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' © 34th Conaregss, _ SENATE. Mrs. Doc.
1st Session. Noss Fd:
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
BOARD OF REGENTS
OF THE
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
SILOWING THE
OPERATIONS, EXPENDITURES, AND CONDITION OF THE INSTI-
TUTION, UP TO JANUARY 1, 1856.
AND TILE
PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD UP TO MARCH 22, 1856.
WASHINGTON:
A. O. P. NICHOLSON, PRINTER.
1856.
LETTER
OF THE
SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
COMMUNICATING
The Tenth Annual Report of the Board of Regents of that Institution.
Jury 25, 1856.—Read, and ordered to be printed. Motion to print 10,000 additiona
copies referred to the Committee on Printing.
Juny 29, 1856.—Ordered, That ten thousand additional copies of the Tenth Annual Report
of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution be printed ; twenty-five hundred of the
same to be for the use of the Institution.
. SMITHSONIAN InstITUTION,
Washington, July 24, 1856.
Sir: In behalf of the Board of Regents, I have the honor to
submit to the Senate of the United States the Tenth Annual Report
of the operations, expenditures, and condition of the Smithsonian
Institution.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
JOSEPH HENRY,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
Hon. J. D. Brieur,
President of the United States Senate.
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT
BOARD OF REGENTS
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
THE OPERATIONS, EXPENDITURES, AND CONDITION OF THE INSTITUTION UP TO JANUARY
1, 1856, AND THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD UP TO MARCH 22, 1856.
To the Senate and House of Representatives:
In obedience to the act of Congress of August 10, 1846, establishing
the Smithsonian Institution, the undersigned, in behalf of the Regents,
submit to Congress, as a Report of the operations, expenditures, and
condition of the Institution, the following documents:
1. The Annual Report of the Secretary, giving an account of the
operations of the Institution during the year 1855.
2. Report of the Executive Committee, giving a general statement
of the proceeds and disposition of the Smithsonian fund, and also an
account of the expenditures for the year 1855.
3. Report of the Building Committee for 1855.
4. Proceedings of the Board of Regents up to March 22, 1856.
5. Appendix.
Respectfully submitted :
R. B. TANEY, Chancellor.
JOSEPH HENRY, Secretary.
OFFICERS OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
FRANKLIN PIERCE, £x officio Presiding Officer of the Institution.
ROGER B. TANEY, Chancellor of the Institution.
JOSEPH HENRY, Secretary of the Institution.
SPENCER F. BAIRD, Assistant Secretary.
W. W. SEATON, Treasurer.
WILLIAM J. RHEES, Chief Clerk.
ALEXANDER D. BACHE, }
JAMES A. PEARCE, + Executive Committee,
JOSEPH G. TOTTEN,
RICHARD RUSH, )
WILLIAM H. ENGLISH,
JOHN T. TOWERS. |
JOSEPH HENRY, |
Caniidine Committee.
REGENTS OF THE INSTITUTION.
, Vice President of the United States.
,OGER B. TANEY, Chief Justice of the United States.
JOHN T. TOWERS, Mayor of the City of Washington.
JAMES A. PEARCE, member of the Senate of the United States.
JAMES M. MASON, member of the Senate of the United States.
STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS, member of the Senate of the United States,
WILLIAM H. ENGLISH, member of the House of Representatives.
HIRAM WARNER, member of the House of Representatives.
BENJAMIN STANTON, member of the House of Representatives,
GIDEON HAWLEY, citizen of New York.
RICHARD RUSH, citizen of Penrsylvania,
GEORGE E. BADGER, citizen of North Carolina.
CORNELIUS C. FELTON, citizen of Massachusetts.
ALEXANDER D. BACHE, citizen of Washington.
JOSEPH G. TOTTEN, citizen of Washington.
MEMBERS EX OFFICIO OF THE INSTITUTION.
FRANKLIN PIERCE, President of the United States.
, Vice President of the United States.
WILLIAM L. MARCY, Secretary of State.
JAMES GUTHRIE, Secretary of the Treasury.
JEFFERSON DAVIS, Secretary of War.
JAMES C. DOBBIN, Secretary of the Navy.
JAMES CAMPBELL, Postmaster General.
CALEB CUSHING, Attorney General.
ROGER B. TANEY, Chief Justice of the United States.
CHARLES MASON, Commissioner of Patents.
JOHN T. TOWERS, Mayor of the City of Washington.
HONORARY MEMBERS.
ROBERT HARE, of Pennsylvania,
WASHINGTON IRVING, of New York.
BENJAMIN SILLIMAN, of Connecticut.
PARKER CLEAVELAND, of Maine.
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION
OF THE
SMITHSONIAN INSTI TION
[PRESENTED IN THE FIRST ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY, AND
ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF REGENTS, DECEMBER 13, 1847.)
INTRODUCTION.
General considerations which should serve as a guide in adopting a
Plan of Organization.
1. Wit or Smrruson. The property is bequeathed to the United
States of America, “to found at Washington, under the name of the
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, an establishment for the increase and diffu-
sion of knowledge among men.”’
2. The bequest is for the benefit of mankind. The Government of
the United States is merely a trustee to carry out the design of the
testator,
3. The Institution is not a national establishment, as is frequently
supposed, but the establishment of an individual, and is to bear and
perpetuate his name.
4. The objects of the Institution are, 1st, to increase, and 2d, to
diffuse knowledge among men.
5. These two objects should not be confounded with one another.
The first is to enlarge the existing stock of knowledge by the addi-
tion of new truths; and the second, to disseminate knowledge, thus
increased, among men.
6. Phe will makes no restriction in favor of any particular kind of
knowledge ; hence all branches are entitled to a share of attention.
7. Knowledge can be increased by different methods of facilitating
and promoting the discovery of new truths; and can be most exten-
sively diffused among men by means of the press.
8. To effect the greatest amount of good, the organization should
be such as to enable the Institution to produce results, in the way of
increasing and diffusing knowledge, which cannot be produced either
at all or so efficiently by the existing institutions in our country.
9. The organization should also be such as can be adopted provi-
sionally, can be easily reduced to practice, receive modifications, or be
abandoned, in whole or in part, without a sacrifice of the funds.
10. In order to compensate, in some measure, for the loss of time
occasioned by the delay of eight years in establishing the Institution,
8 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF inal
. ‘ji ‘
a considerable portion of the interest which Pos accrued should be
added to the principal.
11. In proportion to the wide field of knowledge to ‘be cultivated,
the funds are small. Economy should therefore be consulted in the
construction of the building ; and not only the first cost of the edifice
should be considered, but also the continual expense of keeping it in
repair, and of the support of the establishment necessarily connected
with it. There should also be but few individuals permanently sup-
ported by the Institution.
12. The plan and dimensions of the building should be determined
by the plan of the organization, and not the converse.
13. It should be recollected that mankind in general are to be bene-
fited by the bequest, and that, therefore, all unnecessary expenditure
on local objects would be a perversion of the trust.
14. Besides the foregoing considerations, deduced immediately from
the will of Smithson, regard must be had to certain requirements of
the act of Congress establishing the Institution. These are, a library,
a museum, and a gallery of art, with a building on a liberal scale to
contain them,
SECTION I.
Plan of Organization of the Institution in accordance with the forego-
ing deductions from the Will of Smithson.
To Increase Knowneper. It is proposed—
1. To stimulate men of talent to make original researches, by ofter-
ing suitable rewards for memoirs containing new truths ; and,
2. To appropriate annually a portion of the income for particular
researches, under the direction of suitable persons.
To Dirruse Kynowneper. It is proposed— e
1. To publish a series of periodical reports on the progress of the
different branches of knowledge ; and,
2. To publish occasionally separate treatises on subjects of general
interest.
DETAILS OF THE PLAN TO INCREASE KNOWLEDGE.
1. By stimulating researches.
1. Facilities afforded for the production of original memoirs on all
branches of knowledge.
2. The memoirs thus obtained to be published in a series of volumes,
in a quarto form, and entitled Smithsonian Contributions to Know-
ledge.
3. No memoir, on subjects of physical science, to be accepted for
publication, which does not furnish a positive addition to human
knowledge, resting on original research ; and all unverified specula-
tions to be rejected.
4, Each memoir presented to the Institution to be submitted for
examination to a commission of persons of reputation for learning in
+ THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 9
’ ‘ =
the branch to which the memoir pertains ; and to be accepted for pub-
lication only in case the report of this commission is favorable.
5. The commission to be chosen by the officers of the Institution,
and the name of the author, as far as practicable, concealed, unless a
favorable decision be made.
6. The volumes of the memoirs to be exchanged for the Transactions
of literary and scientific societies, and copies to be given to all the
colleges, and principal libraries, in this country. One part of the
remaining copies may be offered for sale; and the other carefully pre-
served, to form complete sets of the work, to supply the demand from
new institutions.
7. An abstract, or popular account, of the contents of these memoirs
to be given to the public through the annual report of the Regents to
Congress.
>
Il. By appropriating a part of the income, annually, to special objects
of research, under the direction of suitable persons.
1. The objects, and the amount appropriated, to be recommended
by counsellors of the Institution.
2. Appropriations in different years to different objects ; so that in
course of time each branch of knowledge may receive a share.
3. The results obtained from these appropriations to be published,
with the memoirs before mentioned, in the volumes of the Smithso-
nian Contributions to Knowledge.
4, Examples of objects for which appropriations may be made.
(1.) System of extended meteorological observations for solving the
problem of American storms.
(2.) Explorations in descriptive natural history, and geological,
magnetical, and topographical surveys, to collect materials for the
formation of a Physical Atlas of the United States.
(3.) Solution of experimental problems, such as a new determina-
tion of the weight of the earth, of the velocity of electricity, and of
light ; chemical analyses of soils and plants ; collection and publica-
tion of scientific facts, accumulated in the offices of government.
(4.) Institution of statistical inquiries with reference to physical,
moral, and political subjects.
(5.) Historical researches, and accurate surveys of places celebrated
in American history.
(6.) Ethnological researches, particularly with reference to the
different races of men in North America; also, explorations and ac-
curate surveys of the mounds and other remains of the ancient people
of our country.
DETAILS OF THE PLAN FOR DIFFUSING KNOWLEDGE
I. By the publication of a series of reports, giving an account of the
new cliscoveries in science, and of the changes made from year to year
in all branches of knowledge not strictly professional.
1. These reports will diffuse a kind of knowledge generally in-
teresting, but which, at present, is inaccessible to the public. Some
*
10 . TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF ’
of the reports may be published annually, others at longer intervals,
as the income of the Institution or the changes in the branches of
knowledge may indicate.
2. The reports are to be prepared by collaborators, eminent in the
different branches of knowledge.
8. Each collaborator to be furnished with the journals and publica-
tions, domestic and foreign, necessary to the compilation of his report ;
to be paid a certain sum for his labors, and to be named on the title-
page of the report.
4. The reports to be published in separate parts, so that persons
interested in a particular branch can procure the parts relating to it
without purchasing the whole.
5. These reports may be presented to Congress, for partial distribu-
tion, the remaining copies to be given to literary and scientific insti-
tutions, and sold to individuals for a moderate price.
The following are some of the subjects which may be embraced in
the reports :*
I. PHYSICAL CLASS.
1. Physics, including astronomy, natural philosophy, chemistry,
and meteorology.
. Natural History, including botany, zoology, geology, &c.
. Agriculture.
. Application of science to arts.
He CO bo
II. MORAL AND POLITICAL CLASS.
5, Ethnology, including particular history, comparative philology,
antiquities, We.
6. Statistics and political economy.
7. Mental and moral philosophy.
8. A survey of the political events of the world; penal reform, &c.
I. LITERATURE AND THE FINE ARTS.
9. Modern hterature.
10. The fine arts, and their application to the useful arts.
11. Bibliography.
12. Obituary notices of distinguished individuals.
Il. By the publication of separate treatises on subjects of general in-
terest.
1, These treatises may occasionally consist of valuable memoirs
translated from foreign languages, or of articles prepared under the
direction of the Institution, or procured by offering premiums for the
best exposition of a given subject.
2. The treatises should, in all cases, be submitted to a commission
of competent judges, previous to their publication.
* This part of the plan has been but partially carried out.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. pig
3. As examples of these treatises, expositions may be obtained of
the present state of the several branches of knowledge mentioned in
the table of reports.
SECTION II.
Plan of organization, in accordance with the terms of the resolutions of
the Board of Regents providing for the two modes of increasing and
diffusing knowledge.
1. The act of Congress establishing the Institution contemplated
the formation of a library and a museum; and the Board of Regents,
including these objects in the plan of organization, resolved to divide
the income* into two equal parts.
2. One part to be appropriated to increase and diffuse knowledge
by means of publications and researches, agreeably to the scheme
before given. The other part to be appropriated to the formation of
a library and a collection of objects of nature and of art.
3. These two plans are not incompatible with one another.
4, To carry out the plan before described, a library will be required,
consisting, 1st, of a complete collection of the transactions and pro-
ceedings of all the learned societies in the world; 2d, of the more
important current periodical publications, and other works necessary
in preparing the periodical reports.
5. The Institution should make special collections, particularly of
objects to illustrate and verify its own publications.
6. Also, a collection of instruments of research in all branches of
experimental science.
7. With reference to the collection of books, other than those men-
tioned above, catalogues of all the different libraries in the United
States should be procured, in order that the valuable books first pur-
chased may be such as are not to be found in the United States.
8. Also, catalogues of memoirs, and of books and other materials,
should be collected for rendering the Institution a centre of biblio-
graphical knowledge, whence the student may be directed to any work
which he may require.
9. It is believed that the collections in natural history will increase
by donation as rapidly as the income of the Institution can make pro-
vision for their reception, and, therefore, it will seldom be necessary
to purchase articles of this kind.
10. Attempts should be made to procure for the gallery of art, casts
of the most celebrated articles of ancient and modern sculpture.
11. The arts may be encouraged by providing a room, free of ex-
pense, for the exhibition of the objects of the Art-Union and other
similar societies.
*% The amount of the Smithsonian bequest received into the Treasury of
PHeUnibeds Suaneghinee sia See ee aa = 2 eee eee el ier eet = = $515, 169 00
Interest on the same to July 1, 1846, (devoted to the erection of the
pul dings)... aaa eee eee siale <= aati ea otal aim == 242, 129: 00:
Annual income from the bequest-....-.--------------------------- 30,910 14
1s TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
12. A small appropriation should annually be made for models of
antiquities, such as those of the remains of ancient temples, Wc.
13. For the present, or until the building is fully completed, be-
sides the Secretary, no permanent assistant will be required, except
one, to act as librarian.
14. The Secretary, by the law of Congress, is alone responsible to
the Regents. He shall take charge of the building and property,
keep a record of proceedings, discharge the duties of librarian and
keeper of the museum, and may, with the consent of the Regents,
employ assistants.
15. The Secretary and his assistants, during the session of Congress,
will be required to illustrate new discoveries in science, and to exhibit
new objects of art ; distinguished individuals should also be invited to
give lectures on subjects of general interest.
This programme, which was at first adopted provisionally, has be-
come the settled policy of the Institution. The only material change
is that expressed by the following resolutions, adopted January 15,
1855, viz:
Resolved, That the 7th resolution passed by the Board of Regents,
on the 26th of January, 1847, requiring an equal division of the in-
come between the active operations and the museum and library,
when the buildings are completed, be and it is hereby repealed.
Resolved, That hereafter the annual appropriations shall be appor-
tioned specifically among the different objects and operations of the
Institution, in such manner as may, in the judgment of the Regents,
be necessary and proper for each, according to its intrinsic import-
ance, and a compliance in good faith with the law.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 13
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution:
GentiemEN: The year which has elapsed since the last meeting of
the Board of Regents has been marked by events which must have a
decided influence on the future history of the establishment intrusted
to your care. The plan of organization adopted, and the operations
in accordance with it, have been widely discussed by the public. The
subject has also been brought before Congress, and referred to a spe-
cial committee of the House of Representatives, and to the Judiciary
Committee of the Senate. The committee of the House had not time,
before the close of the session, to visit the Institution, or to make such
an examination of the management and the condition of its affairs as
the importance of the matter referred to them would seem to demand.
The members were divided in opinion as to the question of further le-
gislation, and no action was taken upon the reports which they pre-
sented. The Judiciary Committee of the Senate reported on the sub-
ject, and unanimously approved the acts of the Regents in construing
the law of Congress, in interpreting the will of Smithson, and in what
they had done in the way of increasing and diffusing knowledge among
men.
The discussions that have taken place in the journals of the day in
regard to the policy pursued by the Institution, together with the print-
ing of an extranumber of copies of the Regents’ report to Congress,
have given the public generally an opportunity of becoming more
fully acquainted than heretofore with the character of the trust, and
the manner in which it has been administered. From the number of
letters received during the past year, containing spontaneous expres-
sions of opinion relative to the course pursued by the Regents, there
can be no doubt that the policy which has been adopted is the one
most in accordance with the views of a majority of the intelligent part
of the community.
It is not contended that the plan of organization is in all respects
what could be wished; on the contrary, it is believed that more of the
income is devoted to local objects—in the support of a large building
and the expensive establishment necessarily connected with it—than
is entirely consistent with a proper interpretation of the will of Smith-
son. But in establishing an institution in which various opinions
were to be regarded, the question was not, what, in the abstract, was
the best system, but the best which, under the circumstances, could
be adopted. It can hardly be expected that any plan, however faith-
fully and cautiously pursued, will: give general, not to say universal,
satisfaction. In the faithful discharge of their duty, the directors of
the Institution are liable, frequently, to make decisions which conflict
14 TENTIL ANNUAL REPORT OF
with what is deemed, the interests of individuals ; and when proposi-
tions intended only for personaltadvantage are rejected, a hostile feel-
ing is sometimes engendered, which finds vent in misrepresentation
and public attacks. After due caution has been observed in order to
give no just cause of complaint, such attacks should be disregarded.
The Regents will, doubtless, adhere to the line of policy which has
been adopted; turn neither to the right nor to the left to catch an ap-
parently favorable breath of popular applause, and continte to lead,
rather than follow, public opinion. The directors of the establishment,
whose duty it is to make all that concerns it their special study, ought
1o be better acquainted with the intentions of the donor, and the re-
sults produced by the expenditure of the income of his bequest, than
those who have no responsibility of this kind to induce that attention
to its affairs which could alone qualify them to become proper advisers
as to its operations. ‘
Since the last meeting of the Board, the Institution has not only
sustained, but has extended the reputation it had previously acquired.
The number of applications on favorable terms, even in a commercial
point of view, which have been made from abroad for the Smithsonian
publications, has very much increased, and the number of volumes
received in exchange has exceeded that of any previous year. The
inquiries which have been made of the Institution for information in
regard to different branches of knowledge, the references to it for the
decision of important questions, and the applications for assistance in
the prosecution of original research, indicate an extending field of
usefulness open to its cultivation. Indeed, so many objects of the
highest importance are presented, that much difficulty would be ex-
perienced in the selection of those which should first receive attention,
if the directors were not governed by fixed rules. The tendency to
expand the operations of the Institution beyond its means, enforces
the necessity of constant vigilance and forethought. While much
may be done in the way of advancing knowledge by the judicious ap-
plication of a small fund, it is surprising that so much is expected to
be accomplished by an income so limited as that of this bequest, and
that propositions should frequently be made to the Regents by intel-
ligent persons to embark in enterprises which would involve the ex-
penditure of the whole annual interest on a single object.
The building is at length completed, and its several apartments
are now in a condition to be applied to the uses of the Institution.
As various changes have been made in the original plan, the follow-
ing brief description may not be inappropriate at this time. It con-
sists of a main edifice, two wings, two connecting ranges, four large
projecting towers, and several smaller ones. Its extreme length from
east to west is 447 feet, with a breadth varying from 49 feet to 160
feet. The interior of the east wing is separated into two stories, the
upper of which is divided into a suite of rooms for the accommo-
dation of the family of the Secretary; the lower story principally com-
prises a large single room, at present appropriated to the storage of
publications and the reception and distribution of books connected
with the system of exchange. The upper story of the eastern con-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 15
necting range is divided into a number of small apartments devoted
to the operations in natural history, and the lower story is fitted up
as a working laboratory.
The interior of the main edifice is 200 feet long by 50 feet wide, and
consists of two stories and a basement. The upper story is divided
into a lecture-room capable of holding 2,000 persons ; and into two
additional rooms, one on either side, each fifty feet square, one of which
is appropriated to a museum of apparatus, and the other, at present,
toagallery of art. Both are occasionally used as minor lecture-rooms
and for the meetings of scientific, educational, or industrial associa-
tions. The lower story of the main building consists of one large hall
to be appropriated to a museum or a library. It is at present unoc-
cupied, but will be brought into use as soon as the means are pro-
vided for furnishing it with proper cases for containing the objects to
which it may be appropriated. The basement of this portion of the
building is used as a lumber-room and as a receptacle for fuel.
The west wing is at present occupied as a library, and is suffi-
ciently large to accommodate all the books which will probably be
received during the next ten years. The west connecting range is
appropriated to a reading-room.
The principal towers are divided into stories, and thus furnish a
large number of rooms of different sizes, which will all come into use
in the varied operations of the Institution. A large room in the
main south tower is appropriated to the meetings of the ‘‘ Establish-
ment’’ and the Board of Regents; three rooms in one range, in the
main front towers, are used as offices ; and two rooms below, in the same
towers, are occupied by one of the assistants and the janitor; other
rooms in the towers are used for drawing, engraving, and work-shops.
There are in the whole building, of all sizes, ninety different apart-
ments ; of these eight are of a large size, and are intended for public
exhibitions.
The delay in finishing the building has not only been attended with
advantage in husbanding the funds, but also in allowing a more com-
plete adaptation of the interior to the purposes of the Institution. It
is surely better, in the construction of such an edifice, to imitate the
example of the mollusc, who, in fashioning his shell, adapts it to the
form and dimensions of his body, rather than that of another animal
who forces himself into a house intended for a different occupant. The
first point to be settled, in commencing a building, is the uses to
which it is to be applied. This, however, could not be definitely
ascertained at the beginning of the Institution, and hence the next
wisest step to that of not commencing to build immediately, was to
defer the completion of the structure until the plan of operations and
the wants of the establishment were more precisely known.
From the report of the Building Committee it will appear that about
$6,000 remain to be paid upon the contracts, which amount will be met
by the interest of the extra fund during the present year. The whole
amount expended on the building, grounds, and objects connected
with them, is $318,727 01. This exceeds considerably the original
estimate, and the limit which was at first adopted by the Regents.
The excess has been principally occasioned by substituting fire-proof
16 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
materials for the interior of the main building, instead of wood and
plaster, which were originally intended.
It is to be regretted that a design so costly was adopted ; but the
law of Congress” evidently contemplated an expensive building, and
placed no restriction on the Regents as to cost or plan, except the
preservation of the principal of the bequest.
From the report of the Executive Committee it will be seen that not
only has this restriction been observed, but that, notwithstanding the
enhanced expenditure, a considerable augmentation of the fund has
been effected. The original $515,000, received from the bequest of
Smithson, is still in the treasury of the United States; and, after
the present debt on the building shall have been discharged, there
will remain in the hands of the treasurer the sum of $125, 000 of unex-
pended interest. Though this is a favorable condition of the finances,
yet caution in the expenditure is still imperatively required. We
should not forget that the ordinary expenses of the Institution have
constantly increased ; and that, whilst the nominal income has re-
mained the same, the value of money has depreciated ; and, conse-
quently, the capability of the original bequest to produce resuits has
been abridged in a corresponding proportion. Besides, when the
building is entirely occupied, the expense of warming, attendance,
&c., must necessarily be much increased beyond its present amount.
The repairs, on account of the peculiar style of architecture adopted,
will ever be a heavy item of expenditure. The several pinnacles, -
buttresses, and intersecting roofs, all afford points of peculiar ex-
posure to the injuries of the weather. In this connexion, I cannot
help again expressing the hope that Congress will, in due time, relieve
the Institution from the support of this building, and that it will ulti-
mately appropriate at least the greater part of it toa national museum,
for the general accommodation of all the specimens of natural history
and of art, which are now accumulating in the Capital of the nation.
The two wings and connecting ranges would be quite sufficient for all
the operations of the Institution, and a large portion of the funds now
absorbed in the incidental expenses, which have been mentioned, could
be devoted to the more lezitimate objects of the bequest.
It was mentioned in a previous report that the rooms of the upper
story of the building were particularly arranged with a view to accom-
modate the meetings of literary, scientific, and other associations which
might assemble at the seat of government, During the past year the
followins societies have availed themselves of’ the facilities thus af-
forded, viz: the United States Agricultural Society ,the Metropolitan
Mechanics’ Institute, a musical convention of the choirs in this city and
of persons invited from a distance, also a second convention under the
auspices of the Philharmonic Society of Washington. Besides these,
the Teachers’ Association of the District of Columbia has held its
monthly meetings in this building, and the rooms have been frequently
occupied during a single evening for public purposes. The use of the
lecture-room is granted when the object for which it is asked is of
general public utility, and not of a party or sectarian character, or
intended to promote merely individual interests.
Since the death of the lamented Downing, but little has been done
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. Ei
to complete the general plan of the improvement of the mall proposed
by him and adopted by Congress. An annual appropriation, however,
has been made for keeping in order the lot on which the Smithsonian
building is situated, and it is hoped that in due time the whole reser-
vation from the Capitol to the Washington Monument will, in ae-
‘cordance with the original design, be converted into an extended park.
The Smithsonian building having been completed, the refuse mate-
rial will be removed from the south part of the lot, and the whole
grounds around the institution will then be in a condition for per-
manent improvement. Itis to be regretted that Congress has not
made an appropriation to carry out the suggestion of Dr. Torrey, and
other botanists, of establishing here an arboretum to exhibit the vari-
ous ornamental trees of indigenous growth in this country. The
climate of Washington is favorable to the growth of a very large num-
ber of the products of our forests, and an exhibition of this kind would
serve to render better known our botanical wealth, and to improve the
public taste. The preservation and cultivation of our native trees are
objects of national importance.
A subscription has been collected by the members of the American
Pomological Society for the erection of a monument to the memory of
Downing, and the President has given his consent to the placing of
this in the same lot with the Smithsonian Institution. The monument
will be erected in the course of the present year, and will serve to per-
petuate the memory of a public benefactor, as well as to embellish the
grounds.
Publications.—Since the last meeting of the Board of Regents, the
seventh volume of the Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge has
been printed and distributed. Owing to certain changes, which were
considered desirable in some of the memoirs mentioned in the last
report, they were not ready in time for the press, and this volume was
consequently made up without them. It therefore does not contain as
many pages of printed matter as some of the previous volumes. It has,
however, a larger number of plates, and consequently the expense of
its publication has been equal to that of any of the preceding ones.
1. Among the papers mentioned in the last report was one by Mr. 8. F.
Haven, librarian of the American Antiquarian Society, on the progress
of information and opinion respecting the archeology of the United
States. The printing of this paper, which is now nearly completed, was
delayed for the purpofe of enabling the author to extend it in some par-
ticulars, and to include in it a more definite account of some branches
of ethnological investigation than was at first contemplated. It will
be recollected that the object of this paper is, first, to present the specu-
lative opinions relative to American antiquities, which preceded any
systematic or scientific investigation, and to exhibit the various hypo-
theses advanced, as to their origin, based upon hints from sacred or
profane history ; secondly, to follow the steps of inquiry, nearly in
_ the order of time, and to present a summary of facts supposed to be
developed, and views entertained at different stages of research and
discovery. When the author, in pursuing his subject, arrived at the
consideration of the period when philological and physiological dedue-
2
18 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
tions, from reliableinformation, werespecially and scientifically brought
to bear upon this investigation, it seemed necessary to enlarge the
original plan, and to exhibit, concisely, the considerations involved
in the discussions, the course they had taken in this country, and the
conclusions to which different writers in these departments of research
had been led.
The last chapter will present a sketch of what appears to be the
aetual information now possessed respecting the vestiges of anti-
quity in the United States, and will include the consideration of the
tollowing points :
Ist. To what places of the American continent the known courses
of the winds and currents might casually bring the vessels of ancient
navigators.
2d. The evidences of foreign communication said to be observable
at those places.
3d. The other known means of access from foreign countries.
Ath. The topography of ancient remains in the United States.
5th. The external character of those remains.
6th. Their local peculiarities.
ith. The character of the articles taken from them, and supposed to
be of contemporaneous origin.
8th. The inscriptions, medals, and other remains, supposed to indi-
cate the use of letters or hieroglyphic symbols.
wards published as a part of the eighth volume of Contributions.
2. The paper mentioned in the last report, on the Tangencies of
Circles and Spheres, by Major Alvord, of the United States army,
has been printed, and is now ready for distribution. It is due to
Professors Church and Gibbes, to whom the memoir was submitted,
to mention that they have given it critical examination, have sug-
gested several improvements, which have been adopted by the author,
and that, in his absence on official duty in Oregon, they have read
the proof-sheets, and corrected the plates and text—a service of no
small moment in the publication of an abstruse mathematical paper,
in which extreme precision, if not absolute accuracy of typography, is
required,
3. The paper on the Aurora Borealis, by Professor Olmsted, de-
scribed in the last report, has also received some emendations, and
is now in the press. The valuable collection of notices of the appear-
ances of the aurora in northern latitudes, by Peter Force, Esq., of
Washington, is also in the hands of the printer, and will form an ap-
pendix to the eighth volume.
4. A corrected edition of the first part of the tables for facilita-
ting the investigation of physical problems, mentioned in the fiith and
sixth reports, has been prepared, and, with the second part of the
same series, is now in the press. No publications of the Institution
have been called for more frequently than these tables. They have
been introduced into Great Britain, and have supplied a want which
has long been felt by the practical cultivator of physical science in
that country, as well as our own.
Hach set of tables has a distinct title and paging, and may be
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 19
separately stitched and distributed in a pamphlet form, or bound to-
gether in a single octavo volume. The following is the list of the
tables: 1. Comparison of the thermometrical scales; 2. A series of
hygrometrical tables ; 3. Tables for comparing the quantities of rain ;
4. A series of tables for comparison of different barometrical scales,
&c.; 5. Tables for computing differences of level by means of the
barometer ; 6. To ascertain elevations by the boiling-point of water ;
7. For the conversion of different measures of length.
A full descriptive list will be found in the appendix.
In connexion with the publication of these tables, I may allude to
the fact which is constantly to be regretted, that, while the charac-
ters which indicate the numerals of ordinary and scientific computa-
tion are the same in all civilized countries, there should exist, in this
age of the world, such a diversity in the standards and divisions of
measures. The present appears to be an auspicious moment for at-
tempting to introduce a uniform system of weights and measures.
This would probably present no great difficulty in the case between
Great Britain and this country, and since England and France are
now allied in a common causesthey might both be induced to agree
upon a general standard; and if this were adopted by all who speak
the English and French languages, it would soon become common to
every part of the civilized world.
5. Another paper submitted for publication is on a special branch
of natural history, called Oology. The design of this memoir is to
give, by means of colored engravings, correct representations of the
eggs of the birds of North America, so far as they have been ascer-
tained, and to accompany each figure with an account of whatever
may be known as to the mode of breeding, the construction of the
nests, and the geographical distribution of the species during the
hatching season. It is believed that this paper will supply a defi-
ciency in the natural history of North America. There is no separate
treatise on its oology, nor do any of the works on American ornitho-
logy furnish reliable descriptions under this head, except in regard
toa few of the more common birds. All our ornithologists, says the
author, Audubon not excepted, have given their attention almost ex-
clusively to the birds, and have omitted to notice the peculiarities: of
their propagation. The reason for this may readily be found in the
difficulty attending the investigation, which is to be appreciated only
by those who have sought to make a study of this branch of natural
history. The author has devoted to this subject all the leisure he
could spare during twenty years, and each year he has been able to
add new contributions to the stock of knowledge, as well as illustra-
tions and specimens to the common store, until he is now enabled to
describe and figure at least four-fifths of the oology of this continent.
In the commencement of the operations of the Institution, the Re-
gents might have hesitated to sanction the publication of a paper on
a subject which at first sight would appear to be so far removed from
‘practical application. But it is believed that since that period, more
just views of the importance of such subjects have become prevalent,
and that the Smithsonian publications themselves have done good
service in diffusing more liberal sentiments. Indeed, it isan import-
20 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ant part of the duty of this Institution to encourage special lines of
research into every department of the varied domain of nature.
Though it might be a perversion of intellect for a large number of
persons in the same country to occupy themselves in any one pursuit
of this kind, when so much on every hand is required to be done, yet
it is highly meritorious in any individual to devote himself systemati-
cally, industriously, and continuously, for years, to the elucidation of
a single subject. He may be said to resemble in this respect the ex-
plorer of an inhospitable region, who enables the world to see through
his eyes the objects of wonder and interest which would otherwise be
forever withdrawn from human knowledge. Let censure or ridicule
fall elsewhere—on those whose lives are passed without labor and
without object ; but let praise and honor be bestowed on him who
seeks with unwearied patience to develop the order, harmony, and
beauty of even the smallest part of God’s creation. <A life devoted
exclusively to the study of a single insect, is not spent in vain. No
animal, however insignificant, is isolated ; it forms a part of the great
system of nature, and is governed by the same general laws which
control the most prominent beings of: the organic world.
It is proposed to publish this paper in a number of parts, com-
mencing with the oology of the birds of prey. This is one of the
most difficult of all the families to study with precision, on account
of the retiring habits of the birds and their almost inaccessible breed-
ing places.
6. The next paper is on the relative intensity of the light and heat
of the sun upon the different latitudes of the earth, by L. W. Meech,
Esq. This memoir, which was submitted for examination to Prof.
Peirce and Dr. B. A. Gould, of Cambridge, presents a thorough mathe-
matical investigation of the only known astronomical element of me-
teorology. It gives a distinct, precise, and condensed view of this
element; enables the practical meteorologist to compare it with the
results of observation ; to eliminate its influence and obtain the resid-
ual phenomena in a separated form and better fitted for independent
investigation. It determines, from the apparent course of the sun,
the relative number of heating and illuminating rays which fall upon
any part of the earth’s surface. The rays of light and heat from the
sun to the earth, though imperceptible in their passage through free
space, and manifest only by their results at the surface of the globe,
evidently constitute a primary element of meteorology. The subse-
quent effects ,which are measured by the thermometer and designated
by the word temperature, are secondary, and modified by a variety of
proximate causes. In accordance with this distinction, the numerous
researches in this field may be divided into two classes, namely, those
which relate to the number of rays falling on a given place, and those
which relate to the temperature produced by these rays under different
conditions of surface, &c. To the former of these belongs the investi-
gation of Halley, given in the Philosophical Transactions for 1693.
By regarding heat as of the nature of force and resolving it intoa
horizontal and a vertical component, he drew the proper distinction
between the number of rays and their heating effect or ‘‘impulse,’’
which is expressed in the well known law, that the sun’s intensity at
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. yi
any time is proportional to the sine of the sun’s altitude above the
horizon. The subject was also investigated by Euler in 1739, in the
Petersburg Commentaries, with some improvements upon the method
of Halley, but owing to the introduction of false hypotheses, it was
not brought to a successful conclusion. More recently, Fourrier and
Poisson have discussed the problems of terrestrial heat at great length,
but in so general a way as to leave very much yet to be accomplished.
The present memoir, avoiding hypotheses, proceeds entirely in ac-
cordance with the principle that the intensity of the heat and light
radiated from the sun to the earth, is inversely proportional to the
square of the distance. By strict adherence to this primary law, the
principles of the astronomical branch of meteorology are deduced in a
connected series with geometrical precision, while at the same time an
account is taken of all the modifying circumstances of which the effects
are definitely known, such as the geographic latitude, the changes of
the sun’s distance from the earth, the changes of the sun’s altitude or
oblique direction of the solar beams, and changes in the length of the
day.
Among the more interesting results thus obtained are the simple
expressions for annual intensity and the duration of sunlight and twi-
light, and a more full delineation of the peculiar increase of summer
heat around the poles, first pointed out by Halley.
The secular changes of solar heat, or those which relate to long
periods, are also analyzed in accordance with the received variations
of astronomical elements, particularly those given by Leverrier, and
extended to very remote epochs. This part of the investigation is in-
timately connected with the geology of the globe, and the question as
to the amelioration of the climate of America since the period of our
colonial history. The paper is accompanied by a number of graphical
illustrations, which, besides exhibiting the general results, show the
reflex agency of the earth and its atmosphere in modifying the direct
heat of the sun, and the progressive change of climates, and the seasons
of the year. A small appropriation was made to defray the expense
of the arithmetical calculations necessary for deducing the numerical
values from the general formula.
7. In a previous report it was stated that a small appropriation had
been made to defray, in part, the expense of some special geological
explorations, under the direction of Professor HE. Hitchcock, of Amherst
College, Massachusetts. The papers containing the result of these in-
vestigations have been presented to the Institution for publication.
They all relate to surface geology, or the geological changes which
have taken place on the earth’s surface since the tertiary period.
The first paper treats of the unconsolidated terraces, beaches, sub-
marine ridges, &c., that have been formed along the shores of the
ocean, lakes, and rivers, since the last submergence of the continents.
The author has given the heights of a great number of these above
the ocean, and the rivers, and a map of those in the valley of the Con-
necticut river. The evidence they afford of a submergence of this
continent, at least, and a part of Europe, since the Drift Period, is re-
garded by the author as one of his most important conclusions. But
22 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
many others, however, are presented, which will tend to modify the
opinions entertained of the superficial deposits of the globe.
The second paper is on the erosions of the surface of the earth, espe-
cially by rivers. Of this phenomenon numerous examples are given,
and those described minutely which have fallen under the author’s
own observations. Some of the conclusions to which he has been con-
ducted are new and unexpected. He has, for instance, pointed out
several traces of old river-beds, now filled up and abandoned, through
which, in his opinion, the streams ran on a former continent.
The third paper would appear to establish the fact that glaciers
once existed on some of the mountains of New England, in distinction
from the drift agency, which he regards as chiefly the result of ice-
bergs and oceanic currents. This paper is accompanied by a map of
the ancient glaciers, so that geologists can examine for themselves the
data from which the deductions are made.
These investigations, says the author, ‘‘are an humble attempt to
penetrate a little distance into the obscurities of surface geology, and
to exhibit changes which seem to have been more overlooked than
any other which the earth has undergone.’’ Whatever may be the
opinions entertained of the conclusions of the author, the facts which
he has collected must ever be of importance.
On account of the colored maps which are necessary to illustrate
these papers, their expense will be considerable, and we shall be
obliged, perhaps, to defer their publication until towards the close of
the present year.
It is a subject of congratulation, and an evidence of the advance of
liberal sentiments in regard to the importance of abstract science in
our country, that within the last few years liberal donations have
been made for the publication of original research and the promotion
of original scientific investigations. In addition to the $100,000 be-
queathed some years since to the Harvard Observatory, the same
establishment has lately received from the Hon. Josiah Quincy the
sum of $10,000 for the publication of its observations ; and $10,000
has been bequeathed by Mr. Appleton for the publication of original
memoirs in the Transactions of the American Academy. A wealthy
lady of the city of Albany has just reared a monument to the memory
of her husband in the establishment of an observatory, which, we
trust, will be more enduring than any merely material edifice, how-
ever permanent and unalterable may be its character. Discoveries
will undoubtedly be made by means of this enlightened bequest, which
will indeltbly associate the name of Dudley with the future history of
astronomy. The love of posthumous fame is a natural and laudable de-
sire of the human mind. It is an instinct, as it were, of immortality,
which should be fostered and kept alive by example as one of the most
powerful inducements to enlightened benevolence. And what prouder
monument could be coveted than that which shall associate a name
with the discovery of truths, the knowledge of which will be as widely
extended and as continuous in duration as civilization itself? Smith-
son was ambitious of this distinction, and has presented with rare
sagacity, to all who have the means of gratifying the same feeling, a
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 23
noble example. In connexion with the same subject, I may refer to
the unexampled provision which has been made by subscription for
the publication of the extended researches of Prof. Agassiz. The re-
sults of these researches are to be comprised in ten quarto volumes, at
a subscription price of $120. The whole number of subscribers already
obtained is three thousand, which will produce $360,000. The Smith-
sonian Institution had commenced the preparation of the plates of
several memoirs by Prof. Agassiz, which will now be probably merged
in this work; and thus, though it may lose the honor of a more per-
manent association of the name of this celebrated individual with its
own publications, yet a portion of its funds will thus be set free for the
publication of the researches of less fortunate though meritorious
laborers in the field of knowledge. The Institution, however, will
have largely contributed from its museum to the materials which will
be required in the preparation of this great work, and will thus be
still connected with this important enterprise.
Exchanges.—The system of scientific and literary exchanges, of
which an account has been given in the previous reports, has become
more widely known and its advantages more generally appreciated.
Nearly all the exchanges of scientific works between societies and in-
dividuals in this country and abroad are now made through the agency
of this Institution. The whole number of articles transmitted during
the year 1855 was 8,585. The whole number of separate articles re-
ceived during the same time cannot be stated, as those addressed to
particular persons or societies were enclosed in packages which were
not opened. The articles received in behalf of the Institution amounted
to 4,500, and the number of packages for other parties to 1,445. The
latter, in almost every case, contained several different works, which
would swell the amount received to a larger number than that which
was sent. The associations in this country which have availed them-
selves of the facilities of the system comprise nearly all those that
publish Transactions. Among these are many of the agricultural
societies of the western States. Ina number of cases societies and
individuals have transmitted sets of their works, to be distributed by
the Institution to such associations as it might deem best entitled to
receive them.
The Smithsonian agency is not confined to the transmission of
works from the United States, but is extended to those from Canada,
South and Central America, and in its foreign relations embraces
every part of the civilized world. It is a ground of just congratula-
tion to the Regents, that the Institution, by means of this part of the
plan of its organization, is able to do so much towards the advance of
knowledge. It brings into friendly correspondence cultivators of origi-
nal research the most widely separated, and emphatically realizes the
idea of Smithson himself, that ‘‘the man of science is of no country 3”
that ‘‘the world is his country, and all mankind his countrymen.”’
The system of exchange has found favor with foreign governments,
and the Smithsonian packages are now admitted into all ports to which
they are sent, without detention, and free of duty. It has also been
highly favored by the liberal aid of companies and individuals in this
24° TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
country. The mail steamship line to California via Panama conveys
our packages free of cost to the Pacific coast. The line of steamers to
Bremen has also adopted a like liberal policy, and Messrs. Oelrichs &
Lurman, of Baltimore, have indicated their estimation of the value
of the system, by making no charge whatsoever for transmitting a large
number of boxes to Germany, and in receiving and forwarding others
from that country.
In connexion with the subject of exchanges, it becomes my duty to
announce the loss which the Institution has experienced in the death
of one of its warmest friends and most active agents, Dr. J. G. Fliigel,
of Leipsic. After a residence of several years in this country he re-
turned to Germany as United States consul, in which capacity he was
unremitting in his efforts to render service to American travellers,
and, by his untiring industry and zeal in behalf of the Institution,
contributed more than any other person to make it known through
northern and central Europe. His son, Dr. Felix Fliigel, has been
appointed his successor, and has evinced a desire and given evidence
of his ability to carry on the system with promptness and efficiency.
The agent of the Institution in London is Mr. Henry Stevens, and in
Paris Mr. Hector Bossange; and to these gentlemen the thanks of the
Regents are due for important services in the distribution and recep-
tion of packages without charge.
Correspondence.—The correspondence during the last year has been
more extended than that of any preceding period. The character of
the Institution becoming more widely known, the number of applica-
tions for information relative to particular branches of knowledge
has been increased. The correspondence relates to the exchanges,
the collections, the publications, the communication with authors and
the members of commissions to which memoirs are submitted, an-
swers to questions on different branches of knowledge, and reports as
to the character of specimens of natural history, geology, &c.; also
explanations of the character of the Institution, the distribution of its
publications, its system of meteorology, &c.
The whole number of pages copied into letter-books in 1855 is
about 4,000.
Besides this correspondence, there have been sent off from the In-
stitution upwards of 5,000 acknowledgments of books and other ar-
tacles presented to the Institution, and 6,000 circulars, asking for
information on special points, such as natural history, meteorology,
physical geography, statistics of libraries and colleges, &c.
Many of the communications are interesting additions to knowl-
edge, though they are scarcely of a character to warrant their publi-
cation in the quarto series of Contributions; and it is now proposed to
append some of these to the annual report to Congress to illustrate
the operations of the Institution, as well as to furnish information on
subjects of interest to the public. The meteorological system gives
rise to an extensive correspondence, and maintains a lively sympathy
between the institution and a large number of intelligent individuals.
During the past year, as usual, many crude speculations on scientific
and philosophical subjects have been presented for critical examina-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 25
tion. To these, in all cases, respectful answers have been returned,
and an endeavor has been made to impress upon the correspondent
the distinction between fanciful speculation and definite scientific in-
vestigation.
Education.—The plan of organization of this Institution does not
include the application of any of its funds directly to educational pur-
poses. Were the whole Smithsonian income applied to this one ob-
ject, but little, comparatively, of importance could be effected, and
that little would scarcely be in accordance with the liberal intention
of the testator, as expressed in his will, by the terms ‘the increase
and diffusion of knowledge among men.” Still, the theory and art
of education are susceptible of improvement, as well as of a wider ap-
plication ; and therefore, though the Institution may not attempt to do
anything itself in the way of elementary instruction, it may, in ac-
cordance with its plan of operations, assist in diffusing a knowledge
of the progress of the art of teaching, and of its application in this
country.
At a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of
Education, held in this building in December, 1854, a committee was
appointed, which called the attention of the Institution to the im-
portance of aiding in preparing and publishing a history of education
in the several States of the Union, the object of which would be to
diffuse a knowledge of what has been done in each section of the
country among all the others, and thus to render the separate expe-
rience of each beneficial to the whole. After consultation with the
members of the Executive Committee, then in the city, it was con-
cluded to devote $350 to this purpose. This sum has accordingly
been advanced to the Hon. Henry Barnard, of Connecticut, who has col-
lected and digested for publication the materials for a work of this kind.
The subject will be presented under the following heads:
1. Survey of the principal agencies which determine the education
of a people, with an explanation of the American nomenclature of
schools and education.
2. A brief sketch of the action of the general government in the
matter of education and schools.
3. Legislation of each State respecting education.
4. Condition of education in each State, according to the census re-
turns of 1850, and other reliable sources of information,
5. Educational funds—State, municipal, and institutional.
6. Educational buildings : remarks on their general condition, with |
illustrations of a few of the best specimens of each class of buildings.
7. Catalogue of documents relating to the educational systems and
institutions in each State.
8. Statistical tables, with a summary of educational agencies, such
as the press, ecclesiastical organizations, facilities of locomotion, &e.
9. A brief statement of the educational systems and statistics of
the most civilized countries of Europe.
The work will either be published as a separate report on educa-
_ tion, or may be given in a series of numbers of the American Journal
of Education, extra copies of which will be obtained for distribution.
26 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
It is believed that this exposition of the subject will supply a deficiency
which has long been felt, and be of much service in advancing the
important cause to which it relates.
Laboratory, fesearches, &c.—The law of Congress incorporating
the Institution directed the establishment of a laboratory, and, in ac-
cordance with this, a commodious room has been fitted up with the
necessary appliances for original research in chemistry and other
branches of physical science.
During the past year a number of different researches have been
prosecuted in this apartment.
1. A continuation of those mentioned in the last report on building
material.
2. A series relating to combustion, and some points on meteorology.
3. On the flow of air through tubes of various forms.
4. On the application of some newly-discovered substances to prac-
tical purposes in the arts.
5. The examination of the minerals of the Pacific railroad and
other expeditions.
Though the funds of the Institution will not permit the constant
employment of a practical chemist, yet we are enabled to do some-
thing towards the support of a person in this line, by referring to him
the articles of a commercial value which are submitted to us for ex-
amination, and for which the cost of analysis is paid by the parties
seeking the information.
A young chemist, who has spent three years in Germany, has now
the use of the laborator y, and is prepared to make any analyses which
may be required. For the facilities afforded him he is to keep the
apparatus in working order, and to make such examinations of speci-
mens as may not require much labor.
In one of the previous reports it was mentioned that a set of instru-
ments for observing the several elements of terrestrial magnetism
was lent to Dr. Kane for use in his Arctic explorations, and I am hap-
py to inform the Board that these instruments have done good service
to the cause of science in the hands of this intrepid explorer and his
assistants, and that they have been returned in good condition. They
will be again intrusted to other persons for observations in different
parts of this country.
Meteorology.—Since the last meeting of the Board an arrangement
has been made with the Commissioner of Patents by which the sys-
tem of meteorology, established under the direction of the Institution,
will be extended, and the results published more fully than the Smith-
gonian income would allow. A new set of blank forms has been pre-
pared by myself, and widely distributed under the frank of the Patent
Office. An appropriation has also been made for the purchase of a
large number of rain-gages, to be distributed to different parts of
the country, for the purpose of ascertaining more definitely with com-
pared instruments the actual amount of rain which falls in the dif-
ferent sections of our extended domain. A series of experiments has
been made with regard to the different form of gages, and a very
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. NE
simple one, which can be manufactured at a small expense, is easy of
application, and can be readily transported by mail, has been adopted,
Mr. Jas. Green, of New York, has continued to manufxcture standard
instruments in accordance with the plan adopted by the Institution,
and to supply these at a reasonable price to observers. He preserves
an accurate record of the comparison of each instrument with the
standards furnished by the Institution, and in this way good service
is rendered to the advance of this branch of knowledge by the general
introduction of compared and reliable instruments. The system is
constantly improving in precision and extent.
Complaints have been made that but few of the materials collected
by the Institution have yet been published. The answer to these,
however, is readily given in the fact that so much of the income up to
this time has been devoted to the building, and so many demands
have been made upon the Smithsonian funds for objects requiring
more immediate attention, that little could be done in this line; and,
besides, it is more important that the information should be reliable
than that it should be quickly published. The value of observations
of this character increases in a higher ratio than the time of their con-
tinuance, and, therefore, what may be lost by delay is more than
compensated by the precision and value of the results.
The reduction of the meteorological observations has been continued
by Professor Coffin during the past year. He has completed the dis-
cussion of all the records for 1854, and those of 1855. as far as they
have been sent in. The publication of these, however, in full, will
require a volume which, we trust, will be printed at the expense of
the general government, as an appendix to the Agricultural Report
of the Patent Office.
Important additions have lately been made to the physical geogra-
phy of the western portions of the United States, under the direction
of the Secretary of War, by the officers of the army engaged in the
explorations of the several routes for a railway to the Pacific. A
series of exact barometrical sections has been measured from the Mis-
sissippi river to the Pacific ocean. The elevations of the extended
plain which constitutes the base of the Rocky mountains and of the
parallel ridges have been determined. Temporary meteorological ob-
servations have also been made, which afford approximate data rela-
tive to the climate of this region.
The elevation and direction of the ridges which separate the valley
of the Mississippi from the Pacific ocean have a controlling influence
on the climate, particularly on the precipitation of the North Ameri-
can continent, and especially distinguish the storms of the Pacific
coast from those of the Atlantic States.
The additions which have been made to the physical geography
and natural history of this continent under the enlightened policy of
the Secretary of War, will be received with great interest by the scien-
tific men of Kurope.
In studying the general physical phenomena of the globe, the west-
ern half of the North American continent, in comparison with other
_ parts of the world, has been almost a blank. It is hoped, however,
that the spirit of inquiry that has been awakened and the enterprises
28 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
which have been commenced, and thus far successfully prosecuted in
this line, will be continued, and will supply the desiderata which
have so long been felt. If all the military posts, or a selection which
might be made from them, were furnished with a full set of instru-
ments, and the observations made with due precision, results of the
highest interest to the man of science, as well as to the agriculturist,
the physician, and the engineer, would be obtained.
As first approximations the simple observations at the different
posts, which have thus far been published, are acceptable additions
to knowledge; but whatever is worth doing at the expense and under
the direction of the general government, ought to be as well done as
the state of science and the circumstances under which the work is
commenced will admit.
A series of continued observations at a few.posts, made at each
hour during the twenty-four, similar to those carried on under the
direction of Major Mordecai, at the Frankford arsenal, would afford
materials of much interest for determining in the interior of the con-
tinent the hours of the day most suitable to be chosen for ascertaining
the mean temperature, and for reducing the observations made at
different times to the same hours, as well as for settling the time of
occurrence of the daily periodical changes of the atmosphere.
Besides the collection of meteorological materials relative to the
climate of the United States, the Institution has in its possession an
extensive series of observations made in Texas and Mexico by Dr. Ber-
landier. These were placed at our disposal by Lieutenant Couch, who
was favorably mentioned in the last report as having made a valuable
exploration a few years ago in the southern part of our continent,
Portions of this material will be published, from time to time, as an
appendix to the Smithsonian Contributions.
Iam happy to state to the Board, that the Provincial Parliament
has made provision for the establishment of a system of meteorology
in Canada, which will co-operate with that of the Institution. The
act is in the following words:
“¢ Whereas it is desirable at all seminaries and places of education
to direct attention to natural phenomena, and to encourage habits of
observation; and whereas a better knowledge of the climate and
meteorology of Canada will be serviceable to agricultural and other
pursuits, and be of value to scientific inquirers; be it therefore en-
acted, that it shall be part of the duty of every county grammar
school to make the requisite observations for keeping, and to keep a
meteorological journal, embracing such observations, and kept accord-
ing to such form as shall from time to time be directed by the council
of public instruction ; and all such journals, or abstracts of them,
shall be presented annually by the chief superintendent of schools to
the governor-general, with his annual report.
‘¢ very county grammar school shall be provided, at the expense
of the county, with the following instruments: One barometer, one
thermometer for the temperature of the air, one thermometer for
evaporation, one rain-gage, one wind-vane.’’
Lhe Library.—More has been accomplished in the library during
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 29
‘the past year than at any previous period. The books have been pro-
visionally arranged according to subjects, and considerable progress
made in a full catalogue as well as in an index to the chronological
record of the daily reception of books as they are placed in the library.
The first part of a descriptive catalogue of the works received in ex-
change has been published, and the second part is now in process of
preparation. An extra number of the first part has been struck off,
and copies have been sent in the form of an appendix to the seventh
volume of Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, to all foreign
societies, in order that our deficiencies may be made known, and an
appeal made to our contributors for their supply. This list will also
be of much importance to persons engaged in original research in this
country, since it will give them, in a separate catalogue, a knowledge
of the rich collection of Transactions and proceedings of literary and
scientific societies in the possession of the Institution.
The value of a library is not to be estimated by the number of
volumes it contains, but by the character of the books of which it is
composed. It is the present intention of the Regents to render the
Smithsonian library the most extensive and perfect collection of T'rans-
actions and scientific works in this country, and this it will be enabled
to accomplish by mearts of its exchanges, which will furnish it with
all the current journals and publications of societies, while the sep-
arate series may be completed in due time as opportunity and means
may offer. The Institution has already more complete sets of Trans-
actions of learned societies than are to be found in the oldest libraries
in the United States, and on this point we speak on the authority of
one of the first bibliographers of the day. This plan is in strict ac-
cordance with the general policy of the Institution, viz: to spend its
funds on objects which cannot as well be accomplished by other means,
and has commended itself to those who are well able to appreciate
its merits, and who are acquainted with the multiplicity of demands
made upon the limited income of the Smithsonian fund. Ina letter,
after a visit to Washington, the bibliographer before alluded to remarks:
‘¢My previous opinions as to the judiciousness of the system pur-
sued by the Smithsonian Institution, in every respect, were more than
confirmed. I hope you will not change in the least. Your exchanges
will give you the most important of all the modern scientific publica-
tions, and the older ones can be added as you find them necessary.
The library, I think, should be confined strictly to works of science.”’
A thorough examination has been made of the series of journals and
transactions of societies; deficiencies have been noted, and, as far as
possible, supplied, and the whole placed in the hands of the binder.
This was considered indispensable for their preservation and use.
The separate parts are in danger of being lost or injured so long as
they remain in a pamphlet form. During the past year $2,043 have
been expended in the binding of 3,668 volumes. The entire west wing
of the building has been appropriated to the library, and three sides
of this large apartment are now occupied with books. By placing
two rows of cases, each of a double story, along the middle of the
room, the amount of shelf room may be tripled, and space may thus be
obtained sufficient for the wants of the library for a number of years.
30 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
It has before been observed that the Smithsonian library is intended
to be a special one, as complete as possible in Transactions and all
works of science. There is now in the city of Washington the large
miscellaneous library of Congress and a city library of ten thousand
volumes. Besides these, are the libraries of Georgetown College and
of the several executive departments, and the invaluable collection of
works pertaining to America, belonging to Peter Force, esq. The
latter, with commendable liberality on the part of its enlightened
owner, is open to the use of all who are engaged in research with
reference to the speciality to which it pertains; and we trust that
means will be provided by the general government to secure this col-
lection in case of its ever being exposed to the danger of dispersion.
Washington is, therefore, better supplied with miscellaneous books
than any other city of the same size in the Union, and it can
scarcely be considered necessary, or even just, to expend any portion
of the income of the small fund intended for the good of mankind
generally, in duplicating collections already to be tound in the same
city. Indeed it would be well if in every city of this country arrange-
ments could be made by which each library should aim to be as com-
plete as possible in certain branches ; and we are pleased to learn that
this policy has been adopted in the formation of the Astor library,
the superintendent of which, in purchasing the rare books which it
contains, having given a preference to such as were not to be found in
any other collection in the city of New York.
‘L'o assist in rendering available the several libraries of the country,
it has from the first been an object of the Institution to collect a com-
plete set of their catalogues, and it is believed it now possesses a more
extensive collection of this kind than is to be found elsewhere. Any
person desiring to ascertain where a book may be obtained, can in
most cases acquire the knowledge desired by addressing the Secretary
of the Smithsonian Institution. At the last session of Congress an
act was passed authorizing the transmission free of postage of articles
entered for copyright. The effect of this:law has been to diminish
considerably the expense to which the Institution had been subjected
in receiving books of this kind. Still there is a class of books on
which postage is charged, namely, all those we receive in exchange
through the mail for our own publications, including the laws and
legislative documents of the several States. On the whole, the law
relative to the deposite of works intended for copyright has thus far
been of no real benefit; for the expense of clerk-hire, certificates, and
shelf-room, would far exceed the value of all the books received in
this way. While-school books, works intended for children, and the
lighter and more worthless publications of the day, are forwarded to
us, the larger and more valuable productions of the American press
are often withheld. The principal office of these books has been to
swell the number of volumes contained in the library, and in some
respects to satisfy those who desire a large number of books rather
than a choice collection. The process of cataloguing the library of
Congress, in accordance with the plan proposed by this Institution,
has been carried on under the direction of Professor Jillson, of Co-
lumbian College. The number of titles prepared is 15,885, with
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 81
7,949 cross-references—the whole number of volumes catalogued being
32,986. This number, according to Professor Jillson’s report, em-
braces all the volumes which were in the library at the time the cata-
logue was commenced, with the exception of the law department, the
bound volumes of tracts, and some incomplete works. It also in-
cludes the additions made in the general library to chapters Ist, 2d,
3d, and 4th, previous to April, 1855, the additions to the different
chapters previous to the time they were catalogued, and at least one-
half of the additions made during the past year. The whole amount
expended on the preparation of the 15,885 titles is $4,971 07, and
that of stereotyping about 4,000 titles, $2,974 91. This is exclusive
of the expense incurred by the Institution in making the experiments
on the stereotyping process, and the cost of the press, type, general
apparatus, fixtures, &c.
The appropriation made by Congress has been exhausted, excepting
$54 02.
Musewm.—The specimens of natural history which have been re-
ceived during the past year have been very numerous and of great
value, the number of distinct contributors amounting to 130. As in
former years, the most valuable additions have been received from the
officers engaged in the various scientific expeditions of the govern-
ment. An illustration of the extent of our receipts during the year is
exhibited in the fact, that the specimens of mammals alone amount
to 2,500.
The following is a general summary of the present state of the col-
lections: The number of jars containing specimens of mammals in
alcohol is 350: of birds, 39; of reptiles, 3,344; of fishes, 4,000; of
invertebrates, 1,158; of miscellaneous, 28; making a total of 9,171
jars. Most of these contain a number of specimens; and there are
about 30 barrels and cans filled with other specimens, which have not
yet been assorted. There are also 1,200 prepared mammals, 4,425
birds, and 2,050 skulls and skeletons generally.
It is no part of the plan of the Institution to form a museum merely
to attract the attention and gratify the curiosity of the casual visitor
to the Smithsonian building, but it is the design to form complete col-
lections in certain branches, which may serve to facilitate the study
and increase the knowledge of natural history and geology.
Though the statement may excite surprise, yet I may assert, on the
authority of Professor Baird, corroborated by the opinion of others well
qualified to judge, that no collection of animals in the United States,
nor, indeed, in the world, can even now pretend to rival the richness
of the museum of the Smithsonian Institution in specimens which tend
to illustrate the natural history of the continent of North America.
Not only have representatives of animals of every part of the country
been obtained, to illustrate the entire American fauna, but also speci-
mens of the same animal, from different parts, have been procured, in
order to determine the geographical distribution of a species.
Of the vertebrate animals, there is scarcely a known species not al-
‘ready in the collection, while of those which have not yet been criti-
32 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
cally studied, there are probably a large number which have never
been scientifically described.
These specimens have not, up to this time, been exhibited to the
public, for want of suitable cases, in the large room, to properly dis-
play them; but they are accessible to those who are pursuing original
investigations, during nearly the whole year. They have almost con-
stantly been used for this purpose, by a succession of individuals en-
gaged in the preparation of reports for the government, or the study
of particular branches of natural history.
It is a part of the plan to give encouragement and assistance to
original investigations, and persons who visit Washington for the
purpose of studying the collection are furnished with all the facilities
which the Institution can afford, and these, in the specimens, instru-
ments, and the ample library of reference, are already such with re-
gard to certain branches as cannot elsewhere be obtained.
The use of the specimens is not confined to persons who visit
Washington, but, in accordance with the general policy of the In-
stitution, they are sent to individuals who are engaged in the study
of particular classes of animals, and with this view a large number
of duplicates are in almost every case obtained. A considerable por-
tion of the materials of the great work now in preparation by Agassiz
will be derived from this Institution, and it is considered an import-
ant part of the duty of the directors to induce persons to undertake
the study of special branches of natural history, and to afford them
the means of its successful prosecution. For example, one of the
researches of Dr. Leidy has been thus undertaken; and Dr. Jeffries
Wyman, of Cambridge, is now engaged in the study of the peculiar
character of the batrachian animals, and of the anatomical structure
of the undeveloped organ of sight of the blind fish of the mammoth
cave, and he has been supplied, for this purpose, with a large number
of specimens of each of these animals by the Institution. In most
cases of this kind the results of these investigations are published in
the Smithsonian Contributions ; though this is not strictly required,
it being considered sufficient that full credit be given for all that has
been contributed at the expense of the Institution.
The labor necessarily expended in unpacking, assorting, and label-
ling the specimens has been very great; and when to this is added
the constant care required for the preservation of so many objects of
a perishable character, the cost of the maintenance of an extended
museum must be evident.
A large number of the specimens now in the museum have been
procured by the several expeditions under the general government ;
and as in but few cases an appropriation has been made for their
preservation, the expense of this has fallen on the Institution.
For a detailed account of the present condition of the collections,
and the operations in the museum during the past year, I must refer
to Professor Baird’s report, herewith transmitted. Besides the re-
searches mentioned, a number of explorations in natural history
have been undertaken. The most important of these is that of Cali-
fornia, by Mr. E. Samuels, under the patronage of this Institution and
the Boston Society of Natural History. He expects to remain ‘on the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, Sa
Pacific coast about a year, and will doubtless secure numerous speci-
mens in all departments of natural history, and will devote himself
to completing such collections as are imperfectly represented by the
results of the various Pacific railway surveys. Mr. Samuels is also
charged, on the part of the Commissioner of Patents, with collecting
specimens of seeds of the trees, shrubs, and grains of the country. A
division of the expense, and the liberality of the Panama line, have
enabled this exploration to be instituted at a small cost to each of
the parties interested.
A small appropriation has also been made to assist in forming a
complete collection of specimens to illustrate the zoology of Ilinois,
under the direction of Mr. R. Kennicott.
Another exploration was made in the northern part of the State of
New York, during the past season, by Professor Baird.
The collections which have resulted from these expeditions, to-
gether with those from the Mexican boundary commission, and the
several railway surveys, will furnish important additions to the
natural history of the North American continent.
Lectures.—The intcrest in the lectures still continues, and the
large lecture-room during the past winter has frequently been filled
to overflowing by an attentive and intelligent audience. The plan
has been adopted to give courses of lectures on special subjects, inter-
spersed occasionally with single lectures, principally of a literary
character. Courses of lectures on a single subject, it is believed,
serve to convey more valuable and permanent instruction than a
number of separate lectures on different subjects. To impress a gene-
ral truth upon the mind, requires frequent repetition and a variety.
of illustrations, and hence but little impression can be made with re-
ference to any subject involving scientific principles by a single dis-
course ; and the lecturer who appears but once, too often attempts to
interest his audience by the enunciation of vague generalizations or
by mere rhetorical display.
This is, however, not always the case, since, for example, a single
lecture may be given on the history of a discovery, or a brief analysis
of the life of a distinguished individual.
Asa general rule, therefore, we consider a number of single lectures
by different persons, as of less value than a series on one subject by the
same person. The latter requires a more profound acquaintance with
the subject, and a greater amount of previous preparation. There
are many persons who might be able to give a single popular lecture
on some branch of knowledge, who would fail in attempting an ex-
tended course.
The following is a list of the lectures which were delivered during
the winters of 1854-55 and 1855-’56.*
1854—’55.—One lecture by Prof. Etras Loomis, of New York: ‘‘ The
zone of small planets between Mars and Jupiter.’’
- = Tn order to complete the list for the winter of 1855-56, the lectures delivered after
the date of the report have been added.
3
~
34 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
One lecture by Dr. D. Brarnarp, of Chicago, Illinois, ‘‘ On the
nature and cure of the bite of serpents, and the wounds of poisoned
arrows.”’
Four lectures by Hon. Gro. P. Marsn:
Ist. ‘‘Constantinople and the Bosphorus.’’
2d. Do. do. do.
Ba.) “The Camels”?
Ath. ‘‘ Environs of Constantinople.—Political and military import-
ance of the position of that Capital—The reform system in Tur-
key.’’
One lecture by Dr. Rost. Barry: ‘History of the war between
Russia and Turkey, with notices of those countries.”’
Nine lectures by Prof. Asa Gray, of Cambridge, Massachusetts,
“On Vegetation :’’
1. ‘‘Development from the seed and from buds, root, stem, and
leaves.
2. Aerial, ephiphytic, and parasitic vegetation.
3. Morphology of branches.—Subterranean vegetation.—Adapta-
tion of bulb-bearing plants and the like to regions subject to a sea-
son of drought ; of forests and the like to regions of equable distribu-
tion of rain.—Anatomy and action of leaves. :
4, How plants grow.—Anatomical structure.—Development from
the cell.—Gradation from plants of one cell to the completed type of
vegetation.
5. Wood.—The tree.—Life and duration of plants. —The individual
in its various senses.—The tree a community as well as an indi-
vidual,
6. How plants multiply in numbers.—The flower.
7. Fruit and seed.—Fertilization and the formation of the em-
bryo.—Reproduction in flowerless plants.
8. Movements and directions assumed by plants generally.—The
relations of vegetation to the sun.
9. Relations of vegetation to the sun continued.—The plant con-
sidered as the producer of food and a medium of force.”’
One lecture by Rev. J. 8. Fiercuer, on ‘ Brazil.”’
Two lectures by Hon. Henry Barnarp, of Connecticut: ‘ Recent
educational movements in Great Britain.”’
Two lectures by Rev. H. A. WaASHBURNE:
1. ‘‘Confucius, or the Chinese mind.’’
2. ‘‘The Chinese war.’’
Two lectures by Prof. Josspu Lovertne, of Cambridge, Massachu-
setts: “‘The progress of electricity.”
One lecture by Orrver P. Batpwiy, esq., of Richmond, Va.: ‘‘Na-
tional characteristics.”’
One lecture by Dr. W. F. Caannine, of Boston: ‘‘The American
fire alarm telegraph.”’
Three lectures by Rozert RusseLu, esq., of Scotland, on ‘‘Meteor-
ology.”’
1855—’56.—Three lectures by Prof. H. 8S. Syurz, of Amherst Col-
lege, Massachusetts, on ‘‘Architecture;’’ and one lecture on *¢ Plane-
tary motion and disturbances.”’
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 35
Six lectures by Prof. O. M. Mrrcenett, of Cincinnati, Ohio, on ‘‘ As-
tronomy.”’
One lecture by Jonn C. Deverrux, esq., of New York, on ‘‘The
popular influences of architecture.”
Six lectures by Prof. Gzoraz J. Cuace, of Brown University, Provi-
dence, Rhode Island, on ‘‘ Chemistry applied to the arts.”’
One lecture by Prof. C. C. Frnron, of Cambridge, Massachusetts,
on ‘* Greece.”’
Five lectures by Rev. Joun Lorn, of Connecticut, on the ‘‘ Gran-
deur and fall of the French Bourbon monarchy.”’
From the foregoing statements, I trust it will be evident that the
Institution is realizing the reasonable expectations of its friends ; that
its funds are in a prosperous condition, and that, so long as the
present policy is maintained, it will continue to promote the advance
of knowledge, and thus carry out the cherished object of its founder.
Respectfully submitted :
JOSEPH HENRY, Secretary.
JANUARY, 1856.
36 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
APPENDIX TO THE REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
Drcemper 31, 1855.
Str: I beg leave to present herewith a report for the year 1855, of
operations in such departments of the Smithsonian Institution as have
been intrusted by you to my care.
Respectfully submitted:
SPENCER F. BAIRD,
Assistant Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
JosepH Henry, LL. D.,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
I.—PUBLICATIONS,
The seventh volume of Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge
was issued in July last and promptly digtributed.
The octavo publications during the year have been confined to the
ninth annual report, of 464 pages.
The eighth volume of Smithsonian Contributions is in an active state
of forwardness, and will’soon be ready for delivery.
Il.— EXCHANGES.
a—Foreign Exchanges.
Owing to unavoidable delay in printing the seventh volume, the
packages for foreign distribution could not be made up until the mid-
dle of July. By the end of the month, however, they were all sent
off, and by October had safely reached the hands of the agents of
distrinution. As in past years, most of the active scientific and lit-
erary institutions of America embraced the opportunity to transmit
their exchanges.
The returns. during 1855 have been very valuable, considerably ex-
ceeding those of any previous year, excepting so far as relates to maps
and charts. Even here, however, the decrease is more apparent than
real, as several extensive series have been received, bound into vol-
umes instead of being in loose sheets, as is frequently the case. The
particulars of these returns are presented in the following tables:
A.
Table exhibiting the number of pieces received in exchange during 1855.
Wolumes=—f0ll0...0.600ssieencnammeeenees oieseaie' 87
be GUAT CO wwe cues. acabeeeemeresemestess 233
SC OCIAVO) Jas ets a%je8 siete Noon Baas oy Aalaa
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, of
Parts of volumes and pamphlets—folio... 41
os 4 quarto. 239
as oe a ie octavo. 1,427
ay,
Ma pe Std CM ETA VINES. ccws scenes v0.0 eseecnnteneaatenaes 26
OTR Biehl ke ae 2,770
~ By comparison with the table of last year, it will be seen that there
has been an increase in the receipts, by 111 volumes and 239 parts of
volumes and pamphlets.
The number of donations for 1855 amounts to 1,779 ; that for 1854
to 806.
The list of receipts for other parties during the year exhibits a
large increase over that of 1854, both in the number of packages and
of addresses. Thus—
In 1855 were received 1,445 packages to 44 addresses.
In 1854 were received 987 packages to 36 addresses.
Difference 458
I|_ oo |
The Institution is indebted for aid in expediting its parcels to Mr.
Zimmerman, consul-general of the Netherlands; to Dr. Henry Wheat-
land, of Salem ; to Lieutenant J. M. Gilliss, U. 8S. Navy; to the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, and to the
Board of Missions of the Presbyterian church.
The following tables exhibit the chief statistics respecting the for-
eign exchanges “for the year. To table B should be added two boxes
of books sent in December to Chile, and one to London, consisting
chiefly of copies of the report on Chile, made by Lieutenant Gilliss.
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
B.
Fable showing the amount of printed matter sent abroad by the Smith-
sonian Institution in July, 1855.
No. of principal packages
to principal addresses.
No. of sub-packages en-
closed to sub-addresses.
Total of distinct packages
to different addresses.
= J
28 i
EGR one
& jasio
Aloo
mai.
S| cles
Se ce lhe Oley @
ma is) 5 &
Ba/Sgl5™
et aires 5S
ts | lo
<q |< jk
Distributed by Dr. Felix Fliigel,
Leipsic.
a
Gila goosuoudc00a leleiejelnlelarate 9 9
INOTWAVociec ost sie sales ssieie's Brean oules
IDEAS Sono geonsagabooe Sielalele 7 | 12
RUSSIA lseaeter cen selene napanee 20} Io
Holland...... Westlaw estaleies els ce |e Lea ra
CRE LUIIAN Ye rivicleleleleiereitie’e's\clelsisivelolese 123 |152
PIWVALZE EI ATO erercieinie ei aielslelalesiaistetele 17 | 19
Belgium....... cencee Sislsieicisjeseisie 9| 6
Motalissesitess seceeeee eee (203 [238 [441
Paris.
Distributed by the Royal Society
and Henry Stevens, London.
Spain....... Soegdo.n000 Cudecads
Portugal...... je iaiaieforetelainareiste coon
Great Britain and Ireland.......
BRIO AN otetelsiolelsisielateleleeleteierels
Distributed in other parts of the
world ....... cece cece cere cees
Granaltotalyeceiscietsleiieleres
60 | 35 |..
a7 ess a6
87 | 58 |145
Blei3
95 |148 |...
100 |151 |251
28 | 10 | 38
.|418 |457 |875
40
825
No. of pieces enclosed in
principal packages.*
28
73
10
1,477
50
2, 302
196
4, 739
No. of pieces enclosed in
sub-packages.*
several works enclosed
Estimated addition, where
in one piece.
10
2, 430
1,416
sc
[=|
o
n
= th
Baie
gg|s
= |
Chee °
° ~
o
ot 2
8 5
° 5
A Zz
4,714 | 18
1,435 6
2,240 5
206 4
8,585 | 33
rey
o
&
Oo
2
—
=!
oO
i=]
£
Blois
3 |
&| 3
S| =
188 | 5,361
20 650
358 |10, 481
* Addressed packages from other institutions count only as one each, although containing sometimes as
many as a dozen pieces.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 39
C.
Table of packages received in 1855 from American institutions for dis-
tribution abroad.
Boston—
American Academy of Arts and Sciences..........seeseeeeeeeee 146
Natural History Society........cscscseecnsesececececeeeeseseesoeces 49
Cambridge—
Observatory Harvard College........cscsseeseeeeeesseeeeeeeeneeees 124
Botamic Garden... .cncsn soctsccieceenes gecsarseceseccecs ces onc vemunanm 16
New Haven—
American Journal Science.........scccscesessecscccccesccscerserens 40
Albany—
New York State, IiDEary..........sas0.>0nsslecedes sedeeveces ones an 5
New York State Agricultural Society..........s.sseeeeeeeeeeese E
New York—
American Geographical and Statistical Society............++ 150
Philadelphia—
American Philosophical Society............:.sseeeeseeeeerenenenes 28
Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences............-.++++++ 91
Philadelphia College of Pharmacy........s.sssesseeeeeeeeererees if
Pennsylvania Institute for Blind ..........ce cee eenee sense eee ee nes 48
Historical Society of Pennsylvania...........:seeseeseseeeenenees 1
Washington
Secretary of War.........csscocscscsnsescecssecccsencarerersseaeueess 6
United States Patent Office.....-2. G2 020i. ste nean cane 200
Bureau of Ordnance and Hydrography.............seeeseeeeeee 78
United States Naval Astronomical Hxpedition............+++ 20
Columbus, Ohio—
Ohio State Board of Agriculture...........secesseeeeneeeeeeeeees 126
Detroit—
Michigan State Agricultural Society........::s.cesseeeseeeeneees AT
New Orleans—
New Orleans Academy of Natural Sciences.............se020+ 200
San Francisco—
California Academy of Natural Sciences............sseseeeeees 46
Geological Survey of California .........c.eeeeeseeeeeeee ee een ees 128
Santiago, Chile—
University of Chile..:.....0siiic. ficasie.s..s stad Seeleneeatasamanen= 147
Observatory of Santiago.............cccececseeeeeneeeeecasenenenees 34
WALIOUS INGUVICUAIS. «02. iccen ce eneeSarilnatece sols dsesadaieclaisaidasdsseanees 980
40 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
iD.
Table of packages received from Europe for distribution to various
Canada—
Various institutions............ Peet ae Raratiretchinns Macca
Boston—
American Academy of Arts and Saedeer
Mature. Eustionpp mete... ca saiteacrsiesbveiee:eedessea. cs aes
Bowditch Library,
Cambridge—
Obserpaioniee sceast cap statsew sce teas oh vn atien eth cs cat oe eRe
Bota Meg nclenns esc ances eosanteotehe eee SAAN: 7. ILO
Bes), 10 bel Oban) 5 ae Re PRR Pe DS a
societies in America.
AStronomical Paurie ls... sis: «chess usc WANE ee ee :
Worcester—
American Antiquarian Society
New Haven—
American Journal
Providence—
Brown University
Albany—
PAtlpamiy LN SETCULE: «2 « «Sian vonudes <eecahckdcn ev abelnes ahsae emcee
New York State Library
SOLELY. oninginnie Ute ettale CRER, Ae eee SEGUE ;
State Agricultural
New York
Lyceum of Natural History
American Ethnological Society
Geographical and Statistical Society
PME TCA MMBC ULES: sha tek coek acaneht arse vee- aera tema ee pe deaeee =
Astor Library.....
West Point—
United States Military Academy
Philadedphia—
American Philosophical Society....... 2
Academy of Natural Sciences
off Sctencortan evs leer eS ee eee
American, OrientalaSecietyacistn tn. ti. Rimereteaden deel shasta :
Ce i a a
Prankdin Unstutmteeeceeen tk aac de ees rok en en Mam ea ade iee
Geological Survey
Washington
President of the United States
United States Patent Office
ited States and
Ol MenNSylVAMIArccsentenee eel. Lr aoe
Mexican Boundary Survey........ccsseer :
United States Coast Survey.............s00c00 Castel sxe cco eae
Nesronal Observatory... 2. sseeraeaeettnciae seelss cons cee Reeeeteee
pile a Anstitute
eo ee
PO Pee eee eee ee eee eewianeeseseeeeeeses
Se eee eer ee reere reser eeeeereeeseseseeesesese
Ci ek ee a ee i i |
CO ee ee eC Oe i ee
eo ey
i ee i i a ead
od
Come eee sere sees eeeseesrerrneserereeresese
eee eee errr eerereerseseeerene seeesesen
SCP eee oeeeaeereeeesercerererceeresnesesescee
Rane ress, Liltary...azcecaneeey eter ouenes ee tuk kwh sexe ccehe ocean
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. Al
Georgetown, D. C.—
Georgetown College........scceseeseensecsecnscenseessecsaneasesens 29
Cincinnati—
ODserVAtOry......osecescecessecsseaecscssecscescesoa(seneeaeemecmense 12
Columbus—
Ohio State Agricultural Society......c:.s seeeeeseeneeeeeeteeernee 2
Detroit—
Michigan State Agricultural Society............:ssseesseereneees 8
Ann Arbor—
ODBELVALOLY voce’ s vanlesinseuaseiisse oleate caceadeeeeodeschesscceecsumens 4
Madison—
Wisconsin State Agricultural Society.......:.-scecreeeee o 26
Colleges in different places........c.csseseeeeeseenersenseneeesareneeees «) eee
Various State Libraries... 0.6520. cesesesieoses sek epee wah RRAS wists 28
Miscellaneous societies and individuals..........s.sceeeseeeeesere ei. pous
BRPVH EAL sateen ce aac s ae aieabloas del gaclactamae ea cles tetera Siapaebinwes aslo 1,445
By reference to the preceding tables, it will be seen that the Insti-
tution acts as agent not only for parties in the United States and
Canada, but also for the University and Observatory of Chile.
The facilities for conducting the Smithsonian exchanges have been
greatly increased by the liberal act of the mail line of steamships to
California via Panama, in carrying, without charge, its parcels for
the west coast of America. The line of steamers to Bremen has also
granted the same privilege. Messrs. Oelrichs & Lurman, of Balti-
more, as in previous years, have marked their sense of the value of
the operations of the Institution by making no charge whatever for
their agency in shipping from Baltimore the large number of boxes
sent to Bremen, and in receiving and forwarding others from that
port.
b—Domestic Exchanges.
The copies of volume VII of Smithsonian Contributions were dis-
tributed promptly through the following agents, whose services, as
heretofore, have been given without charge: Dr. T. M. Brewer, Bos-
ton; George T. Putnam & Co., New York; J. B. Lippincott & Co.,
Philadelphia; John Russell, Charleston ; B. M. Norman, New Or-
leans; Dr. George Engelmann, St. Louis; H. W. Derby, Cincinnati ;
and Jewett, Proctor & Worthington, Cleveland.
Nearly all the parties to whom copies were addressed have already
returned acknowledgments to the Institution.
A few copies of volumes IV and V of the History, Condition, and
Prospects of the Indian Tribes of the United States have been dis-
tributed in behalf of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
IIJ.—MUSEUM.
A—ZIncrease of the Museum.
_ The year 1854 was a marked one in the history of the Institution,
on account of the magnitude and intrinsic value of the collections re-
42 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ceived. ‘These were mainly from the survey for marking the boundary
between the United States and Mexico, and those for a practical rail~
road route to the Pacific, from the North Pacific exploring expedition
under Captain Ringgold, and the expedition to the Parana and its
tributaries under Captain Page, from the exploration-of the coast of
California by Lieutenant Trowbridge, and many others, enumerated
in detail in the last report. It was supposed that, with the return of
most of these expeditions, and the diminution in extent of the field
of labor, the receipts during the year 1855 would show a considerable
falling off. This, however, has by no means been the case; on the
contrary, the additions have not only been greater in number, but of
even greater interest, many new regions having been almost ex-
hausted of their scientific novelties. The following table will illus-
trate the difference in the receipts for the two years:
1854. 1855.
Number of kegs and barrels received..............sssescess 35 26
UBT Ole? laa 60 0am li ea AW MISES SAS BE rh Nt 26 18
DD eefanBES testing. acetic t.cass auceaprasctc: ocean Cee eg
LO teWOXESN ATG, LLU AS eRe Reet TnL Poem 94 148
es ae Mobs Pid, ie MOE 2 Aa CNY TON ral = 7
Dowie packs eesrs Gl”, Mw TEN DANE Ue Oe 32 79
Dons, Heabimetst AR aee Lee ee. eee ae ee Oe — 2
Hotal’of pieces*...wiess tess Fou AGE ea abt erred 362 467
Distinehidowmations ses her a a. eens aeocr ee . 130 §=229
The entire number of different contributors during 1855 has ex-
ceeded 130. There has been a considerable decrease in 1855 in the
number of fishes and reptiles received, owing to the fact that full
collections have been made in previous years at many points, which
thus became exhausted as far as contributions of desirable specimens
were concerned. In the department of mammals, however, the in-
crease over previous years has been very marked, in consequence of a
circular which you issued early in the year calling attention to the
subject. ‘The number of specimens received, preserved either in alco-
hol or as dry skins, amounted nearly to 2,500, an aggregate which
few museums in the world can probably give, as received in the same
space of time.
As in 1854, the most important of the collections received, whether
their extent or novelty be considered, were made and sent home by
the government exploring expeditions, as follows :
Q—THE MEXICAN BOUNDARY LINE.
Survey of the boundary between the United States and Mexico—Major
W. H. Emory, U.S. A., commissioner.—In the last annual report, atten-
tion was called to the fact that the active survey of this line had been
resumed, for the purpose of accurately marking the new portion of the
United States boundary, acquired by the Gadsden treaty. The party
of the Commissioner left Washington in September for the field of
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 43
operation, and got back to San Antonio in one year, after running a
boundary line of seven hundred miles in length. Operations were
commenced simultaneously at both extremities of the line, Major
Emory himself taking charge of the eastern end, and intrusting the
western to Lieutenant Michler.
As in all previous surveys of the Mexican boundary line, much at-
tention was paid to the collection of facts and specimens illustrating
the Natural History of the region traversed, and very full series of the
animals, plants, minerals, and fossils, were secured by the gentlemen
specially charged with this duty—namely, Dr. C. B. Kennerly, sur-
geon of the expedition; Captain EH. K. Smith, commander of the
escort ; and Arthur Schott, esq., assistant to Lieutenant Michler.
The collections thus made, at the close of the field labors of the
Boundary Survey, were in no respect inferior to the preceding ones,
and formed an appropriate winding up of the natural-history opera-
tions of a great work. The pioneer of all those government explora-
tions which have yielded such important fruits to natural science,
traversing hundreds of miles previously unvisited by the naturalist,
and provided with a scientific outfit devised expressly for it, and well-
tested previously to its adoption by other parties, the Mexican Bound-
ary Survey has imperishably identified itself with the history of the
progress of science in the collecting of perhaps a larger number of
new species of North American animals and plants than any one
party ever gathered before, or will again.
b.—REGIONS WEST OF THE MISSOURI.
Exploration of northern route for Pacific railroad, under Governor
I. I. Stevens.—The rich results of explorations along this line have
already been adverted to. The naturalists of the expedition—Dr.
George Suckley and Dr. J. G. Cooper—after the expiration of their
connection with the survey in 1854, continued making collections of
facts and specimens at their own expense, and added much to their
previous acquisitions. The numerous specimens gathered by Dr.
Cooper, principally at Shoalwater bay and near San Francisco, have
not yet been all received: those of Dr. Suckley, made at the Dalles,
Fort Steilacoom, and in various portions of Oregon, have arrived, and
are of the first importance. They are especially rich in mammalia,
and will again be referred to.
Exploration of California by Lieut. Williamson.—Lieut. William-
son, after completing the report of his survey of 1853, was sent out
again in May last to examine the region along the Cascade range of
mountains in California and Oregon, for the purpose of discovering,
if possible, a practicable pass through these rugged mountains. His
labors were completed in November, and in December Dr. J. 8. New-
berry, geologist and naturalist of the party, arrived in Washington
with the rich fruits of his labors, consisting of full collections in all
departments of natural history. In mammals this collection is espe-
cially ample, containing among others many of the larger species, as
bears, deer, &c., not previously secured by any expedition. Facts of
44 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
the greatest interest in the geographical distribution of many forms
were obtained, especially in determining the existence west of the
Cascade mountains of the genera Coregonus, Siredon and Scaphiopus.
Dr. Newberry brought with him a donation to the Institution by
Dr. W. O. Ayres, of San Francisco, of a series of types of his new
species of California fishes, which will prove of very great value for
comparison.
The exploration under Lieut. J. G. Parke in California has also re-
turned to Washington with important collections, mainly in geology
and botany, made by Dr. Antisell. The expedition under Capt. Pope,
for the purpose of testing the question of artesian boring on the plains,
is still in the field, where Capt. Pope is engaged in continuing the nat-
ural history explorations commenced by him in previous expeditions.
No specimens have, however, been received from him during the year.
Survey in Texas of Capt. R. B. Marcy.—The collections made by
Dr. Shumard during this survey, referred to in 1854, were not received
until the present year, having been detained for many months at Fort
Smith by low water in the Arkansas. They consist of many interest-
ing specimens of vertebrates, insects, and plants, with full series of
the minerals and fossils of that region.
Collections made by Dr. Anderson, U. 8. A., at Fort McKavit,
Texas, have served to illustrate still further the zodlogy of this State.
Lieut. W. P. Trowbridge.—The researches of Lieut. W. P. Trow-
bridge, U. 8. Engineers, superintendent on the Pacific coast of the
tidal stations of the U. S. Coast Survey, have been vigorously con-
tinued since last year, as shown by the record of his donations, con-
sisting of many specimens of vertebrates and invertebrates from dif-
ferent points, as Cape Flattery, Astoria, San Francisco, the Faral-
lones, and San Diego. No one explorer, unaided by government
resources, has done so much in the way of collections in American
zoology as Lieut. Trowbridge accomplished by his own personal labor,
assisted by Messrs. James Wayne, T. A. Szabo, and Andrew Cas-
sidy, tidal observers under his command. It is thus that the oper-
ations of the Coast Survey, under the liberal countenance of its chief,
have tended to advance the knowledge of the natural history of our
coast to a degree only second to that of its physical features.
To Richard D. Cutts, esq., in charge of a surveying party of the
Coast Survey, the Institution is indebted for specimens of the mam-
mals, birds, reptiles, and fishes of California, of rare excellence of
preservation and scientific interest.
Another exploration made by a party of the U. S. Coast Survey
was conducted by Mr. Gustavus Wtirdemann, in continuation of former
efforts of similar character on the coasts of Louisiana and Texas. Mr,
Wiirdemann’s operations were carried on at Indian river, Florida, on
the St. John, and on the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina, at
which places he gathered many interesting specimens of animals.
Dr. J. F. Hammond, U.S. A., stationed at Fort Reading, sent in
some valuable collections from that part of California. Specimens
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 45
from Fort Yuma were presented by Major G. 8. Thomas, Lieut. Pat-
terson, and Dr. R. P. Abbott, of the U.S. army.
Geological Survey of Oregon.—A large number of boxes of minerals
and fossils have been received from Dr. J. Evans, now occupied in
the geological survey of Oregon. To these were added a number of
specimens of the mammals and birds of Oregon, as well as some still
more valuable from the region of the Upper Missouri.
Explorations on the Missourit.—The explorations on the Upper Mis-
souri and Yellowstone, by Dr. F. V. Hayden, in connexion with
Col. Vaughan, Indian agent, Mr. Alex. Culbertson, and Mr. Chou-
teau, continue to yield results of much importance. Large collections
of fossils, minerals, mammals, birds, insects, and plants, have been
made and sent in.
Dr. Hayden has revisited the Mauvaises Terres of White river
during the year, and procured some forms of fossil mammals not pre-
viously discovered. The Mauvaises Terres of the Blackfeet country
have also furnished him a rich harvest. His geological collections
now amount to nearly six tons in weight.
The expedition of United States troops under Gen. Harney against
the Sioux has also resulted in the collecting of many specimens of
fossil mammals and reptiles in the Mauvaises Terres. Most of these
will probably go to enrich the cabinet of the U. 8. Military Academy
at West Point.
A valuable series of specimens, made at Fort Benton, on the Upper
Missouri, by Mr. Harvey, was received during the summer, and serves
to complete the collections in the same vicinity by Dr. Geo. Suckley.
Exploration of Mr. Samuels.—The exploration of California by Mr.
KE. Samuels, under the patronage of the Smithsonian Institution, the
Boston Society of Natural History, and the United States mail line
to California—consisting of the United States Mail Steamship Com-
pany, (M. O. Roberts, esq., president,) the Panama Railroad Company,
(David Headly, president,) and the Pacific Steamship Company, (Mr.
Aspinwall, president)—promises to do much towards the development
of the natural history of that State. Mr. Samuels left New York on
the 5th of November, and by last advices had arrived in San Fran-
cisco. He expects to remain in California about a year, and will secure
numerous specimens in all departments of natural history, devoting
particular attention to completing such collections as are imperfectly
represented in the results of the various Pacific railroad surveys. The
above-mentioned companies have, in the most liberal spirit, granted
free passage to Mr. Samuels and his collections, besides adding other
facilities, thereby reducing materially the expenses of the work.
The California Express Company of Messrs. Wells, Fargo, & Co.,
and J. M. Freeman & Co., at the suggestion of officers of the Panama
line, have instructed their agents in California to render Mr. Samuels
all the aid in their power.
In addition to his other collections, Mr. Samuels is specially charged
by the Commissioner of Patents with securing seeds of the trees and
shrubs of California for distribution throughout the country.
46 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
C—REGIONS EAST OF THE MISSOURI.
In anticipation of the great fair in Chicago of the Illinois State
Agricultural Society, it was proposed to secure and exhibit full col-
lections of the natural history of the State on that occasion. Accord-
ingly, Mr. Robert. Kennicott was selected by the society to travel
throughout Illinois, especially along the lines of the [linois Central
railroad, and not only to make collections himself, but to instruct the
employés of the railroad company and others, so as to enable them to
assist in the work. Aided by a small appropriation by the Institu-
tion, in addition to the facilities furnished by the society and the rail-
road company, Mr. Kennicott collected in a few months the finest
cabinet of Illinois specimens ever brought together. This collection
constituted one of the most striking features of the fair, and after the
latter was closed was in great part forwarded to the Smithsonian In-
stitution. Itis much to be regretted that a very large and valuable
collection of living reptiles of Illinois, transmitted by Mr. Kennicott,
should have been destroyed through a misunderstanding with the ex-
press company. To Mr. Kennicott is due the praise of having been
the first to enter on a systematic zodlogical exploration of Illinois.
Thanks to his efforts, we have few States better, or even so well, repre-
sented in our cabinet. In this labor he has been worthily seconded
in the more southern portions of the State by Mr. William J. Shaw,*
from whom many valuable collections, especially of insects, have
already been received.
In company with William A. Henry, esq., I visited the wild regions
of northern New York, for the purpose of ‘studying the habits, and
collecting specimens, of the mammals inhabiting it. With the assist-
ance of Mr. M. Baker, of Saranac Lake, we succeeded very well in ac-
complishing our object.
Mr. Henry and myself also visited the region along the St. Law-
rence, and made some interesting collections, aided by Mr. ELA, Day-
ton, of Madrid, and Mr. W. E. ‘Guest, of Ogdensburg.
d—MEXICO.
Two very important additions to our collection of specimens, illus-
trating the natural history of Mexico, have been received during the
year. The first consists of a series of types of Mexican ser pents. as
described in the Erpetologie generale of Messrs. Duméril and Bitoron,
and presented by the Jardin des Plantes, of Paris, through the agency
of the Messrs. Duméril. The other collection was forwarded by John
Potts, esq., and contains specimens of reptiles, fishes, birds, and mam-
mals, made in central and northern Mexico, and all in the highest
state of preservation. Some of the specimens were received by Mr.
Potts for the Institution from Mr. Schleiden. Additional collections
from Mest are earnestly desired, as serving to determine more accu-
rately the nature and geographical distribution of North American
* Since writing the above, intelligence has been received of the death of Mr. Shaw.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. AT
animals. Thanks to the disinterested zeal of Mr. D. N. Couch, for-
merly of the United States army, we already possess, in the rich col-
lections made by himself and Dr. Berlandier, very full series from many
provinces of northern Mexico, as Tamaulipas, Coahuila, New Leon,
Durango, &c. The fruits of the travels of Dr. Thos. Webb, in the
more western portions of northern Mexico, are also of very great value.
The vicinity of the city of Mexico is probably the point where the
Mexican specimens of most interest are to be derived.
e€—SOUTH AMERICA AND THE REST OF THE WORLD.
Survey of North Pacific and China seas, wnder Commander John
Rodgers, United States Navy.—The collections made by this naval ex-
ploring expedition, while first in charge of Captain Ringgold, and
subsequently of Captain Rodgers during 1854 and part of 1855, have
been received in good order, and consist of many boxes and kegs of
specimens in zodlogy and botany, collected chiefly by Messrs. Wm.
Stimpson and Charles Wright, naturalists to the survey. These
specimens are principally from the South Pacific and the China seas.
Collections of very great interest were made during the past spring
and summer about Japan, Kamschatka, and in and along Behring’s
straits, and subsequently on the coast of California.
The Japan Expedition, under Commodore Perry, was also the means
of adding some fine collections of birds, reptiles, and shells to the
zoological treasures of the country.
From Dr. James Morrow, agriculturist to the expedition, has been
received a number of jars filled with reptiles and fishes of Japan, em-
bracing several novelties in science.
Exploration of the Parana, under Captain T. J. Page, United States
Navy.—This expedition has continued its important agency in devel-
oping the natural history resources of, Paraguay, by sending home
many specimens of the mammals, birds, reptiles, fishes, invertebrates,
plants, minerals, &c. These, with previous collections-trom the same
source, constitute the most important series of South American ani-
mals, especially of the reptiles and fishes, ever brought to the United
States.
Arctic Expedition of Dr. Kane, United States Navy.— During the re-
cent voyage of Dr. Kane along the west coast.of Greenland, many col-
lections in natural history were obtained. It became unfortunately
necessary to abandon them, however, after the vessel became frozen
up, and the party was obliged to return in sledges.
J{—GENERAL STATEMENTS OF ADDITIONS.
I shall now proceed to discuss briefly the more important contribu-
tions to the museum during the past year, referring for particulars to
the general list of donations.
Mammals.—The most marked increase during the year has been in
48 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
the collection of mammals, of which about 2,500 specimens were re-
ceived. Much the larger number of these, as might be expected, con-
sisted of very small species, as of Arvicola, Sorex, Hesperomys, &c.,
although many of the larger kinds, as bears, deer, wolves, foxes, &c.,
are included. Most of the specimens were preserved entire in alcohol,
affording means of anatomical as well as zodlogical research. About
eight hundred skins have been registered as received or prepared in
the Institution. The additions to this department have been from all
parts of the world, including an interesting collection of English
species from Sir W. Jardine.
One of the most important contributions to the geographical collec-
tions of the institution has Leen the series of mammals of eastern
Massachusetts, received from Mr. J. W. P. Jenks, of Middleboro.
Large numbers of all the species from about Middleboro have been
collected and forwarded by Mr. Jenks, amounting to over eight hun-
dred specimens, and with the result of adding several species to those
known to inhabit the State. ;
Another collection of mammals of nearly equal extent, but of less
variety of species, was made in Clarke county, Virginia, at the instance
of Dr. Kennerly, by Mr. John A. Kniesley. This also contains some
rare species. Others were received from Mr. Bridges, in North Caro-
lina. The Rev. M. A. Curtis, of South Carolina, aided by his sons,
has also furnished the largest number of mammals, both specimens
and species, ever received from the southern States.
Birds.—Of birds, several thousand specimens have been received ;
the most important from the west coast of America. The principal
extra limital collections were from the expeditions of Captain Ring-
gold, Captain Rodgers, Commodore Perry, Captain Page, and Lieut.
Gilliss. Mr. Naffer presented some very rare species from the Phil-
ippine Islands; and Dr. Tolmie a series of skulls of birds of the
Pacific ocean, as penguins, cormorants, &c.
:
feptiles.—Many interesting collections of reptiles have been re-
ceived from different portions of North America and Mexico, as well
as from other parts of the world. Among the species collected in
Japan by Commodore Perry is a specimen of the Plestiodon, supposed
by authors to be identical with a North American lizard, (P. quinqui-
lineatus.) The collection of types of Mexican species from the Jardin
des Plantes has already been referred to.
Fishes.—The number of fishes received has been less than in pre-
vious years, although by no means deficient in interest. Those from
west of the Rocky mountains were mostly made by the government
expeditions, as also by Lieutenant Trowbridge, Dr. Ayres, Dr. J. F.
Hammond, Dr. Cooper, Dr. Suckley, Mr. Cutts, &c. The most im-
portant of the eastern were a collection from the Tortugas, made by
Lieutenant H. G. Wright, U. 8. Navy, assisted by Dr. White-
hurst, and one from the Maumee river, by Mr. George Clark. Some
Cuban fishes were presented by Professor F. Poey, of Havana, and
some South American, by Thomas Rainey, esq., United States consul.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. A9
- Invertebrates.—The principal addition to the series of invertebrata,
not yet mentioned, consists of two large cabinets, containing the valu-
able and extensive collection of shells belonging to General Totten,
and deposited by him, Such a collection has been much needed in
the Institution for purposes of comparison.
Piants.—A series of the plants of the Berlandier collection, selected
by Dr. Gray, was presented by Dr. Short, of Louisville. By special
request of Lieutenant Couch, Mr. Ervendberg forwarded a collection
from Comal county, Texas, and Dr. Glisan one from Fort Arbuckle.
Seeds of a valuable Texan grass were received from Major Carleton.
Fossils and Minerals.—The very valuable collection of minerals and
fossils collected inthe Lake Superior mining region by Messrs. Foster
and Whitney, and illustrating their government report, has been re-
ceived during the year, and with the other government geological
collections, previously secured, furnish rich material for representing
the geological features of the country. The Oregon collections of Dr.
Evans have been already mentioned.
A collection of Niagara fossils and minerals was received from
Thomas Barnett, esq.
Miscellaneous. —A fine specimen of the Australian Boomerang, and
other articles, were received from Mr. Carrington Raymond, of New
York. From Mr. N. Triibner were obtained two sets of microscopic
slides: one containing illustrations of organic tissues and organs; the
other constituting a complete system of entomology, in numerous
mounted preparations, showing the family characteristics of the prin-
cipal orders of insects.
Living Animals.—Among the additions to the museum during the
past year have been quite a number of living animals, some of them
species of great rarity, or else but seldom seen out of their native lo-
ealities. .
These have answered an excellent purpose in serving as models for
drawings by the various artists engaged in figuring the collections of
the different surveying and exploring expeditions.
Although the institution is, of itself, unable to provide suitable ac-
ecommodations for the larger mammals and birds, it is fortunate in
the zealous co-operation of Dr. Nichols, the superintendent of the
United States Insane Asylum, who cheerfully receives any specimens
sent him, and gives them every attention which they may require.
As a source of harmless amusement and mental diversion to the pa-
tients of an insane asylum, a collection of living animals has no equal,
and it is much to be desired that the number at the Washington asylum
may be materially increased.
The most conspicuous addition to the menagerie of the institution is
a huge grizzly bear, (Ursus ferox,) received in July. It was caught.
in 1853, while quite young, by Dr. John Evans, United States geol-
ogist, during his overland journey to Oregon, and sent to Mr. Hen-
dricks, in ae by whom, after two years’ time, it was forwarded _
50 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
to Washington. It is now a little more than two and a half years’
old, and has already attained a Jarge size, weighing probably five or
six hundred pounds.
Dr. Evans has also forwarded, through D. D. Owen, two living
wild cats, (Lynx rufus,) from the Upper Missouri. One of these died
last spring ; the other still survives.
A fine specimen of the American antelope (Antelope americana)
was presented by Dr. W. W. Anderson, of South Carolina, and was, as
far as I can learn, the first living one brought to the Atlantic States,
although the species is very common on the Western plains. It was
taken in the vicinity of Fort McKavit, when quite young, by Dr. W.
W. Anderson, U.S. A., together with a Virginia deer, (Cervus vir-
ginianus,) likewise presented to the Institution. The antelope, unfor-
tunately, died from some unknown cause, some months ago; the deer
is still in good health.
Amorg the small quadrupeds, received alive, of most interest is a
specimen of the grey gopher, (Sermophilus franklinii,) presented by
Robert Kennicott, esq. This species is an inhabitant of the prairies
of Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin, and probably of Minnesota, and the
plains north of it. In some of its habits, it is not dissimilar to the
prairie dog, (Cynomys ludovicianus.) Several squirrels, (Tamias
americana, Sciurus migratorius, &c.,) together with some wild mice
and moles, have also been received from various sources. A living
racoon has also been received from California.
A pair of young roseate spoonbills, (Platalea Ajaja,) caught in
Florida, was presented by. Mr. Wurdemann.
Very large numbers of living serpents, embracing many rare species,
have been received from different regions ; much the greater number,
however, from Illinois, where they were collected by Mr. Kennicott.
Others were presented by Mr. Sergeant, Mr. Kirkpatrick, &c. <A
portion of the specimens from Illinois were sent to the Jardin des
Plantes, in charge of Mr. J. H. Richard, but were wantonly thrown
over-board during the passage by a young American, to the profound
regret of this Institution, and of the administrators of the Paris
Museum d’Histoire Naturelle. A second collection, duplicate of the
first, sent by Mr. Kennicott, was destroyed by the Express Company,
to whose charge it was commited in Chicago. A long time will pro-
bably elapse before some of the species can be replaced.
Some interesting species of living frogs, salamanders, &c., have
also been received, together with a considerable number of turtles.
In view of the very great number and extent of donations to the
museum in 1855, as well as of the limited space allotted to me, it is
clearly impossible to mention here in detail any but the most import-
ant, and even some of these must be omitted. As an index, how-
ever, to the alphabetical list of donations herewith presented, I have
prepared the following tables—the first, showing the principal addi-
tions by States; in the second, the arrangement is by systematic clas-
sification :
I.—Ger0GRAPHICAL INDEX TO SPECIMENS RECEIVED.
Washington and Oregon.—Andrews, Cooper, Evans, Tolmie, Suckley.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 51
California.—Abbott, Ayres, Baird, Campbell, Cooper, Cutts, Ham-
mond, Newberry, Patterson, Taylor, Thomas, Trowbridge,
Williamson.
Southern Boundary.—United States and Mexican Boundary Commis-
sion.
Texas.—Anderson, Carleton, Ervendberg.
Louisiana.—Andrews. é;
Arkansas and Indian Territory.—Glisan, Marey, Shumard.
Missouri.—Engelmann, Hilgard, Shumard.
Kansas.—Couch, Hammond.
Nebraska.—Evans, Harvey, Hayden, Vaughan.
Jowa.—Moore, Stevens.
Wisconsin.—Barry, Child, Hoy, Kumlien.
Lake Superior.—Agassiz, Foster, Whitney.
IWinois.—Kennicott, Sergeant, Shaw.
Ohio.—Clark, Kirtland, Kirkpatrick, Lesquereux, Wormley.
Kentucky.—Grant.
Tennessee.— Means.
Alabama.—Py bas.
Mississippi.—Robinson, Spillman.
Florida.—Casey, Whitehurst, Wright, Wurdemann.
Georgia.—Leconte, Neisler, Postell.
South Carolina.—Anderson, Barratt, Curtis, Morrow, Ravenel, Weston.
North Carolina.—Bridger, Dewey, Erwin, Fitzgerald.
Virginia.—Goldsboro, Kniesley, McDonald, Palmer, Robertson.
District of Columbia.—Brown, Dougal, Herder, Johnson, Nichols.
Maryland.—Bowers.
Pennsylvamia.—Patton.
New York.—Baird, Davis, Dayton, Hall, Howell, Lawrence, Oakley,
Ward, Welsh.
Connecticut.—Plumb.
Vermont.—Thompson.
Massachusetis.—Agassiz, Brewer, Jenks, Wyman.
British Provinces —Barnett, Bell, Dawson, Montreal Natural History
Society, Wyman.
Cuba.—Poey.
Mexico.—Jardin des Plantes, Potts.
South America.—Gilliss, Nichols, Page, Rainey.
Hurope.—Clark, Easter, Jardine, Karsten, Sturm.
China, Japan, and South Pacific Ocean.--Agassiz, Gulick, Morrow,
Ringgold, Rodgers.
East Indies.—Napper.
Australia.—Raymond.
I1.—Syerematic InpEX TO SPECIMENS RECEIVED.
Mammals.—Agassiz, Anderson, Ayres, Baird, Barratt, Barry,
Brewer, Bridger, Brown, Campbell, Child, Clarke, Cooper, Couch,
Curtis, Cutts, Davis, Dawson, Dougal, Engelmann, Evans, Hale,
Hammond, Howell, Hoy, Jardine, Jenks, Kennicott, Kniesley, Kirt-
Jand, Kumlien, Lawrence, Leconte, Montreal Natural History So-
52 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ciety, Moore, Morrow, Nichols, Shaw, Stevens, Sturm, Suckley, Thomp-
son, Trowbridge, Vaughan & Hayden, Tuley, Welsh, Wurdemann,
Wyman.
Birds.—Bowers, Couch, Curtis, Cutts, Davis, Fitzgerald, Gulick,
Johnson, Kennicott, Napper, Postell, Pybas, Shaw, Sturm, Suckley,
Tolmie, Trowbridge, Vaughan & Hayden, Wurdemann.
Reptiles.—Abbott, Andrews, Anderson, Baird, Bridger, Curtis,
Cutts, Easter, Engelmann, Evans, Fitzgerald, Goldsboro, Hammond,
Howell, Jardin des Plantes, Kennicott, Kirkpatrick, Kirtland, Les-
quereux, Palmer, Patterson, Postell, Pybas, Sergeant, Shumard,
Spillman, Suckley, Trowbridge, Vaughan & Hayden, Ward, Weston,
Wormley, Wurdemann, Wyman.
Fishes. —Agassiz, Anderson, Baird, Casey, Clark, Cutts, Dayton,
Evans, Grant, Hammond, Howell, Kennicott, Means, Poey, Rainey,
Shumard, Spillman, Suckley, Trowbridge, Vaughan & Hayden, Wes-
ton, Wormley, Wright, Wurdemann, Wyman.
Invertebrates.—Barratt, Easter, Engelmann, Hammond, Lewis,
Neisler, Ravenel, Shaw, Totten, Trowbridge, Wilson, Wright.
Plants.—Carleton, Eversfield, Glisan, Hilgard, Short.
Fossils and Minerals.—Andrews, Barnet, Dewey, Erwin, Foreman,
Karsten, Oakley, Pybas, Ravenel, Spillman, Thomas, Vaughan &
Hayden.
Miscellaneous: —Raymond, Ringgold, Triibner.
B— Work done in the Museum.
Owing to the very great number of specimens received weekly at
the Institution, the labor involved in unpacking, assorting, and la-
belling, has been very onerous, considerably greater than im 1854.
No arrears, however, have been suffered to aceumulate, every ecollec-
tion on its arrival being promptly entered on the books of registry,
and appropriately ticketed, with date, locality, &c. In this labor, as
in previous years, I have been assisted by Dr. Charles Girard.
A considerable amount of taxidermical work has also been _per-
formed within the walls of the Institution; several hundreds of
skins of mammals and birds, and an equal number of skulls, having
been prepared. All such specimens as admitted of it have beem regu-
larly catalogued on the books of the museum: the serial numbering
of prepared mammals having been advanced, during the year, from
351 to 1,200; of birds, from 4,354 to 4,425; of skeletons and skulls,
from 1,276 to 2,050. The entries of mammals and skulls have been
brought completely up; those of several collections of birds have,
however, been purposely deferred for the present.
All the collections of vertebrata in the Institution (with the excep-
tion of the fishes) have, during the year, been re-arranged systemati-
cally on shelves or in drawers, so as to bring together all the speci~
niens of each species, Owing to the want of space, this could not be
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 53
done previously ; the acquisition of several additional rooms has, how-
ever, supplied all the accommodations at present necessary. Nothing
satisfactory can be done with the collection of fishes, now filling 4,000
jars, until the erection of cases in the main hall shall furnish a suit-
able place of exhibition.
During the past year my own leisure time has been chiefly em-
ployed in working up the mammalia of the collection, and the mono-
graphing of the genera has been completed, with the exception of a
few families.
Particular attention has been paid to the study of the skulls and
skeletons of the species, for which the large collections of the Institu-
tion affords unrivalled facilities. C. Girard has also prepared several
zodlegical monographs.
C—Present Condition of the Museum.
The richness of the museum of the Smithsonian Institution at the
present time must be a source of national pride to all who are desirous
of seeing at Washington a satisfactory exposition of the natural his-
tory of North America. No collection in the United States, nor in-
deed in the world, can pretend to rival it in this respect. Every part
of our continent, from the British line on the north to central Mexico
on the south, has abundant representatives here of its peculiar inhab-
itants, while the collocation of specimens of one species from many
different localities furnishes materials towards determinations of geo-
graphical distribution of inestimable value. Thus of the known spe-
cies of North American vertebrata there is scarcely one not already in
our possession, while of nondescripts we have scores. Among the
mammals alone it is probable that the final result of a critical exami-
nation of the specimens will be the addition of over fifty species to the
list, given recently by Messrs. Audubon and Bachman, most of them
being new to science. |
Of North American reptiles but two or three of those described by
Holbrook are wanting, while his aggregate has been more than
doubled.
The following table will illustrate the statistics of the alcoholic col-
lections at the present time, while the addition of similar data for
1851 will show the increase in four years. Five years is the entire
period during which the collections generally of the Institution have
been forming ; and when it is considered that no purchases whatever
have been made, save of an occasional specimen in the city market,
it must be admitted that few Institutions, even those under the direct
patronage of wealthy governments, can present such results. Nearly
every specimen, too, has been collected at the express instance of the
Institution.
54 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Table exhibiting the number of jars, with specimens in alcohol, in the
Smithsonian Institution December 31, 1855, compared with December
31, 1851.
1851. 1855.
Mammals 22+ 2.112 3.02 eee et ei eee leE eee ae 36 350
Bird ss2 3. $2.2. Sa ee Be ee ee eee ee none 39
Repiiles: <5. 2 See en eee eee ohn tos oe come cee eiamere 554 8, 344
ISU OS 22 =o ee en ee ee ee ee ee Boek bene eee came T, 082 4,000
Invertebrates eesesee ee See Sa eee Se a ee 4159 4, 148
Miscellancoussser eee eer ace sos c ote n messes ees eeceseo user 65 280
ROU OSs ee cch od avai cee Bowe mane Hee ene oleae | 1, 887 9,171
In the above enumeration it should be borne in mind that many of
the jars of invertebrata and of fishes contain a considerable number of
species each, while there are at least thirty barrels, kegs, or large
cans filled with specimens, which it has not yet been convenient to
separate and assort.
An equally gratifying increase is shown in the skins and skeletons,
of which a table similar to the preceding is herewith presented :
1851. 1854. 1855.
Brepared mammal sy Gee coee eee ae tee ersee eye none 351 1, 260
i S70 (0 |e a se eR I A SE A 3,700 4, 354 4,425
2, 050
Skullsiand ‘skeletons jrenerallyo2 2-2Ss25 23-22-2828 | 912 1,276
An addition, however, of at least 1,500 specimens of North American
birds is to be made to this lst of specimens in hand, but not yet
regularly entered.
Catalogue lists of shells, insects, minerals, fossils, plants, &c., have
not yet been prepared, although the increase here has likewise been
very great.
D—Principal Desiderata of the Museum.
Although the collections received by the Institution have been so
large and valuable, there are still some special desiderata, which it
may be well to mention here, in hopes of having them supplied.
Among the mammals east of the Mississippi most wanted are the two
species of swamp rabbit; the one (Lepus aquaticus) found in Mis-
sissippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, considerably larger than the com-
mon gray rabbit, (L. sylvaticus ;) the other from the Atlantic south-
ern States, near the seaboard, (L. palustris,) smaller than that last
mentioned. Next to these come the squirrels, especially the rusty-
bellied varieties, from the southern and western States. The various
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 55
kinds, even those most common, of the mice, moles, shrews, &c., are
very desirable.
A particular desideratum, as yet unsatisfied, is the Florida pouched
rat, or ‘salamander,’ (Geomys pineti,) abundant in Florida and
Georgia, where, though its heaps of earth are met with in every direc-
tion, the animal itself is rarely seen and caught. <A steel trap set at
night, and baited with sweet potatoes, or other vegetable substance,
would probably secure them readily, as the western species may be
taken in like manner.
While the species from the west of the Missouri are universally
desirable, the large reddish-brown hare of northern Texas, the black
and grizzly bear, the wolverine or glutton, the black-tailed deer of
the Missouri, and the Rocky mountain goat, are of particular in-
terest.
Asan additional illustration of our desiderata among the mammals,
I subjoin a copy of a circular on the subject, issued by you last spring,
and containing special instructions for preserving and forwarding.
Skeletons, with skulls of mammals, as indeed of all vertebrata, are
always desirable.
Of birds, the most prominent desiderata from the eastern portion
of the continent are the American golden eagle, (Aquila chrysaetos,)
the flamingo, (Phenicopterus ruber,) and the courleco, (Aramis scolo-
paceus,) from Florida, and the trumpeter-swan, (Cygnus buccinator,)
of the upper Mississippi.
Eggs of birds are always desirable, especially such as may serve to
complete the work of Dr. Brewer on American eggs, now under way.
Among the North American reptiles, there are but two species of
serpents described by Dr. Holbrook not in the collection ; these are the
Coluber couperi, or gopher snake, a very large, thick blue-black snake,
found on the dry pine hills on the seaboard of Georgia, especially
along the Altamaha river ; the other is the Zrigonocephalus atrofuscus,
a copper-head snake, having subquadrate blotches on the back, and
quite dark in color. This species is found in Tennessee.
Of the tortoises, any terrapins from the Atlantic, Gulf coasts, or
the West, are desirable, and these can readily be sent alive. The
Florida land-turtle, or ‘‘ gopher,’’ is also wanted. Of the salaman-
ders, large numbers of the Menobranchus, Menopoma, Siren, and Am-
phiuma, are always wanted for dissection or distribution. These
may be popularly described as lizard-shaped animals, with slimy
skins, living in water or mud, especially of rice-fields, (from the south-
ern kinds,) having two or four legs, and with or without gills on the
sides of the neck. They are usually called alligators in the western
pe though erroneously; in size they range from six inches to two
eet.
Of fishes, those particularly desirable are the species of sunfish,
&c., found in fresh-water creeks, emptying directly into salt or brack-
ish water.
E—Premiums for Collections.
_ It may, under certain circumstances, be desirable for State organiza-
tions, such as that of the New York Cabinet of Natural History, to
56 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
offer premiums for the best collections in particular departments of
natural history, (within the State,) with the privilege of taking the
others offered at a fair valuation. This would excite a spirit of
emulation between societies and individuals, which could not fail of
beneficial results, independently of the value of the collections them-
selves. The credit of having been the first to propose this plan in
America is, perhaps, due to the Ottawa Atheneum, of Ottawa, Canada,
which* has offered premiums of from two to ten pounds, amounting
in the aggregate to £33 10s.
F—Distribution of Collections,
With increasing materials at its command, the Institution is able
to do more and more in furnishing the means of scientific research to
naturalists at home and abroad, either as an absolute donation or as
an exchange for specimens received or promised. More assistance of
this kind has been rendered in 1855 than in any previous year. Thus
many specimens of American turtles and terrapins have been sent to
Professor Agassiz to aid him in preparing materials for the first vol-
ume of his great work on American zoélogy. To Dr. J. Wyman also
have been sent specimens of lophoid fishes and Perennia branchiate
reptiles, to be used in his investigations. Coleoptera have been sent to
J. L. Leconte, mammals to Major LeConte, eggs of birds to Dr. T.
M. Brewer, infusorial earths to Professor Bailey, plants to Drs. Torrey
and Gray.
A collection of 21 species of North American serpents was sent to
the Jardin des Plantes, of Paris, embracing a number not previously
in its possession. Many living specimens were also sent, but unfortu-
nately lost, in a manner previously referred to. Duplicates of collec-
tions received have also been sent to institutions in this country, as
fishes, birds and mammals to the Philadelphia Academy of Natural
Sciences, fishes to the medica] department of Pennsylvania University,
mammals to the Boston Society of Natural History, &c.
G—Lachange of Specimens.
Much has been done by the Institution in 1855, as in preceding
years, in the way of facilitating the labors of naturalists, by bring-
ing into communication those of like tastes in different parts of this
country, or the world. Many persons have thus been enabled to secure
important additions to their means of research. Its extensive lists of
workers in natural science throughout the world enables the Institu-
tion readily to meet the wishes of parties, by referring at once to those
most likely to assist in accomplishing some special object. .
Among the gentlemen who are desirous of having their wishes
made known to fellow-workers in science, may be mentioned the fol-
lowing:
M. Zanardini, of Venice, desires to exchange specimens of Medi-
* Journal of Education for Upper Canada, (Toronto,) November, 1855, page 175,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 57
terranean and other European algae for specimens from North
America.
W. A. Thomas, of Irvington, Westchester county, New York, de-
sires to exchange minerals and fossils of New York for those of other
States.
James Lewis, of Mohawk, New York, is prepared to exchange
shells of New York for others from the south and west.
B. Pybas, of Tuscumbia, Alabama, will exchange shells of the
Tennessee river for Silurian and Tertiary fossils.
Frank Higgins, of Columbus, Ohio, will exchange Ohio shells for
those of southern States.
Dr. Emile Cornaria, Assistant Director of the Civic Museum,
Milan, will exchange vertebrata, mollusca, insects, and fossils of
Italy, Hungary, &c., for corresponding specimens from America,
H—List of Additions to the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution in
1855.
Dr. R. P. Abbott, U. S. A.—Reptiles from near Fort Yuma, Cali-
fornia.
Professor L. Agassiz.—¥resh-water fish from China; mammals
from Massachusetts and Lake Superior.
Dr. W. W. Anderson.—Living deer and antelope from Texas.
Specimens of destructive insects (Spenophorus) from South Carolina.
Dr. W. W. Anderson, U. S..A.—Reptiles, fishes, and young beaver
in alcohol, from Texas.
Professor E. B. Andrews.—Reptiles from western Louisiana.
Deposited.
Seth Andrews.—Infusorial earth from Olympia, Washington Ter-
ritory.
Dr. W. O. Ayres.—Fishes and scalops from San Francisco.
S. F. Baird.—Collections of fishes and reptiles made at Hlizabeth-
town, Saranac Lake, Ogdensburg, and Madrid. Thirty skins of mam-
mals from northern New York. Living racoon from California,
Thomas Barnett.—Minerals and fossils from Niagara Falls.
Dr. J. B. Barratt.—Skin of scalops, and two boxes of insects from
South Carolina.
A. C. Barry.—Mammals and fishes from Wisconsin.
John G. Bell.—Polar hare (Lepus glacialis) and mounted quail,
(Oriyx virginianus.) Specimens in flesh of the varying hare of New
York, (Lepus americanus.)
J. Jacob Bower.—Specimen in flesh of black swan of Australia,
Barnacle goose, and blue-headed pigeon from his aviary.
Dr. T. M. Brewer.—Mammals in alcohol from Massachusetts.
J. L. Bridger.—Keg of mammals and reptiles, skins of squirrels
and hares, from North Carolina.
Solomon G. Brown.—Mammals from vicinity of Washington.
A. Campbell.—T wo foetal black-tail deer from California.
_ Major J. H. Carleton, U.S. A,—Seeds of grass from the Pecos
river.
Captain J. B. Casey, U. 8S, A.—Tail of a ray, (Tampa Bay.)
58 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Rollin R. Child.—Skin of Vespertilio noveboracensis, from Wisconsin.
George Clarke.—Box of fresh white fish (Coregonus) from Lake
Erie, in ice. Barrel of fishes in alcohol from the Maumee river.
James Clarke.—Specimens of Stickleback from England.
Robert Clarke.—Skulls of wolf and mcose from northern New York.
Dr. J. G, Cooper.—Skins of mammals, birds, and case of speci-
mens in alcohol, Shoalwater bay. Mammals from Santa Clara, Cali-
fornia. ;
Lieut. D. N. Couch, U. 8. A.—Box of mammals and birds, Kansas,
Rev. M. A, Curtis, Armand D. R. Curtis, and M. Ashley Curtis.—
Numerous skins of mammals and birds, eggs of birds, reptiles in alco-
hel, from North and South Carolina.
h. D. Cutts.—Skins of birds and mammals, with reptiles and fishes
in alcohol, from San Francisco county, California.
H. Davis.—Nests and eggs of birds, mammals in alcohol, from New
York.
J. W. Dawson.—Specimens of Jaculus, Arviola, and Sorex, from
Nova Scotia. Deposited.
EL. A, Dayton.—Keg of fishes (crooked mullet) from Grass river,
New York.
¥ Samuel A, Dewey.—Chalcedony and Itacolumite from North Caro-
ina.
W. A. Dougal.—Living mole, (Scalops aquaticus.)
Dr, John D, Easter.—Salamander and gryllotalpa from Germany.
Dr. George Engelmann.—Mammals, reptiles, and crustacea from
Missouri.
Professor L. C. Ervendberg.—Collection of plants from Comal coun-
ty, Texas.
M S. B. Lrwin.—Slab of Itacolumite from Burke county, North Caro-
ina.
Dr. John Evans.—Can of reptiles and fishes from Upper Missouri.
Pair of living wild cats.
Dr, J. Evans and Wm. P. Hendricks.—Living grizzly bear from
Upper Missouri.
Dr. Eversfield.—Nut of double cocoanut, (Lodoicea seychellana.)
Rev. Frederick Fitzgerald.—Reptiles in alcohol. Skin of barred
owl (Strix nebulosa) from North Carolina.
Dr. E. Foreman.—Two sets of minerals,
A. Galbraith.—Skin of purple sand-piper, (Zringa maritima, ) Phila-
delphia.
C. Gautier.—Living deer mouse, (Hesperomys. )
Dr. Rodney Glisan, U. S. A.—Bale of dried plants, Fort Arbuckle.
J. M, Gilliss, U. S. N.—Box of birds from Chili.
Mr. Goldsboro.—lLiving Heterodon platyrhinos from Virginia.
Mr, P. Grant.—Blind-fish and crab, Amblyopsis spelaeus, and Cam-
barus pellucidus, from Mammoth cave, Kentucky.
James T. Gulick.—Skin of metarenia from Sandwich Islands.
Dr. S. E. Hale.—Two fresh specimens of pine martin or sable
(Mustela huro) from northern New York.
Dr. J, F’. Hammond, U. S. A.—Box of mammals, reptiles, fishes,
&c., from Fort Reading, California.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 59
Dr. W. A. Hammond, U. S. A.—Bottle of insects from Kansas.
Mr. Harvey.—Specimens of reptiles, fishes, and fossils from the
Upper Missouri.
Master Herder.—Irish specimen of Baltimore oriole, (Icterus Balti-
more.
De Hilgard.—Skeletons of Astur cooperi and Sciurus migratorius
(grey squirrel) from Missouri.
Dr. Hilgard.—Three boxes dried European plants. Deposited.
Robert Howell.—Mammals, reptiles, and fishes of New York.
Dr. P. R. Hoy.—Skull of Spermophilus franklinii, and many skins
of mammals, from Wisconsin.
Jardin des Plantes.—Collection of Mexican serpents, types of spe-
cies described in Erpetologie genérale.
Sir Wm. Jardine.—Skins of weasels, foxes, hares, and arvicolas
from Scotland.
J. W. P. Jenks.—Over 600 specimens of small mammals of Mas-
sachusetts in alcohol, and 120 skins.
Dr. C. J. B. Karsten.—Specimens of meteoric iron from Thorn,
Prussia.
George Kennicott.—Box of birds’ eggs from Illinois.
Robert Kennicott.—Several collections of living reptiles, about 200
in number ; reptiles, fishes, and mammals in alcohol ; dried skins of
mammals;.ege¢s of birds; specimens of seventeen-year locusts; living
grey gopher, Spermophilus franklinit, &c., from Illinois.
J. Kirkpatrick.—Living Nerodia nigra from Lorain county, Ohio.
C. F. Kirtland.—Fishes and reptiles from Ohio.
Professor J. P. Kirtland.—Seven skins of mammals from Ohio.
Mr. Kniesley.—Kight hundred small mammals from Clarke county,
Virginia, in alcohol.
Th. Kiimlien.—Five skins of birds from Wisconsin. Skin of Sorex
brevicaudus.
Geo. N. Lawrence.—Skins of Sciurus and Sorex from Iowa, of Ar-
vicola and Sorex from New York.
Major Le Conte.-—Skin of Reithrodon lecontii from Georgia.
Leo. Lesquereux.—Salamanders from Ohio.
J. Lewis.—Shells from New York.
Marshall MacDonald.—Living deer mouse (Hesperomys) from Vir-
ginia.
Dr. A. Means.—Specimens of Polyodon from Tennessee.
Montreal Society of Natural History.—Skin of Hesperomys from
Canada.
W. E. Moore and A. J. Stevens.—Mammals, fishes, and salaman-
der from Iowa.
Dr. James Morrow.—Five skins of Hesperomys aureolus from South
Carolina.
R. J. Napper.—Box of bird-skins from Manilla.
_H, M. Neisler.—Fifteen specimens of shells from the Chattahooche
river,
Dr. Nichols.—Mammals in flesh from vicinity of Washington. Two
specimens of Crax and Nasua in flesh from Paraguay.
60 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Geo. W. Oakley.—Box of pyntiferous rock from Cayuga county,
New York.
Captain W. P. Palmer, U. S. A.—Specimens of Heterodon platy-
rhinos from Virginia.
W. Patten.—Skin of Mus rattus from Pennsylvania.
Lieut: T. E. Patterson, U. S. A.—Double-headed rattlesnake from
Camp Yuma.
D. Orrin Plumb.—Box of infusorial earth ; specimens in alcohol of
fishes ; skull of rattlesnake ; specimen of gibbsite.
Professor F'. Poey.—Fishes from Cuba.
James P. Postell.—Kiggs of birds and reptiles from Georgia.
John Potts:—Reptiles and fishes in alcohol; skins of mammals
and birds from Mexico.
B. Pybas.—Reptiles, fishes, and fossils from Alabama.
Thomas Rainey.—Fishes (Callichthys and Osteoglossum) from Para.
Edward Ravenel.—Box of recent and fossil shells of Carolina, in-
cluding Encope macrophora, Mellita ampla, and caroliniana.
Carrington Raymond.—Australian Boomerang club and satchel.
Commander C. Ringgold, U. S. N.—Bow and four bone-tipped ar-
rows—island of Nitenda.
Wynaham Robertson.—End of lower jaw of young mastodon from
Washington county, Virginia.
EF. §. Robinson.—Insects from Mississippi.
F’. Schafhirt.—Separated human skull.
FI’. D. Sergeant.—Living specimens of bull-snake (Pityophis say?)
and jar of reptiles from Hlinois.
W. J. Shaw.—Mammals, birds, insects and plants from Illinois.
Dr. Short, Lieut. D. N. Couch, and Professor A. Gray.—Set of
plants of Mexico and Texas from the Berlandier collection.
Dr. B. F. Shumard.—Reptiles and fishes from Missouri.
Dr. Wm. Spillman.—Fishes, reptiles, shells, and fossils from Mis-
sissippi.
F’. Sturm.—Skins, nests, and eggs of birds; skins and skulls of
mammals from Europe.
Dr. George Suckley, U. S. A.—Very large collections of mammals,
birds, reptiles, fishes, and invertebrates from Washington and Oregon
Territories. Living serpent, Mpicrates maurus, from Panama.
A. 8. Taylor.—Dried specimens of grasshopper, and of Yalirus,
from California.
Major G. H. Thomas, U. 8S. A.—Box of river sediment, &c., from
the Colorado river.
Professor Z. Thompson.—Skins of mammals and alcoholic speci-
mens from Vermont.
Dr. W. F. Tolmie.—Skulls of birds from the Pacific.
General Totten, U. S. A.—Two cabinets containing a large collec-
tion of shells. Deposited.
Lieut. W. P. Trowbridge, U. S. A.—Box of birds and mammals
from San Diego, California, collected by Andrew Cassidy; collection
of muds from San Diego; skins of mammals collected in Oregon by
Job Wayne; box of marine plants; two boxes mammals and birds,
collected by T. A. Szabo; keg of reptiles and fishes from coast of Cali-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 61
fornia; other collections, in alcohol, from Cape Flattery and Farra-
lones; box of shells, La Paz, &c.
N. Triibner.—Collection of 150 slides from the microscope, ex-
hibiting dissections, illustrating different families of insects ; also 25
miscellaneous slides prepared by H. Frey.
Col. Joseph Tuley.—Fresh skin of elk (Zlaphus Canadensis) from
his park.
Gilonel Alfred Vaughan and Dr. F’. V. Hayden.—Skins and skulls;
mammals and birds; reptiles and fishes in alcohol; box of fossils, from
Upper Missouri.
Gen. Ward.—Heterodon niger from Sing Sing, New York.
David Welsh.—Skins of squirrels (Tamias and Seiur us) from New
York.
Plowden C. J. Weston.—Reptiles and birds in alcohol; fishes from
South Carolina; fern in alcohol.
Dr, Wilson, U. 8. A.—Shells from Japan.
Dr. T. G. Wormley.—Reptiles and fishes from Ohio. .
Lieut. H. G. Wright, U. S. A., and Dr. D. D. Whitehurst. Fashion
and invertebrates from Tortugas.
Gustavus Wiirdemann. Egos and skins of birds, reptiles, fishes,
and invertebrates, in alcohol ; pair of living roseate ‘spoonbills, (Pla-
talea Ajaja,) from Indian river, Florida, and coast of Georgia and
South Carolina.
Professor J. Wyman.—Arviciola, Sorex, and Cyclopterus, from
Labrador. Scaphiopus holbrookii from Cambridge. Deposited,
62
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
LIST OF METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS.
State.
Nova Scotia
Oanada
Maine
New Hampshire--
Vermont
eee wee
Massachusetts - ..
Rhode Island ---.
Connecticut . -..-
Name of observer.
Henry {hoGlese nes cs.<s54002
Erof. cA bap mSauarbe so. =,"
Ds pO ABR ABBE =o tote 2 mic ec
lenny Walliseee sense sss =e
W. E. Dana
George B. Barrows.--.---.--.-
Jobn J. Bell
G: AW. /Gup tilliz ee ee ee 2
BarGouldubrowineae se oe a
Henry A. Sawyer, A. M_-_----
Rev. U: Wigueonards 222 5° ==
iD). BuckWande ae eet ee
Georgerbliss sees 22 22. a=
James RC Colhyaspeseeseese
nirens Ch aulinia sey ae = see
William Bacon
John Brookshear sae ose oa
Rey. Emerson Davis
Amasa Holeombeee seen. =] oe
James Orton. =—- 4
Lavalette Wilson-
Hon. William Mitchell_-.---
Prot. Eas onelles see 2 ae
EC. Perkins s MeeD = <- create
Edward A. Smith, M. D.
Krank H. Rice, M. D..-- fee
Samuel Rodman..-.......--
John George Metcalf--------
Henry RICO sane seme owe Lae
Alben Schlegel s==-=-.- = =
NORA Steric | See ee 2
James Rankin .--.---------
N.. Scholfield eee eee
Bphraim) byrams eee ee
John Lefferts
Residence. County.
Albion Mines --.--- Pictou.
Horton, Acadia College.
St.) Martings. - = Laval.
Montreal === as522
Steuben. So ss-c Se Washington.
Portland 22) cane Cumberland.
REMDyy foaes soe Washington.
Riryehure esse sen Oxford.
Carmelge= mor oe Se Penobscot.
Gardimenes = se" Kennebec.
Biiehwl ages ee Hancock.
Windham i =o c2ce | Cumberland.
Comishig 5 - ose York.
MUTA ORG sae cee Coos.
Conconde. Lee eee Merrimac,
Londonderry-.---- - Rockingham.
Manchester -- ---- Hillsboro’.
North Barnstead --| Belknap.
Great Falis---..-- Strafford.
Exeter sees ee {\ockingham.
Brandonk=-—er o> Rutland.
Craftsbury -=--.--- Orleans.
Saxe’s Millg__.__- Franklin.
Nonwich= ses Windsor.
Shelburne -...-.-- Chittenden.
St. Johnsbury ----- | Caledonia.
Springfield - ------ Hampden.
Richmondes saeco 3erkshire.
Princetony= = 222 Worcester.
Westfield .... .-.. Hampden.
Southwick_.----.- Hampden.
Williamstown ----| Berkshire.
Nantucket. = -=—--2 Nantucket.
ATI GTR Gen Hampshire.
Newburyport ----- Wssex,.
Woreesteria-2 2.2 Worcester.
New Bedford. -.--..- Bristol.
Mendons 2-4. Worcester.
North Attleboro’ _-| Bristol.
Abarayeovay 5S = eee Bristol.
Jamibridee.= ===. =. Middlesex.
Wood’s Hole._-_-_- Barnstable.
Providence -....-- Providence.
Kast Greenwich ---| Washington.
New London. -_-.-- New London.
Pomtreten oe Windham.
Georgetown -..--- Fairfield.
paybrogk. =... -.--5 Middlesex.
NGI) ee a New London.
New York=. 2-45 New York.
Beviethy, as cee ae Putnam.
Canton s.. = 2 St. Lawrenee.
bap. Harbor --seee Suffolk.
onl Skene eee Seneca,
OBWEZO q mece enna Oswego.
Baldwinsville -...- Onondaga.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 63
METEOROLOGICAL LIST—Continued.
State.
New York—Cont-.
New Jersey_--- ..
Pennsylvania ----
Delaware_..--.-.-
Maryland. ......-
Virginia yc <565.--
Name of observer. Residence. County.
Wie Hi Giresgeese Se bes saree Ogdensburgh -.--- St. Lawrence.
Ae WG. Mionehousens 205 o/s Spencertown.._.--- Columbia.
J. Everett Breed 2. ---..--.- Smithville - -_.._- Jefferson.
Rex Wire Da vWilisOle syste e Gelevars ese ae Ontario.
PO: Walhams =i Dyas ee Watertown _.____- Jefferson.
WeeWi Saneers vines se === Blackwell’s Island_| New York.
Johnvleltees ssa saecasesse Tabertyse 3-54 222 Sullivan.
Je We@nickenno.s 225 2255 52 OniGm ert eek Seneca.
Eee iA Dave Diem aes s Sees dais 245) WG eee Alleghany.
Win. , Pratteo2022222222 f] Rochester ---.--.. Monroe.
Joseph Weelaylon. = 5252552 Plattsburg_.-._-.. Clinton.
dw C. Reedeeaes l= c2c8<s Homer cae. 34a yer Cortland.
We He Denning: 2 2e52252 Fishkill Landing --| Dutchess.
Mrs. obdellh -<5%e0 25 = North Salem.__... Westchester.
He ACy Dayton ane soot Sch et Madrid Se ciees see St. Lawrence.
JohnwRe Hrenchs 8 seks us eA Mexicans 22 2a Oswego.
Stephen! landonss-- = =2522= Hidenveees Aes o2 soe Hrie.
8 Gibbons e222. f| New York...---.. New York.
Jt Carolitiousemn- 22252222 Towvallle {22225 22" Lewis.
Dive Pe Sartwellt 2222 £22 5% Reni ia eye Yates.
Reve. Rhos ween Stnone 2 a4 5 s5 Flatbush 2222-2 25- Kings.
Stillman Spooner.-....-_..- Wampsville - _.__. Madison. *
eli COO Kee mee eee ae ek Bloomfield = ---.~. Essex.
Dr HE heapenmidt= s252 222.8 Burlington ~__.._- Burlington.
W. Aye Wihitehead sis 22% Ne Waris 22 esos Hssex.
Joseph Edwards-=-----2---- Chromedale --..-- Delaware.
Rev. Grier Ralston 2=2225=22 Norristown ---.-.- Montgomery.
JohnshHeisely ese so oo2cooe Harrisburg ----..- Dauphin.
NES UaCObs eae a= ai Saas aa Gettysburg -.-..__ Adams.
Fenelon Darlington----..--- ROcopsonees = aes Chester.
Samuel Brown .------------ Bediondies 2) cso Bedford.
Whenezervilances2-)—.5 52552 Momisville =" s 220 Bucks.
Pale S wither sae aa Sao HMavertordrs. 5-552 Philadelphia.
Hrancis!Schremenrs. 425-2222 Moss Groves...» Crawford.
Chas? 8: Jamess4 2.825325 2.2 lewisburcss.- 2 22 Union.
J, oR hicks bua = 2) 2 Meadville’ £22 =~ Crawford.
We Wie Wolsonmees neice Pittsburg. -/2 se: Alleghany.
OPES Hoppstesesetck sess ese Randolph, 222.225" Crawford.
Wind Smiths sae Sas hes 28 Canonsburg -_----- Washington.
John Herert. Sees sas asses Berwick ee 235 oe Columbia.
He AW Brickensteim 222225452 Nazareth Hall ----| Northampton.
Prof. Jas. A. Kirkpatrick----] Philadelphia -~_-___- Philadelphia.
BLO WenGe Wilsons. 22 S22 Carlislecs 22 5.222 Cumberland.
Wictor Scriven ees A552 se Mroy iw, eee. Alleghany.
Wim, Martine. 2222222222. {| Pittsburg..------. Alleghany.
URC RCI = we see eee Serer Pottsville -....-.- Schuylkill.
ee | kore Newcastle.
MRRP EL VeMb Aer tae sao oo Sykesvalless 22522 — Carroll.
Henry E. Hanshaw_--.---.-- Hredenekren sae a Frederick.
By Omiowndesst6.\5522>_ .2 Bladensburg ----- - Prince George.
JamestAwbearce: yr2o222-25- Chestertown --.--. Kent.
‘AC Zum broek Mer Dis 325 < Anmapolis 20. o2ke Anne Arundel.
Lieut. R. EF: Astrop..------- Crichton’s Store---} Brunswick.
Samuel Concnmeen 2 = 32 Biitaloes =. sees Putnam.
Benjamin Hallowell,-.---.-- Alexandria ......- Alexandria.
64
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
METEOROLOGICAL LIST—Continued.
State.
Name of observer.
Virginia—Cont’d -
North Carolina---
South Carolina- - -
"Georgia ote
Bloriday. -s48 ae
Alabama)== ose
Mississippi-------
ouisianaee ss see
Texas. . Ieee
Tennessee ---=---
Kentucky 224-—-
lO SOG b i 2
James T. Clarke
J. W. Marvin
Wis. CS Quincyeeees oo ose
Miss EH. Kownslar
Prof. James Phillips ---.----
EK. N. Fuller
Ht Degas ear h (os bo ote IN al 0) os eee
Dr. James Anderson
Re JB Gibson eae so 2 jess
He Me sPendleton "3: S225"
John F. Posey
W. Haines
James Bapbaleyess seh
William: Cy Denmis! --2.522252
Lieut. Joss anyre o- ooe ae
John) Pearsonmsem 52 es28
Hon. Augustus Steele. ..-..-
George Benagh!:22--....=--
Sod. Cummings 25 22552
Prof. John Darby
EL Rutwalleresetgre fe eo
Prof. J. Boyd Elliott_..-----
Prof. L. Harper
DALES |S. JAR ees
Rev E. SiRobinsons---.=2--
Dr. EH. H. Barton
J. Li. Rorkess Seer Woe oe
S. K. Jennings, M. D
Dr. R. T. Carver
ww Nw ee eee ee
0), Beabtyre eee 2s oo Ek
Lh. Ge Ray; Mit syee 5 oe
George §. Savage, M. D
John Swain Me Des. See
Mrs. Lawrence Young
Prof. J. W. Andrews
R. 5. Bosworth
F.- A. Bentonteses- soe cceece
George L. Crookham-.-.---
M. Gilmores == eee
Miss Ardelia Cunningham. - - -
Jacob M. Desellem..-....---
Ii:. Mi. Daytoneeeeeeeeee oe
J. H. Fairchild
Li. .Gronewest eee eeeeeeees
Geo. W.. darpera ass eee eee
Ebenezer Hannaford
James D. Herrick
I’. Hollenbeck
Residence. County.
Wardensville.__--- | Hardy.
Mouut Solon _----- | Augusta.
Winchester] =o- - = Frederick.
Lewisburg. -22- Greenbrier.
West Union. .----- Doddridge.
Berrywilletas os. 22 Clark.
Huntersville__-_-__- Pocahontas.
Portsmouth. __.--- Norfolk.
Goldsborough- -- -- Wayne.
Chapeletnils 2 saer 2 Orange.
Edisto Island _ =~ -- Colleton.
Waccaman. .222--- All Saints Parish.
Charlestonss. see | Charleston.
Aiken eaeer 22 S52 Barnwell.
Gamdene ses see Kershaw.
The hock a. e- Upson.
Whitemarsh Island | Chatham.
Spantatees- ose aon Hancock.
SewaTN a eee are te Chatham.
Ancustaeee sean. Richmond.
Jacksonville -_._-- Duval.
Garrisville._—__-- -} Alachua.
SaliPPondsses see. Island Key West.
Rensacola;caeeeeee | Escambia.
Cedar Keysi. <2. 222 Levy.
Tusealoosaneuse — oe Tuscaloosa.
Monroeville. ___~-- Monroe.
Anbu, eet ee Macon.
Green Springs----- Green.
PortsGibsontse] 22] Claiborne.
Oxfords eee ene Lafayette.
Columibuss= 2234522 Lowndes.
Garlandsville ----- Jasper.
New Orleans------ Orleans.
New Wied: --2---- Comal.
ATIStinwee-. see Travis.
Hriendship:5-= Dyer.
Knoxville 22 Knox.
Glenwood!=S22 ===" Montgomery.
Danvillewss: es. Boyle.
(PATS ent tte stots Ce | Bourbon.
Millersburg_--.--- Bourbon.
Ballardsville ._-..__- Oldham.
Springdale. s.-ve- Jefferson.
Marietta. == _ 222. -- Washington.
College Hall S_ 222. Hamilton.
Mount Vernon ----| Knox.
Jack Some CM on cto Jackson.
Union villes: 2-282 Lake.
Richmond... Joan Jefferson.
Newark? -.- teas Licking.
Oberlmelny Aaa Loraine.
Germantown. ----- Montgomery.
Cincinnati eee ee Hamilton.
Cheviots [2 ae Hamilton.
Jefferson = = sees Ashtabula.
Perrysburg -...---!, Wood.
METEOROLOGICAL LIST—Continued.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 65
State. Name of observer. | Residence. County.
Qhio—Continued..| J. G. F. Holston, M. D_----- Zanesville’ ot. 52... Muskingum.
Gedo Hydewe cet soe cece Cleyelandyaeseeeee Cuyahoga,
SM Luther. 22222222. fF] item ----------- Portage.
John Ingram, M. D--------- Sayannahee 3 2S Ashland.
GW Iuime rain, epee = Lic Gallipolis S2be22. Gallia.
JpMcDaMathewss=/c-s0 5 Hillsborough — ---_| Highland.
James gheyeoekers a. oe oie Portsmouth __.--- Scioto.
Rrotesa Ne santond 422/22 Granville) se. S25. Licking.
Joseph: Shawesaoes yok sce) Bellefontaine ----- Logan.
Wil schenck, »Me Dose. cce VtrayaU tel birat yt wo pe Warren.
Prof. nG,.eWalliamsoo. 65 = Unbanawties24222e- Champaign.
Michigan... =... - Seth L. Andrews, M. D------ Romeo hs See Macomb,
Wang Campbellass=- (o2--05- Battle Creek ....-- Calhoun.
Alireduh jCupniene= = 2.52.2 Grand Rapids----- Kent.
Rev. George Duffield_--_---- Wetrorit 22st Ate. Wayne.
EPR ME (SA) Sitnee) aye ae ae Oa ae Saugatuck .-.--..- Alleghany.
CSAC SSI cechoVevme = etl Oe A pe gee Stiadamesses. Se 2 Michilimackinae.
[eager Stone asa at = Sak Romeo. 22 2h seL Macomb.
.| Miss Octavia C. Walker------ Cooper castes eae Kalamazoo.
HAC VWihelip heya eye Monnoer. 36242222 Monroe.
Prof, A. Winchell... {| Aum Arbor .-.-_-] Washtenaw.
Padiana 226. IVES Wisg AUIS GIR s Pete Richmond. = 52222 Wayne.
OLO sig) 522% oY ctf, 8 ne ne en New Albany --...- Floyd.
John Chappellsmith. .-----~- New Harmony ----] Posey.
Dre) We Werseye ee Miltont eet ese Wayne.
Joseph: Moorepa. 2-5.) 2-25 Richmond. 2 Wayne.
PNGIs, 22 es Drakiny Brendel sha Peoriagee aya. ean Peoria.
Wink, Va Bldredgen i) 2 2. Bio itonee ee ee Macoupin.
JohaiGrantee joa. hes oe Manchester..-.-.-- Scott.
Voce se a ees wo Athengaast 3 eee Menard.
| Ue Olsblarnis gM Des os = 2 Obtay aes St oss! La Salle.
John James, M. D...... ---- Upper Alton.____- Madison.
Seb Meads Me TD) wroe 2 26 es 2 Augustae. 32528222 Hancock.
HentyoAMlitZen eee 2a = ae Weest'Saleme +... - 2 Edwards.
Benj Wihitakenss- 5924 25 Warsawesece 2.2 Hancock,
BHSsONTI =. oss Chas: @. Chandler, M.D. -=| Rockport). 4-722 Boone.
Edw. Duffield, M. D_--- --.- Hoannibalesss- 222 Marion.
Geo. Engelmann, M. D.---.- Steybouig St sere" St. Louis.
OME (Pea lluenms ator Bale soe Dry Ridve ease 5 Marion.
1S es eae HeCiebidwelk Mi De 22225. Quasqueton...-._- Buchanan.
Townsend M. Connel-------- Pleasant Plain ----| Jefferson.
Dre Asat Orie Ee ewe Soe 22 Dibugueses=— eee Dubuque.
Daniel McCready, .2.--—-----. Fort Madison ----- Lee.
ee a oon { Sa Peemeae 2 Plum Spring ---.-- Delaware.
RE SIPRLEPETA ATA ca ee Muscatine 327° 322% Muscatine.
Hs H..A. Scheeper ....-.-.-- Pellaysee? ct ae Marion.
Wisconsin -.....- MisseMiann: Baler Bis 22.3. = 2 Ceresca’ = 2oennenae Fond du Lae.
Protas. pAwBeam sa 22 So 2 cies Waukesha <= -2..-- Waukesha,
John H. Himoe...-.----...- Norwayites 23-35 = Racine.
Wm. H Newton .
L. Washington f Mee case. . Bee ee Douglas.
J.) Lig eickondis i eos pret ts Platteville..._...- Grant.
Prof. Wisbortern 2.5... ..'- = Beloubeeae Sy 2o8 Rock.
iH Cy Romeroye eee oc 5 - Milwaukie_--.---- Milwaukie.
s Jack. Wilandiee Janesville ...-...- Rock.
Carl: Winkien: Bach anna ana Milwaukie....... -' Milwaukie.
5
66 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
METEOROLOGICAL LIST—Continued.
® State. Name of observer. | Residence. County.
Minnesota. /..--|_-S..R,. Riggers eta Hazlewood .....--
Di BasSpengereszeee.22--.--- St, Josephe= ==. ose Pembina.
California .--...- Dre EA GADpORS = aes aa os oan San Francisco. ---- San Francisco.
a nie ee, nee tas t Sacramento. SSaeniy Sacramento.
Dr.jRoberti. Reid <2 =. Stockton ..-..---- San Joaquin.
Hi. B. Territory=--} Donald Gunn/---..-...-..-- Red River Settlem’t
Paraguay - <---+- ioAL Hppknsies- 2.2. --2 = |
Mexico_2.es222e- Prof... ¢ wervendberg.<.-—.
Jaaviaica = eee James G. Sawking ....-...-- |
Nicaragua -....-- Ae WONGS eriainemets tania mite
Venezuela ......- As Hendler 2a soecteee< sa man |
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
67
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
Wasuineton, January 1, 1856.
The Executive Committee submit to the Board of Regents the fol-
lowing report relative to the finances of the Smithsonian Institution,
the expenditures during the year 1855, We.
The following is a general statement of the fund:
The wholeamount of the Smithsonian bequest deposited
in the treasury of the United States, (from which an
annual income, at 6 per cent., of $30,910 14 is de-
OO ie WBeoniicaervnase Bee eats teiginiisieceaainares
Amount of unexpended interest reported,
1855, January 1, as incharge of Messrs.
Bree OF EIGER canaca nck swnconaesnnenansie’
From which deduct amount passed by them
to the credit of the treasurer to meet
payments.on building during 1890......
Balance in the hands of the treasurer, Ist
WAY ee aS acess <tddocace vaeue noes ost
The following is a general view of the
during the year 1855:
RECEIPTS.
Balance in the hands of the treasurer, Jan-
PERON Ly CLG chic thin a's asqcian sicerorominrenrariaseiseisle
Interest on the original fund ($515,169)
BREA Sekt e eer tee noe ces daeneveciseucosecie ne =
Interest on the extra fund for the year
Amount drawn from Corcoran & Riggs to
meet payments on building...........se00
EXPENDITURES.
For building, furniture, fixtures, &c.......
For items common to the objects of the
POPSUMLUGEON . Se. dash Ceetectet se esaecessces cena
For publications, researches, and lectures
For library, museum, and gallery of art...
ra
5,000 00
—_—_———-_
120,000 00
8,189 84
—_—_
receipts and
$14,159 59
30,910 21
6,044 38
5,000 00
$19,312 87
13,372 71
7,169 95
8,068 81
$515,169 00
128,189 84
643,358 84
expenditures
'$56,114 18
—_—_—.
47.994 34
68 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Balance in the hands of the treasurer, on the Ist of Jan-
UENO uy dlcts) QAP AMBRE CUS 9. SMMBRR AR RSNA RAUSES Hes
eae
&8.189 84
56,114 18
The following is a detailed statement of the expenditures during
the year 1855:
BUILDING, FURNITURE, FIXTURES, &C.
Pay ON CONMBGES moth ass: secesasicecnes- oases $16,200 00
Pay of architects, draughtsmen, &c........ 500 00
Miscellaneous repairs to building, EC. sie scni 436 90
Furniture and fixtures for uses in common 1,488 04
Furniture and fixtures for library ......... 400 00
Furniture and fixtures for museum......... 200 00
Grounds (lamps for the walks)............... T4 25
Magnetic observatory........cscscesserereeeees 3 68
m —E
GENERAL EXPENSES.
Meetings of the Board of Regents and com-
RICE CS ee Sect see croc sanannss as insists eceriss as 849 65
Pgh tins and. HeatiMOi cece seseuerse nae 1,022 80
MOSER SO oe osieniccccn sane toon s+ series: pactgneccaee 495 41
Transportation and exchange Gaedseeb ae hae 1,103 23
MOM MNGi vn sista omacassossviee goes seoralnclees 411 98
CeCe Td AMG Pec cons pace sso teiasninwinaselee 827 55
PNR MATIN 5 sod ee teivc cowieserneines anode scenes 257 06
ORAL Ollie ccm cee shuicnonaecacesters sstaneeeter 123 14
Pneidientalg. "@CNeLal vn .teccstec secs sacp erases 1,257 16
Salagies——Secretar Vv. scisiitas. votes ere seeeah- vas 3,500 00
high ClEOIC gawcmanss s+ ccck capeeece ss 1,200 00
TROOKMRCE DEL «ccs hcre ev daucttesenns 200 00
AMICON cle ealess<cencesa rene aceeteep 400 00
TGR OTOL. cocaine soit ce. osue eee 250 00
NY eC TMC emer. ses crins ase ce getenen 365 00
iia Clerk ee. 5 codetabeectt stab nace 250 00
PUBLICATIONS, RESHARCHES, AND LECTURES.
For Smithsonian Contributions to Know-
1 Ed WA ERs 3 cnc SU eRe tor 3,562
For reports on progress of knowledge...... 350
For other publications. ....2...............0006 316
HiGr MCtCOTOlLOGY..5.02 +52 eeecenmemvems letmadesata 1,862
INGE COMPUTATIONS: ..3..c =. nerteeumetee toes totes 50
Hor inwestigations..\0/25i0..nensaddtpent cates. 12
For lectures, illustrations, and apparatus 40
mutendance) chee ioreadsa.. 60
pay of lecturers ec inke < 914
92
00
$19,312 87
12,512 98
7,169 95
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 69
LIBRARY, MUSEUM, AND GALLERY OF ART.
Library:
BU VMINOL DOOR 02s. oteMOR II RONG oe $3,186 15
Transportation for library............... 330 49
Stereotype System........cesceeceesseeeees 44 22
Pay or assistants. 2.1). Ae 1,740 00
Incidentals to library...............s0008 124 31
Museum:
Salary of assistant secretary............ 2,000 00
HieONO ATID PIS. coed. 0. tase ttevesenescgee aco 150 00
Collections ......5, MRI a... di david. orton 150 50
Pilcoholiialass jars, doers !.. 1/909... 199 88
Assistance, labor, and incidentals to
soap isch i ee UR GREE A SB AMM aA 390 67
Transportation for museum............. 529 24
MMPS OOL VATE. Dae a iU.lie1 tue dae de Sib sete 83 18
_ $8,928 54
47,924 34
It will be seen, from the foregoing statement, that the expenditures
for the building differ considerably from the estimate of the commit-
tee. At the time of making the estimate, they had no means of as-
certaining what would be required for payment of the contractor.
The architect had not furnished his final statement of the entire cost
of the edifice, and it was in consideration of this that a resolution was
adopted, authorizing the Building Committee to pay out of the special
fund of the Institution such sum as would be required. They have
accordingly drawn $5,000 on this account from Messrs. Corcoran &
Riggs, as is shown in the general statement.
On account of the large drafts required for payments on the build-
ing, an effort was made to curtail the expenditures on other parts of
the operations. The whole sum appropriated for the current expenses
of the Institution during the year 1855, exclusive of the building,
was $32,465. Of this sum there has been expended but $28,611 47;
the remainder, $3,853 53, serves to increase the amount in the hands
of the treasurer, and will be appropriated to discharging the sum still
due the contractor.
Hereafter the funds of the Institution will be in a much more
manageable condition. The architect has rendered his final account,
and the sum of about $6,000 still due on the building being definitely
known, a more precise estimate can be now made. If the expendi-
tures during the present year are kept within the estimate, as they
probably will be, the sum of $125,000 of accrued interest will be on
hand at the beginning of 1857, which may be permanently invested
as a part of the capital.
It has been stated, in the preceding reports, that a plan of finances
was adopted in the beginning, by which a portion of the income might
be saved for the purpose of increasing the capital rendered necessary
to defray the expense of the support of the large building authorized
70 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
by Congress. It was at first. proposed to add $100,000 to the origi-
nal fund; and afterwards the plan was enlarged, so as to make the ©
amount $150,000. This last plan, however, was based upon a limit
of expenditure of $250,000 tor the building. The scheme would
have been entirely successful, and even a larger saving might have
been made had the building been completed within the estimated
cost; but this was found inconsistent with a proper regard to the
safety and durability of the edifice. The actual cost, according to the
statement of the Building Committee, exclusive of furniture, is about
Bee on notwithstanding this, the sum which has been saved is
125,000. Although this is not all that could have been wished, it is,
perhaps, more than could have been reasonably anticipated. The
committee have been informed that Messrs. Corcoran and Riggs do
not desire any longer to retain possession of the surplus fund, and it
will therefore be necessary to urge its acceptance by Congress as an
addition to the fund in the United States treasury, or securely invest
it in State stocks. The interest on the original fund is received semi-
annually, and as far as possible it will be advisable to make the
payments of salaries and other objects at the same time. Unless
this is done, a surplus will continually be required which is not draw-
ing interest, or bills must be paid by drafts in anticipation of the end
of the half year. While the building was in process of erection, it
was impossible to observe a rule of this kind, since, according to the
original contract, the payments for the work done were to be made
monthly.
It will be recollected that a portion of the Smithsonian bequest
(about $25,000) still remains in England as the principal of a life an-
nuity in favor of Madame de la Batut, the mother of the nephew of
Smithson. The annuitant is a very aged person, and cannot in the
ordinary course of nature be expected long to survive. The Hon.
Mr. Rush, to whom this matter was referred, has written to Messrs.
Clarke, Fynmore, & Fladgate, the solicitors employed in obtaining
the bequest, asking them to procure information in regard to this
point.
Another subject, which may require the attention of the Board, is
that of the Wynn estate, contingently bequeathed to the Smithsonian
Institution. It appears bya letter from Joseph H. Patton, esq., of New
York, who was engaged by the Board to inquire into the matter, that
the widow of Mr: Thomas Wynn was married in 1854 to Captain An-
derson, of the Royal artillery, now stationed at Barbadoes, where she
resides with the child, upon whose decease, without issue, the bulk of
the estate is to come to this Institution.
Mr. Patton advises that the Board require from the executors secu-
rity for the proper fulfilment of the trust.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
71
The committee submit the following estimates for appropriations
for the year 1856:
BUILDING, FURNITURE, FIXTURES, ETC.
NT i ica ces aremasiegrennearrepcctasescese $6,000
Repairs and miscellaneous incidentals to build-
(BAR iH SSSI ae se 600
Furniture, &c., for uses in common.............. 500
MUMIA Vaan cv atesececucsccctns« 300
RUIMAEMDRS cc ctas sche s etc ties oc. 150
PPE TIETIC QUREDVEEORY 2c. .ch.sesacesseessaccionsacce 20
GENERAL EXPENSES.
Meetings of Board and committees............... $375
Beirtin rand WeatiNe... 2...c0.caecssescsteesscessee 1,200
ODS VS ELAWRARE SARS ne aeiropete aian iteard me ania ape 400
Transportation and exchange.............csccecee 1,000
0G EAS lee 300
BaP TOUHM Gs: .., 00.0 cers anceostsses crac cctesse secs 350
PM EN ee ieee Seen ceceaesssscteses Gcdvceeveee 300
PEAT ADONY: AGLI UP .2n.0rcescerestyccoeucetens cscs 800
PRETO PMaIAONCEAL wn cstncaestscgecdeccsseseneetvcets 500
PALATICHR—SeCCTEEATY ......0ccessscescscscoecssceseccece 3,500
WORE MGIOING: win ress Oochiciessvccect baat as 1,200
IGUICROGDOL fesseacas ceessestatstacseceiers 200
PUNE ae A ssnecs 5. geess.- 2 ceo terete ane ene 400
RENIN oo ec Secs ee etitet cst ities 550
WOOL OLST corns sesh asec cf starewsetsenentets 450
ROMS CACO sees. nae lecets cohs seco cete 200
PUBLICATIONS, RESEARCHES, AND LECTURES.
Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge...... $5,500
Reports on the progress of knowledge........... 1,000
Rue ULICHIIGHS'S . 2.0.1. ns 005s sercad<canceedoesenes 355
| ESI 7 te 7 Re NRO Sy a aR 1,000
Investigations, computations, and researches... 500
EEE ao i RET PR OnE RE 800
LIBRARY, MUSEUM, AND GALLERY OF ART.
Labrary :
EOI 5130): a a $3,500
eAVIOL ASIP A es occ esin doacinnesis oi» ao00eeeue 2,500
PMATAP OFA Iss scnacsnconesenssa+coesemnet 300
PMCS TE LRG oe ee a ic pings oeins oie wnn'antteide 500
Museum :
Salary of assistant secretary.......ss..sesce0e 2,000
RI PRTIOUG: eta iin oo savaseceardans : 200
MMENEIN 650507 cues Coase od ss évnevntttttoncce 150
$7,570 00
11,725 00
9,155 00
72 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Alcohol, glass jars, &¢...........00.
Transportation ic... l.shaamneenete ee
Assistancevand labor )..9.98 22. . 2.9
Gallery of Art........... Rt 3 COE aE Fe
Respectfully submitted :
Bold ee $500 00
ree 300 00
meee Tas 500 00
BE tts 100 00
—+ + 810.550;.00
39,000 00
——
J. A. PEARCE,
J. G. TOTTEN,
A. D. BACHE,
Executive Committee.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, vie)
REPORT OF THE BUILDING COMMITTEE,
The Building Committee of the Smithsonian Institution present the
following report of their operations and expenditures during the year
1855:
It was stated in the last report that the main or centre building
was nearly finished on the Ist of January, 1855. Since then the
whole edifice has been completed, and the final report of the architect
approved by the committee. After the construction of the new lecture-
room, the east wing of the building was entirely unoccupied. It con-
sisted of a single room 75 feet long, 45 feet wide, and about 30 feet
high. This has been divided into two stories, the lower one princi-
pally consisting of a large room at present used for the reception and
distribution of all the articles of exchange, and also a depository of
the extra copies of the publications of the Institution. The upper
story is occupied by a suite of rooms for the accommodation of the
Secretary, in accordance with the original intention of the Board, as
expressed in their resolution fixing the compensation of that officer.
The fitting up of this wing was made under a separate contract with
Mr. Wm. Choppin, and the whole completed to the satisfaction of the
architect for $3,500. This sum includes both the finishing of the
large room below and the apartments of the Secretary above.
The grounds around the building have been kept in repair under
the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, and it is hoped that an
appropriation by Congress will enable this officer to complete the de-
sign of Mr. Downing for the general improvement of the mall, and
the supply of specimens of our native forest-trees which may be used
for ornamental purposes.
The whole amount paid on account of the building during the last
year, including furniture and fixtures and grounds, is $19,312 87,
which added to the sum previously paid for the same objects as stated
in the last report, ($299,414 14,) will make $318,727 01. Of this
sum $308,184 49 are for the building and grounds ; and if to this we
add $4,569 10 due the contractor, and about $1,000 due on gas-fitting,
fixtures, &c., the whole amount expended on building and grounds,
exclusive of furniture, will be $313,753 59. The whole cost of the
building was at one time limited to $250,000 ; but this limitation was
made with the intention of finishing the interior of the main edifice
in wood and plaster. This plan was afterwards abandoned, and one
in which fire-proof materials were employed was substituted.
A statement on file from Capt. Alexander gives in detail the work
done and the payments made thereon from the time he took charge of
the work until its final completion. According to this, the whole
amount paid for completing the interior of the main building in fire-
proof materials is $79,684 17. This sum is much larger than his
original estimate ; the cause of the difference, as stated by himself,
being as follows:
74. TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF »
‘Tt is due in part to the rise in the prices of materials and labor, but
principally to the execution of many improvements which were not
originally contemplated, but which it was thought best to make during
the prosecution of the work. These improvements were the sewers
for drainage ; the cisterns for supplying water; the substitution of
stone for iron stairs; the making of new sashes for many of the win-
dows ; the strengthening and in part reconstruction of the roof of the
main building ; putting in copper gutters and leaders on the towers,
besides other alterations and additions tending to swell the cost of
the work.”’
So many changes had been made in the plan of finishing the in-
terior, and such different materials had been employed, that it was
impossible to be guided by the original bid of the contractor, and
therefore the committee were obliged to be governed entirely by the
estimate of the architect. They, however, took the precaution to sub-
mit his award to Capt. Meigs, superintendent of the Capitol exten-
sion, who, under the circumstances of the case, expressed his approval
of it.
Though the building is finished, an annual appropriation will be
required for repairs and the substitution on parts of the roofs of the
ranges and wings, of copper in place of tin.
Respectfully submitted :
RICHARD RUSH,
W. H. ENGLISH,
JNO. T. TOWERS,
JOSEPH HENRY,
Building Commuttee.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 75
JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS
BOARD OF REGENTS
OF
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
TENTH ANNUAL SESSION.
WEDNESDAY, January 2, 1856.
In accordance with a resolution of the Board of Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution, fixing the time of the beginning of their an-
nual meeting on the first Wednesday of January of each year, the
Board met this day in the Regents’ room at 12 o’clock m.
Mr. Rush was requested to take the chair.
The Secretary stated that, owing to the House of Representatives
not having elected a speaker, no Regents had yet been appointed to
fill the vacancies in the Board from that body.
There being no quorum present, the Board adjourned to meet on
Saturday, January 12th, at 12 m.
SATURDAY, January 12, 1856.
A meeting of the Board was held this day at 12 o’clock.
Present: Messrs. Mason, Rush, Totten, Bache ; Seaton, Treasurer,
and the Secretary.
There being no quorum present, the new Regents not yet having
been appointed, the Board adjourned to meet on Saturday, January
26th.
SATURDAY, January 26, 1856.
A meeting of the Board was held this day at 12 m.
Present: Messrs. Pearce, Mason, Rush, Totten, and the Secretary.
There being no quorum, the Board adjourned to meet at the call of
the Secretary, as soon as the vacancies should be filled by Congress.
SATURDAY, Marcu 1, 1856.
An adjourned meeting of the Board was held this day at 12 m.
Present: Messrs. Pearce, Mason, English, Warner, Totten; Seaton,
Treasurer, and the Secretary.
76 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Mr. Pearce was called to the chair.
The Secretary announced the election, by joint resolution of the
Senate and House of Representatives, of the Hon. Grorce HK. Baperr,
of North Carolina, and Professor Cornenrus C. Fruron, of Massa-
chusetts, as Regents to fill the vacancies occasioned by the death of the
Hon. Joun Macpnerson Berrien, and the resignation of the Hon.
Rurus CHoate.
Also, the appointment, by the Speaker of the House of Representa-
tives, of the Hon. W. H. Eneutsu, of Indiana, Hon. H. Warner,
of Georgia, and the Hon. B. Sranron, of Ohio, as Regents on the part
of the House.
Mr. Seaton, Treasurer, presented the statement of receipts and ex-
penditures for the year 1855, which was referred to the Executive
Committee.
The Secretary presented and read his report of the condition and
operations of the Institution for the past year, which was accepted.
It being announced by the Secretary that the Hon. J. Macpnzrsow
Berrien, one of the Regents, had departed this life since the last an-
nual session of the Board, Mr. Mason offered the following resolutions,
accompanying them with remarks suitable to the occasion:
Resolved, That the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution have
heard, with deep and sincere regret, that since their last annual meet-
ing, the Hon. J. Macpuerson Berntsen, late one of their associates, has
departed this life.
Resolved, That whilst deploring the severance of so enlightened
and able a coadjutor from the trust committed to the Regents of the
Institution, they sympathize with the country in the loss it has sus-
tained by the death of an eminent and virtuous citizen.
Resolved, That, in testimony of their high respect for the memory
of their late associate, the members of this Board will wear the custom-
ary badge of mourning for the period of thirty days.
Resolved, That these resolutions be entered upon the journal, and
a copy of them be transmitted to the family of the deceased.
The Board thenadjourned till Saturday, March 8th, at 11o’clocka.m,
SATUBDAY, Marcu 8, 1856.
The Board of Regents met at 11 o’clock a. m.
Present: The Chancellor, Hon. R. B. Taney, and Messrs. Pearce,
English, Warner, Totten, and the Secretary.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and adopted.
Mr. English presented the report of the Building Committee for
the year 1855; which was read and adopted.
Mr. Pearce presented the annual report of the Executive Commit-
tee, containing an account of the finances, the receipts and expendi-
tures during the year 1855, the estimates for appropriations for 1856,
&c.; which was read and adopted.
On motion of Mr. Pearce, the following resolution was adopted :
Resolved, That, in order to give sufficient time to make up the
accounts for the year, the annual meeting of the Board shall hereafter
be held on the third Wednesday of January, instead of the first,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. vas
The Secretary presented a ietter from Joseph H. Patton, esq., of
New York, relative to the Wynn estate; which, after several docu-
ments relating to the subject had been read, was referred to Mr. Ma-
son, to whom former communications on this business had been sub-
mitted.
It was stated by the Secretary that Messrs. Corcoran & Riggs were
not desirous to retain in their hands the extra funds of the Institution ;
whereupon, after remarks as to the proper disposition of the money,
on motion of Mr. Warner, it was
Resolved, That the committee appointed on the 24th of February,
1855, be directed to inquire and report upon the propriety and man-
ner of permanently investing the money of the Institution now in the
hands of Messrs. Corcoran & Riggs.
The Secretary read a communication from Frederick Gotteri, of
Malta, received through the Department of State, relative to the es-
tablishment of a school for the instruction of persons in this country
in silk culture and manufactures.
On motion, the letter was referred to the Commissioner of Patents.
A communication from John Phillips, esq., assistant general secre-
tary of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, was
read, containing the following extract from the proceedings of that
body :
‘* A communication from Professor Henry, of Washington, having
been read, containing a proposal for the publication of a catalogue of
philosophical memoirs scattered throughout the Transactions of socie-
ties in Hurope and America, with the ‘offer of co- operation on the part
of the Smithsonian Institution, to the extent of preparing and pub-
lishing, in accordance with the general plan which might be adopted
by the British Association, a catalogue of all the American memoirs
on physical science, the committee approve of the suggestion, and
recommend that Mr. Cayley, Mr. Grant, and Professor Stokes, be
appointed a committee to consider the best system of arrangement,
and to report thereon to the council.”’
The Secretary having stated to the Board that a number of the
steamship and railroad : companies had granted special facilities to the
Institution, in forwarding its packages free of cost, and particularly
in granting a free passage to its agent sent to California to make col-
lections in natural history, &c.,
On motion of General Totten, the following resolution was adopted :
Resolved, That the Secretary, on the part of the Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution, return thanks to the United States Mail
Steamship Company, M. O. Roberts, president ; Pacific Mail Steam-
ship Company, W. H. Aspinwall, president ; South American Mail
Steamship Company, Don Juan Matheson, president; Mexican Gulf
Steamship Company, Harris & Morgan, agents ; and the Panama
Railroad Company, David Hoagley, president, for their liberality
and generous offices in relation to the transportation, without charge,
of articles connected with the operations of the Institution.
The Secretary read the following letter:
78 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Hamitton CoLincr, CLINTON,
Oneida County, N. Y., February 2, 1856.
To the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution :
The trustees of Hamilton College, in the State of New York, made,
on the 22d day of July, 1854, a contract with Messrs. C. A. Spencer
& Co., of Canastota, in the same State, for the construction of an
‘‘equatorial telescope of the first class, with all the mountings and
other incidents necessary and usual thereto.”’
There is a provision in this agreement, that ‘‘ when the telescope
and work are finished and put up in the observatory, the whole is to
be submitted to the examination of three men of science, to be agreed
upon by the parties, and their judgment and decision as to the char-
acter ot the telescope and the whole work, and whether the contract
has been fully performed on the pari of the builders, shall be final and
conclusive.”’
The instrument is now nearly completed. The diameter of the
object-glass is thirteen and one-half inches.
The undersigned, as a committee in behalf of the College, request
that the above-named examining board of scientific men may be ap-
pointed by your body. They ask this for the following reasons:
First. 'This telescope is the largest ever constructed in this country—
eonstructed in the face of many obstacles, with an adverse public
opinion. If it be equal to instruments made in Europe, its construc-
tion is a triumph of American genius in a hitherto untried field. The
contractors, if successful, deserve that their success should be made
known through some medium whose judgment shall be rigid and im-
partial, and shall have a character to be respected abroad as well as
at home.
Again. The funds for the construction of this instrument, and the
observatory to which it is attached, were contributed in various sums
by many persons interested in the advancement of science, and scat-
tered throughout the State of New York. ‘To these persons our in-
stitution pledged itself to secure a first-class instrument. The college
corporation desires to satisfy them by an announcement from an au-
thoritative quarter that it has faithfully fulfilled the trust, and that
the contractors have produced the exact instrument provided for in
the specifications of the contract.
Furthermore, as persons interested in the advancement of science,
and desirous that telescopes hereafter built in this country may be
thoroughly and satisfactorily tested, the undersigned, in behalf of the
college, would be glad to establish a precedent, which might lead the
purchasers of other astronomical instruments to submit the question
of their proper construction to your body, as being an institution cen-
tral in its position and national in its character.
We are authorized to state that the contractors join with the cor-
poration in this application.
Should this proposition be accepted by you, we would like to receive
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 79
notice to that effect, and of the names of the gentlemen who may be
selected as such committee,
CHARLES AVERY,
ORIN ROOT,
OTHNIEL 8S. WILLIAMS,
THEODORE W. DWIGHT,
Commiitee.
On motion of Mr. English, the following resolution was adopted :
Resolved, That the letter of the committee of the trustees of Hamil-
ton College be referred to Messrs. Bache, Totten, and Henry, with
authority to comply with the request contained in said letter.
The following letter from the corresponding secretary of the Amer-
ican Academy of Arts and Sciences was read:
A - A Asner an Az Va ARTD CIENCES,
JAMDERICAN “ACADEMY OF
Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, August, 1855.
My Denar Sir: The following extract from’the record of the annual
meeting in May last has just been furnished me by the recording sec-
retary :
“Professor Agassiz referred to the allusion in the librarian’s report
to the Smithsonian Institution, and expressed in strong language his
sense of the indebtedness of the scientific world to that Institution, for
its enlightened efforts to diffuse knowledge, particularly as a medium
of exchange of publications. In conclusion, he moved that the thanks
of the academy be presented to the Smithsonian Institution, for its effi-
cient agency in effecting for the academy its eachanges wih societies and
individuals, which was unanimously adopted.”’
I have great pleasure in forwarding to you the vote of the academy,
in obedience to its instructions.
And I remain, very respectfully, your obedient, faithful servant,
ASA GRAY,
Corresponding Secretary.
Professor Henry,
Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
The Board then adjourned to meet on Saturday, the 22d instant, at
11 o’clock a. m. :
SATURDAY, March 22, 1856.
The Board of Regents met this day, at 11 o’clock.
Present: Hon. R. B. Taney, the Chancellor, Messrs. Mason, Doug-
las, English, Warner, Totten, Towers ; Seaton, Treasurer, and the
Secretary.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved.
Mr. Mason stated that he had made an examination of the papers
referred to him relative to the Wynn estate.
After some remarks respecting the proper course to be pursued, on
motion of Mr. Douglas, it was
. Jtesolved, That Messrs. Mason and English be appointed a committee
to draught a bill, and present it to Congress at their discretion, ask-
80 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ing the authority for the Institution to receive funds or legacies, and.
for power to sue and be sued,
The Secretary presented the subject of the removal of the collection
of objects of natural history, now in the Patent Office, to the Smith-
sonian building.
The Secretary presented to the Board a manuscript work on bibli-
ography by Mr. Ludewig, which had originally been offered to the
Smithsonian Institution, but which Mr. Triibner, a liberal and intel-
ligent publisher in London, bad now undertaken to present to the
world at his own expense.
The following letter from Mr. Stone, of Washington, was read:
Mount Peasant,
Washington City, February 13, 1856.
Dzar Sm: Some time since I spoke to you of the propriety and ad-
vantage of procuring from Hurope copies in plaster of the best antique
and modern statues and bas-reliefs. Having since reflected on the
importance of cultivating a taste for the fine arts in our country, I now
communicate to you my views, knowing that the object will find in
you a zealous friend and advocate.
J am aware, to undertake what is required will subject you to some
trouble and opposition, owing to the absence of that knowledge, to
procure which your exertions are solicited.
As the country advances in science, the elegancies of life are in de-
mand ; decorations, ornaments, &c., in every fabric, find purchasers,
and the higher the state of refinement, the more is art required. To
meet this demand, it is requisite that we should have the advantage
of seeing what has already been done in sculpture to serve as a basis.
Thus, we may not only cultivate the talent of the artist, but the taste
of the consumer, and thus the arts will meet with proper encourage-
ment.
It is not expected that all who study from the models will acquire
equal eminence ; still all who work with zeal will be improved and
find employment in the various branches of trade that require culti-
vated talent, as in works of design, including the various factories for
using the loom for wool, cotton, or silk, potteries, including porcelain
ware, foundries, &c. Painters, architects, and sculptors are usually
thought to be those only benefited by schools of art; but it is not so:
they are a few among the thousands who will be prepared to give
beauty and elegance to every fabric of manufacture known in the
mechanic arts.
On examination it will be found that the cultivation of the art of
design will thus be of immense value to the country. Onapplication
being made by our minister in Rome, casts would be permitted to be
taken from the moulds in the possession of the government, the cost of
which would be trifling. The statues would decorate the Smithsonian
building, and many could be so placed as to appear as accessories to it.
If a school of design is formed, it may be independent of the Institu-
tion. But should the Smithsonian Institution deem it of sufficient
importance, and consider it as one of the means of diffusion of useful
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. , 81
knowledge among men, and grant an occasional lecture as on other
subjects, it would accomplish much, and Congress may be made to
feel that the interests of the country demand their fostering care in
regard to the arts. I think you will find that ours is the only gov-
ernment that has not seen and felt the importance to manufactures of
cultivating the fine arts. The great strife with manufacturers is, to
obtain elegance and beauty without interfering with durability.
Beauty and symmetry should be made essentials in the manufacture
of the simplest articles, as they may be attained without interfering
with more substantial qualities. Articles manufactured with elegance
and good proportion will always be preferred to those of only equal
strength and durability, of uncouth form. It is true that we may
manufacture from forms and patterns produced by the forethought and
liberality of other nations, and still be inferior to what our own genius
would produce, were the facilities of cultivation in the fine arts made
equal with those of other nations. The free institutions of our country
cause men to rely in a measure on their own resources, thus early de-
veloping and practising those inventive powers so peculiar to our peo-
ple. Weare not bound down by the local laws and prejudices of socie-
ties, as in the Old World. Here a man, if he pleases, is his own
carpenter, mason, or smith. His inquiring mind and ingenuity leads
him to undertake and accomplish what he desires. How little will be
required to cultivate talent, and produce men who will record the
history of their country in marble or imperishable bronze—in the
language of nature, always to be understood. Our monuments and
antiquities will not carry with them the odor ef royalty and nobility,
but torms of elegance and beauty.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
WILLIAM J. STONE.
Prof. Henry,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
The Secretary exhibited a new form of meteorological blanks. which,
he had prepared for the joint use of the Institution and the Patent
Office, and also a simple form of the rain-gage, of which a number
had been ordered for distribution to different parts of the country.
They are so constructed as to be readily transmitted by mail.
The Secretary presented the following resolutions, which had been
unanimously adopted by the Illinois State Board of Education, ata
meeting held in March last:
‘Whereas the Illinois State Board of Education concur in the
opinion of the necessity and importance of the meteorological observa-
tions to be made, in accordance with the system established by the
Smithsonian Institution, of simultaneous observations in every State
of this Union; and whereas that Institution has undertaken to col-
lect and digest all the observations which may be made on this conti-
nent; therefore,
‘¢ Resolved, That we will co-operate with said Institution in order
a Qpiain full and reliable reports from the various sections of this
porate.
‘* Resolved, That each member of this Board select some competent
6
82 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
and reliable person in his congressional district to take charge of the
observations in said district, and from time to time report the same to
the secretary of our Board,
“¢ Resolved, That a committee of four be appointed by the president
to memorialize the legislature for an appropriation to aid in the pur-
chase of a set of meteorological instruments for each congressional dis-
trict in our State.
“ Resolved, That be appointed actuaries, in behalf of
this Board, to collect and prepare specimens of the natural history
and products of our State, and to co-operate with that department of
the Smithsonian Institution.”
The blank in the last resolution was filled with the names. of Robt.
Kennicott, of Cook county; Dr. J. Niglas, of Peoria county; and
W.F.M. Arny, of Mchean county.
The Secretary also presented from the author a manuscript trans-
lation of a memoir on the origin of the human race, by Baron Muller,
of Marseilles, France.
He also exhibited a copy of the great work on Egypt by Lepsius,
presented to the library by the Prussian government; a very expen-
sive and valuable work on Russian antiquities, from the Imperial
Library at St. Petersburg ; a portfolio of colored engravings to illus-
trate the mosque of St. Sophia, Constantinople, from the Sultan ; ana
other valuable donations and articles received in exchange.
The Board then adjourned, to meet at the call of the Secretary, and
afterwards visited the different parts of the building.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 83
APPENDIX.
REPORT OF THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE.*
The following is the report presented in the Senate on the 6th Feb-
ruary, 1855, by Judge Butler, from the Committee on the Judiciary,
to whom was referred the inquiry whether any, and if any, what, ac-
tion of the Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithso-
nian Institution:
‘Tt seems to be the object of the resolution to require the committee
to say whether, in its opinion, the Regents of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution have given a fair and proper construction, within the range
of discretion allowed to them, to the acts of Congress putting into
operation the trust which Mr. Smithson had devolved on the federal
government. As the trust has not been committed to a legal corpo-
ration subject to judicial jurisdiction and control, it must be regarded
as the creature of congressional legislation. It is a naked and hon-
orabie trust, without any profitable interest in the government that
has undertaken to carry out the objects of the benevolent testator.
Thg obligations of good faith require that the bequest should be main-
tained in the spirit. in which it was made. The acts of Congress on
this subject were intended to effect this end, and the question pre-
sented is this: Have the Regents done their duty according to the
requirements of the acts of Congress on the subject ?
“In order to determine whether any, and if any, what, action of
the Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithsonian In-
stitution, it is necessary to examine what provisions Congress have
already made on the subject, and whether they have been faithfully
carried into execution.
‘¢The money with which this Institution has been founded was be-
queathed to the United States by James Smithson, of London, to
found at Washington, under the name of the ‘Smithsonian Institu-
tion,’ an establishment ‘for the increase and diffusion of knowledge
among men.’ It is not bequeathed to the United States to be used
for their own benefit and advantage only, but in trust to apply to
“the increase and diffusion of knowledge’ among mankind generally,
so that other men and other nations might share in its advantage as
well as ourselves.
“¢ Congress accepted the trust, and by the act of August 10, 1846,
established an institution to carry into effect the intention of the tes-
tator. The language of the will left a very wide discretion in the
manner of executing the trust, and different opinions might very nat-
urally be entertained on the subject. And it is very evident by the
* Messrs. Butler, Toucey, Bayard, Geyer, Pettit, and Toombs.
84 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
law above referred to that Congress did not deem it advisable to pre-
scribe any definite and fixed plan, and deemed it more proper to con-
fide that duty to a Board of Regents, carefully selected, indicating
only in general terms the objects to which their attention was to be
directed in executing the testator’s intention.
‘«Thus, by the fifth section, the Regents were required to cause a
building to be erected of sufficient size, and with suitable rooms or
halls, for the reception and arrangement, upon a liberal scale, of ob-
jects of natural history, including a geological and mineralogical
cabinet ; also a chemical Jaboratory, a library, a gallery of art, and
the necessary lecture-rooms. It is evident that Congress intended by
these provisions that the funds of the institution should be applied to
increase knowledge in all of the branches of science mentioned in this
section—in objects of natural history, in geology, in mineralogy, in
chemistry, in the arts—and that lectures were to be delivered upon
such topics as the Regents might deem useful in the execution of the
trust. And publications by the institution were undoubtedly neces-
sary to diffuse generally the knowledge that might be obtained ; for
any increase of knowledge that might thus be acquired was not to be
locked up in the institution or preserved only for the use of the citi-
zens of Washington, or persons who might visit the institution. It
was by the express terms of the trust, which the United States was
pledged to execute, to be diffused among men. This could be done
in no other way than by publications at the expense of the Institu-
tion. Nor has Congress prescribed the sums which shall be appro-
priated to these different objects. It is left to the discretion and judg-
ment of the Regents. 7
‘‘The fifth section also requires a library to be formed, and the eighth
section provides that the Regents shall make from the interest an ap-
propriation, not exceeding an average of twenty-five thousand dol-
lars annually, for the gradual formation of a library composed of val-
uable works pertaining to all departments of human knowledge.
‘‘ But this section cannot, by any fair construction of its language,
be deemed to imply that any appropriation to that amount, or nearly
so, was intended to be required. It is not a direction to the Regents
to apply that sum, but a prohibition to apply more ; and it leaves it
to the Regents to decide what amount within the sum limited can be
advantageously applied to the library, having a due regard to the
other objects enumerated in the law.
‘“ Indeed the eighth section would seem to be intended to prevent the
absorbtion of the funds of the Institution in the purchase of books.
And there would seem to be sound reason for giving it that construc-
tion; for such an application of the funds could hardly be regarded as
a faithtul execution of the trust; for the collection of an immense
library at Washington would certainly not tend ‘to increase or dif-
fuse knowledge’ in any other country, not even among the country-
men of the testator ; very few even of the citizens of the United States
would receive any benefit from it. And if the money was to be so ap-
propriated, it would have been far better to buy the books and place
them at once in the Congress library. They would be more accepta-
ble to the public there, and it would have saved the expense of a costly
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 85
building and the salaries of the officers; yet nobody would have listened
to such a proposition, or consented that the United States should take
to itself and for its own use the money which they accepted as a trust
for ‘the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.’
«This is the construction which the Regents have given to the acts
of Congress, and, in the opinion of the committee, it is the true one ;
and, acting under it, they have erected a commodious building, given
their attention to all the branches of science mentioned in the law, to
the full extent of the means afforded by the fund of the Institution,
and have been forming a library of choice and valuable books, amount-
ing already to more than fifteen thousand volumes. The books are,
for the most part, precisely of the character calculated to carry out the
intentions of the donor of the fund and of the act of Congress. They
are chiefly composed of works published by or under the auspices of
the numerous institutions of Hurope which are engaged in scientific
pursuits, giving an accountof their respective researches and of new dis-
coveries whenever they are made. These works are sent to the ‘Smith-
sonian Institution,’ in return for the publications of this Institution,
which aretransmitted to the learned societies and establishments abroad.
The library thus formed, and the means by which it is accomplished,
are peculiarly calculated to attain the object for which the munificent
legacy was given in trust to the United States. The publication of
the results of scientific researches made by the Institution is calculated
to stimulate American genius, and at the same time enable it to bring
before the public the fruits of its labors. And the transmission of
these publications to the learned societies in Europe, and receiving in
return the fruits of similar researches made by them, gives to each the
benefit of the ‘increase of knowledge’ which either may obtain, and
’ at the same time diffuses it throughout the civilized world. The
library thus formed will contain books suitable to the present state of
scientific knowledge, and will keep pace with its advance; and it is
certainly far superior to a vast collection of expensive works, most of
which may be found in any public library, and many of which are mere
objects of curiosity or amusement, and seldom, if ever, opened by any
one engaged in the pursuits of science.
“These operations appear to have been carried out by the Re-
gents, under the immediate superintendence of Prof. Henry, with
zeal, energy, and discretion, and with the strictest regard to economy
in the expenditure of the funds. Nor does there seem to be any other
mode which Congress could prescribe or the Regents adopt which
would better fulfil the high trust which, the United States have un-
dertaken to perform. No fixed and immutable plan prescribed by law
or adopted by the Regents would attain the objects of the trust. It
was evidently the intention of the donor that it should be carried into
execution by an institution or establishment, as it is termed in his
will. Congress has created one, and given it ample powers, but di-
recting its attention particularly to the objects enumerated in the
law ; and it is the duty of that Institution to avail itself of the lights
of experience, and to change its plan of operations when they are
convinced that a different one will better accomplish the objects of the
trust. The Regents have done so, and wisely, for the reasons above
86 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
stated. The committee see nothing, therefore, in their conduct which
calls for any new legislation or any change in the powers now exer-
cised by the Regents.
‘‘Wor many of the views and statements in the foregoing report the
committee are indebted to the full and luminous reports of the Board
of Regents. rom the views entertained by the committee, after an
impartial examination of the proceedings referred to, the committee
have adopted the language of the resolution, ‘that no action of the
Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithsonian Institu-
tution ; and this is the unanimous opinion of the commuattee.’ ’”
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 87
LECTURES
DELIVERED AT THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
SUBSTANCE OF A COURSE OF LECTURES ON MARINE
ALG Zi
BY WILLIAM HENRY HARVEY,
‘OF THE UNIVERSITY OF DUBLIN.
{Professor Harvey visited this country for the*purpose of studying the marine Aige or
sea-weeds of our coast. Two parts of his work have been printed by the Smithsonian
Institution, and a third will appear soon after his retura from his explorations on the
ceasts of the Pacizic ocean.]
Among the plants which constitute the ordinary covering of the
ground, whether that covering be one of forests, peopled by vegetable
giants, or of the herbage and small herbaceous plants that clothe the
open country, we observe that the greater number—at least of those
which ordinarily force themselves on our notice—have certain obvious
ergans or parts: namely a root by which they are fixed in the ground,
and through which they derive their nourishment from the fluids of
the soil; a stem or axis developed, in ordinary cases, above ground ;
leaves which clothe that stem, and in which the crude food absorbed
by the roots and transmitted through the stem is exposed to the
influence of solar light and of the air; and, finally, special modi-
fications of leaf buds called flowers, in which seeds are originated and
brought to maturity. These seeds, falling from the parent plant,
endowed with an independent life under whose influence they germi-
nate, attract food from surrounding mineral matter; digest it ; organize
it, that is, convert it from dead substance into living substance ; form
new parts or organs from this prepared matter; and, finally, grow
into vegetables, having parts similar to those of the parent plant,
and similarly arranged.
This is the usual course of vegetation: seeds develop roots, stems,
and leafy branches; the latter at maturity bear flowers, producing
similar seeds, destined to go through a like course; and so on, from
one vegetable generation to another. But, with a perfect agreement
among seed-bearing plants in the end proposed and attained, there is
an endless variety of minor modifications through which the end is
compassed. All degrees of modification exist between the simplest
and most complicated digestive organs; in some, the root, stem, and
leaves are so blended together, that we lose the notion of distinct or-
38 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
gans, and in others the leaves are reduced to scales or spines, while
the stem and branches are expanded and become not merely leaf-like,
but actually discharge the functions of leaves. In the reproductive
organs or flowers, too, we find equal variety ; from the most elaborate
and often gorgeous structures to the simplest and plainest, till at last
we arrive at flowers, whose organization is so low that not only have
calyx and corolla disappeared, but the very seed-vessel itself is re-
duced to an open scale or is wholly absent. Yet in all these modifi-
cations it is merely the means that are varied ; the end proposed is as
efficiently attained by the simplest agency as by the most complex ; as
if the Creator had designed to show us plainly how it is the same to
Him to act by many or by few, by the most elaborate arrangement
when He wills it, and by the simplest when that is His pleasure.
In all the cases of which we have as yet spoken, seeds are the result
of the vegetable cycle; a seed being a compound body, containing an
embryo or miniature plant, having stem, root, and leaf already organ-
ized, and enclosed with proper coverings or seed coats. But some
plants do not produce such seeds. At least one-sixth of the vegetable
kingdom, perhaps more, are propagated by isolated cells (or spores)
cast loose from the structure of which they had formed a portion, and
endowed thenceforth with independent powers of growth and devel-
opment. Such are the reproductive bodies of the Ferns, the Mosses,
and all plants below them in the vegetable scale, concluding with the
large class to which our attention will now be confined—the Algew—
which of all are the lowest and simplest in organization.
The framework of every vegetable is built up of cells, little mem-
branous sacks of various forms, with walls of varying tenacity, empty,
or containing fluid or granular, organized matter, from which new
cells may be developed. Among more perfect plants there is, in dif-
ferent parts of the same individual, considerable variety in the form
and substance of the cells; those of the wood and of the veins of
the leaves being different from those of the soft part of the leaves,
and these again different from those of the skin which is spread over
the whole. But as we descend in the scale of organization, greater
and greater uniformity is found. Below the /’erns, no vascular tissue
and no proper wood-cells occur; and at last in the Algz, no cells
exist differing from those of ordinary parenchyma or soft cells, such
as compose the pulp of a leaf. Algae, then, together with Mosses,
Lichens, and Fungi, are termed cellular plants, in contradistinction
to Ferns and Flowering plants, which are denominated vascular,
Among the most perfect of the Alga, however, though the cells are
all of the same substance and nature, all parenchimatic, they are of
various forms and arrangement in different portions of the vegetable,
often keeping up a very perfect analogy with the double system of
arrangement—the vertical and horizontal, or woody and cellular sys-
tems—of higher plants. Thus the cells of the axis of the compound
cylindrical Algz are arranged longitudinally, like the wood-cells of
stems, while those of the periphery or outer coating of the same Algze
have a horizontal direction.
In the most perfect of such Alge the frame still consists of root,
stem, and leaves, developed in an order analogous to that of higher
plants. Passing from such, we meet with others gradually less and
¢ THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 89
less perfect, until the whole vegetable is reduced either to a root-like
body, or a branching naked stem, or an expanded leaf; as if Nature
had first formed the types of the compound vegetable organs so named
and exhibited them as separate vegetables ; and then, by combining
them in a single framework, had built up her perfect idea of a fully
organized plant. But among the Algw, we may go still lower in
vegetable organization, and arrive at plants where the whole body is
composed of a few cells strung together; and finally at others—the
simplest of known vegetables—whose whole framework is a single
cell. These are the true vegetable monads: with these we commence
the great series of the Alge at its lowest point, and proceeding yup-
wards we find, within the limits of this same series, all degrees of
complication of framework short of the development of proper flowers.
It is this progressive organization of the Alga which renders the
study of this portion of the vegetable world especially interesting to
the philosophical botanist, because it displays to him, as in a mirror,
something of that general plan of development which Nature has fol-
lowed in constructing other and more compound plants, in which her
steps are less easily traced. Fromits first conception within the ovule
to its full development, one of the higher plants goes through transform-
ations strictly analogous to stages of advancement that can be traced
among the Algz from species to species, and from genus to genus,
from the least perfect to the most perfect of the group. Hach Alga-
species has its own peculiar phase of development, which it reaches,
and there stops; another species, passing this condition, carries the
ideal plan a step further ; and thus successive species exhibit succes-
sive stages of advancement. ,
While their gradually’advancing scale of development renders the
study of these plants more interesting, it also increases the difficulty
of constructing a short and yet definite character, or diagnosis, which
will exclude every member of the group, and exclude species more
properly referable to the kindred groups of Licnens and Funer. I
shall not here attempt any such critical definition, but proceed to trace
the gradual evolution of the frond and of the organs of fructification
in the Algw, assuming that with the Atem are to be classed all Thallo-
phytes (or Cryptogamic plants destitute of proper axes, in the more
restricted view of that term) which are developed in water, or nour-
ished wholly through the medium of fluids, while all Thallophytes
that are erial and not parasitic are Licuens, and all that are erial
and parasitic are Funat.
Commencing then with Alge of the simplest structure, a large part
of them, belonging to the orders Diatomacece and Desmidiacee, con-
sist almost entirely of individual isolated cells. Each plant, or frond,
is formed of a single living cell; destitute therefore of any special
organs, and performing every function of life in that one universal
organ of which its frame consists. The growth of these simple plants
is like that of the ordinary cells of which the compound frame of
higher plants iscomposed. Nourishment is absorbed through the mem-
branous coating of the young plant (or cell), digested within its sim-
ple cavity, and the assimilated matter applied to the extension of the
céll-wall, until that has reached the size proper to the species. Then
the matter contained within the cavity gradually separates into two
90 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF ‘
portions, and at the same time a cell-wall is farmed between each por-
tion, and thus the original simple cell becomes two cells. These no
longer cohere together, as cells do in a compound plant, but each
hali-cell separates from its fellow, and commencing av independent
career, digests food, increases in size, divides at maturity, &c., going
again and again through a similar round of changes. In this way,
by the process of self-division, and without any fructification, a large
surface of water may soon be covered with these vegetable monads,
from the mere multiplication of a single individual.
These minute plants, (Diatomacee and Desmidiacee) from their
microscopic size and uniform and simple structure, are justly regarded
as at the base of the vegetable kingdom. Notwithstanding which
lowly position in the scale of being, they display an infinite variety
of the most exquisite forms and finely sculptured surfaces; so that
their study affords as much scope for the powers of observation as
does that of the creation which is patent to our ordinary senses.
These tribes are, however, omitted from this essay, because they have
been made the objects of special inquiry by Professor Bailey of West
Point, whose memoirs in the volumes of the Smithsonian Contribu-
tions are referred to for further information.
But Desmidiacee and Diatomacee are not the only Alge of this
simple structure. The lowest forms of the order Palmellacew, such
as the Protococcus or Red snow plant, have an equally simple organ-
ization. The blood-red color of Alpine or Arctic snow which has
been so often observed by voyagers, and which was seen to spread over
so vast an extent of ground by Captain Ross, in his first Arctic journey,
is due to more than one species of microscopic plant, and to some
minute infusorial animals which perhaps acquire the red color from
feeding on the Protococcus among which they are found. The best
known and most abundant plant of this snow vegetation is the Pro-
tococcus nivalis, which is a spherical cell, containing a carmine-red
globe of granulated, semi-fluid substance, surrounded by a hyaline
limbus or thick cell-wall. At maturity the contained red matter
separates into several spherical portions, each of which becomes
clothed with a membranous coat; and thus forming as many small
cells. The walls of the parent whose whole living substance has
thus been appropriated to the offspring, now burst asunder, and the
progeny escape. These rapidly increase in size until each acquires
the dimensions of the parent, when the contained matter is again
separated into new spheres; giving rise to new cells, to undergo in
their turn the same changes. And as, under favorable circumstances,
but a few hours are required for this simple growth and development,
the production of the red snow plant is often very rapid: hence the
accounts frequently given of the sudden appearance of a red color in
the snow, over a wide space, which appearance is ascribed by common
report to the falling of bloody rain or snow. In many such cases it
is probable that the Protococcus may have existed on the portion ot
soil over which the snow fell, and its development may have merely
kept pace with the gradually deepening sheet of snow. That this
plant is not confined to the surface of snow is well known; and Cap-
tain Ross mentions that in many places where he had an opportunity
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 91
of examining it, he found that it extended several feet in depth. It
has been found both in Sweden and Scotland on rocks, in places re-
mote from snow deposites ; and it probably lies dormant, or slowly
vegetates in such cases, waiting for asupply of snow, in which it grows
with greater rapidity.
The structure and development which I have described as charac-
terizing Protococcus, are strikingly similar to those of what are com-
monly considered minute infusorial animals, called Volvox ; the chief
difference between Protococcus and Volvox being that the latter is
clothed with vibratile hairs, by the rapid motion of which the little
spheres are driven in varying directions through the water. Many
naturalists, and some of high note, are now of opinion that Volvox and
its kindred should be classed with the Alga, and certainly (as we shall
afterwards see) their peculiar ciliary motion is no bar to this associa-
tion. Ido not pronounce on this question, because it does not im-
mediately concern our present subject, and because, in all its collat-
eral bearings, it requires more attentive examination than it has yet
undergone.
In Protococcus the cell of which the plant consists is spherical or
oval; in other equally elementary Algz the cell is cylindrical, and
sometimes lengthened considerably into a thread-like body. Such is
the formation of Oscillatorice. In Vaucherie there is a further advance,
the filiform cell becoming branched without any interruption to its
cavity ; and such branching cells frequently attain some inches in
length, and a diameter of half a line, constituting some of the largest
cells known among plants.
In all these cases each cell is a separate individual: such plants
are therefore the simplest expression of the vegetable idea. But even
in this extremest simplicity we find the first indication of the struc-
ture which is to be afterwards evolved. Thus in the spherical cell we
have the earliest type of the cellular system of a compound plant
developing equally in all directions ; and in the cylindrical cell, the
illustration of the vertical system developing longitudinally. These
tendencies, here scarcely manifest, become at once obvious when the
framework begins to be composed of more cells than one.
Thus in the genera nearest allied to Protococcus, the frond is a
roundish mass of cells cobering irregularly by their sides. From
these through Palmella and Tetraspora we arrive at Ulva, where a
more or less compact membranous expansion is formed by the lateral
cohesion of a multitude of youndish (or, by mutual pressure, polygonal)
cells originating in the quadri-partition of older cells; that is, by the
original ceils dividing longitudinally as well as transversely, thus
forming four new cells from the matter of the old cell, and causing
the cell-growth to proceed nearly equally in both directions. Start-
ing, therefore, from Protococcus, and tracing the development through
anim stages, we arrive in Ulva at the earliest type of an expanded
eaf,
In like manner the earliest type of a stem may be found by tracing
the Alge which originate in cylindrical cells. Here the new cells
are formed in a longitudinal direction only, by the bipartition of the
old cells. Thus, in Conferva, where the body consists of a number
92 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
of cylindrical cells, strung end to end, these have originated by the
continual transverse division of an original cylindrical cell. Such a
frond will continually lengthen, but will make no lateral growth ;
and consisting of a series of joints and interspaces, it correctly sym-
bolizes the stem of one of the higher plants, formed of a succession
of nodes and internodes. And the analogy is still further preserved
when such confervoid threads branch; for the branches constantly
originate at the joints or nodes, just as do the leaves and branches of
the higher compound plants. .
We have then two tendencies exhibited among Algee—the first, a
tendency to form membranous expansions, the symbols or types of
leaves; the second, a tendency to form cylindrical bodies or stems.
Among the less perfect Algze the whole plant will consist either of
one of these foliations, or of a simple or branched stem, But
eradually both ideas or forms will be associated in the same in-
dividual, and exhibited in greater or less perfection. We shall find
stems becoming flattened at their summits into leaves, and leaves, by
the loss of their lateral membranes, and the acquisition of thicker
midribs, changing into stems; and among the most highly organized
Algze we shall find leaf-like lateral branches assuming the form, and
to a good degree the arrangement of the leaves of higher plants. Not
that we find among Alge proper leaves, like those of phenogamous
plants, constantly developing buds in their axils ; for even where
leaf-like bodies are most obvious (as in the genus Sargassum,) they
are merely Phyllocladia or expanded branches, as may readily be
seen by observing a Sargassum in a young state, and watching the
gradual changes that take place as the frond lengthens. These
changes will be explaimed in the systematic portion of my work.
I shall now notice more particularly the varieties of habit observed
among the compound Alg; and first,
OF THE ROOT.
The root among the Algew is rarely much developed. Among
higher plants which derive their nourishment from the soil in which
they grow, and in Fungi which feed on the juices of organized bodies,
root-fibres, through which nourishment is absorbed, are essential to
the development of the vegetable. But the AJgs do not, in a general
way, derive nourishment from the soil on which they grow. We
find them growing indifferently on rocks «of various mineralogical
character, on floating timber, on shells, on iron or other metal, on
each other—in fine, on any substance which is long submerged, and
which affords a foothold. Into none of those substances do they emit
roots, nor do we find that they cause the decay, or appropriate to
themselves the constituents, of those substances. ‘They are nourished
by the water that surrounds them and the various substances which
are dissolved in it. On those substances they frequently exert a
very remarkable power, effecting chemical changes which the chemist
can imitate only by the agency of the most powerful apparatus.
They actually sometimes reverse the order of chemical affinity,
driving out the stronger acid from the salts which they imbibe, and
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 93
causing a weaker acid to unite with the base. Thus they decompose
the muriate of soda which they absorb from sea-water, partly freeing
and partly appropriating the chlorine and hydrogen; and the soda
is found combined in their tissues with carbonic acid.
A remarkable instance of the action of a minute Alga on a chemi-
cal solution was pointed out tome by Prof. Bache, as occurring in
the vessels of sulphate of copper kept in the electrotyping department
of the Coast Survey office at Washington. <A slender contervoid Alga
infests the vats containing sulphate of copper, and proves very
destructive. It decomposes the salt, and assimilates the sulphuric
acid, rejecting (as indigestible !) the copper, which is deposited round
its threads in a metallic form. It sometimes appears in great quan-
tities, and is very troublesome; but the vats had been cleaned a few
days before I visited them, so that I lost the opportunity of examining
more minutely this curious little plant. Most probably it is a spe-
cies of Hygrocrocis,* a group of Alge of low organization but strong
digestive powers, developed in various chemical solutions or in the
waters of mineral springs. All the Algz, however, which are found
in such localities are not species of Hygrocrocis, for several Oscillatorica
and Calothrices occur in thermal waters. Species of the former genus
are found even in the boiling waters of the Icelandic Geysers. Of
the latter, one species at least, Calothrix nivea, is very common in
hot sulphur springs, and I observed it in great plenty in the streams
running from the inflammable springs at Niagara.
But on whatever substance the Alga may feed, it is rarely obtained
through the intervention of a root. Dissolved in the water that
bathes the whole frond, the food is imbibed equally through all the
cells of the surface, and passes from cell to cell towards those parts
that are more actively assimilating, or growing more rapidly. The
root, where such an organ exists, is a mere holditast, intended to keep
the plant fixed to a base, and prevent its being driven about by the
action of the waves. It is ordinarily a simple disc, or conical expan-
sion of the base of the stem, strongly applied and firmly adhering to
the substance on which the Alga grows. This is the usual form
among all the smaller growing kinds. Where, however, as in the
eigantic Oar-weeds or Laminariw, the frond attains a large size,
offering a proportionate resistance to the waves, the central disc is
strengthened by lateral holdfasts or discs formed at the bases of side
roots emitted by the lower part of the stem; just as the tropical
Screw-pine (Pandonus) puts out cables and shrouds to enable its
slender stem to support the weight of the growing head of branches.
The branching roots of the Laminaria, then, are merely Fucus-discs
become compound : instead of the conical base of a /’wcus, formed of
a single disc, there is a conical base formed of a number of such discs
disposed in a circle. In some few instances, as in Macrocystis, the
grasping fibres of the root develop more extensively, and form a
matted stratum of considerable extent, from which many stems spring
= Perhaps the Hygrocrocis cuprica, Kutz, or some allied species ; but I had no opportunity
of examining a recent specimen, and the characters cannot be made out from a dried one.
94 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
up. This is a further modification of the same idea, a further exten-
sion of the base of the cone.
In all these cases the roots extend over flat surfaces, to which they
adhere by a series of discs. They show no tendency to penetrate
like the branching roots of perfect plants. The only instances of such
penetrating roots among the Algz with which I am acquainted, occur
in certain genera of Siphonee and in the Caulerpec, tropical and sub-
tropical forms, of which there are numerous examples on the shores
of the Florida Keys. These plants grow either on sandy shores or
among coral, into which their widely extended fibrous roots often
penetrate for a considerable distance, branching in all directions, and
forming a compact cushion in the sand, reminding one strongly of the
much divided roots of sea-shore grasses that bind together the loose
sands of our dunes. But neither in these cases do the roots appear to
differ from the nature of holdfasts, and their ramification and exten-
sion through the sand is probably owing to the unstable nature of
such a soil. It is not in search of nourishment, but in search of
stability, that the fibres of their roots are put forth, like so many
tendrils. We shall have more to speak of these roots in the proper
place, and shall now proceed to notice some of the forms exhibited
by—
THE FROND.
The frond or vegetable body of the compound Algz puts on a great
variety of shapes in different families, as it gradually rises from
simpler to more complex structures. In the less organized it consists
of a string of cells arranged like the beads of a necklace; and the
cells of which such strings are composed may be either globose or
cylindrical. In the former case we have a moniliform string or fila-
ment, and in the latter a filiform or cylindrical one. The term filament
(in Latin, filum) is commonly applied to such simple strings of cells,
but has occasionally a wider acceptation, signifying any very slender,
threadlike body, though formed of more than one series of cells.
This is a loose application of the term, and ought to be avoided. By
Kiitzing the term trichoma is substituted for the older word filum or
filament. Where the jilament (or trichoma) consists of a single series
of consecutive cells, it appears like a jointed thread ; each individual
cell constituting an articulation, and the walls between the cells form-
ing dissepiments or nodes, terms which are frequently employed in
describing plants of this structure. Where the filament is composed
of more series of cells than one, it may be either articulated or in-
articulate. In the former case, the cells or articulations of the
minor filaments which compose the common filament are all of equal
length ; their dissepiments are therefore all on a level, and divide the
compound body into a series of nodes and internodes, or dissepiments
and articulations. In the latter, the cells of the minor filaments are
of unequal length, so that no articulations are obvious in the com-
pound body. In Polysiphonia and Rhodomela may be seen examples
of such articulate and inarticulate filaments.
By Kiitzing the term phycoma is applied to such compound stems ;
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 95
and when the phycoma becomes flattened or leaf-like, a new term,
phylloma, is giver to it by the same author. These terms are some-
times convenient in describing particular structures, though not yet
generally adopted. The cells of which compound stems (or phyco-
mata) are composed are very variously arranged, and on this cellular
arrangement, or internal structure of the stem, depends frequently
the place in the system to which the plant is to be referred. A close
examination, therefore, of the interior of the frond, by means of thin
slices under high powers of the microscope, is often necessary, before
we can ascertain the position of an individual plant whose relations
we wish to learn. Sometimes all the cells have a longitudinal direc-
tion, their longer axes being vertical. Very frequently, this longi-
tudinal arrangement is found only towards the centre of the stem,
while towards the circumference the cells stand at right angles to
those of the centre, or have a horizontal direction. In such stems we
distinguish a proper avis, running through the frond, and a periphery,
or peripheric stratum, forming the outside layer or circumference.
Sometimes the axis is the densest portion of the frond, the filaments
of which it is composed being very strongly and closely glued to-
gether ; in other cases it is very lax, each individual filament lying
apart from its fellow, the interspaces being filled up with vegetable
mucus or gelatine. This gelatine differs greatly in consistence; in
some Alge it is very thin and watery, in others it is slimy, and in
others it has nearly the firmness of cartilage. On the degree of its
compactness and abundance depends the relative substance of the
plant ; which is membranaceous where the gelatine is in small quan-
tity; gelatinous where it is very abundant and somewhat fluid; or
cartilaginous where it is firm.
The frond may be either cylindrical or stem-like, or more or less
compressed and flattened. Often a cylindrical stem bears branches
which widen upwards, and terminate in leaf-like expansions, which
are of various degrees of perfection in different kinds. ‘Thus some-
times the leaf, or phylloma, is a mere dilatation; in other cases it is
traversed by a midrib, and in the most perfect kinds lateral nervelets
issue from the midrib and extend to the margin. These leaves are
either vertical, which is their normal condition, or else they are in-
clined at various angles to the stem or axis, chiefly from a twisting
in their lamina, the insertion of the leaf preserving its vertical posi-
tion. They are variously lobed or cloven, and in a few cases (as in
the Sea Colander of the American coast) they are regularly pierced,
at all ages, with a series of holes which seem to originate in some
portions of the lamina developing new cells with greater rapidity than
other parts, thus causing an unequal tension in various portions of the
frond, and consequently the production of holes in those places where
the growth is defective. Such plants, though they form lace-like
fronds, are scarcely to be considered as net-works. Net-like fronds
are, however, formed by several Algee where the branches regularly
anastomose one with another, and form meshes like those of a net.
Most species with this structure are peculiar to the Southern Ocean,
but in the waters of the Caribbean Sea are found two or three which
may perhaps yet be detected on the shores of the Florida Keys. In
96 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
one of the Australian genera of this structure (Clawdea) the net-work
is formed by the continual anastomosis of minute leaflets, each of
which is furnished with a midrib and lamina. The apices of the mid-
ribs of one series of these leaves grow into the dorsal portion of leaves
that issue at right angles to them, and as the leaves having longitudi-
nal and horizontal directions, or those that form the warp and weft
of the frond, are of minute size and closely and regularly disposed,
the net-work that results is lace-like and delicately beautiful.
In the Hydrodictyon, a fresh-water Alga, found in ponds in Europe
and in the United States, where it was first detected by Professor
Bailey near West Point, a net-like frond is formed in a different man-
ner. This plant when fully grown resembles an ordinary fishing-net
of fairy size, each pentagonal mesh being formed of five cells, and one
cell making a side of the pentagon. As the plant grows larger, the
meshes become wider by the lengthening of the cells of which each
mesh is composed. When at maturity, the matter contained within
each cell of the mesh is gradually organized into granules, or germs
of future cells, and these become connected together in fives while yet
contained in the parent cell. Thus meshes first, and at length little
microscopic net-works, are formed within cach cell of the meshes of
the old net ; and this takes place before the old net breaks up. At
length the cells of the old net burst, and from each issues forth the
little net-work, perfectly formed, but of very minute size, which, by
an expansion of its several parts, will become a net like that from
which its parent cell was derived. Thus, supposing each cell of a
single net of the Hydrodictyon were to be equally fertile, some myriads
of new nets would be produced from every single net as it broke up
and dissolved. In this way a large surface of water might be filled
with the plant in a single generation.
The manner of growth of the frond is very various in the different
families. In some, the body lengthens by continual additions to its
apex, every branch being younger the further removed it is from the
base ; that is, the tips of the branches are the youngest parts. This
is the usual mode of growth in the Confervoid genera, and also ob-
tains in many of those higher in the series, as in the Fucacee and
many other Melanosperms. In the Laminariw, on the contrary, the
apex, when once formed, does not materially lengthen, but the new
growth takes place at the base of the lamina, or in the part where the
cylindrical stipe passes into the expanded or leaflike portion of the
frond. In such plants the apex is rarely found entire in old speci-
mens, but is either torn by the action of the waves or thrown off alto-
gether, and its place supplied by a new growth from below. In sev-
eral species this throwing off of the old frond takes place regularly at
the close of each season; the old lamina being gradually pushed off
by a young lamina growing under it. There are others, among the
filiform kinds, in which the smaller branches are suddenly deciduous,
falling off from the larger and permanent portions of the trunk, as
leaves do in autumn from deciduous trees. Hence specimens of these
plants collected in winter are so unlike the summer state of the spe-
cies, that to a person unacquainted with their habits they would appear
to be altogether different in kind. The summer and winter states of
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 97
Rhodomela subfusca are thus different. In Desmarestia aculeata the
young plants, or the younger branches of old plants, are clothed with
soft pencils of delicate jointed filaments, which fall off when the frond
attains maturity, and leave naked, thorny branches behind. Similar
delicate hairs are found in many other Algz of very different families,
generally clothing the younger and growing parts of the frond ; and
they seem to be essential organs, probably engaged in elaborating the
crude sap of these plants, and consequently analogous to the leaves of
perfect plants. This is as yet chiefly conjectural. The conjecture,
however, is founded on the observed position of these hair-like bodies,
which are always found on growing points, the new growth taking
place immediately beneath their insertion. In most cases these hairs
are deciduous ; but in some, as in the genus Dasya, they are persist-
ent, clothing all parts of the frond so long as they continue in vigor.
They vary much in form, in some being long, filiform, single cells ;
in others, unbranched strings of shorter cells, and in others dichoto-
mous, or, rarely, pinnated filaments.
Three principal varieties of
COLOR
are generally noticed among the Alge, namely, Grass-green or Her-
baceous, Olive-green, and fed; and as these classes of color are
pretty constant among. otherwise allied species, they afford a ready
character by which, at a glance, these plants may be separated into
natural divisions ; and hence color is here employed in classification
with more success than among any other vegetables. In the subdi-
vision of Algze into the three groups of Chlorosperms, Melanosperms,
and Rhodosperms, the color of the frond is, as we shall afterwards see,
employed as a convenient diagnostic character. It is a character,
however, which must be cautiously applied in practice by the student,
because, though sufficiently constant on the whole and under ordinary
circumstances, exceptions occur now and then ; and under special cir-
cumstances Algz of one series assume in some degree the color of
either of the other series.
The green color is characteristic of those that grow either in fresh
water or in the shallower parts of the sea, where they are exposed to
full sunshine but seldom quite uncovered by water. Almost all the
fresh-water species are green, and perhaps three fourths of those that
grow in sunlit parts of the sea ; but some of those of deep water are of
as vivid a green as any found near the surface, so that we cannot as-
sert that the green color is owing here, as it is among land plants,
to a perfect exposure to sunlight. Several species of Caulerpa, Ana-
dyomene, Codium, Bryopsis and others of the Siphonez, which are not
less herbaceous or vivid in their green colors than other Chloro-
sperms, frequently occur at considerable depths, to which the light
must be very imperfectly transmitted.
Algze of an olivaceous color are most abundant between tide-marks,
in places where they are exposed to the air, at the recess of the tide,
and thus alternately subjected to be left to parch in the sun, and to.
be flooded by the cool waves of the returning tide. They extend, how-
ever, to low-water mark, and form a broad belt of. vegetation.about
98 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
that level, and a few straggle into deeper water, sometimes into very
deep water. The gigantic deep-water Algae, Macrocystis, Nereocys-
tis, Lessonia, and Durvillea, are olive-colored.
’ Red-colored Alge are most abundant in the deeper and darker
parts of the sea, rarely growing in tide pools, except where they are
shaded from the direct beams of the sun either by a projecting rock,
or by over-lying olivaceous Algw. The red color is always purest
and most intense when the plant grows in deep water, as may be seen
by tracing any particular species from the greatest to the least depth
at which it is found. Thus, the common Ceramium rubrum in deep
pools or near low-water mark is of a deep, full red, its cells abun-
dantly “filled with bright carmine endochrome, which will be dis-
charged in fresh water so as to form a rose-colored infusion; but the
same , plant, growing in open, shallow pools, near high- water mark,
where it is exposed to the sun, becomes very pale, the color fading
through all shades of pink down to dull orange or straw-color. It
is observable that this plant, which is properly one of the red series
(or Rhodosperms,) does not become grass-green (or like a Chlorosperm)
by being developed in the shallower water, but merely loses its capa-
city for forming the red-colored matter peculiar to itself. So, also,
Laurencia pinnatifida, and other species of that genus, which are nor-
mally dark purple, are so only when they grow near low-water mark.
And as many of them extend into shallower parts, and some even
nearly to high-water limit, we find specimens of these plants of every
shade of color from dull purple to dilute yellow or dirty white.
Similar changes of color, and from a similar cause, are seen in Chon-
drus crispus, the Carrigeen or Lrish Moss, which is properly of a fine
deep purplish red, but becomes greenish or whitish when growing in
shallow pools. The white pobar therefore, which is prefer red in car-
rigeen by the purchaser of the prepared article, is entirely due to
bleaching and repeated rinsing in fresh water.
Many ‘Alge, both of the olive and red series, and in a less perfect
manner a few of the grass-green also, reflect prismatic colors when
growing under water. In some species of Cystoseira, particularly in
the European C’. ericoides and its allies, these colors are so vivid that
the dull olive-brown branches appear, as they wave to and fro in the
water, to be clothed with the richest metallic greens and blues,
changing with every movement, as the beams of light fall in new di-
rections on them. Similar colors, but in a less degree, are seen on
Chondrus crispus when growing in deep water ; but here the prismatic
coloring is often confined to the mere tips of the branches, which
glitter like sapphires or emeralds among the dark purple leaves. The
cause of these changeable colors has not been particularly sought
after. The surface may be finely striated, but it does not seem to be
more so than in other allied species, where no such iridescence has
been observed. In the Chondrus the changeable tints appear to
characterize those specimens only which grow in deep water, and
which are stronger and more cartilaginous than those which grow in
shallow pools.
Fresh water has generally a very strong action on the colors as
well as on the substance of marine Alew which are plunged into it.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 99
To many it is a strong poison, rapidly dissolving the gelatine which
connects the cells, and dissolving also the walls of the cells them-
selves; and that so quickly that in a few minutes one of these delicate
plants will be dissolved into a shapeless mass of broken cells and
slime. Many species which, when fresh from the sea, resist the action
of fresh water, and may be steeped in it without injury for several
hours, if again moistened after having once been dried, will almost
instantly dissolve and decompose. This is remarkably the case with
several species of Gigartinaand Iridea. The first effect of fresh water
on the red colors of Algx is to render them brighter and more clear.
Thus Dasya coccinea, Gelidium cartilagineum, Plocamium coccineum,
and others, are when recent of a very dark and somewhat dull red
color ; but when exposed either to showers and sunshine on the
beach, or to fresh-water baths in the studio of the botanist, become of
various tints of crimson or scarlet, according as the process is con-
tinued for a less or greater length of time. At length the coloring
matter would be expelled and the fronds bleached white, as occurs
among the specimens cast up and exposed to the long continued action
of the air; but if stopped in time and duly regulated, the colors may
be greatly heightened by fresh water. Some plants which are dull
brown when going into the press, come out a fine crimson ; this is the
case with Delesseria sanguinea, though that plant is not always of a
dull color when recent. Others, which are of the most delicate rosy
hues when recent, become brown or even black when dried. This is
especially the case in the order Rhodomelacee, so named from this
tendency of their reds to change to black in drying. The tendency
to become black, though it cannot be altogether overcome in these
plants, may often be lessened by steeping them in fresh water for some
time previous to drying. Hot water generally changes the colors of
all Algw to green, and if heat be applied during the drying process, an
artificial green may be imparted to the specimens; but such a mode
of preparation of specimens ought never to be practised by botanical
collectors, though it may sometimes serve the purpose of makers of
seaweed pictures.
THE FRUCTIFICATION
of the Algw will be more fully described in the systematic portion
of my work, when speaking of the various forms it assumes in the
different families. I shall at present, therefore, limit myself to a
very few general observations. The spore or reproductive gem-
mule of the Alge is in all cases a simple cell, filled with denser and
darker colored endochrome (or coloring matter) than that found in
other cells of the frond. Inthe simplest Algx, where the whole body
consists of a single cell, some gradually change and are converted
into spores, without any obvious contact with others: but far more
frequently, as in the Desmidiacee and Diatomacec, a spore is formed
only by the conjugation of two cells or individual plants. When
these simple vegetable atoms are mature, and about to form their
fructification, two individuals are observed to approach ; a portion of
tlie cell-wall of each is then extended into a tubercle at opposite
100 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
points ; these tubercles come into contact, and at length become con-
fluent; the dissepiment between them vanishes, and a tube is thus
formed connecting the two cavities together. Through this tube the
matter contained in both the old cells is transmitted and becomes
mixed; changes take place in its organization, and at length a spo-
rangium, or new cell filled with spores is formed from it, either in
one of the old cells, or commonly at the point of the connecting tube,
where the two are soldered together. Then the old empty cells or
plants die, and the species is represented by its sporangium, which
may remain dormant, retaining vitality for a considerable time, as
from one year to another, or probably for several years. These spo-
rangia, which are abundantly formed -at the close of the season of
active growth, become buried in the mud at the bottoms of pools,
where they are encased on the drying up of the water in summer, and
are ready to develop into new fronds on the return of moisture in
spring.
Many of the lower Algze form fruit in this manner, to which the
name conjugation is technically given. The thread-like Silk-weeds of
ponds and ditches (Zygnemata and Mougeotic, &c.,) are good exam-
ples of such a mode of fruiting. In these almost every cell is fertile,
and when two threads are yoked together, a series of sporangia will
be formed in one thread, while the other will be converted into a
string of dead, empty cells. Before conjugation there was, seeming-
ly, no difference between the contents of one set of cells and of the
other ; so that there is no clear proof of the existence of distinct
sexes in these plants, however much the process of fruiting observed
among them may indicate an approach to it.
The process of fruiting in the higher Algze appears to be very sim-
ilar: namely, spores or sporangia appear to be formed by certain cells
attracting to themselves the contents of adjacent cells; and in the
compound kinds, empty cells are almost always found in the neigh-
borhood of the fruit cells; but with the complication of the parts of
the frond, the exact mode in which spores are formed becomes more
difficult of observation. At length, among the highest Algz we en-
counter what appear to be really two sexes, one analogous to the
anther, and the other to the pistil of flowering plants. It would
seem, however, that it is not each individual spore which is fertilized,
as is the case in seed-bearing plants; but that the fertilizing influence
is imparted to the pistil or sporangium itself, when that body is in its
most elementary form, long before any spore is produced in its sub-
stance, and even when it is itself scarcely to be distinguished from an
ordinary cell. Antheridia, as the supposed fertilizing organs are
called, are most readily seen among the Mucacece, and will be described
under that family.
Besides the reproduction by means of proper spores,gmany Algw
have a second mode of continuing the species, and some even a third.
Among the simpler kinds, where the whole body consists of a single
cell, a fissiparous division, exactly similar to the fissiparous multiph-
cation of cells among higher plants, takes place. This cell, as has
been already mentioned, divides at maturity into two parts, which,
falling asunder, become separate individuals, Similar self-division
*
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 101
has been noticed among the lower Palmellacee, and in other imper-
fectly organized families. Such a mode of multiplying individuals is
analogous to the propagation of larger plants by the process of gem-
mation, where buds are formed and thrown off to become new indi-
viduals. When, as in the Lemna or Duckweed, the whole vegetable
body is as simple as a phanerogamous plant can well be, the new
frondlets or buds are produced in a manner very strikingly analogous
to the production of new fronds in Desmidiacec.
The third mode of continuing the species has been observed in many
Algz of the green series, in some of which sporangia are also formed,
but in others no fructification other than what I am about to describe
has been detected. This mode is as follows. In an early stage, the
green matter, or endochrome, contained within the cells of these Algee,
is of a nearly homogeneous consistence throughout, and semi-fluid 5
but at an advanced period it becomes more and more granulated.
The granules when formed in the cells at first adhere to the inner sur-
face of the membranous wall, but soon detach themselves and float
freely in the cell. At first they are of irregular shapes, but they
gradually become spheroidal. They then congregate into a dense
mass in the centre of the cell, and a movement aptly compared to that
of the swarming of bees round their queen begins to take place. One
by one these active granules detach themselves from the swarm, and
move about in the vacant space of the cell with great vivacity. Con-
tinually pushing against the sides of the cell wall, they at length
pierce it, and issue from their prison into the surrounding fluid, where .
their seemingly spontaneous movements are continued for some time.
These vivacious granules, or zoospores, as they have been called, at
length become fixed to some submerged object, where they soon begin
to develop cells, and at length grow into Alge similar to those from
whose cells they issued.
Their spontaneous movements before and immediately subsequent
to emission lead me to speak of the
MOVEMENTS OF ALG
in general. These are of various kinds, and of greater or less degrees
of vivacity. In some Algz a movement from place to place continues
through the life of the individual, while in others, as in the zoospores
of which I have just spoken, it is confined to a short period, often to
a few hours, in the transition state of the spore, after it escapes from
the parent filament, and until it fixes itself and germinates. Many
observers have recorded these observations, which are to be found de-
tailed in various periodicals.* I shall here notice only a few cases
illustrative of the various kinds of movement. The most ordinary of
these movements is effected by means of vibratile cilia or hairs, pro-
duced by the membrane of the spore, and which, by rapid backward
and forward motion, like that of so many microscopic oars, propel the
body through the water in different directions, according as the move-
*% See Annales des Sciences Naturelles ; Taylor's Ann. Nat. Hist. ; the Linnea, §e., various vol-
unies. 7
102 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ment is most directed to one side or the other. Sometimes the little
spores, under the influence of these cilia, are seen to spin round and
round in widening circles; but at other times change of direction,
pauses, accelerations, &c., take place during the voyage, which look
almost like voluntary alterations, or as if the spore were guided by a
rincinle of the nature of animal will) Henee many observers do
not hesitate to call these moving spores animalcules, and to consider
them of the same nature as the simpler infusorial animals.
This, as it appears to me, is a conclusion which ought not to be
hastily assumed, not merely taking into consideration the extremely
minute size of the little bodies to be examined, and the consequent
danger of our being deceived as to the cause of movement, and of its
interruption and resumption, but also remembering the facts ascer-
tained by Mr. Brown, of the movement of small particles of all mine-
ral substances which he examined. Many of the spores in question
are sufficiently small to come under the Brownian law, though others
are of larger size. Besides, if we regard the moving spores as animal-
cules, we must either adopt the paradox that 2 vegetable produces an
animal, which is then changed into a vegetable, and the process re-
peated through successive generations, every one of these vegetables
having been animal in its infancy; or else, notwithstanding their
strongly-marked vegetable characteristics, we must remove to the ani-
mal kingdom all Algz with moving spores.
Neither of these violent measures is necessary, if we admit that
mere motion, apart from other characters, is no proof of animality.
Though motion under the control of a will be indeed one of the char-
ter privileges of the higher animals, we see it gradually reduced as
we descend in the animal scale, until at last it is nearly lost alto-
gether. Long before we reach the lowest circles in the animal world,
we meet with animals which are fixed through the greater part of
their lives to the rocks on which they grow, and some of them have
scarcely any obvious movement on their point of attachment. In
some the surface, like that of the Alge spores, is clothed with cilia,
which drive floating particles of food within reach of the mouth ; in
others, even these rudimentary prehensile organs are dispensed with,
and the animal exists as a scarcely irritable flesh expanded on a frame-
work. This would seem to be the case in the corals of the genus
Fungia, if the accounts given of those animals be correct; while in
the sponges the animal structure and organization are still further
reduced, so as almost to contravene our preconceived notions of animal
will and movement. But the sponges can scarcely be far removed
from Fungia, nor can that be separated from other corals; so that,
though I am aware some naturalists of eminence regard the sponges
as vegetables, I cannot subscribe to that opinion, but rather view them
as exhibiting to us animal organization in its lowest conceivable type,
and parallel to vegetable organization, as that exists in the lowest
members of the class of Alge.
This hasty glance at the animal kingdom teaches us that voluntary
motion is a character variable in degree, and at length reduced almost
to zero within the animal circle. On the other hand, we know that
movements of a very extraordinary character exist among the higher
|
*
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 103
vegetables. Not merely the movement of the fluids of plants within
their cells, which has at least some analogy with the motion of ani-
mal fluids; but in such plants as the Sensitive plant, the Venus’s
Flytrap, (Dioncea,) and many others, movements of the limbs (shall I
call them ?) as singular as those of the Algz spores, are sufficiently
well known. And these movements are affected by narcotics in a
manner strikingly similar to the operation of similar agents on the
nervous system of animals. The common sensitive plant, indeed,
only shrinks from the touch, but in the Desmodium gyrans, a move-
ment of the leaves on their petioles is habitually kept up, as if the
plant were fanning itself continually, Such vegetable movements as
these strike us by their rapidity, but others of a like nature only
escape us by their slowness. Thus, the opening of the leaves of many
plants in sunlight, and their closing regularly in the evening in sleep;
the constant turning of the growing points towards the strongest
light, and other changes in position of various organs, are all vege-
table movements, which would appear as voluntary as those of the
Algee spores, if they were equally rapid. Their extreme slowness
alone conceals their true nature.
So, then, we find animals in which motion is reduced almost to a
nullity, and vegetables as high in the scale as the Leguminose, ex-
hibiting well-marked movements—facts which sufficiently establish
the truth of our position, that mere motion is no proof of animality.
But subtracting their movements from the Alge spores, what other
proof remains of their being animalcules? None whatever. They
do not resemble animalcules, either in their internal structure, their
chemical composition, or their manner of feeding; and their vegetable
nature is sufficiently marked by their decomposing carbonic acid,
giving out oxygen in sunlight, and containing starch.
In the Vaucheria clavata, one of the species in which spores moved
by cilia were first observed, the spore is formed at the apices of the
branches. The frond in this plant is a cylindrical, branching cell,
filled with a dense, green endochrome. A portion of the contained
endochrome immediately at the tips separates from that which fills
the remainder of the branch; a dissepiment is formed, and that por-
tion cut off from the rest gradually consolidates into a spore, while
the membranous tube enlarges to admit of its growth. The young
spore soon becomes elliptical, and at length, being clothed with a
skin and ready for emission, it escapes through an opening then
formed at the summit of the branch. The whole surface of the spore,
when emitted, is seen to be clothed with vibratile cilia, whose vibra-
tions propel it through the water until it reaches a place suitable for
germination. The cilia then disappear, and the spore becoming qui-
escent, at length develops into a branching cell like its parent. The
history of other moving spores is very similar, the cilia, however,
varying much in number in different species. Commonly there are
only two, which are sometimes inserted as a pair, at one end of the
spore, but in other cases placed one at each end.
There are other Algz in which vibratile cilia have not been observ-
ed, but which yet have very agile movements. Among these the
most remarkable are the Oscillatorie and their allies, which suldenly
104 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
appear and diappear in the waters of lakes and ponds, and sometimes
rise to the surface in such prodigious numbers as to color it for many
square miles. In Oscillatoria each individual is a slender, rigid,
needle-shaped thread, formed of a single cell, filled with a dense en-
dochrome which is annulated at short intervals, and which eventually
separates into lenticular spores. Myriads of such threads congregate
in masses, connected together by slimy matter, in which they lie, and
from the borders of which, as it floats like a scum on the water, they
radiate. Each thread, loosely fixed at one end in the slimy matrix,
moves slowly from side to side, describing short arcs in the water,
with a motion resembling that of a pendulum; and, gradually be-
coming detached from the matrix, it is propelled forward. These threads
are continually emitted by the stratum, and diffused in the water,
thus rapidly coloring large surfaces. When a small portion of the
matrix is placed over night in a vessel of water, it will frequently be
found in the morning that filaments emitted from the mass have
formed a pellicle over the whole surface of the water, and that the
outer ones have pushed themselves up the sides, as far as the moisture
reaches.
The Oscillatorie, though most common in fresh water, are not
peculiar to it. Some are found in the sea, and others in boiling
springs, impregnated with mineral substances. It has been ascer-
tained that the red color which gives name to the Arabian Gulf is
due to the presence of a microscopic Alga (Zvrichodesmium erythreum, )
allied to Oscillatoria, and endowed with similar motive powers, which
occasionally permeates the surface-strata of the water in such multi-
tudes as completely to redden the sea for many miles. The same or
a similar species has been noticed in the Pacific Ocean in various
places, by almost every circumnavigator since the time of Cook, who
tells us his sailors gave the little plant the name of ‘‘ sea sawdust.”’
Mr. Darwin compares it to minute fragments of chopped hay, each
fragment consisting of a bundle of threads adhering together by their
sides,
These minute plants move freely through the water, rising or sink-
ing at intervals, and when closely examined they exhibit motions
very similar to those of Oscillatoriec. There are several of such
quasi-animal-plants now known to botanists, and almost all belong
to the green series of the Algee, which are placed in our system at the
extreme base of the vegetable scale 8f being.
HABITAT.
The habitat or place of growth of the Alge is extremely various.
Wherever moisture of any kind lies long exposed to the air, Algee of one
group or other are found in it. I have already alluded to the Hygro-
crocis, so troublesome in vats of sulphate of copper, and many, per-
haps almost’ all other chemical solutions, become filled in time, and
under favorable circumstances, with a similar vegetation. The waters
of mineral springs, both hot and cold, have species peculiar to them.
Some, like the Red snow plant, diffuse life through the otherwise
barren snows of high mountain peaks and of the polar regions; and
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 105
on the surface of the polar ice an unfrozen vegetation of minute Algze
finds an appropriate soil. There are species thus fitted to endure
all observed varieties of temperature. Moisture and air are the only
essentials to the development of Algz. It has even been supposed that
the minute Diatomacee whose bodies float through the higher regions
of the atmosphere, and fall as an impalpable dust on the rigging of
ships far out at sea, have been actually developed in the air; fed on
the moisture semicondensed in clouds; and carried about with these
“lonely ’’’ wanderers.
When this atmospheric dust was first noticed, naturalists conjectured
that the fragments of minute Algew of which the microscope showed
it to be composed, had been carried up by ascending currents of air
either from the surface of pools, or from the dried bottoms of what had
been shallow lakes. But a different origin has recently been attribu-
ted to this precipitate of the atmosphere by Dr. F. Cohn, Professor
Ehrenberg, and others, who now regard it as evidence of the exist-
ence of organic life in the air itself! This opinion is founded on the
alleged fact, that atmospheric dust, collected in all latitudes, from the
equator to the circumpolar regions, consists of remains of the same
“species, and that certain characteristic forms are always found in it,
and are rarely seen in any other place. Hence it is interred that the
dust has a common origin, and its universal diffusion round the earth
points to the air itself as the proper abode of this singular fauna and
flora—for minute animals would seem to accompany and doubtless to
feed upon the vegetable atoms. If this be correct, and not an errone-
ous inference from a misunderstood phenomenon, it is one of the most
extraordinary facts connected with the distribution and maintenance
of organic life.
If Algze thus people the finely divided vapor that floats above our
heads, we shall be prepared to find them in all water condensed on
the earth. The species found on damp ground are numerous. ‘These
are usually of the families Palmellacew and Nostochacee. To the
latter belong the masses of semi-transparent green jelly so often seen
among fallen leaves on damp garden walks, after continued rains in
autumn and early winter. ‘These jellies are popularly believed to fall
from the atmosphere, and by our forefathers were called fallen stars.*
If such be their origin, we are tempted to address them, with Corn-
wall in King Lear:
‘¢Out, vile jelly! where is thy lustre now ?”’
for certainly nothing can well be less star-like than a Nostoc, as it
lies on the ground.
An appeal to the microscope reveals beauty indeed in this humble
plant, but gives no countenance to the popular belief of its meteoric
descent. It is closely related in structure to other species found under
dripping rocks and in lakes, and ponds, and the only reason for re-
garding it as an aerial visitant is the suddenness of its appearance
after rain. ?
’
* Other substances besides Nostocs occasionally get this name. Masses of undeveloped
frog-spawn, for instance, dropped by buzzards and herons, pass for meteoric deposits.
106 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
In certain moist states of the atmosphere, accompanied by a warm
temperature, the Nostoc grows very rapidly; but what seems a sudden
production of the plant has possibly been long in preparation unob-
served. When the air is dry the growth is intermitted, and the plant
shrivels up to a thin skin; but on the return of moisture this skin ex-
pands, heeames oelatinous, and continues its active life. And as this
process is repeated from time to time, it may be that the large jelly
which is found after a few days’ rain is of no very recent growth. A
friend of mine who happened to land in a warm dry day on the coast
of Australia, and immediately ascended a hill for the purpose of ob-
taining a view of the country, was overtaken by heavy rains; and was
much surprised to find that the whole face of the hill quickly became
covered with a gelatinous Alga, of which no traces had been seen on
his ascent. In descending the hill in the afternoon, on his return to,
the ship, he was obliged to slide down through the slimy coating of
jelly, where it was impossible to proceed in any other way. No doubt,
in this case, a species of Nostoc which had been unnoticed when shriv-
elled un had merely expanded with the morning’s rain.
Where water lies long on the surface of the ground, as happens in
cases of floods, it quickly becomes filled with Conferve or Silk-weeds,
which rise to the surface in vast green strata. These simple plants
grow with great rapidity, using up the materials of the decaying vege-
fation which is rotting under the inundation, and thus they in great
measure counteract the ill effects to the atmosphere of such decay.
When the water evaporates, their filaments, which consist of delicate
membranous cells, shrivel up and become dry, and the stratum of
threads, now no longer green, but bleached into a dull white, forms a
coarsely interwoven film of varying thickness, spread like great sheets
of paper over the decaying herbage. This natural pape”, which has
also been described under the name of water flannel, sometimes covers
immense tracts, limited only by the extent of the flood in whose waters
it originated.
But though Algz abound in all reservoirs of fresh water, the
waters of the sea are their peculiar home; whence the common name
‘‘Sea-weeds,’’ by which the whole class is frequently designated. Very
few other plants vegetate in the sea, sea-water being fatal to the life of
most seeds; yet some notable exceptions to this law (in the case of the
cocoanut, mangrove, and a few other plants) serve a useful purpose
in the economy of nature.
The sea in all explored latitudes has a vegetation of Algwe. Towards
the poles, this is restricted to microscopic kinds, but almost as soon as
the coast rock ceases to be coated with ice, it begins to be clothed with
Fuct, and this without reference to the mineral constituents of the
rock, the Fucus requiring merely a resting place. Sea-weeds rarely
grow on sand, unless when it is very compact and firm. There are,
therefore, submerged sandy deserts, as barren as the most cheerless of
the African wastes. And when such barrens interpose, along a con-
siderable extent of coast, between one rocky shore and another, they
oppose a strong bagrier to the dispersion of species, though certainly
not so strong as ; the aerial deserts ; because the waters which flow over
submarine sands will carry the spores of the Algz with less injury
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTSTUTION. 107
than the winds of the desert will convey the seeds of plants from one
oasis to another. It cannot, however, be doubted that submerged
sands do exercise a very material influence on the dispersion of Alge,
or their
AROGRAPHTICAT. DISTRIRUTION.
Climate has an effect on the Alge as upon all other organic bodies,
though its influence is less perceptible in them than in terrestrial
plants, because the temperature of the sea is much less variable than
that of the air. Still, as the temperature of the ocean varies with the
latitude, we find in the marine vegetation a corresponding change,
certain groups, as the Laminaric, being confined to the colder regions
of the sea; and others, as the Sargassa, only vegetating where the
mean temperature is considerable.
These differences of temperature and corresponding changes of ma-
rine vegetation, which are mainly dependent on actual distance from
the equatorial regions, are considerably varied by the action of the
great currents which traverse the ocean, carrying the waters of the
polar zone towards the equator, and again conveying those of the torrid
zone ints the higher Jatitudes. Thus, under the influence of the warm
waters of the Gulf Stream, Sargassum is found along the east coast of
America as far as Long Island sound (lat. 44°.) And again, the
cold south-polar current which strikes on the western shores of South
America, and runs along the coasts of Chili and Peru, has a marked
influence on the marine vegetation of that coast, where Lessonia, Ma-
crocystis, Durvillea, and Iridea, characteristic forms of the marine
flora of Antarctic lands, approach the equator more nearly than in any
other part of the world.
The influence of currents of warmer water is also observable in the
submarine flora of the west coast of Ireland, where we find many Algee
abounding in lat. 53°, which elsewhere in the British Islands are found
only in the extreme south points of Devon and Cornwall. These, and
other instances which might be given, are sufficient to show that aver-
age temperature has a marked influence in determining the marine
vegetation of any particular coast.
Seasons of greater cold or heat than ordinary have, as might be in-
ferred, a corresponding action. This is particularly noticeable among
the smaller and more delicate kinds which grow within tide marks,
and are found in greater luxuriance or in more abundant fruit in a
warm than in acold season. And the difference becomes more strongly
marked when the particular species is growing near the northern limit
of its vegetation, Thus in warm summers, Padina Pavonia attains,
on the south coast of England, a size as large as it does in sub-trop-
ical latitudes ; while in a cold season it is dwarf and stunted.
In speaking of the difference in color of Algee, I have already noticed
the prevalence of particular colors at different depths of water. A cor-
responding change of specific form takes place from high to low water
mark ; and as the depth increases, the change is strikingly analogous
to what occurs among land plants at different elevations above the sea.
Depth in the one case has a correspondent effect to height in the other ;
108 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
and the Ale of deep parts of the sea are to those of tidal rocks, as
alpine plants are to littoral ones. In both cases there is a limit to
the growth of species; each aerial species having a line above which
it does not vegetate, and each marine one a line beyond which it does
not descend. And as, at last, we find none but the least perfect lichens
clothing the rocks of high mountains, so in the sea beyond a moderate
depth are found no Alge of higher organization than the Diatomacee.
These latter atomic plants would appear to exist in countless numbers
at very extraordinary depths, having beenconstantly brought up by the
lead in the deep-sea soundings recorded in Sir James Ross’s Antarctic
voyage. But ordinary sea plants cease to vegetate in comparatively
shallow water, long before animal life ceases. The limits have not
been accurately ascertained, and are probably much exaggerated as
commonly given in books.
Lamouroux speaks of ordinary Alge growing at 100 to 200 fathoms,
but we have no exact evidence of the existence of these plants at this
great depth. The Macrocystis, the largest Alga known, has some-
dimes been seen vegetating in 40 fathoms (Hook. Fl. Ant. vol. 2, p.
464) water, while its stems not merely reached the surface, but rose at
an angle of 45° from the bottom, and streamed along the waves for a
distance certainly equal to several times the length of the ‘‘ Hrebus;’’
data which, if correct, give the total length of stem at about 700
feet. Dr. Hooker, however, considers this an exceptional case, and
gives from eight to ten fathoms as the utmost depth at which sub-
merged seaweed vegetates in the southern temperate and Antarctic
ocean ; a depth which is probably much exceeded in the tropics, and
which is at least equalled by Alge of the north temperate zone.
Humboldt, in his ‘‘ Personal Narrative,’’ mentions having dredged
a plant to which he gave the name Fucus vitifolius, (probably a
Codium or Flabellaria) in water 32 fathoms deep, and remarks that,
notwithstanding the weakening of the light at that depth, the color
was of as vivid a green as in Alge growing near the surface. I
possess a specimen of Anadyomene stellata dredged at the depth of 20
fathoms, in the Gulf of Mexico, by my venerable friend the late Mr.
Archibald Menzies, and it is as green as specimens of the same plant
collected by me between tide marks at Key West, and is much more
luxuriant.
Professor Edward Forbes, whose admirable report on the Aigean
Sea should be consulted by all persons interested in the distribution of
life at various depths, dredged Constantinea reniformis, Post. and
Rupr. in 50 fathoms, the greatest depth perhaps on record, as accu-
rately observed, at which ordinary Algee vegetate. I say, ordinary
Alge, for it will be remembered that Diatomacez exist in the pro-
found abysses of the ocean, as far as we are acquainted with them.
And besides these microscopic vegetables, Algz of a group called
Nullipores or Corallines (Corallinacee), long confounded with the
Zoophytes, become more numerous as other Alge diminish, until they
characterize a zone of depth where they form the whole obvious vege-
tation. These remarkable plants assimilate the muriate of lime of
seawater and form a carbonate in their tissues, which from the great
abundance of this deposit become stony. ‘The less perfect Nullipores
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 109
ave scarcely distinguishable, by the naked eye, from any ordinary
calcareous incrustation, and strongly resemble the efflorescent forms,
like cauliflowers, seen so frequently in the sparry concretions of lime-
stone caverns. Others, more perfect, become branched like corals ;
and the most organized of the group, or the true corallines, have sym-
metrical, articulated fronds. This stony vegetation affords suitable
food to hosts of zoophytes and mollusca, which require lime for the
construction of their skeletons or shells, and it probably extends to a
depth as great as such animals inhabit.
When the same species is found at different depths, there is gener-
ally a marked difference between the specimens. Thus, when an indi-
vidual plant grows either in shallower or in deeper water than that
natural to the species, it becomes stunted or otherwise distorted. I
have noticed in many species (as in Plocamium coccineum, Dasya
coccinea, Laurencia dasyphylla, various Hypnece, and many others)
that the specimens from deep water have divaricated branches and
ramuli, and a tendency to form both hooks and discs or supplement-
ary roots, from various points of the stem and branches. Sometimes
the outward habit is so completely changed by the production of
hooked processes and discs, that it is difficult to discover the affinity
of these distorted forms; and such specimens have occasionally been
unduly elevated to the rank of species.
When water of great depth intervenes, on a coast between two
shallower parts of the sea, it frequently limits the distribution of
species, acting as a high mountain range would in the distribution of
land plants, but in a far less degree; as it is obviously easier for the
spores of the Alge to be floated across the deep gulf, than for the
seeds of land plants to pass the snowy peaks of a mountain.
The intervention of sand, already alluded to, is a far greater bar-
rier, because sandy tracts are usually of much greater extent than
submarine obstacles of any other kind. To the prevalence of a sandy
coast, in a great measure probably, is owing the very limited distribu-
tion of the /ucacew on the eastern shores of North America, where
plants of this family are scarcely found from New York to Florida.
Since the erection of a breakwater at Sullivan’s Island, 8. C., many
Algz not before known in those waters have, according to Pro-
fessor L. R. Gibbes’s authority, made their appearance, but none of
the Fucacee are yet among them. In due time Sargassum vulgare
will probably arrive from the south.
Some attempt has been made to divide the marine flora into separate
regions, the particulars of which I have detailed elsewhere.* In the
descriptive portion of my work I shall notice the distribution of the
several families, where it offers any marked peculiarity, and I shall
at present confine myself to some remarks on the distribution of Alge .
along the eastern and southern shores of the United States; here re-
cording the substance of some verbal observations which I made at
the Meeting of the American Association, held in Charleston, in
March, 1850.
% Manual of British Marine Alge, Introd., p. xxxyi et seq. ed. 2.
110 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
EASTERN SHORES OF NORTH AMERICA.
In comparing the marine vegetation of the opposite shores of the
northern Atlantic, a great resemblance is observed between the ordi-
nary seaweeds that clothe the rocks on the eastern and western sides;
with this difference, that the species do not reach so high a latitude
on the American shore as on the European. The reason of this will
be readily understood by inspecting a physical map of the Atlantic, on
which Humboldt’ sisothermal lines, or linesof meanannual temperature,
are laid down. For then it will at once be seen that there is a very con-
siderable bending of the isothermal lines in favor of the continent of Hu-
rope. Thus the same line that runs through New York, in lat. 41°,
strikes the shores of Europe in the north of Ireland, lat. 54°. And
though there is less difference in mean temperature in the southern
parts of the continents than in the northern, still there is a marked
difference throughout.
With respect to vegetation, Laminaria longicruris is commou on
the American shore—at least as far south as Cape Cod (lat. 42°);
while on the European it has not been found south of Norway, save
some stray, waterworn stems occasionally cast on the north of Ireland
or Scotland.
Rodymenia crystata, so very abundant in Boston harbor, (42° 30‘)
where it enters largely into the composition of seaweed pictures, is
rarely found in Europe south of Iceland and the northern parts of
Norway ; its most southern limit being in the Frith of Forth, (56°),
where it has been found but once or twice.
Delesseria hypoglossum has not been observed in America north of
Charleston, (lat. 33°), while in Europe it occurs in Orkney, (lat. 59°),
and is in great profusion and luxuriance on the north coast of Ireland
in lat. 55°. The distribution of this species on the American shore
is very anomalous if Charleston be its northern limit, for it certainly
extends southward at least to Anastasia Island, (lat. 29° 50’). In
the British seas it is most luxuriant on the Antrim shore, (55°), where
its fronds are sometimes three feet in length ; southern specimens are
generally much smaller, and in Devonshire it rarely measures more
than three or four inches, which is the average size of specimens from
the south of Europe, as well as of those found in Charleston harbor.
If we are correct in limiting the American distribution of this species
northward by Charleston, we have the remarkable fact that the great-
est latitude attained by Del. hypoglossum in the northwestern Atlantic
is less by about 5° or 6° than the southern limit of the same species
on the northeastern, and by about 27° than the northern boundary of
its distribution. 'This indicates a range which the isothermal lines
can scarcely explain; for the line which runs through Charleston
strikes the coast of Spain. It is the more remarkable in this species,
because the genus Delesseria is most numerous inthe colder parts of the
sea, its finest species being natives of Northern Hurope and of Cape
Horn and the Falkland Islands; and, as we have seen, this very D.
hypoglossum is nowhere of greater size or in greater plenty than in
latitude 55° on the Irish coast.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 111
It is different with Padina Pavonia, itself a tropical form, and be-
longing to a group peculiarly lovers of the sun. We are not sur-
rised that in America this plant should not grow further north than
the Keys of Florida, although, under some peculiarly favorable cir-
cumstances, it attains a limit 27° further north, on the south coast of
England ; for in the land-vegetation of the two coasts there is some-
thing like an approach to similar circumstances, oranges and cilrons
being occasionally ripened in the open air in Devonshire, and MMag-
nolia grandiflora attaining anarborescent size. The remaining marine
vegetation of the Florida Keys, as we shall presently see, has a greater
resemblance to that of the Mediterranean than to that of the British
coasts ; and this is more in accordance with the land floras, in which
palm trees are a feature in both countries.
Probably one-half the species of Algze of the east coast of North
America are identical with those of Hurope—a very large portion
when we contrast it with the strongly marked difference between the
marine animals of the two shores ; the testacea, and to a great extent
even the fishes of the two continents, being dissimilar. The Euro-
pean species, on the same length of coast, are greatly the more nu-
merous, which appears to be owing to the prevalence of sands, nearly
destitute of Alge, along so great a length of the American shore,
and particularly along that portion which, from its latitude, ought to
produce the greatest variety of Algz, were the local circumstances
favorable to their growth.
As Algee are little indebted for nourishment to the soil on which
they grow, merely requiring a secure resting place and a sheltered
situation, their number generally bears a proportion to the amount of
indented rocks that border the coast. Stratified rocks are more favorable
to their growth than loose boulders or stones; but if the upper surface
be smooth without cavities, it is either swept by the waves too rapidly
to allow the growth of a vigorous vegetation ; or, in quiet places, it
becomes uniformly clothed with some of the Fuci, or other social spe-
cies, which cover the exposed surface with a large number of individ-
uals, to the destruction of more delicate species. The rocks, then,
most adapted for Algz are those in which, here and there, occur deep
cavities affording shelter from the too boisterous waves. In these, on
the recess of the tide, a tide pool or rock basin preserves the delicate
fronds from the action of the sun. The rare occurrence of such situ-
ations on the American coast is doubtless a reason of the comparative
poverty of the marine flora.
This comparative poverty is observable even in the common littoral
Fuci or Rock Kelp. In Northern Europe, besides several rarer kinds,
Six species (namely Fucus serratus, vesiculosus, nodosus, canaliculatus ;
Halidrys siliquosa ; and Himanthalia lorea) are extremely common,
four of them at least being found on every coast. In America, Fucus
vesiculosus and nodosus alone are commonly dispersed ; F’. serratus and
canaliculatus have not yet been detected ; and the Halidrys and [i-
manthalia rest on very uncertain evidence: so that of the siz com-
mon European kinds, only évo are certainly found in America. This
deficiency in /’ucacece is, in degree, made up for in Laminariacee, of
112 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
which family several are peculiar to the American shore, the most re-
markable of which is the Agarwm or Sea Colander.
Among the red Alge (or Ehodosperms), species with expanded,
leaf-like fronds are proportionably less numerous than on the Kuro-
pean side. Delesseria sanguinea is absent on the American shore,
where its place is supplied by D. Americana, a species of equally bril-
liant coloring, but lower in organization, connecting Delesseria with
Nytophyllum. This latter genus, of which there are so many fine
European species, is scarcely knownin North America, <A few scraps
of Nytophylla (almost too imperfect to describe), picked up at the
mouth of the Wilmington river, N. C., and at Key West, are all the
evidence we at present possess of the existence of that type of form
on the North American shore. Plocamiwm coccineum, so abundant in
Europe, and which is also widely dispersed in the Southern ocean,
extending from Cape Horn eastward to New Zealand, has not, that I
am aware of, been found on the American Atlantic coast, where its
place seems taken by the equally brilliant Rhodymenia_cristata.
Ceramium rubrum is as common on the American as on the European
coast, and many of the other common American Lthodosperms are na-
tives of both continents.
The Green Alga (Chlorosperms) are still more alike; but several of
the American Cladophore (not yet fully explored) seem to be peculiar.
Codium tomentosum, which is common to the shores of Europe from
Gibraltar, in lat. 36°, to Orkney in lat. 60°, and perhaps further north,
has yet been found only on the Florida Keys, (lat. 24°). Judging
from its distribution in other parts of the world, particularly in the
Pacific and Southern Oceans, one would have expected to find it all
along the East coast of North America.
Perhaps it would be premature to indicate regions of Alge into
which the Eastern and Southern sheres of the North American States
may be divided, a few points only having as yet been carefully ex-
plored. Halifax harbor, Massachusetts Bay, Long Island Sound at
several points from Greenport to New York, New York harbor, and
the neighborhood of Charleston, 8. C., are the chief points at which
the materials for my essay have been collected on the Hast coast. Our
knowledge of southern Algz is at present derived chiefly from a par-
tial examination of the Florida Keys, by Dr. Wurdemann, Professor
Tuomey, Dr. Blodgett and myself. I think it probable, however,
that future researches will indicate four regions of distribution, as
follows :
Ist. Coast NortH oF Care CoD, EXTENDING PROBABLY To GREENLAND.
Among the characteristic forms of this region are the great Laminaria,
particularly L. Longicruris, one of the largest Alge on the coast, and
Agarum Turneri and pertusum. Several of the rarer Fucacez seem
also to be confined to this district. One of the most abundant and
characteristic species of this tract is hodymenia cristata, which has
not to my knowledge been found farther south than Cape Cod. Speci-
mens said to have come from Staten Island have been shown to me,
but the evidence on which the habitat of these rests is not satisfactory,
and none of the Brooklyn and New York Algologists (a numerous
and indefatigable band) have yet detected the plant in their harbor.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 113
Ptilota plumosa is also a plant of this region, the only species (as far
as I know) that is met with in Long Island Sound being P. sericea,
Gm. Rhodomelce are more abundant here than in the Sound, but are
not limited to this division; Odonthalia (a peculiarly nothern form)
has been seen only at Halifax. Dumontia ramentacea, so abundant at
Iceland, is found also at Newfoundland, and near Halifax, where I
gathered it plentifully. Of this plant I possess a single specimen,
picked up by Miss Frothingham on Rye Beach, New Hampshire. All
the species I have mentioned are Arctic forms confined in the European
waters to very high latitudes, and all appear to vegetate nearly as far
south as Cape Cod, to which limits they are almost all confined. The
Marine flora of this region as a whole bears a resemblance to that of
the shores of Iceland, Norway, Scotland, and the North and North
West of Ireland.
9d. Lone Istanp Sounn, including under this head New York har-
bor and the sands of New Jersey.
The natural limit of this region on the south is probably Cape Hat-
teras, but after passing New York the almost unbroken line of sand is
nearly destitute of Alge. Ihave not received any collection of sea
plants made between Long Branch and Wilmington. In comparing
the plants of the sound with those of our Ist region, a very marked
difference is at once seen. We lose the Arctic forms, dgarum, hod.
eristata, Odonthalia, Dumontia ramentacea, and Ptilota plumosa, whose
place is supplied by Sargassum, of which genus two species are found
at Greenport and at other points in the Sound; by various beautiful
Callithamnia and Polysiphonic ; and by abundance of Delesseria Ameri-
cana and Dasya elegans. Those two latter plants are not limited to’
this region, but are greatly more abundant here than north of Cape
Cod. Del. Americana seems almost to carpet the harbor of Green-
port, and is equally abundant in various points in the Sound, and
Dasya elegans grows to an enormous size in New York harbor, and
is plentiful throughout the region. Seirospora Grijithsiana is not
uncommon; it grows luxuriantly at New Bedford, whence Dr. Roche
has sent me many beautiful specimens of it, and of other Ceramiew.
Rhabdonia Baileyi, Gracilaria multtpartita, (narrow varieties) Chry-
symenia divaricata and C. Rosea are also characteristic forms. Deles-
seria Leprieurii, found in the Hudson at West Point, scarcely belongs
to this region, but is a tropical form at its utmost limit of northern
distribution.
3d. Care Harreras to Cape Frorma. Of the Alge characterizing
this region we know little except those found in the neighborhood of
Charleston, and a few specimens collected at, Wilmington, N. C., and
at Anastasia Island. Many species found within these limits are
common to the second region; others are here met with for the first
time. Of these the most remarkable are Arthrocladia villosa and a
Nitophyllum, found at Wilmington; a noble Grateloupia, probably
new (CU. Gibbesit, MS.) found at Sullivan’s Island, and Delesserta
hypoglossum, already mentioned as occurring at Charleston and Anas-
tasia Island. I have seen no Fucoid plant from this region; but if
there were a suitable locality, we ought here to have Sargassa. None
grow at Sullivan’s Island, where Grateloupia Gibbesii is the largest
4 id ee TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
sea plant, and the one most resembling a Fucus. All the estuaries
of this district produce Delesseria Leprieurit, and a Bostryciia, either
B. radicans, Mont., or a closely allied species. These last are tropical
forms first noticed on the shores of Cayenne, where the former was
found both on maritime rocks, and on the culms of grasses in the
estuary of the Sinnamar river. With us these plants grow on the
palmetto logs in Charleston harbor, and on Spartina glabra as far
up the river as the water continues sensibly salt. Del. Leprieurtt was
collected by Dr. Hooker at New Zealand, accompanied by a Bostrychia.
No other habitats for it are known.
Ath. Frorma Keys, anp SHores oF THE Mexican Guir. Here we
have a very strongly marked province, strikingly contrasting in vege-
tation with the East Coast, comprised in the three regions already
noticed. As yet the Keys have been very imperfectly explored, and
we are almost unacquained with the marine vegetation of the main
land of Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas. Of 130 species
which I collected at Key West in February, 1850, scarcely one-eighth
are common to the Hast Coast, seven-eighths being unknown on the
American shore to the north of Cape Florida. With this remarkable
difference between the Algz of the Keys and those of the East Coast,
there is a marked affinity between the former and those of the South
Jf Europe. The marine vegetation of the Gulf of Mexico has a very
strong resemblance to that of the Mediterranean Sea. Nearly one-
third of the species which I collected are common to the Mediterra-
nean. Several of them straggle northwards along the coast of Spain
and France, and even reach the south of England; but seareely any
of these are seen on the East coast of America. We may hence infer
that they are not conveyed by the gulf-stream. My collection at Key
West included 10 Melanosperms, 5 of which are common to the Med-
iterranean ; 82 Rhodosperms, 25 of which are Mediterranean ; and 38 ©
Chlorosperms, of which 10 are Mediterranean. Besides these identi-
cal species, there are many representative species closely allied to Med-
iterranean types. This resemblance is clearly shown in the genus
Dasya, of which seven out of eleven European species are found in the
Mediterranean. At Key West I collected eight species of this beau-
tiful genus. Among these, seven were new, and the eighth (D. ele-
gans) is found along the whole Hastern coast of North America. Three-
fourths, perhaps, of the masses of seaweed cast ashore at Key West
belong to Laurencia, of which genus several species and innumerable
puzzling varieties are profusely common. A fine Hypnea (H. Wur-
demanni, MS.) one of the most striking species of the genus, 1s also —
abundant. Alstdiumtriangulare, Digeniasimplex, Acanthophora, Aman-
sia multifida, and other common West Indian Rhodosperms, are abund-
antly cast ashore. Sargassum vulgare and bacciferum, Padina Pa- —
vonia, Zonaria lobata, and sundry Dictyote, are characteristic Me- —
lanosperms. But this region is chiefly remarkable for the abundance
and beauty of its Chlorosperms of the groups Siphonacee and Cauler-
pacee. ‘Ten species of Caulerpa were collected, some of which are of
common occurrence, and serve for food to the turtles, which, in their
turn are the staple article of diet of the islanders. Penicillus (at least
three species), Udotea, Halimeda, Acetabularia, Anadyomene, Dictyo-
{HE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 115
spheria, Chamedorjs, Dasycladus, Oymopolia, and others, some of
which are West Indian, some Mediterranean, are evidence of the high
temperature of the sea round the Keys. Many of the plants obtained
by me at Key West were cast up from deeper water when the south
wind blew strongly, and were not seen at any other time. A visitor,
therefore, in the hurricane months, would probably obtain many which
escaped me. Among the new species two Delesseriw, (D. tnvolvens,
and J), tenuifolia) both bolonging to the hypophyllous section, are
specially worth notice. These were very plentiful in the beginning of
February, but soon disappeared. Two Bostrychice (B. Montagnet, and
B, jilicula, MS.) and a Catenella were found on the stems of mangroves
near high-water mark ; but it would extend this notice to too great a
ength, were I to enumerate all the forms which occur in this prolific
region.
COELHCTING AND PRESERVING SPECIMENS.
I shall here give, for the convenience of the student, the sub-
stance of some directions for collecting and preserving specimens,
issued by the Director of the Dublin University Museum.
Marine Alge, as has already been stated, are found from the ex-
treme of high-water mark to the depth of from thirty to fifty fathoms;
which latter depth is perhaps the limit in temperate latitudes; the
majority of deep-water species growing at five to tenfathoms. Those
within the limits of the tidal influence are to be sought at low water,
especially the lowest water of spring tides; for many of the rarer and
more interesting kinds are found only at the verge of low-water mark,
either along the margin of rocks partially laid bare, or, more fre-
quently, fringing the deep tide-pools left at low water on a flattish
rocky shore. The northern or shaded face of the tide-pool will be
found richest in red algw, and the most sunny side in those of an
olive or green color. Alge which grow at a depth greater than the
tide exposes, are to be sought either by dredging, or by dragging
after a boat an iron cross armed with hooks, on all shores where those
contrivances can be applied; but where the nature of the bottom, or
_ the difficulty of procuring boats, renders dredging impossible, the
collector must seek fer deep-water species among the heaps of sea-wrack
thrown up by the waves. After storms seaweed sometimes forms
enormous banks along the coast; but even in ordinary tides many
delicate species, dislodged by the waves, float ashore, and may be
picked up on the beach in a perfect state. The rocky portions of a
coast should, therefore, be inspected at low water ; and the sandy or
shingly beach visited on the return of the tide. In selecting from
heaps we should take those specimens only that have suffered least in
color or texture by exposure to the air ; rejecting all bleached or half
melted pieces.
Collectors should carry with them one or two strong glass bottles
with wide mouths, or a hand-basket lined with japanned tin or gutta
percha, for the purpose of bringing home in sea-water the smaller and
more delicate kinds. This precaution is often absolutely necessary,
for many of the red alge rapidly decompose if exposed, even for a
116 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
short time, to the air, or if allowed to become Massed together with
plants of coarser texture. The cooler such delicate species are kept
the better ; and too many ought not to be crowded together in the
same bottle, as crowding encourages decomposition ; and when this
has begun, it spreads with fearful rapidity. These Alge should be
kept in sea-water until they can be arranged for drying, and the more
rapidly they are prepared the better. Many will not keep, even in
vessels of sea-water, from one day to another.
A common botanist’s vasculum, or an India-rubber cloth bag, will
serve to bring home the larger and less membranous or gelatinous
kinds; but even these, if left long unsorted, become clotted together,
and suffer proportionably.
In gathering Algze from their native places, the whole plant should
be plucked from the very base, and if there be an obvious root, it
should be left attached. Young collectors are apt to pluck branches
or mere scraps of the larger Algz, which often afford no just notion
of the mode of growth or natural habit of the plant from which they
have been snatched, and are often insufficient for the first purpose of
a specimen, that of ascertaining the plant to which it belongs. In
many of the leafy Fucoid plants, (Sargassa, &c.) the leaves that grow
on the lower and on the upper branches are quite different, and were
a lower and an upper branch plucked from the same root, they might
be so dissimilar as to pass for portions of different species. It 1s very
necessary, therefore, to gather, when it can be done, the whole plant,
including the root. It is quite true that the large kinds may be judi-
ciously divided; but the young collector had better aim at selecting
moderately sized specimens of the entire plant, than attempt the
division of large specimens, unless he keep in view this maxim: every
botanical specimen should be an epitome of the essential marks (of a
species.
Hee vekal duplicate. specimens of every kind should always be pre-
served, and particularly where the species is a variable one. Very
many Alge vary in the comparative breadth of the leaves, and in the
degree of branching of the stems ; and when such varieties are noticed,
a considerable series of specimens is often requisite to connect a broad
and a narrow form of the same species. A neglect of this care leads
to endless mistakes in the after work of identification of species, and
has been the cause of burdening our systems with a troublesome num-
ber of synonymes.
Where it is the collector’s object to preserve Algew in the least
troublesome manner, and in a rough state, to be afterwards laid out
and prepared for pressing at leisure, the specimens fresh from the sea
are to be spread out and left to dry in an airy, but not too sunny, sit-
uation. They are not to be washed or rinsed in fresh water, nor is —
their natural moisture to be squeezed from them. The more loosely
and thinly they are spread out the better, and in dry weather they
will be sufficiently dry after a few hours’ exposure to allow of pack-
ing. Inadamp state of the atmosphere the drying process will oc-
cupy some days. No other preparation is needed, and they may be
loosely packed in paper bags or boxes, a ticket of the exact locality
being affixed to each parcel. Such specimens will shrink very con-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. Iz
siderably in drying, and most will have changed color more or less,
and the bundle have become very unsightly ; nevertheless, if thor-
oughly dried, to prevent mouldiness or heating, and packed loosely,
such specimens will continue for along time in a perfectly sound
state; and on being re-moistened and properly pressed, will make
excellent cabinet specimens.
It is very much better, when drying Alge in this rough manner,
aot to wash them in fresh water, because the salt they contain serves
to keep them ina pliable state, and causes them to imbibe water more
readily on re-immersion. All large and coarse growing Algw may
be put up in this manner, and afterwards, at leisure, prepared for the
herbarium by washing, steeping, pressing, and drying between folds
of soft paper, in the same way that land plants are pressed and dried.
But with the membranous and gelatinous kinds, a different method
must be adopted.
The smaller and more delicate Algz must be prepared for the her-
barium as soon as practicable after being brought from the shore.
The mode of preparation is as follows, and, after a few trials and with
a little care, will soon be learned.
The collector should be provided with three flat dishes or large
deep plates, and one or two shallower plates. One of the deep plates
is to be filled with sea-water, and the other two with fresh water. In
the dish of sea-water the stock of specimens to be laid out may be
kept. A specimen taken from the stock is then introduced into one
of the plates of fresh water, washed to get rid of dirt or parasites
that may infest it, and pruned or divided into several pieces, if the
branches be too dense, or the plant too tufted, to allow the branches
to lie apart when the specimen is displayed on paper. The washed
and pruned specimens are then floated in the second dish until a con-
siderable number are ready for laying down. They are then removed
separately into one of the shallower plates, that must be kept filled
with clean water ; in which they are floated and made to expand fully.
Next, a piece of white paper of suitable size is carefully introduced
under the expanded specimen. The paper then, with the specimen
remaining displayed upon it, is cautiously brought to the surface of
the water, and gently and carefully drawn out, so as not to disarrange
the branches. A forceps, a porcupine’s quill, a knitting needle, or
an etching tool, or any finely pointed instrument will assist the ope-
rator in displaying the branches and keeping them separate while
the plant is lifted from the water ; and should any branch become
matted in the removal, a little water dropped from a spoon over the
tangled portion, and the help of the finely pointed tool, will restore
it.
The piece of wet paper with the specimen upon jit is to be laid on
a sheet of soft soaking paper, and others laid by its side until the
sheet is covered. A piece of thin calico or muslin, as large as the
sheet of soaking paper, is then spread over the wet specimens. More
soaking paper, and another set of specimens covered with cotton, are
laid on these ; and soa bundle is gradually raised. This bundle, con-
sisting of sheets of specimens, is then placed between flat boards,
under moderate pressure, and left for some hours. It must then be
118 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
examined, the specimens on their white papers must be placed on dry
sheets of soaking paper, covered with fresh cloths, and again placed
under pressure. And this process must be repeated every day until
the specimens are fully dry.
In drying, most specimens will be found to adhere to the papers on
which they have been displayed, and care must be taken to prevent
their sticking to the pieces of cotton cloth laid over them. Should
it be found difficult te remove them from the muslin, it is better to
allow them to dry, trusting to after-removal, than to tear them away
in a half-dried state, which would probably destroy the specimens. A
few dozen pieces of unglazed thin cotton cloth of proper size should
always be at hand, (white muslin, that costs six or eight cents per
yard, answers very well). These cloths will be required only in the
first two or three changes, for when the specimen has begun to dry
on the white paper it will not adhere to the soaking paper laid over
it. In warm weather the smaller kinds will often be found perfectly
dry after forty-eight hours’ pressure, and one or two changes of
papers.
USES OF THE ALGH.
The uses of the Algze may be considered under two poinis of view,
namely, the general office which this great class of plants, as a class,
discharges in the economy of nature; and those minor useful applica-
tions of separate species which man selects on discovering that they
can yield materials to supply his various. wants.
The part committed to the Algz in the household of nature, though
humble when we regard them as the lowest organic members in that
great family, is not only highly important to the general welfare of
the organic world, but, indeed, indispensable. This we shall at once
admit, when we refiect on the vast preponderance of the ocean over
the land on the surface of the earth, and bear in mind that almost the
whole submarine vegetation consists of Algze. The number of species
of marine plants which are not Algz proper is extremely small.
These on the American coast are limited to less than half a dozen, -
only one of which, the common el Grass (Zostera marina,) 18 ex-
tensively dispersed.
All other marine plants are referable to Algz ; the wide-spread sea
would therefore be nearly destitute of vegetable life were it not for
their existence. Almost every shore—where shifting sands do not
forbid their growth—is now clothed with a varied band of Algee of
the larger kinds; and microscopic species of these vegetables (Diato-
macece) teem in countless myriads at depths of the ocean as great as
the plummet has yet sounded, and where no other vegetable life
exists. It is not, therefore, speaking too broadly to say that the sea,
in every climate and at all known depths, is tenanted by these vege-
tables under one phase or other.
The sea, too, teems with animal life—that ‘‘ great and wide sea,
wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great
beasts,’’ affords scope to hordes of animals, from the ‘‘ Leviathan ”’
whale to the microscopic polype, transparent as the water in which he
)
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 119
swims, and only seen by the light of the phosphoric gleam which he
emits. Now this exuberant animal creation could not be maintained
without a vegetable substructure. It is one of the laws of nature that
animals shall feed on organized matter, and vegetables on unorgan-
ized. For the support of animal life, therefore, we require vegetables
to change the mineral constituents of the surrounding media into
suitable nutriment.
In the sea this office of vegetation is almost exclusively committed
to the Alge, and we may judge of the completeness with which they
execute their mission by the fecundity of the animal world which de-
pends upon them. Not that I would assert that all, or nearly all, the
marine animals are directly dependent on the Algz for their food;
for the reverse is notoriously the case. But in every class we find
species which derive the whole or a part of their nourishment from
the Alez, and there are myriads of the lower in organization which do
depend upon them altogether.
Among the higher orders of Algee feeders I may mention the Tur-
tles, whose green fat, so prized by aldermanic palate, may possibly be
colored by the unctuous green juices of the Caulerpe on which they
browse. But without further notice of those that directly depend on
the Alew, it is manifest that all must ultimately, though indirectly,
depend on whatever agency in the first instance seizes on Inorganic
matter, and converts it into living substance suitable to enter into the
composition of animal nerve and muscle; and this agency is assur-
edly the office of the vegetable kingdom, here confined in the main to
Algz. We thus sufficiently establish our position that the Algz are
indispensable to the continuance of organic life in the sea.
As being the first vegetables that prey upon dead matter, and as
affording directly or indirectly a pasture to all water animals, the
Alge are entitled to notice. Yet this is but one-half of the task com-
mitted to them. Equally important is the influence which their
growth exerts on the water and on the air. The well-known fact
that plants, whilst they fix carbon in an organized form in extending
their bodies by the growth of cells, exhale oxygen gas in a free state,
is true of the Alge as of other vegetables. By this action they tend
to keep pure the water in which they vegetate, and yield also a con-
siderable portion of oxygen gas to the atmosphere. I have already
stated that whenever land becomes flooded, or wherever an extensive
surface of shallow water—whether fresh or salt—is exposed to the
air, Conferve and allied Alge quickly multiply. Every pool, every
stagnant ditch is soon filled with their green silken threads. These
threads cannot grow without emitting oxygen. If you examine such
a pool on a sunny day, you may trace the beads of oxygen on the sub-
merged threads, or see the gas collect in bubbles where the threads
present a dense mass. It is continually passing off into the air while
the Confervee vegetate, and this vegetation usually continues vigor-
ous, one species succeeding another as it dies out, as long as the pool
remains. And when, on the drying up of the land, the Conferve die,
their bodies, which are scarcely more than membranous skins filled
with fluid, shrivel up, and are either carried away by the wind or
form a papery film over the exposed surface of the ground. In neither
120 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
case do they breed noxious airs by their decomposition. All their
life long they have conferred a positive benefit on the atmosphere, and
at their death they at least do no injury. The amount of benefit de-
rived from each individual is indeed minute, but the aggregate is vast
when we take into account the many extensive surfaces of water dis-
persed over the world, which are thus kept pure and made subservient
toa healthy state of the atmosphere. It is not only vast, but it is
worthy of Him who has appointed to even the meanest of His creatures
something to do for the good of His creation.
These general uses of the Alge, apparent as they are on a slight
reflection, are apt to be overlooked by the utilitarian querist, who
will see no use in anything which does not directly minister to his
own wants, and who often judges of the use of a material by the dol-
lars and cents which it brings to:his pocket.
It would be in vain to adduce to him the indirect benefit derived to
the rest of creation through the lower animals which the Alge supply
with food ; for probably he would turn round with the further de-
mand, ‘‘ What is the use of feeding all these animals?’’ And he
might think, too, that the amount of oxygen in the air was quite
enough to last out at least his time, without such constant renovation
as the Algz afford, or that sufficient renovation would come from
other sources had the Algz never been created. ‘‘Show me,” he
would say, ‘‘how I can make money of them, and then I will admit
the uses of these vegetables.’’ This I shall therefore now endeavor
to do, by summing up a few of the uses to which Algw have been
applied by man.
Man, in his least cultivated state, seeks from the vegetable king-
dom, in the first place, a supply for the cravings of hunger, and after-
wards medicine or articles of clothing. As food, several species of
Algze are used both by savage and civilized man, but more frequently
as condiments than as staple articles of consumption. Many kinds
commonly found on the shores of Europe are eaten by the peasantry.
The midrib of Alaria esculenta, stripped of the membranous wings, is
eaten by the coast population of the north of Ireland and Scotland ;
but to less extent than the dried fronds of Rhodymenia palmata, the
Dulse of the Scotch, and Dillisk of the Irish. This latter species
varies considerably in texture and taste, according to the situation in
which it grows. When-it grows parasitically on the stems of the
larger Laminaric it is much tougher and less sweet, and therefore
less esteemed than when it grows among mussels and Balani near
low-water mark. It is this latter variety which, under the name of
‘‘ shell dillisk,’’ is most prized. In some places on the west of Ire-
land this plant forms the chief relish to his potatoes that the coast
peasant enjoys; but its use is by no means confined to the extreme
poor. It is eaten occasionally, either from pleasure or from an opin-
ion of its wholesomeness, by individuals of all ranks, but, except
among the poor, the taste for it is chiefly confined to children. It is
commonly exposed for sale at fruit stalls in the towns of Ireland, and
may be seen in similar places in the Irish quarters of New York. : In
the Mediterranean it forms a common ingredient in soups; but not-
withstanding M. Soyer’s attempt in the famine years to teach this use
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 12)
of it to the Irish, they have not yet learned to prefer it cooked. Oc-
casionally, however, it is fried.
Chondrus crispus, the Carrageen or Irish Moss of the shops, is dis-
solved, after long boiling, into a nearly colorless insipid jelly, which
may then be seasoned and rendered tolerably palatable. It is con-
sidered a nourishing article of diet, especially for invalids, and has
been recommended in consumptive cases. At one time, before it was
generally known to be a very common plant on rocky coasts, it
fetched a considerable price in the market. Though called ‘‘ Irish
moss,’’ it is abundant on all the shores of Europe and of the northern
States of America. It is, perhaps, most palatable when prepared as
a blanc-mange with milk, but it should be eaten on the day it is
made, being liable, when kept, to run to water. Its nourishing quali-
- ties have been tested, I am informed, in the successful rearing of
calves and pigs partly upon it.
Many other species, particularly various kinds of Grigartina and
Gracilaria, yield similar jellies when boiled, some of which are excel-
lent.
Gracilaria lichenoides, the Ceylon Moss of the East, where it is
largely used in soups and jellies, and G. Spinosa, the Agar-Agar
(or Agal-Agal) of the Chinese, are among the most.valuable of these.
They are extensively used, and form important articles of traffic in
the Hast. Another species of excellent quality (the Gigartina speciosa
of Sonder) is collected for similar purposes by the colonists of Swan
river.
It was at one time supposed that the famous edible birds’ nests of
China, the finest of which sell for their weight in gold, and enter into
the composition of the most luxurious Chinese dishes, were constructed
of the semi-decomposed branches of some Alga of one or other of the
above-named genera; but it has since been ascertained that these
nests consist of an animal substance, which is supposed to be dis-
gorged by the swallows that build them.
Nearly all the cartilaginous kinds of Rhodospermez will boil down
to an edible jelly. One kind is preferred to another, not from being
more wholesome, but from yielding a stronger and more tasteless
gelatine. The latter quality is essential ; for though the skill of the
cook can readily impart an agreeable flavor to a tasteless substance,
it is more difficult to overcome the smack of an unsavory one. And
the main quality which gives a disrelish to most of our Algz-jellies
and blanc-manges is a certain bitterish and sub-saline taste which can
rarely be altogether removed.
Very few Alge have been found agreeably tasted when cooked,
though Dillisk and others are pleasantly sweet when eaten raw. Many
which, when moistened after having been dried, exhale a strong per-
fume of violets, are altogether disappointing to the palate.
Perhaps, after all, the most valuable as articles of food are the va-
rieties of Porphyra vulgaris and P. laciniata, which, in winter, are col-
lected on the rocky shores of Europe, and by boiling for many hours
are reduced to a dark brown, semi-fluid mass, which is brought to
table under the name of marine sauce, sloke, slouk, or sloucawn. It is
eaten with lemon-juice or vinegar, and its flavor is liked by most per-
123, TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
sons who can overcome the disgust caused by its very unpleasant
aspect. At some of the British establishments for preserving fresh
vegetables it is put up in hermetically sealed cases for exportation and
use at sea, or for use at seasons when it cannot be obtained from the
rocks. It is collected only in winter, at which season the membranous
fronds, which are found in a less perfect state in summer, are in full
growth. Both species of Porphyra grow abundantly on the rocky
shores of North America. They not only furnish an agreeable vege-
table sauce, but are regarded as anti-scorbutic, and said to be useful
in glandular swellings, perhaps from the minute quantity of iodine
which they contain.
As articles of food for man other seaweeds might be mentioned, but
I admit that none among them furnish us directly with valuable escu-
lents ; though many less nauseous than the hunter’s ‘‘ Z’ripe de Roche’
are sufficiently nourishing to prolong existence to the shipwrecked
seaman; and others, like the Porphyre just mentioned, are useful
condiments to counteract the effects of continued subsistence on salt-
jank.
But if not directly edible, there are many ways in which they indi-
rectly supply the table. As winter provender for cattle, some are in
high esteem on the northern shores of aaa In Norway and Scot-
land the herds regularly visit the shores, on the recess of the tide, to
feed on Fucus vesiculosus and I’, serratus, which are both also collected
and boiled by the Norwegian and Lapland peasants, and, when mixed
with coarse meal, given to pigs, horses, and cattle. These Fuci are
both grateful and nourishing to the animals, which become very par-
tial to such food. Yet, perhaps, they are only the resources of half-
fed beasts, and would possibly be blown on by a stall-fed ‘‘ short-
horn’’ that looks for vegetables of a higher order.
To obtain such food for the high-bred cow, the Alez must be ap-
phed in another way—namely, as manure. For this purpose they
are very largely used in the British islands, where ‘‘ sea-wrack’’ is
carried many miles inland, and successfully applied in the raising of
green crops. On the west coast of Ireland, the refuse of the sea fur-
nishes the poor man with the greater part of the manure on which he
depends for raising his potatoes. All kinds of seaweed are indis-
criminately applied ; but the larger kinds of Laminarie are preferred.
As these rapidly decompose, and melt into the ground, they should,
in common with other kinds, be used fresh, and not suffered to lie
long in the pit, where they soon lose their fertilizing properties. The
crops of potatoes thus raised being generally abundant, but the quality
rarely good, sea-wrack is more suitable. to the coarser than to the ,
finer varieties of the potato. It is, however, considered excellent for
various green crops, and a good top-dressing for grass land, and its
use is by no means confined to the poorer districts. The employment
of sea-wrack is limited only by the expense of conveying so bulky a
material to a distance from the seaor a navigable river.
Though the agricultural profits derived from the Algz are consid-
erable, a still larger revenue was once obtained by burning the /uci
and collecting their ashes, as a source of carbonate of soda—a salt
which exists abundantly in most of them. /'ucus vesiculosus, nodosus,
|
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 123
and serratus, the three commonest European kinds, yielded, up to a
recent period, a very considerable rental to the owners of tidal rocks
on the bleakest and most barren islands of the north of Scotland, and
on all similar rocky shores on the English and Irish coasts. A single
proprietor (Lord Macdonald) is said to have derived £10,000 per an-
num, for several successive years, from the rent of his kelp shores ;
and the collecting and preparation of the kelp afforded a profitable
employment to many thousands of the inhabitants of Orkney, Shet-
land, and the Hebrides.
During the last European war, when England was shut out from
the markets from which a supply of soda was previously obtained,
almost the whole of the alkali used by soap-boilers was derived from
the kelp, or sea-weed ashes, collected in Scotland. The quantity an-
nually made in favorable years, between 1790 and 1800, amounted, on
the authority of Dr. Barry,* to 3,000 tons, which then fetched from
£8 to £10 sterling per ton; but, at a later period of the war, rose
from £18 to £20. It is also stated by the same author, that within
the 80 years, from 1720 to 1800, which succeeded the first introduc-
tion of the kelp trade, the enormous sum of £595,000 was realized by
the proprietors of kelp shores and their tenants and laborers.
Yet, so great was the prejudice of the islanders against this lucra-
tive trade, when first proposed to them, ‘“‘and,’’ to quote Dr. Gre-
ville, ‘so violent and unanimous was the resistance, that officers of
justice were found necessary to protect the individuals employed in
the work. Several trials were the consequences of these outrages.
It was gravely pleaded in a court of law, ‘that the suffocating smoke
that issued from the kelp kilns would sicken or kill every species of
fish on the coast, or drive them into the ocean far beyond tke reach of
the fishermen; blast the corn and grass on their farms; introduce
diseases of various kinds; and smite with barrenness their sheep,
horses, and cattle, and even their own families.’’’ We smile at the
ignorant bigotry of these poor people; but have we never heard as
ereat misfortunes predicted of almost every new improvement of the
age we live in, and that not by unlettered peasantry, but by persons
calling themselves wise, learned, and refined ?—as sad stories have
been told against temperance, free trade, or even against the exhibi-
tion in the Crystal Palace.
The Orkney islanders were not long in finding the golden harvest
which had thus, in the first instance, been forced upon them, and,
within a few years, ‘“‘ Prosperity to the kelp trade !’’ was given as the
leading toast on all their festive occasions. This state of prosperity
lasted until the general peace, when the foreign markets being thrown
open, barilla came into competition with the home produce. The
manufacture of kelp gradually declined as the price fell, and now it
has nearly ceased altogether; for, besides the competition with barila,
the modern process by which soda is readily procured from rock-salt,
has brought another rival into the field, and one against which it
seems in vain to contend.
* History of the Orkney Islands, p. 383, (as quoted by Greville; see Alg. Brit. Introd.,
p. Xxi, et seq.)
124 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Kelp is still made, on a small scale, for local consumption, and is
sometimes exported as manure, but at a very low price. It is not
likely ever to rise again into importance, except as a source of Iodine,
which singular substance was first discovered in a soap-ley made with
kelp ashes. Iodine has now become almost indispensable, from its
medicinal value, as well as from its use in the arts and manufactures,
and has been found in greater quantity in the fronds of certain littoral
Algs than in any other substances. It is therefore possible that, for
producing this substance, these kelp-weeds may again become of mer-
cantile importance. As a remedy in cases of glandular swellings, the
use of Iodine is now well established, and it is a singular fact that
several littoral Fuci have been from early times considered popular
remedies in similar affections. J ucus vesiculosus has long been used.
by the hedge-doctors to reduce such swellings ; and Dr. Greville men-
tions, on the authority of the late Dr. Gillies, that the ‘‘ stems of a
seaweed are sold in the shops, and chewed by the inhabitants of
South America, wherever goitre is prevalent, for the same purpose.
This remedy is termed by them Palo Coto, (literally, Goitre-stick,’’)
and Dr. Greville supposes, from the fragments which he had seen,
that it is a species of Laminaria.
Todine, however, though the most important, is not the only medi-
cinal substance obtained from the Alge. Gracilaria helminthochorton,
or Corsican Moss, has long held a place in the pharmacopeia as a
vermifuge. What is sold under this name in the shops, is commonly
adulterated with many other kinds. In samples which I have seen,
the greater part consisted of Laurencia obtusa, through which a few
threads of the true Corsican Moss were dispersed. Possibly, however,
the Laurencia may be of equal value.
Mannite also has been detected by Dr. Stenhouse in several Algae,
to which it imparts a sweetish taste. The richest in this substance
appears to be Laminaria saccharina, from a thousand grains of which
121.5 grains, or 12.15 per cent., of mannite were obtained. The
method of extracting is very simple. The dried weed is repeatedly
digested with hot water, when it yields a mucilage of a brownish-red
color, and of a sweetish, but very disagreeable taste. When evapo-
rated to dryness, this mucilage leaves a saline semi-crystalline mass.
This being repeatedly treated with boiling alcohol, yields the mannite
in ‘‘Jarge hard prisms, of a fine, silky lustre.”’ Halidrys siliquosa,
Leminaria digitata, Fucus serratus, Alaria esculenta, [thodymenia
palmata, &c., are stated by Dr. Stenhouse, from whose memoir this
account is condensed, to contain from 1 to 5 or 6 per cent. of mannite.
In summing up the economic uses to which Algz have been ap-
plied, I must not omit to mention their application in the arts. The
most valuable species, in this point of view, with which we are ac-
quainted, is the Gracilaria tenax of China, under which name prob-
ably more than one species may be confounded. Of this plant, on
the authority of Mr. Turner, (Hist. Fuc. vol. 2, p. 142,) ‘the
quantity annually imported at Canton is about 27,000 lbs., and it is
sold in that city at about 6d. or 8d. per lb. In preparing it, nothing
more is done than simply drying it in the sun; after which it may
be preserved, like other Fuci, for any length of time, and improves
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. V5
by age, when not exceeding four or five years, if strongly compressed
and kept moist. The Chinese, when they have occasion to use it,
merely wash off the saline particles and other impurities, and then
steep it in warm water, in which, in a short time, it entirely dis-
solves, stiffening, as it cools, into a perfect gelatine, which, like
glue, again liquefies on exposure to heat, and makes an extremely
powerful cement. It is employed among them for all those purposes
to which gum or glue is here deemed applicable, but chiefly in the
manufacture of lanthorns, to strengthen or varnish the paper, and
sometimes to thicken or give a gloss to gauze or silks.’’ Mr. Turner
derived the above information respecting G. tenax from Sir Joseph
Banks ; but recent travellers tell us that Gracilaria spinosa, known
colloquially as Agal-agal,* yields the strongest cement ‘used by the
Chinese, and that it is brought in large quantities from Singapore and
neighboring shores to the China markets. Probably both species are
esteemed for similar qualities.
Several Alege are used in the arts in a minor way. Thus, accord-
ing to Dr. Patrick Neill, knife-handles are made in Scotland of the
stems of Laminaria digitata. ‘‘ A pretty thick stem is selected, and
cut into pieces about four inches long. Into these, when fresh, are
stuck blades of knives, such as gardeners use for pruning or graft-
ing. As the stem dries, it contracts and hardens, closely and firmly
embracing the hilt of the blade. In the course of some months the
handles become quite firm, and very hard and shrivelled, so that
when tipped with metal they are hardly to be distinguished from
hartshorn.’’
On the authority ot Lightfoot,+ the stems of Chorda filum, which
often attain the length of thirty or forty feet, and which are popularly
known in Scotland as ‘“‘ Lucky Minny’s lines,’ “skinned, when ‘half
dry, and twisted, acquire so considerable a degree of strength and
toughness,’’ that the Highlanders sometimes use them as fishing
lines. The slender stems of Nercocystis are similarly used by the
fishermen in Russian’ America. In parts of England bunches of
Fucus vesiculosus or F'. Serratus are frequently hung in the cottages
of the poor as rude barometers, their hygrometric qualities, which
arise from the salt they contain, indicating a change of weather.
In our account of the artistic value of Alge, we ought not to pass
unnoticed the ornamental works which the manufacturers of “ sea-
weed pictures,’ and baskets of ‘‘ ocean-flowers,’’ construct from the
various beautiful species of our coasts, and which are so well known
at charity bazaars, accompanied by a much-hackneyed legend, com-
mencing,
‘‘Call us not weeds; we are flowers of the sea,’’ &c.
Some of these ‘works of art ’’ display considerable taste in the
arrangement, and the objects themselves are so intrinsically beauti-
ful that they can rarely be otherwise than attractive. During the
recent pressure of Irish famine, many ladies in various parts of the
country employed a portion of their leisure in the manufacture of
* See the Voyage of H. M. S, Samarang.
_ TEI. Scot. vol. 2, p. 964.
126 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
these ornamental works, and no despicable sum was raised by the
sale.
Other sums, for charitable purposes, have been realized in a way
which a botanist would deem more legitimate, by the sale of books
of prepared and named specimens; and my friend, the Rev. Dr.
Landsborough,* I am told, has in this manner collected money
which has gone a considerable way towards building a church. There
seems no good reason why missionaries in distant countries might
not, either personally or through their pupils or families, collect these
and other natural objects, and sell them for the benefit of their mis-
sion; by which means they would not only obtain funds for pursuing
the work more immediately committed to them, but would have the
satisfaction of knowing that in doing so they were unfolding to the
admiration of mankind new pages of the wide-spread volume of
nature.
Unfortunately, it happens that in the educational course prescribed
to our divines, natural history has no place, for which reason many
are ignorant of the important bearings which the book of Nature has
upon the book of Revelation. They do not consider, apparently, that |
both are from God—both are His faithful witnesses to mankind. And
if this be so, is it reasonable to suppose that either, without the other,
can be fully understood? It is only necessary to glance at the absurd
commentaries in reference to natural objects which are to be found in
too many annotators of the Holy Scriptures, to be convinced of the
benefit which the clergy would themselves derive from a more ex-
tended study of the works of creation. And to missionaries, es-
pecially, a minute familiarity with natural objects must be a power-
ful assistance in awakening the attention of the savage, who, after
his manner, is a close observer, and likely to detect a fallacy in his
teacher, should the latter attempt a practical illustration of his dis-
course without sufficient knowledge.f This subject is too important
for casual discussion, and deserves the careful consideration of those
in whose hands the education of the clergy rests. These arenot days —
in which persons who ought to be our guides in matters of doctrine
can afford to be behind the rest of the world in knowledge; nor can
they safely sneer at the ‘‘ knowledge that puffeth up,’’ until, lke
the Apostle, they have sounded its depths and proved its shallowness.
Why should the study of the physical sciences be supposed to have
an evil influence on the mind—a tendency to lead men to doubt every
truth which cannot be made the direct subject of analysis or experi-
ment? I can conceive a one-sided scientific education having this
tendency. If the mind be propelled altogether in one direction, and
that direction lead exclusively to analytical research, it is possible
that the other faculties of the individual may become clouded or en-
feebled ; and then he is the unresisting slave of analysis—not more a
rational being than any other monomaniac. And yet, paradoxical
though the assertion seem, he may be all his life a reasoner, forming
* Author of ‘‘A Popular History of British Seaweeds.”’
} See some excellent observations on this subject in ‘‘ Foot-prints of the Creator ; or,
the Asterolepis of Stromness,’’ by Hugh Miller. London, 1849.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 127
deductions and inductions with the most rigid accuracy in his beaten
track.
I can conceive, too, the astronomer, conversant with the immensity
of space and its innumerable systems of worlds, so prostrated before
the majesty of the material creation, as not only to lose sight of him-
self and of the whole race to which he belongs, but of the world, or
even of the solar system, and be led to doubt whether things so poor,
and mean, and small can have any value in the sight of the Lord of
so wide a dominion. I ‘can conceive him, too, observing the uni-
formity and the harmony of the laws that govern the whole system of
the heavens; the undeviating course of all events among the stars
coming round as regularly as the shadow on the dial ; and the little
evidence there is that this uniformity has ever suffered any disturb-
ance that cannot be accounted for by the law of gravitation, and made
the subject of calculation by the mathematician, who, working an
equation in his closet, shall come forth and declare the cause of irreg-
ularity, though that cause may be acting at thousands of millions of
miles distance—I can conceive him inferring from a uniformity like
this the absence of a superintending Providence in human affairs. If
the Creator, he will say, have given up the very heaven of heavens to
the immutable laws of gravitation, can I believe that he interferes by
his Providence to superintend the puny matters of this lower world?
His reasons seem plausible while the mind is pointed in that one
direction. But they lose all their force when, laying aside for a mo-
ment the telescope, the philosopher investigates with his microscope
the structure of any living thing, no matter how small and how seem-
ingly simple the organism may be. Let the object examined but have
life, and it will soon lead him to understand a little of the meaning of
God’s glorious title, Mawimus in minimis. And the further he car-
ries his researches, the more the field of research opens, until, ex-
tending from the speck beneath his lens, it spreads wider and wider,
and at length blends with infinity at the ‘‘horizon’s limit.’’ Here
his boasted analysis can afford him no help. He has laid bare the
‘“mechanism of the heavens;’’ he has weighed the sun and the
planets; he has foretold with unerring certainty events which shall
happen a thousand years after he shall be laid in the dust: and yet
he cannot unravel the mystery that shrouds the seat of life, even as it
exists in the meanest thing that crawls. And if the life of this poor
worm be thus wonderful, what is that spirit which animates the
human frame? What is that humanity which, but a moment ago,
seemed like the small dust in the balance compared with the multitude
and the masses of the stars? His conceptions of his own true position
in the scale of being become more rational. For a moment he views
from a new position the distant stars, as the peasant views them in a
clear night—points of light spangling the blue vault above. And he
reflects, ‘‘ How do I know that those shining ones are other than they
seem? How dol know their size, their distance, the laws by which
they are governed—the reins by which the ‘coursers of the sun’ are
held in their appointed track? How, but by the intellectual powers
of. that human spirit which but now I deemed so poor and mean, so
128 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
unworthy of the very thought of the Almighty—much more, so un-
worthy of the price which He has paid for it ?”’
Thus the mind, turned back upon itself, begins to discover that,
after all, it is not ‘‘of the earth, earthy,’’ but derived from a higher
source, and reserved for a higher destiny. And, strange to say, this
altered and bettered opinion of itself is traceable to the first check
which it feels—the first baffling of its analytical powers. So long as
the mind was extending the sphere of its researches into the material
universe, weighing, and numbering, and tabulating, all nature seemed
to move in blind obedience to a force whose influence might be caleu-
lated ; every world being found to act upon its fellow in exact propor-
tion to its position and its weight, and our world to be but a part, and
a small part, of one vast machine. And with such a view of the rela-
tion of the earth to the universe, might not unnaturally come a lower
estimate of man, the dweller on the earth. ‘‘Is he, too, but a part
in the house in which he dwells? Is his course also subject to those
immutable laws which bind the universe together? And, if so, where
is. his individuality ? Where the reflex of that image in which he is
said to have been created ?’? But the moment that the mind appre-
hends the action of the inexplicable laws of life, and is certified of the
individuality of every living thing, however small, and compares these
microscopic ‘‘ wholes’’ with the ‘‘whole’’ that it feels itself to be,
that moment it begins to see that the human soul is a something
apart from the world, in and over which it is placed.
Galileo in his cell was bound in fetters, but his spirit could not be
bound. His thoughts were as free, and his mind had as wide a range,
as if he could have flown through all space on the wings of light. And
thus it is with man—prisoned for a short time in this lower world, he
belongs to an order of being that no world can confine. He cannot
continue stationary, nor plod forever a dull round in the treadmill
here. He must either rise above all height, into communion with the
Deity ; or fall, bereft of hope, forever. We must not estimate such a
being by the narrow bounds of the cell which he now inhabits. We
must judge of him by his intellectual powers, his aspirations, his in-
tuitive conceptions of his own nature; and, as a spirit, all these place
him, in his individuality, far above any plurality of mere material
worlds.
I may seem to be wandering from my proper theme, but my object
is to vindicate the teaching of the Book of Nature from the aspersions
of the ignorant and the prejudiced. Whilst I admit that half views
of natural science may lead men astray, and whilst I deplore the infi-
delity of scientific men whose minds are absorbed in the material on
which they work, I deny that the study of nature has, in itself, an
evil tendency. On the contrary, the study of organic nature, at least,
ought to be one of the purest sources of intellectual pleasure. It
places before us structures the most exquisite in form and delicate in
material; the perfect works of Him who is Himself the sum of all
perfections :—and if our minds are properly balanced, we shall not
rest satisfied with a mere knowledge and admiration of these wonder-
ful and manifold works; but, reading in them the evidence of their
relation to their Maker, we shall be led on to investigate owr own.
I do not assert that this study is, of itself, sufficient to make men
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 129
religious. But as the contemplation of any great work of art gene-
rally excites in us a two-fold admiration—admiration of the work
itself, and of the genius of its author—so a true perception of the
wonders of nature includes a certain worship of the author of those
wonders. Yet we may study natural objects, and admire them, and
devote our whole life to elucidate their structure; and after all may
fail to recognise the being of Him who has fashioned them. Such
blindness is scarcely conceivable to some minds; yet to others, the
opposite appears but the effect of a warm imagination. So inexpli-
eable is the human mind! The moral evidence which stirs one man
to his centre brings no conviction to another. Physical truths, indeed,
cannot be rationally denied ; but there is no metaphysical truth which
may not be plausibly obscured or explained away by self-satisfied pre-
judice. Hence the inconclusiveness of all reasoning against infidelity.
The failure is not in the reasons set before the mind, but in the non-
acknowledgment of the imperative force of moral reasons. No man
can be convinced of any moral truth against his will; and if the will
be corrupt, it is possessed by a blind and deaf spirit, which none can
cast out until a ‘‘stronger than he’’ shall come.
Here I pause; but I cannot conclude this lecture without express-
ing my warm thanks to the kind friends who have aided me in my
researches, both with specimens and with sympathy. To some of
them I am personally unknown, and with others I became acquainted
casually, during my recent tour along the shores of the United States.
From all I have received unmixed kindness, and every aid that it was
in their power to render. Indebted to all, therefore, I am more espe-
cially bound by gratitude to my friend, Professor J. W. Batuey, of
West Point, the earliest American worker in the field of Algology.
Well known in his own peculiar branch of science, he has found a
relaxation from more wearing thought, in exploring the microscopic
world, and his various papers on what may be called ‘‘vegetable
atoms’’ (Diatomacee) are widely known and highly appreciated.
From him I received the first specimens of United States Algze which
I possessed, and, though residing at a distance from the coast, he has
been of essential service in infusing a taste for this peculiar depart-
ment of botany among persons favorably situated for research ; so
that either from him or through him I have obtained specimens from
many localities from which I should otherwise have been shut out.
To him I am indebted for an introduction to a knot of Algologists
who have zealously explored the southwestern portions of Long Isl-
and and New York Sounds, Messrs. Hooppr, Conepon, Pixs, and
Watters of Brooklyn, from all of whom I have received liberal sup-
plies of specimens; and through him Professor Luwis R. Grppes, of
Charleston, whose personal acquaintance I had afterwards the happi-
ness of making, first communicated to me the result of his explora-
tions of Charleston harbor, as well as the first collection of Florida
Algw which I received, and which Dr. Gibbes obtained from their
collector, the late Dr. Wurdemann. Through Professor Asa Gray,
of Cambridge, Mass., long before it was my good fortune to know him
personally and intimately, I received collections of the Alga of Boston
harbor, made by Mr. G. B. Emerson, Miss Morris, and Miss Lorine,
9
130 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
(now Mrs. Gray); also of the Alge of Rhode Island, made by Mr.
S. T. Otney, who has done so much to illustrate the botany of that
State, and by Mr. Gzorce Hunt. My gatherings from the same coasts
have since been much enriched by specimens from Dr. Sinas Durkee,
of Boston, Dr. M. B. Rocuu, of New Bedford, and Mrs. P. P. Mupes,
of Lynn.
To Professor Tuomry, of the University of Alabama, I feel especially
indebted for the care and kindness with which he formed for me an
interesting collection of the Algew of the Florida Keys, and the more
so because this collection was made purposely to aid me in my present
work. My friend Dr. Biopexrr, of Key West, also, since my return
to Europe, has communicated several additional species, and is con-
tinuing his researches on that fertile shore. To the Rev. W. S. Hors,
now of Oxford, England, (a name well known to the readers of the
Phycologia Britannica,) I am indebted for a considerable bundle of
well preserved specimens, gathered at Prince Edward’s Island, by
Dr. T. E. Jeans; and to the kindness of my old friend and chum,
ALEXANDER Ensorr, of the Dockyard, Halifax, I owe the opportunity
of a fortnight’s dredging in Halifax harbor, and many a pleasant
ramble in the vicinity.
My personal collections of North American Alge have been made
at Halifax; Nahant beach; New York Sound; Greenport, Long
Island; Charleston harbor; and’ Key West; and are pretty full,
especially at the last named place, where I remained a month.
The few Mexican species which find a place in my work have been
presented to me by Professor J. Agarpu, of Lund, and were collected
by M. Lizpman. Those from California are derived partly from the
naturalists of Captain Beechey’s voyage; a few from the lute Davip
Dovenas; and a considerable number brought by my predecessor, Dr.
Coutter, from Monterey Bay. I have received from Dr. F. J. Ru-
PRECHT, of St. Petersburg, several Algee from Russian America; from
Sir Joun Ricnarpson a tew Algw of the Polar sea; and various spe-
cimens of these plants, which have found their way from the North-
west Coast to the herbarium of Sir W. J. Hooker, have, with the
well-known liberality of that illustrious botanist, been freely placed
at my disposal.
But I should not, in speaking of the Northwest Coast, omit to men-
tion a name which will ever be associated in my mind with that
interesting botanical region, the venerable ArcuiBaLD Menzies, who
accompanied Vancouver, and whom I remember as one of the finest
specimens of a green old age that it has been my lot to meet. He
was the first naturalist to explore the cryptogamic treasures of the
Northwest, and to the last could recal with vividness the scenes he
had witnessed, and loved to speak of the plants he had discovered.
His plants, the companions of his early hardships, seemed to stir up
recollections of every circumstance that had attended their collection,
at a distance of more than half a century back from the time I speak
of. He it was who first possessed me with a desire to explore the
American shores—a desire which has followed me through life, though
as yet it has been but very imperfectly gratified. With this small
tribute to his memory, I may appropriately close this general expres-
ts of my thanks to those who have aided me in the present under-
taking,
LECTURE.
NATURAL. HISTORY AS APPLIED TO FARMING AND
GARDENING,
By Rev. J. G. MORRIS, or Baurimore.
The lecturer commenced by observing, that every American has rea-
son to be proud of the exploits of his countrymen in the field of natural
history. Hxtended tours have been made, and exhausting fatigues have
been cheerfully endured; the most patient investigation has been insti-
tuted, and many magnificent works have been published. Some of
these equal, in splendor of pictorial illustration, those of any other
country, and the literary portion will favorably compare with the
most finished scientific compositions of the world. Audubon’s great
works on our birds and quadrupeds was here especially cited, whilst
proper credit was given to other native illustrated works. The cata-
logue of our naturalists and their books is increasing every year, and.
the facilities for studying the natural history of our country are rapidly
enlarging.
The lecturer mentioned the names of our principal naturalists, ar-
ranged under each branch which they have respectively investigated,
including mammals, birds, reptiles, fishes, shells, crustaceans, and
insects.
Whilst much has been accomplished, yet the whole field has not yet
been explored. Our new western territorial acquisitions almost daily
develop new animal treasures, and it will not be many years before
the energy of our students of nature will push their researches to the
utmost limits of our boundaries. Some interesting details were related
of the self-denial and perseverance of our exploring naturalists, whose
adventures have an air of romance truly enchanting.
Several of our State legislatures have made liberal appropriations
for geological and zoological surveys. Massachusetts and New York
were particularly noticed, and a description of the great works on
these subjects, published by them, was given. He noticed the pro-
posal to establish an agricultural college in a northern State some
time ago, in which there was to be a professor of geology, which was
well enough; but the lecturer maintained, that zoology should also
be taught in such an institution, for the farmer should know the habits
and names of the various animals which are injurious to vegetation,
and the best method of checking the mischief done by them, as well
as the nature of his various soils, which geology and agricultural
chemistry teach. The farmer should also be acquainted with the
‘ grasses and forest-trees of his plantation, and thus elevate his noble
132 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
profession to its proper rank among human pursuits, and feel that
the exercise of intellect, as well as of muscle, is highly useful to his
purpose.
The anatomical structure of his domestic animals should also be
studied, so that he may understand the different diseases to which they
are liable.
After an enlargment on the importance of our domestic animals,
field products, and minerals, as sources of wealth and comfort, a few
striking facts were given, demonstrating the immense benefit which a
knowledge of the natural history of some animals and plants has con-
ferred on mankind. Thus, Linné prevented the decay and destruc-
tion of the ship timber in the royal dock-yards of Sweden, by know-
ing the habits of the little insect which occasioned the evil. It was
the same naturalist who first advised the sowing of beach-grass
(Arundo arenaria) to prevent the encroachments of the sea, by fixing
the sands of the shore, in Holland, and this has been tested to some
extent in Massachusetts.
Farmers and gardeners often complain of their fruit being devoured
by birds and other ‘‘vermin,’’ as many call them, and an indiscrimi-
nate slaughter ensues. It is time that correct notions on this subject
should prevail, and all would soon be right if natural history were in-
cluded in the range of general reading.
In proceeding with the lecture, the vertebrate animals that are sup-
posed to be noxious to vegetation were considered. The mammals
were first mentioned. The operations of foxes, rats, weasels, rabbits,
moles, field-mice, squirrels, &c., were alluded to. It was stated that
an English nobleman, instead of destroying the moles in his grounds,
offered a reward for bringing them to him, being assured that they
were more beneficial than injurious, inasmuch as, in their subterranean
wanderings, they destroyed immense numbers of noxious grubs and
beetles.
The birds were next considered, and the conclusion adopted, that the
deestruction of birds has given rise to an infinitely more prejudicial
multiplication of noxious insects than the evils they themselves occa-
sioned. ‘The opinions of eminent naturalists on this subject were
cited, confirmatory of this opinion.
Having considered the vertebrates, or those with a backbone, in re-
lation to this subject, the invertebrate insects, particularly, were next
introduced. It was stated, that they are greater pests and commit
greater ravages, and annoy the farmer and gardener more, than all
other noxious animals together.
After dilating in general on the study of entomology, and the im-
portance of insects in the economy of nature, the lecturer proceeded to
speak of those insects which affect our field crops, garden plants, flower-
ing plants, and, finally, our fruit and forest trees.
Wheat was placed at the head of field crops. Here, naturally, the
Hessian fly first demanded attention. Of this diminutive insect it
hhas been properly said, ‘‘that it is more formidable than an army of
20,000 Hessians would be.’’
Its history was given, and it was made out to be an European in-
sect, and introduced in August, 1776, by the Hessians, who landed on
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 1335
Staten Island, and was brought in the straw used in packing. It was
in that vicinity that it first attacked the wheat-fields, and thence spread
over the country. It was totally unknown in this country before the
Revolution. Its ravages soon began to excite the attention of farmers.
Whole crops were destroyed. Learned societies and agricultural as-
sociations offered rewards for its extirpation. The American Philo-
sophical Society, in 1792, appointed a committee, consisting of Mr.
Jefferson, B. Smith Barton, James Hutchinson, and Caspar Wistar,
to collect and communicate materials for the natural history of the
Hessian fly. So greatly was it dreaded in England, that in 1788 an
order was issued by government, prohibiting the entry of wheat from
the United States into any of the ports of Great Britain. This order
was based on ignorance of the habits of the insect, for it is not the
grain that is affected by it, but the plant alone. It could not be
transported in the grain. The history of the little depredator was
given at length, and its form, &c., illustrated by large drawings.
Its character and transformations, and the mode of its operations on
the wheat-stalk, were enlarged on. After describing its depredations,
it was observed, that if*®Providence had not provided an effectual
means of checking its ravages, they would literally swarm over the
land. This insect is preyed on by at least four others, which were
briefly described. Proper credit was awarded to Dr. Fitch and Mr.
Herrick for their interesting and successful investigations on this sub-
ject. The various remedies proposed were also noticed, but none, as
yet, appears infallible. A rich soil, late sowing, grazing, rolling,
mowing, steeps for the seed, &c., &c., have all been suggested.
The history of another insect infesting our wheat was given, closely
allied to that already considered. This is the wheat fly. They are,
by many, considered the same ; and hence errors and confusion have
arisen. This insect deposites its eggs, not like the Hessian fly, in the
blades of the plant, but in the chaffy scales of the flowers. The larva
works its way into the grain, lives upon its juices, and thus destroys
it. It has, however, powerful enemies in some parasites, but espe-
cially in our common yellow bird, (Lringilla tristis.)
There are other insects which attack stored grains—as a small wee-
is (Calandra remote punctati) and a small moth, (Alucita cerealella,)
C., Ge,
Indian Corn.—This plant is attacked principally by the larva of
a moth, (Gortyna zece,) which penetrates into the soft centre of the
stalk near the ground, which destroys it. There is the larva of
another moth, (Agrotis segetwm,) which attacks the roots and tender
sprouts of the young plants. This is familiarly known as the cut-
worm, though several destructive worms are known by that name.
Various remedies have been proposed for these depredators, but none,
probably, effectual.
Grass.—This is attacked by the grub of a beetle, (Jelolontha
quercina.) The roots are devoured by it. The wire-worm, which is
the larva of a beetle, (later obesus,) is also exceedingly destructive
to grass.
_ In relation to garden plants, the lecturer enumerated the insects
most destructive, and the various methods of exterminating them.
184 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
The insects injurious to fruit trees were more particularly consid-
ered. The history of those attacking the apple, peach, pear, plum,
cherry, grape, &c., was given, and the proper means of destroying
them.
The forest trees of our country have not yet received the scientific
consideration they deserve—that is, as to their economical importance.
They have been named and described, and some splendid illustrated
works have been published upon them, but they have not been culti-
vated with care, and no attention is paid to their preservation. This
is owing to their vast numbers, and it will probably be a century
hence before we shall find it necessary to have a public officer, as they
have in Europe, whose special duty it shall be to superintend the
woods and forests.
Our common hickory tree is sometimes much injured by a beetle,
(Areoda lanigera.) The grubs of the beautiful family of beetles (Bu-
prestide) are wood eaters and borers. The solid trunks and limbs of
sound and vigorous trees are often bored through in various directions
by them, and, of course, destroyed. The grub of a capricorn beetle
(Stenocorus garganicus) inhabits the hickory, and forms long galleries
in the trunk.
The oaks are attacked by the larva of Elaphidion putator, which
perforates the small branches to the extent of six or eight inches. It
lives in the pith, and, when it is full-fed, it eats away all the wood
transversely from within, leaving only the ring of the bark untouched.
It then retires backwards, stops up the end of its hole near the trans-
verse section with the fibres of the wood, and the next strong wind
breaks off the twig, precipitates it to the ground, the larva then comes
out, buries itself in the earth, and there undergoes its transform-
ation.
The pine trees in this country, as well as in Europe, have also
suffered much from an insignificant beetle. Its ravages have been
extensive. <A few years ago there were loud complaints of the depre-
dations of a certain insect on the pine trees of the South, but people,
for the most part, did not know what it was. It is a small beetle,
(Hylobius pales, or picivorus.)
The elm trees in New England, or rather their foliage, is destroyed
by what is there called the canker-worm. It is the larva of a small
butterfly, which is hatched from the egg of the wingless female. She
climbs up the tree by its‘ trunk. To prevent this, the trunk, near the
top, is encircled by a leaden trough, filled with tar or oil, and this
prevents the female from reaching the leaves, on which she deposites
her eggs. For some years back, the elm trees of our State have been
denuded by the larva of an insect. People had heard of the means
employed in New England to prevent the ravages of the worm, and
soon many of our elm trees were furnished with leaden troughs, but
the insect was as mischievous as ever. What was the reason? Sim-
ply this, that the insect in New England is an entirely different one
from ours. That is a butterfly, the wingless female of which is obliged
to crawl up the trunk of the tree; ours is a beetle, the winged female
of which /lies to the tree, and, of course, the leaden trough on the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 135
trunk will not interfere with its depredations. It is the Galeruca
calmariensis, and is of foreign introduction.
The injuries done to the cedar, locust, and other trees, by insects,
were severally considered.
The Doctor concluded by observing that, if men undertake to destroy
insects, they should know their economy, for otherwise those might
be destroyed which are really beneficial. In scme countries children
are employed for this purpose ; and to give an idea of the numbers of
some species of noxious insects, he stated an instance related by Mons.
Audouin, who was charged by the French Academy of Science to in-
vestigate the habits of a small moth, whose larva was found to be ex-
ceedingly injurious in vineyards in France. During the month of
August, women and children were employed for four days in collecting
the patches of eggs upon the leaves, during which period 186,900
patches were collected, which was equal to the destruction of 11,214,000
eggs. In twelve days, twenty or thirty workers destroyed 40,182,000
eves ; all of which would have been hatched in twelve or fifteen days.
The intimate connexion in which insects stand to man, to domestic
animals, and tovegetable productions, makes them well worthy thecon-
sideration of every one, and particularly of the farmer and gardener.
If we consider the fecundity of many kinds, which sometimes produce
an offspring of several thousands, and also that some species produce
several generations in one season, their numbers cannot be estimated.
All these uncounted myriads derive their nourishment either from
plants or animals in their living state, or from their remains when
dead. From such considerations, we may well be alarmed for our
fields, forests, and gardens.
It would be well for farmers and gardeners to observe closely, and
communicate their observations through the journals of the day. We,
too, after awhile, may have a great national work on this subject, as
most European governments have. Our government, or some well-
endowed institution, could not more usefully spend a sum of money ;
and it is hoped that when an agricultural bureau shall have been es-
tablished here at Washington, we shall have such a work that shall
be worthy the subject and worthy the nation.
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LECTURE.
INSECT INSTINCTS AND TRANSFORMATIONS.
By Rev. J. G. MORRIS, or BaLtTiImMoRE.
The lecturer began by deploring the neglect of the study of ento-
mology in this country, and gave several reasons why the science has
not been cultivated to the same extent as some other branches of zo-
ology, such as the minuteness of insects, the presumed difficulty of
capturing them, the dislike to killing them, their increased numbers,
the dread many persons have of handling them when living, the
scarcity of books describing our own species, the fear of being ridiculed
by others, &c., &c. In illustration of the latter reason, he re-
lated an anecdote of an English lady of fortune, whose will some dis-
appointed heirs wished to break on the ground of insanity at the time
it was made ; and one reason they strongly urged to prove her dis-
ordered intellect was, that she was fond of catching butterflies, and
studying the habits of insects in general !
» The lecturer proceeded to show that the ever-varying wonders which
the natural history of insects presents, are much more remarkable than
those of other classes of animals. The curious construction of their
frame, their diversified colors, their wonderful instincts, their extra-
ordinary transformations, their beauties and uses, render them objects
worthy of investigation. He showed how extensively the science had
been cultivated in Europe, and gave a brief history of it from the days
of Linné to the present time. He mentioned the names of some of the
most distinguished writers of the present day, and stated some inte-
resting facts relative to the character and immense cost of some of the
illustrated books on the subject. He paid a deserved compliment to
the few entomologists of our own country, and specially cited the
names of Say, Melsheimer, (father and sons,) Harris, LeConte, Randall,
Haldeman, Ziegler, Fitch, and a few others, who hed industriously
pursued the subject.
The difficulties to beginners in this science were alluded to, but it
was demonstrated that no branch of zoology afforded more pleasure in
its prosecution ; and here a general view was taken of the curious
habits of some insects—the arrangement and character of their eyes,
their motions, food, societies, habitations, eggs, affection for their
young, injuries, benefits, propagation, geographical distribution, in-
finite numbers, inexhaustible variety, unequalled beauty, which the
highest skill of the painter cannot imitate; their stratagems in the
pursuit of their prey, their inconceivable industry, and some other
“wonderful phenomena,
138 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
After this general view, the lecturerer dwelt specifically on several
points ; and, first, on the Transformations of Insects. Everybody would
be surprised to see a bird of gorgeous plumage rise out of the earth,
proceeding from a serpent-like worm that had buried itself and re-
mained under ground for several years. This would be an extraordi-
nary metamorphosis, and yet the equivalent of this is occurring every
day during the summer. The butterfly, which sports in the air, and
sips nectar from every flower, was nothing once but a crawling cater-
pillar, which, entombing itself in the coffin or cocoon of its own con-
struction, or changing into a chrysalis, came forth at last the beautiful
animal you now behold it, with its habits, food, appearance, organs,
entirely changed. And the same is true of nearly all insects.
The different states of insects were now spoken of: the egg, larva
or grub, chrysalis and imago, or perfect insect, and the peculiarities of
each dwelt upon. The different modes of transformation were men-
tioned, and some of them were illustrated in full. Many curious and
striking facts in connexion with this head were introduced. The
habits of the ichneumon fies, which lay their eges in caterpillars, by
inserting their ovipositors through their flesh, the larvee of which feed
on the fatty juices of the living caterpillar, and undergo their trans-
formation in the body, and eat their way out as the perfect insect.
The benejits and uses of insects were then exhibited. They are nature’s
scavengers ; the carcases of animals are speedily consumed by the
larvee of various beetles and flies, and there is good ground for Linné’s
assertion that three flies of a certain species will devour a dead horse
as quickly as a lion. Each will produce 20,000 grubs, which, in
twenty-four hours, will devour so much food as to increase their bulk
two hundred fold. The burying beetle inhumes small dead animals,
and ants perform no mean office in this respect. Putrescent vegeta-
bles and decomposing fungi are consumed by beetles, and stagnant
waters are purified by innumerable larva. Noxious insects are kept
within proper: limits by others; wasps destroy multitudes of spiders
and grasshoppers, and the family of ichneumon insects kill thousands
of caterpillars. Ifit were not for the larve of the lady-bird, so com-
mon in our gardens, our roses, and some other flowers, would be de-
stroyed by the parasitic animals upon them. The singular ant-lion,
which lies in wait for its prey in a holein the sand, and most curiously
throws stones at its retreating game, destroys many noxious insects.
Nothing escapes the ruthless attacks of the ichneumons ; they assault
the spider in his web, the bee in his retreat; they find out the larve
of the Hessian fly and kill millions of them. The tiger-beetle preys
on the whole insect race, and the water-beetles are no less cruel on
their congeners. Ants, wasps, hornets, dragon-flies, in a word nearly
all are employed by Providence in keeping down a superabundance of
these little animals, which, if left unmolested, would be a plague on
the earth. Insects are real cannibals ; even some species of caterpil-
lars will devour each other. Some devour their own offspring with
savage ferocity, and the young of the mantis will fall on and devour
each other as soon as they are excluded from the ege.
Insects, wholly or in part, constitute the food of some of our most
esteemed fishes and birds; they afford nourishment to some quadru-
THR SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 139
peds and reptiles ; many of them furnish the best bait to the angler.
In some countries they are eaten and accounted great delicacies, and
we who delight in lobsters, terrapins, and bullfrogs, should not be
squeamish about the Arabs eating locusts, or some people in South
America crunching a centipede with appetite, or making a savory
soup of the grubs of beetles.
Many years ago, the doctors made extensive use of insects in their
practice. Powder of silkworms was given for vertigo ; millepedes for
the jaundice ; fly-water for ear-ache ; five gnats were considered a dose
of excellent physic ; lady-birds for cholic and measles ; ants were in-
comparable for leprosy, and deafness. A learned Italian professor
assures us that a finger once imbued with the juices of a certain beetle
will retain its power of curing tooth-ache for a year!
But it is true that, in Cayenne, one insect produces a lint which is
an excellent styptic, and gum ammonia oozes out of a plant from an
incision made by another. The benefits and uses of the Cantharis, a
Spanish fly, the cochineal, the gall-flies, the bee, silkworms, &c., &c.,
are well known.
Many interesting iilustrations were given of the affection which
many insects have for their young. The selection of the appropriate
place for the deposite of their eggs by the butterfly, the dragonfly,
the horsefly, the wasp, &c.; the gathering of proper food for the
larve ; their protection against natural enemies and the weather ;
these, and other curious facts under this head, were dwelt on at some
length.
The phenomena presented by insect habitations were exhibited very
lucidly. The lecturer stated and proved, that the most ingeniously
constructed hut of the beaver, and the most artfully contrived nest of
the bird, are far surpassed by the habitations of insects. Here he
discoursed on the cells of wasps, and particularly of the honey-bee—
and these latter were illustrated by large drawings—showing that the
bee in the construction of its nest solves a problem in mathematics of
the highest order. He related many interesting phenomena, which
seemed almost incredible to those who had never paid special atten-
tion to this subject. He stated that Dr. Paley was mistaken an as-
serting ‘‘ that the Auman animal is the only one which is naked, and
the only one which can clothe itself,’ by showing that caterpillars of
various moths clothe themselves comfortably and beautifully. Not
only do larvee which live on land construct coverings for themselves,
but some which spend that period of their existence in the water,
They make their coats of sand, grass, and sometimes of minute shells.
The common web, or habitation of the spider, is familiar to all; but
there is one species which excavates a gallery upwards of two feet in
length and half an inch broad. It is furnished at the orifice with a
curiously constructed door, actually turning on a hinge of silk, and,
as if acquainted with the laws of gravity, she invariably fixes the
hinge at the highest side of the opening, so that the door when pushed
up shuts again by its own weight. The habitation of the water-spi-
der is built under water, and is formed, in fact, of air. She first con-
structs a frame-work of her chamber attached to the leaves of aquatic
plants ; she then covers it with a sort of varnish elaborated from her
140 “TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
spinner ; she then introduces bubbles of air, and soon has a commo
dious and dry retreat in the water.
The means of defence which insects employ were also considered.
They assume various attitudes calculated to deceive the beholder ;
many roll themselves up and feign death. One genus, Brachinus, has
‘the wonderful faculty of producing a sound (but not from the mouth)
like the explosions of a pop-gun, and a smoke-like secretion is at the
same time discharged. Other insects eject an acrid fluid from their
mouths ; some defend themselves with their weapons; some have
horns and strong claws ; some have stings; some bite—others pierce ;
bees erect fortifications at the mouth of their hives to defend them-
selves against their enemy, the moth; some cover themselves with
leaves ; some appear only at night, &c., &e.
Numerous instances of the remarkable instincts of insects were
given, and among them that of the common mosquito in the laying
ofits eges. The female poises herself lightly on the water, protrudes
her hinder legs crosswise, and deposites her eggs on the platform thus
formed ; and when she has laid all, to the number of three hundred,
she lets the mass drop on the water, where they are hatched, and in
which they are destined to live in their larva state. This mass of
eggs is not a misshapen cluster, but it has the regular form of a boat,
and is so well poised that the most violent agitation of the water can-
not overset it. Ifit sunk, the eggs would perish ; but they float until
they are hatched, and then the young find their destined place in the
water, in which they undergo their transformation. Other examples
of instinct of caterpillars, wasps, ants, moths, &c., were given.
This led the lecturer, in conclusion, to say something on the nature
of instinct itself.
The French naturalist, Bonner, has said that philosophers will in
vain torment themselves to define “instinct, until they have spent some
time in the head of an animal, without actually being that animal!
Cudworth referred this faculty to a certain plastic nature ; and Des
Cartes maintained that animals are mere machines. Mylius, an old
philosopher, thought that many of the actions deemed instinctive are
the effect of painful corporeal feelings ; the cocoon of a caterpillar, for
instance, being the result of a fit of cholic ; the animal producing the
cocoon by its uneasy contortions, and thus twisting its superabundant
silk material into a regular ball. Some have thought that the brain
of a bee or spider is impressed at its birth with certain geometrical
figures, according to which models its works are constructed. Buffon
refers the instinct of societies of insects to the circumstance of a great
number of individuals being brought into existence at the same time,
all acting with equal force, and “obliged, by the similarity of their
str ucture, and the conformity of their movements, to perform each the
same movements in the same place, whence results a regular, well-
proportioned, and symmetrical structure. Addison and some ‘others
have thought, as Kirby reports, that instinct isan immediate and con-
stant impulse of the Deity. The only opinion which deserves serious
consideration is that which contends for the identity of instinct with
reason in man, Some great names are arranged on this side, and it
‘ THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 141
is the view commonly taken by those who have not investigated the
subject. It involves consequences which are dangerous, and, of course,
erroneous,
If we allow reason to animals, we must admit some monstrous ab-
surdities. The bee must be the best mathematician and philosopher ;
the young bird must be the best architect ; the spider the best weaver ;
the beaver the best house-builder, &c., &c.
There is no progressive improvement in insect architecture; no
labor-saving machinery employed ; each species has its limited capa-
city, and there its powers cease ; neither is instinct improved by do-
mestication, &e.
The lecturer then returned to his specific theme, and by numerous
examples showed that insect instinct seemed to be more exquisite than
that of higher animals; they showed more cunning, more art, more
adaptation, than other animals.
He closed by expressing the hope that he had awakened some in-
terest in this long neglected subject. That though insects are small
animals, yet ‘‘the meanest thing hath greatness in it,’’ for all things
bear the impress of the Almighty maker: Omnia plena sunt Jovis; and
in our investigations into the secrets of nature, we are led to praise
‘¢ Him first, Him last, Him midst,
Him without end.’’
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LECTURE.
OXYGEN AND ITS COMBINATIONS.
BY PROF. GEO. J. CHACE,
OF BROWN UNIVERSITY.
Combustion or the rapid union of bodies with oxygen, attended with
the free evolution of light and heat, takes place only at temperatures
more or less elevated. Phosphorus, the substance most readily ig-
nited, does not kindle till it has been raised to 120° Fahrenheit. | Sul-
phur, the next most inflammable body, must be raised to the tempera-
ture of 300° before it will begin to burn. Charcoal kindles only at
the full red heat. Anthracite coal requires a temperature somewhat
higher ; while iron and most of the other metals must be brought to
the glowing white heat before they will enter into combustion.
As this rapid union of bodies with oxygen takes place only where
their affinities have been energized by rise of temperature, it rarely
occurs in nature; never, in fact, except where the lightning falls
upon the forest or the prairie, or the volcano sends forth its burning
streams of lava. As ordinarily witnessed, it is brought about by
artificial means for the attainment of economical and industrial ends.
In order that oxygen may unite with bodies at ordinary tempera-
tures, if must be presented to them in connexion with water. Dry
oxygen, whether pure or mingled with nitrogen, as in the atmospheric
air, has no action upon them. With the single exception of potassium,
all the metals may be exposed to it for an indefinite length of time
without alteration. The most perishable organic substances in like
manner remain unchanged in it. Neither do these bodies suffer
change in water from which the air has been removed ; but, exposed
to the combined action of air and water, or rather to the action of air
dissolved in water, all organic substances and nearly all the metals
pass more or less rapidly into the state of oxides. It is in this way
that oxidation in nature is universally effected.
The solvent powers of water are scarcely greater for solids than for
gases. Of some of these it absorbs several hundred times its volume.
For oxygen and nitrogen, however, the two principal constituents of
the atmosphere, its affinity is less energetic. Of the former, it ab-
sorbs but 43 per cent. ; and of the latter, only 23 per cent. of its vol-
ume. On account of the greater solubility of the oxygen, the air ob-
tained from water is richer in this element than ordinary atmospheric
sir. This contains only about 20 per cent. of its volume of oxygen ;
while the air extracted from water contains more than 30 per cent. of
its volume of oxygen.
144 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
As the water at the earth’s surface is everywhere in contact with
the air, it is always more or less perfectly saturated withit. Although
the oxygen is continually being withdrawn by the respiration of
aquatic animals, and also by decaying animal and vegetable matters,
fresh portions of this element are as constantly taken in from the at-
mosphere. This process of absorption is materially facilitated by
agitation at the surface of contact between the two fluids. Hence the
winds play an important part in keeping the superficial portions of
the oceans, seas, and lakes charged with oxygen.
Water is thus the great transferer of oxygen from the atmosphere
to the various organic and mineral substances entering into union
with it. The thinner the stratum of water interposed between the air
and the oxydizing body, the more rapidly is the transfer effected.
Hence metals with a mere film of water upon their surface, such as
they gather from a damp atmosphere, corrode much faster than when
deeply buried in that fluid. Metals with rough surfaces, also, when
exposed to a damp atmosphere, rust sooner than metals whose sur-
faces have been polished. These latter, on account of their feebler
attraction for moisture, do not so readily gather the requisite film
of water; or if it be precipitated upon them, it quickly passes off
by evaporation, as is seen in the case of the highly polished knife
or razor.
If a sheet of iron be placed in a damp atmosphere, or in water con-
taining air, the phenomena observed will beas follows: Fora time the
metal will retain its brightness and apparently suffer no change. At
length, however, minute spots of rust make their appearance here and
there upon its surface. These, when they have once begun to form,
rapidly enlarge and multiply until ere long the entire sheet is over-
spread by them. This more rapid oxydation is probably caused by
a change in the electric state of the metal. Little galvanic circles are
formed by the spots of rust on the iron, in consequence of which the
latter acquires an increased tendency to unite with oxygen. Whether
the incipient oxydation is due to a similar influence of the water upon
the iron, or whether it is owing to the oxygen being presented by the
water in a state more favorable to combination, or whether both of
these causes concur in determining it, may admit of question.
Copper, lead, tin, and zinc, exposed to a moist atmosphere, or
placed in water holding air in solution, exhibit like phenomena.
Hence the corrosion of the copper sheathing of vessels by sea-water.
Hence, too, the frequent contamination of well and spring water by
the leaden pipes employed in conveying it. In both cases, the first
step in the series of transformations which occur, is the union of the
metal with the oxygen dissolved in the water. Silver and gold, in
similar circumstances, experience no change. Sulphur, and not oxy-
gen, is the agent by which they are tarnished.
This rapid wasting of the metals, after oxydation has once com-
menced, finds an analogy in the moral world. The first spot of rust
is the first lapse from virtue, the first stain of vice. And as that spot
of rust, if not promptly removed, enlarges and spreads until it soon
covers the whole surface of the metal ; so that first act of vice, if not
speedily repented of, becomes a habit by repetition, which continues
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 145
to grow and strengthen until at length it extends its blighting influ-
ence over the entire character. But though there be this resemblance
in the commencement and progress of the two cases, there is a wide
difference in the results. In the first instance it is only the corrosion
of a comparatively worthless price of metal ; in the second, it is the
wasting, the blackening, the ruin of a human soul,
The alterations which organic bodies undergo, when no longer per-
vaded by the principle of life, are due to the attacks of oxygen, di-
rected still through the medium of water. In themselves they have
no tendency to change. The first movement among their atoms is
always impressed from without. It is the interposition of new affini-
ties that breaks up the existing combinations and determines a re-
arrangement of the particles. The most delicate viands, hermetically
sealed in canisters from which the air has been removed, may go
round the world unaltered. Fruits hermetically sealed in their skins
are in like manner preserved from decay. When the skin is broken
or has become so changed in texture as to admit the air, decay at once
commences. Timber sunk in mud or water to so great a depth as to
be beyond the reach of oxygen, will remain unchanged for centuries.
The preservative powers of alcohol do not depend simply upon its co-
agulating the albuminous constituents of the animal and vegetable
tissues, and depriving them of a portion of their water ; it shields the
substances buried in it from the attacks of oxygen. Phosphorus,
which soon blackens in water from superficial oxydation, undergoes
no change in alcohol. In water the protoxide of iron soon runs into
the peroxide. In alcohol, it remains unaltered. Turpentine and
most of the essential oils owe their preservative qualities in a great
measure to the exclusion of oxygen. The salts, bitumen, and aro-
matic gums employed by the ancient Egyptians in embalming, were
not simply of service in drying and hardening the animal tissues—
their chief use was in shutting out the oxygen. Whatever does this
renders the bodies most liable to decay incorruptible.
As in the case of the metals, the thinner the stratum of the water
interposed between organic substances and the surrounding atmo-
sphere, the more rapidly is the oxygen transferred to them. Hence
wood, hay, straw, and the fibres of cotton decay faster if simply
wetted, than if wholly immersed in water. Some of these when in
large quantities and pervaded by a due degree of moisture, become so
heated in the interior of the mass as to pass from the ordinary to the
extraordinary mode of oxydation, thus furnishing an instance of
what is called spontaneous combustion. Vegetable mould and the
organic constituents of manures decompose more rapidly in a sandy
soil which allows the water to percolate it freely, than in a clayey
soil which retains the water. One of the chief benefits of drainage
consists in the freer admission of the air to all parts of the soil. The
organic matters contained in it are more rapidly oxydized and con-
verted into food for plants. If to alcohol, so far diluted as to admit
' the air among its particles, there be added some vegetable ferment, it
will pass, by oxydation, into acetic acid and water. Many weeks, or
even months, however, may be required for completing the transform-
ation. But if the same mixed fluid be brought in contact with the
10
146 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
air in thin lamine, as by causing it to trickle slowly through a per-
forated cask filled with wood shavings, a few hours will be found suf-
ficient to effect perfectly its oxydation. ;
The tendency of bodies to unite with oxygen is greatly increased
if the product of their union be capable of acting as a base by the
presence of an acid ; or if it be capable of acting as an acid, by the
presence of a base. Thus iron, copper, lead, and tin, corrode much
faster in acidulated than in pure water. Even the small quantity of
carbonic acid always present in rain and spring water materially
facilitates the oxydation of the metals immersed in them. There is
superadded to the affinity of the metals for the oxygen that of their
oxides for the acid; and if the resultant salt chance to be soluble,
their surface is kept constantly fresh for the corrosive action. The
oxydation of lead by water becomes a source of contamination only
when there is an acid present to unite with the oxide formed, and
render it soluble. The wasting of the copper sheathing of vessels by
sea-water is due not merely to the oxygen, but to the contained salts
with which the copper, either as an oxide or as a carbonate, enters
into reactions.
The arts avail themselves of this principle in the manufacture of
salts. The sulphate of copper is formed by the repeated immersion of
sheets of the metal in sulphuric acid so far diluted with water as to
give it the power of absorbing oxygen. The same metal exposed to
the combined influence of air, water, and acetic acid, passes into an
acetate. Lead, under like circumstances, is converted into an acetate ;
or, if the proper conditions be secured, the acetic acid as well as the
lead suffers oxydation, and a carbonate is produced. It is in this way
that white lead is ordinarily manufactured.
If the body uniting with oxygen form an acid, the combination will
be facilitated by the presence of a base. This fact explains why. the
decay of organic substances is hastened by lime, potash, or soda.
There is superadded to their affinity for oxygen, the affinity of these
powerful bases for the products of their oxydation. Even gold and
platinum, if heated in the air, in contact with either of the alkalies,
suffer oxydation. Nitrogen, though ordinarily manifesting so little
affinity for oxygen, spontaneously unites with it when the two gases
are dissolved in water and brought together in the presence of an
alkali or an alkaline earth. It is probably in this manner that the
nitrates, natural as well as artificial, are for the most part formed.
As oxygen and water, the medium through which it is presented,
are both universally diffused, bodies have a constant tendency to unite
with it, and if left to themselves, do in fact, sooner or later, pass to
the state of oxides. This is their natural or statical condition ; and
although they may be temporarily reclaimed, they cannot be pre-
vented from ultimately reverting to it. Metals find their way back
to the state of ores from which they have been brought. The bodies
of animals and plants, so long as life continues, are, indeed, exempt
from the attacks of oxygen; but no sooner does life cease than they
are laid hold of by this universal, omnipresent element, and fast con-
verted into the substances from which they were formed. The work
of their demolition is assisted by innumerable insects, which, pursuing
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 147
them at all points, allow the destroyer freer access to every part of
their tissues.
Were it not for this dissolving agency of oxygen, the earth would
be everywhere strewn with the undecaying remains of plants and
animals. These, accumulating generation after generation, would en-
cumber its surface, until at length it would become one great charnel-
house filled with the unburied dead.
Oxygen thus performs the part of an undertaker. It removes the
dead out of our sight. And as in the case of the human undertaker,
the graves to which it consigns the lifeless forms intrusted to it, are
not eternal. They, too, give up their dead. The elements of the de-
caying tree, plant and animal, although for a time lost to our sight,
at length reappear in new organic forms, clothed with fresh life and
beauty.
Of the same nature is the office performed by oxygen in respiration.
Penetrating with the blood all parts of the body, it passes by the
living, but everywhere attacks the dead cells and prepares them for
removal from the system. It is only by oxydation that the material
of these cells becomes soluble, and it is only ina state of solution that
they can be borne out of the living organism. Every breath is
freighted with exhalations from the funeral pyres of unnumbered
corpses.
In this oxydation of tissue, which is constantly going forward, cer-,
tain imponderable agents or forces indispensable to the living functions
are liberated. In every part of the body heat is evolved, and in the
brain, that more subtle fluid, which directed along the different ner-
vous channels, controls the movements of the entire frame. The
true source of animal motive power is not to be sought in the endow--
ments of spirit. This merely directs, it does not originate it. Voli-.
tion is the touch of the key by the operator of the telegraph. Unless.
supplied with the requisite force by the brain, the will might as easily
create an arm as move it. As in the steam-engine and the electro-
magnetic engine, so in the animal organism oxydation is the true
source of the power generated.
The nitrogen of the atmosphere is a mere diluent of the oxygen.
It takes no part in any of the work performed by the latter. Nay,
it stands in the way of the latter, and by its physical presence hin-
ders its activities. This is, indeed, its intended office and function. ©
Did oxygen compose the entire atmosphere, bodies coming in contact
with it at points five times more numerous than they now do, would
waste away too rapidly under its action. By the interposition of the
nitrogen its activities are kept within the proper limits, while at the
same time the atmosphere has the weight and density necessary for
its mechanical functions.
Those oxydizing processes so universally in progress would soon.
cease from the exhaustion of subjects, were there no provisions in na-
ture for their continued supply. Such provisions, however, are found
in the vegetable organism. In the. leaves of plants while under the
influence of the sun’s rays, water and carbonic acid, the sulphates
and the phosphates, undergo re-solution. The greater part of the
oxygen is thrown off, while the hydrogen, carbon, sulphur, and phos-
148 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
phorus are wrought into the vegetable tissues. The vast bodies of
bituminous and anthracite coal occurring in different parts of the
earth, were once floating in the atmosphere in the form of carbonic
acid and water, and it is only by passing through the organisms of
plants that they have been brought to their present state. The food
of animals has all been, in like manner, deoxydized. Indeed the
leaf of the plant may be regarded as an apparatus specially designed
for the application of the solar beam to the reduction of carbon, hy-
drogen, sulphur, &e., from the state of oxides. It is only the rays
of the sun that can effect this, and the rays of the sun are capable of
effecting it only in the leaf of the plant. Hence the interposition of
the vegetable between the mineral and the animal kingdoms. Ever
where man would effect the reduction of any of the metals from their
ores, he is obliged to resort to some substance which has been deoxy~
dized by the solar beam in the leaf of the plant.
All deoxydized bodies, therefore, whatever their immediate origin,
are representations of sun power. Sun pewer has actually been ex~
erted, either directly or indirectly, in their production. And when
they revert to the state of oxides, there is an evolution of force equal
in amount to that which was expended in their isolation. Hence the
real source of steam-power, of electro-magnetic power, and of animal
motive power. All of those in the last analysis resolve themselves
into sun power, directed through the mechanism of the vegetable cell
to the re-solution of oxides.
We have thus far contemplated oxygen asa dissolving agent. We
have seen that it literally goes about seeking what it may destroy.
Although respecting the living, and passing by them unharmed, it
everywhere attacks the organic forms from which life has departed
and quickly resolves them into the elements from which they were
formed.
But oxygen is not simply a destroying agent. It takes to pieces
the bodies of the dead only that it may find materials for repairing
and building up those of the living. The hydrogen and the carbon
which it gathers from the decaying wood or the mouldering dust, it
conveys into the leaf of the growing plant. Having there deposited its
purden, it issues again and recommences its wanderings in search of
a new one to have a like destination. Could we see oxygen, could we
make it visible not only to the mind’s eye, but to the eye of sense, as
it speeds on its beneficent mission, we might then observe two little
winged atoms floating along upon the buoyant air, until at length
lighting upon some decaying matter, they lay hold of an atom of car-
bon, and taking it up as the two shining ones on the farther side of the
river took up Bunyan’s pilgrim, bear it away, not to the golden city,
but up among the green leaves and beautiful flowers, there to minis-
ter to and have part in their verdure and beauty. In observing this,
we should recognise oxygen in its most characteristic and habitual
office of carrier between the dead and the living. Indeed, at every
ae of that great cycle through which life and death move hand in
and, the activity of this element is most conspicuous. While by an
irreversible law, inscrutable as it is irreversible, life in our world
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 149
everywhere terminates in death ; through the appointed instrumental-
ity of this agent, new life as constantly springs from its ashes.
Oxygen, therefore, performs the office of restorer as well as de-
stroyer. It is the Vishnu as well as Siva of the Hindoo triad, and, in
nature, its action in both capacities is a beneficent one.
On the products of man’s labor, however, its agency is less kindly.
These, so far as they consist of materials capable of entering into union
with it, gradually waste away under its influence, like the dead forms
of plants and animals. Iron, subserving so many and so important
uses, entering so largely not only into the construction of the tools
and implements of the mechanic arts, but into the products of these
arts—iron, exposed to the combined influence of air and water, quickly
begins to corrode, and, in spite of its strong bands of cohesion, soon
crumbles into dust. Implements and structures of brass are scarcely
more enduring. Wood, and everything formed of it or reared from
it, yield to the same law of decay. ‘‘ Dust thou art, and unto dust
thou shalt return,” is written not only of man himself, but of all,
even the most enduring of his works. Even in that strange land
where the finger of time touches with such marvellous lightness, the
most strenuous and persevering efforts to resist this law of decay have
proved unavailing. The pyramid and the obelisk crumble, while
“Miriam cures wounds and Pharaoh is sold for balsam.’’ Man’s
only hope of immortality must come from his higher, his spiritual
nature; that acknowledges not corruption as its father; that is un-
changing, exempt from all touch of decay, immortal, eternal, like the
Great Being in whose image it was formed. But it is a law of all
material, all earthy, all sublunary things, to change, moulder, decay,
pass away ; and the great principle, or agent, or instrument of this
decay, this dissolution, is oxygen, whose office and ministry in nature
we have this evening been contemplating.
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LECTURE
ON METEORIC STONES.
BY J. LAWRENCE SMITH, M. D.,
PROF. OF CHEMISTRY IN THE MEDICAL DEPT. OF THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE, KY.
The class of bodies which form the subject of this lecture are those
solid masses which, from time to time, are seen to fall from the heavens
to the earth, and bear the name of meteorites, meteoric stones, or
aériolites, the former not being as appropriate a name as the two last.
They are divided into two great classes, stony and metallic, which in
their turn may be subdivided. The fall of the former is much more
frequent than that of the latter, amounting to ninety-six per cent. of
those discovered.
The masses before you are beautiful specimens of the metallic variety.
One of them was found near Tazewell, Claiborne county, Tennessee ;
the second, in Campbell county of the same State ; and the third, in
Coahuila, Mexico. The following is their history and description :
Fig. 1.
—
= ee
= SSS
1. The meteoric iron from Tazewell, Tennessee (Fig. 1).—This mete-
orite was not observed to fall, but was found in August, 1853, it doubt-
less having fallen at a period very much earlier than that of its dis-
covery. The weight of this meteorite was fifty-five pounds. It is ofa
flattened shape, with numerous conchoidal indentations, and three
annular openings passing through the thickness of the mass near the
outeredge. ‘T'wo or three places on the surface are flattened, as if other
- portions were attached at one time, but had been rusted off by a pro-
152 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
cess of oxydation that has made several fissures in the mass, so as to
allow portions to be detached by the hammer, although when the
metal is sound the smallest fragment could not be thus separated, it
being both hard and tough. Its dimensions are such that it will just
lie in a box 13 inches long, 11 inches broad, and 53 inches deep.
The exterior is covered with oxyd of iron, in some places so thin as
hardly to conceal the metal, in other places a quarter of an inch deep.
Its hardness is so great that it is almost impossible to detach portions
by means of a saw. Its color is white, owing to the large amount of
nickel present; and a polished surface when acted on by hot nitric acid
displays in a most beautifully regular manner the Widmannstiittian
figures. The specific gravity of three fragments selected for their
compactness and purity, was from 7.88 to 7.91.
The following minerals have been found to constitute this meteorite :
Ist. Nickeliferous iron, forming nearly"the entire mass. 2d. Proto-
sulphuret of tron, found in no inconsiderable quantity on several parts
of the exterior of the mass. 3d. Schreibersite, found more or less
mixed with the pyrites and in the crevices of the iron, in pieces from
the thickness of the blade of a penknife to that of the minutest par-
ticles. 4th. Olivine ; two or three very small pieces of this mineral
have been found in the interior of the iron. 5th. Protochlorid of
tron; this mineral has been found in this meteorite in the solid state,
which I believe is the first observation of this fact ; it was found in a
crevice that had been opened by a sledge hammer, and ig the same
crevice Schreibersite was found. Chloride of iron is also found deli-
quescing on the surface ; some portions of which, however, are entirely
tree from it, while others again are covered with an abundance of rust
arising from its decomposition.
Besides the, above minerals, two others were found—one a silicious
mineral, the other in minute rounded black particles; both, however,
were in too small quantity for anything like a correct idea to be formed
of their composition.
The analyses of the metallic portion furnished in two specimens
were as follows:
Nol Wl: No. 2.
TOU. 3s isies's die Sein a oniileelste ae ene atamies «wate colt lee aeieanes Bape OMiets iene 83.02
Nickel vs. 5)cc05./: RSet eee odie semen mes AOA fo. ois. welneh eEy Om
Cobalt, ....,..ccsise setmelamee aememrens [oy UR MR a rcs So She 3 ld ant: a re 50
Copper:........:0s 2 eeneeeaeaee aeemenn ds at » mero. cieee ae BOD) wiscd cchuwaivns 06
Phosphorus... Spar Be ice ofeis's spiorapisiald <attaleiaeaia fal G. justia aise 19
Chiorine..........¢emeneee Bee nce ikeeeaeaen Net)! lskaulabsaseme .02
* Sulphur ..........2eneee eee eee sce Be ae 5p el 08
RHIC fats 03 « «ean .nine «nla ae ARE ne aimee sale sist Seeen agai s AG. dn ieee 84
MiG mOS12..... «siess's\icnaet cee eM cnae 2c Sseawamaiac” | hy ttc eee 24
98.55 99.57
Tin and arsenic were looked for, but neither of those substances
were detected.
The composition of the nickeliferous iron corresponds to five atoms
of iron and one of nickel.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. LHS
Tie nl s «aad Fechainae jodsvad akon Chin's uid MR ae OE x laa be . 82.59
MNirelcaleveil tO! cties ss dsndede pubes) ss SER ee 17.41—=100.00
Schreibersite is found disseminated in small particles through the
mass of the iron, and is made evident by the action of hydrochloric
acid ; it is also detected in flakes of little size, inserted as it were into
the iron; and owing to the fact that in many parts where it occurs,
chloride of iron also exists; this last has caused the iron to rust in
crevices, and on opening these, Schreibersite was detached mechani-
cally. This mineral as it exists in the meteorite in question, so closely
resembles magnetic pyrites that it can be readily mistaken for this
latter substance, and I feel confident in asserting that a great deal of
the so-called magnetic pyrites associated with various masses of mete-
oric iron, will, upon examination, be found not to contain a trace of
sulphur, and will, on the contrary, prove to be Schreibersite that can
be easily recognised by its characters.
Its color is yellow or yellowish white, sometimes with a greenish
tinge; lustre metallic; hardness 6; specific gravity 7.017. No .regu-
lar crystalline form was detected ; its fracture in one direction is con-
choidal. It is attracted very readily by the magnet, even more so
than magnetic oxyd of iron; it acquires polarity and retainsit. I
have a piece ;8, of an inch long, ;> of an inch broad, and {5 of an
inch thick, which has retained its polarity over six months; unfortu-
nately the polarity was not tested immediately when it was detached
from the iron, and not until it had come in contact with a magnet, so
that it cannot be pronounced as originally polar.
Three specimens of the Schreibersite were examined, and gave re-
sults as follows:
1 B 8.
2 9 cho a 57.22 56.04 56.53
SRR eso cad ce evr Sasa sateen pias sen sins 25.82 26.48 28.02
PEM teh tnaa icaceeseskereatocbarer sites. anes 0.32 0.41 0.28
eet ns ish PES or. Abdeeleaalto slants ‘race not estimated.
PPM DOT WS) 3 adds asiiels seldesiddaeabioeeevaacees 13.92 14.86
Peed ich wcceiqamhianplagaGhitees ar dames eo Miee 1.62
PRU SSAA eat asst a yn sR Vasclcls Banka E OS He 1.63
PEM eR Ig As SNOT nh cn dregs vw pinwio trace not estimated.
ROUEN Ges ericlas «AAs pion ca gears Omit ann «v0. 0.18
100.66 99.69
The formula of Schreibersite, I consider to be Ni,Fe,P.
Per cent
OS ph OVS peste ener cs ana ncie's Se rer latom 15.47
MRGCEL., . 62). 0k Cee goer a lbvistencv ses e sie 200 Dae 29.17
MAA ier, «6 Yje0 5c ee resind eo onset voons 6 sees : Ane 55.36
This mineral, although not usually much dwelt upon when speak-
ing of meteorites, is decidedly the most interesting one associated with
this class of bodies, even more so than the nickeliferous iron. In
breaking open one of the fissures of this Tazewell meteorite, a small
amount of a green substance was obtained that was easily soluble in
154 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
water, and although not analyzed quantitatively, it left no doubt
upon my mind as to its being protochlorid of iron; and the manner
of its occurrence gave strong evidence of its being an original consti-
tuent, and not formed since the fall of the mass. Chloride of iron
was apparent on various parts of the iron, by its deliquescence on the
surface.
2. The meteoric iron from Campbell county, Tennessee.—This meteor-
ite was discovered in July, 1853, in Campbell county, in Stinking
creek, which flows down one of the narrow valleys of the Cumberland
mountains, by a Mr. Arnold, and was presented to me by Professor
Mitchell, of Knoxville. It is of an oval form, 24 inches long, 1?
broad, and 3 thick, with an irregular surface and several cavities per-
forating the mass. It was covered with a thin coat of oxyd; and on
one-half of it chloride of iron was deliquescing from the surface, while
on another portion there was a thin silicious coating. ‘The iron was
quite tough, highly crystalline, and exhibited small cavities on being
broken, resembling very much in this respect, as well as in many other
points, the Hommony creek iron; a polished surface when etched, ex-
hibited distinct irregular Widmannstiittian figures. The weight is 4
ounces. Specific gravity, 7.05. The lowness of the specific gravity is
accounted for by its porous nature. The composition is as follows:
MOTUS obs kath anivevoaeacs Daawe sh tueakeh en pear ee tae ck Maaeee dance «Ree 97.54
MUTCEON S555. sas bs jatiae Fete dee Seoasiedee a Chas Sales obibale aiastowte See haabtonee 0.25
ODA os cs sk nah Gad Minch edot aor. w saleeam doled buss teramlecomae aellactomaere 0.6
Copper, too small to be estimated.
Gar opi 2235 ade tian chee ate Sta sbinii'h dbbaad aA ee aioe 1.50
Pilios plows sts. aries. deaeee dat tacornon Seetaune se dae ce veeger ne Laaaee 0.12
NTO EAU RUE wise ck wate ed een cae Mee eres ae 1.05
100.52
Chlorine exists in some parts in minute proportion. The amount
of nickel, it will be seen, is quite small, but its composition is, never-
theless, perfectly characteristic of its origin.
Fig. 2.
3. The metéoric iron from Coahuila, Mexico (Fig. 2.)—This meteor-
ite, now in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, was brought
to this country by Lieutenant Couch, of the United States army, he
having obtained it at Saltillo. It was said to have come from the San-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 155
cha estate, some fifty or sixty miles from Santa Rosa, in the north of
Coahuila; various accounts were given of the precise locality, but none
seemed very satisfactory. When first seen by Lieutenant Couch, it
was used as an anvil, and had been originally intended for the Society
of Geography and Statistics in the city of Mexico. It is said, that
where this mass was found there are many others of enormous size;
but such stories, however, are to be received with many allowances.
Mr. Weidner, of the mines of Freiberg, states, that near the south-
western edge of the Balson de Mapimi, on the route to the mines of
Parral, there is a meteorite near the road of not less than a ton weight.
Lieutenant Couch also states, that the intelligent, but almost unknown,
Dr. Berlandier writes, in his journal of the Commission of Limits, that
at the Hacienda of Venagas, there was (1827) a piece of iron that
would make a cylinder one yard in length, with a diameter of ten
inches. It was said to have been brought from the mountains near
the Hacienda. It presented no crystalline structure, and was quite
ductile.
The meteorite now before you (see Fig. 2) weighs 252 pounds, and
from several flattened places I am led to suppose that pieces have
been detached. The surface, although irregular in some places, is
rather smooth, with only here and there thin coatings of rust, and, as
might be expected, but very feeble evidence of chlorine, and that only
on one or two spots. The specific gravity is 7.81. It is highly erys-
talline, quite malleable, and not difficult to cut with the saw. Its
surface etched with nitric acid, presents the Widmannstittian figures,
finely specked between the lines, resembling the representation we
have of the etched surface of Hauptmannsdorf iron. Schreibersite is
visible, but so inserted in the mass, that it cannot be readily detected
by mechanical means. Hydrochloric acid leaves a residue of beauti-
fully brilliant patches of this mineral.
Subjected to analysis, it was found to contain
Ry TI A nic cet a ce Mee vaocersitncloeds demas stelb sins qataee etmek nah seleia 95.82
PEIN PRRs, Gian e inateradsecintwsceeedsanksnpriodswosacasis 0.35
ee tad dain lh ai natu lieatabee sMnedcls oueas tedetenat dabiteids detec s 3.18
Copper, minute quantity, not estimated.
POs PNG RUS 4. anzinaee sentences tse a astinialp Bead ede sac aac tengo 0.24
99.59
Which corresponds to
Nickeliferous iron........... Pin aa eal aale'> ates aaee tmcie 98.45
Beh ret nerette win niccag scvoeee's. oslentislne wabio'e ait Jf hab walt 1.55
a
The iron is remarkably free from other constituents.
The specimen is especially interesting as the largest mass of mete-
oric iron in this country next to the Texas meteorite at Yale College.
The three meteorites just described form an interesting addition to
those already known, a very complete list of which has been lately
156 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
made by Mr. R. P. Greg, jr., to which I would refer all those specially
interested in this subject. It is to be found in the Lond. Phil. Mag.
for 1854.
A fact of much interest is that the number of meteorites already
discovered in the United States is quite large, and, contrary to the
general rule, the iron masses are the most numerous. The following
table, by Mr. Greg, jr., shows at a glance the number of meteorites
already found in different countries, the proportions of the stones and
irons, and the average latitude of their localities.
| |
Countries. Stones. Trons. Total. Average lati-
tude.
QO.
United Statesic 42 22 spo 3osj- ec ae 19 36 55 35 N.
Bavaria, Prussia, Germany----.------ 38 6 44 5EN.
rance MS Mee. SAS Peer aoe oe 34 I 35 46 N.
Lombardy, Piedmont, Sicily, Italy. ---- 3 1 34 3 N.
Hungary. Bohemia, Austria -.-.----~- 28 5 33 48 N.
Sapa On ass. 5 ee oe eee nee senate Zig) wae eee 23 18 N.
Ceyloniand India: i 22562224 2 Sees 19 3 22 20 N.
Ireland and Great Britain...-...----- 20 1 21 Does
Hnropean MRuSside = j-S2 2 se~ aos ceoe 14 1 15 54.N.
Wiest Imdiesvand Mexico. 225-52. -.-< 2 10 12 25 N.
Asta; Minor Creve, Dorkey soos.) soso 10 1 I 40 N.
Fortugaland! Spam se= - aoe Se eee Qa Wl ee eee ee 9 40 N.
PoutihwAnne nica Set. 2 epee Dak oe 1 8 9 20 8.
inland: and wslberiac == 2 <9 oes 4 3 7 63 N.
Egypt, Arabia, and North Africa------ 6 il a 30 N.
SoubhVAtricd..22 Shea sek eee ne eee 2 2 4 30 S.
Tartary, Persia, and Central Asia. ----- 1 2 3 35. N.
Greenland s:: jas sashe52 eee see 1 2 3 65 N.
Sywatzerland sssco2 282 eee meee eae Hate een te em 2 46 N.
Swicdenhie Bare x ue onsets 2 oe i as iB ee ees 1 60 N.
Salhdwichiisiandsse= =sseee see eee ae ee Seem ee 1 20 N.
PING ales alge a Pee Pee eet crepe na prem me TF eer Ht 10 8.
Canadan sie sui. seeds ec iees sete ceest cleaner sae 1 ddepiy vs Sa A ea
The number of these bodies which fall annually cannot be well
determined. In the last sixty years the average falls observed are
ten per annum ; but of course the actual number must have far ex-
ceeded this, and some authors have supposed that not less than five
eS must fall annually on various parts of the surface of the
globe.
In this lecture our object is not to enter into a detailed account of
all the peculiarities of appearance of meteoric stones, either while
falling or after their descent. The more immediate object is to
consider the probable origin of these bodies; yet it is of general in-
terest to mention some of those peculiarities before proceeding to the
theoretical discussion.
Meteoric stones, as they fall, frequently exhibit light; are sometimes
accompanied by a noise, and occasionally burst into several fragments.
All of these phenomena are produced after they enter our atmo-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 157
sphere, which they do at a very great velocity ; heat is developed in
them by their friction against the air; the iron they contain is sub-
ject to combustion, which is augmented by the condensed condition
of the atmosphere before the object while in rapid motion. All this
suffices for the production of the light exhibited. Light does not
always accompany the fall of these bodies—-a fact which, it is reason-
able to suppose, belongs especially to the masses of iron, which, from
the compact nature of their structure, and their great conductibility,
cannot become so readily heated on the surface as to reach the point of
incandescence. The noise is produced by their rapid motion through
the air, and their bursting by the combined effects of irregular expan-
sion by heat, and certrifugal force produced by irregular resistance of
the atmosphere ; the latter being alone sufficient to bring about such
a result, as is shown by the shooting of stone balls from a cannon.
The velocity of these bodies will be discussed in another part of this
lecture.
The lessons to be learned from meteorites, both stony and metallic,
are probably not as much appreciated as they ought to be; we are
usually satisfied with an analysis of them and surmises as to their
origin, without due consideration of their physical and chemical char-
acteristics.
The great end of science is to deduce general principles from parti-
cular facts. Thus terrestrial gravitation has been extended to the
whole solar system, and, indeed, to the whole visible universe. The
astronomer, however, has only proved the universality of this one law,
and has found no evidence that any other force observed at the surface
of the earth displays itself in any other sphere. However probable it
may appear that the same laws affect terrestrial and celestial matter,
it is none the less interesting to extend our proofs of this assumption,
and meteorites, when looked upon in this light, acquire additional in-
terest.
First. They lead us to the inference that the materials of the earth
are exact representatives of those of our system, for up to the present
time no element has been found in a meteorite that has not its coun-
terpart on the earth ; or if we are not warranted in making such a
broad assumption, we certainly have the proof, as far as we may ever
expect to get it, that some materials of other portions of the universe
are identical with those of our earth.
Second. They show that the laws of crystallization in bodies foreign
to the earth are the same as those affecting terrestrial matter, and in
this connexion we may instance pyroxene, olivine and chrome iron,
affording, in their chrystalline form, angles identical with those of
terrestrial origin.
Third. The most interesting fact developed by meteorites is the
universality of the laws of chemical affinity, or the truth, that
the laws of chemical combination and atomic constitution are to be
equally well seen in extra-terrestrial and terrestrial matter ; so that
were Dalton or Berzelius to seek for the atomic weights of iron,
silica or magnesia, they might learn them as well from meteoric
minerals as from those taken from the bowels of the earth. The
158 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
atomic constitution of meteoric anorthite, or of pyroxene, is the same
as of that which exists in our own rocks.
An important peculiarity of the stony meteorites is, that their
outer surface is covered with a coating strongly resembling pitch ;
this is a species of glass formed from the heated condition to which
the meteorite arrives in its passage through the air, the heat acquired
being sufficient to fuse the outer surface. The black color is due to
the protoxide of iron combining with the silica. In most instances
the protoxide is formed from the oxydation of the particles of metallic
iron in the mass.
Keeping in view then the physical and chemical characters of mete-
orites, I propose to offer some theoretical considerations which, to be
fully appreciated, must be followed step by step. These views are
not offered because they individually possess particular novelty; it is the
manner in which they are combined to which especial attention is called.
The first physical characteristic to be noted is their form. No
masses of rock, however rudely detached from a quarry, or blasted
from the side of a mountain, or ejected from the mouth of a volcano,
would present more diversity of form than meteoric stones ; they are
rounded, cubical, oblong, jagged, and flattened. Now, the fact of
form I conceive to be a most important point for consideration in re-
gard to the origin of these bodies, as this alone is strong proof that
the individual meteorites have not always been cosmical bodies ; for
had this been the case, their form must have been spherical or sphe-
roidal. As this is not so, it is reasonable to suppose that at one time
or another they must have constituted a part of some larger mass.
But, as this subject will be taken up again, I pass to another point—
namely, the crystalline structure ; more especially that of the iron,
and the complete separation in nodules, in the interior of the iron, of
sulphuret and phosphuret of the metals constituting the mass. When
this is properly examined, it is seen that these bodies must have been
in a plastic state for a great length of time, for nothing else could
have determined such crystallization as we see in the iron, and allow
such perfect separation of sulphur and phosphorus from the great bulk
of the metal, combining only with a limited portion to form particu-
lar minerals. No other agent than fire can be conceived of by which
this metal could be kept in the condition requisite for the separatiozi.
If these facts be admitted, the natural inference is that they could
only have been thus heated while a part of some large body.
Another physical fact worthy of being noticed here, is the manner
in which the metallic iron and stony parts are often interlaced and
mixed, as in the Pallas and Atacama specimens, where nickeliferous
iron and olivine in nearly equal portions (by bulk) are intimately
mixed, so that when the olivine is detached, the iron resembles a very
coarse sponge. ‘This is an additional fact in proof of the great heat
to which the meteorites must have been submitted; for, with our
present knowledge of physical laws, there is no other way in which
we can conceive that such a mixture could have been produced. Other
physical points might be noticed ; but as they would add nothing to
the theoretical considerations, they will be passed over.
The mineralogical and chemical points to be noted in meteorites are
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 159
as follows: The rocks or minerals of these bodies are not of a sedi-
mentary character, nor such as are produced by the action of water.
This is obvious to any one who will examine them. A mineralogist
will also be struck with the thin dark-colored coating on the surface
of the stony meteorites ; but this isin most, if not in all instances,
the product of our atmosphere, and need not be further noticed. A
more interesting peculiarity is that metallic iron, alloyed with nickel
and cobalt, is of constant occurrence in meteorites, with but three or four
exceptions—in some instances constituting the entire mass, at other
times disseminated in fine particles through stony matter. The ex-
istence of this highly oxydizable mineral in its metallic condition is
a positive indication of a scarcity, or total absence, of oxygen (in its
gaseous state, or in the form of water) in the locality from whence the
body came.
Another mineralogical character of significance is, that the stony
portions of the meteorites resemble the older igneous rocks, and par-
ticularly the volcanic rocks belonging to various active and extinct
voleanoes. It is useless to dwell on this fact; the inference to be
drawn from it is very evident. It is highly significative of the igne-
ous origin of these bodies, and of an igneous action in other portions
of space similar to that now existing in our volcanoes.
Ever since the labors of Howard in 1802, the chemical constitution of
meteorites has attracted much attention, more especially the elements
associated in the metallic portion; and although we find no new ele-
ments, still their association, so far as yet known, is peculiar to this
class of bodies. Thus nickel is a constant associate of iron in meteor-
ites, (if we except the Walker county, Alabama, and Oswego, New
York, meteorites, upon whose claims to meteoric origin there yet re-
mains some doubt ;) and although cobalt and copper are mentioned
only as occasional associates, in my examination of nearly thirty
known specimens (in more than one-half of which these constituents
were not mentioned) I have found both of the last-mentioned metals
as constantly as the nickel. With our more recent method of sepa-
rating cobalt from nickel, very accurate and precise results can be
obtained relative to the former. The copper exists always in such
minute proportion, that the most careful manipulation is required to
separate it.
Another element frequently, but not always, occurring in associa-
tion with the iron is phosphorus. Here again an examination of thirty
specimens of this substance leads me to a similar generalization, namely,
that no meteoric iron is to be expected without it; my examination
has extended as well to the metallic particles separated from the stony
meteorites as to the meteoric irons proper. It may be even further
stated, that, in most instances, the phosphorus was traceable directly
to the mineral Schreibersite.
These four elements, then, (iron, nickel, cobalt, and phosphorus,)
I consider remarkably constant ingredients: first, in the meteoric
irons proper ; and secondly, in the metallic particles of the stony me-
teorites ; there being only some three or four meteorites, among hun-
dreds that are kgown, in which they are not recognised.
As regards the cémbination of these elements, it is worthy of re-
160 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
mark that no one of them is associated with oxygen, although all of
them have a strong affinity for this element, and are never found (except
copper) in the earth uncombined with it, except where some similar
element (as sulphur, &c.) supplies its place.
The inference of the absence of oxygen in a gaseous condition, or in
water, is drawn from such substances as iron and nickel being in their
metallic state, as has been just mentioned ; but it must not be inferred
that oxygen is absent in all forms at the place of origin of the meteor-
ites, for the silica, magnesia, protoxyd of iron, &c., contain this
element. The occurrence of one class of oxyds and not of another
would indicate a limited supply of the element oxygen, the more oxyd-
izable elements, as silicon, magnesium, &c., having appropriated it in
preference to the iron. ~
Many other elements worthy of notice might be mentioned here,
and some of them, for aught we know, may be constant ingredients ;
but in the absence of strong presumption, at least, on this head, they
will be passed over, as those already mentioned suffice for the support
of the theoretical views to be advanced.
I cannot, however, avoid calling attention to the presence of carbon
in certain meteorites ; for although its existence is denied by some
chemists, it is nevertheless a fact that can be as easily established as
the presence of the nickel. ‘The interest'to be attached to it is due to
the fact that it is so commonly regarded in the light of an organic
element. It serves to strengthen the notion that carbon can be of
pure mineral origin, for no one would be likely to suppose that the
carbon found its way into a meteorite, either directly or indirectly,
from an organic source.
Having thus noted the predominant physical, mineralogical, and
chemical characteristics of meteorites, I pass on to the next head.
Marked points of similarity in the constitution of meteoric stones.—
Had this class of bodies not possessed certain properties distinguishing
them from terrestrial minerals, much doubt would even now be enter-
tained of their celestial origin, even in those cases where the bodies
were seen to fall. But chemistry has entirely dissipated all doubts
on this point, and now an examination in the laboratory is entitled
to more credit than evidence from any other source in pronouncing on
the meteoric origin of a body. When the mineralogical and chemical
compositions of these bodies are regarded, the most ordinary observer
will be struck with the wonderful family likeness presented by them
all.
There are three great divisions of meteoric bodies, namely: metallic;
stony, with small particles of metal; and a mixture of metallic and
stony in which the former predominates, as in the Pallas and Atacama
meteorites. The external appearances of these three classes differ in
a very marked manner; the meteoric iron being ordinarily of a com-
pact structure, more or less corroded externally, and, when cut, show-
ing a dense structure with most of the peculiarities of pure iron, only
alittle harder and whiter. The stony meteorites are usually of a grey
or greenish grey color, granular structure, readily broken by a blow
of the hammer, and exteriorly are covered with a thin coating of fused
material. The mixed meteorite presents characters of both of the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 161
Above ; a large portion of it consists of the kind of iron already men-
tioned, cellular in its character, and the spaces filled up with stony
materials, similar in appearance to those constituting the second class.
Although there are some instances of bodies of undoubted meteoric
origin not properly falling under either of the above heads, still they
will be seen, upon close investigation, not to interfere in any way
with the general conclusions that are attempted to be arrived at; for
these constituents are represented in the stony materials of the second
class, from which their only essential difference consists in the ab-
sence of metallic particles.
If we now examine chemically the three classes mentioned, we find
them all possessed of certain common characteristics that link them
together, and at the same time separate them from everything terres-
trial. Take first the metallic masses ; and in very many instances, in
some fissure or cavity, exposed by sawing or otherwise, stony mate-
rials will frequently be found, and a stony crystal is sometimes ex-
posed : now examine the composition of these, and then compare the
results with what may be known of the stony meteorites, and in every
instance it will agree with some mineral or minerals found in this
latter class, as olivine or pyroxene, most commonly the former; but
in no instance is it a mineral not found in the stony meteorites. If
these last, in their turn, be examined, differing vastly in their ap-
pearance from the metallic meteorites, they will, with but two or
three exceptions, be found to contain a malleable metal identical in
composition with the metal constituting the metallic meteorites.
As to the mixed meteorites in which the metallic and stony por-
tions seem to be equally distributed, their two elements are but rep-
resentatives of the two classes just described. Examined in this way,
there will be no difficulty in tracing their connexion.
There is one mineral which there is every reason to believe con-
stantly accompanies the metallic portions, and which may be regarded
as a most peculiar mark of difference between meteorites and terres-
trial bodies. It is the mineral Schreibersite, (mentioned in the first
part of this lecture,) to which the constant presence of phosphorus in
meteoric iron is due. This mineral, as already remarked, has no
parallel on the face of the globe, whether we consider its specific or
generic character ; there being no such thing as phosphuret of iron
and nickel, or any other phosphuret, found among minerals. These
facts render the consideration of Schreibersite one of much interest,
running, as it probably does, through all meteorites, and forming
another point of difference between meteorites and terrestrial objects.
Another striking similarity in the composition of meteorites is the
limited action of oxygen on them. In the case of the purely metallic
meteorites we trace an almost total absence of this element. In the
stony meteorites the oxygen is in combination with silicon, magne-
sium, &c., forming silica, magnesia, &c., that combine with small
portions of other substances to form the predominant earthy minerals
of meteorites ; and when iron is found in combination with oxygen,
it occurs in its lowest state of oxydation, asin the protoxyd of the
olivine and chrome iron, and as magnetic oxyd.
Without ig OME further into detail as regards the similarity of com-
162 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
position of meteorites, they will be seen to have as strongly marked
points of resemblance as minerals coming from the same mountain,
I might almost say from the same mine ; and it is not asking much to
admit their having a common centre of origin, and that whatever may
be the body from which they originate, it must contain no uncom-
bined oxygen, and, I might even add, none in the form of water.
I shall now speak of the origin of meteoric stones. In taking up the
theoretical considerations of the subject of the lecture, it is of the ut-
most consequence not to consider shooting stars and meteoric stones
as all belonging to the same class of bodies—a view entertained by
many distinguished observers. It is doubtless less owing to the fact of
their having been confounded, that there exists such a difference of
opinion as to the origin of these bodies.
It may be considered a broad assumption that there is not a single
evidence of the identity of shooting stars and the meteors which give
rise to meteoric stones; but this conclusion is one arrived at by as
full an examination of the subject as | am capable of making.* Some
of the prominent reasons for such a conclusion will be mentioned.
Were shooting stars and meteoric stones the same class of bodies,
we might expect that the fall of the latter would be most abundant
when the former are most numerous. In other words, the periodic
occurrences of shooting stars in August and November, and more par-
ticularly the immense meteoric showers that are sometimes seen,
ought to be attended with the fall of meteoric stones ; whereas there is
not a single occurrence of this kind on record. Again: in all in-
stances where a meteoric body has been seen to fall, and has been
observed even from its very commencement, it has been alone, and not
accompanied by other meteors.
Another objection to the identity of these bodies is the difference in
velocity. That of the shooting stars can readily be determined by
the simultaneous observations of two observers ; and it has been found
that their average rate of motion is about 16} miles a second, while,
in order that they should revolve around the earth through the atmo-
sphere, their velocity must be less than six miles a second. Now, we
know that the meteors do enter our atmosphere, and probably often
pass through it without falling to the earth; but as the most correct
observations have never given a velocity of less than nine miles a
second to a shooting star, it is reasonable to suppose that none have
ever entered our atmosphere, or, what is perhaps still more probable,
* Prof. D. Olmsted, in a most interesting article on the subject of meteors, to be found.
in the 26th volume of the Am. Journal of Science, p. 132, insists upon the difference be-
tween shooting stars and meteorites, and the time and attention he has devoted to the
phenomena of meteors give weight to his opinion.
+ Under this head, I will merely note what is considered one of the best established
cases of the determination of velocity of a meteoric stone, namely, that of the Weston
meteorite, the velocity of which Dr. Bowditch estimated to ‘‘ exceed three miles a second.”’
Mr. Herrick considers the velocity somewhat greater, and writes, among other things,
what follows: :‘'The length of its path, from the observations made at Rutland, Vermont,
and at. Weston, was at least 107 miles. This space being divided by the duration of the
flight, as estimated by two observers, viz., 80 seconds, we have for the meteor’s relative
velocity about three and a half miles a second. ‘The observations made at Wenham, Massa~
chusetts, are probably less exact in this respect, and need not be mentioned here.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 163
that the matter of which they are composed is as subtle as that
of Encke’s comet, and any contact with even the uppermost limit
of the atmosphere destroys their velocity and disperses the matter
of which they are composed.
Other grounds might be mentioned for supposing a difference be-
tween shooting stars and meteoric stones, and | have dwelt on it thus
much because it is conceived of prime importance in pursuing the
correct path that is to lead to the discovery of their origin.
Various theories have been devised to account for the origin of the
meteorites. One is that they are small planetary bodies revolving
around the sun, and at times become entangled in our atmosphere,
lose their orbital velocity by the resistance of the air, and fall finally
to the earth; another supposes them to have been ejected from vol-
canoes of the moon; and lastly, they are considered as formed from
particles floating in the atmosphere. The exact nature of this last
theory is given by Professor C. U. Shepard, in an interesting re-
port on meteorites published in 1848. He* says: ‘‘ The extra-terres-
trial origin of meteoric stones and iron masses seems likely to be more
and more called in question with the advance of knowledge respecting
such substances, and as additions continue to be made to the connected
sciences. Great electrical excitation is known to accompany volcanic
eruptions, which may reasonably be supposed to occasion some chemi-
cal changes in the volcanic ashes ejected ; these being wafted by the
ascensional force of the eruption into the regions of the magneto-polar
influence, may there undergo a species of magnetic analysis. The
most highly magnetic elements, (iron, nickel, cobalt, chromium, &c.,)
or compounds in which these predominate, would thereby be separated
and become suspended in the form of metallic dust, forming those
columnar clouds so often illuminated in auroral displays, and whose
position conforms to the direction of the dipping needle. While cer-
tain of the diamagnetic elements, (or combinations of them,) on the
other hand, may. under the control of the same force, be collected
into different masses, taking up a position at right angles to the
former, (which Faraday has shown to be the fact in respect to such
bodies,) and thus produce those more or less regular arches, transverse
to the magnetic meridian, that are often recognised in the phenomena
of the aurora borealis.
«<Any great disturbance of the forces maintaining these clouds of
meteor-dust, like that produced by a magnetic storm, might lead to
the precipitation of portions of the matter thus suspended. If the
disturbance was confined to the magnetic dust, iron masses would fall ;
if to the diamagnetic dust, a non-ferruginous stone; if it should ex-
tend to both classes simultaneously, a blending of the two characters
would ensue in the precipitate, and a rain of ordinary meteoric stones
would take place.
“‘The occasional raining of meteorites might, therefore, on such a
© I must, in justice to Professor Shepard, say that since this lecture was delivered he
has informed me that he no longer entertains these views; and I would now omit the
criticism of them did they not exist in his memoir uncontradicted, and also were they
not views still entertained by some.
164 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
theory, be as much expected as the ordinary deposition of moisture
from the atmosphere. The former would originate in a mechanical
elevation of volcanic ashes and in matter swept into the air by torna-
does; the latter from simple evaporation. In the one case, the matter
is upheld by magneto-electric force ; in the other, by the law of diffu-
sion, which regulates the blending of vapors and gases, and by tem-
perature. A precipitation of metallic and earthy matter would hap-
pen on any reduction of the magnetic tension ; one of rain, hail, or
snow, on a fall of temperature. The materials of both originate in
our earth. In the one instance they are elevated but to a short dis-
tance from its surface, while in the other they appear to penetrate
beyond its farthest limits, and possibly to enter the inter-planetary
space ; in both cases, however, they are destined, through the opera-
tion of invariable laws, to return to their original repository.’’
This theory, or rather hypothesis, coming as it does from one who
is justly entitled to high consideration, from the fact of the special
attention he has given to the subject of meteorites, may mislead, and
for this reason the objections which may be advanced against it ought
to be stated. First, it must be proved that terrestrial volcanoes con-
tain all the varieties of matter found in the composition of meteoric
bodies. It is true that many of the substances are ejected from vol-
canoes, as olivine, &c., but then the principal one, nickeliferous iron,
has never in a single instance been found in the lava or other matter
coming from volcanoes, although frequently sought for.
But the physical obstacles are a still more insuperable difficulty in
the way of adopting this theory. In the first place it is considered a
physical impossibility for tornadoes or other currents of air to waft
matter, however impalpable, ‘‘ beyond the farthest limits of the earth,
and, possibly, into interplanetary space.’’ Again, if magnetic and
diamagnetic forces cause the particles to coalesce and form solid
masses, by the cessation of those forces the bodies would crumble into
powder.
We pass on to a concise statement of some of the chemical objections
to this theory of atmospheric origin, and, if possible, they are more
insuperable than the last mentioned. Contemplate for a moment the
first meteorite described in this lecture—a mass of iron of about sixty
pounds of a most solid structure, highly crystalline, composed of nickel
and iron chemically united, containing in its centre a crystalline phos-
phuret of iron and nickel, and on its exterior surface a compound of
sulphur and iron, also in atomic proportions—and can the mind be
satisfied in supposing that the dust wafted from the crater of a voleano
into the higher regions of the atmosphere could, in a few moments of
time, be brought together by any known forces so as to create the body
in question ? However finely divided this volcanic dust might be, it
can never be subdivided into atoms, a state of things that must exist
to form bodies in atomic proportions, where no agency is present to
dissolve or fuse the particles. One other objection and I have done
with this hypothesis. The particles of iron and nickel supposed to be
ejected from the volcano must pass from the heated mouth of a crater,
ascend through the oxygen of the atmosphere without undergoing the
slightest oxydation ; for if there be any one thing which marks the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 165
meteorites more strongly than any other, it is the freedom of the masses
of iron from oxydation except on the surface. But a still more re-
markable abstinence from oxydation would be the ascent of the parti-
cles of phosphorus to form the Schreibersite traceable in so many me-
teorites.
Having noticed the prominent objections to this hypothesis, I pass
on to consider, in as few words as possible, the other two suppositions.
The most generally adopted theory of the origin of meteoric bodies
is that they are small planetary bodies revolving around the sun, one
portion of their orbit approaching or crossing that of the earth; and
from the various disturbing causes to which these small bodies must
necessarily be subjected, their orbits are constantly undergoing more
or less variation, until intersected by our atmosphere, when they meet
with resistance and fall to the earth’s surface in whole or in part ;
this may not occur in their first encounter of the atmosphere, but re-
peated obstructions in this medium at different times must ultimately
bring about the result. In this theory their origin is supposed to be
the same as that of other planetary bodies, and they are regarded as
always having had an individual cosmical existence. Now, however
reasonable the admission of this orbital motion immediately before and
for some time previous to their contact with the earth, the assumption
of their original cosmical origin would appear to have no support in
the many characteristics of meteoric bodies as enumerated before. The
form alone of these bodies is anything but what ought to be expected
from a gradual condensation and consolidation ; all the chemical and
mineralogical characters are opposed to this supposition. If the ad-
vocates of this hypothesis do not insist on the last feature of it, then
it amounts to but little else than a statement that meteoric stones fall
to us from space while having an orbital motion. In order to entitle
this planetary hypothesis to any weight it must be shown how bodies,
formed and constructed as these are, could be other than fragments of
some very much larger mass.
As to the existence of meteoric stones in space travelling in a special
orbit prior to their fall, there can be but little doubt, when we con-
sider their direction and velocity ; their composition proving them to
be of extra-terrestrial origin. ‘This, however, only conducts in part
to their origin, and those who examine them chemically will be con-
vinced that the earth is not the first great mass that metoric stones
have been in contact with, and this conviction is strengthened when
we reflect on the strong marks of community of origin so fully dwelt
upon.
It is, then, with the consideration of what was the connexion of these
bodies prior to their having an independent motion of their own,
that this lecture will be concluded.
It only remains to bring forward the facts already developed to ex-
hibit the plausibility of the hypothesis of the lunar origin of meteoric
stones.
It was originally proposed as early as 1660, by an Italian phi-
losopher, Terzago, and advanced by Olbers in 1795, without any
knowledge of its having been before suggested ; it was sustained by
Laplace, with all his mathematical skill, from the time of its adoption
bd
166 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF |
to his death ; it was also advocated, on chemical grounds, by Berze-
lius, whom I have no reason to believe ever changed his views in re-
gard to it ; and to these we have to add the following distinguished
mathematicians and philosophers: Biot, Brandes, Poisson, Quetelet,
Arago, and Benzenberg, who have at one time or another advocated
the lunar origin of meteorites.
Some of the above astronomers abandoned the theory—among them
Olbers and Arago; but they did not do so from any supposed defect in
it, but from adopting the assumption that shooting stars and mete-
orites were the same, and on studying the former and applying the
phenomena attendant upon them to meteorites, the supposed lunar
origin was no longer possible.
On referring to the able researches of Sears C. Walker on the peri-
odical meteors of August and November, (Am. Phil. Soc.,) it will be
found that astronomer makes the following! remarks: ‘‘ in 1836, OL
bers, the original proposer of the theory of 1795, being firmly con-
vinced of the correctness of Brandes’s estimate of the relative velocity
of meteors, renounces his selenic theory, and adopts the cosmical theo-
ry as the only one which is adequate to explain the established facts
before the public.”’
For reasons already stated, it appears wrong to assume the identity
of meteorites and shooting stars; so that whatever difficulty the phe-
nomena of the latter may have interposed as to the hypothesis of the
origin of meteoric stones, it now no longer exists. Had Olbers
viewed the matter in this light, he would doubtless have retained
his original convictions, to which no material objection appears to
have occurred to him for forty years.
It is not my object to enter upon all the points of plausibility of
this assumed origin, or to meet all the objections which have been
urged against it. The object now is simply to urge such facts as
have been developed in this lecture, and which appear to give strength
to the hypothesis. They may be summed up under the following
heads :
1. That all meteoric masses have a community of origin.
2. At one period they formed parts of some large body.
3. They have all been subject to a more or less prolonged igneous
action corresponding to that of terrestrial volcanoes.
4. That their source must be deficient in oxygen.
5. That their average specific gravity is about that of the moon.
From what has been said under the head of common characters of
meteorites, it would appear far more singular that these bodies should
have been formed separately, than that they should have at some time
constituted parts of the same body ; and from the character of their
formation, that body should have been of great dimensions. Let us
suppose all the known meteorites assembled in one mass, and regarded
by the philosopher, mindful of our knowledge of chemical and physi-
cal laws. Would it be considered more rational to view them as the
great representatives of some one body that had been broken into
fragments, or as small specks of some vast body in space that at one
period or another has cast them forth? The latter it seems to me is
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 167
‘the only opinion that can be entertained in reviewing the facts of the
case.
As regards the igneous character of the minerals composing meteor-
ites, nothing remains to be added to what has already been said ; in
fact no mineralogist can dispute the great resemblance of these min-
erals to those of terrestrial volcanoes, they having only sufficient
difference in association to establish that although igneous, they are
extra-terrestrial. The source must also be deficient in oxygen, either
in a gaseous condition, or combined, as in water ; the reasons for so
thinking have been clearly stated as dependent upon the existence of
metallic iron in meteorites—a metal so oxydizable that in its terrestrial
associations it is almost always found combined with oxygen, and
never in its metallic state.
What, then, is that body which is to claim common parentage of
these celestial messengers? Are we to look at them as fragments of
some shattered planet whose great representatives are the thirty-three
asteroids between Mars and Jupiter, and that they are ‘‘ minute out-
riders of the asteroids,’’ (to use the language of R. P. Greg, jr.,* in
a late communication to the British Association,) which have been
ultimately drawn from their path by the attraction of theearth? For
more reasons than one this view is not tenable. Many of our most
distinguished astronomers do not regard the asteroids as fragments
of a shattered planet; and it is hard to believe, if they were, and the
meteorites the smaller fragments, that these latter should resemble
each other so closely in their composition—a circumstance that would
not be realized if our earth was shattered into a million of masses,
large and small.
If, then, we leave the asteroids and look to the other planets, we find
nothing in their constitution, or the circumstances attending them, to
jead to any rational supposition as to their being the original habita-
tion of the class of bodies in question. This leaves us, then, but the
moon to look to as the parent of meteorites ; and the more I contem-
plate that body the stronger does the conviction grow, that to itall .
these bodies originally belonged.
It cannot be doubted, from what we know of the moon, that it is
constituted of such matter as composes meteoric stones ; and that its
appearances indicate volcanic action, which when compared with sim-
ilar action on the face of the globe, is like Aitna contrasted with an
ordinary forge, so great is the difference. The results of volcanic
throws and outbursts of lava are seen, for which we seek in vain any-
thing but a faint picture on the surface of our earth. » Again, in the
support of the present view it is clearly established that there is neither
atmosphere nor water on the surface of that body, and, consequently,
no oxygen in those conditions which would preclude the existence of
metallic iron.
Another ground. in support of this view is based on the specific
gravity of meteorites—a circumstance that has not been insisted on ;
and although of itself possessing no great value, yet, in conjunction
with the other facts it has some weight.
= See the able paper of R. P. Greg, jr., in the Lond. Phil. Mag.
168 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
In viewing the cosmical bodies of our system with relation to their
densities, they are divided into two great classes—planetary and com-
etary bodies, (these last embracing comets proper and shooting stars,)
the former being of dense, and the latter of very attenuated matter ;
and so far as our knowledge extends, there is no reason to believe
that the density of any comet approaches that of any of the planets.
This fact gives some grounds for connecting meteorites with the plan-
ets. Among the planets there is also a difference, and a very marked
one, in their respective densities ; Saturn having a density of 0.77 to
0.75, water being 1.0; Jupiter 2.00-2.25 ; Mars 3.5-4.1; Venus 4.8—
5.4; Mercury between 7 and 36; Uranus 0.8-2.9; that of the Harth
being 5.67.* If, then, from specific gravity we are to connect meteor-
ites to the planets, as their mean density is usually considered about
3.0,f they must come within the planetary range of Mars, Harth, and
Venus. In the cases of the first and last we can trace no connexion,
from our ignorance of their nature and of the causes that could have
detached them.
This reduces us then to our own'planet, consisting of two parts—the
planet proper with a density of 5.76, and the moon with a density of
about 3.62.t On viewing this, we are at once struck with the relation
that these bear to the density of meteorites, a relation that even the
planets do not bear to each other in their densities.
As before remarked, I lay no great weight on this view of the den-
sity, but call attention to it as agreeing with conclusions arrived at
on other grounds.
The chemical composition is also another strong ground in favor of
the lunar origin. This has been so ably insisted on by Berzelius and
others, that it would be superfluous to attempt to argue the matter
any further here; but I will simply make a comment on the disregard
that astronomers usually have for this argument. In the memoir on
the periodic meteors by Sears C. Walker, already quoted from, it is
stated, “The chemical objection is not very weighty, for we may as
well suppose a uniformity of constituents in cosmical as in lunar
substances.’’ From this conclusion it is reasonable to dissent, for as
yet we are acquainted with the materials of but two bodies, those of
the earth and those of meteorites, and their very dissimilarity of con-
stitution is the strongest argument of their belonging to different
spheres.. In further refutation of this idea it may be asked, is it to
be expected that a mass of matter detached from Jupiter, (a planet
but little heavier than water,) or from Saturn, (one nearly as light as
cork,) or fromeEncke’s comet, (thinner than air,) would at all accord
with each other or with those of the earth? It is far more rational to
suppose that every cosmical body, without necessarily possessing ele-
ments different from each other, yet are so constituted that they may
* For these estimates of the densities of the planets, the author is indebted to
Prof. Peirce. ‘
+ Although the average specific gravity of the metallic and stony meteorites is greater,
yet the latter exceeding the former in‘quantity, the number 3.0 is doubtless as nearly
correct as can be ascertained.
{ Although the densities of the earth and moon differ, these two bodies may consist
of similar materials, for the numbers given represent the density of bodies as wholes ;
the solid crust of the earth for a mile in depth cannot average a density of 3.0.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 169
‘be known by their fragments. With this view of the matter, our
specimens of meteorites are but multiplied samples of the same body,
and that body, with the light we now have, appears to have been the
moon.
This theory is not usually opposed on the ground that the moon is
not able to supply such bodies as the meteoric iron and stone ; it is
more commonly objected to from the difficulty that there appears to
be in the way of this body’s projecting masses of matter beyond the
central point of attraction between the earth and moon. Suffice it to
say, that Laplace, with all his mathematical acumen, saw no difficulty
in the way of this taking place, although we know that he gave
special attention to it at three different times during a period of
thirty years, and died without discovering any physical difficulty in
the way. Also, for a period of forty years, Olbers was of the same
opinion, and changed his views, as already stated, for reasons ‘of a
different character. And to these two we add Hutton, Biot, Poisson,
and others, whose names have been already mentioned.
Laplace’s view of the matter was connected with present volcanic
action in the moon, but there is every reason to believe that all such
action has long since ceased in the moon. This, however, does not
invalidate this theory in the least, for the force of projection and
modified attraction to which the detached masses were subjected, only
gave them new and independent orbits around the earth, that may
endure for a great length of time before coming in contact with the
earth.
The various astronomers cited concur in the opinion, that a body
projected from the moon with a velocity of about eight thousand feet
per second, would go beyond the mutual point of attraction between
the earth and moon, and already having an orbital velocity, may be-
come a satellite of the earth with a modified orbit.
The important question, then, for consideration, is the force requisite
to produce this velocity. The force exercised in terrestrial volcanoes
varies. According to Dr. Peters, who made observations on Altna,
the velocity of some of the stones was 1,250 feet a second, and obser-
vations made on the peak of Teneriffe gave 3,000 feet a second. Assu-
ming, however, the former velocity to be the maximum of terrestrial
volcanic effects, the velocity with which the bodies started (stones
with specific gravity of about 3.00) must have exceeded 2,000 feet
a second to permit of an absorbed velocity of 1,250 feet through the
denser portions of our atmosphere.
When we regard the enormous craters of elevation on the moon’s
surface, the great elevation of these above the general surface, and
the consequent internal force required to elevate the melted lava that
must have at one time poured from their sides, it is not irrational to
assume that bodies were projected from lunar volcanoes at a velocity
exceeding seven or eight thousand feet per second. I know that Prof.
Dana, in a learned paper on the subject of lunar volcanoes, (Am. J.
Sci., [2], ii, 375,) argues that the great breadth of the craters is no
evidence of great projectile force, the pits being regarded as boiling
craters, where force for lofty projection could not accumulate. Al-
though his hypothesis is ingeniously sustained, still, until stronger
170 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
proof is urged, we are justified, I think, in assuming the contrary to be
true, for we must not measure the convulsive throes of nature at all
periods by what our limited experience has enabled us to witness.
With the existence of volcanic action in the moon without air
or water, I have nothing at present to do, particularly as those who
have studied volcanic action concede that neither of these agents is
absolutely required to produce it ;, moreover, the surface of the moon
is the strongest evidence we have in favor of its occurring under those
circumstances.
The views here advanced do not at all exclude the detachment of
these bodies from the moon by any other force than volcanic. It is
useless for us to disbelieve the existence of such force merely because
we cannot conceive what that force is; suffice it to know that the meteor-
ites are fragments, and if so, must have been detached from the parent
mass by some force. A study of the surface of the moon would in-
duce the belief that any disruption caused by heat might have oc-
curred, as that arising from the great tension produced by cooling, as
exists on a miniature scale in Prince Rupert’s drops, (a suggestion
made by Mr. Naysmith at a recent meeting of the British Associa-
tion.)
Admit the fragmentary character of meteorites, (which I conceive
must be done,) the force that detached it from any planet might with
equal propriety detach it from the moon ; while, from what is known
of that body, everything else would tend to strengthen this belief.
In the paper already mentioned as written by Mr. R. P. Greg, jr.,
advocating the probable connexion between meteoric stones and the
group of asteroids, the author cannot altogether get over the probable
lunar origin of some of these stones, as will be seen from the follow-
ing quotation :
‘‘he physical constitution and internal appearance of some ero-
lites, also, as those of Barbotan, Weston, Juvenas, and Bishopville,
are entirely opposed to the idea of an atmospheric origin, or of any
consolidation of homologous or nebulous particles existing in the in-
terplanetary space. They are evidently parts, as Dr. Lawrence
Smith likewise justly insists on, of some larger whole, and are not un-
frequently true igneous if not volcanic rocks. Physically speaking,
there is little choice left us but to consider some of them certainly
as having true geological and mineralogical characteristics ; either
proceeding from volcanoes in the moon, or portions of a broken
satellite or planetary body : there may, indeed, be difficulties and ob-
jections to either supposition. I have principally endeavored to ad-
duce arguments in favor of the latter idea, stating also some appar-
ently strong objections to the (at least universal) lunar origin of
zreolites and meteoric iron masses.”’
But it may be very reasonably asked, Why consider the moon the
source of these fragmentary masses called meteorites? May not
smaller bodies, either planets or satellites, as they pass by the earth
and through our atmosphere, have portions detached by the mechani-
cal and chemical action to which they are subjected? To this I will
assent as soon as the existence of that body or those bodies is proved.
Are we to suppose that each meteorite falling to the earth is thrown
. THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 171
‘off from a different sphere which becomes entangled in the atmo-
sphere? Ifso, how great the wonder that the earth has never inter-
cepted one of those spheres, and that all should, have struck the
stratum of air surrounding our globe, (some fifty “miles in height, )
and escaped the body of the globe 8,000 miles in diameter. It is
gaid that the earth has never intercepted one of these spheres ; for if
we collect together all the known meteorites, in and out of cabinets,
they would hardly cover the surface of a good sized room, and no one
of them could be looked upon as the maternal mass upon which we
might suppose the others to have been grafted ; and this would ap-
pear equally true, if we consider the known meteorites as represent-
ing not more than a hundredth part of those which have fallen.
If it be conceived that the same body has given rise to them, and
is still wending its path through space, only seeming by its repeated
shocks with our atmosphere to acquire new vigor for a new encounter
with that medium, the wonder will be greater, that it has not long
since encountered the solid part of the globe; but still more strange,
that its velocity has not been long since destroyed by the resistance
of the atmosphere, through which it must have made repeated cross-
ings of over 1,000 miles in extent.
But it may be said that facts are stronger than arguments, and
that bodies of great dimensions (even over one mile in diameter) have
been seen traversing the atmosphere, and have also been seen to pro-
ject fragments and pass on. Now, of the few instances of the sup-
posed large bodies, I will only analyze the value of the data upon
which the Wilton and Weston meteorites were calculated ; and they
are selected, because the details connected with them are more acces-
sible. The calculations concerning the latter were made by Dr.
Bowditch ; but his able calculations were based on deceptive data ;
and this is stated without hesitation, knowing the difficulty admitted
by all of making correct observations as to size of luminous bodies
passing rapidly through the atmosphere. Experiments, that would
be considered superfluous, have been instituted to prove the perfect
fallacy of making any but a most erroneous estimate of the size of
luminous bodies, by their apparent size, even when their distance from
the observer and the true size of the object are known ; how much more
fallacious, then, any estimate of size made, where the observer does
not know the true size of the body, and not even his distance very
accurately.
In my experiments, three solid bodies in a state of vigorous in-
candescence were used: Ist, charcoal points transmitting electricity ;
2d, lime heated by the oxy-hydrogen blowpipe ; 3d, steel in a state
of incandescence in a stream of oxygen gas. They were observed on
a clear night at different distances, and the body of light (without
the bordering rays) compared with the disk of the moon, then nearly
full, and 45° above the horizon. Without going into details of the
experiment the results will be tabulated.
172 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF ,
Actual diam. as | Apparent diam. at 200 | Apparent diam. at ; | Apparent diam. at 3 mile.
seen at 10 in. yards. mile.
Carbon points.....
Lime light........|
Incandescent steel |
|
.8o0f ahinch. | 2 diam. moon’s disk. | 3 diam. moon’s disk, 31 diam. moon’s disk.
2 2
4 ce “ce 2 “ ce 9 ce ee 9 oe “ee
2 te (73 + cc “ 1 “ce 73 1 ce ce
If, then, the apparent diameter of a luminous meteor at a given
distance is to be accepted as a guide for calculating the real size of
these bodies, the
Charcoal points would be 80 feet diam. instead of 5, of an inch, °
Lime a 6¢ 50 a a st 66
The steel globule Op Me GES oe ae sy if
It is not in place to enter into any explanation of these deceptive
appearances, for they are well-known facts, and were tried in the
present form only to give precision to the criticism on the supposed
size of these bodies. Comments on them are also unnecessary, as
they speak for themselves. But to return to the two meteorites under
review.
That of Wilton was estimated by Mr. Edward C. Herrick (Ameri-
can Journal of Science, vol. xxxvii, p. 130) to be about 150 feet in
diameter. It appeared to increase gradually in size until just before
the explosion, when it was at its largest apparent magnitude of one-
fourth the moon’s disk—exploded 25° to 30° above the horizon with
a heavy report, that was heard about thirty seconds after the explo-
sion was seen. One or more of the observers saw luminous fragments
descend towards the ground. When it exploded, it was three or four
miles above the surface of the earth ; immediately after the explo-
sion, it was no longer visible. The large size of the body is made
out of the fact of its appearing one-fourth the apparent disk of the
moon at about six miles distant. After the experiments just recorded,
and easy of repetition, the uncertainty of such a conclusion must be
evident; and it is insisted on as a fact easy of demonstration, that a
body in a state of incandescence (as the ferruginous portions of a stony
‘meteorite) might exhibit the apparent diameter of the Wilton me-
teorite at six miles distance, and not be more than a few inches or a
foot or two in diameter, according to the intensity of the incandes-
cence.
Besides, if that body was so large, where did it go to after throw-
ing off the supposed small fragments? The fragments were seen to—
fall; but the great ignited mass suddenly disappeared at 30° above
the horizon, four miles from the earth, when it could not have had
less than six or seven hundred miles of atmosphere to traverse before it
reached the limit of that medium. It had already acquired a state
of ignition in its passage through the air prior to the explosion, and
should have retained its luminous appearance consequent thereupon,
at least while remaining in the atmosphere ; but as this was not the
case, and a sudden disappearance of the entire body took place in the
very lowest portions of the atmosphere, and descending luminous frag-
ments were seen, the natural conclusion appears to be, that the whole
meteorite was contained in the fragments that fell.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. bly ¢5:
As to the Weston meteorite, it is stated that its direction was nearly
parallel to the surface of the earth, at an elevation of about 18 miles ;
and was one mile further when it exploded. The length of its path from
the time it was seen until it exploded was at least 107 miles ; duration
of flight estimated at about thirty seconds, and its relative velocity
three and a half miles a second. It exploded; three heavy reports
were heard ; the meteorite disappeared at the time of the explosion.
As to the value of the data upon which its size was estimated, the
same objection is urged as in the case of the Wilton meteorite ; and
it is hazarding nothing to state that the apparent size may have been
due to an incandescent body a foot or two in diameter. Also, with
reference to its disappearance, there is the same inexplicable mystery.
It is supposed from its enormous size that but minute fragments
of it fell; yet it disappeared at the time that this took place, which
it is supposed occurred 19 miles above the earth; (an estimate doubt-
less too great when we consider the heavy reports. )
Accepting this elevation, what do we have? A body one mile and
a half in diameter in a state of incandescence, passing in a curve
almost parallel to the earth, ‘and while in the very densest stratum of
air that it reaches, with a vigorous reaction between the atmosphere
and its surface, and a dense body of air in front of it, is totally
eclipsed ; while, if it had a direction only tangential to the earth, in-
stead of nearly parallel, it would at the height of 19 miles have had
upwards of 500 miles of air of variable density to traverse, which at
the relative velocity of 34 miles a second (that must have been con-
stantly diminishing by the resistance) would have taken about 143
seconds. It seems most probable that if this body was such an
enormous one, it should have been seen for more than ten minutes
after the explosion, for the reasons above stated. The fact of its dis-
appearance at the time of the explosion, is strong proof that the mass
itself was broken to fragments, and that these fragments fell to the
earth ; assuring us that the meteorite was not the huge body repre-
sented, but simply one of those irregular stony fragments which, by
explosion from heat and great friction against the atmosphere, become
shattered. I say irregular, because we have strong evidence of this
irregularity in its motion, which was ‘‘scolloping,’’ a motion fre-
quently observed in meteorites, and doubtless due to the resistance of
the atmosphere upon the irregular mass, for a spherical body passing
through a resisting medium at great velocity would not show this.
In fact, if almost any of the specimens of meteorites in our cabinets
were discharged from a cannon, even in their limited flight, the scol-
loping motion would be seen.
This, then, will conclude what I have to say in contradiction to the
supposition of large solid cosmical bodies passing through the atmo-
sphere, and dropping small portions of their mass. The contradiction
is seen to be based, first, upon the fact that no meteorite is known of any
very great size, none larger than the granite balls to be found at the
Dardanelles alongside of the pieces of ordnance from which they
are discharged ; secondly, on the fallacy of estimating the actual size
of these bodies from their apparent size; and lastly, from its being op-
posed to all the laws of chance that these bodies should have been
174 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
passing through an atmosphere for ages, and none have yet encountered
the body of the earth.
To sum up the theory of the lunar origin of meteorites, it may be
stated—That the moon is the only large body in space of which we have
any knowledge, possessing the requisite conditions demanded by the
physical and chemical properties of meteorites ; and that they have been
thrown off from that body by volcanic action, (doubtless long since ex-
tinct,) or some other disruptive force, and, encountering no gaseous me-
dium of resistance, reached such a distance as that the moon exercised
no longer a preponderating attraction—the detached fragment possessing
an orbital motion and an orbital velocity, which it had in common with
all parts of the moon, but now more or less modified by the projectile
force and new condition of attraction in which it was placed with refer-
ence to the earth, acquired an independent orbit more or less elliptical.
This orbit, necessarily subject to great disturbing influences, may sooner
or later cross our atmosphere and be intercepted by the body of the globe.
LECTURE.
ON PLANETARY DISTURBANCES.
BY PROT. EH. 8S. SNELD,
OF AMHERST COLLEGE, MASSACHUSETTS.
The laws of force and motion are everywhere the same. Whether a
pebble be thrown by the hand ofa child, or a world be launched into space
by the will of the Creator, the same laws will forever govern the move-
ments of the two bodies, and the same principles will be employed to
calculate their paths. If no second force operates to disturb them,
they will pursue a straight course, and at a uniform rate for endless
ages. But should a second impulse be applied to the moving body,
and in some other direction, it will follow neither its original track
nor that of the new force, but will describe a line between the two,
which can be precisely determined, both in direction and velocity,
from the magnitude and direction of the two forces. And this inter-
mediate line will be as exactly straight, and described with a velocity
as perfectly uniform, as though but one force had originated the
motion. This is denominated compound motion ; but it is the force
which is compound, not the motion.
If the body, which has commenced its rectilinear path, should be
subject to an attractive force urging it towards some centre, and in-
creasing as the square of the distance diminishes, and vice versa, then
it will move in an orbit about that centre; and this-orbit will inevi-
tably be one of the figures called the conic sections, in the focus of
which the attracting body resides. The stone thrown by the hand,
and describing a path bent towards the earth, has in fact begun to
move in such an orbit; and if the earth could attract it by the usual
law of gravity, and at the same time present no obstruction to its
course, the stone would descend with increasing velocity, pass around
the centre within the distance of a few feet, and with a speed of many
thousands of miles per second, then ascend more and more slowly to
its place of departure, and thus, after the lapse of a few minutes from
the time it was thrown, be ready to begin the same journey anew ;
and this elliptical circulation would be continued forever, if no new
force should come in to prevent. The path of a projectile near the
earth is usually called a parabola; and for all the purposes of calcu-
lation it is sufficiently near the truth; for the extremity of so eccentric
an ellipse is infinitely near to a parabola, and this curve is much
more simple than the ellipse. So the upright corners of a building
are considered parallel lines, though in fact they converge towards the
earth’s centre.
The same principles which determine for us the resultant movement
under the action of two forces will also enable us to find it, when three,
176 ‘TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
four, or any number of impulses are applied. And the thought I
wish particularly to present is, that these results of calculation are
just the same in all the movements of common life, in the operations
of every machine, and in the revolutions of the moons, planets, comets,
and suns of the universe. There is not one system of mechanics for
rolling marbles, playing ball, and pitching quoits; another for guid-
ing ships and railroad cars, and driving machinery ; and a third for
maintaining the revolutions of days and seasons on the planets, and
working out the grand harmonies of creation. Here, as in every de-
partment of God’s works, we see infinite variety comprehended in a
simple unity.
This identity in the laws of terrestrial mechanics and of ‘‘me-
chanics celestial’’ affords the highest satisfaction to the student of
astronomy. He feels that he is treading on safe ground; he sees it
to be as preposterous to suppose the foundations of the present sys-
tem of astronomy subverted, and Newton’s Principia and La Place’s
Méchanique Celeste giving way to some new method of explaining
the movements of worlds, as to imagine that philosophers should
abandon the principles of projectiles, the laws which fix the relations
of wheels, levers, and screws in a machine, or the methods of caleu-
lating and applying the forces used in locomotion, and should substi-
tute in their place some new system of principles and laws. .
Perhaps I ought to state the exact meaning of two words which I
shall occasionally use—inertia and gravitation. Gravitation is the
tendency of all masses of matter in the universe towards each other,
which tendency varies directly as the quantity, and inversely as the
square of the distance. Inertia is a negative term, implying that
matter is unable to change its condition as to motion and rest. If a
body is at rest, it will never move, unless a force acts upon it; if it is
in motion, it will forever move in the same straight line, and at the
same rate, if no external force causes a change. A mass of matter
can no more stop, or go faster or slower, or change its line of motion,
than it can begin to move from a state of rest.
These two properties of matter explain not only the ordinary facts
of terrestrial mechanics, and those phenomena of astronomy which
were known in the days of Sir Isaac Newton, but a vast number of
other planetary movements and disturbances, some of them most del-
icate and intricate, which have since been detected. Nota new fact
as yet has come to light which conflicts with these simple first princi-
ples. No system but the true one could bear a test like this.
In attempting to give experimental illustrations of astronomical
movements, we meet with difficulties which cannot be entirely re-
moved. The earth attracts; the air obstructs: a revolving body
must be supported by pivots; these retard by friction. The best con-
trived experiments, therefore, are only approximations to the phe-
nomena which they are intended to illustrate.
A fundamental fact in rotation, whether on an axis or in an orbit,
and one, too, which is a direct consequence of inertia, is this: a re-
volving body tends to keep its plane of rotation always parallel to
itself. This fact is apparent in all the bodies of the solar system.
For example, the earth, though it travels over a journey of six hun-
dred millions of miles every year, maintains its equator parallel to
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 177
itself, its north pole all the time pointing nearly in the direction of
the so-called north star. Were it not so, our seasons would not be
preserved. Let this horizontal wooden ring represent the plane of
the ecliptic, the lamp in the centre the sun, and the six-inch globe
revolving on the axis which I hold, the earth. As I carry the globe
around the ring, with the equator oblique to it, and keep the axis di-
rected to the same point in the sky, you perceive that the upper pole
is now in the light of the lamp; now, after a quarter revolution, the »
light just reaches to both poles; and now, when carried half round,
the upper pole is turned away from the light, and the lower one to-
wards it; and, once more, after three-quarters of a revolution, both
poles are again in the edge of the enlightened hemisphere. The axis
being held parallel to itself, and the globe all the time spinning upon
it, you perceive that the upper hemisphere in the first position has
the long days and short nights of summer; in the second, the equal
days and nights of autumn; in the third, the short days and long
nights of winter ; and in the last, the equal days and nights of spring.
In the lower hemisphere, all these facts are reversed. So, also, the
moon’s axis is not exactly perpendicular to the plane of its orbit ; and,
as its equator continues parallel to itself, we alternately see the north
and south poles of the moon presented to us—a phenomenon called
the moon’s libration in latitude. In the foregoing illustration, we
have only to suppose the wooden ring to be the moon’s orbit, and the
small globe the moon, while the lamp in the centre occupies the place —
of the earth.
In like manner, the orbits and equators of all the planets and satel-
lites in the system show plainly a tendency to maintain a parallelism
at all times. That these planes are not really and precisely parallel,
is the result of disturbing influences, to be noticed presently.
In order to show this tendency experimentally, it is necessary that
the revolving body should be free to place its axis in all directions.
This is done by swinging it in gimbals, somewhat like the mariner’s
compass. The instrument before you was called by the inventor, the
late Professor Walter R. Johnson, the Rotascope.* It very much re-
sembles Bohnenberger’s apparatus for illustrating the precession of
the equinoxes, but is many times larger, and has several appendages
for various experiments on rotatory motion. The outer brass ring is
free to revolve on a vertical axis in the wooden frame; the inner ring
can revolve freely on a horizontal axis in the outer one; and the spheroid
Fig. 1. _ in the inner ring has its axis perpendicular to that of
7 the ring itself. (Fig. 1.) Thus, you perceive, the
spheroid, by means of the rectangular axis, is free to
revolve in any plane whatever. I now setit spinning,
(by looping a cord upon the small pin in the axis,
winding it up, and then drawing the ends apart till
it is unwound and detached,) and elevate somewhat
that end of the axis which is nearest to you, that you
may see its position better. I now take up the frame
a in my hands, and carry it about the platform, and
turn it to every point of the compass, and tip it over to any angle, even
a?
# See Professor W. R. Johnson’s ‘Description of the Rotascope,’’ in the American
Journal of Science and Arts, for January, 1832, p. 265, et seg. The instrument used in
12
178 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
bottom up, and yet the axis of the spheroid remains parallel to itself,
with the elevated end directed towards you.
Fig. 2. Fig. 3.
Friction on the pivots, and resistance of the air, will cause small
changes of direction, especially if I move the frame violently.*
If a body, therefore, were made to revolve on an axis, it might be
carried or driven anywhere into space, without ever changing the
position of its plane of rotation, unless the forces applied should act
unequally on the parts of the body.
We find an elegant illustration of this tendency to parallelism of axis
in the boomereng, a curious missile used by the natives of New South
Wales, an account of which is given by Captain Wilkes in his ‘‘Explor-
ing Expedition.’’} Itis made of wood, about three feet long, two inches
wide, and three-fourths of an inch thick, bent in the middle at an ob-
Fig. tuse angle, somewhat resembling a rude sword.
(Fig. 4.) The article which I holdin my hand is
an actual boomereng, brought by the explorers,
and belonging to the collections of the Smith-
gonian Institution. Three or four others may be seen in the National
Gallery, in the building of the Patent Office. It is thrown with a rapidly
revolving motion, and is said to be very effective both in war and
hunting. Those who are skilled in its use can throw it obliquely up-
ward so that it will come back to them, or even pass over their heads,
and hit any desired object beliind them. It would be hardly safe for
me to try the experiment here, lest (lacking the skill of the savage)
I should hurt either you or myself. I can with less hazard, project
these models, made of stiff card, and only three or four inches long.
Holding one of these with the obtuse angle between my thumb and
finger, I snap the end forcibly, so as to send it off obliquely upward,
with a swift rotation in its own plane, and you perceive that instead
of describing the usual path of a projectile, after completing its ascent,
it returns in the same plane, and falls near me. If several be thus
snapped off in different directions, occasionally one will perform an
awkward somerset, but most of them will come back to me. It is
that tendency (already spoken of) in a rotating body, to preserve its
this lecture is of more simple construction, the orbit-rod and the third ring being dis-
pensed with, as they are wholly unnecessary for the illustration of composition of rotary
motions.
* Tn figures 1, 2, 3, the spheroid is seen maintaining the same position, while the frame
is placed in various positions. ’
+ For a description of the boomereng, and its uses, see Captain Wilkes’s ‘ Narrative of
the United States Exploring Expedition,’ vol. I, pp. 191, 192.
{HE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 179
axis parallel to itself, which explains this apparently singular phe-
nomenon. Observe that as the boomereng ascends, it is whirling on
an axis perpendicular to the plane of ascent. Should it go onward in
its descent, and cut the air edgewise, it must necessarily change its
plane of rotation ; it will not, therefore, do this. If it goes on, keep-
ing its exis paraliel to itself, it must strike broadside through the air,
and the resistance is too great to allow of this, The only way in
which it can maintain a parallelism of rotation, and yet cut the air
edgewise, and also descend with the largest angle of inclination, is to
come back to its place of projection, as you have seen it do. It does,
in fact, as the foregoing explanation requires, ascend and descend on
an inclined plane, instead cf pursuing the parabolic or atmospheric
curve at all,
But I have already intimated that, in the solar system, this paral-
lelism is rarely, if ever, perfectly maintained. The earth’s equator
deviates at a very slow rate, (2bout fifty seconds in a year,) so that
for many years it was not perceived by the rude means of measure-
ment which ancient astronomers possessed. But its deviation has
been going steadily on in the same direction, until the signs of the
zodiac.and the signs of the ecliptic are now separated by the extent
of an entire sign, or thirty degrees. The plane of the moon’s orbit
deviates from parailelism much faster, se that in about eighteen years
it inclines in every direction at its given angle with the orbit, and
comes round again inte its former position. Going back to our first
illustration, in which the small globe represents the earth, and the
wooden ring the ecliptic, I carry the glebe round the ring, from the:
west side, through the south, to the east, and onward, at the same:
time inclining the north pole towards me, se that the planes of the
equator and the ecliptic intersect in an east and west line. But, after
I have carried it round a number of times, please to observe that I
shift the position of the axis, by which I hold the globe, in such a
manner that the line of intersection lesa little to the south of east and
north of west. The ends of that line, representing the equinoxes,
have moved a little from the east (through the south) to the west 5.
that is, in a direction contrary to that in which the earth revolves.
At length, as the revolutions proceed, the line of equinoxes is found
lying north and south; and thus it perpetually retrogrades. This is.
called the ‘‘ Precession of the equinoxes.’’ It is so exceedingly slow,
that in order to describe ninety degrees, as just represented, it will
require between 6,000 and 7,000 years, and, therefore, about 26,000:
years to complete the circuit of the heavens. Again, if I carry
this two-inch brass ball round from west to east, but oblique to the:
wooden ring, passing above it through the southern half, and be-
low it through the northern, we shall have a representation of the
moon’s path around the earth, oblique to the ecliptic. The intersect-
ing points, called the nodes, now lie in an east and west line; but as
I carry it round repeatedly, I] make the ball descend below the ecliptic,
at a point a little further to the west, every time, and thus cause the:
line of nodes to move backward, while the moon itself goes forward,
This is called the ‘‘ Retrogradation of the moon’s nodes.’’ It is vastly
more rapid than the precession just described, since the line of the
nodes passes quite round the sky in eighteen or nineteen years,
180 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Now, these nodal motions in the solar system, of which I have
named the two most familiar examples, are the effects of some disturb-
ing force; for we have seen that, without disturbance, the plane of
rotation would be forever parallel to itself, and would therefore cut a
fixed plane always in the same points. I have already alluded to the
law of composition in rectilinear motions ; namely, that the resultant
motion lies between the directions of the two component forces, divi-
ding the angle into two parts, which have a very simple relation te the
magnitude of the forces, the body moving most nearly in the direction
of the greater force. The law of composition of rotary motions is
quite analogous to it, and directly deducible from it. It is this: Ifa
body is revolving on an axis, and a force is applied tending to revolve
it on some other axis, it will not revolve on either, but on a third one,
between the two, and dividing the angle as before.”
To show you the truth of this law, | whirl the spheroid of the rota-
scope, so that, while the south end of the axis points from me, the
‘ particles pass over from my left to my right. Now, with this smooth
rod, I press down the north side of the inner ring, thus tending to
give the spheroid a similar right-hand rotation on an
axis pointing westward. The effect is, you perceive,
that the ring slips round under the rod, so as to
bring the south end of the axis into the southwest
quarter—that is, between the two axes of separate ro-
tation. If I continue the pressure, the axis passes
round still farther west, endeavoring each moment to
place itself between its present position and one at
right angles to itself.f If there were no friction un-
der the rod and on the pivots, this horizontal rota-
tion would continue so long as the pressure is ap-
plied, and more rapidly as the pressure is greater. But, as there 2s
friction, the south end of the axis slowly rises from a horizontal plane.
I now direct the axis again towards the south, and press the north side
of the ring wpward—that is, I endeavor to produce a right-handed rota-
tion on an axis pointing eastward ; and you see the south pole imme-
diately pass round towards the east, between the two axes.
As all the cases of compound rotation are more easily described by
ve Wa ap SP EIR GES Oe RE eee eee ee ee ee
* [ did not think it best, in a popular lecture, to give a fall and technical statement of
the laws of composition, in either rectilinear or rot :ry motions. ‘They are subjomed here
for the use of any who may wish to recur to them:
‘If a particle receives two motions, which are separately represented by the adjacent
sides of a parallelogram, the resultant motion is represented by the diagonal of the same ;
and therefore, in direction, it divides the angle of the components, so that the sines of the
two parts are inversely as the components ; and in quantity, it has to either component the
same ratio as the sine of the whole angle has to the sine of the part between itself and
the other component.’’
The law of compound revolutions is this : ‘‘ If a body receives two impulses, one of which
would cause it to revolve on one axis, and the other on a second, it will revolve on a third
axis, situated between the two, and dividing their angle, so that the sines of the parts are
inversely as the two impulses. And the velocity of rotation is to the velocity due to either
impulse, as the sine of the angle between the two original axes is to the sine of the partial
angle between the third axis and that on which the other impulse would have revolved
the body.”’
+ In figure 5, the particles at A, moving in the direction of the arrow by the revolu-
tion of the spheroid, and also urged towards the rod, by which the ring is pressed down,
move beween these two directions; this is effected by the sliding of the ring towards the
left, under the rod, as shown by the double-shaft arrow.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 181
directing attention to the revolving particles themselves, rather than
to the axes of motion, and as this ‘mode renders more obvious the re-
semblance between compound rotary and compound rectilinear motions,
I will adopt that method of explanation in the remaining experiments.
The spheroid having lost considerable velocity, I renew it, and once
more direct the axis southward, observing that the particles on the west
side are moving downward, Tnow press the west side of the outer ring
towards the south, and you see that the only effect is to make the south
pole rise wp ; if I push the same side north, the south pole is depressed.
Now observe the reason. The particles on ‘the west side, moving down
by one motion, and sow/h by the other, take an intermediate direction,
which neces sarily elevates the south pole, : The particles on the east
side conspire in this effect ; for, by the first rotation they move up-
ward ; spp the pressure which I communicate they are urged north-
ward; and, taking a direction between these: two, they
also throw the south pole wp. Thus every particle,
on the east half and on the west, has a compound
motion, which tends to raise the south pole of the
spheroid ; that is, to give the spheroid a revolution
| on an axis between the two original ones, one of
4 which was directed horizontally southward, the other
vertically upward.* If the pressure is continued
gently for a few moments, the axis continues to rise,
peer) always seeking a new position, between its present
one in a@ tomes one, until, at Slength, it becomes vertical itself; then
the two revolutiuns coincide, and the ring for the first time yields to
the pressure, and goes round in the same ‘direction as the spheroid. I
now give a new form to the experiment, by pressing the east side
southward for several seconds ; you perceive the north pole of the sphe-
roid elevating itself, till it finally points to the zenith, when the two
revolutions agree in a direction the reverse of the for mer.
Anether mode of exhibiting these last experiments is quite calcu-
lated to deceive the student and lead him to suppose that the diurnal
and annual revolutions of a planet or satellite, are performed in the
same general direction from some mechanical necessity. I whirl the
spheroid on a vertical axis, from west (through south) to east; next
I confine the outer ring, by turning up the fork attached to the bot-
tom of the frame, so as to embrace the edge of the ring; and then,
taking the frame by its two pillars, [commence carrying it round my-
self, from west to east. The spheroid, in the mean time, spins quietly
on its axis. But the moment I stop and begin tu carry the frame
round from east to west, the spheroid suddenly throws itself over, and
revolves on a vertical axis still, but with its poles reversed. By this
inversion of axis, the spheroid revolves also from east to west, the
same direction in which I am carrying the frame. Once more I re-
verse the orbit motion, and instantly you see the spheroid turn over,
seeming determined (if I may borrow some convenient terms from
astronomy) to revolve diurnally in the same direction in which I carry
= Fig. 6. The particles at A, moving by the rev woth of the spheroid, and the pressure
of the rod, respectively in the directions of the broken- -shaft arrows, take the intermediate
direction indicated by the double-shaft arrow ; which can be done only by thie rising of the
remote end of the axis.
182 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
it annually. And so it will do, as often as I change the order of the
circular motion. IfI press very gently, to produce the orbit motion,
without actually moving, the spheroid reverses its axis slowly ; but if
I begin to move rapidly, it throws, itself over with such energy that
it nearly jerks the frame out of my hands.
Now we cannot infer from this experiment, that the axial and or-
bital revolutions of a planet are so connected, that one must be in the
same direction as the other. If the earth were to be stopped in its
orbit, and sent backward through the signs of the ecliptic, that would
be no reason for its throwing itself over with its north pole to the
south, and its south pole to the north. The diurnal rotation would
go on undisturbed ; for we have already seen that the earth or any
revolving body might be projected in any way whatever through
space, without causing the least displacement of its axis. This ex-
periment is exactly in point for illustrating the composition of two
revolutions, which is the topic now in hand. I make the spheroid to
rotate from west to east ; I then begin to carry it round me from east
to west. This is in fact nothing else than turning it on its own aais
from east to west; for, when I commence, the side of the frame nearest
to me (and of the ring, confined to the frame) faces north; after a
quarter revolution, the same side faces east; after a half revolution,
west ; and so throngh all points of the compass. So far as the sphe-
roid is concerned, it is the same as though I take hold of the frame,
and turn it round in its place on the table. I repeat the experiment
in that manner; and you perceive that the instant I turn the frame
and confined ring from east to west, the spheroid reverses its poles;
and on my. turning it back, from west to east, it reverses again, thus
resuming its original position. Now here is no orbit-motion ; the
body stays in its place, and exhibits the resultant effect of two rota-
tions. Let us examine this case of composition. Please to notice
that the axis is not free to place itself in any position when | move the
frame; the spheroid cannot, therefore, maintain a parallel position ; but
is, on the contrary, constrained to receive a second revolution, which
I impress upon it. This second revolution is round a vertical axis,
whether I carry the frame about me, or turn it on the table. So long as
the spheroid keeps its own axis precisely vertical, although revolving
in the opposite direction, it does not tend to turn over, but revolves
with the difference of the two motions, which are in the same plane.
Fig. 7. But the axis of the spheroid will inevitably be jarred
slightly from its vertical position; and if so, it
cannot recover it. If, for example, the upper pole
is jarred towards me, each particle on the nght hand
will, by the first rotation, be moving from me in a
line slightly ascending ; and, by the second, horizon-
tally towards me; thus the two forees will act at a
large obtuse angle, within which the particle will
direct itself, throwing the upper pole farther towards
me.* The angle of the forces is thus diminished a
*In figure 7, the particles at R ascend from the observer in the line of the arrow A, by
the revolution of the spheroid ; and move horizontally towards him in the line of the arrow
B, by pressure on the frame ; they, therefore, move leween, as shown by the arrow C;
that is, the upper end of the axis N moves dowards him.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 183
little, and the next resultant lies within this diminished angle; and
so, by the continued pressure on the frame, the angle is reduced to no-
thing, by the complete reversal of the poles. At that moment, the two
forces coincide in direction ; and now, if the axis is jarred a little, the
angle is acute, the resultant les within it, and tends to bring them to
immediate coincidence without upsetting the spheroid. Wesee, there-
fore, that there is a condition of equilibrium, whichever way the frame
is turned on a vertical axis, provided the spheroid revolves also on a
vertical axis; but if the revolutions are in the same direction, the
equilibrium is stable ; if in opposite directions, it is unstable.
We are now prepared to attend to the explanation and illustration
of the ‘‘ Precession of the equinoxes.’’ ‘The earth is not an exact
sphere. Ifit was a sphere, and of uniform density, there would be
no such phenomenon as precession. The equator of the earth, as is
true also of the other planets, is a little bilged beyond the spherical
form, in consequence of its rotation. We conceive of the earth, there-
fore, as consisting of a sphere with a thin ring attached to its equator.
This equatorial ring is inclined about twenty-three and a half degrees
to the plane of the ecliptic. The sun is always in the ecliptic, and
the moon is always very nearly in it. By the attraction of these
bodies the equatorial ring is shghtly pressed towards the ecliptic, and
the whole mass of the earth, being united to the ring, is thus urged
to turn into the plane of the ecliptic, on an axis passing through the
intersection of thetwo planes. But in the mean time the earth is also
turning on the axis which passes through its poles. By the composi-
tion of these two revolutions it begins to turn on a new axis very near
the original one, and between it and the line of equinoxes.. But the
depressing force continues, tending to tip the equator towards the
ecliptic on a line still at right angles to the diurnal axis, and there-
fore shifts that axis again; and thus the cause, and its consequent
effect, are repeated from moment to moment for ages. The earth’s
axis is ever seeking a new position between its present one and another
at right angles to the present one.
The rotascope illustrates this perfectly. I first set the horizontal
ring around the frame, to represent the ecliptic. The spheroid of the
rotascope represents the earth; though, for convenience, it has an
excessive oblateness, the equatorial ring being even larger than the
enclosed sphere. The earth I set in rotation on its axis from west to
Fig. 8. east, and incline the equator to the ecliptic; and
2 now I attach this brass weight to the lower edge
of the inner ring; the weight, by urging the
ring into a vertical position, of course presses the
equator of the spheroid into a horizontal plane—
that is, the plane of the ecliptic. The line of
equinoxes, you perceive, now lies east and west;
but if I leave the apparatus thus adjusted to itself,
this line commences a slow revolution from east
to west. This is the ‘‘ Precession of equinoxes.’’*
. * In figure 8, the particles at A, revolving to the right with the spheroid, and urged towards
the observer by the weight W, take an intermediate direction ; that is, the equinoctial points,
184 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
If the attraction of the sun and moon was greater than it is, we
reason that the precession would be more rapid; and if less, it would
be slower. The experiment is easily modified, to show the correct-
ness of these conclusions. I take off the weight, and put on a heavier,
and the horizontal movement is hastened ; if I put on a smaller weight
you see it slackened ; and finally, if I remove the weights altogether,
the phenomenon ceases, as it should do.
Once more, we know that if the earth were to revolve more rapidly
on its axis than it now does, the present attraction of the sun and
moon would produce less effect to change the axis; in other words,
the precession would be slower, and vice versa. In illustration of
this, observe that, as the spheroid loses some of its velocity, (with a
given weight on the ring,) the horizontal circulation is gradually gain-
ing speed ; and so it will continue to do as long as | let the experi-
ment continue.
We may here notice why the precession is so excessively slow:
Ist. The ring of matter on which the sun and moon act is an ex-
ceedingly small fraction of the whole earth.
2d. It is not the whole attraction of those bodies upon the ring which
causes this disturbance, but only that part by which it exceeds or falls
short of the attraction on the internal portions.
3d. It is not even the whole of this difference, but only that com-
ponent which is perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic.
4th. The ring cannot move alone, in obedience to this influence, but
must carry the entire earth with it.
No wonder, then, that the effect is almost too small to be observed.
We may well say, when explaining the seasons, that the earth’s axis
is, in every part of its orbit, parallel to itself.
It is interesting to see so delicate a phenomenon as the precession
of the equinoxes completely accounted for. A cause is found, which
is not only right in the direction of its action, but exactly right, too,
in quantity, to cause this almost insensible disturbance. It is Just as
small as it should be, considering that the earth is as large as it is,
and as heavy as it is, and revolves as offen as it does; that the ring is
as small as it is, inclined as it is to the ecliptic, and confined as 1% is to
the earth; that the sun and moon are just as massive and as distant
as they are, and varying as they do their relations to the line of the
equinoxes. All these, and still other conditions, being just as they
are, if the precession was any faster or any slower than about ji/ty
seconds in the year—that is, about the width of the sun in forty
years—then this motion would not be accounted for. But, be-
sides the agreement of calculated results with the observed facts,
which so few are able to appreciate, the same phenomenon can be
shown by experiments; a body being made to revolve like the earth,
and a force being brought to act on it as the sun does on the earth,
the phenomenon is artificially produced before our eyes.
It is to be observed that if the equator, having an inclination of
234° to the ecliptic, directs that inclination every way in the course
at the screws Land R, revolve horizontally in the direction of the double-shaft arrow.
As the component forces are always at right angles with each other, their resultant is
perpetually reproduced.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 185
of ages, the poles of the equator must likewise perform a revolution
around the poles of the ecliptic at the same slow rate.
While the rotascope exhibits the precession as in the last experi-
ment, you will perceive, if your attention is given to the pole of the
spheroid, that it describes a circle around the pole of the ecliptic, or
the pivot at the top of the frame. For many years past and to come,
the conspicuous star in the extremity of the tail of the Litle Bear is
nearly enough in the direction of the earth’s axis to be called the pole-
star. But the time will come when the little fellow will not be held
so unceremoniously by the end of his tail, and whirled round every
day without touching feet to the ground, as he now is. He will re-
tire from his dizzy position in the north, and every twenty-four hours
will go to rest and rise again, like most other animals. In 13,000
years from this time, the Little Bear will rise in the northeast, cul-
minate over our heads—I should say over the heads of our success-
ors—and set in the northwest; while the beautiful Harp will take
its station in the northern watch-tower, furnishing a far more bril-
liant pole-star (Alpha Lyre) than the one which we enjoy.
The retrograde motion of the moon’s nodes is explained in the
same manner as the precession. The sun is the disturbing body,
always in the plane of the ecliptic, while the moon’s path about the
earth is inclined to the ecliptic about five degrees. A small compo-
nent of the difference of the sun’s action on the earth and moon is
employed to press the moon towards the plane of the ecliptic. The
two revolutions thus impressed on the moon cause it to revoive in an
intermediate direction. Recurring to the experiment by which I
illustrated the fact of this retrograde motion, a moment’s attention,
in view of what has been presented on compound rotations, will suf-
fice for understanding the reason of it. The wooden ring represent-
ing the ecliptic as heretofore, the lamp in its centre the earth, and
the brass ball the moon, we must imagine the sun at the distance of
some five hundred feet in the extension of the wooden ring. Now,
as I carry the ball around the ring obliquely while it is above, and
tending, by its inertia and gravity of the earth, to go forward in its
orbit, the distant sun exerts a small force to depress it into the plane
of the ring, and it therefore goes between, and passes the plane at
an earlier point than if the sun had not acted; that is, the node has
moved backward. At every semi-revolution the same cause is in ope-
ration, and the effect is, therefore, perpetually produced on each node.
But this retrogradation is far more rapid than the precession, prin-
cipally because the moon is not attached (as the equatorial ring of
the earth is) to a mass vastly larger than itself, to which the motion
must be communicated.
Before leaving the subject, I will use the rotascope to perform two
experiments which strikingly illustrate the general law of compound
rotations.
From the ceiling there is suspended a strong wire, on the lower
end of which is a cord, or rather a bundle of cords, about two feet
long, terminating in a hook. I take the spheroid and rings from
the frame, by raising the pivot-screw at the top, and hang the outer
186 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
ring on the hook, taking care to keep the axis of the inner ring hor-
izontal. I now spin the spheroid as rapidly as possible, and then
Fig. 9. whirl the outer ring the same way till the cords are
twisted so far as to tend strongly to untwist. Letting
go the ring, it commences whirling by the force of
torsion ; but suddenly the axis of the spheroid throws
itself into an oblique position, and instantly arrests
the motion of the ring, while the spheroid, with the
inner ring, slowly turns itself over.* As soon as it
is inverted, the cords untwist, and twist up in the op-
posite direction, the spheroid all the while maintaining
its own rotation the same way. When they begin the
second time to untwist, the spheroid authoratatively
interposes, and takes time to turn over quite leisurely,
and get itself ready to whirl in the same direction
also. And thus will it operate a number of times. be-
fore running down.
This experiment does not need a separate explanation; 1 is, in fact,
a repetition of the one in which I carried the frame round its vertical
axis. But it becomes more striking, for the reasons that the force is
more secretly applied by the cord than by the hands; that it is ap-
plied uniformly as well as gently ; and that it is repeated as often as
the cord is twisted up. A short and thick rope of parallel cords is
purposely used, that the inversion may be repeated several times be-
fore the spheroid loses its velocity. You will observe, that the outer
ring does not move at all by the torsion of the cord, while the axis is
reversing itself; that force is wholly expended on the spheroid, com-
bining with its own rotation, to produce the inversion of its axis.
To prepare the instrument for the second experiment, I replace it
in the frame, take the inner ring with the spheroid from the outer
ring, and attach to it, at one end of the spheroid’s axis, this stiff rod
of brass, about six inches long. One end of the rod terminates in a
strong fork, which is slipped tightly upon the ring, and confined by
pins. The other end is connected by a hook and swivel, with a wire
two feet long. I next remove the cord used in the preceding experi-
ment, and hang up, in its place, the wire with the spheroid attached
in the manner just described. Having put the spheroid into switt
revolution, I lift it up on one side by the ring, till the rod and axis
make a right-angle with the wire. Dropping it now from this posi-
tion, it does not fall, as one would expect, and hang beneath the
wire, nor does it even descend in the least, but commences a horizontal
revolution about the wire. The spheroid itself revolves vertically, but
the system horizontally. And the whole, weighing fifteen pounds,
and having its centre of gravity more than a foot trom the support,
presents the magical appearance of being held up without force. If
I elevate it higher, at an acute angle with the wire, it will sustain
“Figure 9. The arrows T show the direction of torsion. The particles A are moved up-
ward by the rotation of the spheroid, and horizontally to the left by torsion—these forces
being indicated by the broken-shaft arrows. The double-shaft arrow shows the direction of
the resultant, which corresponds to an elevation of the pole N, and a depression of 8.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 187
* igaOh itself at that angle, and revolve as before.
The direction of the horizontal revolution is the
reverse of that which the spheroid has when
brought down to hang beneath the wire. For
example, in the present experiment, I made
the spheroid rotate from W. to E.; and you see
the system going from EH. to W. I will now
revolve the spheroid from E. to W.; and having
dropped it again, you observe the revolution
to be reversed; the system revolves from W. to
H Hs
Unaccountable as these phenomena appear at first, they are found
to be very obvious cases of compound rotations. Gravity, at first
sight, appears to have no effect on the weight, since it is not at all
depressed. But it is, in truth, exerting its full energy upon it every
moment, producing, in conjunction with the rotation of the spheroid,
the horizontal revolution. Let me stop the latter motion for a few
moments, that we: may examine the manner in which the two forces
are compounded. As I hold the spheroid up on the right of the wire,
the particles on the top are coming towards me; if I should abandon
it to the action of gravity, that force would urge the same particles to
the right, in the are of a vertical circle, described about the hook as a
centre; consequently they assume a direction between these two direc-
tions, which can be done only by the system moving, not downward,
but horizontally from me. This composition of forces is momentarily
repeated, in exactly the same circumstances, and hence the rotation is
continued uniformly so long as the spheroid maintains its speed.
There is another species of disturbance in the planetary motions,
easily illustrated by experiments, and which will demand but a few
moments’ attention. The orbits of the planets and satellites, though
nearly circular, are really ellipses; and, if no attraction operated on
a given revolving body except that of the central body, the ellipse
would always present its longest axis in the same direction. But this
is not true in fact. The remote end of the longest diameter of the
earth’s orbit, called its aphelion, which now points to the constella-
tion Gemini, ten thousand years ago was directed to Taurus, and ten
thousand years hence will be advanced in the order of the signs to
Cancer. This motion is so exceedingly slow that sixty thousand years
will be required for the aphelion and perihelion to change places, and
one hundred and twenty thousand years to make a full revolution.
The extremities of the moon’s orbit, in like manner, are advancing ;
but the disturbance in this case is rapid, since they pass entirely round
the heavens in about nine years.
You will observe that this line (called the line of the apsides) travels
in the same direction as the revolving body, while the line of the
nodes moves, as we have seen, the opposite way.
This efiect is produced by the action of a body, or of bodies, lying
* Wig. 10. The particles at A are moving in the line D, by the rotation of the spheroid,
and are urged by gravity towards B, in the plane of a vertical circle around the centre, H.
The resultant is towards E, which direction can be attained only by the rotation of the
centre of gravity G, in the order of the arrows IF, horizontally around the centre C.
188 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
outside of the orbit. The sun, for example, outside of the moon’s
orbit, operates powerfully on it, and. causes its apsides to advance
rapidly. The superior planets, outside of the earth’s orbit, exert but
a feeble influence, and the motion of its aphelion is almost insensible.
An exterior body always operates to draw a planet away from its
centre ; that is, it diminishes its attraction towards the centre, and, of
course, it does this most efficiently when the planet is farthest removed
from the central body ; in other words, when at its aphelion. Hence
it advances a little beyond its former aphelion before it turns to go
back to the perihelion. Thus each aphelion point is a little further
onward than the preceding.
This may be illustrated by a long pendulum. I suspend the small
globe by a cord six or eight feet in length. Instead of swinging it:
back and forth, however, like a pendulum, I throw it round, so as to
describe an elliptical orbit. Now, in order to describe this orbit,
there must be a central force. That force is the component part of
gravity, which would, if I should stop the ball,
cause it to fall towards the centre, and which
would hold it there, and only there, when at rest.
I now swing the globe in such a manner, that it
will describe from west to east a long narrow
orbit, whose longest axis lies north and south.
After a few revolutions, the axis is seen shifting
a little to the southeast and northwest; and in
a few minutes the south has become east, and the
north has become west, the apsides having ad-
vanced ninety degrees. To show that the two
revolutions are necessarily in the same direction,
I stop the globe, and revolve it from east to west. You presently
notice the axis of the orbit making progress from east to west also.*
To explain this change in the pendulum’s orbit, I must state a law
demonstrated in Newton’s Principia; that, when a body revolves in
an ellipse about the centre, instead of the focus, the attraction to the
centre varies as the distance. When a long pendulum is swung in a
small orbit, this law is proved to obtain almost exactly ; and experiment
corroborates it. Butif the cord is shortened, or the orbit enlarged,
the deviation increases, and always in this way—that the central force
is not great enough at the extremities of the long axis. Hence, as
the body is passing one of these points, the central force being too
feeble to bring it back in the former path, it shoots forward a little
before turning to come back; that is, the apsis is advanced slightly.
This occurs at every semi-revolution. Now here is a known cause,
operating just like the attraction of external bodies in the solar sys-
tem, and producing just such an effect. Thus, again, we have an in-
stance, in which a mechanical experiment, that can be performed in
“In Fig. 11, the globe, suspended from the ceiling, and drawn aside, is urged by a com-
ponent of gravity towards G, where it would hang, if at rest. Being thrown obliquely
so as to describe the ellipse in the direction of the single-shaft arrows, it will, at its suc-
cessive returns, pass through the points A, B, C, D, &c. The double-sha/t arrows show this
motion of the apsides to be in the direction in which the globe describes its orbit ; that
is, the apsides advance.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 189
the lecture-room, and a great fact in astronomy, are explained on the
same principles. ‘
If there were but two bodies in the system, their mutual orbits
would be undisturbed. Some conic section would be exactly and for-
ever described by each about their common centre of gravity. But
the introduction of a third body disturbs both these orbits, and its
own is disturbed by them. In the solar system, therefore, in which
hundreds of bodies are attracting each other, the disturbances are al-
most numberless; though multitudes of them are too minute to be
perceived. The two which have now been noticed—namely, the ret-
rogradation of nodes, and the advance of apsides—are among the
most prominent. And though in some instances they are exceedingly
minute, they at length become apparent, because they go on accumu-
lating for ages instead of oscillating back and forth. The equinoxes,
though they have an oscillatory inequality in their motion, are yet
perpetually receding on the ecliptic, and must continue to do so while
the earth exists. And the apsides, in like manner, are always moving
forward in the same direction in which the planet moves.
It is worthy of notice, that while the mutual attractions of the
planets disturb the orbits, they do not derange them. When the
learner first considers the fact, that the sun and moon are perpetually
pressing the equator of the earth towards the ecliptic, he is almost com-
pelled to infer that it will be brought nearer and still nearer, until at
length the two planes will coincide, and all distinction of seasons
will disappear in every latitude of the earth. The sun will always
culminate vertically at the equator; at the poles he will always be
seen circulating about the horizon. But this calamitous derangement
never can occur; the revolution’ on the axis prevents it. The combi-
nation of the #wo movements is, as we have seen, a simple retrocession
of the equinoxes, which involves no change in the succession of sea-
sons.
So, too, when the student of astronomy learns that the outer planets
draw the earth away from the sun most of all at the aphelion, where
it is already at the greatest distance, he seems to see this aphelion
distance becoming greater and greater, as ages pass on, and the peri-
helion, of necessity, during the same ages, drawing nearer and nearer
(as I move this ball in more and more eccentric ellipses about the
lamp) until the condition of the earth’s climate becomes fatal to every
living thing. At the perihelion, the earth is subjected to an intolerable
heat; at the aphelion, to a cold equally intolerable. But calculation
and experiment both show, that the aphelion point, instead of being
removed from the sun, by the attractions of the outer planets, will
simply slide around, keeping its distance from the sun the same as
ever. The planets have too much stability to be seriously deranged
in respect to their orbits by the influence of outsiders.
This preservation of safe relations among the planets, in the midst
of unceasing changes and disturbances, is one of the most interesting
facts presented to the mind of the pupil in astronomy. He who made
the countless spheres, ordained the laws of their motion ; and those
laws, by their perfect operation, secure the utmost peace and harmony,
though worlds, thousands of miles in diameter, are rushing through
190 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
space with a velocity which it is fearful to contemplate. Huge as are
these masses of matter, and terrific as are their velocities, they are
perfectly controlled by their Omnipotent Lord, who subjects them to
those few and simple Jaws with which we all have to do in the actions
of every-day life.
[Since the delivery, in January last, of this ingenious and interest-
ing lecture, the motions of the rotascope or gyrascope, as it is NOW
called, has unexpectedly become a subject of general popular interest,
and thousands of copies of a simple form of the instrument are now
manufactured to gratify the public curiosity. The explanation of the
principles of compound rotary motion is as old as the day of Newton,
and the experimental illustrations given in this lecture have been
annually exhibited by Professor Snell to his class in Amherst College
for upwards of twenty years.
The following remarks may, perhaps, serve to make the brief ex-
planation of Professor Snell of the horizontal rotation a little more
easily understood. Suppose the horizontal axes (fig. 10) placed
north and south, and the wheel revolving towards the east, then the
particle A will tend to move eastward by the rotation and northward
by the action of gravity ; the resultant will therefore fall between
these two directions, but much nearer the former, on account of the
greater force. The tendency will therefore be to turn the plane of
the disk outward, which, on account of the fixed position of the point
B, must carry the point D backwards. The same statement may be
made with regard to the motion of the lower point of the disk, which
conspires with the upper to produce a motion of the system in the
same direction.
An interesting application of the principle of compound rotation
has lately been made to the explanation of the lateral deviation of a
ball from a rifle-bore cannon. The deviation is always in the same
direction, and is the result of the same kind of action which produces
the horizontal rotation of the system exhibited in the experiment
(fig. 10) of the lecture. J. H.]
METEOROLOGY.
ABSTRACT OF OBSERVATIONS MADE DURING THE YEARS 1853, 1854, AND
1855, AT SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA.
BY THOMAS M. LOGAN, M. D.
GENERAL REMARKS,
The following observations and tables have been carefully drawn
up and verified for future comparative reference. As the initiative of
a series of more comprehensive and perfect observations, which it is
proposed to prosecute for several successive years, they are now pre-
sented for record among the reports of the Smithsonian Institution.
The increasing rigor which advancing physical science exacts before
generalizations can be reliably deduced, especially requires the adop-
tion of such a course, in a new country like this, possessed as it is of
one of the most extraordinary climates known. In frequent instances
discrepancies will be found between the present tables and those pub-
lished in the reports for 1854, originating in errors of copy and ty-
pography, and which are now corrected. ‘The barometric and thermo-
metric computations are the result of three daily observations. Prior
to April, 1854, they were made at 8a.m.,3 p.m., and 10 p. m.;
since that date, at sunrise, 3 p. m., and 10 p.m. Henceforth they
will be continued, in accordance with the uniform system of observa-
tion adopted by the Smithsonian Institution, at 7 a. m., 2p. m., and
9p.m. The course of the wind was also noted three times a day,
corresponding with the above periods, as well as the state of the
weather in relation to clearness, cloudiness, and rain. By clear days,
is meant entirely clear—i. e., no clouds whatever being visible at the
time of observation; by cloudy, that some clouds were visible when
it did not rain; and by rainy days, that more or less rain then fell
without reference to quantity. The dew-point was taken at the driest
time of the day only, (3 p. m.,) from July, 1854, to November,
1855, with Daniels’ hygrometer ; since then, it has been calculated
from three daily observations with the wet and dry-bulb thermometer.
The three tables of hourly observations for twenty-four successive
hours, are the first of a series to be repeated four times every year, at
or about the period of the solstices and equinoxes, for the purpose of
determining the corrections to be applied, in order to render compar-
able with each other, the records made at different periods of the day.
It will be perceived, in these ‘‘term observations,’’ that the horary
oscillations of the barometer present in a marked degree the two di-
urnal maxima and minima which obtain within the tropics. From a
register kept with an extremely sensitive open-cistern barometer for
six months, from the Ist of April, 1855, to September following, in-
192 _ TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
clusive, for the express purpose of testing the regularity of the ebb
and flow of the wrial ocean, it is ascertained that the mean monthly
range between the sunrise and the 94 a. m. readings, amounted to
1.07 inch plus, in favor of the latter hour; whereas, between the
3 p. m. and the 93 p. m. readings, the mean monthly range was only
0.46 inch plus, in favor of the last hour. These observations will be
continued for six months longer, in order to determine whether the
fluctuations of atmospheric pressure occur as regularly in the same
ratio and degree during the rainy season. The instruments employed
were all placed in the open air on the north side of the lower story of a
brick building, in a sheltered projection, and protected against the
effect of either direct or reflected insolation, as well as against noc-
turnal radiation. In consequence of the care exercised in this re-
spect, the figures of the thermometer ranged generally lower during
the summer than those of other observers in the city. It is necessary
to add, before proceeding to the special remarks for each year, that,
according to recent observations by the Aneroid barometer, the altitude
of the city may be put down at thirty-nine feet above tide-level. The
latitude is 38° 34’ 42” north, and the longitude 121° 40! 05” west.
REMARKS FOR 1853.
With the exception of the winter of 1849-50, which, according to
the representations of those who then resided here, was a season of al-
most continual rain-storms, that of 1852~’53 ranks thus far as the most
notable for its high winds and heavy rains. The high northwest
wind which set in a few days after the great fire in November, 1852,
was succeeded by deluging rains, accompanied with strong wind from
the southeast. The Sacramento river, which drains about 15,000
square miles before reaching the city, rose above its natural banks
higher than was ever before known, converting the streets of Sacra-
mento into flowing streams and bottomless quagmires. On the Ist of
January the city was totally submerged. Dense fogs prevailed during
the greater part of the days of the 3d, 4th, 13th, 14th, 17th, 18th,
19th, 20th, 21st, and 22d, which, in connexion with the predomi-
nance of southerly winds and the frequent fall of rain, caused a de-
gree of humidity amounting almost constantly to saturation. Feb-
ruary was comparatively a dry month. On the 5th the streets of
Sacramento began to be passable, and in many points manifested in-
dications of desiccation ; while the river fell steadily, notwithstand-
ing the rains towards the latter part of the month. On the night of
the 22d there was a rain-storm from the southeast ; after which date
it rained more or less until the 25th, when it blew a gale from the
southeast, with heavy rain at night. By the 6th of March the Sa-
cramento river had fallen unusually low for the season, and the streets
of the city, thus thoroughly drained, were drying up rapidly under
the influence of a hot sun—the thermometer at 3 p. m. reading 75°.
On the 8th heavy rains commenced falling again, and the weather
continued variable to the end of the month. Nothing worthy of note
occurred at the date of the equinox; but on the 28th, one of the
heaviest rains ever measured here was found to have fallen, amount-
ing to about five inches. On the following day the Sacramento river
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 193
was found to have risen twelve feet in twenty-four hours, overflowing
its natural banks, and cutting off all communication with the interior
. by stages. On the 3lst the American river, which empties into the
Sacramento on the north side of the city, fell four feet in twenty-four
hours; but the height of the Sacramento river remained unchanged,
having attained within three inches of being as high as it was on the
Ist of January.
April 1.—The river commenced backing up through a break in the
levee at Sutterville, about two miles south of the city, and continued
to rise at the rate of one inch per hour until the streets were again
overflowed on the morning of the 2d. Onthe 4th heavy warm rains
from the south commenced falling ; the weather became genial, and
vegetation began to burst forth. Notwithstanding the river began to
fall slowly and steadily, it was still kept high by these spring showers.
On the 13th, during a heavy shower from the south, vivid flashes
of lightning, followed quickly by thunder, were witnessed ; which
phenomena also occurred on the 17th and 29th. At the latter date
the rain was ushered in by a sprinkle of hail from a nimboid-cumulus
from the southeast. The severest storm of the season occurred on the
night of the 16th, the wind blowing a gale from the southeast, accom-
‘panied by rain.
May was unusually boisterous; high winds prevailing frequently
from the south and southwest. The last shower of the regular rainy
season occurred on the 20th. There was afterwards a sprinkle on the
28th and 29th. At the close of the month the river was within a few
inches of the top of its natural banks, and still falling very slowly.
June was the hottest month in the year, and was generally so
throughout the State. On the 19th the barometer fell to the mini-
mum of the month, lower than it was ever known, with the wind,
strong from the southeast. This uncommon disturbance of the equi-
librium of the atmosphere was followed by no other appreciable effects
here than a considerable moderation of temperature, and a brisk
shower of rain on the 26th; an unusual occurrence in June. The
mean temperature was 80° when the sun entered Cancer, and the
mean reading of the barometer was 29.25 inches: weather clear, and
wind veering from south to northwest.
July was rendered most agreeable by a greater proportion of rela-
tive moisture in the atmosphere than is usually found during mid-
summer, and which may be attributed to the prevalence of southeast
winds. ‘Two sprinkles of rain—one on the 17th and the other on the
- 21st—occurred this month. That on the 17th happened about sunset,
when a beautiful rainbow was refracted.
August was characterized by remarkably cool nights. The minima
observed on the nights of the 13th and 31st were 51° and 50° respect-
ively.
September was comparatively a sultry month ; the wind being gen-
erally very light, particularly during the last four days. <A_ brisk
shower of rain occurred at daylight on the 15th, with the wind from
southwest, and the barometer reading 29.90 inches. On the 22d, the
mean reading of the barometer was 30.05 inches, and of the ther-
mometer 74°: sky clear, and wind southerly and light.
194 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
October opened with calm sultry weather, which continued during
the first six days; afterwards it became variable. The first rain of
the season fell before daylight on the 10th. During the last half of
the month the wind prevailed strong from the northwest, and on the
last three days it was very high.
On the 4th of November the regular rainy season may be said to
have set in, although’the quantity of rain that fell did not amount to
more than about an inch and a half for the whole month.
December was throughout a cold month. Hoar frosts were frequent
and vegetation was completely arrested. There were eight foggy
days this month; two entirely so. On two afternoons these fogs
gravitated towards the earth in the form of mist; generally, however,
they were dissipated before noon. At the period of the winter solstice
rain fell, and the thermometer sank to 32° at sunrise ; the wind blow-
ing fresh from southeast, and the barometer reading 30 inches. The
year ended cold and clear, with the wind from northwest.
Our tables for 1853 are not as complete as we could have desired,
because we were not provided in time with the necessary meteorologi-
cal appliances ; and, consequently, the monthly quantitative fall of
rain cannot be put down with scientific accuracy. The annual amount,
however, recorded in the table, approximates very nearly, the true
measurement.
REMARKS For 1854.
The opening month of this year is notable for its unprecedented
low temperature. Tor the first five days the mornings were foggy,
the wind remaining all the time very hght from northwest. On the
morning of the 5th the barometer fell suddenly 0.30 inch, and in
the afternoon a gale set in from the northwest and blew violently for
twenty-four hours. On the next morning, Sutter lake, situated at
the northwest angle of the city, was frozen over, and the thermome-
ter at 8 a. m. read 32°. From this date to the 20th the weather
was variable. The rains were cold and generally accompanied with
high wind from southeast. On the 15th the Coast range* of mountains
presented the novel appearance of being covered with snow in their
whole extent, and on the 20th the thermometer fell to the lowest point
ever before observed since the settlement of the country, viz: 19° at
7 a.m., and did not rise above freezing the whole day. So per-
sistent was the cold that Sutter lake remained frozen over for twenty-
four successive hours. ‘The mean temperature for four days, from the
19th to the 23d, was 29°. From all the information that can be ob-
tained from the oldest settlers, the greatest degree of cold previously
observed was in December, 1850, when the thermometer fell to 26°.
% The Sierra Nevada lie parallel to the coast of the Pacific, and, as their name imports,
this lofty range of mountains is always more or less capped with snow. But between
the latitudes 34° and 41°—between San Buenaventura and the Bay of Trinidad—there
runs west of the Sierra another smaller chain called the Coast range, of which Monte del
Diablo, 3,760 feet, Mount Ripley, 7,500 feet, and Mount St. John, 8,000 feet high, according
to Milleson, are the culminating points. In the valley between this Coast range and the
Great Sierra, varying in breadth from 40 to 80 miles, according to Fremont, flow from
the south the river San Joaquin, and from the north the Sacramento.
}
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 195
February was the most rainy month thus far observed, both as re-
gards the quantity that fell and the number of rainy days. On the
28th there was a considerable sprinkle of hail, attended with light-
ning and thunder, from a nimbus coursing from west to east.
March was stormy, high winds prevailing from almost every point
of the compass. Most of the rain that fell this month was on the
13th, 14th, and 15th, the wind veering about and blowing, at one
time, strong from the northeast, which is unusual. Immediately after
this the Sacramento river, which had remained ata very low stage all
the winter, commenced rising suddenly and soon reached twenty feet
two inches above low-water mark. It soon, however, began to fall
again. When the sun entered Aries the weather was fine and clear;
wind northwest; mean temperature 61°; mean reading of barometer
30.16 inches. On the 30th a comet was visible in the western hori-
zon at about 8 p.m. It bore northwest by north, with an altitude of
about 20°; length of tail about 6°, extending towards the zenith.
April, although preceded by the coldest winter yet observed, was,
from its inception, literally the opening month, and towards its latter
end vegetation was as much advanced as at the corresponding period
of the previous year. A coincidence worthy of note, inasmuch as
these phenomena are so seldom witnessed, was the occurrence of light-
ning and thunder on the 29th of the same month last year as well as
at the same date this year, accompanied by hail from a nimbus cours-
ing southeast; the mean reading of the barometer on the latter date
being 29.90 inches, and of the thermometer 60.03°.
May was characterized by capricious weather, vacillating between
winter and summer. ‘Two more thunder-storms, attended with high
wind, occurred, one on the 6th and the other on the 18th. The for-
mer, though less severe in the neighborhood of the city than that of
the 29th April, seemed to spend its chief fury, accompanied with
hail, in its course from southwest, extending from a point about eight
miles from the city to an unascertained distance beyond. This storm,
which lasted fifteen minutes, was so severe at a place called Spanish
Ranch, in the American valley, that the inmates were obliged to bar-
ricade the windows and doors to prevent them being blown in, and
two of a herd of cattle were killed by lightning. The barometer did
not read lower here at the time than thirty inches. The great annu-
lar eclipse of the sun was well observed here on the 26th, the sky
being entirely cloudless. At the period of the greatest obscuration
the landscape presented the same appearance as when viewed through
glasses of a neutral tint, and totally different from the shades of
evening. ‘he sky was of the deep greenish blue color seen in some
paintings of the Venetian school. On the following day the wind,
which had been fresh from the south, changed to southwest, and then to
northwest, from which quarter it blew a gale from 10a. m., for twenty-
four hours. After this it moderated a little, but continued high to the
last day of the month, when the barometer fell to its extraordinary
minimum, as in table No. 2.
June responded from the very first to the atmospheric disturbances
of the preceding month, and the established naturai laws of the dr
season were infringed three different times by rain, on the Ist, 12th,
|
196 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
and 17th. The rain on the 12th was accompanied by lightning and
distant thunder, but that on the 17th was the heaviest, measuring
0.20 inch. Although June is regarded as one of the dry months,
still we find, in a journal of one of our pioneers, that ‘it poured
during the night of the 11th June, 1849,’’ and, as is seen in the tables,
it has rained a little in this month every year. The wind was high
about the period of the solstice, but the barometer did not fall below
thirty inches at that date.
July was remarkable as being the hottest month yet observed. At
3 p.m. of the 13th, for the first time since we have been keeping a
meteorological register, the several thermometers distributed in va-
rious parts of the lower story of our brick residence marked 100° and
upwards, and remained at that height until 5 p. m. One placed near
the door of the southern front, and somewhat exposed to the effect of
reflected insolation, although ten feet from the sunshine, rose to 107°.
In several wooden buildings through which the solar heat penetrated
and accumulated, the mercury was seen by us as high as 110° ; but
this is not so high as apparent when we take into consideration the
fact that the atmosphere here is always filled in the summer season
with particles of dust and sand, which form, as Humboldt says, ‘‘ cen-
tres of radiant heat.’’ Ail these observations were made, although
to the windward, still near the locality of the great fire which occurred
about 3 p.m. on the 13th. Now, as the 12th, 13th, and 14th were
the three hottest days, and the mercury did not rise higher than 98°
on the first, and 99° on the last of these days, it is not unphi-
losophical to attribute the solitary instance of extreme heat to the
dryness of the atmosphere, artificially increased by the conflagration,
and which measured 42° by the thermometer of Daniells’ hygrometer.
And such an inference is sustained by the fact that on the 13th the
wind was from the southwest, which is much cooler and moister than
that of northwest, which prevailed on the 12th and 14th. The mean
temperature of the hottest part of the day for the week ending July
15th, was 97°. During the last half of the month the weather mod-
erated considerably, showing a difference of about 8° between the
mean maximum temperature of the first and last half.
August was characterized by the usual atmospheric changes which
usher in the autumnal season. The night of the 16th was the hottest
night as yet noticed in the country, the thermometer standing at 82° at
10 p. m., and 70° at sunrise. On the 17th the barometer commenced
falling, and continued to do so until it reached the minimum of the
month. This variation of the usual atmospheric pressure was attended
with fresh breezes from southeast, and followed by a slight shower of
rain on the morning of the 21st. After this the weather became sud-
denly cool, the nights being quite chilly, with the thermometer rang-
ing from 54° to 60°. During this month the Sacramento river fell
to the lowest point ever known since the settlement of the country.
In September little worthy of remark is recorded. Onthe 14th, at
10 p. m., frequent flashes of lightning were observed in the northeast,
The equinox passed away without any other atmospheric disturbance
than a slight sprinkle of rain at daylight ; wind southwest, fresh ;
barometer 30.08 inches, and thermometer at 58°.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 197
During October, indications of the setting in of the rainy season
were developed. Although the quantity of rain that actually fell was
small, still the proportion of moisture in the atmosphere was large for
this locality and season—the-dew point having been generally only 8 or
10° below the temperature of the air ; whereas during the preceding
summer months the freedom from watery vapor, as measured by the
thermometers of the psychrometer, ranged from 20° to 30°.
Our record for November shows the most agreeable weather, the
genial effects of which were manifested in the verdure of the fields and
fruitfulness of the gardens. In the neighborhood of the city, straw-
berries ripened on flourishing plants, and green peas were in such a
state of forwardness as to justify the expectation of their being ready
for market at Christmas.
December, another rainy month, passed away without much pros-
ect of our getting the usual semi-annual allowance of rain. From
the 4th to the 9th the fogs were so dense during the earlier part of
the day as to measure in the aggregate 0.07 inch by the rain-gage.
The first killing frost of the season occurred on the 9th. The sun
entered Capricornus during fine and clear weather. The year closed
with a strong gale and rain from southeast, which measured 0.60
inch; the barometer reading 29.78 inches, and the thermometer
54°.
REMARKS For 1855.
The new year was ushered in witha violent rain-storm, veering
from southeast to southwest. The barometer at sunrise stood at
29.38 inches, and the thermometer at 51°. The quantity of rain that
fell before 8 p. m., measured 1.12 inches. By the next morning the
weather was clear, with the wind fresh from north; the temperature
at freezing-point, and barometer at 30 inches. After this, only a
little rain fell occasionally ; but from the 10th to the 20th, the
densest fogs and mists prevailed continuously, measuring in the ag-
gregate, by the rain-gage, 0.16 inch. Sometimes the ascending
current would for an hour or two, during the warmest: part of the
day, carry off the vapor with it; but the wind, which was for the
most part warm, and from southeast, was too light to prevent the
re-precipitation of the excess of moisture in the air. On the 5th and
14th there was a slight fall of snow, which unusual phenomenon
was also witnessed two winters ago, at Brighton, about four miles to
the eastward. The month closed with pleasant weather, and the
verdure of the plains presented indications of an early spring.
February was characterized by the variable meteorological phe-
nomena usually attendant upon the breaking up of winter and the
opening of spring. During the first half of the month the weather
was generally pleasant and genial. On the Ist, the cowslip was ob-
served in profuse blossom all over the surrounding plains ; also, on
the 15th, the wild violet; on the 20th, the peach tree, and on the
23d, the pond willow, (Saliz nigra,) and the nemophilla, a small
indigenous blue flower. At daylight on the 24th, the thermometer
fell suddenly to the freezing-point at Sutter’s Fort, the wind being
198 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
fresh from north-northwest. The next day the wind changed to the
southward, from which quarter it continued to prevail almost con-
stantly to the end of the month, accompanied for the most part with a
steady, warm rain. For several days preceding the copious rains,
during the latter part of the month, the atmospheric pressure appeared
subjected to powerful disturbing influences, the barometric column
sinking to the minimum for the month, as stated in the table, on the
19th. The weather all the while remaining clear, with high wind
from northwest, and a comparatively anhydrous condition of the
atmosphere, seemed to conflict with the barometric indications of ap-
proaching rain. The heaviest rain of the season commenced falling
at noon on the 27th, and continued without interruption until 10
p.m. of the 28th, when the barometer rose suddenly one-tenth. of
‘an inch, and the clouds began to break away. ‘The quantity of rain
that fell during these twenty-four hours measured 2.10 inches.
March was noted for the comparative infrequency of high winds
and rain-storms. The vernal equinox was attended with no appre-
ciable atmospheric disturbance ; the weather remaining mild, equable,
and pleasant. The thermometer, however, ranged rather higher than
usual for the season. The deficiency of rain during the winter months
was measurably made up by frequent heavy spring showers, which
served to melt and bring down the snow from the mountains. On
the 15th the Sacramento river, which had remained at a very low
stage all the winter, rose to 20 feet 24 inches above low-water mark ;
which was within 1 foot 9 inches of the high-water mark of 1st Jan-
uary, 1853. During the two last days of the month a steady, warm
rain fell, beginning about 8 p. m. of the 29th, and continuing almost
without interruption until 9 a. m. of the 31st, when it commenced
blowing a gale from the south, with occasional heavy showers. At
the same time the barometric column sank to the minimum for the
month, but began to rise again before evening, when the gale abated.
On the afternoon of the 27th, at 5 o’clock, a remarkable iridescence,
globular in form, and which may be termed a parhelion, was observed
at the western termination of a cloud in the southwest, about 45°
above the horizon. The beautiful prismatic tinting of this meteor,
which lasted about one or two minutes, was the subject of general ad-
miration and newspaper remark.
In April the weather was very changeable, and more snow fell on
the mountains than is recollected to have fallen so late in the season
since 1849. The coincidence, remarked last April, of the unusual
occurrence of lightning and thunder on the same day of the previous
year, was rendered still more remarkable by the recurrence of the
game phenomenon on the 14th of this month. The barometric as well
as all other changes were sudden and frequent. The minimum re-
corded in the table occurred on the 15th, the maximum on the 18th.
The maximum of the thermometer was observed on the 8th, the min-
imum on the 18th; after which latter date a varying temperature,
with a comparative excess of humidity and southerly winds, predomi-
nated. ;
The most noticeable feature in May consisted in the recurrence, so
infrequent in this region, of electric phenomena on two occasions, (the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 199
10th and the 14th,) which happened likewise on the 6th and 18th of
the corresponding month last year, as well as on the 14th of the pre-
ceding month this year. Nothing, however, in the way of thunder-
storms was ever witnessed here like the dense nimbus which suddenly
arose from the southwest at about 3 p.m. on the 14th, and discharged
its watery contents, to the amount of 0.80 inch of rain, over the city,
rivalling, in the vivid shocks of its well charged battery, the violent
thunder-gusts of more tropical regions. As appears in the table, con-
siderable rain for the season fell, being an overplus of 0.94 inch
above that of May, 1854, although minus 0.10 inch of what fell in
May, 1853. During the whole month the barometer ranged uni-
formly low, and maintained a greater equability in its oscillations than
was observed for some months previously. With the exception of the
29th, 30th, and 31st, the thermometer indicated an agreeable temper-
ature, while a sufficiency of relative moisture in the atmosphere ren-
dered the weather pleasant and salutary. On these last days, how-
ever, the afternoons were oppressively sultry, in consequence of the
wind being light from northwest all day, and dying away towards even-
ing. These few uncomfortable days were more than compensated for
by delicious and refreshing nights, ‘‘when the heavens seemed to
unfold the brightest page of their mystic lore.’’ Indeed, no possible
combination of the great agents of nature in producing an agreeable
climate can surpass the delightful moonlight nights of Sacramento,
when fanned by the balmy breathings of the south, fresh from the
Pacific.
June was characterized by one of those extraordinary oscillations of
temperature which occasionally occur early in the summer in every
part of the North American continent, and which have been found to
return on an average of every ten or twelve years at several stations
where observations have been made through a series of years. On
the 21st the thermometer rose to 100°, and on the 22d in many places
beyond that point. This elevation of the temperature to 100°, at the
period of the solstice, appears to be not more extraordinary for Sacra-
mento than for other places at the same parallel of latitude. Rich-
mond and Washington, isothermally considered, many miles north of
Sacramento, are likewise occasionally subject, the former to a maxi-
mum temperature of 102° and the latter 100°, during the month of
June. The condition of the atmospheric pressure was also peculiar.
During the earlier part of the month the barometric column sank to
the minimum, as recorded in the table, without any other appreciable
sequence than some increase in the relative humidity of the atmo-
sphere. During the whole month it maintained a more or less low
position, except on the 11th and 12th, when it rose nearly as high as
at any other time during the month, although on these very days we
were visited with light showers of rain from the south. On the 25th
the barometer fell again as low as it did in the earlier part of the
month, when the wind commenced blowing fresh from the south, and
afterwards, on the 28th, changed to the northwest. The effect of such
hot weather, so early in the season, proved disastrous to the agricul-
tural interests, by developing the eggs of the grasshopper—a species
of gryllide—six weeks earlier than they were hatched out the year
200 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
previous. There is no animal that multiplies so fast as these, if the
sun be hot, and the soil in which the eggs are deposited be dry ; and
it is apprehended, for these reasons, that these destructive insects
may reappear whenever the hot weather sets in early.
July presented a most favorable specimen of our summer climate,
as if in compensation for the excessive solstitial heat of the preceding
month. There was scarcely a day in which the air was not refriger-
ated by southerly breezes. The barometer ranged persistently low,
and the atmospheric disturbance, indicated by its sinking to the mini-
mum on the 14th, was followed by accounts of showers of rain in va-
rious parts of the surrounding country from Yreka to San Francisco.
There was no rain at this point, but an increase of the humidity of
the atmosphere was manifested on several occasions by the formation
of clouds, and on the 18th vivid flashes of lightning were witnessed
in the eastern horizon.
In August there predominated a comparatively large proportion of
the relative humidity of the atmosphere, accompanied by an almost
constant prevalence of southerly winds, and a persistently low range
of the barometer. These phenomena were followed in some parts of
the State by early rains. In Nevada, Sierra, Butte, and Plumas,
heavy showers were reported to have fallen on the 19th. At the same
date it was cloudy here, and the relative moisture at the driest time
of the day amounted to 50 per cent. of saturation.
In September the first rains of the season occurred antecedent to
the equinox. After the prevalence of a high wind for twelve hours, at-
tended with flitting clouds from the southwest, a nimbus passed over
the city about sunset on the 15th, dropping an almost imperceptible
sprinkle, and:displaying a beautiful iris in the northeast. A heavy
bank of clouds was then seen to settle over the Sierra Nevada, occa-
sionally giving forth flashes of lightning. On the next evening, the
wind still prevailing from the same quarter, we were visited by a
shower sufficient to clear the atmosphere of dust for a short time.
Again on the following evening a heavy nimbus was seen to pass
from west-southwest to southeast, emitting vivid flashes of lightning,
followed by audible thunder. Prior to these occurrences the barom-
eter manifested considerable perturbation ; sinking to the minimum
on the 10th, and ranging generally low during the whole month.
During the latter part of the month was experienced somewhat of the
sultry, stagnant condition of the atmosphere which is peculiar to the
season when the wind is light from the northwest.
October furnished further indications of the advent of the rainy
season. The relative moisture of the atmosphere had been for some
time gradually augmenting in per-centage, when, on the morning of
the 29th, saturation manifested itself in the mist that prevailed until
10 a.m. The greatest degree of humidity previou&ly observed was
on the 24th, the day of the eclipse of the moon, when the relative
moisture at the driest time of the day was 67 per cent., and the abso-
lute humidity 6.07 grains in each cubic foot. During the whole time
of the lunar obscuration the atmosphere was transparently clear, and
the phenomenon was seen perfectly through its progress ; the ther-
mometer ranging from 63° at 9h. 34m. p. m., to 55° at 1h. dm. a. m.;
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 201
the barometer reading at the same time 30.04 inches, with the wind
light from the northwest.
In November the large proportion of aqueous vapor which had been
accumulating for some time previously, was condensed by the high
wind from northwest, which prevailed strong during the first five
days, and during one day, the 3d, very high. While this natural
operation was going on, the evolution of electricity was satisfactorily
demonstrated by the magnetic telegraph, tue wires serving to collect
and conduct off some of the abounding electricity of the air. On the
2d, the battery at Marysville was detached, and the communication
preserved without its agency. On the following morning thin ice was
seen at daylight on a neighboring farm, and the potato, watermelon
vines, and okra showed in their blackened leaves the effects of the first
frost. Cloudy weather, with southerly winds, soon succeeded, and on
the night of the 9th the rain came. On the 10th frequent flashes of
lightning were observed about 114 p. m. in the northern horizon. Af-
ter four days of occasional light rains, the weather cleared up, and
light northerly winds prevailed until the 21st, when the barometer
fell suddenly from 30 to 29.80 inches, the minimum for the month,
with the wind fresh from southwest. This variation of atmospheric
pressure was ascertained by means of the telegraph to be simultaneous
at various points, from Downieville to San Francisco. At the latter
place a light rain commenced falling on the same evening, while at
the same period a remarkable corona of three concentric rings of dif-
ferent colors, pale red, blue, and white, close to the moon, was ob-
served in this city, revealing the presence of rain, or rather sleet, in
the higher regions of the atmosphere. Before the succeeding morn-
ing a sprinkle reached us, which was followed up in thetevening by a
steady light rain, with a fresh breeze from southeast, until 9 a.m. of
the 24th, measuring 0.235 inch. After this the wind changed to
the dry quarter, northwest, but was too light to disperse the evapora-
tion which was precipitated in the air during the night, and on the
morning of the 25th a dense fog prevailed until the ascending current,
at 11 a. m., carried off the vapor with it. On the following day the
breeze came fresh from northwest, and the barometer reached its maxi-
mum for the month. After this the weather became variable. On the
28th a light rain fell from 10 a.m. to 1p. m., measuring 0.123 inch ;
and again, on the 30th, another little shower, from 4 to 6 p. m.,
measuring 0.024 inch. The mean relative humidity for the month
was sixty-four per cent. The phenomena incidental to December in
the north temperate zone, of decreasing days, gloomy fogs, saturating
rains, piercing winds, and chilling frosts, concluded the train of the
departing year; fulfilling, in the order of their recurrence, the laws
which were put in force by the Creator, when the foundations of the
earth were laid. "Although the month opened fair, the weather mani-
fested, by a sprinkle at 12 m. on the 2d, symptoms of variableness,
which obtained until the 7th, when the heaviest rain of the season,
from southeast, fell between the hours of 1 and 43 p. m., measuring
0.610 inch. On the night previously, at about 10} p. m., there*
was a slight fall of snow, just sufficient to make the phenomenon ap-
parent, twas of short duration, and was followed immediately by a
202 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
light shower of rain. From this date to the 24th there were only two
days entirely clear, thirteen cloudy and rainy, and two foggy days.
The quantity of rain which fell in the aggregate during this interval
amounted to 0.672 inch.
Notwithstanding this long continuance of unsettled weather which
prevailed generally throughout the interior of the State, the atmo-
spheric pressure at the same period manifested no unusual disturbance
—the barometer never falling below 30 inches, and, indeed, reading
as low as that point only twice, and for a short time: once on the
6th, when it snowed, and again when the sun entered Capricornus.
In the table of hourly observations at this latter period will be noted
the gradually progressive rise and fall of both barometer and ther-
mometer during the twenty-four hours. At 9 a.m. the temperature
was three degrees lower than at 4 a. m., while the atmospheric pressure
was .03 of an inch, increased by the veering of the wind to the west-
ward. At10a.m. the sky appeared almost entirely clear, but by
3 p.m. it became almost entirely cloudy, although the wind had in-
creased in force from the west. At 10 p. m. a large halo of the moon
was observed, consisting of a single luminous circle of about 45°
diameter ; and again at 2 p. m., when the sky had become almost
entirely cloudless, a corona of three faint concentric rings, apparently
about 5° in diameter, encircled the moon. Notwithstanding these
indications of the surcharge of the upper regions of the atmosphere
with humidity, the wind freshened up from northwest in the afternoon,
and by 9 p. m. the sky was entirely clear. Before morning the ther-
mometer fell to the extraordinary minimum of 25°, and the barome-
ter rose to 30.08 inches. On the succeeding day the sky was entirely
overcast, and although the lower current of air continued fresh from
northwest, the rising of the barometer from 30 to 30.12 inches, under
such circumstances, indicated some unusual pressure of the atmo-
sphere. As the sequence demonstrated, this barometric oscillation
was attributable to the marginal accumulation of air around the
storm, which was heralded on the morning of the 26th by an unpre-
cedented fall of snow, the lower current of air still prevailing light
from the north. Simultaneously a rapid diminution of atmospheric
pressure was manifested, and by 10 p. m. it was blowing a gale from
southeast, the rain, which had been falling all day, now coming with
gusts, from low clouds driven before it. At 7 a. m. on the 27th,
when the storm had reached its terminal point in this quarter, the
barometer sank to its minimum, 29.78 inches, and the thermometer
read 49°. At9p.m. following, the barometer had attained its or-
dinary altitude of 30 inches, and the temperature was six degrees
less than at the sunrise observation, while the sky was almost en-
tirely clear, with the breeze fresh from northwest. The snow-storm
lasted from 6 to 10 a. m., and the quantity that fell amounted to 0.016
inch when melted and measured by the rain-gage. The aggregate of
melted snow and rain which fell from 6 a. m. of the 26th to 10 a. m.
of the 27th, measured 0.725 inch. The effect of the rains thus far
* upon the river was to raise it about 30 inches above low-water mark.
Accounts from the interior represent the fall of snow as very great,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 203
and, consequently, the river may not be much affected thereby until
the warm rains of spring.
From the 27th to the close of the month the weather remained
clear and cold, with the wind steady from north and northwest, with the
exception of a part of the day of the 30th, when it veered to east and
northeast, the barometer nearly all the time remaining stationary at
about 30.15 inches, and never attaining the maximum it previously
reached on the 9th, 13th, 14th, 16th, and 17th. The mean temperature
of the four last cold days of the month was 34°, being 5° plus the
mean temperature of the four coldest days, from the 19th to the 23d
January, 1854. The mean of all the highest readings of the ther-
mometer by day was 56.04°, and of all the lowest by night 44.03°:
the mean daily range of temperature during the month was, there-
fore, 12.01°. The mean degree of humidity was 0.818, complete
saturation being represented by 1,000.
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
204
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205
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
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‘IOJOMLOWALIY] ‘LoyoULOIVE
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
206
91 £1 £2 I Rear Stores f I I £1 z ¥ I pura “g “N sXep jo zoqunyy
€1 § I t 4 ee iat es aa: I FI ; T tat Nsecae a f pula ‘q sup jo 1aquinyy
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tye se il 4 ¥§ I II ¢ I I! G T T ~~ pura “A, SAvp Jo aquinyy
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foe g £9 $Z #1 4 £2 -T I i g ? ~" pura “NV sup Jo zaqumy
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‘2 ON ‘HIAVL DALLVUVANOO
207
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
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‘penuiyu0j9—'Z “ON WIAVL AALLYYVdWOO
208 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
TABLE No. 3.
Observations for twenty-four successive hours, taken on the 19th of
June, 1855.
]
Hour. | Barometer.| Thermom- | Clouds, their | Wind, direc- | Dew-point.| Relative
eter. course and| tion and humidity.
velocity. force.
Inches. 0 °
Rn Uses ese 29.97 COPA | fe Sie ae eae Sigh alse a6 56 . 838
Siar moose 29. 97 ie siy, |S See ees SH” gpese 64 . 761
Guana sys ent 29.97 Obras Sect ao seas Sob de eee 52 . 668
f Gals 0 ee 29.97 G Sita eo cece res boi Sane Reema 51 » 592
Stamos cr 29.97 Cr et ae ae ape Subp 22s 50 . 540
Oia vanes oe 29.98 ALUN | ete Sa IS] ee gees Dik . 541
MO Vaemnee so 29.98 (i er\ RES ees ee Saline see 51 463
Java nme sane 29.97 I Hes Safa eras Sao Eis ull ee 52 . 438
Were vee 29.97 SA ee Stirs te eye ae So Wy heen 50 . 356
TS) Oy tare core 29.96 Soyg seas aes SidWiemrns a2 50 . 346
4 yl Noes aro 29.94 SGN ia se ors tes ee S... Wats ae 50 . 336
Sup ewe 29. 95 SS ak |e etoeeeee = ish. Wii rasan 50 . 318
aap me eee 29.93 Situs aoe oes Se We -2tond 50 . 326
Spm se Ss 29.93 SB yi | eat ror Smweaz fa 2s 49 . 336
<i)) [Oni area 29.93 OZ Blaeaicece sees Span fege Ur rept 49 . 367
Cf (Osa ere. 29.93 {Eee an Mii es Saas Si We Wtee2 48 . 387
Sipsmec scr 29.96 (Sn Le me pe an Sy Di lee. 48 . 451
Ohm) eae a 29.96 U7 er ee Peele as ese 2 46 . 450
HO Mp ama 2 29.95 Ou aceasta Silke dieee 45 .463
LiL OM Taree esos 29. 94. evs |S sem ce, ai eee Shales 46 . 509
D2 ipymces oe 29.95 “Glipedlie cto oreo So is betes 48 . 558
Wane ke see 29.95 C13, | bape ee Pe Sh de he 88 49 . 591
Sees ees 29. 94 em | Pee es se ean Sle Presee 52 . 668
S) Alaa ei a ceases 29.93 G2iet eee ee see tae Sieh dees 54 . 186
Aram es 322 29. 94 Giles 2 seer She Uae mec 56 . 861
Remarws.—The mean temperature of the 22d, the period of our summer solstice, was
so much beyond the average, it is deemed best to record the hourly observations made
on the 19th, as most useful for purposes of comparison and correction.
"The departure of the mean temperature of the 19th from that of the 22d June, 1854,
was 1.50 degrees minus.
19th,) was the same as that of this year.
The reading of the barometer varied only 0.01 inch from the average of three years
on the 22d June. The wind of the corresponding day in 1854 prevailed from N.W.., light ;
sky clear.
cirri-strati.
The mean temperature of the corresponding day last year, (the
In 1853 the wind was fresh from the §., and sky more or less invested with
[From the foregoing table, it appears that on this day the maxi-
mum temperature occurred at 3p. m., and the minimum at 4 a. m.
The maximum of humidity was at 4 a. m., and the minimum at 3
p.m. and since the wind continued light during the day, these re-
sults are probably the same as those which would be obtained from
the observations during a number of days. The barometer exhibits
two maxima and two minima, but the points at which these occur are
not precisely marked. |
TABLE No. 4.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
209
Observations for twenty-four successive hours, taken on the 22d of
September, 1855.
Hour.
»
~
=]
alg
B
Barometer.| Thermom- | Clouds, their
Inches.
29.90
29. 89
29. 86
29.88
29.90
29.923
29.93
29.90
29.89
29. 90
29. 90
29. 90
29.92
29.93
29.93
29.92
29. 92
29. 92
29.93
29.93
“29.92
29. 92
29.93
29. 94
29.94
eter.
course and
velocity.
2—S. W. 1.-
—S. W. 1.-
2—S. W. 1.-
2—S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
I—S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
1S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
1—S. W. 1.-
OF se
Qatar
0 SS SRA ceoe sé
(Nese ce
Oetker
QR Ses.
mae bascee=
Q----------
Q----------
0----------
0 once Selo se
Nesemooas oe
tion and
force.
TATA TATA TATA TTA TA TCT TD TT tn Tt Ot OO OA
—_
Wind, direc- | Dew-point.
48
52
50
Relative
humidity.
Remarxs.—The departure of the mean daily temperature from the average of the same
day for three years was 7.019 minus.
The reading of the barometer varied 0.18 inch minus from that of the same day last
year, and 0.13 inch minus from that of the 22d September, 1853.
‘The wind of the corresponding day last year prevailed from 8. W. fresh ; and although,
there was a slight sprinkle at daylight on the same day, the sky was clear for ‘the remainder.
On the 22d September, 1853, the wind was high from the N. W., and sky. entirely cleans.
14
210
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
TABLE No. 5.
Observations for tweniy-four successive hours, taken on the 22d of
December, 1855.
Hour.
Pe et 0 OD HIS Or Bm OD DY
ie OTS ee eee
ows
EEE
'
'
1
Barometer.| Thermom- | Clouds, their
eter.
course and
velocity.
AALAAAAAASZAAAAAA 445
Wind, direc-
tion and
foree.
we AAaad wim
Dew-point.
36
39
39
39
Relative
| humidity.
Remarks.—From 6 p. m. of the 20th to 7 p. m. of the 21st it rained, with brief inter-
missions, to the amount of 0.268 inch, with the wind light from §. E., and remained
cloudy up to the hour the present observations were commenced. On the corresponding
day in 1853 the weather was clear, with the wind fresh from N. W.; the mean tempera-
ture on the same day being 44°, and the mean reading of the barometer 30.15 inches.
At 10 p. m. of the 23d the sky was entirely covered with cumulo-stratified clouds ; and
by 9 p. m. entirely clear, with the wind strong from N. W.
On the morning of the 24th, the thermometer fell to 25° ;
26th the unprecedented fall of snow occurred.
and on the morning of the
METEOROLOGY.
REMARKS
ON THE
QUANTITY OF RAIN AT DIFFERENT HEIGHTS.
BY PROFESSOR O. W. MORRIS, or NEW YORK.
Ata meeting of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York in
1846, and at the meeting of the American Association for the Ad-
vancement of Science, at Albany, in 1851, some account was given of
the quantity of rain at different heights, with the hope that some
other observers would, from the few hints given, take up the subject,
and furnish some more definite information than was yet known,
especially in this country ; but nothing has yet fallen under my obser-
vation. Absence from the State, and other causes, hindered me from
prosecuting the inquiry till 1854, when a gage, suchas is used by the
observers of the Smithsonian Institution, was placed on the observa-
tory of the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, in New York city, and
a similar one on the surface of the ground ; the upper one eighty-five
feet above the lower.
From observations with these instruments, it has been ascertained
that the difference in quantity depends upon a variety of circumstances ;
for the quantity is generally increased in a sudden thunder-shower,
or violent wind ; while with but little wind or a moist atmosphere
preceding the rain, the difference is slight. Thus, in twelve thunder-
storms which occurred in twelve months, the lower gage afforded
8.33 inches, and the upper 5.35 inches, showing a difference of 1.98
inches; while in twelve storms which occurred with light winds or
none at all, the lower gage afforded 4.75 inches, and the upper 4.05
inches, showing a difference of only 0.70 of an inch.
With a moist atmosphere preceding seventeen storms, some of
them long, the lower gage afforded 11.73 inches, the upper 7.97, a
difference of 3.76 inches; and witha dry atmosphere preceding the
storm, thirty-eight storms afforded in the lower gage 31.57 inches,
and the upper 23.13 inches, showing a difference of 8.24 inches. In
the first instance the average difference for each storm was about 0.21
inch; in the latter, it was 0.22 inch. It would therefore seem that
whenever there is much disturbance by winds, &c., there is less abil-
ity in the vapor to rise to any considerable height, owing, in part, to
the increased weight of the falling fluid ; or else there is a more rapid
condensation of the vapor at the surface of the earth, which agrees
with the theory of Mr. Russell.
Whether this theory be the true one or not, there is. much plausi-
212 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
bility in it, and in many cases it is applicable, while in a few it fails
to apply, especially in long-continued rains.
A satisfactory theory has yet to be established, and the facts that
have been, and are now collecting, will serve to suggest some import-
ant rules on this branch of meteorology.
If proper meteorological apparatus could be procured, carefully
watched, and the facts noted by a sufficient number of observers at pro-
per distances from each other, correct comparisons might be instituted,
and data furnished for establishing fixed principles to guide the student
of nature in his search for truth; but in this country the state of society
and the circumstances of most of those who would engage in the enter-
prise debar them from its successful pursuit. It can only be carried
on by the aid of government, or the liberality of the wealthy. When
either of these is given, then will meteorology in our country make
itself known and felt by its beneficial results to society ; and not the
least among these will be such as follow the investigation of the laws
governing the precipitation of water from the atmosphere.
With the apparatus mentioned above, the following results have
been obtained; premising, however, that during the months of win-
ter no record of the difference was kept, as the drifting of the snow |
and other causes rendered the observations not reliable. A record
was kept of the direction of the wind, the height of the mercury in
the dry and wet bulb thermometers, with the relative humidity and
force of vapor, the duration of the rain-storms, as well as the quantity
of water collected in each gage. To note all these circumstances in
this paper would make it too long, and be interesting to only a few ;
therefore the aggregate results for each month will be mentioned.
Quantity. Difference.
Number of storms. Prevailing wind. 5 ah set |
| Upper gage. | Lower gage. | Lower, +-
be we Os | ——————
1854. Inches. Inches. Inches.
PT ee oa eee a GUISBAStELLY, 20 2-2 a" 2.703 3. 82 1.117
May: 22 eee ees ae Co aeee dor eae ie 3. 12 4, 28 1.16
Munéessse tse cee aes T ieee d Oe. sce 1. 68 2.29 0. 61
Duly oases eee See ZANE PEG KOE Aes Se, MF 2. 20 2.72 0. 52
W AVS aT en ea eI (he wipers la le aap 3. 20 4.15 0.95
October 1. ees. Bas OM Ws Tae 1. 67 2. 65 0. 98
November. s2tsp224 = 22 4. | Westerly 0.22222 2: 81 4. 33 1. 52
1855.
Ail aes ee Steen OMS dows ao cee eas 2.42 2. 86 0.44
Mayili24. 55 SSRs CoMitBastenly 222 -Sosee 3. 50 4.90 1.40
Bae sees 2 BO A Solashedbes 5222 Yee 4.10 5. 83 1.73
Unk (ae ee ee (Ge me ores eens Sees = 3. 44 5. 46 2. 02
August ——---------_____* pcan Rempel seta i 2. 06 2. 90 0. 84
Meant = 17 SS5ac0i0.9 5 2.742 3. 85 1. 107
Norn.—Difference in height 85 feet.
These means are for twelve (not consecutive) montha—the prevailing wind being
Easterly.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 213
The greatest monthly difference was in July, 1855, when it was 2.02
inches ; the greatest in any one storm was in November, 1854, a dif-
ference of 1.18 inches; the storm was of about twenty-two hours’ con-
tinuance, and the wind west. The least monthly difference was in
April, 1855—0.44 inch ; and the least in any one storm was in July,
1855—0.02 inch. Thestorm was about twelve hours’ duration, and the
wind northeast, and light; the air on the previous day was damp, and
but little wind. The quantity for the six cooler months was 26,22
inches in the upper, and 22.94 in the lower gage, showing a difference
of 6.72 inches. The quantity for the six warmer months was 16.69
inches in the upper, and 23.35 inches in the lower, a difference of
6.66 inches, showing a difference of only 0.06 inch between the warm
and cool months. There were seventeen storms in which the atmo-
sphere preceding their commencement was moist, when the difference
was 3.76 inches; and thirty-eight storms in which it was dry, with
a difference of 8.24 inches. The difference in thirteen thunder-showers
was 2.98 inches, in a quantity of 5.35 inches in the upper, and 8.33
inches in the lower; and in a quantity of 4.05 inches in the upper,
and 4.75 inches in the lower, there was a difference of 0.70 inch,
when there was little or no wind. The general result for the twelve
monthsis 32.90 inches inthe upper, and 46.29 inches in the lower gage, a
difference of 13.39 inches. Of the storms, thirty of them occurred with
the wind easterly, and the difference in quantity was 6.98 inches;
eleven of them, with westerly winds, with a difference of 1.40 inches ;
nine, with the wind varying from west to east, and vice versa, with a
difference of 2.60 inches; two, with south wind, and a difference of
0.21 inch ; four, with a gale from northeast, with a difference of 2.01.
and one varying from southwest to northeast, and a difference of 0.86
inch. The greatest difference for the time of continuance was in one
* of about forty-five minutes’ duration, with but little wind, when it
was 0.37 inch in 1.28 in quantity ; the wind was west.
These facts are thrown out for the consideration of observers, in the
hope that some system may be adopted by which more accurate obser-
vations will be secured,
REMARKS BY THE SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
The subject of the difference of rain at different elevations has re-
ceived much attention in this country and in Europe; though more
investigations are required to settle definitely all the principles on
which it depends. It would appear that the greater part of the
observed difference is due to eddies of wind, which carry the air con-
taining the falling drops more rapidly over the mouth of the upper
gage than it would pass over an equal portion of the unobstructed
surface of the ground. Professor Bache found, from a series of ob-
servations on the top and at the bottom of a shot-tower in Philadel-
phia, that not only was there a difference due to elevation, but also
to the position of the upper gage, whether it was placed on the wind-
ward or leeward side of the tower. It would also appear, that
when the air is saturated with moisture down to the surface of the
earth, the descending drop would collect at least a portion of the
214 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
water it meets with in its passage to the ground, but the amount
thus collected would not be sufficient to account for the difference ob-
served. Besides this; the condition does not always exist; the air
near the earth is frequently undersaturated during rain, and in this
case a portion of the drop would be evaporated, and its size on reach-
ing the earth less than it was above. If the drop is increased by the
deposition of new vapor in its descent, then the rain at the bottom
ought to be warmer than at the top, on account of the latent heat
evolved in the condensation ; on the other hand, if the drop be dimin-
ished by evaporization during its fall, then the temperature of the
rain caught at the greater elevation ‘ought to be in excess. That
evaporization does sometimes take place during the fall of rain, would
appear from the fact that clouds are seen to exhibit the appearance of
giving out rain though none falls to the earth, the whole being en-
tirely « evaporated. That the air should ever be undersaturated during
rain is at first sight a very surprising fact; it may, however, be ac-
counted for on the principle of capillarity. "The attraction of the sur-
face of a spherical portion of water for itself is in proportion to the
curvature or the smallness of the quantity, and hence the tendency to
evaporate in a rain-drop ought to be much less than in an equal por-
tion of a flat surface of water.
If the diminution of quantity of rain at the upper station depends
principally on eddies of wind, then the effect will be diminished by
an increase in the size of the drops, which will give them a greater
power of resistance ; and the size of the drop will probably “be in-
fluenced by the intensity of the electricity of the air, as well as by its
dryness. The former, as well as the latter, will tend to increase the
evaporation from the surface of the drop.
It is a well-established fact, which at first sight would appear to be
at variance with the results of observations on towers, that a greater
amount of rain falls in some cases on high mountains ‘than on the ad-
jacent plains. For example, the amount of water which anntally
falls at the convent of St. Bernard is very nearly double that which
falls at Geneva. This effect, however, is due to the south wind, loaded
with moisture, ascending the slope of the mountain into a colder re-
gion, which causes a precipitation of its vapor. From what is here
said, it will be evident that the subject of rain is one which involves
many considerations, and which still presents a wide field for investi-
gation.
A series of observations have been commenced at this Institution
on the quantities of rain at different elevations, as well as on gages
of different sizes and forms, the result of which ‘will be given in one
of the subsequent reports.
METEOROLOGY.
DIRECTIONS
: METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS,
ADOPTED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, FOR THE FIRST CLASS OF OBSERVERS.
The following directions were originally drawn up for the use of
the observers in correspondence with the Smithsonian Institution, by
Professor Guyot, of the College of New Jersey, Princeton, and are
now reprinted, witha series of additions, for more general distribution.
The additions are indicated by brackets, | ].
Secretary 8. I.
PLACING AND MANAGEMENT OF THE INSTRUMENTS.
THERMOMETER.
Placing.—Place the thermometer in the open air, and in an open
space, out of the vicinity of high buildings, or of any obstacle that
impedes the free circulation of the air. It should be so situated as to
face the north, to be always in the shade, and be at least from nine to
twelve inches from the walls of the building, and from every other
neighboring object. The height from the ground may be from ten to
fifteen feet, and, as far as possible, it should be the same at all the
stations. The instrument should be protected against its own radia-
tion to the sky, and against the light reflected by neighboring objects,
such as buildings, the ground itself, and sheltered from the rain, snow,
and hail. The following arrangement will fulfil these requirements,
(figure 1.)
Select a window situated in the first story, fronting the north, in a
room not heated or inhabited ; remove the lattice blinds, if there be
any, and along the exterior jambs of the window place perpendicular-
ly two pieces of board, (a b—a' UW’), projecting to a distance of from
twenty to twenty-four inches from the panes. At half this distance,
ten or twelve inches from the panes, and at the height of the eye of
the observer, when in the chamber, pass from one piece of board to
the other two small wooden transverse bars, (¢ d, ¢ d’,) each an inch
broad, for the purpose of supporting the instruments. Upon the outer
edge of the boards fasten in the usual way (H H) the latticed blinds
which were removed from the jambs, or two others provided for the
purpose. That blind, behind which the instruments are to be placed,
is to serve as a screen, and must be fastened, almost entirely closed,
so as make a little more opening ; the other will remain entirely open
to allow a free access of air and light, and is not to be closed except in
great storms. The whole must be covered with a small inclined roof
216 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
of board, (B E,) placed at least fifteen or twenty inches above the in-
strument. The lower part, (J J,) or the basis, may remain open.
a Fig. 1. a!
SR KS
==: sok »
aN SN \
\
\.
a
View from the outside.
_ [The foregoing is a convenient arrangement by which the observa-
tions can be taken without exposing the observer to the weather. To
insure greater accuracy the windows during the intervals of observa-
tions may be closed with a wooden shutter. ‘The outside of the lat-
tice work should be painted white, to reflect off the light and heat
which may fall upon it. ]
- Fig. 2. The. thermometer must be placed exactly perpendicular,
the middle of the scale being at the height of the eye against
the two small wooden bars, so that the top of the scale being
fixed by a screw to the upper bar, the bulb may pass at least
two or three inches beyond the lower bar. The instrument
is attached to the last by a little metallic clasp. (Fig. 2.)
It will thus be placed ten or twelve inches from the panes,
from the screen, and the other parts of the window.
[In a later arrangement, a single transverse bar is used.
This being placed at the necessary height, the thermometers
are attached to it by small metal brackets, which support
them at a distance from the har of about two inches. The
metal brackets are permanently screwed to the bar, and the
thermometers are fastened to them by small finger-screws,
by which they can be detached at pleasure. The order of placing
them is shown in the cut. |
Reading.—To read the thermometer, the eye must be placed exact-
ly at the same height as the column of mercury. Unless this precau-
tion is taken, there is a liability to errors, the greater in proportion
to the thickness of the glass of the stem and the shortness of the de-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 217
erees. The reading should be made at all times, and especially in
the winter, through the panes, and without opening the window;
otherwise the temperature of the chamber will inevitably influence
the thermometer in the open air. The degrees must be read, and
the fractions carefully estimated in tenths of degrees. After having
rapidly taken the observation, another should be made to verify it.
If there are several other instruments to observe, and the thermometer
is to be read first, the first reading may be made some minutes before
the hour; the second, after the reading of the psychrometer ; and if
there is a difference, the mean number is to be entered in the journal.
When, notwithstanding the shelter, the bulb of the thermometer is
moistened by rain or fog, or covered with ice or snow, it is necessary
to wipe it rapidly, and not to record the degree until the instrument
has been allowed to acquire the true temperature of the air.
Verification. —Verify the zero point, at the beginning and end of
winter. Jor this purpose, fill a vessel with snow, immerse the bulb
of the thermometer in the middle of it, so as to be surrounded on every
side by a layer of several inches of snow, slightly pressed around
the instrument. The stem must be placed exactly perpendicular, and
covered with snow as far up as the freezing-point on the scale. Let
it stand so for half an hour or more, and then read it, taking great
care to place the eye at the same height as the summit of, the mer-
curial column. Ifthe top of the column does not coincide with the
freezing-point of the scale, the exact amount of the difference must be
ascertained, and the correction immediately applied. At the same time
enter in the journal, under its appropriate head, the day on which the
experiment is made, its quantity, and the moment at which the ap-
plication of it was commenced. [It is necessary to add that since the
zero point of the thermometer is not that of the temperature of snow
as it is frequently found when exposed to the atmosphere, but that of
melting snow, the experiment must be made in-a place above the tem-
perature of freezing. Instead of snow, pounded ice may be employed. |
[Green’s thermometers have an arrangement by which the tube can
be slipped down the small quantity necessary to correct for this
change. The end of the tube is fitted into a small plate of German
silver, and this fastened by a screw to the scale. If, on testing the
thermometer, the mercury be found to stand above 32°, free the screw
one or two turns without taking it out, and push down the plate the
necessary amount to bring the mercury to coincide. The thermo-
meter must be handled with great care in making this adjustment,
and it may be well, for additional security against accident, to loosen
all the screws which fasten the bands around the tube—it will then
slide in them more freely. After completing the adjustment, they
may again be set moderately tight. The object of this adjustment
being only to avoid the trouble of making a correction, it is not ad-
visable to attempt it, if the observer thinks that he risks, in so doing,
the safety of his instrument. As the tubes of these standard ther-
mometers are kept for a considerable time before fixing the zero point,
in most cases the moving will not be required. After the first year
the zero point changes little, and practically, when exposed only to
atmospheric influences, may be considered permanent. |
218 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
SELF-REGISTERING THERMOMETERS.
Placing.—These two thermometers, indicating the maxima and
minima, are to be placed beside the common thermometer, in a hori-
zontal position, with the bulbs opposite and free, on two small per-
pendicular supports uniting the two bars, as shown in Fig. 1.
Reading.—For the reading, place the eye in such a position that
the visual ray may be perpendicular to the extremity of the index ;
enter the indications with the fractions of degrees, if there are any,
and, after having verified them again, bring~ back, by means of the
magnet, the indexes of the two thermometers to the summit of their
respective columns.
Verification.—Compare the indications of the two thermometers fre-
quently, and especially the spirit thermometer, with those of the
common thermometer ; verify the zeros at least twice a year, and, if
there is a difference, adjust the zero anew, if the instrument permits,
to eliminate the correction, as has been stated above for the simple
thermometer, or take this correction into account in the register.
[The maximum thermometer is subject to derangement by the
mercury getting to the side of the steel index and wedging it fast.
When such is the case, put the bulb in ice, if it is necessary to bring
the mercurial column so low, or cool it sufficiently to get all the
mercury down that will pass the index ; then move the magnet along
the tube with a slight knocking or jarring motion, and try to get the
index into the chamber at the top of the stem. If you get the index
free of the wedge, but with mercury above it, heat the bulb until all
the disjointed mercury and index are driven into the chamber, then
keep the index up by the magnet, and the mercury will go back as
the bulb cools. The great point of attention is to get and keep the in-
dex free of the wedge. Themercury being above, is of little consequence,
as it can readily be heated up into the chamber; in doing this,
most watchfulness is required in not suffering the index to wedge by
the driving mercury. If the index is so wedged that it cannot be
moved by these methods, then take the thermometer steadily in the
hand, and swing it quickly, as if you wished to throw the mercury
into the chamber at the top; the index with more or less mercury
will be found in the chamber: if not, repeat the swinging until it is
there. Then heat up the bulb until the mercury joins that in the
chamber, keep the index up by the magnet, and let the mercury by
cooling go back in unbroken line.
In using the magnet to move the index up into contact with the
mercury, care must be taken not to urge it too strongly, or it may
enter the mercury.
In using the magnet with the spirit-thermometer, the same care is
necessary as with the mercurial, as the index may be forced out of the
spirit, entangling the vapor and the alcohol. When this is the case
the thermometer must be taken down and held vertically—a few taps
or jars will bring the spirit together. The spirit-thermometer re-
quires attention, also, in this particular. The vapor above the spirit
is apt, in time, to condense at the end of the tube, commonly at the
very end. When the spirit-thermometer stands lower than the mer-
curial one, this may be suspected and looked for. When so found,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 219
the thermometer should be taken down and shaken until the alcohol
runs down; it should then be kept in an upright position for some
time to drain. If it is found difficult to shake down the condensed
vapor, the end of the tube may be carefully and slowly heated with a
small lamp, or a small rod of heated iron held at a short distance,
keeping the bulb and lower part as cold as possible; the alcohol by
vaporization will then condense at the surface of the spirit in con-
nexion with the bulb. Occasionally, in cold climates, spirit-thermo-
meters are deranged by the air absorbed by the alcohol becoming free in
the bulb at a low temperature. When this occurs bring the thermo-
meter to as low a temperature as may be convenient ; then hold it in
such a position that the air-bubble comes to the juncture of the bulb
and tube, warm the bulb till all the air is in the tube, then by shaking
the thermometer, or by gentle knocking, the spirit will flow down,
and the air speck come to the top.
This does not occur in spirit thermometers that are closed with a
vacuum, and the spirit at the time well freed from air. In this case,
however, the above named difficulty from vaporization takes place
more readily than when closed with air. These derangements of the
spirit thermometer are readily rectified, and only require occasional
examination to detect them.
Both the maximum and minimum thermometers may be adjusted
without the magnet, by raising one end sufficiently to allow the index
to slide down by its own weight.
The ordinary maximum thermometer (Rutherford’s) not working
well, even in the hands of many careful observers, has occasioned
several attempts to make one without an index. é
Mr. Green has lately contrived one. The object is effected by en-
closing in the bulb a glass valve, which is floated by the mercury to
the juncture of the bulb and tube. On an increase of heat the mer-
cury from the bulb passes this valve, but on contraction from a de-
creasing temperature, the portion in the column is obstructed, and
remains stationary, indicating the maximum point attained.
To set the instrument for another observation, it is held bulb down-
wards, and with a gentle jerk the mercury falls and joins that in the
bulb ; it is then placed horizontal in the usual way.
A movable valve-piece is introduced rather than a fixed obstruc-
tion or stricture, as in a new and ingenious maximum thermometer
by Messrs. Negretti and Zambra, of London, in expectation that the
observer will find greater ease and satisfaction in readjusting the in-
strument for observation.
Professor Phillips, of England, has also devised one. His plan is
to cut off a portion of the column of mercury by an intervening small
bubble of air. An increase of heat drives this detached portion for-
ward, and leaves it there on a decrease of heat.
This form is also made by Mr. Green, and possesses some advan-
tages peculiar to it; but, until experience decide otherwise, we doubt
if it can be put in order after accidental derangement, by every ob-
server. The former plans are not open to this objection. |
"'[Nore.—These thermometers being new in plan, particular instructions in regard to
suspending and setting them will be given with each instrument by the maker, Mr.
James Green, New York. |
220 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
PSYCHROMETER.
*
Placing.—The psychrometer, or wet-bulb thermometer, must be
situated under the same conditions as the thermometer. It should be
placed on the same wooden bars, several inches off and outside of the
thermometer. (See Fig. 1.)
The bulbs should also be entirely free, and at a distance from the
» bars.
In case of violent winds, the instrument may be sheltered by the
movable blind, which may also serve as a fan to promote evaporation
when the air is too still.
The cloth which surrounds the bulb ought to be of medium fine-
ness, not too coarse; it should form a covering of equal thickness on
all sides, and should not be drawn too closely upon the glass. Linen
is preferable to cotton, which retains the dust. The covering should
be changed every two or three months, and the bulb cleaned. [The
linen may be washed without removal by means of a jet of clean
water from a small syringe. |
Olservation.—For the observation, take first a small vessel full of
water, which should be left on the window, that the water may be at
the temperature of the air ; bring it near to the bulb, and immerse the
bulb several times into the water. All the space between the bulb
and the bottom of the scale must be wet, and care must be taken that
the wrapping is thoroughly moistened, without, however, a too large
drop remaining suspended at the bulb. The water used must be pure ;
the best is rain-water filtered, because it does not hold any salt in
solution, which might incrust the cloth after evaporation.
[In some arrangements of the psychrometer the wet-bulb is kept
constantly wet by conducting water to it from a small vessel, by
capillary attraction, along a string of cotton wick. A series of com-
parative observations were made at this Institution last summer on
these two modes of wetting the bulb, which gave the same result
within a fraction of a degree from the mean of the records of a month.
The observers connected with the Coast Survey preter the method of
dipping the covered bulb. |
After wetting the bulb, shut the window, and leave the psychro-
meter for a moment. .
While the wet bulb is slowly acquiring the temperature of evapo-
ration, the observer is occupied with other observations, watching the
psychrometer to make sure of the moment when it has become station-
ary. In summer, from four to ten minutes are needed for this, accord-
ing to the size of the bulb; but in winter, when the water freezes on
the bulb, it must be moistened from fifteen to thirty minutes before
the observation, which should not be made until the ice around the
bulb is quite formed and dry. The best way is to keep round the
bulb a layer of ice, constant and uniform, which should be neither too
thick nor too thin ; then the observation may take place immediately.
When the temperature is in the neighborhood of the freezing-point,
the observation of the psychrometer requires very peculiar care ; the
reason of which we have elsewhere explained. During a fog the wet-
bulb thermometer may be somewhat higher than the dry-bulb ; then
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 22"
the air is over-saturated, and contains, besides the vapor at its maxi-
mum of tension, water suspended in a disseminated liquid state.
If the air is very still, it is well to increase the evaporation by set-
ting the air in motion by afan. Ifthe wind is too strong, the instru-
ment should be protected by the movable blind. The reading must
be made rapidly, and, as much as possible, at a distance, and without
opening the window ; for the proximity of the observer, either by the
heat radiating from his body, or by his breath, as well as the temper-
ature and the hygrometrical state of the air issuing from the chamber,
which is always different from that of the external air, especially 1 in
winter, would infallibly act upon the instruments, and would falsify
the observation.
Verijication.—The two thermometers must be carefully compared
from time to time, and if a difference is found, the instruments must
be adjusted, or it must be taken into the account, and the observations
corrected when entered in the journal.
BAROMETER.
Placing.—The barometer should be placed in a
room, of a temperature as uniform as possible, not
heated nor too much exposed to the sun. The instru-
ment must be suspended at the height of the eye,
near a window, in such a manner as to be lighted
perfectly, without exposure either to the direct rays
of the sun, or to the currents of the air, which always
take place at the joinings of the windows. When the
barometer has to be fixed to the wall, as is the case
with all the common stationary and wheel barometers,
care must be taken to secure the tube in a position
perfectly vertical, regulating it by the plumb-line,
first in front, then at the sides, at least in two verti-
cal planes cutting each other at right angles. When
the instrument is so constructed as to take its equilib-
rium itself, as the Fortin barometers and those of J.
Green, recently made under the direction of the
Smithsonian Institution, it is enough to hang it on a
strong hook. These conditions being fulfilled, the
rest of the arrangement may be varied according to
the nature of the localities. For the Fortin and
Green barometers, the following seems to be the most
convenient, and may be almost everywhere adopted.
(See Fig. 4
A aon oblong box, (a b,) some inches longer than
the barometer, and a little broader than its cistern, is
firmly set against the wall, (w w’,) near the window,
in such a manner as to open in a direction parallel to
the panes; at the summit (a) it has a strong hook,
(h h',) which extends beyond the box about two or
three inches, and on which the barometer is suspended.
The instrument remains generally in the box, which
922, TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
is closed by a movable cover, and which protects it from exter-
nal injuries, from dust, and from the direct radiation of the warm
bodies, or the currents of air from the window, and diminishes
the effect of the too sudden variations of temperature. When it-
is to be observed, the barometer is taken by the upper end of the
tube, and the suspending ring is made to slide towards the end of the
hook. The instrument is then in the full light of the window, in
front.of which the observer places himself; the summit of the mercu-
rial column, as well as the surface of the mercury in the eistern, are
completely lighted, and the reading becomes easy and certain. More-
over, the slight oscillating movement impressed on the instrument,
by changing its place, breaks the adherence of the mercury to the
glass, and thus prepares a good observation. After the reading, the
barometer is again slipped gently into the box, and this is closed.
Observation.—The different operations of the barometer of constant
level should be made in the following order :
a. Before all, incline the instrument gently, so as to render the
mercurial column very movable; then, after having restored it to
rest, strike several slight blows upon the casing, in such a manner as
to impiess on the mercury gentle vibrations. The adherence of the
mercury to the glass will thus be destroyed, and the column will take
its true equilibrium.
b. Note the degree and the tenths of degrees of the thermometer
attached to the instrument ; for it will be seen that the heat of the
observer’s body soon makes it rise.
c. Bring, by means of the adjusting screw, (Fig. 4,) the surface of
the mercury to its constant level. 1n Green’s first barometers, the
metallic envelope of the cistern is pierced through, (0 0’,) and allows
the surface of the mercury contained in the glass cistern to be seen.
The plane which passes through the upper edge (e e’) of this opening
is the true level, or the zero of the scale, to which the surface of the
mercury must be restored.
For this, take hold, with the left hand, of the lower edge of the
cistern, (J U/,) taking great care not to disturb its vertical position ;
apply the right hand to the adjusting screw, (s,) and turning it
gently, bring by degrees the level surface of the mercury to the upper
edge (e e’) of the opening of the cistern, until there remains between
the two only an almost imperceptible line of ight, as in the Fig. 5,
(e¢.) Then leave the instrument to itself to re-establish its vertical-
ity, if it had been accidentally deranged, and placing the eye exactly
at the height of the mercury, examine whether the contact is exact.
For this operation, it is important to have a good light; the cistern
ought to be placed higher than the lower edge of the window, so that
the light may reach it directly. It is necessary also to take care not
to contound the slight line of light which marks the opposite edge of
the cistern, with the light reflected by the surface of the mercury
against the inner walls ; the former is always sharp and well defined,
the latter vague and indefinite. When, before adjusting the level,
the mercury is higher than the upper edge, it is necessary to begin by
lowering it beneath the level, (see Fig. 4,) so as to leave an interval of
light, which is then gradually shut out, as has been described. When
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 223
s
the observation is to be made in the night, place the lamp before, and
not behind the instrument, and somewhat higher than the eye; and
if the wall itself is not light enough, place behind the cistern, or the
. top of the column, a piece of white paper, which reflects the light.
hy
x
ig. 4. Fig. 5,
peky =.
sf vi
s S
In the barometers with an ivory point, as the Fortin, Newman,
and Green barometers, the extremity of this point is the zero of the
scale, which must be brought into exact contact with the surface of
the mercury. We commonly judge that this takes place when we see
the actual rounded summit of the point coincide exactly with its
image reflected below by the mercury. This method may be very
good when the surface of the mercury is perfectly pure and brilliant;
but this is very rare; it is generally dimmed by a slight layer of
oxide, which makes the coincidence of the point with its image un-
certain. It is safer to judge of the contact in a different manner.
From the moment when the point does more than touch the surface,
it forms around itself, by capillary action, a small depression, which,
breaking the direction of the reflected rays, becomes immediately very
easy to discover. It is enough, then, to raise the mercury so as
slightly to immerse the point, then to lower it gradually until the
little depression disappears. If care is taken to make a good light
fall on that portion of the mercury which is under the point, and to
use the aid of a magnifier, the adjustment of the point thus made, be-
comes not only easy, but very certain, and the errors to which we are
liable are almost insensible, for they do not exceed two or three hun-
dredths of a millimetre, or a thousandth of an inch.
- d. The level being thus adjusted to the zero of the scale, we pro-
ceed to observe the height of the summit of the column, Take hold
224 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF —
of the instrument with the left hand, above the attached thermometer,
without moving it from the vertical; strike several slight blows in
the neighborhood of the top of the column ; then, by means of the screw
lower the slide which carries the vernier, until the plane passing
through the two lower opposite edges of it is exactly tangent to the
summit of the meniscus—that is, the convexity which terminates the
column. We know that this is the case when, placing the eye ex-
actly at the height of the summit of the column, we still see the sum-
mit of the column, without there being any trace of light between .
the summit and the edge of the ring. To convince ourselves that the
barometer has remained quite vertical during its operation, we leave
it to itself, and, when it is at rest, we look again to see whether the
ring has remained tangentical to the summit of the column. If it
has not, the verticality had been disturbed ; it must be adjusted anew.
It is necessary, at the same time, to examine if the adjustment of the
surface of the mercury in the cistern has remained the same. The
attached thermometer will also be read anew, and if it indicates a
temperature noticeably higher than at the commencement of the obser-
vation, a mean value between the two indications must be adopted.
An exact observer can never dispense with these verifications.
e. Nothing more, then, remains than to read the instrument. In
the English barometers the inches and tenths of inches are read ‘di-
rectly on the scale, the hundredths and thousandths on the vermier.
In the French barometers, with the metrical scale, the centimetres
and millimetres are read on the scale, and the fractions of millimetres
on the vernier. We begin by reading on the scale the number of
inches and tenths of an inch, or of millimetres, there are, as far wp as
the line which corresponds to the lower edge of the vernier, and which
marks the summit of the column. In the Green barometers this line
marks at the same time the zero of the vernier. If this line does not
coincide with one of the divisions of the scale, we read the fraction of
the following division on the vernier.
The principle of the vernier is very simple. If we wish to obtain
tenths, we divide into ten parts a space on the vernier comprising
nine parts of the scale, (see Fig. 6;) each division of the vernier is
thus found shorter by a tenth than each division of the scale. Now,
if we start from the point where the zero of the vernier and its tenth
division coincide exactly with the first and the ninth division of the
scale, and if we cause the vernier to move gradually from the ninth to
the tenth division of the scale, we shall see the first, the second, the
third; and the other divisions of the vernier as far as the tenth, coin-
cide successively with one of the divisions of the scale. Now, the di-
visions of the scale to which those of the vernier correspond being
equal parts, it follows that the space in question has been successively
divided into ten parts, or tenths, by these successive coincidences. i
the scale bears millimetres, the vernier will give tenths of millime-
tres; if it has tenths of an inch, the vernier will give hundredths.
By changing the proportions, it may be made to indicate by the ver-
nier smaller fractions, as twentieths of millimetres, or five hundredths
of an inch, &c.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 235
To read the vernier, we must look out for the line that coincides
with one of the divisions of the scale; the number of this division of
- the vernier, proceeding from zero, indicates the number of tenths of
millimetres, or of hundredths of an inch, which must be added to the
whole number given by the scale. If none of the divisions of the scale
coincides exactly, we estimate by the eye, in decimals, the quantity by
which the vernier must be lowered to obtain a coincidence, and this is
added to the fraction already obtained. This will be hundredths of
millimetres in the metrical barometer, and thousaridths of inches in
the English barometers. ;
The following figures will serve as an example; the instrument is
an English barometer.
Fig. 6. Fig. 7. Fig. 8.
In Fig. 6 the regulating line, which is the lower edge of the vernier
ring, coincides exactly with the line of thirty inches on the scale. The
zero and the tenth division of the vernier are also in exact coincidence ;
that is to say, there is no fraction. We shall read then 30.000 inches.
In Fig. 7 the regulating line does not fall upon any of the divisions
of the scale, but between twenty-nine inches and two-tenths and
twenty-nine inches and three-tenths of inches. There is then a frac-
tion which must be read on the vernier. Seeking which of these di-
visions coincides with that of the scale, we find that it is the fifth; we
shall write then 29.250 inches.
In Fig. 8 we see that the height falls between thirty inches and thirty
inches and one-tenth; no line of the vernier also coincides exactly ;
but the line 4 is a little above, the line 5 is a little below one of the
lines of the scale; the fraction falls, then, between seven and eight
hundredths. Estimating in tenths the distance the vernier passes
over between the coincidence of seven and that of eight, we thus ob-
tain the tenths of an hundredth, or the thousandths, In this latter
15
226 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
case, the distance above seven is less than the half; we shall then read
30.073. It will always be easy to judge whether the top approaches
nearer the upper coincidence than the lower coincidence; in the former
case the fraction is greater than .005; in the latter it is smaller than
.005. The error which will be committed in this estimate will re-
main less than .005; with practice and a little skill, it will hardly
ever exceed .002, always supposing the scale is well graduated. For
this reading, as well as for the others, it is particularly important to
have the eye exactly at the height of the line to be determined.
The same process of reading is applied to the metrical scale; the
vernier then gives tenths directly, and by estimate, the hundredths
of millimetres. In the English instruments, the inches must be sepa-
rated by a (.) and three decimals written, even when the last is a zero;
e. g. 30.250, and not 30.25; the zero indicates that the thousandths
have been taken into account, but that there is none. In the metrical
scale put the (.) after the millimetres, and admit two decimals, e. g.
761.25.
During the whole time of the observation of the barometer, the ob-
server must endeavor to protect it as much as possible from the heat
which radiates from his body. But the best way is to learn to observe
rapidly. All the operations of which we have just spoken take longer
to describe than to execute; one or two minutes, if the instrument be
in place, three minutes if it is to be taken from its case and put back
again, are sufficient for a practised observer to make a good observation. ~
Altitude.—The height of the barometer above the ground, or above
some fixed point, which may serve as an invariable point of reference,
ought to be exactly determined. Such a point, for instance, may be
the base of a public edifice, the level of low water of a neighboring
river, the ordinary level of the surface-water of a canal, the upper
part of a wharf in mason-work, &c. If the barometer has changed
place, it is again necessary to measure exactly its height above the
same point of reference; the latter will serve to fix the height of the
barometer and of the station above the level of the ocean ; this datum
being of the greatest importance. Every change of this nature should
be carefully noted in the journal.
It is greatly to be desired that the place of the barometer, once
determined, should not be changed, either from one story to another,
or from one house to another. If circumstances compel this to be
done, we should begin, before taking it from its place, by raising the
mercury in the cistern by means of the screw, so as to fill the cistern
and the tube; it must then be gently taken from the hook, twrned upside
down, and carried with the cistern up, taking great care not to strike
it againstanything. If it were transported without these precautions,
even from one chamber to another, great risk would infallibly be run
of breaking it, or letting in air, and thus rendering it useless.
Verification.—F rom time to time the barometer should be so inclined
as to cause the mercury to strike gently against the top of the tube.
Tf it gives a dry and clear sound, it is free from air, and the instru-
ment is in good condition. If the sound is flat and muffled, there is
a little air in the barometric vacuum; and the fact should be noticed
_ in the journal. Every occasion should be seized to compare it anew
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 20%
with a standard barometer, to ascertain whether it has undergone
any change.
OMBROMETER.
*
Placing.—The ombrometer, or rain-gage, is a funnel, accompanied
by a graduated cylindrical glass vessel, and by a reservoir. It should
be placed in an open space. Trees, high buildings, and other ob-
stacles, if too near, may have a considerable influence in increasing
or diminishing the quantity of rain which falls into the funnel. The
surface of the receiver should be placed horizontally about six inches
above the ground. The most simple mode of establishing it is the
following :
Place in the ground a cask or barrel, (Fig. 9,) water-tight, the top
rising above the ground about three inches; cover it with boards
slightly inclined in the form of a roof, which project on all sides
beyond the edge of the barrel at least a foot. A circular opening in
the middle receives the funnel, the borders of which rest on the board.
At the bottom of the barrel, to receive the water, is an earthen or
metallic vessel, with a narrow neck, (an ordinary earthen jug will
answer,) in which is placed the end of the funnel, exactly filling the
opening. It must contain twoor three quarts. The funnel is fastened
by means of two clasps to the board, which must be covered up with
sod, to make it like the ground itself. If circumstances render it
necessary to place the ombrometer higher, the height must be carefully
fem . FSS
ee aa SO
CO
mame easels!
AQ
noted in the journal. If itis placed upon a sloping roof, it should
be on the top, and not at the edges, or at the angles, and must be
raised several feet above the roof itself.
Observation.—To make the observation, remove the funnel, and
pour the water from the jug into the large graduated glass cylinder.
The opening of the funnel being one hundred square inches, one inch
of rain in depth gives one hundred cubic inches of water; and each
division of the glass containing a cubic inch of water, each of them
represents a hundredth of an inch of rain fallen into the ombrometer.
These degrees are large enough to permit us to estimate the thou-
228 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
; ;
sandths of an inch. The divisions of the smaller graduated glass
cylinder will measure directly the thousandths of an inch, and it may
serve, in case of accident, as a substitute for the larger one. The two
glass vessels may be placed in the barrel itself, if it is of sufficient
size. They must be placed in a reversed position, on two upright
pegs, to let them drip out. As soon as the observation is made, it
should be noted in pencil, not trusted to the memory ; and written in
the journal upon entering the house.
SNOW-GAGE.
Observation.—The snow-gage should be supported vertically, in
an open place, between three short wooden posts, its opening being
about two feet from the ground. It should be employed in the fol-
lowing manner :
When only a very small quantity of snow falls, or of snow alterna-
ting with rain, or of dry and fine snow, driven by the wind, it should
be collected in the snow-gage, as would be done in the ombrometer.
But when the snow falls in a sufficient quantity to cover the ground
more than an inch deep, the vessel must be emptied, and plunged,
mouth downwards, into the snow, until the rim reaches the bottom.
A plate of tinned iron, or a small board, may then be passed between
the ground and the mouth of the gage, and the whole reversed. In
this way a cylinder of snow, of which the base is superficially one
hundred inches, will be cut out, and received into the vessel. The
operation may be facilitated by placing on the ground a platform of
strong board or plank, two or three feet square, on which the snow is
received.
The place selected for this purpose must be one where the snow has
not been heaped up, or swept*away by the wind, and where it pre-
sents, as near as possible, the mean depth of the layer that has fallen.
In order to take only the snow which may fall in the interval between
two observations, the board should be swept after each measurement,
and the place designated by stakes.
Reading.—In the reading of the graduated vessels, the general sur-
face of the liquid must be considered as the true height, and not the
edges, which are always raised along the walls of the vessel by capil-
lary attraction.
The collected snow must be melted by placing the gage, covered
with a board, to prevent evaporation, in a warm room; and the
quantity‘of water produced measured by pouring it into the glass
cylinder. It need hardly be said, that if rain and snow fall the same
day, no account will be taken except of what the snow-gage receives,
unless the ombrometer has been observed separately after the rain,
and the snow-gage after the snow. Care must be taken, in these
cases, not to count twice the same quantity of fallen water.
The rain-water and melted snow-water must be separately entered
in the journal in the columns reserved for each.
During abundant rain-falls, it is well to measure the water more
than once a day, or at least immediately after the rain; and the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 229
quantity of the rain fallen, together with the time it has lasted, is to be
noted separately in the column of remarks. ‘
When it freezes, it will be necessary to protect the receiver by filling
in the interior of the barrel with straw.
[A series of observations have been made at the Smithsonian Insti-
tution with rain-gages of. different sizes and different forms, the
result of which, as far the observations have been carried, is to induce
a preference for the smallest gages. The one which was first dis-
tributed by the Institution and the Patent Office to the observers, is
represented in Fig. 10. It consists of the funnel a, terminated
above by a cylindrical brass
ring, bevelled into a sharp edge
at the top, turned perfectly
round in a lathe, and of pre-
cisely five inches diameter. The
rain which falls within this
ring is conducted into a twa-
quart bottle, 6, placed below to
receive it. To prevent any water
which may run down on the
outside of the funnel from en-
tering the bottle, a short tube
is soldered on the lower part of
the former and encloses the neck
of the latter. The funnel and bottle are placed in a box or small
cask e, e, sunk to the level of the ground, which is covered witha board
d, d, having a circular hole in its centre to receive and support the
funnel. To prevent the rain-drops which may fall on this board from
spattering into the mouth of the funnel, some pieces of old cloth or
carpet, c, c, may be tacked upon it.
The object of placing the receiving ring so near the surface of the
earth, is, to avoid eddies caused by the wind, which might disturb
the uniformity of the fall of rain.
In the morning, or after a shower of rain, the bottle is taken up
and its contents measured in the graduated tube /, and the quantity
in inches and parts recorded in the register. The gage, or tube,
which was first provided for this purpose, will contain, when full,
only one-tenth of an inch of rain, the divisions indicating hundredths
and thousandths of an inch. As this, however, is found to be too
small for convenience, another gage, which will contain an inch of
rain, and indicating tenths and hundredths, will be sent to observers.
Another and simpler form of the gage has since been adopted
by the Institution and the Patent Office, to send by mail to distant ob-
servers. It is one of those which have been experimented on at the
Institution, and is a modification of a gage which we received from
Scotland, and which has been recommended by Mr. Robert Russell.
IQA G
WN
WS
230 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
It consists of—
1. A large brass cylinder a, 8, ¢,
d, two inches in diameter, to catch
the rain.
2. A smaller brass cylinder e, /,
for receiving the water and reducing
s the diameter of the column, to allow
of greater accuracy in measuring the
height.
10 3. A whalebone scale s, s, divi-
72 ded by experiment ,so as to indicate
7 ~~ tenths and hundredths of an inch of
rain,
4, A wooden cylinder w, w, to be
inserted permanently in the ground
for the protection and ready adjust-
ment of the instrument.
To facilitate the transportation,
the larger cylinder is attached to
‘4 the smaller by a screw-joint at e.
Directions for use.—To put up this rain-gage for use: 1. Let the
wooden cylinder be sunk into the ground in a level unsheltered place
until its upper end is even with the surface of the earth. 2. Screw
the larger brass cylinder on the top of the brass tube and place the
latter into the hole in the axis of the wooden cylinder, as shown in
the figure, and the arrangement is completed.
The depth of rain is measured by means of the whalebone scale,
the superficial grease of which should be removed by rubbing it with
a moist cloth before its use.
Should the fall of raia be more than sufficient to fill the smaller
tube, then the excess must be poured out into another vessel, and the
whole measured in the small tube in portions.
Care should be taken to place the rain-gage in a level field or open
space, sufficiently removed from all objects which would prevent the
free access of rain, even when it is falling at the most oblique angle
during a strong wind. A considerable space also around the mouth
of the funnel should be kept free from plants, as weeds or long grass,
and the ground so level as to prevent the formation of eddies or varia-
tions in the velocity of the wind.
To ascertain the amount of water produced from snow, a column of
the depth of the fall of snow, and of the same diameter as the mouth
of the funnel, should be melted, and measured as so much rain.
The simplest method of obtaining a column of snow for this purpose
is to. procure a tin tube, about two feet long, having one end closed,
and precisely of the diameter of the mouth of the gage.
With the open end downward, press this tube perpendicularly into
the snow until it reaches the ground or the top of the ice, or last pre-
ceding snow ; then take a plate of tin, sufficiently large to cover it,
pass it between the mouth of the tube and the ground, and invert the
tube. The snow contained in the tube, when melted, may be mea-,
Uf
YY
hhh
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 231
sured as so much rain. When the snow is adhesive the use of the tin
plate will not be necessary.
From measurements of this kind, repeated in several places when the
depth of the snow is unequal, an average quantity may be obtained.
As a general average, it will be found that about ten inches of snow
will make one of water.] _
WIND-VANE.
Placing.—The wind-vane should be set in a place as free and open
as possible, away from every obstacle, and especially from high build-
ings. It should exceed in elevation, by at least eight or ten feet, the _
neighboring objects. To facilitate observations at night, the follow-
ing arrangement may be adopted :
The wind-vane is composed of a leaf of zinc about three feet in
length, in the form of a butterfly’s wing, exactly counter-balanced by
a leaden ball. It is carried upon a cylindrical axis of pine wood, or
of any other light and strong material, two inches in Ciameter,
which, if possible, passes down through the roof into the observer's
chamber, otherwise along the exterior wall of the building to a win-
dow. The axis terminates by a steel pivot turning freely on a
cast-iron plate. his plate supports a dial divided into degrees, be-
sides indicating the eight principal points of the compass. The axis
carries an index placed in the same plane as the feather of the wind-
vane, which enables us to read upon the dial, as well by night as by
day, the direction of the wind. The whole rests on a strong wooden
shelf, firmly fastened to the window by supports. Above, the rod
is firmly fixed to a strong upright staff, or, better; on the roof, with
strong braces, by means of a piece of wood containing friction rollers,
which allow the shaft to turn freely and without effort. Similar
pieces with friction rollers, placed at different distances along the
wall, keep the axis vertical.
Great care must be taken to secure the perfect verticality of the
shaft, and to this end it is necessary to fix it by a plumb-line in two
different planes cutting each other at right angles. The index at the
foot of the rod should be placed on the same side with the point of the
wind-vane, and in the same plane as the feather. The pivot should
turn very freely in the hole that receives it, and into which a drop of
oil should be poured.
Finally, we must carefully adjust the points of the dial, which is
supported with the iron plate, upon a board fastened upon a shelf by
means of a strong screw. In making this adjustment by means of a
compass, the magnetic variation of the locality must be taken into
account ; each observer should have the line of the true north traced
on his window.
If the dial is exposed to the open air, it must be protected against
the snow and ice, which would impede the play of the pivot and of
the index. A small ring of wood placed around the pole, under one
of the friction rollers, will prevent the wind-vane from being raised,
and the pivot from being displaced during the most violent winds.
232 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
[As a flat vane is always in a neutral line, a more accurate and
sensitive one is made by fastening two plates together at an angle of
about ten degrees, forming a long wedge.
The longer the vane, the shorter the pulsations, and the steadier the
action will be. For a small sized vane, it may be ten or twelve inches
wide, and four feet long. |
Observation.—The observation of this instrument demands some
care. In winds of considerable strength the vane is never at rest, or
fixed in the same direction ; it oscillates incessantly, and its oscilla-
tions increase in amplitude with certain winds, and with the violence
of the wind. We must then note the mean direction between the ex-
tremes. When the wind is very feeble, perhaps it may not have
sufficient force to set the vane in motion ; in this case, as when the
air is calm, great mistakes might be made by registering the direc-
tion marked by the index ; for its position indicates, not the direction of
the existing wind, but that of the last wind that had the power to set
the instrument in motion. When the index is immovable, and there is
no oscillation, we must give up its indications, and refer to the move-
ment of light bodies, as that of the leaves of trees and the smoke of
chimneys, to determine the direction of these feeble currents of air.
During the night the direction of tne wind may be easily aseertained
by raing the hand in the air, with one finger wet. The least motion
in the air increases evaporation, and a sensation of cold is experienced
on the side of the finger turned towards the wind.
The direction of the wind must be noted, following the eigh+ prin-
cipal points of the compass—north, northeast, east, southeast, south,
southwest, west, and northwest. For the additional observations
during storms, the degrees may be indicated, in order to follow more
exactly the rotation of the wind, or at least sixteen points of the com-
pass, viz: N. NNE. NE. ENE. E. SE. ESE. SSH. 8. SSW. SW.
WSW. W.. WNW. NW. NNW.
The lower, or surface wind, often has a different direction from that
which prevails in the upper regions of the atmosphere, and this is
generally the case when the wind turns, and the weather is going to
change, also during storms and great atmospheric movements. The
direction, then, of the lower and the higher layers of clouds must be
separately noted in the several columns of the journal reserved for this
purpose. Ifthe direction is the same in the whole extent of the at-
mosphere, the same letters will be marked in the three columns. If
the absence of clouds does not permit us to judge how the wind is
above, a dash must be substituted for the letter, indicating that the —
observation has been made. A blank always signifies an observation
omitted.
To avoid an error in the estimate of the direction of the clouds, it
will be well to observe their course between two fixed points, as a
window frame, the fixed lines of which will facilitate the observation.
Another very convenient method is to place a small mirror horizon-
tally, with lines traced on it indicating the points of the compass ;
the image of the clouds passing over these will indicate their direc-
tion.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 950
The manner in which the wind turns, or rather the order in which
the winds succeed each other in the course of the day, must be watched
very carefully. It will be seen that they commonly follow in regular
order ; they pass from the east by the south to the west, and from the
west, by the north, to the east. Nevertheless, they sometimes go back
in the opposite direction, particularly during storms. <A little mem-
orandum, summing up ina few words at the end of each day this
course of the wind, together with the hour’s of the wind’s changes,
is very valuable. It may be entered in the column of remarks.
The force of the wind must be estimated as nearly as possible ac-
cording to the following degrees :
0. A perfect calm.
The simple initial letter of the wind, for instance N. (north,) intdi-
cating its direction without any number, means a slight movement of
the air hardly to be called a wind, and only just sufficient to allow an
estimate of its direction.
1. A light breeze which moves the foliage, and sometimes fans the
face.
2. A wind which moves the branches of the trees, somewhat retards
walking, and causes more or less of a slight rustling sound in the
open air.
3. A wind which causes strong boughs and entire trees to rock,
makes walking against it difficult ; which causes a stronger rustling
sound to be heard, and which often blows in gusts, and carries light
bodies up into the air.
4, A storm-wind, during which the trees are in constant motion ;
branches and boughs covered with foliage are broken off, and ina
violent storm sometimes even entire trees are broken, or uprooted ;
leaves, dust, &c., are continually borne up and carried far away ;
during which there is an uninterrupted loud rustling sound, with
strong gusts; walking windward is extremely difficult, and now and
then chimneys, fences, &c., are thrown down, windows broken in, &c.
These degrees correspond nearly to the following numbers of Beau-
fort’s scale, which is generally used among seamen:
1. the same as 1. Light breeze, |
2, “¢ «¢ <& 4, Moderate breeze, | of Beaufort’s
Sear Sx Ariresh pale. f scale.
Menon a.) edie, KASS CORIE- WATT, Yin ;
[The force of the wind is now estimated and registered according to
the direction on the blank forms. |
SKY.
The blue color of the sky has an intimate connexion with the hy-
grometrical state and the electrical tension of the air ; it may be noted
by the expressions, dark, light, and greyish.
Haze and dry mist.—The transparency of the air is often disturbed
by a kind of vapor, which gives a whitish tint to the sky and dims
the rays of the sun. This phenomenon, known in Europe under dif-
ferent names, appears frequently after long droughts ; in this country
it seems to characterize the Indian summer. In Europe, and else-
234 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
where, an intense dry mist, which is, probably, a different phenome-
non, sometimes follows great earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. The
observer will carefully enter phenomena of this kind, and the circum-
stances under which they appear or disappear. If he has an oppor-
tunity, as in a high station, he should endeavor to ascertain if there
is an upper limit, and what is the thickness of the layer of haze or
dry mist. Observations made in the Alps prove that the atmosphere
is often entirely free from it at a height of two thousand feet, when
it is very intense in the plain. Does a thunder-storm or rain always
cause it to disappear? Do the prairie fires have any relation with
kindred phenomena? Does it appear more frequently in certain
seasons than in others ?
.
HYDRO-METEOROLOGICAL PHENOMENA.
DEW.
The dews, especially when they are abundant, and
The white frosts, or frozen dew, particularly the first and last of
the year, and their intensity, must be entered.
FOG. ‘
Fog.—The moment must be noted when it forms and when it dis-
sipates, as falling fog, rising fog ; its density, as dense fog, slight fog.
Mists hanging over forests, moors, meadows, rivers, or the like.
Notice must be carefully taken of the time of their appearance or
disappearance ; these are the most important facts in regard to them,
These fogs must not be confounded with the dry fog, which belongs
to another class of phenomena, which have been spoken of above.
CLOUDS.
For noting these the observer must go out to a place entirely free, |
in case his residence has too confined a horizon.
The cloudiness or the quantity of clouds, after some practice, can be
easily estimated, in accordance with the following scale. Thus, we
understand by—
0. A clear sky, entirely free from clouds ;
10.. The whole sky covered with clouds, or a dense fog, or rain; and
by 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, the different degrees of cloudiness
which lie between these :
1. Denotes, for instance, nine times as much blue sky as clouds ;
5. An equal amount of clouds and blue sky ;
9. Nine times more clouds than blue sky.
If, on account of the locality, it is impossible for the observer to
estimate the quantity of clouds in this way, he can make use of the
following expressions, which will mark at the same time the medium
character of the aspect of the sky during each day:
Wel. Wholly clear; a sky entirely free from clouds.
Cl. Clear; when at least two-thirds of the sky is unclouded.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 935
M. Medium; the clouded part of the sky nearly equal to the blue.
CG. Cloudy; a larger part cloudy than clear.
Ov. Overcast; the clouds rarely broken.
Cov. Covered sky ; without any visible spot of blue.
The form of the clouds will be indicated by the terminology of How-
ard.
According to this, they are distinguished by their external forms
into three kinds: the cirrus, cumulus, and the stratus, to which belong
four transition forms, the cirro-cumulus, the cirro-stratus, the cumulo-
stratus, and the nimbus. The most remarkable of these forms may
be characterized in the following manner :
The cirrus, or cat-tail of the sailors, is composed of loose filaments,
the whole of which sometimes resembles a pencil, sometimes curly
hair, sometimes a fine net, or a spider’s web.
The cumulus, or summer cloud, the cotton-bale of the sailors, often
shows itself under the form of a hemisphere resting on a horizontal
base. Sometimes these half spheres are piled upon one another, form-
ing those large accumulated clouds in the horizon which resemble at
a distance, mountains covered with snow.
The stratus is a horizontal band, which is formed at sunset and
disappears at sunrise.
The cirro-cumulus are those small rounded clouds, which are often
called fleecy ; when the sky is covered with clouds of that kind it is
said to be mottled.
The cirro-stratus is composed of small bands, formed of closer fila-
ments than those of the cirrus, for the rays of the sun often find it
difficult to penetrate them. These clouds form horizontal beds,
which, at the zenith, seem composed of a great number of loose
clouds, while at the horizon a long and very narrow band is seen.
The cumulo-stratus is a mass of heaped up and dense cumuli. At
the horizon they often assume a dark or bluish tint, and pass into the
condition of nimbi, or rain clouds.
The nimbus is distinguished by its uniform grey tint, its fringe and
indistinct edges; the clouds composing it are so blended that it is
impossible to distinguish them.
But besides these principal forms, there are several intermediate,
to which it is difficult to assign a name. They must be referred to
the form which they most resemble.
They may be entered in the journal by means of the following
abbreviations :
Stipe: 2. (C3 Stratus.
Cu. Ms Cumulus.
Cir. ‘ Cirrus.
(Cir ets ues Cirro-stratus.
Cap, stave S$ Cumulo-stratus.
re cws::" 14 Cirro-cumulus.
Nim ts Nimbus.
If several of these forms are visible, the most frequent should be
underlined, and the others should follow the order of their frequency.
The distribution of the clouds in the sky should be noted, whether
236 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
they are dispersed or accumulated in:a special region of the heavens,
in the horizon, at the zenith, &e.
RAIN.
It is necessary to note as accurately as possible the hour at which
the rain begins and ends; if it is a continued rain, or at intervals and
in showers; if it is general or only partial, preceded, followed, or ac-
companied by fogs; the size of the drops and the force of the rain
should be also noted. For these different cases, the following desig-
nations may be adopted:
Rainy, when the fall of some drops and the appearance of the wea-
ther is such as to indicate the approach of .rain.
Continued rain. :
Interrupted rain.
Shower, which lasts not more than a quarter of an hour.
General rain, which prevails over the whole extent of the horizon,
Partial rain, which falls from the clouds that pass over only a small
extent of country.
The force of the rain may be indicated by the following gradations:
Drizzling vain, which falls in very small drops, almost like those of
mist.
Slight or fine rain.
Moderate rain.
Fleavy rain.
Violent rain, heavy and strong pelting rain.
The size of the drops seems to depend chiefly upon the height of the
clouds, and consequently upon the seasons and the circumstances of
the temperature.
The snow.—The period of the first and last snow, the size of the
flakes, their forms.
Sleet, which consists in small balls of snow, white and opaque, com-
monly without a crust of ice, like the opaque nucleus found within
hail-stones, falling more frequently in spring and in autumn.
Frozen rain drops should be distinguished from the preceding forms ;
they make little balls of transparent ice.
Hail.—Indicate the size and form of the hail-stones, the extent and
course of the phenomenon.
THUNDER-STORMS.
The time of beginning and ending of the storm qust be indicated
as exactly as possible; the point of the horizon whence it rises, the
direction of the clouds, of the wind and its variations, and, if pos-
sible, the quantity of rain before and during the storm ; of hail, &c.,
which falls , note if it passes over the place of the observation, or at
a distance ; if it is accompanied, or not, with strong electrical detona-
tions and numerous lightnings. It will be well to ascertain the state
of the meteorological instruments during the storm, especially of the
barometer and the thermometer.
In the journal, the occurrence of a storm will be indicated in the
column of remarks merely by the letters Zh St, with the hour when
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 237
it took place. If special observations have been made with the in-
struments, they wil be entered on the opposite side of the sheet in
the columns reserved for additional observations, taking care to note
the day and the hour. Ifthe observations require a more detailed
description, it may be made on a separate sheet.
TORNADOES AND LAND-SPOUTS.
These whirlwinds, or violent and circumscribed storms, give rise
to very complex phenomena, which are difficult to observe. All the
meteorological circumstances, however, should be minutely noted ;
among others the following:
The course of the barometer, which almost always sinks much and
rapidly ; that of the thermometer, which usually indicates an eleva-
tion of temperature ; the region of the heavens in which the thunder-
storm frequently accompanying them is formed; the form and color
of the clouds ; the direction and intensity of the wind ; the frequency,
the size, and the form of the lightnings; finally, the apparent shape
of the land-spout, its variations, its course, and its effects upon the
trees and upon the ground.*
ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONS DURING STORMS.
Everybody knows the importance of a knowledge of the laws of
those great movements of the atmosphere which embrace almost the
whole extent of the continent. It is only in following them, step by
step ; by observing their different phases at different places, and by
combining the facts obtained, that the meteorologist can be enabled
to discover the laws which preside over these great phenomena. Tor
this, the three regular observations a day are insufficient ; it is then
earnestly recommended to observers, who desire to contribute effectu-
ally to the solution of this great problem, not to content themselves
with the prescribed number, but to add as many more as possible
during the continuance of remarkable storms; noting not only the
_ state of the instruments from hour to hour, if possible, but following
with attention all the meteorological changes. These observations
must be entered on the reverse of the sheet, under the head of addi-
tional observations, which is particularly reserved for this purpose.
The principal points to which attention should be directed are the
following:
The barometer announces by a considerable fall the approach of a
storm. Then it begins to rise during its continuance, and only re-
sumes its nominal equilibrium after its close. Remark especially the
following points:
Re the storm preceded by a noticeable or sudden ri§e previous to
the fall.
Note the state of the barometer, and the time when the fall becomes
more rapid ;
Its state, and the time, when it is lowest and when the rise begins ;
“* For more detailed instructions upon the observations of land-spouts, see the Annuaire
Météorol. de France, 1849, p. 225,
/
238 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
The highest point which it reaches during, or immediately after
the storm.
If alternations of rising and falling take place, the fact should be
mentioned and the time noted.
The thermometer.—The fluctuations of the thermometer in the
same time as those of the barometer should also be noted, and their
connection with the changes of the wind be observed.
The wind.—It is of the greatest importance to observe the course
of the winds through the entire height of the atmosphere during the
whole continuance of the storm, by means of the wind-vane and of
the clouds in the different layers of the atmosphere.
The hour when the wind begins, and the direction whence it comes;
The moment of its greatest violence; .
The instant it changes its direction, and when it takes the direction
it keeps to the end of the storm.
It should be stated if the wind blows in a continuous manner or in
squalls, and what is its force.
If there should be one or more moments of calm, the hour and du-
ration will be indicated.
Great care must be taken at each observation to note also the direc-
tion of the different layers of clouds, which will very often be found
different from that of the wind below, for the whole duration of the
storm.
The clouds.—Are there certain forms of clouds which announce the
approach of a storm? It is necessary, in this connection, to watch
the formation of the cirrus, the cirro-cumulus, cirro-stratus, their ar-
rangement in parallel lines, their course, and their directions. Note
the quarter of the sky first covered with clouds; the moment when it
is entirely covered ; if there are later clear spots or not; the moment
when the sky clears off.
The rain.—Note the hour at which the rain’ or the snow begins
and ends; measure the quantity fallen while the storm lasts.
ACCIDENTAL METEORIC PHENOMENA.
These will be entered in the tables, in the place reserved for this
purpose on the opposite side of the sheet. If the space is not suf
ficient for the description to be given, the phenomenon should be
simply noted, and reference made to a separate account for details,
Thus:
The solar and lunar haloes—that is, the colored circles sometimes
observed round the sun and moon. Distinguish the small ones, the
ring of which measures only a few degrees, from the large or real
haloes, the ring of which has a diameter of about forty-four degrees.
It must be stated whether they are connected with other circles, as is
sometimes the case. Care must be taken not to mistake a part of a —
grand halo for a rainbow. Note whether these appearances are, or
are not, ordinarily followed by rain.
The Parhelia and Paraselenes, (mock-suns and moons. )—Describe
exactly their forms and the state of the heavens at the moment of
their appearance.
Ai
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 239
Rainbows, simple or double.
An extraordinary redness of the sky, either in the morning or eve-
ning ; the particular color of the sun and of the moon at their rising,
especially in fair days.
Heat lightnings without thunder, and sometimes without clouds ;
indicate their direction and the aspect of the clouds in their neigh-
borhood.
The Aurora Borealis, or northern light, for the observation of which
the special instructions published by the Smithsonian Institution must
be followed.
Shooting-stars.—The observer must be particularly attentive to
their frequency, during the periods near the 10th and 11th of August,
and the 10th and 15th November, in which it is supposed that they
are more numerous than at any other time. He will designate the
quarter of the heavens from which they seem to issue, and their di-
rection.
Fireballs.—Describe their aspect, their size, their course in the
heavens, and note the exact hour of their appearance.
All the other luminous phenomena, which present any extraordi-
nary appearance, should be noted down.
These descriptions should be made in simple and well-defined terms.
The observer will take great care to enter scrupulously what he sees,
without drawing any conclusion, or attempting any explanation of
the phenomenon. He ought to reflect that, in order to make a good
observation, he must keep his mind in a state of perfect disinterested-
ness in respect of any preconceived theory, and to consider the phe-
nomenon before him as being one of the data for the foundation of
the science, and that the knowledge of the truth will depend upon
the fidelity of his observation.
TIME OF OBSERVATIONS.
The time of observations will be the mean time at each station,
The observations will be made three times daily, viz:
At, 6 o'clock, a.m.
2 886 S) pei.
LOH, CSE / spe iy.
The mean of these three hours will be very nearly the true mean,
as it would be obtained by observation made every hour of the day
and night. They are at intervals of eight hours from each other, and
are the least inconvenient possible for the daily occupations of life ;
they must be preferred to any other series of three equidistant hours.
[For convenience of observation the hours which have been adopted
by the Institution are 7, 2, and 9.|
The ombrometer will be observed only once a day, unless very abun-
dant rains should make a second measurement necessary. The best
time will be 2 o’clock p. m., the observation being made daily; if
another hour is selected, it should, when once fixed, remain the same.
The maxima and minima thermometers will be read once a day,
always at the same hour. The most suitable hour will be 10 o’clock
in the evening.
240 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
If an observer desires to examine the daily oscillations of the barom-
eter he will also observe at 10 a. m. and 4 p. m., which give the
daily maximum and minimum. I¢ will be well to note also, at the
same time, the state of the hygrometer.
If he desires to complete the data upon the diurnal course of the
temperature, he will add observations of the thermometer at 10a. m.,
and 6 p.m. In all cases it is desirable that, if an observer has leis-
ure to increase the number of the hours of observations, he should
fix them at equal intervals between the principal hours indicated
above.
Besides these observations at regular hours, additional observations
ought to be made during remarkable storms, as has been remarked
above.
It is very important that the observations should be made at the
exact hour, fixed by a well regulated watch. All the instruments
should be read rapidly, so that the observations may be as simulta-
neous as possible.
The order in which they are to be observed will be as follows:
A few minutes before the hour, observe the thermometer before
opening the window ; then wet the psychrometer. While it is taking
the temperature of evaporation, note the height of the barometer, ob-
serve the Mrind, the course of the clouds, their quantity, the aspect of
the sky, &c.; then read the temperature of the psychrometer.
The observations must be recorded for each instrument at the mo-
ment when they are made, without trusting anything to the memory.
A strict rule should be laid down for one’s self, to note exactly the
indications of the instruments, without subjecting them mentally to
any corrections or any reductions ; these should not be applied until
all the elements are at hand.
If the observer has been unavoidably hindered from making the
observations at the exact hour, he will note in the column of hours
the number of minutes of the delay. If he is obliged to procure a
substitute, he must choose one accustomed to this kind of observation ;_
but before entering his records, he will carefully examine them. To
distinguish the observations made by his substitute, he will enter
4
them in red ink. : a
ation .
As itis of the greatest importance that the series of observ
should not be interrupted, and that there should be no omissions,
each observer will do well to instruct beforehand one or more substi-
tutes, who may be able upon occasion to take his place. If, in spite |
of these precautions, the observation has necessarily been omitted, a a
place will be left blank in the journal. In this case the observer mu
never fill up these blanks with calculations, according to his judg-
ment; he should consider the conscientious observance of this rule
indispensable to truth and good faith. He should remember, besides,
that if he acts differently, he not only lessens the value of these re-
sults, but brings into doubt and disfavor the fidelity of his other ob-
servations, and takes from them what constitutes their Srapiest value
for science—conjicence.
ith
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. Fa
THE REGISTER,
In the register the first page is devoted to regular observations; the
second to additional observations, to periodical or extraordinary phe-
nomena, and to monthly recapitulations. The headings of the columns
indicate clearly the use of each.
For each instrument the columns follow each other in the order in
which the observations are to be made, and one column is reserved to
enter the observation just as it is made, and before any correction or re-
duction. As each sheet is to be regarded as an independent docu-
ment, it should carry with it all that is necessary to correct the obser-
vations therein contained, and to render them authentic. Thus, the
date of the year, the month, the precise locality, the latitude and
longitude, the elevation of the instruments from the ground and above
the sea, the nature and condition of the instruments which have been
employed, and the amount of their corrections; finally, the signature
of the observer, should be repeated on every leaf. It will be sufficient,
for this, to fill the blank spaces left after the different printed titles
in the blank forms. The observer should the less neglect this im-
portant duty, as itis an affair of only a few strokes of the pen each
month, without which his labor would run the hazard of losing its
value.
Thermometer.—In the thermometrical observations the quantities
above zero will be always written without a sign; the negative
quantities will be all individually marked with the sign minus, (—,)
whether they follow each other or are isolated. In the first column,
entitled daily mean, will be inscribed the mean of the three observa-
tions of the day, 7. e. their sum divided by 3, admitting two decimals.
In the second column of the daily mean will be inscribed the mean of
the maximum and the minimum, given by the thermometrograph,
or self-registering thermometers.
_Barometer.—The degree of the attached thermometer and the ob-
served height of the barometer will be inscribed in the first two col-
ums. This height will be reduced to freezing-point, or 32° Fahrenheit,
whe ero Centigrade, by means of the annexed tables, and the whole
correction of the instrument, indicated on the back of the sheet, will
be applied to it. It will then be inscribed in the third column, en-
titled corrected height at freezing-point. These corrected heights, and
_ mever any others, must be employed to form the mean, which will be
* inscribed in the fourth column.
. ior orsctaeak the first two columns will be entered the indica-
tions of the dry and wet thermometer, after having applied to each
of them the correction of the instruments, if there be any ; and in
the third column the difference of the two numbers. By means of
he psyebro metrical tables will be found the force of the vapor and the
degree of relative moisture, each of which has its column, as well as
the daily 1 sof each of these elements.
at have indicated above the manner of noting the direction of the
winds.
sto the force of the surface wind, which alone can be estimated
16: %
5.»
242 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
with some degree of precision, it will be expressed by adding to the
letter which designates the direction, the figure indicating its force:
e.g., N, without a figure, signifies a slight air, hardly perceptible,
coming from the north ; N,,a slight breeze; N,, a strong wind, &e.
The other two columns will have only letters, ora dash (—) if the
observation has not been possible.
The quantity of clouds, or the cloudiness estimated from zero, or a
perfectly clear sky, to 10, sky entirely overcast, has a separate column.
It is the same with rain and melted snow, which will be separately
entered. A third column is reserved for the total quantity of both.
The thickness of the layer of fallen snow may be indicated im inches
and tenths.
As to the broad column reserved for the aspect of the sky, and re-
marks, although it is desirable, considering the small space the form
of the table allows, to employ abbreviations to express the state of the
sky and the different meteorological phenomena; nevertheless, we
must limit ourselves to a small number, chosen from among the ex-
pressions which most frequently occur, such as those found at the
bottom of the blank forms. If abbreviations are too much multiplied,
we lose in clearness and certainty what we gain in conciseness. A
meteorological journal should not resemble a page of algebra, where
a badly formed letter or a misplaced sign renders the expression unin-
telligible.
For the additional observations the same rule should be followed.
In the space reserved for periodical and extraordinary phenomena,
the phenomena will be inscribed with their dates and the hour of their
appearance,
Every change of position, or in the condition of the instruments,
should be carefully entered under the head of Condition of the instru-
ments, with the precise date at which it took place. If there has been
none, instruments all in order will beentered. By thesideof theindication
of the correction of the instruments will be placed, correction applied
or correction not applied, according as the observations contained in the
sheet shall have been corrected or not. The finished sheet will be
signed by the observer.
The reductions, the corrections, and the calculations of means, must
be made day by day and at the end of each month with the ereatest
punctuality. The necessary tables will be placed at hand by the side
of the journal, and each observation reduced, and the correction, if
any, applied immediately.
This is not only the least troublesome method, but the only one
which permits the observer to control the observations and the reduc-
tions, and to discover the accidental errors of the pen and of the read-
ing in the record.
The observer cannot be too thoroughly convinced that a meteor-
ological journal which contains only rough observations, is only half —
made; in this condition it is wholly unfit to serve any scientific pur-
pose. The observations cannot be compared rigorously with each
other, nor with those of other stations. The only means for the ob-
server to give its true value to his labor, is to make the corrections,
the reductions, and the calculations of the means himself. Itis for
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 245
want of having thus been elaborated that voluminous collections of
observations, the fruits of long years of toil, remain useless and for-
gotten in the dust of libraries, because the meteorologist finds it im-
possible to make use of them without first undertaking those calcula-
tions, the amount of which absolutely transcends the powers of an
individual, and would discourage the most ardent zeal, while they
would have cost the observer only an instant each day, if he had made
them at the time of the observations.
The calculations desirabie are as follows: .
1. Each barometrical cbservation must be reduced immediately to
the temperature of zero Centigrade, or 32° Fahrenheit, by means of
the tables, and the total correction of the barometer, if there is any,
will be applied.
2. The diurnal means of the several instruments, resuiting from the
sum of the three observations made at these different hours, divided
by three, must be entered each day in the respective columns, after
the observation of 10 p.m.,[9 p.m.] It is needless to say that these
means should be drawn solely from observations reduced and corrected.
3. The monthly means for each hour separately—that is, the monthly
mean of the observations of 6a. m., [7 a.m.,| and that of 2 p. m., and
of the observations ef 10 p. m., [9 p. m.]
4, The monthly means drawn from the means of each day; the
monthly extremes of the instruments; the monthly amount of the
rain, hail, or snow; the mean cloudiness of the sky; the prevailing
wind, &c.
5. The annual means and amounts, and the respective extremes for
the civil year.
It will be interesting to calculate also, if the observer is so disposed,
the mean of the seasons of the meteorological year, which begins De-
cember 1, to November 30, of the following civil year:
The meteorological seasons are, then:
Winter—December, January, February.
Spring—March, April, May.
Summer—June, July, August.
Autumn—September, October, November.
In calculating all these different results, we should take, in order
to be very exact, the means of the sums of all the observations during
the pericd of time in question, by reason of the inequality of the
length of the months.
The sums which form the basis of all these means should be in-
scribed in the tables in the place reserved for them.
The preceding calculations, after a little practice, will not appear
difficult, and may be quickly performed; but it can hardly be too
often urged upon the observer to make them without delay; other-
wise, this task, which is slight if accomplished daily, would become
very heavy, if left to accumulate for several months. It is only by
making the correction himself that the observer can institute his own
comparisons, and really study the course of the meteorological phe-
nomena. His interest will increase still more with the feeling that
he is codperating in a great work, which concerns at once his whole
td
944 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
country and the science of the world, and the success of which depends
upon the accuracy, fidelity, and devotion of all who take part in it.
A copy of the observations of each month must be forwarded for
publication during the first week of the following month. It should
be carefully collated by two persons, one of whom reads the figures
aloud. Each observer will receive for this purpose a double series of
blank forms, one of which will be retained by him.
Many of the phenomena connected with the state of the atmosphere
are of great interest for comparative climatology, especially in a prac-
tical point of view. The periodical phenomena of vegetation and of
the animal kingdom, such as the epoch of the appearance and the fall
of the leaves, of the flowering and ripening of the more generally cul-
tivated fruits; the seed time and harvest of plants; the coming and
going of migratory birds ; the first cry of the frogs, the appearance of
the first insects, &c.; the moment of the closing of rivers, lakes, and
canals by ice, and of their opening; the temperature of springs at
different periods of the year ; the temperature in the sun compared to
that observed in the shade; that of the surface, and that below the
surface of the ground. All observations of this kind are valuable.
The observer will find it very instructive to project curves which
indicate the diurnal monthly or annual variations of temperatures, of
atmospheric pressure, of moisture, &c., as well as thermometrical,
barometrical compasses, or circles, &c.
These graphic representations are of the greatest utility for the
comparisons, speaking to the eye more clearly than simple figures.
Besides the above directions for keeping an ordinary Meteorological
Journal, more special instructions for the study of peculiar meteoro-
logical phenomena are prepared by the Smithsonian Institution ;
as on
Thunder-storms, Tornadoes, and Water-spouts, Aurora Borealis,
Parhelia, Parasalenes, Haloes, Rainbows, Temperature of the soil,
Periodical phenomena of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, Graphic
representations of meteorological phenomena, &c. If any observer
should feel inclined to devote himself to the study of any one of these
physical problems, he may receive, on application, the special instruc-
tions relating to the point which he wishes to investigate,
[The directions given in the preceding article are not intended to
supersede those printed on the sheet of blank forms issued jointly by
this Institution and the Patent Office, but to impart additional
instruction, particularly to those who are furnished with a full set of
instruments and desire to attain as much precision as possible. |
METEOROLOGY.
CIRCULAR RELATIVE TO EARTHQUAKES.
Sin: The Smithsonian Institution is desirous of collecting informa-
tion in reference to all phenomena having a bearing on the physical
geography of this continent ; and, in behalf of the Board of Regents,
it is respectfully requested that you will furnish us with any informa-
tion which you may possess, or be able to obtain, in regard to the
earthquake which lately occurred in your neighborhood.
Tt will be interesting to determine the geographical limits of the
disturbance, and to ascertain whether it was confined to any particular
geological formation. If the direction of the shock was observed at
a few places, the centre of commotion could be determined ; and if
the time were accurately known at different points, the velocity of the
earth-wave could be calculated. Hence, an answer is requested to the
following questions, viz:
1. Was the agitation felt by yourself, or by any other person in
your vicinity ?
2. What was the approximate time of the occurrence ?
3. What was the number, and duration, of the shocks ?
4. What was the direction of the motion ?
5. What was the character of the disturbance? was it vertical, hori-
zontal, or oblique? was it an actual oscillation? an upheaval and
depression, or a mere tremor ?
6. Was there any noise heard? and if so, what was its character ?
7. Was the place of observation on soft ground, or on a hard founda-
tion near the underlying rocks of the district ?
8. Were any facts observed having apparently an immediate or
remote bearing on this phenomenon?
9. What was the intensity of the force in reference to producing
motion in bodies and eracks in walls?
Notr.—Please reply to the first question, if to no other—for an
answer to it is necessary, in order to determine the limits of the com-
motion.
The direction of the impulse may have been ascertained by ob-
serving the direction in which molasses, or any viscid liquid, was
thrown up against the side of a bowl. The remains of the.liquid on
the side of a vessel would indicate the direction some time after the
shock occurred,
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
JOSEPH HENRY,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
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METEOROLOGY.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR OBSERVATIONS OF THE AURORA.*
GENERAL REMARKS.
Though the aurora borealis has received attention during a consid-
erable portion of the last two centuries, definite information is still
wanting on several points-which may serve as the basis of a sound
induction as to its cause. These relate particularly to the actual fre-
quency of the appearance of the meteor ; its comparative frequency
in the different months of the year and different hours of the day ;
the connexion of the appearance of the meteor with other atmospher-
ical phenomena ; the elevation and extent of visibility of the arch ;
and whether the same or different phases are presented to individuals
at different stations at the same moment of time ; finally, the precise
influence of the arches, streams, &c., on the magnetic condition of
the earth ; and whether any unusual electrical effects can be observed
during the appearance of the meteor.
Auroral phenomena may be divided into the following classes :
1. A faint light in the north, without definite form or boundary.
2. A diffused light, defined by an arch below.
3. Floating patches of luminous haze—sometimes striated.
4, One or more arches, resembling the rainbow, of uniform white
color, retaining the same apparent position for a considerable time,
and varying in luminosity. :
5. A dark segment, appearing under the arch.
6. Beams, rays, streamers, waves, transverse and serpentine bands,
interrupted or checkered arches, frequently tinged with color, and
showing rapid changes in form, place, and color.
7. Auroral corona, or a union of beams south of the zenith.
8. Dark clouds accompanying the diffuse light.
9. Sudden appearance of haze over the whole face of the sky.
The following may serve as a scale of brightness :
1. Faint. 2. Moderate. 3. Bright. 4. Very bright.
GENERAL DIRECTIONS.
1. Make a regular practice of looking for auroras every clear eve-
ning, from 8 to 10 o’clock, or later. Record the result, whether there
be an aurora or not.
Se ee ee SSS
* These instructions are principally adopted from those used in the Observatory at
Toronto, Canada.
248 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
2. Note the time of observation, and compare the watch used with
a good clock, as soon after as is convenient.
3. Make a return of the latitude and longitude of the station.
4, Note the class to which the auroral phenomenon belongs.
5. Ifit be an arch, note the time when the convex side reaches any
remarkable stars, when it passes the zenith, disappears, &c.
6. If the arch be stationary for a time, mark its position among the
stars on the accompanying map, so that its altitude may be determined.
7. If it be a streamer or beam, mark its position on the map, and
the time of its beginning and ending.
8. If motion be observed in the beams, note the direction, whether
vertically or horizontally, to the east or west.
9. Note the time of the formation of a corona, and its position
among the stars.
10. Note the time of the appearance of any black clouds in the
north near the aurora; also, if the sky be suddenly overcast with a
mist at any time during the auroral display.
11. Give the direction and force of the wind at the time.
12. Note if any electrical effects are observed.
13. Note the effect upon a delicately suspended magnetic needle.
USE OF THE MAP.*
1. To define the place and the extent of the aurora, the observer
should familiarize himself with the relative position of the stars in the
northern sky, by frequent inspection of the accompanying map, or a
celestial globe.
2. Let the observer place the map before him, with the constella-
tions in the positions in which they actually appear at the time of the
observation. This may be done by holding up a plumb-line between
the eye and the pole star, noticing the stars which it cuts; then a
light pencil drawn through these stars and the pole on the map will
be the centre of the heavens, or place of the meridian at the moment.
3. Mark carefully the place among the stars of the arch of the au-
rora, and show its width by parallel curved lines. Make a note of
the time.
4, Draw a light curved line, following, as nearly as can be judged,
the outline of the arch down to the horizon, on each side.
5. If the arch changes its position, mark its new places at intervals,
noting the time of each observation.
6. Letter each position A, B, C, &c., and note the time and other
particulars on the back or margin of the map, or in the register.
7. Beams or corruscations, or streamers of white or colored light,
may be marked by lines at right angles to the above, with arrow
heads pointing towards the place among the stars to which they tend,
or where they would meet, if prolonged.
8. To aid in the estimation of angular distances the spaces between
certain conspicuous stars have been marked on the map, which will
furnish a scale to assist the eye, when actual measurement may be
impracticable.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 249
tion of the heavens included on the map, may be marked by a line,
the length of which will show the path of the meteor; the course
should be indicated by an arrow, and the time recorded.
MAGNETIC APPARATUS.
Few observers will probably be furnished with a regular set of
magnetical instruments. A temporary apparatus may, however, be
fitted up at comparatively little expense and trouble. For this pur-
pose a steel plate, such as was used a few years since for ladies’ busks,
may be magnetized and suspended edgewise in the vertical plane, by
a few fibres of untwisted silk, in a box to prevent agitation by the air,
furnished with a glass window on one side, through which observa-
tions may be made. ‘To render the motions perceptible, a small
mirror should be cemented on the side of the magnet opposite the
window. In front of this mirror, and at the distance of ten or fifteen
feet, an ordinary spy-glass is fastened to a block, and under the glass,
to the same block, a graduated scale, with arbitrary divisions marked
upon it, is attached. The arrangement is such that the divisions of
the scale may be seen through the telescope, reflected from the mirror,
and consequently the slightest motion of the needle, and of the mirror
cemented to it, gives a highly magnified apparent motion to the scale.
The mirror may be formed of a flat piece of steel, highly polished by
means of calcined magnesia; or, in default of a mirror of this kind, a
piece of plate looking-glass may be employed, provided one can be
procured sufficiently true. ‘The suspension threads should be tive or
six feet long. The instrument should not be placed very near large
masses of iron, and care should be taken not to change the position of
any articles of iron which are within the distance of fifteen or twenty
feet, otherwise a change in the position of the needle will be produced,
For a similar reason the box should be constructed without iron nails.
The above described instrument will indicate changes in the direction
of the magnetic meridian. A similar instrument, deflected at right
angles to the magnetic meridian by the torsion of two suspended
threads, will furnish an apparatus for indicating changes of hori-
zontal magnetic force.
ELECTRICAL APPARATUS.
To ascertain whether any change takes place in the electrical state
of the atmosphere during the appearance of an aurora, the end of a
long insulated wire, suspended from two high masts or two chimneys
by means of silk threads, may be placed in connexion with a delicate
gold leaf electrometer. Any change in the electrical state of the at-
mosphere, simultaneous with the aurora, will be indicated by the
divergence of the leaves. Two slips of gold-leaf attached by a little
paste to the lower end of a thick wire, passing through a cork in a
four-ounce vial, will answer for this purpose. The arrangement of
the leaves will be best made by a bookbinder, who is expert in the
management of gold-leaf.
The map when filled, together with any written observations, may
be returned to the Smithsonian Institution, endorsed Meteorology.
250 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
[A continuous series of photographic registers of the motion of the
magnetic needle is now kept up at the joint expense of the Coast Sur-
vey and this Institution, which will serve for comparison with any
observations which may bs made on the aurora. |
Prof, Olmsted, in a recent paper published by the Smithsonian In-
stitution, classifies different auroras as follows:
‘¢ Chass I. This is characterized by the presence of at least three out
of four of the most magnificent varieties of form, namely, arches,
streamers, corona, and waves. ‘The distinct formation of the corona
is the most important characteristic of this class ; yet, were the corona
distinctly formed, without auroral arches or waves, or crimson vapor,
it could not be considered as an aurora of the first class.
‘< Grass II. The combination of é2vo or more of the leading charac-
teristics of the first class, but wanting in others, would serve to mark
class the second. Thus the exhibition of arches and streamers, both
of superior brilliancy, with a corona, while the waves and crimson
columns were wanting, or of streamers with a corona, or of arches
with a corona, without streamers or columns, (if such a case ever oc-
curs,) we should designate as an aurora of the second class.
‘¢ Quass III. The presence of only one of the more rare character-
istics, either streamers or an arch, or irregular coruscations, but with-
out the formation of a corona, and with but a moderate degree of
intensity, would denote an aurora of the third class.
‘¢ Grass LV. In this class we place the most ordinary forms of the
aurora, as a mere northern twilight, or a few streamers, with none of
the characteristics that mark the grander exhibitions of the phenom-
enon,”’
The same author remarks :
‘¢On the evening of the 27th of August, 1827, after a long ab-
sence of any striking exhibition of the aurora borealis, there com-
menced a series of these meteors which increased in frequency and
magnificence for the ten following years, arrived at a maximum
during the years 1835, 1836, and 1837, and, after that period, regu-
larly declined in number and intensity until November, 1848, when
the series appeared to come toa close. The recurrence, however, of
three very remarkable exhibitions of the meteor in September, 1851,
and of another of the first class as late as February 19th, 1852, indi-
cates that the close was not so abrupt as was at first supposed ; but
still there was a very marked decline in the number of great auroras
after 1848, and there has been scarcely one of the higher class since
1853.
‘*A review of the history of the foregoing series of auroras appears
to warrant the conclusion that it constituted a definite period, which
I have ventured to call the ‘‘Secular Period,’’ having a duration of
little more than twenty years; increasing in intensity pretty regular-
ly for the first ten years, arriving at its maximum about the middle
of this period, and as regularly declining during the latter half of the
same period.,’’
If this view be correct, it would appear that but few brilliant dis-
plays of the aurora may be expected for a number of years to come.
METEOROLOGY.
_—_—_——
GREEN’S STANDARD BAROMETER.
The following is an account of Green’s improved standard barometer,
adopted by the Smithsonian Institution, for observers of the first class.
The barometer consists of a brass tube, (Fig. 1) terminating at
top ina ring A, for suspension, and at bottom in a flange B, to which
the several parts forming the cistern are attached.
The upper part of this tube is cut through so as to expose the glass
COTO)
an |
2 Sivuuuuwa
as
— se e
TRARGIAOOATT NHN HAAG en
SST | = ————__— Po
a
tube and mercurial column within, seen
in Fig. 5. Attached at one side of this
opening is a scale, graduated in inches
and parts; and inside this slides a short
tube c, connected to a rack-work ar-
rangement, moved by a milled head D:
this sliding-tube carries a vernier in
contact with the scale, which reads off
to =4y (.002) of an inch.
In the middle of the brass tube is
fixed the thermometer EH, the bulb of
which being externally covered, but in-
wardly open, and nearly in contact with
the glass tube, indicates the tempera-
ture of the mercury in the barometer
tube, not that of the external air. This
central position of the thermometer is
selected that the mean temperature of
the whole column may be obtained; a
matter of importance, as the tempera-
ture of the barometric column must be
taken into account in every scientific
application of its observed height.
The cistern (Fig. 2) is made up of a
glass cylinder F, which allows the sur-
face of the mercury ¢ to be seen, a top-
plate G, through the neck of which the
barometer-tube ¢ passes, and to which
it is fastened by a piece of kid leather,
making a strong but flexible joint. To
this plate, also, is attached a small
ivory point h, the extremity of which
marks the commencement or zero of the
scale above. The lower part, contain-
ing the mercury, in which the end of the
barometer-tube ¢ is plunged, is formed of two parts 77, held together
by four screws and two divided rings 7 m, in the manner shown in the
bre
REPORT OF
TENTH ANNUAL
252
coy TL,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 253
figures 2,3,and4. ‘To the lower piece
j is fastened the flexible bag n, made of
kid leather, furnished in the middle
with a socket &, which rests on the end
of the adjusting-screw O. These parts,
with the glass cylinder I’, are clamped
to the flange B by means of four long
screws P and the ring R; on the ring
R screws the cap s, which covers the
lower parts of the cistern, and supports
atthe end the adjusting-screw O. G,
i,j and k, are of box-wood; the other
parts of brass or German silver. The
screw O serves to adjust the mercury
to the ivory point, and also, by raising
the bag, so as to completely fill the
cistern and tube with mercury, to put the instrument in condition for
transportation. ‘
In Fortin’s barometer, and also Delcro’s modification of it, a cement
is used to secure the mercury against leakage at the joints. This,
sooner or later, is sure to give way ; and tested under the extremes of
the thermometrical and hygrometrical range of this climate especially,
has made this defect more evident. This was removed by the substi-
tution of iron in the place of wood; but it was soon found impractica-
ble, in this form of cistern, to prevent damage from rust. These ob-
jections led to the present plan of construction, which effectually
secures the joints without’ the use of any cement. The surfaces con-
cerned are all made of a true figure, and simply clamped together by
the screws, a very thin leather washer being interposed at the joints.
This would not be permanent, however, but for the especial care taken
in preparing the box-wood. The box-wood rings are all made from
the centres of the wood and concentric with its growth. They are
worked thin and then toughened, as well as made impervious to
moisture, by complete saturation with shellac. This is effected by
immersing them in a suitable solution in vacuo. The air being with-
drawn from the pores of the wood, is replaced by the lac. This,
however, with the after-drying or baking, requires care; but when
properly done, the wood is rendered all but unchangeable.
Another peculiarity consists in making the scale adjustable to cor-
rect for capillarity, so that the barometer may read exactly
with the adopted standard, without the application of any
correction ; and this, too, without destroying the charac-
ter of the barometer as an original and standard instru-
ment. Near the 30 inches line, figure 6, is a line v, on the
main tube; this last line is distant exactly thirty inches
from the tip of the ivory point ; therefore, when these lines
coincide, or make one line, the scale is in true measurement
position ; er the 30 mark is exactly thirty inches from the
tip of the ivory point in the cistern. In this position, the
amount of correction due to capillarity being ascertained,
the scale is then moved that quantity and clamped firm.
The barometer will now give the readings corrected for ca-
254 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
pillarity, and thus avoid at once the labor of applying a correction
and the risk of error from an accidental neglect of it.
It must be borne in mind that this correction applies only to the
particular tube, and while preserved in good condition.
If this tube is injured and again used, or another tube put in its
place, the scale should then be moved until the lines coincide, the
amount of correction for the repaired or the new tube being estimated
until a good comparison can be made directly or intermediately with
the Smithsonian standard.
The connecting the parts 7 and 7 by rings and screws, Figs. 2, 3,
and 4, rather than by a single screw cut on the edge, is an improve-
ment, as the single wood-screw is apt, after a time, to adhere so firmly
that it is often difficult, and sometimes impossible with safety to the
parts, to separate it.
It is not advisable to disturb the cistern unless it becomes difficult,
from the oxide of mercury which gradually forms, to make the ad-
justment of the mercury to the ivory point, as there is more or less
risk in doing so. Any one accustomed to such mechanical affairs,
with due attention to the plan, can, however, take out the mercury
from the cistern, refilter, clear the parts of adhering oxide, and re-
place them ; the instrument all the time being kept vertical, with the
cistern at top, as the mercury must not be allowed to come from the
tube.
To insure a good vacuum by the complete expulsion of all air and
moisture, the boiling of the mercury in the tube is done in vacuo ;
and care should be taken to preserve it in good condition.
To put up the barometer for observation, suspend the barometer by
the ring A in a good light, near to and at the left side of a window,
and, when practicable, in a room not liable to sudden variations of
temperature. Record the temperature, and then, by the screw O,
lower the mercury in the cistern until the surface is in the same plane
with the extremity of the ivory point. As this extremity of the point
is the zero of the scale, it is necessary, at each observation, to perfect
this adjustment. It is perfect when the mercury just makes visible
contact. If the surface is lowered a little, it is below the point;
and if raised a small amount, a distinct depression is seen around the
point. This depression is reduced to the least visible degree. A few
trials will show that this adjustment can always be made to a thou-
sandth of an inch,
The adjustment effected, bring the lower edge of the vernier C, Fig.
5, by means of the milled head D, into the same plane with the con-
vex summit of the mercury in the tube. Looking through the open-
ing, with the eye ona level with the top of the mercury in the tube,
when the vernier tube is too low, the light is cut off; when too high,
the light is seen above the top of the mercury. It is right when the
light is just cut off from the summit, the edge making a tangent to
the curve. A piece of white paper placed behind, and also at the
cistern, will be found to give a more agreeable light by day, and is,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 255
besides, necessary for night observations; the lamp being placed before
the instrument and above the eye, to reflect the light.
Fig % Fig. 5e
i
Seri =
a a a
ini ‘inca
== ——
= ae
== ==
| eed
Ei fant
. |} 29,000
i—_1 30,000 aa |
29,306
The method of reading off will perhaps be best explained by a few
examples. Suppose, after completing the adjustments, the scale and
vernier to be in the position shown in Fig. 4, on this page, it will
be seen that the lowest or index line of the vernier coincides exactly
with the line marked 30 on the scale. The reading, therefore, is
30.000 inches.
If, as in Fig. 5, we find the line of the vernier coinciding with the
third line of the tenths above 29, we read 29.300.
256 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
If, as in Fig. 6. on this page, we find the index at 29 inches 3 tenths
and 5 hundredths, 29.350.
If, asin Fig. 7, we find the index at 30 inches no tenths 5 hun-
dredths and something more, this additional quantity we shall find
30,070
by looking up the vernier scale until we come to some one line on it
coinciding with a line on the other scale. In this instance it is the
line marked 2, and indicates 2 hundredths, to*be added to the other
numbers, making 30.070.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 257
If, as in Fig. 8, we find 29 inches no tenths 5 hundredths, and on
the vernier the second line above that marked 2, is found to coincide
with the scale, each of these short lines indicates 2 thousandths—con-
sequently are so counted; the reading is therefore 29.074.
Fig. 8. Hig. De
ison
aa
Sere,
ats]
ere |
med
oF
any 30
a ae a
rae im 30,000
ee 100
as 30
1
29,074 7 30,131
Or it may be, asin Fig. 9, where we have 30 inches f tenth, and
the line on the vernier mark 8 coinciding nearly, but not perfectly,
with a line on the scale, it*is a little too high ; the 2 thousandth short
line next above is, however, a like quantity too low; so the true
reading must be the number between them—that is, 1 thousandth,
making together 30.131.
These examples include all the combinations the scale allows. A
little practice with the barometer with reference to the examples will
soon enable the learner to read off the scale with facility. At first it
will be best to write down the inches and parts in full, as in the dia-
grams, not trusting the memory with the whole until experience shall
have given confidence.
Be careful never to lower the mercury in the cistern much below
the necessary quantity, as it increases the risk of air entering the
tube.
When the barometer is to be removed for transportation or change
of position, before taking it down, the mercury is. to be screwed up
17
258 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
until the cistern and tube are just full. Ifit is screwed more than
this, the mercury may be forced through the joints of the cistern. It
should then be inverted and carried cistern-end upwards.
This instrument is well adapted for service as a mountain baro-
meter, and when used as such is packed in a leather case with suit-
able straps for convenient carriage.
METHOROLOGY.
REGISTRY OF PERIODICAL PHENOMENA.
The Smithsonian Institution, being desirous of obtaining informa-
tion with regard to the periodical phenomena of animal and vegetable
life in North America, respectfully invites all persous who may have
it in their power, to record their observations, and to transmit them to
the Institution. These should refer to the first appearance of leaves
and of flowers in plants; the dates of appearance and disappearance
of migratory or hybernating animals, as mammals, birds, reptiles,
fishes, insects, &c.; the times of nesting of birds, of moulting and
littering of mammals, of utterance of characteristic cries among rep-
tiles and insects, and anything else which may be deemed note-
worthy.
The Smithsonian Institution is also desirous of obtaining detailed
lists of all the animals and plants of any locality throughout this
continent. These, when practicable, should consist of the scientific
names, as well as of those in common use; but when the former are
unknown, the latter may alone be given. It is in contemplation to
use the information thus gathered, in deducing general laws relating
to the geographical distribution of species of the animal and vegeta-
ble kingdoms of North America. Any specimens of natural history
will also be acceptable. Directions for their preservation have been
published by the Institution, and will be sent to all who may wish
them.
The points in the phenomena of plants, to which attention should
be directed, are:
1. Hrondescence or Leafing. When the buds first open and exhibit
the green leaf.
2. Hlowering. When the anther is first exhibited :
a. In the most favorable location ;
b. General flowering of the species.
3. ructification. When the pericarp splits spontaneously in de-
hiscent fruits, or the indehiscent truit is fully ripe.
4, Fall of leaf. When the leaves have nearly all fallen.
The dates of these various periods should be inserted in their ap-
propriate columns.
When the observations for the year are complete, they should be
returned to the Institution, with the locality and observer’s name
inserted in the blank at the head of the sheet.
260 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
PLANTS.
g .
= to Flowering.
List of plants. oe Fructifi-| Fall of
ae |— :
32 cation. leaf.
3 al a db.
26
isa]
Acer rubrum, L.—Red, or soft maple --- --
Acer dasycarpum, Ehrh.—White, or silver
Maple: fo. essa ae se ole
Acer saccharinum, L.—Sugar maple. ------
Achillea millefolium, L.—Millefoil or yarrow
Actea rubra, Willd.—Red baneberry - ----
Acta alba, Bigelow.— White baneberry ;
mecklacesweedssose ses =stecee ee eee
Aisculus hippocastanum, Lu.—Horsechestnut |
Aisculus glabra, Willd. —Ohio buckeye - ---
AGsculus flava, Ait.—Yellow buckeye. ___- |
Ailantus glandulosa. — Tree of heayen;
ANant hisses. Heese Cees eee
Amelanchier canadensis.—Shad bush; ser-
IGE MD OnVn eee eto ea
Amorpha fruticosa, L.—False indigo ------
Amygdalus nana, L.—F lowering almond --
Anemone nemorosa, L.—Wind flower ; wood
ANEMONES Sena eases Seek lis. sees |
Aquilegia canadensis, L.—Wild columbine. -
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Spreng.—Bearberry
Asclepius cornuti, Decaisne.—Milkweed. . - -
Asimina tritoba, Dunal.—Papaw-.---------
Azalea nudiflora, L.—Common. red honey-
BUCK Cs ae. hice ate ee. ie S23
Bignonia (Tecoma) radicans, Juss. —Trumpet |
CRECPET EDs eS See SSeS See TED
Castanea vesca, Lh.—Chestnut---.-------- | |
Carya alba.—Shag-bark, or shell-bark
EN CIGOT Yea oe eta Serie mie ee cic ee | |
Cercis canadensis, L.—Red bud; Judas tree }
Cerasus virginiana, DC.—Chokeberry..---- |
Cerasus serotina, DC.—Wild black cherry - -
Chionanthus virginica, L.—Fringe tree. ----
Cimieifuga racemosa, Ki11.—Black-snake root;
nagclesnailceroopse tse see pee ees
Claytonia virginica, L.—Spring beauty. ----
Clethra alnifolia.—White alder, or sweet
PEDDEL PUSH eee ee r= eens eee ae =
Cornus florida, L.—F lowering dogwood* __
Crateegus crus-galli, L.—Cockspur thorn. --
Crateegus coceinea, 1.—Scarlet-fruited thorn
Crateegus oxycantha, L.—English hawthorn |
Epige repens, L.—Trailing arbutus; ground
RAUF ook as eee eee eee
Epilobium angustifolium, L..—Willow herb--
Erythronum americanum, Smith. — Dog-
tooth violet, or adder’s tongue____---
Fraxinus americana, L.—White ash_-_----
Craylussacia resinosa, Torr. & Gray.—Black
huciilevertya22 42.2.0 Ae ee tek
Gerardia flava, L.—Yellow false foxglove-
Geranium maculatum, L.—Crane’s bill-_----
Halesia tetraptera, Willd.—Snow-drop tree.
f
7
a eee
“The time of the expansion of the real flower, not of the white involucre.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
PLANTS—Continued.
List of plants.
Hepatica triloba, Chaix.—Round lobed liver-
MOND e neta oe oe nS eee
Floustonia caerulea, Hook.—Bluets ; inno-
ON COM CGa cer Sey he Bae ee take
LTypericum perforatum, L.—St. John’s wort
Sris versicolor, L.—Large blue flag. -------
Kalmia latifolia, L.—Mountain laurel. - - --
Laurus benzoin, L.—(Benzoin odoriferum,
Nees.) Spice bush; Benjamin bush----
Leucanthemum vulgare, Lam.—Ox-eye daisy;
PLES Weeding oe sce We kicmince oe sic
Linnea borealis, Gronov.—Twin flower. - - -
Lobelia cardinalis, u.—Red cardinal flower
Lonicera tartarica, L.—Foreign spurs. - - - - -
Lupinus perennis, .—Wild lupine - - - ~~ ---
Liriedendron tulipifera, LL. —Tulip tree ;
AMERICAN ADOD lak eso = he eee ae
Magnolia glauca, .—Small or laurel mag-
MOMMA TS WEGU WAY t=. 2250 ee ea nerd cies
Mitchella repens, L.—Partridge berry - - - - --
Morus rubra, L.—Red mulberry---------
Nymphea odorata, Ait. —Sweet-scented
Vere Lh ee ee ee ee ee
Persica vulgaris, L.—Peach..------------
Podophyllunt pellatum, L.—Mandrake; May-
ADD re te Sean Se ae se ee eee
Pontederia cordata, 4..—Pickerel weed ---.- -
Pogonio ophioglossoides, Nutt. — Adder’s
TARE OSE Oar seh Se eee Senile ee EE
Pyrus communis, .—Common pear tree--
Pyrus malus, .—Common apple tree----
Quercus alba, L.—White oak_.----------
Rhododendron maximum, L.—Great laurel --
Ribes rubrum, V.—Currant....-.--------
Robinia pseud-acacia, L4.—Common locust - -
Robinia viscosa, Vent.—Clammy locust----
Rubus villosus, Ait.—Blackberry - --------
Sambucus canadensis, 4.— Common elder. - -
Sambucus nigra, L.—Black elder---------
Sanguinaria canadensis, L.—Blood root----
Sarracenia purpurea, L.—Side-saddle flower
Saxifraga virginiensis, Michx.—Warly saxi-
RGD Ye< eae ORO ee oe cS celle a nS Re
Smilacina bifolia, Ker.—Two-leaved Solo-
mon=seal.. 5 =— aes see
Syringa vulgaris, L.—Lilac........------
Taraxacum dens-leonis, Desf.—Dandelion- --
Tilia americana, L.—Bass wood; American
ee or linden = ee ae el Se
Vibur num lentag 0, L.—Sweet viburnum - - -
Flowering.
Frondescence,
or leafing.
Fructifi-
cation.
261
Fall of
leaf,
*)
Lo
o>
bo
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Arrival
Birds. in
spring. |
Commencement |
of nesting.
Commencement!
of incubation.
Appearance of
young.
Departure in
autumn.
Acanthylis pelasgia, Boie.—Chimney-bird - -
Ageaius pheniceus, L.—Red-winged black- | |
| 0) {0 Peerage Lye ae 4 AL a eae
Anser canadensis, .—Wild goose --------
Hirundo purpurea, Li.—Martin- - -- -- -----
Thrundo rufa, L.—Barn swallow -- - - - ----
Pandion carolinus, Gm.—Fish-hawk --. -+-|
Quiscalus ferrugineus, u.—Rusty blackbird |
Quiscalus versicolor, .—Crow blackbird - -|
Stalia wilsonit, Sw.—Blue-bird-----------
Turdus migratorius, L.—Robin -----------
YY,
Tyrannula fusca, Sw.—Pewee------------
!
|
Dolichonyz oryzivora, Sw.—Reed-bird, vice-
birds bo blinks =ee a= sae eae
Mimus felivox, Sw. |
Tyrannus intrepidus, Vicill._—Ring-bird -- - -
Troglodytes acdon.—House wren---------.
Antrostomus vociferous. —W hipporwill. - - - - -
Reprites—/irst appearance, cries, and general peculiarities of habits.
Bufo americanus, and other species of toads.
Rana, the various kinds of frogs.
Hyla and Hylodes, the several kinds of tree-frogs.
Turtles, lizards, snakes.
Fisnes—first appearance and spawning.
Salmo salar, L., salmon.
Alosa, shad.
Clupea, herring.
Anguilla, eel.
Acipenser, sturgeon.
Insects—their first appearance and cries.
Platyphyllum concavum, Harr., catydid.
Cicada, locusts—the several kinds.
(canthus niveus, Harr., tree-crickets.
Grasshoppers, in their variety.
Fire-flies.
GENERAL PHENOMENA OF CLIMATE.
Phenomena of a general character, of which the date of appearance
cannot be mistaken, are very valuable. Series of years have in some
—-. =
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 263
cases been carefully observed, which would greatly add to the valuc
of the current record if forwarded with it. The following are of this
class :
1. Breaking up of ice in large rivers or bays.
2. Date of greatest rise and lowest fall of water in large rivers,
especially when periodic, as in parts of the interior.
3. General leafing and fall of leaf in deciduous forests. In most
parts of the North and interior these are well marked and easily de-
signated periods.
4. Commencement of growth and the end of growth or destruction
of grasses in general; as on plains or prairies.
5. First growth, flowering, and maturity, of important annual sta-
ples, with their period in days from the commencement to the end of
vital action.
e's nacho ella he
‘ iit A
Os an Tee § Miles! ms rae
cet" j Hose) baal
(01 a mite ick } is dah
ETON ais se ZO HOUTA Ohne 1
pals Daw - be AS obey |, Cm
ep Nie Wh ee WEITERE ra aN
MAMISIAAY 7EMASE YO
eA ovetw) vi mee, ey a , Luin na whieh a
ae pike ees ace
—ea- — Jit era r'S. bre
TEMES WEE Cory a4 RRR al iehoe i sft.
: re WEA STi eah tay ain Ai toy he iris i : wif 44
owas Pai hres 1 od Ceeehew 7] ii Sere
* hao Wan PREPS } } ) { iii = +f I « Wok. Ort ah sobassdt-
altrus! “7 +X ' ¥ syacsis t i rhe * ide Ly | Pera | "hire: ot Io |
Dirsine sty yy fl srrecut oat ren ie Vihasesy
a | ee
c “sat ‘eta Jovi i). 2uitdol4 hisguitn. toes ranbiaih nies
x fairey DB MLA TATTE: SER Ae dD soldmateh bo Te Bate .
P, mari Fae as tts hy , Tiere rotor ol biwow ee hig 4
: Raft } | bs / Kino att! doidy xohie aaa
eo sat ee Field stud after hy il ol erie ae oe
Be ad here: | nwo yuodante, Ais Anke a
mene ssn ox . gilerstinok “ell bit weaiemut Daay
OR. 4 y WORD ws its a lu wilenstar |
¢ pith ; Pye ral : BiB ee ie 5.8 re She CF tl a aoomid {
Thy hi tou iy P ebieatis J OL tee BT bed Pa bh birs |
“ai fais if | , murarditias dogdhy lt Sera
: i eet Lae (aon 3 : STi Git rove hoedd aoumd §
Ts a sites iad Yo xaldet boeeake eae
| b ) rrow Sid Rd Sea al
: i pwr firs ig Aah ie a BROT Lin del"
: weak AT ha #1 cf nn } TRAP Takah: ef te he) vir ‘Sonal
‘ 2 | “old frag fener
iy Part GV Niwy tababas-w inlo secifes a angi 4 welt
git Sou. 4 honk wotmsow Jo bovwoasdi-elil ,coidegp 0 RETOME |
Tl RAGS i fH: 4 r} YP RULREE if ee te hay [rom ott douRhon sae
'" onltganone 1 arof adit’)
ea (+s fy me fia lL aanoitaraeio fsx itd ath yaya nt
so) jo aadiaiv Dba e® dibdw vd abate ait isd sisohy vilon svn
frets « imap oval GhoaAteniocerl) mero rt nr a dob awit: Laer
oh-08 dive, yi aul bonysioou ynevaor ot Wh sal agp ol} i:
ote dept. i. | ober Phares olditin tensh oie aia oft
4
ANT Uh tse ti io. wiemoatt ot vodtis ple mp oul! Toe
Adie Yee rleooois aohi iit Ye HinY te)! RORsaHR, uf sation «Liles
RiiilaA i Sah aut abide ul TABS O 400 ono, altima
~ Oh We HERG Tf isateAt ald ifvteay Paes il yaktom | ‘gains if
7 oAitietth teh duonors teal ere hie Sipapiae 2P mana
to demient AAP wed) ahucesa Po pv ine 3 si 97 it%3
Ditiald vil aie mMiy ud hobis: sei doa sluog, 2 “aah rel
METEOROLOGY.
OBSERVATIONS ON THUNDER AND LIGHTNING.
BY STILLMAN MASTERMAN,
WELD, FRANKLIN County, MAINE.
The following observations on the duration of peals of thunder
were made for the purpose of verifying an assumption of my own,
that the limit usually assigned to the continuation of the rolling of
thunder is too low. I find that in some instances the rolling sound
of the thunder lasts several seconds longer than what meteorologists
have generally given as itsextreme duration. In observing the sound
accompanying discharges of atmospheric electricity, a great variety is
apparent, not only in duration, but also in intensity and general
character. It would be futile to attempt to give all the gradations
and tones under which tunis sound is presented to the ear; but I find
that it is conveniently divisible into fowr general classes, as follows:
1. That which commonly commences with not a very great force,
and increases, generally somewhat regularly, up 1o its maximum
intensity, and then decreases until reaching its termination. Some-
times the maximum occurs at or near the commencement of the sound,
and again as near its termination. This is the more common class of
thunder.
2. That which commences with a sound of moderate force and con-
tinues throughout its entire duration with but a slight variation in
intensity. In the annexed tables of observations, peals of this class
are designated by the word ‘‘ uniform.”
3. That which presents a sound alternately very loud and low, in
rapid succession ; sometimes having rapidly succeeding maxima and
minima during its whole continuation. I designate peals of this class
by the word ‘‘ vibratory.’’
4, This class comprises those claps of thunder which have but a
momentary duration, like the sound of a cannon, fired where nothing
can reflect the sound as an echo. I distinguish claps of this class by
the term ‘‘ momentary.’’
In making the annexed observations, I used in most cases an ac-
curate solar clock beating seconds, by which to note divisions of time.
Selecting such a position near the clock as to have an unobstructed
view of the quarter of the heavens occupied by the storm, and to be
able to catch the least audible sound of thunder, I could count the
beats of the pendulum, either by the clicking, or, if necessary, by its
perceivable motion. In cases of peals of thunder preceded by visible
electric discharges, I commence to count the seconds from the flashing
of the lightning; noting the first audible instant of sound of the
thunder, its maximum intensity, and its last moment of audibility,
by marking their respective number of seconds from the instant of
visibility of the lightning. In peals not preceded by visible lightning
266 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
which could be identified, I have commenced to reckon time from the
first instant of audibility of the sound. .
As will be observed, the annexed observations were made, some at
Weld, Franklin county, Maine, and the others at Stillwater, Min-
nesota Territory.
A.
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Thunder-storm in the afternoon of the
16th of August, 1850.
Observed the duration of a single peal of thunder, as follows :
imeliinine hashedmeee eee asks eee fa 2. SO eee ee eee 0 seconds.
Tun dersarstvaudible sa-s4 2 ae teehee te se Le ee eae he See ee 10 &
HOU Gears Pe Ae tee See Se LS ke 2 ee ee ete ee ee 13 ce
wery loud? oS isso 2. Nomen sens se scene eae teen ee Se eee eee eee 15 “e
lowdest Suse Ae IS bE Be he IE Sc ae ee eee eee 20 Ue
weryeloud weiss see bn des ei oer Seas Seay ee ee eee 30 se
AG) os Kamen Shee i ae, Sere Re Rae te LEAWAEE an en Oat Ae een a Sd ie A 40 ue
ecomesan audible eT es ew a le apes ee ee ee ee et ee 61 “
Entire duration of the sound, or rolling of the thunder-_-----------s---- 51 s
B.
Stillwater, Minnesota Territory.—'hunder-storm in the morning of
June 24, 1851.
OBSERVATIONS.
Orderof, pels see Sema eee ionne eee ss eee eeeaeiae a B y 6
8. s = ae
iMohbminoutlagh ea) svi. Se Dwyane nok sal el B kanye yas Ae eee 0 0 0 0
hander sirstiaud ible = a yer ian ee meee Sie eee es 9 4 10 10
LOU: er et ee rs re ee aay a ar Ne Ra, || eee LS papal ese gees 20
lOudes tee We aA Uy ek (oe ER See 15 7 14 22
LOTR ease CPS yi ae Per ay ge ee Te! Sed ae AS ee ee Ee Le Sir) |S 4e e 24
DECOMeESTMANGIPLE 3a" Se ees a ee ee ee eae See ee 40 20 40 28
durauienronmolling (Of se =m seer ee 3 16 30 18
CG
Stillwater, Minnesota Territory.—Thunder-storm in the afternoon of
August 11, 1851.
OBSERVATIONS.
Onderjofpealse_ ss seceet ee a B y é € G n 6
s. s. S s. 8. s. ou $
Lightning flashed__ -... __-- 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Thunder ‘first audible... 2422. 335 |B 4 27 14 29 | er 4 4
Hod aca atwenes BS MBieae bicpey\eestes bem Be) 28| 28
Momd sb oe ons ack eee (eae. i) Oka oT le Tie
Nt cape alee aes 3 | form. 4) Shae e233.) 58 | a8
becomes inaudible---|4 3S A eA ce 35 iad age eee sl Ie =
duration of -.------ O12)-SOF Bpoirb 21 56 | Bo | ee | se
As ala ES Boles | es
es
THE SMITHSONIAN
BD.
INSTITUTION.
Stillwater, Minnesota Territory.—Thunder-storm in the
July 5, 1852.
267
morning of
OBSERVATIONS.
Order ofipeals 205 Shs lk a B y 6 E 5 7 6
~—- — | ot
s. bs o bp 8. ie s 8.
Lightning flashed --.--...--= 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Thunder first audible-------- 8 12 6 12 10 8 22 10
FOUdestyse fips 2 oa (*) (t) 20 9 eae ene 20 30 (p)
becomes inaudible---| 34 (7) 24 26 37 28 50 26
duration) of= 22. - =. ~- 26 (Gi) alts 14 27 20 28 16
** Uniform.
T Momentary.
{ Vibratory.
Remarks.—n, thunder very heavy. <A continual flickering of lightning succeeded the
above observations ; but the sound of the falling rain prevented the thunder being heard,
only when of uncommon loudness.
+
Hs
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Thunder-storm in the aficrnoon of
May 16, 1853.
OBSERVATIONS.
Grderiottpeals) 2 a. 9.222. a B y € 5 0 r)
&. s s. S. 8 s s Se
Dyoniminettashed: 24. soe 2 elo BL fi So (UN ond enue | Sires NEA Sa WP Deb oe) ke
Thunder first audible .2------ 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
Lougeshe cs. G2 he 27% 28 () WS | eerie orate shes areas empl nge 4
becomes inaudible_.-| 40 15 60 10 15 14 30 8
Guration ofee 4.020 4 40 15 26 10 15 14 30 8
Orderols pease eee t x » mn v z 0 7
s. s 8 a 3. 8 8 s.
Suehunine- ashe de == eee les ee See Me a a tal Bs ee ee ee ea
Thunder first audible -_-._--- 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
LOTS Bee ee cee ee Si ee ete ee ee ol re
becomes inaudible_+.| 18 12 10 8 12 13 5 10
sduration: of 2 2ee=se= 18 12 10 8 12 13 13 10
* Uniform.
Remarks.—The lightning was either invisible or could not be identified before fifteen
of these sixteen peals of thunder.
268 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
i.
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Thunder-storm in the afternoon of
September 6, 1853.
OBSERVATIONS.
ES EE SS nC
Oxrderiofpealsses—- 42a -ee ee a B y 6 é iS oT 0 L kK
|
8. ge less s tl lament bs 8 s Soares,
ine hininowdlashedeh sa ssoceenee == ae (Eee opera | hk A) eee eel eee tay) oe
Minder cnsipailaiwleyeee = sel = 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 One 0
ONOWG PLL a ae i SSE | pmo) (as Soe Se | Pe S| ee PS eee Sse cle eo | = pete
londestee = fe. eee noone Sg || eee Ss ae cal Ci lbe | Seae eae 20 | 34 | 15
Koy bre a ii iss a ae) ees ‘hee, £| Sarees ea ee ee 2 | eae ee Bg alee ne
becomes inaudible--.--- 3 12-130) 33 1°28 150") 28°60 | GLa 50 i028
Guranonvohea eee eee = 30 | 12 | 30 | 33 | 28 | 50 | 28 | 60 | 61 | 39 | 29
Ohmeler Gi HEM. SS eesssccescoed mn y g || a p o Fria Weel (race fee's
; ln See SEL TS, o| eo san meS Sani MnEs s So hes Ss
Piahininestashed ena aese4———— Vleet Oil eee | Dialers eres es) (8) ooo
(nunder first auaible..-5225-=\-—= 14 O27 Om 0 0 0 0 | 20 0
lOUGM see e cece cca ene a ee ee col lscrtaserslage aie ool acy = ke
loudestee ees see FAO Vee slecne| (2b alee eciee ee eee ele sO 33
NGude eae eeset eps foes es) |e aie eee ees ee ee ES 5 oe Biss
becomes inaudible ._.---! 50 | 15 | 50 | 15 | 41 | 15 | 7] 37 | 15 | 43) 7
GiunationlOl Soa sse2 soso 265 belo. elon 2 oaiele TN Gare bay | 3} T
Orderion pealsa- esse oe- eae e = Pa eal. ral) (XN kyaee eid ecreral Sie Mit aan Gam mames
(hi Dt a ewe ai em
mn A Re ne eee eee (PE ee TURE DN Cr. ami.
Lightninewiashed. 2-0-2222 24< | OA OO) ONE ese] 08) OU Ogee ss) ON mOmmae
ihhundennnstia wd lol hema ee ee PAY) || PAO. || Ibs} 0 OR eas 0) 10) ASO
Lote) Ya cee. Me ee ae eo Vega ee EI OT ee A ae
loudest 3 Les eee oe. SOnNB6: 16 Ih coal 25) Ube. | So ee VOOR moe:
Voud i Ses. bt ae ae ee See odo) e Brtblos 6 ols ce ere aang eae aes ui
becomes inaudible ---.-- ADIN 50) 40) 230) 60.) 42) 29 eh SoaleZouloomio
Guratiom Obes. seeseesee -| 22 | 30 Zi Neo | Od | 30) L6weaes elo smo ome
|
Remarxs.—As will be seen, only fourteen out of the above thirty-three claps of thunder
were preceded by lightning which could be identified as that producing the audible sound.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
G.
269
Weld, Franklin County, Maine-—Thunder-storm in the afiernoon of
September 'T, 1853.
OBSERVATIONS.
Order of peals----- FMR Te Dad fe Deion ge ee bg: Keen Ds }.eo a
8 8 8 8 Sou ts 8 g 8 Soe weSee tlie Sean ees 8.
PrGnine teased |. oaclaose |e coe l—n ae |seaelen a |e ae oacm|s— Sonn olen a ||) 90) tea alee
Thund. firstaudible} 0| 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Oe Sie ane 0
loud >. == -<|-+ 3+ 2] fg ene ae PS es pee Sel eae ui ee se ee
loudest.---| 30 | 34 | 10 Nels pia as 8 Tel Ty eae 8
LEGVO CC hassel er ee RS ae VY A (al Fg Se Pl ye Rea to | ee |g
becomes in-
audible 2-38 |.66 1380) | £2 1 32) | 25) 128) | 15 |B 20) | 20n 22) 25 ene
GQuration Of ios: jroo: |vo0. |e 2) |e32))|| 2D 128 WLS i 18 1920 200) ae 250 25
ee — |} } = = —_—
Order of peals----- 0 T p c 7 v |*¢ y w (a) Cle NiayoteMieigye Aber!
jad ony See ca |S ES (ar (Re |e ane E.MY e
8 Sele ste ishes esha | tse ibe seetlt os Sy gas lang ma remeelins
inewniamoashede=~22* 2432-222 ci sentlscfssee leuk pee a eet bles On eee ees
Thund. firstaudible| 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 aw 0 0
loudes se Srp ize 15 as Onell 7 | 4 4 (ad rsa re tit || Se es
iMudesta see leah Loa Lue Loe oiel Look bi TA AO WS Wess | 44 9 | 25
Foud 22 25 PEE AOR Zor) iota s ce) i ean le ee |) 2m som ieee aot
becomes in-
MAGIDICM eel |soOR Zo ore| DS | os WoO) | al 221 40) 45 | 56 |) Lea Be
duration of | 17 | 30 | 25 | 37 | 58 | 33 | 30 3 | 22 | 40 | 45 | 19 Lael:
‘ale
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Thunder-storm
May 21, 1854.
OBSERVATIONS,
Sarde Of Cals ie eee yarn a aan as im ay ena wre a te aha
8. 8.
LT VIDIO) 2a TEC] O18 Bees oo Se a ee a | EE 0
BTARAeCT HITS AUCIDIC) 26s ae oe eke ee 0 20
loudest... 225) 5) eee cree eh ela tases 3 46
becomes Indudibiesesee ssw oe an oo 10 60
GUration. \OL./72seeeeeeae He owe o mewn se 10 40
6 é
s. =
Oe Np bees
7 0
VAS) | eee
40 15
33 15
RemMarK,— é, thunder very heavy.
ee ——) on —_—
270° TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF |
x
Weld, Franklin County, Maine —Thunder-storm in the afternoon of —
June 9, 1854. ies ;
OBSERVATIONS.
it a
Order Of peais. 2—. <<... 5 ees | eiBiy{| 4]
Gs eee
SBBE
Lightning flashed ......----.----|---- fal ah aoe
Thunder first audible ..-.------- | o}.0 | @| 0 oO”
ht Se ee Se ee Fy bg a ieee a ek
Fouges6 ese <2 t= 26 198s | Goo:
one. ee ESS bam. tebe et ee RR
becomes inandible-- ---- 30/16; 8§/ 10
dgyation oft 30) 16 | $ | 10 |
Ordar-of peaks. << 5-62-53 4c plwi sje |
We a
. SAN SSS oSoe | ES S . ;s. | s Ps
Lichtning flashed, -...---------- o| o| o|..--| o} of of o| of of @
Thunder first audible .....-.---- a1| 5] 3} O| 1| 33] 15 | 20 | 15 | 10 10
i Eee earer eet P55" bce 8] Os }osechecsche oc OID eee ey ie
fondest 2.0. 8 41} 19 | 39} 10} 2| 23 | 26| () | 35 | 28} 19
ee el aS @ 1m | @ |----1@ | @ b---| @ |@ G29} ee
becomes Inaudible... ---- 1 45 25 ' 12} 12 40} 30 40 | 49 | 35} 40
durawon ‘OF < f2.- <= | 24; 230; 9} 11 11 | 27 7°15 20 | 34 25 30
i ' i ie
= Very loud. § Loud.
+ Very heavy. || Uniform and loud.
‘ ~ Very sharp and heavy. 47 Extremely heavy.
Ji
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Second thunder-storm in the afternoon
of June 9, 1854.
OBSERVATIONS.
|} |} } : Bee
Order of pealls ... .....4..-2-- : | 8 7 6
Pa ones neal
s s. s | RS
Thunder first audible... .- 0 Q 0 Q
idud..c 2. Bees 1s 12 28 | 20
touuest..t... 5-884 36 18 $s | 25
Cs eI be tel Bee loo? 2 Seer 65
becomes inaudible ___| 50 66 65 | 70
duration of ._......-. 50 66 65 | 70
| l
Rewarss.—Storm had passed over to the southeast. The rolls of thunder, howsver
long, appeared to be distinct peals, occurring at intervals of some rinutes. Thunds ¥
very loud. No lightning was seen which could be ascribed te (b > dove peals.
Weld, Franklin
THE SMITHSONIAN
Mrderion Peals. 6. 5. oe sce ae os.
Minder hirstaudible 4.2 hed
ng .
13, 1854.
OBSERVATIONS.
a B
may
0 0
[KO 1) re eae a 6 12
becomes inaudible ._.-.---- 14 13
wks fe 2 ew pp 14. 13
INSTITUTION. 271
|
|
|
County, Maine.—Thunder-storm at noon on June
s. S. s. &.
0 0 0
2 3 8
15 20 20 18
15 20 0 18
Rewanks.—A small thunder-cloud immediately overhead, with a slight spray of rain.
The claps of thunder following one another after intervals of a
No lightning seen,
winute or two,
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
272
‘govyd Mo 7v UTLI oT}4IT YITM possed UIIOyS SITY,
‘ropunyy AAvoyT ‘Lavoy A[WouULOOUN Jopunyy, ‘“divys Aaa suryysry 2
‘repunyy Aavayy & ‘ropunyy Aavoy A194 17
“avoy AioA IOpunyy, 1” “AAvay Japunyy, 7
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THE SMITHSONIAN
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THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 279
Py
Weld, Franklin County, Maine.—Thunder-storm of September 6, 1854.
OBSERVATIONS.
Bret OL News. — a= 5 -- nso a- = a B y t) é 5 n
LS eS Se ONE Ger See cRNA Paka i 2
8. 8. 8. 8. ES 8. Ss. S.
Hightnine: flashed.-2..---4-..-- 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Thunder first audible..-.--.---- 10 14 BUGS Fe ea peer gs | Ae ce 12 14 Bi
POUGN TS ee tne sree ls a Ne ee |- wean n|------|--3~=-|---2-- ee
POMC CRT eee ee ees Sela) SS ae Sod Nr cee PR eg tie ye 30 22 34
CTO e eg [ay cee I EN SERA aie 1 Fn HOR re (a [eo EW eT a) a ee 40
become inaudible__.--- Ey OO | ep eae ree ee ey hc oe SN A 40 66
Geravon. Of] 2a eea= Ali Aileen Nis CO a Cle arene ees ele A 26 55
|
REMARKS.
a. Thunder very heavy.
é. Preceded by a gush of rain five seconds before the flashing of the lightning.
s. Lightning preceded by gush of rain one second.
». Extremely heavy thunder.
9. Lightning vivid ; thunder extremely heavy and loud, causing the ground to tremble.
SUMMARY RECAPITULATION.
1. Peals of thunder ‘preceded by visible lightning.
Average duration of interval between the flashing of the lightning
and the first audibility of the thunder, in one hundred and seventy-five
IM NRCHAES \OUSCEVED: f.ccvere buco. nocsars canes evade toes 12.32 seconds.
Minimuin ditte...... (z—I and w& 6 —M)....... EOE
Maximum ditto...... fel) A ca cccndiatseaepeseaoaned 50.00
Average duration of interval between the flashing of the lightning
and the last audibility of the thunder, in one hundred and forty-eight
Cea OUSCE VE 5 nico asic ce/h ae sane vod de oonsns dean ee 34.70 seconds.
Minimum ditto...... CO ee censsedgedcvseupedane ue Ben tres
Maximum ditto...... CY, vant seisesn taceat haasenien BE.00 Te >
Average duration of the interval between the first audibility of
the thunder, and the last audibility of the same, or the length
of the peals, in the one hundred and forty-eight (148) cases ob-
Ea ara eta meena Oa 2 a odes Asien Sains cdma sesh «bode os 21.85 seconds.
Minimum ditto...... (o' —Mand;—N)............ 4.00 |) a8
Maximum ditto......(€e—C) ...csecseseccsccseeseeeeenes 56.00 “*
2. Peals of thunder not preceded by visible lightning.
Average duration of the interval between the first and last audi-
bility of the thunder, or the entire lengths of the peals, in one
hundred and fifty-six (156) cases observed.........+. . 26.60 seconds.
Minimum ditto...... (y—L and a—Q)............. A300... S
Maximum ditto...... (7 —J).vescovee desaeedeeeseam ah SO009 , &
280 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
PHENOMENA OF LIGHTNING.
1. Lightning without visible clouds.
Weld, Me., May 28, 1850.—At 9 o’clock in the evening, vivid flashes
of lightning appeared above the western horizon, while not a cloud was
to be seen in the visible concave. The stars shone brilliantly, and I
could readily distinguish those of the 5th magnitude immediately
above the western hills, whence the lightning appeared to emanate.
The sky in that quarter was vividly illuminated by the lightning at
least fifty times during five or ten minutes.
Sullwater, Minnesota Territory, July 20, 1852.—Being out in the
open air, in the evening, I observed a sudden flash of lightning which
was followed by several succeeding flashes, occurring once in every
few moments. No thunder was heard. The flashes of lightning
were quite vivid and had a flickering appearance ; but they seemed to
emanate from no particular quarter of the sky, being diffused over
the whole visible arena. At the time, but a few clouds could be seen,
most of these being small, thin, and fleecy ; and the sky presented a
dingy or hazy ground, particularly so near the horizon. Along the
northwestern horizon lay a small stratum of clouds, but they pre-
sented no appearance of being the seat of the electric discharges; on
the other hand they remained quite dark during the several flashes.
At daybreak on the succeeding morning, we experienced a smart
thunder-storm. :
Weld, Me., May 28, 1853.—In the evening the sky was very clear ;
not asingle cloud was to be seen in any quarter. While out in the
open air, between 9 and 10 o’clock, I observed a great number of
vivid flashes of lightning. I could not discern that the lightning
proceeded from any particular part of the sky. The sky was slightly
smoky or dingy near the horizon.
2. Cuspidated lightning.
Weld, Me., June 7, 1850.—At6 o’clock p. m. we experienced a heavy
thunder-storm. When the storm had passed a little to the eastward
tri-cuspidated lightning was exhibited ; that is to say, the electric dis-
charge emanated from the clouds as a single chain, but soon divided,
approaching the earth in three different lines. After the lapse of a
few minutes I observed four distinct streams of the electric fluid to
emanate from the same point and at the same time, and pursue as
many different paths to the earth.
Prairie west of Freeport, Illinois, May 30, 1851.—Being out in the
open air in the evening, during a severe thunder-storm, I observed
bi-cuspidated and also tri-cuspidated electric discharges.
Stillwater, Minnesota Territory, July 4, 1852.—At 8 o'clock p. m.,
there was a large body of thunder-clouds just above the eastern hori-
zon, on the north side of which were two horn-like projections extending
outward parallel with the horizon and each other to the extent of
about 12°, and being about the same distance apart. There were fre-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 281
quent discharges of zigzag lightning passing between these horns,
projected on a clear sky, as a back-ground. In one instance, two
chains of electric fluid were seen to leave the upper one simultaneously
3° apart, and unite on reaching the lower cloud.
3. Curvated electric discharges.
In the thunder-storm of June 7, 1850, when the storm lay to the east-
ward, an electric spark passed from the eastern cloud to one in the
western sky, apparently in acurvated path. During a thunder-storm
occurring 6n the 30th of June last, (1856,) I observed an electric spark
to describe a semi-circular arc; the chord or diameter of the arc being
45° in extent, parallel with and near to the horizon.
4, Miscellaneous electric phenomena.
During the thunder-storm on the prairie west of Freeport, Illinois,
on May 30, 1851, a ball of electric fluid apparently emanated from a
cloud, and after a few seconds burst, sending brilliant corruscations
over the entire vault above. °
Stillwater, Minnesota, September 1, 1851.—In the evening, a small
cluster of columnar-shaped clouds rested on the horizon in the south-
east, their height being about 15°. Their outlines were distinctly
visible in the light of the lunar orb. As I was contemplating these
clouds, I observed vivid lightning appear from their upper edge,
about midway of the cluster. The lightning appeared like an intensely
brilliant disk exactly round, and about 2° in diameter, but of no longer
duration than an ordinary electric flash. This was succeeded in a few
seconds by another exactly similar flash, which was followed by several
others; the disk of light appearing the same at each succeeding flash,
with the exception that it continually decreased in diameter, so that
at the end of twenty minutes it presented the apparent size of the sun.
Shortly after this, two other similar disks of light would appear
simultaneously with the first observed, and about 20° on each side of
it. After the last named phenomenon occurred, at about ten succeeding
flashes, the central disk sent out at each glow vivid chains of light-
ning which were projected far on the sky above.
Stillwater, Minnesota, June 14 and 15, 1852.—On the evening of
the 14th, and morning of the 15th, there was a slight thunder-storm.
I noticed that for several succeeding discharges of the electric fluid,
there was in every instance a sudden and violent gush of rain
immediately previous to the flashing of the lightning. I have ob-
served a like phenomena on other occasions.
Stillwater, Minnesota, July 21, 1852.—In the morning, just after
daybreak, we had a fine thunder-storm. While the storm was yet
coming up from the west I observed a vivid discharge of electricity
dart from the overhanging cloud to the southeastern horizon, where a
very slight spray of rain was falling at the time. ‘There were no
clouds visible in that part of the sky beneath the one overhead. No
thunder was audible within five or ten minutes of the electric discharge,
and the first heard appeared to be located in the opposite direction.
282 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
A phenomenon of thunder.
Weld, Me., July 18, 1854.—At sunrise in the morning, I heard re-
peated peals of heavy thunder while no clouds were visible above the
horizon. The thundering continued for several hours. For some
time not a single cloud was visible, yet the thunder was very heavy ;
occurring at intervals of a few minutes. At last, a few flying cwmule
appeared, but none from which thunder could proceed. No thunder-
clouds were visible during theday. It could not have been any other
sound mistaken for that of thunder; for the peals were prolonged
rolls, sometimes nearly one-half a minute in length, having their
maxima and gradations like common peals of distant thunder. I could
not determine satisfactorily from which direction the sound proceeded.
Afterwards, however, I learned that the thunder-storm was to the
east of us. Ata village eight or ten miles east of us on the morning
named above, a thunder-storm was visible low down in the eastern
horizon, which darted forth vivid flashes of lightning, and gave out
heavy peals of thunder,
2
=—
a ee
EXTRACTS
FROM
THE CORRESPONDENCE
OF THE
Volto A NN ee EP Or LON.
Sketch of the Navajo Tribe of Indians, Territory of New Mexico, by
Jona. Letherman, Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army.
The Navajo Indians are a tribe inhabiting a district in the Territory
of New Mexico, lying between the San Juan river on the north and
northeast, the Pueblo of Zuiii on the south, the Moqui villages on the
west, and the ridge of land dividing the waters which flow into the
Atlantic ocean from those which flow into the Pacific on the east—
giving an area of about twelve thousand (12,000) square miles. The
Navajoes can muster from twenty-five hundred (2,500) to three thou-
sand (3,000) mounted warriors.
The great and distinguishing feature of the country occupied by
these people is the mountains. The entire country is composed of
them and the intervening valleys—their general direction being north
and south, with slight eastwardly and westwardly variation. They
are broken in many places into deep ravines and cafions, which, for
the most part, run perpendicularly to the general direction of the
mountain. These cafions afford, in many places, the only means of
traversing the country, unless with great difficulty and labor. On
their eastern aspect, these mountains present a slope which can be
ascended without much trouble, having an angle of elevation of
twenty, twenty-five, or thirty degrees ; but on the western side the
descent is generally abrupt and often impassable, presenting a perpen-
dicular wall of rock from three hundred (300) to tour hundred (400)
or more, feet in height. The top of the mountain is frequently leve
to a great extent, forming the table-land, or mesas, in the parlance of
the Mexicans. The appearance, looking west from the top of a high
mountain, is that of a succession of comparatively gentle slopes, rising
one after another. Looking east from the same mountain a series of
high escarpments is seen as far as vision extends. These mountains
are chiefly composed of sandstone—rocks, in all probability, belong-
ing to the period of the ‘‘new-red sandstone’ and carboniferous form-
ation. It is generally soft and friable; some, however, being found
suitable for building purposes in this altitude and climate, but not
284 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
for the lower and wore humid portions of the United States, east of
the Territory of New Mexico. Some limestone, of a very impure qual-
ity, is found in various localities, but it is exceedingly difficult to re-
duce, requiring from ten to fifteen days for its calcination. Sulphate
of lime, conglomerate, and in some places bituminous coal, exist.
Pyropes, of a fine quality, are seen in different portions of the country,
but they are generally small—the largest ever seen at Fort Defiance
weighing one hundred and twenty (120) grains. Masses of lava,
thrown up to the height of from two hundred to four hundred feet,
are visible in many sections of the country. An immense stream of
this substance exists on the road from Albuquerque to the Pueblo of
Zuni and to Fort Defiance, about sixty miles from Albuquerque,
ranging from a few hundred yards to a mile or more in width, and
about forty miles in length. The centre of action is supposed, by a
competent judge, to have been in the mountain of San Mateo, a high
mountain, visible from Santa Fé and Albuquerque, and west of the
latter city. This current seems to have flowed at a comparatively re-
cent period—the undulations and curled waves being distinctly visi-
ble ; and no mention is made of it by the Spaniards who first visited
New Mexico, although they traversed the portion of country through
which it has flowed. The Indians have no tradition of the eruption.
The stream is not in the district inhabited by the Navajoes, but upon
its borders. A few miles to the north and south of Fort Defiance
large trap-dykes have been thrown up, running across the valley in
which the garrison is situated. This, and the adjoining portions of
this continent, everywhere give evidence of violent’and relatively
recent volcanic action. In addition tothe eruptions found in so many
sections of this particular portion of the continent, we have direct tes-
timony in the account of the expeditions of the first Spanish adven-
turers to New Mexico and California, as in the following extract :
‘They followed their route, [in the vicinity of the head of the Gulf
of California,| and reached a place covered with ashes so hot that it
was impossible to march over it, for they might as well have drowned
themselves in the sea. The earth trembled like a drum, which caused
the supposition of subterraneous lakes, and the ashes boiled in a man-
ner truly infernal.’’
The soil is chiefly sand, mixed in some places with clay, and is
very porous. It is little susceptible of cultivation—doubtless, in some
measure, owing to the want of water for irrigation. The ground in
many places, especially after having been wet, is covered with an
efflorescence of impure carbonate of soda ; and when such is the case,
cultivation is out of the question. A qualitative analysis of the water
used at Fort Defiance shows the presence of carbonates and sulphates
of lime and magnesia and carbonate of soda, as the preponderating
constituents ; sulphate of soda, and traces of potash and chloride of
sodium. The water is very ‘‘ hard,’’ and acts as a purgative upon
those not accustomed to use it.
In wet weather, at the close of winter, and in July, August, and
September, the country, from the porosity of the soil, is almost im-
passable, both in the valleys and upon the mesas, except by the beaten
trails. The valleys and hills almost everywhere are covered with ar-
Ce
tn: Sy ie kee fe a
a
OS ee ee ee ee Pe. a ee ee ee
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 285
temisia, and where it grows nothing else will flourish, not even grass,
to any extent ; and the appearance of the country, covered with this
shrub, is one of exceeding desolation.
The district possessed by these people has had for many years the
reputation of being the finest grazing country in the Territory of
New Mexico, and the fame thereof has reached the eastern portion of
the United States. The grass called in the country ‘‘ sheep gama’’
is most abundant, and is found upon the sides of the mountains, upon
the mesas, and in the valleys, when not too moist. What is denom-
inated ‘‘ horse gama’’ is a different species, and is not found except
in limited quantities ; almost none may, with propriety, be said to
erow in the Navajo country. This variety of gama is excellent for
srazing and for hay, being very nutritious and green in the win-
ter, when deprived of its cuticle. Horses are exceedingly fond of this
species, but of the ‘sheep gama”’ they are not. Taking the country
at large, it will be found that, in regard to the abundance of natural
pasturage, it has been vastly overrated, and we have no hesitation in
saying that were the flocks and herds belonging to these Indians
doubled, the country could not sustain them. There is required for
grazing and procuring hay for the consumption of the animals at Fort
Defiance, garrisoned by two companies, one partly mounted, fifty (60)
square miles, and this is barely, if at all, sufficient. The hay pro-
cured is a very inferior article, and such as could not be sold at a price
at all remunerative in the cultivated portions of the United States.
The great reputation which this portion of New Mexico has obtained
for grazing has, in part, no doubt, arisen from the fact of the country
having been but little frequented by the Mexicans, and, consequently,
but little known, and from the number of sheep driven from the set-
tlements on the Rio Grande by these people, although this, without
doubt, has been greatly exaggerated. It is far from uncommon that
a country which is little known, has attributed to it many qualities
which, on being more inquired into, have scarcely anything to rest
upon other than the fertile imaginations of those who have passed.
through it, or live at some distance from it. The barrenness and des-
olation so inseparable from immense masses of rock, and hills and
valleys covered with artemisia, are here seen and felt in their widest
and fullest extent.
Pine, scrub-cedar, scrub-oak, and the pifion, are the more common
trees. The mountains, except where composed of the bare rock, are
sparsely covered with scrub-cedar, pifion, and stunted pines. The
large pine, suitable for building purposes, is found in the recesses of
the mountains, but is not abundant. . The scrub-oak is scarce, and is
suitable only as a last resort for economical purposes. A few small
cotton-wood trees are occasionally seen in the damp ravines. A spe-
cies of locust, bearing a very beautiful pink flower, has been found,
but the trees are small and scarce. The wild hop grows in many
places in great luxuriance, and is in every respect suitable for culi-
nary purposes. <A species of wild currant and wild gooseberry, and
various kinds of willow, are met with. The variety of willow from
which the ‘‘Northwestern Indians’’ procure the material so much
used for smoking, is indigenous, and the bark, when prepared, 1s
286 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
identical when smoked, in taste and smell, as we can say from our
own experience, with that used by those Indians. It is said to be
used by these Indians, but we have never seen them using it. They,
however, do not use the pipe, but confine themselves to the cigarrito,
made of the corn-husk.
The animals found in this country are the brown bear, black-tailed
deer, antelope, wild-cat, porcupine, long and short-eared rabbit,
prairie-dog, ‘* coyote’’ and elope, ” two varieties of the wolf, and
the common fox ; two species of rattlesnake, and the tarantula are
also found. The eagle, raven, turkey-buzzard, various kinds of ducks
and teal, the < paisano,”’ a species of jay, and what is called the
magpie, the wild- turkey, white and sand-hill crane, woodpeckers and
wrens, are the principal birds. We do not suppose this list to be
complete.
The annexed table is an abstract from the meteorological register
at Fort Defiance, in latitude 35° 40’, longitude 109° 1 30”, and at
an altitude of about 8,000 feet above the sea, credit being due for the
observations taken previous to October, 1854, to the medical officers
stationed there before that time. -
Mean temperature of four daily observations, and maximum and minimum tem-
perature, and quantity of rain, mm inches, for each month, at Fort Defiance, V. M.
Sunrise.|9 a. M.|3 p. M.|9 p. M.|Mean.| Rain. Remarks.
1853.
October..... | 29.61) 46.64) 59.83) 40.77) 44.70 94) Max., 73° on 13th; min., 17° on 27th; range, 56°
November... 24.56} 33.13) 55.03) 33.00) 39.79]...... 69° on 4th 5 13° on 3d; 56°
December....| 19.59) 27.45] 42.35) 26.51! 30.97 AED) 57° on 2d 3 6° on 19th; SLE
1854.
January..... 15.45] 22.38] 36.80) 24.25) 26.12} 1.11} Max., 49° on 14th; min.—18° on2I1st; range, 67°;
thermometer stood at—20° at 5} a. m.
February....| 19.67) 30.14) 46.67) 29.67) 33.17) 09) Max., 54° on Sth; min., 2° on 15th ; 3 range, 52°
March....... 24.83) 37.87) 50.25) 35.22) 37.54 45 59° on 30th 5 8° on 13th; 51°
PPTs isier00 30.20} 50.33] 60.10) 44.46) 45.05 -90) 75° on 28th3 14° on 9th; 61°
May... 35.83) 54.93] 64.83) 48.64) 50.38 aay 77° on 24th; 19° on &th; 58°
UNC aieisiale 45.46) 68.33) 77.23) 58.60) 61.34) 1.24 92° on 22d; 30° on 2d5 62°
DU sce eee 59,38) 72.48) 85.74) 66.19) 72.56) 3.94 95° on 2Ist5 51° on 2ist5 44°
Angust... 54.83) 67.77] 75.51] 61.74] 65.17) 5.24 84° on 7th; 46° on 25th ; 38°
september 46.13) 59.33} 70.40) 52.60) 58.26) 3 47 79° on 6th; 35° on 15th 5 44°
October.....| 38.48] 45.54) 68.44} 43.19) 53.46 62) 76° on 3d; 25° on 30th: SL?
November...| 26.90) 34.43) 56.73 34.29) 41.8] 49 72° on Sth; 17° on 18th; Hom
December....; 21.51) 28.10} 49.19) 28.39} 35.31) 1.20) 65° on 2d; 10° on 8lst; 55°
1855. |
January......| 12.67} 20.70} 43,93) 21.60) 28.74) .83) _Max., 59° on 18th; min.—17° on 6th; range, 76°
February ....| 22.22) 30.06) 51.14} 31.07) 36.68) 1.72 61° on 28th 5 13° on Ist; 46°
March ...... | 98.51) 37.74) 61.49) 33.41) 45.00) 3.30 74° on o5th 3 19° on 18th; bape?
SANDY sicictatoreiele | 32,93) 42.03) 69.26) 36.03) 51.06 50 80° on 22d 5 92° on 6th ; 58°
May > 35.60) 47.55) 73.38) 40.10) 54.44 06 87° on 3lst; 21° on 27th; 66°
June........| 50.76) 62.03) 86.45) 56.04) 68.61 -43 94° on 3d, 16th,
24th,and27th; 34° on 9th; 60°
RU icste'n'eive 56.96) 65.96) 92.06) 53.90) 74.06) 1.54 99° on 7th ; 36° on Ist; 63°
August...... 52.64) 59.09] 79.24) 48.19) 65.90) 3.92 91° on 2d 5 43° on 224d 5 48°
September...) 49.10} 60.43] 73.10) 54.40) 61,09) 2.86 81° on 15th ; 39° on 30th ; 42°
7A.M. 2P.M.|\9P.M Mean.) Rain.| Hours of observations changed by the surgeon gen-
eral of the army.
October ..... -| Max., 79° on 14th; min., 31° on 28th; range, 48°
November... 7 64° on 11th; 8° on 18th ; 56°
December... 56° on 10th ; 25° on 25th ; 81°
1856.
January..... 11.67] 40.06} 19.35)......| 23.67) .82 54° on 6th 5 —8° on 28th ; 62°
February.... 13.31] 42.03) 19.68)......) 25.00} 1.54 51° on 9th 5 —3° on 8th ; 54°
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 287
On the 25th of December, 1855, the thermometer at the hospital
of Fort Defiance gave a reading of thirty-two (32°) degrees below
zero at 64a.m. The hospital is not by any means in the coldest
portion of the garrison. ‘T'wo hundred yards distant the mercury, in
January, 1856, ranged from four to eight degrees below that at the
hospital, and there is not the slightest doubt of the freezing of the
mercury had the instrument been placed in the more exposed sit-
uation on the morning of December 25, 1855. A number of men on
detached service had their hands and feet frozen, and some badly.
The mercury was below zero four mornings in December, 1855, six
mornings in January, 1856, three mornings in February, and on the
mornings of the Ist and 2d of March it was also below zero.
The table above will give a fair idea of the climate of the country.
The winter of 1855 and 1856 was more severe than any one known
for many years. The wintry weather commenced on the Ist of No-
vember, 1855, and has continued up to the present time, (March 14,
1856.) The Rio Grande at Albuquerque was frozen over, and with
ice sufficiently strong to bear a horse and carreta. Those Indians
who live habitually to the north of Fort Defiance were obliged to
abandon that portion of the country and move south with their flocks
and herds in quest of grazing, on account of the depth of snow,
which on the mountain, at whose base the fort is situated, was over
two feet in depth in March, 1856. It is said by the Indians that once
in many years a winter such as that of 1855 and 1856 is experienced,
and the assertion is corroborated by the early Spaniards, but none of
such severity has been felt since the occupation of the Territory by
the United States troops. The winters in the portion of the country
inhabited by the Navajoes are, however, generally of short duration
and comparatively mild, there being occasionally experienced in De-
cember, weather in many respects similar to the ‘‘ Indian summer ’’
of the Eastern States. As the days become longer and the sun has
more power, the roads become well nigh impassable, but it is almost
fatal to leave them for the drier-looking but more treacherous ground,
miring with horse or wagon being inevitable. In the spring, high
winds, generally from the south and southwest, prevail, and clouds of
dust fill the air, rendering travelling at that season disagreeable in
the highest degree. Rain and snow also come for the most part from
the south and west. In the summer the heat is not oppressive when
one is not exposed to the direct rays of the sun; but, however warm
the days may be, the nights are cool and pleasant, and blankets are
comfortable throughout the summer. The greatest quantity of rain
falls in July, August, and September. In April, May, and June,
vegetation becomes much parched, suffering greatly oftentimes for
water. The country is at such an altitude that evaporation goes on
with great rapidity, and when showers are not frequent, vegetation
suffers.
The amount of land fit for cultivation is very limited when com-
pared with the extent of country. Out of New Mexico we doubt if
any similar extent of country can be found in the domain of the
United States, in which the proportion of cultivable land is so small
as in the country inhabited by these Indians. It is generally neces-
288 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
sary to irrigate for the production of crops, and it will be seen at:
once that the crops must be small when the great elevation of the
country, from seven thousand (7,000) to nine thousand (9,000) feet
above the level of the sea, and the limited supply of water, are taken
into consideration. In some localities the Indians do without irriga-
tion, by planting to the depth of ten and twelve inches, which can be
done in some places without depriving the seed of air, on account of
the porosity of the soil. Maize, pumpkins, beans, and wheat are the
only productions. Wheat is not sown broadcast, but ten or fifteen
seeds are planted in a ‘‘hill,’’ after the manner of planting corn in
the United States. Maize is planted in the same manner, the ground,
in all cases, being prepared for planting by means of the hoe. The
only fruit cultivated is the peach, and this is only found in the cation
of Chelly and a few small cafions adjoining. We have seen some fine
specimens of this fruit brought from that cafion, but it can seldom
be obtained ripe, as the only mode of transporting in vogue among
these people is by means of buckskin bags on horses. During August
and September hundreds of Indians are collected in the cation just
referred to, living on corn and peaches until the crops are exhausted.
Nothing can be learned of the origin of these people from themselves.
At one time they say they came out of the ground ; and at another,
that they know nothing whatever of their origin; the latter, no doubt,
being the truth. We have been informed by a Navajo, who is the
* most reliable man in the nation, that his tribe is very far from being
pure blood ; that his people are mixed blood with Utahs, Apaches,
Mogquis, and Mexicans, and to such an extent that it is a matter of no
small difficulty to find a pure-blooded Navajo. On this account it is
difficult to give a description that would apply to the whole tribe.
Those of purest blood are of good size, nearly six feet in height, and
well proportioned ; cheek-bones high and prominent, nose straight
and well shaped; hair long and black; eyes black; superciliary ridge
small; teeth large, white, and regular, and frequently very hand-
some ; maxillary bones not larger than usual in men of such stature ;
feet small; lips of moderate size; head of medium size and well
shaped ; forehead not small but retreating. Others, those generally
of mixed blood, have low and very retreating foreheads; occiput
largely developed ; cheek-bones high and very prominent; maxillary
bones large and projecting in front; nose and lips very much resem-
bling those of the negro; about five feet two inches to five feet six
inches in height; the tout ensemble giving the idea of a man far in-
ferior to the Caucasian in the scale ot existence, and approaching, in
appearance, the brute creation, with which they have much in common.
So little government do these people possess, that it would be
difficult to give ita name. Anarchy is the only form, if form it can
be called. ‘They have no hereditary chief—none by election ; he who
now holds the nominal title of chief was appointed by the superinten-
dent of Indian affairs for the Territory, and the Indians had nothing
to do with it; a silver medal and a cane is the insignia of office.
The authority of the chief is merely nominal, and against the wishes
of a number of his tribe he is powerless, and his authority melts
away. Every one who has a few horses and sheep is a ‘‘ head man,’’
. ad py —s 2 < - 7
SS eo ee eee ee eee eee
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 289
and must have his word in the councils. Even those who by supe-
rior cunning have obtained some influence, are extremely careful lest
their conduct should not prove acceptable to their criticising inferiors.
The ‘‘juntas,’’ or councils, are generally composed of the richest
men, each one a self-constituted member, but their decisions are of but
little moment unless they meet the approbation of the mass of the people;
and for this reason these councils are exceedingly careful not to run
counter to the wishes of the poorer but more numerous class, being
well aware of the difficulty, if not impossibility, of enforcing any
act that would not command theirapproval. This want of a chief who
would be looked up to by his people, and with power to carry out
whatever measures are necessary for the welfare of his tribe, is a
great drawback, and renders the management of these people a matter
eften of serious concern, and requiring always a great deal of tact,
judgment, and discretion. The nation, as a nation, is fully imbued
with the idea that it is all-powerful, which, no doubt, has arisen from
the fact of its having been for years a terror and a dread to the inhab-
itants of New Mexico. The rich men, however, are fast becoming con-
vinced that the government troops are not frightened at the mention
of their names; yet this opinion is far from prevalent among those (and
they are the great majority) who own no flocks or herds. Persons of
this class frequently commit depredations to a small extent, and so
powerless is the chief to prevent acts of this kind, or punish the
depredator, that he frequently pays from his own herds the value
of the article stolen. In short, their government is no government
at all; the chief has no authority, and every one does that which
seemeth good in his own sight. It is only the fear of the military
power which keeps them in any kind of order.
Their houses are temporary huts of the most miserable construction.
They are conical in shape, made of sticks, and covered with branches
and dirt, from six to sixteen feet in diameter, and in many of them a
man cannot stand erect. A hole covered with an eld blanket or
sheepskin serves the purpose of a door. The hovel is doubtless warm
enough in winter, but must be sadly deficient in fresh air, at least to
sensitive nostrils. Some live in caves in the rocks, and this can be
the only foundation for the assertion that they ‘‘build stone houses.’’
These people build no houses but the huts to which we have just
alluded, and they show the high degree of civilization so much
praised as being superior to that found among any other wild Indians
in any portion of the territory of the United States. In the con-
struction of their dwellings we have no hesitation in saying, that
these people are greatly inferior to the ‘‘ Northwestern Indians,”’ as
we have seen the habitations of both. When an Indian dies in one
of these huts it is immediately abandoned, and upon no considera-
tion can any one’be induced to inhabit it again, or to use it fer any
purpose whatever. A small hut, about three feet in height, is erected
for taking hot-air baths after any fatiguing exertion. A number of
heated stones are placed inside, the person enters, and covering the
hole with a blanket, 1s soon in a copious perspiration.
The men clothe themselves somewhat differently, Some wear short
breeches of brownish-colored buckskin, or red baize, buttoned at the
19
290 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
knee, and leggins of the same material. A small blanket, or a piece
of red baize, with a hole in it, through which the head is thrust,
extends a short distance below the small of the back, and covers the
abdomen in front, the sides being partially sewed together; and a
strip of red cloth attached to the blanket or baize, where it covers the
shoulder, forms the sleeve, the whole serving the purpose of a coat.
Over all is thrown a blanket, under and sometimes over which is worn
a belt, to which are attached oval pieces of silver, plain or variously
wrought. Many of the rich men wear, when ‘‘ dressed,’’ a coat and
pantaloons brought from the United States. A shirt made of un-
bleached cotton cloth, also from the Eastern States, and breeches of
the same material, made to come a little below the knee, are much worn
by the ‘‘ middle class.’’ The men, as a rule, make their own clothes.
These articles constitute the only covering, together with the breech-
cloth and moccasins, that are used. Many are seen who wear nothing
but a blanket, and some in summer, nothing but the breech-cloth, and
we have seen some with no covering but moecasins and a cotton shirt,
when the mercury was below zero. The moccasin is made of buck-
skin, with a sole of raw-hide, and comes well up on the leg. It is
fashioned alike for men and women. The latter wear a blanket
fastened about the waist, and sewed up the sides for askirt. The front
and back parts being attached over either shoulder, a covering is
obtained for the front and back portions of the body. The skirt comes
down below the knee, about half way to the ankle, the leg being well
wrapped in uncolored buckskin. They sit upon their horses in the
same manner as the men. As a general rule, neither sex wear any
head-dress ; an old cap or hat, or dirty rag, is sometimes worn, but
they have no regular covering for the head, even in the coldest days
in winter or warmest in summer. The hair is worn long, and tied
up behind, by both men and women. ‘That of sick persons is gener-
ally cut short, and that of children also, to enable the latter-the more
easily to get rid of the parasitic insects which are by no means un-
common to the whole tribe. With very few exceptions, the want of
cleanliness is universal—a shirt being worn until it will no longer
hang together, and it would be difficult to tell the original color.
These people suffer much from rheumatism, and gonorrheea and syph-
ilis are not at all rare. Many have a cough, and look consumptive.
Various herbs, sweating, scarifications, and incantations are the chief
remedial measures. Women, when in parturition, stand upon their
feet, holding to a rope suspended overhead, or upon the knees, the
body being erect. Accouchment is generally easy, and of short dura-
tion ; when difficult and prolonged, recourse is had to superstitious
observances to bring about a successful issue.
The chief grain used for food is maize. When not fully matured it
is pounded, mixed with pumpkins when these can be procured,
wrapped in the husk, and baked in the ashes. ‘They doubtless have
other ways of preparing it, but we are not aware of them. It would
be hard to say what they would not eat. The majority seem to live
on what they can get—deer, antelope, sheep, horses, mules, rabbits,
prairie-dogs ; and we have seen some eat meat in such a state of pu-
tridity that the sight was disgusting in the extreme. All are very
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 291
fond of bread and sugar, and seem to have a natural taste for all kinds
of liquors. They never kill bears or rattlesnakes unless attacked,
some superstition being connected with these animals.
The chief occupation of these people consists in rearing sheep and
horses. The number of sheep has been very variously estimated, by
those who have been much among them, the highest estimate being
two hundred thousand, and this number is probably as near the
truth as can be obtained. The wool is coarse and is never shorn.
The sheep are in all respects similar to those raised by the Mexicans,
occasionally one being seen having four horns. The males are per-
mitted to run with the herds at all seasons, and the young, conse-
quently, are born in the winter as well as in the spring and autumn,
and many die. For this reason, their flocks do not increase with the
rapidity generally believed by those not much acquainted with these
people. It is a great mistake to suppose there is anything peculiar
about Navajo sheep, for such is not the case. Goats are also reared,
and are allowed to run with the sheep. The mutton is excellent in
the autumn, when the sheep have had the benefit of the summer’s
grazing, but we think not at all superior to that obtained in the east-
ern and mountainous portions of the United States.
The spinning and weaving is done by the women, and by hand.
The thread is made entirely by hand, and is coarse and uneven.
The blanket is woven by a tedious and rude process, after the man-
ner of the Pueblo indians, and is very coarse, thick, and heavy, with
little nap, and cannot bear comparison with an American blanket for
warmth and comfort. Many of them are woven so closely as to hold
water; but this is of little advantage, for when worn during a rain
they become saturated with water, and are then uncomfortably heavy.
The colors are red, blue, black, and yellow; black and red being the
most common. The red strands are obtained by unravelling red
cloth, black by using the wool of black sheep, blue by dissolving
indigo in fermented urine, and yellow is said to be by coloring with
a particular flower. The colors are woven in bands and diamonds.
We have never observed blankets with figures of a complicated pattern.
Occasionally a blanket is seen which is quite handsome, and costs at
the same time the extravagant price of forty or fifty dollars; these,
however, are very scarce, and are generally made for a special pur-
pose. The Indians prefer an American blanket, as it is lighter and
much warmer. The article manufactured by them is superior, because
of its thickness, to that made in the United States, for placing between
the bed and the ground when bivouacing, and this is the only use it
can be put to in which its superiority isshown. The manner of weaving
is peculiar, and is, no doubt, original with these people and the neigh-
boring tribes; and, taken in connexion with the fact of some dilapi-
dated buildings (not of Spanish structure) being found in different
portions of the country, it has suggested the idea that they may once
have been what are usually called ‘‘ Pueblo Indians.”’
They possess from fifty thousand to sixty thousand horses, which
are doubtless descended from those brought to this continent by the
Spaniards. In rearing them attention is only given to the character
of the sire; none being paid to that of the dam, as they suppose the
292 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
superiority of the offspring to depend entirely upon the excellence of
the former. The horses are small, a few handsome, and a very few
fleet. They are frequently ridden fast and a long distance in a day;
but they are usually often changed, and after having been ridden
hard, are turned into the herd and not used again for many days.
The saddle is not peculiar, but generally resembles that used by the
Mexicans. They ride with a very ‘‘short stirrup,’’ which is placed
farther to the front than on a Mexican saddle. The bit of the bridle
has a ring attached to it, through which the lower jaw is partly
thrust, and a powerful pressure is exerted by this means when the
reins are tightened. Hanging down beneath the lips are small pieces
of steel attached to the bit, which jingle as they ride. The side and
front parts generally consist of strings ;,sometimes made of leather,
and not unfrequently ornamented with plates of pure silver, of the
purity of which, by the way, these people are excellent judges. The
chief merit of these horses consists in their being very sure-footed.
It is not a little astonishing that the published accounts of them
should be so far wide of the mark; such as ‘‘that they are equal to
the finest horses of the United States, in appearance and value.”’” We
have seen great numbers of these horses, and instead of being “equal
to the finest horses of the United States,’’ we can say, without the
slightest hesitation, that they have been vastly over-estimated, and
are far inferior in appearance, usefulness, and value to the American
horse. A few are comparatively fleet and handsome, but there are
numbers of army horses in the Territory fleeter, better looking, and
much more valuable. Two or three comparatively fine horses can
occasionally be found in a herd of a hundred, but to give as a general’
character of these animals such as has been given in the above quota-
tion is a great mistake. The usual price is thirty dollars.
It cannot, with truth, be said of these Indians that ‘‘ they encourage
industry by general consent,’’ for the word ‘‘industry’’ cannot with
propriety be applied to them. They plant wheat and maize, and
rear horses and sheep, but are not, in any proper sense of the term,
an industrious people. Like all Indians, they will not work more than
is necessary for subsistence; and, were the word ‘‘laziness’’ substi-
tuted for ‘“‘industry’’ in the quotation just given, the statement would
be much more nearly correct. They are, however, industrious beggars.
They do not ‘‘make butter and cheese.’’ These are rare articles
in a Mexican household; and when we are aware that nearly all their
knowledge of the arts of civilized life is derived from their inter-
course with Mexicans, and that they have very few cattle, the error of
attributing the manufacture of these articles to these people is ap-
parent. Some who own cattle make from the curd of soured milk
small masses, which some have called cheese; but to give this name
and no description of the article, would certainly leave an erroneous
impression. It bears little resemblance to the substance denomi-
nated cheese in the United States.
For ages these Indians have been a terror to the inhabitants of New
Mexico. Wherever they have gone among the inhabitants of the
valley of the Rio Grande, they have spread consternation and dismay ;
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 293
doors have been closed and fastened, and invocations to the saints
offered up for protection. They are even said to have insulted the
governor in his palace, at Santa Fe, and filled the city with terror.
Shepherds have abandoned their flocks at the appearance of one of
these men of the mountains; and children have been, and are yet,
frightened into good behavior by the mention of their name. But
since the occupation of the country by the United States forces, this
prestige is fast melting away even with the Mexicans. Their great
fame for bravery has arisen not so much from any courageous disposi-
tion superior to that of other Indians in the Territory, as from their
numbers and from the character of the people with whom they have
had to deal.
Some years since, a small party of Delawares appeared among
them to revenge an outrage perpetrated upon one of their number who
had wandered west of the Rio Grande, and to this day these people
hold a Delaware in the highest respect. Prior to the abolition ot
Spanish authority upon this continent, the Spaniards spread desolation
throughout their entire country and compelled them to beg fervently
for peace. But this wholesome state of things changed for the worse
when the Spanish rule ceased, and until the authority of the United
States was established in the Territory, the Navajoes ran riot, masters
wherever they went; and, from the fact of their having been allowed
so to do, they yet hold themselves in high esteem; but instead of being
feared by government troops, the order of things is fast becoming re-
versed, as may be perceived from the fact of two companies of United
States troops having held in check over two thousand warriors mounted
and armed.
They use the bow and arrow, and spear, and use them well. The
bow is about four feet in length, and made of some kind of wood
which is said not to grow in the Navajo country, and is covered on the
back with a kind of fibrous tissue. The arrow is about two feet long
and pointed with iron. The spear is eight or ten feet in length, in-
cluding the point, which is about eighteen inches long, and also made
of iron. In case of war, they would give no inconsiderable trouble ;
not so much from active fighting, as from frequenting high and al-
most inaccessible cliffs, in which the country abounds, and the many
hiding-places in the cafions and recesses of the mountains, which,
fer a time, from their superior knowledge of the country, they would,
in a measure, be able to do. It would not be correct, however, to
suppose that they would not fight, for so great an idea do they have
of their prowess, that they no doubt would trust in their skill and
bravery until it was apparent that these would not avail; but, like
all Indians, they would not risk a fight, if it were possible to avoid
it, unless they possessed greatly the advantage in position and num-
bers. Some of them have fire-arms in addition to their usual wea-
pons. We have seen some excellent looking rifles in the possession
of some of them, bearing the name of ‘Albright,’ (of St. Louis,
doubtless,) which the owners state were procured in the Territory of
Utah. They have not been sufficiently accustomed to the use of these
weapons to use them skilfully, and at present are much more formid-
294 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
able with the bow and arrow. They value fire-arms highly, and
obtain them whenever an occasion offers.
Of their religion little or nothing is known, as, indeed, all inquiries
tend to show that they have none; and even have not, we are informed,
any word to express the idea of a Supreme Being. We have not been
able to learn that any observances of a religious character exist
among them; and the general impression of those who have had
means of knowing them is, that, in this respect, they are steeped in
the deepest degradation. Their system of morality is exceedingly
defective. No confidence can be placed in any assertion they may
make, unless it be manifestly for their welfare to tell the truth ; they
give utterance to whatever they suppose is calculated to promote
their interests. Theft and mendacity are common vices. The habit
of stealing is so common, that they will appropriate to themselves
whatever they can lay their hands on, whether of any use or not, such
as door-knobs and keys. Not only do they steal from those who do
not belong to their tribe, but continually from one another. Those
who possess anything which they consider valuable, invariably hide
it from their own family; for husbands cannot trust their own wives.
So little confidence do they place in each other, that those who own
herds fear to leave them, lest some depredation be committed by their
own people. Application has been made to the present commanding
officer of Fort Defiance, (Major Kendrick, U. 8. Army,) by one of the
richest men in the nation, to have his cattle placed under the pro-
tection of the guard which has charge of those belonging to the post,
on the ground that he could not prevent people of his own tribe from
killing them. And we may add, in this connexion, that the same
person requested the commandant to put balls and chains on some of
his peons (a system of peonage existing among these people) who
had been caught stealing, not daring to take the responsibility of
punishing the culprits upon himself.
Such facts as these show how ill-founded is the statement made of
these people, that ‘‘ dishonesty is held in check by suitable regula-
tions.’’ If any such regulations exist, (which we do not hesitate to
doubt,) they are most emphatically a dead letter. Their morals are
extremely loose—the husband keeping a constant watch upon his
wife, lest she stray from the paths of rectitude; and venereal dis-
eases are by no means uncommon. The women, however, exert a
great deal of influence—more than in the majority of Indian tribes.
They have entire charge of the children, and do not allow the father
to correct his own offspring. In fact, an Indian has said that he was
afraid to correct his own boy, lest the child should wait for a conve-
nient opportunity, and shoot him with an arrow. The husband has
no control over the property of his wife, their herds being kept sepa-
rate and distinct ; from which, doubtless, arises the influence of the
women not only in their own peculiar sphere, but also in national
matters, which it is well known they oftentimes exert. The wife 1s
usually bought with horses, of her father—no ceremony that we are
aware of being performed; and if upon trial she does not like her
husband, she leaves him, and there the matter ends. Polygamy is
practised by all who can afford to sustain more than one wife; but the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 295
women do not necessarily inhabit the same hut, or even live in the
same neighborhood. Property does not descend from father to son,
but goes to the nephew of the decedent, or, in default of a nephew, to
the niece; so that the father may be rich, and upon his death his
children become beggars; but if, while living, he distributes his prop-
erty to his children, that disposition i is recognised,
Captives taken in their forays are usually treated kindly. Those
who have been some years among them, for the most part prefer re-
maining rather than join their own kindred. Those who do leave
them are generally such as doubtless have been punished for their
own misdeeds, and are such, judging from what we have seen, as
would be a nuisance to any community, however savage—surpassingly
idle, lazy, and vicious.
Hospitality exists among these Indians to a great extent, all being
said to share whatever food they may have with any one who visits
them. Nor are these people cruel, in the usual acceptation of the word
as applied to barbarous nations. They are treacherous; they will
steal, and will not hesitate to kill, when by so doing their pur-
poses are more easily accomplished ; but they are not prone to murder
for the mere love of taking life.
They have frequent gatherings for dancing, and are fond of games
of skill, and of chance—the latter being more in vogue than the former,
as they are greatly addicted to gambling, often risking everything
upon the issue of a single game. One game is played somewhat on
the principle of gambling with dice. Their singing is but a succes-
sion of grunts, and is anything but agreeable.
In speaking of these people we have been compelled to differ in
many respects from what has been written concerning their man-
mers and customs, and mode of life. ‘A character has been given
them (Transactions of the American Ethnological Society, vol. 2)
that would do honor to a civilized and christianized community for
industry, morals, and intelligence. We hazard nothing in the asser-
tion that they are neither an industrious, moral, nor a civilized peo-
ple. In the whole nation one or two may be found who are reliable
men, cn cearetcgmne they are Navajo Indians, who would not falsify
merely for the sake of falsifying, or steal for the love of stealing ; but
we would not advise any one to place confidence in even the best of
— people, lest he should find himself leaning on a reed easily
roken.
The lack of traditions is a source of surprise. They have no knowl-
edge of their origin, or of the history of the tribe. Ifthey are a branch
of the race of people who attained such a high degree of civilization in
Mexico, they have creatly degenerated, and would scarcely be recog-
nised by their more polished brethren. Upon this head all is in-
volved in obscurity and doubt, though there’ is no want of fanciful
speculation. Resemblances have been found, where, upon more care-
ful inquiry, it is impossible to find the faintest trace ; old dilapidated
buildings, evidently of Spanish origin, have been sear ched thr oughout
their length, breadth, and height, for vestiges of a by-gone race.
Pieces of broken potter y have been closely scrutinized, wisely pondered
296 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
over, and carefully figured in books as relics of a past age and
a civilized people; samples of which, in no way different, may at
any time be obtained by breaking a ‘‘ tinaja,’’ which can be procured
from any pueblo for half a dollar. The ardent and laudable de-
sire shown to trace the origin, divisions, and resting-places of this
people, have, we think, taken a wrong direction, and that their
language alone can be of service in tracing them, if they can be traced
at all. It is impossible to learn anything from the people themselves,
as they have no traditions. A volume of no mean size might be writ-
ten, were all the stories of interpreters taken for truth ; but it would
be found one mass of contradictions, and of no value whatever. If ever
these people possessed the art of making pottery they have lost it, for
they certainly make none now. They cultivate no cotton, neither do
they produce any fabrics of that material, nor do they make any feather-
work. Though we have had an abundant opportunity, we have never
seen anything approaching, in the slightest degree, the description of
the feather-work of the ancient inhabitants of Mexico. Almost all
the arts they possess, and which are very few, may be accounted for
by the occupation of New Mexico by the Spaniards: With minds filled
with one absorbing idea—that of discovering the stopping-places of the
renowned race found by the conquerors in the valley of Tenochtitlan—
this country has been hurriedly traversed, and old buildings have been
restored in drawings by enthusiastic imaginations, and filled with the
ancestors of these people. A unity of origin of different races has been
deduced from manners and customs that are common to humanity.
We have ventured to suggest, that the language must be studied to
discover a common origin, if such ever existed. ‘To trace it in their
habits, or in their arts and customs, or by catechising Indians, is, we
think, entirely out of the question. It is a matter of no great diffi-
culty to learn from intelligent Pueblo Indians that one day they ex-
pect to see Montezuma; that they worship him, and keep fires con-
stantly burning to await hiscoming. Indians are proverbially shrewd
in these things, and unless questions are put with extraordinary tact,
they are keen enough to see what answers would be well received, and
answer accordingly. As well might the origin of the tribes in New
Mexico, because some of them keep a constant fire, (upon which so
much stress is placed,) be ascribed to the inhabitants of ancient Persia
or of Rome, as toany other. It has been no uncommon custom among
nations in different periods of the world’s history to kindle sacred fires;
so that we think little reliance can be placed upon this coincidence ;
and we believe just as little can be placed in the statements of the
comings and goings and miraculous interpositions of Montezuma.
The so-called hieroglyphics are equally unsatisfactory. Many of the
pictures (which are very rude) were evidently drawn for mere pastime,
and with reference tospast, present, or future events, have no signifi-
cance whatever. The figures drawn upon pottery are only the result
of a rude taste common to uncultivated people. Those sketched upon
rocks are of a similar character; some, however, seem to have been
engraven for the purpose of giving a visible embodiment to the lech-
erous imaginings of an uncivilized people, whose inclinations in many
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 297
respects would be disgraceful to the brute creation. . These remarks,
however, apply more especially to the Pueblo Indians in the vicinity
of the Navajo country, the Navajoes themselves having, as we have
remarked, no traditions, make no pottery, nor do they keep any sacred
fires burning.
A new country and a new people are apt to excite the imagination
of those who see them for the first time. Especially is this the case
in the present instance. This country, which was long a terra incog-
nita, has been pointed out as the probable temporary abode of the
celebrated people found by the Spaniards in the valley of Mexico,
while everything relating to them is interesting on account of the
obscurity which envelopes their origin.
Norsg.—It affords me much pleasure to acknowledge my obligations to Major Kendrick,
of the army, for information in reference to this country and these people; and espe-
eially as the value of his information is equalled only by his willingness and his kindness
in imparting it.
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—
CORRESPONDENCE.
TOPOGRAPHY -OFfBLACK «MOU N Tabs
By Hon. THOMAS L. CLINGMAN, or N. C.
The following communication contains information relative to the
topography of a portion of our country but little known. The highest
point of the Black Mountain, now called Clingman’s Peak, is the most
elevated spot on our continent, east of the Rocky Mountains. This fact
has been fully established, since the date of Mr. Clingman’s letter, by
a series of measurements, conducted with every precaution to insure
accuracy, by Professor Guyot. He found the altitude of Mount Mitchell
to be 6,585 feet, and that of Clingman’s Peak to be 6,710 feet.
J. H., Secretary S. I.
ASHEVILLE, N. C., October 20, 1855.
My Dzar Sir: The interest you manifested, a year or two since,
with reference to one of the mountains in our region, induces me to
address this letter to you. From time to time there have been dis-
cussions as to where the highest point of land is to be found east ef
the Mississippi river. You doubtless recollect a controversy as to the
relative height of the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the
Black Mountains of North Carolina. Professor Mitchell succeeded, I
think, in making it appear that that portion of the Black Mountain
since called Mitchell’s Peak, or Mount Mitchell, was higher than Mount
Washington, the elevated point of the White Mountain range.
But even at the time of his measurement I was of the opinion that
he had not succeeded in getting upon the highest point of the Black
Mountain. In our frequent conversations, both before and since that
time, he did not appear to feel at all confident on the subject. It is
with reference to the fact that another peak of the mountain is higher
than any ascended, or measured by him, that I purpose now to speak.
It may appear strange to some persons, at a distance, that at this
time there should be any doubt as to the fact, capable seemingly of
so easy demonstration. Those who have been on the mountain, and
who therefore know the difficulty, heretofore, of getting to the top,
do not share in this feeling. When, some twenty years ago, Dr.
Mitchell began his observations with reference to the height of the
mountain, it was much more inaccessible than it has since become, by
reason of the progress of the settlements around its base; so that he
was liable to be misled, and thwarted by unforeseen obstacles in his
efforts to reach particular points of the chain ; and when he did attain
some part of the top of the ridge, nature was too much exhausted to
300 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
allow more than an observation as to the immediate locality. It has
happened that in his several attempts, both from the north and the
south, he never succeeded in reaching the highest portion of the
range.
The Black Mountain lies wholly on the western side of the Blue
Ridge, the name given in this State to the mountains which divide
the waters of the Atlantic from those of the Mississippi. It is nearly
twenty miles in length, and in form almost makes a semi-circle, with
one of its ends projected in the direction of its tangent. In a part of
its course it approaches within three miles of the Blue Ridge, and is
connected with that mountain by a lower ridge than itself. At the
junction there rises a pyramidal peak, known as the High Pinnacle
of the Blue Ridge, and which is probably the very highest point of
the ‘‘ Great Divide,’’ surpassing, I think, both the Grandfather and
the Hog-back. About one mile north of where this connecting ridge
unites with the Black, stands Mount Mitchell. Something more than
one-third of the entire chain of the mountain runs from this peak,
first in a westerly, and at length in a northwesterly direction.
Rather more than half of the ridge of the Black, therefore, lies to the
northeast of Mount Mitchel. The chain in its entire length is covered,
not only on its top, but down its sides, for one or two miles, with
dense forests of the balsam-fir tree. Its dark green foliage gives the
mountain, whether seen in summer or winter, from all points of the
compass, and at all distances, the appearance of ground recently
burnt over, and irresistibly suggested the name by which it has been
known since the earliest settlement of the country. That point which
I am satisfied is the highest of the range, is situated about three (3)
miles to the northeast of Mount Mitchell. Having lately visited it,
with a view of determining, as nearly as possible, under the circum-
stances, its altitude, I now propose to give you the results of my ob-
servations. I shall, in the first place, assume that the height of
Mitchell’s Peak has been correctly ascertained, though, in common
with several subsequent observers, I am inclined to think that Dr.
Mitchell rather understates its real altitude above the sea. During
his observations he had a barometer stationed at Asheville, for the
purpose of comparison with that which he carried with him. Ashe-
ville he estimated to be twenty-two hundred (2,200) feet above the
level of the ocean. He gave for the height of the peak bearing his
name six thousand six hundred and seventy-two (6,672) feet. Between
this and another point my comparison has been so made as to leave no
doubt whatever of the superiority of the latter. During the period
of my observations, one barometer was observed by Mr. W. McDowell,
the clerk in the Bank of Cape Fear, at Asheville, and another by
Dr. A. M. Forster, who lives a mile from the village, and who was
kind enough to assist mein this manner. From this place to the top
of Mount Mitchell the distance is not more than twenty miles in a
direct line. The barometer which I carried with me has been in my
possession some months; and repeated trials at various elevations, of
well-known heights, have given me the fullest confidence in its accu-
racy. Whenever there is a difference of ten feet in the height of two
stations, no difficulty is experienced in determining it. On the 8th
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 301
September last, at nine o’clock and twenty-four minutes, at the top of
Mount Mitchell, the barometer stood twenty-three and forty-nine hun-
dredths (23.49) inches. At the highest point, which I reached pre-
cisely at twelve o'clock, or two hours and thirty-six minutes later, it
was twenty-three and three-tenths (23.3) inches. I remained on the
top until one o’clock without perceiving any change. Taking each of
these nineteen hundredths (.19) at this altitude to represent eleven
feet, there would be a difference of two hundred and nine (209) feet in
favor of the latter peak. At Asheville, from eight o’clock to twelve
o clock, (the time when he closed the bank,) Mr. McDowell saw no
change whatever in his barometer. Dr. Forster observed his at ten
o'clock, at twelve o'clock, and at two o’clock, without any change
whatever being perceptible. Neither observed his barometer at a
Jater hour than I have indicated above. I found, however, at six
o'clock in the evening, on my return to the house I had left at eight
o'clock in the morning, there had, in the interval of ten hours, been
a fall of ten hundredths, (.1). Independently of the fact that neither
gentleman saw any change, during the morning, in his barometer, I
have reason to believe that the fall took place in the afternoon, be-
cause it became somewhat cloudy, and from the circumstance that the
barometer continued to fall slowly for two or three hours later in the
evening. If, however, part of this fall should be taken to have oc-
curred during the morning, between the hours of nine and twelve
o'clock, it would somewhat reduce the altitude of the highest peak
above Mount Mitchell, but would still show it to be the higher from
one hundred and forty (140) to two hundred (200) feet. Of the fact
of its greater elevation no oe will doubt who visits them both on the
same day, provided it be clear enough to allow them to be seen in con-
nexion with the other mountains around.
Until, however, I had attained the highest point, I did not feel
altogether sure but that one of the other peaks immediately north of
it, might not be equally or nearly as high. It happens, however, that
the course of the ridge northward was directly towards the Roan, a
mountain that for nine miles of its length has nearly a uniform height,
ascertained by Dr. Mitchell to be six thousand one hundred and eighty-
seven (6,187) feet above the sea, or more than five hundred (500)
feet lower than the Black. As its direction is nearly at right angles
with the line from my position to it, portions of it were beyond the
highest points of the northern range of the Black. Thus, though it
was distant nearly thirty (30) miles, in a direct line, and though it
was more than five hundred (500) feet lower than the spot on which I
stood, yet portions of it were visible directly over these points. Hav-
ing been there more than once, I saw clearly that the line of vision
passing the top of any one of the peaks on the Black would have
struck it below the crest of its ridge. What was still more satisfactory
to me, was the fact that these three points of the Black appeared to
the eye to have about the same elevation, being almost, but not quite,
in a line with each other. The northern, or most remote one, at the
termination of the mountain, near Burnsville, was ascertained by
Professor Mitchell to be ninety (90) feet lower than the Roan. It was
distant from me about eight (8) miles, and though much lower than
302 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
I was, yet it appeared as high as the nearer points; making it clear,
therefore, that the descending line from my eye to it, did not fall below
any part of the chain north of me. 1 was in this way fully satisfied
that the ground on which I stood was higher than any of these points.
I may remark, in confirmation of the barometrical measurement,
that, when one is standing on the top of Mount Mitchell, while the
peak I visited appears the highest of all above the horizon, the remote
ones are still visible, and may be seen still in connection with the
Roan, but appear to rise considerably above it. Taking the indica-
tions of the barometer to be correct, as observed by me, and assuming
the height of Mitchell Peak to be six thousand six hundred and seventy-
two (6,672) feet, the other would be six thousand eight hundred and
eighty-one (6,881) feet above the ocean. But, according to the sur-
veys for the line of the extension of the Western railroad, as detailed
in the report of Major Gwynn to the legislature of our State, in De
cember last, and which were brought within one mile and a quarter
of Asheville, the height of this place—I mean the square where the
court-house stands—is two thousand two hundred and sixty (2,260)
feet above tide-water. This survey corresponds in its results with one
made many years ago by the Charleston and Cincinnati Railroad
Company. Sixty (60) feet should, therefore, be added to Dr. Mitchell’s
estimate of the height of this place, which would give his peak an
elevation of six thousand seven hundred and thirty-two (6,732) feet,
and the higher one, that of six thousand nine hundred and forty-one
(6,941) feet. For the reasons already stated, the height of the latter
may be subject to some deduction, but not to an extent to affect mate-
rially this estimate. My object, however, is not so much to prove its
absolute height as to show that it excelled any point as yet measured,
and leave to the more competent the task of determining the precise
altitude. There is no doubt whatever but that it is the highest por-
tion of the Black Mountain, and that point of land east of the Rocky
Mountains having the greatest altitude above the sea. As it has
never, to my knowledge, been designated by any particular name, a
description of its position is necessary to identify it. If one should
travel along the top of the ridge from Mount Mitchell, in a northerly
direction, less than a half mile will bring him to Mount Gibbes, so
called ‘from the fact that it was measured by Professor Gibbes, of
Charleston, South Carolina, a few years since. I have been informed
that he estimated it as being four (4) feet higher than Mitchell’s Peak.
If there be a difference in the elevation of the two points, it probably
does not exceed that stated by him. From this place there is an irre-
gular descent for about one (1) mile, where my companions and I
found ourselves nearly five hundred (500) feet below the top of Mount
Mitchell. We then had to climb a handsome, regularly-shaped pin-
nacle, which reminds one of a sugar-loaf, and which rises to within
one hundred and fifty (150) feet of the height of Mitchell’s Peak. On
its north side the descent is less. Our way then continued over irre-
gular elevations and depressions for about two (2) miles, till we found
ourselves in a sort of prairie ground, or natural meadow, magnificent
and beautiful in the extreme. From the further edge of it, a steep
but regular ascent of about two hundred and twenty (220) feet brought
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 303
us to the highest point. The top is level for eight (8) or ten (10)
yards, and on it the balsam-fir tree still retains its place, though short-
ened to the height of only twenty (20) feet. On the right hand there
runs off, in the direction of Toe river, a ridge which slowly descends
to that stream, distant some six (6) or seven (7) miles. It is thus
easy to identify this peak, and its approach is no longer difficult.
From the head of the Swannonoah, at Mr. Steps’, where an angler
can find speckled trout, there is an easy way to the Mountain House,
built by Mr. William Patton, of Charleston, South Carolina. Its
present occupant will provide one with pleasant lodgings, and, what
mountain journeys render so welcome, all such comforts “for the
inner man’’ as this region affords, with fresh salmon from Scotland,
and champagne from France, to make them go down easily. After
resting here awhile, at the height of five thousand four hundred and
sixty (5,460) feet above the sea-level, two miles of travel on horse-
back, as hundreds of ladies can testify, will bring you to the top of
Mount Mitchell.
When one is upon this peak, he appears to be on a centre, from
which there run off five immense mountain chains. To the north-
ward stretches the main ledge of the Black, with a succession of cones
and spires along its dark crest. On its right, from the far northeast,
from the Keystone State, across the entire breadth of Virginia, seem-
ingly from an immeasurable distance, comes the long line of the Blue
Ridge or Alleghany; but when it passes almost under him, it is com-
paratively so much depressed as scarcely to be perceptible, save where
at the point of junction, stimulated by the presence of its gigantic
neighbor, it shoots up into a pinnacle so steep, that, to use a hunter’s
phrase, it would ‘‘make a buzzard’s head swim, if he were to attempt
to fly over it.’’ Thence it runs southerly, till it touches South
Carolina, when it turns to the west, and is soon hidden behind col-
lossal masses that obstruct further vision in that direction. As the
chain of the Black sweeps around westwardly, it is suddenly parted
into two immense branches, which run off in opposite courses. The
northern terminates in a, majestic pile, with a crown-like summit,
and numerous spurs from its base; while to the south there leads off
the long ridge of Craggy, with its myriads of gorgeous flowers, its
naked slopes and fantastic peaks, over which dominates its great
dome, challenging, in its altitude, ambitious comparison with the
Black itself.
Let the observer then lift his eye to a remote distance, and take a
circuit in the opposite direction. Looking to the southeast and to
the east, he sees, beyond King’s Mountain, and others less known to
fame, tlie plain of the two Carolinas stretched out over a field of illim-
itable space, in color and outline indistinguishable from the ‘‘ azure
brow”’ of the calm ocean. Nearer to him, to the northeast, over the
Linville Mountain, stands squarely upright the Table Rock, with its
perpendicular faces ; and its twin brother, the ‘‘ Hawk-bill,’’ with its
curved beak of over-hanging rock, and neck inclined, as if in the act
to stoop down on the plain below. Further on there rises in solitary
grandeur the rocky throne of the abrupt and wild Grandfather. This
‘‘ancient of days’? was long deemed the ‘‘monarch of mountains,”’
304 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
but now, like other royal exiles, he only retains a shadow of his for-
mer authority in a patriarchal name, given because of the grey beard
he shows when a frozen cloud has iced his rhododendrons. Westward
of him stands a victorious rival, the gently undulating prairie of the
Roan, stretching out for many a mile in length, until its green and
flowery carpet is terminated by a castellated crag—the Bluff.
From this extends southerly the long but broken line of the Unaka,
through the passes of which, far away over the entire valley of Hast
Tennessee, is seen in the distance the blue outline of the Cumberland
Mountains, as they penetrate the State of the ‘‘dark and bloody
ground.’’ In contrast with the bold aspect and rugged chasms of the
Unaka, stands the stately figure of the Bald Mountain, its smoothly
shaven and reeularly-rounded top bringing to mind some classic cupola ;
for when the sunlight sleeps upon its convex head, it seems a temple
more worthy of all the gods than that Pantheon, its famed Roman
rival. As the eye again sweeps onward, it is arrested by the massive
pile of the great Smoky Mountain, darkened by its fir-trees, and often by
the cloudy drapery it wears. From thence there stretches quite through
Haywood and Henderson to South Carolina’s border, the long range
of the Balsam Mountain, its pointed steeples over-topping the Cold
Mountain and Pisgah, and attaining probably their greatest elevation
towards the head of the French Broad river.
Besides these the eye rests on many a ‘‘ripe green valley’’ with its
winding streams, and on many a nameless peak, like pyramid or tower,
and many a waving ridge, imitating in its curling shapes the billows of
the ocean when most lashed by the tempest. And if one is favored
by Jove, he may perchance hear the sharp, shrill scream of his
‘‘cloud-cleaving minister,’’ and, as he sweeps by with that bright eye
which ‘‘pierces downward, onward, or above, with a pervading
vision,’’ or encircles him in wide curves, shows reflected back from
the golden brown of his long wings,
‘The westering beams aslant’’
of the descending sun.
But from Mount Mitchell, where one is still tempted to linger, since
my first visit, a way has been opened quite to the highest point. As
one rides along the undulating crest of the ridge, he has presented to
him a succession of varied, picturesque, and beautiful views. Some-
times he passes through open spots smooth and green enough to be
the dancing grounds of the fairies, and anon he plunges into dense
forests of balsam, over ground covered by thick beds of moss, so soft
and elastic that a wearied man reposes on it as he would on a couch
of softest down. In the last and largest of the little prairies, one
will be apt to pause awhile, not only for the sake of the magnificent
panorama in the distance, but also because attracted by the gentle
beauty of the spot, its grassy, waving surface, interspersed with flat-
tened rocky seats, studded, in the sun-licht, with glittering scales of
mica, and here and there clusters of young balsams flourishing in
their freshest and richest green, in this, their favorite climate, pointed
at top, but spreading below evenly till their lower branches touch the
earth, and presenting the outlines of regular cones.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 305
From this place the highest peak is soon attained. Any one who
doubts its altitude may thus easily satisfy himself, for it stands, and
will continue to stand, courting measurement. One who from the
eminence looks down on its vast proportions, its broad base, and long
spurs running out for miles in all directions, and gazes in silent
wonder on its dark plumage of countless firs, will feel no fear that its
‘‘shadow will ever become less,’’ or that in the present geological age
it will meet the fate fancied by the poet, when he wrote the words—
‘¢Winds under ground, or waters forcing way,
Sidelong had pushed a mountain from his seat,
Half sunk with all his pines.”’
I fear, my dear sir, that I have made this letter much too long for
your patience; and yet the vegetation and surrounding scenery of
this mountain, peculiar and remarkable as it is, might well tempt me
to say many things that I have omitted. I hope your interest in all
that relates to natural science will find an apology for my having so
long trespassed on your valuable time.
Iam very truly yours, &c.,
T.-L. CLINGMAN
Prof, JosepH Henry.
20
CORRESPONDENCE.
COMMUNICATION RELATIVE TO THE PUBLICATION OF
SPANISH WORKS ON NEW MEXICO.
Dear Sir: We ask leave to call your attention to the existence of
some MSS. of a very early date, which belong to the history of this
country, with the hope that you may consider their publication as a
proper object for the Smithsonian Institution to undertake, and in the
Spanish—the language in which they are written.
It is known to the Secretary that an invasion by the Spaniards of
the territory since called New Mexico, took place in the years 1540,
1541, and 1542, accounts of which have come to us from two hands—
Castatieda and Jarramillo. They are together lone, and possess a
variety of interest.
The army marched through the present States of Cinaloa and So-
nora, crossed the Gila river, and having passed through the celebrated
towns of Cibola and crossed the Rio Grande near Santa I'é, came upon
the Buffalo Plains, and are supposed to have reached the Mississippi
river. They give us the first reliable information of the curious state
of Indian civilization existing there; people living in communities,
of diverse languages, inoffensive, industrious, gaining their support
principally by husbandry, and practising all the virtues with a rigor
that belonged to no other American nation, and we believe every where
without a parallel.
A copy of these MSS. is in the Historical Collection of James
Lenox, Esq. They have never been printed in the Spanish, and only
in the French; but, from some careful comparisons of other transla-
tions that have come from the same source with the original works,
we are satisfied that they cannot be relied on for accuracy ; yet these
have afforded nearly all that is quoted or known in this country of
the discovery and early history of New Mexico. The publication of
these papers in the language in which they are written will give oppor-
tunities for their being rendered into other languages ; still, however
exact may be a translation; it must always be important, in writings
of such authority as these, to have the original to refer to in matters
of nicety and doubt.
At the same time that the viceroy of New Spain directed an army
to the north by land, he sent forward another by sea up the Gulf of
California to co-operate with Coronado. Alarcén disembarked at the
mouth of the river Gila, and ascended the Colorado river in boats ;
but finding the famed cities not so near the South sea as they were
supposed to be, the forces did not form a junction. The account of
308 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
‘
this expedition appeared in the Italian, and from it an English trans-
lation afterwards in Hackluyt. The original has never been printed.
A copy is now in this country in the hands of John R. Bartlett, esq.
On the return of Alarcén, one of his ‘‘ cosmographers,’’ Domingo
del Castillo, drew a small map of the country they had traversed, and
generally of the geography of the north, as it was understood at that
time. It portrays with wonderful accuracy the lands of recent dis-
covery, the seacoast, the position of the Spanish settlements, and the
course of the rivers. It is on a single quarto page, and there isa
copy of it in this country.
Thus we have here many important documents giving accounts of
these early explorations, and it is believed they may be got together at
the present time. They have been greatly needed in the country for a
number of years past, and their publication would prove of utility
and of great public interest.
From a particular calculation that has been made, it is found that
the foregoing narratives would cover about 323 pages of the folio of
the volume of the Smithsonian publications.
There is a second series of documents appertaining to a later period
~ of the history of New Mexico, Texas, and adjoining territories, that
are even less known than the first, to which we also ask the Secretary's
particular attention.
1. Memoirs respecting the Provincias Internas of New Spain, by
Lieutenant José Cortes, of the royal engineers, written in the year
1799. They will occupy 120 pages. :
2. Diary & Route through the country newly discovered to the
N.N.W. of New Mexico, of the Fathers Silvestre Velez de Escalante
and Francisco Atanacio Dominguez, in the year 1776. This will
cover 116 pages.
These, in manuscript, are in the library of Peter Force, esq.
3. Report of Lieutenant Cristobal Martin Bernal and Father Euse-
bio Fr. Kino, and others, in the year 1697, on the State of Pimeria.
It will occupy 31 pages.
4, Letter trom Father Kino, touching an expedition made with the
Cap. Carrasco, in 1698, from Pimeria to the N.W. and Gulf of Cali-
fornia and back, a journey of 300 leagues. It will fill five pages.
5. Letter of the same, dated 16th September, 1698, respecting the
condition of Pimeria and the recent conversions therein. It will cover
five pages.
6. Letter of the Father Silvestre Velez de Escalante, dated 2d April,
1778, giving a history of New Mexico, by order of his superior, from —
the archives in Santa é—pp. 25.
Of these documents—3, 4, 5, 6—Buckingham Smith, esq., has
copies from those in the royal archives in the city of Mexico.
7 and 8. Diary of Friar Francisco Garces to the river Colorado in
the year 1775, and Diary of Father Pedro Font, at the same time, to
San Francisco, with a small map by him. About 200 pages.
9. Diary of Ensign Juan Mateo Monge to the N. in a journey
with Father Kino in the year 1697. Supposed to be about 75 pages.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 309
Both these documents are in the Department of Foreign Affairs in
the city of Mexico, where copies of them can be procured with facility.
We are, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servants,
EDWARD ROBINSON,
Prest. Am. Eihnological Society.
HERMANN E. LUDEWIG,
Sec’y Am. Ethnol. Socicty.
E. GEO. SQUIER.
HEN. C. MURPHEY.
WM. B. HODGSON, of Georgia.
Prof. Josern Henry,
Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
Sunnysipe, August 26, 1854.
From a perusal of the accompanying letter, drawn up, as I under-
stand, by Buckingham Smith, esq., late Secretary of Legation in
Mexico, I am induced to believe that the documents therein specified
are well worthy of publication, both in their original language and
in translation, by the Smithsonian Institution.
WASHINGTON IRVING.
Lynn, September 7, 1854.
I concur in the opinion expressed by Mr. Irving, especially in re-
gard to the first series of documents mentioned in Mr. Smith’s letter.
WM. H. PRESCOTT.
——_——
CAMBRIDGE, September 13, 1854.
The Spanish documents enumerated in the communication drawn
up by Buckingham Smith, esq., appear to me valuable, as furnishing
new and interesting materials for a history of portions of the United
States hitherto little known, and I believe the Smithsonian Institution
would confer an important benefit on the country by publishing them.
JARED SPARKS.
—_—
New York, October 5, 1854.
I shall be very glad to see the documents referred to by Messrs. Ir-
ving, Prescott, and Sparks, made accessible through the press. The
Diary of Father Pedro Font seems to be not the least inviting of the
series. Giveus light, all the light that history can shed, on the vast
territory we have annexed,
GEORGE BANCROFT.
New York, October 11, 1854.
The publication of the documents referred to in Mr. Smith’s letter
is very desirable.
“Those named in the first series (and especially Castaiieda’s account)
are very valuable,
FRANCIS L. HAWKS.
44h
= <4
BIW ane alisha ei ae -
}
REPORT
OF
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS,
BY Dre JO. MUL bit,
PROFESSOR OF PHYSICS AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF FREIBURG.
[Translated from the German for the Smithsonian Institution. ]
It is a part of the original plan of organization of the Institution to
furnish occasional reports on the progress of special branches of knowl-
edge, and in accordance with this the following report has been trans-
lated from the German, in which it was written.
It relates to a branch of science which, perhaps, more than any
other, is in the process of practical application to economical purposes,
and is principally composed of materials not accessible to the English
reader. The original article is by Professor Miiller, the celebrated
German physicist. The translation was made by the late Woods
Baker, Esq., of the Coast Survey, whose untimely death, science has
been called to mourn.
We are indebted to Vieveg & Son for the wood-cuts, who have lib-
erally furnished us with copies of the original at the cost merely of
the metal and the casting.
A second portion of the work will be published in the appendix to
the next annual report of the Regents, and so on until the whole is
completed. The present portion will be found particularly valuable
in relation to the construction and use of galvanic batteries.
The report pre-supposes such a preliminary knowledge of the sub-
ject as may be obtained from the elementary books used in our schools ;
and in order to render some of the passages of the text more easily
understood, a few notes have been added at the end. The rapidity
with which government work is printed does not allow the additions
or corrections to be inserted on the proper page, and hence in study-
ing the article the notes should be examined first to ascertain the part
of the text to which they belong.
GALVANISM.
SECTION FIRST.
THE CHEMICAL AND CONTACT THEORIES.
Introduction.—[The author commences his report on the recent pro-
| gress of galvanism with a brief account of the discussions which have
312 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
been carried on relative to the two hypotheses, as to the origin or
cause of the development of the electricity in the galvanic apparatus,
viz: whether it is due to the contact of the metals or to the chemical
action of the acid on one of them. But it must be evident to those
who have paid attention to the history of this branch of science that
justice cannot be done to this interesting discussion in a few pages of
this report, and that the author has merely given a brief sketch of
only one of the hypotheses; but since this is comparatively little
known, except in Germany, it will be acceptable to the English
reader. |
This discussion has been carried on with no little warmth ; but the
history of science shows that when a theory is properly established,
controversy in reference to it ceases. If any one, at this time, should
assert that the earth does not revolve about the sun, astronomers
would give themselves little trouble to refute the objection which
might be urged against the received theory. Drieberg recently
attacked the physical theory of the pressure of the air, but his opin-
ions have not produced the least excitement among physicists. Op-
position provokes discussion only when theories have not risen above
mere hypothesis, and this is partly the case with reference to the
source of the electricity of the galvanic circuit.
The matter in dispute is not fully ripe for decision, and we can
only expect a perfect solution of the difficulty when we are better
informed of the nature of electricity itself. In Euler’s time the
theory of the vibrations of light was advocated with much ability,
yet this distinguished mathematician-was unable to render it gen-
erally acceptable, and it was only by the discovery of new facts, par-
ticularly those of polarization, that the theory received that form
which silenced opposition. The explanation of the origin of the elec-
tricity of the pile must rest on the theory of the molecular constitu-
tion of matter in relation to the ethereal medium, the existence of
which we are obliged to admit in order to generalize the facts of
light, heat, and other emanations from the sun. The establishment
of a general theory of this kind which will give definite concep:ions
of the relation of known phenomena, and lead us to infer the exist-
ence of facts of which we have as yet no idea, is one of the most. 1m-
portant objects of science, and even the attempts which have been
made to arrive at a general view of this kind have been fruitful in new
and interesting results.
The materials, however, for the full establishment of such a theory
do not at present exist, and consequently we cannot expect more than
approximations to a generalization of the character required.
$1. Brief sketch of the theories.—Volta found that when a slip of
zine and one of copper were soldered end to end, the one exhibited
signs of plus, and the other of negative electricity. He therefore con-
cluded that the electricity was due to the contact of the two metals,
and that the acid of the circuit only performed the office of a con-
ductor. This view was at first generally adopted, but as the phe-
nomena came to be more minutely studied, it was found insufficient
to explain them, and Wollaston, Davy, and others, adopted the hypo-
thesis that the electricity was due to the chemical action of the acid
u
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 313
on one of the metals. It has been shown that a galvanic current can
be produced by the action of two liquids without metallic contact,
and therefore the theory of contact requires to be so modified as to
extend the idea of contact to that of the liquids as well as the solids
of the galvanic combination. On the other hand, it has never been
fully proved that the contact of two metals does not in itself produce
a disturbance of the electrical equilibrium, though this effect does not
appear sufficient to account for the great amount of electricity evolved
in the action of the battery. The two theories, properly modified,
approximate each other, and each, perhaps, involves elements of truth.
The hypothesis, that the development of electricity is only the con-
sequence of chemical action—that without chemical decomposition of
the electrolyte no electricity can appear in the circuit, is that against
which the attacks of the advocates of the contact theory were directed ;
and it is, indeed, opposed to a great number of facts. The chemical
theory, in this form, ignores completely the fundamental experiment
of Volta; it does not explain how the tension of electricity of the open
pile increases with the number of plates. But what is most incon-
sistent with the maintenance of this theory, is the circumstance that
a number of galvanic circuits can be constructed in which, when
open, not a trace of chemical decomposition takes place, but which,
nevertheless, give rise to currents when they are closed.
Schénbein, in a memoir ‘‘On the cause of the hydro-electric current,’’
‘in his “ Beitragen zur Physicalischen Chemie—(Basel, 1844,’’) has re-
ferred to several such circuits. A solution of perfectly neutral sulphate
of zine does not attack zinc; yet a combination of zinc and copper in
this solution produces a current.
Another weighty objection to the form of the chemical theory,
which attributes the formation of the current to a preceding chemical
attack upon one of the metals of the circuit, is, that the electro-
motive force of a circuit is not at all proportional to the violence of
the attack. Ifthe copper of a Daniells’ battery be placed in a solu-
tion of sulphate of copper, the electro-motive force of the apparatus is
almost wholly unchanged, whether the zinc is placed in water, dilute
sulphuric acid, or in a neutral solution of sulphate of zinc. This has
been proved by Svanberg, among others, by accurate measurements.
(Pogg. Ann., LXXITT, 290.) If the current had its origin in chemical
action, the electro-motive force should be far greater upon application
of dilute acid than of water and sulphate of zinc.
It is a fact, that the current of the water-battery (hydro-kette)
cannot circulate without decomposition of the liquid. The decompo-
sition appears essentially connected with the passage of the electricity
through the liquid, and the contact theory has fully acknowledged
the important part which chemical decomposition in the cells plays in
the formation of the current. A dispute as to whether decomposi-
tion is the cause of the electrical current, or whether the chemical
decomposition in the battery is preceded by a state of electric tension,
the source of which we need not at present ask, is the same as though
there should be a controversy as to whether the motion of a water-
wheel is owing to the fall of water or the weight of water. The
weight occasions the fall, and the fall the revolution of the wheel, just
314 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
as the electric tension occasions chemical decomposition, in ‘conse-
quence of which the current circulates. ven Faraday, who is prom-
inent in maintaining chemical decomposition as the source of the elec-
trical current, concedes that decomposition is preceded by a state of
tension of the liquid; for he says, in the case where he applies his
theory of induction to, electrolytic decomposition :
““The theory assumes that the particles of the dielectric (now an
electrolyte) are, in the first instance, brought, by ordinary inductive
action, into a polarized state, and raised to a certain degree of tension
or intensity before discharge commences; the inductive state being,
in fact, a necessary preliminary to discharge. By taking advantage
of these circumstances, which bear upon the point, it is not difficult to
increase the tension indicative of this state of induction, and so make
the state itself more evident. Thus, if distilled water te employed,
anda long, narrow portion of it placed between the electrodes of a
powerful voltaic battery, we have at once indications of the intensity
which can be sustained at these electrodes, * * * for sparks may
be obtained, gold leaves diverged, and Leyden bottles charged.’’—
Twelfth Series of Experimental Researches on Electricity, 1345.
Thus Faraday himself concedes that a polarized state precedes de-
composition of the electrolyte in the separate cells of the battery, con-
sequently it precedes the formation ofthe current. The difference
between Faraday’s theory of the pile, and the contact theory, is not to
be found in the fact of deriving the circulation of the current from
chemical decomposition in the cells. The contact theory supposes,
with Faraday, that in the water-battery (hydro-kette) the formation
of the current is the consequence of chemical decomposition in the,
cells. It also supposes, with Faraday, that this decomposition must be
preceded by a state of tension; and it is only in reference to the cause
of this tension, which is nothing else than the electro-motive force,
that there can be any difference of opinion.
§ 2. Schdénbein’s chemical theory.—Schénbein has attempted so to
modify the propositions of the two theories as to bring them more in
harmony. ‘The following are the principal features of his theory, ex-
tracted from his own paper:
‘¢ Whatever may be the cause or force by which elementary sub-
stances are enabled to unite together into an apparently homogeneous
body, and to continue in their new combination, this much is cer-'
tain—that a change must always take place in their condition if a third
element is brought into contact with one of the substances, which
exercises a perceptible chemical attractive force upon the other
components of the compound. ‘To illustrate our idea, let us select
water as an example. Oxygen and hydrogen are held together in
this compound with a given force; or, to express the same thing in
other words, the chemical attractive forces of the elements of water
are in a state of equilibrium, An oxidable substance, as zinc, being
now brought into contact with water, it will have a chemical attrac-
tion of a certain intensity for the oxygen of the water. But in conse-
quence of this attraction, the chemical relation which subsisted between
the oxygen and hydrogen before the presence of the zinc must be
changed, or the state of the original chemical equilibrium of these
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 315
elements is modified in a certain degree or destroyed; or, in other
words, under the circumstances mentioned, the oxygen in each par-
ticle of water will be attracted in two opposite directions—towards the
zinc in contact with the molecule of water, and also towards the par-
ticle of hydrogen contained in this molecule.
‘Now, since the least mechanical molecular change taking place
in a body disturbs its electrical equilibrium, or its particles become
electrically polarized, the above described change, caused by the zine
in the original chemical affinity of the oxygen for the hydrogen of the
water, is followed by the electrical polarization of the substances in
contact. with each other. The particle of zinc nearest the water
becomes positive ; the oxygen side of the molecule of water touching
the zinc is negatively polarized; the hydrogen side of the same
particle, positively. It is self-evident that the particle of water in
contact with the zinc will exert an inductive action on its adjoining
molecules, the latter upon the next particles, and so on, until all the
molecules of water connected together are in the state of electrical
opposition or polarization. Since an inductive action traverses the par-
ticles of water from the place where the zinc and water are in im-
mediate contact, all. the contiguous particles of zinc become polarized,
and in such a manner that the side of each particle turned from
the water indicates negative polarity, and the side towards the
water positive polarity. By placing in this polarized water a good
conductor or a substance easily electrified, which is indifferent:
towards the oxygen of the water, such as platinum, the sides of the
particles of this substance in immediate contact with the water
become negatively electrified, and the sides of the same particles
turned away from the water positively in consequence of an inductive
action, which is exerted by the polarized water upon the platinum.
‘¢ All the other particles of the platinum are similarly affected, that
is, the side of each molecule turned from the water has positive
polarity ; that of each towards the water has negative.
_ “The following diagram gives a clear representation of the electrical
condition in which the particles of zinc, water, and platinum are found :
Figs. “It is very evident that this
condition of all the particles of
the substance in question will
last as long as the cause pro-
ducing the polarization exists ;.
that is, as long as the chemical
attraction of the zinc for the
oxygen of the water continues.
But if the contact of the zinc
and water be broken, the op-
posite electrical conditions in
which the hydrogen and oxygen.
of each molecule of water exist
are neutralized, which is neces-
sarily followed by a like change.
in the particles of platinum.
‘* Now, by placing the particle Z! of the arrangement in contact
316 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
o
with P!, the negative side of the former will be in connexion with
the positive side of the latter, and the opposite states of the two
particles will mutually neutralize each other. But at the same moment
in which the equilibrium takes place in these particles, it takes place
between each two contiguous particles throughout the whole circuit ;
consequently between the positive side of a particle of zinc in contact
with the water and the negative oxygen particle of a molecule of |
water in contact with the zinc. Likewise the electro-negative state
of a particle of platinum is in equilibrium with the positive state of
the oxygen particle of the water molecule with which it is in contact.
‘<The electrical equilibrium which now takes place between each
metallic particle and each component of a molecule of water is not
possible without a decomposition of the latter, and this very act of
equilibrium must be considered as the true and ultimate cause of the
electrical decomposition of water.’’
* * * * *K * K *
‘ Hvidently, according to this view, the actual combination of the ox-
ygen with the zincof the battery is regarded as only a secondary action of
the current or the act of electrical equilibrium, and not as the cause or
source of the current itself. The chemical combination of the mole-
cules of oxygen and zinc being completed, and a substance being in
the water which can remove the oxide of zine from its place of forma-
tion, a new particle of zinc will come in contact with a molecule of
water, and the latter, with all the particles of oxygen lying between
the zinc and platinum, will be electrically polarized anew. By keep-
ing the circuit closed, a neutralization of the electrical opposition will
take place between each two contiguous particles of the voltaic bat-
tery, and the decomposition of new molecules of water follows ; and
thus proceeds polarizing and depolarizing, circulation and electrolysis,
until the necessary conditions cease to be fulfilled.
‘Suppose now that water is placed between two metals which
manifest an exactly equal attraction for oxygen; itis evident that it
will be drawn with equal force, under these circumstances, in opposite ——
directions: hence the effects upon the particles of water by the metals
must be mutually destroyed ; the components of these molecules will
not be polarized ; and in closing such a circuit, neither circulation nor
electrolytic action can take place.
But if the water be placed between two metals, one of which has
greater affinity for oxygen than the other, the chemical equilibrium
existing between the components of each molecule of water will be
destroyed, and in proportion to the difference of oxidability of the
metals used.
Since the destruction of the chemical equilibrium between the vom-
ponents of the particles of water also involves the destruction of
electrical equilibrium, and the latter is as much more considerable as
the former is greater, it follows, that the degree of electrical polariza-
tion of the molecules of water between metals must be proportional
to the difference of oxidability of the said metals; or, to express the
same thing differently: the magnitude of the electrical tension which
the parts of an open circuit have for each other, is measured by the
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. aly
magnitude of the diffrence which exists between the degrees of ox-
idability of the metals composing the circuit.’’ 5 a sla
‘* Now, if the oxidability of a metal is actually related to its vol-
taic action as stated, it is very evident that the place which a metallic
bedy has in the tension series of the contactists denotes the degree
which belongs to the same metal in the scale of oxidability of metallic
bodies. Comparing the tension series of the metals obtained by
water and the galvanoscope, with the scale of oxidability of the same
bodies determined by ordinary chemical methods, it is impossible not
to see the great accordance between the two series.”’ a % =
‘‘Now, since we have a number of electrolytes in which other
metaloids than oxygen, such as the haloids, sulphur, and seleneum,
play the part of anions in their combination with hydrogen, it follows
from what has been said, that the electrical tension series of metals
determined with different electrolytes, cannot accord with each other
perfectly. This want.of accordance has been placed beyond doubt by
various experiments, and the number of cases is not very small in
which the same two metals manifest a different voltaic relation for
each other when they are placed in different electrolytic liquids; so
that the same metal which in one liquid is positive towards the second
metal, manifests the opposite in another liquid.
“‘The case of a reversal of voltaic action which the same two
metals exhibit in two different liquids must, in accordance with the
above statements, always appear when the chemical relation of these
metals to the anions of the electrolytes used is not the same; that is,
when the affinity of one and the same metal for the two anions of
the electrolyte does not exceed the affinity of the other metal for the
same anions, or shows the opposite relations.”’
“¢ Hxperience above all teaches that in general the proportions of
affinity which exist between the metals and oxygen are similar to
those which take place between those bodies and the haloids, sulphur,
seleneum, &c.; hence the voltaic relations which the metals manifest
in electrolytic liquids not containing oxygen, accord so frequently
with those which are observed in the same bodies in water.’’ * * *
‘* Let. us now consider those batteries which consist of one metal
and two electrolytic liquids.
‘The most interesting example is that composed of water, muriatic
acid, and gold.
‘This battery yields a current which passes from the gold to the
acid, and from this to the water. This current is very weak, and by
reason of the rapid positive polarization of the gold immersed in the
water, it soon ceases to have a measurable strength.
“‘The origin of this current depends upon the simple fact, that
the gold possesses a greater chemical affinity for the chlorine of the
muriatic acid, than for the oxygen of the water.’”’ * * * *
“Tt is easily inferred from the preceding explanation, that all
voltaic arrangements consisting of two different electrolytes and a
metal must form circuits, in case the metal used has a greater chemi-
cal affinity for the anion of one of the electrolytic bodies than for
the-anion of the other. It is likewise evident that the force of the
318 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF ;
current thus produced wh be proportional to the difference of the two
affinities.’”’ x x x * x xk *
“¢ Tt need hardly be niente that other fae metallic bodies can
also be placed at either end of a continuous series of electrolytic
molecules to polarize them. According to the chemical relation which
such bodies manifest for the anion or kation of an electrolyte, its
molecules will be polarized in the latter or the former direction.
‘‘ Tf, for instance, chlorine be brought in contact with one of the
ends of a series of particles of water, the chemical equilibrium of
this molecule will be destroyed, and its hydrogen side will be directed
towards the chlorine:* If the end of a platinum wire be placed in
contact with chlorine, and the other end of the same wire .with any
particle of water of the same series, a current must arise, passing
from this end of the platinum wire through the water to the chlo-
rine, while the latter combines chemically with the hydrogen of the
water.
‘©On the contrary, a non-metallic substance being placed at the end
of a continuous series of molecules of water, having .a chemical
attraction for the anion of this series , polarization of the particles of
water will occur, and it will be opposite to that which chlorine occa-
sions in the case mentioned above.
‘¢ Such a substance, for instance, is sulphurous acid, which tends to
unite with the oxygen of the water. This tendency is sufficient to
polarize the par ticles of water, and under favorable circumstances to
set the current in motion.
«<By placing at one end of a series of molecules of water, a body
which has a chemical affinity for the anions, and at the other end a
substance having affinity for the kations of the molecules, it is evident
that this series will be under a double polarizing influence, and the
electro-motive forces coming into play will mutually increase each
other. <A series of such electrolytic molecules, having, for instance,
chlorine at one of its ends and sulphurous acid at the other, if closed
by a conductor forming a voltaic circuit, must generate a current
stronger than that which appearsin the ‘cases where chlorine alone
or sulphurous acid alone are used, other things being the same.
‘Tt is hardly necessary to remark, t that my “hydrogen and platinum
battery, as well as Grove’s new gas pile, are voltaic arrangements,
which, although presenting some peculiarities, belong to the class of
combinations described above.”’
Schénbein finally describes the so called hyper-owide battery. By
immersing in water a clean platinum plate, and one furnished with a
covering of hyper-oxide of lead, a current will arise as soon as the
two metal plates are put in metallic connexion ;_ and the positive cur- |
rent will pass from the clean platinum plate, through the liquid to the
other covered with the hyper-oxide of lead.
The formation of the current, as well as its direction, is easily
explained.
It is well known that half of the oxygen in the hyper-oxide ex-
hibits a great tendency to separate and combine with oxidable bodies,
Schinbein has, moreover, shown that this second portion of oxygen 1m
the same hyper-oxide has a greater aflinity for oxidable substances
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 319
than even uncombined or free oxygen; hence the hyper-oxide will
polarize the particles of water in such a manner that the hydrogen
sides turn towards the hyper-oxide.
Other hyper-oxides act in like manner,
§ 3. Comparison of the Contact theory with that of Schénbein.—If we
compare Schénbein’s theory with the contact theory, we must under-
stand that they both run parallel, that the phenomena of the open
and closed battery can be explained equally well by both ; for Schén-
bein only removes the place of excitation of electricity from the point
of contact of the metals to the point of contact between metal and
liquid. But Schénbein’s theory has a decided advantage in this—that
it can determine beforehand in all voltaic combinations, the direction
of the current from the chemical relations of the substance forming
the battery, while the contact theory is wanting in such a principle.
That the same metals give acurrent first in one direction, and then
in another, according as one or another liquid is placed between them,
is perfectly explicable according to the modified contact theory, from
the different electromotive relations of the liquids to the metals.
Schénbein’s theory not only allows the possibility of a reversal of the
current by changing the liquids, but it also tells us in what cases,
and why, the currrent is reversed.
Thus Schénbein’s theory always determines @ priori from the chem-
ical nature of the substances which form the battery, the directions of
the current, no matter whether the battery is formed of two metals
and a liquid, or of two liquids and a metal; while, on the contrary, the
contact theory in many cases isso much at fault that it is unable to
determine beforehand the direction of the current from a general
principle, and in such cases (e. g. in batteries of water, muriatic
acid and gold; water, sulphurous acid and platinum,) an experiment
is required to find the direction of the current.
From these considerations, one would suppose that there could be
no doubt as to which of the two theories should prevail; whether
Schénbein’s chemical theory, or the modified contact theory. Yet I
cannot decide unconditionally for Schénbein’s theory, because it en-
tirely ignores a well established fact, the fundamental experiment of
Volta, and is unable to give an explanation of it.
That electricity is generated by different metals coming in contact
with each other, is a fact well established by experiments, purposely
instituted in various forms, and which cannot be ignored nor set
aside by such interpretations of the experiments as the opponents of
the contact theory have contrived.
The name contact electricity is exceedingly unfit, and may have
contributed not a little to the confusion of the discussion in question ;
properly speaking, all electricity, wherever and however it may appear,
is contact electricity ; for, in generating electricity, two different
kinds of bodies are necessarily, under all circumstances, brought
into contact. In electrical machines, glass and amalgam ; in the vol-
taic pile, two metals and a liquid ; inthe thermo pile, different metal-
lic rods. Wherever heterogeneous substances are brought into contact,
a development of electricity takes place, but generally a state of elec-
320 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
trical equilibrium soon ensue. For acontinuous excitation of electricity
this state of equilibrium must be continuously destroyed; this is
done in frictional electricity, by removing the contact of the closely-
touching places of the heterogeneous substances ; in the hydro bat-
tery, by the decomposition of the electrolytes; in the thermo pile,
the circulation of electrical equilibrium is produced by the disturbance
of thermal equilibrium.
SECTION SECOND.
DETERMINATION OF THE CONSTANT VOLTAIC BATTERY.
§ 4. Umit of force of current.—Every conductor of electricity, how-
ever good, opposes some resistance to its propagation, and many re-
searches have been made to determine the laws of the transfer through
conducting media. The following facts have been established by ex-
periment :
1. Galvanic electricity tends to diffuse itself through the whole
capacity of a conductor, and consequently the resistance to conduction
will be in proportion inversely to the transverse section of a conductor.
2. All parts of a closed circuit, including the battery itself, are
traversed at the same time by the same quantity of electricity, what-
ever be the diversity of their nature.
It follows from the second law, that the absolute inten ity of the
electricity that passes in a closed circuit depends upon two circum-
stances: first, on the force which develops the electricity, and which
is called the electro-motive force; and second, on the resistance to
conduction presented by the whole circuit taken together. Ohm was
the first to give a precise statement of these laws, and to deduce
with mathematical precision, from them, consequences which have
become of great importance in establishing the theory of the battery
as well as in the application of electricity to the arts.
If we designate by S the value of the current, or its power to pro-
duce effects, and by E the electro-motive force of a single element,
whether this be due to contact chemical action, or both, and by R the
resistance in the battery, then the relations may be expressed by the
equation
Tn the foregoing equation we have supposed that the battery con-
sists of a single element, and that the metals are joined by so short
and thick a conductor that it offers no appreciable resistance. If,
however, the battery consist of m number of elements, joined as before,
then the electro-motive power will be x times greater, and also the
resistance will be increased in the same ratio, and therefore we shall
have
wk
Bip
If, now, we introduce an additional resistance in the conductor
8
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. O21
which joins the poles, and represent this by 7, then the expression
becomes
;
ye n i
1 SL ml
This is the fundamental equation of Ohm, from which all the rela-
tions of galvanic combinations can be derived.
When currents of different forces or strengths are to be compared,
there must be, first of all, a common measure. Hitherto, to my
knowledge, there have been three different units proposed, each of
which we shall consider somewhat in detail.
Pouillet proposed (Pog. Ann., xlii) as a unit of force of the galvanic
current that which a thermo-electric element of copper and bismuth
would produce, when so closed that the whole resistance is equal to a
copper wire of 20 metres long and 1 millimetre thick; one soldering
being maintained at a temperature of 100°, the other at 0°.
Fig. 4. Jacobi (Pog. Ann., xlvili 26) compared the deflection of
a Nerwander tangent-compass with the decomposition of
water produced simultaneously by the current; thus re-
ducing the indications of the tangent-compass to the chem-
ical effect. For unit of force he assumed the current which
generates in one minute, one cubic centimetre of explosive
gas at the temperature of 0°, and height of the barometer
at 760 millimetres.
Weber took for his unit the current which, circulating
at a distance around the unit of surface, produced the
same action as the unit of free magnetism.
To explain what Weber means by the unit of free mag-
netism we must dilate somewhat.
A magnetic bar s 2 placed north or south of a mag-
netic needle, and perpendicular to the magnetic meridian, as
representedin Fig. 4, will tend to deflect the needle from the
magnetic meridian, whilethe terrestrial magnetism tends to
draw it back. The magnitude of the deflection depends
upon the relation of the two forces; the tangent of the
angle of deflection is the quotient of the force of the bar
divided by the
77> tang v, (1)
denoting by v the angle of deflection, by / the force with
which the bar attracts the needle from the magnetic me-
ridian, and by T the force with which the terrestrial mag-
netism tends to draw it back.
But the action of the bar upon the needle is proportional to the
third power of its distance from the needle, so long as this distance is
moderately great in comparison with the dimensions of the bar and
the needle. Denoting the distance by 7, the product fr? must be a con-
stant quantity, which we will denote by M.
But this product /r*, or M, indicates the moment of revolution which
21
392 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
the rod would exert upon the needle when placed at the distance (1)
from it, and its effect beyond this approximation should always increase
in the same proportion in which the cube of the distance decreases.
But this relation between action and distance does not hold good for
short distances; this, however, doesnot prevent the use of the moment
of resolution /r* or M reduced to the unit as a measure of the magnet-
ism of the rod.
Multiplying equation (1) by 7°, and placing fr? = M, we get
J 3 +
ipo . tang. v.
or
MT r tape, v- - . (2)
Assuming the deflecting bar and the needle to be equally magnetic,
let the magnetism in both be so developed that the reduced moment of revo-
lution Mis equal to the pressure which the weight of a milligramme
would produce on a lever-arm of one millimetre, if, instead of the force
of gravity, this weight be acted upon by a force under whose influence
double the space traversed in the first second is equal to the unit of
length, (one millimetre,) then this would be the unit of free magnetism.
With this unit the terrestrial magnetic force is also to be measured,
or, in other words, T is to be expressed in terms of this unit, The
manner in which the value of T is determined, adopting that just
defined as the absolute measure, may be found in Weber’s original
treatise on this subject, and in an elementary account of it in my
Treatise on Physics, (3d edition, 2d vol., p. 48.)
If the value of T is determined according to the absolute measure,
then equation (2) gives the reduced moment of revolution of a magnetic
bar expressed in the same unit.
But the quantity M has still another meaning than the one al-
ready mentioned, namely, C= 'T M is the moment of revolution
with which the terrestrial magnetism tends to draw the bar, placed
perpendicular to the magnetic meridian, out of this position. (Treat-
ise on Physics, 3d edition, 2d vol., p. 44.) Thus, M denotes the
magnitude of this moment of deflection for the case in which T = 1.
By observing how many degrees a magnetic needle is deflected by
a bar placed north and south of it in the position Fig. 4, we can, from
this observation, compute by means of equation (2) the moment of
deflection with which the terrestrial magnetism tends to draw the
bar, lying perpendicular to the magnetic meridian, out of that posi-
tion.
By placing the magnet east or west of the needle, as indicated in
Fig. 5, the former, at the same distance, deflects the needle more,
Fig. 5.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 323
and so that the tangent of the angle of deflection w is exactly double
the tangent of deflection v, which the same magnet, at the same dis-
tance, would have produced in the position Fig. 4; hence, under cir-
cumstances otherwise the same, we have—
By making the experiment, not in the position Fig. 4, but that of
Fig. 5, we get—
3
ace a ¥ es
2
The relation of the circulating current, which traverses the ring of
the tangent compass, in the magnetic meridian, to the terrestrial mag-
netism, as well as to the magnetic needle, may now be compared
with the effect of the magnetic bar placed in the position of Fig. 5.
If the circulating current of the tangent compass deflects the
needle w degrees, we have—
tang. w= ano
oe
denoting by g the force of the current, and by 7 the radius of the
ring: thus we have for the reduced moment G of the deflection of the
circular current, which corresponds to the moment of deflection M
of a magnetic bar
G=
Tr’ tang. w (3.)
2.
== ole
This G is the force with which, under the relation stated above,
the circular current would be deflected from the plane of the mag-
netic meridian, if the force of the terrestrial magnetism were = 1.
Making z r? = 1, we will have G = g;
hence g is the moment of a circular current which circulates in unit
of surface.
From equation (3) we get for g the value—
T r tang. w (4)
J — ee .
27
thus we obtain a value for the force of the current g, measured by the
moment of deflection of a current traversing around the unit of sur-
face, expressed in absolute measure, by substituting for T its absolute
value.
§5. Comparison of the different current units:—Theoretically these
three units of force are determined with perfect exactness, and if the
matter were considered only in a scientific point of view, each of them
would seem acceptable, though the preference would be due to Weber’s
unit.
But the selection must be different when practical wants are also
considered.
The galvanic battery enters so multifariously into a process of art,
that it is of great importance to have methods by which the constants
324 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
of a galvanic arrangement can be determined with accuracy. Un-
fortunately, such methods hitherto have been but little known, and
thus it is that we have descriptions ‘of the useful effect of many differ-
ent combinations of galvanic apparatus, but none such as give an
accurate comparison of different apparatus, and a consequence is that
we are frequently deceived in their value.
For determining the constants of a battery, it is essential to under-
stand, in the first place, with reference to the unit of current, whether
the observations made for that purpose are comparable with other
observations at different places with different instruments. ‘To render
such a unit popular, it should be accessible to practical men, who though
acquainted with the principles of electricity, are unable to enter into
the specialities of the science; hence it is fit to select such a unit only
whose definition is easily and generally comprehensible; moreover,
the unit should be such, that the determination of the force of the
current for obtaining it may be accomplished with the least possible
apparatus.
Considered in this light, the unit first brought into use by Jacobi
has by far the preference. I will endeavor to justify this opinion.
§6. Reduction of Pouillet’s unit to chemical measure.—To com-
pare the indications of any compass with Pouillet’s unit, we must
have a thermo-electrical element exactly equal to that used by him;
and for that purpose it is necessary that the entire resistance of the
circuit, including the wire of the compass or multiplier, should be
equal to the resistance of a copper wire 20 metres long and 1 millimetre
thick. But the current which such a thermo-electrical element pro-
duces under the indicated conditions is exceedingly feeble, or at least
much weaker than the current of hydro-electric batteries, which yield a
practical useful effect; and in instruments with which ordinarily the
torce of the current of hydro-electric batteries is measured, as tangent
compasses, sine compasses or Mohr’s torsion galvanometer, Pouillet’s
unit will produce but a very small deflection. This unit produces, for
example, in Weber’s tangent compass, having a ring 40 centimetres
in diameter, a deflection of from 5 to 7 minutes; in Mohr’s torsion
galvanometer, a deflection of about 14 degree; thus it is requisite to
have very small subdivisions of a degree in these instruments with
accuracy, for determining this angle of deflection with sufficient ex-
actness to make the angle itself, or its tangent, the unit in measuring
strong currents,
Since the instruments do not admit of sufficiently accurate reading
of such small angles, an indirect method must be introduced. The
following, perhaps, is the simplest for this purpose:
Pass the current of the thermo-electrical element, serving as unit,
through a multiplier, and observe the deflection produced: suppose
it is 16°, the entire resistance here is equal to the resistance of a
copper wire 20 metres long and 1 millimetre in diameter.
Now pass the current of a hydro-electric element through the same
multiplier, but insert, in the form of platinum or German-silver
wire, resistance until the deflection is as great as that produced by the
thermo-electrical element, or until it amounts, as before, to 16°.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. . 826
The whole resistance which the hydro-electrical current has now to
overcome must be determined and reduced to that of copper wire.
Suppose it is equal to the resistance of a wire 1 millimetre in diame-
ter and 22,000 metres long.
By making the entire resistance less by the removal of wire, the
current will become stronger in equal measure. Make the resistance,
for instance, 200 times less, so that the entire resistance to be over-
come by the current of the hydro-electrical element is equal to the
resistance of a normal copper wire only 110 metreslong; the current will
now be 200 times stronger than that which produced a deflection of
16° in the multiplier. This current will produce a considerable de-
flection in each instrument adapted to measuring stronger currents,
as a Weber tangent compass ; let it be 19°.
Thus a current which indicates in the tangent compass an angle of
deflection of 19°, of which the tangent is = 0.344, is 200 times as
strong as the unit of the current, thus we have for the tangent of the
angle to which the unit corresponds—
0.344 _ 9 00179.
200
By this result all the indications of the tangent compass can be
easily reduced to Pouillet’s unit.
Pouillet used, not a tangent compass, but a compass of sines, in all
his researches on this subject.
To decompose one gramme of water in one minute, the current
passed through the water must have a force = 13,787 of Pouillet’s
unit. Each gramme of water yields 1862.4 cubic centimetres of de-
tonating gas (at 0° and a pressure of 760 metres); hence to obtain
one cubic centimetre of detonating gas per minute, a force of current of
12ist — 7.4 Pouillet’s unit is necessary.
he above examples will suffice to show that the redtiction of the
data of a rheometer for stronger currents to Pouillet’s unit can be
obtained only by a whole series of operations by no means simple.
First, the resistance of the thermo-electric element, and of the mul-
tiplier, must be determined, and so much resistance must be added
that the sum of the resistances shall have the value given above; then
the resistance of the conductor of the hydro-electrical element must
be found, and after inserting as much resistance in its circuit, the
quantity of this resistance is to be determined ; then the entire re-
sistance must be reduced to an aliquot part, and the corresponding
deflection of a rheometer used for stronger currents observed, &c. The
end here is attained only through a circuitous process, and errors of
observation are unavoidable in each operation, which affect the final re-
sult; the complexity of the process also has a prejudicial influence on
the accuracy of the determination.
The above comparison of Pouillet’s unit with the chemical effect pro-
duced, gives us the means of easily converting the data of a rheome-
ter into this unit; we have only to pass the current simultaneously
through the rheometer and an apparatus for decomposing water, to
determine how much detonating gas will be evolved while the rhe-
ometer indicates a certain number of degrees. Since each cubic centi-
metre of detonating gas corresponds to 7.4 of Pouillet’s unit, it is
326 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
known also how many of Pouillet’s unit correspond to the observed de-
flection of the rheometer. Pouillet’s unit has been used here only
nominally ; the deflection of the rheometer alone has, in fact, been
compared with the chemical effect, and there is no reason why this
comparison should not be adhered to.
§7. Reduction of Weber's unit to the chemical measure.—The defi-
nition of Weber’s absolute measure of the force of a current is by no
means so simple as to encourage the hope of making this unit easily
very generally comprehended. ‘This inconvenience, however, might
be disregarded, if the determination of the force of the current were
easily derived from this absolute measure.
If a Weber’s tangent compass (which should not be less than 40
centimetres in diameter) be used in getting the angle of deflection
which a current produces, it is made to appear stronger in absolute
measure, as expressed by the formula,
27
According to this formula the value of the force of the current is very
easily obtained, if the correct value of T be ascertained; that is, if
at the place of observation the horizontal part of the intensity of the
earth’s magnetism, expressed in absolute measure, be known.
The determination of T (Miiller’s Lehrbuch der Physik, 3d Aufl.
2 Bd.) has for special physicists no great difficulty, but for many ar-
tisans who wish to determine the power of their batteries it is too
complicated ; at least it is more difficult than the comparison of the
data of a rheometer as made by Jacobi, with the chemical effect of the
current. It would not be necessary to determine the value of T by
experiment at the place of observation ; it might be derived from the
magnetic chart of Gauss, if it were certain that at the place of ob-
servation the effect of the horizontal. magnetism of the earth was not
modified by iron deposited in that locality, which would produce a
considerable deviation from T. For instance, we have from Gauss’
chart, as well as from direct observation made in the open air, that
for Marburg T= 1.88, while Kasselman found the value of T, in the
locality in which he instituted the experiments for comparing the
force of the currents of different galvanic batteries, equal to 1.83,
(Uber die galvanische Kohlenzink Kette von Kasselman: Marburg,
1844, p. 75); hence it is unavoidably necessary to determine the
value of T in the locality in which the experiments on the strength
of currents are instituted.
Weber’s unit decomposes 0.000009376 grammes of water in one
second ; in one minute 0.00056256 grammes ; or, what is the same, it
yields 1.0477 cubic centimetres of detonating gas per minute.
To determine the force of a current according to this measure, a
tangent compass of Weber is needed, whose ring should not be less
than 40 centimetres in diameter, while rheometers of different kinds
can be used if the unit of the current yielding one cubic centimetre per
minute of detonating gas be adopted.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 327
Let us now examine the process for obtaining the readings of the
rheometer with this unit.
§8. Determination of the force of @ current by its chemical effects.—
To reduce the magnetic action cf the current in the rheometer to the
chemical effect, the current has only to be passed simultaneously
through a decomposing apparatus and the rheometer ; a voltameter
which gives the two gases together a detonating mixture, is the
best adapted for this purpose.
A current which, for instance, passed through a Mohr’s torsion
galvanometer, and a decomposing apparatus, produced 40 cubic cen-
timetres of detonating gas per minute, while the corresponding torsion
of the galvanometer amounted to 490°.
Since the torsion is in this instrument proportional to the force of
the current, we should have, for forming one cubic centimetre of the
gas, a current corresponding to a torsion of #29 = 12°.2 . ...5 or
each degree of torsion should be equivalent to 7°, = 0.0816 cubic
centimetres of detonating gas. To reduce the number of degrees read
on this galvanometer to Jacobi’s unit, the former need only be mul-
tiplied by 0.0816. Hence a torsion of v° is equivalent to the force
0.0816 v.
The process is exactly the same for reducing the data of the tangent
compass to the chemical effect. In such an instrument, for instance,
a deflection of 22° was observed, while 30.8 cubic centimetres of gas
were developed. The temperature being 15° Centigrade and the
height of the barometer 740 millimetres, the quantity of this gas
reduced to 0° Centigrade and a pressure of 760 millimetres is 28.18
cubic centimetres.
Since in this instrument the forces of currents are proportional to
the tangent of the angle of deflection, the tangent of 22° or 0.404
corresponds to the quantity of gas, 28.18; and the tangent 1 corre-
sponds to the quantity 2%:1§ = 69.7; thus the tangent of any angle
of deflection read on this instrument has to be multiplied by 69.7 to
find out how many cubie centimetres of detonating gas the current
would have produced per minute, if it had passed with the same force
through a decomposing apparatus; hence the force 69.7 tang. v cor-
responds to the angle of deflection v, according to our chemical unit.
It is easy to reduce the indication of a compass of sines to this unit in
a similar manner.
The factor by which the indications of a rheometer are to be mul-
tiplied, to obtain the force of current expressed in chemical measure,
must of course be determined with great accuracy, for which a single
experiment is not sufficient; a series of experiments must be made
with currents of different forces, computing the factor from each, and
from the values thus obtained the mean is to be taken. The different
current forces are most easily obtained by operating, first with a
battery producing a strong decomposition of water, and then weak-
ening the current by removing single elements at a time.
Such a series, instituted by Mohr with his torsion galvanometer,
gave the following results:
a ae Se ee ee Se re
328 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
No. of} Torsion of Gas developed Quantity of gas
cells, | Galvanometer. | per minute. corresponding
; to one degree
of torsion.
2 Cubie cent. a
8 530 44.5 0. 08399
8 587 46 0. 07836 *
8 429 37 0. 08624 '
7 520 Al 0. 07884
7 490 40 0. 08163 am
if 409 suo 0. 68278
§ 423 35 0. 08278
6 | 357 30 0. 08403
5 338 29 0. 08508
5 337.5 28.5 0. 08444
5 | 315 26 0. 08254
4 277 23.5 0. 08483
4 263.5 23 0. 08728
3 181 16 0. 08838
3 181 Tey Ue 0. OS70L
3 174 15 0. 08624
2 85 7 0. 08235
Wiens ae 0. 08386
Since the magnetic and chemical effects are always proportional to
each other, the quotient of the quantity of gas divided by the number
of degrees must always be the same, if there are no errors of observation ;
but this is only approximately the case. The mean of all the quotients
is 0.08386 ; thus we get the current force expressed in chemical mea-
sure, by multiplying the number of degrees v read on the instrument,
by 0.08386, or,
S = 0.08386 v.
Let us now consider a similar series of experiments, instituted to
determine the relation of two tangent compasses to the chemical unit.
The current was passed simultaneously through a decomposing appa-
ratus and the two compasses, the larger of which had a ring 38 centi-
metres in diameter, the smaller one of 30 centimetres. That the needles
of the two compasses might have no influence upon each other, they
were placed twenty-five feet apart. The following are the results of
the observation :
No. of Deflection. Quantity of gas
cells. developed in
three minutes.
Large compass. | Small compass.
° fo)
12 28.5 31. 125
8 24, 8 27. 35 106
6 22. 23.5 92.5
4 18. 75 20. 4 78
3 13. 75 16. 07 56
2 5. 9 6.5 23.7
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 329
During the period of the experiment, three minutes, in which the
gas was caught, the needle vibrated very little ; it receded regularly,
but the rate was at most 0°.5 in three minutes. The number of de-
grees of the table are the means of all the angles read from the begin-
ning to the end of the three minutes.
The quotient obtained by dividing the quantity of gas for one min-
ute by the tangent of the corresponding angle of deflection should
be properly a constant quantity, indicating how much gas a current
develops per minute, which produces in the tangent compass a deflec-
tion of 45°, (because tang. 45°= 1). The following values of these
quotients were obtained from the different experiments :
4
Quotient for the
No. of obser-
vation
Large compass. | Small compass.
° °
1 76.7 69.3
2 76.5 71.0
3 76.2 19.9
4 76.6 69.8
5 Ges 69.3
6 76.6 69.3
Mean - 16.45 70.
During the experiments the temperature of the room was 15° Cent.,
and the height of the barometer 744 millimetres. The gas was caught
in a graduated tube, and the surface of the water in the tube stood
about ten centimetres higher than that without, which is equivalent
to a pressure of seven millimetres of mercury. Hence the gas sus-
tained a pressure of 733 millimetres. Reduced to 0° Cent. and a
barometric height of 760 millimetres, the quantities of gas, 76.5 cub.
centimetres and 70 cubic c., obtained from the observation at 15° Cent.,
and 733 millimetres, are respectively 69.94 and 64.01 cubic centime-
tres, or, in round numbers, 70 and 64.
Thus a current which produces in the large compass a deflection of
45° will yield 70 cubie centimetres per minute ; one producing in the
small compass the same deflection will yield 64 cubic centimetres per
minute of detonating gas, at 0° Centigrade, and under a pressure
of 760 millimetres.
Hence, in chemical measure the force of a current which produces
a deflection of v° in the large tangent-compass is,
S = 70 tangent v.
A current producing a deflection of w degrees in the small compass
has, in chemical measure, a force—
Y = 64 tangent w.
The constant factor for the reduction of the reading of a torsion gal-
vanometer, a Weber’s tangent-compass, or a compass of sines, may be
330 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
obtained by a series of very simple experiments. It is perfectly
evident that this factor holds good for only a special rheometer,
and for that special instrument only as long as the experiment is made
in the same place. For instance, if the compass were removed from
Freiburg to Marburg, the reducing factor would receive another value,
because the horizontal intensity of the earth’s magnetism is less in
Marburg, and thus a current producing less detonating gas, would
still produce a deflection of 45°.
The above series of obServations also present us with a proof that
Weber’s tangent-compass can be used for determining the current
force in absolute measure only when its diameter is not much less
than 40 centimetres, (the length of the needle being three centime-
ters.) According to formula 4, the force of a current is propor-
tional to the radius of the ring, the angles of deflection of the
tangent compass being equal. The currents which produce a deflec-
tion of 45° in the two compasses above mentioned, are to each other
in the proportion of 38 to 30. The quotient of these diameters is
1.2666, while the quotient of the corresponding forces of the current
ise SO == 10937.
Having determined the reducing factor of a large tangent-compass
by accurate experiments, we can compute from it the horizontal intensity
of the earth’s magnetism at the place of observation. The current
which produces a deflection of 45° in our large compass, (380 milli-
metres in diameter,) has, in chemical measure, the force of 70; in
absolute measure the force is, |
pete ol tones) 1
2: 3.14
But chemical measure is to the absolute measure as 1.0477: 13; there-
fore in absolute measure this current has the value ;72,; = 66.813 ;
and we have,
66.813 — 1: 199.
PATO He |
Hence, Z rials
According to the chart the value of T at Freiburg is 2.21, which
accords very well with that computed above.
To determine the quantity of chemical effect which a current pro-
duces, we might, instead of measuring the quantity by the volume of
explosive gas evolved, determine the quantity by weight of water
decomposed, as Kesselman has done, (Uber die galvanische Kohlen-
zink Kette,) and from that compute the volume of gas evolved. This
method of observing is susceptible of great accuracy, and it is to be
recommended on that account to those having an accurate balance at
command. The experiments given above prove that the direct meas-
urement of the volume of gas also yields very accurate results.
§9. Resistance of the element.—The force of current of a galvanic
combination can be measured directly by means of a rheometer, and
reduced in accordance with the principles stated above, to a determi-
nate unit, for which the chemical unit is preferable on account
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 331
of its simplicity. But the knowledge of the force which the appa-
ratus yields in a special case, with a definite quantity of contingent
resistance, is not sufficient for determining the effect of the apparatus
in all cases ; for this purpose the actual resistance of the battery and
its electro-motive power must be known. We now pass to the deter-
mination of the actual resistance. ‘
The resistance, as well as the force of the current, must be reduced
to a definitive unit, to admit of the comparison of different experi-
menters. For this, also, different units have been proposed and used.
Many physicists assume as a unit of resistance, the resistance of @
copper wire one metre long and one millimetre in diameter. This unit
I shall adopt.
To determine the resistance of a battery, the force of its current, of
course, must be measured, if different resistances are inserted succes-
sively in the circuit.
The resistance of the inserted piece of wire must be first brought to
the adopted unit. The simplest way of doing this would be to use
only copper wire of one millimetre in diameter and of different lengths ;
for a piece 10, 15, 20, &c., metres long, of this normal wire, the resist-
ance would be 10, 15, 20, &c. But, since it is difficult to obtain
wires having exactly this diameter, it must be measured accurately,
and the computation made how long a copper wire one millimetre in di-
ameter should be, which makes the same resistance. In computing the
actual resistance of the battery, this reduced length of wire is used.
This section of our normal wire has a surface of 0.785 square milli-
metre. Since, with equal resistance the length of the wire increases
in proportion to its section, it is evident that a copper wire / metres
long, with a radius r, and section zr, excites the same resistance as
a normal wire of the length,
in which L is the reduced length of the wire. A wire, for instance,
having a diameter of 0.74 millimetre, a section of 0.43 square milli-
metre, and a length of 6 metres, will exert the same resistance as a
6 xX 0.785
0.43
diameter ; thus 10.95 is the reduced length of the wire used in the
experiment.
From this inserted copper wire many pieces of different lengths
may be obtained, 5, 10, 20, &c., metres long, for similar experiments,
and ready at all times. Instead of longer copper wires, short pieces
of wire of badly conducting metals, as platinum, iron, or German sil-
ver, are best ; their resistance reduced to the normal wire must be de-
termined by experiment. Wires to about 10 metres long can be
wound suitably into coils and fixed in wooden cylinders from 2 to 3
inches in diameter, and corresponding lengths. Longer wires are
covered with silk and wound on wooden rollers and used thus. On
these cylinders or rollers, the length of the wire reduced to the normal
‘ wire can be written so that there will be no further necessity for a re-
duction of the inserted wire.
copper wire = 10.95 metres long and 1 millimetre in
aon TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
For inserting wires conveniently into the circuit, a binding
J screw, such as represented in Fig. 6, may be used. No ex-
tended explanation of its application is needed. Fig. 7,
For fastening thick wires in the holes of the binding
screw, they should be at least one line in diameter. But
the retaining of these wires is thus rendered some-
what difficult, and in frequent use there is danger
= in squeezing off their ends. Since the insertion wire
<e= must not be too thick, and should always have the
same length, it is well to solder the ends of the wire.to a piece
of copper or brass about 2.5 millimetres thick, which can be
easily fastened in the holes of the clamp.
Norrenburg used for metallic connexion of pieces of wire,
His: wire-feathers (Drahtfe- Fig. 8.
dern) suchas represented
in Fig. 9. These wire- (1)
feathers are to be recom-
mended because connect-
ing and separating, by
means of them, can be
done very easily and
rapidly.
It is very evident that
for insertions, wire of |
different lengths can be applied advantage-
ously to a rheostat.
Denote by E the electro-motive force of the
galvanic battery, by R the essential resistance to conduction ; then we
have, according to Ohm’s law, the force of the current,
i (1)
R
with perfect metallic closing—that is, with such closing that its resist-_
ance to conduction, compared with that of the elements, may be dis-
regarded, Introducing the reduced length of wire /, the force will be
only
—
pads (2)
+
We have here s and s’ given by observation ; / is also known, and
from these two equations E can be eliminated, and the value of R com-
puted. The following tables give a series of observations instituted
for determining the resistance to conduction of different batteries:
“‘
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 333
BUNSEN’S BATTERY, BY DELEUIL.
No. | Insertion in| Deflection. | Tangent of | Force of R. i.
metres. detlection. current.
fe) ,
0 33 30 0.7133 49. 931
ss | 68.7 8 0. 1405 9. 835 AC ac
0 24 52 0, 463 32. 41
: 1 7.2 20. 7 0. 366 25. 62 a Bo
0 24 52 0. 463 32.41
3 | - 50.7 9 0. 158 11. 06 ae ae
Means === 855
( 0 57 1. 54 107.8
: 7 7.2 38 0. 781 54. 67 tee ee
0 57 1. 54 107.8
2 1 29,2 17.8 0. 321 22,47 Wee pea
0 57 1. 54 107.8
S 49 11.8 0.21 14.7 lots —
Mean==--—=- 823
Mean of the observations.--.-------------------------------- 839
BUNSEN’S BATTERY, BY STOHRER.
No. | Insertion in| Deflection. | Tangent of | Force of R. E.
metres. deflection. current.
)
0 61 1. 804 121. 24
: 1 68.7 8.5 0.149 10. 43 eae eS
0 31.5 0. 615 42.91
21) 6.7 7.25 0. 127 8. 86 t . ie
Mean = -- - 717
GROVE’S BATTERY.
No. | Insertion in} Deflection. | Tangent of | Force of R. E.
metres. deflection. current.
fo)
0 30.8 0. 596 41.7
1 7.2 23.5 0. 435 30. 4 a ee
0 30.8 0. 596 41.7
‘ 1 29,2 13.7 0. 245 17.1 Ae aa
0 30.8 0. 596 41.7
; 49 9.7 0.171 12 ioe Ee
Means =—-=— 829
So TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
DANIELLS’ BATTERY.
No. | Insertion in| Deflection. | Tangent of | Force of Ri. E.
metres. deflection. current.
°
0 32 0. 625 43.75
i | 68.7 5.45 0.101 7.07 eo ae
0 16.8 0. 302 21.14
- 7.2 12. 75 0. 266 15. 82 Be a
Mean ase-- 470
SMEE’S ELEMENT.
No. | Insertion in | Deflection. | Tangent of Force of R. E.
metres. deflection. current.
°
0 26 0. 488 34. 16
: i 7.2 12. 25 0.217 15. 19 das a
0 26 0. 488 34. 16 3
2 4 29.2 5. 25 0. 092 15. 19 G a0
|
Mean s=-2-— 210
WOLLASTON’S ELEMENT.
No. | Insertion in} Deflection. | Tangent of Force of R. E.
metres. deflection. current.
fo)
0 23.6 0. 437 30. 58
: 7.2 it 0. 205 14.17 oe oe
0 23. 6 0. 437 30. 58 :
a 29.2 5 0. 087 6. 12 i ae
Meaneeeea= 208
In the last vertical column are the computed values of the electro-
motive force, which shall be spoken of later.
We must append a few
remarks on the separate experiments whose data are given in the
tables.
The numbers under the head ‘‘ Insertion’’ indicate the reduced
length of the inserted wire.
The sulphuric acid used in the first experiment with the Deleuil
arrangement was diluted with about ten times its quantity of water ;
in the second and third, the acid was diluted still more.
acid had a snecific gravity of 1.18.
The nitric
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 335
In the last three experiments the sulphuric acid was diluted with
five times its volume of water, and the specific gravity of the nitric
acid was 1.36.
In the experiments with the Stihrer arrangement of Bunsen’s
battery, acid like that of the first experiment with Deleuil’s was
used ; the considerable difference in resistance of elements in the two
experiments does not depend here upon the nature of the acid, but is oc-
casioned by the porous cells. In the second experiment with the Stohrer
battery, its own excellent cells were not used, but very brittle earthen
cells. By using these red earthen cells the resistance of the elements
increased three fold, from which we see what an important influence
clay cells have-upon the resistance of the element to induction, and
thus upon the force of the current.
In Daniells’ battery the red clay cells were also used ; in the first
experiment the zinc was placed in a mixture of 1 part sulphuric acid
to 10 parts water ; in the last experiment, acid which had been already
used, and still more diluted, was applied.
To give the tangent compass a secure position, it was placed upon a
thick oak board built into the niche of a window, so that walking in
the room produced no vibration in the needle. Thick copper con-
ducting wires passed from the tangent compass to the wall, where they
were fixed over a door to a table on which the battery stood.
The resistance of all this wire, together with the tangent compass,
is equal to 1.75; that is, it is equal to the resistance of a copper wire
1 millimetre thick, and 1.75 metre long. This resistance is in the
values of R in the above table, added to the essential resistance of the
elements; thus the true values of R are always 1.75 less ; hence we
have,
For the Deleuil battery— .
1. R = 15.05 (10 water, 1 sulphuric acid.)
2. R = 24.88 (acid used already and diluted more.)
3. R= 5.85 (5 water, 1 sulphuric acid.)
For the Stéhrer battery—
1. R= 4.45 (white cells, 2 10 water,
2. Sv 16.25. (red cells, + 1 sulphuric acid.
For the Daniells’ battery—
1. R= 9.35 (10 water, 1 sulphuric acid.)
2. R= 19.75 (used acid, further diluted.)
The resistance of the element depends upon the nature of the
liquid and the size of the pair of plates; hence to be able to compare
the conducting capacity of different galvanic combinations properly,
the resistance must be reduced to the same sized pair of plates, and
thus the surface of the latter with which the experiment is made
must be known.
_The above mentioned galvanic elements have the following dimen-
sions :
336
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
DELEUIL ELEMENT.
Plate. Diameter in| Height in | Surface, square
centimetres. | centimetres. decimetres.
AN Cie 2 ice ee ec a LI ae Ba 10 > 1.16
Carbon zy sep easy Semen i eae an 5.5 9.5 jSyan
Mean? -22)22 1. 38
STOHRER ELEMENT.
Plate. Diameter in} Height in | Surface, square
centimetres. | centimetres, | decimetres.
DATING Maas @ PLease. ay 2h, id LER ae me aes 5 12 1. 88
CATON jo ore cae eke es pee pe Tf 15 3.40
| Mean=22 2 22 2. 64
DANIELL ELEMENT.
Plate. Diameter in| Height in | Surface, square
centimetres. | centimetres. decimetres.
ZINES ee ae Tes ee ena ee ey Sener e 15 21 9.76
WODPEN te ome emia =o ee eee ee eee oe 10 22 6. 81
Meares = 22% 8. 34
For height of the cylinder, the height of the part immersed in the
liquid is here given. In the Stihrer carbon-cylinder, the bottom is
closed except a hole in the middle, hence the inner surface of the vase
must be reckoned as the surface of the carbon.
To compare the surfaces of the different elements more conveniently,
the mean is determined from the positive and negative cylinder; we
will term it the mean surface of the element. Reduced to one square
decimetre of mean surface, we get the following resistances :
a.
b.
C.
SQ
Delenilisveletitent ici B eos! ic06eeeee
Stéhrer’s oe th b.tite eeee tens... Jae ae
Stohrers’ ONE REE REELS cdl. 00 OR
Daniells’ Cet wares oeiciain' a's de icic cae eee
Wollaston’ s) “ma en llcs. Lagann
With equal surfaces, the resistances of the elements were in the ratio
of these numbers.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 337
The value 21 of the resistance of the Daniell element for one square
decimetre of mean surface, refers to the case in which the zinc cylin-
der is immersed in a mixture of one part sulphuric acid to ten parts
water.
The numbers given for the Stéhrer element refer to the same h-
quid, and the number opposite 6 to Leipsic cells; that opposite ¢ to
red clay cells. The resistance of Daniell’s battery holds good for the
same strength of sulphuric acid, and for red cells.
With equal surface and like liquid, the resistance of the Delewl
element a is to the Stohrer element as 21: 12; thus the discrepancy
is purely in the dissimilarity of the clay cells.
By using red clay cells (c) instead of white, (b,) the resistance to
conduction is increased in the ratio of 12 : 43, or 3.6 times greater.
Thus it may be expected, that, by using Leipsic clay cells, the resistance
of the zinc and copper battery will be 3.6 times less than by using
earthen cells, or for one square decimetre of mean surface, 78__ 91 ¢
3.6
The Wollaston element was immersed in a liquid composed of one
part sulphuric acid te twenty parts water. When one square deci-
metre of zinc was used, the mean resistance was 6.8. But since
each surface of the zinc is effective, 6.8 is the resistance for an effect-
ive zinc surface of two square decimetres; thus, for one square de-
cimetre the resistance is 13.6; for stronger acids the resistance would
naturally decrease considerably.
§ 10. Electro-motive force.—By means of the two equations, (1)
and (2), the resistance R of the element, as well as the electro-mo-
tive force E,can be computed. From the measurements already given
above, we get the values of the electro-motive force of the zinc and
carbon batteries of Stéhrer and Deleuil, and of the zine and copper
batteries, as they are presented in the tables under H, namely:
For the zinc and carbon battery of Deleuil—
For the zinc and copper battery—
486.
454
338 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
The values of the electro-motive force of one and the same battery
are very nearly equal, although the nature of the liquid, and with it
the resistance to conduction, may change. In fact, the electro-motive
torce of the Stéhrer zinc and carbon battery differs only 0.1 part from
the force of that constructed by Deleuil. This fact has already been
mentioned more at length above.
It is now to be explained what we are to understand by these num-
bers. The electro-motive force is that force which sets the current in
motion. We can of course measure this force, as weli as that of the
current, by its effects.
The electro-motive force of the voltaic pile is proportional to the
electrical tension of the pole in the open circuit ; we could, therefore,
apply this tension as a measure of the electro-motive force, if the
electrical tension were not so very small at the poles that it cannot
be determined with much accuracy in batteries of a few pair of.
plates or elements. But Ohm’s law teaches us that the force of the
current of the closed battery is also proportional to the electro-motive
force ; and since the power of the current can be measured with great
accuracy and reduced to a definitive unit, it is better to use the force
of the current as a measure of the electro-motive force. We have
iE
oe
in which W denotes the entire resistance which the current has to
overcome ; when W = 1, we have
b= EH:
FE is here the force of the current which the battery would give if the
resistance to conduction were = 1. Inestablishing our units of force
of current and resistance, let us consider the value of electro-motive force,
or the value of H, as the quantity of detonating gas which the current of
a battery would give if the whole resistance were equal to the resistance
of a copper wire 1 metre long and 1 millimetre thick ; thus if we have
found the electromotive force E of Daniell’s zinc and copper battery to
be 470, it means that the current of Daniell’s battery would give 470
cubic centimetres of detonating gas per minute if the sum of all resist-
ance were equal to the above-mentioned unit of resistance.
I consider it a great advantage of the chemical unit of force of cur-
rent recommended above (= that current which yields one cubic cen-
timetre of detonating gas per minute) that in adopting it the values
of the electro-motive force are not barely proportional numbers, but
that each has for itself a perfectly distinct and easily comprehended
signification.
Although Jacobi was the first, to my knowledge, to attempt the
reduction of the data of the galvanometer to the chemical effect, he
did not make any further use of this chemical unit of the force of the
current—that is, he did not apply it to the computation of the elec-
tro-motive force.
§ 11. The electro-motive force is proportional to the tension of the open
circuit.—It has been already mentioned that the electrical tension at
the poles of an open battery may be considered as a measure of the elec-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 339
tro-motive force. The correctness of this assumption has been tacitly
received by most physicists, although a direct experimental confirma-
tion had not been attempted on account of the imperfection of the appa-
ratus. Kohlrausch has at length supplied this omission. He con-
verted the exceedingly sensitive electrometer of Dellman into a meas-
uring instrument of great accuracy. By combining this instrument
with a condenser (Pog. Ann. LX XV, 88) he succeeded in determining
the electroscopic tension at the poles of an open, simple battery, with
such exactness that there can be no longer any doubt of the correct-
ness of the above-mentioned principle. '
Kohlrausch has, at the same time, proved by this investigation
that Dellman’s electroscope, as it comes from his hands, is adapted
to the most delicate electrical researches. For a more detailed de-
scription of the instrument and its use, we refer the reader to
the excellent treatise already cited. The comparison of the electro-
metive force with the tension of an open battery may be found ina
third memoir in volume LXXV of Poggendorff’s Annalen, page
220. To render the results of this investigation comprehensible, we
must first give the modus operandi more fully by which the values of
the electroscopic tension can be derived from the measurements mada
by the instrument.
Kohlrausch’s electrometer can be used as a measuring, instrument
in two ways, namely:
1. By placing the upper divided circle, which we shall term the tor-
sion circle, at 90°, the movable needle will form an angle of 90° with
the fixed metal strip. The needle and strip are now brought into
communication, the electricity to be measured communicated to them,
and then the connexion between needle and strip broken. The tor-
sion circle being now turned back to 0, the needle will form an are
with the strip as much greater as the electrical charge is stronger.
The electrical charge which produces a deflection of 10° being
denoted by 1, the strength of the electrical charge belonging to each
angle of deflection can be determined. For the details of this compu-
tation I refer the reader to Kohlrausch’s memoir in volume LX XII
of Pogg’s Ann. On page 385 he gives a table, indicating the corres-
ponding electrical tension for each angle of deflection, which holds
good, of course, only for his own instrument. For clearer compre-
hension ef the matter we will present an extract from this table :
Angle of Strength of
deflection. |Electrical tension. |
i
—)
ee
GF oe A oo pep
eo
oO
310 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Thus if the charge which produces 10° of deflection be denoted by
1, the electrical charges, which produce 40°, 60°, and 80°, are re-
spectively equal to 4.39, 8.30, and 18.33.
Kohlrausch’s table gives results for whole degrees.
2. The instrument can be applied in a second manner for measuring
electrical charges. If after placing the needle and strip at right
angles, both being in communication, electricity is imparted and the
connexion then broken, we are able, by turning the torsion cirele, to
make the angle of deflection a constant quantity, say 30°. According
to well known principles the electrical charge is then also propor-
tional to the square root of the torsion necessary to maintain the
needle at the deflection of 30°.
Kohlrausch determined the tension at the poles of different simple
batteries by both methods ; the batteries being arranged as follows:
The two metals were soldered together ; one was immersed in the
liquid of the vessel A, (Fig. 10,) the other in the liquid
of the vessel B; in each vessel a brass wire was placed,
forming the poles. One of the wires was connected
with the ground, the other with the collector-plate of
a condensing apparatus. The tension of the positive
as well as of the negative pole was determined for each
battery by many experiments, and the mean of all
taken.
The electro-motive foree of the different galvanic elements Kohl-
yausch determined according to Wheatstone’s method, which will
presently be mentioned. The following table contains the results of his
measurement:;
$$ or
Tension of open
\ Hiectro- battery.
Description of battery. BHOtLYE || GOI WU ee
| force.
i | 1g Ul.
1. Zinc in sulphate of zinc; platinum in nitric acid of den- !
STG 200 4330 Sige ae SS OSes Soot ie a eerie ee: |. 23.22.) 28. 22 28. 22
2. Zinc in sulphate of zinc; the nitric acid of 1.213 sp. gr--| 28.43 | 27.71 27.75
3. Zinc insulphate of zine; carbon in nitricacid of 1. 213sp. gr.) 26. 29 26.15 26. 19
4. Zinc in sulphate of zine ; copper in sulphate of copper -- - 32.83 | F888 / 20.06
5. a. Silver in cyanide of potassium—common salt; copper in
sulphate of copper-------------------------------- 14.08 | 14.27 | 34.29
b. The same, later .-2---------+5---------=--<s9--eeee 13. 67 13.84 | 13.82
c. The same, still later ..--.------------------------- 12. 35 12.36 | -12. 26
‘
— oe = 8 —__-—-
— _— —
The tension of the open battery is determined by the above-described
methods. The numbers under IJ and II were obtained by the first and
second methods respectively.
Since the square roots of the torsions, as well as the numbers of the
table on page 385 of volume LXXII of Pogg. Ann., denoting the
tensions corresponding to the different angles of deflection, and also
the number expressing the electro-motive force, are all measured by
different units, Kehlrausch, in order to make the data comparable,
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 341
has multiplied the roots of the torsions by 1.0239, the values deter-
mined by the angle of deflection by 1.8136, by which means the re-
sults by the first experiment are rendered perfectly accordant. But
since the rest of the corresponding numbers accord very closely, these
experimental series prove that the electro-motive force is proportional
to the electroscopic tension at the poles of the open battery.
This principle might be proved with less sensitive electrometers, by
determining the tension at the poles of a battery of 30, 40, or more,
elements.
Kohlrausch’s instrument is also very well adapted to solve a dis-
ptted theoretical question, to which allusion has been made above.
{fa strip of zinc and one of platinum be immersed in a vessel of water
without touching each other, according to Schénbein’s view, the upper
end of the zine must indicate free negative electricity—the upper end
of the platinum, free positive; while according to the contact theory the
reverse should be the case. Itis very desirable that Kohlrausch himself
should investigate this, because he not only possesses an excellent
instrument of the kind, but has attained great skill in manipulating
with the apparatus.
§ 12. Indirect methods for determining the constants of the battery.—
The process given above, derived from formulas (1) and (2), for de-
termining the resistance and electro-motive force of a galvanic battery,
and that for determining the constants, which we will call Ohm’s
method, is as simple as it is accurate, if a suitable measuring appa-
ratus is furnished, and a battery sufficiently constant be used. Both,
however, were wanting at the time of the publication of Ohm’s law,
and it thus happened that complicated methods had to be used to ob-
tain only tolerably accordant results. By degrees only, simplicity was
attained in this instance, as is often the case in the history of physics.
First, there was wanting an instrument adapted to measuring the
force of current; then the multipliers used were objectionable in two
particulars: they were suited for weak currents only, and there was
no simple law, showing the relation of the angle of deflection and the
force of the current.
Several physicists have proposed very ingenious methods for gradu-
ating a galvanometer; that is, to determine empirically what rela-
tion the different degrees of deflection have to the force of current; yet
since they do not appear to be very well adapted for general use, and
only yield useful results in the hands of skilful experimenters, I may
be pardoned for not going into the details of these methods of gradu-
ating. ‘The method which Poggendorff has given for converting the
galvanometer into a measuring instrument, is found in volume LVI
of his Annalen, page 324. There is also in this paper a short col-
lection of the methods recommended by other physicists for the
same purpose, with indications of the sources, to which I must refer
those who wish to enter into the details of this subject.
Fechner did not use the deflection of the needle for determining
the force of current, but the period of oscillation of the needle about
its position of equilibrium, for the case in which the coils of the mul-
tiplier are parallel to this position.
342 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
This method is too laborious for general use.
Thus, methods for determining the constants of the battery (elec-
‘tro-motive force and resistance) were sought for, which do not require
the knowledge of the force of the current. These efforts were even
continued after Pouillet’s and Weber’s tangent compass, as well as
the compass of sines, were known. It is really surprising that such
important instruments as these, which introduced so great simplicity
into the study of galvanic laws, were so slowly adopted and so gener-
ally applied. F
We shall now consider more closely the best of these indirect
methods.
Jacobi presents the following: (Pogg. Ann. LVIII, 85.) The
Fig. 11. conducting circuit of the battery is
divided into two parts, as shown in
Fig. 11. Let the resistance to conduc-
tion of one of the branches be L, that
of the other J, in which the rheostat* is
inserted at a, the galvanometer at 0;
then the resistance which these two cir-
cuits, inserted at the same time, pro-
duce, is—
tai
L+H
Hence, the whole force of the current
which the apparatus yields is—
g—- E+)
A@+ L)+0L
Denoting, by A, the resistance of the elements, (including the conduc-
tor between m and w.)
The part of the entire current which passes through the galvano-
meter is—
Ss — iD L
Aut) +L
Breaking the lateral closing, the force of the current in the other
circuit will increase, and we must add the resistance « by means of
the rheometer, to restore the galvanometer needle to its former posi-
tion; but we have now for the force of 8’ the value—
Nepos i
— Afi a
From this and the previous equation we get for A the value—
A= pls,
l
Now, since z, L and 7 are known, the resistance of the elements can
be determined by this method, without knowing the value of the force
of current.
* An account of this instrument is given at the close of this section.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 343
If another battery, whose resistance is 2’, with the resistance 7 and
x', (quantities corresponding to the / and a above,) produce the same
deflection in the galvanometer, we have—
DY
/
Pt Ug
BE Ya tw) QE Pb ee)
Thus by this method the relation of the electro-motive forces of dif-
ferent voltaic combinations to each other can be determined. Jacobi
found, in this manner, that the electro-motive force of Daniell’s bat-
tery is to that of Grove’s as 21 is to 35.
W heatstone presented a very beautiful process for determining the
electro-motive force of a battery, without having previously found a °
value for the resistance of the battery. (Pogg. Ann. LVII, 518.)
A battery whose electro-motive force is E, gives as the force of the
current
Hence
> i= . , R being the sum of all the resistances. The electro-motive
force of another battery being 2 times as great, the entire resistance
must also be » times as great if the second battery has the same force
of current, or produces the same deflection (say 45°) in the galva-
nometer ; then we have
Pipe tat
R nk
Adding to the resistance R the resistance 7, the force of the current
will decrease to noir ; the needle of the galvanometer will re-
f r
cede a given number of degrees, (say 5°.) Ifit be desired upon insert-
ing the second battery to weaken the current exactly so much, and
make the needle recede from 45° to 40°, the resistance » 7 must be
added to the resistance nm R; for if = _, wh we have also :
R nk R+pr
a P . The electro-motive forces of the two batteries are
nKh+aur
consequently to each other as the resistances which must be added to
the resistance already present, to cause the needle to retrograde from
a given deflection (say 45°) a given number of degrees, (say 5°.)
To compare the electro-motive forces of different batteries the fol-
lowing process is, therefore, to be adopted. In the conducting circuit
of the battery, besides the galvanometer, the rheostat is inserted with
so much wire as to produce a deflection of the needle of 45°; the re-
sistance is then increased by turning the rheostat until the deflection of
the needle is only 40°; the number of turns is thus a measure of the
electro-motive force of the battery.
Suppose, for example, the current of a Daniell’s element be passed
through the rheostat and the galvanometer, and so much wire has
been inserted as to produce the deflection of 45°. To reduce the
deflection from 45° to 40°, suppose thirty turns of the rheostat must be
344 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
added. Now insert a Grove’s element into the same circuit, and so
regulate the entire resistance that the needle stands again at 45°.
To bring it down to 40° the resistance must be increased by (say)
fifty turns of the rheostat ; then the electromotive force of Daniell’s
battery is to that of Grove’s as 30 to 50. This is evidently the sim-
plest process for determining the ratio of the electro-motive forces of
different batteries.
Wheatstore used a multiplier as a rheometer, and on that account
had to insert a considerable resistance to make the current of the
hydro-electric elements weak enough. Under these circumstances, of
course, only a rheostat with a thin wire can be used.
Although this method was originally designed for a multiplier, it
may be also used with any other rheometer, as the torsion galvanom-
eter, tangent compass, &c. But with these instruments, which ad-
mit of stronger currents, the current used need, of course, not be very
weak, and therefore a rheostat with a thicker wire can be used.
This method of Wheatstone gives us the values of electro-motive
force measured by the length of wires required to effect the retrogres-
sion of the needle; hence these numbers are dependent on the in-
dividuality of the galvanometer and the rheostat.
As examples of his method, Wheatstone adduces the following
measurements. Three small Daniell’s batteries* of unequal size were
in succession brought into the circuit. To revert the needle from 45°
to 40°, the following number of turns of the rheostat were necessary :
Copper cylinder 13 inch high, 2 inches diameter, 30 turns.
cs ce 3 ce (a4 Oe ce ce 30 c¢
2 e
cé ce (a4 ce 1 ce ce cé
6 34 30
Thus the electro-motive force, according to the theory, is independ-
ent of the size of the pair of plates.
When batteries of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 equal elements were used as elec-
tro-motors in succession, the following results were obtained:
1 element required 30 turns.
cé 66 61 66
3 cc ce 91 (a4
4 ce a4 120 cc
5 ce ce 150 ce
Thus the electro-motive force of the battery is, as theory indicates,
proportional to the number of pairs of plates.
I have determined by this method the electro-motive force of a
Daniell’s, a Grove’s, a Stohrer’s, and a Deleuil’s element, using for
this purpose the tangent compass, and a rheostat with thick wire.
Yor bringing the needle back from 15° to 10°, I found as follows:
With Daniell’s element, 9 turns.
‘¢ =Grove’s ce i oe
‘¢ ~Stohrer’s - 136 +
‘ ~Deleuil’s FF Taw
_ * The elements were somewhat differently constructed from those of the ordinary Dan-
iell’s battery. The porous clay cell contained only liquid zinc amalgam, and it, as well as
the cylinder of copper surrounding it, stood in a solution of sulphate of copper.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 845
The electro-motive force of Deleuil’s battery was determined by the
chemical method at the same time. The results of these determina-
tions have been given in a previous table. Of the six measurements
of Deleuil’s battery, the last three belong to this series.
After these determinations, it is easy to reduce the number of turns
necessary to revert the needle from 15° to 10°, to the unit of electro-
motive force described above. We have—
15.1 turns, equivalent to 823 of electro-motive force;
hence 1 = é 54.51 66 ry,
Thus the values determined by revolution of the rheostat expressed
in our unit, are as follows:
For Daniell’s battery 490.
‘¢ Grove’s es 709.
ff Stohrer’s. | ** 741.
The zine of Daniell’s battery during the last measurement was in
stronger sulphuric acid, for which case the direct measurement had
given the value 486. The electro-motive force of Stohrer’s battery was
previously found somewhat greater. The numbers for Grove’s bat-
tery differed considerably, on which account no dependence can be
placed upon them.
In the same manner as here, values of electro-motive force, con-
nected with the individuality of the instrument, may be reduced to
our unit, provided the corresponding factor has been determined.
To determine the resistance of the element, Wheatstone has given
several methods, the first of which only we will present here.
Place the galvanometer and rheostat in the circuit, and so adjust
the latter that the needle of the former stands at a given point. The
force of the current 8 is—
iE
| R+ 9’
Fig. 12. denoting by E the electro-motive force, by g
the resistance of the multiplher, by R the
whole of the remaining resistance in the cir-
cuit. This arrangement is rendered clear by
Fig. 12, g representing the galvanic element,
k the rheostat, ~ the multiplier.
Making a branch to the current passing
through the galvanometer, by a wire whose
resistance is exactly equal to the resistance of
the multiplier, one-half of the current will
reach b from a through v, the other half will
pass through the galvanometer to 6, The
resistance between a and 0 is now just half as great as before, when
only the multiplier was present; hence the power of the undivided
current is now—
ila sr
Rrag
346 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
one half of which passes through the multiplier, and the power of the
current passing through this instrument is now only
;
R+39
but the needle can be restored to its original position by suitably dimin-
ishing the resistance R by means of the rheostat. If by turning it,
the resistance of the undivided part of the circuit is reduced from
R to 4 R, the strength of the current is
S'S Sip: | ae
2h+ag Rr g
therefore it is again as strong as at first. Hence, if after the insertion
of the branch wire v, a number nof coils of the rheostat must be taken
out of the circuit to recover the original deflection of the needle, then
the resistance R of the undivided part of the circuit is equal to that
of 2 n coils.
But the resistance R consists of two parts—the essential resistance
of the element, and the resistance of the conducting wire from one pole
toa, and from the other to 6. The resistance of these wires has to be
determined and subtracted from R to find the essential resistance of
the element.
This, as well as all other indirect methods for determining the es-
sential resistance of an element, is not so simple that it should be
preferred to the direct determination described above, if an instrument
for measuring the force of current is at command.
§ 13. Poggendorff’s method for determining the electro-motive force of
inconstant batteries.—In volume LIII of his Annals, page 436, Pog-
gendorff communicates his first experiment on the electro-motive force
of the zinc and iron battery.’ Although iron is much nearer to zine in
the tension series than copper, yet the current which the combination of
zinc and iron produces in dilute sulphuric acid, is stronger than the
current of an element of copper and zinc in the same liquid and under
like circumstances.
This result at first glance appears to be in opposition to the contact
theory; hence Poggendorff undertook a more exact investigation. He
determined, as well as it is possible with the changeable current of bat-
teries with one liquid, the resistance and the electro-motive force of both
combinations, by Ohm’s method, and found, that in fact the electro-
motive force of thé zine and iron battery was to that of the zinc and
copper as 21.5 to 11.8.
Thus the electro-motive force of the zinc and iron battery is actually
greater than that of the zinc and copper, though in the tension series,
iron stands between zincand copper. Poggendorff saw that the cause
of this anomaly could only be the polarization of the plates. The
electro-motive force, which originally set the current in motion, is
limited by the electrical difference of the metals in contact; but as soon
as the current begins to circulate, the metal-plates undergo a polar-
ization which diminishes the original electro-motive force, and this
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 347
polarization is greater in the combination of zinc and copper than in
that of zinc and iron.
This galvanic polarization we will consider hereafter more at
length; it is only mentioned here so far as is necessary to show the
course of Poggendorff’s investigation.
If the values found by Ohm’s method for the electro-motive force
do not accord with the tension series, the cause, as above remarked, is
purely in the modification which the original electro-motive force
undergoes by polarization. Poggendorff endeavored to determine the
value of their original electro-motive force before it was modified by
polarization. We will pass by the earlier efforts by which this ob-
ject was but imperfectly attained, and turn to the consideration of a
method which Poggendorff has published in volume LIV of his
Annals, page 161.
This method differs essentially from all others, in that not the cur-
rent of a battery, but only the tendency towards a current, is measured.
To avoid polarization, Poggendorff endeavored to prevent the current
from coming into action, and to compensate it beforehand by another
whose electro-motive force was constant and known.
The arranging and establishing of this compensating method is
described somewhat diffusely by Poggendorff, and on that account is
not perfectly clear ; hence I have departed from his mode of presenta-
tion, since it has been an object in this report to make it as intelligi-
ble as possible.
In Fig. 13, C represents a constant element—say a Grove’s, and I
eee another voltaic element, whose
; electro-motive force is less than
that of C. The positive poles of
both are connected by a conductor,
and likewise the negative. In the
connexion of two polesof like name
a multiplier m is inserted; the
connexion of the other two poles
can be broken at a at pleasure,
and renewed again. ‘The con-
ducting wire a d b closes the con-
stant battery C.
Suppose the element I is pre-
cisely equal to C, and the con-
nexion at a is made, this combination, then, is in fact nothing else
than two elements so connected that they constitute a single element
with a double surface ; but, if the electro-motive force of I is weaker
than that of C, the actions of the currents are somewhat more compli-
cated.
Denote by—
1, The resistance of the element C, together with the con-
ductors between a and 0.
U, The resistance of the element I with the conductors
between @ and 8, the resistance of the multiplier in-
cluded.
rv, The resistance of the conducting wire a d 6.
348 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
E, The electro-motive force of C.
EH’, The electro-motive force of I.
The current of the element C divides at a and b into two parts; one
of which passes through the conductor by d, the other through I.
The resistance to conduction of the one branch is 7, that of the other
and
/
is !’; hence the resistance of the two branches together is i:
r
the undivided current which C produces is—
E _. E@+7r)
ie lr LU+tr) +r
Utr
In this we neglect the electro-motive force in I.
The part of the entire current which passes through I is—
EB ’
an z - aa (1)
(U+rn+lr
The entire current which I produces, and which is divided between
the branches a Cb and ad b, is—
lieUE olay (2)
Ud+ry+rl
The two currents (1) and (2) pass through the multiplier in oppo-
site directions. Since the denominators of the values (1) and (2) are
exactly equal, the multiplier evidently will stand at the zero point, if
Er=H (+7). (
For given values of E E/ and/a value of r can always be found
which will satisfy equation (3); that is, there is a certain length of the
conducting wire a d b with which the multiplier indicates no current,
when the wire coming from a is brought in contact with one of the
poles of C,
If the resistance 7 be too great, the multiplier will indicate a cur-
rent in favor of C; on the contrary, the current of Cin the multiplier
will preponderate if the resistance r is too small.
If the resistance 7 in the wire a db is precisely such that the multi-
plier remains at zero when the circuit is closed at a, or when equation
(3) is satisfied, we get from this equation the following:
pia gy lies 4
H=E DR; (4)
Wecan thus compute the value of E’; that is, the electro-motive force
of I, when EH, the electro-motive force of C, is known, and also the
values of resistance / and r.
The exact length of the wire a db cannot be attained at the first
trial; in general by closing the circuit at a the needle of the multiplier
will be deflected to one side or the other, according as the wire’is too
long or too short. By a few trials, shortening or lengthening the
wire a d bas may be necessary, it is easy to find such a length thatthe
galvanometer will indicate no current, or at most a very feeble one.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 349
This is to be considered as a first approximation to the correct ratio
between x andl. The battery I should now be left open for a time,
that it may lose all polarization ; or, what would be better, the negative
plate should be taken out of the liquid, cleaned, and then restored to
its place. Ifa deflection occurs again on closing the circuit, the length
of the wire a d } must be regulated until the exact proportion is ob-
tained. The current which the electro-motive force of the element I,
unmodified by polarization, tends to generate, is compensated, and the
value of K’ can be computed by equation (4).
Poggendorff proved his method by ascertaining with it the electro-
motive force of constant elements, which could be determined in another
manner, and found perfectly accordant results. He obtained, by Ohm’s
method—
The electro-motive force of Grove’s element.............00.05. == 25,886
The electro-motive force of Daniell’s element.................. = 15.435
The Grove’s element was then placed at C, and the Daniell’s at I,
(Fig. 13.) J was 35.03. The equilibrium, above mentioned, took
place when r = 52.68. For this case we have
beste Bas hE!
Y i
Hence we get by this method
yh 880, 2 1
1.668 ahi.
which accords very well with the value of H’, determined by Ohm’s
method.
Poggendorff now used this method for determining the original
dlectro-motive force in constant batteries. That of (;rove’s battery,
adopted as the standard of comparison, was found by Ohm’s method
to be equal to 22.88, and he found for the original force of an incon-
stant battery, made of
Zinc and copper.......- SU Mte sai studerts ts Pia lsders ater oeas 13.79
OGRA DEE Gila le ODS oD Be SSR 7.40
bron and) copper’: . 1/0) 20. A) AN aR BR ee POOR ARE EA 6.00
These results prove that the original electro-motive force of these
combinations very nearly satisfy the law of the tension series, since
that of copper and iron, and that of iron and zinc, is nearly equal to
the electro-motive force of copper and zinc; thus, 7.4 + 6 =13.4,
nearly equal to 13.79.
If the current of the zinc and iron battery is stronger than that of
the zinc and copper, and if, according to Ohm’s method, the electro-
motive force of the former combination is found greater than that of
the latter, it is solely because the current of the zinc and copper com-
bination generates a stronger polarization, acting against the original
electro-motive force, than the current of the zinc and iron battery.
§14. Comparison of different voltaic combinations.—In the last
paragraph we have seen how the constants of a voltaic combination
can be determined and expressed in comparable values. None of the
statements of the effects of batteries, as they are ordinarily presented
350 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
for comparison, are satisfactory. The want of accurate numerical de-
terminations occasions great uncertainty in regard to the advantages
and disadvantages of different galvanic combinations. If such uncer-
tainty exists in the accounts of men of science, it is not at all surpris-
ing to find communications in technical journals, which betray entire
ignorance of the principles here discussed. :
Let us now examine the most important of the galvanic combina-
tions somewhat more closely.
§ 15. The simple zinc and copper battery.—The Wollaston battery
is a convenient form of the simple zinc and copper combination, with
one liquid,
The batteries of Young and Miinch may be considered as variations
of Wollaston’s, and therefore a description of them is not necessary.
The simple zinc and copper battery, it is well known, is not con-
stant, because the electro-motive force is considerably modified by the
polarization of the copper plate, which takes place in consequence of
the current. Poggendorff found, as we have seen, the electro-motive
force of the zinc and copper battery in dilute sulphuric acid, before
being modified by polarization, to be equal to 13.8, while the electro-
motive force of Grove’s battery is equal to 22.9.
Assuming the electro-motive force of Grove’s battery to be 830, re-
ferred to the chemical unit, (see table §9,) the unmodified electro-motive
force of the zinc and copper battery would be 500 of the same unit.
But according to my experiments, when the current commences, the
electro-motive force of the zinc and copper combination is only 208;
thus, by polarization, the force is very soon reduced to 2 of its origi-
nal value, and this is also the reason that immediately after immer-
sion the current is exceedingly strong, but then very rapidly de-
creases. The polarization having once reached its maximum, the
current remains tolerably constant—at least, so much so as to admit of
accurate measurement. The numbers from which the values previ-
ously given (§ 9) of electro-motive force and of resistance to conduction
of Wollaston’s battery were computed were not immediately observed,
but are the means of numerous readings. ‘To form a correct idea of
the action of this battery, I will give here the corresponding series of
observations entire:
Kind of wire inserted. Deflection.
Ob is gteeianacht ebpslsae tea. Ochs 26e
Copper saute: tlh. sdet creeeg eae ee tel
Ly eases ites bes ion dee jot Sete oia sed
Oy ead eee ti deus tird Fe ee 24
Coppeticusasiahsaboniaes MBB seee atthe it
oy At paces Saji sedaibeintoah is & See eae ..26
0 ‘ist hee ea Tas EM MEA IAS 235
Brassil. Jigs ie Oe oe eee eee Bie
QO ighoceee dei Abb ehepeRse. d.di dee
IB EGSS sv esind hamdidaane bbe bbabiseck:e iodbak 5
Oe tetas « Fuivativ add ERE dee ithe eee
Ks feachite hE es. AS
Copper sccisisto uihccslipond akg Jesh ee
biOe bv evdvtadeteat avers Mu. da cere
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 351
On closing the battery, a few moments elapsed before the needle
came to rest, from very rapid oscillation ; and even after the oscilla-
tion had ceased it went back slowly, and was tolerably stationary at
26°, which is the first entry in the table. A copper wire was then
inserted, of which resistance, by previous experiment, had been found
equal to that of 7.2 metres of the normal wire. The needle came to
rest at 12°, but after a short time went back to 11.5°.
The copper wire was then removed from the circuit, when the de-
flection was 24°, &c., &e.
The brass wire, which reduced the deflection to 5°, had a resistance
equal to that of 29.2 metres of the normal wire.
Thus we see that the current of this element, after the first oscilla-
tion, remains tolerably constant—at least, so much so that approxi-
mately accurate estimates can be made for computing the electro-
motive force and resistance to conduction. While, on the one hand,
the electro-motive force is considerably weakened by the current, on
the other the resistance is not great, even with very weak acid.
Where it is not important to make exact measurements, and when a
steady current is not required for a long time, the zinc and copper
battery may be advantageously applied to many galvanic experiments.
If elements with large surfaces are necessary, the form of Hare’s
spiral is to be preferred. .
The force of the polarization is dependent, most probably, upon the
strength of the current, though accurate researches on this subject are
yet wanting.
The reason why batteries with one liquid are not constant is to be
sought in the polarization of the negative plate, and this is cbviated
as much as possible in the so-called constant. battery. Yet the
strength of the current of the constant battery gradually decreases,
by leaving it closed for along time, because the liquid gradually
changes—the dilute sulphuric acid becoming converted, by degrees,
into a solution of sulphate of zinc. A corresponding change in the
nature of the liquid takes place in all batteries, without exception,
and it is only to be avoided by renewing the liquid from time to time.
An arrangement might be so made that the heavy solution of sul-
phate of zinc would flow off slowly from the lower part of the vessel,
and the fresh acid flow in above at the same rate.
A circumstance which acts quite injuriously in all batteries without
porous partitions is, that, in consequence of the current, the sulphate
of zinc solution is decomposed, and metallic zinc deposited on the
negative plate, whence, during a protracted action of the battery, its
electro-motive force must decrease more and more.
The constancy of the battery current depends essentially upon its
strength. Feeble currents, like those obtained by using very dilute
acid, and with great resistance included in the circuit, remain constant
for some time ; while, by using stronger acid and less resistance, the
strength of the current must necessarily decrease far more rapidly.
Hence, if it be desired to compare different batteries, with reference
to their constancy, equal resistance and like acid must be used. Neg-
ect of these conditions may have been the occasion of numerous
rrors in regard to the constancy of single batteries.
852 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Batteries composed of zinc and copper plates buried in the moist
ground are said to be very constant. Such batteries, however, yield
very weak currents, because the resistance to conduction between the
plates is very great. Thus itis evident that the current of this
battery will remain constant longer than when the plates were im-
mersed in acid.
Prince Bagration placed plates in vessels filled with sand, which he
moistened moderately with a solution of sal-ammoniac. Garnier used
such batteries successfully to keep electrical clocks in motion (Ding-
ler’s Journal, vol. 110, p. 177); here a very feeble current was pow-
erful enough to impart sufficiently strong magnetism to a small
electro-magnet.
Garnier’s apparatus was constructed as follows: The sand was in
a small tub; the zinc and copper had the form of a cylinder, the
zine being on the inside. The surface of the copper was 1.5 and that
of the zinc 1.3 square decimetres. Such an element kept the appa-
ratus in motion two months and ahalf. By using a battery of many
such elements the construction could be so arranged that a single pair
of plates might be removed, and renewed without interrupting the
current.
Koppinsky (Dingler’s Journal, vol. 101, p. 222; Technologiste,
March, 1846, p. 241) was disappointed in his expectation of this bat-
tery. He probably wished to produce strong currents with it. The
vapor of ammonia also annoyed him. The unfavorable results are to
be ascribed, in his opinion, to insulation ; because the battery cannot
supply itself with electricity from the ground, and because it is not
protected from exposure to the air, which neutralizes the electricity
generated by contact of the plates.
I cite this as an example of the loose and inconsiderate disquisitions
on the galvanic current and battery to be met with in technical periodi-
cals. The editors of these journals should be more critical in such
cases, and statements which are only calculated to lead astray those
having no well-founded physical knowledge should either not be
permitted to appear, or should be accompanied with the requisite ex-
planations.
After condemning all other batteries, Koppinsky finally proposes to
use for galvano-plastic purposes, zinc and copper elements, the plates
of which are one square metre in surface, and immersed two or three
millimetres apart in dilute sulphuric acid. This is one of the oldest
forms of the battery with large plate, to which Hare subsequently gave
the very convenient form of a spiral; thus, in this respect, Kop-
pinsky’s efforts resulted in nothing new. On the other hand, the
proposal to place the acid in vessels of other than resinous wood and
set them on moistened earth, is new, but of no value.
The experiments of Weekes (Dingler’s Journal, vol. 97, p. 194)
show the feebleness of the current produced by burying in tolerably
moist ground, plates of zine and iron, each being 54 square decime-
tres in surface. A current was obtained which deflected the astatie
needle of a multiplier 87°, but the deflection soon fell to 61° ; the cur-
rent was therefore exceedingly weak.
A pile of 36 pairs of this kind gave, between coal points, a light
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. $53
strong enough by which to read fine print at the distance of 4 a metre.
Comparing this exceedingly small eifect with the brilliant ilumina-
tion produced by 36 zine and carbon, or zine and platinum elements,
it is difficult to comprehend how Mr. Weekes can cherish the hope
that such batteries may become advantageous means of illumination.
The plates of Mr. Weekes, it is true, were placed in rather dry
ground; if placed in moister ground they would have yielded «
stronger current; bué it could never be as strong as if the plates
were immersed directly in water. By moistening the sand with a so-
lution of sal-ammoniac the strength of the current will still never ap-
proach that which the same plates would produce if placed in the
solution without the sand. Buried plates can be used profitably
only when very weak currents are desired ; but such currents can be
obtained quite constant for a long time by using very dilute acid.
Buried plates, however, have the disadvantage of being less accessi-
ble than those cf other batteries.
§ 16. Smee’s battery.—This battery was greatly praised in many
quarters ; it was represented to produce very strong currents, and te
be far more constant than other batteries with one liquid. No meas-
urements in support of this opinion were made, and I have not
found it anywhere confirmed.
The copper of Wollaston’s battery is substituted in Smee’s by pla-
tinum or silver, covered by a rough surface of platinum (platinmeor.)
This coating of platinum is produced by immersing the perfectly clean
plate in a solution of chloride of platinum and potassium in contact
with the negative pole of a rather weak battery, the positive pole of
which dips at the same time into the sclution. The platinum de-
posites on the plate at the negative pole. If the positive pole be also
a plate of platinum, it will be attacked by the chlorine, and the solu-
tion wiil be kept saturated.
The two surfaces of Smee’s platinized plate are placed at about one
line distance from the zinc plates. The width of the zinc plates is to
be only about three-quarters that of the platinized plate. What is
to be expected to be gained by this I cannot see. It is not the case in
the Smee element with which | experimented, the negative plate ef
which was platinized silver.
i found this battery less constant than Wollaston’s, and the varia-
tions of the needle were far greater. With the same liquid, Smee’s
cattery gave the following results, obtained exactly as those already
described in section 15.
Kind of wire Deflection.
inserted.
Dns eo eT A 2 bevve 00° Soon, falls to
| ts .. bs tage ae Sere Leyes:
RR ae RR Se 0
Sethe +n ace ES asc sac.) ,
After a few vibrations—
Oe ihe SEN ~etaey bicaeat: “20
Copper ...... ay bic che reeueeees seeat 12
ee Rb tehacee ance” 2D
23
304 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Plates washed.
CP oc nk baron RR eee nee 28.5
OF ii coiccteed ce aeene rel eee eG
After many vibrations—
ape eee eee side vce.nto eels aepiaaete 25.
BY ASG} i aan feb «se Soin sepa keen.) peaeeene 5.5
aim eahdeeeae's +s saigagn end aes 5
is 8 Phaktws~ gonna cemiep meses 29
i, eats oa oe «ned RSI tae ta oles 26
Onif: Saas, Jaen ates SeRieh tineise 24
Assuming as a mean for the insertion 0 the deflection 26°, for the
copper wire 12°.25, and the brass wire 5°.5, the electro-motive force
of Smee’s element is 212, which'is scarcely greater than that of
Wollaston’s, which we have seen is 208. With equal surfaces, the
resistances of the two elements are tolerably equal. From these
experiments, it does not appear that Smee’s battery deserves any
preference over Wollaston’s. It is yet to be determined whether
platinized platinum gives better results than platinized silver.
§ 17. The zinc and copper battery with two liquids.—W hen the cop-
per of a zinc and copper battery is placed in a concentrated solution
of sulphate of copper, and this in dilute sulphuric acid, the two
liquids being separated by a porous partition, the injurious effects of
polarization are in a great measure removed ; the electro-motive force
becomes greater than in the ordinary zinc and copper battery, and the
strength of the current is constant.
The electro-motive force of Daniell’s battery is—
A= 470,
From Svanberg’s experiments, (Pogg. Ann., LX XIII, 290,) it ap-
pears that the electro-motive force of Daniell’s battery changes but little
with the nature of the liquid. The copper being constantly immersed
in a concentrated solution of sulphate of copper, and the zinc im-
mersed in various liquids successively, the following values, expressed
in an arbitrary unit, were obtained for the electro-motive force :
For concentrated solution of sulphate of zinc .......... sete caee 15.6
For the same; much diluted), ;..c.csssesesatemcees aes votceadaeetes 15.9
For concentrated solution of sulphate of copper ...........e600 16.6
Fortthe game, mnitiehvdi lated’. |. carota cee roves no «= 5 Ctasiceee eas 16.2
Bor slightly: acidified “waters i... wescacses. serie cause cxaeceete bent 16.0
For more strongly acidified water ...........cscsseseees AERA. PAGS
For a square decimetre of mean metallic surface, the resistance of
the element is
R= 78 (acid = 1 part SO, + 10 parts HO.)
By using an acid containing 1 part sulphuric acid to 5 of water, the
resistance for the unit of surface can be reduced to R = 30. This re-
sistance is due to the earthen cells; for Stéhrer’s cells the resistance
would be about one-third; therefore—
R = 26 (180, + 10 HO.)
R = 10 (180, + 5 HO.):
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 355
Daniell’s battery is, perhaps, the most constant of all, which is due
partly to the acid being used up less rapidly ; since the acid, set free
by the decomposition of the sulphate of copper, passes in part at least
through the porous cell to the liquid in which the zinc is immersed.
Ryhiner (Dingler’s Journal, vol. 110, p. 418) proposes to substitute
iron for zinc, and to place it in a solution of common salt. The ad-
vantage of this combination is not clearly seen. Its electro-motive
force is certainly less than that of the ordinary Daniell’s battery.
Ryhiner says of his battery: Though it has not a strong influence
on the magnetic needle, it has, nevertheless, a greater reducing effect
on metallic solutions than the ordinary zinc battery ! (?)
Mr. Ryhiner appears not to know that the chemical effect of a cur-
rent is always proportional to its magnetic effect.
Moreover, he proposes to substitute linen cells for clay cells,
which is quite practicable. One is often in fact embarrassed to get
clay cells. Those made by the potter are bad; good ones cannot be
had everywhere ; and this is the more annoying because the best cells
are the most fragile. Ryhiner’s cells are made in the following way :
A bag, without ends, is formed of stout twilled linen cloth, and
stretched over a tin cylinder; on this, three or four plies of stout
paper are fastened with flour paste, and the whole covered with a
piece of thin linen. The bottom is made of a flat wooden cylinder,
with a groove on its edge, to which the linen is tied fast with twine.
The tin cylinder is replaced’and filled with hot sand. When all is
thoroughly dried, melted wax or rosin is poured in, to stop the cracks
in the bottom. The upper edge is soaked in amber varnish.
Whether these cells are really to be recommended, I am unable to
decide from my own experience.
§ 18. Grove’s battery.—According to my measurements, given in
section 9—which, however, for Grove’s battery, have no claim to
great accuracy—the electro-motive force of this battery is, in chemical
measures, 829.
Other observers have determined its force, not in an absolute meas-
ure, but compared with that of Daniell’s battery. Making the elec-
tro-motive force of the latter equal to 1, we have for Grove’s as fol-
lows :
MDW eA OED sso a! senwnasa vn Se nctdassiudce qunaaadetis 1.666
MM es cer een ar ae dunce eu aiigiduste tiacinet 1.712
By PEGS ZeNCOTi «so ncaess ONS ME tat 1.668
BY cave Reed 8. duos st sasdeadasnge asa divers ail) bob Gs
Niall ss hh3 2 3 seas waar. bade. os bap 1.653
Assuming the force of Daniell’s battery in chemical measure, ac-
cording to my determination, equal to 470, we should have, in the
same measure, that of Grove’s equal to
a x 1.653 => TIT:
while I found the value of the electro-motive force of this battery to be
829, or about 64 per cent. greater. ,
The observers above named made no comparison of the resistance
~
356 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
of Grove’s battery with that of Daniell’s. Such a comparison, how-
ever, can hold good only for an individual battery, since it changes with
the nature of the earthen cells, and is dependent upon the degree of
concentration of the liquid.
A comparison of the resistance of these two batteries is of value only
when earthen cells of the same size are used for both, and the same
liquid for the zinc cells; while the copper cell of Daniell’s battery
should contain a concentrated solution of sulphate of copper, the
platinum plate of Grove’s should be in strong nitric acid. I have
not made such a comparison for the Grove’s battery, but I have for the
zinc and carbon battery, the resistance of which under otherwise like
circumstances may be considered equal to that of Grove’s. Thus we
will return to the comparison of resistance in the zinc and carbon
battery.
The proposition has been made to substitute for the nitric acid
another substance also containing much oxygen, namely: a solution
of bichromate of potash. With this liquid, Poggendorff found the
electro-motive force of Grove’s battery equal to—
0.987”,
that of Daniell’s battery being equal to 1 ; thus considerably less than
with nitric acid. Hence, bichromate of potash is not to be recom-
mended for Grove’s battery.
In the 106th volume of Dingler’s Polytechnic Journal, page 154,
it is stated, that in using Grove’s battery for telegraphic purposes, it
often happens that the nitric acid penetrates through the earthen cells,
and attacks the zinc so powerfully that it has to be newly amaleamated -
every day. Crystals of Glauber salts cast into the dilute sulphuric
acid are said to remedy thisevil. The explanation of this may probably
be that the Glauber salts are decomposed, and nitrate of soda is formed,
the free nitric acid then disappearing.
$19, Bunsen’s batterya—As a mean of all my experiments, stated
in section 9, the electro-motive force of the zinc and carbon battery
was found to have, in chemical measure, the value—
824.
The force of Daniell’s battery being made equal to 1, that of the
zine and carbon battery was found by
BU fE 0: De -rsarinreieterasterraetereistelatstarsinte eteeteele mere ve serena 1.712
Poggendorf .....sseeecertessesseeeeeeeecceeneceeeeeeesees 1.548
Expressed in chemical arose ee force of the battery, according to
1] vf aa Ms SAO Saa a ah 805
which accords nearly with my mean ; and according to
Pog genQorit: 18-5; deaswethotsnss deckilachalss (code cvmeteae 727
The electro-motive force of the zinc and carbon battery, and that of
Grove’s, are so nearly equal, that in practical use the little difference
may be disregarded.
According to Poggendorff, the electro-motive force of Bunsen’s
battery remains almost the same, if for the nitric acid is substituted
a solution of bichromate of potash ; indeed, with the liquid it is some-
what greater, the proportion being 1,580 to 1,548.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 357
According to the statements made in section 9, with like mean
surfaces, similar clay cells and equally dilute sulphuric acid, the re-
sistance to conduction of the zinc and carbon battery is to that of
Daniell’s, as—
43 to 78;
or as—
1 to 1.8.
Stéhrer, of Leipsic, has recently considerably improved the Bunsen
battery, and made it more convenient for use. His carbon cylinders are
steeped in coal-tar instead of sugar-water, and are then brought to
ared heat. They are far more solid and have a much smoother surface,
which gives them the advantage of absorbing much less nitric acid,
which before rendered the use of this battery particularly unpleasant
and expensive.
In the first zine and carbon batteries the copper or zine ring, which
embraced the upper edge of the carbon cylinder, was generally mova-
ble. Stdhrer has rendered this fixed. <A strip of brass wire is wound
about the edge of the carbon cylinder, and a copper ring is screwed
in this as firmly as possible. The whole of the upper part is then
coated with a solution of shellac. A wire, about one inch long,
is fixed to the copper ring, serving as a connexion with the next
zinc cylinder. A kind of wire cord, coated with gutta percha, is fast-
ened to the zinc cylinder, and terminates in a binding screw, which
can be attached to the copper wire of the following carbon cylinder.
§20. Zine and iron batiery.—It has been proposed by many to '
use iron instead of platinum or copper in the construction of gal-
vanic batteries. Roberts made a zinc and iron battery in the follow-
ing manner. <A cast-iron vessel, ten inches high and 3.9 inches in
diameter, served for holding a mixture of one part concentrated sul-
phuric acid and three parts of strong nitric acid; in this liquid an
earthen cell filled with dilute sulphuric acid was placed, which cell
also served for the reception of the zinc cylinder 9.9 inches high and
3.3 inches wide.
Five such elements yielded forty cubic inches of detonating gas in
a voltametre placed in the circuit. This is certainly quite a consid-
erable effect. (Dingler’s Journal, vol. 84, p. 386.)
In the same volume of this Journal, p. 385, Schénbein describes a
zinc and iron battery which also produced very considerable effects.
Roberts proposed a battery of this kind, with one liquid, for blast-
ing rock. (Dingler’s Journal, vol. 87, p. 104; Mechanics’ Magazine,
1842.) 20 iron plates and 20 zine plates, each having 7 square inches
of surface, are properly connected and so placed in a frame of slats, that
they may be immersed in a trough containing a mixture of 1 part sul-
phuric acid to 10 parts water.
358 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Callan constructed a zine and iron battery, (Dingler’s Journal,
vol. 109, p. 482; Philos. Mag., July, 1848, p. 49,) of a form simi-
lar to that which Grove had originally given to his zinc and platinum
battery, viz: rectangular smooth earthen cells, 44 inches long and 43
high.
‘A turkey-cock was instantly killed by the stroke of such a battery,
composed of 620 elements; and, on examination, the craw was found
burst. -
Callan says this battery acts fifteen times as strong as one of Wol-
laston’s of the same size, and 1} as strong as an equally large Grove’s
battery. This estimate seems exceedingly loose ; no facts, no meas-
urements are given, from which the constants of this battery can be
computed, even approximately ; without this knowledge a correct
valuation of a galvanic combination cannot be made.
Measurements of the zinc and iron battery may be found in the 81st
volume of Dingler’s Journal, p. 273.
Poggendorff found for the electro-motive force of different combina-
tions the following values :
Zine Bnd platiMUM, +... d6.5s-neesenees Sco spate reeeees 100
MTEC WAT: THON a. 8, ccsctredns ca saswaaskwos Soh tnc eee ee 78.6
FENCING SECCL err acsistaiasnstate tess sed eet Mace toeeeeee o eid
ZONA CASEI OM, Aeats.s slajnc camila ceeinee aces eee 89.6
The zinc being in dilute sulphuric acid, and the platinum, iron, &c.,
in concentrated nitric acid. The resistances are tolerably equal in all
these combinations.
§ 21. The iron and iron battery.—That instead of the platinum
in Grove’s battery, iron can be successfully substituted, is owing, no
doubt, to the fact that iron immersed in concentrated nitric acid
becomes passive, and in this state acts like a strong electro-negative
metal. From this Wéhler and Weber inferred that iron, placed in
concentrated nitric acid, might act towards iron in dilute sulphuric
acid as platinum does towards zinc. Their expectation was entirely
confirmed on trial, and they constructed a very powerful battery in
this manner.
They found it advantageous to use ordinary tin-plate iron for the
metal immersed in the dilute sulphuric acid.
Schénbein, also, by his researches on the passivity of this metal,
was led to the construction of a battery of passive and active iron.
(Dingler’s Journal, vol. 84, p. 385.)
The most convenient form of the iron battery is perhaps the follow-
ing: A cast-iron vessel receives the nitric acid and the earthen cell,
in which the dilute sulphuric acid is placed with the active iron.
The rusting of the part of the iron vessel extending beyond the
liquid acts injuriously on the working of the battery.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 359
§ 22. Callan’s zine and lead battery.—In the Philos. Mag. for 1847,
(sec. III, vol. XX XI, p. 81,) Callan describes a new voltaic combina-
tion, of which Poggendorff gave an account in volume LX XII of his
Ann., page 495. For the platinum of Grove’s battery is here substi-
stituted platinised lead, which is immersed in a mixture of four parts
concentrated sulphuric acid, two parts nitric acid, and two parts of a
saturated solution of nitrate of potash. The zinc is in dilute sulphu-
ric acid, separated of course from the other liquids by an earthen cell.
The action of this battery, according to Callan’s account, is not in-
ferior to that of Grove’s.
Poggendorff found that in fact the electro-motive force of this combi-
nation was equal to that of Grove’s; and that the current from it for
many hours indicated the same constancy as that of a zinc and plati-
num battery. But, on the other hand, he found the addition of salt-
petre to the nitric acid no improvement, but the addition of concen-
trated sulphuric acid has the advantage of protecting the lead from
the action of nitric acid, which the pulverulent coating of platina
cannot do, and allows, besides, the use of dilute nitric acid.
Considered strictly, this combination is a zinc and platinum battery,
since the lead serves properly only as a support for the thin film of
platinum ; therefore zinc and platinum are the terminations of the
metallic circuit immersed in the liquid.
§ 23. The most convenient combination of a given number of voltaic
elements for obtaining the greatest effect with « given closing circuit.—
Theoretically, this subject has long since been settled, but the inves-
tigations are mostly conducted by the aid of the higher calculus, and
the whole is presented in such a form, that the practical use of the
proposition is indicated rather than fully exhibited ; on this account,
a somewhat more detailed exposition may here be in place.
Generally, the question is stated thus: How should a given metal-
lic surface, which is to be used in constructing voltaic elements, be
arranged (that is, how many elements and how large should they he;)
in order that a maximum effect shall be obtained with a given closing
circuit ?
This form of the question does not correspond exactly with practical
cases. We are not required generally to construct the voltaic battery
for a given closing circuit; but the question is, how to combine a dis-
posable number of galvanic elements to obtain a maximum effect.
A maximum strength of current may be obtained from a given number
of elements, if they be so arranged, that the resistance in the battery is
equal to the resistance in the closing are.
I will first explain this proposition, then prove it. A given num-
ber of elements can be combined in the most varied manner. For in-
360
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
.
stance, 24 elements can be arranged in & different ways, as rendered
apparent in Fig. 14,
. e
oT OT He G9 ND
>
Fig. 14.
As a battery of 24 single elements.
RESTOR: eee eee
sy 5, te SA Ore am ele
i dede eek Os de meet
Sigs BIO di lace
-wdsee Go wind ley,
35. wa deeeone. tates
12 double elements.
8 treble elements.
6 four-fold elements.
4 six-fold elements. :
3 eight-fold elements.
2 twelve-fold elements.
1 twenty-four-fold elements.
Which one of these combinations should be selected in a given case,
depends upon the resistance to conduetion of the circuit. That com-
bination must be taken the resistance of which is nearest to that of
the given cirewit. Denoting
resistance of the—
by 1 the resistance of an element, the
tst combination is 24.
2 eae
Sait ees
bra oeoe 6:
.€0.2.2.... 2.666
Abhi cecepelaeees. doy
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 361
5th combination is 0.666
Gilera (LO: oo, cee LO
thea: aeGol...st 66
Silas. G08 10.000 .. 0.046
If the resistance of the given circuit is less than 0.1 of the resistance
of an element, the least combination must be selected ; but if greater
than that of 15 elements, the first must be chosen. If the resistance
to be overcome lies between 15 and 4.3, between 4.3 and 2, between 2
and 1.08, &c., the selection must fall upon the 2d, 3d, 4th, &c., com-
binations respectively.
We have yet to prove the foregoing proposition.
Considering the different combinations of 24 elements, as repre-
sented in’ Fig. 14, it is easily seen that if the pile be shortened, it
Fig. 15.
becomes broad in the same proportion ; that is, if fewer elements be
placed one after the other, we can, by using the same number of ele-
ments, place more of them beside each other, in the same proportion.
. Commencing with the second combination, we have here 12 double
elements. If we reduce the length of the pile by one-half, or to 6.,
362 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
we can double the width of each element—we shall then have 6 four-
fold elements.
Making the pile three times shorter, three times as many single
elements can be united in one; from 12 double elements we obtain 4
of six-fold. In short, if the pile be made a times shorter, we can
unite a@ times as many single elements in one.
If the number of elements combined, one after another, to form a
pile, is @ times less, the electro-motive force thus becomes a times less ;
if the battery had now been made only a times shorter, without in-
creasing its width, the resistance would have been a times less; but
if each element of those in a pile consists of a times as many single
elements as before, the resistance becomes a’ times less than before.
Thus the resistance of 6 quadruple elements (combination No, 4) is
A times less than for 12 double elements, (combination No. 2;) for 4
six-fold elements (combination No. 5) 9 times less than for 12 double,
&e.
From this exposition the proof in question is easily derived. For
any combination of a number of elements, let the electro-motive force
be E, and the battery resistance 7. This battery being closed by a
conducting circuit, whose resistance is also 7, we have, according to
Ohm’s law, the strength of the current—
E aD) (1)
Sa ore
i+ 21
The pile being now made a times shorter, but the single elements a
: : : i
times wider, theglectro-motive force will be a times less, or aes but the
resistance of the battery will be = and the force of the current, for
the same connecting arc, will be
E
ad ire! OV
pr) Leas ay (2)
a
2
a=
ike :
But the sum a + = i under all circumstances, greater than 2*,
which, in an integral or fractional quantity we may substitute for a ;
thus the value of the fraction (2) is, under all circumstances, less than
that of (1.) Since (1) denotes the value of the strength of the current
for cases in which the resistance in the electrometer is equal to the
resistance of the closing arc, and the fraction (2) the value of the
strength of current for cases in which the number of single elements
is combined in any other manner, the proposition in question is there-
fore proved.
The application of this proposition may be shown by an example.
If, in magnetizing an electro-magnet, the current of 24 zinc and car-
bon elements be used, the resistance of one element, with weak acid, is
15.05. But resistance of the coils of the electro-magnet has been
found equal to that of 13.54 metres of normal wire, and therefore
the resistance of the connecting arc is 0.9 of that of a single ele-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 363
ment. A glance at the arrangements (Figs. 14 and 15) shows us that
we must select the fifth combination as the most suitable ; because its
resistance, 0.65, is nearer to that of the closing arc, than that of the
other combinations. Make, for sake of brevity, the electro-motive
force of the element equal 1, and the resistance also 1, then, if we ap-
ply successively all of the eight combinations tc the electro-magnet
above mentioned, the following values will be obtained for the
strength of the current:
1 as 0.96:
TSS ra aha
2 ze 1
Benge ti
3 ee tees 904
Guo wONea
6
: Pease AU aa
5 ; LA ik tackle 9.54
0.666 + 0,9 — *
6 Brae leer 336
0.375 4 0,9.
7 eee te 1
DE Oh apa
8 } == 16h
0.042 + 0,9
It is observed here that with the combination 5 the coils of the
electro-magnet remaining unchanged, the magnetism of the soft iron
will be greater than with any of the other combinations. Combination
4 approaches 5 very closely in its effects; thus the exact maximum
should be looked for between 4 and 5. In fact the combination re-
Fig. 16. presented in fig. 16 gives the strength of
the current 2.56.
By charging the same elements with
strong acid, the resistance of the element
will be 5.85; the resistance of the closing
arc will be 2.3 times as great as that of one
element, and for this case the third com-
bination (eight three-fold elements) will be
the most suitable.
The best combination for a given appa-
ratus to decompose water will be further
considered hereafter.
If a given number of elements be so con-
bined that they will yield in a given cir-
cuit a maximum strength of current, an
increase of the number of elements will in-
crease the strength of the current in the most favorable cases only
364 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
in proportion to the square root of the number of elements; then 4,
9, or 16 times as many elements must be used to obtain 2, 3, or 4
fold effects.
We shall endeavor to prove this, in a special case. Let the resist-
ance of the closing arc be r, equal to the resistance of one element,
the electro-motive force of which is denoted by E, then the strength of
the current is
eA
rr or
Now let us double the force of the current by increasing the number
of elements. To obtain a maximum effect from the new combination,
the resistance in the battery must continue as great as the resistance
of the closing arc; therefore, the resistance of the new combination must
not be greater than that of a single element; hence, we shall obtain
double the force of the current if, with unchanged resistance, we
Fig. 17. double the electro-motive force. This is
done by placing one element after another ;
but we must take 2 double elements, if their
resistance is to be as great as that of a
single element; hence, the combination of -
Fig. 16 will give twice as great a force of
current, and Fig. 17 three times as great,
as a single element.
To consider this matter in a more general
way, let a number of cups a be so combined,
that the resistance of the battery is equal to
that of the conducting circuit, so that we
attain the maximum effect which the num-
ber a of cups can produce in the given
closing arc. Place 2,3,. . .m times as many cups together, so that
each element of the battery may have 2,3, . . . n as great a surface ;
but if the battery is made at the same time 2, 3, . . . m times as long,
by placing 2, 3,.. . times as many elements in succession, then
we shall have in all, 4,9,.. .® times as many cupsin use. The
resistance of the battery by this arrangement remains unchanged,
and therefore the strength of the current increases in the same
ratio as the electro-motive force, namely, in the ratio of the number
of successive elements ; it has thus become 2, 3, . . . times greater.
With 4a, 9a,.. . . n? a cups we can, in the most favorable case, ob-
tain 2,3, .... . times as great a strength of current as that
that which can be produced with a elements.
SS
$24. The most suitable arrangement of the closing are for obtaining
a maximum effect with a given electro-motor.—In some cases the
electro-motor is given, and the question is, how the coils of wire must
be selected to obtain a maximum effect ; from the same quantity of cop-
per are many coils of a thin and long wire to be made, or fewer coils
with short and thick wires? In the case of multipliers, the quantity
of copper wire to be used is limited by the space which can be con-
veniently filled by the coils ; in that of the electro-magnets the quan-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 365
tity of copper wire is limited by the amount of money to be expended
in its construction.
Suppose the resistance of a copper wire of a given length and thick-
ness, making x coils, to be equal to /, or the resistance of the electro-
motor; then the force of the current is
ey a
Cee es) re a he.
and this acting in n coils on the magnetic needles in soft iron, we can
represent its effect by
E
a1 (1)
If we make the wire m times as long, the mass remaining the same,
its section will be m times less, and then the resistance m? times
greater ; hence the force of the current is now
S’ ee ee ee Pe
t+ m,l 1 (1+ m’)’
but of this length of wire, m times as many coils can be made as be-
fore ; thus, the magnetic effect is now
tpi ih a phe ots ait
i(m?+ 1) (n+ 1)
mm
M=n
Mm: 1.
(2)
But the value of M, as just proved, is always greater than the value
of M’. Hence with a given mass of wire, a maximum of magnetic
effect is obtained by giving to the wire such a thickness and length that
the resistance in the coils is equal to that of the elements.
For instance, if we have eight pounds of copper wire for construct-
ing an electro-magnet, to be excited by one of Daniell’s elements,
described in section 9, how thick must the wire be made ?
The resistance of this element is equal to the resistance of 11.1
metres of the normal wire. The normal wire has a section of 0.785
of a square millimetre, or 0.00785 of a square centimetre; thus, a
length of 11.1 metres or 1,110 centimetres has a cubic contents of 8.71
cubic centimetres. The specific weight of the copper to be drawn to
wire is 8.88; hence the weight of the normal wire, which has the
same resistance to conduction as the element, is 8.71 x 8.88 = 77.34
grammes.
But the mass of wire which we have at our disposal does not weigh
717.34 grammes, but eight pounds, or 4,000 grammes ; so that we have
£009 — 51.7 times as great a mass as that of the normal wire which
fulfils the condition.
If, instead of a wire of given diameter and length, one of three
times the diameter be taken, its section is 3 X 3= 9 times greater, and
@ nine-fold length must be given to it, that it may retain its resistance
to conduction unchanged; the volume of the wire is now 81=3*
times as great as it was before. A wire times as thick must have a
length x? as great, and consequently x* greater mass, if its resistance
is to remain unchanged.
366 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
‘Hence, with a mass p times as great, the wire must have a length
Vp times as great, and a diameter 4 Vv p times; the resistance re-
maining invariable.
The mass of copper to be disposed of is 51.7 times as great as that
of a normal wire which offers the same resistance as the elements;
hence, we must make of this mass, a wire which is V51.7= 7.18
times as long, and ¢ V 51.7 = 2.68 times as thick as the normal wire,
11.1 metres long. Thus, if the eight pounds of copper wire is to op-
pose the same resistance as the Daniell’s element, it must be 2.68 milli-
‘ metres thick, thus requiring a length of 7.18 x 11.1= 79.7 metres.
If the electro-magnet is to be arranged for a Stohrer’s element,
whose essential resistance is equal to that of 6.2 metres of the normal
wire, for the same reason, the eight pounds of copper must be a wire
3.1 millimetres thick ; which requires a length of 60 metres.
Using the electro-magnet constructed for Daniell’s battery, with
this battery, the strength of the current is
oe ee ore
dal = Alaleel 29.2. |
The wire being placed in x coils about the iron, the magnetic effect
may be denoted by
ant eels dd
Had the wire been twice as long, and consequently one-half in sec-
tion, its resistance would have been four times as great, or 44.4, and
the strength of the current
E . E
1D 4a | Bb bs
but this is passed around the ironin 2 7 coils, and the magnetic effect
is now
ME SS, oss 1h we
55.5 Ad.
If a wire half as long but double in section had been used, the mag-
netic effect would have been
Ss 2 es —— mn _f
13.9 27.8
Thus it is seen that the values of M’ and M” are less than that of M.
According to these principles, we can alsodetermine how, witha given
thermo-electric battery, a multiplier of the greatest possible sensibility
may be constructed—a question which was solved theoretically long
since, but until now the solution has not had a form susceptible of
practical application. On this account we shall give this subject some
further consideration.
For instance, our physical cabinet possesses a thermo-electric pile
with the galvanometer belonging to it. I found the
Resistance of the thermo-pile......... =18.34 met. of normal wire.
és ‘¢ wire of multiplier...... = oan Oo St
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 367
Thus the resistance of the wire of the multiplier is less than one-
tenth that of the pile.
Denoting the electro-motive force of the thermo-pile by E, the
strength of the current is
qn aD) ety EP
1S. S42 1.75 Gee”
this is conveyed around the needle in m coils; hence the magnetic
effect is
Maia 2:
20
If the same mass had been drawn out into three times the length,
its resistance would have been 9 times as great, or9 & 1.75 = 15.75,
thus nearly equal to that of the thermo-pile. The strength of the
current now would be
ile i sey Tia
ie ee cans Wy gay Gs a
and the magnetic effect
Lig
12 ?
because the current is now conveyed in 3 n coils around the needle.
The value M’ is thus nearly double that of M.
With the same quantity of copper wire, the multiplier for the said
thermo-pile could have been made twice as sensitive by drawing the .
wire to thrice the length, so as to give it three times as many coils
with a section of only one-third.
Hence there is no doubt that the reason for making the wire of this
multiplier too short and too thick, arose from the assumption that the
resistance of the thermo-pile composed of a number of metals could
not be great, and thus only a wire tolerably thick and not too long
should be selected. It is thus shown that mere conjecture will not
suffice in such matters.
Wea, ee,
36
§ 25. Comparison of the effects of different batteries in given cases.—
The strength of the current for any given case can be computed from
the constants of different batteries. If the resistance of the closing arc
is 1, for a zinc and carbon battery with a mean surface of one square
decimetre, and using Stohrer cells with dilute sulphuric acid, the
strength of current is :
__ 824
Ie.
For a Daniells element, of the same size, with sulphuric acid of the
same degree of dilution, the force of the current would be
470 ws Se
meer ST 876 Te
If 1 is very small compared with the resistance of the elements, the
. be! 2 7
strength of their currents will be to each other as = to — ,
’ 0
as 68.6 to 21.8; hence the current of the zinc and carbon battery is
or
368 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
more than three times as strong as the other. When the current is
well closed, a zine and carbon element will effect as much as a Dan-
iells element of three times as great a mean surface.
When the resistance is very great, the ratio is different ; then the
strength of the current is proportional to the electro-motive force, or
as 470 to 824. In this case, by increasing the surface of the zinc and
copper element, but little would be gained. Two Daniell’s elements
would have to be united to obtain the same effect as with one zinc
and carbon element.
The effect of a zinc and carbon battery can be attained in all cases
with a Daniells battery by giving to single elements of the latter a
three-fold surface, and using twice as many of them as would be re-
quired of zine and carbon elements.
What has been said of the zinc and carbon battery holds good for
Grove’s battery, since the constants are nearly the same in both.
As a conclusion of this section we present the description of a few
instruments which have been used for measuring, in the course of the
previous experiments.
§ 26. Rheostats—To accomplish a gradual change of the resist-
ance in the closing circuit of an electto-motor within the desired
limit, without being obliged to open the circuit, several instruments
have been proposed, chiefly by Jacobiand Wheatstone. Jacobi called
his instrument agometer. The descriptions are to be found in Pog-
gendorff’s Annalen, LIV 340, and LIX 145. An instrument of this
kind is very costly, and therefore will not be generally employed, es-
pecially since Wheatstone’s instruments, constructed for the same
object, besides answering the purpose equally well, are far simpler
and more convenient in manipulation. In my treatise on physics
(Lehrbuch der Physik 8 te., aufl. 2 ter. Bd., 8. 193) I have described
Wheatstone’s rheostat with thick wire, which is to be used when the
resistance of the closing conductor is not very great. But when the
entire resistance in the battery is very considerable, a great length of
this thick wire would have to be wound or unwound to produce a
sensible change in the strength of the current ; consequently, in such
cases a rheostat with a thin wire must be used, and which, of course,
must have a different construction.
Wheatstone’s rheostat with thin wire is represented in Fig. 18. g
is a cylinder of dry wood about 6 inches long and 1} in diameter; A
Bie is a cylinder of brass having the same
z = dimensions. The axes of the two cylin-
ders are parallel. A screw-thread is cut
"7s. in the wooden cylinder, and at its end
- (the one seen in the figure) there isa brass
ring to which the end of a long and very
fine wire is fastened. This is so woun
upon the wooden cylinder as to fill all the
screw-threads, and its other extremity is
then fastened to the opposite end of the
brass cylinder. The small brass columns
J and &, designed for clamping the wires,
TO eA
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 369
rest upon metal springs, one of which presses against the front end
of the brass cylinder h, the other against the brass ring of the
wooden cylinder, (the springs are not shown in the figure.) The
winch m, which can be removed, serves for turning the cylinder
about its axis. Placing it on the cylinder h, and turning to the right,
the wire is unwound from the wooden cylinder and wound upon the
brass one; on the other hand, placing it upon g, and turning to the
left, the reverse takes place. ‘Since the coils are insulated on the
wooden cylinder, and kept apart by the screw-thread, the current
traverses the wire throughout its whole length on this cylinder ; but
on the brass cylinder, where the coils are not insulated, the current
passes at once from the point where the wire touches the cylinder to
the spring at &. The resisting part of the length of the wire is there-
fore the variable porcion which may happen to be on the wooden cylin-
der.
There are forty screw-threads of the wooden cylinder to an inch.
The wire is of brass, and 0.01 of an inch in diameter.
For counting the number of coils unwound, a scale is placed be-
tween the two cylinders, and the fraction of a turn is estimated by an
index fastened on the axis of one of the cylinders, and which points
to the divisions of a graduated circle.
§ 27. Differential measurer of resistance.—For determining the
resistance of metallic wires, Wheatstone has given a very simple pro-
cess. The rheostat is inserted in the conducting arc of a eonstant
element with the galvanometer and the wire whose resistanee is to. be
determined, and the whole resistance is so regulated that the needle
can come to rest at any desired point a of the graduated circle. Now,
removing the wire from the circuit, the needle will indicate a greater
deflection, and to bring it back to the point a, a definite number of
turns of the’ rheostat must be added to the existing resistance. We
find in this manner how great the resistance of the wire in question
is, expressed in turns of the rheostat.
By this method nearly equally accurate results are obtained, whether
a multiplier, the much less sensitive tangent compass, or any other
galvanometer, be used. The reason is as follows: 'I'o produce ina
tangent compass a deflection of, say 45°, the entire resistance of the
closing conductor must not be very great. Suppose R. is the entire
resistance of the whole battery, and an increase or decrease r of this:
resistance produces such a change in the strength of the current that
the deflection of the needle is varied by 1°.
Now, by using a multiplier, which is about 150 times more sensi-
tive than the tangent compass, the entire resistance of the battery
must be about 150 R to cause a deflection of the needle of 45°.
To produce a like change in the strength of the current as that above:
mentioned, the resistance must now be increased or decreased by 150 7.
But, since the multiplier is 150 times more sensitive than the tangent
compass, the 150th part of this change of resistance, or 7, will suffice-
to advance or bring back the position of the needle by 1°; thus the
same change of resistance 7 produces in both instruments nearly equal.
changes of deflection,
24
370 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
If the multiplier is required to indicate very minute changes in the
closing conductor, care must be taken that the corresponding differ-
ence of current shall act in the multiplier, without a very considera-
ble resistance being inserted in the conductor. Wheatstone has ac-
complished this by means of the contrivance represented in Fig. 19,
which he calls a differential measurer of resistance.
Fig. 19.
-On a board about 14 inches by 4 wide, the small brass knobs a, b,
c, and d are fastened, forming a paralellogram, and between a and d
are placed e and f, and g, h between d and b. These knobs, which
are furnished with binding-screws, are connected by wires, as seen in
the figure.
One of the wires of the pole of the electro-motor is screwed in a,
the other in 6 ; the ends of the wires of the multiplier are fastened in
cand d, so that the knobs ¢ andd are in conducting connexion through
the multiplier m; between e and / a piece of wire is inserted, and
another between g and h. The currents here diverge in various
branches ; but we have to consider only those which pass through the
multiplier. .
A current passes from a to c, from c through m to d, from d past
and h to b, as indicated by the unbroken line in Fig. 20; another
Fig. 20.
current, which traverses the multiplier in the opposite direction, goes
from a, through e and f, to d; from d, through m, to c, and finally
from c to, as shown by the dotted line in Fig. 106. If the resist-
ances in the two conducting wires a, c, d, b, and a, d, c, b, are perfectly
equal, so are also the two currents passing through the multiplier
equal ; consequently the needle will remain at rest at the zero point.
Now, by makimg the wire, inserted between e and /, only a little
longer or shorter, the two currents going in opposite directions
through the multiplier will be no longer equal, and the difference of
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. S71
strength of the currents will deflect the needle. But since the sum
of all the resistances is not great here, a very minute change in the
resistance inserted between e and / will cause a sensible change in the
strength of the current, and therefore a sensible deflection of the needle.
Now, to obtain by this contrivance the resistance of a wire expressed
in turns of the rheostat, the following method can be adopted: In-
sert between e and / a few of the turns of the rheostat, and between
g and h a wire, whose resistance is nearly equal to that of the inserted
part of the rheostat on the other side, and adjust everything so that
the needle may come to rest at O*. Now, inserting between g and h,
besides the wire already there, the wire whose resistance is to be de-
termined, there must be inserted on the other side a series of n turns
of the rheostat to bring the needle back again to O. This number 2
of revolutions of the rheostat wire is the measure of the resistance of
the wire in question.
Wheatstone has constructed other instruments besides this for the
same object; but the description of this, the simplest one, will suffice.
SECTION THIRD.
RESISTANCE OF METALS AND LIQUIDS, GALVANIC POLARIZATION AND PASSIVITY.
§ 28. In order to compute by Ohm’s formula the strength of current
in a given case, it is not sufficient to know merely the constants of the
electro-motor—we must also know the resistance of the solid con-
ductors which are inserted in the closing circuit; and in case the
current has to traverse a decomposing cell, besides the resistance of
the liquids, we must also know the electro-motive opposing force ap-
pearing at the electrodes, or what is called the galvanic polarization.
The conduction of the current, it is well known, depends upon the
dimensions of the body, and also on its specific conductive capacity,
which we shall now consider.
§ 29. Resistance of metals.—Buff has determined the resistance of
a few of the metals by Wheatstone’s method, as follows (Jahres-
bericht von Liebig und Kopp fiir 1847 and 1848, s. 286:)
DLL VEGIRMEM acer nace ccs tect thaens snot eecocacendecweuss . 0.954
Coppermeememcally pure,)....cc..50r0rasrencsoncuasnes 1.000
Copper of commerce, first quality.............sces00 1.170
Do second quality .scc.s.cis.r~< 1.507
Geer Maite ais aisiew «ve weesteriege ci sabiguind sapeyag cnet 11.833
He has taken the resistance of silver as unity; but since all re-
sistances have been compared here with copper, I have reduced the
data of Buff to this metal.
To distinguish the absolute value of resistance of a wire from these
proportional numbers, I propose to call them the specific resistance to
conduction. The specific resistance to conduction of a metal is the
*=To facilitate such an arrangement Wheatstone has introduced a special contrivance
info his instrument. The knob d rests firmly upon a piece of brass. At the other end
of this strip of brass another piece m turns about a pin, its free end resting on the wire.
When » lies on d it has no effect, but the further it is turned from d towards g the more
will the resistance on the course dg be reduced. If necessary the movable piece of brass
n can also be brought to the other side of d.
372 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
number which denotes how marv times its resistance is greater than
that of a copper wire of equal dimensions. Representing by s ‘the
specific resistance of a metal, the absolute resistance w of a wire with
a length J and a radius 7, is
x 1. 0.785
a 2
i
Specific resistance is what Riess terms electrical retarding force;
hitherto the reciprocal value of specific resistance has been indicated
by the term capacity for conduction. But in practice it seems ad-
visable to use the numerical value of specific resistance instead of
capacity fer conduction.
The values found by Buff for specific resistance of silver, copper,
and German silver, given above, deserve entire confidence, because
they were determined with great care, and by, what is important, a
simple and direct method, which is susceptible of the greatest accuracy.
The silver was prepared specially fcr this object in the chemical labo-
ratory at Giessen. The copper was prepared with great care by the
galvanic process, but was not entirely free from iron, as »nalysis
showed that it contained 0.02 per cent. of that metal. The first
quality of commercial copper contained 0.22 per cent. of iron ; the
second quality, besides a trace of iron, 0.2 per cent. of lead, and 0.26
per cent. of nickel.
In the following table the resistances of different metals. as de-
termined by E. Becquerel, (Ann. de chimie et de phys. 3 serie XVII,
242; Pog. Ann. LXX, 243,) are compared with those found by Riess,
the specific resistance of copper being taken as unity:
Becquerel.
Riga: _| Frick and
oa Muller.
Hard. Annealed.
STV Bre te ete ee eee ee a Re 0. 67 0.95 O589 ee le eee eee
Copper 42 =f) Ree. oe ee 1. 60 1. 00 0. 97 1
Gold. 22225 See Si ke Bee Rees 15 133 1. 38 L3G.) LD eee eee
CaAamiunl 2.352 — eee eee eee eee 2. 61 OiOd ese cease 8 al bee See eee
Brass.a:-2 8 ee oe eee ae 3 OL att Oe Eee nt tl ee CA, OSS 4.
FAC ca n> SARE, CR Re Ce ee oS is eg eee Se OO Mp ai eee ates ae | iy
Palladium. tae eo ee 5. 49 GHGS cf) (Ste ees eae
Iron. 2. 22602 ee eee 5. 66 7.44 7.30 6.4
IBlatiniwin) . = 2 See eee eee 6. 44 11. 08 MORO 9: Dia) See a oe
A tah ees et ees Su Pele a Se 6. 80 Ge52: «Ree ee eS We See
INTC] 2 2. v2 ee ee GO eee eet Bint AEA a eee Ae od ener,
MICA a=. 2 ce oe nee ee eee 9.70 10.86) 7. 0S 5S Se eee eee
Genman-silver 2222.2. ae TE ZOE ASS ae ons 2 ARANDA | ee eee ae 115i 6°
WieKGiiInan: —-< 2oo2 ae wee ee en eee eee ae AQ. ASHI G | See eee eso at eee
The method by which Becquerel obtained these numbers is essen-
tially as follows: His galvanometer, which he terms a differential
galvanometer, is formed of two equal but separate wires placed side
by side, each three metres long. The ends of the two coils of the
multiplier are now so joined to the electro-motor that the current takes
opposite directions in them, so that only the difference of strength of
'
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 878
the two currents comes into play. In one of the closing conductors
the rheostat is inserted, by means of which the resistance in both
circuits caa be made perfectly equal, so that the galvanometer needle
remains at zero. Now, if in the other circuit we insert the wire to
be determined, then to retain the needle at zero, the resistance of an
equivalent number of rheostat coils must be added to the existing
resistance. In this way the resistance of the wire is first expressed
in rheostat coils.
It is easily seen that this method is practically the same as that by
Wheatstone’s differential resistance-measurer, which, however, has
the great advantage that with it any ordinary galvanometer can be
used, while Becquerel’s method requires one of peculiar construction.
The silver which Becquerel used in his experiments was reduced
from the chloride, and ihe copper was precipitated electro-chemically
and melted.
The numbers of the Jast column are computed from experiments
which Frick and myself made conjointly by Wheatstone’s method.
The copper was trom galvanic prec itation.
Most of the experiments gave for silver a resistance very near to
that of copper, while Riess and Lenz before him found it considerably
less. This great difference cannot depend upon the want of purity in
the silver, for that would increase rather than diminish the resistance.
According to the measurements of Lenz (Pog. Ann. XLIV, 345)
the resistance 0’
PRAT TIVOIA YEPIS: ce vneg S- s 11.23
Mercury is........ Sree. 21.45
Bismuth is..... Se ate 38.47
§ 30. Dependence of the resistance of metals on temperature.—Uenz
has investigated the influence of change of temperature on the con-
ductive capacity of metals. His reports may be found in Poggen-
dorff’s Annalen, Bd. XXXIV, p. 418, and Bd. XLV, p. 105. We
extract from the last-named paper the following results:
Conductive capacity for
electiicity at—
0°. 100°. | 200°.
IST) Cee = 2 2S ae ae ee ee ge a Te LR Sy eee 136.25 | 94.45 | 68.72
(CA of oY eS a mes ag I SE eens s in eh ee 100.00 | 73.00 | 54.82
Cols! SEG SS MEGS se. a Oe ae ee ee bs ees oes 79.79 | 65.20 | 54.49
ieee et.) ee eS. ea isiys kt AP Pore ee oo. 30.84 | 20.44 | 14.78
EER ees ee. 2.0 ee eeenteme Le ee Lee AL 29.33 | 24.78 | 21.45
TOKO eS ESE = — 21s See ae ees ee ee ee 17.74 | 10.87 7.00
GH Caterer att Ne ie Sa ek es oe Sk RD te 14. 62 OF 61s 6.06
Tiida yeg eee eee ee 2.” Same Ee By MEE PS Sean ET 14. 16 10.93 | 9.00
. It is very evident from this table how great the influence of heat is
on the conductive capaci-y of metals, and also how unequal this influ-
ence is in the cifferent metals. For instance, at 100° the last five
374 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
metals have entirely changed their respective positions in the order o
conductive cupacity: lead has become the worst conducting metal ;
platinum has gone above iron ; brass conducts better than tin, which,
at 0°, is above it. At 200° the series is relatively the same as at
100°, though here copper and gold have become nearly equal ; so that
gold, at a yet higher temperature, must be a better conductor than
copper,
In reference to the method by which Lenz arrived at the above re-
sults, we have a few remarks to make. The current which he used
was magneto-electrical, in the closing circuit of which a multiplier was
inserted alternately with and without the wire to be determined.
This wire was coiled spirally, yet so that the single coils did not touch,
and it was plunged inan oil bath, kept at a constant temperature by a
spirit-lamp. The conductive capacity of the wire was new determined
for a series (mostly 10 to 15) of different temperatures of the oil bath,
and then by means’ of the different relative values of the conductive
capacity g and the temperature ¢, the probable values of the constant
factors of the equation,
g=—ast bt ce,
were found. In this manner the following equations for computing
the conductive capacity of different metals were obtained :
Bir SAV EE Nie Ji casseeetiine ct g = 136.25 — 0.4984 ¢ + 0.000804 ¢
Copperics dese. cao. ah Saati g = 100.00 — 0.3137 ¢ + 0.000437 &@
CONG, iclecte've ine desi can mevbieuss g= 79.79 — 0.1703 ¢ + 0.000244 t -
MDS aa oe ovis siege Maree = 30.84 — 0.1277 ¢ + 0.000273 &
SEASHS osclossenesncnsencee acc: g= 29.33 — 0.0517 ¢ + 0.000061 ¢
OMS e Soainw ces sige women Eee g= 17.74 — 0.0837 ¢ + 0.000150
Tia oss cwias Gemecieoe a angesnas g= 14.62 — 0.0608 ¢ + 0.000107 #
PURE. Sc nciey wiscsnosiesties g—= 14.16 — 0.0389 ¢ + 0.000066 ¢
These formulas, by which the above table was computed, accord very
well with the observations.
HK. Becquerel has also investigated the relation of the conductive
capacity of metals to temperature.
The method by which Becquerel maintained his wires at a high tem-
perature is as follows: The metallic wire to be used in
the experiments is wound on a glass tube C D, Fig. 21,
one centimetre in diameter and five or six centimetres
in length, so that the single coils do not touch each other.
If the wire should be more than one layer, it must be
covered with silk, and then the second layer of coils
wound on the tube. ‘To prevent the coils from unroll-
ing, they are fastened with silk. Both ends of the wire
are now fastened to the lower ends of the thick copper
rods a b, whose resistance may be disregarded. One of
the rods, namely, a, is fastened to the upper end of the
glass tube C D; the other, 6, passes down into the tube.
The coil, with its wrappings, is now placed in a test
tube filled with oil. The two rods a and 6 pass through
two small openings made in the cork A A’, which holds
C D in the middle of the oil. A thermometer with a
long bulb serves for taking the temperature of the oil.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 375
The oil was heated by immersing the test tube in a water bath;
hence Becquerel’s measurements did not exceed the boiling point of
water.
Becquerel infers from his observations that the decrease of conduct-
ive capacity is proporticnal to the increase of temperature.
Consequently, the resistance of a metal increases by an equal
amount for each degree of temperature. The following table indicates
the amount of increase of resistance for one degree expressed in frac-
tions of the resistance at zero.
PMG SEN shaus cncctxd ase cepa 0.0040 WlatiMUta. Gveas we eahs 0.0019
MERU esti deep wadbh show's 0.0043 VS Oe AP ta a 0.0037
WOM, es caidag te heces S89, 03 0.0034 YAO TUN «hd. tidabees oe 0.0040
BIGRS CFs aoe at oid wea 0.0047 AP tint Aes tal ataas. ott 0.0062
10) aa ae a Sa 0.0041 WMenetT ys A icsaasastinu.. 0.0010
From this Becquerel computed a table for the conductive capacity
of these metals at 0° and 100°, in which, however, the conductive
capacity of silver at 0° is made equal to 100; to compare these data
with those of Lenz, I have re-computed the table, making copper = 100.
Metal. At 0° 100° Difference.
Siliverescnce.cs 109. 3 77.9 63) lew: §
Copper=sae---- 100. 0 70.9 723) AL
Golde 2s. 71.0 52.6 18. 4
Cadminim' 3 — 2 26.8 LOT Tl
VATICL SSE Bon, eee 26, 2 19.2 a0
Thm Ss esc sec 15.3 9. 4. 5.9
lho} cv Sh Shes BE 13.5 | 9.2 4.3
ends syet 9.0 | 6.3 Dae
Platinum: = =_-— 8.6 Uok eS
Mercury esse 2 9 the 7 0. 2
It is evident that there is not the least accordance here with the re-
sults of Lenz, either in regard to the conductive capacity of the metal
at 0°, or in regard to the decrease of the same with increasing tempera-
tures. If the law found by Becquerel were correct, the factors of ¢
in the equations on the last page should be zero, and the factors of ¢
ame by 100 should be equal to the differences of the above
table.
Finally, Muller, of Halle, has investigated this subject (Pog. Ann.
LX XIII, 434) with the view of showing that a relation exists between
the increase of the specific resistance to conduction, and the increase
of specific heat. He assumed the measurements of Lenz with refer-
ence to resistance ; for verifying those numbers he instituted a series
of experiments himself with iron wire, the results of which accorded
well with those of Lenz. The increase which the resistance of zinc
and mercury underwent at increasing temperatures, and which Lenz
had not determined, Miller found to be very nearly proportional to
the increase of temperature.
With reference to specific heat at different temperatures, Miiller
adopted the determinations of Dulong and Petit, with the assumption
376 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
fhat the increase of specific heat is proportional to the increase of the
rise of temperature. Whether this be true or not we shall not
attempt to decide; but if it were the case, the converse would be
proved, of what Miiller desires ; for, according to the determinations of
Lenz, the increase of resistance to conduction is not proportional to
the increase of temperature; the hypothesis of Miller would, per-
haps, accord better with the measurements of Becquerel.
Miiller now compared the increase of the specific heat of mercury,
platinum, copper, zinc, silver, and iron, with the corrc ~ponding in-
crease of resistance; the accordance is not remarkable. This, how-
ever, in Miiller’s opinion, does not militate against his assumption of
the dependence of the increase of resistance on the specific heat,
because the determinations of specific heat at different ter peratures
have not been carried to the requisite degree of accuracy. If this
want of accuracy be admitted, as in fact it must be, we must also
admit that to try to prove such a relation with our present knowedge
of facts is, to say the least, a fruitless endeavor.
§ 31. Resistance of the human body to coaduction.—Lenz and Ptschel-
nikoff have investigated this subject, and made use of a magneto-elec-
trical spiral as an electro-motor. According to their determinations,
the resistance of the human body, the whole hand being immersed in
water with the addition of ;15 part of sulphuric acid, is equal to that
of
91762
metres of copper wire 1 millimetre in diameter. This can be considered
‘as only a rude approximation, consequently the description of the de-
tails of the experiment is not necessary.
Pouillet previously (P. A. XLII, 305) estimated the resistance of
the body at ‘
49082
metres of standard wire.
Although these numbers may be very inaccurate, they nevertheless
show us that the resistance of the body is very great, and that, there-
fore, the strength of the currents which produce physiological effects
is always very feeble.
Suppose a human body introduced into the closing circuit of a
Bunsen’s battery of 50 cups, the strength of the current will be
50 x 800 40
49000 ~ 49
by assuming the electro-motive force of a Bunsen element to be in
round numbers — 800, and the resistance of the battery (about 500)
being disregarded when compared with that of the body, provided we
take for the resistance of the body the smaller number of Pouillet.
This force of current corresponds to a deflection of about } of a degree
of our tangent compass. ‘A single Bunsen clement closed by the body
would thus give a force of current of only
0.8
$0 = 0.016
— 0.5
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 377
Is the induced current arising from a single element, though it
produces in the human body such powerful shocks, any more consider-
able?
§ 32. Galvanic polarization.—A piece of wire of the length of 2, 3,
4, opposes to the galvanic current a resistance 2, 3, 4; the electro-
motive force of the battery and its resistance being known, the strength
of current can be computed from Ohm’s law for any wire inserted.
Denote by E the electro-motive force of the battery, by Li the resist-
ance of the battery, then if 7 denotes the resistance of the closing con-
ductor, the strength of current is
eas
R+r
and if a wire of equal thickness, but n times as long as the closing
wire, be used, the strength of current is
Seas yin Dae
R--aur
This is rot the case with the insertion of liquids. Denote by E
and R the same es above, and by w the resistance of the liquid ina
voltameter, which is inserted in the circuit, then
iD
= ae
R + w
would be the strength of current, if Ohm’s law applied here as to the
metallic wires. By separating the plates of the voltameter m times as
far apart, the strength of the current must be
lial
R-+ nw
If the strength of the current has been determined for a certain dis-
tance of the voltameter plates, it will be found for double, treble, or
four times that distance of the polar plates—greater than should have
been expected from the immediate use of Ohm’s formula.
This ..ay be seen from a series of experiments made by Lenz, and
which were communicatec in volume XLIV of Poggendorff’s An-
nalen, p. 349. Without going further into the description of the
method of observation employed by Lenz, i. will suffice here to pre-
sent some of the results obtained.
Wich metalic closing in his battery, (the current being magneto-
electric,) Lenz obtained a strength of currert = 0.648, (according to
an arbitrary urit.) When the current passed through a concentrated
solution of sulphate of copper, in which two copper plates were im-
mersed as electrodes, the force of current was fourd
0.425,
where the electrodes were 12.6 millimetres apart. Denoting the
whole resistance which the current had to overcome in the first case,
by 1, we have
378 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
And if the resistance of the inserted liquid be computed in exactly the
same manner as that of the wire, we should get
—— 0.425, hence x = 0.5.
1l+a2
If the electrodes were removed 8 times as far apart, other things re-
maining the same, we should expect, if Ohm’s law could be applied
without further trouble, that the stratum of liquid 8 times as thick
would oppose a resistance 8 times as great, and that the force of the
current should now be
Nate ata 0.648 __ 0.648
RePsS ce L8G 0b. aus
But experiment gave in this case the force 0.199.
At 12 times the distance apart of the pole plates, we should expect,
from the application of Ohm’s law, that the current would be 0.0648,
while experiment gave 0.120.
In somewhat different form a similar result was obtained from the
experiments of Horsford, (Pog. Ann. LXX, p. 238.) In the circuit
of a Bunsen battery, he inserted a tangent compass and a rheostat.
By means of the latter the deflection of the needle was brought back
to 10°. A stratum of dilute sulphuric acid 2.5 centimetres thick, be-
tween two platinum plates, was now inserted, and with this 32 coils
were taken from the rheostat, or, in other words, 32 coils were removed
from the circuit to bring the deflection again to 10°. When the two
plates were placed twice as far apart, it was not necessary to remove
32 coils from the circuit to bring the needle to rest at 10°, but only
20.5 coils. For each increase in thickness of the fluid strata, of 2.5
millimetres, only 20.5 coils had to be removed from the circuit to
obtain the same deflection.
Thus it appears, from all experiments of the kind, that the diminu-
tion of the strength of the current, which is produced by inserting a
decomposing cell in the conducting circuit of a battery, does not
depend entirely upon the proper resistance of the liquid, but that there
is another cause at work diminishing the current, which, however, is
not augmeated by the thickness of the stratum, but apparently is in-
dependent of it.
Fechner ascribes this to the so-called “‘ resistance to transition,”’
which acts at the surface of contact between the metal plates and
liquid. Thus he imagines that the current has to overcome, besides the
resistance of the fluid itself, a peculiar resistance at the pole plates of
the decomposing cells, which we will denote by uw. If, with a given
thickness of the liquid stratum, the strength of current is
hey ana (1)
+u+ w
then for a stratum n times as thick, the strength of the current, ac-
cording to Fechner’s view, will be
E
ad
. ~~ Rteutnw @)
Poggendorff at first defended this hypothesis of Fechner. Lenz
== 50 429)
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 379
has shown, in the paper cited above, that the strength of the current
which passes through a liquid may be calculated by formula, (2), and
believes he has thus proved the existence of resistance to transition.
Ohm, Vorselman de Heer, and other physicists, opposed this hypo-
thesis, and ascribed the above mentioned anomalies to a galvanic
polarization of the voltameter plates, which acts in opposition to the
electro-motive force of the battery. Denoting this force by KE, the
strength of current, after inserting a voltameter, would be, according
to this view,
pe ah (3)
~~ R+w’
e donating the electro-motive opposing force in the voltameter, the
other letters retaining their former signification.
At n times the distance of the plates from each other, the strength,
according to this view, would be
E—e (4)
Y= R+ nw *
Lenz treats of this subject again in volume LIX of Poggendorff’s
Annalen, p. 229. A new series of experiments on the strength of the
currents with inserted voltameters is compared with formulas (1) and
(3) ; and Lenz finds that both satisfy the observations, and that the
changes in the strength of currents produced by the voltameter can
be made to accord with Ohm’s law, as well by the hypothesis of a re-
sistance to transition as by that of an electro-motive opposing force at
the electrodes.
Thus this investigation of Lenz leaves the question undecided, while
he himself holds the opinion that galvanic polarization is more prob-
able than resistance to transition.
From the form in which Lenz combined his experiments, no decision
could be expected; but, with another mode of considering this sub-
ject, this would not have been the case. We need only determine the
simple electro-motive force of a battery once with metallic circuit, and
then, with the voltameter inserted, to find whether or not an electro-
motive opposing force appears in the voltameter.
A series of experiments, which I made for the purpose of rendering
the solution of the question apparent, gave the following results :
Six zine and carbon elements formed the battery. The tangent
compass inserted in the circuit gave
8
For insertion of 0 46° deflection.
For insertion of 49 metres of standard wire 30 eG
Consequently the value of the electro-motive force of the battery is
EK = 4366.
A similar experiment, in which a brass wire was inserted, equal to
29.2 metres of the standard wire, gave
EK = 4479;
then the mean is
EK= 4422,
380 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
A voltameter was then inserted. Without any “urther addition, the
deflection was
31°.8.
When an iron wire, whose resistance was equal to 49 metres of the
standard wire, was inserted in addition, the deflection was
20°.6 ;
consequently
HY! = 3220.
After exchanging this iron wire for the above mentioned brass wire,
(= 29.2 metres of standard wire,) the result was
He so 20),
and the mean
EH’ = 3420.
These experiments show clearly that the electro-motive force is di-
minished by inserting the voltameter, and diminished not a little;
for we have
e= K— EH’ = 1000.
Hence, if a decomposing cell be introduced in the circuit, two causes
come into action diminishing the strength of the current—first, the
electro-moiive force, which sets the currert in motion, is diminished ;
and second, the resistance is increased. The strength of the current
in this case is to be computed by the formula
H—e .
= R-+ w
Daniell was the first, to my knowledge, who proved the existence of
galvanic polarization, simply by using Ohm’s law, (Philos. Trans.,
1842, Pt. Il, Pogg. Arn., LX, 387,) and he did it in a very ingenious
way, without using any other instrument than the vol.ameter itself.
An instrument of this kind was inserted in che closing arc ofa bat-
tery of 5 Daniell ele- Phy
ments. es shown in Hig. F
22-6 cubie inches of
detonating gas were
os
evolved in 5 minutes.
If there was no electro-
motive opposing force
present, the same voltameter, placed in the closing are of 10 double
elements, should yield double the quantity of gas in the same time ;
for in the first case the strength of the current was /
5 E
5R+ 7)?
Pig. 22.
in the second,
10 E 10 E
ee were y ote
/
10 47 vatpek -- ©
hence in the last case we should obtain 12 cubic inches of gas in five
minutes. The experiment, however, did not give 12, but 20 cubic
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 381
inches. Making the electro-motive opposing force equal e, we have in
the first case
BeBe rss kel
Feel vr shbeaht
in the second,
LO e ull BO
fe ean
therefore,
10, Mee. 1/90!
[PSURs ari, Mee
hence,
e= 2857 &.
Thus the experiment proved not merely the existence of the elcctro-
motive opposing force, but also determined its magnitude.
33. Resistance of liquids to conduction.—To determine the proper
resistance of liquids we must take the influence of galvanic polariza-
tion into consideration ; ignorance or disregard of this was tne reason
why all former experiments for de‘ermining the specific resistance of
liquids yielded entirely contradictory results.
Lenz first sought to determine the specific resistance of a solution
of sulphate of copper, free from the influence of polarization, and
found the value
6857 500 ;
that is, a solution of sulphate of copper, in the form of a liquid pile,
terminated by metal plates at both ends, being inserted in the closing
arc of a battery, opposed to the galvanic current a resistance 6857 500
times greater than a copper rod of the same dimensions, (Pog. Ann.
XLIV, 349.)
Wheatstone proposed an excellent method for determining the re-
sistance of liquids independent of polarization. A glass tube two
inches long, and about one-half
inch in interior diameter, (Hig.
24) has one-fourth of its circum-
ference ground away, leaving a
large part of its lengta open
above ; at one end of the tuve a
metal stopper is fastened, termi-
nating in a platinum plate; at
the other end a movable piston, ending also in a platinum plate, can
be brought within one-fourth of an inch of the fixed plate, and re-
moved from i to the distance of five-fourths of an inch.
To determine the resistance of a liquid, this measuring tube is in-
serted with the galvanometer and rheostat, in the closing arc of a
constant vattery of about three cups. When the two platinum plates
of the tube are one-fourth of an inch apart, the interval is filled with
the liquid whose resistance is to be measured, and then by means of
the rheostat the deflection of the needle of the multiplier is brought
toa given point. The piston is now drawn back one inch, and the
interval filled again with the liquid; of course the needle has receded,
382 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
and to restore it to its original position, the resistance of the battery
is diminished by aid of the rheostat and resistance rolls,* until the
needle comes to rest at its first position. The reduced length of the
wire thus brought from the battery is the measure of the resistance of
one inch of liquid; the influence of polarization has already been
eliminated by the method of the experiment.
The arrangements which Horsford and Becquerel used, to measure
the resistance of liquids, are founded on the same principle.
Horsford used a quadrangular trough of solid wood (Pog. Ann.
LXX, 238) 3 decimetres in length and 73 centimetres in breadth and
Fig. 25. depth, for holding the liquid,
(Fig. 25;) the inside is coated
with shellac varnish to prevent
the escape of the liquid. Two
pieces of wood are placed on the
trough ; one of which, A, is fas-
tened, while’the other, B, can
be moved back and forth as a
slide. These cross-pieces serve
for holding the immersed plates
in the liquid, and for changing their distance apart at pleasure. The
plates, the same width as the trough, are fastened to copper strips,
which are again screwed to the cross-pieces. ‘
The trough, filled with the liquid, is now placed with the rheostat
and tangent compass in the closing arc of a battery of more or less
cups, according as the circumstances require a greater or less electro-
motive force. The course of the experiment is similar to that indi-
cated by Wheatstone.
Horstord’s arrangement has many advantages. 1. The measure-
ments can be extended by placing the plates at a greater number of
distances apart ; 2. Plates of different metals can be easily substitu-
ted; and 3. Experiments can be made with the trough filled to dif-
ferent heights.
Horsford has shown that liquid columns follow exactly the same
law in regard to resistance as metallic wires; that is, the resistance
is directly as the length, and inversely as the section of the liquid
stratum.
The trough being filled with dilute sulphuric acid, the plates were
placed 2.5 centimetres apart, and the entire resistance so regulated
that the needle of the compass dame to rest ata given point, (say 20°.)
The second column of the following table indicates the number of
rheostat coils (of German silver wire) which were removed from the
circuit to restore the compass needle to the same place, when the dis-
tance apart of the plates (the trough being kept filled to the same
* If the requisite changes of resistance exceed the limits of the rheostat, the object is
accomplished by the insertion or removal of wire rolls (thin wire wound between the fine
screw-thread of a dry wooden cylinder) the resistance of which is known. By adding or
taking away such resistance rolls the greater changes of resistance are accomplished, and
the smaller ones are produced by the rheostat alone.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 383
height, namely, 2.75 centimetres) was increased by the values in the
first column :
Distance of plates, | Coils removed,
centimetres.
gre Signe
ounoc
Since the corresponding numbers of the two columns here have
nearly the same ratio throughout, the resistance of the fluid column
is thus actually proportional to its length. In the mean we get from
this experiment, for the resistance of a stratum of liquid of five cen-
timetres, the value 4.3 rheostat coils.
When the trough was filled toa height of 4.8 centimetres, the value
2.56 rheostat coils was obtained from a similar experimental series for
the resistance of a liquid column five centimetres long of the same
dilute acid.
Now, since the heights of the liquid in the trough, 2.75 and 4.8,
are nearly in inverse proportion to the corresponding resistance 4.3
and 2.56, (namely, 2.75: 4.8 = 2.56: 4.46,) the resistance of the
liquid column is in inverse ratio of its section.
The following table contains the values determined by Horsford, for
the specific resistance of different liquids :
Name of liquid. Condition. Specific resistance,
| that of silver = 1.
SMPHUREACIG = oe oe ots eS ole SpPeclhic pTaAvibyele lL Ole sees oes 38, 500
[2G REY Peep ah chs A (SRS pati es ST Re ll a 840. 500
Wore at eererases See aS, VeOpe Ly Vel dos tea. | bee) Seas ak 696, 700
1D) Sy = i 5 > ee a ey eee dgsss I es 7 ah a = la 696, 700
lO Re eee See eee (ees do-22-42 TOS OEE eae hee 696, 700
Io tee kk eee eee dose ase PA O)S 22 oor 1, 023, 400
Solution of chloride of sodium ----- 27. 6 grains in 500 ce. water _: 7, 157,000
Doteet eee ee cee. Dla che ere donee a (0 (0 yee ee 9,542,000
DO =e Sess S 2 SoS = LONGO). = G0- ener doyst3ass 18, 460, 000
DO ns 2 a ee aise Sek os D2 Ose OO eae doves. 34, 110, 000
Solution of chloride of potassium_.}| 27. 7----- GOs 2230-2 MO. 2:5. ae 7,168, 000
Solution of sulphate of copper----. Of which 100 ce. contains
SMOG SrOTAINS es see ee 12, 058, 000
DOs ope Ja = ee see S With double volume water -- 17, 490, 000
Solution of sulphate of zinc__..--. Of which 100 cc. contains
ROM OCALUS = 2a = we cere 23,515, 000
These liquids were chemically pure.
384 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
The apparatus represented in Fig. 26 was used by
Becquerel for measuring the resistance of liquids (Ann.
de chim. et de phys. 3 series, XVII, 242.) Its construction
hardly requires any further explanation. The metal
plate ais movable up and down in a glass tube, at the
lower end of which the plate b is placed ; thus the cur-
rent has to traverse the liquid column between a and 6.
The conducting wires of the plates a and 6 are enclosed
in glass tubes to prevent lateral currents.
- Becquerel applies the differential galvanometer here
also; in each of the two closing circuits is inserted an
apparatus like that of Fig. 26. In order that he might
raise or lower the plate a in one of them, be arranged so
that the multiplier needle came to rest at 0.
A spiral wire of known resistance having been inserted
in one of the closing ares, the needle deviated and the
liquid column of that circuit had to be shortened to re-
store the needle to 0. In this manner *t was found how
long the liquid column should be, to exert the same
resistance as the inserted spiral wire. It is understood,
of course, that there were contrivances for measuring t’ e exact eleva-
tion or descent of the plate a; but of these, it is not necessary to
give the description.
By this method Becquerel found the following values for the specific
resistances of different liquids, silver being taken as 1:
|
SVG.
Saturated solution of sulphate of copper.......... 18,450,000
Dee ye common: saltvunditeteospedoe Hes 000
DOssice.aseos Dibkate, Of COPPET,..nven eats ale a Oe
Dowian cam sulphate of zine.....0.......... 17,330,000
Dilute sulphuric acid (220 c. c. water + 20¢. c.
sulphuric acid with 1 atom of water).......... 1,128,000
Commercial nitric acidyot SO" Byte. aosaneascasetee . 1,606,000
With reference to the influence which the degree of concentration
had upon the solution, Becquerel found the following results :
Liquid. Resistance.
Sulphate of copper, saturated ‘solution 22222 --ee-=seese= eres ceeeee 18, 450, 000
ut = Gilutedsto 2avolumess2SuSeleoe- 4oe oes ane eee 28, 820,000
Uk oe diluted, to*«volumesssas222 se ee es See eee a 48, 080, 000
Gommon: salt, saturated SOUmiIQmt se ee a ares rene ieee etiam oe oe ae 3,173, 000
ak diluted to 2ivolumesae. see eee se ele oe 4, 333, 000
JE diluted ‘to'S"volumiest. 2-24 5o- ee eeer eet eee ee 5,721, 004
2 dilutedtte 4% volumeses: seas s52—ceees ote tos eee 7,864, 000
§$32*. Computation of strength of current by means of an inserted
voltameter.— When the resistance of the liquid and the approximate
quantity of galvanic polarization are known, it is easy to compute
the strength of current of a givencombination. Suppose, for example,
a voltameter, whose plates have a surface (on each side) of 25 square
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 385
centimetres (2,500 square millimetres) and are 1 centimetre (0.01
metre) apart, is filled with dilute sulphuric acid of the specific gravity
1.4; then the resistance of the liquid column in the voltameter is—
0.01 x 0.785
OB aihezses 22 a
1023400 2500 ==) oe
. HK — 1000 :
hence the strength of the current is Ree sr 2 denoting by E the
electro-motive force, and by R the entire resistance of the pile, and
assuming for the polarization the approximate value 1,000.
When a voltameter is inserted in the closing arc of a battery, the
principle is no longer true, that a maximum strength of current is
obtained when the given number of cups are so arranged that the
resistance of the battery is equal to the resistance of the closing arc ;
because the supposition on which the demonstration was based,
namely, that in different combinations of the same number of cups
the resistances vary in proportion to the square of the electro-motive
force, does not hold good here by reason of the polarization in the
voltameter. The maximum effect is in favor of those combinations in
which more cups stand in a row and fewer beside each other.
That a change of the maximum should take place in this way, may
be easily seen from a special example. In the various combinations’
of 24 cups, of Daniell’s elements, (where H = 470, R = 22,) a wire
was inserted, whose resistance was equal to 32; the following forces
of current were obtained for these combinations :
2 ald tet
PI ESO GOR
SS ec
[OR 7 ee Tomer oe
COOTER Site LOSS 0 eal
ae ren) 91
etn BE: Keon io BP2D) ) Lei ys
ASX 22i/a2 32 65
5. BSD so teh TBBD jt) ay ag,
(a et 47
6. 3 x 470 1410 ae
0.4 x 22 + 32 4]
Hence, we have the maximum, 43, for the case where the resistance
of the battery, 1.5 x 22 = 33, is nearly equal to that of the closing
arc. But, by inserting the above-mentioned voltameter, whose resist-
ance is 32, instead of the metallic wire of the same resistance, the
strength of current must be less, because the numerator of the above
fraction has to be reduced by 1,000; hence we get the following
strengths of currents for the different combinations :
?
386 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Lesa ee ag oe
560 560
PR a ee ee
164 «164
gio SECO L000 4a 14780
9] d1
ey) 2020 pa ON 43 oe 8,
65 65
, 1880 1000 _ 4g _ 91 = 19.
AT 47
LTO) Ey N00 34 od 0.
4] ell
Thus, in fact, the maximum effect is changed from the fourth to
the third combination.
We see, from these results, that among the ratios here considered,
the diminution of strength of current, by polarization, is less for
those combinations for which the entire resistance is greater, and
therefore the change of maximum, in the way indicated, is explained.
We have supposed here that the amount of polarization is constant ;
but this is not the case, as we shall see subsequently. ‘The final result
of this consideration, however, will not be changed essentially in
consequence of this.
§ 33.* Diminution of the resistance of liquids by heat.—While the
resistance of metals is increased by heat, that of liquids, on the other
hand, is considerably decreased. The first measurement of this was
made by Becquerel, (Annales de Chemie et de Phys., 3 Series, XVII,
285.) He used the method above described. One of the vessels,
Fig. 26, was heated ina water bath until the temperature became
constant.
At the temperature 14°.4 Becquerel found the resistance of a column
of saturated solution of sulphate of copper, whose height was 3.88,
equal to the resistance of a given platinum wire. But at the tem-
perature 56° the resistance of the same wire was equal to a liquid
column 8.50 in height.
Since a rise of temperature of 56° — 14°.4 = 41°.6 is required to
increase the conductive capacity of the saturated solution of sulphate
of copper in the ratio of 3.88 to 8.50, a rise of temperature of 35° is
necessary to double the conductive capacity of this liquid, provided
the changes of conductive capacity are proportional to those of tem-
perature. With a rise of temperature of 1° the conductive capacity
of this solution will be increased by ;;, or 0.0286 of its value at
14°.4,
In the same manner Becquerel found that for a rise of temperature
of 1°, the conductive capacities of the following liquids were increased
by the following parts of their original values indicated below :
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. BBG
A dilute solution of sulphate of zinc.............04. 0.0223
Commercial nitviGiaGMeais «sk dorks awletbivn db vues 0.0263
Hankel has published a more extensive series of experiments on
this subject, (Pog. Ann., LXIX, 255.) He found the resistance of a
concentrated solution of sulphate of copper (A) of the spec. grav. 1.17,
at different temperatures, as follows :
OP) eeeeaea Laick lets shies seret saa vas ten 11.26
LUO a eck, Sida ch ore oe ote amaauetn SOL) sateen 1.33
SPL, OS ccd). SCHEO : PR RSS LER 4.70
CO Bah ARRAS ase aals leeds Oaees 3.12
The resistance of 108.7 parts of the former solution (A) with 185 parts
was, at
0° 228%
11 15.16
25 10.5
67.4 Dal
The resistance of a concentrated solution of nitrate of copper was, at
pe 4.89
11.5 Sapa
25 2.18
67.2 1.64
The resistance of a concentrated solution (B) of sulphate of zine was, at
0° 13.05
9.8 8.62
27.4 4.55
67.4 2.29
The resistance of a mixture of 71 parts of the solution (B) and 116 parts:
water was, at
go 13.00
tt 8.82
28.8 5.57
65.1 3.51
The unit to which these resistances were referred was arbitrary.
The construction of the vessel holding the liquids used in these ex
periments cannot be clearly understood from Hankel’s description.
On considering the result, we find that the decrease of resistance is
not proportional to the increase of temperature, as Becquerel supposes.
For the concentrated solution of sulphate of copper, we have on an
average the following for a rise of one degree of temperature:
Limits of temperature. Decrease of
resistance.
0° and 12° 0.327
| ie oon 0.138
31 “* 66.4 0.044
Thus for a given difference of temperature, the corresponding change
in the resistance of the liquids is greater, the lower the temperature,
388 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
§ 34. Galvanic polarization varies with the magnitude of the force of
the current.—Many physicists, and among others Lenz, (Pog. Ann.,
LIX, 234,) have expressed the opinion that the electro-motive opposing
force of a voltameter is independent of the strength of the current.
In Daniell’s memoir, mentioned above, (Pogg. Ann., LX, 387,)
this opinion is adopted, and the attempt is made to establish it by
a series of experiments with the voltameter. These measurements,
however, are not exact enough for this purpose. Wheatstone also
entertains this opinion, and is thereby led to a further false conclu-
sion. He determined the electro-motive force of a battery of three
Daniell’s elements, then the electro-motive opposing force in a volta-
meter, which was inserted in the closing arc of the same battery. He
found
== 90 e169:
When batteries of four, five, and six elements were used, almost ex-
actly the same value for e was found; hence Wheatstone inferred
that the electro-motive opposing force may be considered as constant,
E is here the electro-motive force of three combined cups, consequently
the electro-motive force of one cup is = 30, a value less than e.
3
Wheatstone thinks that the phenomenon may be explained by sup-
posing that‘a single element cannot effect the decomposition of water
in a voltameter.
But this is erroneous. The electro-motive opposing force can never
become stronger than the original cause which produces it ; hence we
must suppose that the electro-motive oppposing force is dependent
upon the strength of the current. But then the current of a single
element can certainly decompose water, though at a very small rate.
For instance, when a voltameter was inserted in the closing arc of a
Daniell’s element, its plates being about two square inches, I obtained
a very sensible development of gas.
That the electro-motive opposing force in a voltameter actually de-
pends upon the strength of the current, appears very strikingly in a
series of experiments which I made for this purpose. As already
mentioned above, I found the electro-motive force of a battery of six
zinc and carbon elements to be—
E = 4422,
and the electro-motive opposing force,
e'==' 1000:
The electro-motive force of each single element was ** = 737,
thus decidedly less than the electro-motive opposing force in the vol-
tameter.
The electro-motive force of a battery of four such elements (zinc
and carbon) was next determined ; the result was
ele
After inserting the voltameter the electro-motive force was only
E! = 2427 ;
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 389
sa Coe — Bi — yon.
Here, with a weaker current, the electro-motive opposing force ap-
peared sensibly less; indeed, in this case it is less than the electro-
motive force of an element.
For a battery of two elements the result was
By 1604.
After the insertion of the voltameter,
B= 984.
thus—
2 Pe he — 620.
No claim to great accuracy is made for the numbers just given, but
that which is placed beyond doubt by them is what might have been
foreseen ; the electro-motive opposing force becomes gradually less
with the decrease of the strength of the current. Hence it is a func-
tion of the current, though the force of this function must be deter-
mined by more accurate experiments.
That the magnitude of the electro-motive opposing force is depend-
ent on the strength of the current was first placed beyond doubt by
Poggendorfi.—(P. A., LXI, 613.) Buff also (P. A., LXIII, 497)
found the electro-motive opposing force of a veltameter greater with the
current of three zine and carbon elements than with that of only two;
he found, moreover, the magnitude of the polarization diminished by
the insertion of a greater length of wire in the closing are.
Rig. 27. For the case in which the
electrodes fill up the whole
section of a trough like that of
~ Fig. 27, the polarization ap-
i peared somewhat greater, ac-
cording to Buff, when the de-
| composing cell is less full. If
Miillugee the electrodes are suspended in
= = the surrounding liquid, without
filling the whole section, the size
ie
f
of the electrodes has no influence on the magnitude of the polari-
zation.
§ 35. Numerical determination of polarization.—Lenz and Saweljev
have instituted a large series of experiments for determining galvanic
polarization in different cases. (Bull, de la Classe Phys. Math. de
l’acad. de Sci. de St. Peters, b. T. V., p. 1; P. A., LX VII, 497.) The
process which they used to determine the magnitude of polarization
in a decomposing cell was that of Wheatstone, viz: by determining
the electro-motive force of a battery, first with metallic closing con-
ductors, and afterwards with the decomposing cell inserted. The dif-
ference of these two numbers, gives the magnitude of the electro-
motive opposing force produced by the polarization in the decomposing
cell.
The following example will explain the mode of observing.
390 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
To reduce the deflection of the compass-needle from 20° to 10° the
following must be inserted :
Wath metallic closingwissisa).sscaunsgseeeet s0e . 19.91 rheostat coils.
A decomposing cell being inserted in the
closing arc, formed of two plates of plati-
num immersed in nitric acid............... Liat -
Polarization of the decomposing cells... 2.54
By this method the following values were found for the galvanic
polarization of different decomposing cells:
Copper-plates in sulphate of copper........c...seeeeeeee aston Gaal oataieae 0.07
Amalgamated zine plates 19 NItEIC ACIG. 0c nse 1. 0c0ncemesesnvrnes 0.03
Gop per-platesijim: strtnier acid: y.4s.ies. od. sawed: Be Se this. Boe eee 0.014
These experiments prove that polarization disappears when the
escape of gas ceases at tho electrodes ; in all three cases no oxygen ap-
peared at ‘the positive electrode, because it oxidized the metal imme-
diately on its evolution from the water ; ; the escape of hydrogen at the
negative electrode was prevented in the first case by attracting in its
nascent state the oxygen from the oxide of copper, and precipitating
metallic copper; in the other two cases the nascent hydrogen was
immediately oxidized by the nitric acid.
Thus here, where the electrodes are not covered with a stratum of
gas, polarization does not take place; the small numerical values
siven above are not due to the polarization of the electrodes, but to
the fact that they do not remain in the same state—one plate being
attacked and the other not, and thus the pair of plates itself becomes
a feeble electro-motor.
Buff also (P. A., LX XIII, 497) found the polarization for copper
plates in sulphate of copper, and for zinc plates in sulphate of zinc,
very small.
Lenz and Saweljev found further for the polarization of
Platinum plates in, nitric acid) sire... cece decssa: sense coe 2.48
Platinum plates in sulphuric acid®...............5+4 5.46
Amalgamated zinc plates in SO; Ak see e sense fale seis 1.00
Copper Dust eS! IA. Satis, «candela geen dnaepien meen ence dcssnes 2.15
Umbelectrodes ..2..c5.c2+- +085. reais somes el selnecieensie ale 1.45
Trom: electrodes. ..)...20..sessetse See emer eocteniioe enisce ee 0.33
Graphite in concentrated...... TS Ce hee eee 1.26
These numerical values are mostly the mean results of a number of
experiments.
In the first case, that of platinum plates in nitric acid, there is no
escape of hydrogen at the negative electrode—the polarization shown
in the value 2.48 is thus to be ascribed entir ely to that at the positive
electrode, where oxygen appears ; 2.48 is consequently the magnitude
of the polarization which a platinum plate receives from oxygen:
In the second case, that of platinum plates in sulphuric acid, de-
velopment of gas takes place at both electrodes ; therefore 5.46 is the
* Composed of 6 vols. of concentrated SO, + 100 of water.
.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 391
sum of the polarization of both plates ; the polarization of platinum
by oxygen being 2.48; that of the same metal by hydrogen is
5.46 — 2.48 = 2.98, or nearly 3.
In the four succeeding cases, (zinc, copper, tin, and iron, in sul-
phurie acid,) the positive electrode is attacked, and therefore the cor-
responding numerical values are those of the polarization of these
metals by hydrogen. Arranging these results, we have for the po-
larization of
PUTA TH VOR Y WED Sh aka. vos sake ox'an.cnantineescandee eee 2.48
Earn LY VO BOS CUE coe. vecialc sn mnsscqecqnaat ss. a4 3.00
Fay) Ca aes oe 0 ubhricti ic tele Mele Noms eadleet hes a 1.00
Copper in......... (6) a ge A 8 cee a A aa 2.15
inher. er Meee Ee to asta eee aint eon sic we 1.45
Wromeatmg a a.crae OL SRLS RAE ie Beet Mites. SNR aR My Pipe 0.33
Graphite Ors Car bOmsIn OX ely...cce.cesdsscn ua scees 1.25
If we introduce into the closing circuit of a battery a decomposing
cell of unlike plates, this itself will act as an electro-motor, and the effect
of its force will, according to circumstances, either favor or oppose
the polarization. Suppose the electro-motive force of the decomposing
cell, as weli as its polarization, to oppose the electro-motive force of
the battery, then the difference D obtained from the measurements of
the electro-motive force of the battery, with and without the decom-
posing celi in the circuit, will be the sum of the electro-motive force
of the decomposing cell, and of the polarization, or
Das=e°- pry
denoting by e the electro-motive force of the decomposing cell, and by
go the polarization taking place in it. If we have determined the
value of D for differently constructed decomposing cells, (say, for.ex-
ample, consisting of platinum in nitric acid, and zinc in sulphuric
acid, platinum in nitric acid, and copper in a potash solution,) we
can compute for these combinations the value of e by deducting the
respective values of ». In this manner Lenz and Saweljev ascertained
the electro-motive force of the following combinations:
Platinum in nitric acid, combined with—
Platinum in hydrochloric acid... 32223. i.scestsyaeces ea je 2G
DG! eae PEUTIC! WCUG trons sa asa cetoetoresaet tess sacs . 0.02
Dose PUBIC ACIO' aac Gone eeitnscosheoacensios tanoadeues 0.00
Grape mitrie Acide o..0.. wiaiwecdesovacesteceks secee 0.01
Groldtnmemipere acids Hes. HOSA We A I Beas 0.06
Gold-ntsmipharic, ‘acid i: 29..08.45... Gis hatagestieers 0.25
Mercuryommaniphuric'actds: 2 28 A 0.70
Mercury intaatrate of mercury..).000..620h0.0 08 O79
Platinum in solution of potash.............c.cesceecees 1.20
Pure coppemia aalmlurie werdsy), 0 5.).40.000 Lg,
Slightly oxidized copper in sulphuric acid........... 1.75
Copper in sulphate of ‘coppers. .....5........ 0 lace 2.00
Gold in solution of potash............cecs0c08 “pete eno 2.31
Gants hydrochiomeraerd sy) Oi. 8k RRs ilobs« 2.38
AToWPING,. 2... MO Fa ee GOA eucedesdton Mga oekc alias 2.75
392 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
Iron }m) sulphuric aerdeiet:!....avergscrens cnt 2.92
Pitt an wae donee: GOL LEE LEEe i. coast teees 2.95
Copper in solution of potash.............seee0 3.10
Law in Solution Of PObaphee... 0.20. sees vecsnens 3.94
Zine in dilute Mite acide... eka... aise. ocnaee 4.05
Zinc in dilute hydrochloric acid............... 4.07
Aine i sulpmuric Acid! oetees. +h let... neeees AT
Icom solution el potash. 8. )......c2.50s. 50% 4.65
ZAGEPID 001004 AOosntisdes BO a0. 20 adaditenere meses 5.48
For zinc in sulphuric acid, and copper in sulphate of copper, these
two Russian physicists found the electro-motive force 2.17. This
gives us a point of reference for reducing the numerical values, given
above, for polarization and electro-motive force to our (the chemical)
unit. We have found for the electro-motive force of a Daniell ele-
ment the value of 470 (section 9); and to reduce the values given by
Lenz and Saweljev to chemical measure they must be multiplied by
ee 217.
Zit
For the electro-motive force of a Grove’s element, (platinam in ni-
tric acid, zinc in sulphuric acid,) they found the electro-motive force
4.17; consequently, in chemical measure, it is 4.17 X 217 = 905.
Hence, for the polarization of different metallic plates, we get the
following values expressed in chemical measure :
Papen TA OXY COW.) «sigs ob o/eseissinndeee ainitee ose eaieh apices 53
Platinmmian by diror emis 35. c0.s: pose sasnnuneer er ones 651
Zine ve See nels Dagaben cod nceceen suincie cneee ces earnest 217
Copper.(7; PEt MS ira ae tate acai ait se stereos Ce opera 466
Tin by SEM Aine ecr ee cect accents Mau mnaane no raetez it 314
Tron a Be reece wae Cigie @eietoett cee dele tains eine eee 72
(OPH soy runita. oie) 1 eaepiliBle ha ANS harmill Sees Sn RAE bon nosed 271
for the entire polarization of the two platinum electrodes in dilute sul-
phuric acid
1185,
while for this case I found the number (section 32)
1000.
§ 36. Polarization in platinized platinum plates.—Poggendorff ob-
served, accidentally, that in an element of the Grove gas column,
which was inserted in the closing are of a Grove element, a consider-
able development of gas took place unexpectedly, while a simple
Grove element, closed by a voltameter with uncoated platinum plates,
produced a very inconsiderable decomposition of water. (Pogg. Ann.,
LXX 183.)
For making comparative measurements, he constructed a voltameter
with platinized platinum plates, which he compared with an ordinary
voltameter. The voltameter with uncoated plates yielded in the
closing arc of a Grove element, in thirty minutes,
0.89 cubic centimetres of explosive gas ;
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 393
while the voltameter with platinized platinum plates, under the same
circumstances, yielded
77.68 cubic centimetres ;
thus nearly 87 times as much.
This is due simply to the fact, that the polarization in platinized
plates is considerably less than in uncoated plates. Poggendorff has
proved this by direct measurements.
The electro-motive force of a battery of two Grove’s elements was
= 64; after inserting the platinized plates it was 31; hence the po-
larization of the platinized plates was
64 — 31 = 33.
When, instead of the voltameter with platinized plates, that with
uncoated platinum plates was substituted, the electro-motive force of
the whole battery was equal to 22; therefore the polarization on the
uncoated plate was
64 — 22 = 42.
It is shown, in section 18, that the electro-motive force of « Grove
element, as a mean of the observation of different physicists, is 777
in chemical measure ; hence the electro-motive force of two elements
equals 1554; therefore the value of the polarization of the uncoated
plates which Poggendorff found, reduced to chemical measure, is
42 X
64
which accords very closely with the value of the polarization given
above in section 32.
Hence the polarization for platinized plates, in chemical measure, is
a 1554
XI) Dd Sa S01.
Poggendorff also found, as mentioned already in section 34, that
the magnitude of the polarization diminishes with the strength of the
current ; when, by the increase of the accidental resistance, the cur-
rent was so weakened that the needle of the sine compass, inserted in
the closing arc, receded from 47° 49’ to 5° 44’, the polarization in the
voltameter diminished from 42 to 38, or, in chemical measure, from
1020 to 922.
According to Poggendorff’s experiments, the magnitude of the po-
larization with platinized plates is but little dependent upon the
changes of the strength of the current, so that it may be considered
constant, without sensible error.
Svanberg also has instituted many experiments in galvanic po-
larization, and with great care and accuracy. (Pogg. Ann., LX XIII,
298.) For the polarization which the current of: four Daniell ele-
ments produced in a voltameter with uncoated platinum plates, he
found, reduced to chemical measure, the value
5
ite Oe 1072.
bese ; cof? EWN yy tat :
= Svanberg observed, that the polarization in the voltameter increases
gradually, and requires some time to attain a maximum. ‘Therefore,
to determine the maximunt polarization accurately, he made his meas-
394 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
urements only after the current had been passing for some hours
through the voltameter.
Metal plates with rough surfaces appeared from his measurement to
be polarized less than polished ones, which accords well with Pog-
gendoril’s observation, that the polarization on platinum plates is less
than on naked ones. The polarization of polished copper plates by
hydrogen, Svanberg found in the ratio of 12 to 8 less when they were
made rough with a file, or still better when rendered granular by
galvanic precipitated copper.
§ 37. Buff’s researches on galvanic polarization.—Single results of
these researches have been already mentioned above, but we must
here present a few more extracts from Buff’s Memoir. (Pogg. Ann.,
TX Agi)
He found that a deflection of 45 degrees in his tangent compass
corresponded to a development of hydrogen of 21.08 cubic centime-
tres per minute, (reduced to the temperature of 0° and 760 milli-
tres pressure?), which is equivalent to a development of explosive
gas of 31.6 centimetres ; hence the strength of the current was re-
duced to chemical measure by multiplying the tangent of the angle
of deflection by 31.6.
In the course of this investigation, Buff found the electro-motive
force of a Daniell element equal to 4.207. Since, in establishing our
unit we have taken the electromotive force of this element at 470,
Buft’s data of electro-motive force, as well as his value of polariza-
tion, must be multiplied by 4.207 = 111 to make the results compar-
able with ours. Buff’s comparison of the strength of current and
maenitude of polarization in a voltameter with naked platinum plates,
(referred to our unit), gave the following results :
Strength of current. Polarization.
43.7 1256
He 1165
Is &) 1132
8.0 1118
4.4 1069
In these experiments the platinum electrodes formed the opposite
sides of a trough; the above numbers relate to the case where the
trough was filled to a height of 45 millimetres.
Filled to a height of 10 millimetres, the following respective values
of strength of current and polarization were obtained :
Strength of current. Polarization.
20.5 1199
11.5 1170
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 395
Thus, under circumstances otherwise equal, the polarization ap-
peared somewhat greater than when the trough was filled higher, as
already mentioned in section 35.
Buff also remarked that the maximum polarization required a con-
siderable time to elapse before taking place.
For one decomposing cell formed of two zinc plates in a solution of
sulphate of zinc, he found the value of polarization,
p='0.85r5
in our unit
Daa, Oat
From this result he is led to the following conclusions:
‘*T regard p = 0.85 as the electrical difference of zinc and hydro-
gen, or as an approximation toit. In like manner I regard the polari-
zation resistance of the platinum pletes in dilute sulphuric acid as an
approximate value for the electrical difference between oxygen and
hydrogen. By the stratum of hydrogen at the negative platinum
plate, and the stratum of oxygen at the positive plate, the same
effect is produced as though not two platinum strips, but a strip
of solid hydrogen and one of solid oxygen, were placed in the acid.
#8 si * The electro-motive action developed by the immediate
contact of hydrogen and oxygen, or the electrical difference of these
substances, indicates the extreme limits of the resistance, which can
take place by the polarization of two metals in the decomposing cell.
This limit will be approached the more nearly, the more perfectly the
immersed plates can be coated with the gases, and the more perfectly
the immediate contact of the metallic with the liquid conductors is
prevented.’’
In the same memoir we find other experiments proving the absence
of polarization in all cases, in which the deposition of the gases on
the electrodes is prevented, which has been previously mentioned.
(Section 35.)
§ 38. Diminution of polarization by heating the liquid.—De la
Rive describes the following experiment in the Biblioth. Univers.,
February, 1837, p. 388: In the closing arc of a battery of four ele-
ments, he inserted a galvanometer and a decomposing cell, composed
of two platinum plates, immersed in a glass of water; the galvan-
ometer indicated a deflection of 12°. He then placed under the posi-
tive pole-plate where oxygen was developed, a large spirit-flame, so
that the plate began to glow, and the part immersed in the liquid
being gradually heated by conduction, raised it to the boiling point.
(The platinum plate was probably bent at right-angles.) No change
was perceptible in the deflection ; the same was done at the negative
plate, but now the needle advanced to 30°. After removing the lamp,
the deflection returned to 12°.
When the water was replaced by dilute sulphuric acid, the original
deflection was 45°; by heating the negative plate it rose to 80°, while
heating the positive plate had no effect whatever.
Hence De la Rive concludes, that heat has no influence on the pas-
396 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
sage of the electrical current from a metal into a liquid, but that it
perceptibly favors the passage of the current from a liquid to a metal.
Vorsselman de Heer opposed this singular opinion. He ascribed
theaction not directly to heat, but to the motion of the liquid pro-
duced by boiling, and by which the polarizing gases were removed
from the electrodes. He supported his view by the fact that the same
effect can be produced without heat, by merely agitating the plate
slightly in the liquid, or causing motion in the liquid near the plates
by a glass rod.
He took a voltaic pile of five pairs charged with pure water. Two
platinum wires dipped in a glass of distilled water, forming the poles
of the battery, the galvanometer placed in the circuit indicated 45° ;
this deflection, however, rapidly decreased on account of the increas-
ing polarization, but it always increased again when the negative
wire was shaken. The following results were obtained :
After 15! 34°; the negative wire being shaken, 40°
After 30 16°; do, do. 38°
After 60’ 4°; do. do. 32°
Shaking the positive wire had no influence.
Similar results were obtained with copper wires.
dees ae
Vorsselman’s explanation is certainly the correct one, yet he leaves
2 if ane
unexplained the circumstance of the positive pole being unaffected by
heating or shaking. Is it because oxygen adheres more firmly to
platinum plates than hydrogen ?
According to a notice in the ‘‘ Jahresbericht uber die Fortschritte
. 5 1 . . . .
der Chemie, Physik u. s. w. von Liebig und Kopp, Giessen 1849, s.
Marah ota PP»
297,’’ Becker of Giessen has investigated more minutely the decrease
of polarization at increasing temperatures of the decomposing fluid ;
but his labors have not yet been published.
§ 39. Cause of galvanic polarization.—One of the first who opposed
the hypothesis of resistance to transition, and endeavored to estab-
lish the existence of an electro-motive opposing force in the voltameter,
was Schénbein. While all the researches on this subject, hitherto
considered, rested upon the relation of the passage of the current
through electrolytes, to Ohm’s law, and while they were in this way
led indirectly to the view that galvanic polarization was to be ascribed
to the strata of gas covering the electrodes, Schénbein regarded the
subject from an entirely different point of view, and sought to prove
directly the polarizing influence of gases on metallic plates.
The most important of Schénbein’s memoirs on this subject are the
following :
Observations on the electrical polarization of solid and liquid conduo-
tors. (Pog. Ann’ XLVI, 1092)
Jew observations on voliaic polarization of solid and liquid conduc-
tors. (Hoe tAnn. Xv a0.)
On voltaic polarization of solid and liquid bodies. (P. A. LVI, 135.)
I will here state the essential results of Schénbein’s researches,
without reporting upon the contents of these separate papers.
The following experiment is mentioned on page 199 of the second vol-
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 397
ume of my treatise, (Lehrbuch der Physik.) If the current of a battery
be passed through a voltameter, and then, directly after breaking the
circuit, each of the voltameter plates be brought into contact with the
terminating wire of a multiplier, the latter will indicate a current
traversing the voltameter in the direction opposite to that of the
original current of the battery. This experiment, made as early as
1827, by De la Rive, merely shows that an electro-motive opposing
force is generated in the voltameter by the primary current; but it
gives us no clue to the cause.
Becquerel maintained that the secondary current appeared only in
the case when the poles were immersed in the solution of a salt.
Under these circumstances, says Becquerel, the salt is decomposed,
the base collects at the negative pole, the acid at the positive ; and if
the wires be put in conducting connexion after the removal of the
battery, a current is generated in consequence of the re-combination
of the acid and base.
Schonbein now shows that a solution of a salt is not at all necessary
for bringing about a secondary current; that the experiment succeeds
perfectly with pure water very slightly acidified with pure sulphuric
acid, even if the platinum electrodes communicates but for an instant
with the battery.
These secondary currents are by no means of only momentary dura-
tion; they last, according to circumstances, a longer or shorter time.
In an instance in which the original deflection of the galvanometer
needle by the secondary current amounted to 80°, four minutes elapsed
before it altogether disappeared ; in another, when the deflection was
160°, it lasted thirty minutes.
Schénbein produced secondary currents as well with electrodes of
gold as with those of platinum. Iron wires being used instead of
platinum, and a solution of potash for sulphuric acid, the secondary
current also appeared. Experiments with silvered copper wire, zinc,
and other metals, gave similar results; so that it isin the highest
degree probable that all metallic conductors have the property of being
electrically polarized.
In the second of the above-mentioned memoirs (P. A. XLVI, 101)
Schénbein arrives at an explanation of the phenomenon. The most
important facts which lead to it are the following :
1. Platinum wires or plates which, being placed for a greater or
less length of time in pure water, or in water with sulphuric or nitric
acid, have served as electrodes, and are then heated to redness in a
spirit flame, lose entirely all their electro-motive power.
2. If the positively polarized electrode, or that which has served as
a negative pole, be exposed but for a few moments to an atmosphere of
chlorine or bromine, the electro-motive force will be completely de-
stroyed; the same result is also obtained by a longer immersion in
oxygen gas.
3. A negatively polarized platinum wire loses its electro-motive
force if it be exposed a few seconds to an atmosphere of hydrogen.
"4, By exposing positively or negatively polarized platinum plates
to a gas which has no chemical action either on oxygen or hydrogen
398 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
in the presence of platinum, the electro-motive force of the plates will
not be destroyed.
5. A platinum plate exposed for only a few seconds in an atmo-
sphere of hydrogen, is polarized positively.
6. Gold and silver wire do not acquire electro-motive power by
immersion in hydrogen gas.
7. A platinum wire placed in oxygen does not become negatively
polarized, nor do gold and silver.
8. Platinum, gold and silver, exposed for a few seconds in chlorine
gas, become polarized negatively. Bromine gas produces the same
effect on these metals.
Before passing to a further elucidation of these facts, we will con-
sider the most advantageous way of showing the electrical polariza-
tion of a metallic plate.
In a small cup of mercury a, Fic. 28, connected with the terminal
wire of a multiplier, the end of a wire of a platinum plate p is im-
Fig. 28. mersed. The plate must be first perfectly
cleaned, and then suspended in a glass of
acidified water. In the cup } the wire of
a second and exactly similar platinum plate
is placed—the plate being in like manner
cleaned and suspended in the acidified
water. The needle will, of course, remain
at rest, since both plates act exactly alike
electro-motively. But if the second plate,
which we will denote by p’, should be po-
larized in any of the above ways, a deflection
of the galvanometer needle would follow,
from which the direction of the current
could be ascertained.
For example, if the platinum plate p’ were immersed in hydrogen
gas, it would act electro-positively towards the other; that is, the
galvanometer would indicate the current passing from p’ through the
liquid to p. The plate p’ being immersed in chlorine gas, the deflec-
tion of the needle would show p’ electro-negative to p.
If the platinum plate p’ should have served as the negative pole in
the decomposition of water, it will act exactly as though it had been
plunged into a jar of hydrogen ; that is, if used for closing in the
apparatus of Fig. 28, it would generate a current passing from p’
through the liquid to p.
All the phenomena we have just considered, appear to indicate that
the stratum of gas which escapes at the electrodes during electrolysis
is really the cause of galvanic polarization. If such be the case, it is
perfectly evident that the stratum of gas will be destroyed by heating
the metal plates to redness. This circumstance alone, however, would
prove nothing, because such a heat must act destructively upon the
polarity, even if it should depend upon other causes than upon a stra-
tum of gas. The second experiment is decisive. The instantaneous
destruction of the positive polarity of a platinum wire, by chlorine,
can hardly take place otherwise than by the chemical action of the
chlorine on the oxygen, by which every trace of hydrogen disappears
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 399
in the formation of hydrochloric acid. On immersion in oxygen, the
hydrogen adhering to the platinum plate is caused by the action of
the latter to combine with the oxygen, and thus the cause of the polari-
zation is removed. That oxygen does not destroy the positive po-
larity so quickly as chlorine, is owing merely to the slow action of
the oxygen.
The fact mentioned under No. 4 is also favorable to the view, that
the cause of the polar condition of the electrodes exists in the
hydrogen and oxygen which adhere to them. The certainty of this
supposition is established by the fact stated in No. 5; at least this
appears to prove incontestably that the positive polarity of the nega-
tive electrode is due to hydrogen.
A platinum wire which has not been used as a negative pole, and has
not been subjected in any way to the influence of a current, presented
all the voltaic properties of a positively galvanized wire, merely from
the fact of having been exposed a few seconds to hydrogen.
Schénbein has, in fact, by these experiments, removed the vail
which has hitherto concealed the nature of galvanic polarization.
Only two of the facts stated above, namely, those under 6 and 7,
appear to oppose the explanation he has given.
While a platinum plate, which has been used as a positive elec-
trode, is negatively polarized, the polarization cannot be produced by
exposure to oxygen ; this seems to show that the negative polarity of
the positive pole is not to be ascribed to oxygen.
The circumstance that gold and silver wire do not become electio-
positive in hydrogen, while the same metals, if they have played the
part of negative electrodes but for a few seconds, become sensibly posi-
tively polarized, excites some doubt as to the correctness of the view
that the positive polarization of the negative electrodes is to be attrib-
uted to hydrogen.
But betore passing to a closer examination of this subject, we will
first consider the polarization of liquids which Schénbein also discusses
in the above mentioned memoirs.
§ 40. Polarization of liquids.—If dilute hydrochloric or dilute sul-
phuric acid be placed in a U-shaped tube, and connected a few seconds
by platinum electrodes with the poles of a battery, the current of
which causes a sensible development of gas in the acidified lquid,
and if then the wires thus used be replaced by new ones, or such as
have not served as poles, and these wires be connected with the gal-
vanometer, the needle of this instrument will deviate, and in a direc-
tion which shows that the positive current of the liquid column in
which the negative pole was immersed passes in the direction of that
in which the positive electrode was, or, in other words, the secondary
current is in the opposite direction to the current of the battery.
Thus liquid columns indicate galvanic polarization.
The cause and nature of this polarization are explained by the fol-
lowing experiments:
1. Water, made conducting by a little sulphuric acid, being agi-
tated with hydrogen and placed in a tube closed below with a bladder,
and the tube put in a vessel which also contains some acidified water,
but free from hydrogen, and both liquids then connected with the
400 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
galvanometer by platinum wires, a current is obtained which passes
from the hydrogen solution to the other liquid. The former acts
relative to the latter as zinc to copper. When gold or silver wires
were used in this experiment, no current was obtained.
2. The experiment having been made under exactly the same cir-
cumstances, excepting that the liquid in the tube contained oxygen
in solution instead of hydrogen, there was no current with connecting
wires of platinum, gold, or silver.
3. When the liquid in the tube contained a small quantity of
chlorine or bromine instead of hydrogen, a current was obtained,
which passed from the wide vessel into the tube, whether the experi-
ment was made with platinum, gold, or silver wire.
4. If the current of a battery be passed through water containing
sulphuric acid placed in a U-shaped tube, this liquid will yield a
secondary current only in case the connexion with the galvanometer
be made with a platinum wire. By using gold or silver wire the
needle of the multiplier does not show the least deflection.
5. If the experiment be made as in 4, using, however, dilute hy-
drochloric acid instead of dilute sulphuric acid, a secondary current
will be obtained even when the closing has been made with gold or
silver wire.
he experiments under 1, 8, and 5 indicate that the course of the
polarization is to be found in the gases which are dissolved in the
water. —
The cases in which the liquids treated with gases yield no current
from polarization, (Nos. 2 and 4,) exactly correspond with the cases
above described, where mctallic wires or plates immersed in gases
produced no such current, (Nos. 6 and 7.) In order to prove that the
stratum of gas adhering to the metallic plates or the gases dissolved
in the liquids are the cause of galvanic polarization, it must be ex-
plained why the same effect is not also produced in these cases. The
view of Schénbein on this subject we give in the following paragraph :
§ 41. Schinbein’s theory of galvanic polarization.—If two like me-
tallic plates be immersed in a liquid, one clean and the other coated
with a stratum of gas; or if two such plates be placed in the two
branches of a U-shaped tube filled with the same liquid, except that
in the liquid in one of the branches a gas is held in solution, and not
in the other, the dissimilarity between the two parts is a sufficient
cause for the appearance of electrical tension. This tension will
cause an electrical current as soon as a metallic connexion is made
between the two plates. But in order that such a current may tra-
verse the wire of a multiplier, it must pass through the liquid, which
cannot transmit the feeblest current without electrolysis. The ap-
pearance of the polarization current therefore is inseparably connected
with the beginning of the electrolysis of the liquid; the current can-
not exist in any case when the electrical difference in the two surfaces
in contact is not sufficient to bring about electrolysis.
For example, if the water acidified by sulphuric acid on one side
be terminated by a pure gold or silver plate, and on the other side by
one coated with a stratum of hydrogen, no current appears on con-
THE SMITHSONIAN. INSTITUTION, 401
necting the two plates, because the hydrogen of the gold plate is not
in the condition to attract the oxygen of the nearest particle of water,
and thus to produce chegananysis throughout the whole stratum of
liquid; but if platinum be used instead of the gold plate, the peculiar
relation of this metal to hydrogen and oxygen “Induces electrolysis by
causing the hydrogen nearest the platinum pale te attract the oxygen
from its neighboring particle of water, and thus the decomposition
and recomposition of water extends to the other plate. Thus it is
shown why the experiment No. 1 succeeds with platinum plates, but
not with gold or silver.
Schénbein considers it not improbable that this action is produced
by a sub-oxide of hydrogen, the hydrogen of which has a greater de-
oxidizing force than pure hydrogen, as the third atom of. oxygen of
the super-oxide shows a greater affinity fer oxidable bodies than pure
oxygen.
A platinum plate immersed in chlorine gas, combined voltaically
with a clean ene in dilute sulphuric acid, yields a current, because, in
this combination, the affinity of the chlorine is sufficiently strong to
attract the hydrogen from the nearest molecule ef water, and form
hydrochloric acid ; hence the electrelysis of the water is induced ail the
wayto the other plate. Even if gold and silver plates be used in this
experiment, the chlorine has the power of decomposing water ; hence,
in this case, the current which passes, ef course, in the direction in
which the particles of hydrogen go, continues until the chlorine on
one of the plates disappears.
The formation of the current in experiment No. 3 is to be explained
in a manner entirely analogous to this.
But, by using pure oxygen instead of chlorine or bromine, in the
above combination, it is not found in such a state of activity, to use
Schénbein’s language, as to cause the decomposition of the nearest
particle of water ; hence the absence of the current in the experiments
No. 7 (in section 39,) and No. 2 (in section 40.)
But if pure oxygen in this case cannot excite a current of polariza-
tion, how is the negative polarization of a platinum plate, which has
served as a positive electrode, to be explained? Certainly not by the
oxygen evolved at its surface. Ozone, as well as oxygen, escapes at
the positive electrode, and that this remarkable body can polarize
platinum plates negatively has been stated.
According to Schonbein, ozone is a super-oxide of hydrogen; a
view which is strongly supported by the fact that the super-oxides of
metals have a precisely similar voltaic action. The third atom of
oxygen has a greater affinity for oxidable bodies than free oxygen,
and thus the strong electro-negative action of these substances is ex-
plained.
§ 42. Hyper-oxide batteries.—A platinum plate, covered with a hy-
per-oxide, as, for instance, hyper-oxide of lead, acts electro- negatively
towards a clean platinum plate. On immersing the two plates con-
nected with the terminal wires of a multiplier, in dilute sulphuric
acid, a powerful current arises, passing from the clean plate to the
one covered with the hyper-oxide. The third atem of oxygen in the
402 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
hyper-oxide attracts from the nearest molecule of water its hydrogen,
and thus causes electrolysis throughout the whole liquid.
To cover a platinum plate with hyper-oxide of lead, it is connected
with the positive pole of a battery of several pairs, whose negative pole
is connected with a similar platinum plate. The two plates are now
immersed in a solution of nitrate of lead, when the positive plate
is at once covered with a layer of super-oxide of the metal.
The current which a polarized platinum plate yields with a clean
one, is, of course, transient ; it disappears with the electro-motive coat-
ing of the plate, and this is removed necessarily in consequence of the
formation of the current.
For example, let us consider a positive platinum plate polarized by
hydrogen ; this being combined with a clean platinum plate, a cur-
rent arises which passes from the coated to the clean plate; thus, at
the coated plate, in consequence of the current, oxygen will escape,
and combine with the hydrogen which appears there.
In like manner, the strata of chlorine, hyper-oxide of lead, &c.,
with which the platinum plate has been negatively polarized, gradually
disappear, the chlorine or oxygen of the super-oxide combining with |
the hydrogen escaping at this plate.
Since platinum plates polarized by hyper-oxide are more strongly
electro-negative than clean plates, by combining plates of zine and
platinum covered with hyper-oxide of lead, exceedingly powerful gal-
vanic batteries can be constructed. |
The practical application of such batteries is as yet opposed by the
fact that the stratum of super-oxide, the production of which is
somewhat troublesome, very soon disappears.
Wheatstone has given us a measurement of the electro-motive force
of the hyper-oxide battery in the memoir already cited (Pog. Ann.
LXII, 522.) He found for the electro-motive force of—
1. Zinc amalgam, sulphate of copper, copper.......... 30 470
2. Zine amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, copper....... 20 313
3. Zinc amalgam, chloride of platinum, platinum... 40 626
4, Zinc amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, platinum.... 27 423
5. Potassa amalgam, sulphate of copper, copper.... 59 924
6. Potassa amalgam, chloride of platinum, platinum 69 1081
7. Potussa amalgam, sulphate of zinc, zinc............ 29 451
8. Zinc amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, hyper-
ORIG. COL MCAG. jr ecocsaceanee vatansine eemesast 10s kee . 68 1065
9. Potassa amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, hyper-
oxide of lead......... ahaa es ra8en RCE Hes 98 1535
10. Zinc amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, hyper-
OXIde Of MANS AMCSCres. wes. sae te cree en essen oe meee 54 846
11. Potassa amalgam, dilute sulphuric acid, hyper-
OKIGS Of MAN OANESE Yates tee den acre. tn .ncndd Nake 84 1316
The first column of figures contains the values of the electro-motive
forces measured by revolutions of Wheatstone’s rheostat ; the last
column gives the values reduced to chemical measure, assuming that
the electro-motive force of the first combination is equal to that of
Daniell’s battery.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 403
We sce here how much greater an electro-motive force the combina-
tion of amalgamated zine with hyper-oxide of lead indicates, than
amalgamated zinc and platinum, even if care is taken, as in No. 3,
to prevent galvanic polarization from taking place at ‘the negative
metal.
The combination No. 3 is one of zinc and platinum corresponding
to Daniell’s battery. Metallic platinum will be separated from the
solution of chloride and deposited upon the platinum plate by the
current, thus hindering galvanic polarization, as in Daniell’s battery
by the deposition of copper. We can thus consider the numerical
value of No. 3 above, namely, 626, as the measure of the electrical
difference between amalgamated zinc and platinum.
Comparing the electro-motive force of No. 3 with that of Grote 8
battery, we tind a considerable difference, since the former is only
626, the latter 777, or according to my measurements 829, (section 18.)
I think I can conclude from this difference that the nitric acid in
Grove’s, as well as Bunsen’s battery, not only prevents polarization
by the removal of oxygen, but that it acts as an electro-motor, also in the
_ manner of the hyper-oxide. A circumstance which renders this view
still more probable is this—that the electro-motive force of a combina-
tion of hyper-oxide of manganese with zinc, (No. 10,) is not sensibly
greater than that of Grove and Bunsen’s battery.
The above table also shows how considerably the electro-motive
force can be augmented by replacing the electro-positive amalgam of
zinc, by the still more electro-positive amalgam of potassium ; the
expense of the latter amalgam, however, renders its practical ap-
plication in such batteries impossible.
§ 43. Grove’s gas battery.—Grove’s battery can be understood from
Fig. 29, which represents a single element,
Fig. 29.
Fig. 30.
ee
l
in |
HU
Te a Ae |
eT
we i ma
a
‘e
404 ‘TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
A varnished metallic cover is fastened air-tight on the glass jar a.
This cover has three openings ; the glass tubes 6 and ¢ pass air-tight
through twoof them. The third is somewhat larger and can be closed
by a stopper. Hach of the tubes is 30 centimetres long and 1.8 centi-
metre in diameter. At the upper end of each tube a platinum wire
is fused into the glass, having at the top a cup for mercury, and to
the other end of the wire a platinized platinum plate is soldered,
which extends nearly to the lower end of the tube.
The following is the process for charging such an element: Fill
the vessel a with water, through the opening d; close d and then
invert the whole apparatus ; in this way the tubes } and ¢ are filled
with water. After restoring the element to an upright position, pass
through the opening d the connecting tube of the gas apparatus.
One of the tubes is filled in this way with hydrogen, and the other
with oxygen to about # the entire length.
Fig. 30 represents a wooden trough intended to hold four such
elements ; it is exhibited on a scale one-fourth of that of Fig. 29. The
elements being in position, the small mercury cups are connected by
copper wires; into the last cup to the left a wire passes from the
binding screw r, and into the last cup to the right, one from the
binding screw s. The poles uw and v are fixed in the two binding
screws.
This form of the gas battery is almost exactly the same as that
which Grove describes as the most convenient, in the
appendix to a memoir: ‘‘On the voltaic gas battery,
its application to eudiometry.”’ (Phil. Trans. 1843,
Pt Il, page 51; Pogg. Ann. im Erginzungband II,
1848.) The arrangement, however, described in the
memoir, admits of the removal of the tubes for the
purpose of examining the gases.
For this purpose the tubes 6 and c must not be
cemented into the cover of the vessel a, but they must
be inserted through corks so that they can be removed
and replaced at pleasure. Fig. 31, represents the
arrangement indicated by Grove in the above cited
, Peper; a ais a glass vessel like a Woulte’s bottle ;
the middle opening is closed by a glass stopper ; the
glass tubes are adapted to the other openings by
ground collars.
§ 44. Theory of the gas battery.—Schoénbein has set forth his views
on this subject in two memoirs in Poggendorff’s Annalen ; the first
in volume LVIII, page 361; the second in volume LXXIV, page
241. ;
His view is, ‘‘that the hydrogen, in the above described arrange-
ment, with reference to the generation of the current, plays a primary,
and the oxygen only a secondary or depolarizing part.”
The hydrogen alone is certainly able to generate a current of polari-
zation, as Schonbein’s experiments (in section 39) prove. A platinum
plate, immersed but a short time in an atmosphere of hydrogen, gives, in
combination with a clean platinum plate, a current, even if the liquid
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 405
in which they are immersed contain no free oxygen. Therefore, it is
clear that a Grove’s battery must yield a current if one half the tube
is entirely filled with acidified water, while the other half contains
hydrogen, even if all free oxygen has been previously expelled from
the liquid, and the entrance of atmospheric air is prevented.
This current will soon cease, because, in consequence of it, the
hydrogen disappears from the platinum plate not previously in con-
tact with gas, and, therefore, the difference which caused the formation
of the current disappears.
‘Tf the current is to continue, then the hydrogen escaping at the
other side, in consequence of the current, must be removed, and this
is, according to Schénbein’s view, the function of the oxygen in the
gas battery.
Schénbein, therefore, holds the opinion, that oxygen does not act in
the gas battery as an electro-motor, but only as a depolarizer., He
sustains this opinion by the observation, the credibility of which is
unjustly disputed by the editor of the ‘‘Jahresbericht von Liebig und
Kopp,” that pure oxygen is unable to polarize a plate in the same
manner as hydrogen does.
The numerical values before given for the polarization of platinum
plates in different gases, renders it possible to state the question in
precise terms.
The entire polarization in a voltameter is at a maximum about
1200; one-half of this polarization is due to the plate coated with
hydrogen, the other half to the positive platinum plate coated with
oxygen containing ozone. Now the question is: Is the electro-motive
force of an element of the Grove gas battery equal to 1200; or is it,
according to Schénbein’s view, only 600?
Although a platinum plate coated with pure oxygen, combined
with another in acidified water, generates no current, yet there is
here always an electrical difference, even though it should not be suf-
ficient to bring about decomposition in the intermediate stratum of
water ; hence it is probable, that the electro-motive force of a Grove
gas element, charged with hydrogen and pure oxygen, is greater than
600, if it does not attain the value 1200.
At the first glance, nothing appears easier than to decide this
question by measuring directly the electro-motive force of the gas bat-
tery ; but a closer examination shows that such a measurement is
utterly impossible. The platinum plates of the gas pile are not
entirely coated with gas, but only partially. Therefore, we have here
a similar case to that in which one of a pair of platinum plates is
partially covered with zinc. By applying the different methods for
determining the electro-motive force of the current, which here tra-
verses the wire connecting the platinum plates, we shall certainly not
obtain the true value of the electrical difference between zine and pla-
tinum, (wholly disregarding the polarization which appears at the
clean platinum plate). On account of the partial coating of the pla-
tinum plate with gas, lateral currents are formed, so that the current,
which traverses the closing wire, is only a part’of the effect produced
by the electrical opposition in the battery; hence, also, in part, the
exceedingly feeble torce of the current in the gas pile.
406 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
§45. Effects of the gas pile.—Grove obtained the following effects
with a gas battery of 50 elements:
1. A shock which could be felt by five persons joining hands.
2. In a moderately sensitive galvanometer, the current produced a
constant deflection of 60°.
3. Considerable divergence of a gold leaf electroscope.
4, Between charcoal points a spark visible in full day-light.
5. Electrolytic decomposition of iodide of potassium and acidified
water.
To produce a sensible decomposition of water, from cells of the above
described construction, four elements are sufficient. A single cell de-
composes iodide of potassium.
A circuit of ten elements of this kind with dilute sulphuric acid of
the spec. grav. 1.2, and filled alternately with hydrogen and oxygen,
was closed with an interposed voltameter and left standing 36 hours.
At the end of this time 2.1 cubic inches of detonating gas had been
developed ; in each of the hydrogen tubes 1.5 cubic inches had dis-
appeared; in each of the oxygen tubes 0.7 cubic inch; thus, to-
gether, 2.2 cubic inches of gas had disappeared. The difference
(2.2 to 2.1) is due to a small absorption of the oxygen by the water.
If a sensible current is to be produced, the platinised platinum
plates must not be wholly immersed beneath the surface of the water,
but they must extend partly out of the liquid into the atmosphere of gas.
A battery, whose tubes were charged alternately with hydrogen
and dilute nitric acid, gave a current, and three pairs were sufficient
to decompose water in an interposed voltameter.
The gas pile yields a very powerful current if chlorine is substituted
for oxygen. A chlorine and hydrogen battery of two elements is
sufficient to decompose water between platinum plates.
Carbonic oxide gas acts in the gas pile like hydrogen.
Other gases—for example, nitrogen—are absolutely without effect.
For instance, place a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen in one tube,
and hydrogen in the other ; after closing the circuit all the oxygen is
gradually but completely absorbed, while the nitrogen remains the
same. Grove’s proposition to apply the gas pile in eudiometrical
experiments is based upon this.
In a second memoir, which may be found in Poggendorff’s Annalen,
(2to Ergiinzungsbande, seite 407,) Grove describes the following re-
markable experiment.
One of the tubes of the gas pile was charged with oxygen; in the other
a weighed piece of phosphorus was placed by means of a small glass
rie. », Cup fastened to a glass rod, as represented in Fig. 32, and then
the tube was partially filled with nitrogen. The apparatus
indicated a current by an interposed galvanometer. After
being closed four months, during which time the galvanometer
constantly indicated a current, the water had increased in the
oxygen tube one cubic inch, but not at all in the nitrogen tube ;
the piece of phosphorus, on the other hand, had become 0.4
grain lighter. *
This result is easily explained; the vapor of phosphorus
was diffused in the atmosphere of nitrogen, and this acted
exactly like hydrogen in the ordinary gas battery.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 407
Sulphur instead of phosphorus gave no action until it was fused by
means of a hot metal ring; the galvanometer was then instantly
deflected.
In another experiment both tubes of the battery were charged with
nitrogen, but one was provided with phosphorus, the other with
iodine. After closing, a decided current appeared which lasted for
months.
The nitrogen did not change in volume, but the liquid became
gradually colored. Here the vapor of iodine acted like oxygen; the
vapor of phosphorus like hydrogen.
§ 46. The pole changer.—It is well known that 1f two homogeneous
plates, say of platinum, be immersed in dilute acid, the poles being
connected even with only a single voltaic element, the galvanic polari-
zation which they undergo if connected after the interruption of the
primary current, is sufficiently strong to cause a current in the oppo-
Fig. 33. site direction. For example, let a, in Fig. 33, be a vol-
tameter, b a galvanic element, sending its current through
the latter; the current being interrupted, connect the
terminal wires of a multiplier c with the two plates, and
this will indicate a current of polarization which, however,
will soon cease.
In this manner a whole series of plates can be polarized,
and thus we obtain itter’s secondary pile, for charging
which a primitive battery of many pairs of plates is always
used. The electro-motive force, which sets in motion the
current of the secondary battery, is evidently less than
that of the primary charging battery.
Poggendorff has invented a contrivance for charging,
with a simple voltaic battery a secondary battery of any number of
plates, and thus obtains a current of far greater electro-motive force
than that of the charging battery itself. (Pog. Ann. LX, 568.)
The process is as follows: Suppose we have a series of pairs of pla-
tinum plates, in cells, filled with dilute sulphuric acid, as shown in
Fig. 34. Fig. 34. Plates 1 and.2 are in the first
cell, 3 and 4 in the second, &c. Now, if
plates 1, 3. 5, and 7 be connected with the
positive pole of the simple battery, and the
plates 2, 4, 6, and 8 with the negative
pole, the plates denoted by the odd num-
bers will be negatively polarized, (since
oxygen escapes at their surfaces,) and the
plates denoted by even numbers will be
5 positively polarized, (by hydrogen.)
FALE ASS After this connexion has existed only a
, very short time, it must be suddenly broken,
the charged plates connected according to
the principle of the battery, and the cir-
; cuit closed by a voltameter ; this will now
be traversed by a current of much greater tension than the primitive
408 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
one, because in this combination the electro-motive force of all the
polarized pairs of plates is added together.
For this purpose, the plates 1 and 8 must be placed in conducting
connexion with the voltameter, while 2 and 3, 4 and 5, 6 and 7, must
be joined by metallic wires.
Poggendorff has invented an apparatus, called the pole-changer, for
effecting these changes and discharges in rapid succession. But his
instrument requires the use of mercury, and I propose tor the pur-
pose the apparatus represented in Fig. 35.
Fig. 35.
On a vertical board to the left of the figure is a series of brass
pillars, which serve for fastening metal wires. The screw which
is used for this purpose is represented only in the one at H; all the
other posts are also provided with screws. These pillars all stand on
metallic springs, rubbing against a movable cylinder ; the first and
last pillars stand a little below the level of the others,
At each end of the cylinder a copper ring is placed. The spring of
the first post (the wire from which passes towards P) rubs on the first
copper ring, and the spring of the last post (whose wire goes to Z)
rubs on the further ring.
These wires pass to the platinum and the zine plates of the charging
element. The wires O and H, leading to the platinum plates of the
voltameter, are screwed to the first and last of the more elevated
pillars.
The wires 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, which are screwed in the other posts,
pass to the platinum plates of the secondary battery.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 409
On the movable wooden cylinder are placed four semicircular wooden
bars, 90° apart, which are partly covered with bands of copper; the
springs of the high posts rub upon these alternately dtring the revo-
lution.
On the bar which is represented as uppermost in the cut} and on
which the springs are resting, the copper bands are so arranged that
1 is brought into conducting connexion with O, 2 with 3, 4 with 5, 6
with 7, and 8 with H ; in like manner the platinum plates from 1 to 8
are combined according to the principle of the battery, and closed by
the voltameter.
The lower wooden bar has exactly the same construction as the
upper one.
The other two bars opposite each other, to the right and left of
the cylinder, are also alike, and so constructed that when they come
into contact with the springs, the plates 2, 4,6, and 8 are in conduct-
ing connexion with the carbon cylinder, and 1, 3, 5, and 7 with the
zinc cylinder of the charging element.
For ready expression, we shall call the rollers which are above and
below in the cut the discharging rollers; the others the charging
rollers.
The construction of the charging rollers is as follows: Hight cop-
per bands are placed on the wooden roller in such a way that they
may come in contact with the eight springs corresponding to the eight
platinum plates. Half of these bands (the 2d, 4th, 6th, and 8th
from the first in one figure) are connected with a copper strip, which
passes to the front ring of the cylinder, and thus to P. In the same
manner the other half of the copper bands (1, 3, 5, and 7) are con-
nected with a similar strip of copper, which, lying on the other side
of the wooden bar, is not visible in the figure, and which passes to
the farther copper ring of the cylinder, thence to Z; thus the bands
1, 3, 5, and 7 are in connexion with the zinc cylinder, and 2, 4, 6,
and 8 with the carbon cylinder of the charging element, when the
charging roller is uppermost.
The cylinder is turned by the crank; at each revolution there is a
double charge and discharge of the secondary pile. The most suita-
ble dimensions for the cylinder are 12 centimetres long, (for a pile of
4 pair of plates,) and (without the bars) 24 to 3 centimetres in diam-
eter.
It is well known that with one Grove’s element very little water can
be decomposed ; the voltameter plates become coated with gas bubbles,
but very few ascend. But on using the simple battery through the
medium of the pole-changer for charging the secondary battery, in
whose circuit the voltameter is inserted, a lively decomposition of
water is obtained as soon as the pole-changer is set in motion, which
is a striking proof that the electro-motive force of the secondary cur-
rent is considerably stronger than that of the primary.
With a voltameter whose plates presented a surface on each side of
about 3 square inches, sulphuric acid being added to the water, Pog-
gendorff obtained from 5 to 6 cubic centimetres of explosive gas per
minute, when in this time the circuit was closed and opened about 80
times.
410 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
The secondary current thus obtained has an electro-motive force
which exceeds that of the primary current in proportion as the pairs
of plates of the secondary battery are more numerous. On the other
hand, the entire chemical effect which the secondary current produces.
in the voltameter is only i (if the secondary battery consists of x pair
n
of plates) of that which the primary current had previously produced
in each separate cell for charging the plates. For, while 6 cubic cen-
timetres of explosive gas were collected in the voltameter in the above-
mentioned experiment, 6 cubic centimetres of this gas had to unite
to form water in each of the four cells of the charging battery, and
this quantity of gas was first released from the water by the action
of the primary battery. Therefore by the action of this battery in
the 4 cells together, the water of 6 x 4 = 24 cubic centimetres of
gas must be electrolyzed per minute, in order that 6 cubic centimetres
may be released in the voltameter.
Without the pole-changer and by the direct action of the simple
battery in the four cells, (which in this combination represent a large
pair of plates,) not over 0.1 cubic centimetre of gas would be evolved,
because the gas, which appears at the first moment of the passage of
the current, produces at once a polarization of the plates, in conse-
quence of which only an exceedingly feeble current can circulate ;
but by the pole-changer this polarization is immediately removed, and
thus an undiminished action of the charging cells is rendered possible.
The platinum plates, of which Poggendorff constructed his sec-
ondary battery, were platinized. If the secondary current is to be
tolerably strong, this is very necessary ; at least the negative plates
of the secondary battery must be platinized, 7. e. those at which the
primary current has evolved oxygen, and to which the secondary
current carries hydrogen. The influence of platinizing appears from
the following experiments made by Poggendorff:
In five minutes a battery of two pairs of platinum plates connected
with a small Grove’s element and the pole-changer yielded the follow-
ing quantities of gas:
1. All the plates uncoated............... 1c. c. (a little over.)
2. The positive plates platinized....... dial
3. The negative ‘ ST wees ete 13 ta 14". '¢.
4, All the plates platinized............. 13 to 14 9°
The positive plates are those at which the original current evolves
hydrogen.
This is not due to the platinized plates being more strongly polar-
ized, for in fact they are less so than the naked ones; but, in Pog-
gendorff’s opinion, the action of the platinum coating consists in favor-
ing the combination of the oxygen, separated at its surface by the
primary current, with the nascent hydrogen evolved in consequence
of the secondary. Much might be said in opposition to the modus
operandi as explained by Poggendorff; but this is not exactly the
place for the discussion.
Poggendorff has successfully used plates of Bunsen’s carbon in con-
structing secondary batteries. A battery of two pairs of such plates
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 417
1 inch wide and 1.5 deep, immersed in dilute acid, yielded 8 cubic
centimetres in five minutes.
The current of polarization which such a secondary battery yields
by means of the pole-changer is considerably stronger than that of a
Grove’s gas-battery. The intermitting current of a secondary battery
of two pairs of plates gave in one minute with the pole-changer 14 =
2.8 c. c. of gas, while the continuous current of a gas-battery of ten
cells yield only 2.1 cubic inches in thirty-six hours; thus only about
0.016 cubic centimetre of gas per minute.
§ 47. Old observations on the relation of iron to nitric acid.—On
immersing an iron wire in nitric acid of the specific gravity 1.4, it
instantly turns brown, while red vapor escapes with more or less
effervescence. This, however, soon ceases; the iron recovers its me-
tallic lustre, and retains it as long as it remains in the acid without
being further attacked. Once placed in this state of chemical in-
activity, such a wire will remain so even in dilute acid, which of
itself could not have produced this condition.
This remarkable relation of iron to nitric acid was observed as early
as the last century by James Keir, and published in the Phil. Trans.
for 1790 ; but the phenomenon was too much isolated to allow a true
determination of its nature, and thus Keir’s observation was forgotten.
After the lapse of thirty-seven years, Wetzlar made similar obser-
vations, which he published in Schweigger’s Jahrbuch der Chemie
und Physik; Bd. 49,8. 470; Bd. 50,8. 88 and 129; Bd. 56,8. 206.
In England, Herschell took up this subject, (Pogg. Ann., XXXII,
211; Ann. de Chemie et de Phys., 1833, vol. LIV, 87,) and Fechner
observed similar phenomena in the action of nitrate of silver on iron.
Schénbein has prosecuted this subject most zealously, and to him be-
longs the merit of having extended, more than any one else, the circle
of the phenomena relating to it.
Since Schénbein has investigated the phenomena of the passivity of
tron (a term which was introduced by himself) the most thoroughly,
it may be advisable to take our facts chiefly from his memoirs. This
distinguished natural philosopher, however, will, I hope, not take
offence if I should venture the remark, that the peculiar diffuseness
which characterizes these papers renders them difficult to understand.
§ 48. Schinbein’s observations on the passivity of iron.—His first
aper on this subject may be found in Poggendorff’s Annalen,
MXX VIT;, 390;
“It has long been known,’’ Schénbein begins, ‘‘ that very concen-
trated nitric acid does not attack many metals, which are oxidized with
violence by the same acid containing more water. Of these metals
tim is one, but iron more especially has this characteristic.
*¢ An iron shaving perfectly free from rust was not attacked by
nitric acid of the specific gravity of 1.5. Even after adding to the
acid as much water as will dilute it to the degree at which it would
attack fresh iron shavings violently, the shaving thus treated will re-
main perfectly passive.
“It is not only the treatment with concentrated nitric acid which
produces this passivity. Iron filings, heated for only a few seconds
412 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
over a spirit- -lamp, are not attacked either by concentrated or dilute
nitric acid.
These experiments may be made much more conveniently with iron
wires. An iron wire placed in nitric acid of the specific gravity of
1.5, becomes passive ; and it assumes the same condition if heated in
a spirit-flame to iridescence. The wire thus rendered passive can
then be dipped in dilute acid without being attacked, while an ordinary
iron wire would occasion a violent liberation of gas. The dilution of
the acid cannot exceed a certain limit, which as yet is not ascertained.
Schénbein has determined that nitric acid of 1.36 specific gravity,
diluted with 15 and more volumes of water, attacked heated iron wire
as it does ordinary wire.
By exposing an iron wire to nitric acid of the spec. grav. 1.35, it
will be attacked with great violence. On removing the wire from
the acid after a second, and holding it a few moments in the air, and
then returning it to the liquid, the action of the acid on the iron will
be perceptibly weaker. After three or four alternate immersions and
removals, a tolerably slow action appears; and, at the fifth, or, at
the latest, at the sixth immersion, absolute chemical indifference
takes place, exhibited in the perfect metallic lustre of the surface of
the wire thus treated, which generally characterizes the iron ren-
dered passive in nitric acid.
From tnese facts, there does not appear to be the least relation be-
tween the passivity of iron and its electrical properties; but that such
Fig. 36. relations do exist may be shown by the following
method of inducing the condition.
First dip in nitric acid, of the spec. gr av. 1.35,
a platinum wire P, Fig. 36; touch it with a well-
cleaned iron wire, and. the latter wire will not be
attacked by the acid when immersed, so long as it
remains in contact with the platinum wire, although
the same wire alone would be at once attacked by
the acid.
If, instead of the platinum wire, the iridized end
of an iron wire, thus rendered passive, be immersed
in the liquid, it will play the part of the platinum
wire, in the above experiment, perfectly. Fig. 37
represents a variation of this experiment. The iri-
: dized and hence passive end of an iron wire is im-
mersed in nitric acid of the spec. grav. 1.35, and is not attacked. Now
Fig. 3 bend it so that fhe end H, prick was not heated, dips
into the acid. No action takes place ; but if the end
E be placed in the acid without P, violent action will
occur.
It should be added that these phenomena no longer
appear when the temperature of the acid is raised to
80°, and that they are the weaker, the nearer the
acid is to this degree of temperature.
If the wire E, Fig. 36, be thrust into the liquid
while it is in contact with P, the latter may be al-
together removed without Ei losing its passivity ; 1n-
deed, with the wire E thus rendered passive, the same
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 413
state can be communicated to an ordinary iron wire in the same man-
ner as it is given by P to E.
The experiment, of which the plan is sketched in Fig. 38, is
of special importance in reference to the theory of passivity. At
one of the ends of a galvanometer an iridized iron wire is fastened,
and at the other an ordinary iron wire. Now, first dipping
the passive and then the other wire into nitric acid of 1.35
spec. grav., the galvanometer indicates a transient current,
passing in the direction from the unchanged iron, through
tne liquid, to the iridized iron.
These experiments afford us a deep insight into the nature
of the passivity of iron. In the first place, it is evident
that by heating the wire the coating of oxide thus formed
protects it from the action of the acid, and “thus the idea is very
obvious, that passive iron, even in cases where such a coating is
not visible, as, for instance, an immersion in concentrated nitric
acid, owes this property to a thin film of oxide. But then the
circumstance, that the platinum wire, in Fig. 36, can be exchanged
for the heated iron wire, shows that the oxide of iron formed by heating
to redness performs the functions of platinum, that by such a coating
the iron, in a certain measure, suffers negative galvanic polarization.
All passive iron wires are changed into active in hot acid; yet, in
the facility with which they change their state, there appears a con-
siderable difference between those which are made passive by a red
heat and such as are rendered passive by contact with a wire already
passive, on being immersed in the liquid. We will term the former
primary passive, the latter secondary passive. The first owes the
longer continuance of its passivity to a thicker coating of oxide.
Everything which destroys the protecting coat, renders the wire
active again.
Fig. 38.
§ 49. Action of iron electrodes.—In the experiment represented by
Fig. 36, E evidently forms the positive pole of a simple circuit ; there-
fore it might be supposed that iron would be made passive by dipping it,
as the positive pole of a voltaic pile, inan acid, which would attack it.
Schonbein has actually made this experiment, (Pog. Ann. XX XVII,
391.) To the positive pole of a circuit consisting of 15. inconstant
zinc and copper elements, an iron wire was fastened, while the nega-
tive pole terminated in a platinum wire. The negative platinum wire
was first dipped in a vessel of nitric acid of 1.36 sp. gr., and the
circuit was then closed by the immersion of the positive pole, formed
of the iron wire, in the same acid,
as shown in Fig. 39. The iron
wire appeared perfectly passive,
and after separation from the bat-
tery, possessed the same proper-
ties as a wire made passive by
being heated red-hot.
If the passive iron wire, con-
tinuing as the + pote of the cir-
cuit, remain in the acid, a remarkable phenomenon is exhibited. The
Fig. 39.
414 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
oxygen liberated at this pole, in consequence of the electrolysis, does
not combine with the iron, but ascends free from it, exactly as though
the + pole of the circuit were formed of a platinum wire. Therefore
the stratum of oxide which is formed under the above-mentioned cir-
cumstances, immediately on the immersion of the iron wire in the
liquid, protects it completely from further oxidation.
Nitric acid of 1.35 sp. gr. is not essential to the success of this ex-
periment; it may be diluted with 100 volumes of water, and yet the
iron positive pole immersed in the liquid will become passive, and the
oxygen liberated at it will ascend as free gas.
Precisely similar phenomena take place if dilute sulphuric or phos-
phoric acid be used instead of dilute nitric acid. To obtain free oxy-
gen at the positive iron wire, the negative pole must be first dipped
in the liquid, and then the iron wire connected with the positive pole
is placed in it.
If the positive wire be dipped in the acid before the negative, it
will be attacked ; the iron wire will not become passive, if, separated
from the positive pole of the battery, it be dipped in the dilute acid,
no matter whether the negative pole be already in itornot. In short,
if iron is to be made passive, the chemical action of the dilute acid
must not precede the action of the current.
If, instead of the dilute acid in this experiment, the liquid solution
of an oxygen compound be used, which exerts no sensible chemical
action on iron, as solutions of alkalis and perfectly neutral salts, the
iron will become passive, as though the battery were closed. In using
potash lye, or a solution of nitrate of soda, the iron connected with
the positive pole will become passive, no matter whether the negative
or positive pole be first placed in the liquid. (Pogg. Ann. XXX VIII,
492.)
Upon this is based the construction of voltameters, which are formed
of iron plates immersed in a solution of potash.
Fig. 40 represents a voltameter
constructed of iron plates by Bunsen.
In acylindrical glass receiver 6 to
8 centimetres in diameter, and 30
to 35 centimetres in height, there
aretwoconcentric cylinders of sheet-
iron, which are kept apart by a sub-
stance at once insulating and not
liable to be attacked by a solution
of potash, such as strands of spun
glass. The vessel filled with this
solution is closed by a suitable cork
through which, besides the gas tube,
two copper wires pass, each of which
is soldered to an iron plate, and put
in connexion with the poles of the
battery.
Such a battery having been once
well constructed, it can be left
standing, filled with the potash solution, always ready for use.
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 415
To prevent a strong disturbance of the solution during the develop-
ment of gas, a film of turpentine oil, about one line thick, is poured
upon the surface.
A voltameter, with moderately large electrodes, can be made by
means of iron plates, in the same manner, at little cost. Such a
voltameter is capable of yielding a large quantity of gas in a short
time ; yet the development is not near so great as might be expected
from the magnitude of the plates, probably because the potash solu-
tion is a worse conductor than the dilute sulphuric acid of the ordinary
platinum voltameter.
Such an iron plate voltameter, according to my observations, is not
well adapted to exact experiments. Ihave noticed that the maximum
development of gas takes place some time after the closing of the bat-
tery, and that the appearance of the gas bubbles does not cease with
the interruption of the current, but lasts considerably longer. This
is due to the absorption of the gas by the liquid.
While with the use of alkaline solution in water and perfectly neu-
tral salts, iron is passive, however the circuit may be closed, on the
other hand iron never becomes passive, however the closing may be
effected, if the iron electrodes be immersed in a solution of an elec-
trolytic compound not containing oxygen, whose negative component
has a great affinity for iron, such as the hydracids, halogen salts, sul-
phurets, &c. In such solutions iron is always attacked, and free
oxygen is never liberated at its surface.
In the experiments described in section 48, the primary passive and
secondary passive ends of the wire were dipped in the same vessel
filled with acid. Schonbein has extended the phenomena by using
two vessels filled with acid, connected in different ways.
Fig. 41. The vessels A and B, Fig. 41, are filled
with nitric acid from 1.3 to 1.36 sp. gr.
Dip the end of the wire p, rendered passive
by red heat, in A, and the unheated end a
in B; then a will be attacked. Ifa second
fork of iron wire, both ends of which have
not been heated, be now immersed, d being
first put in B, and then p’ in A, p will be-
come passive, p and p’ will remain free
from attack, while at a and d a lively development of gas will occur.
This is not essentially different from the form of the experiment
represented in Fig. 37.
Fig. 42. Let the vessels A and B, Fig. 42, filled
with acid of the sp. grav. 1.3 to 1.37, be
a) connected by an asbestos cord saturated with
“Wy {7 the same acid. Immerse in A the passive
Lae = end of an iron wire, and then the other end
BLES ==254 ain B; awill not become passive, but will
A. B be briskly attacked.
h Here, evidently, the current is on account of
the great resistance, too weak to render a passive. The correctness
of this view is proved by the fact, that if the negative pole of a battery,
formed of platinum or passive iron wire, be dipped in A, and then,
416 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
after this, an iron wire be connected with the negative pole, the iron
wire will become passive.
The cord of asbestos, in the experiment, Fig. 42, being replaced by
a siphon filled with acid, the consequence will be the same; that is,
the wire immersed last will not become passive.
The same result is obtained by connecting the vessels by a platinum
wire instead ofa siphon. Here the galvanic polarization of the plati-
num is the cause of the decrease of the current.
If the platinum wire be replaced by one of a metal which is at-
tacked by the acid, the cause of the weakening of the current by the
platinum disappears, and in this case the end a of the iron wire last
dipped in B becomes passive.
§50. Passive iron in a solution of sulphate of copper.—An iron wire
connected with the positive pole ofa pile, and introduced into a solution
of sulphate of copper which is already connected with the negative pole,
Fig. 43, acts indifferently towards this liquid ; that is, no copper pre-
cipitates on this wire, and there is no oxygen developed at its surface.
This passivity of iron does not appear when the circnit is closed in
any other way than that mentioned.
An iron wire, which has been rendered passive by a single immer-
sion in very concentrated nitric acid, or by repeated immersions in
ordinary acid, also shows this passivity towards a solution of sulphate
of copper; that is, it no longer possesses the power of attracting
oxygen from the liquid, and thus of precipitating its copper.
Fig. 43. By repeating the experiment represented in Fig. 43,
after having exchanged the nitric acid for a solution
of sulphate of copper, it appears that the passivity
cannot be transferred from the passive end of the wire
P to the other end H, as was the case with the nitrie
acid ; that is, if the end P, made passive by immer-
sion in concentrated acid, be dipped in a solution of
sulphate of copper, and the end of the wire E be then
placed also in the liquid, copper will be precipitated
at HK.
Since an iron wire, connected with the positive pole
of a pile, acts in an entirely different manner, Schén-
bein justly imagined that the experiment represented
by Fig. 43, made with a solution of sulphate of cop-
per, yielded a negative result only, because the cur-
rent, which should have rendered the end of the
wire last immersed passive, was too weak in this
simple battery.
For this reason, the transfer of the passivity from
one iron wire to the other, which we have previously
mentioned, and which is represented in Fig. 44, is
generally not possible when a solution of sulphate
of copper is used instead of nitric acid,
If the current can be strengthened by making the
wire P more negative than a platinum or passive
iron wire, the fate must also be possible in a go-
lution of sulphate of copper. Starting from this
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 417
consideration, Sch6nbein decided upon the following form for the ex-
periment. One of the ends of a long iron wire was coated with hyper-
oxide of lead, and the end P thus prepared was immersed in a solution
of sulphate of copper; the wire was then bent, and the unprepared
end E was also immersed in the liquid. EH indicated passivity ; no
copper was precipitated.
While E was becoming passive, the hyper-oxide of lead gradually
disappeared at P, and P became active as soon as the hyper-oxide
Fig. 45, which covered this end had totally disappeared.
z In the transfer of passivity from one iron wire to
another in nitric acid, represented in Fig. 45, the
protecting film of oxide on Ei is evidently produced
by the necessary quantity of oxygen being immedi-
ately brought by the current to the end Hi of the
wire. But the current, which hherates oxygen at
EK, must develop hydrogen at P, which attracts the
oxygen from the protecting oxide film of P; thus
one would think that the same current which occa-
sions the formation of the protecting film around E,
must also occasion its removal from P; or, in other
words, that rendering H passive would make P
active, provided that P itself is only a secondary
passive wire, and consequently not protected by a
very thick film. :
But the experiment shows, that with a secondary passive wire, in
nitric acid of 1.36 specific gravity, another can be made passive with-
out the first becoming active, which is probably owing to the fact that
the hydrogen set free is, at least in part, oxidized by the nitric acid,
and thus the film of oxide cannot be wholly reduced. But if the cur-
rent should continue longer, as is the case when instead of E a zinc
or copper strip be let down into the acid at P, neither of which be-
comes passive, the protecting film will be immediately dissolved from
P, and P itself will become active.
P can be rendered active again, even with an iron wire, if dilute
acid be used.
$51. Pulsations of passivity.—With reference to the energy with
which the nitric acid attacks an iron wire, there are two principal de-
grees to be distinguished, which we shall call the slow and the rapid
action. The slow action is characterized by ceasing, instantly, as
soon as the iron wire is touched by a platinum wire immersed in the
acid; the iron thus exposed to the slow action of the acid became pas-
sive in this way. On an iron wire which is exposed to the rapid ac-
tion of the acid, and on which a lively development of gas takes place,
this treatment with a platinum wire has no influence; it does not be-
come passive by such means.
If an iron wire, rendered passive by repeated immersions in nitric
acid of the spec. grav. 1.35, be touched, while yet in the liquid, with
a copper or brass wire, which is at the same time dipped into the acid,
the iron wire, as already shown, becomes active, and is subjected to
slow action. ‘This activity, however, is not constant, but intermittent ;
418 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF
or, in other words, under such circumstances it becomes alternately
active and passive, and this happens at first at intervals of about one
second, but during the course of the action the intervals become
shorter until finally rapid action commences.
Fig. 46. Let each of the conducting wires of a powerful sim-
z ple battery O, Fig. 46, pass into a small cup filled
with mercury, and connect the cup @ in which the neg-
ative wire dips by a platinum strip p, with the liquid
(11 parts by vol. of water to 1 part of sulphuric acid)
of the decomposing cell g; then dip one end of an
ordinary iron wire e in the positive mercury cup 0, and
the other end in the acidified water in the decomposing
cell; the iron will become passive, and no hydrogen
will be developed at the platinum electrode p, since, on
account of the polarization at p, the electro-motive force
of C will not suffice to send a sensible current through
aT, g.
But if the battery be closed in another way, for instance, so that
the iron wire e may first dip in g and then in 8, it will not become
passive ; g itself becomes an exciting cell, whose current combines with
that of the constant elements, and thus a lively development of hy-
drogen will appear at p, during which the iron wire is dissolved.
If the battery be so closed that e is passive, and that consequently
no hydrogen rises at p, various expedients may be adopted to make
e again active, so that the gas may begin to appear at p. One of the
means of producing this development consists in interrupting the
circuit at any point, and after a short time closing it again ; for ex-
ample, by drawing out the wire d from a, e at once becomes active,
and if d be now immersed again, a lively development takes place at
the platinum strip p.
To obtain the passivity of e, the constant element must tend to
drive the current though g with a certain energy, on which account
it will cease when the circuit is interrupted. The energy with which
the constant element tends to drive the current through g, can be
weakened by introducing a good lateral circuit.
If the mercury cups a and 6 be connected by a short thick copper
wire, nearly the whole current which the constant element is able to
generate, will pass through it; e loses its passivity, and part of the
current generated by C passes through g, and exhibits itself by a devel-
opment of gas.
On the contrary, if while e is yet passive, a and 0 be connected by
a wire, which exerts considerable resistance, the current which it can
conduct is too feeble to overcome the passivity of the iron wire e ; by
such a wire no development of gas at p can be produced.
Between these two limits of conductive capacity of the wires con-
necting the mercury cups a and 6—namely, the very good conducting
wire, through which the passivity of e is totally destroyed, and a con-
tinuous development of gas at pis produced, and the very bad con-
ducting wire which cannot destroy the passivity of e—there is a certain
intermediate length of wire, by means of which the passivity of e is
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 419
alternately destroyed and reproduced, so that at p a pulsating develop-
ment of gas takes place.
The length and thickness of the wires which produce the effect
described, depend upon circumstances. Schénbein in his experiments
obtained with a copper wire 3 inches long, and 4 an inch thick, a
constant liberation of gas at p. A wire 40 feet long of the same
thickness did not destroy the passivity of e. A wire of the same
thickness and 16 to 20 feet long produced the pulsations mentioned
above. After closing, a short time elapsed before the gas began to
appear at ; it was more lively than that which was produced by
shorter wires, but ceased again after a few seconds, and soon began
again. This alternate action and inaction continued, until at last a
constant state of inaction occurred. (Pog. Ann. LVI, 63.)
§52. Theory of passivity.—Upon a review of the foregoing facts,
the theory of passivity can hardly be doubtful; it will appear readily
from the general phenomena, though there are many single facts which
need closer investigation.
It may be considered certain, that the phenomena of the passivity
of iron are induced by a film of oxide or sub-oxide which on the one
hand protects the iron from the attack of the acid, and on the other
acts as an electro-motor, like the film of hyper-oxide of lead, which
covers a platinum plate.
The constitution of this film, and the conditions under which it is
formed and dissolved, are indeed questions which cannot in all cases be
satisfactorily answered, yet that is not a sufficient reason for rejecting
the basis of explanation alluded to above.
The formation of the oxide film in heating iron red-hot is clear.
To form a similar film by immersion in a liquid, it is necessary that
the requisite quantity of oxygen should be conveyed to the iron before
any other chemical action of the liquid on the iron can take place.
Concentrated nitric acid is so rich in oxygen, that mere immersion
of iron in it suffices to form the film. How it happens, however, that
an iron wire becomes passive by repeated immersion in acid of the
sp. gr. 1.35 is not yet clearly explained.
In liquids which contain less oxygen a galvanic current must sus-
tain the communication of oxygen to the iron, in order to form the
film, and thus, the electro-motive force generating the current must
be the stronger the less easily oxygen can be liberated from the liquid.
In nitric acid of sp. gr. 1.35, the combination of the iron wire with
platinum suffices; but with dilute sulphuric acid a voltaic pile must
be used. ©
That an iron wire which has been rendered passive by mere im-
mersion in concentrated nitric acid, or by combination with platinum
in dilute nitric acid, should exhibit its perfect metallic lustre, is no
just reason for doubting the presence of a thin film of oxide in this
_ case, for such films must, at increasing thicknesses, pass through the
different shades of Newton’s rings; then, so long as the film has
only a thickness corresponding to the colors of the first order, it can
impart to the metallic lustre of the wire, at most, only a feeble
shading into blue or yellow.
420 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT, ETC.
In respect to the electro-motive power, the film rendering iron
passive stands very near platinum.
We shall now consider briefly the explanations given by different
physicists of the phenomena of passivity.
Faraday (Phil. Mag., 1836, p. 53) supposes iron to become coated
with an insoluble film of oxide in concentrated nitric acid. This
view was attacked on many sides, but all the facts being properly
weighed in their relations, it is not possible to avoid considering this
as the basis of the correct theory of passivity.
Mousson and De la Rive supposed that the iron was protected by a
film of nitrous acid, (Pog. Ann., XX XIX, 330,) an hypothesis which
Schonbein has conclusively proved to be untenable, (Pog. Ann.
XXXIX, 342.) In fact, a nitrous acid film cannot be maintained as
a ground of explanation of the passivity of iron, because, as we have
seen, these phenomena are not limited to nitric acid.
Martens presents the view (Pog. Ann. XXXVIIT, 393 ; LIX, 121)
that the passivity which iron assumes by heat is independent of its ox-
idation, the incorrectness of which Schonbein (P. A. LIX, 149,) as
well as Beetz (P. A. LXII, 234), have amply shown experimentally.
Schénbein himself, who gathered most of the material for establish-
ing a theory of passivity, and has interwoven his memoirs on this
subject with various theoretical considerations, is unable to express
himself decidedly in favor of any one of the explanations given above.
He believes the explanation of the phenomena to be still an open
question.
The views developed at the beginning of this section harmonize on
essential points with those which Beetz (P. A. LXVII, 186) and
Rollman (P. A. LX XIII, 406) have given. The latter has presented
a new proof of the existence of an oxide film on passive iron. He has
shown that rendering an iron wire passive is always attended with a
diminution of its conductive capacity, which evidently can be ascribed
only to a badly conducting envelope. [?]
I have finally to mention a new series of experiments which Wetalar
instituted twenty years after he had first made known to the chemical
public the remarkable indifference which such an oxidable metal as
iron exhibited in a liquid, giving up its oxygen so readily.
Wetzlar has investigated the electro-motive relation of iron treated
in various ways, not with a galvanometer, but with a condensing
Bohnenberger electroscope.
In his experiments he used plates of wrought iron and steel having
a thickness of a few lines, and 23 or 2? inches in diameter, and fitted
to each other perfectly by well planed surfaces. The side opposite
the surface of contact had in its middle a hole for receiving an insu-
lating handle. He obtained the following results :
1. If one of two clean and bright iron or steel plates, of homoge-
neous character, as previously ascertained by a condenser, be rubbed
with rust or polishing paper, it acts positively towards the unrubbed
late.
i In this case from eight to ten contacts with the collector suffice to
impart a complete charge. °
2. If the contact surtace of a clean steel plate be moistened with
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 431
distilled water, and the surface rubbed one or two minutes with clean
blotting paper, the plate, after drying, will act negatively towards a
second with which it was at first homogeneous.
3. If aniron plate be heated over a spirit-lamp to an imperceptible or
invisible zidescence, it will act, after cooling, very strongly negative
towards a plate not thus treated, so that three contacts will suffice for
‘completely charging the condenser. Such a plate acts negatively
towards copper, silver and gold.
~ § 53. Passivity of other metals.—Other metals, especially bis-
muth, copper, and tin, manifest similar phenomena of passivity,
though i in a less marked degree than iron. Andrews (Pog. Ann.
.Y, 121) made the observation that a small piece of bismuth which
was immersed in a lar ge quantity of nitric acid of the sp. gr. 1.4, and
then brought into contact with a platinum plate in the liquid, almost
wholly ceased to dissolve, and at the same time took on a peculiar
lustre, while the same metal alone would be attacked violently by the
acid.
When a small rod of bismuth was made the positive pole of a small
battery of two pairs of Grove’s elements, and immersed in nitric acid
_ of the sp. gr. 1.4, its solubility was at once diminished, and upon
breaking its connexion with the battery, it showed itself to be in the
passive state.
The solubility of bismuth is not totally destroyed in its passive
state, as is the case with passive iron; it is only altered in degree.
When it forms the positive pole of a battery, bismuth does not develop
free oxygen, (Schénbein in Pog. Ann. XLIII,) as is the case with
passive iron; but it is dissolved, though slowly, if a weak battery is
used ; more rapidly with a strong one.
Therefore, the protecting envelope of oxide acts similarly on bis-
muth as on iron, though its protecting power is less on the former.
Andrews observed the same kind of phenomena in tin and copper.
Beetz remarks (Pog. Ann. LXVII, 210,) that the reason why iron
is particularly disposed to passivity is probably to be found in the
great electrical difference between iron and its oxide. According to
this view, a metal should exhibit the phenomena of passivity more de-
cidedly as the electro-motive force between it and its oxide is greater.
NOTES.
(See page 323.) It might at first sight be supposed that the deflect-
ing forces in the two positions Fig. 4 and Fig. 5, ought to be equal ;
but that the deflecting force in the latter position should bedouble of that
in the former, is explained by the fact that in the position Fig. 4, the de-
flecting force is determined by the difference of direction of the attract-
ing and repelling poles of the deflecting magnet from each pole of the
deflected magnet, without difference of distance ; while in the position
Fig. 5, it is determined by the difference of distance of the same at-
tractine and repelling poles from each pole of the deflected magnet,
and the attraction and repulsion are inversely not as the first power, |
‘:
422 TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF ' ;
but as the second power of the distanee. If they were inversely as
the first power of the distance, the deflecting force in the position Fig.
5 would be the same as in the position Fig. 4. “4.
(See page 323.) A magnet whose moment of rotation is a unit may —
berepresented by amagnet having two poles at the unitofdistance apart, ~
each of which would attract or repel an equal pole, at the distance of
a unit, with a force of a unit. Weber’s unit of measure for the galvanic
current may then be represented as that current, which, circulating
in the circumference of a circle around a magnetic pole at the centre
n of a unit of force, would have the differential of its action upon that
pole expressed by the length a 6 of an infinitely short element of the »
current when the distance n a is a unit; or, freely expressed, the cur-
rent of which a unit of length, at the distance of a unit, would act_
upon a unit pole with the force of a unit. Starting from this point
of view, the equations of the text will be easily understood. ;
Let a current of a unit quantity circulate around a circle in the
plane of the magnetic meridian whose radius=7. In this circle
draw any two parallel chords, ¢ f and de, at an infinitely small dis- _
tance apart, and in the direction of the terrestrial magnetic force.
Draw also d g perpendicular to c/, and intersecting iting. Let the «
terrestrial magnetic force be a unit. Then the force with which the
element cd of the current is urged’ in the direction perpendicular to
the plane of the circle is expressed by the perpendicular distance d g
of the chords; that is, the same as the force with which it would be §
acted upon by a unit magnetic pole placed at the distance of a unit in
the direction of the chords. The Poncnk ef is urged with an equal
force in the opposite direction. 'The moment of rotation impressed by
these two forces will, therefore, bed g X de=areacde/f. Conse-
quently, the moment of rotation of the whole circular current is ex-
pressed by the area of the circle. Andif the current be of the quan-
tity g, the moment of rotation will be
GS areax 9 == <7 9.
Now, in the tangent compass the deflecting force of the circle, or
ring, may be represented by the force with which the circle would act
upon a single unit pole at its centre n. The element of this force for
an infinitely short part, a 6, of the circumference, when the current
2g.
?
. ; - @0
is of the quantity g, is 3 g, and the whole force is, therefore,
and T tan. w is the value of this force as given by the tangent com-
pass, or 27g __
T tan. w.
kh ye
(See page 362.) It will readily be seen that a vhs = is always greater
than 2, except when a = 1, by substituting for a, successively, the
values 2, 3, 4, &c., or 3, 4, 4, &e.
a
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 423
The proposition may also be easily demonstrated. To express it in
r , By
general.terms, let a = —, rand s being any positive whole numbers.
s
Then : a+—_=s
e “
Suppose s > r and = r + Z, then—
* te ert eset
= eae i
amc ae
: + TEP
t t
= f a eee
‘ r-ipi— it
ral eee ae
But since v + ¢ is greater than 7, the expression in the last brackets
must be positive, and therefore ~ niemesd greater than 2. But ~ + =
é oi
is only a general form for the expression @ + as consequently a +=
a
is always greater than 2. Z
OTe
<i $ eer
ge Med rey
f ; ; iy he : comin oak Fata te seit,
‘ aS Ae cg W* abe Ayre: a ey
ee 0) Pee cet Ma a et aS RES ca
Wiens 3 ae tts
= 7a 0 i. ay ie ee ¢ =) ‘ re “i 7 oo. . <a in inst an
od ie | C SFE at Sean: is
. ater! f Ly { ied Mk Ld wy mh Ah dhe .'? ay aN 1 iY ae ae 2 ae: my hig © ;
an oy Seal ; ; ier? y gies. LE? ic ait 4
" m: De tt ae Pe Ha ‘ _ “f }? eo ba vee aye Loy Nv, ite Y, *%
8 ; a a wa Pee *
ao: duress SPAR AE pheakod ogy a eis cht (if pala ah te
mu. } ae Ah i,
yy ee AG se Cat eataay it: 7 7% a8
es Pig dee, iho ¥ ikea Tal ; ep %.
a if a re i “J he Sema in Af pie letra és ol pvt 3
, ;; os. ” ne iy Dyes : Pil i hg ’ ia mela ae 7 Lge
Vette ton Sm ee coe ena ae tee ae ae aac
i us
“ ‘ -
a 1 D
‘ . '
; tare | Toten. Say ae te
.
MP af hae tee ee! ; 4) 4 ; ier ae ki ‘ ri 0 aA i
7 y , y J ¢ 4 4 " : Lie | Pi | ». Di -
wid fe Vhes in by 4 a) ey ps is a
¥ . r Fi 4 i i i - ») on)
tu 7) Vile) Sint ee 4 h ray 7 a
: ie . 7 Hi Vu it Hit ; Ate +4 q' rr. 9 we J een Hf »
P Wi ts Tie ies oh setae he eee
are +4 k 1p - » Ay i » “We Gey 4a 0 PEA : A ‘eA 4 ‘ah » ae
5 ‘ee ae
Cae oy Se
| . et i 4,
CONTENTS.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
Page
Peper fom. tne BeekeLary, tO. CONGTERS..2..<-—2-co=-peenese ear s-s-4pq-nnons 3
etter from the Chancellor and Secretary. --so4--s4=2 252-2. scm mene ancsa-6 4
Ofeersiand: Recents of tbe: Institution: = ca. accecc en oc ecco baccce en ae 5
Members) exioficio or the MisthimtOMs she, soo somencaaesoe om oscescoscee enna “ 6
Prorramme of orzaniznhion Vee eee eee ee oe Pe RE eae if
Report of therSecretary for - hoop ses sass Sn sis SS es see Byials:
Report of Prof. S. F. Baird for 1855_--...2..-.-. USSU SS OLDE dp sate CONS tele 36
Bison Metcumolocical Observers-c-2 so-ec seco seek coe seee se ce meee eeeees 62
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES TO THE BOARD.
Report of the Executive Committe for 1855_._.-.- ...---------------«------ 67
Geperalestaocmenb10l xen CWULeS --.oam aisle cece ae ao eet male 68
MMH MERI ER ODO Soe ee saci oe ec eet ce nas someon aeons 71
Bepent Of dmewpullain ey COMMER so a ee omem ene maceoeuacel = tacse. 73
BOARD OF REGENTS.
Journal of proceedings from January 2, 1856, to March 22, 1856-------------- 75
APPENDIX.
Report of the Senate Judiciary Committee......+..----e.--sos\-e<2--------- 83
LECTURES.
On Marine -Alew.”? . By. Professor ‘Wi. H. HanvEx..fisobe. Joe oe eee ee 87
‘Natural History as applied to Farming and Gardening.’’ By Rev. J. G.
MORRIS Ss Sas e@eee ha se pice e sew ccaun sO Ste Re Ce Oe es 131
‘« Insect Instincts and Transformations.’’ By Rev. J. G. Morris_------------- 137
‘‘Oxygen and its Combinations.’’ By Professor Grorcr I. Cuacn.--.--------- 143
On Meteoric-Stones,-»- By. Dr. J, UAWRENCE: SMITH. 2.2222 s ses pbc e- == 151
‘¢On Planetary Disturbances.’’ By Professor E. 8. Snenb_..---.-------------- 175
METEOROLOGY.
On the Climate of California. By Tuomas M. Loaan, M. D. ---.------------- 191
Directions for Meteorological Observations. By Professor A. Guyor----.------ 215
Marth quake dsrections- eee ames oes Ak UL Ok NO oe os ee 245
PFO: CHECOHONS= + <== oeemaeeeses Bocce ebebasssessr names mess UIs. oo se 247
Green's Barometer-= -~--issst@ee=<455 222256 scene seeresats oo SL see 251
Rexistry of-Periodical- Phenomenac=22-<<-.2-=-222~22-22e aL Loess ees 529
Observations on Thunder and Lightning. By S. Masrerman ---.------------- 265 —
426
Sketch of the
CONTENTS.
CORRESPONDENCE.
Navajo Indians. By J. Imraerman, M.D. ..-..--.----..--.---
Topography of Black Mountain. By Hon. T. li. Cumaman--------.-.--------.
Relative to the publication of Spanish works on New Mexico -..-----.-------
REPORTS.
Secrion First. THe Coemican AnD Conract THEORIES.........-.-.---------
§ 1.
§ 2.
, §3.
Brief, sketch of the Theoress-=>-22-aseee= eee eee eo ae
Schon pems Chemical Theorya--e ses se see eee
Comparison of the Contact Theory with Schonbein’s.-----------
Section SEcoND. DETERMINATION OF THE ConsTANT VOLTAIC Barrmry---.- ---
iv ae)
IO Oo
L272 Ur TA UN YN YIM
Hm Oo ©
§ 24.
§ 25.
§ 26.
§ 27.
. Unit of force of current=2="= 255-5325 202 ee eee
. Comparison of the different current unitsoo-- .-.22---- 22 =5_2-
. Reduction of Pouillet’s unit to chemical measure-...-------.----
. Reduction of Weber’s unit to the chemical measure_------------
. Determination of the force of a current by its chemical effects - - --
, sRESistancejom the elementis=s—=s= ee eee eee ee eee
0.
. Electro-motive force is proportional to the tension of the open
Electro-motive force.....---- Jone Lie ee ee Le
batterysnwneetie et vee eh esa ed aot Bees eee eee
. Indirect methods for determining the Constants of the Battery --
. Poggendorff’s method for determining the Electro-motive force of
inconstant battenese= =. 2-23 eee ee eee eee
. Comparison of different Voltaic Combinations......-.-.-----.-
> elhe simple zinc and scoppersbathenyee =e. eee eee eee eee
SMES S DAVVElY seme aes awe ties see ae ete eee eC ee
. The zine and copper battery, with two liquids -..-...--.------
-WGLOVe S“batlery occ ne ose ooo eee eee ee eee eee eee eee
» IBUNEEMIS ABatbeLyin (oc somaeo eos oner ese orien Hacer sence
, Aine and iron. Battery...-ews2422 2s qe ae ek ee ee
. Wronsand iron’ Battery:e))- Saw seciece toh Seti. ah ese
, allan’s Zine and. lead, Battery .<<.-s..-s45s6ennn—soqeeeee
- The most convenient combination of a given number of Voltaic
Elements for obtaining the greatest effect with a given closing
QYCUIb i. cin ano aes Se bee eS. esate aa
The most suitable arrangement of the closing arc for obtaining a
maximum effect with a given electro-motor._......----------
Comparison of the effects of different Batteries in given cases-.--
Rheostats.o. 3. oes eee a ee
Section Turrp. Resistance or Merars AND Liqurps, GaLvANIC PoLARIZATION
§ 28.
§ 29.
§ 30.
ANDAPASSIVITY soca aeons sabe oS ae es
Tn trodietion.. « a.6 3 ose eee eee oe cs es
Resistanes of metals. 252 2— a. - — argc ee tr
Dependence of the resistance of metals on temperature. -..-----
CONTENTS.
. Resistance of the human body to conduction. ......-.....-----
s Galvanic: Polarizntigneea- <-sseeoeesceec - cnet couse eee
» Resistance of liquids to"eonduction <.-.-.-..-..----.----.-.06
.* Computation of strength of current by means of an inserted
Voltameters 26) <4. 2c. Si Sok Se ees Sana oe Sua coon eee
. * Diminution of the resistance of liquids by heat----.-..-...---
. Galvanic Polarization varies with the force of the current....---
. Numerical determination of Polarization.......-.....------+-<
. Polarization on Platinized Platinum Plates.....-........------
. Buffs Researches on Galvanic Polarization-.....-....-----.---
. Diminution of Polarization by heating the liquid-...---.-.--..
Pa Cunise Of Galvanic Polanzationoss: 2. sscecese sos ceeeseese sens
Pe LOMTLZaOD ObMMOUIGSS = 52sec. seca eee ssc leesSee ec fouls
. Schonbein’s Theory of Galvanic Polarization.....-.-.----.----
Sel vmer-OxIdep DaUUCLIES ac ot a coneas yt at eee aa eee eee eae
GLOVE. 5 Gasibattelyioca. = 3. man Suse caches Saas oeoaaeesaasng
Peyneony OL the Gana hteryen. oo .a<asem ese oes Sam eels cetae eee
SP BiLects Of they Gas ba UlelVye soa ie sacar aoe en eee in ae miseie
selhneseoley Changers ot ects aot Shas ces dee tec esioee stone ons
. Old observations on the relation of iron to nitric acid_...---.--
. Schonbein’s observations on the passivity of iron.-------------
PPACtON: OMmno ne Hlectwodess Ua. 24 2a 4 lo se sate tens ene
. Passive iron in a solution of sulphate of copper --------.------
HE MISATIONS Of PASSIVAbY = 5m aan ah adm ann oe ea sedaee Soe selec
SeebHeorys Of PAssivil Vass aasseues oon Se sain eecicewapice sc o5—e—.5
SR EASSUMI LV OGOLNCT, ME bAG 22a. apcia soem see sone Siena ate
7 a » mea eed
ee eat 1 wal el ,
INDEX.
menbott. sls, ROP. Specimens: presented by... < eco 2 oso dena ta lance aus
OGITONS wie MUSEUMS HO aa ei ae imino meee ones oe al a SA
Avassiz, Promyassistance renderedsto: see 5 okt ko acl iaa= koalas
INSEE TU 1 Ea oy BRL ESCO HCl eR KON ene ee ee, a a ae ee
Agassiz, Prof., Resolution of, Relative to Exchanges---.--..-......--------.-
Aricolimal pociehy.on Uilinois), State Hair. <<.) a= .-2 paisa a mice ae eae
Pall een wien Om eel enviey. Soe CUUTG ON ae ar aan aa ataiata a aint a eis =a Se ee
ME COC ULL 0) Sees eo Shoe oh 2 ta rei o n e s
PR OSTOO Umea e ease La BR ps Ae BPS oll ele
Seosrapuicale Gishrib WwlONe = celaaaia ate eae Ss eee Se Ree ee
mone ofcollectins and preserving) specimens. --4-—--4-s-—---5<s25% -S ee
TS OAS oS SOS Re ee ee ene ne ELE ane
Alvord, Major Benjamin, Tangencies of Circles and Spheres.-..--.------------
American Academy, Resolution of, Relative to Exchanges..........-.----.---
mmencan Hinnolorical Society, etter from=2 2... 2-4 5 oo. Je ee
munerdon, Or. W. V., Specimens presented by..--.--- S$) --s 22 he tate aciee
MBMselem Mr Collechons madebye sees see aka oe Ga A es dake
Appletonupeqmests fo, American. Acagemy-o2- ase aces -2o ses ache te te See
PXPPEORELUAONSm OMS Gates cece Oc a eee ee ae eee oes Oe a Se
Archeology of the United States, Haven’s Memoir on_--...-.---------------
Lwin Cen de.qayeto Hin @rny Otel Died kd) See SOE O CEES CIE CIS at ce neste ea ee See ae
Aurora: Borealisw Directions for observing: -- =. - <.<2- 8s qaae=see ce aeons Eo ce
immnorthemlattodes, Notices Of-- 3) 224-565 -5-. = sane
Paper On by Prot. Olimptem. 1-2. clot te abo ce
Ayres, Dr. W.. O!, Specimens: presented. by. 2-250. 52 awe dee te teow es
Badeer, Hon: Geomtbweleetedia erent. .1- NS a. oo. Sate eee an
Baird, Spencer F., Report for OA he eam eee RL A
Baker, M., Explorations byesas= 4.2 -<j- see UP ars
Baker, Woods, Translation of Muller's Physics, by--..----.-----------------
PANCrOrGeo:. Detter frome 2 a 52 aoe ok aes a aeaeban a2 ~ 5 Ss eaee
meruard teary. Work Of MANesmONs «5. oe a a ins oe Pat 9 ne a
Barometer, Description of Green’s Standard.....--.-------------------- bene
Directions fon Readines a=... 5. coc sae ce oe on re ae ee
Altiude dnd Veriiceiiies =. « ..cecckiwodamwesconnccnaeaesndeen
101
107
115
118
307
309
225
226
430 INDEX.
Page.
Barometer, Directions)for, use 0f:- 12s seee SSeS een eee ae eee ae 221
How. to transport: it. 2s25 ashe se seee eee eee se ee 257
Benlandier Collection: 222 s22520= 55 55 ae see = on Soa ae eee ee eeee ese ee 47
Berrien, Hon. J. Macpherson, Resolutions respecting-.......----------.---- 76
Birds, Listiof, for ObservationjonsAmnivaltiiceooeee ==. -5-----2 seo seen ease- 262
Birds .of Prey, Hopsionydcsentbeds 2228s. saeeee eats ose ee eee 20
Birds |Specimensiadgen, to. Museum: 2226s ase ane A Se sees es eee eee 47
BlackeMountainy NaC», Toporraphyyof- 3455 S222. 2 Sanaa Sees eee 299
Beardie: Regents, aournal ofveroceedings= “+> 2422 sie see aeee ee nee AE ee 75
Boeniereno: Deseniption: of asstsesmessce S25 he Hi Nee ee Bee ee een 178
Bremen iaine-ofsteamers liberality ofss=s22 22 sss 552552 eee ee Seer eee 41
British Association, Action of, relative to Catalogue of Philosophical Memoirs -- 77
Building: Committee; Report ofsss222=5222asses2se see ssise 2 eee ee eee 13
Building, Cost) Or =2sa5 2522 s0=2 A= seees nee ae ee a mele ee eee eee 73
Description vofzssss2es2etes2Sseses ese soe e eae eee eee 14
California, Hixploration Of=22s=222s2ce= 22st sesee ae sates ones eae eee eee 43, 44
Valitormiarbxpress Company sssses2easonee se eee Ses eas sae ee eee 45
Walifomia; Mail: Steamshipr Line iaberality 01-2424 s22=2=52 =4"2 25>" seen ene 4
California, Observations on Meteorology of, by T. M. Logan--:--..---..--.--- 191
Canadian Parliament, Provision by, for Meteorology---2-..2----.--12---__-- 28
Cassidy, Andrew.) Collections: madeyby-=seeeseecr sane ae eee ae ee 44
Catalogueothibrary om Congress sss 2s2s2aas senate Sear ee eee 30
Catalopuesiofdtabranes: Collectiohtot=<2>se=s2=-2sessec cee se se sone sane 30
Catalogue of Philosophical-Memoirs proposed=--=--+=++2-22-22 222 2.222 Le 2E 17
hace, Prof-Geord-,Lechureon-Oxyrene= = ssa so2 Aone ok eee eee ee ee ee 143
Chemistensaged-in-the Institutions see as as eae eee eee eee eee ee 26
Cho ppl: sWanies Hash Warerytit te cep bye eee ee ee 73
Chouteat Min Collections madelby 2222222 ve sos oe Ses eee eee 45
Church, -Prof.-A>b-;-Valuablevard rendered by, = 2552425 eee eee ee eee 18
Glimate- General-Phenomens tombeiobserved =a 22 oanee cease een eee eee 262
Wlingman’s+Peak>Description/ofeeees sees See ee ee ee te eee 299
Clouds, ‘birections tor observing seems acter een ne ne 234
Cofin,, Prof--MeteorolosicalsReductions by sssaee esses eee se eee ne eee 27
Commissioner<of Patents, Arrangement with=---- 2226 See ee 2 eS 26
Committee of Regents to appoint Telescope Examiners -....---.-.-..-------.- 79
Committeeon Hinance appointed Sa ee ee Ta
Cooper, ~DrsdaGseCollectionsnnade bya 2222S osee nee ae ne eee oe eee 43
CopyrightsBooksamesmibhsonanmuibraryoeos aa seeeee seers soe s see ee 30
Corcoran-& Riggs) bxira Hund siventuprby asses aeee eee eae se eee 7
@ornania, Dr: Hmile;-bxchanges:desired iby 2222s semen eeee oes ene eee 57
Correspondence, Accountiof ssa ee aac ee 2 ee ee 24
Clingman’s Peale 22 22eeee ae oe ee ee 299
Re-publicationivot; Spanish Workse22-- sone oe ee eee ee 307
Sketch of the Mavajonbueanss 22% 22502 _ Eee ee eee en 283
Ceuch; Licuts DAN: ; Collectionsutrom—s ees see aca ae AT
Hxploration bysssssoeo see e ss soe see ae ee 28
Culbertson; Allex.s Collections madelpysss=seeses: 2607 2. = aan: tee 45
Cutts, Richard D., Collections made Dy ee oa oh ee Bietata (mies (ate lote 44
INDEX. 431
Page.
Davien Fo... Collections madduby sess cacuse do: ees 4c {- ee wth euaniden aed 46
Deslee batt, Madame, Annuity topteeeea as scam mad aso cemcloud beeen ee 70
MIGURMCNTEGHIONS fOr ODSCLV LNG) oe aoe ee ae et eo am hw ine ek Shs en cen 234
Directions for Meteorological. Observations* ~~... - 64 --amcneentueteceeonee 215
Directions for Registry of Periodical Phenomena. 236625222. s2-1.--22----352 259
Bistribution: of, Collectiongeso-6e a2 o25 5600 ot hte |. See ee 56
Donations for Publication of Researches -------------------=-=-- SD a ele 22
Paonin oS IMONTIMENb on nom oe ne we Hee coeaeesso~h nok an. + oe 17
Badley Ohserwaionye. t-censen case cease Gael eede ll pee ope he nc osetia 22
Harbhquekes.. Directions for observing... 34 Assos a aston hb. 4-526 -be 245
PaUCROnE Batten. s ReNORb OMe ano. Sect cas ep oe emia sicaS~ -ackk 25
ETOMOuOns Gis ee ote el ei ees crane yell myopathy rah a 25
Deeorsbirdss Papciwom sete ae 5S eo oe aks gl tele FE See FIL re 19
Bmory,) Maj. WV... Mexican Boundary iSumveyassae: 28 9a jaejoo asd Se oe 42
Hnelisgh Hon. W.H., appombed.a, Rerent . enna 5 Saeed ae ae 76
iEntomolopists: Names, of, American = 53.2. wh tia cet ahe te ie ger 13%
Entomolory.. importance: of. study .of- 3. .3—--.=-...+-- s-seb eee ote a ae 137
Brosions of the Surface of the, Harth, Paper on ....-.-i2sess-ee-sc2--04-se- 22
Bawmates-of Appropriations for 1856.2). 16 te =o re 8 5 ete abe = 71
Ethnological Society, Letter from on Publication of Works on New Mexico---.-.- 8307
Beans, Dr. J, .Geslocical Survey of Oregon......--~ --sde~ apes daa 5b 25 43 45
ichantes SACCHUNY Of) ono cincm en anin ee aaa a alee ees Scat ee 23, 36,41
Peechanges ot Specimens desired... Gesecnuotoh pace aeemals baitegbee oat 56
Exchanges, Resolution of American Academy on ..-..------------------+---- 79
Sieecitive Committee, Report Of a Soe ee eee eee ete t eek lee 67
Bispendirres Gara UR a i hes pier tke dm cnenis teat ge Pl Breit erate ares 68
Experiments on Estimated Size of Luminous Bodies...--.--.---------------- 171
bana hON Sat seye seins lace ees ee ee Rag pen ss 32, 42,45, 46,47
fr of MWinois Arriculimral Socieby_... = -<2 nop o<sesee~eled-ncl- washes 46
mesoat, brats (..C) elected a Regent. ee ee i a eee 76
FEIGREIICO Ss CON CUTON Oficial eer Si nt helo a Se ee ep 16, 67
Fishes, Observation of First Appearance and Spawning ---------------------- 262
Specimens:added| to Musetim: =. 250 22 oe he be oh eee te ee AT
LENG Yaga aD haan fees CogA 1 Dery dl opto) eae ey eRe een Ne SPE eRe Sere ee cele © nee Ree ee 24,
Flozel, Dt Velix appointed, Agent a4.) 55... < eee kee oh hee 24
oe. Directions:forohservin’ 4... ars wo ereee ae Lede whee eee chet 284
morce, Peter, Autoralirecord. by 2655.55 acc an ane Se eeea ees <4 ee bytes 18
De O ES ses oi en RR a te fs te 30
Fort Defiance, Meteorological Observations at...--------------------=-<----- 286
Hossils'and Minerals added to the Musetm.==-<s% 22-scondsesasecoa5-4e one nt 49
Freeman, J. M. & Co., Aid rendered to the Institution by ------------------- 45
Galvanism, Translation of Dr. Muller’s Memoir on~...2++2+-s--.-+---~=---- aL
eeo1opical. Exploration! Py eroty euitchcocks-S.-seec! --25--snme aaa on = mo 21
Gibbes, Prof. Lewis R., Valuable aid rendered by --------------------------- 18
Girard, Dr. Chas., Assistance in Museum rendered by------------------------ 22
Mebscrene, PANCL Ol... = 1 a eee yee Se ai a eae We is = or a a 22
ereidvelr bes. .on. Meech sapapene 15-2... 5.485 ae neemem ia sear = aoe ma 20
Gotteri, Frederick, Plan proposed for Silk Culture ....---.-i-<c0n0--------- 7
432 INDEX.
Page.
Green, Jas., Description of his new Thermometers------------------------- 219, 217
Standard: .Instramients) by Sasa = eee ee eee 27, 251
Grounds; dmprovementiOl = see sess a ae 25 = 2 atte re Sash GES
Guest, Wierd ssC.olllec thom sian ciel ela yjase eet en el mm tele 46
Guyot, Prof. A., Directions for Meteorological Observations by--------------- 215
Measurement of Black Mountain, North Carolina_----------- 299
mes: byseeeaa-acnssteaoee als eee ee eee 18
Gyrascope, Description of and experiments with---------------------------- 177
Hamilton: Colleges New York; elescope of... =o. ---sscnnaes ane oases eee 78
Hammond Drs Collections madexby. 2-55-25 ae eee =e ae eee See 44
Harney, Gen., Collections made by.------------------------------- Bec a 45
Harvey, Mr., Collections made by --------------------------------+------- 45
Harvey, Wm. Henry, Lectures on Alge -.---.-..--------<+------- 44-52-55 87
Haven, S. F., Archaeology of the United States.------..2------------------ 17
Hawks, Francis L.,.Letter-from.....-.-5-2-220-ee) 2-0 spe ee ean ae it 309
Hayden, Dr. F. V., Collections made by--------.=---+25525------45----\3525 45
ifenry;, Wane Aq, sHoxplonationy bys Sa -=sem meee eee ee ee ee 46
Hessian tly, -Hustonysand. account of. == 282 eae ae eee ee eee tate 132
Higgins, Frank, Exchange of shells desired. by.---------------------------- 57
itchcock< Prot. H.. Papers "on (Geology 22-2 -a- eee =a ee eee eee 21
Hodrson.~ eB: sbetter fromi== 22222. 25. tees es == ee ane ei 309
Honorary Members of the Institution...-.-------------------------------- 6
Hydro-Meteorological Phenomena, to be observed-.------------------------ 234
Tilinois Board of Education, Resolutions on Meteorology-------------------- 82
fllinois Aoolosysi=224 252+ s226eee-cce==cekee ee ce ape re et eee eas 33
Insect Instincts and Transformations, Lecture on... ---- = ---ee ee GWE
Insects, Attacks of, on crops, trees, &c..-----.---=-----+--=--------------- 133
iBenehitsiandwsesiote2-a-<-eek eeeaee eae ee see ee ae is 138
Affection forthe yyOung==— 22 2- saan = one ee ee eee eae 139
Habitations-c:c+ 2. ecckes ee ecee eee ae Meee Ae a eee eee 139
Tran gilormM vtlonse Sem seer eee ae eee See See eee ee ee ete te 138
ICY hater Con. (OKs1ks) OVE ha Se oe ES ei SA Soe Roe 4 ace Seto 140
Observations! tobesmadesssesees aos — eee = ee ae eee eters 262
Instinct, Nature of, considered_....--.----.--------------------=--------- 140
Instruments dor Werresinal MMacometismes on ace geen eno ee eee ee ee = 26
Instruments, Meteorological directions for placing...----------------------- 215
Invertebrates added to the Museum .....-..--.-.--e ace neers = eee 49
Irving, Washington, Letter from....-.-------.---------------------------- 309
Japan Expedition.--..-----------------+--------------------------------- AT
Jillson, Prof., Catalogue of Library of Congress by-------------------------- 30
Johnson, Prof. W. R., Inventor of the Rotascope--------------------------- WT
Journal of Proceedings of the Board of Regents---------------------------- a 15
Judiciary Committee of Senate, Report of--------------------------------- 83
Kane, Dr. Ei iK.; Expeditionof- 22-2 22-4203 soe. oe 5 eee gee ee AT
Return of Instruments by {52525222426 eee eee a 26
Kennerly, Dr. C. B., Collections made by---------------------------------- 43
Kennicott; Robt, Collections by-viwerssuaee ee we oe ok ee 33, 46
Laboratory of the Institution, Account of.......-.------=« hs A Sree 26
Bees tet of, (19806, TRUK 0 ite ne ete ee mers
‘Insect Instincts and Tansformations’’......--....-.-.----------- 137
iinRe Ales ” 2 hoo eee ee tee cecowed awk cc een ul ete 87
<UMeteorie SUOHeS! sac beee es. qos Seat Seo ociw soe es le 15L
‘« Natural History applied to Farming and Gardening...-.....------ 131
“Oxyren and its Cominatlons ; 5. 25. scsen sc. oreo eee a cbse. 143
“Planetary DIStUrpAnced, \oo 20. SoceUaneci tes gedess omens owes 175
Pity GOS: > -ARGISUAHICE Onto vod oe Be ne Sets Piso a 2 eee ae 32
Lenox, Jas., Historical Papers in Collection of......---.--.-.---------.-.-<- 307
Pererudy Wnkcens He yw 220 oe Reta cots Juno edd ce woe cece odie 82
Letherman, Jonathan, Sketch of Navajo Indians. .-.....--.----------------- 283
Letter of the Secretary to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House- 3
Mee WIS; JAS: He CHanse or Hiells GERITEd "DY. ooo See. oe Shs Pas SIGs ee aS 57
RDEACICS Et WURLEO LOM es oe co cae ee ere ee ee in RS Soe es 30
Beorsy, a Diblioptnpuer ad Oppiiun, OF 22 ee Sd a ae aes 8 29
Work done in and Churacter of-2 22222 22a eae ee eee 29
Light and Heat of the Sun, Meech’s Paper on..--------------------~+--~---- 20
Lightning, Observations on, by Mr. Masterman -...----.------------------- 265, 280
Payine Animhia added: ta the Museum: = 52.5 005 2 es oe Ce ees 49
Param, thos. Mt. Metcorolosy of Calitormian. 6c o-oo lo ee ee eS 191
Pe Wi tor tie tae Saehorr trOMl sn oe a See oS 2s a 9 2 ae aS oe ee 309
Deewre rere niny athens hoes ous cas ol Se SRS Pen Bs BSE a 80
Lunar Origin of Meteorites advocated. ..-..---------.---.---------s-e4---- 165
Mammals: Specamens aaced to Museum. — 222092. So SSS eb See 47
Marcy. Capt. i, B, Curvey in Texas 222s) 2221532022 o os oe cee wees eewe 44
Masterman, Stillman, Observations on Thunder and Lightning. -...-.--------- 265, 280
Measures, Diversity in Standards of 222232225222 ce beet sek en ae te ele 19
Meech, LL. W., Paper on Light and Heat of the Sun-----------.------------- 29
Peerunea eid in bali s | 722s fa ee cece ee eee ees 16
Meeting of Board of Regents, Time changed......---+---<--<20-+-ss0--6-50- 76
Meigs, Capt., Award to Contractor of Building submitted to.....-...--------- 74
Momberner oye OL the Institution. . 2052S. 22 o5s2so5 44 5 dese Sao 5 Sse ky = 6
MCLEOLIN SLONES, TeCbure ON. 252222 a22 se cst ood scenes ea won ee teed 3 151
Description’ of Specimens: =+=:-2252- 28 8522 as 8 See oe 151, 172
PR RLVSIS Of MMESCORIUCHS = 25s 252 sca s sees Sea eee a 152
Nanmiber found mythe World) es. a A See ae eee ae 156
Pewens tadgiit Uy. = 23 === tease ee eee ek a ea eee 157
Piysrcal (Ch aracterjewcs! Ob sss 242 sce hens se oes ease 158
Minceslopical Constitution Gf « ...2---24 s00-sn0--055-o-225- 158
Points of similarity in-_-.......-------------------------- 160
Greate PvnGHe GE. 24 6s 3a ee er ae o eons he eee eas = 160
: Chemicalt@ineuiubion Ot ooo. os ees sees eye eee ates 159, 161
Presence of Schreibersite in ..-..------+--------------------- 161
Limited Action of Oxygen on.......-..-------------------- 161
Oriel Ob sae tee bce elie ds eee ee -- 55% 162
Shooting Stars not the Same .-.....-----.-.----------+----- 162
Prof. Shepard’s View of their Origin..--.----.-------------- 163
Generally received Theory of Origin....-----.+------------- 165
28
434 INDEX,
Page.
Meteoric Stones, Lunar Origin of, advocated 222.2 — ae nore nese eee ae sincin 165
Experiments on Size of Luminous Bodies........-------.---- 373
Meteorology, Directions for Obgervationgse see —--.--—-- 2 oeaseeenee ees as 215
Directions for placing and observing Instruments--.--.---.----- 215
EIR MOE MRS GR es ee kyo a 2 62
Obsenyatiotis at Sacramento, |Calee. .- 2-8 oon 3 eee eee 192
Observations for twenty-four successive hours in California....208,209, 210
Observations in Texas and Mexico. -.....---+----#=-----4-- ee 28
Observations of Temperature and Rain in New Mexico_-----.--.-. 286
Operations im, Gunn 1850225 os ao see eee eee ee 26
Remarks on quantity of rain at different heights..-.-.~--- a ca e 211
Resolutions of Tilinois Board of Education..-..-.-..---.-----.-- si
System adopbem itt Ore ac cae a ee ee on eee eee 28
Mexican Boundary Line Survey... - 2+ -ssc-2-sacaeoe eee eee ee eee 42
Mexican Gulf Steam-ship Company, Thanks to... 2-0-2 pe cewec seme see nes 77
Pexico, Collections Wott. con. ace cece oes tose ee ee ee AA ei 00m el 46
®uchier, Licut.; Collections tmnde bY so. oa na nete Sense es eet el ate 43
Mitchell, Prof E., Measurement of Black Mountain_.....-.--...------------ 299
Morris, Prof. O. W., Remarks on quantity of rain at different heights__-...-..- 212
Morris, Rey. J. G., Lecture on Insect Instincts and Transformations.....-....- 137
Lecture on Natural History as applied to farming and gardening i3i
weIOW, Suites, COMCCHONE DY. —22- = mcce boom peels ee eee ee ee 47
Brcsetin, Distribution Of Collections: 2222s scs2oneenaew sete eee 56
Exchange Of Specimenhs_- = 2-2 2ece m8) ode See ee eee ee 56
Geographical tidex to specimens received... -2-.0--10eees=na<-= 49
Imerense' Of os 2 os: occ kes Se sicne eee ae oe oe ee ee 4}
Mist Of additions IN LSSDe ns ese se oe eee ae eee ene ene eae 47,57
Présent condition (Of2* See cote = ee ee dee ee ae ere ee 53
Principal, ‘desiderate «= tase. stent oe os See Seen eae ae ee 04
Systematic index tospecimens fecelved= 2-25 12-5245 ese ee eee 50
Table ob alcoholicispecitmens ine 2o- =o n= ase ne ee ae ee eee 54
Work done'imie55< se ee= Sass ek ee ae eee eee ees Soe ee eee 31, 52
Muller, Baron, Memoir on origin of the human race__....-...._..-__.---_-. 82
Mutter, Dr.John, Report'onGalvanism {_-Lbe ee ee pe epee ee 31i
murphey, i. C., ‘Letter’ fromich 2) cece eset Sosy eee oe eee gee 309
Natural History applied to Farming and Gardening.....-...-.------.-.-.--. 131
Advantages of the study of-_.-..-......- Fase eeeh secwlke 132
Animals noxious’ to veretation= 2-2 22-525 ae ee ae ee ee 132
Crops ailected by Insects, WC. 22. es eee eee ee ee eee eae 132
iixchanges Gese@ o-oo) te ne Se eee ee 57
Resolutions on, of Dinois Board of Education..-.- a ae ae 82
Navajo Indians, Sketch of......--- See ae eee rene 2 Oe) et Tes ey ee 283, 288
Description of their country... ©. oo 2 ee ae 283
Climate, soil, Sere ae Bee ee cd, 285
Productions: 2. 2y eee ee as Se eS ee ace ae 288
Origniof the people... -- 2-2-2 2 ee See Sete oo oe, 288
Government 22.22 ohne nates webct eee Meee tl = = cia! r 238
Habitawons, 22. oe see aes ee ee ee one ale 289
Page.
ermien Paden; “Clothing: == 2. 2tembont ier det x a. oo Ach ee can neces 289
1: a ep a LC a 296
Oceuppati ono Se ateed he — a ee eee ee he Ne de 0 294
Bele sila: = Seis Sec Le Polk oe en 296
TIOTSes And Cahhle sss 22. 5: stacete 2 eee eee Soe oe 292
Wranlike character += 42.2 222 220006 fc cil eee mca = 292
RV CAOHSs. See coe ca ey oem ta re a en ue fee ae 293
Reliswn and! movralss= 24 eee Oe eee ee 294
ETB gh Ngo 's, 2 at IAD OR re eGR aE: SUAS ga ee ae Pp 295
JN GDediites SNOT OS NS ped opel ae ea Ele ena C eal SA Ae aE 296
re ee en ns i ee ws kee! 296
Ne Vyas G01 12 pean Spi Se SE pal lappa yea eee elena SET 296
Negretti and Zambra’s new Maximum Thermometer__-----....------.------ 219
Rewbesny Oras Ooleewons male by s2222° 2225 ue ke Le es pe ee 42
ew Mexico. okcicn On Navajo Indiansine (S20 eb ee Cokie ace 283
Bpanininwonks On: @<a"=** =< 2225 os 2-2 it ewes melee Lo eee ee 307
Worthern:route for Pacific Railroandearvey=+=2-5-%.4.22-¥--..-42-.sceec 43
meet Paetic and Ohina seas: Survey of... - +. 322-25. 25-52 --- tee se ee hs 4¢
Brick ava tuiman, Uiberiity Of. 2. o at oe a eon Skee wee a eces 41
Bemecmine tberbaniinabion 2 UNE. Uo SL ek 8 oe ak &
Seeicted, i rot. Dennison, on Aurora Borealis. __ 2... 5-202 ~ ema ens sauce 18
Ombrometer or Rain Gage, description and uses._._-..-....---.-----s.----- 229
| USE IL Ei Mee le pe ee eee a Ge i ae RCRD Ae 19
Geezon, Geological Survey of, by Dr: J. Evans--.:.:-2:-.-...---2--s=--=-+-« 45
Ottawa Atheneum, Premium for collections by .....------------+--------+-- 5g
@xygen. and’ iis’ Combinations, Lectureon 22. -2222-2-822-2ccosnc-004--55225 143
Achon-of waterae transterer of +2252 2 e222 222 ute don ces ewe es 144
Plenomena Di iisn explained 222 *<s4 ee he Soo os eee 2 le ae ee ee 144
Hiiects of oniorranic bodies: <2 22.25.5052 2045 2 ue oe ee ee 145
Hendency of bodiessto unite with. * > cc kee ee oe ee ee 146
Orice penomned by inwrespirawons=-2 2-0-5022. Jose ee eae cee oe 146
The restorer as well as the destroyer of life..........---------.------ 148
MiieciOtvon progucis Or mans wore... 2--= ane eee oe ee ee eee 149
Escite Mail Hteamsnip Company, Thanks foc a--.--2-...2 ..-U.--2---24:---2- 77
PeGliC Ra tOAMERNTVCVS= a2 See se ees sae ess eee s see ee Le Lees sie pees 43
Race, Capt: Td, bsploration of the Parana. 2.oos2 225202 Lt ee eb esol s 47
Pahama Railroad Company, Thanks to.-=.=--..-.-<-.-2-+--2---+---2-+---- 7
Paraguay, Jee Jy See ee eae Se eee eee 47
Berke, Licnt. J. Gieiapmanndon Of-2 2252552222420) 32226522552 h le wea se- 44
Patent Office, Meteorological arrangement with....-.----------------------- 26
Batterson, Lieut., Collections made by ---- 2... - 2-24. --+---«--22--2------4 45
Eutton, Jos. H., relative-to Wynn estate... -2:2....+--2--=-=-------=------- 77
Reece, Exot: 2.. on Meethalaper- <2. -.-09) 800 0L 2 L26L vag .-.--- 20
Periodical Phenomenz, Directions for observation of_...--------------------- 259
Berry, Commodore, Japan Expedition. ...2-+-«2<20--+----0---------+----5- 47
Ren. dad, aC ocnmninicaionaiolek ds a on ons u ons ah SOUS ee ce dt anpac = V7
Seals, Prof.,,-Maximum Thermometer. by - 2--24-<0-0.00-22s5---5544------ 219
Physical Geography of the United States, additions to......-....----- i ae: 27
436 INDEX.
Page.
Planetary Disturbances, Prof. Snell’s Lecture on---------------------------- 175
TLaws-of Worce-and=Motion=<===2—=8ee=- = 2. 22: sS-2222eeo-2-->-—- 175
‘Inertia and Gravitation=-.-=--=---<=s2--2---+-s-2 252555 -2---- ---- 175
illustrations of Astronomical Movements -------- Lessee - 176
Experiments with the Retascope..-..---------------------------- Vii
Precession of the Equinoxes -.-.-------------------------------- 179, 183
Retrogradation of the Moon’s Nodes----------------------------- 379,185
Law of Composition of Rotary Motions--------------------------- 180
Advance of Apsidecectctscarsntacedece: 3s aun ee Rs ae 189
Plants added to the Museum ._--.-----------=-=--+-----+------------------ 49
Plants, Observations to be made on -.-.--.-------------------------------- 259
Distiofjec= secant nee cess ese ese ee ee eee eee ene ie 260
Pole Star, Gradual change of-_--.---~------------------------------------- 485
Pope, Capt., Explorations by ----------------------------------+--------- 44
Potts, Jno., ColNections from-_--..--.------------------------------------- 46
Power, Real source of, explained -.--------------------------------------- 348
Precession of the Equinoxes, Explanation and Hiustration of----------------- 383
Premiums for Collections in Natural History -.----------------------------- 55
Prescott, Wm. H., Letter from-_..--------------------------------------- 4 309
Programme of Organization of the Institution--.-------- nod get aah aad ot 23 vi
Psychrometer, Directions for use of -------------------------------------=+- 220
Publications during 1855 .__-------------------------------=+------------ 17,36
Pybas, B., Exchange of shells desired by -----.---------------------------- 57
Quincy, Hon. Josiah, Donation to Harvard_-.---.-------------------------- 22
Rain, Directions for observation of__..------------------------------------ 236
Observations on quantity of, at different heights ---------------------- 212
Rain Gage, Description and directions for use of ---------------------------- 227
New forms adopted.._----------:2=--- ae I Dee ae ee ee 27, 229, 230
Recent Progress in Physics, Report on Galvanism --------------------------- 311
Reductions of Meteorological Observations -----~---------------------------- 29
Regents of the Institution, List of _....----------------.------------------ 5
Regents, Appointment and election of_.----------------------------------- 76
Registry of Periodical Phenomena --.-------------------------------------- 259
Relative Intensity of the Light and Heat of the Sun.----------------------- 20
Report of recent progress in Physics -------------------------------------- 3il
Report of the Building Committee.....-.---------------------------- ---- 43
Report of the Executive Committee......-.------------------------------- 67
Report of the Secretary for 1855__.--------------------------------------- 13
Report of the Senate Judiciary Committee_-..----------------------------- 83
Reptiles, Observations to be made on_------------------------------------- _ 262
Specimens added to Museum------.--~--------------------------- 47
Research, special lines encouraged -...------------------------------------ 20
Researches made in the Institution during 1855 -..._--.-..----------------- 26
Resolutions of Board respecting Appropriations and Division of the Income---- 12
Resolutions of Mlinois Board of Education on Meteorology------------------- 31
Resolution of the House of Representatives relative to printing extra copies of
TOPOVb.. cog un aw oso oo oo ee wee a an en ea eae 3
INDEX, 437
bs Page.
pe cold, Cant.) Survey. of North)Pacik#c- ser gases sacs Sh cet a scee ss ettaqaae AT
Robinson, Edward, Letter from, on publication of Spanish works on New Mexico. 307
Rodgers, Com, John;, Suryey, ef North, Pacific 525. < gecsade ssn a ceceandane AT
Rotascope, Description of and Experiments with..--......--.--------------- La
orsian Antiquities,work on, in) library... ..2.2)2232s-- 2-2 eee sb aseees 82
Sacramento, California, Meteorological observations at --.-....-------------- 191
Saminels; 1. Uxploration.of Califormia; by.-52 226. teteaaantt 22sslc nese bee 82, 45
Seeleiden, «Mx. Collections frome 2b. c ee See. fe cs area ol le te 46
Self-regulating Thermometers, Use of, explained.....-....------------------ 218
New sforms) of 22:2 Lecet erences 26 ee 219
Senate Judiciary Committee, Report) of... 1.2... .s28-seseee ee cette esse 83
DEON. WIN. udon COMCCHONSe Dy ese wee stiee oes be da ee oes Sete be Sa 46
Saumeard:, Dr, . Collactions;made, byc-casce + tee! ce eects as aie eee 44
Bety | COSCHVATON GON eet ere mc eemice ce ecko nee eehe eee eee eee ted 235
Smith, Buckingham, Letter of, relative to publishing Spanish works on New
MCx0O Seem iawwes wins OMe theses aS seh aaa ReSe CREE Meus eee 309
Eenth, Capt. ©. .K..,.Collections made! by =<. - -.<-...)... nemebasataoctt-3 cnt sus 45
Smith, J. Lawrence, Lecture on Meteoric Stones...---.--.-.-.------s+------ 151
Snell, Prof. E. 8. Lecture by, on Planetary Disturbances._...--.------------- 175
Snow Gage, Description. and Directions for use of 22...) 23 -2-2esel-b es = 35 228
South America, EEplota tons Ino Sean oem ot oe cee SR Se ee eee ee 47
South American Mail Steamship Company, Thanks to-...-.----------------- 77
Seanish Works/on New, Mexico; Listiof....\..... 29 o2hisehae sees e ee Skee 307
MUBEK SO ALGG: CLSGLOr ATOM .o5scicrcrs mjnyocsjainierjnni aS eiolaiem Si cieaeiahee eae ree 309
Spencer, 'C..A.,.d)Co;,..velescope.constructediibysscsias eo anS- Sse ee ee 78
Squire, HoG:,, Letter roms co0s StS 5. LSS ee Lt eee Wen iBO9
Memo pia wilinsiravions OL Mosque Ol 15.2 Seaton Seles eon see ess 82
Santen, Hon. Benjamin, appointed a Regent ....-. ......2-.-.2-o8s-. S245. 76
Mieamoship: Line to: California, Liberality of ce2e222t esse cease se ce see 41
Peevees, Govermen. PooplarngOns Of 42... 4..2/.01Seudeie eto ta abate keto 43
Stimpson, Wm., Collections [SE AREA OCA Sn Re et hes Sg ie eee ih tS 47
Stone, Wm. J., Letter from, relative to casts of Works of Art ......---------- 8l
ProxrmMs, AWiITeeHONS Or ODSCLVING Soa sac mana eclans see lesen See eseee 237
puckley, Dr. George, Collectionsumade by\-3.5- JJo222aee 23222 oc Fos ee seks 43, 45
sun, heatiandcwonion, Memon Oiasa sso sasec5cacste setae s Sete ee eee 20
BEANO; ds As. CONECH ONS MACO!DY ys aso ac asolse coma enonooees Sma veren tae 44
Tangencies of Circles and of Spheres, by Major Alvord--.-.------------------ 18
Telescope constructed by Spencer, to be examined by commission appointed by
Institutions sssas2s5= se seca cock oe ccus ce teneeae ao tee Sede See 78
Bicens. Capt, Marcy. sismimerg isos. a5 ¢ aco oc snincgchh Peeas os em oreme cco 44
iPrermometer, Direchions#or. use Of. 45 o0.Sasa-qsSo sess We seedes seas ean 215
SN Gs wwes et OTERO Wrage em ii ee nese eerily arestoiee 219
Thanks to steamship and railroad companies....---------.----------------- 17
mhomas, MajorG.8:, Colléctions;made by 22222-5252. S255 52 55 -.-5-See 45
Thomas, W. A., Exchange of minerals desired by----.------.--------------- 57
fibumder, Observations Onyaosmem oe wees See. ebb osS eaciee Ook sec cli i ws-be S 265, 282
Thunder-storms, Directions for observation of.....------.------------------ 236
Tornadoes and land-spouts, Directions for observing...-.-..--..------------- 237
438 INDEX.
Page.
Topography of Black Mountain, North Carolina_--------- ee cote t eens ceeeee 299
Trees, Hconomical importance/ot-=-—— soe eee eee = ee ee Se eee eee ee aae = 134
Attacks of- insects, &cxoniasee eee Sees ie Se ee eee eee 134
Transactions of societies Inmibraryo-.s- 42> eee ee ole ee Se - eee eeeeee 30
Transformations-of- Insects- <<. 222-52 Ssccctse cs eee se Ake hs seca ee 138
Trubner, N., Ludewig’s Bibliography, published by._------------------------- 80
Trowbridge; Lieut? W- - P;,- Researches Of: 1 22. -b 4. tee es eek 44.
United States Mail Line to California... .-- Mili ccec ue meee ghia. oh 45
United States Mail Steamship Company, Thanks to.----..------------------ 17
Vaughan’ Col; Collectionsamade Dy=22- 22+ (A Saeeee See. ema e mame = ee ane 45
Vernier scale of the Barometer, Directions for reading-..------------------- 225, 255
Wieveg and'Son,-Indebtedness-tos22s2ss2-steesoces toc ys sees eee al:
Warner, Hon. "Hiram, appointed.a Regent: 2-2 s..s.e>seeh oreo see eee as eee 76
Wayne, James; Collections!made:by:-<sc<2cscceuscseccc cen ca sse es eeeeeee 44
Webb; Dr: “host, ‘Collections made byo2-2- 22- Sates -- 8) eae eee ee 47
Wells, Fargo & Co., Aid rendered by, to the Institution.....-----.---------- 45
Walhamson, dhieut-: iixplorationiof==22 2.226 22 a= aac = eae eae 43
Wind; Observations on Direction of2= 2-222 2 5222422 o2e Sen Se ee ee ee eee 232
Force of....-------------------------------------- 233
Wind-vane, Description and Directions for use of..-------------------- 5208 231
Whrcht, Charles:Collections*made by 2. s5sss-5sc sen ee ee eee 47
Wiurdemann, Gustavus, Collections ‘made by. 22-2 cee- es cesdoe ee eee tence 44
Wyman, Prof..Js; Special- Research sby2.<-.ssse0 st Saat Se. Se eee 32
Ayam Uistatetete ee oe eee em ee eee eee ee eae a ee ee ee 10, 77,79
Vanardini, M., cixchange of Ales proposed!) byssseesces se eeeest eee seees oe ays
Zoology of. Ilinois,Collection: to. Wlustrate.—. - 5. oes csetnoe= See eee = 33
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347TH ConGRESs, SENATE. Mis. Doo,
3d Session. No. 54,
/AL L REPORT
fy Lf
oa
\
SMITHSONTAN INSTEPUTION,
SHOWING THE ee
OPERATIONS, EXPENDITURES, AND CONDITION OF THE
INSTITUTION, FOR THE YEAR 1856.
AND THE
PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD UP TO JANUARY 28, 1857.
WASHINGTON:
A. 0, P, NICHOLSON, PRINTER.
1857.
44, Ne a ry Pa i py
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es
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LETTER
SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
COMMUNICATING
The Annual Report of the Board of Regents.
Frsrvary 28, 1857.—Read and ordered to be printed.
Marcu 3, 1857 —Ordered, That ten thousand additional copies of the Report of the Board of
Regents of the Smithsonian Institution, for the year 1856, be printed; two thousand flve
hundred of which shall be for the use of the Smithsonian Institution.
SMITHSONIAN InstTITUTION,
Washington, February 17, 1857.
Sir: In behalf of the Board of Regents, I have the honor to submit
to the House of Representatives of the United States the Annual
Report of the operations, expenditures, and condition of the Smith-
sonian Institution for the year 1856.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
JOSEPH HENRY,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
Hon, Jas. M. Mason,
President Senate United States.
ANNUAL REPORT
BOARD OF REGENTS
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
THE OPERATIONS, EXPENDITURES, AND CONDITION OF THE INSTITUTION, UP TO JANUARY
1, 1857, AND THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD UP TO JANUARY 28, 1857.
To the Senate and House of Representatives :
In obedience to the act.of Congress of August 10, 1846, establishing
the Smithsonian Institution, the undersigned, in behalf of the Regents,
submit to Congress, as a Report of the operations, expenditures, and
condition of the Institution, the following documents:
1. The Annual Report of the Secretary, giving an account of the
operations of the Institution during the year 1856.
2. Report of the Executive Committee, giving a general statement
of the proceeds and disposition of the Smithsonian fund, and also an
account of the expenditures for the year 1856.
3. Report of the Building Committee for 1856.
4, Proceedings of the Board of Regents up to January 28, 1857.
5. Appendix.
Respectfully submitted :
R. B. TANEY, Chancellor.
JOSEPH HENRY, Secretary.
OFFICERS OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
JAMES BUCHANAN, x officio Presiding Officer of the Institution.
ROGER B. TANEY, Chancellor of the Institution.
JOSEPH HENRY, Secretary of the Institution.
SPENCER F. BAIRD, Assistant Secretary.
W. W. SEATON, Treasurer.
WILLIAM J. RHEES, Chief Clerk.
ALEXANDER D. BACHE,
JAMES A. PEARCE, Executive Committee,
JOSEPH G. TOTTEN,
J
RICHARD RUSH, }
WILLIAM H. ENGLISH, Building Committee.
JOSEPH HENRY,
REGENTS OF THE INSTITUTION.
JOHN C. BRECKENRIDGE, Vice President of the United States.
ROGER B. TANEY, Chief Justice of the United States.
WM. B. MAGRUDER, Mayor of the City of Washington.
JAMES A. PEARCH, member of the Senate of the United States.
JAMES M. MASON, member of the Senate of the United States.
STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS, member of the Senate of the United States.
WILLIAM H. ENGLISH, member of the House of Representatives.
HIRAM WARNER, member of the House of Representatives.
BENJAMIN STANTON, member of the House of Representatives.
GIDEON HAWLEY, citizen of New York.
RICHARD RUSH, citizen of Pennsylvania.
GEORGE E. BADGER, citizen of North Carolina.
CORNELIUS C. FELTON, citizen of Massachusetts,
ALEXANDER D. BACHE, citizen of Washington.
JOSEPH G. TOTTEN, citizen of Washington.
MEMBERS EX OFFICIO OF THE INSTITUTION.
JAMES BUCHANAN, President of the United States.
JOHN C. BRECKENRIDGE, Vice President of the United States.
LEWIS CASS, Secretary of State.
HOWELL COBB, Secretary of the Treasury.
JOHN B. FLOYD, Secretary of War.
ISAAC TOUCEY, Secretary of the Navy.
AARON V. BROWN, Postmaster General.
JAMES BLACK, Attorney General.
ROGER B. TANEY, Chief Justice of the United States.
CHARLES MASON, Commissioner of Patents.
WM. B. MAGRUDER, Mayor of the City of Washington.
HONORARY MEMBERS.
ROBERT HARE, of Pennsylvania.
WASHINGTON IRVING, of New York
BENJAMIN SILLIMAN, of Connecticut,
PARKER CLEAVELAND, of Maine.
A. B. LONGSTREET, of Mississippie’
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION
OF THE
Soa lTHSONTAN INSTITU Tine
[PRESENTED IN THE FIRST ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SEURETARY, AND
ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF REGENTS, DECEMBER 13, 1847.]
INTRODUCTION.
General considerations which should serve as a guide in adopting a
Plan of Organization.
1. Witt of Suiruson. The property is bequeathed to the United
States of America, ‘‘ to found at Washington, under the name of the
SMITHSONIAN [NsTITUTION, an establishment for the increase and diffu-
sion of knowledge among men.”’
2. The bequest is for the benefit of mankind. The government of
the United States is merely a trustee to carry out the design of the
testator. .
3. The Institution is not a national establishment, as is frequently
supposed, but the establishment of an individual, and is to bear and
perpetuate his name.
4, The objects of the Institution are, Ist, to increase, and 2d, to
diffuse knowledge among men.
5. These two objects should not be cenfounded with one another.
The first is to enlarge the existing stock of knowledge by the addi-
tion of new truths; and the second, to disseminate knowledge, thus
increased, among men.
6. The will makes no restriction in favor of any particular kind of
knowledge ; hence all branches are entitled to a share of attention.
7. Knowledge can be increased by different methods of facilitating
and promoting the discovery of new truths ; and can be most exten-
sively diffused among men by means of the press.
8. To effect the greatest amount of good, the organization should
be such as to enable the Institution to produce results, in the way of
increasing and diffusing knowledge, which cannot be produced either
at all or so efficiently by the existing institutions in our country.
9. The organization should also be such as can be adopted provi-
sionally, can be easily reduced to practice, receive modifications, or be
abandoned, in whole or in part, without a sacrifice of the funds.
10. In order to compensate, in some measure, for the loss of time
occasioned by the delay of eight years in establishing the institution,
8 PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION.
a considerable portion of the interest which has accrued should be
added to the principal.
11. In proportion to the wide field of knowledge to be cultivated,
the funds are small. Economy should therefore be consulted in the
construction of the building ; and not only the first cost of the edifice
should be considered, but also the continual expense of keeping it in
repair, and of the support of the establishment necessarily connected
with it. There should also be but few individuals permanently sup-
ported by the Institution.
12. The plan and dimensions of the building should be determined
by the plan of the organization, and not the converse.
13. It should be recollected that mankind in general are to be bene-
fited by the bequest, and that, therefore, all unnecessary expenditure
on local objects would be a perversion of the trust.
14. Besides the foregoing considerations, deduced immediately from
the will of Smithson, regard must be had to certain requirements of
the act of Congress establishing the Institution. These are, a library,
a museum, and a gallery of art, with a building on a liberal scale to
contain them.
SECTION I.
Plan of Organization of the Institution in accordance with the forego-
ing deductions from the Will of Smithson.
To IncrEASE Know.eper. It is proposed—
1. To stimulate men of talent to make original researches, by offer
ing suitable rewards for memoirs containing new truths; and,
9. To appropriate annually a portion of the income for particular
researches, under the direction of suitable persons.
To Dirruse Knowiepexr. It is proposed—
1. To publish a series of periodical reports on the progress of the
different branches of knowledge; and,
2. To publish occasionally separate treatises on subjects of general
interest.
DETAILS OF THE PLAN TO INCREASE KNOWLEDGE.
I, By stimulating researches.
1. Facilities afforded for the production of original memoirs on all
branches of knowledge.
2. The memoirs thus obtained to be published in a series of volumes,
siete quarto form, and entitled Smithsonian Contributions to Know-
edge.
3. No memoir, on subjects of physical science, to be accepted for
publication, which does not furnish a positive addition to human
knowledge, resting on original research ; and all unverified specula-
tions to be rejected.
4. Each memoir presented to the Institution to be submitted or
examination to a commission of persons of reputation for learning in
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION. 9
the branch to which the memoir pertains; and to be accepted for
publication only in case the report of this commission is favorable.
5. The commission to be chosen by the officers of the Institution,
and the name of the author, as far as practicable, concealed, unless a
favorable decision be made.
6. The volumes of the memoirs to be exchanged for the Transactions
of literary and scientific societies, and copies to be given to all the
colleges, and principal libraries, in this country. One part of the
remaining copies may be offered for sale; and the other carefully
preserved, to form complete sets of the work, to supply the demand
from new institutions.
7. An abstract, or popular account, of the contents of these memoirs
to be given to the public through the annual report of the Regents
to Congress.
Il. By appropriating a part of the income, annually, to special objects
of research, under the direction of suitable persons,
1. The objects, and the amount appropriated, to be recommended
by counsellors of the Institution.
2. Appropriations in different years to different objects; so that
in course of time each branch of knowledge may receive a share.
3. The results obtained from these appropriations to be published,
with the memoirs before mentioned, in the volumes of the Smithso-
nian Contributions to Knowledge.
4. Examples of objects for which appropriations may be made.
(1.) System of extended meteorological observations for solving the
problem of American storms.
(2.) Explorations in descriptive natural history, and geological,
magnetical, and topographical surveys, to collect materials for the
formation of a Physical Atlas of the United States.
(3.) Solution of experimental problems, such as a new determina-
tion of the weight of the earth, of the velocity of electricity, and of
light; chemical analyses of soils and plants; collection and publica-
tion of scientific facts, accumulated in the offices of government.
(4.) Institution of statistical inquiries with reference to physical,
moral, and political subjects.
(5.) Historical researches, and accurate surveys of places celebrated
in American history.
(6.) Ethnological researches, particularly with reference to the
different races of men in North America; also, explorations and ac-
curate surveys of the mounds and other remains of the ancient people
of our country.
DETAILS OF THE PLAN FOR DIFFUSING KNOWLEDGE.
I, By the publication of a series of reports, giving an account of the
new discoveries in science, and of the changes made from year to year
in all branches of knowledge not strictly professional.
1. These reports will diffuse a kind of knowledge generally in-
teresting, but which, at present, is inaccessible to the public. Some
10 PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION,
of the reports may be published annually, others at longer intervals,
as the income of the Institution or the changes in the branches of
knowledge may indicate.
2. The reports are to be prepared by collaborators, enon in the
different branches of knowledge.
3. Each collaborator to be furnished with the journals and publica-
tions, domestic and foreign, necessary to the compilation of his report;
to be paid a certain sum for his labors, and to be named on the title-
page of the report.
4. The reports to be published in separate parts, so that persons
interested in a particular branch can procure the parts relating to it
without purchasing the whole.
5. These reports may be presented to Congress, for partial distri-
bution, the remaining copies to be given to literary and scientific
institutions, and sold to individuals for a moderate price.
The plows are some of the subjects which may be embraced in
the reports :*
I. PHYSICAL CLASS.
1. Physics, including astronomy, natural philosophy, chemistry,
and meteorology.
2. Natural history, including botany, zoology, geology, &e.
3. Agriculture.
4, Application of science to arts.
II. MORAL AND POLITICAL CLASS.
5. Ethnology, including particular history, comparative philology,
antiquities, &c.
6. Statistics and political economy.
7. Mental and moral philosophy.
8. A survey of the political events of the world ; penal reform, &c.
Ill. LITERATURE AND THE FINE ARTS.
9. Modern literature
10. The fine arts, and their application to the useful arts.
11. Bibliography.
12. Obituary notices of distinguished individuals.
Il. By the publication of separate treatises on subjects of general interest.
1. These treatises may occasionally consist of valuable memoirs
translated from foreign languages, or of articles prepared under the
direction of the Institution, or procured by offering premiums for the
best exposition of a given subject.
2. The treatises should, in all cases, be submitted to a commission
of competent judges, previous to their publication.
* This part of the plan has been but partially carried out.
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION. lH
3. As examples of these treatises, expositions may be obtained of
the present state of the several branches of knowledge mentioned in
the table of reports.
SECTION II.
Plan of organization, in accordance with the terms of the resolutions of
the Board of Regents providing for the two modes of increasing and
diffusing knowledge.
1. The act of Congress establishing the Institution contemplated
the formation of a library and a museum; and the Board of Regents,
including these objects in the plan of organization, resolved to divide
the income* into two equal parts.
2. One part to be appropriated to increase and diffuse knowledge
by means of publications and researches, agreeably to the scheme
before given. The other part to be appropriated to the formation of
a library and a collection of objects of nature and of art.
3. These two plans are not incompatible with one another.
4, To carry out the plan before described, a library will be required,
consisting, Ist, of a complete collection of the transactions and pro-
ceedings of all the learned societies in the world; 2d, of the more
important current periodical publications, and other works necessary
in preparing the periodical reports.
5. The Institution should make special collections, particularly ot
objects to illustrate and verify its own publications.
6. Also, a collection of instruments of research in all branches ot
experimental science.
7. With reference to the collection of books, other than those men-
tioned above, catalogues of all the different libraries in the United
States should be procured, in order that the valuable books first pur-
chased may be such as are not to be found in the United States.
8. Also, catalogues of memoirs, and of books and other materials,
should be collected for rendering the Institution a centre of biblio-
graphical knowledge, whence the student may be directed to any work
which he may require.
9. It is believed that the collections in natural history will increase
by donation as rapidly as the income of the Institution can make pro-
vision for their reception, and, therefore, it will seldom be necessary
to purchase articles of this kind.
10. Attempts should be made to procure for the gallery of art, casts
of the most celebrated articles of ancient and modern sculpture.
11. The arts may be encouraged by providing a room, free of ex-
pense, for the exhibition of the objects of the Art-Union and other
similar societies.
the United States is FR ek conte ol, See eee aa eer, 2 eer ee em Ae $515,169 00
Interest on the same to July 1, 1846, (devoted to the erection of the
PUMGING Vex sy La eee See eee eae waeeacena a scae aes 242,129 00
Annual incontesironith éibequestwee. goes 22. Sele ee A. 30,910 14
12 PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION,
12. A small appropriation should annually be made for models of
antiquities, such as those of the remains of ancient temples, &c.
13. For the present, or until the building is fully completed, be-
sides the Secretary, no permanent assistant will be required, except
one, to act as librarian.
14. The Secretary, by the law of Congress, is alone responsible to
the Regents. He shall take charge of the building and property,
keep a record of proceedings, discharge the duties of librarian and
keeper of the museum, and may, with the consent of the Regents,
employ assistants.
15. The Secretary and his assistants, during the session of Congress,
will be required to illustrate new discoveries in science, and to exhibit
new objects of art; distinguished individuals should also be invited to
give lecturés on subjects of general interest.
This programme, which was at first adopted provisionally, has be-
come the settled policy of the Institution. The only material change
is that expressed by the following resolutions, adopted January 15,
1855, viz:
Resolved, That the 7th resolution passed by the Board of Regents,
on the 26th of January, 1847, requiring an equal division of the in-
come between the active operations and the museum and library,
when the buildings are completed, be and it is hereby repealed.
Resolved, That hereafter the annual appropriations shall be appor-
tioned specifically among the different objects and operations of the
Institution, in such manner as may, in the judgment of the Regents,
be necessary and proper for each, according to its intrinsic import-
ance, and a comphance in good faith with the law.
REPORT OF THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE.*
The following is the report presented in the Senate on the 6th Feb-
ruary, 1855, by Judge Butler, from the Committee on the Judiciary,
to whom was referred the inquiry whether any, and if any, what, ac-
tion of the Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithso-
nian Institution :
‘<Tt seems to be the object of the resolution to require the committee
to say whether, in its opinion, the Regents of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution have given a fair and proper construction, within the range
of discretion allowed to them, to the acts of Congress putting into
operation the trust which Mr. Smithson had devolved on the federal
government. As the trust has not been committed to a legal corpo-
ration subject to judicial jurisdiction and control, it must be regarded
as the creature of congressional legislation. It is a naked and hon-
* Messrs. Butler, Toucey, Bayard, Geyer, Pettit, and Toombs.
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION. 13
orable trust, without any profitable interest in the government that
has undertaken to carry out the objects of the benevolent testator.
The obligations of good faith require that the bequest should be main-
tained in the spirit in which it was made. The acts of Congress on
this subject were intended to effect this end, and the question pre-
sented is this: Have the Regents done their duty according to the
requirements of the acts of Congress on the subject ?
‘¢In order to determine whether any, and if any, what, action of
the Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithsonian In-
stitution, it is necessary to examine what provisions Congress have
already made on the subject, and whether they have been faithfully
carried into execution.
‘The money with which this Institution has been founded was be-
queathed to the United States by James Smithson, of London, to
found at Washington, under the name of the ‘Smithsonian Institu-
tion,’ an establishment ‘ for the increase and diffusion of knowledge
among men.’ It is not bequeathed to the United States to be used
for their own benefit and advantage only, but in trust to apply to
‘the increase and diffusion of knowledge’ among mankind generally,
so that other men and other nations might share in its advantage as
well as ourselves.
‘‘ Congress accepted the trust, and by the act of August 10, 1846,
established an institution to carry into effect the intention of the tes-
tator. The language of the will left a very wide discretion in the
manner of executing the trust, and different opinions might very nat-
urally be entertained on the subject. And it is very evident by the
law above referred to that Congress did not deem it advisable to pre-
scribe any definite and fixed plan, and deemed it more proper to con-
fide that duty to a Board of Regents, carefully selected, indicating
only in general terms the objects to which their attention was to be
directed in executing the testator’s intention.
“‘Thus, by the fifth section, the Regents were required to cause a
building to be erected of sufficient size, and with suitable rooms or
halls, for the reception and arrangement, upon a liberal scale, of ob-
jects of natural history, including a geological and mineralogical
cabinet ; also a chemical laboratory, a library, a gallery of art, and
the necessary lecture-rooms. It is evident that Congress intended by
these provisions that the funds of the institution should be applied to
increase knowledge in all of the branches of science mentioned in this
section—in objects of natural history, in geology, in mineralogy, in
chemistry, in the arts—and that lectures were to be delivered upon
such topics as the Regents might deem useful in the execution of the
trust. And publications by the institution were undoubtedly neces-
sary to diffuse generally the knowledge that might be obtained ; for
any increase of knowledge that might thus be acquired was not to be
locked up in the institution or preserved only for the use of the citi-
zens of Wagehington, or persons who might visit the institution. It
was by the express terms of the trust, which the United States was
pledged to execute, to be diffused among men. This could be done
in no other way than by publications at the expense of the Institu-
tion. Nor has Congress prescribed the sums which shall be appro-
14 PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION.
priated to these different objects. It is left to the discretion and judg-
ment of the Regents.
‘¢ The fifth section also requires a library to be formed, and the eighth
section provides that the Regents shall make from the interest an ap-
propriation, not exceeding an average of twenty-five thousand dol-
lars annually, for the gradual formation of a library composed of val-
uable works pertaining to all departments of human knowledge.
‘‘ But this section cannot, by any fair construction of its language,
be deemed to imply that any appropriation to that amount, or nearly
so, was intended to be required. It is not a direction to the Regents
to apply that sum, but a prohibition to apply more ; and it leaves it
to the Regents to decide what amount within the sum limited can be
advantageously applied to the library, having a due regard to the
other objects enumerated in the law.
‘‘ Indeed the eighth section would seem to be intended to prevent the
absorption of the funds of the Institution in the purchase of books.
And there would seem to be sound reason for giving it that construc-
tion ; for such an application of the funds could hardly be regarded as
a faithful execution of the trust; for the collection of an immense
library at Washington would certainly not tend ‘to increase or dif
fuse knowledge’ in any other country, not even among the country-
men of the testator ; very few even of the citizens of the United States
would receive any benefit from it. And if the money was to be so ap-
propriated, it would have been far better to buy the books and place
them at once in the Congress library. They would be more accepta-
ble to the public there, and it would have saved the expense of a costly
building and the salaries of the officers ; yet nobody would have listened
to such a proposition, or consented that the United States should take
to itself and for its own use the money which they accepted as a trust
for ‘the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.’
<< This is the construction which the Regents have given to the acts
of Congress, and, in the opinion of the committee, it is the true one;
and, acting under it, they have erected a commodious building, given
their attention to all the branches of science mentioned in the law, to
the full extent of the means afforded by the fund of the Institution,
and have been forming a library of choice and valuable books, amount-
ing already to more than fifteen thousand volumes. The books are,
for the most part, precisely of the character calculated to carry out the
intentions of the donor of the fund and of the act of Congress. They
are chiefly composed of works published by or under the auspices of
the numerous institutions of Europe which are engaged in scientific
pursuits, giving an account of their respective researches and of new dis-
coveries whenever they are made. These works are sent to the ‘Smith-
sonian Institution,’ in return for the publications of this Institution,
which are transmitted to the learned societies and establishments abroad.
The library thus formed, and the means by which it is accomplished,
are peculiarly calculated to attain the object for which the munificent
legacy was given in trust to the United States. The publication of
the results of scientific researches made by the institution is calculated
to stimulate American genius, and at the same time enable it to bring
before the public the fruits of its labors. And the transmission of
PROGRAMME OF ORGANIZATION. 15
these publications to the learned societies in Europe, and receiving in
return the fruits of similar researches made by them, givesto each the
benefit of the ‘increase of knowledge’ which either may obtain, and
at the same time diffuses it throughout the civilized world. The
library thus formed will contain books suitable to the present state of
scientific knowledge, and will keep pace with its advance; and it is
certainly far superior to a vast collection of expensive works, most of
which may be found in any public library, and many of which are mere
objects of curiosity or amusement, and seldom, if ever, opened by any
one engaged in the pursuits of science.
‘“'These operations appear to have been carried out by the Regents,
under the immediate superintendence of Professor Henry, with zeal,
energy, and discretion, and with the strictest regard to economy in
the expenditure of the funds. Nor does there seem to be any other
mode which Congress could prescribe or the Regents adopt which
would better fulfil the high trust which the United States have under-
taken to perform. No fixed and immutable plan prescribed by law
or adopted by the Regents would attain the objects of the trust. It
was evidently the intention of the donor that it should be carried into
execution by an institution or establishment, as it is termed in his
will. Congress has created one, and given it ample powers, but di-
recting its attention particularly to the objects enumerated in the
law ; and it is the duty of that Institution to avail itself of the lights
of experience, and to change its plan of operations when they are con-
vinced that a different one will better accomplish the objects of the
trust. The Regents have done so, and wisely, for the reasons above
stated. The committee see nothing, therefore, in their conduct which
calls for any new legislation or any change in the powers now exer-
cised by the Regents.
“For many of the views‘and statements in the foregoing report the
committee are indebted to the full and luminous reports of the Board
of Regents. From the views entertained by the committee, after an
impartial examination of the proceedings referred to, the committee
have adopted the language of the resolution, ‘ that no action of the
Senate is necessary and proper in regard to the Smithsonian Institu-
tion ; and this ts the wnanimous opinion of the committee.’ ”’
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REPORT OF THE SECRETARY FOR 1856.
To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution:
GrntieMEN: The report of the operations of the year which has just
closed may be considered as completing the first decade of the history
of the establishment entrusted to your care. The act incorporating
the Institution was approved by the President, August 20, 1846, and
the first session of the Board of Regents was commenced on the 7th of
the following September. It was, however, principally occupied in
discussions relative to the plan of organization, which was not adopted
until the beginning of 1847; and hence, although this report will be
the eleventh, yet, in reality, it completes the account of but little
more than the operations of ten years. It may therefore be proper,
on the present occasion, to present in review a few of the prominent
points in the history of the Institution.
In the beginning of an establishment of this kind, intended to last
as long as the government of the United States shall endure, it was
more important that every step should be in the proper direction, than
that great advances should be made, The condition of an institution
after a given time is to be estimated by what it has done well, rather
than by the amount of what it has accomplished. Activity impro-
perly directed is worse than inaction, and a wrong step at the com-
mencement may produce effects which will be injuriously felt during
the whole succeeding career.
From the outset there were many obstacles in the way of the proper
establishment of this Institution. It was not clear to the minds of
many that the general government had the power to accept a trust
intended for the promotion of knowledge; and after this point was
settled in the affirmative, a new difficulty arose in construing the will.
The bequest was of so novel a character, and the terms in which it
was expressed so brief, though precise, that much difference of opinion
naturally prevailed as to the intention of the donor and the means of
Carrying it into execution. Another difficulty grew out of the manner
28
18 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
in which the funds were invested; and from these causes it was not
until after a delay of eight years that the law which organized the
Institution was enacted. Congress, it is true, intended in good faith
to compensate for this delay by granting interest on the fund from the
time the money was received into the treasury of the United States ;
but, unfortunately, the whole of this accrued interest, and as much of
the annual income as might be thought necessary, were by the au-
thority of law appropriated to a building of a magnitude incommen-
surate with the means or wants.of the establishment. The adminis-
tration of the trust was given in charge to a Board of Regents, whose
special duty it was to study the character of the bequest with more
attention than it had previously received. They were not, however,
left entirely free to adopt such a plan as after mature deliberation
they might think best fitted to carry out the intention of the donor,
but were directed to include in the organization several objects which,
in the opinion of a majority of the Board, were not in accordance with
a strict interpretation of the will, or with the annual income of the
bequest.
The founder of the Institution was a man of liberal education, a
graduate of Oxford, an active member of the Royal Society, and de-
voted, during a long life, to original scientific research. Not content
with the acquisition of ordinary learning, he sought by his own labors
to enlarge the bounds of existing knowledge. Well acquainted with
the precise meaning of words, while he left the mode of accom-
plishing his benevolent design to the trustees whom he had chosen,
he specified definitely the object of his bequest. In consideration of
his character, as evinced by his life, there can be no reasonable doubt
that he intended by the terms ‘‘an establishment for the increase and
diffusion of knowledge among men,’’ an institution to promote the
discovery of new truths, and the diffusion of these to every part of the
civilized world. This view, however, was not at first entertained, and
various plans, founded on misconceptions, were proposed for the or-
ganization of the Institution. The most prominent of these proposi-
tions were, first, to found a national university which should be
supplementary to the colleges of the country; secondly, to diffuse
popular information among the people of the United States by the
distribution of tracts; thirdly, to establish at the seat of government
a large library; and fourthly, a national museum. Though these
propositions embraced objects of high importance in themselves, and
probably affected the legislation of Congress, they did not embody the
prominent ideas of the testator. They were restricted in their influ-
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 19
ence to this country, confined to a limited diffusion of existing know-
ledge, and made no provision for new discoveries.
Fortunately the Board of Regents, with more precise knowledge of
the subject and with more liberal views, after much deliberation,
were enabled to adopt a plan of organization, which, while it pro-
vided for the requirements of Congress, presented as its most promi-
nent feature the promotion of original research in the various branches
of science,
Although the directors have had to contend with popular miscon-
ceptions and with opposition from other sources in carrying out this
plan, it has constantly been adhered to, and by its means a reputa-
tion has been established and an influence exerted in the line of
the promotion of knowledge as wide as the civilized world. All
the requirements of Congress have been strictly complied with, a
building, making provision on a liberal scale for a library, a museum,
a gallery of art, lectures, &c., has been erected at a cost of 325,000
dollars; and this sum, by prolonging the time of completing the
building, has been paid entirely out of the interest. The whole
amount of the original bequest, 515,000 dollars, remains untouched
in the Treasury of the United States; and in order to assist in defray-
ing the heavy annual expense of the support of the establishment
necessarily connected with so large an edifice, the sum of 125,000
dollars has been saved from the income and added to the principal.
A library has been established, unrivaled in its series of the trans-
actions of learned societies, and containing nearly 50,000 articles; a
museum has been collected, the most extensive in the world, as regards
the natural history of the North American continent; a cabinet of
apparatus has been procured through the liberality of Dr. Hare, and
other means sufficient to illustrate the principal phenomena of chem-
istry and natural philosophy, as well as to serve the purpose of origi-
nal research ; and an annual series of lectures have been given to
large audiences by some of the most distinguished scientific and
literary individuals in the United States.
Although economy and forethought have been observed in providing
for these objects, they have absorbeda considerable portion of the income,
and lessened the amount of good which might have been accomplished
by a policy of a more truly cosmopolitan character. They have, how-
ever, as far as possible, been made subservient to the direct promotion
of knowledge ; and in this behalf, notwithstanding its limited means,
the Institution has accomplished much that is important.
20 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
It has published a large series of original papers on the following
branches of science, namely on
Wathomaticsiand) (Physics. 6766. .5.20) 1. .thteseneenetee cases en tyainoneaag 4
MST ODO WIG, Shiels. a POC eh a Shcihep AF act ocan = prees osenearscmaaaat ctetars eh enpaee 14
Misteanp Gry. fiawelsy, tees hoe onar eaten res sosecenecga pembecemesttastek eter 5
Chimaptry and) Pechnolowys Si) 22....c..4 sseccstanmesorte seeps cnetie veges 2
Geography, Ethnology and Philology... 2.0... cic. i cccesegeesnsesenns 11
Microscopical rience, Wee. Nels). dhs aecett eee centers sentient 4
Zoolesy. ane JEM OO Ry ce co, 082 2h Yad. aa teen oe ee are edna 8
BRO ESIY cles Sheeran thine ad alee, Be dS Re ed a T
PAP POMOlO Sys. -p ccasioc cash «puideleddeds den seodaioe sacttess nance teeeay secon maemnre 4
NS a. ii wd cbtonph tuenet. oncaeid disie Sebald gi id Cha RA Se INS ca i 1
MigcelTaneous.......avsistesis. ost acd aack stisombaseaendeieh cesses ey «chee ahenwem if
MBAR O Tie ee ies ccdee so ese sdlencosion eaceiesaigecagstncaseteneene: see meteannts 71
Not only have these memoirs been published and distributed at the
expense of the Institution, but the production of most of them has
been facilitated by assistance rendered by its funds, its library, its
collections, and its influence. “They are not mere essays or compila-
tions relative to previously known and established truths, intended to
diffuse popular information among the people of the United States,
but positive additions to the sum of human knowledge, presented in a
form best fitted for the student and the teacher, and designed through
them to improve the condition of man generally. Though in some
cases they may appear to have no connexion with his wants, yet they
are really essential to his mental, moral, or physical development.
Every well established truth is an addition to the sum of human
power, and though it may not find an immediate application to the
economy of every day life, we may safely commit it to the stream of
time, in the confident anticipation that the world will not fail to
realize its beneficial results. Weare assured, as we have said before,
both from the example of Smithson himself, and from the words convey-
ing the intention of his bequest, that the promotion of the discovery of
such truths was his principal design in founding the Institution which
is to perpetuate and honor hisname. Copies of the published memoirs
are sent to all the first-class libraries of the civilized world, and in
this way the idea of ‘‘ diffusion of knowledge among men”’ has been
most effectually realized. Besides the memoirs referred to, a large
number of important reports and miscellaneous papers have been
published.
REPOK! vi THE SECRETARY. 21
Natural history explorations have been made at the expense of the
government, but principaily at the instance and under the scientific
direction of this Institution, which have done more to develop a
knowledge of the peculiar character of the western portions of this
continent than all previous researches on the subject. A system
of exchange is now in successful operation, connecting in friendly
relations the cultivators of literature and science in this country, with
their brethren in every part of the Old World. A large amount of
valuable material has been collected with regard to the meteorology
of the North American continent, and a system of observations organ-
ized which, if properly conducted in future, will tend to establish a
knowledge of the peculiarities of our climate, and to develope the laws
of the storms which visit particularly the eastern portion of the
United States during the winter. A series of original researches have
been made in the Institution in regard to different branches of natural
history, and also to portions of physical science particularly applica-
ble to economical purposes.
In consideration of the difficulties with which the directors of the
Institution have had to contend, it will, I think, be generally ad-
mitted that more has been accomplished than, under the circum-
stances, could have reasonably been anticipated. Although several
steps may have been taken which were not in the proper direction,
the Regents can scarcely be considered responsible for these, since
they were not entirely free to choose their own course, but were obliged
to be governed by the provisions of the act of incorporation.
Whatever ground of doubt may have existed as to the authority of
Congress to accept the charge of the bequest, there ean be none as to
the obligation to.carry out the intention of the testator now that the
duty has been undertaken. The character of the government for justice
and intelligence is involved in the faithful and proper discharge of
the obligation assumed ; and this becomes a matter of graver import-
ance when it is considered that on the successful administration of the
affairs of this Institution depends the bestowment of other legacies of
a similar character intended for the good of men. If this Institution
should prove a failure, the loss would not be confined to the money
bequeathed by Smithson, but would involve the loss of confidence in
the management by public bodies of like trusts committed to their
care.
The adverse effects of the early and consequently imperfect legis-
22 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
lation ought, therefore, as far as possible, to be obviated ; and this
could readily be done, if Congress would relieve the Institution from
the care of a large collection of specimens principally belonging to
the government, and purchase the building to be used as a depository
of all the objects of natural history and the fine arts belonging to the
nation. If this were done, a few rooms would be sufficient for trans-
acting the business of the Institution, and a larger portion of the in-
come would be free to be applied to the more immediate objects of the
bequest. Indeed, it would be a gain to science could the Institution
give away the building for no other consideration than that of being
relieved from the costly charge of the collections; and, for the present,
it may be well to adopt the plan suggested in a late report of the Com-
missioner of Patents, namely, to remove the museum of the Exploring
Expedition, which now fills a large and valuable room in the Patent
Office, wanted for the exhibition of models, to the spacious hall of
the Institution, at present unoccupied, and to continue under the di-
rection of the Regents, the appropriation now annually made for the
preservation and display of the collections.
Although the Regents, a few years ago, declined to accept this
museum as a gift, yet, since experience has shown that the building
will ultimately be filled with objects of natural history belonging to
the general government, which, for the good of science, it will be
necessary to preserve, it may be a question whether, in consideration
of this fact, it would not be well to offer the use of the large room
immediately for a national museum, of which the Smithsonian Institu-
tion would be the mere curator, and the expense of maintaining which
should be paid by the general government. The cost of keeping the
museum of the Exploring Expedition, now in the Patent Office,
including heating, pay of watchmen, &c., is about $5,000, and if the
plan proposed is adopted, the Institution and the Patent Office will
both be benefitted. The burden which is now thrown on the Insti-
tution, of preserving the specimens which have been collected by the
different expeditions instituted by government during the last ten
years, will be at least in part removed, and the Patent Office will
acquire the occupancy of one of the largest rooms in its building for
the legitimate purposes of its establishment. It is believed that the
benefit from this plan is so obvious that no objection to it would be
made in Congress, and that it would meet the approbation of the
v ublic generally.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY, 23
”
Nothing has occurred during the past year to vary the character of
the financial statement which has been given in previous reports. By
a reference to the report of the Building Committee, it will be seen
that a final settlement has been made with the contractor, and, from
the statements of the Executive Committee, that $120,000 have been
invested in State stocks, bearing an annual interest of $7,830, and
that there is also in the hands of the Treasurer $5,000 to be invested.
During the present year the income from the extra fund can, for
the first time, be appropriated, at least in part, to other purposes than
the building. The repairs, however, the cases and furniture re-
quired for the care of the collections, together with the lighting and
heating, the pay of the watchman and laborers rendered necessary by
so large an establishment, will consume a considerable portion of the
income from this source. The expenditure on these items will tend
to increase rather than diminish with time, and therefore it will be
prudent to confine the appropriations considerably within the income,
in order to meet unforeseen demands.
No especial appropriation has yet been made by Congress for con-
tinuing the improvement of the grounds ; andit is to be regretted that
years should be suffered to pass without planting the trees which are in
the future to add to the beauty, health, and comfort of the metropolis of
the nation. Unjust censure is frequently bestowed on the Institution
on account of the neglected condition of these grounds, over which it
has no control, and on which it would manifestly be improper to ex-
pend any of its funds. No part of the public domain is more used
than the reservation on which the building stands, and I doubt not,
if the matter were properly brought before Congress, an appropriation
for the immediate supply of trees and its general improvement would
be granted.
During the past year a beautiful monument has been erected near
the Institution by the American Pomological Society, to the memory
of the lamented Downing. It is a just tribute to the worth of one of
the benefactors of our country, and affords an interesting addition to
the ornamental plan furnished by himself for the public parks of this
city. The adoption of this plan is in part due to the efforts of the Re-
gents in the way of embellishing the grounds around the Smithsonian
building.
24 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
Publications. —The eighth annual quarto volume of Contributions
to Knowledge has ben printed and distributed. It contains the fol-
lowing memoirs:
Archeology of the United States, or Sketches, Historical and Biblio-
graphical, of the progress of information and opinion respecting
vestiges of antiquity in the United States, by Samuel F’. Haven, Esq.
On the recent Secular Period of the Aurora Borealis, by Denison
Olmsted, L.L.D.
The Tangencies of Circles and of Spheres, by Major Benjamin
mivord, Wis. ‘A.
Researches, Chemical and Physiological, concerning certain North
American Vertebrata, by Joseph Jones, M.D.
Record of Auroral Phenomena, observed in the higher northern
latitudes, by Peter Force, Esq.
List of the transactions of learned societies in the library of the
Smithsonian Institution.
An account has been given of all the articles published in the 8th
volume, with the exception of the paper of Dr. Jones. The investi-
gations recorded in this memoir were made by an under graduate of
the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania, and were
accepted for publication on the authority of Professors Jackson and
Leidy of that institution. The experiments were made on alligators,
terrapins, reptiles, fishes, and other animals. They were necessarily
attended with much labor and many embarrassments, on account of
the peculiar habits of the animals on which they were made, and the
difficulty of access to, and the miasmatic condition of, the localities
whence the specimens were obtained. The investigations were, for
the most part, conducted in Liberty county, Georgia, where the author
had an opportunity of obtaining fresh specimens of vertebrate animals
seldom enjoyed by previous observers ; and the industry and zeal which
he has exhibited in prosecuting his researches are highly commenda-
ble, particularly in the case of an under graduate of one of our medical
universities.
The memoir is divided into a series of chapters, the first and second
of which relate to the analysis of the blood of animals in the normal
condition ; the third and fourth to the physical and chemical changes
in the solids and fluids of animals when deprived of food and drink,
and also the effects of a change of diet. The remaining chapters pre-
sent a series of observations upon the alimentary canal, the compara-
tive anatomy and physiology of the pancreas, liver, spleen, the kid-
neys, andthe urine. The following are among the conclusions arrived
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 25
at by the author ; and though some of them may have been previously
obtained, yet they will serve even in these cases to verify the results
of other investigations.
The amount of water in the blood is greatest in the invertebrata.
Among vertebrate animals it is greatest in fishes and aquatic reptiles,
and least in serpents, birds, and mammals. It would appear, asa
general law, that as the organs of the animal are developed, and the
temperature and intellect correspondingly increased, the blood be-
comes richer in organic constituents. The blood of serpents, at first
sight, appears to form an exception to this conclusion; the larger
amount of solid matter existing in their blood is, however, accounted
for by the fact that they seldom or never drink water, and as they
are constantly, though slowly, evaporating this fluid, the blood must
necessarily become concentrated and yield a larger quantity of solid
constituents upon analysis. The proportion of the constituents of the
blood of mammalia varies as much in individuals of the same species
as in those of remotely separated genera. In the invertebrate ani-
mals the number of blood corpuscles is very small in comparison with
that in the vertebrata. The fibrine constitutes a remarkable index of
the vital, organic, and intellectual endowments of animals. In the
whole of the invertebrate kingdom it is absent, except in a few of the
most highly organized. In the lower order of the vertebrata, as
fishes and batrachians, it is soft, unstable, and readily converted into
albumen. The proportion of fixed saline constituents in the blood ig
remarkably uniform throughout the whole animal kingdom. Among
the vertebrate animals the greatest amount of mineral constituents
is found in fishes and reptiles inhabiting the salt water. In every
instance during abstinence from nourishment, the water of the blood
diminishes more rapidly than the solid portions. The rapidity of the
consumption of the watery element, and the consequent concentration
of blood, is connected with the vital and physical condition of the ani-
mal, being more rapid in the case of those of warm blood. The cor-
puscles waste during starvation, as well as the other components, thus
proving that they have an important office to fulfil in the support of
the tissues and organs of the living animal. The fibrine relatively
increases during starvation and thirst. The fat of the body wastes
more rapidly than any other of the tissues. The continuance of life of
the animal during starvation and thirst is inversely proportional to the
rapidity of change of its elements, and, as a necessary consequence, to
its temperature and organic development. The relative weight of the
heart to that of the body was found proportionably smaller in fishes
Zo REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
and larger in birds than in other animals. The blood lost during
starvation was rapidly restored with vegetable diet, its solid constitu-
ents, however, were less with the latter than with animal food. The
proportion between the blood corpuscles and liquor sanguinis was not
altered, though the saline constituents were diminished with a vegeta-
ble diet. In many instances the shells of the terrapins became softer,
and the effect of a change of diet was also exhibited in the digestive
organs. The small intestines were enlarged, and a much greater
amount of water was thrown into the circulation than in the case of
the use of animal food, and hence water, holding albumen in solution,
accumulated in the cellular tissues and serous cavities. The urine
was rendered more abundant, and its specific gravity and chemical re-
lations changed.
The remarkable difference which is known to exist between the
digestive apparatus of carnivorous and graminivorous animals, is eX-
hibited most strikingly in the comparative length of the alimentary
canal; for example, that of the common cat is five feet and a third in
length, while that of the sheep is eighty-eight feet.
Fishes afford the best means of studying the development of the
pancreas; the permanent forms which it assumes in them being but
the transient condition of its development during the growth of the
higher animals. This organ is found in carnivorous fishes, reptiles,
and mammalia, to be relatively much larger than in frugivorous and
eraminivorous animals. The pancreas of warm-blooded is larger than
that of cold-blooded carnivora. The opinion advanced by Bernard is
sustained, viz: that the office of the pancreas is to prepare fatty mat-
ter for absorption. The shape and appearance of the liver vary
greatly. The former appears to be determined by that of the animal
and its abdominal cavity. The size also varies, and on this point a
series of results are given as to the ratio of its weight to that of the
whole body. The livers of all animals, cold or warm-blooded, as far
as the author’s observations have extended, yield grape sugar, which
passes into the circulation and disappears in the lungs so long as nor-
mal respiration is maintained. In cold-blooded animals it is never a
healthy constituent of the urine; if a supply of oxygen be cut off, it
is accumulated in the blood and eliminated by the kidneys. The
spleen, which is absent from all invertebrate animals, varies in form,
size, and position in different reptiles. In the mammalia it is large,
and presents manifold diversities of form. It is smallest in birds and
ophidians, and largest in fishes and mammals. It appears to be an
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 27
organ of subordinate importance in the animal economy, and of its
real office the anatomist is still ignorant. Its function is not indis-
pensable to the maintenance of life.
The kidneys are excreting and not secreting organs; and the
amount and character of the excretions depend upon certain materials
in the blood. When the kidneys are excised, other membranes and
organs assume their office; and it is probable that in lower animals,
which are without this organ, its functions are performed by the
mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines. As far as the ob-
servations of the author extend, the kidneys are larger in carnivorous
than in other animals. The urine of fishes is difticult to be obtained,
the bladders are almost alwaysempty. The amount of urine excreted
by a warm-blooded animal is from forty to several hundred times that
furnished by a cold-blooded animal.
From this very brief exposition of the results obtained some idea
may be formed of the amount of labor bestowed on these investiga-
tions ; and whatever estimate may be formed of the speculations of
the author, there can be but one opinion as to the value of the facts
which he presents. :
The next article accepted since the date of the last report, and
which has been printed and partially distributed, will form a part
of the 9th volume. It is by J. D. Runkle, and is entitled, ‘‘ New
tables for determining the values of the co-efficients in the perturb-
ative function of planetary motions which depend upon the ratio of
‘the mean distances.’’? The object of these tables is to facilitate the
calculation of the places of the planets, and other astronomical re-
searches.
In determining the mutual action of any two planets in our solar
system, there are certain quantities, depending upon the ratio of the
mean distances of these bodies from the sun, which must first be com-
puted. The number of these quantities, and the labor necessary to
compute each one of them, makes this first step in the reduction of
the mutual action of the two planets to numbers, a serious work. But
when it is remembered that there are fifty planets already known,
and that others, especially among the asteroid group, are probably
still to be discovered, the desirableness of determining all these quan-
tities by some short and easy process cannot admit of question. The
tables just published by the Institution accomplish this desired end
with the greatest possible facility. Their use gives the same advan-
‘tage in the calculations to which they are applied that a table of
logarithms affords in arithmetical operations. The tedious labor of
28 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
computing these quantities for the old planets has already been per-
formed three or four times over—a labor which these tables would
have saved, and will save in the future for all the planets whose mean
distances are not at present sufficiently well known. The supplement
to the tables contains the qualities necessary in the computation of the
mutual perturbations of the eight principal planets ; and the supple-
ment continued, which will be published during the present year, will
contain the quantities which correspond to the asteroids. In order to
ensure accuracy in printing these tables, they have been stereotyped.
The work was referred to Prof. B. Peirce, of Harvard University, and
Capt. C. H. Davis, Superintendent of the American Nautical Almanac,
and it is published on their recommendation.
Another paper which has been accepted for publication, and is
now ready for distribution, is by Prof. Wolcott Gibbs, of New York,
and Dr. F. A. Genth, of Philadelphia, entitled ‘‘ Researches on the
Ammonia-cobalt bases.’’ It consists of a laborious series of investi-
gations relative to a very interesting part of chemistry. This memoir
is chiefly important from a theoretical point of view, though it will
probably be found to possess many important practical applications.
Chemists have long recognized the existence of a class of bodies called
bases, which possess the property of neutralizing acids, and of form-
ing with them what are commonly called salts. These bases are
usually oxides of metals, or of substances which play in combination
the part of metals. Thus the protoxide and sesquioxide of iron are
in this sense simple bases, while quinine, morphine, strychnine, &c.,
form examples of complex bases, or oxides of what chemists term
compound radicals. It usually happens that metals which belong to
the same natural family or group form oxides which have an analo-
gous constitution. Thus iron, manganese, chromium, cobalt, and
nickel all form sesquioxides as well as protoxides. The protoxides of
these metals are strong bases. The sesquioxides of chromium, iron,
and manganese are also bases, while those of cobalt and nickel rarely,
if ever, exhibit basic properties. Under these circumstances, it is very
interesting to find that the union of the sesquioxide of cobalt with a
few equivalents of ammonia, or of ammonia and deutoxide of nitrogen,
confers upon it the property of forming stable combinations with acids,
or, in other words, salts. In the memoir referred to, four distinct
classes of such compound bases are described. Of these, two are en-
tirely new, while the others had, up to this time, been very imper-
fectly investigated.
The bases described in the memoir are termed conjugate, from the
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY, 29
fact that they contain substances in a manner yoked together. Such
compounds are not altogether new, and chemists have long assumed
or admitted the existence of both conjugate acids and bases. In its
most general form, the idea of a conjugate body implies that two or
more substances are united in such a way that the properties of one
or two of these substances are lost or become insensible, while those
of another are more or less essentially modified. Thus the body A
may either increase or diminish the acid or basic properties of the
body B, but its own properties are at the same time lost, or at least
do not appear in those of the compound. The ammonia-cobalt bases
furnish the best defined and most instructive class of conjugate bodies
yet discovered, and have abundantly repaid the very great labor which
has been bestowed upon them. It can scarcely be doubted that their
study will give an impulse to chemical science, and will be followed
by that of other bodies of the same character. ‘The remarkably beau-
tiful and brilliant colors which many of these compounds exhibit lead
to the hope that some, at least, may find direct practical applications
indyeing. Drs. Gibbs and Genth propose to continue their researches,
and to present the fruits of an extended study in a second part of their
memoir.
This paper is illustrated by a number of wood engravings of the
forms of the crystals, drawn under the direction of Prof. Dana,
to whom the authors are indebted for the determination of the
systems to which many of the erystals belong, and of their principal
forms. They have also been furnished with facilities in the line of
their researches from the Smithsonian fund, which renders it proper
that the results should first appear in the ‘‘Contributions’’ of the In-
stitution, although the paper will probably be republished in some of
the scientific periodicals of the day.
In the reports for 1850 and 1852, accounts are given of a work
prepared for the Smithsonian Institution by Professor Harvey, of the
University of Dublin, on the Alge found along the eastern and south-
ern coasts of the United States. Two parts of this work have been
published, and have received the approbation of the scientific world,
In reference to the first part, I may be allowed to quote the follow-
ing remarks of the late Professor Forbes, of Edinburgh, than whom
no better authority could be cited:
‘‘ Professor Harvey is one of the ablest and most philosophical of
living botanists. His fame with the multitude is, however, very
small compared with the honor assigned to him by his scientifie
30 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
peers. * * * A more proper person than Professor Harvey could
not have been selected for the elaboration of a ‘Nereis Boreali-Ameri-
cana,’ and most honorable is it to the directors of the Smithsonian
Institution of North America that they should have selected this gen-
tleman for the task of which we have now the first fruits. The trus-
tees of that establishment are pursuing a course which is sure to do
much towards the wholesome development of science in the United
States. In the present instance they have done what is both wise and
generous, and, in seeking the best man to do the difficult work they
require done, have recognized nobly the truth that science belongs to
the world, to all mankind, laboring for the benefit of all regions and
races alike.”’
Professor Harvey has lately returned from an exploration around
the shores of the Pacific ocean, and has promised to complete the
third part of the work during the present year. It will include an
account of the Alge along the coasts of Oregon and California. The
labors of the author, including the drawings of the plants on the stone,
are entirely gratuitous ; yet the publication of the work is very ex_
pensive, and itis proposed to lessen the cost to the Institution by
striking off a number of extra copies for sale to individuals. This
may be done without risk, since a growing taste is manifested in the
study of this interesting branch of botany, and a number of copies
have already been ordered by booksellers.
The three papers mentioned in the report for 1855, on surface
geology, by Professor Hitchcock, are now in the press. By a reduc-
tion in the size, and a re-arrangement of the plates under the super-
intendence of Professor Baird, the cost of the publication of these
communications will be much diminished. The plates require to be
colored, and the reduction of expense, as well as an increased beauty
of effect, is produced by adopting the chromo-lithographic process. The
author proposes to apply to the legislature of Massachusetts for an
appropriation to purchase copies of this work as a supplement to his
report on the geology of that State.
Since the last meeting of the Board, the paper previously men-
tioned on the ‘‘ Relative Intensity of the Heat and Light of the Sun,
by L. W. Meech,’”’ has been published and partially distributed. The
following propositions are discussed in this memoir, viz: The propor-
tion of a planet’s surface which is irradiated by the sun ata given
time, as deduced from the relative size and distance of the two bodies.
The sun’s intensity upon the planets in relation to their orbits. The
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY: 31
law of the sun’s intensity at any instant during the day. Determina-
tion of the sun’s hourly and diurnal intensity. On local and climatic
changes of the sun’s intensity. On the diurnal and annual duration
of sunlight and twilight. These are all mathematical deductions
from well established principles, and constitute the preliminary prob-
lems towards a logical solution of the phenomena of the meteorology
of our earth. The author offers to continue his interesting investiga-
tions in this line of research, provided the Institution will employ
a person to make the arithmetical calculations, or, in other words, to
deduce from the formule the numerical values of the quantities
required. His own time must be principally occupied in other duties,
though he will cheerfully devote his leisure hours to the investigations,
with a view of extending the bounds of knowledge. He considers most
of the memoirs which have been published in the transactions of
different learned societies as preparatory to a more eémplete solution
of the problem of terrestrial heat. He has succeeded in bringing the
formule of the theory of heat in closer connexion with observation
than heretofore, and thinks there is now an opportunity presented
for increasing our knowledge of meteorology on the ‘‘ theoretic side.’’
From a consideration of the interesting problems which have been
discussed in the memoir just published, and the manner of their solu-
tion, it can scarcely be doubted that valuable results will be produced
by an appropriation for the continuance of these researches.
The first part of the paper on Odlogy, described in the last report,
is now in the hands of the printer. Every possible pains has been
taken to make the illustrations as accurate representations of the
objects as can be accomplished by art. The globular shape of the
eggs, and the receding aspect of their markings, have heretofore
baffled all endeavors to represent them correctly. The best and most
artistic works of this kind, involving a very expensive operation, are
but partially successful. The desideratum has been obtained by the
employment of photography in making the original delineations, and
this has furnished an exact and available basis, which the engraver
can copy at his leisure, and which represents with fidelity, otherwise
unattainable, the appearance to be perpetuated. These improvements
have been made by Mr. L. H. Bradford, of Boston, to whom the en-
graving has been entrusted. The plates will be printedin colors. An
order has been received from England, in advance, for a number of
copies of this work, the proceeds of which will be devoted to lessening -
the’ cost of the illustrations.
32 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
The publication of the paper mentioned in the report for 1854,
relative to the Zapotec remains in Mitla, Mexico, was delayed on ac-
count of the absence of Mr. Brantz Mayer, who undertook to prepare
an account of the drawings made by Mr. Sawkins, with general ob-
servations on Mexican history and archeology. It has, however,
been published since the date of the last report, and will form a part
of the ninth volume of the contributions. It was referred to Mr.
Haven, of the Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts, and to
Dr. E. H. Davis, of New York. This paper, as well as that of Mr.
Haven on the archeology of the United States, possesses much more
popular interest than many of the Contributions published by the In-
stitutions, and is therefore in greater demand.
Reports on Progress of Knowledge.—One of the propositions embraced
in the plan of organization is the publication of reports on the pro-
gress of knowledge; but the portion of the fund which could be ex-
pended in printing has been so much more advantageously employed
in giving to the world memoirs consisting of original contributions to
science, that but little has been done in regard to this part of the
original plan. It has not, however, been entirely neglected. Besides
the work of Messrs. Booth and Morfit on the progress of the Chemical
Arts, the last annual report of the Regents to Congress contains an
account of late researches relative to Electricity. Another part of the
same work will be given in an appendix to this report.
The report on forest trees by Dr. Gray, of Cambridge, is still in
progress, but has been delayed principally on account of the more
pressing engagements of the author in preparing his description of
plants collected by different expeditions undertaken by the govern-
ment, and in part from the difficulty of obtaining the necessary
drawings for its illustration. Some of these can only be made at
particular seasons of the year, during fructification, and other periods
of the different phases of the parts of the trees. A sufficient number
of the drawings have been prepared to form a considerable portion of
the work; but as these in many cases belong to different genera, they
cannot properly be published until the others are prepared, which are
necessary to complete definite series. Nevertheless, it is expected
that the first part of the work will be ready for the press during this
year. Instead, however, of presenting it in the form of a report, it
has been thought advisable to publish it as a part of the quarto series
of original Contributions to Knowledge. For, though the facts it
contains are not entirely new, the work will in no sense be a compi-
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 33
lation ; the drawings and descriptions will all be original, and it will
probably contain a series of experiments and observations on the
economical uses of our trees, which have never before been published.
Besides this, the quarto form is best adapted for the illustrations.
The Report on education, mentioned at the last meeting of the Board
as in progress of preparation by the Hon. Henry Barnard, of Con-
necticut, has not yet been completed. We hope, however, to be able
to obtain the article during the present year, and to give it to the
public either as an appendix to the annual report or in a separate
form.
The printing of the second and enlarged edition of the Jeteoro-
logical and physical tables, which was announced in the last report
as having been commenced, has been delayed on account of an error
detected by the author in the reduction of one of the formulas, which
required the recomputation of a considerable number of pages. We
regret that much disappointment has been felt at the long delay of the
appearance of these tables, which has been owing to the many pres-
sing engagements of the author. We have now directed the printer
to strike off such portions of the work as are stereotyped, and these
will probably be ready for distribution to our meteorological observers
before the publication of this report.
These tables will serve to form a part of a great work suggested.
by Mr. Babbage, entitled ‘‘The Constants of Nature and Art,”’ in-
tended to contain all facts which can be expressed in numbers, in the
various branches of knowledge, such as the atomic weights of bodies,
specific gravities, elasticity, tenacity, specific heat, conducting power,
melting point; weight of different gases, liquids, and solids; the
strength of different materials; velocity of sound of cannon balls; elec-
tricity, light, animals, &c., &c., &c. Such a work would be perpetu-
ally useful in original investigations, as well as in the application of
science to the useful arts ; but to carry out fully the idea of the author,
the co-operation of a number of institutions would be necessary. It,
however, consists of parts, any one of which will be considered of im-
mediate value. An account and examples of this work are given in
the appendix.
The materials for a new edition of the Report on Libraries have
been collected, and are now being arranged and prepared for the press
by Mr. Rhees, chief clerk of the Institution. Considerable difficulty
has been experienced in obtaining answers to the circulars first issued,
but the distribution of a second edition has called forth a large amount
38
34 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
of interesting information. The work will exhibit the rapid progress
which this country is making in the means of acquiring knowledge,
as well as indicate the kind of books which receive most attention.
It was at first proposed to publish it as a part of the appendix of the
Report to Congress ; but it has been found impossible to complete it
in time for that purpose, and it will, therefore, be printed by the In-
stitution in a separate form.
Hachanges.—The system of international exchanges has been carried
on during the year 1856 with unabated activity, but with increasing
expense, notwithstanding the liberal assistance which has been con-
tinued by the several transportation companies mentioned in the last
report. <A large room, occupying nearly the whole of the first floor
of the east wing, 75 feet long and upwards of 30 feet in width, has
been devoted entirely to the business connected with the exchanges.
It has been fitted up with cases, shelves, and boxes, similar in ar-
rangement to a post office, in which a separate space is appropriated
to each country and each institution.
This part of the general operations of the Institution continues to
be received with much favor by literary and scientific societies and in-
dividuals in this country and abroad, and is increasing every year in
extent and usefulness. We hope, however, hereafter to render it more
perfect and useful, particularly by increasing the frequency of trans-
missions.
I regret that at this time I am not able to give the exact statistics
of the amount sent and received during the past year, since a second
invoice is now in the course of preparation, containing many articles
which should properly be included among those of the present year.
Meteorology.—In tke last report of the Board of Regents it was
announced that an arrangement had been made with the Commis-
sioner of Patents by which the system of meteorology, established
under the direction of the Institution, would be extended, and the
results published more fully than could be done by the Smithsonian
income alone; that a new set of blank forms had been prepared by
myself, and widely distributed under the frank of the Patent Office ;
and also that an appropriation had been made for the purchase of a
large number of rain-gauges, to be presented to observers in different
parts of the country. This copartnership, as it may be called, has
produced good results; the number of observers has increased, and
the character of the instruments and of the observations has been
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY, 35
improved. The reduction of the registers has been continued by
Prof. Coffin during the past year. He has completed those for 1854
and 1855, and is now engaged on those for 1856. A summary of the
more important reductions for 1854 and 1855 was given in the last
Report of the Patent Office, and hope was entertained that an ar-
rangement could be made by which the whole series would be pub-
lished at the expense of the general government. But this expectation
has not been realized, and the Institution has commenced to stereo-
type the work on its own account. Copies of the stereotype impres-
sions will be forwarded, from time to time, to observers, as they
become ready for distribution.
During the past year many additions have been made to the
number of observers, and increased interest has been awakened in the
subject of meteorology. Quite a number of observers have furnished
themselves with full sets of standard instruments, and the system has
thus been increased in precision as well as magnitude. It is to be
reeretted, however, that the observers are not more uniformly distri-
buted over the whole country ; while the northern and eastern States
are abundantly supplied the southern and western are deficient,
particularly Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas,
Louisiana, and Texas.
Several of the observers publish the results of their observations in
‘the newspapers of their vicinity, and we would commend this custom
to general adoption. It serves to direct attention to the importance
of precise records of the weather, to awaken a greater public interest
in the subject of meteorology, and to gratify a laudable curiosity in the
comparison of the variations of the different seasons. We would also
recommend to the observers generally the plan adopted by some of
them, of the construction of diagrams, exhibiting to the eye, at a
single glanee, the peculiarities of temperature, moisture, and direc-
tion of the wind, for different seasons and years.
All the materials possessed by the Institution relative to the direc-
tion and force of the wind, derived either from its own system or
found in works received by exchange, have been placed in the hands
ot Prof. Coffin, to enable him to prepare a supplement to his valuable
memoir on the ‘‘ Winds of the Northern Hemisphere.’’ This work
requires a large amount of laborious arithmetical calculation, to defray
the expense of a part of which a small sum has been granted from
the appropriation for meteorology. The fact was also mentioned
in the last report, that a valuable series of observations made in Texas
and Mexico, by the late Dr. Berlandier, was placed at our disposition
36 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
by Lieutenant Couch, late of the United States army; and I am
happy to state to the Board that these observations are at present in
the process of revision, and that they will be published, at least in
part, if not entirely, during the next year. The Institution is now
also prepared to publish a number of series of observations continued
for considerable periods of time, which will be of importance in the
comparison of the weather of different years.
The great object in view in regard to this branch of science is to
furnish materials which all who are so disposed may study, and from
which deductions may be made as to the peculiarities of our climate,
or the general meteorological phenomena of the globe. It is highly
desirable that as many minds as possible should be employed on this
subject, and it is consequently important that the greatest procurable
amount of authentic data should be furnished to them as the basis of
their investigations. The continent of North America presents a field
of peculiar interest in regard to geography, geology, botany, zoology,
and meteorology, which has been cultivated more industriously since
the establishment of this Institution than at any former period ; and
now, with the proper co-operation of the medical department of the
army, by means of observations made at the different military posts on
the west, the system about to be established in Canada on the north,
and that of the Smithsonian and Patent Office on the east, with that
of the National Observatory on the sea surrounding our coast, more
extended and accurate means than were ever before in existence will be
offered for the solution of some of the most interesting problems of
climatology. In order, however, to full success in this enterprise, all
considerations of personal or institutional aggrandizement should be
entirely discarded, and each party be impelled alone by the desire to
advance as much as is in its power the cause of truth. The policy of
this institution has ever been of a character as liberal as its means
would permit, and we trust it will not cease to extend a generous co-
operation to every well devised plan intended to promote knowledge.
We cannot hold out the idea that great results are at once to be
obtained for the improvement of agriculture, and the promotion of
health and comfort, by a system of meteorological investigation.
There are no royal roads to knowledge, and we can only advance to
new and important truths along the rugged path of experience, guided
by cautious induction. We cannot promise to the farmer any great
reduction in the time of the growth of his crops, or the means of pre-
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 37
dicting, with unerring certainty, the approach of storms. But in the
course of a number of years the average character of the climate of
the different parts of the country may be ascertained, and the data
furnished for reducing to certainty, on the principle of insurance, what
plants can be most profitably cultivated in a particular place ; and it
is highly probable that the laws of storms may be so far determined
that we shall be able, when informed by the telegraph that one has
commenced in any part of the country, to say how it will spread, and
whether it may be expected to extend to our own locality. We make
these remarks in order to prevent disappointment and the evils pro-
duced by exciting expectations which cannot possibly be realized.
Terrestrial Magnetism.—Nearly a continuous record of the changes
of magnetic declination has been kept up by the photographic method,
during the greater part of the past year, at the magnetic observatory
established by the Institution and the United States Coast Survey.
The series was interrupted, in December, by some improvements in
the arrangement of the building, and by preparations for the mount-
ing of additiorfal instruments for recording the changes of horizontal
and vertical force. The apparatus was constructed, at the request of
Professor Bache, under the direction of Charles Brooke, Esq., of Lon-
don, who originally designed this method of registration, and who
kindly undertook to adjust all the delicate compensations. Similar
instruments are in operation at the magnetic observatories of Green-
wich, Paris and Toronto; and itis hoped that a continuous correspond-
ing record will in future be made here, which will prove of great
interest and utility in the study of the phenomena of terrestrial mag-
netism.
The set of portable magnetic instruments for absolute determina-
tions belonging to the Institution are placed in charge of Baron
Muller, who is making a scientific expedition to Mexico and Central
America. Recent investigations having shown that magnetic obser-
vations in those regions, where none have been made since Humboldt
visited them, more than fifty years ago, would have a special value in
determining the law of distribution, the Institution availed itself of
the opportunity offered by Baron Muller’s expedition, to forward this
branch of knowledge by furnishing instruments, and appropriating an
amount adequate to cover the additional expenses occasioned by these
observations. Full copies of the records are transmitted to the Insti-
tution as opportunity offers. The results of the observations, as far as
88 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
received, are given in the appendix to this report ; they will be pub-
lished in detail when the series is complete.
Laboratory.—It was stated in the last report that, in conformity
with the act of Congress incorporating the Institution, a laboratory
had been fitted up with the necessary appliances for original research
in chemistry and other branches of physical science. During the past
year, besides the examination of minerals and other substances sub-
mitted to the Institution, a series of experiments have been made re-
lative to the strength of materials for building purposes, to some points
of meteorology, and to electrical induction. The results that have
been obtained from these investigations will, in due time, be given
to the public.
Library.—During the past year the library has received, by ex-
change, a larger accession than during any previous year. The
whole number of volumes, parts of volumes, and other articles ob-
tained by this means, is 5,361.
The series of transactions and scientific periodicals is gradually be-
coming more and more complete; and, in the course,of a few years,
this collection will be as extensive as any to be found in the Old
World. A second part of the catalogue of transactions, now in the
library, has been published, and distributed to foreign institutions.
In this the deficiencies of the library are pointed out, and in many
cases these have already been supplied by the liberality of the
societies having duplicates of the desired articles.
Though the books received by donation and exchange are of the
most valuable character, and such as cannot, in many cases, be pro-
cured by purchase, yet, as they are generally presented in parts of
volumes in paper covers, they require a large expenditure for binding.
During the last two years, the sum of three thousand dollars has been
paid for this purpose.
Among the liberal donors to whom the Smithsonian Library is
indebted, principally on account of the system of exchange, special
acknowledgment is due to the Prussian government for the continua-
tion of the celebrated work, by Lepsius, on Egypt; to Baron Korff,
of the Imperial library of Russia, for the volumes of the monuments
of the Cimmerian Bosphorus; to the Board of Health of London, for
a full set of its reports; to the Imperial Society of Naturalists of
Moscow, for 21 volumes, 8vo, of the Bulletin of its proceedings ; to
F. A. Brockhaus, of Leipsic, for 151 quarto volumes of the Ency-
clopadie der Wissenschaften ; to Justus Perthes, of Gotha, for ninety-
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 39
two volumes of maps and other geographical publications; to R.
Lepsius, for a nearly complete series of his philological and ethnolo-
gical works ; to the Naturforschende Gesellschaft, at Basle, for seventy-
three volumes of rare scientific journals ; to the Geological Society of
France, for eleven volumes of its Bulletin, and four volumes of its
Memoirs ; to the Observatory at Milan, for fifteen volumes of Effem-
eridi; to the University of Athens, for thirty-four volumes of modern
Greek works; to the University of Tubingen, for twenty-eight folio
and quarto volumes of rare and curious incunabula; to the Riks-
bibliotek of Stockholm, for three hundred volumes of proceedings of
the Swedish Diet; to the London Admiralty, for ninety charts, pub-
lished from August, 1855, to August, 1856; to Dr. Thomas B.
Wilson, of Philadelphia, for a set of Buffon’s works, 28 volumes, and
Nouveau Dictionnaire d’ Historie Naturelle, 30 volumes; to the Duke
de Lugnes, for a fac-simile of the inscription on the Sidonian sarco-
phagus, and the volume describing it, which were furnished at the
request of the Institution, for the use of some of our oriental scholars,
by its liberal author.
In regard to the last mentioned donation the following account
may, perhaps, be interesting: A sarcophagus, bearing a long Pheeni-
cian inscription, having been exhumed in the vicinity of the ancient
Sidon, in the beginning of the year 1855, the American missionaries
on the spot, with praiseworthy zeal for learning, took copies of the
writing and transmitted them to this country and to Europe, and
scholars on both sides of the water immediately entered upon its
study and gave their interpretations to the world. Meanwhile, the
sarcophagus itself was purchased by the Duc de Lugnes and presented
to the French government, who deposited it in the gallery of the Louvre.
It had become evident that the copies of the inscription on which the
first interpretation was based, owing to the imperfect means at com-
mand, were necessarily, in several respects, unreliable. At the re-
quest of Prof. E. H. Salisbury, of Yale College, and William W.
Turner, Librarian of the Patent Office, who had chiefly occupied
themselves with the study of the monument in this country, applica-
tion was made to the Duc de Lugnes, who, with generous promptuess,
presented to the Institution exceedingly well executed fac-similes of
the inscriptions on the lid and on the sides of the sarcophagus, and a
copy of the work illustrating the same, published by himself for
private distribution. Thus American scholars are afforded the same
opportunity as is possessed by their compeers in Europe of making
40 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
an independent study, with authentic materials, of this highly inter-
esting relic of antiquity.
We have frequently stated that the principal object of the library
is to furnish the colaborators of the Institution with the means of
ascertaining what® has been accomplished in the particular line of
their research. For this purpose, under certain restrictions, we have
forwarded books to different parts of the country, and this we are
enabled to do, without much risk of loss, by means of the system of
express agency which now forms a net-work of intercommunication
over all parts of the United States. A volume may, it is true, be occa-
sionally lost ; but it is better to hazard an occurrence of this kind than
that the books should not be used. The library is also consulted by the
officers of the army, the navy, of the Coast Survey, and the men of
science who have been connected with the several exploring expedi-
tions ; and in this way, it has been made to subserve the general object
of the Institution in the promotion of knowledge. The expense of
this part, however, of the operations of the library is small, in com-
parison with that which is in reality of little importance. I allude
to the cost of keeping up a reading-room, in which the light publica-
tions of the day, obtained through the copyright law, are perused
principally by young persons. Although the law requiring a copy
of each book for which a copyright is granted, to be deposited in the
library was intended to benefit the Institution, and would do so were
it designed to establish a general miscellaneous collection, yet as this
is not the case, and as some of the principal publishers do not regard
the law, the enactment has proved an injury rather than a benefit:
The articles received are principally elementary school manuals and
the ephemeral productions of the teeming press, including labels for
patent medicines, perfumery, and sheets of popular music. The cost
of postage, clerk-hire, certificates, shelf-room, &c., of these far exceeds
the value of the good works received. Indeed, all the books pub-
lished in the United States, which might be required for the library,
could have been purchased for one-tenth of what has been expended
on those obtained by the copyright law. Similar complaints are
made by the Library of Congress and the Department of State; and
it is therefore evident that this subject requires the attention of gov-
ernment. 'hree copies of every work are now required to be sent to
Washington, but in no one of these cases is the intention of the copy-
right law fully carried out. If the books are to be preserved as
evidence of title it would seem most fit that they should be deposited
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 4}
and preserved in the Patent Office with other samples of the protected
products of original thought, namely: models of invention and speci-
mens of design.
Two douvle cases, each fifty feet in length, have been provided
during the present year, which, with the previous shelves, will be
sufficient to hold the books at present in the library and those which
may be received for some time to come.
Musewm.—It has been stated in previous reports that it is not the
design of the Institution to form a general museum of all objects of
natural history, but of such as are of a more immediate interest in
advancing definite branches of physical research ; and in view of this,
special attention has been bestowed on developing the peculiarities of
the productions of the American continent, with a view to ascertain
what changes animals and plants have undergone, how they differ in
their present as well as their past forms from those on other portions of
the globe, and also the distribution of the same species, and the rela-
tions which they bear to the soil and climate where they are found.
The great object of studies of this class is to determine the laws of the
production, growth, and existence of living beings. The nature of life
itself is at present unknown to us, except in its relation to certain or-
ganic forms and changes going oninthem. Itis, to our apprehension,
inseparably connected in this world with transformations of bodies
chemically composed of a few elementary materials, which are con-
stantly being combined and decomposed, in accordance with laws
peculiar to the living being. In reference to the forms which these
materials assume, the whole animal kingdom has been referred to
four great types or plans of structure, the Vertebrata, the Articulata,
the Mollusca, and the Radiata. From these four types all the varieties
that are found on the surface of the earth are derived. It appears to
be a principle of nature that the most diversified effects are made to
follow from a single conception, a fact which is well expressed by the
terms ‘‘ multiplicity in unity.’’ Whilst every part of the earth is
peopled with animals constructed in accordance with these types, the
fauna of no two parts of the world are precisely alike. Difference in
conditions of climate or soil, or difference in original character, have
produced a diversity, the nature of which is an important object of the
naturalist to investigate. For example, fishes of the same name, and
apparently of precisely the same character, found on the east and west
sides of the Rocky mountains, present peculiarities which, though
slight, are invariable, and which mark a difference of origin or of
42 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
condition. But it is not sufficient for the full investigation of the
subject to provide the means of studying the living faunas and floras
which now characterize different districts ;—science also requires the
collection of materials for the investigation of the animal and vegetable
forms which existed at the same and different localities at various
epochs in the past history of the globe, or, in other words, it is de-
sirous to obtain data for the investigation of the phenomena of life, as
it is exhibited in timeas well as in space; and hence attention is also
given to the collection of complete suites of the organic remains, par-
ticularly of the hitherto unexplored parts of this country.
In reference to the solution of some important questions now pend-
ing in relation to natural history, Professor Agassiz has called our atten-
tion to several special collections, and as his suggestions are of general
interest, I will here mention them. First, he commends to attention
the tertiary shells, on account of their bearing on the problem of the
mean annual temperature of the globe at different periods anterior to
its present geological condition. Different species of these animals exist
at present each in water of a given temperature; and by ascertaining
the temperature congenial to each species from actual observation on
different parts of the coast, a thermometrical scale would be given by
which to determine the climate of any place in the past geological
periods in which these animals existed. The United States is most
favorably situated for the solution of this question. Its eastern coast
extends north and south over more than 23 degrees of latitude, along
which shells are everywhere common, and present remarkable changes
in their distribution and mode of association. A large collection of
these fossil shells from the tertiary beds in different latitudes from
Maine to Georgia, properly arranged, would, in time, afford as precise
data for ascertaining the mean annual temperature of these shores
during the different periods of the tertiary times as an actual series of
instrumental observations.
Another collection to which the same distinguished naturalist has
called our attention is a series of embryos and young animals of
different species. It is a well established fact that animals of a higher
type pass from the first inception of life in the embryonic state
through a series of forms resembling the lower animals, so that even
in the case of man himself the embryo assumes the form of the fish
or the reptile. The study, therefore, of a series of animals, selected
at different periods of gestation, is of the highest importance in tracing
the progress of their separate developments, and also of ascertaining
the probable forms under which organized beings may be exhibited in
different parts of the present, or in the remains of the past ages of the
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 43
world. <A collection which might be readily made at one of the great
centres, where hundreds of thousands of swine are killed, would enable
us to clear up the history of the growth of this animal, and to estab-
lish the true relations between the living and fossil quadrupeds of this
class, or, perhaps, afford the means of tracing a correct outline of
those types which have become extinct, and the forms of which are,
perhaps, only preserved in our day in some transient state of the off-
spring, uncompleted in the womb of our living species. Indeed, so far
does Professor Agassiz carry this idea, that he entertains no doubt of
the practicability of drawing correct figures of the fossil Palcetherium
and Anoplotherium from the embryos of our present allied animals,
viz: of our hogs and horses.
The museum continues to receive large additions from the govern-
ment surveys and other sources. According to the statement of Prof.
Baird, the specimens catalogued at the end of the year 1856 were as
follows, viz: Of mammals, 2,046; of birds, 5,855; of skulls and skele-
tons, 3,060, making in all an aggregate of nearly eleven thousand
articles, besides 2,000 mammals in alcohol, and at least 1,200 skins
of birds not yet entered on the museum registers.
However valuable these collections may be in themselves, they are
but the rough materials from which science is to be evolved; and so
long as the specimens remain undescribed, and their places undeter-
mined in the system of organized beings, though they may serve to
gratify an unenlightened curiosity, they are of no importance in the
discovery of the laws of life.
The collections of the Institution are intended for original investi-
gation, and for this purpose the use of them, under certain restric-
tions, will be given to any person having the knowledge and skill
necessary to the prosecution of researches of this character. It is not
the policy of the Institution to hoard them up for mere display, or for
the special use of those who may be immediately connected with the
establishment. Cdoperation, not monopoly, as we have stated in
previous reports, is the motto which expresses our principle of action.
It is an object of the Institution to induce as many persons as possible
to undertake the study of special branches of natural history, and to
furnish them, as far as possible, with the means of knowing what has
been done, as well as of adding to the stock of existing knowledge.
The only return which is required is that proper credit in all cases
should be awarded to the Institution for the facilities it has afforded.
Included in the additions to the museum during the last few years
from government exploring parties and private individuals have been
a number of living animals. Among these were two bald eagles, an
44 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
antelope, monkeys, raccoons, two wild cats, a jaguar, and a large
grizzly bear, the latter from the Rocky Mountains. Though these
objects are of importance in serving as models for drawings by the
various artists engaged in figuring the collections of the different sur-
veying and exploring expeditions, it is neither compatible with the
means of the Institution, nor the duties of the Secretary and his
assistants to take the custody of specimens of this character. We
have, however, been relieved from this unenviable charge by the kind
céoperation of Dr. Nichols, Superintendent of the Government Insane
Asylum, who has provided suitable accommodations for the animals
on the extensive grounds of that institution, and rendered them sub-
servient to its benevolent object in the amusement and consequent
improvement of its patients. As they are in the immediate neighbor-
hood of this city, they are readily accessible to strangers, and students
of natural history, who visit the seat of government. While presents
of this kind evince kind feelings, and are complimentary to the manage-
ment of the Institution, the expense of transportation in some cases has
been rather a heavy tax, and while we cannot very well refuse dona-
tions of this character, they would be much more acceptable were
they received free of cost.
In connexion with this subject it may be stated that we have
frequent applications for exchanges of specimens with foreign institu-
tions; but while we are anxious to diffuse as widely as possible a
knowledge of the natural history of this country, and to distribute
articles which may serve to verify the Smithsonian publications, still
it is not the policy with the present income to collect specimens other
than those directly intended to illustrate the productions of the North
American continent.
For a detailed account of the operations of the museum, the explo-
rations which have been undertaken during the year at the expense
of the government or otherwise, and the sources from which donations
have been received, I will refer to the report of Prof. Baird, herewith
submitted.
Gallery of Art.—The room apropriated to the gallery of art is still
occupied by the series of interesting Indian portraits, by Mr. Stanley.
It is to be hoped that Congress will make an appropriation for the
purchase of these illustrations of a race of men rapidly disappearing
betore the advance of civilization. The collection should be kept to-
gether and carefully preserved as a faithful ethnological record of the
characteristics of the aboriginal inhabitants of the western portion of
our continent. It is the most complete collection of the kind now in
existence, and it would be a matter of lasting regret were the pictures
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 45
sold to individ uals, and thus separated. Mr. Stanley, though possess
ing much enthusiasm and liberality in regard to his art and com-
mendable pride in this collection, will feel compelled, in justice to his
family, to dispose of it to individuals, unless Congress becomes the
purchaser.
The Institution possesses a valuable collection of engravings, well
calculated to illustrate every epoch in the history of the art, as well as
the style of the greatest masters. It is desirable that a catalogue be
prepared, under the names of the engravers, in alphabetical series and
with references to the volume and page, of the authors by whom the
pieces have been described and criticised. The smaller engravings
should be mounted in portfolios or volumes, and the larger regularly
arranged, and where necessary, mounted on sheets of thick paper or
paste-board, and placed in portfolios. A sufficient number to illus-
trate various styles, and also such as are of extraordinary merit, rarity,
or cost, ought to be framed as a means of preservation as well as of
exhibition,
It was a part of the original programme of organization, to furnish
accommodations free of expense for the exhibition of works of art, and
since there is no city of the Union visited by a greater number of in-
telligent strangers than Washington, particularly during the session
of Congress, it is, perhaps, one of the best places in our country for
this purpose. A few artists during the past year have availed them-
selves of the advantages thus afforded, and perhaps others would em-
brace the opportunity were the facts more generally known.
Lectures.—Arrangements have been made for the usual number of
lectures during the present session of Congress. The plan previously
adopted has been adhered to, namely, to give courses of lectures on
particular branches of knowledge, interspersed occasionally with single
lectures on particular topics. It may be proper to mention that the
amount paid the lecturer is merely intended to defray liberally his
expenses, and not as full remuneration for his services. Frequent
applications have been made, as in previous years, for invitations to
lecture ; but as a general rule, the honor has not been extended to
those who appeared most solicitous to obtain it. Men of standing
and established reputation have principally been chosen, and the dis-
courses which they have delivered have been such as to improve the
moral and intellectual character of the audience. All subjects of a
political or sectarian character have been excluded.
46 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
The following is a list of the lectures* which were delivered during
the winter of 1856-57:
Three lectures by Prof. Jos. Le Conte, of Georgia, on ‘‘Coal,’”’ and
and three lectures on ‘‘ Coral.’’
One lecture by J. R. Thompson, Esq., of Richmond, Virginia,
on ‘‘ Huropean Journalism.”’
One lecture by Dr. J. G. Kohl, on ‘‘The History of American
Geography.”’
Five lectures by Rev. J. G. Morris, M. D., of Baltimore, on the
‘¢ Habits and Instincts of Insects.”’
Six lectures by Prof. Benjamin Pierce, of Cambridge, Mass., on
*¢ Potential Physics.”’
1. The elements of potential physics. The material universe con-
sidered as a machine, as a work of art, or as the manifest word of God.
2. Potential arithmetic.
3. Potential algebra.
4, Potential geometry.
5. Analytic morphology, or the world’s architecture.
6. The realization of the imaginary, and the powers of justice and
love.
One lecture by Rev. Geo. W. Bethune, D. D., of Brooklyn, N. Y.,
on ‘‘ The Orator.’’
Three lectures by W. Gilmore Simms, Esq., of South Carolina:
1. On the Professions.
2. Ante-Columbian History of America.
3. Ante-Colonial History of the United States.
Hight lectures by Dr. D. B. Reid, of Edinburg, on the ‘‘ Pro-
gress of Architecture in relation to Ventilation, Warming, Lighting,
Fire-Proofing, Acoustics, and the general preservation of Health.’’
The operations of the Institution have been continually expanding,
and it is with difficulty they can be kept within the limit required by
the Smithsonian fund. So far, therefore, from wanting general fields
of usefulness, the opportunity of doing good is only restricted by the
amount of means which can be employed.
Respectfully submitted.
JOSEPH HENRY.
Wasuineton, Janwary, 1857.
* In order to complete the list for the winter of 1856-57 the lectures delivered after
the date of the report have been added.
APPENDIX TO THE REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
SMITHSONIAN InstrruTIoN,
December 31, 1856.
Sr: I beg leave to present herewith a report for the year 1856 of
operations of such departments of the Smithsonian Institution as have
been intrusted by you to my care.
Respectfully submitted.
SPENCER F. BAIRD,
Assistant Secretary.
Joseph Henry, LL.D.,
Secretary Smithsonian Institution.
1.—Pupuications.—The eighth volume of the Smithsonian Contri-
butions to Knowledge was published and distributed during the year.
In size it exceeds any of those preceding it in the series, embracing
556 pages of text and nine plates. A large portion of the ninth
volume is also printed, and it is expected that the rest will be finished
early in 1857.
The octavo publications during the year consist of the tenth annual
report to Congress and Coffin’s Psychrometrical Tables.
I].—Excuanars.—The receipts by excnange during 1856, both
for the Smithsonian Institution itself and for the other parties for
whom it acts as agent, have been unusually great, considerably ex-
ae those of any previous year, as will be shown by the following
table :
The following table exhibits the total of receipts as compared with 1855.
1855. 1856.
Volumes—Octavo. occccccecccocccccccse 717 966
ee CUUaLCO ees satel clele selelelalctetelclelele’ 233 329
Ke LS TORO DOCTO OPOGDO OC OLIN OS 87 61
— 1,037 —- 1,356
Parts of volumes and pamphlets—
Octavo.anesecccescccecsscces 1,427 1,413
Gita rim iatclcisslsieleclneleicia'« osiaisie)a= 239 383
IRV -Reeno poSpdnay ooodeUt Al 38
— 1,707 — 1,834
Maps, charts, and engravings. . 26 140
sical Veleiaie alstetess\ee.¢:5)8 eocceeee 2,770 3,339
Number of distinct donations. ..s.ee: eae 2,331
The copies of the eighth volume of Smithsonian Contributions to
Knowledge were all duly forwarded to such addresses in the United
States and Europe as were entitled to receive them. Those for Europe
48 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
were accompanied, as usual, by the publications of all the American
societies, and filled 36 large boxes. The Institution did not receive
enough copies of its separate memoirs for distribution at that time,
and the transmission to minor societies and individuals was deferred
until the begining of 1857. The statistics of the whole will be pre-
sented altogether in the next report.
-
I1I.—MUSEUM.
A.—Increase of the Museum.
In my last report I had occasion to call attention to the very large
increase in magnitude of the collections received in 1855 compared
with those of preceding years. As many of these had been gathered
by parties engaged in government surveys, of which few were in the
field in 1856, it was not expected that this year would equal the last
in the extent of additions to the museum of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion. On the contrary, however, there has been no year in which so
many valuable accessions have been made; the pre-eminence consist-
ing not only in the number of specimens, but in their intrinsic value
and variety. For details on this subject I must refer to subsequent
portions of my report, and shall here only present a comparative table
of receipts for the three past years:
1854. 1855. 1856.
Number of articles received—
Pomrels and Ke S68. ¥cceakc specs caaccten ces ewowee 35 26 19
BUSI os wcticvain teeta LE saat a gee ainame ieee 26 18 23
Ps Til ae Gee hy carmen trons ban.« Acrusem cece olue seuiden te 175 187 127
BOC eetene, octnee see ra tbicuciuida vem eaacdcenet 94 159 234
plies te. udeoe reese 6 sachs dettontn ds eis eee — 5 1
PAAGKG POS! eet. elle Sstetetaemesed Seocmepuepeeris 32 79 87
Wotade scasenss oisiatessis tuatemysisiatsla mets seattle 362 476 491
Beparate? donatione’ s0...0sss.se-csee 130 229 274
WONG iro sseniprniuie voainospmamne'snes Saute 85 130 160
From the above table it will be seen that the increase in the number
of packages of donations, and of donors, during 1856, has been almost
as marked as that of 1855 over 1854. I shall now proceed to advert
briefly to the most important sources whence these collections were
derived, and then mention the principal additions in the different
branches of the museum. As in past years, the bulk of the specimens
received were collected by government parties, and deposited with the
Smithsonian Institution in pursuance of the act of Congress which
directs this disposition of all natural history property of the United
States which may be in the city of Washington.
G@.—THE MEXICAN BOUNDARY LINE.
Survey of the boundary line between the United States and Meaxico—
Major W. H. Emory, U. 8. A., commissioner.—In my last report the
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 49
return of the main party under the commissioner was announced, and
brief mention made of the important collections gathered during the
survey. The party engaged on the western portion of the line, under
Lieutenant N. Michler, arrived in Washington early in the present
year. The natural history collections were made by Arthur Schott,
esq., and were in very great variety, embracing many species new to
the fauna of the United States; thus rendering still more just the
remarks made in, my last report upon the comprehensiveness and
value of the natural history results of the United States and Mexican
boundary survey.
Fort Yuma.—An important addition to our knowledge of the zool-
ogy of the Mexican boundary line was made by Major G. H. Thomas,
United, States army, assisted by Lieutenant Dubarry, United States
army, in a sevies of the animals of Fort Yuma. This embraced sev-
eral new species; the most important of which was a Phyllostome bat,
the first member of that family ever found within the limits of the
United States.
b.—REGIONS WEST OF THE MISSOURI.
The government parties engaged in the regions north of the Mexi-
can boundary line and on or west of the Missouri river, and from
which collections have been received in 1856, are three in number ;
the results of which were important and satisfactory in a high degree.
The labors of other parties of a more private character working within
the same field have also yielded fruits of great value.
1. The exploration of the Llano Estacado, under Captain J. Pope,
United States army.—This expedition was sent out in 1854 for the
purpose of testing the practicability of artesian borings for water
in the desert plains of Texas. It returned in October, 1856, atter
having succeeded in accumulating a large mass of facts and ob-
servations respecting the geology, geography, topography, mag-
netism, meteorology, and other physical features of the climate
and soil of the staked plains. But the results of most interest here
consist in a very extensive collection of the animals of that little
known region, embracing full series of its vertebrata and insects.
The collection, in respect to the latter, is indeed of hitherto unexam-
pled extent in the history of government expeditions ; Captain Pope
having directed particular attention to specimens in this obscure de-
partment of American zoology. The result is to be found in sixty
boxes of pinned insects of all orders, in great excellence of preserva-
tion, and furnishing, not only ample materials for the study of geo-
graphical distribution, but likely to throw much light on the charac-
ter, habits, and changes of many species of western insects, already
possessing a painful prominence for their devastations of plants of
both wild and cultivated growth.
Complete collections of the mammals, birds, reptiles, and fishes of
this region were also made; among them several species entirely new,
and others not previously known, except in very different localities.
4s
50 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
Large collections in botany, mineralogy, and geology were also made,
but have not been received at the Institution.
2. Exploration of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers, under Lieut.
G. K. Warren, United States army.—This expedition, accompanied
by Dr. F. V. Hayden as geologist and naturalist, left St. Louis in
April, and returned in November, having in the mean time explored
the whole Missouri, from Council Bluffs to a point eighty miles above
the mouth of the Yellowstone, and up the latter to the mouth of the
Powder river. Short as was the time actually occupied in the field—
scarcely six months—-the party not only made the regular astronom-
ical and topographical observations, but also contributed in a high
degree to the advancement of natural science, by securing the largest
collection in natural history ever obtained by any one government ex-
pedition to the West. Some idea of the extent of these colleetions may
be formed from the fact that they embraced one hundred and fifty
mammals, six hundred birds, (one hundred and thirty-five species,)
‘skulls in large number, with several skeletons of each of the large
quadrupeds of the plains; about forty boxes of selected fossils, weigh-
ing several tons, among them an extensive series of the remarkable
plants of the tertiary, first discovered in North America by Dr. Hay-
den on a previous exploration, together with numerous plants, Indian
implements, dresses, &c. All the large mammals of the plains, buf-
falo, elk, deer, bears, wolves, antelope, bighorn, &c., are represented
in full by a series of skins, skeletons, and skulls, in perfect condition,
fitted at any time to be mounted and placed on exhibition.
3. Hapedition for the construction of a wagon road from Forté Riley
to Bridger’s Pass, under Ineutenant F. T. Bryan, United States
army.—This party, accompanied by W. 8. Wood, esq., of Philadel-
phia, as collector and naturalist, left St. Louis in May, and returned
in November. The collections of the expedition, though exceeded in
magnitude by those of Lieutenant Warren and Captain Pope, were
yet of very great extent, and embraced a number of species larger
than usual in proportion to that of the specimens, owing to the care-
ful selection rendered necessary by the limited amount of transporta-
tion. A peculiar interest attached to this party from the fact of its
route having been in part along or near that of Major Long’s expedi-
tion in 1819, who, as is well known, was accompanied as naturalist
by the eminent Say. Thirty-seven years had elapsed, and many of the
species observed on that occasion, and shortly after described, were
either obscurely known or altogether overlooked, owing to the loss in
one way or another of the original specimens. It will, then, be a
source of no little gratification to those interested in the natural his-
tory of America to learn, that in the collections made by Mr. Wood
are to be found nearly all the vertebrate species gathered by Say in
the way out to the Rocky mountains; those on Say’s return route
having also been collected by Captains Marcy, Whipple, Gunnison,
and Beckwith, a few years ago.
The most important collections made under Lieutenant Bryan con-
sist of the mammals, birds, reptiles, and fishes. Specimens of nearly
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 5]
all the species observed were obtained, embracing, as did those of the
two explorations previously mentioned, several new species.
Exploration of the Upper Missouri to the mouth of the Judith, in
1855, by Dr. F&F. V. Hayden.—Numerous collections made on this
occasion by Dr. Hayden were received during the year, and included
very many specimens of vertebrata, insects, and fossils of much the
same character as those referred to under head of Lieutenant War-
ren’s expedition. It was on this occasion that Dr. Hayden made the
discovery on the Judith river of a peculiar formation which, by its
reptilian remains, would seem to represent the wealden of England,
as suggested by Dr. Leidy.
Explorations of Dr. J. G. Cooper and Dr. George Suckley, United
States army.—The final collections of Dr. Cooper made in Washing-
ton Territory and California were received in 1856, and closed the
important labors of this naturalist, commenced in 1853. These em-
braced all the departments of natural history, including many species
before unknown. This gentleman, as mentioned in a previous report,
went out as surgeon and naturalist to Washington Territory with the:
western division of Governor Stevens’ Pacific railroad party, under
charge of Captain George B. McClellan ; and after the expiration of
his engagement remained in the country, chiefly at Vancouver and
Shoalwater bay, spending a short time, previous to his return to the
Atlantic coast, near San Francisco.
Dr. Suckley, after returning on leave to the United States in 1855,
weut back in November of that year to Washington Territory in com~
pany with a detachment of United States troops. Stationed most of
his time at Steilacoom, on Puget Sound, the scene of his former labors,
in fact, Dr. Suckley renewed many of his previous collections, and
added considerably to his list of species; and sent to Washington
many boxes of specimens.* ‘To these two gentlemen, in connexion
with J. K. Townsend, esq., we are indebted tor a knowledge of the:
entire natural history of the coast regions of northern Oregon and’
Washington Territories such as is possessed by but few States—by
their labors the vertebrate animals being, not only well known, but:
the geographical distribution of the species minutely ascertained, and
the fullest notices of the habits and peculiarities placed on record.
Indeed, it is a serious question whether the species of the Atlantic:
coast and its adjoining regions are as well known as those of the Pa--
cific slope, through the labors of Drs. Cooper, Suckley, Townsend,
Gambel, Heermann, Kennerly, Webb, Newberry, and J. F. Ham-
mond; Lieutenant W. P. Trowbridge and his assistants, Messrs.
James Wayne, A. Cassidy, T. A. Szabo; Major G. H. Thomas,
Lieutenant Dubarry, and Messrs. Nuttall, Bell, Bowman, Schott,
oak Gibbons,” Taylor, Gibbs, Grayson, Samuels, Hutton, and
otners.
From Dr. J. F. Hammond, United States army, many valuable
* Among these were some skins of mountain goats, presented by Lieutenant Nugen,
United States army.
52 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
collections, gathered in southern California, were received, furnishing
not only several species not previously in our collections, but also
supplying most important materials for determining the distribution
of the animals of the western slope generally.
Mr. A. 8. Taylor, of Monterey, has furnished a variety of species,
while A. J. Grayson, esq., has supplied a number of birds of much
interest.
Other California collections, of greater or less extent, were received
from Capt. Stone and Dr. Antisell, and A. Campbell, esq.
Explorations in the vicinity of Petaluma, (Cal.) by 2. Samuels, esq.—
Brief mention was made in my last report of the fitting out of Mr.
Samuels by the Boston Society of Natural History and the Smithsonian
Institution, aided by the liberality of the United States mail line to
California, via Panama. Mr. Samuels returned in July last, having
thoroughly explored the field of his labors, and gathered a rich
collection of specimens, embracing many rare and new species. The
liberal promises of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, the Panama
Railroad Company, and the United States Mail Steamship Company,
have been more than realized in the free passage home given to Mr.
Samuels and all his large collections—an act of generosity which may
well excite the attention and recognition of the lovers of science.
Nor should less meed of praise be awarded to Messrs. Wells, Fargo
& Co. for their free transmission to San Francisco of Mr. Samuels’
boxes, thus facilitating their semi-monthly despatch to Washington.
It may, perhaps, not be out of place here to state that the above
mentioned mail line still continues its kind offices by transporting,
free of charge, all packages of the Smithsonian Institution containing
‘books of specimens of natural history. The United States mail line,
also, has furnished free freight of a similar character from Cuba and
New Orleans to New York.
The results of Mr. Samuels’ explorations will shortly be published
in connected form in the journal of the Boston Society of Natural
History, illustrated with the necessary plates and figures.
Collections in Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, and Utah.—In addition to
the great collection made by Capt. Pope, Lieut. Bryan, Lieut. War-
ren, and Dr. Hayden in these territories, several others have been
received, of more or less importance, which will be referred to under
their appropriate head. A collection of plants from the vicinity of
Fort Belknap, made by Dr. Vollum, United States army, and of
plants and animals from Fort Chadbourne, by Dr. E. Swift, United -
States army, have added to our knowledge of the natural history of
Texas. A collection of reptiles and birds from Fort Riley, Kansas,
was also received from Dr. W. F'. Hammond.
C.—REGIONS EAST OF THE MISSOURI.
-— It will be impossible, with the limits assigned me, to go into detail
respecting the collections from this portion of the United States,
although much of great value has been received. ‘The principal con-
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 53
tributors will be referred to hereafter, under the head of special
departments of the museum, as well as in the alphabetical list of
‘¢ additions to the museum.’’
d,—OTHER PORTIONS OF THE WORLD.
The year 1856 has witnessed the safe and successful return of the
two naval explorations sent out in the early part of 1853, and dili-
gently occupied ever since in fulfilling the objects of their mission.
These were, the expedition for the survey of the China seas and
Behring Straits, (first under command of Capt. C. Ringgold, United
States navy, and subsequently under Capt. J. Rodgers, United States
navy,) and the expedition for the exploration of the La Plata and
its tributaries, under Capt. T. J. Page, United States navy.
The Behring Straits expedition, accompanied by Wm. Stimpson as
zoologist and Charles Wright as botanist, visited the island of Ma-
deira, Cape of Good Hope, China seas, Japan, Kamtschatka, Behring
Straits, and the coast of California, returning from Tahiti, via Cape
Horn, in the very short time of seventy-four days. The natural
history results were of great magnitude, filing many boxes and
barrels, and embracing very many new and rare species. Some idea
of the value of the collection may be formed from the following brief
enumeration of the animals brought home:
NORCO fae ctencamnsscssodesscer sens _ 846 species.
1 DST Ble et i Sle peek et ie Hig ee
TIES HS | PSE eh SR ae i le Aaa Gs0 ‘<1
PAIMOIVCU SS Meee aes ote ccccese rust ass ee
iil vil ynah Gro pe nla C3 i ri al esta ts hele any
GNI G 15 iceland Matyas 200,
MSL Pee tes akis Weck Al. Seek Ey SHI de pense
Of these, it is probable that more than one-half are undescribed.
The plants have not yet been assorted, but it is believed that they
will be not inferior in extent to the animals. They occupy in the
original boxes and bales a bulk of over 100 cubic feet.
Mr. Wright left the vessel at San Francisco, and returned via Nic-
aragua. He there made a valuable collection of plants and animals,
but was prevented from completing his explorations by the internal
troubles of the country. He has since gone to Cuba, to investigate
the botany of that island.
It may be proper to remark here, that the whole of a very rich col-
lection of invertebrates made in the Arctic seas was dredged from
the vessel under the immediate superintendence of Captain Rodgers
himself, while the scientific corps was engaged in another portion of
Bebring’s Straits.
The exploration and survey of the La Plata and its tributaries,
under Captain T. J. Page, though consisting of but a single steamer,
the Water Witch, of only 400 tons, and unprovided with naturalists,
has yet accomplished mach for natural science in the collection of very
full series of the birds, reptiles, fishes, insects, and plants of the.
34 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
country, with many interesting specimens of minerals, fossils, woods,
and.other native products. A point of special attention was that of
plants useful in the materia medica, and of these many new and rare
kinds were obtained, which cannot fail to be of economical importance.
In making these collections, Captain Page was ably seconded by
Dr. Carter, surgeon of the vessel, Licutenant Powell and the other
‘officers, as well as by E. Palmer, horticulturalist. In addition to the
‘specimens themselves, many valuable notes on the habits and pecu-
diarities of the species were obtained.
Mr. Palmer left the expedition before its return on account of il]
health, and while waiting a passage home made some additional col-
lections of reptiles, fishes, and insects, of much interest.
At the present time, all of the collections of these two naval expe-
ditions are stowed in the Smithsonian building, waiting some action
of Congress by which they may be published to the world. Funds
are needed to make the necessary drawings of new or unfigured
species, and to compensate naturalists for preparing the different
reports.
€.—SYSTEMATIC STATEMENT OF ADDITIONS TO THE MUSEUM.
Under the present head, I can only mention, in brief terms, the
most important additions made in the different classes of animals,
referring for particulars to the alphabetical list of contributions.
The collections made by the government expeditions will be discussed
at length in their official reports. In the systematic catalogues also
of the collections of the Institution, in preparation for publication,
as soon as their extent will warrant, will be found a careful and de-
tailed indication of the donor and locality of every specimen. It imay,
however, be well to extend the table of catalogue specimens, given on
page 54 of last year’s report, to 1856, for the sake of exhibiting the
increase in several departments.
| 1851. | 1852. | 1853. | 1854. | 1855. | 1856.
198 | 351 | 1,200} 2,046
Birds, eee, NT, SP EU EAMES UO AOE: PRO 4,353 | 4,425] 5,855
1,190 | 1,275 | 2,050) 3,060
To the above enumeration, however, must be added nearly 2,000
mammals in alcohol, and at least 1,200 skins of birds, not yet entered
on the museum register.
No count has been made of the jars filled during the year with
‘specimens in alcohol. It is believed, however, that. the number of
9,171, may be safely increased to nearly 12,000.
Mammals.—It is in this class that the additions have been most
extensive and important, the number of the larger species especially,
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 55
being very great. Out of the whole number of additions already
catalogued, 846, the following are those of the larger animals.
Black Bear, Ursus americanus....eseee- 1 || Jaguar, Felis onza.ceecesssoccseeceeee 1
Cinnamon Bear, Ursus cinnamomeus.... 1 || Prairie Dog, Cynomys ludovicianus....... 50
Grizzly Bear, Ursus ferow...seee.eeeeee+ 10 | Beaver, Castor canadensis...+.++eeeese0+ 7
Racoon, (lwo species) ...+++..2ee+see+++ 6 || Common Deer, Cervus virginianus.. «+++ 18
Wolf, Lupus occidentalis.....+..++-. .-- 10 || Black Tail Deer, Cervus columbianus.... 7
Prairie Wolf, Lupus latrans.......+2++ 6 || Mule Deer, Cervus macrotis ...+-++++++ Il
Red Fox, Vulpes fulvus ......+.+ eeccece 6 || Elk, Cervis conadensis....... 00000 AAA ee 14
Gray Fox, Vulpes Virginianus ........+. 6 || Antelope, Antelc pe americand...+.+++++- 18
Badger Tavidea iabradoria ....2e+2eee+ 5 || Bighorn, Ovis montana,...++++++sseees 5
Wild Cat, of three species .......00..2++ 19 || Mountain Goat, Capra montana....+.+++ 4
Panther, Felis concolor....sssseeeeesee+ 5 || Buffalo, Bison americand....+eeseeersees 5
As might readily be inferred, most of the above mentioned speci-
mens were received from Captain Pope, Lieutenant Warren, Lieu-
tenant Bryan, and Dr. Hayden; those collected by Lieutenant Warren
being of extraordinary variety and number. |
Continuations of the collections on the west coast, both of mammals
and birds from Doctors Cooper, Suckley, and Hammond, Mr. Samuels
and others, have been of much interest. Messrs. Kennicott, Jenks,
Pastel, Wilson, Curtis, and others, have contributed many specimens
from the Atlantic region.
Several rich collections of European and Siberian mammals have
been received, and furnish the much desired opportunities of com-
parison with American species. Among them may be mentioned
Dipus jaculus, acontion, sagitta; Meriones opimus, tamaricinus; Sper-
mophilus guttatus, eversmanni, erythrogenys; Cricetus arenarius, fru-
mentarius; Myodes novegicus, torquatus, obensis, lagurus, obscurus,
schisticolor; Arvicola rutilus, oeconomus; Lagomys alpinus; Tamas
pallasii.* Mustela sibirica, Feliscatus, &c.—These have been received
from Dr. George Hartlaub, of Bremen, Dr. F. Brandt, of St. Peters-
burg, and Maximilian, Prince of Wied. ~
A deficiency in the collection last year of the Geomys pinetis, or
pouched rat of Georgia, sometimes called “salamander,’’ has been
supplied by specimens received from Dr. Baldwin, Dr. Gesner, and
Mr. Burgwyn.
Birds.—Many specimens of birds have been received from various
parts of the world, and among the North American specimens are
several new species. A collection of nearly 100 Australian species
was presented by Mr. Warfield. Some rare birds from Bolivia were
deposited by Mr. Evans.
Reptiles.—Among many, the most interesting specimens of reptiles
added during the year are two of Lepidosiren annectens from the
*By this name I denote the species of ground squirrel found in Siberia by Pallas, and by
him considered the same with the ground squirrel of the United States. The most superfi-
cial comparison of the two shows them to be distinct, and as the American animal was first
described by Linnaeus as Tamias striatus, it must retain the name. In the necessity for a
new name for the Siberian species, I propose that of tne discoverer, in the absence, as far as
I can ascertain, of any other.
56 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
west coast of Africa, presented by Sir William Jardine. This almost:
completes the rich series of ichthyoid reptiles in the Smithsonian -
collection, the only deficiency being that of the gigantic salamander-
of Japan, (Sviboldia.)
fshes.—The number of fishes received has not been very great,
compared with previous years, as but few portions of the United States.
lack representatives in the Smithsonian museum at the present time.
Insects.—But few insects have been added during the year, with
the exception of those already referred to under the head of govern-
ment expeditions.
Other Invertebrates—A large collection of 100 species of Achati-
nella, from the Sandwich Islands, was presented by Dr. Newcomb,
and of shells and crustacea of Florida and Michigan, by O. M. Dor-
man, Hsq. ‘
Plants.—The principal plants received have been from Texas, col-
lected by Drs. Swift and Vollum, of the United States army.
fossils and Minerals.—The principal private collections under this:
head, besides those contributed by Dr. Hayden, were received from I.
Lippman, of Saxony, the K. L. C. Akademie of Breslau, and the
Naturforschende Gesellschaft, of Emden.
Living animals.—These consisted chiefly of a Prairie Dog (Cyno-
mys ludovicianus,) Sage Rabbit (Lepus artemisia,) and Prairie Fox
(Vulpes macrourus,) collected by Lieutenant Warren and_ party.
Some living animals were brought home by Captain Page, as a Ja-
guar, and Nutria (Myopotamus coypus.) The latter has since died.
Mr. David Miller presented a Pennsylvania Fox Squirrel (Sciwrus
cinereus.) Many specimens of Arvicola and Hesperomys (mice) were
transmitted by Robert Kennicott.
Several hundred living turtles were received and transmitted to
Professsor Agassiz for examination.
The living animals received from time to time have been found of’
great use, as studies for the artists engaged in making drawings for
the various government reports. Several of the specimens, as the
Spermophiles, Prairie Dog, Prairie Fox, Antelope, &c., had never
been figured previously, except from distorted, dried skins.
In the following tables will be found references to the regions from
which collections have been received, and to the nature of the speci-
mens; and at the end a full list of all the donations, arranged
alphabetically by donors. In some cases it has been impossible to-
ascertain the source of collections, owing to the omission by the donor
of his name and address.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. Oo”
I.—GroGRAPHICAL INDEX TO SPECIMENS RECEIVED.
Vancouver's wland.—Turner.
Washington and Oregon.—Carter, Cooper, Newberry, Nugen, Suckley.
Oalifornia.—Antisell, Campbell, Cooper, Dubarry, Emory, Grayson,,.
Hammond, Samuels, Stone, Suckley, Taylor, Thomas, Trow-
bridge. :
Utah.—Carrington.
Nebraska.—Atkinson, Bryan, Hayden, Stevens, Walker, Warren,
Watson.
Kansas.—Bryan, Carleton, Hammond.
Missouri.—Agassiz, Engelmann, Riddell, Wilson.
Texas.—Antisell, Pope, Swift, Vollum.
New Mexico.—Bowman.
Arkansas.—Burke.
Mississippi.—Bellman, Teunison.
Florida.—Baldwin, Burgwyn, Churchill, Dorman, Savery, Smith,
Welsh, Wiirdemann.
Georgia.—Churchill. Gesner, Glover, Jones, Leconte, Postell, Wilson.
South Carolina.—Agassiz, Curtis. 4
North Carolina.—Bridger, Hunter.
Virginia.—Brakeley, Brooks, Cabanis, Easter, Hall, Hotchkiss, Jenks,
Joynes, McCue, Massy, Tompkins, Tuley.
Maryland and District of Columbia.—Lowndes, Moss, Newberry,.
Younger.
Pennsylvania.—Baird, Brickenstein, Brugger, Cassin, Mackey, Miller,
Stauffer, Thickstun.
New Jersey.— Ashmead, Baird, Brown, Cooper.
New York.—Baker, Benton, Byram, Davis, Guest, Hale, Howell,
Reid; White.
Massachusetts.— Atwood, Brewer, Jenks, Jenkins.
Vermont.—Thompson.
New Hampshire.—Harvey.
Maine.—Hamilin.
Michigan.—Dickinson, Dorman, Newberry, Reynolds.
Wisconsin.—Bell, Hoy.
Illinois. —Dorman, Kennicott.
Jowa.—Bidwell, Glover, Odell.
Ohio.—Kirtland, Luther, Merrick, Newberry, Newton, Spence.
Indiana.—Cox.
Tennessee. —Mitchell.
Kentucky.—Bibb.
Nova Scotia.—Dawson, Downes, Gilpin, Ross, Willis.
Newfoundland.—Skues, Stabb.
Mexico.—Bobadilla, Hartlaub.
Nicaragua.—Anderson, Smith, Wright.
Cuba.—Poey.
Panama.—Cooper, Evans, Raymond, Rowell, Suckley.
Paraguay.—Page, Palmer.
Braril.—Cabanis, Page.
58 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
Bolivia.—Evans, Fry.
Jamaica.— Wilson.
England.—Denny, Jardine.
Germany.—K. L. C. Akademie, Breslau, Lippmann, Max., Pr. Wied,
Naturforschende Gesellschaft, Emdon.
Siberia.—Brandt, Hartlaub.
Africa.—Jardine.
Sandwich Islands.—Newcomb.
North Pacific seas.—Rodgers.
Australia.— Warfield.
I1.—Systematic InpDEX TO SPECIMENS RECEIVED.
Mammals.—Antisell, Atkinson, Baird, Baker, Baldwin, Bell, Bid-
well, Byram, Brakeley, Brandt, Brewer, Bridger, Bryan, Burgwyn,
Carleton, Cooper, Curtis, Davis, Dawson, Denny, Downes, Dubarry,
Easter, Emory, Engelmann, Gesner, Gilpin, Glover, Grayson, Hale,
Hall, Hammond, Hartlaub, Hayden, Howell, Jardine, Jenks, Jones,
Kennicott, Leconte, Lowndes, Luther, Massey, Max., Pr. Wied, Mil-
ler, Moore, Mitchell, Newberry, Newton, Nugen, Odell, Page, Poey,
Pope, Postell, Reid Riddell, Rodgers, Rowell, Samuels, Savery,
Skues, Smith, Stabb, Stevens, Swift, ’Suckley, Taylor, Teunison,
‘Thickstun, Thomas, Thompson, Trowbridge, Tuley, Warfield, War-
ren, Watson, Wilson.
Birds.—Bidwell, Bryan, Cabanis, Cassin, Cooper, Davis, Haster,
Emory, Evans, Glover, Grayson, ‘Hammond, Hartlaub, "Hayden,
Kirtland, Luther, Page, Pope, Rodgers, Samuels, Savery, Stabb,
Swift, Suckley, Trowbridge, Warfield, Warren, Wiirdemann.
Reptiles.—Agassiz, Antisell, Ashmead, Baldwin, Brakeley, Brick-
enstein, Bridger, Baird, Bryan, Cabanis, Churchill, Denny, Dickin-
son, Emory, ‘“Gesner, Glover, Jardine, Jones, Kennicott, Mitchell,
Newberry, Page, Palmer, Poey, Pope, Reynolds, Rodgers, Rowell,
Samuels, Smith, Stauffer, Swift, Suckley, Taylor, Teunison, Thick-
stun, Thomas, Walker, Warren, Wilson, Wright, Wiirdemann,
Younger.
Fishes.—Baird, Bibb, Brugger, Bryan, Churchill, Cox, Denny,
Emory, Engelmann, Evans, Guest, Jardine, Kirtland, Mitchell,
Page, Palmer, Pope, Rodgers, Samuels, Suckley, Taylor, Tennison,
Trowbridge, Warren, Welsh, Wiirdemann.
Insects. —Baldwin, Bowman, Bryan, Cooper, Emory, Mackey, Moss,
Palmer, Pope, Raymond, Rodgers, Rowell, Samuels, Swift, Suckley,
Taylor, Walker, Warren.
Other Invertebrates.—Antisell, Atwood, Bellman, Bibb, Bidwell,
Bryan, Dorman, Luther, Newcomb, Plant, Pope, Rodgers, Samuels,
Smith, Stone, Suckley, Willis.
Plants.—Brown, Carter, Churchill, Cooper, Joynes, Raymond,
Rodgers, Swift, Vollum, Wright.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 59
Fossils and Minerals. —Bidwell, Bobadilla, Brooks, Burke, Camp-
bell, Carrington, Denny, Fry, Hammond, Harvey, Hayden, Horner,
Hotchkiss, ‘Hunter, Jenkins, Jenks, K. L. C. Akad., Lippmann,
McCue, Merrick, Naturf, Ges., Emden, Newberry, Ross, Spence, Tay-
lor, Thickstun, Turner, Warren, Wilson.
Miscellaneous.—Hamlin, Hoy, Swift, Tompkins, Triibner, White,
Wilson.
B.— Work done in the Museum.
The various collections of the year have been unpacked, assorted,
and catalogued as fast as received. Books have been opened for the
registry of the fishes and invertebrates of the ser ies, which will be
labelled and entered as rapidly as circumstances will admit.
C.—Distribution and use of the Smithsonian Collections.
As in the previous years, the collections of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution have been freely open to the use of any persons engaged in
original research, and many specimens also distributed as exchanges.
The entire series of turtles has been sent to Professor Agassiz, to be
used in the preparation of his work, and many hundreds of living
ones were procured for him. Dr. Wyman has had many specimens
and preparations of salamanders and ichthyoid reptiles. Eggs of
North American birds have been furnished to Dr. Brewer, coleoptera
to Dr. Leconte, neuroptera to Mr, Uhler, hymenoptera to M. Desaus-
sure: seeds to the United States Patent Office; shells to Dr. Gould,
Mr. Lea, Hugh Cuming, and Mr. Cooper; birds to the Bremen
museum and to Dr. Hoy; living reptiles to the Zoological Society of
London ; fossils to Dr. Leidy, &c., &c.
D.—Present Condition of the Museum.
The present condition of the museum of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion may be summed up as follows:
Ist. Its collection of the vertebrate animals of North America, in-
cluding skins, specimens entire in alchohol, and skeletons and skulls,
is in every department, the richest in the world in materials for illus-
trating species and their geographical distribution.
Of invertebrate animals—as insects, shells, crustacea, &c., plants,
minerals, rock specimens, and fossils—its collections from the western
half of the United States are incomparably superior to all others, while
from the eastern portion of the continent it has very good series, though
surpasged in the extent of the different divisions by a number of others,
both public and private. A single exception may perhaps be found in
the private cabinet of coleoptera belonging to Dr. Leconte, which is by
far the richest known in the species of North America generally. It
60 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
will, however, be a comparatively easy matter to complete the defi-
ciencies of the Smithsonian coliection so as to furnish, in a few years,
as perfect a collection of the natural productions of North America
generally as could reasonably be expected. In most cases, it will be
merely necessary for the Institution to express a desire to possess such
collections from the Atlantic and middle portions of the continent to
have them offered spontaneously. Hitherto it has not been consid-
ered expedient to throw the doors open very wide for the reception of
the more common and better known species.
Of collections from other parts of the world, the Institution possesses
excellent series in many branches of natural history from Paraguay,
Chili, Europe, Siberia, China, Japan, South Africa, and the Pacific
ocean generally. The results of the Paraguay expedition under Cap-
tain Page, United States navy, and the Behring Straits expedition,
first under command of Captain Ringgold, and then under Captain
Rodgers, are of pre-eminent magnitude and value, far exceeding, in
many respects, those of any previous exploring parties to the same
region.
In illustration of the preceding remarks respecting collections in
North American zoology, it may be stated that the series of verte-
brata is almost complete, very few known species being wanting.
Skins of all the more prominent mammals, as buffalo, elk, deer of
five species, antelopes, mountain goats, bighorn or mountain sheep,
black, cinnamon, and grizzly bears, wolves, foxes, beaver, badger,
otters, prairie dogs, and marmots, peccaries, panther, jaguar, ocelot
or tiger cat, lynxes of four species, wolverine or carcajou, &c., are
now packed away within the walls of the Smithsonian Institution,
ready at any time to be mounted. All the species interesting to the
hunter, the traveller, the farmer, or the man of science can here be
examined or studied. The total number of North American species
cannot be less than two hundred, exclusive of bats, seals, and ceta-
ceans. Messrs. Audubon and Bachman describe about one hundred
and fifty North American species of mammals. This Institution pos-
sesses about one hundred and thirty of these; and about fifty addi-
tional species have already been detected, although the examination
of the entire collection has not yet been completed.
Of North American birds, the Institution possesses nearly all de-
scribed by Audubon, and at least one hundred and fifty additional
species,
The registered and catalogued specimens of quadrupeds amount to
2,040, of birds to 6,055, of skeletons and skulls to 3,060, nearly all
North American. To these, however, must be added at least 2,000
North American quadrupeds in alcohol, and 1,200 birds not yet entered
Of reptiles, the North American species in the museum of the
Smithsonian Institution amount to between 350 and 400. Of the
150 species described in Holbrook’s North American Herpetology, the
latest authority on the subject, it possesses every genuine species,
with one or two exceptions, and at least two hundred additional ones.
It has about 130 species of North American serpents for the 49 de-
scribed by Holbrook.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 61
Of the number of species of North American fishes, it is impossible
toform even an approximate estimate, the increase having beenso great.
It will not, however, be too much to say that the Institution has be-
tween four or five hundred species either entirely new or else de-
scribed first from its shelves.
Of skeletons and skulls of North American vertebrata, the Smith-
sonian series is very full, embracing, as shown by a preceding table,
over 3,000 specimens.
The collection of minerals and fossils, (including those gathered
by nearly all the United States geological surveys, as by Dr. D. D.
Owen, C. T. Jackson, Foster and Whitney, Evans, &c.,) are all
carefully classed and catalogued, so as to correspond with and fully
illustrate the reports of these gentlemen. There is also a large col-
lection of geological specimens, made many years ago in New Mexico
and Texas, as well as in Sonora, Chihuahua, and other portions of
northern Mexico, which, with the accompanying notes, furnish indi-
cations of many mineral regions and mining localities now totally
unknown to the people of the United States. Hints are to be derived
from a careful study of this collection of the highest importance in
the development of the mineral region along the Mexican boundary
line.
It may, perhaps, be well here briefly to mention the government
expeditions, by which these collections were made from time to time,
under the authority of the departments. The present and preceding
reports contain much fuller details concerning them.
A.—Geological Surveys. ~
1. The survey of Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and a portion of
Nebraska. by Dr. David Dale Owen.
2. The survey of the Lake Superior district, by Dr. Charles T.
Jackson.
3. The survey of the same region, by Messrs. Foster and Whitney.
4. The survey of Oregon, by Dr. John Evans.
B.—Boundary Surveys.
5. The survey of the line between the United States and Mexico,
first organized under honorable J. B. Weller, as commissioner, and
Major W. H. Emory, as chief of the scientific department, then under
John R. Bartlett, commissioner, and Colonel J. D. Graham, chief of
the scientific corps, succeeded subsequently by Major W. H. Emory,
then under General R. B. Campbell, commissioner, and Major W.
H. Emory, chief of the scientific corps.
6. The survey of the boundary line of the Gadsden purchase,
under Major W. H. Emory, commissioner.
4
62 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
C.—Surveys of a Railroad route to the Pacific.
7. Along the 47th parallel, under Governor I. I. Stevens.
8. Along the 38th and 39th parallel, under Captain J. W. Gun-
nison.
9. Along the 41st parallel, under Captain E. G. Beckwith.
10. Along the 35th parallel, under Lieutenant A. W. Whipple.
11. In California, under Lieutenant R. 8. Williamson.
12. Along the 32d parallel, western division, under Lieutenant J.
G. Parke.
13. Along the 32d parallel, eastern division, under Captain J.
Pope.
14. Ina portion of California, under Lieutenant J. G. Parke.
15. In northern California and Oregon, under Lieutenant R. 8S.
Williamson.
D.—Miscellaneous Expeditions under the War Department.
16. Expedition along the 32d parallel, eastern division, for experi-
menting upon artesian borings, under Captain Pope.
17. Exploration of Red river, under Captain R. B. Marcy.
18. Survey of Indian reservation in Texas, under Captain R. B.
Marcy. |
19. Exploration of the upper Missouri and Yellowstone, under
Lieutenant G. K. Warren.
20. Construction of a wagon road from Fort —Leavenworth to
Bridger’s Pass, under Lieutenant F. T. Bryan.
E.—WNaval Expeditions under the Navy Department.
21. The United States naval astronomical expedition in Chile,
under Lieutenant J. M. Gilliss.
22. The Japan Expedition, under Commodore M. C. Perry.
23. Exploration of the China seas and Behrings Straits, first under
command of Captain C. Ringgold, then under Captain J. Rodgers.
24, Exploration of the La Plata and its tributaries, under Captain
T. J. Page.
25. Exploration of the west coast of Greenland and Smith’s sound,
under Dr. EK. K. Kane.
The preceding enumeration embraces the government explorations,
by which collections of various kinds were made to a greater or less
extent, and deposited with the Smithsonian Institution, in pursuance
of the law of Congress. The government expeditions, the collections
of which are now deposited at the Patent Office, are as follows :
1. The United States Exploring Expedition, under Captain Wilkes.
2. The geological surveys of the northwest in 1840, under*Dr. D.
D. Owen.
3. The exploration of the Salt Lake valley, under Captain H.
Stansbury.
4, The exploration of the Creek boundary line, and of the Zuni river,
under Captain L. Sitgreaves.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 63:
5. The Amazon expedition under Lieutenants Herndon and Gibbon.
It will thus be seen, that of thirty government explorations, the
collections of five-sixths or twenty-four, are now deposited with the
Smithsonian Institution; the remaining ones, one-sixth in number,
are still in the Patent Office, though not all onexhibition. The same
proportion as above will pretty nearly indicate the comparative mag-
nitude of the collections in the two buildings. The disproportion in
favor of the Smithsonian collections will be still greater if we except
the extensive series of implements, utensils, clothing, and fabrics:
generally of the Pacific islands, as collected by Captain Wilkes.
To realize the difference between the two collections, it must be un-
derstood that at the present time all the Smithsonian collections are
packed away in the smallest possible compass, very few specimens
mounted, the alcoholic collections crowded closely together in five or
six different rooms; the shells, minerals, fossils, &c., necessarily
boxed up and stowed away in basement rooms. |
E.— Alphabetical Index of Additions to the Museum of the Smithsonian
Institution during the year 1856.
Professor Agassiz.—Three specimens Hmys serrata from Charleston,
South Carolina; &. belli, L. troosiu, and #. elegans from Osage river ;
E.. mobilensis from Mobile.
Lieutenant Anderson.—One Dryophis, two Istiophorus, and ten skins
of birds from Greytown, Nicaragua.
Dr. Antisell.—T wo boxes fossils and minerals from California ;
skeleton of rattlesnake and spermophile; skin of toad from the Gila
river ; Hermit crab from Matagorda, Texas.
‘ Charles Ashmead.—Salamandra tigrina from Beesley’s Point, New
Jersey.
E.G. Atkinson.—Skin of spotted buffalo calf from Fort Pierre.
é peice NV. Atwood.—Three fresh specimens of Huryale from Cape
od.
S. F. Baird.—¥ishes in alcohol; skeletons and jaws of fishes ;
small mammals from Beesley’s Point, New Jersey, and Carlisle,
Pennsylvania.
M. Baker.—Skins of fisher or black cat (Mustela canadensis) and
weasel, skulls of bear, deer, minks, otter, fisher, and martin, from
Essex county, New York.
Dr. Baldwin.—Bottle insects, living Testudo polyphemus or gopher
and Geomys pinetis or salamander, from Jacksonville, Florida.
J. G. Bell.—Box with two rabbits (Lepus sylvaticus) from Wis-
consin.
C. Bellman.—Mollusca from Biloxi, Mississippi.
: 6 J. H. Benton and W. E. Guest.—Lucioperca, with tumor on
ead.
Dr. George k. Bibb.—Blind fish and crustacea from the Mammoth
Cave, Kentucky.
Dr. HE. C. Bidwell.—Skins of birds and mammals, fossils, and
shells, from Iowa.
‘64 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
Don J. B. Bobadilla.—Fragment of tusk of mastodon from Mexico,
called by Dr. Weidner Duranzotherium bobadillense.
Captain A. Bowman, U. S. A.—Specimens of cochineal collected
near Fort Stanton, New Mexico, lat. 34°.
J. and A. Brakeley.—Skins of deer and other mammals, skulls of
mammals, living rattlesnakes, young Lynx rufus in flesh, bones of
deer, turkey buzzard, from western Virginia.
Dr. EF. Brandt.—Twelve skins Siberian mammals from eastern
Siberia.
Dry. T. M. Brewer.—Mammals from Massachusetts.
J. H. Brickenstein.—Living terrapins from eastern Pennsylvania.
J. L. Bridger. —Living snakes, terrapins, fox squirrels, from North
Carolina.
J. S. O. Brooks.—Crystallized salt from Kanawha, Virginia.
Dr. George G. Brown.—American amadou from New Jersey.
Samuel Brugger.—One can reptiles and fishes from Potter county,
Pennsylvania.
Lieutenant F'. T. Bryan, U. S. A.—Six boxes, one keg, containing
-aleoholic specimens, birds, mammals, and skeletons, from United
States wagon road expedition to Bridger’s Pass.
W. H. K. Burqwyn.—Geomys or ‘‘salamander’’ from Florida.
Rev. John Burke.—Minerals and fossils from Fort Washita.
Dr. George Cabanis.—Living land turtle, roots of Tuckahoe from
Virginia.
Dr, J. Cabanis.—Skins of Vireo from Brazil.
E. N. Byram.—Mice and moles from Long Island.
Albert Campbell.—Fossil plant from Santa Inez, California.
Major J. H. Carleton, U. S. A.—Two foetus of buffalo from the
plains.
Albert Carrington.—Coals from Utah.
M. Carter.—Ceanothus occidentalis trom Oregon.
J. Cassin.—Skins of Loxia leucoptera and Americana.
General Churchill, U. S. A.—¥our living gophers, (Testudo poly-
phemus,) four Emys terrapin, Echineis, Syngnathus, and serpents ;
seeds of plants, from Georgia and Florida.
Dr. J. G. Cooper.—Mammals, birds, and plants from California
and Washington Territories. Living turtles from Panama.
William Cooper.—Highteen skins of mammals.
E. T. Cox.—Skin of Labrax from Indiana.
Rev. M. A. Curtis and Sons.—Skins of Sigmodon, Reithrodon, and
Hesperomys, mammals and reptiles in alcohol, from South Carolina,
H. Davis.—Mammals and birds from Waterville, New York.
J. W. Dawson.—Specimens of Jaculus from Nova Scotia.
H Denny.—Mammals, reptiles, fishes, and fossils, from Eng-
land.
W. C. Dickinson.—Menobranchus from Portage Lake, Lake Supe-
rior.
O. M. Dorman.—Shells from Michigan and Illinois. Shells and
erustacea from Ilorida.
J. Downes.—Skin, Lepus glacialis, from Newfoundland. Hespe-
romys from Nova Scotia.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 65
Dr. J. D. Easter.—Three skins of mice from Virginia. Cardinalis
Virginianus (red bird) in flesh from Harper’s Ferry.
Major W. H. Emory, U. S. A.—Mammals and birds, reptiles and
fishes, insects and shells, collected by Arthur Schott, from San Diego,
via Camp Yuma, to El Paso.
Dr. Engelmann.—Cask of fishes and six skins squirrels from St.
Louis.
M. Evans.—Hemiramphus and Ailurichthys from Panama. Box
of Bolivian birds. Deposited.
W. A, Fry.—Sulphate of lime encrusted with quartz from the
Andes.
D. W. Gesner.
Georgia.
A. J. Grayson.—Birds, mammals, fishes, and eggs, from Cali-
fornia.
Dr. S. FE. Hale.—Skins and skulls of mammals from Essex county,
New York.
Dr. John P. Hall.—Deformed pig from Fairfax county, Virginia.
A. CO. Hamlin.—Cast of ancient inscriptions on rock from Maine.
Casts of fossil cetacean from Bangor.
Dr. J. F. Hammond, U.S. A.—Birds and mammals from California.
Dr. W. A. Hammond, U. S. A.—Box of minerals and jar of alco-
holic specimens from Kansas.
Dr. G. Hartlaub.—Skins of Siberian mammalia, skins of birds of
Mexico and Cuba.
M. Harvey.—Minerals from Hampshire county, New Hampshire.
Dr. F. V. Hayden.—Skins of birds, skins and skulls of black-tail
deer, antelope, mountain sheep, beaver, prairie dogs, and other mam-
mals ; reptiles, fishes, and mammals in alcohol; shells, fossil re-
mains, &c., collected in 1854 and 1855, on the Upper Missouri.
John Hitz.—Cones and seeds of Pinus cembra from Switzerland.
Dr. Horner, U. S. N.—Box of minerals.
J. Hotchkiss.—Fossil bone of deer from Virginia.
sae Howell.—Specimens of mammals from Tioga county, New
ork.
Dr. P. R. Hoy.—Box Indian antiquities from Wisconsin.
Dr. C. I. Hunter.—Rutile and Lazulite from North Carolina.
Sir W. Jardine.—Mammals, fishes, reptiles, &c., from England.
Lepidosiren annectens from Africa.
a te T. A, Jenkins, U. S. N.—Minerals and rocks from Gay
ead.
J. W. P. Jenks —Mammals from Middleboro’, Massachusetts.
W. Jenks.—Silicified wood from Alexandria, Virginia.
Dr. Joseph Jones.—Reptiles and mammals in alcohol, from Colonel’s
island, Georgia.
J. Rh. Joynes.—Living plants from the eastern shore of Virginia,
K. L. C. Akademie der Naturforscher, Breslawu.—Minerals from
Germany. |
_Robert Kennicott.—Mammals, reptiles, and fishes, skins and in
alcohol, living serpents, salamanders, and mammals, from Illinois.
58
Jar reptiles and mammals, skulls, from western
66 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
Dr. J. P. Kirtland.—Skins Bombycilla garrula, 1 jar of fishes,
skin of wolf and squirrels from Cleveland, Ohio.
J. Lippman.—Minerals, (148 specimens,) from Schwarzenberg,
Saxony.
B. O. Lowndes.—Arvicola pinetorum (field mouse) from Bladens-
burg, Maryland. :
S. M. Luther.—Eggs, shells and skin of mink from Portage county,
Ohio.
J. M. Cue.—Fossil bones of deer and woodchuck from Augusta
county, Virginia.
R. B. Marcy, U. 8S. A.—Box of minerals and fossils from Fort
Belknap.
A. W. Massey.—Skins of raccoon, gray fox, and jar of mammals
from Spottsylvania, Virginia.
Maximilian, Prince of Wied.—Skins of European mammals.
Professor F. Merrich.—Fossil fishes from Delaware, Ohio. De-
posited.
Dr. Ed. Merrill.—2 packages moss from Louisiana.
D. Miller, jr.—Living fox squirrel from Pennsylvania.
Mr. Milton.— Coins from Michigan.
Professor Mitchell.—Reptiles, fishes and mammals from Tennessee.
Carlton R. Moore.—Deformed antlers of Cervus virginianus.
WV, Moss.—Specimens of Scarabeeus tityus from near Washington.
Dr. J. 8. Newberry.—Minerals, fossil fishes, and reptiles from
Ohio, skull of beaver from Lake Superior, skins of cinnamon bear,
black bear, and young grizzlis from Oregon.
Dr. Newcomb.—100 species and 40 varieties of Achatinella from the
Sandwich Islands.
Judge C. Newton.—Arvicola and Hesperomys in alcohol from Ohio.
New Orleans Academy of Natural Sciences.—One keg of serpents,
and skins of squirrels from New Orleans.
Dr. Nichols. —Racoon from California.
John E. Nitchie.—Box minerals (Lead ores) from Shelburne, New
Hampshire.
Lieutenant Nugen, U. 8. A.—Skins of mountain goat from Cascade
mountains, Oregon.
B. F. Odell.—Box with skins of mammals, lynx, rabbit, &c., from
Iowa.
Captain Page, U. S. N.—Skin of ant-eater and goat, tank of alco-
holic specimens, 4 bales plants from Paraguay, box birds, keg con-
tainiog skin of Jaguar, Myopotamus, and armadillo from the Salado
river, Paraguay.
Lidward Palmer.—Reptiles, fishes and insects from Paraguay.
J. T'. K, Plant.—Shells and miscellanea from Washington.
Professor Poey.—Solenodon paradoxa, Skull of Capromys, Emys
decussata, and rugosa, trom Cuba.
Cuptain Pope, U. 8S. A.—14 boxes of collections in ail departments
of natural history from the Llano Estacado, of Texas.
J. P. Postell.—Skins and skulls, mammals, shells, from Georgia.
J. W. Raymond.—Living plant, Lspirito santo, from Panama.
Large grasshopper from Aspinwall.
REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 67
Peter Reid.—Portions of three specimens, Zamias striatus, from
New York.
J. L. Reynolds.— Menobranchus, from Portage Lake.
Dr. J. L. Riddel.—Skin of Scturus magnicaudatus from Missouri.
Captain Rodgers, U. S. N.—20 boxes, 9 kegs, one bale natural his-
tory collections from the Pacific coast. ;
Alexander P. Ross.—Slab sandstone from Pictou, Nova Scotia.
Joseph Rowell.—Box of shells, sloth and reptiles in alcohol, from
Panama.
E. Samuels.—Birds, mammals, skeletons, plants, reptiles, and
fishes, from Petaluma, California.
Mr. Savery.—Specimens of birds and mammals from Flerida. (De-
posited in part.)
Dr. B. F. Shumard.—Sdamanxdra glutinesa from Missouri.
Dr. J. M. Skues.—Skin Lepus glacialis from Newfoundland.
J. W. Smith —Crustacea, and young rabbits from Florida.
W. A. Smith.—Two Iguanas from Nicaragua.
William Spence.—Large slab with coal fossils from Coalport, Ohio.
Dr. H. H. Stabb.—Two polar hares, 4 ptarmigans, 1 pine grosbeak,
in flesh, from Newfoundland.
J. Stauffer.—Bottle of reptiles from Lancaster county, Pennsyl-
vania.
Dr, OC. W. Stevens.—Skull ef grizzly bear frem upper Missouri.
(Deposited.)
Captain Stone.—Shells frem near Santa Barbara, California.
Dr. Swift, U. S. A.—Dried plants, reptiles, insects, skins of birds,
five mammals, sediments of rivers, from Fort Chadbourne, Texas.
Dr. George Suckley, U. 8S. A.—2 boxes mammals, birds, reptiles,
fishes, and insects trom Steilacoom; box of shells, skins, birds, mam-
mals, from Panama and San Francisco.
A, S. Taylor.—Specimens of sediments, insects, reptiles, and fishes,
gophers and minerals from Monterey, California.
Miss Helen Tewunison.—Reptiles, fishes, and mammals, from Monti-
cello, Mississippi.
J. F. Thickstun.—(For the institution of Natural History, Mead-
ville, Pennsylvania.) Can mammals and reptiles in alcohol, bom
minerals, from Meadville, Pennsylvania,
Major G. H. Thomas, and Lieutenant Dubarry, U. S. .A.—12 jars:
mammals and reptiles, one Phylostome bat from Fort Yuma, Cali--
fornia.
Professor Z, Thompson.—Specimens in alccheol of small mammalia
from Burlington, Vermont.
Dr. D. Tompkins.—Pertorated stones, used by Indian in games.
From the banks of the Roanoke river.
Lieutenant W. P. Trowbridge U. S. A.—Skins of birds and mam-
mals, can of fishes, from San Miguel, California ; skeleton of sea lion
from Sau Fraucisco.
N. Triiiner.—280 microscopic slides of insects prepared by A.
Heeger, Vieuna.
- Colonel Tuiey.—Fresh skin of Cervus dama, (Fallow deer,) from
Clark county, Virginia.
68 REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY.
Dr Thomas T. Turner.—Cretaceous fossils from Nanaimo, gulf of
Georgia, Vancouver’s island.
Dr, Vollum, U. S. A.—Plants from Fort Belknap, Texas.
Rev. L. Vortisch.—Ancient German antiquities from Saxony.
M. Walker.—Jar reptiles and insects from Nebraska.
H. Mactier Warfield.—100 specimens of birds from Australia, Or-
nithorhynchus and Petaurus.
Tieutenant G. K. Warren, U. S. A.—48 boxes, collections in all
departments of natural history, from the upper Missouri.
Mr. Watson.—Miscellaneous bones and part of skeleton of horse
from Nebraska.
David Welsh.— Jaws of Myliobatis and gophers from Florida.
A, White.—Specimens of filterings and sediments for microscopic
examination from Cazenova, New York. )
John L. Willis.—Box of shells from vicinity of Halifax, Nova
Scotia.
Mr. Wilson.—Specimens of vegetable fibre from Jamaica.
Dr. D. D, Wilson through Dr. J. S. Newberry.—Coal plants and
fossil remains, from Missouri.
Dr. S. N. Wilson.—Skins, mammals, alcoholic specimens, and
shells, living terrapins, from Georgia.
W. S. Wood.—See Bryan.
Charles Wright.—Seeds and dried plants, 12 jars reptiles, and in-
sects from Nicaragua.
G. Wirdemann.—Shells, eggs, and alcoholic specimens from
Florida.
Washington Market.—Sargus ovis from Norfolk. Living Emys
rubriventris, young sturgeon, fresh white fronted goose, muskrat, F'u-
ligula collaris, from Potomac river.
Ed. C. Younger.—Reptiles from Washington.
Unknown.—Box of European birds.
?.—Fishes from Puget’s sound.
——?.—Box water-worn pebbles.
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS. 69
LIST OF METEOROLOGICAL STATIONS AND OBSERVERS
FOR THE YEAR 1856,
NOVA SCOTIA AND CANADA.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. |W. long. | Height.
of 2A Fed.
altar. pan foie Montreal! 222 lb pen top aac 45 30 | 73 36 57
Stuart, A. Py S.--..c- Wolfville....--. Horton N. S.---- 45 06 64 25 95
Smallwood, Dr. Chas.-.} St. Martin.....- aval. ce one 45 32 73 36 118
Magnetic Observatory-| Toronto..-..---|--....---------- 43 39 | 79 21 108
MAINE
Barrows, Geo. B.----- Bryeburg-2 22 5- Oxfords. sa seeee FA OS3 EO PL- OO} oes
Belli John’ J Lass s5< Canmelens 22252 = Penobscot .....- 44 AT 69 00 175
Dang? W,. D225 -. 5 5-- Perry oo) = SaSce Washington ----| 45 00 67 06 100
Eveleth, Sam’l] A----- Windham -...-- Cumberland: e=-+|| 43°49 ||" "70" hi ess Soe
Gardiner Rh. His s2ss22 Gardiner =-.-s--- Kennebec ...-.- 44 11 69 46 90
Gupull, GAwWes.- a. 22 Cornish villeis22 4), Yorket Sten: 43 40 70 44 800
Pavser) ds Dein: - 2s ~3 Steuben.:-..--- Washington ....| 44 44 | 67 58 50
Willis, Henry.------- Portland, 322222 Cumberland ----| 43 39 | 70 15 87
Walbuar; Benj. WW. -222: Monson 2 S285: PIscataquUispee sos [sess eae OL eas aml eee
NEW HAMPSHIRE.
| =et Be a MBAS LEE ERESCICICIGT cc RRPRTORIG ica ULCER OEM FA...
Bell Sami NJ... 22 Manchester- ---- Hillsborough...-} 42 59 | 71 28 300
Brown, B. Gould. ----| Stratford -.----- @oosssssca2 secs 4408 | 71 34 1,000
Hanscam, R. W'.-..- == North Barnstead.| Belknap-------- ABS NSB lt Stele 2s | sows
Mack, R.iC@e.ti..52 Londonderry----| Rockingham --.-| 42 53 | 71 20 |..------
Qdell, Fletcher-.-..-- Shelbourmme’s2¢2232|" Coossssscse es 44 23 Wk 06. (Pose seme
Prescott, Dr. Wm-..-- Concord... -- _---| Merrimack..-... 43 12 71 29 374
Purmort, Nath...-..- West Enfield...-| Grafton ..-.---- 43 30 2 OO} |r ete
Sawyer, Geo. B.-.-.-- Salmon Falls..-.| Strafford -..---- Ave dpa lt LAO Os lz ere
Sawyer, Henry E----- Great Falls ...-- Stratford... =... ASP LT |, WONG2t seer erers
uss. Geo. Ui...---2e Shelburne --_---
sts. Wises oni HS Bradiord.=-=- oo Orange... J22522| 943 5d.) i2lorl Sasa
Buckland, David. ---./ Brandon_..___.- Rutland ....-.-c|/" 43 45).|, sfs00nrPe sates
Mememian AGS 22 53 Norwich, 2222.92 Windgor...scaot2|'@43 A2s|. 72) 200 saa
E aan Craftshury...25=4|), Orleans} 25. 22). 1, 100
70 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS.
MASSACHUSETTS.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. | W.long.| Height.
Ont OF; Feet.
Allin, Lucius._...-..-| Springfield . -...| Hampden ---.-- 42°06 | 72 35 | 19
Bacon, William ---.-- Richmond -.---- Berkshire .-2__- 42 23 | 73 20 1,190
Bond. Prof, W.Cs=.-- Cambridge---=- - Middlesex ---..- 4 DOS e ST Oe soe
Brooks; John *.2_-.2-. Enneetons.s-.2 - Worcester ----.-- 42 28 71 53 3,113
Darling? De Ato. —2- Bridgewater ----| Plymouth -..--- 42 00 | 71 00 142
Davis: Rev. Hiss 222% Westheld 22222 Hampden ---- 22 42 06 42) 4S eee
Holcomb, Amasa ---- - Southwick._---- Hampden ---.-- 42 02 | 72 10 265
al thle Williamstown..-| Berkshire-___._- 42 43| 73.13 720
Metcalf, John Geo.---| Mendon----.--- Worcester .-.--- 42 06 72: 33 14. ees
Mitchell, Hon. Wm---} Nantucket------ Nantucket. -.-..- 41 16 70 06 36
Perkins, Dr: HC _ = Newburyport -—-| (Uss@xeesee= ree 42 47} 70 52 46
Rice, Henry. 2-22 5--- North Attleboro’ | Bristol _.------- 41 59 | TE 22 175
Rodman, Sam’l_------ New: Bedford==2-|"Bristol===-=-=-- 41 39 | 70 56 90
Rice, Frank H.~-.-
Smith, Edw. A----- Worcester .----. Worcester ...--- 42 16| TE 48 536
Sargent, John S__-- |
Snell, Prof. EK. S...-.- Amberst <---2.- Hampshire .----} 42 22 | 72 34 263
Schlegel, Albert_.---- WeaaMtoON Ss Hesse IBTiscOl == aeee eee 41 49 TE -OS IMEC ee
Tirrell, Dr. N. Quincy.) Weymouth ----- Norfolk a2 .S286 43 00 | 71 00 | 156
RHODE ISLAND.
Aenold, BH. Gea 4-2 Acquidueset -~---| Washington ----}--------|--------|--------
Caswell, Prof. A...--- Providence -..-- Providence - ---- 41 49 | Fk 25 120
CONNECTICUT.
Edwards, Rev. T. ----| New London--..-| New London-.--- 41 21 72 12 90
Harrison, Benj. F.----| Wallingford ...-; New Haven- ---- 41 26] 72 50 133
Hull, Aaron B--2----= Georgetown ..--| Fairfield . ~--.-- 4, 15) | Fan06 300
unt, D pieee see 235 Pomifret. <==. Windham. -..--- Al 52 12 23 596
Rankin. Jass¢.2%- 1.282 Saybrook.....-- Middlesex -..--- 41 18 72 20 10
Scholfield, N:-=:---+- Norwich . ...--- Newlhondon::cx-l) 41 32 | T2OSniece ase
Yeomans, W. H------ Columbia... == <- Rolland) .....£s 42 20 2? £6. grees
Anbin: Obits s-sensee Rordham =... 2242 Westchester ----| 40 54 |-------- 147
Mba Dr, BeeMiose =s-< Angelica son - Alleghany --...- 42, 15 78 O1 1,500
Agden, ThosyBs-2 2222 Bevetlyjecs=o == Putnameseeoean 4} 22 | 72 Le 180
Bowman, John-_--.---- | Baldwinsville ---| Onondaga ....-- AS 04s) geo ly jo. soe
Breed, J. Everett_---- Smithville..---- Jefferson ..-.--- 44 (002). 76-01 |e eee
Byram, HUNE £e. 4 o2e Sag Harbor ----- Sufiolk 2-52 .-222 41 00 | 72 20 40
Chickering, J. W----- Ovidl <i oce6ee Seneca.) oo... 588 AD AVG a i652) |, see anes
Dayton,, Hi: (Alp: 2 Madtida..2=- St Lawrence.---| 44 43 | 75 33 280
Denning, Wi His... 32 Fishkill Landing.| Dutchess -----~-- 41 34} 74 18 42
Dewey, Prof. Chester..' Rochester -----.- MONTOe = eee 43 08! ‘7 51 516
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS. 71
NEW YORK—Continued.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. |W. long. | Height.
Ca Cr ae Feet.
Helt.. Johns. --2 1522 hhiberty. -.-.-.s6 Sullivan. 3-1 4145 | 74 45 1,474
French, John R --..--- Miexico..3-<sse O&wero, ..-s2088 43 27 76 14 423
Gorton, JijSp ee. 4-22 Westfarms- ----- Westchester <4-.}/)40 53 |.2-22.-2 150
Greene, Prof. Dascom.-| Troy.---------- Rensselaer-.---- AQ 44. |. bee ote
Guest. W; Bt ce. 4-22 Ogdensburgh..-.| St. Lawrence.---| 44 43 | 75 26) |b. aoteae
House, J. Carroll... 2: Lowville: —..< 3423 hewise <2 sense 43 46 Tiv88) |aeolt eee
Jonnson, WoW ss--'-< Canton... ..4aeea= St. Lawrence...-| 44 38 | 75 15 304
Kendall, John F_----- Pompey Hill----| Onondaga ------|--------|-------- Litas
Lefferts, John -<2---2: Modi: ...- 28254 Seniecalast asus - 42 37 76.53) (eet eee
Lobdell, Mrs. M. J-...-| North Salem_...| Westchester -.--| 41 20 73 38 361
Malcolm. Wm. &.----- Oswego. . ----s=- Oswego. ...---=- 43 28 | 77 34 232
Morehouse, A. W----- Spencertown----| Columbia.---.--- 42 19 | 73 41 800
Morris, Prof. 0. W----| New York--.---- New) Norks i422 40 43 74 05 159
Noxton: dri Ss25 2 2 Plamivitlers= soe Onondaga.-----. ASM O0l |oe cs sa aelea ee ae
Pernot, Claudius....-- Fordham :. #2224 Westchester. - - - - ADP Da Joo ee 147
Brathan WieOs ceo s Rochester.....-- Monroe.caanceee 43 08 (REL 516
Reed, Edward C---..-- HOMErs == - 22 =o Courtland ->.—- 42 38 | 76 11 1,100
Reid. Peter =--.=-4-=- takes O22s2ee Washington. ---- A315 | (3) 38} |p aacee
Riker, Walter H.----.- Saratoga. 2smep Saratoga.-_----- 42 00 | 74 00 960
Root, brot, Ok so. 32< @linton. 2° --==2 Oneasoooeee 43 00 | 75 20 500
Sanger, Dr. W. W----| Blackwells Island|---------.------ 40 45 73 57 29
Sartwell, Dr. H. P--..| Penn Yan.....-- Vatesessses cece A Dik Dim lees a 740
Spooner, Stillman. ---- Wampsville ----} Madison. ------- 43 04 | 75 50 500
Smith, J. Metcalf----- McGrawville....| Courtland ------ AD gh 4-5) |e eeteserars| ee
Tay lorw.JOs.pWase~s== Plattsburgh —~-<)- Clinton: -=---—-= 44 GAD eases oe 156
Tenxteloty Urata cA. 2-) Uittee c= sos s—ca= Oneidasaeeae =" 43 07 Tip LS 500
Van Kleek, Rev. R. D-| Flatbush ------- RIN SG satan so = = 40 37 | 74 Ol 54
White, Aaron_----- Pa WAZeHOVEd Sania Madison -- 2. —-.- 42 55 75 46 1, 260
Williams, Dr P. O----| Watertown ----- VeMETSON . = sa2—j2 43 56 TD. Dom a= ae
Wilson, Rev. W.D.--| Geneva --..---. Ontano sos 2... - 42 53 17 02 567
Woodward, Lewis- -.--- West’ Concorge oi bier = - ss eece 43 00 79 00 2,000
Yale, Walter D.------ Houseville.-_-.-- ewihe<-2s.425= AS AO iy io nese eee are
NEW JERSEY.
Coonen Rellsse set 2 Bloomfield....-- Higcexs ==. eee 40 49 74 11 120
Dodd; G.-Me2 22.22 Salen e eee Saiemeess 2 se 39 34 7s af fr Be
reagent. th arlineton ee Burlington. .---- 40 00 | 75 12 26
Whitehead, W. A.---- Newatk-rrrss. co! slg sateen 40 45 74 10 30
PENNSYLVANIA.
Brown, Samuel-.----. iBediord. 922 22 = iBediord! =. == os. 40 O01 7S dUy lace
faire, John HW. --..b 8 Tarentum ._..-- Alleghany - ----- N33 aa EE 950
Brickenstein, H. A.---} Nazareth ._----- Northampton-.-| 40 43 | 75 21 |---.----
Brugger, Samuel_----- niemimewes =~ .— Centreen = oe oo 40 55 | 77 53 780
Chorpenning, Dr. F.--| Somerset ------- Somerset —----<- 40 02 79 02 1,997
Darlington, Fenelon --| Pocupson--.-.--- Chester? 2-—..-- 39 54 | 75 37 218
Edwards, Joseph ----- Chromedale ._.-| Delaware--.---- 39 55 | 75 25 196
Eggert, John. ....--.. Berwick-_--.--- Camm bia oon 41 05 T6-lonles. ~ soo
2 a ee Shamokin -....- Northumberland.| 40 45 |.---.--- 700
Hance, Ebenezer.-_.-.- Morrisville ..--- BUCKS eee one 40 12 74 53 30
Heisely, Dr. John ----| Harrisburg ----- Dauphin. coop 40.16). 76.50. jo one or -
72
PENNSYLVANIA—Continued.
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS,
—_#——
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. |W. long. | Height
Oe Oy lt Feet.
Hobbs, O2 Fos 2222 Randolph. --..-- Crawford -.----- 41 28} 80 10 1,720
Jacobs, Rev. M_-_----- Gettysburg ----- Adams «2224-25 39 151 of TTS ae oes
James, Charles § .---- Lewisburg.....- Union sesos2 428 40 58 TONS8e se. Sees
Kirkpatrick, Prof. J. A.| Philadelphia...) Philadelphia_---| 39 57 75 11 60
Kohler, Edward-.---- North Whitehall | Lehigh--------- AO BOM wees Ae 250
_ Ralston, Rev. J. Grier_| Norristown -~---- Montgomery-.---| 40 08 75 19 153
Schreiner, Francis ----| Moss Grove....- Crawford ===. <- 41 40 T9*bd? | vse
Bertha, Victor-22.. 22 Droy Hile-ce Atleshany: 724s eS Rees eee St A ee
Smith, Prof. Wm----- Canonsburg. ---- Washington -.--| 40 25 86-074). Jt sees
Swit, Dr. Paule=. 42 West Haverford_| Delaware~------ 40 00 D6 e 2G ete see
Thickstun, J; WH 2..-22 Meadville -...-- Crawford .------ 41 39 |} 80 11 1, 088
Wilson, Prof. W. C.--| Carlisle......--- Cumberland ~..-| 40 12 aa nel 500
Witton, WW. 2... 52 Pittsburgh. ._--- Alleghany.----- 40 32} 80 02 1, 026
DELAWARE.
——
Crawford, W. A----
Craven, Thos. J..-- Newarksss22225- New Castle_...- 39 38 | 75 47 120
Nantin, RnpAs es ==
MARYLAND.
ipaer Missile) Mie ee Shellman’ Hills=-|Caxroll-—2—- 223 39 23 76 57 700
Goodman, W. R-.-.... Annapolis ------ Anne Arundel___} 38 58 7 oe 4)
Hanshaw, Henry H.---| Frederick... .- Hiredericky. =, 39. 2401 willl Siglo ae seems
Eowndés iB) Oss. 25. Bladensburg .---| Prince George..-| 38 57 | 76 58 |-.-..--=
Pearce, James A., jr...| Chestertown ----| Kent --__---_.- 39 14 FO S020) = See ere
Stacer NG ee ecmmicctess Ridg@en on seo sa Nt Mary 8. oto) se ese 2 | sos eS ei eee
Zumbrock, A., M. D..-| Annapolis ------ Anne Arundel_--| 38 58 | 76 29 34
——-e_--
VIRGINIA.
Astrop, Lieut. R. F.--| Crichton’s Store-| Brunswick------ 36 40 TT 46 je Soa
Beckwith, T. S., M. D.| Garysville .-.-.. Prince,George. ==) = =~ =-b-|=-=- Sas | ae eee
Clarke, James T.----- Mount Solon2223|*Angustaaac soos seeee 2 | 2S eee eee
Couch, Samuel...----- Ashigndes ee rece EUG a) = ie cS 38 38 81057 oaepeee ee
Bhs! DD: Te erties Crack pW lips lecr= Mardy: o22 222 39530! 2= ce eee ee eke
Fauntleroy, H. H_---- Montrose- .=--=< Westmoreland..-}| 38 07 | 76 54 200
Hallowell, Benjamin..| Alexandria_ ~.--| Alexandria. -..-| 38 48 77 01 56
Hoff; Josiah W-.-.--- Warn Crals loa ese Wirtuceoeese ss Ait ee oee eee
Hotchkiss, Jed....--- Mossy Creek-.--| Augusta. -..-.-- SI) iG }s |een(he). 2)! 9 Saeeesee
Kendall, James E.---- Charleston. ....|.Jefferson_ ..--c- 38 20 tH) 5741 Ciel ae
Kownslar, Miss Ellen..| Berryville -.--.-- Clark wae eteme 39.09] 78.00 575
Marvin, John W.-.--.-- Winchester. ---.. Frederick. ...... 39 15 Tiss)" Wd A) Pee
Patton, Thomas, M. D, | Lewisburg ------ Greenbrier. .-..- 38 00 | 80 00 2,000
Enrdie; John R.5--2-— Smithfield------ Isle of Wight.--| 36 50 | 76 41 100
Quincy, WiCi2.52.25. West Union. ---- Doddridge. ....- oon Io 81 00 1, 100
Ruffin, Julian C...... Ruthvensoscsese Prince George...-|, sous Zl) Ul Boaleee came
Ruffner, David L ----| Kanawha-_-.---... Kanawha. < on. BCT tia gree i ieee
Skeen, William.....-- Huntersville.--- | cocahontas= o.<ctetuenOn |= ec sceie 2, 640
Webster, Prof. N. B..-| Portsmouth....- Norio Kian aes 36 50 76,19 34
a Ne
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS. 73
NORTH CAROLINA.
rT
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. | W. long.} Height.
Opry OF Fed.
McDowell, Rev. A----| Murfreesboro’ ---| Hertford..------ 86130) |. ck-.- adele
Moore, Geo. F., M. D-| Gaston....----- iNorthampton..62|240 2232/2 52 - Se. -|=-aeeeee
Morelle, Daniel.------ Goldsboro’. ..--- Winhynes=s== seen eet bs5./f. 328 eee
Phillips, Prof. James-_-| Chapel Hill.---- Grange... -se S222 Sor SLE Ne TOMA Ue See
SOUTH CAROLINA.
\
Fuller, E N., M. D---| Edisto Island ---} Colleton. -..---- 32 34 80 18 23
Glennie, Rey. Alex’r--| Waccaman. ----- AlljSaints --.2=- 33 40 19 17 20
Johnson, Joseph, M.D.| Charleston. .---- Charleston. -_--- 32 46 | 80 00 30
Ravenel, Ho Wis----— AIKEN) ase e ee Barnwell: «s\-cems 33 32 81 34 > 565
White; Prof..J. B.--.. Colambia. ..-=.< Richlands -25e-— BB«51 Sh OF 5 ee
Younes, J. A., M. D=-=|, Camden _- = - Kershaw..------ 34 17 | 80 33 275
Se eee
GEORGIA.
Anderson, Jas., M. D.-| The Rock----.-- peor fae y st Ses F052" | Se 28 833
Gipson hy) Pas S22 =e Whitemarsh Is’d.| Savannah. _.---- 320040) Sl Oon he = = ase
Haines, William------ ATU pUsta= S22 see Richmond. se-- = BOu2SU te Sl cake |store
Pendleton, EK. M., M.D.| Sparta. ..------ rancock = =-- 55 = Sigel lif 83 09 550
Posey, John F._..-...- Savannah. --__--- Chatham o2-=-2-- 32/05) |e oLeon 42
FLORIDA.
Bailey, James B.----- Alachias 225422 20 Soe) eS 2e20n == meee
Baldwin, A. G.,M. D..| Jacksonville ...-| Duval. .-.------ 30 30 | 82 00 13
WEDNIE WiC an = = <= - Key) West). -—-- 24.33) | 81 48 bo. coat
Fry, Lieut. Joseph---- Escambia---.--- 30 20} 87 16 12
Mauran, P. B., M. D--| St. Augustine-.-| St. John’s------ 29 48 81 35 8
Steele, Aug....-----.- LGA ORR Dee 29 07 83 02 12
ALABAMA.
Alison, H. L., MD- --} Carlowville. ..-.; Dallas. .-..----- 32 10 87 15 300
Darby, Prot. Johns22=) Auburn. 2 - =. Macon = —2.--=5e 33 37 88 03 821
euwiler, Ho - oo soe Greene Springs.-| Greene--.------ 3250) |e Sln AG ae
Waller, Robert B---.-- Greensboro’. ---- GIECH Cs == = sans 32 30 87 10 350
MISSISSIPPI.
| _o Spe ES e —
Elliott, Prof. J. Boyd.-| Port Gibson. ---- Claiborne: ----- 31 50 91 00 500
Hamper; Dri. ..--- Oxfondssas ee Lafayette. ------ 34 20 | 89 25 338
mil James) §--- --- -- Columbus. .----- Lowndes. ------ 33 30 | 88 29 227
we ee eee
Smith, J. Bayete. Watchiewssscc.ce Miberss.» 328008 31 34} 91 24
ee) ee ee ee
74 METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS.
LOUISIANA.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. |W. long | Height.
Oo. ORE Feet
Barton, E. H., M. D --| New Orleans:---| Orleans -.------ 2950 1. 90000 eeeee
Kalpatrick; ALR, M.D3)) Gninity. --.-==22 Catahoula ------ 31 3 91 46 108
Merrill, Edward, M. D:| Trinity. --.----- Catdhoulatssedaeeie ee . 8 be CEE eee
Taylor, Lewes, B. ----| New Orleans.---| Orleans....----- 29 57 90 00%) _. s222388
— | te
TEXAS.
Brightman, John C-2:) Helenas:s=----- FNATNERSE oc eee eee ales = eee | oe tees
Marke: J). ies 2 2. ene New Wied... --.-- Comalstee see 29 42 foteal be Maat ae
Jennings,| S: Ke. Mi DP ) ‘Austinesssss522% MAVBee ace ene e 30 20 97,46" |2 eee
Raekers 5. He Set oo" Washington. ---- Wiashinptons= 2 etc Sisciee cee one eee
TENNESSEE.
|
Baan, Jast Bye oe | Walnut Grove ..| Greene.....-.-- 36) (00) 482 538 1, 350
Griswold, Prof. T. L ..| Knoxville .....- Knoxe += eeasoe 35 59 | 83 50 1,000
Stewart, William M.--) Glenwood ------ Montgomery.---| 36 28 | 87 13 481
KENTUCKY.
Bestuyy Oran. on soc: Danville) 2-22 =5- Boy len a seee eae 37 40 | 84 30 950
Rave Gee Wl. DD) eee| IPALIS) owie seine Bourbon! 22see—2 38 6 || 8407) | Sao seae=
Savage, Geo.S , M. D.-| Millersburg----- Bourbon -.----- 38 40 | 84 27 804
Swain, John, M. D.---| Ballardsville ....}| Oldham —_-.---- 38°26") "Sh" S0sa22 Saas
OHIO.
Bennett, Henry ....-- Collingwood).ssc} Dieastsen os 252). |L -oee e| See eee | aeeeeeee
Binkerd)J..S:5-se--~ = Germantown-.--| Montgomery...) 39 39 | 84 1] |--s---.-
Bosworth, R. §..-..<- College Hill. ---- Hamilton ------ 39 19 | 84 25 800
Cunningham, Miss A.-| Unionville....-- CE: eer ee 41 52 81 00 650
Warton! Ti vi sees: S = Zanesville -....- Muskingum 2-5) 939908 || (S2eloe see eee
Wanvchild i). saqueseriee Operiinns!seeeee Weoraineteas soe 41 20! 82 15 800
Fischer, Jas. C., M. D-| Dayton.-------- Montgomery....| 39 44) (89) 2) je. cee
Groneweg, Lewis----- Germantown. ..-| Montgomery.---| 39 30 | 84 11 720
Hannaford, Ebenezer--.| Cheviot -...-..-.- Hamilton.si25-|heo90 07 84°34 \o.+ceeee
Harper, George W.---| Cincinnati...--.- Hamilton .. .-.- 39 06 84 27 150
Herrick, James D.-.-..- Jefferson —...-.: Ashtabula --.-.- 42°00) |, 8200") -2b see
Hillker, Spencer Wu; <2 -- PEMA fe = sin = Bie Portage... see 41 20 | 81 15 675
Hollenbeck, F. & D. K_| Perrysburg --.-- Wied ne -amece AV 39) | 183° 400) 2255 eee
Holston, J.G.F., M.D.-.| Zanesville -....- Muskingum .-.-| 39 58 82 29 700
Hyde, GitAt one... Cleveland ---.-- Cuyahoga ...--- 41 30 |} 81 40 665
Ingram, John, M. D -.| Savannah. ..-.-- Ashland 2-482 41 12 82. Ble|seee coe
Eivezay, (G-gW.) o=<54- Gallipolis......- Gallia 25 <5 39 00 | 82 01 520
uthers SYM. esce ban Mitam) Sees. Portage) ssasesee .41 20 | 81 15 675
Mathews, J. McD.--.-- Enlishorot=see—2 Jebyatod nator — 39 13 | 83 380 1, 000
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS.
OHIO—Continued.
75
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. | W. long.| Height.
Oy OF Feet.
WicGanty,: Hel). 3... 225 West Bedford---| Coshocton ------ 40. 18./9 82° OT C22 sees
Poe; James H. -..---- Portsmouth: S22e|Psciopo 22-2222 22 38 50 | 82 49 468
Sanford,. Prof. §. N.---| Granville, .-.--: iekmic: tac 2 40 03 82 34 995
Schénck, W. L., M. D-| Franklin ----.-. Wianren = 2ite se aoe fe 2 | o/s eee eee
Shaw, Joseph ---.---.-- | Bellefontaine -..| Logan ..-.----- CN aA Ll Diente fs fee: 1) ee
Williams, Prof. M. G -| Urbana -.------ Champaign -.--- 40 06 | 83 43 1,016
MICHIGAN.
Andrews, Seth L.& G.P.| Romeo --------- WiCOmy = seem == 42 44 | 83 00 730
Campbell, Wm. M.---| Battle Creek....| Calhoun....----| 42 20 85 10 |-.---.--
Currier, A. O..------- Grand Rapids...| Kent ....------ | 43 00!| 86 00 752
Duffield, Rev. Geo----| Detroit. .--.--.. Woaynet=s sees 42 24 | 82 58 620
Goff, Mrs. M. A. -----| Eagle River----- TB VGnDUe) ai 0) dee celta Meek TE petal ees) ier
Strang, James J. =_--- St: Janres: ==5222 Beaver Island._-| 45 44 | 85 27 598
Ronen o la. Si see coe Saugatuck--.--- Alleghan .. ---- ADESOF |" 85.500 eae osee
Welker, Mre* O} Cl2e2| Coopers= 2225.2 ~ Kalamazoo ..---| 42 40 ro ers hag ees SS
Whelpley, Miss H. ---- Monroe:====2 2 Monroe sss2 2222 | 41 56 | 83 22 590
Winitilesey, (Chas: S:_-| Copper Walls.-..|--2-2.-----.---- 47 25 | 88 16 1, 230
Winchell, Prof. A.---- Ann Arbor ....-. Washtenaw- ---- | 42 16 83 44 891
Woodruff, Lum.-.----- Ann Arbor ...-- Washtenaw- ---- | 42 16| 83 30 850
INDIANA.
IBSTHES; (Ono nls ccs cae = New Allbanye-ee) Hloydsseea) 25s) eae eae a meee eee
Chappellsmith, John--| New Harmony--} Posey.-.------- 38 08 | 87 50 320
Moore, Joseph ------- Richmondiss—sae Wittyne nr 3' 353- 39 47 | 84 47 800
Smith, Hamilton----- Cannelton --_... BORE i2 2 tee Saas Sane foes Se ee (eee
ILLINOIS.
imabcock, Bytt ee 2-7 Riley 25s222225: McHenty=2222- 42 08 | 88 33 650
Brendel, Fred., M. D. | Peoria --------- Reonia 2 SP See ween pasos |e 2 Seee aoe eee
Eldredge, William V. -| Brighton -....-- MEtCOUPININ Sse ote ee saa lmee = ae laretea tate
fring. Johns: cs -5 Manchester....- SSC. Xi ie ee 39 33 90 34 683
Hels Joel... .-5---% Ath ens\<ccuwsace Menatdesscarcose BIEOZal) woos OO a= aeoeetats
ars, .J0..O., MoD. -2\eOttawa ../ eae WerSalles t= =. 2 41 20 88 47 500
mnee x, Gr. [i 2222.2 Chicaro:-.seee COOK se ceooe aus 41 53 | 87 41 600
James, John, M. D.---| Upper Alton._.-| Madison -.. ---- 39 00=i"89"36" | Seeseees
Mead, S. B.,.M. D.-.-| Augusta ......- Hancock yo... 22 40 12 89 45 200
imagers; O: Pysols... 2 Marengo -...--- MecHenry-...--- 42 14 88,38 lensaneees
cgtze, Henry A.=_..- West Silem-_--_-- Hdwards:-.=.- 38.30)|" 88,00 9/222 cgerere
Whitaker, Benjamin--| Warsaw-------- HENCOCkKs.. one | cose towel eee ae eee
76
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS.
Reid; R. K., M. D..-.) Stockton
MISSOURI.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. | W. long.| Height.
Chandler,Chas.Q.,M.D.} Rockport.....-- Boone. << acee 38155 | 92038s|-- oop
Duffield, Edw., M. D.-} Hannibal_.....- Marion. = ae 55-5 39 45 91 00.) ..o..75 ee
Engelmann,Geo., M.D.| St. Louis...-.-- Sts louise == ee 38 37 90 16 481
Wislizenus, A., M. D.-| St. Louis.....-- Ce he gad leer teres (eee ee eae 461
@
IOWA.
Beall. Dexter =. 3424 Hairbanks!/22-5-- Buchanan —---.. 42 45 Si Mowe eee
Bidwell, E. C., M. D--| Quasqueton.---- Buchanan. ...-.- 42 23 91 43 890
Connel, Townsend M2=| Pleasant Plains=sleJetterson 2225-25 |eeece seo eae aeee es Cees
Fairall, Hermann H.--| Iowa City.---..- Johnson = 35.62 22|te ee =sos| se -- eee |e eee
Hoxy,, John,C, “=. .- == Bellevueweeee ese JACKSON jf SE Se eae owe eee eee ae fae
Goss, Geo. C..&.Wm.K;| Border, Plains;—.- |, Webster=. 422-54] sesh secel aass. | eee
McCready, Daniel----- Fort Madison...-} Lee........-.-- 40 137 | 91 284) eee
Parker, Nathan H-. +) Clinton: =2.252=< Clinton: <= see ls{{ee 3256]. 200 2 eee
Banyin ie iSe ie sea Muscatine ._...- Muscatine .-...- 41 26 91 05 586
Seheeper, Tigh Ase oe Wbella.g2 22.2 so se Menon. sso ae 41 30 | 72 55 730
{ jphatier, Jit Me anne Haired eee PNG) 10) ee Se se yeas ae
WISCONSIN.
Bean, Prot. S, Aces .cl Waukesha. ----- Wankeshwesecs Ses ceseed Reese cece
Breed, J. Everett---.- eNewsliondoneere Wall PACCay se eae eee |e ee eS
Durham,--W. J=.=Jd=<< Racine hy seseee ee Racinesccssscke 42 49 8t- 40" | soso
Himoe, John E.....-. INOLWAY = =a sees Racine. 22. see 42 60.) . 88.10 ..2-S52288
Monn, C4 jr acct ;
Washington, L&R t Superior..s2<=<2 Douglass2es24e- 46 38 92 03 658
Mason, Prof. R. Z.-..- Appleton.e-= == Outagamie. --_-- 44 10 | 88 35 800
Park, Rev. Roswell -..| Racine -......-- RACING He eee ene 42 49 87°40" (sae eere
Pickard, J. L., M. D.-| Platteville...... Granteeees eee oe 42 45 9000s seeeeate
omeroy.s hi Oeee sea Milwaukie-_-..- Milwaukie....-- 43 04 | 87 59 658
Porter, Prot. Winwva--- Belottoce =. ROG kek s = cerns 42 30 | 89 04 750
Seibert, Samuel R.---- Cascade Valley..| Buffalo....---.-- 44:30) 92800" 222s eaes
Sehme ALM Deseo se Madisone==>ssee Danevses 2s cee = 43 05 89 25 892
Sterling, Prof. J. W.--| Madison.......- Danner «<5 owed 43 05 89 25 892
Winkler, C., M. D...-| Milwaukie... Milwaukie--...- 43 04 87 57 593
Walang cdi, M ken erste oe Janesville......- 1 RY) anaes 42 42 | 89 91 768
CALIFORNIA.
Ayres, W. O., M. D.--| San Francisco. --| San Francisco..-| 37 48 | 122 23 115
Logan, Thos. M., M. D.| Sacramento- -_-- Sacramento ----- 88 35 | 121 40 49
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVERS. 77
MINNESOTA.
Name of observer. Station. County. N. lat. | W. long.| Height.
o 4 ie) Feet.
Brooks, Rev. Jabez ..-| Red Wing------ Goodhue. .-.=— AATS4 |e 92 SOM S Setee eis
merrieon. 0. boc. Princeton. 22--.4- 1313) 81 100) «re ee ADDO) |sian ta crim ener
Odell, Rev. B. F....-- (@acctiake Mission |eeonmee ee ase hans oe eee =| - =o ane af aan le
SOS): Niihtitdeceo tas c Hazlewhoodschoss ada ceeateeca~se|-saeccecl ass oo se-|s— =e ee
Gunn, Donald..------ Red River Settle- }........-------- 50 06 | 97 00 853
ment.
Ervendberg, Prof. L. C. 19 30 | 99 00 7,665
Fendler, Aug-..-----.
AraguaProvince.| 10 26
Hering, C. T...------| Catharina Sophia/....-.--.-------|-------- | aE. Ae | 5. 2s
SANDWICH ISLANDS.
Hillebrand, Wm., M.D.| Honolulu. sae eile ah YEA DORIA IOs aS T taht fer
JAMAICA.
Bis James a. Up Park sone eee eee eee ee
TRINIDAD. vag
Geological Surveyors--| Port of Spain...-|.------.-----
PERSIA.
Rey. Mr. Stoddard...-| Oroomiah.....-.|.-..------------|--------]--------|-------+
78 REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
The Executive Committee submit the following report of the state
of the finances of the Smithsonian Institution, the expenditures during
the year 1856, and an estimate of receipts and appropriations for 1857.
The whole sum appropriated for the current expenses of the Insti-
tution for the year 1856, including the remaining payment on the
building, was thirty-nine thousand dollars. The actual expenditures
for the several items do not materially differ from those specified in
the estimate submitted by the committee and adopted by the Board.
The whole sum expended was $38,158 90, which is less than the
amount appropriated by $841 10.
A committee was appointed February 24, 1855, consisting of Messrs.
English, Pearce, and Mason, to consider the best means of investing the
extra fund, Mr. Corcoran having signified his intention to relinquish
the charge of the money deposited with him. After due consulta-
tion, the committee concluded to recommend the purchase of State
stocks. This being agreed to by the Board, at a subsequent meeting
the Secretary was instructed to make the purchase under the direction
of the Finance Committee. An account of the transaction under this
resolution is given in the report of the Hon. Mr. English of that com-
mittee.
It will be recollected that the extra fund amounted to one hundred
and twenty-five thousand dollars, and from the report of Mr. Eng-
lish it will be seen that of this sum one hundred and nineteen thou-
sand four hundred dollars have been expended in the purchase of
State stocks; that six hundred dollars remain in the hands of
Messrs. Riggs & Co.; and that five thousand dollars of that fund,
applied in 1855 to the payments on the building, is now in the treas-
ury. There is, therefore, five thousand six hundred dollars of the
extra fund uninvested. It is, however, not advisable to invest this
immediately, because the half-yearly income of the Institution is not
receivable until the first of July, and it is necessary to retain a suffi-
cient sum in the treasury to meet the payments fur paper, printing,
&c., for the next volume of Contributions, which cannot be post-
poned.
The following is a general statement of the fund:
The whole amount of the Smithsonian bequest deposited
in the treasury of the United States (from which an
annual income, at 6 per cent., of $30,910 14 is de-
PIV ECUN ASS: Ach, vos SeURMRE Es oven st ore aae heaton yet cs as $515,169 00
Extra fund {from unexpended income, now
invested in State stocks, yielding an an-
nual. interest-of $7,380 eisiesverieees $119,400 00
Extra fund deposited with Riggs & Co.,
bo be. inyestel, «:ccncsbeccodacerouevases ifennten 600 00
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
Amount in the treasury, being part of the
extra fund of accumulated interest, de-
signed to be invested, and which, with
the above sums of $119,400 and $600,
will make the amount $125,000, appro-
priated for the increase of the perma-
j, Ment FUNG.......crceeeereeeeeeeeceeetenceeeenee:
5,000 00
Balance in the hands of the treasurer January 1, 1857,
$7,164 32, from which deduct the $5,000 belonging to
PNET Ay TIPTEU ee) coc wa scceregaaaasereserncescs
feovsesesoeeesese
The following is a general view of the receipts and
during the year 1856:
RECEIPTS.
Balance in the hands of the treasurer Jan-
uary 1, 1856, of which $5,000 belongs to
RPE N ORS AUGM D258 occas tebeccauc cscs esedess
Interest on the original fund ($515,169)
- oie ben Updo Sets 58th ee aan
Interest on the extra fund from
Corcoran & Riggs, while on
GEPORIU. oon. needs dacidesee= +> sees
Interest on the extra fund since
investment in State bonds...
$9533 33
3,690 00
EXPENDITURES.
For building, furniture, fixtures, &c.......
For items common to the objects of the
Batt tb nome i. eahge sik ste cayeu aha e's inept es
For publications, researches, and lectures.
For library, museum, and gallery of art...
&8.189 75
30,910 14
$7,891
12,859 2
7,876 2
9,532 3
——--.
Balance in the hands of the treasurer January 1, 1857,
of which $5,000 belongs to the extra fund.....csceeees
79
$125,000 00
2,164 32
$642,333 32
expenditures
$45 393 22
$38,158 90
—
7,164 32
* Reduced nine cents, to correct an error in last statement.
80 REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
The following is a detailed statement of the expenditures during
1856:
BUILDING, FURNITURE, FIXTURES, ETC.
Pay on Comtractstmwe dite... <snasevsiweslaneass $6,036 38
Repairs and miscellaneous incidentals to
building; ooicaiitn. & AGA Aas eater bed 1,359 23
Furniture and fixtures for uses in com-
TIRUND cha. savodeie eee anionstemacenaee mule neem dentes 198 83
Furniture and fixtures for library........... 163 16
Furniture and fixtures for museum......... 38 14
Mia enetic-ONSerVAtOLly.......6s.2-5+0+-c0sneceneee 48 80
POUR iors ai pistes sisedec seta. naam aon 46 50
GENERAL EXPENSES.
Meetings of Board and committees......... 369 50
Maigtinis and WAS sncsc ess 5220 teed monevnpins 1,303 92
POSEREC U2 nan saisaviicee Pexcicinpoat sore tee te ear aneae 696 76
Transportation and exchange............s.00 1,134 29
RPAUTONELY te. ands Swodvosdsrdecneacodt stendacucdndse 109 67
Romeral princi e. oc. 5.5-.csaenceee enna. ane 383 25
TIPALACUS: ..ctedeae ec vies Socaxadtnccseeeetetces 739 18
WGP DOTACOLY cicdenepten ep neasenee toeseewedecte mee 629 91
Imeidentals, general s:...:.<ncedeoncgnceneoeee 883 92
Salaries—Secretary ......sccceccscscscsccccsoees 3,499 92
Chiet (Clerks iis nca ts cee cote en tee 1,200 00
Book-keeper s.c<asscsa0r ter etennsacs 200 00
eq ADUUOL REL cuit ercrone tere tear as 399 96
RV ARCHING ee ee iscsusccursnceceenotee 372 00
TGS DOTEIS 5 si<iieiciewow'leeiseeermseeee eee < 636 00
Messen Ger. ..5..3..tvevnssbemabicnamsninite 192 00
lixtra clerks../.......sass eeesaoemebns 109 00
PUBLICATIONS, RESEARCHES, AND LECTURES.
Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge. 4,355 38
Reports on the progress of knowledge...... 75 50
Wthes publicationeseccavs. .ceedechedeseesecces 158 20
ECON BY. oslo n vein nw nn'nsinintieeene 2,279 90
Investigations, computations, and re-
BEATCHES). .. . wowenssresenineanenonns tea tie tensor ene 142 75
Lectures :
Payot Jecturens istiieaciscs+sscccsensscncs 835 00
Incidentals to lectures...........s000 ae 29 50
$7,891 04
12,859 28
7,876 23
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
LIBRARY, MUSEUM, AND GALLERY OF ART.
Tnbrary:
CT Gt SEO 5 vs» ave cdacpsegnnegbascases $3,692 05
Pay: Of GHgIStANES,.......0cccoerecoessseres 1,728 00
TTANSPOTtAtION. ...,20006 cecsenesesseeereere 451 39
SiS GAs: Flas otis. Sucdesdveeenas as sons 152 50
Museum :
Salary of assistant secretary............ ooo a
Hxplorations.......s..ccececeeaecsceceraeees 158 25
Collectiomeys. pais. 5.2 hoteatecadaesessses2s 220 08
Alcohol, glass jars, &C...........cseseee 352 64
TranSPOTtation ......ceocscecseececcsereeees 349 96
Assistance avd IADOT... dfdidieedcasetes. 2s 327 00
Gallery of afb... cccseccecseessecescsendenssesesies 100 56
8]
$9532 35
38.158 90
oo
—_
The committee present the following estimates of receipts and ex-
penditures for the year 1857:
RECEIPTS.
Balance in the hands of the treasurer Jan-
uary 1, 1857, (exclusive of $5,000 be-
longing to extra iLL CCD ae Re Ro APLAR Ar $2,164 32
Interest on the original fund ($515,169)
HAS UO ef Oe an Sing hoalasacieleds ennaisanasicne 30,910 14
Interest on the extra fund invested in State
RMAC STs Sk ep eanas fc tina «suicide semeseaeaaecess 7,380 00
EXPENDITURES.
Building, furniture, fixtures, &c.:
Repairs, additions, and miscellaneous
CLE TSI Pi pss siete tie $1,000 00
Furniture and fixtures for uses in com-
TAO Oe. 8. eo i caceconsdensennh 600 00
Furniture and fixtures for library..... 350 00
Furniture and fixtures for museum... 200 00
Mapnetic observatory...........sssresceee 60 00
GENERAL EXPENSES,
Meetings of Board and committees.......... $250 00
Lighting and heating............cccccsecerccees 1,300 00
(LEN Senin i ie 2 Does 9 2 ik eel "550 00
Transportation and exchange..............00 1,600 00
6s
$40,454 46
$2,210 00
82 REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
Siationery iia. .28 ee. Se AE $120 00
Genera) printings csc cata siie shistdenct eden as 200 00
Apparatus .........cececee ss coceeseeeseseeeeeens 500 00
Biboratorycs 5 Se. peek REN a 300 00
Incidentala, cotleralys. kes. sth tes teee seats 850 00
Salaries—Secretary foo. sc.<1-c-t0 ces eye eee 3,500 00
Chief iclerie . cai. ett ek ee 1,200 00
Bonk keepen.s.icee sesere. ite canece 200 00
JNM ee coerce satin Shae bo ommaes 400 00
Wik Cimie mss caciinsecetecies atc euetetaabe 400 00
BN 0 SiS, yt SA ee ES RRR RRR 700 00
FUSaRE RIG VONICS A. eiviniee detatst'-'oir's's'otntetalels mr 500 00
—_———_
PUBLICATIONS, RESEARCHES, AND LECTURES.
Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge. $6,000 00
Reports on the progress of knowledge..... 500 00
hiver“pablica tions ..)rnccsusecsscienwes scence 500 00
jo FEV NW (oe Te CRA Se Orr as 3,000 00
Investigations, computations, and re-
YE ate] eh Rae Saas) PO AUPE Re Ons ea rian ecae 620 00
Lectures :
Pay OF VCCUUTCTG 2c. .0+ecnitenseaiiesmecwinas 900 00
VEIG eR GAlS sc ccecarccss ates scatters emacs 300 00
AASTOE \ROOKG, sinistecac ct eacuds ek ate cee Seeace $1,000 00
Pay of assistants, ...cc..0.....cscosesseseseseoess 2,000 00
Transportation for library............+...-.-+ 300 00
Pneidenials {Or WDTATYcccccsseseese scence ences. 200 00
Maseum, Salaries. vscsccacs<sncctvertecosmene sce 2,000 00
WXPLOTAIONS. 5... cee ececse sees neee essence meees 200 00
ISGMIBCHIONG. cee wscactosscccerepancete cea teste 200 00
Alcohol, glass jars, W0........sssseeceeeseeeees 300 00
Transportation fOTTMUSEMM ..<...cncemsnnrnnntere’ 350 00
Assistance and labor for museum............ 600 00
Gallery Of Art fy. Wile. ooocciss ssterteraaiatecterereatctes 250 00
$12,570 00
$11,820 00
$7,400 00
$34 000 00
From this it will be seen that the estimates of expenditure for the year
1857 are six thousand dollars less than the receipts for the same time.
It is advisable thus to limit the expenditures for the present year, not
merely because it is easier to expand the operations of the Institution
than to contract them, but because, as the revenue is payable semi-
annually and the accounts must be paid whenever presented, the
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES. 83
treasurer has sometimes been obliged to overdraw on the bankers of the
Institution, whereas the six thousand dollars, reserved from appro=
priation and left in the treasury during the present year, will enable
the Secretary and Executive Committee to defray all expenditures
without subjecting the Institution to charges for interest on over-
drafts.
The committee report, also, that they have examined all the ac-
counts and vouchers and compared them with the books, and find them
all correct.
Respectfully submitted :
J. A. PEARCE,
A... D7 ACHE,
J. G. TOTTEN,
Executive Committee.
84 REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
REPORT OF THE BUILDING COMMITTEE.
The Building Committee of the Smithsonian Institution present the
following report of their operations and expenditures during the year
1856.
At the date of the last report of the committee, the building was
considered finished, but it has been thought best, during the past
year, to make a series of additional drains from the principal windows
and doors of the basement to the main sewer, which passes under
ground from the extreme east end of the building along the middle
of the cellar to the west end of the principal edifice, and thence
through the grounds to another sewer emptying into the canal. The
length of these additional drains in the aggregate amounts to about
seven hundred and thirty-three feet. They were necessary to carry
off the water which descends through the spouts from the roof, and
he rain which falls into the sunken spaces exterior to the windows
-and doors of the basement. They are constructed of brick, and sup-
plied in each case with a trap to prevent the escape of offensive
effluvia.
During the last summer, according to the statement of the Secretary,
a very disagreeable odor was perceived in the east wing of the build-
ing, which was readily traced to the main sewer. It was observed to
be more intense at certain times than at others, and after considerable
examination was found to depend on the tide wave of the Potomac,
which enters the extreme mouth of the sewer, condenses the con-
tained air, and forces it back to the extremity of the drains, where it
escapes through the minute crevices of the encasing brick-work. The
cause of the difficulty having been discovered, a remedy was readily
suggested. This consisted in tapping the main drain before it reached
the building, and erecting over the opening achimney communicating
with the exterior atmosphere. Through this the condensed air
escapes, the internal pressure is relieved, and the disagreeable efflu-
vium is no longer forced into the building.
The attention of the Building Committee has also been directed by
the Secretary to the fact that, in the original plan of the edifice, it
was intended to provide for the drainage in a manner differing from
the present mode. For this purpose, three large cylindrical excava-
tions were made in the ground, two on the front, and one in the rear
of the building. They are each about nine feet in diameter, thirty
feet deep, cased with brick, and covered with planks and earth. Fear
has been expressed that the wooden coverings of these wells may de-
cay, and that accidents may occur from the breaking through of car-
riages. The committee would, therefore, recommend that they be
either filled up, or permanently secured by a dome of brick over each .
The latter plan is preferred, both on account of cheapness and the
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES. 85
fact that one of the excavations may hereafter be used as an ice-
house, and the others for investigations connected with subterraneous
temperature and other physical phenomena.
From the statement of the accounts given by the Executive Com-
mittee it will be seen that the following sums have been expended on
the building, viz:
Pay OM CONGEACES,. QC... ctaiegess gap names sgn spas cpr sqrqareases $6,036 38
Repairs and miscellaneous incidentals.............:s.e1ee0 1,359 23
The first item includes the amount paid the original contractor,
Gilbert Cameron, to close his account, and also for the drains and
other permanent additions to the building. The second item includes
all the sums paid for work done on the roof, and for repairing and
painting all the water-courses lined with tinned iron.
Respectfully submitted,
WM. H. ENGLISH,
JOSEPH HENRY,
Building Committee.
86 PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGENTS.
JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
BOARD OF REGENTS
OF
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
JUNE 18, 1856.
The Board of Regents met this day at 11 o’clock, in the hall of the
Institution.
Present: Hon. R. B. Taney, Clancellor, Hon. J. A. Pearce, W.
H. English, H. Warner, A. D. Bache, Wm. B. Magruder, and the
Secretary, and by special invitation Mr. W. W. Corcoran. The Sec-
retary stated that Dr. W. B. Magruder, having been elected Mayor
of the city of Washington, is ex officio a Regent of the Institution,
and therefore takes his seat in the Board.
Mr. English, from the Finance Committee, made the following
report.
The Committee on Finance charged by the resolution of March 8,
1855, with the duty of enquiring into and reporting upon the pro-
priety and manner of permanently investing the money of the Insti-
tution now in the hands of Messrs. Corcoran and Riggs, respectfully
report:
Ist. That in the judgment of the committee the best disposition . to
make of said fund would be to add it to the funds of the Institution
already in the treasury of the United States, and to that end, your
committee recommend that application be made to Congrese for an
act authorizing such addition.
2d. As the money is at present yielding the Institution no interest,
your committee further recommend, that for the time being, and until
favorable action can be procured by Congress in relation to receiving
said extra fund into the United States treasury, the same be invested,
under the direction of the Finance Committee, in the stocks and bonds of
such sound interest paying States, and at such rates as the Board of
Regents may select and determine.
All of which is respectfully submitted.
The following resolutions were offered :
Resolved, That the report of the Committee on Finance be con-
curred in, and that the Chancellor appoint a committee to make ap-
plication to Congress for an act authorizing the receipt of the extra
fund into the treasury of the United States.
And further be it resolved, That until such action by Congress can
PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGENTS. 87
be procured, the Committee on Finance invest said fund, in the name
of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution, in such bonds and
stocks as are mentioned in the following table, and at such rates, in-
cluding brokerage, as will not exceed one per cent. above the rates
mentioned in said table, viz: ,
35,000 Virginia 6 per cent. bonds at 95 cents.
36,000 Pennsylvania 5 ee SUE NEE EG 48
36,000 Indiana 5 Re Fy GPRS TR **
36,000 Missouri 6 ie Me Eh BayT of
On motion of Dr. Magruder, the report of the committee was ac-
cepted, and the resolutions were adopted.
The Chancellor appointed Hon. J. A. Pearce, of the Senate, and
Hon. H. Warner, of the House of Representatives, a committee to
make application to Congress for an act authorizing the receipt of the
extra fund into the treasury of the United States.
The Board then adjourned to meet at the call of the Secretary.
WEDNESDAY, Juty 9, 1856.
The Board of Regents met this day in the committee room of the
Library of Congress.
Present: Hon. J. A. Pearce, James M. Mason,8. A. Douglas, W.
H. English, H. Warner, A. D. Bache, and the Secretary.
The Secretary stated that Mr. Corcoran had informed him that he
‘could not purchase the stocks directed to be bought by the Board at
its last meeting at the prices limited by the resolution of June 18,
1856.
On motion of Dr. Magruder, it was resolved that the Secretary,
under the direction of the Committee on Finance, be instructed to
purchase the said stocks at the market rate, and if any of said stocks
have advanced in price, the Secretary, under the instruction of said
committee, may invest in other stocks at discretion.
The Board then adjourned sine die.
ELEVENTH ANNUAL SESSION.
JANUARY 21, 1857.
In accordance with a resolution of the Board of Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution, fixing the time of the beginning of their an-
nual meeting on the third Wednesday of January of each year, the
Board met this day in the hall of the Institution.
Present: Hon. J. A. Pearce, Hon. W. H. English, Hon. B. Stan-
ton, Professor Bache, and the Secretary.
No quorum being present, the Board adjourned to meet on Satur-
day, January 24, 1857, at 11 o’clock a. m.
88 PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGENTS.
JANUARY 24, 1857.
The Board met this day at 11 o’clock a. m.
Present: Hon James A. Pearce, Hon. 8. A. Douglas, Hon. W. H.
English, ‘Hon. B. Stanton, Hon. George E. Badger, Hon. W. B.
Magruder, Professor C. C. Felton, and the Secretary.
In the absence of the Chancellor Mr. Pearce was called to the chair.
The minutes of the meetings of June 18, July 9, 1856, and of Jan-
uary 21, 1857, were read and approved.
Hon. Mr. English, from the Committee on Finance, presented the
following report.
The Committee on Finance, charged by resolutions of the Board of
Regents with the duty of permanently investing the extra fund of the
Institution, beg leave to report that, in accordance with the resolution
of July 9, 1856, there have been purchased stocks and bonds of the
States of Indiana, Virginia, and Tennessee, amounting in the aggre-
gate to $135,500, and at a cost of $119,400, from which should be
deducted the interest, accrued at date of purchase, say $1,000, leaving
the nett cost to the Institution $118,400.
The annual interest upon these stocks and bonds amount to $7,380,
whereas, the interest upon the purchase money, as heretofore invested,
was but $5,920, making an annual gain to the Institution in the item
of interest of $1,460.
For further and full particulars, the committee refer to the follow-
ing report made to them by the Secretary of the Institution.
To the Committee on Finance of the Board of Regents of the Smith-
sonian Institution.
GentLEMEN: In accordance with the resolution of the Board of Re-
gents, adopted July 9th, 1856, authorizing the Secretary, under the
direction of the Committee on Finance, to purchase State stocks for the
Institution with the extra fund, I respectfully submit the following
report:
With the assistance of the Hon. Mr. English, and under the direc-
tion of the Committee on Finance, there have been purchased,
Inprana five per cent. bonds, amounting to.. $75,000 for $63,000 00:
and under the direction of the committee and
through the agency of Messrs. Riggs & Co.
VIRGINIA, six per cent. bonds, amounting to 53,500 for 49,832 50
including commission, and also of
TENNESSEE six per cent bonds...........sseeeeee 7,000 for 6,567 50
There remains of the extra fundin the hands of Riggs & Co., $600,
which, together with the $5,000 drawn from this fund in 1855 to meet
payments on the building, and which may be repaid from the balance
now in the treasury, will make the $125,000 intended to be invested.
The interest for six months received at the beginning of this year
on these State stocks, ;waleenergs: dooce sere ercner esas ase eee ... $3,690 00
The interest received from Messrs. Corcoran & Riggs on
the extra fund previous to the investment Was ..........+5 2,533 33.
Total interest on the extra fund, during 1856..............6. $6,223 33.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE REGENTS. 89
The stock now owned by the Institution will yield, during the pre-
sent year, (1857,) an interest of $7,380.
All of which is respectfully submitted,
JOSEPH HENRY,
JANUARY 21, 1857. Secretary.
On motion of Dr. Magruder, the report was accepted and adopted.
The statement of the treasurer for 1856 was presented and referred
to the Executive Committee.
Hon. Mr. English presented the report of the Building Committee,
which was accepted.
On motion of Dr. Magruder, the Secretary was authorized to have
the cisterns referred to in the report of the Building Committee se-
curely arched over with brick, and one of them to be properly ar-
ranged for an ice-house.
The Board then adjourned to meet on Monday morning, at 10
o’clock a. m.
MONDAY, January 26, 1857.
A meeting of the Board of Regents was held this day at 10 o’clock
a, m.
Present: Hon. James A. Pearce, Hon. James M. Mason, Hon. 8.
A. Douglas, Hon. Wm. H. English, Hon. Benjamin Stanton, Pro-
fessor C. C. Felton, and the Secretary.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved.
On motion of Mr. Mason, it was
Resolved, That the funds of the Institution deposited with Messrs.
Corcoran & Riggs, for the current expenses of the Institution, be
placed in the hands of Messrs. Riggs & Co., successors to Messrs.
Corcoran & Riggs.
Mr. Pearce presented the report of the Executive Committee, show-
ing the receipts and expenditures for the year 1856, and the estimates
of appropriations for the year 1857.
The Secretary then presented the annual report of the operations
of the Institution during the year 1856, which was read in part.
The Board then adjourned to meet on Wednesday, January 28th,
at 64 o’clock p. m.
WEDNESDAY, January 28, 1857.
A meeting of the Board of Regents was held this evening, at 63
o’clock p. m.
Present: Hon J. A. Pearce, Hon. J. M. Mason, Hon. B. Stanton,
Hon. H. Warner, Professor 0. C. Felton, Professor A. D. Bache,
Hon. George E. Badger, and the Secretary.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved.
The Secretary concluded the reading of his report.
On motion of Mr. Mason, the report of the Secretary was accepted.
The report of the Executive Committee was then taken up and
adopted.
The Secretary presented various communications, &c., to the Board.
Adjourned to meet at the call of the Secretary.
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GENERAL APPENDIX
TO THE
REPORT FOR 1856.
The object of this Appendix is to illustrate the operations of the
Institution by the reports of lectures and extracts from correspond-
ence, as well as to furnish information of a character suited especially
to the meteorological observers and other persons interested in the
promotion of knowledge.
LECTURES. 93
SUBSTANCE OF A LECTURE DELIVERED AT THE SMITH-
SONIAN INSTITUTION ON A COLLECTION OF THE
CHARTS AND MAPS OF AMERICA.
BY J. G. KOHL.
The fact that individuals often neglect one part of their education
whilst they cultivate another excites in us no particular attention,
because it is so very.common. But that the colossal being which,
with its innumerable heads, and eyes, and hands, seems to approach
omniscience, and which we call human society, should commit a simi-
lar oversight with regard to the objects of intellectual culture, seems
truly extraordinary ; especially must it excite surprise that, at a time
when the whole gigantic tree of science is full of active life and all its
branches bear flowers or fruits, there should be any single off-shoot
which, amid the general expansion, is left untended, and remains
consequently leafless and blossomless.
It is strange, I say—it seems perhaps incredible, but still it is ar
undoubted fact—that there is in the life of the human race, and of
society, taking it as a whole, always much of the blindness and one-
-sidedness of an individual. Like an individual, it has its pre-occupa-
tions and predilections ; like an individual, an entire age is fettered
by a peculiar custom or fashion; like an individual, it is forgetful ;
and like an individual, it suddenly calls to mind something which it
had not thought of for a thousand years. The progress of the human
race in science and civilization is sometimes by fits and starts, instead
of advancing, as would be worthy of such a dignified body, with a
slow, even, and majestic movement, like the rising of the sun.
At one period poetry and the arts flourish, and predominate over
science. So, too, among the different arts and sciences each one has
its epoch. They never culminate at one and the same period. There
is always one that enjoys especial favor, while others are neglected.
It cannot be denied that there has from the beginning been some-
thing that was called geography; but it has been a plant of very
tardy growth. So far as it was not a part of astronomy it was at best
always considered as a handmaid to other sciences, and had never that
noble independence of which it is susceptible. Even yet, geography
is far from its culminating point. But we may predict for it better
days. In our time, at least, some distinguished men have better de-
fined its formerly vague limits, have organized and disciplined it,
have shown what it is capable of doing, and have made us suspect
that the thorough knowledge of our globe, which is the theatre of all
human performance, must be the basis of historical as well as moral
science ; that geography, rightly understood, is not to be considered
merely as the humble assistant and follower of the sciences, but rather
as the guide or governor of them all.
94 LECTURES.
If in our busy time, so full of activity in all directions, we can point
out anything as decidedly predominating, we may say that political
and natural history are the sciences which occupy us more than any
other. The taste for these two branches of knowledge, which are the
twin sisters of geography, is now widely and justly prevalent. They
have been treated of late with more talent, circumspection, and exact-
ness than ever; and because, to become complete and exact, they
need the aid of geography more than of any other discipline, the re-
vival and advancement of geography will be a very natural conse-
quence of the prevailing tendency.
Naturalists have of late become more aware of the importance of
geographical considerations in connexion with their studies than they
ever were before. Plants and animals have been considered in rela-
tion to the soil and climate in which they were produced; and geo-
graphers have defined more distinctly the different regions to which
every natural production belongs.
The intimate relations of geography to history have also been made
apparent. In former times historians related the deeds of nations and
individuals as quite independent of the country in which they were
transacted. Scarcely a historian would give even a brief description
of the country by way of introduction, and it was only on arriving at a
battle-field that they bestowed a little attention on the locality and its
geographical features. But in the writings even of the best historian
there was no indication to be found that he was aware how the config-
uration, climate, and productions of the country in question influence
the current of events, and, indeed, the whole character of the national
history. This has now been changed, and the whole manner in which
history is at present treated has become more geographical, or, I may
say, cosmical. Modern historians show us more clearly how each
nation forms a part of the universal life of the world. And from this
necessary alliance between geography and history quite new branches
of science have sprung up, of which formerly there were no examples;
above all, that of ethnography, or the history of the distribution of
races over the surface of our globe.
If geography itself was neglected until our days, the history of geo-
graphy must, of course, have been utterly unknown. Geography has
too often been treated as if it were a science of yesterday, which had
no past. For this geographers themselves are to blame; for they, in
describing the actual state of countries, have just as seldom entered
into their history as historians have entered into their geography.
Yet no one can justly appreciate the value of existing information
who does not know by what exertions it has been acquired. No man
can rightly estimate any truth who is not aware of the previous
errors through which the way to it led. A geographer ignorant of
the history of his science is like the traveller of an Oriental tale, who
finds himself transferred by enchantment into the heart of a strange
country, without knowing by what means he arrived there.
If, as I have said, the history of geography has been utterly ne-
glected, then I must add, that that most essential part of it, the his-
tory of geographical maps, has scarcely ever been thought of. For
some time, it is true, every new map of the world or of some portion
LECTURES. 95
of it made noise enough, and was highly valued as something precious,
but only for a short time. We hear of maps which kings hung up in
their cabinets and palaces, and of others which were discussed in the
academies of the world, and sent from one city to another for the in-
spection of the learned, but only so long as they were new. When
another new map appeared the old one disappeared from kingly palaces,
and from the academies, and was laid aside to be forgotten. Or no—not
laid aside; for if this had been done, if the old maps had been carefully
preserved in archives and libraries, that would have been all we
wanted. But these old and precious documents were allowed to
perish; they were either never more heard of, or if recollected and
spoken of still, it was only with contempt and to upbraid them for
their ‘‘ridiculous”’ blunders.
They were never raised to the dignity of historical documents.
The most inquisitive minds of the past century neglected them. Hven
the most intelligent French geographers, such as Delille and D’ An-
ville, who died only in the time of our grandfathers, did nothing for
the recovery and preservation of old maps. In fact, this branch of
geographical research remained a perfect blank until our days, when
other views have begun to prevail, and when some enlightened men
have undertaken to glean and collect the few scattered relics which
may yet be found. This change has been wrought in consequence of
a generally awakened interest in historical antiquities.
There has arisen in our century a most active spirit for collecting
and preserving all sorts of historical documents, which have been care-
fully commented upon and reprinted. In all the countries of the
civilized world collections of this kind have been formed. Everywhere
the rusty doors of the archives have been opened to the public at
large, and have surrendered more and more of their treasures, which
formerly by a narrow-minded policy were secreted from the eyes of
the world. Such an enormous mass of new and critically arranged
materials has thus been brought to light, that the history of every
country has gained quite a new and broad foundation, and future his-
torians will have much to do to digest and compile all this new matter.
In the short space of half a century our contemporaries have discov-
ered and deciphered more Greek, Roman, Runic, Egyptian, Baby-
lonian, and Indian inscriptions, than were discovered in all the former
centuries taken together. They have been collected partly in the
originals, partly in accurate copies and fac-similes, obtained by the
most ingenious processes of art, and have been deposited in accessible
collections.
This praiseworthy antiquarian enthusiasm, which seems to have
seized all the world in our time, has also at last influenced geo-
graphers to look around them for monuments on their own field of
research, and to cast into the common treasury of knowledge the
little still remaining within their reach from the carelessness of for-
mer times. As early as the beginning of this century, the late excel-
lent and lamented geographer, Baron Walckenaer, brought together
in-his own house in Paris a geographical collection, containing many
beautiful and most interesting old pictures of the world, and other
chartographical documents. He was perhaps the first who, in his
96 LECTURES.
own country, by his numerous writings drew general attention to this
subject, and he has written upon it with equal taste and erudition.
In the same city a most interesting collection of ancient maps has
been organized and brought into chronological and geographical order,
and put up asa separate branch of the Imperial Library, especially
through the efforts of that enlightened and indefatigable French geo-
grapher, the celebrated M. Jomard. He has added quite a new branch
to that magnificent establishment, in the former catalogues of which
we find the maps and globes scarcely mentioned as an essential element
of the collection. They were mixed up with the books or the engrav-
ings; or they were considered, at the most, as a sort of curiosities, to
adorn the walls of the rooms, as is still the case in the greater part of
our old libraries. A good degree of order and light has also been in-
troduced into the chaos of old surveys, maps, charts, and sketches—
until lately in a most deplorable state of disorder and neglect—in the
archives of the Dépdt de la Marine, and in those of the Dépdt de la
Guerrein Paris. The same has been dong in other collections, in which
ancient maps, more by chance than by design, were preserved.
In England, a vast collection of old maps, for the greater part in
manuscript, has lately been brought together by the efforts of dif-
ferent distinguished gentlemen, and has been added as an essential
department to the British Museum. The learned Sir Frederick
Madden has published a complete catalogue of these maps, which fills
two or three volumes. And asin the British Museum, so, too, in
many other public and private collections of Europe, more eare is
now taken than formerly in saving and collecting old atlasses, globes,
charts, and navigator’s guides, which are beginning more and more
to be considered, not as mere curiosities, but as most valuable acqui-
sitions.
The earliest historians of geography contented themselves with
sometimes adorning their works with maps composed by themselves,
to represent. the views of the ancients. But such factitious represen-
tations are no longer found satisfactory ; so that, at length, some his-
torians have begun to copy and publish the old maps with all their
peculiarities, precisely as the ancient cosmographers and discoverers
drew them with their own hands.
One of the first who attempted this was the celebrated Polish sa-
vant, Professor Lelewel, who copied and engraved with his own hand
a great number of valuable old maps, and published them with a
copious and learned commentary.
The celebrated and most excellent Portuguese scholar, the Vicomte
de Santarem, next produced a collection of most brilliant fac-similes
of ancient maps, especially of those connected with the history of
Africa, which he published and annotated, and which he further illus-
trated by a series of learned and valuable disquisitions on the history
of cosmography and chartography.
With the same object, and in the same manner, the French geo-
grapher M. Jomard, already mentioned as the creating and organ-
izing spirit of the depot of maps and charts in Paris, has been pre-
paring, during a series of years, and has now begun to publish, the
LECTURES. 97
invaluable chartographical documents, which he has collected. He
presents at his own expense the benefit of his labors to the world,
under the title of Jlonwments géographiques du Moyen Age (Geo-
graphical Monuments of the Middle Ages).
In Germany, likewise, some of the most eminent scholars have given
their attention to this most attractive branch of study. Indeed, there
are some indications that in that country the history of maps was
thought of earlier than in any other. We have there as early as the
beginning of the last century some essays or works on this subject.
They are very imperfect, no doubt, and they were not followed for a
long while by any thing more satisfactory. They appear (like so
many other inventions which germinate in Germany without being
perfected) to have slept for a century.
At the end of the 18th century, however, two Germans brought
together by their private exertions, and arranged in geographical and
chronological order, a most admirable collection of maps, relating par-
ticularly to America, and which is now in this country. I allude to
the collection begun by Dr. Brandes, of Hanover, and continued and
augmented by that distinguished geographer Mr. Ebeling, of Ham-
burg, afterwards purchased by a patriotic American, and now deposited
in the library of Harvard University.
Since then, various old maps which were preserved in Germany
have been copied, commented on, and published. An active geo-
grapher, Dr. Giissefeldt, has edited the celebrated map of the world,
made by the Spaniard Ribero, geographer to the Emperor Charles V,
The illustrious Humboldt has brought to light and made accessible to
the public different interesting maps ; for instance, that excellent pic-
ture of the world made by Juan de la Cosa, one of the companions
of Columbus. His critical notes and comments on this map, to which
he often alludes, are of course of the greatest value.
Moreover, the famous old globe of Nuremberg, composed in the
very year of the discovery of America by Martin Behaim, who was
in the service of King Emanuel, of Portugal, has at last been given
to the scientific world in a most accurate and beautiful copy by Pro-
fessor Ghillany of that city.
But I allude to some of these valuable publications only as instances,
for it would occupy me too long to attempt to give a complete review
of them. It may suffice to say, that such publications have become
comparatively numerous in Germany, as well as in Italy, in England,
and in other countries. It is now quite a common thing to edit old
globes and maps, and to write dissertations on them. And it has
almost become the fashion to adorn a geographical treatise or the re-
publication of an old work of travels with a sketch of an old map,
which some 30 or 40 years ago would not have been considered an
ornament at all. The Spanish historian of the discovery of America,
Navarrete, has inserted some most interesting old maps in his great
documentary work. The academy of Madrid has introduced others
into their splendid edition of the historian Oviedo. Nay, scarcely
any place has of late published a catalogue of its town library with-
out taking advantage of the occasion to add a copy of one of its
old chartographical treasures. We find specimens in the catalogue
Ts
¢
98 LECTURES.
of the library of the city of Leipzig, in that of the famous library of
Earl Spencer, in the republication of Hakluyt’s Divers Voyages by
the Hakluyt Society in London, in the Bibliotheca Americana of Mr.
Henry Stevens in London, in the publications of the Paris and London
Geographical Societies, and elsewhere.
It is a fact still more praiseworthy, that scholars on this side of the
Atlantic have not been backward in doing their share both in general
antiquarian and historical research, and in the special department of
study under consideration. The wonder is not so great, that old Eu-
rope, where every stone speaks of the past, and where every village
has its legend reaching back to the time of Cesar, should at last
have become thoroughly antiquarian, and been seized with a gen-
erally diffused passion for history. But we may well be astonished
that a country like this, where even the great metropolitan cities are
but as of yesterday, should already have entered with so much zeal
and activity into this antiquarian and historical movement.
Historical, antiquarian, and ethnological societies have been estab-
lished in almost every State and city, and even in that distant settle-
ment at the sources of the Mississippi, which is not yet a State. Nearly
all these societies have published series of interesting historical collec-
tions; while many private individuals, the Hazards, the Forces, the
O’Callaghans, the Brodheads, and others, have collected the most
valuable documents, relating to the general history of America, or to
that of particular countries and States. The different State govern-
ments have also taken a very active part in this movement. They
have appropriated the necessary funds for collecting, sifting and print-
ing the public and legislative transactions of the States.
Amid all this multifarious historical and antiquarian activity, some
geographical societies, likewise, (though not very numerous as yet,)
have been founded, and they have begun to collect old documents per-
taining to that particular branch of antiquarian research of which I
have been treating. And though nothing great or general has yet been
undertaken in this respect, still we may hail as an auspicious omen
for geographical science in America the fact, that already several en-
lightened individuals have gone to Europe, have discovered there old
and interesting pictures of this part of the world, or of divisions of it,
and have brought home copies of them, to be deposited in the State
archives of Albany, Boston, and other places. And thus, here, as in
Europe, old maps have become the object of special discussions, and
different historical works have been adorned with copies of some
ancient survey of the countries of which they treat.
The work has been fairly entered upon, and nothing seems now to
be necessary but to unite these disconnected efforts into a general sys-
tem by placing a concentrating institution at their head.
II.—CAUSES OF THE LOSS OF FORMER MAPS.
In attempting to account for the disappearance of ancient maps, we
may observe, in the first place, that the greater number are particularly
destined for the use of the traveller, the navigator, and the soldier,
who were probably the first classes of society which introduced the
LECTURES 99
use of them; and hence the names generally given to maps by the
Romans of ‘‘iténeraria picta,’’ traveller’s pictures. The Roman gen-
erals were provided with these itineraria, which accompanied them to
the battle-field. They may have been often destroyed by barbarians
in the conquered camp ; they have shared the fate of their owner in
distant lands; they have gone down with the navigator in the
stormy waves. Besides, whoever has seen a maltreated sea-chart
may easily guess how many such must have perished at all times
under the rough hands of heedless mariners, even without a ship-
wreck.
Again, the nature of the materials, to which the precious lines of
maps were committed, has often been the cause of their rapid destruc-
tion, as in the case of the maps which the Emperor Charles the Great
and King Roger of Sicily ordered to be executed on solid silver plates.
These silver maps were soon divided among a rapacious soldiery, and
the laborious composition destroyed. Even the copper and brass plates
upon which, as we learn, the Greeks sometimes engraved their maps,
were too tempting a material for the rapacity and recklessness of
conquerors. What a treasure for a Roman soldier the brass globe of
Archimedes! By cutting it in two he could make at once a couple of
camp-kettles ; and with the copper-plate on which EHratosthenes: had®
pictured his cosmographical speculations, he could at least mend his.
helmet or shield.
Indeed, it is not easy to tind out a material for maps which is
strong and indestructable, and, at the same time, useless enough for-
other purposes, to have a chance of escaping the spoiler’s hand. Put
your drawings on lead, the least valued of metals, and the soldiers
will melt it into bullets ; inscribe them on sheepskins, yet that will.
not save your work—parchment is useful for making cartridges as well
as for binding books, and even should they escape the shears, your~
antiquated drawing may be washed off and the skins used for keeping”
a grocer’s account, or some equally valuable purpose. Stones with old
inscriptions upon them are just as good for building as rude rocks
without them. |
That I do not speak of mere possibilities, I will here mention a fact
or two of the sort. A part of that famous map of the Roman empire
called the Peutinger Table was discovered bound up, by the monks,
as a fly-leafin an old book in the city library of Treves. Another
portion of a Roman map, representing Spain, and cut upon a stone,
was discovered in the abbey of St. John, near Dijon, in France, where
it had been built into the wall. Even paper, that wonderful and al-
most sacred material, to which Plato and Shakespeare, as well as
Newton and Humboldt, have confided their ideas, is so convenient for
wrapping up little articles of purchase, that hundreds of most yalua-
ble documents have gone to destruction in that way.
Many maps have been constructed only as illustrations of books,
without which they were properly regarded as unintelligible. They
were bound up with the book, and their fate was consequently much
influenced by the manner in which this was done, owing to the varying
customs and fashions of the book-binding art. In the olden time, when
books were generally made in large folio, the maps received the same
160 LECTURES.
shape as the book, and were preserved with it. But when the books came
to assume, at first in some branches of literature, and then quite gener-
ally, a smaller shape—a quarto and lastly an octavo form, it became
impracticable to make the maps conform to the size of the page. They
could not be cut into pieces of any size, like the text of the book ;
because it is necessary to give the whole picture at once, in order to
exhibit the mutual relation of all its parts. The maps, therefore, as
formerly, were printed in large folio sheets; but to fit them for the
small book, it was necessary to fold them. This folding of the maps,
and the consequent necessity which the reader was under of unfolding
and folding them up again each time he wished to consult them, was
another cause why they were more rapidly destroyed than the books
themselves. Here, I have no doubt, is the reason why, in so many
cases, we possess the books, particularly those of the quarto and octavo
form, without the old maps.
But all these causes of the rapid destruction of maps are only inci-
dental. The principal cause of their disappearance lies in the general
indifference to those remarkable productions which has prevailed at
all times among the masses of the people. In consequence of this
indifference, old maps have not only been treated with the greatest
neglect, and allowed to perish by accidents, but they have even been
destroyed intentionally.
To the common eye, old maps are not attractive; though useful,
they scarcely embellish our dwellings, and accordingly have seldom
had the advantage of glass and frame. like thousands of less valuable
but more ornamental engravings. Hence it follows, that there are
vwhole periods of the history of art, of which many paintings and en-
egravings have been preserved to us, even all the cattle and chickens of
a Paul Potter, and the rosebuds of a Heemskerk, though such things
have been represented a hundred times; while the picture of the known
world by the hand of Archimedes is wanting, though such a work
could be produced but once.
The natural desire, moreover, of possessing the latest and best map
of a country, or of the world, led to that lainentable contempt of old
maps, Which caused them to be discarded as no longer of immediate
and practical use, no note being taken of their utility for theoretical
purposes and for historical research, until quite recent times; even
in many topographical and hydrographical bureaus they have heen
thrown aside as useless, or to make room for later productions, This
was probably the case already in the times of the Greeks and Romans:
so that when Agathodwemon made better maps than those of his pre-
decessor, Aristarchus, they probably destroyed the latter ; although
they never would have thought of knocking to pieces the statues of a
Phidias, to give place to the later and more perfect works of a Prax-
iteles. Hence we cannot attribute to the barbarians exclusively the
luss of ancient works in this peculiar brauch of art.
Another great cause of the loss which science has sustained in the
article of maps, was the tendency to secrete them, which seems to have
prevailed at all times and in all countries. There were always a few
persons who set a high value on the newest and most correct maps,
but who, at the same time, had their reasons for desiring to keep this
LECTURES. 101
knowledge from others. So authentica picture of an empire, with all
its roads, its navigable streams, and approachable coasts, has seemed
too dangerous a document to be exposed to the risk of falling into the
hands of an enemy. The Roman emperor Augustus acted upon this
policy, when he ordered the maps and other results of the extensive
survey of the empire, which was completed under his reign, to be de-
posited in the innermost rooms of the palace, and that only such pare
tial copies should be issued at times as the imperial councillors might
find necessary for generals going to war, or useful for the schools of
the provinces. Nor were his successors less jealous and circumspect.
Domitian is said to have once severely punished one of his councillors
for an indiscreet disclosure of something which those maps contained.
The emperor condemned him to death, as a traitor ; some say that he
even killed him with his ewn hands. Of course, when Alaric burnt
the city of Rome, the entire collection of those precious documents
was also destroyed. Had copies of them been deposited in different
towns, some one of these, at least, might have been preserved for our
use and advantage. So constantly, indeed, has this tendency to keep
maps secret and scarce prevailed among statesmen and sovereigns,
that even so late as thirty or forty years ago it was considered, in the
greater part of Europe, a case of high treason to divulge anything of
the official maps of the country which were deposited in its archives.
Maritime nations, and their sea-captains, have exhibited the same
inclination to conceal their hard-earned knowledge from the eyes of
strangers. The Greeks succeeded in obtaining certain Phcenician sea-
charts, drawn on copper only, through the treason of the master of a
vessel, whom they probably bribed ; and a patriotic Carthaginian sea-
captain, who, on an expedition to a distant country, was pursued by
some Roman vessels, is said to have driven his ship on the rocks, and
to have drowned himself and his men, to prevent the journals and
charts, and thus the whole secret of a profitable branch of Carthagi-
nian trade, from falling into the enemy’s hands.
The kings of Spain, from the very commencement of the discovery
of America, observed great caution and reserve, and gave strict orders
about the safe keeping of the maps which their captains and conquerors
brought home from the New World. All the originals of these maps
were deposited in the archives of Seville, and copies of them were
issued only to such Spanish sea-captains and generals as could be
trusted. No map of Columbus, none of Cortes, of Magellan, or any
of the other innumerable explorers, was allowed to be engraved and
published ; and the consequence of this system has been, that nearly
all those interesting documents are lost to us for ever.
All the first maps of the New World were engraved and published
* in other countries, in Italy, in France, and in Germany, in which last
country even the name America originated. They were made after
afew documents and original drawings, which occasionally escaped
the vigilance of the Spaniards. They were, of course, very rude
sketches, and far behind what the Spaniards themselves possessed.
An Englishman, the well known Robert Thorne, who was settled
in Seville, was therefore very anxious that nothing should be said
about it when he sent from Spain a report and a map of the West
102 LECTURES.
Indies to one of his conntrymen, Doctor Ley, ambassador of King
Henry VIII. to the Emperor Charles. ‘‘ Also, this carde,’’ he
says, ‘‘is not to be shewed or communicated there. For though there
is nothing in it prejudicial to the Emperor, yet it may be a cause of
pain to the maker, as well for that none may make here these cards
but certain appointed and allowed for masters, as for that peradven-
ture it would not sound well, that a stranger should discover their
secretes.’ ‘‘And I beseech your lordship let it bee put to silence.”’
Whole editions of books, and probably maps also, which seemed to
reveal too much of the Spanish possessions, have been bought up and
destroyed by order of the court of Spain, and their authors imprisoned,
of which instances are not wanting even in later times. A true Span-
ish map of America, or parts of it, was, therefore, considered by the
English and French captains as a real treasure. When they captured
a Spanish vessel, they searched her as well for the maps as for the
piasters. Some of these Spanish maps captured by the English have
become quite famous; those, for instance, of the coasts of Peru and
Chile, which the English freebooter Rogers captured in the South sea,
and which were immediately engraved and published in England, by
the well-known map maker, Senex. Such instances of the casual pre-
servation or recovery of Spanish maps show us how many valuable
documents for history and geography we have lost by that system of
secrecy.
But, when interest demanded it, other nations acted no better.
Thus, it is recorded of the famous English navigator, Frobisher, that
he kept secret the journal of his track, and showed to nobody the maps
which he made of his strait and his new discovered country in the
north. The consequence was, that for a long time geographers were
at a loss to say under what latitude and longitude his discoveries were
to be placed.
Even in our ‘“‘enlightened”’ days, proofs are not wanting that we
are not much less inclined to hide geographical knowledge, when
interest prompts us to do so. One of the most distinguished geogra-
phers of our time, who wanted to complete the charts of the Atlantic
ocean, applied for information respecting a certain route from New
York to Brazil, to a gentleman who had formerly been a very exten-
sive trader to those regions. ‘‘As my firm no longer exists,’’ was
the reply, ‘‘I can speak freely to you about the advantages of this
route. Some years ago I could not have done it. For the thorough
knowledge of it was a secret which enabled our sea-captains to regu-
larly make a passage some days shorter than that made by others ; and
upon this secret our profits, in a great measure, depended.”’
Suppose that an American captain had discovered, somewhere in
the South sea, a valuable guano island, and that he had taken its lati-
tude and longitude, and made a complete survey of it, is it likely that
he would hasten much to have this map engraved and published for
the benefit of science and for general use? We think not. And
thus, at this very moment, we may be surrounded by many mysteries,
by many secreted maps, without being aware of it; and hence much
information may be, even yet, withheld from geography by the iron
grasp of interest. ‘
LECTURES. 103
II]. —GENERAL INTEREST OF A CITARTOGRAPHICAL COLLECTION.
As the plant, springing from the shapeless seed, is gradually
developed into an object of symmetry and life, as the sculptured form
emerges from the rude block by reiterated blows of the mallet and
strokes of the chisel, so America, contemplated in its successive de-
lineations upon the maps of different periods, exhibits the growth of
that gigantic work with the gradual and laborious completion of which
astronomers and cosmographers have been occupied for centuries.
Only, here each step has occupied a series of years: every stroke of
the mallet is an adventurous voyage of a great explorer, every rude
chip that falls from the block is a large (even if imaginary) country,
every incision is a gulf or a river-mouth, and every touch of the
smoothing file is a complicated calculation, the result of the final
solution of a scientific problem, with which the minds of philoso-
phers had until then been occupied in vain.
In looking at the earliest maps of the world, which were composed
before Columbus’s time, we find, midway between Western Europe and
Eastern Asia, in the centre of the Sea of Darkness, (as the Atlantic
ocean was then called,) that fabulous old land, adorned with many
attractive traditions, and called by such names as the ‘‘ Island of
Antilia,’’ the ‘‘ Island of the Seven Cities,’’ the ‘‘ Island of the Holy
Bishop Brandon.’’ Never stationary, however, sometimes it moves
more to the north, at others more to the south. On some maps it
approaches nearer to the Old World, on others it withdraws further
into the hidden recesses of the dark ocean. The artists and painters
who made those early maps often represent this island as larger than
our present Cuba. They give it an elegant form, adorn it with purple
colors, or frame it ina gilded line. Sometimes all the seven cities,
with their towers and cupolas, are represented upon it. And in this
attractive shape it seems to invite the tardy navigator to venture upon
the unexplored ocean. It floats on the waters like that little patch of
sand and mud which Menaboshu cast upon the surface of the flood
after the deluge, and from which the whole continent of America de-
veloped itself, with all its branches, its peninsulas, its islands, and its
mainlands. Antilia is for the New World what the sacred lotus-flower
is for the Old, which, according to Hindu tradition, grew and unfolded
itself into the great islands of Asia, and bears on its branches and
leaves the whole structure of that continent.
At last, with the return of Columbus, there arrived in Europe the
first good news of the new-found shores, and with it came a map or
sketch of that part of them which was first reached by the Spaniards.
The king of Spain ordered this map to be reduced to a very small
size, and to be inserted into the armorial bearings of the great dis-
coverer. The original is unhappily lost to us; but we may rejoice
that we possess at least that little reduced copy in the great admiral’s
escutcheon, on which it is represented, by a few lines, as a deep and
spacious bay, embosoming a group of islands. When, soon after
Columbus, navigators had ventured to make further excursions to the
right and to the left of the Antilles, and had discovered some parts of
both divisions of the continent, they were at a loss how to place and
104 LECTURES,
how to represent them. Some thought that they must be two broad
peninsulas shooting out far towards the east from the body of the
Asiatic hemisphere. But the greater part, who with justice supposed,
or who soon learned, that the eastern shore of Asia must still be far
distant, imagined them to be two isolated pieces of land in the midst
of the ocean. And they represented them, accordingly, as two great
roughly shaped islands, more or less advancing from the Antillian
centre towards the south and the north.
When the Balbaos and Corteses had reached the long isthmus
countries of Mexico and Central America, those two islands at length
coalesced, and we see them on the subsequent maps linked to each
other by a natural bridge of mountains and continental shores.
Now, the huge bulk of the American block began to show some-
thing of its trwe proportions. At least, this was the case on its east-
ern side, which lay towards Europe, and with which the first European
navigators soon became tolerably well acquainted, whilst the western
side still remained untouched and hidden in darkness. On the maps
of this period, America looks like one of the gigantic statues of gods
or kings which we see carved in high relief in the rock-temples of
Hindostanand Egypt. Their front parts, turned towards us, are toler-
ably well dvawn and sculptured, but their backs still adhere to and
form a portion of the shapeless mountain side.
After Magellan had pierced through his strait into the open water
to the west, when Pizarro had worked his laborious way down the
coast of Peru, and when Cortes in the latter part of his career, in
search of something like Japan or China, had navigated to the north- -
west and explored the shores of California, then, likewise, this western
side was cut loose from the mass of the unknown, and began to assume
at least the principal features of its true configuration.
But even these principal features were as yet only rudely given. A
mariner who would sail by those sketches must be on his guard, and
be prepared to touch at the port of his destination some degrees
earlier or later than his charts would lead him to expect. On them
are projections and excrescences which ought not to be there; inlets.
and bays appear where in reality everything is filled up with vol-
canic matter and diluvial deposits ; and large islands, as for instance.
Newfoundland, are still attached to the whole continent. The ex-
treme north and south of the continent, where no one has yet ven-
turcd to sail, are still for a long while left to fancy and speculation.
In the north, these speculations assumed particularly numerous:
and varied forms. On some of the maps of the middle of the 16th
century we see a long continental bridge or archway built from Scandi-
navia to Greenland, and this part of America thus attached to Europe.
On others this same Greenland, and with it the entire arctic regions.
of America as far down as Newfoundland and Mexico, are annexed to.
Asia, and are represented as a prolongation of Northern China or
Tartary. Very slowly and reluctantly the constructors of these maps.
surrendered their preconceived notion, that Mexico was the next
neighbor of Japan, Shanghai, and Canton. However, every 20 or
30 years, Japan retreated a little further towards the west. Every
half century the broad gulf in the Northern Pacific widened a little
LECTURES, 105
more. Whether and how America was connected with Asia and
Tartary, continued to be long disputed, until at last, scarcely one
hundred years ago, the Russians pointed out the strait that bears the
name of one of their renowned explorers, and the united efforts of
Spanish, English, and Russian navigators brought everything into
its right place.
Scarcely less slow was the progress of light in the southern region,
For more than a century after Columbus, the southern island, called
“the Land of Fire,’’ was pictured as a part of a great imaginary
southern continent, which covered and barricaded the ocean from Ma-
gellan’s Strait to the Antarctic pole. This southern continent is repre-
sented on our ancient maps as nearly of the size of Asia. New Holland,
New Zealand, and other islands are all made a part of it. It receives
at different times very different dimensions, and alternately contracts
and expands, like the cloud which Hamlet showed to Polonius, and
which, according to the disposition of the beholder, took the shape of
a camel, of an elephant, or of a bird. Some said this continent was
peopled by above 25 millions of souls, and the map designers embel-
lished it with cities and castles, with forests and animals of different
kinds. Into this cloud dived at last, in the beginning and middle of
the 17th century, the Dutch and British navigators, and made it dis-
appear from the geographical horizon by rounding the stormy cape.
In like manner, Newfoundland and other islands were successively
detached from the continent. The Gulf of St. Lawrence and other
large Mediterranean bays were roughly traced out. Still the image of
America was as yet nothing but an outline. The whole vast interior
remained a blank, or at least was more filled with products of the
imagination than with portraits after nature. The movements of
navigators were by their nature quicker than those of land travellers.
And not only so, but the latter continued for a long time to be less
scientific, and were less provided with appliances and instruments for
astronomical and other observations.
Consequently, our old charts of America are generally better than
our maps, on which the rivers with their innumerable branches are
endlessly perplexed; while mountains and plains show such anoma-
lous and varying configurations, that the whole continent at first
sight appears like a huge kaleidoscope, the materials contained in
which were constantly subjected to new and fantastic transformations.
Still, there is a method even in their madness! For, if we
look a little closer at these fanciful delineations, we may sometimes
discover that, erroneous though they may be, still they are not down-
right falsehoods. There are few which are not founded upon some-
thing, upon an old tradition, upon a favorite notion of the time, upon
a geographical hypothesis, or at the least upon reports of the wild
Indians, which, it is true, were sometimes misunderstood. We could
exhibit, for instance, maps of this time, on which the great river of
St. Lawrence is represented as much larger than it really is—as occu-
pying the whole locality of the upper Mississippi and Missouri, and
running through the entire broad continent of America. Yet looking
with due discrimination at the circumstances, we perceive that,
according to the state of information at the time, the old map
106 LECTURES.
maker could “scarcely have given us any other St. Lawrence than he
has done.
All the geographers of the i7th, and of the beginning of the 18th
century, believed with an extraordinary tenacity in the existence of a
great lake in the interior of South America, between the Orinoco and
the Amazon rivers. You see this lake represented on the maps nearly
as large as the Caspian sea, of a quadrangular form, surrounded by
most picturesque mountain scenery, upon the neat drawing of which
much pains have been expended. On the shores of that lake, called
the great golden lake of Parime, was painted at its western corner the
large city of Manoa, with an abundance of palaces, towers, and cupolas;
and to this was sometimes added the portrait of the sovereign of this
city and region, the Kmperor H'ldorado, who was said to be a lineal
descendant of the Incas of Peru, and the possessor of their accumu-
lated treasures.
This tradition of Eldorado, with his city and beautiful lake, was a
natural product of different circumstances. It partly grew out of'the
golden dreams in which the European nations indulged after the dis-
covery of Mexico and Cusco. Partly it was founded on good historical
grounds, on certain events in Peru, where some cousins of the Incas
retired with treasures to the interior. And partly, it must be owned,
it was the result of pure deception. The question then naturally
arises: Are those maps worthy to be preserved, and to be noticed by
the historian of geography and discovery? Have they had any influ-
ence upon the present state of our knowledge? And can those old
delineations of the lake of Manoa help us to understand better our
modern geography of that region? Ido not hesitate to answer all
those questions in the affirmative.
Those very chartographical fictions were the cause of innumerable
useful expeditions. The whole history of the settlement and explo-
ration of Dutch, English, and French Guiana is essentially connected
with the fiction of the city and lake of Manoa, without which prob-
ably those extensive American colonies would never have been called
into existence. The whole exploration of that region is a hunt after
the objects named ; and we could not understand a single expedition
made in this direction, without being fully informed respecting the
position properties, and shape attributed to that lake, which has
only of late been dissolved and drained into such narrow river courses
as now take its place.
When at last the Jesuits, those excellent astronomers and mathe-
maticians, took out of the hands of the Pizarros and the De Sotos the
continuation of the work of Columbus ; when they brought the astro-
labe and compass from the shores into the interior; when father Fritz,
and after him La Condamine, had worked their way down the whole
course of the river Amazon; when the members of the same order
had explored all the branches of the great La Plata and Orinoco in
the southern, and had reached the westernmost end of the St. Law-
rence in the northern continent, the great secret of the New World
was at length wrested from the hand of Nature, and its main features
stood clearly revealed. As with the whole continent, and its great
Jakes, rivers, and mountain chains, so also with every smaller part
LECTURES, 107
and sub-division of them, each had to go through certain traditional
and poetical periods, till it gained that certainty in its outlines which
it at present exhibits.
Every blue summit of a mountain descried by your western settlers
and pioneers from a distance, every large or small branch of a new
river, every glittering surface of a lake never seen before, was talked
of by them around their camp-fires, and gave occasion to all manner
of hypotheses and speculations about the end of the lake, about the
direction and source of the river, and about what those mountains
might be, what they might contain, and how they might be connected
with the rest. And what those bold pioneers surmised, and what
they heard from the Indians in the west, all found an echo in the
cabinets of the geographers of the east, and you see it conscientiously
transferred to their maps, which are changed and corrected a hundred
times, till at length a Champlain, a Boone, or a Clarke fits out his
expedition and sets the matter at rest.
To follow out such laborious undertakings, and to trace the zigzag
lines of their progress through the course of whole centuries, may to
some appear a very tedious work. I regard it, on the contrary, as a
branch of investigation both novel and exciting. It is a department
of historical inquiry which is unique in its kind, because it treats of
human efforts and achievements which when once brought to a satis-
factory termination are incapable of renewal. Asia, in the course of
ages, may yet be conquered by more than one Alexander or Genghis
Khan. But a Columbus will never appear again, because he per-
formed a work which, from its nature, can never be repeated. The
islands, and mountains, and rivers, of our globe are numbered; and
the time must arrive when the race of discoverers shall become extinct.
But the glory of the Corteses, the Drakes, the Cooks, wiil then shine
brighter than ever. These were the men who struck the great blows
in carving out the right figure of our globe, and in fundamentally
changing the aspect of all human affairs. They wrote their names
on the rocks and shores which they discovered, and there they will
stand so long as the pillars of Hercules and the limits of the ocean,
and of the dry land shall last. Their history, as I have said, is
unique, and therefore ought to be written and delivered to posterity
with especial care and accurateness. If we, who are comparatively
still near to these remarkable events, omit to do this, if we neglect
the valuable documents which are still at our command and allow
them to perish, posterity will justly reproach us with having deprived
humanity of a part of its most interesting records.
IV.—USE OF FORMER MAPS FOR COMPLETING AND TESTING THE ACCURACY OF
THE NEW ONES.
The field of geographical research through all the vast regions of
a great continent like America is immense. And although scientific
observers are now more numerous than ever, it has been perfectly
impossible for them to bring up the observations of every point, har-
bor, cape, and inlet, of every source, turn, angle, and mouth of a
river to the point of accuracy which science now demands.
In fact, I believe the number of places of which the position, nature,
108 LECTURES.
and configuration have been determined, with that nicety and perfec-
tion which astronomical instruments and processes render possible at
the present day, is still comparatively small. A German geographer,
Mr. Doppelmayer, believed, after conscientious research, that in the
year 1740 there were, on the whole globe, only 116 places the posi-
tion of which had been satisfactorily ascertained. In the year 1817
another German geographer, Mr. O’Htzel, estimated the number of
places on the globe the astronomical position of which had been thus
satisfactorily determined, at about 6,000. Of these 6,000 places
probably two-thirds were in Europe, leaving only 2,000 for the rest
of the world. Although since that time the sum of observed places
may have been doubled or trebled, still it must be very small in com-
parison with the enormous number of points which ought to be known.
From the small number of perfectly well ascertained positions we find
along series of points, the positions of which is pretty well known
from compntation, from terrestrial measurement, or from astronomical
observations of approximate accuracy, down to those whose latitude
and longitude have not been fixed at all. ,
The same is the case with respect to all observations other than
those of position ; for instance, with respect to the configuration of
the outlines of a bay or an island, or in regard to the soundings of a
harbor or bank, or to the height of hills, capes, and mountains. The
amount of science and activity at the present day is great, still it is
not omnipresent, and through the whole course of the history of
geography there has never been a moment in which it could be said
that for every place all had been done that the state of knowledge at
the time permitted. There are many harbors in which no regular
soundings with improved instruments have been made for half a cen-
tury or more. There are mountains the height of which, as laid
down in our present books and maps, is the result of observations
made with very antiquated instruments and processes. There are
numerous lakes or remote river sources where no scientific exploring
expedition has been since the time of La Condamine.
‘<T sometimes find, to my surprise, in a ‘ very old book,’ ”’ says the
intelligent Bishop Kennet in the introduction to his valuable Ameri-
can Bibliography, ‘‘ one cape or one sand-bank much more accurately
described than it is done in one of the newest coast pilots.’’ The
same thing may be said of old maps. A chart of 1800, though upon
the whole antiquated, may often contain of some part of the coast,
which then was particularly explored, a much better representation
than is found in those of a later date.
Again, the different classes of observations laid down on one and
the same map are of very different value. On one survey the sound-
ings may be quite accurate, while, perhaps, the astronomical position
and the configuration of the coast is better given on a map of another
date. Some explorers have had particular facilities, inclination, or
talent for one or other of the numberless branches of geographical
observation, and one has thought of that which was overlooked by
another. The results of all these observations, from early times to
the present day, have been laid down partly in books and partly on
innumerable maps; and nothing but a complete series of these can
LECTURES. 109
enable us to know what has been done and what remains to be accom-
plished in this vast field of research. Hence it is evident that very
seldom, if ever, can we determine when an old map is really obsolete
and of no further use at all.
The work of surveying, exploring, and map-making, is, like every
other human pursuit, capable of an endless approximation towards
perfection. It is constantly progressive—particularly as regards this
new world, America, There is an inaccuracy of expression when we
speak of the discovery of America by Columbus. The great work of
the discovery of America was only begun by Columbus; it has been
going on for the last three centuries, and cannot yet be said to be
completed. And, therefore, here especially an institution is wanted
the business of which shall be to follow and record step by step this
progress, and thus become a common fund and treasure-house of all
preceding anl contemporaneous discoveries.
Truth and error are handed down together, from generation to gen-
eration, through the history of mankind. It is curious, that while
this is often admitted to be the fact as regards the history of other
sciences, geographers until now seem to have believed that it has no
application to chartography —a science which, according to them, like
the phoenix, each day is consumed and each day is born again from
its ashes ; but, to show how false this notion is, I may cite the state-
ments of the able author of the article on Geography in the Encyclo-
peedia Britannica, who says that the tables and measurements of
Abulfeda and of Nazir Eddin, and the maps of the interior of Asia,
made under the enlightened Calif Almamoun, were, as late as the
year 1817—that is to say, about 1,000 years afterwards—of use in the
construction of the maps of some parts of Asia.
On the other hand, the longevity of errors in geography, and con-
sequently in maps, may be illustrated by the following instances: It
is well known that the great father of geography, Ptolemy of Alex-
andria, committed the extraordinary error of assigning to the Medi-
terranean sea a length of not less than sixty-two degrees of longitude,
which was upwards of twenty degrees too much. This amazing
mistake affected all our maps of the Mediterranean more or less until
the beginning of the last century. Many astronomers and navigators
knew, long before that time, that the Mediterranean was actually
much shorter, and many map-makers ventured to cut off a few de-
grees, despite the statement of the great Egyptian; but so absolute
was the authority which he enjoyed amongst Christians as well as
Arabians, that they were extremely slow in deviating from him, and
came down to the truth very unwillingly. In this instance the con-
test between truth and error lasted more than 1,500 years, until at
length the French geographer Delille gave to the sea its true limits.
But if such a thing could happen with respect to the Mediterranean,
which from the beginning of commerce and civilization was the best
known part of the world, is it not highly probable that we may dis-
cover similar longeval errors in such little known countries as, for
instance, the interiur of Patagonia or Brazil; and. that, by studying
and comparing the maps, we may trace these errors to their source,
and so help to correct them ?
110 LECTURES.
Another equally remarkable though not so old an instance of the
long continuance of errors on maps, is presented to us in the works
of the great French geographer, Buache. He conceived the idea that
the whole surface of the earth was divided into certain principal and
lateral basins, each of which was surrounded by mountains, whilst its
central part was occupied by a great lake or ocean, into which rivers
flowed on every side. This conception was, to some extent, true ; but
Buache carried it to an extreme, and, his head being full of this idea,
he drew on his, in other respects valuable, maps as many basins as
could in any way be brought into seeming harmony with ascertained
facts. A French savant says, in a work of the past year, that his
system still exercises a pernicious influence on the best French map-
makers, who, inheriting the theory of Buache, have continued to
propagate its fanciful deductions.
The old maps, therefore, are not only precious for some hidden
treasure of truth which they may contain, but just as valuable for the
facility which a series of them affords for tracing traditional errors.
‘©All maps,’’ says a British geographer, ‘‘should be considered as
unfinished works, in which there will always be something to be cor-
rected or something to be inserted.’’
Buache, Forster, La Condamine, Humboldt, and other enlightened
geographers, have shown how useful they considered the knowledge
of the opinions of former cosmographers, by taking the trouble to com-
pose what they called maps of errors. a Condamine composed a com-
parative map of the course of the Amazon river, on which he showed,
with different colors, how the direction and bends and branches of
this river were represented by different geographers.
Buache and Forster made maps of the northwest coast of America,
on which they combined, in one picture, the outlines of that coast, as
they found them represented on the authority of a number of different
observers.
Humboldt composed, with great care, a map of Mexico, with the
erroneous astronomical positions of many important points of that
country. Others have done the same for other parts of America,
But these so very useful and instructive maps of errors form a class of
scientific compositions which are not yet as much in use as they deserve
to be. ‘They are probably so rare because there exist so few chrono-
logical collections of old maps. And this again proves how desirable,
how necessary, such collections are. We cannot dispense with them,
so long as we cannot say that every part of our maps is above all
criticism, and so long as the picture of the whole continent, in all its
parts, is not laid down with absolute and minute accuracy. Only
when this shall be the case, will we be justified in cutting loose our
connexion with the past; then only can we cast overboard the whole
erroneous structure of our forefathers, or consign it at least to our
collections of antiquity, as a mere matter of curiosity.
V.—MAPS AS HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS,
Historians, geographers, and travellers, have laid down on their
maps many things of which they have not spoken at all in their books,
LECTURES. lil
either because they inserted on the map what they had omitted in the
book, or because they found it easier and shorter to speak to the eye
than to the ear.
Maps, therefore, form a peculiar class of historical documents.
Sometimes they confirm what we have in the books, sometimes they
make our literary information more complete, and sometimes they
must serve us instead of books. It is particularly the old maps which
have this documentary character. Martin Behaim, when he composed,
in the year 1492, his celebrated globe, was not content with giving
merely the outlines and names of the countries and islands which he
depicted, but he added to each of them quite lengthy descriptions, in
which he informs us what kind of people lived in each country, what
plants were raised there, and, occasionally, by whom and when it was
discovered.
The same thing was done by many other map-makers, on whose de-
lineations we find inscrip!ions like these: ‘‘In the year 1500, Bastidas
sailed as far as this point.’’ ‘‘ Here Solis was killed.’’ ‘‘On this island
the Portuguese found signs of gold,’’ and the like. Travellers, too,
have often been in the habit of jotting down their observations and
conjectures on the maps they composed in travelling.
It is not seldom the case that maps contain the only hints and data
which we possess concerning an expedition or a discovery the reports
of which have been lost. Historians have, in this respect, not yet
derived all the advantage from them which maps are capable of afford-
ing. It has been questioned, if the first Portuguese expedition along
the eastern coast of South America, could have gone as far south as
they pretended to have done, that is to say, beyond the fiftieth degree
of south latitude, and if the Portuguese explorers of the beginning of
the sixteenth century ought to be considered as the discoverers of the
Falkland islands. Different very old maps, which show a group of
islands in the true latitude of the Falkland islands, can be quoted as
documentary proof of the truth of that assertion. That the Spaniards
knew the Sandwich islands a long time before Cook, that they had
a name for them, that they probably visited them repeatedly, was
proved by a map which Admiral Anson found on board a Spanish
vessel, and on which those islands were laid down in their true posi-
tion, and is proved likewise by still older maps, on which we find a
group of islands, called Los Volcanos, laid down in the latitude and
longitude of the Sandwich islands. Some other old maps, which have
recently come to light, have large tracts of the Australian continent
very accurately depicted, and prove to us that the Portuguese and
Spaniards were acquainted with those countries a long time before the
Dutch and English,
The printed books inform us imperfectly about those highly inter-
esting expeditions which Cortes ordered to be made into the Gulf of
California, and along the western shores of the Californian peninsula.
A map of these regions, which was made by a contemporary of Cortes,
and which, at the end of the last century, was discovered and pub-
lised in Mexico, completed our knowledge of these expeditions in a
very satisfactory manner. It showed us exactly how far the captains
of Cortes ascended the Rio Colorado, what names they gave to the
re LECTURES.
harbors and capes, and which was their ne plus ultra or the western
coast.
Many assertions in history are of such a kind that we do not give
to them a very high degree of credence, if we find them only reported
in books. But if we see the same thing aiso depicted on a map, our
conviction of the truth is enhanced. So, for instance, many may
doubt the fact, reported in Spanish authors, that as early as the year
1519, the Mississippi was discovered by the captains of the Conquesta-
dor Garay. But when we produce to them maps of the period on which,
not only the whole configuration of the northern coast of the Mexican
Gulf is given according to nature, but on which also in the middle
of this coast a broad river is depicted, having the true latitude of the
mouth of the Mississippi, they feel much more inclined to believe the
asserted discovery.
The history of the cosmographical speculations and hypotheses,
which prevailed at the different periods of geographical knowledge,
forms a very interesting chapter of the history of science and civiliza-
tion. These speculations, it is true, were also usually treated of in
books. But they are sometimes so fanciful and wild, that we can
scarcely credit their having ever been seriously entertained. When,
however, we behold them carefully drawn on maps, and find that those
maps were reproduced a thousand times, and passed into every hand,
we clearly recognise how deeply rooted those speculations or prejudices
must have been in the minds of a former age. We learn, for instance,
that the Dutch, when they discovered, north of Japan, the island
of Yesso, imagined it to be a large country, reaching from Asia
to America. At first it seems scarcely possible that such an erroneous
supposition could become the conviction of the time. But the Dutch
not only described this fanciful continent of Yesso in their books ;
they also laid it down on their maps as a bridge extending from Cali-
fornia to Tartary, with the inscription : ‘‘ This isthe land over which
the seven Israelitish tribes wandered from Asia to America.’”’ They
delivered such maps to all their contemporary students and navigators.
And these maps, therefore, prove to us, more than books, to what a
degree these contemporaries must have been impressed with those
specniations.
Very often the maps of a time are the only guides which enable us
to guess the real design of the expeditions sent out for discovery, and
to explain the movements of their commanders. In this respect, we
may observe, that the published reports and books very rarely give us
full information on the subject. The reports which we have, for in-
stance, of the expeditions of Bartholomew Diaz, of Vasco de Gama,
of Magellan, of Drake, of Hudson, were not written by the comman-
ders themselves, but by some “‘vertleman’’ accompanying them, a
missionary or volunteer, who only occasionally was induced to take
notes of what he considered worthy of record. The papers and maps
of the commanders themselves went generally another way. ‘They
were deposited in the archives of the governments, and are in innu-
merable instances lost to us.
From such second-hand information as we have, we therefore learn
many curious things and events, which happened to be observed by
LECTURES. 113
the occasional passenger, or ‘‘ gentleman companion.’”’ But we very
rarely find an allusion to the maps which they had on board, and after
which they sailed—no description of the astronomical instruments used
by the officers, no explanation of the leading ideas of the commander,
and the reasons for his conduct, or of other decisive points of the sort,
which a historian principally wants to know, but which were kept
secret from the journalists.
The study of the maps of the time, and the comparison of them, can
do much towards supplying this lacking information. If we have fixed
the dates of the maps, we can prove what sort of guides those comman-
ders were likely to have had with them. We can show what notions
they must have entertained; and, in many cases, we can guess by what
reasons they were influenced to act as they did.
There is only one class of expeditions respecting which we have that
full and complete information which is desirable, namely, the recent ones
performed by the English, French, and Americans. For them we have
the parliamentary papers, in which the motives of the expedition are
discussed at large. There we hear the commanders speak themselves,
and give us the amplest description of their whole outfit, and instead
of being forbidden they are even required to give to the public all the
explanations necessary for understanding their proceedings ; while on
the construction and publication of the maps and charts, which are to
form a summary of the entire geographical results, especial pains are
bestowed.
VI.—USE OF THE OLD MAPS WITH RESPECT TO BOUNDARY QUESTIONS AND OTHER
POLITICAL TRANSACTIONS,
There are no countries in the world which have been from the very
beginning, and still are, so much agitated by boundary questions—
and in which, therefore, reliable maps, as the principal means of
settling these questions, are so much wanted—as the different colo-
nies, empires, and states, of America,
Scarcely was America discovered, and scarcely had the Pope drawn
his famous line between the possessions of Spain and Portugal, when
there arose a boundary dispute of the widest extent between those
two powers ; one of which desired to include in its limits nearly the
whole of Brazil, whilst the other tried to prove that its competitor
ought to be almost entirely excluded from the continent.
The commissioners of Spain and Portugal discussed this question at
different lengthy sessions, but without conducting it to a satisfactory
solution—partly because the maps and charts which were produced on
both sides did not agree, and partly because they found themselves
unable to locate their boundaries on the surface of the earth.
The Hispano-Portuguese boundary question forms the most essen-
tial element of the whole history of South America. It runs through
a space of 350 years. It was revived at every step which Spanish and
Portuguese discovery and conquest made in opposite directions. It was,
after all, only partially and roughly settled. The question descended as
an heir-loom from the royal contending parties to their modern repub-
88
114 LECTURES,
lican and imperial successors, and it remains a debatable matter to
this day. The whole empire of Brazil is still surrounded by bound-
ary disputes springing from that contest.
As among the different sovereign powers, so also among individual
Spanish discoverers, questions of this sort were a fruitful source of
contention. The Spanish kings, in their contracts with their so-called
** conquistadores,’’ used to promise them that they should become
governors, commonly hereditary ones, of the new countries within the
limits of their discoveries or conquests. These limits differed greatly
according to the different views which the conquistadores themselves
entertained of their own merits and the extent of the fields of their
activity.
Hence arose the famous quarrels between Cortes, the conqueror of
Mexico, and Garay, the discoverer and governor of the countries north
of the Mexican Gulf. Cortes wished to carry the limits of his pro-
vince as far north, and Garay as far south, as possible. Similar dis-
putes existed for some time between Bastidas and Ojeda, and between
Columbus, or his heirs, and all the other discoverers.
Pizarro, the conqueror of Peru, had a similar quarrel with his
companion, Almagro, the conqueror of Chile. When the three great
conquerors of Cundinamarca—Quesada, Benalcazar, and Kederman—
marching into the Magdalena valley from different sides, met on the
high plateau of Bogota, a question arose as to how the new country
should be divided. This they finally agreed to submit to the decision
of the King of Spain. During the ensuing lawsuits, maps were made
and produced which showed the limits and extent of the several dis-
coveries ; and on the decisions based upon these documents rest the
boundaries of provinces and empires to this very day.
When, at a later period, the French began to extend their conquests
' in Canada and the English their settlements on the Atlantic coast, a
whole series of collisions respecting the boundaries of the different
powers commenced. At first between France and England, about the
limits of Canada towards the south, and of what was called Virginia
towards the north. Afterwards between France and Spain, about the
extent to be given to the newly created province of Louisiana. And
again between England and France as well as Spain, respecting the
boundaries of the countries beyond the Alleghany mountains, and
likewise in Florida and in Nova Scotia.
We may, say that during the whole of the seventeenth and eigh-
teenth centuries no war was carried on in Europe which was not partly
a war for the extension of colonial boundaries in the New World, and
no treaty of peace was concluded which did not comprise articles on
the same subject. On all these occasions American maps were of the
greatest use, and were on all sides much sought after. The French
and English commissioners, for instance, who discussed, in the middle
of the last century, at and after the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the
question of the limits of Nova Scotia, collected, used, and criticised
as many at least as fifty American maps of the earliest as well as
the latest date.
Some of these boundary questions, in the unfinished state in which
they were left, were afterwards inherited by the great North American
LECTURES. . 115
republic; and in the negotiations respecting its limits towards the
Mississippi, towards Florida, and towards Canada, both early and
recent maps were always in demand, and could sometimes only with
difficulty be procured, because there existed no collection or depot for
preserving and keeping them in order.
The predominance in America of boundary questions, above all
others, strikes us not only in an international point of view, but also
when we look into the history of each particular State and province.
All the different colonies which the English planted on the eastern coast
of America have had, from the beginning, like the Spanish discoverers
and conquistadores, quarrels about the degrees of latitude and longi-
tude, the rivers and the mountains, to which their territories ought to
extend. Disputes of this kind have been innumerable, whilst few or
no quarrels from any other cause whatever have arisen to disturb their
peaceable relations. Such were the boundary questions between Mas-
sachusetts and Rhode Island, between New Hampshire and Maine,
between Connecticut and the old Dutch colony on Hudson’s river, be-
tween Georgia and Florida, between Carolina and Virginia, Pennsyl-
vania and Delaware, &c. This last, the Maryland boundary question,
commenced with the very foundation of that colony, and gave rise
to endless treaties, lawsuits, surveys, measurements of degrees of
latitude, and constructions of maps, which occupied more than a
century. Nor can it yet be assunied that all the maps illustrating
Mason and Dixon’s line are superseded, obsolete, and of no further
practical use.
The same may be said in relation to the subdivision of the great
colonies and States into counties, and of the further division of these
counties, which were at first very large, into smaller counties and into
townships. The necessity for consulting old maps and for construct-
ing new ones was endless. .
The same peculiarly great importance which maps possess in
America, with respect to defining State boundaries, they have also
with respect to private landed property. In Europe the greater and
smaller divisions of landed estate have been from time immemorial
included in long known and settled limits, indicated by natural or
artificial metes and bounds. Further, such extraordinary and whole-
sale grants of land have never been made in Europe as was customary
in this new world, which has been parcelled out in lots, sometimes ot
enormous magnitude. Never was there such a lawsuit in Europe as
the celebrated one of the heirs of Lord Stirling, who laid claim at
once to as many millions of acres as would be equal to the surface of
some European kingdoms ; a suit which was at last decided with the
help and by the authority of a geographical map.
As broad grants of land were once made by the English and French
kings in Canada, Virginia, Louisiana, &c., as by those of Spain in
Florida, Texas, and the Mississippi valley ; and consequently, to this
very day, lawsuits in which some large portion of a city or county is
made the object of the claim are here matters of not uncommon
occurrence; and in all these sorts of claims former maps are often
the only authoritative documents that can be referred to for a decision.
Thus it is evident that chartography runs like a colored thread
116 LECTURES.
through the weft of America history, through all the great political
transactions as well as the arrangement of private affairs, wherein it
becomes ramified into innumerable branches. And still this country
has never yet thought even of establishing an institution to supply
every branch of the government with a kind of information the want
of which is so continually felt. It is to be hoped, however, that in
this respect America will yet point the way to the older nations of the
world.
VII.—USE OF FORMER MAPS IN DIFFERENT PRACTICAL QUESTIONS.
Although in its principal features the configuration of the surface
of our globe remains unaltered, still there are continually going on,
in every part of it, changes which appear insignificant in comparison
with the great mass of our continents and oceans, but which are some-
times of the utmost importance for the pigmy works of man and for
the enterprise and existence of nations.
Our mountains are constantly being lessened in height, our rocks
crumble down from year to year, never to be built up again. Some-
times a volcano or a new island rises from the depths of that fiery
abyss which is concealed under our waters and blooming lands. Our
rivers are continually changing a little the direction of their courses.
They abrade their banks on one side, and break through with new
branches, whilst the opposite side is left dry and allowed to increase.
They gradually float away old islands, or form new ones which did
not exist before. The changes are particularly great at the mouths
of the rivers and in their deltas near the sea-shore, where the current
encounters the influence of the motions of the sea and its strong winds.
There one arm of a river is choked with sand, and in time entirely
disappears, whilst another gradually deepens, and from a little creek
is transformed into a broad and navigable channel.
On the shores of the ocean itself the changes are upon a larger scale.
The sea has swallowed whole tracts of country, and has produced new
ones from its depths. In the course of centuries, banks of sand are
formed, or shift their place. Many capes and peninsulas are continu-
ally melting away under the action ot the waves; others grow larger
under the influence of the meeting of contrary currents ; whilst others,
again, seem only to vary their position, and, like enormous pendulums
thrown out into the waters, show a tendency to increase for a certain
period on one side, and then for a like period on the other.
It is even believed that the very foundations of the gigantic crust
of our globe are not quite settled yet, and that some parts of our coasts
are constantly heaved up from beneath, whilst others by a slow pro-
cess are sinking ; whence it results that they are perpetually varying
the outlines which they form with the unchanging level of the ocean.
An accurate knowledge of these changes and their tendencies is not
only very interesting for the history of the past and for general science,
but is also of the greatest consequence for the future and for practical
purposes.
Some of the processes by which those changes are effected are
rapid in their action, and can be observed and recollected by indi-
LECTURES. 117
viduals or families living on the spot. Others are extremely slow,
and go through so large a space of time, that the particular circum-
stances escape the memory of individuals and even of generations, and
can only be ascertained from history and written documents. These
recollections and traditions of the local population, as well as the re.
cords of local history, are always valuable and may be consulted-
But in most cases, especially if a particular application of the phe-
nomena is to be made, such a precision as to the facts, and such a
nicety of observation are requisite, as can only be obtained by a series
of mathematically accurate pictures, that is to say maps, of the
changed locality.
If our forefathers for two or three centuries past had been as correct,
conscientious, and minute in the construction of special maps of all
parts of a country, of its rivers, coasts, ports, banks, &c., as we now
are, a complete collection of their maps would be invaluable. But
even as they are, incomplete, often unreliable, and for the most part
too general, they are for the history of those changes and all that de-
pends upon them of the highest importance ; because they often are
the only documents which we can consult, and from which we can
form a judgment.
How desirable also in this respect a complete collection of former
maps would be has been observed in this country on various occasions.
Harbor commissions, coast survey officers, military engineers, archi-
tects, in constructing bridges or moles for the protection of ports, have
repeatedly felt this great and essential want.
There is perhaps no other country in the world which has such
changeable coasts and rivers as the United States. The whole extent
of the shores of the Mexican Gulf, more than 1,500 miles in length, are
low, and consist of shifting materials, partly of sand and partly of coral
rocks. Changes on a great scale have occurred there every year as
long as the Gulf has been known to us. <A mighty circular current,
accompanied by many side currents, moves in this large basin, and is
constantly at work, abrading and altering after its own manner the
configuration of its coasts. Heavy gales, and consequent inundations,
are frequent phenomena; of some of which it is recorded that in the
short space of one or two days they have torn asunder islands,
filled ports, heaped up sand-banks, destroyed settlements, and thus
changed at once the whole physiognomy of a long coast-tract of some
hundreds of miles.
Into the Mexican Gulf empties that mighty river the Mississippi,
the delta of which, one of the most interesting in the world, is a per-
fect labyrinth of natural changes. This delta has been explored, and
somewhat more accurately studied since the time of the French dis-
coverers, Iberville and Bienville, about a century and a half ago.
These Frenchmen gave their names to branches of the Mississippi
which now no longer exist. They built fortifications and beacons on
the then extreme spits of land, which are now situated far in the
interior. They speak in their reports of sand-banks with deep sound-
ings upon them, which now have become inhabited islands. They
would in many parts scarcely recognise the old Mississippi delta in
the maps which we could now lay before them. No harbor can be
118 LECTURES.
undertaken in this delta, no water-work built in one of its bayous,
no channel can be cut, no sort of improvement proposed, but that at
once a question arises about the former events at that place, and the
men commissioned with the execution of the work must carefully
study the history of the locality where the contemplated improvement
is to be made.
Nearly the same is the case with the whole extent of sea-shore on
the eastern side of the United States, from Cape Florida to Cape Cod,
a line of more than 1,500 miles. All these shores are likewise low
and sandy, and form a barrier very easily affected by the attacks of
the mighty Atlantic. There is on this coast scarcely a harbor in or
before which changes have not taken place at some period or other.
The far stretching beaches of North Carolina, of Maryland, and New
Jersey, have been broken through by the waves at different times and
places; and the same waves have shut and filled up in another year
the gaps they had previously made. The whole coast of New Jersey
is believed to be in a state of subsidence. Entrances formerly navi-
gable have completely disappeared; and some of these ocean doors,
the history of which we are somewhat acquainted with, appear to
have been alternately opened and shut again nearly every ten years.
The spit of land which forms the famous cape of Sandy Hook has
been in the course of 50 years four times an island, and four times
again a part of the mainland.
To watch closely all these changes, and to follow them and lay
them down on paper with rule and compass, would have no other
than a historical interest for us, if they did not follow in their mo-
tions certain Jaws, if the currents, waves, and gales of the ocean, with
their destructive results, operated accidentally like the flashes of
lightning, which fall now here and now there. But from what little
we know it is quite evident that such laws exist, that the Ocean in
his attacks follows a certain strategic plan—directing his unwieldy
powers for one period constantly in a certain way, and for perhaps
another century in an opposite one—leaving certain points unharmed,
and assailing others with uniform persistency. Butif the ocean thus
follows a certain plan, then it is obvious that this plan is worth
studying; that we must try to avail ourselves of some such strategic
art as may enable us to countervail its action, and prevent or at
least avoid mischief; and that it is in many respects most essential
for us to know the points which have for ever remained safe, and those
which are the most exposed, and the manner in which they have been
and probably will continue to be assailed. And there is no other
means of acquiring this information than by constantly, from year to
year, daguerreotyping the physiognomy of these coasts, and in this
way detecting the laws of those unwieldy movements.
On this side of the Atlantic there are only the coasts of Maine and
parts of New England which are so rocky, so elevated, so soundly
built by nature, that they may almost be called unchangeable, and
for which, consequently, former maps, in respect to the observation
of physical changes, would be of little use. But even in the neigh-
borhood of these coasts there lie, on the bottom of the ocean, many
broad banks and shoals the soundings of which may not be always
LECTURES. 119
the same, and which should therefore be watched and studied in like
manner. At all events, those solid and unalterable coasts of Maine
form a not very considerable part of the entire coast of this country ;
and I repeat it, therefore, that in the whole domain of the active com-
mercial and navigating nations of the European stock there is no
country which so much as this is in want of those documents and
records of the past which we call maps and charts.
VIII.—ON THE DIFFERENT CLASSES OF MAPS.
The interesting matters which are subject to geographical distri-
bution, and which are at the same time capable of a graphical repre-
sentation on maps, are very numerous, nay, we may say they are
innumerable. There is hardly any phenomenon either in the moral or
in the physical world which does not undergo some change according
to the position of its birthplace on the surface of the globe ; and these
changes and their degrees may almost always be expressed by lines,
shadings, and colors. Consequently, our geographers now present us
with many different classes of maps—physical, hydrographical, poli-
tical, historical, moral, administrative, &c. The question, then,
arises, whether we should admit into our intended collection all these
classes of maps or not.
The chartographical art originated probably everywhere with tra-
vellers by land and sea and their requirements. All the maps which
we see mentioned in ancient times were probably more qr less of this
kind; as, for instance, those which the Greeks received from the
Pheenicians, and which they improved upon; so, too, the maps of the
Romans, who scarcely mention any other than travellers’ maps, called
‘‘ itineraria picta,’’ (painted itineraries,) of which a separate class was
formed by the ‘‘itineraria maritima,’ (marine itineraries.)
By far the greater part of the maps painted during the middle
ages belonged to this class, and more especially to the class of
marine maps; because the greatest map-makers of that time, the
Venetians and other Italians, were also the greatest navigators. Thus
we see that the art of map-making particularly flourished among the
reat trading and navigating nations—the Pheenicians, Greeks, and
talians. The different classes of chartographical works for which
they had names in the middle ages related all of them more or less
exclusively to the hydrography of the sea. Very common, for in-
stance, were the so-called ‘‘ portulanos,’’ or indicators of harbors.
The ‘‘ isolarios’’ (books of islands) form a very curious sort of com-
position, also probably designed for the special use of mariners. In
these insularies the authors represented and described all the most
important islands of the world, which they separated from their sur-
rounding continents.
Next to travellers and navigators, probably the great conquerors
‘ of the world were the first promoters of the art of depicting the sur-
face of the earth. The desire to know exactly what had been taken
possession of, and to see his whole empire as it were at a glance, has
been entertained by every conqueror. Sesostris, Alexander the Great,
Crasar, the Arabian caliphs, were all accompanied on their marches
120 LECTURES.
by astronomers and mathematicians for that especial object. Cyrus
of Persia, Augustus of Rome, and the Emperor Charlemagne, after
having accomplished their military work, sat down, and surveyed and
painted it. Even Joshua, as we are told in the Bible, did this with
his little territory of Palestine, when he had settled there the twelve
tribes.
From this class of maps, made by conquerors and distributors of
land, have grown our official government surveys, which often are
very valuable, because they are made without a too great fear of
expense. They generally contain the most important information as
regards the political divisions of the country, and for the adjustment
of boundary questions. Sometimes, being particularly destined for
government use, they have not been given to the public, or at least not
to any great extent. With respect to America we have many most
important publications of this character, made by the French and
British governments for Canada; by the British admiralty for nearly
every part of America; by the Spanish hydrographical depot in
Madrid for Spanish America; and by the Land Office, Topographical
Bureau, the Coast Survey Office, and other branches of the United
States government, for different parts of the territory of the United
States. The governments of Brazil, of New Granada, and other
South American States, have likewise caused splendid publications to
be made descriptive of the territories under their dominion.
The observation of the stars and the movements of the other
heavenly bodies seems to have attracted the attention of all nations at
avery early stage of their civilization. And at a no less early period
questions arose respecting the origin, formation, extent, and configu-
ration of the world inhabited by us—questions which are intimately
connected with astronomy. The attempt to depict to the eye the
result of the investigations that ensued naturally led to the construc-
tion of the first astronomical and cosmographical maps.
But astronomy, although a very ancient science, remained in an
infant state for thousands of years, and the first steps in the progress
of navigation and discovery were very slow. We may say that, until
the time of Columbus and Gama, nations had no accurate knowledge
except of their immediate neighborhoods, and their deeds were per-
formed on a very narrow stage. Hence, for thousands of years, the
art of constructing maps made very little progress. The maps which
were in use in the time of Columbus are not much better than those
which the Alexandrian geographer Agathodwmon had composed for
the work of Ptolemy a thousand years before. They do not include
a greater extent of country, they exhibit no other facts, neither do
they show any great improvement as regards the position of locali-
ties upon the earth’s surface. In fact, the old maps of Ptolemy’s
Geography were even then considered as a great authority, and were
often copied exclusively.
After the discovery of America and the countries bordering on the —
Pacific ocean and the Indian sea, the extent of the known and _ habi-
table world was much increased and the figure of the continents
and the limits of the oceans were more correctly given on the
maps. But it was still very long ere the classes of interesting facts
LECTURES. 121
represented on the maps were enlarged and the manner of depicting
them improved.
Sometimes, it is true, an attempt was made to represent on the
maps certain physical features of the earth, resulting from geographical
position. Thus, for instance, we have very old maps on which the
whole torrid zone is overlaid with a glowing purple color, to indicate
the extreme heat of that part of the world. Here we see the first
rude beginning of thermographic maps. When the great discoveries
of the Portugese and Spaniards had astonished the civilized world
with the sight of the strange products of barbarous regions and with
the accounts of the savage customs of their inhabitants, it became
the fashion among chartographers to embellish the different countries
and islands on their maps with figures of grotesque apes, of enormous
snakes, of birds of brilliant plumage, of the precious pepper and
clove tree, and of the fightings, butcherings, and feastings of can-
nibals. These representations also did good service in handsomely
filling up vacant spaces, and thus, in a measure, concealing the artist’s
ignorance of the interior of the countries delineated. As these figures
were not very accurately distributed, according to latitude and longi-
tude, we see in them our zoological and mineralogical maps only in a
very embryonic condition.
It appears particularly strange that the ocean should have remained
for so long a time a perfect blank on the maps. Water for the old
map-makers was nothing but water, and they represented the whole
aqueous surface of our globe as a perfectly unvaried desert, on which
no interesting change of any kind could be observed, and which,
therefore, they colored blue throughout or covered with uniform lines
and stripes. It did not occur to them that the surface of the ocean
offers nearly as much variety in color, depth, temperature, and fitness
for locomotion as the surface of the dry land itself. And long after
they had become acquainted with many of these peculiarities they did
not mark them on the maps.
That the ocean, ia certain parts, was covered with sea-weed was
known since the first voyage of Columbus. Indeed, we find the so-
called Sargasso sea alluded to in much earlier voyages of the Portu-
guese along the coast of Africa. And yet nobody tried to indicate this
remarkable feature on the marine maps, as had been done long before
with the deserts of Sahara and other variations of the surface of the
dry land.
The Spaniards very well knew that some parts of the ocean are
rough and boisterous nearly all the year round, while others are
almost always calm. They had invented for these different states of
the ocean the most expressive terms: they called a certain rough part
of the ocean ‘el Golfo de los Caballos,’’ (the Horses’ gulf,) and a cer-
tain quiet one ‘‘ el Golfo de las Damas,’’ (the Ladies’ gulf.) Yet
though they painted the difference so well in words they never at-
tempted to express it by colors.
That there were certain regular currents in the ocean was also an
early discovery. The great Gulf-stream, for instance, was known as
early as 1512, or since the first voyage of Ponce de Leon to Florida.
This Gulf-stream is particularly well and completely. described in
122 LECTURES.
Ovredo and in Herrera. And still nobody tried to lay down its
proper outlines on a map, which would have been the best way of
improving and correcting the knowledge of this important phenome-
non, so useful for navigators. We find on many maps, in the neigh-
borhood of Florida, legends like the following: ‘‘ Here the water runs
continually to the north.’’ How easy, at least so it seems to us, it would
have been instead of writing this down, to paint it by a few strips
of color! And yet to make this step the inventive genius of a Frank-
lin was required ; for it was he who, towards the end of the eigh-
teenth century, was the first to depict the Gulf-stream and its limits
in a tolerable manner on a map, and thus give the first impulse to
the improvement of our current-maps, which now form so important
a branch of the art. This general omission of the currents on the
maps is all the more strange inasmuch as geographers were long ago
accustomed to make an exception with regard to one particular cur-
rent. ‘The famous maelstrom, on the coast of Norway, can be seen
on very old maps. We find it there regularly indicated with a long,
rough, spiral line. It did not strike the artists that what they did
here could, with great propriety, have been extended further.
The regular trade winds between India and Arabia, with their na-
ture, direction, and changes, were not only known but daily taken
advantage of by navigators for centuries. So, too, the trade winds of
the Atlantic were described, discussed, and used, at least since the
time of Columbus. Nevertheless, though these air currents flow with
nearly the same regularity as rivers, no map-maker gave any visible
hint respecting them to the navigators to whom he pretended to fur-
nish useful charts, until the time of our modern Rennells. Wind-maps
are also a very late invention of our century.
That the level surface of the ocean covered very different depths
of water was ascertained in the earliest stages of navigation, the
sounding line being an instrument the necessity of which was soon
recognised. The able Spanish navigator Alaminos, for instance, not
to speak of many earlier ones, had explored tolerably well not only the
currents and directions of the winds in the Mexican Gulf, but also
that remarkable bank which runs along the west coast of Florida,
and is known under the name of ‘‘The Tortugas Soundings.’’ And
yet it was not till. more than two centuries after Alaminos that the
Spanish hydrographers began to depict that important feature of the
Mexican Gulf by running a dotted line round its limits.
The existence of the Banks of Newfoundland was known to the very
first discoverers of the eastern coast of North America. Nay, for a
long time these banks were the most frequented part of the North Ameri-
can waters, being visited, since the year 1504, by whole fleets of French,
Portuguese, Spanish, and English fishermen. To havea true conception
of their configuration, extent, varying depths, currents, and other cir-
cumstances, was almost of greater importance for all the navigating
nations of Europe than to know the configuration of the coasts of the
creat continentitself. Yet,atatime when the whole east coast of North
America was already very well represented on the maps, we see the
George’s bank, Nantucket shoals, and the other great banks before this
LECTURES. 123
coast, either not given at all, or else in a shape so little like reality
that it would have been almost better to leave them out altogether.
The other qualities of the bottom of the ocean, its deep valleys and
lofty mountain-ranges, were of course not noticed in an age which
did not possess our deep sea-sounding instruments, and which had
also no practical occasion for such explorations. This practical in-
terest has existed only since the question has been mooted, where we
can lay with safety our electric wires for the connexion of the two
continents. For this purpose we now explore those hidden recesses,
and we may expect that ere long our pictures of the oceans will pre-
sent as great a variety of scenes as do those of the dry land itself.
Before the middle of the eighteenth century, we scarcely find any
trace of a separation of political and physical maps. Although the
world possessed the most interesting and learned works on the plants,
the animals, the nations, &c., of all parts of the globe, still it seems
not to have occurred to any one that some of those subjects could be
treated in a much more successful, concise, and impressive manner in
a map, until, about the year 1790, a German (Mr. Crome) made the
first attempt at composing a special map of the vegetable productions
of the earth. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Lehmann
invented an improved method, or rather the first good method, of re-
presenting on maps the mountains and other inequalities of the sur-
face of the earth; and from that time date our orographical maps.
At a little later period, another German, named Bernhardi, began to
compese maps on which the languages spoken in different countries,
with their extent and limits, were indicated by colors and lines; and
here we have the origin of our ethnographic and linguistic maps, which
have found so much favor with the public.
Geological maps scarcely had an existence before the year 1820.
After that year, geology, though still young, rapidly became a favorite
science, and many geological maps were published in quick succession.
Some of the first savants of Germany and France, Leopold von Buch,
Elie de Beaumont, and others, who saw that geology could scarcely
exist without maps, themselves condescended to the task of preparing
these indispensible drawings. At present there is hardly any country
concerning which an attempt, at least, has not been made to give
anatomical pictures of what is contained beneath its surface.
When, at last, the ice was broken, progress in this direction was
rapid, and soonthe Germanchartographer Berghaus composed his great
Physical Atlas of the Globe, in which he introduced at once quite a
number of new classes of maps, mineralogical, meteorological, clima-
tological, hyetographical, paleontological, tidal, and moral, which
twenty years before had not been dreamed of. New fields of investi-
gation were opened in every direction, and we began dimly to fore-
see of what further development this new art was capable.
If it be asked now, with respect to our special object, whether we
should include in our collection not only the commonly so called geo-
graphical maps and charts which have been made from olden times,
but also all these new physical, moral, and other maps of recent
invention, I believe there can be no doubt that we should answer this
question in the affirmative.
124 LECTURES.
What reason could be given for admitting the old and rude sketches
of coast lines, river courses, and mountains, made from the time of
Columbus, and whieh form only a very small part of what constitutes
the body of a continent, and excluding all the equally useful and
necessary pictures of the distribution of its animal, vegetable, and
mineral contents? Why should we be satisfied with the mere outlines
of the political boundaries of states, provinces, counties, and cities,
when the Indian tribes, European races, languages, customs, manners,
crimes, diseases, &c., are equally subject to geographical distribution,
and can be delineated with the same precision and clearness ?
With Columbus commenced the hydrographical discovery and char-
tography of America. The geological discovery and chartography of
America began only a few years ago. Our first geological maps of
America of this century were as rude as the hydrographical maps of
the beginning of the sixteenth century. For some parts of the conti-
nent they have been greatly improved, for other parts they are still in
the first stage of development, and for many they do not exist at all.
These geological maps are now just as much scattered through all
sorts of books, offices, and depots, as were the hydrographical maps of
the olden time; and unless we make complete collections of them now,
while it is possible, the rapid progress of science will cause them, in
like manner, to disappear. They are equally valuable, moreover, as
scientific documents ; they mark the point at which we have arrived,
they show what still remains to be done, and they serve as a solid basis
to build further upon hereafter. If we should collect and preserve the
one class, there is no reason why we should not likewise provide an
asylum for the other ; and why we should not, by an historically and
chronologically organised collection of all the attainable geological
maps of America, enable our successors to trace the progress of this
department of knowledge step by step ?
And what is true as respects geological maps, holds good also with
regard to the botanical, zoological, magnetical, ethnographical, and
other numerous classes of maps. Hach of them has had its beginning,
each has inaugurated a discovery of America in a new sense, and each
is capable of progressive and indefinite improvement.
I therefore do not hesitate to pronounce that we should collect and
register every map of every description on which a successful attempt
has been made to depict any feature of the country that is subject to
geographical influences, and is capable of being more accurately con-
veyed to the mind by means of colors and lines than by mere verbal
description.
IX.—ON THE CHOICE AND SELECTION OF THE MAPS.
There can scarcely be a doubt that we should aim at completeness
in our collection of former American maps. This, it is evident, should
be a guiding principle, if our collection is to become essentially useful.
We should have of every part of the continent a connected series of
representations, which will explain each other, because they have
grown out of each other.
‘ LECTURES. 125
Nevertheless, though completeness ought to be our aim, still it is
evident that this completeness must have its Jimits. The number of
maps which have been published of the New World and its parts is
so extremely great, that the labor of procuring them all would be
enormous. At the same time, the value of individual maps is so very
different, that while some form more or less essential links of a com-
plete chain, others are so valueless for the purpose contemplated that
we may, without regret and without loss, refuse them admission to
our collection.
It is necessary, therefore, to make a critical selection; and to guide
our choice in this respect, we may first divide all the maps that pre-
sent themselves for admission into two great classes, namely, maps
made by discoverers, navigators, and travellers on the spot, and maps
which were afterwards composed at home, from the original sketches,
by official geographers and learned map-makers. In selecting from
that most interesting class of documents, maps from actual survey, we
should use great caution in rejection, while a certain severity of criti-
cism is allowable and even demanded in admitting maps formed by
compilation.
When an explorer penetrates into a new and hitherto unknown
region, everything that he hears and sees, all that he collects and
puts down in his journals and maps, has an especial interest. How-
ever rude his draughts may be, they comprise all that is known of that
region for the time being. ‘They are liable to be copied and imitated
a hundred times over, and in this way often become of high historical
interest, even when in many respects false, on account of the influence
they have exerted on the geography of their age.
Thus, to take a very striking example, the famous Baron La Hontan
was certainly, in many respects, but little entitled to credibility. He
composed, and published in his work, a very fanciful map of one of
the great western affluents of the Mississippi, and of another adjoining
river, flowing towards the west, to a supposed great salt lake. Accord-
ing to his own statement, he drew this map partly from actual survey
and partly from a report, and a sketch on a deer skin, given him by his
Indian friends. This map departs very widely from nature, and yet
it is a not unimportant document in the history of American geogra-
phy. As the baron was a bold and enterprising traveller, who soon
became celebrated throughout Europe, his book and accompanying
maps were repeatedly published, and attracted so much attention that
thousands implicity believed what he reported of regions which were
not visited again for a long time after. His fanciful map was adopted
by geographers, copied many times, and inserted in all the maps of
America of that time. We could not understand these maps without
a look at the original draught of Baron La Hontan, which was the
source of all those erroneous conceptions. Even as late as the latter
part of the eighteenth century, we find maps reproducing La Honton’s
great river and salt lake. In a documentary history of American
geography, therefore, this map, which, erroneous as it was, exerted
so great an influence on map-making, should, by all means, find a
place.
The same principle is applicable to many similar cases, as, for in-
126 LECTURES. ,
stance, to all those rude sketches of interior parts of America, which,
on different occasions, have been drawn by the Indians on skins or the
bark of trees, and which sometimes were the first guides, by the help of
which Europeans were enabled to find their way. Such Indian maps
have often been considered as conveying very valuable information, and,
consequently, have been sent home to England or France by governors
of provinces, have been copied by European geographers into their
works, and have then been deposited as valuable documents in the
archives of state, or have been found worthy, as historical curiosities,
of being preserved in the British Museum and in similar splendid
collections. Nay, there are still some parts of America, as the interior
of Brazil and Labrador, and the vast territories of Hudson’s Bay,
which are delineated on our maps on no better authority than that of
an Indian sketch or report. It is evident, then, that we cannot
neglect the study of these aboriginal productions, but must give them
also a place in our collection:
If we now turn our attention to that large class of maps which have
not been made on the spot by travellers themselves for the sake of per-
petuating their discoveries, but which have been compiled at home,
either for general instruction or to serve the purposes of commerce
and navigation, we must begin by subdividing them into ancient
and modern maps, and, with respect to their authors, into those which
have been constructed in the cabinets of scientific individuals, or in
hydrographical and topographical bureaus, and those which have been
made in map manufacturing establishments, by the traders and copyists
who live on the knowledge of others. Some of the old maps, which
have been compiled by careful students of geography, have nearly as
much historical value and importance as original maps from actual
survey, nay, sometimes more.
Ribero, the celebrated cosmographer of the Emperor Charles V.,
compiled in the year 1528 a map of America, for which he used the
actual surveys and draughts of different discoverers, which at that
time were still extant in the marine depots at Seville. Ribero laid
down on his map the coasts of North America after the drawings sent
home by Columbus, Ponce de Leon, Cortes, Garay, and other Spanish
navigators and conquerors. He traced the coasts of Peru, so far as
they were known in the year 1528, by the progress of Pizarro. For
the coasts of Venezuela, Guiana, Brazil, and Patagonia, he had before
him the charts of Pinzon, Cabral, Solis, Magelhaens, and many
other Portuguese and Spanish explorers. Of the original maps and
actual surveys of all these celebrated men nothing or very little is
now left to us; but by a careful anatomy of the map of Ribero, and
by resolving it into its elements, we could to a certain degree supply
our want of sources from which it was compiled, and restore to each
explorer what originally belonged to him.
The same may be said of many ancient compiled maps which we
find scattered through the editions of Ptolemy, or in the works of
Ramusio, Munster, Mercator, Ortelius, and many other diligent col-
lectors, who were never themselves in the field, but whose compila-
tions give us more or less faithful copies of actual surveys, and serve
us in their stead.
: LECTURES. 127
It is evident, then, that the older a compiled map is the more origi-
nal matter it may be supposed to contain, and that often the entire
picture in all its parts will be unique tous. But even later maps
may sometimes have the same value, at least for certain parts of their
contents. The famous and interesting globe of Molineux, in the Mid-
dle Temple in London, is in many respects only a copy from copies of
other well known maps. But for certain northern parts of North
America, Molineux had before him the original draughts brought
home by Drake, Baffin, and other English navigators. He copied
those draughts, and transferred them to his globe, which is now the
only authentic thing in the way of maps transmitted to us from those
navigators. That part of Molineux’s globe, therefore, possesses for
us the authority and value of a most precious historical document.
In such a case we should copy if not the whole at least the most im-
portant parts of the map to be inserted in our collection.
But neither should all the works of compilers who had few or no
original documents before them be rejected by us, if that is true which
a biographer states of the great French map-maker, D’Anville.
““D’ Anville,’’ he says, ‘‘combined with vast information a very fine
and experienced eye. In the enormous mass of materials offered to him
for the construction of his maps, he quickly discovered the right from
the wrong, and seemed sometimes by a kind of critical instinct to re-
cognise the truth.’’ D’Anville’s maps, therefore, were not mere
compilations ; they were new creations. By adopting the mean of all
the differing lines offered to him, which were all wrong, he drew upon
his map the correct line, and thus produced something new, which was
truer than all the rest.
Such men as D’Anville gifted with such a decided genius for geo-
graphy arerare. Butthey appear sometimes, and then they generally
correct so many errors, discard so many old prejudices, and base their
productions upon such a solid foundation of truth, that they become
the models and guides of their successors, as if they had been dis-
coverers themselves.
The old cosmographers of the 16th century, Sebastian Munster
and the still more excellent Ortelius, were men of this stamp. They
first led the way in map-making and geography, and were called the
Ptolemies of their age. The maps of Ortelius, in particular, served
as the basis of all the similar works undertaken after them.
Hondius, Blaeu, Nicolaus Vischer, Sanson d’ Abbeville, and Duval,
among Dutch and French geographers, took the lead in this branch of
science and art during the 17th century. Sanson d’ Abbeville has
been called the creator of geography and map-making in France.
Delille and D’Anville, in the 18th century, effected great improve-
ments in the maps of their age, although not travellers themselves,
merely by the help of critical study and sagacious combination.
Such men as these, whom I mention only as instances, possessed the
confidence of their governments. To them were laid open all the
materials concealed in hydrographical and topographical archives.
They made themselves masters of this undigested matter ; and because
they put on their maps no line, point, or name about which they had
not studied everything within their reach, and for which they had not
128 LECTURES. 5
the best existing authority, their works must be considered as the
very type of the knowledge of the age. Their maps make an epoch
for every country which they touched upon, and may sometimes pre-
serve to us features for which every other authority is lost.
It is observable in the history of every art, but especially in the art
of map-making, in which so much indolent and servile copying has
been going on, that the real work is done by a comparatively few in-
ventive and ingenious minds; and it must be our particular care to
find out those men and those maps which, in any respect, have taken
the lead.
Sometimes we cannot use all that such a man has left us, but only
afew of his productions. hus, for instance, we would not use all
the maps of Hondius; but to leave out those which he composed of
Guiana, for the discoveries of Sir Walter Raleigh, or for the voyages
of Drake and Cavendish, would be an unpardonable omission.
So, too, we might dispense with most of the maps of the French
geographer Robert de Vaugondy; but we ought not to neglect his
atlas of the Arctic polar sea, which gained him so much celebrity.
In the same manner other geographers, like the painters, had their
favorite subjects and their master-pieces. Only a few, like Ortelius or
D’ Anville, deserve that everything they produced should be collected,
With some we must not be content with a single edition of their
maps, but must endeavor to procure them all; because each issue was
carefully revised and augmented with new discoveries, so that every
one of these additions is a mark of progress.
The productions of the few great and learned geographers who
took upon themselves the painful business of map compiling were
afterwards, when once published, copied and recopied by a host of
manufacturers of all nations A D’Anville was edited and re-edited
in England, in Germany, in the Netherlands, sometimes tolerably
well, and sometimes very ill; sometimes with additions and so-called
corrections, and sometimes without; sometimes under his own name,
and sometimes under the name of his plunderer. And frequently these
copies were copied again in distant countries; and thus the light which
D’Anville threw on the configuration of our world, became at each
remove from the original more diffused and obscure.
To adopt into our collection all these copies of copies would be
worse than useless; though even here an exception may occasionally
be made. Some mere map manufacturers were so very active, and
managed to introduce their productions so generally into the market,
that they played from this very circumstance an important part in the
history of geography. They were introduced into schools, libraries,
commercial towns, and even into the ships of navigators. They
exercised, not a very well deserved or beneficial, but a very important
influence on the spread of geographical knowledge, and even on navi-
gation and the progress of discovery, and they therefore must not
quite escape our attention.
Numberless maps have been constructed, not merely with want of
care, but with the evident intention of falsifying geography. The
reasons for doing this have been manifold. Sometimes learned men
have represented the position of places or the configuration of coun-
LECTURES. 129
tries falsely, with the view of sustaining a geographical hypothe-
sis. Explorers, too, have often committed this sin, in order to add a
little to their glory, by magnifying the extent of their discoveries,
and especially by carrying them to a higher latitude than had been
done by others. Maps have also been falsified officially by govern-
ments, either for the purpose of concealing from foreigners the assail-
able points of their territories, or for giving to their boundaries a
greater extent.
Even such false representations should often be comprised in our
collections, especially when they may still become the object of some
important scientific or political discussion.
Falsifications of maps at the instigation of trading associations,
railroad companies, and other speculators, are also not rare. On one
occasion a map was published of the State of Maine, liberally fur-
nished with an assortment of fabulous rivers, which were represented
as navigable to certain points; and all for the purpose of enticing
land buyers, wood-cutters, and settlers to those localities. With
such fabrications we, of course, have nothing to do.
XTII.—ON THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE COLLECTION.
It is evident that a mere accumulation of some thousands of maps
without order would be of little or no use, because in every case in
which we wanted to refer to them the trouble would be enormous.
What principles, then, are to be adopted for bringing order out of
this chaos ?
If we had here to treat only of a narrow spot, of a limited country,
then a simply chronological arrangement would be sufficient. But
having before us a large continent, more or less connected with all the
rest of the world, eomposed of many extensive regions, and contain-
ing numerous important rivers, harbors, and cities, an adherence to
the chronological order ‘alone would be far from satisfactory. If the
maps of Canada were mixed up with those of Patagonia, and the
special surveys of the harbor of New York with the general;maps of
America, according to their time of publication or composition, the
trouble of search would still be immense whenever we wanted to con-
sult the maps with respect to a certain point.
Hence it is evident that, while a chronological arrangement should.
pervade the whole, geographical distribution should be resorted to for
reducing the collection to manageable subdivisions.
In accordance with these views, we would propose to put in am
introductory class all those old maps of the world, by whatever nation:
produced, in which some indications or conjectures may be found as to
the existence of islands and countries beyond the limits of the knowm
old world.
When the new world was discovered, the mind of the Europeam
public was at first principally occupied with the general questions. as:
to what this country might be, how far it might extend, and in, what,
relative position it might stand to the rest of the world. Far-reaching:
voyages were undertaken, in order to ascertain the great outlines. of”
the whole, before attention was directed to the study of the particular:
Is
130 LECTURES.
parts. For a long period, therefore, scarcely any but general maps
of the entire continent were produced.
It is proposed, then, that the second class of our collection shall
consist of those general maps of America which show us the configu-
ration of the continent, its position on the globe, and its relation to
the other parts of the world, as these were gradually developed by
years of exploration and study. ‘<
It is only in our time, as it were, that America has been fully cir-
cumnavigated and its general features completely made known. We
may therefore bring this division of our maps down to these latter
years ; though, of course, among the enormous mass of modern general
maps of America, only those should be selected which really exhibit
some important change in the general outlines.
Since the geographical pictures of the northwestern part of Europe
and of the northeastern part of Asia belong, in a certain degree, to a
collection of American maps, because these countries approach the
new world, and were for some time thought to be connected with it,
the old maps of these countries down to the time when this supposed
connexion was disproved will form two lateral and supplementary
branches of our collection of the general maps of America.
America was at first supposed to consist of two separate islands or
continents, afterwards discovered to be connected by a narrow isthmus,
which we call North and South America. These two great bodies of
land belong to opposite hemispheres of the globe, are separated from
each other by broad waters, offer many contrasts in their physical
features, and have had, to a certain extent, their separate histories ;
consequently they have in general been treated separately by geogra-
phers. This circumstance gives occasion for a third and fourth divi-
sion of our collection—one of which will comprise all the maps of the
northern, and the other those of the southern continent.
North and South America are each subdivided by nature, as well
as by history, into different large portions. According to the prin-
ciple of division adopted, we might dissect them in almost num-
berless ways ; but for various reasons it would seem best to submit
in this respect to the dictates of custom, and follow the practice pretty
generally adopted by map-makers, geographers, and the public at
large.
It is customary, for instance, to use the term Russian America as
the name of that broad northwestern peninsula of the continent which
is possessed by the Russians. In adopting this name we follow as a
principle of division the dominant nationality. Everybody knows
what is meant by the Arctic regions of America—a name derived from
the position of these regions on the globe; and nearly all geographers
adopt the division of Canada and Canadian maps, which designation
is derived from the political name of the country, and comprises, more
or less, the maps of the great St. Lawrence basin. Another division
has been made of the Mississippi valley ; though this forms only a
hydrographical whole, and does not correspond to a political parti-
tion. Brazil, Patagonia, Peru, &c., are other great names which
everybody uses and understands.
We therefore adopt all these and other customary divisions, and
LECTURES. 131
form the different classes of our map collection after them. Before
enumerating, however, all the divisions which are thus obtained, it
will be proper to determine the order in which they should be arranged.
- America was first discovered on its eastern coast, and in its central
parts, the Antillian islands. Thence discovery spread to the south
and to the north, and after some time reached the western coast. The
same direction that was taken by the discoverers was afterwards fol-
lowed by settlement and colonization. The march of American history
has been a movement from east to west, and from the centre towards
the north and south. Upon the whole, therefore, we shall arrange
the divisions of our collection in the most natural way, by pursuing
a similar order. They will thus succeed one another as follows, viz:
1.—WNorth ‘America.
The Antilles and Caribbean islands.
Mexico and Central America.
The Atlantic slope and general maps of the United States.
Canada.
The Mississippi valley.
California, or the Pacific slope.
Labrador and Hudson’s Bay countries.
The northwest coast of America.
Greenland and the Arctic regions.
Russian America.
SO OAT ST G9 bo
pt
2.—South America.
Venezuela and the basin of the Orinoco.
New Granada and the Magdalena river.
Guyana.
The river Amazon.
Brazil.
Peru.
The Rio de La Plata and Paraguay.
Chile.
Patagonia.
The Antarctic regions.
DOOARUPWe
pest
It is evident that this arrangement has its inconveniences. It sepa-
rates, for instance, by a great gap the maps of the Antilles and the
Caribbean islands from Venezuela, which lies in fact so near to them.
It separates also the Arctic and Antarctic discoveries, which ap-
proach each other in respect to time. But it is the only arrangement
which we can come to, and is, I believe, less inconvenient than any
other that could be proposed.
The geographical and political names which we have given to our
tweuty large subdivisions are, of course, not to be taken as very exact
definitions. They must be considered as designating the regions only
in a general way. Some of these names, especially the political ones,
132 LECTURES.
have, at different times, had a very different signification. The name
Canada, for instance, formerly covered much more, and that of the
United States much less, ground than now.
No arrangement, however, that we can adopt will enable us, in all
instances, to find under one head every map that is explanatory of a
given country. We can only expect to find the principal things
united under it, and must always be prepared to search somewhat in
the neighboring divisions. Thus, if a person would study, with the
help of our collection, the geographical history of the La Plata river,
he must consult, besides the maps placed under that head, those also
which are contained in the divisions of Brazil, Patagonia, Chile, and
Peru ; because, if not the whole, at least some branches of the river
may at times have been represented under those heads. It cannot be
expected that a collection like ours should altogether do away with
trouble, study, and research, but only that research should be made
easier, or rather we should say, in many instances, possible.
For the beginning, and for a limited historical collection of Ameri-
can maps, the divisions named would perhaps suffice. Whether
these different classes should again be subdivided, and how far the
subdivisions should be carried, whether to the history and chartogra-
phy of every province, county, port, and town, would depend on the
development given to the collection. That in many parts of America,
at least, we might come down in a useful and satisfactory manner to
very small divisions, there is not the slightest doubt. It might be
useful to provide, at the very beginning, a special receptacle for the
maps of some very important points, such as the harbors of Boston,
New York, Havana, or Rio Janeiro.
A further question arises with respect to the place to be assigned to
maps commonly known as physical, geological, zoological, tidal, cur-
rent, wind, &c. Shall they be mixed up according to time and place
with all the rest of the maps, or shall we make of them separate divi-
sions? Shall, for instance, a geological map of Peru of the year 1830
be placed along with the topographical and political maps of that
country of the same period ?
If the geographers of America had, from the beginning, made
geographical, geological, and all other descriptions of physical as well
as historical and political maps, and if they had all been developed
in equal degrees, and in parallelism with each other, then I would say
that all the different species of maps of each part of the continent
might be strictly arranged together according to chronology, as such
an arrangement would give a better and fuller view than could other-
wise be obtained of the whole growth of knowledge respecting that
country.
But as the case actually stands, I believe it would be better to col-
lect the physical maps separately—at least the greater part of them.
Natural history is a very recent science, and the chartography of
natural history is newer still—is only in its childhood. Political and
so-called topographical maps we have in great numbers. Physical
maps are still very few and scarce. They would be in a manner lost, if
we were to combine them with the overwhelming bulk of the former.
We have, for instance, some hundreds of topographical and political
LECTURES. | 133
maps of Russian America, but only one or two attempts at a geologi-
cal survey of that country. If we should chronologically interlink
the latter with the former class, we would always have much trouble
to discover them again.
Then again, the American waters—I mean those parts of the ocean
which belong more or less to this continent—have had different physi-
cal maps constructed for them, (such as maps of tides, currents,
winds, ’&c.,) but never any political maps, (which, by the by, isa
somewhat curious omission, as certain political divisions and limits
on these waters might readily have been discovered.) How could we
connect the physical maps of our oceans with those political divisions
of the continent? I therefore believe that it is better to separate
altogether the few physical maps which we possess from the topo-
graphical and political ones, and to collect them into special divisions.
This could be done in different ways, either by forming an entirely
separate body of the physical maps, or by forming them into a kind of
supplement to each of the great and small divisions of the topograph-
ical and political maps.
If we should adopt this latter plan, then, under such heads as ‘‘Jis-
sissippi valley,” or ‘‘ State of New York,’’ would first be given, in
their chronological order, the topographical and political maps, and
after them the botanical, geological, zoological, and others. This
would afford the advantage of having the entire body of information
respecting any one region in one and the same place.
But I believe the number of physical maps would be too small even
for this manner of disposing of them. The physical features of the
different regions have not, as yet, been figured much in detail. It is
true we have not only general geological maps for the whole of Ame-
rica, but also now and then a special one for a State or some other
smaller country. But for: many other branches of natural science
there exists either no map at all or only very general ones. Where,
for instance, shall we find a zoological, climatological, or magnetical
map of Massachusetts or Rhode Island? Many extensive regions of
America are as yet so little known, that we are happy to have even
their more general physical features traced in a more or less accurate
way. If, therefore, we should make preparations for supplements to
every one of them for the reception of their physical maps, we would
often find nothing wherewith to fill these supplements. I think,
therefore, that the best plan of proceeding would be to put the small
number of our physical maps by themselyes, and to prepare for them
a special department, co-ordinate and supplementary to the great
body of topographical and political maps.
If this be so, the question next arises, how should we organize this
separate body of physical maps? Ought we to proceed here in the
same manner as with the classification of the other maps? Shall we
first collect the general physical maps of America, and then those of
particular river basins, empires, States, provinces, &c. And shall
we repeat this for each of the different branches of natural science—
first, mineralogy, then magnetism, and so on?
The present state of our chartography hardly warrants the adoption
of such a plan. For many branches of natural science we possess no
134 LECTURES.
special maps of small territories at all; and for some, probably, we
never shall possess them. Many natural features seem to sweep with
a certain uniformity over a large tract of country ; so that nobody has
ever thought of giving us a special wind map of the State of Dela-
ware or a zoological map of Long Island.
It is true that even in these extensive natural phenomena, which we
now portray only with a broad brush, we may, in time, discover some
regular local peculiarities worthy of being delineated on a map. In
some cases we have already discovered such local variations. Recent
observations have shown, for instance, that the deviations of magnet-
ical attraction, even on such a circumscribed territory as the District
of Columbia, are very great ; and we may, in time, possess special
magnetical maps of the District and of similar small localities.
Modern observers again have shown how very peculiar and exceptional
are the movements of the great tidal wave in such a small water basin
as the Sound of Long Island, and they have tried to paint these pe-
culiarities on a special tidal map of the Sound. Cases like these,
however, are too exceptional to justify the adoption of such a plan.
For the present, therefore, we propose that all the so-called physical
maps, to whatever science they may belong, shall be thrown into one
and the same great division under the general head of physical maps,
and that this division shall, for further convenience, only be subdi-
vided into those twenty-one great divisions into which we have divided
our topographical and political maps—that is to say into general
physical maps of the whole of America, and then into physical maps
of the Mississippi valley, Mexico, Brazil, Patagonia, &c. &e. To
these twenty-one divisions we may then add five or six divisions for
the physical maps of the American seas, which have found no place
in the topographical collection, one for the Atlantic ocean, one for the
Mexican Gulf, a third for the ’Pacific, and a fourth and fifth for the
Arctic and Antarctic ooeans.
There are still many other classes of maps, which we cannot well
classify under the head either of topographical and political or of
physical maps, or which, at least, we are not accustomed to consider
as a part of either.
First, there are the ethnographieal maps, pretty numerous in this
country, where so many different native tribes are found. The
names and localities of these tribes and of different other nations have
often been put down on the general topographical maps; and thus
ethnography is, to a considerable extent, included in those maps.
But in modern times maps have been constructed whose especial object
is ethnography, or the distribution of tribes and languages.
There are, also, the so-called moral maps, which exhibit the sta-
tistics of crime or of certain customs; others again try to give us
the statistics and limits of the various diseases and other phenomena
among men. Some show the denseness of population in the different
parts “of. the country. We may comprehend all these under the
general name of statistical maps. Some geographers, as, for instance,
Berghaus and Johnston, have incorporated these ethnographical and
statistical maps in their atlases and collections of physical maps.
But it is evident that they do not properly belong there.
LECTURES, 135
There are, again, the road maps, the object of which is to show the
condition of a country as regards its turnpikes, railroads, canals,
bridges, &c. Sometimes the land offices compose special maps, to
indicate which parts of the country are taken up and which are still to
be sold. The post offices have maps for their special purposes. Maps,
again, are issued to show the number and distribution of telegraphic
stations, of magnetical observatories, of light-houses, and for num-
berless other purposes, important for the administration of the gov-
ernment. These we might term official or administrative maps.
It would no doubt be of the highest interest to have all these maps
collected and brought into a regular arrangement, according to class
and time. But in these respects, chartography has only made its
first steps—at least in most of the countries of this continent. It
would, therefore, for the present, perhaps, be advisable to throw all
the maps which we cannot place under the topographical or physical
heads into one and the same great division by the name of ‘‘ miscel-
laneous maps,’ which might then be subdivided into the three follow-
ing orders: first, ethnographical, linguistical, and moral maps ;
second, statistical maps; third, administrative maps.
In course of time, when chartography should become more devel-
oped and the number of maps increased, we might form for each class
and order a separate collection.
XIV.—LITERARY AID TO BE PROCURED.
What we propose seems to be, in some respects, a quite new and
unusual thing. Maps generally have been either constructed as second-
ary works to serve other purposes, to illustrate the books of travellers,
geographers, &c., or they have been collected in great chartographical
works called atlases, which show all the countries of the world as
they were known and depicted at a certain time. We propose to
separate them from those books, to cut up those atlases, and, extracting
those maps which we want for the illustration of our subject, America,
arrange them according to the plan of our collection, where they will
thus find themselves otherwise surrounded and placed in other con-
nexions.
The question may arise, if in this way we shall not endanger the
intelligibility of the maps, and likewise their usefulness ; or whether
we can suggest remedies to obviate, or at least counterbalance, these
contingent disadvantages. '
To diminish at the outset these and similar apprehensions, we may
first observe, that many maps, both ancient and modern, have been
issued in loose sheets, without other explanation, or needing any, but
that contained in the maps themselves.
Again, geographical maps, it is obvious, have a double nature.
They possess the advantage over mere pictures of being literary as
well as artistic productions. They therefore can and generally do
bring with them much of the materials necessary for their own inter-
pretation. Even when connected with books, they admit, for the most
part, of being detached without detriment ; and this, perhaps, in a
higher degree than many statues, pictures, &c., which nevertheless
126 LECTURES.
we are accustomed to separate from their appropriate temples, palaces,
churches, bridges, &c., without scruple, though only capable of being
fully appreciated under their original and local associations.
Furthermore, it may be observed, that numberless maps have been
added to books, with a professed intention of illustrating and being
used in connexion with them, without possessing any real adaptation.
Travellers have embellished their reports with maps which ought to
have shown us their routes or illustrated the regions traversed, but
which, to our great regret, have neither served the one nor the other
purpose. We find sometimes in the maps certain descriptions and
names, and in the reports quite unlike descriptions and quite different
names. The same thing has often been done by historians, who have
related one thing in their text and depicted another on their maps.
In olden times many ancient maps of the world were added to
books which contain no allusion whatever to the maps ; for instance,
to Bibles, to religious treatises, to old chronicles of some province or
city, &c.
In all such cases, where the connexion of the maps with the works
is merely a casual one, we may without scruple separate them. The
maps will become more intelligible and useful by being admitted into
our collection and finding themselves surrounded there by old rela-
tions and associates. The shortest notice which we may add to our
copy or detached sheet, about the place or book from which it was
taken, will sometimes suffice to make amends for the whole loss sus-
tained in the separation.
In cutting up atlases and other collective works of maps and dis-
tributing them through our collection, it is true, we dissolve some
times a beautiful piece of art into its elements, and, at the same time,
we deprive the isolated maps, to a certain extent, of that light which
they receive when they are considered in connexion with those collec-
tive works.
In old portulanos, for instance, the title-page and introduction
contain sometimes very curious, valuable, and characteristic hints
and materials respecting the geographical ideas which presided at
the construction of the work. Nay, the very frame-work and the
covers of these portulanos contain paintings and allusions for illus-
trating the spirit of the times in which they were composed. Besides,
in taking the whole portulano, or atlas, and comparing each part with
the other, we learn much that will serve for deciphering the hand-
writing and for better understanding the different signs made use of.
As a counterpoise to these objections, it should be considered that
if our maps lose some elements of intelligibility by being separated
from their old companions, they receive quite a new light from those
with which we associate them. If a portulano by being cut up loses
something as an artistic work, it may be greatly enhanced by our
process in scientific and historic importance ; and then that light which
the maps of the same work threw upon each other in their original
connexion need not be quite lost by their separation. By means of
notes, or the catalogue, it will not be difficult to point out the region
of the collection where the related maps can be found and reference
be had to them.
LECTURES. 137
But how shall we deal with those maps which are designed as
genuine illustrations of a literary work, and are so interwoven with it
that map and book seem to form one inseparable whole, but which,
at the same time, would seem to be an indispensable complement to
our proposed collection ?
Cases of this kind must be numerous; whether in the instance of
discoverers and travellers, whose maps and narratives are sometimes
mutually explanatory, or in that of historians, whose plans and
diagrams can only be satisfactorily explained by the work for which
they were specially composed. Again: there are numerous scientific
maps—geological, magnetical, hyetological, and others—which can
be thoroughly understood only in connexion with their respective
works, and which nevertheless would fill a place in a series of pictures
representing to the eye the progress, development, and present state
of those branches of knowledge.
The statement of this objection shows that it cannot be our inten-
tion completely to dispense with literary help or renounce the assist-
ance of books. On the contrary, as we now proceed to announce, we
must have the books too; our scheme must include a library of a cer-
tain extent and character. Our intention has only been to insist that
the chartographical documents should be put forward as the principal
thing, that they should not be mixed up with the books on the shelves,
or be deposited in corners of the library, as is their usual fate; but
that they should stand before the eye as the prominent and independ-
ent object of the collection. This plan excludes the books only from
our chief and central compartment. It by no means refuses them ad-
mission as auxiliaries, or denies them the shelter of a side-room in our
establishment. In fact, our chartographical institute will stand so
continually in need of books of reference of various kinds, that we
would propose to lay the foundations of such a collection from the
very commencement of our enterprise. Its nature, limits, and manner
of arrangement, ought therefore to become an object of inquiry from
the first.
This auxiliary library, then, should first contain the historical works
and books of travels from which we have taken maps, and which are
necessary to explain these maps. Further, it should contain all im-
portant works on the subject of American discovery, geography and
history, and at least some good dictionaries of those languages in
which the legends on the maps have been written; always, however,
keeping in view the subordinate character of the collection, and
restricting it to what is clearly indispensable.
Still more to cireumscribe the requirements of our library, we have
yet other means, which the nature of our maps suggests to us. We
propose to append to every map that may require it certain notes
touching its history, origin, and value. How this may be done in an
efficient and tasteful manner I propose to show in the following sec-
tion, where I treat of the principles on which the exterior arrange-
ment of our collection is to be made.
.Here it may suffice to observe, that only in this way probably can
the inspection of any map be made in the highest degree useful,
138 LECTURES.
namely, by bringing at once and on the same sheet before the eyes
of the inspector nearly all that he can require.
If he wishes to enter more deeply into the subject, if neither the
examination of the map alone, nor the comparison of it with prece-
dent and subsequent maps, nor our notes should satisfy him, then we
must refer him to our library; for anything beyond this he must, of
course, look to the treasures of science at large, to the great libraries
and scientific depots of the learned world. A collection like ours
has fulfilled its duty, and sufficiently asserted its right to exist, when
it brings to some degree of concentration and perfection a well defined
class of documents for the elucidation of the history of the Ameri-
can continent.
XV.—EXTERIOR ARRANGEMENT.
As the interior organization, so also the exterior arrangement, of
such a comprehensive collection of documents as we propose, has
its difficulties, particularly because it will be a changing, progressive,
and growing collection, and we must be prepared for a perpetual and
rapid increase.
The principal law of such a collection ought therefore to be, that,
although it is necessary at once to classify and organize, (for without
this, our little collection could not be rendered immediately useful,)
yet we should not make too permanent and unalterable preparations.
Pliability must be the principal quality of our arrangements.
The first consequence dictated by this law would therefore be that
the rooms assigned for our collection should be a little more spacious
than would be necessary for the number of maps which may be de-
posited there at first. Yet they need not and ought not to be very
lofty, because the receptacles for the maps should not be so.
These latter should not be higher than a man, so that the maps
could be reached easily, and handed down with one short move-
ment to the tables of exhibition, which in all cases should be near
the respective depots. The use of ladders, staircases, &c., should he
altogether dispensed with.
The repositories of the maps should, therefore, along their whole
range be accompanied by a series of broad tables on which to exhibit
the maps. The space between these ranges of repositories and tables
must be a littie broader than is usual in libraries, in which the objects
to be exhibited are generally smaller. A particular attention should
be given to light, and this point is with us even more important than
in libraries, because maps offer often very minute objects, slender lines,
and fine handwriting. In a word, well lighted, spacious, and not
very lofty rooms, would meet all the necessities of such a collection as
we propose.
In some chartographical depots the system has been adopted of
making every map into a roll, fastened with strings. These rolls are
labeled ‘on one end, and on the label is written in brief the title and
number of the map. The rolls in every class or division of the collec-
LECTURES. 139
tion are placed in such a way that they turn their labels towards the
interior of the room,
This arrangement has the great advantage, that when one particular
map is looked for it is not necessary to take out the whole parcel
to which it belongs, and to search for it among many other maps.
Each document can easily be selected by looking over the labels,
without disturbing the rest.
On the other hand, however, this manner of arrangement, which is
observed in nearly all the American chartographical collections, and
which is excellent for their particular purposes, offers for ours some
great disadvantages.
First, the maps when they are rolled, and still more so when each
roll is put in a separate cylindrical box, as is done for protecting the
maps in the archives of the United States Coast Survey, take up a
much greater space than when the plain sheets in their flat state are
laid one over the other. We can easily put in one case of a moderate
size a hundred maps, sheet over sheet, while perhaps six times as
much space would be required if we rolled them. Besides, the rolling
of the maps, the unrolling and flattening them, the troublesome fas-
tening of the little bands, &c., have their inconveniences, and the
maps must be particularly prepared and strengthened for these often
repeated processes.
But the principal objection is, that the rolling system would be
directly against the spirit and tendency of our historical collection:
this being destined to show how the maps grew out from each other,
it will often happen that a whole series of connected maps is to be
consulted. Here it is essential that the chronological order of the
maps In every division should always be preserved, which might be
difficult in the process of unrolling, since maps thus managed would
always be liable to interfere with one another, and thus get into
confusion.
Iam led therefore to the conclusion, that our maps ought to be
deposited flat in broad, commodious drawers, one above the other.
Labels with numbers and titles may always be added to each of them,
in case it should be considered requisite. The drawers will only
serve as a receptacle; for carrying a whole division of maps out of
them, and for moving them to the tables for exhibition and back
again to the drawers, they may besides be surrounded by a portfolio
of pasteboard,
In no way, however, should our maps be bound up like the sheets
of an atlas or a book. They should, in the beginning at any rate, be
kept as loose sheets; because, as has been said, the whole collection
must be pervaded by a spirit of progress and growth, and each article
be prepared at any moment to cede its place to another newly intro-
duced. Every map should also be ready for being transferred from
one class into another, and every class for separation into two or three
other classes, if the richness of materials in any division should be
such as to authorize it. Hyven the more ancient deposits of our col-
lection should be kept, at least for some time, in the same movable
state; because the archives and libraries of Europe might always
throw up séme old map which had escaped our attention. Sooner or
140 LECTURES,
later, however, for some division, (for instance, the old maps of Scan-
dinavia, or those of Northeastern Asia, or the maps of the world
before Columbus, or the general pictures of America of the 16th
century,) there may arrive a time when we can deliver the loose sheets
to the binder, and form a finished and complete atlas of them, finished
and complete at least for a certain period and for a certain class.
The same may be done with propriety even in some branches of our
collection which are subject to perpetual changes and additions, when
we have carried these branches to their complete development through
a certain period. If we are sure, for instance, on the appearance of
a very excellent map of the harbor of New York, that we possess
pretty much all the other preceding surveys, we may then connect and
bind them in a volume in chronological order, and may begin anew to
collect the following surveys for a subsequent volume. With these
different volumes and atlases, then, we would have at least reached
that useful and manageable form of exterior arrangement at which
we aim in regard to all our geographical documents.
Having. now shown, in a general way, what external accommoda-
tions we want, it remains still to inquire how every particular sheet
should be treated, to make it most serviceable to our purposes, and to
prepare and strengthen it for the most lasting use.
We have already shown, in a@ previous section, that with the map
itself a concise sketch of its history and origin and an indication of
its principal contents should be given on one and the same sheet. The
question arises, in what manner this ought to be done. :
The maps, especially the ancient ones, have sometimes very curious
titles, given to them by quaint old writers. If we should give to a
map only this title, nobody would at first know what country was
meant by it. Sometimes the strangeness of the title arises from the
primitive but now obsolete names given to different countries. But
besides this, the titles of the maps are given in all sorts of languages,
in Latin, Spanish, Swedish, Dutch, &c. To apply only these titles
to our maps, and catalogue them under the same, would be very in-
convenient for English readers, for whom our collection is principally
destined. Therefore, all the titles of our maps should be in plain
English, and the countries, oceans, and other principal objects, should
bear in the added title the names by which they are now generally
known among English geographers. Otherwise, who would know,
for instance, that by the title ‘‘Tabula terrae Stee Crucis’’ (Picture
of the Land of the Holy Cross,) was meant Brazil, that ‘‘ A Map of
the Country of Parrots,’’ represented the Antarctic regions, or that
‘¢ Peruviana’’ was but another name for South America ?
To the general title of the map the year of its production and the
name of the author should be added. If we do not know the year,
at least the century to which the map belongs should be indicated ;
and if we cannot find out the author we should, at any rate, designate
the country in which the map was composed, as ‘‘ French map,”’
“‘ Spanish map,’’ &c. Nor should the old original title of the map—
though we cannot make use of it for the purpose of speedy reference
and of cataloguing—be omitted; while there should also appear on
the map itself some more explicit information about its érigin, and
LECTURES. 141
some further criticism about its contents, by which the examiner
might be guided in his researches.
T'o procure space for these remarks and notes, we propose to paste
each of our maps on a broad sheet of strong paper, which would leave
a margin on both sides, where we could fasten narrow slips, on which
the short explanatory notes here spoken of might be introduced. In
addition to the original title of the map, they might contain brief ob-
servations on its author, some remarks on its value and principal con-
tents, the position which it occupies in the whole series, what addi-
tions and improvements it contains, &c., &c.
The slips on which these notes are to be written should be of white
paper, like the map itself. But we should prefer, for different
reasons, to paste the slips, as well as the map, on paper of a grayish
color. First, the contrast of the vacant and neutral-tinted margin
with the strikingly white maps and notes attracts the eye at once to
the principal things on the exhibited skeet. Then the grayish color
is not so subject to be spoiled by frequent use. Moreover, in this
way we bring our maps as nearly as possible, and as far as the
necessary considerations of space will allow, to the exterior appear-
ance of pictures. There will thus be presented a somewhat at-
tractive variety of colors; not glittering, and strongly contrasted,
but suitable to the serious character of the collection. Nor should
this consideration be deemed unworthy of attention. The study of
the old maps has been neglected in some measure from their want of
attractiveness of appearance. To engage attention anew, then, we
should call to our aid such modest embellishment as taste and the
nature of the object will allow.
XVIV.—REVIEW OF UNDERTAKINGS SIMILAR TO THAT PROPOSED HERE, AND
CONCLUDING REMARKS.
Similar propositions to that which we have here laid before the
reader have already been made, and similar projects have been, at
least to a certain extent, realized, at different times.
We may regard as the very first of these attempts the collection of
American maps and reports, so frequently alluded to, which Ferdi-
nand, King of Spain, established at Seville. Had this institution
continued to be conducted in the way in which it was commenced by
its judicious founder, had all the American maps and sketches from
actual survey been deposited and preserved there as in the beginning,
it would now comprise the most valuable collection of American
chartography extant. .
In the year 1713 the excellent and well known Bishop White Ken-
net made to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts a proposition which in many respects resembles our own, In
the introduction to his excellent catalogue of American books and
pamphlets, entitled ‘‘ An Attempt towards laying the Foundation ot
an American Library,’’ he propounds his plan so clearly that I cannot
refrain from speaking of it a little more fully. .
Like myself, the worthy bishop made for his own use a little collec-
142 LECTURES.
tion of documents relating to the regions of the New World and to
expeditions and voyages made to various coasts, ports, and rivers of the
same. By and by he discovered, as he expresses himself, ‘‘ a certain
affinity of the arguments and matters,’’ and ‘‘a certain dependence of
things and places upon one another.”’ He then proceeded to gather
“¢ other works as well of ancient as of modern geography, of astro-
nomical observations, of experiments in hydrography, of shipping
and the progress of navigation, of commerce and exchange, of war,
embassies, voyages, and travels.”’
He finally presented this collection to the said society. But he
wished that the place destined for it might be capable of receiving a
much larger accession of books, globes, maps, sketches, drawings,
&c., the future donations of other generous hands. For this enlight-
ened man already saw (what the geographers of our time have urged
repeatedly in vain) the necessity of an American centra] institution
for collecting all new discoveries and contributions.
‘‘Not only the missionary, or the merchant, or the historian and
the herald might apply for information to such an institute ; nay, even
the greatest ministers of State might please to think that such a re-
pository of papers of navigation and commerce might at one time or
other be of advantage in the most arduous affairs of the kingdom,
particularly iu asserting our dominion of the seas, in keeping up the
wonted superiority of our fleets and navies, in securing and encouraging
our fisheries and manufactures, in forming and maintaining our
treaties and alliances.”’
‘¢ Among the uses to be made of this American collection,’’ he goes
on to say, ‘‘I ought not to forget that it is capable of becoming the
common fund and treasury of all the remains of that country and of
all the following discoveries and remarks that shall hereafter be made
upon it. In such a fixed repository some modest mariners and tra-
vellers may lay up their own observations on the geography and
natural history of those ends of the earth—of the climates, soils,
seasons, winds, tides, waters, and other commodities. It may serve to
pick up especially all the descriptions of coastings, bearings, sound-
ings, sands, shelves, rocks, tides, journals and maps of voyages, tra-
vels, and adventures, and all manner of experiments now lying in
a thousand private hands of mariners, merchants, strangers, who
understand nothing of them, and would take but little care to pre-
serve them from fire and consumption.’’
Thus clearly was the same idea developed a century and a half ago
which we have been again presenting to the public. Our own plan
differs from that of Bishop Kennet only in this respect, that our prin-
cipal object is American maps, which have been so greatly neglected ;
while he had likewise in view the printed books, tracts, and pamph-
lets, for which since more sufficient provision has been made.
The excellent German geographer, Ebeling, appears to have antici-
pated our design still more nearly. He collected maps and geographi-
cal sketches: he cut them out from books and atlases; and he
arranged them according to time and locality in the same manner as
we have done and wish to do further. He, however, had not America
LECTURES. 143
exclusively in view ; he paid also less attention to the original sketches
of the discoverers, and did not go with his collection as far back into
former times as we wish to do. He admitted only such general maps
of America as were printed and which he could purchase. He pro-
cured no copies or fac-similes of those unique maps which cannot be
had in the original.
From Ebeling to the present time I know of no one who has made a
similar attempt or proposition, with the exception of Lieutenant E.
B. Hunt, of the United States corps of Engineers, who, in the year
1853, brought before the American Association for the Promotion of
Science a project for establishing a geographical collection as a dis-
tinct and independent department. He wished it to embrace ‘all
materials illustrating the early and recent geography of the United
States, both its sea-coast and interior, including traced copies of all
valuable maps ard charts in manuscript and not published ; also, the
materials for illustrating the past and present geography of each
State, country, township, and city,’’ and, in the same manner, ‘‘all
the maps and charts on the remainder of America. Further, the ad-
miralty or sea-coast charts of all the European and other foreign
States, and the detailed topographical surveys of their interiors—at
least the most approved maps published from private sources, whether
as atlases, nautical charts, or naval maps, including publications on
physical geography, guide-books, railroad maps, and city handbooks.’’
Further, Mr. Hunt wished to combine with the above a complete series
of the narratives of voyages of discovery and exploration, besides geo-
graphical, geodetical, and nautical manuals and treatises, with all the
requisite bibliographical aids to the amplest geopraphical investiga-
tion.
Mr. Hunt’s primary object in advocating the formation of this col-
lection was to provide for the wants of Congress; but, at the same
time, he wished that it should furnish facilities to the State Depart-
ment, the Bureau of Engineers and Topographical Engineers, the
Coast Survey, the National Observatory, and the several naval bureaus.
‘‘The value of such a collection,’’ says Mr. Hunt, ‘in its relation
to legislation, in its illustration of river and harbor questions, in its
prospective use for illustrating history, and generally as a means of
exalting and correcting our geographical knowledge, gives it most
truly the character of a national enterprise.’’
Of all the plans and propositions of this kind of which I have any
knowledge that of Mr. Hunt comes the nearest to my own, as well in
the objects aimed at as in the means by which he desired to effect them.
My principal deviation from his plan consists in this, that the collec-
tion I propose shall be as exclusively as possible American. American
maps are what is wanted the most, not only here but everywhere, be-
cause they have been until now the worst provided for. Ata later
period we might try to include the whole world; but such a work is
teo enormous to be undertaken at once.
Further, Mr. Hunt proposed a general geographical department,
and wished to put library and maps on the same footing ; whilst I
desire, at least, to begin with a mere chartographical depot, to which
@ small library may be added, as subsidiary merely ; and this, too,
144 . LECTURES.
for the same reasons, because it is so very necessary to do something
s quickly as possible for the maps.
It is sad to think, that of all these reasonable and useful proposi-
tions not one has been successful. Nevertheless, this want of success
cannot prevent it from being brought forward, if necessary, again and
again, until at length the time shall arrive when, all minds being
prepared for it, the question will be carried unanimously.
Still, it is highly desirable, for various reasons, that the thing
should be done at once. Destructive time is continually at work, and
the gradual but never-ceasing progress of decay bereaves us daily of
the most valuable documents, which can never be replaced. <A hun-
dred, nay, fifty years ago, we had still many of these treasures left,
which, by carelessness and inattention, are now lost to the world.
Even the early maps of these very young States are sometimes of the
greatest rarity ; and the first surveys of counties which were organ-
ized within the memory of people still living are, in some cases, no
longer extant.
Besides the rapid diminution of the number of documents, the grow-
ing taste for collecting them makes them daily less accessible by en-
hancing their price. Rare old books, tracts, and maps, formerly but
little cared for except by a few amateurs, are now sold in Paris for
five and ten times the price which they brought twenty or thirty
years ago. Any one who has been at all attentive to the movements
of the literary market will have observed the same phenomenon in
London, in Germany, and in other countries.
This general increase in the price of historical documents has, how-
ever, been in no department so enormous and striking as in that
which relates to the history of America, probably because American
books, tracts, and maps, as the records and monuments of mere colo-
nies, were formerly the least esteemed of any, and because, in conse-
quence of the transformation of those colonies to first-rate independent
powers, they are now found to be of the highest importance. Nearly
every new catalogue or report of a booksellers’ auction gives us new
proofs of this fact.
A work by one of the first American missionaries—the celebrated
Eliot—which a few years ago could be bought for a trifle, produced
recently at an auction in the city of New York the sum of two hun-
dred dollars. A Spanish manuscript map of America, which the dis-
tinguished Baron de Walckenaer purchased for a small sum at the
beginning of this century, was contended for at his death by different
nations, and at last sold to the Spanish government at a price exceed-
ing two hundred pounds. ;
Such facts, of which numberless instances might be given, speak a
clear language. And we cannot yet see where this movement will
stop. It will, no doubt, go on until old American documents and
maps become scarce and valuable as the most precious gems. We
thus find ourselves in the position of the famous Roman king. Time,
like the sybil of the ancient story, destroys each year more of these
venerable leaves, and, while thus diminishing the number to be dis-
posed of, enormously enhances their price.
Besides the fearfully augmenting scarcity of old American doct-
J ‘ LECTURES. 145
ments, there is still another fact which makes the proposed plan every
day more difficult of execution, and which finds its cause in the pecu-
liar position of this country. The features of the old countries of
Europe are already well known, and it is easy to combine the compar-
atively small portion of novelty which is brought out with the long
settled facts. But in America, geographical discovery is still every
day at work. Each hour brings us something new. very travelling
report, geographical work, or map, which is published, shows us new
features, and corrects old ones or represents them otherwise. The
exploring expeditions performed by government officers, by railroad
companies, and by private travellers, extend every year further to the
west, to the south, to the north. Of late years Americans have gone
where they never did before—to the vicinity of the North Pole, and at
the same time they have explored and re-explored Chile, Patagonia,
and the Antarctic seas. The great valley of the Amazon has become
quite a fashionable route for American enterprise, and the bosom of
the Pacific has been furrowed in every direction. The great topo-
graphical, geodetical bureaus, the numerous land offices of the United
States, are constantly active in correcting the geography of the interior
of the country, producing a vast quantity of interesting maps, which
increases daily in number and value.
That excellent institution, the Coast Survey, is bringing to light
every year new and important facts respecting the nature of the coasts
and of the surrounding American seas. In short, we may say, that
not only is American discovery not ended, but that it is progressing
at a more rapid rate than ever.
Accordingly, itis evident that while, on the one hand, our work be-
comes daily less easy to perform as regards the old materials, from
their rapid destruction, growing scarcity, and increasing price, it also
becomes, on the other hand, more difficult of execution with respect
to the new materials, owing to their rapid increase and their enor-
mous diversification.
The historical, as well as the physical sciences, are becoming ex-
tended and ramified in such a way, that it is easy to see that the time
is fast approaching when it will be incomparably more difficult to
master their results than it is at present. If we do this now, if we
create a well organized institution for the reception and preservation
of every new map along with the old ones, we shall then be prepared
for every emergency ; the subsequent discoveries, however numerous
they may be, can easily be added to the acquired treasures.
Since the destruction and dispersion of the American chartographi-
cal collection of King Ferdinand at Seville, the concentrating of all
American maps and historical and antiquarian documents into one
focus is now, for the first time, made possible again. Now there
exists again a government and nation, the interests of which are so
intimately interwoven with all parts of the whole continent, that the-
name ‘‘ Americans’’ has been given to them par excellence. The whole:
continent of America finds in the United States a central power nearly
in as high a degree as formerly in Spain. In fact, the United States,
the commerce of which enters every harbor, inlet, and river of the con-
10s
146 LECTURES,
tinent, derives already much more advantage from the whole of
America than Spain when she received it from the hands of the Pope.
If the United States would not be found inclined to give life to the
plan proposed here, then there would be left as little hope for its re-
alization as Columbus would have had for the carrying out of his pre-
ject had Ferdinand and Isabella refused him their assistance.
LECTURES. 147
ON THE ‘‘ PROGRESS OF ARCHITECTURE IN RELATION TO VENTILATION,
WARMING, LIGHTING, FIRE-PROOFING, ACOUSTICS, AND THE GENERAL
PRESERVATION OF HEALTH.”
BY DoOBS REED; MED, Fo R. 8) E.,
FELLOW OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS OF EDINBURGH, ETC., ETC., ETC.
FIRST LECTURE.
Professor Henry introduced Dr, Reid to the audience, and, in ad-
verting to his plans for ventilation, quoted an extract from some recent
proceedings of the Royal Institution in London, where Dr. Bence
Jones had given certain statistical details showing the great reduction
of mortality in an hospital which Dr. Reid had ventilated, and that
the mortality increased again when the ventilation was suspended.
After responding to the remarks of Professor Henry, Dr. Reid
claimed the indulgence of the audience in entering on a course while
still imperfectly acquainted with this country, and perhaps not yet
fully acclimated to it, as the experience of personal illness for the last
fort-night had taught him.
Dr. Reid then commenced his first lecture with a general sketch of
the position in which man is placed on this globe. With his natural
wants at first supplied in a congenial climate, he was still, at a very
early period of history, like a traveller without a guide in respect to
many departments of physique, except those external senses which an
omnipotent creator had given him wherewith to steer his course in the
material world. Increase of knowledge, arts, and manufactures gradu-
ally accompanied an increasing s population. ‘New climates, new wants,
and new occupations stimulated his ingenuity and rewarded his inven-
tion as much as it increased his comforts. Dwellings in caves or clefts
of rocks, such as are described in the Sacred Scriptures, as well as tents
and huts, the primitive abodes of man, soon gave way in many places
to more systematic habitations, though these are still to be found away
from the scenes of civilization. Monuments and public temples then
arose in Cyclopean, Egyptian, Druidical, Indian, Chinese, and Mexi-
can architecture. The Greeks, with the finest eye for beauty and pro-
portion, excelled all their predecessors ; the Romans added a gorge-
ousness and juxuriance of ornament that competed with, without rival-
ling, the severe and more scrupulous taste of Grecian architecture ; and
then followed a host of styles that have multiplied indefinitely, in
148 LECTURES,
which the spire and the dome, the pointed and the circular arch are
continued with endless modification, to the crystal palace and iron
buildings of modern times.
But during all this period comparatively little attention was paid
to the question of air, which has been so much the subject of later in-
vestigation. Buildings were at first too imperfect in their structure
and fittings to form those air-tight receptacles that have multiplied
so largely in our day. The same resources and machinery were not
available for their construction. The habits and occupations of the
people were different. Few read, and still fewer wrote, till the press
began to diffuse its influence among mankind, The illumination of
rooms at night with an artificial daylight by means of gas is but a
recent invention.
But with all these inventions the duration of human life has not
increased, except in local and special instances. Passing over the
times of the ancient patriarchs, human life seems still, on the whole, to
have been diminishing from the time when it is generally supposed to
have been reduced to threescore and ten. How many places are there
wherefrom a quarter to a half of the population now die within from five
to ten years ; born, as it were, to pass through an infancy of suffering
and sorrow, and then to disappear from this transitory scene. And
then, if we look to adults, is it not true that many, so far from at-
taining threescore and ten, are cut off before they are twenty-five? An
age of fifty years is beyond the average, and threescore and ten, or up-
wards, is still more rarely attained. But is there any just foundation
for the belief that threescore and ten is the allotted period for man’s
existence? Is the passage from the Psalms correctly interpreted to
which this alleged maxim is usually ascribed ? He contended that it
was not; that Biblical critics usually attributed this psalm to Moses,
believing that it was written by him in the wilderness, when the
Israelites were exposed to great suffering, and as yet he had met with
no clergyman of any denomination who was disposed to insist on the
popular interpretation usually ascribed to it. He thought the subject
one of great practical importance ; that the question should be set on
a right footing ; that if it were not only possible, but probable, that a
marked extension of five, ten, fifteen, or five-and-twenty years could
be given to human life by attention to the moral, religious, and
physical elements that entered into it, nothing would contribute more
to place the whole subject of the care of health, the increase of
comfort, and the prevention of disease on a better footing. It would
regulate, or at least affect, the period of infancy and education, the
time of entering on business, and form an element in all subsequent
concerns of lite. Above all, it would be one of the strongest checks
upon that system of fast living and that incessant strain upon the
nervous system that was so marked in thousands and tens of thou-
sands of cases, especially in populous cities, whether we looked to
London or Paris, to New York or St. Petersburgh. Vain would
the attempt be to extend the duration of man’s life if the nervous
system was exhausted, whether from an honorable ambition, an
LECTURES. 149
imperious necessity, a corrupt luxury, or a want of faith, hope, and
contentment in the providence of the Creator.
Dr. Reid then turned his discourse to the physical evils attendant on
human life, and explained the magnitude of that resulting from de-
fective ventilation. Man respired, on an average, twelve hundred times
an hour during the whole period of his existence. The lungs contained
millions of cells, and if pure air were not supplied all these provisions for
life and health were more or less useless; the blood became changed
in its qualities; the brain, the eye, the ear, and every tissue and fibre
of the human frame were more or less affected. The result varied in
every degree—from the most trifling headache, listlessness, or langor,
to every variety of fever, scrofula, consumption, or even, in extreme
cases, to sudden and immediate death.
In large cities and in all populous districts a proper system of drain-
age and external cleansing were the true remedy for periodical evils
too often attributed to wrong causes. These being secured, the right
ingress and egress of air in individual buildings and habitations be-
came the next desideratum.
Few cities, comparatively, large or small, were cleaned to the
extent necessary for the right preservation of health; nor was it to
be expected that this subject would receive adequate attention till the
united efforts of medical men, engineers, architects, and agriculturists
should be brought to bear uponit. Great progress had been made, un-
questionably, in recent years ; but a more systematic, combined, and
harmonious effort was desirable than was in operation, either in this
country or in Europe, so far as I have had the opportunity of observ-
ing. The medical profession was responsible for pointing out the
sources of disease and death, but, without the aid of the agriculturist,
it was, in general, found impossible to obtain the funds necessary for
effective cleansing ; and what could be done in this respect where a
good system of engineering did not afford an ample supply of water
and the requisite drainage, or where a defective architecture did not
provide the proper facilities for the removal of refuse? In London,
after the experience of upwards of a thousand years, the authorities
had at last become convinced that the condition which the river attains
from the drainage thrown into it is an evil of the greatest magnitude,
and a reference to the newspapers of the day would show the deter-
mination to reduce this evil, though nothing effectual can be done
under an expenditure of millions of pounds. Is it not the case, that
in this city the continued drainage into the canal may become more
and more objectionable every succeeding year, and is there not abun-
dant evidence that a right system of drainage and sewerage, with
proper attention to the ventilation of drains, would here lessen disease
and suffering? In Paris the whole atmosphere is sometimes tainted
with an ammoniacal odor; and who has ever crossed the ‘‘ Unter den
Linden,’’ in Berlin, at least when in the condition in which it was
a few years ago, without being admonished of what had still to be
done in that city. Modern chemistry has not yet developed and ex-
‘plained all the varieties of malaria, natural and artificial, that inter-
fere with the preservation of a pure atmosphere, but it has most em-
phatically pointed out many of their sources in innumerable habita-
150 LECTURES.
tions in cities, villages and populous districts, as well as the means
of correcting them. It was a self-evident proposition that the first
step in all effective ventilation is to start with a good atmosphere;
but such was the apathy, indifference, and sometimes the ignorance,
on this point that it often became a most troublesome question to deal
with in a satisfactory manner, particularly where tracts of ground
had become saturated with debris in a perpetual state of putrefactive
fermentation, or where streams or stagnant water were loaded with
similar materials. In the great theatre of the globe itself, the gen-
eral purity of the atmosphere was sustained by the mutual relations
of the animal, the vegetable, and the mineral kingdom; by the per-
petual rotatory currents flowing from the equator toward the poles
and from the poles towards the equator ; by that great peculiarity in
all gases and vapors which constantly led to their diffusion through
each other, however different in specific gravity, so that nowhere on
the surface of the earth where there was free access to the external
atmosphere could any accumulation of any noxious product take place
without a process of dissipation and dilution being immediately com-
menced; and by the chemical action of the air, which was perpetually
tending to oxidate or burn all malarious products. But how largely
were these nataral agencies counteracted, within as well as without
doors, when there was a deficiency in the ‘supply of air, or an excess
in the material of decomposition. Many were the districts in which
a rich and luxuriant vegetation consumed the products that gave rise
previously to fever and ague. Travellers have expressed their great
surprise at the total absence of these diseases under circumstances
where they had anticipated their severe operation, and traced, subse-
quently, to the action of special plants the conservative influence that
guarded them from danger. Let this lesson, said Dr. Reid, not be
neglected ; let it be applied in full force, and the facts be studied
and developed with an untiring assiduity, till miasma shall be largely
overcome in all cities subject to its influence, and the water-lilly and
other aquatic plants shall have improved the condition of all accu-
mulations of water in their vicinity, as much as an active and vig-
orous vegetation purifies the air that moves upon the land. If he
dwelt more upon this point than might at first appear requisite, it
was because its importance, though admitted, was by no means ade-
quately estimated. He did not consider that there was any question
connected with the material world that promised greater blessings to
large cities and populous districts than those that would flow from
professional investigation and practical experience in this department,
combined with the information available from former ages, and the
practice of different nations. It had been demonstrated that a large
proportion of the deaths that filled the annual bills of mortality arose
from preventible causes ; and in making any estimate on this subject,
it ought never to be forgotten that every death indicated many cases
of disease and suffering that were never registered in the ordinary
tables. How great, then, is the question at issue, and how many and
how varied would the channels be through which its right solution
would affect society ?
Dr. Reid then showed by experiments the fundamental principles
LECTURES. 151
of ventilation, illustrating the tendency of the air to assume rotatory
movements, and thus induce the removal of vitiated and the supply of
fresh air whenever expansion or any other cause produces a disturb-
ance in the atmospheric balance. The effect of the human frame in
inducing such currents was then pointed out. The body always ven-
tilates itself if the natural currents it determines are not impeded by
the architecture which surrounds it.
A special ventilating shaft has been constructed in this Institution
for the illustrations, and a connexion is established between it and a
tube and chamber in the experimental table, by which a ventilating
power is brought to bear on any visible vapors used in explaining the
principles and practice of ventilation.
SECOND LECTURE.
Dr. Reid commenced this lecture with different illustrations of the
movement of air. Mechanical means—as pumps, fanners and bellows,
or a current of air or water, the action of heat, the impulse of steam,
and the repelling power of electricity—had all been employed with
the view of moving air; and all these forces had been practically
applied in sustaining ventilating operations, with the exception of
electricity. This agent, hitherto, had only been used experimentally.
For all ordinary purposes, no power was so generally useful and
available for ventilation as that arising from the action of heat on air
or other gases. Referring to the ventilating shaft connected with
the experimental table at which he lectured, it was shown that a
column of heated air in the interior could not balance or resist the
pressure of the colder air in the apartment from which it was supplied,
air being admitted freely into it from the external atmosphere. It
was not strictly accurate to say that heated air ascended, in describing
this movement in a technical manner. It was more correct to state
that air, when warmed, became expanded, and lost its power of bal-
ancing the contiguous air, which then pressed in upon it on every
side and forced it upwards. The right understanding of this point
was essential in the study of all the more familiar phenomena of ven-
tilation. It was then shown, that on establishing a free communica-
tion with the lower portion of the heated shaft, a flexible tube could
be made to carry a ventilating power in any direction, and, at the
fixtures connected with the table, flame, smoke and various colored
vapors were made to move upwards, downwards, laterally, and in other
directions, according to the position in which the apparatus used at
each was placed, and the amount of power brought to bear upon the
materials employed.
The tendency of air, when falling in temperature, to descend to a
lower level, was then pointed out. This was illustrated practically
by the exhibition of a heavy, cloud-looking vapor, that was poured
with facility from vessel to vessel and rolled along the table in a
continuous stream, as if it had been an ordinary liquid. It was formed
152 | LECTURES.
by the action of nitric acid, mercury, and alcohol, and used frequently
In giving indications of aerial movements that would otherwise have
been invisible. Though the materials that became the principal object
of attention in ventilating operations were of great tenuity, it was
never to be forgotten that they might, in numerous respects, be treated
in the same way as water and other liquids.
The quantity of air desirable for ventilation then came under con-
sideration. For each respiration the actual amount required was
small. From twenty to thirty cubic inches were sufficient for this
purpose ; but the expired air contaminates immediately a much larger
amount of the surrounding atmosphere. At the same time the sur-
face of the body is continually exhaling vitiated air in the same
manner as the lungs. Further, almost all kinds of clothing soon
become more or less charged with animal exhalations, and require
some addition to the ordinary supply, particularly if dyed with cer-
tain chemicals and exposed where they may have imbibed moisture.
It is also equally important to notice that every variety of tempera-
ture, electrical condition, and humidity in the atmosphere produces a
corresponding influence on the sensations as affected by the amount
of air brought in contact with the body in a given time. Further, not
only are there great varieties of constitution in different individuals,
but even in the same person. Before and after dinner or any other
refreshment, before and after exercise, and under many other circum-
stances, very different quantities of air become agreeable or disagree-
able, and refreshing or oppressive. Lastly, minute and variable por-
tions of impurity from smoke and manufactories, or from terrestrial
exhalations, often modify the amount of supply that is desirable for
all constitutions.
It will not be surprising, accordingly, that there is perhaps nothing
in respect to which there is a greater difference of practice than in the
amount of air given for ventilation, even where we assume that its
effect is not still further modified by its mode of introduction and dis-
charge, and the efficiency with which it has the opportunity of acting
in passing through the apartment to be ventilated.
It is surprising with how small a proportion of air existence can be
maintained for a long period when the system is comparatively inactive.
Dr. Reid then described an experiment, in which he had been hermeti-
cally inclosed in a case that was not broader than his shoulders,
deeper than his chest, or longer than himself; and stated that he had
continued there for upwards of an hour, the attendants being ordered
to take him out whenever he ceased to answer questions or to give
distinct replies. During the whole of that period he had not been
particularly incommoded, after getting over a feeling of oppression
that attended his first respirations. Apprehensive, however, of
some subsequent injurious effects when the oppression he expected did
not increase so rapidly as he had anticipated, he directed the case to
be undone before any indications were given such as would have led
his assistants to have anticipated this order. Nor did he suffer so
much as he had expected from the effect subsequently, though head-
ache and restlessness continued for some days to a degree that prevented
him from renewing his observations te the extent he had desired.
LECTURES. 153
This experiment was important in corroborating the fact that life
might often be sustained for long periods, even in limited quantities
of air, where animation was not temporarily suspended,
On the other hand, at different times and under other circum-
stances, he had suffered more from air not nearly so much contami-
nated as it was in this instance, and adverted particularly to the fact
that the intensity of vitality was often very different in different indi-
viduals, and also in one and the same individual at different
times. To impress this upon the attention of the audience, an experi-
ment was then shown, in which a common candle, a wax candle, an
oil lamp, a spirit lamp, and a gas lamp, were kindled at the same
level under a large glass shade, all communication with the external
atmosphere having been cut off. In a short time the air became so
vitiated that the common candle ceased to burn. Subsequently the
wax candle was extinguished, then the oil lamp; the spirit lamp
came next in order, and last of all, but long after the others, had
ceased to burn, the gas lamp was also extinguished, struggling pre-
viously in the form of a long pale-blue flame. In the same manner
death took place among different individuals, even from the very same
causes, in very different periods of time, some sinking without a mur-
mur where the bystanders scarcely noticed the causes that deprived
them of life, while others sustained themselves throughout a long and
painful struggle.
Dr. Reid then described the manner in which experiments on respi-
ration had been made with small quantities of air, and the peculiari-
ties of the apartments constructed at his lecture room at Edinburgh
for researches on respiration and ventilation, where the amount of air
supplied to numbers, varying from one to two hundred and fifty,
could be precisely ascertained and controlled. Sometimes one or more
individuals were placed in an air-tight box, containing a definite
amount of air. On other occasions one hundred individuals or up-
wards were placed in an air-tight room with a porous floor and a
porous ceiling, the cavities below and above communicating with
channels by which air could be made to enter and be withdrawn in
any required proportion.
From these experiments and others the conclusion was drawn that
ten cubic feet per minute is an ample allowance of air for an adult—
far more than he generally has in ordinary habitations, but not more
than every ordinary structure should have the means of providing at
aminimum. Dr. Reid was prepared to admit that a less amount
would generally sustain health, but asserted that it would not give
the comfort and maintain the constitution in such good condition as
a larger allowance. In extreme atmospheres,:loaded with moisture
or charged with special impurities or malaria, and at comparatively
elevated temperatures, there was no limit to the amount of increase
that proved grateful to particular constitutions. He had, in some
cases, given forty, fifty, and even a larger number of cubic feet per
minute with advantage, but there the velocity of the air acted essen-
tially as a cooling power from the great amount brought to affect the
body in a given time. Such velocity was not desirable where an
equivalent effect could be produced by cooling the air previously. But
154 LECTURES,
in looking to this question as one that had to regulate practice in
construction and the appliances used in connexion with ventilation,
he was satisfied that ten cubic feet per minute for each person would
be amply sufficient, wherever it was possible to control the tempera-
‘ ture and the hygrometric condition of the air to be used.
The practice of merely determining the amount of cubic or super-
ficial space to be given for each soldier in a barrack, each patient in a
hospital, or every criminal in a prison, and leaving every other question
or means of ventilation to accident, had never been satisfactory, and
was now abandoned in all the best buildings for these and other
purposes. No dependence whatever can be placed on such a provision
beyond the actual amount of pure air they may contain before occu-
pation. The true question is, to determine the amount of pure air
that can be made to pass through wards, cells, or any other spaces in
a given time, with a maximum of the ventilating power in action,
valves or other arrangements reducing the effect to any desirable
standard,
In cases with systematic ventilation properly applied, a man ina,
room densely crowded may have more air than one in a confined
area with ten times as much space for his own occupation. Rooms
in different habitations vary as, much in the amount required at dif-
ferent times and seasons as many public buildings. Further, there is
nothing more deceptive to those who have not studied the subject
practically than the numbers of persons that can stand on a given
space. In special trials, made with the view of determining the
numbers that can be accommodated on a floor of known size, several
cells were selected at the prisons at Perth, in Scotland, and able-
bodied men (engaged at that time in completing the building of the
works) were requested to stand in them as close as they conveniently
could. Seventy were then counted in one cell having a floor of
seventy-two feet, and ninety in another having a floor of ninety-two
feet. He had repeatedly seen at the bar of the House of Peers,
in London, and in many other places an individual standing upon
each area of one foot. When the body of the late Duke of Wel-
lington lay in state at Chelsea hospital, previous to the funeral, he
had seen a more dense crowd than he had ever witnessed on any pre-
vious occasion. Many were literally crushed to death in this crowd,
and numbers who escaped death had the appearance of persons who
had fallen into a stream of water and been thoroughly drenched.
The morning was cold, calm, and gloomy, such as would have suited
the description many foreigners give of a London atmosphere at that
period. ‘There was no fog, however, though a small cloud of vapor
hung heavily over the densest part of the crowd. It should be re-
membered, then, that in cases of great interest, all rooms, public and
private, are liable, generally or locally, to have like numbers crowded
into them, and it becomes, therefore, imperative on those who desire
ventilation to state the number to be provided for, rather than the
mere area of the floor.
In the chambers for Congress the floor space allotted for individual
members was upwards of twice as much as that given at the Houses
of Parliament in London, taking into consideration that occupied by
LECTURES. 155
the benches or individual seats. This, however, was not an unmixed
gain in the House of Representatives at Washington, since the large
area of occupation necessarily increased the difficulty of hearing and
of seeing the expressicns of countenance during the progress of debate.
In explaining the estimate given of the amount of air desirable for
ventilation, it was stated that a temperature of sixty-five to seventy
would generally be found most acceptable, and a supply of moisture
in the air, such as was indicated by a wet-bulb thermometer (the
hygrometer in common use) when it showed a temperature five degrees
below that of the ordinary thermometer.
The methods of determining the quality of the air in ventilated
apartments then engaged attention. None was so pre-eminently
available as that of going out of doors where the atmosphere was pure,
and then comparing the effect there with that of the apartment under
examination. Important as this mode was, it was not, however, suf-
ficiently precise, nor could it always be put practically in operation
with convenience while differences of temperature and a want of sensi-
bility in the nostrils, or a loss of the sense of smell from cold, inter-
fered with a correct decision. It was a matter of great practical
importance, accordingly, that some accessible and convenient test
should be available that would at all times and seasons give an indi-
cation that would tell the purity of the atmosphere.
For this purpose Dr. Reid had introduced an instrument called the
carbonometer, which was then explained. Itadmits of a great variety
of forms. That shown in action consisted of a bent glass tube attached
to a phial containing water, a few drops of lime water being placed
in the angle of the bent tube. On taking out the stopple from the
phial a portion of the water slowly escaped. This caused a flow of
air from the apartment under examination through the lime water,
which becomes more or less turbid, according to the amount of car-
bonic acid in the air. But carbonic acid is invariably present in a
very marked proportion in all ordinary atmospheres contaminated by
respiration, the combustion of ordinary lamps or candles, dr the escape
of vitiated air from a fire flue. Any excess beyond that in the atmo-
sphere renders the amount of lime water used slightly opalescent,
milky, or turbid and chalky, according to the amount. Torty speci-
mens of air were shown, contaminated with various amounts of car-
bonic acid. A syringe may be used instead of a phial of water to
cause the movement of air, or a few drops of lime water may be
poured into a phial containing air to be examined, making compara-
time experiments with fresh air.
THIRD LECTURE.
This lecture was devoted to the warming, cooling, moistening, and
drying of air, and the exclusion and correction of external vitiated
ain.
Great progress had been made in recent years in elucidating many
of the properties of heat, in tracing its operation on different kinds
156 LECTURES.
of matter, and in perfecting and economizing the apparatus by which
it could be rendered available for the practical purposes of daily life.
The intimate connexion that had been proved to exist between heat,
light, electricity, magnetism, and chemical action, had opened up new
sources of investigation ; but much remained to be done ; for we were
as yet scarcely beyond the mere threshold of discovery. In one and the
same experiment an acid might be employed in conjunction with
water to disintegrate and separate one by one the primitive molecules
of a mass of metal, developing heat by the chemical changes thus in-
duced, discharging electricity, which could be conveyed through a
proper conductor, producing light on making or breaking contact
with the wires employed to manifest the electrical action, and impart-
ing magnetic power to iron and other materials.
We were no longer restricted to the ordinary fire-place, and though
nothing could rival its agreeable cheerfulness and general utility,
steam and hot water apparatus had given facilities that were unknown
in former days.
The common fire radiated in the room in which it was placed in
the same manner as the sun shone upon the earth, and would prob-
ably always continue the favorite in ordinary apartments. It hada
peculiar charm in the ever-varying features of its luminousness that
no other invention had equalled. The grand desiderata in respect to
it were the right adjustment of its position in respect to altitude
above the floor, which should not exceed from six to ten inches; the
introduction of no more iron than was absolutely necessary for sup-
porting the fuel below and in front; the size of the chimney, which
was generally, till lately, four or more times larger than was requisite
or desirable, wasting a great amount of air, and ventilating at a
wrong level, unless special provision was made to counteract this de-
fect. Many experiments were then described that had been made in
reference to fire-places and flues, and. one illustration minutely ex-
plained, where a flue nine inches square, and about twenty feet high,
had worked’four ordinary fire-places. These were afterwards closed
above and in front, so as to be converted into furnaces, and, when in
full operation with the same flue, each was found capable of melting
iron with facility and rapidity. A register or valve was preferred
near the top of the smoke flue, or, at least, at a considerable elevation
above the fire. A special experimental illustration was then given of
a circular fire-place, three feet in diameter, the red-hot fuel being
visible and accessible all around it, and the products of combustion,
accompanied by a blue flame, descending in the form of a circular
wreath in the centre of the fire, and traversing the floor below, which
was well warmed before they escaped into the chimney.
In England, though the open fire was usually accompanied by the
production of smoke from the bituminous coal in common use, consid-
erable progress had been made in the introduction of smokeless fuel
during the last twenty years. In many buildings, soft coke or an-
thracite was employed, and Dr. Arnott had recommended a fire-place
in which the fuel was kindled at the top in the same manner as a
candle, all the smoke being consumed when the proper coal was em-
LECTURES. 157
ployed, and sufficient attention paid to the construction and manage-
ment of the grate.
In explaining the peculiarities of stoves, Dr. Reid insisted strongly
on the excellence of those long used in the north of Kurope, that were
of considerable size, and had a pure porcellaneous surface. They
were much larger ‘than the iron stoves usually employed in this
country and in England, extent of surface compensating for the want of
intensity of heat, and the atmosphere they afforded being more
grateful to the lungs and nostrils. Much ingenuity and skill were
undoubtedly displayed in many of the stoyes made in this country
and the accompanying drums, but, asa general rule, the great ma-
jority he had seen were, when placed i in the lower part of any building
for general purposes, usually provided with pipes or channels for the
ingress and egress of air that were far too small, They gave accord-
ingly a sharp current at a high temperature rather than a lar ge
volume of a mild atmosphere. They were also generally without the
means of supplying themselves with air from the house itself, instead
of from the external atmosphere, an object of great practical import-
ance in heating halls, passages, and public buildings previous to any
occupation, or where a small amount of ventilation was sufficient.
Steam’ apparatus was then adverted to, the use of which Dr. Reid
considered could be largely extended with advantages to individual
habitations, even where the power of using a common fire was secured
in the usual manner. Itcould be made to assume any desirable form.
The principal difficulty in ordinary habitations was the boiler within
doors. Great improvements had been made in modern boilers, so as
to reduce largely any risk of accident, but the improvement consid-
ered most desirable was, that in which one boiler should be provided
for a number of houses, and built in connexion with facilities for
water baths, washing, &c., and from which steam for heating or cul-
inary purposes could be supplied to each individual habitation in the
same manner as gas, by special pipes. Steam, or steam power, could
be rented in many places for manufacturing purposes, and there
was no reason why similar facilities should not be extended to ordi-
nary habitations in cities and villages.
Steam could be made to afford any required temperature, according
to the form of apparatus used. With extended metallic rings, plates,
or projections from the surface of a steam pipe maintained at 212°, a
much lower temperature could be secured, corresponding with the
amount of material in connexion with the pipe, and this torm of ap-
paratus, or hollow metallic cases with a limited supply of steam,
necessarily gave a milder temperature. He did not consider a tem-
perature of 212° objectionable when the air was pure, though he pre-
ferred a milder warmth; but higher temperatures, arising from the use
of high-pressure steam, he had often seen attended with disadvan-
tageous results, increasing with the elevation of the temperature
sustained.
The action of the hot-water apparatus was then explained and illus-
trated by a glass model, in which colored water was thrown into cur-
rents by the action of heat, the warm water giving off caloric where-
ever it was desired, and then returning to the source of heat for a
158 LECTURES.
fresh supply. This heating apparatus was preferred to the high tem-
perature stove and the steam pipe wherever a mild and continuous
heat was desirable, and where it was not required to carry the pipes
or apparatus containing the water to a very high level, the strain
upon the joints of the apparatus being in proportion to the altitude of
the column of water they contained. The water could be maintained
continuously at any required temperature under 212°. Gas stoves
had been introduced in many places with advantage where a small
chamber was to be heated, and where there was no convenience for
any other arrangement. A most pernicious practice was, however,
prevalent where “they were used, the products of combustion being
permitted to mingle with the air of respiration in apartments not pro-
vided with ventilation. Thousands upon thousands suffered annu-
ally where gas lights or stoves not ventilated formed the only source
of warmth.
Dr. Reid then pointed out the comparatively ineffective results that
arose from the action of heating apparatus that conveyed warm air too
quickly to the ceiling of the rooms instead of distributing its power
on or near the floor. Railroad cars frequently presented a tempera-
ture above 212° at the ceiling, while on the floor the thermometer
might be down to the freezing point. They gave an extreme illus-
tration of numerous buildings where the introduction of arrangements
for securing the full action of warm air at a lower level would add
equally to comfort and to economy. The peculiarities of external
warmth arising from the rays of the sun were then contrasted with
that developed by artificial means. Saussure made an experiment in
which air had been raised to a temperature of 210° by merely ex-
posing a cork case with glass cover to the direct rays of the sun, and
preventing the cooling influence of the circumambient air. The rays
of the sun did not directly warm the air, but the ground, from which
heat was transmitted to the air resting upon it. In the torrid zone it
would probably be practicable, even without the use of lenses or
reflectors, to develop heat sufficient to produce a limited amount of
steam. A patent had lately been taken out for concentrating the rays
of the sun upon boilers in such climates. The great practical lesson
which all these points taught was that we should endeavor to warm
the lower stratum of air effectually i in individual buildings. If this
primary point be secured, the upper portion will soon acquire the
necessary temperature from the natural ascent of warm air.
The cooling of air was in some countries, and at particular seasons,
as important a question as the warming of air in temperate and cold
climates. In India habitations were sometimes built under ground,
the family occupying a lower and lower flat or series of apartments as
the external heat increased. The construction of buildings so as to
take full advantage of the shade, and of the basement in making
channels of supply, was seldom made a sufficient object of attention.
The production of cold by the evaporation of water was largely intro-
duced in many places with advantage ; but where the air was highly
charged with moisture this method was disadvantageous, tending to
saturate it to’ an extent that interfered with the natural exhalation
and evaporation from the surface of the lungs and of the body. By
LECTURES. — 159
taking in air through apertures in turrets, or even by apertures ele-
vated as much as was found practicable in different buildings above
the level of the ground, great relief was often given. The warmest
atmosphere in sunshine was generally at the surface of the ground,
where no peculiar current or other special cause gave it a different
position. In all cases where a ventilating power was available, the
simplest method of producing a cooling effect upon the body consisted
in inducing a current. A draught or current was agreeable or dis-
agreeable, dangerous or salutary, in proportion as it was adapted to
existing circumstances. The fan in a lady’s hand and the punkah,
or large fan used in India, were very different from the ventilating
shaft or other instrument used to act on hundreds or thousands at the
same time; they differed essentially in this, that while the former
merely agitated the same air again and again, changing that portion
in direct contact with the face or the whole of the body, the latter, in
producing a similar effect, entirely changed the atmosphere charged
with products of respiration or exhalation.
The use of ice, however effectual in cooling air, was generally too
expensive. Underground. channels cooled by a stream of water,
removed or stopped when too much moisture was communicated to
the air, were the most valuable and available means of reducing tem-
perature; and where hot-water apparatus was provided for winter
use, it might often be used as a cooling apparatus in summer by run-
ning a stream of cold water through it. The artificial evaporation of
ether and water in rams could be also rendered useful in the produc-
tion of cold, but no such apparatus had as yet come into general use,
though perfectly successful in special experiments.
Moistening air was a comparatively simple matter, though often
neglected. Very pure water should be selected for this purpose, and
the evaporation should not be permitted under any circumstances
where the water was apt to be decomposed. A porcelaneous or mar-
ble surface was preferred for evaporation. Iron was to be avoided,
and steam from ordinary boilers, contaminated by oil or gases from
corroded metals, was not to be used. Special copper boilers, set
apart exclusively for this purpose, and block tin tubes, for the con-
veyance of the steam, were preferred in large buildings, where an
atmosphere had to be provided for thousands at the same period. The
steam prepared in this manner was also used to assist the heating ap-
paratus. Whenever a thermometer with a bulb moistened with water
indicated a difference of not more than five degrees lower than the
ordinary thermometer, the addition of any further increase of moisture
should be arrested.
Drying air is an operation for which no satisfactory process has yet
been pointed out sufficiently economical to admit of its general prac-
tical application when air is warm and largely charged or saturated
with moisture. When the temperature is lower, and the application
of a slight elevation of temperature is not objectionable, the increased
solvent power which the air thus acquires gives it practically a drying
effect. In the sick chamber, in new buildings where the plaster was
not dry, and in all limited or confined atmospheres where it was im-
portant to remove moisture, nothing was more effectual than newly
160 ' LECTURES.
prepared lime. Dr. Reid had used this largely in many buildings
occupied soon after completion, distributing, in one case, cart loads of
quicklime in the air channels and in the different apartments where
the pressure of public business induced the authorities to occupy courts
of law the day after very extensive alterations had been completed,
without waiting either for the drying of the plaster in the usual man-
ner, or for painting and decorations. When a building was sur-
rounded with an external malarious atmosphere, by a right system of
drainage this could in general be removed, at least from the immedi-
ate vicinity. Where the drainage was not sufficient, an active system
of vegetation became the next resource. If temporary or other causes
prevented this being carried to a proper extent, the antiseptic power of
caustic lime could be applied with great success. He was prepared to
point out many opportunities where this agent ought to be used in all
cities he had hitherto examined. Numerous other chemicals could be
rendered available, particularly choride of lime, muriate of zinc, and
other substances. Their effects were seldom, however, obtained to the
extent they were capable of producing, froma want of knowledge on the
part of those who applied them of the chemical details essential to
their full operation. Where vitiated emanations were traced within
a building to any special drain, close chamber, room, or other space,
either in the basement or elsewhere, a special ventilating power
should be brought to bear on them in the same manner as the venti-
lating shaft exhibited had been brought to act upon all the mate-
rials used in the illustrations given at the experimental table, unless
the cause was altogether temporary and easily removed.
FOURTH LECTURE.
The ventilation of individual rooms and habitations formed the
most important question connected with sanitary improvements. These
were the places where the great mass of mankind spent the larger por-
tion of their time; where they were born and where they died; there
they generally spent the period of their infancy and childhood, wheir
days of suffering and sickness, and recruited their daily strength with
food and by reposing from their labors. A vitiated atmosphere at home
corrupted the condition of the blood more than any other cause, inas-
much as it had a more continuous power of operation. The effect of
each jindividual inspiration might indeed be trifling, but when re-
peated twelve hundred times an hour for days, and months, and years,
and brought in direct action upon the blood itself in the lungs, it was
to be expected that it should soon affect every fibre of the living frame.
In studying the ventilation of individual rooms and habitations,
it was recommended that the rotatory movements of air in a confined
atmosphere should be examined when an inequality of temperature
was induced, and that these movements should be rendered paipdble
by chemicals producing heat and smoke. Franklin had made use of
this expedient, and had it been more generally attended to, ventilation
would have made much more progress than it had done. Hxperi-
LECTURES. 161
mental illustrations were then given of these rotatory movements.
In the external atmosphere the general ventilation of the globe de-
pended on such movement. In the smallest space that man could
examine they could likewise be traced. A peculiar argand lamp was
then shown, in which hundreds of circular rings appeared when the
air and gas were permitted to enter in special proportions. They
afforded an example of minute rotatory currents indicated by the
movement infinitesimally small particles of incandescent carbon. The
audience were invited to examine these individually at the end of the
lecture, as they could not be seen ata distance. Bearingin mind the fact
that the living body, unconsciously to the individual, ventilates itself
when this operation is not opposed by an air-tight or ill constructed
apartment, an aperture for the ingress and egress of air in a proper
osition, and of the right dimensions, is the great desideratum.
hile a window serves this purpose, and a porous curtain diffuses
the entering and out going air, it has taken a long time to carry con-
viction of the importance of additional resources in the comparatively
air-tight structures of modern times, charged with products of com-
bustion from gas and respiration, as well as other varying impurities.
But when it is recollected that a thousand different circumstances:
arising from the peculiar position, form, structure, arrangement, fur-
niture, and occupation of rooms, as well as their aspect in relation to
the sun, prevailing winds, local influences acting on the air, the.
position of doors and windows, constitutional peculiarities, and many
other details that might be enumerated, in addition to the changes of’
the season, the time of day or night, and the number of persons pre~
sent, all contribute to modify the effect required, it will be obvious.
that the window alone is not sufficient for every ordinary apartment..
The great desiderata, in addition to the window, at least in rooms
subject to a great variety of occupation, are the following:
1. A special flue, from the highest portion of the room, for the dis-
charge of vitiated air.
2. A special aperture for the ingress of a warmer or colder atmo-
sphere, when the external temperature, dust, noise, or any other cause,
renders a supply by the windows objectionable.
3. The means of extending the diffusion of the entering air so that
it shall not impinge offensively on any individual.
4, The means of applying a force or power to the ventilating flue,
(heat is the most available tor all ordinary purposes,) which shall in-
crease the discharge to any required extent, and cause fresh air to
enter by any channel provided for this purpose.
5. The exclusion of all vitiated air from the basement of the build-
ing, or any other source, either by the action of a ventilating flue or
other equivalent measures.
These objects can, in general, be attained with facility and economy
in building a new structure, without interfering with the usual de-
tails of construction to any objectionable extent. It forms a most:
important addition when the passages and staircases can be converted
into means for the general supply and discharge of vitiated air, warm-
ing the air by an apparatus placed there at the lowest available level,
and introducing a large internal window above every door communi-
Lis
162 LECTURES.
cating between the passage or staircase and individual rooms. These,
when open or shut to the required degree, allow the air in the pas-
sages and staircase to be used as a milder climate, whether in the heat
of summer or the severity of winter—a perpetual ingress of fresh air
and discharge of vitiated air being constantly maintained in the hall,
passages, or staircase.
Dr. Reid then adverted to some models and to a series of diagrams,
with which he illustrated, practically, the various methods adopted in
experimenting on the subject, and in the construction of apartments
where ventilation was introduced under very different circumstances,
from which we select the following examples:
1. In this case, the ventilating aperture was immediately below the
ceiling and above the window. A valve regulated the amount of
opening. The air entering or escaping by this aperture must pass
through a plate of perforated zinc about one foot deep, and extending
the whole breadth of the window. Area of aperture through the wall
nine inches square.
2. A room having a ceiling universally porous, the air entering be-
tween it and an air-tight roof, and two apertures communicating with
this cavity and the external air which descends from one part of the
ceiling and escapes at another.
3. A room where the fresh air is supplied from the whole surface
of the wall in which the chimney is placed, excluding those portions
below the level of the fire-place ; vitiated air escapes by a special flue
‘contiguous to the chimney.
4. A room in which, when crowded, fresh air can be admitted freely
through a porous door from a prepared atmosphere in the passage,
vitiated air being permitted to escape by a large panel or window
above the same door.
5. A house having a special ventilating shaft capable of acting on
all or any of the individual rooms, and of having its power increased,
swhen necessary, by the action of heat.
6. A house in which all the vitiated air-flues are led into one large
‘flue descending to the basement, passing then laterally into an ad-
joining shaft, whose altitude (from the basement to the roof) gives it
great additional power when the fire is kindled at the lower extrem-
ity.
7 A house in which fresh air is supplied to the passage, stairs, and
principal apartments, from a special turret on the shaded side of the
house, while a discharging shaft, as in No. 6, commands the escape
of vitiated air.
8. A house in which the heating apparatus (hot water) is so arranged
‘as to present a warm surface on the floor of the staircase and principal
apartments. Similar arrangements can be made with steam appa-
ratus.
9. A series of habitations supplied from a general source with a
ventilating power, and a steam tube in every house, and in every
room of each house, where it is desired, in the same manner as houses
are supplied at present with water and gas from one common source.
10. A series of diagrams, showing the imperfections of ventilated
LECTURES. 163
apartments, under different circumstances, when not constructed with
the resources explained.
In all these examples, whether apertures alone were made in humble
apartments, or an extensive series of arrangements in first-class habi-
tations, nothing was done incompatible with the free use of an ordinary
window, or the action of a stove or open fire-place. The only pecu-
liarity that required attention was, that there should be an ample
supply of air in proportion to the demands made upon it. There was
then no conflicting action between fire flues and the ventilating flues.
It was strongly recommended that the shaft or flue for the escape .
of vitiated air should always be constructed so that external wind
should have no effect in producing a back current. No external top
is better for this purpose than that recommended by a committee of
the American Academy of Sciences at Boston. It differed from the
cone in common use in this country, in having an addition above the
top of this cone which expanded the aperture slightly above the line
of the ordinary discharge. The ordinary form of cone of Mr. Emerson
had the advantage of being more simple, though not so powerful in
producing a draught. It ought to be recollected, however, that such
terminations to ventilating shafts or flues were principally important
in counteracting the influence of wind. They had no power in a calm.
If heated by the sun, they would promote ventilation ; if cooled by the
state of the atmosphere below the temperature within doors, they would
retard ventilation. R
Dr. Reidsconcluded this lecture by a brief exposition of the condi-
tion of the habitations of the people in different cities in Europe, and
illustrated by a drawing the numbers often crowded on a given space
in many of the humbler dwellings, and houses of refuge for the des-
titute.
Bad ventilation was by no means confined to the abodes of the
poor. None suffered more at times from this cause than the opu-
lent in palatial edifices where extreme illumination and air-tight
construction prevailed, though their wealth gave them great ad-
vantage in other respects. But great improvements had been made
in all classes of habitations within the last twenty years, however de-
fective individual examples might be. It was in vain, however, to
insist on ventilation where there was a deficient supply of warmth
and food. The general condition and health of the people was greatly
influenced by the air they breathed, and this, in the course of time,
affected the appetite; then the health gave way rapidly from the com-
bined influence of bad air and want of nourishment. The low tone
of the constitution induced a craving for unwholesome stimuli which
affected the system still more powertully. In one house inspected, near
St. Paul’s cathedral, in London, one hundred and twenty-three per-
sons were found crowded in a few rooms; and in anotuer, thirty or forty
people were occasionally found in a single room. So great was the
crowding of the poor in many of the most populous cities, that the
question had been publicly taken up, and model lodging houses in-
- troduced, which, with the supervision of licensed lodgings, promised
to be of inestimable value in improving the condition of the humblest
portion of the population. He found that model houses had also been
164 LECTURES,
constructed in different cities in this country, some of which he had
inspected with much interest. He did not know many questions con-
nected with the material well-being of man more important than that
of improving the condition of the dwellings of the people. It was
every day becoming more and more a moral, a religious, and a politi-
cal, as well asa physical question. Many were driven to the very ex-
tremes of socialism in its most repugnant forms as often from the want
of proper habitations as from any other cause. If the family system
and the home circle were essential to the foundation of a nation’s pros-
perity and happiness, then too much importance could not be attached
to the improvement of the habitations of the people. Wherever the
laws, the institutions, the state of morals and religion, and the re-
sources of a country led to their being carefully made, the effects were
manifest in the external aspect of the people, to say nothing of the
many other blessings that flowed from this source. But let them look
to the other picture, and there it would be seen that if this object
were neglected, whether from defective legislation, imperfect adapta-
tion, or careless and indifferent landlords and proprietors, vice and in-
temperance were certain to mark the results. It was by nomeans desired
to attach an exclusive importance to this question of the habitations of
the people. It was only one of many causes that contributed to their
elevation and comfort, or to their misery and degradation. But view-
ing this matter ina practical manner, it was obvious that the greater
the degree to which science perfected and economized the means of com-
bination and improvement, sustaining at the same time all the pecu-
liarities and associations of individual families, the greater would be
its success in promoting the best interests of the people.
Dr. Reid then adverted to the general appearance of the population
in different European countries, and remarked that he had nowhere
seen such marked specimens of sturdy and robust health and comfort
as the Swedish guard, at Stockholm, presented when he visited that
city. The soldiers were not tall, but they had a firmness, density, and
compactness of limb and muscle which he had never before witnessed
in any body of troops; while their countenances evinced a composure,
along with an entire absence from care, dissipation, or fatigue, that
manifested at a glance the high condition of their health. It would
be important if in every city there was at least one trained band of
men who could be seen from time to time, and give an example of
the appearance that human nature ought to present amidst the mass
of inferior constitutions that appear in cities, whether arising from
bad air or any other cause.
”
FIFTH LECTURE.
On this occasion, Dr. Reid commenced with a reference to his pre-
ceding lecture on individual rooms and habitations, and called the
attention of the audience to numerous cases that had come under his
notice, both in this country and in Europe, where a great amount of
LECTURES. 165
vitiated air prevailed in the upper portion of different buildings.
There vitiated air was prone to ascend by passages and staircases from
other apartments, and if the roof or ceiling of the attics had no adequate
discharge, the moisture of respiration was condensed during the cool of
the night, though the warmth of the sun gave an elevated temperature
to this space during the day. He had seen numerous houses where dry
rot from vitiated air had entirely destroyed floors in the attics, while
the lower floors were comparatively sound. In public buildings the
same tendency was equally manifested under parellel circumstances.
An example was cited of a church in Scotland, near Edinburgh,
where the upper part of a long ladder was found so completely de-
cayed that it was broken with facility by the hand, while the wood of
the lower portion was perfectly sound. This church had been venti-
lated apparently by apertures in the ceiling, but there was no dis-
charge above in the roof, so that they were totally useless, except in
so far as they permitted the air in the roof to add its volume to that
below; but at night the moisture of respiration condensing on the
timbers of the roof, which were finally entirely destroyed by the dry
rot. In London a very marked case occurred in the new post office,
where, a few years after it had been occupied, large quantities of a
brown fungus were found in the roof extending in branches sometimes
ten, twelve, or sixteen inches long, and as thick as a man’s finger,
The products of respiration and of the gas lamps below had formed the
food that supported the growth of the fungus.
The ventilation of public buildings was the next subject of consid-
eration. The same principles were applicable there asin the ventilation
of individual habitations ; but the numbers crowded in a given space,
the fixed position and comparative restraint that necessarily accompa-
nied many of the duties of official life, the long sittings of a judge in
court, of a member of the legislature, according tothe public business
transacted, the ever-varying numbers present, and the changes of the
external atmosphere during long protracted investigations and de-
bates—all conspired to render a degree of control and power of venti-
lation requisite that was not needed in ordinary apartments. Further,
in public buildings, large halls, corridors, and passages were often
necessary, besides numerous individual apartments applied to very
various purposes, and subsidiary to the principal assembly rooms for the
transaction of public business. These varying in number from one
or two to hundreds, and sometimes covering several acres of ground,
in many cases required to be ventilated in unison with the principal
assembly rooms; and without the adoption of some general system for
the whole, the warming and ventilating would be equally defective and
incongruous with the architectural character of the building were
ae different portions of it erected without reference to any general
plan.
The first point to determine, in the construction of a large building,
in reference to warming and ventilating, was the number of apart-
ments, halls, and passages that were to be used in such a manner, or
so arranged that they must be subject to one system of ventilation to
maintain uniformity of action. Then came the determination of the
question, how far it was necessary or desirable to unite the varied
166 LECTURES.
groups-of apartments and of individual rooms that required the power
of independent action in a more comprehensive scheme, that would
economize and facilitate the whele operation, without sacrificing the
special requirements of each separate control ?
These preliminaries being settled, the next step was to determine
whether a ventilating shaft, put in action by heat, should be resorted
to for the necessary power, or a mechanical instrument sustained by
a steam engine or any equivalent force.
Where offices occupied by a few individuals only were to be venti-
lated, and where they were only required for very brief periods, neither
large shafts nor machinery might be requisite, if proper apertures
for the ingress and egress of air were arranged, as in well-ventilated
individual habitations, with small ventilating shafts or flues.
A shaft being made to operate on the vitiated air to be discharged,
tended, more or less, to produce a comparative vacuum in the apart-
ment to be ventilated, and hence the origin of the term Vacuum ven-
tilation.
An instrument moved by mechanical power, and acting directly in
expelling vitiated air, produced a similar effect. But when it was
made to ventilate by blowing in fresh air, it tended to create an excess
of pressure within the apartment it ventilated ; air then escaped out-
wardly by open doors and windows, as well as by any appointed
channels, if they were not extremely large. This was termed Plenum
ventilation.
In the most perfect form of ventilation, the ingress and egress of
air were so nearly balanced that there was little or no tendency to
the air being drawn inwards or pressed outwards at doors or other
apertures not provided for its regular ingress or egress. The less
the tendency to either plenum or vacuum ventilation the better. And
even where shafts alone, or instruments alone, were used, it was
always desirable to reduce the tendency to a plenum or vacuum as much
as possible by the right adjustment of supply and discharge. In law
courts, theatres, or assembly rooms of great complexity, and having
numerous entrances to galleries, to seats on the floor, and to special
places allotted for particular purposes, and still more if they were
subject to great fluctuations of attendance, a plenum and vacuum
power was combined where the greatest perfection of effect was desired.
Having determined on the leading arrangements for the supply and
discharge of air, the amount to be given per minute, the apparatus
required for heating, cooling and moistening, and any of those end-
less varieties of contingencies which each individual building might
require, whether from the purposes to which it was to be applied, the
locality in which it was to be placed, or the climate to which it was
subject,—the details of the supply and discharge, the position of
valves, and the precise arrangements required for the ingress and
egress of air, should then be planned. This, in general, will be found
to require much more attention than was formerly given to such
questions. It is the rock of difficulties in all disputes where separate
authorities are responsible for decoration and structure, and for the
comfortable and effective result of ventilation. If the architect do not
profess ventilation, or the authorities do not confide that department
to him, it will be obvious that if no right mutual understanding be
LECTURES. 167
amicably and accurately carried out, then an imperium in imperio will
interfere at every step. If the architect have supreme power, then
he must necessarily become responsible for the ventilation, particu-
larly if he controls and determines the apertures for ingress and
egress, and the amount of diffusion given to the entering air. The
ventilator cannot be responsible for his plans if he disapproves of
alterations which the architect may carry into effect. Again, if
the ventilator shall have the directing authority, the architect may
say that he will not be responsible for the appearance of decorations
and their general effect if they are adapted for ventilation in a
manner of which he does not approve. It will be obvious, then, that
until schools or colleges of architecture shall give the future student
the opportunity of applying himself to this subject as much as its
importance demands, we must consider this branch in a state of transi-
tion. When the architect does not profess to attend to ventilation, it
cannot receive from him that full assistance and development which
could otherwise be given in the original design, and in harmonizing all
the conflicting claims of the different departments of the profession.
Dr. Reid then gave experimental illustrations of the action of ven-
tilating shafts worked by heat, of steam ejected from a small glass
boiler, and of different classes of instruments for the movement of
air, pointing out more particularly the difference between the air-
pump, the screw, and the fanner. In speaking of instruments alone,
he gave a decided preference to the two latter, from the simplicity,
continuity, and equality of their action ; though, in particular cases,
where air at a higher pressure than usual was necessary, he preferred
the air-pump.
At the same time, wherever a ventilating power was essential, and
the difficulties to contend with were not great, he recommended the
shaft as abundantly sufficient for all ordinary purposes; stating that
any common laborer could be taught to attend to it, and that it merely
required to have a proper supply of fuel from time to time; whereas,
with an instrument worked with an engine the constant attendance
of an engineer was essential. That was the result of his experience.
He had been the first, so far as he was aware, to introduce large fan-
ners, worked by steam engines, fitted up expressly for ventilating
buildings, and still recommended their use as much as before, under
similar circumstances ; but he could point out places where they were
not necessary, and where the substitution of a shaft would effect a
considerable annual saving.
In respect to the course which the air should take in passing
through any apartment to be ventilated, much should depend on the
special difficulties to be overcome in each individual case. The ascend-
ing movement was preferred for all ordinary purposes. He had used
that movement more extensively in public buildings than any other,
though in old buildings, where it had to be applied under great limi-
tations, there were often many difficulties to be met. Among these
the most formidable in general was the want of sufficient diffusion
for the entering air. In the late House of Commons, which was made
the basis of experiment for determining the accuracy of his views and
the test of their application to the new houses of Parliament, he had
168 LECTURES.
been led to the conclusion that the restrictions which the state of the
walls and the time for applying his plans in this building necessarily
imposed on him, universal diffusion through a porous floor was the only
scheme of supply that met the realities of the case. This arrangement
for the supply he introduced accordingly ; and, for fifteen successive
years, after which the building was pulled down in consequence of the
progres of the new works, the government and the House uniformly sup-
ported it, notwithstanding some obvious disadvantages that were met
by peculiarities of details. The House of Peers, also, after it had been
sustained for three successive years, requested that similar arrange-
ments should be introduced into their chamber; but the means
allowed for this purpose did not permit the views to be applied as
completely as in the House of Commons—the progress of the new
works leading the authorities to expect that they would soon be en-
abled to occupy the new House of Peers.
Tables were then presented, showing the observations that had been
made every hour during the sittings of the House of Commons for
fifteen successive years. Large diagrams were also shown explana-
tory of all the peculiarities of the arrangements adopted in the late
House of Commons, and of the experimental buildings previously con-
structed by the Lecturer at ldinburgh in reference to the ventilation.
In the temporary House of Peers arrangements were made that
enabled a large movement to be tested whenever the weather gave a
suitable temperature, according to which fresh air was permitted to
descend from one part of the ceiling and ascend to another. This
was independent of the usual arrangements adopted there. A similar
movement had also been in use in his lecture-room at Edinburgh from
the time it was constructed in 1833; but there he did as he pleased,
and gave a supply and discharge by a large aperture having an area
of several hundred superficial feet. The wall of one side was left out
in reality, so that air descending from the contiguous apartment
moved in one broad current to the class-room. A movement of sup-
ply and discharge by the ceiling requires a very large amount of
apertures, otherwise much of the air passes from the aperture of
supply to the aperture of discharge without doing any good to the
ventilation of the lower part of the room, where alone it is essential
to have fresh air. Again, there are cases where a direct descent is
preferable to all other movements. These occur principally where
there are peculiar difficulties connected with the supply and the con-
dition of the floor. At one period he (Dr. Reid) was under the impres-
sion that such a movement might have been the best for the old House
of Commons; but, on investigating the circumstances that led to this
view, it was found that the whole arrangements for the ventilation
had been improperly changed and neglected during his absence,
and, with the sanction of the government and the members of the
House of Commons who attended the investigation, everything was
restored to its former position.
Descending ventilation could be rendered perfectly successful even
in a crowded assembly, but never without a much larger supply than
was requisite with an ascending movement. He had made the experi-
ment repeatedly with individuals, and in a room specially constructed
LECTURES. 169
for testing this and other questions connected with architecture, and
the result was invariably the same. Descending ventilation was also
inapplicable where lights were introduced that were not specially ven-
tilated. Where the products of gas and oil lamps were added to the
products of respiration the amount of ventilation requisite was so large
as to preclude a proper supply without a movement of air so
great as to be objectionable on this ground alone, and, at the same
time, very expensive.
In some experiments, in which a number of the members of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh took a part, one of the clubs formed of
members of the society dined in one of the experimental rooms he had
constructed. Fifty attended on this occasion, including the president,
Sir Thomas Brisbane, the late Lord Cockburn, and other gentlemen
connected with literature and science. The hotel-keeper at whose
establishment the club were in the habit of dining was well acquainted
with the habits of those who were present, and stated next day, when
he presented the bill, how much he was surprised at the amount
of wine taken on this occasion. This, at least, was the point that
principally attracted his attention. After providing rather more than
a good average supply, he had to send a carriage for more, and again,
as the evening advanced, he had to send a second time for further
supplies. The dining room at his hotel was not then, at least,
ventilated, and gas and vitiated air from respiration soon satisfied
the appetite. But ina room supplied with a large and flowing stream
of air, the natural powers of the constitution were not subdued, and,
what is curious, none of those present were at all aware that they had
taken anything unusual till they were informed of it next day. Many
is the unrefreshing meal and subdued appetite that destroys the
strength of the constitution in apartments loaded with the vapor of
respiration and exhalation. Travellers, and, indeed, all persons,
should be charged only half fare when they partake of refreshments
in an ill-ventilated apartment.
If one wishes to see and study the practical importance of this
question, let him go to ill-ventilated boarding-houses, schools, mili-
neries, manufactories, and refreshment rooms, particularly in the
crowded localities of large cities, and he will there trace one of the
causes of impaired health which affects great numbers of the popu-
lation. So thoroughly is this now understood in many places, that
cases have been cited where workmen have struck for more wages
in newly ventilated manufactories; the proprietors not perceiving that
they could, in general, obtain an equivalent value from the exertions
of those who were in better health and strength than the ventilation
previously permitted.
Diagrams were then pointed out illustrative of the general mode of
dealing with the ventilation of large buildings, special reference being
made to the houses of Parliament, in London, and to St. George’s
Hall, at Liverpool.
170 LECTURES.
SIXTH LECTURE.
In this lecture details were given as to the arrangements made at
the late House of Commons, and contrasted with the provisions founded
on them that had been executed for the application of his plans in the
new houses. It was only right, however, that he should tell the
audience that they were not completed under his directions; and that
his plans there met with so many obstacles from alterations, to which
he objected, that, in the year 1845, he considered it his duty to call
the attention of the government to them, and to the necessity of an
investigation. It being evident that he could no longer be responsible
for the result, or for the cost, unless sustained in the arrangements.
authorized by the government and Parliament at the time his plans
were adopted. He continued that it would be altogether out of place
in so brief a course, to detain the audience with any minute state-
ment of his own, or of others, on such a subject; but it would be
equally obvious that he could not pass over this subject without some
notice of the principal incidents that had occurred in so great a work,
and he would, therefore, only give a very general outline of the case,
and place in the hands of the secretary of this institution a copy of the
evidence he was finally called upon to give openly and publicly at the
bar of the House of Commons in respect to it, after demanding this
or some equivalent opportunity in vain during the six preceding years.
The investigation he asked for was instituted in 1845, and in the
following year a committee of the House of Commons took up the
question. The committee included members of all political parties ; the
late Sir Robert Inglis waschairman, and Lord Palmerstonand Lord John
Russell were both members. After due investigation the committee
passed resolutions that were in every respect satisfactory to him, and
they also renewed, as a committee, their expressions of opinion as to
the satisfaction given by the plans in the house they then occupied.
But in the meantime new proceedings were instituted in the House
of Peers, and after this renewed investigation by new referees, and by
a committee of which the Marquis of Clanricarde was chairman, in a
manner that did not permit, as Dr. Reid had then stated publicly
in official documents, a proper investigation; a resolution was carried
in the one house of Parliament, the House of Peers, that virtually
negatived the resolution unanimously adopted previously by the com-
mittee of the House of Commons, and gave an authority to the archi-
tect over the ventilation to which he, Dr. Reid, could not assent.
From the day this was officially communicated to him by the govern-
ment he never once acted at the new houses, except under protest,
though he gave such advice as the government still required from
him, till he succeeded in being called to the bar of the House of
Commons. But in the meantime the mayor and corporation at
Liverpool had adopted, in the year 1841, the same year in which his
plans had been adopted for the new houses, parallel plans for their
great building, St. George’s Hall, and the new assize courts. In
1846 the Liverpool committee inquired into the disputes at Parlia-
ment, and coinciding with the views of the House of Commons, and
LECTURES. 171
not with those of the House of Peers, continued the support they had
all along accorded, and, in 1855, when the whole works were com-
pleted, declared their satisfaction with the result. A committee of
the House of Commons also had previously reported their success.
Further, in an arbitration, in 1853, when a new investigation took
place that lasted for thirty days, the arbiters sustained him in every
legal privilege and award connected with his case, of which, at the
new houses of Parliament, an attempt had been made to deprive him,
founded on the evidence of the architect, with whom he differed.
If any one should think that even with this brief statement he
had dwelt too much on this subject, he requested them to remember
that he could not say less without appearing to evade a case that had
led more to the study and progress of ventilation than any other with
which he was acquainted; which had materially assisted in support-
ing the views he had previously expressed, and explained in his Illus-
trations of Ventilation, published by Messrs. Longman, of London, .
as to the right method of proceeding with the study of architecture
and ventilation for the future, as well as to the mode of meeting the
difficulties attending a state of transition in making preparation for
systematic ventilation.
The late houses of Parliament, the new houses, St. George’s Hall,
and the new assize courts at Liverpool, a building in which there were
upwards of a hundred public and private compartments, and the ex-
perimental rooms and lecture room he had previously constructed at
Edinburgh, presented in their combined history the most extended
illustration of the applications of his views. The obstacles opposed
to them at one place, and their execution in another, under such a
variety of circumstances, exclusive of law pleas, arbitrations, parlia-
mentary, professional and other inquiries, called forth facts which
elucidated the progress of all the leading questions affecting warming,
lighting, ventilating, drainage, and acoustics, in connexion with the
progress of modern architecture, and the difficulties they had to en-
counter.
A diagram was then explained, illustrating the numerous rooms
subjected to the action of a single shaft at the late houses of Parlia-
ment, and the manner in which it was applied in acting, at the same
time, on the chimney flues, on the drains in the vicinity, and on vitia-
ted air when accumulated in the contiguous court-yards. Plans and
sections were also shown, illustrative of the works executed under his.
direction at the new houses, which were incorporated with the princi-
pal portions, till he refused to be responsible, and ceased to act, except
under protest. The sections explained the portions of the Victoria
and the clock towers set apart for the supply of fresh air from a great
altitude, the central air chamber under the central hall, the leading
channels from it to the House of Peers, to the House of Commons, and
to other parts of the building, and the passage for vitiated air from
several hundred different places, and from all the smoke flues to the
central tower above the central hall, which had been introduced ex-
pressly at his suggestion, but subsequently so reduced and cut off from
important channels that it formed one of the principal causes of dis-
pute.
172 LECTURES.
The plans showed the general disposition of the fresh air chambers
in the vaults, and the great smoke and vitiated air flues in the roof.
Dr. Reid then concluded his remarks on the new houses of Parlia-
ment, stating that though alterations had been made in his plans
every succeeding year had confirmed him in the opinion that they
could not depart in any material point from the principles he had
advocated or the practice he had introduced without injury to the ven-
tilation. He added that he had reason to believe that this conclusion
would be placed beyond all question whenever the evidence taken at
arbitration should become better known; referring to the numerous
works he had executed, and to the extent they had influenced others,
he mentioned one architect, Mr. Thomas Brown, who had applied his
plans in forty-eight public and private buildings.
A large plan was then brought forward showing the details of the
principal works executed under his direction at George’s Hall, Liver-
pool. The principal air channels were about 400 feet long, and of
such magnitude that any one could walk in them without inconveni-
ence. A central engine commanded the movement of air, and drove
four instruments that directed currents north or south, east or west, as
might be required. The great hall, the courts of law, the minor
courts, the library, the concert room, had the combined advantages of
a plenum and vacuum movement. Heat was given by coils of hot water
apparatus, the principal coils being each forty feet in length, ten in
breadth and six in depth, and auxiliary coils of steam pipe were placed
locally, whose action was brought into play principally in very cold
weather. Many portions of the structure showed special modifications
in the design of the interior for ventilating purposes. All the smaller
apartments had fire-places supplied with a soft coke that gave no smoke,
and the flues were all carried into four large shafts in the angles of
the great hall. No windows were ever opened in the great hall, law
courts, or concert room, but in most of the minor rooms and offices
windows were made in the usual manner.
When air is supplied to large buildings, or, indeed, to any habita-
tions by a fixed and definite channel, it is very desirable, if it be not
introduced from a great hight, to pass it through a gauze in winter,
in such towns as London and Manchester, so as to exclude a large por-
tion of the soot that usually accompanies it at such periods. By taking
the additional precaution of making it traverse a heavy artificial shower
of water, which is still more purifying, if charged previously with as
much lime as it can dissolve, the air becomes much more refreshing,
Thus, then, in public buildings of the highest importance the great
objects are, the supply of the purest accessible atmosphere; the purifi-
cation of the air when requisite ; the exclusion of all sources of local
contamination ; the power of warming by a mild heat; the power of
cooling ; valves and channels that admit of air being changed in tem-
perature at a moment’s notice, or, at least, sooner than numbers can
pass out of or into the building ventilated; means for moistening air;
the ventilation of lamps, or the adoption of a system of lighting that
excludes the products of combustion ; the introduction of a plenum or
vacuum power, or of both, for regulating the supply of fresh air and
discharge of vitiated air; and the adoption of the most extensive
LECTURES. 173
measures practicable for securing the supply of air with the gentlest
movement, and through a very large diffusing surface, which is more
and more agreeable in proportion as it approaches universal diffusion
from every perpendicular surface. The diffusion may, in some cases,
be given at the ceiling, under certain circumstances of breadth and
height, excepting such area as may be reserved there for the discharge
of vitiated air.
Leading facts were afterwards pointed out in reference to other
classes of buildings, in which his plans had been introduced, from
which the following selection is made:
The Chapel Royal, at St. James’s Palace, is ventilated by a metallic
shaft, worked by a series of gas lights, and the principal fire-places
discharge vitiated air into the same flue, with which they communi-
cate by copper tubes. There is an ascending movement of air in the
body of the chapel, but in the Queen’s gallery the fresh air descends
from the ceiling and spreads horizontally over the seats.
At the Pavilion, in Brighton, ventilation was effected by the intro-
duction of an iron shaft, heated by gas, and attached to one of the
turrets in the vicinity of the Minarets.
At Buckingham Palace, in ventilating some of the state apartments,
a central shaft, having an area of twenty-seven feet, was formed where
only two feet of discharge had previously been provided, exclusive of
doors and windows. A back staircase, eight feet in diameter, was
appropriated for the discharge of vitiated air from the basement and
contiguous offices, which had previously flooded the state apartments.
At the opera, in London, a discharge two feet in diameter was
replaced by another of seventy-five superficial feet area, but nothing
was done for the better supply of fresh air, except at the Queen’s box.
The proprietors would not agree to give a proper supply.
At the Old Bailey the whole of the arrangements were adapted to
the action of a large fanner, eighteen feet in diameter, which was worked
by a steam engine.
In churches, the spire or tower was brought into action as a venti-
lating power, whenever permission was given for this purpose; and
when the church was surrounded by a grave-yard or other source of
vitiated air it was recommended that the spire should be so divided
within that one part might supply fresh air from a considerable alti-
tude above the level of the ground, the other portions being used for
the discharge of vitiated air at a higher level.
In prisons, Dr. Reid had used the ventilating shaft principally, and
preferred an ascending movement in the individual cells, allowing
the prisoner the control of the window to a limited extent.
In barracks for soldiers great suffering was often experienced from
defective ventilation, and the men often became practically familiar
with this question from the extent to which their arms and accoutre-
ments rusted in some places compared with others, entailing on them
a degree of labor, in preparing for parade, of which they made more
complaints than of its influence on their health.
In schools, he preferred the action of a single ventilating shaft suf-
ficient to control the ventilation of every apartment in the building,
and urged also the general adoption of one regulating discharge from
174 LECTURES.
each room. Illustrations were taken from schools in Westminster
and other places, and cases cited where excessive crowding had led
to six times the number originally intended being accommodated in
particular schools. In this country his own observation, as well as
the concurring testimony of different reports he had seen, led him to
the conviction that much was still to be done before the ventilation of
schools could be considered on a proper footing. The supply was, in
general, too small, the means of discharge not sufficiently powerful,
and the ascent of the warm entering air so rapid, that much of it escaped
by the ceiling without doing any good, unless made to descend to the
floor by opening the discharge there, and closing the aperture above,
when the products of respiration descended along with it. The diffu-
sion of heat, also, was rarely general and equal, and hence it was
often impossible to give sufficient fresh air without opening the win-
dows at times when the state of the external atmosphere indicated
that they ought, if possible, to be closed. In some more recent cases
the diffusion of heat had been very much extended and improved, but
not the ingress of air.
In hospitals much required to be done, more especially where con-
tagious diseases were treated ; he considered that great improvements
might be made in such cases by causing all the expired air and ex-
halations to pass directly from each individual patient to a ventilating
flue, where, by the action of heat, every noxious emanation could be
entirely destroyed, so as equally to save life within doors and relieve
apprehension without. In this country, at the New York Hospi-
tal, he had seen arrangements that were in advance of most of the
plans usually adopted in Europe ; but he had not hitherto observed
any hospitals where the views he recommended for quarantine hos-
pitals on shore and others for contagious diseases had been intro-
duced.
In chemical lecture rooms, experimental class rooms, and in all
manufacturing operations, where acrid, poisonous, or irritating gases
and vapors were diffused, he recommended that provision should be
made for the direct removal of every offensive product without per-
mitting it to escape into the general atmosphere, illustrating this
department of the subject by a large plan of the ventilating shafts
and flues introduced at his former class-room in Edinburgh.
From these illustrations it would be seen that the course he recom-
mended was a special adaptation in each individual class of building
to the purpose for which it was erected, and in unison with the style
of architecture adopted. Air could be made to move in any direction
that might be required, and when in a proper condition as to tempera-
ture and moisture, and in sufficient quantity, many of the details were
often matters of indifference. But the economy of each individual
movement was a very different question, and extensive ventilating
movements could only be most successfully and economically combined
when incorporated with the original design before the building is
commenced,
Dr. Reid then passed to the subject of lighting public buildings,
and commenced his illustration by throwing a very powerful lime ball
light on the flame of candles, lamps, gas-lights, burning alcohol, and
LECTURES. 175
paper. These, under the influence of the lime ball light, gave a
shadow on the adjoining wall which did not terminate with the
outline of the flame, but merged without any line of demarcation at
the upper part of each flame in a continuous ascending undulatory
shadow that reached to the ceiling of the lecture room. The apparent
shadow arose from the refraction produced by the heated current of
ascending vitiated air, and the necessity was then pointed out of all
lamps used in public buildings being ventilated by special tubes, or of
ventilating apertures being arranged for the discharge of vitiated air
above them, so as to prevent the recoil and descent of vitiated air from
the ceiling. In an assembly for the transaction of business, in a
church, in a school, in courts of law, and in other similar collections,
it was too often forgotten that the object to be attained by lighting
was not so much to show a beautiful chandelier as to illuminate the
countenances of those who took a prominent part in the proceedings.
A visible light close to any object, or in the direct line of sight
between one person and another, interfered with distinct vision.
In a light-house the light was the special object of attention, as in
fireworks, and in various optical, electrical, and chemical experi-
ments; but in public buildings, such as had been adverted to, the less
the actual flame or luminous matter was seen the better, provided
the proper objects were well illuminated. The more successtully the
diffused light of day was imitated, and the light by night corresponded
with the light required and given by day, the more satisfactory would
the result be. But many were the buildings in which the light by
day as well as that by night was very imperfectly adapted to the
necessities of the case. In his experience, at least, he had often seen
the back of the head illuminated more powerfully than the counte-
nance, and a distraction of rays and beams of light utterly at variance
with that harmony and unity of effect that was always manifested in
an external landscape, when there was no disposition nor attempt to
waze upon the sun itself in its meridian splendor. The different steps
in the progress of this question were then explained; the successive
experiments made at Edinburgh, Liverpool, and London, and the final
acknowledgment of the principle that the products of combustion from
lamps, as well as the heat they produced, should be excluded or with-
drawn as much as possible from ventilated buildings, where the heat
was not rendered useful in unison with proper ventilation. That
electrical lights, oxygenated lights, lime ball, and other lights of
great intensity, were not so much required, at their present expensive
cost, as a mild and diffused light illuminating the objects to be seen,
and which should not glare in the eye of the observer. That the
countenance should be illuminated by rays extending from an ex-
panded surface, and rather from above downwards, than from below
upwards, always securing, directly or indirectly, as much horizontal
light as was required. That lights ata low level, as foot-lights, such
as are common at theatres, give an unnatural expression to the coun-
tenance, and also interfere materially with distinctness of vision when
hot currents of air are permitted to ascend from them, by the ine-
quality of the refraction of light transmitted through such heated cur-
rents and the contiguous colder air. That the new resources placed
176 LECTURES. .
at the disposal of architecture by the progress of practical science, and
particularly by the facility which iron and glass afford in arrange-
ments for lighting and ventilation, call for a revision of the practice
of former days and for the more extended use of external illumination,
or the introduction of ventilated lamps. That phosphorous was an
element that might be advantageously introduced for the purpose of
artificial illumination, the acid formed by its combustion being con-
densed by ammonia, and returned again by chemical processes in the
form of phosphorous. There was no objection to bright lights if the
rays from them were sufficiently diffused before they met the eye; but
until economy was attained in their construction and management, a
double expense was incurred, first in producing them and subsequently
in moderating their intensity.
The physical effect of hght upon the constitution was then ad-
verted to, and illustrations given from a barrack in St. Petersburgh,
where avery marked example was presented of this influence in
the prevention of disease. If the rays of light were capable of
producing those striking and delicate results that were portrayed by
the daguerreotype and the photograph, it would be unreasonable to
suppose that their action on the sentient fibres of an organized and
living structure would not be still more marked. The influence of
light was equally conspicuous on the animal and vegetable kingdom;
and the tint given to rooms could be used in some cases of disease as &
power in assisting to sooth and subdue an irritable temperament, or
in raising, in some degree, the spirits of those that were depressed.
He had had, on different occasions, the opportunity of noticing the
effect produced in this manner. <A room that was of a dead black,
and another in which pink and white alternated, were at the extremes
of the scale.
The electric light was the most intense and penetrating artificial
light hitherto discovered; and next to it came the lime ball light.
The electric light was accompanied with a perpetual vibration that
had not hitherto been overcome; but the lime ball light could be
sustained indefinitely and with great equality, by the use of appro-
priate apparatus. The late Sir John Leslie had estimated that the
brightest lime ball light had only a one hundred and twenty-third
part of the power of an equal amount of solar radiation.
This lecture was concluded with an account of some experiments he
had directed for illuminating the hills at Edinburgh on the occasion
of a public festival, when the scenery was made manifest by tons of
blue light and other deflagrating mixtures, fired by signals on selected
spots on different hills. Nearly a hundred persons were employed on
this occasion, and the magnificence and beauty of the effect produced,
where isolated landscapes started suddenly into view in the midst of
the surrounding darkness, and where the illuminating lights were not
seen, confirmed the views he had advocated in reference to the lighting
of public buildings. Hedid not mean to say that naked lights should
not be used, and that the light itself should not be visible in all kinds
of public buildings. This was not requisite; nor was it so economical.
Lights, also, were pleasing adjuncts in the ball room and on all festive
occasions, where their sparkling brilliancy added to the gaiety of the
LECTURES. 177
scene. In this respect the pure white wax candle, with its brilliant
flame, was unrivalled, except by the small gaslight burning with
similar lustre. But he did maintain that the best style of lighting
is that which told least on the nervous system and on the health of
those who were engaged in public assemblies, and one that was, at the
same time, the best for the transaction of public business. The light
itself should be altogether concealed, or at least very considerably out
of the direct line of vision. He would only add that light trans-
mitted through ground glass was very offensive to some, and that a
smoother and opalescent material gave it a softness of tone that could
never be commanded by the ground glass. Light radiated from
invisible burners, and, falling upon convex plaster of Paris surfaces
and solid flowers made of the same materials, and tinged to any
agreeable tone, gave a very pleasing and diffused radiation, with which
any desirable amount of illumination could be obtained for public
buildings.
SEVENTH LECTURE.
In this lecture Dr. Reid commenced with an explanation of the
manner in which fire-proofing interfered with the ventilation of some
public buildings, and the method of obviating the defects arising from
this source. The whole question of fire-proofing required revision.
An examination of the construction of different buildings said to be
fire-proot would exhibit a great diversity in the standard aimed at,
and in the amount of security given against fire. Ventilation re-
quired the ingress and the egress of air. Some systems of fire-proof-
ing contemplated the entire prevention of such movements when not
in actual occupation, and therefore valves (doubled, if necessary, for ad-
ditional security) were requisite to cut off all communication with the
air flues. The importance of separating contiguous rooms or buildings
by fire-proof walls and floors was universally recognized. But the great
point desirable in public buildings was to use no combustible mate-
rials, or a portion so small that even if on fire it could not do any
material injury. These also could be charged with chemicals of
ditferent kinds, so as to diminish their ready accendibility. Various
experiments were then made illustrative of the action of alkaline and
earthy salts in preventing or retarding the combustion of wood, ’cloth,
and other inflammable substances used in building or for furniture.
Many fires originated not merely from carelessness, but from an
ignorance of the first principles of chemistry. In the present state of
society, in which the extension of art and science had introduced the use
of so many new materials, it was essential that the chemistry of daily
life should be made an elementary branch of general education.
A number of special facts were then mentioned in illustration of
this position. It would give increased power and facility in con-
ducting operations of art, and in dealing with combustible and ex-
plosive materials. To illustrate this, a portion of gunpowder was placed
in a small copper cup, and covered with oil of turpentine. The oil
of turpentine was then inflamed. It continued to burn above the
12s
178 LECTURES.
gunpowder, which was not at first in any way aflected by it.
The flame was blown out, and rekindled. This was repeated seyv-
eral times in succession. At last the gunpowder was exposed, the
level of the burning fluid having descended below the surface of the
central portion. Still it did not fire; it was surrounded and enve-
loped in avapor of oil rising rapidly from the portion below. At last,
the oil being nearly consumed, and the edge of the flame coming in
contact with individual grains, they deflurated one by one, and soon
afterwards the rest of the gunpowder exploded.
This experiment was then varied by placing a small portion of
gunpowder on a flat brick, drenching it with oil of turpentine, and
_ sustaining continually around it a small portion of this fluid. A
light was then apphed, when the oil alone was kindled; the gun-
powder acting as a wick, and remaining totally unaffected so long as
there was any oil in the vicinity to be consumed.
It was then argued that general instruction in chemistry would
give a similar power of control over many sources of fire, and that
the principles he had explained in connexion with this illustration
could in many cases be practically applied. It would also lead to
the more extended use of fire-proof or incombustible materials in
all classes of building, by giving correct views as to their nature and
capabilities, and the advantages attending their introduction.
The next subjects were the ventilation of underground mines and
of ships. These presented peculiar and somewhat similar difficulties,
from the comparative inaccessibility of the lower portions of both to
the direct access of atmospheric air.
In the class of mines to which he adverted, the great difficulty lies
principally in the expense of making ventilating shafts, particularly
where springs of water interrupt their formation, or the presence of
fire-damp render it important to have a larger amount of ventilation
than would otherwise be requisite. Nothing would contribute so
much to the better ventilation of mines as the invention of machinery
and apparatus for facilitating the sinking of shafts. The attention
of men of science and practical engineers should be directed specially
to this subject. Hitherto he had not had the opportunity of visiting
mines in this country, but he had examined many mines in Great
Britain, more especially in the northern mining district, on which he
had reported officially when acting on a commission of health for
cities and populous districts in England and Wales. In some of the
most dangerous mines in England a very slight interruption to the
ventilation, or a fall of the barometer, causing a rapid discharge of
fire-damp from the coal, greatly increased the risk of explosion.
Hundreds were at times subjected to the most horrible deaths, the mix-
ture of fire-damp and air in numerous mines constituting, at the mo-
ment of explosion, a kind of aerial gunpowder that equally surrounded
the body and penetrated to the interior of the chest. In no range of
cases where ventilation was an absolute necessity would education in
science do more good than in the mining districts. It was not enough
to have a few able superintendents here and there. Every mine and
every district of a mine ought to be much more frequently examined
LECTURES. 179
and reported on than was customary at present. He had found in
some cases, even recently, that the fresh air intended for the supply
of a pit, where there were hundreds of men at work, was contaminated
largely when the wind blew in a particular direction from a large
heap of waste fuel of inferior quality that had been burning there for
many previous years. He mentioned this merely as one of the numer-
ous instances which could be pointed out of the impossibility of check-
ing evils of great magnitude, where more intelligence did not prevail
in respect to the nature of the materials which were employed.
One of the shafts of access to the pit, or mine, was usually converted
into a ventilating flue, by kindling a large fire, not at the bottom of
the pit, but at one side, near the bottom. From this a large flue con-
veyed the vitiated air and products of combustion to the shaft, at a
sufficient distance above the lower part to permit them tocool on the way
to a degree which would allow men and materials to pass safely up
and down the shaft. Dangerous atmospheres were sometimes diluted
with air, by proportionate ventilation, so as to take away all risk of
explosion; or discharged by a separate shaft, or by a separate channel,
into the ordinary ventilating shaft, far above the fire, so as to pre-
vent their coming in contact with flame. Mechanical appliances were
used in some mines to promote ventilation, and advantage had also
been taken in different places of the steam jet. Choke damp (car-
bonic acid) infested numerous mines, and was frequently a cause of
death. The Davy lamp, though an invaluable invention, was not
always to be trusted, even with all the improvements that had been
suggested in recent times. An infinitesimally small particle of carbon
might be projected, sufficiently hot from the flame of the lamp,
through the wire gauze, by a sudden commotion of the air arising from
the falling in of any portion of the roof of a mine, or any other cause,
and be fanned into an active combustion in an explosive atmosphere,
though ordinary flame is entirely arrested by the wire gauze pro-
posed by Davy.
Again, in many mines, partitions of wood giving way, from the
decay of the material, rendered the ventilation less effective ; and, in
short, from the length of the air courses, extending sometimes to ten,
twenty, or thirty miles, the underground miner almost always worked
in an atmosphere more or less contaminated ; and he did not consider
that sufficient exertions were made at present, either by the extended
application of practical science, or by the education of the miner, to
place this subject on the footing demanded both by the dictates of
humanity and by a true economy as a matter of business.
The ventilation of ships had made less satisfactory progress, prob-
ably, than that of any other cases in which ventilation was so impor-
tant. [rom the time of Dr. Hales, who had long since entered on
this question practically, with great ability, and at a period when
much of the information now made accessible by more modern chem-
istry was not available, it had at different periods been taken up, and
again neglected ; and even in his own experience he had seen it alter-
nately prosecuted with vigor, and abandoned by successive directors of
the same board, according as their appreciation or want of information
as to the laws of health had dictated. The sea had had its ‘black
180 LECTURES,
holes of Calcutta’’ as well as the land. In some cases almost every
individual confined under deck, in a storm, had been literally suffo-
cated in consequence of the want of fresh air. Even a very few years
ago a case of this kind had occurred in the Irish channel. Still more
recently hundreds of Chinese had perished on board ship from the
same cause. During the late Crimean war, the suffering and death on
shipboard, during a storm in the Black Sea, had been extreme. In
one of the most crowded vessels, where defective ventilation added its
horrors to disease, nearly a hundred perished in a single night. How
often was it forgotten that a very small cause would put out the fee-
ble flame of life, when it had to struggle at the same time against
disease and against a vitiated atmosphere, poisoning the very foun-
tain at which it should be renewed at the rate of twelve hundred
respirations every hour. If it had been right in him to advocate the
cause of general education in the elements of science in speaking of
other cases where ventilation was necessary, it was still more essential
that it should not be forgotten as a means of promoting the purity
of the air of ships.
On examining the condition of ships-of-war, packets and merchant
vessels, when his attention was first specially directed to this depart-
ment, he had not met with a single case in which any arrangements had
been made beyond the windsail, and occasionally a few copper or other
tubes, acting locally for the supply or discharge of air, and not gene-
rally on the whole ship. The effect of these was entirely dependent
on the state of the wind. There was no ventilating power that
could be put in operation in calm weather, sufficient to meet the
contingency of a storm when all side ports and scuttles were closed,
and even the very hatches battened down to prevent the ingress of
water from the deck. In experiments which he had made on board
the Benbow, a seventy-two gun ship, by the kindness of Admiral
Houston Stewart, he had used a fanner that sustained a plenum cur-
rent in a tube made of canvass about four or five feet in diameter.
He had afterwards seen a small fanner introduced by Captain War-
rington, who had been strongly impressed in a voyage from India
with the necessity of the ventilation of ships. But whether fanners,
screws, pumps, or any other variety of mechanical power was used
for this purpose, a system of tubes or ventilating channels was
absolutely essential to admit of a satisfactory effect being insured,
particularly on those occasions when ventilation was most imperiously
demanded. <A ventilating power worked by heat alone was not so
generally available on board ‘ship as other means ; still, however, it
could be used with advantage in many cases when judiciously applied,
and the cooking stove could often be rendered useful for this purpose
by intelligent officers. In steamboats, the machinery and the fires
for the production of steam gave twofold facilities for ventilation.
It was inexcusable, therefore, that they should not be more systemati-
cally ventilated than they generally were. Any amount of appro-
priation, almost, could often be secured for the most superb cabin
decorations, while a comparatively trifling sum was as often denied
for the means of giving the pure breath of life.
A diagram was then shown illustrative of the plans executed by
LECTURES. 18]
the directions of Dr. Reid in different classes of ships. Those intro-
duced in two of the Queen’s yachts were specially mentioned, and that
in the Minden, the hospital ship used during the former Chinese war.
He referred also to three steamers he had ventilated for an expedition
to the Niger. Emigrant ships and packets were then mentioned, and
it was strongly urged that were nothing more done than the intro-
duction of a single ventilating tube from stem to stern, a great and
important improvement would be secured. By this, with appropriate
power apertures, and with valves, vitiated air could be extracted from
any part of the ship in the line of the tube.
At the same time he deprecated the idea that this should be the enly
improvement introduced where many were crowded in cabins or small
spaces. A ventilating tube should be supplied to every individual
cabin or place occupied by passengers, and indeed to every isolated
portion or cavity of the ship. And in large vessels, with crowded
decks, the officers should be instructed in the best methods of con-
verting the ladder ways and cargo hatches into ventilating shafts in
proportion to the numbers present. Nor was it difficult to construct
temporary air pumps or fanners to assist in the discharge of vitiated
air, though it would be much better to have these made on shore and
kept in readiness for use on shipboard.
The important question of quarantine was then introduced and
its relation pointed out to the subject under consideration. The
want of systematic ventilation in ships and the deficiency of chemi-
cal information in respect to the necessity of removing moisture,
to a certain extent, at least, from different articles of merchan-
dise, occasioned an annual loss in this country alone that would
probably, if he was correctly informed, be counted only by millions if
all the circumstances of the case were. fully taken into consideration.
It was most important that an effective quarantine establishment
should be maintained, and that hospitals should be so constructed
that all the vitiated air from them should be passed through fire, or so
altered, at least, by heat or chemicals, as to prove as unobjectionable
as air escaping from an ordinary habitation. The introduction of
ventilation that would remove the vitiated air from each patient
laboring under a severe form of any disease rendering nim liable
to quarantine, was peculiarly important in quarantine hospitals. It
would contribute not only to the health of the patient and to that
of the attendants and of the other patients in the same ward, but
would tend very much to relieve those without from all apprehension
as to the escape of any dangerous atmosphere from the precincts of
the hospital. But it was still more important to the public, to the
merchant, and to the sailor, that a right system should be adopted
in the shipping of all goods prone to convey disease from an infected
port, or develope it during a voyage. He contended that this object
would be greatly promoted by simply drying, to a certain extent,
before shipping them, ‘special classes of exports, and by the intro-
duction in all ships of a ventilating tube from stem to stern, such as
had been explained.
Another important measure that should be adopted at all great
mercantile ports consisted in providing a portable ventilating appa-
182 LECTURES.
ratus that could be placed on the deck of any ship arriving in a very
bad condition, and capable of destroying all noxious effluvia escaping
from it, while maintaining as effective a ventilation as circumstances
might permit. It was also strongly urged that a steam-tug should
be provided at such ports capable of meeting all extreme cases at once,
of discharging vitiated air with a power that would make the effect
manifest in a few minutes, and also of applying warm, cold, or a fu-
migated atmosphere to the whole or any part of the ship.
Finally, a special provision should be made on the quarantine
grounds for the reception and purification of all suspected goods which
it might be necessary to land or to destroy. Many were the cases of
disease on shore that had been traced to materials or goods thrown
overboard. By the action of a heating, fumigating, and ventilating
apparatus consuming noxious products, much valuable merchandise
might soon be restored, and worthless materials consumed without
danger.
By these varied arrangements the sick could be at once conveyed on
shore to a proper quarantine establishment in a ventilated tug, mer-
chandise purified on board ship or on shore, and the public good
secured with the least possible tax on the mercantile interest. It
was more peculiarly the province and duty of the merchants them-
selves to have their goods so shipped and their vessels so ventilated
as to reduce to a minimum the chances of loss by detention at quar-
antine, to say nothing of the claims of humanity; and the public could
not look on with apathy, either at the loss of life arising from pre-
ventible disease on bcard ship, or the necessity of incurring extreme
expense beyond what was necessary for the most effective quarantine
establishment.
In concluding these remarks, Dr. Reid took occasion to notice the
ceneral condition of the life of the sailor at sea, the hardships to which
he was so often subjected, the magnitude of the interests involved in
the right construction, management, and efficiency of ships, and of
the practicability of immense improvement in this department, more
especially in the mercantile marine of all nations. The diminution of
shipwrecks, and the prevention of loss were not the only objects requi-
site. The service should be put ona better footing ; the public should
support nautical schools and schools of naval architecture, on the
same principle that they recognized the importance of supporting or
contributing to the support of other departments of education. It was
hard to tell what an extended navy and increased commercial relations
might yet accomplish between man and man, And were they to lose
sight of the mariner in carrying out such national objects, even if
it were possible to attain otherwise the desired result, was he to be
neglected, whether he might be the rough sailor before the mast or
the accomplished officer, skilled in all that science could apply either
in the management of his own ship, or in extending the boundaries
of human knowledge? Where had there been recorded, at sea or on
shore, any memoir of a man of a more refined sensibility, of more
daring intrepidity, or of more heroic devotion, than that which char-
acterized Dr. Kane; the intelligence of whose untimely death had just
arrived, and whose name would ever be cherished with admiration,
regret, and esteem, on both sides of the Atlantic.
LECTURES, 183
EIGHTH LECTURE.
The eighth and concluding lecture of this course embraced an out-
line of a series of experiments on acoustics, and a description of the
construction for acoustic purposes of different public buildings which
had been designed by the lecturer or altered under his direction.
After a short exposition of the leading principles of acoustics, it was
contended, though there might be no end to the peculiarity of devel-
opments arising from the use of new materials, new designs, and new
decorations, that these principles were sufficiently well known to guide
construction, particularly if accompanied with adequate provisions for
the escape of sound, after it had effected the object desired—a point
that had not, so far as he was aware, met with adequate attention till
some of the experiments had been made which he had described.
Without this escape, or an equivalent absorption of sound, which was
not compatible with many structures and decorations, sound continued
too often to reverberate and interrupt the distinctness of succeeding
sounds. He then described rooms in various parts of Europe, where
the sound was audible from five to twelve seconds after the cause pro-
ducing it had ceased to act ; and added that in such places, supposing
only three syllables to be pronounced in a second, from fifteen to
thirty-six successive syllables were constantly ringing in the ear and
modifying or destroying the enunciation of every succeeding word.
In general, sound was most beautifully distinct and clear in a wood
or on the surface of the ocean, no returning echo or reverberations in-
terfering with the sweetness or purity of each succeeding note. Ifa
room were built of properly absorbing materials, or lined with those
that did not reflect sound, any form could be given to it that the archi-
tect required. It would not be powerful in sustaining sound, but,
with adequate power, there would be no jarring reflections. If par-
allel reflecting surfaces were largely introduced and great altitude
given, dissonant sounds would equally destroy or mar both speech
and music. Good effects were attained when the highest power of
reflection was given near the ear of the hearer and the voice of the
speaker, the sound that had done its duty being then absorbed or dis-
charged. The object was attained in a still higher degree when the
reflection permitted was induced by materials that had the power of
vibrating independently of the general structure. Dr. Reid then de-
scribed the peculiarities of the acoustics in his class-room, and the
trials made in it by members of government and of Parliament ; pass-
ing then to the old House of Commons, which he had treated as an
acoustic instrument, using glass and pine wood largely in the interior,
and combining universal ventilation with the means of escape, both
above and below, for the sound that had done its duty. The tem-
porary House of Peers he had treated in a,somewhat similar manner,
but there essentially he had introduced largely a resilient surface of
sheet iron on both sides of the house, immediately opposite the most
important benches, where the tone of speaking and hearing required
the highest attention. In the new House of Commons a different
series of arrangements had been introduced in opposition to his views,
184 LECTURES.
but the House had no sooner met and tried it for a few days than they
declared it was not fit for the transaction of business with the tacility
they had been accustomed to in the previous house during the preced-
ing fifteen years; and accordingly the ceiling was lowered in the
centre, and on every side, the lateral portions of this new ceiling cut-
ting the windows into two parts, the lower portions solely remaining
available to the House. Dr. Reid then entered on a number of other
points connected with churches and schools which he had been called
upon to alter, sometimes increasing the power of sound by lowering
the ceiling and other arrangements, and on other occasions diminish-
ing excessive sound by providing means for its escape or absorption.
He then adverted specially to the lecture room of the Smithsonian
Institution, and complimented Prof. Henry on the arrangements
adopted, saying that it was one of the very few lecture rooms where
the voice could be enunciated and heard without effort on the part of
the speaker and hearer.
Dr. Reid then adverted to the great progress of acoustics in later
years, though it had not yet received the same proportionate attention
as optics, and gave a number of illustrations of the effects of the voices
of different public speakers, from Wellington and Peel to O’Connell
and Shiel ; pointing out also the leading peculiarities in the voices of
Jenny Lind, Rubini, Catalani, and in the violin of Paganini, which
he described as wielding the power of an Orpheus in modern days,
and as having exceeded in his opinion rather than fallen short of the
almost fabulous terms in which it was often mentioned.
A brief review of the whole question of architecture was then taken,
and the necessity shown for combining utility and economy, as well
as true beauty and harmony of structure. The great questions of
acoustics, lighting, warming, and ventilating might be mutually in-
terwined or accommodated to each other, and perfected with the
design and decorations as much as was necessary, before any building
was commenced. The principal desiderata necessary for the future
progress of architecture were next adverted to; the importance of
establishing colleges or special curricula in existing schools for civil
and naval architecture, and the immense amount of valuable infor-
mation and experience at present lost from the want of such establish-
ments were pointed out; universal education in the elements of science
was urged as equally important to health, arts, and manufactures, and
the extended organization of architectural, agricultural, polytechnic,
and industrial institutions.
Dr. Reid then referred to a paper that he had recently published on
a college of architecture inthe American Journal of Education, edited
by the Hon. Henry Barnard, and thanked his audience for the interest
they had taken in his exposition of the views he had advocated. He
concluded his lectures with the following outline of the course of study
recommended for students of architecture :
LECTURES. 185
CURRICULUM, OR COURSE OF STUDY RECOMMENDED FOR STUDENTS OF ARCHI-
TECTURE, BY DR. D. B. REID.
I. Generar Srupres, referring to the materials of which the globe is
composed, their power and capabilities, and their relations to the
human frame.
1. Chemistry—history of the elements of which the globe is com-
posed, and of their combinations,
2. Mechanical philosophy, including the mutual relations of solids,
liquids and gases.
8. Heat, light, electricity, and magnetism.
4. Mineralogy and geology.
5. Meteorology.
6. The general structure and physiology of the frame of man—prin-
ciples of hygiene.
Il. SpecraL STUDIES.
1. The materials used in building, natural and artificial—their
strength and capabilities.
2. The principles and practice of design and construction—the dif-
ferent orders and styles of architecture.
3. Outline of the history of architecture as a fine and as a useful
art—the monuments of antiquity—the peculiar works of modern
times.
4, Public buildings, including schools, churches, law-courts, prisons,
hospitals, theatres, and gymnasia for exercise and recreation.
5. Habitations for the people—extreme importance of the tenement
question, and of the right construction of the habitations of the
poorer classes in all large cities ; its relation to the wants, habits,
and morals of the inhabitants.
. Special buildings for trades, workshops, and manufactories.
. The construction requisite for acoustics, warming, cooling, light-
ing, ventilating, fire-proofing, draining and sewerage, the collec-
tion and removal of refuse, and the importance of due provision
being adjusted for all these purposes before the execution of any
building is commenced. “
8. The selection of sites for buildings, superficial drainage, the
peculiarities required in different classes of foundations.
9. The special architecture required in destroying noxious fumes
and exhalations from drains, manufactories, and other houses,
and for facilitating the cleansing of large cities and villages, and
the general preservation of the public health; the objects and
conduct of quarantine on shore.
10. The principles and practice* of decorations—the influence of
colors.
11. Plans, drawings, and specifications; architectural books re-
"quired in conducting business accounts.
12. Preparing estimates and measuring executed work.
-~I co
186
TH.
Eye
LECTURES.
It is presumed that the student will carry on a systematic series
of exercises in drawing perspective as well as plan drawing, in-
cluding isometrical perspective, that he will equally pursue his
mathematical studies in relation to every department of the pro-
fession which he may have to cultivate, and engage.as soon as hig
time permits, or so adjust his studies as to enable him to become
an apprentice to an architect, where he can see daily the realities
of his profession. On the whole, however, nothing should be
undertaken, if practicable, that will interfere with the right
prosecution’ of his studies.
Lastly, a workshop and laboratory should be provided, in which
the student shall have the opportunity of becoming practically
acquainted with experimental chemistry, carpentry, and mechanics »
generally, and be enabled to test materials, and make or direct the
construction of models that will facilitate all his labors.
LECTURES. 187
SYLLABUS OF A COURSE OF LECTURES ON PHYSICS,
BY PROFESSOR JOSEPH HENRY, SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
PART FIRST.
INTRODUCTION.
(1.), Screncz, properly so called, is the knowledge of the laws of
phenomena, whether they relate to mind or matter.
By mind we understand that which thinks, wills and is capable of
moral emotions—by matter that which affects owr senses—by the term
phenomena a collection of associated facts; and by daw the relation
which pervades a class of facts, or a general fact in reference to the
order of succession or the method of production of the phenomena.
2.) So far as these laws have been discovered and developed, they
constitute the scrence of the present day.
The study of the laws of the phenomena necessarily includes that
of the phenomena themselves.
The mere description and classification of facts belong to Natural
History.—|{ Novum Organum. |
The test of a knowledge of true science is the ability to predict what
will happen when the circumstances are known.
(3.) General science is separated into two divisions corresponding
to the two great objects of thought, material and immaterial.
The first is usually called physical science, and the second meta-
physical. The use of these terms is, however, conventional. The
phenomena of mind, as well as of matter, belong to nature, which
includes all existence.
(4.) Physical science or natural puilosophy, in the widest use of the
term, comprehends the laws of all the phenomena of external nature,
but in the progress of knowledge it has been found necessary to divide
it into various parts.
It is first separated into the study of the laws of Organic and Inor-
ganic matter.
The first comprehends Zoology and Botany, or the phenomena of
animal and vegetable life.
The phenomena of inorganic matter are also considered under two
divisions, Celestial and Terrestrial. The first, which also includes
some of the phenomena belonging to the earth, is called astronomy.
The phenomena of terrestrial inorganic bodies are farther divided
into three parts.
1. Geology, including mineralogy, which treats of the laws of the
arrangement and constitution of the masses which form the earth.
188 LECTURES.
2. Chemistry, which relates to the peculiar phenomena of individual
bodies ; to the laws of their combinations ; decompositions &e.
3. Natural Philosophy, or Physics, the branch of science with
which we are to be occupied in this course of lectures, teaches the
laws of the general phenomena of bodies and of the agents which pro-
duce the changes in inorganic matter; such as the unknown cause of
attraction, light, heat, electricity, &.
These divisions of the study of the laws of inorganic matter are con-
ventional rather than real.
(5.) Science assumes as its basis that the laws of nature are constant.
The same principle is often expressed in other terms; as, 1. The
uniformity of causation. 2. Like causes produce like effects. 3. In
similar circumstances similar consequences will ensue.
This principle is the foundation of all scientific reasoning, and is
collected from all experience by an original propensity or law of the
human mind.—[ Young. |
(6.) Most of the phenomena of nature are presented to us as the
complex results of the operation of a number of laws.
We are said to explain or give the cause of a simple fact when we
refer it to the law of the phenomena to which it belongs, or to a
more general fact ; and a compound one when we analyse it and refer
its several parts to their respective laws.
(7.) The indefinite use of the term cause, has led to much confusion
and error. We distinguish two kinds of causes, intelligent and phy-
sical.
By an intelligent cause is meant the volition of an intelligent and
efficient being producing a definite result. By a physical cause, scien-
tifically speaking, nothing more is understood than the law to which
a phenomenon can be referred.
Thus we give the physical cause of the fall of a stone or the eleva-
tion of the tides when we refer these phenomena to the law of gravita-
tion. And the intelligent cause when we refer this law to the volition
of the Deity.
In'cases where the law has not been discovered, one fact is said to
be the cause of another, when the latter, in some unknown way,
depends on the former. Before the law of universal gravitation was
discovered, the moon was said to be the cause of the tides, but we
now say, in reference to this explanation, that the true cause was
then unknown.
The intelligent cause is sometimes called the moral cause, and also
the efficient cause.
It is to be regretted that the use of the term cause has not been
restricted to the efficiency of an intelligent being, to which it alone
properly belongs, and from which the idea is derived.
(8.) In the investigation of the order of nature, two general methods
have been proposed ; the a priori and the inductive method.
The a priori method consists in reasoning downwards from the
original cognitions, which, according to the a priori philosophy, exist
in the mind relative to the nature of things, to the laws and phe-
nomena of the material universe,
LECTURES. 189
The inductive method, which is the inverse of the other, is founded
on the principle that all our knowledge of nature must be derived
from experience. It therefore commences with the study of phe-
nomena, and ascends from these by what is called the inductive pro-
cess, to a knowledge of the laws of nature. It is by this method that
the great system of modern physical science has been established. It
was used in a limited degree by the ancients, and especially by Aris-
totle, but its importance was never placed in a conspicuous light until
the publication of the Novum Organum of Bacon.
(9.) In the application of the inductive method to the discovery of
the laws of nature, four processes are usually employed,
1. Observation, which consists in the accumulation of facts; by
watching the operations of nature as they spontaneously present them-
selves to our view.
This is a slow process, but it is almost the only one, which can be
employed in some branches of science. For example, in astronomy.
2. Heperiment, which is another method of observation, in which
we bring about, as it were, a new process of nature by placing matter
in some unusual condition.
This is a much more expeditious process than that of simple obser-
vation, and has been aptly styled the method of cross-questioning or
interrogating nature.
The term experience is often used to denote either observation or
experiment, or both.
3. The inductive process, or that by which a general law is inferred
from particular facts. This consists generally in making a number
of suppositions or guesses as to the nature of the law to be discovered,
and adopting the one which agrees with the facts. The law thus
adopted is usually further verified by making deductions from it and
testing these by experiment ; if the result is not what was anticipated,
the expression of the law is modified, perhaps many times in succes-
sion, until all the inferences from it are found in accordance with the
facts of experience.
4. Deduction, which is the inverse of induction, consists in reason-
ing downwards from a law which has been established by induction,
to a system of new facts. In this process the strict logic of mathe-
matics is employed, the laws furnished by induction standing in the
place of axioms. Thus all the facts relative to the movements of the
heavenly bodies, have been derived by mathematical reasoning from
the laws of motion and universal gravitation.
Induction and deduction are sometimes called analysis and syn-
thesis.
(10.) When one system of facts is similar to another, and when
therefore we infer that the law of the one is similar to the law of the
other we are said to reason from analogy.
This kind of reasoning is of constant use in the process of induction,
and is founded on our conviction of the uniformity of the laws of
nature.
‘In the process of the discovery of a law, the supposition which we
make as to its nature, must be founded on a physical analogy, between
190 LECTURES.
the facts under investigation and some other facts of which the law is
known. One successful induction is the key to another.
We must be careful not to be misled by a mere rhetorical analogy.
(11.) A supposition or guess thus made from analogy, as to the
nature of the law of a class of facts, is usually called an hypothesis,
and sometimes the antecedent probability.
(12.) When an hypothesis of this kind has been extended and veri-
fied, or in other words, when it has become an exact expression of the
law of a class of facts, it is then called a theory.
(13.) Physical theories are of two kinds; which are sometimes
called pure and hypothetical. The one being simply the expression
of a law of facts resting on experiment and observation. Such as the
theory of universal gravitation—the theory of sound, &c.
The other consists of an hypothesis combined with facts of expe-
rience. Of this kind is’ the theory of electricity which attributes a
large class of phenomena to the operations of an hypothetical fluid
endowed with properties, so imagined as to render the theory an
expression of the law of the facts.
On account of the abuse of theory and hypothesis, discredit has
been thrown even on the terms. They are, however, of essential im-
portance to the advance and application of science; since few physical
investigation can be made without the adoption of some provisional
hypothesis ; and a good hypothetical theory such as that of electricity
is generally the only convenient expression of the law of a large class
of phenomena,
Strictly speaking, no theory in the present state of science, can be
considered as an actual expression of the truth. It may, indeed, be
an exact expression of the law of a limited class of facts, but in the
advance of science, it is liable to be merged in a higher generalization
or the expression of a wider law.
(14.) Although in accordance with the principles of the inductive
philosophy, it is acknowledged that there is no other method of estab-
lishing the laws of nature, than by induction founded on experience ;
yet many writers who profess to adopt this method, inconsistently
attempt to deduce some of the most important of these laws from
a@ priori considerations.
For example, in works on mechanics we find frequent attempts to
prove the laws of motion by an application of the principle of Leibnitz,
called the sufficient reason, which is expressed by saying, nothing
exists in any state unless there is some reason for its being in that state
rather than in any other. This principle is evidently true in itself,
but its application to the proof of a law of nature presupposes in us a
knowledge of all the reasons for the particular existence of things.
(15.) Another principal of Leibnitz often referred to by writers on
natural philosophy, is that called the law of continuity. His motto in
reference to this was, natura non operatur per saltum—all the changes
in nature are produced by insensible gradations. This principle, it is
true, expresses a fact of frequent occurrence, yet since it does not rest
on a suflicient induction, we cannot consider it as a law of nature.
LECTURES. 191
(16.) It should be recollected that laws of nature are contingent
truths, or such as might be different from what they are for anything
we know—that they can only be established by induction from facts
of experience—that they admit of no other proof than the a posterior
one of the exact agreement of all the deductions from them with the
actual phenomena of nature, and that’no other reason can be assigned
for their existence than the will of the Creator.
(17.) It should also not be forgotten that the great test of the per-
fection of any branch of science, and of the truth of its laws, is the power
it gives us of predicting events when the circumstances are known.
(18.) Importance of mathematics in the study of physical science,
principally used in the process of deduction.
It is the great instrument of all exact enquiry relative to time,
space, order, number, &c. And as the material universe exists
in space, and consists of measureable parts, and its operations are
produced in time and by degrees, the abstract truths of mathematics
are applicable by analogy to the development of those of external
nature.
(19.) Importance of experimental illustrations in teaching physical
science. ;
They serve to give a clear idea of the phenomena, and make an in-
delible impression on the mind.
(20.) The ultimate tendency of the study of the physical sciences
is the improvement of the intellectual, moral, and physical condition
of our species. It habituates the mind to the contemplation and dis-
covery of truth. It unfolds the magnificence, the order, and the
beauty of the material universe, and affords most striking proofs of
the beneficence, the wisdom and power of the Creator. It enables
man to control the operations of nature, and to subject them to his
use.
(21.) We propose to treat of the general subject of natural phi-
losophy in order as follows :
1. SoMAToLoGy.
2. Mecuanics, (Rational and Physical,) including Statics and Dy-
namics.
. Hyprostatics and HypRopYNAMICS.
. Pneumatics, including Aérostatics and Aérodynamics.
. Huat, including the Steam Engine.
Oo OF PR OD
. Sounp, including the doctrine of vibrations.
7. Enecrriciry and Magevyetism, including Galvanism, Hlectro-Mag-
netism, &c.
8. Liaut and Raprant Heart.
9. METEOROLOGY.
Difficulty of giving a clear idea to these different branches ; to un-
derstand any one of them requires some knowledge of all the others.
192 LECTURES.
SOMATOLOGY.
(1.) Somatology (cwpya and Aoyoc) treats of the general properties of
bodies.
A body, a limited portion of matter.
(2.) The general properties of bodies are certain simple phenomena
for the most. part immediately obvious to our senses, and some of which
are essential to our perception of the existence of matter.
In the present state of science we suppose that there are different
kinds of matter, endowed with different qualities or properties ; that
these enter into various combinations, while the quantity of each in
the universe remains the same. It is possible, however, that there
may be but one kind of matter and that the different properties are the
result of the different groupings of its parts.
(3.) The following is a list of the general properties of bodies as
recognized at the present time.
Extension.
Impenetrability.
Figure.
Divisibility.
Porosity.
Compressibility.
Dilatability.
Mobility. |
Inertia. ROMERO properties according to the
10. Attraction, and molecular hypothesis.
11. Repulsion. J
12. Polarity.
13. Elasticity.
Of these, impenetrability, mobility, inertia, attraction, and repul-
sion, are general facts to which many particular facts may be referred.
(4.) The general properties of matter are frequently divided into
two classes, essential and contingent properties ; but, these are meta-
physical rather than physical divisions, and different authors are not
agreed as to what are the essential properties.
It appears evident, however, that extension and impenetrability are
necessary to our perception of matter, or, in other words, without
them our senses would not be affected by matter.
(5.) All the general properties of matter are not to be considered as
ultimate facts of which no explanation can be given; most of them,
as will be shown, can be accounted for by adopting the molecular
hypothesis of the ‘constitution of matter,
Besides general properties, different bodies possess peculiar proper-
ties which ‘distinguish them from each other; but the consideration
of these belongs to chemistry.
Matter is found in three states or consistencies—solid, liquid, and
aeriform or gaseous, and to these may reasonably be added a fourth—
the etherial.
Necessary to our perception of matter.
CD COT SD OTH C9 DO
LECTURES. 193
Terrestrial bodies are divided into three kingdoms—Animal, Vege-
table, and Mineral. Also into Organic and Inorganic.
EXTENSION.
(6.) Matter exists in space; bodies occupy definite portions of space
and are therefore extended.
Extension of matter in three dimensions.
The quantity of space occupied by a body is called its volume.
(7.) The exact dimensions of bodies are often required in scientific
investigations, and to obtain these, various instruments and methods —
are employed.
The vernier (named from the inventor.) Improperly called nonius.
In this, small divisions are measured by the difference of larger ones,
on two scales. The long graduated rod is called the scale, the short
slider the vernier. See model. |
As an example let each division on the scale be ;/; of an inch, and
let 11 of these be equal to 10 of those, of the vernier ; then it follows
that each division of the latter will be }4 of an inch, and the difference
of the two will be -1, of an inch. Now if any two divisions on each
scale coincide with each other, the next pair above will differ -4, of
an inch, the pair two degrees above ;3,, three degrees 73,5, &c.
(8.) Comparator. For comparing lengths of bars.
Micrometer, consisting of a fine screw with a large circular head
divided into parts—applied to different instruments.
1. To dividing machine. Examples of use—500 divisions in the
length of an inch, on a slip of glass.
2. To spherometer—tripod with micrometer screw in the middle to
determine thickness and sphericity.
Gage plate—for ascertaining the thickness of wire and of plates.
Proportional callipers and compasses.
Saxton’s moving mirror, for measuring minute changes in length.
(9.) Method of determining interior diameter ‘of fine tubes, by
weighing the mercury which it will contain.
Use of a vessel with a bulb and fine hollow stem, as in the ther-
mometer.
Method of graduating irregular vessels into divisions of equal capa-
city by equal weights of mercury.
IMPENETRABILITY.
(10.) The property in consequence of which no two bodies can occupy
the same space at the same time.
Sometimes regarded as an axiom, but rests on invariable experience.
It was not recognized before the time of Archimedes, who made it
the ground of his theory of Hydrostatics.
Space without impenetrability is called void space or a vacuum.
Absolute impenetrability not considered by some as an essential
property of matter. See Theory of Boscovich.
Illustrations—impenetrability of air; water ; solids.
io. 8
194 LECTURES.
FIGURE.
(11.) Bodies being limited portions of matter must possess figure or
form.
Figure and extension are sometimes called the mathematical affec-
\tions of matter.
(12.) Many bodies possess forms peculiar to themselves.
Forms of animals and plants, are distinctive marks which serve to
identify the species.
All inorganic matter is capable of assuming regular geometrical
forms called crystals. See constitution of bodies.
Amorphous mass.
Liquids and gases have no peculiar form but assume that of the
vessel in which they are contained.
DIVISIBILITY.
(13.) Every body is capable of being separated into parts, and these
again into other parts and so on, until the portions become so minute
as to escape our senses.
Much discussion relative to the infinite divisibility of matter. The
demonstrations given in the older books refer to the infinite divisibility
of space, and prove nothing as to the actual divisibility of matter.
(14.) It is convenient to adopt the hypothesis that matter is divisi-
ble only to the degree of what is called the ultimate atoms. These are
supposed to be indestructible, and endowed with permanent properties.
According to this hypothesis a number of atoms form a molecule—a
number of molecules a compound molecule, and a number of the latter
a particle.
Atomic Theory of chemical combination.
Explanation of definite composition of bodies on this theory.
Atomic volumes of different groups of different bedies.
(15.) Actual divisibility of matter carried to a great extent.
Examples of division of metals, &e.
Gold and silver leaf.
Gilding on embroidering thread—a single grain of gold on thread
of this kind has been divided into 3,600,000 parts, perceptible through
a microscope magnifying 500 times; and each part exhibiting the
properties of the metal.
Wollaston’s method of making exceedingly fine wire—finest 3535
of an inch in diameter. Hollow glass thread of extreme fineness.
(16.) Divisibility of matter in solution.
One grain of blue carmine tinges 10 lbs. of water, which is calcu-
lated to give 60 millions of blue particles—the carmine itself is a com-
pound substance.
Metallic solutions and chemical tests.
(17.) Illustrations from organized bodies.
The thread by which the spider suspends himself is composed ot
6,000 single threads.
Diameter of the globules of the blood, which give the red color,
4000th part of an inch.
LECTURES. 195
Ehrenberg has found whole rocks composed of the shells of animals
so minute that one cubic line contains about 23 millions of them.
These animals must have had limbs and other parts.
(18.) Divisibility of odorous matter.
Our olfactory nerves frequently detect the presence of matter in the
atmosphere, of which no chemical test could afford an indication,
A single grain of musk will scent a large room for years.
The dog hunts by the scent of odors imperceptible to man.
A single drop of lavender made to fill a large room.
POROSITY AND COMPRESSIBILITY.
(19.) All bodies can be indefinitely compressed, or reduced in
volume; consequently, in their ordinary state, they do not form a
plenum of matter.
The intervals between the parts are called pores.
If we adopt the hypothesis of the atomic constitution of matter, we
must admit the existence of different orders of pores.
Pores between the atoms—between the molecules—between the
particles, and between the grosser parts.
Illustrations—shrinking by cold—mixture of liquids—water im.
sponge.
Improper idea often given of porosity:
(20.) Real and apparent volume of bodies.
Method of determining the ratio of these.
The sum of all the atoms of a body constitutes its mess.
Density is the quantity of matter in a given bulk or volume...
In homogeneous bodies mass proportion to the bulk.
In heterogeneous bodies, to bulk and density.
(21.) Absolute quantity of matter in a given body may be exceed--
ingly small.
Illustration=—vessel filled with alcohol, great quantity of cotton
introduced—sponge dipped in vessel nearly filled with water.
Relative bulk of steam and water; great porosity of the former.
(22.) Porosity of organized bodies.
Mercury forced through a cylinder of oak—pine sinks in water when
saturated by pressure—experiments of Scoresby. Skin perforated with:
a thousand holes in the length of an inch, through which the insen~
sible perspiration passes; water through a bladder. Remarks on
India rubber cloth—improper for clothing.
(23.) Porosity of minerals.
Mercury through lead; condensation of alloys; water through
gold; water through cast iron ; gold leaf translucent. Porosity of
chalk—of marble—of hydrophane.
Method of coloring agate.
Effects of water on rocks. Formation of stalagmites and stalactites.
Method of determining whether a stone will stand the effects of
frost by the absorption and crystallization of a salt.
196 LECTURES.
(24.) Porosity of liquids :
Water and sulphuric acid; water and alcohol; salt and water ;
water and gas.
(25.) Porosity of gases:
Air and vapor; nitrogen and hydrogen.
Some bodies are without pores of the third order. Examples:
glass, crystals, &c.; but these can be compressed, and, therefore,
have pores of an inferior order.
(26.) Compressibility of solids, by mechanical means :
Of iron in casting; of brass for delicate machines; of wood, so as to
sink in water; of cork in neck of bottles lowered into the deep sea.
(27.) Of water and other liquids.
Apparatus of Perkins. Of Cirsted. See Elasticity.
(28.) Compressibility of air and all gases.
Experiment with air in a tube submitted to great pressure under
water.
DILATABILITY.
(29.) All bodies change their volume with a change of temperature.
Examples: air expanded by heat; also water; bar of metal
lengthened ; Saxton’s apparatus employed.
Preliminary notions of heat.
General description of the thermometer.
Dilatability by the removal of pressure.
Examples in the case of air; water; solids.
(30.) By mechanical exertion.
Examples: When India rubber is stretched, its density is said to
be slightly lessened. Also, when wire is drawn in the direction of its
length, the same effect is produced.
MOBILITY.
“31.) The property by which a body is capable of a change of place.
Motion is better illustrated than defined. The following definition,
“however, is sometimes given :
Motion is the rectilinear change of distance between two points.—
[Dr. Young. |
~ According to this definition, if there were but one point in the
universe, there could be no measurable motion.
(32.) Rest is permanency in the same place.
It is only apparent ; all bodies are really in motion, expanding and
contracting with the constant change of temperature—moved by every
sound ; in motion with the earth on its axis and in its orbit.
Rest and motion of two kinds, absolute and relative.
Illustrations :
Direction of motion; continued and reciprocating ; rectilinear and
circular.
The line described is sometimes called the trajectory.
LECTURES 197
(33.) In the consideration of motion the ideas of space and time
are necessarily involved.
Time is considered as a quantity consisting of parts which can be
compared or measured.
Imperfectly measured by a succession of ideas.
Circumstances which vary the apparent rapidity of the lapse of time.
(34.) In the exact measurement of time, the following axiom is as-
sumed—ZIn the operations of nature the same effects under the same cir-
cumstances are always produced in equal times.
Examples: The fall of a stone from the same height to-day and yes-
terday ; the successive vibrations of a pendulum ; flowing of equal
quantities of sand; the revolutions of the earth on its axis.
(35.) Uniform motion is that in which equal spaces are passed over
in equal times. ;
Motion of the earth on its axis perfectly uniform. From this is de-
rived the principal unit of time—the day ; the subdivisions of which
give the lesser divisions.
By the whirling mirror less than the ;yy'sc0th part of a second can
be measured, and yet great physical changes are produced in this in-
terval.
(36.). The velocity or rate of motion of a moving body, is the ratio
of the space described to the time of describing it. Illustrations.
Velocity, time, and space, are heterogeneous quantities, and are
therefore compared numerically.
Unity of time and of space—hour, mile—second, foot.
The relations of uniform motion are expressed by the following
equations ;
S—VT: ined = = (1.)
(37.) Variable motion is that in which equal spaces are not described
in equal times.
The velocity may be constantly increasing or constantly decreasing.
Two cases of each kind: 1. Variation equal in equal times; 2. Vari-
ation unequal in equal times.
INERTIA.
(38.) That property of matter by which it tends to retain its state,
whether of rest or motion. [La Place. |
(39.) It has been established by a wide induction that a body at rest
cannot of itself begin to move and that a body in motion cannot change
its velocity nor its direction of motion without the action of some extra-
NEOUS CAUSE.
This is called the law of Inertia. (See Mechanics.)
It may be otherwise stated as follows:
. A body at rest tends to remain continually at rest; a body in free
motion tends to move continually (1) with a uniform velocity, and
(2) in a straight line.
198 LECTURES.
(40.) That which tends to produce change, or prevent motion, ts
called a force,
Or whatever causes a body to exist under a given condition, or
whatever changes any of its relations, is called a force.
The muscular exertion of animals, the unbending of a bow, the
impulse of a moving body, are instances of active force. The resist-
ance of a rope which suspends a body, of a table which supports a
weight, are examples of forces which tend to prevent motion.
Our idea of force is derived from the muscular effort required to
produce the motion of a mass of matter.
The original meaning of the word was muscle or tendon. {Whe-
well.| It becomes metaphorical when applied in any other case, and
we must not, therefore, imagine that force is always connected with
lapor or difficulty. r
Force which is capable of doing work, that is of transforming mat-
ter is called power or energy. [See mechanics. |
(41.) In all cases of the change of the state of a body in reference
to rest or motion, we can attribute this change to an extraneous force.
The spontaneous motions of animals are ascribed to vitality.
The fall of a stone to the action of the earth.
Two kinds of force, Impulsive and Incessant; an incessant force may
be either Accelerating or Retarding. HKxamples.
(42.) Force is measured by its effects.
We usually call that a double force which produces a double velocity
in the same mass, or
Wik EK: ons) . NE
We also call that a double force ae produces the same velocity
in double masses, or
ype Ree aM
When the velocities and masses are both unequal, the forces are
measured by the product of the velocities into the masses, or
J peat alas. Oo Met l sih
The force proportional to the product of the mass into the velocity
is called the quantity of motion or momentum.
An incessant force is measured by the relation
Vv
BESS tore ta (2.)
ils
(43.) It must be observed that the relations here given are the re-
sults of experience. We know nothing of force but by its effects, and
in some cases we are obliged to adopt the relation
i eee SNe
Force is also sometimes measured by pressure.
The laws of force and motion will be fully developed under the head
of Mechanics.
(44.) Illustrations of the foregoing principles.
Tendency of bodies to remain at rest. Wood split by the inertia
of an iron wedge.
Tendency of bodies to continue in motion. The inertia in this re-
LECTURES. 199
spect of solid, liquid, and aeriform bodies. Continued motion of the
planets.
Causes of cessation of motion. Friction; resistance; and communi-
cation of motion to other bodies. Ball on cloth; also on smooth
board. Wheel on friction rollers.
Matter perfectly free to move. Large mass freely suspended, put in
motion by impulses from small ball of putty; velocity small in pro-
ortion.
Effect of a succession of small impulses. Heavy body put in rapid
motion by successive pulls with cambric thread.
Attempt to put a body in a state of rapid motion by a single given
impulse.
Motion of large mass stopped by a succession ‘of small impulses.
Also, by a single impulse, or by an obstacle.
Term vis-inertic sometimes used in connexion with this phenomenon.
Tendency of matter to move in a straight line, shown by an ex-
periment.
Experimental proof of uniform velocity of unrestrained motion.
Animals sometimes act instinctively in accordance with the prin-
ciple of inertia. Hare when pursued by the hounds. Rams in
butting. Favorite amusement at the court of Persia.
Means of accumulating momentum in a large mass of matter for
purposes in the arts.
ATTRACTION AND REPULSION, OR THE GENERAL PHYSICAL FORCES.
(45.) The tendency in the parts of all matter to approach toward
or to recede from each other.
These tendencies differ from the other general properties of matter,
in the fact of their being forces acting reciprocally between bodies at
a distance from each other, or between the minute parts of the same
body. The existence of these forces, in the present state of science is
an ultimate fact, although attempts have been made to refer them
to the intermediate agent or agents of the phenomena of heat and
electricity.
The intensity of the attracting and repelling forces varies with the
distance of the parts of matter “between which they act, and where
the geometrical relation between the distance and the intensity is
known, the whole is called a law of attraction.
In the present state of knowledge we arrange the different pheno-
mena of attraction and repulsion, under the following heads, although
it is not impossible that they may be the result of one principle.
Atraction of
GRAVITATION, which act
ELECTRICITY, at sensible
MAGNETISM distances.
>
eee which act
? at insensible
CAPILLARITY,
distances.
CHEMICAL AFFINITY,
200 LECTURES.
Illustration. Attraction at a distance—action not interrupted by
solid matter—attraction and repulsion through the human body.
Attraction and repulsion instantaneous.
Variation of intensity with change of distances.
Experiment to show phenomena which appear the result of attrac-
tion, but which are due to pressure, &c.
pieces of wood collecied together on water not the result of direct
attraction.
Attraction of Gravitation.
(46.) The reciprocal tendency of all parts of the solar system to
approach each other. )
The same action probably extends to other systems.
(47.) Gravitation is an incessant force, and is generally measured
by the velocity which it imparts to the attracted body in a second of time.
May also be measured by pressure. Illustrations.
Newton’s Theory of Universal Gravitation. The most extended
generalization ever established by man. It may be expressed as fol-
lows:
1. The attraction exists between the atoms of all matter at finite dis-
tances, and is the same for all kinds of matter, hence :
2. The force of attraction is proportional to the mass of the attracting
body; the distance being the same.
3. If the same body attracts several bodies at different distances, the
JSorces are inversely as the square of the distances.
All deductions from this theory are in strict accordance with the
phenomena of nature. The only proof of the truth of any physical
law.
(48.) In some cases of attraction the whole moving force of approach
of two bodies is required, and this is as the product of the masses into
the inverse square of the distance.
The acceleration of the velocity of-approach is as the sum of the two
masses, and inversely as the square of the distance.
Illustrations of the laws by diagrams of atoms.
(49.) In reference to the attraction of spheres the following propo-
sitions will be proved. See Mechanics.
1. A particle of matter placed without a solid homogeneous sphere ©
is attracted as if all the matter of the sphere were in its centre.
2. The attraction is the same in reference to a particle without a
hollow sphere.
3. A particle placed within a homogeneous hollow sphere is in
equilibrio at any point within the sphere.
4. Particles placed at different distances from the centre within the
surface of a solid homogeneous sphere are attracted towards the cen-
tre with forces proportional to the distances from the centre.
(50.) Attraction of spheroids. Gravitation the most feeble of all
attractions ; almost imperceptible between small masses; long time
required for two lead balls to come together.
Illustrations of the foregoing principles.
LECTURES. 201
The attraction between all bodies at sensible distances proved by
the experiment of Cavendish. See Mechanics.
The attraction of all matter the same, shown by an experiment.
Also Newton’s experiment to prove the same.
(51.) At all accessible distances above the surface of the earth, the
diminution of the force of attraction is very small. If R represents
the radius of the earth, x the distance, I the force at the surface, and
D the diminution, then approximately
4
ae (3.)
+22
Small as this diminution is it may be detected by the vibrations of
a pendulum on a high mountain and at the level of the sea.
In some investigations, as that of the fall of bodies near the earth,
&c., the diminution is neglected, and the force is considered as inva-
riable: in these cases, gravitation takes the name of gravity.
(52.) The earth is nearly a sphere, and all bodies fall in straight
ines, directed nearly to its centre.
The convergency, however, in a short distance is very small. Ina
geographical mile it is but one minute of a degree.
The direction of gravity is readily shown by the plumb line.
The weight of a body is the aggregate action of gravity on each of
its atoms, or
W=Nyg. (4.)
Consequently the weight of bodies is as the quantities of matter, and
also as the force of gravity.
(53.) The absolute weight of a body is estimated in reference to
some arbitrary standard, which differs in different countries. In
England the grain is the foundation of the system of weights.
Pound avoirdupois (16 0z.) 7000 grains,
Ounce do. aye ana
Pound Troy (12 0z.) 5760 ¢
Ounce do. 480 Ya
In order to perpetuate the standard it is referred to the weight of
a given bulk of pure water at a given temperature. Thus the En-
glish grain is of such a weight that a cubic inch of distilled water at
62° F. in vacuo, is equal to 252.72 of such grains. A cubic foot
therefore weighs 62.3862 lbs. avoirdupois.
In the State of New York, by a provisional act of the legislature,
the ounce is the standard ; and this is of such a weight that 1,000 of
them are equal to the weight of a cubic foot of distilled water at its
maximum density (40° F.) and in vacuo.
(54.) The ratio of the weight of one body to that of another of equal
bulk taken as a standard is called the specific gravity.
Pure water at a given temperature is the standard for solids and
liquids ; air under a given pressure and temperature for gases and
vapours.
Simple method shown of determining the specific gravity of bodies—
other methods will be given under the head of hydrostatics.
202 LECTURES.
Table of specific gravities exhibited. Hydrogen the lightest sub-
stance, and Iridium the heaviest—the first is .069 the weight of air,
and the latter 23 times that of water. In equal bulks the weight of
the latter is more than a quarter of a million of times that of the
former. [Dr. Hare.]
(55.) It is a remarkable fact that the znertie of equal bulks of dif-
ferent substances are in the same ratio as their weights. Hence the
masses, the quantities of matter, and the densities of different sub-
stances of the same bulk are said to be proportional to their relative
weights ; or, in other words, to their specific gravities.
(56.) The absolute weight in ounces of solids and liquids may be
obtained by the following relation, in which B is the bulk in cubic feet,
and § the specific gravity.
W=10008 xB. (5.)
The weight of air shown. 770 times lighter than water at the
freezing point with bar. at 30 inches. Difference between the weight
of air and the pressure of the atmosphere.
Electrical and magnetic attraction and repulsion.
(57.) These are exhibited under certain conditions in all kinds of
matter. They will be fully discussed under their appropriate heads.
Magnetic attraction may however be here employed to illustrate the
general principles of polarity.
The attraction and repulsion of a magnet shown to exist at its two
ends called poles; hence the term polarity—origin of the name—
neutral point at the middle between the two poles—the magnet
broken, each part shown to be a perfect magnet with attracting and
repelling poles—again each part divided into two pieces, and again
the exhibition of new poles, and so on, until we infer that the polarity
exists in every part of the mass, or in other words that attraction and
repulsion belong to the opposite extremes of every molecule of the
metal.
(58.) In order to explain the phenomena of chemical saturation,
erystalization, the difference of the liquid and solid states of bodies,
as well as other phenomena we are obliged to admit a kind of polarity
as a general property of the molecules of all bodies.
Attraction of cohesion and adhesion, or the molecular forces.
(59.) By cohesion we designate the force by which the parts of the
same body are held together, and by adhesion that which causes the
parts of dissimilar bodies to unite. These forces are also sometimes
distinguished by the names of homogeneous and heterogeneous at-
traction.
(60.) There is also between the molecules of the same body and the
parts of different bodies a repulsive action and this with the attrac-
tions constitute what are called the molecular forces.
Also sometimes called corpuscular action.
LECTURES. 203
(61.) Cohesion of solids.—Two leaden balls made to cohere with a
force of 40 lbs. to square inch of surface of contact. Two glass
plates shown to cohere with great force—also two plates of marble.
(62.) The relative cohesion of bodies is called the ¢enacity, and this
is determined by the weight required to pull apart a bar of the sub-
stance an inch square. :
This weight is sometimes called the limit of cohesion and a know-
ledge of it is of great importance in the arts.
Barlow’s table of the cohesion of the principal substances used in
the art of construction.
eastiniecinas pee es 2 184.256 - lbs iiebedke 5224 2-52 oe Se tes ae 12,915 lbs.
Swedish malleable iron_---- 72,064 COE Mog RE es a etter Oe 11,880
Good American ores 60,000 Syeamore: se. Jesas sate eeee 9,630
English Ao) St sa 55,872 Beeches tee coseteeh ee 12.225
Caswinone=s55 2555255. -46 19,096 NG Hig rh yay eT eS he a ee 14,130
@aKt COpper= sain segte—cts5 19,072 1) of ees PR ari penn Fe 9,750
Mellow brass2- =~ <== ees 17,958 Memelttit 725502. 22h. eb 9,540
Oeste te sere ese ye ak 4,736 Christiana dealijas.2-5 9226 12,346
Cagileade os. e esas < 1,824 (arch) ees ase ee ee 12,240
Considerable uncertainty in reference to tenacity—much smaller
force required to produce rupture, if time be allowed for the action.
Explanation of this.
(63.) The tenacity and density of surface of metals are increased by
drawing the masses into wire. The cohesion of gold, silver, and
brass more than doubled by this process. |obison.| The surface in
this case appears to receive a fibrous texture. If the outside be re-
moved by acid the tenacity is materially lessened. Same effect pro-
duced by annealing [heating and gradually cooling] the wire.
(64.) The mixture of some metals is more tenacious than the metals
themselves. Brass is stronger than its components, copper and zinc.
A small addition of zinc to tin almost doubles its strength. In these
cases heterogeneous attraction is stronger than homogeneous.
(65.) The tenacity of many substances is greater in some directions
than in others. #xamples, crystals, wood, &c.
The tenacity of bodies is effected by heat; sometimes increased,
sometimes diminished. Iron at first stronger then weaker.
The effect of a small degree of heat on the cohesion of two leaden
balls shown by experiment. By the application of a greater degree of
heat, the metal may. be changed from a solid to a vapor.
(66.) Cohesion of liquids.—The relative intensity of cohesive force of
liquids may be measured by suspending a plate, which can be wet by
the liquid, to the arm of a balance, and attaching weights to the
other arm until separation takes place. Dividing the weight thus
found, by the number of square inches in the plate, the quotient will
give the cohesive force for one square inch.
The cohesion of water for water, shown by the force required to sep-
arate a disc of wood. iiupture between water and water. Attraction
of water for wood greater than that of water for water.
In the same manner we can find the relative cohesion of different
liquids. 52 grains to the square inch required for the separation of
204 LECTURES.
water ; 28 grains for alcohol ; and 31 grains for oil of turpentine.
Liquid in drops. Relative size of drops,
(67.) The foregoing method gives us the relative cohesion, but not
the absolute. It is not the attraction of the whole section of the fluid
which produces the result, but that of the indefinitely thin film around
the exterior perpendicular surface, and within which the mass of fluid
hangs by its cohesion. [ Young, La Place, Poisson.| Explanation of
this: See (89.)
Connexion of the curvature of the surface with this apparent attrac-
tion. See Capillarity.
(68.) The molecular attraction of water for water at 32 degrees, is
probably greater than ice for ice at the same temperature. The ap-
parent feeble attraction of water for water, is due to the perfect mobil-
ity of the particles which permits them to slip upon each other.
Explanation of this: See (89.)
Phenomena of adhesion.
(69.) Adhesion of solids to solids.—The solder adheres to the metals
which it unites. Gold leaf stamped on metals—adheres to glass.
Wax adheres to many solids. Bladder dried on glass, the surface of
the latter torn by forcibly removing the former.
(70.) Adhesion of liquids and solids.—The force required to separate
glass from mercury, shown by experiment—the cohesion is here
stronger than the adhesion.
Same experiment with a clean surface of copper, the rupture is now
between the molecules of the liquid—adhesion stronger than cohesion.
The same in case of a solid, wet or infilmed with water.
Stream of water made to follow the under side of an inclined glass
tube. Method of pouring a liquid into a vial with small neck.
Explanation of the use of a lip to vessels from which liquids are to
be poured. The edge of the vessel touched with grease.
Mercury poured from glass vessel, also from a tinned one.
(71.) Adhesion of solids increased by the interposition of a liquid.
The adhesion increased by the solidification of the interposed substance.
A thin flake of tallow cooled between two discs.
(72.) Different liquids possess different degrees of attraction for the
same solid.
Film of water driven from surface of glass by a drop of alcohol ; the
attraction of the latter for the solid the stronger.
Same effect with oil of turpentine.
(73.) Phenomena of solution ; lead in mercury ; sugar in water,
&c.; heterogeneous attraction stronger than the cohesion of the solid.
Different bodies dissolved in the same liquid.
Effect of pulverizing in hastening solution.—Due to the increase of
surface. A cubic inch of matter cut into little cubes, each ,~, of an
inch on the edge, will exhibit a surface of exactly 100 square feet.
Trituration produces a finer division than even this.
Explanation of the cleansing effect of water.
LECTURES. 205
Displacement of one body by the solution of another. Rosin dis-
solved in alcohol. Water poured in.
~ Alcohol dissolves some substances which water does not; and the
converse.
(74.) Adhesion of liquids to liquids.—Oil spreads on the surface of
water. First drop infilms the whole of a limited surface; second
drop collects itself into the form of a lens. The film so thin as to
exhibit the colors of the soap bubble. Explanation of the spreading
of oil on water.
Effect of oil in stilling surface waves. Dr. Franklin’s magical cane.
Surface motions—camphor, spirits of turpentine, &c., on water ;
motion produced by alcohol, oil, &c., in light bodies.
(75.) Adhesion of gases to solids.—Air to glass shown by pouring
mercury into glass tube—vapor of water to glass—clean surface of
platinum plunged into a vessel of oxygen and hydrogen ; same effect
with other metals slightly warmed.
Rapid manufactory of vinegar ; object of dividing the metal.
Adhesion of gases to liquids.— Air absorbed by water ; also by melted
metals. Shown by pouring the liquid metal into water.
(76.) Adhesion of gases to gases.—Between the molecules of the
same gas continued repulsion exists ; but the molecules of different
gases probably slightly attract each other. Diffusion of gases the
same as if the one was a vaccuum to the other. [See Pneumatics. |
Molecular repulsion.
(77.) Examples.—Two glasses, one slightly convex the other flat,
placed on each other and pressed by a force of 1,000 pounds to the
square inch are still, at the distance from each other of the thickness
of the top of a soap bubble just before it bursts, or at least ;7; >th of
an inch. Method of finding this. |[JZtobison. |
Small drops of water rebound from a surface of water. Also alcohol
from a surface of the same liquid gently heated.
Solids expand when the pressure of the air is withdrawn, this
shown by experiment. Liquids, compressed, spring back to the
original bulk when the pressure is removed.
The particles of air repel each other, repulsion increases with dimi-
nution of distance.
By a slight agitation of percussion powder it springs into a gaseous
state—the particles separate with immense velocity, and repel each
other with great force.
The dew drop which rests on the surface of a leaf is not in mathe-
matical contact, but sustained by repulsion.
Repulsion of solids when heated. Experiment with an instrument
called the Rocker.
(78.) The molecular attractions and repulsions appear to predomi-
nate at different distances. All bodies attract each other at sensible
distances, but when brought nearly in contact they repel ; still nearer
attract and again repel.
Experiments of Huygens and Robison on this point—two very
206 LECTURES.
smooth and flat glasses attracted at one distance, repelled at another,
&c. Experiment very delicate; care required to exclude electrical
and other extraneous actions.
(79.) The molecular forces are confined to exceedingly small ranges
of distances. The alternations above mentioned take place within the
5000th part of an inch. The two plates of glass are brought into the
sphere of cohesion by sliding them together, and when strongly pressed
for sometime become incorporated as one.
Probable explanation of this.
(80.) Coarsely powdered substances which do not cohere, when
finely powdered and submitted to great pressure become solid.
Cannon ball fired into the mouth of a large cannon filled with sand
produces sandstone.
Explanation of this.
(81.) Although the molecular action is confined to insensible dis-
tances, yet the forces are of the same nature as those of gravitation
and magnetism, tending to produce motion in the molecules as the
others do in the masses. Proof of this.
Molecular constitution of matter.
(82.) The phenomena of the transmission of sound, of light and
heat—of dilatability and compressibility—of porosity, &c., all lead
us to adopt the hypothesis that matter under its apparent volume does
not consist of a plenum, but that its molecules are widely separated in
reference to their size by void spaces; or by spaces occupied only by
the imponderable agents or agent of light, heat, and electricity.
The molecules, however, must be supposed to be so small and go
near that many myriads of them exist in the length of an inch, and
on this account produce on our senses the effect of perfect solidity.
The primary molecules may be supposed to be formed of the union
of others of an inferior order separated in the same way and so on as
far as the actual phenomena may indicate. :
Each molecule must be submitted to the action of attraction and re-
pulsion, and these forces predominate at different distances.
(83.) According to the molecular hypothesis, frequently adopted,
the attraction belongs to the molecules of the matter, but the repul-
sion is due to the atmospheres of the imponderable agent of heat, which
is supposed to surround them; or in other words, between the mole-
cules of matter there is attraction, between the atoms of heat, repulsion,
and between heat and matter, attraction.
The electrical hypothesis of the constitution of bodies.
(84.) The different states of bodies depend on the condition of the
molecular forces. In gases the cohesion is nothing and the particles
tend to separate but probably not continually, at a certain distance
gravitation would predominate. In liquids the attraction and repul-
sion are balanced and the molecules have perfect mobility among them_
selves; but in solids besides cohesion there is another force, polarity
which prevents lateral motion while the molecules are free to oscillate.”
LECTURES. 207.
Atomic theory of Boscovich.
(85.) This is similar to the foregoing and may be expressed in the
following postulates:
Ist. Matter consists of indefinitely small indivisible and inert
atoms. |
2d. These are endowed with attracting and repelling forces, which
vary both in intensity and direction by a change of distance, so that
at one distance two atoms atttract and at another repel.
3d. The law of variation is the same in all atoms, and the action
mutual. 2
4th. At all sensible distances the force is attraction, and known by
the name of gravitation.
5th. Within the insensible distance in which physical contact is
observed, there are several alternations of attraction and repulsion.
6th. The last force which is exerted between two atoms as their
distance diminishes is an insuperable repulsion, no force however great
can press two atoms into mathematical contact.
The property of inertia was not assigned to the atoms of Boscovich,
but it is necessary to explain the phenomena.
(86.) Use of such a theory—an expression of a limited generaliza-
tion including many facts—may be continually improved and modified
as new facts are discovered. Importance of general views of this kind
as aids to discovery.
The theory expressed mathematically—Distances, attraction, and
repulsion represented by the abscissee and ordinates of a curve which
cuts the axis several times—parts above the line attractions—below
repulsions. The primary branch forming an asymptote expresses a
continued increasing repulsion. The final branch gradually assimi-
lates itself to the law of gravitation.
Illustration of the theory.
(87.) Stable and instable points. For small distances the curve
may be considered a straight line; the force is therefore inversely as
the distance—atoms in stable points are inactive—when pushed nearer
they repel—when drawn apart attract.
Formation of a polarized molecule of an assemblage of such atoms—
construction of a solid.
Diagram and models to illustrate hypothetical constitution of
matter.
Crystalline forms produced by grouping of atoms—development ot
polarity—attempt to explain the liquid and solid states. Shrinking
of ice in melting, &ec.
The internal structure of inorganic bodies may be studied, 1st, by
cleavage : 2d by the action of polarized light ; 3d, by vibrations.
Daniell’s method of developing thecrystalline structure of amorphous
solids. Alum in water. Metals in mercury.
Derangement of the molecules in a rod of glass by bending, shown
by polarized light. The extreme mobility of the particles of the most
208 LECTURES.
solid bodies exhibited by the same. Transmission of small impulses
through a very long rod of wood.
Atoms set in motion by the smallest force.
(88.) In connexion with the subject of the constitution of matter,
the following extract from a paper by the author, published in the
Proceedings of the Am. Phil. Soc., may be given.
‘¢The passage of a body from a solid to a liquid state is generally .
attributed to the neutralization of the attraction of cohesicn by the re-
pulsion of the increased quantity of heat; the liquid being supposed
to retain a small portion of its original attraction, which is shown by
the force necessary to separate a surface of water from water, in the
well known experiment of a plate suspended from a scale beam over a
vessel of the liquid. Itis, however, more in accordance with all the
phenomena of cohesion to suppose, instead of the attraction of the
liquid being neutralized by the heat, that the effect of this agent is
merely to neutralize the polarity of the molecules so as to give them
perfect freedom of motion around every imaginable axis. The small
amount of cohesion (52 grains to the square inch) exhibited in the
foregoing experiment, is due, according to the theory of capillarity of
Young and Poisson, to the tension of the exterior film of the surface
of water drawn up by the elevation of the plate. This film gives way
first, and the strain is thrown on an inner film, which, in turn, is rup-
tured; and so on until the plate is entirely separated; the whole effect
being similar to that of tearing the water apart atom by atom.
“ Reflecting on this subject, the author has thought that a more
correct idea of the magnitude of the molecular attraction might be ob-
tained by studying the tenacity of a more viscid liquid than water.
For this purpose he had recourse to soap water, and attempted to
measure the tenacity of this liquid by means of weighing the quantity
of water which adhered to a bubble of this substance just before it
burst, and by determining the thickness of the film from an observa-
tion of the color it exhibited in comparison with Newton’s scale of
thin plates. Although experiments of this kind could only furnish
approximate results, yet they showed that the molecular attraction of
water for water, instead of being only about 52 grains to the square
inch, is really several hundred pounds, and is probably equal to that
of the attraction of ice for ice. The effect of dissolving the soap in the
water, is not, as might at first appear, to increase the molecular at-
traction, but to diminish the mobility of the molecules, and thus ren-
der the liquid more viscid.
~ According to the theory of Young and Poisson, many of the phe-
nomena of liquid cohesion, and all those of capillarity, are due to a
contractile force existing at the free surface of the liquid, and which
tends in all cases to urge the liquid in the direction of the radius of
curvature towards the centre, with a force inversely as this radius.
The fact of the existence of this force is derived from a consideration
of the molecular constitution of matter. The molecules within the
mass of a liquid and at a distance from the surface, can be moved
freely in all directions among each other, because they are acted on
by equal forces on all sides. ‘Not so with the molecules very near the
surface, these are separated by the preponderance of repulsion, and
LECTURES, 209
the fluid is rarified both in a vertical and horizontal direction, and by
the reaction a tension or contractile force is developed in the whole
exterior filnt.
Explanation of this by a diagram.
“According to this theory the spherical form of a dew-drop is not
the effect of the attraction of each molecule of the water on every
other, as in the action of gravitation in producing the globular form
of the planets, (since the attraction of cohesion only extends to an ap-
preciable distance, but it is due to the contractile force which tends
constantly to enclose the given quantity of water within the smallest
surface, namely, that of a sphere. The author finds a contractile
force similar to that assumed by this theory in the surface of the soap
bubble; indeed, the bubble may be considered a drop of water with
the internal liquid removed, and its place supplied by air. The
spherical form in the two cases is produced by the operation of the
same cause. , The contractile force in the surface of the bubble is
easily shown by blowing a large bubble on the end of a wide tube, say
an inch in diameter; as soon as the mouth is removed, the bubble will
be seen to diminish rapidly, and at the same time quite a forcible cur-
rent of air will be blown through the tube against the face. This
effect is not due to the ascent of the heated air from the lungs, with
which the bubble was inflated, for the same effect is produced by in-
flating with cold air, and also when the bubble is held perpendicularly
above the face, so that the current is downwards.
‘‘Many experiments were made to determine the amount of this
force, by blowing a bubble on the larger end of a glass tube in the
form of a letter U, and partially filled with water; the contractile
force of the bubble, transmitted through the enclosed air, forced down
the water in the larger leg of the tube, and caused it to rise in the
smaller. The difference of level observed by means of a microscope,
gave the force in grains per square inch, derived from the known
pressure of a’given height of water. The thickness of the film of
soap-water which formed the envelope of the bubble, was estimated as
before, by the color exhibited just before bursting. The results of
these experiments agree with those of weighing the bubble, in giving
a great intensity to the molecular attraction of the liquid; equal at
least to several hundred pounds to the square inch. Several other
methods were employed to measure the tenacity of the film, the gen-
eral results of which were the same: the numerical .details of these
are reserved, however, until the experiments can be repeated with a
more delicate balance.
‘‘The comparative cohesion of pure water and soap-water was de-
termined by the weight necessary to detach the same plate from each;
and in all cases the pure water was found to exhibit nearly double the
tenacity of the soap-water. The want of permanency in the bubble
of pure water is therefore not due to feeble attraction, but to the
perfect mobility of the molecules, which causes the equilibrium, as in
the case of the arch, without friction of parts, to be destroyed by the
slightest extraneous force.’’
(89.) Jilustrations of the foregoing principles.—Great tenacity of a
14s
210 LECTURES.
film of soap-water shown by the load of cotton which it will support.
The molecular attraction of soap-water shown to be less than that
of pure water. Effect of salt in the water.
Explanation of the different consistencies of bodies, from perfect
rigidity to perfect liquidity. Steel at one extremity of the scale and
alcohol or ether at the other.
Difference of the tenacity of sealing wax in the cold and heated state.
Phenomena exhibited in pulling apart rods of metal of different de-
grees of rigidity.
(90.) Explanation of the development of the increase of the contrac-
tile force by curving the surface.
The molecules, on account of the curvature, are placed in a position
more favorable to the action of the attracting force.
The contractile force increases directly as the curvature, and the
resultant is in the direction of the radius of the circle of curvature.
Explanation of this, by means of a diagram.
(91.) Illustrations of the effect of the contractile force.
Small bubble made to expand a large one.
Apparent elasticity of a bubble.
Phenomenon of the, breaking of a cylindrical bubble.
Water poured through a bubble.
Method of forming concentric bubbles.
Form of a drop of water. Without weight it would be perfectly
spherical. Cause of the incurvature of the neck of a pendent drop.
Explanation of the weight required to flatten a globule of mercury
—why two drops of mercury rush together.
Explanation of the apparent elasticity of a drop of water rebound-
ing from the surface of a solid.
Mercury sustained in a cup of wire gauze. Also water supported
in the same manner.
Effect of wetting the under surface.
Fine needles made to float on the surface of water.
Feet of insects which walk on the water ; sink when the feet are wet
with aleohol.
In all these cases a curvature of the surface is produced which de-
velops the contractile force.
Capillary Attraction.
(92.) Under this head is classed a set of phenomena belonging to
molecular action, among which the ascent of liquids in capillary tubes
is the most conspicuous, and hence the name.
When a plate of glass is plunged vertically into a vessel of water
the liquid rises along the surface and covers it to an indefinite height
with an exceedingly thin film. On the surface of this film another
film rises, and so on until the weight of the accumulated water becomes
equal to the elevating force.
(93.) The thickness of the glass does not affect the result, hence the
force is limited in its action to insensible distances.
LECTURES, 21}
If these effects are due to adhesion and cohesion, it is evident that
the first film of water is supported by the attraction of the glass—that
the second coheres to the first, and the third to the second, and so on.
See model and drawing.
The quantity of water thus supported by one side of a plate is equal
to about 2} grains, (or the weight of the hundreth part of a cubic
inch of water,) for each linear inch along the glass, parallel to the
surface of the liquid in the vessel.
(94.) When an amalgamated plate of copper is plunged into mer-
cury, the quantity of the metal supported above the general level and
estimated in the same way is about 17 grains.
(95.) The following equation expresses the equilibrium of the forces
which sustain the frst film. In this q represents the attraction of
the liquid for the solid, p that of the liquid for itself, and w the weight
of the film:
2g—p=w. (6.)
Proof of this—according to the method of La Place. We see from
this equation that if the attraction of the liquid for the solid is more
than half as great as that of the liquid for itself, an elevation will be
produced along the surface—hence a film of water will be elevated
along a surface of ice, and a second film of water along the surface of
the water of the first film, and so on. In this case
2p—p = w, or p=w.
If the atlraction of the liquid for the solid be less than half of that
of the liquid for itself, then the left hand side of the equation becomes
negative, and a depression will be indicated.
Example—plate of glass plunged into dry mercury.
(96.) Suppose next that two plates held parallel and opposite each
other be placed in the water, the weight of liquid supported will now
be double. Ifthe plates be brought nearer, the water will rise between
them, so that the weight supported may still be the same ; hence the
height of the liquid will be inversely as the distance of the plates.
Let the interval between the plates be the ;1,th of an inch, then,
since each linear inch of each plate will support 24 grains or the hun-
dredth part of a cubic inch of water, therefore the liquid will stand at
the height of two inches. If tne plates be ;4 of an inch apart, the
elevation will be 6 inches—or, if d@ be the distance of the plates, and
h the height, then
|) fat Oe (7.)
50d
(97.) Next let four narrow plates be joined at their edges so as to
form a prism, of which the transverse section is a square, and let this
be placed in water—then the liquid, being supported on four sides
instead of two, will rise to tavice the height. Also because the circum-
ference of a circle is to its area as the periphery of a circumscribed
square is to its area, the liquid will stand at the same altitude in a
212 LECTURES.
cylindrical tube as in the circumscribing prism—and hence, in the
case of the tube we will have
cl
h=— (8.)
25d
The results in reference to the varying distance of the plates are
best exhibited by two squares of glass joined at their vertical edges
and opened to an acute angle. The liquid is observed to stand at
different points, at heights inversely as the distance of the plates at
these points, and therefore its outline must form a hyperbole referred
to its asymptotes. -Proof of this.
(98.) In the case of two plates of glass plunged into mercury, the
depressing force is also found to be constant for each linear unit of the
width of the glass parallel to the horizon—consequently the depression
must be inversely as the distance of the plates, and twice as great in
a tube of the same diameter as the distance of the plates.
It has been found by experiment that in a glass tube of j,th of an
inch in diameter the depression is one inch—hence the depression in
any other glass tube will be given by
1
9 ec a ie 8
68d
and between two glass plates by (9.)
1
7 =—
136d
(99.) Although the capillary force is constant for the same liquid,
it is different for different liquids, as is shown in the following table
derived from experiment :
Wiarton Baht yey: Se ie a LE eh NT OA eh ta hc es 100
Solution of common salts hte. Re OORT Ee 84
Nitriciacid siybs is eeren deel Ge EA RG Te 75
Maariaticacidies. fis Haig, AS PROP A ae ancace 70
Alcohol........ SUA BORE SE TOTA STI ET ae 41
Butified: whale. @ilitagtt aude Sic ONES, ROT 374
This table exhibits the relative heights of the different liquids in
tubes of the same diameter.
(100.) In the elevation of liquids in tubes the height is the same
with thesame diameter, whatever may bethe substance of which the tube
is composed, but in the case of depression the depressing force varies
with the substance of the tube as well as with the diameter. Hxpla-
nation of this. :
(101.) The elevation of liquids is readily explained in its general
features, on the principle we have already given of the adhesion of
the liquid to the solid and the cohesion of the liquid to itself; but to
explain the depression and a number of other facts connected with the
subject require something more.
LECTURES, 213 »
Various hypotheses have been advanced for the explanation of capil-
lary phenomena, the most important of which are those of Jurin,
Clairaut, Robison, Lesley, La Place, Young and Poisson. Almost
every one of these may be considered as an improvement on the pre-
ceding, or a closer approximation to truth. ;
(102.) According to the improved hypothesis, or theory as it may
now be called, of Poisson and Young, the phenomena are not only
due to the attractions of the liquid and solid, but also to the contrac-
tile force existing in’ the free surface of every liquid, and which is
increased or diminished in a given direction by a convexity or con-
cavity of this surface.
To apply these principles to the phenomena of capillarity, let us
first suppose two plates plunged perpendicularly into a liquid on which
they have no action; then the liquid will be divided from itself, the
contractile force will be developed along the free surface contiguous to
each plate, the liquid will be drawn down until the hydrostatic pres-
sure balances the contractile force, and we will have the following as
the equation of equilibrium :
2c= w. (10.)
(103.) Next let the plates have an attraction for the liquid, but not
as great as that of the liquid for itself, as in the example of glass and
mercury.
The liquid in this case will not be entirely separated from the glass
so as to produce a perfectly free surface, but will be pressed against it
by the attraction ; the contractile force will, therefore, be partially
neutralized, and the depression consequently be less.
If d be the diminution in the contractile force in consequence of the
attraction of the glass, then
2 (c—d) = w. Chl)
Since ¢ and d must remain the same with the same liquid and
solid, w will also be constant; and hence the depression will be in--
versely as the distance of the plates, or the diameter of the tube.
Also, with the same liquid and solid, the angle of contact will re-
main constant, and the curvature of the upper surface will be inversely
as the distance of the plates, and therefore the curvature may be taken,
as it has been by La Place, as the measure of the capillary force.
(104.) If the attraction of the liquid for the solid be greater than
for itself, then the film in contact will be drawn up, the surface be-
tween the plates will be rendered concave—a superficial tension will
be developed along the curved surface and the liquid will rise until
the tension due to the curvature balances the weight of the column.
The curvature in this case will also be inversely as the distance of
the plates, since the angle of contact remains the same—hence so long
as the exterior surface remains unchanged in form, the elevation will
be inversely as the distance of the plates.
But if the surface without the tube be rendered either concave or
convex, a contractile force will be developed which will tend to elevate
or depress the column.
‘ 214 LECTURES.
(105.) The equilibrium of the capillary forces may be expressed by
the following general equation in which Z is the elevation or depres-
sion, T a co-efficient for each fluid and solid, R and R’ the radii of
curvature
cea ee (12.)
(106.) Illustrations of the effects of curvature on the length of the
column—the exterior surface of a liquid rendered concave, the column
in the tube depressed—convex the reverse. The surface of the exterior
liquid made concave, the height of the column in the tube diminished—
convex increased.
Column supported in a tube with a drop of liquid at the end is de-
pressed by touching the drop to a surface of liquid—effect of convex
and concave surface exhibited by means of a small inverted syphon.
Movement of a drop of water in a conical glass tube—also between
two glass plates.
Reverse movement of a drop of mercury.
Apparent attraction of two plates with film of water interposed.
Effect of double curvature of the liquid surface.
A small glass rod in a large capillary tube filled with water, does
not fall out but rebounds from the lower surface of the liquid.
Illustration of Capillary Phenomena.—Surface crystallization—water
imbibed by sponge, the pores require to be previously wetted by pres-
sure. Water drawn up into sand. Oilsupplied by the wick—bundle
of fine wire may be used for the same purpose. Method of oiling the
axles of the locomotive. Marble absorbs oil but not water ; the oil
extracted by clay.
Water passed through filtering paper by capiliary force, collects on
the lower side into drops, by cohesion, falls by gravity. Different
liquids separated by previously wetting the filter with one of them.
Cloth rendered air-tight by water.
_ The dimensions of bodies are often changed by imbibing water.
The untwisting of catgut, and of the beard of the wild oat, the short-
ening of strings and the lengthening of whalebone, all fu: nish hygro-
scopes, or instruments for indicating the state of moisture of the air.
The intensity of the capillary action is exceedingly great ; water is
drawn into wood with such force as to split rocks. <A large weight
raised by the contraction of a rope in the direction of its length, while
it is increasing in diameter. The same force is not exerted when oil
is absorbed. Cause of warping and splitting of furniture—use of oil-
ing and varnishing to prevent this.
French method of saturating timber with substances for its preser-
vation.
(107.) Apparent attraction and repulsion of floating bodies.—Two
moistened or two smoked corks approach each other; but a moistened
and a smoked cork separate. Also a moistened cork adheres to the
side of a glass vessel, partially filled with water, but it moves towards
the centre when the liquid is heaped on the vessel above the rim.
(108.) Lndosmose, (from evéov and wayoc). The transmission of
LECTURES.. ; 215
one liquid into another through the pores of the substance which
separates them. The effect is due to an elective capillary attraction
and a subsequent mixing of the liquids. A bladder can be soaked
with water, but is merely infilmed with alcohol—hence the more rapid
transmission of one of these liquids through this membrane than the
other.
Same result produced with other liquids, provided they have
different degrees of attraction for the membrane, and a strong ten-
dency to mix with each other.
The endesmometer exhibited.
(109.) The endosmose, (or flowing in) of the exterior liquid is
generally accompanied by the exosmose (fw and wayoc or flowing
out) of the interior liquid, but to a much less extent, the difference
depending upon the greater or less attraction for the interposed sub-
stance.
Modifications of this action perform an important part in many of
the operations of vegetable and animal life.
f Method of strengthening wine by a bladder over the mouth of the
ottle.
Endosmose probably takes place to a slight degree, between gases
in their transfusion through porous substances, although most of the
phenomena of this kind can be explained on the principle of a differ-
ence in weight, and Dalton’s law of diffusion. It is, however, certain
that capillary attraction does take place in an eminent degree between
solids and gases. Newly burnt charcoal absorbs 90 times its bulk of
ammoniacal gas, 35 times of carbonic acid, and 9.2 times of oxygen.
The gas in some of these cases must be condensed by the attraction
into a liquid.
(110.) Chemical Attraction,
Or, as it is generally called, chemical affinity, is the highest degree
of heterogeneous attraction—it takes place between the component
molecules of different kinds of matter, and produces other matter of
entirely different qualities.
The peculiarities of this attraction are as follows: 1. It is elective ;
the intensity of action is not the same between all bodies, so that one
substance may displace another in a compound by its superior attrac-
tion for the other ingredient. 2. It is definite; the same quantity of
any substance has the same saturating power in reference to all matter
with which it combines. 3. It determines the peculiar properties of
the compound. In these peculiarities it differs materially from gravi-
tation, the intensity of which is the same for all matter, and does not
admit of saturation, the attraction of a@ for 6 does not interfere with
the attraction of a for e.
The operation of this attraction is intimately connected with the
electricity, and will be referred to again under the head of galvanism.
Ht forms an essential part of chemistry, and its peculiarities are fully
described and illustrated in that branch of science.
216 LECTURES.
Elasticity.
(111.) By this term we understand that property of bodies by which
they return to their original form and dimensions when an extraneous
force, to which they have been submitted, is withdrawn.
The term elasticity is also used to express the force with which any
body resists a change of density or of form. In this sense the elas-
ticity of water is greater than that of air. The ambiguity may be
avoided by employing the expression elastic force tor the latter.
All bodies in mechanics are sometimes divided into two classes,
elastic and non-elastic, and sometimes into perfectly and imperfectly
elastic. Examples.
But in reality all bodies are perfectly elastic within certain limits
which differ widely in different bodies. The late experiments pre-
sented to the British Association do not, I think, establish the con-
trary.
(112.) Elasticity of gases.—The molecules of gases being entirely
within the region of repulsion, they tend constantly to separate from
each other, and are only confined within a given volume by the sides
of the vessel which contains them. ‘The range of elasticity in these is
much greater than in liquids and solids.
The laws of Boyle and Mariotte.
1. The elastic force and density of a gas are directly as_the pressure.
2. The bulk of a gas is inversely as the pressure.
(113.) Experimental proof of these laws. Precautions to be ob-
served. ‘lhe second has been found to hold true in the case of com-
mon air, to the extent of a pressure of twenty-four atmospheres.
It is probable, however, that these laws are true for all gases only
within certain limits ; several gases have been condensed into liquids,
and analogy would lead us to infer that all of them might be reduced
to the same state if sufficient pressure could be applied. In those
which have been liquefied, the laws fail as the point of liquefaction
is approached. On the other hand, if the gases were sufficiently
expanded, we cannot doubt that the molecular repulsion would finally
pass into the attraction of gravitation. These facts are in accordance
with the theory of Boscovich.
Experiment to illustrate this. Several gases submitted at the same
time to the same intense pressure; condensation finally becomes
unequal.
To account for the laws of elasticity, we may suppose, with Newton,
that the force between the atoms is inversely as their distances ; but
if we adopt this hypothesis we are obliged to admit that the action of
each atom does not extend beyond the atoms nearest to it, however
greatly they may be crowded together. The explanation of Dr. Robi-
son is more probable; according to this, the repulsion remains the
same for a certain range of distance, and the law of elasticity is the
result of the greater number of atoms forced into the same space ;
the repulsion “being in proportion to the number of tlie repelling
centres.
Illustration of this by a diagram of atoms, and also by the curve of
Boscovich,
LECTURES. 217
(114.) Elasticity of liquids.—The range of elasticity in these bodies
is exceedingly small when compared with that of gases, but the
elastic force is much greater.
The diminution of bulk is found by experiment to be proportional
to the pressure. If B represent the bulk under a given pressure, P,
and other pressures be added in succession, then the corresponding
pressures and bulks will be as follows:
P+p Q : e B—b
P+ 2p . . . 3—2b
P+3p A ; : B—3b
P-+np f , ; B—nb
[t is evident that this law must have a limit ; otherwise the matter
may be annihilated by sufficient pressure.
For a long time it was supposed that liquids were incompressible
and inelastic. Canton, in 1761, was the first who compressed water ;
since then the subject has been studied and extended by Perkins,
(Ersted and others.
(115.) Perkins’s apparatus ;—an iron bottle with a piston filled to
the neck ; pressure produced by sinking this into the deep sea.
(Ersted’s apparatus exhibited. It consists principally of three parts:
1st. An exterior vessel which takes the place of. the deep sea, and in
which the pressure is produced by a screw and piston. 2d. Of an
inner vessel containing the liquid to be compressed called a Piezo-
meter, (zefw and petpov.) 3d. Of an inverted glass tube filled with
air, the diminution of which in bulk indicates the compressing force,
Method of graduating the stem of the piezometer—each division
indicates the 2 millionths of the whole bulk. |
Self-registering piezometer for pressures which would break the
exterior glass vessel.
Discussion as to the variation in the capacity of the piezometer.
According to Poisson it becomes smaller—according to Cirsted,
larger. ‘The opinion of the former is correct.
The following is the compressibility of liquids, according to the
experiments of Colladon and Sturm of Geneva, expressed in millionths
of the primitive bulk, for an additional pressure of our atmosphere :
Mercury, : : : é 3 : 3.38
Sulphuric acid, ; : ; : . . 80.35
Water not freed from air, ; ; bi dae: ise
Water freed from air, : ; : . | 49.65
Alcohol, (Ist atmos.) . : ; . 94.95
do., (5th ‘do.)’'; ; ‘ : Say ee oe)
Sulphuric ether, (Ist atmos.) . 4 Ri i Bes)
do. do. (24thdo.) . f . 120.45
The greater the density the greater the repulsive force. Change of
temperature affects the compressibility.
(116.) The Llasticity of Solids\—This may be considered under
three heads: viz., the elasticity of compression and dilatation, of bend-
ing, and of éorsion.
Llasticity of Convpression, &c.—In masses of solids, compressed on
218 LECTURES.
all sides, the law of diminution is the same as that which has been
given for liquids. The degree of compressibility may also be deter-
mined by the use of (Ersted’s apparatus. Hxplanation of this.
In rods and wires drawn, in the direction of their axes, the elonga-
tion within certain limits is just in proportion to the force applied.
When the force is removed the body resumes its ordinary dimensions.
With a force which exceeds the limits of elasticity, the position of
the molecules is permanently changed, and the body is said to take a
set. After this the molecules will oscillate around their new position
of equilibrium and the body will again be perfectly elastic, within,
however, a different limit.
The elastic force of wires of different substances may be found by
the use of Gravesand’s apparatus. Explanation of this.
In stretching a rod or a wire the diameter is diminished one-fourth
of the extension in length, and therefore the whole volume is in-
creased,
When the stretching force approaches the limit of cohesion, the
dilatation becomes very irregular.
On the principle of taking a set depends the malleability and duc-
tility of bodies, or the properties of being extended and modeled by
the hammer, and of being drawn out into wire.
Illustrations. Gold is one of the most malleable substances ; pla-
‘tinum one of the most ductile. <A flat sheet of copper may be beaten
into a hollow globular vessel, with a small opening at the top, with-
out seam or joint. The rolling, coining, and stamping of metal
depend on the same principle. Frequent annealing is necessary
during the process.
C117.) Elasticity of Bending.—In the case of plates and rods the
force of bending is just in proportion to the degree of bending, and
within small limits the body in this respect is perfectly elastic. This
fact was discovered by Dr. Hooke in 1660, and expressed by the
phrase
*« Ut tensio sic vis.”’
Experimental illustrations of this law. Weights suspended from
the middle, and also from the end of a flexible bar. Hlongation of a
spiral spring.
It follows from this law that all the vibrations of a thin plate fas-
tened at one end are isochronous. Proof of this—the force increases
in proportion to the distance to be passed over.
It was this relation that suggested to Dr. Hooke the application of
the hair-spring to a watch. On the same principle also depends the
operation of the extemporary weighing machine, the spring balance,
and the dynamometer.
Effect of loading the spring; the time of vibration must be as the
weight.
In bending a rod the molecules on the concave side are pressed
nearer together, while those on the opposite side are drawn further
apart ; between these a line must exist called the neutral axis, in
which the distance of the molecules is unchanged. These inferences
from the molecular hypothesis shown to be true by means of polarized
LECTURES. 219
light, and the bending of a rectangular prism of glass. Also illus-
trated by a diagram.
(118.) Llasticity of Torsion.—Apparatus and experimer.ts of Cou-
lomb exhibited. Double horizontal pendulum suspended by a fine
wire.
The force of torsion is just in proportion to the angle of torsion, or
again we have ut tensio sic vis,
All the vibrations are therefore in this case also performed in the
same time, whatever-be the amplitude.
Because the force of torsion varies as the angle of torsion, the vibra-
tions of a torsion pendulum are governed by the same laws as those
of the cycloidal pendulum; hence we shall have by mechanics
Tonrvib
In this expression, in which T is the time, / the elastic force, and Z
the length of the radius of the double pendulum, the diameter of the
wire and the weight which stretches the wire are each supposed to be
equal to unaty.
If the weight be increased to W, then the velocity or the measure
of the force will evidently be diminished in the same ratio, and in-
stead of f we shall have. Hence by substitution,
T—czvlw or
i
1. The time of vibration is as the square root of the weight which
stretches the wire. '
If the length of the wire be increased to /, then for a given angle
of torsion the molecules will be separated inversely as the length;
therefore the force will be expressed byt , and by substitution, we
shall have
2. The other quantities remaining the same, the time varies as the
square root of the length of the wire.
Again, if the diameter of the wire becomes 7, then r® will represent
the increased number of molecules, and since the mean distance of
separation, of these for a given torsion will vary as 7, and also the
distance from the centre to the point of application at r, it follows
that the whole force will be expressed by 7*, and therefore by substi-
tuting again, we shall have
The time varies inversely as the square of the radius of the wire, the
ather quantities being constant.
All these inferences are in strict accordance with the results of ac-
curate experiments.
\
220 LECTURES.
(119.) The application of the torsion pendulum to the measurement
of small forees,—Coulomb’s balance of torsion,—Cavendish’s experi-
ment of weighing the earth. The hair spring of a watch—new clock.
Torsion is a means of exhibiting the elasticity of some bodies which
ordinarily appear inelastic. The elasticity of a lead wire may be
shown by torsion ; also of a rope of moistened clay.
The degree of elasticity of some solids depends on a peculiar ar-
rangement of the molecules of the surface, called temper. Steel,
heated to a cherry red, and then plunged into cold water, has its
elastic force much increased—it becomes as hard and as brittle as
glass. If it be again heated until it exhibits a blue color, and is
‘again plunged into water, a ‘‘ spring temper’’ is produced, or the
metal assumes a much wider range of elasticity.
A tempered bar of steel is larger than one of the same weight
which has been suffered to cool gradually ; also on breaking the bar
the temper is found to be superficial. Probable explanation of tem-
per. The outer crust is suddenly cooled over a heated and dilated
nucleus—the latter shrinks in cooling, and leaves the crust in a state
of tension. Cast iron may also be tempered by the solidifying pro-
cess called chill-casting.
Glass also possesses the property of receiving a temper. Large
drops of this substance let fall into water suddenly solidify at the
surface, and thus the molecules assume a state of tension analogous
to that of tempered steel. Pieces of glass of this kind are called
Prince Rupert's drops ; they will bear a considerable blow on the end,
but if the tail of the drop be broken, the whole explodes into a fine
powder.
The molecular force developed in this explosion is astonishingly great
—a thick tumbler broken by it...
- The drops lose their peculiar property by being heated and grada-
‘ally cooled.
The existence of a state of tension in the unannealed drop shown
by polarized light.
The method of annealing glass for domestic and other uses ex-
plained.
The Chinese gong metal, called tam-tam, which consists of four
parts of copper and one of tin, possesses the remarkable property of
becoming hard and brittle by slow cooling.
(To BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT REPORT. )
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 22)
ON ACOUSTICS
APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.*
BY PROFESSOR JOSEPH HENRY,
SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
At the meeting of the American Association in 1854, I gave a ver-
bal account of a plan of a lecture-room adopted for the Smithsonian
Institution, with some remarks on acoustics as applied to apartments
intended for public speaking. At that time the room was not finished,
and experience had not proved the truth of the principles on which
the plan had been designed. Since then the room has been employed
two winters for courses of lectures to large audiences, and I believe it
is the universal opinion of those who have been present, that the ar-
rangement for seeing and hearing, considering the size of the apart-
ment, is entirely unexceptionable. It has certainly fully answered
all the expectations which were formed in regard to it previous to its
construction. The origin of the plan was as follows:
Professor Bache and myself had directed our attention to the sub-
ject of acoustics as applied to buildings, and had studied the pecu-
liarities in this respect of the hall of the House of Representatives,
when the President of the United States referred to us for examina-
tion the plans proposed by Captain Meigs, of the Engineer Corps, for
the rooms about to be constructed in the new wings of the Capitol.
After visiting with Captain Meigs the principal halls and churches
of the cities of Philadelphia, New York, and Boston, we reported
favorably on the general plans proposed by him, and which were
subsequently adopted. The facts which we have collected on this
subject may be referred to a few well established principles of sound,
which have been applied in the construction of this lecture-room. To
apply them generally, however, in the construction of public halls,
required a series of preliminary experiments.
In a very small apartment it is an easy matter to be heard distinctly
at every point; but ina large room, unless from the first, in the
_original plan of the building, provision be made, on acoustic princi-
ples, for a suitable form, it will be difficult, and, indeed, in most
cases impossible, to produce the desired effect. The same remark
may be applied to lighting, heating, and ventilation, and to all the
special purposes to which a particular building is to be applied. I
beg, therefore, to make some preliminary remarks on the architecture
o-—~— —
* Read before the American Association for the Advancement of Science, in August, 1856.
992 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
of buildings bearing upon this point, which, though they may not
meet with universal acceptance, will, I trust, commend themselves to
the common sense of the public in general.
In the erection of a building, the uses to which it is to be applied
should be clearly understood and provision definitely made in the
original plan for every desired object.
Modern architecture is not, like painting or sculpture, a fine art
par excellence ; the object of these latter is to produce a moral emo-
tion, to awaken the feelings of the sublime and the beautiful, and we
egregiously err when we apply their productions to a merely utilita-
rian purpose. ‘To make a fire screen of Rubens’s Madonna, or a can-
delabrum of the statue of the Apollo Belvidere, would be to debase
these exquisite productions of genius, and do violence to the feelings
of the cultivated lover of art. Modern buildings are made for other
purposes than artistic effect, and in them the zsthetical must be sub-
ordinate to the useful, though the two may coexist, and an intellectual
pleasure be derived from a sense of adaptation and fitness, combined
‘with a perception of harmony of parts, and the beauty of detail.
The buildings of a country and an age should be an ethnological
expression of the wants, habits, arts, and sentiment of the time in
which they were erected. Those of Egypt, Greece, and Rome were
intended, at least in part, to transmit to posterity, without the art of
printing, an idea of the character of the periods in which they were
erected. It was by their monuments that these nations sought to con-
vey an idea of their religious and political sentiments to future ages,
The Greek architect was untrammelled by any condition of utility.
Architecture was with him in reality a fine art. The temple was
formed to gratify the tutelar deity. Its minutest parts were exquisitely
finished, since nothing but perfection on all sides, and in the smallest
particulars, could satisfy an all-seeing and critical eye. It was in-
tended for external worship, and not for internal use. It was without
windows, entirely open to the sky, or, if closed with a roof, the light
was merely admitted through a large door. There were no arrange-
ments for heating or ventilation. The uses, therefore, to which, in
modern times, buildings of this kind can be applied, are exceedingly
few ; and though they were objects of great beauty, and fully realized
the intention of the architect by whom they were constructed, yet
they cannot be copied in our day without violating the principles
which should govern architectural adaptation.
livery vestige. of ancient architecture which now remains-on the
face of the earth should be preserved with religious care; but to ser-
vilely copy these, and to attempt to apply them to the uses of our day,
is as preposterous as to endeavor to harmonize the refinement and
civilization of the present age with the superstition and barbarity of
the times of the Pharaohs. It is only when a building expresses the
dominant sentiment of an age, when a perfect adaptation to its use is
joined to harmony of proportions and an outward expression of its
character, that is entitled to our admiration. It has been aptly said,
that it is one thing to adopt a particular style of architecture, but a
very different one to adapt it to the purpose required.
Architecture should change not only with the character of the peo-
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 223
ple, and in some cases with the climate, but also with the material to
be employed in construction. The use of iron and of glass requires
a modification of style as much as that which sprung from the rocks of
Egypt, the masses of marble with which the lintels of the Grecian
temples were formed, or the introduction of brick by the Romans.
The great tenacity of iron, and its power of resistance to crushing,
should suggest for it, as a building material, a far more slender and
apparently lighter arrangement of parts. An entire building of iron,
fashioned in imitation of stone, might be erected at small expense of
invention on the part of the architect, but would do little credit to his
truthfulness or originality. The same may be said of our modern
pasteboard edifices, in which, with their battlements, towers, pinna-
cles, ‘‘ fretted roofs and long drawn aisles,’’ cheap and transient mag-
nificence is produced by painted wood or decorated plaster. I must
not, however, indulge in remarks of this kind, but must curb my feel-
ings on the subject, since I speak from peculiar experience.
But to return to the subject of acoustics as applied to apartments
intended for public speaking. While sound, in connexion with: its
analogies to light, and in its abstract principles, has been investi-
gated within the last fifty years with a rich harvest of results, few
attempts have been successfully made to apply these principles to
practical purposes. Though we may have a clear conception of the
simple operation of a law of nature, yet when the conditions are va-
ried, and the actions multiplied, the results frequently transcend our
powers of logic, and we are obliged to appeal to experiment and ob-
servation to assist in deducing new consequences, as well as to verify
those which have been arrived at by mathematical deduction. Further-
more, though we may know the manner in which a cause acts to pro-
duce a given effect, yet in all cases we are obliged to resort t> actual
experiment to ascertain the measure of effect under given conditions.
The science of acoustics as applied to buildings, perhaps more than
any other, requires this union of scientific principles with experimen-
tal deductions. While, on the one hand, the application of simple
deductions from the established principles of acoustics would be un-
safe from a want of knowledge of the constants which enter into our
formulz, on the other hand, empirical data alone are, in this case,
entirely at fault, and of this any person may be convinced who will
examine the several works written on acoustics by those who are
deemed practical men.
Sound is a motion of matter capable of affecting the ear with a sen-
sation peculiar to that organ. It is not in all cases simply a motion
of the air, for there are many sounds in which the air is not concerned ;
for example, the impulses which are conveyed along a rod of wood
from a tuning-fork to the teeth. When a sound is produced by a
single impulse, or an approximation to a single impulse, it is called a
noise; when by a series of impulses, a continued sound, &c.; if the
impulses are equal in duration ‘among themselves, a musical sound.
This has been illustrated by a quill striking against the teeth ofa
wheel in motion. A single impulsetrom one tooth is a noise, from a
series of teeth in succession a continued sound; and if all the teeth
are at equal distances, and the velocity of the wheel is uniform, then
224 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
a musical note is the result. Hach of these sounds is produced by the
human voice, though they apparently run into each other. Usually,
however, in speaking, a series of irregular sounds of short duration
are emitted,—each syllable of a word constitutes a separate sound of
appreciable duration, and each compound word and sentence an as-
semblage of such sounds. It is astonishing that, in listening toa
discourse, the ear can receive so many impressions in the space of a
second, and that the mind can take cognizance of and compare them.
That a certain force of impulse, and a certain time for its continu-
ance, are necessary to produce an audible impression on the ear, is
evident ; but it may be doubted whether the impression of a sound on
this organ is retained appreciably longer than the continuance of the
impulse itself; except in cases of loud sounds. If this were the
case, it is difficult to conceive why artitulated discourse, which so
pre-eminently distinguishes man from the lower animals, should
not fill the ear with a monotonous hum; but whether the ear con-
tinues to vibrate, or whether the impression remains a certain time
on the sensorium, it is certain that no sound is ever entirely instanta-
neous, or the result of a single impression, particularly in enclosed
spaces. The impulse is not only communicated to the ear, but to all
bodies around, which, in turn, themselves become centres of reflected
impulses. Every impulse must give rise to a forward, and afterwards
to a return, or backward, motion of the atom.
Sound from a single explosion in air, equally elastic on all sides,
tends to expand equally in every direction; but when the impulse
is given to the air in a single direction, though an expansion takes
place on all sides, yet it is much more intense in the line of the im-
pulse. For example, the impulse of a single explosion, like that of
the detonation of a bubble of oxygen and hydrogen, is propagated
equally in all directions, while the discharge of a cannon, though
heard on every side, is much louder in the direction of the axis; so also
a person speaking is heard much more distinctly directly in front
than at an equal distance behind. Many experiments have been made
on this point, and I may mention those repeated in the open space in
front of the Smithsonian Institution. In a circle, 100 feet in diame-
ter, the speaker in the centre, and the hearer in succession at different
points of the circumference, the voice was heard most distinetly di-
rectly in front, gradually less so on either side, until, in the rear, it
was scarcely audible. The ratio of distance for distinct hearing
directly in front, on the sides, and in the rear, was about as 100, 75,
and 30. These numbers may serve to determine the form in which an
audience should be arranged in an open field, in order that those on
the periphery of the space may all have a like favorable opportunity
of hearing, though it should not be recomended as the interior form of
an apartment, in which a reflecting wall would be behind the speaker.
The impulse producing sound requires time for its propagation, and
this depends upon the intensity of repulsion between the atoms, and,
secondly, on the specific gravity of the matter itself. If the medium
were, entirely rigid, sound would be propagated instantaneously ;
the weaker the repulsion between the atoms, the greater will be the.
time required to transmit the motion from one to the other; and the
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 22.5
heavier the atoms, the greater will be the time required for the action
of a given force to produce in them a given amount of motion.
Sound also, in meeting an object, is reflected in accordance with the
law of light, making the angle of incidence equal to the angle of re-
flection. The tendency, however, to divergency in a single beam of
sound appears to be much greater than in the case of light. The law,
nevertheless, appears to be definitely followed in the case of all
beams that are reflected in a direction near the perpendicular. It ig
on the law of propagation and reflection of sound that the philosophy
of the echo depends. Knowing the velocity of sound, it is an easy matter
to calculate the interval of time which must elapse between the original
impulse and the return of the echo. Sound moves at the rate of 1,125
feet in a second, at the temperature of 60°.*
If, therefore, we stand at half this distance before a wall, the echo
will return to us in one second. It is, however, a fact known from
general experience, that no echo is perceptible from a near wall,
though in all cases one must be sent back to the ear. The reason of
this is, that the ear cannot distinguish the difference between similar
sounds, as, for example, that from the original impulse and its reflec-
tion, if they follow each other at less than a given interval, which can
only be determined by actual experiment ; and as this is an important
element in the construction of buildings, the attempt was made to de-
termine it with some considerable degree of accuracy. For this pur-
pose the observer was placed immediately in front of the wall of the
west end of the Smithsonian building, at a distance of 100 feet; the
hands were then clapped together. A distinct echo was perceived ;
the difference between the time of the passage of the impulse from the
hand to the ear, and that from the hand to the wall and back to the
ear, was sufficiently great to produce two entirely distinct impressions.
The observer then gradually approached the building, until no echo.or
perceptible prolongation of the sound was observed. By accurately
measuring this distance, and doubling it, we find the interval of space
within which two sounds may follow each other without appearing
separately. But if two rays of sound reach the ear after having passed
through distances the difference between which is greater than this,
they produce the effect of separate sounds. This distance we have
called the limit of perceptibility in terms of space. If we convert this
distance into the velocity of sound, we ascertain the limit of percepti-
bility in time. ,
In the experiment first made with the wall, a source of error was
discovered in the fact that a portion of the sound returned was reflected
from the cornice under the eaves, and as this was at a greater distance
than the part of the wall immediately perpendicular to the observer,
the moment of the cessation of the echo was less distinet. In subse-
quent experiments with a louder noise, the reflection was observed
from a perpendicular surface of about 12 feet square, and from this
more definite results were obtained. The limit of the distance in this
case was about 30 teet, varying slightly, perhaps, with the intensity
* From the average of all the experiments, according to Sir John Herschel, the velocity
of sound is 1,090 feet at the temperature of 32°, and this is increased 1.14 feet for every
degree of temperature of Iahrenheit’s scale.
15s
226 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
of the sound and the acuteness of different ears. This will give about
the sixteenth part of a second as the limit of time necessary for the
ear to separately distinguish two similar sounds. From this experi-
ment we learn that the reflected sound may tend to strengthen the
impression, or to confuse it, according as the difference of time between
the two impressions is greater or less than the limit of perceptibility.
An application of the same principle gives us the explanation of some
phenomena of sound which have been considered mysterious. Thus,
in the reflection of an impulse from the edge of a forest of trees, each
leaf properly situated within a range of 30 feet of the front plane of
reflection will conspire to produce a distinct echo, and these would
form the principal part of the reflecting surfaces of a dense forest, for
the remainder would be screened; and being at a greater distance, any
ray which might come from them would serve to produce merely a
low continuation of the sound.
On the same principle, we may at once assert that the panelling of
a room, or even the introduction of reflecting surfaces at different dis-
tances, will not prevent the echo, provided they are in parallel planes,
and situated, relatively to each other, within the limit of perceptibility.
Important advantage may be taken of the principle of reflection of
sound by the proper arrangement of the reflecting surfaces behind the
speaker. We frequently see in churches, as if to diminish the effect
of the voice of the preacher, a mass of drapery placed directly in the
rear of the pulpit. However important this may be in an esthetical
point of view, it is certainly at variance with correct acoustic arrange-
ments—the great object of which should be to husband every articu-
lation of the voice, and to transmit it unmingled with other impulses,
and with as little loss as possible, to the ears of the audience. :
Another effect of the transmission and reflection of sound is that
which is called reverberation, which consists of a prolonged musical
sound, and is much more frequently the cause of indistinctness of per-
ception of the articulations of the speaker than the simple echo.
Reverberation is produced by the repeated reflection of a sound from
the walls of the apartment. If, for example, a single detonation takes
place in the middle of a long hall with naked and perpendicular walls,
an impulse will pass in each direction, will be reflected from the walls,
cross each other again at the point of origin, be again reflected, and
so on until the original impulse is entirely absorbed by the solid
materials which confine it. The impression will be retained upon the
ear during the interval of the transmission past it of two successive
waves, and thus a continued sound will be kept up, particularly if the
walls of any part of the room are within 30 feet of the ear. Ifa series
of impulses, such as that produced by the rapid snaps of a quill against
the teeth of a wheel, be made in unison with the echoes, a continued
musical sound will be the result. Suppose the wheel to be turned
with such velocity as to cause a snap at the very instant the return
echo passes the point at which the apparatus is placed, the second
sound will combine with the first, and thus a loud and sustained.
vibration will be produced. It will be evident from this that every
room has a key-note, and that, to an instrument of the proper pitch,
it will resound: with great force. It must beapparent, also, that the
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS, 227
continuance of a single sound, and the tendency to confusion in dis-
tinct perception will depend on several conditions ; first, on the size
of the apartment ; secondly, on the strength of the sound or the inten-
sity of the impulse ; thirdly, on the position of the reflecting surfaces ;
and fourthly, on the nature of the material of the reflecting surfaces.
In regard to the first of these, the larger the room, the longer time
will be required for the impulse along the axis to reach the wall; and
if we suppose that at each collision a portion of the original force is
absorbed, it will require double the time to totally extinguish it in a
room of double the size, because, the velocity of sound being the same,
the number of collisions in a given time will be inversely as the dis-
tance through which the sound has to travel.
Again, that it must depend upon the loudness of the sound, or the
intensity of the impulse, must be evident, when we consider that the
cessation of the reflections is due to the absorption of the walls, or to
irregular reflection, and that, consequently, the greater the amount of
original disturbance, the longer will be the time required for its com-
plete extinction. This principle was abundantly shown by our obser-
vations on different rooms.
Thirdly, the continuance of the resonance will depend upon the
position of the reflecting surfaces. If these are not parallel to each
other, but oblique, so as to reflect the sound, not to the opposite, but
to the adjacent wall, without passing through the longer axis of the
room, it will evidently be sooner absorbed. Any obstacle, also, which
may tend to break up the wave, and interfere with the reflection
through the axis of the room, will serve to lessen the resonance of the
apartment. Hence, though the panelling, the ceiling, and the intro-
duction of a variety of oblique surfaces, may not prevent an isolated
echo, provided the distance be sufficiently great, and the sound suffi-
ciently loud, yet that they do have an important effect in stopping the
resonance is evident from theory and experiment. In a room fifty feet
square, in which the resonance of a single intense sound continued six
seconds, when cases and other objects were placed around the wall, its
continuance was reduced to two seconds.
Fourthly, the duration of the resonance will depend upon the nature
of the material of the wall. <A reflection always takes place at the
surface of a new medium, and the amount of this will depend upon the
elastic force or power to resist compression and the density of the new
medium. For example, a wall of nitrogen, if such could be found,
would transmit nearly the whole of a wave of sound in air, and reflect
put a very small portion; a partition of tissue-paper would produce
nearly the same effect. A polished wall of steel, however, of sufficient
thickness to prevent yielding, would reflect, for practical purposes, all
the impulses through the air which might fall upon it. The rebound
of the wave is caused, not by the oscillation of the wall, but by the
elasticity and mobility of the air. The striking of a single ray of
sound against a yielding board would probably increase the loudness
of the reverberation, but not its continuance. On this point a series
of experiments were made by the use of the tuning-fork. In this in-
strument, the motion of the foot and of the two prongs gives a sonor-
ous vibration to the air, which, if received upon another tuning-fork
228 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
of precisely the same size and form, would reproduce the same
vibrations.
It is a fact well established by observation, that when two bodies are
in perfect unison, and separated frm each other by a space filled with
air, vibrations of the one will be transmitted to the other. From this
consideration it is probable that relatively the same effect ought to be
produced in transmitting immediately the vibration of a tuning-fork
to a reflecting body, as to duration and intensity, as in the case of
transmission through air. This conclusion is strengthened by float-
ing a flat piece of wood on water in a vessel standing upon a sounding-
board; placing a tuning-fork on the wood, the vibrations will be
transmitted to the board through the water, and sounds will be pro-
duced of the same character as those emitted when the tuning-fork is
placed directly upon the board.
A tuning-fork suspended from a fine cambric thread, and vibrated
in air, was found, from the mean of a number of experiments, to con-
tinue in motion 252 seconds. In this experiment, had the tuning-
fork been in a perfect vacuum, suspended without the use of a string,
and, further, had there been no ethereal medium, the agitation of
which would give rise to light, heat, electricity, or some other form of
ethereal motion, the fork would have continued its vibration forever.
The fork was next placed upon a large, thin pine board, the top
of a table. A loud sound in this case was produced, which continued
less than ten seconds. The whole table as a system was thrown into
motion, and the sound produced was as loud on the under side as on
the upper side. Had the tuning-fork been placed against a partition
of this material, a loud sound would have been heard in the adjoining
room; and this was proved by sounding the tuning-fork against a door
leading into a closed closet. The sound within was apparently as
loud as that without.
The rapid decay of sound in this case was produced by so great an
amount of the motive power of the fork being communicated to a large
mass of wood. ‘The increased sound was due to the increased surface.
In other words, the shortness of duration was compensated for by the
greater intensity of effect produced.
The tuning-fork was next placed upon a circular slab of marble,
about three feet in diameter and three quarters of an inch thick. The
sound emitted was feeble, and the undulations continued one hundred
and fifteen seconds, as deduced from the mean of six experiments.
In all these experiments, except the one in a vacuum, the time of the
cessation of the motion of the tuning-fork was determined by bringing
the mouth of aresounding cavity near the end of the fork; this cavity,
having previously been adjusted to unison with the vibrations of the
fork, gave an audible sound when none could be heard by the unaided
ear.
The tuning-fork was next placed upon a cube of India rubber, and
this upon the marble slab. The sound emitted by this arrangement
was scarcely greater than in the case of the tuning-fork suspended
from the cambric thread, and from the analogy of the previous ex-
periments we might at first thought suppose the time of duration
would be great ; but this was not the case. The vibrations continued
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 229
only about forty seconds. The question may here be asked, what
became of the impulses lost by the tuning-fork ? They were neither
transmitted through the India rubber nor given off to the air in the
form of sound, but were probably expended in producing a change in
the matter of the India-rubber, or were converted into heat, or both.
Though the inquiry did not fall strictly within the line of this series
of investigations, yet it was of so interesting a character in a physical
point of view to determine whether heat was actually produced, that
the following experiment was made: :
A cylindrical piece of India rubber, about an inch and a quarter
in diameter was placed in a tubulated bottle, with two openings, one
near the bottom and the other at the top. A stuffing-box was attached
to the upper, through which a metallic stem, with a circular foot to
press upon the India rubber, was made to pass air-tight. The lower
tubular was closed with a cork, in a perforation of which a fine glass
tube was cemented. A small quantity of red ink was placed in the
tube to serve asan index. The wholearrangement thus formed a kind
of air-thermometer, which would indicate a certain amount of change
of temperature in the enclosed air. On the top of the stem, the
tuning-fork was screwed, and consequently its vibrations were trans-
mitted to the rubber within the bottle. The glass was surrounded
with several coatings of flannel to prevent the influence of external
temperature. The tuning-fork was then sounded, and the vibrations
were kept up for some time. No reliable indications of an increase
of temperature were observed. A more delicate method of making
the experiment next suggested itself. The tube containing the drop
of red ink, with its cork was removed, and the point of a compound
wire formed of copper and iron was thrust into the substance of the
rubber, while the other ends of the wire were connected with a delicate
galvanometer. The needle was suffered to come to rest, the tuning-
fork was then vibrated, and its impulses transmitted to the rubber.
A very perceptible increase of temperature was the result. The needle
moved through an arc of from one to two anda half degrees. The
experiment was varied, and many times repeated ; the motions of the
needle were always in the same direction, namely, in that which was
produced when the point of the compound wire was heated by momen-
tary contact with the fingers. The amount of heat generated in this
way is, however, small, and indeed, in all cases in which it is gene-
rated by mechanical means, the amount envolved appears very small
in comparison with the labor expended in producing it. Jule has
shown that the mechanical energy generated in a pound weight, by
falling through a space of seven hundred and fifty feet, elevates the
temperature of a pound of water one degree.
It is evident that an object like India rubber actually destroys a por-
tion of the sound, and hence, in cases in which entire non-conduction
is required, this substance can probably be employed with perfect suc-
cess. "
The tuning-fork was next pressed upon a solid brick wall, and the
duration of vibration from a number of trials was eighty-eight seconds.
Against a wall of lath and plaster the sound was louder, and con-
tinued only eighteen seconds,
230 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
From these experiments we may infer that, if a room were lined
with wainscot of thin boards, and a space left between the wall and
the wood, the loudness of the echo of a single noise would be in-
creased, while the duration of the resonance would be diminished. If,
however, the thin board were glued or cemented in solid connexion
to the wall, or imbedded in the mortar, then the effect would be a
feeble echo, and a long continued resonance, similar to that from the
slab of marble. This was proved by first determining the length of
continuance of the vibrations of a tuning-fork on a thin board, which
was afterwards cemented to a flat piece of marble.
A series of experiments were next commenced with reference to the
actual reflection of sound. For this purpose a parabolic mirror was
employed, and the sound from a watch received on the mouth of a
hearing trumpet, furnished with a tube for each ear. The focus was
near the apex of the parabola, and when the watch was suspended
at this point it was six inches within the plane of the outer circle of
the mirror. In this case the sound was confined at its origin, and
prevented from expanding. No conjugate focus was produced, but, on
the contrary, the rays of light, when a candle was introduced, con-
stantly diverged. The ticking of the watch could not be heard at all
when the ear was applied to the outside of the mirror, while directly
in front it was distinctly heard at the distance of thirty feet, and with
the assistance of the ear trumpet at more than double that distance.
When the watch was removed from tre focus, the sound ceased to be
audible. This method of experimenting admits of considerable pre-
cision, and enables us directly to verify, by means of sound transmit-
ted through air, the results anticipated in the previous experiments.
A piece of tissue-paper placed within the mirror, and surrounding
the watch without touching it, slightly diminished the reflection.. A
single curtain of flannel produced a somewhat greater effect, though
the reflecting power of the metallic parabola was not entirely masked
by three thicknesses of flannel; and, I presume, very little change
would have been perceived, had the reflector been lined with flannel
glued to the surface of the metal. The sound was also audible at the
distance of ten feet, when a large felt hat, without stiffening, was inter-
posed between the watch and the mirror. Care was taken in these
experiments so to surround the watch that no ray of sound could
pass directly from it to the reflecting surface.
With a cylindrical mirror, having a parabolic base, very little in-
creased reflection was perceived. The converging beams in this case
were merely in a single plane, perpendicular to the mirror, and pass-
ing through the ear, while to the focal point of the spherical mirror a
solid cone of rays was sent.
The reflection from the cylindrical mirror forms what is called a
caustic in optics, while that from a spherical mirror gives a true focus,
or, in other words, collects the sounds from all parts of the surface,
and conveys them to one pointof space. These facts furnish a ready
explanation of the confusion experienced in the Hall of Representa-
tives, which is surmounted by a dome, the under surface of which acts
as an immense concave mirror, reflecting to a focus every sound which
ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 231
ascends to it, leaving other points of space deficient in sonorous im-
ulses
‘ Water, and all liquids which offer great resistance to compression,
are good reflectors of sound. This may be shown by the following
experiment. When water is gradually poured into an upright cylin-
drical vessel, over the mouth of which a tuning-fork is vibrated, until
it comes within a certain distance of the mouth, it will reflect an
echo in unison with the vibrations of the fork, and produce a loud
resonance. This result explains the fact, which had been observed
with some surprise, that the duration of the resonance of a newly plas-
tered room was not perceptibly less than that of one which had been
thoroughly dried.
There is another principle of acoustics which has a bearing on this
subject. I allude to the refraction of sound. It is well known that,
when a ray of sound passes from one medium to another, a change in
velocity takes place, and consequently a change in the direction or a
refraction must be produced. The amount of this can readily be cal-
culated where the relative velocities are known. In rooms heated by
furnaces, and in which streams of heated air pass up between the au-
dience and speaker, a confusion has been supposed to be produced, and
distinct hearing interfered with, by this cause. Since the velocity of
sound in air at 32° of Fahrenheit has been found to be 1,090 feet in a
second, and since the velocity increases 1.14 feet for every degree of
Fahrenheit’s scale, if we know the temperature of the room, and that
of the heated current, the amount of angular refraction can be ascer-
tained. But since the ear does not readily judge of the difference of
direction of two sounds emanating from the same source, and since
two rays do not confuse the impression which they produce upon the
ear, though they arrive by very different routes, provided they are
within the limit of perceptibility, we may therefore conclude thatthe
indistinctness produced by refraction is comparatively little. Professor
Bache and myself could perceive no difference in distinctness in hear-
ing from rays of sound passing over a chandelier of the largest size,
in which a large number of gas jets were in full combustion. The
fact of disturbance from this cause, however, if any exist, may best be
determined by the experiment with a parabolic mirror and the hear-
ing trumpet before described.
These researches may be much extended ; they open a field of in-
vestigation equally interesting to the lover of abstract science and to
the practical builder ; and I hope, in behalf of the committee, to give
some further facts with regard to this subject at another meeting.
I shall now briefly describe the lecture room, which has been con-
structed in accordance with the facts and principles previously stated,
so far at least as they could be applied.
There was another object kept in view in the construction of this
room besides the accurate hearing, namely, the distinct seeing. It was
desirable that every person should have an opportunity of seeing the
experiments which might be performed, as well as of hearing dis-
tinctly the explanation of them.
‘By a fortunate coincidence of principle, it happens that the arange
932 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
ments for insuring unobstructed sight do not interfere with those
necessary for distinct hearing.
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ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 233
The law of Congress authorizing the establishment of the Smith-
sonian Institution directed that a lecture-room should be provided ;
and accordingly in the first plan one-half of the first story of the main
building was devoted to this purpose. It was found, however, impos-
sible to construct a room on acoustic principles in this part of the
building, which was necessarily occupied by two rows of columns.
The only suitable place which could be found was, therefore, on the
second floor. The main building is two hundred feet long and fifty
feet wide; but by placing the lecture-room in the middle of the story
a greater width was obtained by means of the projecting towers.
The general form and arrangement of the room will be understood
from the accompanying drawing, which exhibits a general plan of the
second story of the main building. In this, G, F, F, represent the
rear, and M, M, M, the front towers. The lecture-room is 100 feet
in its greater dimension, and 64 feet from I to C, and 88 feet to the
extremity of the upper gallery F, F. The curved dotted line repre-
sents the front of the gallery, which is in the form of a horse shoe.
The dotted line in the rear tower represents the extension of the gal-
lery into this space.
234 ACOUSTICS APPLIED TO PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
The above illustration exhibits a perspective view of the lecture-
room from the west side under the gallery.
The speaker’s platform is placed between two oblique walls. The
corners of the room which are cut off by these walls afford recesses
for the stairs into the galleries. The opposite corners are also par-
titioned off, so as to afford recesses for the same purpose. The ceiling
is twenty-five feet high, and, therefore, within the limit of percepti-
bility. It is perfectly smooth and unbroken, with the exception of an
oval opening nearly over the speaker’s platform, through which light
is admitted. The seats are arranged in curves, and were intended to
rise in accordance with the panoptic curve, originally proposed by Pro-
fessor Bache, which enables each individual to see over the head of
the person immediately in front of him. The original form of the
room, however, did not allow of this intention being fully realized,
and therefore the rise is a little less than the curve would indicate.
The walls behind the speaker are composed of lath and plaster, and
therefore have a tendency to give a more intense, though less pro-
longed sound than if of solid masonry. They are also arranged for
exhibiting drawings to the best advantage.
The general appearance of the room is somewhat fan-shaped, and
the speaker is placed as it were in the mouth of an immense trumpet.
The sound directly from his voice, and that from reflection immedi-
ately behind him, is thrown forward upon the audience; and as the
difference of distance travelled by the two rays is much within the
limit of perceptibility, no confusion is produced by direct and reflected
sound.
Again, on account of the oblique walls behind the speaker, and
the multitude of surfaces, including the gallery, pillars, stair-screens,
&c., as well as the audience, directly in front, all reverberation is
stopped.
No echo is given off from the ceiling, for this is also within the
limit of perceptibility, while it assists the hearing in the gallery by
the reflection to that place of the oblique rays.
The architecture of this room is due to Captain Alexander, of the
corps of topographical engineers. He fully appreciated all the prin-
ciples of sound which I have given, and varied his plans until all the
required conditions, as far as possible, were fulfilled,
NATURAL HISTORY. 235
DIRECTIONS FOR COLLECTING, PRESERVING, AND TRANSPORTING
. SPECIMENS OF NATURAL HISTORY.
PREPARED FOR THE USE OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
By Proressor S. F. BAIRD.
INTRODUCTION.
The present brief directions for collecting and preserving objects of
natural history have been drawn up for the use of travellers and
others who may desire elementary instruction on this subject. The
general principles involved are so simple as to enable any one, with
but little practice, to preserve specimens sufficiently well for the ordi-
nary purposes of science.
In transmitting specimens to the Smithsonian Institution, recourse
may be had, when practicable, to the facilities kindly authorized by
the War, Navy, and Treasury Departments, in the annexed letters.
Parcels collected in the vicinity of military posts in the interior may
usually be sent down to the coast or the frontier in returning trains
of the quartermaster’s department. From the Atlantic, Pacific, or
Mexican gulf coasts, they may be shipped on board storeships, reve-
nue cutters, or other government vessels, to some convenient Atlantic
seaport. While waiting for opportunities of shipment, packages can
generally be deposited in custom-houses or public stores.
Where it is not convenient or practicable to inake use of govern-
ment facilities, the ordinary lines of transportation may be employed.
When there is time enough to communicate with the Institution, in-
structions will be supplied as to the most eligible route; if not, then
the cheapest but most reliable line should be selected. In every case
the parcels should be addressed to the Smithsonian Institution, Wash-
ington, with the name of sender and locality marked on the outside.
Full directions for packing specimens will be found in the pamphlet.
Collections in natural history, as complete as possible, including
the commonest species, are requested from any part of the country ;
as also lists and descriptions of species, notes of habits, &c.
For all assistance which may be rendered, either in gathering spe-
cimens or in aiding in their transportation, full credit will be given
by the Institution in the annual reports to Congress, catalogues and
labels of collections, and in other ways.
§I. GENERAL REMARKS.*
The general principle to be observed in making collections of natural
history, especially in a country but little explored, is, to gather all the
* This chapter is intended especially for the guidance of travelling parties by land, and
embraces many points referred to subsequently at greater length.
236 NATURAL HISTORY.
species which may present themselves, subject to the convenience or
practicability of transportation. The number of specimens to be
secured will, of course, depend upon their size, and the variety of
form or condition, caused by the different features of age, sex, or
season. .
As the object of the Institution in making collections is not merely
to obtain the different species, but also to determine their geographi-
cal distribution, it becomes important to have as full series as prac-
ticable from each locality. And in commencing such collections, the
most common and abundant species should be secured first, as being
most characteristic. It is a fact well known in the history of collec-
tions, that the species which, from their abundance, would be first
expected, are the last to make their appearance. Thus, while the
rarer mammals of the plains are tolerably well represented, the ante-
lope, prairie dog, the various species of wolves, the black-tail deer,
and others, so numerous in perfectly accessible localities, have scarcely
ever been seen in.a preserved state.
The first specimen procured, however imperfect, should be pre-
served, at least until a better can be obtained.
Whereasmall part only of the specimens collected can be transported,
such species should be selected as are least likely to be procured in other
localities’ or on other occasions. Among these may be mentioned
reptiles, fishes, soft insects, &c.; in short, all such as require alcohol
for their preservation. Dried objects, as skins, can be procured with
less difficulty, and are frequently collected by persons not specially
interested in scientific pursuits.
In gathering specimens of any kind, it is important to fix, with the
utmost precision, the localities where they are found. This is espe-
cially desirable in reference to fishes and other aquatic animals, since
they occupy a very intimate relation to the waters in which they live.
The smaller quadrupeds, of the size of a mouse, may be preserved
entire in alcohol. Larger kinds should be skinned, and the skins put
into alcohol, or coated on the inside with arsenic, and then dried.
The skulls of the smaller kinds may be left in the skins; those of
the larger should be removed, taking care to attach some common
mark by which they may be again brought together. Large animals,
of or above. the size of the wolf, may, for greater convenience, be
skinned after the method pursued by butchers, by drawing the skin
of the legs down to the toes, and there severing the joint. The skins
need not be sewed up, as is directed for the smaller kinds, but rolled
up into bales, after applying an abundance of arsenic and drying
them. In the absence of arsenic, salt applied to the skin will answer
as a preservative. Immersion in a strong brine of alum and salt will
be found very efficacious. Powdered green or blue vitriol, sprinkled
on the hair, will serve a good purpose in keeping off insects.
It is very important to procure the skeletons, and at all events the
skulls, of all the species of mammals, in sufficient number to include
all the variations of age and sex. These may be roughly prepared by
cutting off the flesh, extracting the brain, and drying in the sun.
In passing through the breeding ground of species of birds whose
nidification and eggs are not known, attention should be paid to secu-
NATURAL HISTORY. 237
ring abundant specimens of nests andeggs. When possible, the skin®
of the bird to which each set of eggs may belong should be secured, as
well as the skins of birds generally. .
A great obstacle in the way of making alcoholic collections while
on a march, has been found in the escape of the spirits and the
friction of the specimens, as well as in the mixing up of those from
different localities. All these difficulties have been successfully ob-
viated by means of the following arrangement: instead of using
glass jars, so liable to break, or even wooden kegs, so difficult of
stowage, a square copper can should be procured, having a large
mouth with a cap fitting tightly over it, either by a screw, or other-
wise. ‘The can should be enclosed in a wooden box, or may be made
to fit toa division of a pannier, to be slung across the back of a
mule. Several small cans, in capacity of from a half to one-third of
a cubic foot, or even less, will be better than one large one. Small
bags of mosquito netting, lino, crinoline, or other porous material,
shouid be provided, made in shape like a pillow-case, and open at one
end; these may be from six to fifteen inches long. When small
fishes, reptiles, or other specimens are procured in any locality, they
may be placed indiscriminately in one or more of these bags (the
mouths of which are to be tied up like a sack,) and then thrown into
the alcohol. Previously, however, a label of parchment, leather, or
stout paper should be placed inside the bag, containing the name of the
locality or other mark, and written in ordinary ink. The label, if dry
before being placed in the bag, will retain its writing unchanged for
along time. The locality, or its number, should also be coarsely
marked with a red pencil on the outside of the bag. In this way,
the specimens, besides being readily identified, are preserved from
rubbing against each other, and consequent injury. Still further to
facilitate this object, an India rubber gas-bag may be employed to
great advantage, by introducing it into the vessel, and inflating until
all vacant space is filled up by the bag, and the consequent displace-
ment of the spirit. When additional specimens are to be added, a
portion of the air may be let out, and the bag afterwards again inflated,
Should this arrangement be found impracticable, a quantity of tow,
cotton, or rags, kept over the specimens, will be found useful io pre-
venting their friction against each other, or the sides of the vesvel.
The larger snakes should be skinned, as indicated hereafter, and
the skins thrown into alcohol. Much space will in this way be saved.
Smaller specimens may be preserved entire, together with lizards, sal-
amanders, and small frogs. All of these that cau be caught should
be secured and preserved. The head, the legs witi tie fect, the tail,
in fact the entire skin of turtles, may be preserve in alcohol; the
soft parts then extracted from the shell, which is to be washed and
dried.
Every stream, and indeed, when porsible, many localities in each
stream, should be explored for fishes, which are to be preserved as
directed. For these, as well as the vther alcoholic collections, the
lino bags are very useful.
‘Great attention should be paid to procuring many specimens of the
different kinds of small fishes, usually known as minnows, shiners,
938 NATURAL HISTORY.
‘chubs, &c. Among these will always be found the greatest variety
of species, some never exceeding an inch in length. These fish are
generally neglected under the idea that they are merely the young of
larger kinds; even if they should prove to be such, however, they
will be none the less interesting. Different forms will be found in
different localities. Thus the Hiheostoma, or Darters, and the Cottus,
live under stones, or among gravel, in shallow clear streams, lying
flat on the ground. Others will be dislodged by stirring under roots
or shelving banks along the water’s edge. The Melanura, or mud fish
(a few inches in length,) exist 7x the mud of ditches, and are secured
by stirring up this mud intoa thin paste with the feet, and then draw-
ing a net through. The sticklebacks ard cyprinodonts live along the
edges of fresh and salt water. The Zygonectes swim in pairs slowly
along the surface of the water, the tip of the nose generally exposed.
They generally havea broad black stripe on the side. By a careful
attention to these hints, many localities supposed to be deficient in
species of fishes, will be found to yield a large number.
The alcohol used ona march may be supplied with tartar emetic.
This, besides adding to its preservative power, will remove any temp-
tation to drink it, on the part of unscrupulous persons.
Nearly all insects, scarcely excepting the Lepidoptera, can be readily
preserved in alcohol. Crabs and small shells may likewise be treated
in the same manner.
It is not usually possible to collect minerals, fossils, and geological
specimens in very great mass while travelling. The fossils selected
should be as perfect as possible; and especial care stiould be paid to
procuring the bones and teeth of vertebrate animals. Of minerals
and rocks, specimens as large as a hickory-nut will, in many cases,
be sufficient for identification.
Where collections cannot be made in any region, it will be very de-
sirable to procure lists of all the known species, giving the names
by which they are generally recognized, as well as the scientific name,
when this is practicable. ‘'he common names of specimens procured
should also be carefully recorded.
All facts relating to the habits and peculiarities of the various
species of animals should be carefully recorded in the note book,
especially those haviug relation to the peculiarities of the season of
reproduction, &c. The accounts of hunters and others should also be
collected, as much valuable information may thus be secured. The
colors of the reptiles and fishes when alive should always be given,
when practicable, or, still better, painted on a rough sketch of the
object.
LIST OF APPARATUS USEFUL FOR TRAVELLING PARTIES.
1. Two leather panniers, supplied with back strap for throwing
across amule, One of these is intended to contain the copper kettles,
and their included alcohol, together with the nets and other apparatus ;
the other to hold the botanical apparatus, skins of animals, minerals,
&c. These, when full, should not weigh more than one hundred and
fifty pounds the pair.
NATURAL HISTORY. 239
2. Two copper kettles in one of the panniers, to contain the alcohol
for such specimens as require this mode of preservation, viz: reptiles,
fishes, small quadrupeds, most insects, and all soft invertebrates. The
alcohol, if over 80 per cent., should have one-fourth of water added.
3. An iron wrench to loosen the screw-caps of the copper kettles,
when too tight to be managed by hand.
4. Two India rubber bags, one for each kettle. These are intended
to be inflated inside of the kettles, and by displacing the alcohol cause
it to rise to the edge of the brass cap, and thus fill the kettle. Unless
this is done, and any unoccupied space thus filled up, the specimens
will be washed against the sides of the vessel, and much injured.
5. Small bags made of lino, mosquito netting or cotton, of different
sizes, and open at one end. These are intended, in the first place, to
separate the specimens of different localities from each other ; and, in
the second place, to secure them from mutual friction or other injury.
The number or name corresponding to the locality is to be marked on
the outside with red chalk, or written with ink on a slip of parchment,
and dropped inside. The specimens are then to be placed in the bag,
a string tied round the open end, and the bag thrown into alcohol.
The ink of the parchment must be dry before the slip is moistened in
any way.
N. B. Fishes and reptiles over five or six inches in length should
have a small incision made in the abdomen, to facilitate the introduction
of the alcohol. Larger snakes and small quadrupeds may be skinned,
and the skins placed in alcohol.
6. Red chalk pencils for marking the bags.
7. Parchment to serve as labels for the bags. This may also be cut
up into labels, and fastened by strings to such specimens as are not
suited for the bags. Leather, kid, buckskin, &c., will also answer this
purpose.
8. Fishing-line and hooks.
9. Small seines for catching fishes in small streams. The two ends
should be fastened to brails or sticks (hoe-handles answer well), which
are taken in the hands of two persons, and the net drawn both up and
down stream. Fishes may often be caught by stirring up the gravel
or small stones in a stream, and drawing the net rapidly down the cur-
rent. Bushes or holes along the banks may be inclosed by the nets,
and stirred so as to drive out the fishes, which usually lurk in such
localities. These nets may be six or eight feet long.
10. Casting-net.
11. Alcohol. About five gallons to each travelling party. This
should be about 80 per cent. in strength, and medicated by the addi-
tion of one ounce of tartar emetic to one gallon of alcohol, to prevent
persons from drinking it.
12. Arsenic in two-pound tin canisters. This may be applied to the
moist skins of birds and quadrupeds, either dry or mixed with alcohol.
13. Tartar emetic for medicating the alcohol, as above.
14. Cotton or tow for stuffing out the heads of birds and mammals.
To economize space, but little should be put into the bodies of the ani-
inals. The skulls of the quadrupeds had better be removed from the
skins, but carefully preserved with a common mark.
240 NATURAL HISTORY.
15. Paper for wrapping up the skins of birds and small quadrupeds,
each separately. The paper supplied for botanical purposes will
answer for this,
16. Butcher-knife, scissors, needles, and thread, for skinning and
sewing up animals.
17. Blank labels of paper with strings attached for marking locali-
ties, sex, &c., and tying to the legs of the dried skins, or to tle stems
of plants.
18. Portfolio for collecting plants.
19. Press for drying plants between the blotting paper. Pressure
is applied by straps.
20. Very absorbent paper for drying plants.
21. Stiffer paper for collecting plants in the field. The same paper
may be used for wrapping skins of birds and quadrupeds, as well as
minerals and fossils.
22. Small bottles for collecting and preserving insects.
23. Geological hammer.
24. Double-barrelled gun and rifle.
25. Fine shot for small birds and mammals. Numbers 3, 6, and 9,
are proper sizes: the latter should always be taken.
26. A pocket case of dissecting instruments will be very convenient.
27. Blowpipe apparatus for mineralogical examinations.
28. Pocket vial for insects.
29. Bottle of ether for killing insects.
30. Insect pins.
31. Cork-lined boxes.
§II. INSTRUMENTS, PRESERVATIVE MATERIALS, &c.
1, IMPLEMENTS FOR SKINNING.
The implements generally required in skinning vertebrated animals
are: A sharp knife or a scalpel. 2. A pair of sharp-pointed scissors,
and one with strong short blades. 3. Needles and thread for sewing
up the incisions in the skin. 4. A hook by which to suspend the car-
cass of the animal during the operation of skinning. To prepare the
hook, take a string, of from one to three feet in length, and fasten one
end of it to a stout fish-hook which has had the barb broken off. By
means of a loop at the other end, the string may be suspended to a
nail or awl, which, when the hook is inserted into the body of an
animal, will give free use of both hands in the operation of skinning.
2. PRESERVATIVES.
The best material for the preservation of skins of animals consists
of powdered arsenious acid, or the common arsenic of the shops. This
may be used in two ways, either applied in dry powder to the moist
skin, or else mixed with alcohol or water to the consistency of molas-
ses, and put on with a brush. A little camphor may be added to the
alcoholic solution. There are no satisfactory substitutes for arsenic
NATURAL HISTORY 24]
but, in its entire absence, corrosive sublimate, arsenical soap, cam-
phor, alum, &c., may be employed.
The proper materials for stuffing out skins will depend much upon
the size of the animal. For small birds and quadrupeds, cotton will
be found most convenient; for the larger, tow. Tor those still larger,
dry grass, straw, sawdust, bran, or other vegetable substances, may
be used. Whatever substance be used care must be taken to have it
perfectly dry. Under no circumstances should animal matter, as
hair, wool, or feathers, be employed.
§ III. SKINNING AND STUFFING.
1. BIRDS.
Whenever convenient the following notes should be made previous
to commencing the operation of skinning, as they will add much to
the value of the specimens:
1. ‘The length, in inches, from tip of bill to the end of the tail ;
the distance between the two extremities of the outstretched wings ;
and the length of the wing from the carpal or wrist-joint. The num-
bers may be recorded as follows: 44, 66, 12, (as for aswan,) without
any explanation; it being well understood that the above measure-
ments follow each other in a fixed succession. These numbers may
be written on the back of the label attached to each specimen.
2. The color of the eyes, that of the feet, bill, gums, membranes,
caruncles, &c.
3. The date, the locality, and the name of the collector.
4. The sex. All these points should be recorded on the label.
Immediately after a bird is killed, the holes made by the shot,
together with the mouth and internal or posterior nostrils, should be
plugged up with cotton, to prevent the escape of blood and the juices
of the stomach. A long narrow paper cone should be made; the bird,
if small enough, thrust in, head foremost, and the open end folded
down, taking care not to break or b. nd the tail feathers in the opera-
tion.* ;
When ready to proceed to skinning, remove the old cotton from
the throat, mouth, and nostrils, and replace it by fresh. Then take
the dimensions from the point of the bill to the end of the tail, from
the tip of one wing to that of the other, when both are extended, and
from the tip of the wing to the first or carpal joint, as already
indicated, :
This being done, make an incision through the skin only, from the
lower end of the breast bone to the anus. Should the intestines pro-
trude in, small specimens, they had better be extracted, great care
being taken not to soil the feathers. Now proceed carefully to sepa-
rate the skin on each side from the subjacent parts, until you reach
the knee and expose the thigh; when, taking the leg in one hand,
push or thrust the knee up on the abdomen, and loosen the skin around
_*Crumpled or bent feathers may have much of their elasticity and original shape restored
by dipping in hot water.
16s
242 NATURAL HISTORY. °
it until you can place the scissors or knife underneath, and separate
the joint with the accompanying muscles. Place a little cotton be-
tween the skin and the body to prevent adhesion. loosen the skin
about the base of the tail, and cut through the vertebrae at the last
joint, taking care not to sever the bases of the quills. Suspend the
body by inserting the hook into the lower part of the back or rump, and
invert the skin, loosening it carefully from the body. On reaching the
wings, which had better be relaxed previously by stretching and pull-
ing, loosen the skin from around the first bone, and cut through the
middle of it, or, if the bird be small enough, separate it from the next
at the elbow. Continue the inversion of the skin by drawing it over
the neck, until the skull is exposed. Arrived at this point, detach
the delicate membrane of the ear from its cavity in the skull, if pos-
sible, without cutting or tearing it; then, by means of the thumb-
nails, loosen the adhesion of the skin to the other parts of the head,
until you come to the very base of the mandibles, taking care to cut
through the white nictitating membrane of the eye, when exposed,
without lacerating the ball. Scoop out the eyes, and by making one
cut on each side of the head, through the small bone connecting the
base of the lower jaw with the skull, another through the roof of the
mouth at the base of the upper mandible, and between the jaws of the
lower, and a fourth through the skull behind the orbits, and parallel
to the roof of the mouth, you will have freed the skull from all the
accompanying brain and muscle. Should anything still adhere, it
may be removed separately. In making the first two cuts care must
be taken not to injure or sever the zygoma, a small bone extending
from the base of the upper mandible to the base of the lower jaw-bone.
Clean off every particle of muscle and fat from the head and _ neck,
and, applying the preservative abundantly to the skull, inside and
out, as well as to the skin, restore these parts to their natural posi-
tion. In all the preceding operations the skin should be handled as
near the point of adhesion as possible, especial care being taken not
to stretch it.
Finely powdered plaster of Paris, chalk, or whiting, may be used
to great advantage by sprinkling on the exposed surface of the car-
cass and inside of skin to absorb the grease and blood.
The next operation is to connect the two wings inside of the skin
by means of a string, which should be passed between the lower ends
of the two bones forming the forearm, previously, however, cutting
off the stump of the arm, if still adhering at the elbow. Tie the two
ends of the strings so that the wings shall be kept at the same dis-
tance apart as when attached to the body. Skin the leg down to the
scaly part, or tarsus, and remove all the muscle. Apply the arsenic
to the bone and skin, and, wrapping cotton round the bone, puil it
back to its place. Remove all the muscle and fat which may adhere
to the base of the tail or the skin, and put on plenty of the preserva-
tive wherever thiscan be done. Lift up the wing, and remove the
muscle from the forearm by making an incision along it, or in many
cases the two joints may be exposed by carefully slipping down the
skin towards the wrist-joint, the adhesion of the quills to the bone
being loosened.
NATURAL HISTORY. 243
The bird is now to be restored to something like its natural shape
by means of a filling of cotton or tow. Begin by opening the mouth
‘and putting cotton into the orbits and upper part of the throat, until
these parts have their natural shape. Next take tow or cotton, and,
after making a roll rather less in thickness than the original neck,
put it into the skin, and push firmly into the base cf the skull. By
means of this you can reduce or contract the neck if too much stretched,
Fill the body with cotton, not quite to its original dimensions, and
sew up the incision in the skin, commencing at the upper end, and
passing the needle from the inside outwards; tie the legs and mandi-
bles together, adjust the feathers, and, after preparing a cylinder of
paper the size of the bird, push the skin into it so as to bind the wings
closely to the sides. The cotton may be put in loosely, or a body the
size of the original made by wrapping with threads. If the bird have
long legs and neck, these had better be folded down over the body,
and allowed to dry in that position. Economy of space is a great
object in keeping skins, and such birds as herons, geese, swans, &c.,
occupy too much room when outstretched.
In some instances, as among ducks, woodpeckers, &c., the head is,
so large that the skin of the neck cannot be drawn over it. In such,
cases, skin the neck down to the base of the skull, and cut it off there.
Then draw the head out again, and, making an incision on the cut--
side, down the back of the skull, skin the head. Be careful not to.
make too long a cut, and to sew up the incision again.
The sex of the specimen may be ascertained after skinning, by
making an incision in the side near the vertebra, and exposing the.
inside surface of the ‘‘small of the back.’’ The generative organs.
will be found tightly bound to this region, (nearly opposite to the last
ribs,) and separating it from the intestines. The testicles of the male.
will be observed as two spheroidal or ellipsoidal whitish bodies, vary-
ing with the season and species, from the size of a pin’s head to that.
of a hazel-nut. The ovaries of the female, consisting of a flattened
mass of spheres, variable in size with the season, will be found in the.
same region.
For transportation, each skin of mammals, as well as of birds.
should, when possible, be wrapped in paper.
2. MAMMALS.
The mode of preparing mammals is precisely the same as for birds,
in all its general features. Care should be taken not to make too
large an incision along the abdomen. The principal difficulty will be
experienced in skinning the tail. To effect this, pass the slipknot of
a piece of strong twine over the severed end of the tail, and, fasten-
ing the vertebra firmly to some support, pull the twine towards the
tip until the skin is forced off. Should the animal be large, and an
abundance of preservative not at hand, the skin had better remain
inverted. In all cases it should be thoroughly and rapidly dried.
The tails of some mammalia cannot be skinned as directed above.
This is particularly the case with beavers, opossums, and those species
which use their tail for prehension or locomotion. Here the tail is
244 NATURAL HISTORY.
usually supplied with numerous tendinous muscles, which require it
to be skinned by making a cut along the lower surface or right side,
nearly from one end to the other, and removing the bone and flesh.
It should then be sewed up again, after previous stuffing.
For the continued preservation of hair or fur of animals against
the attacks of moths and other destructive insects, it will be neces-
sary to soak the skins in a solution of corrosive sublimate in alcohol
or whiskey, allowing them to remain from one day to several weeks,
according to the size. After removal, the hair must be thoroughly
washed or rinsed in clean water, to remove as much as possible of
the sublimate; otherwise, exposure to light will bleach all the colors.
Finely powdered green vitriol, or copperas, sprinkled on either hair
or feathers will have an excellent effect in keeping out moths. Cover-
ing with tobacco leaves will also answer the same end.
In some instances, large skins may be preserved by being salted
down in casks.
»
0. REPTILES.
“The larger lizards, such as those exceeding twelve or eighteen
inches in length, may be skinned according to the principles above
mentioned, although preservation in spirit, when ‘possible, is prefera-
ble for all reptiles.
Large frogs and salamanders may likewise be skinned, although
~ gases where this will be advisable are very rare.
Turtles aud large snakes will require this operation.
To one accustomed to the skinning of birds, the skinning of frogs
~or other reptiles will present no difficulties.
‘The skinning of a snake is still easier. Open the mouth and sepa-
arate the skull from the vertebral column, detaching all surrounding
muscles adherent to the skin. Next, tie a string round the stump of
the neck thus exposed, and, holding on by this, strip the skin down
to the extremity of tne tail. The skin thus inverted should be restored
to its proper state, and then put in spirit or stuffed, as convenient.
Skins of reptiles may be stuffed with either sand or sawdust, by the
use of which their shape is more easily restored.
Turtles and tortoise are more difficult to prepare in this way,
although their skinning can be done quite rapidly. ‘*The breastplate
must be separated by a knife or saw from the back, and, when the
wiscera and fleshy parts have been removed, restored to its position.
The skin of the head and neck must be turned inside out, as far as
the head, and the vertebre and flesh of the neck should be detached
from the head, which, after being freed from the flesh, the brain, and
the tongue, may be preserved with the skin of the neck. In skin-
ning the legs and the tail, the skin must be turned inside out, and,
the flesh having been removed from the bones, they are tu be returned
to their places by redrawing the skin over them, first winding a little
cotton or tow around the bones to prevent the skin adhering to them
when it dries.’’—RIcHARD OWEN.
Another way of preparing these reptiles is as follows: Make two
incisions, one from the antcrior end of the breastplate to the sym-
NATURAL HISTORY. 245
physis of the lower jaw, and another from the posterior end of tbe
breastplate to the vent or tip of the tail; skin off these regions and
remove all fleshy parts and viscera without touching the breatplate
itself. Apply preservative, stuff, and sew up again both incisions.
‘When turtles, tortoises, crocodiles, or alligators, are too large to
be preserved whole in liquor, some parts, as the head, the whole vis-
cera stripped down from the neck to the vent, and the cloaca, should.
be put into spirits or solution.’’—R. Owen.
4, QPISHES.
As a general rule, fishes, when not too large, are best preserved
entire in spirits. '
Nevertheless, they may be usefully skinned and form collections,
the value of which is not generally appreciated. In many cases, too,
when spirits or solutions cannot be procured, a fish may be preserved
which would otherwise be lost.
There are two modes of taking the skin of a fish: 1. The whole
animal can be skinned and stuffed like a bird, mammal, or reptile.
2. One-half of the fish can be skinned, and nevertheless its natural
form preserved.
Sharks, skates, sturgeons, garpikes or garfishes, mudfishes and all
those belonging to the natural orders of Placoids and Ganoids, should
undergo the same process as given above for birds, mammals, and
reptiles. An incision should be made along the right side, the left
always remaining intact, or along the belly. The skin is next re-
moved from the flesh, the fins cut at their bases under the skin, and
the latter inverted until the base of the skull is exposed. The inner
cavity of the head should be cleaned, an application of preservative
made, and the whole, after being stuffed in the ordinary way, sewed
up again. Fins may be expanded when wet, on a piece of stiff paper,
which will keep them sufficiently stretched for the purpose. A var-
nish may be passed over the whole body and fins, to preserve some-
what the color.
In the case of Ctenoids, perches, and allied genera, and Cycloids,
trouts, suckers, and allied genera, one half of the fish may be skinned
and preserved. To effect this, lay the fish ona table with the lefé
side up; the one it is intended to preserve. Spread out the fins by
putting underneath each a piece of paper, to which it will adhere on
drying. When the fins are dried, turn the fish over, cut with scissors
or a knife all around the body, a little within the dorsal and ventral
lines, from the upper and posterior part of the head, along the back
to the tail, across the base of the caudal fin down, and thence along
the belly to the lower part of the head again. The dorsal, caudal,
and anal fins, cut below their articulations. This done, separate the
whole of the body from the left side of the skin, commencing at the
tail. When near the head, cut off the body with the right ventral
and pectoral fins, and proceed by making a section of the head and
_ removing nearly the half of it. Clean the inside, and pull out the-
left eye, leaving only the cornea and pupil. Cut a circular piece of '
black paper of the size of the orbit and place it close to the pupil.
216 NATURAL HISTORY.
Apply the preservative ; fill the head with cotton as well as the body.
Turn over the skin and fix it on a board prepared for that purpose.
Pin or tack it down at the base of the fins. Tlave several narrow
bands of paper to place across the body in order to give it a natural
form, and let it dry. The skins may be taken off the board or re-
main fixed to it, when sent to their destination, where they should be
placed on suitable boards of proper size, for permanent preservation.
Such a collection of well prepared fishes will be useful to the practi-
cal naturalist, and illustrate, in amore complete matter, to the public,
the diversified forms and characters of the class of fishes which speci-
mens preserved in alcohol do not so readily show.
These skins may also be preserved,in alcohol.
§ IV. PRESERVING IN LIQUIDS, AND BY OTHER MODES
BESIDES SKINNING.
1. GENERAL REMARKS.
The best material for preserving animals of moderate size is alcohol.
When spirits cannot be obtained, the following substitutes may be
used :
I, Goapsy’s Sotution.—A. The aluminous fluid, composed of rock-
salt, 4 ounces; alum, 2 ounces; corrosive sublimate, 4 grains; boiling
water, 2 quarts. B. The saline solution, composed of rock-salt, 8
ounces; corrosive sublimate, 2 grains; boiling water, 1 quart. To be
well stirred, strained, and cooled.
I]. A strong brine, to be used as hereafter indicated for Goadby’s
solution.
Ill. In extreme cases, dry salt may be used, and the specimens
salted down like herring, &c.
The alcohol, when of the ordinary strength, may be diluted with
one-fifth of water, unless it is necessary to crowd the specimens very
much. The fourth proof whiskey of the distillery, or the high wines,
constituting an alcohol of about 60 per cent., will be found best suited
for collections made at permanent stations and for the museum. Lower
proofs of rum or whiskey will also answer, but the specimen must not
be crowded at all.
To use Goadby’s soiution, the animal should first be macerated for
a few hours in fresh water, to which about half its volume of the con-
centrated solution may then be added. After soaking thus for some
days, the specimens may be transferred to fresh concentrated solution.
When the aluminous fluid is used to preserve vertebrate animals, these
should not remain in it for more than a few days; after this they are
to be soaked in fresh water, and transferred tothe saline solution. An
immersion of some weeks in the aluminous fluid will cause a destruction
of the bones. Specimens must be kept submerged in these fluids. The
success of the operation will depend very much upon the use of a weak
solution in the first instance, and a change to the saturated fluid by
one or two intermediate steps.
The collector should have a small keg, jar, tin box, or other suitable
vessel, partially filled with liquor, into which specimens may be thrown
NATURAL HISTORY. 247
(alive if possible) as collected. The entrance of the spirit into the
cavities of the body should be facilitated by opening the mouth,
making a small incision in the abdomen w half or one inch long, or
by injecting the liquor into the intestines through the anus, by means
of asmall syringe. After the animal has soaked for some weeks in
this liquor, it should be transferred to fresh. Care should be taken
not to crowd the specimens too much, When it is impossible to transfer
specimens to fresh spirits from time to time, the strongest alcohol
should be originally used.
To pack the specimens for transportation, procure a small keg,
which has been properly swelled, by allowing water to stand in it for
a day or two, and from this extract the head by knocking off the upper
hoops. Great care must be takeh to make such marks on the hoops and
head, as willassist in their being replaced in precisely the same relative
position to each other and the keg that they originally held. At the
bottom of the keg place a layer of tow or rags, moistened in liquor,
then one of specimens, then another of tow and another of specimens,
and so on alternately until the keg is entirely filled, exclusive of the
spirit. Replace the head, drive down the hoops, and fill completely
with spirits by pouring through the bung-hole. Allow it to stand at
least half an hour, and then supplying the deficiency of the liquor,
insert the bung and fasten it securely. An oyster-can or other tin
vessel may be used to great advantage, in which case the aperture
should be soldered up and the vessel inclosed in a box. A glass jar or
bottle may also be employed, but there is always a risk of breaking
and leaking. In the absence of tow, or rags, chopped straw, fine
shavings, or dry grass may be substituted.
It will condnce greatly to the perfect preservation of the specimens,
during transportation, if each one is wrapped up in cotton cloth, or
even paper. A number of smaller specimens may be rolled succes-
sively in the same wrapper. In this way friction, and the consequent
destruction of scales, fins, &c., will be prevented almost entirely.
The travelling bags, already described, will answer the same purpose.
Should the specimens to be packed vary in size, the largest should
be placed at the bottom. If the disproportion be very great, the deli-
cate objects at the top must be separated from those below, by means
of some immovable partition, which, in the event of the vessel being
inverted, will prevent crushing. The most imperative rule, however,
in packing, is to have the vessel perfectly full, any vacancy exposing
the whole to the risk of loss.
It is sometimes necessary to guard against the theft of the spirit em-
ployed, by individuals who will not be deterred from drinaing it by
the presence of reptiles, &c. This may be done by adding a small
quantity of tartar emetic, ipecacuanha, quassia, or some other disa-
greeable substance. The addition of corrosive sublimate will add to
the preservative power of the spirit.
2. VERTEBRATA.
Fishes under five or six inches in length need not have the abdom-
inal incision. Specimens with the scales and fins perfect should be
selected, and, if convenient, stitched, pinned, or wrapped in bits of
218 NATURAL HISTORY.
muslin, &c., to preserve the scales. In general, fishes under twelve
or fifteen inches in length should be chosen. The skins of larger ones
may be put in liquor. It is important to collect even the smallest.
The same principles apply to the other vertebrata.
The smallest and most delicate specimens may be placed in bottles
or vials, and packed in the larger vessels with the other specimens.
3. INVERTEBRATA.
Insects, Buas, &c.—The harder kinds may be put in liquor, as
above, but the vessel or bottle should not be very large. Butterflies,
wasps, flies, &c., may be pinned in boxes, or packed in layers with
soft paper or cotton. Minute species should be carefully sought under
stones, bark, dung, or flowers, or swept with a small net from grass
or leaves. They may be putin quills, small cones of paper, or in
glass vials. They can be readily killed by immersing the bottles, &c.,
in which they are collected, in hot water, or exposing them to the
vapor of ether.
‘When possible, a number of oz. or 2 oz. vials, with very wide mouths,
well stopped by corks, should be procured, in which to place the more
delicate invertebrata, as small crustacea, worms, mollusca, &c.
It will frequently be found convenient to preserve or transport in-
sects pinned down in boxes. The bottoms of these are best lined with
cork or soft wood. The accompanying figures will explain, better
than any description, the particular part of different kinds of insects
through which the pin is to be thrust: beetles being pinned through
the right wing-cover or elytra; all others through the middle of the
thorax.
The traveller will find it very convenient to carry about him a vial
having a broad mouth, closed by a tight cork. In this should be con-
tained a piece of camphor, or, still better, a sponge soaked in ether,
to kill the insects collected. From this the specimens should be trans-
ferred to other bottles. They may, if not hairy, be killed by immers-
ing directly in alcohol. ‘
The camphor should always be fixed in the box containing insects,
as it would break the feet and antennz of the latter if in a loose and
crystalline state. It may be kept ina piece of muslin or canvass, and
then pinned at the bottom of the box.
Sea-urchins and starfishes may also be dried, after having been pre-
viously immersed for a minute or two in boiling water, and packed up
in cotton, or any soft material which may be at hand.
The hard parts of coral and shells of mollusca may also be pre-
served in a dried state. The soft parts are removed by immersing
the animals for a minute or two in hot water, and washing clean after-
wards. The valves of bivalve shells should be brought together by
a string.
Wingless insects, such as spiders, scorpions, centipedes or thousand-
legs, earth-worms, hair-worms, and generally all worm-like animals
found in the water, should be preserved in alcoholic liquor, and in
small bottles or vials.
NATURAL IFUISTORY. 219
§ V. EMBRYOS.
Much of the future progress of zoology will depend upon the extent
and variety of the collections which may be made of the embryos and
foetuses of animals. No opportunity should be omitted to procure
these and preserve them in spirits. All stages of development are
equally interesting, and complete series for the same species would be
of the bighest importance. Whenever any female mammal is killed,
the uterus should be examined for embryos. When eggs of birds,
reptiles, or fish are emptied of their young, these should be preserved.
It will be sufficiently evident that great care is required to label the
specimens, as in most cases it will be impossible to determine the
species from the zoological characters.
§ VI. NESTS AND EGGS.
Nothing forms a more attractive feature in a museum, or is more
acceptable to amateurs, than the nests and eggs of birds. These
should be collected whenever they are met with, and in any amount
procurable for each species, as they are always in demand for purposes
of exchange. Hundreds of eggs of any species with their nests (or
without, when not to be had) will be gladly received.
Nests require little preparation beyond packing so as to be secure
from crumbling or injury. The eggs of each nest, when emptied,
may be replaced in it and the remaining space filled with cotton.
Eggs, when fresh, and before the chick has formed, may be emptied
by making a small pin-hole at each end, and blowing or sucking out
the contents. Should hatching have already commenced, an aperture
may be made in one side by carefully pricking with a fine needle
round a small circle or ellipse, and thus cutting out a piece. The
larger kinds should be well washed inside, and all allowed to dry be-
fore packing away. If the egg be too small for the name, a number
should be marked with ink corresponding to a memorandum list.
Little precaution is required in packing, beyond arranging in layers
with cotton and having the box entirely filled.
The eggs of reptiles, provided with a calcareous shell, can be pre-
pared in a similar way.
The eggs of fishes, salamanders, and frogs may be preserved in
spirits, and kept in small vials or bottles. A label should never be
omitted.
§ VII. SKELETONIZING.
Skulls of animals may be prepared by boiling in water for a few
hours. A little potash or lye added will facilitate the removal of
the flesh.
Skeletons may be roughly prepared by skinning the animal and
removing all the viscera, together with as much of the flesh as_possi-
ble. The bones should then be exposed to the sun or air until com-
pletely dried. Previously, however, the brain of large animals should
be removed by separating the skull from the spine, and extracting
250 NATURAL HISTORY.
the contents through the large hole in the back of the head. In case
it becomes necessary to disjoint a skeleton, care should be taken to
attach a common mark to all the pieces, especially when more than
one individual is packed in the same box.
Skulls and skeletons may frequently be picked up already cleaned
by other animals or exposure to weather. By placing small animals
near an ant’s nest, or in water occupied by tadpoles, or small crus-
tacea, very beautiful skeletons may often be obtained. The sea-beach
sometimes affords rich treasures in the remains of porpoises, whales,
large fishes, as sharks, and other aquatic species.
§ VIII. PLANTS.
The collector of plants requires but little apparatus ; a few quires
or reams of unsized paper, of folio size, will furnish all that will be
needed. The specimens, as gathered, may be placed in a tin box, or,
still better, in a portfolio of paper, until reaching home. About forty
or fifty sheets of the paper should be put into the portfolio on setting
out on an excursion. Put the specimens of each species in a sepa-
rate sheet as fast as gathered from the plant, taking a fresh sheet for
each additional species. On returning to camp place these sheets
(without changing or disturbing the plants) between the absorbent
drying papers in the press, and draw the straps tight enough to pro-
duce the requisite pressure. The next day the driers may be changed,
and those previously used laid in the sun to dry; this to be continued
until the plants are perfectly dry. If paper and opportunities of
transportation be limited, several specimens from the same locality
may be combined in the same sheet after they are dry.
Place in each sheet a slip of paper having a number or name of
locality written on it corresponding with a list kept in a memorandum
book. Record the day of the month, locality, size, and character of
the plant, color of flower, fruit, &c.
If the stem is too long, double it or cut it in two lengths. Collect,
if possible, half a dozen specimens of each kind. In the small speci-
mens collect the entire plant, so as to show the root.
In many instances old newspapers will be found to answer a good
purpose both in drying and in keeping plants, although the unprinted
paper is best—the more porous and absorbent the better.
When not travelling pressure may be most conveniently applied
to plants by placing them between two boards, with a weight of about
fifty pounds laid on the top.
While on a march the following directions for collecting plants,
drawn up by Major Rich, are recommended :
Have thick cartridge, or envelop paper, folded in quarto form, and
kept close and even by binding with strong cord; newspapers will
answer, but are liable to. chafe and wear out ; a few are very convenient
to mix in with the hard paper as dryers. This herbarium may be
rolled up in the blanket while travelling, and placed ou a pack-animal.,
The specimens collected along the road may be kept in the crown of
the hat when without a collecting box, and placed in paper at noon
or at night. Great care should be taken to keep the papers dry and
NATURAL HISTORY. 251
free from mould. When there is not time at noon to dry the papers
in the sun they should be dried at night by the fire, when, also, the
dried specimens are placed at the bottom of the bundle, making room
on top for the next day’s collection. A tin collecting box is very
necessary; plants may be preserved for two or three days in one if
kept damp and cool. It is also convenient in collecting land shells,
which is generally considered part of a botanist’s duty. A collector
should also always be provided with plenty of ready made seed papers,
not only for preserving seeds, but mosses and minute plants. Many
seeds and fruits cannot be put in the herbarium, particularly if of a
succulent nature, causing mouldiness, ard others form irregularities
and inequalities in the papers, thus breaking specimens and causing
small ones and seeds to drop out. Fruits of this kind should be
numbered to correspond with the specimen, and kept in the saddle-
bag, or some such place. It is necessary, in order to make good
specimens, to avoid heavy pressure and keep the papers well dried,
otherwise they get mouldy, turn black, or decay.
The seeds and fruits of plants should be procured whenever prac-
ticable, and slowly dried. These will often serve to reproduce a
species, otherwise not transportable or capable of preservation.
On board ship it is all-important to keep the collections from get-
ting wet with salt water. The papers can generally be dried at the
galley. The whole herbarium should be exposed to the sun as often
as possible, and frequently examined, and the mould brushed off with
a feather or camel-hair pencil.
In collecting alge, corallines, or the branched, horny, or calcareous
corals, care should be taken to bring away the entire specimen with
its base or root. The coarser kinds may be dried in the air, (but not
exposed to too powerful a sun,) turning them from time to time.
These should not be washed in fresh water. if to be sent any distance.
The more delicate species should be brought home in salt water, and
washed carefully in fresh, then transferred to a shallow basin of clean
fresh water, and floated out. A piece of white paper of proper size
is then slipped underneath, and raised gently out of the water with
the specimen on its proper surface. After finally adjusting the
branches with a sharp point or brush, the different sheets of specimens
are to be arranged between blotters of bibulous paper and cotton
cloth, and subjected to gentle pressure. These blotters must be fre-
quently changed till the specimens are dry.
§IX. MINERALS AND FOSSILS.
The collections in mineralogy and paleontology are, amongst all,
those which are most easily made; whilst, on the other hand, their
weight, especially when on a march, will prevent their being gathered
on an extensive scale,
All the preparation usually needed for preserving minerals and
fossils consists in wrapping the specimens separately in paper, with a
label inside for the locality, and packing so as to prevent rubbing.
Crumbling fossils may be soaked to advantage in a solution of glue.
Fossils of all kinds should be collected. Minerals and samples of
252 NATURAL HISTORY.
rocks are also desirable. The latter should be properly selected, and
cut to five by three inches of surface and one to two inches thick.
The vertebrate fossils of North America are of the highest interest
to naturalists. These are found 'n great abundance in those portions
known as ‘‘ Mauvaises Terres,’’ or ‘ Bad Lands,”’ and occurring along
the Missouri and its tributaries, White River, Milk River, Platte, Eau
qui Court, &c. The banks and beds of these and other streams like-
wise contain rich treasures of fossil bones. Similar remains are to
be looked for in all caves, peat bogs, alluvial soil, marl pits, fissures
in rocks, and other localities throughout North Ameried.
The floor of any cavern, if dug” up and carefully examined, will
generally be found to Ponta teeth, bones, &c. These, however simi-
lar in appearance to recent or domesticated species, should be care-
fully preserved.
Specimens ought to be tightly packed up in boxes, taking care that
each one is wrapped up separately, i in order that the angles or crystal-
line surfaces should not be destroyed by transportation ; their value
depending upon their good condition. The same precautions will be
required for corals. The interstices between the specimens in the
box or cask may be occupied by sawdust, sand, shavings, hay, cotton,
or other soft substance. It is absolutely essential that no cavity be
left in the vessel or box.
§ X. MINUTE MICROSCOPIC ORGANISMS.
It is very desirable to procure specimens, from many localities, of
the various forms of microscopic animals and plants, not only on ac-
count of their intrinsic interest, but for their relation to important
general questions in physical and natural science. These will almost
always be found to occur in the following localities :
1. In all light colored clays or earths, as found in peat bogs, mea-
dows, soils, &c., particularly when these are remarkably light.
2. In the mud from the bottom of lakes and pools. A small hand-
ful of this mud or of the confervoid vegetation on the bottom, if dried
without squeezing, will retain the Diatomacezw and Desmidiee.,
3. In the mud (dried) from the bottom and along the margins of
streams in any locality. The muds from brackish and from fresh
waters will differ in their contents.
4. In soil from the banks of' streams. The surface and subsoils
should both be collected.
5. In the soundings brought up from the bottom of the sea or
Jakes. These should be collected from the greatest possible depths.
If an armature be used to the lead, it should “be of so: ap rather than
fatty matter, as being more e readily removed from the organisms. The
mud which adheres to anchors, to rocks, &c., below high water mark,
as well as below low water, should also be carefully gathered.
6. In bunches of damp moss from rocks, roofs ‘of houses, trees,
about pumps, We.
7. In the deposits in the Bitiens and spouting of roofs of houses.
8. In the dust which at sea collects upon the sails or decks of vessels.
When not in sufficient quantity to be scraped off, enough may be ob-
NATURAL WISTORY. 253
tained for examination by rubbing a piece of soft clean paper over the
surtace affected.
Specimens of all these substances should be gathered, and, when
moist, dried without squeezing. ‘The quantity may vary from a tew
grains to an ounce, depending on the mode of transportation to be
adopted. very specimen, as collected, should have the dale, locality,
depth below the surface, collector, &c., marked immediately upon the
envelope.
It is also very important to collect filterings from river, brackish,
and sea waters. To do this, take/a circular piece of fine chemical
filtering paper, six inches, or thereabouts, in diameter, (the patent
blotting paper will answer if the other cannot be procured,) and weigh
it caretully in a delicate balance. Pass a quantity of the water, vary-
ing with its turbidity, from a pint to a gill, through the paper, and
allow this to dry. Mark the paper or its envelope with the original
weight of the paper, the amount of water passed through, date, place,
&ec. It is-desirable to have specimens thus prepared tor every locality
and for every month in the year. They may be sent, as well as light
packages of dried muds, &c., by mail, and should be transmitted as
speedily as possible.
When the water of lakes and ponds has been rendered turbid by
minute green or brown specks, these should be gathered by filtration
through paper or rag, which may then be dried, or, still better, have
this matter scraped off into a small vial of alcohol.
ON THE FISHES OF NEW YORK.
BY THEODORE GILL, ESQ.
New York, April 14, 1856.
The SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. .
Sir: Learning that you were collecting facts in behalf of the
Smithsonian Institution with regard to the geographical distribu-
tion, habits, &c., of the various animals of North America, a short
time since I tendered my services to you, through my friend, Mr.
John G. Bell, and offered to prepare for you a brief list of the fishes
observed by me in the markets of the city of New York. This offer
Mr. Bell has informed me you were pleased to accept; and I have
therefore drawn up such a catalogue, which I now forward to you.
For nore than a year [ have, with the exception of one or two in-
terruptions of short duration, visited Fulton market at least twice a
week, and occasionally Washington market.
As it is interesting to know something respecting the localities in
_which the observations recorded were made, although in this case not
important, a short accouut is given of the two chief places which have
been the theatres of my labors.
254 NATURAL HISTORY.
Fulton market is the chief wholesale fish mart of the city. The
general place of traffic occupies the whole block bounded on the north
by Beekman street, south by Fulton street, east by South street, and
on the west by Front street. The stalls at which fish are sold by re-
tail are situated on an elevated platform, along the north side of the
general market, with the stands on both sides of a walk of moderate
width. The wholesale fish market is separated from the chief market
by South street, and consists of mere sheds, which front on South
street, and are on the rear bounded by the East river. Here the
staple fish are principally sold—cod, flounders, porgies, sea bass, &ce.—
while those that are only occasionally brought to the city—the exotic
fishes, if I may so call them—are sold in the retail Fulton, and oftener
in Washington market. In the rear of these sheds are also moored
the vessels, called wells, containing the living cod, which are taken
from them as occasion requires.
Washington market is situated on a corresponding block on the
opposite or western side of the city, and, like the other, fronts on the
south on Fulton street. A greater variety appears to be brought to
this than the other market, and I have here seen most of the rarer
species that are mentioned in my catalogue.
My visits to this market were commenced with the intention of in-
vestigating and recording the time of arrival and disappearance of
the fishes most useful as food to man, as I was persuaded that the
earliest visitors are waited for with impatience, and as soon as they
arrive in our waters they are for sale, because they bring a higher
price than they do in the season of greatest plenty. Their compara-
tive abundance and other facts connected with their economical his-
tory could also be best learned here.
You will notice that I mention in my catalogue seventy-nine species
in fifty-six genera and twenty familes, all of which I have myself
seen. I have made mention of none that have not come under my
own observation ; and this accounts for the absence from my list of
species noticed by Dr. DeKay, and others, as being occasionally
brought to the New York markets.
I have here discovered some fishes that I little expected to find sold
as food, while others that I have thought to see have not yet come
under my notice. These deficiencies are mostly included in the fam-
_ilies of Scombridz and Clupidee. The great variety of species has sur-
prised me. The number seen by myself nearly equals the whole
number described by Dr. Storer in his report of 1839 on the fishes of
Massachusetts. All of these species are occasionally found in the
waters of the State of New York, and most of them are common here.
I have only walked leisurely through the market in the morning,
and have not especially sought for rarities, and probably several
species have been exposed for sale that have escaped my notice.
No new species, unless, perhaps, one of Pomoxis, have been seen by
me. All have been described by Dr. DeKay, in his Zoology of New
York, except the Pomoxis Esox nobilior, Th., and the Labrus appen-
dix of Dr. Mitchell, which DeKay did not describe from personal
observation, but merely abstracted the notice of it given by Dr. Mit-
chell in the second volume of the American Monthly Magazine (1818),
NATURAL HISTORY. 255
and transferred it to its proper genus Pomotis. I have found it to be
quite common here during the colder months of the year.
It is a very difficult matter to obtain any satisfactory information
respecting the localities in and the circumstance under which the
various fishes are caught, The dealers of the markets purchase the
fishes from others. ‘The true fishermen, whose business is restricted
to the catching of them, and having but little of that intelligent
curiosity which would lead them to inquire into the habits and the
peculiarities of the animals which they make it their employment
to buy and sell, do not ask any questions concerning them, and
cannot therefore dispense any knowledge to others; with them it is
sufficient to know in what State or on what coast the fish is caught,
and even in this respect we cannot be certain that the information is
always correct. The exact locality is rarely known. I have therefore
seldom particularized the places in which they are caught.
My observations do not always agree in all respects with the re-
marks made by the author of the New York Fauna respecting the
appearance and departure of the migratory fishes occurring on the
coast of this State.
For the sake of convenience the classification, and generally the
nomenclature used by Dr. DeKay in his New York Fauna, is adopted.
In those cases where the species noticed are placed in different genera
from those to which they were referred by their original describers, I
have enclosed the name of the author of the specific name in paren-
theses, and that of the naturalist who transferred it to the genus
adopted in the catalogue after it in open space. Tor convenience of
reference, I have mentioned the pages where the species are described
in Dr. DeKay’s New York Fauna.
Iam fully aware of the imperfectness of this catalogue, and had
hoped to have made a more full one, but various causes have deterred
at present. I may, perhaps, at some future time, make out a more
complete and extended list, in the hope, however, that this will prove
of some small service to you.
DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF FISHES OF THE NEW YORK MARKET.
PERCIDAE, Cuy.
1. Perca Fuavescens (Afit.) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 3, fig. 1.
The yellow perch is sent to the markets in considerable numbers
and quite regularly from the beginning of September till the end of
April. It is sold at from eight to ten cents per pound,
‘This species, as far as I can learn, is not very abundant in any of
the streams in the vicinity of this city.
2. LAaBRAX LINEATUS, (Bloch) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 7, fig. 3.
The striped bass is common with us during the whole year, but is
brought to market in finer condition, as well as in larger quantities,
in the winter and earlier spring months ; I have then seen individuals
ae
256 NATURAL HISTORY.
weighing as much as seventy pounds. In April, young fishes, measur-
ing from two to four inches, are also brought, which have several
narrow, indistinct, transverse bands, as described in the notice of the
fishes of Beesley’s Point.
I have seen a specimen that I considered as only a variety of this
species, agreeing in its marking with the L. notatus of Sir John
Richardson, as noticed by Dr. DeKay. In form and every other
particular it resembled the common bass.
The striped bass is one of the most esteemed fishes found in our
waters, and sells readily at from ten to twelve cents a pound, and it
occasionally brings even eighteen cents. It is sent to market in con-
siderable numbers from the shores of Long Island, and many are also
caught on the New Jersey side of New York bay, a short distance
below Jersey city.
3. Laprax RuFUS, (Mit.,) DeKay.
DrKkuy, Nv Vs Raumes. pan Oy on tae
This species is found in our markets from the first of September till
as late as the end of June, but in the greatest numbers in the early
spring. The average size is less than ten inches long. It is sold at
from six to eight cents, and occasionally at ten cents per pound.
This fish is generally known to the fisherman under the simple
name of ‘‘Perch;’’ the Perca flavescens being distinguished as the
“¢ Yellow Perch.’’
Fishes are occasionally brought which are a shade lighter in their
color than the general color of this species, but they agree in every
other respect, even to the most minute points, with the L. rufus.
4, Luctoperca AMERICANA, (Cuv. and Val.)
DrkKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 17, fig. 163.
This percoid is occasionally sent to our markets from the first of
September till towards the middle of spring. It is called by the
fishermen ‘‘ Lake Pike,’’ and by some ‘‘ Maskalonge.’’
This and many other species found in the interior of the State of
New York, are packed in saw dust and sent to this city by express. I
am informed that most of them are caught in the small lakes of cen-
tral New York, Cayuga, &c.
5, SERRANUS ERYTHROGASTER, DeKay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p: 21, fig. 52.
This species is sometimes sent to our market from Key West and
the reefs of Florida in May and the summer months. I have never
seen more than two or three exposed for sale at a single time. It ap-
pears to be considerably esteemed and is sold at from twelve to fifteen
cents per pound.
This fish is generally called by the fishermen ‘‘red snapper.’’ I
have been told by them that it takes the hook in the same manner ag
the Black tish, (Yauloga americana,) and that it otherwise resembles
that labroid in its habits. Huw much reliance is to be placed on this
information I do not know.
NATURAL HISTORY. 257
6. CENTROPRISTES NIGRICANS, (Bloch) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 24, fig. 6.
This fish is generally known by our citizens as the ‘‘ sea bass.’’
It is first brought to market towards the latter part of April or the
beginning of May, and continues to be exposed for sale till the mid-
dle of October. A very few are brought to the end of that month
and even later, but none are to be seen in winter. It is a delicious
fish, but being very common does not sell for more than eight to
twelve cents per pound.
7. Grystes Frascratus, (Les.) Agassiz.
Houro nigricans, Cuv. and Val. DuKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 15, fig.
224. CENTRARCHUS FASCIATUS, ib. p. 28, fig. 8.
The black bass is rather common—more so than any other of the
lacustrine species—in our markets during the milder parts of winter
and the first half of spring. I have been informed that they are
sent from Lakes Erie and Ontario, as well as Lake Cayuga, and that
a few are caught in the Hudson river, where they have been intro-
duced since the opening of the great Erie canal. They appear to be
much esteemed by our citizens and are generally sold at twelve cents
per pound. ‘They are called by our fishermen ‘lake bass.’’
8. AMBLOPLITES ZNEUS, (Les.) Agassiz.
CeNnTRARCHUS ZNEUS, Cuv. and Val., DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 27, fig. 4.
This species had not, as late as last fall, received any popular name
from the fishermen. It is brought from the same localities, according
to the fish dealers, as the black bass, but not in so large numbers.
It is most common during the early part of spring, when it brings
about ten cents per pound.
9. Pomoxis.
A species of the genus Pomoxis, of Rafinesque, as characterized by
Professor Agassiz, is occasionally brought to the New York markets
with the two preceding, and from the same locality. I have only
seen Rafinesque’s description of the P. annularis, Raf., of the Ohio
river in the first volume of the Transactions of the Philadelphia
Academy of Natural Sciences, and the brief notice of the Centrarchus
hexacanthus of Cuv. and Val., given by Dr. DeKay in his N. Y.
Fauna, and from both of these it appears to differ—from the P. an-
nularis widely if Rafinesque’s description and figure are correct.
Professor Agassiz, in his ‘‘ Notice of the Fishes of the Tennessee
River,’’ in the American Journal, vol. XVII, p. 298, in his re-
marks on the geographical distribution of the genus, states that he
has received a species ‘‘ from the western part of New York,’’ and the
species brought to this market is probably identical with his. As I
have never seen his description, however, I will give a short notice
. of it.
‘The body is very much compressed ; the greatest depth contained
little less than twice in its total length. The dorsal and abdominal
17s
258 NATURAL HISTORY.
outlines are nearly equally convex. The head is nearly a third of
the total length of the body, and there is a considerable depression
immediately over the eyes, which causes the snout to appear turned
up. The mouth is large, and the maxillary bones reach a point ver-
tical to the posterior borders of the eyes. The eyes are a third nearer
the snout than the opercular spine, and are large, their diameter
being to the length of the head as two tonine. The lateral line runs
nearly parallel with the dorsal outline. The dorsal fin commences
nearer the snout, and is supported anteriorly by seven spinous rays.
The first spine is very low, and, in a specimen seven inches long, was
little more than one-sixth of an inch in length, and about half the
length of the second; from the latter they rapidly but regularly in-
crease in size to the seventh, which is about an inch long. The anal
fin commences under the fourth spinous ray of the dorsal, and seven
of its soft rays extend beyond the posterior part of that fin. The
spines are in nearly the same proportion to each other as those of the
dorsal fin. The spines of both fins are all curved slightly backwards.
DO WAL, 16. AL VT, tO) Pig) Vado Ra Celie,
The general color of the body is a dark bronze yellow, shaded with
green and with golden reflection above, and many of thescales are darker
on the margins. The dorsal and anal fins are colored with six or
seven rows of round, yellowish spots, most of which cover the rays as
well as the connecting membrane. ‘There are fewer of these spots on
the spinous parts of both fins. The pupils are of an intense dark
blue, and the irides a dark straw yellow.
This description was drawn from a specimen about seven inches in
length, and is, perhaps, in some respects defective, as I was called off
before I was able to finish my notes, and have not been able to pro-
cure another since. The color is drawn entirely from memory, but
is, | think, correct.
This percoid is not often brought to market, but when exposed for
sale it is mingled with the two following species :
10. Pomoris appenprx, (Mit.) DeKay.
DrKay, N.Y. Fauna, p. 32.
This species is brought to market in considerable numbers in winter
and spring from Cayuga Lake, &c., It is a matter of surprise that
Dr. DeKay never saw this species, as I have been toid that it is very
common in all the lakes of central New York. It reaches a much
larger size than the common sunfish,
11. Pomorts vunearis, Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 31, fig. 166.
This handsome sunfish is sent to market from the same places as
the preceeding, according to the fishermen, although it is very com-
mon in almost all of the neighboring streams. This and the two
former species are sold at from eight to ten cents per pound. Some
of the fishermen are under a singular error in regard to Pomoxis and
Pomotis. ‘They believe them to constitute a single species, of which
Pomoxis is the male, and Pomotis vulgaris and Pomotis appendix
NATURAL HISTORY. 259
females. It is only necessary to revert to the different geographical
areas in which the various species are found to be at once convinced
of the absurdity of this opinion.
TRIGLIDAE, (Cuv.) DeKay.
12. Prionorus tinzatus, (Jkt ) DeKay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 45, fig. 12.
The ‘Robin,’ “Sea Robin,’’ and flying fish, as this species is
indifferently called by our fishermen, is occasionally brought to the
markets in the month of May. It does not appear to be much
esteemed, and is eaten from necessity rather than from choice. They
generally sell for about twelve cents a dozen. The average size is
about twelve inches long.
13. Sesastes Novrestcus, (Muller) Cuv. and Val.
DreKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 60, fig. 11.
i observed a few specimens of this trigloid in the third week of
February ef this year. The man in whose possession they were
called them ‘‘ Red Snappers,’ the same name which they apply to the
Serranus morio, DeKay, and furthermere told me that they were
seat from Charleston! They agreed with the description and figure
given of the Sebastes norvegicus by DeKay, who also gives ‘‘ snap-
per,’’ as one of the popular names by which they are known. May
not this be the species to which the “‘ intelligent fisherman’”’ alluded,
who informed Dr. DeKay that the Serranus erythrogaster, DeKay,
<<ig occasionally, but very rarely, taken off our coast?’’ The fish-
monger, on whose stand the species in question was exposed, is the
only one in whese possession I have seen the Serranus erythrogaster.
SCLAINIDAS, Cuv.
14, Lerostomus osriquus, (Mit.) DeKay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 69, fig. 195.
The ‘‘ Lafayette’’ appears to be rather late in their arrival on the
coast of this State. Last year I saw none in market until the first of
September. After that they were brought in greater or less numbers
until nearly the end of October. Most of those that I saw were
under six inches in length. I asked the fishermen if they did not
usually visit us earlier; they replied that they were nearly as early
this year as usual.
15. OTOLITHUS REGALIS, (Schneider?) Cuv. and Vat.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 71, fig. 24.
The weak fish is brought to the markets in quite large quantities
from the first of May to the middle or end of October. It appears to
-be rather more abundant in July and August.
Dr. DeKay gives an average length of only ‘six or eight inches’’
260 NATURAL HISTORY.
to this fish, which is, I think, too low. Ten inches would be nearer
the average length of those brought to market last year.
The weak fish is seldom sold at more than six or eight cents per
pound.
16. Corvina oceLLata, (MMit.) Cuv. and Val.
DerKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 70, fig. 61.
This scienoid is known to our fishermen under the name of ‘‘ red
fish’’ and sometimes ‘‘ branded drum.’”’ It is seldom sold in the New
York markets. I saw a few in the month of February of the present
year which, I was informed by the fishermen, were sent from Charles-
ton, 8. C. Fifteen cents per pound were asked for them.
I have never seen the Corvina argyroleuca, Cuv. and Val., in the
markets.
17. Umprrna atpurnus, (Lin.) Ouv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 78, fig. 20.
This most excellent fish is brought to market during almost the
same periods as the weak fish. It appears, however, to be slightly
later in its arrival on our coast, for last summer the weak fish had
been brought to market two weeks before I saw any king fish. The
king fish is not quite as abundant as the weak fish. It hardly brings
a price commensurate with its good qualities, being rarely more than
twelve cents per pound, and often not over ten cents.
18. LoBorEs SURINAMENSIS.
Dekay, N.:¥. Fauna, p.88; fie, 49:
I saw a single specimen of this species in Fulton market last year,
which remained exposed on the stall from the thirtieth of August till
the sixth of September. It did not seem to be known. The owner
called it ‘‘ flasher;’? why it was so named, I was unable to learn.
The individual on sale was about fifteen inches in length, and a
dollar was demanded for it.
19. Pogontas cHromis, (Lin.) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 80.
A few ‘‘drums’’ were brought to market last year in the early part
of June, and again towards the end of September. These are the only
occasions on which I remember to have seen them. Most of them
were, I should think, about thirty inches in length.
?
SPARIDA, Cuv.
20. Sarevus ovis, (Mit.) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 89, fig. 23.
This species, so well known to our citizens as the ‘‘sheeps head,”’ is
brought to market during the months from May to October, inclusive—
NATURAL HISTORY. 261
rather more frequently and abundantly in June—but rarely in any
great numbers. I have never seen more than thirty at a single time,
and it is seldom that more than five or six are seen. It is very much
esteemed by the New Yorkers and brings a high price.
I do not recollect having seen the sand porgee (Sargus arenosus,
DeKay,) in market.
21. PAGRUS ARGYROPS.
Drkay, N.Y. Fauna, p..95, fig. 25.
The porgee is the most common fish of the summer months, and
our markets are supplied with them to excess. Owing to this abund-
ance, although an excellent article of food, they are sold very cheap,
three to six cents being the retail price per pound.
They were brought last year towards the end of April, and were as
abundant on the first day that I saw them in market as at any subse-
quent period, none appearing forerunners of larger bands, as appears
to be the case with some of our summer visitants. Unlike their
arrival, however, they disappear by degrees, and become fewer in
number as the autumn advances. Some linger till about the end of
November.
SCOMBRID, Cuv.
22. ScoMBER VERNALIS, (JMit.) Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 101, fig. 34.
Brought to market in the months of May, June, and July, and sold
for ten or twelve cents a pound.
23. ScompBer @REX, (M/it.) Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 1038, fig. 32.
Two or three months intervene between the time that the former
species disappears from the markets and the one in question is first
brought here.
24. Scomper coitas, Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 104, fig. 33.
This species does not appear to be very abundant here. I saw but
very few last year during the months of July and August.
25. PrLAMys sarDA, (Bloch) Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 106, fig 27.
A few specimens of this species were exposed for sale last year at
different times in the months of August and September.
26. Cyprum MacuLatum, (Mit.) Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 108, fig. 232.
This species, known to our citizens as the ‘‘ Spanish mackerel,’’ is
brought to market during the same months as the preceding species.
It is not very common.
262 NATURAL HISTORY.
27. PaLinurus PeRcrroRMIs, (Ift.) De Kay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 118) fig. 75.
The only occasion on which I have seen this species in market was
on the 3d of September, 1855, when some twenty or thirty were ex-
posed on one of the stalls.
28. Caranx curysos, (Mit.) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 121, fig. 85.
I only saw a very few specimens of this species in Washington
market, in the month of October of last year.
29. Temnopon saLtaTor, (Lin.) Cuv. and Val.
DerKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 130, fig. 81.
The blue fish are very common in our markets during summer and
autumn, and are sold at from six to eight cents per pound. They
arrived last year on our coasts towards the last of May, and remained
till November.
30. CorypHmNnaA GLopicers, (Jfit.) De Kay.
DrkKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 132, fig. 29.
I saw a single specimen of this Scombroid considerably over two
feet long, in Washington market, on the 24th of August, 1855.
31. RuomeBus TRIAcANTHUS, (Peck) De Kay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 137, fig. 80.
This fish is brought to market in September, October, and Novem-
ber. It is called by the fishermen ‘‘ harvest fish,’’ and ‘‘ butter fish.’’
MUGILID Ai, Cuv.
32. Muar atpuna, Lin.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, (fi.) p. 146.
Mullets are exposed for sale in the markets during February and
the spring months, principally in February and March, but in no very
great numbers.
“ GOBIDA, Cuyv.
33. ZOARCES ANGUILLARIS, (Peck) Cuv. and Val.
DeKay, N.Y. Faunw, p. 155, tie. 45:
34. ZOARCES FIMBRIATUS, Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 156, fig. 44.
Both of these fishes are occasionally brought to the markets in the
months of March and April. The former is the more common of the
two. They do not appear to be much esteemed, probably on account
of the repulsiveness of their appearance.
-
NATURAL HISTORY. 263
LABRID®, Cuv.
35. CTrENOLABRUS CERULEUS, (J/it,)
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 179, fig. 93.
36. CrenoLaBRus uNnrNoratus, (At.)
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 174, fig. 90.
Both of these species, called by our fishermen under the common
name of ‘“ Bergalls,’’ are brought to market in spring and autumn.
The ©. ceruleus is the most common. Some are exposed for sale in a
perfect condition, but most of them are skinned, gutted, and the head
cut off, and strung on sticks, &c., through the middle of the body in
numbers of about two dozen.
37. TauroGa AMERICANA, (Schn.) Cuv. and Val.
DreKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 175, fig. 39.
We have the black fish with us during almost the entire year, but
it appears to be comparatively rare in winter, becoming more abundant
towards the commencement of April.
SILURIDA, Cuv.
38. Prmeropus catus, (Lin.) Cuv. and Val.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 189, fig. 119.
Catfish are brought to market in small quantities in the spring
months. They are usually sold at about eight cents per pound.
CYPRINIDA, Cuv.
39. Cyprinus carpio, Lin.
I saw several European carp in the Washington market last year,
in the month of April. The person on whose stand they were exposed
informed me that they were caught in the Hudson river ; this was all
I could learn respecting them.
40. LevucosoMUs AMERICANUS, Girard.
ABRAMIS VERSICOLOR, DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 191, fig. 103.
This species is very rarely brought, and rather by accident, with
sun-fish and suckers, caught near this city.
41, Catasromus ostonaus, (Iht.) Les.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 193, fig. 136.
Occasionally brought to market in winter and early in spring, I
have seen the adult male in winter dress, (C. oblongus,) the same in
his nuptial dress (C. tuberculatus Les.) and the young male (C. gibbosus,
* Les.) all in market at the same time. They are called by our fisher-
men, chub, chub-suckers, and often by the simple name of sucker.
264 NATURAL HISTORY.
42, Catasromus communis, Les.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 196, fig. 100.
This species is brought to market in autumn, winter, and spring.
It is simply called ‘‘sucker.’’ The fishermen have, however, no clear
perception of the difference between this species and the C. oblonqus.
None of our species of catastomus are held in much repute. The
species brought to market are sold at four cents generally, and more
rarely at six cents per pound. The larger specimens are sometimes «
called by the fishermen, ‘‘ Fresh water pollack.’’
CYPRINODONTES, Agassiz.
43. Funpuuus zepra, DeKay, N. Y. F. fi. p. 218.
44, FounpuLus viawescens, (Mit.,) DeKay, N. Y. F., p. 217, fig. 99.
45. HypRARG@YRA FLAVULA, (Mit.), Storer.
Fonputus rascratus, DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 216, fig. 98.
A considerable number of these species were brought to market in
the early part of April, last year, and were sold by the measure at
twelve cents per quart. I perceive that in the notice of the fishes of
the New Jersey coast you are inclined to regard the £’. viridiscens of
DeKay, as merely the female of /’. zebra, DeKay.
ESOCIDA, Cuv.
46. Esox reticuLatus, Les.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 223, fig. 107.
The pickerel appears in our markets in the beginning of the au-
tumn, and thenceforth continues to be brought till spring has far ad-
vanced. They are worth from twelve to fifteen cents a pound.
47. Esox rasctatus, DeKay.
Drkay, N. Y. Fauna, fi: p.224) ote:
Brought in less numbers and more irregularly than the preceeding.
48. Esox rstor, (Les.) Thompson.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 222.
This lacustrine species is frequently to be seen in our markets in the
fall and spring months, and when the weather is mild and the com-
munication with the ‘‘lakes’’ uninterrupted, it is also brought in
winter. It brings from twelve to fifteen cents per pound.
49 Hsox noprttor, Z’hompson.
Quite a number of this excellent species was brought to market in
February of this year. It appears to be much esteemed and is sold
at about eighteen cents per pound.
NATURAL HISTORY. 265
50. Brrone truncata, Les.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 227, fig. 112.
This fish does not appear to be verycommon here. During the months
of September and October, 1855, several dozen were brought to market.
They were called by thé fishmongers ‘‘ bill fish.”’
SALMONIDZE, Cuv.
51. Samo FontrInauis, Jt.
Dekay,,.NOY9 Fauna, fi. p. 235, fis. 120.
The common trout is sent to market from Long Island from No-
vember to April; more abundantly in spring. In the markets they
are sold at a very high price: from thirty-seven to fifty cents per
pound. Occasionally they are exposed for sale in the streets—prin-
cipally Wall street—at twenty-five cents a pound.
52. Satmo conrinis, DeKay.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 238, fig. 123.
The lake trout is sometimes brought in considerable numbers from
northern and western New York during the autumn, winter, and
spring months. It is much less relished than the common brook
trout.
SALMO SALAR, Lin.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 241, fig. 132.
Sent in limited quantity during the same months as the preceding,
from Nova Scotia.
OSMERUS VIRIDISCENS, Les.
DrkKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 248, fig. 124.
The smelt is also one of our most esteemed fishes, and is sold at a
price varying from twelve to twenty-five cents a pound. The price
appears to be very fluctuating, thus in the latter part of February,
they brought twenty-two cents per pound; on the first of April,
twelve cents was all demanded; they were at least as common in the
preceeding month as in April.
CoREGONUS ALBUS, Les,
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 247, fig. 198.
The white fish of the northern lakes is brought to the New York
‘markets at considerable intervals of time, and in small numbers in
spring and fall. I have seen them in May, September, and October.
266 NATURAL HISTORY.
CLUPIDA, Cuv.
54, CLUPEA ELONGATA, Les.
DreKay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 250.
A species of clupea, which agreed in most respects with the C. elon-
gata, Les., as described by that naturalist, was exposed in our markets
in quite large numbers during the months of Marchand April. The
market men called them ‘English herring ;’’ one of them told me
they were sent from Nova Scotia, and another, from St. John’s, New
Brunswick. They were sold at eight cents a pound. Dr. DeKay has
committed a great error in his description of the species.
55, ALOSA PRAESTABILIS, DeKay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 255, fig. 41.
The shad is sent to our city from Charleston (S. C.) in considerable
numbers as early as the latter part of January and February, but does
not arrive on our own coast until March. An average sized fish sells in
early spring at seventy-five cents toa dollar, and sometimes even
more; but as the season advances, and they become more plenty, the
price is reduced to about twenty-five cents each.
56, ALosa TyRANNUS, (Latrobe) ,,DeKay.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 258, fig. 38.
Sent to market occasionally in spring.
57. ALOSA MENHADEN, (J/it.) Storer.
DreKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 259, fig. 60.
Mossbunkers appear in the markets in the fall months; but in no
great quantity. : i
58. Atosa Matrowacca, (Mit.) De Kay.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 260, fig. 127.
The fall herring is rather common in autumn and winter. <A few
appear towards the end of summer.
COELACANTHS, Agassiz.
59. AMIA occIDENTALIS, DeKay.
DeKay, N. Fauna, p. 269, fig. 125.
A single specimen of this ganoid, about two feet long, was offered for
sale in Washington market on the fifteenth of May, 1855. I could
learn nothing in regard to it from the fishmonger on whose stand it
was. It appeared to be totally unknown to him, and he could not
even tell me the name of it.
NATURAL HISTORY. 267
‘ GADIDA, Cuv.
60. Morruvua AMERICANA, Storer.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 274, fig. 140.
The universally kngwn cod is the most abundant of fishes during
the entire year. The price is more uniform than that of most of our
fishes, and is hardly ever over six or less than five cents a pound.
61. Morruva prurnosa, (Jit.) DeKay.
N. Y. Fauna, fi., p. 278, fig. 142.
Brought to market in large numbers in the fall and winter months
and the greater part of spring. It is sold from six to ten cents a
pound.
62. Morrava manirina, (Lin.) Cuv.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 279, fig. 138.
Less common than its congener, the cod, and not brought so con-
stantly to market; in the autumn and first months of winter it is
comparatively rare. Although by many esteemed as inferior to the
cod, it is generally sold for the same price and occasionally higher.
63. MERLANGUS CARBONARIUS, (Lin.,) Cuv., Du Kay, N. Y. Fauna.
p. 287, fi. 144.
64. Meriancus purpurgus, (Mit.) Storer, N. Y. Fauna, p. 286, fi. 147.
Both species are brought to the New York markets in September,
October, and November. The M. purpureus is rarer of the two.
65. Puycrts AMERICANUS, (Schn.) Storer.
This gadoid was brought to market this year in considerable num-
bers. I have also seen a few on the last of May. It attains a large
size apparently, as I have never seen one in market less than two feet
long, and generally they are much larger, To the fisherman it is
known as the hake or codling.
66. Puycis punctatus, (Mlit.) Richardson.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 292, fig. 149.
This phycis appears to be a rare species on the coast of New York,
and is seldom brought to market. I saw a few last year on different
days of October. They were sold under the simple name of ‘‘ Ling.”’
PLANIDA, Cuvier.
67. Hrppoanossus VULGARIS, Cuv.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 294, fig. 157.
The halibut is brought to market all the year. It is cut up in
steaks and sold at a price varying from ten to fifteen cents a pound.
268 NATURAL HISTORY.
68. Puatessa PLANA, (JMt.) Storer.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. fig.
This is the most common species of flounder that is brought to the
city markets in the winter and spring months. It is seldom sold at
a higher price than eight to ten cents per poun®.
Flounders are chiefly sold by the weight; occasionally they are
strung through the branchial apertures on twigs and nominally sold
by the bunch.
69. Puatessa pusILLA, DeKay.
DeKay, N.Y. Wanna, tf p. 296, ie. los:
I have rarely seen this species in market. When brought to market
they are always mingled with the P. plana.
70. Piatsssa pentata, (Mit.,) Storer.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 298.
71. Puatvessa ocentaris, DeKay.
DrkKay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 300, fig. 152.
The common flounders of the summer months.
72. PLavTEssa oBLONGA, (JNit.) DeKay.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, p. 299, fig. 156.
This species is most common in the autumn months and the early
part of winter.
In August of last year I observed a specimen of this species with
the dark side doubled. The dextral was as dark as the sinistral side
to within a short distance of the opercle; the brown color then ab-
ruptly ceased, following the curve of the opercle, and the remainder
of the inferior surface of the body and the head were of the usual
color.
73. PLEURONECTES MAcULATUS, Mit.
DeKay, NoY. Fauna, £ip. 301, fectol.
This fish is not often brought to the New York markets. I only
saw a few last year in the early part of May.
74. Acuirus MoLus, (JMfit.,) Cuv.
DrKay, N. ¥. Pauna, f. -p. 303, fig: 159:
I have never seen this species in either Washington or Fulton
markets ; but last year, on the last of February, I saw a single speci-
men on the fish stall of a private market in the city.
NATURAL HISTORY. 269
ANGUILLIDA, Cuvier.
45. ANnaurtna TeNurRostris, DeKay.
DrKay, N. Y. Fauna,#. p. 310, fig. 173.
The common eel is brought to market in almost every month of
the year. Few are sold entire; most of them are exposed cleaned,
skinned, and with the head cut off. In this state they are generally
sold at twelve cents a pound.
STURIONES.
76. AcIPENSER OXYRHYNcHUS, Jit.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 346, fig. 189.
In the spring young specimens of this sturgeon, agreeing with the
description and figure of Dr. De Kay, are occasionally brought to
market. These young range from ten inches to two feet in length.
Larger individuals are cut into transverse sections or steaks and sold
by the pound. Whether these larger fish are the Acipenser oxyrhyn-
cus of Mit., or some other species, [am at present unable to say with
confidence, as I have not examined an unmutilated specimen. I have
been told they are occasionally brought entire, and even alive, into the
markets, and will, therefore, probably soon have an opportunity of
examining one.
RATADAE.
77. Rata piapHanss, Jit.
DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, fi. p. 366, fig. 218.
This species is occasionally brought to market in winter and spring,
and sold under the name of ‘* French skate.”’
78. Rata avis, Mit.
DreKay,,Niu¥ Mauna, £ pust0:
This ray is also brought to market occasionally in winter, but more
seldom than the preceding.
Only the fleshy pectoral fins of this species are exposed for sale, the
head and tail being always cut off. The Raia diaphanes, on the con-
trary, is generally to be seen entire, and is only cut up at the desire
of the purchaser. Neither of the species is much valued as food.
PETROMYZONIDAE.
79. PETROMYZON AMERICANUS, Les.
Dukay, N. Y. Fauna, f. p. 379, fig. 216.
The sea lamprey rarely appears in our market, and never in any
great quantity. Ihave seen them in small numbers in the month of
April. Specimens two feet long, living and writhing on the stalls,
have then been offered at twelve to eighteen cents each. This hardly
corroborates the statement made by Dr. DeKay respecting the esti-
mation in which they are held by the epicures.
Ly eh
aa,
t Fe Li al i
ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS. 274
ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS, NEAR PRESCOTT, C. W.
BY W. E. GUEST.
One of the oft reiterated assertions of foreigners on visiting our
country as they pass rapidly from the Atlantic to the lakes, and from
the lakes to where the ‘‘ Father of Waters rolls his flood,’’ is that ‘‘the
country is too new; that it has no ancient time-marked monuments,
no ivy-robed ruins with gray turrets pointing to the distant past, or
storied urns rich with the records of human greatness to serve as models
for the present.’’
A greater error, perhaps, was never committed. Hundreds, aye
thousands of years before the white man’s foot had pressed the soil of
the New World, there lived and flourished 4 race of men who called
this continent their home. Had they a written history, what deeds
of chivalry might we not peruse; what tales of forest ‘‘ Agamem-
nons’’ and unknown “‘kings of men’’ Alas! for their glory, their
ardor, and their pride!
‘They have all passed away,
That noble race and brave,
Their light canoes have vanished ’
From oft the crested wave.
— but
Their name is on your waters,
You may not wash it out!”’
Many are the traces of their existence that lie widely scattered
over the surface of the country, such as burial grounds, places of sacri-
fice or defence, and earthern mounds of various shapes and sizes ; the
latter class being so numerous that as many as two hundred and fifty
have been examined and surveyed in the State of New York alone. All
these interesting relics, however, like the remnant of the race to which
they belong, are fast disappearing before the progress of civilization,
and will probably in time be entirely obliterated; a fact calling for
energetic exploration and earnest investigation while yet the oppor-
tunity is offered.
Having been informed of the existence of some ancient Indian works
in the vicinity of Prescott, C. W., I made a visit to one of great in-
terest on July 17,1854. The work in question is situated in the town-
ship of Augusta, about eight miles and a half northwest of Prescott,
on a farm occupied by Mr. Tarp. Jas. Keeler, esq., who resides within
a mile of the works, accompanied me, and to him I am indebted for
much valuable information not only respecting this locality, but also
of a similar work in the town of Edwardsburgh, near Spencerville,
about one mile and a half in a northerly direction.
This ancient work in Augusta is about eighty rods in length, its
greatest width twenty rods. The westerly part has a half moon em-
bankment, extending some ten rods across a neck of land, terminating
272 ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS.
to the north in a swamp, and to the southwest near the edge of a creek.
It has three openings, which are from twenty to twenty-five feet wide.
Upon the embankments there is a pine stump four and a half feet across,
five feet from the ground, with its root extending over the embank-
ment, showing that 1t has grown there since the erection of the earth
work.
This place, from present appearances, was doubtless the only one
approachable by land, and arise of a few feet of water almost surround-
ing the work, would insulate it and add very much to its defence.
The eastern and southeastern portions where there are tumuli, and
where, from appearances, the inhabitants resided, is from fifteen to
eighteen feet above, and descends abruptly to the now swampy grounds.
On the north isa large tamarack swamp, which is said to contain about
VIEW OF THE MOUNDS AT PRESCOTT.
———l
twelve thousand acres. The ‘‘ Nation’’ river is about a mile to the
northeast, and the intervening land is low, while the southeast and
south ground rises gently at a distance of fifty or eighty rods. The
soil on this table land is rich, and at every step evidences are beheld
ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS. Pw he
of its having been once thickly inhabited. The ground is strewed
with broken pieces of earthen ware, and hollow and smooth pieces of
stone, doubtless used for culinary purposes. The timber, which was
mostly pine, is, except a small portion on the westerly part all cut
down, indeed the original forest is entirely gone within the enclosure
roper.
: Tt will be necessary to consult the diagram to obtain a proper idea
of the locality of the mounds and embankments. The tumuli are
four in number, situate at the corners of a parallelogram, containing
between one and two acres of ground, within which are to be seen the
regular streets and lines of a village; outside of the mounds, on three
sides are double lines of circumvallation; on the fourth side, which
faces the southeast side, there is but one.—(See fig. 1.)
The elevations of ground which we have called tumuli, or mounds,
are at present but slightly raised above the general level—say from
two to four feet. On opening these they were found to be composed
of earth, charcoal and ashes; and contained human bones, pointed
bones from the leg of the deer, horns and skulls of the same animals,
human skulls, and bones of the beaver, muscle shells of the genus
Unio, such as are now found on the shores of the St. Lawrence river,
and which were doubtless used as food, since they are very common
about such mounds. With these were great quantities of earthen-
Fiz. 2 ware, some of which was of the
os most elaborate workmanship.
On the surface of the ground
were scattered numbers. of
smoothed pieces of quartz and
sandstones. One stone or boul-
der of hornblendic gneiss (fig.
2,) was hollowed out into a
cavity of sixteen inches in
length, twelve, in breadth,
and four anda half inches in
depth; had it not been broken
off at one end it would probably
have held a gallon.
Onthe3d of August Ire- Fic, 3.
visited this place'with some
friends, and, with the aid ¢
of tw6 laborers, we exhum-{\
eda large variety of bones,\ <
bone points, broken pieces \%
of pottery, earthenware, ©
pipes, needles, and a part @—
of the tooth of a walrus,
(fig. 3.) This had _ holes :
drilled through it as WALRUS TOOTH.
though it had been used for ornament.
I then proceeded to the work, previously mentioned, in Edwards-
’ burgh, near Spencerville, about half a mile west of the village, on an
elevated piece of ground. This is well chosen for defence—overlooking
18s
FXCAVATED STONE,
274 ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS.
the surrounding country to a great distance. Here (fig. 4) we traced
the faint lines in part and bolder in other parts of an embankment
in the shape of a moccasined foot, the heel pointing to the south and
& ver Btmtk. =
Renton teditilles
REPRE
ANCIENT WORK NEAR SPENCERVILLE.
the toes north, enclosing about three and a half acres of ground. It
is situated on the front of the west half of lot twenty-seven, seventh
concession in Edwardsburgh, on the farm of John McDonald, esq.,
who, with Messrs. Imrie and Mitchell, kindly accompanied us, and,
from their acquaintance with the locality, aided very much in explor-
ing the embankment, which was in some places almost obliterated.
This enclosure has been cultivated for some years, and at the time
of the visit was mostly covered with luxuriant crops, so that we
were unable to make excavations. Some parts of the embankments
are from two to three feet high; on these, also, are some enormous
pine stumps, one of which was nearly five feet across its top.
Some few pieces of pottery were obtained here, similar to those found
in Augusta ; also pieces of clay pipes, one of them richly ornamented,
andastone implement sharpened to a point, which was doubtless used
Fig. 5 Fig. 6
for dressing skins. There were also human bones scattered over the
field which the plough had thrown up. The ‘‘ terra cotta’’ found
here is elaborate in its workmanship, and is as hard as the stone-
ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS. 275
ware of the present day. It seems to be composed of quartz pounded up
and mixed with clay, which adds to ifs hardness; and as to beauty
of shape, some of the restored articles (see figs. 5, 6 and 7) will at
Fig. 7.
least compare favorably with any form of Indian manufacture hitherto
discovered. These vessels have been found from four to eight and
three-quarter inches inside. We likewise found a few rounded pieces
of pottery in the shapeof coin, (figs. 8 and 9,) about the size of a quarter
Fig. &.
ar
Hi
co
. in the shape of a knife (fig. 11), made of a shark’s tooth,
: Fig. 11.
FRAGMENT OF STEATITE.
which had some marks upon it transversely, by which the owner
evidently intended to identify it. In a subsequent visit to these
remains we obtained an earthen pipe complete, and a piece of a human
skull polished and with several notches cut in itsedge. The bowl
of a pipe was shown us with a face strongly characteristic of the
western aborigines.
276 ANCIENT INDIAN REMAINS,
The great size of the trees, the stumps of which remain upon the
embankments, are, in some degree, chronological evidence of the long
time that has elapsed since these monuments were erected ; and the
fact of the bones of the walrus and shark being found, shows their
acquaintance and communication with the sea, while the entire ab-
sence of stone pipes and arrow heads of the same material, (which .
belong comparatively to a more recent age,) as well as the entire
deficiency of metals, or anything European to connect them with the
western or southern tribes of Indians, and the significant fact that
no remains of this kind have been found upon the borders of the St.
Lawrence, but that they are always situated upon terraces from one
hundred and twenty feet (the height of these) to two hundred feet
above the present level of the water, is all strong proof of their great
antiquity, compared with those of a much lower level, in which, to
this day, stone pipes and copper articles are found. Further investi-
gation may change this view, but facts at present would seem to point
to a time, previous to the breaking away of the great northern bar-
rier, when the sea was on a level with some of the terraces of Lake
Ontario.
These vestiges of a proud and once powerful race are traceable from
the rude earthen embankments of the North to the extended ruins of
Central America, and are worthy of patient and continued investiga-
tion, though their unwritten history may never be fully revealed.
It is by the careful collection and preservation of facts, minute
though they may be in detail, that a sufficiency of data will be
gathered from which some future historian may do justice to the
memory of the earlier inhabitants of this continent, and erect a beau-
tifully proportioned and massive ethnological structure.
CORRESPONDENCE.
PHONOGRAPHY.
To the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution :
The system of writing called phonography has acquired some inte-
rest for the public from its singular success as applied to verbatim
reporting, for which purpose it is rapidly supplanting all former
methods of short hand. But independent of its merits in this regard,
it has claims of a scientific character from its philosophic basis, its
simplicity, and its adaptedness to a general system of education, which
have been less appreciated.
With a view of ¢alling attention to these points, this communica-
tion has been prepared in the belief that, if it shall lead any to inves-
tigate the system, they will find it not the least among the means of
promoting ‘ the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.”
The inventor of phonography, Isaac Pitman, of Bath, England,
has sought to combine the perfect phonetic representation of the Eng-
lish language with a selection of signs so simple as to furnish, like-
wise, a system of short hand. For the phonetic representation of a
language, we require, first, an analysis of the sounds heard in speak-
ing it, so as to determine the elements of which it is composed ; and,
secondly, the selection of a special sign for each distinct sound as thus
derived. This done, all that is needful for the representation of any
word in writing is to set down the signs agreed on for the sounds in
the order in which such sounds appear in the given word ; and con-
versely reading is but the rapid utterance of the sounds indicated by
the signs or letters with which the given word is written.
The original from which European alphabets are derived was doubt-
less phonetic; that is, it had a letter for each sound to be represented,
and such sound was uniformly represented by that letter; but at
present the traces of such an origin are more or less obscured.
In English this is especially the case, insomuch that we have many
elementary sounds in our speech which we have no means of certainly
representing ; and, on the other hand, letters professedly selected to
denote certain sounds are employed for other sounds as well. Asa
consequence, instead of the harmony and simplicity of a phonetic
system, we have one which is essentially arbitrary. Our spelling is
determined, not on any fixed principles, but by the force of authority
and custom ; so that ifa word be presented to us for the first time,
we cannot feel assured of its spelling from the pronunciation, or of its
pronunciation from its spelling, without first referring to the diction-
ary. Hence the very foundation of modern knowledge, the art of
_reading and spelling, is beset with peculiar difficulties; and that
which, through a phonetic alphabet, is acquired without annoyance
in a few months, demands, through the imperfection of our present
alphabet, the labor of as many years. An analysis of the English
tongue shows that, for its complete phonetic representation, an alpha-
bet of thirty-four elementary sounds is demanded. These sounds are
those indicated by the italicized portion of the following words, viz:
pit, to, cot, fat, theme, seal, rush.
bit, do, got, vat, them, zeal, rouge.
278 PHONOGRAPHY.
map, nap, ring, ray, lay, he, we, ye.
eel, ail, are, awed, ope, fool.
all, ell, at, odd, up, foot.
The received alphabet has but twenty effective letters, (since x, q,
Jj, ¢, 1, and u are duplicates, or compounds of simpler elements,) so
that fourteen additional letters are required to fit it for the phonetie
representation of our language. It is from this deficiency that a con-
sistent system of spelling is rendered impracticable, and that a resort
must be had to arbitrary and confusing expedients.
Were the settling of our alphabet and orthography now for the first
time proposed as an original question, a phonetic system would of course
be adopted ; and there are not wanting those who believe that the advan-
tages it would secure in averting the difficulties attendant on acquiring
the art of reading, would justify, even now, a reform in that direction.
But the inconvenience of a transition from an established to a new
system will probably be held to countervail such advantages.
These inconveniences, however, are not encountered in the adoption
of a phonetic alphabet for short hand purposes.
In such a case, no acquired knowledge is to be unlearned; no printed
books are to be discarded ; and the inventor may apply himself to the
development of a perfect system, untrammelled by antecedent re-
straints. Such being the case, it is somewhat surprising, considering
the unquestionable advantages of phonetic representation, that Isaac
Pitman’s system of short hand is the first which has been erected, on
that basis ; and its success affords another illustration of the import-
ance of founding an art on scientific principles, in place of arbitrary
rules. Jor it is in consequence of certain analogies, only clearly
brought to notice in his investigation of the phonetic elements of our
language, that Isaac Pitman was enabled to secure, what is essential
to the success of phonography asa system of short hand—a selection
of a simple sign for each simple sound.
It is, of course, impracticable, with the ordinary resources of the
printing office, to give here the forms of the letters employed in pho-
nography. It may suffice, in general terms, to explain, that the
simplest mathematical signs—the right line, the curve or the segment
of a circle, the dot and the dash—furnish the material of the phono-
graphic alphabet. Each sound is expressed by a simple and easy
motion of the hand. It follows that the system thus developed
meets every requirement for the most rapid writing. It is, in fact,
the most perfect method of reporting which has ever been invented,
and its phonetic basis renders it also as easy to be read as to be written ;
so that, in fact, it lacks no requisite for a thoroughly philosophical sys-
tem of writing ; easy to learn, easy to read, capable of reporting the
most rapid speech, and indicating the nicest shades of pronunciation.
It may be observed, further, that our language, being derived from
a variety of sources, embraces an unusual variety of elementary sounds ;
comprising nearly all those requisite for the representation of the
languages of Europe. By the enlargement of the phonographic alpha-
bet with the few additions requisite for foreign languages, we are able
to employ it not merely for English, but for other tongues as well ;
recording by it with unerring certainty the infinite diversities of
pecch and pronunciation in use among civilized nations.
PHONOGRAPHY. 279
A system whose scientific basis is such as has been indicated, and
capable of being written with the rapidity previously without a par-
allel, approves itself to the judgment without argument, as deserving
a place in any well ordered plan of education. As a means of devel-
oping distinctness and accuracy of pronunciation, and a clear knowl-
edge of its nice shades and varieties, nothing can be more useful than
the study and practice of phonographic writing and reading ; since
from the very necessity of writing the sound of the words, our atten-
tion is constantly directed towards differences of pronunciation and
the ascertainment of that which is correct. Indirectly, therefore, and
more thoroughly, it teaches all which is included in the study of
orthcepy ; and if it were only useful in this particular, it would be
well worthy of attention. But when we consider, further, its advan-
tages as a system of short hand, there appear few studies, if we except
the very elements of learning, more likely to prove useful, both in
the process of acquisition and in the attainment.
The system of long hand writing is far from answering all the re-
quirements of our present state of social and mental advancement. It
is not a fancied, but a real want, which phonography meets, when it
furnishes a method which makes the representation of words by writ-
ten characters as facile and easy as is their expression in speech;
which combines, in short, the legibility and distinctness of long hand
with the brevity and facility of short hand.
Such a system enables students at schools and colleges to secure a
verbatim record of the valuable information presented in their course
of instruction, and which the unassisted memory is wholly unable to
retain. The importance of such information for present use, and asa
treasury for future reference, cannot well be over estimated. Nor does
the utility of a knowledge of phonography by any means cease when,
after completing the studies of youth, we enter on the business of lile.
The lawyer, the physician, the clergyman, the author, the scholar,
and the merchant, versed in the art, will find abundant opportunities
to apply it to practical advantage, as a labor-saving instrument in sub-
stitution for the cumbrous long hand.
We have already an abundant store of facts proving the practical
value of phonography. “Apart from its use for reporters’ purposes, it
is employed among many thousands of persons in this country and
Great Britain in interchanging correspondence ; by preachers in pre-
paring for the pulpit; and by authors in writing for the press; in
which case the printers are taught to set up from phonographic man-
-uscript. Several periodicals are published in lithographed phonog-
raphy, and find patrons who read them with the facility of ordinary
manuscript. But the most striking examples of the value of the sys-
tem are found among those who adopt it for the purpose of pro-
fessional reporting. Lads, many years short of manhood, who have
had the advantage of acquiring this art, find it the means, not merely
of support, but of lucrative remuneration, by becoming amanuenses,
or reporters of judicial or legislative proceedings, some of them having
_been selected for the responsible position of reporters for the Congress
of the United States.
The usefulness of the system would be more apparent, were it fairly
introduced into our schools as part of an elementary system of educe-
280 PHONOGRAPHY.
tion, for which purpose, by its simplicity and attractiveness, it is
eminently fitted. But, thus far, the knowledge of the art has been
spread mainly through self-instruction, and under many disadvan-
tages. It is gratifying to know, however, that phonography, having
passed through the ordeal of experiment, is rapidly becoming ac-
knowledged as a necessary branch of education, and is now introduced
and taught in a large number of our leading colleges and seminaries,
a list of which is appended to this communication.
On behalf of the Philadelphia Phonographic Society.
TOWNSEND SHARPLESS.
ROBERT PATTERSON.
PHILADELPHIA, January 10, 18517.
Institutions in which phonography is taught.
Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio.
Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio.
Yale College, New Haven, Connecticut.
Green Mount College, Richmond, Indiana.
New York Central College, McGrawville, New York.
. Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsylvania.
Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts.
Victoria College, Cobourg, Canada West.
College, New Wilmington, Pennsylvania.
American Female College, Glendale, Ohio.
EHleutherian College, Neal’s Creek, Indiana.
College, Athens, Ohio.
College, Evanston, Illinois.
Fort Edward Institute, Fort Edward, New York.
Public School, Waltham, Massachusetts.
High School, Providence, Rhode Island.
Madison University, Hamilton, New York.
Union School, Bellefontaine, Ohio.
Delaware Literary Institute, Franklin, New York.
Biblical Institute, Concord, Hew Hampshire.
Theological Seminary, Fairfax county, Virginia.
Conference Seminary, Charlotteville, New York.
Wyoming Seminary, Kington, Pennsylvania.
Goodrich’s Seminary, New Haven, Connecticut.
Bedford Harmonial Seminary, Calhoun county, Michigan.
Holly Springs Seminary, Marshall county, Mississippi.
Western Reserve Seminary, Farmington, Ohio.
McNeely Normal School, Hopedale, Ohio.
Southwestern Normal School, Lebanon, Ohio.
University of Michigan, Michigan.
Union School, Granville, Ohio.
Normal School, Oskaloosa, Iowa.
Friends’ Boarding School, Richmond, Indiana.
Male Institute, Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
Hopedale Seminary, Milford, Massachusetts.
High School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
ECONOMIC GEOLOGY. 281
CORRESPONDENCE.
Port or Spatn, Trrnrpap, April, 1857.
My Dear Sir: In my last letter I gave you some idea of the geo-
logical structure of this singular island; and also the meteorological fact
that hurricanes are never known here, although they have occurred at
Tobago, 30 miles east of us. By the accompanying registers you will
be enabled to see the minute variations of our mountain barometer,
made by Messrs. Troughton & Simms, London. Our aneroids have
done good service, particularly that invented by Bourdon & Richards.
Our boiling water experiments have not been so satisfactory ; I am
induced to attribute this to the great humidity of our atmosphere.
I enclose you also a copy of our report, as it may interest you.
Our future operations will be over a more interesting country. This
report you must not regard as a scientific document, but one writ-
ten to meet the capacities of the inhabitants of this island. As
our future labors are published, if you take any interest in them, I
shall have much pleasure in sending them to you. They will em-
brace our survey of that interesting object, the ‘‘ Pitch Lake.’’ The
difficulty of transit over the low lands during the rainy seasons pre-
vents our carrying on the survey with that system of regularity so
desirable. Moreover, we have to limit our researches to very superfi-
cial examinations, as they are intended for mineralogical rather than
for geological purposes. Various local causes operate against us, partic-
ularly the density of the vegetation, which surpasses that of every
other country I have visited except the portion of New Granada near
the Isthmus of Panama.
I remain, my dear sir, yours, very sincerely,
JAMES G. SAWKINS.
Professor Josepu Henry.
REPORT OF PROGRESS, FROM AUGUST 25, 1856, TO FEB-
RUARY 24, 1857, OF THE SURVEY OF THE ECONOMIC
GEOLOGY OF TRINIDAD.
BY G. P. WALL AND JAS. SAWKINS.
An examination of the Economic Geology of a country necessarily
includes several kinds of observations and investigations, viz:
Those appertaining to a Geological Survey proper, in which the
nature of the different rocks and strata are ascertained, their mutual
relations to one another defined, and the various disturbing causes
282 ECONOMIC GEOLOGY.
which may have affected the district under consideration are deter-
mined, with an amount of accuracy which it is permissible to give the
investigation.
Should an inspection establish the existence of sedimentary strata,
these would probably contain fossils, in which case an ¢xamination of
these organic remains would be of high importance, whether with the
view of discovering the relative geological age of the formation, or for
the purpose of comparing them with fossiliferous strata already classi-
fied in countries which have been thoroughly surveyed. To render
these researches complete, it is also important to institute purely
physical investigations, such as the determination of the height relative
to the sea level, of characteristic elevations, or depressions, either by
barometrical measurements or geodesical operations.
The economic value of the rocks, or minerals contained in the given
district, should such be ascertained. Their existence would probably
be revealed during the execution of the geological survey, and it
would be requisite, either during the progress of that work, or
after its completion, before concluding as to their value, to deter-
mine as far as possible the nature and extent of such deposits of
the useful metals; the feasibility of extracting them, of preparing
them for commerce, or the industrial processes to-which it may be
necessary to subject them, before they became available for the use in
the arts or manufactures.
In connexion with this department, a series of assays and chemical
analyses are highly useful to define the per centage of available
product contained in metallic ores, or the relative purity of gypsum,
marbles, and other non-metallic substances.
The prospects of obtaining a supply of water by means of Artesian
wells are dependent on geological conditions; and as works of this na-
ture prosecuted under favorable geological indications have so often
been attended with success, a review of the circumstances which render
probable the existence of subterraneous accumulations of water under
hydrostatic pressure should not be omitted from any comprehensive
survey of the mineral resources of a country.
Another subject which deserves attention is the influence of geolo-
gical structure on agriculture, as exercised through the medium of the
soils, which are derived either from the decomposition of the subjacent
strata, or from detrital matter transported by aqueous agency from
more elevated land at a distance. Experience proves that after a certain
time the richest lands become exhausted by cultivation, and only re-
acquire their fertilizing properties after a lengthened period of repose;
during which the mineral constituents present in the soil are decom-
posed ; thus rendering accessible to vegetative processes those mineral
ingredients so essential to the life of plants. An examination, then,
of a district under cultivation in connexion with its geological struc-
ture may frequently afford data for conclusions as to the relative
duration of its fertility, and if exhausted, of the time necessary for its
restoration to the productive condition.
ECONOMIC GEOLOGY. 283
The application of chemical analysis to the determination of the
elementary constituents of soil may also be included under the head
of economic geology. Its utility is manifest, since the comparison
of the composition of virgin soil with those cultivated, and of others
exhausted, will readily show what elements are extracted by certain
plants, and consequently what substances should be contained in the
manures applied by the cultivator to regenerate his estates.
Such are the principles which the surveyors appointed to report on
the economic geology of Trinidad have kept steadily before them in
the execution of their task. In those respects in which they have
failed to accomplish the ends indicated above, they trust such defects
will be ascribed not to a deficiency of zeal on their part, but rather to
the limited means at their disposal; to the difficulties opposed to
works of this nature in tropical countries, where many facts of vital
importance to correct conclusions are unfortunately concealed, or ob-
scured by the depth of the soil, and where the examination of localities
remote from lines of regular traffic is attended with a considerable
expenditure of time.
The district examined is comprised between the islands at the Bocas
on the west, and the hills above St. Joseph and Ancona Valley on the
east. In meridianal extension it ranges from the plain of Caroni to
the northern coast. Passing visits were also made to Cedros, Point-a-
Pierre, and the Pitch Lake, for the satisfaction of the late governor,
Sir Charles Elliot ; but the observations were not sufficiently detailed
to justify description. The following remarks will therefore relate to
the first named section of the country only.
The geological structure of this district consists of a metamorphized
strata, probably underlaid by gneiss, which nowhere comes to the
surface in Trinidad, but is the rock forming the point of Paria on the
adjacent coast of the main land.
This metamorphic series may be divided into the following mem-
bers : ;
A. Dark blue, sometimes nearly black limestone, laminar, or com-
pact, not generally crystalline or micaceous, but traversed by nume-
rous veins of calc spar, (carbonate of lime ;) it occurs in layers inter-
stratified with shale containing laminar gypsum, and sometimes thin
beds of sandstone. This limestone deposit forms the island of Pato,
near the coast of the main land, the island of Gasparillo within the
gulf, and the southwest portion of the Laventille hills. This is the
uppermost number of the series, and has an average dip to the south at
a.variable angle. The beds are sometimes horizontal, at others nearly
vertical. Numerous faults traverse these districts, and the limestones
are at times much shattered. This division, as well as the succeeding,
are entirely unfossiliferous.
B. A series of beds, consisting of clay slates, sandstones, subordi-
nate mica slates, and a number of shales, often talcose ; but little
limestone appears in the group; when present its texture is crystal-
line. Extensive segregations of quartz have been induced between
the laminz of the beds of this system, often attaining a width of two
to three feet ; contortions are frequent, cleavage imperfect and irregu-
284 ECONOMIC GEOLOGY.
lar, pyrites very abundant. Since clay slates occur in considerable
quantity in this system, they may be considered typical of the series.
C consists of crystalline and micaceous limestones not generally
traversed by veins of cale spar, in color varying from white to blue,
containing numerous caves often partially filled with stalagmitic
deposits of crystalline carbonate of lime.
D is composed of mica, chlorite, and quartzose slates ; ferruginous
shales, especially in the upper portion, whilst the lower is often
characterized by dark, apparently carbonaceous slates; the original
structure very generally obliterated, but foliation exists in a high
degree. The mica usually distinguished by a green color, contortions
frequent, and quartz veins of still larger dimensions than in section
B, attaining a width of from four to six feet. The average dip of
this system is from 8. 10° W. to S. 10° E.
The valleys intersecting this district contain alluvial deposits,
formed from the degradation of the adjacent hills, and consisting of,
Ist, large rounded boulders of quartz and tabular pieces of the various
- rocks just described.
2d. Beds of smaller boulders and pebbles.
3d. Soil and vegetable mould ; between them beds of variegated
clay often occur, and indeed the boulders, &c., are usually deposited
in the matrix of the same nature.
MINERAL SUBSTANCES ENCOUNTERED IN THE ABOVE FORMATIONS WHICH MAY
POSSESS ECONOMIC VALUES.
The compact limestone of section A forms an excellent material
for macadamizing, and is further applicable for the purposes of quick-
lime, and for building where roughness of finish is not objectionable,
but the production of smooth surfaces, such as characterize firestone,
would require too great an expenditure of labor.
It has been proposed to apply the white limestone (section C) for
building, or inferior marbles; they would, however, probably be
available only for ornamental purposes, as these crystalline limestones
require very careful cutting to produce surfaces adapted for construc-
tion ; mica contained in these limestones might often communicate a
fissile structure, inducing the too facile separation of a block into
several pieces. To test their real value it would be judicious to make
experiments on the same scale of magnitude as the articles proposed
to be manufactured. The portions free from mica are tolerably pure,
containing 96 to 97 per cent. of carbonate of lime. (See analysis
furnished to the Colonial Secretary.)
QUARTZ,
The scattered boulders of this substance, found on the hill-sides or
in the beds of rivers, might be employed with advantage for the
repair of roads when the limestones are not present. Although very
hard, it is not sufficiently tough to resist severe friction. In Saxony
ECONOMIC GEOLOGY. 285
a considerable portion of the roads are repaired with this material,
and when subject to heavy traffic become very uneven, from unequal
resistance. On adjacent portions of the lines of communication, where
basalt, a rock both hard and tough, is used, a very even surface is
preserved.
GYPSUM
Occurs in beds of shale between the limestone, in a tubular form,
but only in small quantities. It exists in abundance near St. Joseph,
forming a bed at least twenty feet thick, lying unconformably on
highly inclined shales and calcareous slates. This deposit is very
pure, containing 93 per cent. sulphate of lime, (analysis furnished to
the Colonial Secretary,) and would probably more than suffice in quan-
tity for the wants of the colony.
ALUM
Is found efflorescing on cliffs of mica slate on the north of the Boca
Islands; and near Macaripe, on the north coast of Trinidad. Anabun-
dant supply of this article might be obtained, but the low price it
commands in commerce, and the limited demand for it in this colony,
would scarcely justify the outlay of capital for its manufacture.
SULPHUR,
In smal] quantities, is associated with alum and gypsum deposits,
but does not require more than a mere notice of the fact.
SLATES,
The essential properties of good slates are a fine texture, compact-
ness, cohesion in one direction, resisting flexure, and at right angles
to this direction a highly fissile structure, dependiug more or less on
cleavage, and which should preserve a straight course in one and
the same place. For the advantageous working of a bed of slate it
must have a moderate width, and be tolerable free from quartz veins,
and other extraneous matter, which might destroy the regularity of
the structure. Although small pieces fulfilling all the requisites
may be obtained from the quarry at St. Ann’s, generally the coarse-
ness of texture, the absence of transverse cohesion, the irregularity of
cleavage, and the interference of quartz veins, will prevent the appli-
cation of these slates to roofing purposes, but they may possess some
slight value in cases where the qualities just described can be partially
or wholly dispensed with,
GOLD.
. Reports have been circulated of the discovery of gold in the oxides
of iron, associated with quartz veins traversing clay slates at St. Ann’s
quarry ; to ascertain the accuracy of such reports, four specimens of
286 ECONOMIC GEOLOGY.
ferruginous quartz and three of gravel from the stream flowing at the
base of the section exposed were submitted to the gold assay without,
however, detecting the slightest trace of that metal.
Another specimen in Mr. Cruger’s possession, given to him as
auriferous, and as proceeding from the slate quarry, was a dark green
slate, with disseminated pyrites, but quite dissimilar to any of the
strata detected in the section at the quarry. On examination it yielded
the remarkably insignificant amount of .00009 per cent. of silver, or
.03 ounce per ton, containing also a minute quantity of gold. It may
be remarked that traces of gold are often present in pyrites, but not
to such an extent as to warrant extraction, for which, in the case refer-
red to, about 250 tons, the amount indicated, would be requisite.
QUARTZ VEINS AND MINERAL LODES.
In reference to quartz veins it may be well to explain that they
must be distinguished from mineral veins, or lodes, which are mechan-
ical fissures, first open, and afterwards filled with metallic ores and a
variety of other minerals. No indication of the existence of such fis-
sures has been detected during the geological survey. The former
are due to metamorphic action, which has induced the segregation of
the excess of quartz into the lines of weakness between the laminz of
the strata produced by the stratification or cleavage ; the instances of
metals or metallic ores associated with these veins are exceptional,
although the substance next to be considered affords an illustration
of its occurrence, viz:
IRON.
The oxide of this metal is intimately mixed with quartz in certain
strata of this district, belonging to the mica slate or lowest division,
and found especially abundant in the ‘‘ Quebrada de Hierro.’’ Mag-
netic and specular iron ores, free from quartz and containing 60 to 66
per cent. of metallic iron are found traversing quartzose slates, and
sandstones parallel to the laminar structure, and filling joints, or any
minor crevices which may exist. These iron ores are present in con-
siderable quantities, and the metal might undoubtedly be produced
from them, as the abundance of wood in the vicinity furnishes the
charcoal necessary for smelting; it is also probable the iron would be of
good quality, but the experience of other countries shows that the seg-
regated ores of iron contained in the metamorphic rocks are both ex-
pensive in extracting and difficult of reduction to the metallic state.
Considering these facts in connexion with the high price of skilled
labor, and the low price at which imported iron is furnished, it is
doubtful whether the attempt to work these deposits would be attended
with profit. The ores of iron are found so abundantly in the coun-
tries, which are the seats of its manufacture, that the expenses of ex-
traction and transport would scarcely allow the colonial ores, however
rich, to be advantageously exported. The blocks of iron ore found at
Se ae though rich, are apparently present to a limited extent
only.
ECONOMIC GEOLOGY. 287
CHROMIC IRON ORE,
This valuable mineral was said to have been met with in Laventille.
The specimen obtained bears a striking resemblance to titanic iron,
and on analysis was proved to contain only 1.02 per cent. chromic acid ;
while to be available as a commercial article, it should contain from
40 to 45 per cent. of this substance, which gives importance to the
mineral,
SILVER LEAD ORE.
This mineral, so often reported to exist in the district of Santa Cruz,
and of which samples have been frequently exhibited, was the subject
of a careful search in the localiti@s indicated, but nothing differing
. from the features of the adjacent country could be detected, no signs
of mineral deposits, no trace of metallic combinations, or the usually
associated minerals; the specimens produced were those of an ordinary
lead ore, and contained 81 per cent. of lead, and 3.33 ounces of silver
to the ton, which small amount would not repay extraction.
QUICKSILVER.
It has also been currently reported and believed that there exists
a deposit of mercury in strata adjacent the Dry river; without any
desire to discredit the fact of the mercury having been found there, it
may be stated that a particular examination of the locality appears
to indicate that its presence was the result of accident, and not due
to any natural deposit of that metal.
MINERAL SPRINGS.
The only one in this district likely ever to be of importance is the
tepid sulphur spring, which rises in the bed of the St. Joseph’s river,
not far from the valley leading to the Cascade; it is similar to those
mineral waters which have proved so highly beneficial in cutaneous
diseases. The White Sulphur Spring, in Virginia, is annually re-
sorted to by many thousands of visitors, who, whilst adding to the
wealth of the vicinity, derive great benefit from the use of the waters.
PITCH DEPOSITS WHICH MAY PROVE AVAILABLE FOR GAS.
These remarks on the mineral value of the portion of the island
explored should not be concluded without allusion to the abundant
supply of pitch existing in the marls and clays of the western section
of the country, since so many applications of this are proposed and
the question of the success of some is now in course of solution.
The substance itself, and more particularly the adjacent strata im-
pregnated with pitchy matters, bear a resemblance in mineral char-
acter to the bituminous shales of Scotland, now attracting so much
attention in the home country, on account of the large proportion of
gas extracted from them, for which reason they command a price far
288 ECONOMIC GEOLOGY.
exceeding that of ordinary coals. The latter are merely earthy beds
impregnated with bitumen, not applicable as fuel, from the circum-
stance that the combustible portion melts, and flows through the bars
of the furnace, but generating an amount of gas ,in some instances,
double the volume of that obtained from the regular coals. The
Trinidad pitch formation also consists of bituminous elements inti-
mately mixed with a variable per centage of earthy matter. It is
natural to conclude that well directed experiments might produce
results appoximating to those afforded in the instances referred to.
ATMOSPHERIC INFLUENCES.
Atmospheric variations in all climates have a material influence on
the harvests of a country, and n@thing less will suffice to the full
understanding of the peculiarities of climate than the comparison ot ,
observations on atmospheric phenomena made throughovt entire
years. On this account, a record of meteorological data has been
executed by the geological department, and on a scale as complete as
circumstances would allow.
ANALYSIS OF SOILS.
The elementary constitutions of the soils, as well as their exhaus-
tion by cultivation, has also received attention, and a series of chemical
analysis of typical soils, and subsoils, is in progress, but the great
expenditure of time involved in researches of this nature has rendered
it difficult to combine them with the duties more especially apper-
taining to the department.
PICTORIAL REPRESENTATIONS.
No written descriptions of a country can convey so faithful an idea
of its structure or appearance as when accompanied by pictorial
representations. The district geologically examined is amply illus-
elie by drawings’ of interesting scenery and peculiar geological
eatures,
SPECIMENS.
The specimens collected during the examination, and illustrative of
the geology of the island, are arranged at the office of the survey, for
the inspection of such as experience an interest in the progress of the
inquiry.
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART. 289
ON TABLES OF THE CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
BY CHARLES BABBAGE,
Amongst those works of science which are too large and too labori-
ous for individual efforts, and are therefore fit objects to be undertaken
by united institutions, I wish to point out one which seems eminently
necessary at the present time, and which would be of the greatest
advantage to all classes of the scientific world.
I would propose that its title should be “‘The Constants of Nature
and of Art.’’ It ought to contain all those facts which can be ex-
pressed by numbers in the various sciences and arts. A better idea
will be formed by giving an outline of its proposed contents, and it
may, perhaps, be useful to indicate the sources whence much of the
information may be drawn.
These constants should consist of—
1. All the constant quantities belonging to our system: as distance
of each planet; period of revolution; inclination of orbit, ete. ; pro-
portion of light received from sun ; force of gravity on surface of each.
These need not be further enumerated, as they have already been
collected, and need only be copied.*
2. The atomic weights of bodies.
These may be taken from Berzelius, Thompson, or Turner.
The proportions of the elements of various compounds; acids with
bases ; metals with oxygen, etc.
These may be taken from the best treatises on chemistry.
3. A list of metals, with columns containing specific gravity, elas-
ticity, tenacity, specific heat, conducting power of heat, conducting
power of electricity, melting point, refractive power, proportion of
rays reflected out of 1,000, at an incidence of 90°.
List of specific gravities of all bodies.
4. List of refractive indices.
dispersive indices.
polarizing angles.
4. List of angle formed by the axes of double refraction in crystals.
- * A work of this kind, embodying the results of sicence, has been projected for sometime
by M. Poggendorff, of Berlin, and a specimen of it may be seen in his Annalen, xxi, p. 609
19s
290 TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
These may be extracted from the writings of Brewster, Mitscherlich,
Herschel, Biot.
5. Number of known species of mammalia, birds, reptiles, fishes,
mollusca, worms, crustacea, insects, zoophytes.
These classes might be further subdivided.
Additional columns should show how many of each are found in a
fossil state, and the proportion between the fossils of existing and ex-
tinct species.
6. List of mammalia, containing columns expressing height, length,
weight, weight of skeleton, weight of each bone, its greatest length,
its smallest cir cumference, ‘its specific gravity; also the number of
young ata birth, the number of pulsations per minute whilst the
animal is in repose, the number of inspirations in the same circum-
stances, period of blindness after birth, period of sucking, period of
maturity, temperature, average duration of life, proportion of males
to females produced.
It would be desirabie to select some bone for the unity of weight,
and perhaps of measure, and to give the proportion of all the other
bones to this standard one. The numerical relations thus estabiished
might perhaps in some cases identify the sexes, or even the races of
the human species, when only a few bones were found. It would also
be highly interesting to compare the relative weight of the bones of
persons employed in different trades, and of persons dying from certain
constitutional diseases.
7. Of man. Average weight at various periods of existence, height
of ditto, tables of mortality i in various places, average duration of
reigns of sovereigns; proportions of the sexes born “under various
circumstances ; proportion of marriages under various circumstances ;
quantity of air consumed per hour; quantity of food necessary for
daily support; average proportion of sickness amongst working
classes ; proportion of persons dying from different diseases.
Many of these facts may be found in the writings of Villermé, Quete-
let, Bailly, Milne, etc.
8. Power of man and animals.
A man laboring ten per hours per day will saw (_) square feet of deal,
ditto ( ) elm, ditto ( ) oak, etc., ditto Portland stone, ditto Purbeck ;
days labor in mowing, ploughing, etc., etc., every kind of labor,
raising water one foot high, horse ditto, ox or cow ditto, camel.
Power of steamengines in Cornwall.
Inclination of a road, both in degrees and number of feet, etc., or
of a base on which carriages and horses can trot, walk; on which
horses cannot ascend, on which man cannot, on which a cart cannot
ascend.
9. Vegetable kingdom. Number of species known of monocotyle-
donous plants; number of species of dicotyledonous plants.
Number of species of the various natural groups.
Additional columns should show the number of species known in a
fossil state, together with that of extinct fossil species.
Also, average weight of vegetable produce of one acre ina year,
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART. 291
when under different modes of cultivation; hay, straw, wheat, tur-
nips, and mangel wurzel, potatoes, clover; etc. produce of timber
per acre.
10. Tables of the geographical distribution of animals and of plants ;
of the average period of maturity and decay in various woods ; increase
in weight annually at different periods; weight of potass produced
from earth ; proportion of heat produced by burning given weight.
11. Atmospheric phenomena. Weight of air above a square inch;
square foot; an acre; a square mile of the earth’s surface, barometer
at 30 inches. Weight of oxygen, of nitrogen, of carbonic acid, above
the same spaces, under the same circumstances.
Weight of water in vapor above ditto at various degrees of hy-
grometer. Depth of rain falling annually at various places, in inches,
columns for number of year’s observation, mean temperature, mean
height of barometer, height of places above the sea; drainage of sur-
face-water for one, two, three, to ten inches, from each square of 100
feet side, each acre, or square mile, expressed in cubic feet, in gallons,
and in hogsheads ; water discharged per” or 1’, per hour or per day,
under various circumstances, as found by experiment; velocity of rivers
and torrents to carry stones of given weight.
12. Materials. Height to which a column of any substance used in
building may be carried before the lowest layer is crushed ; weight
necessary to crush a cubic inch of each; weight of cubic foot or cubic
yard. Angles at which sand, gravel of various sized pebbles, snow,
etc., support themselves. Strength necessary to pull asunder various
woods ; bars of metal of various dimensions; weight to break ropes
and chains of various sizes; column for weight to be safely borne by
them ; friction under various circumstances ; resistance of fluids.
Weight of coal to burn 10 bushels of lime; weight of ashes to burn
10,000 brick ; of coke to make ton of wrought-iron; tallow to make
soap, etc.; and constants in all trades.
See Rennie, Tredgold, Prony, Eytelwein, Venturi, etc.
13. Velocities. Arrow, musket ball at several distances, cannon ball,
sound, telegraph, light, birds.
Day’s journey. Man, horse, heavy wagon, stage-coach, mail-coach,
camel, elephant, steam carriage, steamboat, balloon, greatest; average
passage Liverpool to New York, etc., of steamboats, Dublin to Liver-
pool; London to Edinburgh, etc.
14. Length of all rivers; water discharged per hour; seas; pro-
portion of water to land on globe; area of all seas and lakes in square
miles; areas of all islands and peninsula and continents; heights of
mountains; depth of mines from surface; quantity of water
pumped out of mines.
Heights of above.7,000 points in Europe may be found in Orographie,
the third volume of the Zransactions of the Geographical Society of
Paris.
_15. Population, extent in square miles, revenue, etc., of kingdoms;
births, deaths, marriages, rate of increase, population of great towns.
292 TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
16. Buildings. Height of all temples, pyramids, churches, towers,
columns, etc.; also all single stones, as obelisks, and area covered by
ditto ; area of all great public buildings. Dimensions of all columns
in ancient temples; lengths of all bridges; of span of each arch, and
height, also breadth of piers.
Such tables may be found in Wiebeking, Architecture Civile, in—.
17. Weights, measures, etc., factors and their logarithms to convert
all money of every country into English pounds sterling.
Factors and their logarithms to convert weights of every country
into English pounds avoirdupois.
foot and all measures in every country into English feet.
measures of area, acres, etc., into English acres.
liquid measures in every‘country into English imperial gallons.
These are already collected in several works of L6hmann, of Dresden.
See also Vniversal Cambist.
18. Tables of the frequency of occurrence of the various letters of
the alphabet in different languages ; of the frequency of occurrence of
the same letters at the beginnings or endings of words; as the second
or as the penultimate letters of words; of the number of double letters
occurring in different languages; of the proportion of letters com-
mencing surnames amongst different nations.
See Quetelet, Correspondence math., also Dissertatio inauguralis
mathematica de literarum proportionibus, Hd. Hayez, Bruxelles, 1829.
19. Table of number of books in great public libraries at given
dates ; number of students at various universities. Observatories of
the world; transit, its length, diameter of object-glass, maker; circle,
length of telescope, aperture, diameter of divided circle, maker.
It would be desirable to give the date of the different eras by which
time is computed, and perhaps tables of the reigns of sovereigns.
Also a chronological table, at least of scientific discoveries and their
authors.
In the above enumeration, which is far from complete, some few of
the uses of such a volume are noticed ; others will present themselves
to every reader, and probably many unexpected ones will arise. The
facts being all expressed in numbers, if printed in small type and
well arranged, would not occupy a large space. Most of the constants
mentioned in this list already exist, and the difficulty of collecting
them would consist chiefly in a judicious selection of those which
deserve the greatest confidence. The labor of extracting them from
a great variety of volumes, and of reducing the weights and measures
of other countries to our own, could be performed by clerks. To any
individual who might attempt it, it must be a work of great labor and
difficulty, and there are few persons possessing the varied knowlege
which such a task implies, whose talents might not be differently
employed with more advantage to science. It is also certain that
such an assemblage of facts, emanating from the collected judgment
of many, would naturally command greater attention than if it were
the produce of any single individual, however eminent.
It appears, then, that such a work is particularly fitted to be the
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART. 293
production of a body of men of science, and I would appeal to the
great academies of Kurope whether they would not, by combining in
one volume so vast a collection of facts, confer an important advantage
upon science and upon all who are occupied with its pursuits. I
would suggest that three of the academies of Europe, perhaps the
Royal Society, the Institute of France, and the Academy of Berlin,
should each publish at intervals of six years their own table of the
CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART. Thus these publications might succeed
each other at intervals of two years, andthe man of science would
always be able to refer to the most recent determinations of the con-
stants he employs. -
In order to execute the work, sub-committees of one or two persons
must be appointed to each department, who should be directed in the
first instance to prepare the outline of the constants they propose to
insert. These views should then be considered and classed by a small
committee, consisting of persons of general views and various knowl-
edge. The sub-committee should then collect and reduce to certain
standards the constants committed to them, and the whole should be
printed under the general superintendence of the committee, but each
part should be specially revised by its own sub-committee.
A preface should be prepared, stating as briefly as possible the
reasons for preferring or rejecting particular experiments or observa-
tions, and also, generally, the degree of accuracy the several subjects
admit of. A good and concise system of reference should be made to
all the authorities for the numbers given. Whoever should undertake
the first work of this kind would necessarily produce it imperfect,
partly from omission, and partly from the many facts connected with
natural history, which, although measured by number, have not yet
been counted.
But this very deficiency furnishes an important argument in favor
of the attempt. It would be desirable to insert the heads of many
- columns, although not a single number could be placed within them,
for they would thus point out many an unreaped field within our
reach which requires but the arm of the laborer to gather its produce
into the granary of science.
It is, however, to be hoped that no fear of the imperfection of a first
attempt will deter either any individual or any body of men from an
immediate endeavor to produce a work fraught with so many advan-
tages to knowledge. The task of revising it at each period of six years
will be comparatively easy, and the discussions of new observations or
additional experiments made during those intervals will have an
admirable effect in exciting the ambition of the inquirers to bestow
such care as shall claim for their results a place in the volume, in
which the academy shall record the condensed expression of the knowl-
edge of their age and nation.
If should be successful in inducing any scientific institution to enter
in the task, I am confident that many a weary hour, now wasted in
the search for existing knowledge, will be devoted to the creation of
new, and that it will thus call into action a permanent cause of ad-
vancement towards truth, continually leading to the more accurate
294 TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
determination of established facts, and to the discovery and measure-
ment of new ones.
The following list of those facts relating to mammalia, which can
be expressed by numbers, was first printed in 1826. It was intended
as an example of one chapter in a great collection of facts which the
author suggested under the title of the ‘‘ ConsTANTS OF NATURE AND
art.’’ About 200 copies were circulated at that period. The num-
ber of persons, however, then engaged in cultivating science was small,
and the author’s own pursuits prevented him from attempting to fill
up any part of the details of the subject. The want of some
central body to which individual results might be confided for the
purpose of arrangement also impeded the publication of such results
as may have been collected.
The present time offers a far more favorable combination of circum-
stances. Science itself is cultivated by a much larger number of per-
sons. Stationary scientific societies have become more special in their
particular objects. Other societies assembling periodically in different
cities have brought into personal acquaintance men of all countries
following kindred pursuits. The newest feature of the times, ‘‘ con-
gresses for special objects,’’ bring together men who have deeply
studied those objects, who have felt the want of union as an impedi-
ment to their advancement, and who assemble together to agree upon
principles and methods of observation, which, whilst they shorten the
labor of individual research, contribute towards rendering most pro-
ductive the united efforts of the collective body of inquirers.
The accompanying skeleton of facts susceptible of measure, apper-
taining to mammalia alone, might occupy usefully a large number of
different inquirers. If those distinguished men who are at the head
of the great schools of comparative anatomy would suggest to their
pupils the measurement and weight of the various skeletons of animals
occasionally coming under their control, much advantage would be
derived from the exercises afforded to the students, whilst, by causing
these successive measurements of the same individual to be made and
recorded by several pupils, any casual error would be corrected.
The directors of zoological gardens and other menageries might
readily supply a daily account of the food consumed by the animals,
whilst every intelligent visitor might himself count and register the
inspirations of the animals. Even in the farm-house and in the
country village several of these inquiries might be successfully pur-
sued. The proportion of the sexes amongst our poultry and our
domesticated animals, the rates of their pulse and their inspirations,
are at present unrecorded in works of natural history.
In order to promote and render useful these contributions of indi-
viduals, it is essentially necessary that some centre of action should
be arranged, to which all communications should be addressed, and
by which they should be recorded from time to time in the periodical
publications of the day. When a sufficient number had thus accu-
mulated, a special memoir on the subject might be contributed to some
philosophical society, in which the deductions arising from these facts
might be pointed out, and the most interesting direction of further
researches indicated,
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART. 295
It is scarcely to be expected that any one individual will, even for
a single animal, be able to fill up the whole of the measures pointed
out in this short paper, and it would be much to be regretted if this
enumeration should from its extent discourage any observer. As,
however, some definite portions of this labor, within reach in the
course of the next twelvemonth, might perhaps, if accomplished,
supply a stimulus to more extensive inquiries, I would propose to
those who possess microscopes the determination of the diameter of
the globules of the blood of various animals, and to those who are not
in the possession of such instruments, or cannot spare the time neces-
sary for their use, I would propose the determination of the rate of
breathing of various mammalia. The numerous collections of animals
now distributed over the continent would render this limited portion
of the task a work of comparatively little difficulty.
OBSERVATIONS.
1. Length from tip of tail to end of nose.
— ————— eee
. Height from ground to top of shoulder.
SS
. Length of tail,
. Length of head.
. Weight of animal.
. Weight of skeleton.
. Number of mamme.
2
3
+
5. Greatest breadth of head.
6
Us
8
9
. Period of gestation, in days.
10. Period of blindness after birth.
11. Period at which they cease sucking.
12. Period of maturity.
13. Period of old age.
14. Number of young at a birth.
15. Proportion of males to females.
16 Animal heat; thermometer centigrade.
17. Number of pulsations per minute, awake, asleep.
18. Number of inspirations per minute, awake, asleep.
19. Number of species known.
20. Number of toes or claws on fore foot.
_—$—$<———.§ ————$ —————— —___
296
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
OBSERVATIONS.
Name.
21. Number of toes or claws on hind foot.
22. Divisions of hoof.
23. Facial angle.
24. Nature of food, average weight in 24 hours.
25. Excretions, solid and fluid, in 24 hours.
26. Velocity in motion.
27. Day’s journey.
28. Weight carried.
29. Greatest length. )
30. Breadth at ears. |
31. Height.
Cranium.
32. Weight.
33. Specific gravity. |
34. Breadth between inn rv corners of eyes. J
35. Length. jj
36. Greatest breadth. Lower jaw.
37. Specific gravity.
38. Length. 7}
39. Distance from tip to tip.
ee Horns
40. Weight of each.
Al. Specific gravity. J
42. Weight.
—_—— }Clavicula.
43. Specific gravity.
44, Weight.
—— —— Scapula
45. Specific gravity.
46, Greatest length. )
47. Greatest diameter at upper end. |
48. Greatest diameter at lower end. |
. Smallest diameter.
Humerus.
. Weight. |
. Specific gravity.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
64,
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.
70.
(Ne
72.
73.
74,
15.
76.
ide
78.
79.
80.
81.
* The specific gravity of the bones is to be given, exclusive of the cavities.
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
OBSERVATIONS.
Name.
Length.
Smallest Tote ee
Weight.
Specific gravity.
shel
—— —| Radius.
Length. wars
—— |
Smallest Giameter Gaeta
Ulna.
Weight.
Specific gravity.
Number.
Length of each or of largest.
Carpal bones.
Weight of ditto.
Specific gravity.*
———
Number.
Length of each or of largest.
Weight of ditto.
Specific gravity.
Number.
Weight of each or largest. Finger bones.
Spec. grav. of ditto.
Number.
True ribs.
a ee a
Spee. grav.
Number of false ribs.
Length
Smallest diameter.
—_—__ —_——_—___—_——_. | Femur.
|
)
Weight.
Spec. grav.
Length.
Smallest diameter.
Weight.
Spec. grav.
Metacarpal bones,
297
298 TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
OBSERVATIONS.
Name.
82. Length. )
OO —————— ———— — — ____
83. Smallest diameter.
—————————— —— ________
\ Fibula.
FO OO —
85. Spec. grav.
86. Number.
—_—
Tarsal bones.
Se
88. Weight of ditto.
89. Spec. gray.
90. Number.
ss
91. Length of each or of largest.
Metatarsal bones.
92. Weight of ditto.
Mi. Sternum.
95. Spec. gray.
—— oe ———,- - - ——~ SS Nes —+-— e+, a SS
96. Total number.
Vertebre.
97, Total length.
98. Number of cervical.
99. Total length of ditto.
Vertebre.
100. Weight of each.
101. Spec. gray. of each.
——$<$— ————
102. Number of dorsal.
103. Total length of ditto.
— + Vertebra.
104. Weight of each. |
105. Spec. gray. of each. J
106. Number of lumbar. )
107. Total length of ditto.
————$——————_—_——— Vertebre.
108. Weight of each.
109. Spec. grav. of each.
110. Number of sacral.
. Total length of ditto.
Vertebree
112. Weight of each.
|
|
ae
113. Spee. grav. of each. J
. Spec. grav. of each. |
. Weight of each.
. Spec. grav. of ees ere
. Incisive.
f
el
fi ee
. Weight of en fo te aa
. Spec. grav. of each.
. Grinders. Baia
. Weight of each. a
. Spec. grav. of ae CO ae Cane i wen HERR
. Canine.
. Weight of each. Lower jaw
. Proportion of intestinal canal to length of body.
. Proportion of intestinal canal to its circumference.
. Diameter of the globules of blood.
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
OBSERVATIONS.
Name.
. Number of caudal. )
. Total length of ditto.
—— EEE.
\ Vertebree.
. Weight of each.
. Spec. gray. of each.
. 5
. Grinders. Number.
. Canine.
Upper jaw )
. Spec. grav. of each. ce
. Incisive. |
. Weight of each.
— —
. Proportion of weight of cerebrum to that of body.
. Proportion of weight of cerebrum to cerebellum.
. Length of intestinal canal.
Teeth.
|
|
299
300
TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
Blank table of measurements for mammals adopted by the Smithsonian Institution.
Sprcres—
© OD ATO Or Oo DO
General dimensions.
PNOSEMO OCCIDUt.. =< one aot eee ee
POINOSEILO\ CYCL. == s-= acme eeosecn ee
PONOSCLLO CAL 2 2 cue taco cee accesses sess
he Nosetto rootrof tall’ 22-2 Seer eee ee
Nose to end of outstretched hind legs--
. Tail from root to end of vertebrae ----
. Tail from root to end of hairs
» Bars: height, posteriorly s2s2=-5----=—
Mars height, anteriorly; = o-oo. - en
. Ears: height, internally above skull-_--
. Ears: width
. Arm: between claws across shoulder. - -
> Arm length of-fore arm-= > -ss-—- se
. Arm: from elbow to end of claws-----
. Arm: fore foot to end of claws -.-----
SPAM LON est Clawier ea setae
. Leg: from knee joint to end of claws..
peu leven 7010) See eTocs eee
| Inches and 100ths.
Inches and lines.
| 100ths of length.
| Inches and 100ths.
| Inches and lines.
| 100ths of length.
| Inches and 100ths
| Inches and lines
| 100ths of length
See
Nors.—The measurements of most importance are Nos. 1, 4, 6, and 7, and should,
whenever possible, be made before skinning, as they can never be obtained with accuracy
from the prepared specimen.
Blank table of measurements for the skulls of mammals.
Skull.
m
owe
aa
me Ob re
. Total length
. Greatest width
. Distance between orbits
. Nasal bones, length
DAA RONe
Nasal bones, width behind_.._.~. eet
Nasal bones, width before ....-....--
Upper incisors from front to molars----
. Upper incisoys from front to hinder
margin of palate
Uppenuncisots helphti= see ememers oe
. Upper incisors, width between external
edges
. Upper molars, length taken together --
. Upper molars, distance between ------
» Lower jaw, lengthe. <2. cereeee see
. Lower jaw, height
| Inches and 100ths.
| Lines.
| 100ths of length.
| Inches and 100ths.
|
| 100ths of length.
| Inches and 100ths.
| 100ths of length,
| Lines.
TESTING..BUILDING MATERIALS,
Blank table of measurements for fishes.
Sprcres—
Rays. Be gy S bee D. A.
\
Bopy.
General shape... --- RRR Rags th lien 2 hl ae
TOMtCRU Hele = 4. a5 2. sas SO ee ee
NOMIC AILGR En UONOKTIOBS = seo oi oie ee tte en este i oom ee
Greatesttheicht) tolength, as-cace.sse-eoseee=2 ese Se 33
Greatest thickness to greatest height, as..--.-..------ 2:
Hran— (side) tolength, assacte ass -o sient eneen eset 23
Hrap—(above)ito lengths as. 2222 5252S. 2b sie ok :
Movrs.
Most projecting jaw, mouth'shut --.-.-........-.-..2-
Distance from centre of eye to the snout to same distance
to end of operculum, in diameters of eye, as -_--_----
Distance from snout to tip of operculum, in diameters of
Relation of nape to angle between lines from centre of
eye to two extremities of commissure -_-...--...-.--
Relations of the eye to anterior edge of operculum
Mucous lines
Fins.
Dorsal—Relation to centre of axis
i Base to height
ee Last ray to longest
Totalslencthrofolo0 ths. 2 seeca= = see oes. sooo
Pectoral—Relation to dorsal
We OH toxventral, 22 ona eee maces as
Motallencthein-100ths s2acsees ses see eet fk os
iVentral—Relationrto anal): 2 2s. fae oh Ss. mst e see
Motalilenotheini lO0ths 2. a6 ssh 222 Bees cee e ochre
Anal—Base to height
‘¢ Last ray to longest
Potaliteneth ine LOObRS) sells ee owe Sea oe Ue
Caudal—Shortest central ray to longest
Total length in 100ths
SCALEs.
Curve and position of the lateral line
Number of scales in lateral line
Rows from dorsal line in front of dorsal ray to lateral line -
Rows from lateral line to base of ventral.........-----
Rows encircling body posterior to dorsal fin
Rows around the tail
_ Oblique rows from nape to dorsal
Oblique rows from dorsal to caudal
Number of vertebrae
ee ee
301
302 TABLES OF CONSTANTS OF NATURE AND ART.
The capital letters at the head of the preceding table refer: P. to the pectoral fin; V. to
the ventral; D. to the dorsal; A. to the anal; C. to the caudal; and the blanks after
each are to be filled up with the number of bony rays in each fin.
The unit of measure is considered to be the total length of the fish divided into 100
equal parts. All the dimensions may be given in terms of this unit. In order to obtain
the number of hundredths of the total length of the fish in any given amount, it is only
necessary to use the total length in inches and hundredths as a constant denominator,
Thus, in a fish 7. 35 inches long, a height of 2. 55 inches would bess, or about . 35 of the
total length.
The most important measurements for birds are: the length from
point of bill to end of tail, the distance between the tips of the out-
stretched wings, and the distance from the first or carpal joint to the
end of the longest primary quill. These should always be taken
before skinning, and recorded on the label; other important measure-
ments which can be taken from the dried specimen, however, are, the
length of the bill along the upper edge and along the cleft of the
mouth, the length of the tarsus, and the length of the longest and
shortest tail feathers. The colors of the iris, the inside of the mouth,
the bill and the feet, may also be recorded to advantage, especially
the first mentioned.
[The physical tables now in process of stereotyping, which have
been prepared under the direction and at the expense of the Smith-
sonian Institution by Professor Guyot, will forma part of the impor-
tant work proposed in this article. |
TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS. 303
ON THE MODE OF TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS,
AND AN ACCOUNT OF THE MARBLE USED IN THE EXTENSION OF THE UNITED
STATES CAPITOL.
BY PROFESSOR JOSEPH HENRY,
SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
[Read before the American Association for the advancement of science. |
A commission was appointed by the President of the United States,
in November, 1851, to examine the marbles which were offered for the
extension of the United States Capitol, which consisted of General
Totten, A. J. Downing, the Commisioner of Patents, the Architect,
and myself. Another commission was subsequently appointed in the
early part of the year 1854 to repeat and extend some of the experi-
ments, the members of which were General Totten, Professor Bache,
Captain Meigs, and myself.
A part of the results of the first commission were given in a report
to the Secretary of the Interior, and a detailed account of the whole
of the investigations of these committees will ultimately be presented
in full in a report to Congress, and I propose here merely to state
some facts of general interest, which may be of importance to those
engaged in similar researches.
Though the art of building has been practised from the earliest
times, and constant demands have been made, in every age, for the
means of determining the best materials, yet the process of ascertain-
ing the strength and durability of stone appears to have received but
little definite scientific attention ; and the commission, who had never
before made this subject a special object of study, were surprised with
unforeseen difficulties at every step of their progress, and came to
the conclusion that the processes usually employed for solving these
questions are still in a very unsatisfactory state.
It should be recollected that while the exterior materials of a build-
ing are to be exposed for centuries, the conclusions desired are to
be drawn from results produced in the course of a few weeks.
Besides this, in the present state of science, we do not know all the
actions to which the materials are subjected in nature, nor can we fully
estimate the amount of those which are’ known.
The solvent power of water, which even attacks glass, must in time
produce an appreciable effect on the most solid material, particularly
where it contains, as the water of the atmosphere always does, car-
bonic acid in solution. The attrition of silicious dusts, when blown
against a building, or washed down its sides by rain, is evidently
operative in wearing away the surface, though the evanescent portion
304 TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS.
removed at each time may not be indicated by the nicest balance.
An examination of the basin which formerly received the water from
the fountain at the western entrance of the Capitol, now deposited in
the Patent Office, will convince any one of the great amount of action
produced principally by water charged with carbonic acid. Again,
every flash of lightning not only generates nitric acid—which, in
solution in the rain, acts on the marble—but also by its inductive
effects at a distance produces chemical changes along the moist wall,
which are at the present time beyond our‘means of estimating. Also,
the constant var‘ations of temperature from day to day, and even from
hour to hour, give rise to molecular motions which must affect the
durability of the material of a building. Recent observations on the
pendulum have shown that the Bunker Hill monument is scarcely for
a moment in a state of rest, but is constantly warping and bending
under the influence of the ever varying temperature of its different sides.
Moreover, as soon as the polished surface of a building is made rough
from any of the causes aforementioned, the seeds of minute lichens and
mosses, which are constantly floating in the atmosphere, make it a
place of repose, and from the growth and decay of the microscopic
plants which spring from these, discoloration is produced, and disin-
tegration assisted. But perhaps the greatest source of dilapidation in
a climate like ours is that of the alternations of freezing and thawing
which take place during the winter season; but though the effect of
this must be comparatively large, yet, in good marble, it requires the
accumulated results of a number of years in order definitely to estimate
its amount.
From a due consideration of all the facts, the commission are con-
vinced that the only entirely reliable means of ascertaining the com-
parative capability of marble to resist the weather is to study the actual
effects of the atmosphere upon it, as exhibited in buildings which for
years have been exposed to these influences. Unfortunately, however,
in this country, but few opportunities for applying this test are to be
found. It is true some analogous information may be derived from
the examination of the exposed surfaces of marble in their out crops
at the quarry ; but in this case the length of time they have been ex-
posed, and the changes of actions to which they may have been sub-
jected during, perhaps, long geological periods, are unknown; and
since different quarries may not have been exposed to the same action,
they do not always afford definite data for reliable comparative
estimates of durability, except where different specimens occur in the
same quarry.
As we have said before, the art of testing the quality of stone for
building purposes is at present in a very imperfect state ; the object is
to imitate the operations of nature, and at the same time to hasten
the effect by increasing the energy of the action, and, after all, the
result may be deemed but as approximative, or, to a considerable de-
gree, merely probable.
About twenty years ago an ingenious process was devised by M.
Brard, which consists in saturating the stone to be tested with a solu-
tion of the sulphate of soda. In drying, this salt crystallizes and ex-
pands, thus producing an exfoliation of surface which is supposed to
TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS. 305
imitate the effect of frost. Though this process has been much relied
on, and generally employed, recent investigations made-by Dr. Owen
lead us to doubt its perfect analogy with that of the operations of na-
ture. He found that the results produced by the actual exposure to
freezing and thawing in the air, during a portion of winter, in the
case of the more porous stones, produced very different results from
those obtained by the use of the salt. It appears from his experiments
that the action of the latter is chemical as well as mechanical.
The commission, in consideration of this, have attempted to produce
results on the stone by freezing and thawing by means of artificial
cold and heat. This process is, however, laborious; each specimen
must be inclosed in a separate box fitted with a cover, and the amount
of exfoliation produced is so slight that in good marble the operation
requires to be repeated many times before reliable comparative results
can be obtained. In prosecuting this part of the inquiries unforeseen
difficulties have occurred in ascertaining precisely the amount of the
disintegration, and it has been found that the results are liable to be
vitiated by circumstances which were not foreseen at the commence-
ment.
It would seem at first sight, and the commission when they under-
took the investigation were of the same opinion, that but little diffi-
culty would be found in ascertaining the strength of the various spe-
cimens of marbles. In this, however, they were in error. The first
difficulty which occurred was to procure the proper instrument for the
purpose. On examining the account of that used by Rennie, and
described in the Transactions of the Royal Society of London, the com-
mission found that its construction involved too much friction to allow
of definite comparative results. Friction itself has to be overcome as
well as the resistance to compression, and, since it increases in pro-
portion to the pressure, the stronger stones would appear relatively
to withstand too great a compressing force.
The commission first examined an hydraulic press, which had pre-
viously been employed in experiments of this kind, for the use of the
government, but found that it was liable to the same objection as that
of the machine of Rennie. They were, however, extremely fortunate
subsequently in obtaining, through the politeness of Commodore Bal-
lard, commandant of the navy yard, the use of an admirable instru-
ment devised by Major Wade, late of the United States army, and
constructed under his direction for the purpose of testing the strength
of gun metals. This instrument consists of a compound lever, the
several fulcra of which are knife edges, opposed to hardened steel sur-
faces. The commission verified the delicacy and accuracy of the
indications of this instrument by actual weighing, and found, in
accordance with the description of Major Wade, the equilibrium was
produced by one pound in opposition to two hundred. In the use of
this instrument the commission were much indebted to the experience
and scientific knowledge of Lieutenant Dahlgreen, of the navy yard,
and to the liberality with which all the appliances of that important
public establishment were put at their disposal.
‘Specimens of the different samples of marble were prepared in the
form of cubes of one inch and a half in dimension, and consequently
208
306 TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS.
exhibiting a base of two and a quarter square inches. These were
dressed by ordinary workmen with the use of a square, and the oppo-
site sides made as nearly parallel as possible by being ground by hand
ona flat surface. They were then placed between two thick steel
plates, and in order to insure an equality of pressure, independent of
any want of perfect parallelism and flatness on the two opposite sur-
faces, a thin plate of lead was interposed above and below between the
‘stone and the plates of steel. This was in accordance with a plan
adopted by Rennie, and that which appears to have been used by most,
if not all, of the subsequent experimenters in researches of this kind.
Some doubt, however, was expressed as to the action of interposed lead,
which induced a series of experiments to settle this question, when
the remarkable fact was discovered that the yielding and approxi-
mately equable pressure of the lead caused the stone to give way at
about half the pressure it would sustain without such an interposition.
For example, one of the cubes precisely similar to another, which
withstood.a pressure of upwards of 60,000 pounds when placed in
immediate contact with the steel plates, gave way at about 30,000 with
lead interposed. This interesting fact was verified in a series of ex-
periments, embracing samples of nearly all the marbles under trial,
and in no case did a single exception occur to vary the result. The
explanation of this remarkable phenomenon, now that the fact is
known, is not difficult. The stone tends to give way by bulging out
in the centre of each of its four perpendicular faces, and to form two
pyramidal figures with their apices opposed to each other at the centre
of the cube and their bases against the steel plates.
In the case where rigid equable pressure is employed, as in that of
the thick steel plate, all parts must give way together. But in that of
a yielding equable pressure, as in the case of interposed lead, the stone
first gives way along the outer lines or those of least resistance, and
the remaining pressure must be sustained by the central portions around
the vertical axis of the cube.
After this important fact was clearly determined, lead and all other
interposed substances were discarded, and a method devised by which
the upper and lower surfaces of the cube could be ground into perfect
parellelism. This consists in the use of a rectangular iron frame, into
which a row of six of the specimens could be fastened by a screw at
the end. The upper and lower surfaces of this iron frame were
wrought into perfect parallelism by the operation of a planing ma-
chine. The stones being fastened into this, with a small portion of
the upper and lower parts projecting, the whole were ground down to
a flat surface, until the iron and the face of the cubes were thus
brought into a continuous plane. The frame was then turned over,
and the opposite surfaces ground in likemanner. Care was, of course,
taken that the surfaces thus reduced to perfect parallelism, in order to
receive the action of the machine, were parallel to the natural bed of
the stone.
All the specimens tested were subjected to this process, and in their
exposure to pressure were found to give concordant results. The
crushing force exhibited was therefore much greater than that hereto-
fore given for the same material.
TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS. 307
The commission also determined the specific gravities of the different
samples submitted to their examination, and also the quantity of water
which each absorbs.
They consider these determinations, and particularly that of the re-
sistance to crushing, tests of much importance, as indicating the cohe-
sive force of the particles of the stone, and its capacity to resist most
of the influences before mentioned.
The amount of water absorbed may be regarded as a measure of
the antagonistic force to cohesion, which tends, in the expansion of
freezing, to disintegrate the surface. In considering, however, the
indication of this test, care must be taken to make the comparison
between marbles of nearly the same texture, because a coarsely crystal-
lized stone may apparently absorb a small quantity of water, while in
reality the cement which unites the crystals of the same stone may
absorb a much larger quantity. That this may be so was clearly
established in the experiments with the coarsely crystallized marbles
examined by the commission. When these were submitted to a liquid
which slightly tinged the stone, the coloration was more intense around
the margin of each crystal, indicating a greater amount of absorption
in these portions of the surface.
The marble chosen for the Capitol is a dolomite, or, in other words,
is composed of carbonate of lime and magnesia in nearly atomic pro-
portions. It was analyzed by Dr. Torrey of New York, and Dr. Genth
of Philadelphia. According to the analysis of the former it consists
in hundredths parts of—
STE ECOTEES T2190 LC 8 IaR pa Rpeee e etag 54.621
DC MGOMaLOon MACOS. nec snctasseta canaiasasssqepincsee 43.932
Parvonate/Ol MLGLOSIOC. Of ITO saceasedeosureeseseeasences .365
Carbonate of protoxide of manganese (a trace) mica ~-.472
ART eT Hea a aa Ee eo ala ee a .610
The marble is obtained from a quarry in the southeasterly part of
the town of Lee, in the State of Massachusetts, and belongs to the
great deposit of primitive limestone which abounds in that part of the
district. Itis generally white, with occasional blue veins. The struc-
ture is fine grained. Under the microscope it exhibits fine crystals of
colorless mica, and occasionally also small particles of bisulphuret of
iron. Its specific gravity is 2.8620; its weight 178.87 lbs. per cubic
foot ; it absorbs .103 parts of an ounce per cubic inch, and its porosity
is great in proportion to its power of resistance to pressure. It sus-
tains 23.917 lbs. to the square inch. It not only absorbs water by
capillary attraction, but in common with other marble suffers the dif-
fusion of gases to take place through its substance. Dr. Torrey found
that hydrogen and other gases, separated from each other by slices of
the mineral, diffuse themselves with considerable rapidity through the
partition.
This marble, soon after the workmen commenced placing it in the
the walls, exhibited a discoloration of a brownish hue, no trace ot
which appeared so long as the blocks remained exposed to the air in
the stonecutter’s yard. A variety of suggestions and experiments
were made in regard to the cause of this remarkable phenomenon,
308 TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS.
and it was finally concluded that it was due to the previous absorp-
tion by the marble of water holding in solution a small portion of
organic matter, together with the absorption of another portion of
water from the mortar.
To illustrate the process let us suppose a fine capillary tube, the
lower end of it immersed in water, and of which the internal diameter
is sufficiently small to allow the liquid to rise to the top, be exposed
to the atmosphere ; evaporation will take place at the upper surface
of the column, a new portion of water will be drawn up to supply the
loss; and, if this process be continued, any material which may be
dissolved in the water, or mechanically mixed with it, will be found
deposited at the upper orifice of the tube, or at the point of evapora-
tion.
If, however, the lower portion of the tube be not furnished with a
supply of water, the evaporation at the top will not take place, and
the deposition of foreign matter will not be exhibited, even though the
tube itself may be filled with water impregnated with impurities.
The pores of the stones, so long as the blocks remain in the yard, are
in the condition of the tube not supplied at its lower end with water,
and consequently no current takes place through them, and the amount
of evaporation is comparatively small; but when the same blocks are
placed in the wall of the building, the absorbed water from the mortar
at the interior surface gives the supply of the liquid necessary to carry
the coloring materials to the exterior surface, and deposit it at the
outer orifices of the pores.
The cause of the phenomenon being known, a remedy was readily
suggested, which consisted in covering the surface of the stone to be
embedded in mortar with a coating of asphaltum. This remedy has
apparently proved successful. The discoloration is gradually disap-
pearing, and in time will probably be entirely imperceptible.
This marble, with many other specimens, was submitted to the
freezing process fifty times in succession. It generally remained in
the freezing mixture for twenty-four hours, but sometimes was frozen
twice in the same day. The quantity of material lost was .00315
parts of an ounce. On this data Captain Meigs has founded an in-
teresting calculation which consists in determining the depth to which
the exfoliation extended below the surface as the effect of its having
been frozen fifty times. He found this to be very nearly the ten thou-
sandth part of an inch. Now, if we allow the alternations of freezing
and thawing in a year on an average to be fifty times each, which, in
this latitude, would be a liberal one, it would require ten thousand
years for the surface of the marble to be exfoliated to the depth of one
inch. This fact may be interesting to the geologist as well as the
builder.
Quite a number of different varieties of marble were experimented
upon. A full statement of the result of each will be given in the
reports of the committees.
At the meeting of the Association at Cleveland, I made a commu-
nication on the subject of cohesion. The paper, however, was pre-
sented at the last hour; the facts were not fully stated, and have
never been published. I will, therefore, occupy your time in briefly
TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS, 309
presenting some of the facts I then intended to communicate, and
which I have since verified by further experiments and observations.
In a series of experiments made some ten years ago, I showed that
the attraction of the particles for each other of a substance in a liquid
form was as great as that of the same substance in a solid form. Con-
sequently, the distinction between liquidity and solidity does not
consist in a difference in the attractive power occasioned directly by
the repulsion of heat; but it depends upon the perfect mobility of the
atoms, or a lateral cohesion. We may explain this by assuming an
incipient crystallization of atoms into molecules, and consider the first
effect of heat as that of breaking down these crystals and permitting
each atom to move freely around every other. When this crystalline
arrangement is perfect, and no lateral motion is allowed in the atoms,
the body may be denominated perfectly rigid. We have approxi-
mately an example of this in cast-steel, in which no slipping takes
place of the parts on each other, or no material elongation of the
mass ; and when a rupture is produced by a tensile force, a rod of this
material is broken with a transverse fraction of the same size as that
of the original section of the bar. In this case every atom is sepa-
rated at once from the other, and the breaking weight may be consid-
ered as a measure of the attraction of cohesion of the atoms of the
metal.
The effect, however, is quite different when we attempt to pull
apart a rod of lead. The atoms or molecules slip upon each other.
The rod is increased in length, and diminished in thickness, until
a separation is produced. Instead of lead we may use still softer
materials, such as wax, putty, &c., until at length we arrive at a
substance in a liquid form. This will stand at the lower extremity
of the scale, and between extreme rigidity on the one hand, and
extreme liquidity on the other, we may find a series of substances
gradually shading from one into the other.
According to the views I have presented, the difference in the
tenacity in steel and lead does not consist in the attractive cohesion
of the atoms, but in their capability of slipping upon each other.
From this view it follows that the form of the material ought to have
some effect upon its tenacity, and also that the strength of the article
should depend in some degree upon the process to which it had been
subjected.
for example, I have found that softer substances in which the outer
atoms have freedom of motion, while the inner ones, by the pressure
of those exterior, are more confined, break unequally; the inner
fibres, if I may so call the rows of atoms, give way first, and entirely
separate, while the exterior fibres show but little indications of a
change of this kind.
If a cylindrical rod of lead three quarters of an inch in diameter,
turned down on a lathe in one part to about a half of an inch, and
then be gradually broken by a force exerted in the direction of its
length, it will exhibit a cylindrical hollow along its axis of half an
inch in length, and at least a tenth of an inch in diameter. With
substances of greater rigidity this effect is less apparent, but it exists
even in iron, and the interior fibres of a rod of this metal may be
310 TESTING BUILDING MATERIALS.
entirely separated, while the outer surface presents no appearance of
change.
om this it would appear that metals should never be elongated
by mere stretching, but in all cases by the process of wire-drawing,
or rolling. A wire or bar must always be weakened by a force which
permanently increases its length without at the same time compress-
ing it.
Another effect of the lateral motion of the atoms of a soft heavy
body, when acted upon by a percussive force with a hammer of small
dimensions in comparison with the mass of metal. For example, if a
large shaft of iron be hammered with an ordinary sledge, the ten-
dency would be to expand the surface so as to make it separate from
the middle portions. ‘The interior of the mass by its own inertia
becomes as it were an anvil, between which and the hammer the ex-
terior portions are stretched longitudinally and transversely. I here
exhibit to the Association a piece of iron originally from a square bar
four feet long, which has been so hammered as to produce a perfora-
tion of the whole length entirely through the axis. The bar can be
seen through as if it were the tube of a telescope.
This fact appears to me to be of great importance in a practical
point of view, and may be connected with many of the lamentable
accidents which have occurred in the breaking of the axles of loco-
motive engines. These, in all cases, ought to be formed by rolling,
and not with the hammer.
The whole subject of the molecular constitution ot matter offers a
rich field for investigation, and isolated facts, which are familiar to
almost every one, when attentively studied, will yield results alike
interesting to abstract science and practical art.
METEOROLOGY. 311
DESCRIPTION OF THE OBSERVATORY AT ST. MARTIN,
ISLE JESUS, CANADA EAST,
Latitude 45° 32! north, longitude 73° 36' west. Height above the level
of the sea 118 feet. Erected by Charles Smallwood, M. D., L. L. D.
We preface Dr. Smallwood’s own account of his observatory by a
sketch of the general appearance of the building and instruments,
from the pen of Dr. Hall, published in the Montreal Gazette.
A small wooden building, distant about twenty yards from the
dwelling house of Dr. Smallwood, contains the whole of the apparatus
which has for somany years furnished such valuable results. A short
distance from it, and on a level with the ground, is the snow gauge.
Immediately in front of the entrance to the small building is a dial,
with an index to point out the course of the clouds. Contiguous to
the building again may be seen four erect staffs. The highest of
which—80 feet—is intended for the elevation of a lighted lantern, to
collect the electricity of the atmosphere, the copper wires from which
lead through openings in the roof of the building toa table inside, on
which a four-armed insulated conductor is placed. The lantern is
made to ascend and descend on a species of railway, in order to obviate
all jarring. Onanother pole is placed the wind vane, which, by a series
of wheels moved by a spindle, rotates a dial inside the building marked
with the usual points of the compass. Another staff, about 30 feet high,
contains the anemometer, or measurer of the force of the wind, which,
by a like arrangement of apparatus, is made to register its changes
inside. The last pole, 20 feet in height, contains the rain gage, the
contents of which are conducted by tubing also into the interior of the
building, in which, by a very ingenious contrivance, the commence-
ment and ending of a fall of rain are self-marked.
At the door entrance on the right side is a screened place, exposed
to the north, on which the thermometer and wet bulb thermometer
are placed, four feet from the surface of the earth. A similar apart-
ment on the left contains the scales with which experiments had been
conducted throughout the winter to ascertain the proportional evapo-
ration of ice.
On entering the door, in the centre of the apartment is a transit
instrument in situ, for the convenience of using which openings are
made in the roof, usually kept closed by traps. This apparatus is not
the most perfect of its kind, but is amply adequate for all its uses.
On the left is a clock, the works of which, by means of a wheel, are
made (while itself keeps proper time) to move slips of paper along
little railways, on which the anemometer by dots registers the velocity
$12 METEOROLOGY.
of the wind; therain gage, the commencement and end of showers;
and the wind vane, the continually shifting currents of wind. This
is effected by a pencil kept applied by a spring to a piece of paper on
the dial previously alluded to, and as by the clock-work the dial, and
the two previously mentioned slips of paper move at the rate of one
inch per hour, so it 1s easy to determine, in the most accurate manner,
the direction and force of the wind at any hour of the day, or any.
Lt
\
=
i
=2MALLWOOD’S OBSERVATORY.
METEOROLOGY. 3138
period of the hour. Now, with the exception of the clock, the whole
of this miniature railway work, with all its apparatus, wheels, &c., &c.,
is the work of Dr. Smallwood’s own hands, and exhibits, on his part,
a mechanical talent of the highest order.
At the extreme end of the room is a table, beneath which is an ar-
rangement for a heating apparatus, and on which is the four arm con-
_ ductor previously alluded to. To the two lateral and front arms
hang, respectively, two of Volta’s electrometers, and one of Bennet’s,
while beneath the knob on the anterior, there is a discharging appa-
ratus, with an index playing over a graduated scale, to measure
during thunder storms the force of the electric fluid, by the length of
its spark. On this subject we cannot avoid a reflection on the fate of
the unfortunate Richman. In this case such precautions are adopted
as will obviate any casualties whatever ; great precaution, however, is
required in these experiments, and Dr. Smallwood, fully aware of it,
has the whole placed in connexion with the earth by means of a brass
chain and iron rod. As another proof of Dr. Smallwood’s ingenuity
and mechanical skill, we may notice that the whole of this apparatus,
even to the electrometers, is the result of his own handicraft ; and the
whole arrangements in the little room are a signal proof how much a_
man may do unaided, and how well he can effect an object if thrown
entirely upon his own resources.
On the right wall of the apartment are suspended the barometers,
of which there are three. 1. A standard of Newman’s; 2. Another
of Negretti’s, but of different construction ; and 3d. One of Doctor
Smallwood’s own construction. The means of the three observations
is the measure adopted for the observation.
The only other instrument deserving of notice is the one to deter-
mine the terrestrial radiation; and this also has been made by Dr.
Smallwood. It consists of a mirror of speculum metal, (composed of
copper, zinc, and tin,) of six inches in diameter, and wrought into
the form of a parabolic surface, in the focus of which, at the dis-
tance of eight feet, a self-registering spirit thermometer is placed.
The construction of this was a labor requiring great nicety in
execution, and involving the sacrifice of much time; but perseverance
even here conquered the difficulties, and we witnessed a mirror whose
reflecting powers would not have disgraced Lord Ross’ telescope. In
fact, placed in a telescope it has, we were informed, proved itself capable
of resolving those singular stellar curiosities—the donble stars.
Dr. Smallwood certainly deserves great credit for his perseverance
in a favorite study, under the most unpromising circumstances ; but
in nothing is he so remarkable as in that peculiar ingenuity which
has led him to overcome difficulties in the prosecution of scientific
enquiry, which, to most minds, would have been utterly discouraging.
The Natural History Society of Montreal intend to petition the
legislature for a grant of money to enable them to publish Dr. Small-
wood’s tables of observations for the last twelve years. This is a most
laudable measure, and must meet with the support of every man who
has the welfare of science and Canada at heart.
314 METEOROLOGY.
PLAN OF THE OBSERVATORY.
METEOROLOGY. 315
EXPLANATION OF EXTERNAL VIEW OF THE OBSERVATORY.
A. Thermometer for solar radiation.
B. Screen of Venetian blinds.
C. Thermometers.
D. Opening in ridge of the roof, closed with shutters, to allow use of transit Instrument.
E. Rain gage with conducting pipe through the roof.
F. Velocity shaft of the anemometer.
G. Mast for elevating apparatus for collecting electricity.
H. Cord for hoisting the collecting apparatus.
I. Copper wire for conducting the electricity into the building.
J. Direction shaft of the anemometer.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLAN OF THE OBSERVATORY.
A. Anemometer.
B. Small transit for correcting time.
C. Electrical machine for charging the distinguisher.
D. Peltier’s electrometer.
d. Space occupied ly drosometer, polariscope, &c
E. Electrometer. e. Discharger.
F. Distinguisher.
f. Small stove—sometimes used in damp weather.
G. Thermometer placed in the prismatic spectrum for investigations in light.
H. Nigretti & Zambra’s barometers and cisterns, 118 feet above the level of the sea.
I. Small-tube barometer.
J. Newman’s barometer.
K. Aneroid barometer.
L. Quadrant and artificial horizon.
M. Microscope and apparatus for ascertaining the forms of snow erystals.
N. Thermometer, psychometer, &c . 4 feet high. A space is left between the two walls to
insure insulation and prevent radiation.
O. Ozonometer.
P. Evaporator—removed in winter and replaced by scales for showing the amount of evap-
oration from the surface of ice.
Q. Post sunk in the ground, and 40 feet high, to carry the arms of support for the ane-
mometer.
R. Solar radiator.
S. Venetian blinds.
T. Iron rod beneath the surface of the ground connected with the discharger to insure
safety.
316 METEOROLOGY.
DESCRIPTION OF THE OBSERVATORY, BY DR. SMALLWOOD.
- The observatory is placed in the magnetic meridian, is constructed
of wood, and has an opening in the roof, furnished with sliding shut-
ters, for the observations, by means of a transit instrument, of the
passage of a star across the meridian for the correction of the clock
time. It is also connected by the Montreal telegraph with the prin-
cipal places in the United States ; the wires being led into the observ-
atory. It has also a seven-inch achromatic telescope, the object glass
by Frauenhofer, of Munich, and observations are taken on the heavenly
bodies as often as there are favorable nights.
Observations are taken on the usual instruments used by meteorolo-
gists at 6 and 7 a. m. and at 2, 9, and 10 p. m., daily; also on the
temperature of springs and rivers, and the opening and closing thereof};
also on the foliation and flowering of plants and trees, and the periodic
appearance of animals, birds, fishes and insects beside the usual obser-
vations on auroras, haloes, meteors, and any remarkable atmospheric
disturbances. Constant tri-daily observations on the amount and kind
of atmospheric electricity, ozone and thunder storms, are all recorded.
Many of the instruments are self-registering, and to some the photo-
graphic process has been adopted.
The observatory is furnished with four barometers. 1. A Newman
standard, 0.60 of an inch bore; the brass scale extends from the
cistern to the top of the tube, and is adapted for registration by the
photographic process. 2. A Nigrettiand Zambra’stube, 0.30 of an inch
bore; another of a small bore, and also an aneroid. The cisterns
are all placed at the same height (118 feet,) and are read at each
observation.
Thermometers of Sixes, Rutherford, Nigretti, &c., &e.
The psychrometer consists of two thermometers whose readings are
coincident. There is also a Saussure’s hygrometer.
For solar radiation a maximum Rutherford thermometer is used,
with the bulb kept blackened with Indian ink; the tube is shaded by
a piece of glass blackened also with Indian ink, which prevents the
index from adhering to either the tube or the mercury, which is often
the case when not shaded.
Terrestrial radiation is indicated by a spirit thermometer of Ruther-
ford, which is placed in the focus of a parabolic mirror 6 inches in
diameter and of 100 inches focus.
Drosometer or dew measurer.—One is of copper, like a funnel, the
inside of which has been exposed to the flame of a lamp and has
become coated with lamp black; the other is a shallow tin dish,
painted black, and ten inches in diameter.
Rain-gage.—The reservoir is thirteen inches in diameter, and is
placed 20 feet above the soil. It is self-registering, and is attached to
the anemometer.
The snow-gage presents 200 inches of surface. A tin tube, 3 inches
in diameter and 10 inches long, is used for obtaining snow for the
purpose of reducing the amount to the relative amount of water.
The tin tube fits in another vessel of tin of the same diameter, and
the snow is easily reduced and measured.
METEOROLOGY. 317
The evaporator exposes a surface of 100 inches; the amount of
evaporation from the surface of ice is measured during the winter
months.
The ozonometers are Schonbien’s & Moffat’s, one is raised to the
altitude of 80 feet.
A microscope and apparatus for the examination of snow crystals,
and obtaining copies by the chromotype process.
The electrical apparatus.—This consists of three parts: a hoisting
a collecting and a receiving apparatus.
The hoisting apparatus consists of a pole or mast 80 feet high. It
is in two pieces, but is spliced and bound with hoop iron, and squared
or dressed on one face for about six inches. It is dressed in a straight
line to receive cross pieces of 2-inch plank, 8 inches wide and 12
inches long, which are firmly nailed to the mast or pole about
three feet apart; this serves as a ladder to climb the pole in case of
necessity. Each of these cross pieces is rebated to receive pieces of
inch board, 4 inches wide, and placed edgeways in the rebate, extend-
ing from the top to the bottom of the pole, and forms a sort of verti-
cal railway ; these pieces are also grooved or rebated to receive a
slide, which runs in these grooves and carries the receiving appa-
ratus. From the top of the sliding piece passes a rope over a pulley
fixed at the top of the mast, and from it to a roller and windlass, by
which means the collecting lantern is raised or lowered for trimming
the lamps. I have also used it for the purpose of placing an ozonom-
eter at that height (80 feet.) The lower part of the mast or pole is
fixed into a cross picce of heavy timber, and is supported by 4 stays.
These cross timbers are loaded with stones, and are thus rendered
sufficiently firm.
The collecting apparatus consists of a copper lantern 3 inches in
diameter, 5 inches high.—(See top of mast G, fig. 1. The bottom is
moveable and the lamp is placed in it by the means of a small copper
pin passing in a slit, which is a very easy method of fixing it. This
lantern is placed on the top of a copper rod of # inch thick and 4 feet
long ; the bottom of the lantern having a piece of copper tube fixed to
it, a very little larger than the rod, and is thus easily removed and re-
placed. To the lower end of the copper rod is soldered an inverted
copper funnel, a parapluie, for protecting the glass insulating pillar
upon which it is fixed by means of a short tube firmly soldered to the
underside of the parapluic. This glass pillar passes into and is fixed
firmly into a wooden box, and is freely exposed to the heat of a second
lamp, which is placed in this box and is trimmed at the same time as
that in the collecting lantern, and keeps warm and dry the glass
pillar, and by that means securing a more perfect insulation. From
this upright rod and collecting apparatus descends a thick copper
wire, which serves to convey the accumulated electricity to the receiver
which is placed in the observatory.
The receiver consists of a cross of brass tubes (gas tubes), each
about 2 feet long, and is screwed into a large tube which fits upon a
glass cone, which is hollow, forming a system of hollow pipes for the
passage of the heat internally, and keep up a certain amount of dry-
ness and consequent insulation. The glass cone is fixed upon a table
318 METEOROLOGY.
over an opening made in it, fitting to the hollow part of the cone.
Immediately under this table is placed a small stove of sheet-iron,
about 8 inches in diameter, is made double, the space of about 1 inch
being left between the two chambers; and I have found this plan very
good to effect a good insulation by keeping the whole of the appa-
ratus warm and dry. Charcoal is used as fuel, and is, I think, prefer-
able toalamp. A coating of suet or tallow is applied to the glass
cones or pillars, Care must be taken not to rub or polish the collect-
ing apparatus as it seems to deteriorate its power of collecting and
retaining atmospheric electricity ; and I have found that its collecting
powers increase with its age. Suspended from these cross arms hang
the electrometers. 1. Bennet’s electroscope of gold leaves ; this scarcely
needs a description. 2. Voltas’ electrometer No. 1, consisting of two
straws 2 French inches long; a very fine copper wire passes through
these straws which are suspended from the cross arms. This elec-
trometer is furnished with an ivory scale, the old French inch being
divided in 24 parts, each being 1°; this forms the standard scale for
the amount of tension. 3. Voltas’ electrometer No. 2 is similar to the
No. 1, but the straws are five times the weight of No. 1, so that one
degree of Voltas’ No. 2 is equal to five of No. 1. Henly’s electrometer
is a straw suspended and furnished with a small pith ball; each of
the degrees of Henly’s is equal to 100° of No. 1 of Voltas. These
electrometers are all suspended from the cross arms. A discharging
apparatus, furnished with a long glass handle, measures the length
of the spark, and serves also as a conductor to carry the electricity
collected to the earth, and is also connected by a chain and iron rod
passing outside of the observatory for about 20 yards and buried under
ground.
Various forms of distingwishers are used to distinguish the kinds of
electricity. The Voltas electrometers may be rendered self-registering
with great facility by the photographic process, by placing a piece of
the photographic paper behind the straws and throwing the light of
a good lens upon them; the expansion is easily depicted and serves
well for a night register. There is also a Peltier’s electrometer, and
another form of electrometer, consisting of two gold leaves suspended
to a rod of copper 2 feet long ; the upper end being furnished with a
wire box, in which is kept burning sume rotten wood, (touch-wood.)
Lhe anemometer consists of a direction shaft and a velocity shaft; to
the top of the direction shaft is placed the vane, which is 18 feet in
length. The shaft is made of three pieces, to insure lightness and
more easy motion ; each piece is connected by means of small iron-
toothed wheels. The two shafts are six feet apart, and work on cross
arms from a mast firmly fixed in the ground. The vane passes some
6 or 8 feet above the velocity shaft, and does not in any way interfere
with the other movements. The lower extremities of these shafts are
all furnished with steel points, which work on an iron plate or a piece
of flint, and pass through the roof of the observatory ; the openings
being protected by tin parapluies fixed to the shaft and revolvin
with them. Near the lower extremity is placed a toothed wheel
inches in diameter, which is connected to another wheel of the same
diameter, which carries upon its axis a wooden disc 13 inches in dia-
METEOROLOGY. 319
meter, upon which is clamped a paper register,(old newspapers answer
very well) washed over with whiting and flour paste. Upon the
surface of this register is traced by a pencil the direction of the wind;
this register is renewed every twelve hours.
The velocity shaft is in two pieces, connected by means of the toothed
wheels and steel pivots, as in the direction shaft; and, practically,
the friction is nil. At the top of the velocity shaft is fixed three
hemispherical tin or copper caps, 10 inches in diameter, similar in
construction to those of the Rev. Dr. Robinson’s, of Armagh, and are
firmly riveted to three iron arms of $-inch iron. These caps revolve
always in the same direction, and one revolution is found to be just
one-third of the linear velocity of the wind. I have no reason to
doubt Dr. Robinson’s formula for this calculation. At the lower ex-
tremity of the velocity shaft is fixed a one-toothed wheel 2? inches
in diameter ; this moves a second, or ten-toothed, wheel, which also
gives movement to a third wheel, which marks a hundred revolutions
of the caps, which are so calculated that each one hundred revolutions
are equal to one mile linear, and whenever one hundred revolutions
have been accomplished a small lever is elevated by means of a small
inclined plane, which is fixed upon the edge of the last wheel, and
which gives motion to the level. The other extremity of the lever is
furnished with a fine steel point, which dots off, upon a paper register,
the miles as they pass. This register is of paper one and a quarter
inch wide, and is removed every twelve hours.
Between the two shafts at the lower extremities is placed two run-
ners of wood rebated to receive a slide or train which carries the register.
To the underside of this slide is fixed a rack and is moved by a pinion,
themovement of whichiscommunicated by aclock, thecord of the weight
being passed over a wheel and pulley and advances one inch per hour,
and the lever before described dots off the miles as the register ad-
vances under the steel point ; it does in this manner show the increase
and decrease of the velocity, and also the moment of its change. At-
tached to this moveable train is a rod of wood carrying a pencil, which
passes over the disc connected with the direction shaft, and there
traces, as it advances, the direction of the wind an! the moment of
its changes, and the point from which it veered. T - extreme height
of the vane is 40 feet, which might be increased : required. ‘The
clock is wound up every twelve hours, which bring back the train to
its starting point.
There is also a polariscope and prism for experimenting on the
various rays of light in connexion with photography and the germi-
nation of seeds.
The observatory also possesses a quadrant and artificial horizon,
and also apparatus for the measure of haloes, and registering dial for
the direction and course of the clouds.
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METEOROLOGY. 32)
ON THE RELATIVE INTENSITY OF THE HEAT AND LIGHT
OF THE SUN UPON DIFFERENT LATITUDES OF THE
EARTH.
BY L. W. MEECH.
The ninth volume of the Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge
contains a memoir, which, under the above title, presents the astro-
nomical determinations of the relative number of heating and illu-
minating rays received from the sun upon any portion of the exterior
surface of the earth. During their passage through the air in im-
pinging upon the solid earth, the rays are modified by a variety of
circumstances; still the primary intensity of the sun is the controlling
cause of the changes of temperature of the seasons, and therefore the
determination of its laws has a special importance.
The subjoined account, with slight additions, contains nearly all of
the paper referred to, except the mathematical portions, for which,
reference may be made whenever necessary to the original memoir.
The regular and almost uniform variations which meteorological
tables exhibit, indicate a periodical cause of change, which evidently
resides in the sun. The inquiry then arises, may not these variations
be determined by theory from the apparent course of the sun?
The object of the investigation here presented is to resolve the pro-
blem of solar heat and light, to the extent of the principle, that the
intensity of the sun’s rays, like gravitation, varies inversely as the
square of the distance, without resorting to any other hypothesis.
The principle is but a geometrical consequence of the divergence of the
rays. This elementary view thus presents the sun shining upon a
distant planet, and indicates the sum of the intensities received at the
planet’s surface in all its various phases of position and inclination.
In relation to the earth especially, the sum of the intensities must
be referred to the exterior limit of the atmosphere which surrounds
the globe. This condition, which is perhaps necessary in the present
state of science, has the advantage of rendering the deductions as
rigorously accurate as are the propositions of geometry and the conic
sections.
Poisson, in 1835, observed that, ‘‘for the completion of the theory
of heat, it is necessary that it should comprise the determination of
the movements produced in aeriform fluids, in liquids and evea in
solid bodies; but geometers have not yet resolved this order of ques-
tions, of great difficulty, with which are connected the phenomena of
21s
322 METEOROLOGY.
the trade-winds, of certain currents observed in the sea, and the
diurnal variations of the barometer.’’ The subject is believed to be
now included among the prize questions of the French Academy, and
in the increasing number of researches it is hoped that its difficulties
may at length be effectively obviated.
The laws of Solar Intensity here derived @ priori, have a general
accordance with physical phenomena, and will furnish instructive
comparisons with analogous values obtained by meteorological obser-
vations. The changes of the sun’s intensity upon the inaccessible
regions of the Pole will be included, to which the late Arctic explora-
tions have given unusual interest. And, among other advantages,
light will be thrown upon geological researches relating to changes of
the heat of the globe at very remote epochs.
At the close, the course of investigation has led to the development
of a pecular inequality in the annual duration of sunlight. The like
series of values for the duration of twilight is also new, and will not
be devoid of interest. But the main design has been—distinguishing
between the sun’s intensity and terrestrial temperatures—to carry out
one comprehensive principle, by which the laws of the sun’s intensity
of heat and light are obtained to some degree of completeness as a
system.
SHCLR LON: ..
Irradiated surface upon the planets.—It is evident that the extreme
rays proceeding from the sun to the planet are tangent to the two
spheres, as shown in the annexed diagram ; where are represented a
section of the
sun, of the
planet, and
the radius-
vector or dis-
tance of the
planets centre
from that of
the sun. The
sun being the
greater body
illuminates not only the adjacent hemisphere of the planet, but also
the zone or belt A C lying beyond, which may be called the zone of
differential radiation. From the geometrical properties of the figure,
it is shown that the sine of the angular breadth of the zone of differ-
ential radiation is equal to the difference of the radii of the sun and
planet divided by the radius-vector of the planet’s orbit.
With this principle, we can determine by geometry the actual breadth
in miles, and the proportions of dark and illuminated surface. These
will vary with the elliptic changes of distance from the sun, as indi-
cated in the following table.
METEOROLOGY. 523
Average Greatest |Least breadth, Proportion
PLANET. breadth of | breadth of of zone. of surface
zone. zone. irradiated.
—————— ee eee)
, Miles. Miles. Miles.
GEC ONG te oe emi mm fo Liigeg 22. 32 14. 96 . 505991
WS bdo ope soooee eer as) 61. 12 61. 54 60. 70 . 503190
Wanthyers ssn. ssa olse soe = et 18. 29 18. 60 17. 98 . 500231
WR eee aise oa Sorts 6. 42 (OU 5. 87 - 500152
WeR tage eee ion net isnalsh Sic rene . 26 . 28 . 24 - 500980
SIBSSUG oe ee ete Sa 2 Sie aes latmine 34. 87 36. 62 33. 28 ~ 500404
SENT a = eS a een ae 18.17 19. 25 17. 21 - 500222
URRMUE = See ae Stee oe ae 4,01 4. 20 3. 83 - 500117
Neptunes. Jane = 2 iss. 6. 14 6.19 6. 08 . 500087
In obtaining these tabular results, the earth’s mean distance from
the sun was taken at 95,273,870 miles, and its radius at 3,962 miles.
It will be perceived that the vast magnitude of the sun brings ad-
vantages of temperature and sunlight similar to those which the pre-
ponderance of its mass gives to the steadiness and uniformity of the
planetary revolutions. Were the same amount of heat and lght
radiated from a smaller body like the moon, the effects would be re-
stricted to a smaller portion of the earth’s surface ; and the zone of
differential radiation would be reversed to one of cold and darkness.
But in the present beneficent arrangement, light and heat prepon-
derate, counteracting extremes of heat and cold with a warmer
temperature. And this effect is further prolonged by atmospheric
refraction and reflection of the rays, which, rendering the transitions
more mild and gradual, lessens the reign of night.
To estimate the effect of the Refraction of Light, we have only to
find two points on the spherical surface of the earth, at such distance
that the inclination of the two tangent rays from the sun falling on
them shall be just equal to the horizontal refraction ; that is, suppose
the sun’s upper margin or limb to be in the horizon, sending without
refraction a level beam of rays to the observer. In consequence of
horizontal refraction in the atmosphere, the rays will appear to come
from a source 34’ higher in altitude. And being inclined at this angle
with the unrefracted rays, they will pass over, and become tangent to
a point of the earth’s surface 34’ of terrestrial arc behind the former.
The terrestrial radii drawn to these points will evidently be inclined
at the same angle as their tangents, which is 34’ nearly, corresponding
to a distance on the surface of 40 English miles. Thus it appears
that the effect of refraction in widening the irradiated zone of the
earth is more than twice as great as that arising from the apparent
semi-diameter, or the mere size of the sun. Uniting the two effects,
the sun is found to illuminate more than half of the earth’s surface
by a belt or zone that is 58 miles in width, encircling the seas and
continents of the globe.
The advantage of the vast size of the sun is most conspicious upon
the planet Venus, our evening and morning star, where the belt of
illumination is sixty-one miles in width, as shown in the preceding
table. The next in tank is Jupiter, whose belt of greater illumina-
324 METEOROLOGY.
tion is thirty-five miles wide ; while those of Mercury, the earth, and
Saturn, are nearly eighteen miles in breadth. In the last column of
the table, it will be observed that the asteroid Vesta, though situated
beyond Mars, yet has, in consequence of its smaller size, a greater
proportion of i!luminated surface than the earth.
By computation it is found that the zone of differential illumination
upon the earth extends over 455,400 square miles; or, including the
additional area due to 34’ horizontal refraction, it comprehends an
ageregate of 1,430,800 square miles of surface. The position of this
ereat zone is continually changing, and in turn it overspreads every
island, sea, and continent. At the vernal equinox, when the sun is
vertical to the equator, it will readily be perceived that the larger
base of this zone is a great circle passing through the poles and
having the earth’s axis for its diameter. From this position it grad-
ually diverges, till at the summer solstice one extremity of its diameter
will be in the Arctic, and the other in the Antarctic cirele. Thence
it gradually returns to its former position at the poles at the autumnal
equinox, all the while revolving in every twenty-four hours, like a
fringed circle around the globe, and accompanied with the lustrous
tints and shadows which variegate the dawn and close of day.
SiC TONG ia
LAW OF THE SUN’S INTENSITY UPON THE PLANETS IN RELATION TO THEIR
ORBITS.
THE preceeding section represents the sun’s action upon a distant
planet at a given distance, or at rest. It is here proposed to examine
the effect when the distance is variable ; that is, supposing the planet
to commence its motion from a state of rest, in an elliptical orbit, to
determine the intensity received during its passage through any part,
or the whole of its orbit. ;
In the annexed figure, let S denote the sun situated in one focus;
P the planet’s position at a
: given time; A, the perihelion
or point in the orbit nearest
the sun, B, the aphelion or
point farthest from the sun,
SP, the radius-vector, and
6 the angle AS P the true
anomaly. From the pro-
perty of the ellipse, combined
with the principle that heat
and light vary inversely as
the square of the distance, it
is proved that in its orbital
motion the earth does not
receive equal increments of heat and light in equal times; but the
amount received in any given interval is exactly proportional to the true
anomaly or true longitude described in that interval. This important
law, or one less correct, for the mean longitude, appears to have been
first published in the Pyrometry of Lambert. f
METEOROLOGY. 325
This point being established, let us, in the next place, compare the
intensities received by the planets during entire revolutions in their
orbits ; and also the ratios of intensity for equal times, which depend
simply on the inverse square of the distance. The following table has
been thus prepared from the usual astronomic elements.
Lhe sun’s relative intensity upon the principal planets.
In equal times at the:
Planet. In a whole
revolution.
Mean distance. | Perihelion. Aphelion.
MCrcHby S27. 22-552 555 1. 643 6. 677 10. 573 4 592
AES a Ie Se ee 1. 176 LOU 1. 937 1. 885
LTR ph ae agi i Bs Sees 1. 000 1. 000 1. 034 0. 967
Raiser = Sa eek oes . 813 431 0. 524 6. 360
itidive See ee eters se eae . 439 2037 - O41 034
SEU Se en . 324 - O11 . 012 . 010
Wranus:o-204a ee aoe. . 228 . 003 . 003 . 003
Nepiurie sf a8 sean e eee . 182 . O01 . 001 . OOL
It should be observed that the foregoing table does not take account
of the different dimensions of the planets, but refers to a unit of plane
surface upon their disks, which is exposed perpendicularly to the rays
of the perpetual sun. Upon the disk of Mercury, the solar radiation
appears to be nearly seven times greater than on the earth; while
upon Neptune, it is only as the one-thousandth part, in equal times.
In entire revolutions, however, the intensities received will be seen to
approach more nearly to equality.
The intensities are thus unequal; and, by a calculation founded on
the apparent brightness of the planets as estimated by the eye, Prof.
Gibbes has shown, in the Proceedings of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science for 1850, that the reflective powers
are also greater, according as the several planets are more distant from
the sun.
Another feature worthy of mention, is the resemblance of the earth
to the planet Mars; upon which Sir W. Herschel has remarked:
‘‘The analogy between Mars and the earth is, perhaps, by far the
greatest in the whole solar system. The diurnal motion is nearly the
same, the obliquity of their respective ecliptics not very different ; of
all the superior planets, the distance of Mars from the sun is by far
the nearest alike to that of the earth; nor will the length of the
Martial year appear very different from what we enjoy, when com-
pared to the surprising duration of the years of Jupiter, Saturn, and
Uranus. If we then find that the globe we inhabit has its polar
region frozen and covered with mountains of ice and snow, that only
partly melt when alternately exposed to the sun, I may well be per-
mitted to surmise that the same causes may have the same effect on
the globe of Mars; that the bright polar spots are owing to the vivid
reflection of light from frozen regions ; and that the reduction of those
spots is to be ascribed to their being exposed to the sun.”’
326 METEOROLOGY.
From this investigation it appears that during each of the four
astronomic seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, the in-
tensities received from the sun are precisely equal. For in each
season the earth passes over three signs of the zodiac, or a quadrant
of longitude. The equality of intensities, however, applies to the
entire globe regarded as one aggregate, and is consistent with local
alternations, by which it is summerin the northern hemisphere when
it is winter in the southern. Deferring the consideration of these
local inequalities, however, we may here illustrate the connexion of
the seasons with the elliptic motion from an ephemeris. In the year
1855, for example, spring in the northern hemisphere, commencing
at the vernal equinox, March 20th, lasts eighty-nine days ; summer,
beginning at the summer solstice June 21, continues ninety-three
days ; autumn, commencing at the equinox, September 23, continues
ninety-three days; and winter, beginning at the winter solstice, De-
cember 22, lasts ninety days; yet, notwithstanding their unequal
lengths, the amounts of heat and light which the whole earth receives
are equal in the several periods. Since the earth is not strictly a
sphere, but an oblate spheroid, it evidently presents its least section
perpendicular to the rays of the sun at the equinoxes. As the sun’s
declination increases, the section also increases and attains its limit
at the solstice. The variation, however, appears to be not material,
and compensates itself in each season.
Atthe present time the earth is in perihelion, or nearest the sun
about the Ist of January, and furthest from the sun on the 4th day of
July. A special cause must, therefore, be assigned for the striking
fact which Professor Dove has shown by comparison of temperatures
observed in opposite regions of the globe, namely: that the mean
temperature of the habitable earth’s surface in June considerably ex-
ceeds the temperature in December, aithough the earth in the latter
month is nearer to the sun. ‘This result is attributed by that meteo-
rologist to the greater quantity of land in the northern hemisphere
exposed to the rays of the sun at the summer solstice in June ; while
the ocean area has less power for this object, as it absorbs a large por-
tion of the heat into its depths. Had land and water been equally
distributed, in other words, were the earth a homogeneous sphere,
the alleged inequality of temperature, it is obvious, would never have
existed,
SECTION III.
LAW OF THE SUN’S INTENSITY AT ANY INSTANT DURING THE DAY.
The rays which emanate from the sun’s disk into space proceed in
diverging lines in the same manner as if they issued directly from the
centre. And on arriving at the earth their intensity, as before stated,
will be inversely proportional to the square of the distance.
But the more obvious phenomena of solar heat and light are mani-
fested to us under a secondary law. The sun’s intensity first becomes
sensible in the eastern rays of morning; it gradually increases to a
maximum during the day ; it declines on the approach of the shades
METEOROLOGY. 327
of evening, and becomes discontinuous during the night. On the
morning following the same course is renewed, and continued succes-
sively through the year. Ordinary sensation and experience lead us
to associate the degree of solar heat, at any part of the day, with the
apparent height which the sun has then attained above the horizon,
Indeed, theory determines that the swn’s intensity is proportional to the
length of a perpendicular line from the sun to the plane of the apparent
horizon; that is, it varies as the sine of the sun’s altitude.
The reason of this secondary law will be understood by regarding
the beam of solar rays which traverses in a line from the sun to the
observer, to be resolved, according to the parallelogram of forces, into
a horizontal and a vertical component. The horizontal component
running parallel to the earth’s surface is regarded as inoperative,
while the vertical component measures the direct heating effect.
This relation is more fully shown in the annexed figure, where A
denotes the sun’s apparent altitude above the horizon. The sun’s in-
tensity or impulse in an oblique direction will be measured by the
inverse square of the distance, or the direct square of the sun’s appa-
rent semi-diameter A. If, therefore, A? denotes the intensity of the
rays in a straight line from the
sun, A® sin A, will be the vertical
component or heating force of the
rays. And these terms being
in ratio as 1 to sin A, the latter
component will be represented
by a perpendicular line from
the sun’s centre to the horizon.
Instead of thus decomposing
the intensity after the manner of a force in mechanics, as first pro-
posed by Halley, in 1693, the same law may be obtained in an entirely
different way from the principle of the inverse square of the distance.
The latter mode appears to present it in a more evident light, and was
suggested in the original beginnings of the present investigation,
ge were published in Silliman’s Journal of Science for the year
50.
The intensity at a fixed distance being as the sine of the altitude,
* Let L — the “ apparent” latitude of the place,
PD = the sun’s meridian declination,
A= the sun’s apparent semi-diameter,
A= the sun’s altitude, and
Hf =the hour-angle from noon.
The horizontal section of a cylindrical beam of rays from the sun’s disk upon a plain on
the earth’s surface, is well known to be an ellipse; and if 1 denote the sun’s radius, 1 will
likewise denote the semi-conjugate axis of this projected ellipse; while the horizontal pro-
a nae 1 P fae Be
jection, ard will be the semi-transverse axis. The area of the elliptic projection is, there
’
fore, 1 X
ad X 7 But the intensity of the same quantity of heat being inversely as the
’
space over which it is diffused, the reciprocal of this area, or sin A, on rejecting the constant
z, will express the sun’s heating effect, supposing the distance to be constant for the same
day. But, on comparing one day with another, the intensity further varies inversely as the
square of the distance, that is, directly as the squareof the apparent diameter or semi-dia-
328 METEOROLOGY.
it follows that the sun shining for sixteen hours from an altitude of
30°, would exert the same heating effect upon a plain as when it
shines during eight hours from the zenith ; since sin 30° is 0.5, and
sin 90° is 1. At least, such were the result independently of radiation
from the earth.
By some writers, the measure of vertical intensity, as the sine of the
sun’s altitude, has been stated without limitation. Approximately it
may apply at the habitable surface of the earth, when the influence of
the atmosphere is neglected ; yet it is strictly true only at the exterior
of the atmospheric envelope which encompasses the globe, or at the
outer limit where matter exerts its initial change upon the incident
rays.
The distinction here explained has not only engaged the attention
of the most eminent meteorologists of modern times, but was equally
adopted in ancient philosophy, as appears in the following passage
fram Plato’s Pheedon, LVIIL: ‘‘ For around the earth are low shores,
and diversified landscapes and mountains, to which are attracted
water, the cloud, and air. But the earth, outwardly pure, floats in
the pure heaven like the stars, in the medium which those who are
accustomed to discourse on such things call ether. Of this ether, the
things around are the sediment which always settles and collects upon
the low places of the earth. We, therefore, who live in these terra-
queous abodes, are concealed, as it were, and yet think we dwell
above upon the earth. As one residing at the bottom of the sea might
think he lived upon the surface, and, beholding the sun and stars
through the water, might suppose the sea to be heaven. The case is
similar, that through imperfection we cannot ascend to the highest
part of the atmosphere, since, if one were to arrive upon its upper
surface, or becoming winged, could reach there, he would on emerg-
ing look abroad, and, if nature enabled him to endure the sight, he
would then behold the true heaven and the true light.”
In modern times, the researches of Poisson led him to the philo-
sophic conclusion now generally received, that the highest strata of
the air are deprived of elasticity by the intense cold ; the density of
this frozen air being extremely small, T’héory de la Chaleur, p. 460.
An atmospheric column resting upon the sea may thus be regarded
as an elastic fluid terminated by two liquids, one having an ordinary
density and temperature, and the other a temperature and density
excessively diminished.
Although the sun’s intensity, which is here the subject of investi-
gation, is the principal source of heat, yet its effects are modified by
proximate causes of climate, of which the following nine are enume-
rated by Malte Brun:
1st.—Action of the sun upon the atmosphere.
meter of the disk. Hence, generally, A? sin A, expresses the sun’s intensity at any given in-
stant during the day.
To determine the value of sin A by spherical trigmometry, the sun’s angular distance from
the pole, or co-declination, the are from the pole to the zenith, or co-latitude, and the included
hour-angle from noon are given to find the third side or co-altitude. Writing, therefore, sines
instead of the co-sines of their complements, ,
sin A= sin L sin D+ cos L cos D cos H.
A? sin A= A? sin L sin D+ A2 cos L cos D cos H,
METEOROLOGY. 329
2d.—The interior temperature of the globe.
3d.—The elevation above the level of the ocean.
4th.—The general inclination of the surface and its local exposure.
5th.—The position of mountains relative to the cardinal points of
the compass. .
6th.—The neighborhood of great seas and their relative situation.
Tth.—The geological nature of the soil.
8th.—The degree of cultivation and of population to which a coun-
try has arrived.
9th.—The prevalent winds. .
The same author observes, in relation to the fourth enumerated
cause, that northeast situations are coldest ; and southwest, warmest.
For the rays of the morning which directly strike the hills exposed
to the east, have to counteract the cold accumulated there during the
night. The heat augments till three in the afternoon, when the rays
fall direct upon southwest exposures, and no obstacle now prevents
their utmost action. |
With respect to the general climatic features of the globe, the
following points have been ascertained from extensive observations.
At an equal distance from the equator, Asia has a comparatively cold
winter and a hot summer ; Europe tempers both extremes ; America
has a severe winter and a cold spring, but is allied in summer to
Europe, which it surpasses in the splendid climate of its autumn.
SC LeoON LY,.
DETERMINATION OF THE SUN’S HOURLY AND DIURNAL INTENSITY.
In the last section, the sun’s vertical intensity upon a given point
of the earth’s surface at any instant during the day, was shown to be
measured by a perpendicular drawn from the centre of the sun to the
plane of the horizon. If perpendiculars be thus let fall at every in-
stant during an hour, the sum of the perpendiculars will evidently
represent the sum of the vertical intensities received during the hour,
which sum may be termed the hourly intensity.
The integral calculus furnishes a ready means of obtaining this
sum. For during any one day the sun’s distance or apparent semi-
diameter, and the meridian declination, may be regarded as constant,
while the hour-angle alone varies, and the deviations from the implied
time of the sun’s rising and setting will compensate each other.*
* Multiplying the equation of instantaneous intensity by d H, since astronomy shows that
H varies uniformly with the time, and integrating between the limits of any two hour-angles,
H’ H', we obtain an expression for the hourly intensity.
In like manner let H denote the semi-diurnal are, and integrating between the limits 0 and
H, we obtain the intensity for a half day, which, on caneelling the constant multiplier 2,
may be taken for the whole day, or diurnal intensity, as follows :—
Sf sin A d= I a2 Hsin L sin D + A2 cos L cos D sin H.
The diurnal intensity is, therefore, proportioned to the product of the square of the sun’s
semi-diameter into the semi-diurnal arc, multiplied by the sine of the latitude into the sine
of the sun’s declination, plus the like product of the square of the sun’s semi-diameter into
the sine of the semi-diurnal are multiplied by the cosine of the latitude into the cosine of the
declination. This aggregate obviously changes from day to day, according to the sun’s
distance and declination.
330 METEOROLOGY.
The following cases under the general formula may here be specified:
First, at the time of the equinoxes, the sun’s daily intensity for all
places on the earth is proportional to the cosine of the latitude. As the
equinoxes in March and September lie intermediate between the ex-
tremes or maxima of heat and hght in summer, and their minima in
winter, the presumption naturally arises that the same expression will
approximate to the mean annual intensity. The coincidence is ac-
cordingly worthy of note, that the best empirical expression now known
for the annual temperature in degrees Fahrenheit, given by Sir David
Brewster, in the Hdinburgh Philosophical Transactions, Vol. 1X, is
81°.5 cos L, being also proportional to the cosine of the latitude. It
is remarkable that Fahrenheit, in 1720, should have adjusted his
scale of temperature to such value, that this formula applies, without
the addition of a constant term.
Secondly, for all places on the equator the latitude is 0; and the
sun rises and sets at six, the year round, exclusive of refraction. Con-
sequently the sun’s diurnal intensity varies slowly from one day to
another, being proportional to the cosine of the meridian declination of
the sun.
Thirdly, at the north pole, the sun rises only at the vernal equinox
in March, and continues wholly above the horizon, till it sets at the
autumnal equinox. Thus, to either pole, the sun rises but once, and
sets but once in the whole year, giving nearly six months day, and
six months night. Now suppose the six months day to be divided
into equal portions of twenty-four hours each, then the intensity during
twenty-four hours of polar day is proportional to the sine of the declina-
tion at the middle of the day.
Fourthly, at the summer solstice, when the intensity on the pole is
a maximum, the ratio becomes as 1 to 1.25; or the polar intensity is
one-fourth part greater than on the equator. The difference evidently
arises from the fact that daylight in the one place lasts but twelve
hours out of twenty-four, while at the pole the sun shines on through
the whole twenty-four hours.
It were interesting to find when this polar excess begins and ends,
which is ascertained to be on May 10th, and again on August 3d.
Therefore, during this long interval of eighty-five days, comprehending
nearly the whole season of summer, the sun’s vertical intensity over the
north pole is greater than upon the equator. To this subject we shall
again recur in a subsequent section.
Fifthly, having glanced at these particular cases, let a more com-
plete survey be made for the northern hemisphere. <And the same
will equally apply to the southern hemisphere, allowing for the rever-
sal of the seasons and change of the sun’s distance.
The subjoined table has been computed for intervals of fifteen days,
and expresses the results in wnits of intensity. The choice of a unié.
being entirely arbitrary, the intensity of a day on the equator at the
time of the vernal equinox is here assumed to be 81.5, and other
values are expressed in that proportion. In the last three columns
for the frigid zone, the braces include values for the days when the
sun shines through the whole twenty-four hours; the blank spaces
indicate periods of constant night.
METEOROLOGY. 331
The sun’s diurnal intensity at every ten degrees of latitude in the
northern hemisphere.
roy rel O ol Q ro} rol O ol
fe) ae tilto So o > S = = r]
oS re N ioe) — ac) co I CO a
A. D. 1853. 3 = 3 3 3 3 3 = 3 =
& £ S s = s = iS ‘s gs
| | ) 4 4 4 = | | HI = 4
Jar. oss sct: ISIC ic CiopeltaoeS Nate oeeo0e dt 1Gs5 ioe tee Ie Cue ee
Jee Slat oot. Peek)! 8.0 |aa8..24rapn Ga) S227 4) 19.8) 79 fe ae, | ee
hy ea) ale 19..6.-| T10 \YG1 Ol eee ge B85 Gal 2520.4) 20.9: | Tees eh ie
ere Slat cee SIO | %4. 0 loo, 6 |aporbe| aoe. | Sis9 Neloe0 | or 4eimne ees mee
Mary 9622-0. S-6 | ZSSOCM TI eGeT on basy | ATE ame O) fae Beene fee ae
Mar. t\-..- + $2.0); 805 2/476. ON 6956) G12. | 502 | s37. 0) | 25.5 Tea e ee
~_"
i 80.8 | 81.4 | 79.5 | 75.6 | 68.9 | 60.2 | 49.9 | 38.0 | 25.6 | 20.5
~_e
Moril W6s. : 222s 79.0 | 81.7 | 82.0 | 79.5 | 75.1 | 68.6 | 61.1 | 51.4] 44.0] 44.6
| 76.9 | 81.5 | 83.7 | 83.6 | 80.8 | 77.1 | 70.9 | 64.6 | 64.3] 65.3
May ihe. oe TELTAOSO: S|) SETA SGLFoh'S5. 7. S883" / FONT Wade (80: Sol, eS w
May (30222. 22 73.0 | 80.1 | 85.1 | 87.8 | 88.9 | 87.8 | 85.7 | 86.8 | 91.0 9234
Dpne W222... 72.0 | 196 | 85.2) 88.4: 90.1 | 89.9 188.8 | 91.7 | 96% | (9496
ely tie 4. 72.0 | 79.5 | 85.0 | 88.5 | 90.4 | 89.5 | 88.4 | 90.8 | 95.1] 96.6
July MGs 5.2 73.0 | 79.8 | 84.7 | 87.5 | 87.6 | 86.5 | 84.1 | 84.3] 88.3 | 89.7
Sin
Sik SL see. 74.7 | 80.4 | 83.9 | 85.1 | 84.5 | 81 TES T3e4y| TECD |) RE
Age) Ubs222c. 4 TENT WSOP SES In SB 40 7958. Fd 68.2 | 60.9 | 59.2 | 60.1
| ——
Aas, 0s. a. 3 Tes bs0. 7.1:80..6177..7..| 72s) | 66. 5 | 57.3)| 47.7 | 88.8.1. S809
Sept. Te 225. ft 79.8 | 79.8 | 77.5 | 72.8 | 65.9 | 58.8 | 4659 | 34.5 | 21.9 | 14.7
| —o
Sept. 29.....-- SOB ASetele 23.84) 67. 00 6h098. |) 4700) 6.22.5.) GeO ule os -
et. tae SQ271 |. 4054 |p69o 7 1LGd2 0. | 5042 | 38.2) | as.0 a la G |, llc eee
ere ee ESTO 7325 bar P54. 6.) 4285 S00T aT. Bol Bae lose eee
Wowlg lo2 2: FBES: 1 TOP TACO; Bel S495 8 ole 8 Tbe BIS i\ hI OohOy Osa cic eae es aN
ee) Wi. & | 68. SAVO Tl. Salt4o: Bt ales | he O8 ler bu Suet. sche oe aoe eee
CS: ae 76.9 | 66.9 | 55,4 | 43.0 | 30.3 | 16.3] 4.9 |.----.)------|--....
! |
To indicate the law of the sun’s diurnal intensity to the eye also, I
have taken the relative units in the table as ordinates, and their times
for abscissas, and traced curves through the series of points thus de-
termined, as shown in the accompanying diagram.
METEOROLOGY.
ipeeecce
ee |
dfs
Winter
Auli
:
Pl
8
S
S
S
UY
Spr
| AQISUaUT JG _SPLUI,
METEOROLOGY. 333
~ The equatorial curve will be observed to have two maxima at the
equinoxes in March and September, and two minima at the solstices
in June and December. Since the earth is nearer the sun in March
than in September, the curve shows a greater intensity in the former
month, other things being equal.
In the latitude of 10° the sun will not be vertical at the summer
solstice, but only when the declination is 10° N., which happens
twice inthe year. The curve corresponds in every particular with the
known course of the sun. Above the latitude of 23° 28’ the tropical
flexure entirely disappears; and there is only a single maximum at
midsummer.
For comparison with the curves of intensity, I have also traced curves
of temperature observed at Calcutta, in lat. 22° 33’ N.; at New Orleans,
in lat. 29° 57’; and at Philadelphia, in lat. 39° 57’. The curve for
Philadelphia is adjusted from the daily observations made at the
Girard College Observatory from 1840 to 1845, under the direction of
Prof. Bache. The rest are interpolated graphically from the mean
monthly temperatures.
Retardation of the effect.—In the temperate zone the temperatures
will be seen to attain their maximum about one month later than the
sun’s intensity would indicate. At Stockholm it is somewhat more
than a month ; and, during this interval the earth must receive dur-
ing the day more heat than it loses at night; and, conversely, after
the winter solstice it loses more heat during the night than it receives
by day. In illustration of this point, and to approximately verify
the formula, I here insert a former computation of the sun’s intensity
for the 15th day of each month, on the latitude of Mendon, Mass., and
the results are found to agree very nearly with those observed at that
place about one month later, as follows: (The observed values are
taken from the American Almanac for 1849, and are derived from fit
teen years’ observations.)
Computed values. Observed values. Difference.
January , 15...... 5040 23°. 3 24003) sebruary, oso 5---= +1°.0
ebruary bso. 22 7142 33°. 1 339.5 March Sesser + .4
March lde sects 9764 45°. 2 45°.8 April Le ee eee + .6
April aa ae 12574 58°. 3 559.0 May 1 a Se ay a —3°. 3
May 5t es 14482 679.1 649.5 June ease raises —2°.6
June spas 15346 719.1 71°.8 July ie ee ees SU
July 1533.2 15085 69°. 9 689.9 August Dae cee —1°.0
August eee 13437 62°. 3 GLONO) September 15252 25=- 2 —1°.3
September 15.-_--- 10860 50°. 3 ASCr5 NOctober Hibs ==. -- —1°.8
October 16335422 8080 37°. 5 38°.9 November 15-------- +1°.4
November 15.....- 5638 26°. 1 2nd. ADecemberel5 =.) —25=- +1°.6
December 15.-.-.- 4519 209.9 Z6°..0 #January) slos-5----- +5°. 1
It may be proper to observe that the formula was divided by sin Z,
a constant factor; and the numbers in the second column were then
successively computed: their sum, divided by twelve, gave 10163 as
the mean, to be compared with 47°.1, the observed mean at Mendon.
Then as 10163: 47°.1 :: 5040: 20°.3, Jan. 15, &c. Let it also be
334 METEOROLOGY.
observed, that the Mendon values are the monthly means, which do
not always fall on the 15th day, but nearly at that time.
Rate per hour of the sun’s intensity.—To glance at the subject from
another point of view, let us consider the rate, or the relative num-
ber of heating rays per hour. For any day, if we divide the com-
puted intensity by the length of the day, the quotient will express
the average hourly intensity.
In the accompanying table the values of the rate are exhibited at
intervals of fifteen days, and for every ten degrees of latitude. The
peculiar variation of the values for latitude 70° evidently arises from
the change to constant day. And apparently the hourly rates coin-
cide more nearly with the temperatures than do the diurnal inten-
sities or absolute amounts.
Average rate of the sun’s hourly intensity, or relative number of
vertical rays per hour.
F rol rom roo rol ro) roo Oo ° roy
oO oS oO (o>) Oo oS — oS oS So
Oo rad N oO =H ro) (to) I lo 0) oo
Ass. ee Ng el eee ey a oe ees
3 3 3 3 3S 3 = 3 = 3
4 4 4H 4 | H 4 4 4 4
Jan Ieee ale GrAS MEDS CO De UG a4. 2435 ZG Zenit ence. | eee nee ae ee
Janes oot See Ce Sle be GON bead. [eA 44s Oe Aa ocd lea Lee eee eget | par ean |e
Vari vo Le eee | 6.63 6S 20M M556 RAG Ge Mae BiG |e. wean eal tote Olney On) ere han een
Rehilijbee 2k ee GR) 1 GE SS S5e eNOS 4s 2a SS a2 ieee seein ania eee [eae
War paar =". GSO Ge 59s os el Sab ONE. cles oaulon ls ae nO EDO al Otad: esa eie
Wears elieee ORS A HAC | oaks) Meraeustay ll early Ze Pehle | Peal ee QS) 55-4.
ee
/ oul Gee 6234671) 6250) |V65098) Ss oL NA aTSe | eyez lee OMelnG: 0. 86
AMT LG aee= ae 6.58 1 6567 | 656) 196s 2 Seb OF |e tee deals one Omi lee ees 1.86
May, Milas Sse 6. 40) | 6559" | (6: 57 1°6. 33) 5286) (sbud2e |) Ae 50s aor oz esos Pi (ye
We i soboe GZS W648) Nba 5oleb54-0) 6.01 ONO atlas. oDil cee 3. 40
_——,
May Slt oo sshs 6.08 | 6.3 6.49 | 6.36 | 6.07 | 5.54 14.78) 3.62) 3 79 3.85
JUNG RE Seances 6200) Gass IG. 4b Gyo4) OO Oo, oleae siun | wows 2nu md-e00 4, 07
Ouliya base eee HAL ete SRA 2b WS Seal (he lea tors fates | 2h eis} as 7A} ay OG 4.03
oulyanlGee aaa 608 (M6088 765 4606. oi |OnOde | *Oe Om eeendo | By ais (is: 3.74
Iuly_ ole ss) S- 6.22 | 6. 46) 16.50) 6.32) 15.98") 5.42) 4065 1.32 55 13.18 3522
AUG Dea eae 6.939) 6. O66. DOMING: SO nD aSii al De Zon leaeroon los 4m eer 2. 50
—_
Angra 02s2aee" 6x b4 | 6.606.487 162 12) 195153 | 45 Sia eee 05 Ba O ele 0 62
Sept. 14.---_-- 6.64 | 6.60 | 6.3 56.92 | 5.45.) 4.70 | 3.68 | 2.61 | 1.50 0. 61
—_
SOE 7 ores 60) Ge br 1 6.2L 5. 68 I 4598 4 0baieos LG eZe 04 Onc oi eee
Oct) 14242s:\zs Geo OsaeleoOn Ol No.3 A Boi) Gs Dow eer Ol pellets Zim a Ose 2 eee
Octe 2922.2=." | 6.66 | 6. 29) | 5.74 | 6.100 | 4.08 | 3.09) 1) 2.00 | ORSON 2 aS SSeS
NG ws, dijm ees ae. 6<560| Gadlzeieo. 48) o4: 72) (2 38h75: | 2 Obes 48a LOs oie ee eee
INOW See ee .| 6.46 | 5.9 Da2e || 4.42. | 30300) 2a28) |e lO See eees| saat eee
Dec egestas. (ye: AO Nis tts) lp sind hoya |e eeyoye eer tomlie eon obs hellSseeca allosopoelssen oo
A close agreement, however, could’not reasonably be expected ; for
the intensities represent the sun’s effect at the summit of the atmos-
phere, but the temperatures at its base. Indeed, the sun’s intensity
METEOROLOGY. 335
upon the exterior of the earth’s atmosphere, like the fall of rain or
snow, is aprimary and distinct phenomenon. While passing through
the atmosphere to the earth the solar rays are subject to refraction,
absorption, polarization and radiation; also to the effects of evapora-
tion of winds, clouds, and storms. Thus the heat which finally
elevates the mercurial column of the thermometer is the resultant of
a variety of causes, a single thread in the network of solar and ter-
restrial phenomena.
Indication of tropical calms.—Should the inquiry be made, in what
part of the earth the sun’s intensity continues most uniform for the
longest period, an inspection of the flexures of the curves at once indi-
cates the region intermediate between the equator and the tropic of
Cancer on the one side, and of Capricorn on the other. Thus the
curve for latitude 10° shows the solar intensity to be nearly stationary
during half the year, from March to September. During October and
November it falls rapidly, and after remaining nearly unchanged for
a few days in December it again rises rapidly in January and Feb-
ruary. As the sun’s heat is the prime cause of winds, we might infer
that this region would be comparatively calm during the half year
mentioned, and that in the remaining months there would be greater
atmospheric fluctuations.
Such were the general indications. of the plate representing the
amounts ; and, on recurring to the table representing the rates of
diurnal intensity, the status is precisely similar, except that the region
of summer calm is removed further from the equator and nearer to
the tropic. On referring to a recent work on the physical geography
of the sea, with respect to this circumstance, I find that ‘‘the varia-
bles,’’ or calms of Cancer and of Capricorn, occur in the very latitudes
thus indicated by the compound effect of the amount and rate of solar
intensity. And, further, the annual range of solar intensity, which is
least upon the equator, has its counterpart in the belt of equatorial
calms, or ‘‘doldrums.’’ The same effect extends also to the ocean
itself, and appears in the tranquillity of the Sargosso sea. While
the curves of intensity for the higher latitudes are significant hiero-
glyphs of theserenity of summer, and the more violent windsand storms
of March and September. The entire deprivation of the sun’s intensity
during a part of the year within the Arctic and Antarctic circles
may also produce a polar calm, at least during the depth of winter.
But the existence of such calm, though probable, can neither be dis-
proved nor verified, as the pole appears not to have been approached
nearer than within about five hundred miles. Parry and Barrow
believed that a perfect calm exists at the pole.
SECTION V.
THE SUN’S ANNUAL INTENSITY UPON ANY LATITUDE OF THE EARTH.
By the method explained in the last section, the diurnal intensity,
in a vertical direction, might be computed for each and every day in
the year, and the sum total would evidently represent the annual
intensity.
336 METEOROLOGY.
The sum of the daily intensities for a month, or monthly intensities,
might be found in the same manner. But, instead of this slow pro-
cess, we first find an analytic expression for the aggregate intensity
during any assigned portion of the year, and then for the whole year.
The summation is effected by an admirable theorem, first given by
Euler; a new investigation of which, with full examples by the
writer, may be found in the Astronomical Journal, (Cambridge, Mass.,)
Vol. 2, and in the Smithsonian memoir. By this general summation
the following remarkable principle was rigorously demonstrated :
The sun's annual intensity upon any latitude of the earth is propor-
tional to the sum of two elliptic circumferences of the first and the second
order, diminished by an elliptic circumference of the third order.
On the equator, the sun’s annual intensity reduces to the circumference
of an ellipse, whose ratio of eccentricity is equal to the sine of the obli-
quity of the ecliptic.
In the frigid zones, where the regular interchange of day and night
in every twenty-four hours is interrupted, the formula will require
modification, though the general enunciation of the elliptic functions
remains the same. The year in the polar regions is naturally divided
into four intervals, the first of which is the duration of constant night
at mid-winter. The second interval at mid-summer is constant day ;
the third and fourth are intermediate spring and autumnal intervals,
when the sun rises and sets in every twenty-four hours.
With respect to the unit of measure for annual intensity, the mean
tropical year contains 365.24 days; let this represent the annual
number of vertical rays impinging on the equator; that is, let the
sun’s intensity during a mean equatorial day be taken as the thermal
day, and let the values for all the latitudes be converted in that pro-
portion.* Also denoting the annual intensity on the equator by 12,
the mean equatorial month may be used as another thermal unit.
And taking the annual intensity on the equator as 81.5 units, with
reference to Brewster’s formula, the intensity on other latitudes may
be expressed in that proportion. It may here be observed that the
diurnal value of the last section will be changed to this scale by in-
creasing them in the ratio of 1 to 1.049.
With the aid of Legendre’s elliptical tables the computation of
annual intensities is entirely practicable. The results converted into
units, with differences for every five degrees of latitude, have been
carefully verified and tabulated as follows:
* The three species of circumferences, each representing four equal and similar_quad-
rants, are discussed at great length by Legendre in his Zraité des Fonctions Elliptiques.
Let L denote the latitude of the place, and developing in thermal days for the
torrid and temperate zones, we find for any year in the present century:
Annual intensity = 349.322 cos. L -p 22-48 40-1628, 0.0066
. ‘ on ea : : eos. L cos.® L er
cos. L
METEOROLOGY. 337
The sun's annual intensity.
Thermal|Thermal} Thermal] Diff. | Lati- | Thermal |Thermal|Thermal] Diff.
units |months.| days. days. |} tude. | units. | months.) days. days.
81. 50 12.00 | 365. 24 Pari 50° 5D. 1d 8.21 | 249. 74 20. 92
81. 22 11.96 | 363. 97 3.78 55 | 51.06 Tide I 228.82 21. 06
80. 38 11. 83 | 360. 19 6. 28 60 | 46.36 6.83 | 207.76 19.91
78.97 11. 63 | 353.91 8.70 65 41. 92 6.17 | 187.85 14. 81
77.03 LiS3e 345. 27 | PEO! 70 38. OL 5.69 | 173. 04 9. 82
74. 57 10.98 | 334.20 | 13.20 75 36. 42 BD. a0) L6s0a2 6. 59
71.63 10.55 | 321.00 | 15. 30 80 34.95 5.15 | 156. 63 3. 80
68. 21 10.04 | 305.70 | 17.15 || 85 34. 10 5.02 | 152. 83 1,24
64. 39 9.43 | 288.55 | 18.76 |} 90 33. 83 4.98 | 151.59 0. 00
60. 20 8. 86 | 269.79 | 20.05 || |
From this table it will be seen that, at the tropic of Capricorn, or
of Cancer, the sun’s annual intensity is but eleven thermal months,
being twelve on the equator. In the latitude of New Orleans the
annual intensity in a vertical direction is ten and a half thermal
months, and in the latitude of Philadelphia nine and a half. At
London the annual intensity is reduced to eight thermal months ;
and at the polar circle to six months, being just one-half the value
on the equator. Thus the intensity irregularly decreases till it ter-
minates at the South or North Pole, where the annual intensity is but
five thermal months.
Again, it will be interesting to note the analogy which the differ-
ences for every five degrees of latitude, in the last column of the table,
bear to the corresponding differences of height in the atmosphere which
lumit the region of perpetual snow. It has been observed that the
different heights of perpetual frost ‘‘decrease very slowly as we recede
from the equator until we reach the limits of the torrid zone, when
they decrease much more rapidly The average difference for every
five degrees of latitude in the temperate zone is 1.318 feet, while from
the equator to 30° the average is only 664 feet, and from 60° to 80°
it is only 891 feet—important meteorological phenomena depend on
this fact.—(Olmsted’s Natural Philosophy.) The differences of com-
puted annual intensity in the table vary in a manner precisely
similar. While, in the temperate zone, the decrease for every five
degrees of latitude is from 13 to 21 thermal days, yet it averages only
about 6 thermal days within the tropics and beyond the polar circles.
The line of congelation evidently rises in summer and falls in winter
between certain limits.
With reference to the connexion between these annual intensities
and the observed annual temperatures, the analogy of the centigrade
scale shows that units of intensity may be converted into degrees
Fahrenheit by a multiplier and constants. Since the values of the
multiplier and constants are not precisely known, a graphical con-
struction will be employed; and it is plain that if computed intensi-
ties and observed temperatures both follow the same law of change,
their delineated curves will be symmetrical.
22s
338 METEOROLOGY.
Therefore, taking the latitudes for ordinates, and the annual in-
tensities in the table for abscissas, we obtain the curve of annual in-
tensity; and, in the same manner, the curve of annual temperature.
It will be seen, no doubt with interest, that the curve of annual inten-
sity is almost symmetrical with that of Kuropean temperature, ob-
served mostly on the western side of that continent. But the curve
of American temperature based on the United States army observa-
tions for places on the eastern portion of the continent, diverges from
the curve of intensity, and indicates a special cause depressing these
temperatures below the normal standard due to their latitudes.
At Key West, on the southern, border of Florida, the divergence
commences, and on proceeding northwardly continually increases in
magnitude; that is, so far as reliable observations have been made
along the expanding breadth of the North American continent.
It were natural to suppose that the annual temperature would be
defined Ly the annual number of heating rays from the sun. Indeed
on and near the tropical regions, the curves of annual temperature
and solar intensity are symmetrical. But in the polar regions, the
irregularity of the intervals of day and night, and of the seasons, and
various proximate causes, introduce a discrepancy, which the principle
of annual average does not obviate. The laws of solar intensity, how-
ever, have been determined; the laws of climatic temperature will
require a special and apparently more difficult analysis.
It has been inferred that there are two poles of maximum cold about
the latitude of 80° north, and in longitudes 95° E. and 100° W.
The fewness of the observations, however, in that remote hyperborean
region, leaves this question still open to investigation.
SECTION VI.
AVERAGE ANNUAL INTENSITY OF THE SUN UPON A PART OR THE WHOLE OF
THE EARTH’S SURFACE.
Having determined the sun’s vertical intensity upon a single unit or
point of the earth’s surface, let us next ascertain the average annual
intensity upon a larger area, a zone, or the entire surface of the globe.
After which, we shall glance at some of the climatic alternations which
are most clearly made known and interpreted by the mechanism of
the heavens.
In any zone of the earth the sum of the annual intensities divided
by the surface will evidently give the mean annual intensity upon
the unit of surface. On this principle the following results were
derived, but the analytic process is here omitted:
:
Thermal days. | Thermal months. | Thermal units.
Upon the polar zones -.-.--.-.- . 166. 04 5.45 37. 05
Upon the temperate zones------ 276. 38 9. 08 61. 67
Upon the torrid zone -.--..-..- 356. 24 11. 70 79.49
Upon the whole earth.__--_---. 299.05 9. 83 66. 73
METEOROLOGY. 339
Thus it appears that the sun’s annual intensity upon the whole
earth’s surface from pole to pole averages 299 thermal days, being
five sixths of the value on the equator.
Though the figures in the last column are strictly units of intensity,
yet, as shown by the curves, they also approximately represent annual
temperatures, except near the poles. lollowing these indications, the
mean annual temperature of the whole earth’s surface must be some-
what below 66° Fahrenheit. In comparison with this result,’ the
mean annual temperature found by Professor Dove, from a vast num-
ber of observations, may be introduced, which is approximately 58°.1
Fahrenheit. The like value found from the formula of Brewster, is
64°.0 Fahrenheit.
SECTION VII.
ON SECULAR CHANGES OF THE SUNS INTENSITY.
In relation to secular variations of intensity, we shall adopt the.
hypothesis that the physical constitution of the sun has remained?
constant. The secular changes here considered, therefore, are thosé-
which depend solely on position and inclination, according to the laws:
of physical astronomy. kai
The recurrence of spots on the sun’s disc has lately been discovered’
to observe a regular periodicity. But their influence upon tempera- -
ture appears to be insufficient for taking account of them. M. R.
Wolf, in the Comptes Rendus, XXXV, p. 704, communicates his:
discovery that the minima of solar spots occur in regular periods of ©
11.111 years, or nine cycles in a century—and that the years in which
the spots are most numerous are generally drier and more productive
than the others—the latter being more humid and showery. Coun- -
sellor Schwabe, after twenty-six years of observation, does not think
that the spots exert any influence on the annual temperature. And
a writer in the Encyclopedia Britannica, article Astronomy, states
that ‘‘in 1823 the summer was cold and wet, the thermometer at
Paris rose only to 23°.7 of Reaumur, and the sun exhibited no spots;
whereas, in the summer of 1807 the heat was excessive, and the spots
of vast magnitude. Warm summers and winters of excessive rigor -
have happened in the presence or absence of the spots.’’*
Proceeding now to investigation, our first inquiry will relate to:
changes of the sun’s annual intensity upon the earth’s surface regaraed®
as one aggregate.
In the Connaissance des Tems, for 1843, Leverrier has exhibitedé
the secular values of most of the elements of the planetary orbits
during 100,000 years before and after January 1, 1800. ‘The eccen-
tricity of the earth’s orbit at the present time being .0168, the value
100,000 years ago, and the greatest in that interval was .0473. Sub-
stituting these in the formula, we find that the sun’s annual intensity
* Protessor Henry was the first to show, by projecting on a screen in a dark room the
image of the sun from a telescope with the eye glass drawn out, that the temperature of the
spets was slightly less than that of the other parts of the solar disc. The temperature was
indicated by a delicate thermoelectrical apparatus. Professor Secchi, of Italy, afterwards
obtained the same result.—See Silliman’s Journal, Vol. XLIX, p. 405.
310 METEOROLOGY.
at the former epoch was greater than at present by one-thousandth
part. Now this fraction of 365.24 days, counting the days at twelve
hours each in respect to solar illumination, amounts to between four
and jive hours of sunshine in a year; and by so small a quantity only
has the sun’s annual intensity, during 100,000 years past, ever ex-
ceeded the yearly value at the present time. Nor can it depart from
its present annual value by more than the equivalent of five hours of
average sunshine in a year for 100,000 years to come.
The superior and ultimate limit given by Leverrier, to which the
eccentricity of the earth’s orbit may have approached at some very
remote but unknown period or periods, is .O777. At such epoch, tie
annual intensity is computed, as before, to have exceeded the intensity
of the present by thirteen hours of sunshine in a year. On the other
hand, the inferior limit of eccentricity being near to zero, indicates
only four minutes of average sunshine in a year, less than the present
annual amount. Between these two extreme limits, all annual varia-
tions of the solar intensity, whether past or future, must be included,
even from the primitive antediluvian era, when the sun was placed in
his present relation to the earth. By the third law of Kepler, on
which the equation is based, these results are rigorous for siderial
years ; and by reason of the slight but nearly constant excess, the
same may be concluded of tropical or civil years. For the annual
variation of the tropical year is only—0d.000 00006686.
The preceding conclusions, 1t is proper_again to observe, refer to the
whole earth’s surface collectively. Let us, in the next place, inquire
concerning changes of annual intensity upon the different latitudes of
the earth. This variation will be a function of the eccentricity, and
the obliquity. For the present, let it be proposed to compute the
annual intensity for an epoch 10,000 years prior to A. D. 1800. The
eccentricity of the orbit, was then .0187, according to Leverrier ; and
for the obliquity of the ecliptic, the most correct formula is probably
that of Struve and Peters, quoted in the American Nautical Almanac.
It is true their formula may not strictly apply for so distant a period ;
but, since the value 24° 43’ falls within the maximum assicned by
Laplace, it must be a compatible value, though its epoch may be some-
what nearer or more remote than 10,000 years. ‘Therefore, compar-
ing the computed results with the table for 1850, given in Section V,
vas a standard, we find the annual intensity on the equator, at the
former period, to have been 1.65 thermal days less than in 1850; the
differences for every ten degrees of latitude are as follows:
Change of the sun’s annual intensity 8,200 years B. C., from tts value
in A. D. 1850, taken as the standard.
; } | t
Latitude. | Differencein || Latitude. | Difference in | Latitude. | Difference in
thermal days. | thermal days thermal days.
~ = Sallie
Hag =i oo 40° LL | 47a sh Acie 45/52
OST —1. 58 509 + .68 = || 30SR +7. 18
20° | —1. 32 60° 2. LL cael +7. 64
i |
METEOROLOGY. 341
From this it appears that the annual intensity within the Torrid Zone,
ten thousand years ago, averaged one thermal day and a half less than
now; while from 35° of latitude to 50°, comprehending the whole area
of the United States, it was virtually the same as at the present day.
But above 50° of latitude, the annual intensity was then greater in
an increasing rate towards the pole, at which point it was between
seven and eight thermal days greater than at the present time; in
other words, the poles both north and south, 10,000 years ago, received
twenty rays of solar heat in a year, where they now receive but nine-
teen. Owing to change in the obliquity of the ecliptic, the sun may
be compared to a swinging lamp; at the former period, it apparently
moved farther to the north and to the south, passing more rapidly
over the intermediate space.
The maximum variation of the obliquity of the ecliptic, according
to Laplace, without assigning its epoch, is 1° 22! 34”, above or below
the obliquity 23° 28’ in the year 1801.* Now the difference recog-
nized in our calculation almost reaches this limit, being 1° 15’. As
the secular perturbations are now understood, therefore, it follows
that, since the earth and sun were placed in their present relation
to each other, the annual intensity upon the Temperate Zones has
never varied ; between the tropics, it has never departed from its
present annual amount by more than about ,1,th part, and is now
very slightly increasing. The most perceptible difference is in the
Polar regions, where the secular change of annual intensity is more
than four times greater than on the Equator; in its annual amount,
the Polar cold is now very slowly increasing from century to century,
which effect must continue so long as the obliquity of the ecliptic is
diminishing. And thus, so far as relates to a decreased annual inten-
sity, the celebrated ‘‘ Northwest passage’ through the Arctic sea will
be even more difficult in years to come than in the present age.
Having now considered the secular changes of annual intensity upon
the earth and its different latitudes, let us next examine the secular
changes of intensity in relation tothe Northern and Southern hemispheres.
The earth is now nearest the sun in winter of the northern hemisphere
on January Ist, and farthest from the sun in summer on July 4th. This
collocation of times and distances has the advantage of rendering the
extreme of summer cooler, and of winter, north of the equator, warmer
than it would be at a mean distance from the sun. But south of the
equator, on the contrary, it exaggerates the extremes by rendering
the summer hotter and the winter colder. Before estimating this
difference, we may observe that the perigee advances in longitude
11”.8 annually ; by which the instant when the earth is nearest the
sun, will date about five minutes in time later every year. The time
of perihelion, which now falls in January, will at length occur in Feb-
ruary, and ultimately return to the southern hemisphere the advan-
tage which we now possess. Indeed, it is remarkable that the perigee
must have coincided with the autumnal equinox about 4,000 B. C.,
which is near the time that chronology assigns for the first residence
of man upon the earth.
* Mécanique Céleste, Vo!. II, p. 856, note, Bowditch’s translation,
342 METEOROLOGY.
For ascertaining the difference of intensity, we know that the sun’s
declination goes through a nearly regular cycle of values in a year.
The formula shows that the length of the day in the southern hemis-
phere is the same as in the northern hemisphere about six months
earlier. The ratio of daily intensity of the northern, is to the southern
then as 1 to Lata And the like ratio for the summer intensities is
as 1 tol + 75. But, is the es deviation for a few days only;
the mean heueok this and 0, or =';, would seem more correctly to
apply to the whole seasons of summer and winter. Taking then ,,th
of the greatest and least values of daily intensity, Section LV, for the
temperate zone, it appears that winter in the southern hemisphere is
now about 1° colder, and summer 3° hotter than in the northern
hemisphere. The intensities during spring and autumn may-be re-
garded as equal in both hemispheres. And the summer season of the
south temperate zone being hotter, is also shorter by about eight
days, owing to the rapid motion of the earth about the perihelion.
In confirmation of these last deductions, the younger Herschel refers
to the glow and ardor of the sun’s rays under a perfectly clear sky at
noon, and observes, ‘‘ one-fifteenth is too considerable a fraction of
the whole intensity of sunshine, not to aggravate, in a serious degree,
the sufferings of those who are exposed to it without shelter. The
accounts of these sufferings in the interior of Australia, would seem
far to exceed what have ever been experienced by travellers in the
northern deserts of Africa. The author has observed the temperature
of the surface soil in South Africa, as high as 159° Fahrenheit. The
ground in Australia, acecrding to Captain Sturt, was almost a molten
surface, and if a match accidently fell upon it, it immediately ignited.”’
(Herschel’s Astronomy.)
The phenomenon is of sufficient interest to warrant a glance at the
secular values. The eccentricity, 100,000 years ago, has already been
stated at .0473; and the formula of the proportional general differ-
ence of the winter intensities, in the northern and southern hemi-
spheres, becomes 1 — .0946; and the maximum difference becomes
1 — .1892. Thus the difference of winter intensities between the
northern and southern hemispheres, and likewise of summer intensi-
ties, was then about three times greater than at the present time.
But this wide fluctuation of summer and winter intensities, in rela-
tion to the two hemispheres, scarcely affected the aggregate annual
intensities, as before shown.
From occasional Historic notices of climate, it has been assumed that
the winter season in Kurope was formerly colder than at the present
time. The rivers Rhine and Rhone were trozen so deep as to sustain
loaded wagons ; the Tiber was frozen over, and snow at one time lay
forty days i in the city of Rome; but the histo: y of the weather pre-
sents winters of equal severity in modern times. Thus, in the famous
winter of 1709, thousands of families perished in their houses ; the
Arabic Sea was frozen over, and even the Mediterranean. The winter
of 1740 was scarcely inferior, and snow lay ten feet deep in Spain and
Portugal. In 1776 the Danube bore ice five feet deep below Vienna.
In the United § tates, likewise, since the period of our colonial history,
the indications of an amelioration of climate are not conclusive. The
METEOROLOGY. 343
great snow of February, 1717, rose above the lower doors of dwel-
lings, and in the winters which closed the years 1641, 1697, 1740,
and 1779, the rivers were frozen, and Boston and Chesapeake bays
were at times covered with ice as far as the eye could reach; but the
like occurs at similar intervals in our day. Mild winters, too, have
intervened, and the other seasons are also very variable. The general
indications, however, give rise to the question, whether there is a
cause of change of climate in the course of the sun ?
About two thousand years ago, in the time of Hipparchus, 128
B. C., the obliquity of the ecliptic, or the sun’s greatest declination,
was 23° 43’. It has now decreased to 23° 273’; therefore, at the
former epoch, the sun came farther north and rose to a higher alti-
tude in summer; and went farther south and rose only to a lower
altitude in midwinter. There is then an astronomic cause of change,
of which we propose to determine more precisely the effect.
Let the latitude be 40°, which is nearly the latitude of Philadel-
phia, also of southern Italy and Greece. Computing now for B. C.
128, and for A. D. 1850, the daily intensities at the summer solstice
are 90.45 and 90.05 thermal units, and at the winter solstice 28.67
and 29.04 respectively. The differences .40 and .37 must correspond
almost precisely to degrees of the thermometer; and halving them
for the whole seasons, as before described, we are conducted to the
following conclusion. In the time of Hipparchus, or about a century
before Julius Cesar, Virgil, Horace and Ovid flourished, wnder the
latitude of Italy and Greece the summer was two-tenths of a degree Fah-
renheit hotter, and the winter as much colder, than at the present day.
The similar changes of solar intensity upon the United States in two
hundred years, can only be made known by theory, and are evidently
very slight. There has been, therefore, no sensible amelioration of
climate in Europe or America from astronomical causes. The effects,
however, of cutting down dense forests, of the drainage and culti-
vation of open grounds and woodlands admit of conflicting inter-
pretation, and appear but secondary to the atmospheric fluctuations
which are governed by the changes in the relative position of the
earth and sun.
Before leaving the. subject, the inquiry may arise respecting Geolo-
gical changes, whether the secular inequalities have ever been of such
value under the present order, as to admit of tropical plants growing
in the temperate or frigid zones. In reply, as the annual intensity
could never have varied in any considerable degree, the change must
consist entirely in tempering the extremes of summer and winter to a
perpetual spring. And this could not happen on both sides of the
equator at once; for the same astronomic arrangement which made
the daily intensities in the northern hemisphere equable, would
subject those of the southern to violent alternations; and the wide
breadth of the torrid zone would prevent the effects being conducted
from one hemisphere to the other.
Let us then look back to that primeval epoch when the earth was
in aphelion at midsummer, and the eccentricity at its maximum
value—assigned by Leverrier near to .0777. Without entering into
elaborate computation, it is easy to see that the extreme values of
344 METEOROLOGY.
diurnal intensity, in Section IV, would be altered as by the multi-
pher 1— 0.11 in summer, and 1+ 0.11 in winter. This would
diminish the midsummer intensity by about 9°, and increase the
midwinter intensity by 3° or 4°; the temperature of spring and
autumn being nearly unchanged. But this does not appear to be of
itself adequate to the geolcgical effects in question.
It is not our purpose here, to enter into the inquiry, whether the
atmosphere was once more dense than now, whether the earth’s
axis had once a different inclination to the orbit, or the sun a
greater emissive power of heat and light. Neither shall we at-
tempt to speculate upon the primitive heat of the earth nor of
planetary space, nor of the supposed connection of terrestrial heat and
magnetism ; nor inquire how far the existence of coal fields in this
latitude, of fossils, and other geological remains have depended upon
existing causes. The preceding discussion seems to prove simply that,
under the present system of physical astronomy, the sun’s intensity
could never have been very greatly different from what is manifested
upon the earth at the present day. The causes of notable geological
changes must be other than the relative position of the sun and earth, under
their present laws of motion.
If we extend our view, however, to the general movement of the Sun
and Planets in space, we find here a possible cause for the remarkable
changes of temperature traced in the geological periods. For, as
Poisson conjectured, Théorie de la Chaleur, p. 438, the phenomena
may depend upon an inequality of temperature in the regions of space,
through which the earth has passed. According to a calculation quo-
ted by Prof. Nichol, the velocity of this great movement is six times
greater than that of the earth in its orbit, or about 400,000 miles per
hour.
In this motion, continued for countless ages, the earth may have
traversed the vicinity of some one of the fixed stars, which are suns,
whose radiance would tend to efface the vicissitudes of summer and
winter, if not of day and night, with a more warm and equable cli-
mate. This may have produced those luxuriant forests, of which the
present coal fields are the remains; and thus the existence of coal
mines in Disco, and other Arctic islands, may be accounted for. If no
similar traces exist in the Antarctic zone, the presumption will be
strengthened, that the North Pole was presented more directly to the
rays of such illuminating sun or star. Indeed, by this position, all
possibility of conflict with Neptune, and the other planets which lie
nearly in the plane of the ecliptic, were avoided.
The description of such period, with strange constellations and
another sun gleaming in the firmament, their mysterious effects upon
the growth of animals and vegetation, their untold vicissitudes of
light, shadow and eclipse, belong to the romance of astronomy and
geology. As in the ancient tradition described by Virgil in the sixth
Eclogue:—
Jainque novum terre stupeant lucescere solem:
Altits atque cadant submotis nubibus imbres :
Incipiant silve quam primtm surgere, quumque
Rara per ignotos errent animalia montes.
METEOROLOGY. 345
It is evident that, in receding from the sphere of intensity of such
star, as a comet from the sun, the earth’s annual temperature would
very slowly decrease in process of time, according to the temperature
of the space traversed.’ And, at a remote distance from the stars, the
temperature of space ought to remain stationary; as the mean annual
temperature of the earth has remained for at least two thousand years
past, and without doubt will so continue for ages to come.
Section VILI.
ON LOCAL AND CLIMATIC CHANGES OF THE SUN’S INTENSITY.
As the principal topics under this head have been anticipated in the
former portions of the work, they need not here be repeated. The
inequality of winter, and especially of summer intensities in the
northern and southern hemispheres, has already been discussed in the
last Section, and ascribed to the changing position of the sun’s perigee.
Let us now pass to another local inequality, which consists in the
difference of daily intensities at two places situated on the same par-
allel of latitude, but separated by a considerable interval of longi-
tude. This difference arises solely from hourly change of the Sun’s.
Declination, while moving from the meridian of one place westward
to the meridian of the other; the Sun in the interval attaining a
higher or lower meridian altitude.
For example, the latitude of Greenwich, near London, is 51°29
39”. Following this parallel west to a point directly north of San
Francisco, in California, ‘the difference of longitude is 122° 28! 2”. At
the time of the autumnal equinox, the daily change of the sun’s decli-
nation is 23’ 23”. Consequently, in passing from the meridian of
Greenwich to that of San Francisco, the declination is diminished by
HOOT! 3:
When the Sun’s Declination is 0, at apparent noon at Greenwich,
on Sept. 21st, it will be 7'57’.38. at noon in the longitude of San
Francisco, on the same day ; the semi-diameter being 15’ 59” or 959”
for Greenwich, and 959”.1 for San Francisco. With these elements,
let the sun’s daily intensity be computed for both places. The result is
50.13 thermal units for Greenwich, and 49.91 for the place north of
San Francisco, on the same latitude. The difference is .22 corre-
sponding to nearly + 4° Farenheit ; and by so much the intensity upon
the zenith of Greenwich is greater, on tle same day.
At the vernal equinox, March 20, the sun’s daily change of declina-
tion would be in the oppesite direction, and the difference would be-
come—i°F. The inequality of this species thus compensates itself in
theory, leaving the yearly intensity the same for all places having the
same latitude.
For further reference on this point, the daily changes of declination,
near the first of each month, are subjoined as follows:—
January, 5! May, 18 September, 22’
February, 18’ June, 8 October, 23!
March, © 23! July, 5/ November, 18
April, 23! August, 177’ December, 9/
346 METEOROLOGY.
In this connection, it may be observed that Nervander, Buys Ballot,
and Dove have developed a slight inequality of temperature dependent
upon the Sun’s rotation around his axis, and having the same period
of about 27 days; but this result is not confirmed by Lamont, Pog-
gendorff’s Annalen for 1852.
With respect to maxima and minima, the foregoing Plate exhibits
a resemblance to two summers and to two winters on the Equator—
the sun being vertical at the two equinoxes. On receding from the
equator, but still in the torrid zone, the sun will be vertical at equal
intervals, before and after the summer solstice, which intervals
diminish as the sun approaches the Tropic; the sun being vertical to
each locality, when his declination is equal to the latitude of the
place ; as indicated in the annexed diagram.
On arriving at the Tropic in the
yearly motion, the sun can be vertical
but once in the year, namely, at the
summer solstice. At all places more
distant from the equator the sun can
never be vertical, but will approach
nearest this position at the solstice in
summer (s), and be farthest from it at
the solstice of winter (w). Thus in the
torrid zone, the sun’s daily intensity
has two maxima and two minima
annually ; in the temperate zones, one
maximum and one minimum; and in
the frigid zones, one maximum.
Owing to change of the sun’s distance, the intensity is not pre-
cisely the same at the autumnal equinox as at the vernal; the dif-
ference, however, being small, may here be neglected. And for more
full illustration, a horizontal projection might be drawn of the Table
in Section IV, showing the Sun’s Diurnal Intensity along the
meridian at intervals of thirty days, from June to December, and
approximately for the other months. The alternate curves will of
course show the sun’s changes of intensity in intervals of sixty days.
It will be seen that the sun’s least yearly range of intensity is not
on the Equator, but about 3° of latitude from it north and south.
Here the daily heat is most constant, and perpetual summer reigns
through the year.
In lke manner, the diverging curves show an increasing yearly
range, which is greatest in the Polar regions. Also the changes
from one day to another are most rapid in spring and autumn. ‘The
greatest intensity occurs at the summer solstice, June 21, and the
least, at the winter solstice, December 21; so that the yearly range
from minimum to maximum is a little wider than the drawn curves
indicate. Near the Polar Circle, a singular inflection commences in
summer, and the temperature rises rapidly to the Pole.
These laws of Intensity are subject to the retardation in time,
mentioned in Section IV, when applied to temperatures, and thus
will correspond, generally, with observations. For example, the
METEOROLOGY. 347
thermometric column will, during the month of May, rise faster at
Quebec than in Florida, and still more rapidly at the Arctic Circle.
It was proved, in Section IV, that the Sun’s intensity upon the
Pole during eighty-five days in summer, is greater than upon the
Equator. Indeed, at the summer solstice it rises to 98.6 thermal
units, corresponding nearly to 98° Fahrenheit, which singularly
coincides with the temperature of the human body, or blood heat.
Though this circumstance may invest the Hyperborean region with
new interest, still we cannot assume a brief tropical summer with
teeming forms of vegetable and animal life in the centre of the frozen
gone. For the measured intensity refers to the outer limit of the
atmosphere, upon which the sun shines continually, but from a low
altitude which cannot exceed 23° 28’. Much of the heat must, there-
fore, be absorbed by the air, as happens near the hours of sunrise
and sunset in our climate. Also ‘‘ the vast beds of snow and fields of
ice, which cover the land and the sea in those dreary regions, absorb,
in the act of thawing or passing to the liquid form, all the surplus
heat collected during the continuance of a nightless summer. But
the rigor of winter, when darkness resumes her tedious reign, is like-
wise mitigated by the warmth evolved as congelation spreads over
the watery surface.”” (Incyc. Brit., article Climate.)
The sun’s intensity may yet have a somewhat greater effect upon the
pole where it pierces a thinner stratum of the atmosphere than over
another portion of the earth’s surface. For, in consequence of the
centrifugal force of the earth’s diurnal motion, the particles of air in
all other parts of the earth, being thrown outwards, tend to an in-
creased thickness in spheroidal strata. We might thence infer that a
less proportion of the sun’s rays would be absorbed, and a greater
portion transmitted through the atmosphere to the surface of the
earth. However this may be in the immediate vicinity of the Pole,
yet in the high latitudes hitherto visited by navigators, and which
are not nearer than about five or six hundred miles from the North
Pole, according to Dr. Kane and others, a dense and lasting fog
prevails after the middle of June, through the rest of the summer
season, and effectually prevents the rise of temperature which the
sun’s intensity would otherwise produce.
““The general obscurity of the atmosphere arising from clouds or
fogs is such, that the sun is frequently invisible during several suc-
cessive days. At such times, when the sun is near the northern
tropic, there is scarcely any sensible quantity of light from noon to
midnight.’’ (Scoresby’s Arctic Regions, Vol. I, p. 378.) ‘‘The
hoar-trost settles profusely in fantastic clusters on every prominence.
The whole surface of the sea steams like a lime-kiln, an appearance
called the frost smoke, caused, as in other instances of the production
of vapors, by the waters being still relatively warmer than the in-
cumbent air. At length the dispersion of the mist, and the conse-
quent clearness of the atmosphere, announce that the upper stratum
of the sea itself has become cooled to the same standard ; a sheet oi
ice quickly spreads, and often gains the thickness of an inch ina
single night.’’
The question of an open unfrozen sea in the vicinity of the North
Pole has long been agitated. In this connection we shall only glance
348 METEOROLOGY. :
at some of the evidences on both sides, without discussing further a
subject from which the veil of uncertainty is not yet entirely removed.
‘¢ Of this I conceive we may be assured,’’ says Scoresby, Vol. I, p.
46, ‘that the opinion of an open sea around the Pole is altogether
chimerical. We must allow, indeed, that when the atmosphere is
free from clouds, the influence of the sun, notwithstanding its
obliquity, is, on the surface of the earth or sea, about the time of
the summer solstice, greater at the Pole, by nearly one-fourth part,
than at the equator. (See Section IV. The value was first de-
termined by Halley, Phil. Trans , 1693.) Hence it is urged that this
extraordinary power of the sun destroys all the ice generated in the
winter season, and renders the temperature of the Pole warmer and
more congenial to the feelings than it is in some places lying near the
equator. Now, it must be allowed, from the same principle, that the
influence in the parallel of 78°, where it is computed in the same way
to be only about one forty-fifth part less than what it is at the Pole,
must also be considerably greater than at the equator. But, from
twelve years’ observations on the temperature of the icy regions, I
have determined the mean annual temperature in latitude 78° to be
16° or 17° F., [that is about fifteen degrees below freezing point] ;
how, then, can the temperature of the Pole be expected to be so very
diffirent ?’’
After some further argument, the author remarks ina note: ‘‘Should
there be,land near the pole, portions of open water, or perhaps even
considerable seas might be produced by the action of the current
sweeping away the ice from one side almost as fast as it could be formed.
But the existence of land only, I imagine, can encourage an expecta-
tion of any of the sea northward of Spitzbergen being annually free
from ice.”’
On the other hand, the following indications in favor of an open sea,
are derived from a recent article upon Arctic Researches, announcing
that ‘‘ the existence of the long suspected unfrozen Polar Sea has been
all-but proved.”’ /
First, is was found that the average annual temperature about the
80th parallel. was higher by several degrees, than that recorded far-
ther south. At the island of Spitzbergen, for example, under the
80th parallel, the deer propagate, and on the northern coast the sea is
quite open for a considerable time every year. But at Nova Zembla, five
degrees further south, the sea is locked in perpetual ice, and the deer
are rarely, if ever seen on its coast. This has led physical geographers
to suppose that the milder temperature of Spitzbergen must be attrib-
utable to the well known influence of proximity toa large body of
water; while the contiguity of Nova Zembla to the continent was
thought to account for the severity of its climate.
Secondly, Captain Parry reached Spitzbergen in May, 1827; from
thence he went northward two hundred and ninety-two miles in thirty-
five days, during which it rained almost all the time. The ice being
much broken, and the current setting toward the south, he could not
make way against it, and was compelled to return, which the current -
greatly facilitated. Besides the current here noticed by Parry, others
had been determined before, and more have been ascertained since ;
METEOROLOGY. 349
so that powerful currents of the Arctic Ocean southward, may be con-
sidered as established.
Thirdly, in 1852, Captain Inglefield, while making his summer
search for Sir John Franklin, in the northeast of Baffin’s Bay, beheld
with surprise ‘‘ two wide openings to the eastward into a clear and
unincumbered sea, with a distinct and unbroken horizon, which, beau-
tifully defined by the rays of the sun, showed no signs of land, save
one island.’’ Further on he remarks, ‘‘the changed appearance of
the land to the northward of Cape Alexander was very remarkable.
South of this cape, nothing but snow-capped hills and cliffs met the
eye; but to the northward an agreeable change seemed to have been
worked by an invisible agency—here the rocks were of their natural
black or reddish-brown color; and the snow which had clad with
heavy flakes the more southern shore had only partially dappled them
in this higher region, while the western shore was gilt with a belt of
ice twelve miles broad, and clad with perpetual snows.”’
To these may be added the discovery of the southern boundary of
an open polar sea, in the expedition from which Dr. Kane has just
returned, October, 1855. ‘‘There are facts,’’ observes this distinguished
explorer, ‘‘ to show the necessity and certainty of a vast inland sea at
the North. There must be some vast receptacle for the drainage of
the polar regions and the great Siberian rivers. To prove that water
must actually exist, we have only to observe the icebergs. These float-
ing masses cannot be formed without terra firma, and it is a remark-
able fact that, out of 360°, in only 30° are icebergs to be found, show-
ing that land cannot exist in a considerable portion of the country.
Again, Baffin’s Bay was long thought to bea close bay, but it is now
known to be connected with the Artic sea. Within the bay, and cov-
ering an area of ninety-thousand square miles, there is an open sea
from June to October. We find here a vacant space with water at 40°
temperature —eight degrees higher than freezing point.”’
The last narrative of Dr. Kane has since been published, in which
the view is described of the open Polar sea in the month of June, and
the opinion is advanced that its higher temperature arises from a con-
tinuation of the Gulf stream to that most remote locality. More
recently, the observations of Commodore Rogers, in the United States
ship Vincennes, who passed through Behring’s Straits in the summer
of 1855; ‘‘and his observations show uniformly this arrangement or
stratification in the fluid mass of the Arctic ocean—warm and light
water on top, cold water in the middle, and warm and heavy water at
the bottom. This substratum of heavy water was probably within the
tropics, and at the surface when it received its warmth. Water, we
know, is transported to great distances by the under currents of the
sea without changing its temperature but a few degrees on the way.
Beneath the Gulf stream, near the Tropic of Cancer, with the surface
of the ocean above 80°, the deep-sea thermometer of the Coast Survey
reports a current of cold water only 3° above the freezing point. We
know of numerous currents flowing out of the Polar basin and dis-
charging immense volumes of water into the Atlantic; we know of
but one surface current, and that a feeble one, around the North Cape,
that goes into this basin. Hence, weshould conclude that there must
350 METEOROLOGY.
be one or more under-currents of salt and heavy water flowing into the
Arctic basin. A considerable body of water at the temperature of
40° rising to the surface there—as come to the surface it must, in order
to supply the out-going upper currents—would tend mightily to mit-
igate the severe cold of these hyperborean regions.’’
SECTION IX.
ON THE DIURNAL AND ANNUAL DURATION OF SUNLIGHT AND TWILIGHT.
Having thus far considered the intensity of solar radiation upon any
part of the earth, we shall lastly pass to examine its duration.
In several publications it has been stated that ‘‘the sun is, in the
course of the year, the same length of time above the horizon at all
places.’” On applying an accurate analysis, however, it appears, as
will presently be shown, that the annual duration of sunlight is sub-
ject to a very considerable inequality. This annual inequality in-
creases with the distance from the equator, and is proportional to the
sine of the longitude of the sun’s perigee.
The longitude of the perigee on January 1, 1850, was 280° 21’ 25”,
‘and increasing at the rate of 61”.47 annually ; the sine of the longi-
tude of the perigee is therefore decreasing in value every year, and
with it, the inequality of sunlight. At the present time it amounts,
in the latitude of 60°, to 36 hours—being additive in the northern,
and subtractive in the southern hemisphere. That is, in the latitude
of 60° north, the total duration of sunlight ina year is 36 hours more,
and in the latitude of 60° south, 36 hours less than on the equator.
At either pole the inequality amounts to 92 hours, or more than seven
and a half average days of twelve hours each.
Were the earth’s orbit a perfect circle, the inequality could not
exist ; its physical cause lies in the unequal motion of the earth in its
elliptical orbit. During summer of the northern hemisphere, the
earth is in and near aphelion, its longitude, and consequently the de-
clination on which the length of day depends, changes most slowly
from one day to another; whereas, during summer of the southern
hemisphere, it changes the most rapidly, and the longest days are
fewer in number.
The epoch when the annual inequality was at its last maximum, is
found by dividing the present excess of the longitude of the perigee
above three right angles, by the yearly change. ”'The excess, in 1850,
was 10° 21’ 95, which divided by 61.47 gives a quotient of 606. 5
years ; which refers back to the period of the middle ages, A. D. 1243.
At a still earlier epoch, this inequality must have entirely vanished.
At that epoch, the line of the apsides evidently coincided with the
line of the equinoxes, which is computed to have been about 4,000:
years before the birth of Christ, at which time chronologists have fixed
the first residence of man upon the earth. The luminous year was
then of the same length, at all latitudes, from pole to pole.
Though the annual duration of sunlight thus varies from age to.
age, and in the northern hemisphere differs from the southern; yet,
such is the law of the planet’s elliptic motion, that the sun’s annual
METEOROLOGY. 351
intensity at any latittde north, is precisely the same as at an equal
latitude south of the equator. This immediately follows from the
formula, where the annual intensity is developed in a series of powers
of cos L, which is always positive, whether the latitude Z be south or
north.
Proceeding with the investigation, I have computed the annual
duration of sunlight, according to the rising and setting of the sun’s
centre, without regard to refraction. It is the half of 365.24 days, or
182.62 days, increased by the quantities in the following table, for
the northern hemisphere, and diminished by the same for the southern
hemisphere :
Annual Inequality of Sunlight, A. D. 1850.
—y
Latitude. Inequality. Latitude. Inequality:
9° 0h. 00 m. 50° 24 h. 08 m.
10 3 008 60 | 36 51
20 7 07 70 66 52
30 11 23 80 | 86 02
40 16 40 90 92 01
Having thus determined the duration of Sunlight, let us next con-
sider its increase by Refraction and by Twilight. The mean horizon-
tal refraction, according to Mr. Lubbock’s result, is 2075”, or 34! 35”;
the barometer standing at 30 inches, and the thermometer at 50° F.
But as this is somewhat greater than what has been usually employed,
we shall adopt 34’ as the mean value for determining the increase of
daylight by direct refraction.
With respect to the duration of Twilight, A. Bravais, who has
made extensive observations upon the phenomenon, observes in the
Annuaire Météorologique dela France for 1850, p. 34: ‘‘ The length
of twilight is an element useful to be known: by prolonging the day,
it permits the continuance of labor. Unfortunately, philosophers are
not agreed upon its duration. It depends on the angular quantity by
which the sun is depressed below the horizon; but it is also modified
by several other circumstances, of which the principal is the degree of
serenity of the air. Immediately after the setting of the sun, the
curve which forms the separation between the atmospheric zone directly
illuminated by the suh, and that which is only illuminated second-
arily, or by reflection, receives the name of the crepuscular curve, or
Twilight Bow.* Some time after sunset, this bow, in traversing the
heavens from east to west, passes the zenith; this epoch forms the
end of Civil Twilight, and is the moment when planets and stars of
the first magnitude begin to be visible. The eastern half of the
heavens being then removed beyond solar illumination, night com-
mences to all persons in apartments whose windows open to the east.
Still later the Twilight bow itself disappears in the western horizon ;
itis then the end of Astronomic Twilight ; it is closed night. We
* The phenomenon is equally conspicuous in the west, before the rising of the sun, and in
certain states of the atmosphere is scarcely less beautiful than the rainbow, for the symmetry
and vivid tinting of its colors. .
352 METEOROLOGY.
may estimate that civil twilight ends, when the sun has declined 6° |
below the horizon ; and that a decline of 16° is necessary to terminate
the astronomic twilight.
‘‘T depart here from the general opinion, which fixes at 18° the
solar depression at the end of twilight, and at 9° that which charac-
terizes the end of civil twilight. The numbers which I have adopted
are derived from numerous observations.’’ ‘‘ The shortest civil twi-
light takes place on the 29th of September, and on the 15th of March;
the longest on the 21st of June. The shortest astronomic twilight
occurs on the 7th of October, and on the 6th of March; the longest
on the 21st of June, in this latitude. Above the 50th degree of lati-
tude twilight lasts through the whole night at the summer solstice.”
The analytic solution of the problem to find the time of the shortest
twilight was first given by John Bernoulli; the formula may be found
in various astronomical works. The method of Lambert for deter-
mining the height of the atmosphere from twilight being less com-
monly known, a method of solution is given in the Smithsonian
Memoir. Lambert found that when the true depression of the sun
below the horizon was 8° 03’, the height of the twilight arch was 8°
30’; and when the depression was 10° 42’, the altitude of the bow was
6° 20’.
With the given mode of caleulation, the first observations of Lam-
bert determine the height of the atmosphere to be 17 miles; and the
second observations, 25 miles. And a still later observation would
have given a still greater height, owing, perhaps, to the mingling of
direct and reflected rays. The subject awaits further improvement ;
though some extensions have been made by M. Bravais, in the dn-
auaire Meétéorologique de la France for 1850.
If we regard only the appearance of the Twilight bow, the limits of
the sun’s depression assigned by M. Bravais are doubtless nearly
correct, namely, 16° for astronomical, and 6° for civil twilight.
But, regarding only the actual intensity of light falling upon the eye,
it appears that the effects of the bow are further increased by indefi-
nite reflection among the particles of air, and this may increase the
average limits to 9° for civil, and 18° for astronomical twilight.
Without determining which view ought to be adopted, a mean has
here been taken, and the following tables have been calculated on the
assumption that the sun is 74° below the horizon at the end of civil
twilight, and 17° at the end of astronomic twilight.
By subtracting either value from the latitude of the polar circle we
obtain the lowest latitude at which twilight lasts through the whole
night at midsummer. This latitude is about 50° for astronomical,
and 60° for civil twilight. In determining these and other phases,
the increase of the day by refraction and by the twilights may all be
comprehended in one general formula.* ~
then the distance from the Pole to the zenith, 90° — Z, the distance from the Pole to
the sun, 909 —— D, the distance from the zenith to the sun 90° +- m, or three sides of a
apherical triangle are given to find the hour angle + 7, as in the following equation :
— sin L sin D — sin m sin m "
con. (B17) — Vos case Dy). a + cos. H— cos. L cos. D
Hero + denotes the increase by refraction or by Twilight, according as m is taken at 34’,
at 73°, or 17°.
METEOROLOGY. 353
At the pole the duration of twilight is easily found by noting in
the ephemeris the time at which the sun’s declination south is equal
to the depression of the crepusculum circle below the horizon; this
instant and the equinox being its limits of duration. As before indi-
cated, the limit of refractional light is when the sun is 34’ below the
horizon ; civil twilight when it is 7° ; and common or astronomical
twilight when it is 17°. Thus we shall find—
Annual Duration.
|
Sunlight. Refractional | Civil twi- Astronomic | Darkness.
1853.
| light. light. | twilight.
North Pole ------ | 186d. 11h. 2d. 22h. 38d. 15h. 94d. 16h. 84d. 3h.
Latitude 40°__--- | 183d. 8h. Id. 14h. 21d. 6h. 49d. 2h.} 132d. 20h.
Bquatawes=s)o=26 | 182d. 15h. Lidiya: 15d. 21h. 36d. Ih.| 146d. 14h.
From this table it appears that the annual length of darkness
diminishes from the equator to the pole, while the duration of twi-
light increases from about one month on the equator to three months
at the Pole. In this latitude about thirty-eight hours of daylight,
at the sun’s rising and setting, are annually due solely to atmospheric
refraction. The second, fifth, and sixth columns represent 365‘ 6°.
In further illustration of this subject, the duration from noon to
midnight, or from midnight to noon, of sunlight, astronomic twi-
light, and darkness are exhibited to the eye in the accompanying
plate for every day in the year on different latitudes. On the equator
it will be seen that twilight has its least value and is almost uniform
through the year. In the latitude of 40°, the limiting curves of twi-
light bend upward in an arch-like form. The upper curve at the
same time recedes from the lower, and encroaches upon the duration
of darkness, till, as shown for latitude 60°, twilight lasts through the
whole night in summer. If the first and last extremities of the
curves at January and December be united to complete the circuit of
a year, darkness there will be represented by an elliptic segment, the
longest nights and shortest days being at mid-winter. In approach-
ing the highest latitudes, the lines which form the limits continually
change their inclination, till, at the pole, they become perpendicular
to their position at the equator.
The present section contains formule and tables for determining
both the diurnal and the yearly limits of twilight for A. D. 1853,
computed for 34’, 7° 30’, and 17°, depressions of the crepusculum
circle below the horizon, the reasons for which have before been stated.
Although these phenomena are varied by mists and clouds, and by
the atmospheric temperature and density, still the assumption of mean
depressions has been necessary in order to obtain a general view of
their laws of continuance. The duration of moonlight, which is un-
attended by sensible heat, has not been discussed. From this source
the reign of night is still further diminished, till, in this latitude, the
20:8
354 METEOROLOGY.
| L.AT.40°PHILADELPHTA. |
LAT. 60° STOCKHOLM.
NORTH POLE.
i
huss
re
ui
L
METEOROLOGY. 355
remaining duration of total darkness after twilight and moonlight,
can scarcely exceed three months in the year. The interval towards
the close of astronomic or common twilight corresponds to what is
commonly termed, in the country, ‘‘ early candle-light,’’ when the
glimmering landscape fades on the sight and the stars begin to be
visible. The end of civil twilight marks the time at which some city
corporations in Europe are said to have made regulations for lighting
the street lamps.
In conclusion, without entering into further details, the connexion
of solar heat and light has enabled us to exhibit, by the same formule
and curves, the intensities of both in common. Indeed, so close is
the analogy that even the monthly height of the mercurial column,
which shows the temperature, indicates generally the average intensity
of sunlight in that locality.
Half days, or Semi-Diurnal Arcs, in the Northern Hemisphere.
Date. Lat. 0°. |Lat. 10°.) Lat. 20°.!Lat. 30°.|Lat. 40°.) Lat. 50°./Lat. 60°.| Lat. 70°. | Lat. 80°. |Lat. 90°.
1853. h m. h. m. h.m.| h.m h. m h.m h. m h. m h. m. | h. m
January l........| 6 00 5 43 5 24 5 03 4 37 3 58 2 51 0 00 0 00 0 00
Vanuary 16s... ss 6 00 5 44 5 28 5 09 4 45 411 8) 118} 0 00 0 00 0 00
mPaMUaHy Glens « ee 6 00 5 48 5 3d 5 18 5 00 4 33 3 49 2 04 0 00 0 00
February 15...... 6 00 5 51 5 41 5 30 5 ley 4 58 4 29 3 29 0 00 0 00
MMiarehi 2) si; -..| 6 00 Doo 5 50 5 44 5 36 5 26 5 10 4 40 3 00 0 00
March 17.........| 6 00 5 59 5 58 by bY 5 56 5 54 Son 5 46 2.32 0 00
PASTING velmiate:cfela clo 6 00 6 04 6 07 6 11 6 16 6 22 6 32 6 5L 7 49 12 00
PATITILML Giga dele asic n| ee OU 6 07 6 15 6 24 6 35 6 50 {i jie 7 59 12 00 12 00
1 CAD ARSE 6 00 6 11 6 22 6 36 6 53 TAS tie 9 12 12 00 32 00
Mav 16:..... sees 00 6 14 6 29 6 46 7 08 7 38 8 28 10 50 12 00 12 00
My Sirk tee vc 0 100 6 16 6 34 6 54 7:19 {/ BE. 8 58 12 00 12 00 12 00
DUNE Wosiesielsisinics 6 00 6 18 6 36 6 58 ins) 8 04 9 14 12 00 12 00 2 00
DULY, Leen deleieten OnuO 6 17 6 36 6 57 i233 & 02 9 09 12 00 12 00 12 00
DULY? 16s acsameriee Bale 6 16 6 33 6 52 via tok 8 51 12 00 12 00 12 00
July Slee eons 6 00 6 13 6 28 6 44 7 04 @ 32 8 19 10 20 200s 1 + 12°00
August 15. acco ndleGr00 6 10 6 21 6 33 6 48 709 7 42 8 53 12 00 | 12 00
August 30........ | 6 00 6 06 6 13 6 21 6 3L 6 44 7 04 7 43 10 14 12 00
September 14....) 6 00 6 02 6 05 6 08 6 11 6 16 | 6 23 6 37 718 12 00
September 29.. at 6 00 5 59 aor 5 54 ooe 5 48 5 43 5 33 5 03 0 00
October 14....... | 6 00 5 54 5 48 5 41 5 32 5 20 5 02 4 27 2 20 0 00
October 29.......| 6 00 DOL 5 40 5 28 5 13 4 353 4 22 3 14 0 00 0 00
November 13..... | 6 00 5 47 5 33 ae fj 4 57 4 29 3 43 1 46 0 00 0 00
November 28.....| 6 00 5 44 5 27 5 08 4 43 4 09 3 09 0 00 0 00 0 00
December 13.....| 6 00 5 43 5 24 5 03 4 37 3 57 2 49 0 00 0 00 0 00
Increase of the Half Day at Sunrise, or Sunset, by Refraction.
Date. Lat. 0°. |Lat. 10°./Lat. 20°.) Lat. 30°.|Lat. 40°.|Lat.50°.|Lat.60°.| Lat. 70°. | Lat.80°. | Lat. 90°,
| |
|
1853. m. m. m. m. m. m. m. m. m. m.
JANUALY cia ates 2.5 2.5 2.6 2.8 3.3 4.4 67 0.0 0.0 0.00
February......... 2.4 2.4 2.5 Oe! 3.1 3.8 5.1 9.0 0.0 0.00
March 220. cence 2.3 PIES) 25 Dae 3.0 3.8 4.6 7.0 14.0 0.00
‘Aoril) Scere te eee 2.3 2.4 OD 2.8 oes 3.8 5.0 8.0 0.0 0,00
WEN Ze Qeaeo. COOnD 2.4 2.5 2.6 3.2 3.5 4.5 6.1 22.0 0.0 0,00
Wr eeldaccodapade 2.5 2.6 2.8 3.1 3.7 4.9 7.6 0.0 0.0 0.00
Ulcoe iCeccosot: 2.5 2.5 Dull 3.0 3.5 4.7 6.7 0.0 0.0 0.00
AUDUSE scile'scc'sc0 2.4 2.5 PAs 2.8 3.2 4.0 5.2 9.7 0.0 0.00
September......| 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.7 3.1 3.7 4.6 7.0 14.7 0.00
October ......08- 2.3 2.4 Os Dar Ryu 3.7 4.9 Mia 24.3 0.00
November.......- 2.4 25 2.6 2.8 3.2 3.9 Bets) 16.3 0.0 0.00
December ...... 5 Dd Pray LET 259 3.5 | 4.6 ted 0.0 0.0 0.00
i
356
METEVUROLOGY
Duration of Civil Twilight, Morning or Evening.
—$—$—_— ——_———_____|.__ —————_.
rs a | |
1853.
Api Ea ogqooscce
February ........
September.......
Wetaperincacae cae
November.......
December........
Lat. 0°, |Lat. 10°.|Lat. 20°.|/Lat. 30°./Lat. 40°./Lat. 50°.|Lat. 60°.
m m m. m m m h. m.
32 33 34 37 43 Lyf 1 16
31 31 32 35 40 49 115
30 30 32 35 39 50 1 03
30 31 33 36 41 50 1 08
32 33 34 42 45 58 1 37
33 34 36 40 48 64 2 46*
32 33 35 39 46 61 2 03
31 32 33 36 42 52 MS
30 31 32 35 40 47 1 02
30 31 32 35 40 AT 1 OL
3l 32 34 37 42 51 110
33 33 35 38 44 60 1 22
]
Lat. 70°.
h. m.
3 21+
1 40
1 29
2 08
10%
0 00
0 00
3 07*
1735
1 31
216
2 42 |
Lat. 80°.
Lat. 90°
h. m.
0 00
0 00
12 00;
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
12 00f
0 00
0 00
35
=
+
+
counhooooownoy
cenvneooooosscse
coonoocoece
Duration of Astronomical Twilight, Morning or Evening.
Date.
1853.
January.....-000.
February. ae
Mfarchiatrs aries s sis
END ail an goaoposKs
May... 5500
Ue Chcongacne
July ee cece
JAUZUSE ci. cleccces
September.......
October ..... Aocc
November.......
December...-....
Lat. 0°. |Lat. 10°.|Lat. 20°.|Lat. 30°.|Lat. 40°.|Lat. 50°.|Lat. 60°.
hy Menthe amy ibe ms leks, heme) Dm.
113 1138 a aby 1 24 1 39 1 56 2 38
110 110 114 1 20 1 30 1 43 2 20
1 08 1 09 ae 119 1 30 1 48 2 21
1 09 on ay Rs) 1 24 1 36 2 O01 3 06
1 12 114 119 1 29 1 48 2 37 Soak
114 Pan, 1993 135 1 59 3156" ||) 2464
113 1 16 by I 1 32 1 54 2 59 3 09*
110 i) ip) 1 16 1 25 1 40 211 4 18*
1 08 1 09 113 118 st Mol 2 30
1 09 110 113 119 129 1 47 218
pag 112 115 1 22 188} 1 yp) 2 29
114 WAS 118 TERS 1 37 2 00 2 47
Lat. 70°.
5
—
*
weoorrnwwounr
SS S55 S22 nhs hs
9
*
*
5 23*
Lat. 80°.
Lat. 90°.
h. m.
0 00
12 00}
12 00+
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
0 00
12 00+
0 00
0 00
et 3
wmoococooeecnu
*
WHUIRSOCOOCOMUNSS
wWrhhhOCOSCSCW 4+
tot
+
* Twilight through the whole night.
Nore.—Astronomical Twilight includes the duration of Civil Twilight.
7 Twilight without day.
REPORT
OF
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
emvis tits) Shs ee ste eee
BY Dr. JOH. MULLER,
PROFESSOR OF PHYSICS AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF FREIBURG.
—
[Translated from the German for the Smithsonian Institution. ]
This work, which was commenced in the last annual report, p. alr,
is continued in the present volume.
Some of the subjects discussed may be familiar to the readers of
English scientific works, but these are retained for two reasons—firstly,
because their omission would destroy the continuity of the narrative of
scientific progress, and, secondly, because these very subjects serve
as a text for the introduction of views held by continental philoso-
phers, with very few exceptions, and yet not sufficiently well known
to those who derive their information from the ordinary English
works upon electricity.
SECTION FIRST.
FRICTIONAL ELECTRICITY.
ELECTRIC RELATIONS OF DIFFERENT SUBSTANCES, ELECTRICAL MACHINES, AND
ELECTROMETERS.
§ I. ELEcrricrry oF MACHINE-MADE PAPER.—It has been long known
that paper becomes electrified by friction ; and the excitation of elec-
tricity in the manufacture of machine paper is not a new phenomenon ;
possibly there were few proprietors of paper mills who had not observed
it, yet this phenomenon was described for the first time by Haukel.—
(Pogg .Ann., LV, 477,)
In every machine the paper becomes highly negative on leaving the
last pair of pressing rollers. If the finger is brought near to the
paper, between the finishing rollers and the reel, a brush passes from
it to the paper, and a Leyden jar can be readily charged. The paper,
too, which has been wound upon the reel is electrified, and notably so
when there is a large roll upon the reel. When the paper is cut off
from the reel, and the long sheets are pulled apart, very strong,
brilliant sparks pass between them.
This electricity evidently arises merely from the heating of the
paper and its compression by the rollers. No rubbing friction can
take place since the velocity of revolution of all of the rollers 1s ex-
actly the same.
358 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
§ 2. ScHONBEIN’S ELECTRICAL PAPER.—By a process similar to that used
in the preparation of gun-cotton, Schdnbein has succeeded in converting
paper into a perfectly transparent substance, which, by the slightest
friction, becomes extraordinarily electrified, (Pogg. Ann., LX VIII,
159,) and which he employed in the construction of an electrical
machine.
Such a substance must be in the highest degree acceptable to the
experimental physicist, and it is so much the more to be regretted
that Schinbein and Bétiger have published nothing further on this
subject, although electrical paper is now offered for salein Berlin. In
most cases the electrical paper can be replaced by thin sheets of gutta
percha.
§ 3. ELEcTRICITY OF GUTTA PERCHA.—Gutta percha is such a good in-
sulator, and becomes so powerfully electrified by friction, that these
properties of a substance, already applied to so many uses, could not
long remain unknown. Towards the close of the winter in 1848,
Dr, Hasenclever, of Aachen, called my attention to this peculiarity of
gutta percha, and I had already used it in the construction of an
electrophorus, when I found, in the March number of the Phil. Mag.,
amemoir by Faraday upon this subject, a translation of which ap-
peared in Pogg. Ann., (LXXIV, 154.) The following is the sub-
stance of Faraday’s remarks upon the electric and insulating properties
of gutta percha:
A good piece of gutta percha insulates as perfectly asa similar piece of
shellac, whether the form be that of a plate, a rod, or a mere thread;
but, as it is tough and pliable when cold, as well as soft when warm,
it serves a better purpose, in many cases, than the brittle shellac. In
the form of strings and bands it is an excellent suspending insulator,
and in that of plates it is the most convenient insulating support.
By friction gutta percha becomes powerfully negative. Some of it
is sold in sheets no thicker than ordinary paper; if a strip of this be
drawn between the fingers, it becomes so much electrified that it
adheres to the hand and attracts bits of paper.
A plate of gutta percha makes an excellent electrophorus.
All kinds of gutta percha are not equally good insulators. If a
piece of the proper kind is cut, the surface has a resinous lustre and a
compact appearance, whilea piece of the poorer kind has not the same
degree of lustre, is less translucent, and looks almost like a solidified
cloudy fluid.
Ifa piece which conducts is heated in a current of hot air or over a low
gas flame, pulled out, folded up and then kneaded for some time with
the fingers, as if to squeeze out the contained moisture, it becomes as
good an insulator as the best kind.
A piece which insulates, will, if soaked in water for four days, re-
over its insulating power by an exposure to the air for twelve hours.
A piece which does not insulate is greatly improved after lying for
eight days in a drying closet; the outer layer insulates, but a freshly
cut surface shows that the inside still conducts.
Gutta percha of any kind exposed to a gradually increasing tem-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 359
perature at 170 to 180° cent. gives out a considerable quantity of
water, and after cooling insulates well.
§ 4. ELECTRICITY OF RUBBED GLAss.—It is well known that the kind
of electricity which glass receives by friction depends upon the rub-
bing substance. But Heintz, (Pogg. Ann., LIX, 305,) has further
shown that, by various means, glass may be brought into such a con-
dition that by a slight rubbing it becomes negative, with substances
which, under ordinary circumstances, make it positive.
Ifa glass rod be passed several times through the flame of a spirit
lamp, (whereby every trace of adhering electricity must be dissipated, )
and-then rubbed gently with cloth, which ordinarily renders it posi-
tive, it becomes negative, and it is only after a continued aad stronger
friction that positive electricity appears.
It is not the heat of the glass rod which produces this effect, for if
after having been passed through the flame the rod is allowed to be-
come perfectly cold, or even laid aside for several days, it still becomes
negative by slight friction with cloth.
This experiment shows that heat is not the immediate cause of the
above mentioned phenomenon, but it might be possible that the heat
of the flame was the cause of the condition of the surface of the glass,
by virtue of which it became negative by slight rubbing. But Heiniz
has shown that even this is not the case.
If a perfectly clean glass rod be wrapped in tin foil, or put into a
glass tube, and then held in the flame of a spirit lamp, so that the
flame does not touch it, but still heats it, the above mentioned pecu-
liarity does not appear, even if the temperature has been carried to a
high degree.
In order to give to glass this peculiar property, it is not necessary
to hold it within the flame, it is sufficient to pass it back and forth at
a distance of about three inches above the top of the flame of a good
spirit lamp with double current of air.
To clean the glass rod properly it should be washed with a solution
of caustic potash, and rinsed with distilled water.
Other flames produce the same effect as that of alcohol.
The chemical action of the products of combustion cannot be the
cause of this phenomenon, for steam does not produce it, but the flame
of burning hydrogen does, and in this case nothing but the vapor of
water is produced.
Ifa glass rod be dipped into concentrated sulphuric, muriatic or
nitric acid, and rinsed after its removal with distilled water, until the
drops no longer show an acid reaction, the adhering water thrown off,
and what still remains allowed to evaporate—the rod acts precisely in
the same way as it would have done if it had been passed through the
flame of a spirit lamp, it becomes negative by friction.
Alkalies do not act like the acids, they cause the glass rod to become
decidedly positive.
There is. a great difference between the various specimens of glass
in regard to the facility with which they assume the above described
condition.
Upon rock crystal, calespar, gypsum and heavy spar, the flame has
the same action as upon glass.
360 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
On the other hand, such substances as ordinarily become negative
by friction could not, by the employment of similar means, be so
changed as to become positive.
In relation to the rubbing substance, it is shown by the experiments
that for cloth, may be substituted leather, sealing wax or silk, but
not Kienmaier’s amalgam; on the other hand, a glass rod prepared in
the flame of a spirit lamp and rubbed with tin foil shows negative
electrcity; the same effect is produced by the other metals; even on
dipping a prepared glass rod but once into mercury, it is drawn out
with negative electricity; by repeated dippings, however, it is ren-
dered positive. ;
To say ‘‘that the glass rod, held in the flame of any combustible
substance, or dipped into concentrated acids undergoes a change upon
its surface, which cannot be discovered immediately by the senses, but
which can be recognized by means of the electroscope,’’ can by no
means be called an explanation, it is simply a modified statement of
the fact.
§ 5. ON THE CONDUCTING POWER OF CERTAIN SUBSTANCES.—/ess has ex-
amined many substances with reference to their conducting power,
and their capability of becoming electrified by friction.—(Pogg. Ann.,
TEReIVESD E:)
A small rod of selenium, three lines thick, will discharge a gold leaf
electrometer almost instantaneously, and by means of it sparks may
be drawn from the conductor of an electrical machine ; insulated and
rubbed in one spot by flannel, it becomes negatively electrified in every
part. In its ordinary condition, consequently, the surface of selenium
conducts. If in one spot a new surface is made by fusion, it does not
conduct electricity as well as before, and a thread of selenium drawn
out in a flame insulates as well as shellac. Rubbed with flannel, leather,
linen, or even drawn between the dry fingers, such a thread becomes
strongly negative.
Selenium, therefore, is a non-conductor, and becomes electric by
friction, if its surface be perfectly clean.
fodine is an imperfect conductor of electricity. A rod of this sub-
stance, 64 lines thick and 20% lines long, discharged an electroscope
in one second ; without insulation this cylinder could not be electrified ;
when insulated and rubbed against flannel it became feebly negative.
vetinasphaltum insulates, provided that pieces with a clear vitreous
surface are used. Leather—brown pieces with a rough ragged surface,
on the other hand, conduct, as is also the case with bits of amber hav-
ing rough surfaces.
Aluminum and glucinum in the form of powder, when properly dried,
are non-conductors.
§ 6. PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY BY STEAM ESCAPING THROUGH NARROW
PASSAGES.—Mr. Armstrong, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, towards the close
of 1840, received information that, at Saghill, near Newcastle, a very
extraordinary phenomenon had been observed on the escape of steam
from a boiler. (Pogg. Ann. LU, 328, Phil. Mag. vol. XVII, p. 370
and 452, vol. XVIII, p. 50.)—Steam was escaping from a leaky joint
near the safety valve, and the engine tender, having one hand acci-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 361
dentally in the jet, had with the other taken hold of the lever to adjust
the weight of the safety valve, when a spark passed between his hand
and the lever, and he received a severe electrical shock.
Armstrong went to the place, and verified this statement; but the
sparks were not so powerful as they had been before, which he as-
eribed to the circumstance that, the day before his arrival, the boiler
had been cleaned by the removal of a thin calcareous incrustation 5
this, however, his subsequent investigations showed had no influence
whatever upon the excitation of electricity.
In continuing his investigations, Armstrong stood upon an insula-
ting stool, and found that then the sparks were much stronger. A
metallic rod, with a brass plate at one‘end anda ball at the other,
was held by an insulating handle, with the plate in the jet of steam ;
the whole insulated conductor showed signs of electricity, and sparks
could be drawn from the knob. When the knob was brought within
a quarter of an inch of the boiler, between sixty and seventy sparks
passed in a minute. The greatest distance between the knob and the
boiler at which a spark appeared was one inch.
The load upon the valve was thirty-five pounds to the square inch.
The electrical excitement increased and decreased with the tension of
the steam in the boiler.
The electricity of the steam and of the conductor held in it was
positive.
Investigations made upon other boilers gave similar results ; very
powerful sparks were obtained from a locomotive. Armstrong stood
upon an insulating stool, and took in one hand a light iron rod, which
he held in the steam escaping from the safety valve. When the other
hand was brought near an uninsulated conductor, he obtained sparks
an inch long. The length of the sparks increased to two inches when
the rod was held five or six feet above the safety valve.
Even from the cloud of steam in the engine house in which the
locomotive stood, electricity could be drawn as by a lightning-rod
from a storm cloud.
When the upper end of the rod held in the hand was provided with
a brush of wire, sparks four inches long could be drawn from a knob
on the lower end.
To discover the negative electricity corresponding to the positive of
the escaping steam, the locomotive was raised from the rails, and its
wheels placed upon insulating supports. Each of these supports con-
sisted of three blocks of dried wood, covered with pitch, and separated
by layers of pitch and paper. To avoid increasing the height, and
at the same time to extend the insulating surface, the middle block
was made much wider than the others. The water in the boiler was
then made to boil. As long as the steam was confined, the boiler
gave no signs of electricity; but as soon as it was allowed to escape,
the boiler became strongly negative.
The sparks from the boiler were never more than one inch long,
and this is easily understood when we consider that the electricity of
the boiler, on account of the numerous angles and prominences of the
locomotive, could not attain a high tension.
The experiments which Armstrong made to discover the source of
362 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
the electricity of steam boilers need not be described, as they led to
no decisive results. We now pass to the investigations made by
Faraday upon this subject. :
§ 7. FARADAY’S RESEARCHES ON HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.—The substance
of the results obtained by Faraday in these researches is given in my
Lehrbuch der Physik.—(Vol. I, 2d pt., p. 82, 3d ed.) It is only
necessary at present to give some of the details.
The apparatus employed by Faraday (Pogg. Ann, LX, 321) was
not intended to produce steam in quantity, or of high pressure; his
Fig. 1. object being to discover the cause of
the phenomenon, and not to increase
the electric development. His boiler
held 10 gallons of water, and would
allow the evaporation of 5 gallons.
= To this boiler was attached a pipe
41 feet long and about } of an inch
in diameter, at the end of which was
a globe about 4 inches in diameter,
designated in the experiments as the
steam globe, (fig. 1.) To this dif-
erent mouth-pieces could be screwed. The boiler was well insulated.
For a mouth-piece, a narrow boxwood tube may be. screwed to the
steam globe. If the globe contains no water, the issuing steam, after
the first moment, and as soon as the apparatus becomes hot, excites
no electricity. But if the globe contains so much water that it passes
out with the steam, an abundance of electricity appears.
Instead of the boxwood tube, the apparatus rep- Fig. 2.
resented in fig. 2 may be used. This consists of a a
narrow tube, into the upper side of which water
may be allowed to enter from the small vessel 6 on
opening the stop-cock c. If the steam globe con-
tains no water, and the cock cis closed, no elec-
tricity is obtained when the steam escapes ; but as
soon as the cock is opened so that the water can
drop into the issue pipe and be carried off with the
steam, electricity is instantly developed.
Hence it follows that steam alone is not sufficient
for the development of electricity ; there must be
condensed steam, consequently, drops of water,
to rub upon the side of the escape pipe, or, in other
words, the electricity is due entirely to the friction
of the particles of water carried out by the steam.
If, instead of pure water, a very dilute solution
of any salt or acid be employed in the apparatus shown infig. 2, the
development of electricity ceases entirely.
This arises, as Faraday justly remarks, from the conducting power
of water being so much increased by these agents that the electricity
developed by its rubbing upon metal, or any other substance, is im-
mediately discharged again. The case is just the same as if we
attempt to excite shellac by flannel which is moist instead of dry.
As ammonia increases the conducting power of water only ina
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS, 363
small degree, Faraday concluded that a solution of ammonia, in the
place of pure water, introduced into the escape tube, would still per-
mit the development of electricity. Experiment verified this pre-
diction.
The metals, wood, glass, shellac, sulphur, &c., become negative by
the friction of the jet of steam and water, while the jet itself is posi-
tive.
An ivory tube, used as an issue piece, causes scarcely any electrical
excitement, so that neither the boiler nor the jet is electrified.
When the neutral jet of steam and water is caused to impinge upon
various substances, electricity is developed. If threads or strings of
different kinds be stretched upon a fork of stout wire, and then ex-
posed, when insulated, to the neutral jet, they become excited, as may
be shown by the gold leaf electrometer. In this way, Maraday found
that linen, cotton, silk, wool, yarn, &c., became negative by the
friction of the unexcited jet. |
When Faraday held an insulated wire in the jet, made positive by
issuing from a glass or metal tube, at the distance of half an inch
from the mouth of the tube, it was not excited; held nearer to the
opening it became negative ; remoyed to a greater distance, however,
it was positive. The reason of this is, that the wire, when near the
tube in the forcible part of the current, is excited and becomes nega-
tive, rendering the jet more positive than before ; removed further
off, in the quieter part of the current, there is no sensible excitement
by friction, and the wire then acts only as a conductor to the positive
jet, and shows the same state with it.
If some oil of turpentine be introduced through the stop-cock
(fig. 2) into the escape tube, the boiler becomes positive, and the jet
negative; if the stop-cock be closed again, the condition of things
is soon reversed, as the oil is very rapidly dissipated. With olive oil,
the phenomena are in general the same,—1. e., the jet of stream and
water becomes negative, the boiler positive ; but this condition is more
permanent, the oil not being volatile. A very little olive oil in the
exit tube makes the boiler positive for a long time.
If a wooden tube be used as an exciter, and some olive oil applied to
its inner end, or that at which the steam enters, the boiler becomes
positive, and the issuing steam negative ; butif the oil be applied to
the outer end of the tube, the boiler becomes negative and the steam
jet positive.
If a simple exit tube be screwed into the steam globe, the oil will
produce the same effect as before, provided some oil be put upon the
water in the steam globe; but if the latter contain nojwater and only
oil, there will be no development of electricity.
Lard, spermaceti, beeswax, castor oil, resin dissolved in alcohol,
and laurel oil act like olive oil and oil of turpentine.
Faraday thinks that these effects are to be explained by consider-
ing that the sides of the tube are rubbed, not by water, but by oil,
each globule of water being covered by a very thin film of oil.
In confirmation of this view, that the oil spreads in thin films upon
the surface of the water, he has shown that the addition of acid or
salt, which in other cases prevents any excitement of electricity, in
364 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
the presence of oil does not have this effect; that is, when oil is in the
escape tube, electricity is developed if the water be slightly acid or
saline.
I do not, however, see among these facts a single one opposed to the
view which seems to me to be at least more natural, namely: that
we have not to consider the friction of the oil on the sides of the
tube, but that of water on the sides affected by the oil; a view which
Faraday does not entirely exclude, when he says: ‘‘ It is very probable
that when wood, glass, or even metal is rubbed by these oily currents,
the oil may be considered as rubbing not merely against wood, &c.,
but against water also,’ &c.
When, from a vessel containing compressed air, a jet was caused to
impinge upon a cone of wood or brass, placed in Fig. 3.
front of the opening, as shown in fig. 3, there was
no indication of electricity as long as the air was
perfectly dry ; but whenever the air was moist, the
cone became negative. Faraday ascribes this ex-
citation of electricity to the particles of water
which were condensed by the expansion and
cooling of the air striking against the cone. These particles were
visible both in the mist which appeared and by their moistening the
surface of the wood or metal.
If the current of air carried particles of water which it had taken
up in its course against the cone, the latter, as might have been ex-
pected, became negatively excited.
If the current of air carried with it the powders of different sub-
stances, these, too, were found to excite electricity. Flowers of su/phur,
tor instance, made wood and metal negative, pulverized quartz made
both positive. Other substances, such as pulverized resin and gum,
gave variable results.
§ 8. EXcITATION OF ELECTRICITY BY THE ESCAPE OF LIQUID CARBONIC
actp.—On a strong glass support, by means of a wooden attachment,
Jolly insulated Natterer’s condensation apparatus, with the exit pipe
directed downwards. When the opening was unscrewed, and the
liquid carbonic acid escaped, the apparatus became electric, and small
sparks could be drawn from it.
§ 9. ARMSTRONG’S HYDRO-ELECTRIC MACHINE.—A description of this
machine will be found in my Lehrbuch der Physik, (Miiller’s Physics.)
Compared with the largest and best plate machines, it does not excel
so much by a greater tension, as by its affording a far greater quan-
tity of electricity. The length of the sparks is not greater than in
the most remarkable plate machines, but experiments which require,
in a short time, a great quantity of electricity, are rendered much
more striking by the hydro-electric machine.
The greatest power is developed when the electricity is drawn off
in the form of a current without disruptive discharge. Thus the true
electrolytic decomposition of water, which had never before been ac-
complished unequivocally by frictional electricity, was performed in
the clearest and most distinct manner by the hydro-electric machine.
Ten wine glasses were arranged ina row. They contained—
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 365
1 and 2, distilled water.
3 and 4, distilled water + + vol. sulphuric acid.
5, solution of sulphate of soda, reddened by acidified litmus.
6, solution of sulphate of soda, made blue by litmus.
7, solution of sulphate of magnesia reddened by acidified litmus.
8, solution of sulphate of magnesia made blue by litmus.
9, distilled water reddened by acidified litmus.
10, distilled water made blue by litmus.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Glass tubes, 34 inches long, and closed at one end around platinum
wires passing into them some distance, were filled with the respective
fluids and connected by means of the wires, (fig. 4,) {as shown in
glasses 2 and 3, 4and 5, 6 and 7, 8 and 9, while 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5
and 6, 7 and 8, 9 and 10 were connected by wet cotton threads; two
of the above described tubes were placed, one in No. 1, the other in
No. 10. The wire of the tube in No. 1 was connected with the boiler,
and that of the tube in No. 10 with a leaden water pipe leading into
a well.
As soon as the steam electric machine was put into operation, bubbles
of gas appeared upon all the wires, but upon the negative in exactly
double the volume of those upon the positive wire; subsequent exam-
ination showed the former to be hydrogen and the latter oxygen.
After two or three minutes, the water in glass No. 9 became blue
around the wire, and that in No. 10, red; similar changes of color
appeared, but not so soon, in the solutions of glauber salt and of epsom
salt.
The experiment was continued until the tension of the steam was
reduced from 75 to 40 pounds per square inch. The steam was then
shut off and the boiler kept closed until the original tension was again
reached, when the experiment was repeated with the same result.
In similar experiments, Armstrong carried the current through only
two glasses filled with distilled water, when the well known phenom-
enon of the voltaic battery appeared ; the level in the glass eontain-
ing the negative pole rose considerably, while it fell in the other.
Another interesting phenomenon was then observed. When the
two glasses were filled to the brim with water, brought within 0.4 of
an inch of each other, and connected by a moistened silk thread, a
quantity of which was coiled up in the water of each, the following
phenomena were noticed:
366 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
1. A column of water enveloping the thread immediately passed
between the glasses, and the silk thread was quickly drawn over from
the glass connected with the negative pole into the one containing
the positive pole, or that which led into the ground.
2. After this had taken place, the column of water continued for
a few seconds suspended between the glasses without the support of
the thread, and when it broke, the electricity passed in sparks.
3. When one end of the silk thread was fastened in the negative
glass, the water diminished in the positive glass and increased in the
negative ; showing apparently that its motion was opposed to that of
the thread when free to move.
4, By scattering particles of dust upon the surface of the water, it
was ascertained that two opposite currents passed between the glasses :
an inner one from the negative to the positive, and an outer one, en-
closing the other, from the positive to the negative. Sometimes the
outer current did not pass over into the negative glass, but trickled
down on the outside, and then the water did not increase in the nega-
tive glass, but diminished in both.
5. After many fruitless attempts, the water was made to pass from
one glass to the other for several minutes without the help of a thread.
At the end of this time, no material variation in the quantity of water
in either of the glasses could be detected. Hence it appears that the
two currents were nearly, if not exactly equal, when the inner one
was not retarded by the friction of the thread.
For the success of these experiments, it is essential that the water
should be chemically pure. The least impurity caused the water to
boil on the thread, which, becoming nearly dry, is destroyed by the
heat developed by the current of electricity.
Other chemical effects, such as the precipitation of copper, from its
solutions, upon silver, the decomposition of iodide of potassium, &c.,
were well shown by this electrical machine.
Finally, the electricity developed by steam, when conducted through
a coil of wire, deflected the magnetic needle and magnetized a cylin-
der of soft iron.
$10. THE SOURCE OF ATMOSPHERIC ELECTRICITY STILL UNKNOWN—. Long
ago Volta and Saussure expressed the opinion that the atmospheric
electricity might have its origin in the evaporation of water, and sup-
ported this view by experiments showing the development of elec-
tricity by evaporation. 'Their experiments, however, did not always
give constant results. The source of this uncertainty seemed to have
been discovered by the investigations of Powillet ; according to his
experiments, the development of electricity does not take place on the
evaporation of pure water, but on the evaporation of water holding in
solution salt, acid, or alkalies,
In the first edition of my work, based on Pouillet’s Physics, these
experiments are noticed on page 521 of the first part. Even then
these experiments did not appear to me to be conclusive; they seemed
to have been made without following the precautions necessary to the
establishment of Pouillet’s views beyond doubt ; and hence I was led
to conclude the paragraph with the expression of the hope that a crit-
ical revision of these experiments might be made. In the later edi-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 367
tions of my Lehrbuch der Physik, the whole paragraph was omitted,
its matter seeming to me too problematical, and therefore unsuitable
for a text book.
The discovery of Armstrong, and the investigations of Maraday
upon the development of electricity by escaping steam, gave a new
point of view for the interpretation of Powillet’s experiments, which
led Reich and Reiss to repeat them, and thus to discover the true rela-
tion of the conditions concerned in the case.
Reich has published his experiments in the Abhandlungen bei der
Begriindung der konigl. scichsischen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, &c.
Leipsic, 1846, p. 199.
He verified the experiment as described by Powillet. A clean pla-
tinum crucible is insulated and connected with a sensitive electroscope,
first heated and then removed from the source of heat ; if then pure
water be dropped into it and allowed to evaporate, no electricity is
obtained, either with or without the condenser.
But if a solution of common salt be dropped into the hot crucible,
as long as the drop rolls about in the spheroidal state, by reason of
the high heat of the crucible, we obtain, as before, no electricity, or, at
most, but a mere trace of it; but as soon as the crucible has cooled
enough to allow the liquid to boil away, the electroscope is charged
with negative electricity, and pretty strongly, too, if the crucible is a
large one.
The use of the condenser has hardly any advantage, as nearly the
same results are obtained without as with it.
This, and the fact that the development of electricity commenced as
suddenly as the boiling, were considered by Leich as decidedly sup-
porting the view that the electricity is not owing to evaporation, but
has its origin solely in the friction of the particles of water dashed
about upon the hot sides of the crucible.
Now, if friction is the source of the electricity, it is clear that a
powerful development of it can only take place when the particles of
water are thrown about with violence. As the liquid is dropped into
the vessel, traces of electricity sometimes appear, because, as this is
done, a few particles of water are occasionally thrown out.
The electricity developed by the friction of the drops thrown out
upon the sides of the vessel has sufficient tension to cause the diver-
gence of the gold leaves of the electroscope, but the development is
not continuous ; hence the condenser is of no use.
The non-appearance of electricity when pure water is employed is
easily explained; for, with the solution of salt, the violent boiling
commences when the sides of the vessel have a far higher tempera-
ture than they have when pure water begins to boil. When the par-
ticles of pure water are thrown off they touch the sides of the vessel,
already cool enough to be moistened by them; but when the solution
of salt is used, the sides are so hot that the drops roll off.
In a platinum crucible, properly connected with an electroscope,
Reich raised quartz sand, bit of porcelain, rusted iron filings, &c., to a
red heat, removed the lamp, and sprinkled these substances with pure
water. Under such circumstances a very perceptible evolution of elec-
tricity took place, while when the crucible was empty not a trace was
found.
368 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Riess, in a short paper, (Pogg. Ann., LXIX, 286,) says that the
memoir of fetch recalled similar experiments made by himself as early
as 1844, among which he cites the following as particularly striking
and instructive :
A platinum spoon, with a round mouth, holding 0.24 grammes of
water, was insulated and connected by a wire with Behren’s and
Fechner’s electroscope. The spoon was raised to a white heat by a
spirit lamp placed beneath, the lamp rapidly removed, and a quan-
tity of solution of salt, nearly sufficient to fill the spoon, was then
introduced by a pipette. The liquid passed into the spheroidal state,
rotated, and, when the cooling had reached a certain point, was
thrown out of the spoon with violent ebullition. During the whole
course of this experiment no electricity showed itself.
A strip of platinum foil was rolled into a cylinder seventeen lines
long and five in diameter, and placed over the cavity of the spoon:
the previous experiment was then repeated. On the violent boiling
of the fluid so much —E. was produced that the gold leaf struck the
opposite pole.
This experiment, which can always be repeated with the same
result if the surface of the platinum be previously freed from the salt
deposited, teaches us that in Pouillet’s experiment the source of the
electrical excitement is not in the chemical separation brought about
by the evaporation, but in the friction of the finely divided particles
of fluid upon the sides of the vessel, provided that the fluid rolls over
the sides without wetting them.
By slow evaporation /?iess could never obtain a trace of electricity,
neither could Reich develope any by evaporation under the boiling
point.
All of the experiments which eich made to discover a possible
development of electricity by the condensation of steam gave uni-
formly negative results.
Riess also repeated Pouillet’s experiments on the development of
electricity by the process of vegetation. An insulated porcelain vessel
was filled with loam, and cresses sowed in it. The earth, always kept
moist, was connected by a brass wire with the collecting plate of a
six-inch condenser. The condensing plate, when raised, was tested
by a pile electroscope. From March until April, 1844, Riess caused
cresses to germinate eleven times, examining the condenser daily
until they had reached the height of two inches. ‘Traces of electricity
were often found, but not of a constant kind. Some check experi-
ments, with earth alone, made it probable that even these traces did
not arise from the vegetation.
From all of these experiments, it follows that the opinion, that in
evaporation and in the process of vegetation are to be found the sources
of atmospheric electricity, is altogether without experimental foundation.
§ 11. Tue ELEcTRICAL MAcHINE.—The electrical machine belongs to
the most common and best known of physical apparatus, and yet
powerful machines can rarely be obtained at a moderate price. On
this account, I think it will be interesting to many to learn the mode
of construction according to which Carl Winter (electrician, &c., Wie-
den, Waaggase No. 501, Vienna) makes machines of excellent per-
formance and at a very reasonable price.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 369
Fig. 5 represents a machine, about one-ninth its actual size, with a
15-inch plate, giving sparks seven to nine inches in length. The
axis ¢ of the plate, as well as the supports h g fand J, are of glass.
The rods / carry the axis of the plate, f bears the rubber, g the con-
ductor, and / the discharger. eh
1fe oO-
The prime conductor a, the spheres 6 and c, are all of sheet brass.
To diminish, as far as possible, the loss of electricity by the support
g, the conductor a has the form advantageously used in the great
Harlem machine by Van Marum, as shown in section in fig. 6.
The conductor carries two wooden rings d, between which the plate
revolves. These rings are of polished wood, and are provided, on the
sides opposite the.glass plate, with strips of tin foil, from which the
collecting points project. These strips are continued to the conductor
a, to which they carry the collected electricity.
From the bulb 6 projects a wooden rod about one inch in diameter,
and rather more than a foot long; to this is attached a wooden ring
about two feet in diameter, whose section is equal to that of the rod.
Both the rod and the ring are covered with tin foil.
The discharger N is connected with the conductor of the rubber by
a metallic cord m, enveloped in silk ribbon.
To obtain negative electricity, we have only to detach the cord m
from the conductor of the rubber, and put the conductor a in con-
nexion with the ground.
. The arrangement for holding the rubber is shown detached in
fig. 7. Upon the glass rod f stands the fork-shaped piece of wood
24g
370 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYsICS.
nm, on the inner sides of which there are mortises for the reception of
the rubber ; along the middle of the face of n there runs a strip of tin
foil which receives the electricity from the spring of the rubber, and
leads it to the negative conductor o.
The rubber itself is shown in fig. 8, the oiled silk attached to it
being omitted. is a wooden slide which goes into the mortise of the
support m. gis a projection which prevents the rubber from slipping
out. Upon theslide p the amalgamated leather r is fastened. When
the rubber is slid into its place, the metallic spring s, screwed by its
narrow end to p, is compressed, and thus forces the rubber against
the glass plate.
Fig. 6.
In the middle of the projection g, a strip of tin foil is seen ; this
leads from the amalgamated side of the leather to the spring s, from
which the electricity is conveyed to the conductors 0 in the;manner
above described.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 371
Fig. 9 represents the rubber as seen from the
amalgamated side of the leather, with its two
flaps of oiled silk, ¢ being single and w double.
With remarkable power, Winter’s machines
combine, as we have just seen, great simplicity
of construction. :
The following are the prices of Winter’s machines, with the dis-
charger:
Price.
Size of plate. Length of spark.
Florins con. Wes:
AQPINCHER Secs «ce: ome Noie setae cee QBito Za WNCHOS: scece aes) «eet e 300 $150
WO wINGh Nene scsee ees cree Se 20 to s2ninchesys-4. cues sec ee 200 ' 100
SOPInCHEs ws eae kaos we bces 16 to'dSainches!-.3-cassoncese 160 80
Ar INGHER aaa caso oes ccleec's 2 toulauinchesss+. 2 essa eoneee 80 40
Ite hili{el Gs Be GaSe ioc Bee eons 96:10 inches::. 5. ..-- eee. 60 30
A OMINCHES see ces Bee ese es 7 to! -O) ANCHOBO. «sso cerewes 50 25
ID anches eet ee Soo ene cece DitOn FMChOS.ccsecs sais. noms 40 20
| OeINChessee esas os se ~ am A‘GOL OD UINCHOS:. wclnceietocecee 30 15
Seinchesspemesececicee cess a oto 4p Inches aseanece testes 20 10
Guinchosincash cece. claciass Oto ounches: saa aseecceas 12 6
Machines of similar construction and equal power, but less elegantly
finished :
Price.
Size of plate. 3
Florins con. U.S
Manan 6 slass BAS ooaes ae e eek eee tha a 50 |) $35
PINCHES Ste Sec e cise ae Satie em elec iniabe Maeiminletese weuctate 40 20
V2 INCHES. «2-2-5 oon cmc cn cane oa mn enwnes won ces eons venma= ' 30 15
MeinCHeR ee ee oan eo ee cas Dos eee ee mais stem e ese te 20 10
ITICHOR ee See he en eee tee waaeeie tee ae tata wecetwas 16 8
GyNnCGHENses sono wkeweee BA Desh sg Smee cbeiows cite seine 10 5
Winter has really displayed great taste in the arrangement of elec-
trical apparatus, and has given a new and better form to many elec-
trical experiments and toys.
He has constructed Leyden jars of extraordinary striking distance,
of which more will be said in another place.
That he has succeeded in telegraphing and in kindling powder at
a distance of 15,600 feet with frictional electricity, shows with how
much certainty he can experiment with his apparatus.
I have satisfied myself in Vienna as to the power of the machines
made by Winter. Wito the greatest readiness he has, at my request,
furnished me the opportunity of giving the above description of his
machines.
Gruel, of Berlin, makes cylinder machines of a peculiar construc-
tion, which are said to be of great power ; but of this I know nothing
372. RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
from personal observation, and his catalogues give no information
upon this point.
§ 12. IMPROVEMENT IN THE GOLD LEAF ELECTROSCOPE.—Andriessen has
introduced a contrivance into the gold leaf electroscope, by means of
which its sensitiveness, and at the sametime its usefulness, is greatly
increased.—(Pogeg. Ann., LXII, 493.)
The glass vessel in which the gold leaves hang, is pierced at about
the height of their point of suspension, and
Fig- 10. through this holea polishedbrass wire, abi de,
of } to # lines diameter is introduced, fastened
where properly insulated, and bent as shown
in fig. 10. The plane, which the wire forms,
must coincide with the plane of motion of
x the suspended leaves, so that when they diverge
one may move toward }7, and the other toward
The horizontal distance of b 7 from d e
should be 14 inch; the length of the gold
leaves 2 inches; their breadth as narrowas
possible, about 1 line; the distance of their
lower end from the horizontal wire, di, 4 an
i inch.
If electricity be communicated to the wire—for instance, the nega-
tive electricity of a smooth piece of cork rubbed on a cloth—the leaves
diverge, because the wire acts inductively and attracts the + E in the
leaves, while the repelled — E is driven back to the knob a. The
divergence of the leaves increases somewhat when the knob a is
touched by a conductor.
The apparatus is now prepared to indicate the slightest amount of
electricity ; if a very small quantity be communicated to the knob a,
the leaves either diverge further or collapse, according to the nature
of the imparted electricity ; they will collapse if — E be communi-
cated to the knob, and diverge if + E is applied.
The apparatus is sufficiently sensitive to serve for the fundamental
experiment of Volta without a condensor.
If a plate of zinc be substituted for the knob, its upper surface
having been freshly rubbed with powdered pumice-stone, and a simi-
larly prepared copper plate be placed on the zinc, when the copper
plate is removed, the gold leaves will diverge.
If, on the contrary, the copper plate be screwed on in the place of
the knob a, the suspended leaves will collapse on the removal of the
zinc plate.
Andriessen observed that, by using a bell-glass electroscope of
ordinary dimensions with the induction wire, the experiment never
succeeded so well as when he used narrow bottles ; hence, for his ex-
periments, he employed ordinary bottles with ground stoppers 2 to 23
inches wide, and about 4 inches high. He could give no explanation
of this fact.
It was of great importance for the success of the experiment that
the air inside the bottle should be perfectly dry ; to accomplish this,
Andriessen made a second hole ina suitable part of the bottle, into
which he fitted a glass tube (/) filled with chloride of calcium. But
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 373
if the openings were well secured with cement, it sufficed merely to
lay a piece of the chloride of calcium in the vessel.
The combination of this apparatus with the condensor gave rise to
peculiar difficulties ; if a collector be screwed to the top instead of the
knob x, and the condensor plate placed on this, the electricity of the
gold leaves will be drawn mainly into the collector plate when the
condensing plate is touched, so that the leaves will diverge as soon as
the condensor is raised, even if not the least electricity has been im-
parted to the collector.
This circumstance renders the use of the condensor, in the ordinary
manner, altogether uncertain. Andriessen remedied this defect m
the following way :
He placed the condensor, not upon the electroscope, but beside it.
A glass tube fastened to a board and coated inside and outside with
shellac, carried the collector as shown in figure 11.
When the electricity is condensed on the collector, the condensor is
raised, and the collector Bies ts
with its free electricity is j
brought into connexion
with the electroscope by
means of the wire x q.
This wire is of soft cop-
per, and is wound around
the stem of the knob a,
which sustains the gold
leaves; n is a stick of
shellac fastened to the
wire, serving as a handle
to bring the end q of the
wire into contact with the
collector.
§ 13. ImproveMENTSs IN CoULOMB’s TORSION BALANCE.—Since the time
of Coulomb, the electric torsion balance has been used by very few
and with but little effect; complaints were made of the uncertainty of
the instrument, and of its difficult management; the opinion spread
abroad that exceedingly great,skill was required in the experiments
to produce reliable results with it.
Riess opposed this prejudice (Pogg. Ann. LXXI, 359 ;) he experi-
mented much with this balance, and proved that, if the necessary care
has been taken in the construction of the instrument, the result will
not only be certain, but excessive skill in its use will not be required.
The instrument which Riess describes in the above mentioned com-
munication has the dimensions of the smallest balance which Coulomb
used in his measurements. The lower glass cylinder is one foot in
diameter and one foot high; the tube in which the metallic thread
hangs is fifteen inches long. The torsion balance of Jtiess is con-
structed on the same principle as that of Coulomb, but a few arrange-
ments are introduced which render a greater accuracy of observation
possible ; thus the position of the moveable arm or beam is observed
with a microscope. To make the most minute changes in the torsion
of the metallic wire, a micrometer screw is placed at the head of the
apparatus, and is turned by means of a dependent handle with a
374 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Hook’s universal joint, while the position of the moveable beam is
observed at the same time by the microscope. In this manner the
most accurate readings are possible. It would have been of advan-
tage to those about to construct such an instrument, if the author
had given, with his other drawings, a section through the upper part
of the apparatus.
If the greatest possible care has been taken in the construction of
all the separate parts, and, above all, when the moveable beam, as
well as the handles of the proof planes, or knobs introduced into the
apparatus, are insulated as perfectly as possible, very great accuracy
in measuring may be expected. The torsion balance, however, is a
contrivance which is not altogether adapted to lecture experiments,
its principle is sufficiently well known, and the detailed description
of the instrument interests only the few who are practically engaged
in measuring the density of electricity. For this reason, I do not con-
sider it necessary to dwell further upon the subject here.
With reference, however, to the method of observation and compu-
tation of the results, something may be given from Fiess’s memoir.
To determine the ratio of two electrical densities at a and b, exist-
ing at the same time upon two parts of one conductor, or upon two
conductors, Coulomb made a whole series of measurements (generally
five) alternately for each place, and as nearly as possible, in equal in-
tervals of time. In this manner he obtained, for the first place, three
densities, (measured by the angle of torsion at equal elongations of
the balance beam,) a, a’, a’ ; and two values for the density in the
other place, 6 and b’. The measurement of b was made between those
of a and a’ ; and that of a’, between those of } and b! ; thus the mean
of a and a’ could be considered as nearly simultaneous with 6; the
mean of b and U’ with a’, &c. The required ratio of the two densities
is expressed by
4(a+dq’), or a’ or (da’+ a").
b VO 8), U/
The mean of these three values is then taken as the true ratio, = OF
the two densities. This method requires great skill; for it is not
always easy to make the alternate measurements of density at equal
intervals, besides exact results cannot be obtained if the two places
examined are on two different bodies, one of which loses its electricity
more rapidly than the other, for then the ratio of the two densities
changes at every succeeding moment; hence the three quotients are
no longer three values of the same quantity, differing only in conse-
quence of unavoidable errors of observation, but three essentially
different quantities, and the mean from the values of the three quo-
tients, consequently, does not give the true ratio of the two electrical
densities at any one moment.
Indeed, this method is not at all applicable where the same density
cannot be determined twice as when the existence of the density 6 de-
pends upon an alteration of the density a, a return to which is there-
fore impossible.
Ttiess employed the following method of observing with success,
with two perfectly equal proof balls, having equally well insulated
a
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 375
handles, the two electrified places are touched simultaneously, or so rap-
idly one after the other that the contact may be considered as simul-
taneous. One of the proof balls is then placed in a large bell glass,
the other applied to the torsion balance. After measuring the torsion
for the first proof ball, it is removed and the second, (kept meanwhile
in the bell glass,) is applied to the balance, and the corresponding
torsion, (with equal elongation,) is measured. The times at which
the two readings are made, are observed by means of a watch marking
seconds. The torsion is now diminished a few degrees, hence the
elongation is somewhat increased, and the length of time the balance
beam occupies in returning to its former position is then noted.
An example may serve better to explain this method of observing.
Suppose the two proof balls I and II have been applied to the places
whose electrical densities are to be compared.
I being brought to the torsion balance requires a torsion of 55°.5,
to bring the beam into a certain position, that is, deflected a certain
number of degrees.
II is now applied. To bring the beam into exactly the same posi-
tion as before, the thread must receive a torsion of 293°.5.
Between the first and second reading a period of 3.1 minutes has
elapsed.
Now suppose the torsion is reduced 20° or to 273°.5, and, counting
from the second reading, 3.2 minutes elapse until the beam returns
to its former position.
We will now proceed to the computation of these data. In 3.2
minutes proof ball No. II has lost a quantity of electricity which is
measured by a torsion of 20°; if the loss of electricity is proportional
to the time, the loss of No. II between the first and second reading
amounts to—
3.1
ae lice
3.2
but the loss of electricity is proportional not only to the time, but also
to the density, which is not equal in the two periods. We may sup-
pose, without sensible error, that the electrical density of proof ball
II, in the first period, is to the density in the second period as 293.5
is to 273.5; hence the loss of ball II in the first period, (that is,
between the first and second observations,) would be—
273.5
At the instant in which the electrical charge of ball I was measured
in the balance, the charge of ball LI was
293.5 + 20.8= 314°.3, ;
Hence, the required proportion between the two quantities of electri-
city is
55.5
: 314.3
If we indicate by a the torsion first measured, by b the second, by ¢
= Ost go
376 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
the number of degrees the torsion was diminished after the second
measurement; also by ¢ and ?’ the two intervals of time, then the den-
sity of the electricity on ball II, at the moment the torsion a was mea-
sured, is equal to ‘
t.b
b+cxX (6 —c) (1)
. Suppose, for example—
C—O ley
b= 09r Ae 7
G== 2005
then, at the instant in which the density @ was measured, the electri-
cal density on the other proof ball was
E Sos VS69 Bone 5
369 + 20 x 56 X 349 = 369 + 31°.3= 400.3;
and the required ratio of the two densities
ee ees
400.3 _ OAC:
Riess computed the results by this method of observing ‘‘with pairs
of proof bodies,’’ not according to formula (1), which is only an ap-
proximation, but according to another approximate formula, the deri-
vation of which, however, cannot be termed elementary. The results,
however, of the computation, according to formula (1), correspond
so closely with those obtained by /eiss, that there need be no hesita-
tion in using it.
The results of the first of the above two examples corresponded per-
fectly when computed according to both formulas; in the second
example, the value found, according to Riess, was 400°.8, while we
have made it 400°.3, a difference which has hardly any effect upon
the required quotient.
§ 14. ExecrroscopEs TO WHICH THE PRINCIPLE OF THE TORSION BALANCE
IS APPLIED. In the 53d volume of Poggendorf’s Annalen is a descrip-
tion of two electrometers, or rather electroscopes, which may be con-
sidered as small torsion balances; the first by Dellman, (page 606,)
the second by Ursted, (page 612.)
ee. Dellman’s instrument is represented in fig. 12. The
g mouth of a white preserve jar, 8 or 10 inches high, is
closed with a piece of cork, B. Through this cork is
passed a tolerably stout wire, C, with a hook at its lower
end, in which is hung a thread of untwisted silk. The
thread carries a small rod of shellac, D, with a little
ball of elder pith, a, fastened at one end. (Pressure
with clean fingers readily removes all angles from the
pith,
The glass is ae at a, and a pin, #7, is fastened in the hole by
shellac, with the head, 7, outside; on the inside a pith ball, ?, is stuck
upon the pin, the point of which must not go through the ball. The
wire, C, is drawn up until a and f are on a level; the wire is then
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. Ot
turned upon its axis once or twice, so that the ball a, by means of the
elasticity of the thread, is brought against the ball
Dellman subsequently changed the construction of his instrument,
and thus made it much more sensitive. Fig. 13 represents Dellman’s
electroscope in its new form, (Pog. Ann. LVIII, Fig. 13.
49.) The moveable beam g consists of a light
metallic wire, which is bent in the middle so that
one-half of the balance beam can be placed on the
right, and the other on the left side of the me-
tallic strip f. This strip f extends through the
middle of the apparatus, and is fastened on one
side to the conducting wire h, on the other to the
wire é.
If electricity be communicated to the conduct-
ing wire (on which a plate, such as that of a
condensor, can be screwed) it will, in part, pass to the balance beam,
(pressed by the torsion of the fibre against the metal strip /,) which
is, consequently, deflected.
One vertical arm of the wire, /, whose horizontal part makes an
angle of about 90° with the direction of the strip /, is on the right,
and the other vertical arm on the left side of the beam. Dellman
terms this wire, to which electricity can be communicated from above,
and whose function is the same as the wire in the electrometer of
Andriessen, the ‘‘cross wire.’’ When electricity is communicated to
the cross wire, the beam g at once turns and stands in a new position
of equilibrium. It moves to one or the other side according to the
kind of electricity communicated to the wire h. It is evident that the
apparatus in this form must be exceedingly sensitive; but it is very
troublesome, as the beam suspended by the siik fibre commences vi-
brating with the least disturbance.
The paper alluded to in Poggendorf’s Annalen, in which Dellman
speaks of the new form of his electroscope, is somewhat obscurely
written. A particular description of the apparatus or of its applica-
tion is not to be found. The proper dimensions for the strip and the
best position for the cross-wire are spoken of without any allusion
having been previously made to the cross-wire and strip. Evidently,
Dellman takes for granted much that is not familiar to most of his
readers.
The arrangement of the strip f is evidently somewhat awkward.
Romerhausen has very advantageously altered it. The balance beam,
which is of common flat gold wire, is straight, while the metallic strip
f has a bend in the middle, as represented in figure 14.
The metal strip is fastened ut its middle Fig. 14.
to the conducting wire. In this instrument
the torsion of the silk fibre is opposed to the
repulsion of the beam, while in Oersted’s elec-
trometer the magnetism of a small iron wire
tends to keep the beam in a given position. tee
378 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
The most important parts of Oersted’s instrument are shown (one-
Fig. 15. half the natural size) in figure 15. In the
SSIES cover of a glass vessel isa glass tube d d, in
which a metal tube, insulated with shellac, is
fastened and divided below into two bent arms,
ec. In the middle of this tube hangs the silk
fibre which carries the beam aa, made of a
fire brass wire; 60 is a stirrup of very fine
iron wire, very slightly magnetized, by means
of which the beam is pressed against the brass
arms cc, so that one end of aa touches the left
side of c¢ and the other end the right side.
When electricity is communicated from above
it is conducted from the arms cc to the balance
beam a a, causing it to turn. If the magnetic
OE directive power is very feeble the electrometer
will possess greatsensibility. Todiscover weak electrical effects, enough
electricity is previously communicated to the instrument to cause the
beam to diverge afew degrees. A substance, possessing the same kind
of electricity, then produces a considerable increase of the deviation
when brought near. The electricity, which insulated zinc and copper
plates show, upon contact and separation, is thus rendered very per-
ceptible, without the aid of a condensor. Dellman’s instrument also
shows this fundamental experiment of Volta without a condensor.
Oersted adapted to his instrument a contrivance for measuring
the angle of deflection, and a microscope to observe the position of the
beam more accurately, &c. I have omitted these as not necessary
in explaining the principle of the instrument. Oe¢rsted himself used
the instrument only as an electroscope.
Kohlrausch has converted Dellman’s electroscope into an electro-
meter.—(Poge. Ann. LX XII, 353.) He introduced under the beam a
divided circle for reading the angle of deflection, and a second, at the
top of the instrument, for determining the torsion. Instead of cocoon
fibre he used a fine glass thread, because its force of torsion is more
reliable.
Dellman’s instrument has this great advantage, that if may be
constructed with but a few and common materials, so that any one
having but little dexterity can make such an instrument for himself.
This advantage of Dellman’s apparatus Kohlrausch has surrendered
altogether, for his instrument can be made only by a skilful me-
chanic. However, if the apparatus in this form has advantages which
it had not in its simpler form, no objection can be made. According
to Kohlrausch’s memoir, his electrometer serves for accurate measure-
ment in cases for which the torsion balance of Caulomb is not suffi-
ciently sensative. I cannot give a decided opinion as to the value of
Kohlrausch’s electrometer in this respect, for I have not experimented
with it. Ido not know whether the same amount of trouble is found
in its use that must be required in its construction. The instrument
seems to me to be rather complicated ; but whether this view is well
founded I must leave to the judgment of those who have made prac-
- tical use of it. The results which Aohlrausch presented in his memoir
are much in favo; of his instrument.
’
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 379
In all electrostatic measurements it is quite certain that the most
important source of error is to be found in the gradual loss of the
electrical charge by the inductive action which the charged body has
on those near it, &c. The uncertainty which springs from this
source is certainly far greater than the errors of observation which
arise from adjusting and reading. From this point of view it seems
superfluous to apply to electrometers of all kinds a great array of
graduation, microscopes, &c.
In the memoir already mentioned Kohlrausch suggests the very ex-
cellent idea of employing the electroscopic power of the voltaic pile as a
convenient measure for frictional electricity, or for comparing different
electrometers.
A pile of a given number of elements, consisting of strips of zinc
and copper soldered together, immersed in small glass vessels contain-
ing distilled water, will have, if one pole be put into perfect connexion
with the ground, a constant tension upon the other pole, and, conse-
quently, will answer very well for comparing different electrometers.
In a long immersion (lasting over a week) the intensity will certainly
diminish, because the zinc becomes covered with oxyde, but the orig-
inal intensity may be restored by cleaning the metal with a file.
Kohlrausch obtained from the pole of such a pile the constant indi-
cation of 52° to 53° of his instrument during a whole week. After
the lapse of four weeks the indication had fallen to 46°, but it re-
turned to the original quantity as soon as the metal was cleaned by
filing.
§ 15. Perrina’s ELEcTROscopE.—Petrina has constructed an electro-
scope in which he has substituted an electrophorous for the dry pile.
(New theory of the electrophorous, and a new resin-cake electroscope,
by Dr. Franz Petrina, from the Abhandlungen der Kénigl. Béhmis-
chen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, V. Folge, Bd. 4, Prag. 1846.)
The gold leaves are suspended between two metallic plates, one of
which is in connexion with the cover, the other with the insulated
dish of a small rosin-cake electrophorous. By a special contrivance
the mould, together with the cake, can be depressed, whereby one of
the plates (that connected with the cover) receives a positive and the
other a negative charge, so that the two plates here play the same
part as the pole plates of the dry pile in Bohnenberger’s electrometer.
It is, in fact, a very ingenious application of the electrophorous, and
if we did not possess the pile electrometer, we should welcome the
resin-cake electrophorous as an important addition to electrical appa-
ratus ; but whether this instrument, as compared with the pile elec-
trometer, will receive any practical consideration, I am very doubt-
ful. Petrina, indeed, thinks that it is easier to construct, because it is
easier to make a good cake of resin than a good Zamboni pile; but
the contrivance for raising and lowering the plate with the resin cake
may quite make up for this difference. The only real advantage of
Peirina’s apparatus is, perhaps, this: that it can never become use-
less from loss of power, because the resin, when it becomes weak, can
always be rendered electrical again.
With reference to the rest of the contents of Petrina’s memoir, it
should be discussed in another place ; but I will not return to it again
yi
380 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS
because it does not present any new facts, but only opinions, the cor- |
rectness of which is still very problematical.
Fig. 16.
ea
yy
-
y~ 7 e
LXaKy)
shellac, is cemented.
ratus gn.
For greater clearness, this part is shown in section
and on a larger scale in fig. 17. a@eis a flat copper
ring, five inches in diameter, on the inside of which
are soldered colleeting wires dd of copper, gilded
and brought to a fine point; these are inclined out-
ward slightly, so as to appear like a crown. <A cop-
per support, passing across the ring, and curved
somewhat downwards, bears on its underside the
socket g for fastening on the glass rod h, and on the
upper part a higher wire point is soldered. This
point is the most important part of the whole con-
trivance, since it alone, according to exact experi-
ment, renders sensible the slightest shades of atmos-
pheric electricity.
§16. OBSERVATION OF ATMOSPHERIC ELEC-
Tricity.—lomershausen has constructed
an apparatus for observing atmospheric
electricity, the arrangement of which |
is exhibited in fig. 16. (Pogg. Ann. |
Fig. 16 represents the application of
the collecting apparatus to any dwelling,
and to any story of it. |
H is the house, over the roof D of |
which the collector can extend without ©
doing any injury. F is the window of |
the observer’s chamber; mn represents |
|
|
|
the collecting rod in its general con-
struction. It rests above the window ©
in a strong iron socket m, and, by means —
of a hook J, is easily and firmly secured
in a slot & in the roof.
liquely from the house into the air, and —
its details are arranged as follows:
The rod of varnished pine wood, 10
or 12 feet long, is provided at 7 with a
brass band, in which the solid glass
rod h, 14 feet long, and coated with
This supports,
at its upper end, the collecting appa-
It extends ob- |
Binet
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 381
The copper wire, finely pointed and gilded at its upper
end, is about one Paris line in diameter, and is surrounded
with very fine platinum points, which are most easily
made in the following way: The wire is covered with tin
solder as far as the platinum points extend; then, as
shown in fig. 18, it is wound with the finest platinum
wire, which is fused in a spirit lamp where it touches the
_opper point; the loops are then cut, and arranged as
exhibited in fig. 17.
The conducting wire d e, fig. 19, [which is a repetition of fig. 17,] of
copper, is soldered to the ring at e. Atd ithas a small tin plate which
turns off the rain. <A similar plate is placed on the rod ato for the
same purpose. On the lower end of the conducting wire e dat c, a
small copper socket is soldered and arranged so as to receive the con-
ducting wire coming from the chamber. The window frame is bored
in the corner, for the purpose of fastening the conductor in a glass
tube well coated with shellac, and bringing it into the chamber per-
fectly insulated. At b the wire is bent downwards, and connected
with the electrometer E placed at the side of the window, and beyond
the immediate influence of the sun’s rays.
Romershausen uses two electrometers, standing in the same case,
namely: a pile electrometer, and one constructed on the plan of Dell-
man, which has been already described.
382 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
SECTION SECOND.
INDUCTION OF ELECTRICITY.
[This title is translated by words having a very different sense in English from those used
in the German. The original is ‘ Verlhcilung und Bindung der Electricitét’’—literally, Dis-
tribution and Binding of Electricity. The verb vertheilen, which we translate by “induce,” is
so strictly parallel in all its derivatives with the corresponding English word that, although
the original meanings are not the same, we need make no further remark upon this point.
But, although we may translate“ bound” into “disguised,” we cannot with equal propriety
speak of an electrified conductor as “disguising” electricity in a body brought near to it; the
German would say “binding.” In some English translations of German works on electricity,
the words “combine,” “combined,” and “combination,” are used; these are not-only incor-
rect, but lead to an idea diametrically opposed to the true one. In general for “bind” we
have used simply ‘‘induce,” sometimes the more precise periphrasis ‘render latent.” In
general “latent” and “‘disguised’’ are used synonymously.
A good English word nearly identical in meaning with the German one, and capable of being
used in all the corresponding modifications, would be “engage”—thus we might speak of a
conductor “engaging” electricity, of ‘‘engaged”’ electricity, and on the contrary of ‘ disen-
gaged” or free electricity.
But as there is no authority for the use of this term we have not ventured to introduce it.
These remarks are rendered necessary by the fact that in many places the force of the
original is lost in the circumlocution required in the English.
The introduction to § 26, and the first foot note after it, should be read wlth reference to
these difficulties in the translation.
In strictness the term “latent electricity” is improper as implying an analogy with latent
heat. Even “disguised electricity” is not really correct, as it is one of the main objects of
this section, to show that electricity in this condition loses none of its properties. But we
may here refer to the remark of our author, that terms in themselves not strictly accurate,
may be safely used after correct ideas have been connected with them. } ,
§ 17, Inrropuction.—The mode in which Biot has exhibited the in-
duction of electricity on an insulated body, to which an electrified
body is approached, should be sufficient to remove every doubt as to
the nature of induction ; yet a controversy on this subject has arisen,
from the objection of Pfaff.
An account of this controversy is given in the second volume of
Dove's Repertorium, page 29.
Fig. 20.
: Let a body m, (fig. 20,) charged
with positive electricity, be brought
near an insulated conductor c, then
will c, as it is well known, be elec-
trified by induction ; at the end near-
est m, is to be found the attracted
— KH, and at the opposite end the re-
pelled + E, as shown by the proof plane.
If the insulated conductor be touched, the repelled electricity will
be conducted off, while the electricity attracted by m remains disguised
or latent at c.
Pfaff contended that this disguised electricity could not act in all
directions, while Biot showed its free activity by suspending at the two
ends of the conductor electrical pendulums, which diverged ; those at
a
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 383.
one end, by the attracted electricity, and those at the other end, by the
repelled. Ifthe conductor was touched the distant pair of suspended
balls collapsed, while the divergence of those nearest m, increased.
Although this experiment, if proper precaution be taken, such as
not charging m too strongly, does not easily fail, yet it has not suc-
ceeded for many observers, and to this may be attributed the whole
controversy on the nature of disguised electricity. The doubt about
the experiment arises, as Jess has properly remarked, from the fact
that the electricity of the inducing body acts at right angles to the
electroscopic pendulums, which it causes to deviate from their perpen-
dicular position.
Ttiess has remedied this defect by the following arrangement. A
metallic rod about 5 inches long and 8 lines thick, with rounded ends,
is fastened by the middle to an insulating handle, as shown in fig. 22,
and by means of this handle is held in a vertical po-
sition. It is provided at both ends with a pith ball pe saci
suspended by a linen thread.
If an electrified body be brought near the lower end
both balls will be repelled. Suppose the approaching
body is positively electrified, then the upper pendu-
lum is deflected with + E, the under one with—E,
as may be tested by presenting a rubbed glass or
stick of sealing wax.
If the metallic rod be now touched, the upper pendulum falls, while
the divergence of the under one is increased.
At the lower end of the rod, and in the ball there, only disguised
— EK is now found ; the electricity of this end, though it is disguised,
repels the like-named electricity of the ball; hence disguised elec-
tricity acts as freely at a distance as though it were not disguised.
The divergence of the lower pendulum proves, that the particles of
disguised electricity repel each other precisely in the same manner as
though they were not disguised, consequently its propagating power
is similar to that of free electricity ; and if disguised electricity can-
not be carried off to the ground by conductors, the cause is not that
it has not propagating power, but that it is restrained by the attrac-
tion of the opposite electricity of the inducing and restraining body.
To deny to disguised electricity its ordinary properties, is like assert-
ing, that because a stone les upon the ground it has lost its gravity.
The experiment of Ziess has proved, beyond all contradiction, that
latent electricity acts at a distance as perfectly as Fig. 23.
though it were not latent. If an electrified body (a, ‘ aa
Fig. 23) has rendered latent the opposite electricity (a) (6)
on a conductor connected with the earth, any point a
(c) in the vicinity is acted on by the electricity of @
as well as by that of b; but since a and b are charged with oppo-
site kinds of electricity, only the difference of their effect can be
observed in ¢.
After this contested question might have been considered as settled
by the experiment of ftiess, Knochenhauer brought forward new ob-
jections. (Pogg. Ann., XLVII, 444.)
384 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Fig. 24
He excited a cake of resin, and having
I stretched over it a sheet of tin foil at a given
Cc \ distance, removed from the latter, by a touch
F of the finger, its free negative electricity. Pre-
E : ; senting to this apparatus, represented by a dia-
gram in Fig, 24, two pith balls suspended on
linen threads, they do not diverge in the
least, the cause of which may be the distance
of the pendulum from the sheet of tin foil
charged with latent + H.
Knochenhauer concluded, from this experiment, that when two
opposite electricities render each other latent, they lose all action at
a distance, and stand only in relation to each other; for it could not
be supposed that, in case the opposite latent electricities acted ata
distance, these effects would perfectly neutralize each other at all
points above the tin foil.
Fechner has completely retuted this objection of Knochenhauer (Pog.
An., LI, 321.) He has shown that, by the aid of the suspended pith
balls, no electrical action can be obtained above the induced plate,
because they are not sufficiently sensitive to weak charges. If a proof
plane be substituted for the balls, and touched for an instant with the
finger, it shows, when tested by the pile electrometer, that it is really
electrified and similarly with 6b; a proof that the effect which a a
has upon c exceeds the effect which the latent electricity in b b has
upon c.
Fechner has repeated this experiment, not only in the above de-
scribed manner, but varied in a great many ways, and always with
the same result. It will not be necessary to describe all these differ-
ent forms of experiment, since, in speaking of the researches of /ara-
day on electrical induction, we shall have to return to some points of
Lechner’s investigation.
At the conclusion of the report on these experiments J’echner says :
‘‘ From the preceding experiments we are amply justified in con-
sidering the attracting and repelling effects of the inducing, and of
the so-called latent, electricity, from the same point of view, namely,
as free electricity. Electricity, in becoming latent, is invested with
no new properties. If its attraction and repulsion be no longer per-
ceptible, this is explained by the fact that they are counterbalanced
or overpowered by the opposite effects of the inducing electricity, &c.”’
Petrina has attempted again to cast doubt upon the correct views
of Fechner, that tension electricity acts through uninsulated con-
ductors, (Pogg. Ann., LXI, 116,) without, however, being able to
advance. anything decisive. According to his view, the electricity
which Fechner found in the electrical ‘‘ shadow ’’ of the upper metal
plate, was caused by the curved surface of the cylindrical space above
the upper plate becoming electrified by induction, and the inductive
action spreading thence inward.
Petrina has neither established this strange idea nor followed out
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 385
the consequences arising from it. It remains obscure, precisely as he
conceived it.
That the electricity of a powerful electrical machine can exercise no
perceptible inductive action through a partition wall and closed door
of a chamber, should certainly not surprise us, and can be of no value
as an argument against the view held by Fechner.
In the course of the memoir alluded to above, experiments are de-
scribed which Fechner made to discover how electricity is distributed
over an insulated and induced body. The essential results of these
experiments are as follows:
A small Leyden jar, provided with a metal ball
A (fig. 25) 3 inches in diameter, was charged with
-++ E and insulated. ‘The ball was placed opposite
an insulated brass conductor acb. This conduc-
tor was cylindrical, 5.2 lines in diameter, with (mp
spherical knobs 8.3 lines in diameter at the ends, }j |
and 16 inches long. a and A were placed 2 in- }) 17
ches apart. ——
When the conductor was touched at a by the finger, a proof-plane
constantly indicated negative electricity, to whatever part of the con-
ductor it might be apphed ; even at b negative electricity was found,
the intensity, however, increasing towards a. Even from the finger or
hand touching the conductor, — E was obtained by the proof-plane.
On the removal of the hand, so that the conductor a 6 became again
insulated, the greater part towards b indicated positive, the less part,
towards a, negative electricity.
This result at first appears surpriging, but it can be explained readily
by the following consideration :
When the conductor is touched at a, — EH, attracted by A, is accu-
mulated upon the hand, and, of course, acts repulsively upon the — B
ina. The repulsive action of the — E of the hand, and the attractive
action of the + E of the ball A, upon the — E present in a, are in
equilibrio ; but if the — E upon the hand be removed, more — EK can
accumulate in a, a part of the neutral E of ab is then decomposed,
the — EK flows to a, while towards b is collected the + E repelled
by A.
Te on the contrary, the conductor be touched at b, — E is indicated
throughout its entire length, increasing from b toward a, being, how-
ever, very feeble at 6; on the removal of the finger, the whole con-
ductor becomes negative, increasing from } to aas might have been
predicted.
The arrangement which electricity must assume upon a conductor
exposed to inductive influence, is reduced by Poisson to pure mathe-
matical determinations, which are based solely upon the known laws
of the attraction and repulsion of electricity. The practical application
of theprinciple, however, involves, in many cases, great difficulties;
for the composition and decomposition of the actions are to be considered
from an infinite number of points. By general consideration, evidently
very little can be accomplished in a field where the obtaining of results
is too difficult even for the calculus. In such cases it is necessary to
seek instruction from experiment.
2
e 5§
386 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
If electricity be induced upon an insulated conductor, we find, as a
general rule, that the electricity dissimilar to that of the inducing
body approaches as near as possible to it, and the similar removes as
far as possible from it. This rule, however, even if we regard it only
as a general guide, leaves much that is undetermined.
Fig. 26. Let an insulated disk a 6 (fig. 26) be exposed
- uA g to the inductive action of an electrified sphere
He mee TT Te c. How will the two electricities be distributed
onab? Are the edges ab, or the middle of
the back d, to be regarded as the most remote
(e) parts of the disk? Ifc be positive, is positive
electricity to be expected at d?
Fechner has made a series of experiments in answer to these ques-
tions. The attracted —E is collected in the greatest quantity at the
middle of the front surface, and decreases towards the edges; the
repelled -+-E is found on the back, and its intensity, which is but
slight in the middle, at d increases towards the edges. The repelled
+E embraces the edge, so that it is found at the edge even on the
front face; the line of indifference between the + E and —E is on the
front, and approaches the middle the closer the sphere is brought to
the disk.
Fechner has made similar experiments with rods and strips of metal.
[§ 18 is omitted because it is occupied with the refutation of the views of Knochenhauer,
which have never been generally adopted, and which are sufficiently disproved in other
parts of this report. |
§ 19. EXPERIMENTAL PROOF THAT THE QUANTITY OF LATENT ELECTRICITY
Is IN THE INVERSE PROPORTION TO THE SQUARE OF THE DISTANCE FROM THE
INDUCING BopY. In order to set aside definitely the objections of
Knochenhauer, I have myself made a series of experiments on the law,
according to which the strength of the induction decreases when the
distance between the bodies acting on each other increases.
The method of observation was essentially the same as that em-
ployed by Knochenhauer, except that I substituted a straw electrome-
ter, with a graduated arc, for the torsion balance. I had first to find
the proportion of the increase of charge to the increase of divergence
of the leaves of the electrometer, in order to determine subsequently —
from the divergences the magnitude of the electrical force which pro-
duced them, This was accomplished in the following manner:
A large Leyden jar, having about two square feet of interior coat-
ing, was charged with positive electricity: the knob of the jar might
be considered as a tolerably constant source of electricity, from which ~
the same small quantity could always be taken and conveyed to the
electrometer. This transfer was made by means of a brass knob of
about three lines in diameter, insulated by a sealing wax handle of |
sufficient length. This small knob was brought into contact with the
knob of the Leyden jar, and thus charged with a certain quantity of
electricity, which we will designate by 1. This quantity 1 was then
transierred to the electrometer by touching its plate with the charged
knob; the pendulum diverged, and the amount of the divergence was
noted.
The small knob was again brought into contact with the knob of
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 387
the jar, and the same quantity of electricity transferred to the elec-
trometer, whose divergence thus received a corresponding increase.
In this manner the charge of the electrometer was constantly increased,
and the corresponding divergence of the pendulum observed.
These charges were continued to 7, 8, or 9; the electrometer was
then discharged and the same process repeated.
That, during the whole period of the experiment, the strength of
the electrical charge of the jar did not diminish perceptibly, is shown
by the numbers of the following table, which contains the results of
8 experimental series:
E d d d d d d d d Mean.
— —_____
° ° ° oe) [e) ° 1°) °o °
a 6 is 7 bh 7 6 5.5 | 6 6.4
2 10 11 11 9 11 10 10 11 10.3
3 15 15 15 15 14.5 16 14 15 , 14.6
4 18.5 18 19 18 18 19 17.5 19 18
5 Bee al ae 22 21 21.5 22 21.5 22 21.4
6 2405 18 25 25 24 ea etal aeete 23 23 24
7 28 28 28 27 Ze ee = iar 28.5 28.5 28
| Eee hese 32 3 StU) ease 31 5 31 30.7
J) e)iees S55 SoS eSeS5 PSS SSEE EE Re AB See aesea| Seore sss 33.5 | 34 33. 7
The first vertical column contains the quantities of electricity trans-
ferred to the electrometer; each of the following vertical columns con-
tains the correspondirg divergences as determined by eight consecu-
tive series of experiments; the last column contains the means of the
divergences found for each quantity of electricity.
Fig. 30.
388 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Instead of expressing the connexion between the quantity of elec-
tricity with which the electrometer is charged, and the divergence of
the pendulum, by means of a complicated formula, I have attempted
to render it apparent by graphic representation. In fig. 30, the ordi-
nates represent the quantities of electricity, the abscissas the diver-
gences, and the marked points are those which correspond to the mean
divergences belonging to the different quantities of electricity marked
on the sides of the figure.
These points admit of being connected by a quite regular curve, as
shown in the figure, representing the relation between the quantity
of electricity and the divergence, the points corresponding to 6 and 7
only lying a little outside of the curve.
The readings, from which these results were taken, were indeed
exact only to a half degree; a greater_nicety in reading the single
observations is not necessary, since the results (from various causes)
are uncertain beyond one half degree, and the separate readings for
the same quantity of electricity often differed as much as two degrees. |
Knochenhauer, indeed, gives single minutes in his observations,
although the uncertainty of the observation amounts to several de-
grees ; how he could read to single minutes with an instrument so
small as his, (44,) it is difficult to conceive; if, however, the instru-
ment actually admitted of so accurate a reading, it was still unneces-
sary, because the pointing of the needle is not determinable with the
same degree of accuracy. In such cases greater accuraty should not
be affected than is actually to be obtained under the circumstances.
After the straw electrometer had been tested in the above described
manner, I proceeded to the different experiments, which were ar-
ranged in the following manner:
A hollow brass ball, two inches in diameter, was suspended by a
well insulating silk string. Directly under it stood the electrometer, |
upon a plate whose support could be slipped up or down and fastened ©
at any desired position. The brass plate of the electrometer was 18 |
lines in diameter.
Die al marks were made, at distances of 3 inches from each
other. When the lowest of these marks was at the ©
upper end of the hollow leg, the plate of the elec-
trometer was 3 inches from the middle point of the
ball; and this distance amounted to 6 and 9 inches
when the second and third of the marks were simi-
larly placed. ‘Three inches being taken for unity,
the electrometer plate could be shifted to the re-
spective distances, 1, 2, and 3.
cistance 3 from the ball, it was touched with the
finger, and the ball a charged by bringing a small
Leyden jar into contact with it.
As soon as the ball was charged in this manner,
the jar was quickly put aside.
The electricity on a had then rendered latent a
definite quantity of the opposite E on 0, which
ca
On the rod which bore the plate of the stand three |
ee
When the plate of the electrometer stood at the |
j
|
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 389
came measurable by removing the finger from b, and, at the same time,
pushing aside a with the hand.—A divergence of 6° was indicated.
The plate of the stand was then raised 3 inches higher, so that the
distance between 6 and the centre of a was equal to 2, or 6 inches,
and the experiment repeated, in the same manner, by applying the
same jar with its charge.—A divergence of 12° was now indicated.
The same experiment, repeated for the distance 1, gave the diverg-
ence, 30°.5.
The electrometer was then placed at the position 2, 3, 2, 1, 2, 3,
&c., in succession, and the same experiment made. The result of the
observations are collected in the following table :
Distance. » Divergence. Mean.
31.5 30 31 30 3
12.5) 10 Ziel 10259; 1D56 DEG LE 1
6 5.5 6 of 6
With equal charges of the ball a the mean divergence 30°.6 was
obtained at the distance 1; the divergence 11°.4, at the distance 2;
and the divergence 6°.2, at the distance 3.
Equal charges of the ball @ were obtained by bringing it in con-
tact with the knob of a Leyden jar charged once for all for the whole
series of experiments. The charge of the jar was, indeed, somewhat
diminished at each contact with the ball, but this diminution was
not sensible after the twentieth contact, as the above table shows.
We shall now see how great the changes are which give to our elec.
trometer, the deflections, 30°.6, 11°.4, and 6°.2.
From a consideration of Fig. 30, it follows that the divergence,
30.6 corresponds to the electrical quantity 8 the divergence 11.4
to the quantity 2.25; and 6.2 +0 0.95. The quantity of electricity
which the ball @ renders latent on 0, is, therefore
At the distance 1, equal to 8.00.
(74 cc Y ce OR oiEss
¢ ce 3 ce 0.95.
These numbers are very nearly in the ratio of 1: 4: 93 or in-
versely as the square of the distance. At the distance of 1, the read-
ing of the divergence is rather too small, which can be easily explained.
For such heavy changes of the electrometer, causing a deflection of
upwards of 30 degrees, the pendulum sinks more suddenly by reason
of the more rapid loss; thus, when the reading is taken, the original
_ divergence has already slightly diminished.
| A similar series in which the alternation was only between the single
and double distance, (4 inches being the unity of distance,) gave the
following result :
Distance. Divergence. | Mean.
1 26 24 24.5 24 24.6
2 9 9 8.5 a 8.87
390 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
The divergence 24.6 and 8.87 correspond to the quantities of elec-
tricity, 6 anu 1 6, which likewise are very nearly in the proportion of
4 to 1; thus again at a double distance, we have one-fourth the quan-
tity of latent electricity.
I should think that these experiments were sufficient to place beyond
doubt, the principle that, the quantity of electricity which is rendered
latent on an uninsulated conductor by a neighboring insulated electrified
body, is in the inverse proportion of the square of the distance of the two
bodies, provided that their dimension and the distance, are such that
the electrical force can be considered as concentrated in their centres
of gravity, without considerable error.
In the experiments of Knochenhauer, the distance between the in-
ducing body and that upon which the opposite electricity is rendered
latent, was much less than in mine; his least distance was 3 lines,
mine was 3 inches. This fact gives rise to the supposition that in his
experiments, electricity may have gone over. To find out whether
Fie. 32. this could really have happened, I made the distance
SS ___ between the ball a and the electrometer plate, 3 lines
in the clear, and then placed the electrometer so that
the distance of the plate from the centre of the ball
was double as great as in the first position. In this
case also at a double distance, the effect was about
a one-fourth, consequently, no electricity had passed
from the ball to the plate.
But the ball was quite large, and the plate, a por-
tion of an indefinitely large sphere; the ball a, more-
af Z over, was varnished ; circumstances far less favorable
<a" to the passage of electricity than in the arrangement
of Knochenhauer.
| I now exchanged the ball a for another not var-
nished, and only 8 lines in diameter; the plate of
the electrometer was removed and replaced bya ball
about 4 lines in diameter. When the distance be-
tween the balls amounted to 12 lines or 18 lines be-
tween their centres; on repeating the experiment in the above de-
scribed manner, I obtained from a charge, which of course had to be
quite weak, a divergence of 8 to 10 degrees; but when the electro-
meter was brought so near, that the distance in the clear amounted to
only 3 lines, the distance of the center being then only half as great
as in the first position, for equal charges of the small ball a, there was
not a divergence of the pendulum anything near four times as great
as before, but a divergence of only 10°.
Evidently electricity had gone over between the balls, hence the
charge of the upper ball, as well as the quantity of latent electricity
on the lower one, was considerably diminished.
There is not the least doubt, that this acted injuriously in the exper-
iments of Knochenhauer, and made his results perfectly valueless.
[ § 20 is omitted for reasons mentioned under § 18]
§ 21. FARADAY’S RESEARCHES ON LATENT Exectricrry.—Faraday also
has made the induction of electricity a subject of research. In his
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 391
eleventh series of Haperimental researches in Electricity, (Pog, An.
XLVI, 1) he endeavors to prove that induction is not the consequence of
electrical action ata distance, but is effected by the inducing body
through the medium of the intervening material particles.
In order to prove that induction is the result of an action progress-
ing from particle to particle of the separating insulator, Maraday seeks
to prove—
Ist. That at the same distance of the inducing body and that on
which electricity is excited and rendered latent by induction, the force
of the induction is dependent upon the nature of the intervening insu-
lator ; that the induction under otherwise lke conditions is not the
same through different insulators; that therefore to each insulator
belongs a peculiar specific inductive capacity.
2d. That induction can take place in curved lines.
§ 22. SpEciFIc INDUCTIVE caPAcIty.—We will first consider the spe-
cific inductive capacity of insulators.
In fig. 35, A represents a hollow metallic Fig. 35.
sphere, standing ona metallic support. In an
opening at the top a cylinder of shellac is fast-
ened tightly, through the middle of which a
wire passes, having at its upper end a small
metallic knob K, and at the lower the metallic
ball B. The diameter of the sphere A is about
8.5 centimetres, (33 inches,) that of the ball B
is 6 centimetres, (24 inches). The sphere A
consists of two pieces similar to the Magdeburg
hemispheres, and so arranged that the upper
half can be removed together with the shellac
cylinder and the balls K and B.
Faraday, in his experiments, used two per-
fectly similar instruments of this kind, which he
termed an inductive apparatus.
Such an apparatus can be charged like a
Leyden jar, by bringing K into contact with a
source of electricity, and connecting A with the
ground. Thus, B represents the inner coat-
ing, A the outer, and the stratum of air between px
takes the place of the glass.
An apparatus of this kind, which I shall indicate by I, was charged
as above shown. It is evident, as in the case of the inner coating of
a Leyden jar, that there mustbe an excess of free electricity on B and
K, the tension of which was measured by Coulomb’s torsion balance.
In order to maintain the centre of the two balls of the balance at an
angular distance of 30°, a torsion of the thread of 250° was necessary.
The knob K of the apparatus Iewas then touched by the knob K of
a perfectly similar apparatus II, while its exterior sphere was in con-
nexion with the earth. The charge, which had been previously com-
municated to apparatus I alone, was now divided between the two.
After this division, the force of the free electricity of the interior was
determined for each; the first corresponded to a torsion of 124°, the
other to a torsion of 122° of the balance, in order to maintain the balls
392 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
in both cases at the angular distance of 30°. Thus, after the division,
the fiee electricity of the inner coating was nearly equal in the two
instruments, and as might have been predicted, was half as great on
each as on I before the division.
Big. 36. In apparatus II, half of the air was now
. replaced by another dielectrical medium,
(araday thus names the medium through
which electrical induction takes place). Shel-
lac was first tried. The upper half of the
apparatus IT was removed, in the under part
of the sphere A, a hemispherical cup of
shellac was placed, and the upper half re-
turned again to its place, so that the inter-
vening space between the lower half of the
two spheres was filled, as shown in fig. 36.
Apparatus I, which remained unchanged
as in the first experiment, was charged again,
in the same manner as before, and the free
electricity of the inner coating, measured by
the torsion balance. Thus, the result was by
Apparatus [cee caty seeceen aeeeme eee 290°.
The charge was now divided between I and
Il, and after the division the result was,
A DDATATUG | cate sepeodiee wome seh sauces 114°,
WOON SS Apparatis ll es ccuptha pps aeane ceca 113%
Here, also, the free electricity of the interior coating of the two in-
struments is very nearly equal after the division, but it is far less than
the half of the free electricity of apparatus I before the division; hence,
it follows, that apparatus IT had received more than half the electricity
of I, but without the free electricity on II being more than on I, and
consequently /araday concludes that a more powerful induction takes
place through shellac. If we represent the quantity of free electricity
of the interior coating of I, before the division, by 290°, then the
whole quantity of its electricity will be m 200; after the division
there remained only n 114; hence there has been given to apparatus
IT
n (290 — 114) = n 176.
In Faraday’s opinion another relation takes place between the latent
and free electricity ; the free electricity is 113, the latent is mn. 113;
we have, consequently,
wv 1138 = 6,
hence
Accordingly, an inductive force 1.55 times greater takes place through
shellac than through air; or, as /araday expresses it, shellac has 1.55
times greater specific inductive capacity than air.
By similar experiments Faraday found the specific inductive capa-
city of sulphur to be 2.24 times as great as that of air.
For the various gases Faraday found their inductive capacity equal
to that of air. In order to introduce the different gases into the ap-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 393
paratus the support was perforated and furnished with a stop-cock ; it
could be screwed to an air pump, a vacuum made, and any other gas
introduced. ;
Rarifying and heating the air produced no change in its specific in-
ductive capacity.
Faraday made further experiments for the purpose of establishing
his views on this subject. .
Let A, fig. 37, be an insulated metallic plate placed between two
other metallic plates, B and C, insulated in like Fic, 27.
manner, B and C being each * inch distant from
A. With Ca wire was connected which termi-
ted in the gold leaf c, and in like manner a wire
fastened to B terminated in the leaf 6. The
two gold leaves hung in a glass jar two inches
apart. Band C were then connected with the
ground and a weak positive charge given to the
plate A, by means of which B and C were charged
with — E. The connection of B and C with the
earth was then cut off, so that these two plates
were again insulated—the gold leaves b and c remained suspended
parallel to each other as before.
A shellac plate, # inch thick and 4 inches square, suspended by
a clean thread of white silk, after being carefully deprived of all
charge, was brought between the plates A and B. The electric rela-
tions of the three plates were at once altered, and attraction was pro-
duced between the gold leaves. On the removal of the shellac this
attraction again disappeared. The shellac having been then examined
by a sensitive Cowlomb’s electrometer, indicated no charge.
In this Faraday found a further confirmation of his views, and he
explained the result as follows: As soon as the shellac plate is intro-
duced between A and B a strong charge of negative electricity takes
place on B—it repels the positive, which is thus diffused towards 6 ;
but, since A acts more powerfully on B than before, negative electri-
city on C must be set free; thus ¢ will contain free — H, while free
+E is on 0 ; hence the attraction of the leaves.
How Faraday has proved that this electricity is set free on 5 and e,
as it must be according to his theory, does not appear in his memoir,
Faraday’s experiments are perfectly correct, but it appears to me
that he has erroneously interpreted these experiments and drawn a
conclusion from them in which he is not justified. The grounds for
this assertion are as follows:
If an insulated electrified body A is placed opposite a second con-
ductor B, which is in communication with the ground, a definite quan-
tity of electricity will be rendered latent on B. A part of the EH on
A is then disguised by the opposite kind on B, and a part is free. If
shellac is now placed between A and B, more electricity is disguised
on A, and there is less free than before ; this is the fact which is ex-
hibited by the experiments of Faraday with the inductive apparatus.
He further asserts, however, that a stronger induction takes place
through the shellac, but this he has not proved by experiment. To be
justified in this assertion he should have shown, that with equal charges
394 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
on A, more electricity will be induced on B when shellac is placed be-
tween them, than when air is the intervening insulator. The experi-
ment indicated in fig. 37 tends just as little as that with the inductive
apparatus to lead to the above explanation.
The following experiment is well adapted to bring the question to
a decision : Fic. 38.
Under an insulatedand electrified metallic balla, lor cs
2 inches in diameter, fig. 38, place a gold leaf or straw
electrometer at such a distance that a considerable
divergence may be obtained. If the ball a be charged
with +H, then — E will be induced in the plate of
the electrometer 6, and the +E will be repelled by a
into the pendulum ; hence its divergence.
Now put a plate of shellac between a and 0.
If Faraday’s view be correct, a stronger induction
must take place through the shellac than before ;
more — H should be induced in the electrometer plate,
and thus more -++ E should be forced into the pendu-
lum, and its divergence should increase.
But the experiment shows that the divergence of
the pendulum decreases as soon as the shellac plate
is introduced. Hence, most decidedly, a stronger
induction does not take place through shellac than
through air. ;
Ifa greater quantity of the electricity on a is dis uised after the
introduction of the shellac than before, it is evidently caused by a
mutual action between a and the shellac plate; but by no means
because a stronger induction takes place through the shellac.
Knochenhauer has instituted an experiment similar to this, but he
has entirely mistaken its signification.
Instead of an electrometer with two suspended leaves, he used a
pile electrometer, (Pogg. Ann. LI, 126.) A weak positive charge
was imparted to the conductor a (which, in his experiments, was a
metallic plate instead ofa ball, producing the same result, however)
at the same time the plate of the electrometer was touched ; — EH was
thus induced in this plate. A plate of shellac was then placed be-
tween the electrometer plate and the electrified conductor a, when a
movement of the gold leaf took place, and Knochenhauer asserted
‘*that simultaneously with the introduction of the shellac plate the
leaf of the electrometer indicated free positive electricity, so that now,
on the lower disk, more negative electricity was disguised.’’ This
was in perfect harmony with Faraday’s view; but it is in direct op-
position to the results of the experiments with the straw electrometer
instituted by me. According to my experiments, I am obliged to
suppose that the movement of the gold leaf indicated free negative
electricity.
‘It might be supposed that Anochenhauer was deceived as to the
pole of his gold leaf electrometer, so that he confounded a negative
with a positive indication.
In order to come at this definitely, I repeated Knochenhauer’s ex-
periment. The ball @ was charged with + EH, and when a shellac
plate was introduced between a and the electrometer plate, the gold
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS, 395
leaf moved towards the positive pole of the instrument; that is, to-
wards that one which it strikes when a rubbed stick of rosin is ap-
proached from above; the gold leaf then received free — E by inserting
the shellac plate.
If Knochenhauer’s view were correct, the gold leaf, on the introduc-
tion of the shellac plate, (a being positive,) should move toward the
side which is approached whena glass rod rubbed with silk is brought
over the electrometer. But the proximity of rubbed glass produces a
result opposite to that effected by the presence of the shellac plate.
Thus the error of AKnochenhauer with reference to the nature of the
indication is proved.
Faraday’s opinion that a stronger induction is effected through
shellac than through air, is hence decidedly wrong. The experiments
made with the straw electrometer, as well as with the pile electrome-
ter, directly contradict this view.
But how are all these phenomena to be explained? I beg leave to
offer a few hints, which, perhaps, will serve to point out the way that
may lead to a definitive decision of the question.
If we introduce between the electrified ball a, fig. 38, and the straw
electrometer an uninsulated conductor, the pendulum will collapse.
According to known laws, nothing else could be expected.
If we introduce an insulated metallic disk between a and the elec-
trometer, a considerable diminution of the divergence will occur, but
the pendulum will not completely collapse. This is in consequence
of an inductive action which a exerts upon the intervening insulated
metallic plate.
If we introduce a shellac plate between a and the electrometer, a
similar diminution of the divergence will take place, but yet not so
much as in presence of the insulated metallic plate. This seems to
indicate that the electrified body @ causes an induction even in the
shellac, though not to such an extent as ina good conductor. In
fact, we know that shellac, though a very bad conductor, is not an
absolute insulator.
Knochenhauer also seems to hint at something similar in the me-
moir cited. At any rate, this matter needs further investigation ;
but so much is certain, that a more powerful induction does not take
place through solid insulation than through air, as /araday main-
tains.
§ 23. INDUCTION IN CURVED LINES. We proceed now to the consider-
ation of Faraday’s proof of induction in curved lines.
A cylinder of shellac 0.9 of an inch in diameter, which
can be placed upright, and has a cavity at the top, is
electrified by friction, and a brass ball 1 inch in diam-
eter laid in the cavity or cap. If now an insulated proof
ball be brought into the positions indicated by d, c, b,
and e, touched for an instant, and then tried whether it
have any electrical charge, and of what kind, it is found
that the carrier will receive a positive charge at d and c¢,
as well as at 0 and e.
The result of this experiment has nothing in it at all
remarkable, it might have been predicted. The ball B_ '
is electrified positively by induction ; the — E of the shellac cylinder
396 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS,
and the induced + KE of the ball B act simultaneously upon the
carrier wherever it may be, the effect of the cylinder preponderates,
and hence the carrier must be charged with induced + E at 0 as well
as ate.
This case is perfectly analogous to that already mentioned in § 17.
Faraday explains the matter thus: The proof ball is electrified at
b as well as at e by induction ; but since it is impossible to connect by
a straight line the shellac cylinder with either 6 or e, the induction
must take place around B through the air, consequently there must
be induction in curved lines. To arrive at this conclusion, Faraday
must naturally suppose that no inductive action can take place
through a conductor.
That no induction can take place through metal, Yaraday believes
he can prove.
Fig. 40. A metallic plate, C, fig. 40, was held above the
shellac cylinder, and touched for a moment, so
40 that it should be charged by induction with + EH.
/ A proof plane, or a small proof ball, was now
fs, a es held at a, close to the middle of the plate, and
= touched for a moment, when it gave no indica-
tion of a charge; hence Faraday concluded, that
the electricity of the shellac cylinder cannot act
inductively through the metal plate; but when
the proof ball was raised to about the distance of
b, it received a positive charge, which, according
to his view, showed that induction could take
place in curved lines around the plate upon point 0.
Fechner has described the same experiment in a somewhat different
form, in the memoir already cited, (Pog. Ann. LI, 321.) He has
shown that the phenomena, as Faraday describes them, are necessary
consequences of the known laws of induction.
Fechner says: ‘‘ That the’maximum of the effect is seen at some
distance froin the upper plate,* is not at all surprising. For all
points of the upper plate, the influence of the negative electricity
which it contained, must be in exact equilibrium with that of the
positive electricity of the lower plate; otherwise, more or less elec-
tricity would be decomposed in the upper plate, and accumulate more
than the case shows. By elevating the proof plane above the upper
plate, its distance from the points of the upper plate increases in
another proportion, than from those of the lower plate; hence the
influence of the latter begins to predominate. Yet the increase of the
action with the elevation of the proof plane cannot go beyond a cer-
tain maximum, because at a greater distance the action of each plate
separately would disappear.’’
These phenomena, consequently, are not a proof of induction in
curved lines; and, in general, it may be asserted that Maraday has
not presented a tenable proof of his hypothesis, namely, that induc-
tion takes place through the contiguous particles of the intervening
insulator.
§ 24, FARADAY’S THEORY OF INDUCTION.—Faraday endeavors, in the
* Fechner used (instead of a shellac cylinder) an insulated and positively electrified me-
ta ic plate, which he termed the lower plate.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 397
12th and 13th series of his Haperimental researches, (Pog. Ann.
XLVII, XLVIII,) to support his theory of induction by a consideration
of the different forms of electric discharge. He classifies the different
kinds of discharge by dividing them into conductive discharge, electro-
lytic discharge, disruptive discharge, (sparks, brushes, &c.,) and con-
vective discharge.
{In considering the conductive discharge, /’araday endeavors to prove
that the difference between insulators and conductors is only quantita-
tive—a truth which no one, to my knowledge, has disputed.
The electrolytic discharge, says Faraday, is preceded by an inductive
action through the electrolyte; the inductive state being, in fact, a
necessary preliminary to discharge, decomposition is preceded by the
state of polarization or tension of the particles of the fluid to be de-
composed. To this also nothing is to be objected.
For the disruptive discharge, Faraday, in like manner, endeavors
to prove that the particles of the dielectric through which the discharge
takes place, whether in the form of a spark or brush, are also in a state
of tension or polarization.
Though we cannot get aclear conception of such a state of tension
or polarization of the particles of air which precedes the spark or brush
discharge, yet the existence of such a state is not in the least doubtful,
neither is its admission at all opposed to the heretofore acknowledged
electrical theories. But Faraday goes further: he regards this polar-
ized state as a proof that the electric inductive effect which takes place
through the air, or the dielectric substituted for it, is produced by
means of their polarized state. For the correctness of this view Fara-
day has yet to furnish the proof.
With the design of establishing his theory of induction, Faraday
made many experiments on sparks and brushes, which, though they
are not very important to the present subject, yet are interesting, and,
as valuable facts, will be described in another place.
Since conduction and insulation have only a quantitative difference,
Faraday thinks that even in the better conducting fluids a convective
discharge might take place, if only a sufficient quantity of electricity
were present. The following experiment would seem to support this
opinion :
Two platinum wires, forming the poles of a powerful voltaic bat-
tery, were fused hermetically, near to each other and side by side, in
a strong glass tube containing distilled water, having a few filaments
init. When the bubbles at the electrodes, in consequence of the in-
creased pressure caused by the continuous development of gas, had
become so small that they produced only a weak ascending current,
. it could be noticed that the filaments were attracted and repelled be-
tween the two wires, as though between two oppositely charged sur-
faces in air or oil of turpentine. They moved so rapidly that they
displaced and disturbed the bubbles and the currents formed by them.
Faraday supposed it could hardly be doubted that, under similar cir-
cumstances, with a large quantity of electricity, of sufficient tension,
convective currents might be formed. The attractions and repulsions
of the filaments were in fact the elements of such currents; hence,
water, although it is almost an infinitely better conductor than air or
oil of turpentine, is a medium in which similar currents can take place.
398 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Faraday’s theory does not pretend to decide upon the consequences
of avacuum. According to his view, electrical phenomena, such as
induction, conduction, and insulation, depend on, and are produced
by, the influence of contiguous particles of matter, the nearest particle
being considered as the contiguous one ; he assumes further, that these
particles become polarized, and that they act at a distance only by
acting on the contiquous and intermediate particles.
Suppose a vacuum to be in the line of induction ; it does not follow
from the theory, says Faraday, that the particles on the opposite sides
of such a vacuum cannot act on each other. Suppose it possible for a
positively electrified particle to exist in\the centre of a vacuum one
inch in diameter; nothing in my theory prevents the particle from
acting, at the distance of half an inch, on all the particles forming
the surface of the sphere with a force according to the known law of
the square of the distance.
Here, however, Faraday again assumes the action at a distance.
In the fourteenth series of Experimental Researches, (Pog. Ann.
Sup., vol. of 1842,) Faraday collected his views on the nature of elec-
trical force, and particularly on the state of tension accompanying
induction. I quote this summary literally:
“1669. The theory (Faraday’s) assumes that all the particles,
whether of insulating or conducting matter, are, as wholes, con-
ductors.
“©1670. That not being polar in their normal state, they can become
so by the influence of neighboring charged particles, the polar state
being developed at the instant, exactly as in an insulated conducting
mass consisting of many particles.
“1671. That the particles when polarized are in a forced state, and
tend to return to their normal or natural condition.
**1672. That being as wholes conductors, they can readily be
charged, either bodily or polarly.
“©1673. That particles which, being contiguous, are also in the line
of inductive action, can communicate or transfer their polar forces one .
to another more or less readily.
“1674. That those doing so less readily require the polar force to
be raised to a higher degree before this transference or communication
takes place.
**1675. That the ready communication of forces between contiguous
particles constitutes conduction, and the dificult communication insu-
lation; conductors and insulators being bodies whose particles natur-
ally possess the property of communicating their respective forces
easily or with difficulty ; having these differences just as they have
differences of any other natural property. :
“1676. That ordinary induction is the effect resulting from the
action of matter charged with excited or free electricity upon insu-
lating matter, tending to produce in it an equal amount of the contrary
state.
“1677. That it [the charged matter] can do this only by polarizing
the particles continguous to it, which perform the same office to the
next and these again to those beyond; and that thus the action is
propagated from the excited body to the next conducting mass, and
these render the contrary force evident in consequence of the effect ot
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS, 399
communication which supervenes in the conducting mass upon the
polarization of the particles of. that body, (1675.)
“©1678. That, therefore, induction can only take place through or
across insulators ; that induction is insulation, it being the necessary
consequence of the state of the particles and the mode in which the
influence of electrical forces is transferred or transmitted through or
across such insulating media.
‘©1679. The particles of an insulating dielectric whilst under induc-
tion may be compared to a series of small magnetic needles, or more
correctly still to a series of small insulated conductors. If the space
round a charged globe were filled with a mixture of an insulated
dielectric, as oil of turpentine or air, and small globular conductors,
as shot, the latter being at a little distance from each other, so as to
be insulated, then these would in their condition and action exactly
resemble what I consider to be the condition and action of the particles
of the insulating dielectric itself. If the globe were charged these
little conductors would all be polar; if the globe were discharged
they would all return to their normal state, to be polarized again
upon the recharging of the globe. The state developed by induction
through such particles on a mass of conducting matter at a distance
would be of the contrary kind, and exactly equal in amount to the
force in the inductric globe. There would be a lateral diffusion of
force, (1224, 1297,) because each polarized sphere would be in an active
or tense relation to all those contiguous to it, just as one magnet can
affect two or more magnetic needles near it, and these again a still
greater number beyond them. Hence would result the production of
curved lines of inductive force if the inducteous body in such a mixed
dielectric were an uninsulated metallic ball, or other properly shaped
mass. Such curved lines are the consequences of the two electric
forces arranged as I have assumed them to be; and that the inductive
force can be directed in such curved lines is the strongest proof of the
presence of the two powers and the polar condition of the dielectric
particles.
‘$4680. I think it is evident, that in the case stated, action at a
distance can only result through an action of the contiguous con-
ducting particles. There is no reason why the inductive body should
polarize or affect distant conductors and leave those near it, namely,
the particles of the dielectric, unaffected ; and everything in the form
of fact and experiment with conducting masses or particles of a suita-
ble size contradicts such a supposition.”’
Asa consequence of the above, Faraday supposes all bodies to consist,
as it were, of small conductors which are separated by an insulating
substance; the inductive action of one particle on another, he must
also assume, to be precisely like induction between two conductors, as
generally supposed; he must then assume action at a distance of the
ordinary kind between each two particles of the insulator. Since he
must assume this at last, and an insulating interval, there is really
little reason to set aside the accepted opinions which, though they
may have many deficiencies, must be maintained until overwhelming
gro. establishes not only their insufficiency, but their incorrectness
also.
In continuation of the fourteenth series, Faraday notices the induc-
400 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
tive capacity of crystalline bodies in different directions. According
to his idea of specific inductive capacity, it is evidently possible that
crystalline bodies have not equal inductive capacity in all directions ;
that, for instance, rock crystal, or cale spar, might have a greater or
less inductive capacity in the direction of their optical axes than
perpendicular to them. WJaraday’s experiments leave this question
wholly undecided ; in most cases exceedingly small differences being
indicated, while in others, where greater differences appeared, colored
seams in the crystal, cracks and the like, may have had an injurious
effect. I do not consider it necessary here to enter more into detail.
Faraday’s views on electrical induction must necessarily have forced
upon him the question, whether magnetic attraction and repulsion, as
heretofore supposed, are to be ascribed to action at a distance, or
whether magnetism in a similar manner acts at a distance through
the medium of intervening particles, analagous to induction in static
electricity according to his view.
The experiments which he made for the solution of this question
gave invariably negative results, whether he used plates of shellac,
sulphur, or copper, as intervening bodies. No sign of the influence
of intermediate particles could be obtained.
Even if the first experiment did not succeed in showing that mag-
netism acts at a distance through the medium of intervening particles,
it is still conceivable that a magnet might affect all the particles of
the non-magnetic bodies surrounding it, and place them in a peculiar
state of tension, similar to that of the dielectric, through which in-
duction takes place from one conductor to another ; and it is certain
that Faraday, in his endeavors to discover proofs "for such a state,
was led to the discovery of the rotation of the plane of polarization by
the magnetic poles and galvanic currents as well as to dia-magnetism ;
discover ies which alone would be sufficient to make his name immortal
in the history of science.
§ 25. Munck ar RosENScHOLD on InNDucTION. In the 69th volume of
Poggendorf’s Annalen, is a memoir by Munck af Rosenschild, in
which induction is treated of. In his somewhat extended considera
tion of the subject, into which he naturally introduces much that is
known, he starts with the correct view of induction, which is also
defended | »y Riess and Fechner.
The following constitutes the most important parts of Rosenchéld’s
memoir :
Let the plate A, Fig. 41, be electrified and act inductively on B
and C. Let E be the quantity of electricity on A, and it will induce
Fig. 41. upon B, which communicates with the ground through
A a fine wire, the quantity of electricity — mE. If the
Cm im 7 plate C be now brought within the ‘ electrical sha-
B dow’’ of B, and connected with the ground, both A
Ci and B will act upon this plate. If we indicate by m!
the co-efficient of induction which belongs to the dis-
tance between B and C, then m’ mE will be disguised
“lige on C by A, if m”’ represents the co-efficient of induc-
tion correspor ding to the distance between A C; then there will be
disguised on C,
c= mm K—m' i,
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 401
The density of the electricity induced on C is always very small ;
if it were zero we should have
m.m =m!
If this were rigidly true, we should have m?, m’, m‘, &c., for the
coefficients of induction for the distances 2, 3, 4; m being the coefti-
cient for the distance 1; or, in other words, the distances would be
the logarithms of the coefficients of induction.
But the electricity disguised in C is not zero, though it is very
feeble. It becomes imperceptible when C is very near B, or even
when A is brought very close to B; for a given distance between A
and C, the induced electricity becomes a maximum when B is placed
exactly in the middle between them.
These relations had been already discovered by Fechner, who de-
scribes them in his treatise above quoted.
Fig. 42. Rosenschold now sought to determine in what pro-
A portion the quantity of electricity disguised on CO
varies, when the intermediate plate B is insulated,
y ~ and is then put in connection with the ground.
The plates A, B, and C, were 6 inches in diameter,
the distance from A to C was 9 inches, and B was
mid way between them. When B was uninsulated,
¢ Rosenschold found that the electricity disguised on C
was only 7; of what there was when B remained insulated. In the
latter case, that is, when B is insulated, according to Rosenschold’s
experiments, it is quite immaterial whether this plate be present or
not.
When the distance from A to C was half as great, the electricity
induced on C, B being uninsulated, was only 4; of that which was
disguised there when B remained insulated.
A and C having been placed at the distance of 2 feet from each
other, the electricity disguised on C was inconsiderable, but on touch-
ing B it amounted to more than half of what was observed when B
was insulated.
Similar experiments were made with three-inch plates.
When A and C were 9 lines apart, and B was touched, the quan-
tity of electricity disguised on C was =, of the quantity on it when B
was insulated.
As a final result of these experiments, it was found that m! differed
very little from mm’, as long as the distance of the plates A and C
from each other did not exceed from + to } of their diameter.
With reference to the above ratios 7., =1., -., it may be remarked
that Rosenschold has not stated, as he should have done, how the in-
dications of his electrometer used for these measurements, were made
properly comparable.
§ 26. Riess ON INDUCED ELECTRICITY AND THE THEORY OF CONDENSERS.
The last labors on this subject which we have to mention here, are those
of iess, published in the 73d vol. of Poggendorff’s Annalen, under the
title: ‘‘On Influence Electricity and the Theory of Condensers.’”’ By
the name influence electricity, Riess designates that which is generally
268
402 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
termed disguised (gebundene) electricity, a designation which Riess
shows, in the historical introduction to his memoir, has contributed
much towards establishing erroneous views on the nature of induced
electricity.
Lichtenberg first introduced the expression ‘‘bound”’ electricity into
science. He speaks of bound, latent, or dead electricity, in contradis-
tinction to free or sensible; he distinguishes from the ordinary elec-
trical condition another, in which electricity, although present, is
inactive, dead, latent, perfectly analogous to latent heat.—(ra-
leben’s Elements of Physics, 3d edition, with additions by Lichtenberg,
1784, page 499.)
This has produced very injurious consequences to science, and has
given occasion to the strange ideas on the existence of induced or dis-
guised electricity, which, obstinately defended as we have already
seen, cannot be corrected without much trouble. However, we can
now regard the opinion that latent electricity has entirely peculiar
properties, as finally refuted. [See note at the commencement of
this section. |
Biot presents the theory of condensers and the Leyden jar some-
what in this manner: If to an insulated metallic plate the quantity
of electricity 1 be communicated, this will disguise, in a neighboring
metalic plate connected with the earth, a quantity of electricity m,
which, reacting upon the first plate, will disguise in it the quantity
m2, so that there is remaining only the quantity 1— m? as free elec-
tricity. If E be the greatest quantity of electricity which the insu-
lated plate can re¢eive separately, it will continue to receive more in
the presence of the condenser plate, until its free electricity amounts
to E. Represent by A the whole quantity which the insulated plate
is now capable of receiving, and we will have
1
: A
(1 — m’) A = HE, hence E> ilo
This fraction indicates the ratio of the quantities of electricity which
the insulated plate can receive, standing first alone and then in the
presence of the condenser ; it expresses, consequently, the condensing
power of the apparatus.
This formula is perfectly admissible in so far as it serves only for
illustrating the action of the condenser, but it must be regarded as
misused when it is employed for computing the condensing power of
the apparatus. iess has proved that the coeilicient of accumulation
of the condenser is not a definite quantity, dependent only upon the
distance of the plates, but that it varies with the form and magnitude
of the condenser plate, with the position of the conducting wire of the
plate, with the point in which the collector receives the electricity
from the source of excitation, &c. In short, Mess has shown that
the coefficient of acumulation is a quantity which varies in the same
instrument from one experiment to another; that consequently the
above formula cannot be used for computing the condensing power of
the apparatus.
I beg leave to make a few remarks on the manner in which Jiiess
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 403
speaks in relation to this formula. He expresses himself strongly
against it, so that one would get the notion that the entire conception
which Biot presented of the action of the condenser was not only faulty,
but fundamentally wrong. tiess justly censures the misuse which has
been made of the formula in computing the condensing power of the
apparatus, and shows incontestably, by experiment, that such an appli-
cation is not admissible ; but in the introductory consideration he ex-
presses himself in a manner which would lead one to believe he desired
to prove far more against the formula than is in fact his purpose, and
from this cause it is somewhat difficult to understand his memoir. It
appears subsequently, however, that in his opposition to the formula
not so much is intended as would seem at first to be the case, and it
becomes clear to the reader after a while, that he only censures the
misuse of the formula, which in the end rests upon the same notion
of the action of the condenser which he himself developes. The dis-
cussion is in part a strife about words, —
We pass now to the experiments which /¢ess instituted to discover
and explain the mode of action of the condenser, and the circumstan-
ces which influence the capacity of the instrument for condensing.
Two plane brass disks, 87.6 lines in diameter, ,17 of a line thick,
with rounded edges, were in the middle of one side provided with
cylindrical handles, 15 dines long and 11 lines thick. These handles
are perforated in their axes so that a conducting wire may be fastened
in them by means of a clamp screw. At right angles to their axes
they have a,cavity in which a glass rod, coated with shellac, somewhat
over eight inches long is cemented. These rods bearing the disks stand
vertically on a horizontal base as shown in fig. 43.
The induced plate A or condenser can be laid on its back by means
Fig. 43. of a_ hinge.
The inducing
—_ a |
uh i) | o
LTDA
disk B, known
as the collect-
oris placedona
slide so that it
can be brought
near to or re-
| moved from A
i _If i at will,and the
WiowonliwW W '™’~w©«qqq\g“ge<a dd distance mea-
sured accurately.
The condenser A, when in use, was connected by a metallic wire
with the gas pipes of the house, as a discharging train.
The collector B was connected by a metallic wire with”one knob of
a spark micrometer, fig. 50, the other knob of which communicated
with the gas pipes of the house.
A being turned down, so that B stood alone, the latter was then elec-
trified by contact with the knob of a Leyden jar. The free electricity
distributed itself over the whole insulated system, that is, over the
plate B, and the knob of the spark micrometer connected with it.
The striking distance of the electricity present was measured by the
404 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
gradual approach of the other knob of the micrometer. One experi-
ment gave, for instance, the striking distance 1.475 lines.
~ The movable knob of the spark micrometer was then shoved back,
the plate B charged in the same manner as before, and the disk A
placed erect and brought within two lines of B; B now acted induc-
tively on A, —E collected on A,* and reacting inductively upon B,
brought about another arrangement of the electricity in the system
opposite to it; the electricity collected more in A, and its density on
the knob C is diminished ; from this follows a reduced striking dis-
tance; for on bringing up the other knob of the spark micrometer
until a spark passed, the striking distance was found to be 0.150.
By the approach of the condenser, therefore, the electricity is accumu-
lated upon A; its density on C on the contrary, is diminished, and
Fig. 44. in the propor-
tion of 1.475 to
0.150, or in the
last case it is
only 0.102 of
the former.
The electri-
cal “charee,
which the jar
WEN XC RQQQQGQG{ e: CE SQQ 7 ,7° SS g ave to the
CC’ GGG www ww ..g5b plate was not
perfectly equal in both cases, for beside the loss of charge which the
jar suffered between the times of the first and second contact, it had
imparted electricity to the plate at the first contact, hence at the sec-
ond its charge must have been somewhat, although but a trifle, less
than before. In order to correct this inequality in the quantities of
electricity, Riess made a series of experiments, alternately with and
without the condenser, and compared the striking distance of each
experiment with the mean of the preceding and following ones. The
results are arranged in the following table. Distance of the plates,
two lines:
NN
“Throughout his whole memoir Riess avoided the expression ‘‘ bound electricity,’ (gebun-
deue electricitat,) for no other reason than because a false idea was connected with it. This
term may be very properly united with a correct conception, and consequently I do not
think an expression should be proscribed which has gone so much into common use.
False conception of ‘‘ bound,”’ ¢. e., disguised electricity, are not so generally disseminated
as Riess seems to think ; I never had any other view, than that which he presents, and he
can hardly find much to object to in the presentation of the matter in my Treatise on
Physics, unless he should take offence at a single word; the remark on the lower half of
page 414 of the first volume of the first edition, (3d edition, 2d vol., p. 97,) are designed
to remove every doubt as to the true meaning, and yet at the time I wrote that part, the
memoir of Riess and the whole controversy on the nature of disguised electricity, was un-
known to me, else I would have certainly suggested the proper experiments described in
Section 17 of this report, and I also would have avoided here and there a few less ae-
curate expressions, which, as I was not aware of any controversy, were used quite un-
designedly.
[See note at the commencement of this Section. ]
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 405
Striking distance in Paris lines.
With condenser. Mean. Ratio.
{
. 5
Without condenser. ©
1.475 0.150 1.406 0.106
0.142 0.106
1.337 0.135 1.303 0.104
0,132 0.104
1.270 | 0.130 1.244 0.105
0.128 0.105
1.219 0.126
| 0.105
eel a ee ee eee See
If we indicate by 1 the density of the electricity which is distributed
upon the ball C when the plate B is charged while A is removed,
more electricity will be attracted from C to B when the condenser
in connexion with the ground is brought within two lines of the plate
B, and thus the density of the electricity on C is diminished to 0.105.
The influence which the condenser A exerts upon the induction of
electricity on the opposite insulated system B OC, naturally depends
upon the distance between A and B; the further A is from B, so
much the less will the density on C be diminished on its elevation.
From a numerous series of experiments, conducted as those above
described, fiess found for different distances of the condenser the
following striking distances at the ball C, the striking distance with-
out the condenser being taken as unity.
|
Distance of plates..| 2 lines. | 5 lines. | 10 lines. | 20 lines. | 30 lines. | 50 lines. | io)
|
of
If we suppose that a perfectly free communication of electricity can
be made at the knob C of the normal connecting wire, an accumula-
tion of electricity will occur on the plate so long as the striking dis-
tance at the knob does not exceed a given quantity. Make this limit
of density equal to 1. Suppose the insulated system, B standing alone,
is charged to this limit. Now, if the condenser be brought near, and
more electricity thus attracted to the plate B, and its density on C
Striking distance..-| 0. 105
0. 272 0.451 | 0. 687 0. 794 0-914 | 1
diminished, (say to fa it is clear that n times as much electricity
n
can be conveyed to the whole insulated system as before, until the
density 1 is reached on C; hence the apparatus, in the presence of
the condenser, can receive m times as much electricity as before.
In the above experiments, the density of the electricity on C is di-
minished by the approach of the condenser within two lines, to 0.105
or
= ; hence an accumulation of electricity 9.5 times as great as
Oo
without the condenser,
For the different distances of the condenser in the above experiments
the possible increase of density on the collector is in the following pro-
portion :
/
406 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Possible increase of electric density on
GOUECHOR Has = Se ee ee ee eee
This is the correct representation of the mode of action of the con-
densing apparatus. Correct views on the subject had long been held,
but not so decidedly and clearly expressed.
In these experiments, © was connected with B by a wire 8 inches
5 linesinlength. Whena wire 18 inches 3 lines long was used instead,
almost exactly the same relative numbers of the striking distance were
obtained for the collector standing alone and in the presence of the
condenser.
Consequently, when the conducting system of the collector is brought
into contact with a constant source of electricity, there will be accu-
mulated on the collector B, 2.21, 1.45, 1.25, &c., times more electricity
when the condenser A connected with the ground, is 10, 20, 30, &c.,
lines distant from B, than if it were removed.
Riess made direct experiments to determine the increase of the
quantity of electricity on the collector by the approach of the con-
denser under the above circumstances; that is, when the collector,
during the proximity of the condenser, remained in communication
with a constant source of electricity; the form of experiment was as
follows.
First the ball C was touched with the knob of a Leyden jar, while
the condenser was away ; the jar was then removed, and the striking
distance at C measured.
Next, the condenser communicating with the ground was placed at
a given distance, © was brought into contact with the knob of the
Leyden jar, the condenser jar removed, and the striking distance
at C again measured.
The striking distance was found to be in the last case as many times
greater than in the first as the electricity imparted to the plate B in the
last instance was more than in the first.
A series of experiments gave as a mean the following quantities of
electricity for the different distances of the plates :
Mictancelotplates) seem eae | 10 lines.| 20. 30. 50. oO
Blectricity obtamed:-s-2—<5) sac) Poet iee 2. 33 Td2h Valeo 1.11 1
The difference between these observed numbers and the densities
computed from the first experiments is really very small.
For distances less than 10 lines reliable experiments could not be
made.
The proportion of the quantity of electricity on the collector, accord-
ing as it stands alone during contact, or near the condenser, is called
the coefficient of accumulation of the condenser. According to the
above experiments, therefore, the coefficient of accumulation of the
condenser is 2.21, 1.45, &c., when the plates are 10 lines, 20, &c.,
apart.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 407
We shall see presently that this coefficient does not depend on the
distance of the plates alone.
The determination of the density of the electricity on C by means
of the spark micrometer renders the result very apparent, but is not
suitable for accurate determinations, because the knob of the microm-
eter connected with the ground influences the induction of electricity
on the opposite one. Instead of the spark micrometer, however, any
other method of measuring the electrical density on C may be used.
Riess applied the torsion balance in a more accurate series. He
found in this manner that when an electrical charge was imparted to
the insulated system D B, (the knob of the micrometer connected with
the ground being removed,) the condenser being away, and unity
representing the electrical density of C, on the approach of the con-
denser at different distances, the density on C was as follows:
Distance of plates----- 2 lines.}. 3. 4. by 10. Woe 20. 50; | ©
Density on C_----...- 0.173 | 0. 235] 0. 28610. 335} 0. 492 | 0. 595 | 0.683} 0.897| 1
These results correspond very well with those found by means of
the spark micrometer.
When the connecting wire between B and C was shortened, the
following somewhat different numbers were found :
Distance of plates-----
Densitye a. toca ss-5
ee
On the back of the collector the electrical density was diminished
by the proximity of the condensor. Riess found that on this surface,
near its edge, the density was diminished in the following proportion:
Distance of plates---- - 2. | 3. 4. OL OS ite 20. 50. oO
DWensiayeee 4 == 2-145 \='= 0.260 {0.341} 0.412]0. 460} 0. 617/0. 715} 0.628} 0.9417 1
Thus it appears that on the back of the collector, near the edge,
the density of the electricity is diminished by the proximity of the
condenser far less than at the end C of the connecting wire, placed in
the middle of the plate; hence the coefficient of accumulation of the
condenser is less when the body to be examined is placed at the edge than
when at the middle of the collector.*
* This conclusion does not seem to me perfectly correct. The experiments show that
when the constant source of electricity is kept at C the coefficient of accumulation
decreases more than when the back surface of the collector is touched near the edge by
the constant source of electricity. That it is the same whether the knob C or the middle
of the collector itself be touched by the constant source is not yet proven, as it must be
before the above conclusion can be admitted.
408 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Larger condensing plates admit of a greater condensation of elec-
tricity than smaller ones, as Munk af Rosenschéld, has shown.
Experiments were made with plates 52 lines in diameter, under
circumstances as near as possible the same as in the above series, that
is the connexion of the collector was the same in both cases. Only
the diminution of the electrical density was observed which took place
at the end of the normal connecting wire (at the knob C?) on the
approach of the condenser. In the following table the results obtained
with the small plates are compared with those of the larger ones.
ay 10. 1507) | c
| |
Distance of plates ..-.---} 2 lines. 3. 4, |
i
Density with small con- ; j
denserks sae ee PS. ee ; 0.232 | 0.330) 0.393 | 0. 443 | 0.688 |} 0.768 | 1
Density with large con- | |
densemoee ester eee | 0.155] 0.219 | 0.274 | 0.306 | 0.488 | 0.630: 1
Thus it is seen that the density of the electricity on the normal con-
ductor of the small plates is not so much diminished by the proximity
of the condenser as by the use of the larger plates, and consequently
that in condensing with large plates, a greater accumulation of elec-
tricity is possible on the back surface of the collector itself than in the
use of small plates.
The density of the electricity on the collector plate also depends
upon the manner in which conducting connexion is made with the
condenser.
In the last experiments made with the small plates, the conducting
connexion with the condenser was normal to its plane; but the con-
necting wire was next placed at the side of the projection from the
plate, so that it was about five lines distant from the plate and parallel
with it. (The arrangement as thus described is not quite clear to
Tiss, MM.)
The density of the electricity on the normal projection, or handles
of the collector, was now observed for different distances of the con-
denser, and the results compared with those obtained by the normal
conductor of the condenser plate.
amalakh on B
+
Distance of platess =. 22 —-- -\ 2-5 | 2 lines. Bye 4, Be | 10. eo
Density, (parallel conductor) -.--.--- 0. 190 0. 269 0. 340 0. 408 0. 597 1
Density, (normal conductor)---..-- 0. 232 0. 330 0.3938 0. 443 0. 688 1
With the conducting wire running parallel to the condenser, a less
density is found for each distance of the plates, on the normal con-
ductor of the collector plate, than when the conductor of the con-
denser plate is normal; consequently the conductor of the condenser
plate being parallel, the condensor is susceptible of a greater accumu-
lation of electricity than when the conductor is normal.
Riess next sought to determine the quantity of electricity disguised
on the condenser plate. It is sufficient here, to present only the
results of his experiments with the larger condenser. Representing
by 1 the quantity of electricity on the collector, the following quan-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 409
tities of electricity are found on the condenser at different distances of
the plates.
Distance of plates ....-.--- 2 lines.
Quantity of induced electri-
|
city on condenser. -.----- 0. 911 | 0. 887} 0. 854) 0. 823) 0. 689} 0. oe 0. 500) 0. 263
,
——
§ 27. ELECTRICAL EFFECTS OF FLAME.—The electrical properties of
flame have been described ina memoir by Riess, which may be found
in Poggendorf’s Annalen, vol. LVI, p. 545. In the introduction he
gives historical notices of the experiments and views previously pre-
sented on this subject. We will only remark here, that Gilbert and
Kircher were acquainted with the electrical effect of flame; Priestly
proved experimentally that it was a conductor of electricity, and Volta
compared the electrical action of flame to that of metallic points.
The electrical action of flame may be thus concisely characterized:
If an electrified conductor be furnished with a flame, it will at once
lose its electricity, which issues though the flame, as through a point
fixed on the conductor; if, on the other hand, a flame be brought into
the neighborhood of an electrified body, the flame draws off the
electricity, just as a metallic point does in a far less degree. On
placing a flame on the knob of a Leyden jar which is near an electrical
machine in operation, the jar charges itself as though the knob had
been connected with the conductor of the machine. Volta applied
burning sponge to his electroscope, in order to attract atmospheric
electricity by this means.
Although Volta was well aware that flame was a conductor and that
it acted like metallic points, and thus had the elements of a correct
explanation, yet his views on the action of points themselves were
somewhat erroneous, since he believed that the emission as well as
the absorption of electricity by points was a consequence of the elec-
trical wind. In flame the ascending current of air, according to his
view, replaced the effect of the electrical wind.
The electrical wind appears, it is true, when points are strongly
charged and favors the emission and absorption of electricity, but
the action of points is not dependent upon this wind; the action takes
place even in electrical charges which are too weak to cause the elec-
trical wind to appear.
According to Volta’s explanation, an actual communication of elec-
tricity takes place in the electrical action of flame. That the charg-
ing and discharging action of points does not always depend on the
immediate transfer of electricity is known; Riess sought to prove this
also for flame, experimentally; he explains the action of flame in the
following manner.
A dense current of steam constantly issues from flame, rising as a
continuous stratum into the air. But it preserves this form only for
a small elevation.* As the air presses on the steam from all sides,
pret Mire Wa Ae US AR eee ne
_ [This passage, which is correctly transcribed from Riess’ memoir, is here literally
translated. That the steam should be decomposed after having been formed by combus-
tion, is contrary to what we know of flame, and the author has given no reason for such
a view. |
— 410 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
and the latter, decomposed by the white heat, unites with particles
of air, the continuous mass is broken and separated, and only threads
of it remain, which are diffused more and more, and finally scattered
in the air.* Hence from flame conducting electricity threads issue,
which being separated from each other by the non-conducting gases
and hot air, necessarily flow away in ends and points. This being
granted, flame must be considered as a good conductor of electricity,
furnished with a number of points extending in every direction into
the air, and such, too, as to exceed in perfection all the points exist-
ing in nature.
The quantity of electricity issuing from a conductor furnished with
points, is as much greater as the points are more perfect; the least
traces of electricity are also removed by flame. The electrical density is
much greater on a point than on any other part of a conductor, at the
steam points of flame the density is therefore very great; the elec-
tricity accumulated at the steam points acts then inductively upon
neighboring insulated conductors. If the accumulation of the elec-
tricity attracted to the parts of the insulated conductor, which le
nearest the electrical steam points, is great enough, it will escape,
and the conductor will remain charged only with the electricity which
is repelled by the electricity of the flame being of the same kind;
the insulated conductor therefore remains charged with the same elec-
tricity which the flame has, without that of the flame having gone
over to it.
On the other hand, if the flame be brought near to an electrified
body, the steam points will become electrical by induction, but their
electricity escapes, and the insulated conductor, on which the lamp is
placed, remains charged with the same electricity which the neighbor-
ing inducing electrified body possesses, without this electricity having
passed from the electrified body to the conductor provided with the
lamp.
This view of the subject is justified by the following experiment:
A small metallic spirit-lamp, surrounded by a metallic cylinder 13
lines high, was placed on a properly insulated copper disk A, 3 inches
11 lines in diameter. About 33 in-
ches from the lamp was placed a
second copper disk B, (fig. 45,) con-
nected with the electroscope 6, and
kept in a vertical plane by an insu-
lating shellac handle. The point of
the wick and the middle of the disk
B were at the same height.
When the lamp was lighted and
A electrified by contact with one of
the poles of a dry pile, the electroscope immediately indicated a diver-
gence of 3 lines. Since the steam of the flame ascends vertically, a direct
transfer of electricity is improbable. If it does take place, A and B
must necessarily be in conducting connexion through steam, and the
electroscope should collapse as soon as A is touched. But by touching
[* This explanation is unsatisfactory, since super heated steam does not conduct better
than heated air; all we know at present relative to this matter is, that a flame acts as an
assemblage of perfect points |
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 411
A, the leaves of the electroscope 6 fell only to 2} lines. Hence there
was no conducting connexion between B and the lamp, and the
charging of B took place in the way indicated above.
If B was electrified, and while the lamp burned, A was touched,
the electroscope collapsed slowly, stood at 3 lines divergence, and
even after two minutes the divergence was 2} lines. B being held
horizontally over A, the steam of the iamp struck B; consequently a
conducting connexion existed between A and B. In this case, when
the experiments just described were repeated, the electroscope b at
once collapsed when A was touched.
From the results of these experiments, it appeared that the effective
steam points extended far beyond the flame and the metallic cylinder
surrounding the lamp, otherwise the cylinder would have destroyed
the action of the points, as, in fact, is the case with incandescent
bodies.
When burning spunk was laid upon A, and B_ properly insulated,
was held horizontally over A, A being electrified by contact with one
of the poles of a dry pile, the electroscope 6 immediately diverged ;
but this did not happen when the burning spunk was surrounded
by a metallic cylinder 13 lines high by 9 in diameter. This shows
that the ascending smoke in this case was not a conductor. The
action of incandescent bodies, therefore, is not, like that of flame,
produced by steam. At the place where the mass burned, a hole was
formed whose edges were prevented from burning by the carbonic
acid, &c., produced. Where a number of such holes came together,
a projection of unburnt mass remained. By continued burning, these
projections became pointed; and to these points, standing out every-
where over the burning body, all the consequences are applicable
which were developed above for the steam points.
Slow match, pastiles, &c., behaved like glowing spunk.
Riess modified these experiments in various ways, and always ob-
tained results confirmatory of his theoretical views. In all these ex-
periments the combustion of the ignited bodies was made as perfect as
possible. Spunk and charcoal pastiles (made like ordinary fumi-
gating pastiles) were kept burning by constant blowing, and cleared
of ashes; and the spirit-lamp used only for intense ignition. By
such precaution, every disturbance of the described effects was avoided.
When, on the contrary, the ignition of the body under examination is
not perfect, an experiment with one of the kinds of electricity is found
to succeed often much more easily, and in a more striking manner,
than with the other, which is not the case in perfect ignition.
The disk A was placed in a vertical position, and B parallel to it,
and then on A was fastened a pastile, (a small cone made of pulver-
ized charcoal and some saltpetre, mixed with gum tragacanth,) which
was directed towards B. When the pastile was ignited over half of
its surface, and covered with ashes, A was touched with one of the
poles of a dry pile. If it was the positive pole, the electroscope b
diverged very slowly, and at most only 2 lines; but if the negative
pole of the dry pile was applied to A, the electroscope diverged quickly,
‘and more than 5 lines. On the other hand, an electroscope connected
with the pastile and the plate A diverged more rapidly, and toa
412 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
greater extent, when the opposite disc B was electrified positively
than when negatively. It therefore seemed as though negative elec-
tricity escaped from the pastile more easily; while the positive, on
the contrary, was absorbed by it more readily. :
Riess explains these peculiar phenomena by the well known fact
that, in burning charcoal, a development of electricity takes place,
and, as observed by Volta, this development is strongest with moder-
ate ignition, with a weak blast and a retarded combustion of the coal.
In this case the ascending carbonic acid is positively, and the coal
negatively electrical; the points being then negatively electrified
already of themselves, must act more powerfully when — E is im-
parted to them in addition, than when + E is imparted; hence the
above described difference of the phenomena in positive and negative
charges explains itself perfectly.
The coal acts by its negatively electrified points, and not through
the positively electrified steam, else we should obtain the stronger
effects with the same electrical charge, which, in the above experiment,
gave the weaker effect. This case is also observed in Davy’s lamp
without flame.
On the disk A (fig. 45) a brass flameless lamp with a feebly glow-
ing spiral was placed; the lamp, 10 lines high, was surrounded by a
cylinder of sheet copper 13 lines high; A being positively charged,
the electroscope 6 diverged more than by a negative charge of A.
When A was provided with an electroscope and B charged by contact
with one of the poles of a dry pile, the electroscope diverged more by
a negative charge of B.
On the above mentioned memoir of Riess, a discussion has arisen as
to the electrical effects of flame between Mess and Van Rees.—(Pogg.
Ann., LX XIII, pp. 41 and 307.) Van Rees first denies the existence
of steam points. He sustains himself by the fact that these points are
not visible when the shadow of a flame is examined, the shadow being
obtained by letting the light pass through the illuminating apparatus
of a solar microscope into a dark room, and bringing the flame into
the diverging cone of light.
On the contrary, Riess says that he who imagines that these points
can cast shadows, may abandon this view without trying the experi-
ment. But it is a fact that, above the flame acting electrically, a
column of steam does exist, which is a good conductor, and which
soon loses itself in the badly conducting air; the cold air divides
the conducting mass and diffuses it.
Indeed, this view has the greatest probability on its side, and since
Van Rees himself says, ‘‘a flame is, on the whole, (including the
mass of steam directly above it,) to be regarded as a conductor,’’ there
is properly no great difference between the views of the two physicists,
and the controversy on this point is almost nothing but a strife about
words.
In explaining the action of flame, Van Rees also starts from the
action of points; he says, if a point be placed on the conductor of an
electrical machine, an unbroken current of electrified air arises, acting
inductively upon the nearest conductor.
Two metres from the conductor of the electrical machine, furnished
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 413
with a point, an electroscope was placed; as soon as the machine
was turned the leaves diverged, and this divergence remained when
the conductor was discharged ; in spite of this continued divergence,
the electroscope had no permanent charge, but the leaves diverged in
consequence of the inductive action of the air electrified by the point,
which air cannot lose electricity by the discharge of the conductor.
Van Rees showed that the electroscope actually had no permanent
charge by the collapse of the pendulum when he took the electroscope
to an adjoining room, and by its diverging again when he placed the
instrument in its former position. By continued turning of the ma-
chine, the particles of air electrified at the point were scattered, they,
in part, reached the electroscope, and thus communicated to it a per-
manent charge.
No objection can be urged against this.
Van Rees now applies these views of the action of points to the action
of flame; air, ascending from flame, is charged by it and can then act
inductively on neighboring conductors. When the electroscope 0,
in the first experiment of Miess, mentioned on page 410, ap-
peared to be permanently electrified, according to Van fees, this was
only a consequence of the inductive action of the electrified air above
the flame, which air, on discharging the plate A, cannot be itself
discharged because it is an insulator. The inductive action which
proceeds from flame, Van Rees considers much too feeble to effect so
great an accumulation of attracted electricity in the plate of an elec-
troscope brought near to it (the plate B in [iess’ experiment) as to
cause a current in consequence of which the electroscope should remain
charged. On this point it is evident that no general rule can be given,
since so much depends upon special relations, such as the dimensions
of the plates, the dimensions of the inducing body, the relative dis-
tances, &c.
The difference between the views of the two physicists is essentially
as follows: According to Riess, the ascending conducting mass of
steam, going off in single threads, acts inductively upon the neighbor-
ing conductors ; on the other hand, according to Van Jtees, the induc-
tive action proceeds from the non-conducting mass of air above the
ee to which the electricity is communicated by the conducting
ame.
The truth may lie between these two views. It is beyond doubt
that a conducting column of steam forms over flame, and it is highly
probable that it is diffused in fine conducting threads. If this mass
of steam, with its points, is electrical, it must act inductively on the
neighboring conductors, according to the view of Ztiess. But how far
the column of steam continues to be a conductor is uncertain. Most
of the gases and vapors formed by ignition lose their conducting
power by cooling; but they will retain the electricity imparted by
flame, and thus an electrified non-conducting mass of gas forms above
the electrified flame and its conducting parts, which gas also acts in-
ductively on neighboring conductors, in accordance with the view of
Van fees.
It is very evident that, in powerful excitation of electricity, the
transfer of electrified air and particles of dust is added to the above-
414 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
described inductive action, and may easily effect the greater part of
the charging and discharging.
Petrina has endeavored to explain the electrical effect of flame in
a very peculiar manner, (Pog. Ann. LVI, 459.) He thinks that the
oxygen rushing toward the flame enters into chemical combination
only under a definite electrical condition, and he supposes that this
condition continues to a considerable distance from the place of com-
bination,
Petrina has not yet established this hypothesis.
t
SECTION THIRD.
THE LEYDEN JAR AND EFFECTS OF THE DISCHARGE.
§28. ABRIA ON SOME OF THE MECHANICAL PHENOMENA ACCOMPANYING
ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE.— When the discharge of a Leyden jar is passed
between points, and a glass plate, strewed over with a fine powder, is
placed beneath the path of the spark, after a few discharges the pow-
der is opserved to be arranged in curves with some regularity.
Abria first observed and described this phenomena, (Ann. de Chim.
et de Phys., LXXIV, 186; Pog. Ann. LIII, 589.) A clear concep-
tion cannot be obtained from his memoir of what kind of curves these
are, and this is chiefly due to the fact that the figure, which should
serve for the purpose of explaining the matter, does not correspond at
all to the text. Hven after having myself become acquainted with the
phenomenon by experiment, the figure attached to the memoir is still
incomprehensible.
In order to investigate the subject I made the experiment in the
following manner: The interior coating of a jar was connected with
the conductor of the machine. In the path which the electricity had
to traverse from the interior coating to the exterior, Henley’s universal
discharger was placed. <A glass plate was laid on its stand, thinly
sprinkled with minium or with flour of sulphur. The result was the
same for both powders; the particles arranged themselves as shown
in figure 46.
Fig. 46.
The two points between which the
sparks passed are represented by a
and 6; beneath them is the plate
ede, on which the regularly strew-
- ed powder arranged itself after re-
peated discharges, in the manner
represented by the curved lines.
The curves are modified, of course,
when the distance of the plate from
e the line of the points a and b is
changed. They are not continuous, but composed of short broken por-
tions, as shown in the figure, and I cannot, therefore, comprehend how
la
ili
-
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 415
Abria could so far investigate their nature as to decide that they are
not ellipses, as it would appear at first sight, but that they are more
complicated figures.
Abria ascribes this effect to the mechanical shock which the dis-
charge of the spark occasions in the air, and supports this view by
producing similar phenomena from slight explosions.
If small soap bubbles, filled with detonating gas, are exploded upon
a marble slab strewed with powder, or if we produce the shock by ex-
ploding pellets of fulminating powder on the powdered plate, similar
curves will be obtained, which, however, in the latter case, will not
be so regular as when produced by the explosion of the small bubbles.
of the detonating mixture.
$29. MmASURE OF THE CHARGE OF THE BATTERY.—Jiess used the follow-
ing process for measuring the quantity of electricity accumulated in a.
jar or battery. (Pog. Ann. XL, 321.)
Fig. 47, The jar or battery
b (figure 47) to be
- charged was placed
. upon a table insulat-
ed by glass legs, and
its inner coating con-
nected with the con-
ductor a of the elec-
trical machine, the
outer with the inner
coating of Lane’s
measuring jar. The
outer coating of the
measuring jar was
connected with a large metallic surface (a zinc roof) by a wire, so that
perfect conduction could be secured.
The battery having received + E from the conductor of the ma-
chine, the repelled + E of the outer coating of the battery goes to the
interior of the measuring jar, and charges it; but this charge having
attained a certain limit a discharge of the measuring jar ensues, and
a new portion of -— E can pass from the interior coating of the latter
to the exterior of the battery, because the original state of the inner
coating of the measuring jar is restored by the discharge, except an
inconsiderable residue, which, however, remains the same after all
the subsequent discharges. As often as a discharge of the Lane jar
follows the continued turning of the machine, the same quantity of —
E passes to the outer coating of the battery, and the charge of the
battery is increased by the same quantity of electricity ; the charge of
the battery, therefore, is proportional to the number of discharges of
the measuring jar.
The distance of the knobs of the measuring jar, in Jvess’s experi-
ment, was first } a line, afterwards 1 line; it remained constant,
however, during each series of experiments.
Riess indicated the quantity of E collected on the outer coating of
‘the battery by g. ‘The unit by which g was measured was the quan-
tity of electricity imparted to the battery for each discharge of the:
416 RECENT PROGRESS JN PHYSICS.
measuring jar. Suppose g = 8; this means the charge of the battery
has been continued until 8 discharges of the measuring jar have
occurred,
The density of the electric charge of the battery depends, not only
upon the quantity of E imparted to it, but also upon the size of the
surface over which it spreads. If the same quantity of electricity is
diffused over a double, treble, &c., surface, its density becomes twice,
thrice, &c., as small ; in short, the density of the E is inversely pro-
portional to the magnitude of the surface of the battery, but is directly
proportional to the quantity of EK imparted; the density upon the
charged battery may then be expressed by
q
eat,
q indicating the quantity of imparted E, s the size of the surface.
In his experiment, /iess used jars as nearly alike as possible, so
that the surface of the battery was proportional to the number of jars.
The surface of one jar was taken as the unit of area.
To attain accurate results, the charge of the battery must be made
continuously by contact, and not by sparks passing from the conductor.
§ 30. REPULSION OF THE INNER COATING OF THE BATTERY.—If the inner
coating of the first jar of a battery be connected with a wire termi-
Fig. 49. nating in a metallic knob, as
shown in fig. 49, the free elee-
tricity of this coating of the
charged battery will be diffused
over the knob. ,In contact
with the first is a second knob
6 fastened to the end of a glass
# rod, which may readily turn
about its middle point, and bearing at its other end a small scale pan.
The scale is loaded until it is in equilibrium with the knob 6.
The glass rod 6 was 12 inches long, and had at the middle a piece
with steel pivots resting upon the rounded edges of two agate plates.
1, 2, 3, 4 grains being now placed in succession upon the scales, it
was found what quantity of E should pass through the measuring jar
from the outer coating of the battery before the knob b was repelled.
When the battery consisted of only one jar, and 1 grain was placed
in the scale, repulsion followed after 2 discharges of the measuring
jar, 3 grains being placed in it, 4 discharges were required.
Hach experiment was repeated and the mean of the two taken.
The same experiments were then made with a battery of 2,3, ...
to 5 jars. The results are comprised in the following table:
I |
H
8 | 1 2 3 | 4 5
ce aves Cee oe pt unlia o cade
sabia: oe iis ee
P | q q q | q q
1 | 2.0 4.5 7.0 | 8.7 10.0
2 3.5 6.0 a 12.0 15.5
3 4.0 7.7 11.7 Ae aig Fs) 20.0
4 4.5 9.0 it 18.8 | re 24.0
} }
yi, RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 417
‘The quantity 4.5, according to the table, sustains a weight of 4
grains when only 1 jar is used, while the same quantity 4.5, divided
between two jars, sustains only 1 grain; thus the effect, the quantity
being the same, is inversely proportional to the square of the surface,
since with a double surface the effect is one fourth.
Let us consider the experimental series with 2 jars. The quantity
4.5 sustains 1 grain double this quantity, 9.00 sustains a weight four
times as great or 4 grains; hence, the surface being the same, the
weight sustained, or the force of repulsion, is proportional to the
square of the quantity. .
We conclude from the above data that the repulsion of the balls ig
directly as the square of the quantity of electricity, and inversely as
the square of the surface, so that,
poet =o(4)\
or the repulsion of the balls is proportional to the square of the den-
sity of the E,% indicating this density. :
8
Having deduced this law from observations selected at random, we
have now to show how closely the rest of the observations agree with
it.
According to the law, a double quantity of electricity produces,
with the same number of jars, a quadruple effect; each value of q,
therefore, on the lowest horizontal line, must be double the value of
q at the top of the same vertical column. This, however, is rigidly
true only for the series under the head of 2; the quotients
4.5 13.3 Jnl 24
—-= 2.25; —--=1.90; —--=2.03; —=2.40
2 7 8.7 10
vary more or less from 2. Taking the mean of all the five quotients,
9.
(that of — =2 included,) we get the number 2.11, which in fact is
4
very nearly equal 2.
The quotients, obtained by dividing the values of the second line
by the value of g in the upper horizontal row, should, aecording to
the law, be equal to V2= 1.41. The mean of the five quotients ig
1.48.
If the numbers of the flrst and third lines be compared in the same
manner, the mean of the five quotients will be the value 1.82,
while, according to the law, it should be equal to V3=1.73.
The repulsion being proportional to the square of the density,
according to the above law, with like effects, or equal values of p, the
quantity of electricity must increase in proportion to the number of
jars ; hence the numbers of the column headed with 2 must be twice
as great as those on the same line under 1; or in other words the
4.5 6.0 7.7 9.0
quotients —-, —-, —-, —-, should all equal 2. Computing these
ae Ged Od G
278
418 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
quotients and taking their mean, we find the value 1.97 deviating
but little from 2. :
In like manner comparing the third, fourth, and fifth vertical
series of the values of q with the first, we get as mean values the
quotient :
3.05 3.84 4.94
instead of
3. 4, ;
Thus it is seen that the mean values agree quite well with the law.
It has already been proved by Coulomb’s experiments that two
insulated conductors which are in contact, after receiving electrical
charges, repel each other with a force proportional to the square of
the electrical density.
In the experiments just described we do not directly measure the
density of E upon the balls, but the quantity induced upon the outer
surface of the battery. The accordance of our results with Coulomb’s
law therefore proves that the density of the free Hi of the inner coat-
ing, producing the repulsion of the knobs, is always in the same
proportion to the induced E on the outer coating ; or, in other words,
that the co-efficient of condensation is independent of the quantity of
E in the interior of the battery.
§ 31. STRIKING DISTANCE OF THE BATTERY—The experiments of Riess on
this subject (Pogg. Ann. XL, 332) confirm the fact, which had been
already discovered by Lane and Harris, that the striking distance of
the battery is proportional to the density of the electricity.
In order to measure accurately the striking distance of the battery,
Riess used an apparatus, which he termed the spark micrometer, rep-
resented in figure 50.
Fig. 50.
Each of the brass
pins, a and 0b, is at-
tached to a piece of
brass having a horizon-
tal arm for clamping
kK -~swire and insulated by
==, a glass support. One
of the rods is fixed, the
other is on a slide which
moves by means of the
screw f along a gradu-
ated scale. When the
clamp screw d is loose,
the slide may be moved
freely by the hand; but
when d is screwed up,
the fine adjustment 1s
made by means of f/f,
because by screwing up
d the nut belonging to
f is clamped against
the lower metal plate.
The whole apparatus rests upon a glass support 24 inches high.
Jat Sen |
TTT os
MM ii —
Yi py
i
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 419
Different metallic bodies can be placed upon the pins @ and b; knobs
K, 64, discs 8, 84 lines in diameter, points P, We.
In the first of the experiments now under consideration knobs were
used,
The experiments were made in the following manner: One of the
arms was brought into good conducting contact with the inner, the
other with the outer coating. The jar or battery was charged as
before with the Lane jar. Observation was made of the number of
sparks which passed in the measuring jar before a discharge of the
battery took place at a given distance d between the knobs of the
spark micrometer. The unit for d was 14 lines.
The results of the experiments are comprised in the following table,
s and qg having the usual signification :
|
Ss 2 3 4 5
!
d | q q q q
1 | 3.0 3.5 4.3
2 3.0 5.5 | 7.0 i 8.5
3 4.6 8.0 10.1 | 12.5
4 6.4 | 4 10.3 13.5 16.0
5 | 7.5 16.0 |
Comparing any value of q with those under it in the same column,
the quotient is nearly the same as that of the corresponding values of
d. ‘Take for example the column headed 4, the case in which a bat-
tery of 4 jars was used, we see that the quantity 3.5 gives the striking
distance 1 ; a double and quadruple striking distance gives double and
quadruple quantity, namely : 7= 2 X3.5, and 13.5=4X3.5 nearly.
Thus the striking distance in the same battery is constantly propor-
tional to the quantity g of imparted electricity.
The other experiments confirm this. The numbers of the second
column of values of g, divided by those of the first, give as a mean
the quotient 1.92, nearly 2, which is the quotient of the correspond-
ing striking distance 2 and 1.
The second and third, second and fourth, second and fifth horizon-
tal series of values of g in like manner give the mean quotients,
1.47 1.95 Peas
or nearly Lib y 2 ae, Se
which are the ratios of the corresponding striking distances.
The quantity 10.3 divided among 3 jars gives the striking distance
4; the same quantity (very nearly, viz: 10.1) divided among 4 jars
gives the striking distance 3. Thus, with equal quantities of elec-
tricity, the surface increasing from 3 to 4, the striking distance dimin-
ishes in the inverse ratio of 4 to 3; the striking distance therefore is
directly as the quantity and inversely as the surface, hence
%
d—b-
§
420 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
or, in other words, the striking distance is proportional to the density of
the accumulated electricity.
If this law be generally true, and the striking distance inversely
proportional to the surface of the battery, but directly proportional to
the quantity, for equal striking distances, the quantity must increase
in the same ratio as the surface.
In the above table the numbers of the same horizontal series should
be always proportional to the values of s placed over them. Thus
5.5 8.0 10.3 3 B25: 7.0) LOL atau
SEE ee should be equal i, also 3.05, BO In
which is nearly true for the averages.
Riess found the law, that the striking distance is proportional to
the density of the accumulated E, to hold good for the case in which
the spark passed between two parallel metallic discs, or between a
ball and a disc.
He found, that under otherwise like circumstances, the striking dis-
tance between two discs is greater than between two balls, and that
with parallel discs the spark passed not in the middle, but at or near
the edge. Fora ball and disc the striking distance is greater than
for two balls and less than for two discs.
equal : &e.,
§ 32. STRIKING DISTANCE OF THE BATTERY INDEPENDENT OF THE CON-
pUCTING cIRcuIT.—It was formerly believed that the striking distance
of the battery was dependent upon the nature of the conducting cir-
cuit, that it was greater with good metallic connexion, less with
poorer conductors. tiess has shown that this is not the case. (Pog.
Ann,, LITT, 1.)
The experiments were arranged in the following manner: One of
the pins of the spark micrometer was connected with the inner coat-
ing of the battery by a thick copper wire; another thick wire of
copper led from the other pin to one of the arms of Henley’s dis-
charger, the other arm of which was placed in good conducting con-
tact with the outer coating of the battery. Between the arms of the
discharger the following were interposed in succession :
1. A copper wire 4 lines in length 4 a line in diameter.
2. A platinum wire 102 inches long 0.052 lines in diameter.
3. A glass tube 8.3 inches long 4.5 lines diameter, filled with
water.
Thus in turn a very perfect, a metallic, an imperfect, though metallic
and finally a very imperfect conductor was inserted. The results of
the experiment are given in the following table:
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 421
Conducting circuit.
Copper wire. | Platinum wire. | Tube of water.
$s d. q: q: q:
3 1 6 6 6
2 10.2 10.5 10.5
3 15 15 14,5
4 1 8 8 8
Saar 14.5 14 14
3 21.5 19.7 19.5
5 1 10 10 11
2 18 19 19
3 : 27 25.5 26
This table shows that with an equal number of jars s, and for equal
distances d of the knobs of the spark micrometer, the value of g re-
mains very nearly constant, whether the platinum wire, the copper
wire or the tube of water be interposed. With equal charges, then,
the striking distance is the same however the connector may be com-
osed.,
The striking distance of the electrical battery, consequently, is per-
fectly independent of the nature of the closing substance, provided the
surfaces between which the discharge takes place remain unchanged.
Though the striking distance is not changed by the nature of the
circuit, the latter has a great influence upon the sparks themselves.
Five jars of a battery, with a certain charge, and using the copper
wire, produced sparks of dazzling brilliancy, 1} lines long with a
rattling report; while by using the platinum wire, with an equal
charge, a spark of equal length was obtained, but the light was feeble
and the report faint; and with a tube of water the spark was scarcely
perceptible.
§ 33. QUANTITY OF ELECTRICITY DISAPPEARING BY DISCHARGE AT THE
STRIKING DIsTaNce.—When the battery is discharged at the striking
distance, a perceptible charge remains behind, which produces a
second spark on bringing the knobs nearer together. This fact can
be easily shown by the measuring jar. Place its knobs about two
lines apart, and charge until a spark passes; now approach the knobs
towards each other and a second spark will pass.
ftiess has shown in the last mentioned memoir, that the quantity
of electricity disappearing on discharging the battery at the striking
distance, is always in the same ratio to the entire charge, and that it
is the same whether the closing circuit is composed of better or worse
conducting metaliic wires.
The experiments were arranged precisely like those whose results
are given in the last table; in one of the series a copper wire, and
in the other a platinum wire was used with Henley’s discharger.
After the discharge had taken place at the striking distance, and a
part of the battery’s charge had thus disappeared, it was recharged
422, RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
until another discharge occured. The number of sparks of the mea-
suring jar required to produce the first discharge of the battery was
counted, then the number of sparks necessary to replace the quantity
of electricity which had disappeared at the first discharge.
The previous table shows how large the entire charge was under
different circumstances, when the discharge took place at a given
striking distance, and the following table shows how much electricity,
the battery had to receive again, to obtain the second discharge at
the same striking distance :
CONDUCTING CIRCUIT.
|
Copper wire 4’”. | Platinum wire,
102 in.
s. d. Go q-
3 In 5.0 5.0
on 8.8 Bei
eee Sined 13. 0 12.5
1s) 1 6.5 6.5
2 12. 5 sik a
|e St 17.0 17.0
Oe eee 9.0 9.0
[nee 15.0 16,5
| 3 | 22.5 | 22.5
|
}
a
We see from this table that the quantity of electricity gq’, which has
to be imparted to the battery after the first discharge at the striking
distance, to produce a second discharge at the same distance, or the
quantity disappearing by discharge at the striking distance, is always
almost exactly the same, whether the short copper or long platinum
wire be interposed.
With three jars, and at the distance 1 of the knobs of the spark
micrometer, the quantity of electricity required for the first discharge
was g= 6; to produce the second discharge, the battery had to re-
ceive afterwards the quantity ¢ = 5,; thus = of the entire charge dis-
appeared at the distance 1, or, in other words, we have
7 — «§ — 0.833
q
For s = 4, d= 1, we have g = 8, gq’ = 6.5, hence
fo 8) 6 Big
q 8
Fors ='5)'\d S11, we have'g = 10)/9/=" ethene
ie poe 0.9
Grid.
For s= 5, d= 3, we have g= 21, gq’ = 22.5, hence
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 423
For s= 4, d= 2, we have g= 14.5, q’ = 12.5, hence
Cah a a
ae 0.862.
Thus it is evident that, under the most different circumstances, very
nearly the same portion of the entire charge disappeared on discharg-
jng at the striking distance. Asa mean of all the experiments pre-
sented in the last two tables, it appears that 0.846 or 44 of the entire
charge disappears after discharge at the striking distance, whether
good or bad metallic conductors are used, and consequently ;’; of the
entire charge remain as residue.
When fess substituted parallel metallic plates for the knobs on the
!
spark micrometer, an experimental series gave for 7 the mean value
0.849 ; and when an interruption of 0.3 line was made in the closing
circuit, he had ih — (0.842, or almost exactly the same value for the
quantity of electricity disappearing at the striking distance.
The value - is probably dependent upon the thickness of the glass
of the battery, but no experiments have as yet been made to deter-
mine this.
§ 34, RESULTS BY THE ORDINARY MODE OF DISCHARGE.—From these ex-
periments we may easily determine what takes place in the ordinary
mode of discharge, in which a movable knob, connected with the outer
coating, is brought into contact with the fixed knob of the inner coat-
ing. When the movable knob arrives at the striking distance, which
we shall denote by d, 14 of the charge disappears and ,’; remain ;
another discharge can take place only when the movable knob is ap-
proached to ;2, d, at which distance again }4 of the remaining charge
disappear ; a third discharge follows when the movable knob is brought
to (2) ¢, &c. Suppose the original striking distance to be 14
lines, the series of discharges take place at the following distances :
1.5; 0.23; 0.035; 0.0055 lines ;
the third of which does not differ sensibly from contact. In the ordi-
nary mode of discharge, therefore, the closing circuit receives several
discharges, one after another.
§ 35. RESULTS BY DISCHARGE AT THE STRIKING DISTANCE.—In discharge
at the striking distance so great a quantity of electricity disappears
that merely a small approximation of the knobs does not produce a
second discharge; but the striking distance must be reduced to ;* of
the original. That so great a quantity of electricity as 1} of the en-
tire charge should disappear seems to indicate that the discharge,
even at the striking distance, is successive ; the air is rarefied by the
transfer of the first quantity of electricity, and thus the transfer of a
new portion is rendered possible, which could not have taken place if
the resistance to be overcome had not been diminished by the rarefac-
tion of the air. The passage of electricity continues until the charge
of the battery has become so feeble that at the constant distance of the
424 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
knobs, in spite of the little resistance still due to the rarefied
air, a spark can no longer pass. The air having regained its ordinary
density between the knobs, a considerable approximation of the latter
is necessary to make another discharge possible. By discharging at
the striking distance, therefore, the electricity is successively trans-
mitted.
« A proof of this successive discharge exists in the fact that the re-
mainder of the charge is considerably greater, and consequently
a smaller quantity of electricity disappears if the first discharge oc-
casions a break in the circuit, as is the case, for instance, when a fine
wire, interposed in the circuit, is fused which we will consider more
at length hereafter.
A further proof of successive discharge at the striking distance is
the circumstance that the residual charge is considerably greater when
a tube of water is introduced into the circuit.
Instead of the copper or platinum wire mentioned on page 420, the
glass tube with water was interposed, anda series of experiments with
this circuit gave the following results :
|
d. Entire charge, | Residual charge,
q- q':
ce
Whe Wwh eo hoe
—"
cS
Although the striking distance here is the same under as
stances, as in the metallic circuit, the quantity of electricity that dis-
appears is much less than when the metallic circuit is used. With
the latter f = 11 — 0.846, with the water it is only § = 0.625 ; the
remainder of the charge then amounted to ;?; = 0.154; in this case
it is 2 = 0.375; thus the residue is here more than double as great
as in the former case.
Riess explains this in the following manner: A battery being
charged, the quantities of electricity on the outer and inner coatings
are in a given ratio to each other. An excess on the inner coating,
which is an aliquot part of the whole quantity, exists in the
interior. The quantity of induced electricity on the exterior coating
is also in a certain ratio to this excess. At the first moment of the
discharge equal portions of the electricity of the inner and outer
coatings disappear, the former ratio is destroyed, and there.is now
proportionally more free electricity on the inner coating than in the
state of perfect charge, and in this way a further discharge is favored:
But when the tube of water is introduced the discharge is so delayed
RECENT PROGRESS 1N PHYSICS. 425
that the excess of the inner coating, acting through the glass upon
what surrounds it, attracts the opposite electricity towards the outer
coating, so that it remains latent there, and the passage between the
knobs of the spark micrometer is consequently hindered, This ex-
planation serves also for the successive discharge at the striking dis-
tance.
§36. HEATING OF THE CONNECTING WIRE OF THE ELECTRICAL BATTERY.—
For experiments on the heating of thin wires by the discharge of the
battery, Riess used Harris’ arrangement of an air thermometer,
through the large globe of which the wire was stretched. The tube
of the thermometer, narrow in comparison with the globe, was turned
obliquely downwards and ended in a wider position, so that a small
quantity of colored liquid there could penetrate the tube.
The scale of the thermometer was divided into lines. The instru-
ment is represented in fig. 51.
The"wire, and consequently the air in the globe, being heated by
the discharge, the liquid in the tube is driven back. The depression
of the column of liquid expressed in lines, is considered as the mea-
sure of the temperature.
A more precise description of this air thermometer will be given
hereafter.
The results of an experimental series, with a platinum wire 0.0547
lines thick, are collected in the following table:
426 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
; |
{ | j i
q. h. h. } h h | h
2 | ee :
Bo} Ae 8, As Ne
4 6.7 | 4.5 | 2 Dial 3.0 | 2.6
5 9.3 0 | 5.2 een 3.8
6 13. 4 9.7 7.3 | 6.5 5.5
7 15. LDSOse 8.8 723
i] hes Ld: Waly, BE 9.3
9 | 17.80 di, des 11.7
10 | ai an 14.3
;
h indicates the depression in the thermometer expressed in lines,
q and s have their former signification.
If we assume that the depressions are proportional to the temper-
ature of the wire used, and this will be proved further on, it appears,
from these experiments, that the temperature is directly proportional to
the square of the electrical density, but inversely to the magnitude of
the surface of the battery, or that
9
hon
s
which is easily deduced from the above table.
The depression h being proportional to the square of the quantity
q, with an equal number of jars, the quantity 8 must produce four
times as great an effect as the quantity 4. We have for 3 jars g= 8,
he No ge A Ae them mei 3.89, or 4 nearly. For
4 jars, this quotient is a = 4.4; for 5 jars, uses 3.77 ; for 6 jars,
3)
— = 3.57. The mean of these quotients is 3.9 or very nearly 4.
Hence, the double quantity corresponds to the fourfold effect.
Comparing the effect which the quantity 3 produces with that of 9,
us — 8.9; for 5 jars, = — 9.53: the
we get for 4 jars the quotient.
mean is9.4. The triple quantity then produces a ninefold depression.
Comparing in the same manner the other numbers of the table, we
find that, with an equal number of jars on an average, h is pro-
portional to the square of g.
The table also shows that the value of g being constant, h is in-
versely proportional to s ; hence, if the same quantity of electricity
be distributed over a double or triple surface, the depression is twice
or thrice as small. The table, in the mean, gives this almost exactly.
For s = 3, ¢ = 4, according to the above table, we have h = 4.5.
Substituting this value in the above equation :
i) 3
hence n = 0.843.
If in like manner we compute the value of the constant » from all the
single observations, that is, from all the corresponding values of h, s,
and q, of the above table, m is found as a mean to be equal to 0.88.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 427
§ 87. INFLUENCE OF THE THICKNESS OF THE WIRE IN THE THER-
MoMETER.—The value of the constant n changes when another wire is
placed in the globe of the thermometer. iess repeated the experiments
with wires of equal length, but of unequal thickness. Without
presenting the entire table containing the data of these experiments,
we shall consider only the final results.
For wires of the diameter :
0.119, 0.078, 0.0547, 0.05, 0.0225 lines he found for mean values
of n,
Ore; 0:45," 0.88) 1.02, -. 2.69.
From the equation—
2
ha=n 2
s
it follows, that if experiments be made with the wires of equal length,
but unequal thickness, using the same battery (or like valnes of s)
with the same charge, (or constant value of q,) the depression h will
be as the value of x corresponding to this thickness of wire. Com-
paring the above values of 2 with the corresponding diameter of the
wire, we find that ceteris paribus, the value of n, and consequently
the depression of the column of liquid, or the heating of the air in
the globe of the air thermometer, is in proportion to the square of the
corresponding radii of the wires.
Denoting the thickness of the above wires by 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, the
squares of the radii of the 4th and Ist are as 0.05° to 0.119’, or as
0.0025 to 0.014169 ; but
0.014169
0.0025
the corresponding values of n are inversely as the square of their
diameter ; for
— 5.66,
1.02 pe
0.18 — 5.66
If we divide the square of the diameter of the wire 1 in the series
by the square of that of the other wires, the following quotients are
found :
2 et tll AR Ted 4 uy Eis Og 0, Huis
but dividing the value of n for the first wire in succession into the
value of ” for the 2d, 3d, &c., we get the following quotients :
de. A Ba-b. 66,15;
which are very close to the above, excepting that in the case of the
finest wire the quotients 28 and 15 differ considerably.
Disregarding this wire, it follows from the other experiments, that
the values of the factor n, and consequently the depressions in the air
thermometer, or the elevations of temperature of the air in the globe,
are inversely as the square of the diameter of the wires; or in other
words: The increase of temperature of the air in the globe is, ceteris
‘ow
428 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
paribus, inversely proportional to the section of the wire; or expressed
algebraically,
tian Ge
a r2s?
. . Awe . . .
in which — is substituted for m in the equation, and a represents a
Ope
constant factor.
Hence, if a wire twice or thrice as thick be placed in the air ther-
mometer, the temperature of the air in the globe will be four or nine
times less than before the change.
The rise of temperature of the air in the globe is evidently propor-
tional to the quantity of heat evolved in the wire; hence, having de-
termined the temperature of the air, we learn the quantity of heat
set free.
A wire twice, or three or four times as thick, has, for the same
length, a mass four, nine or sixteen times as great; now if in the
thick wires there is as much heat set free as in the thinner ones, the
same quantity of heat has a greater mass to spread over, the elevation
of the temperature is inversely as the mass, or, the square of the
diameter, or algebraically,
T=7%
‘ )
in which y is a constant factor, and T indicates the temperature of the
wire. From this follows the equation,
ire
WwW —
van;
if this value of w be substituted in the above equation, we have
Tr? a g
a Tans
hence
the interpretation of which is: Zhe elevation of the temperature of a
wire, ceteris paribus, is inversely proportional to the fourth power of
its diameter. Hence, a wire two or three times as thick will occasion
a rise of temperature sixteen or eighty-one times less, when perfectly
equal charges of the same density are discharged through it, pro-
vided that the length of the wire is unchanged.
These relations hold good, of course, only when wires of the same
substance are compared with each other, and as each substance has a
different specific heat, for each one a different proportion will be found
between the quantity of heat and the elevation of temperature.
In the experiments of Aiess just described, platinum wires were
used in the thermometer.
The last exceedingly fine wire did not accord with the law, which
Riess explained by assuming, that the law is valid only for equal
times of discharge, which may be considered equal as long as the
diameter does not fall below a certain limit, bgt when this is the case,
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 429
the wire retards the discharge, and in consequence of this delay there
is less elevation of temperature.
His first experiment showed him, that when the length of the wire
in the globe was increased the temperature was somewhat lower.
§ 38. INFLUENCE OF THE LENGTH OF THE WIRE IN THE THERMOMETER,—
When the wire in the thermometer was made longer, a slight decrease
in the heating was observed, which indicated a delay of the dis-
charge. But when the closing wire of the circuit remained in all
respects the same, and the temperature at different parts of it was
examined, it appeared that the rise of temperature was independent
of the length of the wire.
For instance, a piece of platinum wire in the air thermometer and
another equally thick and double the length in Henley’s discharger
closing the circuit, a discharge of the battery produced a certain
depression. The platinum wires being now exchanged, the one in
the thermometer for that in the discharger, and inversely, the circuit
evidently remains the same in length, the same discharge now pro-
duced a double depression. The double mass of platinum was in the
thermometer in this case, and it had given off a double quantity of
heat; hence, the temperature of the long platinum wire was the
same as that of the short one.
We shall now consider more closely one of the experiments, by
means of which fess proved this. The radius of the wire in the
thermometer was 0.036 lines; its length 59.7 lines. The diameter
of the wire in the discharger was 0.058; its length 100.4 lines. A
series of experiments were made with different numbers of jars and
variable charges, which gave as their result
2
h = 0.912—
s
The wires were then exchanged. A similar series gave the result
2
(Oe eel ae
8
If the wire last placed in the thermometer had been exactly as long
as the other, the depressions, according to the previous paragraphs,
should be as the square of the diameters; hence, the last case should.
give
2
h = 0.352
s§
2
This coefficient of F is to the coefficient 0.56, as listo 1.6. But
the length of the second wire is nearly in the same proportion, viz :
in the proportion of 59.7 to 100.4, or 1 to 1.67 longer.
The depression in the second series, considering the different diam-
eters, is greater in proportion to the increase of length of the wire ;
hence, the heating of the separate pieces of wire is independent of
their length.
_ This can be shown better when the actual temperatures of the wire
in the thermometer are computed. How this can be done will be
oD
430 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
shown in § 43. For the first of the above described series of experi-
ments the following temperature was obtained :
= OLSOT Ss
for the other,
PES 0.0592:
These numbers are to each other as 1 to 6.66; the fourth powers
of the corresponding diameters of the wires are as 1 to 6.738. The
temperatures, consequently, are very nearly as the fourth powers of
the diameters, and are independent of the length of the pieces of wire.
§ 39. INFLUENCE OF BREAKS IN THE WIRE UPON THE RISE OF TEMPERA-
TURE.—A break in the closing wire has a marked influence upon the
temperature. When the ends of the broken wire were pointed, the
temperature was constantly lower than with an unbroken circuit, and
the lower, the farther the points of the wire were apart. This is ex-
plained by the fact that the residual charge of the battery becomes
greater as the distance the spark has to traverse is increased, and
that consequently a less quantity of electricity passes through the
wire than when there is no interruption.
Remarkable phenomena appeared when Riess applied to the ends
of the wire two brass discs, 10.4 lines in diameter, which were kept
parallel to each other. The following table presents a part of the
results he obtained.
THE DISCS.
are airateec
cee f ae
, In contact. | 0.1 line apart. 1 line apart.
a SS IS
| | h. h. h.
ai iw Si ewes | 4.7 5.3
haber) Mie 7.0 7.0
a4! 11.0 10. 9 10.3 |
ko Guniig, oe G M5 00 ea ene
re ame GOs bl Oreseeae
Fel leone ai SS AMMA Nite ia
4 Ce ee 11.9 12K0@
"lame BOye 15.5 | i Brwy
For 0.1 line distance of the plates, the temperatures as a whole are
less than when they are in contact, yet the difference is much less than
might have been expected from the magnitude of the residual charge.
Ata greater distance of the plates, for which a greater residue re-
mains, we are surprised to find temperatures sometimes even greater
than in the case of contact of the plates ; for weaker charges the tem-
perature is greater at 1 line distance than when the plates are in
contact ; on the contrary, with more powerful charges, the contact of
the discs produces a higher temperature.
i
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 431
ftiess has clearly explained this in the following ingenious manner:
The separation of the plates involves two conditions which act in
opposite ways upon the temperature of the wire in the thermometer.
One is the part of the electricity remaining in the battery—in con-
sequence of which evidently the heating must be diminished. The
other condition which, on the contrary, raises the temperature,
requires a more extended explanation.
When the distance betweén the two discs is less than the striking
distance of the battery, one spark passes between the knob of the
battery and the knob of the discharger, and a second between the
lates.
° When the distance between the discs is greater than the striking
distance, a spark can pass between the discs if the knob of the dis-
charger is in contact with that of the battery. The passage of the
spark between the plates is only possible because, generally, as we
have seen above, (page 423) the striking distance between plates
is greater than between knobs.
At the passage of the spark between discs, a condensation of elec-
tricity takes place at their edges, and this condensation, very probably,
has an accelerating effect upon the discharge which shows itself by an
increase of temperature.
This last condition, which raises the temperature of the closing wire,
can appear only when the distance between the plates is greater than
the striking distance between the knobs. Let the plates stand ata
given distance. The striking distance between the knobs changes
with the power of the charge; it is proportional to the fraction -
for weak charges it is small, for stronger charges it increases ; hence,
it is in weak charges only that the above mentioned acceleration of
the discharge can increase the temperature so much that the opposite
influence of the residual charge shall be overpowered.
In fact, we see in the above table that h, when the plates are 1 line
apart, only when s= 3 andg=3,s=4 and g=4,s=4andqg=5,
is greater than / in the case of contact of the plates. In all these cases
£ ig not greater than 1.25. For charges so powerful that fig greater
8 s
than 1.25, the temperatures of the last column, as a whole, are less
than the corresponding temperature in the case of contact of the plates.
If the separation of the plates is greater than the possible striking
distance, of course there is no discharge.
The results were similar when small balls were used instead of plates,
the striking distance between the small balls being a little greater
than that between the large ones of the discharger and the battery ;
hence, in a favorable case, the temperature, at a distance of the small
knobs of only 1 line, was very little higher than when they were in
contact.
§ 40. HmaTING POWER OF OBSTRUCTED DISCHARGE.— When a thin in-
sulator was introduced at the place of interruption, through which
the discharge stroke could penetrate, the heating power was less, as
432 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
the resistance to be overcome was greater, as is shown by the follow-
ing data.
The ends of the wire at the break were furnished with small knobs,
(5.7 and 4.4 lines in diameter ;) for s==5, g=8, and the separation
of the knobs, 0.2 line, the result was as follows:
Substance between knobs. | Temperature.
JANE ostonte sieeve cision 15.4
MCAT tetetetcrapiatsl sve 12.0
Ds GAROS siheieleicfela centers 8.0
Platerofiniiea sts ce.< 4.9
The results were similar when metallic disks or points instead of
knobs were used at the place of interruption.
Hence, the electrical discharge produces a temperature in the closing
circuit as much less, as the resistance is greater, which has to be
overcome before discharge can take place.
This is not a resistance which, as in the case of the interposition of
a long conductor in the circuit, retards the discharge throughout its
whole duration, but a resistance which renders discharge absolutely
impossible so long as it exists.
The decrease of the heating power is always too great to be ascribed
to the inconsiderable residue ; hence we must draw the conclusion
from the above experiments that an obstacle interposed at any place
in the circuit being pierced by the discharge prolongs the duration
of the discharge through all the rest of the circuit.
If the smallest possible charge be used for perforating mica, the
hole is rarely made immediately at the spot where the connexion is
interrupted ; the electricity almost always passes along the plate of
mica and penetrates at a place which, apparently, is less solid, in con-
sequence of acrack. If the point of application of the conductors is
not too far from the edge of the mica, the discharge takes place over
the edge. The temperature in the thermometer is as much lower as
the path the electricity has to traverse over the surface of the mica is
greater.
The marks which the electricity leaves on the mica are very regnlar
and delicate. tess has examined these as well as the corresponding
ones on glass.
§ 41. MARKS LEFT BY ELECTRICITY UPON GLASS AND MIcA.—Jiess placed
a glass plate, 0.37 of a line thick, carefully cleaned and warmed,
(so that when tested by the electrometer it proved itself in all direc-
tions a perfect insulator,) between the points of the closing wire, from
which the thermometer had been removed. ‘The quantity of electrici-
ty, 15, collected in four jars discharged itself over the edge of the
plate, which was 154 lines distant from the place where the points
were placed, and left marks on both surfaces, from the points of con-
tact to the edge.
The marks were faint and of one color; they grated when rubbed
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 433
with a smooth body, and under the microscope had the appearance
of scratches on glass with rough sand. When tested by the electrome-
ter, the points of contact being held between the fingers, it was found
that the glass at the marked, as well as at several unmarked places, had
become conducting. By breathing on the plate all the conducting
places became visible, they remained unmoistened and showed more
or less numerous ramifications; even after the glass plate had been
washed with nitric acid and dried, the stripes appeared to conduct.
Other glass plates gave exactly similar results.
With mica the appearance of the electrical marks was quite dif-
ferent. A serpentine stripe, of uniform width, passed from the point
of contact on both surfaces to the place of puncture, which, by trans-
mitted light, was light gray in color, but in oblique reflected lght
appeared as a delicately colored band, bounded by two sharply defined
dark lines, bordered by a clear brilliant fringe; the inner part of the
band, between the fringe, contained blurred zones of yellow, blue, red
and green colors.
The pieces of mica used in this experiment were good insulators
both before and after use, though when breathed upon they appeared
covered with innumerable reticulated ramifications, which were not
moistened, indicating the places where the electricity had touched the
surface.
There was no essential difference between the two surfaces of the
plate of mica, either in regard to the colored stripes, or the reticulated
figures. ‘
“The electricity appeared to penetrate only by a sort of crack into
the substance of the glass, and even to separate the alkali, which was
indicated by the circumstance, that the injured places became more
perceptible after a while, than immediately after the experiment.
A plate of mica having been smeared with oil, a discharge, which
without the oil would have produced colored stripes, penetrated it at
the place of contact. An irregular hole &ppeared with fused edges,
about which there was a slight splitting of the mica.
By careful diminution of the electrical accumulation, Riess obtained
repeatedly, in spite of the coating of the oil, discharges without pene-
trating, and colored stripes of considerable length and size towards
the edge of the plate, or towards a previously pierced place, which
seemed to indicate that the mica conducts electricity better in the
direction of its lamina than perpendicular to them.
In general the electrical marks on glass and mica are altogether
dissimilar, though there are kinds of glass which, at their surface
conduct electricity quite well, on which stripes appear similar to those
on mica.
§ 42. Tae AIR THERMOMETER.—The air thermoneter, which Riess
used in his researches, is represented in fig. 53, from an instrument
made by Kleiner of Berlin.
28s
434 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Riess gives a des-
cription of his instru-
ment in several pla-
ces in his memoirs
and in Dove’s Reper-
toriwm. But the des-
cription is nowhere :
perfectly clear and
sufficiently illustra-
ted by figures. In-
deed, it is much
to be wished that
authors _ generally
would give better
drawings of their
apparatus, by means
of which tedious and
yet insufficient des-
criptions would be
avoided.
Fig. 53 represents
the instrument + its
natural size. The
globe which is about
3 inches in diameter,
is perforated in three
places. The openings at a and b are diametrically opposite each
other and are provided with perforated metallic pieces, between which
the platinum wire is extended ; the third opening c is likewise fur-
nished with a metallic fitting, the opening of which is closed by a
stopper, so that before the éxperiment the air inside the globe can be
put in equilibrium with the external atmosphere.
The wire is arranged as shown in figs. 54 and 55.
Fig. 54 repre- Fig. 54.
sents a section of
the globe 34 the
natural size, pass-
ing through the
middleoftheopen-
ingsaandb. The
fixtures cemented
to these openings
have holes about 2
lines in diameter
through whichthe
cylinder f passes.
This hasa conical
cavity on the end
towards the inside
of the globe, into
ia
<
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 435
which the metallic cone g with a split head is screwed, as is more
clearly shown in fig. 55. In the sht the platinum wire is held and
is firmly clamped by screwing the cone in deeper. ess terms this
contrivance a ‘‘ cone clamp.’’
When one wire is to be taken out in order to introduce another one,
the method pursued is as follows: The cap A is first unscrewed ;
the cylinder /, of one of the sides, is lengthened externally by a
screw, to which another of less diameter is attached. On this last,
as shown in Fig. 55, is fastened a rod, whose length is greater than
the diameter of the globe together with the metallic attachments ;
when this is done, the metallic plate x, which prevents the cylinder
f from being drawn into the globe, can be detached and slipped on
the rod. It is now easy to draw the cylinder f from the left side of
the globe, and push the rod, with its attached cylinder, on the other
side after it; the wire may then be removed and another put between
the cone clamps. To replace the cylinder, the rod is first passed
through the globe drawing f with it, the plate x is screwed into its
place, and the red being removed, the two caps h are again screwed
on.
The air thermometers, constructed by Kleiner, are very beautiful
and well made, but their price (25 thalers and 2 thalers for packing)
is high. It is greatly to be desired, on this account, that the instru-
ment should have a simpler construction, which would render it less
costly.
The inclination of the tube, as seen in Fig. 53, can be changed at
pleasure, and then the sensibility of the instrument increased to any
desired degree. iess used generally an inclination of 64 degrees to
the horizon.
The scale of the tube is divided into lines. All the other parts are
clearly shown in the figure.
The capacity of the globe of Riess’ instrument was 40,766 cubic
lines. The size of the tube was such that, the space between two
division lines being taken as unity, the globe contained 320,307 such
units of capacity.
§43. ‘THEGRY OF THE INSTRUMENT.—When the air in the globe is
heated, the column of liquid is depressed; thus, on the one hand, the
tension of the air, and, on the other, its volume, is increased.
But the increase of tension, as well as that of volume, is propor-
tional to the rise of temperature; hence the sum of both effects, or
the depression, is proportional to the rise of temperature.
We will now compute the increase of the temperature of the air in
the globe, which produces a depression of one line.
Suppose the temperature to be 15° Cent. and the barometer to indi-
cate 336 lines.
The liquid in the tube was 15 times lighter than mercury; hence
a barometer of this liquid would have a height of 15 x 336 = 5040
lines.
But the tube is not in a vertical position, it is 6°.5 to the horizon.
The column of liquid in a tube thus inclined must have the length
5040 _ 5040
gine Wa dk Waste ek
436 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
in order to be in equilibrium with the pressure of the air; hence we
can consider 44,600 as the measure of the tension of the air in the
as ee 4) ee
The temperature of the air being increased 1° (to 16°) it dilates in
the proportion :
(1+ 15 x 0.00365) to (1 + 16 x 0.00365),
1.05475 to 1.05840,
1 to 1.00346;
the air of 15° consequently dilates 0.00346 of its volume for each de-
gree of temperature above 15°.
But if the air cannot dilate, its tension increases in the same pro-
portion, hence we have
1: 1.00346 = 44,600" : 44,754.
Thus a rise of temperature of 1° prodenee a depression of 154 lines
in the tube, provided no increase of volume takes place ; a depression of
1 line, therefore, corresponds to a rise of temperature of +}z = 0°.00649
when the increase of tension alone is considered.
The capacity of the globe amounts to 320,307 units of division of
the tube. A rise of temperature from 15° to 16° would expand the
air in the globe 1108 such units, if the air could expand freely; hence
an increase in OUD of 1 line in the tube corresponds to a rise of
temperature of =55 = 0°.0009.
A depression of 1 line, considering the increase of tension and of
volume, corresponds to a temperature
0°.00649 + 0°.0009 = 0°.0074.
From the elevation of temperature of the air in the globe, that of
the wire can be found. Let ¢ be the temperature of the air and of the
wire before discharge; T the temperature of the wire after the dis-
charge; ?¢ the rise of temperature which the wire causes by imparting
its excess of heat to the air; then —
MC(T—/)=me (t —d),
M representing the mass and C the specific heat of the platinum wire,
m the mass and c the specific heat of the air in the globe. From this
equation we get
wi, real getheihlle
T—t= (t’—?) MC
or
fae Nee me me
pena (i+ sre = 0.0074 (14+ 774),
T’ indicating the rise of temperature of the wire, ¢’ —¢ is the rise of
temperature of the air, which can be computed easily from the ob-
served depression.
The capacity of the globe is 40766 cubic lines; the specific gravity
of the air, at 15°, is 0.00114, the specific heat of the air 0.188; we
have, therefore,
40766 x 0.00114 x 0.188
T= (0.0074..4) (1 + 3a ts 2 x 0.081)?
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 437
r representing the semi-diameter, 7 the length of the wire in the
globe. The specific gravity of platinum is 21, and its specific heat is
0.0031.
Performing the multiplication indicated, we get
8.737
T = (0.0074 h) G ee Be ae
According to this formula, the rise of temperature T’ of the wire
can be computed when the corresponding depression 4 is observed,
and the dimensions of the platinum wire known.
A wire, for which r = 0.036 lines,
and jo="b0unine
gave the following data:
For all the respective values of s, h, g, computing the value of » in
the equation
we get for the mean value of »0.91.. When lie = 1h = 0.91,
s
the corresponding rise of temperature, therefore, would be 0.91 x
0.0074 = 0.006734, and the rise of temperature of the wire
T’ = 0.006734 (1 + 55.24
DO STSy:
Riess found for this case with his formulas, which are developed in
a less simple manner, at a temperature of 12°.5, T = 0.3975, which
is nearly equal to the above value.
mc
MC
shorter, or as M becomes less. In most cases which present them-
selves in such researches M is so small, as in the above case, that the
The quotient becomes greater as the wire is finer and M OC
fraction ar is considerably greater than 1.
In this discussion we have supposed the temperature to be 15°. If
the temperature of the air had not been 15°, but 0°, the air would
have been denser in the proportion of 1 to 1.0547, and m would have
been so much greater.
The temperature of the air being 15°, we found above that a de-
pression of one line corresponded to a rise of temperature of 0°.0074.
If we had taken 0° for the starting point we should have found that a
depression of one line corresponded to a rise of temperature of
6°.0070; if, therefore, the experiments had been made at 0°, the
438 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
factor 0.0070 would have been substituted for 0.0074, or a factor
which is less in the proportion of 1 to 1.0571; on the contrary, m,
Mm ¢c
MC
small,) would become greater in the proportion of 1: 1.0547. Thus
the one factor would increase in almost exactly the same proportion
in which the other decreased, and the value of T’ would remain
almost without change ; hence it follows that slight fluctuations in
the temperature of the surrounding air may be totally disregarded,
and no correction of the value of T’ computed for 15° is necessary.
A similar discussion of the height of the barometer leads to the
same result—that is to say, although our formula is computed for @
height of 336 lines, it may be used for other heights, because the in-
termediate fluctuations of the barometer have no marked influence on
the value of 'T’. °
§ 44. INFLUENCE OF THE LENGTH OF THE CONNECTING WIRE ON ITS RISE OF
TEMPERATURE.— We have seen above that, when the same discharge
passes through a series of wires introduced into the circuit together,
the heating of the separate pieces is, independent of their length,
and inversely proportional to the fourth power of their semi-diameters.
But as soon as the circuit is considerably prolonged, by the intro-
duction of new wires, the heat in all parts of the circuit decreases
In order to investigate the influence of an increase of length in the
circuit, Riess interposed, in succession, pieces of the same copper wire
of different lengths, by means of Henley’s discharger, retaining in the
thermometer the same platinum wire. With each piece an experi-
mental series of the same kind was made, as shown on page 426.
Indicating the length of the interposed copper wire (its thickness
being 0.29 lines) by 4.
the value of the expression in the brackets, (since 1 to is very
gy
for“ 0. * h = 0.18 = —
p= Oe he eee
© J= 49.0%, h= 0.48 f
iva)
«2 98.4", h = 0.34
3, & |S
|
CAS EE 0.272
8
A= 246.4", kh = 0.21 2.
8
We see from these data that the heating constantly decreases as
2
the wires increase in length, the value of _ being constant.
The values of h are evidently proportional to the co-efficients of
wo
& |S
. For e = 1 we have the following relation between / and A:
0.78 (1)
A ai > 's) oh
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 439
For 4 = 0, this equation gives h = 0.78; for A= 49 it gives h =
0.476; for A= 147.7, h = 0.267, &c., all of which values correspond
remarkably well with the above observations, so that we can consider
this equation as the expression of the actual relation between h and A,
Dividing the numerator and denominator of this equation by 0.013,
we get
In this form we find the greatest resemblance to the law of Ohm.
The discharge in these experiments had, in addition to the variable
length 2 of the interposed copper wire, to traverse the invariable part
of the circuit, in which the platinum wire of the thermometer was
comprised,
Each increase of length in the circuit resists the rise of tempera-
ture, which is, in fact, inversely proportional to the length of the
circuit, as shown by the formula, if we assume that the constant part
of the circuit acts like a piece of copper wire 76.9 feet long and
having the thickness of the interposed wire.
The above value of hk represents only a special case ; it may be gen-
eralized thus :
a
Bor igF a
—— =
1 8
-+ A; L+aA
b
i!
by substituting a for ? and L for 7° Thus we have the same
law here for the development of heat as for the magnetic effect of the
galvanic battery.
Evidently L here expresses the reduced length of the circuit ; that
is, it indicates how long a platinum wire should be, of the same
thickness as the interposed wire whose length is A, to give the same
value of retardation as the whole circuit, with the exception of the
platinum wire in the discharger having the length £.
This last transformation, by means of which Jess’ law of heating
gives a form perfectly similar to Ohm’s law, Riess has not presented
with his formula. In the beginning of his memoir he merely made
the general remark that the similarity of his results to the magnetic
effect of the galvanic battery was not to be overlooked, but without
presenting or proving it; indeed, in his treatise he has intentionally,
as he says, avoided representations which might seem to refer to gal-
vanism, because the subject of electricity needs well founded experi-
ments more than theoretical disquisitions and analogies.
Equation (1) brought into the general form is as follows:
a
2 ea
from which Riess draws the following conclusion:
440 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
By lengthening the circuit the rise of temperature is dimin-
ished. If, instead of metallic wire, a piece of moistened wood, or @
glass tube filled with water, be introduced, the most powerful charges
of the battery are not alle to produce a depression of even 0.1 line.
Here the discharge of the battery is no longer instantaneous, as with
the interposition of the longest copper wire ; it requires a perceptible
time. Hence it is inferred that a difference might be observed in the
time of discharge when a long or short wire was used if we were
endowed with keener senses. The heating of the platinum wire in
the thermometer appears to be in simple inverse ratio with the time
during which the discharge lasts. A temperature a being observed,
while a certain quantity of electricity of a given density is discharged
in the time 1, the time of discharge will be prolonged by 6 A, if a wire
of the length A is introduced ; and the temperature is now
a
T plore
1+0A
or the heating of a wire by the discharge of an electrical battery is in-
versely proportional to the duration of the discharge; the duration of
ihe discharge is prolonged by lengthening the wire of the circwit by a
time which is proportional to the length of the wire added.
§ 45. INFLUENCE OF THE THICKNESS OF THE CONNECTING WIRE UPON ITS
TEMPERATURE.—In order to investigate the influence of the thickness
of the connecting wire iess removed the interposed copper wire
which he had used in the previous experiments, and in its stead
placed, in succession, platinum wires of various dimensions between
the arms of Henley’s discharger. The result was that the thermome-
ter indicated temperatures as much lower, as the platinum wires of
like lengths were thinner. The data thus obtained admit of the
formula
in which s represents the radius of the wire. Expressed in words this
means:
The heating of a wire by electrical discharge is inversely proportional
to the duration of the discharge ; by interposing homogenous wires the
discharge is prolonged by a time which is directly proportional to the
length of the interposed wire, and inversely proportional te its section.
§ 46. TEMPERATURE IN THE MAIN CONDUCTOR OF A BRANCHED CIRCUIT.
Having determined how much retardation of discharge is produced by
a wire a introduced into the circuit, the value of retardation by @
second wire f# is obtained in like manner; and it may be asked now
how much retardation is produced by introducing both wires at the
same time as branches in the circuit.
The annexed diagrams may serve to show more clearly how this
question is to be understood.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 44]
In figure 56 6 represents the battery, ¢ the air thermometer, a a
Fig. 56. piece of wire introduced into the circuit.
In the two following figures } and ¢ represent
the same things as in the other ; Fig. 58.
but in figure 57 we have the wire
8 instead of a, and in figure 58
both pieces of wire are introduced
together, so as to form branches.
If, now, for a given charge of
the battery a certain temperature of the air ther-
mometer is produced by the combination in figures
56 and 57, the question is, what is the temperature
for the same charge with the combination of figure
58?
Riess has treated this question in the 63d vol.,
page 486, of Poggendorf’s Annalen.
As we have just seen, the elevation of temperature by the air ther-
mometer for unity of charge is represented by the formula—
a
C=
z
I+
a indicating the temperature which occurs when only the constant
parts of the conducting circle close the battery, < the time the dis-
charge is retarded by interposing any piece of wire in the circuit,
provided the time in which the battery is discharged when the said
wire is out of the circuit is taken as unity.
Having determined by experiment the value of retardation, « for
one wire a introduced into the conducting circle, and then, in the
same manner, the value z! for a second wire f, we are able to deduce
theoretically the values of retardation when both wires are introduced
together, as shown in figure 58.
The wire a discharges the unit of electrical charge in the time 2;
in the unit of time, therefore, it can discharge the quantity Z
In like manner the second wire f in the unit of time can discharge
the quantity of electricity
In the unit of time, then, the two wires introduced together (figure
58) into the conducting circle can discharge the quantity : 4 i
Hence it follows that with the combination of figure 58 the
two wires can discharge the quantity of electricity 1 in the time
1
Now, if— A
442 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
is the rise of temperature in the thermometer when the wire a@ is in
the circuit, and if—
ge ai sce bs
fe 1l+2zs
represents the temperature in the thermometer when the wire f is
introduced, the charge being the same, we have—
Wier x , q°
1 S
Ls i ay
2) 2
for the rise of temperature, when the wires a and f are introduced
at the same time, forming branches as represented in Fig. 58.
In accordance with the same train of reasoning it follows that, if
the values of retardation of three wires are z, z, 2’, and they be intro-
duced into the circuit at the same time, the retardation of the whole
system will be
1
Le ad WE I)
Curie!
The correctness of this deduction Liess has proved by numerous ex-
periments, a few of which I shall present.
The battery used in all these experiments consisted of four jars,
with 2.6 square feet of inner coating. Between the constant portions
of the circuit a series of platinum wires were inserted, varying in
length, but uniform in thickness; through each wire various quan-
tities of electricity were discharged, and from the combination of
these experiments the value of a of the above equation was found =
1,232. The manner in which a can be determined from the combi-
nation of numerous experiments is shown at page 426.
A platinum wire a (whose dimensions it is not necessary here to
know) being introduced, and various quautities of electricity dis-
charged, the experiments gave for the unit of charge h = 0.81, hence
consequently z= 0.5209 and ts = 1.919; the wire f being substi-
z
tuted for a, gave for the unit of charge h = 0.94; hence z/ —0.3107, and
8.019)
z
The two wires a and f being introduced together as two branches
of the circuit, we have, according to our deduction, for the heat de-
veloped in the main conductor—
D)
jee the 28 Laie dade? Sates wens
i 1
pO pete te, saat
Tigipsa +538
The experiment gave h = 1.03.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 448
Closing the circuit with a branch a’, the result was
h = 0.386, and ee 0.4563.
Closing with a branch f’,
h= 0.519, and ie 10 F279.
PA .
Closing with an (iron) wire 7’,
0489 ana ae 0.5734.
Therefore—
i B 1
+545 1158;
from which it follows that, when the circuit is closed with the three
branches simultaneously, we get for the temperature with unit of
charge,
92
b= * — 0,451
if iar te
i 1.758
The experiment gave fcr this combination,
h= 0.784.
Additional experiments showed a like harmony between the com-
puted and observed values.
$47. TEMPERATURE IN A BRANCH OF THE CONDUCTING cIRcUIT.—We
have seen that the quantity of electricity g is discharged through two
branches of the closed circuit in the time T>? and 2 represent-
at@Z
ing the time in which each of the two branches is able separately to
discharge the same quantity of electricity. In the unit of time the
first branch can discharge the quantity of electricity 4; hence the
quantity of electricity which the first branch discharges in the time
———,, equals wey ;
1 2 i Ey.
ny i(-+5
likewise the second branch discharges
JANG
iedy
(245
a gy
fy es at oh dae bins
in the same time the quantity Hence the temperature
444 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
a q
I ae it rea
(43) 0424):
BRike ee
Ivess found this formula also confirmed by his experiments.
To introduce an air thermometer into the branches without
changing the circuit in other respects, platinum wires were placed in
_the branches with the same connecting pieces, and of equal length
and thickness with the platinum wire in the thermometer, so that
these pieces of wire could be removed from the branches and the
thermometer substituted for them ; the place in the circuit where the
thermometer stood was occupied by a connecting wire of equal dimen-
sions.
In all these experiments the branches were very short, and it is
for such cases only that the above formulas are applicable. When
the branches are long, each induces in the other lateral currents in
the same direction. But if the main current in @ induces a lateral
current in /, a completes, as it were, the circuit for the lateral cur-
rent 3; the lateral current excited in f# will thus traverse a in a direc-
tion opposite to that of the main current; to this is to be added the
lateral current excited in a by 8. The effect of these lateral currents
is shown not only in the branches, but they modify the main current
in the general conductor. These exceedingly complicated disturb-
ances of the discharge current in a branched wire are difficult, as
ftiess has justly remarked, to bring under a generally valid law. ~
—
—
s§
§ 48. ELEcTRICAL RETARDING POWER OF METALS.—Jess concludes the
investigation just described by an account of his highly interesting
and important labors on the electrical retarding power of metals.
We have seen that a wire brought into the circuit by means of
Henley’s discharger retards the discharge, and that in consequence of
this retardation the depression of the air thermometer diminishes.
The wire in the thermometer remaining unchanged, if we intro-
duce first a platinum wire, and afterwards one of copper of equal
length and thickness into the circuit, an equal depression will not be
obtained ; whence it follows that these wires, though they have the
same dimensions, do not retard the electrical discharge in a like
measure ; hence the retarding force of the two metals is specifically
different.
With a copper wire a greater depression will be obtained than with
a platinum wire of equal length and thickness; the copper, therefore,
retards the electrical charge less than the platinum wire.
For discussion and computation of the retarding power of different
metals, the following is the simplest method to be pursued: First
place a platinum wire in the discharger and determine the depression
produced by a given charge of the battery. Introduce another wire
instead of the platinum, (having the same thickness,) and lengthen
or shorten it until the same charge of the battery produces the same
effect. The retarding forces are to each other inversely as the length
of the wires used.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 445
A copper wire, for instance, has to be 6.44 times as long as a plati-
num wire of the same thickness to effect an equal retardation ; hence
the retarding force of platinum is 6.44 times as great as that of cop-
per. Making the retarding force of platinum equal to 1, we find
that of copper to be 0.1552.
This would be, as I have said, the simplest method for discussion
and computation. The prosecution of the experiments, however,
would be very troublesome. On this account, /tiess has preferred to
make the experiments with wires of determinate length and thick-
ness, observing the corresponding depressions, and from these he
computed the retarding force by the aid of the law found above.
In the following experiments the same platinum wire (59.25 lines
long and 0.04098 lines in diameter) was retained in the thermometer.
A platinum wire of the same thickness, but 34.67 lines long, was
placed in the discharger. A series of experiments instituted accord-
ing to the method described above, g and s varying, and the corre-
sponding depression being observed, gave as the result
2
haat3T qT.
8
a platinum wire of the same thickness, but 87.62 lines long, gave
r—=1.01L,
a third platinum wire, equal in thickness but 143.5 lines in length, gave
eS, cree
8
The coefficient of 1 has , as we have seen above, (page 440,) the form
Ve as
1+ 62’
to determine the constants a and b, two series of observations are
necessary, that is, two numerical values of these factors must be
known, corresponding to two different lengths of 2.
First, we have
a '
1 G86 Ta el
then
Pig Joienks —_———
1-0. 87.62
combining these two equations we get
a= Mise, 6==.0.0087Ts.
Combining, in like manner, the first and third series of observa;
tions, we find : .
a= 1.788, b= 0.008807;
combining the second and third series, we get
@==1.792; b= 0.008843.
446 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
The mean of these tkree results is
WE TNT SIP GS OMUBS TN
To determine the retarding force of copper, a wire of this metal was
placed in the discharger. Its length was 141.6 lines, its radius
0.041952 line. Assuming the thickness of the platinum wire, pre-
viously examined, as unity, the value of the semi-diameter of the
copper wirewas
p == 1.0236.
A series of experiments with this wire gave
2
Nes ishet
8
But, according to the above, we have the coefficient
a
ghee aa,
p?
in which a@ equals the value just found, 1.789, 4 = 141.6, and p=
1.0236. From this we find for 0! the value
b = 0.001867.
Dividing this value by the value of 6 found for platinum, we get
b/
5 -= 0.1552 ;
that is, the retarding force of copper is 0.155 times as great as that of
platinum ; or, taking the retarding force of platinum for unity, that
of copper is 0.1552.
In like manner Jess determined the retarding force of other metals
and found as follows:
Retarding | Inverse value
Metals. force. of retarding
force; copper
camel LK)
Silver. che eee. 0. 1043 148. 74
Copperzeeeae cones 0. 1552 100. 00
Golde eee eee 0. 1746 88. 87
Cadminme@nsseecceece 0. 4047 38. 35
Brass e Se. Ses foe ae 0. 5602 PAA!)
Pauli aici aie te ee 0. 8535 18. 18
Iron; oases See 0. 8789 17. 66
Platinum seeenenee = 1. 0000 15. 52
ff br h arrays EL Peewee 1. 058 14.70
Nickel) . 0 eee yo 1.180 3s LS
headL sae. ee 1. 503 10. 32
. German silver. .....-- 1. 752 8. 86
‘
The first column of figures gives the proportion in which wires of
the same dimensions, but of different substances, retard the discharge
of the electrica ‘oattery. The inverse values of the retarding forces
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 447
in the second column correspond to what physicists are accustomed to
call the conductive capacity.
§ 49. CAPACITY OF METALS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF HEAT.— When
a platinum wire 59.25 lines long, and 0.04098 lines in radius was in
the thermometer, and a copper wire 141.6 lines long, 0.041952 lines
radius, in the discharger a series of observations gave
q
h= 151 —.
8
In these experiments a thermometer was used whose globe contained
22.668 cubic lines, which in parts of the scale amounted to 188,404.
Hence a depression of 1 line, as shown in § 43 corresponds to a rise
of temperature of the air of 0°.00802. The rise of temperature of,
the wire was found, as there shown, by the formula
SLi ge Saha
iy 0.00802 1 ( $e
2
The computation being performed we get, with x = 1, for the rise
of temperature in the platinum wire,
0°.4635.
The wires being exchanged, so that the copper wire was in the
thermometer while the platinum was in the discharger, the result was
9
q
h = 0.46 saan
8
9
a
and therefore, with a 1, the rise of temperature of the copper
wire is
0°.04678.
Thus the same discharge produces in the two wires very unequal
temperatures. It is true that the thickness of the wires was not the
same, the radius of the platinum being 0.04098 lines, that of the
copper 0.04195 lines, but as shown above, the rise of temperature in
the wires being ceteris paribus as the fourth powers of the radii, a
platinum wire, therefore, with the same dimensions as the copper
wire, would give an increase of temperature of
0.04098*
— == 0°.4230.
0.04195*
Thus the same discharge produces, in wires of platinum and copper
of like dimensions, increases of temperature which are to each other
as 0.4230 to 0.04678 ; hence the same discharge produces in a copper
; : 0.04678 f ;
wire a rise of temperature (G55) = 0.1106 times as great as 1n an
0.4635
equally thick platinum wire; or copper has a capacity for the develop-
ment of heat 0.1106 times as great as platinum.
448 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
Riess found by his formula 0.1133 instead of 0.1106—a difference
so small as not to require further examination.
In a similar manner he determined the heating capacity of other
metals, and found as follows :
Metal. Heating capacity. | Quantity of heat.
Silver 2232 52252 ase 0. 1267 0. 1126
Copperesseesaae === 0. 1133 0. 1447
GoldMei ease enone 0. 2112 0. 1847
Brass aes sie c ee nee 0. 3861 0. 5616 s
Vigoyels See A es 0. 7080 0. 9148
Platinum! ace 1. 0000 1. 0000
Pins. ee eas 2 1. 570 0. 8917
Nickel {chee sae ece 0. 8727 1. 182
Leadti: 2.2 F2se one 2.876 1. 455
The first of these columns of numbers gives the capacity of metals
for the development of heat—that is, the relative height of tem-
perature different kinds of wire of the same thickness would reach, if
they were fastened together end to end, and an electric battery dis-
charged through them.
Multiplying the heating capacities of metals by their specific weights
and specific heats, the numbers are obtained, which ‘show the quan-
tities of heat set free by the same discharge in equally thick wires.
Again, taking platinum for unity, we must divide all the products
found by the specific weight and specific heat of platinum. In
this manner the numbers of the second column were obtained.
This series of numbers shows the ratio of the quantities of heat set
free in different kinds of wires of equal diameters when, being
fastened end to end, they discharge an electrical battery.
Comparing these numbers with the retarding forces given on page
446 we see that they are almost precisely equal, the difference being
so small as to be explained by the fluctuating values of capacity for
heat and specific weights in connexion with errors of observation ;
hence, the retarding force of different metals is (ceteris paribus) in. the
same proportion as the quantity of heat set free in the wires by the
electrical discharge.
Hence it follows further, that the relative electrical heating capacity
ofa metal may be found by dividing its electrical retarding force by
its specific weight and capacity for heat; multiplying by the
specific weight and capacity for heat of platinum, when the heating
capacity of platinum is = 1.
§ 50. ENgrRE QUANTITY OF HEAT PRODUCED BY THE DISCHARGE.— Vors-
selman de Heer made use of the experiments given above for deter-
mining the entire quantity of heat which an electrical dischager
generates (Pog. Ann, XLVIII, 292), by making in Atess’ formula a
transformation which is in perfect harmony with the modification
given in page 439.
He showed in this way what should be the length L of a platinum
wire of given thickness which should offer to the discharge the same
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 449
resistance ; or, in other words, which should produce the same re-
tardation of the discharge as that caused by the constant part of the
conducting circuit.
Since the quantity of heat set free in a piece of wire is proportional
to its retarding force, and since, moreover, the heating of a given
wire in any part of the circuit can be determined by aid of the elec-
trical air thermometer, we can compute the quantity of heat set free
in the whole circuit, were it to consist of a single wire of the length
L + Aand of a given thickness. Vorsselmann de Heer assumes that
in the whole circuit a quantity of heat, exactly equal to that com-
puted, is actually set free, because the circuit has the same retarding
force as the computed length of wire, and the heat set free is propor-
tional to the retardation.
Riess, however, protests against this conclusion, (Pog. Ann. XLVIII,
320,) and with justice replies that the greatest part of the retardation
in the conducting circuit is due not so much to the continuous metal-
lic parts themselves as to the places at which they are joined ; and
that experiment gives us information as to the relation between the
retarding force and development of heat for continuous wires only,
but not for discontinuous wires when joined together ; that as yet we
know nothing of the relation between the retarding force and heating
at the joints.
§ 51. Ja@nirioN AND FUSION OF METALLIC WIRES BY ELECTRICAL DIS-
cHARGES.— While feeble currents, discharged through thin wires, pro-
duce changes of temperature, the laws of which Jiess has thoroughly
studied, and with which we have hitherto been engaged, more powerful
discharges bring the wires into astate of ignition and even of fusion.
The question now is, whether these effects, namely, the ignition
and fusion of wires, can be explained by the increase of heat accord-
ing to the laws found for lower temperatures or not.
Riess has accurately investigated the ignition and fusion of metallic
wires by electricity, (Pog. Ann. LXV, 481,) and shows that this is
not the case.
When a thin platinum wire 15 lines long, together with a thicker
one in the air thermometer, were introduced into the conducting cir-
cuit of a battery, observations with feeble discharges gave, accord-
ing to the above laws for units of charge, a rise of temperature in the
thin wire of 0°.68.
By discharging the quantity of electricity, 42 in 5 jars, the wire
was completely melted. Computing the rise of temperature in the
thin wire for this charge, according to the known laws, we get
0.68422 = 245°.
This temperature is not high enough for the ignition, far less for
the fusion of platinum ; hence, it is clear that the temperature of 245°
which was computed according to the laws obtained for weak charges,
is not that to which the platinum really reaches. when melted by
electricity.
From this it follows that a powerful charge acts in a different
manner upon the wire than a weak one; and it also appears that a
powerful discharge produces mechanical effects in the wire, which are
not at all shown by weaker discharges.
298
450 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS,
Riess has very carefully investigated the effects of gradually in-
creasing discharges. To produce very powerful effects he used a
battery of 7 jars, with a coating of 2.6 square feet to each jar.
Long before the quantity of electricity required for ignition had
been reached, the wires showed appearances which evinced a forcible
penetration of the electricity ; the wire was visibly shaken, small
sparks were given off at its ends, particles of its surface were thrown
off, rising in the form ofa dense vapor. It often happened that the
throwing off of larger pieces of glowing metal occurred with the pas-
sage of the spark, giving to ita scintillating appearance. Charges
still more powerful produced bends in the wire, which appeared ex-
actly as though they had been made by an edged tool. We shall give
here only one experimental series, showing these phenomena, A
platinum wire of 0.0261 line semi-diameter, and 16 lines long, ap-
peared as follows:
Quantity of
ie omena
electricity. Phenome
Sparks on the inner part of the wire; that is,
nearest the inner coating.
Streaks of vapor over the whole wire.
Vapor sparks on the outer part.
The same.
Neither sparks nor vapor; strong bending.
Sparks on outer end; bending increased.
Wire ignited.
All the phenomena preceding ignition appeared more readily when
the wire was not stretched.
Harlier observers had already noticed a shortening of wires ignited
by electrical discharges, which shortening is now explained by the
bending mentioned above.
The sparks spoken of as seen at the ends of the wire depend upon
the material of the wire, and upon that of the clamp. The scintil-
lating sparks appear in great quantity with iron wire, while with
copper none were observed. ’
Far more constant than the appearance of sparks is the formation
of the vapor which is seen with every metal. The facility with which
it is formed, with different metals is the same as for different wires
of the same metal. Its formation is promoted by a great number of
furrows left by the draw-plate upon the wire; and Riess has found
that it is diminished by carefully polishing the wire.
§ 52. LAWS OF ELECTRICAL IGNITION.
1. Ignition in proportion to amount of charge.—A thin platinum
wire of 0.116 line diameter, and 26.6 lines length, together with an
electrical thermometer containing a platinum wire so thick as to remain
uninjured by the strongest discharge, were introduced into the con-
ducting circuit. A given number of jars were charged with increasing
quantities of electricity until a quantity was attained which produced
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 45]
ignition in the wire, visible by daylight, the thermometer being
observed each time. The same was repeated with different number
of jars. Such a series of observations gave the following charges
required to produce ignition with the corresponding depressions of
the thermometer.
Quantity of
No. of jars. electricity: Temp. of ther.
5 12 20. 2
+ 11 21.8
3 10 21.6
2 8 20.3
To bring the thin wire to a visible red heat, the quantities of elec-
tricity 12 in 5 jars, 11 in 4, 10 in 3, and 8 in 2, were necessary.
Dividing the square of the quantities of electricity by the correspond-
ing number of jars, we get the following qvotients:
144, by ==) 28.55.1214 => 80.2) 1003 4==3318}°64.2° 32.
These quotients are very nearly equal, and from this we may infer
that, if a quantity of electricity q in s jars make a wire red hot, under
circumstances equal in other respects, the quantity q' in s! jars will
2 12
produce the the same effect if _ = z. In the above experiments
the mean of the quotients is 31; hence, for
jars Diane oe Bt ee D, Boor
the quantities of E 7.9, 9.6, 11, 12.4, 138.6, 14.7
will be found as those required to produce incandescence in the above
mentioned wire. .
We have seen above that the heat produced by a discharge through
the electrical thermometer, under otherwise like circumstances,
2 2
remains the same so long as the quotient “, or what is the same, the
8 q “C,
7 does
product of the electrical quantity g multiplied by the density 5
9
not change. But since the same value of 2 is always necessary for
s
the ignition of the thin wire, it was to be supposed that the discharges
which effect the ignition of the thin wire also produced in the ther-
mometer like temperatures, which, in fact, is very nearly the case in
the above series of experiments.
For the sake of brevity we shall measure the current by its heating
power, and always denote the quantity of heat produced in a wire, kept
constantly in the conducting circuit, by the term force of the discharge.
2
This force is constant so long as the value of, — does not vary,
other things being equal
- 2. Ignition of the wire in proportion to its length.—When a dis-
charge current produces incandescence in a thin wire, a prolongation
of the wire retards the current so that the glow no longer appears.
452 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
If an electrical thermometer besides the thin wire be introduced into
the circuit, lengthening the wire will also occasion a less heat in the
thermometer by retarding the discharge.
Since the ‘‘ force of the current’’ is measured by the temperature of
the electrical thermometer, it also may be said that the force of the
current is diminished by the prolongation of the thin wire.
If, then, a certain charge of the battery brings the wire to ignition,
by lengthening the wire, the same charge will yield a current of less
force, and it will no longer be sufficient. to produce incandescence in
the wire. To make the longer wire glow, the charge must be in-
creased, as shown by fess’ experiments, until the force of the current
has reached its previous magnitude.
A platinum wire 15.7 lines long was brought to incandescence by
four jars and a quantity of E 12, the indication of the thermometer
being 8.
An equally thick wire, 77.5 lines long, was brought to incandes-
cence by four jars and a quantity of E 22, the indication of the ther-
mometer being likewise 8. Wires equally thick, but of different
lengths, were, therefore, brought to ignition by currents of the same
force.
3. Ignition of wires in proportion to their thickness.—If a given force
of current produces ignition in a wire, with an equal value of g and s, a
thicker wire of the same length will not produce that effect, although
the force of the discharge current increases on account of the dimin-
ished retardation.
To produce incandescence in thick wires, g must be increased, by
which the force of the current is also increased.
For wires of equal length, with radii of 0.018 in., 0.021 in., 0.026
lines, respectively, discharge currents were required whose forces,
measured in the electrical thermometer, were 9, 20, 43.
The fourth powers of the three radii are to each other as 10:
19 : 45, and these numbers are nearly in the same proportion as 9 :
20: 43. Hence,
The force of the discharge of an electrical battery, necessary for pro-
ducing ignition in a wire, is proportional to the fourth power of the radius
of the wire.
4. Ignition of wires of different metals.—It follows from the experi-
ments that fess made on the ignition of wires of different metals,
that if 1 indicate the force of the current required to produce ignition .
in a platinum wire, wires of the same dimensions, consisting of the
following metals, are brought to the same condition by currents as
follows :
Metal. Force of current.
Tron 2-2 Site apatejern SS See Sa il 2 ek ue! SE ol ee ee 0. 816
Germanisilyer ots 2 oe Ree ee DAP PO eer eee 0. 950
Blatinum'.2)... 25 tSacaGeries a 2 St ys meme st lh ee ge ca Se 1.00
Palladium. 2 <'-,- =e rae ce eee ee ee Seas Se a 1. 07
Brags2t eo scnit tet Ree sete Gan SOR Ae epi ity: ei Re 2. 59
Silver sapomse oo LLL Mey Steele Lets ee ee eee boa a bare! geen oe 4.98
Coppereeeese ete eo Lr XIE UE Ae Ee Aree Le | ee ee apt ee yg 5. 95
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 453
§ 53. PHENOMENA FOLLOWING IanrtIon.—If the force of the current
is increased more than is necessary for the first incandescence the fol-
lowing phenomena appear in succession with the increasing force.
The wire becomes white hot, tears from its fastenings, breaks into
pieces, melts, and is dissipated.
1. Learing loose.—A platinum wire of 0.026 line radius and 16
lines long presented the Petiswineg phenomena :
No. of jars.| Quantity of E. Phenomenon.
12 The wire red hot.
4 14 Increased ignition.
15 White hot.
16 Torn into three pieces.
According to Cavallo, the glow should progress from the positive
to the negative end of the wire. iess noticed, with one exception, a
reverse progress in every case.
According to Van Marum, when the wire is partially destroyed, it
is always the part nearest the positive coating that is injured ; but
Riess found the wire broken sometimes at the positive end and some-
times at the negative end.
A wire which has once been brought partly to ignition, is more
easily torn than a new one.
2. Breaking into pieces.—Wire being subjected to a stronger dis-
charge than is necessary to tear them, they break into a greater or
less number of small pieces giving off light, which are thrown to
some distance. It may be seen in the collected pieces, that the dis-
membering of the wire depends upon a splitting and breaking action,
and that fusion where it appears 1s only secondary.
A platinum wire 16 lines long, and 0.079 line thick, was sur-
rounded by a glass tube 74 lines in diameter, and placed in the con-
ducting circuit. The discharge of the quantity of electricity, 22,
collected in 7 jars, brought it to ignition; the quantity 35, tore it
into pieces, which were found in the tube. The pieces had evident
signs of fusion on their surface, and four of the largest seemed welded
together in a twisted figure, which indicated that they were thrown
while hot against each other, and against the sides of the tube. The
ends of all the pieces were not fused, most of them were sharp pointed.
A tolerably straight piece was measured under the microscope: it
was (0.081 line in the middle, and at one end 0.022 line in diameter,
hence it had been split lengthwise. Other pieces showed the same
appearance.
Numerous other experiments gave similar results. By carefully
increasing the charge, the shivering of the wire was produced with-
out the least trace of fusion.
3. Fusion.—By continually increasing discharges, the wires were
broken into less and less pieces, which melted at their surfaces and
ends, and at last flowed together, into globules. The wires were in
all cases torn violentlyfrom their fastenings, and the pieces scattered
454 RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS
far and wide. All the following experiments were made under a bell
glass, and the scattered pieces collected on a sheet of paper at the
bottom.
A platinum wire, 0.0258 lines radius, 19 lines long, becomes red hot
with s= 5 andg=11; with g = 20 it broke and melted. Many pieces
3 line long had globules at their ends; a few splinters were melted
together. A similar platinum wire melted into a number of small
perfectly round globules with g = 22.
A silver wire, 0.0264 semi-diameter, 20 lines long, broke and melted
with s = 6, ¢g = 26; some globules and fragments fused together were
collected.
A tin wire, radius 0.037, length 15, with s = 5, g = 20; globules
dropped-which oxidized in dancing about with the well known scin-
tillations.
A copper wire, radius 0.0253, length 16 lines, with s = 6, ¢g = 20
ignited ; with gq = 25, was converted into very small globules.
Larger globules could not be obtained from copper.
The charge producing perfect fusion here, is not much greater than
that which produced the first red heat. Hence, with the oxidizable
metals, the temperature is elevated by receiving oxygen from the air,
chemical effects uniting with the electrical. This is most remarkable
in iron, which often melts with charges, that directly would have
produced only a moderate ignition.
An iron wire, radius 0.0266 length 17 lines, came toa bright red
heat with s= 3, ¢= 13; but this did not cease in an instant, as in
the other cases. The ignitiondncreased to a white heat; then some
globules dropping from the wire rolled about on the paper, giving off
an abundance of sparks.
The residue of the charge remaining in the jar after the fusion of a
wire, is very considerable; in one of iess’ experiments it amounted
to nearly 23 per cent. of the whole charge.
4. Dispersion.—The first directly visible effect of the electrical
discharge on a new wire, consists, as before remarked, in the forma-
tion of a cloud of vapor rising from the surface. It is probable that
this consists of particles of metal separated from the exterior of the
wire, the quantity depending upon the condition of the surface. By
increasing the charge beyond the point at which it would perfectly
fuse the wire, it is possible to convert the whole mass of the wire into
such a vapor. This takes place with a brilliant development of light,
and a loud report.
A platinum wire, (radius 0.0309 lines, length 15 lines,) ignited
with s= 5 and g = 13, and with g = 17, melted into globules. A
similar platinum wire was dissipated with brilliant light, with g=
22, and in the tube surrounding it appeared a gray deposit.
The same experiment was repeated in the open air, and a few lines
above the wire a plate of mica was held; it was covered by the dissi-
pation of the wire with gray and blackish flakes, which, under a mi-
croscope of 280 magnifying power, seemed to be composed of particles
of metal of different sizes and form.
The more brittle the metals are, the more easily are they dispersed.
RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. 455
§ 54. Mucwanism or Fustoy.—Whenever electrical fusion occurs,
there is a mechanical separation of the melted mass; hence, this
fusion is only the effect of heat upon finely divided metal. The dif-
ference between fusion by fire and electricity, Riess has characterised
as follows:
<¢ When fire acts on a metal, it heats the metal as an entire mass
to the melting point ; electricity, on the contrary, heats the metal (as
a whole mass) only to a temperature below the welding point, and
completes the fusion by simultaneous dissipation and heating.”’
Franklin proposed in 1747, the view, which he afterwards aban-
doned, that lightning loosens the cohesion of a metal without the aid
of heat, and brings about a cold fusion. This view was taken up
again by Berthollet, who explained the operation of electricity on a
substance, by a separation of the particles, and supposed the heat de-
veloped to fuse it, as only a secondary phenomenon.
This opinion is in some respects true, according to the experiments
just given, but it leaves entirely out of consideration the heat whic
occurs before the mechanical effect ; on the other hand, the view gen-
erally held subsequently, that electrical fusion is wholly the result of
heating, is just as one sided, for it disregards the mechanical effect.
§ 55. CHANGES IN THE COEFFICIENT OF RETARDATION OF METALS WITH
INCREASING MECHANICAL EFFECTS.—We have seen that between the tem-
perature i, of a wire, the quantity of electricity g, and the number
of jars s, the relation
2
ho=n—
$
subsists, in which n is a constant factor during a whole series of ob-
servations. This is no longer the case when a wire in the conducting
circuit is affected mechanically by the discharges passed through it
and is brought to ignition, as appears clearly from the following
results: A platinum wire, 17 inches long, with a radius of 0.0209
lines, being inserted in addition to the thermometer, the result was:
8 q
OR: i6
| 7 14.0 :
4 9 20.0 0. 99 Bending.
cre 27.2 0.90 | Red hot.
| 18 33. 3 0. 80 White hot.
{ 15 41.3 0. 95 Melted to globules.
Thus the coefficient of retardation decreases when mechanical
effects and incandescence are produced by increased charges, but it
increases again by melting.
- Riess is of the opinion that the phenomena of heat obtained by a
continuous transmission in the wire are produced by the electricity
456 ; RECENT PROGRESS IN PHYSICS.
traversing the wire with uniform rapidity, while the mechanical
effects are the result, in part at least, of an interrupted transmission.
If the quantity of electricity i is too great to be conducted off continu-
ously, it will accumulate in. separate places at which its progress is
impeded by some cause, until it is in the condition to break through
the obstacles. Hence the increase of the coefficient of retardation.
The places interrupting the discharge are indicated by the bending,
The retardation becomes less again by fusion, because here, at least
in part, a disruptive charge occurs.
Different kinds of transmission of electricity take place in non-
metallic substances. In discharges through the air, by means of
sparks, brushes, &c., an interrupted transmission takes place, while
the gradual passage of electricity through the air, recognized in the
laws of Coulomb, is regarded as the continuous discharge of an elec-
trified body. <A battery can be perfectly, continuously, and quietly
discharged by a tube of water, but by increasing the charge a spark
will appear in the tube, which is broken with violence—discontiuous
or explosive discharge.
That the discharge passes through water in different ways is shown
most distinctly by introducing the thermometer, together with the
tube of water, into the circuit. With four jars the result was:
Amount of E. | Temperature.
“TH MD Or Or
AASSS
As long as a continuous discharge takes place in the water, the
discharge is so much retarded as to indicate no heating; but with a
slight increase of the charge the rupture of the tube is made, and
with it a sudden elevation of temperature in the thermometer.
[20 BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT REPORT. |
CONTENTS.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY.
Hetterdrom the Secretary-to:Congress----cucaseesoctcs scesencceesaseae some
Letter from the Chancellor and Secretary
eincers and: Reveneus Or ther lMsuicUlON cee see samme a aeieee ecclesia eisai ae eeetal ate
Members e officio and Honorary members of the Institution
TATE MINI OH OWEN CR NO ee ee Soe SSeS Spe con Ce SeotSHEeercseceea5
Report of the Senate Judiciary Committee
iReport. or the mecretary 100 LS00 see amas sam lemme ae mmole ale ame le ee ea
TREPOU OL! LAE HA SSISUAING) (SC CLO CAI ie x tte Salas en eee em eel myc eer el
List of Meteorological Stations and Observers
REPORTS OF COMMITTEES.
Report of the Executive Committee
Report of the Building Committee
BOARD OF REGENTS.
Journal of proceedings from June 18, 1856, to January 28, 1857
APPENDIX.
On the ‘‘ Progress of Architecture in relation to Ventilation, Warm-
ing, Lighting, Fire-proofing, Acoustics, and the General Pre-
servation of Health.’’ By Dr. D. B. Rem
On ‘‘Physics.’’ By Prof. Josepo Hunry-...-----.----------------
On ‘‘ Acoustics Applied to Public Buildings.’’ By Prof. Jossru Henry-
Directions for collecting, preserving, and transporting specimens of natural his-
tory. By Prof. Bamp_----------+-------------------- ae = ate cia oe ratte
On the Fishes of New York. By Turo. Gimt.-:-.-.-------------------------
Ancient Indian Remains near Prescott, Canada West. By W. E. Gursr--------
Phonography. By T. Suarpiess and R. ParrErson--.-.- eS eet aoe se aera
Report of the Survey of the Economic Geology of Trinidad. By G. P. Wax and
JAS. SAWKINS. =~ - 2-2-2 nn =~ 3 wen nw re nnn enn ns ene nnn nnn --- +=
Tables of the Constants of Nature and Art. By Cuas. BaBBaGE---------------
On the Mode of Testing Building Materials, and an account of the marble used in
the extension of the United States Capitol. By Prof. Jos. Hunry----, ----
Description of the Observatory at St. Martin, Isle Jesus, Canada Hast. By C.
SMALLWOOD. -------------- 2 oe - enn wn nn nn en nnn nen enn
On the Relative Intensity of the Heat and Light of the Sun upon Different Lati-
tudes of the earth. By L. W. Mescu.-.-.-------------------------------
- Report of Recent Progress in Physics—Electricity. By Dr. J Munner....------
86
93
147
187
221
235
253
271
277
281
289
303
311
321
357
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INDEX,
Page.
Acoustics, applied to public buildings, Lecture on, by Prof. Henry.-..-------- 221
Origin of plan of Smithsonian lecture room --....-..------------.«- 221
(reneral ywewsonvarchitecturets 222 o oo ccec oso aneeiee eae nee eae 222
Hxperiments "on ‘sound So S522 cs Seen ech eee ke ceteeneee asce 223
HChO'. ks cosece ose ot ser See seas Soares eet eo eee tee oe 224
Shimit of perceptibilityjcc sen So ethene. Sasaaes- setae aeeeeweote ss 225
Reflection. Or sound oo. o- seen ue oe See Bas mee eee eee eee 226, 230
Reverberation of pound! le soos Ss Ss oe ere eee Saas ee 226
Increase of temperatures js ee ee ye ere fee he 229 .
Conduction ‘of sound" S2 Sa see oe Se ee oe es hee eee ae 228
Refraction of suund 222" 52 es a5 eee eee aes ee ae 231
Description of Smithsonian lecture room.--....-----.sseeeeee+---- 233
OHUstiCS Of Duludines Reig s l6ECuures OM Seas ooo se soe eee ease eee nae 147
Agassiz, Prof., Suggestions by, as to special collections in natural history_------ 42
Algx of the United States, Prof. Harvey’s Work on___....------------------ 29
American Pomological Society, Downing Monument.....-......-.----.----- 23
Ammonia-cobalt bases, Gibbs and Genth’s Researches --._...-.--------------- 28
Analysis of Marble used for United States Capitol_...--..-...--------.---.--- 307
Ancient Indian Remains hear Prescott: Ci Woe 2oe eo eee eceenietenceete 271
mppendix, Object Obs a2e= ase mae a eee er tee eee Ra ein Bi iara 92
mmohitecture, General “Views: Ona asso te a a ee eats eae ae rears epee 222
in: Relation to” Ventilation. Cia eee as aa ota = 147
In relation to ventilation, warming, lighting, fire-proofing, acous-
tics, and the preservation of health, Lectures on, by D. B. Reid-- 147
Position’ of man‘ontte’ elope s4 sa— see Meee sees eerie ee 147
Duration‘oflife=sseee m= see San ose ae ie ea aera ata 148
Sources of disease*sssasssssasis2e ses n ace eee ae see ee 149
Principles of ventilation s22ss2s2S2ss5s2 ses cans se6- es ae seoe 151
Drainage’ of cities sssSs24 ses 223 32 Ss 5s ses eee ase saan oe aoe 149
Tilustrations:cf the. movement) of airs: =. sos oa on eas a 151
Respirations; ‘experiments /oneess nea oe owe 153
Carbonometer, description and uses of-.-..--..--.------------ 155
Stoves= peculiarities of sess eae ee ee Sik m haere mae 157
Steam apparatus for heating buildings --.-.-..-.--------------- 157
‘Hot water apparatus for heating buildings...-.--.------------- 157
Cooling, moistening, and drying of air-_-.....-.-.-..-----...- 158
Ventilation of-individual' roomss22 ss sis S222 ees Se 22 eee 160
The best means for effecting ventilation--.....-..-----------.- 161
Hxamples of, in different ‘roomss 222222552222 5222225255 428 Ses 162
Best.form of shaft orfluesscssasscseecs s2sscelSeesis cle ck hed 163
460 INDEX,
Architecture, Lectures on, &e.—
Lodging houses for thet Noort nossa en eas ce cee ee os eee 146
Physical condition of men in Europe ....-...-.-------.-------- 160
The heating, cooling, moistening, and drying of air-_........_-- 164
Theexclusionnot -vitiated puree tot Me aaa cea ee ee 161
Individual rooms and habitations, the sick chamber..-..-__-.-.- 162
Publiciboildiips: 2 fats sone cat se oe acess ko a ee eee 165
Plenum; ovacwum and mixed’: << 2c ssase oe] ae eee eee 166
Ascending, and” descending. son snot ween a ee ee eee 167
Old and new houses of Parliament, &c--.-..-.---....-----___- 168
House Of Commons s: 2s seer se toes ree oe ree ena tee oe ee 170
Hxamples:of Drv Reid's plans2s: fol 25 2 SoS ey ee Weal
St--GeorgeissHallaliverpools oe ae ies eee eee & 172
Churches, courts, schools, hospitals, prisons, &c.......--------- 173
Chemical. lecture :noonis: soos 2S Se aie F 174
Lighting public buildings..c.2 Se ee 175
Physical effect of light on the constitution............-----.-- 176
Mlectricvanddimetliohtseesaees eee eee See ee eee 176
Lighting -hills at din bir sco ee ee 176
Hire-proofing. cece eR MAR SF eT ale fee
Minesaccceee eee eee eet ental s 2) Soe Se ere ee ee 178
DE e ee eR ee ee ace ae ome ane oe ane oe arene 179
IX PErINeN ts "ON THOM SEND OW EE mae eee eee eee eee ee 180
Hxperiments*on*the Minden tee. Sout eed seein “Hameo eet - 181
Quarantine vs ee ns ss So eee Nee ae Robles wie Oe eel, WARE eens 181
Genera liconcdition» otthe sallorss “sees ee sae eee nee eae 182
ix PeriMiCMbsnOMvaCOURtICs memes soe eee aes ee eee 183
MECtUTE TOOMVOhs thes SmTC SOM ane n= eee ee ee eee eee 184
PrORTESS OR ATCHITECEUTONs me meee ee ears Slee ete eer eee 184
Course of study for students of architecture..........-...---.-- 185
ASIONOMICA! aes: Mya 1). NER ULNEGL @ chet eect ae eee re re a ee eee 27
Babbage, Charles, on the Constants of Nature and Art-_.__.......-.--..-.--- 33, 289
Baird, Prof. 8. F., Directions for preserving specimens......-.-....-...---.-- 235
Report on the Mnseum= &e or lsobeese een ae ee eee anata AT
SACHATG ee OMicyap Eve OUt OL ECU Co LLOTI ee eee reece ae a arn rete 33
PoMrin oS Soras UX PeaUIOM sees e eee see e OMe Cee aaa e eae eee eee eee ee 53
Benandier Meveprolusical Mepisters ooo oe tee. eee cee ee eee oe eee 35
Boundary Surveys, List of all those made by the United States......--..----- 61
bradtord, i, ->, Improvements, in) Knpravime Dy oes — oo eeeee ee eee cee sees 31
Brewer, Ur. 05M Memoir on Oolory, byo eons Se ae aoe eee ceane ee ene ae 31
Bryan, ieut. i. &.,, Wason-road HxpeditlOn, oo see esse tee cece ae ama e ae 50
building Wommittee; Report Ofe- ease - oce ase soe Seen ean a eee eee 84
Building Materials, mode’ Of testigs so 0. - acca coe ee cena eee 303
California’ Collections in Natural Elstory=>------—— pesca ose acim a see seeine pt
Capitol Extension, Experiments on building materials for....-.-------------- 303
Charts and Maps of America, Lecture on a Collection of, by J. G. Kohl-------- 93
Historians of peorraphy...22- sce cic vanes sem aaa es oe eee 96
Valuable publications. ere Sess etre cies i oo ee acne pe an ate a 97
PALI STOUVICHL SO CLE CLE Boi rarer eee al cee ear ee et aa tes Dee pep nL eee pet et eet aes a 98
INDEX.
Charts and Maps of America, Lecture on—
Causes of the loss of former maps -..-
General interest of a chartographical collection -...-..----------.-.-..
Use of former maps for testing accuracy of new ones---..---.---------
Instances of, errors: insgeography in. Utne seen toe seme bese eek ce see
Maps as historical documents................ ee Stab set ees Ue
Use. of old maps im boundary, disputesuat Joe Sa Seo ese eee
Use of former maps in different practical questions........-....--.---.
Different classes of maps
we ee we eR Re eee ee ee ee ee eee eee eee eee
Choice'and selection: of maps sence etoe nese a aene ee. Jou Se eee
Arrangement of a collection of maps
Literary aid to be procured
Exterior arrangement
Review of similar undertakings, by Ebeling, Hunt, &c
istermns tobe arched over, &css cc... acces was cae at eeen eee ae
Coffin, Prof. J. H., Meteorological Reductions and Work on ‘‘ Winds’”’._..-_--
REL ESTOTA EUG TST as a eat es alana pt Se
Cooper, Dr. J. G., Explorations by......-. caf htt thy Share Sibel oe bean ey
Constants of Nature and Art
Corcoran & Riggs, Transfer of funds from
Directions for collecting, preserving, and transporting specimens of Natural His-
tory, by, Prof. 5. Bi. Baitd occa eenncee are oeen eee ee eee
General ‘Remarkss sajna nce cmon ne nccecocmnseHeeasee te ene
Apparatus nequired i= oo ecient a om eee, ee ee
Apparatus useful for travelling parties
ee
Instruments, Preservative Materials, &c
Skinning and Stuffing Birds
Mammals
Reptiles
Fishes
Preserving in Liquids, &c
Vertebrata
we mw ee mem ww eee ee wee ne ee ee eee eee ewes eee
wee ea meee we ew ee eww ee eee mee ewe ene
we we ew we we mm eee eK eee wee ee ee ee eee
we ww ww ww ew wwe ee ee eee ee ee ew eee ee eee ee ee
wee ee een www ww we ew a ee ee ee eee we ee ee ee eee
IDNA) ee meee cases eas I Ser on CE Oso sec ees a0 56 doce ch ee abe
Nests and Eggs. ..--- 5-2. -eachil Seat eee ee eee
Skeletonizing .....2 suite basen e ie batted Eee sues sa Be eee
Plante! 2 5 <5 5 a.== Se tiene ete soe tats Sets etre eects ele ree
Minerals and ,Wossilaséucerian! lf lie ee eee eee eee
Minute Microscopic/Orgamismssnce soo Jccce seee eek se eee ee Pee Se
Denors, tothe Library... <<. .5.nn-an ad onan beeen were oe eae eee ae ee
owning Monument 2.2 2-9 25. eee uae See Soe Rete ae eee eas
Drainage of Smithsonian Building
eonomic Geology of Trinidad 2. 42 oa ace acncs mee eeUnee eats ses atone
Education, Reportion» by; Henny Bamardssc-ceunsccl he Sogs2 220 e eee
Electricity, Report on, by Dr. J. Muller-.......--... een kiase ls eS
Electricity of Machine-made Paper
Schonbein’s Electrical Paper
Electricity of Gutta Percha
Electricity of Rubbed Glass
ewww we em www wee ee ee eee eH ee ee eee ee ee eee
462 INDEX.
Page,
Electricity—
The Conducting Power of Different Substances....-------..--- Soi: Bonk 360
Production of Electricity by Escape of Steam-....-...---..-22----2L22 360
Faraday’s' Researches ony dro-electnictiy=-. =.5 224.255 Sees seeene eee 362
Excitation of Electricity by the Escape of Liquid Carbonic Acid_...___-_- 364
Armstrong’s Hydro-electric Machine.-----2-esseeuscb we ckueek ee 364
Source of Atmospheric Electricity unknown_.-.-.--2...--.-..-...---- 366
The Electrical Machine. 22.224) Jeebacus foster 34 Sees See 20 368
Improvements in the Gold Leaf Electroscope.....--...-......--..-.-. 372
Improvements in Coulomb’s Torsion Balance....----.-....----------- 373
Electroscopes to which the Principle of the Torsion Balance has been ap-
19) OES Hee TS ES ae gee lena SE OTe ee ps 376
Petrinas Mlectroscope. - oo ao no. oe eae eee Se eee 2s 379
Observation of Atmospheric; Hlectricity. == --2e ss see eee alee oe ee 380 ©
Induction, of Mectncity.<— os socnaceceeceee ee eee eee se eee eee 382
Notes on: Translation’ of Terms i235 Suess su. See es See eee 381
Knockenhauer:s, Researches. - 2 oe eee meee ee eee ee eee ee 386
Experimental Proof that the quantity of Latent Electricity is inversely as
the square of the distance from the Inducing Body_.---.----.---.- 386
Knockenhauer's further Moxperiments=s see sa eeee sae aa eeee See ee 390
Raraday..s *Researchesyso us 520) seus _ ses Sete eee ees 390
Specific Capacity of Induction a= —A— ei ee ook eee ene ae a 391
Induction in| Curved ines ee 2. somone eee eee eee ee ee ee 395
Haraday,'s “Wheoryot ng G tom aa eee acca 397
Monekyaf Rosencholdvon Induction= eeeseoe sane ss ee see eee eee 400
Riess on Electricity and the Theory of Condensers_-.....-....-.----.- 401
Blectrical Effectsiof Wlame--. se ee ee a 409
The Leyden Jar and Effects of the Discharge.....-.-..----.-.-.-------- 414
Abria on the Mechanical Phenomena accompanying Electrical Discharge. 414
Repulsion of the Inner Coating of the Battery2-.........---.-......-. 416
Striking Distance ‘ofthe! Battery sence eee AE Baty sey - 418
Striking Distance of the Battery, independent of the Conducting Circuit. . 420
Quantity of Electricity disappearing by discharge at the striking distance- 421
Results by, the ordinary mode of discharvepcee cece neers e Sena eee teas 423
Results by discharge at the striking distance ......-2--.----..-------- 423
Heating of the connecting wire of the electrical battery...........----- 425
Influence of the thickness of the wire in the Thermometer -__..-.------ 427
Influence of the length of the wire in the Thermometer---.....-------- 429
Influence of breaks in the wire upon the rise of Temperature -.....-.-.. 430
Heating power of obstructed) discharge os porate resist see eee 431
Marks left by Electricity upon glass and mica...0...---s-5<-2-----~-s- 432
‘Fhe Air Thermometer = —— eee seo rar errr See, a, ee 433
Theory of the Instrnments se a oo oe a ee nr SO 435
Influence of the length of the connecting wire on its rise of Temperature. - 438
Influence of the thickness of the connecting wire upon its Temperature -- 440
Temperature in the main conductor of a branched circuit ....---------- 44.0\
Temperature in a branch of the conducting circuit -...--.-.----------- 443
Electrical retarding power. of metals...s2--0s2l.s2csas-..--2-ssss-02- 444
Capacity of metals for the development of heat .......---------------- 447
INDEX. . 463
Electricity—
Entire quantity of heat produced by the discharge -------------------- 448
Ignition and fusion of metallic wires by electrical discharees=-.- 4bs=q= 449
Taw of Wlectrical Tonition.cco et eee ak aca sen eee 2 Sete ER SME ot 450
1. Ignition in proportion to amount of charge ------.---~------------ 450
2. Ignition of the wire in proportion to its length ~...--..----------- 451
8. Ignition of wires in proportion to their thickness...--.-..-------- 452
4, Ignition of wires of different metals -......------.-------------- 452
Pitenomens following 1gMtiONe co ]c. secs eee toe oen es see eae ee a 453
ie PEATE lOWsWen = oe See ae eae Mae a ee anneal aie ee 4538
2. Breaking into pieces: . 5 -- <6 252 - seem nen nee an ne==-----==-= 453
SPIRO ce cowie aaa er re oat Seinen Se ete a ER mista aiemule wigs = een ie 453
#2 Dis persiOn oe ae coe oe ee ee eens ee ee eae w ema ead bee eae 454
Méchanizm of fusion esos ase es oss ae oe esa eae ees 455
Changes in the co-efficient of retardation of metals with increasing me-
chanical effects. ---.------------------------------------------ inte 455
Emory, Major W. H., Survey of Mexican Boundary Line---.------.---------- 48
Engraving, Bradford’s improvement in -...-------------------------------- al
Engravings, Proposed catalogue of, and exhibition-..----------------------- 45
Estimates of Receipts and Expenditures for 1857 -...-.---------------------- 81
Exchanges, Account of, during 1856 -...---------------------------------- 34
Exchanges, Statistics of for 1856....-.-------.~-------------------<-------- 47
Executive Committee, Report Of--5-5.-- cc) enacs tones eee eran 78
Expenditures during 1856 ----------------------------------------------- 80
Experiments on Testing Building Material -......-.------------------------ 305
Explorations, Mexican Boundary Line, Major Emory --------..-------------- 48
Hilane Wetacado, by Captaim Pope 2--cecsercpecasnk= selene 49
Fort Riley to Bridger’s Pass, by Lieutenant Bryan..--.-----.---- 50
Missouri and Yellowstone, by Lieutenant Warren....-.--------- 50
Dipper Missourl, Dy Wen Heaven. cece eee ane ee ee 51
Washington Territory and California, by Drs. Cooper and Suckley- 51
Petaulma, California, by Samuels o.-) - oee ooo nae eee eee 52
Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, and! Utah os oso to ecco ae seeeee 52
Rerions east of the Missouri < joo Secce soe eeeee basen ee == oe 52
Other portions of the world ....2.~-<scea---es-0r=--------+--~ 53
Behrine’s Straits, by Captam Rogers’ --22- (oo oo eee 53
iba Plata, by Captain! Pave ieee ce oe een in la aii teed 53
Exploring Expeditions, List of all that have been made by government --.--..- 61
Wishes oftiic New VOrk MArKet . 0. ooo netud Chae arena oon ee omen cneielee 253
Fishes, Tables for Measurements..---.------------------------------------ 301
Fire-proofing of Buildings..-.---------------------------------------+---- 147
Forbes, Professor, Notice of Professor Harvey’s Algw by--.------------------ 29
Korest Trees, Report'on, by Dr: Asa Gray—- oo eem= eccine ane sas Seem e = se emia 32
Fund, General Statement of Condition of .-..------------------------------ 78
Gallery of Art, Paintings and Engravings in........------------------------ 44
Genth, F. A., Researches on Ammonia Cobalt Bases....-.-.----------------- 28
Genlopical Report Of TNimMdad =o) soe eon Seen Ses ene ae ie Eee ae i 281
- Geological Sirveys, List of all made by U.8.--. ~~. oe oe nee na ta ae 61
Geology, Account of Professor Hitchock’s Papers on .-...--.-----------.----- 30
Gibbs Wolcott, Researches on the Ammonia Cobalt Bases
e
464 : INDEX.
Page.
Gill, Mheo., On the Fishes of New. 00 oe icon etcetera ea 253
Gray, Asa, Report,on, Worest (Trees 2 ooo alae eer ataint eh a er 32
Guest, W. E., Account of Jndian Rem ain go oa ee aia rel oe 271
Guyot, A., Meteorological and Physical Tables.........0.---e00--sa-e--sen= 33
Hall, Dr. A., Description of Smallwood’s Observatory.....---------------«-=< 311
Harvey, Professor, W. i. Marine Algeoy. .- c= cpee teee e e 29
Hayden, Dr, l. V., BEplomablOns, DY ao .nc— 5 5e = ee oe ee ee: 50,51
Health. in relation to, Ventilation wNCsaee) ase nee ot ey ae eee ee 147
Henry, Professor Joseph, Lectures on Acoustics (see Acowstics)....--...---.--« 221
Lectures om Physics (see Physics)......--.------. 2-0 187
on the Mode of Testing Building Materials........... 303
smavory or Geographical, Maps) . 2c cmenaa = aosaielee a een tak eer 94
iitchcock, Prof. Hdward, Papers oni Geolopy 222-— 5s, eee ee ee 30
aionorary Members.ot ‘the lms titation =: 22 pease een een ee mee 6
indian Remains at, Prescott..C., Wiecseaaseeack ee Seen = aoe oe eee ee ee 271
Institutions in which Phonography is taught.....---...-.....-..-.--------- 280
Intensity of the Heat and Light of the Sun, (see Sun) -------..-..----..----- 321
investments An Stave StOCKS, PLOPOSEM — ara ac oct ey ae a eeh Le 86
investment of bextra “Bum Ge ey or a ee ee 78
Jones, Dr. Joseph, Account of Researches on Blood, &c.....----------------- 24
Journal of the Board of Regents sick dat dates: We Gel AUR NAY Sette tye weir 86
Judiciary Committee, Report on the Institution ....-.....----------.------- 12
Peanhas, EX PlOTeMOUS I an toe ce ene See aie aa nee a ee ee 12
Kohl, Dr. J. G., Lectures on Charts and Maps, (see Charts).....-------------- 93
WapOTaLoOry. OPerahlons CUTS MSO Ona e eee e see en ee ee ee eae 38
Pe Etta S MNOTUON OF UNG oa ce cman cawaun ana ence Ra eee Qo ose coe 53
MeCHUTES -ACCOUNU/OL, CULINA UBOO— iO sao aa oneal ae eae oe 45
Lecture Room of the Smithsonian Institution ._...........---------«-.- 184, 221, 233
Wibranies, Report On - oo) so= semeee SASS fe anne a OOS Jeno Semon 33
Library, Account of valuable accessions during 1856 -...--.------/---------- 38
operations during 1806 :. ose. teem mee cne nee eee ek oe 38
diving Animals piven. "to the Institution: oo ie eae ae em i
List of Meteorological Stations and Observers -.....---- a ia en oa 69
faeries, Ducide, Sit Of, tO the PID rany as sie ec ane ee en a a le 39
Miagnetinm ~ RECOrds OL CHANS CS OC a al ie te 37
Mammals, bables: for meas nreni en GS aa apace erates ee eee en re 300
SEAS, LEE TORE CLASES OL cae ee ctw ae ite nee Lee Sea 119
of, America, &c., Lecture.on, (cee Cherts): <i iim ote nee Ve eee 93
on thetarrangement Of a collectionecs sa st ate ao tee 129
On the chuice and selechOn (Of ss ao me ales wee eee pe ere, 124
marble tor Capitol, ‘Ania ysis: Of o> aces smc oem cane n eee eee 307
mearicots.Or - New “York oo ete cee oc cer ee ce a 254
@ayer, Brantz,Paper by; on Mitla Antiquities oe oe 32
MICHBUTOMENnts” OF WIRHOS >. oso oa ean seein pie eee hee a a a 301
EY 06. alike pee: AY ey aD SIN NE SAVE 300
Meech, L. W., on the Intensity of the Heat and Light of the Sun, (see Sun)---. 30,321
Momibers'¢: oficiv.of the Tnstitition ean snp n cen ornidamanwase eames 6
mismoira puplushed "by the Tnstitahon eo cece ecae eee ie ee ee es i 20
Meteorological and Physical Tables ...... aeueee Sas we eee oa ee 33
£
INDEX. 465
Page.
Meteorological Stations.and observerd...2-..s200--ceeecce cece nen cunecwecn a
Meteorological Observatory at. Montreal. ......--0------seceenencnnncsconenn 311
Mreteeralogy, of Trinidad. 21. Se emer ont en ate @---------------- 281
Operations dering, (8665 223.9... <cn0 cee ee ae ae 34
Mexican Boundary Survey, by Maj. Wm. H. Emory..........-.------------< 48
Mitia, Remains) in Mexico, Mayer's) Paper On. soncs eeecene se eee eeee see lee 32
Mailer, Baron, Magnetic. Observations by 24.0. w«n nc cocae coeeeee < wane cunleled 37
Muller, Dr. John, Report on Electricity, (see Hectricit, HY Sie ata wie nla ates ee 357
Piuskcum, additions during 1856 nt so es ce eeeecna mae hae as 54, 63
distribution and use,of specimens ino... 5. noel oe kee cee 59
Geperal, Remarky by the Secretary. 5-32.23 2s lees cca cscdeeseas 41
PRICE ORGS OF jaro nares Se Re Sia fale toate hi ee tac ea 48
present. condition of, (1857) <25-seeebacucaecane ute as weeecemeee 59
in Patent Office, removal proposed Selatan. ae SL oe ee 22
Natural History, Directions for Preserving Specimens, (see Directions).--.------- 235
Watural History, Special Collections) Proposedaas.a- cee cee ncn ecaeec cease ae 42
Nebraska «Explorations Anos a. is oicinnetasmictele cle sina aisle eae aeninis Bee oie epee 52
Observatory.at Montreal Description Of... ajo cee eee atin eee eee 311
Officers olithe Institutione ston qa aepa aicie wetted owian cemesa cl cea sieeees 5
Oolocy,-Accountoh Work,on =o sscn can ocean nee rotnmancasones san seerease 31
AO vy CAN UATE Heel HE XSTOC CU EL ODN 1D Ypres te fate atest lene ee oe ee 53
Patterson: Robert, Reportion. Phonography: --= cs. s<sem—<nese—necemn sone 280
BIE TATE sn ODOUb! ON encore hale ae arial tial a ae ee ee geet 277
PHYSICS wwe churesiOn,| DyeETOlessOn Hentya 2 oo= conse saeco one ae ee 187
IMtrOdUetloneesen ete temas See e et ese ce ae ok ee eeee eee 187
DefinitiombokiScience/ ase ee Teena see aoe so ce ease ee eee Se 187
CAURO Te a errata area alae et tata lah ar ats Slaten Sie tar ia teheed tte tele 188
Mothodsiofinvestipations.. ee See oo See ya es se ee ieee 188
Application of induction.and Deduction.........--...-.-------=.--- 189
Theories, Hypotheses; &e..222.. 2026S ee os es ke ee 190
Somatology, or the General Properties of Bodies.....---------------- 192
SEBO YAS LO Whe apse a mia a ee ee ees 193
Impenetrabilivy: asia oto nt et ie tes alas ofa ee eer 193
TIRE ee OOOO ee BS SME 2 Je Oat Raho nob See Cae Set er aGO oa 194
Divisibviby, =23 se qso-o ee eee eee ea eet ae ae eee oe eee 194
Porosity, and Compressibility ones eee ee at elnino atelier ante 195
JO pB EA erl ay Ub eam eae IOC AO | SOOO Ht Hooge aS Sase cinotie 196
Mobility 2320 -csmsececceeseperens Baseeemence eWaneuehaaeseeee 196
1 DoYs1n) 0 ¢ pene ee te et rs SE Om OO rene Se IE 197
Attraction’ and Repulsion== see eso ae oan soa eee ane eee eee eae 199
Physical, Worces<ac 2s asses eo Pee ses Seas ee ene ten se ope pee ae 199
‘Atiraction) Of Graiyibailon ates a a tone ae lad 200
Electrical and Magnetic Attraction and Repulsion.------- eae Saf 202
Attraction of Cohesion: and: Adhesion..<<\.--.-<0s0eem samenacionwne 202
Phénomens of Adhesion ss286<< soso. sonenceodene pees daeeeeeicee 204.
Molecular Repulsioni= a2 s2 = e-seeee oe afore mena a ele ai eee 205
Molecular Constitution of Matter.....-..-...--.--..---.= peat see =e 206
Atomic; Theory Of, BoscoVvichiwaiatartatetesia eri a inieaiel ais aed alae pe orehel= tate 207
305s
.
466 INDEX.
Page.
Physics, Illustrations of the Contractile Force------------------------------ 210
Capillary Attraction .....--------------------------------------- 210
Cliewital: Attradtio—le 1. 3c S2-c eet sees eae eee 215
Elasticity.---.-.-----------------------------------220--------- 216
Physics, Report on the Recent Progress of, by Dr. Muller-.------------------ 357
Pope, Captain J., Exploration by ---..------------------------------------ 49
Prescott, Canada West, Indian Remains at --------------------------------- 271
Programme of Organization......---------------------------------------- 7
Publications during 1856 --..------.------------------------------------- 24
Publications, Number of Scientific-.-----.-------------------------------- 20
Publications, Professor Baird’s Report on---------------------------------- AT
Railroad Route Surveys, List of all made by the United States --------------- 62
Receipts and Expenditures..------------------ nt ge A ea el oh 79
Recent Progress in Physics..--.------------------------------------------ 357
Regents of the Institution.-..--.---------------------------------------- 5
Regents, Journal of Proceedings of -.------------------------------------- 86
Reid, Dr. D. B., Lectures on Architecture, Ventilation, &c., (see Architecture) ----- 147
Report of the Building Committee-..------------------------------------- 84
‘ Report of Committee on Finance relative to investment.--------------------- 86,88
Report of the Executive Committee_...----------------------------------- 78
Report of recent progress in Physics. (See Hlectricity).---------------------- 357
Report of the Senate Judiciary Committee --------------------------------- 12
Report of the Secretary -.----------------------------------------------- 17
Report on Public Libraries. .--------------------------------------------- 33
Reports on the Progress of Knowledge ...--------------------------------- 32
Researches, Chemical and Physiological, by Dr. Jos. Jones------------------- 24
Review of history of the Institution.....-.------------------------------- 17
Rhees, W. J., Report on Public Libraries --.------------------------------- 33
Riggs & Co., Funds for current expenses deposited with--.-------------------- 89
Ringgold, Capt., Expedition by-..----------------+------------------------ 53
Rodgers, Capt., Expedition by ------------------------------------------ $ 53
Runkle, J. D., Account of the Astronomical Tables by----------------------- 27
Samuels, E., Explorations by, in California -.....-------------------------- 52
Sawkins, Jas. G., Drawings of Mitla remains by---------------------------- 32
Sawkins, Jas. G. and G. P. Wall, Geology of Trinidad----------------------- 281
Secretary’s Report relative to investments -------.------------------------- 88
Scientific Publications of the Institution...._.-....------------------------ 20
Senate, Report of Judiciary Committee of ....----------------------------- 12
Sharpless, Townsend, Report on Phonography...-.------------------------- 280
Sidonian Sarcophagus, Account of inscription on, &c.--.---.----------------- 39
Smallwood, Dr. Charles, Observatory at Montreal ....----------------------- 311
Somatology, Lectures on ~..----------------------------2-------- 20020207 192
Sound, Experiments on........------------- = --- een nnn n ease ee ennneen- 223
Specimens, Systematic Index to -...---.---------------------------------- 58
Stanley’s Collection of Indian Portraits -..-..----+------------------------ 44
Stimpson, William, Collections by .-.------------------------------------- 53
State Stocks purchased for the Institution -...----------------------------- 88
Stocks ordered to be purchased ......------e--n---nn nen een n neon enn eennnee 87
INDEX. 467
Page
Suckley, Dr. George, Explorations by....-...--.---.-...- vim ermine a dinlinee wees 51
Sun, the Heat and Light of, Account of Paper on....-....---...--.--------. 30
Sun, on the Relative Intensity of the Heat and Light of, by L. W. Meech...--.- 321
Irradiated surface upon the Planets. .-.........-....-.@ee ee. 322
Refraction of Light. .-......-...225.....0-.. 2052) Ae. 323
Law,of the Sun’s Intensity upon the Planets, in relation to their Orbits. _.. 324
Resemblance of the Earth to the Planet Mars..........----22--.e-ceeene 325
Law of Sun’s Intensity at any instant during the day......-.-...-------- 326
Ohmatic Features of thé Globec..--- $55 0o0 052-222 2222 pS BD td 329
Determination of the Sun’s Hourly and Diurnal Intensity................ 329
Sun’s Annual Intensity upon any Latitude..............--------.----<< 335
Annual Intensities and Annual Temperatures.......---------------0---- 337
Average Annual Intensity on a part or the whole of the Earth’s Surface... 338
Secular Changes of: the, Sun’s Intensity. . = .-.25% <.<0-cc0s eden mando 339
mastorical Notices! of Climate... .< wow 2a .- ss onwewnadaccenwehwonnekss 342
Geological Changes 1) tia scence eens aminte/carnidaia ate Scoromeporae Oana 344
iLecaiand Climatic Changes. 3. 52. c0e shanna dane Sete eee ese 345
Been Sesiae the North, Polo. 22 sew ee ee eee eee 347
Diurnal and Annual Duration of Sunlight and Twilight...............-- 350
Half-days in the’ Northern’ Hemisphere....25......2.0--<ccec---cnencce 355
Increase of the Half-day at Sunrise or Sunset, by Refraction....-......... 355
BrarauOH Or Civil LWP ten. 4 we saa ros ou caw see tomas eco aeas See 356
Duration of Astrodomical Twitloht «<8 an secanennsscennnsentonen os 356
SW ply Eg COMGE ABE BWR a a ate la Os aaa ie re le ia ae 52
Tanle-Cf MeasUKcinelts, cOf MIAIRINAlS oc ao wn ona ctems Mee Someta ee ce 300
Tables for Calculation of the Places of the Planets, &c.......-..-..----.---.- 27
ables, Meteorological. and Physical... 2s .s2-cheeseen ck acct sees ee ee 33
Tables of the Constants of Nature and Art......-.......--c2ce0---esceeeele 289
Terrestrial Magnetism, Apparatus for Observations, &c..--........---.----.. 37
Testing Building Materials-..........---- SN tee lesa he lei a ee 303
Peers, eXplorahOns in Jecocse ae see ele SI Se Ee ir 52
brmdad, Meteorology and Geology Of. 2.224 20 Lee 281
ine PEDIONE MOnis bike Wt 22 tees) ee oe een ao cae a eee ears 52
Ventilation, Lectures on. (See Architecture)....--2.0---c0-e---0--dbacnccece 147
Waren, Drs ollecWons DY s- osc acay momen awae ae aaa ema an aoe a ee ot Bia
Picie, Major, Vesting’ Machine. -.=5 2. slo ook ce ee ek ot eee 305
Wall, G.P., and Jas. Sawkins, Geology of Trinidad... +e0ise, stead 281
Warming, Lighting, &c.,.0f Buildiniess 52242555222. sendinwnsonsucoeisews 155, 147
Warren, Lieut. G. K., Exploration of the Missouri and Yellowstone eae aaa 50
Wood, W. §S., Exploration by ...... ST A EOE re pie eee a 50
Weieht: Charles; Collettions by steu8=. 22044 el eee 53
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