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REPORT 


OF  THE 


TWENTY-SECOND    MEETING 


OF  THE 


BKITISH  ASSOCIATION 


FOR  THE 


ADVANCEMENT  OF  SCIENCE ; 


HELD  AT  BELFAST  IN  SEPTBMBER  1852. 


LONDON: 

JOHN  MURRAY,  ALBEMARLE  STREET. 

1863. 


/ 


&* 

M 


PRINTED  BT 
RICHARD    TAYLOR   AND    WILLIAM    FRANCIS, 
RED  LION   COURT,   FLEET  STREET. 


CONTENTS. 


Objects  and  Rules  of  the  Association   xiii 

Places  of  Meeting  and  Officers  from  commencement  xvi 

Table  of  Council  from  commencement XTiii 

Treasurer's  Account    xx 

Officers  and  Council    xxii 

Officers  of  Sectional  Committees    xxiti 

Corresponding  Members xxiv 

Report  of  Council  to  the  General  Committee ..  xxiv 

Report  of  the  Parliamentary  Committee    xxix 

Recommendations  for  Additional  Reports  and  Researches  in  Science  xxxii 

Synopsis  of  Money  Grants xxxy 

Arrangement  of  the  General  Meetings xl 

Address  of  the  President xli 


REPORTS  OF  RESEARCHES  IN  SCIENCE. 

Third  Report  on  the  Facts  of  Earthquake  Phssnomena.  Catalogue  of 
recorded  Earthquakes  from  1606  b.c.  to  a.d.  1650.    By  Robert 

JjlALLETy  t«£^  fVl.tt.J.A.     •*..«.•• ••••. ••••••«.         1 

Twelfth  Report  of  a  Committee,  consisting  of  H.  E.  Strickland,  Esq., 
Professor  Daubeny,  Professor  Henslow,  and  Professor  Lindley, 
appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the  Growth  and  Vitality 
of  Seeds    ,. 177 


IV  CONTENTS. 

Report  on  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  1851-52.  By  the  Rev. 
Baden  Powell,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  F.R.A.S.,  F.G.S.,  Savilian  Professor 
of  Geometry  in  the  University  of  Oxford  178 

On  the  Influence  of  the  Solar  Radiations  on  the  Vital  Powers  of  Plants 
growing  under  different  Atmospheric  conditions.  By  J.  H.  Glad- 
stone, Ph.D 239 

A  Manual  of  Ethnological  Inquiry ;  being  a  series  of  questions  concern- 
ing the  Human  Race,  prepared  by  a  Sub-committee  of  the  British 
Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  appointed  in  1851  (con- 
sisting of  Dr.  Hodokin  and  Richard  Cull,  Esq.),  and  adapted  for 
the  use  of  travellers  and  others  in  studying  the  Varieties  of  Man    ...  243 

Mean  Temperature  of  the  Day  and  Monthly  Fail  of  Rain  at  127  Stations 
under  the  Bengal  Presidency,  from  official  Registers  kept  by  Medical 
Officers,  for  the  year  1851.    By  Colonel  Sykes,  F.R.S 252 

On  Experiments  on  the  Laws  of  the  Conduction  of  Heat.  By  J.  D. 
Forbes,  F.R.S.  L.&  E 260 

On  the  Chemical  Action  of  the  Solar  Radiations.    By  Robert  Hunt...  262 

On  the  Composition  and  (Economy  of  the  Flax  Plant  By  Dr.  Hodges, 
F,C.S.,  Professor  of  Agriculture,  Queen's  College,  Belfast,  and 
Chemist  to  the  Chemico-Agricultural  Society  273 

The  Freshwater  Fishes  of  Ulster,  as  enumerated  in  the  MSS.  of  the  late 
William  Thompson,  Esq..  President  of  the  Belfast  Natural  History 
and  Philosophical  Society.  Contributed  by  Robert  Patterson, 
Esq.  and  James  R.  Garrett,  Esq 290 

Supplementary  Report  on  the  Fauna  of  Ireland.  By  the  late  William 
Thompson,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Belfast  Natural  History  and  Phi- 
losophical Society 290 

Observations  on  the  Meteorology  of  Birmingham.  By  Willia  m  Wills, 
Esq.,  F.G.S 297 

On  the  Vortex- Water- Wheel.  By  James  Thomson,  A.M.,  Civil  En- 
gineer, Belfast 317 

On  the  Composition  of  Foods  in  relation  to  Respiration  and  the  Feeding 
of  Animals.  By  J.  B.  Lawes,  Esq.,  of  Rothamsted ;  and  J.  H.  Gil- 
bert, Ph.D.,  F.C.S. 328 


NOTICES  AND  ABSTRACTS 

OF 

MISCELLANEOUS  COMMUNICATIONS  TO  THE  SECTIONS. 


MATHEMATICS  AND  PHYSICS. 
Mathematics. 

Pftge 
Rev.  Dr.  Bryce's  Account  of  a  Treatise  on  Arithmetic  in  the  Chinese  Lan- 
guage, by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Moncrieff,  late  of  St.  Paul's  College,  Hong  Kong      1 

Mr.  W.  Gartland  on  Criteria  for  real  and  imaginary  Roots  of  Biquadratic 
Equations    2 

Sir  William  R.  Hamilton  on  Biquaternions 2 

J.  J.  Watkroton  on  the  Gradient  of  Density  in  Saturated  Vapours,  and  its 
Development  as  a  Physical  Relation  between  Bodies  of  definite  Chemical 
Constitution    2 

Light,  Heat,  Electricity,  Magnetism. 

Sir  David  Brewster's  Notice  of  a  Tree  struck  by  Lightning  in  Clandeboye 
Park 2 

Account  of  a  Case  of  Vision  without  Retina 3 

On  the  Form  of  Images  produced  by  Lenses  and 

Mirrors  of  different  sizes    3 

Mr.  A.  Claudet  on  the  Stereoscopometer 6 

on  a  Manifold  Binocular  Camera  6 

Professor  Matteucci  on  the  Laws  of  Magnetism  and  Diamagnetism,  in  a 
Letter  to  Dr.  Faraday 6 

Captain  £.  J.  Johnson  on  placing  Compasses  on  Board  Iron  Ships  10 

Professor  Powell  on  a  peculiarity  of  Vision 11 

on  Luminous  beams 11 

— on  Converging  Sun-beams   12 

Mr.  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine  on  the  Re-concentration  of  the  Mechanical 
Energy  of  the  Universe 12 

Professor  C.  Piazzi  Smyth  on  an  Improved  Form  of  Reflecting  Instrument 
for  Use  at  Sea 12 


Remarks  on  the  Red  Prominences  seen  during 


the  Total  Solar  Eclipse  13 

Professor  Stokes  on  the  Optical  Properties  of  a  recently  discovered  Salt  of 
Quinine    • • 15 

Mr.  J.  P.  Joule  and  Professor  W.  Thomson  on  the  Thermal  Effects  of  Air 
rushing  through  small  Apertures 16 

Professor  W.  Thomson  on  the  Sources  of  Heat  generated  by  the  Galvanic 
Battery 16 


VI  •  CONTENTS. 

Page 
Professor  W.  Thomson  on  the  Mutual  Attraction  between  two  electrified 
Spherical  Conductors 17 

on  certain  Magnetic  Curves ;  with  applications  to  Pro- 
blems in  the  Theories  of  Heat,  Electricity,  and  Fluid  Motion   18 

■  ■  on  the  Equilibrium  of  elongated  Masses  of  Ferromag- 
netic Substance  in  uniform  and  varied  Fields  of  Force 18 

Mr.  R.  W.  Townbend  on  an  Instrument  for  exhibiting  the  Colours  of  Liquids 
by  Transmitted  Light     20 

Dr.  John  Tyndall  on  Molecular  Action  20 

1  on  Poisson's  Theoretic  Anticipation  of  Magnecrystallic 
Action 20 

Astronomy,  Meteors,  Waves. 

Mr.  H.  Hennbssy  on  the  Connexion  between  Geological  Theories  and  the 
Theory  of  the  Figure  of  the  Earth    21 

Mr.  Jamks  Nasmyth's  proposed  Theory  of  the  Origin  of  the  Asteroids   21 

The  Earl  op  Rosse's  Drawings  to  illustrate  Recent  Observations  on  Nebulas. 
With  Remarks  by  Rev.  Dr.  Robinson    22 

Meteorology. 

Sir  David  Brewster's  Account  of  a  remarkable  Case  of  Mirage  24 

— — — — —  on  certain  Phenomena  of  Diffraction   24 

Dr.  G.  Buist  on  four  simultaneous  Experiments  in  the  Island  of  Bombay  to 
determine  the  Fall  of  Rain  at  different  Heights  below  200  feet 25 

on  Atmospheric  Daily  and  Yearly  Fluctuations  25 

Communication  from  the  Smithsonian  Institution  '  on  the  Plan  adopted  for  in- 
vestigating the  Meteorology  of  North  America' 26 

Lieut.  W.  H.  H.  Hooper  on  the  Aurora   26 

Rev.  H.  Lloyd's  Notes  on  the  Meteorology  of  Ireland,  deduced  from  the  Ob- 
servations made  at  the  Coast-guard  Stations  under  the  direction  of  the  Royal 
Irish  Academy 26 

Mr.  M'Farland  on  the  Fata  Morgana  of  Ireland 29 

Mr.  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankin  b  on  the  Causes  of  the  Excess  of  the  Mean 
Temperature  of  Rivers  above  that  of  the  Atmosphere,  recently  observed  by 
M.  Renou    30 

Rev.  T.  Rankin's  Meteorological  Summary  for  1851,  at  Huggate,  near  Pock- 
lington 31 

« on  an  Aurora  observed  at  Huggate  31 

Rear-Admiral  Sir  John  Ross  on  the  Aurora  Borealis  31 

Captain  Strachey  on  the  Formula  for  the  Wet-bulb  Thermometer  31 

Dr.  J.  Taylor  on  Tropical  Hurricanes  31 

Mr.  J.  K.  Watts  on  the  Aurora  Borealis  observed  at  St.  Ives,  Hunts 32 

Miscellaneous. 
Mr.  Henry  Twining  on  an  Instrument  for  Drawing  32 

CHEMISTRY. 

Professor  Thomas  Andrews  on  the  Discovery  of  Minute  Quantities  of  Soda 
by  the  Action  of  Polarized  Light 33 

1 on  the  Atomic  Weights  of  Platinum  and  Barium    33 


CONTENTS,  VU 

Professor  Thomas  Andrews  on  the  Microscopic  Structure  of  certain  Basaltic 
and  Metamorphic  Rocks,  and  the  Occurrence  of  Metallic  Iron  in  them  34 

Professor  Jambs  Apjohn  on  the  Results  of  Analysis  of  a  Substance  resembling 
the  Pigolite  of  Professor  Johnston   35 

— — — — — —  Ig  the  Mechanical  Power  capable  of  being  obtained 

by  a  given  amount  of  Caloric  employed  in  the  production  of  Vapour  indepen- 
dent of  the  Nature  of  the  Liquids  ?  35 

Mr.  Samuel  Bateson  on  Glynn  and  Appel's  Patent  Paper  for  the  prevention 
of  Piracy  and  Forgery  by  the  Anastatic  Process 35 

Mr.  Jambs  S.  Brazier  on  Irish-bog  Butter 35 

Professor  T.  Graham  on  the  Principle  of  the  Endosmose  of  Liquids 36 

Professor  John  F.  Hodges  on  the  Phosphatic  Nodules  of  the  Greensand  of 
the  North  of  Ireland 36 

Mr.  —  Knox  on  the  Effect  of  the  Moon's  Rays    36 

Mr.  A.  Macdoknell  on  the  Atomie  Weight  of  Magnesium   36 

Professor  Frederick  Penny  on  the  Estimation  of  Iodine 37 

Professor  E.  Ronalds  on  the  Oil  of  the  Sun-Fish   39 

Professor  G.  G.  Stokes  on  the  application  of  certain  Optical  Phenomena  to 
Chemistry   39 

Professor  Tbnnant  on  the  Koh-i-Noor  Diamond 39 

Mr.  Thomas  Woods  on  Chemical  Combination,  and  on  the  Amount  of  Heat 
produced  by  the  Combination  of  several  Metals  with  Oxygen 39 

on  the  Combination  of  Metals  with  Oxygen 40 

GEOLOGY  AND  PHYSICAL  GEOGRAPHY. 

Professor  T.  Andrews  on  a  New  Variety  of  Magnetic  Iron  Ore;  with  Re- 
marks upon  the  Application  of  Bicarbonate  of  Baryta  to  Quantitative  Ana- 
lyses...,.     41 

Mr.  W.  Bollabbt  on  the  Sources  of  Common  Salt 41 

Sir  David  Brewster's  observations  on  the  Diamond 41 

Mr.  James  Bryce,  jun.,  on  the  Geological  Structure  of  the  Counties  of  Down 
and  Antrim '. 42 

•  on  the  Disposition  of  Granite  Blocks  in  Argyllshire  ...    43 

Major  Charters  on  the  Alps  in  the  Vicinity  of  Mont  Blanc  43 

M.  Achillb  Dblebse'b  Account  of  the  Changes  occasioned  during  the  Cool- 
ing of  the  Granite  of  Mont  Blanc 43 

Dr.  Andrew  Fleming  on  the  Rocks  of  the  Upper  Punjaub  43 

Professor  E.  Forres  on  the  Fossils  of  the  Yellow  Sandstone  of  the  South  of 
Ireland 43 

Mr.  John  Grainger  on  the  Shells  found  in  the  Alluvial  Deposits  of  Belfast...    43 

Mr.  Richard  Griffith  on  the  Lower  Members  of  the  Carboniferous  Series 
of  Ireland , 46 

Notices  of  the'  Geology  of  Ireland 47 

Mr.  Robert  Harkness  on  the  Fossil  Remains  of  the  Lower  Silurians  of  the 
Sooth  of  Scotland,  and  their  Position  48 

on  the  occurrence  of  Graphite  at  Almorness  Head, 

Kirkcudbrightthire 60 

Mr.  H.  Hennessy's  Account  of  the  Researches  of  German  Geologists 51 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

Mr.  J.  Beete  Jukes  on  Devonian  Rocks  in  the  South  of  Ireland 51 

Professor  William  King  on  the  Permian  Fossils  of  Cultra    53 

Colonel  Lloyd  on  the  Mines  of  Copiapo    53 

Mr.  Long  on  Crag  Formations  and  Coprolites  53 

Mr.  James  MacAdam  on  the  Fossiliferous  Beds  of  the  Counties  of  Antrim  and 

Down   53 

Professor  M'Coy  on  the  Subdivisions  of  Leptcena 55 

—————  on  the  Structure  of  certain  Fossil  Fishes  found  in  the  Old 

Red  Sandstone  of  the  North  of  Scotland 55 

■            on  the  Mode  of  Succession  of  the  Teeth  in  Cochliodus    55 

Prof.  J.  Nicol  on  the  Structure  of  the  South  Silurian  Mountains  of  Scotland  55 

■  on  the  Occurrence  of  Glacier  Moraines  in  Arran  55 

Mr.  C.  B.  Rose's  Notice  of  the  Discovery  of  a  new  Talpina  ? 55 

Mr.  J.  W.  Salter  on  the  Lowest  Fossiliferous  Beds  of  North  Wales 56 

__ .,  on  a  few  Qenera  of  Irish  Silurian  Fossils    59 

Mr.  W.  D.  Saull  on  the  supposed  Action  of  Water  in  Geological  Formations, 

and  the  Position  of  the  Poles  of  the  Earth 61 

Mr.  James  Smith  on  the  Conditions  under  which. Boulders  occur  in  Scotland  61 

Dr.  William  Stanger  on  Certain  Furrows  and  Smoothings  on  the  Surface 

of  Granite,  caused  by  Drift  Sand,  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope   61 

Mr.  H.  Twining  on  some  Peculiarities  of  Granite  in  Certain  Points  of  the  Py- 
renees    62 

Dr.   Vallini's  Notice  of  a  Skeleton  of  Mastodon  angustidens  found  near 

Montopoli    62 

M.  De  Verneuil  on  the  Geological  Structure  of  Spain 62 

Major  Vicary  on  the  Geology  of  a  portion  of  the  Himalaya  Mountains 62 

Mr.  J.  King  Watts  on  the  Geology  of  Saint  Ives,  Huntingdonshire,  and  its 

Neighbourhood 63 

Mr.  R.  Young  on  the  Eskers  of  the  Central  Part  of  Ireland    63 

BOTANY  AND  ZOOLOGY,  including  PHYSIOLOGY. 
Botany. 
Professor  Allman  on  the  Development  of  Ferment  Cells  in  the  Warm-Water 

Flax  Steeps 64 

on  a  Microscopic  Alga  as  a  Cause  of  the  Phenomenon  of 

the  Coloration  of  large  masses  of  Water  64 

Professor  Balfour's  Remarks  on  the  Flora  of  the  South  and  West  of  Ireland  64 

Professor  Dickie  on  the  Distribution  of  the  Marine  Alga?  on  the  British  and 

Irish  Coasts,  with  reference  to  the  Influence  of  the  Gulf-stream   65 

Notice  of  a  Monstrosity  of  Bellis  perennis 66 


Remarks  on  the  Altitudinal  Ranges  of  Plants  in  the  North 


of  Ireland 66 

Professor  W.  Hincks  on  an  Anomaly  of  the  Trifolium  repens  (white  clover),  in 
which  the  Pedicles  of  the  Flowers  were  very  much  elongated,  and  the  Petals 
and  Pistil  converted  into  Leaves    66 

Professor  M'Cosh's  Morphological  Analogy  between  the  Disposition  of  the 

Branches  of  Exogenous  Plants  and  the  Venation  of  their  Leaves 66 

Major  M u  n ro  on  the  Transmutation  of  JByilops  into  Triticum  68 

Professor  Royle  on  the  Black  and  Green  Teas  of  Commerce 69 


CONTENTS.  IX 

Zoology. 
Professor  Allman  on  a  peculiar  Annelidan  Larva 70 

. on  the  Universality  of  a  Medusoid  Structure  in  the  Repro- 
ductive Gemmae  of  the  Tuhularian  and  Sertularian  Polypes  70 

on  the  Signification  of  the  Ovigerous  Vesicles  in  the  Hy- 

droid  Polypes 71 

Dr.  Martin  Barry  on  a  singular  Locality  chosen  for  its  Nest  hy  the  Black 
Red-Start  (Sylvia  Tithys) 71 

Prince  of  Canino'b  Zoological  Notices  72 

Professor  Dickie's  Remarks  on  the  Distribution  and  Habits  of  Echinus  lividus    72 

Professor  E.  Forbes  on  a  New  Map  of  the  Geological  Distribution  of  Marine 
Life,  and  on  the  Homoiozoic  Belts   73 

— — _ — - _  Remarks  on  a  species  of  Sepiola  new  to  Britain,  and  first 
procured  in  the  Neighbourhood  of  Belfast 73 

Mr.  John  Grainger's  Catalogue  of  the  Shells  found  in  the  Alluvial  Deposits 
of  Belfast 74 

Rev.  Thomas  Hincks  on  a  peculiar  Organ  which  occurs  on  some  of  the  Ma- 
rine Bryozoa,  and  which  appears  to  indicate  a  Difference  of  Sex  75 

Mr.  Thomas  H.  Huxley's  Researches  into  the  Structure  of  the  Ascidians  ...     76 

Mr.  George  C.  Hyndman  on  a  New  Species  of  Acaleph  from  Belfast  Bay...     77 

Mr.  William  Ogilby  on  the  Geographical  Distribution  of  Animals  in  con- 
nection with  the  Progress  of  Human  Civilization    *....     78 

Professor  Owen  on  the  Homologies  of  the  Cranial  Vertebras  78 

Mr.  C.  W.  Peach  on  some  Fishes,  Crustacea  and  Molluscs  found  at  Peterhead    78 

Dr.  Wyvillb  T.  C.  Thomson  on  the  Character  of  the  Sertularian  Zoophytes    78 

PHY8IOLOGY. 

Dr.  J.  Barker  on  the  Part  played  bv  the  Cavernous  Sinus  in  the  Circulation 
of  the  Brain * 78 

Dr.  £.  nv  Bois-Rbymond  on  a  New  Effect  produced  on  Muscles  by  the  Elec- 
tric Current 78 

Professor  T.  Wharton  Jones  on  the  Forces  by  which  the  Circulation  of  the 
Blood  is  carried  on 80 

Dr.  Richard  Fowler  on  the  State  of  the  Mind  during  Sleep 80 

ETHNOLOGY  AND  GEOGRAPHY. 

Ethnology. 

Dr.  Bialloblotzki's  Remarks  on  an  Ethnological  Collection,  in  illustration 
of  the  Ethnology  of  Java  82 

Mr.  Richard  Cull  on  the  Misapplication  of  the  terms  Evolution  and  Develop- 
ment, as  applied  by  Ethnographical  Philologists  to  the  Inflexions  of  a 
Language « 82 

■  Notes  on  Blumenbach's  Classification  of  the  Human  Race  ...    84 

Mr.  John  V.  Giles's  Description  of  a  Samoied  Family  seen  at  Archangel, 
in  a  letter  to  Dr.  Hodgkin 84 

Mr.  John  Grattan's  Notes  upon  a  Collection  of  Irish  Crania 84 

Rev.  Edward  Hincks  on  the  Ethnological  Bearing  of  the  Recent  Discoveries 
in  Connexion  with  the  Assyrian  Inscriptions 85 


X  CONTENTS. 

Pip 
Rev.  Edward  Hincks  on  the  Forms  of  the  Personal  Pronouns  of  the  Two 

First  Persons  in  the  Indian,  European,  Syro- Arabic,  and  Egyptian  Lan- 
guages      88 

Rev.  A.  Hums  on  the  Origin,  Characteristics,  and  Dialect  of  the  People  in 
the  Counties  of  Down  and  Antrim ...., • 89 

Professor  MacDou all's  Heads  of  a  Paper  "On  the  present  state  of  Medo- 
Persic  Philology  "  90 

Geography. 

Capt.  W.  Allen's  Attempt  to  account  for  numerous  appearances  of  sud- 
den and  violent  drainage  seen  on  the  sides  of  the  basin  of  the  Dead  Sea...    95 

■  on  a  Proposed  New  Line  for  a  Ship  Canal  to  the  East  Indies 
through  the  Dead  Sea   97 

on  the  Antiquities  of  the  Island  Ruad,  the  Ancient  Aradus, 

and  on  the  ancient  Harbour  of  Seleucia  in  Pieria   98 

Mr.  W.  F.  Ainsworth  on  a  Railroad  through  Asia  Minor  100 

Mr.  William  Bollaert  on  the  Distribution  of  Common  Salt,  and  other  Saline 
Bodies,  with  a  view  to  show  their  Primary  Origin  and  subsequent  Forma- 
tions   100 

Colonel  Chesney's  Observations  on  the  Euphrates  Line  of  Communication 

with  India . 104 

Mr.  F.  Galton's  Expedition  to  the  East  of  Walfisch  Bay  110 

Dr.  J.  Gabon's  Climatological  Notes  on  Pisa  and  Lucca 110 

Messrs.  Lionel  Gisborne  and  Forde's  Recent  Survey  for  a  Ship  Canal 
through  the  Isthmus  of  Central  America 110 

On  a  Recent  Journey  across  Africa  from  Zansibar  to  Angola,  as  communicated 
from  Her  Majesty's  Foreign  Office  to  the  Royal  Geographical  Society ]  10 

Rev.  Dr.  Hincks  on  certain  Ancient  Mines   110 

Messrs.  Livingston  and  Orwell* s  latest  Explorations  in  South  Africa  to 
the  North  of  Lake  N'gami 112 

On  the  Expedition  to  the  Interior  of  Central  Australia  in  search  of  Dr.  Leichardt  1 12 

Lieut.  L.  Macleod  on  the  Proposed  Expedition  to  ascend  the  Niger  to  its 
Source.... . 112 

M.  A.  Petbrmann's  Notes  on  the  Distribution  of  Animal  Life  in  the  Arctic 

Regions   » 112 

Commercial  Documents  relating  to  the  Eastern  Horn  of  Africa  113 

Lieut.-Colonel  Sykeb's  Notes  on  the  Possessions  of  the  Imaumof  Muscat,  and 
on  the  Climate  of  Zanzibar,  with  Observations  on  the  Prospects  of  African 
Discovery 113 

Capt.  Synge  on  the  most  Rapid  Communication  with  India  vid  British  North 
America   • 114 

Chevalier  Van  de  Velde's  late  Explorations  in  Syria  and  Palestine   114 

Consul  Vandey  on  the  Upper  Nile 114 

STATISTICS. 

Professor  Alison  on  the  Present  State  of  the  Law  of  Settlement  and  the 
Removal  of  Paupers  in  Scotland  114 

Rev.  John  Edgar  on  the  Neglected  and  Perishing  Classes,  and  the  Means  of 
their  Reformation  • • « • 115 


CONTENTS.  XI 

Page 
Mr.  J.  W.  Gilbart  on  the  Laws  of  the  Currency  in  Ireland,  as  exemplified  in 
the  Changes  that  have  taken  place  in  the  amount  of  the  Annual  Circula- 
tion of  Bank  Notes  in  Ireland  since  the  passing  of  the  Act  of  1845 115 

Professor  Hancock.  Should  our  Gold  Standard  of  Value  he  maintained  if  Gold 
becomes  depreciated  in  consequence  of  its  Discovery  in  Australia  and 
California?  116 

■  ■   •■   ■■'    *  Are  there  any  impediments  to  the  Competition  of  Free 

Labour  with  Slave  Labour  in  the  West  Indies? 117 

Mr.  Jambs  Hbywood's  Statistics  of  the  Revenues  of  the  University  and  some 
of  the  Colleges  of  Oxford,  compiled  from  the  Report  of  the  Oxford  Uni- 
versity Commission 118 

Mr.  Holdbn's  Notice  of  the  Progress  of  the  Sewed  Muslin  Manufacture  in 

Ireland ; : 118 

Statistics  of  the  Island  of  Portsea     . 118 

Mr*  John  Lockb  on  Excessive  Emigration  and  its  Reparative  Agencies  in  Ireland  118 

Mr.  Hrnry  M'Corm  ac  on  the  Connexion  of  Atmospheric  Impurity  with  Disease  1 19 

Mr.  D.  M'Culloch  on  the  Statistics  of  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia 119 

Dr.  A.  G.  Malcolm  on  the  Sanitary  State  of  Belfast,  with  Suggestions  for  its 
Improvement 119 

Mr.  G.  R.  Pobtbr  on  the  Productive  Industry  of  Paris   119 

Dr.  John  Stbano  on  the  Progress  and  Extent  of  Steamboat  Building  in  theClyde  120 

Lieut-Colonel  Sykes  on  the  Census  and  Condition  of  the  Island  of  Bombay...  120 

Mr.  W.  A.  Wilde's  Statistics  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  in  Ireland 121 

■  A  Short  Account  of  the  early  Bills  of  Mortality  at  Dublin   ...  121 

MECHANICAL  SCIENCE. 

Mr.  F.  C.  Bake  well  on  Telegraphic  Communications  by  Land  and  Sea 121 

Mr.  John  Barker's  Mechanical  Proof  of  the  Composition  of  Rotatory  Forces  122 

Mr.  Jambs  Barton  on  the  Permanent  Way  of  Railways    122 

on  the  Calculation  of  Strains  in  Lattice  Girders,  with  practical 

deductions  therefrom • • 123 

Mr.  J.  F.  Batsman  on  a  series  of  Observations  on  the  Discharge  of  Water 
from  actual  Experiment., 124 

Mr.  Gborob  Clarkb  on  the  Evolution  of  Gas  in  Wallsend  Colliery 124 

Mr.  James  Cooper's  Account  of  the  Drainage  of  the  Middle  Level  of  the 
Bedford  Level;  with  Observations  on  Arterial  Drainage    125 

Mr.  William  Fairbairn  on  the  Mechanical  Properties  of  Metals,  as  derived 
from  repeated  Meltings,  exhibiting  the  maximum  Point  of  Strength,  and  the 
Causes  of  Deterioration .'..,,  125 

—————  on  the  Tensile  Strength  of  Unwrought  Iron  Plates 
at  various  Temperatures 125 

New  Tubular  Boiler 125 

—  Remarks  on  the  Minie  Rifle    125 

Mr.  Robert  Garrett  on  Improvements  made  in  the  Harbour  of  Belfast......  126 

Mr.  Thomas  Murray  Gladstone  on  Malleable  Iron  for  Beams  or  Girders...  126 

Mr.  John  Godwin  on  an  Improved  Cast-Iron  Sleeper  for  Railways 127 

M.  Pbrrbaux  on  a  Dynamometric  Machine  for  Measuring  the  Strength  of 
Textile  Fabrics  and  other  Substances  128 


XU  CONTENTS. 

Fife 
Messrs.  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine  and  John  Thomson  on  Telegraphic 
Communication  between  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  by  the  Mull  of  Cantyre  128 

Mr.  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine's  Remarks  on  the  Mechanical  Process  for 
Cooling  Air  in  Tropical  Climates  proposed  by  Prof.  C.  Piazzi  Smyth  128 

Capt.  J.  Saunders's  Design  for  Safety  Harbours    . 129 

Mr.  W.  H.  Smith  on  the  Natural  Peculiarities  and  Advantages  of  the  Mineral 
Field  and  the  proposed  Harbour  of  Fair  Head    129 

Professor  C.  Piazzi  Smyth  on  Penrose  and  Bennett's  Sliding  Helicograph  ...  129 

Mr.  James  Thomson  on  some  Properties,  of  Whirling  Fluids,  with  their  appli- 
cation in  improving  the  action  of  Blowing  Fans,  Centrifugal  Pumps,  and  cer- 
tain kinds  of  Turbines 130 

■  ■   ■         on  a  Jet  Pump,  or  Apparatus  for  drawing  up  Water  by 

the  Power  of  a  Jet , ;....  130 

Mr.  W.  S.  Ward  on  the  Production  of  Cold  by  Mechanical  Means 131 

Mr.  Charles  V.  Walker  on  Telegraphic  Time  Signals 131 

■  ■  ■  ■ on  Graphite  Batteries 132 

Mr.  Thomas  Webster  on  the  New  Patent  Law 139 

Mr.  Matthew  Whytlaw  on  a  New  Method  of  Scutching  the  New  Zealand 
Flax  (Phormium  tenax) , 132 

Mr.  Alfred  J.  Woodhouse  on  the  Mould  for  casting  Conical  Bullets    132 

Index  L— To  Reports  on  the  State  of  Science 133 

Index  II. — To  Miscellaneous  Communications  to  the  Sections 135 


ADVERTISEMENT. 


The  Editors  of  the  preceding  Notices  consider  themselves  responsible  only 
for  the  fidelity  with  which  the  views  of  the  Authors  are  abstracted. 


OBJECTS    AND    RULES 

OF 

THE  ASSOCIATION, 

OBJECTS. 

The  Association  contemplates  no  interference  with  the  ground  occupied  by 
other  Institutions.  Its  objects  are, — To  give  a  stronger  impulse  and  a  more 
systematic  direction  to  scientific  inquiry, — to  promote  the  intercourse  of  those 
who  cultivate  Science  in  different  parts  of  the  British  Empire,  with  one  an- 
other, and  with  foreign  philosophers, — to  obtain  a  more  general  attention  to 
the  objects  of  Science,  and  a  removal*  of  any  disadvantages  of  a  public  kind 
which  impede  its  progress. 

RULES. 

ADMISSION  OF  MEMBERS  AND  ASSOCIATES. 

All  Persons  who  have  attended  the  first  Meeting  shall  be  entitled  to  be- 
come Members  of  the  Association,  upon  subscribing  an  obligation  to  con- 
form to  its  Rules. 

The  Fellows  and  Members  of  Chartered  Literary  and  Philosophical  So- 
cieties publishing  Transactions,  in  the  British  Empire,  shall  be  entitled,  in 
like  manner,  to  become  Members  of  the  Association. 

The  Officers  and  Members  of  the  Councils,  or  Managing  Committees,  of 
Philosophical  Institutions,  shall  be  entitled,  in  like  manner,  to  become  Mem- 
bers of  the  Association. 

All  Members  of  a  Philosophical  Institution  recommended  by  its  Council 
or  Managing  Committee,  shall  be  entitled,  in  like  manner,  to  become  Mem- 
bers of  the  Association. 

Persons  not  belonging  to  such  Institutions  shall  be  elected  by  the  General 
Committee  or  Council,  to  become  Life  Members  of  the  Association,  Annual 
Subscribers,  or  Associates  for  the  year,  subject  to  the  approval  of  a  General 
Meeting. 

COMPOSITIONS,  SUBSCRIPTIONS,  AND  PRIVILEGES. 

Life  Members  shall  pay,  on  admission,  the  sum  of  Ten  Pounds.  They 
shall  receive  gratuitously  the  Reports  of  the  Association  which  may  be  pub- 
lished after  the  date  of  such  payment.  They  are  eligible  to  all  the  offices 
of  the  Association. 

Annual  Subscribers  shall  pay,  on  admission,  the  sum  of  Two  Pounds, 
and  in  each  following  year  the  sum  of  One  Pound.  They  shall  receive 
gratuitously  the  Reports  of  the  Association  for  the  year  of  their  admission 
and  for  the  years  in  which  they  continue  to  pay  without  intermission  their 
Annual  Subscription.  By  omitting  to  pny  this  Subscription  in  any  particu- 
lar year,  Members  of  this  class  (Annual  Subscribers)  lose  for  that  and  all 
future  years  the  privilege  of  receiving  the  volumes  of  the  Association  gratis : 
but  they  may  resume  their  Membership  and  other  privileges  at  any  sub- 
sequent Meeting  of  the  Association,  paying  on  each  such  occasion  the  sura  of 
One  Pound.     They  are  eligible  to  all  the  Offices  of  the  Association. 

Associates  for  the  year  shall  pay  on  admission  the  sum  of  One  Pound. 
They  shall  not  receive  gratuitously  the  Reports  of  the  Association,  nor  be 
eligible  to  serve  on  Committees,  or  to  hold  any  office. 

1852.  b 


XIV  RULES  OF  THE  ASSOCIATION. 

The  Association  consists  of  the  following  classes  :— 

1.  Life  Members  admitted  from  1631  to  1845  inclusive,  who  have  paid 
on  admission  Five  Pounds  as  a  composition. 

2.  Life  Members  who  in  1846,  or  in  subsequent  years,  have  paid  on  ad- 
mission Ten  Pounds  as  a  composition. 

3.  Annual  Members  admitted  from  1831  to  1839  inclusive,  subject  to  the 
payment  of  One  Pound  annually.  [May  resume  their  Membership  after  in- 
termission of  Annual  Payment.] 

4.  Annual  Members  admitted  in  any  year  since  1839,  subject  to  the  pay- 
ment of  Two  Pounds  for  the  first  year,  and  One  Pound  in  each  following 
year.  [May  resume  their  Membership  after  intermission  of  Annual  Pay- 
ment.] 

5.  Associates  for  the  year,  subject  to  the  payment  of  One  Pound. 

6.  Corresponding  Members  nominated  by  the  Council. 

And  the  Members  and  Associates  will  be  entitled  to  receive  the  annual 
volume  of  Reports,  gratis,  or  to  purchase  it  at  reduced  (or  Members')  price, 
according  to  the  following  speciBcation,  viz. : — 

1.  Gratis, — Old  Life  Members  who  have  paid  Five  Pounds  as  a  compo- 

sition for  Annual  Payments,  and  previous  to  1845  a  further 
sum  of  Two  Pounds  as  a  Book  Subscription,  or,  since  1845  a 
further  sum  of  Five  Pounds. 

New  Life  Members  who  have  paid  Ten  Pounds  as  a  com- 
position. 

Annual  Members  who  have  not  intermitted  their  Annual  Sub- 
scription. 

2.  At  reduced  or  Members*  Prices,  viz.  two-thirds  of  the  Publication 

Price. — Old  Life  Members  who  have  paid  Five  Pounds  as  a 
composition  for  Annual  Payments,  but  no  further  sura  as  a 
Book  Subscription. 

Annual  Members,  who  have  intermitted  their  Annual  Subscrip- 
tion. 

Associates  for  the  year.  [Privilege  confined  to  the  volume  for 
that  year  only.] 

3.  Members  may  purchase  (for  the  purpose  of  completing  their  sets)  any 

of  the  first  seventeen  volumes  of  Transactions  of  the  Associa- 
tion, and  of  which  more  than  100  copies  remain,  at  one-third  of 
the  Publication  Price*  Application  to  be  made  (by  letter)  to 
Messrs.  Taylor  &  Francis,  Red  Lion  Court,  Fleet  St.,  London. 
Subscriptions  shall  be  received  by  the  Treasurer  or  Secretaries. 

MEETINGS. 

The  Association  shall  meet  annually,  for  one  week,  or  longer.  The  place 
of  each  Meeting  shall  be  appointed  by  the  General  Committee  at  the  pre- 
vious Meeting ;  and  the  Arrangements  for  it  shall  be  entrusted  to  the  Offi- 
cers of  the  Association. 

GENERAL  COMMITTEE. 

The  General  Committee  shall  sit  during  the  week  of  the  Meeting,  or 
longer,  to  transact  the  business  of  the  Association.  It  shall  consist  of  the 
following  persons : — 

1.  Presidents  and  Officers  for  the  present  and  preceding  years,  with  au- 
thors of  Reports  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Association. 

2.  Members  who  have  communicated  any  Paper  to  a  Philosophical  Society, 
which  has  beenprintedinits  Transactions,  and  which  relates  to  such  subjects 
as  are  taken  into  consideration  at  the  Sectional  Meetings  of  the  Association. 


RULES  OF  THE  ASSOCIATION.  XV 

3.  Office-bearers  for  the  time  being,  or  Delegates,  altogether  not  exceed- 
ing three  in  number,  from  any  Philosophical  Society  publishing  Transactions. 

4.  Office-bearers  for  the  time  being,  or  Delegates,  not  exceeding  three, 
from  Philosophical  Institutions  established  in  the  place  of  Meeting,  or  in  any 
place  where  the  Association  has  formerly  met. 

5.  Foreigners  and  other  individuals  whose  assistance  is  desired,  and  who 
are  specially  nominated  in  writing  for  the  meeting  of  the  year  by  the  Presi- 
dent and  Genera]  Secretaries. 

6.  The  Presidents,  Vice-Presidents,  and  Secretaries  of  the  Sections  are  ex 
qfficio  members  of  the  General  Committee  for  the  time  being. 

SECTIONAL  COMMITTEES. 

The  General  Committee  shall  appoint,  at  each  Meeting,  Committees,  con- 
sisting severally  of  the  Members  most  conversant  with  the  several  branches 
of  Science,  to  advise  together  for  the  advancement  thereof. 

The  Committees  shall  report  what  subjects  of  investigation  they  would 
particularly  recommend  to  be  prosecuted  during  the  ensuing  year,  and 
brought  under  consideration  at  the  next  Meeting. 

The  Committees  shall  recommend  Reports  on  the  state  and  progress  of 
particular  Sciences,  to  be  drawn  up  from  time  to  time  by  competent  persons, 
for  the  information  of  the  Annual  Meetings. 

COMMITTEE  OF  RECOMMENDATIONS. 

The  General  Committee  shall  appoint  at  each  Meeting  a  Committee,  which 
shall  receive  and  consider  the  Recommendations  of  the  Sectional  Committees, 
and  report  to  the  General  Committee  the  measures  which  they  would  advise 
to  be  adopted  for  the  advancement  of  Sciepce. 

All  Recommendations  of  Grants  of  Money,  Requests  for  Special  Re- 
searches, and  Reports  on  Scientific  Subjects,  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Com- 
mittee of  Recommendations,  and  not  taken  into  consideration  by  the  General 
Committee,  unless  previously  recommended  by  the  Committee  of  Recom- 
mendations. 

LOCAL  COMMITTEES. 

Local  Committees  shall  be  formed  by  the  Officers  of  the  Association  to 
assist  in  making  arrangements  for  the  Meetings. 

Local  Committees  shall  have  the  power  of  adding  to  their  numbers  those 
Members  of  the  Association  whose  assistance  they  may  desire. 

OFFICERS. 

A  President,  two  or  more  Vice-Presidents,  one  or  more  Secretaries,  and  a 
Treasurer,  shall  be  annually  appointed  by  the  General  Committee. 

COUNCIL. 

In  the  intervals  of  the  Meetings,  the  affairs  of  the  Association  shall  be 
managed  by  a  Council  appointed  by  the  General  Committee.  The  Council 
may  also  assemble  for  the  despatch  of  business  during  the  week  of  the 
Meeting. 

PAPER3  AND  COMMUNICATIONS. 

The  Author  of  any  paper  or  communication  shall  be  at  liberty  to  reserve 
his  right  of  property  therein. 

ACCOUNTS. 

The  Accounts  of  the  Association  shall  be  audited  annually,  by  Auditors 
appointed  by  the  Meeting. 

o2 


II.  Table  showing  the  Names  of  Members  of  the  British  -Association  who 
have  served  on  the  Council  in  former  years. 


Acland,  Sir  Thomas  D.f  Bart,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

Acland,  Professor  H.  W.,  B.M.,  F.R.S. 

Adamson,  John,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 

Adare,  Edwin,  Viscount,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

Ainslie,  Rev.  Gilbert,  D.D.,  Master  of  Pern- 
broke  Hall,  Cambridge. 

Airy,  G.  B.,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  Astronomer  Royal. 

Alison,  Professor  W.  P.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.E. 

Ansted,  Professor  D.  T.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Argyll,  George  Douglas,  Duke  of,  F.R.S. 

Arnott,  Neil,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Ashburton,  William  Bingham,  Lord,  D.C.L. 

Babbage,  Charles,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Babington,  C.  C,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 

Baily,  Francis,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Balfour,  Professor  John  H.,  M.D. 

Barker,  George,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Bengough,  George,  Esq. 

Bentham,  George,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 

Bigge,  Charles,  Esq. 

Blakiston,  Peyton,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Boileau,  Sir  John  P.,  Bart.,  F.R.S. 

Boyle,  Right  Hon.  David,  Lord  Justice-Ge- 
neral, F.R.S.E. 

Brand,  William,  Esq. 

Brewster,SirDavid,K.H.,D.C.L.,LL.D.,F.R.S. 
Principal  of  the  United  College  of  St  Sal- 
vator  and  St  Leonard,  St.  Andrews. 

Breadalbane,  John,  Marquis  of,  K.T.,  F.R.S. 

Brisbane,  General  Sir  Thomas  M.,  Bart, 
K.C.B.,  G.C.H.,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 

Brown,  Robert,  D.C.L.,  F.R.8. 

Brunei,  Sir  M.  I.,  F.R.S, 

Buckland,  Very  Rev.  William,  D.D.,  Dean  of 
Westminster,  F.R.S. 

Burlington,  William,  Earl  of,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
Chancellor  of  the  University  of  London. 

Bute,  John,  Marquis  of,  K.T. 

Carlisle,  George  Will.  Fred.,  Earl  of,  F.G.S. 

Carson,  Rev.  Joseph. 

Cathcart,  Lt-Gen.  Earl  of,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S.E. 

Chalmers,  Rev.  T.,  D.D.,  late  Professor  of 
Divinity,  Edinburgh. 

Chance,  James,  Esq. 

Chester,  John  Graham,  D.D.,  Lord  Bishop  of. 

Christie,  Professor  S.  H.,  M.A.,  Sec.  R.S. 

Clare,  Peter,  Esq.,  F.R.A.S. 

Clark,  Rev.  Prof.,  M.D.,  F.RS.  (Cambridge). 

Clark,  Henry,  M.D. 

Clark,  G.  T.,  Esq. 

Clear,  William,  Esq. 

Clerke,  Major  Shadwell,  K.H.,  R.E.,  F.R.S. 

Clift,  William,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Cobbold,  John  Chevalier,  Esq.,  M.P. 

Colquhoun,  J.  C,  Esq.,  M.P. 

Conybeare,Very  Rev.  W.  D.,  Dean  of  Llandaff, 
M.A.,  F.RS. 

Corrie,  John,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Currie,  William  Wallace,  Esq. 

Dalton,  John,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 

Daniell,  Professor  J.  F.,  F.R.S. 

Dartmouth,  William,  Earl  of,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Darwin,  Charles,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Daubeny,  Prof.  Charles  G.  B.,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
De  la  Beche,  Sir  Henry  T.,  C.B.,  F.R.S.,  Di- 
rector-General of  the  Geological  Survey 
of  the  United  Kingdom. 


Dillwyn,  Lewis  W.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Drink  water,  J;  EM  Esq. 

Durham,  Edward  Maltby,  D.D.,  Lord  Bishop 

of,  F.R.S. 
Egerton,  Sir  Philip  de  M.  Grey,  Bart.,  F.R.S. 
Eliot,  Lord,  M.P. 
Ellesmere,  Francis,  Earl  of,  F.G.S. 
Enniskillen,  William,  Earl  of,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Estcourt,  T.  G.  B.,  D.C.L. 
Faraday,  Professor,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Fitzwilliam,  Charles  William,  Earl,  D.C.L., 

F.R.S. 
Fleming,  W.,  M.D. 
Fletcher,  Bell,  M.D. 
Forbes,  Charles,  Esq. 
Forbes,  Professor  Edward,  F.R.S. 
Forbes,  Professor  J.  D.,  F.R.S.,  Sec.  R.S.E. 
Fox,  Robert  Were,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Gassiot,  John  P.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Gilbert,  Davies,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Graham,  Professor  Thomas,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Gray,  John  E.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Gray,  Jonathan,  Esq. 
Gray,  William,  jun.,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Green,  Professor  Joseph  Henry,  F.R.S. 
Greenough,  G.  B.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Grove,  W.  R.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Hallam,  Henry,  Esq.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Hamilton,  W.  J.,  Esq.,  SecG.S. 
Hamilton,  Sir  William  R.,  Astronomer  Royal 

of  Ireland,  M.R.I.A. 
Harcourt,  Rev.  William  Vernon,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Hardwicke,  Charles  Philip,  Earl  of,  F.R.S. 
Harford,  J.  S.,  D.C.L.,  F.RS. 
Harris,  Sir  W.  Snow,  F.RS. 
Harrowby,  The  Earl  of. 
Hatfeild,  William,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Henslow,  Rev.  Professor,  M.A.,  F.L.S. 
Henry,  W.  C,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
Henry,  Rev.  P.  S.,  D.D.,  President  of  Queen's 

College,  Belfast. 
Herbert,  Hon.  and  Very  Rev.  William,  late 

Dean  of  Manchester,  LL.D.,  F.L.S. 
Herschel,  Sir  John  F. W.,  Bart.,D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Heywood,  Sir  Benjamin,  Bart,  F.R.S. 
Hey  wood,  James,  Esq.,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 
Hill,  Rev.  Edward,  M.A.,  F.G.S. 
Hincks,  Rev.  Edward,  D.D.,  M.R.I. A. 
Hodgkin,  Thomas,  M.D. 
Hodgkinson,  Professor  Eaton,  F.R.S. 
Hodgson,  Joseph,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Hooker,  Sir  William  J.,  LL.D.,  F.RS. 
Hope,  Rev.  F.  W„  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Hopkins,  William,  Esq.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Horner,  Leonard,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  F.G.S. 
Hovenden,  V.  F.,  Esq.,  M.A. 
Hutton,  Robert,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Hutton,  William,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Ibbetson,Capt.  L.  L.  Boscawen,  K.R.E.,  F.G.S. 
Inglis,  Sir  Robert  H.,Bart,D.C.L.,M.P.lF.R.S. 
Jameson,  Professor  R.,  F.R.S. 
Jeffreys,  John  Gwyn  Jeffreys,  Esq. 
Jenyns,  Rev.  Leonard,  F.L.S. 
Jerrard,  H.  B.,  Esq. 
Johnston,  Right  Hon.  William,  Lord  Provost 

of  Edinburgh. 
Johnston,  Professor  J.  F.  W.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 


Keleher,  William,  Esq. 

Kelland,  Rev.  Professor  P.,  M.A. 

Lansdowne,  Henry,  Marquis  of,D.C.L.,F.R.S. 

Lardner,  Rev.  Dr. 

Latham,  R.  G.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.    • 

Lee,  Very  Rev.  John,.D.D.,  F.R.S.E.,  Prin- 
cipal of  the  University  of  Edinburgh. 

Lee,  Robert,  M.D.,F.RS. 

Lefevre,  Right  Hon.  Charles  Shaw,  Speaker 
of  the  House  of  Commons. 

Lemon,  Sir  Charles,  Bart,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

Liddell,  Andrew,  Esq. 

Lindley,  Professor  John,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S. 

Listowel,  The  Earl  oil 

Lloyd,  Rev.  Bartholomew,  D.D.,  late  Provost 
of  Trinity  College,  Dublin. 

Lloyd,    Rev.   Professor,    D.D.,    Provost  of 
Trinity  College,  Dublin,  F.R.S. 

Lubbock,  8ir  John  W.,  Bart,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Luby,  Rev.  Thomas. 

Lyell,  Sir  Charles,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

MacCullagh,  Professor,  D.C.L.,  M.R.I.A. 

Macmrlane,  The  Very  Rev.  Principal. 

MacLeay,  William  Sharp,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 

MacNeill,  Professor  Sir  John,  F.R.S. 

Malcolm,  Vice  Admiral  Sir  Charles,  K.C.B. 

Manchester,  James  Prince  Lee,  D.D.,  Lord 
Bishop  of. 

Meynell,  Thomas,  Jun.,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 

Middleton,  Sir  William,  F.  F.,  Bart 

Miller,  Professor  W.  H.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Moillet,  J.  L.,  Esq. 

Moggridge,  Matthew,  Esq. 

Moody,  J.  Sadleir,  Esq. 

Moody,  T.  H.  C,  Esq. 

Moody,  T.  F.,  Esq. 

Morley,  The  Earl  of. 

Moseley,  Rev.  Henry,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Mount-Edgecumbe,  Ernest  Augustus,  Earl  of. 

Murchison,  Sir  Roderick  I.,  G.C.StS.,  F.R.S. 

NeiU,  Patrick,  M.D.,  F.R.S.E. 

Nicol,  D.,  M.D. 

Kicol,  Rev.  J.  P.,  LL.D. 

Northumberland,  Hugh,  Duke  of,  K.G.,  M.A., 
F.R.S. 

Northampton,  Spencer  Joshua  Alwyne,  Mar- 
quis of,  V.P.R.S. 

Norwich,  Edward  Stanley,  D.D.,  F.R.S.,  late 
Lord  Bishop  of. 

Norwich,  Samuel  Hinds,  D.D.,  Lord  Bishop  of. 

Ormerod,  G.  W.,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 

Orpen,  Thomas  Herbert,  M.D. 

Orpen,  J.  H.,  LL.D. 

Owen,  Professor  Richard,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Oxford,    Samuel    WUberforce,  D.D.,    Lord 
Bishop  of,  F.R.S.,  F.G.S. 

Osier,  Follett,  Esq. 

Palmerston,  Viscount,  G.C.B.,  M.P. 

Peacock,  Very  Rev.  George,  D.D.,  Dean  of 
Ely,  F.R.S. 

Peel,  Rt   Hon.    Sir   Robert,   Bart.,    M.P., 
D.C.L.,  F.R.8. 

Pendarves,  E.,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 

Phillips,  Professor  John,  F.R.S. 

Porter,  G.  R.,  Esq. 

Powell,  Rev.  Professor,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Prichard,  J.  C,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Ramsay,  Professor  W.,  M.A. 

Reid,  Lieat-Col.  Sir  William,  F.R.S. 

Rendlesham,  Rt  Hon.  Lord,  M.P. 


Rennie,  George,  Esq.,  V.P.R.S. 

Rennie,  Sir  John,  F.R.S. 

Richardson,  Sir  John,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Ritchie,  Rev.  Professor,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

Robinson,  Rev.  J.,  D.D. 

Robinson,  Rev.  T.  R.,  D.D.,  Pres.  R.I.A., 

F.R.A.S.,      . 
Robison,  Sir  John,  late  SecR.8.Edin. 
Roche,  James,  Esq. 
Roget,  Peter  Mark,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
Ronalds,  Francis,  F.R.S. 
Rosebery,  The  Earl  of,  K.T.,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S. 
Ross,  Capt.  Sir  James  C,  R.N.,  F.R.S. 
Rosse,  William,   Earl  of,   M.A.,  M.R.I.A., 

President  of  the  Royal  Society. 
Royle,  Professor  John  F.,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
Russell,  James,  Esq. 
Russell,  J.  Scott,  Esq. 

Sabine,  Col.  Edward,  R.A.,Treas.  &  V.P.R.S. 
Saunders,  William,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Sandon,  Lord. 

Scoresby,  Rev.  W.,  D.D.,  F.R.S. 
Sedgwick,  Rev.  Professor  Adam,  M.A^F.R.S. 
Selby,  Prideaux  John,  Esq.,  F.R.S.E. 
Smith,  Lieut-Colonel  C.  Hamilton,  F.R.S. 
Spence,  William,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Staunton,  Sir  George  T.,  Bart.,  M.P.,D.C.L., 

F.R.S. 
St.  David's,  Connop  Thirlwall,  D.D.,  Lord 

Bishop  of. 
Stevelly,  Professor  John,  LL.D. 
Stokes,  Professor  G.  G.,  F.R.S. 
Strang,  John,  Esq. 
Strickland,  H.  E.,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Sykes,  Lieut-Colonel  W.  H.,  F.R.S. 
Symonds,  B.  P.,  D.D.,  late  Vice-Chancellor  of 

the  University  of  Oxford. 
Talbot,  W.  H.  Fox,  Esq.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Tayler,  Rev.  J.  J. 
Taylor,  John,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Taylor,  Richard,  Jun.,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Thompson,  William,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 
Tindal,  Captain,  R.N. 
Tod,  James,  Esq.,  F.R.S.E. 
Traill,  J.  S.,  M.D. 
Turner,  Edward,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
Turner,  Samuel,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  F.G.S. 
Turner,  Rev.  W. 
Vigors,  N.  A.,  D.C.L.,  F.L.S. 
Vivian,  J.  H.,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 
Walker,  James,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Walker,  Joseph  N.,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 
Walker,  Rev.  Robert,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Warburton,  Henry,  Esq.,  M.A.,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 
Washington,  Captain,  R.N. 
West,  William,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
Western,  Thomas  Burch,  Esq. 
Wharncliffe,  John  Stuart,  Lord,  F.R.S. 
Wheats  tone,  Professor  Charles,  F.R.S. 
Whewell,  Rev.  William,  D.D.,  F.R.S.,  Master 

of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge. 
Williams,  Professor  Charles  J.B.,  M.D.,F.R.S. 
Willis,  Rev.  Professor  Robert,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Wills,  William. 

Winchester,  John,  Marquis  of. 
Woollcombe,  Henry,  Esq.,  F.S.A. 
Wrottesley,  John,  Lord,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 
Yarrell,  William,  Esq.,  F.L.S. 
Yarborough,  The  Earl  of,  D.C.L. 
Yates,  James,  Esq.,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 


BRITISH  ASSOCIATION  FOR  THE 


£ 

693 

5 

11 

90 

0 

0 

202 

0 

0 

244 

0 

0 

141 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

THE  GENERAL  TREASURER'S  ACCOUNT  from  2nd  of  July 

RECEIPTS. 

To  Balance  brought  on  from  last  account  

Life  Compositions  at  Ipswich  and  since    

Annual  Subscriptions  at  Ipswich  and  since  

Associates'  Subscriptions  at  Ipswich 

Ladies' Tickets  at  Ipswich 

Book  Composition  

Dividends  on  Stock  (eighteen  months9  Dividends  on  £3500 

3  per  cent.  Consols)   152  18    3 

From  the  Sale  of  Publications : — Reports,  Catalogues  of  Stars,  &c.  :— 

Volume  1  0  18  0 

2  0  16  0 

3  15  0 

4  0  13  0 

5  1    4  6 

6  , 0  16  6 

7  ! 0  15  0 

9  2  15  0 

10  0    9  0 

11  0  10  6 

12  0  16  0 

13  16  8 

14  2    0  0 

15  0  15  0 

16  5    8  0 

17  2    8  0 

18  5    6  8 

19    64  10  0 

British  Association  Catalogue  of  Stars 56    3  6 

Lalande's  Catalogue  of  Stars 5    3  0 

Lacaille's  Catalogue  of  Stars 0  16  0 

Dove's  Isothermal  Lines  7    9  0 

Lithographic  Signatures 0    9  0 


162  13    4 


1690  17    6 


Audited  and  found  correct, 

CHARLES  C.  BABINGTON,  Auditor. 


ADVANCEMENT  OF  SCIENCE. 


1851  (at  Ipswich)  to  1st  of  September  1852  (at  Belfast). 


PAYMENTS. 

£     ».   d. 

For  Sundry  Printing,  Advertising,  Expenses  of  Ipswich  Meeting, 

and  Petty  Disbursements  made  by  General  and  Local  Trea- 
surers   v.. 

Printing  Report  of  20th  Meeting  (paid  on  Account) 

Engraving,  &cibr  Report  of  the  21st  Meeting 

Salaries,  Assistant  General  Secretary  and  Accountant,  (eighteen 
months) 

Dove's  Isothermal  Lines 

Maintaining  the  Establishment  at  Kew  Observatory : — 

Balance  of  Grant  of  1850 29  13    0 

Part  of  Grant  for  1851 204    4    8 

On  account  of  Grant — 

For  Experiments  on  the  Conduction  of  Heat 

Influence  of  Solar  Radiations   

For  a  Geological  Map  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland   

Researches  on  the  British  Annelida 

Vitality  of  Seeds    

Strength  of  Boiler  Plates 

Balance  at  the  Bankers 226  17    3 

Ditto  in  the  hands  of  the  General  Treasurer  and  Local  Treasurers      10  12    8 


£     9.    d. 


206  14 

2 

300 

0 

0 

17 

6  10 

525 

0 

0 

100 

0 

0 

233  17 

8 

5  2 

9 

20  0 

0 

15  0 

0 

10  0 

0 

10  6 

2 

10  0 

0 

237    9 


OFFICERS  AND  COUNCIL,  1852-53. 

TRUSTEES  (PERMANENT). 
Sir  Roderick  I.  MuRCHisoN,G.C.St.S.,F.R.S.    The  Very  Rev.  George  Pbaoook,D.D.,  Dean 
John  Taylor,  Esq.,  F.R.S.  of  Ely,  F.R.S. 

PRESIDENT. 
COLONEL  EDWARD  SABINE,  R.A.,  Treasurer  and  Vice-President  of  the  Royal  Society. 

VICE-PRESIDENTS. 
The  Earl  of  Enniskillen,  D.C.L.,  P.R.S.      Rev.  T.  R.  Robinson,   D.D.,  Pres.R.I.A., 
The  Earl  of  Rosse,  M.A.,  M.R.I.A.,  Presi-        F.R.A.S. 

dent  of  the  Royal  Society.  George  Gabriel  Stokes,  F.R.S.,  Lucasian 

Sir  Henry  T.  Dr  la  Bbchb,  C.B.,  F.R.S.,        Professor  of  Mathematics  in  the  University 
Director-General  of  the  Geological  Surrey        of  Cambridge. 

of  the  United  Kingdom.  John  Stevellt,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  Natural 

Rev,  Edward  Hincks,  D.D.,  M.R.I.A.  Philosophy  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast. 

Rev.  P.  S.  Henry,  D.D.,  President  of  Queen's 
College,  Belfast. 

PRESIDENT  ELECT. 
William  Hopkins,  Esq.,  M.A.,  V.P.R.S.,  F.G.S.,  Pres.  Cambr.  PhiL  Soc. 

VICE-PRESIDENTS  ELECT. 
The  Earl  of  Carlisle,  F.R.S.  Charles  Frost,  Esq.,  F.S.A.,  President  of 

The  Lord  Londesborough,  F.R.S.         x  the  Hull  Lit.  &  Pbilos.  Society. 

Michael  Faradat,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  Pro-    William  Spbnce,  Esq.,  F.R.S. 
fessor  of  Chemistry  in  the  Royal  Institu-    Lt.-Colonel  W.  H.  Stkes,  F.R.S. 
tion  of  Great  Britain.  Charles  Whbatstonb,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  Pro- 

Rev.  Adam  Sedgwick,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Wood-        fessor  of  Experimental  Philosophy  in  King's 
wardian  Professor  of  Geology  in  the  Uni-        College,  London, 
▼ersity  of  Cambridge. 

LOCAL  SECRETARIES  FOR  THE  MEETING  AT  HULL. 
Henry  Cooper,  Esq.,  M.D.,  V.P.  Hull  Lit.  &  PhiL  Soc 
Bethel  Jacobs,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Hull  Mechanics  Institution. 

LOCAL  TREASURER  FOR  THE  MEETING  AT  HULL. 
Edmund  Smith,  Esq. 

ORDINARY  MEMBERS  OF  THE  COUNCIL. 

J.  C.  Adams,  Pres.R.A.S.  John  P.  Gassiot,  F.R.S.  Prof.  Owen,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

C.  C.  Babingtok,  F.R.S.  William  R.  Grove,  F.R.S.  Francis  Ronalds,  F.R.S. 

Professor  Bell,  SecJLS.  Robert  Hutton,  F.G.S.  SirJ.  Clark  Ross,  RJl.,F.R.S. 

Prof.DAUBENT,  M.D.,  F.R.S.  James  Heywood,  Esq.,M.P.  Prof.  H. E.  Strickland,F.R.S. 

Sir  P.  Egrrton,  Bart,  F.R.S.  Rev.  Dr.  H.  Lloyd,  F.R.S.  Lt.-Col.  W.  H.  Stkes,  F.R.S. 

Professor  E.  Forbes,  F.R.S.  Sir  C.  Lemon,  Bart.,  F.R.S.  Prof.  Walker,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

Professor  Graham,  F.R.S.  Prof.  W.  H.  Miller,  F.R.S.  Lord  Wrotteslbt,  F.R.S. 

EX-OFFICIO  MEMBERS  OF  THE  COUNCIL. 

The  President  and  President  Elect,  the  Vice-Presidents  and  Vice-Presidents  Elect,  the  Ge- 
neral and  Assistant-General  Secretaries,  the  General  Treasurer,  the  Trustees,  and  the  Presi- 
dents of  former  years,  viz.  The  Earl  Fitzwilliam.  Rev.  Dr.  Buckland.  Rev.  Professor  Sedgwick. 
Sir  Thomas  M.  Brisbane.  The  Marquis  of  Lansdowne.  The  Earl  of  Burlington.  Rev.  W. 
V.  Harcourt.  The  Marquis  of  Breadalbane.  Rev.  Dr.  Whewell.  The  Earl  of  EUesmere. 
The  Earl  of  Rosse.  The  Dean  of  Ely.  Sir  John  F.  W.  Herschel,  Bart.  Sir  Roderick  I.  Mur- 
chison.  Sir  Robert  H.  Inglis.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Robinson.  Sir  David  Brewster.  G.  B.  Airy, 
Esq.,  the  Astronomer  Royal. 

GENERAL  SECRETARY. 

J.  Forbes  Royle,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Prof.  Mat.  Med.  &  Therap.  in  King's  College,  London. 

ASSISTANT  GENERAL  SECRETARY. 
John  Phillips,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  York. 

GENERAL  TREASURER. 
John  Taylor,  Esq.,  F.R.S.,  6  Queen  Street  Place,  Upper  Thames  Street,  London. 

LOCAL  TREASURERS. 

William  Gray,  Esq.,  York,  Professor  Ramsay,  Glasgow. 

C.  C.  Babington,  Esq.,  Cambridge.  G.  W.  Ormerod,  Esq.,  Manchester. 

William  Brand,  Esq.,  Edinburgh.  J.  Sadleir  Moody,  Esq.,  Southampton. 

J.  H.  Orpen,  LL.D.,  Dublin.  John  Gwyn  Jeffreys,  Esq.,  Swansea. 

William  Sanders,  Esq.,  Bristol.  J.  B.  Alexander,  Esq.,  Ipswich. 

W.  R.  Wills,  Esq.,  Birmingham.  Robert  Patterson,  Esq.,  Belfast. 

AUDITORS. 
J.  W.  Gilbart,  Esq.  J.  P.  Gassiot,  Esq.  C.  C.  Babington,  Esq. 


OFFICERS  OF  SECTIONAL  COMMITTEES.  XXUl 

OFFICERS  OF  SECTIONAL  COMMITTEES  PRESENT  AT  THE 
BELFAST  MEETING. 

SECTION  A. MATHEMATICS  AND  PHYSICS. 

President.    Professor  William  Thomson,  M.A.,  F.R.S.  L.  &  E. 

Vice-President*.  J.  C.Adams,  F.R.S.  Sir  David  Brewster,  K.H.,  F.R.S. ;  Right 
Rev.  Dr.  Denvir,  Sir  W.  R.  Hamilton,  Astron.  Royal  for  Ireland ;  Rev.  Dr.  Lloyd, 
F.R.S. ;  Professor  Stokes,  F.R.S. 

Secretaries.  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine ;  John  Tyndall,  Ph.D. ;  Professor  Dixon, 
F.T.C.D. ;  Professor  Stevelly. 

SECTION  B.      CHEMISTRY  AND  MINERALOGY,  INCLUDING  THEIR  APPLICATION 
TO  AGRICULTURE  AND  THE  ARTS. 

President.— Thomas  Andrews,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

Vice-Presidents.  Professor  Apjohn,  M.R.I.A. ;  Professor  Connell,  F.R.S.E. ; 
Professor  Graham,  F.R.S. 

Secretaries.    Professor  Hodges ;  Professor  Ronalds ;  Dr.  Gladstone. 

SECTION  C. — GEOLOGY  AND  PHYSICAL  GEOGRAPHY. 

President.— Lieutenant-Colonel  Portlock,  R.E.,  F.R.S. 

Vice-Presidents.  Richard  Griffith,  F.G.S. ;  Sir  H.  De  la  Beche,  F.R.S. ;  James 
Smith,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 

Secretaries.  James  Bryce,  F.G.S. ;  James  MacAdam,  F.G.S. ;  Professor  M'Coy, 
F.G.S. ;  Professor  Nicol,  F.G.S. 

SECTION  D. — ZOOLOGY  AND  BOTANY,  INCLUDING  PHYSIOLOGY. 

President.    W.  Ogilby,  Esq. 

Vice-Presidents.  Professor  Allman ;  Professor  Walker  Arnott ;  Dr.  Robert  Ball ; 
Professor  E.  Forbes ;  Professor  Owen. 

Secretaries.  George  C.  Hyndman,  Esq. ;  Edwin  Lankester,  Esq.,  M.D.,  F.R.S. ; 
Dr.  Dickie. 

SECTION  E. — GEOGRAPHY  AND  ETHNOLOGY. 

President.— Colonel  Chesney,  R.A.,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  F.R.G.S.,  &c. 

Vice-Presidents.— Sir  R.  I.  Murchison,  G.C.St.S.,  F.R.S.,  Pres.  R.G.S. ;  Rev. 
Dr.  E.  Hincks. 

Secretaries. — Richard  Coll,  Esq.,  Hon.  Secretary  Ethnological  Society,  London  ; 
Robert  MacAdam,  Esq. ;  Norton  Shaw,  M.D.,  Assistant  Secretary  Royal  Geogra- 
phical Society,  London.  # 

SECTION  F.— STATISTICS. 

President. — His  Grace  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin. 

Vice-Presidents. — Lord  Dnfferin ;  Mountiford  Longfield,  Esq.,  LL.D. ;  Major 
Thomas  A.  Larcom,  R.E. ;  Lieutenant-Colonel  Sykes,  F.R.S. ;  Valentine  Whitla, 
Esq. ;  the  Earl  of  Mayo;  James  Heywood,  Esq.,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — Professor  Hancock,  LL.D. ;  James  MacAdam,  Jun.,  Esq. ;  Professor 
Ingram,  F.T.C.D. 

SECTION  G. — MECHANICAL  SCIENCE. 

President.— James  Walker,  Esq.,  C.E.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.  L.  &E. 

Vice-Presidents.— William  Fairbairn,  C.E. ;  John  Godwin,  Esq.,  C.E. ;  C.  Lan- 
yon,  Esq.,  C.E. ;  Alex.  Mitchell,  Esq.,  C.E. 

Secretaries.— John  Frederick  Bateman,  Esq.;  Charles  B.  Hancock, Esq. ;  Charles 
Manby,  Esq.,  Sec.  Inst*  C.E. ;  James  Thomson,  Esq.,  C.E. 


XXIV 


REPORT — 1852. 


CORRESPONDING  MEMBERS. 


Professor  Agassiz,  Cambridge,   Massa 

chusetts. 
M.  Arago,  Paris. 
M.  Babinet,  Paris. 
Dr.  A.  D.  Bache,  Philadelphia. 
Professor  H.  von  Boguslawski,  Breslau. 
Mr.  P.  G.  Bond,  Cambridge,  U.  S. 
Monsieur  Boutigny  (d'Evreux),  Paris.     \ 
Professor  Braschmann,  Moscow.  ) 

Chevalier  Bunsen  (Prussian  Embassy),  j 

London. 
Prince  Charles  Buonaparte,  Paris. 
M.  De  la  Rive,  Geneva. 
Professor  Dove,  Berlin. 
M.  Dufrenoy,  Paris. 
Professor  Dumas,  Paris. 
Dr.  J.  Milne-Edwards,  Parts. 
Professor  Ehrenbera,  Berlin. 
Dr.  Eisenlohr,  Carhruhe. 
Professor  Encke,  Berlin. 
Dr.  A.  Erman,  Berlin. 
Professor  Esmark,  Christiania. 
Professor  G.  Forchhammer,  Copenhagen.  | 
M.  Frisiani,  Milan. 

Professor  Asa  Gray,  Cambridge,  U.  S. 
Professor  Henry,  Washington,  U.  S. 
Baron  Alexander  von  Humboldt,  Berlin 
M.  Jacobi,  St.  Petersburg. 
Professor  Kreil,  Prague. 
M.  Kupffer,  St.  Petersburg. 


Dr.  Langberg,  Christiania. 

M.  Leverrier,  Paris. 

Baron  de  Selys-Longchamps,  Litgc. 

Dr.  Lamont,  Munich. 

Baron  von  Liebig,  Munich. 

Professor  Gustav  Magnus,  Berlin. 

Professor  Matteucci,  Pisa. 

Professor  von  Middendorff,  St.  Peters- 
burg. 

Professor  Nilsson,  Sweden. 

Dr.  N.  Nordengsciold,  Finland. 

Chevalier  Plana,  Turin. 

M.  Quetelet,  Brussels. 

Professor  Pliicker,  Bonn* 

M.  Constant  Prevost,  Part*. 

Professor  C.  Ritter,  Berlin. 

Professor  H.  D.  Rogers,  Philadelphia. 

Professor  W.  B.  Rogers,  Virginia. 

Professor  H.  Rose,  Berlin. 

Baron  Senftenberg,  Bohemia. 

Dr.  Siljestrom,  Stockholm. 

M.  Struve,  St.  Petersburg. 

Dr.  Svanberg,  Stockholm. 

Dr.  Van  der  Hoeven,  Ley  den. 

Baron  Sartorius  von  Waltershausen, 
Gotha. 

M.  Pierre  Tchihatchef,  (Russian  Em- 
bassy), Part*. 

Professor  Wartmann,  Lausanne. 


Report  on  the  Proceedings  of  the  Council  in  1851-52,  as  presented 
to  the  General  Committee  at  Belfast,  Wednesday,  Sept.  1, 
1852. 

"  I.  With  reference  to  the  subjects  referred  to  the  Council  by  the  General 
Committee  at  Ipswich,  the  Council  have  to  report  as  follows  :— 

(a)  The  Council  having  requested  the  President,  Mr.  Airy,  to  use  his  best 
endeavours  to  obtain  from  Government  a  grant  towards  the  publication  of  Mr. 
Huxley's  Zoological  and  Anatomical  Researches,  made  during  the  voyage  of 
H.M.S.  '  Rattlesnake/  have  been  informed  by  Mr.  Airy  that  the  Govern- 
ment have  expressed  their  inability  to  make  a  grant  for  that  purpose  in  the 
present  year:  the  Council  recommend  that  the  application  should  be  re- 
peated. 

(b)  The  Council  requested  the  President,  Mr.  Airy,  to  communicate  to 
Her  Majesty's  Government,  and  to  the  Court  of  Directors  of  the  East  India 
Company,  the  recommendation  approved  by  the  General  Committee,  that 
the  necessary  aid  should  be  given  for  the  speedy  publication  of  the  Bo- 
tanical Researches  of  Drs.  Hooker  and  Thomson,  Captain  Strachey  and  Mr. 
Winterbottom,  so  as  to  constitute,  by  combination  with  former  publications, 
a  general  Indian  Flora.  The  Council  have  been  informed  by  Mr.  Airy,  first, 
that  Dr.  Hooker  is  engaged  under  an  instruction  from  Government,  in 
arranging  his  materials  for  publication,  in  three  volumes,  the  first  of  which 
will  not  be  ready  before  November  1852 ;  and  that  no  immediate  application 


REPORT  OF  THE  COUNCIL.  XXV 

for  further  assistance  is  required ;  and  secondly,  that,  having  ascertained  the 
state  of  preparation  of  Dr.  Thomson's  researches,  he  has  laid  the  case  fully 
before  the  Court  of  Directors  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Melvill,  to  which  he  has  as 
yet  received  no  reply. 

(c)  The  Council  requested  the  President,  Mr.  Airy,  to  make  the  necessary 
application  to  the  Court  of  Directors  of  the  East  India  Company  to  afford 
Captain  Strachey  such  aid  as  would  enable  him  to  publish  his  explorations 
in  the  Himalaya  Mountains  and  in  Thibet,  with  the  necessary  maps  and 
illustrations;  and  have  learned  from  Mr.  Airy  that  he  has  been  informed 
that  the  Chairman  of  the  Court  of  Directors  has  signified  his  intention  of 
giving  to  Captain  Strachey  the  assistance  contemplated  by  the  Association, 
and  that  he  has  therefore  taken  no  further  step. 

"  II.  The  President,  as  one  of  the  Committee  for  Tidal  Observations  in  the 
Atlantic  appointed  by  the  General  Committee  at  Ipswich,  has  communicated 
to  the  Council  the  Memorial  which  the  Tidal  Committee  has  presented  to 
Government.    It  is  as  follows : — 

"  *  We  beg  leave  to  make  to  Her  Majesty's  Government  a  representation 
with  which  we  have  been  charged  by  the  British  Association  for  the  Ad- 
vancement of  Science,  respecting  the  importance  of  sending  out  a  ship  or 
ships  to  extend  our  acquaintance  with  the  phsenomena  of  the  Tides  of  the 
Atlantic  Ocean. 

"  '  The  importance  of  an  acquaintance  with  the  phsenomena  of  the  Tides, 
both  for  practical  and  theoretical  purposes,  is  sufficiently  obvious,  and  has 
been  recognised  by  the  Government  of  this  country  in  many  ways.     At 
most  of  the  points  of  our  own  coast,  and  at  several  places  in  other  countries, 
observations  have  long  been  made  which  suffice  for  most  of  these  purposes. 
But  perhaps  it  is  not  generally  understood  how  far  these  observations, 
hitherto,  are  from  giving  us  such  a  connected  knowledge  of  the  subject  as 
may  enable  us  to  follow  the  course  of  the  tide  over  any  considerable  portion 
of  the  Ocean.     Even  with  regard  to  our  own  shores,  such  accurate  know- 
ledge hardly  existed  till  observations  were  made  and  continued  for  a  fortnight 
at  the  coast-guard  stations  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  in  June  1834,  and 
again  in  June  1836.     On  the  latter  occasion  application  was  also  made  to 
foreign  maritime  states,  to  make  a  similar  and  simultaneous  series  of  obser- 
vations, the  Duke  of  Wellington,  at  that  time  Foreign  Secretary  of  State, 
promoting  the  object  in  a  manner  which  procured  from  them  the  most  cordial 
and  effective  co-operation.    The  results  of  these  observations  were  inserted 
and  discussed  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions  for  1836  (Part  II.) ;  and,  in 
consequence,  the  course  of  the  tides  along  the  shore  from  the  Strait  of 
Gibraltar  to  the  coast  of  Norway,  was  made  out,  as  to  some  general  features 
and  also  along  the  coast  of  the  United  States.     But  beyond  these  limits  we 
may  be  said  to  have  no  connected  knowledge  of  the  course  of  the  tides  of 
the  Atlantic ;  and  even  within  these  limits  it  is  impossible,  for  want  of  other 
observations,  to  connect  those  which  were  made ;  for  instance,  the  tides  on 
the  American  and  the  European  shores.     Along  the  coasts  of  Africa  and  of 
South  America  we  are  ignorant  of  the  course  and  progress  of  the  tides, 
although  we  know  some  of  the  phsenomena  at  detached  points,  and  know 
some  of  them  to  be  remarkable  and  perplexing.     Nor  is  it  at  all  likely  that 
these  defects  in  our  knowledge  will  be  removed  by  any  collection  of  de- 
tached observations.     It  is  only  by  systematic  observations  made  with  the 
express  view  of  connecting  our  knowledge  on  this  subject,  and  pursued  from 
place  to  place,  as  the  results  themselves  suggest,  that  we  shall  ever  obtain  a 
general  view  of  the  facts.     Such  observations  might  be  made  in  no  long 


xxvi  REPORT — 1852. 

time  if  an  expedition  were  sent  out  with  this  special  and  exclusive  object ; 
and  might,  in  that  case,  be  so  conducted  as  to  lead  with  certainty  to  the 
result. 

"  *  The  best  mode  of  making  observations  would,  probably,  be  found  to  be 
to  place  observing  parties  at  certain  distances  along  the  coast,  the  intervals 
being  various  according  to  the  nature  of  the  phsenomena;  and  to  direct 
them  to  make  simultaneous  observations  for  a  few  days,  and  then  to  proceed 
farther  along  the  coast  with  the  expedition ;  or  the  tides  at  any  place  might 
(on  any  day)  be  referred  to  the  moon's  transit,  and  this  would  afford  suffi- 
cient means  of  comparison  with  any  neighbouring  case,  unless  the  phseno- 
mena were  peculiar  In  this  way  the  progress  of  the  tide-wave  along  the 
coasts  of  Africa  and  America  would  be  determined ;  from  what  points  it 
diverges,  and  towards  what  points  it  converges  ;  the  latter  points  being,  it  is 
presumed,  generally  those  of  very  high  tides,  such  as  occur  on  the  east  coast 
of  Patagonia.  With  these  observations,  combined  with  others  at  oceanic 
islands,  the  general  course  of  the  tide  elevation  might  be  traced ;  and  if  this 
were  done  for  the  Atlantic,  it  would  be  the  first  time  that  the  course  of  the 
tide  in  such  an  ocean-space  has  been  made  known  to  us. 

"  *  It  would  also  be  desirable  to  observe  at  the  same  time  the  streams  of 
flood  and  ebb.  From  such  observations,  combined  with  those  of  High  and 
Low  water,  it  has  appeared  in  Captain  Beechey's  recent  researches,  results 
may  be  deduced,  giving  a  new  and  unexpected  view  of  the  tidal  movements 
of  the  sea,  and  supplying  knowledge  useful  for  the  practical  purposes  of 
navigation. 

"  *  As  has  been  said,  it  is  probable  that  an  expedition  devoted  especially  to 
such  a  purpose  might  attain  the  leading  features  of  the  required  results  in  no 
long  time ;  perhaps  in  a  year  or  eighteen  months.  This  must  be  on  the  sup- 
position that  it  did  not  attempt  to  follow  the  details  of  the  tides  out  of  the 
oceanic  space  into  collections  of  islands  like  the  West  Indies,  the  details  of 
which  would  employ  a  much  longer  time. 

"  *  One  ship,  with  several  boats  to  set  down  and  take  up  observing  parties, 
would  probably  be  the  fittest  scale  of  the  expedition  ;  and  standard  points, 
where  the  observations  shou\pi  be  longer  continued,  and  to  which  the  obser- 
vations at  secondary  points  should  be  referred,  would  be  established  from 
place  to  place  in  the  course  of  the  operations/ 

"III.  It  has  been  reported  to  the  Council,  by  the  officers  of  the  Associa- 
tion, that  from  accidental  circumstances,  the  three  following  recommenda- 
tions from  the  Committee  of  Section  C,  at  Ipswich,  had  not  reached  the 
Committee  of  Recommendations  in  sufficient  time  to  be  included  in  their 
Report  to  the  Committee  :— 

"1.  That  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  take  into  consideration  and  report 
upon  the  exact  position,  number  and  nature  of  the  phosphatic  beds  of  the 
Crag,  and  to  connect  this  subject  with  that  of  mineral  manures  generally 
with  reference  to  their  scientific  and  economic  value ;  and  further  to  investi- 
gate the  geological  conditions  under  which  the  so-called  '  Coprolites '  and 
other  drifted  Organic  and  Inorganic  bodies  occur  in  the  Red  Crag,  and  the 
probable  sources  from  which  these  bodies  have  been  respectively  derived. 
The  Committee  to  consist  of  Professor  Henslow,  Mr.  Searles  Wood  and 
Mr.  Long,  with  power  to  add  to  their  number. 

"  2.  That  Mr.  Searles  Wood  be  requested  to  prepare  for  the  next  meeting 
of  the  Association,  a  Report  of  the  observed  distribution  of  the  specific  forms 
of  Vertebrata  and  Invertebrata  in  the  supracretaceous  deposits  in  the  vicinity 
of  Ipswich. 


REPORT  OF  THE  COUNCIL.  XXVU 

"  3.  That  Mr.  Logan's  paper  on  the  Geology  of  Canada  be  printed  in  full 
in  the  next  volume  of  the  Reports  of  the  Association. 

"  The  Council  have  requested  the  gentlemen  named  iu  the  two  first  recom- 
mendations to  proceed  in  the  matters  referred  to,  pending  a  decision  of  the 
General  Committee,  that  may  be  taken  at  Belfast;  and  have  ordered  that 
Mr.  Logan's  paper  on  the  Geology  of  Canada  should  be  printed  in  full  in 
the  Ipswich  volume  of  Reports. 

M IV.  In  concurrence  with  the  Belfast  Provisional  Committee,  the  Council 
directed  that  the  meeting  should  commence  on  Wednesday,  the  1st  Sep- 
tember ;  and  requested  the  following  gentlemen  to  undertake  the  offices  of 
Presidents,  Vice-Presidents  and  Secretaries  of  Sections  respectively,  subject 
to  confirmation  by  the  General  Committee,  viz. — 

Section  A. — President,  William  Thomson,  Esq.,  Professor  of  Mathe- 
matics, Glasgow.    Vice-President,  Rt.  Rev.  Dr.  Denvir. 

Secretary  W.  J.  M.  Rankine,  Esq. 
B. — President,  Dr.  Andrews,  M.R.I.A.  Secretaries,  Dr.  Hodges, 

Dr.  Blyth. 
C. — President,  Lieutenant  Colonel  Portlock,  R.E.    Secretaries, 

James  M'Adam,  Esq.,  J.  Bryce,  Esq.,  Professor  Nicol, 

Professor  M'Coy. 
D. — President,  Wm.  Ogilby,  Esq.    Secretaries,  Dr.  Lankester, 

J.  C.  Hyndman,  Esq.,  Dr.  Dickie. 
E. — President,  Colonel  Chesney,  R.A.     Secretaries,  R.  Cull, 

Esq.,  Dr.  Norton  Shaw,  ft.  M'Adam. 
F. — President,   the  Archbishop  of  Dublin.    Vice-President, 

V.  Whitla,   Esq.    Secretaries,  Professor  Hancock,  J. 

M'Adam,  Esq.,  jun. 
G^— President,  James  Walker,  Esq.,  F.R.S.     Vice-President, 

C.  Lanyon,  Esq.,  C.E.    Secretary,  James  Thomson,  Esq., 

C.E. 

"  V.  The  Council  have  added  the  names  of  the  following  cultivators  of 
science  who  attended  at  the  Ipswich  meeting  to  the  list  of  Corresponding 
Members  of  the  British  Association : — 

M.  Babinet,  Paris. 

Mr.  P.  G.  Bond,  Cambridge,  U.S. 

M.  Dufrenoy,  Paris. 

M.  Constant  Prevost,  Paris. 

M.  Pierre  Tchihatchef,  Russian  Embassy,  Paris. 

Dr.  N.  Nordengsciold,  Finland. 

Professor  Asa  Gray,  U.S. 

"  VI.  The  Council  have  great  pleasure  in  submitting  the  following  list  of 
invitations  from  which  the  General  Committee  will  have  to  select  the  place 
of  meeting  in  1853,  viz. — 

"  Hull:  from  whence  invitations  were  also  received  in  1838,  1839,  1842, 
1849,  1850  and  1851 ;  in  which  invitations  the  Municipal  Council  and  all 
the  other  public  bodies  of  the  town  united. 

" Liverpool:  from  the  Mayor  and  Corporation;  the  Literary  and  Philo- 
sophical Society ;  the  Royal  Institution ;  the  Architectural  and  Archaeolo- 
gical Society ;  the  Polytechnic  Society ;  Historic  Society  of  Lancashire  and 
Cheshire;  being  a  renewal  of  the  invitation  presented  at  Edinburgh  in  1850. 

"  Brighton :  from  the  Earl  of  Chichester  and  sixty-eight  other  gentlemen, 


xxviii  REPORT — 1852, 

in  addition  to  the  application  made  to  the  meeting  at  Ipswich,  on  the  part  of 
the  Commissioners  of  Brighton,  by  their  clerk. 

"Glasgow:  from  the  Magistrates  and  Town  Council,  and  from  the 
Glasgow  Philosophical  Society. 

"Leeds:  for  a  meeting  some  year  after  the  year  1853. 

"  VII.  The  Council  are  happy  to  have  it  in  their  power  to  report  most 
favourably  on  the  proceedings  in  the  last  year  at  the  establishment  at  Kew. 
The  experimental  trial  of  Mr.  Ronalds  s  magnetographs,  which  was  in  pro- 
gress when  the  last  Report  of  the  Council  was  made,  has  been  completed, 
and  detailed  statements  of  the  performance  of  each  of  the  three  instruments 
have  been  furnished  by  Messrs.  Ronalds  and  Welsh,  and  are  inserted  in  the 
volume  of  Reports  for  1851.  The  Council  have  great  pleasure  in  referring 
to  these  statements  as  showing  that  Mr.  Ronalds's  adaptation  of  photography 
to  record  the  magnetic  variations  is  an  effective  and  practically  useful  in- 
vention, supplying  to  those  who  may  desire  it  the  means  of  making  and 
preserving  a  continuous  registry  of  the  phenomena.  The  processes  employed 
for  the  construction  and  verification  of  standard  thermometers,  have  proved 
remarkably  successful,  and  will  form  the  subject  of  a  distinct  and  detailed 
Report  from  the  Committee  of  the  Kew  Observatory.  The  thermometers 
prepared  by  Mr.  Welsh,  under  the  direction  of  the  Committee,  have  been 
found,  on  intercomparison,  and  also  on  comparison  with  Mr.  Regnault's 
standard,  to  furnish  results  highly  satisfactory.  They  have  already  been 
supplied  on  application  to  the  observatories  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  and 
Toronto,  and  to  several  persons  under  the  following  regulation  of  the 
Council : — *  That  standard  thermometers  made  at  Kew  be  supplied  on  ap- 
plication to  members  of  the  British  Association,  and  Fellows  of  the  Royal 
Society,  at  1/.  each/  The  Council  have  also  directed  that  the  Kew  Com- 
mittee be  authorized,  at  their  discretion,  to  supply  standard  thermometers 
on  official  application  to  any  department  of  Her  Majesty's  Government,  or 
to  the  East  India  Company ;  and  2nd,  that  the  Committee  be  authorized,  at 
their  discretion,  to  present  standard  mercurial  thermometers  to  certain  of 
the  philosophical  instrument  makers.  In  compliance  with  the  first  of  these- 
regulations,  the  Committee  have  supplied,  on  application  from  the  Admiralty, 
fourteen  thermometers  graduated  to  extreme  low  temperatures,  to  be  em- 
ployed in  the  Arctic  Expeditions;  and,  in  compliance  with  the  second 
regulation,  they  have  presented  standard  thermometers  to  each  of  the  follow* 
ing  artists,  viz. — Messrs.  Adie,  Barrow,  Watkins  and  Hill,  Negretti,  Newman, 
and  Simms.  Applications  have  been  received  from  Professors  James  Forbes 
of  Edinburgh,  and  William  Thomson  of  Glasgow,  for  suitable  thermometers 
for  very  delicate  experimental  researches  in  which  these  gentlemen  are  en- 
gaged, and  which  thermometers  are  now  in  preparation. 

"  The  preparations  for  the  construction  of  standard  barometers  are  far 
advanced  ;  and  with  a  view  to  the  further  prosecution  of  theie  objects,  the 
Committee  for  the  construction  and  verification  of  standard  instruments  have 
taken  steps  for  procuring  authentic  standards  of  length  and  weight,  by  placing 
themselves  in  communication  with  the  Commission  appointed  by  Her  Ma- 
jesty's Government  to  prepare  such  standards. 

"  At  the  request  of  the  East  India  Company,  twenty  sets  of  instruments 
for  proposed  meteorological  observations  in  India  have  been  examined  and 
verified  at  Kew. 

"  The  arrangements  required  for  Professor  Stokes's  experiments  have  been 
completed,  and  the  experiments  are  now  in  progress. 

"  The  Council  have  great  pleasure  in  repeating  their  former  expressions  of 


REPORT  OF  THE  PARLIAMENTARY  COMMITTEE.  XXIX 

entire  approbation  of  the  zeal  and  intelligence  with  which  Mr.  Welsh  con- 
tinues to  discharge  the  various  duties  entrusted  to  him  from  time  to  time, 
by  the  Superintending  Committee.  These  qualities  have  been  especially 
shown  in  the  manipulations  required  in  the  construction  of  the  standard  ther- 
mometers, and  in  the  processes  for  their  verification. 

"  At  the  request  of  the  Council,  the  Superintending  Committee  have  made 
arrangements  with  Mr.  Green  for  four  ascents  of  the  Nassau  balloon,  for  the 
purpose  of  investigating  the  meteorological  phenomena  of  the  atmosphere. 
Two  of  these  ascents  have  already  taken  place,  one  on  the  17th  and  the 
other  on  the  26th  of  August,  on  each  of  which  days  Mr.  Green  ascended 
to  between  19,000  feet  and  20,000  feet,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Welsh  and 
Mr.  Nicklin,  taking  with  them  instruments  prepared  in  the  Kew  Observatory. 
The  observations  made  in  these  two  ascents  had  reference  chiefly  to  the  laws 
of  the  decrement  of  temperature  and  of  aqueous  vapour  in  ascending  into 
the  atmosphere,  and  will  be  the  subject  of  a  communication  from  Mr.  Welsh 
to  the  Mathematical  and  Physical  Section* 

"  In  closing  this  report  of  the  proceedings  at  the  establishment  at  Kew,  the 
Council  are  glad  to  be  able  to  state  that  the  expenditure  during  the  year  has 
not  exceeded  the  sum  placed  at  their  disposal  by  the  General  Committee, 
and  that  there  are  no  debts ;  and  the  Council  strongly  recommend  that  the 
establishment  should  continue  to  receive  the  support  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation." 


Report  of  the  Parliamentary  Committee  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  presented  to  the. 
General  Committee  at  Belfast,  Wednesday,  September  1, 1852. 

The  Parliamentary  Committee*  have  the  honour  to  report  as  follows : — 

The  Committee  met  for  the  first  time  on  the  3rd  of  February  last,  they 
met  again  on  the  11th  of  March  and  on  the  17th  of  June. 

At  these  several  meetings  the  following,  among  other  business,  was  trans- 
acted. The  Committee  agreed  to  meet  yearly  on  the  day  succeeding  the 
meeting  of  Parliament,  and  on  the  second  Thursday  in  July. 

In  consequence  of  the  dissolution  of  Parliament,  the  meeting  of  June  was 
this  year  substituted  for  that  of  July.  The  Committee  resolved  to  cooperate 
with  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Royal  Society,  who  had  already  taken 
steps  in  this  behalf,  in  urging  upon  the  Government  the  expediency  of  facili- 
tating the  cheap  and  rapid  international  communication  of  scientific  publi- 
cations ;  and  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Society,  by  a  resolution  dated  the  19th 
of -February,  informed  this  Committee  that  they  would  be  much  gratified  by 
such  cooperation. 

In  pursuance  of  these  resolutions,  Lord  Wrottesley,  as  Chairman  of  this 
Committee,  in  company  with  the  Earl  of  Rosse  as  President,  and  Colonel 
Sabine  as  Treasurer  of  the  Royal  Society,  had,  on  the  10th  of  March,  an  in- 
terview with  Sir  Thomas  Freemantle,  the  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Customs, 
who  suggested  a  plan  by  which  eminent  scientific  individuals  and  institutions 
might  be  permitted  to  receive  from  abroad  their  presentation  copies  of  scien- 
tific works  duty  free,  through  the  medium  of  the  Royal  Society,  and  whereby 
certain  facilities  in  this  behalf  might  likewise  be  afforded  to  the  Smithsonian 
Institution  of  the  United  States,  in  return  for  privileges  conceded  to  that 
Institution  by  the  Government  of  those  States ;  and  he  recommended  that  a 
letter  should  be  written  to  the  Lords  of  the  Treasury  embodying  these  sug- 
gestions. 

1852.  c 


XXX 


BRPORT — 1852. 


In  conformity  with  this  recommendation  a  letter  was  addressed  to  the 
Lords  of  the  Treasury  by  the  Earl  of  Rosse,  as  President  of  the  Royal  So- 
ciety, in  concurrence  with  Lord  Wrottesley  as  Chairman  of  this  Committee. 
To  this  letter  no  reply  has  as  yet  been  received. 

With  the  view  of  promoting  the  same  general  object,  vis.  the  cheap  and 
rapid  international  communication  of  scientific  publications,  it  was  resolved 
that  Lord  Wrottesley  should  address,  and  he  addressed  accordingly,  a  letter 
to  the  Earl  of  Malmesbury,  as  Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs,  of  which  the 
following  is  a  copy : — 

"  Mareh  15, 1852. 

"My  Lord, — As  Chairman  of  a  Committee  composed  of  Members  of  both 
Houses  of  Parliament,  selected  by  the  British  Association  for  the  Advance- 
ment of  Science,  to  watch  over  the  interests  of  science  and  inspect  the  various 
measures  from  time  to  time  introduced  into  Parliament  likely  to  affect  such 
interests,  and  which  met  for  the  first  time  on  the  3rd  of  February  last,  I  am 
requested  to  represent  to  your  Lordship  the  great  inconvenience  to  which 
the  cultivators  of  the  various  branches  of  science  in  this  country  are  now  ex- 
posed by  the  extravagant  charges  levied  by  Foreign  Governments  on  the 
conveyance  by  post  of  Presentation  Copies  of  Scientific  Publications  sent  from 
this  country  to  eminent  scientific  men,  pursuing  similar  branches  of  science 
in  foreign  parts ;  and  I  am  further  directed  respectfully  to  request  your  Lord- 
ship, by  negotiating  Postal  Conventions  or  otherwise  as  you  shall  think  pro- 
per, to  endeavour  to  prevail  on  the  governments  of  other  countries  to  afford 
greater  facilities  for  the  transmission  by  post  of  such  publications. 

14  The  undersigned  believes  that  he  cannot  better  illustrate  the  extent  of 
the  evils  complained  of  than  by  subjoining  the  following  list  of  charges  for 
the  conveyance  by  post  to  the  various  countries  named  therein,  of  a  commu- 
nication printed  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions  for  1851,  and  which  was 
conveyed  by  our  own  post  office  to  every  place  within  the  United  Kingdom 
at  a  charge  of  8d. : — 

s.  d. 

ToModena 14  10 

Palermo 15  0 

Milan 18  4 

Turin 12  8 

Padua    18  4 

Bonn .* 9  0 

11  Your  Lordship  will  at  once  perceive  that  such  charges  as  these  are  far 
beyond  the  moans  of  many  of  the  most  distinguished  cultivators  of  science, 
who  are  absolutely  disabled  thereby  from  forwarding  by  post  to  their  friends 
abroad  the  copies  of  their  scientific  memoirs  which  are  presented  to  them 
gratuitously  for  the  purpose  of  distribution  by  the  respective  societies,  to 
which  such  communications  are  sent  and  in  whose  Transactions  they  appear. 

"  From  this  cause,  combined  with  the  duties  levied  at  the  Custom  House  on 
similar  publications  imported  from  abroad,  at  present  the  interests  of  science 
are  very  injuriously  affected,  for  it  happens  continually,  to  use  the  expressions 
of  the  Treasurer  of  the  Royal  Society  in  a  letter  addressed  to  the  under- 
signed, *  That  a  quantity  of  intellectual  labour  of  a  very  high  class  is  un- 
productively  consumed  in  doing  over  again  in  one  country  that  which  has 
already  been  done  in  another,  from  the  want  of  a  more  rapid  interchange  of 
knowledge.' 

11  Mr.  Rowland  Hill  of  the  Post  Office  Department,  has  suggested  a  mode 


#. 

£ 

To  Berlin    

9 

0 

Seeberg 

....      9 

0 

Dreissen    

....      9 

0 

Brussels 

....      5 

0 

Cadiz 

....     7 

4 

Gdttingen" 

....     6 

0 

BEPORT  OF  THE  PARLIAMENTARY  COMMITTEE.  XXXI 

by  which  these  evils  might  be  remedied,  viz.  if  Foreign  Countries  could  be 
induced  to  adopt  the  arrangement,  by  which  books  are  now  forwarded  to 
some  of  our  Colonies,  at  charges  very  reasonable  as  compared  with  the  above* 

"  I  remain,  &c, 

"  Wrottesley." 

To  the  above  letter  the  following  reply  was  received  from  Mr.  Addington, 
the  Under  Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs: — 

44  Foreign  Office,  March  17, 1852. 
"  My  Lord, — I  am  directed  by  the  Earl  of  Malmesbury  to  acquaint  your 
Lordship  that  he  has  referred  to  the  Postmaster-General  your  letter  of  the 
15th  inst,  urging  that  steps  be  taken  by  Her  Majesty's  Government  to  induce 
Foreign  Governments  to  reduce  their  rates  of  Postage  on  printed  papers,  with 
a  view  of  facilitating  the  distribution  of  scientific  works. 

"  I  am,  &c, 

"  H.  U.  Addington." 

The  Committee  also  requested  Lord  Wrottesley  and  Sir  Robert  Inglis  to 
represent  to  the  Earl  of  Derby  the  inadequacy  of  the  present  fund  out  of 
which  Pensions  are  provided  in  certain  cases  for  eminent  scientific  men. 

In  pursuance  of  this  resolution  Lord  Wrottesley  and  Sir  Robert  Inglis  re- 
quested and  obtained  an  interview  with  the  Earl  of  Derby  on  the  19th  of  March 
last,  at  which  they  directed  his  attention  to  the  ill-success  which  had  lately 
attended  the  applications  for  Scientific  Pensions,  and  instanced  the  cases  of 
Mr.  Hind  and  Dr.  Mantell,  in  whose  behalf  the  Earl  of  Rosse,  as  President 
of  the  Royal  Society,  had  applied  for  a  grant  of  Pensions. 

The  Earl  of  Derby,  in  reply,  stated  it  to  be  the  wish  of  the  Government 
to  apportion  the  fund  equitably  amongst  all  the  separate  classes  into  which 
the  List  is  divided,  or  to  that  effect,  and  requested  to  know  the  share  of  the 
whole  fund  which  had  in  fact  been  allotted  to  Science.  In  answer  to  this 
latter  question  Lord  Wrottesley  addressed  to  the  Earl  of  Derby  a  letter,  of 
which  the  following  is  a  copy  :— 

"  Wrottesley,  April  24, 1852. 

"  Dear  Lord  Derby, — When  I  had  the  honour  of  an  interview  with  you 
in  the  matter  of  Pensions  to  Scientific  men,  you  asked  me  for  the  exact 
amount  of  those  that  had  been  granted  in  favour  of  Science.  I  could  not 
answer  this  question,  as  I  had  not  then  been  able  to  obtain  either  the  earliest 
or  latest  returns.  I  have  since  procured  all  the  papers  and  the  account  stands 
as  follows:  out  of  £16,800  (1200 X 14),  the  total  sum  granted  for  Pensions, 
since  the  Civil  List  was  settled  at  the  commencement  of  the  Queen's  reign, 
a  sum  of  £2150  has  been  appropriated  to  Scieuce,  properly  so  called,  or  not 
quite  13  per  cent 

"  I  give  this  detail  because  it  was  required  from  me ;  but  I  would  not  be 
understood  to  ground  any  argument  upon  it :  our  complaint  is,  that  in*  a 
country  like  this,  which  owes  so  much  to  Science,  there  should  be  at  any 
time  no  means  of  rewarding,  either  by  money  payments,  or  in  any  other 
manner  both  appropriate  and  acceptable  to  the  candidates  for  distinction, 
cases  of  great  merit,  which  have  been  brought  to  the  notice  of  the  Govern* 
ment  by  Scientific  Societies  in  whose  recommendations  confidence  may  be 
securely  reposed.  1  say  Scientific  Societies,  for  however  trustworthy  an  in- 
dividual may  be,  there  can  never  be  the  same  reliance  on  a  single  opinion  in 
cases  of  this  description  •. 

•  •••••• 

"  I  may  add,  that  when  I  saw  you  I  was  not  aware  that  Lord  Rosse  had 

*  A  paragraph  is  here  omitted  as  referring  to  personal  matters. 

c2 


xxxii  report — 1852. 

applied  on  behalf  of  Mr.  Ronalds  of  the  Kew  Observatory,  and  that  this 
would  likewise  seem  to  be  a  very  deserving  case;  it  was  favourably  enter- 
tained, but  the  funds  were  exhausted*. 

"  Yours,  &c, 

"  Wrotteslby." 

In  closing  their  Report  the  Committee  cannot  but  express  a  hope  that 
their  negotiations  with  the  Government,  with  respect  to  the  cheap  and  rapid 
international  communication  of  scientific  works,  may  ultimately  result  in  the 
complete  accomplishment  of  this  desirable  object. 

June  17th,  1852. 


Recommendations  adopted  by  the  General  Committee  at  the 
Belfast  Meeting  in  September  1852. 

Involving  Grants  of  Money. 

That  the  sum  of  £200  be  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  Council  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  establishment  of  the  Observatory  at  Kew. 

That  Dr.  Hodges  be  requested  to  investigate  the  chemical  changes  which 
are  observed  to  occur  in  the  technical  preparation  of  flax ;  and  that  £20  be 
placed  at  his  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

That  Mr.  Robert  Hunt  and  Dr.  Gladstone  be  requested  to  continue  their 
experiments  on  the  influence  of  the  solar  radiations  on  chemical  combinations, 
electrical  phaenomena,  and  the  vital  powers  of  plants  growing  under  different 
atmospheric  conditions ;  with  £15  at  their  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

That  Mr.  Mallet  be  requested  to  continue  his  experiments  on  the  propa- 
gation of  earthquake  waves,  availing  himself  of  the  operations  now  carrying 
on  at  Holyhead  ;  with  £50  at  his  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

•That  Dr.  Lankester,  Professor  Owen,  and  Dr.  Dickie,  be  a  Committee  to 
continue  the  superintendence  of  the  publication  of  tabular  forms  in  reference 
to  periodical  phaenomena  of  animals  and  vegetables  ;  with  £10  at  their  dis- 
posal for  the  purpose. 

That  Mr.  H.  £.  Strickland,  Dr.  Lindley,  and  the  other  members  of  a 
Committee  already  named,  be  requested  to  continue  their  experiments  on 
the  vitality  of  seeds ;  with  £5  10*.  at  their  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

That  Mr.  R.  Patterson,  Dr.  Dickie,  Mr.  Hyndman,  and  Mr.  Grainger,  be 
requested  to  carry  out  a  system  of  dredging*  on  the  North  and  East  coasts 
of  Ireland;  with  £10  at  their  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

That  Mr.  Wyville  Thomson,  Professor  Balfour,  Professor  Goodsir,  Mr. 
Peach,  and  Dr.  Greville,  be  requested  to  carry  out  a  system  of  dredging  on 
the  East  coast  of  Scotland  ;  with  £15  at  their  disposal. 

That  Professor  E.  Forbes  and  Professor  T.  Bell  be  requested  to  assist  in 
the  publication  of  the  remaining  part  of  Dr.  Williams's  Report  on  the  Struc- 
ture of  the  Annelida;  with  £10  at  their  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

That  the  sum  of  £5  be  granted  for  defraying  the  expenses  attending  the 
distribution  of  a  Manual  of  Ethnological  Inquiry  prepared  by  Mr.  Cull  and 
a  Sub-committee  appointed  in  1851. 

That  a  large  outline  Map  of  the  World  be  provided  for  the  use  of  the 
Geographers  and  Ethnologers;  and  that  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison,  the  Lord 
Bishop  of  St.  Asaph,  and  the  Secretaries  of  the  Geographical  and  Eth- 
nological Societies,  be  a  Committee  for  carrying  this  into  effect;  with  £15  at 
their  disposal  for  the  purpose. 

*  See  page  lxi. 


RESEARCHES  IX  SCIENCE.  XXX1U 

Involving  Application  to  Government  or  Public  Institutions. 

That  in  order  to  meet  the  growing  wants  of  science,  and  remedy,  in  some 
degree,  the  inconvenience  caused  to  its  cultivators  by  the  dissociated,  incom- 
plete, and  discontinuous  publication  of  scientific  researches,  it  is  expedient 
that  the  British  Association,  which,  by  its  constitution,  includes  representa- 
tives of  the  various  scientific  institutions  of  the  empire,  should  propose  such 
general  views  on  the  subject  as  may  be  suggested  by  the  experience  of  its 
members. 

That  a  Committee  be  formed  for  the  purpose  of  considering  of  a  plan  by 
which  the  Transactions  of  different  Scientific  Societies  may  become  part  of 
one  arranged  system,  and  the  records  of  facts  aud  phenomena  be  rendered 
more  complete,  more  continuous,  and  more  convenient  than  at  present. 

That  it  be  an  instruction  to  this  Committee  to  place  itself  in  communica* 
cation  with  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Society,  and  the  Councils  of  other  Sci- 
entific Societies  which  receive  scientific  communications  at  regular  meetings. 

That  the  Committee  consist  of  Prof.  W.  Thomson,  Prof.  Andrews,  Leo- 
nard Horner,  Esq.,  Prof.  Owen,  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison,  Col.  Sykes,  W.  J.  Ran- 
kine,  Esq.,  J.  C.  Adams,  Esq.,  Dr.  Lloyd,  Prof.  Wilson,  Dr.  Robinson,  Prof. 
Bell,  Prof.  Graham,  \V.  R.  Grove,  Esq.,  Sir  D.  Brewster,  and  ex  officio  the 
General  Officers,  with  power  to  add  to  their  number. 

That  it  is  important  to  have  a  Quarterly  Record  of  British  and  Foreign 
scientific  publications  and  discoveries,  and  that  the  consideration  of  the  prac- 
ticability of  obtaining  this  be  referred  to  the  same  Committee. 

That  a  representation  be  made  to  the  Royal  Society  of  the  importance  at- 
tached by  M.  Otto  Strove"  to  the  determination  of  the  constant  of  " Irradiation" 
for  the  Huyghenian  object-glass  of  123  feet  radius. 

That  it  is  expedient  to  proceed  without  delay  with  the  establishment  in 
the  Southern  Hemisphere  of  a  Telescope  not  inferior  in  power  to  a  three 
feet  reflector ;  and  that  the  President,  with  the  assistance  of  the  following 
gentlemen,  viz.  Lord  Rosse,  Dr.  Robinson,  Lord  Wrottesley,  J.  C.  Adams, 
Esq.,  the  Astronomer  Royal,  J.  Nasmyth,  Esq.,  W.  Lassell,  Esq.,  Sir  D. 
Brewster,  and  E.  J.  Cooper,  Esq.,  be  requested  to  take  such  steps  as  they 
shall  deem  most  desirable  to  carry  out  the  preceding  Resolution. 

That  the  publication  of  the  reduction  upon  a  scale  of  one  inch  to  the  mile 
of  the  Townland  Survey  of  Ireland,  ordered  to  be  made  in  connection  with 
the  Geological  Survey  by  the  Ordnance,  and  for  which  a  vote  was  taken  for 
1852-53,  upon  the  Estimates  of  that  department,  be  recommended  to  the 
Government  to  be  accelerated. 

That  the  Council  of  the  British  Association  be  requested  to  continue  their 
efforts  to  obtain  the  assistance  of  the  Government  for  the  publication  of  Mr. 
Huxley's  researches. 

That,  with  the  view  of  obtaining  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  countries 
on  and  near  the  Eastern  coast  of  Africa,  from  the  Red  Sea  to  10°  S.  lat.,  the 
very  important  products  of  which  have  been  enumerated  by  the  late  Sir 
Charles  Malcolm  and  Mr.  D.  Cooley,  the  British  Association  do  call  the 
attention  of  the  Court  of  Directors  of  the  Honourable  the  East  India  Com- 
pany, to  the  desirableness  of  sending  an  expedition  thoroughly  to  explore 
that  region,  as  recommended  by  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  of  London. 
The  deputation  to  consist  of  the  President  of  the  British  Association,  and 
the  President  and  Vice-Presidents  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society. 

That  most  important  meteorological  data  are  attainable  by  balloon  ascents ; 
and  that  the  Council  be  requested  to  solicit  the  cooperation  of  the  Royal 
Society  in  this  investigation. 


xzxiv  REPORT— 1852. 

That  it  >  important  that  Professor  W.  Thomson  and  Mr.  J.  P.  Joule  be 
enabled  to  make  a  series  of  experiments,  on  a  large  scale,  on  the  thermal 
effects  experienced  by  air  in  rushing  through  small  apertures ;  and  that  a 
representation  to  this  effect  be  made  to  the  Royal  Society. 

That  the  Government  be  requested,  on  the  part  of  the  British  Association, 
to  connect  with  the  survey  of  the  Gulf-stream  an  examination  of  the  Zoology 
and  Botany  of  that  current ;  and  also  of  the  temperature  of  the  sea  round 
the  shores  of  the  British  Islands. 

The  Committee  having  been  informed  that  an  expedition  has  been  pro- 
posed for  ascending  the  Niger  to  its  source,  by  Lieut  Lyons  Macleod,  R.N. ; 
and  that  it  has  been  recommended  to  Her  Majesty's  Government  by  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society  and  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  Manchester,  resolve 
that  the  President  be  requested  to  concur  with  the  President  of  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society  in  bringing  the  subject  before  the  Government 

The  Committee  having  understood  that  Dr.  Bakie,  Mr.  A.  Adams  and  Mr. 
W.  T.  Alexander,  each  of  them  in  the  medical  branch  of  Her  Majesty's  Navy, 
have  proposed  to  undertake  a  thorough  exploration  of  the  countries  watered 
by  the  river  Magdalena  in  South  America,  in  respect  to  their  botanical, 
zoological,  and  geological  products,  on  the  condition  of  being  allowed  their 
full  pay,  request  the  President  of  the  Association  and  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison 
to  urge  the  Government  to  accede  to  this  proposition. 

The  Committee  being  aware  of  the  liberality  with  which  the  Master- 
General  and  Board  of  Ordnance  have  supplied  the  several  engineer  stations 
with  instruments  for  meteorological  observations,  would  suggest  the  advan- 
tage of  adding  to  their  instruments,  in  the  Ionian  Islands,  others  for  measu- 
ring the  direction  and  amount  of  earthquake  vibrations,  so  frequent  in  these 
islands. 

That  a  systematic  collection  of  the  Agricultural  Statistics  of  Great  Britain, 
of  a  similar  nature  with  the  returns  of  the  agricultural  produce  of  Ireland, 
prepared  under  the  care  of  Major  Larcom,  R.E.,  is  a  desideratum,  and  would 
be  of  great  public  utility ;  and  that  the  President,  Mr.  Heywood,  Major 
Larcom  and  Col.  Sykes,  be  requested  to  communicate  the  above  resolution 
to  Her  Majesty's  Government. 

That  a  Committee,  consisting  of  Rev.  Dr.  Robinson,  Prof.  C.  P.  Smyth, 
W.  Fairbairn,  Esq.,  W.  J.  M.  Rankine,  Esq.,  C.E.,  and  W.  S.  Ward,  Esq., 
be  requested  to  take  into  consideration  the  methods  of  cooling  air  for  the 
ventilation  of  buildings  in  tropical  climates  by  mechanical  processes,  and 
should  they  see  fit  to  prepare  a  memorial  in  the  name  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation to  the  Hon.  the  East  India  Company,  representing  the  advantage  of 
making  a  trial  of  a  process  of  that  kind  on  a  large  scale,  e.g*  in  a  hospital. 

Not  involving  Grants  of  Money  or  Application  to  Government,  fyc. 

That  the  thanks  of  the  British  Association  be  given  to  the  Smithsonian 
Institution  for  the  communication  of  Charts  illustrating  the  plan  adopted  by 
that  Institution  for  deducing  the  general  facts  of  the  Meteorology  of  North 
America,  bearing  on  the  laws  of  the  great  North  American  Storms ;  and 
that  it  be  referred  to  the  Council  to  consider  what  steps  it  may  be  advisable 
to  take  for  the  purpose  of  extending  the  system  of  observations  over  the 
British  portion  of  North  America. 

That  the  thanks  of  the  British  Association  be  given  to  Prof.  Dove  for  his 
valuable  communication  respecting  the  lines  of  abnormal  temperature  on  the 
globe ;  and  that  it  be  referred  to  the  Council  to  consider  of  the  expediency 
of  procuring  copies  of  the  map  of  the  abnormal  temperatures  in  different 
months  of  the  year,  for  the  supply  of  members  of  the  Association. 


RESEARCHES  IN  SCIENCE.  XXXV 

That  Mr.  Sylvester  be  requested  to  draw  up  a  complete  Report  on  the 
Theory  of  Determinants,  to  be  laid  before  the  next  meeting  of  the  Associa- 
tion. 

That  the  Earl  of  Rosse,  Dr.  Robinson,  and  Professor  Phillips  be  requested 
to  draw  up  a  Report  on  the  physical  character  of  the  moon's  surface  as  com- 
pared with  that  of  the  earth. 

Printing  of  Communications. 

That  the  observations  of  mean  daily  temperature  and  fell  of  rain  at  127 
stations  of  the  Bengal  Presidency,  be  printed  at  length  in  the  next  volume 
of  Transactions. 

That  Mr.  James  Thomson's  paper,  on  Vortex  Water-wheels,  be  printed  at 
length  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Association. 


Synopsis  of  Grants  of  Money  appropriated  to  Scientific  Objects  by  the 
General  Committee  at  the  Belfast  Meeting  in  Sept.  1852,  with  the 
Name  of  the  Member,  who  aline,  or  as  the  First  of  a  Committee,  is 
'  entitled  to  draw  for  the  Money. 

Kew  Observatory.  £     s.  d. 

At  the  disposal  of  the  Council  for  defraying  Expenses 200    0    0 

Chemical  Science. 

Hodges,  Prof—-Researches  on  Chemical  Changes  in  the  pre- 
paration of  Flax 20    0    0 

Hunt,  Mr.  R. — Influence  of  the  Solar  Radiations  on  Chemical 
Combinations,  Electrical  Phenomena,  and  the  Vital  Powers 
of  Plants  growing  under  different  atmospheric  conditions.      15    0    0 

Geology. 
Mallet,  Mr.  R. — Experiments  on  the  Propagation  of  Earth- 
quake Waves , 50    0    0 

Natural  History. 
Lankbster,  Dr.  E. — Periodical  Phenomena  of  Animals  and 

Vegetables 10    0    0 

Patterson,  Mr.  R. — Dredging  on  the  North  and  East  Coasts 

of  Ireland   10    0    0 

Strickland,  Prof.  H.  E.— Vitality  of  Seeds 5  10    0 

Thomson,  Mr.Wy  ville. — Dredging  on  the  East  Coast  of  Scotland      15    0    0 
Forbes,  Prof.  E. — Researches  on  Annelida    10    0    0 

Geography  and  Ethnology. 

Cull,  Mr.  R. — Manual  of  Ethnological  Inquiry    5    0    0 

Murchison,  Sir  R.  I. — Large  outline  Map  of  the  World ....        15    0    0 

Grants £355  10    0 


XXJCtl 


REPORT — 1852. 


General  Statement  of  Sums  which  have  been  paid  on  Account  of  Grants  for  Scien* 

tjfic  Purposes, 


1834. 

Jt    s.  d. 

Tide  Discussions 20    0  0 

1835. 

Tide  Discussions 62    0  0 

British  Fossil  Ichthyology. .    105    0  0 

.£167    0  6 

1836. 

Tide  Discussions 163    0  0 

British  Fossil  Ichthyology. .    105    0  0 
Thermometric  Observations, 

&c 50    0  0 

Experiments  on  long-conti- 
nued Heat  17     1  0 

Rain  Gauges 9  13  0 

Refraction  Experiments. ...      15    0  0 

Lunar  Nutation 60    0  0 

Thermometers    15    6  0 

.€434  14  0 

1837. 

Tide  Discussions 284     1  0 

Chemical  Constants 24  13  6 

Lunar  Nutation 70    0  0 

Observations  on  Waves 100  12  0 

Tides  at  Bristol 150    0  0 

Meteorology  and  Subterra- 
nean Temperature 8.9    5  3 

Vitrification  Experiments  . .    150    0  0 

Heart  Experiments.  . 8    4  6 

Barometric  Observations  . .     30    0  0 

Barometers 11  18  6 

.£918  14  6 

■BBBBBB 

1838. 

Tide  Discussions 29    0  0 

British  Fossil  Fishes 100    0  0 

Meteorological  Observations 
and  Anemometer  (con- 
struction)        100    0  0 

Cast  Iron  (strength  of) 60    0  0 

Animal  and  Vegetable  Sub- 
stances (preservation  of)      19     1  10 

Railway  Constants 41  12  10 

Bristol  Tides 50    0  0 

Growth  of  Plants 75    0  0 

Mud  in  Rivers 3    6  6 

Education  Committee 50    0  0 

Heart  Experiments 5    3  0 

Land  and  Sea  Level 267    8  7 

Carried  forward  .£800  12  9 


£    s.  d. 

Brought  forward  800  12  9 

Subterranean  Temperature         8    6  0 

Steam-vessels 100    0  0 

Meteorological  Committee        31     9  5 

Thermometers 16    4  0 

.£956  12  2 

1839. 

Fossil  Ichthyology 110    0  0 

Meteorological  Observations 

at  Plymouth   63  10  0 

Mechanism  of  Waves 144    2  0 

Bristol  Tides 35  18  6 

Meteorology  and  Subterra- 
nean Temperature 21  11  0 

Vitrification  Experiments  . .       9    4  7 

Cast  Iron  Experiments 100    0  0 

Railway  Constants 28     7  2 

Land  and  Sea  Level 274     1  4 

Steam-Vessels' Engines. .. .    100    0  0 

Stars  in  Histoire  Celeste   . .   331  18  6 

Stars  in  Lacaille 11    0  0 

Stars  in  R.A.S.  Catalogue. .       6  16  6 

Animal  Secretions 10  10  0 

Steam-engines  in  Cornwall       50    0  0 

Atmospheric  Air 16     1  0 

Cast  and  Wrought  Iron 40    0  0 

Heat  on  Organic  Bodies. ...       300 

Gases  on  Solar  Spectrum  . .     22    0  0 
Hourly  Meteorological  Ob- 
servations, Inverness  and 

Kingussie    49    7  8 

Fossil  Reptiles 118    2  9 

Mining  Statistics 50    0  0 

.£1595  11  0 

1840. 

Bristol  Tides 100    0  0 

Subterranean  Temperature  .     13  13  6 

Heart  Experiments    18  19  0 

Lungs  Experiments   8  13  0 

Tide  Discussions    60    0  0 

Land  and  Sea  Level 6  11  1 

Stars  (Histoire  Celeste)....   242  10  0 

Stars  (Lacaille) 4  15  0 

Stars  (Catalogue) 264    0  0 

Atmospheric  Air 15  15  0 

Water  on  Iron    10    0  0 

Heat  on  Organic  Bodies    . .       7    0  0 

Meteorological  Observations    52  17  6 

Foreign  Scientific  Memoirs     112     1  6 

Working  Population 100    0  0 

Carried  forward  ^1006  15  7 


GENERAL  STATEMENT. 


xxxvu 


£  8.  d. 

Brought  forward  1006  15  7 

School  Statistics 50  0  0 

Forma  of  Vessels    184  7  0 

Chemical     and     Electrical 

Phenomena    40  0  0 

Meteorological  Observations 

at  Plymouth    80  0  0 

Magnetical  Observations  ..    185  13  9 

.£1546  16  4 

1841. 

Observations  on  Waves 30  0  0 

Meteorology  and  Subterra- 
nean Temperature 8  8  0 

Actinometers 10  0  0 

Earthquake  Shocks    17  7  0 

Acrid  Poisons 6  0  0 

Veins  and  Absorbents    ....       3  0  0 

Mud  in  Rivers    5  0  0 

Marine  Zoology 15  12  8 

Skeleton  Maps   20  0  0 

Mountain  Barometers    ....       6  18  6 

Stars  (Histoire  Celeste)....    185  0  0 

Stars  (Lacaille) 79  5  0 

Stars  (Nomenclature  of)    ..      17  19  6 

Stars  (Catalogue  of) 40  0  0 

Water  on  Iron    50  0  0 

Meteorological  Observations 

at  Inverness    20  0  0 

Meteorological  Observations 

(reduction  of) 25  0  0 

Fossil  Reptiles    50  0  0 

Foreign  Memoirs   62  0  0 

Railway  Sections    38  1  6 

Forms  of  Vessels   193  12  0 

Meteorological  Observations 

at  Plymouth   55  0  0 

Magnetical  Observations  . .     61  18  8 
Fishes  of  the  Old  Red  Sand- 
stone        100  0  0 

Tides  at  Leith 50  0  0 

Anemometer  at  Edinburgh       69  1  10 

Tabulating  Observations    ..       9  6  3 

RacesofMen 5  0  0 

Radiate  Animals 2  0  0 

j€1235  10  11 

1842. 

Dynamometric  Instruments    113  11  2 

Anoplura  Britannia   52  12  0 

Tides  at  Bristol 59  8  0 

Gases  on  Light 30  14  7 

Chronometers 26  1 7  6 

Marine  Zoology 1  5  0 

British  Fossil  Mammalia  . .    100  0  0 

Statistics  of  Education 20  0  0 

Marine   Steam-vessels'   En- 
gines      28  0  0 

Carried  forward  .€432  8  3 


£  s.  d. 

Brought  forward  432  8  3 

Stars  (Histoire  Celeste)....     59  0  0 
Stars    (British    Association 

Catalogue  of) 110  0  0 

Railway  Sections    161  10  0 

British  Belemnites 50  0  0 

Fossil  Reptiles  (publication 

of  Report) 210  0  0 

Forms  of  Vessels    180  0  0 

Galvanic    Experiments    on 

Rocks 5  8  6 

Meteorological  Experiments 

at  Plymouth   68  0  0 

Constant  Indicator  and  Dy- 
namometric Instruments       90  0  0 

Force  of  Wind    10  0  0 

Light  on  Growth  of  Seeds. .       8  0  0 

Vital  Statistics    50  0  0 

Vegetative  Power  of  Seeds. .    .8  1  11 

Questions  on  Human  Race  .      7  9  0 

jg!449  17  8 

1843. 

Revision  of  the  Nomencla- 
ture of  Stars   •   2    0    0 

Reduction  of  Stars,  British 
Association  Catalogue    . .     25    0    0 

Anomalous  Tides,  Frith  of 

Forth 120    0    0 

Hourly  Meteorological  Ob- 
servations at  Kingussie 
and  Inverness 77  12    8 

Meteorological  Observations 
at  Plymouth   55    0    0 

Whewell's  Meteorological 
Anemometer  at  Plymouth    10    0    0 

Meteorological  Observations, 
Osier's  Anemometer  at 
Plymouth 20    0    0 

Reduction  of  Meteorological 
Observations 30    0    0 

Meteorological  Instruments 
and  Gratuities 39    6    0 

Construction  of  Anemometer 
at  Inverness    56  12    2 

Magnetic  Co-operation  ....      10    8  10 

Meteorological  Recorder  for 

Kew  Observatory   50    0    0 

Action  of  Gases  on  Light . .      18  16    1 

Establishment  at  Kew  Ob- 
servatory, Wages,  Repairs, 
Furniture  and  Sundries . .    133    4     7 

Experiments     by     Captive 

Balloons 81     8    0 

Oxidation  of  the  Rails  of 
Railways 20    0    0 

Publication  of  Report  on 
Fossil  Reptiles 40    0    0 

Carried  forward  .€789    8    4 


XXXVU1 


BEPORT-~1852. 


£     t.    d. 
Brought  forward  789    8    4 

Coloured  Drawings  of  Rail- 
way Section* 147  18    3 

Registration  of  Earthquake 
Shock* 30    0    0 

Report  on  Zoological  No- 
menclature       10    0    0 

Uncovering  Lower  Red  Sand- 
atone  near  Manchester  . .       4    4    6 

Vegetative  Power  of  Seeds  .538 

Marine  Testaoea  (Habits  of)     10    0    0 

Marine  Zoology 10    0    0 

Marine  Zoology 2  14  11 

Preparation   of   Report   on 

British  Fossil  Mammalia  .  100    0    0 

Physiological  operations   of 

Medicinal  Agents  20    0    0 

Vital  Statistics    36    5    8 

Additional  Experiments  on 
the  Forms  of  Vessels....     70    0    0 

Additional  Experiments  on 
the  Forms  of  Vessels....    100    0    0 

Reduction  of  Observations  on 
the  Forms  of  Vessels....    100    0    0 

Morin's  Instrument  and  Con- 
stant Indicator   69  14  10 

Experiments  on  the  Strength 

of  Materials 60    0    0 

£1565  10    2 

1844. 

Meteorological  Observations 
at  Kingussie  and  Inverness    12    0    0 

Completing  Observations  at 

Plymouth    35    0    0 

Magnetic  and  Meteorological 
Co-operation 25    8    4 

Publication  of  the  British 
Association  Catalogue  of 
Stars    35    0    0 

Observations  on  Tides  on  the 
East  coast  of  Scotland  ..100    0    0 

Revision  of  the  Nomencla- 
ture of  Stars  1842      2    9    6 

Maintaining  the  Establish* 
ment  in  Kew  Observatory  117  17    3 

Instruments  for  Kew  Ob- 
servatory  *56    7    3 

Influence  of  Light  on  Plants    10    0    0 

Subterraneous  Temperature 
in  Ireland    5    0    0 

Coloured  Drawings  of  Rail- 
way Sections  15  17    6 

Investigation  of  Fossil  Fishes 
of  the  Lower  Tertiary 
Strata 100    0    0 

Registering  the  Shocks  of 
Earthquakes,  1842 23  11  10 

Carried  forward  £538  11    8 


£  i.  d. 
Brought  forward  538  11  8 
Researches  into  the  Struc- 
ture of  Fossil  Shells  ....  20  0  0 
Radiata  and  Molluscs  of  the 

.figean  and  Red  Seas,  1842  100  0  0 
Geographical  distributions  of 

Marine  Zoology 1842      0  10    0 

Marine  Zoology  of  Devon 

and  Cornwall 10    0    0 

Marine  Zoology  of  Corfu  . .  10  0  0 
Experiments  on  the  Vitality 

of  Seeds 9    0    3 

Experiments  on  tile  Vitality 

of  Seeds 1842      8    7    3 

Researches  on  Exotic  Ano- 

plura   15    0    0 

Experiments  on  the  Strength 

of  Materials    100    0    O 

Completing  Experiments  on 

the  Forms  of  Ships 100    0    0 

Inquiries  into  Asphyxia ....  10  0  0 
Investigations  on  the  internal 

Constitution  of  Metals  ..  50  0  0 
Constant      Indicator      and 

Morin's  Instrument,  1842  10  3  6 
,£981  12    8 

1845. 

Publication  of  the  British 
Association  Catalogue  of 
Stars   351  14    6 

Meteorological  Observations 

at  Inverness    30  18  11 

Magnetic  and  Meteorological 
Co-operation 16  16    8 

Meteorological  Instruments 
at  Edinburgh 18  11     9 

Reduction  of  Anemometrical 
Observations  at  Plymouth    25    0    0 

Electrical    Experiments    at 

Kew  Observatory  43  17    8 

Maintaining  the  Establish- 
ment in  Kew  Observatory  149  15    0 

For  Kreil's  Barometrograph    25    0    0 

Gases  from  Iron  Furnaces. .     50    0    0 

Experiments  on  the  Actino- 
graph 15    0    0 

Microscopic  Structure  of 
Shells 20    0    0 

Exotic  Anoplura 1843     10    0    0 

Vitality  of  Seeds 1843      2    0    7 

Vitality  of  Seeds 1844      7    0    0 

Marine  Zoology  of  Cornwall    10    0    0 

Physiological  Action  of  Me- 
dicines      20    0    0 

Statistics    of   Sickness  and 

Mortality  in  York 20    0    0 

Carried  forward  £8U  15    1 


GENMAL  STATEMENT. 


XXXIX 


£    s.  d. 

Brought  forward  814  16  1 
on  of  Earthquake 

Shocks .1843    15  14  8 

jC830    9  9 

1846.  — — 
British  Association  Catalogue 

of  Stars  1844  211  15  0 

Fossil  Fishes  of  the  London 

Clay 100    0  0 

Computation  of  the  Gaussian 

Constants  for  1839 50    0  0 

Maintaining  the  Establish- 
ment at  Kew  Observatory  146  16  7 
Experiments  on  the  Strength 

of  Materials 60    0  0 

Researches  in  Asphyxia.. ..       6  16  2 

Examination  of  Fossil  Shells    10    0  0 

Vitality  of  Seeds 1844      2  15  10 

Vitality  of  Seeds 1845      7  12  3 

Marine  Zoology  of  Cornwall    10    0  0 

Marine  Zoology  of  Britain..     10    0  0 

Exotic  Anoplura 1844    25    0  0 

Expenses  attending  Anemo- 
meters      11     7  6 

Anemometers1  Repairs  ....       2    3  6 
Researches  on  Atmospheric 

Waves .......    3    3  3 

Ca^ve^o\ms,<'.l!/l844      8  19  8 
Varieties  of  the  Human  Race 

1844      7    6  3 

Statistics   of   Sickness   and 

Mortality  at  York 12    0  0 

£6$5  16  0 

1847.  "— "™" 
Computation  of  the  Gaussian 

Constants  for  1839 50    0  0 

Habits  of  Marine  Animals..      10    0  0 

Physiological  Action  of  Me- 
dicines  T 20    0  0 

Marine  Zoology  of  Cornwall    10    0  0 

Researches  on  Atmospheric 

Waves 6    9  3 

Vitality  of  Seeds 4    7  7 

Maintaining  the   Establish- 

mentatkew  Observatory  107    8  6 

£208    5  4 

1848. 

Maintaining  the  Establish- 
ment at  Kew  Observatory  171  15  11 

Researches  on  Atmospheric 

Waves 3  10  9 

Vitality  of  Seeds 9  15  0 

Completion  of  Catalogues  of 

Stars    70    0  0 

On  Colouring  Matters   ....       5    0  0 

On  Growth  of  Plants 15    0  0 

j€275    1  8 


£    t.    d. 

1849. 
Electrical   Observations    at 

Kew  Observatory  50    0    0 

Mftiwfamiing    Establishment 

at  ditto    76    2    5 

Vitality  of  Seeds 5    8    1 

On  Growth  of  Plants 5    0    0 

Registration    of    Periodical 

Phssnomena    10    0    0 

Bill  on  account  of  Anemo- 

metrical  Observations. . . .     13    9    0 

.€159  19    6 


1850. 
Maintaining  the  Establish- 
ment at  Kew  Observatory  255  18 
Transit  of  Earthquake  Waves    50    0 
Periodical  Phssnomena  ....      15    0 
Meteorological    Instrument, 
Azores 25    0 


.£345  18    0 


1851. 
Maintaining  the   Establish- 
ment at  Kew  Observatory 
(includes  part  of  grant  in 

1849) " 309    2    2 

Experiments  on  the  Theory 

of  Heat   20    1     1 

Periodical  Phenomena  of 
Animals  and  Plants    ....       500 

Vitality  of  Seeds 5    6    4 

Influence  of  Solar  Radiation  30  0  0 
Ethnological  Inquiries  ....  12  0  0 
Researches  on  Annelida. ...     10    0    0 

^€391    9    7 

1852. 

Maintaining  the  Establish- 
ment at  Kew  Observatory 
(including  balance  of  grant 
for  1850) 233  17    8 

Experiments  on  the  conduc- 
tion of  Heat    5    2    9 

Influence  of  Solar  Radiations    20    0    0 

Geological   Map  of  Ireland    15    0    0 

Researches  on  the  British 
Annelida 10    0    0 

Vitality  of  seeds 10    6    2 

Strength   of   Boiler    Plates     10    0    0 

£ 304    6    7 


Xl  REPORT — 1852. 

Extracts  from  Resolutions  of  the  General  Committee. 

Committees  and  individuals,  to  whom  grants  of  money  for  scientific  pur- 
poses have  been  entrusted,  are  required  to  present  to  each  following  meeting 
of  the  Association  a  Report  of  the  progress  which  has  been  made ;  with  a 
statement  of  the  sums  which  have  been  expended,  and  the  balance  which 
remains  disposable  on  each  grant. 

Grants  of  pecuniary  aid  for  scientific  purposes  from  the  funds  of  the  As- 
sociation expire  at  the  ensuing  meeting,  unless  it  shall  appear  by  a  Report 
that  the  Recommendations  have  been  acted  on,  or  a  continuation  of  them  be 
ordered  by  the  General  Committee. 

In  each  Committee,  the  Member  first  named  is  the  person  entitled  to  call 
on  the  Treasurer,  John  Taylor,  Esq.,  G  Queen  Street  Place,  Upper  Thames 
Street,  London,  for  such  portion  of  the  sum  granted  as  may  from  time  to 
time  be  required. 

In  grants  of  money  to  Committees,  the  Association  does  not  contemplate 
the  payment  of  personal  expenses  to  the  Members. 

In  all  cases  where  additional  grants  of  money  are  made  for  the  continua- 
tion of  Researches  at  the  cost  of  the  Association,  the  sum  named  shall  be 
deemed  to  include,  as  a  part  of  the  amount,  the  specified  balance  which  may 
remain  unpaid  on  the  former  grant  for  the  same  object. 


General  Meetings. 

On  Wednesday,  Sept.  1st,  at  8  p.m.,  in  May  Street  Church,  Sir  Roderick 
I.  Murchison,  G.C.St.S.,  F.R.S.,  on  the  pari  of  G.  B.  Airy,  Esq.,  M.A., 
D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  Astronomer  Royal>  resigned  the  office  of  President  to 
Colonel  Edward  Sabine,  R.A.,  Treas.  and  V.P.  R.S.,  who  took  the  Chair 
at  the  General  Meeting,  and  delivered  an  Address,  for  which  see  p.  xli. 

On  Thursday,  Sept.  2nd,  a  Soiree  took  place  from  8  to  10  p.m.,  in  the 
rooms  of  Messrs.  Workman,  which  had  been  arranged  for  the  purpose. 

On  Friday,  Sept.  3rd,  at  8  p.m.,  in  May  Street  Church,  G.  G.  Stokes, 
F.R.S.,  Lucasian  Professor  of  Mathematics  at  Cambridge,  delivered  a  Dis- 
course on  some  recent  discoveries  in  the  properties  of  Light. 

On  Saturday,  Sept.  4th,  at  8  p.m.,  a  Soiree  took  place  in  the  rooms  of 
Messrs.  Workman. 

On  Monday,  Sept.  6th,  at  8  p.m.,  Colonel  Port  lock,  R.E.,  F.R.S.,  delivered 
a  Discourse  on  the  recent  discovery  of  Rock-salt  at  Carrickfergus,  and  the 
geological  and  practical  considerations  connected  with  it. 

On  Wednesday,  Sept.  8th,  at  3  p.m.,  the  concluding  General  Meeting  of 
the  Association  was  held  in  May  Street  Church,  when  the  Proceedings  of  the 
General  Committee,  and  the  grants  of  Money  for  scientific  purposes  were  ex- 
plained to  the  Members. 

The  Meeting  was  then  adjourned  to  Hull*. 
*  The  Meeting  is  appointed  to  take  place  on  Wednesday,  the  7th  of  September,  1853. 


v-v ,,  ...    •-/- 
tVi:i7ZZ.ZUY.. 


ADDRESS 


COLONEL    EDWARD    SABINE,  R.A., 

Treasurer  and  Vice-President  op  the  Royal  Society. 


Gentlemen  of  the  British  Association, 

My  first  duty  in  addressing  you  from  this  Chair,  must  be  to  express  my 
grateful  thanks  for  the  high  honour  you  have  conferred  upon  me  by  placing 
me  in  so  distinguished  a  position.  My  acknowledgements  are  due  in  the 
first  place  to  the  gentlemen  of  Belfast,  who  by  their  Provisional  Committee 
brought  my  name  before  the  Council  as  that  of  a  person  whose  nomination 
to  the  Presidency  would  give  satisfaction  at  Belfast ;  next,  to  my  colleagues 
in  the  Council,  who  adoped  the  suggestion  of  the  Provisional  Committee, 
strengthening  it  by  their  approval ;  and  finally,  to  the  General  Committee 
(the  governing  body),  by  whom  it  was  confirmed.  The  strong  attachment 
which  I  am  known  to  have  felt  for  so  many  years  to  the  British  Association 
will  be  my  best  guarantee  that  no  endeavours  shall  be  wanting  on  my  part 
to  perform  the  duties  of  the  Office  to  the  utmost  of  my  power. 

Gentlemen,  we  meet  for  the  third  time  in  the  Sister  Kingdom,  on  the 
invitation,  which  has  been  most  welcome  to  us,  of  a  part  of  the  kingdom 
which  has  furnished  to  the  British  Association  so  large  a  proportion  of  dis- 
tinguished members  actively  engaged  in  almost  every  department  of  science. 
On  our  arrival,  we  find  ourselves  surrounded  by  faces  familiar  to  us  in  the 
recollections  of  many  previous  meetings,  and  long  recognised  as  amongst  the 
warmest  and  steadiest  friends  of  our  Association.  Our  meeting  is  graced 
and  honoured  by  the  presence  of  Her  Most  Gracious  Majesty's  representa- 
tive in  Ireland.  With  ample  and  excellent  accommodation  liberally  provided 
in  the  fullest  anticipation  of  our  wants,  and  with  the  evidence  which  forcibly 
impresses  itself  on  every  side  of  rapidly  increasing  prosperity,  opening  a  wide 


xlii  REPORT — 1852. 

field  for  the  practical  applications  of  science,  our  satisfaction  in  assembling 
here  would  be  complete,  were  it  not  clouded  by  the  absence  of  one  friend 
who  would  have  been  among  the  foremost  to  have  welcomed  us  to  this 
meeting  which  he  prepared,  the  Naturalist  of  Ireland,  whose  memory  will 
long  be  honoured  and  cherished  by  the  members  of  the  British  Association. 

The  ever-increasing  activity  of  the  various  branches  of  science  embraced 
by  the  British  Association  is  such,  as  to  render  it  scarcely  possible  to  com- 
prehend within  the  limits  of  an  address  of  the  usual  length,  even  a  brief 
review  of  the  progress  made  in  the  seven  departments  which  constitute  our 
Sections.  In  the  selection  which  I  have  thus  found  myself  compelled  to  make, 
I  have  been  guided  by  a  practical  principle,  which  appears  not  unsuited  to 
an  Association  in  which  the  Presidency  is  an  annual  office,  viz.  that  the 
President  for  the  year  should  notice  by  preference  those  subjects  with  which 
he  is  most  familiar,  in  which  the  Association  as  a  body  have  taken  a  part,  or 
which  are  likely  to  be  discussed  at  the  meeting  over  which  he  presides. 

Among  the  subjects  which  are  likely  to  come  before  the  Mathematical  and 
Physical  Section,  there  is  none  perhaps  of  greater  importance,  or  requiring 
more  careful  consideration,  than  the  question  whether  the  time  is  arrived, 
when  the  establishment  of  an  Observatory  in  the  Southern  Hemisphere,  fur- 
nished with  instruments  of  suitable  optical  power  for  the  examination  of  the 
Nebulae  of  the  southern  heavens,  and  devoted  exclusively  to  that  branch  of 
sidereal  astronomy,  should  be  again  brought  under  the  consideration  of  Her 
Majesty's  Ministers.  I  need  not  occupy  your  time  by  restating  on  this 
occasion  the  reasons  both  of  scientific  and  national  concernment,  which  in- 
duced the  two  principal  Scientific  Institutions  of  the  United  Kingdom,  con- 
jointly, to  recommend  to  those  entrusted  with  the  administration  of  public 
affairs,  the  formation  of  an  establishment  of  this  description  in  some  fitting 
part  of  Her  Majesty's  southern  dominions.  I  would  rather  refer  you  to  the 
memorial  presented  to  Government  by  the  Earl  of  Rosse  on  the  part  of  the 
Royal  Society,  and  by  Dr.  Robinson  on  the  part  of  the  British  Association, 
not  only  because  it  contains  such  a  complete  and  formal  exposition,  as  may 
be  most  advantageously  consulted  by  those  who  will  now  be  called  upon  to 
take  part  in  the  reconsideration  of  the  subject,  but  also  because  it  appears,  to 
me  to  furnish  an  admirable  model  both  in  spirit  and  in  matter,  for  communi- 
cations designed  to  fulfil  the  important  purpose  of  conveying  in  an  official 
form  the  opinions  and  suggestions  which  the  united  body  of  scientific  men 
of  this  Kingdom  may  desire  from  time  to  time  to  bring  under  the  considera- 
tion of  the  Executive. 

In  the  discussions  which  took  place  at  a  former  period,  the  only  difficulty 
which  appeared  to  be  apprehended  in  reference  to  the  successful  working  of 
such  an  establishment,  arose  from  a  doubt  whether  mirrors  of  the  required 
magnitude  could  be  repolished,  as  they  would  frequently  need  to  be,  on  the 
ipot  This  difficulty  has  now  it  is  understood  been  entirely  removed  by  the 
improvements  which  the  noble  Earl,  the  President  of  the  Royal  Society,  to 


ADDBKSf.  Xlili 

whom  science  is  bo  deeply  indebted  for  the  instrumental  means  of  prosecuting 
these  researches,  has  made  in  the  apparatus  for  repolishing  the  mirrors, 
and  in  the  instructions  for  the  guidance  of  those  who  may  have  occasion  to 
employ  it,  which  his  own  great  personal  experience  has  enabled  him  to 
prepare. 

In  this  happy  country,  in  which  men  are  free  to  consider  and  to  discuss  the 
propriety  of  public  support  being  given  to  undertakings  conducive  to  national 
honour,  and  are  encouraged  to  do  so  by  the  experience  that  publio  men  of  all 
parties  who  succeed  each  other  in  administration,  seek  to  be  guided  by  en- 
lightened  public  opinion,  we  may  justly  entertain  the  full  conviction  that 
measures  which  from  their  intrinsic  importance  deserve  to  be  adopted  will 
sooner  or  later  obtain  the  consideration  they  merit.  When  such  propositiona 
are  brought  in  the  first  instance, — as  in  the  class  of  subjects  with  which  we 
are  here  concerned  it  is  desirable  they  should  be,— before  those  publio  bodies 
which  are  justly  regarded  as  possessing  the  highest  scientific  authority  in  this 
country,  and  as  most  competent  to  judge  of  them,  they  cannot  be  too  carefully 
considered  and  discussed,  before  by  their  adoption  they  become  invested  with 
the  authority  and  weight  which  those  bodies  have  it  in  their  power  to  impart 
But  when  after  due  deliberation  they  have  been  so  adopted,  it  is  equally  fitting 
that  those  publio  bodies  should  be  true  to  their  own  convictions,  and  should 
steadily  persevere  in  urging  on  all  proper  occasions,  both  publicly  and  pri- 
vately, the  measures  which  they  believe  will  add.  to  their  country's  honour, 
as  well  as  to  that  general  advancement  of  science  by  which  all  nations  benefit 
freely  and  alike  in  proportion  to  their  degree  of  mental  cultivation.  That  an 
Observatory  for  the  purpose  specified,  in  a  part  of  the  globe  where  it  can 
render  peculiar  service,  and  where  we  possess  facilities  which  other  nations 
do  not  possess,  will  ere  long  be  established,  no  one  I  believe  entertains  a 
doubt  The  importance  was  admitted  by  the  Ministry  to  whom  the  recom- 
mendation was  made,  the  only  question  with  them  appearing  to  be  one  of 
time.  When  therefore  we  view  the  intrinsic  merit  of  the  proposition  itself, 
the  general  interest  which  it  has  excited  at  home  and  abroad,  and  its  already, 
to  a  certain  extent,  favourable  reception  by  Government,  we  cannot  doubt 
that  we  have  but  to  persevere,  and  by  a  judicious  selection  of  times  and 
opportunities  the  object  will  be  secured.  It  will  be  for  the  Members  of  the 
Mathematical  and  Physical  Section  to  consider  in  the  first  instance,  and  for 
the  General  Committee,  subsequently,  to  consider  and  decide  whether  any 
official  step  shall  be  taken  by  the  British  Association  in  the  present  year. 
Should  such  be  your  decision,  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the  Officers  and  Council 
of  the  Association  to  confer  with  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Royal 
Society,  and  in  conjunction  with  them  to  take  such  steps  as  may  appear  moat 
fitting  to  bring  the  subject  again,  and  in  the  most  impressive  manner,*  under 
the  consideration  of  the  Authorities  of  the  State.  On  the  former  occasion  it 
was  thought  most  respectful  to  abstain  from  any  suggestion  in  regard  either 
to  a  suitable  locality,  or  to  the  Astronomer  who  might  be  advantageously 


xliv  BBPX>RT — 1852. 

•elected  to  direct  an  establishment  of  this  novel  description.  Such  may  still 
be  deemed,  perhaps,  the  least  exceptionable  course ;  but  at  the  same  time  it 
may  be  desirable  that  it  should  be  fully  known,  that  we  are  not  unprepared 
on  these  and  other  points,  if  it  be  the  pleasure  of  Her  Majesty's  Government 
to  desire  our  opinion. 

Hitherto  the  researches  of  Sidereal  Astronomy,  even  in  their  widest  exten- 
sion, had  manifested  the  existence  of  those  forces  only  with  which  we  are 
familiar  in  our  own  solar  system.  The  refinements  of  modern  observation 
and  the  perfection  of  theoretical  representation,  had  assured  us  that  the 
orbits  in  which  the  double  stars,  immeasurably  distant  from  us,  revolve 
around  each  other,  are  governed  by  the  same  laws  of  molecular  attraction  which 
determine  the  orbits  of  the  planetary  bodies  of  our  own  solar  system.  But 
the  Nebulae  have  revealed  to  us  the  probable  existence  in  the  yet  more  distant 
universe,  of  forces  with  which  we  were  previously  wholly  unacquainted.  The 
highest  authorities  in  this  most  advanced  of  all  the  sciences,  acknowledge 
themselves  unable  even  to  conjecture  the  nature  of  the  forces  which  have 
produced  and  maintain  the  diverse,  yet  obviously  systematic  arrangement  of 
the  hosts  of  stars  which  constitute  those  few  of  the  Spiral  Nebulae  which 
have  been  hitherto  examined.  Hence  the  importance  of  increasing  our 
knowledge  of  the  variety  of  forms  in  which  the  phaenomena  present  them* 
selves,  by  a  similar  examination  of  the  Southern  Heavens  to  that  which  Lord 
Bosse  is  accomplishing  in  the  Northern  Heavens ;  hence  also,  we  may  believe, 
In  great  measure,  the  devotion  with  which  his  Lordship  has  directed  the  un- 
precedented instrumental  power  which  he  has  created  almost  exclusively  to 
the  observation  of  nebulae.  But  whilst  we  cannot  but  admire  the  steadiness 
of  purpose  with  which  an  object  regarded  as  of  paramount  importance  is  un-» 
deviatingly  pursued,  we  can  scarcely  forbear  to  covet  at  least  an  occasional 
glance  at  bodies  which  from  their  greater  proximity  have  more  intimate 
relations  with  ourselves,  and  which,  when  viewed  with  so  vast  an  increase  of 
optical  power,  may  afford  instruction  of  the  highest  value  in  many  branches 
of  physical  science.  In  our  own  satellite,  for  example,  we  have  the  opportu- 
nity of  studying  the  physical  conformation  and  superficial  phaenomena  of  a 
body  composed,  as  we  believe  mainly  at  least,  of  the  same  materials  as  those 
of  our  own  globe,  but  possessing  neither  atmosphere  nor  sea.  When  we  re- 
flect how  much  of  the  surface  of  the  earth  consists  of  sedimentary  deposits, 
and  consequently  how  large  a  portion  of  the  whole  field  of  geological  research 
is  occupied  with  strata  which  owe  their  principal  characteristics  to  the  ocean 
in  which  they  were  deposited,  we  cannot  but  anticipate  many  instructive 
lessons  which  may  be  furnished  by  the  points  of  contrast,  as  well  as  of  resem- 
blance, which  the  surface  of  the  moon,  viewed  through  Lord  Rosse*s  telescope, 
may  present  to  the  best  judgement  we  are  able  to  form  of  what  the  appearance 
of  the  earth  would  be  if  similarly  viewed,  or  with  what  may  be  more  difficult 
perhaps  to  imagine, — what  we  may  suppose  the  earth  would  appear  if  it 
could  be  stript  of  its  sedimentary  strata,  which  conceal  from  us  for  the  most 


ADDRESS.  xlv 

part  the  traces  of  that  internal  action  #  which  has  played  so  large  a  part  hi 
moulding  the  great  outlines  of  the  present  configuration  of  its  surface.  It  is 
understood  that  Lord  Rosse  himself  participates  in  the  wish  that  such  an 
examination  of  the  surface  of  the  moon  should  be  made,  and,  should  the 
desire  of  the  Association  be  expressed  to  that  effect,  is  willing  to  undertake 
it  in  conjunction  with  one  or  two  other  gentlemen  possessing  the  necessary 
physical  and  geological  knowledge.  It  will  be  for  the  Members  of  the  As* 
sociation  to  determine  the  form  in  which  a  Report  on  the  "  Physical  Features 
of  the  Moon  compared  with  those  of  the  Earth*'  may  mo3t  appropriately  be 
requested. 

In  connection  with  Astronomy,  I  permit  myself  to  notice  the  publica- 
tion, now  in  progress,  of  two  works  of  considerable  magnitude  and  value, 
because  they  do  honour  to  the  science  and  public  spirit  of  the  part  of  the 
United  Kingdom  in  which  we  are  assembled;  I  refer  to  the  Markree 
Catalogue  of  Ecliptic  Stars,  and  to  the  results  of  the  Observations  at  the 
Armagh  Observatory.  The  establishments  from  which  these  publications 
emanate  belong  to  the  class  which  owe  their  endowment  and  support  to 
private  munificence,  but  by  the  extent  and  character  of  the  work  they  per* 
form  entitle  themselves  to  rank  with  the  Institutions,  which  in  this  and 
other  countries  testify  the  liberality  of  a  nation's  patronage.  The  Markree 
Observatory,  which  has  already  distinguished  itself  under  the  personal 
superintendence  of  its  founder,  amongst  other  services  by  the  discovery 
of  oue  of  the  thirteen  planets  by  which  our  knowledge  of  the  solar  do- 
main has  been  enriched  in  the  last  seventeen  years, — will  hereafter  take 
its  position  amongst  the  establishments  which  have  most  largely  contributed 
to  the  perfection  of  modern  astronomy  by  its  catalogue  of  the  approximate 
places  of  all  the  stars  in  the  ecliptic  down  to  the  twelfth  magnitude  inclusive ; 
by  which  catalogue  the  detection  of  any  still  undiscovered  planetary  bodies 
belonging  to  our  system  will  be  greatly  facilitated.  One  volume  has  already 
been  published  in  the  year  which  has  elapsed  since  our  Ipswich  Meeting,  and 
a  second  is  in  preparation,  and  both,  by  the  aid  of  funds  supplied  from  the 
annual  grant  now  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  Royal  Society,  to  be  applied 
in  the  advancement  of  science.  The  publication  of  the  results  of  the  ob- 
servations of  the  Armagh  Observatory,  since  it  has  been  under  the  very  able 
direction  of  Dr.  Robinson,  has  been  for  some  time  a  desideratum.  At  the 
instance  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  it  was  recommended  by  the  Irish 
Executive,  but  without  success.  It  is  now  being  accomplished  by  aid 
from  the  same  source  as  the  Markree  Catalogue.  I  have  the  more  satis** 
faction  in  noticing  these  appropriations  in  favour  of  Irish  science  from  funds 
designed  for  the  general  benefit  of  the  United  Kingdom,  because  they  indicate 
the  fairness  and  equality  with  which  the  distribution  of  those  funds  is  ad- 
ministered :  it  is  also  I  believe  strictly  in  character  with  the  prevailing 
principles  which  sanction  public  aid,  that  it  should  be  given,  when  needed,  to 

1852.  d 


xlvi  REPORT — 1852. 

those  who,  as  in  the  case  of  these  private  observatories,  have  already  largely 
contributed  from  their  own  resources. 

The  Mathematical  and  Physical  Theories  of  Light  have  afforded  subjects 
for  tnany  interesting  and  profitable  discussions  in  Section  A,  and  have  usually 
had  one  day  in  the  six  specially  allotted  to  them.  Those  discussions  will 
derive  a  more  than  usual  interest  at  this  meeting  from  the  remarkable  dis- 
covery recently  made  by  Prof.  Stokes,  that  under  certain  circumstances  a 
change  is  effected  in  the  refrangibility  of  light,  and  from  the  advantage  we 
possess  in  having  amongst  us  on  this  occasion  the  eminent  mathematician 
and  physicist  by  whom  this  most  important  contribution  to  the  science  of 
physical  optics  has  been  made.  His  researches  took  their  origin  from  an 
unexplained  phenomenon  discovered  by  Sir  John  Herschel  and  communicated 
by  him  to  the  Royal  Society  in  1845.  A  solution  of  sulphate  of  quinine  exa- 
mined by  transmitted  light,  and  held  between  the  eye  and  the  light,  or 
between  the  eye  and  a  white  object,  appears  almost  as  transparent  and  colour- 
less as  water;  but  when  viewed  in  certain  aspects  and  under  certain 
incidences  of  light,  exhibits  an  extremely  vivid  and  beautiful  celestial  blue 
colour.  This  colour  was  shown  by  Sir  John  Herschel  to  result  from  the 
action  of  the  strata  which  the  light  first  penetrates  on  entering  the  liquid; 
and  the  dispersion  of  light  producing  it  was  named  by  him  epipolic.disper- 
sion,  from  the  circumstance  that  it  takes  place  near  the  surface  by  which  the 
light  enters.  A  beam  of  light  having  passed  through  the  solution  was  to  all 
appearance  the  same  as  before  its  entrance ;  nevertheless  it  was  found  to  have 
undergone  some  mysterious  modification,  for  an  epipolised  beam  of  light, 
meaning  thereby  a  beam  which  had  once  been  transmitted  through  a  quini- 
ferous  solution,  and  had  experienced  its  dispersive  action,  is  incapable  of  fur- 
ther epipolic  dispersion.  In  speculating  upon  the  possible  nature  of  epi- 
polised light,  Prof.  Stokes  was  led  to  conclude  that  it  could  only  be  light 
which  had  been  deprived  of  certain  invisible  rays  which  in  the  process  of 
dispersion  had  changed  their  refrangibility  and  had  thereby  become  visible. 
The  truth  of  this  supposition,  novel  and  surprising  as  it  at  first  appeared,  has 
been  confirmed  by  a  series  of  simple  and  perfectly  decisive  experiments ; 
showing  that  it  is  in  fact  the  chemical  rays  of  the  spectrum  more  refrangible 
than  the  violet,  and  invisible  in  themselves,  which  produce  the  blue  superficial 
light  in  the  quiniferous  solution.  Professor  Stokes  has  traced  this  principle 
through  a  great  range  of  analogous  phenomena,  including  those  noticed  by 
Sir  David  Brewster  in  his  papers  on  "  Internal  Dispersion,"  and  has  distin- 
guished between  "  cases  of  false  internal  dispersion"  or  "  opalescence/'  in 
which  the  luminous  rays  are  simply  reflected  from  fine  particles  held  in  me- 
chanical solution  in  the  medium,  and  those  of  "  true  internal  dispersion,"  or 
44  fluorescence,"  as  it  is  termed  by  Mr.  Stokes.  By  suitable  methods  of  ob- 
servation the  change  of  refrangibility  was  detected,  as  produced  not  only  by 
transparent  fluids  and  solids,  but  also  by  opake  substances ;  add  the  class  of 


ADDRESS.  xlvii 

media  exhibiting  "  fluorescence"  was  found  to  be  very  large,  consisting  chiefly 
of  organic  substances,  but  comprehending,  though  more  rarely,  some  mineral 
bodies;  The  direct  application  of  the  fact,  as  we  now  understand  it,  to  many 
highly  interesting  and  important  purposes,  is  obvious  almost  on  the  flrst  an- 
nouncement The  facility  with  which  the  highly  refrangible  invisible  rays  of 
the  spectrum  may  be  rendered  visible  by  being  passed  through  a  solution  of 
sulphate  of  quinine  or  other  sensitive  medium,  affords  peculiar  advantages 
for  the  study  of  those  rays ;  the  fixed  lines  of  the  invisible  part  of  the  solar 
spectrum  may  now  be  exhibited  to  our  view  at  pleasure.  The  constancy 
with  which  a  particular  mode  of  changing  the  refrangibility  of  light  attaches 
to  a  particular  substance,  exhibiting  itself  independently  of  the  admixture 
of  other  substances,  supplies  a  new  method  of  analysis  for  organic  compounds 
whioh  may  prove  valuable  in  organic  chemistry.  These  and  other  applica- 
tions of  the  facts  as  they  are  now  explained  to  us,  will  probably  form  subjects 
of  notice  in  the  Chemical  and  Physical  Sections,  and  a  still  higher  interest 
may  be  expected  from  the  discussion  of  the  principle  itself,  and  of  the  founda- 
tion on  which  it  rests.  A  discovery  of  this  nature  cannot  be  otherwise  than 
extremely  fertile  in  consequences,  whether  of  direct  application,  or  by  giving 
rise  to  suggestions  branching  out  more  and  more  widely,  and  leading  to 
trains  of  thought  and  experiment  which  may  confer  additional  value  on  the 
original  discovery,  by  rendering  it  but  the  first  step  in  a  still  more  extensive 
generalization. 

As  the  interest  of  this  discovery  is  not  confined  to  a  single  branch  of 
science,  the  Officers,  with  the  approbation  of  the  Local  Committee,  have 
requested  Mr.  Stokes  to  favour  the  Association  with  an  exposition  of  the 
subject  at  an  evening  meeting,  when  the  members  of  the  different  sections 
may  be  able  to  attend  without  prejudice  to  their  respective  sectional  duties : 
and  in  that  view  I  have  thought  that  this  brief  introductory  notice  might  not 
be  misplaced,  a  notice  which  I  cannot  conclude  without  adverting  to  the 
gratification  which  all  who  cultivate  science  in  this  part  of  the  United 
Kingdom  must  feel  at  the  rising  eminence  of  their  highly  accomplished 
fellow-countryman. 

Among  the  subjects  of  chemical  inquiry  which  may  well  deserve  the 
attention  of  a  combination  of  philosophers,  perhaps  few  could  mote  usefully 
occupy  their  joint  labours  than  the  revision  of  the  Equivalent  Numbers  of  the 
Elementary  Bodies.  This  is  a  task  which  must  necessarily  require  the  co- 
operation of  several  properly  qualified  individuals,  if  it  be  accomplished 
within  anything  like  a  reasonable  period  of  time.  Most  of  the  Numbers  now 
in  use  depend  upon  experiments  performed  by  Bertelius,  at  a  time  when  the 
methods  of  research  then  known  were  inadequate,  even  in  such  hands,  to 
determine  these  constants  with  an  accuracy  sufficient  for  the  wants  of  science 
at  the  present  day.  So  much  has  this  been  felt  to  be  the  case,  that  many 
of  the  most  accomplished  chemists  now  living  have  undertaken  extensive 
and  laborious)  though  isolated  researches,  upon  the  combining  quantities  of 

d2 


xlviii  report — 1852. 

some  of  the  most  important  elements.  But  much  more  than  has  been  already 
performed  still  remains  undone.  Such  a  subject  it  is  believed  might  be 
highly  proper  for  consideration  by  the  Chemical  Section,  to  whose  notice  it 
would  be  introduced  by  the  distinguished  chemist,  Dr.  Andrews,  who  pre- 
sides over  that  Section,  and  than  whom  no  one  could  be  named  as  more 
competent  to  estimate  the  importance  of  such  a  revision,  or  to  judge  more 
truly  of  the  qualifications  that  would  be  required  for  its  execution. 

We  are  deprived  by  the  illness,  I  trust  only  temporary,  of  our  valued  asso- 
ciate Prof.  James  Forbes,  of  the  Report  he  would  have  given  us  of  the  progress 
of  the  experiments  which  he  has  undertaken  at  the  request  of  the  Association 
to  test  the  Theory  of  Heat,  But  this  branch  of  Physics  abounds  more 
perhaps  than  any  other  at  the  present  time  in  subjects  which  may  be  most 
profitably  discussed.  The  theory  of  Heat  has  made  great  advances  within 
the  last  ten  years.  Mr.  Joule  has  by  his  experiments  confirmed  and  illustrated 
the  views  demonstrated  about  the  end  of  the  last  century  by  Davy  and  Rum- 
ford  regarding  the  nature  of  heat,  which  are  now  beginning  to  find  general 
acceptance.  He  has  determined  with  much  accuracy,  the  numerical  relation 
between  quantities  of  heat  and  of  mechanical  work.  He  has  pointed  out  the 
true  principles  upon  which  the  mechanical  value  of  any  chemical  change  is 
to  be  estimated,  and  by  very  careful  experiments  he  has  arrived  at  numerical 
expressions  for  the  mechanical  equivalents  in  some  of  the  most  important 
cases  of  cheniical  action,  in  galvanic  batteries,  and  in  combustion.  These 
researches  appear  to  be  laying  the  ground-work  for  the  ultimate  formation 
of  a  Mechanical  Theory  of  Chemistry  y  by  ascertaining  experimentally  the 
mechanical  equivalents  expressed  in  absolute  motive  force  of  the  thermic, 
electric  and  magnetic  forces.  Mathematical  developments  of  the  theories  of 
heat  and  electro-dynamics,  in  accordance  with  these  principles,  are  given  in 
various  papers  by  MM.  Helmholz,  Rankine,  Clausius  and  Thomson,  published 
principally  within  the  last  two  years.  In  discussing  these  subjects  the  Sec- 
tion will  have  a  great  advantage  in  being  presided  over  by  the  last-named  of 
these  gentlemen,  a  native  of  Belfast,  who  at  so  early  an  age  has  attained  so 
high  a  reputation,  and  who  is  taking  a  leading  part  in  the  investigations 
to  which  I  have  referred. 

In  connexion  with  the  subjects  of  Heat,  I  would  advert  to  the  experiments 
in  which  Mr.  Hopkins  is  engaged  for  investigating  the  possible  influence  of 
high  pressure  on  the  temperature  at  which  substances,  in  a  state  of  fusion, 
solidify — an  inquiry  which  was  shown  by  Mr.  Hopkins,  in  a  report  recently 
presented  to  the  British  Association,  to  have  an  important  bearing  on  the 
questions  of  the  original  and  present  state  of  the  interior  of  the  earth.  It  is 
well  known  that  the  temperature  of  the  earth  increases  as  we  descend,  and 
it  has  been  calculated  that  at  the  rate  at  which  the  increase  takes  place  in 
such  depths  as  are  accessible  to  us,  the  heat  at  the  depth  of  eighty  or  a  hun- 
dred miles  would  be  such  as  to  fuse  most  of  the  materials  which  form  the 
•olid  crust  of  the  globe.  On  the  hypothesis  of  original  fluidity,  and  assuming 


ADDRESS.  xlitf 

that  the  rate  of  increase  known  to  us  by  observation  continues  further 
down,  and  is  not  counterbalanced  by  a  considerable  increase  in  the  tempe- 
rature of  fusion  occasioned  by  pressure,  the  present  state  of  the  earth  would 
be  that  of  a  solid  crust  of  eighty  or  a  hundred  miles  in  thickness,  enveloping 
a  fluid  nucleus.  Mr.  Hopkins  considers  this  state  to  be  inconsistent  with  the 
observed  amount  of  the  precession  of  the  equinoxes,  and  infers  that  if  the 
temperature  of  fusion  be  considerably  heightened  by  pressure,  the  conclusion 
must  be  unavoidable  that  the  earth  is  solid  at  the  centre.  Mr.  Hopkins  is 
assisted  in  these  experiments,  which  are  carried  on  at  Manchester,  by  the 
well-known  engineering  knowledge  of  Mr.  Fairbairn,  end  the  equally  well* 
known  experimental  skill  of  Mr.  Joule.  The  principal  difficulties  attending 
the  experiments  with  substances  of  low  temperatures  of  fusion  have  been 
overcome,  and  strong  hopes  are  entertained  of  success  with  substances  of 
more  difficult  fusibility.  The  pressures  employed  are  from  three  to  four 
tons  to  eight  and  ten  tons  on  the  square  inch.  The  latter  is  probably  equal 
to  the  pressure  at  several  miles  beneath  the  earth's  surface. 

From  Heat  the  transition  is  easy,  and  by  many  may  be  deemed  natural,  to 
Terrestrial  Magnetism,  a  science  which,  more  perhaps  than  any  other,  has 
profited  by  the  impulse  and  systematic  direction  communicated  to  it  by  the 
British  Association,  and  which  perhaps  more  than  any  other  required  such 
external  aid.  In  the  infancy  of  a  science,  the  phsenomena  of  which  present 
on  our  first  acquaintance  with  them  a  great  appearance  of  complexity,  the 
path  by  which  its  progress  may  be  advanced  may  be  by  no  means  easy  to 
discern ;  and  individual  explorers  may  well,  under  such  circumstances,  be 
discouraged  by  doubts  whether  their  labour  will  be  recompensed  by  pro- 
portionate success,  as  well  as  disheartened  by  the  little  sympathy  which  is 
usually  given  to  investigations  which  hold  out  but  little  immediate  prospect 
of  practical  utility.  Some  there  have  been  however  from  time  to  time,  who, 
impressed  with  a  persuasion  of  the  position  which  magnetism  deserves  to 
take,  and  which  sooner  or  later  they  believe  it  will  take,  amongst  the  phy- 
sical sciences  of  the  highest  order,  have  not  spared  this  precu reive  labour, 
and  have  been  uniformly  conducted  by  it  to  the  same  general  conclusion, 
viz.  that  in  order  to  obtain  a  sufficient  foundation  of  facts  upon  which  to 
raise  a  fitting  superstructure  of  inductive  reasoning,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
organize  a  system  of  cooperative  research,  in  which  the  labours  of  many 
might  be  united  agreeably  to  concerted  arrangements ;  and  that  as  such  re- 
searches would  require  to  be  carried  on  nearly  at  the  same  epoch  at  many 
distant  parts  of  the  globe,  for  which  private  resources  were  inadequate,  public 
assistance  must  be  sought.  That  this  conclusion  was  extensively  recognised 
and  acquiesced  in  is  sufficiently  attested  by  the  readiness  bo  generally  mani- 
fested by  governments  and  individuals  in  all  countries  where  mental  cultivation 
is  regarded  to  take  part  in  the  general  system  of  magnetic  cooperation  pro- 
posed by  this  country  in  1838.  In  the  years  which  have  since  elapsed,  the 
energy  and  zeal  of  those  who  have  engaged  in  these  researches  have  accumu- 


1  REPORT — 1852. 

lated  a  mans  of  observations,  which,  as  the  fruit  of  systematic  and  concerted 
labour,  is,  I  believe,  wholly  unprecedented.  The  labour  of  digesting,  com- 
paring, and  coordinating  the  body  of  facts  thus  obtained  may  certainly  be 
stated  to  be  not  lea  than  that  expended  in  obtaining  them ;  and  as  the  one 
process  must  necessarily  be  in  great  measure  carried  out  subsequently  to  the 
other,  we  are  only  now  beginning  to  reap  the  first-fruits  of  this  great  co- 
operative undertaking  in  the  bearing  of  its  results  upon  theory.  At  the 
Ipswich  meeting  of  the  British  Association,  I  was  requested  by  the  General 
Committee  to  draw  up  a  report  on  the  state  and  progress  of  the  magnetic 
researches  consequent  on  the  application  of  the  British  Association  to  Her 
Majesty's  Government  in  1838.  I  regret  that,  from  the  other  very  pressing 
duties  above  alluded  to,  I  have  not  been  able  to  complete  this  report  in  time 
to  present  at  this  meeting,  but  as  I  may  assume,  from  the  request  just  made 
to  me,  that  the  subject  retains  with  the  British  Association  the  interest  which 
it  there  so  happily  acquired,  I  may  venture  to  avail  myself  of  this  opportunity 
to  make  a  very  few  remarks  on  some  of  its  most  important  results ;  confining 
myself  for  the  most  part  to  results  obtained  by  persons  of  our  own  country 
as  the  direct  and  immediate  consequences  of  the  recommendation  of  the 
British  Association,  leaving  to  a  more  fitting  occasion  a  more  general  and 
comprehensive  view. 

We  recognise  in  terrestrial  magnetism  the  existence  of  a  power  present 
everywhere  at  the  surface  of  our  globe,  and  producing  everywhere  effects 
indicative  of  a  systematic  action  ;  but  of  the  nature  of  this  power,  the  cha- 
racter of  its  laws,  and  its  economy  in  creation,  we  have  as  yet  scarcely  any 
knowledge.  The  apparent  complexity  of  the  phenomena  at  their  first  aspect 
may  reasonably  be  ascribed  to  our  ignorance  of  their  laws,  which  we  shall 
doubtless  find,  as  we  advance  in  knowledge,  to  possess*  the  same  remarkable 
character  of  simplicity  which  calls  forth  our  admiration  in  the  laws  of  mole- 
cular attraction.  It  has  been  frequently  surmised,  and  the  anticipation  is  I 
believe  a  strictly  philosophical  one,  that  a  power  which,  so  far  as  we  have  the 
means  of  judging,  prevails  everywhere  in  our  own  planet,  may  also  prevail 
in  other  bodies  of  our  system,  and  might  become  sensible  to  us,  in  the  case 
of  the  sun  and  moon  particularly,  by  small  perturbing  influences  mea- 
surable by  our  instruments,  and  indicating  their  respective  sources  by  their 
periods  and  their  epochs.  As  yet  we  know  of  neither  argument  nor  fact  to 
invalidate  this  anticipation ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  much  to  invest  it  with 
a  high  degree  of  probability.  Be  this  however  as  it  may,  we  have  in  our 
own  planet  an  exemplification  of  the  pheenomena  which  magnetism  pre- 
sents in  one  of  the  bodies  of  our  system,  on  a  scale  of  sufficient  mag- 
nitude, and  otherwise  convenient  for  our  study.  Accordingly  the  first 
object  to  which  the  British  Association  gave  its  attention  was  to  ob- 
tain a  correct  knowledge  of  the  direction  and  amount  of  the  magnetic 
force  generally  over  the  whole  surface  of  the  globe  corresponding  to  a 
definite  epoch.    It  has  been  customary  to  represent  the  results  of  magnetic 


ADDRESS.  11 

observations  by  three  systems  of  Lines,  usually  called  isogenic,  isoclinal, 
and  isodynamic  lines.  [Lines  of  equal  horizontal  direction,  of  equal 
inclination,  and  of  equal  force.]  In  the  maps  of  these  lines  existing 
in  1838,  large  spaces  of  the  earth's  surface  were  either  blank,  or  the  lines 
passing  across  them  were  very  imperfectly  supported  by  observations.  In 
the  more  frequented  parts,  where  observations  were  more  numerous,  the  dis- 
crepancies of  their  dates  impaired  their  suitability  for  combination ;  for  the 
position  and  configuration  of  the  magnetic  lines  has  been  found  to  undergo 
a  continual  process  of  systematic  change,  with  the  causes  of  which  we  are  as 
yet  wholly  unacquainted,  but  which  has  obtained  the  name  of  secular  change 
to  distinguish  it  from  periodical  variations  of  known  and  limited  duration. 
Amongst  the  most  marked  deficiencies  in  these  maps,  were  the  greater  part 
of  the  extra-tropical  portion  of  the  southern  hemisphere, — the  British  pos- 
sessions in  North  America,  and  British  India ; — magnetic  surveys  of  these 
were  expressly  recommended,  and  the  practicability  and  advantage  of 
making  the  observations  on  board-ship,  and  of  thus  extending  them  over  the 
surface  of  the  ocean,  were  pointed  out.  It  is  most  pleasing  to  recall  to  recol- 
lection, and  gratifying  to  acknowledge  from  this  chair,  the  favourable  manner 
in  which  the  recommendations  of  the  British  Association  were  received  by 
Her  Majesty's  Government  and  by  the  East  India  Company,  and  how 
promptly  and  effectually  they  have  been  carried  out.  The  blanks  in  the 
southern  hemisphere  have  been  filled  up  by  maritime  expeditions  appointed 
expressly  for  the  purpose.  Magnetic  surveys  have  been  completed  of 
British  North  America  at  the  expense  of  our  own  Government,  and  of  the 
Indian  Archipelago  at  that  of  the  East  India  Company,  and  India  itself  U 
now  in  progress ;  whilst  from  the  seal  of  our  naval  officers  contributions 
have  flowed  in  from  almost  every  accessible  part  of  the  ocean.  The  coordi- 
nation and  mutual  connection  of  so  large  a  mass  of  materials  is  necessarily  a 
work  of  time,  but  is  progressing  steadily  towards  completion,  and  when  pre- 
sented in  one  connected  view,will  form  the  groundwork  on  which  will  securely 
rest  a  general  theory  of  terrestrial  magnetUm  corresponding  to  the  present 
epoch.  Until  these'  combinations  and  calculations  are  performed,  it  would  be 
obviously  premature  to  speak  of  numerical  values  by  which  the  magnetic 
forces  at  one  part  of  the  globe  may  be  compared  with  those  of  another,  or 
with  forces  of  other  descriptions ;  and  for  the  same  reason  it  is  desirable 
to  abstain  for  the  present  from  notices  of  the  geographical  positions  whioh 
particular  lines,  or  as  some  may  deem  them,  critical  points  in  the  magnetic 
resultants  may  occupy  on  the  earth's  surface  at  the  present  epoch.  Such 
notices  could  only  be  as  yet  provisional  and  liable  to  the  amendments  which 
more  exact  and  extended  calculation  must  be  expected  to  produce.  But 
thus  much  may  be  safely  stated  in  reference  to  the  general  character  of  the 
three  systems  of  lines  which  have  been  spoken  of,  that  when  derived  afresh 
and  exclusively  from  the  observations  of  the  last  few  years,  they  do  most 
fully  confirm  the  general  conclusions  derived  from  the  observations  of  earlier 


Hi  REPORT — 1852. 

date,  which  were  submitted  to  the  British  Association  in  the  Report  on  the 
"  Variations  of  the  Intensity  of  the  Magnetic  Force  at  different  points  of 
the  Earth's  surface/'  which  preceded  the  recommendations  of  1838.  The 
magnetic  phenomena,  or  as  it  is  now.  customary  to  call  them,  the  three  mag* 
netic  elements,  appear  to  be  everywhere  and  in  both  hemispheres  the 
resultants  of  a  duplicate  system  of  magnetic  forces,  of  which  one  at  least 
undergoes  a  continuous  and  progressive  translation  in  geographical  space, 
the  motion  being  from  west  to  east  in  the  northern  hemisphere,  and  from 
east  to  west  in  the  southern.  It  is  to  this  motion  that  the  secular  change  in 
all  localities  is  chiefly  if  not  entirely  due,  affecting  systematically  and  ac- 
cording to  their  relative  positions  on  the  globe,  the  configurations  and  geo- 
graphical positions  of  the  magnetic  lines,  and  producing  conformable 
changes  in  the  direction  and  amount  of  the  magnetic  elements  in  every 
part  of  the  globe.  The  comparison  of  the  earlier  recorded  observations 
with  those  of  the  present  epoch  gives  reason  to  believe,  that  viewed  in  its 
generality,  the  motion  of  the  system  of  forces  which  produces  the  secular 
change  has  been  uniform,  or  nearly  so,  in  the  last  two  or  three  centuries* 
Under  favourable  conditions  the  regularity  of  this  movement  can  be  traced 
down  to  comparatively  very  minute  fractions  of  time;  by  the  results  of 
careful  observations  continued  for  several  years  at  the  observatory  of  St* 
Helena,  where,  in  common  with  the  greater  part  of  the  district  of  the  South 
Atlantic,  the  secular  change  of  the  declination  exceeds  eight  minutes  in  the 
year,  and  from  its  magnitude  therefore  may  be  advantageously  studied, — 
every  fortnight  of  the  year  is  found  to  have  its  precise  aliquot  portion  of  the 
annual  amount  of  the  secular  change  at  the  station.  This  phaenomenon  of 
secular  change  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  remarkable  features  of  the 
magnetic  system,  and  cannot  with  propriety  be  overlooked,  as  too  frequently  it 
has  been,  by  those  who  would  connect  the  phenomena  of  terrestrial  magnetism 
generally,  mediately  or  immediately,  with  climatic  circumstances,  relations  of 
land  and  sea,  or  other  causes  to  which  we  are  assuredly  in  no  degree  entitled 
to  ascribe  secular  variation,  and  who  reason  therefore  as  if  the  great  magnetic 
phenomena  of  the  earth  were  persistent  instead  of  being  as  they  are  subject 
to  a  continual  and  progressive  change.  It  may  confidently  be  affirmed  that 
the  secular  magnetic  variation  has  no  analogy  with,  or  resemblance  to,  any 
other  physical  phaenomenon  with  which  we  are  acquainted.  We  appear  at 
present  to  be  without  any  clue  to  guide  us  to  its  physical  causes,  but  the  way 
is  preparing  for  a  future  secure  derivation  of  its  laws  to  be  obtained  by  a 
repetition,  after  a  sufficient  interval,  of  the  steps  which  we  are  now  taking  to 
determine  the  elements  corresponding  to  a  definite  epoch. 

The  periodical  variations  in  the  terrestrial  magnetic  force,  which  I  have 
before  adverted  to  as  distinguished  from  its  secular  change,  are  small  in  com- 
parison with  the  force  itself,  but  they  are  highly  deserving  of  attention  on 
account  of  the  probability  that  by  suitable  methods  of  investigation  they 
may  be  made  to  reveal  the  sources  to  which  they  owe  their  origin  and  the 


ADDRESS.  liil 

agency  by  which  they  are  produced.  They  formed  accordingly  the  subject 
of  a  distinct  recommendation  from  the  British  Association,  which  met  with 
an  equally  favourable  reception.  To  investigate  these  variations  by  suitable 
instruments  and  methods,  to  separate  each  from  the  others,  and  to  seek  its 
period,  its  epochs  of  maximum  and  minimum,  the  laws  of  its  progression,  and 
its  mean  numerical  value  or  amount,  constituted  the  chief  purposes  for  which 
magnetic  observatories  were  established  for  limited  periods  at  certain  stations 
in  Her  Majesty's  dominions,  selected  in  the  view  that  by  a  combination  of 
the  results  obtained  at  them,  a  general  theory  of  each  at  least  of  the  principal 
periodical  variations  might  be  derived,  and  tests  be  thus  supplied  whereby 
the  truth  of  physical  theories  propounded  for  their  explanation  might  be 
examined.  We  are  just  beginning  to  profit  by  the  collocation  and  study  of 
the  great  body  of  facts  which  have  been  collected.  Variations  corresponding 
in  period  to  the  earth's  revolution  around  the  sun,  and  to  its  rotation  around 
its  own  axis,  have  been  ascertained  to  exist,  and  their  numerical  values  ap- 
proximately determined  in  each  of  the  three  elements,  the  Declination,  In- 
clination, and  Magnetic  Force.  We  unhesitatingly  refer  these  variations  to 
the  sun  as  their  primary  source,  since  we  find  that  in  whatever  part  of  the 
globe  the  phsenomeua  are  observed,  the  solstices  and  equinoxes  are  the  cri- 
tical epochs  of  the  variation  whose  period  is  a  year,  whilst  the  diurnal  varia- 
tion follows  in  all  meridians  nearly  the  same  law  of  local  solar  hours.  To 
these  unquestionable  evidences  of  solar  influence  in  the  magnetic  affections 
of  the  earth,  we  have  now  to  add  the  recently  ascertained  fact,  that  the  mag- 
netic storms,  or  disturbances,  which  in  the  absence  of  more  correct  know- 
ledge were  supposed  to  be  wholly  irregular  in  their  occurrence,  are  strictly 
periodical  phenomena,  conforming  with  systematic  regularity  to  laws  in  which 
the  influence  of  local  solar  hours  is  distinctly  traced. 

But,  whilst  we  recognise  the  sun  as  the  primary  cause  of  variations  whose 
periods  attest  the  source  from  whence  they  derive  their  origin,  the  mode  or 
modes  in  which  the  effects  are  produced  constitute  a  question  which  has  been 
and  may  still  be  open  to  a  variety  of  opinions  :  the  direct  action  of  the  sun 
as  being  itself  a  magnet,  its  calorific  agency  occasioning  thermo-electric 
and  galvanic  currents,  or  in  alternately  exalting  and  depressing  the  magnetic 
condition  of  substances  near  the  surface  of  the  earth,  or  in  one  of  the  consti- 
tuents of  its  atmosphere, — have  been  severally  adduced  as  hypotheses  afford- 
ing plausible  explanations.  Of  each  and  all  such  hypotheses  the  facts  are  the 
only  true  criterion ;  but  it  is  right  that  we  should  bear  in  mind  that  in  the  pre- 
sent state  of  our  knowledge,  the  evidence  which  may  give  a  decided  counte- 
nance to  one  hypothesis  in  preference  to  others  does  not  preclude  their  possible 
coexistence.  The  analysis  of  the  collected  materials  and  the  disentanglement 
of  the  various  effects  which  are  comprehended  in  them,  are  far  from  being  yet 
complete.  The  correspondence  of  the  critical  epochs  of  the  annual  variation 
with  the  solstices  and  equinoxes  rather  than  with  the  epochs  of  maximum 
and  minimum  temperature,  which  at  the  surface  of  the  earth,  in  the  subsoil 


liv  REPOET — 1852. 

beneath  the  surface,  or  in  the  atmosphere  above  the  surface,  are  separated 
by  a  wide  interval  from  the  solstitial  epochs,  appears  to  favour  the  hypothesis 
of  a  direct  action ;  as  does  also  the  remarkable  fact  which  has  been  established) 
that  the  magnetic  force  is  greater  in  both  the  northern  and  southern  hemi- 
spheres  in  the  months  of  December,  January,  and  February,  when  the  sun 
is  nearest  to  the  earth,  than  in  those  of  May,  June,  and  July,  when  he  is 
most  distant  from  it:  whereas  if  the  effects  were  due  to  temperature,  the  two 
hemispheres  should  be  oppositely  instead  of  similarly  affected  in  each  of  the 
two  periods  referred  to.  Still  there  are  doubtless  minor  periodical  irregular 
variations  yet  to  be  made  out  by  suitable  analytical  processes,  which,  by 
their  possible  accordance  with  the  epochs  of  maximum  and  minimum 
temperature,  may  support  in  a  more  limited  sense,  not  as  a  sole  but  as 
a  coordinate  cause,  the  hypothesis  of  calorific  agency  so  generally  received, 
and  so  ably  advocated  of  late  in  connection  with  the  discovery  by  our  great 
chemist  and  philosopher  of  the  magnetic  properties  of  oxygen  and  of  the 
manner  in  which  they  are  modified  and  affected  by  differences  of  temperature. 
It  may  indeed  be  difficult  to  suppose  that  the  magnetic  phenomena  which 
we  measure  at  the  surface  of  the  globe,  should  not  be  in  any  degree  influ- 
enced by  the  variations  in  the  magnetic  conditions  of  the  oxygen  of  the 
atmosphere  in  different  seasons  and  at  different  hours  of  the  day  and  night ; 
but  whether  that  influence  be  sensible  or  not,  whether  it  be  appreciable  by 
our  instruments  or  inappreciable  by  them,  is  a  question  which  yet  remains 
for  solution  by  the  more  minute  sifting  of  the  accumulated  facts  wbioh  are 
now  undergoing  examination  in  so  many  quarters. 

To  justify  the  anticipation  that  conclusions  of  the  most  striking  character, 
and  wholly  unforeseen,  may  yet  be  derivable  from  the  materials  in  our 
possession,  we  need  only  to  recall  the  experience  of  the  last  few  months, 
which  have  brought  to  our  knowledge  the  existence  of  what  may  possibly 
prove  the  most  instructive,  as  it  is  certainly  at  first  sight  the  least  explicable, 
of  all  the  periodical  magnetic  variations  with  which  we  have  become  ac- 
quainted. I  refer  to  the  concurrent  testimony  which  observations  at  parts 
of  the  globe  the  most  distant  from  each  other  bear  to  the  existence  of  a 
periodical  variation  or  inequality,  affecting  alike  the  magnitude  of  the  diurnal 
variations,  and  the  magnitude  and  frequency  of  the  disturbances  or  storms. 
The  cycle  or  period  of  this  inequality  appears  to  extend  to  about  ten  of  our 
years;  the  maximum  and  minimum  of  the  magnitudes  affected  by  it  being 
separated  by  an  interval  of  about  five  years,  and  the  differences  being  much 
too  great,  and  resting  on  an  induction  far  too  extensive,  to  admit  of  uncer- 
tainty as  to  the  facts  themselves.  The  existence  of  a  well-marked  magnetic 
period  which  has  certainly  no  counterpart  in  thermic  conditions,  appears  to 
render  still  more  doubtful  the  supposed  connexion  between  the  magnetic  and 
calorific  influences  of  the  sun.  It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  this  periodical 
magnetic  variation  is  found  to  be  identical  in  period  and  in  epochs  of  maxima 
and  minima  with  the  periodical  variation  in  the  frequency  and  magnitude  of 


ADDBSM.  lV 

the  soJar  spots  which  M.  Sohwabe  hag  established  by  twenty -•«  yean  of 
unremitting  labour.  From  a  cosmioal  connexion  of  this  nature,  supposing  it 
to  be  finally  established,  it  would  follow,  that  the  decennial  period  which 
we  measure  by  our  magnetic  instruments  is,  in  fact,  a  solar  period,  mani* 
fested  to  us  also  by  the  alternately  increasing  and  decreasing  frequency  and 
magnitude  of  obscurations  on  the  surface  of  the  solar  disc.  May  we  not 
have  in  these  phenomena  the  indication  of  a  cycle  or  period  of  secular 
change  in  ike  magnetism  of  the  mi,  affecting  visibly  his  gaseous  atmosphere 
or  photosphere,  and  sensibly  modifying  the  magnetic  influence  which  he 
exti  cises  on  the  surface  of  our  earth  ? 

The  determination  of  the  figure  and  dimensions  of  the  globe  whiob  we 
inhabit  may  justly  be  regarded  as  possessing  a  very  high  degree  of  scientific 
interest  and  value,  and  the  measurements  necessary  for  a  oorreot  knowledge 
thereof,  have  long  been  looked  upon  as  proper  subjects  for  public  underta- 
kings and  as  highly  honourable  to  the  nations  which  have  taken  part  in  them. 
Inquiries  in  which  I  was  formerly  engaged  led  me  fully  to  concur  with  a 
remark  of  Laplace,  to  the  effect  that  it  is  extremely  probable  that  the  first 
attempts  were  made  at  a  period  much  anterior  to  those  of  which  history  has 
preserved  the  record ;  the  relation  which  many  measures  of  the  most  remote 
antiquity  have  to  each  other  and  to  the  terrestrial  circumference  strengthens 
this  conjecture,  and  seems  to  indicate,  not  only  that  the  earth's  circumference 
was  known  with  a  great  degree  of  accuracy  at  an  extremely  ancient  period,  but 
that  it  has  served  as  the  base  of  a  complete  system  of  measures  the  vestiges  of 
which  have  been  found  in  Egypt  and  Asia*  In  modern  times  the  merit  of  re- 
suming these  investigations  belongs  to  the  French  nation,  by  whom  the  arc  of 
the  meridian  between  Formentera  and  Dunkirk  was  measured  towards  the  close 
of  the  last  century.  The  Trigonometrical  Survey  of  Great  Britain,  commenced 
in  1783,  for  the  specific  object  of  connecting  the  Observatories  of  Greenwich 
and  Paris,  was  speedily  expanded  by  the  able  men  to  whom  its  direction  was 
then  confided  into  an  undertaking  of  far  greater  scientific  as  well  as  topo- 
graphical importance,  having  for  its  objects  on  the  one  hand  the  formation 
of  correct  maps  of  Great  Britain,  and  on  the  other  the  measurement  of  an 
arc  of  the  meridian,  having  the  extreme  northern  and  southern  points  of  the 
Island  for  its  terminations*  A  portion  of  this  arc,  amounting  to  2°  50',  viz. 
from  Dunnose  in  the  Isle  of  Wight  to  Clifton  in  Yorkshire,  was  published  in 
the  Phil.  Trans,  in  1803.  As  the  whole  arc,  extending  from  Dunnose  to 
Unst  and  Balta,  the  most  northern  of  the  Shetland  Islands,  would  comprise 
more  than  10°,  and  as  nearly  half  a  century  had  elapsed  since  the  publication 
of  the  earlier  part  of  the  Survey,  it  is  not  surprising  that  some  degree  of  impa- 
tience should  have  been  felt,  both  by  those  who  desired  the  results  for  scientific 
use,  and  by  those  who  were  interested  for  the  scientific  character  of  the  nation, 
that  the  general  results  of  the  Survey  applicable  to  scientific  purposes  should 
at  length  be  given  to  the  world.  Accordingly,  at  the  Birmingham  Meeting 
of  the  British  Association  in  1849,  a  Resolution  was  passed  appointing  a 


lvi  REPORT — 1852. 

deputation  to  confer  with  the  Master-General  of  the  Ordnance,  and  a  similar- 
resolution  was  passed  about  the  same  time  by  the  President  and  Council  of 
the  Royal  Society.  On  communicating  with  the  Master- General,  it  appeared 
that  the  want  of  special  funds  for  the  requisite  calculations  formed  the  only 
obstacle,  a  difficulty  which  was  happily  immediately  surmounted  by  an  appli- 
cation of  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  to  Lord  John 
Russell,  then  First  Lord  of  the  Treasury.  The  Report  of  the  Council  of  the 
British  Association  to  the  General  Committee  at  the  Meeting  of  the  last  year  at 
Ipswich,  contained  an  official  statement  from  the  Inspector-General  of  Forti- 
fications of  the  progress  of  the  reduction  and  examination  of  the  observations 
preparatory  to  the  desired  publication,  and  concluded  with  expressing  the 
expectation  of  the  Director  of  the  Survey,  that  he  "  should  be  able  to  furnish 
for  communication  to  the  British  Association  that  would  probably  assemble 
in  1852,  the  principal  results  obtainable  from  the  geodetic  operations  in 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland."  By  a  recent  letter  to  my  predecessor  from 
Captain  Yolland  of  the  Royal  Engineers,  who  is  entrusted  with  the  direction 
of  the  publication,  I  am  enabled  to  have  the  pleasure  of  announcing  that  the 
"  printing  of  the  observations  made  with  the  Zenith  Sector,  for  the  determi- 
nation of  the  latitudes  of  stations  between  the  years  1842  and  1850,  is 
finished,  and  will  be  presented  in  time  for  the  meeting  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation, and  that  the  calculations  connected  with  the  triangulation  are 
rapidly  advancing  towards  their  completion." 

In  the  meantime  the  great  arc  of  Eastern  Europe  has  been  advancing 
with  unexampled  rapidity  and  to  an  extent  hitherto  unparalleled.  Originating 
in  topographical  surveys  in  Esthonia  and  Livonia,  and  commenced  in  1816, 
the  operations,  both  geodesical  and  astronomical,  have  been  completed  be- 
tween IzmaTl  on  the  Danube  and  Fugleness  in  Finnmarken,  an  extent  of  25£ 
meridional  degrees.  Next  to  this  in  extent  is  the  Indian  arc  of  21°  21 f  be- 
tween Cape  Comorin  and  Kaliana  ;  and  the  third  is  the  French  arc  already 
referred  to  of  12°  22'.  It  appears  by  a  note  presented  to  the  Imperial 
Academy  of  Sciences  at  St.  Petersburgh  by  M.  Struve,  that  a  provisional 
calculation  has  been  made  of  a  large  part  of  the  great  arc  of  Eastern  Europe, 
and  that  it  has  been  found  to  indicate  for  the  figure  of  the  earth  a  greater 
compression  than  that  derived  by  Bessel  in  1837  and  1841,  from  all  the  arcs 
then  at  his  command, — Bessel's  compression  having  also  been  greater  than  La- 
place's previous  deduction.  It  is  naturally  with  great  pleasure  that  I  perceive 
that  the  figure  of  the  earth  derived  by  means  of  the  measurement  of  arcs  of 
the  meridian  approximates  more  and  more  nearly,  as  the  arcs  are  extended 
in  dimension,  to  the  compression  which  I  published  in  1825  as  the  result  of 
a  series  of  Pendulum  Experiments,  which,  by  the  means  placed  by  Govern- 
ment at  my  disposal,  I  was  enabled  to  make  from  the  equator  to  within  ten 
degrees  of  the  pole,  thus  giving  to  that  method  its  greatest  practicable  ex- 
tension. 

The  observations  hitherto  made  on  the  tides  of  the  ocean  have  been  insuf- 


ADDRESS.  lvil 

ficient  to  furnish  such  a  connected  knowledge  of  the  subject  as  would  enable 
us  to  follow  the  course  of  the  tide  over  any  considerable  portion  of  the  ocean, 
and  in  the  opinion  of  persons  most  competent  to  judge,  it  is  only  by  systematic 
observations  specially  directed  for  the  purpose,  that  this  connected  knowledge 
is  likely  to  be  obtained.  Accordingly  a  resolution  was  passed  at  the  Ipswich 
Meeting  of  the  Association,  appointing  a  Committee  to  prepare.a  Memorial 
to  Her  Majesty's  Government,  representing  the  importance  of  determining 
the  progress  of  the  tide -wave  along  the  coasts  of  Africa  and  South  America 
by  an  Atlantic  Tidal  Expedition.  This  Memorial  was  presented  to  Govern- 
ment by  my  predecessor,  and,  having  been  referred  to  the  Hydrographer,  has 
been  most  favourably  reported  upon.  We  may  therefore  expect  that  the 
survey  will  be  very  shortly  commenced.  The  recent  researches  of  Captain 
Beechey,  which  have  given  a  new  and  unexpected  view  of  the  tidal  movements 
of  the  ocean,  show  how  much  yet  remains  to  be  learnt  respecting  the  tides 
even  for  the  practical  purposes  of  navigation. 

The  facts  derived  a  few  years  since  from  the  barometrical  observations  at 
St  Helena,  showing  the  existence  of  a  lunar  atmospheric  tide,  have  been 
corroborated  in  the  last  year  by  a  similar  conclusion,  drawn  by  Captain  Elliot 
of  the  Madras  Engineers  from  the  barometrical  observations  at  Singapore* 
The  influence  of  the  moon's  attraction  on  the  atmosphere  produces,  as 
might  be  expected,  a  somewhat  greater  effect  on  the  barometer  at  Singapore, 
in  lat  1°  19',  than  at  St  Helena,  in  lat  15°  57'.  The  barometer  at  the 
equator  appears  to  stand  on  the  average  about  0*006  in.  (more  precisely 
0-0057,  in  lat  1°  19')  higher  at  the  moons  culminations  than  when  she  is 
six  hours  distant  from  the  meridian. 

We  have  received  from  our  valued  corresponding  member  Pro/.  Dove,  for 
presentation  to  this  Meeting,  an  important  continuation  of  his  researches  on 
the  temperatures  at  the  surface  of  the  globe.  In  former  communications  he 
has  furnished  us  with  maps  showing,  so  far  as  observation  permits,  the 
isothermals  of  the  whole  globe  in  every  month  of  the  year.  He  has  now 
given  us,  first,  the  normal  temperatures  of  each  parallel  of  latitude  in  each 
month ;  being  the  average  of  all  the  temperatures  in  that  parallel  in  such 
month ;  and  second,  the  abnormal  temperatures,  or  the  difference  between  the 
temperature  of  each  place  and  the. mean  temperature  of  its  parallel.  From 
these  again  are  formed  lines  of  abnormal  temperature  for  each  month,  sur- 
rounding andmarking  out  those  districts  or  localities,  which,  from  peculiarities 
of  the  surface  or  other  causes  affecting  the  distribution  of  heat,  are  charac- 
terized by  excessive  abnormal  heat  or  abnormal  cold.  The  importance  of 
these  researches  on  the  general  theory  of  the  causes  which  interfere  with  the 
equable  distribution  of  heat  according  to  latitude  is  obvious. 

The  activity  which  has  prevailed  so  greatly  of  late,  in  the  collection 
of  meteorological  data,  has  been  almost  exclusively  confined  to. that  portion 
of  the  surface  of  the  globe  which  is  occupied  by  land,  although  the  portion 


lviii  REPORT — 1852. 

covered  by  the  ocean  is  not  only  much  greater  in  extent,  but  is  also  better 
suited  for  the  solution  of  several  meteorological  problems.  Many  striking 
examples  might  be  adduced  to  show  that  it  is  "  systematic  direction/'  and 
not  "  individual  seal "  in  naval  men,  which  has  been  wanting,  and  it  has  been 
therefore  with  great  satisfaction  that  meteorologists  have  learnt  that  a  pro- 
position has  recently  been  made  from  the  United  States  Government  to  the 
British  Government,  to  undertake,  conjointly  and  in  cooperation,  a  system 
of  meteorological  observations,  to  be  made  at  sea  in  all  ships  belonging  to 
the  naval  service  of  the  two  countries,  and  sufficiently  simple  to  be  parti- 
cipated in  by  the  merchant  service  also.  In  a  partial  trial  whioh  has  been 
already  made  of  this  system  in  the  United  States,  it  has  been  found  to  produce 
results  which,  exclusive  of  their  scientific  bearing,  are  of  great  importance  to 
the  interests  of  navigation  and  commerce,  in  materially  shortening  passages 
by  the  knowledge  of  prevailing  winds  and  currents  at  particular  seasons. 
The  practical  advantages  arising  from  the  coordination  of  the  observa- 
tions in  the  Hydrographic  Office  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the  circu- 
lation of  the  charts  of  the  winds  and  currents,  and  of  the  sailing  diree- 
tions  founded  on  them,  have  been  such  and  so  appreciated,  that  there 
are  now,  as  it  is  stated,  more  than  1000  masters  of  'American  ships  en- 
gaged in  making  them.  The  request  for  British  cooperation  in  an  un- 
dertaking so  honourable  to  the  country  in  whioh  it  originated,  was  referred 
in  the  spring  of  this  year  by  the  Earl  of  Malmesbury  to  the  President  and 
Council  of  the  Royal  Society  for  a  Report ;  from  which  I  permit  myself  to 
quote  the  concluding  sentence,  in  the  persuasion  that  it  would  find  an  echo, 
if  necessary,  in  every  part  of  the  United  Kingdom,  and  that  it  cannot  fail  to 
be  promptly  acted  upon  by  the  Government  of  a  country  in  which 
maritime  interests  hold  so  prominent  a  place : — "  To  the  Government  of 
this  country  the  demand  for  cooperation  and  for  the  interchange  of  obser- 
vations is  most  earnestly  addressed  by  the  Government  of  the  United 
States  {  and  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  express  their 
hope  that  it  will  not  be  addressed  in  vain.  We  possess  in  our  ships  of  war, 
in  our  packet  service,  and  in  our  vast  commercial  navy,  better  means  for 
making  suoh  observations,  and  a  greater  interest  in  the  results  to  which  they 
lead,  tban  any  other  nation ;  for  this  purpose  every  ship  which  is  under  the 
control  of  the  Admiralty,  should  be  furnished  with  instruments  properly  con- 
structed and  compared,  and  with  instructions  for  using  them;  similar  in- 
structions for  making  and  recording  observations,  as  far  as  their  means  will 
allow,  should  be  given  to  every  ship  that  sails,  with  a  request  that  they  will 
transmit  the  results  to  the  Hydrographer's  Office  of  the  Admiralty, 
where  an  adequate  staff  of  Officers  or  others  should  be  provided  for  their 
prompt  examination,  and  the  publication  of  the  improved  charts  and  sailing 
directions  to  which  they  would  lead  $  above  ail,  it  seems  desirable  to  establish 
a  prompt  communication  with  the  Hydrographer's  Office  of  the  United  States, 


ADDRESS,  lix 

bo  that  the  united  labours  of  the  two  greatest  naval  and  commercial  nations 
of  the  world  may  be  combined,  with  the  least  practicable  delay*  in  promoting 
the  interests  of  navigation." 

Amongst  the  most  valuable  results  which  the  Physical  Sciences  may  expect 
to  obtain  from  this  extensive  system  of  nautical  observation,  we  may  reckon 
the  construction  of  charts  of  the  isothermals  of  the  surface  of  the  ocean  cor- 
responding to  every  month  in  the  year,  similar  to  Dove's  monthly  isothermals 
of  the  temperature  of  the  air;  and  a  knowledge  of  the  normal  condition  as 
well  as  the  abnormal  variations,  with  their  special  causes  and  effects,  of  the 
great  Gulf-stream  which  connects  the  shores  of  the  Old  and  New  World, 
and  in  its  normal  effects  is  influential  in  many  ways  on  the  climate  of  the 
United  States  and  Western  Europe,  whilst  its  abnormal  effects  are  principally 
known,  so  far  as  we  are  yet  aware,  by  the  peculiarities  of  climate  they 
occasionally  produce  on  the  European  side  of  the  Atlantic.  Of  the  extent, 
depth,  and  limits  of  this  remarkable  current  in  ordinary  and  extraordinary 
years  we  are  as  yet  very  imperfectly  informed.  Of  the  zoology  of  the  great 
tracts  of  ocean  which  are  covered  by  its  banks  of  seaweed,  we  know  nothing 
beyond  the  fact  that  they  are  the  habitation  of  a  countless  number  of  oceanic 
animals,.—  giving  rise  possibly  to  deposits  which  may  have  distinctive 
characters  from  littoral  deposits  or  from  those  of  marine  estuaries.  But 
doubtless,  we  can  now  estimate  only  a  very  small  part  of  the  advantages 
which  Terrestrial  Physics  as  well  as  Hydrography  and  Navigation  would 
derive  from  the  concurrent  exertions  of  the  two  great  maritime  nations  in 
the  way  that  has  been  pointed  out. 

The  analogy  of  the  configuration  of  the  land  and  sea  on  the  north  of  the 
continents  of  Asia  and  America,  has  for  some  time  past  caused  an  opinion 
to  be  entertained  that  the  sea  on  the  north  of  the  Parry  Islands  might  be  as 
open  as  it  is  known  to  be  throughout  the  year  in  the  same  latitude  on  the 
north  of  the  Siberian  Islands.  The  expectation  that  Wellington  Strait  might, 
as  the  continuation  of  Barrow's  Strait,  prove  a  channel  of  communication 
from  the  Atlantic  into  that  part  of  the  Polar  Ocean,  has  been  considerably 
strengthened  in  the  last  year  by  the  discoveries  which  we  owe  to  the  hardi- 
hood and  intrepidity  of  our  merchant  seamen.  The  access  to  the  Polar 
Ocean,  and  the  degree  in  which  it  may  be  navigable  for  purposes  of  dis- 
covery or  of  scientific  research,  are  amongst  the  few  geographical  problems 
of  high  interest  which  remain  to  be  solved ;  and  we  may  confidently  look 
for  a  solution,  in  the  direction  at  least  that  has  been  adverted  to,  by  the 
Expedition  which  has  been  despatched  under  Sir  Edward  Belcher  to  follow 
up  the  discovered  traces  of  Sir  John  Franklin's  vessels. 

The  success  which  the  Kew  Observatory  Committee  have  had  in  their  un* 
dertaking  to  make  Standard  Thermometers,  encourages  us  to  hope  that  they 
will  be  equally  successful  in  the  endeavour  in  which  they  are  now  engaged 
to  introduce  a  greater  degree  of  precision  in  the  construction  of  meteorological 
instruments  generally,  as  well  as  in  the  more  delicate  kinds  which  are  so  fre- 


IX  REPORT — 1852. 

quently  required  in  physical  experiments.  An  establishment  has  long  been 
a  desideratum  in  which  instruments  for  various  physical  researches  employed 
in  foreign  countries  should  be  tried  in  comparison  with  the  instruments  used 
here,  and  the  relative  merits  of  each  examined,  and  in  which  new  and  pro* 
mising  inventions  and  suggestions  should  receive  a  practical  trial.  Amongst 
its  other  services  rendered  to  Science  and  to  the  country,  the  British  Associa- 
tion is  now  entitled  to  claim  the  merit  of  having  organized  an  establishment 
which  appears  extremely  welUsuited  to  supply  this  deficiency,  and  needs  only 
more  extensive  means  to  supply  it  to  any  required  extent  The  applications 
which  have  been  made  to  Kew  in  the  past  year  by  Profs.  Forbes  and  Thomson 
for  thermometers  of  particular  kinds,  required  in  very  delicate  experiments  in 
which  those  gentlemen  are  engaged,  and  by  the  Admiralty  for  Standard  Ther- 
mometers for  very  low  temperatures  to  be  employed  by  the  Arctic  Expeditions, 
show  that  the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  such  an  establishment  are  already 
beginnings  to  be  recognised  ;  and  as  these  become  more  known  and  felt,  it  may 
confidently  be  anticipated  that  means  will  not  be  wanting  for  such  an  exten- 
sion of  the  establishment  at  Kew,  as  may  be  necessary  to  meet  fully  the 
public  requirements.  The  desire  which  is  so  frequently  manifested  by 
voyagers  and  travellers  in  distant  countries  to  contribute  to  our  knowledge 
of  terrestrial  physics,  would  be  greatly  aided  by  increased  facilities  afforded 
to- them  of  obtaining  suitable  and  well-assured  instruments,  and  still  more  if 
practical  instruction  or  advice  could  be  added.  It  is  not  from  deficiency  of 
interest,  or  of  a  desire  to  be  useful  in  such  inquiries,  that  our  British  travellers 
do  not  reap  the  full  advantages  of  the  great  opportunities  which  they  possess, 
so  much  as  from  the  absence  of  any  provision  for  supplying  instruments  on 
which  reliance  can  be  placed  with  practical  instructions  for  their  use.  In  no 
department  is  the  "  systematic  direction,**  which  it  is  the  object  of  the  British 
Association  to  communicate  to  the  sciences  generally,  more  needed  than  in 
Physical  Geography.  To  carry  this  desirable  purpose  into  effect,  might  with 
great  propriety  and  public  benefit  be  made  to  form  a  branch  of  the  duties  of 
the  Kew  Observatory. 

In  compliance  with  a  resolution  of  the  Council,  the  Kew  Committee  have 
made  arrangements  for  four  aeronautic  ascents  in  the  Nassau  Balloon,  chiefly 
for  the  purpose  of  investigating  the  laws  of  the  decrement  of  temperature 
and  of  aqueous  vapour  in  ascending  into  the  atmosphere.  The  two  first  of 
these  ascents  took  place  on  the  17th  and  26th  of  August,  attaining  in  each 
case  between  19,000  and  20,000  feet,  and  will  be  the  subject  of  a  commu- 
nication to  the  Association,  which  will  doubtless  excite  much  interest,  from 
Mr.  Welsh  of  the  Kew  Observatory,  who  was  charged  by  the  Superintend- 
ing Committee  with  the  conduct  of  the  observations. 

The  opportunity  which  the  Observatory  furnishes  to  the  Association,  of  a 
convenient  locality,  presenting  many  facilities  for  carrying  on  a  series  of 
delicate  experiments,  has  been  taken  advantage  of  by  Professor  Stokes  for 
experiments  in  which  he  is  engaged  on  the  Index  of  Friction  in  different 


ADDRESS.  lxi 

Gates.  Experiments  reported  by  myself  to  the  Royal  Society  in  1829, 
showed  that  the  retardation  of  a  pendulum  vibrating  in  different  gases 
was  not  proportionate  to  their  respective  densities,  but  appeared  to  depend 
also  on  some  inherent  quality,  whereby  the  different  gases  present  different 
degrees  of  resistance  to  the  motion  of  bodies  passing  through  them.  I  was 
interrupted  in  the  prosecution  of  this  subject  by  a  recall  to  military  duty,  and 
I  now  rejoice  to  see  it  in  hands  so  far  more  able  to  do  it  justice. 

The  Parliamentary  Committee  appointed  at  the  Ipswich  meeting  to  watch 
over  the  interests  of  Science,  consisting  of  Members  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation who  are  also  Members  of  the  Legislature,  have  this  morning  made 
their  first  Report  to  the  General  Committee,  and  some  notice  of  the  subjects 
which  have  chiefly  occupied  them  in  the  past  year  may  not  be  unacceptable 
to  the  Members  of  the  Association  at  large.  One  of  these  subjects  is  that  of 
Scientific  Pensions.  It  is  known  to  all  that  since  the  commencement  of  the 
reign  of  Her  present  Majesty  pensions  to  the  amount  of  £1200  have  been  at 
the  disposal  of  the  First  Minister  of  the  Crown,  to  be  granted  each  year  in 
recompense  of  civil  services,  chiefly,  though  not  exclusively,  in  literature  and 
science,  and  that  several  persons  of  various  degrees  of  literary  and  scientific 
eminence  have  received  pensions  accordingly,  many  of  which  have  given 
much  public  satisfaction.  On  examining  the  appropriations  which  have 
been  made  in  the  fourteen  years  since  this  fund  became  available,  it  appeared 
that  only  about  thirteen  per  cent,  or  an  eighth  part  of  the  whole  amount,  had 
been  allotted  to  scientific  pensions.  Considering  this  lobe  a  proper  subject 
to  be  brought  under  the  notice  of  Government,  Lord  Wrottesley,  the  Chair- 
man, and  Sir  R.  H.  Inglis,  one  of  the  Members  of  the  Committee,  obtained 
an  interview  with  the  Earl  of  Derby  for  that  purpose.  The  readiness  of 
Government  to  attend  to  such  representations  has  been  fully  shown  in  the 
scientific  pensions  granted  in  the  present  year,  amounting  to  nearly  a  third 
of  the  whole  sum  available  for  the  year.  These  pensions  have  been  granted, 
on  the  recommendation  of  the  President  of  the  Royal  Society, — to  Mr. 
Hind,  who  has  the  unique  distinction  of  being  the  discoverer  of  no  less  than 
six  out  of  the  twenty-five  known  planets  of  the  solar  system, — to  Dr. 
Mantell,  so  well  known  for  his  successful  researches  in  palaeontology, — and 
to  Mr.  Ronalds,  for  the  electrical  and  kindred  researches  in  which  he  has 
been  engaged  for  so  many  years.  The  intimate  association  of  the  scientific 
services  of  Mr.  Ronalds  for  several  years  past  with  the  Observatory  of  the 
British  Association  at  Kew,  must  render  this  last  selection  peculiarly  gra- 
tifying to  our  Members. 

Another  subject  which  has  occupied  the  attention  of  the  Parliamentary 
Committee  in  the  last  year,  is  one  to  which  their  attention  was  requested  by 
the  Council  of  the  Association,  with  a  view  of  carrying  into  effect  the  desire 
of  the  General  Committee  for  a  more  cheap  and  rapid  international  commu- 
nication of  scientific  publications.  The  credit  of  the  first  move  towards  the 
accomplishment  of  this  desirable  object  is  due  to  the  Government  of  the 

1852.  e 


lxii  REPORT — 1852. 

United  States,  by  whom  an  arrangement  was  made  for  the  admission  duty 
free  of  all  scientific  books  addressed  as  presents  from  foreign  countries  to  all 
institutions  and  individuals  cultivating  science  in  that  country,  such  books 
being  sent  through  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  by  whom  their  further  dis- 
tribution to  their  respective  destinations  was  undertaken.  This  arrangement 
was  notified  to  our  Government  through  the  British  Minister  at  Washington, 
and  a  similar  privilege  was  at  the  same  time  requested  for  the  admission 
duty  free  into  England  of  books  sent  as  presents  from  the  United  States  to 
public  institutions  and  individuals  cultivating  science  in  this  country,  under 
such  regulations  as  might  appear  most  fitting.  This  proposition  gave  rise  to 
communications  between  the  President  of  the  Royal  Society  and  the  Chair- 
man of  the  Parliamentary  Committee  on  the  one  part,  and  the  Treasury  and 
the  principal  Commissioner  of  Customs  on  the  other;  the  result  of  which 
has  been  the  concession  of  the  privilege  of  admission,  duty  free,  into  England 
of  scientific  books  from  all  countries,  desigued  as  presents  to  institutions  and 
individuals  named  in  lists  to  be  prepared  from  time  to  time  by  the  Royal  So* 
ciety,  after  communication  with  other  scientific  societies  recognized  by  charter, 
under  the  regulation,  however,  that  the  books  are  to  be  imported  in  oases 
addressed  to  and  passing  through  the  Royal  Society.  This  arrangement  has 
come  into  operation ;  and  it  may  be  interesting  to  notice,  as  giving  some 
idea  of  its  extensive  bearing,  that  the  first  arrival  from  the  United 
States  which  has  taken  place  under  these  regulations  consists  of  packages 
weighing  in  all  no  less  than  three  tons.  There  is  another  branch  of  the 
same  subject  which  is  more  difficult  to  arrange,  viz.  the  international  com- 
munication by  pott  of  scientific  pamphlets  and  papers  at  reduced  rates  of 
postage ;  the  Parliamentary  Committee  have  directed  their  attention  to  this 
part  of  the  subject  also,  and  I  earnestly  hope  that  their  exertions  will  be 
successful. 

Allusions  have  been  made  by  influential  men,  and  in  influential  places,  to 
a  direct  representation  of  Science  in  Parliament ;  and  we  frequently  hear 
opinions  expressed  that  Parliament  might  be  improved  by  a  greater  admix- 
ture of  men  who  might  be  chosen  as  the  representatives  of  the  intellectual 
cultivation  of  the  nation,  amongst  those  who  represent  its  material  interests. 
The  benefit  which  the  Legislature  might  derive  from  a  change  of  this  descrip- 
tion, is  a  question  rather  for  statesmen  than  for  men  of  science,  and  would 
be  quite  unsuitable  for  discussion  here :  but  in  respect  to  the  influence  which 
such  change  would  exercise  on  Science  itself  and  on  its  cultivators,  it  does 
belong  to  us  to  consider  both  its  probable  advantages  and  disadvantages.  I 
have  no  hesitation  in  expressing  as  an  individual  opinion,  my  belief  that  the 
possible  gain  would  be  incalculably  outweighed  by  the  too  certain  evils ;  and 
that  scientific  men  cannot  too  highly  value  and  desire  to  retain  the  advantage 
they  now  possess  in  the  undisturbed  enjoyment  of  their  own  pursuits  un- 
troubled by  the  excitements  and  distractions  of  political  life.  Some  there 
are  amongst  us,  and  some  there  ever  have  been,  who,  born  to  a  station  which 


'      %  ADDRESS.  lxiii 

brings  with  it  public  duties,  but  gifted  with  a  strong  natural  taste  for  the 
pursuits  of  science,  do  manage  to  succeed  in  a  greater  or  less  degree  in  com- 
bining both.  Success  is  in  such  cases  the  more  honourable,  and  is  the  more 
admired,  because  it  manifests  the  strength  of  the  original  disposition,  and  in- 
dicates how  much  more  might  probably  have  been  accomplished  by  an 
undivided  attention.  The  economy  of  human  labour  points  specially  to  such 
men  as  the  most  suitable  representatives  of  science  in  the  legislature  of  which 
they  already  form  a  part  The  selection  from  amongst  them  of  a  certaiu 
number  to  be  particularly  charged  with  the  duties  of  watching  over  and  pro- 
moting the  interests  of  science,  either  with  Government  or  in  the  Legislature 
appears  in  this  view  a  most  happy  expedient  We  cannot  read  over  the 
names  of  the  noblemen  and  gentlemen  who  form  the  Parliamentary  Committee 
of  the  British  Association,  without  being  satisfied  that  science  would  not  be 
likely  to  be  more  honourably  or  more  ably  represented  by  any  system  o£ 
direct  representation ;  nor  can  we  look  to  the  discretion  and  practical  wisdom 
with  which  the  proceedings  of  the  Committee  have  been  conducted  in  the 
first  year  of  its  existence,  without  being  impressed  with  the  belief  that  it  is 
destined  to  render  important  services  both  to  the  country  and  to  ourselves. 

Gentlemen,  I  have  now  occupied  fully  as  much  of  your  time  and  attention 
as  I  can  venture  to  trespass  upon,  and  yet  have  found  it  impossible  to  com- 
prehend within  the  limits  of  a  discourse  all  the  topics  to  which  I  would  gladly 
have  called  your  notice,  even  in  those  branches  of  knowledge  in  which  I 
may  consider  myself  least  uninformed,  in  three  of  the  seven  departments 
into  which  our  science  is  divided.  I  have  left  wholly  untouched  those  wide 
fields  of  Geology  and  Natural  History,  which  would  of  themselves  have 
furnished  fitting  subjects  for  an  address  of  still  longer  duration.  No  one  can 
be  more  sensible  of  this,  and  of  many  other  imperfections  and  deficiencies, 
than  the  individual  who  addresses  you ;  yet,  if  he  has  not  wholly  failed  in 
the  purpose  he  designed — if  the  impression  which  he  has  endeavoured  to 
convey,  however  faint  may  be  the  image,  be  true  to  that  which  it  is  intended 
to  represent, — yau  have  not  failed  to  recognise  the  gratifying  picture  of 
British  Science  in  the  full  career  of  energetic  action  and  advancement,  press- 
ing forward  in  every  direction  to  fill  the  full  measure  of  the  sphere  of  its 
activity  in  the  domain  of  intellectual  culture;  regardful  on  the  one  hand  of 
the  minutest  details  in  the  patient  examination  of  natural  facts,  and  on  the 
other  hand  diligent  in  combining  them  into  generalizations  of  the  highest 
order,  by  the  aid  of  those  principles  of  inductive  philosophy,  which  are  the 
surest  guide  of  the  human  intellect  to  the  comprehension  of  the  laws  and 
order  of  the  material  universe. 


ecZ 


REPORTS 


ON 


THE    STATE    OF    SCIENCE 


REPORTS 


ON 


THE    STATE    OF    SCIENCE 


Third  Report  on  the  Facto  qf  Earthquake  Phenomena. 
By  Robbrt  Mallrt,  C.B.,  MJUjL. 


ERRATA  IN  MR.  MALLET'S  SECOND  REPORT  ON  EARTHQUAKES. 

Since  the  printing  of  the  preceding  Report  the  following  errata  have  been 
discovered : —  « 

In  page  288,  line    5  from  bottom,  for  0"*014206  read  0"014286. 

289,  line  14,/or  0"013910  read  0"013903. 

line30,/or0''-41743r«M*0"-41726. 

line  31,/or  0"013914  read 0"013909. 

[The  preceding  corrections  apply  also  to  the  table  of  chronograph  ratings 
at  foot  of  p.  289.] 

In  page  290,  line   2,  for  0"-013914  read  0"013909. 

for  0"006956  read  0"006954. 

293,  line    1,/or  ratio  read  rate. 

298,  line 33, for  30705  read 307*60. 

299,  line  12,/or  9-607  read  9609. 

306,  line  13,  supply  a  comma  after  the  word  "  dial ". 

306,  line   4  from  bottom,  supply  a  comma  after  "  dial ". 

These  errors  are  all  small,  and  affect  the  results  within  limits  much  less 
than  those  of  the  differences  between  one  experiment  and  another.  A  single 
arithmetical  mistake  remains  however  to  be  noticed,  which  alters  consider- 
ably the  constant  of  wave  transit  in  sand  as  deduced  from  the  experiments ; 
namely,  that  in  page  292,  line  3  from  bottom,  *8  was  read  instead  of  '3,  at 
the  beginning  of  the  number  representing  the  average  of  col.  4.  The  result 
of  the  subtraction  should  therefore  be  S'H  11 639  instead  of  2 "'9 11 63 9,  and 
hence  the  gross  rate  of  transit  in  sand  =774*568  feet  per  second.  Using 
this  corrected  number  in  the  calculation  (p.  307)  of  the  distance  lost  in 
raising  the  wave  in  the  seismoscope,  and  applying  throughout  the  small 
corrections  mentioned  above,  the  true  rates  of  transit  are — 

In  Sand  . 824*915  feet  per  second. 

In  discontinuous  Granite  1306*425  „ 

In  more  solid  Granite 1664*574  „ 

which  numbers  should  therefore  be  substituted  for  those  given  in  pp.  307, 
308. 

This  correction  still  further  removes  any  probability  of  aerial  commotion 
having  at  all  interfered  in  the  Killiney  experiments  :  see  pp.  303-305. 

The  Catalogue  of  Earthquakes  contained  in  Mr.  Mallet's  Report  will  be 
continued  in  the  next  volume. 


ON  THE  PACTS  OP  EARTHQUAKE  PHENOMENA. 


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ON  THB  FACTS  OV  EARTHQUAKE  PHENOMENA. 


39 


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41 


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REPORT — 1852. 


ON  THE  PACT8  OF  EARTHQUAKE  PHENOMENA. 


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! 


CO  CO-*  •*« 


ON  THE  VITALITY  OF  SEEDS, 


%  Twelfth  Report  qf  a  Committee,  consisting  of  H 
Professor  Daubuny,  Professor  Henb^ow, 
appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the 
of  Seed*. 

Thb  seeds  set  apart  for  this  year's  sowing  were  those  collected  in  1844,  and 
it  is  the  third  time  that  the  same  kinds  have  been  subjected  to  experiment 

There  is  a  very  evident  deorease  in  the  numbers  which  have  vegetated  when 
compared  with  those  of  previous  sowings,  as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the 
annexed  table* 

It  being  still  desirable  for  the  continuation  of  these  experiments  that  seeds 
of  known  date  should  be  added  to  the  Dep6t  at  Oxford,  more  especially  of 
families  and  genera  not  already  there,  we  again  beg  to  call  the  attention  of 
the  Members  to  the  subject ;  and  to  guide  them  in  the  selection,  we  refer 
them  to  the  List  of  Genera,  the  seeds  of  which  are  now  in  our  possession, 
given  in  p.  32  of  the  Report  of  this  Association  for  1848. 


Name  and  Date  when  gathered. 

No. 
■own* 

No.  of  Seeds  of  each 
Specks  which  vege- 
tated at 

Time  of  vegetating 

in  days  at 

Remarks. 

Ox- 
ford. 

Cam- 
bridge. 

Chia- 
wick. 

Ox- 
ford. 

Cam- 
bridge. 

Chi.- 
wick. 

1844. 

1.  Ammobinm  alatum    

2.  Asparagus  officinalis 

3..  Alstrcemeria  aurantia 

4.  Argemone  mexicana 

h,  Bryonia  dioica   r.,.., ...... 

200 
150 
100 
100 
100 
100 
200 
200 
100 
200 
200 
150 
200 
200 
150 
200 
200 
200 
200 
150 
200 

200 

27 

26 

3 

12 

2 
68 

25 

15 

7 

13 
9 

f  Strong  and 
\    healthy. 

Plants  weak. 

J  Strong  and 
\   healthy. 

Plants  weak. 
J  Strong  and 
\\    healthy. 

6.  Carthamns  tinctoriua 

7.  Carum  Carol 

8.  Catananche  coerulea 

9.  Crambe  maritima  

10.  Chenopodium  Botrya 

11.  Eschscholtzia  californica . 
12    HeHebonw  foetidus 

13   Lioaria  PresiiT-T... 

14.  Scorzonera  hiapanka 

1J»     SAnnnAriA  annua. •• 

16   Solan  una  ovigerum 

17.  Sinm  Sisaniip.  *-.--.. „ 

18.  Sanvitalia  procumbent  ... 

19.  Tngopogoa  porrifolinm... 

20.  Veaicaria  grandiflora 

21.  Madia 8plendenjtttf_.tT.Tt. 

22.  Malva  fw^ntim* ,,T,„f 

42 

30 

10 

s 

Sown  at  Oxford  on  the  18th  of  June  in  pots  and  placed  in  a  cold  frame, 
at  Cambridge  on  the  21st  of  June  in  the  open  border,  and  at  Chiswick  on 
June  10th  in  pots  placed  in  slight  heat. 


1852. 


178  REPORT — 1852. 

Report  on  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  1851-52.  By  the  Rev. 
Baden  Powell,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  F.R.A.S.,  F.G.S.,  Savilian  Pro- 
fessor of  Geometry  in  the  University  of  Oxford. 

In  submitting  to  the  British  Association  a  fifth  report  in  continuation  of 
former  ones  on  observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  I  am  bound  to  acknow- 
ledge the  contributions  (as  heretofore)  of  Dr.  Buist,  the  Rev.  J.  Slatter,  Mr. 
J.  King  Watts,  the  Rev.  T.  Rankin  and  Mr.  Birt,  besides  several  other  friends 
who  have  favoured  me  with  occasional  observations :  to  Mr.  £•  J.  Lowe  I  am 
especially  indebted  for  communicating,  besides  his  own  valuable  series,  those 
of  Mr.  Lawson,  and  the  very  exact  observations  of  M.  Bulard,  and  a  series  ob- 
served by  the  Rev.  J.  B.  Reade  and  several  friends. 

These  latter  sets  of  observations  have  each  been  drawn  up  in  such  complete 
and  distinct  tabular  forms  that  I  have  judged  it  better  for  the  most  part  to 
retain  them  in  the  order  in  which  they  were  communicated,  than  to  attempt 
to  reduce  them  to  a  more  strict  chronological  arrangement. 

I  have  also  received  a  considerable  series  of  older  meteor-observations  by 
T.  W.  Webb,  Esq.,  of  Ganarew,  near  Monmouth,  extending  over  a  period 
of  upwards  of  thirty  years  prior  to  1850.  As  it  was  found  almost  impossi- 
ble to  reduce  these  to  the  tabular  form,  they  are  given  precisely  as  they  were 
communicated :  they  in  several  instances  afford  points  of  comparison  with 
former  records,  and  supply  deficiencies  in  them. 

I.  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  from  1818  to  1850,  extracted  from  old 
diaries  of  natural  phenomena.  By  Thomas  William  Webb,  Esq.,  of 
Ganarew,  Monmouth. 

1818.  Jan.  5. — A  meteor  about  5h  30m  p.m.;  it  passed  from  N.E.  to  S.W. 
across  the  zenith  ;  its  observed  time  was  about  3  sees.  (This  is  but  an  uncer- 
tain observation,  from  youth  and  inexperience.) 

1820.  Aug.  10. — My  father,  the  Rev.  John  Webb,  "informed  me  that  as 
he  was  travelling  about  a  quarter  past  2  a.m.,  he  saw  a  remarkable  meteor. 
It  was  somewhere  near  Auriga,  and  had  the  appearance  of  a  luminous  line, 
with  sparks  issuing  in  great  quantity  from  both  sides  of  it.  This  soon  dis- 
appeared gradually,  and  directly  after,  another,  much  less  bright,  was  seen 
further  on,  which  lasted  only  for  a  moment."  He  was  also  informed,  that 
"  one  had  been  seen  about  1 1  p.m  .,  which  was  much  brighter  and  lasted  longer. 
Shooting  stars  were  observed  in  surprising  numbers  all  night." 

1821.  Aug.  23. — The  same  gentleman  supposed  that  a  meteor  might  have 
appeared  about  9  p.m.  "  in  the  N.W.  part  of  the  sky,  as  he  saw  a  light  on  the 
hedges  before  him  (he  was  then  going  S.E.)  such  as  would  be  produced  by 
the  sudden  appearance  of  a  candle,  or  the  flash  of  a  gun.  It  was  accompanied 
by  a  noise  like  a  rushing  gale.  The  weather  was  hot,  and  the  sky  serene  and 
cloudless,  without  a  breath  of  wind.  It  should  be  observed  that  there  was  a 
thunder-storm  on  the  evening  of  the  24-th"  (and  therefore  this  observation  is 
only  so  far  valuable  as  it  may  be  corroborated  by  others.  It  was  in  South 
Herefordshire). 

1821.  Sept.  9. — A  meteor  about  8h  p.m.  at  some  height  in  the  north.  It 
had  the  appearance  of  a  star,  about  as  bright  as  Venus,  and  disappeared 
instantly  without  motion. 

1822.  Nov.  28. — About  911  45m  p.m.  I  saw  a  falling  star  which  appeared, 
at  first,  quite  as  bright,  if  not  brighter,  than  a  star  of  the  first  magnitude,  but 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  MRTBORS.     179 

very  soon  lost  its  splendour  and  gradually  diminished  till  it  became  totally 
invisible.  Its  course  was  perpendicular,  in  the  N.E.,  and  about  SO°  in  length. 
The  full  moon  was  shining  at  the  same  time  with  very  great  brightness.  Its 
course  was  straight  and  performed  with  a  medium  rapidity. 

1823.  Sept  7. — About  9*  15m  p.m.,  a  meteor  was  seen  in  the  S.S.E.,  whose 
course  may  be  thus  delineated : 

In  its  descent  it  made  an  angle  of  about  10°  with 

*m  the  horizon :  at  first  it  appeared  as  bright  as 

VA<iairiiu    */J  m    Athair,  and  it  did  not  diminish  until  it  had  run 

*0  about  half  its  course,  when  it  gradually  became 

fainter  and  fainter.     Its  progress  was  not  more 

rapid  at  first  than  that  of  a  cloud  driving  with  a 

♦Scheat  *y       high  wind,  but  it  became  quicker  whilst  the  angle 

*•       of  inclination  to  the  horizon  increased.    It  re* 

mained  visible  about  3  sees.  (S.  Herefordshire.) 

1824.  Aug.  29. — About  16*  p.m.,  my  mother  saw  a  meteor  in  the  S.W., 
which  from  her  description  must  have  had  when  first  seen  20°  or  30°  of  alti- 
tude :  it  descended  in  a  sloping  westerly  direction,  till  near  the  horizon,  when 
it  disappeared  without  diminution,  either  by  extinction,  or  by  passing  behind 
trees.  It  was  larger  than  Venus  in  her  brightest  state,  but  so  blue  as  to  be 
compared  to  a  ball  of  quicksilver,  and  to  appear  quite  unlike  any  planet  or 
star.  Its  velocity  was  considerable,  and  it  seemed  as  though  projected  with 
force.     (South  Herefordshire.) 

1824.  Aug.  31.— About  9h  30m  p.m.,  the  Swan  being  S.  of  the  zenith, 
a  falling  star  appeared  in  it,  whose  course  was  short  and  rapid,  in  a  S.E.  di- 
rection. It  was  of  the  second  magnitude  at  one  time,  but  very  tremulous  and 
variable.  About  three  minutes  after,  another  appeared  just  below  it,  in  the 
N.  part  of  Aquila,  of  the  fourth  magnitude,  sailing  in  a  W.  direction,  with 
a  slow  and  equable  movement,  over  a  considerable  space.  (South  Here- 
fordshire.) The  Diary  adds,  "this  night  there  seemed  to  be  many  little 
startings  and  flashings  in  the  heavens;"  but  on  this  I  would  not  rely,  as  I  am 
very  near-sighted,  and  I  think  at  that  time  did  not  wear  a  concave  glass. 

1825.  April  13. — A  servant  at  Gloucester  saw  a  meteor  at  night  in  the  S., 
which  passed  in  a  W.  direction  :  it  was  quite  red,  larger  than  a  falling  star, 
and  not  like  one.  The  night  was  quite  cloudy,  but  the  veil  was  unequal,  and 
in  some  places  occasionally  thin. 

1825.  June  5. — About  8h  45m  p.m.,  a  light  seemed  to  catch  my  eye  for  a 
moment  in  the  N.  at  about  30°  of  elevation.  If  not  a  deception,  which  is 
very  probable,  it  must  have  been  twice  as  large  as  Venus. 

1825.  Aug.  10 — About  10h  SO™  p.m.,  a  meteor  equal  to  a  star  of  the  3rd 
magnitude  in  brightness  passed  across  the  upper  part  of  Pegasus  in  a  straight 
line,  tending  somewhat  downwards.  Immediately  on  its  disappearance  an- 
other appeared  just  £•  of  the  hand  of  Perseus,  exactly  in  the  course  of  the 
first,  produced  in  the  opposite  direction  :  it  seemed  to  come  with  a  very  short 
horizontal  course  from  the  N.,  then  becoming  stationary,  blazed  out  as  bright 
as  Algenib  for  an  instant,  then  diminished  to  the  4th  magnitude,  and  quickly 
after  vanished.  Soon  after  another  of  the  3rd  magnitude  fell  in  the  S.W.,  in 
a  perpendicular  line  from  Serpentarius  downwards,  with  a  swift  course.  After 
11*  p.m.  another  meteor  shot  horizontally,  rather  descending,  for  the  length 
of  2°  or  3°  by  Scheat  in  Pegasus :  it  dissolved  into  a  splendid  broadish  train 
of  faint  bluish  light  visible  for  some  seconds.  At  the  beginning  of  its  course 
its  apparent  magnitude  was  about  the  2nd.  Just  after  this  a  very  distant  red 
reflexion  of  lightning  was  seen  in  the  S.  All  these  meteors  came  more  or 
less  from  the  N.E. 

n2 


180  RBPORT — 1852. 

1825.  Aug.  16. — About  9h  30m  P.M.,  a  shooting  star  of  the  3rd  magnitude 
was  seen  in  the  E.  at  an  altitude  of  about  40°,  which  rose  perpendicularly  for 
7°  or  8°. 

1825.  Nov.  6.— At  9h  p.m.,  a  meteor  was  seen  3°  or  4°  below  Menkar  in 
the  E.S.E.,  as  large  or  larger  than  Venus  when  at  her  greatest  brightness.  It 
did  not  seem  to  move,  but  vanished  in  an  instant. 

1826.  May  12. — Great  meteor,  about  10h40m  p.m.,  which  by  the  account 
of  a  person  who  was  with  me  began  to  appear  about  two-thirds  of  the  distance 
between  the  Pole  and  Lyra,  but  on  a  lower  line,  between  Lyra  and  Cygnus. 
It  was  described  to  me  to  have  begun  "  as  if  a  star  had  shot,"  and  then  it 
broke  out  all  at  once  in  a  great  body,  moving,  with  a  moderate  velocity,  to 
the  N.W. ;  at  first,  and  for  some  parts  of  its  course,  horizontally,  but  at  last 
deflecting  downwards  in  a  considerable  curve ;  in  which  part  of  its  course  I 
first  saw  it,  my  attention  being  roused  by  the  strange  blue  light  it  cast  on  the 
ground.  As  it  was  passing  on  beneath  the  Pole,  it  went  out,  as  it  were,  but  a 
red  spark,  half  as  large  as  Mars,  passed  on  in  the  same  direction  for  3°  or  4°, 
and  had  the  same  effect  as  a  case  that  remains  kindled  after  the  extinction  of 
a  fire-work.  This  meteor  had  an  intense  bluish  white  light,  and  illuminated 
objects  considerably  which  were  not  immediately  in  the  moon's  rays.  When 
I  saw  it  I  thought  it  one-third  as  large  as  the  moon,  then  about  five  days  old. 
I  do  not  think  it  left  any  train.  I  fancied  the  light  on  the  ground  was  waver- 
ing and  streaming,  and  diminished  before  I  looked  up,  but  I  was  informed  that 
the  meteor  appeared  uniform  from  beginning  to  end.  An  hour  before,  a  fall- 
ing star  had  been  seen,  with  a  course  of  50  or  60°  from  the  zenith  to  S.W. 
diminishing  before  it  disappeared.    (Gloucester.) 

1826.  Sept.  15. — I  was  informed  that  about  8"  p.m.  (uncertain  to  half  an 
hour),  a  meteor  had  been  seen  at  some  elevation  S.E.,  which  passed  from  N.  to 
S.,  or  from  N.E.  to  S.W.,  for  30°  or  40°,  as  large  as  a  star  of  the  1st  magnitude ; 
its  course  was  mostly  horizontal,  but  descending  towards  the  last.  It  had  a 
very  broad  train,  as  long  as  two-thirds  of  its  course,  which  lasted  a  short  time. 

1826.  Dec.  21- — About  9b  SO"1  p.m,  while  I  was  looking  through  a  tele- 
scope, I  perceived  a  falling  star  with  the  other  eye :  as  soon  as  I  could  direct 
my  attention  to  it,  I  ascertained  that  it  was  descending  nearly  in  a  straight 
line  in  the  £.,  the  point  where  I  first  saw  it  being  between  Ursa  Major,  Au- 
riga, and  Gemini :  its  course  was  perhaps  20°,  pretty  slow.  It  was  of  the  1st 
magnitude,  as  large,  as  bright,  and  nearly  as  red  as  Mars :  at  the  extremity 
of  its  course  it  suddenly  diminished  to  the  3rd  or  4th  magnitude,  proceeded 
8°  or  3°  in  that  state,  and  vanished.  A  few  seconds  after,  another  was  seen, 
which  first  appearing  very  near  the  course  of  the  former  one,  I  think  below 
Gemini,  proceeded  8°  or  10°  in  a  direction  to  the  S.,  perfectly  at  right  angles 
to  the  course  of  the  other.    It  was  hardly  so  large  as  the  3rd  magnitude. 

1827.  Dec.  6.— About  6h  or  7h  p.m.,  a  very  large  shooting  star  was  seen, 
whose  course  was  nearly  perpendicular,  8°  or  10°  long,  passing  through  the 
tail  of  Ursa  Major,  and  very  slow  :  its  commencement  was  not  very  accurately 
noted,  but  afterwards  it  exhibited  two  or  three  alternations  of  light,  from  a 
white  star  of  the  2nd  magnitude,  to  a  brightness  much  exceeding  a  Lyre,  and 
of  a  splendid  reddish  yellow  colour.     It  went  out  in  a  faint  spark. 

1828.  Jan.  19. — About  5h  45m  p.m.,  during  light  twilight  a  shooting  star 
was  observed  to  pass  between  two  clouds  in  an  open  space  of  2°  or  3  in  a 
direction  sloping  to  the  left.    It  seemed  quite  as  bright  as  Venus. 

1828.  April  10. — About  9b  SO™  p.m.,  a  meteor  appeared  at  about  30°  high, 
S.S.W.  As  I  only  saw  it  out  of  the  corner  of  my  eye,  I  cannot  be  particular 
as  to  its  appearance,  but  it  seemed  a  sudden  short  blaze  or  flash  of  bright  red 
light,  brighter  I  thought  than  Venus,  then  uncommonly  brilliant*  There  had 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      181 

been  a  clap  of  thunder  in  a  hail-storm  during  the  day,  which  was  showery ; 
and  there  were  a  few  clouds  in  the  sky  at  the  time,  and  a  faint  haze  in  the 
place  where  it  appeared.  It  might,  perhaps,  be  an  electric  spark ;  its  instan- 
taneous disappearance  rendered  this  likely,  but  no  report  followed,  nor  did  it, 
as  far  as  I  can  judge,  illuminate  the  haze  in  which  it  appeared. 

1828.  Aug.  22. — A  beautiful  shooting  star  as  large  as  Venus  passed  in  a 
long  tract  from  S.E.  to  N.W.  under  Cassiopeia,  about  9b  10°  p.m.  It  seemed 
to  become  extinct  by  degrees. 

1828.  Aug.  28.— About  10*  SO"  a  beautiful  shooting  star  was  seen,  whose 
course  was  from  S.E.  to  N.W.,  not  less  than  40°  long,  a  little  S.  of  the  zenith. 
It  was  of  the  1st  magnitude.  About  the  middle  of  its  course  it  became  duller, 
moved  slower  as  I  thought,  and  was  perhaps  a  little  deflected :  it  then  resumed 
its  first  appearance :  it  seemed  to  leave  a  train  on  disappearing,  but  I  could 
not  tell,  the  moon  being  bright,  and  I  not  using  an  eye-glass. 

1828.  Sept.  29. — At  10*  52m  a  brilliant  falling  star  appeared,  which  had  a 
short  course  close  to  the  horizon  a  little  to  the  W.  of  the  W.  extremity  of  a 
fine  auroral  light  in  the  N.  horizon.  It  made  an  angle  of  60°  or  70°  with  the 
horizon  (as  a  streamer  might  have  been  supposed  to  do  in  that  situation), 
being  deflected  to  the  right  as  it  advanced.  It  was  gradually  extinguished.  It 
had  a  blue  colour,  as  bright  as  Venus. 

1828.  Dec  1.— (At  the  close  of  the  memorandum  of  an  aurora  borealis, 
the  following  occurs) :  —Several  falling  stars  were  seen,  whose  courses  were  in 
opposite  directions. 

1830.  June  25. — (The  following  is  added  to  an  account  of  a  most  tremen- 
dous thunder-storm.)  The  storm  passed  about  two  miles  E.  of  Gloucester  at 
lOfcp.M.,  and  at  some  period  between  10*  20"  and  10*  40",  Mr.  — — ,  who  had 
a  complete  view  of  the  whole,  perceived  a  strange  meteor  in  the  W.  or  W.S.W, 
where  the  sky  was  cloudy,  precisely  like  the  moon  behind  clouds,  of  the  same 
colour,  and  oearly  as  large,  so  that  he  thought  for  a  moment  it  had  been  the 
moon.  He  called  several  other  people,  who  all  saw  it  It  lasted  about  three 
minutes  as  near  as  he  could  judge,  and  gradually  disappeared  as  if  obscured 
by  clouds,  or  retiring  in  a  straight  line  backwards,  for  it  was  quite  stationary. 
He  stated  also  that  he  saw  another  thing  of  the  same  kind,  very  much  smaller, 
on  the  same  night.  But  query,  was  it  not  the  moon  ?  [Supposing  it  to  have 
been  actually  a  meteor,  and  the  observer,  an  educated  and  intelligent  man, 
might  not  have  been  supposed  liable  to  such  a  mistake,  though  the  moon  was, 
I  believe,  actually  in  that  quarter,  some  light  may  be  obtained  from  the  fol- 
lowing memorandum,  which  occurs  under  1831,  Feb.  6.]  Mr.  J.  B»  ■  ,  an 
accurate  observer  of  nature,  told  me  that  about  the  beginning  of  Sept.  1880 
(a  note  states  that  there  can  be  no  doubt,  from  the  account  of  another  per- 
son, that  the  correct  date  was  June  25)  a  thunder-storm  came  on  towards 
night,  the  lightning  of  which  was  of  a  remarkable  pale  hue,  and  had  not  so 
much  the  appearance  of  flashing  as  of  rolling  from  one  cloud  to  another,  and 
chiefly  from  N.E.  to  S.W.  (This  observation  was  made  in  the  South  of  Here- 
fordshire.) When  it  had  passed  off,  and  the  sky  was  clear,  about  mid- 
night, though  itYtill  lightened  at  a  distance  towards  N.E.,  as  he  was  return- 
ing home,  a  meteor  suddenly  broke  out  in  the  £•  horizon,  and  passed  rapidly 
across  the  sky  till  it  disappeared  in  the  W.  horizon.  He  described  it  as  a  cloud 
of  fire,  of  the  deepest  red,  of  surprising  brilliancy,  especially  at  its  first  break- 
ing out ;  so  that  while  it  passed  any  minute  thing  might  have  been  seen  upon 
the  ground.  He  described  it  as  appearing  as  large  as  his  garden,  but  taper- 
ing at  the  two  ends :  it  produced  no  noise,  and  the  whole  appearance  was 
over  in  a  quarter  of  a  minute. 

1830.  Nov.  11.— (After  some  streamers  of  an  aurora  in  the  N.  about  & 
p.m.)    Just  afterwards  a  very  large  falling  star  was  seen  E.N.E. 


182  report — 1852. 

18S0.  Dec.  10.— About  5h  \5m  p.m.,  a  meteor  was  indistinctly  seen  at 
about  10°  elevation  N.  by  E.  It  was  stationary,  lasted  a  second  or  two,  and 
appeared  in  colour  and  size  much  like  Mars  in  opposition,  as  far  as  could  be 
judged  from  a  very  imperfect  view. 

1830.  Dec.  12. — (A  description  of  a  fine  aurora,  concluding  thus): — After 
8h,  when  the  streamers  had  ceased,  a  splendid  and  large  green  falling  star  was 
seen  lowish  in  W.N.W.  which  left  a  train  :  another  large  one  was  also  seen ; 
and  one  also  during  the  aurora  of  the  night  before. 

1831.  April  10. — There  were  faint  streamers  N.  at  night,  and  a  beautiful 
and  brilliant  falling  star  N.E.,  and  a  light  most  clearly  connected  with  a 
black  cloud  N.W. 

1831.  Dec.  8. — The  morning  being  overcast  with  very  low  foggy  clouds, 
and  very  dark  (it  was  probably  before  7h),  as  I  looked  suddenly  towards  my 
window  I  saw  a  flashing  or  flickering  effect  of  light,  such  as  might  have  been 
produced  by  faint  lightning  or  a  fire  in  the  opposite  quarter.  No  light  seemed 
to  come  into  the  room  ;  the  illumination  was  in  the  clouds  or  fog.  As  I  in- 
stantly went  towards  the  window,  the  light,  after  becoming  rather  brighter* 
faded  and  disappeared  very  suddenly.  It  occurred  to  me  that  it  was  proba- 
bly the  effect  of  some  great  meteor  (for  though  the  light  was  faint,  the  lumi- 
nous body  must  have  been  considerable  to  have  produced  such  an  effect 
through  such  dense  clouds);  on  the  other  hand,  a  boy  was  whistling  not  far  off, 
who,  had  such  been  the  case,  would  probably  have  been  frightened.  Such  an 
effect  from  a  lantern  I  never  saw,  nor  believed  it  possible ;  it  might  have  been 
best  compared,  as  above,  to  faint  lightning ;  perhaps  a  little  ruddy.  (South 
Herefordshire.)  (The  Hereford  Journal  of  Dec.  21,  contained  a  long  ex- 
tract, a  copy  of  which  I  possess,  from  the  Bath  Journal,  giving  along,  though 
very  unscientific  account  of  this  meteor,  for  such  it  was,  which  seems  to  have 
been  visible  over  a  great  extent  of  country.) 

1832.  Oct.  20. — Four  shooting  stars  were  seen  within  half  an  hour  about 
10h,  three  of  which  were  large  and  beautiful,  and  sailed  with  a  fine  equable 
motion :  all  from  E.  or  N.E.  But  one  which  proceeded  from  the  latter  quarter, 
at  a  considerable  elevation,  traversed  40°  or  50°  of  the  N.  sky  in  a  direction 
nearly  straight  and  parallel  to  the  earth,  leaving  behind  it  a  fine  white  streak, 
which  gradually  spread  wider  and  dispersed.  As  the  star  was  equal  to  one 
of  the  1st  or  2nd  magnitude,  and  as  the  streak  was  visible  at  once  throughout 
so  long  a  course,  the  effect  was  very  striking  and  beautiful :  what  seemed  re- 
markable was  that  the  other  three,  though  similar  to  this  in  their  direction, 
left  no  visible  train  behind  them.  One  night  two  or  three  months  ago  (I 
rather  think  on  Sept.  18),  I  saw  a  bright  star,  which  falling  perpendicularly 
seemed  to  be  partially  quenched,  but  yet  proceeded  a  short  distance  before 
it  was  totally  extinct,  in  the  form  of  a  dull  red  spark.  The  appearance  was 
just  like  that  of  a  candle  suddenly  plunged  into  carbonic  acid  ;  the  transition 
being  apparently  from  a  state  of  inflammation  to  that  of  simple  ignition. 

1832.  Dec.  12. — A  great  meteor  seems  to  have  appeared  between  7h  and 

8k  p.m.     M was  then  returning  through  the  field  behind  her  mother's 

house  at ,  when  a  bright  light  shone  round  her,  much  brighter  than 

moonlight,  and  more  permanent  than  lightning. 

1832.  Dec.  13. — Another  great  meteor  about  6h  p.m.,  described  as  a  great 
body  of  fire  passing  across  the  sky  from  E.  to  Wn  and  giving  so  strong  a 
light  that  a  pin  might  have  been  taken  from  the  ground  for  a  short  time. 
Another  account  was  that  it  passed  two  ways.  No  report  seems  to  have 
succeeded  it  The  weather  had  latterly  been  electrical :  it  lightened  on 
several  nights  at  the  end  of  last  month,  and  I  saw  a  strong  distant  flash  on  the 
evening  of  Dec*  2.    (South  Herefordshire.) 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  MKTEOB8.   183 

1833.  Dec.  11. — At  lO*  p.m.,  I  saw  a  very  beautiful  meteor.  It  com- 
menced somewhere  near  /3  and  y  Ursa?  Minor  is,  probably  above  and  to  the 
right  of  them,  as  a  small  shooting  star,  taking  a  left-hand  direction,  with  an 
inclination  of  about  45°  to  the  horizon.  During  a  course  of  8°  or  10°  it  had 
increased  gradually  to  a  splendid  globe,  perhaps  three  times  the  size  and  bril- 
liancy of  Jupiter,  and  of  a  lovely  colour,  not  easily  described,  probably  nearest 
to  a  greenish  blue.  The  remainder  of  its  course  was  intercepted  from  my  view 
by  a  building ;  but  from  the  great  illumination  of  the  sky,  I  imagine  its  splen- 
dour still  continued  to  increase.  Its  velocity  was  that  of  an  ordinary  falling 
star :  it  did  not  appear  to  leave  any  train.  Frequent,  though  faint,  flashes  of 
lightning  were  seen  in  the  E.  horizon  between  6h  and  7h  p.m.,  and  a  very  strong 
one  had  been  perceived  on  the  preceding  evening.  The  wind  was  N.W.with 
slight  but  very  cold  showers,  indicating  snow  upon  the  mountains,  which  pro- 
bably existed  there  at  the  time,  and  the  next  day  was  seen  in  considerable 
quantity.     (South  Herefordshire.) 

1834.  July  4. — A  very  beautiful  meteor  was  seen  at  Tretire  (South  Here- 
fordshire) at  about  9*  15m  p.m.  When  first  noticed  it  was  probably  about  55° 
(or  perhaps  60°)  above  the  E.S.E.  horizon,  in  the  form  of  a  very  brilliant  body 
of  yellow  or  pale  orange  light,  not  apparently  exactly  circular,  but  a  little  irre- 
gular or  angular  in  its  outline.  This  appearance  I  think  may  have  arisen  from 
the  preceding  part  being  more  brilliant  than  the  rest,  but  my  surprise  at  its 
sudden  outbreaking,  and  the  small n ess  of  its  diameter,  which  probably  did  not 
exceed  5f,  prevent  me  from  speaking  with  certainty.  It  descended  with  a  very 
slow  motion,  vertically,  for  about  15°,  and  then  broke  into  three  balls,  and  be- 
came extinct :  the  lowermost  ball  was  by  far  the  largest  and  brightest,  the 
other  two  were  much  smaller,  one  of  them  almost  a  point.  They  all  became 
of  a  dull  red  before  their  disappearance,  which  took  place  when  they  were 
several  minutes  apart,  one  beneath  the  other,  in  a  vertical  line.  This  change 
of  colour  before  extinction  I  have  several  times  remarked,  and  it  always  gives 
me  the  idea  of  an  entrance  into  a  medium  incapable  of  supporting  combustion. 
The  appearance  of  the  present  meteor  was  decidedly  that  of  a  ponderable 
body,  probably  fluid,  in  a  state  of  ignition,  perhaps  fusion,  actually,  not  ap- 
parently, descending,  and  upon  disruption  coalescing  by  the  force  of  gravity 
into  smaller  globules,  of  which  the  heaviest  preceded  the  rest.  At  any  rate 
it  had  no  resemblance  to  any  electrical  phenomenon  which  1  ever  witnessed. 
No  report  could  be  perceived  ;  there  was,  however,  a  considerable  noise  of 
wind,  and  of  the  mill ;  at  the  time  I  am  almost  certain  that  the  largest  ball 
preserved  its  original  brilliant  colour  longer  than  the  others.  I  should  esti- 
mate its  splendour,  before  division,  at  6  or  8  times  greater  than  the  maximum 
of  Venus :  such  estimates,  however,  are  apt  to  be  very  uncertain.  The  twi- 
light was  so  strong,  that  a  Aquilse,  which  was  a  little  below  and  to  the  left 
of  the  place  of  its  disappearance,  had  not  long  been  visible  with  the  naked 
eye.  Had  it  been  in  a  dark  winter's  night  the  effect  would  have  been  surprising 

and  magnificent.  This  meteor  was  also  seen  by  young  Mr.  P ,  then  in  the 

neighbourhood  of  Newport,  Monmouthshire :  he  described  it  as  having  a  tail, 
which  very  probably  was  at  its  first  appearance,  which  I  did  not  see.  He  says 
it  was  as  large,  or  larger  at  first  than  at  last ;  its  disappearance  was  out  of 
Bight  behind  trees,  but  he  thought  it  had  fallen  in  the  garden  just  at  hand. 
Mr.  P.  informs  me  that  two  or  three  years  ago,  very  early  in  the  morning, 
there  was  so  brilliant  a  meteor  as  to  terrify  such  of  his  men  as  were  out ;  the 
blaze  seemed  to  surround  them ;  and  they  might  have  picked  a  pin  from  the 
ground.   (South  Herefordshire.) 

1834.  Sept.  29. — About  7h  \5m  p.m.,  the  twilight  having  already  become 
very  dusky,  as  I  was  walking  along  a  lane  among  trees,  1  was  startled  by 


184  beport — 1852. 

seeing  the  road  before  me  suddenly  illuminated  by  a  beautiful  blue  light,  much 
resembling  the  effect  of  lightning,  and  scarcely  longer  in  its  duration  ;  such 
indeed  for  a  moment  I  supposed  it  to  be.  I  looked  up,  and  saw,  at  a  height 
of  about  60°  as  I  guessed,  in  the  N.E.,  the  luminous  track  of  a  meteor.  The 
sky  for  a  great  extent  in  this  quarter  was  overcast  with  a  thin  irregular  veil, 
interspersed  with  darker  masses ;  but  a  few  stars  were  visible  here  and  there, 
and  as  it  soon  became  clear,  I  found  that  the  phenomenon  must  have  oc- 
curred in  or  near  the  Galaxy  between  Cassiopeia  and  the  tail  of  Cygnus.  The 
track  was  about  3°  or  4°  long,  considerably  bright  and  very  narrow,  if  not  in- 
terrupted in  places.  Its  form  and  appearance  were  exactly  that  of  the  summit 
of  a  dense  cloud  illuminated  from  behind,  which,  indeed,  for  a  moment  I 
thought  it  had  been ;  its  light  was  reddish.  It  continued  visible  by  estima- 
tion for  2  or  S  minutes,  gradually  decreasing  in  brightness  and  appearing 
more  unconnected  and  like  a  series  of  insulated  patches.  The  following  may 
give  a  faint  and  inadequate  idea  of  its  form. 

No  report  was  heard. 

1835.  Aug.  4. — The  forenoon  had  been  very  warm  and  nearly  cloudless. 
Towards  3h  or  4h  clouds  began  to  form  in  the  W.  horizon,  which  rapidly  in- 
creased. Their  great  darkness  indicated  considerable  density,  but  they  exhi- 
bited no  towering  summits,  or  hard  and  defined  edges,  such  as  would  lead  to 
any  apprehension  of  thunder.  They  gradually  rose  and  spread  to  a  consider- 
able height,  and  it  appeared  likely  that  showers  would  ensue  towards  even- 
ing, which  proved  to  be  the  case,  but  they  did  not  seem  dense  enough  for 
tempest.  About  4h  30%  being  in  my  bedroom  at  Tretire  (in  the  South  of  Here- 
fordshire), I  was  surprised  by  a  distant  explosion,  dull  and  heavy,  like  that  of 
a  cannon,  and  by  no  means  loud,  yet  causing  a  vibration  in  the  house,  which 
is  very  strongly  built,  and  the  window  distinctly  rattled  from  it  I  should 
have  supposed  it  a  cannon  fired  at  Goodrich  Court  (about  5  miles  distant),  or 
the  blasting  of  a  quarry,  had  it  not  been  followed  by  a  long  low  rumble  of 
some  duration.  I  immediately  exclaimed  almost  involuntarily  two  or  three 
times,  that  I  never  heard  anything  like  it:  A  servant  in  the  kitchen  heard 
the  cellar  door  so  jar  from  it,  that  she  thought  some  person  had  gone  down 
there.  Our  man,  who  had  the  fairest  opportunity  of  hearing  it,  being  out  of 
doors,  was  greatly  surprised  at  it,  and  thought  it  had  been  the  blasting  of  a 
quarry,  only  it  seemed  at  Borne  height  in  the  air  towards  the  £.,  and  the  suc- 
ceeding rumble  travelled  towards  the  N.  I  also  referred  it  to  an  £•  direction. 
The  sky  on  that  side  was  nearly  free  from  clouds,  and  of  a  fine  serene  appear- 
ance. My  own  impression  decidedly  was  that  it  was  not  thunder,  but  the  ex- 
plosion of  some  meteor. 

Extract  from  Hereford  Journal,  referring  to  the  last  notice : — 

"  On  Tuesday  the  4th  inst.  a  most  extraordinary  concussion  in  the  air  was 
perceived  by  several  persons  in  different  parts  of  the  kingdom,  and  at  the  same 
moment,  about  40  minutes  past  4  in  the  afternoon.  It  is  described  as  a  re- 
port as  of  heavy  ordnance,  and  followed  by  a  reverberating  heavy  sound  for 
some  seconds.  A  great  peculiarity  attending  it,  and  most  strongly  showing  the 
immensity  of  its  distance,  is  the  impression  it  made  on  all  those  who  heard  it, 
as  if  it  was  immediately  in  their  own  vicinity." 

(I  find  here  a  reference  to  the  Analyst,  No.  XIII.,  p.  175,  which  I  am  at 
present  unable  to  verify.) 

1835.  Aug.  28.— About  9h  15m,  a  falling  star,  brighter  than  Venus,  was 
seen  at  a  moderate  elevation  in  the  £.  descending  with  a  straight  course. 

1836.  March  8.— A  beautiful  falling  star  appeared  in  the  S.  to  the  left  of 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      185 

Sinus,  about  7h  p.m.,  but  was  scarcely  noticed  time  enough  to  be  fairly  seen* 
It  seemed  fully  as  brilliant  as  Jupiter,  and  of  a  greenish  light. 

1838.  Oct  15— About  8h  35m,  or  40m  p.m.,  the  sky  being  for  the  most  part 
covered  with  low  dark  dense  clouds,  driving  with  a  strong  wind,  with  an  ob- 
vious degree  of  electrical  light  between  them,  in  a  part  of  the  sky  somewhat 
less  obscured,  and  where  several  stars  were  plainly  shining,  a  bluish  light  be- 
gan to  appear,  which  in  two  or  three  seconds  became  very  brilliant,  as  much 
so  as  one-quarter  or  one-third  of  the  full  moon,  and  faded  away  again  in  about 
the  same  time.  The  luminous  body  itself  was  invisible  behind  a  cloud,  and 
nothing  was  seen  but  the  reflexion.  This  exactly  resembled  distant  light- 
ning, but  was  less  transient. 

1838.  Dec.  7. — A  great  number  of  falling  stars  were  observed  between 
6h  and  7h.  In  about  half  an  hour  forty  were  counted,  sometimes  by  one, 
sometimes  two,  sometimes  three  observers,  two  at  a  medium.  They  were  of 
all  magnitudes  up  to  the  first :  the  larger  dissolved  into  a  train  of  light,  but 
left  no  train  [I  presume  this  means  no  streak]  behind  them ;  the  S.  and  W. 
quarters  were  chiefly  observed,  but  their  prevalence  seemed  to  be  universal : 
they  all  fell  in  nearly  a  vertical  direction,  but  those  in  the  N.W.  and  S.E. 
quarters  inclined  towards  the  S.W.  The  colour  of  the  more  conspicuous  ones 
seemed  to  verge  towards  orange.  Their  courses  were  of  no  great  length. 
There  was  at  the  same  time  a  pale  auroral  light  along  the  N.  horizon  from 
N.W.  to  N.E.,  apparently  equally  extended  on  each  side  of  the  true  meridian. 
The  meteors  were  not  watched  after  7h,  but  about  1  lk,  upon  looking  out  again, 
I  saw  one,  the  only  one  in  several  minutes,  in  the  S.W.;  but  it  had  no  longer  a 
vertical  direction,  its  course  pointing  now  to  the  N.W.  (South  Herefordshire.) 

(For  an  account  of  this  phenomenon  as  observed  by  Mr.  Maverly  at  Goa- 
port,  see  '  Proceedings  of  the  Meteorological  Society  during  the  Session 
1838-39/  p.  9.) 

[This  shower  of  stars  is  not  noticed  by  M.  Coulvier-Gravier  in  his c  EtoileS 
Filantes.'] 

1840.  June  SO. — About  10*  30m,  a  beautiful  falling  star  was  seen  in  the  S., 
nearly  in  the  meridian,  having  a  long  straight  course  somewhat  inclined  to 
the  E.  Its  commencement  was  small ;  it  gradually  attained  considerable 
splendour,  and  after  a  period  of  obscuration,  produced  perhaps  by  a  thin 
cloud,  it  attained  the  magnitude  of  Jupiter  in  quadrature  before  it  disap- 
peared. Its  colour  was  orange.  Streamers  of  the  aurora  borealis  had  pre- 
viously been  noticed,  extending  from  N.E.  towards  S.W. 

1841.  Aug.  12. — In  the  early  part  of  the  night,  from  about  9*  to  10£k, 
many  falling  stars  were  seen.  Being  engaged  myself  with  the  telescope,  I 
saw  but  very  few ;  but  two  or  three  persons  in  the  company  were  frequently 
exclaiming  that  they  perceived  them.  I  should  imagine  that  there  must  have 
been  three  or  four  times  the  average  dumber.  I  did  not  then  recollect,  what 
has  since  occurred  to  me,  that  the  smaller  periodical  shower  is  about  this 
time. 

1841.  Aug.  13. — On  looking  out  of  my  window  between  10*  and  llk,  I 
saw  a  large  falling  star,  which  induced  me  to  go  out  to  examine  whether  there 
was  any  repetition  of  the  phenomenon  of  last  night ;  I  saw  however  nothing 
in  the  course  of  several  minutes. 

1841.  Nov.  8. — The  night  seemed  remarkably  free  from  shooting  stars.  I 
was  abroad  from  6h  to  6h  J5m,  and  from  9h  SO"  to  9*  55m,  without  noticing 
one.     (South  Herefordshire.) 

1841.  Nov. 9. — There  appears  to  have  been  a  considerable  meteor  this  morn- 
ing, from  the  following  extract  from  a  note  from  Miss  H.  (South  Hereford- 
shire):—'4 Last  Tuesday  morning,  before  5  o'clock,  one  of  our  workmen  saw 


186  REPORT — 1852. 

an  immense  large  substance,  which  he  described  to  be  like  a  ball  of  fire, 
coming  down  from  the  sky  quite  perpendicular  till  within  fifteen  yards  of  the 
earth,  when  it  suddenly  disappeared." 

1841.  Nov.  11. — One  of  our  servants  saw  three  falling  stars  in  the  course 
of  milking,  about  7h  p.m.  She  described  them  as  passing  from  £.  to  W.  in 
the  N.W.  quarter  of  the  heavens,  as  being  of  the  first  magnitude,  and  leaving 
trains.     (South  Herefordshire.) 

1841.  Nov.  12. — The  day  had  been  rough  and  showery,  with  a  high  wind 
from  W.  or  W.S.W.,  and  a  little  hail  in  some  places,  but  the  evening  twilight 
was  very  clear,  during  which,  about  the  same  hour  and  in  the  same  quarter 
as  last  night,  our  servant  saw  two  considerable  falling  stars  with  trains.  About 
6hS0m  there  was  afaint  light  in  the  N.  horizon,  which  I  then  thought  indicated  a 
slight  tendency  to  an  aurora,  but  I  afterwards  found  it  accompanied  the  edges 
of  dark  clouds  in  various  parts  of  the  sky.  Until  9h  I  was  detained  indoors  at 
L.  (South  Herefordshire) ;  from  that  time  till  9*  45m,  I  kept  as  sharp  a  look  out 
as  a  speedy  walk  over  a  bad  path  permitted,  but  saw  nothing  until  about 
9*  40m,  when  a  meteor  of  an  orange-colour  appeared  low  in  the  S.E.  to  the 
right  of  Rigel,  and  about  the  size  of  that  star ;  its  course  was  short,  rapid  and 
flickering,  descending  gradually  towards  the  S.  I  did  not  perceive  any  train. 
16*  SO™  there  was  a  fine  meteor  of  the  1st  magnitude,  orange-coloured,  with 
a  train,  in  the  E.  quarter,  shooting,  as  the  former,  in  a  line  directed  from  Leo ; 
it  was  not  seen  by  me.  Two  smaller  ones  afterwards,  one  with  a  train,  which 
one  I  did  not  see,  had  short  courses  from  the  same  direction  in  the  £.  or  S.E. 
quarter,  in  the  space  of  the  next  7m  or  8m.  But  between  10*  S5m  and  10*  40™, 
a  small  point  was  perceived  towards  the  feet  of  the  Great  Bear,  not  far  above 
the  N.E.  horizon,  drawing  a  small  train  after  it,  and  rapidly  increasing  in  size 
as  it  rose  with  a  steady  course,  in  such  a  way  as  to  prove  that  it  was  really 
drawing  near  from  an  incalculable  distance  in  an  apparently  straight  line.  It 
grew  brighter  and  brighter,  as  did  its  splendid  and  beautiful  train,  and  it  as* 
sumed  an  orange-yellow  hue ;  it  passed  a  few  degrees  N.  of  the  zenith,  but 
not  quite  so  far  N.  as  Cassiopeia,  and  still  continued  to  increase  as  it  de- 
scended towards  the  W.  horizon,  but  it  seemed  to  become  fainter  and  to  be 
extinguished  before  it  reached  it ;  but  trees  partially  obscured  this  portion  of 
its  course.  It  was  seen  by  three  others  besides  myself,  my  father,  Mr.  T.  and 
his  son,  and  it  appeared  to  ail  of  us  except  my  father,  to  be  attended,  when  at  its 
height,  with  a  hissing  sound,  but  a  loud  rushing  wind  prevented  any  cer- 
tainty as  to  this  point.  Its  appearance  was  like  that  of  a  magnificent  rocket, 
and  the  impression  of  absolute  height,  speed,  and  projectile  force,  was  truly 
sublime.  Its  size  appeared  to  me  greater  than  Venus,  but  not  so  vividly 
brilliant  The  length  of  its  course  might  be  o  or  6  seconds.  At  llh  5m  a 
stormy  cloud  in  the  N.E.  horizon  had  a  faint  luminosity  attendant  upon  its 
upper  edge.  A  shower  afterwards  came  on.  At  llh45m,  a  storm,  which  had 
passed  to  the  E.N.E.  horizon,  was  followed  by  a  similar  light,  which  was  very 
evident  5m  afterwards  amongst  dark  patches  of  cloud.  Our  friends  also  saw 
what  appeared  like  a  light  cloud  somewhere  towards  the  S.W.  horizon,  and 
wondered  at  it  in  the  absence  of  the  moon.  10™  after  midnight  the  E.  ho* 
rizon  continued  light,  though  the  clouds  had  left  it  I  watched  the  S.E. 
quarter  pretty  frequently  from  llh  till  lh  80m,  Nov.  IS,  but  no  meteor  was 
seen  after  the  large  one,  nor  could  I  see  anything  during  a  short  examination 
at  3h  30m  and  4h  SO".  The  distinctness  with  which  1  saw  the  light  of  the 
Welsh  furnaces  [20  or  more  miles  distant]  upon  my  walk  about  9h  30m, 
though  the  sky  was  very  clear,  except  low  in  the  horizon,  was  very  unusual 
indeed.  The  air  was  not  favourable  for  delicate  astronomical  observations, 
the  diameters  of  the  stars,  according  to  Sir  W.  Herschel's  remark,  appearing 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  -METEORS.      187 

enlarged.  Miss  H.  N.,  who  watched  from  half-past  lh  till  morning,  informed 
me  that  she  saw  thirteen  meteors  ;  the  finest,  which  ran  a  longer  course,  were 
between  5h  and  6b.  None  of  them,  however,  seem  to  have  been  remarkable 
either  for  brilliancy  or  trains. 

1841.  Dec.  10. — Eleven  shooting  stars  were  counted  between  llb  and  12h 
at  night,  by  a  person  in  Hampshire.  "  The  greater  part  proceeded  from  a 
N.W.  direction,  some  far  less  brilliant  than  others,  and  their  light  of  a  silvery 
whiteness." 

1842.  Aug.  9. — About  10h  (as  near  as  I  can  judge)  I  looked  out  for  two 
or  three  minutes  for  the  periodical  meteors,  but  saw  nothing,  though  the  sky 
was  very  clear:  my  father  thought  he  perceived  a  flash  of  lightning  in  the  S. 
horizon.  But  on  looking  out  about  10h30m  (having  been  called  by  him  upon 
the  appearance  of  a  falling  star),  I  counted  in  about  one-fourth  of  the  hea- 
vens, or  possibly  one-third,  8  or  9  in  as  many  minute*,  two  of  which  were 
brighter  than  any  fixed  star,  and  of  an  orange -colour;  one  left  a  beautiful 
train.  I  heard  that  two  had  been  seen  by  a  servant,  between  9*  and  10*, 
bright,  and  in  immediate  succession,  but  passing  in  different  directions ;  and 
one  of  those  8  or  9  (which  one  I  did  not  see)  appeared  to  my  father  to  de- 
viate from  the  general  direction  of  the  others,  which  was  towards  the  S. 
For  about  15m  afterwards  I  saw  no  more,  and  gave  up  the  observation.  No- 
thing could  be  seen  during  a  minute  or  two,  about  1*  30m  on  the  following 
morning,  or  again  at  2h  45m,  except  perhaps  one  meteor  the  latter  time,  but 
I  am  not  sure.     (South  Herefordshire.) 

The  meteors  on  this  night  were  seen  by  several  persons  in  the  neighbour- 
hood. 

1842.  Aug.  10. — The  night  was  cloudy  and  rainy.  Aug.  11. — I  was  out 
much  during  the  evening  and  early  part  of  the  night,  but  saw  nothing. 

1842.  Aug.  13. — Extract  of  a  letter  from  a  correspondent  in  Hampshire. 
"The  scene  was  truly  magnificent  I  saw  thirteen  shooting  stars  within  the 
space  of  half-an-hour,  between  11  and  12,  and  S.  saw  one  shoot  at  the  same 
time  that  I  did  not  witness,  making  fourteen.  Three  of  them  had  beautiful 
trains,  two  in  the  S.W.,  with  trains  something  like  the  tail  of  the  comet  of 
1618 ;  colour  of  these  two  a  silvery  whiteness ;  one  was  of  surpassing  beauty 
and  brilliancy ;  they  both  proceeded  in  a  southerly  direction.  The  third  ap- 
peared near  the  Polar  star,  and  proceeded  towards  the  S.E.  This  was  less 
brilliant  than  the  two  preceding  one:*,  of  the  same  colour,  but  had  a  curious 
flickering  motion  ,in  the  train ;  the  streams  of  light  radiated  towards  the  cen- 
tre of  the  train,  something  like  this  figure  fsss///  •  I*  was  verv  beau- 
tiful indeed,  and  what  I  had  never  before  witnessed.  The  motion  too  was 
less  rapid  than  that  of  the  two  preceding  ones." 

1842.  Aug.  27. — A  little  before  &h  p.m.,  the  sky  being  overcast  with  thin 
clouds,  a  glow  of  dusky  red  light  appeared  between  me  and  a  thick  hedge  be- 
side which  I  was  riding,  and  which  was  very  dark ;  from  its  peculiarity  of  ap- 
pearance, its  being  chiefly  visible  to  one  eye,  and  its  duration  (however  short), 
I  felt  more  inclined  to  refer  it  to  (the  reflexion  of)  a  great  meteor  than  to 
lightning,  of  which  there  was  no  appearance,  though  the  weather  was  close 
and  warm.  The  clouds  were  thin  and  foggy,  and  had  no  electrical  appear- 
ance.    (South  Herefordshire.^ 

1842.  Sept.  S. — Between  9*  and  1011  p.m.,  an  unusual  number  of  falling 
stars  were  seen,  probably  6even  or  eight  in  about  20m. 

1844.  Aug.  9. — Several  fine  falling  stars,  more  numerous  than  the  average, 
were  seen  (at  Gloucester).  Mr.  H.  W.,  who  was  observing  with  me,  told  me 
that  for  some  nights  previously!  but  especially  last  night,  they  were  still  more 


188  report — 1852. 

numerous  and  brilliant  at  Minehead  in  Somersetshire,  and  that  he  saw  one 
very  carious  appearance,  resembling  a  serpentine  train  of  sparks.  He  de- 
scribed them  as  generally  visible  towards  the  S.E.  All  those  that  we  noticed 
tonight  had  a  similar  general  direction  from  N.E.  to  S.W. 

1844*.  Aug.  10. — A  few  falling  stars  were  noticed  (at  Gloucester)  moving 
in  the  same  direction  as  last  night,  but  one  was  observed  which  presented  the 
singular  appearance  of  a  comparatively  slow,  and  as  it  were  difficult  progress 
in  the  opposite  direction. 

1846.  July  25. — A  workwoman  near  Gloucester,  returning  home  about  Id11 
p.m.,  saw  a  meteor  of  considerable  magnitude.  It  was  of  the  size  and  colour 
of  the  moon,  and  she  compared  its  light  to  that  of  day.  According  to  her 
account,  it  seemed  as  though  it  proceeded  downwards  from  an  opening  cloud, 
and  was  instantly  withdrawn  into  the  cloud  again ;  but  probably  this  retro- 
grade motion  may  have  been  a  deception.  It  was  in  the  N.  or  N.E.  at  a  con- 
siderable altitude. 

[This  meteor  was  described  in  the  '  Illustrated  London  News/] 

1847.  March  19. — Extract  of  a  letter  from  a  lady. 

"  On  the  evening  of  Friday,  March  19,  A.  and  I  left  Albion  Road  [Hol- 
lo way]  about  half- past  8.  Not  any  stars  were  then  visible,  but  when  we  were 
in  Highbury  Place,  A.  called  my  attention  to  what  we  thought  a  fire-balloon 
ascending  slowly.  It  was  in  the  west,  a  little  inclining  to  the  south.  As  it 
passed  on  slowly  to  the  west  its  intense  brilliance  convinced  me  that  it  was  not 
an  earthly  thing.  When  it  appeared  to  be  over  Hampstead  (but  as  high  in  the 
heavens  as  the  sun  is  at  6  o'clock  in  the  evening  when  the  days  are  longest), 
it  shot  forth  several  fiery  coruscations,  and  whilst  we  were  gazing  at  it,  broke 
into  an  intensely  radiant  cloud.  This  cloud  sailed  on  slowly,  and  we  never 
took  our  eyes  off  it.  At  this  time  the  stars  were  shining.  When  we  were  in 
the  gravel  path  opposite  to  Highbury  Terrace,  the  cloud  was  rather  higher 
in  the  heavens,  and  more  to  the  W.  It  cast  a  most  brilliant  light  on  the 
houses  there,  brighter  than  moonlight,  and  unlike  any  light  I  ever  saw.  It 
appeared  of  a  blue  tint  on  the  bricks,  but  there  was  no  blue  light  in  the  cloud 
itself.  Suddenly  over  the  radiant  cloud  appeared  another  cloud  still  more 
brilliant,  but  I  now  felt  so  awe-struck  that  I  cannot  say  precisely  how  long 
they  hung  one  over  the  other,  before  the  most  wonderful  sight  happened. 
Perhaps,  they  remained  so  for  two  or  three  minutes,  when  from  the  upper 
cloud  a  small  fiery  ball  (about  the  size  that  the  largest  planets  appear  to  the 
naked  eye)  dropped  into  the  lower  cloud,  and  was  instantly  absorbed.  Soon 
after  another  similar  ball  dropped  from  the  upper  to  the  lower  cloud ;  and 
then  a  ball  apparently  four  or  five  times  the  size  of  the  two  preceding  fell  from 
one  cloud  to  the  other  in  the  same  wonderful  way.  Shortly  after  this  both 
clouds  disappeared,  apparently  absorbed  in  the  heavens,  though  I  did  see  a 
few  particles  of  the  brilliant  clouds  floating  about  for  a  minute  or  so.  Pre- 
sently the  moon  appeared  considerably  to  the  northward  of  the  place  where 
the  clouds  had  hung.  We  then  saw  the  bright  light  across  the  heavens  which 
you  told  me  was  zodiacal  light,  which  lasted  for  more  than  an  hour." 

1847.  Aug.  10. — A  little  after  10*  p.m.,  several  large  and  beautiful  falling 
stars,  with  fine  trains,  appeared  to  descend  in  the  S.  in  pretty  quick  succes- 
sion ;  and  on  the  whole  the  meteors  of  this  kind  certainly  much  exceeded  the 
average  between  1011  and  llh  30m.  Most  of  them  fell  in  the  above-men- 
tioned direction,  but  the  track  of  a  small  one,  near  the  latest  time  of  obser- 
vation, pointed  towards  the  N.W.  Several  of  them  were  noticed  two  or  three 
nights  ago.  [Reference  is  then  made  to  an  account  of  shooting  stars  in  a 
letter  in  the  '  Times/  dated  Aug.  17,  and  this  follows.]  The  Hereford  Journal 
of  Sept.  8, 1847,  contains  also  the  following :— "  M.  A.  Frdro,  of  Mootiaon, 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  MBTEOR8.      189 

has  stated  that  on  the  night  of  the  1 1  th  ult  he  counted  more  than  fifty  shooting 
stars  in  the  course  of  two  hours,  viz.  from  1 1  to  1.  Most  of  them  were  seen 
in  the  Milky  Way,  and  a  few  towards  its  edges.  The  direction  of  all,  how- 
ever, was  by  the  Milky  Way,  and  towards  the  S.W.  horizon." 

1847.  Sept  14. — About  9*  48m  p.m.,  as  I  was  looking  (or  going  to  look) 
through  a  telescope  towards  the  S.,  a  light  caught  my  left  eye  towards  the  £. 
horizon.  I  turned  immediately,  but  only  caught  a  glimpse  of  a  meteor  of  a 
yellow  or  reddish  colour,  about  the  brightness  of  Jupiter  or  Venus,  which 
had  descended  through  the  N.  Fish,  to  the  S.  of  Aries,  in  a  course  a  little  in* 
dined  towards  the  N.,  and  had  become  invisible  behind  a  building,  leaving  a 
narrow  red  streak,  at  first  of  considerable  brightness,  but  fading  very  rapidly. 
Its  course  must  have  been  of  20°  or  30°  in  length,  before  hidden  near  the  ho- 
rizon.   (Gloucester,  I  believe.) 

1848.  Nov.  17* — During  a  brilliant  aurora  witnessed  by  me  at  the  ex- 
treme W.  verge  of  Herefordshire,  three  falling  stars  of  considerable  magnitude 
were  seen,  one  with  a  long  course  and  fine  train. 

1850.  Aug.  12.— A  few  minutes  after  llk  (Greenwich  time)  a  beautiful 
meteor  shot  across  Cygnus,  then  at  a  great  elevation  in  the  meridian.  I  do 
not  know  whether  I  caught  its  first  appearance  ;  but  its  brilliancy  drew  the 
attention  of  my  left  eye,  while  the  other  was  at  the  telescope.  Its  course  was 
from  W.  to  £.  and  not  rapid,  extending  for  perhaps  10°  or  12°  till  I  lost  it 
behind  the  top  of  a  tree.  Its  light  was  intense,  much  brighter  than  that  of 
Venus,  and  of  a  beautiful  clear  blue  colour :  in  the  middle  of  its  course  it 
seemed  to  be  extinguished,  and  then  broke  out  again  as  bright  as  before.  I 
think  it  left  no  train.  Nearly  an  hour  before  I  had  noticed  a  much  smaller 
one,  falling  in  quite  a  different  direction,  low  in  the  S.S.W.  perpendicular  to 
the  horizon.  This  meteor  was  seen  at  Highfield  near  Nottingham,  by  Mr. 
Lowe,  as  appears  by  his  letter  in  the  *  Times.'  He  calls  its  colour,  however, 
yellow,     (South  Herefordshire.) 

1850.  Aug.  24. — A  little  after  10*  p.m.,  a  fine  yellow  meteor  fell  from  near 
the  zenith  to  a  Aquilae,  as  large  as  Venus. 

1850.  Oct.  5. — While  looking  with  my  5^  feet  achromatic  at  a  consider- 
able star,  probably  of  about  7  mag.,  I  saw  in  the  field  a  bright  point  of  light, 
of  nearly  the  same  size  and  appearance,  and  at  no  great  distanoe,  which  imme- 
diately vanished.  It  seems  to  have  been  a  small  and  instantly  extinguished 
meteor.     It  had  I  believe  a  reddish  tinge. 

1850.  Nov.  29.— About  9h,  or  from  9h  to  9h  10m  p.m.  Greenwich  time,  I 
caught  an  oblique  sight  of  a  very  beautiful  meteor  of  a  yellowish  colour  and 
considerable  size,  which  seemed  to  run  a  very  short  course  at  a  great  alti- 
tude, a  few  degrees  W.  of  the  zenith,  and  I  believe  among  the  stars  of  Gloire 
Frederici ;  but  I  did  not  exactly  note  the  place,  as  finding  it  had  left  a  bright 
and  beautiful,  though  short  train,  I  endeavoured  to  turn  the  telescope  upon 
it ;  but  before  I  could  succeed,  the  train  had  disappeared,  and  I  then  could 
not  exactly  identify  its  place.  [This  meteor  is  mentioned  in  the  'Times/ 
in  two  letters,  dated  Barnstaple  and  Brixton  Road.] 


in 


BBPOBT— 1852. 


Hour. 

Bright- 

Velo- 

Mean pi 
1840 

aces  for 

Mean  places  for 

No. 

Date. 

Greenwich 

Apparent 
Magnitude. 

ness  and 
Colour. 

city  or 
Dura- 

of A. 

1840  of  B. 

Mean  Time 

tion. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

R.A. 

DecL 

1 

1848. 
Feb.   22 

1849. 
April  24 
May  22 

h    m    s 
9  21  25 

Siriu8Xl2  ... 

Blue 

8 

4-0 

6l  24 

14  1^ 

5i  01 

$05 

2 

11  34  53 

a  Pegasi  

White  ... 

3-0 

234  40 

7  48 

239  02 

11  05 

3 

11  45  00 

y  Ononis 

White  ... 

2-0 

247  00 

-10  16 

243  30 

-11  25 

4 

July     5 

11  38  00 

«  Ononis 

White  ... 

30 

343  36 

28  20 

334  17 

20  00 

5 

6 

11  34  00 

«  Ononis 

White  ... 

4-0 

281  35 

33  46 

266  28 

32  28 

6 

Aug.  12 

10  00  53 

i  Geminorum 

Blue 

10 

352  56 

28  27 

344  00 

24  36 

7 

6    12 

10    7  00 

Sinus  X  3 

Blue 

30 

356  05 

26  50 

345  41 

19  55 

8 

12 

10  14  50 

X  Ononis 

Blue 

2*0 

284  31 

12  29 

289  21 

703 

9 

12 

10  15  45 

X  Arietis  

Blue 

1-0 

284  45 

9  09 

288  00 

4  10 

10 

12 

10  21  00 

n  Arietis  

Blue 

0-5 

282  00 

3  50 

284  26 

-  3  07 

11 

12 

10  43  00 

«  Arietis  

Red 

1-5 

80  48 

61  48 

20  08 

55  39 

12 

12 

12  20  40 

x  Arietis  

White  ... 

0-5 

274  35 

38  52 

281  03 

34  35 

13 

12 

12  24  00 

«•  Arietis  

White  ... 

0-5 

336  47 

28  28 

334  17 

20  16 

14 

12 

12  14  50 

Siriu8X6 

Blue 

5-0 

291  04 

16  39 

292  14 

-  1  40 

15 

12 

12  25  00 

x  Pegasi  

Blue 

0-5 

1  35 

25  11 

358  35 

14  28 

16 

12 

12  38  00 

Siriusx8 

Blue 

1-5 

282  00 

38  39 

275  44 

23  50 

17 

13 

11  12  52 

y  Pegasi  

Blue 

20 

5  25 

28  24 

354  32 

20  16 

18 

13 

12  53  00 

Sirius— 0*1  ... 

White  ... 

20 

310  09 

37  59 

298  38 

28  48 

19 

13 

10    3  00 

«  Arietis  

White  ... 

1-0 

357    8 

26  50 

346  30 

34  46 

20 

13 

11  53  00 

Sirius X 25  ... 

Blue 

4-5 

352  28 

44  41 

8  00 

31  47 

21 

13 

12  18  00 

$  Pegasi   

Blue 

2*0 

25  20 

29  56 

20  44 

28  12 

22 

13 

12  23  00 

X  Ononis 

Blue 

0-5 

23  32 

19  29 

16  21 

16  09 

23 

15 

12  18  00 

0  Ononis 

Blue 

2-0 

349  15 

31  30 

326  28 

23  45 

24 

15 

12  31  00 

£  Ononis 

White  ... 

2-0 

358  35 

-53 

352  56 

-  9  43 

25 

26 

15 
15 

12  37  55 
12  45  00 

a  Lyra 

White  ... 
White  ... 

50 
2-0 

341  58 
357  46 

27    2 

25  11 

340  33 
350  00 

14  27 
21  45 

0  Pegasi  

27 

15 

12  49  00 

0  Ononis 

White  ... 

30 

344  50 

30  27 

333  21 

20  00 

28 

15 

12  49  05 

Aldebaran    ... 

Red 

0-5 

338  53 

29  23 

339  40 

30  27 

29 
30 

31 

15 
15 

16 

12  58  00 

13  11  00 

10  15  00 

Sirius   

Blue 

White  ... 

Blue 

10 
2-0 

05 

356  30 
20  38 

38  19 

57  U 
14  29 

39  01 

17  40 
12  10 

45    3 

62  as 
6  43 

38  13 

a  Lyra 

X  Arietis  

82 

19 

10  27  00 

•  Geminorum 

Blue 

20 

339  42 

-  5  03 

335  44 

-  7  22 

33 
34 

Sept    7 
7 

9  30  00 
9  33  00 

Sirius    

Blue 

White  ... 

30 
0-25 

309  00 
335  8-45 

20  39 
-10  45 

301  43 
334  41 

16  37 
-10  51 

a  star,  3rd  mag. 

35 

11 

9  26  00 

Sirius  X  4 

Blue 

20 

11  58 

10  07 

8    8 

5  59 

36 

11 

10  21  00 

Aldebaran    ... 

Blue 

20 

348    3 

4  40 

340  30 

0  54 

37 

11 

10  22  00 

Aldebaran    ... 

Crimson 

30 

348    3 

4  40 

340  30 

0  54 

38 
39 
40 

22 
24 
24 

9  48  00 

11  53  00 

12  6  00 

a  Lyra 

Blue 

White  ... 
Blue 

2-0 
25 
2-0 

66  21 
58  50 
49  42 

40  56 
67  42 
10  00 

59  39 
63  47 
52  00 

36  26 

6  41 

-96 

Sirius   

Sirius  X  3 

41 

Oct.    15 

9    9  00 

Sirius— 3 

Blue 

1-5 

42  47 

8  16 

40    9 

5  19 

42 
43 
44 

15 
15 
15 

10  17  04 

11  1  30 
11  22  53 

Sirius   

White  ... 

Blue 

White  ... 

20 
10 
1-0 

335  28 

8  53 

66  43 

2  25 

-24 

11  00 

324  52 

3  40 

71  31 

1  51 

-  4  30 

8  17 

a  Arietis  

45 
46 

47 

15 

15 

Nov.    6 

11  35  00 
11  52  00 
11    3  00 

•  Lyra 

White  ... 
White  ... 
Orange... 

1*5 

1-75 

1-5 

28  27 
32  26 
80  57 

-  6  32 

1     7 

24    1 

22    3 

26  19 
69  22 

-11    8 

-  2    1 

20  00 

•  Lyra 

Aldebaran  X  5 

48 
49 

10 
13 

6  34  00 
9  39  15 

White  ... 
Blue 

2-0 
0-5 

10    6 
332  25 

22  31 
-2  55 

356  12 
335  45 

15  56 
-  7  20 

0  Ononis 

50 

14 

10  50  00 

Sirius  

Blue 

2-0 

75  00 

-  3  33 

66  89 

7  54 

A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS. 


193 


vlean  places  for 
1840  of  C. 


Decl. 


Place  of  Observation. 


L.  from  G  Lat. 


48  14 
330  50 
297  34 

334  12 
6    2 

335  11 
335  11 

57  20 
69  22 
52  11 

38  56 

314    7 

I      238 

|    73    3 

20    8 

|    24  14 

61     1 

348    3 

336  47 

64  52 


$45 

14  25 
-11  00 

1  57 
23  15 
20  47 

7  58 

0  36 

0  01 

-  5  07 

50  00 

27  49 

12  23 

-13  00 

5  59 

14  35 
12  09 

15  21 
37  38 
20  00 

25  11 
10  00 

2  14 
-16  40 
-12  28 

15  33 

736 

30  02 

56  58 

-  5  14 

34  14 
-12  21 

10  14 
-10  41 

0  00 

-  5    3 

-  5     3 
81  47 

5  20 
-11  33 

1  00 

-  6  31 

-  9  57 
3  29 

-16  30 

-  9    7 
13  32 

6  43 
-11  32 
-14  10 


in    s 

-|-2  54-7 

+ 2  54-7 
+2  547 
-4  22  27 
-4  22-27 

-1-2  547 
+2  547 
+2  54  7 
+2  547 
+2  547 

+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+ 2  54  7 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 

+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
42  547 
+2  54  7 
+2  547 
+2  547 
42  547 
4-2  54  7 
4-2  547 

-1-2  547 
4-2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
42  547 
+ 2  547 
+2  547 
-|-2  547 

4-2  547 
4-2  547 
+2  547 
4-2  547 
+2  547 
+2  547 
42  547 
4-2  547 
+2  547 
4-2  547 


+56  5tf  46*6 

+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46  6 
+49  26  29 
49  26  29 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46  6 


Train  or  sparks.    Remarks. 


A  most  splendid  meteor,  giving  light  all 
over  the  country.  Explosion  without 
noise.    See  fig.  4. 


With  a  train  of  light 
and  nebulous  ball. 


Passing  through  a  small 
Cirrocumulus. 


+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46*6 
+50  59  46-6 

+50  59  46-6  A  very  beautiful  meteor,  having  a  nebulous 
.  ra  ko  a**      appearg,,^  trajn  of  jignt    No  ^  alike. 

No.  14.  See  fig.  3  in  Map. 


+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46-6 

+50  59  466 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  466 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46  6 
+50  59  46-6 
+50  59  46*6 
+50  59  466 


Rather  a  brilliant  object. 


+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 

+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 
+50  59 


Here  a  rather  curious  phenomenon  took 
place.  When  No.  27  was  in  C,  No.  28 
vanished  at  C,  fig.  10. 


46*6 
466 
466 
466 
46-6 
46-6 
46-6 
46  6 
46  6 
46-6 

466 
466 
46  6 
46-6 
466 
46  6 
46-6 
46  6 
46  6 
46  6 


A  beautiful  meteor  with  train  of  light. 

34.  Seen  in  the  field  of  telescope  while  ob 
serving  Neptune.  The  given  places  are  for 
1800.  35.  Train  of  light. 

37.  This  meteor  has  not  been  observed  ex- 
cept the  light  which  emanated  from  it 
from  the  zenith  and  which  was  very  bril 
liant  indeed,  and  so  intense  was  it  that  the 
"observer  thought  it  safer  to  take  a  shelter 
in-doors.  o^ 


M 


O 

0 


This  is  the  curious  meteor  of  which  a  draw 
ing  is  given  in  the  Map.  It  showed  a 
dark  side,  and  then  a  bright  one.  See 
fig.  9. 


a 


1852. 


194 


REPORT— 1852. 


No. 


Date. 


Hour. 

Greenwich 
Mean  Time 


Apparent 
Magnitude. 


Bright- 
ness and 
colour. 


Velo- 
city  or 
Dura- 
tion. 


Mean  places  for 
1840  of  A. 


R.A.    Dec) 


Mean  places  for 
1840  of  B. 


R.A. 


51  Nov. 

52  I 

53  ! 

54  Dec. 
55 
56 

57 

58  Feb. 

59 

60 


61 
62 
63 
64 
65 


16 

16 

16 

8 

8 

9 

1850. 

Jan.   6 

9 

11; 
12 


h  m  s 
7  37  00  Aldebaran 

7  37  37!Sirius  .... 

8  43  00|Siriusx3. 
11  9  00  «  Lyras.... 
11  13  OOJSirius  .... 

9  7  00  Sinus   .... 


6  13  00  «  Lyre  ... 

7  17  32  0  Ononis . 
9  10  25  «  Lyras.... 

10  57  00  Siriusx5. 


Mar.     6 
15 


Blue... 
Blue... 
Blue- 
White 
White 
White 

White 
White 
Blue... 
Blue... 


May 


67 
68 
69 
70  Jane 


71 
79 
73 
74 
75 
76 
77 
78 
79 
80 

81 
82 
83 
84 
85 
86 
87 


90 

91 
92 


94 
95 
96 
97 
98 
99 
100 

101 
102 
103 


Aug. 


Sept. 


15  12 
5  9 
5    9 

18  8 
9>13 
9,13 

30  11 
ijll 

I 

1  11 
1  13 
12  10 
12  10 
12  10 
1210 
12  10 
30  11 
10' 10 
10  11 


22  00  Sirius— 4 
42  00  [0  Ononis 

9  00 1«  Aldebaran... 

0  00  |Lyra  « 


Oct.  10 
10 
11 

Nov.     6 
6 

8 
8 
8 
8 
8 

8 
23 
25 
1851. 


Jan. 


Feb. 


16  00 

48  00 
10  00 

17  00 
55  00 
33  00 

42  53 
47  00 
10  37 
23  30 
47  35 

49  37 

50  37 
15  00 
57  30 
23  54 


Sirius  X3. 
«  Lyras. . . . 
0  Ononis . 
0  Ononis . 
Arcturus  . 
«  Ononis. 

«  Arietis  .. 
Arietis  ., 
a  Lyras.... 
•  Lyras..... 
Sirius  .... 
Sirius  .... 
«  Lyras..... 
«  Lyras...., 
0  Orionis .. 
0  Ononis.. 


10  15 

11  6 
10  33 

7  27 
9  56 
7  8 
7  30 

7  33 

8  21 
8  39 


9  85  24 
7  35  00 
5  58  00 


10  12  00 

27: 10  42  00 

27  10  48  00 

5;  11  33  00 

5  1 1  34  50 

5  11  45  00 

5  11  52  00 

I 

21  10  4  00 

21-11  15  00 

21  12  16  00 


Pegasi  . 
Sirius  .... 
0  Orionis . 
Sirius  x3. 
0  Pegasi  . 
«  Pegasi  . 
«  Lyras.... 
Sirius  x  5., 
r  Ononis .. 


24  0  Orionis. 


0  Pegasi 
0  Pegasi 
Lyras... 


Mars  X  4  . 

Lyras.... 
«  Lyra?.... 
0  Orionis . 
Sirius  .... 
0  Orionis . 

Lrne.... 


Sirius  .... 
Arcturus. 
Lyras    .... 


Blue... 

Blue... 

Blue... 

Blue... 

Blue... 

White 

Blue... 

Blue.... 

Blue... 

Blue... 


Blue... 
Blue- 
Blue... 
Blue... 
Blue... 
Blue... 
Blue... 
White 
Blue... 
Blue... 


White 

Blue... 

Blue... 

Blue... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue..., 

Blue.... 

White  . 

Blue.... 


Red.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue. 


Blue 

Red 

White  ... 


s 

20 
30 
50 
1-0 
20 
05 

40 
10 
0-5 
50 

10 
0-5 
0-5 
1-0 
50 
20 
1-5 
10 
20 
10 

0-5 
05 
10 
1-5 
05 
05 
10 
05 
0*5 
05 

05 

20 

05 

20 

05 

10 

15 

10 

075 

0-5 


Blue 0-5 

Blue 05 

Blue 10 


1-5    j 
0-5 

io  ! 

0-75 
15 
05 
10 

05 
0-5 
0-2 


16  12 
45  37 
79  51 
64  59 
82  00 

324  21 

359  45 

85    2 

121  30 

170  30 

195  00 
130  46 
214  45 
193  33 
212  37 
168  13 
282  00 
281  3 
151  51 
237  16 

306  16 
261  42 
281  00 
295  00 

17  35 
20  44 

355  00 

344  00 

358  00 

22  47 

164  50 

28  8 

5  15 

6  00 
31  05 

322  18 
12  22 
30    5 

29  28 

14  17 

53  04 

15  00 
197  00 

166  28 
65  24 
81  25 
149  56 
186  00 
140  00 
185  00 

128  00 

92  00 

191  53 


19  00 
45  00 
12  43 
18    2 

23  45 

28  12 
1  28 
9  40 

-  2  07 

71  7 

17  34 
22  4 
10  18 
62  17 

8  12 
38  38 

33  49 

72  55 
3  02 

42  54 
47  54 
32  40 
7  10 
57  25 
55  39 

32  00 

24  36 

18  44 
27  13 

61  15 

-  9  20 

20  00 
64  00 

14  00 

25  00 

34  46 
20  00 

18  35 

19  23 

33  27 
2  46 

9  30 

15  45 
10  00 
23  56 

0  24 
15  47 

8  00 

1  15 

+  4  30 

+ 23  16 
+  6  40 


2%  9 
.38  45 
99  44 
58  40 
83  10 
332  6 

15  35 

85  10 

126  29 

181  40 

212  17 
124  55 
223  22 
189  23 
0SBoreali». 
172  11 
275  44 
274  51 

154  59 
231  47 

313  9 
253  33 
277  53 
290  20 
30  01 
13  31 

4  30 
355  00 
357  45 

20  44 

155  88 

19  05 
7  08 

20  00 
23  17 

325  38 
11  40 
28  39 
25  00 

5  14 

51  00 
17  54 

195  00 

160  00 
69  30 
72  02 

149  00 

196  30 
144  00 
189  00 


26  36 
-  3  30 

7  58 


119  30 

87  1 

197  23 


+  13  30 
+25  17 
+  6  19 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS. 


19S 


Mean  places  for 
1840  of  G. 

Place  of  Observation. 

Train  or  sparks.    Remarks. 

i 

§ 

R.A. 

Dech 

L.  from  G. 

Lat. 

I 

30    1 

lS  55 

m    s 

+2  547 

+6<J  59  46'-6 

a;  48 

»0U 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

Ascending  slowly. 

129  37 

62  33 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

54  20 

8  98 

+2  547 

+50  69  46-6 

85    2 

-2  42 

+2  547 

+50  69  46*6 

335    9 

5  26 

+*  M-7 

+50  59  46-6 

30    1 

17  23 

+8  20-0 

+50  30  00 

Ascending  slowly. 

83  10 

944 

+8  90-0 

+50  80  00 

A  beautiful  meteor  with  two  successive  fire- 

128 45 

18  00 

+8  20-0 

+50  80  00 

balls.      Explosion  without  noise.      See 

185  24 

-15  87 

+8  9(H) 

+50  80  00 

fig.  7, 10*  b7m  0\    Kg.  8, 10*  67"  4V 

225  £3 

66  82 

+8  20-0 

+60  80  00 

121  40 

10  89 

+8  20-0 

+50  80  00 

299    9 

17  29 

+2  547 

+50  59  46  0 

188  82 

035 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

237  45 

23  45 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

This  meteor  passed  exactly  oter  the  follow- 

174 25 

-  1  87 

+9  547 

+50  59  46*6 

ing  stars. 

276    8 

14  35 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

271  54 

20  55 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

/       • 

150  30 

47  47 

+2  547 

+50  59  46-6 

<^— * — -^ 

228  53 

-  7  53 

+2  547 

+60  59  46-6 

^^-^\ 

318  41 

44  53 

+9  547 

+50  59  46-6 

^\     X 

251    8 

84  99 

+9  547 

+50  59  46-6 

x    X 

275    1 

28  48 

-4  99-27 

+49  26  29 

X.       ^ft 

284  26 

-62 

-4  99-27 

+49  26  29 

»       //i^^Hiv 

39  45 

52  60 

-4  29-27 

+49  26  29 

Vw 

i 

M 

99 

9  57 

50'  8 

-4  29-27 

+49  26  29 

•aR*   '*. 

a 

15  00 

46  23 

-4  22-27 

+49  26  29 

•* 

JO 

600 

18  44 

+2  547 

+60  59  46 

•j 

357  30 

786 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

3 

20  40 

14  88 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

& 

148  29 

54  45 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

12  41 

10  80 

-16  49 
-11  15 

+2  547 
+2  547 

+50  59  46 

+50  59  46 

A  fine  meteor  with  train  of  light. 

80  00 

82  56 

+9  54-7 

+50  59  46 

20  27 

-  5  41 

+9  54-7 

+50  59  46 

326  27 

7  80 

+9  54-7 

+50  59  46 

13  40 

16  05 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 

28  32 

6  09 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 

A  beautiful  meteor  haying  the  appearance 

21  49 

5  19 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 

of  a  blue  ball. 

1  15 

10  00 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 

51  14 

20  00 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 

19  00 

-  9  58 

+9  54-7 

+50  69  46 

190  00 

600 

+9  547 

+60  59  46 

156  38 

8  00 

+9  54  7 

+50  59  46 

A  beautiful  meteor,  of  a  red  colour,  inclining 

72  30 

10  00 

+2  547 

+60  59  46 

towards  orange,  perhaps  on  account  of 

66  30 
148  58 

20  25 
-  0  54 

+2  547 

+9  547 

+50  59  46 
+50  59  46 

its  proximity  to  the  horizon. 

203  30 

8  00 

+9  54-7 

+50  59  46 

145  00 

8  15 

+2  64-7 

+50  59  46 

192  00 

6  10 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

10124 

+16  93 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

81  25 

+93  66 

+2  54-7 

+50  59  46 

201  40 

+  400 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

- 

• 

o2 


196 


tt^PORT — 1852. 


No. 


Date. 


Hour. 

Greenwich 
Mean  Time 


Apparent 
Magnitude. 


Bright- 
ness and 
Colour. 


Velo- 
city or 
Dura, 
tion. 


Mean  places  for 
1840  of  A. 


R.A. 


Decl. 


Mean  places  for 
1840  of  B. 


R.A. 


104 
105 
106 
107 
108 
109 
110 

HI 
112 
113 
114 
115 
116 
117 
118 
119 
120 

121 
122 
123 
124 
125 
126 
127 
128 
129 
130 

131 
132 
133 
134 
135 
136 
137 
138 
139 
140 

141 
142 
143 
144 
145 
146 
147 
148 
149 
150 

151 
152 
153 
154 
155 
156 
157 


1851. 
Feb.  21 
21 
21 
22 
26 
24 
19 


Mar. 
Apr. 


July 


19 
22 

28 
28 
28 
30 
21 
21 
21 
21 

21 
21 
30 
30 
30 
30 
30 
30 
30 
30 

30 
30 


h  m  s 

12  20  00 

13  8  30 
13  30  30 
13  30  30 

8  58  30 
13  56  30 
10  30  30 

9  45  30 

10  47  30 
9  40  30 
9  50  30 
9  55  30 

11  40  30 

10  40  30 

11  23  46 
11  28  40 
11  46  40 


I*» 

Virgo    

Virgo    

Sinus   

Aldebaran 

Lyra 

Arcturus  .. 


Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Regains    .. 
Regulus  .. 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Aldebaran 

Lyra 

y  Arictis  .. 


49  10 
56  25 
53  10 

0  2 
19  40 
23  10 
53  10 
56  25 
56  30 

1  10 


y  Arietis  , 
y  Arietis  , 
y  Arietis 

Lyra 

Sirins  .... 
y  Arietis  , 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Sirios  .... 
Lyra 


Aug.  3 
3 
3 
3 


Sept. 


3 
3 
3 

3 
3 
3 
3 
3 
3 

f 
3| 

f 

17 
17 
17 
17 
20 
21 
3 


12  5 
12  12 
9  48 
10  27 
10  29 
10  33 

10  54 

11  2 
11  14 

11  22 

12  8 
12  12 
12  16 
12  36 
12  46 
12  56 

12  59 

13  1 
13  14 
13  28 


9  44  30 
10  25  30 
10  36  30 
9  49  30 
9  50  1 
10  2  1 
13  26  30 


y  Pegasi  . 
Siriusx2. 
Lyrax2  . 
Lyrax2  . 
Lyrax2  . 
Lyrax2  . 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyrax4  . 
Lyrax4  ., 


Lyra  x  4  

Lyrax4  

Lyra-0-25  .. 
Lyra-0-25  .. 
Lyra-0-25  ., 

Sirins   

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 


Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

Lyra 

SiriusxS. 


Blue 

White  ... 
White  .. 

Blue 

Red 

Blue 

Blue 


Blue 

Blue 

Bine 

White  .. 

White  ... 

Blue... 

Blue... 

Red... 

Blue... 

Blue... 


Blue 

Blue , 

Blue 

Blue 

Blue 

White  ... 

Bine 

Blue 

Blue 

Blue 


Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 


Blue..., 

White 

Blue..., 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 

Blue.... 


Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 
Blue.. 


8 

0-5 

0-5 

0-25 

05 

1-5 

05 

2-0 

1-0 

05 

0-5 

0-25 

0-25 

0-5 

0-5 

1-0 

0-5 

025 

0-25 

0-25 

025 

1-5 

0-25 

0-5 

0-5 

0-25 

0-5 

0-25 

025 

1*0 

0-5 

fr25 

0-25 

025 

0-5 

0  25 

0-5 

0-25 

0-5 

0-5 

0-25 

0-25 

025 

0* 

0-25 

0-5 

025 

1-0 

0-5 

0-5 

0-25 

0-25 

10 

0-5 

1-0 


178  10 
144  00 
216  14 
175  13 
196  37 
15  33 
214  00 

128  54 
227  6 
180  00 
185  24 
184  00 
263  00 

3  1 
353  8 

348  14 
357  44 

10  15 
28  30 
20  44 

349  21 
340  25 

0  9 

357  14 
0  30 
6  40 

18  45 

358  26 
24  45 

333  40 
348  15 
22  3 
346  5 
357  14 

359  8 
10  00 

353  59 

34  45 

5  36 

31  8 

36  5 

4  2 
30  57 
40  20 
53  4 
56  4 
43  31 

257  14 
268  14 
262  17 
239  00 
17  40 
181  52 
8  28 


+  *3<S 
+26  45 
+31  4 
+15  28 
+41  00 
+86  27 
+39  00 

+18  13 

-  8  30 
+  2  40 
-14  30 
-16  00 
+  4  40 
+28  52 
+45  40 
+26  50 
+46  59 

+33  5 
+31  30 
+29  14 
+30  00 
+23  40 
+53  38 
+45  11 
+29  00 
+59  15 
+59  17 

+88  48 
+48  15 
+29  18 
+22  46 
+47  4 
+29  18 
+  4  34 
+30  18 

-  3  25 
+23  41 

+  735 

10  35 

+11  00 

+39  31 

-13  6 

+17  23 

37  10 

32  52 

17  2 

20  42 

43  27 
16  40 
1  19 
4  40 
12  30 
57  00 
40  24 


175  00 
138  50 
219  00 
163  27 
191  40 
343  51 
205  28 

127  6 
230  00 
170  32 
181  00 
180  00 
259  00 
2  5 

1  18 
354  56 

2  30 

12  20 
30  5 

26  4 
0  30 

342  20 

359  10 

9  58 

2  34 

350  15 
15  35 

2  30 

35  00 

338  24 

348  40 

28  31 

351  35 
20  53 

345  13 

0  32 

348  41 

27  15 

0  38 

34  40 
40  25 

1  38 
27    9 

35  12 
52  36 
56  29 
45  37 

5  37 
265  1 
257  46 
236  50 

21  49 
176  54 

10  19 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS. 


19? 


1 
Mean  places  for 
1840  of  C. 

Place  of  Observation. 

£ 

* 

Train  or  sparks.    Remarks. 

s 

00 

.a 
O 

1 

ILL     |     Dtfd. 

L.fromG. 

Lilt. 

m    4   +  4  29 

m    s 
+2  54/ 

+5&  59  46 

* 

«* 

J33  2ft  +25     5 

+2  547 

+50  59  40 

,  224  H    +30  30 

+  2  547 

+  50  59  46 

1  150  oo  +  16  00 

+  2  547 

+50  59  40 

Train. 

190  58  ,+28  25 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

350  13  ,+77  00 

+  2  547 

+50  59  4ft 

1H  00  +  5  00 

+2  547 

+50  5B  40 

i ma L  1 37 

+2  517 

+50  59  46 

232  31    -  9  31 

+  2  547 

+50  59  46 

163  00   -13  55 

+  2  547 

+50  59  46 

17H  00    ~I»  00 

+  2  547  |+50  59  46 

1^  00   -22  00 

+  2  547 

+50  59  46 

257  00  U  7  00 

+2  547 

+50  59  46 

3    5  i+16  00 

+  5  IS 

+50  45  m 

|    14  25   +49  41 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

|  35J  24  -|-34  46 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  Ugbl. 

t    5  !+38  42 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

IS  00  +35  1 1 

+.1    12 

+  50  45  25 

32  IS  +28  35 

+5    12 

+50  45  25 

30*7  I+27     1 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

12  45  i+50  OO 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

'  342  *4   +14  27 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

MS  24  1+48  25 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

21  00  +47  55 

+5  12 

+50  45  S5 

fi    5   +32  40 

+5  12 

+50  45  S5 

• 

i 

or" 

1337  57  1+71  33 
13  00  !+5&  47 

+  5   12 

+50  45  S5 

S 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

^ 

1     ?    5   +33  40 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

J2 

1  S 

2 

1    48  30   +53  15 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

£ 

bl 

!  33*  12    +20  10 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

w 

E 

348  4]    +19  57 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

30    1    +31  U 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

1  359  47    +34  46 

+5  IS 

+50  45  25 

52  53  |+60  38 

+5  12 

-  50  45  25 

Train  of  light- 

<&$  S3  1+45  30 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Tram  of  light. 

350  53    -15  55 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light, 

1  345  29       10  53 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

22  45   -  2  12 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

0  52    -23  35 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

38  2g  !     10  35 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

'    44    1        29  30 

+5  32 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light* 

300  00    -22  40 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light* 

24  14         g  21 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

31  18       34  14 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

1    51  49 

S3  00 

+5  12 

+  50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

57  57 

a  2d 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

50  30 

10  S3 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

17  31 

53     I 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light 

251  53 

4  50 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

'-'<:•  Is    _  ;,  30 

+5  12 

+  50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

235  19  I      1  25 

+  £  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

25  10  1     18  30 

+5  :2 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

168  20 

54  30 

+5   12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

1132 

IS  19 

+5  12 

+50  45  25 

Train  of  light. 

198 


REPORT— 1852. 
iy.  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  \85\-52.    Com- 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  or 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or     l 
duration.      i 


1851. 
July 


Sept. 


h  m 
11  16  30" 


>  twice  U 


20 


11     5  =twice  y. 


Orange  -  red, 
the  separate 
balls  blue, 
very  bright, 
at  last  be 
came  more 
purple. 


Small  separate  balls. 


Qgte 


Red 


11  15  As  a  spark 


29 
Aug.      5 

7 
10 

22 

28 


Orange-red  , 


Slight  tail 


Slight  tail 


10  36  Small,  indistinct .... 

10  39  More  than  1st  mag.. 


10  39 

9    3 

8  23 

9  30 
10  31 


llh  to  13h 

9  40  

9  40  


10 


10    7 
10  25 

9  16 


Yellow... 
Yellow.     Less 
than  1st  mag. 
=  lat  mag.  ...'Train  25°  long 


Separate  sparks 
Separate  sparks 


Small 
Large 

Large 


« 4th  mag. . 


Small  

—  2nd  mag... 
=  to  Saturn 


Blue. 


■  3  times  Venus  in 
opposition. 


14 


9  15 


Orange- red. 
Brighter  than 
Saturn. 

=4  times  Ve- 
nus in  oppo- 
sition. Blue. 


Verysmall,= 7th  mag.  Colourless 


As  a  spark 


Long  tail. 


Continuous  streak 
Giving  out  stars  ... 


3  sees.,  slowly;  at 
last  vanished  sud- 
denly. 


isec 


0-2  sec 


Long     continuous* 
stream  of  light. 


Continuous  streak 


0-5  sec    

l¥  sec ;  slowly 


Passed  1°  30' show 
y,2°  below  0,  and 
jqst  below  r<  Ur- 
sv  liajoris. 

Bapidly    


Basted  midway  be» 
tween  2  Dracooii 
and  a  Urw  Ms- 
joris,  throuak  I 
UrssftMajons. 


Rapid  

Moved  over  12°  in  3 


blue  3  sees. . 


Instantaneous. 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATION*  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.     199 

municated  by  E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq.,  F.R.J.S,  F.G.S. 


Direction  or  altitude.  General  remarks.  Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Well-defined  circu-i  Highfield  House 
lardisc.  The  small 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 


From  y  Lyras  through  £  Cygni, 

$  Delphini  to  y  Bquulei.  The 

meteor  always  equally  large  circular    append*; 

and  bright.  ages  kept  vanish- 

I  ing  quickly,  never 

1  remaining  visible  a 

I  distance  of  twice 

!  the  diameter  of  the  j 

I  object.  j 

From  near  No.  6  Cassiopeia:  to  Increased    from    a  Ibid. Id. 

H.  1  Camelopardi.      Com-,  point  to  2  sees.  If..1 
menced  R.A.  23h  51",  N.P.D., 
290lQ/,endedatR.A.lh15m,i 
N.P.D.25°iy.  I 

XCassiopeiaB  to  n  Persei.  Com-| Ibid Id. 

menced  AR.  0h  12mt  N.P.D.l 

40°,endedAR.  lh27m,  N.P.D. 

|    37°30/.  , 

From  x  to  X  Ophiuchi    Ibid Id. 

From  41  Camelopardi  to  39  Well-defined disc.Jlbid. lid.    

!    Itfncis.  |  I  | 

2  sees. , Darlington,  Dur-.J.  Graham,  Esq. 


Mr.  Lowe's  MS. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


1  Cephei  to  ^  Andromeda? Highfield  House 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq.  Ibid. 


Id. 


Ibid. 


i  Unas  Majoris  to  42  Coma  Be-( Seen  through  haze.  Ibid., 
rtnices. 

,FromE.  to  W.,  passing  10°  S.E. Nottingham M.  J.  L.  B.  Du-Ibid. 

I    of  zenith.  ;  i  rand. 

(Great  velocity JDarlington,  Dur-  J.  Graham,  Eaq. 

ham. 


Ibid. 


Many  falling  stars  .  Ibid Id. 

■lnS.E Ibid. jld. 

From  zenith  perpendic^lown  in  > Highfield  House  E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

!    N.W.  |  Observatory. 

From  under  Atair  perpendic J  Bright (Ibid. 

I    down.  \  | 

,Downwards  =  45°,  passing  35'  Increased    from    a  Ibid 

above  Saturn.  point  and  disap- 

peared at  maxi- 
mum brightness. 
Prom  midway  between  $  and  n  Circular,     weD-de-iObiervatory, 
!    Aquilae,  passing  above  XAqui-j    fined    edge,    in-|     Beeston. 
.    Is  through  tiSerpentis,disap-:    tensely  blue. 
|    peared  between  y  and  r  Ophi-  I 

uchi  a  Uttle  above  I  Serpentis. j                               [ 
[Position  when  first  seen  R.A.Very  many  small  ibid 

19b51«B>N.P.D.90°20/;poiut|    meteors.  | 

ofdisappearanceR.A.17h41,al  , 


Id. 
Id. 


Id. 


Id. 


N.P.D.92°58'_ 
Through  i  Lyra,  passing  to  N. 
I   horizontally. 


Highfield  House 


Id. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

I 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

I 

I 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 


200 


REPORT 1852. 


Date. 

1851. 
Sept.  14 

18* 

18* 

18* 

18* 

18* 

18 
20 


21 


28 


Oct. 


Hour. 


h  m 
10  20 


8  41  

8  55  

8  59  30' 

9  40  

9  41  


9  50 


8  20 
8  24 
8  30 
8  30 
8  31 

7  40 


8  20 
8  30 
8  45 

8  20 


16 
19 
23 
27 


7  35 

8  0 

9  15 
12  9 
10    3 


9  51  

9  54  30* 


10    3 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


«  3rd  mag. 

=  3rd  mag. 
» 1st  mag. 

—  1st  mag. 
—3rd  mag. 

—  3rd  mag. 


Colourless    . . .  Continuous  streak 
brighter  Continuous  streak 
Stream., 


Nearly  i  diam.  <[ 


Small  

Small  

Small  

Small  

= 2nd  mag.. 

«  8th  mag. , 


—  6th  mag.  . 
=6th  mag. . 
«  2nd  mag. , 

=  2nd  mag., 


=  2nd  mag. , 
—  1st  mag.  . 
=4*5  mag.  . 

1st  mag 

=  3rd  mag.  , 


—  3rd  mag , 

=  ty  at  opposition  , 


Very  small 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Continuous  streak 


Blue, 

than  1st.  mag. 

Blue 


Blue. 


Light  blue 


Train  or  sparks. 


Duration  i  sec.  .. 

Duration  1  sec.  .. 
Duration  1*5  sec... 

1-2  sec    

Rapid  


Stream., 


0-8  sec. 


Long  train,  which  vanished 
rapidly. 


3  to  4  sees. 


Streak. 
Streak  . 
Streak. 
Streak  . 
Streak . 


Blue 

Orange-yellow 


Collection  of  sparks,  thus 

Mm*-. 


Bluish  . 
Blue.... 


Yellowish., 


Blue 

Faint  blue 


As  a  spark 


Train 


Velocity  or 
duration. 


Instantaneous . 


Instantaneous . 


1  sec. 


3  sees. . 


1  sec. 


2  sees. 


2*5  sees. 
2  sees.  ... 


1  sec. 


*  These  fife  meteors  gave  a  point  of 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.   201 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place 


Observer. 


Reference* 


.From  10°  S.  (and  same  level  as) 
•  Lym  towards  S. 

From  •  Cassiopeia;  perpendic. 

,    down. 

From  39  through  f  Pegasi 


From  m  Draconis  through  « I'r- 
sae  Majoris. 

Through  i  Aquilas  perpendicu- 
larly down. 

From  6  Volpeculae  perpendic. 
down  through  &  Serpentis. 


Appeared  very  di-  Highfield  House 

stinct  at  -<45°; 

rapid.  I 

Observatory, 

1    Beeston. 
Increased    from    a  Ibid 

point,  circular. 


Below  x  Draconis  over  3  Ursa? 
Minoris,  vanishing  in  the 
head  of  the  Lynx  near  No.  14. 
Fint  seen  R.A.  \S*  8",  N.P.D. 
15°  4<r*,  disappeared  R.A 
6M5",N.P.D.31°. 


Several  meteors 
Almost  as  light  as 
day. 


Down  through  «  Cassiopeia; 

Through.  Delphini,  downwards 

Through  •  Cassiopeise    . . . 

Through  Polaris 

From  bead  of  Draco  towards 
Cygnus. 

(Horizontal  level  but  2°  E.  oi 

>   •  Andromeda,  perpendicular 

i   down  inclining  to  S. 

Below  «  Cassiopeise  perpendic. 
down. 

Across  from  •  Arietis  under  Pe- 
gasus, square  at  <25°. 

Moved  horizontally  from  3°  N. 
and  3°  lower  than  Saturn, 

I   moved  towards  N.    Passed 

j    over  2°  of  space. 

jMoyed  down  at  -<25°  towards  Auroral 

I    N.  from  1°  above  Cor.  Caroli, 

I    passing  15'  to  N.  of  that  star. 


Several  small  me- 
teors. 


ibid., 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.., 


Highfield  House 
Ibid 


ibid.., 


Obser7,  Beeston 

Ibid. 

Ibid 

Ibid. 

Ibid 


Ibid... 

Ibid.., 
Ibid... 


An   assemblage  of  Ibid... 
sparks,  the  whole1 
mass  being  equal: 
to  a  2nd  mag.*   I 
iroral  glare  and  Ibid.., 
lightning. 


Prom  under  Cassiopeia  hori 
i  zontally  to  0  Unas  Majoris. 
,From  S.  downwards  at  -<  of 

40°,  passed  2°  below  C- 
Immediately  below  «  Pegasi, 

perpendic.  down. 
Between  «  Pegasi  and  «  Andro- 
1    mededown. 
fi  Pegasi  to  «  Andromeda; 


Prom  0  Cygni  to  f*  Aquilas 

"rom  fi  Aquilas,  incurved  direc- 
tion towards  S  Tauri  Ponia- 
towski. 


Many  meteors . 
Slow 


Space  4° 


Sear  Scheat  to  near  Markab 

(Pegasi). 


Small  at  first,  gra- 
dually increased 
to  size  V-  at  op 
position. 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 


Ibid 

Castle  Donington 
Highfield  House 
Castle  Donington 


Ibid., 
(bid.., 


Ibid.. 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id.    

[Esq. 
A.  S.  H.  Lowe, 
Id.    

Id.    

E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id.    

Id 

Id.   

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

W.   H.   Leeson, 

Esq. 
A.  S.   H.  Lowe, 

Esq. 
W.    H.  Leeson, 

Esq. 

Id 

Id 

Id , 


Mr.  Lowe's  MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


divergence  about  R.A.  23h  15",  N.P.D.  30°. 


909 


REPORT — 1852. 


Dm, 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
duration. 

1  see.  

Almost  instantane- 
ous. 
sees. 

1  sec ;  rapid 

2  sees. ;  slowly  J 

i 
12  sees.   


1851. 
Oct.    27 

29 

30 


h    m    s 
10  11  30,., 

8  58  30... 

8  25  


Small  

Very  small  .. 
=to  Saturn., 


Blue. 


Much  brighter  Long  tail  of  sparks . 
than  Saturn; 
orange. 


Nov.     3 


8  50 

9  4 
5  32 


~  2nd  mag 

= 3rd  mag, 

6  times  sice  of  Saturn 


11 


12 


14 


5  30  i  size  of  C 


7  49  30... 


8    &  30.. 


7  56 

9    4 

10  10 
10  45 


Very  bright . 


Small 


Very  small 
=4*5  mag,  , 

=  2nd  mag. 
2nd  mag, , 


■3rd   mag., 
yellow. 

Orange,  =*3*5 
mag. 

Pale 
and  after 
15°  move- 
ment  turned 
bluish. 


orange,  Slight 


Orange    and 
prismatic. 


Much  brighter 
than  Vega, 


Blue. 


Brighter  than 
2nd  mag.^ 
orange-red. 


Continuous  streak 


Composed  of  many  sepa- 
rate sparks. 
'    tail   


The  above  ia  a  sketch  of  it 
No  sparks    


Several  seconds  . 


Leaving  bright  train,  cu- 
rious path,  thus : — 


3*5  sees. 


0-5  i 


Leas  than  1 1 
Less  than  1 1 


Sparks 

Train  of  light . 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.   203 


Direction  or  altitude. 

General  remarks. 

Place. 

Observer. 

Reference. 

Midwaybetween  Vega  and  Altair 
to  below  Delphinus. 

CastleDonington 

W.    H.   Leeson. 

Mr.  Lowe's  MS. 

Esq. 

*.»■*  a  •   a^VVf  H  m  *■*  M* 

From  «  to  a  Dracouis 

Aurora  at  the  time. 

Ibid 

Id.    7. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

From  near  S  Draconis  to  about 
No.  76  Ursse  Majorii.    First 

Obserr,  Beeston 

Id.    

seenRJL  12°  53',N.P.D.  31°; 

disappeared    R.A.   12h  32m, 

Ni>.D.26°20/. 

Prom  J  Andromedse  to  1  Piscium 
From  No.  72  to  «  Piscium 

Ibid.. ,. 

Id,    

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Id.    

From  13°  S.  of  Marac ;  passed 

Moved  very  slowly. 

Highfield  House 

E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

3°  S.  of  Areturus;  continued 

Before  starting  in* 

and  A.  S.  H. 

visible  to  near  horizon;  va- 

creased from  a  point 

Lowe,  Baq. 

nished  suddenly. 

to  4  times  the  sized 
Saturn,  moved  15° 
and  then  increase! 
to  6  times  the  size  of 
Saturn. 

From  just  N.  of  Jupiter  fell  down- 
jwardi  at  an  angle  of  55°  towards 

imileW.N.W.of 
Bramcote. 

R.  Enfield,  Esq. 

Ibid. 

X.  horizon ;  it  disappeared  very 

near  the  horizon  in  haze.    The 

sun  just  set,  a  half  <£ ,  and  much 

glare  in  the  sky  at  the  time. 

When  first  seen  was  about }  size 

of  c  and  had  confused  edges,  be- 

ing a  mass  of  prismatic  light;  af- 

ter descending  slowly  for  a  time 

the  confused  light  disappeared, 

and  it  faurnedtheformof  a  well* 

defined  orange  ball,  twice  the  size 

of  4,  and  intensely  bright.  The 
meteordisappearedin  thickmist. 

(Probably  the  luminosity  which 

surrounded  it  was  rendered  invi- 

sibleowing  to  passingbehindcir- 

roos  haze,  which  there  was  at  the 

time.-E.  J.  L.) 

From  f  Pegasi  to  3°  below  Altair, 
much  brighter  than  Altair ;  it 

CastleDonington 

W.   H.    Leeson, 
Esq. 

Ibid. 

then  became  fainter,  and  moved 
*°  in  horizontal  direction  some- 

|Wbat  zigzag,  then  shot  off  more 

rapidly  towards  3  Poniatowski, 

near  which  star  it  suddenly  dis- 

appeared, leaving  a  bright  train. 

3  above  «  Ursss  Majoris  to  1° 
below  that  star. 

Ibid 

Id 

Ibid. 

From  «  Pegasi  to  g  Pegasi 

Ibid. 

Id 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

From  midway  between  y  and  0 

Ibid 

Id.    

Cygni  to  near  0  Lyre. 

From  0  Persei  through  the  Plei- 
ades. 

From  Polaris  to  head  of  the 

Dragon. 

Highfield  House. 
Ibid. 

E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 
Id 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

1 

204 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


Hoar. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Trains  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
duration. 


1851. 
Not.    15 


16 


h  m 
6  18 

6  20 

6  58 

7  4 


17 
18 
20 


30 


7    5 
7  36 

7  45 

10  50 

10  8 

11  10 

11  13 
6  26 


Dec     1 


24 

26 
29 


11    4 

8    3 

10  14 

7  46 


Small 

Small 
=  *... 


Yellow. 


Slight  tail 


8  23  45' 


Small,  thns  .— 

Small   

Small 


White 


Tail 

Separate  stars . 


Instantaneous . 
Instantaneous . 


No  tail. 


|  sec. ;  rapid  . 
Instantaneous . 


a  to  Saturn. 
atoRigel  . 
«  1st  mag.  . 
—3rd  mag. . 


Red 


Coloured,  bril- 
liancy of  Rigel. 
Red , 


Orange., 


«3rd  mag. 


—twice  Saturn 


Orange 

—  1st  mag. 


Red  and 
orange. 


«=  3rd  mag 

=2nd  mag. 

=2nd  mag 

Orange,     outshone 
Mars. 


Continuous  train  left  , 

Slight  sparks  

No  tail... 

Sparks , 


3  sees.. 


Sparks. 


1  sec 


1  sec 


Separate  sparks  

The  following  figures  will 
show  its  several  appear- 


1 

Passed  midway  bcJ 
tween  »  and  x  Dr* 
command  over  ■  Ur- 

Majoris. 
4  sees. j 


Orange 

Orange 
Yellow 


Train  of  light  left 


Tail 

Tail 

Without  a  train 


isec 

isec 


& 


Rapid,    being    in* 
stantaneous. 


InN.E.ali.l2°,andl 
moved  down  to-j 
wardsthe  extremity 
of  an  auroral  arch  J 
Its  path  formed  tn! 
angle  of  about  60^ 
with  E.  horizon.  It 
vanished  when  If3, 
above  the  upper 
edge  of  the  arch, 
near  its  E.extremu 
ty;  at  about  l™  later 
a  very  great  change 
occurred  in  the  au-j 
rora,it  becameverr, 
active,very  brilliant 
streamers  occur-* 
ring  for  15". 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OB8RRVATION8  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS. 


205 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Ibid.. 
Moved  over  20°  of] Ibid... 

space. 
Ibid 


'rora  n  Unas  Majoris  perpendic. 
down. 

from  fi  Bootia  perpendic  down 

from  1°  above  Saturn  horizon- 
tally towards  S. 

Vom  immed7  above  m  Andro 

Dedavnoved  towards  Atair,  and 

aded  when  half-way  to  that  star. 

Vom  a  Arietis  to  2°  E.  of  Saturn 

'erpendic.  down  from  midway 
between  «  and  0  Aurigse. 

'ell  upwards  through  0,  n  and 
{  Draconis, 

'erpendic.  down  from  y  Pegasi.  Lightning  and  au 
rora  borealis. 


Highfield  House 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 


Ibid.. 


0bser7,Beeston. 
Ibid. 


Id. 
Id. 

Id. 


Id. 
Id. 


Ibid.. 


Ibid... 


Ibid..., 


\9  N.  of  «  Cygni  towards  hbri- 

am,  passing  S.  of  Vega. 
'erpend.  down  from  midway  Moved  over  2}°  of* Ibid, 

between  n  Urate  Majoris  &  X 

Bootii. 
Perpendic.  down  from  y  Ursss  Moved  over  3°  of] Ibid., 

Majoris. 
Rapid  


From  *  Ceti  to  i  Eridani 


5°  S.  and  5°  lower  than  Mars 

moved  down  in  direction  of 

S.  at  an  angle  of  45°. 
Prom  5°  below  Pleiades,  per- 

pendic  down. 
From  Polaris  towards  W.  at  an 

angle  of  45°. 
Very  slow,  moving  over  3°  in  5 

sees. 


First  as  a  spark, 
then  increased  as  a 
number  of  sparks, 
became  less  bright 
when  passing  near 
the  star  35  Eri 
dani,  but  increased 
again  immediately ; 
moved  slowly, 


space. 


Id 

Id.    

A.S.H.Lowe,Esq 
E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq, 


Darlington,  Dur- 
ham. 


Obser.  Beeston  . 


Id 

J.  Graham,  Esq. 

E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 


Highfield  House. 


Ibid... 
Ibid... 


Darlington,  Dur- 
ham. 


Id. 


Id 

Id.    

J.  Graham,  Esq. 


Mr.  Lowe's  MS. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


206 


REPORT — 1 852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1852. 
Jan.  24 


25 


h  m 
10  45 


10  45  15s 


9  0 
8  36 


8  52 


feb.   1 10  13 


18 
20 

22 


April 


13 


21 
26 


May  10 


10  55 
9  17 

8  54 
8  50 


10  19 

9  39 

10  40 

10  55 

12  40 

13  12 


13  18 


10  45 

9  40 
9  50 

10  10 

11  0 


*3rd  mag. . 
:2nd  mag.. 


Colourless   .. 
Colourless   .. 


Long  streak., 
Streak 


Larger  than  Mars  ... 


Yellow 

=  1st  mag. 


•  1st  mag. 


Long  train 


Size  of  Mars 


Orange. 


Small,  =3rd  mag. 
=2nd  mag. 


Not  so  bright 
as  2nd  mag. 


Small  

Small  

Small  

Small  

Small  

4th  mag. 


-to<J. 


=  2nd  mag.. 


Small 
Small 
Small 
Small 


Continuous  train. 


No  tail. 


Brae. 


Train 


Blue., 


Two  sparks  . 


Yellowish  red. 
Brighter  than 

Orange 


Stream  of  light 


Instantaneous . 
Instantaneous . 


2  sees 

Descended  perpen-' 
die.  down  in  W.J 
passed  between  y 
&«Pegasi,  about 
2°  nearer  the  lat- 
ter star. 
Passed  5°  above  y 
Pegasi,  and  moved 
obliquely     north- 
ward,    its     path! 
forming  an  angle) 
of  about  20°  withi 
horizon.  It  moved 
over  4°very  s1ow1t:J 
it  made  a  stop  andj 
partially       disap- 
peared   before  it' 
finally  vanished.  ) 
Slowly ;  duration  1 


Slowly I 

Duration  1'5  sec.  . 


Rapid 
Rapid 


Rapid 


Instantaneous . 


1  sec. 


Slowly. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OP  LUMINOUS  METEORS.   207 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


rom  f  between  y  and  0  Andro- 
meda* perpendic.  down. 

Vom  y  Ursa  Majoris  between 
*  and  £  Unas  Majoris,  nearly 
perpendic.  down. 

rom  i  to  n  Unas  Majoris  .. 

used  over  15°  in  3  sees.  .. 


tam  midway  between  &  and  ^ 
Unas  Majoris,  fading  away  at 
about  R.A.  13°  3C,N.P.D.440 

'rom  30°  above  S.S.W.  horizon 
perpendic.  down. 

'rom  x  Ureas  Majoris  through  • 
Ureas  Minoris ;  moved  slowly 
towards*  Cephei, lading  when 
3°  from  that  star. 

tfored  downwards,  passing 
slightly  E.  of  Procyon. 

V  very  large  meteor  reported  as 
being  in  N. ;  unluckily  I  was 
not  observing  at  the  moment. 
My  brother  saw  the  reflexion 
and  registered  it  as  a  flash  of 
lightning. 

'rom  )  Cephei  towards  Arctnros 

to>m  )  Hydras  perpendic.  down 

3owu  across  «  Leonts    .. 

rbroDghMaxs 

Near  Spica  Virginia    

torn  Caput  Medusas  to  i  Bootis 


Highfield  House 
Ibid 


Ibid 

Darlington,  Dur- 
ham. 


Ibid... 


Highfield  House 
Observatory. 


Ibid... 
Ibid... 


Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 


Mwrt  W  above  Mara ;  moved 
1°  towards  Pollux. 

PromSCassiopeiie  towards  W., 

»%ht  inclination. 
Downwards  from  0  Virginia 

Down  from  y  Leonis 

Down  from  iLyne 

Perpendic  down  in  N.N.W. 


Two  spark  meteors 
side  by  side;  moved 
very  rapidly,  appa- 
rently at  no  very 
great  elevation. 
Weil^denned  circu- 
lar disc. 


Ibid. 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Bath    Observa- 
tory. 


Mr.  Lawson's 
Observatory, 
Bath. 

Highfield  House 


Ibid... 
Ibid.. 
Ibid... 
Ibid... 


B.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 
Id 


M 

J.  Graham,  Esq. 


Id. 


Mr.  Lowt's  MS. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

Id.    

Id.    

Id.    

Id.    


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


Id. 


Id. 


Id 

Id 

Id 

A.S.H.Lowe,Esq. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


208 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


1852. 
July     3 


Hour. 


h  m 
10  30 


6  times  V-,  gradually 
diminished  in  size. 


12 10  47  30' 


13 


22 


23 


10  47 


11    0 


1911  10 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


<  #  at  opp. 


10  39  15a 
12    6  

11  59  57* 

12  0  30... 


11  45 


Aug.     5 10  32  p.m.  Bright .. 

"~   "  Small   .. 

Meteor.. 

Meteor.. 

1011    5  Meteor.. 

Meteor.. 
Meteor.. 
Meteor.. 
Meteor.. 
Meteor.. 
15  9  52  Meteor.. 


10  32  p.m. 

10  43  

10  24  

10  35  

11  5  

11     5  

11     5  

11     5  

11  10  

11  14  


= 2nd  mag., 

=3rd  mag. . 

= 3rd  mag.  , 

»3rd  mag. , 

*3rd  mag. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Small 


Small 


Brilliant 


Colourless 
Colourless 
Colourless 
Colourless 

Colourless 


Red, 


Train  or  sparks. 


Pale  blue Long  streak 


Left  a  train . 


Slowly,  8  i 


2-5 


Leaving  a  lengthened  train 


Continuous  streak 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


Horizontally  from  * 
through  {  Ser- 
pentis. 

Through      zenith 

from  I.E.  to  N.W. 

Fell  parallel  with 
milky  way,  pass- 
ing near  /»  CygniJ 
moving  to  E.      | 

Slowly,  1*2  sec 


'Continuous  streak  0*2  sec,  rapid 

Continuous  train , 

Continuous  train 


Continuous  train.. 


With  train 
Faint  train 


0*2  sec. 
0*2  sec. 

01  sec 


With  train 


Rapid 


1851, 
Aug.    19 

19 


V.  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors  made  at  the  Observatory,  Stone 


10    3  p.m. 


Brighter  than  a  star 
of  the  1st  mag. 


Blue. 


Blue. 


Train 


A  train  as  long  as  twice  the 
distance  from  «  Andro- 
meda? to  Markab. 


Slow;    visible  da- 
ring 4  sees. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.   209 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


-i- 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Netr{Ursc  Majoris,  above  x 
Dnconis  through  Polaris  to 
j  Cephei.  Ill-defined  trem 
bling  mass  of  light. 

From  y  Cygni  to  a  point  2°  be- 
low Deneb,  it  then  changed 
its  course  and  proceeded  about 
3°  in  horizontal  direction, 
growing  less  and  less  bright, 
till  at  length  scarcely  visible. 
In  an  instant  it  changed  its 
coarse  a  second  time,  became 
as  brilliant  as  at  its  first  ap- 
pearance, fell  in  a  direction 
nearly  perpendic.  to  horizon 
and  disappeared  midway  be 
tween  Deneb  &  &  Pegasi. 


NearDreux(Eure 
&  Loire),  France 


Castle  Donington 


From « to  i  Andromedas    . . . 
From  x  through  i  Ophiuchi 
From  y  through  i  Ophiuchi 
Moved  across  0  and  «  Arietis 

towards  N. 
From  i  Herculis  to  3  Coronas 

Borealia. 
From  Cassiopeia  to  Andromeda. 

S.E.  of  Milky  Way 

InS.W. 

InN.E 


InS. 

inw ;; 

In  zenith 

lnS.S.W 

InS.  along  Milky  Way 
InW 


From  15°  below  Vega  to  S. 


6  meteors  in  9 
minutes. 


M.  J.  E.  Durand 


W.    H.   Leeson, 
Esq. 


Mr.  Lowe's  MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Highfield  House  JA.  S.  H.  Lowe, 
Esq. 


Ibid... 
Ibid... 


Id. 
Id. 


[Beeston. 
Observatory, 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Highfield  House 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


E.  J.  Lowe,  Esq. 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id.    

A.  S.  H.  Lowe... 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id.    


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 


Vwrage,  Aylesbury,  Bucks.    Lat.  51°  47'  57"-03.    Long.  0°  52'  16"-35  W. 


T*o  meteors  from  N.  to  S.  un- 
der Cassiopeia. 

Two  meteors  from  B.  to  W., 
one  under  «  Herculis,  and  the 
otber  under  m  Aquilse. 

no*  Cassiopeia,  passing  south 
<»  APegasito/JAquarii;  it 
^appeared  in  a  cloud  beyond 
Aquarius. 


1852 


It  appeared  as  a 
train  of  beads  very 
well  separated. 


Stone 
Ibid.., 

Ibid.., 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
Id.    


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
and  Vnt.Fasel, 
Esq. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


210 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1851 
Aug.    20 
21 

22 


h  m 

11    0  p.m. 
9  10  p.m. 


Train 


9  30  

8  20  5V 
8  23  58' 


2nd  mag. 


Red 
Red 


Train 
Train 


Very  vapid 
Rapid  


30 


9  48 
9  55 
10  8 
10  9 
10  15 
10  50 

10  53 

10  54 

11  49 
11  52 


About  5th  mag. 

4th  mag 

3rd  mag. , 

3rd  mag. 

3rd  mag. 


4th  mag. 


Moderate. 


Yellow. 
White  . 


31 

Sept.    3 


0  38  a.m. 
8  41  p.m. 
8    4  p.m. 


10 
11 


1310 


7  48  p.m. 

8  43  p.m. 
"  45  


5th  mag.  . 
3rd  mag. 
2nd  mag. , 

5th  mag.  . 

2nd  mag. . 

2nd  mag. . 

3rd  mag.  . 
1st  mag.  . 
3rd  mag. . 


Blue. 
Red. 


Train 


Blue. 
Red. 


Short  train  ... 
Train-beaded 


Rapid  

1  sec  duration 


Blue.... 
Yellow. 
White  . 


Rapid  .... 
Moderate. 
Rapid  .... 


19 


8  44  p.m. 

8  55  p.m. 
7  35  p.m. 

7  45  p.m. 

8  4  p.m. 

8  31  p.m. 

9  0  p.m. 
9  38  p.m. 
9  45  p.m. 
9  54  p.m. 

10    8  


3rd  mag. 

3rd  mag. 
4th  mag. 


3rd  mag. .~ 


White 


Moderate. 


Red 
Red, 


Short  train  , 


White  , 


Rapid 
Rapid 

Rapid* 


20 


11  45 


8  25 


8  45 

9  17 

9  18 
10  28 


4th  mag. . 
4th  mag.  . 
4th  mag. . 
2nd  mag. . 
4th  mag.  . 
3rd  mag. . 
5th  mag. . 

4th  mag. . 


Blue 

Yellow 

Dull  red  

Light  yellow 

White 

Light  blue  .. 
White  


Rapid  .... 

Rapid  .... 
Moderate. 

Rapid  .... 

Rapid  .... 

Rapid  .... 

Rapid  .... 


Yellow. 


3rd  mag.,  andas  bright 
as  a  star  of  the  1st 
mag. 

2nd  mag. 

4th  mag 


Yellowish.. 


Short  train 


Rapid 


Moderate. 


White 

Light  blue  ... 


Long  train 


Rapid  .... 
Moderate. 


2nd  mag. 
3rd  mag. 


Yellow.. 
Orange.., 


Train    

Beaded  train 


Rapid 
Rapid 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS. 


211 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Went  through  the  Pleiades 
From  •  Lyre  to  m  Coronas  Bo- 
realis. 
From  below  0  Unas  Minoris  to 

2°  east  of  «  Ursse  Majoris. 
From  Cassiopeia  to  «  Andro- 

medae. 

From  Mirkab  to  a  very  short  di- 
stance south. 

From  •  Urs.  Maj.  to  Mizar 

From  «  to  £  Cassiopeia; 

From  Perseus  to  the  Pleiades.. 
From  H  Urs.  Maj.  to  «  Bootis 

From  Cassiopeia  to  Polaris 

Prom  the  square  of  Pegasus; 

!   from  esst  to  west. 

Through  Corona  Borealis,  from 

|   E.toW. 

kbore  i  Bootis  from  B.  to  W. . 

Went  through  Aquarius  due  S. 

pom  C  Urs.  Maj.  down  to  the 

horizon. 
4°  below  the  Pleiades  from  E. 

toW. 
From  C  Unas  Maioris  passing 

through  y,  to  2*  beyond  it. 
From  4  below  Corona  borealis 

to  i  Bootis. 
through  Lyra  from  E.  to  W. 
From 0 Urs. Min.  to* Urs.  Maj. 
From  2°  below  m   Serpentis, 

psstrng  between  £  and  i  Urs. 

Maj.  to  2°  below  them. 
From  E.  to  W.,   passing  by 

•  Hercuhs. 
From  Sheat  to  )  Cygni  ... 
From  below  Polaris  to  half-way 

between  Polaris  and  Perseus. 
From  a  short  distance  west  of 

« Bootis  to  near  Cor.  CarolL 

From  C  to  x  Dracoois t 

PromyCephdto2°belowit  . 
From  i  Pegasi  to  y  Aquarii 
From  Cassiopeia  to  Capella 
Through  Cassiopeiafrom  N.  to  S. 
Prom  jS  Cephei  to  0  Urs.  Min. . 
From  Musca  Borealis  to  the 

Hyades. 
Started  half-way  betwaen  Aide- 

baran  and  the  Pleiades,  and 

travelled  about  3°  towards 

the  Pleiades. 
From  about  (  Andromeda  to 
2°belowJ. 


Stone 
Ibid.... 


Train  red  and  con- 
tinuous. 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 
Ibid.. 


Ibid... 

Ibid... 
Ibid.., 
Ibid... 

Ibid.., 

Ibid.., 

Ibid... 

Ibid... 
Ibid.., 
Ibid... 


Aylesbury 


Stone 
Ibid.... 


Ibid... 


Bright. 


Ibid. , 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. , 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Ibid.. 


Observatory.. 


Prom  0  to  y  Andromeda;  ...  . 
From  o  Un.  Ma),  to  between 

the  Pointers. 
Jh>m  4°  above  to  $  Auriga;  .. 
C  from  Capella  to  6°  due  east 


Stone 
Ibid.... 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
J.W.Eccles,Esq. 


Id. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid 

Ibid........ 

Ibid 

Ibid. 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 

Vnt.Fasel,Esq.,& 
Rev.J.B.Reade. 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
O.  J.  Grace,  Esq. 
H.  Smith,  Esq.  . 
O.  J.  Grace,  Esq. 

Id.    

Rev.  J.  B. 


E.  J.  Lowe's  MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Reade  Ibid. 


Id. 

W.     Whit! 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
Id. 


W.     Whitbread, 

Esq. 
Id.    


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade  Ibid. 


H.  Smith,  Esq.  , 
W.  Eccles,  Esq. , 
O.  J.  Grace,  Esq, 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


J.     W.    Eccles, 

Esq. 
Rev.  J.  B, 
Id.    


Reade  Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Eccles,  Ibid, 


J.    W. 
Esq. 
O.J.  Grace,  Esq. 

Id.    

J.W.  Eccles,  Esq. 

Id.    

H.  Smith,  Esq.  . 

Id 

J.W.  Eccles,  Esq. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade  Ibid. 


Vnt.  Fasel,  Esq. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 


J.W.  Eccles,  Esq. 
Rev.  C.  Lowndes|lbicL 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
Id 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 


p2 


212 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


1851 
Sept.  20 


21 


24 
29 


Oct      2 


14 


15 


16 


Hour. 


h  m 
11  15 


3rd  mag. 


11  43  p.m. 
7  27  p.m. 


7  27  p.m. 

7  53  

9  18  


4th  mag. 
3rd  mag. 


9  25 

7  56 
7  31 
7  32 


7  42  30* 

7  55  p.m. 
9  5  p.m. 
9  10  p.m. 

8  15  p.m. 

9  14  p.m. 
7    2  p.m. 

7  53  p.m. 

8  8  p.m. 

8  10  p.m. 

9  2  p.m. 
6  47  p.m. 


7  10  p.m. 

7  56  p.m. 

8  6  p.m. 

9  7  p.m. 

11    4  p.m. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Orange.. 


2ndVmag. 
4th  mag. 
3rd  mag. 

4th  mag. 


As  bright  at «  Aquihe. 

4th  mag 

2nd  mag 


4th  mag. 

3rd  mag. 

3rd  mag 

3rd  mag. 

Aa  bright  as  Capella 

Much  larger  and 
brighter  than  Ca- 
pella. 

3rd  mag.  wheu  it  be- 
gan, and  of  the  6th 
when  it  ended. 

2nd  mag 


1st  mag. 


3rd  mag. 

As  bright  as  a  star  of 
the  1st  mag. ;  it  in 
creased  in  size  as  it 
proceeded. 


3rd  mag. 
4th  mag. 


4th  mag. . 


3rd  mag. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Red... 
White 


Blue 

White  

Yellowish., 


Orange 

Light  blue 

White 

Blue 


Train 
Train 


Blue.... 
Yellow. 
Yellow. 
Yellow. 
White  . 


Brilliant  white 

Blue 

Brilliant  white 
Blue 


Blue. 


White 

Bright  orange. 


White 
Blue... 


White 


Blue. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Long  train 


3  sees,  duration  . 


Train 
Train 


Rapid 
Rapid 


Rapid 
Rapid 
Rapid 

Rapid 


Very  rapid 
Moderate... 
Rapid  


Beaded  train 


Short  flash,  no  train 


Long  train 


Long  train 


Instantaneous  flash., 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


Rapid  

Moderate 

Rapid  

Rapid  

Instantaneous . 


Slow... 
Rapid 
Rapid 
Rapid 


Slow.. 


Moderate. 
Slow , 


Rapid 
Rapid 


Moderate. 


Moderate., 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOU8  METEORS.   213 


Direction  or  Altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


From  Capella,  through  Perseus, 
to  Caput  Medusa?. 


I 


from  Algenib  to  i  Piscium    . . . 
From  47  AndromedsB  to  m  Tri- 
anguli. 


The  tail  of  the  train 
was  visiblefor  se- 
veral seconds  af- 
ter the  meteor 
had  disappeared. 


Hartwell . 


Rev.  C.  Lowndes 


B.  J.  Lowe's  MS. 


FromjS  Andromeda  to  X  Arietis. 

From  •  Lyra?  to  i  Cygni 

From  «  Cassiopeiss  to  y  Andro- 
meda*. 

From  «  Andromeda?  to  «  Cas- 
tiopeie. 

From  «  Aqailae  to  m  Ophiuchi  . 

From  x  Cephei  to  0  Urs.  Min.. 

Through  Pegasus,  in  a  south- 
eastern direction. 

From  Polaris  to  «  Urs.  Maj. 

3°  through  Lacerta  from  N.  to  S. 

(From  )  Auriga?  to  m  Urs.  Maj. 

From  I  Aurigae  to  Castor  .... 

In  7  Camelopardalis  


This  meteor  started 
a  few  seconds  be- 
fore the  follow- 
ing one. 


Stone 
Ibid.... 


Vnt.  Fasel,  Esq. . 
H.  Smith,  Esq.  . 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid 

Ibid 


Hartwell , 


Stone 

Ibid.... 

Ibid..., 


Id 

J.W.  Eccles,  Esq. 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 

Rev.  C.  Lowndes 

J.W.Eccles,Esq. 
O.  J.  Grace,  Esq. 
W.Carter    ... 


From  3°  east  of  the  moon,  cross-  It 
edthe  moon,  and  went  about 
7°  west  of  it. 

From  Cassiopeia  to  )  Cygni 


It  only  broke  out, 
and  then  vanished, 
appeared  like  the 
flame  of  a  candle. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Hartwell . 

Ibid 

Stone  .... 


Ibid.. 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
O.  J.  Grace,  Esq. 
Rev.  C.  Lowndes 

Id 

Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 

J.W.  Eccles,Esq. 


Ibid.. 


Through  Aquarius  from  N.  to  S. 


It  was  as  bright  as  Ibid.., 
Jupiter  when  it 
ended. 


Id. 


Id. 


From  t  Bootis  to  the  horizon, 
It  started  a  little  to  the  E.  of 
i  Bootis. 

From  jS  Bootis  down  to  the  ho- 
rizon. 

From  •  Arietis  to  0  Andromedas     

From  about  24  Lyncis,  passed  The  same  meteor 
through  42  Urs.  Maj.,  and  be- 
tween the  Pointers ;  and  va- 
nished in  the  middle  of  the 
trapezium,about  5i°from  the 
little  star  above-named,  42. 

From  •  Arietis  to  S.E.  horizon  . 

iFrom  between  *  and  ft  Aquita 

I    to  the  horizon. 

to  the  cluster  in  the  sword  of 
Perseus. 

Started  from  Algol,  passed  be- 
tween «  and  )  Persei,  and  va- 
nished about  3°  beyond  ^ 
Persei. 

From  «  Andromede,  and  travel- 
ed about  8°  towards  x  Andro- 
meda?. 


Aylesbury 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 


Ibid.. 


was  Been  at  Hart- 
well by  Rev.  C 
Lowndes ;  his  ac- 
count perfectly 
agrees  with  this. 


Stone 
Stone 
tory. 


Observa- 


Id. 

J.W. 
Vnt. 


Eccles,  Esq. 
Fasel,  Esq.. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 


It  increased  to  2nd 
mag. 


Stone 
Ibid.... 


Ibid.. 


Ibid.. 


Ibid.. 


J.W. 
O.J. 

Rev. 

Vnt. 


Id. 


Eccles,  Esq.  Ibid. 
Grace,  Esq.  Ibid. 

J.  B.  Reade  (bid. 

Fasel,  Esq. .  Ibid. 


Ibid. 


214 


REPORT— 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Thin  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1851 
Oct     17 


h  m 
7  47  50" 

7  48  p.m. 
7  50  p.m. 

7  54  p.m. 

8  0  p.m. 
8  17  p.m. 
8  21  30* 
8  24  p.m. 
8  24  30* 
8  26  p.m. 

8  27  30.. 


1st  mag.  . 

3rd  mag.  . 
6th  mag.  . 
3rd  mag.  , 

5th  mag. , 
4th  mag. , 
1st  mag.  . 
4th  mag.  . 
2nd  mag. , 
1st  mag.  , 


Yellow. 

Yellow. 
Red  .... 
White  . 


Train 


Red  .... 
Yellow. 
White  . 
Yellow. 
Blue.... 
Red.... 


1st  mag.  and  as  bright  Blue . 
as  «  Lyre. 


After  it  parted,  that 
of  the  2nd  mag.  was 
that  of  the  4th  was 


Bright  orange. 
Blue 


Nov.      2 


4 
20 


21 


8  35  p.m. 

9  0  p.m. 

9  25  p.m. 
7  1  p.m. 
7  2  p.m. 
7    2    7* 

7  35  p.m. 
6  32  p.m. 

6  45  p.m. 


3rd  mag. . 
3rd  mag. . 

3rd  mag.  . 
2nd  mag. . 
2nd  mag. . 
2nd  mag. . 

3rd  mag. . 
3rd  mag. . 


Blue 

Light  blue 


Train 


Train 
Train 


Train 


Blue. 
Blue. 
Blue. 
Blue. 

Red. 
Blue. 


Red  tail 


Train 


As  large  as  Mars,  with  Of 
a  well-defined  disc. 


the  same 
colour  as 
Mars. 


Very  rapid 


Rapid  .... 
Moderate.. 
Rapid  .... 


Moderate... 
Moderate... 
Moderate... 

Rapid  

Very  rapid 
Rapid  


Moderate. 


Moderate., 
Moderate. 


Moderate. 
Slow 


Rapid  .... 
Moderate. 
Rapid  .... 
Rapid  .... 


Moderate.. 
Rapid  ..... 


8  22  p.m.  3rd  mag. |Orange Short  train Rapid 

N.B.  The  above  89  meteors  were  observed  within  the  space  of  three  months  and  three  days.    From  the 
there  have  been  many  bright  starry  nights,  on  every  one  of  which  there  has  been  a  constant  and  careful 

1852. 

1st  mag.  and  as  bright  Light  yellow 


Aug. 


3 

9  30  p.m. 

5 

10    0  p.m. 

10  18  p.m. 

15 

9  10  p.m. 

9  15  p.m.  | 

as  Jupiter. 
2nd  mag. 
3rd  mag.  . 
2nd  mag. , 
3rd  mag.  . 


Reddish 
Yellow... 
Whitish 
Yellow... 


Train 

Train 
Train 
Train 
Train 


Rapid 


Rapid  

Very  rapid 

Rapid  

Rapid  


On  the  10th  August  many  meteors  were  seen  between  9'  and 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OP  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      215 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remark*. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


From  $  Bootis,  went  5°,  pasting 
between  y  and  3  Bootis. 

From ^  Hercnlis  to  0  Bootis  ... 

From  0  to  J  Bootis 

from  y  Lyras,  and  went  in  cir. 
culsr  form  to  •  Hercnlis. 

From  «  to  0  Lyra;  

From  « to  {  Pegasi 

From  •  Lyrae  to  y  Braconis  ... 

From  n  Hereolia  to  )  Bootis  ... 

From  y  Pegasi  to  £  Cygni 

It  went  5°,  running  parallel  with 
•  and  0  Draconis. 

From  about  15°  east  of  the  sol 
stitial  colore  and  7°  above  i 
Lyne;  it  went  4°  towards 
N.W.,  then  parted  into  two 
meteors,  one  of  the  2nd  and 
the  other  of  the  4th  magni 
tode;  they  took  a  different 
direction,each  leaving  a  train. 
That  of  the  2nd  mag.  went 
to  i  Hercnlis,  and  that  of  the 
4th  vanished  at  X  Hercnlis 

From  about  *  Cygni  to  «  Lyras. 

From  1°  under  Saturn,  went 
about  H°  from  E.  to  W. 

From  Polaris  to  2  Auriga;  

Through  Lacerta  from  S.  to  N. 

From  0  Cygni  to  near  «  Aquilse 

Through  r  Hercnlis  from  east 
to  west. 

From  Saturn  to  0  Ceti  ....... 

From  a  little  below  Polaris  to  ? 
Ura-Maj. 

Pssied  up  the  field  of  the  tele- , 
scope,  which  is  1*,  in  a  little 
less  than  half  a  second.  It 
preceded  v  Hercnlis  of  the 
3rd  mag.,  and  its  declination 
was  the  same  as  Brorsen's 
comet  Hence  its  R.A.— 
15h55-,itsN.P.D.43°56', 

From  •  to  $  Cygni 


Stone 


Ibid... 
Ibid... 
Ibid... 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
saw  the  same  me* 
teor  from  a  dif- 
ferent place,  and 
the  two  descrip- 
tions perfectly 
•free* 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 
Ibid... 
Ibid... 

Ibid... 


It  appeared  low 


Ibid..... 
Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid..... 
Ibid 


Ibid... 
Ibid... 

Ibid.., 


Ibid.. 


.     Wbltbread, 

Esq. 

Id 

Id 

J.W.Eccles,Esq. 
[Esq. 
W.  Whitbread, 

Id.    

H.  Smith,  Esq.... 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
Vnt.  Fasel,  Esq. . 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 

Vnt.  Fasel,  Esq. 


E.  J.  Lowe's  MS. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 
J.W.Eccles,Esq, 


Id.    

Vnt.  Faael,  Esq, 
J.W.Eccles,Esq. 
Rev.  J.  B.  Reade 

J.W.Eccles,Esq. 
Ret.  J.  B.  Reade 


Id. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Id. 


Ibid. 


end  of  November  1851  up  to  the  beginning  of  August  1852,  wry  few  mtttori  were  seen,  although 

look  out— Vnt.  Fasbu 


From  about  2 

and  travelled  about'  10 

S.W.  direction* 
From  )  Urs.  Maj.  to  very  near . 

Cor.  CaroH. 
From*  Cassiopeia  to  half-way . 

to  Polaris. 
From  about  i  Delphini    to 

AqmTae. 
from  9  Pegasi,  and  travelled . 

about  13°  in  a  southward  di- 
rection. 

10*  p.m.  immediately  after  a  thunder-storm. 


Stone 


Vnt.  Fasel,  Esq. 


Ibid... 
Ibid.., 
Ibid... 
Ibid.., 


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


Ibid, 

Ibid, 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


216 


REPORT — 1852. 

VI.  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors,  1851-52.     Corn- 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1850. 
Sept.     4 


1851 
May      2 


22 

23 
June     1 

24 

July    30 

Aug.     3 


h  m 

From 
9  30  a.m. 

to 
3  30  p.m. 

10    0  p.m. 
10  15  p.m. 


8  30  p.m. 


A  vast  number  of  lu 
minous  bodies  seen 
through  a  telescope 


Circular  illumination 
in  the  clouds,  about 
10°  in  diameter. 

Large  and  brilliant 
meteor. 


Smaller  andless  bright 

Brilliant  light = moon 
four  days'  old. 


Various  mag- 
nitudes,frora 
2"  to  20" 
with  discs. 


Somewhat  in- 
creased  in 
size&bright 
ness,  purple 
and  green. 


Tail  or  streak  lasted  two 
minutes. 


Various    velocities, 
but  uniform. 


Did  not  change' 
place,  lasted  about 
one  minute.  l 


11    0 
11    0 


3rd  mag. . 
3rd  mag.  . 


Became  green 
just  before 
disappearing 

Red 

Red 


Fell  and  dissipated) 
at  10°  alt,  , 


No  train 
No  train 


Rapid 
Rapid 


10    0  p.m. 


>Sirius 


Bluish  white  . 


10  9 

11  35 
10  27 


10  28 
10  30 
10  43 


1st  mag 

3rd  mag 

Gradually  dying  away 

and  suddenly  « 1st 

mag. 

2nd  mag. 

2nd  mag 

2nd  mag 


No  train 


No  train 
No  train 


10  45  

10  46  30a 
10  48  40* 
10  48  50* 
10  52  


10  54  

10  55  30* 


4th  mag.  ... 
3rd  mag.  ... 
3rd  mag.  .., 
4th  mag.  ... 
1st  mag.  .., 

2nd  mag.  %„ 
4th  mag.  .., 


Fine  sparks  . 


Continuous  line  of  light... 


11  26 


9  57  p.m. 
10  16  p.m. 


1th  mag. 
4th  mag. 


isec. 

i  sec 

Isec. 

isec. 
i  sec. 
i  sec. 
i  sec. 
1  sec. 

4  Bee. 
1  sec 

isec. 


9  40  p.m. 


From 

10  0  p.m. 
to 

11  0  p.m. 


2nd  mag. 


White 

Reddish,  bril- 
liant. 

Blue,    very 
brilliant. 


Very  rapid 
Rapid  


7  meteors., 


Train  of  blue  light,  stopped 
several  seconds  in  its 
progress,  then  proceeded 


Slow.. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OP  LUMINOUS  METEORS.       217 
municated  by  various  Observers, 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference* 


[n  a  continuous  stream  due  E. 
and  W.  about  18°  in  breadth. 


South  Mimms ...  Rev.  W.    Read, 
M.A. 


a  S.E.. 


Jnder  a  verandah,  tint  seen  at 
alt.  75°,  fell  perpendicular  to 
horizon  into  the  sea. 


'romN.W.toS.E.. 
from  zenith  to  S.   . 


Entirely  cloudy  .. 


J.S.E.  alt.  25°  to  15°  . 
>.S.E.,alt.  25°  to  45°. 


in  N.N.E.,  alt.  40°  . 


through  Ursa  Major  below  0. 

rhrough  Sagittarius   

)own  on  right  of  Milky  Way. 


These  two  meteors 
were  seen  through 
hazy  clouds,  pur. 
suing  each  other. 

Communicated  to 
me  by  a  friend 
staying  in  the 
house. 


0  E.  of  ?  Aquarius 

trough  Bootes , 

Jelow  Delphin.  through  Anti- 
nous. 

through  Sagittarius  

'ocCapric 

Lbove  Cassiopeia.......... 

!°  E.  of  Polaris    

torn  centre  of  Pegasus  -*-  to 
the  rest. 

felow  Cassiopeia,  ||  to  rest 

torn  i  Pegasi,~L-to  rest  with 
great  force. 

tam  0  Aquar.  to  between 
and  j3  Capric. 

'rom  Ursa  Major    

Below  Una  Major 

Sear  Polaris    


Various  directions,  5  generally 
towards  S.f  2  towards  N. 


Ennore,  India,  1 1 
miles  N.  of 
Madras. 

Ibid. 


Ibid 

Calcutta 


Rose  Hill, 
Oxford. 


Ibid.., 


Passed  downwards. 
From  N.  to  S. ... 


Passed  to  N. 


Moon  full;   atmo- 
sphere hazy. 


Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 


MS.  See  Appendix, 
No.  13. 


Correspondent  to 
Dr.  Buist, 


Id. 

Id. 
Id. 


Rev.  J.  Slitter.. 


Ibid.., 
Ibid... 
Ibid.., 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 
Ibid.., 
Ibid... 


Ibid.., 
Ibid.. 


Ibid.., 


St.  Ives,  Hunts.. 
Ibid. 


Ibid.. 


Haverhill., 


Id. 


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 

Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 

Id. 
Id. 

Id. 


See  Appendix,  No. 
3. 

Ibid. 


Ibid. 

See  Appendix,  No. 
5. 

MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  PoweD. 


Ibid. 


J.  King  Watts. 
Id 


Id. 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  W. 

Boreham. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


MS.  communicated. 

See  diagram,  App. 

No.  7. 


218 


REPORT— 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1851. 
Aug.    IS 

14 


h    m 
8  45  , 


•19 

18 
19 


9  40  

9  38  

9  38  "30* 

9  43  

10    2  

10  13  


20 10  25  p.m. 
21    9  23  p.m. 
9  27  p.m. 
22|  9  35  p.m. 


23 

28 
Sept.     2 


3 
19 


20 


25 


Oct.      5 


9  52  p.m. 
9    8  p.m. 


10  35  pun. 
9  50  p.m. 
7  30  p.m. 


A  few  sees, 
later. 


7  30 

7  45 
10    0 
1    Oi 


3rd  mag. 


3rd  mag. .. 
4tb  mag.  .. 
5th  mag. .. 
2nd  mag... 
>►  Jupiter 
1st  mag.  .. 


Red... 
Orange.. 


Coarse  sparks  , 
Train   


1  sec  , 

1  sec  . 
1  sec  . 
1  sec.  . 
1  sec  . 
It  sec. 


Small 
Large 


Large  and  brilliant .. 

3rd  mag 

Large  and  bright 

Large  and  beautiful 


«4thmag. 
Large  


An  ill-defined  lumi 
nous  patch  or  band, 
longer  diameter, 
slightly  inclined. 


A  small  shooting  star 

nearly  in  the 

place. 
Two-thirds  of  moon 


11    Op.m, 

9  45  p.m. 
9  50  p.m. 


Between 
10&11  p.m. 


Sheet  form 

Star  of  1st  mag. ... 
Larger  than  any  star. 

Bright  meteor,  one- 
fifth  full  moon,  star 
shaped. 


Disc 

Very  large 


A  large  ball  of  fire  , 


7  52  -¥ 


White 
Bluish 


Very  rapid 
Slow 


White 

White 

Bluish 

Very 
and 

increased  un- 
til it  disap- 
peared 
sparks. 


Beautiful  sparks  and  bright  Slow.. 

Rapid 

Train    

bright  Train  continuous 

white, 


in 


White    and 
brilliant. 

Bright  white, 
gradually  in- 
creased  in 
brightness, 
then  decrea- 
sed and  dis- 
appeared. 


Dark  red. 


Lighter  red . 


Yellow  and 
violet. 

Illumination 
more    than 
half   moon, 
tinged  with 
blue. 

Bright  blue 


Longtrain,  which  exploded  About  2  sees. 

No  explosion,  disappeared  About  5  sect 
suddenly,    leaving    no 
track,  except  a  whitish 
trace  at  the  upper  part 
of  its  course. 


Iridescent  sparks 


Slow.. 
Slow. 


Slow J 

Stationary  ,duratioi 
about  1  minute. 


Rather  alow,  disap 
peared  withoa 
explosion. 


Rapid 


*  This  day  an  immense  meteor  waa 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSEBVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.       21  9 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remark*. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


ieaeath  Polaris 


through  Perseus  downward 
Phrongh  Ophiuchus  above  « 
ftuoogh  Aquila  above  y  ... 
foroogh  Capric.,  slanting  down 
lame  as  last,  slightly  curved ... 
"hroDgh  y  Cor.  Bor.  from  un- 
der Polaris. 

"rom  Virgo 

torn  Leo    • 


Rose  Hill, 
Oxford. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Rev.  J.  Blatter... 


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


Mow  Virgo  to  west  

Wow  Ursa  Major  to  west... 

torn  Ursa  Major  to  west  ... 

taed  the  whole  length  of  Una 
Major  from  south  to  north, 
and  in  Hs  progress  rendered 
some  of  his  stars  invisible. 


1°  below  Cor.  Bor.  from  n« 
Polaris, 
fom  Lyra  down  to  the  west . 


Passed  S 

Exploded   with 
brilliant  light 


St.  Ives,  Hants. 
Ibid 


J.  King  Watts.. 
Id.   


Ibid.., 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.., 


Id. 
Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


nS.W.,alt60°? 


RoseHffl,Oxford.  Ret.  J.  Slatter... 
J.  King  Watts... 
Rev.  T.  Master. 


St.  Ives,  Hunts. . 


Garsington,  near 
Oxford. 


MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  PowelL 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Verbal  communica- 
tion to  Prof, 
Powell. 


Ibid.., 


Id. 


Jpwards ... 
lorizontal 


Phosphoric  meteor. 


Huggate 


Rev.  T.  Rankin 


hired  towards  the  earth  , 


from  a  little  north  of  zenith 
down  about  45°*  to  S.W. 


Ibid.., 
Ibid... 
To  the  W.  of  Unajlbid... 
Major. 


Id 

Gamekeeper 
Id.   


Calcutta 


Correspondent  to 
Dr.  Buist 


from  near  Polaris,  passed  Ursa 
Major  (see  sketch  in  Appen 
dix). 

Prom  N.N.W.  to  N.N.K.,  from 
alt.  25°  to  alt.  20°. 


Pell  perpendicularly  down, 
ptrently  into  the  sea. 


Beneath  the  moon  in  8.W. 


ap-In 


Altitudestakenfrom 
windows,  also  re- 
ported by  Mr. 
Lowe. 

a  storm,  accom- 
panied by  a  rush- 
ing sound  and  a 
noise  as  if  of 
falling 


Near    Farnham, 
Surrey. 

RoseHill,Oxf6rd. 


Several      places 
near  Bombay. 


Rose    Hill   near 
Oxford. 


Mr.G.W.Hewitt 


Seen  by  some 
Mr.     Sutter's 
family. 

Several  commu- 
nicated to  Dr. 
Buist. 


Brother  of  Rev. 
J.  Slatter. 


Ibid. 


MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  PowelL 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Bombay    Times, 
App.  No.  4. 


MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  Powell, 
see  App.  No.  8. 

communicated 
to  Prof.  Powell, 
from  Rev.  J. 
Slatter. 

Bombay  Times. 
See  App.  No.  6. 


of  MS. 


IS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  PowelL 


Been  at  Naples  from  W.  to  E,— Paper*. 


220 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1851. 
Not.     4 


24 

25 
1852. 
Mar.   12 


April  20 


m 
0  p.m. 


Brilliant 


FeU  slowly  towards  the  W. 
in  a  curve  concave  to 
horizon. 


10    2  p.m. 
10  15  p.m. 

7    6  a.m. 


Large 
Large 


2nd  mag.. 


White 

Purplish,  bril- 
liant. 
Pale  yellow.., 


Sparkling.. 


Rapid 
Slow.., 


About  1  ice 


9  28 

10  5 

11  25 


Small  .. 
Large  .. 

1st  mag. 


White  .. 
White, 
liant. 


bril 


Sparkling,    and    stopped 
twice  in  its  progress. 


Slow.. 
Slow.. 


f  11  35  4th  mag, 


*0spLU    + 
B  T 


#Gapell» 
i  B 


i'.' 

4    * 


I  4 


I  4      •      •     » 


A  Auroral  beam. 

B  C  Course  of  meteor. 


i  * 


May    14 


11  35  5' .. 

12  25  

10  33  301 


4th  mag. .. 
»  Jupiter.. 
-Vega    .. 


July    12 


13 


29 


About 
9  59  p.m. 

O.T. 


10    0  p.m. 
(London 
time.) 


9  45  p.m. 


Aug.     3 


9  15  p.m. 

(O.M.T.) 


White 
White 


diameter  Very 


Apparent 
little  inferior  to  full 
moon. 

Larger  than  ^.  As  it 
fell  brilliancy  in 
creased ;  then  seem 
ed  to  decrease  and 
again  to  increase  till 
disappearance. 

=2nd  mag.,  but 
dually  decreased  till 
«5th. 


At  first  like  a  small 
star,  intensely  bright 


Fine  sparks 
Fine  sparks 


.  bright, 
ruddy  co- 
lour. 

Bright  orange, 
red,  chan 
gingtonear 
fy  white,  and 
then  red 
again. 

Bluish  white 


Noted  shape 
tail  pointing  to  south. 


Disappeared  without  s 
ration ;  no  explosion.- 


v 


-* 


Moved  towards  tb 

N.  very  rapidh 
Duration  of  ris 
bilityabout2Ka 
2i 


sepa-  About  2  sees. 


For  about  15°  gradually  Train 
increased  in  magnitude, 
became  brilliant,  though 
white  (as  if  inflamed), 
=  2  diam.  of  ?  when 
brightest,  and  continued 
through  about  30°,  when 
it  suddenly  resumed  its 
first  appearance  (as 
burnt  out)  and  continued 
onward  some  distance 
further. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OP  LUMINOUS  METEORS.   221 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Appeared  first  below  and  a  little 
to  the  right  of  the  moon,  in 
S.E.alt.  Estimatedabout  35c 

From  Polaris  ruining  northward 
Left  of  Ursa  Major  to  north 


Perpendicular  down 


Perhaps  the  same 
as  one  seen  in 
Nottingham;  vide 
Mr.Lowe'sCataL 


St.  John's  Lodge, 
Stone,  near 
Aylesbury. 

St  Ives,  Hunts., 
Ibid. 


Miss  G.  R.  Smyth  MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  Powell. 


J.  King  Watts. 
Id.    


Below  Leo  Minor  . 


Huggate 


From  the  Pleiades  to  the  north 
From  Polaris  to  the  N.W. ... 


St.  Ives,  Hunts. 
Ibid. 


Rev.  T.  Rankin 

J.  King  Watts.. 
Id.    


From  Ursa  Major  to  2°  N. 

Mars. 
FromCapella 


of  During  Aurora 


Rose   Hill,  nearjRev.  J.  Slatter., 
Oxford. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


[The  meteor  f  fell  downwards  till  apparently  near 
the  auroral  haze,  and  then  started  aside  into  a  wavy 
course,  as  if  repulsed.  %  followed  downwards  unin- 
terruptedly. It  was  as  if  t  had  been  repulsed  by  a 
similar  electric  force  and  exhausted  it  See  figure 
above.] 


FromCapella  Ibid.. 

From  1°  W.  of  Spica  to  Crater .  Ibid.. 
From  Spica  to  Crater,   curve  Ibid. 
•  curving   upwards,   intensely 

incandescent  at  the  endof  the 

curve. 
Altitude  about  30°  above  west 

point  of  horizon. 


Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid.. 


Seen  at   Glasgow, 
Helensburgh, 
Perth,  &c. 


Appeared  in  N.N.W.  at  alt  20°, 
fell  nearly  vertically  or  a  little 
toE. 


Path  perpendicular  to  a  line* 
joining  Polaris  and  the  Upper 
Pointer ;  greater  part  of  course 
above  that  line,  and  thence 
down  to  horizon. 

From  «  Lyras  to  past  0  Scot. 
pionis. 


Dunse, 
Lat.55°47/N. 
Long.  2°  23^. 

Carlisle.  Seen 
also  90  miles 
W.  of  Carlisle. 


About  2  sees.,  velo- 
city uniform. 


Wm.  Stevenson 


John    Carrick 
Moore,  Esq. 


Victoria    Park, 
London. 


Oxford. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 


W.  R.  Birt,  Esq. 


Mr.  G.  A. 

ell. 


Row- 


Communicated  to 
Prof.  Powell, 
through  Mr.  Fa- 
raday. SeeApp. 
No.  9. 

MS.  communicated 
to  Prof.  Powell. 


Ibid. 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


1852. 
Aug.    5 


Hour. 


h    m 
9  40  

9  40  p.m. 

9  42  p.m. 
From 

10  25  to 

11  30 

10  58  


Small  

80  shooting  stars 


10 


10  21  p.m. 

10  30  p.m. 
to 

10  40  p.m. 

10  50  p.m. 

to 

11  5  p.m. 
11  12  p.m. 

to 

11  27  p.m. 
11  30  p.m. 

to 

11  45  p.m. 
11  50  p.m. 

to 
0    5  tun. 
0  20  t-m. 

to 
0  35  a.m.* 
9  20  p.m 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


» 1st  mag. 
Small  


1  brilliant 
Large  


9  22  p.m. 
9  47  p.m. 


9  53  p.m. 
9  59  p.m. 


1  p.m. 
1p.m.* 


Magnitudes  full  1st 
down  to  5th  or  6th. 

No.  counted  in 
northern  sky. . 

No.  counted  in 
southern  sky. .  13 

No.  counted  in 
northern  sky. .  12 

No.  counted  in 
'  southern  sky. .  14 

No.  counted  in 
northern  sky. .  12 

No.  counted  in 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


White 
White 


White 

Mostly  stellar 


Train  or  sparks. 


Path  illuminated  for  30  or 
40  sees. 


Velocity  or      j 
Duration. 


Stow... 
Rapid 


Rapid 


Almost  all  left  a  luminous  Velocity  as  usually; 
train.  noticed.  Duratioa 

1'  to  6"  or  6", 


♦Night 
cloudy. 


southern  sky..  18 — 78 


Urge 


Small 
Large 


Small 
Small 

Large 
Large 


*  On  this  evening, 
sides  the  above,  chiefl 
being  visible  at  th 


Many  the  whole  even, 
ing,  17  in  20  mins 
(from  10h  45m,  to 
11*  5m.) 


Whitish  red.. 


White  .. 
Reddish 


Brilliant 


Many  brilliant  sparks,  and 
a  tram  similar  to  a  rocket, 
thus: 


White  ... 
White  ... 


White 
White 


which  was  ver 
yjn  the  field  b 
e  same  time, 


y  clear,  many  other  meteo 
etween  Polaris,  Ursa  Majo 
in  various  directions. 


going 


None  particu- 
larly bril 
liant. 


Brilliant 
Brilliant 


Slow.... 

1 
■.I 

Slow.... 

'"  I 

Slow.... 

Rapid  . 
Slow.,.. 

.........* 

.... 

Stow 

ra  were  visible  be-j 
r  and  Lyra,  five 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METJEOR8.      295 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


From  near  Cassiopeia  towards 

N.N.B.    Through  14°. 
N.W.   ; 


Velocity  moderate,  Oxford 

2  sees. 
From  Ursa  Minor 


W. 


St.  lyes,  Hunt- 
ingdonshire. 

Ibid. 

Haverhill 


Mr.  G.  A.  Rowell 

King  Watts, 

Esq. 

Id.    

W.  W.  Boreham, 

Esq.,  and  Mrs. 

W.  W.  Bore- 

ham. 


N.W. 


Nearly  all  moved  to  S,  oi 
8.S.W.  In  northern  sky  a 
few  moved  to  N.W.  and  E. 


The  meteors  were 
distributed  over 
all  parts  of  the 
sky;  the  place 
from  which  they 
proceeded  ap- 
peared to  be  in 
the  northern  sky, 
somewhere  be- 
tween Perseus 
and  the  Pole,  but 
this  is  uncertain 


N. 

s.w. 

N.E. 


From  «  Cephei  to 
the  S.f  then  be- 
came stationary 
several  seconds 
and  threw  off 
some  large  sparks 
before  it  expired. 

From  Ursa  Major. 

From    •    Lyras 
through  Cygnus 
to  zenith. 


From  zenith  to  W.  Ibid... 
From  Ursa  Major  Ibid., 

downwards. 
To  Ursa  Major   ...Ibid.. 
From  Cygnus*. 


St.  Ives,  Hunt- 
ingdonshire, 
Dunse 


King  Watts, 
Esq. 
Wm.  Stevenson 


MS.  communicate 
•  to  Prof.  Powell 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

MS.  See  App.  N< 


MS.  communicate 
to  Prof.  Powell, 
Ibid. 


St.  Ives,  Hunt- 
ingdonshire. 


J.    King 


[Esq. 
Fatts, 


Ibid.., 
Ibid... 


Id. 
Id. 


Id. 
Id. 

Id. 


*  These  two  meteors 
crossed  each  other's  path, 
and  both  shining  at  the 
same  time,  thus: 


All  from  E.  to  W. 
at  each  45°. 


Downwards 


From    a    window 
facing  S.E. 


Oxford. 


Mr.  G.A.Rowell 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 


Communicated    t< 
Prof.  Powell. 


224 


REPORT — 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


1852, 
Aug.    10 


h  m 

From 
9  57  to 
10  57 

From 

10  0  to 

11  0 

9    2  p.m. 


9    8  p.m. 
9  18  p.m. 


9  27  p.m. 
9  27  30' 


9  28  p.m. 


23  shooting  stars 


Numerous ;  one  large 
star. 


With  long  horizontal  train 


2nd  mag. 


Between  2nd  and  3rd 
mag. 


White,  increa 
sed  rapidly  in 
brilliancy  un 
til  its  extinc- 
tion. 


2nd  mag. , 


Bluish-white 


Slight  scintillations  as  it 
passed  along. 


Small;  3rd  mag.. 


Between  2nd  and  3rd 
mag. 


Slight  train,  which  quickly 
vanished. 


Nearly  as  large  as  1st 
mag.  star. 


Commenced 
with  consi- 
derable bril- 
liancy,which 
graduallydi 
minished  as 
it  proceed- 
ed, as  if  it 
were  a  long 
narrow  cone 
of  light,  the 
base  being 
first  illumi- 
nated with 
great  bril- 
liancy, and 
the  apex  ve- 
ry dim,  as 
under. 


Obliquely  se 
Cassiopeia,  about 
half  a  degree  N. 
of  y. 

Obliquely  toward* 
the  horizon,  a  lit- 
tle to  B  of  yPc- 
gasi. 

Shot  from  midwzr 
between  Cassio- 
peia and  Cr* 
Major,  toward* 
«  Ursae  Majoris, 
where  it  becamq 
extinguished. 

From  Cassiopeia  ft 
0Pegasi. 

From  Cassiopeia  to 
wards  •  Ursa 
Majoris,  nearij 
parallel  to  thi 
course  of  the  stai 
seenbyMr.Hard 
ing. 

From  Cassiopeia  to 
wards  Ursa  Ma 
jor  across  f  Cat 
siopeiae. 


Colour     bril- 
liant white, 
with    silver 
greyish  tinge. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      225 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Haverhill, 


Derby  and  neigh- 
bourhood. 


W.  W.  Boreham, 
Esq. 

Correspondent  to 
Derby  Mercury 


Victoria      Park, 
London. 


W.  R.  Birt,  Esq, 


Globular 


Ibid.. 


Ibid.. 


Extinguished  when 
nearly  under  Po- 
laris. 


Ibid.. 
Ibid.., 


Ibid.. 


Id. 


MS.  See  Appendix, 
No.  11. 

Ibid. 


See  App.,  No.  10. 


Ibid. 


J.  Harding,  Esq, 


W.  R.  Birt,  Esq. 

W.  R.  Birt,  Esq., 
and  J.  Hard- 
ing. 


J.  Harding,  Esq. 


Ibid. 


Ibid. 
Ibid. 


Ibid. 


1852. 


226 


REPORT— 1852. 


Date. 


Hour. 


1852 
Aug    10 


15 


h  m 

9  34  p.m. 


Appearance  and 
magnitude. 


Small 


22 


9  37  p.m. 


9    5  p.m. 
9    8  


Brightness 
and  colour. 


Bright. 


Immediate- 
ly   after 


Small,  brilliant 
Small,  globular 
Very  similar    ... 


Bright  bluish- 
white. 


9  14  

7  44  p.m. 


Light,  a  2nd  mag... 
Nearly  =»  half  moon ., 


Train  or  sparks. 


Velocity  or 
Duration. 


From  below  0  A 
Ursse  Minora 
(Ursse  Majori 

From  Alga:  ohfity 
ly  toward  the] 
rizon. 


Brilliant  clearLeft  a  train  in  its  path 
white  light. 


Slow;  several  a 
ootids. 


APPENDIX, 


Containing  original  details  of  various  observations  of  Meteors  communicated 
by  the  respective  observers  to  Prof  Powell. 

No.  1. — It  may  be  important  for  comparison  to  mention  that  in  the  Phil. 
Mag,,  Jan.  1839,  will  be  found  observations  of  54  shooting  stars,  seen  in  the 
night  of  Nov.  12-13, 1838,  at  109  York  Street,  Whitechapel,  by  W.  R.  Birt, 
Esq. 

No.  2. — Farther  particulars  of  the  Meteor  shower,  April  19-20,  1851. 
(See  last  Report,  App.,  Nos.  23,  24,  25,  29.) 

"  Meteors. — We  have  been  favoured  with  the  following  from  Madras  on  the 
subject  of  the  shower  of  meteors  visible  all  over  India  on  the  19th  or  20th 
of  April.  By  a  blunder  of  our  own  we  mistook  the  Bombay  date,  and  made 
it  Saturday  the  19th,  when  it  ought  to  been  Sunday  the  20th;  and  on  this 
night  accordingly  the  shower  was  seen  here,  at  Poona,  and  at  Cawnpore. 
With  all  these  coincidences  we  came  to  the  conclusion  that  our  Kolapore 
correspondent,  who  gave  an  account  of  them,  had  also  mistaken  the  date,  and 
that  there  had  been  one  shower  only.    As  he  makes  no  sign  of  recantation, 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.     227 


Direction  or  altitude. 


General  remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


Victoria      Park, 
London. 


W.  R.  Birt,  Esq. 


bore  /0  Cassiopeia;  to  S.E.  for 

above  |°. 

trough  Pegasus/  square  ... 


irallcl,  but  to  £. 


N.  of  £  Caaaiopeue  towards 

Pole. 

Dm  W.  to  E.  with  a  slight 

curve,  from  near  «  Lyrae  to 

beyond  m  Persei. 


Ibid.., 

Ibid... 
Ibid.. 
Ibid... 

Ibid... 


Id. 

Id. 
Id. 
Id. 


Id. 


St.  Ives,   Hunt- J 
ingdonshire. 


.  King    Watts, 
Esq. 


See  Appendix,  No. 
10. 


Ibid. 

Ibid.  No.  12. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

MS.  Utter. 


30C  altyrir 


XfraCyyni 


we  now  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  were  two  showers  on  two  suc- 
cessive nights,  bearing  a  very  close  resemblance  to  each  other.  The  following 
description  is  one  of  the  most  copious  and  clear  that  we  have  met  with  ;  it  is 
from  the  pen  of  one  of  the  oldest  and  ablest  of  our  observers  in  India : — 

"  4  On  the  evening  of  Saturday  the  19th  of  April,  I  was  sitting  in  a 
verandah  of  the  Government  House  at  Madras,  facing  to  the  eastward,  from 
about  £  past  8  to  \  past  10.  From  the  height  of  the  verandah  1  could  see 
the  sky  to  about  an  altitude  of  60°  or  65°,  and  about  one-fourth  of  the  horizon 
between  north-east  and  south-east.  During  the  period  above  stated  1  counted 
not  less  than  forty  meteors,  of  different  magnitudes  and  brightness.  The  flight 
of  the  whole  was  from  north  and  north-east  to  south  and  south-west  Some 
of  them  commenced  their  flight  at  a  point  of  the  heavens  invisible  to  my  eye, 
whilst  others  came  into  sight  whilst  on  their  career,  from  my  left-hand.  Some 
burned  out  (if  I  may  use  the  expression)  whilst  visible,  and  others  disap- 
peared whilst  yet  burning  to  my  right-hand.  I  heard  no  explosions,  though 
some  of  the  largest  left  a  bright  streak  or  tail,  the  trace  of  which  remained 
for  several  minutes.  The  greater  part  of  the  time  it  was  brilliant  moonlight, 
which  detracted  greatly  from  the  effect  of  the  meteors. 


No.  3.  (Continued  from  the  same).- 


5  During  the  period  between  the 
Q2 


228  report— 1852. 

29th  of  April,  1851,  and  the  6th  of  May  the  atmosphere  at  Madras  was  com- 
pletely overcast  with  dense  clouds.  On  the  night  of  the  2nd  of  May  (Friday), 
at  10  o'clock,  there  was  every  symptom  of  the  subsequent  gale.  At  the 
hour  I  state,  I  observed  in  the  south-east  quarter  a  very  extensive  circular 
illumination  of  the  clouds,  which  continued  for  above  a  minute.  The  space 
in  the  clouds  so  lighted  up  might,  I  estimated,  be  about  10°  in  diameter, 
but  owing  to  the  dense  state  of  the  atmosphere  and  the  lowness  of  the 
clouds,  I  saw  nothing  of  the  meteor,  which  doubtless  covered  the  circular 
illumination.  I  infer  that  the  meteor  was  flying  towards  me,  that  is,  from 
south-east  to  north-west,  because  the  shape  of  the  illumination  in  the  clouds 
did  not  vary. 

"  *  On  the  night  of  the  22nd  of  this  month,  I  was  sitting,  as  is  my  wont, 
under  an  awning  on  the  terrace  of  my  bungalow  at  Ennore  (11  miles  north 
of  Madras) :  I  could  see  in  altitude  about  75°.  About  4  past  10  o'clock,  a 
very  brilliant  and  large  meteor  came  within  the  range  of  my  sight,  and  fell 
apparently  perpendicularly  in  the  sea  (Bay  of  Bengal).  From  the  moment 
it  became  visible  to  me  it  rather  increased  into  size  and  brilliancy  than  other- 
wise, and  was  in  full  blaze  when  it  disappeared  behind  the  sand-hills  in  front 
of  my  bungalow,  which  is  not  above  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  sea-shore. 
The  colour  of  this  meteor,  which  seemed  to  be  as  large  as  an  8£lb.  shot  (qu.), 
was  bright  purple  and  green  mingled,  and  it  left  a  luminous  tail  or  streak, 
which  did  not  wholly  disappear  for  about  two  minutes. 

" '  Last  night  (the  23rd)  I  saw  another  meteor  in  the  same  quarter,  but 
neither  of  the  dimensions  nor  brilliancy  of  that  of  the  preceding  night  The 
flight  was  from  north-west  to  south-east,  and  it  burned  out  before  it  had  gpt 
within  10°  of  the  horizon. — Ennore,  24th  of  May,  1851/ 

"  Our  correspondent  mentions  a  very  brilliant  meteor  seen  from  Madras 
some  months  since  before  sunset ;  it  swept  clean  across  the  sky,  and  was  so 
light  and  of  such  magnitude  that  it  caused  a  glare  over  the  landscape  even  at 
this  early  hour.  This  is  the  third  meteor  within  the  year  that  has  been  visible 
in  daylight  in  India ;  that  seen  to  explode  on  the  SOth  of  November,  1850, 
near  Bissunpore  at  3  p.m., — the  stone  was  afterwards  picked  up ; — and  that 
seen  near  Beerbhoom  at  9  p.m.  on  the  8th  of  January,  1851/'  [See  last  Re- 
port.]— Bombay  Times,  June  4, 1 851 . 

No.  4. — "  A  correspondent  of  the  Bengal  Uurkaru,  subscribing  himself 
*  W.  M.,'  gives  the  following  interesting  account  of  a  meteor  which  he  had  ob- 
served on  the  night  of  the  19th  of  September : — 

"  *  A  splendid  meteor  burst  over  Calcutta  last  night  about  1 1  p.m.,  and  I 
send  this  notice  to  you  that  it  may  serve  as  a  record  of  the  event  On  the 
13th,  14th,  and  15th,  the  atmosphere  was  dry  and  its  general  movement  from 
south-west,  the  lower  clouds  also  moved  from  south  to  west,  little  wind  and 
occasionally  sultry  and  oppressive.  On  the  16th  and  17th  a  storm  or  squall 
brewed  in  the  south-east  during  the  afternoon,  but  did  not  visit  us.  On  the 
18th  of  September  the  clouds  and  atmosphere  during  the  forenoon  moved  from 
south-west ;  the  weather  dry  and  close.  Between  3  and 5  p.m.  nimbus  clouds 
passed  over  quietly  from  north-west  to  east,  with  scarcely  a  breath  of  air.  After 
5  p.m.  the  aspect  of  the  sky  was  again  dry.  The  chirping  of  the  crickets  was 
unusually  loud,  and  the  weather  close  and  sultry.  About  1 1  p.m.  the  sky  was 
clear,  but  the  stars  were  not  brilliant,  and  there  was  no  wind,  when  a  most 
splendid  meteor  lighted  up  in  zenith  or  a  little  north  of  it,  and  shot  down 
half-way  to  south  a  little  west,  illuminating  the  landscape  as  if  the  full  or 
half-moon  had  suddenly  appeared  on  high.    The  meteor  was  a  bright  ball  of 


A  CATALOGUE  OP  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      229 

light  appearing  to  be  of  a  size  equal  to  one-fifth  the  area  of  the  full  moon  :  it 
was  star-shaped,  its  light  brilliaut  with  a  faint  tinge  of  blue,  but  its  light  re- 
flected from  surrounding  objects  had  a  green  tinge  even  in  the  sky ;  and  in 
its  progress  there  was  a  curdling  appearance  in  the  sky,  about  ten  or  fifteen 
degrees  in  advance  of  it,  as  if  cirrus  or  fleecy  clouds,  very  gauzy  and  thin,  were 
retreating  from  it  and  crowding  on  each  other,  or  more  like  a  very  thin  and 
watery  solution  of  white  paint  brushed  over  a  smooth  and  polished  surface 
and  then  invaded  by  the  finger.  The  white  particles  fly  from  the  finger  with 
the  repelled  liquid,  and  form  a  white  fleecy  circle  at  a  little  distance  all  round 
it  The  meteor  endured  as  long  as  a  person  would  require  to  take  five  or 
six  steps  at  a  quick  march  and  disappeared  at  once,  from  perfect  brightness 
to  nothing,  leaving  no  apparent  track  where  it  was  extinguished  :  but  in  the 
upper  part  of  its  course,  a  little  south  of  zenith,  there  was  a  milky  or  phos- 
phorescent line,  its  thickness  that  of  the  little  finger,  and  tapering  towards  the 
south ;  and  between  its  southern  point  and  the  spot  where  the  meteor  vanished, 
a  clear  space  of  some  degrees  without  any  evidence  of  a  track.  There  was 
no  appearance  of  an  explosion,  nor  did  I  hear  any  sound.  I  am  not  quite 
certain  of  the  hour,  but  I  think  the  church  clocks  were  chiming  eleven  a  few 
minutes  after  the  meteor  disappeared.  Shortly  after  a  light  southerly  air 
sprung  up,  and  during  the  night  the  temperature  was  low,  approaching  to 
coW— Bombay  Times,  Oct.  3,  1851, 

No.  5. — "  On  the  1st  of  June  last,  about  8j  p.m.,  while  there  were  clouds 
around,  cirrostratus  overhead,  and  moderate  south-east  wind  blowing,a  splendid 
meteor  shot  from  zenith  towards  south  :  it  gave  a  light  like  that  of  the  moon 
when  it  is  four  days  old,  and  turned  to  a  green  star  just  before  it  disappeared. 
This  meteor  was  preceded  by  four  days  of  dry  and  sultry  weather." — Ibid. 

No.  6. — "  Some  singular  phenomena  occurred  during  the  thunder-storm 
of  Thursday  evening,  Sept  25,  1851,  which  seem  well- worthy  of  record. 
Exactly  at  a  quarter  past  ten,  when  the  thunder  was  at  its  loudest,  the  inha- 
bitants of  the  northern  end  of  the  Fort  were  alarmed  with  the  sound  as  if  of 
a  large  mass  of  something  rushing  violently  through  the  air,  the  noise 
resembling  that  of  a  huge  cannon-shot  passing  close  by ;  and  immediately 
afterwards  a  tremendous  crash  was  heard,  as  if  the  mass  had  impinged  on  the 
ground  or  penetrated  some  of  the  buildings ;  nothing  however  could  yester- 
day morning  be  discovered  in  the  neighbourhood.  The  whole  closely  re- 
sembled what  is  mentioned  as  having  occurred  in  Ross-shire  in  August  1849, 
when  a  huge  mass  of  ice  was  found  to  have  fallen.  The  rain  was  at  this  time 
falling  so  furiously,  the  night  was  so  dark  in  the  intervals  between  the 
flashes  of  lightning,  and  these  last  so  bright  and  frequent,  that  a  meteor  of 
any  size  might  have  "  swept  unheeded  by;"  yet  appearances  look  very  much 
as  if  something  of  this  sort  had  fallen,  and  we  should  recommend  observers 
to  be  on  the  outlook  for  the  corpus  delicti — more  than  likely  at  the  same 
time  to  have  dropped  into  the  sea.  A  tumbler  half-full  of  water,  on  the  side- 
t>oard  of  a  house  near  the  Mint,  fell  in  two  about  seven  in  the  evening,  im- 
mediately after  a  vivid  flash  of  lightning  !  We  have  it  now  before  us ;  it  is 
cut  almost  as  clean  asunder  as  if  cloven  with  a  knife.  The  storm  abated 
somewhat  after  eleven,  having  apparently  gone  round  to  the  west  and  south- 
west :  half  an  hour  after  midnight  it  again  got  round  to  east,  and  several  loud 
peals  of  thunder  were  heard ;  the  lightning  throughout  was  almost  continued. 
Shortly  after  one  all  was  tranquil  again." — Bombay  Times,  Sept.  27. 

"  The  Meteor. — The  writer  of  the  following  most  interesting  notice  has  our 
grateful  thanks ;  we  trust  to  hear  further  of  the  matter  from  the  lighthouse, 


230  report — 1852. 

or  those  on  board  the  outer  light- vessel.  We  have  oo  doubt  whatever  that  this 
was  a  meteor  or  fire-ball  of  large  dimensions  which  has  fallen  into  the  sea : — 
*  It  may  be  of  interest  to  you,  with  reference  to  the  notice  in  to-day's  paper 
of  the  storm  on  the  night  betwixt  Thursday  and  Friday,  to  know  that  I  was 
last  evening  informed  by  a  seafaring  friend  of  mine,  who  was,  at  the  time  the 
Times  describes  the  rushing  sound  to  have  been  heard,  sitting  on  the  deck  of 
a  vessel  in  harbour  watching  the  storm,  that  he  saw  what  appeared  to  be  an 
immense  mass  or  ball  of  electric  fluid  fall  perpendicularly  (as  it  were)  into 
the  sea,  apparently  near  the  outer  light- vessel:  the  persons  in  charge  of  this 
craft  may  probably  be  able  to  afford  further  information.' " — Ibid.  Sept.  29. 

"  Some  further  particulars  of  the  fall  of  the  meteor  which  occurred  during 
the  thunder-storm  of  Thursday  evening  noticed  in  our  two  last  issues,  have 
since  then  been  received.  The  mighty  rushing  sound  and  violent  concussion 
perceived  by  hundreds  of  persons  in  the  Fort,  was  so  in  exactly  the  same 
manner  in  Colaba,  a  mile  to  the  southward, — at  Ainbrolie,  two  and  a  half  miles 
to  the  north-west, — as  it  was  in  the  Roadstead,  a  mile  to  the  eastward.  All  the 
parties  between  these  two  extremes  of  nearly  four  miles  giye  exactly  the  same 
account  of  the  matter.  The  sound  was  said  to  proceed  from  the  northward  as 
of  that  of  a  body  passing  right  over  head  towards  the  south,  and  striking  the 
ground  at  no  great  distance.  As  these  phenomena  are  spoken  of  by  all  parties 
as  nearly  identical,  the  meteor  must  have  passed  when  at  its  nearest  at  a  di- 
stance of  ten  or  twelve  miles  at  least.  We  want  more  information  on  the  sub- 
ject ;  the  smallest  contributions  will  be  acceptable :  only  one  party  who  has 
communicated  with  us  actually  saw  it  rush  through  the  air,  and  observed  it 
fall  near  the  outer  light-ship."— Ibid.  Sept.  30. 

"  The  Meteor  of  last  Thursday. — The  following  notice  of  the  meteor  of 
Thursday  last,  Sept  25,  closely  corresponds  with  what  has  already  reached  us : 
had  our  correspondent  been  able  to  give  us  anything  like  an  exact  idea  of 
the  interval  which  elapsed  betwixt  the  fire-ball  being  seen  and  the  sound  being 
heard,  we  might  have  formed  an  estimate  of  the  distance  of  the  falling  body, 
if  the  hissing  spoken  of  was  in  reality  the  same  as  the  rushing  through  the 
air  described  by  other  observers.  We  shall  be  happy  to  receive  the  further 
communication  our  correspondent  promises  us.  '  My  wile  and  I  had  been 
watching  the  lightning  for  some  time  at  the  door  of  our  bungalow,  but  feel- 
ing very  much  fatigued,  being  an  invalid,  I  retired  to  the  sofa,  and  had  scarcely 
done  so  when  my  wife  called  out  that  she  saw  a  ball  of  fire  fall  into  the  sea 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  outer  light-ship.  The  heavens  appeared  to  open  at  one 
spot,  from  which  it  descended.  This  took  place  between  the  hours  of  ten 
and  eleven  p.m.  Neither  of  us  noticed  at  that  time  any  peculiar  noise,  but 
at  a  later  hour  I  said,  Listen  to  the  conflict  going  on  amongst  the  elements : 
they  seemed  hissing  one  another  for  some  moments.  1  recollect  many 
years  since,  when  residing  at  Sidmouth,  on  the  coast  of  Devon,  during  a 
violent  storm,  a  large  ball  of  fire  fell  into  the  sea,  illuminating  the  whole  re- 
gion ;  but  in  those  years  little  or  no  notice  was  taken  of  these  things.' " — 
Ibid.  Oct.  2. 

No.  7.— Meteors  seen  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  W.  W.  Boreham,  Aug.  11,  1851, 
from  10  to  11  o'clock.    Right  ascension  of  zenith  19*  20"  to  2CP  20™. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OP  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      231 

North. 


West. 


South. 

No.  8.— Diagram  of  Mr.  Hewitt's  meteor,  Sept.  20, 1851. 

jg,  Polaris. 


East 


J 


is  \ 


*U 


232  report— 1852. 

No.  9. — Extract  of  a  note  from  John  Carrick  Moore,  Esq.,  Corswall, 
Stranraer,  N.B.    Addressed  to  Mr.  Faraday. 

"  On  the  evening  of  Tuesday,  the  13th  of  July,  1852, 1  happened  to  observe 
a  very  brilliant  meteor.  I  was  walking  on  the  bridge  of  Carlisle  when  it  oc- 
curred. It  resembled  a  large  star,  but  certainly  bigger  than  Jupiter,  which 
was  shining  bright  at  the  time.  It  was  about  N.W.  or  perhaps  N.N.W.,  and 
seemed  to  fall  vertically,  or  with  a  very  slight  inclination  to  the  E.  I  guess 
the  altitude  when  it  first  appeared  to  have  been  about  20°  above  the  horizon. 
[I  am  aware  that  persons  not  in  the  habit  of  using  instruments  generally  ex- 
aggerate altitudes ;  but  still  I  do  not  think  it  could  have  been  less.]  The  co- 
lour was  a  bright  orange-red  ;  as  it  fell,  the  brilliancy  increased  ;  it  became 
nearly  white,  and  then  again  a  very  bright  red,  and  disappeared  without  di- 
viding. The  night  was  still,  there  were  no  clouds,  and  not  the  slightest  sound 
was  perceptible.  I  do  not  think  it  could  have  been  two  seconds  visible.  It 
had  scarcely  disappeared,  when  the  clock  of  Carlisle,  set  to  railway,  that  is 
London  time,  struck  10. 

"  I  would  mention  a  circumstance,  which  I  thought  I  noticed,  but  in  which, 
as  the  time  was  so  short,  I  may  be  deceived.  The  meteor  appeared  after  the 
brilliancy  increased,  suddenly  to  become  dim,  and  then  again  to  shine  out  in 
its  greatest  brightness,  which  was  at  the  moment  of  its  disappearance.  It 
seemed  so  near,  that  I  tried  to  mark  the  spot  where  it  fell.  Mr.  Hyslop,  the 
clergyman  of  Kirkcolm,  tells  me  he  also  saw  it  on  the  shore  of  Loch  Ryan, 
about  90  miles  as  the  crow  flies  to  the  west ;  he  expected  it  also  to  fall  near 
him.  Mr.  H.  tells  me  it  seemed  to  him  to  fall  with  a  considerable  slope  to  the 
east  He  did  not  observe  the  dimness  after  the  first  increase  of  brilliancy, 
which  I  have  mentioned,  and  of  which  I  feel  rather  confident ;  the  more  so, 
that  I  did  not  expect  it,  and  never  heard  of  such  being  observed  before." 

No.  10.— Extract  of  a  letter  to  Prof.  Powell  from  W.  R.  Birt,  Esq. 

"  11a  Wellington  Street,  Victoria  Park,  London,  Aug.  11, 1852. 

"  My  dear  Sir, — I  have  the  honour  to  transmit  to  you  the  enclosed  obser- 
vations of  luminous  meteors  witnessed  by  myself  and  a  friend,  Mr.  J.  Hard- 
ing, last  evening  in  the  Victoria  Park.  The  two  classes  of  shooting  stars  are 
very  apparent,  viz.  those  stars  that  increase  in  brilliancy  during  their  progress, 
and  those  that  decrease  as  they  proceed.  The  first  star  seen  by  myself,  at 
9h  2™  p.m.,  is  an  instance  of  the  first  class,  and  that  seen  by  Mr.  Harding,  at 
9h  28m  p.m.,  is  a  fine  instance  of  the  second.  The  description  by  Mr.  Harding 
appears  to  be  very  accurate :  I  regret  I  did  not  catch  it,  but  the  figure  given 
well  describes  the  appearance  presented  by  the  meteor  seen  on  the  evening 
of  July  29th,  an  account  of  which  I  forwarded  you.  The  paths  of  the  whole 
of  the  stars  now  sent,  if  prolonged,  meet  in  the  constellation  Camelopardalis, 
and  may  be  regarded  as  confirmatory  of  the  point  of  divergence  being  in  this 

constellation  at  this  period  of  the  year. The  same  feature  which  I  noticed 

three  years  since  was  well  brought  out  last  evening,  viz.  the  retrograde  move- 
ment of  the  meteors  towards  the  southern  and  eastern  part  of  the  heavens, 
and  the  direct  movement  of  those  in  the  northern  and  western,— confirmatory 
of  the  idea  that  the  real  movements  of  the  meteors  are  of  a  planetary  nature 
and  opposed  to  the  motion  of  the  earth  in  its  orbit,  unless  they  should  be  com- 
paratively at  rest  as  the  earth  passes  through  the  group. 

"  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  my  dear  Sir, 

"  Yours  very  respectfully, 
"  Rev.  Professor  Powell:*  «  W.  R.  Birt." 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      233 

No.  11. — Letter  from  Mr.  W.  W.Boreham  to  Prof.  Powell,  with  diagrams 
of  meteors. 

"  Haverhill,  Aug.  13, 1852. 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  enclose  three  diagrams  of  the  approximate  paths  of  80  on 
Aug.  9,  and  23  on  Aug.  10. 

"  On  the  former  evening  I  was  assisted  by  Mrs.  Boreham  ;  on  the  10th  I 
observed  alone,  looking  westward. 

"  There  was  one  very  remarkably  brilliant  meteor  at  10*  58m  on  the  9th, 
the  path  of  which  was  illuminated  for  30  or  40  seconds  (marked  *). 

"  Trees  interfered  with  my  seeing  it  perfectly. 


Rev.  Prof.  Powell." 


"  I  am,  dear  Sir,  yours  most  truly, 
"  Wm.  W.  Boreham. 


Fig.  1. 
North. 


West. 


East 


South. 


Aug.  9, 1852,  from  10*  25"  to  10*  55"  mean  time.    Right  ascension  of  zenith  19h  40m  to 
20*10". 


234 


REPORT — 1852. 


Fig.  2. 
North. 


West 


South. 

Aug.  9, 1852,  from  10h  55m  to  llh  30"  mean  time.  Right  ascension  of  zenith  20*  10"  to 
20*  46m. 

No.  12 Note  from  W.  R.  Birt,  Esq.,  to  Prof  Powell. 

"  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors  seen  at  11a  Wellington  Street,  Vic- 
toria Park,  London,  by  W.  R.  Birt 

"  1852,  Aug.  15,  9*  5m  p.m* — A  very  small  luminous  meteor  passed  just 
above  /3  Cassiopeia?  towards  the  south-east,  its  visible  part  less  than  half  a  de- 
gree ;  it  was  very  brilliant  for  its  size,  which  was  less  than  a  star  of  the  third 
magnitude. 

"  1852,  Aug.  15,  9*  8mp.M. — A  small  globular  meteor,  between  second  and 
third  magnitude,  parsed  about  midway  between  a  Andromedee  and/3  Pegasi; 
it  appeared  to  describe  a  somewhat  curved  path,  but  very  slightly  so,  within 
and  nearly  parallel  to  the  sides  of  the  square  formed  by  a,  fi  aud  y  Pegasi  and 
a  Andromeda? ;  its  motion  was  from  the  line  joining  a  Andromedee  and  fi  Pe- 
gasi to  that  joining  a  and  y  Pegasi. 

"  Immediately  afterwards  another  very  similar  meteor  described  a  very 
similar  and  nearly  parallel  path  about  the  same  distance,  east  of  a  Andromeda? 
and  a  Pegasi,  as  the  former  star  was  west  of  them :  both  these  meteors  very 
closely  resembled  the  falling  stars  designated  b,  No.  4  and  5,  observed  on  the 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEORS.      235 


West 


East 


Aug.  10, 1852,  from  9h  57"  to  10*  bT 
20*15-. 


Righti 


iofsenithl9h15-to 


10th  of  August,  1849  (see  Report,  1849,  pp.  51,  52).  The  approximation 
of  the  parallelism  of  their  paths  clearly  indicates  them  to  have  been  two 
distinct  bodies ;  colour  a  bright  bluish  white. 

"Aug.  15,  9*  10™  p.m. — A  bright  meteor  fully  of  the  second  magnitude 
shot  across  the  Milky  Way  about  half  a  degree  north  of  fi  Cassiopeia?  towards 
Polaris. 

"  Upon  comparing  the  path  of  this  star  with  that  observed  on  August  10, 
9h  2™  p.m.  (1 852),  it  will  be  found  that  their  paths  cross  at  rather  a  consider- 
able angle,  the  star  of  August  10  moving  from  Capella  towards  Cygnus, 
which  would  be  slightly  erratic  from  the  general  direction  of  movement  wit- 
nessed on  that  evening.  The  direction  of  the  star  seen  this  evening  at  9*  14m, 
is  considerably  at  variance,  with  the  motion  of  the  other  three,  indicating  that 
the  body  was  certainly  moving  (L  e.  with  its  true  motion)  in  a  different  di- 
rection." 

No.  13. — Communication  from  the  Rev.  W.  Read,  M.A.,  to  Professor 
Powell. 

"  Croydon,  Surrey,  Aug.  12, 1852. 
"  I  have  the  honour  to  transmit  an  account  of  a  singular  phenomenon  wit- 


236  report — 1852. 

nessed  by  myself  and  my  family  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  September, 
1850. 

"  I  was  then  residing  at  the  Vicarage,  South  Mimms,  Middlesex,  in  a 
situation  peculiarly  favourable  for  astronomical  observation. 

"  1  had  been  engaged  for  several  consecutive  days  in  observing  the  planet 
Mercury  during  his  approach  to  the  sun  ;  partly  to  test  the  accuracy  of  my 
power  of  observation  by  the  calculations  of  the*  Nautical  Almanack,  but 
chiefly  to  remark  how  nearly  I  could  trace  the  planet  in  his  course  to  the  sun, 
before  he  should  be  wholly  lost  in  his  rays. 

"  For  this  purpose  I  used  the  most  careful  adjustments  my  instrument  was 
capable  of,  and  continued  my  observations  without  noticing  anything  peculiar. 

"  When,  however,  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  September  I  was  preparing 
my  equatoreal  before  it  was  fixed  on  the  planet,  I  observed,  passing  through 
the  field  of  view,  in  a  continuous  stream,  a  great  number  of  luminous  bodies ; 
and  I  cannot  more  correctly  describe  the  whole  appearance,  than  by  employ- 
ing the  same  language  which  I  used  when  1  communicated  the  circumstance 
to  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  in  the  Monthly  Notices  of  Dec  IS,  1850, 
and  Dec  12th,  1851. 

"  When  1  first  saw  them  I  was  filled  with  surprise,  and  endeavoured  to  ac- 
count for  the  strange  appearance  by  supposing  that  they  were  bodies  floating 
in  the  atmosphere,  such  as  the  seeds  of  plants,  as  we  are  accustomed  to  wit- 
ness them  in  the  open  country  about  this  season ;  but  nothing  was  visible  to 
the  naked  eye. 

"  The  sky  was  perfectly  cloudless ;  and  so  serene  was  the  atmosphere,  that 
there  was  not  a  breath  of  wind  through  the  day,  even  so  much  as  to  cause 
any  perceptible  tremor  of  the  instrument;  and  I  subjected  the  luminous 
bodies  to  examination  by  all  the  eyepieces  and  coloured  glasses  that  were 
needful;  but  they  bore  every  such  examination  just  as  the  planets  Mercury 
and  Venus  did,  both  of  which  were  frequently  looked  at  by  me,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  comparison,  during  the  day ;  so  that  it  was  impossible  I  could  resist 
the  conclusion  (much  as  1  was  early  disposed  to  hesitate)  that  they  were  real 
celestial  bodies  moving  in  an  orbit  of  their  own,  and  far  removed  beyond  the 
limits  of  our  atmosphere. 

"  They  continued  passing,  often  in  inconceivable  numbers,  from  I  past  9 
a.m.,  when  1  first  saw  them,  almost  without  intermission,  till  about  |  past  3 
p.m.,  when  they  became  fewer,  passed  at  longer  intervals,  and  then  finally 
ceased. 

"  The  bodies  were  all  perfectly  round,  with  about  the  brightness  of  Venus, 
as  seen  in  the  same  field  of  view  with  them ;  and  their  light  was  white,  or 
with  a  slight  tinge  of  blue ;  and  they  appeared  self-luminous,  as  though  they 
did  not  cross  the  sun's  disc ;  yet  when  seen  near  him  they  did  not  change 
their  shape,  or  diminish  in  brightness. 

"  They  passed  with  different  velocities,  some  slowly,  and  others  with  great 
rapidity ;  and  they  were  very  various  in  size,  some  having  a  diameter,  as  nearly 
as  I  could  estimate,  about  2",  while  others  were  approaching  to  20". 

"  I  tried  various  powers  upon  them,  and  used  both  direct  and  diagonal  eye- 
pieces ;  but  with  every  one  I  employed  they  showed  the  same  appearance, 
being  as  sharply  defined  as  the  planet  Jupiter,  without  haze  or  spot,  or  in- 
equality of  brightness. 

"  I  naturally  anticipated  some  such  appearance  at  night,  but  after  \  past  3 
I  saw  nothing  peculiar,  though  I  waited  till  11  p.m.  ;  but  have  since  been  in- 
formed that  at  \  past  1 1  (it  is  believed  on  the  same  night)  a  meteor  of  amazing 
brilliance  and  size,  and  passing  in  the  same  direction  and  about  the  same  al- 
titude, was  observed  by  Mr.  Ballau  of  Wrotham  Park,  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  of  South  Mimms,. 


A  CATALOGUE  OF  OBSERVATIONS  OF  LUMINOUS  METEOB8.      237 

"  I  repeated  my  observations  the  following  morning,  and  then  saw  one  such 
single  body  pass  in  the  same  direction  as  those  of  the  preceding  day.  w 

"They  occupied  a  tolerably  well-defined  zone  of  about  18°  in  breadth; 
and,  though  with  some  exceptions,  their  direction  was  due  east  and  west. 
Their  motion  was  perfectly  uniform,  so  far  as  I  was  able  to  follow  them  with 
the  instrument  at  liberty;  and  they  were  observed  continuously  by  myself  and 
members  of  my  family,  accustomed  to  the  use  of  instruments,  both  by  day 
and  night. 

"  The  telescope  I  employed  on  this  occasion- is  one  of  3-J  feet  focal  length, 
and  2J  inches  aperture,  by  Mr.  Dollond,  of  faultless  performance  and  mounted 
equatoreally  by  Mr.  Jones  of  Charing  Cross,  the  circles  divided  by  Mr. 
Rothwell  of  London,  and  reading  off  to  5". 

"  I  understand  that  a  similar  phaenomenoa  has  been  witnessed  by  Mr. 
Cooper  of  Markree  Castle,  County  of  Sligo,  though  I  have  not  communicated 
with  that  gentleman  on  the  subject ;  but  I  take  the  opportunity  of  subjoining 
a  portion  of  the  contents  of  a  letter  to  me  from  Charles  B.  Chalmers,  Esq., 
F.R.A.S.,  now  residing  at  Jugon,  Cotes  du  Nord,  France. 

"He  thus  writes : — *  About  the  latter  end  of  the  year  1849, 1  witnessed  a 
phenomenon  similar  to  that  which  you  saw  in  September  J  850,  in  every  re- 
spect, excepting  that  I  thought  some  of  the  bodies  were  elongated,  though 
certainly  the  majority  were  globular ;  and  their  brightness  appeared  to  me 
about  equal  to  that  of  Venus,  as  seen  at  the  same  time. 

"  *I  was  then  residing  at  Weston*  Super-Mare,  in  Somersetshire  ;  and  the 
instrument  with  which  I  saw  them  was  a  5-feet  telescope,  equatoreally 
mounted,  in  a  fixed  observatory. 

"  *  I  was  engaged  similarly  to  yourself  in  observing  the  planet  Mercury ; 
about  4  past  10  a.m.  I  was  at  first  inclined  to  believe  it  must  be  the  seed  of 
some  plants  of  the  thistle  nature  floating  in  the  air,  but  from  my  position  that 
could  not  have  been  the  case. 

" *  The  wind  on  the  day  I  observed  the  phenomenon  was  very  slight ;  but 
such  as  it  was  it  came  from  the  sea.  The  bodies  all  appeared  sharply  defined, 
no  feathery  appearances  that  I  could  detect ;  and  I  did  not  observe  any  differ- 
ence in  their  brightness  during  the  time  I  observed  them*. 

"  Mr.  Chalmers,  then,  after  offering  some  remarks  on  a  communication 
made  by  Mr.  Dawes  to  the  Roy.  Astron.  Society's  Notice  in  April  1852,  says, 
'  My  impression  certainly  is  that  the  phenomena  observed  by  Mr.  Dawes 
and  myself  were  not  similar,  and  I  trust  that  future  observers  may  throw  a 
clear  light  on  the  subject ;  for  though  Mr.  Dawes  is  a  very  high  authority, 
he  is  not  infallible'. 

u  I  feel  it  right,  myself,  to  notice,  that  in  the  paper  referred  to  by  Mr. 
Chalmers,  Mr.  Dawes  conceives  an  appearance  which  he  saw  to  have  been 
produced  by  seeds  floating  in  the  atmosphere. 

"  No  one,  I  am  sure,  would  doubt  the  correctness  of  his  observations  on 
such  subjects ;  but,  excepting  in  the  season  of  the  year,  there  is  so  little  real 
similarity,  that  they  cannot  be  parallel  cases ;  and  in  his  concluding  observa- 
tion that '  had  such  a  dense  shoal  of  bodies  so  brilliant  as  those  described  by 
me,  as  seen  in  September,  passed  in  the  night,  they  would  have  sufficed  to  turn 
darkness  into  day;'  no  doubt  but  that  would  have  been  the  case,  as  it  was 
in  the  phenomenon  witnessed  by  Messrs.  Olmsted  and  Palmer  in  America, 
as  recorded  by  Capt.  Smyth  and  Baron  Humboldt 

"  In  conclusion,  I  may  be  permitted  to  say  to  the  British  Association,  that 
I  had  been,  at  the  time  my  family  and  myself  witnessed  what  I  now  commu- 
nicate, a  careful  Observer  with  superior  instruments  for  upwards  of  28  years, 
but  that  I  never  saw  such  appearance  before  nor  since  that  period. 

"  William  Head,  M.A." 


238  report—  1852. 

No.  14.— Letter  from  Dr.  Buist  to  Prof.  Baden  Powell,  Oxford. 

"  Bombay,  July  24, 1852. 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  have  done  myself  the  pleasure  of  forwarding  from  time  to 
time  to  your  address  copies  of  the  *  Bombay  Times/  containing  notices  of 
meteors  seen  on  the  coast  of  India  in  the  course  of  the  year.  I  regret  to  say 
that  the  list  is  a  poor  one ;  whether  it  be  the  want  of  reapers  or  the  barren- 
ness of  the  celestial  field  which  has  prevented  more  information  being  gathered, 
I  shall  not  take  upon  myself  to  determine.  1  have  been  about  as  much  out 
in  the  open  air  as  usual,  that  is,  I  have  driven  home  from  office  six  miles  every 
evening  after  dark,  and  so  am  likely  to  observe  anything  unusual  in  the  skies : 
this  season  1  have  absolutely  seen  nothing. 

"  One  of  the  most  extraordinary  circumstances  hitherto  observed,  is  the 
length  of  time  through  which  they  are  occasionally  visible  in  one  spot,  when 
they  must  either  be  approaching  or  retiring  from  the  earth  in  a  line  with  the 
observer's  eye.  Another  adverted  to  by  Olmsted  is  the  almost  equally  sur- 
prising train  of  light  they  occasionally  leave  behind  them ;  the  most  extraor- 
dinary case  of  which  is  that  described  in  a  recent  number  of  the  Journal  of 
the  Bengal  Asiatic  Society,  by  Professor  Middleton.  'I  was  awakened,' 
says  he, '  at  four  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  Sept,  1844,  by  my  friend 
Mr.  Williams,  Head  Master  of  the  College,  who  remarked  to  me  that  some- 
thing remarkable  had  occurred  towards  the  north,  when  a  truly  beautiful 
object  presented  itself,  namely  a  delicate  white  arch  of  light,  extending  from 
about  four  degrees  from  the  horizon  on  the  west,  to  about  seven  on  the  east, 
its  crown  rising  up  to  near  the  Pole  star.  It  looked  as  if  an  even  and  rigid 
rod  coated  with  phosphorus  had  been  made  to  arch  the  sky  in  the  manner 
described.  It  was  seen  under  very  favourable  circumstances,  also  in  so  far 
as  no  trace  of  cloud  was  anywhere  visible,  the  sky  being  at  the  time  of  that 
peculiar  depth  and  transparency  which  is  to  be  witnessed  here  during  a  break 
in  the  rains.  The  account  which  he  gave  of  its  first  appearance  was  this  :— 
a  servant  rushed  into  the  house  in  great  fright,  declaring  that  the  sky  had  split 
He  first  saw  he  said  an  immense  ball  of  fire  pass  from  east  to  west,  which  left 
behind  it  the  rent  which  had  terrified  him  so  much.  During  the  time  which  I 
was  able  to  observe  the  arch,  about  twenty  minutes,  it  increased  in  curvature 
near  the  crown,  which  besides  moved  slowly  through  about  two  degrees  to- 
wards the  east  The  dawn  was  now  setting  in,  and  the  arch  diminishing  in 
absolute  brightness,  though  still  as  well-defined  as  at  first,  and  before  it  had 
ceased  to  be  distinguishable  it  had  shortened  by  several  degrees,  rushing  away 
from  the  ends  upwards.' 

"  I  sent  to  you  last  year  an  account  of  a  meteor  seen  here  on  the  6th  of 
November,  1850,  a  few  minutes  before  seven  o'clock.  When  first  seen  it  was 
about  60°  above  the  horizon,  and  was  rushing  towards  the  south.  It  tra- 
versed an  arc  of  about  40°,  when  it  exploded  without  noise,  descending  in  a 
number  of  brilliant  fragments  towards  the  earth.  It  left  a  long  stream  of 
brilliant  white  light  behind  it,  ten  or  twelve  degrees  in  length,  resembling  the 
tail  of  a  comet,  and  which  was  visible  for  full  twenty  minutes.  Seen  through  a 
telescope  it  bore  exactly  the  appearance  of  a  comet,  the  nucleus,  even  after 
the  explosion,  and  when  nothing  was  visible  to  the  naked  eye,  but  the  light 
appearing  like  a  star  of  the  second  magnitude,  surrounded  by  luminous  va- 
pour or  cloud.  Captain  Shortrede  describes  a  meteor  seen  by  him  from  Churla 
on  April  11, 1842 ;  it  was  from  ten  to  twenty  degrees  in  length,  equally  bright 
throughout,  except  at  the  upper  end,  where  it  was  rather  faint  It  continued 
of  the  same  appearance  and  at  the  same  place  for  two  or  three  minutes,  when 
it  became  fainter  and  fainter  and  then  vanished.  There'  are  numberless 
instances  in  which  similar  things  have  been  visible,  but  for  shorter  periods  of 
time.    I  called  your  attention  last  year  to  the  extraordinary  shower  of  me- 


ON  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  SOLAR  RADIATION  ON  PLANTS.      239 

teors  seen  on  the  19th  of  March,  1851,  at  Shekarpoor,  Bombay,  Kholapoor, 
and  Cawnpoor,  over  an  area  of  nearly  a  thousand  miles  each  way.  I  have 
now  to  bring  to  your  notice  the  following  remarkable  facts  in  reference  to 
fire-balls  seen  to  fall  during  thunder-storms. 

"  1  have  scarcely  any  hope  that  this  will  reach  you  in  time  for  the  Meet* 
ing  of  the  Association,  as  this  is  our  season  of  slow  mails.  It  was  not  in  my 
power  to  despatch  it  sooner,  and  the  facts  may  be  worth  preserving  though  at 
present  useless  to  you. 

"  We  have  had  three  instances  this  season  of  what  seems  to  have  been  the 
fall  of  an  aerolite  during  thunder-storms.  On  the  25th  of  September  a  violent 
explosion  occurred  in  the  air  at  Bombay,  followed  by  a  wild  rushing  sound 
overhead,  heard  at  various  points  over  an  area  of  thirty  miles  in  length  and 
eight  in  breadth,  followed  by  a  severe  coouession,  as  if  a  heavy  body  had 
fallen,  just  before  the  occurrence  of  which  a  large  fire-ball  was  seen  plunging 
into  the  sea*  On  the  18th  of  March,  during  a  violent  thunder-storm  near 
Dhutmah  in  the  north-west  provinces,  at  seven  p.m.,  a  thunderbolt,  as  it  was 
called,  was  seen  to  fall  and  strike  the  ground,  giving  out  in  the  course  of  the 
concussion  a  clear  ringing  sound  like  the  crack  of  a  rifle ;  there  was  no  echo 
or  reverberation  at  all  like  thunder.  It  appeared  150  yards  from  Choki,  and 
resembled  in  its  descent  a  huge  ball  of  red-hot  iron  with  a  band  of  fire  esti- 
mated at  about  thirty  feet  in  length*  On  the  30th  of  April,  about  midnight,  a 
violent  explosion  was  heard  during  a  storm  of  wind  and  rain  at  Kurrachee, 
resembling  the  discbarge  of  a  vast  artillery  battery,  and  about  half  a  minute 
afterwards  a  meteor,  partially  obscured  by  the  rain,  but  still  distinct  and  visible, 
was  seen  descending  into  the  sea.  It  is  now  well-established  that  in  India  at 
all  events  earthquakes  are  almost  always  accompanied  by  furious  storms  of 
thunder,  lightning,  wind  and  rain :  it  is  difficult  to  trace  the  cause  of  coinci- 
dences so  remarkable  in  the  commotions  of  the  earth  and  air,  still  more  so  to 
imagine  any  connection  whatever  betwixt  the  perturbations  within  the  limits 
of  our  atmosphere  and  the  movements  of  solid  bodies  entering  it  from  re- 
gions beyond  its  boundaries ;  yet  it  is  surely  possible  to  suppose  a  thunder- 
storm propitious  to  the  precipitation  on  the  surface  of  the  ground  of  bodies 
which  might  otherwise  have  passed  on  in  their  career." 


On  the  Influence  of  the  Solar  Radiations  on  the  Vital  Powers  of 
Plants  growing  under  different  Atmospheric  conditions.  By  J.  H. 
Gladstone*  Ph.D. 

There  are  few  subjects  of  experimental  research  in  which  such  opposite 
statements  have  been  made  as  on  the  mutual  action  of  the  atmosphere  and 
the  vegetable  kingdom ;  even  the  apparently  simple  question  as  to  whether 
plants  increase  or  diminish  the  amount  of  oxygen  in  the  air  was  long  a  matter 
of  dispute.  This  arose  partly  from  defective  modes  of  analysing  gases; 
partly  from  experiments  upon  plants  being  made  under  circumstances  very 
unfavourable  to  their  healthy  development ;  and  partly  also  from  variations 
in  light  having  a  great  influence  in  modifying  the  functions  of  the  vegetable 
world.  The  history  of  these  discussions,  in  which  many  of  the  greatest 
philosophers  of  the  day  took  part,  is  too  long  and  too  well  known  to  need 
further  notice  here.  ,  When  it  was  fully  conceded  that  carbonic  acid  really  is 


240  report— 1852. 

decomposed  by  the  plant,  it  was  natural  enough  that  those  who  observed  the 
wonderful  powers  of  the  chemical  rays  of  the  solar  spectrum  in  reducing 
salts  of  silver  and  other  substances,  should  refer  the  chemical  changes  taking 
place  within  the  vegetable  tissues  to  the  same  occult  agency.  But  Dr. 
Daubeny,  in  an  admirable  investigation,  published  in  the  Philosophical 
Transactions  for  the  year  18S6,  has  shown  by  indisputable  evidence  that  it 
is  the  luminous,  and  not  the  chemical  or  the  calorific  rays,  which  cause  the 
decomposition  of  carbonic  acid  with  emission  of  oxygen  from  the  leaves,  the 
formation  of  chlorophyl,  the  irritability  of  the  Mimosa,  the  evolution  of  water, 
and  indirectly  at  least  the  absorption  of  it  by  the  roots.  The  colours  of 
flowers  are  supposed  by  this  author  to  depend  also  on  the  luminous  rays ; 
sunshine  was  found  to  act  far  more  energetically  than  diffused  daylight; 
while  no  colouring  effects  were  observed  to  be  produced  by  any  artificial 
illumination,  not  even  by  that  afforded  by  incandescent  lime. 

That  portion  of  the  inquiry  requested  by  the  British  Association  which 
devolved  upon  me,  embraced  a  question  not  included  in  the  investigations  of 
the  Oxford  Professor,  nor  in  those  of  any  other  experimentalist,  as  far  as  I 
am  aware:  I  refer  to  the  influence  of  various  atmospheric  conditions  in 
conjunction  with  light.  This  circumstance  necessitated  the  employment  of 
closed  vessels  under  which  the  plants  should  be  grown ;  and  glass,  from  its 
transparency,  was  not  only  the  best  but  almost  the  sole  article  which  could 
be  employed.  Bell-shaped  glasses  were  accordingly  procured ;  and  they  were 
made  of  various  colours,  in  order  that  the  different  properties  of  the  spectrum 
might  be  to  a  considerable  extent  separated. 

The  blue  glasses  mentioned  in  this  paper  had  each  a  capacity  of  about  690 
cubic  inches.  A  smaller  bell-glass  of  172  inches  capacity  was  also  employed 
in  an  experiment  not  described  on  the  present  occasion.  The  yellow  glasses 
had  a  capacity  of  650  cubic  inches ;  the  red  of  558 ;  and  those  made  of 
colourless  glass  of  740  cubic  inches.  The  darkened  glasses  mentioned  below 
were  made  by  partially  covering  bell-jars  with  brown  paper,  thus  excluding 
the  light  except  such  as  passqd  through  about  one-eighth  of  the  surface  of 
the  glass,  and  that  on  the  side  turned  away  from  the  window.  Their  cubic 
contents  were  500  inches.  Small  colourless  ami  yellow  glasses  were  also 
procured,  each  having  a  capacity  of  1 77  cubic  inches. 

The  blue  glass  employed  is  of  so  intense  a  colour,  that  it  cuts  off  by  far 
the  greater  portion  of  the  luminous  rays,  but  photographic  paper  showed  that 
it  admits  the  chemical  rays  freely ;  it  may  also  be  considered  as  interfering 
much  with  the  transmission  of  heat.  The  red  glass,  on  the  contrary,  freely 
admits  the  calorific  influence,  but  stops  the  chemical,  whilst,  like  the  blue,  it 
diminishes  greatly  the  luminous.  The  yellow  again  scarcely  decreases  the 
illuminating  power  of  light,  but  almost  destroys  its  chemical  action. 

The  place  in  which  the  experiments  here  described  were  conducted,  was  a 
room  in  a  dwelling-house  at  Stock  well,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  London. 
The  glasses  stood  on  a  table  close  by  the  window,  which  had  a  S.S.E.  aspect. 
No  fire  was  ever  lighted  in  the  room,  but  it  must  have  been  a  little  warmer 
than  the  external  atmosphere  in  the  winter  time  on  account  of  the  vicinity  of 
heated  apartments. 

As  preliminary  experiments,  merely  the  effect  of  these  coloured  glasses  in 
accelerating  or  retarding  the  growth  of  various  kinds  of  plants  was  tried. 

Hyacinths  were  chosen  as  samples  of  bulbous-rooted  plants.  They  were 
all  of  the  same  description,  purple  in  colour,  as  nearly  as  possible  of  the  same 
size,  healthy,  and  beginning  to  put  forth  a  plumule  and  radicles.  They  were 
weighed,  placed  on  the  top  of  colourless  glasses  containing  sufficient  pure 
water  just  to  touch  the  rootlets,  an<}  then  covered  with  the  large  glass  shades. 


ON  f HE  INFLUENCE  OF  SOLAR  RADIATION  ON  PLANTS.      241 

The  experiments  were  started  on  Nov.  ISth.  In  order  to  change  the  air, 
the  shades  were  lifted  off  for  a  minute  or  two  about  every  second  night. 
Each  plant  grew  healthily  and  flowered  ;  yet  some  differences  were  observed 
of  a  character  which  might  fairly  be  attributed  to  the  quality  of  the  light 
First,  as  to  the  rootlets.  Under  the  colourless  glass  they  grew  abundantly ; 
under  the  blue  glass  they  also  grew  abundantly  and  more  rapidly ;  under  the 
red  glass  scarcely  any  rootlets  were  produced,  and  what  there  were  never 
attained  any  considerable  length ;  while  under  the  yellow  glass  they  were  few 
in  number,  but  long.  Secondly,  as  to  the  leaves  and  flower-stalk.  Under 
the  colourless  glass  they  were  put  forth  in  process  of  time  and  grew  healthily. 
No  difference  was  noticeable  under  the  blue ;  under  the  red  long  spreading 
leaves  were  put  forth,  that  bent  towards  the  light  in  a  very  marked  manner, 
and  the  plant  had  an  unhealthy  appearance ;  while  under  the  yellow  glass 
short  sturdy  leaves  and  flower-stalks  were  produced. 

As  to  the  flower  itself,  it  began  to  open  at  about  the  same  period  in  each 
instance,  namely, — 

Under  colourless  glass,  on  Feb.  1 1th,  or  after  90  days. 
Under  blue  „  „       10th,      %„       89    „ 

Under  red  „  „         8th,       „       87     „ 

Under  yellow         „  „       10th,       „       89    ,, 

There  was  no  observable  difference  in  the  colour  of  the  four  flowers,  not- 
withstanding the  variety  of  tint  under  which  they  had  been  formed.  The 
flower  under  the  red  glass  was  long  and  thin.  Latterly  they  all  suffered 
for  want  of  room. 

On  April  16th  all  the  plants  were  removed  from  the  water  into  which  their 
rootlets  dipped,  dried  in  the  air,  and  weighed. 


Primary  weight  of  bulb. 

Weight  of  folly  developed  plant. 

Under  colourless  glass     1305  grs. 

2118  grs. 

Under  blue             „         1328   „ 

2026    „ 

Under  red              „         1 135   „ 

1386    „ 

Under  yellow         „         1299  „ 

170*    „ 

showing  an  increase  of — 

Under  colourless  glass,  as 

1000 

: 

1623 

Under  bhie  .           „ 

1000 

• 

1525 

Under  red               „ 

1000 

1221 

Under  yellow          „ 

1000 

: 

1312 

The  greatest  growth  therefore  was  in  the  plant  exposed  to  all  the  influences 
of  the  solar  ray. 

Cereals  were  also  grown  under  the  various  glasses,  a  comparative  experi- 
ment being  made  under  a  darkened  shade.  Access  of  air  was  permitted  to 
the  plants  by  the  glasses  being  placed  upon  boards  which  were  perforated 
with  holes  close  together,  and  were  raised  about  one-third  of  an  inch  from  the 
table.  No  direct  rays  of  light  could  enter,  especially  as  the  space  under  the 
boards  was  blocked  up  on  the  side  nearest  the  window,  and  any  diffused  light 
finding  access  by  the  perforations  had  to  pass  through  several  folds  of  tarla- 
tane  of  the  same  colour  as  the  glass  shade  itself. 

On  Sept.  12th  three  grains  of  white  wheat,  sown  in  garden  mould,  to  which 
a  little  stable  manure  was  added,  were  placed  under  the  various  glasses.  The 
wheat  began  to  grow  in  a  few  days  in  each  instance,  one  seed  only  under  the 
red  glass  proving  unproductive.  They  were  watered  as  occasion  required. 
In  a  week  or  two  the  plants  under  the  darkened  shades  attained  a  consider- 
able height,  turning  in  a  very  marked  manner  to  that  part  where  most  light 

1852.  R 


242  report— 1852. 

entered.  No  secondary  leaves  ever  appeared,  but  each  plant  consisted  of 
two  long  white  leaves  of  about  9  inches  in  length,  so  thin  and  flaccid  that 
they  were  unable  to  support  themselves;  and  after  thirty  days  they  drooped 
entirely  and  became  mouldy.  The  corn-plants  under  the  other  glasses  grew 
more  slowly,  but  put  forth  many  leaves,  attained  a  height  of  10  or  12  inches, 
and  remained  healthy  throughout  the  winter  and  spring.  Those  under  the 
yellow  glass  were  the*  most  sturdy  in  their  growth ;  and  those  under  the  blue 
alone  appeared  thin  and  unhealthy. 

Mallow-seeds  (Malope  trifida)  were  sown  in  garden  mould,  and  placed 
under  the  various  glasses  near  the  commencement  of  September,  the  arrange- 
ments being  the  same  as  in  the  preceding  experiment  They  began  to  grow 
after  the  lapse  of  a  few  weeks,  first  under  the  colourless  glass,  then  under  the 
blue,  and  afterwards  under  the  red,  yellow*  and  darkened  glasses  at  about 
the  same  time,  October  8th.  Thin  etiolated  stalks,  with  only  the  first  pair 
of  leaves,  and  those  badly  developed,  about  2  inches  in  length,  were  all  that 
was  produced  under  the  darkened  shade.  In  about  a  fortnight  they  died ; 
and  in  the  middle  of  March  some  other  seeds  sprouted  in  a  precisely  similar 
manner.  The  mallows  under  the  other  glasses  grew  more  healthily  and  sur- 
vived much  longer,  but  in  no  instance  did  they  arrive  at  maturity :  the  best 
plant  was  one  that  grew  under  the  yellow  light ;  it  had  sprouted  in  the  early 
part  of  January  and  put  forth  many  leaves,  reaching  the  height  of  5  inches. 
They  grew  worst  perhaps  under  the  blue  glass.  A  self-sown  SleUaria  grew 
luxuriantly  along  with  the  mallows  under  the  red,  and  a  grass-plant  under 
the  yellow  shade. 

In  a  paper  read  by  my  brother  and  myself  before  the  Association  last  year, 
and  published  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  for  September  1851,  we  re- 
marked that  plants  kept  in  an  unchanged  atmosphere  appear  to  enter  into  a 
sort  of  lethargic  condition.  An  experiment  was  instituted  for  the  purpose 
of  ascertaining  whether  the  alteration  in  light  produced  by  coloured  media 
made  any  marked  variation  in  this  matter ;  and  as  the  pansy  and  Poa  annua 
were  the  plants  generally  experimented  on  in  our  previous  investigation, 
they  were  employed  here  likewise.  Six  pansies  newly  struck,  which  had 
taken  good  root  and  were  vigorous,  were  planted  in  six  flower-pots  contain- 
ing good  garden  mould;  and  with  each  was  also  placed  a  grass-plant  in 
flower.  They  were  all  set  in  trays  filled  with  water  to  the  depth  of  an  inch, 
or  thereabouts ;  five  were  covered  with  the  different  descriptions  of  glass 
shades  dipping  into  the  water,  so  as  to  cut  off  all  communication  between 
the  external  and  internal  atmospheres ;  while  one  was  freely  exposed  to  all 
the  changes  of  the  surrounding  air.  The  experiment  was  commenced  on 
October  17th,  and  access  of  air  was  never  permitted  to  the  covered  plants. 
The  results  under  the  glasses  were  very  various,  but  how  far  they  depended 
upon  the  character  of  the  light  or  upon  the  peculiar  atmospheric  condition, 
could  not  be  determined  with  any  accuracy.  One  thing  however  was  clear, 
that  the  plants  survived  much  longer  for  being  in  an  unchanged  atmosphere. 
The  pansy  that  was  not  covered  by  any  shade  was  attacked  with  aphides 
eight  weeks  after  the  commencement  of  the  experiment,  and  although  these 
were  washed  off,  it  drooped  before  the  end  of  December.  The  Poa  also 
scarcely  survived  the  winter.  Under  the  colourless  glass  the  plants  remained 
healthy  much  longer ;  the  pansy  was  attacked  by  the  forementioned  insects 
at  the  commencement  of  December,  but  although  it  was  necessarily  impos- 
sible to  remove  the  aphides  without  disarranging  the  experiment,  the  plant 
lived  till  March.  The  grass-plant  grew  very  luxuriantly.  A  curious  phe- 
nomenon was  observed.  As  the  air  within  the  glass  shade  was  perfectly  still, 
the  ripe  seeds  of  the  Poa  did  not  fall  from  the  flower-stalk,  and  through  the 


ETHNOLOGICAL  INQUIRY.  243 

dampness  of  the  atmosphere  many  of  them  which  rested  against  the  sides  of 
the  glass  germinated  and  shot  forth  leaves,  in  some  instances  Sa5  inches  long, 
and  radicles  of  1  inch  in  length.  Under  the  blue  shade  the  plants  grew  very 
tall.  No  aphides  appeared,  but  mouldiness  was  observed.  In  March  both 
plants  were  straggling  and  unhealthy ;  the  grass-seeds  never  germinated ; 
and  any  portion  that  died  quickly  suffered  decomposition.  The  plants  ex- 
posed to  the  red  light  were  healthy  at  first,  and  the  grass  grew  luxuriantly ; 
but  aphides  appeared  on  the  pansy  in  the  middle  of  December,  and  at  the 
commencement  of  the  succeeding  month  it  became  sickly  and  drooped.  The 
grass-plant  also  lost  its  healthy  appearance  during  the  spring :  some  of  its 
seeds  germinated.  Under  the  yellow  glass  neither  of  the  plants  increased  in 
size  at  first,  but  in  the  spring  they  grew,  the  grass  attaining  a  very  great 
length ;  they  maintained  a  strong  and  healthy  appearance ;  no  insects  showed 
themselves  on  the  pansy,  and  the  grass-seeds  gave  little  indications  of  germi- 
nating. Some  changes  in  the  colour  of  the  pansy's  leaves  were  observed  to 
take  place,  but  the  grass  remained  of  its  proper  green  tint.  The  plants 
under  the  darkened  shade  soon  became  sickly.  On  December  11th  the 
grass  was  found  to  be  dead ;  the  pansy  had  grown  tall,  and  turned  decidedly 
towards  the  least  darkened  part  of  the  shade ;  it  was  mouldy  and  ill-favoured, 
and  on  January  6tb  it  drooped. 

Researches  connected  with  the  growth  of  plants  must  necessarily  stretch 
over  a  considerable  space  of  time.  My  object  in  detailing  these  experiments 
now  is  not  to  draw  any  general  conclusions  from  them ;  I  regard  them  as 
far  too  few  and  uncertain  for  that ;  but  offer  them  to  the  Association  as  a 
sample  of  my  preliminary  attempts  in  this  inquiry, — attempts  which  may 
indicate  a  line  of  fruitful  investigation  in  future  seasons. 


A  Manual  of  Ethnological  Inquiry ;  being  a  series  of  questions  concern- 
ing the  Human  Race,  prepared  by  a  Sub-committee  qf  the  British 
Association  for  the  Advancement  qf  Science,  appointed  in  1851  (con- 
sisting of  Da.  Hodgkin  and  Richard  Cull,  Esq.),  and  adapted 
for  the  use  of  travellers  and  others  in  studying  the  Varieties  qf 
Mm*. 

The  late  Dr.  Prichard  read  a  paper  at  the  Meeting  of  the  British  Association 
held  at  Birmingham  in  1839,  "  On  the  Extinction  of  some  Varieties  of  the 
Human  Race."  He  cited  instances  in  which  total  extinction  has  already 
taken  place,  and  other  instances  in  which  a  continually  decreasing  population 
threatens  a  total  extinction.  He  pointed  out  the  irretrievable  loss  to  science 
if  so  many  tribes  of  the  human  family  are  suffered  to  perish,  before  those 
highly  important  questions  of  a  physiological,  psychological,  philological  and 
historical  character  in  relation  to  them,  have  been  investigated.  In  order 
to  direct  inquiry  rightly  into  the  subject,  a  set  of  questions  was  drawn  up  by 
a  Committee  of  the  British  Association,  which  was  largely  circulated  by 
means  of  successive  grants  of  money  for  that  purpose.  These  questions  were 
however  adapted,  not  only  to  direct  inquiry  respecting  those  tribes  which  are 
threatened  with  extinction,  but  also  to  the  rest  of  the  human  family.  The 
object  in  publishing  these  questions  is  to  induce  Consuls,  political  and  other 

*  Copies  of  this  Manual  may  be  had  on  application  to  the  Aiaiatant  General  Secretary, 
York ;  Messrs.  Taylor  and  Francis,  Red  Lion  Court,  Fleet  Street ;  and  Richard  Cull,  Esq., 
13  Tavistock  Street,  Ruisell  Square. 

R2 


244  report — 1852. 

residents  and  travellers,  to  obtain  precise  knowledge  in  reply  to  them,  and 
to  send  it  to  a  centre,  the  British  Association. 

It  should  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  verification  of  what  is  already 
known  is  of  importance  in  Ethnology,  as  in  other  sciences.  The  discovery 
of  new  tribes  of  the  human  family  falls  to  the  lot  of  but  few  observers,  while 
many  have  the  opportunity  of  adding  to  our  knowledge  of  those  tribes  that 
are  partially  known,  besides  which,  recent  observation  may  differ  from  the 
older  in  consequence  of  changes  that  may  have  taken  place  in  the  people. 
Any  amount  of  knowledge,  however  trifling  it  may  appear  in  itself,  may  be 
of  great  value  in  connexion  with  other  knowledge,  and  therefore  will  be  wel- 
comed. We  are  seeking  Facts,  and  not  inferences ;  what  is  observed,  and  not 
what  is  thought. 

The  following  questions  might  be  much  increased  in  number,  and  the 
reasons  and  motives  for  framing  them  stated,  but  such  detail  would  swell  the 
tract  to  a  volume. 

Physical  Characters. 

1.  Ascertain  the  form,  size  and  weight  of  the  people.  Measure  the  height 
of  several  men  ;  state  those  measures,  and  whether  they  are  above  or  below 
the  ordinary  stature.  Measure  the  length  of  the  limbs,  giving  the  situation 
of  the  elbow  and  knee.  Measure  the  circumference  of  the  chest,  thighs,  legs, 
arms,  neck  and  head  of  the  same  men  :  and  weigh  the  same  men.  Observe 
if  the  women  be  less  than  the  men  in  stature  and  relative  dimensions ;  and, 
if  possible,  measure  and  weigh  them  also.  If  any  remarkable  deviations 
above  or  below  the  ordinary  stature  occur  in  the  adults,  measure  and  weigh 
them  also. 

2.  Note  if  there  be  any  prevailing  disproportion  between  different  parts  of 
the  body,  or  any  peculiarity  of  form. 

3.  What  is  the  prevailing  complexion  ?  It  is  impossible  to  accurately 
describe  colour  by  words.  The  best  method  is  to  imitate  the  colour  on  paper ; 
if  this  be  impracticable,  state  what  the  colour  is  in  comparison  with  some 
well-known  complexion.  The  colour  and  character  of  the  hair  can  be  ob- 
tained by  bringing  home  specimens.  State  at  what  age  the  hair  falls  off  or 
turns  grey.  The  colour,  form,  size,  situation  and  other  character  of  the  eyes 
should  be  accurately  described.  It  is  very  desirable  to  obtain  individual  like- 
nesses by  means  of  some  photographic  process. 

4.  Is  there,  apart  from  lack  of  personal  cleanliness,  any  peculiar  odour,  as 
in  the  Negro  ?     If  so,  describe  it 

5.  The  importance  of  the  head  claims  particular  attention.  The  head 
consists  of  two  parts,  viz.  the  face  and  the  brain-box.  Is  the  shape  of  the 
face  round,  oval,  long,  broad,  lozenge-shaped,  or  of  any  other  marked  form  ? 
In  addition  to  the  best  verbal  description,  give  three  sketches  of  the  whole 
head,  by  which  means  the  character  of  the  features,  their  relation  to  each 
other  and  to  the  whole  head,  can  be  at  once  displayed.  These  sketches  should 
be, — 1st,  a  profile;  2nd,  a  front  face ;  and  3rd,  a  view  looking  down  on  the 
top  of  the  head.  Let  sufficient  neck  be  taken  in  order  to  show  how  the  head 
is  set  on  and  carried.  And  in  these  sketches  accuracy  of  drawing  is  indis- 
pensable, without  which  picturesque  effect  is  valueless. 

The  form  and  size  of  the  head,  and  the  relative  proportions  of  its  parts, 

can  be  obtained  with  minute  precision,  by  measuring  it  in  the  method  laid 

down  by  phrenologists.     If  the  observer  be  competent,  by  a  previous  study 

of  phrenology,  he  is  requested  to  observe  the  manifestations  of  mind  in  con- 

?xion  with  the  cerebral  development,  as  indicated  by  the  form,  size  and 

^portions  of  the  head. 


ETHNOLOGICAL  INQUIRY.  245 

6.  Human  skulls  should  be  collected,  and  care  should  be  taken  to  bring 
away  such  specimens  as  fairly  represent  the  people.  Remarkable  skulls 
should  also  be  preserved  and  marked  as  such,  their  deviations  should  be  ac- 
curately described.  And  besides  those  specimens  which  are  brought  away, 
it  is  desirable  to  observe  certain  things  in  a  large  number,  always  stating  the 
number  observed. 

a.  Is  the  os  frontis  divided  by  a  middle  suture? 

b.  Are  the  skull-bones  thick,  thin,  heavy,  light,  dense,  &c  ? 

c.  Are  the  sutures  much  indented  ? 

d.  Are  ossa  triquetra  frequent  ?    if  so,  in  what  sutures  do  they  occur  ? 

e.  Does  the  squamous  bone  well  abut  on  the  frontal  bone  ? 

f.  Open  some  crania  to  ascertain  if  there  be  large  frontal  sinuses ;  if  so, 
state  the  condition  of  the  ossification,  and  also  of  the  teeth. 

g.  Observe  the  bones  of  the  face,  their  relation  to  each  other,  and  to 
the  cranium. 

A.  What  is  the  form  of  the  outer  orbitar  process? 

i.   Is  the  palatine  arch  fiat  or  vaulted  ? 

j.   Does  the  upper  jaw  project  forwards  ? 

A.  What  is  the  form  of  the  lower  jaw  ? 

L  What  is  the  shape  of  the  chin  ? 

hi.  What  is  the  relative  position  of  the  ossa  nasi  and  unguis  ? 

ft.  What  is  the  situation  of  the  foramen  magnum  ? 

0.  What  is  the  state  of  development  of  the  paroccipital  processes  ? 

p.  Observe  the  number,  position,  character  and  mode  of  wear  of  the 
teeth. 

q.  Have  they  any  artificial  means  of  modifying  the  form  and  appear- 
ance of  the  teeth  ? 

7.  The  number  of  lumbar  vertebrae  should  be  ascertained,  as  an  additional 
one  is  said  to  occur  in  some  tribes. 

8*  Measure  the  length  of  the  sternum,  and  that  of  the  whole  trunk,  so  that 
comparisons  may  be  instituted. 

9.  Give  some  idea  of  the  relative  magnitudes  of  the  chest  and  abdomen. 

10.  What  is  the  character  of  the  pelvis  in  both  sexes  ? 

11.  What  is  the  form  of  the  foot  ? 

12.  The  form  of  the  scapula  deserves  attention,  especially  its  breadth  and 
strength,  and  the  clavicle  also  in  relation  to  it 

IS.  The  blood-vessels  and  internal  organs  can  be  subjected  to  examination, 
but  with  greater  difficulty :  observe  any  peculiarities  in  regard  to  them. 

Peculiarities  may  exist  which  cannot  be  anticipated  by  special  question ; 
the  observer  should,  if  possible,  examine  each  organ  in  detail,  and,  comparing 
one  with  another,  be  will  find  few  things  escape  him. 

14k  Are  Albinos  found  ?  if  so,  what  characters  do  they  present  ?  State 
their  parentage,  and  all  that  can  be  gathered  to  throw  a  light  on  their  origin. 
State  the  physical  characters  of  their  children  if  they  have  any. 

15-  Where  a  district  obviously  possesses  two  or  more  varieties  of  the 
human  race,  note  the  typical  characters  of  each  in  their  most  distinct  form, 
and  indicate  to  what  known  groups  or  families  they  may  belong :  give  some 
idea  of  the  proportion  of  each,  and  state  the  result  of  their  intermixture  on 
physical  and  moral  character.  When  it  can  be  ascertained,  state  how  long 
intermixture  has  existed,  and  of  which  the  physical  characters  tend  to  pre- 
dominate. It  is  to  be  observed,  that  this  question  does  not  so  much  refer  to 
the  numerical  strength  or  political  ascendency  of  any  of  the  types,  but  to 
the  greater  or  less  physical  resemblance  which  the  offspring  may  bear  to  the 
parental  and  what  are  the  characters  which  they  may  appear  to  derive  from 


246  report — 1852. 

each :  whether  there  is  a  marked  difference  arising  from  the  father  or  the 
mother  belonging  to  one  of  the  types  in  preference  to  another;  also  whether 
the  mixed  form  resulting  from  such  intermarriage  is  known  to  possess  a  per- 
manent character,  or  after  a  certain  number  of  generations  to  incline  to  one 
or  other  of  its  component  types. 

16.  Any  observations  connected  with  these  intermarriages,  relating  to 
health,  longevity,  physical  and  intellectual  character,  will  be  particularly 
interesting,  as  bringing  light  on  a  field  hitherto  but  little  systematically  in- 
vestigated. Even  when  the  people  appear  to  be  nearly  or  quite  free  from 
intermixture,  their  habits,  in  respect  of  intermarriage  within  larger  or  smaller 
circles,  and  the  corresponding  physical  characters  of  the  people,  will  be  very 
interesting. 

Language. 

17.  The  affinity  of  languages  is  one  line  of  evidence  of  high  value  in  eth- 
nological researches,  and  hence  the  importance  of  obtaining  accurate  infor- 
mation concerning  the  language  of  a  people. 

18.  If  the  language  be  a  written  one,  care  should  be  taken  to  obtain  spe- 
cimens of  the  best  compositions  in  it,  both  of  verse  and  prose.  If  possible, 
procure  native  manuscripts  ;  if  not,  obtain  copies  of  them. 

If  there  be  no  written  language,  and  therefore  no  literature,  yet  traditions 
will  be  found  which  should  be  obtained  and  recorded  as  closely  as  possible 
verbatim,  so  as  to  preserve  their  own  collocation  and  arrangement  of  words, 
taking  care  to  select  as  the  most  valuable,  such  as  relate  to  their  own  origin, 
history,  wars,  habits,  superstitions,  &c 

19.  If  possible,  cause  some  competent  person  to  translate  into  their  lan- 
guage a  well-known  continuous  composition,  as  the  Lord's  Prayer,  the  1st 
Chapter  of  Genesis,  and  the  6th  and  7th  Chapters  of  St.  Luke's  Gospel,  for 
with  these  examples  a  philologist  will  be  able  to  give  a  very  good  account  of 
any  language. 

20.  In  compiling  a  vocabulary  from  the  mouth  of  an  intelligent  native, 
two  objects  must  be  steadily  kept  in  view,  vix.  1st,  the  right  selection  of 
words ;  and  2nd,  their  accurate  reproduction. 

1st.  The  proper  selection  of  words. — In  selecting  the  words  to  form  the 
first  vocabulary  of  a  strange  language,  we  must  reject, — 1st,  all  words  which 
have  no  corresponding  words  in  our  own  language ;  2nd,  all  words  which 
only  imperfectly  correspond  to  words  in  our  own  language ;  and  take  only 
such  words  as  perfectly  correspond.  Words  are  names  of  things,  events, 
qualities,  conditions,  &c.  Words  of  the  following  classes  should  be  taken, 
a.  The  names  of  natural  physical  objects,  as  sun,  moon,  fire,  water, 

man,  arm,  river.  Mil,  &c ;  the  names  of  animals,  &c. 
p.  The  names  of  physical  qualities,  as  red,  blue,  round,  long,  heavy,  &c, 
y.  The  names  of  events,  actions,  conditions,  &c,  as  to  fall,  to  walk,  to 

eat,  to  sleep. 
3.  The  names  of  family  relationships,  as  father,  mother,  sister,  uncle,  Ac 
p.  The  names  of  the  numbers  as  high  as  they  can  enumerate.   The  ordi- 
nal numerals  should  also  be  given. 
It  should  be  ascertained  if  there  be  Distributives,  Multiplicatives,  and 
Proportionals.    Is  there  anything  corresponding  to  our  Numeral 
Adverbs  ? 
(.  Personal  Pronouns. 

rf.  Particles  such  as  prepositions,  conjunctions,  Arc. 
In  compiling  a  vocabulary,  the  observer  should  verify  every  word  he 
receives  from  one  informant  by  the  testimony  of  others. 
2nd.  Their  accurate  reproduction. — The  words  should  be  so  written,  that 


ETHNOLOGICAL  INQUIRY.  247 

a  person  quite  ignorant  of  the  language,  and  with  no  other  guide  than  the 
vocabulary,  shall  be  able  from  it  alone  to  pronounce  each  word  with  accu- 
racy, sufficient  for  philological  researches. 

If  elementary  sounds  peculiar  to  the  language,  as  the  clicks  of  the  Kaffirs, 
or  the  sounds  represented  by  ^p  and  c  of  the  Persian  alphabet,  occur  in  the 

words  of  the  vocabulary,  it  is  obvious  that  no  alphabetic  notation  will  enable 
one  who  is  ignorant  of  the  language  to  reproduce  those  words  even  though 
the  compiler  invents  characters  to  represent  them.  Mr.  Ellis's  Ethnic  Al- 
phabet is  a  useful  stock  of  characters  to  those  whose  lingual  knowledge  is 
sufficient  to  use  it  Our  own  alphabet,  however,  is  found  to  be  sufficient  to 
write  many  vocabularies,  including  both  Kaffir  and  Persian,  with  an  accuracy 
sufficient  for  our  purpose- 
In  writing  the  vocabulary  it  is  of  great  importance  to  mark  the  accented 
syllable  of  the  word.  The  mark'  of  the  acute  accent  is  commonly  adopted 
for  this  purpose,  and  is  recommended  to  be  continued  by  future  compilers. 

21.  Ascertain  the  extent  of  the  geographical  area  over  which  the  lan- 
guage is  spoken. 

22.  Ascertain  what  languages  it  comes  in  contact  with  at  the  periphery  of 
its  area:  and  if  unknown,  or  but  partially  known  languages  occur,  collect 
vocabularies  of  them  also. 

23.  Ascertain  if  the  same  language  without  dialectic  variations  be  spoken 
over  the  whole  lingual  area.  If  variations  occur,  give  examples  of  them ; 
always  bearing  in  mind  that  Facts  are  of  greater  value  than  opinions. 

Grammar, 

In  giving  an  outline  of  the  Grammar,  the  following  hints  may  be  useful* 

24.  Give  the  various  forms  which  words  assume,  as — 

a.  The  plural  forms  of  Nouns,  and  the  Dual  if  it  exist. 

/3.  The  cases  of  Nouns. 

y.  Adjectives,  their  inflections  and  modes  of  concord. 

I.  Pronouns,  their  various  forms,  with  the  Dual  if  it  exist 

25.  Exhibit  the  formation  of  compound  words. 

26.  What  is  the  order  of  words  in  a  sentence? 

27.  Beyond  the  mere  order  of  words,  observe  if  the  subject  take  pre- 
cedence of  the  predicate :  the  cause  of  the  effect,  and  of  any  peculiarity  in 
the  statement  of  propositions. 

Individual  and  Family  Life* 

28.  Are  there  any  ceremonies  connected  with  the  birth  of  a  child  ?  Is 
there  any  difference  whether  the  child  be  male  or  female  ? 

29.  Does  infanticide  occur  to  any  considerable  extent,  and  if  it  does,  to 
what  causes  is  it  to  be  referred,  want  of  affection,  deficient  subsistence,  or 
superstition  ? 

30.  Are  children  exposed,  and  from  what  causes,  whether  superstition, 
want  of  subsistence  or  other  difficulties,  or  from  deformity,  general  infirmity, 
or  other  causes  of  aversion  ? 

31.  What  is  the  practice  as  to  dressing  and  cradling  children,  and  are 
there  any  circumstances  connected  with  it  calculated  to  modify  their  form ; 
for  example,  to  compress  the  forehead,  as  amongst  the  western  Americans ; 
to  flatten  the  occiput,  as  amongst  most  Americans,  by  the  flat  straight  board 
to  which  {he  child  is  attached ;  to  occasion  the  lateral  distortion  of  the  headr 


248  report— 1852. 

by  allowing  it  to  remain  too  long  in  one  position  on  the  hand  of  the  none,  as 
amongst  the  inhabitants  of  the  South  Seas  ? 

32.  Are  there  any  methods  adopted,  by  which  other  parts  of  the  body  may 
be  affected,  such  as  the  turning  in  of  the. toes,  as  amongst  the  North  Ameri- 
cans ;  the  modification  of  the  whole  foot,  as  amongst  the  Chinese  ? 

S3.  How  are  the  children  educated,  what  are  they  taught,  and  are  any 
methods  adopted  to  modify  their  character,  such  as  to  implant  courage, 
impatience  of  control,  endurance  of  pain  and  privation,  or,  on  the  contrary, 
submission,  and  to  what  authorities,  cowardice,  artifice  ? 

,34.  Is  there  anything  remarkable  amongst  the  sports  and  amusements  of 
children,  or  in  their  infantile  songs  or  tales? 

35.  At  what  age  does  puberty  take  place  ? 

36.  What  is  the  ordinary  size  of  families,  and  are  there  any  large  ones? 

37.  Are  births  of  more  than  one  child  common  ?  What  is  the  proportion 
of  the  sexes  at  birth  and  among  adults  ? 

38.  Are  the  children  easily  reared  ? 

39.  Is  there  any  remarkable  deficiency  or  perfection  in  any  of  the  senses  ? 
It  is  stated,  that  in  some  races  sight  is  remarkably  keen,  both  for  near  and 
distant  objects. 

40.  To  what  age  do  the  females  continue  to  bear  children  ?  and  for  what 
period  are  they  in  the  habit  of  suckling  them  ? 

41.  What  is  the  menstrual  period,  and  what  the  time  of  utero-gestation  ? 

42.  Are  there  any  ceremonies  connected  with  any  particular  period  of  life  ? 

43.  Is  chastity  cultivated,  or  is  it  remarkably  defective,  and  are  there  any 
classes  amongst  the  people  of  either  sex  by  whom  it  is  remarkably  cultivated, 
or  the  reverse,  either  generally  or  on  particular  occasions  ? 

44.  Are  there  any  superstitions  connected  with  this  subject  P 

45.  What  are  the  ceremonies  and  practices  connected  with  marriage  ? 

46.  Is  polygamy  permitted  and  practised,  and  to  what  extent  ? 

47.  Is  divorce*  tolerated,  or  frequent  ? 

48.  How  are  widows  treated  ? 

49.  What  is  the  prevailing  food  of  the  people?  Is  it  chiefly  animal  or 
vegetable,  and  whence  is  it  derived  in  the  two  kingdoms  ?  Do  they  trust  to 
what  the  bounty  of  nature  provides,  or  have  they  means  of  modifying  or 
controlling  production,  either  in  the  cultivation  of  vegetables,  or  the  rearing 
of  animals?  Describe  their  modes  of  cooking,  and  state  the  kinds  of  condi- 
ment which  may  be  employed.  Do  they  reject  any  kinds  of  aliment  from 
scruple,  or  an  idea  of  uncleanness  ?  Have  they  in  use  any  kind  of  fermented 
or  other  form  of  exhilarating  liquor,  and,  if  so,  how  is  it  obtained  ?  What 
number  of  meals  do  they  make  ?  and  what  is  their  capacity  for  temporary  or 
sustained  exertion  ? 

50*  Describe  the  kind  of  dress  worn  by  the  people,  and  the  materials  em- 
ployed in  its  formation.  What  are  the  differences  in  the  usages  of  the  sexes 
in  this  respect?  Are  there  special  dresses  used  for  great  occasions  ?  and,  if 
so,  describe  these,  and  their  modes  of  ornament.  Does  any  practice  of  tat- 
tooing, piercing,  or  otherwise  modifying  the  person  for  the  sake  of  ornament, 
prevail  amongst  the  people  ?  N.B.  Such  modifications  not  to  be  blended 
with  other  modifications  used  as  signs  of  mourning,  &c. 

51.  Have  the  people  any  prevailing  characteristic  or  remarkable  modes  of 
amusement,  such  as  dances  and  games  exhibiting  agility,  strength  or  skill  ? 

52.  Are  games  of  chance  known  to  the  people,  and  is  there  a  strong  passion 
for  them  ? 

53.  Do  the  people  appear  to  be  long-  or  short-lived  ?  If  anjr  cases  of 
extreme  old  age  can  be  ascertained,  please  to  state  them.     Such  cases  may 


ETHNOLOGICAL  INQUIRY.  249 

sometimes  be  successfully  ascertained  by  reference  to  known  events,  as  the 
previous  visits  of  Europeans  to  the  country.  Is  there  a  marked  difference 
between  the  sexes  in  respect  of  longevity  ? 

54.  What  is  the  general  treatment  of  the  sick  ?  Are  they  cared  for,  or 
neglected  ?  Are  any  diseases  dreaded  as  contagious,  and  how  are  such 
treated  ?  Is  there  any  medical  treatment  adopted  ?  Are  there  any  super- 
stitious or  magical  practices  connected  with  the  treatment  of  the  sick  ?  What 
are  the  most  prevailing  forms  of  disease,  whence  derived,  and  to  what  extent  ? 
Is  there  any  endemic  affection,  such  as  goitre,  pelagra,  plica,  or  the  like  ? 
With  what  circumstances,  situations,  and  habits  do  they  appear  to  be  con- 
nected, and  to  what  are  they  referred  by  the  people  themselves  ? 

55.  Where  there  are  inferior  animals  associated  with  man,  do  they  exhibit 
any  corresponding  liability  to,  or  exemption  from  disease  ? 

56.  Do  entozoa  prevail,  and  of  what  kind  ? 

57.  What  is  the  method  adopted  for  the  disposal  of  the  dead?  Is  it 
generally  adhered  to,  or  subject  to  variation  ? 

58.  Are  any  implements,  articles  of  clothing,  or  food,  deposited  with  the 
dead? 

*  59.  Is  there  any  subsequent  visitation  of  the  dead,  whether  they  are 
disposed  of  separately,  or  in  conjunction  with  other  bodies  ? 

60.  What  is  the  received  idea  respecting  a  future  state  ?  Does  this  bear 
the  character  of  transmigration,  invisible  existence  about  their  accustomed 
haunts,  or  removal  to  a  distant  abode  ? 

Buildings  and  Monuments* 

61*  What  are  the  kinds  of  habitations  in  use  among  the  people?  Are 
they  permanent  or  fixed?  Do  they  consist  of  a  single  apartment,  or  of 
several?  Are  the  dwellings  collected  into  villages  or  towns,  or  are  they 
scattered,  and  nearly  or  quite  single  ?  If  the  former,  describe  any  arrange- 
ment of  them  in  streets  or  otherwise  which  may  be  employed. 

62.  Have  any  monuments  been  raised  by  the  present  inhabitants  or  their 
predecessors,  and  more  especially  such  as  relate  to  religion  or  war  ?  State 
their  character,  materials,  and  construction.  If  they  are  still  in  use  amongst 
the  people,  state  this  object,  even  if  they  should  be  of  the  simplest  construction, 
and  be  little  more  than  mounds  or  tumuli.  If  these  monuments  are  no  longer 
in  use,  collect,  as  far  as  possible,  the  ideas  and  traditions  of  the  natives  re- 
garding them,  and,  if  possible,  have  them  examined  by  excavation  or  other- 
wise, taking  care  to  deface  and  disturb  them  as  little  as  possible. 

63.  In  these  researches  be  on  the  look  out  for  the  remains  of  the  skeletons 
of  man  or  other  animals ;  and,  if  discovered,  let  them  be  preserved  for  com- 
parison with  those  still  in  existence. 

Works  of  Art 

64.  Let  works  of  art,  in  metal,  bone,  or  other  materials,  be  likewise  sought 
and  preserved,  and  their  similarity  to,  or  difference  from  implements  at 
present  in  use  amongst  the  people  of  the  district,  or  elsewhere,  be  noted. 
Have  they  any  kind  of  commerce  or  exchange  of  commodities  with  the  people 
of  other  tribes  or  countries,  civilized  or  uncivilized  ?  and,  if  so,  what  are  the 
articles  which  they  give  and  which  they  take  in  exchange  ?  Is  this  trade  or 
barter  in  continued  or  irregular  operation,  or  periodical  by  means  of  fairs, 
stated  journeys  to  or  visits  from  other  people  ? 

65.  Name  the  people  and  channels  of  this  trade. 

66.  Is  it  of  long  standing,  or  recent  ? 

67*  Has  it  undergone  changes,  when  and  how  ? 


250  report — 1852. 

68.  When  a  people  display  their  ingenuity  by  the  extent  or  variety  of  their 
works  of  art,  it  will  not  only  be  desirable  to  describe  what  these  are,  bat  also 
the  materials  of  which  they  are  constructed,  the  modes  in  which  these  ma- 
terials are  obtained,  the  preparation  which  they  undergo  when  any  is  required, 
and  the  instruments  by  which  they  are  wrought,  Such  particulars  will  not 
only  throw  light  on  the  character  and  origin  of  the  people,  but  will,  directly 
or  indirectly,  influence  the  commercial  relations  which  may  be  profitably 
entered  into  when  commerce  alone  is  looked  to.  When  colonization  is  con- 
templated, the  facts  contained  in  the  replies  to  these  queries  will  point  out 
the  mutual  advantages  which  might  be  obtained  by  preserving,  instead  of 
annihilating,  the  aboriginal  population. 

Domestic  Animals* 

Are  there  any  domestic  animals  in  the  possession  of  the  people  ?  Of  what 
species  are  they  ?  Whence  do  they  appear  to  have  been  derived,  and  to  what 
variety  do  they  belong?  Have  they  degenerated  or  become  otherwise 
modified  ?     To  what  uses  are  they  applied  ? 

Government  and  Laws. 

69.  What  is  the  form  of  government  ?  Does  it  assume  a  monarchical  or 
democratic  character,  or  does  it  rest  with  the  priests  ? 

70.  Are  the  chiefs,  whether  of  limited  or  absolute  power,  elective  or 
hereditary  ? 

71*  Is  there  any  division  of  clans  or  casts  ? 

72.  What  are  the  privileges  enjoyed  by  or  withheld  from  these  ? 

73.  What  care  is  taken  to  keep  them  distinct,  and  with  what  effect  on  the 
physical  and  moral  character  of  each  ? 

74*.  What  laws  exist  among  the  people  ?  How  are  they  preserved  ?  Are 
they  generally  known*  or  confided  to  the  memory  of  a  chosen  set  of  persons  ? 
What  are  their  opinions  and  regulations  in  reference  to  property,  and  espe- 
cially the  occupation  and  possession  of  the  soil  ?  Does  the  practice  of  hiring 
labourers  exist  among  them  ? 

75.  Have  they  any  knowledge  or  tradition  of  a  legislator,  to  whom  the 
formation  of  laws  is  ascribed  ? 

76.  Do  they  rescind,  add  to,  or  modify  their  laws?  and  how  ? 

77.  Are  they  careful  in  the  observance  of  them  ? 

78.  What  are  their  modes  of  enforcing  obedience,  and  of  proving  and 
punishing  delinquency  ? 

79.  How  are  judges  constituted  ?  Do  their  trials  take  place  at  stated 
periods,  and  in  public  ? 

80.  How  do  they  keep  prisoners  in  custody,  and  treat  them  ? 

81.  What  are  the  crimes  taken  cognizance  of  by  the  laws?  Is  there  gra- 
dation or  commutation  of  punishment  ? 

Geography  and  Statistics. 

82.  Briefly  state  the  geographical  limits  and  character  of  the  region  inha- 
bited by  the  people  to  whom  the  replies  relate. 

83.  State  approximately  the  number  of  inhabitants.  As  this  is  an  im- 
portant, but  very  difficult  question,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  point  out  the  modes 
in  which  the  numbers  may  be  ascertained.  The  people  themselves  may  state 
their  number  with  more  or  less  accuracy,  but  it  should  be  known  whether 
they  refer  to  all  ranks  and  ages,  or  merely  comprehend  adult  males,  who  may 
be  mustered  for  war,  or  other  general  purpose  requiring  their  combination. 
In  this  case  state  the  apparent  proportion  between  adult  males  and  other 


ETHNOLOGICAL  INQUIRY.  251 

members  of  families.  The  Dumber  of  habitations  in  a  particular  settlement 
may  be  counted,  and  some  idea  of  the  average  numbers  of  a  family  be  given. 
Where  the  people  inhabit  the  water-side,  the  number  and  dimensions  of  their 
%  craft  may  be  taken,  and  some  idea  of  the  proportion  between  the  number  of 
these  and  of  the  individuals  belonging  to  them,  may  be  formed.  In  drawing 
conclusions  from  observations  of  this  kind,  it  will  be  necessary  to  have  due 
regard  to  the  different  degrees  of  density  or  rarity,  in  which,  from  various 
causes,  population  may  be  placed. 

84.  Has  the  number  of  inhabitants  sensibly  varied,  and  within  what 
period? 

85.  If  it  have  diminished,  state  the  causes ;  such  as  sickness,  starvation, 
war,  and  emigration.  When  these  causes  require  explanation,  please  to  give 
it.  If  the  inhabitants  are  on  the  increase,  is  this  the  result  of  the  easy  and 
favourable  circumstances  of  the  people  causing  an  excess  of  births  over  deaths, 
or  is  it  to  be  assigned  to  any  cause  tending  to  bring  accessions  from  other 
quarters  ?     State  whether  duch  causes  are  of  long  standing,  or  recent 

86.  Is  the  population  generally  living  in  a  manner  to  which  they  have  been 
long  accustomed,  or  have  new  relations  with  other  people,  and  consequently 
new  customs  and  practices,  been  introduced? 

87.  If  the  people,  being  uncivilized,  have  come  under  the  influence  of  the 
civilized,  state  to  what  people  the  latter  belong,  how  they  are  regarded,  and 
what  is  the  kind  of  influence  they  are  producing*.  State  the  points  of  their 
good  influence,  if  any,  and  those  of  an  opposite  character,  as  the  introduction 
of  diseases,  vices,  wars,  want  of  independence,  &c. 

88.  Is  there  any  tendency  to  the  union  of  races  ?  how  is  it  exhibited,  and 
to  what  extent  ? 

Social  Relations. 

89.  What  kind  of  relationship,  by  written  treaty  or  otherwise,  subsists 
between  the  nation  and  other  nations,  civilized  or  not?  Have  they  any 
intercourse  by  sea  with  other  countries  ?  Do  any  of  them  understand  any 
European  language  ?  Or  are  there  interpreters,  by  whom  they  can  commu- 
nicate with  them? 

90.  Are  they  peaceable,  or  addicted  to  war?  Have  they  any  forms  of 
declaring  war,  or  making  peace  ?  What  is  their  mode  of  warfare,  either  by 
sea  or  land  ?  their  weapons  and  strategy  ?  What  do  they  do  with  the  slain, 
and  with  prisoners  ?  Have  they  any  mode  of  commemorating  victories  by 
monuments,  hieroglyphics,  or  preservation  of  individual  trophies,  and  of  what 
kind  ?  Have  they  any  national  poems,  sagas,  or  traditions  respecting  their 
origin  and  history  ?  Where  Europeans  have  introduced  fire-arms,  ascertain 
the  modes  of  warfare  which  have  given  place  to  them. 

State  whatever  particulars  respecting  their  origin  and  history  are  derived, 
either  from  traditions  among  themselves  or  from  other  sources. 

Religion,  Superstitions,  fyc. 

91.  Are  the  people  addicted  to  religious  observances,  or  generally  regard- 
less of  them  ? 

92.  Do  they  adopt  the  idea  of  one  great  and  presiding  Spirit,  or  are  they 
poly  theists  ? 

93.  If  polytheism  exist,  what  are  the  names,  attributes,  and  fables  connected 
with  their  deities,  and  what  are  the  modes  in  which  devotion  is  paid  to  each  ? 

*  This  question  will  comprise  the  existence  of  missions — the  success  or  the  want  of  it  from 
causes  connected  with  missionaries  themselves  or  others. 


252  report — 1852. 

Are  any  parts  of  the  body  held  sacred,  or  the  reverse  ?    Do  they  offer  sacri- 
fices, and  are  they  of  an  expiatory  character,  or  mere  gifts? 

94.  Have  they  any  sacred  days  or  periods?  fixed  or  moveable  feasts,  or 
religious  ceremonies  of  any  kind,  or  any  form  of  thauksgiving  or  other  ' 
observance  connected  vith  seasons  ? 

95.  Have  they  any  order  of  priests,  and  if  so,  are  they  hereditary,  elective, 
or  determined  by  any  particular  circumstance? 

96.  Is  the  religion  of  the  people  similar  to  that  of  any  other  people,  neigh- 
bouring or  remote?  If  different,  are  they  widely  so,  or  dependent  on  par- 
ticular modifications,  and  of  what  kind  ? 

97*  In  what  light  do  they  regard  the  religion  and  deities  of  neighbouring 
tribes  ? 

98.  Is  there  any  idea  of  an  inferior  order  of  spirits  and  imaginary  beings, 
— such  as  ghosU,  fairies,  brownies,  and  goblins ;  and  how  are  they  described  ? 

99.  Have  they  any  notions  of  magic,  witchcraft,  or  second  fight  ? 

100.  What  ideas  are  entertained  respecting  the  heavenly  bodies  ?  Have 
they  any  distinction  of  stars,  or  constellations  ?  and  if  so,  what  names  do  they 
give  them,  and  what  do  these  names  signify  ? 

101.  Are  they  in  any  manner  observed  with  reference  to  the  division  of 
the  year,  and  how  ? 

102.  If  time  is  not  divided  by  observations  of  those  bodies,  what  other 
mode  is  adopted  ?  and  do  observances  connected  with  them  rest  with  the 
priests  or  chiefs? 

103.  When  the  traveller,  by  personal  acquaintance  with  the  language,  or 
by  means  of  competent  assistance  from  interpreters,  can  freely  converse  with 
the  people,  it  will  be  desirable  that  he  should  form  some  idea  of  their  amount 
of  intelligence,  their  tone  of  mind  with  regard  to  social  relations,  as  respects 
freedom,  independence,  or  subserviency,  and  their  recognition  of  moral  obli- 
gations, and  auy  other  psychological  character  which  observation  may  detect ; 
and  more  especially  such  as  may  contribute  to  an  estimation  of  the  probable 
results  of  efforts  to  dcvelope  and  improve  the  character. 

In  using  this  little  manual,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  it  is  not  a  mere 
guide  to  inquire  into  those  tribes  that  are  threatened  with  extinction,  nor  to 
make  out  certain  details  which  are  desiderata  in  our  knowledge  of  the  people 
of  any  given  locality,  but  is  intended  to  direct  inquiry  generally  respecting 
the  varieties  of  man* 


Mean  Temperature  of  the  Day  and  Monthly  Fall  of  Rain  at  127 
Stations  under  the  Bengal  Presidency,  from  official  Registers  kept 
by  Medical  Officers,  for  the  year  1851.  By  Colonel  Sykes, 
F.R.S. 

[Ordered  to  be  printed  entire  among  the  Reports.] 

Dr.  George  Lambe,  late  Physician-General  in  Bengal,  has  been  good  enough 
to  transmit  to  me  the  following  analysis  of  official  meteorological  returns,  made 
by  medical  officers  of  the  Bengal  Presidency  to  the  Medical  Board  in  Calcutta. 
They  are  limited  to  the  returns  of  mean  dally  temperature  and  fall  of  rain,  the 
extreme  difficulty  of  getting  barometers  conveyed  in  safety  to  distant  stations, 
not  one  in  three  sent  over  reaching  its  destination  in  an  efficient  state,  having 
left  the  great  majority  of  medical  officers  without  the  means  of  determining 
the  varying  pressure  of  the  atmosphere ;  and  with  regard  to  the  moisture  in 


TEMPERATURE  AND  BAIN  IN  BENGAL.  253 

the  atmosphere  and  fixing  dew-points,  although  several  medical  officers  kept 
registers  of  the  dry-  and  wet-bulb  thermometers  (there  not  being  any  hygro- 
meters on  Darnell's  plan  in  use),  yet  the  registers  appeared  so  little  satisfac- 
tory, that  Dr.  Lambe  did  not  think  it  desirable  to  include  them  in  the 
analysis.  The  daily  mean  temperature  was  determined  by  daily  observations 
from  three  to  six  in  number ;  but  as  these  were  made  during  the  day  and  not 
at  all  at  night,  the  mean  temperature  is  necessarily  higher  than  the  mean  of 
the  24  hours  would  be.  Proper  precautions  were  taken  against  direct  radi- 
ated or  reflected  heat,  by  the  thermometers  being  placed  in  the  hospitals  or  in 
the  surgeons'  houses,  properly  shaded  and  with  a  northern  aspect ;  but  the 
errors  of  construction  in  the  instruments  do  not  appear  to  have  been  generally 
verified ;  they  are  not  to  be  relied  upon  therefore  for  absolute  results ;  but  as 
the  same  mode  of  observation  obtains  throughout,  the  different  meteorological 
records  have  a  relative  value  to  each  other  which  makes  them  acceptable. 
The  records  of  the  pluviometer  are  more  free  from  objections  than  those  of  the 
other  instruments,  and  they  contain  some  highly  interesting  results  respecting 
the  unequal  distribution  of  rain,  and  in  support  of  the  facts  adduced  by  myself 
from  Western  India,  and  by  Mr.  Miller  from  Cumberland,  testifying  that  the 
rain-fall  becomes  a  maximum  in  mountainous  districts  at  a  certain  height,  and 
then  diminishes  as  the  height  increases.  For  the  reasons  previously  assigned, 
I  shall  circumscribe  my  observations  on  temperature  within  narrow  limits ; 
but  as  the  stations  are  arranged  in  groups,  within  certain  areas  of  latitude  and 
longitude,  some  few  facts  of  interest  may  be  selected.  For  instance,  in  the 
Calcutta  group  of  15  stations,  within  lat.  19°  48'  and  25°  42'  N.  and  long. 
85°  49'  and  89°  14'  £.,  Cuttack,  in  lat.  20°  28',  has  a  lower  mean  daily  tempe- 
rature in  January  than  Balasore,  a  degree  further  N. ;  but  in  February  this 
is  reversed,  but  reversed  again  in  a  marked  manner  in  March,  April,  May  and 
the  remaining  months  until  September,  when  Cuttack  becomes  hotter  than 
Balasore ;  but  in  October  it  is  reversed  again.  The  maximum  daily  mean 
temperature  in  this  group  is  99°  in  May  at  Kishnaghur,  lat.  23°  24%  Ions;. 
88°  22'  £.  The  next  is  the  Dacca  group  of  19  stations  between  the  parallels 
of  lat.  20°  8'  and  27°  31'  N.,  and  long.  90°  17'  and  95°  l'E.  The  same  discre- 
pancies are  observed  here  as  in  the  preceding,  of  the  higher  latitude  having  a 
higher  mean  daily  temperature  than  the  lower  in  some  months,  witness  Buri- 
saul,  lat.  22°  35',  temperature  in  January  66°,  while  Sylhet,  lat.  24°  53',  in 
the  same  month  is  67  '7  Fahr.  The  highest  daily  mean  temperature  in  this 
group  is  88°"6  at  Burisaul  in  May.  The  next  group  of  10  stations  is  in 
ascending  the  Ganges  from  Hazareehaugh,  lat.  24°  0',  to  Darjeeling,  lat.  27°  3', 
at  7000  feet  above  the  sea* ;  and  from  Gyah,  long.  85°  3',  to  Dinagepore, 
long.  88°  41'.  The  highest  daily  mean  temperature  is  at  Gyah  in  Behar,  lat. 
24°  48',  viz.  96°*9  in  Mayf.  The  next  is  the  Benares  group  of  7  stations, 
from  Mirzapore,  lat.  25°  9',  to  Goruckpore,  lat.  26°  46',  and  from  long.  82°  6' 
Sultanpore  to  long.  83°  37'  Ghazeepore.  The  highest  mean  temperature  is 
101°  in  May  at  Sultanpore,  in  a  higher  latitude  than  any  station  or  the  group 

*  Cherrapoonjie  and  Decca  are  in  the  same  group,  the  former  at  4500  feet  above  the  sea ; 
the  latter  is  on  the  Delta  of  the  Brahmaputra.  Their  difference  of  latitude  is  1°  33'  35"; 
their  difference  of  mean  temperature  in  May  is  19°-1,  which  would  give  235  feet  to  a  degree. 
In  October  the  difference  is  13°*7V  which  gives  329  feet  to  1°  Fahr. 

f  Darjeeling  at  7000  feet,  and  Sarun  on  the  plains  differ  1 7|  miles  in  latitude;  the  difference 
of  mean  daily  temperature  in  May  is  31°'l,  giving  225  feet  for  each  degree  of  temperature ;  but 
in  December  the  difference  of  mean  temperatures  is  only  I4a8,  giving  473  feet  for  each 
degree  of  temperature.  Tirhoot  and  Darjeeling  differ  55  miles  in  lat.  The  difference  of  the  mean 
temperature  in  May  is  30°,  giving  233  feet  to  1°;  the  difference  in  December  is  17°'4,  giving 
102  feet  to  a  degree. 


254  report— 1852. 

except  Goruckpore,  and  at  1050  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  next 
group  is  in  the  N.W.  Provinces,  and  consists  of  18  stations,  from  lat.  21°  51' 
Baitool  to  lat.  27°  23'  Futteghur,  and  from  long.  IT  45'  Hoshungabad  to  long. 
81°  54'  Allahabad.     The  highest  mean  temperature  is  103°  in  May  at  Myn- 

Ex>rie,  lat.  27°  1',  and  100°*1  at  Allahabad  and  Nursingpore,  the  former  in 
t.  25°  27'  on  the  confluence  of  the  Ganges  and  Jumna.  The  daily  mean 
temperatures  run  very  high  in  May  and  June  at  all  the  stations  in  this  group. 
The  Agra  group,  embracing  Rajpootana,  has  9  stations,  but  the  observations 
are  incomplete.  The  highest  mean  daily  temperature  at  Agra,  lat.  27°  10', 
was  96°*1  in  June.  The  Meerut  and  Delhi  group  has  13  stations,  embra- 
cing Almorah  at  5500  feet,  from  Budaon,  lat.  27°  50',  to  Deyrah,  lat.  30°  19', 
and  from  Delhi,  long.  IT  13',  to  Almorah,  long.  79°  41'.  The  highest 
mean  temperature  is  104°  at  Goorgaon,  38  miles  south  of  Delhi,  lat.  27  53', 
in  June,  and  at  Delhi,  lat.  28°  31',  the  temperature  in  May  is  98°*6. 
The  Umballa  group  of  1 1  stations  embraces  Simla,  at  7500  feet,  and  other 
hill  stations.  At  Ferozepore,  on  the  Sutlege  and  Simla,  differing  9  miles,  in 
lat.  30°  57'  and  31°  6',  the  highest  mean  temperature  at  both  is  respectively 
in  June,  97°*5  and  69°'2 ;  the  difference  of  elevation  giving  220  feet  for  each 
degree  of  difference  of  temperature  in  the  month  of  June;  but  in  the  month  of 
January  the  difference  of  mean  daily  temperatures,  40°  and  55°*  9,  gives  397 
feet  for  each  degree  of  temperature.  The  last  group  takes  us  to  the  Punjab, 
where  there  are  25  stations  between  Mooltan,  lat.  30°  10',  and  Peshawur,  lat. 
34°  0',  and  Kohat,  long.  71°  26',  to  long.  76°  1 9'  Kangra.  Lahore  in  this  group 
is  1 180  feet  above  the  sea,  and  Peshawur  1068  ;  and  I  presume  none  of  the 
stations,  excepting  probably  Mooltan,  have  a  lower  elevation  than  these.  The 
returns  are  defective,  but  it  would  appear  a  very  high  daily  mean  temperature 
exists  in  somemonths,  notwithstanding  the  comparatively  high  latitude;  Mooltan, 
lat.  30°  lO'i  temp.  99°*4 ;  Jehlum,  lat.  32°  55r,  temp.  97° ;  and  Mean  Meer,  at 
Lahore,  lat.  31°  33',  temp.  98°*  2,  all  in  June.  The  general  results  would  seem 
to  indicate  that  the  daily  mean  temperature  in  the  summer  months  increases 
with  the  latitude  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  the  daily  mean  temperature  in  lat.  32° 
in  June,  July  and  August,  is  greater  than  in  lat.  22°.  The  rain-fall  manifests 
in  a  marked  manner,  as  I  have  formerly  had  occasion  to  show,  the  great  discre- 
pancies in  the  fall  within  very  limited  areas ;  and  in  the  increase  in  the  fall  up 
to  certain  maximum  elevations.  In  the  case  of  Calcutta  and  Barrackpore,  only 
9  miles  separate  in  latitude  and  44  in  longitude,  the  fall  of  rain  respectively 
for  1851  was  6416  and  4275,  differing  22  inches.  Hooghly  is  20  miles  N. 
of  Calcutta,  and  differs  only  6  miles  in  longitude,  but  the  fall  was  only  36 
inches,  differing  from  Calcutta  28  inches.  Barrackpore  is  intermediate  between 
Calcutta  and  Hooghly,  and  only  1  j-  mile  west  of  the  longitude  of  Barrackpore, 
but  the  difference  in  the  rain-fall  is  6§  inches.  All  these  three  places  are  on 
the  Granges,  on  the  same  level,  about  20  feet  above  the  sea.  Burdwan,  which 
is  40  miles  N.  of  Calcutta  and  28  miles  W.,  had  only  a  fall  of  28  inches ;  but 
more  remarkable  still,  Midnapore,  8  miles  south  of  Calcutta  and  59  west  of  it, 
had  only  22*78  inches;  while  Cuttack,  76  miles  south  and  l£°  of  longitude 
west,  had  50*17  inches.  In  the  Dacca  group,  which  contains  the  hill  station 
of  Cherraponjie  in  the  Cossya  hills,  the  most  extraordinary  discrepancies  occur. 
Chittagong,  only  13  miles  south  of  the  latitude  of  Calcutta,  but  3±°  to  the  E., 
has  86*33  inches  of  rain,  and  lving  under  the  same  meridian  as  Cherraponjie, 
which  is  116  miles  N.  of  Chittagong,  at  an  elevation  of  4500  feet,  it  has 
524*02  inches  of  rain  less  than  Cherraponjie,  at  which  station  the  almost 
incredible  quantity  of  610*35  inches  fell  in  1851 ;  and  that  this  deluge  is 
no  mistake  of  record,  independently  of  the  official  report  which  I  quote,  I  nave 
a  letter  from  Professor  Oldham  in  confirmation  of  the  fact,  who  spent  the  mon- 


TEMPERATURE  AND  RAIN  IN  BENGAL.  255 

soon  of  1851  at  Cherraponjie,  and  kept  a  separate  record :  50  feet  10  inches  depth 
of  water  may  be  said  to  have  fallen  chiefly  in  7  months,  for  in  November  and 
December  there  was  not  a  shower ;  in  January  only  J  of  an  inch,  in  February  3*05 
in.,  and  in  March  1|  inch.  The  S.W.  monsoon  would  appear  to  commence  in 
April  with  67  in.,  followed  by  115*15  in  May,  147'20  in  June,  99*40  in  July, 
103*9  in  August,  71 '7  in  September,  and  40*3  in  October ;  so  that  the  vapour 
from  the  south  passed  over  Chittagong,  and  little  of  it  was  condensed  until  it 
reached  Cherraponjie  and  the  Cossya  hills.  But  the  discrepancy  in  the  fall 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Cherraponjie  itself  is  not  the  least  remarkable  cir- 
cumstance. Sylhet,  which  lies  below  Cherraponjie  23  miles  to  the  S.  of  it, 
and  only  7  miles  to  the  W.,  had  only  209*85  m.  of  rain ;  the  fall  at  the  prox- 
imate places  differing  4005  in.  The  greatest  fall  in  any  month  at  Sylhet  was 
43*35  in  May.  The  explanation  of  this  extraordinary  fall  at  Cherraponjie  is 
in  the  physical  circumstances  connected  with  its  location.  The  station  is  on 
the  Cossya  hills,  at  4500  feet  above  the  sea,  facing  the  south ;  and  the  vapour 
from  the  Bay  of  Bengal,  floating  at  a  height  of  about  4500  feet,  passes  over  the 
plains  of  the  Deltas  of  the  Ganges  and  Brahmapootra,  and  first  impinges  upon 
the  Cossya  hills,  and  is  immediately  condensed  by  the  lower  temperature  at  the 
hills  ;  and  then  comparatively  little  of  the  vapour  reaches  the  higher  regions, 
as  is  the  case  in  the  Western  Ghauts  of  India,  where  the  maximum  condensa- 
tion  takes  place  also  at  about  4500  feet.  This  is  shown  at  Darjeeling,  1500 
feet  above  Cherraponjie,  134  miles  to  the  N.,  and  3£°  of  longitude  to  the  W. 
of  Cherraponjie,  the  fall  being  only  125*20  in. ;  and  yet  rain  fell  in  every 
month  of  the  year,  the  maximum  fall  being  31  in.  in  June.  The  rain-tables 
are  not  complete  for  Simla  at  7500  feet,  but  the  maximum  fall  in  the  mon- 
soon months  was  only  17*95  in.  in  July  and  11*65  in  August,  the  most  rainy 
months;  so  that  there  can  be  no  question  but  that  the  fall  does  not  exceed  that 
at  Darjeeling,  and  we  have  then  the  fact  that  those  stations  so  widely  separated 
in  India  as  Simla,  Darjeeling  and  Dodabetta  on  the  Neilgherries,  at  about  an 
elevation  above  the  sea  of  from  7000  to  8400  feet,  have  about  the  same 
amount  o£  rain-fall ;  while  the  lower  elevations  of  4500  feet  in  the  peninsula 
of  India  have  the  maximum  fall,  ranging  from  300  to  600  inches.  It  will  scarcely 
be  desirable  to  make  further  comment  upon  the  rain-tables ;  but  it  may  be 
stated  generally,  that  as  the  latitude  is  increased,  and  westing  made,  from  Cal- 
cutta the  mean  annual  fall  appears  to  decrease,  the  fall  at  Ferozepore  being  as 
low  as  23  in. ;  but  the  discrepancies  in  the  fall  in  neighbouring  localities  con- 
tinue, as  is  manifest  in  the  case  of  Goruckpore,  lat.  26°  3',  long.  83°  13', 
having  61*70  in.,  Azimghur,  42  miles  south  and  9  miles  east,  having  only 
39*96  in.     The  rain-tables  from  the  Punjab  are  incomplete. 

The  above  meteorological  observations  suggest  to  us  to  be  cautious  in  ge- 
neralizing from  local  facts,  not  less  with  regard  to  temperatures  and  falls  of 
rain,  than  on  the  supposed  law  fixing  a  fall  of  one  degree  of  Fahrenheit  for  a 
certain  number  of  feet  of  ascent  into  the  atmosphere. 


256 


BEPOBT— 1852. 


Abttract  of  Mean  Temperature  of  the  Day  and  Fall  of  Rain  from  Regiiten  kept 

N.W.  Province 


I* 


January. 


Mean 
tempe- 
rature 
of  the 
day 


February. 


rature 
of  the 
day. 


Bain. 


March. 


Mean 


of  the 
day. 


Bain, 


April. 


Mean 
tempe- 
rature 
of  the 
day. 


Bain. 


Calcutta  ... 
Barrackpore 
Hooghly  .. 
Jeaaore  .  • 
Kishnughur 
Bnrdwan  .. 
Moorahedabad 
Rangpore . . 
Bauliab  . . 
Becrbhoom 
Bancoora . . 
Balaaore  .. 
Midnapore 
Poorie  .... 
Cuttack    . , 


Dacca 

Akyab  

Sandowy  . . . 
Ramree  ..  • 
Chittagong  . 
Tipperah  . . . 
Buriaaul   . . . 

Pubna  

Bogra 

Mymenaing  . 

Sylhet 

Cherraponjic 
Gwalparah  . 
Gowahuttee . 

Cachar 

Seebaagor  . 
Tezpore  ... 
Debroghur  . 
Nowgong  A. . 

Dinapore . . . 
Tirhoot  ... 
Dinagcpore  . 
Purneah  ... 
Darjeeling    . 

Sarun   

Mongbyr  ... 
Hazareebaugh 

Gyah    

Bhaagulpore 

Benarea 
Gorackpore  .. 
Aiimghor.... 
Sultanpore  .. 


ft. 
i8-ii 


76 


4500 


7000 


22  33*01 
22  4235 

22  53*24 

23  9* 
23  24* 

23  13-10 

24  11*50 

25  42*50 
24  2315 
23  54-25 
23  14-8 

21  30-7 

22  25*13 

19  48*09 

20  28-55 

23  43*10 
20  8' 


22  20*30 

23  27-30 

22  35*40 


20*34 

*5*4 

26-34 

10*30 

22*20 

52-20 

13*20 

14*50 

33*45 
34*00 
631 
58-11 
19*25 
4910 
54*15 


1050 


2444-50 

H  53 

25  16-35 

26  11* 
26  11*15 
24  48-40 

26  36*45 

27  3>"45 


»5  37*45 

26  7*20 

25  37*30 

25  48*00 

27  3* 

26  45*27 
25  27*26 
24    0-0 

24  48*44 

25  14*50 

25  18*26 

26  463 5 
20     3*2 
26  1535 


90  23*40 
92  56 


91  47*30 
91  5*40 
90  17* 


90  24*20 

91  50*30 

9*  43*55 

90  40- 

91  47*  10 

92  47*17 

92  50*10 
95     1 


5*  10 
26*15 
41*00 
33*00 
18*40 
29*12 

43'3» 

24*20 

3*i6 

O'OO 


83    3*12 

83  22*6 

83  13*20 
82    6-40 


71*2 
72*5 
68*5 

*♦' 

70- 
70*5 

63* 

65*3 

66*3 

695 

71*9 

72-9 

71*6 
72* 

67*3 

7i*5 
7»- 

677 

69-2 

66* 

70*3 

61* 

62- 

677 

53*7 

64*2 

664 

62*5 

6o* 

65*2 

636 


63-6 
6 1*8 

64*5 
40*9 


64*3 

70* 

667 

64*3 
62*2 
64*3 
65*5 


in. 

0*07 

0*24 

0-95 

0*40 

2*50 

0*30 

0*20 

I'lO 


0*90 
0*50 
0*26 

o*io 

0*69 


075 

°*55 
0*72 
0*75 
0-30 
075 
0*70 
051 

0*84 

o-6i 


175 
375 
0-80 
2*12 
3*45 


76*01 

705 

68* 

72- 

76-5 

68*7 

7i*6 

73*i 

74* 

74*9 

69* 

75*6 
78* 

71* 

738 

8i- 

66* 

72*9 

7i*4 
72-6 

74* 
68-2 
64*7 
69*6 

55*i 

66*i 

68*3 

66* 

62*3 

652 

637 

66*5 

67-7 

65*2 

7«* 

65*5 

417 


0-85 

0*30 
o75 

231 
3*60 
3*80 


68* 

65*4 

72* 

72*5 

67*8 
65*4 
669 
70*6 


in. 

2*41 

1*17 

0*65 

o-o 

1*20 

no 
165 
0*10 
o*6o 
o*6o 
0*93 
0*27 
0*23 
0*40 
0*04 

0-99 


1*90 
125 
2*50 
1-60 
170 
3**5 
450 
3*05 
0*70 
c*47 

4*39 
1*87 

5*49 
285 

i* 

i*45 
o*8o 
3*25 
2*40 


1*25 
1*00 
1-25 
150 

i*6o 

0*20 

i*o8 


85*5 

857 

80*4 

8o* 

94* 

8y 

79*2 

79*8 

813 

82*7 

824 

85*8 

74* 
82* 
825 

76*9 


75* 
80*3 

77* 
f2'5 

807 

7«- 

76-5 
«S3 

76*I 

77*5 
767 
70*5 

74* 
73*1 

7**4 

78*5 
757 
825 

7i*5 
51-8 

76*5 
768 
79*8 
8o* 

74*5 

76*1 
83*4 


in. 

105 

0*24 

o*o 

0-30 

0*50 

0*20 
Il6 
I'lO 

1*20 
i*54 

0*25 


1*22 
0*50 
2*I5 
1*3© 
IO5 

i*45 

1*06 
2*07 
225 

2'IO 

2* 

0*90 
0*30 
1*50 

4*00 

0'20 

0*35 

O'OO 

0*65 

0*20 

o*6o 


88-7 
90- 

85* 
86* 
96* 
86* 

8r 

826 

859 

869 
89* 
87*5 
8r5 

85* 
86* 

84' 

83* 

85* 

77*5 

817 

82*1 

84*8 

84* 

83*5 

77*3 

77*7 

67-1 

77-6 

78-9 

77*7 
72*8 

77*3 
73*5 
75*8 

87*8 
842 

IV 

55*3 

f2'5 

83* 
91* 
86-5 

87*3 
82*9 
8 1*9 
92*2 


4*** 
0-50 

**55 

5"5° 

318 

2*30 

1-20 

5*3© 

19*35 

27*60 

10*20 

5*57 

12' 1 1 
885 

4*27 
9*43 
8*55 


0-70 

2*00 

4*55 


0*40 
0*80 


o*xo 
o-8o 


TEMPERATURE  AND  RAIN  IN  BENGAL. 


257 


by  Medical  Officers  at  Civil  and  Military  Stations  in  Bengal  and  the 
for  185L. 


1852. 


Jane. 

July. 

Augurt. 

September. 

October. 

November. 

December. 

fcf  ean  | 

Men 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

tmpe-| 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe 

tempe- 

tempe 

Rain-mil. 

•cure  <   Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

rature 

Rain. 

if  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

©        j    i»- 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

867 

in. 

0 

in. 

e 

in. 

0 

in. 

in. 

87l  |      839 

•47 

12*89 

861 

1078 

8-49 

83-l 

16*25 

78*5 

.. 

7i*8 

.. 

64*16 

%r  1    6-04 

83-5 

971 

87- 

7*39 

87- 

3*82 

84'5 

io*8o 

74*9 

.. 

67-3 

.. 

4*75 

85-         575 

*Y 

9*60 

84*5 

4*20 

845 

*75 

82-7 

IO'OO 

71-2 

.. 

62*5 

.. 

36*00 

94-         8'6ci85* 

9-90 

9i* 

4*40 

90*5 

5'40 

86* 

7*15 

8o- 

40*30 

9*5  1     4-5,84* 

23* 

85* 

1075 

85* 

ii* 

84" 

2*50 

75* 

.. 

66- 

.. 

57*7o 

SS5      315' tr 

885 

86*8 

5*20 

87'2 

**55 

82- 

5-65 

73* 

o*6o 

.. 

.. 

28*20 

*SmS\     4'6' 

8*7 

10-67 

88* 

775 

88* 

3-60 
6-30 

83* 

T 10 

75* 

0*00 

68- 

.. 

40*48 

Syy  1    23-90 

8*5 

1 170 

84-5 

14*40 

87'i 

8o* 

3*20 

79* 

.. 

70*6 

.. 

74*60 

86- x  [     6-88 

8r 

11*56 

87* 

4*95 

87'5 

3*35 

813 

3*30 

72*2 

0*17 

.. 

.. 

31*56 

88-6 1     350 

8r3 

1 1*30 

86-2 

5-40 

86-9 

270 

82* 

4*9° 

75*3 

.. 

697 

.. 

32*06 

90-6 .     4-43 

867 

8*76 

*77 

*75 

88-2 

4-05 

.. 

2*90 

73*5 

.. 

737 

.. 

31*04 

95'5  [     3*** 

88' 

5-86 

895 

3*65 

82* 

3*40 

83* 

9' 10 

72* 

0*15 

55*5 

.. 

30*79 

865  |      3*10 

815 

4*44 

84' 

4*»3 

83-5 

77* 

7*34 

69* 

.. 

62- 

.. 

22*78 

867.     4-50 

854 

14'3° 

86*2 

7*35 

Si'6 

4*45 

83*  b 

town  dow 

n76- 

•  • 

72*6- 

92* 

7-31 

84* 

10*20 

86* 

12*11 

86* 

6*io 

79* 

II-65 

•• 

•• 

75" 

•• 

50*17 

84*2 

18-78 

86-3 

1376 

85-3 

10*30 

85*6 

470 

8 1*9 

I2*70 

75*7 

. . 

69*5 

. . 

68-93 

8r 

59*54 

837 

22-43 

83*4 

27*58 

8* 

-T57 

831 

14*09 

81*5 

.. 

75*1 

252 

155*07 

8r5 

5*-i8 

8*7 

30*64 

817 

37*49 

8 1*4 

29*67 

8i*3 

10*00 

807 

130 

747 

0*62 

178*48 

5r 

17-30 

76-6 

25-88 

78-i 

13*11 

79- 1 

7*99 

80*5 

16*27 

77*2 

IO75 

72*8 

.. 

67-5 

0*42 

86*33 

806 

19-50 

8i'S 

16-08 

82*2 

25*25 

81*1 

ii-oo 

784 

13-50 

7*7 

.. 

66*1 

•  • 

95*95 

»4*5 

20*70 

*33 

17*90 

82*5 

21*00 

84*3 

6*90 

81-8 

2I'I5 

75*6 

.. 

69-5 

.. 

94*47 

r4*  /  *9<> 
14-5/  14-65 

»»-8 

7-65 

85-2 

6*20 

85> 

6*  10 

81*6 

575 

73* 

.. 

66- 

.. 

39*05 

•  • 

7*95 

.. 

8-40 

.. 

6*25 

.. 

6*oo 

5i*44 

(2-3  f  35-25 

845 

20*00 

85-1 

20*38 

!" 

6*52 

817 

10-70 

74*5 

.. 

67*3 

.. 

109-90 

In     39-70 

82*5. 

33'5<> 

82-6 

28*30 

831 

17-85 

I!'4 

20*40 

73*9 

.. 

69* 

o*45 

209*85 

ri'3 

147-20 

71-8 

99*40 

72*4 

103-90 

7*"4 

7170 

68*2 

40*30 

610*35 

•99 

4**55 

8i'3 

17*90 

81-8 

11*65 

8ri 

7*40 

77*9 

8*85 

71*6 

.. 

658 

.. 

ii6*io 

ri-6 

16-61 

8V7 

935 

83*8 

4*53 

833 

3*05 

80*3 

3-68 

75*» 

0*38 

69*1 

0-50 

5*74 

tj-i 

»5"35 

«3-4 

15*60 

85' 

8-94 

847 

9-32 

809 

11*26 

761 

2'00 

68*3 

0-48 

102-84 

*-6 

16-35 

84-4 

10-43 

84-1 

16*40 

841 

7*40 

79-2 

638 

71*4 

0*05 

65*8 

0*50 

85-18 

b- 

16-82 

845 

4*50 

83-3 

1658 

83** 

450 

79*4 

3*00 

71*2 

.. 

66*1 

0*30 

•*3*49 

64 

1  *"85 

834 

13*74 

82*2 

18*42 

.. 

11*98 

-• 

1773 

.. 

•  • 

.. 

.. 

106*95 . 

14  1  ir5<> 

83-9 

7*35 

83-8 

22*20 

8r8 

4*65 

8o*i 

7*00 

70*6 

0*40 

66* 

2*O0 

83*45 

>°*5 

4-50 

86-2 

375 

86*6 

6*75 

8*4 

7-50 

815 

375 

71* 

62-3 

. . 

V 

tf'i 

350 

85-8 

8-45 

86*3 

7*33 

845 

3*50 

8o* 

4'5o 

69* 

.. 

62-2 

.. 

33*38 

8- 

12-50 

.. 

12*70 

89*5 

6*70 

!?'5 

3*20 

85* 

6-50 

8o* 

.. 

73* 

.. 

46-70 

r* 

9*75 

85-5 

15-12 

84-5 

ii*8o 

86- 

3*35 

79*8 

375 

717 

.. 

65* 

.. 

53*39 

a*  5 

31-00 

637 

27*15 

643 

16*70 

«3* 

19*60 

55*8 

9-40 

5o*4 

0*10 

44*8 

O'lO 

125*20    % 

9*9 

.. 

86-4 

4*55 

.. 

.. 

83-5 

8*90 

80*2 

3-40 

63* 

.. 

59*6 

or 

8«20 

86- 

665 

865 

3*36 

8S- 

8*io 

80*5 

665 

7o'5 

3666 

6-2 

876     799 

7*95 

79*3 

57o 

77-8 

5-65 

73*5 

0*90 

695 

O-85 

647 

32-06 

*7 

3*5 

86-5 

9*35 

89*8 

3*25 

86-4 

4**5 

83* 

2*50 

65*3 

0*50 

652 

•  • 

24-65 

»*5 

10-45 

*T 

1440 

856 

3*50 

85- 

**35 

82* 

7*90 

72* 

** 

66*5 

-• 

4**45 

*7 

6-30 

865 

7*10 

86- 

5*57 

84-5 

9-68 

816 

3*8S 

73-1 

683 

.. 

37*06 

9* 

15*60 

85*9 

14*10 

862 

5* 

847 

9-90 

8o*8 

1 1  *6o 

70*4 

.. 

63*2 

.. 

61  70 

»*4 

448 

853 

872    86*4      3*83 

83-8 

9*45 

81-3 

7*20 

7"'3 

•  • 

64*3 

•  . 

39*96 

h|    .. 

88- 

1     1 

258 


REPORT — 1852. 


• 

1 

, 

| 

January. 

February. 

March. 

•   April. 

1 

i«r. 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

M 

•a 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

3 

a 

rature 
of  the 

Rain. 

rature 
of  the 

Rain. 

ratnre 
of  the 

Rain. 

rature 
of  the 

Ram. 

rmtare,  Bi 
of  the 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

*V    i 

ft 

e       1 

e       / 

0 

in 

0 

in. 

e 

in. 

in. 

0  U" 

Murzapore    •  •  • . 

25      9'I9 

82   37*23 

6o- 

.. 

72*5 

.. 

88* 

9*    ' 

Ghazeepore  .... 

*S  34**5 

83  37*9 

64-5 

170 

68- 

1*40 

79' 

0*60 

88* 

0*00 

95"      -3 

Juanpoie  

*5  43'4« 

82  44*7 

58-5 

•• 

6r 

•• 

74* 

•• 

825 

•- 

93-   1 

Cawnpoie 

26  28*15 

80  23*45 

62*6 

.. 

676 

.. 

76-9 

. 

88-1 

95"3     '^ 

Futteghur    .... 

27  23*20 

79  4^**5 

59-7 

4*95 

647 

0-66 

75*5 

0*57 

85*0 

o*n 

9**6  |  ^ 

Mynpoorie   .... 

27    1*24 

79  13*58 

£s 

.. 

72' 

.. 

83' 

93' 

#  # 

103-   1    ■ 

9*7  11  -1 

Itawah 

26  45*31 

79    3*i8 

276 

65*5 

0*63 

75*8 

0*04 

85*5 

0-05 

Humeerpore- . .. 
Oorai    

26    7-49 

79  47*** 

•• 

1-50 

58*5 

o*8o 

78-5 

•• 

95* 

0-30 

93*51    - 

Banda 

Futtepore 

Allahabad    .... 

26     6*2 
25  27*43 

80  24*18 

81  54*12 

66-5 
647 

2*90 

71* 
61*2 

69- 

2*00 

77** 

70* 

8o*6 

•• 

92*6 

•- 

°ff3 

98S 

90-2 

lOO'I 

Saugor 

Dumoh 

23  50* 

78  47*55 

•• 

•• 

•• 

1*30 

•• 

•• 

89* 

•• 

91-5  i  : 

Nurrdngpore.... 

6V 

, . 

6r 

95* 

too*  1   :; 

Hothungabad  .. 

"  45*43 

77  45*5 

79* 

. . 

9°" 

94* 

87-4,  r 

Baitool 

Seeonie. 

21  51*13 

77  58*15 

70*8 

•• 

77*6 

•• 

85*3 

0*02 

9**9 

•• 

Jubbulporc  .... 

23    9-39 

79  59'43 

67*4 

0*50 

72*3 

0*90 

79*5 

.. 

94*5 

.. 

99*8 1  =■ 

964  i 

96*2.   • 

Nowgong 

Jhansee    

*5    3'30 

• . . . 

79  3»* 

65-7 

3*92 

70*4 

0*66 

80*8 

.. 

91*6 
88*6 

•  • 

Agra. ••••••... 

27  10*26 

78    5*4 

57'5 

ri8 

68* 

108 

79*6 

. . 

88*4 

o**o 

1     , 
95*1    e 
90-   i 

Neemuch 

*4  *7*3° 

75    **3© 

65-5 

.. 

73*5© 

. . 

815 

.. 

88*5 

Muttra ........ 

27  28*42 

77  22*3 

59* 

.. 

.. 

, . 

77* 

Erinpoora 

*S    9#i5 

73    9*4« 

Allyghur. 

Khewaree. ..... 

.... 

.... 

656 

Beawur    

Bolundshuhur. 

.... 

.... 

5** 

•• 

63*5 

•• 

7i'5 

•• 

80*5 

•• 

«r  i 

Ajmere. 

1 

Meant  •••••••• 

.. 

29    0*41 

77  45*3 

58*5 

. , 

64*8 

, . 

74*1 

831 

0*60 

X61 

Delhie 

.. 

28  31*23 

77  »r39 

55** 

2*60 

62*2 

0*30 

71*1 

2*60 

98-6     *: 

IQf 

^      1        - 

Ooorgaoii 

.. 

27  53*4 

77  *4*35 

.. 

.. 

76- 

.. 

. . 

?2 
815 

3*30 

0*50 

Moradabad  .... 

.. 

29  12*49 

78  59*46 

.. 

.. 

63*5 

.. 

7**5 

0*IO 

Bareilly    

.. 

28  12*17 

79  34*45 

60*5 

285 

63*0 

2*90 

76* 

0*22 

82* 

#- 

Shajehanpore  .. 

.. 

28     i*35 

79  35'" 

5* 

64* 

.. 

74" 

.  . 

8r5 

mm 

*  *        1 
89*5; 

Seharunpore    . . 

•• 

29  57*18 

77  35*3o 

48- 

.. 

555 

.. 

6i-5 

.. 

72*5 

.  . 

Deyra 

-. 

30  18*58 

78    4#*7 

83*3 

.. 

QX**»  ' 

Almorah 

5500 

*9  3S*i° 

79  4i*i6 

.. 

4*59 

.. 

2*88 

.. 

70*1 

1*23 

lc  + 

Budaon    

•• 

27  50*33 

78  44*58 

76-5 

.. 

90*5 

96*5 

Bijnore 

'Nynetal    

Landour  

•• 

29  22*36 

78  10*32 

74*5 

.. 

8r 

.  . 

87*5 

■  • 

.... 

.... 

42*1 
35*9 

6*29 

46-5 
407 

371 

56- 
5»*3 

«-s« 

""    1 

Umballa 

Simla    

Kuaiouli 

Dugahai   

.. 

30  2V4 

31  6*6 

76  48*42 

57* 

3*»5 

6o'3 

7*15 

73*2 

. . 

8l*2 

a*  1 6 

1 

87*9!  c"- 

7500 

77  »'i 

40* 

2*50 

44*» 

.. 

53*4 

0*50 

61*3 

.. 

66*3  j  c*: 

•  • 

•  •  •• 

.... 

4**9 

0*37 

47*4 
45*05 

3*5° 

2*  IO 

58-5 
56*8 

0*30 

641 

075 

77*2 
74*2 

CI 

Parosepore  .... 

Loodiana  ...... 

Sirta..  • 

•• 

30  57*05 

74  4»*48 

55*9 

1*17 

62*5 

1*68 

72*3 

C36 

84* 

0*14 

92*8 

c*: 

•• 

30  55*45 

75  56'57 

•• 

6ri 

3*25 

O'XI 

70*2 

0*I5 

81*9 

014 

90-5 

ov 

TEMPERATURE  AND  BAIN  IN  BENGAL. 


259 


(continued.) 


Jane. 

July. 

August. 

September. 

October. 

November. 

December. 

• 

lean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

mpe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

Bain-fall. 

iture 

Bain. 

rature 

Rain, 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

P*in 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

Bain. 

"the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

l*y. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

, 

in. 

0 

In. 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

in. 

*♦• 

in. 

in. 

»6* 

•  • 

•  • 

.. 

.. 

.. 

845 

.. 

7** 

.. 

»4'5 

8*40 

88* 

6'20 

86* 

570 

86- 

570 

83-5 

6-io 

69- 

O'OO 

64 

o-o 

35*8 

♦4" 

•• 

•• 

•• 

■• 

■• 

•• 

•• 

8o- 

•• 

68* 

•• 

57*5 

158 

.. 

86*3 

.. 

86-9 

.. 

77'5 

. . 

77*5 

. . 

72* 

ia*a 

3'22 

8V3 

«5'35 

85-5 

543 

834 

6-»7 

78-5 

0-44 

69-4 

.. 

63-4 

.. 

37**9 

i8-5 

•• 

94*5 

•  • 

88*3 

.. 

88-5 

.. 

74*5 

6r 

'47 

0*87 

21"5 

ii'40 

«7-5 

9-23 

82-5 

6l6 

76-5 

0*29 

7°7 

O'Ol 

62-7 

0-05 

3184 

»3'5 

670 

89- 

12*63 

8r 

10-54 

86*2 

48l 

825 

0*64 

68*2 

37*92 

"•5 

•• 

IP 

.. 

84s 

78*5 

73* 

.. 

65* 

'3' 

•• 

86- 

.. 

87-5 

•  • 

83' 

.. 

80-5 

. . 

6**5 

•  i* 

I'lO 

90* 

8*50 

6* 

77*5 

I '20 

•*3 

.. 

88*9 

.. 

91*8 

.. 

88- 

.. 

8i* 

75-6 

68*8 

•*' 

*j8 

86* 

H*77 

8 1*2 

12*40 

7*5 

•3'*3 

76-5 

1-26 

65*5 

.. 

63-5 

•  • 

82-5 

79" 

77* 

68- 

>*"3 

I*30 

»r 

17-67 

8i-5 

7*38 

80-1 

10-96 

792 

0*41 

743 

0-59 

68-5 

;5-6 

2*00 

«5- 

«4* 

82' 

9-50 

81- 

17-90 

8o- 

1-25 

70- 

0-50 

3*5<> 

tv 

1450 

787 

8*90 

79*5 

3-70 

825 

67-8 

0*20 

70*8 

•• 

32*02 

k>-8 

5*97 

%vS 

17-17 

8r 

3*93 

79-6 

8-22 

79*5 

i*34 

70-8 

0-37 

f5*5 

, . 

3887 

>4*8 

392 

•■ 

•  • 

•  • 

.. 

84*6 

.. 

84*3 

74-6 

.. 

67-9 

>4'4 

•• 

•* 

•• 

•• 

•• 

8ri 

•• 

85-1 

•• 

73-6 

•• 

657 

)6i 

0-30 

863 

9*80 

85-4 

9*95 

83*6 

3-98 

8x2 

0-57 

674 

27-81 

16* 

5-00 

;5-s 

>3'5 

4*00 

867 

14-70 

87-5 

5*10 

85' 

0*60 

80-1 

69-8 

59'* 

>7'9 

039 

86-4 

11*62 

88-5 

6-56 

9** 

.. 

815 

. . 

68*8 

59-6 

25-08 

>4' 

•  • 

2I'5 

14' 10 

8r 

4*80 

90-1 

>r 

•  • 

86- 

1325 

8rs 

6-10 

84 

470 

84* 

2*00 

}*7 

3-04 

l5S 

1 6-8 1 

«r$ 

775 

80- 

175 

77'5 

270 

56-8 

*'f 

•  • 

!?' 

.. 

8r 

.. 

82- 

78- 

94-8 
859 

•  • 

86* 

.. 

90- 

.. 

82- 

.. 

78" 

, . 

684 

62*6 

•• 

*3'< 

•  • 

82- 

.. 

8o- 

75** 

.. 

645 

59'5 

8l'2 

6*90 

746 

lO'OO 

76-9 

2'00 

777 

5*55 

7**3 

2' IO 

61-1 

53-2 

93'* 

•  • 

88' 

8-85 

88-5 

.. 

83-2 

79" 

r\ 

•  • 

86' 

.. 

87-5 

.. 

8r 

.. 

79' 

• 

, 

69-6 

1 1*65 

67-8 

*3'95 

69*2 

24-69 

iv 

5-67 

6l5 

2*36 

50-1 

0-31 

47*9 

.. 

82-31 

* " 

•  • 

•  • 

•• 

•• 

•• 

68' 

•• 

64-1 

0-95 

49-6 

2*  IO 

463 

06-3 

1-30 

871 

7-80 

90-7 

3'10 

91*6 
66-3 

o*6o 

84*3 

67't 

.. 

62-2 

.  m 

2576 

69*2 

3-50 

646 

17*95 

634 

11*65 

.. 

60*2 

52-3 

.. 

461 

80*9 

•• 

75'5 

2-40 

737 

-. 

70- 

.. 

67-9 

73*9 

3-00 

70-5 

22-13 

70-6 

6*50 

72*1 

662 

97*5 

074 

88*8 

1881 

933 
88-4 

0-18 

94* 

.. 

861 

70*8 

6r 

23*13 

91-9 

1-50 

86-1 

10-62 

2-50 

88*9 

.. 

82- 

,  . 

66*6 

.. 

61-6 

0*50 

«5' 

»• 

85- 

16* 

82 


260 


REPORT — 1852. 


!1 


Mean 
tempe- 


January. 


of  the 
day. 


Bain. 


Mean 
tempe- 
rature 
of  the 
day. 


February. 


Bain. 


Mean 

tempe- 
rature 
of  the 
day. 


Bain. 


Mean 
tempe- 


April. 


of  the 
day. 


Bain. 


May. 


Mean 


of  the 
day. 


Histar  ... 
Landour  . 
Paneeput. 
Rhotuck  . 


35'9 


in. 
o*54 


407 


in. 
1*09 


5**3 


in. 
0*13 


0*47 


Lahore 

Jullunder     . . , 
Hooshearpore  . 

Kangra 

Umritsir 
Mean  Meer  . . . 

Nakoda    

Kurtapore    . . 


1 180 


35-0 
19-30 
31-30 
6*  10 

33-10 

7-0 

26*40 


Peshawar.... 

Kohat 

Rawulpindee 
Mume  .....< 

Jhelum 

Wuzeerabad.. 
Sealkote  .... 
DheraGhazeeKh. 
DheralsmaelKh. 
Ghoojarea  . . 
Mooltan  .... 
Shapore  .... 
Shaikapoora. , 
Ghoojrat. 
Jbung. 
|L,eia. 
Mozuffergur. 


1068 


34    o's 
33  32-30 

33  34*4° 


32  55-10 
32  26*20 


74  22*0 

75  3^-45 

75  57*45 

76  19-5 

74  a4*3<> 

75  3o-»5 
75  3**3o 

71  3* 
71  26-25 

73     5**° 


536 
57'4 
5i* 
49*3 

55*8 
553 
57-2 

488 

5o-5 
49-8 


2*40 

3*20 

6-75 
7-25 

0-58 
3-28 
2-58 

324 
3*4 
359 


59'9 
5»'4 
57-6 

59*7 

6r 

60*9 


3*4* 
4*75 
3-65 

2-47 
217 
2*40 


69*1 
70*2 
687 
82-5 

7i'4 
7i'9 
70*1 


0-90 


813 

79*9 
8r8 

7«i 


i-oo 

0'20 


0*25 


0-08 
0-29 
0-37 


»3-5 
«3-4 
82- 


82-5 
104- 


0'20 
0*50 


58-5 

57"  1 


2-02 

6-o8 


67-3 

55*i 


165 
2*61 


777 
74-2 


115 
2*50 


88 
86-9 


73  45'*5 

74  9'5° 


53*i 
53-8 
53* 


373 


6o- 

61*9 

58-5 


3-50 


7i-8 
68-5 
65'5 


r56 


85-3 
8r8 


»"35 


30  10*40 


7i  33**5 


5°' 
5i* 
48-5 
59* 


59' 
58*5 
535 
66-5 


69*5 

69* 

59*5 


77*5 
8o*8 

73*5 
86- 


86- 
911 
795 

93*5 

9** 

90- 

894 
78*5 
88* 


On  Experiments  on  the  Laws  of  the  Conduction  of  Heat. 
By  J.  D.  Forbes,  F.R.S.  L.  $  E. 
I  beobet  to  state  that  my  experiments  have  been  altogether  suspended  since 
the  time  of  my  last  report  by  a  severe  illness  which  occurred  just  when  I  was 
about  to  renew  them.  Consequently  only  a  trifling  amount  of  the  sum  voted 
in  1851  for  prosecuting  the  experiments  has  been  expended;  not  is  it  my 
wish  at  present  to  have  a  fresh  grant  of  money,  as  it  is  altogether  uncertain 
when  they  may  be  recommenced.  I  have  not,  however,  neglected  to  examine 
narrowly  the  results  of  the  experiments  already  made,  so  far  as  they  have 
been  reduced.  I  am  glad  to  say  that  they  appear  to  be  very  consistent,  and 
the  experimental  number*  to  be  worthy  of  preservation  as  valuable  data  in 
the  science  of  heat. 

It  is  with  more  reserve  that  I  communicate  any  conclusions  affecting  the 
basis  of  the  theory  of  conductivity  as  commonly  received.  But  having  been 
in  possession  for  more  than  a  year  of  a  result  which  seems  highly  probable, 
if  not  quite  certain,  I  am  unwilling  to  withhold  it  longer  on  account  of  an 
outstanding  difficulty  which  I  have  not  been  able  satisfactorily  to  remove. 
The  result  is  this,  that  in  the  case  of  iron  (the  only  one  yet  tried)  the  flux 


ON  THE  LAWS  OF  THE  CONDUCTION  OF  HEAT. 


261 


(continued.) 


Jane. 

July. 

August. 

September. 

October. 

November. 

December. 

• 

Men 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

tempe- 

Bain-mtl. 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

Bam. 

rature 

Bam. 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

Bam. 

rature 

Bain. 

rature 

Bain. 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

of  the 

da,. 

day 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

day. 

0 

in. 
ri6 

e 
«5-5 

in. 
6*27 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

0 

in. 

in. 

94'S 

°'54 

86- 

«9'1 

, , 

87-8 

. . 

76-5 

89-4 

178 

8.5*9 

.. 

88^ 

.. 

86* 

.. 

76-2 
8o-9f 

66« 

.. 

59*4 

92-9 

.. 

86- 

.. 

85-6 

.. 

86-6 

.. 

64-6 

.. 

59-2 

0*12 

911 

3-00 

8 1-8 

.. 

8 1*9 

.. 

«3'5 

.. 

784 

-. 

59'5 

190 

57*4 

0*50 

• 

94* 

•r 

61-5 

9*2 

864 

.. 

89*1 

.. 

87-5 

.. 

77-6 

.. 

64- 

o*6o 

59'4 

O'lO 

947 

'*54 

»7-3 

.. 

9°*1 

.. 

90-1 

.. 

82* 

.. 

66*4 

1*09 

60*4 

94'K 

ri5 

*rs 

•• 

90*6 

" 

•• 

82-6 

" 

68*5 

i'35 

6o-6 

0-25 

.. 

95'5 

887 

. . 

871 

. . 

74€ 

.. 

6o-6 

. . 

5Z'5 

93* 

0-98 

91*  z 

.. 

90-4 

57*9 

.. 

S* 

90-9 

370 

*5'5 

.. 

«J-» 

.. 

857 

.. 

76*2 

.. 

45' 

69-5 

•• 

68*4 

•• 

667 

•• 

02' I 

"• 

62-8 

9T 

90- 

.  m 

»4- 

55" 

m 

.. 

88-3 

.. 

91*1 

. . 

887 

.. 

85- 

.. 

67' 

.. 

6r 

8r5 

•• 

84*1 

•• 

817 

•• 

«4- 

•• 

•• 

64-5 
62' 

•• 

58-6 

95*5 

89-5 

8a* 

* 

994 

.. 

9**3 

.. 

92*1 

.. 

91-5 

. . 

86-9 

.. 

68-4 

W'5 

86-5 

.. 

8r 

67- 

95* 

1 

93* 

93* 

of  heal  through  the  solid  is  not  in  a  simple  direct  proportion  to  the  difference 
of  temperature  of  two  contiguous  thin  slices,  but  varies  in  a  less  rapid  pro- 
portion; or,  the  conductivity  diminishes  as  the  temperature  increases.  My 
experiments  were  so  framed  as  to  give  the  numerical  relation  between  the 
conductivity  and  the  temperature ;  but  though  the  numbers,  given  by  expe- 
riments under  circumstances  essentially  different,  substantially  agree,  I  do 
not  as  yet  feel  justified  in  assigning  a  numerical  value  to  the  effect  of  tem- 
perature on  the  conductivity  of  iron,  until  the  possible  disturbing  effect  of 
the  cause  which  I  have  mentioned  shall  be  better  ascertained. 

I  take  this  opportunity  of  expressing  my  acknowledgements  to  Professor 
Kelland  for  the  advice  which  he  has,  with  his  usual  kindness,  from  time  to 
time  afforded  me.  I  still  hope  to  be  able  to  renew  these  experiments,  and 
1  shall  not  cease  to  devise  plans  for  their  improvement ;  in  the  meantime  I 
intend  to  put  on  record  both  the  principles  of  the  method  and  the  direct 
results  obtained,  as  well  as  the  reductions ;  and  also  the  manipulations  which 
experience  has  taught  me,  and  which  I  believe  will  be  found  of  use  to  any 
future  observer. 

Ambleside,  25th  August,  1852. 


262  report— 1852. 

On  the  Chemical  Action  of  the  Solar  Radiations. 
By  Robert  Hunt. 

(1).  The  following  results  are  offered  as  a  small  instalment  of  an  exten- 
sive system  of  examination  which  I  have  undertaken.  The  object  in  view 
is  to  determine,  with  all  the  accuracy  possible,  the  relation  which  each 
coloured  ray  of  the  prismatic  spectrum  bears  to  the  chemical  action  which 
takes  place  upon  the  different  agents  employed  in  the  production  of  the 
sensitive  surface.  Since  different  media  exhibit  very  various  degrees  of 
absorbent  action  upon  the  chromatic  rays,  as  well  as  on  the  chemical  rays,  of 
the  spectrum,  by  employing  them  we  obtain  indications  by  which  we  may 
determine  the  relation  in  which  these  phsenomena  stand  to  each  other. 

(2).  The  plan  upon  which  I  am  proceeding  is  this.  Having  obtained  a 
very  extensive  series  of  coloured  glasses,  and  by  the  solution  of  chemical 
compounds,  procured  a  still  mftre  varied  set  of  transparent  coloured  solu- 
tions, I  analyse  the  luminous  spectrum  of  a  well-formed  vertical  opening  be- 
tween two  knife-edges,  by  passing  the  spectrum  through  a  particular  absorb- 
ent medium.  The  spectra  are  obtained,  first,  by  means  of  an  excellent  flint- 
glass  prism ;  again,  by  one  of  crown-glass  of  faultless  purity,  the  manufac- 
ture of  Messrs.  Chance,  Brothers,  of  Birmingham ;  and,  thirdly,  by  a  hollow 
prism,  in  which  I  have  the  means  of  employing  fluids  of  very  different  re- 
fracting powers.  For  obtaining  the  chemical  impression  of  the  spectrum,  I 
procure  a  flame-like  chromatic  image  of  great  intensity,  1  inch  in  length,  from 
a  vertical  opening  in  my  steel  plate.  I  have  adopted  this  as  my  measure 
throughout,  dividing  it  into  100  equal  parts :  thus,  all  the  numbers  employed 
are  intended  to  express  inches,  or  the  one-hundredth  part  of  an  inch. 

(3).  The  first  part  of  the  present  Report  is  devoted  to  the  examination  of 
the  prismatic  spectrum  by  coloured  glasses  of  various  kinds.  The  numbers 
affixed  may  appear  somewhat  irregular,  but  as  they  correspond  with  a  very 
extensive  series,  over  many  of  which  I  have  no  control,  but  which  are  well 
known  to  me  by  these  numbers,  and  can  always  be  obtained,  I  have  thought 
it  best  to  retain  them.  I  have  however  adopted  the  plan  of  numbering  my 
paragraphs,  so  that  in  referring  back  there  will  be  no  difficulty  in  comparing 
the  chemical  with  any  particular  luminous  spectrum. 

As  I  hope  to  present  to  the  next  meeting  a  far  more  complete  examina- 
tion of  this  subject,  I  refrain  from  offering  a  single  speculation,  contenting 
myself  for  the  present  with  the  record  of  careful  observations  and  exact 
experiments. 

The  lines  a  a'  indicate  throughout  the  length  of  the  normal  spectrum. 

Analysis  of  Spectrum  by  Absorbent  Media. — No.  1. 
(A.)  Series  of  Yellow  Glasses. 

(4)  1 6.  Deep  yellow.    Colouring  matter  Carbon*  fig.  1. — The     Kg*  1- 
ordinary  red  rays  very  intense,  but  partaking  more  of  a  scarlet  colour  — - — S- 
from  the  mixture  of  yellow  than  a  pure  red ;  the  orange  and  red  rays 
blend  so  perfectly  that  it  is  difficult  to  define  their  boundaries. 
Combined,  these  rays  occupy  a12.    The  yellow  rays  are  reduced  to 
a  line  of  bright  light  equal  to  '10.  Beyond  these  the  green  rays  ap- 
pear very  intense,  and  occupy  a  well-defined  space  equal  to  *25. 
Blue  and  violet  rays,  confined  within  a  space  equal  to  "38,  appear    ^Zy 
somewhat  more  luminous  than  the  green,  presenting  no  decided     *^Pv 
colour,  but  appearing  rather  as  a  patch  of  a  pale  neutral  tint. 

(5)  15.  Straw- yellow.  Silver  stain  upon  one  surface  only. — Shortens 
the  spectrum  by  two-thirds  of  the  violet,  so  that  its  entire  length  is  reduced 


I 


ON  THE  CHEMICAL  ACTION  OF  THE  SOLAR  RADIATIONS. 

to  -80;  the  other  rays  continue  unchanged,  exhibiting  a  tolerable  degree  of 
intensity.  When  concentrated  by  a  lens  the  violet  ray  is  seen  to  suffer  yet 
further  extinction  relatively  to  the  other  rays. 

(6)  1 8.  Medium  yellow,  believed  to  be  Charcoal. — The  red  ray  exhibits 
more  crimson  from  the  introduction  of  blue ;  orange  and  yellow  well-defined ; 
green  ray  somewhat  shortened,  but  exhibiting  considerable  intensity,  and  well- 
defined.  The  blue  ray  reduced  to  a  small  band,  and  the  rays  beyond  are 
only  indicated  by  a  pale  stream  of  light,  neutral  in  colour. 

(7)  14-  Brown  yellow,  by  Carbon,  fig.  2. — Red     Kg.  2.  Fig.  8. 
and  yellow  rays  are  considerably  reduced ;  the  green  is 
well-defined,  shading  off  into  blue,  of  which  a  faint 
portion  alone  remains,  the  space  beyond  appearing  ra- 
ther a  lavender  colour  than  violet. 

(8)  17.  Deep  yellow,  by  Iron,  fig.  S. — This  spec- 
trum consists  of  four  well-defined  and  nearly  equal 
circles,  or  rather  oval  spaces.  No  blue  can  be  de- 
tected in  the  spectral  image ;  the  green  rays  occupying 
the  place  of  the  blue ;  the  yellow  rays  considerably  ex- 
tended ;  the  red  rays  are  well-defined,  but  on  the  upper 
edge  a  band  of  scarlet  or  deep  orange  is  detected  when  the  eye  has  become 
accustomed  to  the  light  The  violet  has  more  red  than  usual  in  the  rays ; 
and  at  the  upper  edge,  after  long  gazing,  is  seen  a  faint  line  of  neutral  gray, 
the  lavender  ray  of  Herscbel. 

(9)  45.  A  yellow  glass,  having  a  peculiar  pink  hue4 — Does  not  pro- 
duce any  change  on  the  coloured  rays  of  the  spectrum ;  it  appears  to  pro- 
long the  yellow  by  reducing  the  upper  edge  of  the  orange  and  the  lower 
edge  of  the  green. 

(10)  113.  Very  dark  smoky  brown. — All  blue  flowers  appear  of  a 
deep  red  brown.  Purple  and  claret-coloured  flowers  lose  all  their  blue,  and 
appear  red.  The  red,  orange  and  green  rays  only  are  visible  through  this 
glass,  and  the  illuminating  power  of  those  is  very  considerably  diminished. 

(11)  114.  A  lighter  brown  than  113. — A  very  much  more  decided 
action  on  natural  colours  than  113.  An  examination  of  the  spectrum  shows 
that  the  red  rays  are  slightly  shortened ;  the  orange  and  yellow  rays  blend, 
the  yellow  coming  out  in  much  purity ;  the  green  rays  are  well-defined,  but 
cut  off  somewhat  sharply  at  the  more  refrangible  end.  Beyond  these,  by 
accustoming  the  eye  to  the  light,  a  faint  trace  of  blue  becomes  gradually 
apparent. 

(B.)  Series  of  Red  Glasses. 

fig,  4. 

(12)  50.  Pink  olass  (not  very  clear),  fig.  4?- — The  illuminating 
powers  of  all  the  rays  considerably  reduced.  The  violet  rays  are 
lengthened  and  the  indigo  lost ;  the  blue  also  considerably  short- 
ened. The  influence  of  this  glass  is  of  a  very  marked  character  in 
separating  the  rays  from  each  other,  every  ray  visible  being  well 
marked  out.  The  orange  rays  are  only  made  out  after  long  exa- 
mination as  a  line  of  inconsiderable  width  edging  the  red  rays. 
By  using  two  thicknesses  of  this  glass,  and  a  spectrum  concen- 
trated by  a  lens,  the  orange  rays  are  brought  out  as  a  well-marked 
band,  edged  by  two  black  lines. 

(IS)  13.  Violet  glass,  fig.  5. — 1st.  Rays  passed  through  the  glass 
to  the  prism.  The  spectrum  appears  divided  into  two  distinct  parts.  The 
illuminating  power  of  all  the  rays  lessened.  In  the  lower  section  (  \,a\. 
red,  orange  and  green  are  visible ;  blue  and  violet  occupying  the  space  6.   If 


I 


264  report — 1852. 

the  spectrum  is  concentrated  by  a  lens  and  then  Kg  5. 

examined  through  this  glass,  the  images  appear        *•  ** 

as  in  (2  a),  joined  by  a  thin  neck  of  a  neutral 

tint.    Few  spectra  are  more  beautiful  than  this 

when  all  the  extraneous  light  is  cut  off,  each 

colour  being  so  very  distinctly  and  clearly  made 

out,  the  lower  illumination  enabling  the  eye  to     0k  9 

examine  it  without  weariness  or  confusion.  '■'.  y  ?>     y 

(14)  12.  Red  glass  (Gold),  fig.  6.— The    ^r        ,      ^  r 

spectrum  becomes  an  oval  spot  of  intense  red-     ^  —      -X— — 

ness  with  a  prolongation  of  the  same  colour ;  the 

red  oval  comprehending  all  the  rays  from  the  upper  end     Fig.  6.  Fig.  7. 

of  yellow  to  the  end  of  ordinary  red,  and  the  prolongation  a      ^ 

extends  to  the  edge  of  the  blue. 

(15)  117.  Violet-coloured  glass,  fig.  7. — Blue 
flowers  observed  through  it  appear  far  more  red  than      I 
under  ordinary  circumstances*.  The  spectrum  separated      I 
into  two  long  ovals,  one,  6,  being  violet,  and  the  other,    ^L 
<?,  exhibiting  the  red  and  green  rays  only,  the  spectrum   Br 
being  very  considerably  shortened  at  the  least  refran-   ^^ 
gible  end.  

(16)  119.  Violet. — This  glass  obstructs  but  a  very 

small  quantity  of  light,  and  its  action  upon  the  spectrum  is  not  very  decided. 
The  red  rays  are  seen  in  great  beauty  and  purity  extending  over  the  space 
covered  by  the  orange  rays ;  the  yellow  is  very  pure,  but  the  green  is  some- 
what diminished  in  intensity,  and  also  in  length.  The  violet  rap  are  prolonged 
into  the  blue,  thus  shortening  the  latter,  which  are  however  very  brilliant. 

(17)  48.  A  deep  and  not  very  pure  violet. — The  red  rays  are  slightly 
shortened  at  the  lower  end,  but  they  appear  extended  as  they  in-     _. 
crease  in  refrangibility,  so  that  the  orange  and  yellow  rays  present        °a 
a  long  band  of  a  pale  orange  tint  uniform  throughout.     The  blue 
rays  are  sharply  cut  off  from  the  violet,  the  interposing  indigo  being 
nearly  black ;  the  violet  rays  being  themselves  exceedingly  beau- 
tiful and  clear. 

(18)  104.  Lilac  glass  (Manganese),  fig.  8. — Reds  of -flowers 
seen  in  strong  contrast  with  the  leaves,  which  appear  darker  from 
the  loss  of  their  yellow.    The  yellow  rays  of  the  spectrum  are  nearly    jfb  y 
obliterated ;  red  shortened  ;  green  is  gradually  lost  in  black  sba-    Wra' 
dow,  and  all  the  other  rays  blended  in  an  intense  oval  patch  of  blue. 

(C.)  Series  of  Green  Glasses. 

(19)  36.  Apple-green  glass. — The  red  rays  are  shortened  one-half, 
the  yellow  extends  into  the  orange,  and  is  sharply  cut  off  without  any  blend- 
ing at  the  edge  of  the  red ;  on  the  more  refrangible  side  the  green 
encroaches  considerably  on  the  yellow,  and  upwards  into  the  blue ;     KS-  9- 
the  violet  by  extending  into  the  blue  obliterates  the  indigo. 

(20)  33.  Intense  green,  fig.  9. — AH  the  rays  below  the  orange 
are  cut  off;  the  yellow  and  green  form  one  tint  of  pale  pea-green. 
The  blue  rays  are  very  light  in  colour,  losing  but  little  of  their 
illuminating  power,  and  these  are  fringed  with  a  deep  band  of 
indigo ;  no  violet  rays  apparent. 

(21)  34.  Green.    Copper  of  great  brilliancy,  fig.  10. — The  red 
below  the  orange  cut  off;  does  not  shorten  the  violet  end,  but  pro- 
ices  a  great  extension  of  the  blue ;  the  green  rays  encroach  consi- 


Fig.  8. 

r 


l 


I 


ON  THB  CHEMICAL  ACTION  OP  THB  SOLAR  RADlM'NoW  *2$  J?  S  I  T         ' 

derably  on  the  yellow.  The  chemical  action  commences  at  '1 8  ftwq  3$J/?f N '"  \\\  )> 
the  line  a';  the  orange  occupies  the  space  of  #10,  the  yellow  abouK»^>iy^  **    ^ 
•16,  bat  blending  with  the  green ;  this  is  not  easy  of  exact  deter* 
mination ;  the  green  occupying  about  °25,  and  the  blue  and  vio- 
let -38.    There  is  a  considerable  loss  of  light  in  the  spectrum. 

(22)  12a  Grebn  glass  acting  powerfully  on  all  the  reds  of 
flowers,  &c. — Cuts  off  one-half  the  red,  extends  the  yellow,  and  con-   BP|  V 
aequently  reduces  the  green  of  the  spectrum.  The  blue  is  shortened   ^0  ° 
by  an  extension  of  the  violet.    Although  the  reds  of  the  least  re-  a, 

frangible  end  of  the  spectrum  suffer  considerably,  those  which  are  

most  refrangible  pass  this  glass  (copper)  freely. 

(23)  i2i.  Green  glass  (Copper).— Reduces  the  reds  of  spectrum ;  brings 
the  violet  down  on  the  blue ;  but  the  violet  less  red  than  ordinary. 

(24)  122.  Grebn  glass. — Nearly  the  same  as  the  last  (121).    Kg-  "• 
There  is  little  change  on  the  lower  rays,  but  the  blue  and  violet 
rajs  are  reduced  to  one-half  their  ordinary  linear  dimensions. 

(25)  u 6.  Deep  iron-green,  fig.  11. — All  the  reds  of  flowers 
observed  through  this  glass  become  nearly  black.    The  spectrum 
exhibits  two  spots  of  pure  crimson;  perfect  blackness  between  them.      ^ 
A  spot  of  yellow  of  great  purity,  from  which  the  green  shades  off    (''-y 
into  a  light  blue,  which  becomes  very  bright,  and  then  passes  into     ~ 
a  line  of  indigo.    The  violet  is  entirely  wanting. 

(26)  115.  A  pale  8M0KT-GRBEN. — Acts  but  very  slightly  upon 
any  of  the  rays. 

(27)  44.  Deep  iron-green,  fig.  12, — Cuts  off  the  lower  red  rays ;  Fig.  12. 
admits  the  permeation  of  the  orange  rays  freely.  The  green  very 
much  blended  with  the  yellow,  so  that  it  is  only  by  adjusting  with 
great  care  that  a  line  of  yellow  can  be  seen.  The  blue  and  violet 
rays  suffer  scarcely  any  change,  the  lengths  of  these  rays  being  rela- 
tively as  follows: — green  *30,  blue  "25,  violet  '15. 

(28)  6.  Intense  copper- green. — The  spectrum  appears  as  v..    . 
orange,  green,  blue  and  violet.     The  yellow  rays  are  entirely  want-   \^n 
ing ;  a  very  thin  line  of  red  appears  at  the  lower  end  of  orange ;  the    ™ 
violet  is  considerably  reduced  by  the  loss  of  red.  ^ 

In  all  the  deep  greens  we  find  the  violet  rays  almost  entirely  destroyed 
owing  to  the  removal  of  the  red.  It  is  from  results  of  this  character  that  I 
am  led  to  believe  the  violet  rays  to  be  due  to  a  reappearance  of  red  rays 
amongst  the  more  refrangible  ordinary  rays. 

(29)  52.  Yellowish-green  glass. — This  glass  has  but  very  slight  ac- 
tion on  the  spectrum,  defining  more  perfectly  than  ordinary  the  limits  of  the 
violet,  but  producing  no  sensible  change  on  any  other  of  the  chromatic  rays. 

(30)  107.  Light  green. — The  reds  of  flowers  are  lost,  the  flowers  ap- 
pearing purple.  Yellows  are  also  lost,  the  yellow  blossom  of  the  Elder  tree, 
Ac.  becoming  pure  white. 

The  violet  rays  are  considerably  cut  off;  the  other  rays  are  well-defined, 
but  more  green  and  less  yellow  than  ordinary. 

(31)  119.  Light  bottle-green. — Produces  no  evident  change  on  na- 
tural colours ;  its  action  on  the  spectrum  is  merely  to  define  the  spaces  of 
the  rays  without  producing  any  other  change. 

(32)  no.  Deep  bottle-green. — Natural  blues  are  blackened,  and  the 
paler  reds  suffer  slightly.  This  glass  cuts  off  all  the  most  refrangible  rays ; 
a  band  of  violet,  or  blue  with  some  red,  is  seen  lining  the  edge  of  the  green. 
The  green  rays  very  brilliant,  and  yellow  passing  to  whiteness ;  the  red  rays 
suffering  scarcely  any  change. 


% 


266  report— 1852. 

(S3)  1 02.  Olive-green*— Green  of  spectrum  somewhat  more  yellow; 
the  violet  diminished  by  an  elongation  of  the  indigo ;  the  violet  appearing  as 
a  border  to  the  indigo  only. 

(34)  103.  Deep  olive-green. — Red  flowers  not  to  be  distinguished  from 
the  green  leaves;  spectrum  diminished  to  red,  yellow  and  green  rays,  the  red 
being  very  much  reduced  in  extent,  and  the  yellow  and  orange  blended. 

(D.)  Series  of  Blue  Glasses. 

(35)  49.  A  light  blue,  fig.  13. — The  spectrum  is  represented    Fig.  13. 
in  its  three  primary  rays,  suffering  a  little  reduction  in  length ;  when  * 
concentrated  by  a  lens  a  little  violet  appears  at  the  extreme  edge 
of  the  blue.    Natural  objects  do  not  suffer  much  change  when  ob- 
served through  this  glass ;  purple  flowers  lose  more  of  their  red 
than  blue,  and  violet-coloured  ones  appear  nearly  pure  blue. 

(36)  46.  Intense  cobalt-blue,  fig.  14. — The  ordinary  red  ray 
disappears,  and  a  pure  crimson  ray,  the  extreme  red,  is  seen  below 
the  lower  edge  a1  of  the  ordinary  spectrum  and  extending  up  to  the 
mean  yellow.    All  the  rays  but  the  blue,  which  becomes  very 
intense,  and  a  trace  of  violet  at  v,  are  ob- 
literated, the  red  rays  being  sharply  cut  off  at 
y,  between  which  and  the  blue  a  dark  band 
appears.     When  concentrated  by  a  lens,  the 
spectrum  is  changed,  as  shown  in  (2).     The 
lower  crimson  ray  at  a'  becoming  a  defined 
circle,  surrounded  by  a  band  of  intense  black- 
ness, which  extends  to  the  second  circle  at  y, 
which,  instead  of  being  crimson,  as  was  conti- 
nued in  the  neck  of  (1 ),  is  now  of  a  lavender 
hue,  from  the  mixture  of  some  yellow  with  the 
red,  the  blue  is  condensed,  the  black  at  the  lowest  edge  being  an  intense 
indigo. 

(37)  3.  Combined  blue  and  green  glasses,  fig.  16. — Looking  at  the 
spectrum  through  these  glasses,  every  trace  of  red  is  obliterated,  the  resulting 
spectrum  being  a  pure  green  and  blue.   Making  the  rays  pass  from    pjg#  1& 
the  prism  to  a  lens  (fig.  15),  and  causing  the  concentrated  rays  to 

Kg.  15. 


i 


permeate  this  combination,  the  result  is  somewhat  more  decided.  The  spec- 
trum is  not  shortened  at  the  most  refrangible  end,  but  the  red  of  the  violet 
is  entirely  removed,  forming  a  pure  blue  patch  equal  to  *8.  Over  the  space 
marked  g  the  green  is  far  more  luminous  than  over  any  other  part,  and  the 
rays  gradually  darken  towards  the  lower  end. 

(38)  105.  Deep  cobalt-blue,  fig.  17.— The  red  of  flowers,  as  of  the 
Fuchsia,  &c,  is  entirely  lost,  and  not  to  be  distinguished  from  the  green  leaves. 
The  surface  of  leaves  appears  a  grey  or  blue,  with  a  few  exceptions ;  the  Arbor 
viUe  assumes  a  red-brown  colour,  remarkable  from  the  striking  contrast  it 
makes  with  the  surrounding  trees.    The  leaves  of  the  Currant  and  several 


ON  THE  CHEMICAL  ACTION  OF  THE  SOLAR  RADIATIONS. 

other  plants  appear  red  on  their  under  surface  when  examined  through  this 

glass,  the  light  falling  on  the  upper  surface,  and  being  trans-      Rg#  17, 

mitted.  Yellow  Nasturtiums  become  of  an  intense  brown.  Blue 

Larkspurs  not  to  be  distinguished  from  the  leaves.    The  violet 

and  blue  rays  form  a  large  oval,  which,  encroaching  on  the 

green,  reduces  it  to  a  line  bordering  the  lower  edge  of  the  blue. 

Yellow,  a  well-defined  circular  spot,  ordinary  red  obliterated, 

and  the  extreme  red  forming  a  well-defined  circular  image  quite 

surrounded  by  a  black  band.    A  prism  of  crown-glass  gives 

the  same  result,  as  does  also  the  hollow  prism  filled  with  Castor 

oiL    The  extension  of  this  spectrum  is  remarkable. 

(39)  108.  Pale  grey-blue  appears  to  act  most  upon  the 
yellow  of  natural  objects,  but  produces  no  marked  difference  in 
the  general  tints.  Its  action  on. the  spectrum  is  very  slight;  the  yellow  ray 
is  somewhat  reduced  in  size,  and  appears  whiter  than  ordinary;  and  the 
green  is  lessened  by  the  blue  ray  encroaching  on  it. 

(40)  112.  A  smoky-blub* — No  effect  on  colours  generally;  increases 
the  extent  of  the  violet  and  diminishes  the  blue.  The  yellow  suffers,  green 
passing  into  it;  orange  lost  in  the  red. 

9  (41)  in.  Blue-grey. — Produces  a  slight,  but  by  no  means  a  marked 
change  on  the  colours  of  natural  objects ;  defines  more  perfectly  the  line 
between  the  blue  and  violet,  and  by  lowering  the  yellow  gives  a  more  de- 
cided margin  to  the  green. 

(42)  118.  Pale  blue,  fig.  18. — The  reds  of  flowers  are  nearly 
lost  when  observed  through  this  glass,  all  extraneous  light  being 
shut  off  from  the  eyes.  The  red  rays  of  the  spectrum  are  thrown 
into  two  circles,  and  the  yellow  into  a  well-marked  patch.  The 
green  rays  are  well  defined;  blue  and  indigo  do  not  appear  to 
suffer  change.     The  red  of  the  violet  is  completely  lost 

(43)  123.  Light  cobalt-blue. — The  red  of  the  spectrum  is 
brought  into  a  well-defined  oval,  the  yellow  very  distinct;  the  green 
rays  are  considerably  reduced.  The  blue  rays  extended,  and  con- 
sequently the  violet  rays  are  much  diminished. 

(44)  47.  Deep  purple  glass. — Red,  orange,  green,  and  blue  rays  ad- 
mitted ;  violet  only  distinguished  after,  long  examination.  When  concen- 
trated by  a  lens,  the  violet  becomes  quite  visible  as  a  well-defined  band  of 
coloured  light. 

(E.)  Miscellaneous. 

(45)  1 01.  Smoke-coloured  glass. — Does  not  appear  to  alter  the  co- 
lours of  natural  objects  observed  through  it  Blue  of  spectrum  nearly  ob- 
literated, but  the  indigo  and  violet  rays  are  extended;  entire  length  of 
spectrum  is  not  lessened.  The  most  remarkable  feature  is  the  way  in  which 
the  spectrum  is  extended  over  the  violet  end,  proving  the  existence  of  red 
rays  far  down  in  the  ordinary  blue  rays. 

(46)  106.  A  grey  glass. — Removes  some  red  from  the  violet  and 
shortens  it.  All  the  rays  lose  in  luminous  power,  otherwise  they  do  not 
appear,  relatively,  to  change. 

(47)  115.  Smoke-coloured,  having  a  green  tint- — Scarcely  any 
action  on  either  of  the  rays ;  there  is  a  little  loss  of  light. 

(48)  151.  Glass  very  slightly  smoky. — No  change  can  be  detected 
when  this  glass  is  interposed. 


268  report— 1852. 

Chemical  Series,  No.  1. 

Chemical  Spectra  obtained  after  the  Prismatic  Spectrum  has  been  analysed 
by  the  interposition  of  Transparent  Coloured  Screens. 

Photographic  Agent. 

CoUodio-iodide  of  Silver  on  Glass  Plates*. 

The  Dumber*  preceding  the  coloured  glass  employed,  refer  to  the  numbers  attached  to  each 
particular  medium  in  the  previous  aeries.  No.  1.  Those  following  the  colour  refer  to  the 
paragraph. 

(49)*  Normal  Spectrum,  formed  by  a  very  pure  flint-glass  prism. — Light 
admitted  between  two  knife-edges,  separated  £th  of  an  inch,  and  generally 
passed  through  a  hole  of  the  same  diameter  in  an  inner  screen.  The  chro- 
matic image  was  received  on  a  white  tablet  in  a  perfectly  black  box ;  its 
length,  when  most  accurately  adjusted,  was  1  inch  and  rf^ths,  but  for  con- 
venience  this  has  been  reduced  to  1  inch  and  divided  into  100  parts,  and  re- 
latively to  this  all  the  chemical  spectra  have  been  corrected  (1:2). 

(50).  Without  any  interposed  medium,  fig.  1 9. — Chemical  Fig.  19. 

action  commences  '40  above  the  lower  end  of  red, and  from 
this  point  extends  to  the  length  of  l£  inch.  Over  the 
space  covered  by  the  red  and  orange  rays  are  indications 
of  a  well-defined  circle  of  protective  action ;  immediately 
above  this  a  dusky  brown  commences,  forming  a  kind  of 
fringing  which  is  extended  to  "60,  and  in  a  similar  manner 
it  bounds  the  whole  of  the  spectrum.  This  is  due  to 
diffused  light,  which  I  always  find  bordering  the  spectrum. 
Over  a  space  equal  to  '10  a  well-defined  black  space  ap- 
pears, then  the  action  weakens,  but  is  still  strong  over  *7, 
when  it  again  increases  just  at  the  end  of  the  violet,  and 
is  somewhat  sharply  cut  off  at  1*90  above  0,  or  lowest 
red,  presenting  an  image  similar  to  that  represented  in 
the  margin.  Placing  the  glass  at  a  small  angle,  and  ob- 
serving the  spectrum  by  reflexion,  the  lower  dark  space 
comes  out  very  strongly,  and  the  "whole  space  above  it 
appears  of  a  dark  semi-metallic  purple  shaded  by  a  dusky 
brown  border. 

Glasses  (A.)  Yellow  Media.  **' 

(51)  1 6.  Deep  yellow  (4),  fig.  20. — Chemical  ac- 
tion commencing  over  the  region  of  the  indigo  and  violet 
rays,  the  most  intense  action  appearing  to  take  place 
about  the  line  H  of  Fraunhofer.  It  forms  eventually  a 
well-defined  oval,  the  greatest  amount  of  darkening  going 
on  in  the  centre  of  the  impressed  spectrum,  a  protected 
band,  well-defined  from  the  other  parts  of  the  surface,  in 

*  The  collodion  was  made  with  gun-cotton  which  had  been  pre- 
pared with  nitrate  of  potash  and  sulphuric  acid.  This  being  well 
washed  was  dissolved  in  aether.  Iodide  of  potassium  was  dissolved  in 
spirits  of  wine  and  iodide  of  silver  added  so  long  as  it  would  take 
up  any,  and  two  drachms  of  this  were  mixed  with  one  fluidounce  of 
the  collodion.  The  solution  of  silver  employed  was  30  grains  to  the 
fluidounce  of  distilled  water.  The  image  was  always  developed  by 
pyrogallic  acid. 


ON  THE  CHEMICAL  ACTION  OP  THE  SOLAR  RADIATIONS. 

contract  with  the  little  darkening  from  extraneous  light  beyond  the  luminous 
image.    The  space  between  a  and  the  lower  end  of  the  impressed  spectrum 
is  very  decidedly  protected  from  change.    Upon  placing  the       Fig.  21. 
glass  in  a  solution  of  hyposulphite  of  soda,  and  allowing  it  to 
remain  for  some  time,  the  variations  of  action  are  more  ap- 
parent:—1st,  the  very  dark  centre;  2nd,  a  band  of  much 
weaker  action ;  3rd,  a  far  more  energetic  band  surrounding 
the  whole ;  and  4th,  a  protected  band  extending  from  the  lower 
point  far  below  this  as  a  protected  circle,  as  indicated  by  the 
shading  in  the  figure. 

(52)  18.  Medium  yellow  (6),  fig.  21. — Chemical  action 
commences  above  the  yellow  ray,  upon  the  confines  of,  but  in 
the  green,  commencing  a40  above  lower  red,  the  space  oc- 
cupied by  the  green  rays  being  impressed  as  a  well-defined 
oval  of  the  length  of  a25,  then  a  neck  of  very  much  lower  in- 
tensity of  *20 ;  a  large  and  well-defined  oval  *90  in  length, 
exhibiting  the  greatest  degree  of  intensity  in  the  middle  space, 

shaded  off  to  the  edges.    The  length  of  impressed  spectrum       

1*40,  and  from  the  zero  a!  to  end  of  chemical  action  1*85,  or  pjg.  22. 
length  of  action  beyond  luminous  spectrum  at  a  '85.  Here 
we  have  an  extinction  of  the  violet  and  indigo  rays ;  and  over 
the  space  occupied  by  the  blue  rays  a  comparatively  weak 
action,  this  action  being  continued  with  very  much  energy 
over  the  space  occupied  by  the  dark  rays.  The  indication  of 
protected  spaces  around  the  spectrum  is  less  evident  than  in 
many  other  examples. 

(53)  114.  Light  red-brown  (11),  fig.  22. — Action  com- 
mencing at  *75  and  extending  with  tolerably  uniform  inten- 
sity to  1-60,  and  gradually  shading  off  to  1*85.  At  the  lower 
end  the  action  descends  slowly  to  *65*  A  brown  line  of 
shading  appears  around  this  spectrum,  but  this  is  probably  due 
to  dispersed  light,  since  this  shading  is  considerably  increased 
when  many  clouds  are  floating  about. 


Glasses  (B.)  Red  Media* 

(54)  1 3.  Violet  glass  (IS),  fig.  23 Chemical  action  commences  at  *60 

above  0,  and  is  then  continued  with  tolerable  uniformity  to  1*35,  a  faint  sha- 
ding being  prolonged  about  "15  further,  or  a50  beyond  the  luminous  spectrum. 
The  long  dark  oval  in  the  interior  of  the  spectrum  exhibits  a  more  intense 
chemical  action  than  the  other  portion;  this  darkened  space  appears  to 
belong  mainly  to  the  upper  oval  of  the  luminous        Fig.  23.  Pig.  24. 

spectrum  and  over  the  dark  space  beyond  it  In 
some  other  experiments,  during  a  period  when 
the  sky  was  covered  with  light  white  clouds,  and 
consequently  when  the  intensity  of  the  sunshine 
was  varying,  the  chemical  limits  were  subject 
to  constant  changes,  commencing  sometimes  as 
high  as  *70  and  terminating  at  *30. 

(55)  104.  Lilac  glass  (18),  fig.  24. — Che- 
mical action  commences  at  *75  and  ceases  en- 
tirely at  1-25,  forming  thus  one  small  patch  of 
changed  silver,  commencing  near  the  line  H,  and 
occupying  but  about  one  half-inch  of  space. 


**&•  *" 

^ 


270 


REPORT — 1852. 


More  than  half  of  the  blue  rays  are  inactive,  the  action  being 
confined  to  the  space  of  the  violet  and  the  lavender  rays. 
(56)  12.  Red  (Gold)  (14),  fig.  25.— A  great  number 
of  experiments  have  been  made  with  the  hope  of  detecting 
some  chemical  action  on  the  iodized  collodion  by  the 
bright  crimson  rays  which  permeate  this  glass.  In  no 
instance  have  I  been  successful;  instead  of  obtaining  any 
indication  of  change,  the  only  result  has  been  the  occa- 
sional evidence  of  a  protecting  action  over  the  spot  on 
which  the  oval  red  patch,  described  in  the  analysis  of 
the  spectrum,  falls  when  diffused  radiations  have*  acted 
on  the  sensitive  surface  generally. 


Fig.  25. 


Glasses  (C.)  Green  Media. 


Kg.  26. 


(57)  36.  Bright  apple-green  (19), 
fig.  26. — Action  appears  singularly  divided. 
Two  spaces  of  most  intense  action,  corre- 
sponding with  the  green  and  violet  rays  as 
shown  at  y,  0,  these  being  surrounded  with 
a  band  of  a  chocolate-brown  colour.  By 
placing  the  glass  in  a  strong  solution  of  the 
hyposulphite  of  soda  the  outer  band  is 
readily  dissolved  off,  but  the  ovals  y,  v  resist 
for  a  long  time  the  action  of  the  solvent, 
dissolving  jndeed,  only  when  the  film  of  col- 
lodion separates  from  the  glass. 

(58).  The  former  result  was  obtained  in 

London.    On  repeating  the  experiments  at       a^  a[ 

Falmouth,  a  very  different  result  was  ob- 
tained. The  action  commencing  at  *60,  and  continuing  to  1*60,  an  extended 
though  much  weaker  action  is  prolonged  to  '35.  The  experiments  having 
been  repeated  several  times  in  both  localities  under  precisely  the  same  con- 
ditions as  regards  prism,  size  of  opening  between  knife-edges,  length  of 
spectrum,  &c^  these  results  indicate  some  peculiar  atmospheric  conditions. 
These,  however,  can  only  be  determined  by  several  sets  of  experiments  at 
different  times. 

(59)  6.  Intense  copper-green  (28),  fig.  27* 
— Intense  action,  producing  a  bronzed  line, 
commences  at  -60  and  extends  to  1*10,  or  over 
a  space  equal  to  *50.  A  weak  action  extends 
down  to  '45,  marking  the  space  occupied  by 
the  green  ray*  A  similar  modified  action 
extends  upward  to  1*60.  By  long  exposure  a 
light  fringe  appears  over  the  space  occupied 
by  the  yellow  rays,  the  actual  chemical  spec- 
trum being  1*35  in  length.  The  fringe  around 
the  lower  part  of  the  spectrum,  which  is  not 
readily  explained,  is  a  tolerably  constant  re- 
sult It  may  possibly  arise  from  some  refrac- 
tion of  the  rays  near  the  Fraunhofer  line  B, 
within  the  glass  plate. 

(60)  34.  Green  (Copper)  (21),  fig.  28.— 
Action  commences  at  *60,  and  it  is  continued 


Kg.  27. 


Kg.  28. 


ON  THE  CHEMICAL  ACTION  OF  THE  SOLAR  RADIATIONS.      271 

with  fall  intensity  to  1*15.  This  forms  a  well-defined  dark  olive-green  oval 
spot ;  it  is  somewhat  smaller  at  the  upper  end;  the  chemical  action  is  then 
continued  faintly  to  1*85,  and  still  more  faintly  to  1*60.  At  the  lower  end  the 
impressed  image  descends  to  '50,  and  a  faint  border  of  dusky  brown  sur- 
rounds the  spectrum,  which  is  impressed  over  a  space  equal  to  1*5.  The  prin- 
cipal action  is  limited  to  the  blue  and  the  rays  above  it 

(61)  33.  Intense  green  (20),  fig.  29. — The  action  here  on      Rg.  29. 
the  most  sensitive  collodion  plates  is  exceedingly  slow,  and  after     # 

an  exposure  of  five  minutes  in  the  brightest  sunshine,  the  only    & 

indication  of  any  chemical  action  is  the  appearance  of  a  faint 
spot  near  the  line  H.    This  when  acted  on  by  the  pyrogallic     • 
acid  becomes  very  dark,  and  another  spot  a  little  beyond  the 
violet  rays  makes  its  appearance. 

(62).  In  the  camera  obscura,  which  has  been  devised  for 
working  with  the  very  sensitive  and  beautiful  collodion  process 

in  the  open  air,  yellow  glasses  have  been  introduced  for  the   ^ 

purpose,  as  it  was  thought,  of  cutting  off  the  chemical  rays,  at 
the  same  time  as  light  enough  was  admitted  to  enable  the  operator  to  see 
his  work.  The  results  obtained  (see  Yellow  Media)  clearly  prove  that  rays, 
chemically  active  for  collodion,  pass  the  yellow  media  very  freely;  some 
green  glasses,  as  the  above,  offer  much  more  obstruction,  but  red  glasses  ap- 
pear to  be  still  more  effective. 

(63)  44.  Deep  iron-green  (27). — The  action  of  this  spectrum  is  very 
slow,  and  confined  to  the  limits  between  the  mean  green  ray  and  the  extreme 
violet.  In  a  great  many  experiments  the  spectrum  impressed  has  been  always 
limited  to  the  space  *50 ;  that  is,  it  has  commenced  in  the  middle  of  the 
luminous  spectrum  and  terminated  with  the  violet  rays.  Very  weak  hypo- 
sulphite of  soda  washes  off  the  darkened  portion  so  readily,  that  I  am  led  to 
infer  that  it  is  an  exceedingly  superficial  dust  upon  the  surface  only. 

(64)  116.  Another  deep  iron-green  (25)-— By  long-continued  action 
there  is  scarcely  a  trace  of  any  chemical  change.  Here  we  have  an  example 
of  a  spectrum  in  which  the  blue  class  of  rays,  ordinarily  called  the  cJtemical 
rays,  are  very  brilliant,  yet  they  are  chemically  inactive  upon  this  most  sen- 
sitive photographic  preparation. 


Glasses  (D.)  Blue  Media. 

(65)  105.  Deep  cobalt-blue  (38),  fig.  SO. — The 
rapidity  of  action  with  this  medium  prevents  the  marking 
of  many  of  the  more  remarkable  gradations  of  change 
which  appear  to  go  on  within  the  chemical  spectrum. 
Chemical  action  commences  between  *70  and  1*70,  and  ex- 
tends up  to  2-20.  The  inner  portion  of  this  spectrum 
appears  the  lightest,  but  in  reality  .the  action  has  been 
much  more  intense  over  this  section  than  on  any  other 
part,  and  the  semi-transparency  of  this  portion  is  due  to 
the  complete  production  of  metallic  silver  in  a  state  of 
fine  division.  Ammonia  will  dissolve  off  the  outer  dark 
brown  edge,  but  does  not  act  in  the  slightest  degree  on 
the  inside  oval  space.  The  spectrum  obtained  without 
any  interposed  medium  is,  upon  collodion,  of  less  extent 
than  that  now  described;  it  is,  usually,  a  long  flame- 
shaped  band  of  1-60  or  1*70  in  length,  and  of  uniform 
intensity  throughout    The  operation  of  the  cobalt-blue 


Fig.  30. 


272 


REPORT — 1852. 


glasses  on  the  spectrum  indicates'some  peculiar  influences,  which  require  more 
extensive  study  than  they  have  yet  received.  The  remarkable  difference 
between  the  luminous  and  the  chemical  spectrum  is  very  striking,  and  it  ap- 
pears to  indicate  the  independent  existence  of  the  actinic  or  chemical  ray*. 

(66)  3.  Combination  blue  and  green  (S7)»  fig.  SI* — The  spectrum 
impressed  by  long  exposure  commences  at  "45  and  terminates  sharply  at  10, 
there  being  no  indication  of  any  action  beyond  the  visible  spectrum.  It  will 
be  found  by  examining  the  drawing  of  the  luminous  spectrum  obtained 


r 


when  the  light  has  passed  this  combination  of     K_  31 
glasses,  that  the  action  commences  at  the  Lower 
edge  of  the  green  rays.    The  whole  space  im- 
pressed has  equal  intensity  throughout,  with  a 
brightening  of  the  silver  in  the  middle. 

(67)  49.  A  Light  blue  (95),  fig.  32.— The 
action  commences  at  the  lower  edge  of  the  blue 
rays  '55  fromO,  and  extends  to  1*40,  when  it  is 
suddenly  interrupted.  Considering  the  usual 
character  of  blue  glasses,  and  that  this  one  is  of 
an  unusually  transparent  nature,  it  will  be  uer 
cessary  to  subject  it  to  a  much  more  search- 
ing examination  than  it  has  yet  received.     That 

the  chemical  change  is  very  superficial,  is  proved  by  the        pjg  33, 
rapidity  with  which  the  hyposulphite  of  soda  removes  the 
impression. 

(68)  46.  Cobalt-blue  (36),  fig.  S3. — Action  com- 
mencing at  *75,  extending  with  full  energy  to  1*50;  at 
the  lower  edge  it  is  continued  with  faint  shading  to  '55, 
and  even  some  very  slight  continuation  to  *0,  which  is  to 
be  detected  by  placing  the  collodion  glass  plate  upon  a 
sheet  of  white  paper  and  viewing  it  at  a  small  angle,  and 
shading  off  at  the  most  refrangible  end,  until  at  2*10  all 
action  appears  to  cease.  This  is  the  greatest  extension 
of  the  spectrum  which  up  to  this  date  (August  20,  1852) 
has  been  obtained ;  and  in  two  experiments  made  in  very 
intense  sunshine  at  noon-day,  a  well-marked  spot  has 
been  obtained  *10  below  0,  as  marked  in  the  drawing. 
This  spot  will  be  found  to  correspond  with  one  of  Sir 
John  Herschel's  heat  spots,  and  may  possibly  be  referred 
to  some  peculiar  chemical  action  due  to  the  so-called  pa* 
rathermic.nja.  The  presence  of  vapour,  in  the  form  of 
light  cloud  or  mist,  however  attenuated,  appears  to  ob- 
struct this  peculiar  class  of  rays.    . 

(E.)  Miscellaneous  Series. 

(69)  101.  Smoxy-coloured  glass  (46),  fig.  34. — Che- 
mical action  commences  at  *70  and  extends  to  1*90.  At  the 
least  refrangible  end  the  impression  descends  faintly  to  -50. 
The  maximum  of  action  is  within  the  limits  of  the  visible  most 
refrangible  rays,  the  most  intense  spot  being  near  Fraunhofer's 
line  H. 

Those  media  which  have  been  employed  in  the  analysis  of 
the  prismatic  spectrum,  and  are  described  in  the  optical  series, 
but  which  do  not  appear  in  the  chemical  one,  have  been  omitted, 
until  further  experiments  confirm,  or  the  contrary,  the  results 
which  have  been  obtained. 


Kg.  32. 


Kg.  34. 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  2jS 

On  the  Composition  and  (Economy  of  the  Flax  Plant.  By  Dr.  Hodges, 
jF.C.S.,  Professor  of  Agriculture,  Queen? s  College,  Belfast,  and 
Chemist  to  the  Chemico-Agricultural  Society. 

Next  in  importance  to  the  study  of  the  substances  which  serve  man  for  food, 
is  the  investigation  of  the  composition  and  osconomy  of  the  materials  which 
yield  him  clothing.  Among  the  plants  which,  from  the  most  remote  anti- 
quity, have  been  valued  for  their  textile  adaptation,  those  of  the  Linaceee 
family — and  especially  the  Linum  usitatissimum%  a  native  of  our  own  country, 
and  widely  spread  over  Europe,  and  also  found  in  Hindostan  and  North 
America — have  occupied  a  prominent  place ;  the  flax  plant,  we  have  reason 
to  believe,  having  been  cultivated  for  its  fibre  in  the  earliest  seats  of  civi- 
lization, and  manufactured  in  the  tents  of  the  patriarchal  fathers  of  our  race. 
We  find  that  it  was  worn  in  the  temples,  and  the  microscope  has  demon- 
strated that  it  was  entombed  in  the  sepulchres  of  Egypt.  It  also  appears 
that  its  valuable  qualities  were  known  to  the  ancient  tribes  of  northern  and 
western  Europe. 

A  complete  account  of  the  flax  plant,  and  its  industrial  applications  in 
Ireland,  should  include — 1st,  the  history  of  flax  cultivation  in  Ireland ;  2nd, 
an  account  of  the  processes  of  cultivation ;  3rd,  an  examination  of  the  chemical 
composition  of  the  plant ;  4th,  an  account  of  its  technical  preparation. 

The  second  division  of  the  subject,  however,  belongs  so  exclusively  to  the 
practical  department  of  agriculture,  that  its  consideration  may  at  present  be 
properly  omitted ;  and  though  it  would  be  out  of  place  to  occupy  much  time 
in  this  Section  with  the  first  division,  yet  a  few  remarks  may  be  permitted, 
for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  the  attention  which,  from  a  very  remote  period, 
seems  to  have  been  directed  to  flax  cultivation  in  this  country,  and  as  illus- 
trative of  its  vast  importance  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  province  in  the  com- 
mercial capital  of  which  we  are  now  assembled. 

1  .  The  History  of  Flax  Cultivation  in  Ireland. — From  the  earliest  periods, 
we  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  inhabitants  of  this  island  were  acquainted 
with  the  valuable  qualities  possessed  by  the  fibre  of  the  flax  plant,  and  manu- 
factured it  for  clothing.  By  whom,  however,  or  from  what  country  it  was 
introduced,  we  have  no  satisfactory  record ;  for  the  assertion  made  by  some 
writers,  that  the  Phoenicians  were  the  instructors  of  the  Irish  people,  is 
totally  destitute  of  historical  foundation.  Our  Irish  name  for  flax  is  Lhin, 
which  word  is  also  applied  to  thread,  while  the  term  Anairt,  which  is  used 
to  express  a  kind  of  coarse  linen  cloth  worn  by  the  peasantry,  Dr.  O'Donovan, 
of  Queen's  College,  whose  extensive  and  valuable  researches  in  connexion 
with  the  native  records  of  this  kingdom  are  so  well  known,  informs  me  has 
no  cognate  term  in  any  language  with  which  he  is  acquainted,  and  is  evidently 
a  word  of  great  antiquity.  In  the  Brehon  laws,  also,  we  find  it  enjoined  that 
the  Brughaidhs  or  farmers  must  be  acquainted  with  the  mode  of  working  flax. 
The  linen  shirt,  dyed  yellow,  indeed,  appears  to  have  been  a  national  dress ; 
and  the  celebrated  Jesuit,  Edmund  Campion,  speaking  of  the  "  meere"  Irish, 
describes  their  fondness  for  capacious  linen  garments.  "  Linen  shirts,*'  he 
says,  "  the  rich  doe  weare  for  wantonness  and  bravery,  with  wide  hanging 
sleeves,  playted ;  thirtie  yards  are  little  enough  for  one  of  them."  The 
importance  of  flax  cultivation  in  Ireland  appears  to  have  been  fully  recognized 
by  the  English  government,  as  may  be  inferred  from  the  number  of  legislative 
enactments  and  grants  for  its  encouragement  In  1809,  we  find  that  govern- 
ment appropriated  the  sum  of  £20,000  for  this  purpose.  The  exertions  of 
several  national  societies  have  also  been  directed  to  the  promotion  of  flax 

1852.  T 


274  report — 1652. 

cultivation ;  and  by  the  labours  of  the  Royal  Dublin  Society,  the  parent  of 
all  our  agricultural  associations,  important  improvements  were  introduced  in 
the  management  of  this  crop.  Since  the  establishment,  in  1841,  of  the  Royal 
Flax  Improvement  Society  of  Ireland — an  association  of  proprietors  and  ma- 
nufacturers, which  was  originated,  and  holds  its  meetings  in  this  town — there 
has  been  expended  of  money,  collected  by  subscriptions  from  members, 
£8000,  and  of  money  granted  by  the  government  to  the  Society,  for  the  pro* 
motion  of  flax  cultivation  in  the  south  and  west  of  Ireland,  £4000.  Vet, 
notwithstanding  the  efforts  which  have  been  made  by  governments  and 
sooleties  to  stimulate  the  culture  of  flax,  and  though  the  total  extent  of  the 
crop  produced  last  year  was  estimated  by  the  Census  Commissioners  as  equal 
to  138,619  acres,  the  value  of  which  would  be  about  £1,700,000,  this  produce 
is  only  about  a  fourth  of  that  annually  required  by  the  rapidly  increasing 
manufactures  of  the  United  Kingdom.  Though  flax  is  at  present  cultivated 
in  almost  every  part  of  Ireland,  yet  it  is  in  Ulster  that  this  branch  of  industry 
has  attained  its  chief  development  Of  the  138,619  acres  of  flax  grown  in 
1851,  only  14s 893  acres  were  beyond  the  bounds  of  this  province.  It  is  in 
Ulster,  also,  that  the  principal  seats  of  its  manufacture  are  to  be  found. 

2.  The  Composition  of  the  Flax  Plant. — In  reference  to  the  third  division 
of  the  subject,  I  conceive  that  the  most  satisfactory  method  will  be  to  com- 
municate the  history  of  a  crop  grown  by  myself  for  experimental  purposes, 
the  progress  of  which  I  was  able  carefully  to  watch,  from  the  sowing  of  the 
seed  till  its  conversion  into  dressed  flax  for  the  market  Some  of  the  details 
which  I  have  collected,  though  of  importance  in  the  study  of  agricultural 
science,  have  not  been  hitherto  much  attended  to  in  this  country. 

The  field  selected  for  the  experiments  was  situated  about  a  mile  and  a 
half  from  Belfast ;  it  has  a  south-west  aspect,  and  the  soil  is  a  sandy  loam, 
composed  of  transported  materials,  such  as  are  common  in  the  districts  sur- 
rounding Belfast.  It  had  been  occupied  as  a  grazing  field  for  four  years, 
and  allowed  to  produce  rich  crops  of  thistles  and  ragweeds.  Its  chemical 
examination  proved  that  it  contained  a  fair  supply  of  all  the  ingredients  re- 
quired for  the  purposes  of  cultivation:  100  parts  had  the  following  compo- 
sition : — 

Organic  matters 6*60 

Oxide  of  iron 2*06 

Alumina 2*00 

Carbonate  of  lime   1*91 

Sulphate  of  lime 1*01 

Phosphate  of  lime 0*18 

Carbonate  of  magnesia    . . 0*06 

Salts  of  potash  and  soda 2*40 

Insoluble  siliceous  matters 83*32 

99-54 

Water  in  the  sample 8*00 

Textural  composition* — Clay,  fine  sand,  and  organic  matters. . . .    16*50 
Coarse  sand  and  gravel 83*50 

100*00 
Progress  of  the  Crop. — On  the  16th  of  April,  1851,  a  portion  of  the  field, 
measuring  exactly  70  yards  by  70,  which  had  been  prepared  by  spade  labour 
in  winter,  was  reduced  to  a  fine  tilth  by  harrowing  and  rolling,  and  sown 


TH»  *LAX  PLANT.  2?5 

with  two  and  a  half  bushels  of  clean  Riga  seed  of  Superior  quality.  The 
weather  had  been  dry  for  some  time;  but  in  the  evening,  after  the  sowing, 
0*800  inches  of  rain  fell. 

On  the  28th  of  April  the  young  plants  appeared  above  the  soil. 

Mean  temperature,  from  16th  April,  46°*5  Fahr. 
Quantity  of  rain 1-385  inch. 

On  the  14th  of  May  the  surface  of  the  field  was  green;  each  plant  con- 
sisted of  two  leaves. 

May  31.— Each  plant,  with  root,  measured  about  6  inches.  Eight  plants 
were  taken  for  examination,  and  were  found,  when  all  traces  of  adherent 
earth  were  removed,  to  weigh  36  grs.  They  were  dried  at  212°,  and  care- 
fully incinerated  in  a  platinum  vessel,  and  were  found  to  be  composed  as 
follows: — 

Per-centage  composition. 
Fresh  plants.  Dry. 

Water 30-18  83-833 

Organic  matters 509  14*139  87-446 

Inorganic  matters    . .     0-73  2-028  12-554 

36-00  100-000  100-000 

June  26. — Two  plants,  with  roots,  were  taken  from  the  same  part  of  the 
field  as  those  last  examined.  The  plants  were  iust  about  to  flower.  Height 
of  each  above  surface  of  soil,  22±  inches.     Both  together  weighed  60  grs. 

Per-centage  composition. 
Fresh  plants.  Dry. 

Water    81-917 

Organic  matters ' 16-837  93-11 

Inorganic  matters 1*246  6*89 

100-000         100-000 
June  28— The  plants  were  in  flower.    Mean  temperature,  from  their  first 

appearance  above  the  soil  (60  days),  53°-7  Fahr. 
July  7. — One  plant  in  flower  was  taken.     Height,  29  inches.    Weight  of 

entire  plant,  26*05  grs. 

Per-centage  composition. 
.  Fresh  plants.  Dry. 

Water 73-321 

Organic  matters 25*144  94*25 

Inorganic  matters 1*535  5*25 


100*000         100*000 

July  28. — One  plant  of  flax,  in  seed,  was  taken ;  height  above  ground, 
31  inches,  root  5\  long ;  length  from  surface  of.  the  field  to  the  first  branch 
24  inches.  About  5  inches  of  the  lower  end  of  stem  had  become  yellow. 
The  weight  of  the  entire  plant  was  71 -1  grs. 

Per-centage  composition. 
Fresh  plant.  Dry. 

Water 69*210 

Organic  matters 30*045  97*58 

Inorganic  matters 0745  2*42 


100*000  100*00 

T! 


276  •  report — 1852. 

The  plant  was  cut  into  three  portions,  which  were  separately  incinerated, 
with  the  following  results : — 

1 .  Root  and  lower  part  of  stem  weighed,  dried,  6*60  grs.>  gave  0*094  ash, 
1*424  per  cent 

2.  Capsules  and  branches,  dry,  weighed  9*47,  gave  *29S  ash,  3*094  per  cent 

3.  Middle  portion,  dry,  weighed  5  53,  gave  '143  ash,  2*584  per  cent 
August  10. — One  plant  taken ;  entire  length,  with  root,  37  inches ;  length 

from  surface  of  soil  to  branches,  29  inches;  stem  of  a  light  straw  colour; 
leaves  withered  on  10  inches  of  stem  ;  capsules  10  in  number — seeds  green; 
weight  of  entire  plant  71  grs.;  branches  and  capsules  31*8  grs.;  water  in 
plant  45*336  grs. ;  solid  matter  in  ditto  25*665  grs. ;  inorganic  matter  in  ditto 
1*006  gr. 

Per-centage  Composition. 

Water 63*852 

Organic  matters 34*732  96*08 

Ash 1*416  3*92 

Total..    100*000  100O0 

August  25. — The  pulling  of  the  crop  was  begun — a  plant  was  taken  and 
examined ;  weight  of  entire  plant  62*40  grs. ;  weight  of  capsules  22*50  grs. 

Per-centage  Composition  of  Stem. 

In  fresh  plant  Dry. 

Water    56*64 

Organic  matters   41*97  96*80 

Ash    1*39  3*20 

Total..    100*00  100*00 

The  crop  was  placed  in  stooks,  and  remained  in  the  field  until  the  8th  of 
September,  when  it  was  weighed  at  the  Cregagh  Steeping  Works.  At  this 
period  the  air-dried  straw  was  found  to  contain  12*2  per  cent  of  water,  and 
the  bolls  1 1  '84  per  cent 

The  weight  of  the  produce  of  the  experimental  field  (straw  and  bolls),  air- 
dried,  was  7770  lbs.,  for  which  the  sum  of  £12.  9s.  9d.  was  obtained. 

Amount  of  Nitrogen  and  Inorganic  Matters  in  the  Straw  and  Capsules, 
as  pulled  on  the  25th  August,  dried  at  212°. 

In  the  straw.      In  the  boll*. 

1.  Nitrogen,  percent. . . .      0*53  1*26 

2.  Ash,  per  cent 3*20  4*77 

Composition  of  the  Inorganic  Matter  of  the  Crop. 

100  parts  of  the  ash  of  the  straw  and  capsules  had  respectively  the  fol- 
lowing composition  :-— 

Ash  of  strew.  Ash  of  capsules. 

.       Potash   20*32  16'38 

Soda 2*07  6*25 

Chloride  of  sodium 9-27  12*98 

Lime 19*88  13*95 

Magnesia 4*05  3*91 

Oxide  of  iron    2*83  0*38 

Sulphuric  acid 7*1 3  14*51 

Phosphoric  acid    10*24  23*26 

Carbonic  acid   *  10*72  6*37 

Silica 12*80  0*67 

Total..  99*31  99*02 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  277 

One  of  the  earliest  among  those  who  directed  their  attention  to  the  che- 
mical composition  of  flax,  was  a  distinguished  member  of  this  Association,  Sir 
Robert  Kane.  Since  that  time  analyses  of  the  ash  of  the  straw  of  flax  have 
been  published  by  Professor  Johnston  of  Durham ;  by  Messrs.  Mayer  and 
Brazier,  and  by  Mr.  Way  in  England ;  by  Leuchtweiss  in  Germany  ;  and  by 
the  reporter.  The  only  examination  however  of  the  proximate  constituents 
of  the  plant,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  consists  of  an  analysis  of  the  seed  by  Leo 
Mayer.  It  is,  indeed,  strange  that  a  plant,  the  straw  of  which  has  afforded  oc- 
cupation to  the  industry  of  so  large  a  portion  of  the  world  in  all  ages,  and  the 
preparation  of  which,  for  commercial  purposes,  consists  in  acting  upon  its 
proximate  constituents,  should  not  have  been  more  carefully  studied.  Having 
been  for  some  time  engaged  with  investigations  in  this  important  department, 
I  shall,  on  some  other  occasion,  bring  forward  the  details  of  my  analyses.  At 
present  I  shall  merely  state  the  general  results  of  the  examination  of  a  spe- 
cimen of  flax-straw  taken  from  the  experimental  crop.  A  preliminary  exa- 
mination having  indicated  the  presence  of  a  volatile  oil,  a  quantity  of  the 
stems  of  the  plant,  carefully  deprived  of  the  seed  capsules,  was  distilled  with 
water  containing  common  salt,  and  from  the  distillate,  which  was  without 
action  on  litmus,  I  obtained  an  oil  of  a  yellow  colour ;  5  lbs.  of  the  fully- 
grown  fresh  stems  afforded  about  10  grs.  of  this  oil,  which  had  an  agreeable 
penetrating  odour,  and  suggested  the  peculiar  smell  which  is  remarked  on 
entering  a  room  where  flax  is  stored.  In  my  examination  of  the  proximate 
constituents  of  the  plant,  the  straw,  coarsely  powdered,  was  placed  in  an 
extraction  apparatus,  and  successively  treated  with  aether,  absolute  alcohol, 
water,  dilute  hydrochloric  acid,  and  weak  solution  of  potash.  The  solutions 
obtained  on  examination  were  found  to  contain  a  fat  oil,  wax,  traces  of  chlo- 
rophyle,  a  peculiar  green  resin,  a  gum  resin,  which  presented  some  of  the 
characters  of  the  principle  which  Pagenstecher  termed  linine,  and  described 
as  existing  in  the  Linum  catharticum  or  "  purging  flax,"  but  could  not  be 
identified  with  it,  a  modification  of  tannic  acid,  which  afforded  a  gray  preci- 
pitate with  percbloride  of  iron,  but  was  not  affected  by  solutions  of  isinglass 
or  tartar  emetic,  gum,  not  affected  by  solution  of  borax  or  basic  silicate  of 
potash,  a  brown  colouring  matter,  albumen,  caseine,  starch,  pectine,  cellulose, 
and  salts.  The  following  table  exhibits  the  action  of  the  various  solvents 
employed : — 

1.  Soluble  in  aether  2*88 

2.  Soluble  in  absolute  alcohol 8*52 

3.  Soluble  in  water   5*92 

4.  In  dilute  hydrochloric  acid 22*76 

5.  In  dilute  solution  of  caustic  potash. .    36*39 

6.  Cellulose  and  salts 48*58 


100*00 


I  shall  now  proceed  to  the  fourth  division  of  the  subject,  and  describe  the 
various*  methods  which  are  adopted  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  the  flax 
plant  for  the  spinner.  I  shall  not  in  this  place  allude  to  the  oeconomv  of  its 
seed,  but  confine  myself  to  the  management  of  the  fibre  of  the  plant,  to 
obtain  which,  of  superior  quality,  is  the  main  object  of  the  flax-growers  of 
Ulster. 

When  a  portion  of  the  straw,  as  it  is  termed,  of  the  flax  plant  is  examined,  \ 
it  is  found  to  consist  of  three  parts :  first,  of  a  woody,  central,  hollow  column,  \ 
which  the  microscope  shows  to  be  composed  of  cellular  tissue ;  second,  of  a    \ 
tabular  sheath,  composed  of  long  and  firm  bast-cells ;  and  thirdly,  of  a  deli- 


978  REPORT — 1852. 

cate  covering  of  epidermis.  By  rubbing  a  piece  of  dried  flax-straw  between 
the  fingers,  tbe  woody  central  part  and  delicate  epidermis  can  be  readily 
broken  to  pieces,  while  the  tough  fibres  of  the  bast- cells  will  be  found  to  re- 
main but  little  injured.    Those  tough  fibres,  which  are  capable  of  being  split 

t  into  filaments  of  extreme  delicacy,  constitute  the  raw  material  of  our  greatest 
national  manufacture.  In  the  country  farm-houses  and  manufacturing  towns 
of  Ulster,  they  afford  employment  to  thousands  of  our  people,  and  are  made 
to  assume  almost  innumerable  forms.    They  are  moulded  into  the  costly  lace 

i and  beautiful  cambric.  They  cover  our  tables,  and  supply  us  with  "fine 
linen,"  equal  to  that  which  was  once  the  pride  of  Egypt.  The  coarser  fibres 
give  stout  sails  to  our  ships,  and  even  the  refuse  rejected  by  the  spinner  is 
.worked  up  into  a  cheap  and  substantial  material  for  covering  our  farm-houses, 
'while  the  sweepings  of  the  Belfast  warehouses  are  sold  to  the  paper*makera 
of  England,  and  used  to  produce  the  broad  sheets  upon  which  the  Tmu 

J  and  Morning  Chronicle  newspapers  are  printed. 

To  separate  this  invaluable  fibre  from  the  worthless  parts  connected  with 
it  is  the  first  step  in  its  preparation  for  the  spinner.  Numerous  plans  have 
been  proposed  for  this  purpose,  both  by  scientific  and  practical  men*  The 
examination  of  the  plant  shows  us  that  its  parts  are  bound  together  by  gummy 
and  resinous  substances,  and  that  vegetable  jelly  fills  its  cells.  The  separa- 
tion of  the  fibre,  therefore,  merely  by  mechanical  means,  as  might  be  expected, 
cannot  be  perfectly  accomplished;  yet  at  various  times  patents  have  been 
taken  out  for  the  application  of  machinery  for  this  purpose ;  and  in  1815  the 
Linen  Board  expended  £6000  in  the  attempt  to  introduce  into  Ireland  a  ma- 
chine which  had  been  invented  by  a  Mr.  Lee.  One  of  those  machines  was 
lately  sold  as  lumber  at  the  White  Linen  Hall  in  this  town.  In  other 
countries  the  dry  preparation  has  also  been  tried,  and  though  it  has  been 
found  capable  of  producing  a  coarse,  discoloured  fibre,  adapted  for  inferior 
fabrics,  such  as  bagging,  &c,  yet  it  has  been  nearly  discontinued*  The 
specimens  on  the  table  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  results  of  this  method  of 
treatment,  as  pursued  in  the  jail  at  Cork,  where  it  serves  to  give  useful 
employment  to  the  prisoners. 

From  the  earliest  times  only  one  method  has  been  found  capable  of  yielding 
the  textile  material  in  a  condition  adapted  for  every  purpose,  and  possessing 
all  the  qualities  demanded  by  the  spinner,  viz.  the  decomposition,  by  the 
process  of  fermentation,  of  the  adhesive  substances  which  connect  together 
the  bast  fibres  and  the  ligneous  tissues  of  the  straw.  It  is  by  this  pro- 
cess, variously  modified  in  the  arrangements  for  conducting  it,  that  nearly  all 
the  fibre  produced  in  the  great  flax-growing  countries  of  Europe  is  at  present 
prepared.  In  many  parts  of  Germany  the  fermentation  is  induced  by  ex- 
posing the  flax,  spread  in  the  fields,  to  the  influence  of  the  air  and  moisture  ; 
while  in  Belgium,  which  is  justly  regarded  as  the  model  country  for  flax 
management,  the  practice  of  enclosing  the  straw  in  wooden  frames,  and  im- 
mersing it  in  the  waters  of  rivers  until  the  necessary  changes  are  produced, 
is  in  many  places  adopted  and  found  to  yield  fibre  of  superior  quality. 

In  Ireland,  at  the  present  time,  two  modifications  of  the  system  of  fermenta- 
tion are  in  use— one  of  which  consists  in  steeping  the  straw  in  pools  of  water 
in  tbe  open  air  at  ordinary  temperatures,  while,  according  to  the  other  method* 
the  steeping  is  transferred  from  the  farm  to  the  factory,  and  the  fermentation 
accelerated  by  employing  water  maintained  at  an  elevated  temperature*  The 
former  method  of  steeping  has  prevailed  in  this  country  and  in  other  parts  of 
Europe  to  some  extent  from  the  earliest  times;  and  though  it  has  been 
asserted  by  some  writers,  without,  however,  any  authority  for  the  statement, 
that  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  this  island  prepared  the  flax  in  the  same  rude 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  879 

manner,  by  beating  the  unsteeped  straw,  as  observed  among  some  of  the 
people  of  the  South  Sea  Islands,  yet  we  may,  I  think,  infer  from  the  number 
of  places  to  which  the  name  "poll  a  lin,'  i.  e.  flax  hole,  is  applied,  that 
they  steeped  in  water.  The  plan  followed  by  the  farmer,  who  adopts  the  plan 
of  steeping  the  flax  on  his  farm  in  the  open  air,  is  to  excavate  a  pond  in  con- 
nection with  some  convenient  stream.  The  dimensions  preferred  are  from 
twelve  to  eighteen  feet  broad,  and  about  four  feet  deep.  The  quality  of  the 
water  employed  requires  careful  consideration,  hard  waters  being  found  ma- 
terially to  interfere  with  the  process;  ferruginous  waters  also  are  avoided  | 
and  in  those  districts  where  the  steeper  is  obliged  to  make  use  of  them,  the 
flax  acquires  a  dark  tinge,  which  the  bleacher  finds  it  difficult  to  remove* 
From  the  action  of  the  salts  of  iron  upon  the  modification  of  tannic  acid, 
which  I  have  shown  to  exist  in  the  straw,  we  can  readily  understand  that  the 
presence  of  iron  in  the  water  of  the  steep-hole  must  be  prejudicial.  As  the 
oozing  of  water  from  the  adjoining  soil  also  frequently  produces  discoloration 
of  the  flax,  careful  steepen  place  on  each  side  of  the  pond  a  small  drain,  to 
prevent  the  entrance  of  drainage  waters.  The  flax,  after  pulling,  is  prepared 
for  steeping  by  removing  the  seed  capsules,  or  bolls,  by  means  of  a  simple 
machine,  composed  of  a  number  of  iron  teeth,  about  eighteen  inohes  long, 
screwed  to  a  socket  of  wood,  and  fixed  perpendicularly  on  a  long  bench,  upon 
which  the  workmen  sit  The  bolls  are  separated  from  the  stems  by  the  work- 
men taking  a  handful  of  the  flax,  spreading  it  out,  and  drawing  it  through 
the  teeth  of  the  ripple,  as  the  machine  is  termed.  Sometimes,  however,  the 
steeping  does  not  take  place  until  the  flax  has  been  stored  for  some  time,  and 
has  become  so  dry  that  the  fibre  would  be  liable  to  injury  by  using  the 
common  rippling-machine.  In  such  cases  the  seed  is  beaten  off  by  means 
of  a  "  beater,"  formed  of  a  block  of  wood  furnished  with  a  curved  handle. 

In  England,  where  the  flax  plant  is  cultivated  more  for  supplying  food  for 
cattle  than  for  its  fibre,  the  value  of  its  nutritious  seed  is  acknowledged  by 
every  farmer ;  but  in  Ireland,  unfortunately,  industrial  knowledge  is  only 
beginning  to  influence  the  practice  of  the  agricultural  population.  It  is  in 
Ulster  that  the  chief  progress  has  been  made.  The  Royal  Flax  Society  has 
diffused  much  useful  information ;  and  another  institution,  the  Chemico- Agri- 
cultural Society,  by  its  lectures  and  publications,  has  also  contributed,  in  no 
small  degree,  to  overcome  ancient  prejudices.  Yet  it  must,  I  fear,  be  regarded 
by  this  meeting  as  but  little  creditable  to  our  agriculture,  that,  though  annu- 
ally nearly  650,000  qrs«  of  flax-seed  and  70,000  tons  of  flax-seed  cake  are  pur- 
chased by  the  fanners  of  the  United  Kingdom  from  foreign  countries,  only 
about  one-tenth  of  the  seed  grown  in  this  country  is  saved,  the  remaining 
portion,  by  the  prejudices  or  indolence  of  the  farmer,  being  consigned  to  the 
steep-hole* 

In  placing  the  bundles  of  flax  in  the  steeping- pond,  they  are  arranged  in 
regular  rows,  placed  in  an  inclined  position,  so  that  the  tie  which  confines 
the  straw  in  one  bundle  rests  upon  the  root  end  of  the  preceding  bundle; 
the  bundles  of  flax  of  equal  length  being  arranged  in  different  parts  of  the 
pond.  When  the  pond  is  filled,  a  thin  layer  of  straw  or  rushes  is  spread 
evenly  over  the  flax,  and  on  this  covering  old  sods  are  placed,  so  as  to  keep 
the  bundles  from  rising  above  the  water.  In  a  day  or  two,  according  to  the 
temperature  of  the  season,  fermentation  commences  in  the  pool,  and  in  warm 
weather  in  from  eight  to  ten  days,  at  other  times  in  from  twelve  to  fourteen, 
the  steeping  and  retting,  as  the  process  is  usually  termed,  is  completed* 
Duriog  the  steeping  the  water  acquires  a  dark  brown  colour,  carbonic  acid 
is  disengaged  in  great  abundance,  and  the  surface  becomes  covered  with  a 
gelatinous  scum.    To  remove  this  matter  it  is  usual  to  allow  a  gentle  current 


280  report-— 1852. 

of  water  to  flow  over  the  surface  of  the  pond  from  the  supplying  stream,  as, 
when  it  is  allowed  to  remain,  the  colour  of  the  flax  is  found  to  be  injured. 
Various  methods  are  resorted  to  in  this  and  other  flax-growing  countries,  to 
ascertain  the  proper  period  for  the  removal  of  the  flax  from  the  pond.  Thus 
the  Silesian  steepers  take  some  stalks  of  the  flax  from  the  pits,  and  place  them 
on  the  surface  of  the  water.  If  the  stalk*  sink  they  remove  the  flax,  but  if 
they  swim  they  allow  the  steeping  to  continue  for  some  days  longer ;  while 
the  Irish  farmer,  day  after  day,  when  the  fermentation  has  fairly  commenced, 
anxiously  tests  the  progress  of  decomposition  by  drawing  a  few  stalks  from 
one  of  the  flax  bundles  and  breaking  them  aoross  in  two  places,  about  two 
inches  apart.  If  he  can  readily  pull  away  the  central  woody  column  without 
tearing  the  filaments  of  bast  which  surround  it,  he  considers  that  the  period 
has  arrived  for  removing  it  from  the  pit. 

It  is  easy  to  perceive  that  the  peculiar  series  of  changes  which  facilitate 
the  breaking  up  of  the  various  organic  compounds  which  compose  the  struc- 
ture of  the  flax  plant,  must,  in  our  fickle  climate,  where  so  many  sudden 
alterations  of  temperature  occur,  be  liable  to  frequent  disturbance,  and 
that  the  progress  of  the  fermentation,  in  the  shallow  steeping- pools,  must 
be  exceedingly  irregular  and  uncertain.  It  is  not,  indeed,  to  be  wondered, 
that,  notwithstanding  the  closest  supervision,  the  most  experienced  steepers 
should  frequently  be  deceived,  and  that  one  part  of  the  flax  should  be  too 
much  decomposed  while  another  part  has  not  properly  experienced  the  altera- 
tions which  facilitate  the  complete  separation  of  the  valuable  material. 

The  disagreeable  odour  evolved  from  a  flax-pool  must  be  familiar  to  those 
who  have  travelled  in  the  north  of  Ireland  in  the  steeping  season,  and  the 
black  hue  which  the  streams  in  some  country  districts  acquire  at  that  period, 
from  the  refuse  waters  of  the  pools  being  allowed  to  fall  into  them,  excites  the 
surprise  of  strangers. 

It  is  interesting  to  discover,  amongst  those  wonderful  records,  not  merely 
of  the  military  achievements,  but  of  the  rural  occupations  and  manufactures 
of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  Egypt,  which  have  come  down  to  us  on  the  walls 
of  tneir  temples,  that  the  steeping  of  flax  and  its  preparation  for  their  "  fine 
linen,"  was  conducted  nearly,  we  may  conclude,  in  the  same  manner  as  by  our 
farmers  at  the  present  time.  The  drawings  exhibit  to  us  large  wooden  vats 
for  containing  the  flax-straw,  and  men  are  represented  carrying  water  to  fill 
them. 

To  render  the  history  of  the  crop  complete,  it  is  necessary  to  give  some 
account  of  the  treatment  which  the  flax  undergoes  on  its  removal  from  the 
steeping-pool.  I  shall  confine  myself  to  a  description  of  the  ordinary  system 
of  this  country.  The  first  operation  to  which  it  is  subjected  is  what  is  tech- 
nically termed  grassing,  which  consists  in  spreading  the  steeped  straw  in  thin 
and  even  layers  upon  pasture  ground,  for  from  six  to  ten  days,  according  to 
the  season,  frequently  turning  it  during  its  exposure,  that  the  air  may  act 
equally  on  every  part  of  it.  By  grassing  the  eremacausis  of  the  woody  matter 
and  loosening  of  the  fibre  is  still  further  promoted,  and  the  colour  of  the  flax 
also  improved.  After  grassing,  the  straw  is  either  stored  up  in  stacks,  for 
subsequent  treatment,  or  at  once  subjected  to  the  action  of  machines  which 
break  up  and  remove  the  brittle  woody  parts.  To  break  up  the  woody  matters 
so  as  to  facilitate  their  removal  in  the  ordinary  practice  of  the  farm,  a  simple 
machine,  termed  "  the  break,"  is  employed.  It  consists  of  two  wooden  frames, 
each  of  which  is  furnished  on  one  side  with  a  number  of  parallel  angular  bars, 
so  arranged,  that,  when  the  frames  are  connected  together  by  a  hinge,  the 
angular  surfaces  of  the  bars  on  one  frame  are  received  into  the  hollows  formed 
between  the  bars  of  the  other.    One  of  the  frames  is  permanently  fixed  on 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  281 

a  support,  while  motion  is  communicated  to  the  other  frame  by  means  either 
of  an  iron  spring,  or  by  an  elastic  pole  of  wood  attached  to  it  and  connected 
with  a  treadle,  upon  which  the  workman  presses  with  his  foot.  By  placing 
a  handful  of  the  straws  between  the  frames,  and  pressing  upon  the  treadle, 
the  moveable  frame  descends  and  bruises,  or  breaks  the  inelastic  woody 
matter,  while  the  supple  fibre  is  uninjured.  So  prepared,  the  straw  is  ready 
for  the  second  and  final  operation,  which  it  undergoes  before  it  is  transferred 
from  the  farm  to  the  factory.  Steeping  and  grassing  have  destroyed  the  co- 
hesion between  the  various  structures  of  the  straw,  the  break  has  fractured 
the  woody  matters,  it  only  now  remains  to  liberate  completely  the  valuable 
textile  material  from  its  worthless  encumbrance.  This  is  effected  on  the  farm 
by  means  of  a  simple  implement  of  manual  labour ;  an  improved  form  has 
been  introduced  from  Belgium.  It  cousists  of  a  thin  blade  of  wood,  attached 
to  a  handle,  and  an  upright  wooden  stand,  with  a  notch  cut  on  one  side,  in 
which  the  workman  inserts  a  handful  of  the  steeped  and  bruised  flax,  and 
turning  the  flax  so  as  to  present  every  part  to  the  implement,  by  the  blows 
of  the  "  scutcher  "  the  brittle  and  broken  wcody  matters,  technically  termed 
"  shoves,"  are  knocked  away,  and  at  the  same  time  any  very  short  or  injured 
fibres  are  removed,  producing  what  is  known  as  "  scutching  tow."  Some- 
times bits  of  "  shove  "  adhere  so  closely  to  the  bast  fibre,  that  the  workman 
requires  to  scrape  them  away  by  means  of  a  blunt  knife. 

Amongst  the  various  obstacles  which  impede  the  extension  of  flax  cultiva- 
tion to  the  south  and  west  of  Ireland,  is  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  experienced 
scutchers;  and  serious  loss  has  frequently  been  sustained,  by  persons  who 
have  attempted  the  preparation  of  the  crop,  from  the  want  of  that  skilled 
labour  which  is  available  in  almost  every  part  of  Ulster.  Thus  it  was  found 
that  while  the  northern  scutchers  can  turn  out  from  12  lbs.  to  14  lbs.  of  fibre 
per  day,  the  workmen  in  the  south  and  west  have  not  been  able  to  prepare 
more  than  from  5  lbs.  to  6  lbs.  daily,  and  frequently  not  more  than  2  lbs.  It 
is  therefore  of  great  importance  to  this  country  that  government  is  about  to 
afford  encouragement  to  the  erection  of  machinery  for  scutching,  in  districts 
where  skilled  workmen  cannot  be  obtained.  Even  in  Ulster,  for  some  years 
the  opinion  has  begun  to  prevail,  that,  as  in  other  departments  of  our  manu- 
factures, hand  labour  must,  in  the  preparation  of  the  flax  fibre,  give  place  to 
machinery,  and  "  scutch-mills,"  where  the  work  is  performed  for  the  farmer, 
are  to  be  found  in  all  our  flax-growing  districts. 

The  fibre  of  the  flax,  prepared  either  by  manual  labour,  or  in  the  scutch- 
mill,  is  ready  for  market,  and  is  sold  according  to  its  quality,  at  prices  ranging 
from  £30  to  £150  per  ton.  It  is  not  yet,  however,  suitable  for  the  opera- 
tions of  the  spinner.  In  the  same  bundle  there  exist  fibres  of  various  quali- 
ties ;  and  it  is  also  necessary  that  the  filaments«should  be  arranged  in  parallel 
"  reeds?  They  must  be  sorted  and  hackled.  "  Hackling  "  consists  in  draw- 
ing the  mass  of  fibres  through  sets  of  iron  teeth,  fixed  in  a  stand  of  wood, 
which,  like  the  teeth  of  a  comb,  separate  and  arrange  the  fibres,  and  remove 
all  broken  pieces.  Thus  treated,  flax  is  rendered  fit  for  its  various  textile 
uses. 

Produce  of  Fibre,  fyc. — The  amount  of  rippled  flax-straw,  viz.  5824  lbs., 
obtained  in  my  experiment,  considerably  exceeded  the  ordinary  produce 
of  the  farmer.  From  the  returns  of  the  Royal  Flax  Society,  and  from  my 
own  inquiries,  I  would  estimate  the  average  produce  of  a  statute  acre,  in  the 
north  of  Ireland,  of  air-dried  flax-straw,  with  bolls,  at  two  tons,  which  by  the 
seeding  machine  are  usually  reduced  to  3360  lbs.  By  the  various  processes 
of  the  rural  manufacturer,  the  amount  of  dressed  flax  or  fibre  obtained  ave- 


REPORT — 1852. 

rages  from  four  to  five  cwt.  per  acre.  Some  time  ago  I  made  an  experiment 
at  one  of  the  country  scutch-mills  nearBelfast,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining 
the  relative  proportions  of  the  various  qualities  of  fibre,  and  also  the  distri- 
bution of  the  inorganic  matters.  The  flax  employed  had  been  steeped  in  the 
usual  way,  and  was  found  to  contain  1*73  per  cent  of  inorganic  matters: — 
4000  lbs.  of  air-dried  straw  produced  of — 

Dressed  flax 500  lbs. 

Fine  tow 132  lbs. 

Coarse  tow 192  lbs. 

824108. 

An  examination  of  the  amount  of  ash  which  the  above  materials  respec- 
tively contained,  showed  that  its  distribution  was  as  follows  :— 

In  the  flax 4*48  lbs.  of  inorganic  matters. 

In  the  fine  tow 2*08 

In  the  coarse  tow 2*56,  or  in  all  9*12  lbs. 

So  that  59*08  lbs.  of  the  inorganic  matters,  which  the  crop  had  withdrawn 
from  the  field,  remained  locked  up  in  the  woody  shoves,  which,  as  obstinately 
resisting  decomposition,  are  used  for  fuel,  while  9*12  lbs.  were  carried  away 
in  the  dressed  flax  and  tow  sold  to  the  spinner. 

Accelerated  Fermentation— The  Patent  System. — For  to  far,  we  have  con- 
sidered the  preparation  of  the  flax  fibre  solely  as  constituting  a  part  of  the 
ordinary  farm  operations  of  this  country.  Where  the  necessary  amount  of 
intelligence  prevails  among  the  agricultural  community,  with  regard  to  the 
proper  cultivation  of  the  crop  and  its  after  treatment,  as  is  the  case  in  Belgium, 
in  some  provinces  of  which  country  frequently  10  per  cent,  of  the  cultivated 
area  is  devoted  to  its  production,  and  in  Ulster,  where  we  find  that,  in  1851, 
one  out  of  every  44  acres  was  under  flax,  experience  has  taught  the  farmer, 
that  even  with  the  various  disadvantages  attendant  upon  the  old  and  unoer* 
tain  methods  of  management,  it  is  capable  of  yielding  considerable  profit  to  the 
grower.  Notwithstanding,  however,  the  efforts  which  have  been  made  by 
societies  and  government  to  extend  the  cultivation  of  the  crop  to  those  di- 
stricts in  the  south  and  west  of  the  kingdom,  where,  for  various  reasons,  it  was 
most  important  that  the  means  of  occupation  which  it  was  found  to  afford  in 
Ulster  should  be  rendered  available,  great  difficulties  were  experienced,  both 
from  the  deficiency  of  skilled  labour  and  the  want  of  convenient  markets  for 
the  produce.  Fortunately,  at  a  time  when  great  discouragements  had  been  ex- 
perienced by  those  who  had  entertained  the  expectation  that  the  fertile  toils 
of  the  south  of  Ireland  were  destined  to  render  our  manufacturers  independent 
of  the  supplies  of  foreign  countries,  the  attention  of  the  flax-growers  of  Ulster 
was  directed  to  a  system  of  flax  management,  proposed  by  an  American 
named  Schenck,  which  appeared  to  remove  all  the  difficulties  of  the  old 
system,  and  promised  completely  to  revolutionize  the  oeconomy  of  the  crop. 
In  the  method  of  Mr.  Schenck,  as  in  the  old  system,  a  process  of  fermentation 
is  employed  for  the  separation  of  the  fibre ;  but  instead  of  the  steeping  being 
conducted  in  the  open  air  in  shallow  pools,  it  is  made  a  factory  operation, 
and  the  requisite  changes  are  accelerated  by  placing  the  rippled  flax  in  water 
maintained  at  an  elevated  temperature.  This  method  is  not  new,  bnt  had 
been  proposed  by  Professor  Scheidweiler  in  Belgium,  and  tried  in  this  country 
several  years  before  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Schenck.  It  also  appeals  to  have 
been  employed  by  the  Malays  and  the  natives  of  Bengal ;  but  it  is  to  the  late 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  283 

Mr*  Schenck,  and  his  successors,  Messrs.  Bernard  and  Koch,  that  the  credit 
of  organizing  establishments  for  working  the  process  is  to  be  ascribed. 

The  advantages  which  the  new  system  presented  were  most  important :~ 

1st  By  leading  to  the  establishment  of  factories  for  the  steeping  of  flax, 
and  the  purchase  of  the  crop  from  the  farmer,  who  would  thus  be  relieved 
from  the  trouble  of  its  preparation,  it  rendered  it  possible  to  extend  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  crop  beyond  the  bounds  of  the  ordinary  flax-growing  districts. 

2nd.  It  introduced  greater  certainty  and  ceconomy  into  the  preparation  of 
the  fibre. 

3rd.  It  prevented  the  destruction  of  the  valuable  seed,  and  also  increased 
the  per-centage  of  fibre.  With  these  advantages,  as  might  be  expected,  the 
new  system  made  rapid  progress,  and  establishments  were  erected,  not  merely 
in  Ireland,  but  in  England  and  Scotland,  and  the  attention  of  several  Con- 
tinental countries  was  also  at  once  directed  to  it. 

To  enable  you  completely  to  understand  the  system  of  management  pur- 
sued at  these  establishments,  one  of  which  those  interested  in  the  subject 
will  have  an  opportunity  of  inspecting  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Belfast, 
I  shall  continue  the  description  of  the  treatment  of  the  experimental  crop,  of 
which  I  have  already  given  a  portion  of  the  history.  When  the  crop  had 
been  completely  air-dried,  by  exposure  in  the  field,  so  as  to  yield,  as  al- 
ready stated,  in  the  straw,  when  dried  at  212°,  only  12  per  cent  of  water, 
it  was  removed  to  the  steeping-works  at  Cregagh.  It  was  there  placed  in 
stacks,  and  after  some  time  prepared  for  steeping.  The  first  operation  for 
this  purpose  is  the  removal  of  the  valuable  bolls  or  capsules.  This,  in  these 
establishments,  where  the  cost  of  labour  is  carefully  considered,  is  usually  most 
expeditiously  and  perfectly  effected  by  means  of  a  machine  composed  of  two 
massive  oast-iron  rollers,  to  which  motion  is  communicated  by  a  belt  from 
the  steam-engine.  Between  these  the  flax  is  passed  and  the  capsules  bruised, 
so  that  the  seed  can  be  readily  shaken  out  Having  been  deprived  of  its 
bolls  by  this  machine,  it  was  found  that  the  7770  lbs.  of  flax  plants  were 
reduced  to  52  cwt,  or  5824  lbs. 

Of  the  portions  of  the  plant  removed  by  the  seeding  machine,  910  lbs.  con- 
sisted of  clean  seed,  10S6  lbs.  of  husks,  leaves,  and  sand.  The  vats  to  which 
the  flax  is  now  removed  are  formed  of  wood,  strongly  bound  together  by 
hoops,  the  oval  shape  being  preferred.  They  are  furnished  with  false  bottoms, 
pierced  with  holes  beneath,  through  which,  by  means  of  a  coil  of  pipe,  as  re- 
presented in  the  drawing,  steam  is  conveyed.  The  flax  having  been  placed  in 
the  vats,  with  the  bundles  resting  on  the  butt  or  root  ends,  and  in  single  layers, 
as  in  the  ordinary  steeping-pools,  a  wooden  frame  is  fixed  above  them,  so  as 
to  prevent  their  rising  out  of  the  water  during  the  fermentation.  The  vats 
are  now  filled  with  water,  so  as  completely  to  cover  the  flax,  and  the  steam- 
cook  opened  so  as  gradually  to  raise  the  temperature  to  00°  F.  The 
overseers  are  furnished  with  thermometers,  and  instructed  carefully  to  main- 
tain the  temperature  at  that  point  day  and  night  Reckoning  from  the  time 
at  which  the  steam  is  admitted  to  the  vats,  the  duration  of  the  steeping 
averages  about  sixty-six  hours.  When  the  object  is  to  obtain  a  very  fine 
fibre,  the  retting  is  continued  for  a  longer  period.  The  method  of  ascer- 
taining the  proper  period  for  the  removal  of  the  flax  from  the  water  is  the 
same  as  has  already  been  described  as  relied  on  by  the  common  steeper. 
The  loss  experienced  by  the  seeded  flax  in  steeping  was  IS  cwt 

ZJrytw^r-— When  the  steeping  is  completed,  the  flax  is  carried  from  the  vats 
to  an  adjoining  apartment  of  the  factory,  and  placed  in  layers  upon  tables, 
and  fixed  by  women  in  the  drying  holders*    These  consist  of  two  wooden  rods, 


284  report — 1852. 

5$  feet  long,  between  which  a  thin  layer  of  flax  is  secured,  by  passing  metal 
rings  over  the  ends  of  the  holders,  fifty  holders  being  employed  for  about 
1  cwt.  of  flax.  Thus  secured,  the  holders  are  carried  to  open  drying  sheds, 
and  suspended  from  cross-beams.  In  three  days,  in  favourable  weather,  the 
drying  is  completed ;  but  in  damp  weather  it  is  placed  in  a  hot  chamber,  to 
heat  which  the  waste  steam  of  the  steam-engine  is  employed. 

Breaking  and  Scutching. — As  in  the  patent  steeping  establishments  a 
sufficient  number  of  skilled  workmen  could  not  be  at  all  times  obtained,  a 
new  impulse  was  given  to  the  invention  of  machines  capable  of  performing 
the  work  of  the  hand-scutcher,  and  several  ingenious  and  beautiful  mecha- 
nical arrangements  have  been  proposed,  both  for  breaking  and  scutching  the 
flax.  In  this  department  Belfast  has  produced  some  excellent  examples,  and 
the  machines  of  Messrs.  M'Adam,  Brothers  and  Co.,  and  of  Mr.  Richard 
Robinson,  are  to  be  found  in  almost  every  flax-growing  district  both  in  this 
country  and  in  England.  From  the  52  cwt.  of  seeded  straw,  the  produce  of 
the  experimental  crop,  there  remained  6  cwt.  1  qr.  2  lbs.  of  marketable 
fibre. 

After  the  introduction  of  the  new  system,  and  that  several  establishments 
were  occupied  in  the  preparation  of  fibre,  objections  were  made  to  the 
quality  of  the  material,  and  considerable  doubts  were  expressed,  both  with 
regard  to  the  amount  of  produce  obtained,  and  its  adaptation  for  its  various 
uses.  These  objections,  however,  were  at  the  time  removed  by  experiments 
instituted  by  experienced  manufacturers,  both  in  this  country  and  at  the  admi- 
rably-conducted works  of  the  Messrs.  Marshall  in  Yorkshire.  In  Messrs. 
Marshall's  experiments,  samples  of  the  products  of  which  are  on  the  table, 
flax-straw  grown  in  Holland  was  the  material  employed ;  the  steeping  of  a 
portion  was  conducted  at  two  establishments,  on  Schenck's  system,  while 
another  portion  from  the  same  lot  was  steeped  in  -Holland  in  the  ordinary 
way.  The  results  were  regarded  as  in  all  respects  confirmatory  of  the  supe- 
riority of  the  patent  process ;  and  a  Committee  of  the  Royal  Flax  Society 
also  reported,  that  all  objections  with  respect  to  any  injurious  influence  of  the 
accelerate  fermentation  on  the  strength  and  bleaching  qualities  of  the  fibre 
had  been  shown  to  be  groundless,  and  that  the  yield  of  the  fibre  was  greater 
than  when  "the  old,  slovenly,  and  uncertain  process  of  watering"  was  prac- 
tised. 

The  process  of  fermentation,  as  conducted  in  the  patent  establishments,  so 
far  as  my  investigations  have  extended,  does  not  appear  in  any  respect  to 
present  phenomena  different  from  what  I  have  observed  in  the  ordinary 
steeping-pools  of  the  country,  when  only  rippled  flax  is  employed.  Usually, 
in  eight  or  ten  hours  after  the  flax  had  been  placed  in  the  vats,  a  copious 
extrication  of  gas  is  observed,  and  sometimes  the  vat  becomes  covered  with  a 
head  of  froth,  like  the  vat  of  the  brewer ;  and  at  this  period  an  odour  is 
evolved  in  the  establishment  closely  resembling  that  of  the  brewery.  The 
gas  evolved  at  this  period  is  chiefly  carbonic  acid.  The  liquid  at  the  same 
time  exhibits  a  slight  acid  reaction.  As  the  process  continues  the  tem- 
perature rises,  so  that  an  additional  admission  of  steam  is  seldom  required  to 
maintain  the  liquid  at  from  85  to  90  degrees.  Towards  the  conclusion  of 
the  operation,  usually  in  about  60  hours,  the  escape  of  gas  becomes  less  abun- 
dant, and  a  covering  of  slimy  matter  collects  on  the  surface  of  the  liquid. 

The  steep-water  at  this  period  has  a  light  brown  colour,  is  transparent, 
and  closely  resembling  bitter  ale.  It  is  strongly  acid  to  litmus,  but  the 
original  blue  colour  of  the  test-paper  is  restored  on  drying. 

Its  taste  at  first  is  rather  agreeably  acid,  but  followed  by  the  peculiar 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  285 

plant-like  taste  of  the  flax.  Contrary  to  what  has  been  stated  in  some  reports 
on  this  subject,  the  liquid  I  found,  at  the  conclusion  of  the  process,  yields 
nearly  a  trace  of  acetic  acid,  and  in  numerous  experiments  no  trace  of  the 
evolution  of  sulphuretted  hydrogen  could  be  detected  at  any  stage  of  the  fer- 
mentation. When  the  flax  is  allowed  to  remain  in  the  vats  after  the  usual 
time,  a  new  series  of  changes,  and  a  fresh  and  rapid  extrication  of  gas,  take 
place.  I  have  made,  during  the  last  three  years,  numerous  experiments 
with  respect  to  the  composition  of  the  steep-water  from  several  establish- 
ments, and  also  from  the  common  steep-pools,  which  afforded  me  some  inter- 
esting results,  and  satisfied  me  that  the  fermentation  which  is  induced  by 
steeping  flax  in  water  resembles  the  so-called  butyric  acid  fermentation, 
merely  traces  of  acetic  acid,  and  invariably  large  quantities  of  butyric  acid, 
having  been  detected  in  every  case.  In  fact,  the  fragrant  butyric  aether,  so 
extensively  employed  in  the  preparation  of  pine-apple  rum,  and  in  flavouring 
confectionery,  might  readily  be  obtained  in  large  quantities  from  the  stinking 
waters  of  the  flax-pool. 

(Economy  of  the  Flax  Water. — With  regard  to  the  refuse  waters  of  the  vats, 
some  years  ago,  upon  the  opening  of  Mr.  Schenck's  establishment  in  Belfast, 
I  made  an  analysis  of  the  water  in  which  the  flax  had  been  steeped,  which 
confirmed  the  conclusions  to  which  I  had  been  conducted,  from  my  examina- 
tions of  the  waters  of  the  country  steep-ponds,  that  an  opinion  which  had 
been  promulgated  by  scientific  authority,  of  the  possibility  of  restoring  to  the 
fields  of  the  farmer  all  the  ingredients  abstracted  from  the  soil  during  the 
growth  of  the  flax,  by  means  of  the  steep-water  and  other  refuse  parts  of  the 
plant,  was  not,  even  supposing  that  these  matters  could  be  (Economically 
employed  as  manure,  which  is  impossible,  supported  by  investigations  with 
respect  to  the  amount  of  fertilizing  ingredients  which  they  contained. 

Chemistry  is,  I  conceive,  contributing  in  no  small  degree  to  the  progress 
of  agricultural  knowledge.  It  has  even  already  introduced  greater  oeconomy 
into  many  departments  of  the  farmer's  business,  and  has  opened  up  to  him 
new  sources  of  fertilizing  agents.  But  in  some  cases  it  is  to  be  feared  that 
the  chemist  has  himself  raised  obstacles  to  the  reception  of  agricultural 
science  by  the  practical  agriculturist,  by  proposals  which,  though  capable  of 
being  carried  out  in  the  laboratory,  are  totally  inapplicable  in  the  great 
operations  of  the  husbandman. 

To  ascertain  exactly  the  effect  produced  by  steeping,  and  the  composition 
of  the  steep-water,  I  obtained  from  the  works  at  Cregagh  a  sample  of  flax- 
straw  unsteeped,  a  portion  of  steeped  straw  taken  from  the  same  lot,  and  a 
gallon  of  the  steep-water  taken  from  the  vat  immediately  after  the  removal 
of  the  flax.  The  composition  of  the  ash  obtained  by  burning  the  extract  of 
the  steep-water,  and  the  samples  of  the  straw,  is  given  in  the  Table.  The 
spring-water  employed  at  the  works  is  moderately  hard,  indicating,  on  Dr. 
Clarke's  scale,  8  degrees.  It  was  not  considered  necessary  to  deduct  the  in- 
gredients supplied  in  it,  as  these  would  add  but  little  to  its  fertilizing  value. 
An  imperial  gallon  of  the  liquid  of  the  vat  was  found  to  contain,  in  grains 
and  tenths, — 

Organic  matters     136'7 

Inorganic  matters 131*4 

Total  solid  matters 268-1 


286  report— 1852. 

Composition  of  the  Ash  of  the  Flax-draw  before  and  after  steeping,  and  of 
the  Inorganic  Matters  of  the  Steep-water. 
100  parte  of  each  respectively  contained — 

Unsteeped  Steeped  Ash  of  the 

flax.  flax.  steep  water. 

Potash    13-88  11-40  19-31 

Soda  5-33  4-17 

Chloride  of  potassium   ....         ...  ...  S-83 

Chloride  of  sodium    6-47  3-28  21-24 

Lime 18-86  17*69  8*23 

Magnesia    4*10  5*50  10-18 

Oxide  of  iron 5'40  5*76  2-02 

Sulphuric  acid   11-16  4*07  6"10 

Phosphoric  acid 9*63  11-87  S'77 

Carbonic  acid    10-37  20-06  23-30 

Silica 15-23  15-78  M2 

Sand ...  0-60 


100-43  9958  99*77 

Ash  per  cent  in  the  straw . .       3*89  2-59 

100  grs.  of  the  dried  extract  of  the  steep- water  contained  1-56  nitrogen, 
=1*89  grs.  of  ammonia;  therefore  an  imperial  gallon  would  be  capable  of 
supplying  5  grs. ;  and  a  vat  containing  3000  gallons  of  water,  2^  lb&, 
worth  about  1*.  2<£,  and  would  convey  to  the  fields  of  the  farmer  about  the 
same  weight  of  phosphoric  acid. 

By  the  kindness  of  the  proprietors  of  the  Patent  Steeping-Works  at  Cregagh, 
who  have  liberally  given  me  an  opportunity  of  inspecting  the  books  of  their 
establishment,  1  am  enabled  to  give  the  following  average  statement  of  the 
changes  which  100  tons  of  flax  undergo,  when  treated  by  Schenck s  process. 
100  tons  of  air-dried  flax-straw  yield — 

Tons. 

1.  By  Seeding— $$  tons  of  seed  and  husks,  leaving  of  seeded  flax. .    67 

2.  By  Steeping — 67  tons  of  seeded  flax  yield  of  steeped  straw 39*5 

3.  By  Scutching — 39£  tons  of  steeped  straw  yield  of  dressed  flax . .  5*90 
Of  tow  and  pluckings 1-47 

Flax  Cotton.— The  irregularity  in  the  supply  of  cotton,  the  raw  material 
of  an  important  allied  branch  of  English  manufacture,  and  of  which  it  is  cal- 
culated the  mills  of  the  United  Kingdom  require  annually  a  quantity  equal 
to  1000  tons  daily,  has  at  various  times  suggested  attempts  to  convert  our 
indigenous  flax  into  a  form  which  might  render  it  capable  of  being  spun  with 
the  ordinary  cotton  machinery.  It  appears  that  attempts  to  produce  from 
flax  a  substance  possessing  the  properties  of  cotton,  were  many  years  ago 
made  by  a  Swede  named  Des  Charmes,  and  that  in  1775  Lady  Moira  com- 
municated to  the  Society  of  Arts  some  experiments  which,  suggested  by  those 
of  the  Swede,  she  had  made  in  this  country.  Her  ladyship's  experiments  are 
to  us  peculiarly  interesting,  as  her  letters  show  that  they  were  carried  on  at 
her  seat,  the  present  residence  of  David  Ker,  Esq.,  M.P.,  only  twelve  miles 
distant  from  Belfast.  Neither  Des  Charmes'  nor  Lady  Moira's  experiments 
seem  to  have  led  to  any  practical  application  of  the  proposed  substitute  for 
the  foreign  material ;  and  though  subsequent  trials  for  the  same  purpose 
were  made  by  various  persons,  the  public  do  not  appear  to  have  placed  any 
confidence  in  their  plans.     Lately,  however,  the  project  has  been  revived  by 

Brazilian  gentleman,  the  Chevalier  Claussen,  known  to  the  public  as  the 
'ntor  of  an  ingenious  loom.  This  gentleman  has  been  more  successful  than 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  287 

his  predecessors  in  exciting  attention,  and  hii  processes  have  been  described 
by  several  chemists  of  reputation  in  England,  as  affording  a  new  and  beauti- 
ful application  of  the  powers  of  chemistry  to  practical  purposes.  In  every 
part  of  Europe,  indeed,  much  interest  has  been  excited  by  the  accounts  which 
have  been  published  respecting  his  discoveries,  which  were  regarded  as  cal- 
culated to  render  Great  Britain  nearly  altogether  independent  of  foreign 
supplies  of  cotton.  The  proposals  of  M.  Claussen  were  not  confined  to  cot- 
tonizing  flax,  but  also  embraced  a  method  of  preparing  long-line  or  fibre  for 
the  flax-spinner,  substituting  for  fermentation  the  more  rapid  action  of  a 
weak  solution  of  caustic  soda,  followed  by  boiling,  or  simple  immersion  in 
water,  acidulated  with  sulphuric  or  muriatic  acid.  The  material  employed 
for  the  production  of  his  cotton  was  at  first  unsteeped  flax-straw ;  but  at 
present  I  find  that  the  flax  in  its  original  state  is  not  used,  and  that  the 
refuse  tow  of  the  scutch-mills  is  preferred.  This  limitation  of  the  application 
of  M.  Claussen's  patent  removes  some  of  the  objections  which  were  urged 
against  his  original  proposal  to  cut  up  valuable  flax,  so  as  to  produce  what 
the  opponents  of  the  invention  regarded  as  an  inferior  article ;  now,  however, 
it  is  merely  the  waste  tow  of  the  scutching-mill,  which  can  be  purchased  at 
from  £4  to  £7  per  ton,  that  is  used  in  M.  Claussen's  establishments :  and 
from  this,  as  the  interesting  series  of  samples  which  have  been  kindly 
supplied  to  me  by  Dr.  Ryan  show,  a  beautiful  material,  capable,  it  is  stated, 
not  merely  of  being  spun  with  cotton  machinery,  but  of  being  combined 
with  wool,  silk,  and  other  fibres,  and  exhibiting,  apparently,  that  increased 
affinity  for  colouring  matters  which  Mr.  Mercer  has  found  to  be  possessed 
by  cotton  fibre,  acted  upon  by  caustic  alkali,  has  been  obtained.  The  first 
operation  at  M.  Claussen's  works  is  to  pass  the  tow  through  a  carding  and 
hackling  machine,  for  the  purpose  of  arranging  its  fibres  parallel;  so  straight- 
ened, it  is  cut  by  another  machine  (somewhat  similar  in  its  operations  to  the 
chaff-cutter  of  the  farmer)  into  pieces  of  about  one  and  a  half  inch  in 
length,  and  is  then  conveyed  to  the  steeping  vats.  The  vats  are  placed  side 
by  side ;  and  by  means  of  a  cradle  and  a  travelling  railway,  the  tow  can  be 
transferred  from  one  to  the  other,  as  required.  It  is,  in  the  first  place, 
steeped  for  twenty-four  hours  in  a  cold  solution  of  caustic  soda,  of  1°  Twad- 
del.  The  next  step  is  to  plunge  it  in  another  vat  containing  a  similar  solution, 
but  furnished  with  a  steam-pipe,  so  that  the  liquid  can  be  kept  at  a  boiling 
temperature  for  two  hours.  The  peculiar  part  of  the  process,  or  the  Claus- 
senizitfg  of  the  tow,  is  commenced  by  transferring  the  material  prepared,  as 
described,  to  a  third  vat,  which  holds  a  solution  containing  5  per  cent, 
carbonate  of  soda.  It  is  allowed  to  remain  immersed  about  an  hour,  so  as  to 
be  completely  saturated  with  this  liquid,  and  is  then  raised  from  the  vat  and 
placed  in  a  solution  containing  about  one-half  per  cent,  of  sulphuric  acid. 
In  the  bath  of  sulphuric  acid  it  is  alleged  that  important  chemical  and  me* 
chanioal  changes  are  effected  in  the  character  of  the  flax  fibre.  It  is  stated 
that  it  becomes  at  once  changed, 'as  if  "  by  a  new  instance  of  natural  magic," 
from  a  damp  aggregation  of  flax  to  a  light  expansive  mass  of  cottony  texture, 
increasing  in  size,  like  leavening  dough  or  an  expanding  sponge ;  and  this 
material,  it  is  asserted,  can  be  produced  at  a  cost  not  exceeding  2\d.  per  lb., 
which  is  considerably  below  the  price  at  which  cotton  can  be  grown  and 
imported  from  the  United  States  or  any  other  cotton-producing  country. 
By  a  simple  process  of  bleaching,  and  subsequently  "  carding,"  the  tow  thus 
modified  assumes  both  the  texture  and  appearance  of  foreign  cotton,  and  can 
at  once  be  employed  by  the  cotton-spinner. 

With  such  alleged  advantages  to  recommend  it,  it  was  not  wonderful  that 
M.  Claussen's  proposal  attracted  the  attention  and  excited  the  sympathies  of 
Mr.  Porter  and  other  eminent  (Economists,  and  that  the  late  Lord  Lieutenant 


288  report — 1852. 

of  Ireland,  the  Earl  of  Clarendon,  should  desire  that  a  scheme  which  promised 
such  important  results  to  this  country,  so  deeply  interested  in  the  production 
of  flax,  should  be  carefully  tested  on  a  proper  commercial  scale. 

An  inquiry  having  been  oommitted  to  Sir  Robert  Kane,  Director  of  the 
Museum  of  (Economic  Geology,  I  was  requested,  together  with  Professors 
Blyth  and  Murphy  of  Cork,  to  make  such  investigations  as  might  properly 
ascertain  the  value  of  the  various  methods  proposed.  But,  unfortunately, 
the  mechanical  arrangements  which  had  been  made  by  M.  Claussen's  agents, 
to  illustrate  the  production  of  the  new  material  from  unsteeped  flax,  were  not 
capable  of  affording  satisfactory  results ;  and,  though  some  trials  with  tow 
proved  more  successful,  it  was  found  impossible  to  carry  out  the  object  of  the 
inquiry  at  the  locality  selected.  I  am  informed  that  it  is  the  intention  of 
the  patentees  to  solicit  a  full  investigation  of  the  methods  pursued  in  their 
operations  at  works  which  they  have  established  near  London,  and  where,, 
they  state,  the  material  is  produced  in  large  quantities.  The  real  value 
however  of  Claussen's  substitute  for  cotton  must  be  decided  by  the  ex- 
perience of  the  manufacturers  of  England.  With  regard  to  the  ceconomy  of 
the  processes,  it  would  be  improper  to  give  an  opinion  until  the  investigation 
which  M.  Claussen  solicits  has  taken  place.  The  specimens  show  what  can 
be  made  from  the  waste  tow  of  the  spinner ;  and  it  is  interesting  to  find  both 
Berthollet  and  Gay-Lussac,  many  years  ago,  pointing  out  the  advantages 
which  appear  here  to  be  realized  from  the  conversion  of  tow  into  a  substitute 
for  cotton. 

I  have  now  to  request  attention  to  a  new  process,  entirely  different  from 
any  of  those  which  have  been  described,  and  the  first  public  announce- 
ment of  which  I  am  permitted  by  the  patentees  to  make  to  this  meeting. 
The  methods  adopted  are  the  invention  of  Mr.  Watt,  a  countryman  and 
namesake  of  the  great  philosopher.  In  this  process  neither  fermentation  nor 
the  action  of  acid  nor  alkaline  solutions  are  employed,  the  separation  of  the 
fibre  from  the  useless  matters  of  the  straw  being  effected  by  subjecting  the 
stems  to  the  action  of  steam,  and  afterwards  by  pressure  applied  by  powerful 
rollers.  In  the  first  place,  Mr.  Watt  proposes  to  take  seeded  flax,  and  to  ex- 
pose it  to  steam,  at  the  ordinary  pressure  of  the  atmosphere>  in  a  close  cham- 
ber, of  peculiar  construction,  so  as  to  soften  and  dissolve  out  the  gummy 
and  other  soluble  matters.  The  chambers  which  he  employs  are  square 
vessels  constructed  of  wood,  or  of  plates  of  cast  iron,  and  provided  with  false 
bottoms,  formed  of  the  perforated  iron  plates  used  in  malt-kilns.  Two  doors 
are  placed  in  the  ends  of  the  chambers,  for  putting  in  and  removing  the  flax. 
The  top  of  each  vat  is  formed  of  cast-iron  plates  so  arranged  as  to  constitute 
a  shallow  tank  for  containing  water,  and  through  which,  extending  for  some 
inches  above  the  surface  of  the  water,  passes  an  iron  pipe,  which  commu- 
nicates with  the  interior  of  the  chamber.  To  the  opening  of  this  pipe  a  valve 
is  fixed,  which  can  be  opened  or  closed  as  required.  Resting  upon  the  false 
bottom,  there  is  an  arrangement  of  pipes,  which  are  intended  to  act  like  the 
vomiter,  or  throw-pipe  of  the  bleacher.  The  process  is  commenced  by 
placing  the  flax  in  bundles,  as  received  from  the  seeding  machine,  on  the 
false  bottom,  until  the  chamber  is  nearly  filled.  The  doors  are  then  secured 
by  screws,  and  steam  is  discharged  into  the  chamber  by  a  pipe  which  passes 
between  the  bottoms,  and  for  some  time  allowed  to  escape  through  the  valve- 
pipe  in  -the  roof,  so  as  to  remove  the  volatile  oil  contained  in  the  straw. 
After  some  time  the  valve  is  closed ;  and  the  escape  of  the  steam  being  pre- 
vented, it  penetrates  through  the  mass  of  the  flax,  softening  and  loosening 
its  various  parts.  Water  is  now  admitted  into  the  metal  tank,  and  the  steam, 
which  strikes  against  the  cooled  roof  of  the  chamber,  is  condensed  and  made 
to  descend  in  showers  of  distilled  water,  by  which  the  soluble  and  softened 


THE  FLAX  PLANT.  /T~  >->  T  **2£0U    c   r  ~* 

|  J  i<  1    *    S  U  w  i   J. 

extractive  matters  are  washed  out  aud  carried  below  the  falte  \gttpm,  awr      ap.  ^. 
conveyed  by  pipe9  into  a  reservoir  and  preserved.     It  is,  howeV^j^yfy}c£eflpw^  >^ 
at  intervals,  during  the  operation,  to  allow  the  flax  liquid  to  accumulate  until  * — -^ 
it  rises  above  the  false  bottom,  and  then,  by  the  pressure  of  the  steam,  to 
cause  it  to  ascend  in  the  throw-pipes,  and  to  descend  in  streams  over  the 
straw,  so  as  completely  to  wash  away  all  the  softened  matters.     In  about  ten 
hours  the  entire  operation  may  be  completed,  though  the  patentee  regards 
it  advantageous  to  subject  the  flax  to  the  action  of  the  steam  for  from 
twelve  to  eighteen  hours. 

The  second  part  of  Mr.  Watt's  process  consists  in  submitting  the  straw,  as 
it  is  removed,  softened  and  swollen,  from  the  steam  chambers  to  the  success- 
ive action  of  two  pairs  of  very  heavy  iron  rollers,  somewhat  resembling  the 
seeding  rollers  used  in  the  hot- water  steeping  establishments,  for  the  purpose 
both  of  quickening  the  drying  process,  and  of  expressing  any  adherent  colour* 
ing  or  glutinous  matter.  By  this  operation,  also,  he  finds  that  not  only  is  the 
drying  facilitated,  but  that  a  considerable  portion  of  the  enveloping  cuticle 
of  the  stems  is  removed,  and  that  the  separation  of  the  fibre  in  scutching  is 
rendered  more  perfect  by  the  bruising  and  splitting  up  of  the  woody  parts 
consequent/^) pon  the  longitudinal  pressure  to  which  they  are  exposed  under 
the  rollers.  This  new  method,  which  is  in  operation  at  present  in  the  extensive 
works  of  Messrs.  Lead  better  in  this  town,  appears  to  offer  most  striking  ad- 
vantages. It  is  peculiarly  adapted  for  rendering  the  separation  of  the  fibre  a 
manufacturing  operation.  No  disagreeable  smelling  odours  are  evolved  ;  and, 
if  experience  confirms  the  expectations  of  the  patentees  with  respect  to  the 
quality  of  the  fibre  obtaiued,  and  the  comparatively  low  expenditure  required 
in  its  production,  the  new  process  will,  in  no  trifling  degree,  contribute  to 
the  extension  of  flax  cultivation  in  this  country. 

A  striking  peculiarity  of  this  process,  and  one  which  renders  it  exceedingly 
interesting  to  the  scientific  agriculturist,  is,  that  it  offers  the  only  satisfactory 
method  of  oeconomizing  the  matters  which  are  dissolved  from  the  flax  plant 
in  its  treatment.  The  dark  liquid  which  accumulates  in  the  lower  chamber 
of  the  vat  can  be  obtained  in  a  most  concentrated  fonn ;  it  is*  totally  free 
from  the  disagreeable  odour  of  the  flax-pool,  and  experiments  which  have 
been  tried  prove  that  it  is  found  by  pigs  a  palatable  and  nutritious  food. 

I  have  to  apologize  for  the  length  to  which  this  Report  has  extended,  and  I 
feel  that  some  of  the  details  which  I  have  included  in  it  may  appear  unneces- 
sary to  those  who  are  familiar  with  the  various  process  of  the  flax  manufac- 
ture; but  as  many  persons  present,  though  acquainted  with  the  beautiful 
fabrics,  which,  in  every  market  in  Europe  and  America,  attest  the  skill  and 
ingenuity  of  the  linen  manufacturers  of  Ulster,  have  probably  now  for  the 
first  time  visited  a  district  which,  like  the  north  of  Ireland,  on  every  side 
exhibits,  in  its  steeping- establishments,  busy  flax-mills  and  extensive  bleach- 
greens  evidences  of  the  advantages  which  this  country  has  derived  from  the 
cultivation  and  skilful  management  of  the  flax  plant,  I  trust,  that,  whilst  in- 
specting the  various  processes  to  which  our  manufacturers  have  liberally  invited 
the  attention  of  the  members  of  the  Association,  the  outline  which  I  have  en- 
deavoured to  give  them  of  the  oeconomy  of  the  crop  may  tend  to  increase 
their  interest  in  this  important  department  of  our  national  industry.  And  if 
my  remarks  on  the  composition  of  the  plant  and  the  various  plans  proposed  for 
the  preparation  of  its  valuable  fibre  should  induce  any  of  those  whom  I  have 
the  honour  to  address  to  undertake  investigations  which  may  contribute  to 
improve  either  the  agricultural  or  technical  management  of  the  crop,  the 
present  visit  of  the  British  Association  will  be  regarded,  if  possible,  with  still 
greater  satisfaction  by  the  manufacturers  of  Ulster. 

1852.  u 


290  report— 1852. 

The  freshwater  Pishes  of  Ulster,  as  enumerated  in  the  MSB.  of  the 
late  William  Thompson,  Esg.9  President  of  the  Belfast  Natural 
History  and  Philosophical  Society.  Contributed  by  Robert  Pat- 
terson, Esq.  and  James  R.  Garrett,  Esq. 

Tbk  contributors  of  this  paper  stated  that  they  had  prepared  it  from'  their 
late  friend's  MSS.,  in  consequence  of  a  suggestion  which  had  been  made  to 
them,  to  the  effect  that  an  accurate  catalogue  of  the  freshwater  fishes  of  Ulster 
would,  on  the  present  occasion,  be  interesting  to  many  who  had  not  before 
had  an  opportunity  of  observing  the  physical  features  of  the  North  of  Ireland. 
The  several  species  of  fish  which  inhabit  purely  fresh  water  for  at  least  a  por- 
tion of  the  year,  and  which  Mr.  Thompson  had  noted  as  having  been  found 
in  the  province  of  Ulster,  were  enumerated  thus : — 

Perca  fluvktilis,  Linn.  Cobitia  barbatula,  Linn. 

Gasterosteus  aculeatus,  Linn.,  including  Esox  lucius,  Linn. 

the  several  varieties  figured  in  Yar-  Salmo  salar,  Linn. ") 

nil's  British  Fishes,  viz.  ( Salmulus.)    / 

G.  trachurus,  Cuv.  Sf  Vol.  —  Eriox,  Linn. 

—  semiarmatus,  Cuv.  A*  Vol.  —  tratta,  Linn. 

—  leiurus,  Cuv.  £  Vat.  fario,  Linn. 

brachycentrus,  Cuv.  Sc  Vail.  —  ferox,  Jard. 

—  spinulosus,  Cuv.  4*  V°l'  —  umbla,  Linn.     1 

—  pungitius,  Linn.  (8.  Salvelinus,  Don.)  J 
Gobio  flimatilis,  Will.  Coregonus  Pollan,  Thomp. 
t;«-w.  m,iM*:.  n^  ?  T  Introduced  into  Pktessa  flesus,  Cuv. 
r™L™  ^L  7jL  I  PO^s  but  not  Anguilla  acutirostris,  Forr. 

^Z£??a£       f  considered  in-            —  mediorostris,  Yarr. 
auratus,  Linn,      j    digenonii  latirostris,  Yarr.  (?). 

Abramis  Brama,  Cuv.  Petromyzon  marinus,  Lmm. 

—  Buggenhagii,  Thomp.  \  fluviatilis,  Linn. 

(Cyprinus ,  Block).      J  Planeri,  Bl. 

Leuciscus  erythrophthalmus,  Cuv.  Ammocsetes  branchialis,  Cuv. 


Supplementary  Report  on  the  Fauna  of  Ireland  by  the  late  William 
Thompson,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Belfast  Natural  History  and 
Philosophical  Society. 

Robert  Patterson  and  James  R.  Garrett,  Esqs.,  the  two  gentlemen  by 
whom  this  communication  was  brought  forward,  gave  the  following  explana- 
tion as  to  the  circumstances  under  which  it  was  prepared : — At  the  Meetings 
of  the  British  Association  held  in  the  years  1840  and  1843,  Mr.  Thompson 
presented  Reports  on  the  Fauna  of  Ireland,  drawn  up  by  him  at  the  request 
of  the  Association.  Shortly  after  his  untimely  decease  in  February  last 
(1852),  his  MSS.  were — in  pursuance  of  directions  contained  in  his  will — 
handed  over  to  the  two  gentlemen  above-named,  with  a  view  to  publication, 
so  as  to  complete  his  work  on  the  Natural  History  of  Ireland,  three  vols,  of 
which — on  the  Birds  of  Ireland — had  appeared  during  the  author's  lifetime. 
On  examination  of  these  MSS.,  a  memorandum  was  found  containing  a  list  of 
the  papers  which  it  had  been  Mr.  Thompson's  intention  to  submit  to  the 
Belfast  meeting  of  the  Association,  and,  amongst  others,  there  was  specified 
a  supplement  to  his  former  reports.  The  materials  of  this  Supplement  were 
also  discovered,  partly  arranged,  and  it  was  considered  desirable  that  the 


ON  THB  FAUNA  OF  IRELAND.  291 

author's  intentions  should  be  carried  oat  as  far  as  possible.  The  remaining 
volumes  of  "  The  Natural  History  of  Ireland  "  being  in  course  of  preparation 
for  the  press,  the  present  communication  was  confined  to  an  enumeration  of 
the  several  species  of  animals  now  recorded  as  Irish,  but  which  had  not 
been  made  known  at  the  date  of  the  publication  of  Mr.  Thompson's  previous 
reports. 

Div.  VERTEBBATA. 

Class  Mammalia. 

Vespertilio  Nattereri,  Kuhl M'Coy,  in  Ann.  Nat.  Hist.  vol.  xv.  p.  270. 

Delphinus  tureio,  Fabr Gray,  in  Ann.  Nat.  Hiit.  vol.  vii.  p.  84. 

Class  Ayes. 

Vntar  rotas,  IMm . Tamil,  Br.  Birds,  ed.  2.  vol.  i.  p.  1 ;  Thomp. 

Nat.  Hiit.  Ireland,  vol.  Lp.  84. 
Aquila  Nsvia,  Brisson.... * Tarr.  Br.  B.  vol.  i.  p.  10 9  Thomp.  K«  H.  Lrt. 

vol.  i.  p.  13. 

Circus  cineraceul,  Mont,  (sp.) Thomp.  N.  H.  Ire.  vol.  i.  p.  427* 

Motacilla  alba,  Linn.,  Gould  „  „      p.  218. 

Alauda  cristata,  Gould Tarr.  Br.  B.  vol.  i.  p.  455. 

Alcedo  Alcyon,  Linn Thomp.  N.  H.  Ire.  vol.  i.  p.  373. 

Hirundo  purpurea,  Wilson 1..  Tarr.  Br.  B.  vol.  ii.  p.  257. 

Perdue  rufa,  Mont Thomp.  N.  H.  Ire.  vol.  ii.  p.  65. 

Charadrma  eantianus,  Latham    „  „     p.  104. 

Grus  cinerea,  Bechst „  „      p.  131. 

Botanrus  lentiginosus,  Mont,  (sp.) ...  „  „     p.  168. 

Ciconia  alba,  Brisson „  „      p.  175. 

Scelopas  Brehmi,  Kaup ,..  „  vol.  iii.  p.  447. 

Tringa  platyrhynca,  Temm. „  vol.  ii.  p.  282. 

—  Seninzii,  Bonap „  „     p.  297. 

— —  Bonapartei,  Schlegel „  „     p.  297. 

— —  rufescens,  VieiU. M'Coy,  in  Ann.  Nat.  Hist.  vol.  xv.  p.  271* 

— —  Temminckii,  Leisler  Thomp.  N.  H.  Ire.  vol.  ii.  p.  302. 

Crex  BaiBoni,  VieiU.  (tp.)  „  „     p.  321. 

GaDinula  Martinica,  Gmel „  „     p.  331. 

Anser  Canadensis,  Gmel.  (sp.)   „  vol.  iii.  p.  24. 

jfigyptiacu*,  Linn,  (ro.) „  „     p.  64. 

Tadoma  rutila,  Pallas  (sp.) „  „     p.  65. 

Anas  Americana,  Gmel. „  „     p.  112. 

Oidemia  perepicillata,  Linn,  (sp.)  ...  „  „     p.  118. 

Mergus  cucullatiu,  Linn „  „     p.  161. 

Una  Ieucophthalmua,  Faber    „  „     p.  211. 

Sterna  Velox,  Rvppel  „  „     p.  266. 

—  leucopareia,  Natterer ,.  „     p.  298. 

leueoptera,  Meissner  <$*  Schini..  M'Coy,  in  Ann.  N.  S.  vol.  xv.  p.  271  j  Thomp. 

N.  H.  Ire.  vol.  iii.  p.  307. 
Larus  Booapaitii,  Rich.  Sf  Swains....  „  „     p.  317. 

Procellaha  glaeialis,  Lin n „  „     p.  406. 

Class  Pisces. 

Coitus  OrefiBkndieus,  Cuv.  if  Vol....  Specimen  in  Dublin  University  Museum,  ob- 
tained by  Dr.  Ball  at  Yougbal;  another 
procured  by  Mr.  Win.  Andrews  from  Dingle 
Bay,  Feb.  1850. 

Sebastes  Norvegicus,  Cuv.  fy  Vol.  ...  Obtained  from  Dingle  Bay  by  Mr.  Wm,  An- 
drews. 

Pagelm*  erythrinus,  Cuv.  if  Vol.  ....  Taken  on  south-west  coast  by  Hie  same  gen- 
tleman* 

u2 


292 


REPORT — 1852. 


Cantharus  lineatua,  Mont,  (sp,)  Ann.  N.  II.  vol.  xviii.  p.  313. 

Brama  Raii,  Cud.  fy  Vol „         vol.  xv.  p.  311. 

Xiphias  gladius,  Linn.  ?  „  vol.  xviii.  p.  314. 

Cepola  rubescens,  IAnn Obtained  by  Dr.  Farran  on  southern  coast, 

Dec.  1848. 

Scopelus  borealis,  Nillson   Ann.  N.  H.  vol  xx.p.  171* 

PLatessa  limandoides,  Jenyns  Obtained  by  Mr.  W.  Todhunter  off  Cape 

Clear,  in  winter  of  1848. 

Pleuronectes  Arnoglossus,  Schn Obtained  by  Mr.  W.  Todhunter  on  Galway 

coast,  Sept.  1848. 

Soleapegusa,  Yarr Obtained  by  Mr.  W.  Todhunter  on  Gabray 

coast,  Sept.  1848. 

Echeneis  remora,  Linn Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  314. 

Syngnathus  ophidion,  Linn „         vol.  i.  (new  series)  p.  6*3. 

Orthagoriscus  oblongus,  Schn Specimen  obtained  near  Tramore  (Co.  Water- 
ford),  in  Sept.  1845 ;  now  in  the  Collection 
of  the  Dublin  Nat.  Hist.  Society. 

Acipenser  huso,  Linn Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xx.  (1847)  P-  172. 

Scymnus  borealis,  Flem.  ?   Mr.  R.  Ball  (MS.). 

Amphioxus  lanceolatus,  Pallas  (sp.)..  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  314. 


Div.  INVERTEBRATA. 

MOLLUSCA. 

Testacellus  Maugei,  Ferussae Ann.  N.  H.  vol. 

Succinea  oblonga,  Drap „         vol. 

Acteon  viridis,  Mont,  (sp.)  „         vol. 

Eolis  violacea,  Alder  fy  Han „         vol. 

Alderia  modesta,  Loven  (sp.)  Allman,  in  Ann. 

Idalia  aspersa,  Loven  (sp.)  Thomp.  in  Ann. 

Polycera  punctilucens,  IX Orb. 


Doris  obvelata,  Joknst. 

— —  Ulidiana,  Thomp 

Aplysia  nexa,  Thomp , 

Orbis  foliaceus,  Phtl 

Bullssa  pruinosa,  Clark    

Utriculus— ,  Brown 

Volvaria  subcylindrica,  Brown  ..... 
Cylichna  (Bulla)  strigella,  Loven  . 
Bulla  mammillata,  Phil 

—  producta,  Brown , 

Bulla?  acuminata,  Brug 

Ovulapatula,  Penn.  (sp.) 

Pleurotoma  Farrani,  Thomp 

■ coarctata,  Forbes 

"        striolata,  Scacchi    

■—  brachystoma,  Phil 

■         laevigata,  Phil 

—  teres,  Forbes 

— ;—  Ulidiana,  Thomp 

Triton  ele^ans,  Thomp 

Fusus  Sabini,  Gray 

Buccinum  Zetlandicum,  Forbes  .... 

Nassa  varicosa,  Turt.  (sp.)  

Trichotropis  borealis,  Brod.  8f  Sow. 

Natica  Montagui,  Forbes, 

sordida,  Lam 

Odostomia  crassa,  Thomp 

Eulima  nitida  (Melania),  Lam 

Stylifer  Turtoni,  Brod 


xx.  p.  174. 

vii.  (new  series)  p.  501. 
xv.  p.  314. 
xv.  p.  313. 
N.  H.  vol.  xvii.  p.  1 . 
N.  H.  vol.  i.  (new  series)  p.  63. 
vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  313. 
p.  311. 
p.  312. 
„         p.  313. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  351. 
p.  381. 
vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  314. 
p.  315. 
vol.  vii.  (n.  s.)  p.  501. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  351. 
vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  314. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)p.35K 
vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  384. 
vol.  xv.  p.  316. 
vol.  xx.  p.  174. 
vol.  xviii.  p.  384. 
„       p.  384. 
„       p.  384. 
vol.  xviii.  p.  383. 
vol.  xv.  p.  316. 
„      p.  317. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  a.)  p.  352. 
vol.xv.(1845)p.316. 
vol.  xviii.  p.  38o. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  352. 
vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  384. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  352. 
vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  315. 
vol.  iii.  (n.s.)  p.  352. 
p.  351. 


on  the;  fauna  of  irsland.  293 

Rissoa  Warrcni,  Tkomp Thomp.  in  Aim.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  315. 

— —  fulgida,  Mont.  (sp.) „  „  vol.iii.(n.  s.)p.351. 

proxima,  Alder    „  „  voLxx. (1847)p.  174. 

inconspicua,  Alder  „  „  „          p.  173. 

costulata,  Risso  „  „  vol.  xv.  (1845)  p.  315. 

—  abyssicola,  Forbes    „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  351, 

?* 

Lacuna  Montacuti,  Tart „  „  vol.  xx.  (1847)  p.  173. 

Scissurella  crispata,  Flem „  „  vol.  vii.  (n.  s.)  p.  501. 

Emarginula  crassa,  Sow „  „  vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  384. 

Puncturella  noachina,  Linn,  (sp.) ....  „  „  vol.  vii.  (n.  8.)  p.  501. 

Chiton  Hanleyi,  Bean „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  352. 

Pecten  similis,  Laskey „  „  vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  385. 

fuci,  GmeUn „  „                       „           p.  385, 

Area  raridentata,  S.  Wood  „  „                       „           p.  385. 

Nucula  Polii,  Phil. „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p»3&2. 

decussate,  Sow „  „  vol.  xx.  (1847)  p.  174. 

Modiola  vestita,  Phil „  „  vol.  xv.  p.  318. 

Galeomma  Turtoni,  Sow „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  a.)  p.  352. 

Montacuta  oblonga,  Turt „  „  vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  385. 

Lucina  lactea,  Poll  (sp.) „  „                       „           p.  385. 

Cardium  Loveni,  Thomp „  „  vol.  xv.  p.  317. 

Ervilia  caatanea,  Mont,  (sp.) „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  352. 

Ampbidesma  intermedia,  Thomp,   ...  „  „  voL  xv.  (1845)  p.  318. 

Telfina  pygmeca,  Phil „  „  vol.  i.  (n.  s.)  p.  63. 

baiaustina,  Linn „  „  vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  385. 

Nesera  cuspidata,  Olivi  (sp.)   „  „                       „           p.  385. 

Teredo  bipalmulata,  Del.  Chia „  „  vol.  xx.  p.  237. 

Didemnum  gelatinosum,  Edw „  „  vol.  i.  (n.  a.)  p.  64. 

Ascidia  grossularia,  Van  Beneden   ...  „  „                 „          p. 63. 

tubularis,  M ill „  „                 „          p.  63. 

virginea,  Forb.  Sf  Han „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  352. 

Botrylloides  rubrum,  M .  Edw „  „                   „          p.  353. 

rotifera,  Edw „  „  vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  386. 

—  albicans,  Edw „  „                   „              p.  385. 

Botryllus  smaragdus,  Edw „  „  vol.  i.  (n.  s.)  p.  64. 

—  violaceus,  Edw „  „                   „        p.  64. 

Amoroucium  albicans,  Edw.    .... „  „                   „       p.  64. 

ApHdhrm  fallax,  Johnst „  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  362. 

ClRRHIPEDA. 

Aetna  anglica,  Leach Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  386. 

Crustacea. 

Obisinm  maritimum,  Leach Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  386. 

Stenorhynchus  tenuirostris,  Leach ...  „         vol.  xx.  p.  237. 

Enrynome  scutellata,  Risso „  „     p.  238. 

Polybius  Henslowii,  Leach „  vol.  xv.  p.  31 9. 

Tbia  polita    Dr.  Scouler,  in  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xvii.  p.  176. 

Paeuriis  Forbesii,  Bell Dr.  Melville,  in  Ann.  N.H.  Sept.  1851,  p.  236. 

Gebia  deltura,  Leach  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xx.  p.  239. 

Crangon  fasciatus,  His so „         vol.  i.  (n.  s.)  p.  64. 

sculptus,Be»  Dr.  Melville,  in  Ann.  N.H.  Sept.  1851,  p.  236. 

bispraosus,  Bell  „  „  p.  236. 

Hippolyte  Thompsoni,  BeU.. Bell,  Brit.  Crust,  p.  291. 

Pandaliformis,  Bell „  p.  289. 

*  This  shell  has,  since  Mr.  Thompson's  decease,  been  identified  by  S.  Hanley,  Bsq.  as 
Rissoa  BeanU :  found  in  shell  sand  in  deep  water,— month  of  Belfast  Bay. 


$94  REPORT*— 1852. 

Cynthia ?  Tkomp.  (J.  V.)   Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xx.  p.  340. 

Themisto  brevispinosa,  Goodsir „  „      p.  340. 

OrchestU ?   „  „      p.342. 

Amphithoe  fucicola,  Leach  (sp.) „  „      p.  242. 

rubricate,  Mont,  (sp.) „  „      p.  242. 

*  »  »      p.242. 

Gammarus  marinus,  Leach „  „      p.242. 

* campylops,  Leach  „  „      p.242. 

— —  longimanus,  Leach  (sp.) „  „      p.242. 

— —  punctata!,  Johnst „  „      p.  243. 

Opis  typica,  Kroyer 7  „  „      p.  243. 

Anonyx  (sp.?)  ,,  „      p.  243. 

1    „  M      p.  243. 

Cerapus  falcatusj Mont .  (sp.) „  „      p.  244. 

Hyperia  Latreillii,  Edw „  „      p.  244. 

Galba,  Mont,  (ap.) „  n      p.  244. 

Lestrigonus  •— —  ? „  „      p.  244. 

Caprefla  lobata,  MuU „  „      p.  244. 

taberculata,  Goodsir  „  „      p.  244. 

acuminifera,  Leach „  „      p.  245. 

Idotea  acuminatum,  Leachl  „  vol.  iii.  (n.  a.)  p.  364. 

Tanais  Dulongii,  Audouin  (sp.) „  vol.  xx.  p.  245. 

Jasra  albifrons,  Mont,  (sp.) „  „      p.  245. 

Praniza  essrulata,  Mont,  (sp.)  ? „  vol.  i.  (new  series)  p.  65. 

Spbasroma  Prideauxiana,  Leach „  vol.  xx.  p.  245. 

Griffitbsii,  Leach  MS  S.I    „  „      p.  246. 

Cymodocea  truncata,  M ont.  (sp.)   ...  „  „      p.  246. 

Cirolana  hii-tines,  Edw „  „      p.  246. 

Eurydice  pulcnra,  Leach „  „      p.  246. 

Bopyrus  mppolytes,  Kroyer   „  vol.  i.  (new  series)  p.  65. 

(new) 1  "Found  in  Galathe*  in  Belfast  Bay"  [Thomps. 

■  ?....... /  M88J] 

Sida  erystallina,  Mull,  (sp.)  Edw. ) 

Crust '. VAnn.  N.  H.  vol.  i.  (n.  a.)  p.  65. 

Daphnia  erystallina,  MuU.  Entom. .  J  „  ,,          p.  65. 

Lynceus  lamellatus,  MuU „  vol.  xviii.  p.  386. 

Cypris  reptans,  Batrdt    „  „         p.  386. 

Canthocaipusininuticornis,3i«Z/.(sp.)  „  vol.  xx.  p.  247. 

Cetochilua  septentrionalis,  Goodsir...  „  „      p.  247. 

Notodelphis  ascidicola,  Attman  Proc.  Roy.  Irish  Acad.  April  1847. 

"Caligus  minutus,  Otto,  Nordm." 

Edw v. Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xx.  p.  247. 

— —  diaphanus,  Nordm „  „      p.  247. 

— -~  Stromii,  Baird „  vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  354. 

curtus,  Kroyer „  vol.  xx.  p.  247. 

—  rapax,  Edw „  vol.  iii.  (n.  a.)  p.  357. 

Mullen „  „          p.  357. 

— —  Nordmanni,  Edw „  „           p.  357. 

pectorahs,  Kroyer  „  vol.  xx.  p.  247. 

Trebius  caudatus,  Kroyer    „  „      p.  248. 

•Chondracanthus  gibbosui,  Kroyer...  n  „      p. 248. 

Lernseopoda  galei,  Kroyer „  „      p.  248. 

Nymphon  Johnstoni,  Goodsir „  vol.  xv.  p.  31 9. 

— — •  spinosum,  Gooiwr „  „       p.  319. 

— —  femoratum,  Leach „  vol.  xx.  p.  249. 

Phoxichilidium  globosum,  Goodsir...  „  „      p.  249. 

Munna  Kroveri,  Goodsir „  „      p.  247. 

Pasithoe  vesiculosa,  Goodsir  „  vol.  xv.  p.  31 9. 

/£Sgin»?  longispina,  Kroyer „  vol.  xx.  p.  245. 


ON  THE  FAUNA  Of  IBBLAND. 


ttfc 


Annelida. 

♦Udonella  caligorctm,  Joknst Ann.  N.  H. 

Borlaaia  alba,  Thomv 

octoculata,  Joknst 

purpurea,  Joknst 

—  olivacea,  Joknst 

Planaria  cornuta.  Mull 

rosea,  Mull. 

lactea,Jtf«tf 

nigra,  Mull 

torva,  MuU 

flexilis,  DalyeU   

arethusa 

Nemertes  melanocephala,  Joknst.  ... 
Nephetts  octoculata,  Moquin-Tandon 

Glosaiphonia  Kachana,  Tkomp 

Pontobdella  leevis,  Blainville  ......... 

Tristoma  coccineum,  Cue 

Euphrosina  foliosa,  And.  Sf  Edw.  ... 

"  Octobothrium  (?)  Merlangi    \ 

(Octostoma  Merlangi,  Kukn)f"Nord.  J 

FoRAMINIFERA. 

Rotalina  communis,  iyOrb Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xx. 

Rotalia  crassula,  Mont,  (sp.)   

Guttulina  communis,  D'Oro 

Quinqueloculina  semilunaris,  iyOrb. 

"  Quinqueloculina  cora,  D'  Orb ) 

——semilunaris,  var.?"  Wood   ...  / 

Triloculina  minuta,  Brown  (sp.) 

Globulina  gibba,  ITOrb 

Spirohna  subarcuatula,  Mont.  (sp.)... 
Arethusa  lactea,  Mont,  (sp.)   


vol.  xv.  p.  320. 
„      p.  330. 
vol.  xviii.  p.  388. 
„        p.  388. 
„       p.  388. 
vol.  xv.  p.  320. 
„      p.  321. 
vol.  xviii.  p.  388. 
„        p.  389. 
p.  389. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  364. 
vol.  vii.  (n.  s.)  p.  501. 
vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  387. 
p.  389. 
p.  389. 
p.  391. 
t.p. 
vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  366. 

p.  356. 


1*175. 
p.  175. 
p.  175. 
p.  175. 

p.  175. 

p.  176. 
p.  175. 
p.  175. 
p.  176. 


Tetrarhynchus  megacephalus,  Rud. 
Echinorhynchus  gigas,  Rud.   


Entozoa. 

..  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  vii.  (n.  8.)  p.  501. 
„  „  p.  501. 


ECHINODSRMATA. 

Brissus  lyrifer,  Forbes ... Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  393. 

Holothuria  inhaerens,  Mull „         vol.  xv.  p.  321 . 

—  niger,  Couck Obtained  by  Mr.  W.  Todbunter  on  west  coast, 

Sept.  1848. 

?  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  393. 

Thyone  raphanus,  Duben  Sf  Koren,..  „         vol.  xx.  p.  176. 

Chirodota  digitata,  Mont,  (sp.)  „  vol.  xv.  p.  321. 


vol.  xviii.  p.  393. 


Syrinx  Harveii,  Forbes  | 

granulosus  (M'Coy  in  Ann.  N.  > 

H.  vol.  xv.  p.  272) J 

— ? [Two  specimens  found  under  stones,  on  beach 

at  Tory  Island,  by  Mr.  Hyndman.— Tkomp, 
MSS.j 

Forbesii,  M'Coy Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  p.  273. 

—  tenuicinctus,  M* Coy  „  „      p.  2/3. 

Sipunculus— ? [From  Belfast  Bay.     Intermediate  in  some 

respects  between  the  genera  Syrinx  and  Si- 
punculus.— Tkomp,  MSS.] 

*  Included  by  Mr.  Thompson  amongst  the  Crustacea  in  Ann.  N.  H.,  but  subsequently 
noted  by  him  as  belonging  to  the  AnneUda. 


S96  '  report— 1852. 

Priapulua  — — ?  M'Coy  in  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  p.  273.      [Not 

distinct  from  P.  caudatus.—Yf.  T.] 
?  

ACALEPHA. 

Velella  subemarginata,  Thomps Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  p.  321. 

ZOOPHYTA. 

Syncoryna  Listen,  Van  Ben.  (sp.)  ...  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  394. 

Gorgonia  verrucosa,  Linn „         vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  356. 

Turbinolia  milletiana,  Defrance „         vol.  xviii.  (1846)  p.  394. 

Corynactis  AUmani,  Thomps „  „        p.  394. 

Dysidea  ?  papulosa,  Johnst \  n  oo< 

(Zoanthus  Coucbii)    ]  »  »        P-  **' 

Lucernaria  campanulata W.  H.  Harvey  and  W.  Andrews,  Esqs. 

Iluanthos  Scoticus,  Forbes Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  p.  322. 

Alecto  granulata,  Edw „         vol.  xx.  p.  176. 

—  major,  Johnst „         vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  357. 

— —  dilatans,  Johnst „  „  p.  357. 

Hippothoa  sica,  Couch    „         vol.  i.         „     p.  65. 

CetteiporiLSkene'i, Ellis $Soland.(ap.)  „         vol.xv.  (1845) p. 322. 

Lepralia  simplex,  Johnst ,....  „         vol.  iii.  (n.  s.)  p.  357. 

—  Hyndmanni,  Johntf „  „  p.  357. 

—  granifera,  Johnst 

■     i    annulata,  Fabr.  (sp.)  Johnst. ...  „  „  p.  357. 

—  Peachii,  Johnst „  „  p.  357. 

— —  reticulata,  Macgillivray 

innominate,  var.  ?  Couch \  ok7 

(description,  not  figure)  Johnst. . .  J  »  "  P* °°' ' 

—  Baltii,  Johnst „  „  p.  357.  • 

— —  trispinosa,  Johnst „  „  p.  357. 

—  coccinea,  Abilqaard • „  „  p.  357* 

violacea,  Forbes  

—  concinna,  (Busk  MS.)    

labrosa,  (Busk  MS.)  

Escbara  foliacea  Obtained  by  Mr.  W.  Todhunter  off  Cape  Clear, 

winter  of  1848. 
Retepora  cellulosa,  Linn,  (sp.)   ......  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xv.  p.  322. 

Amorphozoa. 

Halicbondria  hispida,  Mont.  Wern.l 

Mem.  vol.  ii.  p.  86.  pi.  5.  figures  >  Dr.  Scolder  in  Ann.  N.  H.  vol.  xviii.  p.  396. 

1  &  2;  Johnst.  B.  S.  p.  98    J 

macularis See  Dr.  Johnston  in  Berw.  Club,  Proc  vol.  ii. 

p.  196. 

Note. — Mr.  Thompson's  MSS.  contain  references  to  several  sponges  in  his 
collection,  which  he  considered  to  be  of  species  not  previously  described. 
They  are  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Belfast  Natural  History  and  Philosophical 
Society. 


ON  THE  METB0B0L06Y  OF  BIRMINGHAM.  297 

Observations  on  the  Meteorology  of  Birmingham. 
By  William  Willb,  Esq.,  F.G.S. 

The  accompanying  Tables  have  been  compiled  from  a  Meteorological 
Register  kept  at  the  Birmingham  Philosophical  Institution.  • 

The  observations  for  temperature,  pressure,  rain  and  wind,  extend  over  a 
period  of  eight  years,  from  18S7  to  1844  inclusive.  The  dew-point  tables 
embrace  a  period  of  five  years,  from  1838  to  1842  inclusive ;  and  the  evapo- 
ration tables  the  two  years  of  1843  and  1844  only.  The  whole  of  these 
observations,  with  the  exception  of  those  for  the  four  months  from  August 
to  November  1844,  were  made  by  the  late  Dr.  Ick,  the  Curator  of  that 
Institution,  whose  accuracy  as  an  observer  is  well  known ;  the  observations 
for  the  excepted  months  were  made  by  a  gentleman  who  acted  as  his  sub- 
stitute during  his  last  illness,  and  continued  to  do  so  for  a  short  time  after 
his  death,  and  as  they  bear  internal  marks  of  care  and  accuracy,  I  have  not 
hesitated  to  incorporate  them  with  those  of  Dr.  Ick. 

This  Register  came  into  my  possession  during  an  official  connection  with 
the  above-mentioned  Institution,  and  from  the  care  with  which  it  appeared 
to  have  been  kept,  the  long  period  over  which  it  extends,  and  the  importance 
of  Birmingham  as  a  meteorological  station,  it  occurred  to  me  that  a  reduction 
of  the  recorded  observations  was  likely  to  repay  the  necessary  labour,  and 
that  the  results  would  probably  form  an  acceptable  contribution  to  this  de- 
partment of  knowledge ;  and  the  rather  so,  that  with  the  exception  of  Mr. 
Osier's  papers  on  the  winds,  contained  in  the  Reports  of  the  Association, 
I  am  not  aware  of  the  existence  of  any  long-continued  series  of  trustworthy 
observations  on  the  Meteorology  of  Birmingham. 

I  will  briefly  notice  the  subjects  of  these  observations,  and  recapitulate 
their  chief  results. 

1.  Temperature  (Tables  I.  to  VII.). — The  instruments  were  placed  in  the 
shade,  for  the  first  two  years  4£  feet,  and  subsequently  about  38  feet  above 
the  ground,  and  about  437  and  470  feet  respectively  above  the  mean  level 
of  the  sea,  the  place  of  suspension  being  nearly  in  the  centre  of  the  town  of 
Birmingham.  In  consequence  of  breakages,  the  same  instruments  were  not 
employed  throughout  the  whole  series  of  observations,  so  that  it  has  not  been 
possible  to  submit  them  to  verification.  The  self- registering  thermometer 
was  of  Rutherford's  construction. 

The  mean  monthly  and  annual  temperatures  are  deduced  in  Tables  L»  IL, 
IIL,*— first,  from  continuous  daily  observations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  local 
time ;  secondly,  from  the  highest  and  lowest  daily  markings  of  the  self-regis- 
tering thermometer ;  and  thirdly,  from  the  highest  and  lowest  annual  indica- 
tions of  the  same  instrument. 

The  mean  annual  temperature  for  eight  years,  as  deduced, — 

1st  From  the  daily  observations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.,  is. 49°*90 

2nd.  From  the  highest  and  lowest  daily  observations  of  the  self- 
registering  thermometer 49°*17 

3rd.  From  the  highest  and  lowest  yearly  observations  of  the  self- 
registering  thermometer 60^00 

4th.  The  mean  temperature  of  the  five  years,  from  1838  to  1842 
inclusive  (see  Table  XXL),  which  excludes  the  year  1837 
and  the  unusually  warm  years  1843  and  1844,  is 49Ca694 

Of  these  amounts  some  |K>rtion  is  doubtless  due  to  the  great  number  of 
our  manufacturing  and  domestic  fires. 

In  Table  IV.  is  shown  the  distribution  of  the  temperature  through  the 
several  meteorological  seasons,  with  the  differences  from  the  mean. 


2»:  *BP0*V~18$2# 

The  Tables  III.,  V.,  VI.  exhibit  the  mean  range  of  the  self-registering 
thermometer  through  the  several  years,  months  and  seasons,  with  the  differ- 
ences from  the  seasonal  and  annual  means.  The  mean  annual  range  of 
temperature  is  640,25,  and  the  mean  monthly  range  32°*51 ;  while  the  greatest 
monthly  range,  that  of  April,  is  6°*49  in  excess,  and  the  least  monthly  ranges, 
namely,  those  of  November  and  December,  are  severally  4°*95  in  defect 
from  the  general  mean. 

.  In  Table  VII.  is  given  the  number  of  days  on  which  the  self-registering 
thermometer  was  at  or  below  32° ;  the  average  yearly  number  being  5$. 

2.  Barometric  pressure  (Tables  VIIL,  IX.,  X.,  XI.). — The  instrument 
employed  was  a  standard  barometer  of  Newman's  construction,  of  *546  in. 
bore,  with  moveable  brass  scale,  and  which  had  been  compared  with  the 
flint-glass  barometer  at  the  Royal  Society's  rooms.  The  cistern  was  18  feet 
above  the  ground,  and  about  447  feet  above  the  mean  level  of  the  sea. 

The  Tables  VIII.,  IX.,  X.  exhibit  the  mean  monthly  and  annual  barometric 
pressure,  deduced  from  observations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.,  corrected  for  tern* 
perature,  with  its  distribution  through  the  several  meteorological  seasons,  the 
corresponding  barometrical  ranges,  and  the  differences  of  pressure  and  range 
between  each  season,  and  the  general  mean  of  the  several  seasons* 

The  mean  annual  barometric  pressure  is  29*381  inches,  from  which  the 
greatest  yearly  difference  in  excess  is  +*084  in.,  and  in  defect  —  '109  in. 

In  Table  XL  is  shown  the  mean  monthly  and  annual  pressures  as  derived 
from  the  highest  and  lowest  of  the  pressures  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  The  mean 
annual  pressure  thus  obtained  is  29*303  in.,  differing  from  the  mean  of  the 
two  daily  observations  by  *078  in.  only. 

In  the  synoptical  Table  XXI.  the  barometric  pressure  is  resolved  into  its 
gaseous  and  vapour  constituents ;  and  their  mean  monthly  amounts,  shown 
for  the  period  of  five  years,  comprised  in  the  dew-point  register,  namely,  from 
1838  to  1842  inclusive,  with  their  respective  differences  from  the  several 
annual  means  :— 

Inches. 

The  mean  annual  gaseous  pressure  is 29*065 

Ditto  vapour  pressure *324 

Total  pressure  (from  5  years'  observations). .    29*389 

This  result  differs  from  that  obtained  from  the  mean  of  the  daily  obser- 
vations for  eight  years  by  only  +  *008  in. 

3t  Rain  (Tables  XII.  to  XV.). — The  receiver  of  the  rain-gauge  was  placed 
38  feet  above  the  ground,  and  about  470  feet  above  the  mean  level  of  the  sea. 
The  quantities  which  fell  were  registered  daily  at  9  a.m.  The  average  annual 
amount  was  25*258  in.  The  tables  show  the  distribution  of  the  aggregate 
annual  amounts  through  the  several  months  and  meteorological  seasons,  with 
the  differences  from  the  means ;  and  also  the  number  of  days  on  which  rain 
fell  in  each  year  and  season,  and  their  mean  monthly  and  annual  numbers. 

The  greatest  excess  in  any  year  above  the  average  amount  was  in  1839, 
when  it  amounted  to  about  +3*907  in.,  and  the  greatest  deficiency  in  1844, 
when  it  amounted  to  —5*332  in.,  making  a  total  difference  between  the  two 
years  of  9*269  in.  The  mean  monthly  quantity  is  2*105  in.,  which,  on  the 
average  of  eight  years,  is  exceeded  in  November,  February,  July,  August, 
September,  and  October,  in  the  order  of  enumeration.  The  smallest  monthly 
amount  falls  in  April,  and  next  to  that  month,  in  December,  after  which  fol- 
low, in  order  of  dryness,  March,  May  and  June. 

The  greatest  quantities  of  rain  fell  in  the  several  seasons  in  the  following 
order,  namely,  autumn,  summer,  winter,  spring. 


ON  THS  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM.  299. 

4.  Dew-point  (Tables  XVI.  XVIL). — The  dew-point  register  extends  over 
five  years,  from  1838  to  1842  inclusive.  The  Table  XVI.  shows  the  monthly 
and  annual  means  as  derived  from  observations  made  daily  at  9  a.m.  and 
3  p.m.  with  Daniell's  hygrometer. 

The  mean  annual  dew-point  from  Table  XVI.  is  44°*95,  while  the  same 
result  deduced  in  Table  XVII.  from  the  highest  and  lowest  monthly  dew- 
point  at  the  above-mentioned  hours  is  44°*18. 

Adopting  the  first  quantity,  44°*95,  the  mean  annual  dryness  of  the  climate 
of  Birmingham  is  4°*95,  and  its  mean  humidity  (complete  saturation  being 
represented  by  unity)  is  =0707  ;  and  consequently  the  weight  of  vapour  in 
a  cubic  foot  of  air  is  =3*03  grs.,  and  the  quantity  required  for  saturation 
about  1-28  gr. 

5.  Evaporation  (Table  XVIII.). — The  amount  of  evaporation  is  recorded 
for  two  years  only,  namely,  1843  and  1844 ;  and  was  registered  daily  at  9  a.m., 
by  Howard's  evaporation  gauge,  which  was  placed  37  feet  above  the  ground. 
In  1843  the  greatest  amount  took  place  in  the  months  of  June,  July  and 
August,  and  the  least  in  February ;  while  in  1844  the  greatest  amouut  took 
place  in  the  months  of  May,  June  and  July,  and  the  least  in  December. 

The  total  amount  of  evaporation  was,  for  1843,  32*166  in.,  and  for  1844, 
351 13  in. 

6.  Winds  (Tables  XIX.  XX.).— The  Table  XIX.  records  the  direction  of 
the  winds  at  9  a.m.,  through  the  several  months  of  the  years  1837  to  1844 
inclusive;  Table  XX.  being  a 'summary  of  the  aggregate  number  of  the 
several  winds  throughout  that  period,  with  the  corresponding  barometric 
pressures,  reduced  to  32°,  with  their  variations  from  the  mean.  The  mean  of 
the  barometric  pressures  at  9  a.m.  was  29*403  in. ;  differing  only  by  -f -014  in. 
from  the  mean  of  the  observations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  ;  and  the  forces,  as 
shown  by  the  pressures,  balance  each  other  to  the  hundredth  of  an  inch. 

The  prevailing  winds  at  Birmingham  are  from  the  S.W.,  S.,  and'S.S.W.  in 
the  order  indicated.  Of  2914  registered  winds,  not  fewer  than  906,  or  nearly 
one-third,  blew  from  those  quarters  alone;  namely,  from  the  S.W.  341,  from 
the  8.  300,  and  from  the  S.S.W.  265. 

It  is  an  anomalous  fact,  of  which  I  do  not  understand  the  cause,  that  the 
barometer  is  lower  with  the  S.E.  than  with  the  S.W.  winds,  the  mean  pres- 
sure with  the  S.E.  winds  being  29*191,  and  with  the  S.W.  winds  29*347. 

Conclusion.— In  the  synoptical  Table  XXI.  the  meteorological  elements  of 
temperature,  pressure,  and  dew-point,  during  the  five  years  for  which  the 
materials  of  comparison  exist,  are  brought  into  juxtaposition ;  and  in  the  ap- 
pended curves  (Plate  V.)  these  elements  are  represented  graphically. 

It  is  not  my  intention  to  enter  into  any  enumeration  or  discussion  of  the 
many  interesting  deductions  suggested  by  the  before-mentioned  tables.  I 
may,  however,  remark,  in  general,  that  they  exhibit  some  important  results 
in  comparison  with  similar  tables  constructed  from  data  derived  from  other 
localities,  and  show  a  marked  difference  between  the  climate  of  the  south- 
western and  other  parts  of  our  island  and  its  interior ;  and  illustrate,  more- 
over, the  influence  of  situation  and  local  circumstances,  even  at  moderate 
distances,  in  modifying  the  general  laws  of  climate,  and  their  influence  on 
human  health,  longevity,  and  enjoyment 

The  striking  accordance  of  form  between  the  accompanying  curves  and 
similar  ones  formed  by  numerous  observers,  from  facts  obtained  at  different 
and  widely  separated  places,  is  strongly  corroborative  of  the  simplicity, 
uniformity,  and  universality  of  the  laws  by  which  the  great  agencies  of  me- 
teorologic  change  are  restrained  from  destructive  irregularity  and  excess, 
and  controlled  and  adjusted,  with  the  nicest  exactness,  to  the  exigences  of 
animal  and  vegetable  existence. 


300 


REPORT — 1852. 


Table  I,— Mean  Monthly  and  Annual  Temperature  from  daily  observations 

Differences  from 


Yean. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

ApriL 

Mny. 

June. 

1837. 

3§*73 

38-30 

4334 

3?*03 

42-02 

52-15 

i 
63*43    , 

1838. 

40-72 

29*34 

3286 

42-38 

44-85 

5318 

59-58    ' 

1839. 

39-81 

37-92 

41-32 

41-32 

47*88 

57-00 

56-47    , 

1840. 

38-94 

40-12 

39-73 

42-22 

54-61 

55-67 

60-71 

1841. 

35-19 

35*41 

37-12 

49-21 

49-31 

59*55 

61-73 

1842. 

40-81 

33-80 

41-01 

45-38 

51-10 

55*34 

61*06   ; 

1843. 

46-70 

39-64 

36*74 

43-03 

49*26 

52-41 

57-26    1 

1844. 

45-49 

40*56 

36-27 

41-75 

54-83 

54-73 

61-53    . 

Means... 

40-924 

36-886 

38-548 

42-79 

49*232 

55003 

60-221      , 

Table  II. — The  Highest  and  Lowest  Monthly  Temperature  by  the  Self- 
Monthly  and  Annual  Means,  and  the  Dif- 


Month. 

1837. 

1838. 

1839. 

1840.              | 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

Hifr. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

ffifirifFfrr 

55-0 
510 
54-0 
49-0 
58*5 
69-0 
79*0 
79-0 
76*0 
67-5 
68*5 
56-5 

25*00 
25-50 
28*25 
19-00 
27-50 
3400 
39-00 
47-00 
44-50 
42-00 
33*00 
27-50 

3§00 
38-25 
41-12 
34*00 
4300 
51-50 
59*00 
6300 
60-25 
54-75 
50*75 
42*00 

55*00 
46*00 
45*50 
62*00 
61-50 
7500 
74*00 
72-50 
7800 
68*50 
6300 
57*00 

2?-50 
9-00 
2200 
29-00 
2700 
3500 
4200 
4700 
45  00 
40-50 
33-50 
26*00 

41-25 
27-50 
33*75 
45*50 
44*25 
55*00 
58*00 
59-75 
61*50 
54-50 
48-25 
41*50 

52*00 
51*00 
55*00 
5500 
72*00 
78*00 
78-00 
76*00 
79*00 
70*00 
66*00 
55*00 

25*00 
20*00 
22*50 
22*00 
27-50 
30*50 
41-00 
45*00 
42-50 
42*50 
36*00 
30*00 

38*50 
35*50 
38-75 
38*50 
49*75 
54*25 
59*50 
CO-50 
60*75 
56*25 
51*00 
42*50 

52-00 
5400 
51*50 
57*50 
81-50 
7400 
80-50 
75-50 
82*00 
74*00 
60*00 
58*50 

28-00 
22*00 
25-00 
25-00 
33-50 
38*00 
43-00 
46-00 
46-50 
38-00 
34-00 
27*50 

40*00 
38-00 
38-25 
41*25 
57*50 
56-00 
61-75 
60-75 
64*25 
56*00 
47*00 
43*00 

Means. 

63-6 

32-52 

48*05 

63*16 

31*96 

47*56 

65*58 

3204 

48-81 

66*75 

33*87 

50*31 

Diff.fr. 

An.  M.              -1-12 

-1-61 

-0*36 

+114 

Mean  of  the  8  yean  49°*17. 

Table  III. — Showing  the  Highest  and  Lowest  Temperature  of  each  year, 

the  Means  do- 


1837. 

1838. 

1839. 

1840. 

Highest 

Lowest  

790    June  23. 
19*0    March  24. 

7*8-0    August  27. 
9-0   January  20. 

79*0   August  2. 
20-0    January  30. 

82-0    August  9. 
22*0    January  8. 

Mean  Temp... 

49*0 

43-5 

49-5 

52*0 

Ann.  Range... 

60-0 

69-0 

59-0 

60-0 

Mean  of  the  extreme      Temperature  50°. 


ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


301 


at  9  a.m.  and  S  p.m.  for  8  years,  from  1897  to  1844  inclusive,  with  the 
the  General  Mean. 


July. 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Annual  Means. 

Diflcfences  n*om 
Annual  Meant. 

65-43 
62-03 
62-93 
59-57 
59-85 
61-85 
61*28 
63-06 

62-61 
61-54 
62-02 
65-62 
61-63 
61-16 
63-12 
59*59 

5661 
57-38 
57-86 
54-85 
59-93 
57-85 
61-79 
61-06 

52-23 
51*40 
51-45 
48-59 
49*26 
46*88 
47*31 
49-75 

42-37 
41-62 
45-43 
44-08 
4212 
42*62 
43-60 
42-61 

49-604 
48-073 
50-117 
50-392 
60-025 
49-905 
50-178 
50-935 

-  °299 
-1-830 
4-  -214 
4-  "489 
4-  -122 
4-  -002 
4-  '275 
4-1-032 

62*00 

62-161 

58-416 

49-608 

43-056 

49-903 

Registering  Thermometer  for  8  years,  from  1837  to  1844*  inclusive,  with  the 
ferencea  from  the  Mean  of  the  8  years. 


1841. 

1842. 

1843. 

1844. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

52-50 

22-0 

37-25 

51-50 

22-00 

3o-75 

5800 

32-00 

45*00 

54*0 

3&-00 

45*00 

50-00 

120 

31-00 

4200 

21-50 

31-75 

53*50 

2600 

39-75 

51-0 

23*00 

37*00 

52-50 

17-5 

35-00 

53*50 

25-00 

39-25 

48-50 

18-50 

33-50 

46-5 

21-00 

33-75 

67-50 

32-0 

49-75 

57-50 

31-50 

44-50 

62-00 

26-00 

44-00 

57-5 

27*00 

42*25 

71-00 

340 

52-50 

76-50 

30-00 

53*25 

67-00 

29-00 

48-00 

67-5 

35-00 

51-25 

8500 

400 

62*50 

7000 

39-50 

54*75 

70-00 

37*00 

53-50 

700 

31-00 

5Q-50 

72-50 

40-0 

56*25 

85-00 

4400 

64*50 

71-50 

42-00 

56*75 

82-0 

43-00 

62-50 

74-00 

44*5 

59*25 

76-00 

4500 

60*50 

78-00 

46-00 

62*00 

85*0 

47*50 

66-25 

78-00 

45-0 

61-50 

86-50 

4500 

65-75 

82*50 

46-00 

64*25 

82-5 

44-50 

63-50 

81-00 

390 

.  60-00 

77-00 

4200 

59-50 

79  00 

36*50 

57*75 

85-0 

4000 

62-50 

59-00 

36*0 

47'50 

58-00 

29-00 

43-50 

64*50 

31-00 

47*75 

61-0 

32-00 

46*50 

56*50 

22-0 

39-25 

52-00 

3200 

42-00 

55-00 

3000 

42-50 

56-0 

3100 

43-50 

66*62 

32-0 

49-31 

65*46 

33*87 

49-66 

65-79 

33-33 

49-56 

66-5 

33-75 

50*12 

4-0*14 

4-0-49 

4-0-39 

4-0-95 

from  18S7  to  1844  inclusive,  by  the  Self-Registering  Thermometer,  with 
duced  therefrom. 


1841. 

1842. 

1843. 

1844. 

&-0  May  27. 

120  Jan.  8  &  Feb.  7. 

86*5    August  18. 
21*5    January  24. 

82*5    August  18. 
18-5    February  16. 

85*0  July24&SepU. 
21-0  February  23. 

48-5 

540 

50-5                  # 

53-0 

73-0 

650 

64*0                            64-0 

Mean  of  the  yearly  Range  64°*25. 


302 


REPORT— 1852. 


Table  IV. — Temperature  of  the  Meteorological  Seasons,  and  Differences 
from  the  Means  for  8  years,  from  1837  to  1844  inclusive. 


Tears. 

Winter. 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

Spring. 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

Summer. 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

Autumn* 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

1837. 
1838. 
1839. 
1840. 
1841. 
1842. 
1843. 
1844. 

40-45 
34-30 
39-68 
39-59 
35-90 
38-54 
41-02 
40-77 

+1-67 

-4*48 
+0-90 
+0-81 
-2-88 
,-0-24 
+2-24 
+1-99 

43-73 
46-80 
48-73 
50-83 
52-69 
50-60 
48-23 
50-43 

-5-28 
-2-21 
-0-28 
+1-82 
+3-68 
+1-59 
-0-78 
+1-42 

63-82 
6105 
60-47 
61-96 
61-07 
61-35 
60-55 
61-39 

+2-36 
-0-41 
-0-99 
+0-50 
-0-39 
-011 
-0-91 
-0-07 

50-40 
50-13 
51-58 
49-17 
50-43 
49-10 
50-90 
51-14 

+J-05 
-0-22 
+1-23 
-118 
+0-08 
-1-25 
+0-55 
+0-79 

Meant... 

38-78 

49*01 

61-46 

50-35 

Mean  Ann 

ual  Temper 

atnre  49°-9. 

Means  of  the  Seasons. 

Difference  from  Mean  of  the  Tear. 

Winter  ... 

38-78 
4901 
61-46 
50-35 

Winter  - 

..     -1112 
,.     -     -S9 
.     +11-56 
.     +     -45 

Spring  ... 
summer 

Sprin 
Snmi 
Autu 

8  

ner    ....... 

inn t 

Table  V.— Monthly  Range  of  the  Self-Registering  Thermometer  for  8 
years,  from  1837  to  1844  inclusive. 


Month. 

1837. 

1838. 

1839. 

1840. 

1841. 

1842. 

1843. 

1844. 

Means. 

Dec.... 

32-00 

2°7'50 

2°7-00 

2400 

30-50 

29-50 

2600 

24-00 

27*56 

Jan. ... 

25-50 

3700 

3100 

32-00 

3800 

20-50 

27-50 

28-00 

29-93 

Feb. ... 

25-75 

23-50 

32-50 

26*50 

3500 

28-50 

3000 

25-50 

28*40 

Mar.... 

30-00 

3300 

33-00 

32-50 

35-50 

26-00 

36-00 

30-50 

32-06 

Apr. *.. 
May  4.. 

3100 

34-50 

44-50 

48-50 

37-00 

46-50 

38-00 

32-50 

39-00 

3500 

4000 

47-50 

36-00 

4500 

3050 

3300 

39-00 

38-25 

June «.. 

40*00 

32-00 

37-00 

37-50 

32-50 

41-00 

29*50 

39-00 

3vw 

July,.. 

32-00 

25-50 

3100 

29-50 

29*50 

3100 

32*00 

37*50 

31*00 

Aug.... 

31-50 

33-00 

36-50 

35-50 

3300 

41*50 

36*50 

3800 

35*69 

Sept  J.. 

2550 

28-00 

2750 

3600 

4200 

35-00 

42-50 

4500 

35-20 

Oct.  J.. 

35-50 

29-50 

30-00 

26-00 

23-00 

.29-00 

33-50 

29*1)0 

29-43 

Not  J.. 

2900 

31-00 

2500 

3100 

34-50 

20-00 

2500 

25-00 

27-56 

Means. 

31*06 

31-21 

33-54 

32-92 

34-62 

31-58 

32-46 

32*75 

32-51 

ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


808 


Table  VI*— Range  of  Temperature  in  the  several  Meteorological  Seasons 
from  the  Self- Registering  Thermometer,  and  Differences  from  the  Means 
for  8  years,  from  1887  to  1844  inclusive. 


Difference 

Difference 

Difference 

Difference 

Yean. 

Winter. 

from 
Mean. 

Spring. 

from 
Mean. 

Summer. 

from 
Mean. 

Autumn. 

from 
Mean. 

1837. 

32-0 

-Vo 

500 

+0-5 

480 

+°0-5 

4f-0 

-°6-5 

1838. 

46-0 

+11-0 

480 

-1-5 

36-0 

-3-5 

42-5 

-  5-0 

1839. 

35-0 

56-0 

+6-5 

880 

-1-5 

40-0 

-  7-5 

1840. 

320 

-  3-0 

56-5 

+7-0' 

89-0 

-0-5 

46-5 

-  1-0 

1841. 

30-5 

-  4-5 

530 

4-3-5 

38-0 

-1-5 

59-0 

+11  fr 

1842. 

32-0 

-  3-0 

46-5 

-3-0 

42-5 

+3-0 

48*0 

+  0*5 

1843. 

39-5 

+  4-5 

440 

-5-5 

40-5 

+1-0 

490 

+  1-5 

1844. 

330 

-  2-0 

43-0 

-6-6 

42-0 

+2-5 

54*0 

+  6-6 

Means... 

35-0 

49*5 

39-5 

47-5 



Mei 

in  Range  < 

rf  the  four ! 

Seasons  42*875. 

Mean  Range  of  each  Season. 

Diff.  from  the  Mean  Range  of  the  four  Seasons. 

Winter  ... 
Spring  ... 

35-0 
49'5 

Winfc 
Sprin 

er 

.     -7-875 
.     +6*625 

8  

39-5 
47-5 

Sum 
Autui 

aer.......... 

.    -3-875 
.     +4-62A 

Atjtpmn... 

nn. ••••••••. 

Table  VII.— Number  of  days  in  each  year,  from  18S7  to  1844  inclusive,  in 
which  the  Temperature  was  at  or  below  82°. 


Months. 

1837. 

1838. 

1839. 

1840. 

1841. 

1842. 

1843. 

1844. 

December 

January  

9 
9 
5 

20 
15 

4 

7 

26 

23 

3 

6 

9 

9 
18 

8 
10 

7 

1 

12 

9 

12 

13 

4 

18 
16 
13 

1 

8 

6 
21 

7 
1 
4 

3 

1 

2 

9 

16 

10 

5 

5 
3 

1 

6 

20 

8 

1 
1 
5 

February. ...... -r 

March .... 

April  

May    

October 

November  ...... 

$ums*«» 

6? 

74 

£3 

50 

M 

43 

50 

4* 

S04 


REPORT — 1852. 


Tablb  VIIL- 

-Mean 

i  Monthly  and  Annual  Barometrical  Pressure,  from  J 

(corrected 

Months. 

1837. 

1838.              !               1839. 

1840. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Means. 

9  a.m. 

3  P.M. 

Means.  9  a.m. 

3  P.M. 

Means. 

9aji 

.     3  FJi.  hi 

i 
December  ...••• 
January 

n. 
29-227 

•402 
•366 
•440 
•279 
•415 
•469 
•434 
•406 
•362 
•574 
29-275 

in. 

29-245 
•392 
•354 
•414 
•264 
•390 
•446 
•408 
•434 
•277 
•530 

29-252 

in. 

29-236 
•397 
•360 
•427 

in. 

29-349 
•378 
•033 
•220 

in. 

29*367 
•376 
•035 
•207 
199 
•339 
•281 
•406 
•321 
•434 

29-383 

28-980 

in.         in. 
29*358  129-464 
•377      -360 

in. 

29*452 
•127 
•387 
•240 
•513 
•402 
•335 
•340 
•396 
•028 
•424 

29100 

in. 

29-458 
•243 
•381 
•232 
•515 
•405 
•359 
•306 

in.         lin.        i 

29-123  129-199  3 

•177       -034 

Ftbruan* 

•034 
•214 
•223 
•347 
•288 
•402 
•361 
•424 
29*405 
28-831 

•375 
•225 
•517 
•409 
•383 
•273 
•414 
•033 
-425 
29-118 

•333 
•715 
•504 
•383 
•510 
•408 

-33; 

•684 

•464 
\  -359 
>       -502    1 

•394 

•445     i 

March.. 

April  

•271      "247 
•402 1     -356 
•457  1     -296 
•421  1     -399 
•420      *402 

May    

June  

July    .e 

August 
Septem 
Octobei 

•405  j     -494 

ber 

•319 

•552 

29-263 

•415 
29-428 
28-683 

•030 !     "369  i     -319     "J 

•424       -575       -552     • 

29109  129-211  (29-137  frt 

November - 

Annual  Means 

29-377 

29272 

29-322                            1 

i 

Diff.  from  Mean 

-•004 

-10S 

)                           --059 1 

Table  IX. — Barometrical  Pressure  iu  the  several  Seasons,  with  the  Differ- 
ences  from  the  Mean  for  8  yean,  from  1837  to  1844  inclusive. 

Years* 

Winter. 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

Spring. 

Difference 
from      i 
Mean. 

Summer. 

Difference 
from 
Mean. 

Autumn. 

Difference  1 
from      1 
Mean.     | 

1837. 
1838. 
1839. 
1840. 
1841. 
1842. 
1843. 
1844. 

in. 

29-331 
•256 
•361 
•186 
•462 
•412 
•340 

29*531 

in. 

-•029 
-•104 
+  001 
-•174 
+•102 
+  052 
-•020 
+•174 

in. 

29-367 
•261 
•384 
•518 
•410 
•431 
•378 

29-558 

in. 

-•046 
-152 
-•029 
+•105 
-•003 
+•018 
-•035 
+•145 

in. 

29422 
•350 
•353 
•450 
•430 
•544 
•455 

29*339 

in. 

+  004 
-068 
-•065 
+•032 
+•012 
+  126 
+•037 
-•078 

in. 

29-378 
•220 
188 
•361 
•232 
•401 
•457 

29-434 

in. 
+•044 
-•114 
-•146 
+•027 
-•102 
+•067 
+•123 
+•100 

Means.. 

.    29-360 

29-413 

29-418 

29-334 

i 
1 

1 

Mean  of  the  8  years  29*381.                                                  j 

Means  of  the  Seasons. 

Differences  from  Mean  of  8  years. 

Winte 
Spring 
Summ 

r 

29-360 
29-413 
29-418 
29-334 

Winl 
Sprij 
Sum 

Autn 

ter «...  .  .. 

—•021 

«r 

»8     

mer  

+•032 

+  037 

,  — -047 

Autumn  . 

mn 

■ 

ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


305 


serrations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  daily,  for  8  years,  from  1837  to  1844  inclusive 
Temperature). 


184L 

1842. 

1843. 

1844. 

Means. 

k.u.ZvM. 

Mmu. 

9  a.m. 

3f.m. 

Means. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Means. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Means. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in.        'in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

700  29*685  ,29*692 

29-267 

291 88  29-222  29*644  29*657  29650 

29-894 

29*889 

29-891  29*457 

29*449 

29-453 

346     -338!     -342 

•588 

•544      -566 

-126 

•273 

•199 

•562 

•547 

•554 

•369 

•329 

•348 

349,    -338      -343 

•467 

•431 

•449 

•197 

•143 

•170 

•163 

•133 

•148 

•284 

•269 

•277 

444     -401      -422 

'406 

•877 

•391 

•502 

•485 

•493      *267 

•386 

•326 

•402 

•399 

•400 

437     -3861    -411 

•318 

•596 

•456 

•319 

•310 

•3141     '682 

•646 

-664 

•413 

•422 

•417 

404 1    -389 

•396 

•452 

•439 

•445 

-335 

•318 

•326 :     -699 

•671 

•685 

•431 

•413 

•422 

5271    -481 

•504 

•588 

•551      -569 

•408 

•387 

•397 

•493 

•466 

•479 

•459 

•481 

•445 

3691    '379 

•369 

•497 

•499  i     -493 

•503 

•156 

•479 

•455 

•434 

•444 

•416 

•414 

•415 

413     -419 

•416 

•581 

•5601    -570 

•507 

•470 

•488 

•055 

•133 

•094 

•409 

•396 

•403 

'3091    «274 

•291, 

•442 

•393      -417 

•739 

•718 

•728 

'593 

•900 

•746 

•408 

•418 

•413 

078     -152 

•115 ' 

•556 

•534 

•548 

•262 

•264 

•263 

•215 

•210 

•212 

•389 

•381 

•385 

298  29-280 

29*289 

1 

29*249 

29-225 

29*237 

29*397 

29-366 

29-381 

29-366 

29335  29-345 

29*323 

29335 

29-324 

29-382 

29447 

29*407 

29-465 

Pinal  Mean 29*381 

+•001 

+•066 

+•026 

+•084 

Table  X. — Range  of  Barometrical  Pressure  in  the  Meteorological  Seasons, 
as  observed  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  for  8  years,  from  1837  to  1844  inclusive, 
and  Differenpes  from  the  Means. 


Difference 

Difference 

- 

Difference 

Difference 

Yean. 

Winter. 

from 
Mean. 

Spring. 

from 
Mean. 

Summer. 

from 
Mean. 

Autumn. 

from 
Mean. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

1837. 

1-587 

-•263 

1134 

-172 

1-403 

+•273 

1-894 

+  -270 

1838. 

1*843 

-•007 

1-732 

+•426 

1-158 

+  028 

2*028 

+  -404 

1839. 

1*599 

-•251 

1-233 

-073 

1-055 

-•075 

1-424 

-  -200 

1840. 

1*988 

+•138 

1-303 

-•003 

1*250 

+•120 

2-299 

+  -675 

1841. 

1*806 

-•044 

1-266 

-•040 

1116 

-•014 

1-661 

+  -037 

1842. 

1*699 

-151 

1*361 

+•055 

•918 

-•212 

1-784 

+  -160 

1843. 

2*401 

+'651 

1125 

-•181 

1075 

-•055 

1-459 

-    165 

1844. 

1*881 

+•031 

1*298 

-•008 

1-069 

-•061 

•444 

-1-180 

!  Means... 

1*850 

1*306 

1130 

1-624 

Mean  Annual  Range  1*477. 

Means 

of  the  Sea* 

iras. 

Differences  from  Mean  Annual  Range. 

Winter  .. 

1-850 
1*306 

Win* 
Sprin 

er 

...     +-37 

3 

'              Spring  .. 

*     

...     --17 

1 

i             Swmer-r 

1*130 
1*624 

SaouBer  

...     --347 

Autui 

nn   ..* 

...     +14 

7 

•» 

1852. 


306 


REPORT— 1852. 


Table  XL— *Mean  Monthly  and  Annual  Barometric  Pressure,  deduced  from 

for  8  years,  from  1837  to  1844  in* 


Months. 

1837. 

1838. 

9  a.m. 

3  P.M.  - 

9  A.M. 

3  p.m. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Man. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

Dec 

29*800 

28-520 

29160 

29*837 

28-453 

29145 

29-924 

28-723 

29-323 

29-931 

28-675 

29-303 

Jan 

30*030 

•793 

•411 

•997 

•700 

•348 

•865 

•824 

29-344 

•835 

•899 

•322 

Pcb 

29-883 

•645 

•264 

•784 

•443 

•113 

•868 

•088 

28-977 

•833 

•181 

•007 1 

March  ... 

•871 

•748 

•309 

•867 

•747 

•307 

'941 

•503 

29*222 

•907 

•534 

29*2201 

April    ... 
May 

•881 

28*846 

•363 

•878 

28-755 

•316 

•698 

•620 

•159 

•624 

•209 

28*916! 

•778 

29034 

•406 

•783 

29129 

•456 

•828 

•920 

•374 

•786 

•962 

29-374! 

June 

•799 

29021 

•410 

•743 

29015 

•379 

•700 

28-973 

•336 

•690 

28-983 

•336, 

July 

'776 

28-669 

•222 

•780 

28*453 

•116 

•656 

29-066 

•361 

•645 

29-012 

•328 

Aug....... 

•856 

•903 

•379 

•813 

•883 

•348 

•645 

28-542 

•093 

•601 

28-573 

•087 1 

Sept 

29-803 

•533 

168 

29*781 

•520 

150 

•937 

•695 

•316 

•915 

•652 

•283i 

Oct 

30*137 

•730 

•433 

30114 

•558 

•386 

•929 

28-705  29*317 

•898 

28-795 

29-346 

Nov. 

29*803 

28-395 

29099 

29-798 

28-243 

29020 

29-879 

27*909 

28-894 

29-844 

27969 

28-906 

i 

i 
I 

Annual  M 
Diff.from 

etna 

29-302 

29-257 

29*226 

29*202 

Final  Mean 

-•001 

-046 

-•077 

-•101 

1 

Table  XL- 


Month*. 


1841. 


9  a.m. 


High. 


Low.    Mean. 


3  p.m. 


High. 


Low. 


Mean. 


1842. 


9  A.M. 


High. 


Low. 


Mean. 


3  P.M. 


High. 


Low. 


Mean. 


December 
January  ... 
February ... 

March 

April    

May 

June 

July 

August 

September 
October   ... 
November 


in. 

30*257 
29-970 
29-993 
30-044 
29*786 
-826 
•933 
719 
834 
726 
743 
29-975 


,111. 

in. 

28-716  29*486 

•451 

•210 

•557 

•275 

•778 

•411 

•921 

•353 

28-766 

■296 

29057 

-495 

28-817 

•268 

•953 

•393 

•623 

•174 

'345 

044 

28-314 

29144 

in. 

30-199 

29-979 
•944 
•983 
•770 
•819 
•878 
•718 
•782 
•691 
•579 

29*934 


in. 

28-789 

•519 

•599 

•879 

•961 

28-677 

29-019 

28-962 

29-080 

28-752 

454 

28-416 


in. 

29-494 
249 
271 
431 
365 
'248 
448 
340 
431 
221 
016 

29170 


Ann.  Means.. 


29-296 


29-307 


Din*,  from  Fina  1  Mean 


-•007 


+•004 


in. 

29-726 
30097 
30092 
29-896 
29-955 
30-021 
29-874 
952 
990 
29-831 
30095 
30  096 


in. 

28*519 
754 
'680 
787 
872 

28-660 

29-177 
108 

29-287 

28-841 
320 

28-312 


in. 

29-122 
•425 
•386 
•341 
•413 
•340 
;525 
•530 
•638 
•336 
•207 

29-204 


29-372 


+'0 


in. 

29-717 

30097 

30044 

29*878 

•900 

•961 

•852 

•962 

•944 

29*802 

30064 

30-028 


in. 

28-469 
•398 
■636 
-889 
'884 

28-692 

29072 
•093 

29*202 

28*958 
'415 

28-329 


in. 

29-093 
•247 
•340 
•383 
•392 
•326 
•462 
•527 
•573 
-380 
•239 

129*178 


29*345 


+•042, 


ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


307 


the  Highest  and  Lowest  Monthly  Observations  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  daily 
elusive  (corrected  for  Temperature). 


1839. 

1840. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

9  a.m. 

j                      3  P.M. 

HiRh. 

! 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

(•Low. 

i 

Mean. 

High.  J  Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

io. 

io. 

io. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in.         in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

29-874 

28-755 

29-314 

29-941  28'788 

29-364 

29-761  28-545 

29-153 

29-741  28-573 

29157 

•992 

•393 

•192 

•989 

•463 

•226 

29852      -563 

•210 

!     -867       -236 

•051 

•855 

•848 

•351 

•872 

•855 

•363 

30-029  28089 

•059 

29-999  28041 

•020 

•593 

•797 

•195 

•583 

•765 

174 

30-076  29-258 

•667 

30-050  29-230 

•640 

•998 

•810 

•404 

•955 

•813 

•384 

29*760  29064 

•412 

29-756  29-079 

•417 

•695'    -851 

•273 

•694 

•825 

•259 

•916  28-820 

•368 

•908  28-773 

•340 

•703      -789 

•246 

•668 

•812 

•240 

•741  29-245 

•493 

•721  '29-208 

•464 

•746,28-713 

•229 

•728 

•759 

•243 

•816  29-002 

•409 

•809  28-999 

•404 

•753  29021 

29387 

•692 

•698 

29-195 

•807  28-566 

186 

•769      -723 

•246 

•418  28-389 

28-903 

•475 

•384 

28-929 

29-782      -344         -063 

29-744  !     -459 

•101 

•800 1    -851 

29-325 

•808 

•926 

29-367 

30195 1     -667 

•431 

30166  28-695 

29-430 

29-644  28-644 

I 

29144 

29-636 

28-686 

29161 

30-025  28-300 

29-162 

29-993  27-896 

28-944 

29*247 

29-242 

29-301 

29*268 

-•056 

-061 

-•002 

-•035 

(Continued.) 


1843. 

1844. 

Means. 

9  A.M. 

3  p.m. 

9  A.M. 

3  p.m. 

[High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

High. 

Ix>w. 

Mean. 

High. 

Low. 

Mean. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

in. 

1 
in.         in. 

in. 

in. 

in.         in. 

30-042  28-883 

29-462 

30-024 

28-874 

29-449 

30085 

29-424 

29-754 

30-065 

29-310 

29-687 

29-347  29-336 

30-072 .27-671 

28*871 

30037 

27716 

28-876 

29-976 

28-711 

29-343 

29-946 

28-731 

29*338 

•251 

176 

29-704  28-570 

29137 

29*680 

28*486 

29-083 

29-729 

•204 

28-966 

29-730 

•243 

28-986 

•177 

•148 

967  J29-013 

•490 

•935 

•942 

•438 

30-096 

28-798 

29447 

30-040 

28-816 

29-428 

•385 

•378 

'672  28*906 

•289 

•663 

•842 

•252 

051 

29179 

•615 

30-010 

29-196 

•603 

•376 

•331 

•786  '29039 

•412 

•757 

•961 

•359 

30-044 

•410 

•727 

29-967 

•402 

•684 

•399      -381 

•683  28-816 

•249 

•712 

28-753 

•232 

29-736 

•187 

•461 

•735 

•191 

•463 

•402 

•378 

I    -800 

29-005 

•402 

•756 

29-090 

•423 

-804 

29042 

•423 

•783 

29-026 

•404 

•355 

•348 

29-828 

039 

•433 

29-808 

•001 

•404 

•880 

28-817 

•348 

•857 

28*811 

•334 

•357 

•327 

30-126 

29-348 

•737 

30097 

29*288 

•692 

•920 

29-273 

•596 

•916 

29276 

•596 

•287 

•294 

'29-714 

28-758 

•236 

29-703 

28-667 

•185 

•848 

28-506 

•177 

•855 

28*476 

•165 

•271 

•267 

29-922 

28-866 

29-394 

29-908 

28*880 

29'394 

29-917 

28-525 

29-221 

29*893 

28-550 

29-221 

29158 

29124 

29-342 

29-315 

29-465 

29-409 

29-314 

29*291 

+•039 

+•012 

+•120 

+•106 

Final  Mean  29*303  in. 


x2 


308 


REPORT— 1852, 


J 

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ON  THE  METBOBOLOOY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


309 


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IS 


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3 


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2 

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310 


REPORT— 1852. 


Table  XVI. — Mean  Monthly  and  Annual  Dew-Point,  from  Ofaierva- 


1838. 

1899. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Means. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Means. 

9aji. 

December  

39-08 
27*02 
30-25 
3651 
36-90 
44-89 
51-96 
5508 
55-54 
51-55 
4600 
3810 

40-98 
28*56 
32-69 
37-88 
38-76 
46-65 
5413 
56*24 
56-65 
52-52 
46-45 
39-36 

4003 
27-79 
31-47 
37-19 
37-83 
45-77 
5304 
55-66 
5609 
52-03 
46*22 
38-73 

3°7-88 
34*42 
36*73 
37-22 
38-77 
50-56 
52-70 
5506 
54-25 
53-26 
46*93 
44-20 

39*05 
35-41 
38-56 
40-34 
39-62 
47-31 
54-63 
56-26 
54-37 
53-47 
48-02 
45*40 

38-46 
34-91 
37*64 
38-78 
39-19 
48-93 
53-66 
55-66 
54-31 
53-36 
47-47 
44-80 

3°7*24 

January 

39*46  . 

February.... 

36-51 

March 

34-21 

April  .'...  . 

47-58 

May    

48-49 

June  

51-35 

July    

52*84   • 

August    

56*95 

September 

49*50   i 

October 

4390  < 

November 

40*05 

1 

Annual  Means   

42-74 

44-24 

43-49 

45-15 

46*03 

45-59 

44*84   j 

Table  XVII.— Highest  and  Lowest  Monthly  Dew- Point,  observed  at  9  a.m. 

Annual  Means 


1838. 

1839. 

Highest. 

Lowest. 

Means. 

Highest. 

Lowest. 

Means. 

Highest. 

December  

5°1*00 
44-00 
42*25 
47-50 
50*50 
53-50 
6400 
6500 
64-50 
59-00 
5700 
52*00 

30-50 
10-00 
21-00 
28-50 
23-50 
33*50 
4200 
46-50 
46-50 
3700 
3200 
2400 

4°0-75 
27*00 
31*62 
38*00 
3700 
43-50 
5300 
55-75 
55-50 
4800 
4400 
3800 

4800 
48*00 
50*00 
50*00 
5400 
5950 
63-50 
61*50 
61-50 
61*00 
57*50 
52-50 

© 

27-50 
24*00 
24-50 
26-50 
2700 
33-00 
3900 
44-00 
4200 
43-50 
3300 
33-00 

3°7*75 
36*00 
37*25 
38-25 
40-50 
46-25 
51-25 
52-75 
51-75 
52-25 
45*00 
42*75 

50*50 

Janimry  ,,,r»T ,,T. 

50*50  i 

February 

47*00  1 

March 

44*00  ' 

April  

56-00  i 

May    

59-00 

June 

61*00 

July    

63-20 

August   

67*50 
64-50 
52-50 
53*50 

September 

October 

November 

Annual  Means   

54187 

31-25 

42-676 

55-58 

33*08 

44-31 

55-76 

ON  THE  MBTEOBOLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


311 


tion*  at  9  a.m.  and  3  p.m.  for  5  years,  from  1838  to  1842  inclusive. 


1840. 

1841. 

1842. 

Monthly 
Meant. 

3  p.m. 

Meant. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Meant. 

9  a.m. 

3  p.m. 

Meant, 

39-10 

38*17 

3°l*70 

3412 

32-91 

40*46 

40*43 

40-44 

38-00 

36-09 

37-77 

3315 

33*35 

33-25 

32-29 

33*30 

32-78 

33-30     | 

36-86 

36*68 

34*48 

35*56 

35-02 

3719 

39*67 

38-43 

35-84      I 

34*52 

34-36 

43-54 

45-03 

44*28 

40*90 

41-73 

41*31 

39-18     1 

44-80 

46*19 

41*48 

43-30 

42-39 

4115 

41*90 

41-52 

41*42      1 

49*59 

49*04 

47-28 

52-06 

49-67 

46-98 

47-14 

4706 

4809     : 

51*96 

51-65 

48*36 

48-63 

48-49 

53-57 

54-70 

54*13 

52-19      , 

54*99 

53*91 

52-22 

52-29 

52*25 

54*99 

54-79 

54*89 

54-47 

57*96 

57*45 

55-83 

56-45 

56*14 

60*25 

61-37 

60-81 

56-96     1 

48-72 

4911 

54-48 

55*80 

55*14 

53*58 

55-16 

54*37 

52-80     | 

44-01 

43-95 

46-66 

45*95 

46*30 

42*89 

43-73 

43*31 

45-45      ! 

42-78 

41*41 

39-86 

43*60 

41-73 

40*82 

42-92 

41-87 

41-70 

45-10 

44-97 

44*08 

45-51 

44-79 

45*42 

46*40 

45*91 

44*95 

and  3  p.m.  for  5  years,  from  1838  to  1842  inclusive,  with  the  Monthly  and 
deduced  therefrom. 


1840. 

1841. 

1842. 

Monthly 
Meant. 

Lowest 

Meant. 

Highett. 

Lowest. 

Meant. 

Highest. 

Lowest. 

Meant. 

30*00 

40-25 

50*00 

23-50 

36-75 

50*00 

24-00 

3°7*00 

36-50 

24*50 

37-50 

46*50 

1500 

30*75 

41*00 

21-00 

31*00 

32-45 

23-00 

35-00 

46*50 

18-00 

32-25 

49*00 

26-50 

3775 

34-77 

22-50 

33-25 

53*00 

34-00 

43*50 

51-00 

31*50 

41*25 

38-85 

,    28*50 

42-25 

58*00 

32-50 

45-25 

52*00 

32-50 

42-25 

41*45 

33*50 

46*25 

64*00 

42*50 

53*25 

5600 

39-00 

4750 

47-35 

!    38*50 

49*75 

5900 

35-50 

47*25 

65-00 

43-50 

54-25 

5110 

1    44*50 

53-85 

6500 

4300 

5400 

63-00 

43-00 

53-00 

53*87 

.    45-50 

56-50 

68*00 

4600 

57*00 

73-00 

43-00 

5800 

65-75 

39-00 

51-75 

65-50 

4100 

53-25 

64*00 

45-00 

54-50 

51-95 

34-50 

43-50 

53*00 

3600 

44-50 

54-00 

30*00 

42-00 

43-90 

30-50 

42*00 

5200 

25-50 

38-75 

50*50 

3300 

41-75 

40*25 

32*87 

44*32 

56*70 

32*66 

44*70 

5770 

34*33 

45-02 

44-18 

310 

• 

-• 

ftiP0a*-««lB8*. 

Table  XIX.- 

-Winds  registered  daily  at  9  a.m. 

daring  8  years,  from  1857 

to  1844  inclusive. 

1837. 

N. 

N.N.B. 

N.B. 

B.N.B. 

B. 

B.8.E. 

8.B. 

S.S.B. 

8. 

8.8.W. 

8 

K.M.W. 

Dec.   ... 

2 

... 

6 

2 

1 

6 

6 

1  s: 

Jan.    i.. 

2 

... 

... 

... 

1 

... 

"i 

•  i. 

"i 

... 

7 

1 

... 

7 

'i 

.  -v 

Feb.    ... 

1 

... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

3 

1 

6 

1 

8 

1 

3 

... 

2 

1 

t  >* 

March... 

2 

... 

7 

1 

... 

1 

3 

... 

1 

1 

1 

3 

4 

2 

1 

4 

.  ^ 

April  ... 

2 

2 

2 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

1 

4 

2 

... 

5 

4 

6 

i  *» 

May    ... 

2 

4 

3 

1 

2 

1 

... 

... 

3 

6 

4 

... 

... 

1 

1 

3 

.  i; 

June   ... 

... 

1 

... 

4 

1 

3 

2 

3 

5 

3 

1 

1 

... 

2 

4 

i  * 

July    ... 

"s 

2 

... 

4 

1 

•». 

... 

1 

3 

2 

3 

4 

4 

1 

3 

i  -V. 

Aug.   ... 

3 

6 

3 

2 

1 

1 

1 

2 

3 

5 

1 

1 

... 

1 

1 

'  31 

Sept.  ... 

2 

3 

4 

2 

... 

1 

6 

3 

2 

2 

... 

2 

2 

1 

1 

i  *' 

Oct 

1 

1 

1 

1 

4 

7 

7 

5 

3 

1 
1 

!m 

Nov.   ... 

"i 

1 

... 

... 

1 

"5 

5 

6 

4 

2 

3 

3 

... 

16 

13 

32 

9 

17 

6 

16 

14 

30 

38 

51 

16 

32 

15 

26 

27 

.3* 

i 

k  From  the  26th  to  the  Slit  inclusive,  wind  not  registered. 

1838. 

Dec    ... 

1 

2 

5 

1 

3 

7 

5 

3 

2 

1 

1 

|*1 

Jan.    ... 

2 

1 

3 

3 

"i 

4 

1 

3 

3 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

3 

3: 

Feb.    ... 

... 

4 

8 

3 

5 

2 

2 

1 

... 

... 

... 

1 

... 

25 

March... 

1 

1 

1 

1 

4 

3 

2 

6 

1 

i 

8 

... 

1 

1  31 

April  ... 

4 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

4 

2 

3 

1 

2 

9 

2 

3«'' 

May    ... 

6 

5 

2 

4 

i 

8 

fe 

2 

1 

2 

... 

2 

1 

... 

... 

:  31 

June   ... 

2 

... 

2 

1 

i 

...   " 

4 

6 

3 

2 

1 

1 

2 

1 

1  * 

July    ... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

i 

... 

2 

6 

4 

2 

2 

3 

3 

2 

1 

3: 

Aug.    ... 

2 

... 

... 

... 

i 

... 

1 

10 

4 

4 

2 

4 

1 

... 

'31 

Sept.  ... 

1 

2 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

4 

3 

3 

1 

3 

3 

... 

... 

t  W 

Oct. 

3 

2 

1 

... 

1 

1 

3 

5 

2 

2 

3 

1 

2 

i  3i 

Nov.   ... 

3 

1 

3 

... 

6 

... 

1 

5 

3 

3 

1 

1 

... 

2 

1 

j  — 

li 

25 

19 

25 

It 

22 

13 

24 

35 

5Q 

81 

27 

12 

19 

31 

9 

11 

365 

1839. 

Dec.    ... 

1 

1 

5 

6 

4 

2 

1 

a 

5 

1 

2 

31 

Jan.    ... 

1 

... 

... 

1 

5 

2 

7 

5 

5 

3 

1 

1 

31 

Feb.    ... 

1 

1 

2 

... 

... 

... 

1 

2 

6 

5 

4 

3 

2 

1 

... 

... 

28 

March... 

2 

3 

... 

4 

1 

4 

1 

2 

4 

3 

2 

1 

1 

... 

... 

3 

31 

April  ... 

2 

4 

4 

4 

1 

... 

2 

1 

1 

... 

7 

1 

1 

... 

2 

... 

30 

May    ... 

4 

3 

3 

... 

1 

... 

1 

... 

1 

4 

... 

2 

3 

1 

7 

1 

31 

June   ... 

4 

3 

3 

3 

1 

4 

1 

4 

3 

1 

... 

3 

... 

SO 

July    ... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

•  a. 

2 

3 

10       4 

3 

2 

1 

1 

4 

... 

31 

Aug.    ... 

i 

1 

... 

1 

... 

2 

... 

5       2 

5 

4 

2 

4 

3 

•  a. 

30* 

Sept.  ... 

... 

... 

in 

•  i« 

... 

... 

4 

2 

7\      7 

4 

2 

3 

... 

1 

... 

30 

Oci. 

3 

2 

5 

2 

... 

2 

3 

2 

8.     1 

... 

... 

2 

... 

1     , 

31 

Nov.    ... 

1 

1 

... 

5 

... 

2 

1 

1 

3J       6 

4 

2 

... 

... 

2 

2    1 

30 

14 

17 

18 

20 

6 

9 

25 

21 

58     37 

41 

28 

21 

15 

24 

10     ' 

1 

364 

*  Wind  not  registered  on  the  31st. 


ON  THE  METBOftOLOOY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


313 


Table  XJX<— (Continued.) 


1840. 


it. 

If.lC.B. 

If.B. 

B.1C.B. 

B. 

M.8.B. 

S.B. 

0.0.K. 

ft. 

8.8.W. 

8.W 

W.ft.W 

Jw 

.  W.N.W 

.  N.W 

N.N.W. 

... 

a 

*i* 

1 

4 

5 

4 

5 

3 

2 

2 

1 

2 

31 

1 

. .. 

... 

1 

1 

... 

2 

10 

5 

4 

2 

2 

2 

... 

1 

31 

1 

... 

3 

4 

4 

a 

... 

1 

3 

4 

3 

1 

1 

1 

... 

29 

ch.. 

4 

4 

3 

6 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

1 

1 

1 

3 

3 

3 

31 

1  .. 

1 

3 

2 

2 

1 

... 

1 

2 

4 

1 

2 

... 

3 

1 

4 

3 

30 

.  3 

3 

2 

4 

2 

1 

1 

2 

3 

3 

... 

3 

I   1 

2 

1 

31 

5  .. 

... 

•  •• 

••• 

... 

... 

2 

G 

2 

6 

8 

1 

!   5 

4 

1 

30 

.  i 

2 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

5 

9 

2 

■  8 

1   2 

... 

... 

31 

.   •• 

2 

2 

••• 

1 

2 

3 

3 

2 

9 

2 

1  2 

3 

... 

31 

T.  .. 

... 

2 

... 

... 

... 

1 

... 

5 

4 

5 

4 

i  3 

3 

2 

1 

30 

.  i 

1 

1 

1 

... 

1 

2 

2 

1 

... 

2 

1 

,  5 

3 

7 

3 

31 

-   .. 

... 

3 

1 

... 

... 

3 

4 

... 

3 

4 

7 

1 

1 

2 

1 

30 

li 

19 

19 

17 

11 

14 

14 

17  44 

34 

|  53 

19 

29 

22 

29 

14 

366 

1841. 

► 

2 

2 

1 

1 

3 

1 

1 

2 

1 

2 

1 

1 

2 

4 

1 

31 

•  •• 

2 

1 

2 

1 

... 

... 

2 

1 

1 

2 

2 

2 

5 

4 

4 

2 

31 

a     .. 

2 

1 

1 

5 

2 

1 

... 

3 

4 

1 

2 

1 

2 

3 

... 

28 

rch.. 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

3 

8 

3 

8 

2 

3 

1 

... 

31 

il  .. 

1 

5 

2 

1 

... 

1 

2 

5 

2 

4 

1 

3 

3 

... 

... 

30 

f  •• 

1 

2 

2 

1 

2 

1 

1 

5 

3 

3 

5 

1 

1 

... 

3 

... 

31 

e  .. 

3 

1 

1 

2 

1 

1 

1 

1 

3 

5 

2 

... 

2 

3 

3 

1 

30 

r    •• 

4 

4 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

2 

3 

a 

4 

4 

5 

1 

31 

c-  •• 

3 

... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

4 

5 

5 

4 

4 

4 

.1 

31 

t.  .. 

1 

... 

... 

... 

4 

3 

... 

7 

3 

6 

i 

3 

... 

1 

1 

30 

1 

1 

3 

2 

2 

... 

... 

2 

... 

2 

2 

5 

3 

2 

4 

2 

31 

r.  .. 

2 

1 

... 

1 

... 

1 

2 

3 

3 

5 

2 

6 

3 

1 

... 

30 

22 

14 

24 

13 

11 

8 

12 

21 

36 

32 

45 

23 

35 

28 

32 

9 

365 

1842. 

c.  .. 

h 

... 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

1 

3 

3 

6 

3 

6 

2 

31 

i 

1 

•  •■ 

., 

2 

2 

1 

2 

3 

5 

2 

1 

2 

1 

2 

4 

3 

31 

u 

... 

1 
1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

2 
2 

5 
1 

4 
5 

6 
4 

2 
4 

1 
5 

2 
4 

3 

"i 

28 
31 

r.  .. 

1 

r.  .. 

2 

2 

8 

4 

4 

*2 

1 

3 

1 

1 

... 

... 

... 

2 

... 

30 

y  •• 

... 

1 

3 

... 

3 

1 

... 

4 

5 

2 

4 

5 

1 

2 

•  r. 

... 

31 

16  .. 

1 

... 

3 

S 

2 

... 

2 

1 

2 

4 

2 

1 

2 

1 

4 

2 

30 

y  •• 

1 

1 

2 

1 

2 

... 

3 

1 

4 

1 

3 

4 

1 

2 

2 

3 

31 

g.  •• 

2 

... 

1 

6 

... 

2 

4 

... 

2 

5 

3 

1 

2 

... 

2 

1 

31 

|>t.  .. 

2 

1 

5 

2 

1 

2 

1 

... 

2 

... 

3 

1  , 

3 

3 

2 

2 

30 

t 

4 

3 

2 

1 

... 

1 

1 

1 

2 

3 

4 

... 

4 

5 

31 

V.  .. 

2 

1 

2 

2 

3 

... 

... 

4 

5 

4 

2 

2  1 

1 

... 

1 

1 

30 

17 

9 

28 

22 

17 

10 

16 

23 

35 

30 

34 

28 

27 

19 

30 

20 

365 

31* 


ttifOiltf-— IBM- 


Table  XIX. — Winds  registered  daily  at  9  a.m.  during  8  years,  from  18S7 

to  1844  inclusive. 

1837. 


N.N.K.  N.E 


B.N.E.  K.  B.8.B.  8.B. 


S.8.W4  8.W.  W.8.W. 


N.W.  9.W.W. 


16 


13 


32 


17 


16   14 


30 


38 


51 


16 


32 


15 


26 


27 


*  From  the  25th  to  the  Mat  inclusive,  wind  not  registered. 


1838 

Dec.    ... 

1 

2 

5 

1 

3 

7 

5 

3 

2 

1 

1 

31 

Jan.    ... 

2 

1 

3 

3 

6 

4 

1 

3 

3 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

3 

31 

Feb.    ... 

4 

8 

3 

5 

2 

2 

1 

1 

... 

... 

1 

1 

... 

28 

March.  .. 

i 

1 

... 

1 

1 

4 

1 

3 

2 

6 

1 

1 

8 

... 

1 

31 

April  ... 

4 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

4 

2 

3 

1 

2 

9 

1 

2 

30 

May    ... 

5 

5 

2 

4 

2 

2 

fe 

1 

2 

1 

2 

... 

2 

1 

».* 

..; 

31 

June   ... 

2 

... 

2 

1 

1 

...   * 

4 

3 

6 

3 

2 

1 

1 

2 

1 

1 

30 

July    ... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

1 

,,, 

2 

4 

6 

4 

2 

2 

3 

3 

2 

1 

31 

Aug.    ... 

2 

... 

••■ 

... 

1 

... 

1 

1 

10 

4 

4 

2 

4 

1 

1 

... 

31 

Sept.  ... 

1 

2 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

4 

4 

3 

3 

1 

3 

3 

... 

... 

30 

Oct 

3 

2 

1 

... 

... 

1 

1 

4 

3 

5 

2 

2 

3 

1 

1 

2 

31 

Nov.   ... 

3 

1 

3 

... 

6 

... 

1 

5 

3 

3 

1 

1 

... 

2 

1 

... 

30 

25 

19 

25 

It 

22 

13 

24 

35 

50 

31 

27 

12 

19 

31 

9 

11 

365 

1839. 

Dec.    ... 

1 

1 

5 

6 

4 

2 

1 

3 

5 

1 

2 

31 

Jan.    ... 

1 

... 

... 

■•• 

... 

1 

5 

2 

7 

5 

5 

3 

1 

1 

31 

Feb.    ... 

1 

1 

2 

•  ■• 

... 

... 

1 

2 

6 

5 

4 

3 

2 

1 

... 

... 

28 

March... 

2 

3 

... 

4 

1 

4 

1 

2 

4 

3 

2 

1 

1 

... 

... 

3 

31 

April  ... 

2 

4 

4 

4 

1 

... 

2 

1 

1 

... 

7 

1 

1 

... 

2 

... 

30 

May    ... 

4 

3 

3 

... 

1 

1 

... 

1 

4 

... 

2 

3 

1 

7 

1 

31 

June   ... 

... 

4 

3 

3 

3 

1 

4 

1 

4 

3 

1 

... 

3 

... 

30 

July    ... 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

10 

4 

3 

2 

1 

1 

4 

... 

31 

Aug.    ... 

1 

1 

... 

1 

... 

... 

2 

... 

5 

2 

5 

4 

2 

4 

3 

... 

30* 

Sept.  ... 

;.; 

... 

it. 

... 

... 

... 

4 

2 

7 

7 

4 

2 

3 

1 

... 

30 

Oct 

3 

2 

5 

2 

... 

2 

3 

2 

8 

.     1 

... 

... 

2 

... 

... 

1 

31 

Nov.    ... 

1 

1 

... 

5 

2 

1 

1 

3 

6 

4 

2 

..» 

... 

2 

2 

30 

14 

17 

18 

20 

6 

9 

25 

21 

58 

37 

41 

28 

21 

15 

24 

!0 

364 

*  Wind  not  registered  on  the  31st. 


ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


313 


Table  XIX-— (Continued.) 


1840. 


ir. 

'  1V.1T.B. 

K.m. 

B.ir.i. 

a. 

M.8.B. 

0.B. 

8*8.1. 

8. 

S.S.W. 

8.W. 

W.8.W. 

jw. 

W.N.W. 

N.W. 

N.N.W.. 

€C.     ... 

... 

a 

nt 

1 

4 

5 

4 

5 

3 

2 

2 

2 

31 

in.    ... 

1 

. .. 

... 

1 

1 

... 

2 

10 

5 

4 

2 

2 

2 

... 

1 

31 

;b.    ... 

1 

... 

3 

4 

4 

3 

... 

1 

3 

4 

3 

1 

1 

1 

... 

... 

29 

•arch... 

4 

4 

3 

6 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

1 

1 

1 

3 

3 

3 

31 

E?::: 

1 

3 

2 

2 

1 

... 

1 

2 

4 

1 

2 

... 

3 

1 

4 

3 

30 

3 

3 

2 

4 

2 

... 

1 

1 

2 

3 

3 

••• 

3 

1 

2 

1 

31 

ine  ... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

6 

2 

6 

3 

1 

5 

4 

1 

30 

aly    ... 

1 

2 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

5 

9 

2 

8i 

2 

... 

... 

31 

u&.    ... 

2 

2 

... 

1 

2 

... 

3 

3 

2 

9 

2 

2' 

... 

3 

... 

31 

Bpt.    ... 

... 

2 

... 

... 

... 

1 

... 

5 

4 

5 

4 

3i 

3 

2 

1 

30 

ct 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2 

2 

1 

... 

2 

1 

5i 

3 

7 

3 

31 

ov.    ... 

... 

3 

1 

... 

... 

3 

4 

... 

3 

4 

7 

1 

i 

1 

2 

1 

30 

11 

19 

19 

17 

11 

14 

14 

17 

44 

3*    1 

53 

19 

»: 

22 

29 

14 

366 

1841 

ec    ... 

2l 

2 

7 

1 

3 

1 

1 

2 

1 

2 

1 

1 

2 

4 

1 

31 

m*    ... 

2I 

1 

2 

1 

... 

... 

2 

1 

1 

2 

2 

2 

5 

4 

4 

2 

31 

sb.    ... 

2 

1 

1 

5 

2 

1 

... 

3 

4 

1 

2 

1 

2 

3 

*•• 

28 

arch... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

2 

3 

8 

3 

8 

2 

3 

1 

... 

•  »• 

31 

pril  ... 

l1 

5 

2 

1 

... 

1 

2 

5 

2 

4 

1 

3 

3 

... 

••• 

30 

MJ     ... 

1| 

2 

2 

1 

2 

1 

1 

5 

3 

3 

5 

1 

1 

... 

3 

... 

31 

ine   ... 

3' 

1 

1 

2 

1 

1 

1 

1 

3 

5 

2 

... 

2 

3 

3 

1 

30 

ily    ...{  4 

... 

4 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

2 

3 

3 

4 

4 

5 

1 

31 

ag.   ...:  3 

... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

... 

4 

5 

5 

4 

4 

4 

.1 

31 

jpt.  ....... 

1 

... 

... 

... 

4 

3 

... 

7 

3 

6 

1 

3 

... 

1 

1 

30 

5t 1 

1 

3 

2 

2 

... 

... 

2 

... 

2 

2 

5 

3 

2 

4 

2 

31 

DV.     ... 

2 

... 

1 

... 

1 

... 

1 

2 

3 

3 

5 

2 

6 

3 

1 

... 

30 

22, 

14 

24 

13 

11 

8 

12 

21 

36 

32 

45 

23 

35 

28 

32 

9 

365 

1842. 

ec.    ...<   1 

... 

1 

... 

2       3 

1 

3 

3 

6 

3 

6 

2 

31 

in i   1 

2 

2 

1 

2 

3       5 

2 

1 

2 

1 

2 

4 

3 

31 

*k L. 

... 

1 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

2     '  5 

4 
5 

6 
4 

2 
4 

1 
5 

2 
4 

*3 

1 

28 
31 

ar.    ...1   1 

2 

1 

av     ...... 

2 

8 

4 

4 

2 

i 

3 

... 

1 

1 

... 

... 

... 

2 

... 

30 

1 

3 

... 

3 

1 

... 

4 

5 

2 

4 

5 

1 

2 

... 

... 

31 

ine    ...    1 

3 

3 

2 

... 

2 

1 

2 

4 

2 

1 

2 

1 

4 

2 

30 

dy    ... 

Dg.      ... 
JDt.     ... 

1 

1 

2 

1 

2 

... 

3 

1 

4 

1 

3 

4 

1 

2 

2 

3 

31 

2 

2 

i" 

1 
5 

6 
2 

"l 

2 
2 

4 

1 

... 

2 
2 

5 

3 
3 

'     1 

1 

2 
3 

3 

2 
2 

1 
2 

31 
30 

«. 4 

3 

2 

1 

... 

... 

... 

1 

1 

1 

2 

3 

4 

4 

5 

31 

»v.    ...|  2 

1 

J 

2 

2 

3 

... 

... 

4 

5 

4 

2 

2 

1 

... 

1 

1 

30 

t 

:i7 

1  • 

28 

22 

17 

10 

16 

23 

35 

30 

34 

28 

27 

19 

30 

20 

365 

314 


REPORT — 1852. 


1843. 


Tabli] 


N. 

N.NB. 

N.B. 

B.N.B. 

E. 

B.8.B. 

8.B. 

8.B.H. 

8. 

S.S.W. 

B.W. 

W.8.W 

.  w. 

W.N.W. 

1 

K.W.jNAVT 

Dec. 

1 

... 

2 

... 

1 

4 

11 

5 

4 

2 

ll     ... 

Jan 

2 

1 

... 

,,. 

... 

... 

1 

4 

2 

1 

9 

5 

2 

2 

Feb 

2 

3 

3 

4 

4 

1 

1 

... 

1 

... 

2 

1 

... 

2 

4 

Mar 

1 

2 

... 

4 

5 

2 

2 

1 

4 

1 

5 

1 

... 

... 

2 

i 

April  ... 
May    ... 

3 

1 

... 

3 

1 

1 

... 

2 

;     2 

5 

6 

... 

4 

1 

.- 

1 

... 

2 

2 

6 

2 

1 

... 

2 

t       2 

5 

3 

1 

3 

1 

June  ... 

1 

1 

9 

5 

... 

2 

... 

... 

1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

... 

i     3 

July    ... 

2 

2 

... 

... 

... 

... 

1 

... 

1 

1 

5 

4 

4 

2 

8 

I 

Aug.   ... 

1 

2 

2 

1 

4 

1 

... 

5 

3 

1 

4 

2 

3 

2 

„ 

Sept.  ... 

3 

1 

2 

3 

3 

1 

1 

... 

2 

►       2 

2 

... 

1 

3 

1        5 

Oct 

3 

1 

... 

1 

1 

... 

... 

2 

3 

3 

6 

2 

2 

4  '     3 

Nov.   ... 

... 

2 

... 

1 

2 

2 

1 

5 

5 

3 

3 

1 

2 

3 

20 

14 

20 

23 

23 

11 

11 

4 

26 

i     28 

46 

44 

25 

22 

26 

22 

Table  XX.— General  Sui 

miliary  of  the  number  and  direction  of  tbel 

1844  inclusive,  witl 

i  the  corresponding  Barometric  Pressures, « 

N. 

N.N.B. 

N.B. 

B.N.E. 

B. 

B.8.B. 

S.B.         ^ 

Dec 

8 

4 

21 

3 

6 

7 

19 

Jan 

12 

6 

6 

6 

10 

6 

8 

Feb 

8 

9 

19 

17 

15 

9 

10 

March 

16 

10 

13 

18 

8 

8 

13 

April  

16 

18 

18 

16 

7 

4 

8 

May    

22 

20 

30 

18 

19 

7 

6 

June   

8 

4 

23 

14 

13 

5 

13 

July    

15 

7 

9 

2 

8 

1 

11 

Aug 

11 

9 

12 

11 

9 

6 

9 

Sept 

6 

9 

20 

13 

6 

10 

14 

Oct.    

15 

12 

14 

8 

3 

7 

8 

Nov 

11 

9 

10 

9 

12 

7 

12 

No.  of  1 
Winds./ 

148 

nr 

195 

135 

116 

77 

131 

Barom.    \ 
Pressure.  J 

29*509 

29-537 

29*545 

29*482 

29-432 

29*349 

29-191     * 

Var.  from  i 
mean  press./ 

+•106 

+•134 

+•142 

+•079 

+•029 

-•054 

-•212     ^ 

1 

,  Mem  Pressure  g* 


ON  THE  METEOROLOGY  OF  BIRMINGHAM. 


315 


inued.) 


1844. 


N. 

N.N.B. 

N.E. 

E.N.E. 

s. 

S.S.E; 

8.E. 

S.8.E. 

8. 

8.8.W. 

8.W. 

W.8.W. 

w. 

W.N.W. 

N.W. 

N,N.W. 

•  ■> 

1 

... 

... 

... 

3 

... 

2 

8 

7 

4 

5 

1 

31 

.... 

3 

i 

1 

... 

i 

3 

2 

1 

5 

2 

12 

31 

.... 

1 

... 

... 

1 

... 

... 

3 

2 

7 

1 

5 

3 

3 

3 

29 

.... 

4 

... 

2 

2 

i 

... 

i 

... 

1 

2 

1 

3 

7 

1 

4 

2 

31 

... 

1 

... 

2 

i 

1 

2 

l 

3 

2 

4 

3 

3 

3 

1 

3 

30 

... 

6 

2 

13 

6 

|i 

... 

... 

1 

... 

... 

*■* 

1 

1 

31 

... 

1 

2 

3 

... 

12 

i 

•  ■* 

... 

1 

6 

4 

3 

3 

2 

... 

2 

30 

... 

3 

1 

1 

1 

.1 

... 

3 

l 

2 

1 

2 

2 

2 

6 

4 

1 

31 

... 

2 

1 

... 

... 

1 

... 

1 

i 

1 

... 

3 

5 

8 

3 

3 

2 

31 

2 

7 

4 

i 

••• 

... 

3 

2 

2 

5 

1 

2 

1 

30 

•  •• 

1 

1 

1 

1... 

2 

1 

2 

4 

5 

4 

2 

3 

3 

2 

31 

... 

1 

2 

1 

2 

I2 

1 

2 

2 

1 

4 

7 

3 

... 

1 

1 

... 

30 

23 

12 

29 

19 

'9 

6 

13 

8 

21 

35 

44 

30 

41 

26 

33 

17 

366 

tered  daily  at  9  a.m.  during  each  month  of  the  period  from  18S7  to 
2°   Fahrenheit,   and  their  Variations  from  the  Mean. 


i. 

8.S.W. 

S.W. 

W.8.W. 

w. 

W.N.W. 

N.W. 

N.N.W. 

Total 
number. 

:l 

23 

33 

18 

24 

12 

20 

7 

248 

!9 

17 

24 

21 

24 

15 

31 

14 

241 

!8 

18 

30 

11 

13 

10 

11 

8 

226 

12 

18 

28 

16 

22 

19 

13 

15 

248 

SI 

14 

28 

12 

17 

20 

15 

14 

240 

18 

21 

24 

11 

11 

9 

15 

6 

248 

16 

28 

26 

13 

13 

13 

17 

14 

240 

n 

21 

29 

22 

27 

24 

26 

10 

248 

28 

23 

35 

24 

25 

15 

19 

5 

247 

53 

23 

27 

14 

19 

16 

9 

10 

240 

23 

24 

22 

22 

21 

14 

23 

19  . 

248 

24 

35 

35 

16 

13 

11 

10 

8 

240 

00 

265 

341 

200 

229 

178 

209 

130 

2914 

1*286 

29-301 

29-347 

29*381 

29*369 

29*448 

29-473 

29495 

•117 

-•102 

-•056 

-•022 

-034 

+ -045 

+•070 

+•092 

the  Winds  29*403. 


816 


REPORT — 1852. 


§ 


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1 

ON  THE  VORTEX  WATBR-WHEEL.  317 

On  the  Vortex  Water-Wheel.    By  James  Thomson,  A.M.,  Civil 

Engineer,  Belfast. 

[A  Communication  ordered  to  be  printed  among  the  Reports.] 

Numberless  are  the  varieties,  both  of  principle  and  of  construction,  in  the 
mechanisms  by  which  motive  power  may  be  obtained  from  falls  of  water. 
Tbe  chief  modes  of  action  of  the  water  are,  however,  reducible  to  three,  as 
follows: — First,  The  water  may  act  directly  by  its  weight  on  a  part  of  the 
mechanism  which  descends  while  loaded  with  water,  and  ascends  while  free 
from  load.  The  most  prominent  example  of  tbe  application  of  this  mode  is 
afforded  by  the  ordinary  bucket  water-wheel  Secondly,  The  water  may  act 
by  fluid  pressure,  and  drive  before  it  some  yielding  part  of  a  vessel  by  which 
it  is  confined.  This  is  the  mode  in  which  the  water  acts  in  tbe  water-pressure 
engine,  analogous  to  the  ordinary  high-pressure  steam-engine.  Thirdly,  The 
water,  having  been  brought  to  its  place  of  action  subject  to  the  pressure  due 
to  the  height  of  fall,  may  be  allowed  to  issue  through  small  orifices  with  a 
high  velocity,  its  inertia  being  one  of  the  forces  essentially  involved  in  the 
communication  of  the  power  to  the  moving  part  of  the  mechanism.  Through- 
out the  general  class  of  water-wheels  called  Turbines,  which  is  of  wide  extent, 
the  water  acts  according  to  some  of  the  variations  of  which  this  third  mode 
is  susceptible.  The  name  Turbine  is  derived  from  the  Latin  word  turbo,  a 
top,  because  the  wheels  to  which  it  is  applied  almost  all  spin  round  a  vertical 
axis,  and  so  bear  some  considerable  resemblance  to  the  top.  In  our  own 
country,  and  more  especially  on  the  Continent,  turbines  have  attracted  much 
attention,  and  many  forms  of  them  have  been  made  known  by  published 
descriptions.  The  subject  of  the  present  communication  is  a  new  water- 
wheel,  which  belongs  to  tbe  same  general  class,  and  which  has  recently  been 
invented  and  brought  successfully  into  use  by  the  author. 

In  this  machine  tbe  moving  wheel  is  placed  within  a  chamber  of  a  nearly 
circular  form.  The  water  is  injected  into  tbe  chamber  tangentially  at  tbe 
circumference,  and  thus  it  receives  a  rapid  motion  of  rotation.  Retaining 
this  motion  it  passes  onwards  towards  the  centre,  where  alone  it  is  free  to 
make  its  exit.  Tbe  wheel,  which  is  placed  within  tbe  chamber,  and  which 
almost  entirely  fills  it,  is  divided  by  thin  partitions  into  a  great  number  of 
radiating  passages.  Through  these  passages  the  water  must  flow  on  its 
course  towards  the  centre ;  and  in  doing  so  it  imparts  its  own  rotatory  mo- 
tion to  the  wheel.  The  whirlpool  of  water  acting  within  the  wheel  chamber, 
being  one  principal  feature  of  this  turbine,  leads  to  tbe  name  Vortex  as  a 
suitable  designation  for  the  machine  as  a  whole. 

The  vortex  admits  of  several  modes  of  construction,  but  the  two  principal 
forms  are  the  one  adapted  for  high  falls  and  tbe  one  for  low  falls.  The 
former  may  be  called  the  High-pressure  Vortex,  and  the  latter  the  Low-pres- 
sure Vortex*.  Examples  of  these  two  kinds,  in  operation  at  two  mills  near 
Belfast,  are  delineated  in  Plates  1  and  %  with  merely  a  few  unimportant 
deviations  from  the  actual  constructions. 

Plates  1  and  2  are  respectively  a  vertical  section,  and  a  plan  of  a  vortex 
of  the  high-pressure  kind  in  use  at  the  Low  Lodge  Mill  near  Belfast,  for 
grinding  Indian  cornf*    In  these  figures  A  A  is  the  water-wheel.    It  is  fixed 

*  These  terms  correspond  to  Hochd  ruck  turbine,  and  Niederdruck  turbine,  used  in  Germany 
to  express  tbe  like  distinction  in  turbines. 

f  This  vortex  was  only  in  course  of  erection  at  the  time  of  the  meeting  of  the  British 
Association  in  Belfast  The  water-wheel  itself,  removed  from  its  ease,  being  light  and  of  small 
dimensions,  was  exhibited  in  Section  O.  It  is  composed  chiefly  of  thick-tinned  iron  plates 
united  by  soft  solder. 


318  REPORT— -1852* 

on  the  upright  shaft,  B,  which  conveys  away  the  power  to  the  machinery 
to  be  driven.  The  water-wheel  occupies  the  central  part  of  the  upper  di- 
vision of  a  strong  cast-iron  case,  CC ;  and  the  part  occupied  by  the  wheel 
is  called  the  wheel-chamber.  DD  is  the  lower  division  of  the  case,  and  is 
called  the  supply  chamber.  It  receives  the  water  directly  from  the  supply 
pipe,  of  which  the  lower  extremity  is  shown  at  E,  and  delivers  it  into  the 
outer  part  of  the  upper  division,  by  four  large  openings,  F,  in  the  parti- 
tion between  the  two  divisions.  The  outer  part  of  the  upper  division  is 
called  the  guide-blade  chamber,  from  its  containing  four  guide-blades,  G, 
which  direct  the  water  tangent ially  into  the  wheel-chamber.  Immediately 
after  being  injected  into  the  wheel-chamber  the  water  is  received  by  the 
curved  radiating  passages  of  the  wheel,  which  are  partly  seen  in  figure  %  at 
a  place  where  both  the  cover  of  the  wheel- chamber  and  the  upper  plate  of 
the  wheel  are  broken  away  for  the  purpose  of  exposing  the  interior  to  view. 
The  water,  on  reaching  the  inner  ends  of  these  curved  passages,  having 
already  done  its  work,  is  allowed  to  make  its  exit  by  two  large  central  orifices, 
shown  distinctly  on  the  figures  at  the  letters  L,  L ;  the  one  leading  upwards 
and  the  other  downwards.  It  then  simply  flows  quietly  away ;  for,  the  vortex 
being  submerged  under  the  surface  of  the  water  in  the  tail  race,  the  water 
on  being  discharged  wastes  no  part  of  the  fall  by  a  further  descent  At  the 
central  orifices,  close  joints  between  the  case  and  the  wheel,  to  prevent  the 
.  escape  of  water  otherwise  than  through  the  wheel  itself,  are  made  by  means 
of  two  annular  pieces,  L,  L,  called  joint-rings,  fitting  to  the  central  orifices  of 
the  case,  and  capable  of  being  adjusted,  by  means  of  studs  and  nuts,  so  as  to 
come  close  to  the  wheel  without  impeding  its  motion  by  friction.  The  four 
openings,  H,  H,  Rates  1  and  2,  through  which  the  water  flows  into  the  wheel- 
chamber,  each  situated  between  the  point  or  edge  of  one  guide-blade  and  the 
middle  of  the  next,  determine,  by  their  width,  the  quantity  of  water  admitted, 
and  consequently  the  power  of  the  wheel.  To  render  this  power  capable  of 
being  varied  at  pleasure,  the  guide-blades  are  made  moveable  round  gudgeons 
or  centres  near  their  points ;  and  a  spindle,  K,  is  connected  with  the  guide- 
blades  by  means  of  links,  cranks,  &c.  (see  the  Plates)  in  such  a  way  that, 
when  the  spindle  is  moved,  the  four  entrance  orifices  are  all  enlarged  or  con- 
tracted alike.  This  spindle,  K,  for  working  the  guide-blades  is  itself  worked 
by  a  handle  in  a  convenient  position  in  the  mill ;  and  the  motion  is  commu- 
nicated from  the  handle  through  the  medium  of  a  worm  and  sector,  which 
not  only  serve  to  multiply  the  force  of  the  man's  hand,  but  also  to  prevent 
the  guide-blades  from  being  liable  to  the  accident  of  slapping  suddenly  shnt 
from  the  force  of  the  water  constantly  pressing  them  inwards.  The  gudgeons 
of  the  guide-blades,  seen  in  fig.  2  as  small  circles,  are  sunk  in  sockets  in  the 
floor  and  roof  of  the  guide-blade  chamber ;  and  so  they  do  not  in  any  way 
obstruct  the  flow  of  the  water. 

M,  in  Plate  1,  is  the  pivot-box  of  the  upright  shaft.  It  contains,  fixed 
within  it,  an  inverted  brass  cup,  shown  distinctly  on  the  figure ;  and  the  cup 
revolves  on  an  upright  pin,  or  pivot,  with  a  steel  top.  The  pin  is  held  sta- 
tionary in  a  bridge,  N,  which  is  itself  attached  to  the  bottom  of  the  vortex- 
case.  For  adjusting  the  pin  as  to  height,  a  little  cross  bridge,  O,  is  made  to 
bear  it  up,  and  is  capable  of  being  raised  or  lowered  by  screws  and  nuts 
shown  distinctly  on  the  figure.  Also,  for  preventing  the  pin  from  gradually 
becoming  loose  in  its  socket  in  the  large  bridge,  two  pinching-screws  are 
required,  of  which  one  is  to  be  seen  in  the  figure.  A  small  pipe,  fixed  at  its 
lower  end  into  the  centre  of  the  inverted  brass  cup,  and  sunk  in  an  upright 
groove  in  the  vortex-shaft  (see  the  Plates),  affords  the  means  of  supplying 
oil  to  the  rubbing  surfaces,  over  which  the  oil  is  spread  by  a  radial  groove  in 


ON  THE  VORTEX  WATER-WHEEL.  319 

the  brass.  A  cavity,  shown  io  the  Plates,  is  provided  at  the  lover  part  of 
the  cup,  for  the  purpose  of  preventing  the  oil  from  being  rapidly  washed 
away  by  the  water*. 

Four  tie-bolts,  marked  P,  bind  the  top  and  bottom  of  the  case  together,  so 
as  to  prevent  the  pressure  of  the  water  from  causing  the  top  to  spring  up, 
and  so  occasioning  leakage  at  the  guide-blades  or  joint-rings. 

The  height  of  the  fall  for  this  vortex  is  about  37  feet,  and  the  standard  or 
medium  quantity  of  water,  for  which  the  dimensions  of  the  various  parts  of 
the  wheel  and  case  are  calculated,  is  540  cubic  feet  per  minute.  With  this 
fall  and  water  supply  the  estimated  power  is  28  horse  power,  the  efficiency 
being  taken  at  75  per  cent.  The  proper  speed  of  the  wheel,  calculated  in 
accordance  with  its  diameter  and  the  velocity  of  the  water  entering  its  cham- 
ber, is  555  revolutions  per  minute.  The  diameter  of  the  wheel  is  22  j-  inches, 
and  the  extreme  diameter  of  the  case  is  4  feet  8  inches. 

A  low-pressure  vortex,  constructed  for  another  mill  near  Belfast,  is  repre- 
sented in  vertical- section  and  plan  in  Plates  3  and  4.  This  is  essentially  the 
same  in  principle  as  the  vortex  already  described,  but  it  differs  in  the  material 
of  which  the  case  is  constructed,  and  in  the  manner  in  which  the  water  is  led 
to  the  guide- blade  chamber.  In  this  the  case  is  almost  entirely  of  wood ;  and, 
for  simplicity,  the  drawings  represent  it  as  if  made  of  wood  alone,  though  in 
reality,  to  suit  the  other  arrangements  of  the  mill,  brick-work,  in  certain 
parts,  was  substituted  for  the  wood*  The  water  flows  with  a  free  upper  sur- 
face, W,  W,  into  this  wooden  case,  which  consists  chiefly  of  two  wooden 
tanks,  AA  and  BB,  one  within  the  other.  The  water-wheel  chamber  and 
the  guide-blade  chamber  are  situated  in  the  open  space  between  the  bottom 
of  the  outer  and  that  of  the  inner  tank,  and  will  be  readily  distinguished  by 
reference  to  the  figures.  The  water  of  the  head  race,  having  been  led  all 
round  the  outer  tank  in  the  space  CC,  flows  inwards  over  its  edge,  and  passes 
downwards  by  the  space  DD,  between  the  sides  of  the  two  tanks.  It  then 
passes  through  the  guide-blade  chamber  and  the  water-wheel,  just  in  the 
same  way  as  was  explained  in  respect  to  the  high-pressure  vortex  already 
described ;  and  in  this  one  likewise  it  makes  its  exit  by  two  central  orifices, 
the  one  discharging  upwards  and  the  other  downwards.  The  part  of  the 
water  which  passes  downwards  flows  away  at  once  to  the  tail  race,  and  that 
which  passes  upwards  into  the  space  £  within  the  innermost  tank,  finds  a 
free  escape  to  the  tail  race  through  boxes  and  other  channels,  F  and  G, 
provided  for  that  purpose.  The  wheel  is  completely  submerged  under  the 
surface  of  the  water  in  the  tail  race,  which  is  represented  at  its  ordinary  level 
at  YYY,  Plate  3,  although  in  floods  it  may  rise  to  a  much  greater  height 
The  power  of  the  wheel  is  regulated  in  a  similar  way  to  that  already  de- 
scribed in  reference  to  the  high-pressure  vortex.  In  this  case,  however,  as 
will  be  seen  by  the  figures,  the  guide-blades  are  not  linked  together,  but  each 
is  provided  with  a  band-wheel,  H,  by  which  motion  is  communicated  to 
itself  alone. 

*  Great  stress  has  been  by  continental  engineers  and  authors  laid  on  the  supposed  neces- 
sity for  oiling  the  pivots  of  turbines.  The  author  of  the  present  communication  has  thus  been 
led  to  endeavour  to  find  and  adopt  the  best  means  for  oiling  pivots  working  under  water.  The 
oiling,  however,  is  a  source  of  much  trouble ;  and  he  has  found  in  the  course  of  his  experience, 
that  pivots  of  the  kind  described  above,  made  with  brass  working  on  hard  steel,  and  with  a 
radial  groove  in  the  brass  suitable  for  spreading  water  over  the  rubbing  surfaces,  will  last  well 
without  any  oil  being  supplied.  The  rapid  destruction,  which  is  commonly  reported  as  having 
been  of  frequent  occurrence  in  turbine  pivots,  he  believes  may  in  many  cases  have  arisen  from 
the  employment  of  an  inverted  cup  like  a  diving-bell  as  one  of  the  rubbing  parts,  without  any 
provision  for  the  escape  of  air  from  the  cup.  It  is  evident  that  a  pivot  of  this  kind,  although 
under  water,  might  be  perfectly  dry  at  the  rubbing  surfaces. 


920  *bpobt— 1852. 

In  this  vortex,  the  fall  being  taken  at  7  feet,  tbe  calculated  quantity  of 
water  admitted,  at  the  standard  opening  of  the  guide-blades,  is  2460  eubic 
feet  per  minute*  Then,  the  efficiency  of  the  wheel  being  taken  at  75  peir  cent, 
its  power  will  be  24  horse  power*  Abo  tbe  speed  at  which  the  wheel  is 
calculated  to  revolve  is  48  revolutions  per  minute. 

In  connexion  with  the  pivot  of  this  wheel  arrangements  are  made  which 
provide  for  the  perfect  lubrication  of  tbe  rubbing  surfaces  with  clean  oil. 
The  lower  end  of  the  upright  revolving  shaft  enters  a  stationary  pivot  box,  K, 
through  an  opening  made  oil-tight  by  hemp  and  leather  packing.  Within 
the  box  there  is  a  small  stationary  steel  plate  on  which  the  shaft  revolves. 
Within  the  box,  also,  there  are  two  oil-chambers,  one  situated  above  and 
round  the  rubbing  surface  of  this  plate,  and  the  other  underneath  the  plate. 
A  constant  circulation  of  the  oil  is  maintained  by  centrifugal  force,  which 
causes  it  to  pass  from  the  lower  chamber  upwards  through  a  central  orifice 
in  the  steel  plate,  then  outwards  through  a  radial  groove  in  the  bottom  of 
the  revolving  shaft  to  the  upper  chamber,  then  downwards  back  to  tbe  lower 
chamber,  by  one  or  more  grooves  at  the  circumference  of  the  steel  plate. 
The  purpose  intended  to  be  served  by  the  provision  of  the  lower  chamber 
combined  with  the  passages  for  the  circulation  of  the  oil,  is  to  permit  the 
oil,  while  passing  through  the  lower  chamber,  to  deposit  any  grit  or  any 
worn  metal  which  it  may  contain,  so  that  it  may  be  maintained  clean  and 
may  be  washed  over  the  upper  surface  of  the  steel  plate  at  every  revolution 
of  the  radial  groove  in  the  bottom  of  the  shaft.  A  pipe  leading  from  an  oil 
cistern,  L,  in  an  accessible  situation  conducts  oil  to  the  upper  chamber  of  the 
pivot-box  {  and  another  pipe  leaves  the  lower  chamber,  and  terminates,  at 
its  upper  end,  in  a  stop-cock,  M .  This  arrangement  allows  a  flow  of  oil  to 
be  obtained  at  pleasure  from  the  cistern,  down  by  the  one  pipe,  then  through 
tbe  pivot-box,  and  then  up  by  the  other  pipe,  and  out  by  the  cock*  Thus, 
if  any  stoppage  were  to  occur  in  the  pipes,  it  could  be  at  once  detected ;  or 
if  water  or  air  were  contained  in  the  pivot-box  after  the  first  erection,  or  at 
any  other  time,  the  water  could  be  removed  by  the  pipe  leading  to  the  stop- 
cock, or  the  air  would  of  itself  escape  by  the  pipe  leading  to  the  cistern, 
wbiob,  as  well  as  the  other  pipe,  has  a  continuous  ascent  from  the  pivot-box. 
Certainty  may  consequently  be  attained  that  the  pivot  really  works  in  clean  oil. 

The  author  was  led  to  adopt  the  pivot-box  closed  round  the  shaft  with  oil 
tight  stuffing,  from  havitig  learned  of  that  arrangement  having  been  sucess- 
fully  employed  by  Kochlin,  an  engineer  of  Munchausen.  As  to  the  other 
parts  of  the  arrangements  just  described,  he  believes  the  settling  chamber 
with  the  circulation  of  oil  to  be  new,  and  he  regards  this  part  of  the  arrange- 
ments as  being  useful  also  for  pivots  working  not  under  water.  In  respect 
to  the  materials  selected  for  the  rubbing  parts,  however,  he  thinks  it  necessary 
to  state  that  some  doubts  have  arisen  as  to  the  suitableness  of  wrought  iron 
to  work  on  steel  even  when  perfectly  lubricated ;  and  he  would,  therefore, 
recommend  that  a  small  piece  of  brass  should  be  fixed  into  the  bottom  of  the 
shaft,  all  parts  being  made  to  work  in  the  manner  already  explained. 

The  two  examples  which  have  now  been  described  of  vortex  water-wheels 
adapted  for  very  distinct  circumstances,  will  serve  to  indicate  the  principal 
features  in  the  structural  arrangements  of  these  new  machines  in  general. 
Respecting  their  principles  of  action  some  farther  explanations  will  next  be 
given.  In  these  machines  the  velocity  of  the  circumference  is  made  the 
same  as  the  velocity  of  the  entering  water,  and  thus  there  is  no  impact 
between  the  water  and  the  wheel ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  water  enters  the 
radiating  conduits  of  the  wheel  gently,  that  is  to  say,  with  scarcely  any 
motion  in  relation  to  their  mouths.    In  order  to  attain  the  equalisation  of 


ON  THE  VORTEX  WATER-WHEEL.  321 

these  velocities,  it  i*  necessary  that  the  circumference  of  the  wheel  should 
move  with  the  velocity  which  a  heavy  body  would  attain  in  falling  through 
a  vertical  space  equal  to  half  the  vertical  fall  of  the  water,  or  in  other  words, 
with  the  velocity  due  to  half  the  fall ;  and  that  the  orifices  through  which 
the  water  is  injected  into  the  wheel-chamber  should  be  conjointly  of  such 
area  that  when  all  the  water  required  is  flowing  through  them,  it  also  may 
have  a  velocity  due  to  half  the  fall.  Thus  one-half  only  of  the  fall  is  em- 
ployed in  producing  velocity  in  the  water ;  and,  therefore,  the  other  half  still 
remains  acting  on  the  water  within  the  wheel-chamber  at  the  circumference 
of  the  wheel  in  the  condition  of  fluid  pressure.  Now,  with  the  velocity 
already  assigned  to  the  wheel,  it  is  found  that  this  fluid  pressure  is  exactly 
that  which  is  requisite  to  overcome  the  centrifugal  force  of  the  water  in  the 
wheel,  and  to  bring  the  water  to  a  state  of  rest  at  its  exit,  the  mechanical 
work  due  to  both  halves  of  the  fall  being  transferred  to  the  wheel  during  the 
combined  action  of  the  moving  water  and  the  moving  wheel.  In  the  fore- 
going statements,  the  effects  of  fluid  friction,  and  of  some  other  modifying 
influences,  are,  for  simplicity,  left  out  of  consideration  ;  but  in  the  practical 
application  of  the  principles,  the  skill  and  judgement  of  the  designer  must  be 
exercised  in  taking  all  such  elements  as  far  as  possible  into  account.  To 
aid  in  this,  some  practical  rules,  to  which  the  author  as  yet  closely  adheres, 
were  made  out  by  him  previously  to  the  date  of  his  patent  These  are  to  be 
found  in  the  specification  of  the  patent,  published  in  the  Mechanics' 
Magazine  for  Jan.  18  and  Jan.  25,  1851  (London). 

In  respect  to  the  numerous  modifications  of  construction  and  arrangement 
which  are  admissible  in  the  Vortex,  while  the  leading  principles  of  action  are 
retained,  it  may  be  sufficient  here  merely  to  advert, — first,  to  the  use  (as 
explained  in  the  specification  of  the  patent)  of  straight  instead  of  curved 
radiating  passages  in  the  wheel ;  secondly,  to  the  employment,  for  simplicity, 
of  invariable  entrance  orifices,  or  of  fixed  instead  of  moveable  guide-blades; 
and  lastly,  to  the  placing  of  the  wheel  at  any  height,  less  than  about  thirty  feet, 
above  the  water  in  the  tail  race,  combined  with  the  employment  of  suction 
pipes  descending  from  the  central  discharge  orifices,  and  terminating  in  the 
water  of  the  tail  race,  so  as  to  render  available  the  part  of  the  fall  below  the 
wheel. 

In  relation  to  the  action  of  turbines  in  general,  the  chief  and  most  commonly 
recognised  conditions,  of  which  the  accomplishment  is  to  be  aimed  at,  are 
that  the  water  should  flow  through  the  whole  machine  with  the  least  possible 
resistance,  and  that  it  should  enter  the  moving  wheel  without  shock,  and  be 
discharged  from  it  with  only  a  very  inconsiderable  velocity.  The  vortex  is 
in  a  remarkable  degree  adapted  for  the  fulfilment  of  these  conditions.  The 
water  moving  centripetally  (instead  of  centrifugally,  which  is  more  usual  in 
turbines)  enters  at  the  period  of  its  greatest  velocity  (that  is,  just  after  passing 
the  injection  orifices)  into  the  most  rapidly  moving  part  of  the  wheel,  the 
circumference ;  and,  at  the  period  when  it  ought  to  be  as  far  as  possible 
deprived  of  velocity,  it  passes  away  by  the  central  part  of  the  wheel,  the  part 
which  has  the  least  motion.  Thus  iu  each  case,  that  of  the  entrance  and 
that  of  the  discharge,  there  is  an  accordance  between  the  velocities  of  the 
moving  mechanism  and  the  proper  velocities  of  the  water. 

The  principle  of  injection  from  without  inwards,  adopted  in  the  vortex, 
affords  another  important  advantage  in  comparison  with  turbines  having  the 
contrary  motion  of  the  water ;  as  it  allows  ample  room,  in  the  space  outside 
of  the  wheel,  for  large  and  well-formed  injection  channels,  in  which  the 
water  can  be  made  very  gradually  and  regularly  to  converge  to  the  most 
contracted  parts,  where  it  is  to  have  its  greatest  velocity.    It  is  as  a  con- 

1852.  x 


322  report— 1852. 

comHant  alio  of  the  fame  principle,  that  the  very  simple  and  advantageous 
mode  of  regulating  the  power  of  the  wheel  by  the  moveable  guide-blades 
already  desoribed  can  be  introduced:  This  mode,  it  is  to  be  observed*  while 
giving  great  variation  to  the  areas  of  the  entrance  orifices,  retains  at  all  times 
very  suitable  forms  for  the  converging  water  channels. 

Another  adaptation  in  the  vortex  is  to  be  remarked  as  being  highly  bene- 
ficial, that  namely  according  to  which,  by  the  balancing  of  the  contrary  fluid 
pressures  due  to  half  the  head  of  water  and  to  the  centrifugal  force  of  the 
water  in  the  wheel,  combined  with  the  pressure  due  to  the  ejection  of  the 
water  backwards  from  the  inner  ends  of  the  vanes  of  the  wheel  when  they 
are  curved,  only  one-half  of  the  work  due  to  the  fall  is  spent  in  commu- 
nicating vis  viva  to  the  water,  to  be  afterwards  taken  from  it  during  its 
passage  through  the  wheel ;  the  remainder  of  the  work  being  communicated 
through  the  fluid  pressure  to  the  wheel,  without  any  intermediate  generation 
of  vis  viva.  Thus  the  velocity  of  the  water,  where  it  moves  fastest  in  the 
machine,  is  kept  comparatively  low;  not  exceeding  that  due  to  half  the 
height  of  the  fall,  while  in  other  turbines  the  water  usually  requires  to  act  at 
much  higher  velocities.  In  many  of  them  it  attains  at  two  successive  times 
the  velocity  due  to  the  whole  fall.  The  much  smaller  amount  of  action,  or 
agitation,  with  which  the  water  in  the  vortex  performs  its  work,  causes  a 
material  saving  of  power  by  diminishing  the  loss  necessarily  occasioned  by 
fluid  friction. 

Jn  the  Vortex,  further,  a  very  favourable  influence  on  the  regularity  of  the 
motion  proceeds  from  the  centrifugal  force  of  the  water,  which,  on  any  in- 
crease of  the  velocity  of  the  wheel,  inoreases,  and  so  checks  the  water  supply ; 
and  on  any  diminution  of  the  velocity  of  the  wheel,  diminishes,  and  so  admits 
the  water  more  freely ;  thus  counteracting,  in  a  great  degree,  the  irregularities 
of  speed  arising  from  variations  in  the  work  to  be  performed.  When  the 
work  is  subject  to  great  variations,  as  for  instance  in  saw-mills,  in  bleaching 
works,  or  in  forges,  great  inconvenience  often  arises  with  the  ordinary 
bucket  water-wheels  and  with  turbines  which  discbarge  at  the  circumference, 
from  their  running  too  quickly  when  any  considerable  diminution  occurs  in 
the  resistance  to  their  motion. 
%  The  first  vortex  which  was  constructed  on  the  large  scale  was  made  in  Glas- 

Swr,  to  drive  a  new  beetling-mill  of  Messrs.  C.  Hunter  and  Co.,  of  Dunadry,  in 
ounty  Antrim.  It  was  the  only  one  in  action  at  the  time  of  the  Meeting 
of  the  British  Association  in  Belfast ;  but  the  two  which  have  been  particularly 
described  in  the  present  article,  and  one  for  an  unusually  high  fall,  100  feet, 
have  since  been  completed  and  brought  into  operation.  There  are  also 
several  others  in  progress ;  of  which  it  may  be  sufficient  to  particularise  one 
of  great  dimensions  and  power,  for  a  new  flax-mill  at  Ballyshannon  in  the 
West  of  Ireland.  It  is  calculated  for  working  at  150  horse-power,  on  a  fall 
of  14  feet,  and  it  is  to  be  impelled  by  the  water  of  the  River  Erne.  This 
great  river  has  an  ample  reservoir  in  the  Lough  of  the  same  name ;  so  that 
the  water  of  wet  weather  is  long  retained,  and  continues  to  supply  the  river 
abundantly  even  in  the  dryest  weather.  The  lake  has  also  the  effect  of 
causing  the  floods  to  be  of  long  duration,  and  the  vortex  will  consequently 
be,  through  a  considerable  part  of  the  year,  and  for  long  periods  at  a  time, 
deeply  submerged  under  back-water.  The  water  of  the  tail  race  will  fre- 
quently be  7  feet  above  its  ordinary  summer  level ;  but  as  the  water  of  the 
head  race  will  also  rise  to  such  a  height  as  to  maintain  a  sufficient  difference 
of  levels,  the  action  of  the  wheel  will  not  be  deranged  or  impeded  by  the 
floods.  These  circumstances  have  had  a  material  influence  in  leading  to  the 
adoption  in  the  present  case  of  this  new  wheel  in  preference  to  the  old  breast 
■*r  undershot  wheels. 


FOODS,  |N  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.  '     32&  V 

Q»  f A*  Composition  of  Foods,  in  relation  to  RespiratUmwidyhe  tetifoiiif  ^  *  *  - 

of  Animals.    By  J.  B.  Lawes,  Esq.,  of  Rothamstkiftfid  JL'  JL  v*-?  •  *. 

Gilbert,  PAJX,  F.C.S.  >^^rOj.i*^>^ 

During  the  last  twelve  years  our  knowledge  of  the  adaptation  of  food, 
according  to  its  composition,  to  the  various  exigences  of  the  animal  system, 
has  assumed  much  of  definiteness ;  and  it  is  to  the  experiments  and  writings 
of  MM.  Boussingault,  Liebig  and  Dumas,  that  we  must  attribute,  either 
directly  or  indirectly,  much  of  the  progress  that  has  been  made.  There  are, 
however,  connected  with  this  important  subject  still  many  open  questions; 
and  it  is  with  the  hope  of  aiding  the  solution  of  one  or  two  of  these,  and  thus 
providing  a  new  starting-point  for  further  inquiry,  that  we  propose  in  the 
present  paper  to  bring  forward  some  results  of  our  own  which  bear  upon 
them,  and  to  point  out  the  conclusions  to  which  they  appear  to  us  to  lead. 

The  writers  to  whom  we  have  above  referred,  as  well  as  many  others, 
whether  themselves  experimenters  or  more  systematic  writers  on  the  subject 
of  the  chemistry  of  food,  may,  with  few  exceptions,  and  with  some  limita- 
tions, be  said  to  agree  on  two  main  points,  viz.  on  the  one  hand,  as  to  the 
connection  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food,  with  the  formation  in 
the  animal  body  of  compounds  containing  nitrogen,  and  with  the  exercise  of 
force  ;  and  on  the  other,  as  to  the  general  relationship  of  the  non-nitrogenous 
constituents  of  the  food  with  respiration,  and  with  the  deposition  of  animal 
fat.  It  is  indeed  upon  the  assumption  of  this  broad  and  fundamental  classi- 
fication of  the  constituents  of  food,  according  to  their  varied  offices  in  the 
animal  oeconomy,  that  a  vast  series  of  analyses  of  foods  have  of  late  years 
been  made  and  published ;  whilst,  founded  upon  the  results  of  these  analyses, 
numerous  tables  have  been  constructed,  professing  to  arrange  the  current 
articles  of  diet  both  of  man  and  other  animals,  according  to  their  comparative 
values  as  such.  Among  the  labourers  in  this  field  of  inquiry,  we  are  much 
indebted  to  MM.  Liebig,  Dumas,  Boussingault,  Payen,  Play  fair,  R.  D. 
Thomson,  Horsford,  Schlossberger  and  Kemp,  and  others. 

When  speaking  generally  then,  of  the  various  requirements  of  the  animal- 
organism,  the  more  special  adaptations  of  the  several  proximate  compounds 
and  ultimate  elements  of  which  our  vegetable  and  animal  aliments  are  made 
up,  are,  as  we  have  already  said,  fully  admitted ;  but  in  attempting  to  apply  to 
practice  the  principles  herein  involved  by  the  construction  of  tables  of  the 
comparative  value  of  foods,  it  seems  to  have  been  generally  assumed,  that  our 
current  food-stuffs  are  thus  measurable  rather  by  their  flesh-forming  than  by 
their  more  specially  respiratory  and  fat- forming  capacities.  Hence,  with 
some  limitations,  the  per-centage  of  nitrogen  has  always  been  taken  as  the 
standard  of  comparison. 

Founded  upon  their  per-centage  of  nitrogen,  M.  Boussingault  first  arranged 
tables  of  the  comparative  values  of  different  articles  of  food,  chiefly  in  refer- 
ence to  the  dieting  of  the  animals  of  the  farm ;  and  with  this  method  Professor 
Liebig  has  expressed  his  concurrence.  At  page  369  of  the  3rd  edition  of  his 
Chemical  Letters,  he  says — "  The  admirable  experiments  of  Boussingault 
prove,  that  the  increase  in  the  weight  of  the  body  in  the  fattening  or  feeding 
of  stock  (just  as  is  the  case  with  the  supply  of  milk  obtained  from  milch 
cows),  is  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  plastic  constituents  in  the  daily 
supply  of  fodder."  And  at  page  349  of  the  same,  speaking  of  the  nitrogenous 
compounds  of  food,  he  says — "It  is  found  that  animals  require  for  their 
support  less  of  any  vegetable  food  in  proportion  as  it  is  richer  in  these 
peculiar  matters,  and  cannot  be  nourished  by  vegetables  in  which  these 
matters  are  absent." 

.  In  like  manner,  various  specimens  of  flour  and  of  bread  have  been  arranged 
by  Dr.  R.D.  Thomson ;  other  articles  of  vegetable  diet  by  Mr.  Horsford ;  and 

y2 


324  bbport — 1852. 

a  large  series  of  aliments  from  the  animal  kingdom  by  MM.  Schlossberger 
and  Kemp.  Dr.  Anderson  also,  in  his  valuable  Report  on  the  Composition  of 
Turnips,  grown  under  different  circumstances  and  in  different  localities,  has 
taken  their  per-centage  of  nitrogen  as  the  measure  of  their  comparative  feed- 
ing value. 

The  views  which  have  thus  led  to  a  vast  number  of  analyses  of  foods,  as 
well  as  the  information  supplied  by  the  analyses  themselves,  have  contributed 
much  to  the  advancement  of  our  knowledge  of  the  chemistry  of  food.  It  has 
however  been  found,  that  the  indications  of  tables  of  the  comparative  values 
of  foods,  founded  on  the  per-centages  of  proteine  compounds,  were  frequently 
discrepant  with  those  which  common  usage  or  direct  experiment  affords. 
These  discrepancies  have  not  escaped  the  attention  of  the  authors  of  the  theo- 
retical tables ;  but  they  have  attributed  them  rather  to  the  erroneous  teachings 
of  common  practice  or  experiments  on  feeding,  than  to  any  defect  in  the  theo- 
retical method  of  estimation.  On  all  hands,  however,  it  has  been  admitted, 
that  further  direct  experiment  bearing  upon  this  important  subject  was  much 
needed ;  and  it  is  the  acknowledgement  of  this  necessity  that  seems  to  justify 
the  publication,  under  the  auspices  of  the  British  Association,  the  results  of 
this  kind  which  we  have  now  to  submit. 

The  question  to  which  we  shall  first  call  attention,  is,  whether,  in  the  use 
of  our  current  foods,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  but  especially  in  the  case 
of  animals  fattening  for  the  buteher,  the  amount  of  food  consumed,  and  that 
of  increase  produced,  have  a  closer  relationship  to  the  supplies  in  such  foods 
of  the  nitrogenous,  or  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  ?  That  is  to  say, 
whether  the  sum  of  the  requirements  of  the  animal  system  is  such,  that,  in 
ordinary  circumstances,  and  in  the  use  of  ordinary  articles  of  food,  the 
measure  of  the  amount  taken,  or  of  the  increase  produced,  will  be  regulated 
more  by  the  supplies  of  the  "Plastic,"  or  of  the  more  peculiarly  respiratory  and 
fat-forming  constituents.  According  to  the  views  upon  which  all  the  tables 
of  the  comparative  values  of  foods  are  constructed,  it  is  the  supplies  of  the 
plastic  elements  of  food  chiefly,  that  should  regulate  both  the  consumption, 
and  the  increase  in  weight,  of  a  fattening  animal.  If,  however,  we  bear  in 
mind  the  views  which  are  generally  entertained  as  to  the  influence  of  respi- 
ration on  the  demands  of  the  system  for  the  oxidizable  elements  of  food,  it 
would  appear  more  consistent  to  suppose  that  the  measure,  at  least  of  the  con- 
sumption of  food,  would  be  chiefly  regulated  by  its  supplies  of  those  elements. 

In  the  experiments  to  which  we  shall  call  attention,  sheep  and  pigs  have 
been  the  subjects.  As,  however,  their  object  has  partly  been  the  solution  of 
certain  questions  of  a  more  purely  agricultural  character  than  those  now 
under  consideration,  the  details,  as  to  the  selection  of  the  animals,  and  the 
general  management  of  the  experiments,  will  be  given  more  appropriately  in 
another  place.  Indeed,  the  particulars  of  some  of  the  experiments  with 
sheep,  so  far  as  their  agricultural  bearings  are  concerned,  have  already  ap- 
peared in  the  Journals  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England  ;  and 
those  of  the  rest,  and  also  of  the  experiments  with  pigs,  will  probably  do  so 
shortly.  It  should  here  be  stated,  however,  that  the  general  plan  has  been 
to  select  several  different  descriptions  of  food,  containing  respectively  various 
amounts  of  nitrogenous  and  non-nitrogenous  constituents,  the  proportions  of 
which  were  ascertained  by  analysis.  To  one  or  more  sets  of  animals  to  be 
compared,  a  fixed  and  limited  amount  of  food  of  a  high  or  of  alow  per-centage 
of  nitrogen,  as  the  case  might  be,  was  allotted,  and  they  were  then  allowed  to 
take  ad  libitum  of  another  or  complementary  food.  In  this  way,  in  obedience 
to  the  instinctive  demands  of  the  system,  the  animals  were  enabled  to  fix  for 
themselves,  according  to  the  composition  of  the  respective  foods,  the  quantities 
of  each  class  of  constituents  which  they  required. 


POODS.  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        325 


In  the  tables  which  follow  the  results  of  the  experiments  are  arranged  to 
show — 

1st.  The  amounts  respectively  of  the  nitrogenous  and  the  non-nitrogenous 
constituents  consumed  weekly  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal. 

2nd.  The  amounts  consumed  of  each  of  these  classes  of  constituents  to 
produce  100  lbs.  increase  in  live  weight. 

Summary  tables  of  the  results  of  the  analyses  of  the  foods  are  also  given. 

In  the  tables  showing  the  amounts  of  the  constituents  consumed,  &c, — the 
weights  of  the  animals  themselves — of  the  foods  consumed — and  their  per  cent- 
ages,  of  dry  matter,  of  ash,  and  of  nitrogen — have  formed  the  basis  of  the 
calculations.  Thus,  the  column  of  nitrogenous  substances  consumed,  is 
obtained  by  multiplying  the  amount  of  nitrogen  by  6*3,  on  the  assumption 
that  they  all  exist  as  proteine  compounds.  This  method  of  estimation  will,  we 
think,  be  found  sufficient  for  our  present  purpose ;  though,  as  we  shall  have 
occasion  to  point  out  further  on,  it  is  frequently  far  from  accurate,  and 
especially  when  applied  to  succulent  vegetable  substances. 

The  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  constituents  are  obtained  by  deducting 
those  of  the  mineral  and  nitrogenous  constituents  from  the  amount  of  the 
total  dry  matter  consumed. 

In  the  tables  showing  the  amounts  of  the  respective  constituents  consumed 
by  a  given  weight  of  animal  within  a  given  time,  it  is  their  mean  weights  that 
are  taken  for  the  calculation ;  namely,  those  obtained  by  adding  together  their 
weights  at  the  commencement  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  experiment,  and 
dividing  by  2. 

In  the  tables  showing  the  constituents  consumed  to  produce  a  given  weight 
of  increase,  the  figures  are  obtained  by  simple  rule  of  three;  taking  as  tho 
elements  of  calculation,  the  consumption  during  the  total  period  of  the  ex- 
periment, and  the  total  increase  in  weight  during  the  same  period. 

With  these  short  explanations  we  may  now  introduce  the  tables  them* 
selves. 

Table  I. 
Summary  Table  of  the  Per-centage  Composition  of  the  Sheep  Foods. 


Foods  eaten  by  Series  1. 


Description  of  Food. 


Mean  Per-centage  Results. 


Dry  Matter. 


Inclusive 
of  Ash. 


Exclusive 
of  Ash. 


Ash. 


In  Fresh       In  Dry 
Substance.     Matter. 


Nitrogen. 


In  Fresh       In  Dry 
Substance.    Matter. 


Swedish  Turnips,  No.  1. 
Swedish  Turnips,  No.  2. 

American  Oil-cake 

Oata   

Clover-chaff  

Oat-straw  Chaff    


10-58 
1212 
89-50 
8518 
78-61 
81-28 


1000 
11-49 
8408 
82-24 
72-33 
74-86 


0-577 

0-682 

5-42 

294 

6-28 

6*42 


5-46 
5-21 
606 
345 
799 
7-87 


0263 

0151 

5-08 

208 

185 


249 
125 
5-68 
244 
2-35 


Foods  eaten  by  Series  2. 


Oil-cake 

Linseed,  No.  1. 
linseed,  No.  2. 

Barley    

Malt   

Clover-chaff  ... 


8736 
90-56 
91-54 
85  54 
91-65 
84-66 


8188 
86-28 
87-46 
83-23 
89-34 
7739 


5-48 
4-28 
408 
2-31 
231 
727 


627 
4-72 
4*45 
270 
252 
8-58 


501 
3-68 
405 
149 
151 
211 


574 
4-07 

4-44 
1-74 
1-65 
2-50 


326 


BBPORT— 1852. 

Table  I.  (continued) 


Foods  eaten  by  Series  3. 

Description  of  Food. 

Mean  Per-eentage  Results. 

Dry  Matter. 

Ash. 

VntrosjesL 

Inclusive 
of  Ash. 

Exclusive 
of  Ash. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

Norfolk    White     Turnips,* 
grown  by  mineral  manures  ► 
only  ......... •••»• 

9*37 

8-42 
778 

7-88 

8-74 
779 
714. 

717 

0*27 
0-630 
0*639 

0-703 

669 

7-48 
8-21 

892 

0*146 
0175 
0183 

0*252 

1-56 

208 

2*36 

i 
I 
1 

3*90 

Norfolk    White     Turnips,' 
grown  by  mineral  manures  ► 
and  ammoniacal  salts 

Norfolk     White     Turnips," 
grown  by  mineral  manures  ► 
ajttf  rape^cake 

Norfolk     White     Turnips/ 
grown  by  mineral  manures, 
rape-cake  and  ammoniacal 
gaits 

Foods  eaten  by  Series  4. 

Long  Red  Mangold,  No.  1,  ... 
Long  Red  Mangold,  No.  2.  ... 

Mean.it... 

Barley    

1*94 
1314 

11-94 
1816 

1-002 
0-979 

774 
7-45 

0*30 
0-28 

2*36 
2*18 

1304 

1205 

0-990 

7-59 

0-29 

227 

81*84 
95*39 
93-76 
8974 

79-51 
92-78 
8500 
83*30 

232 
2  60 
870 
612 

2*84 
273 
9-28 
6-82 

1-45 
1-62 
410 
5-26 

178 
170 
4-38 
5-87 

Malt  

Malt-dust  

Oil-fiikftr.. ., 

.  i 

Table  II. 
Summary  Table  of  the  Per-centage  Composition  of  Sheep  Foods  (continued). 


Series  5. 
Foods  eaten  by  Hants  and  Sussex  Downs. 

Description  of  Food. 

Mean  Par-eentago  Basalts. 

Dry  Matter. 

Ash. 

Nitrogen. 

IncluttTe 
of  Ash. 

Exclusive 
of  Ash. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  1 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  2 

Oil-cake 

9-81 
10*32 
87*54 
81-24 

9-20 

9-73 

80-84 

72-82 

0-607 
0*607 
6-70 

8-42 

619 

587 

7-65 

10-36 

0-231 
0*301 
4-98 
203 

236 
2*61 
570 
2-51 

Clover-hay ,.. 

FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION"  AND  FEEDING.        327 


Table  II.  (continued.) 

Eaten  by  Cotswolds. 

Description  of  Food. 

Mean  Per-centage  Basalts. 

Dry  Matter. 

Aib. 

Nitrogen. 

Inclusive 
of  Ash. 

Exclusive 
ofAab. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

In  Freah 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Matter. 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  1.  ...... 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  2.  

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  8 

OU-cake - 

Clover-hay  ...t-t., 

10-88 
1070 
1*60 
87  54 
83-66 

10-37 
10-12 
11-84 
80-84 
76*46 

0-504 

0-579 

0-758 

670 

7'20 

4-63 
5  41 
600 
7*65 
8-60 

0-18 
0-28 
0-27 
4-99 
2  24 

166 
2-63 
2  21 
570 

2-68 

Eaten  by  Leicesters ;  and  by  Cross-bred  Ewes  and  Wethers, 
[Leicester  and  Sooth  Down.] 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  1 

Swedish  Turnips,  Lot  2.  ...... 

Oil-cake 

10-89 

11-88 
86  32 
80-48 
80-08 

10-38 
11-26 
78-52 
72-38 
71-90 

0-520 
0-623 

780 
810 
818 

479 

5  23 

904 

1006 

1017 

0-23 
0  25 
505 
2-73 
2-73 

215 
214 
5-86 
3  40 
3  42 

Clover-hay,  Lot  1,  t-.... ......... 

Clover-hay,  Lot  8. 

Table  III. 
Summary  Table  of  Per-centage  Composition  of  the  Pig  Foods. 


Eaten  by  Series  1. 


Desctiptiott  of  Food. 


Mean  Per-centage  Results. 


Dry  Matter. 


Inclusive 
of  Ash. 


Exclusive 


In  Fresb 
Substance. 


In  Dry 


In 
Substance. 


In  Dry 

Matter. 


Egyptian  Beans 

Lentils,  Lot  1 

Lentils,  Lot  2 

Indian  meal,  Lot  1. 
Indian  meal,  Lot  2. 

Bran   

Barley    


88-30 
8730 
86-62 
89-70 
89-89 
84-79 
81-86 


88-57 
82-42 
81-64 
88-33 
88-61 
78-77 
79-72 


472 
4-87 
4-98 
1-37 
128 
6-02 
2*14 


5-35 
5-58 
5-75 
1-53 
142 
710 
2-61 


4  24 

452 
4-56 
1-72 
1-95 
2-61 
183 


4-80 
518 
5-26 
192 
217 
308 
2  24 


Egyptian  Beans.. 
Lentils,  Lot  1.  .. 
Lentils,  Lot  2.  .. 
Barley,  Lot  1.  ., 
Bailey,  Lot  2.  ., 
Barley,  Lot  3.  ., 
Bran 


Eaten  by  Series  2. 


8817 
89-42 
89-97 
82-38 
80-95 
82-53 
85*08 


84-45 
86-44 
8510 
80-19 
78-77 
80-48 
78-67 


372 
2-98 
4-87 
2*19 
218 
2-05 
6-41 


4*22 

3-33 
5-41 
2-66 
2*9 
8*48 
7-53 


441 
4-54 
418 
1-82 
1-88 
1-55 
2-62 


4-78 
508 
4*65 
2-21 
226 
1-88 
3-08 


328 


REPORT — 1852. 


Table  IV, 


Experiments  with  Sheep. —  Weekly  consumption  of  Nitrogenous  and  1 
nitrogenous  constituents  of  Food  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal  (q 
tities  stated  in  lbs.,  tenths,  &c). 


Non- 
juan- 


Series  1. — Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  14  weeks. 

d 
Z 

i 

Limited  Food. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenoua 
Organic  Substance. 

I1 

it 

5*8 

h 

11 

CJk, 

h 

1. 

2. 
3. 
4. 

Oil-cake 

Swedish  Turnips.. 

ditto     

-  ditto     

ditto     

1-63 
0*88 
0  69 

0-82 
0-69 
0-94 
107 

2  46 
1-57 
164 
1-07 

2-75 

4-76 
3*99 

710 
6*61 
913 
9-82 

9-85 
11-36 
1312 
1017 

12-31 
12-93 
1476 
11-24 

Oats    

Clover-chaff 

Oat-straw  chaff 

Means 

1-071 

0-882 

1-68 

383 

816 

1113 

12-81 

Series  2.— Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  19  weeks. 

1. 
2. 
3. 

4. 

Oil-cake 

Clover-chaff  

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

1-64 
1-26 
0-50 
0-44 

214 
1-95 
208 
208 

3-78 
3  21 

2-58 
2  52 

2-55 
319 
3-83 
3*98 

10-38 
9-47 
9-96 

10-04 

12-93 
12-66 
1379 
1402 

1671 
15-87 
16-37 
16-55 

Linseed 

Barley 

Malt    

Means 

0*96 

206 

302 

339 

9-96 

1335 

16-38 

Series  3. — Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  10  weeks. 

1. 
2. 
3. 
4. 

5. 

Barley 

Mangold- wurtzel  • . 

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

0  44 
0-43 
0-43 

0-40 

0-52 

1-26 
120 
1-65 

1-36 

1-36 

170 
164 
208 

1-77 

1-89 

3-53 
3-32 
3-35 

309 

3-97 

7-06 
6-80 
924 

7-60 

7-66 

1059 
10-12 
12-60 

10-70 

11-63 

12-29 
1176 
14-68 

12-47 

13-52 

Malt  and  malt-dust  ... 
Barley  (steeped) 

Malt     and    malt-dust 
(steeped)    

Malt     and    malt-dust 
(extra  quantity) 

Means 

0-44 

1-37 

1-82 

3  45 

767 

1113 

12-94 

Series  4. — Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  10  weeks ;  no  limited  Foods. 

1. 

2. 
3. 
4. 

Norfolk  White  Turnips,  mineral  manures 
only     --- 

120 
151 
1-64 
214 

10-30 
9-24 
8-86 
7-60 

11-50 
975 

10-50 
9*74 

Norfolk  White  Turnip 
and  ammoniacal  salt 

Norfolk  White  Turnip 
and  rape-cake     

s,  mineral  manures 
s 

8,  mineral  manures 

Norfolk  White  Turnip 
rape-cake  and  ammo 

s,  mineral  manures, 
niacal  salts    

Means 

1-62 

900 

10-37 

POODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        329 

Table  IV.  (continued.) 


Series  5.- 

—Different  breeds  of  sheep. 

i 
1 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-mtrogenou* 
Organic  8ubstance. 

4 
r 

J9l 

11 

ah, 

it 

at 

.si 

ah 

Forty  Hants  Down*,  twen-  \ 
1    ty-six  weeks    .......*..../ 

G 

s 

« 

1 

O 

1 

2-27 
231 
2-27 

2-30 
239 
2  41 

112 
1-06 
114 
107 
109 
112 

339 
3-37 
341 
337 

3-48 
3-53 

543 

5*64 
537 
470 
4  91 
4-96 

5-63 
5-35 
6-65 
6-46 
6*60 
6-73 

1106 
10-99 
1202 
1116 
1151 
11-69 

14-45 
14-36 
15-43 
14-53 
14  99 
15-22 

j  Forty  Sussex  Downs,  twen- 1 

I    ty-six  weeks J 

!  Forty-six  Cots  wolds,  twen- 1 

ty  weeks J 

i  Forty  Leicester!,  twenty  1 

weeks J 

Forty    cross-bred    Ewes,! 

twenty  weeks J 

Forty  cross-bred  Wethers,  1 

twenty  weeks j 

|                                                       Means 

232 

110 

3  42 

517 

6-23 

11-40 

14-83 

Table  V. 

Experiments  with  Sheep. — Consumption  of  Nitrogenous  and  Non- nitrogenous 
constituents  of  Food  to  produce  100 /fa.  increase  in  live  weight  of  animal 
(quantities  stated  in  lbs.). 


Series  1. — Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  14  weeks. 

s 

i 

i 

Limited  Food. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Pood. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenoutt 
Organic  Subftance. 

h 

ah 

41 

it 

'4 

Ai 

h 

l. 

2 

Oil-cake 

Swedish  Turnips . . 

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

111 

55 
43 

56 

48 
59 
102 

167 
103 

102 
102 

181 
289 
223 

469 
395 
513 
881 

650 
684 
736 
913 

817 

787 

838 

1015 

Oats    

3 

Clover-chaff  

4. 

Oat-straw  chaff... 

Means 

70 

66 

118 

231 

565 

746 

864 

Series  2. — Five  sheep  ii 

i  each  pen,  19  weeks. 

1. 

Oil-cake 

Clover-chaff  

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

138 

112 

45 

49 

183 
177 
190 
217 

321 
289 
235 
266 

219 
291 
353 
412 

884 

853 

916 

1045 

1103 
1144 
1269 
1457 

1424 
1433 
1504 
1723 

2 

■  Linseed  

3. 

1  Barley 

4. 

Malt    

u 

Means 

|    86 

192 

278 

319 

925 

1244 

1521 

aso 


REPORT— 1859. 

Table  V.  (continued.) 


Series  8. — Fire  sheep  in  each  pen,  10  weeks. 

i 

i 

Limited  Food. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenous 
Organic  SuUtance. 

1. 

r 

h 

eg 

h 

l. 

2. 
3. 

4. 

5. 

Barley 

Mangold-wurtzel .. 

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

ditto    

31 
29 
25 

32 

85 

87 
82 
96 

104 

91 

118 
111 
121 

136 

126 

248 
220 
194 

287 

265 

488 
457 
586 

584 

511 

781 
677 
780 

821 

776 

850 

788 
851 

958 

903 

Malt  and  malt-dost  ... 

Barley  (steeped)    

Malt     and    malt-dust 
(steeped)    

Malt     and    malt-dust 
(extra  quantity) 

Meant 

80 

92 

128 

282 

515 

747 

870 

Series  4.— Five  sheep  in  each  pen,  10  weeks ;  no  limited  Food. 

1. 
2. 
8. 

4. 

Norfolk  White  Turnips,  mineral  manures 
only     - 

192 
153 
324 

Lost  weight. 

1627 

930 

1682 

Lost  weight. 

1 
1819  ' 

Norfolk  White  Turnips 
and  ammoniacal  salts 

Norfolk  White  Turnip! 
and  rape-cake     

,  mineral  manures 

1083  • 

,  mineral  manures 

i 
2006 

Norfolk  White  Turnips 
rape-cake  and  ammoi 

,  mineral  manures, 
iacal  salts    ......... 

Means 

223 

1418 

1636 

8eries  5.— Different  breeds  of  sheep. 


Nil 


itroMMma  Or  j 


Organic 


si 


it 


h 

5* 


Non-nit 
Organic  Si 


Forty  Hants  Downs,  twen- 
ty-six weeks    

Forty  SussexDowns,twen< 
ty-six  weeks    

Forty-six  Cotrwolds,  twen* 1 
ty  weeks 

Forty  Leicesters,  twenty 
weeks  

Forty    cross-bred    Ewes, 
twenty  weeks 

Forty  cross-bred  Wethers, 
twenty  weeks 


I 
i 

I 


s. 

1 


Means  . 


124 
129 
111 
127 
127 
127 

7*4 


62 
60 
55 
59 
58 
59 

59 


186 
189 
166 
186 
185 
186 

183 


300 
318 
260 
261 
260 
261 

277 


812 

802 
322 
358 
350 
855 

333 


612 
620 
682 
619 
610 
616 

610 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       SSI 


Table  VI. 

Experiments  with  Pigs. —  Weekly  consumption  of  Nitrogenous  and  Non- 
nitrogenous  constituents  of  Food  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal 
(quantities  stated  in  lbs.,  tenths,  6Vc). 


Series  1. — Three  pigs  in  each  pen,  8  weeks. 

o 

Z 

i 

limited  Pood,  per  head, 
per  day. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenous 
Organic  Substance. 

h 

5*8 

11 

a! 

h 

5h 

n 

•Si 

ah 

9 

None  

Bean   and  Lentil 

meal 

ditto     

ditto     

ditto    

0-83 
132 
214 

8-84 
7-30 
639 
4-73 

8*84 
813 
7-71 
6-87 

5-5 

50 

10-6 

176 
143 

12-8 
94 

176 
19*8 
178 
20-0 

26-4 
27-9 
25-5 
269 

Indian  meal   

3. 

Bran 

4. 

Indian  meal  and  Bran... 

Means 

107 

6*82 

789 

53 

135 

18-8 

26-7 

5. 
6. 
7. 
ft. 

None  «.. 

Indian  meal    

ditto    

ditto     

ditto    

1^5 
121 

3-05 

2-91 
2-60 
2-74 

215 

2  91 

4  55 
395 

5  20 

3:9 
4-6 

8*1 

193 
17-2 
179 

193 
211 
22  5 

221 

22*2 
25-7 
264 

273 

Bean  and  Lentil  meal .. 
Bran  

Bean  and  Lentil  meal, 
and  Bran 

Means 

155 

2-60 

415 

41     171 

21-2 

254 

9. 
10. 
11. 

12. 

Bean  and  Lentil  meal... 

Indian  meal  

Bean  and  Lentil  meal, 

and  Indian  meal    ... 

None 

Bran 

334 
144 

3*23 

1-85 
2-46 

1-73 
612 

519 
3-90 

4-96 
612 

6-7 
9-4 

10-4 

70 
9-3 

6-6 
201 

137 

18-7 

170 
201 

18-9 
22  6 

22-0 
262 

ditto     

ditto     

Bean  and    Lentil 
meal,       Indian 
meal,  Bran,  each 
ad  libitum 

Means 

2-00 

304 

5-04 

6-6 

10  8 

17-4 

224 

Means  of  the  12  pens 

154 

415 

5  69 

63 

13  8 

19-1 

24-8 

Series  2.— Three  pigs  in  each  pen,  8  weeks. 

1. 

2. 
3. 
4. 

None 

Bean   and  Lentil 
meal    ............ 

1-23 
0-66 

1-95 

6-69 
706 
8-07 

4-85 

6-69 
8  29 
873 

680 

7*3 

25 

101 

14-5 
15-3 
175 

106 

14  5 
22-6 
20-0 

206 

212 
30*9 
28-7 

274 

3  lbs.  Barley  meal 

lib.  Bran  

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

3  lbs.  Barlej  meal,  1  lb. 
Bran 

Means...... 

096 

6-67 

763 

5-0 

14  4 

19-4 

270 

332 


REPORT — 1852. 

Table  VI.  (continued.) 


1 

Limited  Food,  per  head, 
per  day. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenous 
Organic  substance. 

r 

II 

■9| 

h 

§1 

It 

5. 
6. 

7. 
8. 

None 

Barley  meal   

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

2*81 
0-61 

2-98 

391 

236 
345 

166 

3-91 

517 
406 

4-64 

61 
23 

72 

236 

139 
20-9 

10-0 

28-6 

200 
23-2 

17*2 

27-5 

252 
27* 

218 

H  lb.  Bean,  and  1*  lb. 
Lentil  meal    

lib.  Bran  

1*  lb.  Bean,  1 J  lb.  Len- 
til meal,    and  1  lb. 
Bran 

Means 

1-60 

2-84 

444 

3-9 

17-1 

21-0 

254 

9. 

10. 
11. 

12. 

None 

Mixture  of  1  part 
Bran,2partsBar- 
ley  meal,  and  3 
parts  Bean  and 
Lentil  meal 

Duplicate  of  pen  9. 

Mixture  of  1  part 
Bran,    2    parts 
Bean  and  Lentil 
meal,  and  3  parts 
Barley  meal    ... 

Duplicateofpenll. 

... 

665 
7-03 

5-86 
602 

6-65 
703 

5-86 
602 

... 

20-6 
21-9 

214 
221 

20-6 
219 

214 
221 

272 

289 

273 

281 

None  • 

None 

None 

Means 

... 

639 

6-39 

... 

21-5 

215 

27-9 

Means  of  the  12  pens 

0-85 

5  30 

615 

2-9 

177 

*>6 

26-8 

Means  of  the  24  pens 

119 

4  73 

5*92 

41 

15-8 

19-9 

25-8 

Table  VII. 

Experiments  with  Pigs. — Consumption  of  Nitrogenous  and  Non-nitrogenous 
constituents  of  Food,  to  produce  100  lbs.  increase  in  live  weight  of  animal 
(quantities  stated  in  lbs.). 


Series  1.— Three  pigs  in  each  pen,  8  weeks. 


Food,  per  head, 
per  day. 


None 


Indian  meal   , 

Bran  

Indian  meal  and  Bran., 


Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 


Bean   and   Lentil 

meal   

ditto  ... 
ditto  ... 
ditto     ... 


Means. 


Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 


12 

28 
38 

19 


P 


138 

102 

133 

83 

114 


si 


114 
161 
121 

133 


Non  •nitrogenous 
Organic  substance. 


77 
105 
185 

92 


275 

201 
267 
166 

227 


21 

,5* 


275 
278 
372 
351 

319 


413 
392 
533 
472 

452 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       333 
Table  VII.  (continued.) 


1 

5. 
6. 
7. 

8. 

limited  Food,  per  head, 

per  day. 

Complementary  or 
ad  libitum  Food. 

Nitrogenous  Organic 
Substance. 

Non-nitrogenous 
Organic  substance. 

r 

5*8 

h 

flpM 

11 

p 

None  

Indian  meal   

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

31 

18 

43 

57 
42 

40 

30 

57 
73 

58 

73 

62 
68 

114 

378 
275 
264 

195 

378 
337 
332 

309 

435 
410 
390 

889 

Bean  and  Lentil  meal .. 
Bran  

Bean  and  Lentil  meal, 
and  Bran 

Means 

23 

42 

65 

61 

278 

339 

404 

9. 

Bean  and  Lentil  meal.* 
Indian  meal  

Bran  

127 

48 

74 

71 
82 

40 

107 

198 
130 

114 
107 

255 
311 

240 

268 
309 

151 
350 

523 
620 

391 
350 

721 
750 

505 
457 

.10 

ditto     

ditto     

Bean   and   Lentil 
meal,       Indian 
meal,  Bran,  each 
ad  libitum  

11. 
12. 

Bean  and  Lentil  meal, 

and  Indian  meal    ... 

None  

Means 

02 

75 

137 

202 

269 

471 

608 

Means  of  the  12  pens 

35 

77 

119 

118 

258 

376 

488 

Series  2.— Three  pigs  in  each  pen,  8  weeks. 

1. 

2. 
3. 
4. 

None 

Bean   and   Lentil 
meal   

20 
12 

36 

146 
117 
140 

89 

146 
137 
152 

125 

120 
43 

186 

317 
254 
305 

192 

317 
374 
348 

378 

463 
511 
500 

503 

3  lbs.  Barley  meal 

lib.  Bran  

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

3  lbs.  Barley  meal,  lib. 
Bran  

Means 

17 

123 

140 

87 

m 

354 

494 

5. 
6. 

7. 

8. 

None 

Barley  meal   

ditto     

ditto     

ditto     

50 
10 

64 

64 

41 
56 

36 

64 

91 
66 

100 

107 

38 

157 

385 

245 
341 

215 

385 

352 

379 

372 

449 

443 
445 

472 

l*lb.  Bean  and  Hlb. 
Lentil  meal    

lib.  Bran  

li  lb.  Bean,  U  lb.  Len- 
til  meal,  and  1  lb. 
Bran  

Means 

31 

49 

80 

75 

297 

372 

452 

9. 
10. 

None  . 

Mixture  of  1  part 
Bran,2partsBar- 
ley  meal,  and  3 
parts  Bean  and 
Lentil  meal 

Duplicate  of  pen  9. 

Mixture  of  1  part 
Bran,    2    parts 
Bean  and  Lentil 
meal,  and  3  parts 
Barley  meal    ... 

Duplicate  of  pen  11. 

... 

117 

no 

88 
87 

117 
110 

88 
87 

... 

362 
342 

320 
321 

362 
342 

320 
321 

479 
452 

408 
408 

None  • 

11. 

None  

12. 

None  

Means 

... 

101 

101 

... 

336 

336 

437 

Means  of  the  12  pens 

16 

91 

107 

54 

300 

354 

461 

334  report— 1852. 

A  glance  at  the  Tables  as  a  whole  must  show,  that  in  all  comparable  cases 
there  is  much  more  of  uniformity  of  amount  in  the  total  columns  of  non-nitro- 
genous than  in  those  of  nitrogenous  substance,  both  as  to  the  quantities  con- 
sumed to  a  given  weight  of  animal  within  a  given  time,  and  to  those  required 
to  produce  a  given  weight  of  increase.  The  deviations  from  this  general 
regularity  in  the  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed  under  equal 
circumstances,  are  indeed,  in  most  cases  such,  that  when  examined  into  they 
tend  the  more  clearly  to  show,  that  the  uniformity  would  be  considerably 
more  strict  if  the  amounts  only  of  the  really  available  respiratory  and  fat- 
forming  constituents  could  have  been  represented,  instead  of,  as  in  the  case 
of  these  Tables,  that  of  the  gross  or  total  non- nitrogenous  substance  consumed. 
For,  in  reading  the  actual  figures  of  the  Tables,  allowance  has  to  be  made 
both  for  those  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food  which  would 
probably  become  at  once  effete,  and  also  for  the  different  respiratory  and  fat- 
forming  capacities  of  the  portions  of  them  which  are  digestible  and  available 
for  the  purposes  of  the  animal  ceconomy.  It  must  further  be  remembered, 
that  even  after  all  due  allowance  has  been  made  for  the  sources  of  discre- 
pancy just  referred  to,  the  amounts  which  we  may  suppose  to  be  so  corrected 
must  still  cover  all  variations,  whether  arising  from  differences  of  external 
circumstances — from  individual  peculiarities  in  the  animals  themselves — from 
the  different  amounts  stored  up  in  them  according  to  the  adaptation  of  the 
respective  foods — as  well  as  from  the  many  other  uncontrollable  circum- 
stances which  must  always  interfere  with  any  attempts  to  bring  within  the 
range  of  accurate  numerical  measurement  the  results  of  those  processes  in 
which  the  subtle  principle  of  animal  life  exerts  its  influence.  Bearing,  then, 
all  those  points  in  mind  which  must  tend  to  modify  the  true  indications  of 
the  actual  figures  in  the  Tables,  it  appears  to  us,  that  the  coincidences  in 
the  amounts  of  available  respiratory  and  fat-forming  constituents  consumed 
by  a  given  weight  of  animal,  under  equal  circumstances,  within  a  given  time, 
and  also  in  those  required  under  equal  circumstances  to  produce  a  given 
amount  of  increase  in  weight,  must  be  admitted  to  be  much  more  striking 
and  conclusive  than  d  priori  we  could  have  expected  to  find  them.  With 
this  general  uniformity,  however,  as  to  the  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous 
substance  consumed  under  given  circumstances,  or  for  a  given  result,  those 
of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  are  found  to  vary,  under  the  same  circum- 
stances, in  the  proportion  of  from  1  to  2  or  3. 

In  illustration  of  our  statements  let  us  examine  the  Tables  for  a  moment 
somewhat  more  in  detail. 

In  Table  IV.  we  have  the  amounts  of  the  two  classes  of  constituents  re- 
spectively, which  were  consumed  weekly  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal, 
in  the  case  of  five  different  series  of  experiments  with  sheep.  In  all  cases 
the  experiments  extended  over  a  period  of  many  weeks,  and  in  some  even  of 
several  months.  Each  series  comprised  several  pens,  to  each  of  which  (except 
in  Series  4,  in  which  there  were  no  limited  foods)  there  was  allotted  a  dif- 
ferent description  of  fixed  or  limited  food,  the  ad  libitum  or  complementary 
food  being  (except  in  Series  4*)  the  same  throughout  the  several  pens  of  the 
same  series,  but  different  in  the  different  series.  In  the  Series  1,  2,  3  and  4, 
there  were  five  or  six  sheep  in  each  pen ;  in  Series  5,  from  40  to  50  sheep  in 
each  pen. 

Iu  Series  1,  the  complementary  or  ad  libitum  food  was  Swedish  turnips, 
and  the  limited  foods  were— 

In  pen  1,  oil-cake. 

In  pen  2,  oats. 

In  pen  3,  clover-chaff. 

In  pen  4,  oat-straw  chaff. 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       335 

The  oat-straw  chaff  of  pen  4  was  given  as  adding  to  the  otherwise  only 
succulent  matter  of  the  turnip,  the  bulk  of  solid  matter  which  seems  to  be 
demanded  particularly  by  ruminant  animals.  So  small  a  quantity  of  this 
straw  was  eaten,  however,  that  it  need  scarcely  enter  into  our  calculations. 
Turning  to  the  results  of  pens  1,  2  and  3,  it  is  seen  that  the  weekly  consump- 
tion of  non-nitrogenous  matter  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal  is,  with  the 
oil-cake  as  limited  food,  9*8  lbs.;  with  the  oats,  11*3  lbs. ;  and  with  the  clover- 
chaff  13*1  lbs.  Now,  of  these  three  descriptions  of  food,  the  oil-cake  would 
contain  by  far  the  most  of  oleaginous  matter,  the  respiratory  and  fat-forming 
capacity  of  which  is  about  twice  and  a  half  as  great  as  that  of  the  starch 
series  of  compounds  which  would  more  abound  in  the  oats.  Hence  we  find 
that  a  less  actual  weight  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  was  consumed  with 
the  oil-cake  than  with  the  oats.  But  to  the  reason  just  given,  to  which  a  part 
of  the  result  was  doubtless  due,  we  might  add  that  there  was  a  comparatively 
large  and  somewhat  excessive  amount  of  nitrogenous  matter  consumed  in  the 
oil-cake  pen,  a  part  of  which  at  least  might  serve  the  respiratory  and  fat- 
forming  functions.  Then,  again,  in  pen  3,  where  clover-chaff  was  the  limited 
food,  the  animals  would  consume  a  much  larger  amount  of  effete  woody 
fibre  than  with  either  the  oil-cake  or  the  oats ;  in  this  pen  therefore  a  larger 
gross  weight  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  must  be  eaten  to  yield  the  same 
equivalent  of  that  which  is  available  for  respiratory  or  fat-forming  purposes 
than  with  either  of  the  other  foods.  When  therefore,  allowance  has  been 
made  for  the  different  quantities  and  capacities  of  the  available  constituents 
in  the  several  foods,  it  will  be  seen,  that  the  equivalents  of  the  available  non- 
nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  in  the  different  cases,  are  in  reality  much 
more  nearly  identical,  than  the  figures  as  they  stand  in  the  Table  would 
indicate.  But  if  we  now  turn  to  the  column  of  the  nitrogenous  substance 
consumed  under  the  same  circumstances,  we  find  that  it  varies,  comparing 
one  pen  with  another  in  this  first  series,  nearly  as  much  as  from  1  to  2£. 

In  the  second  series  (Table  IV.)  we  have  clover-chaff  as  the  ad  libitum  or 
complementary  food  in  all  the  pens,  instead  of  Swedish  turnips  as  in  Series  1 ; 
and  again,  with  the  much  larger  amount  of  effete  woody  fibre,  we  have  a 
larger  gross  amount  of  the  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed.  The 
average  of  the  four  pens  of  this  Series  2  is  indeed  almost  identical  with  the 
amount  where  clover-chaff  was  employed  in  Series  1.  Again,  comparing  one 
pen  with  another  in  this  clover-chaff  series,  we  have  with  the  larger  amounts 
of  oleaginous  matter  supplied  in  the  linseed  and  oil-cake,  less  of  gross  non- 
nitrogenous  substance  taken  than  with  the  barley  or  the  malt)  in  which  there 
is  a  proportionally  larger  amount  of  the  starch  series  of  compounds.  When 
due  allowance  is  made,  then,  for  the  different  respiratory  and  fat-forming 
capacities  of  the  several  foods,  we  have  again  a  closer  coincidence  than  would 
at  first  sight  appear,  in  the  equivalents  of  the  non-nitrogenous  substances 
consumed  in  the  different  pens  of  this  second  series — as  also  when  we  com- 
pare this  series  with  the  former  one.  Turning  now  to  the  column  of  the 
nitrogenous  substances  consumed  in  this  second  series,  we  see  that  the  gross 
amounts  vary  more  than  in  those  of  the  non-nitrogenous ;  and  more  indeed 
than,  according  to  any  knowledge  we  at  present  possess,  could  be  accounted 
for  by  a  consideration  as  to  the  state  in  which  the  nitrogen  existed  in  the 
several  pens.  Comparing  now  the  result  of  the  one  series  with  those  of  the  other, 
although  in  the  two  cases  the  description  of  the  larger  portion  of  the  food  is 
widely  different,  and  we  have  found  that  there  is  nevertheless  considerable 
coincidence  in  the  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed,  yet  the 
columns  of  nitrogenous  substance  throughout  the  two  series  show  a  very 
great  variation  in  the  quantities  of  these  consumed — amounting}  indeed,  in 


336  report— 1852. 

the  extreme  cases,  to  as  much  as  from  one  to  three  and  a  half.  There  can  be 
little  doubt  that  the  method  of  estimating  the  amount  of  available  nitro- 
genous substance  from  the  per-centage  of  nitrogen  must  be  more  or  less  faulty, 
both  in  the  case  of  the  succulent  turnips  of  the  first  series,  and  in  that  of  the 
also  unripened  produce — clover-chaff — of  the  second;  but  whether  or  in 
what  degree  the  differences  in  the  amounts  consumed  in  the  two  series  would 
be  lessened  by  corrections  due  to  this  source  of  discrepancy,  we  have  not  the 
means  of  accurately  deciding. 

In  the  third  series,  which  consisted  of  five  pens,  mangold- wurtzel  was  the 
complementary  food ;  and  the  limited  foods  were  barley  and  malt,  respectively, 
in  different  states  and  proportions  in  the  several  pens.  Throughout  this  series 
the  proportion  of  nitrogenous  to  non-nitrogenous  constituents  varied  but 
little  in  the  limited  foods,  and  being  also  constant  in  the  complementary  foods 
of  the  several  pens,  we  have  but  little  difference  in  this  series  in  the  amounts 
respectively  of  either  class  of  constituents  when  comparing  pen  with  pen. 
Comparing  the  results  of  this  series  with  those  of  the  others,  however,  we 
observe  that  there  was  a  very  close  coincidence  between  the  amounts  of  avail- 
able non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed ;  but  in  those  of  the  nitrogenous 
substances  there  is  little  in  common  when  thus  taking  at  one  view  the  results 
of  the  several  series. 

In  the  fourth  series  we  have  no  supply  of  limited  food.  In  all  the  four 
pens  Norfolk-white  turnips  only  were  given  ad  libitum.  Those  supplied  to 
the  different  pens,  were  however,  respectively  grown  by  very  different  manures, 
and  differed  in  all  cases  very  much  in  ultimate  composition  and  other 
qualities.  Thus,  the  per-centage  of  dry  substance  and  the  state  of  maturity 
were  greatest  in  the  turnips  of  pen  1,  and  diminished  in  the  order  of  the  pens, 
they  being  in  pen  4  the  worst  in  both  these  respects.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
per-centage  of  water,  of  mineral  matter,  and  of  nitrogen,  and  the  degree  of 
unripeness  or  unfitness  for  food,  were  in  the  inverse  order.  The  turnips  eaten 
in  pen  1  were,  however,  too  ripe,  and  what  is  called  "  pithy  " ;  and  those 
were  in  the  best  condition  which  were  supplied  to  pen  2. 

In  this  series  there  was,  with  a  probably  generally  lower  amount  of  effete 
matter,  at  the  same  time  a  generally  less  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
consumed — though  most  where  the  turnips  were  known  to  be  too  ripe  and 
pithy*  In  pen  4  there  was  a  very  small  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
taken ;  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  here  the  limit  to  consumption  was  fixed  by 
the  unfitness  of  the  turnips  as  food,  and  not  by  their  high  value  in  this  respect; 
for  these  turnips  were  very  succulent  and  unripe,  and  notwithstanding  they 
contained  a  very  high  per-centage  of  ttitrogen,  all  the  animals  fed  upon  them 
lost  weight  Taking  the  circumstances  into  account,  then,  we  have  as  much 
uniformity  in  the  amounts  of  non- nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  as  we 
could  expect,  both  among  the  several  pens  of  Che  series,  and  in  comparing  this 
series  with  the  rest.  In  the  column  of  nitrogenous  constituents,  on  the  other 
hand,  there  is  nothing  to  indicate  any  uniformity  of  demand  for  the  supply 
of  them,  whether  we  compare  pen  with  pen,  or  the  results  of  this  series 
with  those  of  the  others.  It  might  perhaps  be  objected,  from  what  we  have 
already  said  of  the  varying  qualities  of  the  turnips  used  in  this  series,  that 
the  nitrogenous  compounds  themselves  would  exist  in  the  different  lots  in  a 
more  or  less  assimilable  condition;  and  hence  probably  some  of  the  differences 
in  the  amounts  consumed.  Doubtless  there  were  differences  in  this  respect 
in  the  different  lots,  but  it  is  seen  that  there  is  nearly  twice  as  much  of  nitrogen 
consumed  in  one  pen  as  in  another ;  and  we  cannot  suppose  that  by  any  such 
method  of  correction  as  has  been  suggested,  so  large  a  difference  as  this, 
or  even  that  the  whole  of  the  lesser  ones  observed  in  the  other  cases,  could 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        337 

be  thus  accounted  for.  It  is  worthy  of  observation,  however,  that  in  this 
series  the  amounts  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  are  in  an  inverse 
ratio  to  those  of  the  non-nitrogenous  ;  and  if  we  are  to  calculate,  that  in  the 
case  of  a  defect  of  the  latter  or  an  excess  of  the  former,  a  notable  portion  of 
the  nitrogenous  constituents  would  serve  as  respiratory  material,  such  an 
assumption  in  the  present  case  would  tend  yet  more  clearly  to  show  the  closer 
dependence  of  consumption  upon  respiration,  than  upon  the  supplies  by  the 
food  of  the  plastic  elements  of  nutrition,  as  such. 

In  the  next  and  last  series  of  experiments  to  be  noticed  with  sheep,  as  far 
as  possible  the  same  description  of  foods  is  used  throughout ;  but  animals 
of  different  breeds  aud  weights  and  other  admitted  qualities  are  now  the 
subject  of  experiment  in  the  several  pens.  The  breeds  which  have  thus  been 
compared  are, — the  Hampshire  Down,  Sussex  Down,  Cots  wold,  Leicester, 
Half-bred  Wethers  (Leicester  and  Southdown),  and  Half-bred  Ewes 
(Leicester  and  Southdown).  In  all  these  experiments  oil-cake  and  clover- 
chaff  were  the  limited  foods,  and  Swedish  turnips  the  complementary  food. 
About  1  lb.  per  head  per  day  of  each  of  the  limited  foods  was  given  to  the 
Hampshire*;  and  taking  this  allowance  as  the  standard,  the  other  breeds  had 
quantities  of  these  foods  exactly  in  proportion  to  their  weights.  There  were 
from  40  to  50  sheep  in  each  lot ;  and  each  experiment  extended  over  several 
months.  The  experiments  were,  however,  not  all  made  in  the  same  season ; 
the  turnips  were  therefore  of  different  growths ;  and  the  oil-cake  and  clover- 
chaff,  though  chosen  as  nearly  as  possible  of  similar  quality,  were  not  always 
from  the  same  stocks.  These  circumstances,  then,  as  well  as  the  intrinsic 
differences  in  the  breeds  themselves,  if  any,  might  be  supposed  perhaps  to 
have  some  share  in  any  variations  in  result.  We  see,  however,  that  there 
is  nevertheless  a  very  striking  coincidence  in  the  amounts  of  constituents 
consumed  to  a  given  weight  of  animal  among  the  different  breeds.  Bui 
what  is  more  to  the  purpose,  the  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
consumed  to  a  given  weight  of  animal  by  these  different  breeds,  and  at 
different  times,  are,  after  making,  as  before,  due  allowance  for  the  probable 
different  equivalents  of  the  foods,  exactly  consistent  with  the  indications  of 
the  other  series  with  all  their  varied  foods.  This  result,  then,  further  shows  that 
in  all,  the  respiratory  and  fat- forming  exigences  of  the  animals  have  fixed 
die  limit  to  their  consumption  of  food;  and  also  that  these  requirements  have, 
on  an  average,  and  under  somewhat  similar  circumstances,  a  pretty  constant 
relationship  to  their  weights.  With  this  general  coincidence  in  the  amount 
of  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed  to  a  given  weight  of  animal  in  the 
several  pens  of  this  series,  there  could  not,  of  course,  with  foods  of  similar 
composition  in  all,  be  much  variation  in  the  amounts  of  the  nitrogenous  con- 
stituents taken  under  the  same  circumstances.  Of  these,  however,  we  have 
throughout  this  series  twice  or  thrice  as  much  as  in  many  cases  of  the  other 
series,  which  would  not  happen  if  the  demand  for  them  had  been  the  guide 
to  consumption;  nor  shall  we  afterwards  find  that  the  increase  in  weight  ' 
obtained  was  by  any  means  proportional  to  this  large  amount  of  nitrogenous 
substance  consumed. 

In  our  experiments  with  sheep,  then,  whether  with  different  descriptions 
of  food,  or  with  different  breeds  of  the  animal,  the  amount  of  food  consumed 
would  seem  to  be  regulated  by  the  quantities  which  it  supplied  of  Hie  non-nitro- 
genous rather  than  by  those  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents. 

So  much,  then,  for  the  bearing  of  our  sheep  experiments  upon  the  question 
of  the  amount  of  food  consumed  according  to  its  composition :  but  before 
entering  upon  a  consideration  of  the  results  of  these  same  experiments  in 
relation  to  the  second  question,  namely,  that  of  the  increase  produced,  it 

1852.  z 


338  report— 1852. 

will  be  well  to  see  how  far  the  experiments  with  pigs  afford  us  similar  indi- 
cations in  relation  to  the  former  one. 

The  pig  requires  much  less  of  mere  bulk  in  his  food  than  the  ruminant 
animal.  Indeed,  the  food  of  the  pig,  when  on  a  liberal  fattening  diet,  consists 
generally,  weight  for  weight,  of  a  much  larger  proportion  of  digestible  or 
convertible  constituents,  and  contains  much  less  of  effete  woody  fibre  than 
that  of  the  sheep.  Thus,  whilst  the  food  of  the  fattening  sheep  is  principally 
composed  of  grass,  hay  and  roots,  with  a  comparatively  small  proportion  of 
cake  or  corn,  that  of  the  fattening  pig  comprises  a  larger  proportion  of  con), 
which  contains  a  comparatively  small  amount  of  indigestible  woody  fibre, 
and  is  comparatively  abundant  in  starch,  sugar,  &c,  and  in  highly  nitro- 
genous compounds.  Notwithstanding  the  generally  richer  character  of  his 
food,  however,  the  fattening  pig  is  found  to  consume  a  much  larger  quantity 
of  dry  substance  in  relation  to  his  weight  than  the  sheep.  We  should  at 
least  expect,  therefore,  that  he  would  yield  a  greater  proportion  of  increase, 
and  this  he  is  found  to  do.  Such,  indeed,  is  the  greediness  of  the  animal, 
and  so  much  larger  is  the  proportion  of  the  food  which  he  will  consume 
beyond  that  which  is  necessary  for  the  respiratory  function,  or  for  the 
formation  of  flesh,  and  which  is  therefore  employed  in  storing  up  fat,  that 
the  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  matter  consumed  must  obviously,  in  his 
case,  have  a  less  close  numerical  relationship  to  the  requirements  of  the 
respiratory  system  than  in  that  of  the  sheep.  Hence,  no  doubt,  is  in  part 
the  reason  that  the  exact  indications  of  the  figures  of  the  Tables  are,  on  the 
whole,  not  so  consistent  as  with  the  sheep.  The  experiments  with  the  pigs 
however  bear  testimony  in  the  same  direction  as  those  with  the  sheep  on 
the  question  now  in  discussion,  and  the  evidence  they  afford  on  the  point  is, 
indeed,  very  conclusive. 

In  the  arrangement  of  the  pig  experiments  the  selection  of  the  foods  was 
made  rather  according  to  composition  than  to  cost  In  the  first  series  (see 
Tables  V{.  and  VII.)  the  foods  chosen  were— 

A  mixture  of  equal  parts  of  bean  and  lentil  meal,  as  a  highly  nitrogenous 
food. 

Indian  corn  meal,  as  the  comparatively  non-nitrogenous  food.    And — 

Bran,  as  containing  a  considerable  amount  of  woody  fibre. 

The  series  comprised  twelve  pens,  in  each  of  which  three  pigs  were  placed. 
In  the  first  four  pens,  the  bean  and  lentil  mixture  constituted  the  ad  libitum 
food ;  in  one  of  these  it  was  given  alone,  and  in  the  others  with  a  limited 
amount  of  one  or  both  respectively  of  the  other  two  descriptions  of  food. 
In  the  second  set  of  four  pens,  the  Indian  corn  meal  was  the  ad  libitum  food ; 
and  it,  in  its  turn,  was  in  one  case  given  alone,  and  in  the  others  with  a 
certain  amount  of  the  other  or  limited  foods.  In  the  third  set  of  pens,  bran 
was  the  ad  libitum  food ;  the  other  two  then  constituting  the  fixed  or  limited 
food.  In  this  way  there  was  secured  a  great  diversity  in  the  proportion  of 
'  the  nitrogenous  to  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food  in  the 
several  pens ;  and  as  the  animals  were  allowed  to  fix  for  themselves  the  limit 
of  their  consumption,  the  results  afford  us  the  means  of  judging,  whether  in 
doing  this,  their  natural  instincts  have  led  them  to  any  uniformity  in  relation 
to  their  weights,  in  the  amounts  taken  of  either  of  these  classes  of  constituents. 

In  Table  VI.  are  given  the  amounts  of  the  nitrogenous  and  non-nitrogenous 
constituents  respectively,  consumed  weekly  by  every  100  lbs.  live  weight  of 
animaL  In  this  Table  we  see  at  a  glance,  that  although  there  are  some 
apparent  discrepancies,  yet  the  figures  in  the  column  of  fwm-nitrogenous 
constituents  are  much  more  uniform  than  in  that  of  the  nitrogenous  ones. 
And,  as  to  the  few  apparent  deviations  from  this  uniformity,  we  think  it 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        339 

will  be  much  more  reasonable  to  attempt  to  explain,  or  even  considering  the 
nature  of  the  subject,  to  admit  as  inexplicable,  a  few  discrepant  cases,  than  to 
reject  on  their  account  the  general  testimony  of  much  more  numerous,  more 
consistent,  and  otherwise  sufficiently  conclusive  results.  Thus  in  the  first 
set  of  four  pens  in  this  series,  there  is,  upon  the  whole,  a  less  amount  of  the 
non-nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  than  in  the  second ;  and  this  lessened 
amount  of  non-nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  in  the  former  is  seen  to  be 
coincident  with  excessive  consumption  of  the  nitrogenous  ones,  and  it  is  evenr 
the  less  the  greater  that  excess.  It  is  also  worthy  of  remark,  too,  that  in  pens 
5  to  8,  where  there  was  this  larger  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
consumed,  it  was  supplied  chiefly  by  Indian  corn  meal,  which,  containing 
more  oily  matter  than  that  of  the  foods  in  pens  I  to  4,  would  also  possess  a 
higher  respiratory  and  fat-forming  capacity,  weight  for  weight,  than  that  in 
the  other  cases.  We  may  here  suppose,  that  perhaps  a  surfeit  of  the  nitro- 
genous substances  put  a  limit  to  the  further  consumption  of  non-nitrogenous 
constituents  which  would  otherwise  have  been  taken ;  or,  that  being  in  excess, 
the  nitrogenous  substances  have  substituted  other  respiratory  material ;  and 
it  is  consistent  with  such  a  supposition,  that  with  the  less  amount  of  non- 
nitrogenous  constituents  consumed,  where  the  nitrogenous  are  in  excess,  there 
is  nevertheless  a  larger  amount  consumed  of  total  organic  substance  than 
where  there  is  more  of  the  non-tiitrogenous  constituents. 

That  a  larger  amount  of  the  complementary  food  was  consumed  when  it 
consisted  of  the  comparatively  low  nitrogenized  Indian  meal,  was  not  due 
only  to  a  craving  for  a  supply  of  nitrogen  which  a  less  quantity  would  not 
have  yielded,  would  appear,  among  other  considerations,  from  the  fact,  that 
when,  after  a  time,  the  pigs  in  pen  5,  where  Indian  meal  alone  was  given, 
had  become  affected  with  large  tumours  breaking  out  on  their  necks, 
their  breathing  and  swallowing  becoming  at  the  same  time  difficult,  we,  in 
order  to  test  the  question  as  to  whether  this  arose  from  a  defect  of  nitrogen 
or  from  other  causes,  supplied  them  with  a  trough  of  mineral  substances:  they 
soon  recovered  from  their  complaint,  and  eventually  proved  to  be  among  the 
fattest  and  best  of  the  entire  series  of  pigs ;  at  least,  a  dealer  in  pork  with 
a  practised  eye,  purchased  by  preference  one  of  these  animals  from  among 
the  whole  set  of  carcases.  The  mineral  mixture  that  was  supplied  to  them 
was  composed  of  twenty  parts  coal  ashes,  four  parts  common  salt,  and  one 
part  superphosphate  of  lime ;  and  for  it  they  seemed  to  exhibit  considerable 
relish. 

In  pens  9, 10  and  1 1,  a  comparatively  small  quantity  of  the  more  digestible 
foods  was  allowed,  the  complementary  food  being  in  these  cases  bran ;  and 
as  we  have  before  said,  the  digestive  apparatus  of  the  pig  is  not  adapted  for 
a  large  amount  of  bulky  woody  substance.  Here  the  animals  consumed  a 
less  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  in  proportion  as  the  bran  predo- 
minated in  their  food ;  and  they  at  the  same  time  also  increased  and  fattened 
much  less  than  those  in  the  other  pens.  In  fact,  until  Slbs.  per  head  per  day 
of  the  limited  foods  were  allowed  instead  of  only  two,  as  was  at  first  given, 
several  of  the  pigs  lost  weight  and  became  unwell ;  being  as  it  were  paralysed 
(gouty  ?),  and  almost  deprived  of  the  use  of  their  legs.  There  can  be  little 
doubt  that  the  proportion  of  woody  matter  in  the  bran,  which  food  only 
they  had  at  full  command,  was  too  great  for  the  convenience  of  their  sto- 
machs ;  and  that  hence,  after  their  respiratory  requirements  had  been  fulfilled, 
a  limit  was  put  to  further  consumption  to  serve  the  mere  purpose  of  fattening. 

In  pen  12,  the  several  foods,  namely,  the  bean  and  lentil  mixture,  the 
Indian  meal,  and  the  bran,  were  each  put  into  a  separate  trough,  and  the 
animals  were  allowed  to  take  of  all  or  any  of  them  ad  libitum.    Were  it  not 

z2 


340  report — 1852. 

that  one  of  the  pigs  io  this  pen  was  unwell  in  the  same  way  as  those  referred 
to  in  the  previous  pens  during  a  considerable  portion  of  the  period  of  the 
experiment,  we  might  have  assumed  perhaps,  that  the  results  of  this  pen  would 
have  pointed  to  the  proportions  of  the  several  foods  best  adapted  to  the  wants 
of  the  animals ;  and  if  such  a  conclusion  were  a  legitimate  one,  it  would 
indeed  appear,  that  their  natural  demands  called  for  a  larger  proportion  of 
nitrogen  than  was  within  the  reach  of  the  animals  in  any  of  those  pens  in 
which  Indian  meal  was  the  ad  libitum  or  complementary  food.  Two  of  the 
pigs,  however,  in  this  pen  12,  increased  exceedingly  well,  and  gave  eventually 
the  highest  proportion  of  carcass  to  live  weight,  of  any  in  this  entire  series  of 
experiments.  It  is,  too,  an  interesting  fact,  that  as  the  experiment  proceeded, 
and  the  animals  matured,  their  consumption  diminished  very  considerably. 
Thus,  the  proportion  of  the  bean  and  lentil  mixture  to  the  total  food  consumed 
was  only  two-thirds  as  great  at  the  conclusion  as  at  the  commencement  of 
the  experiment,  whilst  that  of  tbe  Indian  meal  was  not  three-tifths  as  much 
at  the  commencement  as  at  the  conclusion.  We  have  in  this  fact  some  indi- 
cation of  the  large  proportion  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food 
which  is  appropriated  by  the  fatting  animal. 

Reviewing,  as  a  whole,  the  reults  of  these  twelve  dietaries,  and  carefully 
considering  the  bearing  of  the  various  circumstances  which  must  influence 
our  reading  of  the  actual  figures  of  the  Table  relating  to  them,  we  think  it 
cannot  be  doubted,  that  here,  as  in  the  case  of  the  sheep,  we  have  very  clear 
evidence  that  it  is  the  non-nitrogenous,  rather  than  the  nitrogenous  consti- 
tuents of  the  food,  that  have  fixed  the  limit  to  consumption. 

In  the  lower  section  of  this  Table  VI.,  we  have  the  results  bearing  upon  the 
same  point,  of  a  second  series  of  experiments  with  pigs,  conducted  on  a 
similar  plan  to  that  of  the  former  one.  In  this  second  series  of  pig  experi- 
ments, we  have,  as  before,  the  bean  and  lentil  mixture  as  the  highly  nitro- 
genous food.  Barley  meal  is  in  this  case  used  as  the  non-nitrogenous  food, 
instead  of  Indian  corn  as  in  the  former  series.  Bran,  again,  constitutes  the 
third  food.  In  this  series  however,  when  either  the  bean  and  lentil  mixture, 
or  the  barley  meal,  constituted  the  limited  food,  the  daily  allowance  per  head 
was  3  lbs.  instead  of  2,  as  in  the  former  series.  When  the  limited  food  was 
bran,  lib.  only,  instead  of  2  as  previously,  was  now  given.  In  other  respects, 
excepting  that  in  this  series  bran  was  in  no  case  given  alone  as  the  ad  libitum 
food,  the  arrangements  were  the  same  as  in  the  case  of  the  previous  series. 

The  weather  during  part  of  the  period  of  this  second  series  of  experiments 
was  exceedingly  hot ;  from  this  several  of  the  animals  suffered  considerably ; 
and  some,  either  from  this  or  other  causes,  became  quite  ill  and  died,  or  were 
"  killed  to  save  their  lives."  Nevertheless  it  is  seen,  that  there  was,  upon  the 
whole,  a  larger  amount  of  respiratory  food  consumed  in  relation  to  weight  in 
this  series  than  in  the  previous  one  during  the  cooler  season. 

If  we  compare  the  column  of  the  amounts  of  non -nitrogenous  constituents 
consumed  weekly,  per  100  lbs.  live  weight  of  animal,  for  this  series,  as  given 
in  the  lower  section  of  Table  VI.,  with  that  in  the  upper  section  for  Series  1, 
we  shall  see  that  there  was,  upon  the  whole,  a  greater  uniformity  in  tbe  former 
than  in  the  latter.  There  are,  however,  one  or  two  marked  exceptions  to  the 
regularity  of  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  matter  consumed  in  this  Series  % 
which,  but  for  coincident  circumstances,  and  the  abundance  we  have  of  evi- 
dence in  the  opposite  direction,  might  lead  to  different  conclusions  than  those 
which  we  have  drawn  from  the  results  as  a  whole ;  but  at  any  rate  the  uni- 
formity is  still  greater  here  than  in  the  column  of  the  nitrogenous  substances. 
The  more  obvious  exceptions  to  the  rule  are  pens  1  and  8 ;  but  apart  from 
any  incidental  causes  which  might  account  for  these — and  in  each  of  these 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        341 

pens  one  of  the  animals  died — we  shall  see,  when  we  come  to  consider  the 
question  of  the  amount  of  increase  produced  by  a  given  amount  of  food  con- 
sumed, that  although  the  pigs  were  satisfied  to  eat  a  smaller  proportion  of 
food  in  relation  to  their  weight  in  these  pens  where  the  proportion  of  nitrogen 
was  comparatively  large,  yet  the  proportion  of  increase  to  the  food  consumed 
was  less  than  where  the  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed 
was  much  greater.  Hence,  in  these  cases,  if  there  were  a  smaller  amount 
of  food  consumed,  there  was  also  a  smaller  proportion  of  increase  produced 
by  it,  and  there  would  therefore  at  the  same  time  obviously  be  a  larger 
proportion  of  it  available  for  the  purposes  of  respiration^  These  apparent 
exceptions  are  not,  then,  necessarily  adverse  to  the  view  that  the  respiratory 
process  was  the  gauge  of  consumption. 

We  have  already  noticed,  that  notwithstanding  the  weather  was  much  hot- 
ter during  the  progress  of  the  second  series  of  experiments,  yet  that  there 
was  here,  upon  the  whole,  a  larger  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
consumed  in  proportion  to  weight  of  animal  than  in  the  first  This  apparent 
excess,  if  indeed  it  show  any  real  excess  in  respiratory  and  fat-forming  equi- 
valent, at  any  rate  does  not  do  so  in  the  degree  which  the  bare  figures  of  the 
Table  would  indicate.  Thus,  the  Indian  corn  of  the  first  series,  of  which 
a  less  amount  seems  to  have  sufficed  than  of  the  barley  in  the  second,  con- 
tained about  6  per  cent,  of  oleaginous  matter,  instead  of  less  than  3  per  cent., 
as  in  the  barley.  And  as  a  deficiency  of  3  per  cent,  in  fatty  substance  would, 
for  respiratory  and  fat-forming  purposes,  require  to  be  substituted  by  about 
twice  and  a  half  that  amount  of  the  other  non-nitrogenous  constituents,  it 
is  obvious  that  the  respiratory  and  fat-forming  capacity  of  the  Indian 
meal  non-nitrogenous  matter  was  therefore  somewhat  higher  than  that  of  the 
barley ;  and  hence  a  less  amount  of  it  would  be  required  to  produce  the  same 
result. 

We  could  add  to  the  results  already  given  those  of  further  experiments 
both  with  pigs  and  sheep,  as  well  as  some  with  bullocks,  bearing  upon  the 
point  we  have  been  considering;  but  those  we  have  already  adduced  are, 
we  think,  sufficient  to  justify  our  conclusion,  that,  in  reference  to  this  first 
question,  at  least  so  far  as  fattening  animals  are  concerned,  the  amount  of 
food  consumed  is  regulated  more  by  its  supplies  of  the  non-nitrogenous,  than 
of  the  nitrogenous  constituents. 

We  now  come  to  the  second  question ;  namely,  that  of  the  relationship 
of  the  increase  in  live  weight  produced  to  the  consumption  of  nitrogenous 
and  n  on -nitrogenous  constituents  in  the  food. 

Turning  first  to  the  experiments  with  sheep,  we  have  in  Table  V.  the  amounts 
respectively  of  the  non-nitrogenous,  of  the  nitrogenous,  and  of  the  total  or- 
ganic substance  consumed  to  produce  100  lbs.  increase  in  live  weight. 

In  viewing  the  Tables  in  reference  to  this  point,  we  must,  as  before,  read 
the  indications  of  the  actual  figures  as  modified  by  the  obviously  different 
capacities  for  the  purposes  of  the  animal  ceconomy  of  the  substances,  the 
amounts  of  which  they  in  each  case  represent.  Especially,  too;  when  con- 
sidering the  results  with  the  sheep,  we  must  bear  in  mind  the  fact,  which  we 
have  ascertained  by  direct  experiment,  namely,  that  other  things  being  equal, 
the  more  succulent  the  food,  the  less  will  be  the  proportion  of  real  dry  sub- 
stance in  the  increase  obtained  by  its  means ;  and  also,  that  the  greater  the 
amount  of  fat  produced  the  greater  considerably  will  be  the  per-centage  in 
the  gross  increase  of  real  dry  substance.  And  we  must  further  remember, 
that  as  in  the  Tables  showing  the  relationship  of  consumption  to  respiration, 
the  figures  also  included  the  increase  in  weight  obtained,  so  now,  in  the 
Tables  professing  to  show  the  relationship  of  the  increase  to  the  constituents 


342  mpobt— 1852. 

consumed,  the  figures  at  the  same  time  include  the  amounts  which  have  been 
expended  in  the  respiratory  process. 

Looking  down  the  entire  columns  of  Table  V.,  it  is  at  once  seen  that  wherever 
clover-chaff  was  employed,  that  is  to  say,  wherever  there  was  a  large  amount 
of  innutritions  woody  fibre,  the  gross  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  substance 
consumed  to  produce  a  given  amount  of  increase  is  always  great.  The  ana- 
lysis of  the  excrements  of  this  series  showed,  indeed,  that  there  was,  in  re- 
lation to  the  non-nitrogenous  matter  consumed  in  the  food,  a  very  much 
larger  proportion  of  it  voided  by  the  animals  than  in  the  case  of  the  series 
where  the  amount  of  woody  fibre  in  the  food  was  less.  This,  therefore,  must 
be  allowed  for  in  comparing  the  figures  in  the  column.  It  will  at  once  be 
seen,  when  due  allowance  has  thus  been  made,  that  the  amounts  of  available 
non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed  to  produce  a  given  weight  of  increase, 
are  at  any  rate  much  more  nearly  uniform  than  are  those  of  the  nitrogenous 
constituents.  Of  the  differences  which  will  still  remain  after  the  allowance 
for  woody  fibre  has  been  made,  many  can  be  again  reduced  by  a  consideration 
of  the  different  equivalents  of  the  remaining  available  non-nitrogenous  con- 
stituents ;  as  for  instance,  when  in  comparable  cases  these  contain,  in  one 
instance,  more  of  oil,  and  in  another  more  of  the  starch^series  of  compounds. 
A  less  amount  of  the  former  than  of  the  latter  is  required  to  produce  the 
same  resulting  increase  in  the  animal ;  and  again,  less  of  the  starchy  series 
than  of  some  of  the  peculiar  products  of  the  root  crops. 

In  the  column  showing  the  proportion  of  the  total  nitrogenous  substance 
consumed  to  increase  produced  (Table  V.),  we  have  a  much  wider  range  of 
difference  than  in  that  of  the  non-nitrogenous,  and  much  wider,  indeed,  than 
can  be  explained  away  by  such  considerations  as  have  above  been  alluded  to 
in  reference  to  the  latter.  It  is  true  that  these  figures  cannot,  any  more  than 
in  the  column  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents,  be  taken  as  showing  ab- 
solutely proportional  nutritious  values  of  the  matters  represented;  for  as  we 
have  before  observed,  the  figures  assume  the  whole  of  the  nitrogen  of  the 
food  to  exist  in  the  form  of  proteine  compounds,  which  obviously  would  not 
be  the  case  with  the  succulent  and  unripened  produce,  such  as  the  roots  and 
clover-chaff;  and  hence,  this  consideration  must  more  affect  the  correctness 
of  the  statement  of  nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  for  a  given  result  in 
the  sheep  experiments  than  in  those  with  the  pigs,  where  the  foods  employed 
were  ripened  seeds.  But,  as  we  have  observed,  the  differences  in  the  figures 
in  the  Table  would  seem  to  be  too  great  to  be  satisfactorily  accounted  for  by 
the  correction  of  any  errors  arising  from  this  cause* 

Looking  at  this  Table  V.  rather  more  in  detail,  we  see,  taking  the  first  two 
pens  in  Series  1,  which  are  comparable  so  far  as  the  description  of  the  ad  libitum 
food  is  concerned,  that  whilst  the  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed  to 
produce  100  lbs.  increase  in  weight  is  very  nearly  equal  in  the  two  cases,  yet 
that  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  varies  in  the  two  in  the  proportion  of 
from  three  to  two ;  but  a  difference  in  the  nature  of  the  nitrogenous  substance 
cannot  be  supposed  to  have  made  a  difference  so  great  in  the  amount  of  con- 
stituents consumed  to  produce  a  given  result.  On  the  other  hand,  the  higher 
capacity  of  the  oleaginous  matter  of  the  oil-cake  than  of  the  starch,  &c  of 
the  oats,  is  sufficient  further  to  lessen  the  but  small  difference  in  the  amounts 
of  the  non-nitrogenous  substance  in  the  two  cases.  In  pens  2,  S  and  4  of 
the  first  series  of  sheep,  we  have  all  but  identical  amounts  of  gross  nitrogenous 
substance  consumed  for  a  given  amount  of  increase ;  but  this  would  be  of  the 
most  highly  elaborated  kind  in  pen  2  with  the  oats,  and  the  least  so  in  pen  4, 
with  turnips  only ;  and  in  the  latter,  besides  having  less  of  available  nitrogenous 
substance,  the  respiratory  and  fat-forming  capacity  of  the  non-nitrogenous 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        343 

substance  in  the  exclusive  turnip  diet  would  be  less  than  in  the  other  instanoes ; 
and  hence  the  larger  amount  consumed  for  a  given  result. 

Turning  to  the  results  of  the  second  series,  with  clover-chaff  instead  of 
turnips  as  the  ad  libitum  food,  we  have,  with  the  larger  amount  of  woody 
fibre,  which  would  become  at  once  effete,  much  more  gross  non-nitrogenous 
matter  consumed  to  produce  100  lbs.  of  increase  than  in  Series  1.  This  is 
less,  however,  in  pens  1  and  2,  with  the  large  proportion  of  oleaginous  matter, 
than  in  pens  3  and  4s  There  is,  moreover,  in  this  second  series,  with  this 
greater  amount  of  non-nitrogenous  matter  consumed  for  a  given  effect  than 
in  Series  1,  a  much  larger  amount  also  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents ;  the 
gross  amount  of  the  latter,  indeed,  in  this  second  series,  is  twice,  and  even 
sometimes  thrice  as  great  as  in  Series  1. 

In  the  next  series,  namely,  Series  3,  with  barley  and  malt  in  different  states 
and  proportions  as  limited  food,  and  mangold-wurtzel  as  the  complementary 
food,  we  have,  upon  the  whole,  about  the  same  amounts  of  non-nitrogenous 
substance  required  to  produce  the  same  result  as  in  Series  1,  with,  besides,  a 
small  quantity  of  grain  or  other  limited  food  and  Swedish  turnips  as  the  com- 
plementary food,  which  latter  are  in  great  degree  comparable  with  the  mangold- 
wurtzel;  and  of  course,  as  in  Series  1,  the  average  amount  is  very  different 
from  that  in  the  second  series  with  the  large  proportion  of  clover-chaff. 
Looking  to  the  three  total  columns,  namely,  of  nitrogenous,  of  non-nitrogen- 
ous, and  of  total  organic  constituents  consumed,  although  it  is  true  the  dif- 
ferences are  not  great,  and  perhaps  such  as  might  be  covered  by  differences 
in  the  composition  of  the  increase,  yet  it  may  be  noticed,  that  larger  amounts, 
both  of  non-nitrogenous  and  of  total  organic  substance,  were  consumed  to 
produce  the  same  result  the  larger  the  proportion  in  the  latter  of  the  nitro- 
genous constituents. 

In  Series  4,  we  have  a  more  marked  instance  of  the  result  last  noticed. 
But,  apart  from  the  question  as  to  whether  the  increase  of  the  fattening 
animal  has  a  closer  relationship  with  the  amount  of  the  true  proteine  com" 
pounds,  or,  within  certain  limits  of  the  available  non-nitrogenous  constitu- 
ents of  its  food,  we  have  here  a  striking  illustration  of  the  inapplicability  on 
other  grounds  of  the  percentage  of  nitrogen  as  the  measure  of  feeding  value, 
or  indeed  of  any  analytical  method,  unless  a  detailed  determination  of  the 
proximate  compounds,  when  succulent  products,  such  as  in  this  instance,  the 
roots,  are  the  subjects  of  the  experiment  Thus,  in  the  fourth  pen  of  this  series, 
where  there  was  by  far  the  largest  amount  of  nitrogen  consumed,  the  animals 
lost  weight ;  and  in  the  other  three  pens,  the  productiveness  of  the  food  is  in 
the  inverse  order  of  the  amounts  of  nitrogen  taken  in  the  food.  This  arose  of 
course  from  the  different  states  of  maturity,  and  the  consequent  state  of  elabo- 
ration of  the  constituents  of  the  various  turnips,  the  produce  of  the  different 
manures.  Indeed,  we  believe  that  an  unusually  high  per-centage  of  nitrogen 
in  succulent  produce  is  frequently  a  pretty  sure  indication  of  immaturity  and 
innutritious  qualities.  Comparing  the  results  of  this  series  with  those  of  the 
others,  we  have,  considering  how  small  would  be  the  proportion  of  inert 
woody  fibre  in  the  unripe  turnips,  about  twice  as  much  dry  substance  (in 
pens  1  and  3  at  least)  consumed  to  produce  a  given  amount  of  increase — a 
difference  which  could,  at  any  rate  in  only  a  small  degree,  be  accounted  for 
by  any  difference  in  the  capacities  of  the  digestible  and  available  portions  of 
the  foods  in  the  cases  thus  compared. 

Considering  only  the  ostensible  similarity  of  the  foods  in  the  several  pens 
constituting  the  5th  and  last  series  of  experiments  with  sheep,  there  is,  per. 
haps,  no  more  of  coincidence  in  the  amounts  that  have  been  required  to  pro- 
duce a  given  increase  in  the  different  pens,  than,  judging  from  previous 
results,  we  might  have  anticipated.    From  what  we  know,  however,  of  the 


344  report — 1852. 

varying  character  of  the  several  breeds  as  fatteners,  greater  differences  might 
have  been  expected ;  for,  in  some  cases  a  less  or  larger  proportion  of  the 
gross  increase  would  be  solid  substance  than  in  others ;  whilst  this  solid  sub- 
stance itself  would  be  composed  of  more  or  less  of  fat  or  lean — circumstances 
which  obviously  imply  the  appropriation  in  the  increase,  of  varying  amounts 
and  proportions  of  the  constituents  of  the  food  consumed.  Then,  again, 
though  nominally  the  same,  there  were  unavoidably  slight  differences  in  the 
qualities  of  the  food  used  in  the  different  cases,  and  the  experiments  them- 
selves were  not  all  conducted  in  the  same  season  ;  that  with  the  Hampshire 
and  Sussex  Downs  being  made  in  the  winter  of  1850-51,  that  with  the  Cots* 
wolds  in  1851-52,  and  with  the  Leicesters  and  half-breeds  in  1852-53. 
There  is  also,  upon  the  whole,  a  very  general  coincidence  in  the  amounts  of 
non-nitrogenous  and  total  organic  substance,  consumed  to  produce  a  given 
amount  of  increase  in  this  series  with  the  different  breeds,  and  the  Series 
1  and  S.  At  least  the  general  coincidence  throughout  these  several  series  is 
quite  as  close  as  the  variations  in  the  foods  could  lead  us  to  look  for.  But 
in  the  column  of  nitrogenous  substance  the  agreement  between  this  series 
and  the  others  is  by  no  means  so  obvious ;  nor,  so  far  as  we  know,  can  the 
want  of  agreement  in  the  cases  thus  compared  together  be  accounted  for  by 
differences  in  the  composition  and  applicability  of  the  nitrogenous  consti- 
tuents themselves. 

Reviewing  then  the  whole  of  the  experiments  with  sheep, — if  we  consider 
that  it  is  the  results  obtained  under  the  subtle  agency  of  animal  life  that  we 
are  seeking  to  measure  and  express  in  figures,  and  if  we  also  bear  in  mind 
the  various  sources  of  modification  to  which  our  actual  figures  must  be  sub* 
mitted  in  order  to  attain  their  true  indications,  we  think  that  it  cannot  be 
doubted,  that  beyond  a  limit  below  which  few,  if  any,  of  our  current  fattening 
food-stuffs  are  found  to  go,  it  is  their  available  non -nitrogenous  constituents, 
rather  than  their  richness  in  the  nitrogenous  ones,  that  measure  both  the 
amount  consumed  to  a  given  weight  of  animal,  within  a  given  time,  and  the 
increase  in  weight  obtained. 

But  we  have  still  to  examine  the  results  of  the  experiments  with  pigs  as  to 
the  latter  point,  namely,  that  of  the  relationship  of  the  increase  produced  to 
constituents  consumed  ;  and  owing  partly  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  animals, 
and  partly  to  the  nature  of  the  foods  employed,  the  actual  figures  themselves 
even  (see  Table  VII.)  bear  out  the  view  that  has  been  maintained  more  ob- 
viously at  first  sight,  than  those  relating  to  the  sheep.  Thus,  casting  the  eye 
down  the  column  of  total  non-nitrogenous  substance  consumed,  and  more 
particularly  that  of  the  total  organic  matter,  we  see  with  but  few  exceptions,  a 
strikingly  close  coincidence  in  the  amounts  required  to  produce  100  pounds 
of  gross  increase  throughout  the  two  series  of  twenty-four  pens,  and  as  many 
different  dietaries.  Some  of  the  exceptions,  such  as  those  where  a  large 
quantity  of  bran  was  used,  are  at  once  explained  by  a  consideration  of  the 
more  obvious  qualities  of  that  substance ;  and  many  of  the  minor  differences 
by  that  of  the  different  capacities  of  those  portions  of  the  foods  which  would 
be  digestible  and  available  for  the  purposes  of  the  animal  (Economy ;  and  in 
this  way,  as  we  have  already  noticed  when  speaking  on  the  first  question,  we 
must  account  for  the  generally  larger  amount  consumed  with  the  barley  meal 
in  Series  %  than  in  the  comparable  cases  with  the  Indian  corn  in  Series  1. 

Looking  to  pens  1  and  2  of  Series  1,  where  the  food  consisted  chiefly  of 
the  highly  nitrogenous  Leguminous  seeds,  we  have  comparatively  very  small 
amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  substance  required  to  produce  a  given  amount 
of  increase;  a  result  which  at  first  sight  appears  to  lead  to  conclusions 
opposite  to  those  from  the  experiments  as  a  whole.  If  we  look  down  the 
column  of  total  organic  substance,  however,  we  observe  that  the  amounts 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       345 

of  it  in  the  second  section  of  Series  i,  where  the  Indian  corn  predomi- 
nated, and  where  the  nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  were  only  about 
half  as  great  as  in  the  pens  1  and  2,  are  generally  as  small,  or  even  smaller, 
than  in  these  two  pens.  It  is  not,  then,  that  there  was  in  reality  a  very  great 
productiveness  in  gross  increase  from  a  given  amount  of  food  in  these  two 
pens,  but  rather  only  that  with  the  large  supply  of  available  nitrogenous  con* 
stituents  in  the  Leguminous  seeds,  a  certain  amount  of  the  non-nitrogenous 
constituents  have  been  substituted  by  it  It  was  observed,  too,  that  although 
all  the  pigs  were  very  fat,  excepting  the  few  with  an  excessive  allowance  of 
bran,  yet  those  apparently  grew  more,  where,  with  no  deficiency  of  other 
matters,  the  nitrogenous  constituents  were  very  liberally  supplied.  Hence 
the  gross  increase  obtained  might  be  somewhat  more  nitrogenous  with  the 
large  supply  of  nitrogenous  food ;  but  it  would  in  that  case,  according  to 
some  experiments  of  our  own,  contain  a  larger  proportion  of  water,  and  less 
of  solid  matter,  than  where  mote  fat  had  been  produced. 

But,  with  the  very  great  regularity  of  non-nitrogenous  equivalent  con- 
sumed throughout  this  large  series  of  pig  experiments  to  produce  a  given 
amount  of  increase,  we  have,  in  the  column  of  total  nitrogenous  substance, 
on  the  other  hand,  a  difference  in  the  amounts  required,  in  the  proportion  of 
from  one  to  two,  or  three,  or  even  more ;  though,  since  all  the  foods  used  in 
these  experiments  were  ripened  vegetable  products,  a  very  trifling  error,  if 
any,  can  arise  from  representing,  in  all  cases,  the  whole  of  the  nitrogen  as 
existing  as  proteine  compounds.  And,  there  is  throughout,  a  generally 
larger  amount  of  total  organic  substance  required  to  yield  a  given  amount  of 
gross  increase,  the  larger  the  proportion  in  that  substance  of  the  nitrogenous 
constituents. 

It  is  seen,  as  has  been  already  noticed,  that  where  the  amount  of  nitrogen 
consumed  in  these  pig  experiments  to  produce  a  given  amount  of  gross  in- 
crease is  comparatively  large,  it  is  where  a  large  proportion  of  the  Legumi- 
nous seeds  have  been  employed.  Some  writers  who  have  taken  the  percent- 
age of  nitrogenous  compounds  as  the  measure  of  feeding  value,  have  recog- 
nised, and  endeavoured  to  explain  in  various  ways,  the  fact  that  the  records 
of  practical  feeding  experiments  do  not  award  to  the  Leguminous  seeds  a 
feeding  value  in  proportion  to  their  richness  in  nitrogen  ;  and  they  have  con- 
cluded, that  it  is  the  accepted  indications  of  the  practical  experiments,  and 
not  the  theoretical  conclusions,  that  are  at  fault.  Thus,  it  has  been  objected 
against  the  teachings  of  such  experiments,  that  the  variations  in  the  compo- 
sition of  the  same  description  of  food  used  in  different  cases  has  not  been 
determined  ;  that  the  test  has  been  the  gross  increase  or  loss  in  weight ;  that 
the  increase  may  be  only  fat  formed  from  starch,  &c. ;  that  the  loss  in  weight, 
if  any,  may  be  the  result  of  activity,  and  not  of  defective  diet ;  that  the  food 
in  the  different  cases  has  been  employed  in  different  states,  that  is,  coarse  or 
fine,  raw  or  prepared ;  that  the  animals  have  been  variously  circumstanced  as 
to  temperature,  exposure  and  activity;  that  individual  animals  have  very 
various  tendencies  to  increase,  and  so  on.  Now  we  believe  that  not  one  of  all 
these  objections  can  vitiate  the  comparisons  which  we  have  made,  unless,'  in- 
deed, in  some  degree,  the  one  which  refers  to  the  difficulty  of  determining 
whether  the  gross  increase  obtained  be  composed  chiefly  of  fat  formed  from 
the  starch  and  oily  series  of  compounds ;  or  whether  of  flesh  from  the  nitro- 
genous ones.  We  believe,  indeed,  from  the  many  direct  experiments  which  we 
have  made,  that  in  reality,  the  composition  of  our  domestic  animals  generally, 
but  especially  that  of  the  gross  increase  of  the  so-called  "  fattening"  animals, 
consists  of  a  much  larger  proportion  of  fat  than  is  usually  supposed.  We 
have  instituted  very  extensive  and  laborious  investigations  in  regard  to  this 
point,  the  details,  or  even  the  general  results  of  which  must  be  reserved  for 


346  report— 1852. 

some  future  occasion;  before  closing  this  paper,  however,  we  propose  to 
call  attention  to  a  mere  summary  statement  of  one  of  these  experiments. 
But,  apart  from  the  considerations  involved  in  the  question  of  the  varying 
composition  of  increase,  or  from  the  fact  that  our  own  feeding  experiments 
(which,  so  far  as  we  are  aware,  are  the  largest  comparable  series  bearing  upon 
the  point)  afford  testimony  in  the  same  direction,  we  think  there  is  evidence 
of  another  kind  of  the  probable  correctness  of  the  decisions  of  practical  ex- 
periments which  have  thus  been  objected  to.  Thus  the  comparative  prices 
of  the  Leguminous  seeds  and  the  Cereal  grains,  may  be  taken  as  a  pretty  safe 
condemnation  of  the  measurement  of  feeding  value  according  to  their  per- 
centage of  nitrogenous  constituents.  In  matters  of  this  kind,  indeed,  espe- 
cially when  staple  and  generally  used  articles  of  food  are  concerned;  the 
market  la  one  of  our  shrewdest  judges,  as  we  shall  presently  endeavour  a 
little  further  to  illustrate. 

Whilst  speaking  of  the  comparative  feeding  values  of  the  Leguminous  seeds 
and  the  Cereal  grains,  we  may  casually  allude  to.  some  other  considerations 
of  much  interest  bearing  upon  this  question,  which,  however,  we  cannot  in 
any  degree  adequately  discuss  in  this  place. 

As  a  general  rule,  it  may  be  said,  that  weight  for  weight,  the  Leguminous 
seeds  contain  about  twice  as  much  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  as  the 
Cereal  grains.  We  have  elsewhere  shown,  that  in  a  Leguminous  crop,  under 
equal  circumstances  of  soil  and  season,  an  acre  of  land  will  frequently  yield 
twice  or  thrice  as  much  of  nitrogenous  constituents  as  in  a  Cereal  grain  ;  and 
again,  that  in  the  latter  an  increase  of  produce  is  not  obtained  except  at  the 
cost  of  more  nitrogen  in  the  manure  than  is  contained  in  that  increase.  How 
is  it,  we  would  ask,  if  this  be  the  case,  and  if  really  these  foods  are'  valuable 
in  proportion  to  their  richness  in  nitrogenous  constituents,  that  according  to 
the  usual  state  of  the  market,  we  can  obtain,  for  a  given  sum,  about  twice  as 
much  nitrogenous  substance  in  the  Leguminous  seeds  as  in  the  Cereal  grain ; 
or  how  is  it,  on  the  other  hand,  that  the  Leguminous  crop  does  not,  much 
more  than  is  in  fact  the  case,  supersede  the  Cereal  grain  in  the  field,  the  feeding 
shed,  or-even  on  the  table  ?  We  have,  it  is  true,  much  yet  to  learn  of  those 
minor  differences  of  composition  to  which  is  due  the  greater  or  less  adapta- 
tion to  the  instinctive  wants  of  the  system  of  the  various  constituents  of  which 
our  staple  articles  of  food  are  made  up,  but  we  think  that  in  no  considerations 
of  this  kind  could  we  seek  an  adequate  solution  of  our  question.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  believe  that  in  the  Leguminous  seeds  the  due  proportion  of 
the  non- nitrogenous  to  the  nitrogenous  constituents  is  not  observed.  It  is 
obvious,  if  this  be  the  case,  that  in  the  use  of  the  Leguminous  seeds,  instead 
of  the  Cereal  grains,  more  than  was  requisite  of  nitrogen  would  be  taken  into 
the  system  before  the  adequate  supply  were  attained  of  the  non -nitrogenous  or 
respiratory  materials ;  nor,  as  the  markets  go,  would  the  relative  prices  of  these 
seeds  and  grains  be  found  to  interfere  with  a  somewhat  lavish  use  and  expen- 
diture of  nitrogen  in  the  former. 

In  the  facts  which  are  here  briefly  stated,  we  have  surely  very  curious  and 
interesting  matter  for  reflection ;  and  we  have  brought  to  our  view  a  striking 
instance  of  the  mutual  adaptations  which  are  everywhere  traceable  in  the 
practical  operation  of  natural  laws.  Thus,  then,  we  have  said,  that  uuder 
given  circumstauces,  the  Leguminous  crop  will  give  a  much  larger  acreage 
yield  of  nitrogen  than  the  Cereal  grain ;  and  that  an  increase  of  produce  of 
the  latter  is  not  obtained  except  at  the  cost  of  more  nitrogen  in  the  manure 
than  is  obtained  in  this  increased  produce  ;  whilst  in  point  of  fact,  in  the  or- 
dinary practice  of  rotation  in  this  country,  -the  growth  of  the  Leguminous  corn 
or  fodder  crop,  with  its  large  per-centage  and  actual  amount  of  nitrogen,  is 
"tself  frequently  either  the  direct  or  indirect  source  of  the  nitrogenous  ma- 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       347 

nure  by  which  the  increased  Cereal  is  obtained ;  and  again,  this  Cereal,  ob- 
tained at  the  cost  of,  but  with  its  lessened  produce  of  nitrogen,  is  found  in 
practice  to  be  of  equal,  or  of  a  more  highly  feeding  value  than  the  more 
highly  nitrogenized  Leguminous  product  which  perhaps  has  been  expended 
to  produce  it.  It  would  thus  appear,  therefore,  that  the  demands  of  the  re- 
spiratory function  which  again,  more  than  any  other,  regulate  the  consump- 
tion of  food,  would,  in  point  of  fact,  not  be  satisfied  in  the  use  of  the  Legu- 
minous diet  unless  by  a  consumption  or  expenditure  of  an  amount  of  nitrogen 
beyond  that  which  the  due  balance  of  the  constituents  of  food  would  seem 
to  require ;  whilst  on  the  other  hand,  in  the  use  of  the  Cereal  grain,  its  better 
proportion  of  respiratory  to  nitrogenous  constituents  has  only  been  attained 
by  the  sacrifice  of  nitrogen  expended  in  its  growth.  It  would  seem,  there- 
fore, that  whether  we  would  seek  our  supplies  of  respiratory  food  in  the 
direct  use  of  the  highly  nitrogenized  Leguminous  seeds,  or  in  the  better  ba- 
lanced diet  of  the  Cereal  grains,  in  either  case  the  end  is  attained  only  at  the 
cost  or  expenditure  of  nitrogen ;  in  the  one  case,  by  the  consumption  of  a 
larger  amount  of  it  in  the  food  than  the  due  balance  of  constituents  would 
seem  to  require,  whilst  in  the  other  this  due  balance  has  not  been  attained 
without  a  loss  of  nitrogen  during  growth.  The  claims  of  health  and  na- 
tural instinct  generally  leave  little  doubt  which  alternative  should  be  adopted, 
in  the  case  of  human  food  at  least ;  and  it  becomes  us,  therefore,  to  investi- 
gate and  understand  the  practical  bearings  of  these  curious  and  interesting 
facts ;  for  upon  the  principles  they  involve  depend  much  for  their  success 
those  fundamental  practices  of  the  farm, — the  feeding  of  our  stock,  for  their 
double  products  of  meat  and  manure,  and  the  adaptation  of  our  rotations. 

It  would  appear,  then,  from  our  experiments,  that  taking  our  current  food- 
stuffs as  we  find  them,  it  is  their  supply  of  the  non- nitrogenous,  rather  than  of 
their  nitrogenous  constituents,  which  guides  both  the  amount  of  food  consumed, 
and  of  increase  produced,  by  a  fattening  animal.  When  we  consider  the  na- 
ture of  the  respiratory  process,  and  the  large  share  which  its  demands  must 
necessarily  have  upon  the  consumption  of  food,  it  can  scarcely  appear  sur- 
prising that  consumption,  at  least,  should  be  chiefly  regulated  by  the  supply 
in  the  food  of  compounds  rich  in  carbon  and  hydrogen,  rather  than  nitrogen. 
That  the  amount  of  increase  produced  should  also  bear  a  closer  relationship 
to  the  supply  of  these  constituents  than  to  that  of  the  latter,  does  not  perhaps 
at  first  sight  seem  so  obvious,  especially  if  we  supposed,  as  some  writers  on 
this  subject  have  done,  that  the  amount  of  nitrogen  in  the  current  food  of 
man  and  other  animals  was  frequently  insufficient  to  supply  the  amount  re- 
quired* for  the  production  or  restoration  of  the  nitrogenous  products  of  the 
animal  organism.  We  believe,  however,  that  a  closer  examination  of  the 
facts  would  show  that  this  exceedingly  rarely  happens ;  and  we  think,  more- 
over, as  we  have  already  intimated,  that  in  fact,  that  portion  of  nitrogen  which 
is  stored  up  in  the  increase  of  a  growing,  and  especially  of  a  "fattening  "  animal, 
is  much  less  than  is  usually  supposed.  We  cannot  in  any  degree  adequately 
discuss  this  question  in  this  place;  but  when  maintaining  a  greater  relative 
importance  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  food  than  is  usually  ac- 
corded to  them,  it  seems  somewhat  pertinent  briefly  to  adduce  some  evidence 
in  confirmation  of  our  conclusions  on  this  point. 

We  propose,  therefore,  to  give  a  very  brief  summary  of  one  of  our  expe- 
riments, in  which  pigs  were  the  subjects,  which  was  undertaken  chiefly  for 
the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  composition  of  the  increase  of  the  fattening 
animal ;  but  to  obtain  also,  some  clear  evidence  in  reference  to  the  much- 
debated  question,  whether  or  not  more  fatty  matter  is  stored  up  in  the 
animal,  than  is  contained,  as  such,  in  its  food. 


348 


REPORT— 1852. 


Taking  first  the  question  of  the  composition  of  the  increase,  we  have  in  the 
following  table  a  summary  statement  of  the  composition  of  the  foods  em- 
ployed in  the  experiment  referred  to ;  and  also  of  the  pigs  themselves,  both 
in  the  store,  and  in  the  fat  condition ;  as  well  as  that  of  the  increase  in  weight 
during  the  fattening  process,  as  deduced  by  calculation. 

Table  VIIL 
Summary  of  the  Per-centage  Composition  of  the  Foods  employed-— of  the 
Store  Pig,  and  of  the  Fat  Pig — and  also  of  the  Increase  in  Live  Weight  of 
the  latter. 


Description. 

Dry  Matter. 

Mineral  Matter  (Ash). 

Nitrogen. 

FattyMatter(by  aether , . 

Inclusive 
of  Ash. 

Organic 
only. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Substance. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Substance. 

In  Fresh 
Substance. 

In  Dry 
Substance* 

Egyptian  Beans . 

Lentils 

Foreign  Barley... 
Bran 

87-8 
86*96 
81*86 
85-08 

84-53 
82-03 
79-72 
78-67 

3-274 
4-926 
2140 
6-408 

6-73 
5-66 
2-61 
753 

4-214 

4-487 
1-834 
2-620 

4-80 
516 
2-24 

3-08 

2-26 
2-23 
2-34 

4-98 

2-58 
2-56 
2-86 
585 

Store  or  Lean  Pig 
Fat  Pig 

39-70 
5474 

37-03 
53-09 

2-67 
1-65 

6-73 
3-01 

2-20 
1-75 

5-54 
319 

23-32 
42-20 

58-74 
77-09 

Increase   inl 
Live  Weight  J 

7183 

71-39 

0-436 

0-61 

1-33 

185 

63-44 

88-32 

We  may  briefly  explain,  that,  for  the  purposes  of  this  experiment,  two  pigs 
were  selected  resembling  each  other  as  nearly  as  possible  both  in  weight  and 
in  every  other  respect  One  of  these  was  killed  at  once,  and  its  composition 
determined  by  methods  which  we  shall  fully  describe  on  some  future  occasion. 
The  other  pig,  after  it  had  been  put  up  to  fatten  for  a  period  of  eight  weeks 
upon  weighed  quantities  of  the  foods,  the  composition  of  which  is  given  in 
the  upper  lines  of  the  table,  and  its  increase  in  weight  determined,  was  also 
killed,  and  submitted  to  the  same  methods  of  preparation  and  analysis  as  the 
former  one.  The  composition  of  the  two  pigs — the  one  in  the  store  and  the 
other  in  the  fat  condition — thus  being  ascertained,  that  of  the  increase  in 
weight  was,  as  will  be  readily  understood,  simply  a  matter  of  calculation. 

We  learn  from  this  table  (VIIL),  that  rather  less  than  40  per  cent,  of 
the  Store  or  Lean  Pig  was  dry  substance ;  of  which  about  2$rds  were  mineral 
matter.  Of  the  remaining  37  per  cent,  of  dry  substance,  2*2  were  nitrogen, 
equal  to  about  14  only  of  proteine  compounds.  There  is,  however,  of  abso- 
lute or  dry  fat  in  this  Store  or  Lean  Pig,  about  23£  per  cent ;  or  nearly  twice 
as  much  as  of  dry  nitrogenous  compounds. 

In  the  Fat  Pig,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  about  55,  instead  of  about  40 
per  cent  of  dry  substance ;  of  which  only  lfrds,  instead  of  2f  rds,  are  mineral 
matter.  Of  the  remaining  53  per  cent  of  dry  substance,  only  1*75,  instead 
of  2*2,  is  nitrogen;  and  this  is  equal,  upon  the  entire  animal,  to  only  11, 
instead  of  H  per  cent  of  proteine  compounds.  We  have,  however,  offal, 
instead  of  23£  per  cent,  about  42£  per  cent  in  this  Fat  Pig,  or  nearly  double 
as  much  as  in  the  Lean  one ;  and  nearly  four  times  as  much  as  of  dry 
nitrogenous  compounds. 

With  then  only  about  14  per  cent  of  nitrogenous  substance  in  the  Lean 
Pig,  and  nearly  twice  as  much  fat,  we  have,  in  the  fattening  process,  con. 
ducted  only  for  a  few  weeks,  the  per-centage  of  mineral  matter,  reduced  by 
about  one-third,  and  that  of  the  nitrogenous  substances  by  about  one-fourth ; 
that  of  the  fat,  on  the  other  hand,  which  in  the  Store  Pig  even,  was  in  so 


POODS,  IN  ABLATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        349 

much  the  larger  proportion,  is  nearly  doubled  in  the  Fat  one.  Thus,  the 
increase  in  weight  during  the  fattening  process  was  found  to  contain  as  much 
as  72  per  cent,  of  dry  substance,  of  which  only  0*4S6  is  mineral  matter,  and 
only  1*33  nitrogen,  equal  to  about  8£  of  proteine  or  gelatinous  compounds. 
There  is,  however,  about  6S\  per  cent,  of  fat,  or  nearly  eight  times  as  much 
as  of  dry  nitrogenous  compounds.  Indeed,  it  is  seen  in  the  table,  that  88 
per  cent.,  or  about  eight-ninths  of  the  entire  dry  increase  of  this  Fat  Pig,  was 
pure  fat. 

M.  Boussingault,  in  his  '  Rural  Economy,'  estimates  that  the  Ox,  the 
Sheep,  and  the  Pig,  contain  from  3£  to  4  per  cent,  of  nitrogen  ;  and  more 
recently  in  his  paper  on  the  Formation  of  Fat  in  the  Animal  Body  (Ann.  de 
Chenue,  vol.  xiv.  p.  444),  he  supposes  4  as  the  probable  per-centage  in  the 
Pig.  He  also  states  (Rural  Economy),  that  M.  Pay  en  estimates  the  increase 
of  the  fattening  pig  to  contain  about  16  per  cent,  of  nitrogenous  compounds, 
equal  to  about  2£  per  cent  of  nitrogen.  It  will  be  observed,  however,  that 
only  about  half  of  these  amounts  of  nitrogen  were  found  in  the  direct  expe- 
riments of  our  own  which  we  have  quoted  ;  and  it  should  at  the  same  time 
be  remarked,  that  the  Fat  Pig  in  our  experiment  was  by  no  means  so  fat  as 
is  usual,  at  least  in  this  country. 

It  is  doubtless  true,  that  other  animals,  as  fed  for  the  butcher,  will  generally 
contain  more  flesh  and  less  fat  than  the  pig.  In  a  very  fat  sheep,  however, 
fed  for  Christmas,  and  which  was  indeed  too  fat,  we  found  a  larger  per- 
centage of  fat,  and  as  little  nitrogenous  substance,  as  in  the  moderately  fat 
pig,  whose  composition  has  been  given  above.  Among  our  experiments  on 
this  subject,  it  was  only  in  the  case  of  a  lean  ox,  that  we  found  the  nitrogen 
to  exceed  2£  per  cent,  of  the  entire  animal ;  whilst  in  all  the  cases  of  store 
or  lean  animals,  the  per-centage  of  dry  fat  was  much  greater  than  that  of  the 
dry  nitrogenous  compounds. 

The  fact  that  fat  is  in  so  much  a  larger  proportion  than  lean  in  the  animals 
fed  for  the  butcher,  would  seem  not  only  to  be  consistent  with  the  results  of 
our  experiments  as  to  the  great  influence  of  the  non -nitrogenous  constituents 
of  the  food  of  these  animals  in  the  production  of  increase  during  the  fattening 
process — but  it  indicates  also  the  predominance  of  this  non-nitrogenous  cha- 
racter in  that  description  of  human  food  (butcher's  meat),  which  is  generally 
spoken  of  as  the  most  nitrogenous,  and  therefore  the  most  nutritive. 

That  the  fatty  matter  of  the  food  is  not  the  only  source  of  the  fat  stored 
up  in  the  body  of  the  fattening  animal,  is  illustrated  by  a  further  consi- 
deration of  the  circumstances  and  results  of  this  same  experiment  with  pigs. 
Thus,  in  the  following  table  are  shown  the  amounts  of  Gross  Dry  Sub- 
stance— of  Mineral  Matter — of  Dry  Organic  Matter — of  Total  JVon-nitro- 
genous  constituents — of  Nitrogenous  constituents — and  of  fatty  matter,  stored 
up  in  the  Fat  Pig,  for  100  lbs.  of  each  of  them  consumed  as  food. 

Table  IX. 

Showing  the  proportion  of  certain  constituents  stored  up  in  the  Fattening  Pig 

for  100  of  each  of  them  consumed  as  food. 


Constituents. 

• 

Consumed 

as 
Food. 

Stored  up 
in  the 
Animal. 

Expired, 
Perspired, 
or  Voided. 

Gross  dry  substance    

100 
100 
100 
100 
100 
100 

15*04 

219 

15-59 

1774 

8-35 

40700 

84-96 
9781 
84-41 
82-26 
91-65 

Mineral  matter    

Total  dry  organic  matter 

Non-nitrogenous  constituents 
Nitrogenous  constituents   ... 
Fatty  matter    

350 


BKPOET— 1 852. 


It  may  be  observed,  that  in  the  case  of  the  experiment  with  this  single  pig, 
the  amounts  of  nitrogenous  and  non-nitrogenous  constituents  required  to 
produce  a  given  amount  of  increase — though  nearly  the  same  as  the  averages 
of  the  24  pens,  as  given  at  the  foot  of  Table  VII. — were  greater,  than  in  many 
of  the  cases  with  the  better  foods.  Hence,  the  quantities  of  the  various  con- 
stituents, represented  in  Table  IX.  as  stored  up  in  this  pig  for  100  of  each  of 
them  consumed,  are  less  than  they  would  be  in  many  of  the  other  experi- 
ments. We  believe,  however,  that  the  figures  in  the  Table  (IX.) may  be  trusted 
in  their  general  indications ;  and  attention  may  therefore  be  called  in  passing 
to  the  fact,  that  for  100  of  each  consumed,  there  is  of  the  total  dry  substance 
little  more  than  15  stored  up  in  the  animal;  of  the  mineral  matter,  little 
more  than  2  per  cent. ;  and  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents,  about  8£rd  per 
cent. 

Again,  a  glance  at  the  Table  shows  how  very  much  larger  is  that  propor- 
tion of  every  constituent  of  the  food — excepting  fatty  matter — which  was 
expired,  perspired  or  voided,  i.  e.  which  was  expended  in  merely  keeping  in 
working  order  the  living  mechanism,  than  that  which  is  stored  up  in  the 
animal  as  increase.  Of  fat,  however,  it  appears  that  there  was  nearly  four 
times  as  much  stored  up  in  the  animal,  as  there  was  of  fatty  matter  ready 
formed  in  the  food.  There  was  then,  in  this  experiment,  a  considerable 
formation  of  fat  in  the  animal  body. 

As  is  seen  in  the  Table  (IX.),  for  every  100  lbs.  of  gross  dry  substance 
consumed  as  food,  only  about  15  lbs.  were  stored  up  in  the  animal;  and  about 
85  lbs.  expired,  perspired  or  voided.  It  may  be  convenient  here  to  show  in  a 
tabular  form,  the  composition  of  this  1504  of  total  dry  increase  obtained  by 
the  consumption  of  100  of  total  dry  matter  as  food. 

Table  X. 


Mineral  matter ...••«.... 

0*09 

1-67 
13  28 

Nitrogenous  substance 

Non-nitrogenous  substance  (fat) 

Total  increase  

15*04 

84  96 

Expired,  perspired  or  voided  ... 

Total  dry  matter  consumed 

100*00 

It  must  not  be  concluded,  however,  that  only  15  per  cent  of  the  dry  sub* 
stance  of  the  food  was  employed  in  the  production  of  the  15  parts  stored  up 
in  the  fat  pig.  Thus,  in  Table  X.  we  see,  that,  of  the  1504  of  gross  dry 
increase  produced  from  100  of  gross  dry  food  consumed,  1S*S  were /of;  and 
from  Table  IX.  we  learn,  that  only  one-fourth  of  this  fat  could  hare  been 
derived  from  fatty  matter  already  formed  in  the  food.  As  then  only  one- 
fourth,  or  about  3*3  parts  of  the  13*3  of  pure  fat,  was  already  formed  in  the 
food,  about  10  parts  out  of  the  15  of  dry  animal  substance  produced,  would 
be  fat  formed  in  the  body  from  some  other  constituents.  We  may  perhaps 
safely  reckon,  that  at  least  2£  parts  of  starch,  or  the  other  non-nitrogenous 
compounds  of  food,  would  be  required  for  the  formation  of  one  part  of  fat. 
It  is  true,  that  less  than  2£  of  starch,  &c.  would  contain  all  the  constituents 
of  one  part  of  fat ;  but  when  we  consider,  that  in  the  conversion  of  the 
starch  series  of  compounds  into  fat  a  large  quantity  of  oxygen  is  eliminated, 
which  we  may  assume  would  not  leave  the  body  except  in  combination  with 
matters  that  would  otherwise  serve  the  respiratory  process,  it  would  seem 
probable,  that  more  than  2|  parts  of  other  constituents  of  food  would  be  ex- 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.       351 

pended  in  the  direct  production  in  the  animal  body  of  one  part  of  fat  At 
any  rate,  we  are  safe  in  assuming  this  amount  for  our  present  purpose,  in  the 
absence  of  more  exact  knowledge  than  is  at  command  on  the  nature  of  the 
intermediate  changes  to  which  the  constituents  of  food  are  subject  in  their 
passage  through  the  body.  If,  then,  we  suppose,  that  the  starch  series — rather 
than  the  proteine  compounds — of  the  food,  served  for  the  formation  of  the 
fat  in  the  animal  body,  it  follows,  that  about  25  parts  of  these  were  expended 
in  the  formation  of  the  10  parts  of  produced  fat  If  now  we  add  to  this 
amount  of  the  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food  not  fat  the  3£rd  parts 
which  were  fatty  matter  already  formed,  and  also  the  lfrds  of  the  increase 
which  was  not  fat,  it  would  appear,  that  at  least  30  parts  of  the  100  of  dry 
substance  consumed,  must  have  been  directly  employed  in  the  production  of 
the  15  only  of  dry  animal  increase.  It  is  obvious,  too,  from  the  nature  of  the 
chemical  change  by  which  fat  would  be  formed  from  the  starch  series  of 
compounds,  that  the  extra  15  of  the  30  parts  of  the  dry  substance  of  the 
food,  which  were  expended  in  the  direct  production  of  the  15  of  dry  increase, 
would  not  serve  any  useful  purpose  in  the  respiratory  process  of  the  fattening 
animal.  And,  unless  indeed,  we  were  to  assume — that  in  the  more  direct  use 
of  the  starch  series  of  compounds  as  respiratory  matter,  their  oxygen  was 
eliminated  only  in  combination  with  respiratory  material — and  that  when  em- 
ployed in  the  production  of  fat  it  was  not  so— it  would  appear,  that  not  only 
must  this  produced  fat  have  been  obtained  at  the  cost  of  respiratory  material 
expended  by  the  fattening  animal  which  produced  it—but  that  it  is,  at  any 
rate,  not  in  the  amount  of  respiratory  material  thus  obtained,  that  there  can 
be  any  gain  in  this  conversion  by  the  fattening  animal  of  a  given  amount  of 
compounds  of  lower  respiratory  and  fat-forming  capacity,  into  fat  to  serve 
as  human  food,  of  which  it  is  the  most  concentrated  of  the  respiratory  con* 
stituents. 

If,  then,  as  we  have  seen,  so  large  a  proportion  as  nearly  £rd  of  the  dry 
substance  of  the  food  of  the  fattening  pig  may  be  employed  in  the  direct 
production  of  increase— ami  we  have  reason  to  suppose  that  frequently  more 
than  this  is  so  employed — we  think  that  the  deviations  from  uniformity  in  the 
amounts  of  non-nitrogenous  constituents  consumed  by  a  given  weight  of 
animal,  within  a  given  time,  as  shown  in  our  tables,  will  be  admitted  to  be 
even  less  than  might  have  been  expected  in  so  extensive  and  varied  a  series 
of  experiments — and  to  be,  by  no  means  such,  as  to  raise  any  question  as  to 
whether  or  not,  it  was  the  supplies  of  the  respiratory  and  fat-forming,  rather 
than  the  flesh-forming  constituents  of  the  foods,  which  determined  the 
amounts  consumed. 

But  to  recur  to  the  question  of  the  formation  of  fat  in  the  animal  body. 
We  believe  that  such  a  formation,  even  to  a  considerable,  and  practically 
important  extent,  is  demonstrated  by  the  results  of  the  experiments  with  pigs 
last  given ;  and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  that  it  is  the  starch  and  other 
non -nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food  that  contribute  mainly,  if  not  en- 
tirely, to  this  formation. 

At  one  time  MM.  Dumas  and  Boussingault  maintained  that  the  formation 
of  fat  in  the  animal  body  was  improbable ;  and  others  have  done  so  more  re- 
cently. Since  that  time,  however,  both  M.  Boussingault  and  M.  Persoz  have 
instituted  direct  experiments  in  reference  to  this  question.  In  the  course  of 
these  experiments  they  found  a  decided  formation  of  fat ;  and  most  probably 
from  the  starch  series  of  compounds. 

M.  Boussingault  made  numerous  experiments  of  a  somewhat  artificial  kind 
with  ducks ;  from  which  it  appeared,  that  fat  might  be  formed  in  the  body 
from  other  non-nitrogenous  constituents  of  food,  and  probably  from  nitroge- 


352  report — 1852. 

nous  compounds  also.  He  also  experimented  with  pigs,  in  a  manner  somewhat 
similar  to  that  adopted  by  ourselves ;  and  it  is  a  curious  circumstance,  that 
his  storey  or  lean  pig,  contained  almost  identically  the  same  per-centage  of 
fat  as  our  own.  The  foods  he  employed  were,  however,  far  inferior  in  fatten- 
ing quality.  Hence,  though  his  experiments  extended  over  a  much  longer 
period  of  time,  the  per-centage  of  fat  in  his  fat  pig  was  scarcely  5  per  cent, 
higher  than  in  his  lean  one ;  whilst  almost  the  whole  of  this  increased  fat  had 
been  supplied  by  fatty  matter  in  the  food.  It  was  indeed  mainly  upon  a 
calculation  of  the  fat  which  had  been  supplied  in  the  food  of  the  store  pig,  ' 
that  he  found  the  evidence  of  the  formation  of  fat  in  his  experiments  with 
pigs.  M.  Boussingault  is  disposed  to  believe,  that  the  nitrogenous  con- 
stituents of  food  probably  have  some  considerable  influence  in  the  formation 
of  fat  in  the  animal  body.  We  have  ourselves  called  attention  to  the  fact, 
that  a  large  supply  of  the  nitrogenous  constituents  of  the  food  would  seem 
to  replace  a  relative  deficiency  of  other  constituents.  The  amount  of  increase 
is  found,  however,  to  bear  a  rapidly  decreasing  ratio  to  the  amount  of  nitrogen 
in  the  food  when  this  exceeds  a  somewhat  narrow  limit;  whilst  the  composition 
of  such  increase  would  appear  to  contain  a  less  proportion  of  fat  Whether 
therefore  any  effect  of  an  excess  of  nitrogenous  compounds  in  the  produc- 
tion of  increase  be  due  merely  to  the  amounts  tbey  contain  of  certain  non- 
nitrogenous  elements,  or  to  the  influence  of  the  nitrogenous  compounds  them- 
selves as  such,  in  increasing  the  activity  of  some  of  the  vital  processes,  and  thus 
aiding  the  production  of  fat,  or  whether  any  increase  due  to  the  nitrogenous 
constituents  in  the  food  is  more  generally  not  fat  at  all,  raay'be  considered 
to  be  an  open  question. 

In  the  experiments  made  by  M.  Persoz,  geese  were  the  animals  he  operated 
upon,  and  maize  the  food  employed.  He.  found  a  decided  formation  of  fat; 
and  apparently  from  the  starch  series  of  compounds. 

Wc  repeat,  then,  that  we  believe  that  the  formation  of  fat  in  the  animal 
body,  even  to  a  considerable  and  practically  important  extent,  and  most 
probably  from  the  starch  series  of  compounds,  may  now  be  considered  to  be 
clearly  proved.  It  would  appear,  therefore,  that  the  theoretical  opinions  of 
Baron  Liebig  on  this  point  are  fully  borne  out. 

We  have  thus  far  only  alluded  to  the  feeding  of  fattening  animals ;  and  we 
think  that  the  results  which  have  been  brought  forward  clearly  indicate,  that 
with  them  at  least,  as  our  current  food-stuffs  go,  both  the  amount  consumed, 
and  the  increase  produced,  are  regulated  more  by  the  supplies  of  the  more 
peculiarly  respiratory  and  fat- forming  constituents,  than  of  the  flesh-forming 
or  nitrogenous  ones.  We  have,  however,  calculated  many  human  dietaries ; 
and  this  branch  of  the  subject  we  hope  to  enter  upon  more  fully  on  some  future 
occasion.  We  may,  however,  remark  in  passing,  that  from  the  results  of  this 
inquiry,  as  well  as  from  a  consideration  of  the  management  of  the  animal 
body  undergoing  somewhat  excessive  labour,  as  for  instance,  the  hunting 
horse,  the  racer,  the  cab-horse,  and  the  fox-hound,  and  also  pugilists  and 
runners,  we  are  led  to  believe,  that  in  the  cases,  at  least  of  ordinary  exercise 
of  force,  the  exigences  of  the  respiratory  system  keep  pace  more  nearly  with 
the  demand  for  nitrogenous  constituents  of  food  than  is  usually  supposed  ; 
and  in  fact,  that  the  exigeuces  of  the  animal  body  are  much  more  correctly 
stated  in  the  following  sentences  by  Professor  Liebig,  than  in  those  wherein 
he  has  attached  so  much  more  of  importance  to  the  amounts  of  the  nitro- 
genous constituents,  as  the  measure  of  the  comparative  value  of  foods. 
At  page  314?  of  the  3rd  edition  of  his  Chemical  Letters,  he  says : — 
"  *  *  *  It  is  evident  that  the  amount  of  nourishment  required  by  an  animal 


FOODS,  IN  RELATION  TO  RESPIRATION  AND  FEEDING.        353 

for  its  support  must  be  in  a  direct  ratio  with  the  quantity  of  oxygen  taken 
into  its  system." 

And  again  at  page  322 : — 

"  But  the  waste  of  matter,  or  the  force  exerted,  always  stands  in  a  certain 
relation  to  the  consumption  of  oxygen  in  respiration ;  and  the  quantity  of 
oxygen  taken  up  in  a  given  time  determines  in  all  seasons,  and  in  all  climates, 
the  amount  of  food  necessary  to  restore  the  equilibrium." 

A  somewhat  concentrated  supply  of  nitrogen  does,  however,  in  some  cases, 
seem  to  be  required  when  the  system  is  overtaxed ;  as  for  instance,  when 
day  by  day,  more  labour  is  demanded  of  the  animal  body  than  it  is  compe- 
tent without  deterioration  to  keep  up ;  and  perhaps  also,  in  the  human  body, 
when  under  excitement  or  excessive  mental  exercise.  It  must  be  remembered, 
however,  that  it  is  in  butcher's  meat,  to  which  is  attributed  such  high  flesh- 
forming  capacity,  that  we  have  also,  in  the  fat  which  it  contains,  a  large  pro- 
portion of  respiratory  material  of  the  most  concentrated  kind.  It  is  found 
too,  that  of  the  dry  substance  of  the  egg>  40  per  cent,  is  pure  fat 

A  consideration  of  the  habits  of  those  of  the  labouring  classes  who  are 
under-  rather  than  over-fed,  will  show,  that  they  first  have  recourse  to  fat 
meat,  such  as  pork,  rather  than  to  those  which  are  leaner  and  more  nitroge- 
nous; thus  perhaps  indicating,  that  the  first  instinctive  call  is  for  an  increase 
of  the  respiratory  constituents  of  food.  It  cannot  be  doubted,  however,  that 
the  higher  classes  do  consume  a  larger  proportion  of  the  leaner  meats; 
though  it  is  probable,  as  we  have  said,  that  even  with  these  as  well  as  pork, 
more  fat,  possessing  a  higher  respiratory  capacity  than  any  other  constituent 
of  food,  is  taken  into  the  system  than  is  generally  imagined.  Fat  and  butter, 
indeed,  may  be  said  to  have  about  twice  and  a  half  the  respiratory  capacity 
of  starch,  sugar,  &c.  It  should  be  remembered,  too,  that  the  classes  which 
consume  most  of  the  leaner  meats,  are  also  those  which  consume  the  most 
butter,  sugar,  and  in  many  cases,  alcoholic  drinks  also. 

It  is  further  worthy  of  remark,  that  wherever  labour  is  expended  in  the 
manufacture  of  staple  articles  of  food,  it  has  generally  for  its  object  the  con- 
centration of  the  wow-nitrogenous,  or  more  peculiarly  respiratory  constituents. 
Sugar,  butter,  and  alcoholic  drinks  are  notable  instances  of  this.  Cheese, 
which  at  first  sight  might  appear  an  exception,  is  in  reality  not  so ;  for  those 
cheeses  which  bring  the  highest  price  are  always  those  which  contain  the 
most  butter ;  whilst  butter  itself  is  always  dearer  than  cheese. 

In  conclusion,  it  must  by  no  means  be  understood  that  we  would  in  any 
way  depreciate  the  value  of  even  a  somewhat  liberal  amount  of  nitrogen  in 
food.  We  believe,  however,  that  on  the  current  views  too  high  a  relative 
importance  is  attached  to  it ;  and  that  it  would  conduce  to  further  progress 
in  this  most  important  field  of  inquiry  if  the  prevailing  opinions  on  the  sub- 
ject were  somewhat  modified. 


1852.  2  a 


NOTICES  AND  ABSTRACTS 


or 


MISCELLANEOUS  COMMUNICATIONS  TO  THE  SECTIONS. 


<^"      tit-    » i : k  '      \ 

[ukivsrsity: 

NOTICES  AND  ABSTRACTS 

OF 

MISCELLANEOUS  COMMUNICATIONS  TO  THE  SECTIONS. 


Mathematics  and  physics. 

Mathematics. 

Thb  Rev.  Dr.  Bryce  gave  an  Account  of  a  Treatise  on  Arithmetic  in  the  Chinese 
Language,  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Moncrieff,  late  of  St.  Paul's  College,  Hong  Kong. 

The  Chinese  have  for  ages  had  a  character  (called  Ling)  corresponding  in  part  to 
oar  zero,  but  used  by  them  only  to  fill  a  vacant  place,  not  to  give  local  value.  Thus 
they  came  one  step  nearer  the  Arabic  notation  than  the  Greeks  did.  One  step  how- 
ever remained*  which  Dr.  Moncrieff  has  taken.  The  Jesuit  missionaries  to  China 
had  printed  Vlacq's  Logarithmic  Tables  in  a  simplified  character,  and  it  has  been 
said  that  a  copy  of  their  work  was  presented  to  the  Royal  Society  about  the  year 
1750.  Dr.  Moncrieff's  letter  requesting  him  to  make  the  present  communication, 
had  only  reached  Dr.  Bryce  on  the  first  day  after  the  present  meeting  ;  and  having 
been  pretty  constant  in  his  attendance  on  the  Sections,  he  had  not  had  time  to 
investigate  the  matter  particularly :  however,  he  had  examined  all  the  records  of  the 
Royal  Society  within  his  reach,  but  could  find  no  notice  of  the  work  of  those  reverend 
gentlemen.  He  was  therefore  unable  to  say  whether  they  had  attempted  to  introduce 
the  admirable  device  of  local  value,  which  is  the  distinctive  characteristic  of  the  Arabic 
notation.  If  they  had.  Dr.  Moncrieff  evidently  knew  nothing  of  their  having  done 
so ;  which  is  not  wonderful,  inasmuch  as  Dr.  Peacock,  io  his  learned  and  elaborate 
history  of  the  science  (Encyclopaedia  Metropolitana),  makes  no  mention  of  their 
work,  from  which  we  may  infer  that  it  was  unknown  even  to  him.  At  all  events, 
pr.  Moncrieff  found  the  actual  arithmetic  of  China  in  the  same  clumsy  condition 
in  which  it  has  been  for  ages,  their  notation  quite  unfit  for  making  calculations  on 
paper  as  we  do,  in  consequence  of  which  they  were  obliged  to  perform  all  arithme- 
tical operations  on  the  Abacus*. 

Finding  the  circle  used  for  another  purpose  in  the  written  language  of  China,  Dr. 
Moncrieff  used  a  triangle  for  his  ling  or  zero,  and  employed  it  to  convert  the  cha- 
racters representing  simple  units,  into  symbols  for  tens,  hundreds,  &c,  exactly  as  in 
the  Arabic  notation.  He  also  introduced  our  marks  of  addition,  subtraction,  mul- 
tiplication, division,  involution,  evolution,  &c,  modifying  some  of  them  to  distinguish 
them  from  characters  already  in  use  for  other  purposes. 

The  work  comprises  the  common  rules, — fractions,  common  and  decimal, — invo- 
lution and  evolution ;  in  short,  the  general  scientific  principles  of  arithmetic.     He 

*  Two  different  figures  of  the  Chinese  Abacus  are  given  in  the  Phil.  Trans,  for  1686,  and 
in  Da  Halde's  History  of  China. 
1852.  1 


NOTICES  AND  ABSTRACTS 


or 


MISCELLANEOUS  COMMUNICATIONS  TO  THE  SECTIONS. 


REPORT — 1852. 


any  author  has  treated  of  the  shape  of  images  as  affected  only  by  the  size  of  the 
lenses  or  mirrors  by  which  they  are  formed.  This  subject  is  of  fundamental  im- 
portance in  the  new  art  of  Photography,  when  the  images  delineated  by  the  solar 
rays  are  formed  by  lenses,  and  sometimes,  too,  by  mirrors  of  a  larger  size. 

The  images  of  objects  formed  upon  a  plane  surface  differ  from  the  objects  them- 
selves, from  many  causes  which  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  enumerate.  The  most 
skilful  opticians  have  striven,  and  to  a  great  extent  successfully,  to  make  the  most 
perfect  lenses  for  photographic  purposes ;  but  the  photographer  himself  has  over- 
looked the  greatest  imperfection  to  which  his  art  is  subject,  arising  solely  from  the 
size  of  the  lenses  in  his  camera. 

According  to  the  geometrical  principles  of  perspective,  the  correct  representation 
of  any  body  or  object  whatever,  upon  a  plane  surface,  is  obtained  by  drawing  lines 
from  the  point  of  sight,  through  every  point  of  the  body  or  object,  to  that  plane. 
As  the  pupil  of  the  human  eye  is  little  more  than  two-tenths  of  an  inch  in  diameter, 
we  may  regard  the  picture  on  the  retina  as  a  correct  representation  of  external 
objects,  in  so  far,  at  least,  as  its  correctness  depends  upon  the  size  of  the  lens  which 
forms  the  picture.  In  like  manner  we  may  consider  the  image  of  objects  formed  by 
a  lens  the  size  of  the  pupil  of  the  eye  as  a  correct  representation  of  the  object. 

Now  if  in  perspective  we  take  a  new  point  of  sight  two-tenths  of  an  inch  distant 
from  the  first,  the  perspective  representation  of  the  object  on  a  plane  will  be  changed, 
and  the  magnitude  of  the  change  will  increase  with  the  distance  between  the  two 
points  of  sight.  In  like  manner,  if  we  look  at  an  object  from  two  different  points, 
which  are  two- tenths  of  an  inch  distant,  we  shall  obtain  two  views  of  that  object 
equally  dissimilar. 

Following  out  this  principle,  let  us  suppose  that  a  lens  four  inches  square  is 
employed  to  produce  upon  a  plane  surface  the  image  of  any  object,  and  that  the 
size  of  the  pupil  of  the  eye  is  two-tenths  of  an  inch ;  then,  as  there  will  be  several 
hundred  areas  equal  to  that  of  the  pupil  in  the  lens,  the  image  given  by  the  lens  will 
be  a  compound  image  consisting  of  several  hundred  perspective  views  of  the  object 
taken  from  several  hundred  different  points  of  sight,  each  distant  two- tenths  of  an 
inch  from  its  neighbour,  and  all  those  on  the  margin  of  the  lens  distant  three  inches 
and  eight-tenths  from  those  opposite  to  them.  Such  a  jumble  of  images  cannot, 
under  any  circumstances,  be  a  true  representation  of  the  object.  This  view  of  the 
question,  as  one  of  perspective,  will  be  more  intelligible  if  we  consider  the  subject 
optically. 

Let  LL  be  either  the  horizontal  or  the  vertical  section  of  a  lens,  by  means  of 

which  an  image  or  picture  of  the  object 
ABCDE  is  to  be  taken  either  on  a  plane  sur- 
face, or  suspended  in  the  air,  and  made  visible 
to  an  eye  behind  the  lens.  The  solid  object 
ABE  consists  of  a  cylindrical  portion  ABDC, 
whose  termination  AB  is  a  circle,  and  of  a 
conical  portion  CDE.  If  we  continue  the 
lines  EC,  ED,  and  CA,  DB,  they  will  meet 
the  lens  in  the  points  c,  a,  d,  b.  If  we  now 
cover  all  the  lens  except  the  central  portion 
ab,  the  image  of  the  object  ABE  will  be 
merely  a  circle,  as  shown  at  ab,  fig.  1,  because 
not  a  single  ray  from  the  cylindrical  surface 
ABDC,  nor  from  the  conical  surface  CDE,  can 
reach  the  lens  ab.  In  like  manner,  if  we  cover 
all  the  lens  except  cdt  the  image  of  the  ob- 
ject ABE  will  be,  as  shown  in  fig.  2,  at  cd, 
its  circular  termination,  and  the  cylindrical 
part  of  it  only  being  seen,  because  not  a  single 
ray  from  its  conical  part  CDE  can  fall  upon 
the  lens  erf.  But  when  the  whole  area  LL  of  the  lens  is  exposed,  the  whole  object 
will  be  seen  suspended  in  the  air,  as  at  LL,  fig.  2. 

If  the  image  is  received  upon  a  plane  surface  behind  the  lens,  the  cylindrical  part 
will  be  represented  by  a  halo  or  circle  of  light  surrounding  the  circle  ab,  and  cor- 


Fig.  2. 


m  c^a>9 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTION8.  5 

responding  in  size  to  the  section  wit,  fig.  1 ,  of  the  cone  of  rays  CcdD ;  and  the 
conical  part  CDE  will  be  represented  by  another  halo  or  circle,  round  the  halo  mn, 
and  corresponding  to  the  section  op  of  the  cone  of  rays  ELL. 

Results  demonstrating  the  truth  of  these  views  have  been  obtained  photographi- 
cally by  my  friend  Mr.  Buckle  of  Peterborough,  whose  beautiful  Talbotypes  obtained 
a  Council  Medal  at  the  Great  Exhibition.  The  acting  diameter  of  his  lens  was  3J 
inches,  and  the  effect  of  the  combination  of  the  marginal  pictures  is  most  distinctly 
exhibited. 

Let  us  now  apply  these  results  to  the  photographical  pictures  of  the  human  bust 
as  taken  in  a  camera.  The  human  face  and  head  consist  superficially  of  various 
surfaces,  some  vertical,  some  horizontal,  and  many  inclined  at  all  angles  to  the 
axis  of  the  lens  by  which  they  are  to  be  represented  on  a  plane  surface.  A  true 
perspective  representation  of  the  human  head  placed  at  AB,  will  be  that  which  is 
given  by  a  lens  ab  whose  diameter  is  equal  to  that  of  the  pupil  of  the  eye,  or  as 
formed  by  lines  passing  from  the  centre  of  the  pupil  to  different  points  of  the 
head.  From  such  a  portrait,  all  surfaces,  such  as  AC,  BD,  EC,  ED  will  be 
excluded ;  but  if  we  use  the  whole  lens  LL,  all  these  surfaces,  and  all  those  of  an 
intermediate  inclination  between  AC  and  EC,  BD  and  DE,  will  be  introduced 
into  the  portrait.  If,  for  example,  LL  is  a  horizontal  section  of  the  lens,  the  right 
hand  marginal  parts  of  the  lens,  between  a  and  L,  may  introduce  into  the  portrait 
the  left  eye,  or  the  left  ear,  or  the  left  Bide  of  the  nose,  and  all  other  parts  of  a  certain 
inclination  to  the  axis ;  thus  enlarging  all  such  parts  and  widening  the  picture.  If 
LL  be  a  vertical  section  of  the  lens,  the  lower  part  of  the  nose,  the  interior  of  the 
nostrils,  the  lower  part  of  the  upper  lip,  and  the  lower  part  of  the  chin  will  be  intro- 
duced into  the  portrait  by  the  lower  marginal  parts  6L  of  the  lens ;  while  the  top 
of  the  head,  the  upper  parts  of  the  lip  and  the  eyelids,  will  be  introduced  by  the 
upper  marginal  parts  ah  of  the  lens.  The  same  is  true  of  all  other  sections  of  the 
lens,  and  a  monstrous  portrait  of  the  human  bust  is  thus  obtained  by  the  photo- 
grapher, the  monstrosity  increasing  with  the  size  of  the  lens.  The  nature  and 
character  of  the  portrait  will  thus  vary  with  the  superficial  form  of  the  lens,  which 
may  be  circular,  oval,  square,  rectangular,  triangular,  or  of  any  irregular  form ;  and 
in  this  way  remarkable  modifications  of  photographic  portraits  may  be  produced 
merely  by  varying  the  shape  of  the  lens. 

The  amount  of  the  deformity  introduced  into  portraits  by  a  lens  three  or  four  inches 
in  diameter  may  be  readily  estimated  by  the  fact,  that  when  a  portrait  is  taken  from 
two  points  two  and  a  half  inches  distant,  such  as  those  taken  as  seen  by  each  eye 
separately,  the  difference  between  the  two  is  so  well  marked  that  it  can  be  pointed 
out  by  a  child.  A  portrait,  therefore,  consisting  of  a  combination  of  portraits  as 
seen  from  every  point  of  a  lens  three  or  four  inches  in  diameter,  must  give  a  rorm  and 
expression  to  the  human  countenance  very  wide  of  the  truth. 

The  hideousness  of  photographic  portraits  is  universally  admitted,  and  has  been 
ascribed  to  the  imperfection  of  the  lenses  employed,  the  unsteadiness  of  the  sitter, 
and  the  necessary  constraint  of  features  and  of  limb  under  which  he  submits  to  the 
operation.  The  true  cause,  modified  doubtless  by  others,  is  the  size  of  the  lens,  even 
if  the  lens  is  optically  perfect. 

The  photographer,  therefore,  who  has  a  genuine  interest  in  the  perfection  of  his 
art,  will  receive  these  truths  with  gratitude ;  and  by  accelerating  the  photographic 
processes,  with  the  aid  of  more  sensitive  materials,  he  will  be  able  to  make  use  of 
lenses  of  very  small  aperture,  and  thus  place  his  art  in  a  higher  position  than  that 
which  it  has  yet  attained.  The  photographer,  on  the  contrary,  whose  sordid  interests 
bribe  him  to  forswear  even  the  truths  of  science,  will  continue  to  deform  the  youth 
and  beauty  that  may  in  ignorance  repair  to  his  studio,  adding  scowls  and  wrinkles 
to  the  noble  forms  of  manhood,  and  giving  to  a  fresh  and  vigorous  age  the  aspects 
of  departing  or  departed  life. 

But  while  small  apertures  possess  such  a  peculiar  advantage  as  that  of  giving  a 
true  perspective  representation  of  the  object  or  scene  to  be  delineated,  a  small  lens 
possesses  still  greater  advantages.  In  large  lenses  much  light  is  lost  by  the  absorp- 
tion of  rays  in  passing  through  a  great  thickness  of  glass,  and  also,  by  reflexion  from 
the  four  or  eight  surfaces  of  the  achromatic  lens  or  lenses  employed.  In  such  lenses, 
too,  neither  {he  chromatic  nor  the  spherical  aberrations,  which  increase  with  the 


6  REPORT— 1852. 

aperture,  are  completely  corrected,  and  no  attempt  even  is  made  to  remove  the 
influence  of  the  secondary  spectrum.  With  small  apertures,  too,  objects,  or 
parts  of  objects,  at  different  distances,  will  be  delineated  with  nearly  the  same 
distinctness,  and  a  picture  produced  as  nearly  resembling  the  original  as  it  can  be 
made  in  the  present  state  of  practical  optics. 

The  same  observations,  with  the  exception  of  those  whioh  relate  to  the  achromatism 
and  the  thickness  of  the  refracting  medium,  are  applicable  to  the  images  produced 
by  mirrors  of  different  sizes. 

On  the  Stereoecopometer.    By  A.  Claudet. 

This  was  a  simple  instrument,  by  which  the  relative  positions  of  the  two  cameras 
and  the  placing  of  the  object  could  be  accurately  determined  in  taking  the  pictures 
for  the  binocular  stereoscope. 

On  a  Man\fold  Binocular  Camera,    By  A.  Claudet. 

The  author  exhibited  a  Double  Camera  for  taking  the  two  stereoscopic  Daguerreo- 
types of  groups  or  individuals,  and  by  which  four  double  pictures  could  be  succes- 
sively taken  with  such  rapidity  as  to  be  exact  representations  of  the  same  circum- 
stances. It  would  be  impossible  to  make  all  the  mechanical  arrangements  of  this 
instrument  intelligible  without  drawings. 


On  the  Lowe  of  Magnetism  and  Diamagnetism,  in  a  Letter  to  Dr.  Faraday. 
By  Professor  Matteucci. 

Pisa,  August  15,  1851. 

My  dear  Faraday, — With  much  regret,  and  at  the  last  moment,  I  am  compelled 
to  renounce  the  pleasure  of  assisting  at  the  Meeting  of  the  British  Association  and 
of  conversing  with  you  andf  other  friends  on  scientific  subjects.  I  beg  you  to  present 
my  cordial  thanks  to  Col.  Sabine  for  the  invitation  he  so  kindly  sent  me.  I  ask 
your  permission  to  address  to  you  an  extract  of  my  researches  on  magnetism  and 
diamagnetism,  which  have  occupied  me  for  several  years :  if  you  think  that  this 
communication  can  offer  any  interest  to  the  members  of  the  Association,  you  can,  if 
you  please,  read  it  to  the  meeting,  as  I  should  be  glad  in  any  way  to  prove  my 
gratitude;  to  that  respectable  body. 

I  have  studied,  in  the  first  place,  the  influence  of  temperature  and  mechanic  action 
on  magnetic  and  diamagnetic  substances.  Thus,  I  operated  on  iron  in  a  state  of 
fusion  obtained  by  the  flame  of  oxyhydrogen  gas.  In  this  experiment  a  small  iron 
globule  is  placed  in  a  cavity  at  the  extremity  of  a  horizontal  bar  of  copper  wire  or 
caustic  lime,  suspended  by  a  cocoon  silk  in  the  magnetic  field  between  the  conical 
poles  of  a  very  powerful  electro- magnet.  Iron  in  a  state  of  fusion,  partially  oxidated, 
i«  always  attracted  by  the  magnet ;  the  diminution  of  magnetic  attraction  produced 
by  fusion  io  iron  is  immensely  great :  in  one  experiment,  which  I  think  was  suf- 
ficiently exact,  I  found  that  attraction  became  at  least  15  million  times  less,  passing 
from  the  ordinary  temperature  to  the  state  of  fusion.  All  the  compounds  of  iron, 
and  all  natural  substances  containing  a  portion  of  metallic  iron,  suffer  a  diminution 
by  heat ;  hence  it  is  that  the  natural  or  artificial  compounds  of  magnetic  and  dia- 
magnetic substances,  such  as  certain  coals  and  charcoal,  clay,  impure  metals,  gold, 
copper,  zinc,  &c,  which  are  attracted  at  the  ordinary  temperature,  appear  to  be 
temporarily  repelled  when  strongly  heated.  Passing  to  diamagnetic  substances,  I 
have  found  that  their  repulsive  action  suffers  a  very  slight  diminution  by  fusion  in 
phosphorus  and  sulphur.  But  this  is  not  the  case  with  bismuth  in  fusion,  upon 
which  I  have  verified  and  completed  the  observation  of  PlUcker. 

The  following  experiment  is  simple,  and  sure  to  succeed  at  the  first  attempt.  Take 
a  bar  of  pure  caustic  lime  and  suspend  it  in  the  magnetic  field  in  the  manner 
described ;  when  the  magnetic  power  is  developed,  the  bar  is  repelled ;  and  when 
the  bar  is  strongly  heated,  the  repulsion  is  certainly  not  less  great.  Touching  lightly 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  J 

the  small  cavity  in  the  bar  of  lime  with  a  piece  of  paper  besmeared  with  oxide  of 
iron,  one  can  easily  arrange  so  that  the  bar  is  attracted ;  and  when  the  quantity  of 
oxide  is  sufficient,  the  bar  continues  to  be  attracted  even  when  strongly  heated* 
Fill  the  cavity  with  bismuth,  1  gramme,  for  instance,  and  the  bar  will  be  again 
repelled  when  the  magnetism  is  developed.  But  if,  before  passing  the  current,  the 
bismuth  is  rased,  the  bar  will  be  attracted,  and  will  attach  itself  to  the  extremity  of 
the  pole  when  the  magnetism  is  produced.  At  the  instant  that  the  bismuth  becomes 
solid,  the  bar  detaches  itself  abruptly  from  the  pole,  and  the  diamagnetic  repulsion 
of  the  bismuth  prevails. 

It  now  remained  for  me  to  ascertain  whether  bismuth  in  a  state  of  fusion  was 
indifferent  to  magnetic  action,  or  whether,  on  the  contrary,  it  became  magnetic. 
For  this  purpose,  I  measured  by  the  number  of  oscillations  the  diamagnetic  force  of 
a  cylinder  of  bismuth  contained  in  a  corresponding  cavity  formed  in  a  bar  of  limt 
suspended  by  a  glass  hook  to  a  cocoon  silk.  Operating  with  the  necessary  pre- 
cautions,  which  are  too  long  to  be  described  here,  I  have  found  that  the  bar  of  lime, 
with  its  cylinder  of  bismuth  in  a  state  of  fusion,  made  the  same  number  of  oscilla- 
tions as  when  without  bismuth.  The  lime  being  constantly  diamagnetic,  this  might 
have  masked  the  change  of  the  bismuth  transformed  into  a  magnetic  body  by  fusion. 
I  therefore  suspended  between  the  poles  of  the  electro-magnet  a  bar  of  lime,  formed 
somewhat  like  a  salt-spoon,  in  order  to  increase  greatly  the  quantity  of  bismuth  in 
fusion  compared  with  that  of  the  lime.  In  one  experiment  I  employed  as  much  as  57 
grammes  of  fused  bismuth,  and  nevertheless  the  repulsion  continued.  Thus,  then,  the 
diamagnetic  power  of  bismuth  diminishes  suddenly  at  the  point  of  fusion,  and  during 
the  state  of  fusion  the  bismuth  remains  indifferent,  without  being  apparently  changed 
into  a  magnetic  body. 

I  have  studied  the  influence  of  mechanic  action  on  diamagnetism.  By  means  of 
a  copper  box  provided  with  a  screw,  I  was  able  to  compress  a  pure  bismuth  cylinder, 
3  millims.  in  diameter  and  34  millims.  in  length,  so  as  to  reduce  it  to  88  millims. 
I  then  made  two  cylinders  of  bismuth  precisely  of  the  same  dimensions,  the  one 
compressed,  the  other  in  its  natural  state,  and  I  found  that  the  compressed  cylinder 
had  a  diamagnetic  power  distinctly  superior  to  that  of  natural  bismuth.  I  think  it 
advisable  here  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fact  which  Coulomb,  and  more  recently 
Pliicker,  have  discovered  respecting  feebly  magnetic  substances ;  namely,  that  all 
cylinders  of  bismuth  have  the  same  oscillation  independently  of  their  weight,  or  in 
other  words,  that  the  diamagnetic  power  is  proportionate  to  the  weight  of  the 
cylinders.  Cylinders  of  bismuth,  varying  in  weight  from  0*576  gr.  to  18*600  gr., 
give  the  same  oscillation.  I  studied  afterwards,  at  some  length,  the  influence  of  a 
powerful  electro-magnet  upon  chemical  affinity  and  cohesion.  You  have  proved 
that  gases,  and  even  the  most  magnetic  of  the  gases,  do  not  suffer  any  variation  in 
density  by  magnetic  action.  I  have  repeated  the  same  experiments  on  gases,  em- 
ploying a  glass  tube  closed  or  open,  such  as  that  of  a  spirit*  level,  filled  with  gas 
and  different  liquids.  The  gaseous  bubble  placed  between  the  two  polar  extremities 
suffers  considerable  contraction  and  elongation,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  liquid 
and  gas.  I  think  I  have  proved  that  these  appearances  are  owing  to  a  simple 
change  of  form  in  the  bubble  without  variation  of  density  produced  by  the  differential 
action  of  the  magnet  on  the  gas  and  on  the  liquid.  I  made  a  great  number  of  expe- 
riments in  order  to  measure  the  electrolyzation  of  acidulated  water  in  a  very  powerful 
magnetic  field,  or  independently  of  this  influence.  Several  precautions,  not  gene- 
rally followed,  are  absolutely  necessary  to  obtain  a  uniform  result  in  the  use  of  the 
voltameter.  These  experiments  led  me  to  conclude  that  the  most  powerful  magnetic 
action  has  no  influence  whatever  on  the  electrolyzation  of  water.  There  is  however 
a  phenomenon  which  I  do  not  think  has  been  observed  hitherto,  and  on  which  I 
must  say  a  word.  In  electrolysing  water  in  a  powerful  electro- magnetic  field,  and 
if  the  experiment  is  properly  arranged,  the  streams  of  gas  bubbles  which  rise  from 
the  two  electrodes  are  violently  carried  away  in  certain  directions  when  the  magnetism 
is  put  in  activity.  I  think  this  movement  is  communicated  by  the  liquid  currents 
discovered  by  Davy.  By  employing  a  saturated  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper  for 
electrolyte,  and  by  blowing  into  that  liquid  through  a  glass  capillary  tube  a  stream  of 
atmospheric  bubbles  instead  of  those  formed  by  electrolyzation  in  water,  I  could 
easily  convince  myself  that  the  phenomenon  is  independent  of  any  peculiar  state  of 


8  REPORT— 1852. 

the  gas  supposed  to  be  derived  from  elect rolyzation.  By  a  proper  application  of 
Nobili'8  beautiful  experiment  of  colours  obtained  by  electrolyzation,  I  was  enabled 
to  demonstrate,  that  an  axis  of  great  magnetic  power  has  no  sensible  influence  in 
disturbing  the  distribution  or  propagation  of  the  electrical  currents,  nor  the  physical 
or  chemical  composition  of  the  body  traversed  by  them.  Make  a  rectangular  box,  the 
longer  sides  of  which  are  formed  of  perfectly  clean  plates  of  platina.  Fill  this  box 
with  a  solution  of  chloride  of  iron,  or  acetate  of  lead,  or  other  metallic  salts,  and  place 
it  between  the  poles  of  a  very  powerful  electro-magnet.  The  coloration  of  these 
plates,  produced  by  the  shortest  passage  of  a  very  feeble  current,  is  found  to  be  exactly 
the  same  at  all  points,  that  is,  on  the  line  of  the  magnetic  poles,  as  at  the  distance  of 
150  or  200  millimetres  from  that  line.  The  magnetic  power  therefore  does  not 
change  either  the  composition  of  the  liquid  subject  to  its  action,  nor  the  distribution 
of  the  electricity  which  traverses  it.  I  remember  having  found  formerly  that  the 
laws  of  the  derived  currents  on  a  plate  of  tin  and  of  the  isodynamic  lines,  were  not 
disturbed  by  the  influence  of  a  very  strong  electro-magnet.  I  have  also  studied  the 
influence  of  the  magnetic  power  of  the  elements  on  that  of  the  body  resulting  from 
their  combination.  Although  there  are  some  examples  of  magnetic  compounds, 
the  elements  of  which  are  diamagnetic,  such  as  protochloride  of  copper,  one  finds  in 
general  that  the  magnetical  character  of  the  compound  results  from  that  of  its  ele- 
ments. Pure  copper,  which,  independently  of  inductive  currents,  is  decidedly  dia- 
magnetic'produces  protoxide,  which  is  indifferent  or  scarcely  diamagnetic,  and  a  per- 
oxide which  is  decidedly  magnetic.  The  same  may  be  said  of  silver ;  the  protoxide 
is  diamagnetic,  and  the  binoxide,  obtained  by  the  pile,  is  decidedly  magnetic.  Operating 
on  the  various  oxides  of  bismuth  and  antimony,  I  measured  the  variations  in  the 
magnetic  power  induced  by  different  quantities  of  oxygen  contained  in  these  oxides. 
I  have  made  a  great  numbet  of  conclusive  and  elegant  experiments  on  the  laws  of 
equilibrium' of  diamagnetic  bodies  in  the  magnetic  field,  and  on  the  reciprocal  action 
of  diamagnetic  bodies.  I  have  employed  in  these  experiments  a  solution  of  chloride 
of  iron  in  concentrated  alcohol,  so  as  to  have  the  same  density  as  olive  oil,  which  is 
a  diamagnetic  body.  I  could  thus  fill  the  magnetic  field  with  this  ferruginous 
solution,  in  which  floats  a  drop  of  oil,  more  or  less  large,  or  I  could  reverse  the 
arrangement.  At  the  moment  in  which  the  electro-magnet  is  set  in  action,  the 
two  liquids  are  set  in  movement  and  place  themselves  in  equilibrium,  occupying 
distinct  places  in  the  magnetic  field.  By  adopting  the  proper  arrangements,  one 
can  easily  determine  the  form  of  the  curved  surfaces  of  separation  of  the  two  liquids. 
This  method  is  delicate,  and  fitted  for  discovering  the  slightest  difference  in  the  force 
of  the  two  poles,  or  in  their  relative  distance  from  the  centre  of  the  magnetic  field. 
If  the  magnetic  field  is  uniform,  as  one  obtains  it  with  plane  polar  surfaces  of  great 
extent,  a  small  piece  of  bismuth  suspended  to  a  cocoon  silk,  in  the  manner  employed 
also  by  yourself,  is  in  equilibrium  in  the  centre  of  the  magnetic  field  and  in  the 
greater  part  of  the  equatorial  line.  When  the  magnetic  field  is  formed  by  the  ferru- 
ginous solution,  a  piece  of  bismuth  or  drop  of  oil  floating  within  the  liquid  does  not 
remain  in  equilibrium  in  the  centre  of  the  field,  but  flies  off  to  the  side  following  the 
equatorial  line.  The  drop  changes  in  form,  and  is  prolonged  in  axial  or  equatorial 
direction  according  to  its  being  magnetic  or  diamagnetic.  The  constant  motion  of 
the  diamagnetic  drop  from  the  centre  towards  the  side  along  the  equatorial  line  and 
this,  even  when  floating  not  at  the  surface  but  in  the  middle  of  the  liquid  mass,  is 
not  in  evident  accord  with  the  beautiful  experiments  of  Reich  and  Tyndall.  I  have 
remarked  on  the  fact,  that  the  motion  takes  place  when  the  drop  is  even  in  the 
midst  of  the  liquid,  in  order  to  prove  that  this  motion  is  independent  of  the  remark- 
able elevation  undergone  by  the  ferruginous  liquid  along  the  line  of  the  poles. 
With  this  method  I  could  easily  examine  the  mutual  action  of  diamagnetic  bodies. 
For  this  purpose  the  base  of  the  square  box  placed  in  the  magnetic  field  was  formed 
one  half  of  marble  or  wood,  the  other  of  bismuth.  This  base  was  covered  with  a 
thin  stratum  of  ferruginous  liquid,  and  of  oil  three  millimetres  in  thickness.  The 
line  of  junction  of  the  marble  and  bismuth  was  alternately  axial  and  equatorial.  I 
was  never  able  to  discern  the  slightest  dissymmetry  in  the  form  of  the  surfaces  of 
separation  of  the  two  liquids,  which  might  be  attributed  to  the  influence  of  the  two 
very  different  substances,  marble  and  bismuth,  as  regards  their  magnetic  power.  In 
the  same  way,  I  have  never  been  able  to  discover  any  mutual  action  at  toe  moment 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  9 

when  the  electro-magnet  was  in  activity,  between  two  drops  of  oil  suspended  in  the 
midst  of  the  ferruginous  liquid,  or  between  a  piece  of  bismuth  and  one  of  these  drops. 
I  have  therefore  reason  to  doubt  whether  such  movements,  which  have  been  con- 
sidered as  proving  the  mutual  action  of  diamagnetic  bodies,  are  not  rather  owing  to 
the  movement  of  the  entire  liquid  mass  of  which  we  have  spoken.  Although  it  is 
extremely  probable  that  the  mutual  action  of  diamagnetic  bodies  does  exist,  and, 
according  to  the  laws  admitted  also  by  yourself,  still  it  must  be  allowed  that  this 
action  is  very  feeble,  and  it  is  much  to  be  desired  that  an  experiment  should  be  made 
by  which  it  might  be  clearly  demonstrated. 

I  pass  over  in  this  extract,  which  is  already  too  long,  my  experiments  upon  the 
different  inductive  power  of  various  metals,  on  the  time  of  induction  in  the  different 
metals,  Sec. ;  but  I  must  finally  call  your  attention  to  the  part  of  these  researches 
which  I  believe  to  be  the  most  important,  and  which  relates  to  an  experimental 
theory  of  diamagnetic  phenomena. 

A  mass  composed  of  very  fine  powder  of  perfectly  pure  silver  or  copper,  the  con- 
ductibility  of  which  is  destroyed  by  the  interposition  of  a  thin  film  of  oil  of  tur- 
pentine, duly  suspended  in  proximity  of  the  polar  surface,  is  repelled  at  the  instant  of 
the  passage  of  the  current,  and  continues  to  oscillate  like  a  mass  of  bismuth.  If  one 
composes  other  similar  suspended  matter  in  which  the  quantity  of  metal  and  con- 
ductibility  gradually  increases,  one  sees  the  silver  or  copper  pendulums  first  repelled 
from  the  pole,  then  come  to  a  stop  after  a  constantly  decreasing  number  of  oscilla- 
tions, until  at  last  they  present  the  phenomenon  which  you  have  called  revulsion, 
due  to  the  production  of  induced  currents.  In  the  same  way  a  small  copper 
or  silver  disc,  fixed  to  the  extremity  of  a  straw  lever  suspended  by  a  cocoon 
silk  near  to  a  pole,  is  repelled  or  attracted  at  the  beginning  or  end  of  the  current 
without  being  subject  to  any  movement  of  oscillation  :  if  this  disc  is  cut  so  as  to 
destroy  its  continuity  as  much  as  possible,  to  prevent  the  development  of  the  induc- 
tive current,  it  then  exhibits  the  phenomenon  of  oscillation  like  bismuth.  These 
phenomena,  and  several  others  which  you  have  described,  and  which  it  is  unneces- 
sary to  adduce  here,  have  led  you  and  Weber,  with  much  reason,  to  admit  the 
hypothesis  of  a  diamagnetic  polarity  in  reverse  direction  of  that  acquired  by  mag- 
netic bodies.  I  hasten  to  add,  that  my  experiments  do  not  lead  me  to  reject  this 
hypothesis,  as  you,  and  more  recently  M.  Verdet,  have  done ;  and  that,  on  die  con- 
trary, it  seems  to  me  in  conformity  with  physical  analogy  to  admit  that  diamagnetic 
substances,  when  subjected  to  magnetic  force,  assume  a  polarity  the  same  in  kind 
as,  but  reverse  in  direction  of,  that  acquired  by  iron,  which  polarity  has  a  duration 
varying  according  to  the  nature  and  conductibility  of  the  substance,  and  which, 
according  to  these  circumstances,  tends  to  transform  itself  into  an  inductive  instanta- 
neous current.  I  abstain  from  entering  here  into  a  minute  development  of  these  theo- 
retical views,  which  every  one  can  do  for  himself,  and  proceed  at  once  to  speak 
experimentally.  It  is  perfectly  true  that  you,  and  more  recently  M.  Verdet,  have 
demonstrated  that  the  phenomenon  discovered  by  Weber  in  bismuth  can  be  explained 
by  simply  referring  to  the  inductive  currents,  and  without  having  recourse  to  dia- 
magnetic polarity ;  but  the  same  experiments  have  not  proved  the  non-existence  of 
diamagnetic  polarity.  In  the  first  place,  I  recollect  that  oxide  of  copper  is  strongly 
magnetic ;  consequently  a  mass  of  copper  filings  with  oxidated  superficies  cannot, 
when  it  acts  on  the  electro-magnet,  develope  inductive  phenomena  similar  to  those 
of  bismuth  or  pure  copper.  In  fact,  I  found  with  my  inductive  apparatus,  which  is 
certainly  the  most  powerful  and  delicate  hitherto  constructed,  that  a  mass  of  copper 
filings  oxidated  at  the  superficies,  such  as  used  in  organic  analysis,  gives  inductive 
corrents  as  if  it  were  a  magnetic  body.  In  order  to  prove  by  our  experimental 
method  that  diamagnetic  polarity  does  not  exist,  one  roust  prove  that  no  induced 
currents  are  obtained  in  the  direction  demanded  by  that  supposed  polarity,  when  one 
makes  an  electro-magnet  act  on  a  diamagnetic  body,  incapable  of  conducting  in- 
duced currents,  and  in  quantity  sufficient  to  induce  sensible  effects  on  our  apparatus. 
To  show  the  superiority  of  my  apparatus,  I  have  only  to  mention,  that  a  stratum  of 
500  grammes  of  colcothar  brought  near,  but  not  in  contact  with  the  electro-magnet, 
and  consequently  without  any  apparatus  of  rotation,  produced  an  induced  current  of 
10°  to  15°  and  more,  according  to  the  strength  of  the  battery.  With  this  same  appa- 


10  REPORT — 1852. 

rata*  and  a  rotating  machine,  I  obtained  very  distinct  phenomena  of  induction  by  the 
action  of  a  bundle  of  varnished  bismuth  or  copper  wires.  I  have  already  observed 
that  the  experiment  can  be  decisive  only  when  one  acts  on  the  electro-magnet  with 
a  sufficient  quantity  of  the  diamagnetic  substance.  In  fact,  it  seems  reasonable  to 
admit  that  the  effects  of  induction,  magnetic  or  diamagnetic,  ought  to  be  in  propor- 
tion with  the  corresponding  effects  of  attraction  or  repulsion.  Now  I  am  not  very 
far  from  the  truth  In  admitting  that  1  gramme  of  bismuth  is  repelled  by  an  electro* 
magnet  with  the  same  force  as  1 1  milligrammes  of  colcothar  is  attracted  by  the 
same  magnet ;  that  1  gramme  of  sugar  or  stearic  acid  makes  equilibrium  to  5  or  6 
milligrammes  of  colcothar,  and  1  gramme  of  sulphur  to  2  or  3  milligrammes  of  col- 
cothar. I  have  already  said  that  the  inductive  action  of  500  grammes  of  colcothar 
gives  me  10°  to  15°  of  induced  current :  therefore,  to  obtain  a  similar  effect  by  bismuth 
(if  diamagnetic  polarity  exists),  one  must  employ  a  quantity  of  that  metal,  which  is 
at  least  a  hundred  times  500  grammes,  or  50  kilogrammes.  By  similar  reasoning  one 
sees  what  an  enormous  quantity  of  phosphorus,  sugar  and  sulphur  would  have  to  be 
employed  in  order  to  obtain  a  sensible  inductive  effect,  and  how  far  we  have  hitherto 
been  from  employing  the  necessary  quantity.  It  is  only  by  the  method  of  rotation 
of  inductive  bodies  in  presence  of  the  electro-magnet,  that  one  can  obtain  sensible 
effects  from  small  quantities  of  diamagnetic  substances.  Using  the  method  of 
rotation,  as  Verdet  has  done,  with  an  electro-magnet  and  inductive  coil  more  powerful 
than  any  which  have  been  hitherto  employed,  I  have  succeeded  in  obtaining  distinct 
signs  of  induction  from  a  mass  composed  of  fragments  of  varnished  bismuth.  I  con. 
tinue  to  vary  and  extend  my  experiments  in  this  way ;  therefore,  for  the  present, 
'  though  I  should  be  grateful  to  you  if  you  would  communicate  this  note  to  the  British 
Association,  I  wish  to  be  able  to  arrange  these  researches  myself  before  publishing 
them. 


On  placing  Compasses  an  Board  Iron  Ships.  By  Captain  E.  J.  Johnson, 
li.N*  F.R.S.,  Superintendent  of  the  Compass  Admiralty  Department  of 
the  Royal  Navy.    {In  a  Letter  to  the  President.) 

It  was  my  intention  to  have  been  present  at  the  Meeting  of  the  British  Association 
at  Belfast,  but  I  have  been  prevented  by  my  official  duties  on  board  some  of  H.M. 
steam-ships  which  could  not  be  delayed.  One  of  these  was  the  iron  steam-vessel 
"  Trident,"  and  I  think  it  worth  while  to  notice  to  you  a  circumstance  which  oc- 
curred relating  to  the  compass  observations. 

As  a  member  of  the  Compass  Committee,  you  are  aware  that  the  system  adopted 
in  H.M.  service  on  board  iron  ships,  is  to  elevate  the  compass  considerably— to 
ascertain  the  deviations  and  allow  for  them,  and  to  persevere  in  a  continual  series 
of  observations  to  ascertain  the  change  of  deviation  according  to  the  change  of  the 
ship's  geographical  position,  as  described  in  the  "  Practical  Rules"  which  have  been 
issued  to  all  H.M.  ships  since  1842  ; — the  said  plan  being  considered  safer  than  the 
application  of  iron  or  magnets  for  the  reduction  of  the  amount  of  deviation. 

In  placing  the  compasses  of  H.M.  ships,  I  have,  of  course,  adhered  to  the  recom* 
mendations  of  the  Committee,  taking  care  by  a  few  preliminary  observations  to  fix 
upon  a  position  where  the  deviations  were  lessened ;  but  the  circumstance  to  which 
I  wish  to  draw  your  attention  at  present  is  this : — While  the  "  Trident"  was  in  the 
basin  at  Woolwich,  it  occurred  to  me  to  try  whether  a  position  could  be  discovered 
where  the  influences  of  the  ship's  iron  upon  the  compass  were  so  equalized  as  to 
render  the  amount  of  deviation  so  small  as  to  be  of  no  practical  importance. 

The  correct  magnetic  direction  of  the  ship's  head  having  been  determined  by  a 
compass  on  the  shore,  and  that  proving  to  be  near  to  one  of  the  points  of  maximum 
deviation  (the  standard  compass  on  the  quarter-deck  there  indicating  90°  westerly 
deviation),  I  moved  the  standard  compass  several  feet  further  forward  in  the  centre 
line  of  the  ship,  and  there  found  the  westerly  deviation  increased  to  29°.  I  now 
commenced  to  move  the  compass  ail  6  or  7  feet  at  a  time,  observing  the  deviation 
at  each  position,  and  found  the  westerly  deviation  decreased ;  and  on  placing  the 
tripod  of  the  compass  directly  over  the  rudder- head,  easterly  deviation  was  produced ; 
and  hence  it  followed  that  there  must  be  a  position  somewhere  between  the  two  last 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  11 

place*  of  observation  where  there  would  be  no  deviation  while  the  ship's  head  re- 
mained in  the  same  direction. 

This  position  I  practically  discovered  by  moving  the  compass  a  few  inches  at  a 
time,  till  it  indicated  the  correct  magnetic  direction  of  the  ship's  head. 

The  question  which  now  remained  to  be  proved,  was,  to  what  extent  the  deviations 
of  the  said  compass  had  been  lessened  (or  what  they  actually  were)  when  the  ship's 
head  was  placed  upon  different  points,  and  I  was  gratified  to  find  that  after  swing- 
ing the  vessel  and  observing  upon  the  eight  principal  points,  the  compass,  placed  as 
before  described,  proved  to  be  correct  within  ^  of  a  point. 

It  is  necessary  to  mention  that  the  "Trident"  has  wooden  beams  under  the 
quarter-deck,  and  therefore  it  remains  to  be  seen  to  what  extent  such  observations 
may  be  useful  in  vessels  which  have  iron  beams. 

It  will  also  be  requisite  to  ascertain  by  actual  observation  how  far  a  position  so 
selected  shall  prove  advantageous  when  the  ship  changes  her  geographical  position ; 
and  as  the  "Trident"  is  about  to  proceed  to  the  southern  hemisphere,  and  is  amply 
provided  with  instructions  and  the  means  of  ascertaining  such  changes,  and  as  I 
shall  swing  her  again  at  Greenhithe  on  every  point  before  she  leaves,  we  may  hope 
for  much  useful  information  on  this  important  subject. 

In  sending  you  these  remarks,  I  must  observe,  that  it  may  not  always  be  practi- 
cable to  find  the  position  of  no-deviation,  or  where  the  influences  of  the  iron  in  the 
ship  upon  the  magnetic  needle  are  equalized,  because  such  a  point  might  be  found  in 
a  most  inconvenient  position,  or  be  too  near  moveable  iron  work,  machinery,  &c. ; 
but  if  we  succeed  in  approximating  towards  it,  and  thereby  reduce  the  deviations 
within  moderate  limits,  a  point  of  great  practical  importance  will  be  gained  in  navi- 


On  a  peculiarity  of  Visum.    By  Professor  Powell,  F.R.S. 

The  peculiarity  to  which  I  refer  affects  both  my  own  eyes,  but  more  especially  the 
left  eye.  They  have  always  been  long-sighted,  but  I  never  used  glasses  till  about 
seven  years  ago.  About  that  time  I  had,  I  fear,  injured  my  eye-sight  generally  by 
optical  experiments,  and  have  in  consequence  thought  it  prudent  to  desist  from  them 
in  a  great  degree.  I  then  perceived  a  general  indistinctness  of  vision,  which  is  how- 
ever completely  removed  by  the  use  of  convex  glasses  of  long  focus  ;  but  I  have  not 
till  lately  been  aware  of  the  precise  nature  of  this  indistinctness.  I  have  now  found 
that  it  is  produced  by  the  image  of  every  small  object,  as  for  instance,  a  fine  dark  line 
on  a  white  ground  appearing  triple.  I  do  not  find  any  difference  from  varying 
the  distance  of  the  object  from  the  eye,  nor  in  placing  the  line  in  different  azimuths 
round  the  axis  of  the  eye  j  the  appearance  is  presented  whether  I  use  one  eye  or 
both,  but  is  somewhat  less  marked  with  the  right  eye.  Conjectures  may  easily  be 
started  as  to  the  change  of  form  in  the  Jens  which  might  produce  such  an  appear- 
ance, but  I  will  not  at  present  do  more  than  simply  mention  the  fact,  as  it  may 
perhaps  elicit  other  statements  of  a  similar  kind  which  may  tend  to  throw  light  on 
the  question  as  to  its  nature. 

On  Luminous  Beams.     Communicated  by  Professor  Powell,  F.B.S. 

Appearances  of  luminous  beams  in  the  sky,  of  a  peculiar  kind,  agreeing  neither 
with  the  characteristics  of  aurora,  nor  of  the  zodiacal  light,  have  been  occasionally 
recorded.  A  remarkable  instance  of  this  kind  was  observed  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Rowell, 
at  Oxford,  July  11, 1850 : — "When  the  sun  was  just  setting,  or  set,  but  hidden  by 
clouds,  he  saw  a  bright  beam  with  parallel  sides  extending  vertically  upwards  from 
the  place  of  the  sun  to  an  altitude  estimated  at  15°  or  20°."  Again,  on  July  6, 1852, 
Mr.  Rowell  saw  a  similar  phenomenon  which  he  describes  thus : — "  About  10  o'clock 
p.m.,  I  observed  two  extraordinary  rays  of  light  in  the  N.N.W.,  each  extending 
from  the  horizon  to  upwards  of  half-way  towards  the  pole  star,  and  apparently  pro- 
ceeding from  the  sun's  place  below  the  horizon,  in  a  direct  line  towards  that  star.  I 
watched  this  phenomenon  till  10h  30m,  and  I  believe  it  could  not  have  been  caused 


12  REPORT — 1852. 

by  an  aurora  borealis,  the  direction  and  appearance  of  the  rays  being  very  different 
from  any  aurora  I  have  ever  6een ;  there  was  no  change  to  be  observed  in  them,  and 
they  kept  their  place  with  regard  to  the  stars.  At  1 1  o'clock  they  had  disappeared.'' 


On  Converging  Sun-beams.    Communicated  by  Professor  Powell,  FJLS. 

A  peculiarly  brilliant  instance  of  the  phenomenon  of  the  solar  rays  converging  by 
the  effect  of  perspective  to  a  point  opposite  the  sun  immediately  after  sunset,  was 
observed  by  several  persons  in  and  near  Oxford,  on  July  6,  1852,  about  8*35  p.m., 
and  lasted  about  twenty  minutes.  Mr.  G.  A.  Rowell  collected  the  accounts  of  dif- 
ferent observers,  illustrated  by  sketches,  given  unknown  to  each  other,  and  apparently 
without  their  being  aware  of  the  real  nature  of  the  phenomenon.  He  states  that — 
"  All  agree  as  to  the  general  appearance  being  that  of  five  or  seven  principal  rays  of 
bright  light  arising  from  (converging  to)  a  point  in  the  S.E.  horizon,  just  opposite 
to  where  the  sun  had  set.  Each  ray  extended  about  65°  or  70°,  and  was  widest  at 
the  upper  end ;  the  middle  ray  being  perpendicular.    There  is  a  difference  in  the 

statements  as  to  whether  there  were  smaller  rays  between  the  principal  ones 

The  observer  on  Shotover  Hill  had  a  clear  view  of  the  N. W.  horizon,  and  remarked 
that  there  was  not  at  the  time  the  slightest  appearance  of  rays  where  the  sun  had 
gone  down." 

On  the  Re-concentration  of  the  Mechanical  Energy  of  the  Universe* 
By  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine,  CJ3.%  FJR.SJE. 

Mr.  Rankine  observed  that  it  has  long  been  conjectured,  and  is  now  being  esta- 
blished by  experiment,  that  all  forms  of  physical  energy,  whether  visible  motion, 
heat,  light,  magnetism,  electricity,  chemical  action,  or  other  forms  not  yet  understood, 
are  mutually  convertible ;  that  the  total  amount  of  physical  energy  in  the  universe 
is  unchangeable,  and  varies  merely  its  condition  and  locality,  by  conversion  from 
one  form  to  another,  or  by  transference  from  one  portion  of  matter  to  another. 

Professor  William  Thomson  has  pointed  out,  that  in  the  present  condition  of  the 
known  world  there  is  a  preponderating  tendency  to  the  conversion  of  all  the  other 
forms  of  energy  into  heat,  and  to  the  equable  diffusion  of  all  heat ;  a  tendency  which 
seems  to  lead  towards  the  cessation  of  all  phenomena. 

The  author  of  the  present  paper  points  out,  that  all  heat  tends  ultimately  to 
assume  the  radiant  form ;  and  that  if  the  medium  which  surrounds  the  stars  and 
transmits  radiation  between  them  be  supposed  to  have  bounds  encircling  the  visible 
world,  beyond  which  is  empty  space,  then  at  these  bounds  the  radiant  heat  will  be 
totally  reflected,  and  will  ultimately  be  re-concentrated  into  foci ;  at  one  of  which,  if 
an  extinct  star  arrives,  it  will  be  resolved  into  its  elements,  and  a  store  of  energy 
reproduced. 


On  an  Improved  Form  of  Reflecting  Instrument  for  Use  at  Sea. 
By  Professor  C.  Piazzi  Smyth,  F.R*A.S. 

The  peculiar  circumstances  of  an  observer  at  sea,  caused  chiefly  by  the  rolling  of 
the  vessel,  preclude  the  use  of  any  of  the  ordinary  instruments  employed  on  land 
for  measuring  altitudes,  depending  as  they  do  on  levels  or  plumb  lines  for  their  zero 
points ;  recourse  must  be  had  to  the  principle  of  double  images  by  two  reflectors, 
the  method  invented  by  Hadley  and  Newton.  This  one  necessary  principle  has  been 
carried  out  in  a  variety  of  different  forms,  in  the  sextant,  quadrant,  quintant  or  re- 
flecting circle,  some  more  or  less  accurate  or  more  or  less  convenient  than  others ; 
but  all  of  them,  under  whatever  names  they  are  known,  are  merely  different  forms 
of  essentially  the  same  instrument. 

Great  ingenuity  has  been  shown  in  many  of  these  forms,  but  still  the  greatest 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  13 

degree  of  efficiency  has  not  yet  been  arrived  at,  or  the  highest  degree  of  convenience 
attained  for  all  the  various  occasions  required  in  practice. 

The  naval  officers,  who  know  what  these  difficult  circumstances  are,  unfortunately 
are  not  in  a  position  to  remedy  the  defects  of  their  instruments ;  while  the  makers 
thereof,  living  at  home  at  ease,  cannot  fully  appreciate  all  the  difficulties  actually 
met  with  in  real  practice  at  sea*  This  has  left  room  for  a  person  like  the  author, 
who  has  had  some  practice  at  sea  and  some  experience  in  instrument-making,  to 
effect  several  minor  improvements  of  a  practical  character. 

The  ordinary  form  of  the  reflecting  instrument  at  present  in  use  is  the  sextant, 
id  which  will  generally  be  found,  even  as  made  by  the  best  makers,  more  or  less  of 
the  following  little  practical  drawbacks  upon  the  speedy  and  accurate  employment 
of  it. 

It  is  packed  in  its  box  in  a  way  difficult  to  be  got  out,  the  handle,  by  which  it 
ought  only  to  be  touched,  being  below :  also  it  cannot  be  laid  down  anywhere 
without  a  changing  of  the  hands  and  the  incurring  of  risk  in  handling  parts  which 
should  be  sacred  from  the  touch. 

Next  there  are  several  loose  parts,  as  the  telescope,  plain  tube,  dark  glasses,  fee, 
which  have  to  be  screwed  on  before  an  observation  can  be  taken,  and  time  is  lost 
thereby ;  even  then  too  it  may  be  often  found  with  faint  stars  at  night,  that  the 
object-glass  of  the  telescope  is  prejudicially  small,  and  the  reflectors  insufficiently 
bright,  as  well  as  erroneous  at  extreme  angles,  on  account  of  the  impossibility  of 
procuring  perfect  glass,  besides  giving  the  nuisance  of  images  from  each  surface,  &c. 

Then,  supposing  the  observation  taken,  there  is  such  a  needless  difficulty  in  read- 
ing off  the  divisions,  a  difficulty  not  felt  by  beginners  alone,  but  equally  by  practised 
naval  officers,  who  give  that  as  a  reason  why  the  very  important  class  of  observa- 
tions of  stars  by  night  is  so  little  practised  at  sea. 

Finally,  the  observation  when  read  off  at  last  is  taken  merely  upon  a  sextant  or 
part  of  a  circle,  and  is  therefore  liable  to  errors  of  excentricity  and  motion  of  the 
centre,  and  this  to  an  unknown  extent,  and  not  constantly,  as  they  may  be  influenced 
by  accidental  causes  unknown  to  the  observer.  It  is  essential  to  the  accuracy  and 
the  honesty  as  it  were  of  observations,  that  they  should  be  taken  with  some  form  of 
circle  with  opposite  readings ;  many  such  have  been  brought  forward  in  England 
and  France,  but  owing  apparently  to  their  greater  complexity,  size  and  weight,  they 
have  not  obtained  a  footing  amongst  practical  men. 

The  author  then  exhibited  a  reflecting  instrument  which  he  had  had  constructed 
by  Messrs.  Adie  of  Edinburgh,  and  which  appeared  to  supply  all  the  desiderata,  for 
it  was  in  the  shape  of  a  circle,  small,  light,  and  simple,  with  the  delicate  parts  pro- 
tected from  injury  under  all  circumstances :  the  usual  loose  telescope  and  plain  tubes 
were  avoided  by  making  them  cross  through  each  other  and  work  on  a  pivot,  thus 
admitting  of  instant  alteration  from  one  to  the  other ;  the  illuminating  apparatus 
was  improved  and  rendered  powerfully  effective  even  with  a  faint  light ;  and  a  small 
apparatus  was  added,  which,  without  sensibly  cumbering  the  instrument,  gave,  either 
by  night  or  by  day,  a  convenient  horizontal  referring  point,  visible  in  the  field  of 
view. 


Some  Remarks  on  the  Red  Prominences  seen  during  the  Total  Solar  Eclipse. 
By  Professor  C.  Piazzi  Smyth,  F.R*A.S. 

When  the  Members  of  the  Association  separated  last  year  at  Ipswich,  it  was  under 
circumstances  of  peculiar  astronomical  import,  viz.  the  impending  occurrence  of  the 
total  solar  eclipse  in  a  neighbouring  .region :  many  astronomers  started  to  observe 
the  phenomenon  to  the  utmost,  and  more  especially  everything  having  relation  to, 
or  tending  to  throw  any  light  on  the  physical  characteristics  of  the  sun ;  amongst 
which  the  "red  prominences"  were  considered  the  most  promising  and  important. 

The  author  was  amongst  the  number  of  observers  who  started  with  these  objects 
in  view,  but  was  totally  defeated  by  the  occurrence  of  clouds.  Having  been  pre- 
vented then  himself  from  seeing  the  red  prominences,  he  thought  it  proper  to  defer 
to  the  opinions  of  those  observers  who  had  been  more  fortunate,  and  who  seem  in 


14  REPORT — 1852. 

all  cases  to  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  these  apparent  bodies  were  really  at* 
tached  to,  and  connected  with,  the  sun,  and  were  no  less  than  masses  of  light-gmng 
matter,  30,000  or  40,000  miles  in  length,  and  playing  of  course  a  most  important 
part  in  the  mystery  of  the  nature  and  the  source  of  solar  light,  and  the  whole 
OBConomy  of  that  mighty  orb. 

But  if  we  are  never  to  see  these  bodies  but  during  the  rare  occasion  of  a  solar 
eclipse,  and  then  only  for  the  too  short  space  of  three  minutes,  ages  upon  ages  may 
pass  away  before  we  ascertain  anything  very  precise  upon  the  subject.  In  this  case 
it  becomes  of  the  greatest  importance  to  contrive  some  method  of  making  the  red 
prominences  visible  on  ordinary  occasions ;  and  a  method  having  been  proposed  by 
Mr.  J.  Nasmyth  of  Manchester,  which  at  least  prbmised  well,  the  author  lost  no 
time  in  putting  it  into  execution. 

The  method  consisted  in  receiving  the  image  of  the  sun  and  field  of  view,  formed 
by  a  telescope  in  a  dark  room,  on  a  white  board,  in  which  was  a  hole  just  largt 
enough  to  let  the  sun  pass  through,  and  be  absorbed  on  the  inside  of  a  black  bag 
beyond ;  the  image  of  the  field,  and  therefore  of  the  sky  in  the  immediate  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  sun,  could  then  be  examined  with  the  greatest  nicety,  and  free  from 
the  prejudicial  effect  of  the  glaring  solar  image ;  while  any  faint  ray  of  light  extend- 
ing from  that  luminary  into  the  space  beyond  could  be  much  more  easily  appreciated 
than  before.  But  although  the  experiment  was  carefully  tried  on  all  the  best  days 
of  last  summer  as  well  as  the  present,  not  the  slightest  appearance  of  red  prominences 
could  be  detected.  The  author  however  would  not  presume  to  say  that  they  did  not 
therefore  exist  $  for  although  the  experiment  in  itself  was  extremely  successful,  inas- 
much as  during  the  very  time  that  the  sun  was  being  received  into  the  black  bag  the 
room  itself  was  much  darker  than  the  atmosphere  at  the  solar  eclipse,  yet  the  light* 
ness  of  the  sky,  by  reason  of  the  reflective  power  of  the  air  outride  the  room,  was  so 
extreme,  that  nothing  so  faint  as  the  red  prominences  are  reputed  to  be,  could  well  be 
seen  on  so  bright  a  background.  This  is  a  difficulty  which  can  only  be  got  over  by 
ascending  to  a  great  height  in  the  atmosphere,  and  it  would  be  well  worth  while  to 
repeat  the  experiment  on  the  top  of  a  high  mountain. 

Having  given  this  experiment,  founded  on  the  opinions  of  observers,  full  trial,  the 
author  then  thought  himself  justified  in  taking  up  an  opposite  idea,  and  supposing 
that  the  red  prominences  might  be  some  spurious  effects  of  diffraction  of  the  son's 
light  at  the  edge  of  lunar  mountains.  He  therefore  produced  an  artificial  eclipse  by 
introducing  a  small  opake  ball  into  the  telescope,  near  the  focus  of  the  object-glass, 
when  directed  on  the  sun.  The  results  were,  that  pink  light,  similar  to  that  of  the 
prominences,  was  thrown  off  from  the  edge  of  the  eclipsing  ball*  in  greater  quantity  as 
the  polish  of  the  surface  was  increased,  and  was  broken  up  into  more  distinct  portions 
the  more  irregular  the  surface.  Prominences  most  similar,  nay,  precisely  like  those 
of  the  eclipse,  in  shape  and  colour,  were  produced  by  an  opal  glass  ball,  scratched 
and  cut  on  the  edge  with  a  diamond. 

There  was  however  still  the  important  failing,  that  the  artificial  prominences  were 
connected  with  the  eclipsing  ball  as  a  centre,  and  not  with  the  sun,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  real  prominences.  In  the  latter  instance,  however,  the  sun's  rays  fall  on  the 
moon  in  a  parallel  direction,  while  in  the  former  they  converge  on  the  eclipsing 
ball.  To  arrive  therefore  more  nearly  at  this  particular,  the  author  placed  a  large 
tin  disc,  with  spherically  curved  tangential  rim,  on  the  top  of  the  Nelson  monument* 
and  examined  the  appearance  from  below,  when  the  sun  was  eclipsed  behind  the 
disc,  with  a  small  hand  telescope.  The  result  was  that  orange  and  red  light  were 
thrown  off  the  edge;  and  in  greater  abundance,  according  to  the  greater  proximity 
of  the  sun  behind  to  any  particular  side  of  the  disc,  and  also  according  to  the  greater 
purity  of  the  atmosphere.  This  certainly  seems  to  point  out  the  great  probability 
of  a  spurious  origin  for  the  red  prominences  at  this  surface  of  the  lunar  mountains ; 
but  this  experiment  should  also  be  tried  on  a  high  mountain,  in  an  atmosphere  a 
little  more  nearly  approaching  that  of  the  moon  in  rarity  and  purity. 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  15 

On  the  Optical  Properties  of  a  recently  discovered  Salt  of  Quinine, 
By  Professor  Stokes,  Mji,  F.R.S. 

This  salt  is  described  by  Dr.  Herapath  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  for  March  1852, 
and  is  easily  formed  in  "the  way  there  recommended,  namely,  by  dissolving  disul- 
phata  of  quinine  in  warm  acetic  acid,  adding  a  few  dropB  of  a  solution  of  iodine  in 
alcohol,  and  allowing  the  liquid  to  cool,  when  the  salt  crystallizes  in  thin  scales  re- 
flecting (while  immersed  in  the  fluid)  a  green  light  with  a  metallic  lustre.  When 
taken  out  of  the  fluid  the  crystals  are  yellowish- green  by  reflected  light,  with  a  me- 
tallic aspect.  The  following  observations  were  made  with  small  crystals  formed  In 
this  manner ;  and  an  oral  account  of  them  was  given  at  a  meeting  of  the  Cambridge 
Philosophical  Society,  shortly  after  the  appearance  of  Dr.  Herapath's  paper. 

The  crystals  possess  in  an  eminent  degree  the  property  of  polarizing  light,  so  that 
Dr.  Herapath  proposed  to  employ  them  instead  of  tourmalines,  for  which  they  would 
form  an  admirable  substitute,  could  they  be  obtained  in  sufficient  size.  They  appear 
to  belong  to  the  prismatic  system ;  at  any  rate  they  are  symmetrical  (so  far  as  re- 
lates to  their  optical  properties  and  to  the  directions  of  their  lateral  faces)  with  re- 
spect to  two  rectangular  planes  perpendicular  to  the  scales.  These  planes  will  here 
be  called  respectively  the  principal  plane  of  the  length  and  the  principal  plane  of  the 
breadth,  the  crystals  being  usually  longest  in  the  direction  of  the  former  plane. 

When  the  crystals  are  viewed  by  light  directly  transmitted,  which  is  either  polar- 
ized before  incidence  or  analysed  after  transmission,  so  as  to  retain  only  light  polar- 
ized in  one  of  the  principal  planes,  it  is  found  that  with  respect  to  light  polarized 
in  the  principal  plane  of  the  length  the  crystals  are  transparent,  and  nearly  colour- 
less, at  least  when  they  are  as  thin  as  those  which  are  usually  formed  by  the  method 
above  mentioned.  But  with  respect  to  light  polarized  in  the  principal  plane  of  the 
breadth,  the  thicker  crystals  are  perfectly  black,  the  thinner  ones  only  transmitting 
light,  which  is  of  a  deep  red  colour. 

When  the  crystals  are  examined  by  light  reflected  at  the  smallest  angle  with  which 
the  observation  is  practicable,  and  the  reflected  light  is  analysed,  so  as  to  retain, 
first,  light  polarized  in  the  principal  plane  of  the  length,  and  secondly,  light  polarized 
in  the  other  principal  plane,  it  is  found  that  in  the  first  case  the  crystals  have  a 
vitreous  lustre,  and  the  reflected  light  is  colourless ;  while  in  the  second  case  the 
light  is  yellowish-green,  and  the  crystals  have  a  metallic  lustre.  When  the  plane 
of  incidence  is  the  principal  plane  of  the  length,  and  the  angle  of  incidence  is  in- 
creased from  0°  to  9*0°,  the  part  of  the  reflected  pencil  which  is  polarized  in  the 
plane  of  incidence  undergoes  no  remarkable  change,  except  perhaps  that  the  lustre 
becomes  somewhat  metallic.  When  the  part  which  is  polarized  in  a  plane  perpen- 
dicular to  the  former  is  examined,  it  is  found  that  the  crystals  have  no  angle  of 
polarization,  the  reflected  light  never  vanishing,  but  only  changing  its  colour,  passing 
from  yellowish-green,  which  it  was  at  first,  to  a  deep  steel-blue,  which  colour  it 
assumes  at  a  considerable  angle  of  incidence.  When  the  light  reflected  in  the  prin- 
cipal plane  of  the  breadth  is  examined  in  a  similar  manner,  the  pencil  which  is 
polarized  in  the  plane  of  incidence  undergoes  no  remarkable  change,  continuing  to 
have  the  appearance  of  being  reflected  from  a  metal,  while  the  other  or  colourless 
pencil  vanishes  at  a  certain  angle,  and  afterwards  reappears,  so  that  in  this  plane 
the  crystals  have  a  polarizing  angle. 

If,  tnen,  for  distinction's  sake,  we  call  the  two  pencils  which  the  crystals,  as  belong- 
ing to  a  doubly  refracting  medium,  transmit  independently  of  each  other,  ordinary 
and  extraordinary,  the  former  being  that  which  is  transmitted  with  little  loss,  we 
may  say,  speaking  approximately,  that  the  medium  is  transparent  with  respect  to 
the  ordinary  ray  and  opake  with  respect  to  the  extraordinary,  while,  as  regards 
reflexion,  the  crystals  have  the  properties  of  a  transparent  medium  or  of  a  metal, 
according  as  the  refracted  ray  is  the  ordinary  or  the  extraordinary.  If  common  light 
merely  be  used,  both  refracted  pencils  are  produced,  and  the  corresponding  reflected 
pencils  are  viewed  together ;  but  by  analysing  the  reflected  light  by  means  of  a 
Nicol's  prism,  the  reflected  pencils  may  be  viewed  separately,  at  least  when  the  ob- 
servations are  confined  to  the  principal  planes.  Hie  crystals  are  no  doubt  biaxal, 
and  the  pencils  here  called  ordinary  and  extraordinary  are  those  which  in  the  lan- 
guage of  theory  correspond  to  different  sheets  of  the  wave  surface.  The  reflecting 
properties  of  the  crystals  may  be  embraced  in  one  view  by  regarding  the  medium  as 


16  REPORT — 1852. 

not  only  doubly  refracting  and  doubly  absorbing,  but  doubly  metalUc.  The  metoQicttu, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  medium  of  course  alters  continuously  with  the  point  of  the  wave 
surface  to  which  the  pencil  considered  belongs,  and  doubtless  is  not  mathematically 
null  even  for  the  ordinary  ray. 

If  the  reflexion  be  really  of  a  metallic  nature,  it  ought  to  produce  a  relative  change 
in  the  phases  of  vibration  of  light  polarized  in  and  perpendicularly  to  the  plane  of 
incidence.  This  conclusion  the  author  has  verified  by  means  of  the  effect  produced 
on  the  rings  of  calcareous  spar.  Since  the  crystals  were  too  small  for  individual  ex- 
amination in  this  experiment,  the  observation  was  made  with  a  mass  of  scales  depo- 
sited on  a  flat  black  surface,  and  arranged  at  random  as  regards  the  azimuth  of  their 
principal  planes.  The  direction  of  the  change  is  the  same  as  in  the  case  of  a  metal, 
and  accordingly  the  reverse  of  that  which  is  observed  in  total  internal  reflexion. 

In  the  case  of  the  extraordinary  pencil  the  crystals  are  least  opake  with  respect 
to  red  light,  and  accordingly  they  are  less  metallic  with  respect  to  red  light  than  to 
light  of  higher  refrangibility.  This  is  shown  by  the  green  colour  of  the  reflected 
light  when  the  crystals  are  immersed  in  fluid,  so  that  the  reflexion  which  they  exhibit 
as  a  transparent  medium  is  in  a  good  measure  destroyed. 

The  author  has  examined  the  crystals  for  a  change  of  refrangibility,  and  found 
that  they  do  not  exhibit  it.  Safflower-red,  which  possesses  metallic  optical  proper- 
ties, does  change  the  refrangibility  of  a  portion  of  the  incident  light;  but  the  yel- 
lowish-green light  which  this  substance  reflects  is  really  due  to  its  metallicity  and 
not  to  the  change  of  refrangibility,  for  the  light  emitted  from  the  latter  cause  is  red, 
besides  which  it  is  totally  different  in  other  respects  from  regularly  reflected  light. 

In  conclusion,  the  author  observed  that  the  general  fact  of  the  reflexion  of  coloured 
polarized  pencils  had  been  discovered  by  Sir  David  Brewster  in  the  case  of  chrysam- 
mate  of  potash*,  and  in  a  subsequent  communication  he  had  noticed,  in  the  case  of 
other  crystals,  the  difference  of  effect  depending  upon  the  azimuth  of  the  plane  of 
incidence  f.  Accordingly,  the  object  of  the  present  communication  was  merely  to 
point  out  the  intimate  connexion  which  exists  (at  least  in  the  case  of  the  salt  of 
quinine)  between  the  coloured  reflexion,  the  double  absorption,  and  the  metallic 
properties  of  the  medium. 

Note  added  during  printing. — When  the  above  communication  was  made  to  the 
Association,  the  author  was  not  aware  of  M.  Haidinger 's  papers  on  the  subject  of 
the  coloured  reflexion  exhibited  by  certain  crystals.  The  general  phenomenon  of 
the  reflexion  of  oppositely  polarized  coloured  pencils  had  in  fact  been  discovered  in- 
dependently by  M.  Haidinger  and  by  Sir  David  Brewster,  in  the  instances,  respectively., 
of  the  cyanide  of  platinum  and  magnesium,  and  of  the  chrysammate  of  potash.  A 
brief  notice  of  the  optical  properties  of  the  former  crystal  will  be  found  in  Poggen- 
dorff's  'Annalen/  Bd.  lxviii.  (1846),  S.  302,  and  further  communications  from  M. 
Haidinger  on  the  subject  are  contained  in  several  of  the  subsequent  volumes  of  that 
periodical.  The  relation  of  the  coloured  reflexion  to  the  azimuth  of  the  plane  of  in- 
cidence was  noticed  by  M.  Haidinger  from  the  first. 


On  the  Thermal  Effects  of  Air  rushing  through  small  Apertures. 
By  J.  P.  Joule,  F.JR.S.  and  Professor  W.  Thomson,  M.An  F.R.SJB.% 


On  the  Sources  of  Heat  generated  by  the  Galvanic  Battery. 
By  Professor  W.  Thomson,  itfJl,  F.R.S.E. 

It  has  been  stated  as  an  objection  to  the  chemical  theory  of  the  galvanic  battery, 
that  the  chemical  action  being  the  same  in  all  elements  consisting  of  zinc  and  any 
less  oxidizable  metal,  their  electromotive  force  ought  according  to  that  theory  to  be 
the  same  ;  which  is  contrary  to  experience,  the  electromotive  force  of  a  zinc  and  tin 
element  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  for  instance,  being  found  by  Poggendorff  to  be  only 

*  Report  of  the  Meeting  of  tbe  British  Association  at  Southampton,  1846,  part  ii.  p.  7. 

f  Ibid.  Edinburgh,  1847,  p.  5. 

%  This  paper  has  been  published  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  for  December  1852* 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  17 

about  half  that  of  a  zinc  and  platinum  element  in  the  same  liquid.  Mr.  Joule  in 
1841  gave  (in  his  paper  on  the  heat  of  electrolysis)  the  key  to  the  explanation  of  all 
such  difficulties,  by  pointing  out  that  the  heat  must  be  generated  in  different  quan- 
tities by  the  electrical  evolution  of  equal  quantities  of  hydrogen  at  equal  surfaces  of 
different  metals.  The  author  of  the  present  communication,  reasoning  on  element- 
ary mechanical  and  physical  principles,  from  Faraday's  experiments,  which  show 
that  a  zinc  diaphragm  in  a  trough  of  dilute  sulphuric  acid  exercises  no  sensible 
resistance  to  the  continued  passage  of  a  feeble  electric  current,  demonstrated  that  a 
feeble  continued  current,  passing  out  of  an  electrolytic  cell  by  a  zinc  electrode,  must 
generate  exactly  as  much  more  heat  at  the  zinc  surface  than  the  same  amount  of  current 
would  develope  in  passing  out  of  an  electrolytic  cell  by  a  platinum  electrode,  as  a  zinc- 
platinum  pair  working  against  great  external  resistance  would  develope  in  the  resistance 
wire  by  the  same  amount  of  current.  A  series  of  experiments,  commenced  for  illus- 
trating this  conclusion,  were  described  and  a  few  of  the  conclusions  stated.  It  was 
found  that  in  two  equal  and  similar  electrolytic  cells  in  the  same  circuit,  which  dif- 
fered from  one  another  in  one  of  them  having  its  exit  electrodes  of  zinc,  and  the 
other  of  platinum,  very  sensibly  more  heat  was  developed  in  the  former  than  in  the 
latter,  verifying  so  far  the  conclusion  stated.  By  separating  the  two  electrodes  by 
means  of  porous  diaphragms,  it  was  found  that,  at  least  with  low  strengths  of  cur- 
rent, more  heat  was  developed  at  the  negative  than  at  the  positive  electrode,  when 
both  electrodes  were  of  zinc ;  while  when  both  were  of  platinum,  much  more  heat 
was  found  at  the  positive  electrode  than  was  found  at  the  negative,  for  all  strengths 
of  current,  which  gave  sufficient  thermal  effects  to  be  tested  in  this  respect.  The  last- 
mentioned  result,  which  had  not  been  anticipated  by  the  author,  appears  to  be  in 
accordance  with  experimental  conclusions  announced  by  De  la  Rive. 

Many  other  results  of  a  remarkable  nature  were  obtained  in  a  series  of  experi- 
ments on  the  heat  evolved  in  different  parts  of  various  electrolytic  and  chemical 
electromotive  arrangements,  but  much  difficulty  had  been  found  in  interpreting 
them  correctly  on  account  of  initial  irregularities  depending  on  "polarization," 
which  often  appeared  to  last  as  long  as  the  experiments  could  be  continued  without 
introducing  other  sources  of  disturbance,  and  which  produced  marked  effects  on  the 
observed  thermal  phenomena. 

This  communication  was  brought  forward  principally  for  the  purpose  of  calling 
attention  to  what  may  be  done  if  experimenters  can  be  induced  to  undertake  re- 
searches on  the  evolution  of  heat  in  all  parts  of  a  galvanic  battery  or  of  any  electro- 
thermal apparatus,  but  partly  also  on  account  of  the  novelty  of  some  of  the  result* 
which  have  been  already  obtained  by  the  author. 


On  the  Mutual  Attraction  between  two  electrified  Spherical  Conductors. 
By  Professor  W.  Thomson,  M.A.,  F.R.SX.  $  E. 

In  a  previous  communication  by  the  same  author  at  the  last  Oxford  Meeting  of 
the  Association,  the  attraction  of  a  single  electrified  sphere,  influenced  by  the,  presence 
of  another,  on  any  external  electric  point,  was  shown  to  be  the  same  as  that  due  to 
a  converging  infinite  series  of  electric  points  in  determinate  positions  within  it,  to 
which  the  name  of  "  electrical  images"  was  given.  Hence  it  is  concluded  that  the 
attraction  of  one  sphere  upon  the  other  is  equal  to  that  of  one  infinite  series  of 
electrical  images  upon  another,  and  is  immediately  expressible  algebraically  by  a 
"  double  series."  Another  method  by  which  a  single  series  is  obtained  to  express  the 
required  attraction, had  been  alluded  to  at  the  previous  Cambridge  Meeting, and  worked 
out  to  numerical  results,  which  were  published  in  November  1845,  in  the  first  Number 
of  the  Cambridge  and  Dublin  Mathematical  Journal.  It  was  not  until  1849  that 
the  author  found  a  way  of  reducing  the  double  series  to  a  single  one,  and  so  sue* 
ceeded  in  arriving  at  the  same  form  of  result  by  the  two  methods.  Detailed  accounts 
of  both  methods,  with  all  the  formulas  for  completely  working  out  the  solution, 
including  the  case  of  contact  for  which  the  series  is  not  convergent,  were  commu- 
nicated by  letter  to  M.  Liouville  in  the  month  of  July  of  that  year,  and,  not  having 
as  yet  been  published,  are  now  laid  before  the  British  Association.  Similar  methods 
are  applicable  to  determine  the  whole  force  experienced  by  either  of  two  electrified 

1852.  2 


18  BEPOET — 1852. 

spheres  placed  near  one  another  and  subjected  to  the  influence  of  an  electrified 
point,  whether  in  the  line  joining  the  centre  of  the  spheres  or  not  j  but  the  formula 
expressing  the  details  were  not  brought  forward. 


On  certain  Magnetic  Curves  j  with  application*  to  Problem*  in  the  Theories 
of  Heat,  Electricity,  and  Fluid  Motion.  By  Professor  W.  Thomson, 
M^A.,  F.R.S*L.  Sf  E. 

A  method,  which  had  been  given  by  the  author  in  the  Cambridge  Mathematical 
Journal  for  integrating  the  differential  equations  of  the  lines  of  force  in  any  case  of 
symmetry  about  an  axis,  is  applied  in  this  communication  to  the  case  of  an  infinitely 
small  magnet  placed  with  its  axis  direct  or  reverse  along  the  lines  of  force  of  a 
uniform  magnetic  field.  Diagrams  containing  the  curves  drawn  accurately,  accord, 
ing  to  calculations  founded  on  the  result  of  this  investigation,  (corresponding  to 
series  of  ten  or  twelve  different  values  given  to  the  constant  of  integration,)  were 
exhibited  to  the  Section.  Certain  parts  of  these  curves  were  shown  in  a  separate 
diagram,  as  constituting  precisely  the  series  of  lines  of  electric  force  about  an  insu- 
lated spherical  conductor  under  the  influence  of  a  distant  electrified  body ;  and  the 
other  parts,  in  a  separate  diagram,  as  constituting  the  lines  of  motion  of  a  fluid  mass 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  a  fixed  spherical  solid,  at  considerable  distances  from  which 
the  fluid  is  moving  uniformly  in  parallel  lines  so  slowly  as  to  cause  no  eddies  round 
the  obstacle.  The  circle  representing  the  section  of  the  spherical  conductor,  in  the 
former  of  these  diagrams,  cuts  the  entire  series  of  curves  at  right  angles,  with  the 
exception  of  one  curve,  which  it  cuts  through  a  double  point  at  an  angle  of  45°  to 
each  branch.  The  circle  representing  the  section  of  the  spherical  obstacle  in  the 
latter  diagram,  along  with  two  infinite  double  branches  consisting  of  the  axial  dia- 
meter produced  externally  in  each  direction,  constitutes  the  limiting  curve  of  the 
series  shown,  and  is  not  intersected  by  any  of  them.  A  series  of  diagrams  (deduced 
from  the  former  of  these  by  describing  a  circle  of  the  same  size  as  that  shown  in  it, 
and  drawing,  on  a  smaller  scale,  as  much  of  the  curves  as  lies  without  this  circle,) 
was  shown  as  representing  the  disturbed  lines  of  magnetic  force  about  balls  of  ferro- 
magnetic substance  of  different  inductive  capacities,  placed  in  a  uniform  magnetic 
field ;  and  another  series,  similarly  derived  from  the  latter,  (that  is,  the  one  repre- 
senting the  lines  of  fluid  motion  about  a  spherical  obstacle,)  was  shown  as  represent- 
ing the  disturbance  caused  by  the  presence  of  diamagnetic  balls  of  different  inductive 
capacities  in  a  uniform  magnetic  field.  These  two  series  of  diagrams  are  also  accu- 
rate representations  of  the  lines  of  motion  of  heat  in  a  large  homogeneous  solid 
having  heat  uniformly  conducted  across  it,  as  disturbed  by  spherical  spaces  occupied 
by  solid  matter  of  greater  or  less  conducting  power  than  the  matter  round  them ; 
the  two  principal  diagrams  from  which  they  are  derived  being  the  corresponding 
representations  for  the  cases  of  spherical  spaces  occupied  respectively  by  matter  of 
infinitely  great  and  infinitely  small  conductivity.  The  author  called  attention  to 
the  remarkable  resemblance  which  these  diagrams  bore  to  those  which  Mr.  Faraday 
had  shown  recently  at  the  Royal  Institution  to  illustrate  his  views  regarding  the 
action  of  ferromagnetics  and  diamagnetics  in  influencing  the  field  of  force  in  which 
they  are  placed ;  and  justified  and  illustrated  the  expression  "  conducting  power  for 
the  lines  of  force,"  by  referring  to  rigorous  mathematical  analogies  presented  by  the 
theory  of  heat. 

On  the  Equilibrium  of  elongated  Masses  of  Ferromagnetic  Substance  in 
uniform  and  varied  Fields  of  Force.  By  Professor  W.  Thomson,  M^L> 
F*R%S.Mjm  &f  E. 

The  fact,  first  discovered  experimentally  by  Gilbert,  that  a  bar  of  soft  iron,  held 
by  its  centre  of  gravity  in  a  uniform  magnetic  field,  settles  with  its  length  parallel 
to  the  lines  of  force,  is  not  explained  correctly  when  it  is  said  to  be  merely  due  to 
the  property  of  magnetic  induction  in  virtue  of  which  the  bar  of  soft  iron  becomes 
temporarily  a  magnet  like  a  permanent  magnet  in  its  position  of  stable  equilibrium. 
For  exactly  the  same  statement  would  be  applicable  to  a  row  of  soft  iron  balls  rigidly 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  19 

connected  by  a  non-magnetic  frame ;  yet  such  an  arrangement  would  not  experience 
any  directional  tendency,  (since  no  one  of  the  balls  in  it  would  experience  either  a 
resultant  force  or  a  resultant  couple  from  the  force  of  the  field,)  unless  in  virtue  of 
changes  in  the  states  of  magnetization  of  the  balls  induced  by  their  mutual  actions. 
Hence  the  mutual  action  of  the  parts  of  a  row  of  balls,  and,  as  is  easily  shown,  of 
a  row  of  cubes,  or  of  a  bar  of  any  kind,  must  be  taken  into  account  before  a  true 
theory  of  their  directional  tendencies  can  be  obtained.  The  author  of  this  commu- 
nication, by  elementary  mechanical  reasoning  founded  on  what  is  known  with  cer- 
tainty regarding  magnetic  induction  and  magnetic  action  generally,  shows  that  an 
elongated  mass,  in  a  uniform  magnetic  field,  tends  to  place  its  length  parallel  to  the 
lines  of  force,  whether  its  inductive  capacity  be  ferromagnetic  or  diamagnetic*  pro* 
vided  it  be  non-crystalline,  because  if  ferromagnetic  it  becomes  more,  or  if  diamag- 
netic,  less  intensely  magnetized,  if  placed  in  such  a  position,  than  if  placed  with  its 
length  across  the  lines  of  force.  But  for  all  substances,  whether  ferromagnetic  or 
diamagnetic,  possessing  so  little  capacity  for  induction  as  any  of  the  known  dia- 
magnetics,  this  tendency,  depending  as  it  does  on  the  mutual  action  of  the  parts  of 
the  elongated  mass,  is,  and  probably  will  always  remain,  utterly  imperceptible  in 
experiment.  All  directional  tendencies  in  bars  of  diamagnetic  substance  which  have 
yet  been,  and  probably  all  which  can  ever  be  discovered  by  experiment,  are  due 
either  to  some  magnecrystallic  property  of  their  substances,  or  to  the  tendency  of  their 
ends  or  other  moveable  parts,  from  places  of  stronger  towards  places  of  weaker  force, 
in  varied  magnetic  fields,  or  to  these  two  causes  combined,  and  in  no  respect  to  the 
inductive  effects  of  the  mutual  influence  of  their  parts.  To  consider  the  effects  of  a 
want  of  uniformity  of  the  force,  in  a  varied  field,  on  the  equilibrium  of  a  ferromag- 
netic bar,  the  author  quoted  Faraday's  admirable  statement  of  the  law  regarding  the 
tendency  of  a  ball  or  cube  of  diamagnetic  substance,  and  referred  to  former  papers, 
in  which  he  had  proved  that,  when  applied  to  non-  crystalline  substances  generally, 
with  the  proper  modification  for  the  case  of  ferromagnetics,  it  expresses  with  admi- 
rable simplicity  the  result  of  a  mathematical  investigation  involving  some  of  the 
most  remarkable  principles  in  the  theory  of  attraction.  From  this  it  was  shown, 
that  if  we  conceive  a  ferromagnetic  mass  to  be  divided  into  very  small  cubes,  each  of 
these  parts  would,  of  itself,  tend  towards  places  of  stronger  force,  and  therefore 
that  the  bearing  of  the  whole  mass  in  a  varied  field  will  be  produced  partly  by  this 
tendency  and  partly  by  the  tendency  depending  on  the  mutual  inductive  influence 
which  alone  exists  when  the  field  is  uniform.  The  author  then  proceeded  to  illus- 
trate these  theoretical  views  by  a  series  of  experiments.  In  some  of  them  a  steel  bar 
magnet  was  used,  and  small  soft  iron  wires,  fixed  in  various  positions  on  light  wooden 
arms,  were  shown  to  be  sometimes  urged  on  the  whole  from  places  of  stronger  to 
places  of  weaker  force  by  their  tendency  to  get  into  positions  with  their  lengths  along 
the  lines  of  force.  In  others,  a  ring  electro- magnet,  consisting  of  insulated  copper 
wire,  rolled  fifty  times  round  as  closely  as  possible  to  the  circumference  of  a  circle 
of  the  diameter  stated,  about  9  inches  in  diameter,  fixed  in  a  vertical  plane  at 
right  angles  to  the  magnetic  meridian,  was  used,  and  a  single  cube  of  soft  iron, 
placed  in  an  excentric  position  on  a  long  narrow  pasteboard  tray  centrally  sus- 
pended in  the  field  of  force  by  unspun  silk,  was  attracted  into  the  plane  of  the 
ring;  but  a  row  of  three  or  four  cubes  placed  touching  one  another  in  a  line 
through  the  axis  of  suspension,  settled  as  far  from  the  plane  as  possible,  in  virtue 
of  the  tendency  of  an  elongated  mass  to  get  its  length  along  the  lines  of  force. 
Two  cubes  placed  in  contact  are  found  to  be  in  stable  equilibrium  in  the  plane  of  the 
ring,  or  in  oblique  positions,  or  as  far  from  the  ring  as  possible,  according  to  the 
greater  or  less  distances  at  which  they  are  placed  in  the  tray,  from  the  point  of 
suspension.  A  number  of  equal  and  similar  bars  of  a  composition  of  wax  and  soft 
iron  filings  of  different  ferromagnetic  strengths,  suspended  successively  with  their 
middle  points  in  the  centre  of  the  magnet,  settled  in  various  positions.  Those  of 
them  which  were  of  greatest  ferromagnetic  capacity  settled  perpendicular  to  the 
plane  of  the  ring  or  along  the  lines  of  force ;  others,  with  a  smaller  proportion  of  iron 
filings,  had  positions  of  stable  equilibrium  both  in  the  plane  of  the  ring  and  perpen- 
dicular to  it ;  and  others,  with  a  still  smaller  proportion  of  iron  filings,  had  their 
sole  positions  of  stable  equilibrium  in  the  plane  of  the  ring.    The  last-mentioned 

2* 


20  REPORT — 1852. 

experiments  illustrated  very  curiously  the  diminished  proportion  borne  by  the  effects 
of  mutual  influence  of  the  parts  to  those  of  a  non-uniformity  in  the  field  of  force,  in 
similar  bodies  of  smaller  ferromagnetic  capacity. 


On  an  Instrument for  exhibiting  the  Colours  of  Liquids  by  Transmitted  Light. 
By  R.  W.  Townsend, 

This  consisted  of  a  short  portable  trough  for  containing  the  liquids,  at  the  ends 
of  which  parallel  mirrors  being  placed,  by  the  reflexion  of  the  visual  ray  or  of 
light  backward  and  forward  several  times,  the  effect  was  produced  of  transmitting  the 
ray  proceeding  from  the  eye  (or  a  beam  of  light)  virtually  through  considerable 
thicknesses  of  the  liquid.  The  author  had  been  led  to  construct  this  in  order  to  test  the 
common  explanation  of  the  deep  blue  colour  of  the  waters  of  the  Rhone,  where  they 
enter  the  Lake  of  Geneva,  and  in  other  places.  But  his  experiment  with  the  in- 
strument did  not  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  the  natural  colour  of  all  pure  water 
was  blue.  Pure  spring  or  rain  water  when  perfectly  clear  exhibited  no  colour  when 
thus  viewed  ;  but  a  sunbeam  transmitted  thus  through  the  water  received  a  beautiful 
deep  yellow-green  colour.  He  verified  the  experiment  by  afterwards  using  a  very 
long  trough  without  mirrors,  and  found  the  results  the  same. 


On  Molecular  Action.    By  John  Tyndall,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S. 

In  this  investigation  the  author  has  examined  the  influence  exerted  by  the  peculiar 
structure  of  wood  upon  the  transmission  of  heat  through  the  substance.  A  sen- 
sitive thermoscope  was  found  in  a  bismuth  and  antimony  couple,  and  by  means  of 
cushions  of  mercury  which  pressed  upon  the  bodies  under  examination,  perfect  and 
uniform  contact  was  obtained.  The  bodies  were  reduced  to  the  cubical  form.  Four 
faces  of  each  cube  were  parallel  to  the  fibre  of  the  wood ;  one  pair  of  these  faces 
intersected  the  ligneous  layers  perpendicularly,  and  the  other  pair  was  parallel  to  the 
layers.  The  velocity  of  calorific  transmission  was  examined  in  the  above  three  di- 
rections, and  the  following  law  of  action  established  by  experiments  on  fifty-seven 
different  kinds  of  wood,  both  English  and  foreign  ; — 

"  At  all  points  not  situate  in  the  axis  of  the  tree,  wood  possesses  three  rectangular 
axes  of  calorific  conduction  :  the  first  and  greatest  axis  is  parallel  to  the  fibre  of  the 
wood ;  the  second  and  intermediate  axis  is  perpendicular  to  the  fibre  and  to  the 
ligneous  layers  which  mark  the  growth  of  the  tree ;  while  the  third  and  least  axis 
is  perpendicular  to  the  fibre  and  parallel  to  the  layers." 

Two  other  systems  of  axes  were  pointed  out  by  the  author  as  existing  in  wood ; 
the  axes  of  cohesion  and  those  of  fluid  permeability.  In  order  of  magnitude  and 
direction  these  axes  coincide  with  the  axes  of  calorific  conduction,  and  all  three 
systems  coincide  with  the  axes  of  elasticity  discovered  by  Savart. 


On  Poisson's  Theoretic  Anticipation  of  Magnecrystallic  Action. 
By  John  Tyndall,  Ph.D.9  F.R.S. 

Professor  Wm.  Thomson  has  drawn  attention  to  the  fact,  that  the  discovery  of 
magnecrystallic  action  by  Plucker  was  anticipated  in  Poisson's  Theory  of  Magnet- 
ism ;  and  in  a  recent  number  of  Liebig  and  Kopp's  Annual  Report,  the  author's 
investigations  are  referred  to  as  particularly  confirmatory  of  this  view.  Dr.  Tyndall, 
however,  conceives  that  the  hypothesis  of  Poisson  is  by  no  means  sufficient  to 
account  for  magnecrystallic  phenomena.  Poisson  supposed  that  in  crystallized 
bodies  the  magnetic  elements  were  possibly  ellipsoidal ;  and  conceiving  the  larger 
axes  of  these  ellipsoids  all  to  lie  in  the  same  direction,  he  inferred  that  a  differential 
action,  such  as  that  first  observed  by  Plucker,  would  be  the  result.  But  exactly  the 
Same  results  are  obtained  by  a  peculiar  arrangement  of  the  particles  of  amorphous 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  21 

bodies.  A  wax  model  of  calcareous  spar  was  exhibited  by  Dr.  Tyadall,  the  deport- 
ment of  which,  as  proved  experimentally  before  the  Section,  was  precisely  the  same 
as  that  of  a  calc-spar  crystal  of  the  same  size  and  shape.  Similar  experiments  were 
made  with  other  substances,  both  magnetic  and  diamagnetic,  and  all  went  to  esta- 
blish the  result— a  result  assented  to  by  Prof.  Thomson,  who  witnessed  the  experi- 
menta — that  the  phssnomena  in  question  are  not  due  to  the  shape  of  the  molecules, 
but  to  their  manner  of  arrangement. 


Astronomy,  Meteors,  Waves. 

On  the  connexion  between  Geological  Theories  and  the  Theory  of  the  Figure 
of  the  Earth*    By  Henry  Hennessy,  M.R.LA. 

As  geology  may  be  considered  to  embrace  an  examination  of  the  form  and  struc- 
ture of  the  earth,  it  follows  that  every  correct  geological  theory  must  be  capable  of 
explaining  the  greater  as  well  as  the  lesser  inequalities  in  the  figure  of  our  planet. 
Certain  geological  theories  being  incompatible  with  the  supposition  that  the  earth 
was  originally  in  a  state  of  fluidity,  attempts  have  been  made  to  account  for  its 
spheroidal  figure  by  the  abrading  action  of  the  waters  at  its  surface.  It  has  been 
shown  by  Play  fair  and  Sir  John  Herschel  that  the  earth  would  from  such  causes 
ultimately  tend  to  assume  the  form  of  an  oblate  spheroid ;  but  neither  of  these  emi- 
nent mathematicians  have  presented  such  numerical  results  as  would  enable  us  to 
compare  the  theory  with  observation  satisfactorily.  This  the  author  has  effected  in 
a  paper  communicated  to  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  in  which  he  deduces  for  the  polar 
compression,  according  to  the  theory  in  question,  xhr-  The  compression  given  by 
measurements  is  y^ ;  consequently  it  seems  that  the  theory  of  the  earth's  primitive 
solidity  must  be  rejected  in  favour  of  that  of  its  primitive  fluidity,  which  perfectly 
agrees  with  observation. 

The  author  also  pointed  out  an  inconsistency  between  the  theory  of  the  earth's 
primitive  solidity  and  the  theory  of  climates  proposed  by  Sir  Charles  Lyell  in  order 
to  account  for  the  diminution  of  temperature  at  the  earth's  surface  since  early 
geological  epochs.  This  theory  would  require  a  gradual  transport  of  matter  from 
the  equator  to  the  poles  in  order  to  account  for  a  diminution  of  the  heating  surface 
of  dry  land  at  the  equator.  Consequently  on  this  theory  the  earth  would  tend  to 
become  prolate  instead  of  oblate.  The  author  concluded  by  pointing  out  similar 
objections  to  the  geological  views  known  as  the  Neptunian  theory  and  the  chemical 
theory  of  volcanos. 


Proposed  Theory  of  the  Origin  of  the  Asteroids. 
By  Jambs  Nasmyth,  P.R.A.S. 

As  the  progress  of  science  is  frequently  aided  by  advancing  hypothetical  views  in 
explanation  of  the  cause  of  certain  phenomena,  Mr.  Nasmyth  desires  to  hazard  a 
suggestion  as  to  the  cause  of  the  break-up  of  the  original  planet  whose  fragments,  it 
has  been  conjectured,  form  that  numerous  and  remarkable  group  of  small  planets 
revolving  between  the  orbits  of  Mars  and  Jupiter,  some  peculiarities  of  whose  path 
have  led  to  the  supposition  that  they  must  have  parted  company  from  a  parent  mass 
at  the  same  time  and  place.  In  order  to  render  his  views  on  this  subject  more  clear, 
he  would  refer  to  the  well-known  toy  called  a  "  Prince  Rupert  Drop,"  namely,  a  drop 
of  glass  which  has  been  let  fall  while  in  a  semifluid  state  into  water,  by  which  the 
surface  of  the  glass-drop  is  caused  to  cool  and  consolidate  with  such  rapidity  that 
the  subsequent  consolidation  and  contraction  of  the  interior  mass  induces  so  high 
a  degree  of  tension  between  it  and  the  exterior  crust  that  the  slightest  vibration  is 
sufficient  to  overcome  the  cohesion  of  the  external  crust,  and  by  so  letting  free  the 
state  of  tension  cause  the  glass-drop  to  fly  into  thousands  of  fragments.    Nor  is 


22  REPORT — 1852. 

this  action  confined  to  "  Rupert's  drop/'  as  we  nave  examples  of  the  same  action  in 
our  foundry  operations  in  the  case  of  masses  of  brittle  metal,  when  the  exterior  of  the 
casting,  by  consolidating  (as  it  always  does  before  the  interior)  the  after  con- 
traction of  the  interior  of  the  mass,  induces  a  sort  of  "  touch  and  go"  state  of  tension, 
which  frequently  results  in  such  castings  flying  into  fragments  in  spite  of  their 
apparent  strength,  either  per  at,  or  on  the  application  of  some  force  otherwise 
totally  inadequate  to  produce  so  destructive  a  result. 

Now  let  us  apply  this  action  (which  we  find  constant  in  the  cooling  of  all  masses 
of  brittle  material)  to  the  case  of  the  supposed  parent  planet  of  the  asteroids. 

It  appears  to  Mr.  Nasmyth  that  we  shall  find  in  such  the  elements  of  a  very  feasible  if 
not  the  true  explanation  of  the  origin  of  this  remarkable  and  numerous  group  of  planets, 
namely,  that  the  parent  planet  may  hare  consisted  of  such  materials  as  that  by  the 
rapid  passing  of  its  surface  from  the  original  molten  condition  to  that  of  solidifica- 
tion, while  the  yet  fluid  or  semifluid  interior  went  on  contracting  by  the  compara- 
tively gradual  escape  of  its  heat  into  space  through  the  solid  crust,  a  state  of  tension 
may  thereby  have  been  induced,  such  as  that  in  the  "  Rupert  drop,"  and  that  the 
crust  may  have  at  last  given  way  with  such  violence  as  to  cause  the  fragments  to 
part  company,  and  so  pass  whirling  off  into  orbits  slightly  varying  from  each  other, 
according  to  corresponding  variations  in  the  condition  of  each  at  the  instant  of 
rupture. 

The  remarkable  fact  that  the  orbits  of  these  asteroids  have  one  common  node  or 

Ct  of  coincidence  causes  us  to  look  to  some  such  explanation  as  has  thus  been 
rded,  and  which  perhaps  may  be  entitled,  in  the  mean  time,  to  fill  up  a  gap  until 
supplanted  by  a  better  explanation. 


Drawings  to  illustrate  Recent  Observations  on  Nebula.    By  As  Earl 
of  Rosse.     With  Remarks  by  Rev.  Dr.  Robinson. 

Dr.  Robinson  stated  that  he  had  examined  the  drawings,  which  contain  care- 
ful delineations  of  several  nebulae  not  previously  examined,  and  certainly  the 
contemplation  of  them  was  well  fitted  to  increase  the  obligations  of  the  astrono- 
mical world  to  Lord  Rosse,  as  well  as  to  fill  every  mind  with  astonishment  at  the 
wondrous  revelations  of  bis  matchless  telescope.  Each  of  them  was  a  new  proof  of 
a  former  statement  of  his,  that  this  instrument  would  probably  disclose  forms  of 
stellar  arrangement,  indicating  modes  of  dynamic  action  never  before  contemplated 
in  celestial  mechanics.  He  referred  to  the  drawings  of  M.  51,  in  which  the  spiral 
or  vorticose  arrangement  of  the  stars  and  unresolved  nebulas  was  first  remarked  in 
its  simplest  form ;  and  to  others  already  published,  .where  it  presents  itself  under 
conditions  of  greater  complexity.  He  also  referred  to  the  important  fact  that  the 
class  of  planetary  nebulae  might  now  be  fairly  assumed  to  have  no  existence,  as  all 
of  them  which  have  been  examined  prove  to  be  either  annular  or  of  a  spiral  charac- 
ter. Thus  M.  97,  which  was  considered  by  Sir  J.  Herschal  the  finest  specimen  of 
them,  and  seemed  even  in  his  18-inch  reflector  a  uniform  disc,  presents  in  the  six- 
feet  a  most  intricate  group  of  spiral  arcs,  disposed  round  two  starry  centres,  looking 
like  the  visage  of  a  monkey.  Among  the  new  ones  are  H.  2241.  It  is  a  ring  of 
stars  with  a  faint  nebula  within,  and  a  fine  double  star  near  its  edge ;  H.  2075,  of  the 
tame  kind,  but  with  a  bright  star  almost  exactly  central,  and  nine  others  round  it, 
evidently  part  of  the  same  group.  H.  450  is  a  most  extraordinary  object ;  the  ring 
exactly  circular,  its  light  mottled  and  flickering,  and  within  it  what  is  evidently  a 
globular  cluster.  Scarcely  less  surprising,  but  more  magnificent  from  its  association, 
is  the  planets ry  at  the  edge  of  M.  46,  which  he  had  seen,  though  in  a  night  not  so 
favourable  as  that  must  have  been  when  the  drawing  was  made.  It  is  a  resolvable 
double  ring,  rather  spiral,  with  a  central  star ;  and  from  the  improbability  of  two 
objects  so  rare  as  a  splendid  cluster,  and  one  of  these  compound  rings  being  eataa% 
connected,  it  seems  reasonable  to  think  they  constitute  one  system.  The  double 
star, «  Ononis,  belongs  also  to  this  class,  and  he  called  attention  to  the  absolute 
darkness  of  the  aperture  in  the  nebula  round  the  two  stars,  and  that  the  larger  of 
them  was  at  its  edge  instead  of  being  central.    He  argued,  from  the  remarkable  dif- 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  28 

ference  between  these  objects  as  seen  in  the  telescopes  of  Lord  Rosse  (even  the  three- 
feet)  and  those  of  previous  observers,  how  desirable  it  was  that  a  complete  review 
of  the  nebulae  should  be  made  without  loss  of  time.  Even  now  much  labour  and 
talent  were  expended  in  theorizing  on  the  imperfect  data  given  by  instruments,  which 
though  matchless  in  their  time  nave  now  been  surpassed.  Among  others  he  di- 
rected the  notice  of  the  Section  to  H.  604,  where  the  two  clusters  and  the  associated 
spirals  are  projected  into  ellipses ;  and  to  H.  2205,  in  which  the  long- resolved  ray,  being 
the  most  intense,  was  alone  seen  by  Herschel,  but  the  magnificent  spirals  and  their 
central  stars  escaped  him.  M.  65,  H.  857,  appear  to  be  helices  seen  obliquely. 
But  the  most  curious  one  is  M.  33,  of  which  die  centre  is  a  triple  star  disposed  as 
an  equilateral  triangle  among  a  mass  of  smaller,  from  which  proceed  eight  or  nine 
spirals ;  and  round  all  is  an  enormous  nebula,  in  which  however  no  spiral  character 
•had  yet  been  traced. 

There  were  several  examples  of  another  singular  system,  nebula?  streaked  with 
dark  bands,  such  as  Bond  discovered  in  the  great  nebula  of  Andromeda.  H.  399,  a 
wisp ;  H«  1393,  a  long  ray  of  most  marvellous  appearance ;  H.  218,  an  oblique  with 
sixteen  or  seventeen  dark  transverse  stripes)  and  H.  315,  having  in  the  nebula  a 
cluster  nearly  insulated  by  offsets  from  the  broad  curved  dark  band,  are  among  the 
most  surprising.  But  tie  number  of  these  curious  objects  was  so  great  that 
time  would  only  permit  him  to  invite  attention  to  H.  1052  and  1053,  where  the 
cause  of  spirality  had  been  interrupted  by  some  other  forces  that  bent  the  system  at 
a  right  angle  and  drew  the  nebula  into  a  straight  ray ;  to  H.  444,  a  double  resolved 
nebula  inclosed  in  a  large  and  faint  oval  ring ;  and  above  all  to  M.  27,  the  "  Dumb 
Bell "  nebula  as  shown  by  the  six-feet,  with  its  brilliant  two  clusters  of  comparatively 
large  stars,  its  dark  bands  and  the  faint  rings  which  surround  it  differing  even  more 
from  the  picture  of  the  three-feet  than  that  does  from  the  figure  of  Herschel. 

In  the  name  of  the  Section  he  thanked  Lord  Rosse,  not  merely  for  the  pleasure 
which  they  received  from  the  sight  of  these  wonders,  but  for  the  unremitted  and 
precious  gifts  which  he  was  conferring  on  astronomy.  Would  he  also  increase  their 
gratitude  by  mentioning  any  improvements  which  he  might  have  lately  made  in  the 
methods  of  suspending  these  large  specula?  in  their  tubes  or  in  the  process  of  polish- 
ing, the  latter  with  reference  to  the  possibility  of  its  being  practised  with  success  by 
persons  who  had  not  the  long  experience  and  mechanical  knowledge  of  his  Lordship  r 

Lord  Rosse  adverted  to  the  peculiar  conditions  of  equilibrium  which  must  prevail 
in  these  systems,  or  rather  to  the  forces  which  are  required  to  produce  the  peculiar 
constitution  which  they  indicate,  and  pointed  out  the  difficulties  of  such  an  investi- 
gation. It  could  however  not  be  undertaken  with  advantage  till  we  possess  a  much 
more  extended  collection  of  data,  to  which  he  would  contribute  to  the  utmost  of  his 
power.  These  drawings  were  based  on  measures  carefully  taken  with  a  bar-micro- 
meter (the  only  one  available  in  such  cases),  and  he  believed  they  might  be  trusted. 
He  had  already  described  the  improvement  effected  by  supporting  the  speculum  on 
its  lever  by  eighty-one  balls,  and  mentioned  the  striking  fact,  that  with  a  speculum 
weighing  3£  tons  a  slight  pressure  of  the  hand  would  deform  for  a  time  the  image 
of  a  star.  He  had  since  effected  a  further  improvement  by  supporting  the  edge  of 
the  speculum  in  a  hoop  mounted  in  jimmals.  As  to  polishing,  he  had  recently  made 
many  experiments  with  3-feet  specula  in  reference  to  the  object  of  Dr.  Robinson's 
question,  and  in  particular  had  found,  that,  by  increasing  the  speed  of  the  second  ex- 
centric  in  his  machine,  the  process  was  rendered  so  much  more  certain,  that  desiring 
one  of  his  workmen,  a  smith,  to  perform  the  whole  process  without  any  superintend- 
ence on  his  part,  he  produced  a  speculum,  not  perhaps  absolutely  perfect,  but  capable 
of  doing  excellent  work.  He  had  no  doubt  that  any  person  of  ordinary  mechanical 
capacity  would  be  able  to  do  as  much  with  a  little  instruction,  and  he  would  be  most 
willing  to  give  that  instruction  to  any  observer  that  might  be  placed  in  charge  of  a 
large  reflector.  • 


24  REPORT—I  852. 

Meteorology. 

Account  of  a  remarkable  Case  of  Mirage.    By  Sir  David  Brewster,  KM^ 
D.CX^  F.R.S.,  $  VJP.R.S.  Edinb. 

On  the  21st  of  August,  1851,  Miss  F.  £.  went  out  on  a  drive  with  Mrs.  and  Miss 
H.,  and  leaving  them  in  the  carriage,  climbed  to  the  top  of  the  Mynydd,  a  high  and 
steep  hill,  rising  about  500  feet  above  the  valley  of  New  Radnor,  the  summit  round 
and  bare,  the  ground  firm. 

It  was  about  half- past  2  p.m.,  and  there  was  a  bright  hot  sun. 

After  picking  some  flowers  on  the  top  of  the  hill,  she  went  to  a  spot  whence  she 
could  see  the  road,  the  carriage  and  the  ladies,  and  waved  to  them  her  "  victorime" 
which  she  held  in  her  hand.  Then,  turning,  she  suddenly  perceived  a  figure  at  the 
distance  of  a  few  yards  from  her.  It  was  standing  on  a  wet  spot,  where  there  was 
a  little  thin  mist  (probably  steam)  rising,  and  wavered  a  little,  never  remaining  still ; 
for  which  reason  she  did  not  think  it  was  a  real  figure,  though  she  says  it  had  "  a  great 
deal  of  bulk,"  It  was  on  a  level  with  herself,  and  formed  a  species  of  triangle  with 
herself  and  the  sun,  F.  looking  towards  the  sun,  but  not  directly  to  it.  She  thought 
at  first  that  the  figure  might  be  a  delusion ;  it  stood  exactly  facing  her,  and  she  first 
discovered  it  to  be  her  own  image  by  perceiving  that,  like  herself,  it  held  a  "  victo- 
rine"  and  bunch  of  flowers  in  its  hand.  She  moved  the  hand  with  the  nosegay,  and 
the  figure  did  the  same.  The  dress  and  the  flowers  were  precisely  similar  to  her 
own,  and  the  colours  as  vivid  as  in  the  reality.  She  could  see  the  colouring  and 
the  flesh ;  it  was  like  looking  at  herself  in  a  looking-glass. 

She  stood  looking  at  and  examining  it  for  two  or  three  minutes ;  then,  becoming 
frightened,  turned  away  from  the  figure  and  ran  straight  down  the  side  of  the  hill 
(which,  though  covered  with  turf,  is  of  almost  perpendicular  steepness)  without  look- 
ing behind  her,  to  Mrs.  and  Miss  H.,  to  whom  she  said  that  she  had  "had  such  a 
strange  companion  on  the  hill — herself."  There  was  no  mist  around  her  when  she 
saw  the  figure ;  it  hung  only  over  the  one  spot. 

Miss  H.  said,  that  she  and  her  sister-in-law  had  remained  in  the  carriage.  Look- 
ing up,  she  saw  two  figures  on  the  top  of  the  hill  against  the  sky,  at  a  few  yards' 
distance  from  each  other.  Being  short-sighted,  and  the  distance  considerable,  she 
could  distinguish  nothing  but  this  fact,  and  merely  observed,  that  she  wondered 
what  companion  F.  had  met  with.  She  then  turned  to  talk  to  her  companion,  and 
thought  no  more  about  the  matter,  until  F.  came  running  to  them,  considerably 
alarmed,  to  tell  them  what  she  had  seen.  Mrs.  H.  saw  the  two  figures  as  well  as 
her  sister-in-law. 

A  little  servant-boy  who  was  with  the  carriage,  saw  F.  run  down  the  hill,  falling 
repeatedly,  and  appearing  much  frightened. 

Miss  F.  E.  returned  a  few  days  after  to  the  same  spot  to  see  whether  the  appear- 
ance would  be  renewed,  but  has  never  seen  it  again. 

The  figure,  of  Miss  £.,  thus  distinctly  seen  by  herself  and  others,  was  obviously 
produced  by  reflexion  from  the  mass  of  vapour  rising  from  the  wet  ground  on  which 
she  stood.  Sir  David  Brewster  stated,  on  the  authority  of  direct  experiment,  that 
when  the  particles  of  vapour  are  sufficiently  small,  such  as  that  produced  by  breathing 
on  a  glass  surface  of  nearly  the  same  temperature  as  the  breath,  the  surface  of  the 
vapour  reflects  as  distinct  a  picture  as  if  it  were  the  surface  of  water.  The  vapour 
surface  must  have  been  considerably  extended  in  the  direction  of  Mrs.  H.'s  carriage 
in  order  that  the  reflected  rays  might  reach  it. 


On  certain  Phenomena  of  Diffraction.    By  Sir  David  Brewster,  K.H^ 
D.CJL.,  F.R.S.,  $  V.P.R.S.  Edinb. 

In  this  communication  the  author  pointed  out  some  new  and  interesting  pheno- 
mena which  he  had  observed.  The  diffracting  body  tapers  like  the  point  of  a  very  fine 
needle,  which  will  be  understood  from  the  figure,  which  very  imperfectly  represents 
the  internal  and  external  fringes  as  produced  by  a  needle-point  like  MN.     The  ex- 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  25 

tonal  fringes  are  represented  by  nm,  a*V,  and  are  convex  outwards,  or  parallel  to  the 
m'         ,„  sides  of  the  point  MN.    The  internal  fringes, 

?  * '  ftHL   A  iWL  0       ** 8Ccn  b  7  Grimaldi  *nd  Dr. Young,  are  shown 

s%  ltil\    $RM         by  ^e        p  black  lines  between  A  •"'d  B« 

A  ^JErfiw  f/ftuU         Tbes6  internal  fringes,  however,  I  have  ob- 

AB  WmAi  \lf/WC  served  extending  far  beyond  the  shadow  in 

■  M  fine  hyperbolic  curves,  as  shown  between  o 

II  /flBSoIl       KBfflj        and  n,  and  o' and />'.    They  intersect  the  ev- 

il '  -3^  Khq  ^    'enMI'  °nes,  and  give  them  the  appearance 

B  B  °f  •ceio*  or  twitted  cords.    In  homogeneous 

N  W  light,  where  the  fringes  are  alternately  dark 

-  and  coloured,  the  dark  fringes  are  dark  at 

their  intersections,  and  the  coloured  ones  coloured. 

When  the  needle-point  is  illuminated  by  the  spectrum,  and  the  fringes  viewed  by 
a  lens,  which  is  necessary  to  see  them,  we  require  to  approach  the  lens  to  the  fringes 
si's1  on  the  violet  side  of  the  spectrum,  and  to  withdraw  it  on  the  red  side,  in  order 
to  see  them  distinctly.  When  this  experiment  is  made  with  great  care,  I  have 
counted  twenty  external  fringes  on  each  side  of  the  shadow,  which  may  always  be 
seen  most  distinctly  by  looking  through  the  margin  of  the  lens. 

When  the  diffracting  body  is  an  exceedingly  small  wire  with  parallel  sides,  the 
internal  fringes  extend  far  beyond  the  shadow,  mingling  with  the  external  ones,  and 
completely  altering  their  colours  and  forms. 

The  internal  fringes  beyond  the  shadow,  like  those  in  it,  disappear  by  intercepting 
the  light  with  a  screen  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  diffracting  body. 

In  former  notices  on  certain  dark  bands  in  the  spectrum,  the  author  noticed  that 
they  resembled  screws  or  twitted  lines;  and  he  infers  from  the  preceding  experi- 
ments, that  these  bands  may  have  a  similar  origin,  that  is,  that  they  may  be  pro- 
duced by  the  intersection  of  two  systems  of  bands,  or  by  portions  of  bands  produced 
by  the  ragged  or  uneven  edge  of  the  diffracting  body. 

In  this  communication  Sir  David  stated  that  the  bands  which  in  former  notices  he 
had  considered  as  indicating  an  apparent  polarity  of  light,  were  merely  the  internal 
diffraction  fringes  produced  by  the  edge  of  the  plate,  displaced,  according  to  M.  Arago's 
discovery,  by  the  retarding  action  of  the  plate  itself,  and  rendered  visible  through 
the  action  of  the  prism  in  one  position  of  the  edge  more  than  another.  He  had  seen 
the  fringes  under  various  circumstances,  whether  the  diffracting  edge  was  towards  the 
red  or  blue  side  of  the  spectrum,  never  having  any  dependence  on  the  aperture  of  the 
pupil  or  of  the  object-glass.  ^___ 

On  four  simultaneous  Experiments  in  the  Island  of  Bombay  to  determine  the 
Fall  of  Rain  at  different  Heights  below  WO  feet.  By  Dr.  G.  Buist.  Com- 
municated by  Col.  Sykes. 

Dr.  Buist  gave  the  details  of  the  means  which  he  adopted  to  ensure  accurate  re- 
sults. No  satisfactory  conclusion  could  be  drawn,  because  the  gauges  at  the  several 
heights  below  and  at  200  feet  did  not  give  uniform  results ;  sometimes  the  most 
elevated  gauges  having  the  greatest  fail  of  rain,  and  at  other  times  the  lower 
gauges  having  the  greatest  quantity.  Nor  did  gauges  at  similar  heights  receive  the 
same  quantity  of  rain.  

On  Atmospheric  Daily  and  Yearly  Fluctuations,    By  Dr.  G.  Buist. 

The  object  of  the  author  was  to  show  from  the  annual  and  daily  oscillations  of 
the  barometer  south  of  latitude  44°  N.,  that  the  usually  received  opinion,  that  "the 
annual  range  of  the  barometer  increased  and  that  the  daily  fluctuations  decreased  as 
the  equator  was  receded  from/'  was  met  by  so  many  instances  to  the  contrary  aa 
to  go  far  to  invalidate  the  rule.  Dr.  Buist  supplies  a  list  of  twenty-five  stations 
from  lat.  43°  30/  N.  to  lat.  42°  52'  S„  in  which  the  annual  and  daily  ranges  of  the 
barometer  are  given  for  the  year,  and  for  the  summer  and  winter  months.  With 
the  exception,  however,  of  Aden,  Toronto,  St.  Helena,  and  Hobart  Town,  the  stations 
are  confined  to  the  continent  of  India  and  within  22 J  degrees  of  latitude  north  of  the 


86  report— 1852. 

equator ;  and  many  of  the  stations  are  at  very  different  derations,  which  it  is 
known  affects  both  the  annual  and  the  daily  oscillations.  Dr.  Buist  in  his  paper 
discusses  the  exceptional  cases  to  the  supposed  rule,  and  recommends  them  for 
scientific  consideration. 


Communication  from  the  Smithsonian  Institution  4  on  the  Plan  adopted  for 
investigating  the  Meteorology  of  North  America' 

Col.  Sabine  read  a  letter  from  Prof.  Henry,  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution. 
Accompanying  the  letter  was  a  set  of  charts  to  illustrate  the  plan  adopted  by  the 
Institution.  They  gave  the  atmospheric  changes  in  pressure,  temperature,  and 
wind  during  a  storm  which  commenced  at  the  close  of  January  1851.  The  prin- 
cipal object  of  this  communication  was  to  cause  the  British  Association  to  procure 
the  establishment  of  a  series  of  observations  in  the  British  possessions  on  that  con- 
tinent which  may  serve  as  an  extension  of  those  proceeding  under  the  direction  of 
the  Smithsonian  Institution.  The  general  plan  is  that  originally  proposed  by  Prof. 
Mitchell  of  North  Carolina,  and  used  successfully  by  Prof.  Loomis  in  the  study  of 
two  storms  which  occurred  some  years  since.  It  consists  in  ascertaining  the  changes 
of  the  several  meteorological  elements  from  the  mean  of  the  month  In  which  the 
storm  occurs,  and  delineating  on  a  series  of  charts  all  the  phases  and  movements  of 
the  atmosphere  from  the  beginning  of  the  disturbance  to  its  end.  As  many  of  the 
instruments  used  had  not  been  compared  and  were  not  of  the  most  improved  con- 
struction, it  had  been  feared  that  no  reliable  results  could  be  obtained.  But  this  is  not 
the  case  :  though  the  absolute  mean  temperature  and  pressure  are  not  obtained,  yet 
facts  of  equal,  if  not  greater  interest,  are  deducible,  namely,  the  change*  from  a 
normal  state.    Thus  the  average  (say  for  a  month)  can  be  deduced  with  sufficient 

}>recision  to  afford  important  practical  deductions.  Though  the  aero-points  may  be 
n  error  several  divisions  of  the  respective  scales,  they  may  give  with  sufficient  accu- 
racy the  changes  which  occur  at  a  given  time,  and  thus  furnish  reliable  data  for  de- 
termining the  dynamic  phenomena  of  the  atmosphere,  though  Inadequate  to  furnish 
statistical  meteorological  elements.  The  whole  number  of  observers  immediately 
under  the  direction  of  this  Institution  is  about  two  hundred ;  and  a  hope  was  ex- 
pressed that  the  British  Association  and  the  Royal  Society  would  aid  by  their  co- 
operation in  extending  the  system  by  establishing  corresponding  observations  in  Her 
Majesty's  possessions  in  America. 

On  the  Aurora.    By  Lieut  W.  H.  H.  Hooper. 

The  author  believes  the  aurora  borealis  to  be  moisture  in  some  shape  (whether  dew 
or  vapour,  liquid  or  frozen),  illumined  by  the  heavenly  bodies,  either  directly  or 
reflecting  their  rays  from  the  frozen  masses  around  the  pole,  or  even  from  the  imme- 
diately proximate  snow-clad  earth.  This  opinion  he  endeavoured  to  support  by 
facts  and  argument. 

Notes  on  the  Meteorology  of  Ireland,  deduced  from  the  Observaticms  made  at 
the  Coast-guard  Stations  under  the  directum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy. 
By  the  Rev.  H.  Lloyd,  DJ)^  F.R.S. 

In  the  year  1850  an  application  was  made  by  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  to  the 
Government,  requesting  that  meteorological  and  tidal  observations  should  be  made 
by  the  officers  of  the  Coast-guard  Service,  according  to  a  prearranged  plan*  at  cer- 
tain selected  stations  on  the  coasts  of  Ireland,  the  Academy  undertaking  to  furnish 
the  instruments  and  the  instructions  for  their  use.  This  application  was  promptly 
acceded  to  by  the  Government ;  and  in  the  course  of  the  same  year  meteorological 
instruments,  previously  compared  with  the  standards  belonging  to  the  Dublin  Mag- 
netical  Observatory,  were  conveyed  to  the  several  stations,  and  tide-gauges  of  a  new 
construction  were  erected.  All  the  stations  were  subsequently  visited  by  Members 
of  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  who  undertook  the  task  of  placing  and 
adjusting  the  instruments,  and  of  training  the  observers  in  their  use.    At  the  si 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.       flj]  V  T  T»  *     «    r  -•  - 

II  */  *<  X    v    Hi  j,\  £  i   . 

time  an  application  was  made  to  the  Board  of  Trinity  College,  a&d/fer f&HHeadfr  tff       „.,  * 
the  Queen's  Colleges  of  Belfast,  Cork  and  Gal  way,  requesting  their^pWcaiiCji  fa*"^  ^x  \'~\ 
the  meteorological  observations ;  and  a  similar  application  was  addressed  »~^-~  rftmin~  *  *  *     ^ 
son  and  Mr.  Cooper,  and  to  several  private  individuals  who  were  known  to  be  in- 
terested in  meteorological  inquiries.    These  applications  were,  for  the  most  part, 
cheerfully  acceded  to,  and  the  observations,  upon  the  plan  laid  down  by  the  Academy, 
were  commenced  everywhere  before  the  close  of  the  year. 

Dr.  Lloyd  having  been  requested  by  the  Council  of  the  Academy  to  superintend 
the  reduction  of  the  meteorological  observations,  some  of  the  principal  results  to 
which  he  has  been  conducted  are  given  in  the  present  communication. 

The  first  point  to  which  he  invited  the  attention  of  the  Section  was  the  distribution 
of  mean  temperature  in  Ireland  at  the  different  seasons  of  the  year.  On  an  exami- 
nation of  the  mean  monthly  temperatures  at  the  several  stations,  it  was  found  that 
those  of  the  inland  stations  (Armagh,  Markree,  Portarlington  and  A  thy)  were  in  defect, 
as  compared  with  the  corresponding  coast  stations ;  the  defect  being  (as  might  be 
expected)  least  in  summer  and  greatest  in  winter.  The  daily  and  yearly  ranges  of 
temperature  are,  of  course,  greater  at  the  inland  than  at  the  coast  stations. 

Upon  examination  of  the  results  at  the  coast  stations,  it  is  found  that  there  is  a 
decrease  of  mean  yearly  temperature,  in  proceeding  northward,  amounting  to  30,5 ; 
the  mean  temperature  at  Castletownsend  being  52°*2,  and  that  of  Buncrana  48°*7. 
The  rate  of  decrease  is  about  1°  in  80  geographical  miles. 

Again,  there  is  a  decrease  of  mean  yearly  temperature,  although  not  so  rapid,  in 
proceeding  eastward.  Thus  from  Weatport  to  Dublin,  places  nearly  in  the  same 
parallel  of  latitude,  the  decrease  of  temperature  is  1°'3 ;  the  mean  rate  of  decrease 
in  proceeding  eastward  being  about  1°  in  130  geographical  miles.  In  consequence 
of  this  variation,  the  mean  temperature  of  the  western  coast  of  the  island  exceeds 
that  of  the  eastern  by  about  2°. 

The  following  are  the  angles  which  the  isothermal  lines  form  with  the  meridian 
at  the  several  seasons  of  the  year : — 

Spring S.  63°  E. 

Summer N.  77°  E. 

Autumn S.  27°  E. 

Winter    S.  47°  E. 

It  thus  appears  that  the  direction  of  the  isothermal*  makes  a  wide  oscillation  in  the 
course  of  the  year,  viz.  through  an  angle  of  about  80°,  their  mean  direction  for  the 
entire  year  being  S.  67°  E.  It  appears,  further,  that  their  two  extreme  positions  are 
in  the  consecutive  seasons  of  summer  and  autumn. 

The  latter  conclusion,  startling  as  it  is  at  first  sight,  is  completely  explained  by  the 
form  and  annual  movement  of  the  isothermal  lines,  as  shown  in  Dove's  maps.  In 
fact,  there  is  a  rapid  flexure  of  these  lines  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  British 
islands  in  the  autumn  and  winter  months,  the  lines  (as  we  follow  them  eastward) 
first  tending  to  the  N.E.,  and  then,  after  a  sudden  bend,  taking  a  S.E.  course.  Now 
this  flexure,  which  is  due  to  the  influence  of  the  Gulf-stream,  begins  to  manifest  itself 
in  the  month  of  September,  and  the  maximum  advances  westward  with  the  advance 
of  the  season ;  so  that  the  ascending  and  descending  branches  of  the  curve  pass 
through  Ireland  at  a  short  interval.  It  is  to  this  flexure  that  we  owe,  in  this  country, 
the  mildness  of  our  winter  .climate. 

The  next  point  connected  with  the  meteorology  of  Ireland  referred  to  by  Dr.  Lloyd, 
was  the  mean  elasticity  of  vapour  and  the  mean  humidity,  The  maximum  elastic 
force  of  vapour  occurs,  as  might  have  been  expected,  at  the  southern  stations, 
Cahirciveen  and  Castletownsend;  and  the  minimum  at  the  northern,  Buncrana  and 
Armagh.  The  mean  elastic  force  of  vapour  in  Ireland,  during  the  year  1851,  was 
•314  of  an  inch  of  mercury ;  and  the  extreme  variation  depending  on  position  was 
•046. 

If  we  divide  the  actual  elasticity  of  vapour  by  the  maximum  elastic  force  com. 
sponding  to  the  temperature,  we  obtain  the  measure  of  the  humidity.  The  humidity 
is,  as  we  know,  very  great  in  Ireland ;  its  mean  yearly  value  for  the  whole  of  Ireland 
being  *86.  The  driest  stations  are,  as  might  be  expected,  on  the  eastern  coast,  and 
the  most  humid  on  the  western. 


28  REPORT — 1852. 

The  total  amount  of  raw,  at  the  several  stations,  for  the  year  1851,  is  as  follows : — 

Station.  Rain  in  inches. 

<«*—<«  \Killough 23-2 

f  Dublin   26-4 

25-3(J  Athy • 26'7 

25    J0 1  Donaghadee  27*9 

ICourtown 29*6 

fKilrush  32'6 

30-35JArma«b 331 

W— <5D<  j^uy^gg   33.2 

(JDanmore  33*5 

•«_ -in/  p°rtnish    37-2 

do— *"\Buncrana  39*3 

40^45/ Markree 40*3 

4u— **>\Castletownsend 425 

45—50.. .Westport  45*9 

50 — 60...Cahirciveen  59*4 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  table — 

1.  That  there  is  great  diversity  in  the  yearly  amount  of  rain  at  the  different  sta- 
tions, all  of  which  (excepting  four)  are  but  a  few  feet  above  the  sea-level ;  the 
greatest  rain  (at  Cahirciveen)  being  nearly  three  times  as  great  as  the  least  (at 
Portarlington). 

2.  That  the  stations  of  least  rain  are  either  inland  or  on  the  eastern  coast;  while 
those  of  greatest  rain  are  at  or  near  the  western  coast. 

3.  That  the  amount  of  rain  is  greatly  dependent  on  the  proximity  of  a  mountain 
chain  or  group,  being  always  considerable  in  such  neighbourhood,  unless  the  station 
lie  to  the  N.E.  of  the  same. 

The  author  illustrated  this  last  position  by  reference  to  the  map  prepared  by 
Captain  Larcom,  at  the  instance  of  the  Land-tenure  Commissioners,  in  which  degrees 
of  elevation,  differing  by  250  feet,  are  distinguished  by  different  shades  of  colour. 
Thus,  Portarlington  lies  to  the  N.E.  of  Slieve-bloom,  Killough  N.E.  of  the  Mourne 
range,  Dublin  N.E.  of  the  Dublin  and  Wicklow  range,  and  s,o  on.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  stations  of  greatest  rain,  Cahirciveen,  Castletownsend,  Westport,  &c.  are 
in  the  vicinity  of  high  mountains,  but  on  a  different  side. 

If  we  assume  the  proportion  of  rain  at  the  different  stations  to  be  constant,  or 
nearly  so,  the  preceding  numbers  may  all  be  reduced  to  their  mean  values  by  multi- 
plying by  the  factor,  which  expresses  the  relation  of  the  rain  of  1851  to  the  mean  at 
any  one  station.  The  following  table  gives  the  yearly  fall  of  rain  in  Dublin  for  the 
last  eleven  years  :— 

Year.  Rain  in  inches.  Year.  Rain  in  inches. 

1841 27*05  1847 25-80 

1842 28*08  1848 34*11 

1843 27*71  1849 29*80 

1844 28*38  1850 24*16 

1845 31*49  1851 26*40 

1846 3609  

Mean....  29*01 

On  this  assumption,  therefore,  the  mean  yearly  rain  at  any  station  will  be  found 

C29*01\ 
==26*40/'    ^e 
greatest  mean  monthly  fall  of  rain  in  Dublin  occurs  in  October,  and  its  amount  is 
3*34  inches;  the  least  mean  monthly  rain  is  in  February,  its  amount  being  1*74 
inches. 

The  last  point  adverted  to  by  Dr.  Lloyd,  as  deduced  from  these  observations,  was 
the  evidence  which  they  afford  of  the  frequent  occurrence  of  cyclonic  movements  in 
the  atmosphere.  The  observations  being  simultaneous  at  all  the  stations,  such 
movements  are  at  once  detected  by  a  comparison  of  the  directions  of  the  wind  at  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  29 

same  moment  at  the  different  stations ;  and  it  thus  appears  that  the  rotatory  move- 
ment of  the  air,  which  constitutes  a  cyclone,  is  by  no  means  confined  to  tne  more 
violent  currents,  but  may  be  traced  even  in  the  gentlest  breeze.  The  author  con- 
cluded with  some  remarks  on  the  physical  characters  of  these  aerial  movements ; 
"and  he  showed  in  what  manner  the  results  of  observation  should  be  combined  by 
the  method  of  least  squares,  so  as  to  deduce  the  direction  and  velocity  of  the  centre 
of  the  vortex. 


Monthly  Amount  of  Rain  from  the  Register, 

Armagh  Observatory. 

Anno. 

Jan. 

F*.    Mar. 

i 

Apr. 

May. 

June. 

July. 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

Not. 

Dec. 

Days  on 

which 

rain  Ml. 

Sum  of 
rain. 

Inch. 

inch.  1  inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

inch. 

1840. 

4*035 

3751  !  0*403 

0700 

3*035 

3*501 

8*154 

3*050 

3*434 

1*360 

3*448 

3*818 

101 

30*1Q3 

1841. 

3-004 

3-385  '  3*049 
3730    4*330 

1-099 

1*549    3*597 

3*353 

3*890 

3*314 

4*001 

3*034 

3-603 

190 

31-858 

1842. 

*7©4 

0*033 

4*070  I  3*419 

3*009 

8*970 

3*850 

1-977 

4700 

8*005 

191 

34*800 

1843. 

3*345    1*209    1*930 

38 

8*150 

3*944  '  3*314 

4*100 

3*841 

1*223 

3*905 

3*188 

2*243 

183 

34*311 

1844. 

9*090    3*339    8*888 
4*985  ,  1*330    1*033 

0*043  I  4*472 

3*300 

3*007 

9*330 

4*351 

3*002 

0*533 

180 

30*487 

1845. 

0*391     5*500 

8*088 

1*877 

3*839 

4*841 

4*755 

6*350 

189 

41*333 

1840. 

4*579  i  1*804  <  3*793 

3-848 

1*084    8-104 

3*854 

3*551 

3*353  ,  4*931 

3*397 

1*033 

180 

87007 

1847. 

3*087  :  1*974 

1*401 

3*147 

3*483  •  1*913 

1*083 

1*096 

3-005    3*778 

8*775 

6*850 

310 

33*358 

184& 

1*807  '  0754 

8*709 

3*330 

1*339    3733 

3*930 

3*470 

3*379 

3*147 

8*098 

3-011 

381 

39*318 

1840. 

0*303    3*507 

1*483 

3*091 

3*004  !  0*870 

3*977 

9*891 

8*554 

4*387 

3*730 

3*360 

330 

87*048 

1890. 

4*083  .  5*085 

1*335 

3*507 

3*414  '  9*371 

8*143 

37«0 

3711 

3*340 

3*314 

3*403 

338 

86*134 

1851. 

6*538    3*837 

3*547 

1*538 

1*915  .  3-453 

3*055 

3*809 

3*438 

3*808 

1*406 

3*113 

333 

39-136 

Mom. 

3749    3*879  |  3*433 

3-335 

3-330    3-803 

8*191 

3*831 

3'580 

3*484 

3*353 

W*i| 

On  the  Fata  Morgana  of  Ireland.     By  Mr.  M'Farland. 

These  singular  illusions  are  termed  in  the  Irish  language  Duma  Feadhreagh,  or 
Fairy  Castles.  As  proof  that  the  Morgana  had  appeared  as  an  island,  either  resting 
or  floating  on  the  sea  prior  to  1185,  Mr.  M' Far  land  read  a  passage  from  the  topo- 
graphical history  of  that  country,  by  Giraldus  Cambrensis  (lib.  ii.  c.  12).  He  then 
referred  to  the  "  Miranda  loca,  quae  vidit  St.  Brandanus  in  Oceano,"  to  which  Usher 
alludes  in  his  '  De  Hibernia'  (p.  813),  and  quoted  an  unpublished  History  of  Ire- 
land, composed  about  1636  (and  now  remaining  in  MS.  in  the  Library  of  the 
Royal  Irish  Academy  at  Dublin),  that  speaks  of  an  "  Hand  which  lyeth  far  att.  sea, 
on  the  west  of  Connaught,  and  sometimes  is  perceived  by  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Owles  and  Iris ;  also  from  St.  Helen  Head,  beyond  the  haven  of  Calbeggs  (Killibegs, 
Donegal).  Likewise,  severall  seamen  have  discovered  it  att  sea  as  they  have  sailed 
on  the  western  coasts  of  Ireland."  Mr.  M'Farland  also  read  from  the  Chronogra- 
phical  Description  of  Connaught,  written  in  1684,  by  Roderick  O'Flagherty,  and 
published  by  the  Irish  Archaeological  Society,  in  which  it  is  recorded  (p.  68),  that, 
"  From  the  Isles  of  Arran  and  the  West  continent,  often  appears  visible  that  en- 
chanted island,  called  O'Branil,  and  in  Irish  Beg-ara,  or  the  Sessen  Arran,  set  down 
in  cards  of  navigation.  *  *  There  is,  westward  of  Arran,  in  sight  of  the  next  conti- 
nent, Skerde,  a  wild  island  of  huge  rocks ;  these  sometimes  appear  to  be  a  great  city 
far  off,  full  of  houses,  castles,  towers,  and  chimneys ;  sometimes  full  of  blazing  flames, 
smoke,  and  people  running  to  and  fro.  Another  day  you  would  see  nothing  but  a 
number  of  ships,  with  their  sailes  and  riggings ;  then  so  many  great  stakes  or  reekes 
of  corn  and  turf."  Mr.  M'Farland  next  cited  the  '  History  of  the  Parish  of  Ramoan 
(Bally castle)/  by  the  Rev.  Wm.  Conolly  (1812),  in  which  it  is  stated,  that  the 
author  had  received  a  minute  description  of  the  Fata  Morgana  from  several  persons 
who  saw  it,  on  different  summer  evenings,  along  the  shore  of  the  Giant's  Causeway ; 
shadows  resembling  castles,  ruins  and  tall  spires  darted  rapidly  across  the  surface  of 
the  sea,  which  were  instantly  lengthened  into  considerable  height ;  they  moved  to  the 
eastern  part  of  the  horizon,  and  at  sunset  totally  disappeared.  This  work  makes 
mention  of  an  earlier  one  (of  1748),  by  a  gentleman  who  resided  near  the  Causeway, 
and  which  presented  a  long  account  of  an  enchanted  island,  annually  seen  floating 
along  the  coast  of  Antrim.  Reference  was  afterwards  made  to  '  Plumptree's  Nar- 
rative' (of  1817),  as  showing  that,  at  Rathlin — a  considerable  island  opposite  to 
Balrycastle— -a  belief  then  prevailed,  that  a  green  island  rose  every  seventh  year,  out 


80  REPORT — 1852. 

of  the  sea,  between  it  and  the  promontory  of  Bengore ;  the  inhabitants  asserting  that 
many  of  them  had  distinctly  seen  it,  crowded  with  people  selling  yarn,  and  en- 
gaged in  various  other  occupations  common  to  a  fair.  The  notes  to  the  second  book 
of  Dr.  Drammond'8  poem  on  the  '  Causeway'  were  also  glanced  at,  as  containing  an 
account  of  other  cases  of  the  Fata  Morgana,  by  the  Bushfoot  Strand  and  Tor-point. 
So,  a  person  still  living  (and  whose  name,  ficc.  were  given)  conceived  that  he  had  a 
sight  of  the  floating  isle  off  Fair- Head ;  that  it  seemed  to  be  well -wooded  j  and  that 
he  could  distinguish  upon  it  the  forms  of  buildings,  and  a  woman  laying  out  clothes. 
Mr.  M'Farland  then  mentioned  that,  in  June  1833,  he  himself  and  a  party  of  friends, 
when  standing  on  a  rock  at  Portbalintrea,  perceived  a  small  roundish  island  as  if  in 
the  act  of  emerging  from  the  deep,  at  a  distance  of  a  mile  from  the  shore ;  at  first  it 
appeared  but  as  a  green  field,  afterwards  it  became  fringed  with  red,  yellow  and 
blue ;  whilst  the  forms  of  trees,  men  and  cattle  rose  upon  it  slowly  and  successively ; 
and  these  continued  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  distinct  in  their  outlines,  shape 
and  colour ;  the  figures,  too,  seemed  to  walk  across  it,  or  wandered  among  the  trees, 
the  ocean  bathed  it  around,  the  sun  shone  upon  it  from  above ;  and  all  was  fresh, 
fair,  and  beautiful,  till  the  sward  assumed  a  shadowy  form,  and  its  various 
objects,  mingling  into  one  confused  whole,  passed  away  as  strangely  as  they  came. 
Further,  Morgana  had  occasionally  assumed  the  semblance  of  a  beautiful  bridge 
that  spanned  the  Sound  between  the  Skerry  rocks  and  the  strand  at  Pbrtrush, 
and  having  people  passing  and  repassing  over  it.  A  particular  instance  of 
this  Was  stated,  as  well  as  of  the  appearance  of  the  sea,  at  Ballintoy,  of  what 
resembled  a  city  with  its  streets,  houses,  spires,  &c.  Two  occasions  were  then  spe- 
cified, in  which  the  Fata  had  been  seen  in  the  sky — the  one  in  the  summer  of  1847, 
over  the  Ferry  at  Lough  Foyle,  and  the  other  on  the  14th  of  December  1850,  near 
to  the  Bann mouth;  and  in  the  course  of  which  the  images  of  troops,  ships,  &c. 
were  reflected  on  the  clouds.  Four  other  cases  of  the  Aerial  Morgana  were  adduced, 
as  witnessed  about  the  town  and  coast  of  Waterford  in  1644,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
last  and  commencement  of  the  present  centuries,  and  taken  from  the  '  Voyages  and 
Observations'  of  M.  le  Gown,  Brewer's  "  Beauties  of  Ireland  "  (vol.  ii.  p.  307,  n.), 
and  the  13th  volume  of  the  Phil.  Mag.,  Old  Series.  Mr.  M'Farland  considered  that 
these  various  exhibitions  of  the  Fata  Morgana  might  all  be  accounted  for  by  apply- 
ing to  those  parts  of  the  coast  on  which  they  had  been  displayed,  the  theories  of 
Minasi  and  M.  Honel,  as  advanced  by  them  in  explanation  of  similar  phssnomena 
seen  on  and  about  the  Strait  of  Messina.  The  Northern  Channel  of  Ireland  presents, 
to  a  very  great  degree,  the  same  data  as  regards  shape,  indentations,  currents,  and 
bitumen,  as  that  strait  does,  and  on  which  their  theories  rest ;  and  he  believed  that, 
to  some  extent  at  least,  so  did  the  sea  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  isles  of  Arran 
and  town  of  Waterford.  Where  the  Marine  Morgana  was  found,  the  Aerial  might 
be  expected,  and  the  Prismatic  was  a  mere  corollary  to  the  first. 


On  the  Causes  of  the  Excess  of  the  Mean  Temperature  of  Rivers  above  that  of 
the  Atmosphere,  recently  observed  by  M.  Kenou.  By  W.  J.  Macquorn 
Rankinb,  CJB*  F.R.SM. 

M.  Renou  having  for  four  years  observed  the  temperature  of  the  River  Loir  at 
Venddme,  as  compared  with  that  of  the  atmosphere,  has  found  that  the  mean  tem- 
perature of  the  river  invariably  exceeds  that  of  the  air,  by  an  amount  varying  from 
1$  to  3  Centigrade  degrees,  and  averaging  2°' 24  Centigrade ;  and  a  similar  result  has 
been  deduced  from  observations  made  by  M.  Oscar  Valin  on  the  Loire  at  Tours. 
M.  Renou  and  M.  Babinet  account  for  this  fact  by  the  re-radiation  from  the  bed  of 
the  river  of  solar  heat  previously  absorbed  by  it. 

Mr.  Rankine  thinks  this  supposition  inadequate  to  account  for  the  facts ;  because 
the  excess  of  temperature  of  the  river  over  the  air  was  considerably  above  its  mean 
amount  in  November,  and  very  near  its  maximum  in  December ;  and  because  the 
mean  diurnal  variation  of  temperature  of  the  river  was  much  less  than  that  of 
the  air.  He  considers  that  friction  is  probably  one  cause  of  this  elevation  of 
temperature ;  for  if  water  descends  in  a  uniform  channel,  with  a  uniform 
velocity,  from  a  higher  level  to  a  lower,  the  whole  power  due  to  its  descent  is 
expended  in  overcoming  friction ;  that  is  to  say,  is  converted  into  heat,  as  the  cxpe- 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THB  SECTIONS.  SI 

riments  of  Mr.  Joule  have  proved.  This  mast  cause  an  elevation  of  temperature, 
which  will  go  on  until  the  loss  of  heat  by  radiation,  conduction,  and  evaporation 
balances  the  gain  by  friction,  and  at  this  point  the  temperature  of  the  river  will 
remain  stationary.  

Meteorological  Summary  for  1851,  at  Huggate,  near  Pochlington. 
By  the  Rev.  T.  Rankin. 

This,  as  usual,  contained  a  summary  for  the  year  of  the  thermometer,  barometer, 
hygrometer,  rain-gauge,  atmospheric  waves,  winds,  aurora,  and  meteors  observed 
at  Huggate.     It  also  contained  a  brief  notice  of  eclipses. 


On  an  Aurora  observed  at  Huggate.    By  the  Rev.  T.  Rankin. 


On  the  Aurora  Borealis.    By  Rear- Admiral  Sir  John  Ross.  • 

This  explanation  of  auroras  is  the  same  as  that  which  was  formerly  given  by  Sir 
John  Ross  at  the  Dublin  Meeting  in  1835. 


On  the  Formula  for  the  Wethulh  Thermometer.    By  Capt.  Strachey. 

The  author  stated  objections  to  the  .principle  on  which  Or.  Apjohn's  formula 
had  been  investigated \  affirmed  that  this  formula  was  found  not  applicable  to 
the  high  temperatures  and  dew-points  observed  in  India,  and  proposed  a  correction 
in  that  part  of  the  process  whicn  involves  the  difference  of  the  number  of  degrees 
of  the  dry  and  wet  bulbs.  _____ 

On  Tropical  Hurricanes.    By  Dr.  J.  Taylor. 

The  author  began  by  stating  the  observed  facts  as  to  these  hurricanes.  They 
begin  from  10°  to  20°  from  the  equator,  but  are  not  observed  at  it.  A  hot,  sultry 
and  calm  state  of  the  atmosphere,  with  a  low  barometric  pressure,  indicates  their 
occurrence,  or  immediately  precedes  them.  The  force  of  the  wind  increases  as  the 
centre  of  the  area  over  which  the  action  of  the  hurricane  extends  is  approached. 
The  author  then  pointed  out  the  inconsistency  of  the  theory  of  Mr.  Espy  and  other 
American  philosophers  with  the  facts  observed,  and  particularly  that  a  ship  situ- 
ated in  a  storm  of  the  structure  which  that  theory  supposed  would  find  the  wind  to 
bear  in  either  direction  indifferently  in  the  northern  or  the  southern  hemisphere, 
which  ia  contrary  to  experience)  for  the  direction  of  the  whirl  in  the  northern 
hemisphere  is  always  contrary  to  the  motion  of  the  hands  of  a  watch  j  while  in  the 
southern  it  was  as  constantly  in  the  same  direction  for  the  true  cyclone.  He  stated 
his  conviction  that  the  opinion  which  is  alone  consistent  with  all  the  facts  is,  that 
the  movement  of  the  air  is  one  of  revolution  round  a  central  space  which  is  itself  in 
a  state  of  progressive  motion ;  and  that  the  direction  of  the  rotatory  movement  is 
invariable  in  the  same  hemisphere.  The  author  then  sketched  the  causes  which 
might  give  rise  to  such  a  rotatory  movement ;  particularising  the  hypothesis  of  Dove 
and  others,  viz.  that  of  contending  currents,  and  showing  its  utter  incompetence } 
and  proceeded  to  give  the  theory  which  he  proposed  of  them,  viz.  that  the  partial 
vacuum  indicated  by  the  low  state  of  the  barometer  over  the  area  of  the  storm,  and 
particularly  towards  the  vortex,  is  not  the  effect  of  centrifugal  force,  but  the  original 
cause  of  the  movement,  by  inducing  a  translation  of  air  from  beyond  the  boundary  of 
the  partial  vacuum  inward  towards  its  centre, — a  motion  which  would  occur  in  directly 
converging  right  lines  were  the  earth  and  air  at  rest ;  but  the  earth  being  in  motion, 
and  therefore  the  area  of  the  hurricane  turning  round  with  regard  to  its  own  centre, 
the  velocity  of  such  movement  being  greater  for  a  particle  of  air  at  a  distance  from 
that  centre  than  for  one  nearer,  as  the  particles  approach  it,  they  retain  their  greater 
velocities,  and  thus  move  not  in  radial  lines,  but  in  diminishing  circles  or  spirals 
round  the  centre,  which  would  be  the  case  were  the  particles  of  air  only  to  retain 
their  primitive  velocity  of  rotation ;  but  by  the  principle  of  the  conservation  of  areas, 
the  velocity  would  increase  more  and  more  as  the  centre  of  the  vortex  was  approached. 


32  report — 1852. 

The  author  then  traced  the  consequences  of  such  combined  motions,  by  supposing  the 
disturbance  to  commence  first  around  one  of  the  poles  of  the  earth,  and  then  by 
tracing  the  change  of  circumstances  which  must  take  place  in  other  latitudes ;  and 
asserted,  that  by  calculating  by  these  suppositions,  using  as  data  the  well-ascertained 
dimensions  of  the  area  over  which  cyclones  extended,  a  relative  movement  of  the  air 
over  the  earth,  even  greater  than  any  that  had  ever  been  observed  in  violent  hurri- 
canes, might  result.  He  concluded  by  showing  how  an  experiment  which  he  had 
prepared  might  be  performed,  so  as  to  exhibit  the  more  striking  effects  of  a  hurricane 
m  water,  by  giving  a  whirling  motion  to  a  wide  vessel  of  water  furnished  with  a 
valve  in  the  bottom,  at  a  distance  from  the  axis,  which  could  be  withdrawn.  He 
also  stated  his  conviction,  that  the  phenomena  of  sea  and  land  breezes  would  yet  be 
found  to  partake  of  the  rotatory  character. 


Aurora  Borealis  observed  at  Su  Ives,  Hunts*    By  J.  K.  Watts. 

This  is  a  record  of  four  displays  of  the  aurora  on  the  26th  of  March,  1851,  and  on 
the  19th  and  21st  of  February,  and  the  21st  of  March,  1852. 


Miscellaneous. 
On  an  Instrument  for  Drawing.    By  Henry  Twining. 

The  use  of  the  instrument  is  to  assist  in  obtaining  correct  representations  of  ob- 
jects from  nature,  by  pointing  out  the  different  angles  at  which  they  present  them- 
selves to  the  eye,  and  by  finding  out  the. vanishing  points  of  their  retiring  sides. 

The  instrument  consists  of  a  graduated  semicircular  plate  placed  horizontally 
on  the  top  of  a  rod  or  pillar,  so  as  to  be  raised  or  lowered  at  pleasure.  Above 
this  plate  or  dial  is  placed  another  having  a  vertical  position,  in  connexion  with 
which  there  is  an  index  or  needle,  moving  vertically  on  a  pivot,  and  which 
serves  to  mark  the  elevation  and  the  depression  of  any  point  above  or  below  the 
horizon.  Also  connected  with  the  horizontal  plate  or  dial  is  another  index,  con* 
sisting  of  three  branches  or  wires  placed  at  right  angles,  and  which  is  susceptible  of 
a  horizontal  motion.  Its  position  is  immediately  above  the  horizontal  graduated 
plate.  The  straight  side  of  this  plate  is  placed  parallel  with  the  picture,  the  angular 
dimensions  of  which  are  marked  on  the  graduated  semicircle  opposite.  Hie  cross 
wire  of  the  index  above  the  plate  is  then  so  directed,  that,  to  the  observer's  eye,  it 
will  correspond  exactly  with  a  given  line  of  any  object  in  nature  of  which  it  is 
wished  to  obtain  the  direction,  or,  in  other  words,  the  inclination  with  reference  to 
the  plane  of  the  picture.  A  plan  recommended  by  Varley  for  attaining  this  purpose, 
is  to  give  to  one  of  the  limbs  of  a  jointed  rule  the  inclination  which  any  receding 
line  in  nature  may  appear  to  have  to  the  eye ;  but  with  the  instrument  now  described 
we  reverse  the  method,  as  it  were,  for  we  adjust  the  direction  of  a  wire  which  is 
level,  so  as  to  correspond  with  the  horizontal  line  of  any  retiring  object,  and  then  we 
find  out,  on  the  graduated  plate  connected  with  the  wire,  the  exact  position  of  the 
vanishing  points  of  these  objects,  that  is  to  say,  those  points  to  which  their  various 
horizontal  lines  converge.  Thus  the  true  inclination  of  all  horizontal  lines  is 
obtained  by  finding  out,  in  the  first  place  according  to  a  simple  method,  but  which 
cannot  here  be  fully  detailed,  the  vanishing  points  of  all  level  lines  of  objects. 

The  advantages  of  this  instrument  may  be  considered  to  consist  in  accustoming 
the  student  to  view  the  perspective  of  objects  theoretically,  and  in  a  manner  calcu- 
lated to  impress  its  principles  on  the  mind  ;  the  horizontal  plate  and  index  serving 
to  convey  clear  and  precise  notions  of  the  relations  of  the  vertical  surfaces  of  objects 
to  the  plane  of  the  canvas,  whilst  the  vertical  plate  and  needle  serve  to  give  the 
angular  elevation  and  depression  of  objects,  or  their  extension  above  or  below  the 
horizon ;  a  correct  representation  of  nature,  under  various  circumstances,  requiring 
a  perfect  familiarity  with  both  these  principles. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTION8.  33. 

CHEMISTRY. 

On  the  Discovery  of  Minute  Quantities  of  Soda  by  the  Action  of  Polarized 
Light.  By  Professor  Thomas  Andrews,  MJ).,  MMJ.A.,  F.R.S., 
VJP.  Queen's  College,  Belfast. 

The  double  chloride  of  potassium  and  platinum  crystallizing  in  regular  octahedrons, 
exercises,  when  placed  m  the  dark  field  of  the  polariscope,  no  depolarising  action ; 
and  the  same  remark  applies  to  the  bichloride  of  platinum  in  consequence  of  its  im- 
perfect crystallization.  On  the  other  hand,  the  chloride  of  sodium  and  platinum  in 
thin  crystalline  plates  is  remarkable  for  its  depolarizing  power,  and  a  trace  of  this  salt, 
which,  is  invisible  to  the  naked  eye,  may  be  at  once  detected  by  the  brilliant  display 
of  prismatic  colours  which  it  exhibits  under  the  action  of  polarised  light  The  author 
applies  this  property  to  the  detection  of  soda  in  the  following  way.  The  other  bases 
having  been  removed  by  the  ordinary  methods,  and  the  alkalies  converted  into  chlo- 
rides, a  drop  of  the  solution  is  placed  on  a  glass  slide,  and  a  very  small  quantity  of 
a  dilute  solution  of  the  bichloride  of  platinum  added,  avoiding  as  far  as  possible  an 
excess  of  that  reagent.  The  drop  is  then  evaporated  by  a  gentle  heat  till  it  begins  to 
crystallize,  and  afterwards  placed  in  the  field  of  a  microscope  furnished  with  a  good 
polarizing  apparatus.  On  turning  the  analyser  till  the  field  becomes  perfectly  dark, 
and  excluding  carefully  the  entrance  of  light  laterally,  the  crystals  remain  quite  invi- 
sible if  either  potash  alone  or  no  alkali  whatever  be  present ;  while  the  presence  of 
the  slightest  trace  of  soda  is  at  once  indicated  by  the  depolarizing  action  of  its  pla- 
tinum compound.  With  a  drop  of  solution  of  chloride  of  sodium,  weighing  0*0015 
gramme,  and  containing  }~  of  its  weight  of  chloride  of  sodium,  a  very  distinct 
effect  was  obtained.  The  quantity  of  soda  thus  detected  was  only  tfjsSjSn  °*  *  gTamme> 
or  about  j^j^  of  a  grain.  

On  the  Atomic  Weights  of  Platinum  and  Bariusn. 
By  Professor  T.  Andrews,  M.D^  MMJ^  F.R.S. 

No  determination  of  the  atomic  weight  of  platinum  having  been  made  since  the 
recent  revision  of  atomic  weights,  and  the  number  adopted  by  chemists  for  that  metal 
resting  on  the  authority  of  a  single  experiment  of  Berzelius,  the  author  considered  it 
of  importance,  on  practical  as  well  as  theoretical  grounds,  to  institute  some  new  expe- 
riments on  the  subject.  The  salt  of  platinum  selected  was  the  double  chloride  of 
potassium  and  platinum,  which,  after  being  dried  in  vacuo  at  a  temperature  of  105°  C, 
was  decomposed  by  digestion  with  metallic  zinc  and  a  small  quantity  of  water,  the 
action  being  assisted  by  the  application  of  heat  towards  the  end  of  the  -process.  After 
the  complete  precipitation  of  the  platinum  and  the  formation  of  chloride  of  zinc  from 
the  decomposition  of  the  double  salt,  the  excess  of  zinc  was  removed  by  the  addition, 
first  of  acetic  and  subsequently  of  nitric  acid.  The  precipitated  platinum  was  then 
removed  by  means  of  a  small  and  carefully  washed  filter,  and  the  amount  of  chlorine  in 
the  solution  of  chloride  of  zinc  ascertained  by  Gay-Lussac's  process,  which  has  been 
of  late  so  successfully  applied  by  Pelouze  to  the  determination  of  several  other 
atomic  weights.  The  double  chloride  of  potassium  and  platinum  was  found  to  retain 
i^gfcdths  of  its  weight  of  moisture,  even  when  dried  at  a  temperature  considerably  supe- 
rior to  the  boiling-point  of  water.  In  three  experiments  performed  by  this  process, 
the  numbers  obtained  were  98*93,  98-84,  and  99*06;  the  mean  number  98*94  ex- 
presses therefore  the  atomic  weight  of  platinum. 

For  the  atomic  weight  of  banum,  the  author  obtained  from  two  closely-accordant 
experiments  the  number  68*789,  and  concluded  with  some  general  observations  as  to 
the  importance  of  a  systematic  series  of  experiments  to  settle,  if  possible,  definitively, 
whether  the  law  of  Prout,  that  the  atomic  weights  of  all  bodies  are  multiples  of  that 
of  hydrogen,  be  universally  true.  He  concluded  by  reading  an  interesting  extract 
from  a  letter  which  he  received  from  Baron  Liehig :— '*  It  is  not  certain  that  Prout's 
law  may  not  be  true  for  oxygen,  nitrogen  and  carbon,  without  it  being  necessary  to 
assume,  as  a  consequence,  that  other  bodies  behave  similarly ;  that  is,  their  atomic 
weight  must  be  exactly  multiples  by  whole  numbers  of  the  atomic  weight  of  hydrogen* 
The  law  is  certainly  not  true  of  all  bodies,  but  it  may  be  true  of  certain  croups,  whose 
members,  in  respect  to  atomic  weight,  stand  in  a  simple  numerical  relation  to  each 

1852.  S 


34  report — 1852. 

other.  The  atomic  weights  of  silicium,  cobalt,  strontium,  tin,  arsenic  and  lead,  are  in 
the  same  ratio  as  the  numbers  1:2:3:4:5:7.  We  do  not  see  the  necessity  of  this 
relation,  but  only  the  possibility.  Why  should  fractional  numbers  only  occur,  and  not 
whole  numbers  also  ?  I  consider  these  relations  only  as  facts ;  the  law  of  the  numbers 
themselves  is  quite  unknown  to  us — as  unknown  as  the  absolute  weights  of  the  atoms." 

On  the  Microscopic  Structure  of  certain  Basaltic  and  Metamorphic  Rocket 
and  the  Occurrence  of  Metallic  Iron  in  them.  By  Professor  T.  Andrews, 
M.D.>  MJRJ^i*  FJR.S. 

If  a  thin  splinter  of  basalt  is  viewed  by  reflected  light  in  the  field  of  a  good  micro- 
scope, it  is  seen  to  consist  of  a  semitransparent  granular  mass,  containing  occasionally 
opake  crystals  of  the  magnetic  oxide  of  iron  and  of  iron  pyrites.  The  former  are  easily 
recognized  by  their  dark  colour,  metallic  lustre,  and  the  triangular  and  striated  facets 
of  the  regular  octahedron ;  the  latter,  by  their  yellow  colour  and  cubical  form.  The 
semitransparent  portion  which  forms  the  great  mass  of  the  stone  evidently  consists  of 
two  distinct  minerals ;  one  having  a  resinous  lustre,  and  in  microscopic  characters 
closely  resembling  crystallized  augite ;  die  other,  colourless  and  with  a  glassy  lustre, 
might  be  referred  to  certain  varieties  of  felspar  or  of  zeolite.  These  remarks  apply 
to  the  compact  varieties  of  basalt 

The  metamorphic  rock  of  Portrush — an  indurated  clay-slate  containing  the  charac- 
teristic fossils  of  the  lias  formation,  and  in  external  characters  closely  resembling 
Lydian  stone— exhibits  under  the  microscope  a  very  different  appearance.  It  is 
formed,  in  fact,  of  a  semitransparent  paste  of  homogeneous  structure,  everywhere 
thickly  studded  with  Innumerable  microscopic  cubes  of  iron  pyrites.  These  crystals 
are  very  perfectly  formed,  but  so  minute  that  twenty  of  them  may  frequently  bt 
counted  in  the  space  of  y^dth  part  of  a  square  inch,  the  sides  of  the  crystals  being  on 
an  average  not  more  than  TtrWbh  of  an  inch  in  length.  If  a  portion  of  any  of  these 
rocks  be  reduced,  in  a  porcelain  mortar,  to  a  tolerably  finer  but  not  impalpable  powder, 
and  a  magnet  be  passed  several  times  through  the  powder,  magnetic  particles  will  be 
found  adhering  to  the  magnet,  in  greater  or  less  abundance)  according  to  the  nature 
of  the  rock.  On  removing  these  magnetic  particles  and  placing  them  in  the  field  of 
the  microscope,  they  exhibit  distinct  polarity  and  all  the  other  characters  of  the  mag- 
netic oxide  of  iron.  This  mineral  may  be  separated  by  the  above  simple  process,  not 
only  from  basalt,  but  from  granite)  clay-slate,  primitive  limestone,  hardened  chalk, 
msgnesian  limestone,  and  many  metamorphic  rocks.  In  short,  it  is  one  of  the  most 
widely- diffused  minerals  in  nature,  occurring  in  almost  every  rock  which  exhibits 
evidence  of  igneous  action.  The  author  was  only  able  however  to  discover  a  doubtful 
trace  in  roofing-slate,  serpentine  and  marble. 

After  referring  to  the  few  instances  in  which  metallic  iron,  not  of  meteoric  origin, 
is  alleged  to  have  been  observed,  the  author  proceeded  to  describe  the  process  by 
which  he  has  succeeded  in  showing  that  native  iron  is  by  no  means  an  uncommon 
constituent  of  basaltic  rocks.  The  stone  is  first  reduced  to  powder  in  a  porcelain 
mortar,  the  use  of  metallic  tools  being  carefully  avoided  in  every  part  of  the  operation. 
The  magnetic  portions  are  then  removed,  as  in  the  process  for  separating  the  oxide  of 
iron,  and  placed  in  the  field  of  the  microscope.  While  in  the  field)  they  are  moistened 
with  an  acid  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper,  which  produces  no  change  on  the  oxide, 
but  immediately  indicates  the  presence  of  the  slightest  trace  of  metallic  iron  by  a 
deposition  of  metallic  copper.  On  making  this  experiment,  a  deposit  of  copper  occa- 
sionally occurred  in  irregular  crystalline  bunches,  perfectly  opake,  and  with  the 
characteristic  colour  and  lustre  of  that  metal.  With  neutral  solutions  of  the  copper 
salt  this  deposit  very  rarely  occurred,  indicating  either  that  the  iron  it  covered  witn  a 
film  of  oxide,  or  that  it  is  analogous  in  properties  to  the  meteoric  alloy  which  precipi- 
tates copper  from  acid,  but  not  from  neutral  solutions.  If  instead  of  the  copper 
solution  dilute  sulphuric  acid  be  added  to  the  magnetic  particles,  a  slight  effervescence 
at  particular  points  frequently  indicates  the  presence  of  the  metallic  iron ;  and  oh  add- 
ing solution  of  copper  while  the  disengagement  of  gas  continues,  the  latter  is  suddenly 
arrested,  and  a  bright  deposit  of  metallic  copper  appears  at  the  same  points.  The 
largest  deposit  of  copper  obtained  was  abont  ¥^th  of  an  ihch  in  diameter.  The  most 
abundant  indications  of  metallic  iron  were  obtained  from  a  coarse-grained  variety  of 
basalt,  which  forms  the  hill  of  Slieve  Mish  in  Antrim,  and  also  occurs  at  the  Maiden 
Rocks  and  other  localities.    Indications  of  its  presence  in  the  basalt  of  the  Giant's 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  35 

Causeway,  the  lias  slate  of  Portrusb,  and  the  trachyte  of  Auvergne  have  also  been 
obtained. 

This  experiment  is  liable  to  the  ambiguity  that  nickel  and  cobalt,  in  a  state  of  very 
fine  subdivision,  also  precipitate  copper,  and  would  also  be  extracted  from  a  powder 
containing  them  by  passing  a  magnet  through  it.  The  extreme  improbability  of 
either  of  these  metals  being  present  is  such,  that  the  author  considers  it  scarcely  to 
weaken  the  conclusions  at  which  he  has  arrived. 


On  the  Results  of  Analysis  of  a  Substance  resembling  the  Pigolite  of  Professor 
Johnston.    By  Professor  James  Apjohn,  M.D.,  M.R.I.A. 

Is  the  Mechanical  Power  capable  of  being  obtained  by  a  given  Amount  of 
Caloric  employed  in  the  production  of  Vapour  independent  of  the  Nature  of 
the  Liquids  f    By  Professor  James  Apjohn,  Hf.D.9  M.R.I.A. 

On  Glynn  and  Appel's  Patent  Paper  for  the  prevention  of  Piracy  and 
Forgery  by  the  Anastatic  Process.    By  Samuel  Bateson. 

On  Irish-bog  Butter.    By  James  S.  Brazier,  F.C.S. 

The  substance  bearing  this  name  is  found  accidentally  in  the  various  boggy  districts 
ot  Ireland,  sometimes  also  in  Scotland,  and  is  usually  preserved  in  small  kegs,  in 
which  the  matter  had  most  probably  been  originally  deposited.  Nothing  appears  to 
be  known  as  to  what  this  substance  formerly  was,  or  the  time  of  its  deposit.  The 
specimen  supplying  the  materials  for  Mr.  Brazier's  experiments  was  found  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Belfast.  In  Berzelius'  Rapport  for  1847,  is  found  an  examination 
of  another  specimen  of  this  substance  by  M.  Luck,  under  the  name  of  "  Bogie  Acid" 
who  describes  it  as  whitish,  of  low  specific  gravity,  and  of  a  peculiar  odour.  He  fixes 
the  fusing-point  of  the  purified  body  at  51°  Cent.  (124°  Fahr.).  He  mentions  also  that 
its  reaction  to  litmus  paper  is  acid,  and  gives  for  the  formula  of  the  acid  Cfi  HM  04. 

The  specimen  examined  by  Mr.  Brazier  was  of  a  yellowish- white  colour,  the  slight 
tinge  of  yellow  being  due  to  the  presence  of  a  very  small  quantity  of  a  yellow  oil 
pervading  the  whole  mass :  its  external  surface  was  somewhat  friable,  but  portions 
from  the  interior  of  the  specimen  might  have  been  selected  having  on  unctuous  feel, 
and  possessing  a  most  peculiar  urinous  odour.  It  is  nearly  insoluble  in  cold  water, 
somewhat  soluble  in  hot,  but  very  soluble  in  alcohol  and  aether,  especially  on  boiling, 
from  either  of  which  fluids  it  is  deposited  in  white  granular  crystals.  The  alcohol  or 
aether  separated  from  the  crystalline  deposit,  which  was  usually  done  by  expression, 
was  of  a  deep  yellow  colour,  and  containing  apparently  a  small  quantity  of  the  yellow 
oleaginous  matter  above  mentioned  in  solution,  and  imbibing  more  powerfully  the 
urinous  odour  of  the  interior  of  the  mass. 

A  clear  portion  of  the  substance  taken  directly  from  the  keg  gave  a  fusing-point  of 
45°  Cent.  (113°  Fahr.),  but  after  repeated  purification  and  crystallization,  by  means  of 
alcohol  and  aether,  to  free  it  from  all  oleaginous  matter,  the  fusing-point  was  raised  to 
53°  (127°*5  Fahr.).  This  means  of  purification  was  repeated  several  times,  the  fusing- 
point  of  the  body  remaining  constantly  the  same,  the  substance  itself  resembling  after 
fusion  ordinary  stearic  acid.  Before  subjecting  the  substance  to  analysis,  I  thought 
it  more  advantageous  to  submit  the  body  to  a  more  rigorous  method  of  purification, 
and  adopted  that  of  saponification.  With  potassa  this  body  forms  a  beautifully  clear 
transparent  soap,  and  with  the  exception  of  the  small  portion  of  yellow  oil  mixed  with 
it,  is  readily  soluble  in  water ;  by  means  of  solution  therefore  the  oil  and  other  acci- 
dental impurities  may  easily  be  separated.  By  the  addition  of  hydrochloric  acid  to 
the  aqueous  solution  of  the  soap,  the  fatty  acid  is  set  free  ;  this  has  to  be  well  washed 
with  large  quantities  of  water  and  subjected  several  times  to  a  considerable  pressure.  In 
this  state  the  fusing-point  was  found  to  be  127°o  Fahr.,  and  the  same  portion  of  acid 
having  undergone  the  same  routine  of  purification  a  second  time,  the  fusing-point  re- 
mained constant.  An  analysis  of  the  body  thus  purified  furnished  numbers  correspond- 
ing to  the  formula  C^  H3a  04,  and  for  which  the  name  of  Butyro-limnodic  Acid  is  pro- 
posed. The  acid  was  subsequently  recrystallized  from  alcohol  and  aether,  when  it  was 
obtained  in  crystals  of  a  beautifully  white-satiny  appearance,  resembling  benzoit  acid. 

3* 


36  REPORT — 1852. 

r 
We  have  now  three  fatty  acids,  isomeric  in  composition,  and  differing  only  by  a 
few  degrees  in  their  points  of  fusion,  viz. 

C.      H.      O.  Fuanft-potot. 

Palmitic  acid    32    32    4  58°  Cent. 

Cetylicacid 32    32    4  55°    „ 

Butyro-Iimnodic  acid  32    32    4  53°    „ 

On  the  Principle  of  the  Endosmose  of  Liquids. 
By  Professor  T.  Graham,  M«A.9  F.R.S. 

On  the  Phosphoric  Nodules  of  the  Greensand  of  the  North  of  Ireland. 
By  Professor  John  F.  Hodges,  MJ)n  Queen's  College,  Belfast* 

Professor  Hodges,  of  Queen's  College,  gave  an  account  of  his  discovery  of  the 
existence,  in  the  greensand  of  the  north  of  Irelaud,  of  nodules  rich  in  phosphate 
of  lime,  the  important  fertilizing  ingredient  of  bones.  The  beds  of  greensand,  he 
remarked,  occurred  immediately  under  the  chalk,  and  belonged  to  what  was  called 
the  chalk  formation.  They  extended  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Moira  to  the  Giant's 
Causeway,  forming  in  some  places  a  broad  belt,  and  in  other  parts  a  narrow  stripe, 
and  presented  various  shades  of  colour,  from  yellowish  green  to  a  rich  dark  green 
colour.  The  nodules  which  he  bad  analysed  were  found  imbedded  in  the  greensand, 
and  possessed  peculiar  interest,  as  affording  the  agriculturist  a  native  source  of  the 
phosphoric  acid.  The  beds  of  greensand  contained  about  5  per  cent,  of  the  bone-earth 
phosphate,  while  the  nodules  afforded  so  much  as  from  30  to  50  per  cent.  He  gave 
the  analysis  of  a  sample  of  the  greensand  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Kilroot,  in 
Antrim : — 

100  parts  were  found  to  contain — 

Water    097 

Organic  matters    0*73 

Potash   0-56 

Soda  025 

Lime 4*14 

Magnesia  .., 0*41 

Oxide  of  iron    4*85 

Alumina    2-41 

Sulphuric  acid trace 

Chlorine     004 

Phosphoric  acid,  equal  to  6*68  bone-earth  phosphate    3-24 

Silica,  soluble  in  potash   6*41 

Insoluble  siliceous  matters  • 74-88 

Carbonic  acid  and  loss I'll 

100-00 
One  ton  of  the  sand  would,  therefore,  convey  to  the  soil  149}  lbs.  of  bone-earth 

phosphate,  worth,  at  \d.  per  lb.,  9s.  3d. 

Dr.  Hodges  also  directed  attention  to  the  valuable  discovery  of  phosphatic  nodules 

in  England,  and  of  a  mineral  in  America,  rich  in  phosphate  of  lime  ;  and  gave  an 

account  of  some  successful  experiments  which  had  been  made  with  greensand  applied 

as  a  manure.  

On  the  Effect  of  the  Moon's  Bays.    By Knox. 

This  paper  described  the  effects  of  a  large  lens  in  fusing  different  substances, 

S'ving  the  effects  produced  upon  silica  and  other  bodies,  noting  the  temperature  of 
e  day  at  the  period  of  experimenting  and  the  time  occupied.    By  concentrating  the 
moon's  rays  upon  two  individuals,  sensation  was  excited. 

On  the  Atomic  Weight  of  Magnesium.    By  Alex.  Macdonnkll. 
The  results  of  experiments  were  stated,  which  induced  the  author  to  conclude  that 
the  atomic  weight  for  magnesium  was  11-95  or  quam  prox.  12,  and  the  atomic  weight 
of  magnesia  as  19*95  or  quam  proximo  20,  instead  of  12*7  and  20*7,  numbers  that  have 
usually  been  assigned  in  chemical  works. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  3/ 

On  the  Estimation  of  Iodine,     By  Professor  Frederick  Penny,   Ph,D. 
Andersonian  University,  Glasgow. 

Among  the  many  applications  that  may  be  made  of  bichromate  of  potash  to  the 
purposes  of  centigrade  analysis,  there  is  none  more  convenient  or  useful  than  its 
employment  for  the  estimation  of  the  amount  of  iodine  in  samples  of  commercial  iodine 
and  of  iodide  of  potassium.  In  Glasgow  especially,  which  is  the  principal  focus  of  the 
manufacture  of  potash-salts  and  iodine  from  kelp,  and  where  tne  problems  referred 
to  are  frequently  presented  for  solution,  an  expeditious  and  exact  method  for  the  deter- 
mination of  iodine  becomes  truly  valuable. 

According  to  the  statements  of  a  party  well  qualified  to  judge,  it  appears,  that,  in 
the  kelp  season  of  1851,  the  total  quantity  of  kelp  brought  to  Glasgow  was  about 
6000  tons  (22£  cwt  to  the  ton),  which  may  be  considered  a  fair  average  of  ordinary 
seasons.  On  account  of  the  greatly  increased  demand  for  potash-salts,  the  arrivals  in 
1850  amounted  to  nearly  10,000  tons,  which  is  considerably  higher  than  for  several 
previous  years*.  The  manufacture  however  is  not  confined  to  Glasgow ;  there  are 
iodine  works  at  Borrowstowness,  Greenock,  and  Falkirk,  in  Scotland,  at  Ramelton 
in  Ireland,  and  at  Cherbourg  and  Brest  in  France. 

The  centigrade  process,  here  to  be  described,  for  the  estimation  of  iodine,  is  based 
upon  the  fact,  that  chromic  acid  in  presence  of  hydrochloric  acid  causes  the  complete 
decomposition  of  soluble  metallic  iodides,  the  chloride  of  chromium  and  the  chloride 
of  the  other  metal  being  produced,  while  the  iodine  is  thrown  down  in  the  solid  state. 
Bichromate  of  potash  is  taken  as  the  most  convenient  and  stable  form  of  chromic  acid* 
The  reaction  with  iodide  of  potassium  is  exhibited  in  the  following  equation  :— 
3KI  +  KO,  2CrO»  +  7HC1=I»  +  *KC1  +  Cr*  Cl» + 7HO. 

The  action  is  immediate,  and  provided  that  the  solutions  are  kept  cool,  no  secondary 
result  is  formed.  The  precipitated  iodine  speedily  subsides,  leaving  the  supernatant 
liqnid  quite  clear,  though  slightly  coloured,  with  a  few  floating  particles  of  iodine  on  the 
surface.  When  the  solution  of  the  bichromate  is  overdosed  with  the  iodide,  it  becomes 
dark  red,  from  a  portion  of  the  iodine  being  dissolved  by  the  excess  of  the  iodide. 
This  change  of  colour  is  useful  as  indicating  when  the  addition  of  the  iodide  has  been 
carried  too  far. 

Iodide  of  Potassium. — The  process  for  iodide  of  potassium  is  conducted  as  follows  :— 

10  grs.  of  bichromate  of  potash  are  dissolved  in  half  an  ounce  of  cold  water,  and  half 
an  ounce  by  measure  of  hydrochloric  acid  is  afterwards  poured  in.  An  alkalimeter 
of  100  measures  is  then  made  up  in  the  usual  manner  with  50  grs.  of  the  iodide  of 
potassium  dissolved  in  water,  and  the  solution  is  added  to  that  of  the  bichromate  of 
potash  until  the  chromic  acid  is  completely  decomposed.  To  hit  the  exact  point  at 
which  the  action  is  complete,  a  white  plate  is  spotted  with  a  solution  containing  a 
mixture  of  pure  protosulphate  of  iron  and  sulphocyanide  of  potassium,  slightly  acidi- 
fied with  hydrochloric  acid,  and  by  means  of  a  glass  rod  a  small  quantity  of  the  bi- 
chromate liquor  is  brought  into  contact  with  the  mixture  on  the  plate.  So  long  as  a 
red  colour,  or  even  dark  tinge,  is  communicated  to  the  spots  by  the  application  of  this 
test,  the  presence  of  chromic  acid  is  indicated ;  but  when  no  dark  shade  is  produced, 
the  action  is  complete,  and  the  operation  is  finished.  The  number  of  measures  used 
is  accurately  read  off,  and  the  per-centage  quantity  of  iodine  in  the  sample  subjected  . 
to  trial  is  found  by  dividing  5080  by  this  number,  10  grs.  of  bichromate  being  equal 
(as  will  presently  be  shown)  to  25  4  of  iodine,  and  to  33*3  of  iodide  of  potassium. 

Throughout  the  process  the  liquid  should  be  kept  quite  cool,  and  towards  the  con- 
clusion the  iodide  solution  in  the  alkalimeter  should  be  added  very  slowly,  in  order  to 
give  ample  time  for  the  mutual  action  of  the  iodide  and  chromic  acid,  which  should 
likewise  be  assisted  by  repeated  and  brisk  stirring. 

*  Kelp  Import*  in  Glasgow.     July  to  July. 

1841-42 2565  tons. 

1842-43 1887     „ 

1843-44 1965     „ 

1844-45 3263     „ 

1845-46 6086     „ 

1846-47 3627     „ 

Mr.  Glassford's  Kelp  Manufacture, 


98  import-— 1852. 

The  mode  of  preparing  the  mixture  of  protosulpbate  of  iron  and  sulphoeyanide  ef 
potassium,  as  well  as  its  extreme  delicacy  in  detecting  minute  quantities  of  bichromate 
of  potash,  I  have  fully  explained  in  a  paper  published  in  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  the 
Chemical  Society  of  London,  vol.  iv.  p.  244.  It  should  be  made  very  weak,  and  in  using 
it  the  precaution  should  be  observed  of  not  spotting  it  on  the  piste  until  the  moment 
of  its  being  required.  The  spots  moreover  should  be  large,  and  thinly  spread  on  die 
surface  of  the  plate,  and  care  should  be  taken  to  bring  the  drop  of  the  liquor  to  be 
tested  into  contact  with  the  oentre  of  the  spot,  which  it  is  allowed  merely  to  touch, 
without  any  stirring  or  agitation.  The  colour  or  tinge  is  produced  instantaneously  if 
any  chromic  acid  be  present.  It  is  not  always  easy  to  procure  protosulpbate  of  iron 
perfectly  free  from  peroxide,  and  theq  the  mixture  prepared  with  such  impure  sulphate 
has  a  pinkish  colour.  This  is  of  no  moment  when  the  tinge  is  light,  as  it  becomes 
extremely  pale  and  scarcely  perceptible  on  the  mixture  being  spread  upon  the  plate. 
In  the  ease  of  the  mixture,  however,  being  dark-coloured  from  the  impurity  of  the 
sulphate  of  iron,  it  is  better  to  dissolve  a  small  piece  of  iron  wire  in  dilute  hydrochloric 
add,  and  to  add  a  portion  of  the  clear  solution  at  once  to  the  sulphoeyanide  of  potas- 
sium previously  dissolved  in  water. 

When  minute  accuracy  is  required,  it  will  be  advisable  to  add  30  grs.  of  the  iodide, 
dissolved  in  a  small  quantity  of  water,  at  once  to  the  bichromate  solution j  then  to 
make  up  the  alkalimeter  with  10  o?  20  grs.  of  the  iodide,  and  to  proceed  with  the 
operation  as  before  directed.  By  using  in  this  way  a  very  weak  solution  of  the  iodide, 
it  is  perfectly  easy  to  bring  the  result  within  a  tenth  of  a  grain  of  the  proper  quantity. 

I  nave  tried  this  process  repeatedly  upon  carefully-purified  iodide  ef  potassium, 
both  in  large  and  small  quantities.  The  results,  which  never  differed  more  than  a 
tenth  of  a  grain  from  each  other,  show  that  100  parts  of  bichromate  of  potash  are 
equal  to  333  of  iodide  of  potassium,  and  to  254  of  iodine ;  and  accordingly  10  grs.  of 
bichromate  are  equivalent  to  25*4  grs.  of  iodine. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  results  obtained  by  subjecting  different  specimens 
of  commercial  iodide  of  potassium  to  trial  by  this  process: — 


No.  1 99'8  per  cent. 

2 99-5  „ 

3 98*6  „ 

4 888 

6 79-3  „ 

6 30-2  „ 

The  last  sample  consisted  chiefly  of  carbonate  of  potash. 

Iodine. — When  iodine  is  the  subject  of  examination,  it  must  be  first  converted  into 
a  aolubje  iodide.  The  iodide  of  sine  appears  to  be  best  adapted  for  the  purpose, 
from  its  stability  and  the  readiness  with  which  it  may  be  prepared.  50  grs.  of  the 
iodine  to  be  tested  are  put  into  a  small  flask  with  some  fragments  of  pure  sine  and 
half  an  ounce  of  water.  The  mixture  is  agitated  till  the  iodine  becomes  completely 
converted  into  iodide  of  zinc,  which  is  indicated  by  the  solution  losing  the  dark  red 
colour  that  it  first  acquires,  and  becoming  nearly  colourless.  The  solution  is  then 
decanted  into  an  alkalimeter,  which  is  made  up  to  0  with  rinsings *from  the  excess  of 
zinc. 

10  grs.  of  bichromate  of  potash  are  next  dissolved  in  a  small  basin  with  half  an 
ounce  pf  water,  and  half  an  ounce  of  hydrochloric  acid  is  subsequently  added. 

The  remaining  operations  are  precisely  similar  to  those  directed  for  jodide  of  potas- 
sium. The  iodide  solution  is  dropped  into  that  of  the  bichromate  till  no  coloration  is 
produced  with  the  sulphoeyanide  mixture ;  then  5080,  divided  by  the  number  of  mea- 
sures consumed,  gives  the  amount  of  iodine  per  cent,  in  the  sample. 

This  process  is  obviously  incompatible  with  proto-compoundt  of  iron,  arjenioua 
acid,  and  substances  having  similar  chemical  relations ;  but  their  presence  would  be 
immediately  disclosed  and  their  influence  easily  prevented. 

Kelp  and  Kelp-liquor. — The  direct  application  of  the  present  process  to  kelp  and 
kelp- liquors  is  evidently  inadmissible,  in  consequence  of  the  sulphides,  sulphites,  typo- 
sulphites  and  sulphocyanides,  which  they  invariably  contain.  Ail  these  ingredients 
act  readily  upon  bichromate  of  potash,  in  presence  of  hydrochloric  acid.  They  mar 
however  be  effectually  removed  py  cautiously  treating  the  solution  from  the  kelp  with 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  59 

hydrochloric  acid,  and  evaporating  to  dryneu,  repeating  the  operation*  if  neqetsary, 
or  till  the  above  ingredient*  are  decomposed.  In  the  cafe  of  kelp,  the  following  it 
an  outline  of  the  mode  of  procedure : — A  known  weight  it  exhausted  with  water  in 
the  usual  manner,  and  the  several  liquors,  being  mixed)  are  concentrated  by  evapora- 
tion, and  set  aside  to  crystallize.  The  mother-liquor  it  decanted  and  slightly  super- 
saturated with  hydrochloric  acid,  boiled  and  filtered.  The  filtrate  if  then  evaporated 
completely  to  dryness,  a  little  carbonate  of  soda  being  added  towards  the  conclusion, 
if  it  be  found  that  the  hydrochloric  acid  it  in  such  excess  at  to  affect  the  iodide* 
This  will  be  indicated  by  the  liberation  of  iodine,  and  by  the  solution  acquiring  4  dark 
colour*  The  drv  residue  is  digested  in  a  small  quantity  of  cold  water  and  filtered, 
The  solution  it  then  tested  for  the  pretence  of  the  substances  before  named,  when,  if 
pure,  it  it  transferred  (wholly  or  in  part,  according  to  the  quantity  of  kelp  operated 
upon)  to  the  alkalimeter,  and  subsequently  dropped  into  the  prepared  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash  and  hydrochloric  acid,  as  previously  described1.  If  however  it 
should  stil]  contain  any  sulphite,  hyposulphite,  &c,  the  treatment  with  hydrochloric 
acid  it  repeated.  It  has  been  found  that  the  extraction  of  the  iodide  from  the  residue 
by  means  of  alcohol  answers  very  well  when  the  removal  of  the  incompatible  matters 
it  attended  with  difficulty.  The  quantity  of  iodine  in  kelp  it  proportionately  small, 
and  of  eourse  subject  to  extensive  variation.  The  amount  extracted  on  the  large  scale 
from  "  drift- weed  kelp"  varies  from  5  to  12  lbt.  per  ton,  though  larger  quantities  are 
said  to  have  been  obtained.  From  cut-weed  kelp  not  more  than  2  to  3  lbs.  per  ton 
have  been  extracted ;  and  it  is  easy  to  conceive  that  the  produce  will  be  variable 
when  these  two  kinds  of  kelp  are  mixed  together.  Not  lets  therefore  than  2  lbs.  of 
drift-weed  kelp  should  be  operated  upon,  and  in  the  case  of  cut-weed  kelp,  it  will  be 
advisable  to  use  only  5grs.  of  bichromate  of  potash  in  place  of  lOgrs. 

The  method  of  testing  kelp-liquors  is  evident  from  the  above  outline  of  the  mode  of 
operating  upon  kelp  itself.  ______ 

On  the  Oil  of  the  Sun-Fish.    By  Professor  E.  Ronalds,  PhJ>*  F.C.g. 

On  the  application  of  certain  Optical  Phenomena  to  Chemistry, 
fly  Professor  G.  O.  Stokes,  H~4.,  F.R.S. 

On  the  Kok-i-Noor  Diamond.    By  Professor  Tennant,  F.G.S. 

At  the  last  Meeting  of  the  British  Association,  Dr.  Beke  read  a  paper  on  the  dia- 
mond slab  supposed  to  have  been  cut  from  the  Koh-i-Noor,  and  stated,  that  "  at  the 
capture  of  Coochan,  there  was  found  among  the  jewels  of  the  harem  of  Reeza  Kooli 
Khan  1  the  chief  of  that  place,  a  large  diamond  slab,  supposed  to  have  been  cut  from 
one  aide  of  the  Koh-i-Noor,  the  great  Indian  diamond  now  in  the  possession  of  Her 
Majesty.  It  weighed  about  130  carats,  showed  the  marks  of  cutting  on  the  flat  and 
largest  tide,  and  appeared  to  correspond  in  size  with  the  Koh-i-Noor."  Professor 
Tennant  was  induced  to  record  his  opinion  of  the  probability  of  this  being  correct. 
He  had  made  models  in  fluor  spar  and  afterwards  broken  them,  and  obtained  speci- 
mens which  would  correspond  in  cleavage,  weight  and  size  with  the  Koh-i-Noor.  By 
this  means  he  was  enabled  to  include  the  piece  described  by  Dr.  Beke,  and  pro- 
bably the  large  Russian  diamond,  as  forming,  altogether  but  portions  of  one  large 
diamond.  The  diamond  belongs  to  the  tessular  crystalline  system ;  it  yields  readily 
to  cleavage  in  four  directions,  parallel  to  the  planes  of  the  regular  octahedron.  Two 
of  the  largest  planet  of  the  Kon-i-Noor,  when  exhibited  in  the  Crystal  Palace,  were 
cleavage  planes ;  one  of  them  had  not  been  polished.  This  proved  the  specimen  to 
be  not  a  third  of  the  weight  of  the  original  crystal,  which  he  believed  to  have  been  a 
rhombic  dodecahedron,  and  if  slightly  elongated,  which  is  a  common  form  of  the 
diamond,  would  agree  with  Tavernier's  description  of  it,  bearing  some  resemblance  to 
an  egg.  

On  Chemical  Combination ;  and  on  the  Amount  of  Heat  produced  by  the 
Combination  of  several  Metals  with  Oxygen.    By  Thomas  Woods,  M.D. 

The  author  endeavoured  to  show  that  in  chemical  combination  no  action  different 
from  that  which  takes  place  in  simple  bodies  when  expanding  or  contracting,  when 


40  REPORT — 1852. 

heated  or  cooled,  exists.  Every  substance  is  an  assemblage  of  particles  between  which 
a  definite  distance  exists,  as  shown  by  every  body  having  a  specific  gravity  and  bulk 
always  the  same  for  the  same  temperature ;  and  therefore  the  matter  and  space 
of  a  body  are  related,  or  have  some  dependence  on  each  other.  Now  if  two  bodies  be 
brought  together  at  an  insensible  distance  (and  this  must  always  be  the  case  before 
chemical  action  takes  place),  they  form,  as  far  as  their  particles  are  concerned,  one 
body ;  and  therefore  these  particles  behave  as  though  they  were  particles  of  a  simple 
body,  that  is,  the  distance  between  them  or  the  space  is  regulated  by  the  matter. 
But  as  the  matter  of  the  compound  body  is  not  the  same  as  the  matter  of  either  of 
those  separately  which  compose  it,  the  distance  between  the  particles  of  the  compound 
must  be  different  from  that  of  the  elements.  This  distance  cannot  be  greater,  for 
then  the  particles  would  be  nearer  at  a  sensible  than  an  insensible  distance,  and  so 
could  not  mix  at  all ;  and  being  less,  a  particle  of  each  of  the  elements  must  be  joined 
to  one  of  the  other,  for  if  not,  the  relation  of  the  space  to  matter  could  not  be  carried 
out :  hence  what  is  called  chemical  combination.  And,  as  where  two  simple  bodies 
are  brought  together  they  unite,  if  the  distance  of  the  particles  is  less  for  the  compound 
than  the  simple,  so,  if  a  simple  and  compound  body  are  mixed,  the  former  decomposes 
the  latter  if  its  particles  lie  closer  to  those  of  either  of  the  elements  of  the  former  than 
those  of  the  other  elements  do,  for  in  every  case  the  relation  between  space  and  matter 
must  be  carried  out.  But  in  other  papers  published  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine, 
Dr.  Woods  has  endeavoured  to  show  that  the  distance  between  particles  cannot  either 
be  increased  or  diminished  without  an  opposite  and  equal  cnange  simultaneously 
occurring  in  some  other  particles ;  hence,  when  in  chemical  combination  the  distance 
between  the  uniting  particles  is  being  diminished,  other  particles  expand,  and  this 
expansion  is  the  heat  of  chemical  combination :  and  the  necessity  of  this  equal  and 
opposite  movement  shows  that  it  cannot  be  any  power  of  matter,  such  as  attraction,  that 
causes  particles  to  cohere,  but  the  absence  of  expansion  going  on  in  other  bodies;  and 
the  same  law  also  proves  that  the  idea  of  repulsion  is  equally  unnecessary.  Now,  accord- 
ing to  this  theory,  bodies  which  have  the  greatest  affinity  for  each  other  should  also  lie 
the  closest  together,  and  as  the  more  closely  they  lie  the  greater  the  distance  their  parti- 
cles move  together  when  combining,  so  the  heat  or  accompanying  expansion,  which  is 
equal  although  opposite,  might  be  taken  as  a  measure  of  the  affinity  of  bodies  for  each 
other. 

To  prove  whether  this  idea  were  correct,  the  author  investigated  the  "  amount 
of  heat  produced  by  the  combination  of  several  metals  with  oxygen."  The  method 
of  finding  the  amount  of  heat  is  new.  Instead  of  burning  the  metals  in  oxygen,  as 
formerly,  Dr.  Woods  dissolved  them  in  water  (potassium,  sodium),  or  sulphuric  or 
nitric  acid,  and  noted  the  effect  on  the  thermometer.  To  the  number  of  degrees 
indicated  was  then  added  the  quantity  of  heat  absorbed  by  the  decomposition  of  the 
dissolving  menstruum ;  for  Dr.  Woods  has  proved  in  the  October  Number  of  the 
Philosophical  Magazine,  1851,  that  "  decomposition  of  a  compound  body  absorbs  as 
much  heat  as  the  combination  of  the  elements  originally  produced."  In  the  follow- 
ing table  are  the  results : — 

Amount  of  best  produced  by  the  combina- 
Name  of  metal,  turn  of  an  equivalent  of  each  with  1  gram 

of  oxygen  in  00  grains  of  water. 

Sodium T 284  0  Fahr. 

Potassium    . . 256*5  „ 

Zinc 159*8  „ 

Tin    129-6  „ 

Iron 126-4  „ 

Lead 99-4  „ 

Bismuth    74-5  „ 

Copper.: 72-6  „ 

Mercury  40*4  „ 

Silver   38-9  „ 


On  the  Combination  of  Metals  with  Oxygen.    By  T.  Wood,  MJD. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  41 

GEOLOGY  AND  PHYSICAL  GEOGRAPHY. 

On  a  New  Variety  of  Magnetic  Iran  Ore  ;  with  Remarks  upon  the  Application 
of  Bicarbonate  of  Baryta  to  Quantitative  Analyses,  By  Professor  T. 
Andrews,  M.D.,  F.R.S*  M.RJJi. 

This  mineral  occurs  in  the  schist  rocks  of  the  Mourn e  Mountains,  near  their  junction 
with  the  granite.  In -external  characters  it  resembles  somewhat  the  common  mag- 
netic oxide ;  but  its  lustre  is  inferior.  It  occurs  both  in  the  amorphous  state  and  in 
imperfectly-formed  octahedrons.     Its  composition  was  found  to  be, — 

Sesquioxide  of  iron  71*41 

Protoxide  of  iron 21*59 

Magnesia «.     6*45 

The  formula  of  this  mineral  is  evidently  Fea  O,  +  (FeO,  MgO),  a  part  of  the  protoxide 
of  iron  being  replaced  by  magnesia.  Although  not  mentioned  in  any  of  the  published 
analyses  of  magnetic  oxide  of  iron,  magnesia  appears  to  be  a  constant  constituent  of 
this  mineral.  The  author  gave  the  results  of  analyses  of  magnetic  oxide  in  which 
2*00,  0*71,  and  0*09  per  cent,  of  magnesia  had  respectively  replaced  an  equivalent 
amount  of  the  protoxide  of  iron.  It  is  remarkable  that  not  a  trace  of  lime  could  ever 
be  detected  in  any  specimen  of  magnetic  oxide.  Oxide  of  manganese  is  usually  also 
present,  but  in  minute  quantity.  In  this  analysis  a  solution  of  the  bicarbonate  of 
baryta  was  employed  to  separate  the  sesquioxide  of  iron  from  the  magnesia.  A 
solution  of  this  compound,  which  is  readily  prepared  by  passing  a  current  of  carbonic 
acid  into  water  containing  recently- precipitated  carbonate  of  baryta  in  suspension,  the 
author  finds  to  effect  «a  very  complete  separation  of  the  sesquioxide  of  iron  from  the 
oxide  of  manganese  and  from  magnesia,  and  considers  that  it  may  be  very  usefully 
employed  in  quantitative  analyses  for  effecting  the  separation  of  the  bases  just  men- 
tioned, presenting  many  advantages  over  the  insoluble  carbonate  of  baryta,  as  well  as 
over  the  other  reagents  usually  employed  for  the  same  purpose. 

On  the  Sources  of  Common  Salt.    By  W.  Bollaert. 

Observations  on  the  Diamond.    By  Sir  David  Brewster,  K.H.,  F.R.S. 

In  the  course  of  last  spring  I  was  requested  by  H.R.H.  Prince  Albert  to  give  my 
opinion  respecting  different  forms  into  wnich  it  was  proposed  to  reduce  the  Koh-i-Noor 
diamond,  in  order  to  make  it  an  ornamental  gem.  In  the  state  in  which  it  then  was, 
it  exhibited  an  inferior  display  of  colours  to  its  glass  model,  and  it  was  only  by  sur- 
rounding it  with  a  number  of  vivid  lights  that  its  coloured  refractions  could  be  de- 
veloped. Having  had  occasion  to  observe  some  remarkable  phenomena  in  small 
portions  of  diamond,  an  account  of  which  was  published  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Geological  Society  for  1836,  I  was  desirous  of  examining  so  large  a  mass  of  diamond 
as  the  Koh-i-Noor  before  it  was  reduced  in  size,  and  covered  with  facets  which  would 
not  permit  it  to  be  examined.  His  Royal  Highness  readily  granted  my  request,  and 
I  had  thus  an  opportunity  of  submitting  it  to  the  scrutiny  of  polarized  light.  In 
place  of  producing  no  action  upon  this  species  of  light,  as  might  have  been  expected 
from  its  octahedral  structure,  it  exhibited  streaks  of  polarized  tints,  generally  parallel 
to  one  another,  but  in  some  places  of  an  irregular  form,  and  rising  to  the  yelhw  of 
the  firtt  order  of  colours.  These  tints  and  portions  of  polarized  light  were  exactly 
the  same  as  those  which  1  had  long  ago  found  in  many  other  diamonds,  and  figured 
in  the  Edinburgh  Transactions  for  1815  and  1816.  In  placing  the  Koh-i-Noor  under 
a  microscope  of  considerable  power,  I  observed  in  it,  and  also  in  eacli  of  the  two 
small  diamonds  which  accompanied  it,  several  minute  and  irregular  cavities,  sur- 
rounded with  sectors  of  polarized  light,  which  could  only  have  been  produced  by  the 
expansive  action  of  a  compressed  gas  or  fluid  that  had  existed  in  the  cavities  when 
the  diamond  was  in  a  soft  state.  In  an  external  cavity,  shown  in  the  model,  and 
which  had  been  used  for  fixing  the  gold  setting,  I  observed,  with  common  light,  a 
portion  of  yellow  light,  indicating  a  yellow  substance.  Mr.  Garrard  and  others  con- 
sidered it  as  gold  rubbed  off  the  gold  setting ;  but  as  gold  is  never  yellow  by  trans- 
mitted light,  I  considered  the  colour  as  produced  by  a  yellow  solid  substance  of 
unknown  origin.    Sir  Henry  De  la  Beche  having  suggested  to  me  that  it  would  be 


43  EKPOBT— 1852. 

desirable  to  make  a  general  examination  of  the  principal  diamonds  in  London,  I  went 
next  day  to  the  British  Museum,  and  found  tnere  an  interesting  specimen,  which 
threw  some  light  on  the  yellow  solid  to  which  I  have  referred.  This  specimen  was  a 
piece  of  colourless  diamond,  uncut,  and  without  any  crystalline  faces,  about  three  or 
four  tenths  of  an  inch  broad,  and  about  the  twelfth  of  an  inch  thick,  and  on  its  sur- 
face there  lay  a  crystal  of  yellow  diamond,  with  the  four  planes  of  semi-octahedron. 
This  singular  fact  was  illustrated  by  a  Urge  model  placed  beside  it.  Upon  examining 
the  original,  I  noticed  a  pretty  large  cavity  in  the  thickness  of  the  specimen,  with  the 
extremity  of  which  the  yellow  octahedron  was  connected ;  and  finding  a  portion  of 
amorphous  yellow  diamond  in  the  other  end  of  the  cavity,  I  bad  no  doubt  that  the 
yellow  crystal  had  emerged,  in  a  fluid  state,  from  the  cavity  when  it  was  accidentally 
opened,  and  had  immediately  crystallized  on  the  surface  of  cleavage.  I  am  well 
aware  that  such  an  opinion  makes  a  good  demand  upon  the  faith  of  the  mineralogist ; 
but  to  those  who  have  seen,  as  I  have  done,  the  contents  of  fluid  cavities  in  crystal 
solidifying  and  even  crystallizing  on  the  face  of  cleavage,  while  another  portion  of 
the  contents  of  the  cavity  escaped  in  gas — to  those  who  have  seen  in  topaz  cavities 
numbers  of  regularly  formed  crystals,  some  of  which,  after  being  fused  by  heat, 
instantly  recrystallized — the  conclusion  I  have  drawn  will  be  stripped  of  much  of  its 
apparent  extravagance.  In  examining  a  number  of  diamonds  in  ihe  museum  of  the 
Bast  India  Company,  to  which  Col.  Sykes  kindly  obtained  me  access,  and  about  forty 
or  fifty  in  the  possession  of  Messrs.  Hunt  and  Roskill,  I  found  many  containing  large 
and  irregular  cavities  of  the  most  fantastic  shapes,  and  all  of  them  surrounded  with 
irregular  patches  of  polarized  light,  of  high  tints,  produced  undoubtedly  by  a  pressure 
from  within  the  cavities,  and  modified  by  their  form.  Among  these  specimens  I 
found  one  or  two  black  diamonds,  not  black  from  a  dark  colouring  matter,  like  that 
in  smoky  quartz,  but  black  from  the  immense  number  of  cavities  which  they  con- 
tained. Tavernier  has  described  a  large  and  curious  diamond  which  throws  some 
light  on  the  subject  of  this  notice.  It  contained,  in  its  very  centre,  a  large  black 
cavity.  The  diamond  merchants  refused  to  purchase  it.  At  last  a  Dutchman  bought 
it,  and  by  cutting  it  in  two,  obtained  two  very  fine  diamonds.  The  black  cavity 
through  which  he  cut  was  found  to  contain  eight  or  nine  carats  of  what  Tavernier 
calls  black  vegetable  mud!  _____ 

Geological  Structure  of  the  Counties  of  Down  and  Antrim, 
By  James  Bryce,/w».,  M.A.,  F.Q.S. 

The  author  began  by  stating  that  the  valley  of  the  Lagan,  on  which  the  town  of 
Belfast  is  situated,  is  a  great  depression  on  either  side  of  which  formations  of  dif- 
ferent ages  are  confluent.  On  the  southern  side  of  the  valley  the  strata  belong 
to  the  older  formations;  on  the  northern  side  they  are  the  newest  that  occur  in 
Ireland.  Each  of  the  counties  of  Down  and  Antrim  is  thus  almost  exclusively  occu- 
pied with  rocks  peculiar  to  itself;  those  in  the  one  county  not  including  those  in  the 
Other.  The  author  then  proceeded  to  describe  the  leading  geological  features  of  the 
County  of  Down.  Tt  contains  two  granitic  tracts,  which  seem  to  have  been  elevated 
at  different  epochs.  They  are  separated  from  one  another,  and  each  is  wholly  enclosed 
by  a  thick  band  of  metamorphic  slate,  gneissose  in  its  lower  part,  and  passing  upwards 
into  flinty  and  common  clay-slate.  Superimposed  conformably  on  these  are  other 
slates  of  a  less  crystalline  type,  whose  aggregate  thickness  is  epormous,  and  whose 
upper  portions  have  yielded  a  few  imperfect  fossils,  which  seem  to  make  them  refer- 
aDie  to  the  lower  Silurian  group ;  but  as  vet  no  definite  lines  have  been  made  out 
to  justify  a  classification.  Over  the  slates,  but  unconformable  to  them,  there  occurs 
in  the  N.E.  part  of  the  county  many  strata  abounding  in  fossils,  which  the  author 
is  inclined  to  refer  to  the  Carboniferous  and  Permian  systems.  Among  these  no  traces 
of  coal  have  yet  been  found ;  which  is  remarkable,  seeing  that  the  system  is  otherwise 
so  fully  developed. 

The  formations  of  Antrim  were  next  described.  These  consist  of  triassic  beds,  lias, 
and  the  cretaceous  system,  including  greensand  and  chalk ;  the  whole  overlaid  by 
vast  accumulations  of  igneous  rocks  presenting  many  varieties, — basalts,  greenstones* 
greystones,  porphyries,  tufts,  and  ashes  with  lignites ;  which  the  author  endeavoured 
to  separate  into  distinct  flows  from  certain  foci  of  submarine  volcanic  action.  Many 
new  pbaenomena  connected  with  the  Giant's  Causeway  were  also  described;  and  a 


TRANSACTION!  OF  TBS  MOTIONS.  49 

tertiary  pliocene  formation  at  Belfast  which  has  yielded  a  mater  variety  of  fonU 
speeies  toan  all  the  other  similar  beds  In  Ireland  taken  together.  In  conclusion,  the 
recent  discorery  of  extensive  beds  of  rock-salt  near  Carrickfergus  was  briefly  al- 
luded to.  

On  the  Disposition  of  Granite  Block*  in  Argyllshire. 

By  James  Bryob,>*„  F.G.S. 

■  '  ■  'j  ■ 

On  the  Alps  m  tke  Vicinity  of  Mont  Blanc.    By  Major  Charters,  F.G.S. 

An  Account  of  the  Changes  occasioned  during  the  CooUng  of  the  Granite  of 
Mont  Blanc.    By  M.  Achille  Delesse. 

On  the  Rocks  of  the  Upper  Punjaub.    By  Dr,  Andrew  Fleming,  of  the 
East  India  Company's  Service. 

Sir  Roderick  I.  Murohison  briefly  explained  the  nature  and  value  of  the  last  re- 
searehes  of  Dr.  A.  Fleming,  to  whom  the  Indian  government  had  assigned  the  task  of 
exploring  (as  Director)  the  salt  mines  of  the  Upper  Punjaub.  The  chief  results  are, 
thai  the  salt  range  is  composed,  in  descending  order,  of  a  mass  of  nummulite  lime- 
stone, which,  forming  its  peaks,  throws  off  younger  and  pebbly  deposits,  and  is  under- 
laid first  by  secondary  rocks  of  Jurassic  (Oxfordian)  age,  and  next  by  limestone, 
laden  with  well-known  species  of  Produoti  of  the  carbouiferous  or  mountain  limestone ; 
the  whole  being  supported  by  inferior  masses  of  red  shale,  sandstone  and  oonglome* 
rate,  to  which  the  salt  is  subordinate.  After  a  pointed  allusion  to  the  great  importance 
of  these  discoveries,  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison  informed  the  Section  that  he  had  acquainted 
the  author  that  some  of  the  salt  of  Russia  occupied  the  same  position,  or  that  of  the 
Devonian  or  Old  Red  Rocks. 

On  the  Fossils  of  the  Yellow  Sandstone  of  the  South  of  Ireland. 
By  Professor  £.  Fqrbhs,  F.B.S. 
During  the  course  of  the  labours  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Ireland  in  1851, 
strata  referable  to  the  "  yellow  sandstone,"  and  consisting  of  compact  flagstones  of  a 
very  grey  and  creamy  colour,  at  the  hill  of  Knocktopher  in  Kilkenny,  were  found  to 
abound  in  fossils  of  mat  beauty,  and  apparently  entirely  new.  Tliev  consisted  of 
remains  of  ferns  ana  other  plants  in  a  beautiful  state  of  preservation,  and  were 
accompanied  by  a  large  bivalve  shell,  which  must  provisionally  be  referred  to  the 
genus  Anodon,  and  may  receive  the  name  of  Anodon  Jukesil.  The  ferns  belong 
tq  the  genus  CycfopterU,  and  to  a  group  in  that  genus  among  which  the  aspect  of 
Neuropteru  is  assumed.  They  differ  materially  from  any  of  the  members  of  this 
group  hitherto  described,  not  only  specifically,  but  also  in  their  general  arrange- 
ments ;  and  exhibit  some  peculiarities  not  hitherto  noticed  in  fossil  ferns.  The  most 
common  of  these  (Cyclopteru  Hibernicut)  is  often  two  feet  in  length  of  its  bipinnate 
frond*.  Along  with  these  are  species  of  Lepidodendron  and  Stigmaria ;  also  curious 
cones,  formed  of  loose  groups  of  scales  or  bracts,  each  furnished  with  an  exceedingly 
long  mucro.  AH  of  these  appear  to  be  new*  Great  interest  attaches  to  this  assem- 
blage:— 1st,  as  an  indication  of  fresh,  or  at  least  brackish,  water  conditions  at  the 
period  of  the  depositions  of  the  beds ;  and  2ndly,  as,  if  we  are  correct  in  considering 
these  strata  Devonian,  this  is  the  most  perfect  illustration  of  the  flora  of  that  epoch 
yet  discovered.  Fish  remains  of  the  genus  Holopti/chius,  and  of  the  crustacean  PUry- 
gotus  occur  also  in  these  beds.  ____ 

On  the  Shells  found  in  the  Alluvial  Deposits  of  Belfast. 
By  John  Grainger,  ffon.  Sec.  of  the  Dublin  University  Zoolt  Assoc. 

The  author,  after  referring  to  the  incomplete  character  of  what  had  been  published 
oil  (be  subject,  statecji  that  the  alluvial  deposits  of  Belfast  occupied  the  greater  part 
of  the  foundations  of  the  town,  and  extended  three  or  four  miles  into  the  bay,  and 
that  the  Shells  had  been  found  in  various  levels  from  four  feet  in  vertical  height ^hove 
high-water  mark  to  twenty-four  feet  below  it.  The  deposits  appeared  to  have  the  shells 


44  report — 1852. 

rather  diffused  throughout  them  than  lying  in  regular  beds.  This,  together  with  the  fact 
that  the  same  species  were  found  at  every  depth,  made  it  useless  as  well  as  impossible 
to  observe  levels  to  which  the  species  should  respectively  belong.  Besides,  the  sheila 
were  all  of  recent  species,  and  thus  fixed  the  formations  of  one  geological  age.  The 
following  is  a  summary  of  the  remarks  upon  each  species. 

Teredo  norvegica,  Sprengler.  A  considerable  number  of  tubes  were  found,  tending 
to  prove  the  indigenousness  of  the  species.  It  is  not  now  an  inhabitant  of  the  bay, 
nor  indeed  is  there  any  habitat  nearer  than  Portpatrick  in  Wigtonshire,  a  harbour 
presenting  identically  similar  geological  features  to  those  of  Belfast  Bay. 

Pholas  dactylus,  Linn.  A  single  valve  in  the  sand  of  the  deposits.  It  exists  at 
present  in  some  numbers  in  the  harbour. 

P.  parva,  Penu.   Was  met  with,  and  in  the  living  state  upon  the  surface. 
P.  crispata,  Linn.     Several  huge  examples  4£  inches  long.    Not  now  common  in 
the  bay. 

P.  Candida,  Linn.   A  tolerable  number  of  single  valves,  with  a  few  perfect  speci- 
mens, one  three  inches  in  length.     At  the  present  day  abundant  in  the  harbour. 
Saxicava  arctica,  Linn.   A  few  single  valves.     Still  an  inhabitant  of  the  bay. 
Mya  truncaia,  Linn.  Occurred  plentifully.     An  extremely  common  species  in  the 
harbour. 

M.  arenaria,  Linn.  Was  found  everywhere  in  the  deposits.  Now  a  favourite  food 
with  the  poor  along  the  neighbouring  shores. 

Corbuia  nucleus,  Lam.  Was  met  with  but  sparingly.     It  still  occurs  in  the  bay. 
Thracia  phaseolina,  Lam.  A  few  specimens,  but  only  with  separated  valves.    Com- 
mon enougn  in  the  harbour  at  present. 

T.  pubescent,  Pult.  One  rather  fine  individual.  Has  been  taken  also  in  the  living 
state  in  the  neighbourhood. 

T.  convexa,  Wood.  A  large  number  was  obtained.  Has  not  been  taken  in  Belfast 
Bay. 

Sokn  marginatum,  Pult  Occurred  rather  frequently.  Has  been  dredged  in  the 
dead  state  near  the  mouth  of  the  harbour. 

S.  ensis,  Linn.  Represented  by  one  or  two  poor  examples  of  the  var.  magna. 
Both  the  typical  form  and  the  var.  occur  in  the  living  state. 

S.  peUuctdus,  Penn.  In  small  numbers,  and  rather  local.  Dredged  commonly 
enough  in  the  bay. 

Solecurtut  coarctaius,  Gmel.  A  single  rather  fine  example.    Not  in  the  harbour  as 
a  living  species,  but  has  been  dredged  in  some  of  the  neighbouring  estuaries. 
Psammobia  vespertina,  Chem.     One  valve  only.     Still  an  inhabitant. 
P.  Ferroensis,  Chem.     Rather  scarce,  and  only  in  single  valves.    Now  dredged  in 
tolerable  numbers  alive. 

TeUina  tenuis,  Da  Cos.  Was  represented  by  rather  fresh-looking  specimens.  Quite 
abundant  as  a  living  occupant. 

T.  sotidula,  Pult.  Distributed  everywhere  throughout  the  beds.  Still  a  common 
shell  in  the  neighbourhood. 

Syndosmya  alba.  Was  well  distributed,  and  occurred  in  large  numbers  in  company; 
It  is  also  an  inhabitant  in  the  recent  state. 

Scrobicularia  piperata,  Gmel.  Left  ample  memorials  of  its  former  presence ;  and 
does  not  occupy  suitable  localities  near  Belfast  The  best  specimens  found  nearest  to 
the  course  of  the  river. 

Mactra  elHptica,  Brown.  Occurred  pretty  often.  Enumerated  amongst  the  inha- 
bitants of  the  harbour. 

M.  subtruncata,  Da  Cos.  A  large  number  of  fine  examples.  Abundant  in  the  bay 
in  the  living  state. 

Lutraria  elliptica,  Lam.  Was  imbedded  everywhere.  It  is  yet  in  the  harbour  a  not 
unfrequent  species. 

Tapes  decussata,  Linn.  Appeared  pretty  often.  Dug  living  out  of  the  sand  near 
Belfast. 

T.  pullastra,  Wood.  The  typical  form  was  met  with  abundantly.  Extremely 
numerous  at  the  present  day. 

T  aurea,  Gmel.  Was  locally  abundant.  In  some  parts  of  the  bay  nothing  could 
be  more  plentiful  than  this  as  a  living  species. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  45 

Venus  striatula,  Don.  Three  varieties  occurred  in  some  numbers,  vis.  lammosa, 
gallina,  and  a  decidedly  ventricose  form.     Still  lives  in  the  harbour. 

Artemis  lincta,  Puit  Very  sparingly  in  single  valves.  Not  oommonly  met  with  in 
the  living  state  in  the  bay. 

Lucinoosis  undata,  Penn.  Distributed  in  vast  numbers.  Thrown  on  the  neigh- 
bouring snores  in  the  recent  state. 

Cardium  echmatum,  Linn.  Fine  examples  extremely  numerous.  Still  living  near 
its  ancient  station. 

C.  edule,  Linn.  Imbedded  in  vast  numbers.  On  both  sides  of  the  harbour  it  is 
obtained  for  the  market. 

C.  pygmaum,  Don.  Not  unfrequent.  Still  to  be  met  with  living  in  the  neigh- 
hourhood. 

Lucma  borealis,  Linn.  Was  found  finely  developed,  and  in  some  numbers.  Now 
dredged  living  in  the  harbour. 

L.flexuosa,  Mont.   Fine  examples  in  great  numbers.   One  of  the  recent  inhabitants. 

Tvrtoma  minuta,  O.  Fab.  A  few  specimens  of  fine  colour.  Sometimes  taken  in 
great  abundance  in  the  living  state. 

Mytilus  edulis,  Linn.  Several  varieties  in  vast  numbers.  An  individual  mea- 
sured 3(  inches  in  length.     As  a  living  occupant  it  is  extremely  abundant. 

Modiola  tulipa,  Lam.  Pretty  frequent  in  single  valves  of  large  size.  Still  inhabits 
the  harbour. 

Nucula  nucleus,  Linn.  Somewhat  frequent,  and  of  large  dimensions.  Belongs  to 
the  fauna  of  the  neighbourhood. 

Leda  caudata,  Don.    A  single  valve.     Not  found  in  the  bay  in  the  recent  state. 

Lima  hians,  Omel.    A  number  of  detached  valves.    Dredged  living  also. 

Pec  ten  varius,  Linn.    Frequent     Now  a  well-known  inhabitant. 

P.  maximus,  Linn.  Diffused  abundantly,  and  present  examples  of  all  ages.  Not 
unfrequently  brought  to  market  from  the  neighbourhood. 

P.  opercularis,  Linn.  In  large  numbers.  Excellent  examples  dredged  in  the 
living  state. 

Ostrea  edulis,  Linn.  In  innumerable  myriads,  and  several  beautiful  examples  of 
the  var.  parasitica.    The  market  is  supplied  by  their  descendants. 

Anomia  ephippium,  Linn.  Appeared:  abundantly.  The  bay  still  contains  the  species 
in  numbers. 

Patella  vulgata,  Linn.  One  specimen  only.  In  suitable  localities  nothing  could 
exceed  the  abundance  of  this  moUusk  at  present. 

Trochus  cinerarius,  Linn.  Distributed  in  some  numbers.  The  harbour  still  retains 
its  presence  in  abundance. 

T.  magus,  Linn.    Occurred  sparingly.    Abundant  as  a  living  species. 

Liltortna  littorea,  Linn.  Diffused  in  vast  quantities.  It  still  exists  in  the  bay  in 
countless  myriads. 

L.  rudis,  Don.    Occurs  but  seldom.    Lives  in  the  harbour  in  abundance. 

L.  tenebrota,  Mont.  Rather  frequent  Enumerated  in  the  fauna  of  the  neighbour- 
hood. 

L.  lateralis,  Linn.    Found  pretty  often.     Extremely  prolific  in  the  bay. 

Lacuna  crassior,  Mont  Distributed  in  some  numbers.  In  the  harbour  it  is  still  a 
living  species. 

Rusod  labiosa,  Mont  Frequent,  and  in  company  with  Cerith.  reticulatum.  In 
the  harbour  it  still  abounds. 

R.  ulva,  Penn.  Was  common.  Is  thrown  upon  the  shore  in  the  living  state  in 
multitudes. 

TurriteUa  communis,  Riss.  Exceedingly  abundant  in  the  deposits.  One  specimen 
was  2$  inches  in  length.     It  still  lives  in  the  harbour. 

Aporrhui*  pes-pelecani,  Linn.    Was  frequent    Still  an  inhabitant 

Cerithium  reticulatum,  Da  Cos.  Perhaps  the  most  abundant  shell  in  the  beds. 
Still  a  member  of  the  fauna  of  Belfast. 

Scalaria  Trevelyana,  Leach.    A  tolerable  number.    Not  present  in  the  living  state. 

Eulima  subulala  (?).  An  individual  of  this  genus  was  met  with,  but  is  now  lost,  and 
is  doubtfully  referred  to  the  species  subulata,  which  occurs  at  present  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. 


46  REPORT — 1852. 

Odostomia  eulimoides,  Haul.  Was  met  with  sparingly,  not  at  all  corresponding  to 
its  present  numbers. 

Natica  niHda,  Don.   Was  found  frequently.   It  is  in  the  harbour  as  a  living  species. 

Murex  erinaceus,  Linn.  Was  constantly  met  with.  It  occurs  abundantly  in  the  bay. 

Purpura  lapillue,  Linn.  In  considerable  numbers.  It  still  lives  there  in  great 
abundance. 

Nana  reticulata,  Linn.  Fine  examples  very  common.  A  prolific  inhabitant  at 
present. 

N.  intrastate,  Mull.  In  exceeding  abundance.  Its  presence  still  diffused  through 
the  bay. 

Buccinum  undatum,  Linn.  Very  abundant.  One  specimen  of  the  carinated  var. 
Still  an  inhabitant. 

Fusus  antiquus,  Linn.    Occurred  sometimes.     Lives  in  the  harbour, 

Cyprma  Europeea,  Mont  A  single  imperfect  example.  Dwells  now  at  the  mouth 
of  the  bay. 

Akera  bullata,  Mull.  A  specimen  or  two  only.  Sometimes  thrown  in  now  in  vast 
numbers. 

Scaphander  tignarius,  Linn.     A  portion  of  a  full-grown  shell.    Still  an  occupant. 

Philine  aperta,  Linn.     Abundantly  present.     The  harbour  still  retains  it 

Helix  rotundata,  Miill.    Was  found  once.     In  its  usual  abundance  near  the  town. 

H.  nemoralis,  Linn.    Occurred  once.     Common  all  round  Belfast. 

Creuria  verruca,  Leach.  Two  or  three  specimens.  Enumerated  in  the  fauna  of 
the  locality. 

Balanus.    Two  forms  of  this  genus  occurred.     Both  forms  recent  in  the  bay. 

Pectinaria  Belgica,  Pall.     Met  with  on  one  occasion.     Common  in  the  harbour. 

Serpula  triquetra,  Linn.    Was  frequent.     Constantly  met  with  in  the  living  state. 

Eighty  species  in  all,  examples  of  nearly  all  of  which  are  preserved  in  the  author's 
cabinet.  Those  species  which  usually  present  colouring  have  preserved  it  in  a  striking 
degree.  The  great  size  generally  attained  is  also  remarkable.  The  shells  which  were 
in  the  greatest  abundance  were  those  of  edible  Mollusca,  a  fact  which  evidences  such 
design  as  to  suggest  the  beneficent  Author  of  Nature  as  the  Cause  of  it. 


On  the  Lower  Members  of  the  Carboniferous  Series  of  Ireland. 
By  Richard  Griffith,  M.RJji^  F.G.&. 

Having  briefly  glanced  at  the  carboniferous  series,  as  it  occurs  in  various  parts  of 
Ireland,  he  proceeded  to  describe  the  yellow  sandstones  and  carboniferous  slates, 
which,  he  said,  are  best  developed  in  the  north  coast  of  the  County  Mayo,  extending, 
in  a  western  direction,  to  the  undulating  quartz  rocks  and  mica-slate  at  Ballinderry, 
and  in  the  north  of  Ireland,  in  the  counties  of  Londonderry  and  Donegal.  In  the 
north,  the  series  is  altogether  about  6000  feet  thick,  3000  feet  belonging  to  the  car- 
boniferous limestone,  and  3000  to  the  slate  and  yellow  sandstones,  so  that  altogether 
the  series  is  about  6000  feet  in  thickness.  The  first  members  of  the  series  consist  of 
beds  of  yellow  sandstones,  with  occasional  alternating  layers  of  whitish  aud  greenish 
coloured  shales,  red  sandstones,  and  limestones.  The  beds  contain  a  great  number 
of  fossils ;  and  it  is  a  remarkable  fact,  that  fossils  of  the  same  character  occur  in  each, 
and  are  found  from  top  to  bottom.  The  limestone  alone  contains  upwards  of  90  spe- 
cies, some  remarkably  curious  specimens  of  which  were  shown  by  the  author;  and:  in 
the  yellow  sandstone  there  is  a  large  number,  including  fish-beds  and  plants,  such  as 
were  first  discovered  by  Col.  Portlock  at  Moyola  in  the  County  Londonderry.  Mr. 
Griffith  next  directed  attention  to  various  sections  in  the  County  Dublin,  in  which  he 
pointed  out  the  carboniferous  slate  beds  as  having  a  stratification  consisting  of  impure 
•  argillaceous  limestone,  and  perfectly  distinct  in  character  from  the  lower  limestone ; 
and  also  to  sections  in  the  County  Waterford,  in  which  the  old  red  sandstone  is  found 
resting  unconformably  on  the  Silurian  rocks,  with  carboniferous  slates  and  yellow 
sandstone  below  it  He  conceived,  that  what  he  called  the  carboniferous  slate  and 
yellow  sandstone  might  belong  to  the  carboniferous  limestone. 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  TBS  SECTIONS.  47 

Notices  of  die  Geology  of  Ireland.    By  Richard  Griffith,  F.G.8. 

Mr.  Griffith  directed  attention  to  the  map  of  the  geology  of  Ireland,  on  which  ho 
had  been  to  many  yean  engaged,  and  to  the  improvements  which  he  had  been 
enabled  to  make  on  it  since  1838,  acknowledging  with  thanks  the  sendees  rendered 
to  him  by  Col.  Fordyce,  and  Messrs.  Bryce  and  M*  Adam.  On  looking  at  the  map, 
it  will  be  found,  he  said,  that  the  conformation  of  Ireland  is  peculiar,  the  coast  being 
mountainous  and  the  interior  flat.  Taking  the  line  from  Dublin  to  Galway,  which 
is  120  miles,  the  summit  level  is  seen  to  be  only  160  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea; 
hence  it  is  that  our  canals  and  railways  have  been  made  at  an  expense  so  com- 
paratively trifling.  Lough  Allan,  which  may  be  considered  the  source  of  the  Shan* 
non,  is  160  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea ;  while  between  Killaloe  and  the  tide  water 
at  Limerick,  a  distance  of  about  12  miles,  the  fall  is  only  110  feet.  The  average  fall 
is  less  than  six  inches  to  the  mile,  a  circumstance  to  which  we  are  to  attribute  so 
many  sluggish  rivers,  and  the  existence  of  large  tracts  of  country  flooded  during  six 
or  nine  months  in  the  year.  The  mountain  ranges  which  indicate  the  strata  of  Ire- 
land run  in  the  north  from  north-west  to  south-east,  and  in  the  county  of  Cork  from 
nearly  east  to  west. 

Beginning  with  the  foundation  and  going  to  the  top,  it  may  be  said  that  the  mica 
slate,  which  forms  the  basis  of  all  the  sedimentary  rocks  of  Ireland,  occurs  in  abun- 
dance in  the  counties  of  Londonderry  and  Donegal,  where  it  is  found  twisted  and 
contorted  in  every  direction  bv  the  protrusion  of  the  granite.  Mr.  Griffith  next 
alluded  to  the  stratifications  in  the  counties  of  Mayo  and  Galway,  which,  he  remarked, 
were  chiefly  composed  of  mica-slate,  granite  rock,  and  limestone.  Granite  also 
occurs  to  the  north  of  Galway  Bay,  where  it  is  succeeded  by  metamorphic  rocks  and 
mica-slate.  To  the  north  of  the  grand  boundary  several  granite  rocks  occur,  pro- 
truding through  the  mica-slate  and  limestones.  In  this  district  there  appears  the 
green  marble,  which  is  only  limestone  metamorphosed  by  the  action  of  the  granite. 

Passing  northward,  the  mica-slate  is  found  covered  by  Silurian  rocks.  These 
rocks  contain  numerous  fossils  belonging  to  the  Silurian  system,  and  are  succeeded 
bv  enormous  masses  of  conglomerate,  containing  large  pebbles  of  grey  granite,  some 
or  them  nearly  a  ton  in  weight,  and  perfectly  rounded.  The  granite  thus  observed 
is  quite  distinct  in  its  character  from  the  granite  of  the  district,  and  clearly  enough 
belongs  to  an  older  period.    The  thickness  of  the  Silurian  strata,  including  the  con" 

Slomerate,  may  be  set  down  at  about  5000  feet.  The  speaker  next  alluded  to  the 
ates  and  Silurian  ranges  of  the  promontory  at  Dingle,  in  the  county  of  Kerry,  and 
described  similar  formations  in  the  counties  of  Waterford,  Wexford,  and  Wicklow. 
To  the  north  of  Dublin  there  is  another  slate  district,  similar  in  character  to  that  of 
Wicklow  and  Wexford,  and  probably  belonging  to  a  lower  Silurian  series,  though,  aa 
no  fossils  have  been  discovered  in  it  except  at  the  south  portion,  its  exact  age  remains 
undetermined.  This  is  accompanied  with  the  granite  at  the  Mourne  Mountains, 
which  Mr.  Griffith  conceives  to  be  newer  than  the  slate*  One  of  the  most  interesting 
Silurian  districts  in  Ireland  occurs  near  Pomeroy,  in  the  county  of  Tyrone. 

Mr.  Griffith  next  described  the  Old  Red  Sandstone,  particularly  alluding  to  the  large 
district  which  occurs  in  the  county  of  Tyrone,  and  which,  apparently,  has  some  rela- 
tion to  the  Silurian  district  at  Pomeroy ;  and  then  pointed  out  on  the  map  several 
mountain  ranges  which  are  capped  by  the  deposit,  particularly  the  Gaftees  and 
Knockmeledown  mountains,  Slievenish,  in  the  west  of  Kerry,  and  districts  north  of 
the  county  of  Cork.  Mr.  Griffith  remarked  that  the  old  red  sandstone  is  succeeded 
by  the  great  mountain  limestone  district  of  Ireland,  which  occupies  two-thirds  of  the 
entire  country.  The  carboniferous  limestone  series,  ne  observed,  is  altogether  about 
6000  feet  thick,  3000  feet  of  which  belongs  to  the  lower  portion  of  the  series,  and  3000 
to  the  upper. 

He  next  described  the  several  coal  districts  of  Ireland,  commencing  with  BallVcastle, 
at  Fair  Head,  on  the  north  coast  of  the  county  of  Antrim.  This  district,  which  is  of 
creator  antiquity  than  any  other  in  Ireland,  had,  he  remarked,  been  worked  to  a  consi- 
derable extent.  The  coal  was  worked  bv  tunnels,  and  the  beds,  which  were  affected  at 
different  elevations  by  the  protrusion  of  dykes  of  greenstone,  have  been  nearly  worked 
out,  though  at  Murlough  Bay,  which  contains  bituminous  coal,  or  stone  coal,  there 
are  tome  beds,  whether  exhausted  or  not  he  had  not  information  to  enable  him  to  say. 
The  next  coal  district  u  that  situated  near  Coalisland,  in  the  county  of  Tyrone.    It 


48  REPORT — 1852. 

is  very  small,  and  the  beds  are  now  nearly  all  worked  out  A  third  occurs  in  Leitrim, 
Cavan,  and  Roscommon,  stretching  to  Ijough  Island,  which  contains  only  one  bed, 
not  exceeding  two  feet  in  thickness,  though  in  this  locality  there  is  the  site  of  the 
Arigna  iron-works,  which,  though  they  are  not  worked  at  the  present  time,  formerly 
attracted  much  attention  in  this  country.  The  shale  accompanies  the  coal  with  rich 
beds  of  argillaceous  ironstone,  some  of  it  containing  so  much  as  40  per  cent,  of  iron  ; 
indeed,  the  iron  that  was  made  at  Arigna  was  found  to  be  of  very  superior  quality. 

Mr.  Griffith  next  described  the  Kilkenny  coal  district,  which  contains,  he  said,  an 
unflaming  coal,  or  mineral  charcoal  alone.  There  are  several  beds  in  this  district, 
two  of  which  are  three  feet  in  thickness,  one  four  feet,  and  two  less  than  three  feet. 
The  upper  beds  have  been  long  since  worked  out;  the  lower  ones  still  remain, 
though  they  are  so  impure  in  quality,  and  contain  so  much  sulphur,  that  they  are  not 
used  except  to  burn  limestone.  The  Munster  coal  district  -was  next  dwelt  upon.  It 
occupies  a  considerable  portion  of  Clare,  Limerick,  Cork,  and  Kerry,  and  contains 
three  beds,  some  of  which  are  not  more  than  six  inches  in  thickness.  The  most 
valuable  portion  is  found  at  the  south,  immediately  to  the  north  of  the  river  Black- 
water,  where  several  excellent  beds  of  anthracite  occur. 

Having  remarked  that  he  would  not  say  that  a  valuable  coal  bed  would  not  be 
found  in  Ireland,  though  he  believed  that  no  such  coal  would  be  had  in  the  country 
as  is  to  be  found  in  England,  Mr.  Griffith  proceeded  to  the  New  Red  Sandstone.  The 
new  red  sandstone,  he  said,  is  very  sparingly  developed  in  Ireland.  The  most 
southern  locality  in  which  it  is  found  is  at  Carrickmacross,  in  the  county  of  Monaghan, 
where,  in  sinking  through  it  to  obtain  coal,  a  bed  of  gypsum,  40  feet  in  thickness, 
was  discovered ;  and  the  districts  in  which  it  is  found  most  extensively  are  in  the 
counties  of  Tyrone  and  Antrim.  In  Tyrone,  it  adjoins  the  coal  district,  and  rests 
upon  it.  It  also  occurs  in  the  valleys  of  the  river  Lagan,  in  the  counties  of  Down 
and  Antrim,  continues  under  Belfast,  and  again  displays  itself  at  Carrickfergus.  The 
strata  contain  gypsum  in  thinner  beds,  however,  than  those  mentioned  as  occurring 
at  Carrickmacross.  Some  time  ago,  when  sinking  through  it  to  obtain  coal,  a  bed  of 
salt  was  discovered. 

The  new  red  sandstone  is  covered  by  the  lias,  which  is  similar  to  that  in  England, 
and  this  again  by  the  chalk,  which  in  the  north  of  Ireland  is  called  white  limestone, 
owing  to  being  more  dense  than  the  chalk  found  in  England.  The  chalk  is  covered 
by  tabular  trap,  which  occupies  a  large  portion  of  the  counties  of  Antrim  and  Deny. 

Mr.  Griffith  next  explained  the  position  of  the  tertiary  beds,  remarking  that  an  in- 
teresting tertiary  district  occurs  in  the  south  side  of  Lough  Neagh,  in  the  counties  of 
Tyrone  and  Down.  It  is  ten  miles  in  length  and  four  in  breadth;  a  bore  was  made 
through  it,  to  the  depth  of  300  feet,  with  a  view  to  obtain  coal,  and  the  strata  were 
found  to  consist  of  alternations  of  white  ironstone  and  blue  clay,  with  surlurbrand,  or 
wood  coal — a  series  similar  to  that  at  Bovey,  in  Devonshire.  The  level  of  the  bore, 
which  was  situated  not  far  from  the  coal-field,  and  adjoined  the  coal  district,  was 
about  70  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea ;  and,  as  the  boring  itself  was  300  feet  deep, 
the  depth  of  the  series  was  230  feet  below  the  level  of  the  sea,  though  even  at  this 
distance  it  was  not  penetrated.  Mr.  Griffith  next  alluded  to  the  tertiary  districts 
situated  on  the  coasts  of  the  counties  of  Wicklow,  Wexford,  and  Waterford,  and  con- 
cluded by  a  view  of  the  eskar  hills  and  diluvial  gravel  which  cover  so  large  a  portion 
of  Ireland,  and  which  appeared  to  him  to  have  been  produced  by  currents  setting  in 
from  the  north-west  towards  the  south-east. 


On  the  Fossil  Remains  of  the  Lower  Silurians  of  the  South  of  Scotland,  and 
their  Position.    By  Robert  Harkness. 

The  occurrence  of  fossil  remains  amongst  the  deposits  known  to  the  earlier  Scotch 
geologists  by  the  name  of  transition,  was  a  circumstance  which  excited  considerable 
attention  even  in  the  days  of  Hutton  and  Playfair.  The  locality  from  whence  these 
were  procured  was  Wrae  in  Peeblesshire,  and  this  spot  for  a  long  time  was  regarded 
as  the  only  source  which  afforded  organic  remains  amongst  the  Silurians  of  Scotland. 
Since  these  deposits  have  been  discovered  to  be  of  the  Lower  Silurian  age,  they  have 
furnished  fossils  in  considerable  abundance. 

Prof.  Nicol  has,  from  the  slate  auarries  of  Greistone  and  Thornielee  in  Peebleshire 
and  Selkirkshire,  obtained  Graptohtes ;  Mr,  Carrick  Moore,  at  Cairnryan,  has  procured 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  49 

the  nme  fossils ;  Prof.  Sedgwick  at  Moffat  also  obtained  Graptolites ;  and  Sir  Rode- 
rick Murchison,  in  the  last  year's  volume  of  the  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society, 
has  given  an  elaborate  account  of  the  Silurians  of  the  south-west  of  Ayrshire  and  their 
fossil  contents.  These  Silurians,  described  by  Sir  R.  Murchison,  occupy  a  higher 
position  than  those  which  constitute  the  great  Silurian  mass  traversing  the  South  of 
Scotland  from  sea  to  sea. 

In  Ayrshire  a  deposit  of  limestone  makes  its  appearance,  which,  both  in  lithological 
characters,  and  also  in  its  fossil  contents,  shows  an  affinity  to  the  limestone  of  Wrae, 
and  above  this  limestone  several  deposits  containing  large  quantities  of  fossils  occur. 
The  nature  of  the  fossil  contents  of  tnis  limestone  and  that  of  Wrae  indicate  that  they 
appertain  to  the  Llandeilo  flags.  At  Wrae  this  limestone  is  seen  lying  upon  a  breccia 
composed  of  fragments  of  slate,  and  at  the  same  locality  thick  beds  of  the  slate,  from 
whence  these  fragments  have  been  obtained,  are  also  seen.  This  slate  extends  east- 
north-eastwards  and  west-south-westwards,  and  is  seen  at  Stobo  in  Peeblesshire,  and  in 
the  summit-cutting  of  the  Caledonian  railway,  where  it  shows  great  thickness.  From 
thence  it  extends  westwards  through  Lanarkshire  and  the  north-east  of  Dumfries- 
shire to  Cairn  Ryan  in  Wigtonshire;  and  in  this  black  slate  Mr.  Carrick  Moore  found 
Graptolites  and  other  fossils.  To  the  south  of  the  zone  occupied  by  these  black  slates, 
beds  of  grey wacke,  sandstones  and  shales  are  found,  having  great  thickness ;  and 
beneath  these  a  band  of  gray  slate  is  met  with.  In  this  gray  slate  are  seen,  in  some 
localities,  the  graptolites  described  by  Prof.  Nicol,  and  this  gray  slate  band  runs  nearly 
parallel  with  the  black  zone.  Besides  Graptolites,  it  affords  annelid  markings  and 
fucoids,  both  of  which  are  found  in  considerable  abundance  at  Barlae  quarry  in  Kirk* 
cudbright.  Southward  of  this  gray  slate  the  gray  wacke  sandstones  and  shales  again 
make  their  appearance,  and  in  them  there  occurs  a  deposit  of  green  and  blue  shales, 
which  also  contaiu  annelid  markings.  Beneath  these  green  and  blue  shales,  after  a 
considerable  thickness  of  gray  wacke  sandstone  is  passed  through,  beds  of  soft  black 
shale  are  seen  having  abundance  of  Graptolites,  of  various  species,  and  this  grap- 
tolite-shale  passes  into  anthracitic  shale,  in  some  localities  consisting  altogether  of 
the  latter  mineral.  Under  the  anthracite,  gray  wacke  sandstones  and  shales  are 
again  seen,  and  these  appear  to  form  the  lowest  beds  of  the  lower  Silurians,  as  they 
occur  in  the  South  of  Scotland.  In  these  low  shales  evidence  of  animal  life  is  seen  in 
the  form  of  annelid  impressions,  and  these  are  probably  the  lowest  traces  which  have 
yet  been  obtained  of  animal  existences.  The  lower  beds  of  greywacke  sandstones  and 
shales,  the  anthracite  band,  and  tbe  accompanying  graptolite  beds,  as  well  as  some  of 
the  deposits  which  succeed  them,  are  repeated  three  times  in  that  portion  of  the  area 
occupied  by  the  Silurians,  where  they  are  best  developed,  viz.  in  Dumfriesshire. 
The  gray  shale,  and  the  beds  which  succeed  it,  together  with  the  higher  black  slates 
and  breccia,  do  not  appear  to  be  repeated  like  the  deposits  which  occur  beneath 
them,  consequently  the  order  of  sequence  of  the  deposits  in  these  lower  Silurians  is 
somewhat  disturbed.  However,  between  the  Beatock  station  of  the  Caledonian  rail- 
way and  Elvanfoot  a  comparatively  perfect  sequence  may  be  made  out,  by  examining 
the  sections  on  the  line  of  railway  and  the  brook  courses  which  fall  into  the  Evan, 
the  stream  which  runs  parallel  to  the  Caledonian  railway.  At  Ruttenside  near 
Greskin,  about  four  miles  above  the  Beatock  station,  the  anthracite  is  seen  in  the 
Evan  water,  and  this  can  be  traced  E.N.E.  to  Hartfell,  and  from  thence  into  Peebles- 
shire and  Selkirkshire.  North  from  Ruttenside  the  greywacke  sandstones  and  shales, 
which  lie  above  the  anthracite,  make  their  appearance  ;  and  at  Rae-cleugh,  near  the 
line  which  separates  Dumfriesshire  from  Lanarkshire,  the  gray  slates  were  seen, 
which  contain  the  Graptolites  at  Greistone,  and  the  annelid  markings  and  fucoids  at 
Barlae.  Following  the  railway  northwards  from  Rae-cleugh,  we  come  upon  the 
greywacke  sandstones  and  shales,  which  separate  the  gray  slates  from  the  black 
slates  which  occur  above  them ;  and  these  at  the  summit-cutting  are  succeeded  by  the 
black  slates,  which  at  Cairn  Ryan  afford  Graptolites  and  other  fossils.  The  hills  of 
Crawford  in  Lanarkshire,  which  rise  to  the  north  of  the  black  slate  band,  are  com- 
posed of  the  breccia  already  alluded  to ;  but  the  thickness  of  this  breccia  cannot  be 
made  out  here,  nor  is  it  seen  to  be  succeeded  by  the  limestone  containing  Llandeilo 
flag  fossils,  as  at  Wrae  in  Peeblesshire.  This  section  on  the  Caledonian  railway  is 
more  than  six  miles  long,  and  from  the  great  inclination  of  the  beds,  which  are  rarely 
less  than  70°  N.N.W.,  it  would  seem  to  afford  a  series  of  deposits  about  25,000  feet 
in  thickness ;  and  by  taking  the  conglomerate  which  lies  below  the  limestone,  and  the 
1852.  4 


50  REPORT^— 1852. 

deposits  which  occur  beneath  the  anthracite  beds,  it  is  probable  that  we  may  add 
6000  feet  more  to  the  Silurians  which  occur  below  the  limestones  containing  fossils 
similar  to  the  Llaudeilo  flags,  making  in  all  a  total  thickness  of  30,000  feet  of  strata 
through  which  four  distinct  bands  of  deposits  containing  fossil  remains  are  scattered. 

From  the  mineral  character  of  these  Silurians,  and  also  from  their  occurrence  below 
the  limestone  with  lower  Silurian  fossils,  it  would  seem  that  the  great  bulk  of  the 
Scotch  Silurians  are  about  the  equivalents  of  the  Longmynd  beds  of  the  governnment 
geologist,  as  shown  in  North  Wales*  But  the  Scotch  deposits  have,  however,  one 
feature  which  the  Longmynd  beds  do  not  possess,  viz.  organic  remains,  and  they  are  of 
such  thickness  as  to  indicate  that  in  them  are  contained  some  of  the  lowest  forms  of 
life,  not  only  as  regards  the  relation  of  the  fossils  to  animals  generally,  but  likewise 
as  respects  geological  position. 

With  regard  to  the  fossil  contents  of  these  lower  Silurian  beds,  these  are  remark- 
ably simple,  and  at  the  same  time  very  characteristic.  Graptolites  of  various  species 
are  the  almost  exclusive  fossils,  and  they  abound  more  in  tne  lower  beds  than  in  the 
higher  strata.  In  the  shales  which  lie  above  the  anthracite  they  occur  in  great  pro- 
fusion, and  are  the  exclusive  fossils  of  this  deposit.  Here,  too,  the  greatest  amount 
of  species  is  obtained,  as  well  as  the  greatest  abundance  of  individuals;  and  as 
respects  the  latter,  I  know  of  no  deposit  in  the  whole  range  of  the  geological  for- 
mations which  can  be  compared  with  these  black  shales,  so  far  as  quantity  of  fossils  is 
concerned. 

Although  these  low  beds  are  characterized  by  this  group  of  fossils,  it  is  not  sufficient 
to  give  to  them  a  division  distinct  from  the  lower  Silurians.  Graptolites  in  soma 
districts  occur  in  considerable  abundance,  above  beds  which  are  marked  by  lower 
Silurian  trilobites,  as  in  Bohemia.  Some  species  of  Graptolites  extend  upwards  into 
the  upper  Silurian,  amongst  which  is  the  Uraptolites  priodon,  Bronn  ;  and  this  spe- 
cies is  found  in  great  quantities  in  the  lower  Silurians  of  Scotland,  at  Greistone,  in 
the  gray  slates.  But  although  I  have  examined  many  thousand  specimens  from  the 
soft  black  shale  above  the  anthracite,  I  have  never  been  able  to  detect  this  common 
Graptolite.  _____ 

On  the  occurrence  of  Graphite  at  Almorness  Heady  Kirkcudbrightshire. 
By  Robert  Harkness. 

At  Almorness,  a  headland  which  lies  on  the  west  side  of  the  entrance  of  the  estuary 
of  the  river  Urr,  in  the  stewartry  of  Kirkcudbright,  graphite  occurs.  This  headland 
consists  principally  of  syenite  and  patches  of  metamorphic  lower  Silurians.  The 
syenite  is  a  portion  of  that  which  extends  from  CrhTel,  a  mountain  on  the  south-east 
of  Galloway,  along  the  southern  margin  of  the  county,  and  crossing  the  estuary  of  the 
Urr,  makes  its  appearance  on  the  western  side.  In  this  syenite  the  felspar  is  com- 
monly of  a  white  colour ;  but  when  the  syenite  approaches  the  Silurian  rock,  the 
felspar  becomes  reddish,  giving  the  syenite  a  flesh-coloured  tint.  This  is  the  case 
with  that  portion  which  forms  the  headland  of  Almorness,  and  through  which  veins 
of  quartz  traverse.  In  one  of  these,  which  occurs  on  the  south-west  side  of  the  head- 
land, the  graphite  is  found.  This  vein,  which  is  about  4  feet  wide,  has  the  graphite 
disseminated  through  it.  It  likewise  appears  on  the  syenite  in  contact  with  the 
quartz  vein.  It  has  been  urged  by  some  of  the  German  chemists,  that  the  presence 
of  plumbago  in  igneous  rocks  is  due  to  the  decomposition  of  carburetted  hydrogen, 
which,  passing  over  matter  through  veins  in  a  red-hot  state,  has  been  decomposed, 
the  result  being  the  deposition  of  the  carbon,  which,  uniting  with  iron  in  the  rocks, 
appears  in  the  form  of  a  carburet  of  iron.  So  far  as  regards  the  former  occurrence  of 
carburetted  hydrogen  in  connexion  with  the  rocks  which  have  been  elevated  by  the 
irruption  of  the  syenite  in  this  locality,  this  is  a  circumstance  extremely  probable.  In 
the  Silurians  which  occur  to  the  north  of  the  district  occupied  by  this  syenite,  there  are 
seen  extensive  beds  of  anthracite ;  and  these  beds  of  anthracite,  when  acted  on  by 
gnecus  matter  previous  to  their  becoming  anthracitic,  would  afford  abundance  of 
hydrocarbons. 

Amongst  the  Silurians  which  are  contiguous  to  the  syenitic  district,  and  which  are 
much  metamorphosed  and  chloritic,  there  occur  beds,  which,  from  their  structure  and 
position,  appear  to  have  originally  been  anthracite,  but  which  now  contain  no  traces 
of  carbon.    Probably  the  action  of  the  igneous  rocks  on  these  beds  may  have  bean  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  51 

means  by  which  the  carburetted  hydrogen  was  obtained,  and  the  passage  of  this  through 
red-hot  veins  may  have  produced  the  graphite  at  Almomess  Head. 

An  Account  of  the  Researches  of  German  Geologists.    By  H.  Hennessy. 

On  Devonian  Bocks  in  the  South  of  Ireland.    By  J.  Beete  Jukes,  F.G.S. 

The  object  of  the  following  paper  is,  first  of  all,  to  bring  before  the  Section  the  physi- 
cal facts  connected  with  some  very  remarkable  fossils  discovered  by  the  Geological  Sur- 
vey of  Ireland  during  the  past  year;  and  secondly,  to  take  the  opinion  of  the  Section 
on  a  difficulty  that  has  arisen  as  to  the  classification  and  nomenclature  of  the  rocks. 

For  the  first  part  of  the  paper,  a  description  of  the  structure  of  the  south-east  part 
of  the  county  of  Kilkenny  will  suffice ;  for  the  second,  the  description  must  be  ex- 
tended from  Kilkenny  through  Waterford  into  Cork. 

[Mr.  Jukes  then  described  this  portion  of  the  southern  part  of  Ireland  from  Mr. 
Griffith's  map,  of  the  general  accuracy  and  admirable  character  of  which  he  spoke  in 
high  terms,  and  from  some  enlarged  sections  copied  from  those  constructed  by  the 
Geological  Survey.] 

In  Kilkenny,  the  total  thickness  of  the  rocks  between  the  mountain  limestone  and 
the  Silurian  and  granite  does  not  exceed  1000  feet.  In  the  neighbourhood  of  Knock- 
topher,  south  of  Thomastown,  these  rocks  are  principally  composed  of  red  slates  and 
sandstones.  The  mountain  limestone  has  some  beds  of  dark  shale  interstratified  with 
Its  lower  parts,  beneath  which  are  some  brown  and  yellow  sandstones,  containing  casta 
of  bivalve  shells;  these  do  not  exceed  150  feet  in  thickness,  and  below  them  are 
about  300  feet  of  red  slates,  with  a  few  yellow  sandy  beds  occasionally,  when  we 
come  to  some  alternations  of  red  and  green  "  slate-rock,"  a  smooth  fine-grained 
argillaceous  sandstone  without  cleavage.  In  these  greenish  beds  are  some  large 
slates  containing  ferns,  and  also  casta  of  some  large  bivalve  shells  resembling  Anodon. 
These  fossils  were  discovered  by  Mr.  Flanagan,  fossil  collector  to  the  Survey,  the 
country  being  mapped,  and  the  details  of  its  structure  made  out  by  Mr.  Andrew 
Wyley,  my  able  and  seatou*  colleague  on  the  Geological  Survey,  a  native  of  Belfast, 
and  who  1  regret  is  not  able  to  be  present  on  this  occasion.  These  red  and  green 
beds  are  about  100  or  150  feet  in  thickness,  and  below  them  are  about  350  feet  of  red 
slates  and  argillaceous  sandstones,  below  which  are  100  feet  of  coarse  conglomerates, 
resting  on  the  subjacent  Silurian  and  granitic  rocks. 

Reckoning  from  the  base  of  the  mountain  limestone  to  the  latter,  the  beds  con- 
taining these  fossils  are  about  in  the  middle  of  the  included  series : — 

In  the  north  part  of  the  County  of  Waterford,  near  Carrick  on  Suir,  for  instance,  we 
get  below  the  mountain  limestone, — 

Feet. 

Thin-bedded  yellow  sandstones  and  greenish  and  yellow  shales 150 

Alternations  of  yellow  sandstone  and  hard  red  shale,  often  cleaved  ....       350 

Red  shales  and  sandstones  with  conglomerates,  fine  at  top,  and  getting 
coarser  as  we  descend 1800 

2300 

In  other  parts  of  Waterford  further  west,  these  beds  thicken  out  to  a  total  of  4500 
feet,  of  which  the  upper,  consisting  of  yellow  sandstones  alternating  with  red  shales, 
is  about  900  feet. 

In  the  northern  part  of  County  Cork,  about  the  south  flank  of  the  Galtee  Moun- 
tains, and  thence  to  Fermoy,  we  get  a  similar  section,  consisting  of, — 

Feet. 

Yellow  sandstones  alternating  with  red  shales  and  slates    500 

Red  shales  or  slates,  and  red  sandstones,  with  an  occasional  band  of  yellow 

sandstone 400 

Red  sandstones  and  slates  passing  downwards  into  thick  red  sandstones 

and  conglomerates,  resting  unconformably  on  lower  Silurian 2500 

In  the  central  part  of  County  Cork  the  lower  part  of  the  formation  is  not  seen, 
but  the  rocks  immediately  below  the  mountain  limestone  still  consist  very  largely  of 
yellow  sandstones,  split  up  not  only  by  red  shales  and  slates,  but  also  by  blue  and  gray 
shales  cleaved  into  slate.    In  these  bluish  slates  are  found  casts  of  marine  shells; 

4* 


52  report — 1852. 

Hitherto,  in  North  Cork,  North  Waterford,  and  Kilkenny  fragments  of  plants  hare 
been  the  only  things  found  in  the  yellow  sandstone. 

As  we  go  south,  the  blue  and  gray  slates  increase  in  quantity  at  the  expense  of  the 
yellow  sandstones,  till  south  of  Cork,  especially  near  Monkstown  and  Carrigaline,  we 
get  the  following  section : — 

Dark  gray  shales  and  slates,  with  occasional  bands  of  greenish-gray  Feet. 

grit 400 

Brown  sandstone,  sometimes  calcareous,  and  containing  casts  of 

CuculUeal  50 


Dark  gray  shales  and  slates,  weathering  brown  or  yellowish,  with  "|  -  j™ 

occasional  banc1-  -*1— J  — j-*—  -« f ip~*~i  u_-  l 

slaty  cleavage  , 


occasional  bands  of  hard  sandstone,  all  more  or  less  affected 


y.\  to 


1000 

Red  and  green  slates  alternating about  300 

Red  slates,  with  an  occasional  band  of  yellow  sandstone    500 

Red  slates,  with  gray  or  purple  sandstones,  without  reaching  the 

base  of  the  formation 2000 

4850 

We  here  lose  the  yellow  sandstone  altogether,  and  get  below  the  mountain  lime- 
stone, a  great  series  of  slate  rocks  with  interstratified  beds  of  sandstone,  the  prevailing 
colour  of  the  upper  portion  being  gray,  and  of  the  lower  red,  with  alternating  beds  at 
their  junction,  marine  fossils  being  found  in  the  upper  part,  and  no  fossils  at  all  in 
the  lower. 

Still  further  south,  about  Kinsale,  these  upper  beds  acquire  a  still  larger  development, 
being  at  the  very  least  6000  feet  thick,  without  seeing  anything  like  the  base  of  them, 
and  without  any  certainty  of  our  having  seen  the  top.  Of  this  part,  as  we  have  not 
yet  completed  the  survey,  1  cannot  enter  into  details;  I  have  however  received  a 
letter  from  my  colleague,  Mr.  Wilson,  in  which  he  tells  me  that  the  following  section 
is  admirably  seen  in  Courtinacsherry  Bay  : — 

Blue  calcareous  shales,  with  occasional  thin  bands  of  limestone  and  blue  Feet 

slates,  with  a  few  grit  beds    2100 

Blue  slates,  with  greenish-gray  grits  predominating  below 1700 

Yellow  sandstones  with  shale  partings 800 

Red  and  green  slates  passing  down  into  red  slates  and  sandstones   ....  1500 

6100 

We  here  get  the  yellow  sandstone  coming  in  again  just  above  the  red  rocks,  having 
a  vast  series  of  blue  and  gray  shales  and  slates  above  it,  bearing  out  Mr.  Griffith  in 
his  threefold  division  of  carboniferous  slate,  yellow  sandstone  and  old  red.  The 
difficulty  we  experience  in  the  field  is,  that  all  these  rocks  are  so  blended  at  their 
junction  by  alternation  one  with  another  through  several  hundred  feet  of  thick- 
ness, and  are  near  their  junction,  and  generally,  except  in  particular  spots,  so  devoid 
of  fossils,  that  we  cannot  hit  upon  any  characters  to  enable  us  to  draw  a  clear  boun- 
dary between  them.  Starting  with  the  old  red  sandstone,  and  calling  that  Devonian, 
there  are  no  physical  characters  whatever  enabling  us  to  draw  a  boundary  until  we 
come  to  the  base  of  the  mountain  limestone.  We  nave  therefore  hitherto  found  our- 
selves compelled  merely  to  make  a  shaded  outline,  including  the  upper  beds,  namely, 
the  carboniferous  slate  and  yellow  sandstone  of  Mr.  Griffith,  looking  on  them  in  the 
light  of  the  upper  portions  of  the  old  red  sandstone.  If  we  can  so  consider  them,  we 
get  the  following  remarkable  result ;  that  on  the  east,  where  the  old  Devonian  land 
lay,  as  proved  by  the  conglomerates,  the  old  beaches  of  that  formation,  we  find 
remains  of  terrestrial  plants  and  freshwater  shells ;  while  on  the  south  and  west, 
where  the  rocks  get  finer-grained,  and  where  therefore,  the  finer  silts  and  muds  were 
deposited  further  from  the  land,  or  in  the  deeper  water  of  the  sea,  there  we  get  marine 
shells  coming  in,  and  we  find  the  whole  formation  gradually  thickening  in  that  direc- 
tion, swelling  out  from  1000  to  upwards  of  0000  feet  This  increase  of  thickness,  though 
it  seems  great,  is  nothing  remarkable,  since  to  acquire  it,  it  is  only  necessary  to  suppose 
that  the  old  sea  bottom  deepened  very  gradually,  its  bed  inclining  at  no  greater  angle 
than  1°,  or  17  in  1000,  or  89  feet  (14  fathoms)  in  a  mile,  if  we  take  the  distance 
from  Knocktopher  in  Kilkenny  to  Kinsale ;  or  if  we  supposed  that  the  thickness  of  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  53 

whole  rocks  doubled  (from  3000  to  G000)  between  Cork  and  Kinsale,  a  distance  of 
20  miles,  the  slope  of  the  bottom  would  not  amount  to  2°  or  35  in  1000,  or  184  feet 
(30  fathoms)  in  a  mile.  

On  the  Permian  Fossils  of  Cultra.    By  Professor  Wm.  King,  Queen's  Coll., 

Galway. 

Before  noticing  the  fossils*,  Prof.  King  made  a  few  observations  on  the  rocks  form- 
ing the  Permian  system  of  the  north  of  England.  This  system  is  so  called  from  an 
extensive  division  of  the  Russian  empire  bearing  the  name  of  Perm,  and  situated  on 
the  western  flanks  of  the  Ural  mountains.  The  name  was  originally  proposed  by  Sir 
Roderick  Murchison,  who  was  the  first  to  show  that  the  rocks  occurring  in  that 
region  are  of  the  same  age  as  certain  magnesian  and  fossiliferous  deposits  largely 
developed  in  the  county  of  Durham.  The  name* '  Permian  '  has  consequently  been 
applied  to  the  last-named  deposits,  and  on  the  same  grounds  it  must  also  be  applied 
to  corresponding  rocks  wherever  they  may  exist.  The  Professor  proceeded  to  prove 
that  the  remarkable  patch  of  magnesian  limestone  occurring  at  Cultra,  on  the  shore 
of  Belfast  Lough,  is  a  member  of  the  Permian  system,  the  fossils  it  contains  being 
identical  with  the  Schizodu*  Schlatheimi,  Pleurophortu  costatus,  Bakevellia  antiqua, 
and  other  species  common  to  the  Permian  rocks  of  England  and  Germany. 

On  the  Mines  of  Copiapo.    By  Colonel  Lloyd. 

Report  on  Crag  Formations  and  Coprolites.      In  a  Letter  from  Mr.  Long. 

On  the  Fossiliferous  Beds  of  the  Counties  of  Antrim  and  Down. 
By  James  MacAdam,  F.G.S. 

These  beds  were  described  in  descending  order.  The  town  of  Belfast  is  in  a  great 
measure  placed  upon  deposits  of  sand  and  silt  that  have  been  formed  in  the  estuaries 
of  the  rivers  Lagan  ana  Blackstaff.  Great  quantities  of  shells  have  been  found  in 
these  beds,  and  a  list  of  them  was  laid  before  Section  D,  at  the  present  meeting  of  the 
Association,  by  Mr.  John  Grainger.  They  are  all  of  species  now  existing,  but  some 
are  not  found  at  the  present  time  living  in  the  bay.  These  shells  occur  at  levels, 
none  of  which  seem  to  exceed  that  of  present  high  water.  Beds  of  shells,  however, 
are  found  at  various  elevations.  At  the  Kinnegar  of  Holywood,  four  miles  down 
Belfast  Lough,  beds  of  shells  similar  to  the  above  occur  at  elevations  from  10  to  20 
feet ;  and  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  bay,  below  Carrickfergus,  a  shell-bed  occurs  in 
a  like  position.  On  both  sides  of  the  bay  other  beds  may  be  observed  from  60  to  80 
feet  above  the  water  with  similar  contents ;  and  they  are  found  also  at  some  distance 
inland,  up  the  valley  of  the  Lagan,  and  in  the  valley  running  from  Belfast  to  Comber. 
In  the  latter  valley  there  is  a  branch  of  the  County  Down  Railway,  and  during  its 
formation  many  shells  were  obtained  from  the  cuttings.  It  is  also  worthy  of  being 
recorded,  that  in  a  cutting  near  Comber  rolled  lias  and  chalk  fossils  were  found,  the 
nearest  beds  containing  such  fossils  being  behind  Belfast,  and  at  a  distance  of  ten 
miles.  Beds  still  more  remarkable  occur  at  elevations  from  100  to  150  feet.  One  of 
these,  at  the  Belfast  Water-works,  on  the  Antrim  side,  was  examined  by  Messrs. 
Hyndmau  and  Bryce  in  1842,  and  an  account  of  it  was  copied  into  the  Appendix  to 
Col.  Portlock's  '  Geological  Report  on  Londonderry.'  Another  bed,  precisely  similar, 
was  discovered  by  Mr.  MacAdam  in  1850,  at  the  Knock  on  the  Down  side.  The 
most  abundant  shell  in  it  is  the  Nucula  oblonga,  and  the  deposit  may  be  perhaps  con- 
sidered as  belonging  to  the  newer  pleiocene.  Some  years  ago,  Mr.  Smith,  of  Jordan 
Hill,  described  a  shell-bed  occurring  at  Port  Rush,  ont  he  northern  coast  of  Antrim ; 
it  occurs  at  an  elevation  of  10  feet,  and  contains  a  great  variety  of  recent  marine 
shells  mixed  with  some  land  ones ;  a  list  of  them  is  printed  in  Portlock's  '  Report.' 

In  Belfast  Lough  there  are  deposits  of  submerged  wood,  in  one  of  which,  near 
Carrickfergus,  hazel-nuts  have  been  obtained,  having  their  kernels  replaced  by  car- 
bonate of  Time :  this  fact  had  been  remarked  by  the  Tate  Dr.  M'Donnell,  and  a  note 
of  it  is  entered  in  the  4th  volume  of  the  Geological  Transactions.     Throughout  the 

*  The  Cultra  fossils  were  noticed  by  Dr.  Griffith  in  a  paper  read  at  the  Cork  Meeting  of 
the  British  Association  (vide  Report  Brit.  Assoc.,  1843,  part 2.  pp.45  and  46). 


54  report — 1852. 

county  of  Antrim  deposits  of  lignite  frequently  occur,  as  around  the  shores  of  Lough 
Neagh,  at  Carnaghhss,  between  that  lake  and  Belfast,  at  Libbert  near  Glenarm,  at 
Kiltymorris  and  at  Ballintoy :  associated  with  them  is  an  impure  fire-clay.  At  several 
of  these  places  the  lignite  is  covered  with  trap,  proving  that  this  trap  is  of  tertiary  or 
post-tertiary  age,  as  the  wood  from  which  the  lignite  has  been  derived  was  in  all 
likelihood  coniferous.  There  is  also  lying  under  the  trap  in  different  parts  of  Antrim 
considerable  beds  of  ochre,  which  sometimes  contains  thin  seams  of  impure  lignite. 
It  has  been  long  known  that  at  Lough  Neagh,  in  the  alluvial  covering  that  lies  upon 
the  lignite  beds,  there  are  found  many  pieces  of  silicified  wood,  sometimes  of  a  con- 
siderable size.  Between  the  trap  and  the  subjacent  chalk  there  is  very  generally  a 
bed,  varying  from  a  few  inches  to  a  few  feet,  consisting  in  many  places  of  iron-shot 
clay  and  loose  flints,  and  in  others  of  a  grayish  clay,  Tike  impure  fire-clay ;  in  this 
last  case  it  sometimes  contains  lignite. 

The  Chalk  of  Antrim  contains  a'  number  of  fossils  resembling  in  a  great  measure 
those  obtained  from  the  same  formation  in  England.  The  upper  beds  of  the  Antrim 
chalk  are  not  so  prolific  in  organic  remains  as  the  under,  which  are  mixed  with  parti- 
cles of  greensand ;  under  these  lower  beds,  and  quite  conformable  to  them,  are  beds 
resembling  the  Fire-stone  of  Surrey,  and  lowest  of  all  is  a  soft  bed  of  pure  greensand. 
In  the  upper  strata  of  pure  chalk  the  prevailing  fossils  are  some  species  of  Belemnites, 
Ammonites,  Pleurotomaria,  Terebratula  and  Turbo;  also  several  kinds  of  Echino- 
dermata  and  Sponges,  which  fossils  not  unfrequently  are  found  also  in  the  imbedded 
flinfe.  In  the  lower  or  chloritic  chalk  are  remarked*  in  addition  to  the  above,  Area, 
Avicula,  Inoceramus,  Natica,  Ostrea,  Pecten,  Pholadomya,  and  Trigonia ;  and  the 
same  are  observed  even  in  greater  abundance  in  the  subjacent  fire-stone.  Some  fine 
specimens  of  Ostrea  carinata  have  been  got  in  the  fire-stone,  to  which  rock  this  fossil 
seems  to  be  confined ;  also  the  Exogyra  Columba  appears  in  it  in  great  numbers,  and 
rarely  in  the  upper  or  lower  beds.  The  Exogyra  laevigata  is  very  abundant  in  the 
lowest  bed  of  soft  greensand,  where  it  is  often  the  only  fossil  to  be  met  with :  in  this 
lowest  bed  there  is  less  variety  of  organic  remains  than  in  the  others ;  from  it  however 
were  procured  some  teeth  and  bones  of  Saurian  animals  by  Mr.  Mac  Adam ;  and  in  the 
Philosophical  Magazine  for  1831,  there  is  an  account  of  the  discovery  of  saurian 
vertebrae  near  Belfast,  in  lias,  by  Mr.  Bryce ;  but  it  has  since  been  ascertained  that 
they  had  been  found  in  the  soft  greensand  bed  which  immediately  overlies  lias. 
Teeth  of  the  Shark  family,  sometimes  very  perfect,  occur  in  all  the  beds  from  the 
upper  chalk  to  the  pure  greensand,  and  some  obscure  remains  of  entire  fishes  of  a 
small  size ;  also  portions  of  Crustacea,  and  several  zoophytes.  In  some  places  fucoids 
were  got  in  the  fire -stone,  and  small  pieces  of  fossil  wood  in  the  soft  greensand. 
These  lower  beds  are  apparently  equivalents  of  the  upper  greensand  of  England. 

Thin  beds  of  lias  underlie  the  greensand,  but  not  everywhere,  as  they  are  wanting 
in  various  localities.  This  lias  abounds  in  organic  remains,  almost  identical  with 
those  of  the  same  formation  in  England.  In  the  beds  near  Belfast  there  are  several 
ammonites,  and  great  numbers  of  the  Cardium  striatulum,  with  a  few  other  fossils. 
In  the  beds  near  Larne  the  same  fossils  are  found,  and  a_great  variety  of  others,  as 
the  Gryphea  ineurva  and  obliquata,  Plagiostomagiganleum  aadpunctatum,  Packyodon, 
Mya,  Amphidesma,  Pecten,  Mytilus,  Modiola,  Area,  Lutraria,  Avicula,  Trochus,  Tur- 
ritella,  &c. ;  also  numerous  fragments  of  the  Pentacrinus.  At  Larne  a  bed  of  oolitic 
structure  rests  upon  lias,  and  in  it  are  found  Avicula  contorta  and  Lima  Proboscidea, 
with  some  others.  At  Ballintoy,  on  the  north  coast  of  Antrim,  there  is  a  lias  deposit 
very  rich  in  fossils,  several  of  which  are  described  in  Portlock's  '  Report : '  several 
new  ones  have  been  obtained  by  Mr.  MacAdam  from  that  deposit,  some  of  which 
seem  not  to  have  been  as  yet  described.  In  the  beds  at  Larne  and  Belfast  several 
fish  remains  were  obtained,  and  a  few  saurian  vertebra?.  The  hardened  lias  of  Port 
Rush  has  been  often  described ;  it  contains  many  fossils,  but  they  are  not  easy  to 
determine  from  their  obliteration ;  in  all  probability  they  are  nearly  the  same  as  those 
found  at  Ballintoy. 

Mr.  MacAdam  has  discovered,  resting  immediately  on  the  variegated  saliferous 
marls  of  Woodburn,  near  Carrickfergus,  a  bed  containing  many  fish  remains,  among 
which  were  recognized  the  Gyrolepis  Albertu  and  ienuistriatus  and  others,  which  have 
been  referred  to  the  upper  parts  of  the  Trias.  In  the  marls  and  subjacent  sandstones 
no  fossils  have  as  yet  been  discovered. 

On  the  south,  or  County  Down  side  of  Belfast  Lough,  at  Cultra,  there  are  small 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  55 

patches  of  magnesian  limestone,  in  which  are  found  some  shells  resembling  Schizodus. 
Associated  with  this  limestone  are  red  sandstones,  supposed  to  be  equivalents  of  the 
rothe-todte-lieaende,  and  containing  vegetable  remains,  as  Catamite*,  Sigillaria,  &c, 
but  often  too  obscure  to  determine  specifically.  Underlying  these  are  soft  calcareous 
shaly  beds,  in  which  are  many  fish  remains,  generally  of  Holoptychus,  and  a  great 
number  of  Modiola,  with  a  few  other  shells. 

At  Ballycastle  and  Murlough,  in  the  north-eastern  part  of  Antrim,  there  is  the  regu- 
lar coal  formation,  from  which  Mr.  Mac  Adam  obtained  a  variety  of  fossil  plants,  but 
not  differing  from  those  of  the  English  coal-fields.  There  are  associated  shales  in 
which  a  Lingula  is  frequently  found,  and  there  is  underlying  carboniferous  limestone 
with  the  usual  fossils.  In  the  County  of  Down  at  Castle  £spie,  near  Comber,  there  is 
a  small  patch  of  carboniferous  limestone,  remarkable  for  the  Orthoceratites  it  contains, 
and  several  other  fossils.  On  the  County  Down  side  of  Carlingford  Bay  there  is  a 
deposit  of  limestone,  which  in  all  probability  is  the  same  as  that  which  occurs  near 
the  town  of  Carlingford  on  the  south  side  in  the  county  of  Louth,  but  the  fossils  have 
not  yet  been  examined. 

No  Silurian  rocks  have  yet  been  discovered  in  Antrim  or  Down,  but  it  is  not 
improbable  that  the  like  may  be  detected  on  more  minute  examination. 


On  the  Subdivisions  o/Leptaena.    By  Professor  M'Coy. 

On  the  Structure  of  certain  Fossil  Fishes  found  in  the  Old  Red  Sandstone 
of  the  North  of  Scotland.    By  Professor  M'Coy. 

The  Professor  exhibited  specimens  and  plates ;  among  others  a  large  species  of 
Hohptychiu*,  which  he  named  H.  Sedgwicki,  showing  for  the  first  time,  the  form, 
number,  and  position  of  the  vertical  fins  of  that  genus.  He  also  dwelt  on  the  ana- 
tomical structure  and  peculiarities  in  the  form  of  the  tail,  and  the  ossification  of  the 
vertebral  column,  which  had  been  supposed  to  characterize  the  fishes  found  in  the  more 
ancient  rocks,  and  which  had  been  used  by  some  recent  writers  in  support  of  the 
doctrine  of  "  Progressive  Development"  He  pointed  out  that  the  structure  of  the 
fossils  which  he  treated  of  disproved  these  notions,  and  strengthened  the  more  ordi- 
nary geological  laws.  He  described  the  peculiarities  of  two  new  genera,  which  united 
the  two  great  groups  of  Saiirodipteridse  and  Coelacanthi, 

On  the  Mode  of  Succession  of  the  Teeth  in  Cochliodus. 
By  Professor  M'Coy. 

In  this  communication  the  fact  was  announced  that  the  mountain  limestone  genera 
of  fossil  fishes  called  Cochliodus  and  Pcecilodus  by  Agassiz,  and  supposed  by  him  and 
all  succeeding  writers  to  have  manifested  the  most  intimate  relation  to  the  living 
Australian  shark,  called  Cestracion,  had  really  a  strong  horny  jaw  for  the  support  of 
the  teeth,  and  that  these  latter  succeeded  each  other  vertically  upwards,  the  young 
teeth  appearing  under  the  old  ones  ;  while  in  the  living  shark  alluded  to  there  was 
no  horny  jaw,  and  the-  young  teeth  followed  the  old  ones  laterally  from  behind  for- 
wards; so  that  there  was  no  such  reason,  as  generally  supposed,  for  quoting  the 
existence  of  the  Cestracion*  in  the  Palaeozoic  rocks.  The  nearest  analogy  for  the 
carboniferous  fossils  was  the  osseous  genus  Placodus  of  the  Muschelkalk,  though  it 
differed  in  microscopic  structure. 

On  the  Structure  of  the  South  Silurian  Mountains  of  Scotland. 
By  Professor  J.  Nicol,  F.G.S. 

On  the  Occurrence  of  Glacier  Moraines  in  Arran.   By  Prof.  Nicol,  F.G.S. 


Notice  of  the  Discovery  of  a  new  Talpina? 
By  C.  B.  Rose,  F.G.S.,  Swaffham,  Norfolk. 

In  the  course  of  last  winter,  I  sent  some  fossil  fish-scales  from  a  species  of  Beryx, 
met  with  in  the  chalk  strata,  to  a  person  in  London,  that  they  might  be  put  up  as 


56  REPORT — 1852. 

microscopic  objects ;  lie  succeeded  in  setting  two :  on  their  return  to  me,  upon  ex- 
amination under  the  microscope  with  a  power  of^th,  I  found  one  of  them  extensively 
ornamented  with  elegantly  ramifying  figures,  not  much  unlike  coralloid  bodies.  After 
perusing  Mr.  Morris's  paper,  Ann.  Nat.  Hist,  Aug.  1851,  and  comparing  the  figures 
on  my  fish-scale  with  those  seen  in  many  of  the  Belemnites  from  the  chalk  at  Nor- 
wich, I  feel  persuaded  that  the  figures  on  both  are  due  to  the  operations  of  the  same 
tribe  of  parasites,  and  I  consider  that  the  dissimilarity  in  their  form  is  sufficient  to 
warrant  my  concluding  that  they  are  the  workings  of  different  species. 

Unlike  the  borings  in  the  Belemnite,  which  run  in  straight  lines,  and  frequently 
inosculate,  those  in  the  fish-scale  proceed  with  a  graceful  curve  to  their  extremities, 
terminating  in  a  symmetrically-formed  dilatation  or  cell,  and  they  do  not  frequently 
inosculate. 

I  have  with  some  care  endeavoured  to  measure  the  calibre  of  the  borings,  and  I 
believe  that  it  ranges  from  a  3000th  to  a  4000th  of  an  inch  in  diameter.  Conceive, 
then,  the  infinitesimal  tenuity  of  the  organism  that  formed  them.  I  propose  calling 
this  parasite  Talpina  Squama. 


On  the  Lowest  Fossitiferous  Beds  of  North  Wales. 
By  J.  W.  Salter,  F.G.S.,  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Great  Britain. 

The  great  interest  always  attaching  to  the  search  for  the  oldest  types  of  animal 
life,  has  lately  been  revived  by  the  zealous  researches  of  M.  Barrande  of  Prague, 
who  has  discovered  and  announced  in  various  communications*,  a  succession  of 
faunas  in  the  Silurian  region  of  that  country.  The  earliest  fauna  is  marked  by  the 
presence  of  peculiar  genera  of  Trilobites,  not  found  in  any  of  the  succeeding  forma- 
tions. Such  are  in  Bohemia  Paradoxides,  Conocephalus,  Sao j  and  several  other 
genera  of  the  Olenoid  type,  together  with  species  of  Agnostus. 

A  rare  Orthis,  a  Pteropod,  and  two  Cystidece,  are  all  the  other  forms  this  naturalist 
has  discovered,  after  many  years  of  patient  labour,  in  his  region  C. 

The  publication  by  Angelin  in  the  *  Palceontologia  Suecica,'  of  a  considerable  number 
of  Trilobites,  confirms  these  views,  and  shows  the  same  genera,  Paradoxic^*,  Cono- 
cephalus, and  for  the  most  part  Agnostus,  to  be  confined  to  the  lowest  members  A.  B. 
of  the  Swedish  system,  and  with  them  are  the  long-known  species  of  Olentts  and  the 
Graptolites  of  the  lower  alum  slates. 

In  18*51,  M.  de  Barrande  paid  a  visit  to  this  country  for  the  express  purpose  of 
comparing  the  Bohemian  fossils  with  many  unpublished  forms  of  this  country.  He 
recognised  with  great  pleasure  that  the  u  Lingttla  flag  "  (discovered  by  Prof.  Sedg- 
wick to  form  the  lowest  fossiliferous  zone  in  North  Wales  f)  was  a  most  satisfactory 
equivalent  of  this  lowest  stratum  C. 

Lingula  Flags. — As  all  the  fossils  from  these  strata  collected  by  the  Geological 
Survey  have  now  been  examined,  it  is  thought  it  will  prove  interesting  to  put  them 
upon  record,  previously  to  their  fuller  publication  in  the  Memoirs  of  the  Survey. 

The  beds  in  question  are  largely  developed  in  Merionethshire  and  Caernarvonshire, 
appearing  sometimes  in  the  form  of  fine  thin- bedded  sandstones,  and  at  others  of  beds 
of  black  slates  interstratified  with  coarse  sandstone  and  conglomerate.  In  Me- 
rionethshire they  appear  at  the  base  of  a  great  igneous  series,  described  by  Messrs. 
Jukes  and  Selwyn  as  15,000  feet  thick,  and  the  fossil  beds  alternate  with  these  volcanic 
strata  throughout  their  whole  extent,  at  least  the  Lingula  Davisii,  which  is  the  cha- 
racteristic fossil,  is  found  from  the  base  nearly  to  the  top. 

In  the  lower  part,  or  the  true  Lingula  flags,  the  Lingula  Davisii  is  associated  with 
Olenus  micrurus,  a  new  crustacean  Hymenocari*  hereafter  mentioned,  and  fu- 
coids :  higher  up  no  fossils  have  been  found  except  the  Lingula  Davisii ;  and  at  the 
top,  but  still  distinctly  in  the  igneous  series,  Lingula  still  occurs,  probably  of  the  same 
species,  but  associated  with  an  Asaphus,  a  Calymene,  and  some  Graptolites. 

For  the  lower  part  of  this  series,  which  I  feel  sure  M.  de  Barrande  would  alone  con- 

*  The  latest,  and  since  this  paper  was  read,  is  that  published  in  Leonhard  and  Bronn's 
Neues  Jahrb.  1852,  p.  257,  Transl.  in  Quart.  Geol.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  pt.  2.  p.  31. 
f  Quart  Geol.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  139  el  seq. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTION8. 


57 


aider  as  belonging  to  the   "  Etage  C,"    may  be  cited   the  following  fossils  and 
localities : — 


Species. 
Chondrites,  —  sp. 


Cruziana  semiplicata,  n.sp. 


Plants. 

Records  Mus.  Pract.  Geol., 

ined. 
Salter,  ibid 


Localities. 

Carncdd  Ffiliast,  a  moun- 
tain 5  m.  S.E.  of  Bangor. 

Ditto  (specimensmorethai) 
a  foot  long,  abundant). 


Olenus  micrurus. 


Hymenocaris    vermicauda, 
new  genus. 


Lingula  Davisii, . 


Crustacea. 

Salter,  Decade  2.  pi.  10.  of 
Memoirs  Geol.  Survey. 

Salter,  Records  Mus.  Pract. 
Geol.,  ined. 

Mollusc  a. 

M'Coy,  Ann.    and    Mag. 
Nat.  Hist.  vol.  viii.  405. 


Dolgelly ;      Trawsfynydd ; 

Tre      "  

Llanberis. 


rremadoc;    N.  W,     of 


Dolgelly ;  Tremadoc ;  Pont 
Seiont,  Caernarvon? 


Dolgelly;  Tremadoc;  N.W. 
of  Llanberis;  Carnedd 
Ffiliast;  near  St.  Ann's 
Chapel,  Bangor;  oVc. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  fossils  is  a  large  Par  ad  oxides,  probably  P.  Forchham- 
meri,  Angelin;  but  most  unfortunately  the  exact  locality  in  North  Wales  has  not 
been  preserved,  though  there  is  great  probability  it  comes  from  the  *  Lingula  Flags.' 

In  the  higher  beds,  near  the  upper  limit  of  the  igneous  series,  Prof.  Sedgwick  and 
myself  gathered  in  1843  the  following  fossils. 


Asaphus  Sehoynii,  n.  sp. 
Calymene  parvifrons 


Lingtda  Davisii?., 


Salter,  Records  Mus.  Pract. 
Geol.  ined. 

Salter,   Append,  to    Prof. 

M 'Coy's  Paleozoic  Foss. 

Woodw.  Mus.  pi.  1.  F. 

f.  7. 
M'Coy,  supra. .'. 


Hengwrt  uchaf,  4  m.  N.E. 
of  Dolgelly,  a  bed  of  slate 
in  the  volcanic  ash. 

Tai  hirion,  under  the  trap 
and  volcanic  ash-beds  of 
A  re  nig  bach. 

Tai  hirion ;  and  Llyn-y-Dy- 
warchen,  to  the  west  of  it. 
The  Geol.  Surveyors  have 
also  found  Lingula?  at 
Hengwrt  uchaf. 

Lastly,  at  Llanfaelrhys  near  Aberdaron,  South  Caernarvonshire,  in  beds  which  both 
by  position  and  mineral  character  appear  to  be  the  '  Lingula  Flags/  although  sepa- 
rated by  great  dislocations  and  obscured  by  drift,  the  following  fossils  occur. 

Asaphus  Selwynii,  n.  sp.,  mentioned  before. 

Lingula  attenuata  ? 

,  broader  species. 

Didymograpsus  A/urchisona,  and 

CrraptolUes  incisus  ?  or  a  new  species. 

In  all  those,  except  the  first  list,  some  doubt  may  be  entertained  whether  the  strata 
may  not  more  properly  be  classed  with  the  second  division,  the  '  etage  D '  of  M.  de 
Barrande.  The  genera  Asaphus  and  Calymene  certainly  would  indicate  it.  There 
is  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  Asaphus  Selwynii  is  the  same  species  as  one  common 
in  the  lowest  Llandeilo  flags  of  Shelve  in  Shropshire,  and  as  such  it  is  considered. 

Therefore,  if  the  zoological  demarcations,  which  are  of  so  much  value  elsewhere, 
hold  good  in  England,  it  would  he  proper  to  draw  the  line  between  the  fossils  which 
occur  at  the  base,  and  those  near  the  top  of  the  igneous  series. 

Professor  Phillips  has  described  a  formation  of  black  shales  occurring  at  the  base 
of  the  Silurian  series  in  the  Malvern  Hills,  which  is  characterized  only  by  small  Tri- 
lobites,  and  these  of  the  genera  Olenus  and  Agnostus ;  they  are  Olenus  humi/is,  Phil]. 
Mem.  Geol.  Surv.  vol.  ii.  pt.  J.  p.  55.  f.  4-6 ;     O.  bisulcatus,  Ph.  f.  1,  2;     O.  scara- 


58  REPORT— 1852. 

bmoides,  Wahl.  ?  f.  3  (0.  spinulosus  ?,  Phill.),  and  Agno$tua  pisiformis,  Wahl.  Brongn. 
t.  4.  f.  4. 

It  is  quite  possible  therefore,  as  suggested  by  M.  de  Barrande  himself,  that  these 
shales  may  be  identical  with  the  black  slates  of  Sweden,  and  belong  to  the  Etage  C. 

It  should  however  be  observed,  in  conclusion,  that  Agnostus  in  England  is  ge- 
nerally characteristic,  not  of  the  first,  but  of  the  second  zone  or  true  Llandeilo  flags ; 
we  have  at  least  three  species ;  also  that  the  true  position  of  our  Parodoxides  is  not 
known ;  that,  in  the  probable  equivalent  of  the  '  Lingula  Flags '  in  S.  Caernarvon- 
shire, an  Asaphus,  the  Didymograpsus  Murchisona*,  and  perhaps  Lingula  attenuata, 
occur ;  that  the  genus  Cruziana,  the  fucoid  described  below,  is  characteristic  of  beds 
in  Normandy  *,  which  lie  nearly  in  the  place  of  our  Caradoc  sandstone ;  and  that  Hyme- 
nocaris,  the  new  genus  here  proposed,  belongs  to  a  group  of  Phyllopod  Crustaceans 
not  hitherto  described  from  strata  older  than  the  Upper  Silurian.  Taking  all  these 
circumstances  into  account,  it  would,  I  think,  be  premature  to  pronounce  as  to  the 
separate  and  distinct  character  of  our  own  lowest  fossiliferous  zone;  and  it  may 
perhaps  be  necessary  hereafter  to  modify  the  conclusions  drawn  by  so  able  and  suc- 
cessful an  observer  as  M.  de  Barrande  as  to  the  primordial  and  isolated  character  of 
his  earliest  fossil  group ;   it  may  be  a  local,  and  not  a  general  phaenomenon. 

It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  lowest  fossiliferous  zone  in  England  and  Wales 
is  not  quite  the  oldest  known.  The  purple  and  green  schists  of  Wicklow  in  Ireland 
contain  Zoophytes  or  Bryozoa  {Oldhamia  antiqua  and  O,  radiata,  Forbes),  and  they 
have  been  determined  to  occupy  a  similar  place  with  the  "  Llanberis  slates  and  Har- 
lech grits  "  of  Prof.  Sedgwick,  which  underlie  the '  Lingula  flags/  and  which  in  Wales 
and  Shropshire  are  void  of  fossils. 

Notes  an  the  New  Forms  above  mentioned. 

I  append  a  short  description  of  the  new  genus  Hymenocaris,  and  the  new  species 
of  fucoid,  Cruziana,  from  the  '  Lingula  Flags.' 

Hymenocaris,  new  genus. 

Carapace  ample,  semioval,  narrowed  towards  the  front,  curved  downward  at  the 
sides,  but  not  angularly  bent  along  the  dorsal  line ;  no  external  eye* ;  antennae  ?  of 
two  pairs,  short  and  not  visibly  jointed ;  abdomen  as  long  or  longer  than  the  carapace, 
of  8  [or  probably  9]  transverse  segments, — the  last  with  short  unequal  appendages. 

Species  1.  Hymenocaris  vermicauda,  Salter,  Records  Mus.  Pract.  Geol.  ined. 

There  are  four,  and  may  be  more  appendages  to  the  last  segment ;  for  one  crushed 
specimen  shows  two  of  them,  a  short  and  along  one  on  the  dorsal  part  of  the  seg- 
ment, and  two  others  toward  the  ventral  edge ;  and  it  is  impossible  to  say  how  they 
may  have  been  arranged. 

The  number  of  segments  to  the  body  is  also  not  quite  certain,  though  nearly  as 
above  stated.  One  specimen  shows  the  8  anterior,  another  the  4  or  5  posterior  ones  and 
the  appendages.  The  antennae  ?  too,  are  3  appendages,  two  longer  than  the  third, 
proceeding  from  the  front  of  the  carapace :  they  show  no  trace  of  joints. 

The  genus  is  evidently  related  to  the  living  Nebalia,  and  differs  markedly  from 
Ceratiocaris,  M'Coy,  by  the  entire  convex  carapace,  not  bent  along  the  dorsal  margin. 
It  has,  too,  a  neck  furrow  running  all  along  the  posterior  edge.  There  are  no  traces  of 
eyes  on  the  exterior  of  the  carapace.     The  crust  was  very  thin. 

Localities.    Tremadoc ;   Dolgelly  ;   North  Wales. 

Cruziana,  D'Orbigny.   Frama,  Marie  Rouault.  < 

C.  semiplicata,  sp.  nov.  C.  longa,  plus  pollice  lata,  linearis,  integra,  ad  sulcum  me- 
dianum  crebriplicata,  extus  Uevigata :  plicis  obUquis,  simplicibus  aut  krregularUer 
furcatis,  ad  marginem  kevem  latum  abrupti  termmatis. 

It  appears  to  differ  from  all  the  published  species,  in  the  smooth  border,  against 
which  the  oblique  folds  terminate  abruptly  ;  they  very  rarely  run  out  into  it  The 
plaits  are  not  always  equal,  and  are  sometimes  branched  and  occasionally  fasciculate. 

Locality.    Carnedd  Ffiliast,  near  Bangor,  North  Wales;  Stiper  Stones,  Shropshire. 

*  Marie  Rouault,  Bull.  Soc.  Geol.  France,  vol.  vii.  1850,  p.  725. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  TH1  8ECTION8.  59 

On  a  few  Genera  of  Irish  Silurian  Fossils. 
By  J.  W.  Salter,  F.G.S.,  of  the  Government  School  of  Mines. 

Crustacea. 

Among  the  many  new  and  interesting  forms  of  Trilobites  described  by  Colonel 
Portlock  in  his  work  on  Londonderry  and  Tyrone,  a  small  species  of  A  tophus  was 
recorded  from  the  Lower  Silurian  of  Tyrone,  which  he  named  A.  tati front,  distin- 
guishing it  from  some  other  species  by  the  breadth  of  front  inoluded  within  the  curve 
of  the  facial  suture.  The  species  if  very  remarkable  for  the  position  of  the  eyes, 
which  are  placed  very  far  backward  and  inward,  so  as  to  be  close  to  the  base  of  the 
small  and  narrow  glabella.  This  peculiarity  of  habit  is  associated  with  some  other 
characters  which  wul  remove  the  species  from  A  tap  hut,  to  which,  nevertheless,  it  is 
closely  allied.     It  has  also  some  relations  with  IUanus. 

Stygina,  new  genus. 

Gen.  Char.  Body  ovate  and  rather  flattened.  Head  and  tail  large  and  tolerably 
equal,  body  of  9  rings.  Eyes  small,  placed  far  backward  and  inward,  near  the 
base  of  the  glabella,  which  is  quite  indistinct  above,  and  much  contracted  below. 
Facial  suture  marginal  along  a  wide  space  in  front,  and  below  the  eyes  curved 
outwards,  and  ending  on  the  posterior  margin.  Angles  of  head  mucronate.  No 
rostral  shield.  Hypostome  ?  Axis  of  body  narrow.  Pleura  without  a  furrow* 
Tail  smooth  with  a  moderately  long  axis. 

The  flattened  oval  form,  long  axis  to  the  tail,  and  head  spines,  very  much  re- 
semble Asaphus  *,  from  which  the  9  ungrooved  pleurae  effectually  distinguish  it.  In 
the  obliteration  of  the  glabella,  number  of  body-rings  and  course  of  the  facial  suture, 
it  is  closely  allied  to  IUanus,  from  which  its  habit  diners  so  much ;  but  there  is  enough 
of  the  under  side  preserved  to  show  that  there  was  no  rostral  shield,  an  essential  cha- 
racter of  IUanus. 

Species  I .  Head  spines  short.  S.  latifrons.  Asaph,  latifrons,  Portlock,  Geol.  Rep*, 
Tyrone,  &c.  pi.  7.  figs.  5,  6.  A.  marginatut,  ib.  f.  7. — Locality.  Desertcreat,  Ty- 
rone, in  Llandeilo  flags. 

Species  2  ?  Head  spines  long.  S.  1  Murchisonm.  Ogygia  Murchisones,  Murchison,  Sil. 
System,  pi.  26,  rig.  3.   Locality.  Mount  Pleasant,  Caermarthen,  in  Llandeilo  flags* 

The  narrow  axis  and  the  smooth  extremities  of  this  species,  as  well  as  the  apparent 
absence  of  eyes  in  the  middle  of  the  head,  render  it  very  probable  that  we  have 
here  a  second  species  of  the  genus.  The  facial  suture,  too,  as  far  as  it  can  be  traced, 
agrees  with  that  of  Stygina. 

The  Chair  of  Kildare,  an  interesting  isolated  patch  of  Llandeilo  flags,  discovered 
by  Mr.  Griffith,  contains  in  some  parts  of  the  limestone  swarms  of  a  minute  Trilobite 
belonging  to  the  great  group  of  the  OUnidte,  but  referable  to  no  published  tvpe.  It 
will  soon  be  figured  and  described  in  Decade  7  of  the  Memoirs  of  the  Geological  Sur- 
vey.    In  the  meantime  the  characters  may  be  defined  as  follows : — 

Cyphoniscus,  new  genus. 

Gen.  Char.  Body  oval  and  very  convex;  head  large  and  gibbous ;  body  of  7  seg- 
ments ;  tail  minute.  Ho  ad  half-elliptical,  the  glabella  occupying  the  greater  part 
of  it ;  glabella  broadest  in  the  middle,  oval,  and  inflated,  without  lobes ;  neck- 
furrow  distinct;  cheeks  bent  steeply  downwards,  with  nearly  parallel  sides,  rather 
broadest  below,  the  posterior  angles  square.  Eye-line  marginal  in  front  for  a  space 
equal  to  the  breadth  of  the  glabella,  then  running  in  an  oblique  Une  down  the  cheek, 
and  cutting  the  exterior  margin  very  obliquely  some  distance  in  advance  of  the  pos* 
terior  angle.  Eyes  (minute  linear  ?)  very  forward ;  free  cheeks  narrow  and  linear. 
Thorax  convex,  the  axis  prominent,  and  the  fulcrum  of  the  pleurae  near  it.  Pleurae 

*  One  species  oiAtaphut,  described  by  Portlock,  A.reetifront,  exactly  resembles  our  genus 
in  the  wide  marginal  extent  of  the  facial  suture  in  front,  and  in  the  want  of  a  vertical  suture 
on  the  under  side.  But  the  eyes  are  in  the  usual  position,  and  the  blunt  extremities  and 
broad  obscure  axis  show  that  this  species  is  a  true  Asaphus,  though  probably  not  of  the  section 
Itotelut. 


60  REPORT — 1852. 

deeply  furrowed,  their  ends  rounded  or  truncate.    Tail  small)  the  axis  short  of  1 
segment,  the  sides  without  furrows. 

The  position  of  the  very  minute  eyes  is  indicated  by  a  slight  indentation  opposite 
the  front  of  the  glabella ;  they  must  have  been  linear  and  small,  for  there  h  no  visible 
elevation  or  appearance  of  an  eye-lobe.  In  this  respect  there  is  some  difference  be- 
tween the  form  under  description  and  the  North  American  genus  Triartkrus,  to 
which  it  is,  nevertheless,  most  closely  allied.  In  both  genera  the  eye-line  takes  the 
remarkable  course  above  described,  viz.  in  an  oblique  and  almost  marginal  line  from 
the  front  to  the  outer  edge  of  the  narrow  cheeks,  and  the  furrow  which  runs  along 
the  posterior  margin  of  the  cheeks  in  both  genera  turns  upward  towards  the  termi- 
nation of  the  facial  suture.  Triartkrus,  too,  has  the  ends  of  the  thorax  segments 
rounded  or  square,  not  pointed  and  recurved  as  in  other  Olenoid  genera.  Bat  the 
present  genus  differs  in  the  gibbous  form  and  inflated  glabella  without  lobes,  as  well 
as  in  the  fewness  of  the  segments  of  the  thorax,  7  instead  of  15  or  16. 

Species  1.  C.  sociatis,  n.  sp.   Length  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch.     Locality.  Chair  of 
Kildare,  in  Lower  Silurian. 

AcidaMpis,  Murchison. 

Of  this  remarkable  genus,  one  new  Irish  form  has  to  be  added  to  the  list.  It  was 
formerly  (Mem.  Geol.  Surv.,  vol.  ii.  p.  1.  pi.  9.  fig.  5)  considered  by  me  the  same 
with  A.  bispinosus,  M'Coy,  a  species  distinguished  by  the  possession  of  two  spines 
on  the  neck.  Many  species  are  now  found  to  have  this  character.  The  original 
one,  described  by  Prof.  M'Coy,  is  a  minute  species  with  a  remarkably  inflated 
glabella,  and  a  sinuated  front.     It  is  from  the  Chair  of  Kildare. 

The  new  species,  of  which  good  specimens  occur  in  Waterford  (Lower  Silurian), 
has  a  wide  and  somewhat  depressed  head,  with  a  straight  front,  and  the  glabella 
lobed,  and  not  inflated.  It  will  be  figured  and  described  in  Decade  7  of  the  Me- 
moirs of  the  Geological  Survey  as  A.  Jamesii. 

jEglina,  Barrande.     Cyclopyge,  Corda. 

This  genus,  proposed  by  Barrande  to  replace  the  name  JEgU%  which  he  formerly 
bestowed  on  it,  exhibits  the  greatest  proportional  development  of  the  eyes  known 
in  the  group  of  Trilobitea.  They  occupy  the  entire  side  of  the  head  to  the  exclusion 
of  all  other  parts  of  the  cheeks,  and  meet  in  front  (as  in  the  case  of  many  insects, 
especially  of  the  male  sex).  In  this  respect  Remopleurides  of  Portlock  is  the  only 
genus  that  can  be  compared  with  it ;  the  genus  under  notice,  however,  has  the  eyes 
greatly  more  developed,  and  with  large  lenses  quite  visible  to  the  naked  eye ;  few 
body  segments,  and  a  rounded  tail.  The  genus  must  for  the  present  be  placed  near 
Asaphus.    Two  or  three  species  are  known  in  Bohemia,  all  Lower  Silurian. 

A  new  one,  JE.  mirabilis,  has  been  found  at  Portrane,  Dublin ;  and  the  same,  or  an 
allied  species,  in  Anglesea  and  South  Wales.  It  will  be  figured  shortly  in  Decade  7, 
Mem.  Geol.  Survey. 

Remopleurides,  Portlock. 

As  this  has  just  been  quoted,  it  may  be  well  to  say,  that  perfect  specimens  of  R. 
dorsospinifert  Portlock,  will  also  be  figured  with  the  above.  The  remarkable  dorsal 
spine,  detected  by  the  discoverer  of  the  genua,  is  very  likely  a  character  peculiar  to 
the  male  sex,  and  it  is  more  than  probable  that  12.  Colbii  is  the  female  of  the  same 
species.     Such  appendages  characterize  the  male  sex  in  Sphmroma. 

In  the  Retnopt.  dorsospinifer,  the  possession  of  this  spine,  on  the  8th  segment,  is 
accompanied  by  a  general  narrowness  of  form  as  compared  with  R.  Colbii,  but  besides 
this,  there  is  no  available  means  of  distinction.  Col.  Portlock  had  himself  suggested, 
that  two  or  more  of  these  forms  might  prove  to  be  varieties  of  one  species,  and  in 
this,  after  careful  examination,  I  fully  concur.  Again,  except  in  the  possession  of 
the  lateral  appendages  (which  might  be  expected  in  the  mature  ovigerous  female), 
and  in  a  still  greater  breadth  of  form,  R.  laterispmifer  does  not  differ  from 
the  two  above  mentioned.  And  hence  these  three  forms  may  be  respectively  regarded, 
as  the  male,  and  the  young  and  mature  female  forms  of  the  same  species.  While 
suggesting  this  as  probable,  and  supported  by  general  analogy  among  the  Crustacea 
and  other  articulate  tribes,  it  would  not  be  advisable  to  alter  the  names  originally 
given. 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  61 

Cyphaspis,  Burmeister, 
is  another  example  of  this  dorsal  appendage.  Several  of  the  species  that  have 
been  described  show  something  of  it  when  perfect.  A  fine  series  of  the  C.  me  galops, 
M'Coy,  from  Dudley,  in  the  collections  of  Messrs.  Gray  and  Fletcher,  have  in  each 
specimen  a  strong  spine  projecting  from  the  6th  segment,  which  is  the  same  segment 
in  which  they  occur  in  the  recent  Sphmroma. 

Encrinurut  punctatas,  a  common  Trilobite,  has  similar  spines  on  the  7th  and  10th 
thorax  segments.  Brontes  spinifer,  Barrande,  and  Sao  kirsuta,  ibid,  have  short 
spines  on  every  segment. 

Mollu8ca. 

The  collections  in  Kildarehave  also  yielded  a  new  and  very  interesting  Cephalopod, 
of  a  group  common  in  North  America,  but  not  in  this  country.  The  genus  Lituites  in 
America  contains  a  group  of  closely-coiled  species,  the  whorls  being  thicker  than 
broad  (instead  of  broader  than  wide,  as  usual  in  the  genus),  the  siphon  internal,  and 
the  septa  waved  backwards  on  the  peripheral  margin.  They  are  distinguished  as  the 
genus  Trocholiles.  One  of  these  species,  the  Lituites  (T.)  planorbiformis,  Oonrad, 
was  found  by  Prof.  Sedgwick  and  myself  at  Bala,  North  Wales.  The  septa  in  that 
have  but  a  very  slight  backward  curvature  on  the  outer  margin.  A  second  species, 
from  the  Chair  of  Kildare,  is  different  from  either  of  the  American  ones.  It  is 
easily  distinguished  by  the  great  depth  of  the  backward  curvature  of  the  septa,  form- 
ing a  complete  sinus.     It  may  be  called 

Lituitet  hibernicus,  sp.  nov. 
Diameter  fths  of  an  inch,  thickness  nearly  half  an  inch.     Whorls  4  (or  5),  their 
thickness  much  greater  than  the  breadth.  Umbilicus  rather  deep.  The  inner  whorls 
much  covered  by  the  outer.     Surface  with  faint  Hues  of  growth,  nearly  smooth. 
Septa  rather  approximate,  and  with  a  deep  peripheral  sinus. 

Pterotheca,  new  genus. 

I  wish  to  propose  the  above  name  for  a  remarkable  Pteropod  mentioned  in  the 
Report  of  the  last  meeting  of  the  Association  as  occurring  in  Canada,  Ireland,  and 
Wales.  Of  this  beautiful  fossil,  originally  described  from  a  Tyrone  specimen  as  a 
smooth  Brachiopod,  better  specimens  have  been  obtained  in  N.  Wales,  which  show 
it  to  have  been  an  animal  closely  allied  to  Cleodora,  but  distinguished  from  it  and  all 
allied  forms  now  known  by  an  extraordinary  expansion  of  the  sides  or  wings  of  the 
shell.  The  cavity  for  the  animal  is  a  compressed  triangle,  as  in  Theca,  Cleodora,  and 
others  of  the  order ;  but  the  dorsal  lamina  is  much  elevated  above  the  flat  ventral 
one,  and  the  sides  are  furnished  with  a  wing-like  expansion  almost  to  the  curved  tip. 

Species  1.  Pterotheca  transversa.     Sides  entire ;  ventral  lamina  flat.    Syn.   Atrypa 
transversa,  Portl.  Geol.  Rep.  p.  455  :  As  Cleodora  transv.  Salter,  Rep.  Brit.  Ass. 
1851,  p.  64. 
Locality.    Desertcreat,  Tyrone. 

Species  2.  P.  corrugata,  n.  sp.    Sides  lobed,  ventral  lamina  somewhat  keeled  above. 
Locality.    Caernarvonshire. 

On  the  supposed  Action  of  Water  in  Geological  Formations,  and  the  Posi- 
tion of  the  Poles  of  the  Earth.    By  W.  D.  Saull,  F.G.S. 


On  the  Conditions  under  which  Boulders  occur  in  Scotland. 
By  James  Smith,  F.G.S^  of  Jordan  Hill. 


On  Certain  Furrows  and  Smoothings  on  the  Surface  of  Granite,  caused  by 
Drift  Sandy  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.    By  William  Stanger,  M.D. 

It  appears  by  the  observation  of  the  author  that  rocks  are  polished  by  the  sand 
driven  by  the  winds,  and  exhibit  on  a  smaller  scale  similar  effects  to  the  polishing  by 
glacial  action. 


62  REPORT — 1852. 

On  some  Peculiarities  of  Granite  in  Certain  Points  of  the  Pyrenees. 
By  H.  Twining. 


Notice  of  a  Skeleton  (/Mastodon  angustidens  found  near  MontopolL 
By  Dr.  Vallini. 

The  country  of  Montopoli  is  situated  on  a  group  of  small  hills  of  the  pleiocene  de- 
posit, which  extends  north -eastward  beyond  the  Arno,  toward  the  Val  di  Rievolfe, 
and  south-eastward  connects  itself  with  the  meiocene  tracts  of  the  Val  d'Elsa,  Val 
d'Era,  &c.  The  hills  consist  for  the  most  part  of  masses  of  yellow  sand,  deeply 
excavated  by  the  strong  action  of  water.  The  sands  are  often  rendered  coherent  by 
calcareous  cement,  and  from  point  to  point  diversified  by  gravels  of  eocene  origin. 
The  shells  of  molluscs  lie  in  different  planes,  and  most  plentifully  in  the  lower  part  of 
the  deposit. 

The  bones  of  the  Mastodon  were  found  by  Dr.  Vallini  at  the  depth  of  about  two 
feet,  in  the  excavation  for  a  drain)  and  levelling  of  a  small  hill  in  the  south-east  part 
of  the  country  of  Montopoli.  In  general  they  were  found  in  the  sands  simply  indu- 
rated, but  from  place  to  place  in  a  species  of  conglomerate  of  sand  and  shells  cemented 
by  carbonate  of  lime.  All  were  found  on  the  bedding  surface  of  a  sandy  bed,  mostly 
arranged  with  reference  to  their  anatomical  relations,  and  surrounded  by  marine 
shells,  such  as  Pecten  pleuronectes,  Ostrea  denticulate,  O.  lameUosa,  Cardita  pccti- 
nata,  Venu*  Uevis,  V.  islandicoides. 

The  author  described  minutely  the  situation  of  a  long  chain  of  dorsal  vertebra*  in 
their  natural  order,  directed  from  north-east  to  south-west,  and  connected  with  the 
bones  of  the  pelvis ;  at  the  opposite  extremity  of  the  vertebral  series,  a  large  tusk,  and 
near  its  base  the  lower  maxilla?,  one  still  retaining  a  molar,  the  other  showing  the 
alveolar  cavity.  Great  part  of  the  cranium  was  found  lying  a  short  distance  to  the 
east  of  the  parts  already  described.  To  the  north-west  lay  the  right  femur,  and 
other  bones  of  the  leg  of  the  same  side ;  and,  two  metres  removed  from  the  western 
extremity  of  the  tusk,  the  left  scapula. 

A  minute  description  of  the  dimensions  of  the  bones  was  appended.  The  tusk  was 
in  length  2-57  metres;  its  basal  diameter  0*17,  at  the  upper  end  0*075.  There  were 
20  ribs,  mostly  preserving  their  connexion  to  the  vertebral  column  ;  the  longest  0*88 
long,  and  0*035  broad.  Antero-posterior  length  of  scapula  0*33 ;  its  height  0*47. 
Length  of  the  acromial  spine  0*60 ;  its  height  0*14.  Breadth  of  the  acromial  ex* 
tremity  0*20 ;  of  the  articular  cavity  0*14.  Length  of  the  ulna  0*00.  Diameter  of  its 
humeral  extremity  0*28 ;  of  its  carpal  extremity  0*13.  Length  of  radius  0*58.  Length 
of  femur  0*87.  Breadth  from  the  summit  of  the  articular  ball  to  the  trochanter  0*32. 
Diameter  of  the  articular  ball  0*14 ;  its  height  0*10.  Diameter  of  lower  articulating 
extremity  0*28 ;  in  the  middle  0*14.  Length  of  tibia  0*50.  Diameter  of  its  femoral 
extremity  0-20;  of  its  tarsal  extremity  0*13. 


On  the  Geological  Structure  of  Spain.    By  M.  De  Vernbuil. 


On  the   Geology  of  a  Portion  of  the  Himalaya  Mountains.     By  Major 
Vicary  of  Wexford.     Communicated  by  Sir  Roderick  I.  Murchison. 

A  coloured  section  from  the  plains  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Umballa,  towards  the 
flanks  of  the  Himalaya  above  Subathoo  and  near  Simla,  showed  that  all  the  formations, 
from  the  youngest  tertiary  of  the  tract  to  the  crystalline  rocks  of  the  chain,  are  in 
highly  dislocated  positions,  some  of  the  younger  deposits  appearing  to  underlie  others 
of  prior  date,  probably  through  the  occurrence  of  powerful  faults.  Some  of  the 
younger  tertiary  beds  with  pebbles  and  fossil  bones  (the  S6  walik  strata)  are  inclined 
with  the  older  or  nummulitic  rocks,  and  are  probably  therefore  of  higher  antiquity 
than  was  supposed.  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison  passed  a  warm  eulogium  on  the  author, 
Major  Vicary,  a  brave  Irish  officer,  who,  in  the  wars  of  Scinde  and  the  Punjaub,  had 
sometimes,  even  in  face  of  the  enemy,  collected  materials  which  had  advanced  geological 
science,  and  specially  adverted  to  a  most  magnificent  assemblage  of  nummulites  and 
associated  fossils,  which  were  about  to  be  described  in  a  separate  work  by  M.  D' Areolae, 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  63 

On  the  Geology  of  Saint  Ives,  Huntingdonshire,  and  its  Neighbourhood. 
By  J.  King  Watts. 

The  principal  formations  in  the  neighbourhood  are   the  upper  greensand,   the 

J^ault,  and  the  Oxford  clay,  with  great  quantities  of  drift  gravel  and  sand  in  certain 
ocalities.  The  upper  greensand  is  however  but  ill  defined,  being  only  occasionally 
met  with,  as  near  Woodhurst  and  at  Needingworth,  and  then  but  to  a  small  extent. 
The  gault  formation  is  well  defined,  and  is  in  some  places  of  great  thickness.  All 
the  elevations  and  hills  near  this  town  are  composed  of  it.  The  lower  greensand 
is  seen  outcropping  in  patches  a  few  miles  distant,  as  between  Elsworth  and  Hilton, 
and  also  between  Over  and  Willingham.  There  is  a  beautiful  outcrop  and  elevation 
of  this  formation  at  Haddenham  some  miles  off  on  the  road  to  Ely,  being  a  further 
continuance  of  the  line.  The  Oxford  clay  extends  to  a  considerable  distance 
southward,  and  a  great  part  of  the  district  towards  Fenstanton,  Hilton,  and  Coning- 
ton  is  of  this  formation.  The  drift  gravels  and  sand  are  found  in  many  places 
immediately  under  the  top  soil ;  in  some  places  very  coarse,  and  at  others  as  fine 
as  quick-sand.  In  some  of  those  drifts  occurred  good  specimens  of  Echinus, 
many  Belemnitet  and  Ostrea,  much  water- worn.  The  above-mentioned  range  of 
gault  hills  are  well  defined  and  interesting.  At  the  westward  end  of  the  ranee  near 
the  town,  the  gault  passes  downward  apparently  to  a  great  depth ;  and  at  this  place 
many  Ammonites,  GrypJuece,  Belemnitet,  Hamitet,  and  Terebratula  are  found.  The 
Ammonites  occur  of  various  sizes,  some  very  small,  and  others  weighing  many 
pounds.  Belemnites  have  been  found  upwards  of  a  foot  in  length.  This  ridge  trends 
eastward  towards  Somersham,  and  about  2  miles  from  St.  Ives  towards  that  place,  is 
a  district  of  rich  land,  called  St  Ives  Heath,  which  was  formerly  part  of  the  royal 
forests,  but  disafforested  in  the  reigns  of  Henry  II.  and  HI.  This  heath  was  in  by- 
gone times  of  celebrity,  on  account  of  its  medicinal  spring  or  spa,  and  an  establish- 
ment formerly  stood  there  for  the  use  of  invalids  who  resorted  there  for  the  waters. 
An  interesting  account  of  the  water  in  the  above-mentioned  spring  was  published  in 
the  56th  volume  of  the  Philosophical  Transactions,  by  Drs.  Layard  and  Morris.  It 
is  to  be  regretted  that  this  spring  should  have  been  choked  up  and  destroyed.  Fol- 
lowing the  range  of  hill,  which  now  turns  eastward,  we  arrive  at  the  cutting  on  the 
Wisbeach  and  St.  Ives  Railway,  in  the  parish  of  Bluntisham.  In  this  cutting  iron 
pyrites  were  found  in  great  abundance,  a  great  quantity  of  selenite,  and  specimens  of 
Ostrea  and  Belemnites.  The  elevation  proceeds  on  to  Holywell,  and  there  breaks  off, 
the  river  running  below. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  in  the  parish  of  Over  (Cambridgeshire),  is  a  con- 
tinuance of  this  ridge  of  low  hills,  and  the  Cambridge  and  St.  Ives  railway  cuts 
through  the  southern  side  thereof.  In  this  cutting  a  great  variety  of  fossils  were  found, 
many  smooth  nodules  crystallized  within,  and  large  boulders  of  hard  sandstone. 

In  this  cutting,  at  a  considerable  depth,  was  found  a  large  Ammonite,  and  17  ver- 
tebra?, and  a  paddle  of  a  species  of  Plesiosaurus ;  and  also  one  vertebra  of  another 
Saurian,  whicn  were  forwarded  to  Prof.  Owen. 


On  the  Eshers  of  the  Central  Part  of  Ireland.    By  R.  Young,  C.E. 

After  having  described  the  peculiar  character  of  the  country  between  Dublin  and 
Galway,  and  the  absence  of  mountain  chains,  the  sluggish  character  of  the  streams,  the 
immense  tracts  of  bogs,  the  numerous  gravel  pits,  and  the  enormous  stretch  of  carboni- 
ferous or  mountain  limestone ;  the  author  went  on  specially  to  take  up  and  discuss  the 
phenomena  invariably  associated  with  the  district-r-gravel,  diluvium  and  bogs.  Like 
Mr.  Griffith,  he  attributed  the  growth  of  the  bogs  to  the  gravel  hills  and  diluvium,  which 
acted  as  barriers  to  the  free  discharge  of  the  drainage  from  the  land,  and  caused  in  some 
cases  extensive  lakes,  of  which  we  have  many  evidences  in  the  marl  beds  and  callow 
lands  along  the  Shannon,  Suck,  Brusna,  &c.  He  divided  the  diluvial  ridges  of  the  coun- 
try under  two  distinctive  forms : — 1st,  the  gravel  hills,  which,  ho  said,  are  sometimes 
confounded  with  eskers,  from  their  bearing  at  times  a  resemblance  to  them  in  form  and 
composition,  though  their  character  is  distinct,  and  which  seem  to  have  been  thrown 
down  from  agitated  water,  as  there  is  little  appearance  of  stratification ;  and  2ndly, 
the  eskers  proper— well  defined,  narrow  ridges  of  pure  gravel  or  blue-water  gravel — 
which,  when  not  washed  through  by  pent-up  waters,  can  be  distinctly  traced,  many 


64  report — 1852. 

for  20  or  30  miles,  and  which,  when  they  traverse  a  flat  country,  bear  a  striking  resem- 
blance to  a  railway  embankment  They  are  invariably  found  to  consist  of  water- worn 
limestone,  gravel,  associated  with  boulders  both  of  limestone  and  sandstone,  also  much 
worn,  and  sand  without  clay.  The  larger  boulders  are  generally  arranged  in  a  bed  at 
the  bottom  of  the  ridge,  the  interstices  often  filled  up  with  a  marly  stalagmite,  the 
gravel  and  sand-beds  lying  above  them.  Mr.  Young  went  on  to  describe  some 
remarkable  peculiarities  with  regard  to  the  form  and  direction  of  the  eskers,  and  con- 
cluded by  stating  it  as  his  opinion,  in  common  with  others,  that  the  drift  had  its 
origin  in  the  sea  currents  and  eddies,  at  the  same  time  pointing  out  on  a  map  which 
he  has  constructed  the  probable  direction  of  the  currents  across  the  depressed  tract 
between  Galway  and  Dublin,  when  the  country  was  submerged  500  feet 


BOTANY  AND  ZOOLOGY,  including  PHYSIOLOGY, 

Botany. 

On  the  Development  of  Ferment  Cells  in  the  Warm-  Water  Flax  Steeps. 
By  Professor  Allman,  M.D.,  M.R.LA. 

The  author  described  a  peculiar  cellular  growth  which  invariably  accompanies  the 
process  of  flax-steeping  by  the  warm- water  or  patent  method  of  Mr.  Schenk.  It  is 
strictly  analogous  to  the  cells  which  are  developed  during  the  alcoholic  fermentation, 
and  first  shows  itself  in  the  flax-steeps  a  few  hours  after  the  commencement  of  the 
steeping  process,  in  the  form  of  isolated  cells  of  a  nearly  spherical  figure  containing 
minute  colourless  granules,  but  without  any  decided  indication  of  a  nucleus.  These 
cells  rapidly  multiply  by  a  process  of  gemmation,  and  ultimately  form  dichotomously 
branched  groups  which  collect  on  the  surface  of  the  steep  in  the  form  of  a  thick 
yeasty  head. .  The  very  peculiar  and  characteristic  odour  which  accompanies  the 
process  of  flax-steeping,  appears  to  be  exactly  coincident  with  the  formation  of  the 
cells,  and  to  go  on  increasing  with  their  multiplication. 

The  cells  appear  by  their  presence  to  determine  in  the  fluid  a  peculiar  fermenta- 
tion, and  the  consequent  decomposition  of  the  intercellular  substance  which  holds 
together  the  fibre  of  the  flax  stem,  a  process  which,  however  generally  confounded 
with  common  putrefaction,  must  nevertheless  be  carefully  distinguished  from  it. 


On  a  Microscopic  Alga  as  a  Cause  of  the  Phamomenon  of  the  Coloration  of 
large  masses  of  Water.    By  Professor  Allman,  M.D.$  M.R.IJL. 

It  appeared,  in  little  conglomerated  gelatinous-like  masses,  and,  when  submitted  to 
the  microscope,  it  was  fouod  to  consist  of  a  number  of  fronds.  The  younger  fronds 
were  nearly  spherical,  and  consisted  essentially  of  a  central  mass  of  transparent  ge- 
latinous matter,  surrounded  by  a  crust  composed  of  minute  cells,  containing  a  green 
colouring  substance.  The  crust  being  much  slower  in  its  growth  than  the  internal 
nucleus,  it  soon  burst,  and  the  nucleus  then,  by  an  apparent  spontaneous  action,  as- 
sumed a  regular  form,  not  unlike  an  hour-glass,  which  soon  separated  into  two  distinct 
fronds.  Some  of  them  being  put  into  a  glass  tube,  and  placed  in  the  window,  were 
observed  to  arrange  themselves  in  a  mass  on  the  side  of  the  tube  opposite  to  that 
exposed  to  the  sun's  rays — that  side  of  the  mass  towards  the  light  being  formed  into 
a  beautiful  concave  curve,  which  might,  he  thought,  when  fully  investigated,  reveal 
some  important  facts  as  to  the  nature  and  influence  of  light. 

Remarks  on  the  Flora  of  the  South  and  West  of  Ireland. 
By  Professor  Balfour,  MJD.,  Edinburgh. 

The  communication  on  this  subject  contained  the  result  of  a  three  weeks'  tour 
just  completed  with  some  of  his  pupils  in  the  southern  and  western  districts  of 
Ireland,  viz.  in  the  counties  of  Cork,  Kerry,  Limerick,  and  Galway.  The  floras  of 
these  districts  belong  to  Professor  E.  Forbes's  Armorican  and  Lusitanian  divisions ; 


TRANSACTIONS  O*  THH  SECTIONS.  65 

the  former  containing  plants  resembling  those  of  Cornwall  and  Devonshire,  and  the 
French  coast  at  Normandy  j  the  latter  having  plants  resembling  those  of  Portugal 
and  of  the  Asturian  division  of  Spain. 

The  mountains  of  the  south  and  west  of  Ireland,  although  some  of  them 
attain  an  elevation  of  upwards  of  3000  feet,  were  not  found  to  exhibit  an  alpine  or 
Scandinavian  flora  like  the  mountains  of  Scotland.  The  few  alpine  species  seen 
were  chiefly  Silene  acaulis,  Draba  incana,  Dryas  octopetala,  Saxifraga  nivalis 
and  stellaris,  Saussurea  alpina  and  Polystichum  Lonchitis.  Some  of  these  appear 
at  much  lower  elevations  than  they  do  in  the  mountainous  districts  of  Scotland. 
The  flora  resembles  in  many  respects  that  of  the  western  coasts  and  islands  of 
Scotland.  This  is  shown  by  the  prevalence  of  such  plants  as  Cotyledon  Umbilicus, 
Osmunda  regalis,  Hypericum  elodes,  Pinguicula  lusitanica,  Eufragia  viscosa,  Ulex 
nanus,  Anthemis  nobilis,  Hymenophyllum  Tunbridgense  and  H.  Wilsoni.  But  in  ad- 
dition to  these,  there  are  many  peculiar  species.  The  prevalence  of  Saxifraga 
umbrosa,  with  its  varieties  serratifolia  and  punctata,  as  well  as  Saxifraga  Geum,  S. 
ekgans,  S.  htrsuta,  S.  hirta,  and  S.  affinis,  tend  to  give  a  marked  character  to  the 
flora  of  the  south-west ;  and  in  the  Connemara  district,  Erica  mediterranean  E.  Mac 
tcatana  and  E.  ciliaris,  along  with  Dabacia  poltfolia  and  Eriocaulon  septangutare, 
give  a  remarkable  character  to  that  flora. 

The  Cork  flora  has  been  fully  given  in  a  work  published  by  Dr.  Harvey  at  the 
time  when  the  British  Association  met  in  that  town.  Dr.  Balfour's  party  noticed  on 
the  aides  of  the  Glanmire  river,  as  well  as  at  Aghada,  a  species  of  Hypericum,  pro- 
bably Hypericum  anglicum  of  Fries,  which  had  nbt  previously  been  recorded  in  Ire- 
land. The  plant  abounds  in  that  part  of  the  county  of  Cork,  and  appears  to  be  in  a 
wild  state.  At  all  events,  if  it  has  been  introduced,  it  has  become  completely  natu- 
raliied.  On  the  roadside  near  Monkatown,  Cork,  there  was  observed  profusion  of 
Petaeites  fragmns,  apparently  wild.  In  Killarney,  the  prevalence  of  Trichomanee 
radicans,  Lastrta  Thelypteris  and  Lastrea  Famisecii,  was  remarked,  as  well  as  Pt»- 
guicula  grandiflora,  Arbutus  Unedo,  and  Orobanche  Hederm. 

In  the  large  island  of  Arran  there  was  seen  abundance  of  Adiantum  Capilhu  Ve- 
neris, Bpiranthee  autumnalis,  Sesleria  cawulea,  Alsine  verna,  and  a  peculiar  form  of 
Saxifraga  hypnoides.  On  the  limestone  of  that  island  were  found  many  plants 
which  axe  common  in  the  trap  districts  of  Scotland. 


On  the  Distribution  of  the  Marine  Alga  on  the  British  and  Irish  Coasts,  with 
reference  to  the  Influence  of  the  Gulf-stream.    By  Professor  Diokib,  MJ)> 

There  are  forms  of  marine  Algie  generally  admitted  to  be  characteristic  of  our 
northern  coasts,  and  others  of  the  southern.  The  present  remarks  have  reference 
to  those  generally  deemed  of  southern  type ;  that  Is,  those  usually  more  or  less 
abundant  in  low  latitudes,  and  on  the  other  hand  absent  from  high  latitudes.  Such 
species,  natives  of  our  coasts,  may  be  classed  under  three  heads :— first,  those  con- 
fined to  the  southern  parts  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland ;  second,  species  of  more 
extensive  range,  since  they  extend  to  the  north  of  Ireland  and  south-west  of  Scot- 
land ;  third,  those  found  abundantly  in  the  south  of  England,  and  ranging  along  the 
western  coasts  of  both  islands,  as  far  as  Orkney  and  Shetland ;  and  the  species  com- 
prehended under  these  three  heads,  and  amounting  to  at  least  twenty,  are,  so  far  as 
known  at  present,  absent  from  a  certain  part  of  the  east  coast  of  Scotland*  A  con- 
siderable proportion  of  them  reappear  in  Shetland  and  Orkney.  The  marine  vege- 
tation in  those  northern  islands  in  some  respects  resembles  that  of  the  north  of 
Ireland,  though  there  is  a  difference  between  them  of  from  four  to  five  degrees  of 
latitude.  The  marine  vegetation  of  some  of  the  north-eastern  counties  of  Scotland, 
intermediate  in  latitude,  is  of  more  boreal  character. 

The  drifting  of  tropical  fruits,  &c.  to  the  western  and  northern  parts  of  Britain 
and  Ireland,  is  a  proof  of  the  course  and  presence  of  the  Gulf-stream ;  the  develop- 
ment of  southern  forms  of  Alga  at  the  extreme  northern  parts  is  a  proof  of  the 
same,  and  an  indication  of  its  influence  in  reference  to  temperature.  Are  we  to 
consider  their  absence  from  certain  parts  of  the  east  coast  of  North  Britain  as 
owing  to  a  lower  aea  temperature  than  in  localities  where  they  exist?  The  portion 
of  the  coast  in  question  is  precisely  that  which,  from  the  generally  understood 

1852.  5 


66  report— 1852. 

course  of  the  Gulf- stream,  may  be  least  exposed  to  its  influence.  Investigations 
respecting  the  temperature  of  our  seas  are,  however,  still  desiderata,  and  without 
such,  an  important  modifying  element  has  been  overlooked  having  reference  to  the 
climate  of  the  British  islands.  

Notice  of  a  Monstrosity  of  Bellis  perennis.    By  Professor  Dickie,  MJ). 

Each  capitulum  was  surrounded  by  an  involucre  of  the  usual  form ;  the  recep- 
tacle (as  in  a  well-known  variety  of  the  plant)  supported  numerous  secondary 
capitula,  each  having  an  involucre  of  three  to  five  pieces,  and  enclosing  generally 
three,  five,  or  six  imperfect  flowers,  most  of  which  seemed  reduced  merely  to  open 
carpellary  leaves,  and  attached  to  some  of  them  there  was  an  imperfect  ovule.  The 
secondary  capitula  were  either  sessile  or  stalked,  and  the  same  was  true  of  the  car- 
pellary leaves.  This  variety  presented  therefore  a  remarkable  example  of  arrest  of 
development,  the  flowers  being  reduced  to  imperfect  carpels  with  or  without  rudi- 
mentary ovules.  

Remarks  on  the  Altitudinal  Ranges  of  Plants  in  the  North  of  Ireland. 
By  Professor  Dickie,  MJ). 

The  observations  were  made  on  Slieve  Donard,  in  county  Down,  attaining  an 
elevation  of  2796  feet,  Muckish  and  Erigal  in  county  Donegal,  the  height  of  the 
former  being  2190  feet,  of  the  latter  2450  feet,  and  Nephin  in  the  north-west  of 
county  Mayo,  its  elevation  being  2639  feet.  Neither  of  these  mountains  present 
the  same  richness  of  vegetation  seen  on  many  of  those  in  North  Britain.  Only  one 
of  them,  namely,  Slieve  Donard,  comprehends  the  upper  part  of  the  Mid -Arctic  zone 
of  Mr.  H.  C.  Watson,  lying  between  3000  and  2000  feet.  Only  six  species  attain 
the  summit  of  Slieve  Donard,  three  being  Monocotyledons,  and  three  Dicotyledons ; 
six  of  the  former  and  twelve  of  the  latter  were  found  on  the  summit  of  Muckish ; 
Erigal  has  on  its  comparatively  narrow  summit  four  Monocotyledons  and  seven  Di- 
cotyledons ;  on  the  summit  of  Nephin  were  observed  four  of  the  former  and  eight  of 
the  latter ;  there  are  only  two  species  common  to  all  the  summits,  viz.  Featuea 
vivipara,  and  Faccinium  Myrtillus. 

The  upper  limits  of  3D  Dicotyledons  and  of  32  Monocotyledons  were  carefully 
measured.  It  might  have  been  expected  that  in  general  the  species  noted  would 
have  the  upper  and  lower  limits  of  each  respectively,  obeying  the  usually  understood 
law.  Instead  of  which,  it  appears  that  their  natural  upper  limits  are,  with  a  very 
few  exceptions,  lower  in  the  North  of  Ireland  than  in  North  Britain. 

The  lowest  limits  of  plants  usually  found  at  high  elevations  were  next  examined, 
and  those  of  20  species  in  Ireland  compared  with  their  recorded  lowest  limits  in 
different  parts  of  North  Britain  ;  from  which  comparison  it  appears  that  the  lower 
limits  in  Ireland  are  generally  much  lower  than  in  Britain.  It  may  be  stated,  in 
other  words,  that  in  Ireland,  with  a  climate  generally  mild,  plants  usually  growing 
in  the  low  grounds  do  not  rise  so  high  upon  the  mountains  as  in  North  Britain 
with  a  less  favourable  climate ;  and  plants  usually  growing  at  high  elevations, 
descend  lower  in  Ireland  than  in  many  parts  of  North  Britain. 


On  an  Anomaly  of  the  Tri folium  repens  (white  clover),  in  which  the  Pedicles 
of  the  Flowers  were  very  much  elongated,  and  the  Petals  and  Pistil  converted 
into  Leaves.    By  the  Rev.  Professor  W.  Hincks. 


Morphological  Analogy  between  the  Disposition  of  the  Branches  of  Exogenous 
Plants  and  the  Venation  of  'their  Leaves.  By  the  Rev.  Professor  M 'Cosh, 210. 

The  view  which  the  Professor  took  of  the  morphology  of  the  plant  might  be  regarded 
as  an  extension,  in  the  same  direction,  of  the  theory  of  Goethe.  According  to  this 
theory,  all  the  appendages  of  the  axis  of  the  plant,  including  leaves,  bracts,  sepals,  pe- 
tals, stamens,  &c,  are  formed  on  a  common  plan,  of  which  the  leaf  may  be  taken  as 
the  type.  It  had  occurred  to  him  (Dr.  M'Cosh)  that  we  may  regard  the  branches 
of  the  plant  and  the  whole  plant  as  formed  on  the  same  plan.    We  may  thus  regard 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTIONS.  67 

the  plant  as  constructed  on  one  model  throughout.  Speaking  in  this  paper  of  reticu » 
lated  leaved  plants,  he  showed  that  there  is  a  correspondence  between  the  disposition 
of  the  branches  along  the  axis  and  the  distribution  of  the  venation  of  the  leaf. 

(1 .)  In  some  plants  the  lateral  branches  are  disposed  pretty  equally  along  the 
axis,  whereas  in  others  a  number  are  gathered  together  at  one  point,  and  the  plant 
becomes  verticil  late  or  whorled.  Now,  he  found  that  wherever  the  branches  are 
whorled,  either  the  leaves  of  the  plant,  as  in  the  rhododendron,  Alchemilla  alpina, 
common  barberry,  broom,  laburnum,  marsh  trefoil,  or  the  veins  of  the  individual 
leaf,  as  in  the  common  sycamore.  Alchemilla  vulgaris,  currant,  gooseberry,  guelder 
rose,  geranium,  maple,  are  also  whorled. 

(2.)  When  a  leaf  has  a  petiole,  the  tree  has  its  trunk  un branched  at  the  base  (as  in 
the  case  of  the  sycamore,  apple,  &c),  and  when  the  leaf  has  no  petiole,  the  trunk 
is  branched  from  the  root,  as  in  our  common  ornamental  lawn  shrubs — the  bay 
laurel,  holly,  box,  &c. 

(3.)  He  proceeded  to  show  further,  that  the  angle  at  which  the  branches  go  off 
from  the  axis  is  the  same  as  that  at  which  the  side  veins  go  off  from  the  main  veins. 
His  observations  during  the  past  summer  had  been  chiefly  directed  to  this  point. 
He  made  the  measurements  by  means  of  a  graduated  semicircle  with  a  moveable 
index.  In  these  measurements  he  took  the  angle  formed  by  the  main  lateral  branches 
with  the  axis,  and  by  the  main  lateral  veins  with  the  midrib.  The  angle  of  the 
veins  of  the  leaf  is  easily  taken.  It  is  more  difficult  to  determine  the  natural  angle 
of  the  branches,  inasmuch  as  the  direction  of  the  branch  may  be  altered  by  a  variety 
of  circumstances,  as  by  winds,  its  own  weight,  &c.  Still,  there  is  evidently  a  normal 
angle  for  each  species  of  plant,  which  may  he  ascertained  by  taking  the  average  of 
a  number  of  measurements  of  a  freely  growing  branch.  He  had  measured  in  all 
about  210  species  of  plants,  and  found  the  angle  of  the  branch  and  of  the  vein  to 
correspond.  He  produced  a  tabulated  statement  of  these  210  plants,  and  called 
the  special  attention  of  the  Section  to  several  of  them,  as  under  the  letter  A. 

Plants  with  Woody  Structure.  Angle  of  vein 

and  branch, 
o        o 
Alateruus,  very  short  petiole  and  branched  to  near  root    50 

Alder,  short  petiole  and  short  unbranched  trunk 50 

Andromeda  speciosa 38 

Apple,  has  petiole  and  unbranched  trunk 45 

Arbutus,  very  little  petiole,  or  unbranched  trunk 55 

Azalea,  no  petiole,  and  no  unbranched  trunk,  leaves  and 

branches  whorl 60 

Native  Herbaceous  Plants, 

Achillea  millefolium 35 

Achillea  ptarmica 35—40 

Arctostaphylos  Uva  Ursi 35—38 

Agrimoma  eupatoria 35 

Alchemilla  vulgaris,  main  veins  whorl,  and  leaves  and 

branches  whorl 37 

Alchemilla  alpina,  leaflets  whorl,  and  also  flowerstalks, 

and  leafstalks 25 

Angelica  sylvestris 40 

Anthriscus  sylvestris 40 

Arctium  lappa,  angle  decreases  from  base 48—40 

Apargia  autumnalis 50 

Atriplex  patula 45 

Alisma  plan tago,  has  whorled  veins  and  whorled  leafstalks  60 

(4.)  He  had  also  observed  that  the  curve  of  the  branch  seems  to  be  the  same  aa 
the  curve  of  the  vein. 

These  observations  seem  to  show  that  there  is  a  morphological  analogy  between 
the  ramification  and  venation  of  reticulated  leaved  plants.  Though  he  could  not 
enter  on  the  subject  at  present,  he  believed  that  there  was  a  similar  unity  running 


68  REPORT— 1852. 

through  linear-leaved  and  monocotyledonous  plants.  In  conclusion,  he  remarked, 
that  these  views,  if  substantiated,  would  aid  in  giving  us  the  true  science  of  the  mor- 
phology of  the  plant,  and  in  particular  show  that  there  is  a  unity  of  design  in-  the 
skeleton  of  the  plant,  similar  to  the  unity  of  design  which  has  been  discovered  in  the 
skeleton  of  the  animal  frame.  Possibly  they  might  also  help  to  determine  the  di- 
rection of  the  vital  forces  as  operating  in  vegetable  organisms ;  they  would  certainly 
make  us  better  acquainted  with  what  Humboldt  would  call  the  physiognomy  of  each 
species  of  plant,  and  furnish  some  additional  marks  to  distinguish  genera  and  species, 
and,  what  was  to  him  especially  interesting,  enable  the  student  of  natural  theology 
to  make  successful  use  of  the  plant,  to  illustrate  the  order  which  reigns  in  the  uni- 
verse.   

On  the  Transmutation  of  jEgilops  into  Triticum. 
By  Major  Munro,  $9th  Regiment,  FA.S. 

The  origin  of  all  our  domesticated  animals  is  still  considered  by  the  most  cele- 
brated naturalists  to  be  unknown,  and  this  is  the  opinion  very  generally  held  with 
regard  to  our  principal  cereal  grains  also.  The  difficulty  may  possibly  have  arisen 
from  looking  for  an  animal  or  plant  bearing  too  close  a  resemblance  to  their  culti- 
vated descendants.  Mythology,  hitherto  considered  an  amusing  dreamy  account  of 
early  history,  may  come  to  our  aid  in  this  matter  also,  and  lead  us,  in  the  fable  of 
Ceres  and  Triptolemus,  to  Sicily  as  the  birth-place  of  our  much-valued  grain,  wheat. 
Certain  it  is  that  at  different  periods  it  has  been  believed  that  some  species  of 
JEgilops  is  the  origin  of  our  wheat,  the  produce  of  some  of  the  numerous  varieties 
of  the  cultivated  Triticum.  It  has  also  been  stated,  that  the  inhabitants  of  the 
neighbourhood  of  Mount  iEtna  used  to  collect  the  seed  of  the  ^Egilop*  ovata  which 
grows  there  wild,  as  food.  It  is  a  small  insignificant-looking  plant,  but  from  a 
series  of  specimens  produced  to  the  meeting,  it  does  not  require  any  great  stretch  of 
imagination  satisfactorily  to  trace  the  gradual  alteration  the  plant  assumes  in  its 
various  advances  towards  the  state  which  is  commonly  called  Tonselle. wheat.  The 
still  greater  external  change  from  bearded  to  smooth  wheat,  and  the  very  extraordi- 
nary looking  forms  called  Egyptian  and  Abyssinian  wheats  (Triticum  Polomcum  and 
eompontum),  take  place  under  our  own  observation  daily,  especially  in  cultivating 
wheat  in  India  from  English  and  Egyptian  grown  seeds.  M.  Esprit  Fabre  seems 
most  satisfactorily  to  have  proved  that  both  AZgilops  ovata  and  triaristata  pass  acci- 
dentally into  AHjriticoides,  and  thence  into  Triticum.  His  experiments,  as  detailed  and 
illustrated  in  a  pamphlet  edited  by  M.  Felix  Dunal,  appeared  to  have  been  carried 
on  most  carefully  and  regularly  for  twelve  years,  commencing  in  1838.  For  seven 
years  the  plants  were  raised  in  a  garden  surrounded  by  a  wall,  and  for  five  years  as 
a  field  crop,  producing  an  average  return  with  other  wheats  grown  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. M.  Fabre  had  no  favourite  idea  to  illustrate  and  enlarge  upon,  and  no 
object  apparently  in  his  experiments  but  the  interests  of  science,  and  was  so  badly 
provided  with  books,  that  he  had  only  one,  and  that  certainly  a  very  good  one, 
Decandolle'a/Tore  Francois,  He  therefore  details  minutely  the  gradual  change  which 
took  place  after  each  successive  sowing  in  this  remarkable  progress  of  sEgilops  ovata, 
about  six  inches  high,  with  its  brittle  head,  shedding,  as  soon  as  ripe,  its  few,  one  to 
three,  perfect  hairy  seeds,  into  good  wheat  three  feet  high,  producing  from  each 
lasting  head  often  100  and  upwards  perfect,  almost  smooth  seeds,  remaining  in 
the  spikes  till  removed  by  the  hand  of  man.  In  proof  of  the  correctness  of  these 
observations,  M.  Dunal  has  forwarded  a  very  interesting  series  of  specimens  to 
England.  Still  the  fact,  it  is  but  right  to  state,  is  doubted  by  some  botanists,  and 
especially  by  him  who  is  considered  by  almost  every  naturalist  as  Botanicorum 
facile  princeps.  The  objections  appear  scarcely  sufficiently  strong,  and  the  difficulty 
of  procuring  ripe  seeds  ofuEgilops  into  England  has  hitherto  prevented  some  minute 
inquiries  into  the  internal  structure  of  the  seeds.  In  making  conclusive  experiments 
in  cultivation,  it  will  be  necessary  first  to  procure  the  shoot  or  varieties  of  ASgilops 
ovata,  which  is  called  triticoides,  and  not  simply  to  cultivate  the  AZgilop*  ovata, 
which  might  go  on  for  years  reproducing  itself  without  variation.  All  gardeners 
in  seeking  to  produce  double  flowers  carefully  collect  the  seed  from  the  best  semi- 
double  ones. 

Fully  persuaded,  in  conformity  to  the  opinion  of  most  botanists,  that  Jrittom 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  69 

and  jEgihps  are  identical  as  a  genua,  and  that  M.  Fabre's  experiments  are  fully  to  be 
depended  upon,  there  is  no  reason  to  adopt  the  notion,  that  this  really  very  curious 
but  not  unnatural  change  of  JSgtfopM  into  Triticum  proves  the  little  value  of  modern 
genera,  and  leads  us  to  expect  that  oats  can  be  changed  into  rye,  and  wheat  into 
barley.  The  latter  has  been  asserted  as  a  fact,  and  may  possibly  have  taken  its  origin 
from  the  circumstance,  that  in  1817  Hordeum  trifurcatum  or  jEgicenu  was  intro- 
duced as  Nepal  wheat ;  but  it  was  soon  found  to  be  a  real  barley,  and  it  may  pos- 
sibly have  been  thought  that  the  climate  had  changed  the  wheat  into  barley. 

It  certainly  is  very  difficult  to  define  what  is  a  genus,  at  the  same  time  the  beauti- 
ful order  of  God's  works  in  general  indicate  that  he  has  made  some  divisions  or 
groups  which  naturalists  and  others  call  genera,  within  the  wide  range  of  which 
species  may  wander,  but  beyond  which  they  cannot  go.  To  three  such  different  ge- 
nera do  wheat,  barley  and  oats  belong,  and  they  never  will  be  altered  by  cultivation 
from  the  one  into  the  other. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  add,  that  the  observations  of  a  very  large  number  of 
monstrosities  in  abnormal  states  in  grasses  (some  quite  as  curious  as  the  one  the 
subject  of  this  notice),  plainly  show  that  there  is  always  a  tendency  in  grasses  to 
elongate  their  axis,  and  increase  the  number  of  the  flowers  in  the  spicules,  and 
never  to  become  fewer- flowered,  which  would  be  the  case  if  wheat  or  oats  ever  be* 
came  barley. 

The  Black  and  Green  Teas  of  Commerce.  By  Professor  Royle,  MJ>^  F.R.S. 

It  was  a  remarkable  fact,  that  the  subject  of  the  difference  between  the  black  and 
green  teas  had  been,  until  recently,  a  matter  of  great  uncertainty.  The  Jesuits,  who 
had  penetrated  into  China,  and  Mr.  Pigou,  were  of  opinion  that  both  the  black  and 
green  teas  were  produced  from  the  same  plant ;  while  Mr.  Reeve  believed  that  they 
were  manufactured  from  two  distinct  plants.  Now,  as  regarded  himself,  he  (Dr. 
Royle)  had  adopted  the  view  that  the  best  kinds  of  black  and  green  tea  were  made 
from  different  plants ;  and  examination  of  tea  samples  seemed  to  confirm  that  view, 
but  a  repetition  of  the  experiment  had  not  done  so.  Mr.  Fortune,  subsequent  to  the 
China  war,  having  been  sent  out  to  China  by  the  Horticultural  Society  of  England, 
made  inquiries  on  the  subject.  He  there  found  the  Thea  bohea  in  the  southern  parts 
of  China  employed  for  making  black  tea ;  and  in  proceeding  as  far  north  as  Shanghae, 
he  found  the  Tliea  viridis  used  in  making  green  tea  near  the  districts  where  the  best 
green  tea  was  made.  So  far,  therefore,  the  information  obtained  seemed  to  confirm 
the  view  of  two  different  species  of  Thea  being  employed  to  make  the  two  different 
kinds  of  tea ;  but  Mr.  Fortune,  in  visiting  the  district  of  Fokien,  was  surprised  to  find 
what  he  conceived  t»be  the  true  Thea  viridis  employed  in  making  black  tea  in  di- 
stricts near  where  the  best  black  tea  was  made.  He  took  plants  with  him  from 
Fokien  to  Shanghae,  and  could  find  no  difference  between  them.  It  was  still,  how- 
ever, desirable  to  get  specimens  from  the  district  where  the  black  and  green  teas  oc 
commerce  were  actually  made,  and  this  had  latterly  been  effected.  In  consequence 
of  the  great  success  which  had  attended  the  experimental  culture  of  tea  in  the  nur- 
series established  in  the  Himalayas,  Mr.  Fortune  was  again  sent  to  China  by  the 
East  India  Company.  He  proceeded  to  the  northern  parts  of  the  country,  in  order 
to  obtain  tea  seeds  and  plants  of  the  best  description,  as  the  most  likely  to  stand  the 
Himalaya  climate.  Mr.  Fortune  procured  seeds  and  plants  in  great  numbers,  and 
sent  them  to  the  Himalayas,  where  they  had  been  since  cultivated.  When  he  had 
reached  Calcutta,  the  tea  manufacturers  whom  he  had  brought  with  him  made  from 
plants  in  the  Botanic  Gardens  their  black  and  green  tea  from  the  same  specimens ; 
so  that  it  was  evident  it  was  the  process  of  manufacture,  and  not  the  plant  itself 
that  produced  the  green  tea.  All  now  who  were  acquainted  with  the  difference  be- 
tween black  and  green  teas,  knew  that  they  could  be  prepared  from  the  same  plant 
without  the  assistance  of  any  extraneous  materials,  though  it  was  a  common  thing 
for  manufacturers  to  use  indigo,  prussian  blue,  turmeric,  &c.  in  colouring  the  tea. 
Dr.  Royle  showed  specimens  of  the  Black  Tea  plant  from  the  Woo-e-Shan,  and  of 
the  Green  Tea  plant  from  the  Hwuychou  districts.  No  specific  difference  could  be 
observed  between  the  two  specimens. 


70  REPORT — 1852. 

Zoology. 

On  a  peculiar  Annelidan  Larva.    By  Prof.  Allman,  MJ).,  MJLIJL 

The  author  described  a  minute  Annelidan  larva,  which  he  obtained  in  abundance 
in  a  small  towing-net  in  July  last  off  the  coast  of  the  county  of  Cork.  It  is  vermi- 
form, and  swam  about  with  great  activity,  the  locomotion  being  chiefly  effected  by 
the  aid  of  ciliated  discs,  which  are  borne  on  the  fourteen  segments  which  imme- 
diately succeeded  the  head.  Each  disc  carries  a  pencil  of  very  long  vibratile  cilia, 
and  four  such  discs  are  carried  by  each  segment. 

The  disc-bearing  segments  are  followed  by  about  twenty  others  much  smaller 
and  destitute  of  discs.  The  terminal  segment  is  encircled  by  a  wreath  of  very  long 
cilia.  Dorsal  and  ventral  oars  are  present  on  all  the  segments.  The  dorsal  oars 
carry  cirriform  branchial  appendages  densely  clothed  with  minute  vibratile  cilia. 
The  setae  are  largely  developed ;  and  in  each  pencil  of  sets  carried  by  the  disc- 
bearing segments  there  are  two  stronger  and  longer  than  the  others,  denticulated 
and  beautifully  iridescent.  A  pencil  of  very  large  and  beautifully  iridescent  setae 
is  borne  by  the  head.  A  prominent  ridge  on  the  upper  surface  of  the  head  is  set 
with  thread-cells.  The  mouth  is  situated  on  the  inferior  surface  of  the  head.  The 
alimentary  canal  is  straight,  dilated  into  a  large  sacculus  in  each  of  the  fourteen 
large  anterior  segments ;  in  the  smaller  posterior  segments  the  canal  presents  but 
slight  dilatations. 

The  little  larvae  were  preserved  in  a  phial-  of  sea- water,  and  after  about  a  week 
were  seen  to  be  transformed  into  minute  Annelides,  nearly  resembling  Nereis.  Their 
death  shortly  afterwards  prevented  all  subsequent  observation  on  their  development. 


On  the  Universality  of  a  Medusoid  Structure  in  the  Reproductive  Gemma 
of  the  TubulariOn  and  Sertularian  Polypes.  By  Professor  Allman, 
M.D.,  M.R.I.A. 

In  this  communication  it  was  the  author's  object  to  show  that  the  Medusoid 
structure  was  not  confined  to  the  free  locomotive  gemmae  of  the  Tubaiarian  and 
Sertularian  Polypes,  but  that  a  similar  structure  was  also  possessed  by  the  fixed 
capsules  of  the  Tubular  id  <e,  and  by  certain  fixed  organs  found  in  the  ovarian  vesicles 
of  the  Sertularidce;  that  the  Tubularian  and  Sertularian  Polypes  therefore  produced, 
by  a  process  of  gemmation,  fixed  as  well  as  free  Medusas,  the  real  office  of  both  being 
apparently  the  production  of  ova  by  a  true  sexual  process. 

In  the  marine  Tubularida,  the  capsular  bodies  which  contain  the  ova  consist  of  a 
closed  vesicle  whose  walls  are  composed  of  cells,  and  having  a  hollow  peduncle  pro- 
jecting into  it  from  the  point  of  its  attachment  to  the  Polype-sfem,  the  cavity  of  the 
peduncle  being  in  direct  communication  with  the  general  cavity  of  the  polypary. 
The  hollow  peduncle  here  manifestly  represents  the  stomach  of  a  Medusa  with  the 
mouth  permanently  closed,  and  the  vesicle  only  requires  to  be  open  anteriorly,  to 
complete  its  resemblance  to  the  bell- shaped  disc.  The  system  of  gastro- vascular 
canals,  which  in  the  ordinary  Medusae  radiate  from  the  stomach  towards  the  margin 
of  the  disc  where  they  intercommunicate  by  means  of  a  circular  vessel,  are,  it  is 
true,  here  wanting,  and  the  absence  of  this  part  of  the  medusan  organization  may 
at  first  sight  appear  to  invalidate  the  view  here  taken.  That  the  absence  of  the  ra- 
diating canals  in  the  marine  Tubularida  however  affords  no  real  ground  for  objection, 
is  proved  by  Cordylophora,  their  freshwater  representative. 

In  this  curious  genus,  the  reproductive  capsules,  altogether  homologous  with  those 
of  Tubularia  and  its  marine  allies,  present  a  well -developed  system  of  branched  tubes 
communicating  with  the  base  of  the  peduncle  and  extending  forwards  in  the  walls 
of  the  capsule.  These  tubes  will  easily  be  recognised  as  the  true  equivalents  of  the 
gastro-vascular  canals  of  the  Medusae,  and  at  once  complete  the  series  of  homologies 
between  the  fixed  sacs  of  the  TubulaHda  and  their  locomotive  medusoid  gemmae. 

The  contents  of  these  sacs  are  either  bodies  presenting  all  the  characters  of  true 
ova,  with  the  germinal  vesicle,  and  in  many  instances  the  germinal  spot,  and  ex- 
hibiting the  phenomenon  of  yelk- cleavage  and  the  subsequent  steps  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  embryo,  or  else  they  present  no  appearance  of  ova  and  are  merely  com- 
posed of  a  multitude  of  minute  corpuscles,  endowed  in  some  cases  with  independent 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECT10N3.  7l 

motion,  and  which  are  most  probably  spermatozoa.  The  ova- like  bodies  are  there- 
fore true  ova,  and  the  bodies  developed  from  them  (sometimes  polypoid  embryos, 
bat  most  frequently  resembling  the  "Planulse"  of  Sir  J.  G.  Dal  yell)  are  the  product 
of  a  true  sexual  process,  and  not,  as  has  been  asserted,  mere  gemmae  or  bulbillee. 

In  the  Sertularidce  medusQid  bodies  have  been  witnessed  by  many  observers  to 
escape  from  the  "  ovarian  vesicles  "  of  Campanuloria,  and  swim  freely  away ;  while 
Loven  and  Lister  have  observed  similar  though  less  completely  developed  medusoids 
expand  at  the  mouth  of  the  vesicles  of  this  genus,  discharge  their  ova,  and  then 
wither  away  without  ever  becoming  free.  Besides  these  gemmae  of  obvious  medusoid 
organization,  certain  more  or  less  globular  bodies  are  commonly  seen  in  the  interior 
of  the  vesicle  clustering  round  the  fleshy  axis,  and  described  by  various  observers  as 
eggs.  In  these  so-called  eggs  of  the  Campunularus,  however,  the  author  has  de- 
tected a  medusoid  structure  quite  as  manifest  as  in  Tubularia.  Each  of  them  is  in 
fact  a  fixed  Medusa,  either  developing  within  it  true  ova  which  present  a  distinct 
germinal  vesicle  and  germinal  spot,  and  undergo  the  process  of  yelk-cleavage,  when 
they  finally  escape  as  "Planulse;"  or  else,  as  it  would  appear  in  some  cases  (though 
this  will  require  further  observations  for  its  confirmation),  containing  spermatozoa. 

Among  the  Sertularirue  no  case  had  hitherto  been  observed  of  the  production  of 
anything  resembling  Medusa-buds,  The  author  has  however  found  the  axis  de- 
veloped in  the  interior  of  the  "  ovarian  vesicle  "  of  Sertularia  argentea  into  a  medu- 
soid body,  which,  though  permanently  fixed,  presented  medusoid  structure  more 
highly  developed  than  in  the  fixed  sacs  of  the  Campanularue  and  Tubularidce ;  the 
peduncle  of  this  Medusa  terminated  by  an  open  mouth,  and  the  disc  was  also 
open ;  the  gastro- vascular  canals  were  present ;  the  ova  appeared  to  be  developed 
in  the  walls  of  the  peduncle. 

The  facts  recorded  in  the  present  communication  were  believed  by  the  author  to 
be  the  only  ones  wanting  to  harmonise  the  singularly  discrepant  observations  of  the 
several  trustworthy  zoologists  who  have  made  these  polypes  their  special  study. 

By  a  careful  collation  of  these  facts,  and  those  already  established  by  independent 
observers,  the  following  conclusions  may  be  obtained : — 

1.  That  the  Tubularian  and  Sertularian  Polypes  are  in  their  young  state  either 
"  Planulse  "  or  solitary  naked  polypoid  larvae  ("  Actinulse  ")• 

2.  That  both  "  Planulse  "  and  "  Actinulse "  are  embryos  proceeding  from  real  ova, 
the  result  of  a  true  sexual  process. 

3.  That  these  ova  are  produced  in  all  cases  by  a  proper  medusan  structure,  how- 
ever masked  this  structure  may  be  under  the  form  of  a  fixed  ovisac. 

4.  That  the  free  medusoids  are  not  embryos,  but  buds,  and  that  they  are  destined, 
probably  in  all  cases,  as  we  know  them  to  be  in  some,  to  produce  ova  by  a  true 
sexual  process  in  a  manner  similar  to  what  takes  place  in  the  fixed  sacs. 

5.  That  every  ?  species  of  the  Tubularida  and  Sertularid*  therefore  produces  by 
gemmation  two  kinds  of  polypes,  one  hydroid  and  destined  for  nutrition,  the  other 
medusoid  and  destined  for  sexual  reproduction. 

6.  That  the  medusoid  polypes  are  either  fixed  or  free,  the  fixed  with  a  more  or 
less  masked  medusoid  structure  discharging  their  ova  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
the  parent  stock ;  and  the  free  with  a  highly  developed  medusoid  structure  and  fur- 
nished with  active  powers  of  locomotion,  by  which  they  are  enabled  to  carry  their 
ova  to  a  distance,  and  thus  provide  for  the  diffusion  of  the  species. 


On  the  Signification  of  the  Ovigerous  Vesicles  in  the  Hydroid  Polypes. 
By  Professor  Allman,  M.D. 


On  a  singular  Locality  chosen  for  its  Nest  by  the  Black  Bed-Start  (Sylvia 
Tithys).    By  Martin  Barry,  M.D.,  F.B.S. 

At  the  railway  station  in  Giessen,  Hesse  Darmstadt,  in  May  1852,  it  was  found 
that  a  bird  had  built  its  nest  on  the  collision  spring  of  a  third-class  carriage  which  had 
remained  for  some  time  out  of  use.  The  bird  was  the  Black  Red-start  (Sylvia  Tithys) ; 
and  the  nest  contained  five  eggs.  The  discovery  was  made  by  the  "  Wagenmeister," 
Jacob  Stephanij,  who  humanely  desired  his  men  to  avoid  as  long  as  possible  the  run- 


72  REPORT — 1852. 

ning  of  that  carriage.  At  length,  when  it  could  no  longer  be  dispensed  with,  the  car- 
riage was  attached  to  a  train,  and  sent  to  Frankfort-on-the-Maine,  distant  between 
thirty  and  forty  English  miles.  At  Frankfort  it  remained  for  six-and-thirty  boars,  and 
ww  then  brought  back  to  Gieesen ;  from  whence  it  went  to  Lollar,  distant  fbnr  or  fixa 
English  miles,  and  subsequently  again  came  back  to  Gieasen,  haying  been  kept  awhile 
at  dollar  j  so  that  four  days  and  three  nights  elapsed  between  the  bringing  of  the  car* 
riage  into  its  use  and  its  last  return  to  Gieesen.  Stephanij,  now  finding  the  neat  not 
to  nave  been  abandoned  by  the  parent  birds,  and  to  contain  young  ones,  which  he 
describes  as  feathered,  removed  it  from  the  carriage  to  a  secure  place  of  rest  which 
he  had  prepared,  saw  the  parent  birds  visit  it,  and  visited  it  from  time  to  time  himself, 
until  at  first  three  and  then  the  other  two  young  birds  had  flown ;  none  remaining  at 
the  end  of  four  or  five  days.  Now,  while  the  carriage  was  travelling,  where  were  the 
parent  birds  ?  It  will  hardly  be  said  that  they  remained  at  Giessen  awaiting  its  return, 
having  to  examine  by  night  as  well  as  by  day  hundreds  of  passing  carriages  in  order 
to  recognise  it ;  the  young  birds  in  their  nests  quietly  awaiting  food  (!)  There  seems 
little  doubt  that,  adhering  to  the  nest,  one,  at  least,  of  the  parent  birds  travelled  with 
the  train.  Nor,  when  it  is  remembered  how  gently  and  how  slowly  an  enormous 
railway  carriage  is  pushed  into  connection  with  a  train,— how  gradually  a  train  is 
brought  into  full  speed,  and  how  equable  the  movements  are  upon  a  railway, — will  it 
appear  incredible  that  at  such  a  time  a  parent  bird  should  continue  with  its  neat,  that 
nest  being  quite  concealed,  and  containing  young.  Not  until  after  the  above  was 
written  did  the  author  of  this  communication  become  acquainted  with  the  important 
fact,  that  while  the  carriage  in  question  was  at  Frankfort,  as  well  as  during  its  short 
stay  at  Friedeberg,  on  the  way  to  Frankfort,  the  conductor  of  the  train  saw  a  red-tailed 
bird  constantly  flying  from  and  to  the  part  where  the  nest  was  situated  in  that  parti- 
cular carriage.  Is  further  evidence  required  that  a  parent  bird  did  indeed  travel  with 
the  train  ? 


Zoological  Notices.    By  the  Prince  of  Canino. 

The  Prince  exhibited  a  Ray  which  would  have  tempted  many  a  naturalist  of  our 
day  to  constitute  a  new  genus,  and  perhaps  even  a  new  family ;  yet  it  is  only  a  mon- 
strosity of  the  common  Trygon  paetinaca,  or  to  speak  more  properly,  a  specimen  in 
which  the  transitorial  forms  of  the  embryo  have  become  permanent.  A  teratologist 
would  claim  the  analogy  of  this  our  monstrosity  to  the  bifida  spina,  or  to  the  leporine 
lip,  which  are  nothing  but  normal  and  transitorial  conditions  in  course  of  formation. 

It  would  be  easy  with  the  fish  before  him,  for  the  anatomist  to  prove, — 1,  the 
embryonal  changes  of  the  Trygon  and  the  Raiida ;  9,  their  similarity  and  eon- 
sequent  superiority  in  the  scale  to  the  Saualida,  the  proof  of  which  has  been  a 
desideratum  in  our  science;  whilst  the  greater  development  of  the  nervous  system 
proves  these  cartilaginous  fishes  higher  organized  than  the  osseous  ones  generally 
placed  ahead  of  them. 

The  Prince  of  Canino  also  drew  attention  to  three  species  of  Butweria  to  be  men- 
tioned :  B.  ootumhina,  a  second  Smithian  species  from  the  Cape,  and  a  new  one  from 
the  Isle  of  Bourbon  j  he  also  noticed  a  new  Tnalaseidroma,  which  he  calls  ProceUari* 
tksHt,  from  the  Gallapagos,  similar  to  pelagic*,  but  even  smaller,  without  the  whitish 
alar  band,  and  with  upper  tail-coverts  white  to  the  tips,  as  in  Pr.  Wilesmn  and 
others,  not  black-tipped  as  in  the  pelqgica. 


Remarks  on  the  Distribution  and  Habit*  of  Echinus  lividus. 
By  Professor  Dickie,  MjD. 

This  interesting  species  is  well  known  on  the  west  coast  of  Ireland ;  Bundorau 
is  the  most  northern  locality  recorded  in  Professor  £.  Forbes's  work  on  the  Ecbino- 
dermata ;  it  has,  however,  a  more  extensive  range.  Mr.  Hyndman  observed  it  at 
Tory  Island ;  it  has  been  found  hy  the  Rev.  Mr.  Gallagher  in  the  Bay  of  Dunfanaghy, 
and  in  July  last  1  saw  it  at  Malin  Head,  county  Donegal.  It  may  possibly  occur 
on  the  east  coast  of  Ireland,  since  I  found  a  specimen  cast  up  at  Carrickfergus, 
Belfast  Bay.  This  species  has  the  power  of  forming  nest-like  cavities  in  rocks  of 
— J~-4te  hardness ;  these  are  sufficiently  deep  to  protect  about  two-thirds  of  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THB  SECTIONS. 


73 


TTiere  appears  to  be  some  relation  between  the  structure  and  composition 
of  the  spines  and  the  habits  of  this  species ;  they  are  generally  well-developed  in 
proportion  to  its  size,  and  sections  of  them,  viewed  under  the  microscope,  present 
appearances  of  greater  strength  and  density  than  similar  preparations  of  the  spines 
of  Echinus  spharo,  though  a  much  larger  species.  The  following  are  the  results  of 
a  chemical  examination  made,  at  my  request,  by  Mr.  J.  W.  Smyth,  assistant  in  the 
laboratory  of  Queen's  College. 


Echinus  spkara. 

Echinus  llvidu*. 

Specific  gravity 

Inorganic  matter 

Organic  matter 

Ash    

Silica    ,  . 

Iron  • 

2*49 

82*03  per  cent. 

17*97  per  cent. 

Chiefly  carb.  of  lime. 

0*05  per  cent. 

none. 

2*55 

82*26  per  cent. 

15*74  per  cent. 

Chiefly  carb.  of  lime. 

0*41  per  cent. 

a  trace. 

The  smaller  proportion  of  organic  matter,  and  greater  amount  of  inorganic  gene- 
rally, and  of  silica  in  particular,  appear  to  indicate  some  relation  between  the  spines 
of  Echinus  lividua  and  its  burrowing  powers.  The  spines  on  the  sides  and  lower 
surface  of  the  animal  are  generally  abraded,  particularly  in  immature  individuals ; 
when  it  has  attained  full  size,  and  the  cavity  completed,  the  spines  are  often,  if  not 
always  reproduced.  By  actual  experiment,  I  have  proved  that  the  spines  are  capable 
of  abrading  rock  of  moderate  hardness. 


On  a  New  Map  of  the  Geological  Distribution  of  Marine  Life,  and  on  the 
Homoiozoic  Belts.    By  Professor  Edward  Forbes,  P.R.S. 

On  this  map  the  provinces  under  which  animals  and  vegetables  are  assembled,  are 
delineated  so  as  to  show  their  peculiarities,  relations,  and  contrasts.  The  character  of 
each  is  marked  by  the  entire  assemblage  of  organized  beings  constituting  its  popu- 
lation ;  a  considerable  portion  in  most  cases  being  peculiar,  and  a  still  larger  number 
of  species  having  their  areas  of  maximum  development  within  it.  The  several  pro* 
vinoes  vary  greatly  in  extant,  some  being  very  small,  some  very  large.  But  though 
not  equally  important  in  a  geographical  point  of  view,  their  inequality  of  extension  is 
not  opposed  to  their,  being  of  equal  natural  history  importance.  The  author  showed 
that  the  northern, and  southern  limits  of  each  province  correspond  with  the  boundaries 
of  a  latitudinal  belt,  to  which,  on  account  of  the  similarity  of  organic  features  presented 
throughout  its  extension,  the  name  of  Homoioioic  is  proposed  to  be  applied.  Nine 
of  these  belts  are  distinguished ;  of  which  one  is  unique,  central,  and  equatorial,  and 
four  in  the  northern  hemisphere  represent  as  many  in  the  southern.  The  boundaries 
of  these  belts  on  land  appear  to  correspond  with  the  isotherm  of  the  months  in  which 
there  is  die  greatest  vivacity  of  animal  and  vegetable  life.  The  homoiozoic  belts  are 
not  of  equal  breadth  in  all  parts ;  and  whilst  the  Polar  belts  include  only  a  single  pro- 
vince in  each,  the  others  severally  include  many  provinces.  On  the  same  map,  the 
comparative  distribution  of  marine  life  in  zones  of  depth  in  different  and  distant  re- 

S'ons  U  also  laid  down,  and  a  nomenclature  applicable  to  all  seas  is  proposed  for 
em,  

Remarks  on  a  species  of  Sepiola  new  to  Britain,  and  first  procured  in  the 
Neighbourhood  of  Belfast.    By  Professor  Edward  Forbbs,  F.B.S. 

One  species  only  has  hitherto  been  recognised  in  the  British  seas,  and  this  has  always 
been  identified  by  our  naturalists  with  the  common  Sepiola  of  the  Mediterranean.  Ger- 
vais  and  Van  Beneden,  in  1838,  maintained  that  the  Sepiola  of  the  Atlantic  coasts  of 
Europe  was  different  from  that  inhabiting  the  Mediterranean.  The  distinctions  indicated 
by  them,  however,  were  quite  insufficient  to  warrant  the  inference  drawn  by  these  ob- 
servers. M.  A.  D'Orbigny  was  the  first  to  determine  a  true  and  important  difference, 
bat  likewise  committed  tne  error  of  supposing  that  all  the  Atlantic  individuals  were 
of  one  type  and  the  Mediterranean  ones  of  another.  He  consequently  referred  all  the 


74  REPORT — 1852. 

figures  and  descriptions  of  British  and  Channel  Sepiola  to  his  £.  Atlantic*  (those  of 
Pennant,  Bouchard,  Gervais  and  Van  Beneden,  and  Thompson),  and  those  of  Medi- 
terranean individuals  to  S.  Rondeletii.  It  will  be  seen  that  we  have  both  these  species 
in  the  British  seas.  Owing  to  the  distinctive  characters  having  been  entirely  over- 
looked, it  is  impossible  now  to  say  which  kind  was  intended  by  British  authors  who 
quote  this  cuttle-fish  under  the  names  ofLoligo  sepiola,  Sepiola  vulgaris,  and  S.  Ron- 
deletii. Under  these  circumstances,  we  think  it  best  to  restrict  our  synonyms  and  not 
include  doubtful  references. — 1.  S.  Atlantic  a,  D'Orbigny. — Suckers  becoming  sud- 
denly four-ranked,  crowded,  and  very  minute  at  the  extremities  of  the  lower  pair  of 
arms.  Respecting  this  species,  Mr.  Alder  writes  as  follows  from  the  Menai  Straits : 
— "  Miss  Hughes  has  supplied  me  with  three  specimens  of  different  sizes.  This  is 
an  odd  fish,  crouching  generally  at  the  bottom  like  a  toad,  with  its  great  goggle-eyes 
half-closed,  and  sometimes  crawling  along  by  means  of  its  suckers,  puffing  the 
water  through  the  funnel  all  the  time.  When  it  does  take  to  swimming  it  darts 
very  quickly  through  the  water  and  is  difficult  to  catch.  When  taken  out  of 
the  water  and  placed  on  the  hand,  it  had  recourse  to  an  odd  mode  of  progression, 
turning  two  or  three  somersaults  in  regular  tumbler  fashion;  first  laying  hold 
with  its  arms,  turning  over,  and  laying  hold  again  until  it 'managed  to  get  back  into 
the  water.  In  this  species,  too,  the  tentacular  arms  generally  lie  concealed  within 
the  others."— Dr.  Johnston  remarks  of  it,  that  "  although  kept  alive  in  a  basin  of 
sea-water  for  about  twelve  hours,  and  repeatedly  irritated,  it  never  ejected  any  inky 
fluid,  with  which  it  is,  nevertheless,  amply  provided."  It  is  probable,  as  has  already 
been  remarked,  that  the  majority  of  British  localities  of  Sepiola  relate  to  this  species. 
Whether  Pennant's  Sepia,  sepiola  from  the  coast  of  Flintshire  was  it,  it  is  impossible 
now  to  say.  We  have  taken  it  in  the  Irish  Sea;  in  fifteen,  eighteen,  and  twenty 
fathoms,  among  the  Hebrides,  and  in  seven  fathoms  in- the  Sound  of  Skye.  Mr.  Alder 
has  found  it  on  the  coast  of  Northumberland,  and  in  the  Menai  Straits ;  also  at  Tor- 
bay.  The  week  before  Mr.  Thompson,  of  Belfast,  died,  he  submitted  to  our  exami- 
nation two  specimens  of  Sepiola  as  possibly  distinct.  His  sagacity  did  not  deceive 
him  in  this,  any  more  than  in  many  other  similar  instances ;  for  one  of  these  little 
cuttle-fishes  taken  at  Bangor,  in  Ireland,  in  1839,  by  Dr.  Drummond,  proved  to  be 
S.  Atlantica,  and  the  other  was  an  Irish  example  of  the  true  Sepiola  Rondeletii.  The 
statistics  of  the  distribution  of  the  two  species  have  yet  to  be  made  out. — 2.  S.  Ronde- 
letii, Leach.  —Suckers  on  the  lower  pair  of  arms  similar  to  those  on  the  others.  I  may 
remark  respecting  the  British  cuttle-fishes, — I.  That  the  Rossia  Jacobi  has  proved  to 
be  identical  with  Rossia  macrosoma.  2.  That  among  Dr.  Ball's  specimens  of  Irish 
cuttle-fishes,  a  form  noted  by  him  as  probably  distinct  from  Loligq,  media  is  apparently 
the  Loligo  marmorea  of  Verany.  3.  That  the  true  Ommastrephes  sagittatus  has  been 
taken  during  the  past  winter  at  Brighton  by  the  Marchioness  of  Hastings,  and  at 
Folkestone  by  Mr.  Mackie.  The  specimens  usually  so  named  have  been  shown  by 
Mr.  Alder  and  Mr.  Hancock  to  be  the  Ommastrephes  todarus. 


Catalogue  of  the  Shells  found  in  the  Alluvial  Deposits  of  Belfast. 
By  John  Grainger. 

The  greater  part  of  the  town  of  Belfast  is  built  upon  alluvial  deposits  of  sand  and 
silt.  These  depositions  extend  far  into  the  bay,  and  are  extensively  exposed  at  low 
water,  reaching  to  Holywood  upon  the  county  Down  side,  and  to  Whiteabbey  upon 
that  of  county  Antrim.  The  localities  which  were  most  investigated  were  the  em- 
bankments raised  for  the  two  railways  which  run  along  the  sides  of  the  bay,  and  the 
cuttings  made  during  the  progress  of  the  harbour  improvements.  The  embankments 
of  which  the  railways  consist  are  formed  almost  entirely  of  the  sand  and  silt  raised 
on  the  spot,  and  leaving  numerous  shallow  excavations.  The  cuttings,  however,  made 
to  afford  a  straight  channel  instead  of  the  old  tortuous  course  of  the  tidal  river  pre- 
sented shells  from  much  deeper  levels.  They  extended  to  the  depth  of  nine  feet  from 
low- water  mark,  and  eighteen  from  that  of  high  water.  1 1  affords  an  example  of  the  im- 
portance of  seizing  opportunities  for  prosecuting  scientific  researches,  presented  by 
the  progress  of  altogether  different  operations,  when  we  consider  that  these  places 
will  never  again  be  accessible  to  inspection,  the  channel  being  now  filled  with  water, 
and  the  railways  traversed  by  continually  passing  trains.    All  these  localities  pre- 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  *JS 

rented  vast  numbers  of  shells,  which  appeared  rather  scattered  everywhere  throughout 
them,  than  lying  in  regular  beds.  This,  together  with  the  fact  that  the  same  species 
were  found  at  almost  every  depth,  made  it  impossible  to  observe  levels  to  which  the 
species  could  be  said  respectively  to  belong.  The  shells,  no  matter  at  what  depth 
found,  were  all  of  recent  species ;  thus  fixing  the  whole  formation  of  one  geological 
age.  In  addition  to  these  localities  may  be  mentioned  the  foundations  of  the  town 
generally ;  the  whole  affording  a  range  of  about  twenty  feet  in  the  vertical.  Eighty 
species  were  enumerated.  Of  this  number  not  one  is  extinct ;  five  are  cot  now  living 
in  the  bay ;  seven  occur  so  sparingly  that  they  can  scarcely  be  called  inhabitants  of 
the  bay,  but  are  rather  occupiers  of  some  very  limited  spot  in  it ;  while  the  great  ma- 
jority of  the  remaining  seventy  species  dwell  at  the  distance  of  severaljniles  from  their 
ancient  stations,  although  the  latter  are  still  under  water.  Thus  six  per  cent,  of  the 
former  occupants  of  the  harbour  have  left  it,  while  nine  per  cent,  appear  in  the  fair 
way  of  doing  so.  The  shells  which  occurred  in  the  beds  in  the  greatest  numbers 
were  those  of  the  edible  Molluscs. 


Dr.  Mathie  Hamilton  read  a  paper  "  On  the  Lobos  Islands." — Along  the  sea- 
board of  Peru  and  Bolivia,  within  the  Tropic  of  Capricorn,  countless  numbers  of 
aquatic  fowls  exist,  which  live  on  fish,  and  whose  excretions  are  exceedingly  fertilising. 
In  some  localities,  the  number  of  guanos  is  enormous,  so  that  when  alarmed  by  dis- 
charges of  fire-arms,  or  otherwise,  they  rise  from  their  nestling  places  in  such  masses 
as  cannot  be  supposed  by  those  who  have  never  seen  these  birds  darkening  the  air 
like  a  cloud.  Guano  producers  change  their  habitation  when  continuously  disturbed, 
but  they  do  not  permanently  leave  a  locality  which  has  long  been  frequented  by  them, 
in  consequence  of  a  temporary  alarm  ;  for,  in  such  a  case,  they  soon  return  to  their 
old  haunts,  and  totally  abandon  them  only  when  teased  by  lasting  annoyances. 
The  ocean  on  the  west  coast  of  South  America  within  the  tropic,  teems  with  fish, 
the  quantity  seeming  exhaustless,  and  guanos  equally  abound ;  so  that  their  egesta 
are  gradually  accumulating  somewhere  either  on  or  off  that  desert  land,  and  now 
have  become  an  object  sought  after,  not  only  by  the  Peruvian  mountaineer,  but  by 
the  merchant,  shipowner,  and  statesman. 


On  a  Peculiar  Organ  which  occurs  on  some  of  the  Marine  Bryozoa,  and 
which  appears  to  indicate  a  Difference  of  Sex.  By  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Hincks,  2L4. 

Some  of  the  marine  Bryozoa  are  furnished  with  a  curious  intertentacular  organ, 
first  noticed  by  Dr.  Farre  in  his  paper  on  the  ciliobrachiata.  It  consists  of  an  ob- 
long and  somewhat  "flask-shaped"  body,  which  is  placed  between  two  of  the  arms, 
and  attached  to  the  tentacular  ring.  It  has  a  wide  orifice  at  the  top,  round  which 
there  is  a  play  of  cilia.  The  neck  is  somewhat  constricted.  The  interior  cavity  is 
lined  with  cilia.  The  organ  becomes  narrow  towards  the  base,  and  is  closely  united 
to  the  sides  of  the  tentacles.  It  is  constant  in  its  position,  and  (in  Membranipora) 
is  always  situated  on  the  same  side  as  the  anal  orifice.  At  times  it  is  seen  to  be  ex- 
tended considerably,  and  to  change  its  form. 

It  was  observed  by  Dr.  Farre  on  the  Membranipora  pilosa  and  Alcyonidium  gela- 
tinosum  (Johnston),  but  he  was  unable  to  determine  its  function.  I  have  also  met 
with  it  on  the  Cycloum  papillosum  (Hassall),  and  I  can  find  no  record  of  its  occur- 
rence on  any  other  species  but  the  three  which  I  have  named.  It  is  possible,  how- 
ever, that  it  may  not  be  confined  to  these,  for  it  is  commonly  present  on  very  few 
individuals,  and  might  readily  escape  observation.  Dr.  Farre  states  that  he  was 
unable  to  detect  any  flow  of  fluids  through  it,  nor  could  he  ascertain  with  what  parts 
the  cavity  in  its  interior  might  communicate.  At  most  times  nothing  is  to  be  seen 
but  the  regular  and  constant  play  of  cilia  within  it  and  around  the  orifice.  But  in 
spring  I  have  met  with  individuals  furnished  with  the  appendage,  in  which  Sperma- 
tozoa were  present  in  immense  quantities,  and  have  witnessed  their  expulsion  from 
the  cell  through  the  intertentacular  organ.  In  one  instance,  when  examining  the 
Membranipora,  I  observed  a  mass  of  the  Spermatozoa  moving  upward  from  the  lower 
part  of  the  visceral  cavity.  On  reaching  the  base  of  the  organ,  which  I  have  described, 


76  REPORT— 1852. 

they  were  drawn  into  it,  and  carried  through  it  by  the  action  of  the  cilia  lining  the 
interior,  and  were  then  ejected  and  borne  off  by  the  tentacular  currents.  This  ex- 
pulsion went  on  for  three  or  four  minutes,  during  which  time  the  active  filaments 
were  streaming  up  from  the  lower  part  of  the  cell.  After  awhile  a  single  Jpermo- 
tozoon  only  made  its  appearance  occasionally,  and  at  last  none  were  to  be  seen.  The 
ciliated  intertentacular  organ,  then,  communicate*  with  the  visceral  cavity,  and  is  at 
certain  seasons  the  channel  through  which  large  quantities  of  Spermatozoa  are  ejected 
and  diffused  through  the  surrounding  water. 

Similar  observations  were  made  on  the  Cycloum.  I  have  never  met  with  Sper- 
matozoa in  any  individual  which  was  not  provided  with  the  organ  (and  I  have  ex- 
amined hundreds),  while  in  those  which  possessed  it,  they  were  frequently  present 
at  the  proper  season  in  astonishing  profusion.  The  organ  occurs  on  comparatively 
few  individuals.  This  has  been  ascertained  by  a  careful  examination  of  great  numbers 
at  different  seasons  of  the  year. 

With  the  facts  now  related  before  us,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  imterten- 
tacular  organ  of  the  Memhranipora,  Akyonidium,  and  Cycloum  marks  a  difference  of 
sex.  It  characterizes  the  male  individuals,  and  is  a  special  provision  for  the  expulsion 
of  the  Spermatozoa,  which  are  produced  in  great  profusion  in  a  few  of  the  cells,  and 
being  thence  diffused  through  the  surrounding  water,  are  drawn  in  by  the  tentacular 
currents  of  other  individuals  (female),  and  so  fertilize  the  ova, 

A  separation  of  the  sexual  organs  has  also  been  observed  in  some  of  the  freshwater 
Bryozoa,  but  I  am  not  aware  that  any  of  the  latter  are  supplied  with  the  interten- 
tacular  organ.  ____ 

Researches  into  the  Structure  of  the  Ascidians. 
By  Thomas  H.  Huxley,  F.R.S.,  Assist.  Surgeon  RUF. 

The  author  stated  that  he  was  desirous  of  laying  before  the  Section  an  account  of 
some  investigations  into  the  structure  of  the  Ascidians  which  he  had  been  led  to 
make  while  endeavouring  to  form  a  catalogue  of  those  contained  in  the  collection  of 
the  British  Museum. 

The  Ascidians,  varied  as  they  are  in  external  appearance,  present  certain  general 
anatomical  uniformities,  which  are  capable  of  being  represented  by  a  diagram.  To 
such  a  hypothetical  structure  thus  represented,  the  author  gives  the  name  of  the 
Archetypal  Ascidian.  From  this  every  actual  form  can  be  shown  to  be  derived*  by  very 
simple  laws  of  modification.  The  author  particularly  desired  it  to  be  understood 
that  he  attached  no  other  meaning  to  the  term  Archetype  than  that  thus  defined. 

It  has  been  a  matter  of  dispute  which  is  the  dorsal  and  which  the  ventral  side  of 
the  Ascidians ;  there  can  be  no  question,  however,  that  the  heart  is  upon  one  side  of 
the  axis  of  the  body,  and  that  the  nervous  ganglion  is  upon  the  other ;  to  avoid  all 
ambiguity  therefore,  the  author  proposes  to  speak  of  the  "  haemal "  and  of  the 
"neural  aides,  in  accordance  with  the  nomenclature  proposed  by  him  in  a 
memoir  '  Upon  the  Homologies  of  the  Molluscs/  read  before  the  Royal  Society. 
The  Ascidian  Archetype  differs  from  all  others  in  the  following  points  : 

1 .  The  intestine  is  always  flexed  towards  the  haemal  side.  In  the  Polyzoa  it  is 
flexed  towards  the  neural  side,  as  pointed  out  by  Professor  Allman. 

2.  The  tentacles  are  small,  while  the  pharynx  is  very  large,  and  serves  as  a  respi- 
ratory cavity,  its  parietes  becoming  perforated.  The  author  combated  the  view  that 
the  "  branchial  sac  "  of  the  Ascidian  answers  to  the  tentacles  of  the  Polyzoon,  or  to 
the  united  gills  of  the  Lamellibranchiate  Mollusk ;  in  opposition  to  the  former  view, 
he  endeavoured  to  show  that  the  tentacles  of  the  Polyzoa  are  represented  by  the 
tentacles  of  the  Ascidians;  and  against  the  latter,  he  urged,  that  the  gills  of  the 
Bivalve  Mollusk  have  no  representative  in  the  Ascidian.  The  "  branchial  sac  "  of 
the  latter,  represents  not  the  gills  of  the  Mollusk,  but  the  perforated  pharyni  of 
Ampbioxus  ;  an  analogy  which  has  already  been  noticed  by  many  observers. 

The  author  brought  forward  the  structure  of  the  peculiar  genus  Appendicularia, 
as  fatal  to  the  view  that  the  branchial  sac  of  the  Ascidian  is  homologous  with  the 
united  tentacles  of  the  Polyzoa. 

Especial  attention  was  directed  to  the  formation  of  what  the  author  termed  the 
"  Atrium,"  under  which  term  he  included  the  cloaca  and  the  space  between  the 
branchial  sac  and  the  "  third  tunic  "  of  writers.    The  author  endeavoured  to  show 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  77 

that  it  answers  to  the  mantle-cavity  of  ordinary  mollusks ;  that  its  excessive  de- 
velopment accounts  for  the  presence  of  the  "  third  tunic  "  in  the  Ascidian,  and 
that  Savigny's  comparison  of  an  Ascidian  to  an  inverted  Patella  had  very  con- 
siderable justice. 

The  author  next  proceeded  to  detail  many  structural  points  of  interest  which  he 
had  made  out  in  the  genera  examined.  A  minute  account  was  given  of  the  structure 
of  the  branchial  sac  in  Boltenia,  Cynthia,  Phalhuia,  Syntethys,  and  other  genera. 
The  branchial  meshes  are  always  true  apertures,  generally  more  or  less  rectangular 
or  oval  in  shape ;  but  in  one  species  described  they  were  arcuated  or  semilunar,  so 
as  to  give  the  appearance  of  spiral  vessels  in  the  branchial  tissue. 

The  structure  of  the  dorsal  folds  and  of  the  "  Endostyle,"  a  structure  first  noticed 
as  distinct  by  the  author  in  his  memoir  upon  the  Salpa,  was  minutely  described ; 
and  the  singular  and  characteristic  variations  in  form  of  the  peculiar  organ  of  sense 
— the  "  tubercule  anteneure  "  of  Savigny — were  pointed  out. 

The  "  Tubular  System,"  described  in  the  same  memoir  as  a  peculiar  and  unique 
organ  in  Salpa  and  Pyrosoma,  was  shown  to  be  the  form  of  hepatic  organ  proper 
to,  and  universal  among  the  Ascidians. 

The  reproductive  system  exhibits  remarkable  and  hitherto  little  noticed  pecu- 
liarities, which  have  led  the  author  to  distinguish  the  simple  Ascidians  into  Mono- 
thalamous  and  Dithalamous  groups,  the .  section  Styela  (Sav.)  being  the  type  of 
the  latter.  Owing  to  the  discovery  of  a  Marsupial  Cynthia,  that  is,  of  one  whose  ova 
pass  through  all  stages  of  their  development  in  the  Atrium  of  the  parent,  the 
author  was  enabled  to  lay  some  interesting  embryological  facts  before  the  Section. 
The  Cynthia  in  question  has  the  appearance  of  a  compound  form ;  it  does  not, 
however,  become  multiplied  by  gemmation  like  the  true  compound  forms,  but  the 
originally  free,  tailed  larva?,  adhere  and  become  firmly  united  before  the  withering 
away  of  their  appendages.  The  mass  is  therefore  an  aggregation  of  distinct  indi- 
viduals, not  one  individual  represented  by  many  Zooid  forms. 

The  development  of  the  muscular  tissue  of  the  tail  was  described,  closely  resem* 
bliog  that  of  the  muscles  of  the  tadpole  as  given  by  Kolliker. 

With  respect  to  the  structure  of  the  test  of  the  Ascidians,  the  author  stated  that 
he  had  verified  in  many  new  cases  the  discovery  of  the  presence  of  cellulose  in  large 
quantities  therein  made  by  Schmidt,  and  extended  by  Lowig  and  Kolliker,  and  by 
Schacht.  In  other  points,  the  author's  results  differed  somewhat  from  those  of 
these  writers ;  ajid  after  pointing  out  what  he  considered  to  be  the  true  structure, 
he  drew  particular  attention  to  the  essential  identity  of  the  test  of  the  Ascidian  with 
true  bone  (if  for  the  calcareous  salts  cellulose  be  substituted)  on  the  one  hand,  and 
with  vegetable  tissue  on  the  other.  The  physiological  distinction  between  plants 
and  animals,  which  authors  have  endeavoured  to  draw,  upon  the  ground  that  the 
Ascidians  do  not  form  cellulose,  but  only  take  it  from  plants,  seems  incompatible 
with  the  circumstance  made  out  by  the  author,  that  the  Ascidian  larvae  contain  cel- 
lulose while  they  are  yet  a  mere  mass  of  cells  contained  within  a  structureless  mem- 
brane, and  totally  without  any  organ,  except  the  tail. 

The  author  endeavoured  to  show  that  the  Ascidians  might  be  divided  into  natural 
groups,  by  considering  :— 

1st,  The  arrangement  of  the  organs  with  regard  to  the  axis,  whence  the  animal 
may  be  symmetrical  or  asymmetrical,  according  to  the  relative  development  of  the 
neural  and  haemal  regions,  and  of  the  branchial  sac ;  and, 

2ndly,  The  nature  of  the  tentacles  and  of  the  reproductive  organs. 

In  conclusion,  the  author  stated  that  the  Ascidian  type  appeared  to  be  sharply 
defined  from  all  others,  nowhere  exhibiting  any  transition  forms. 


On  a  New  Species  ofAcalephfrom  Belfast  Bay.  By  George  C.  Hyndman, 

Dr.  J.  D.  Marshall  exhibited  specimens  of  the  "  Bonaparte's  Gull,"  "  Sabine's 
Gull,"  "  Little  Auk,"  and  some  other  fowl,  all  shot  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Belfast. 
The  specimen  of  "Bonaparte's  Gull,"  he  mentioned,  had  been  called  after  the  Prince 
of  Canino  j  and  is  the  only  one  hitherto  shot  in  Europe,  having  been  obtained  in  the 
Lagan  hi  1848.    It  is  at  present  in  the  Belfast  Museum. 


78  REPORT — 1852. 

On  the  Geographical  Distribution  of  Animals  in  connection  with  the  Progress 
of  Human  Civilization*    By  William  Ooilbt,  F.L.S. 

The  author  treated  his  subject  in  a  very  popular  manner,  and  pointed  to  the  less 
civilized  nations  of  the  world,  as  being  so  from  the  absence  of  animals  capable  of  do- 
mestication. America  and  Australia  were  the  great  types  of  this  deficiency.  The 
following  conclusion  of  his  paper  will  give  an  idea  of  the  general  argument  and  style. 
"  Let  us  now  examine  the  facilities  which  the  natives  of  Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa 
possessed  for  developing  civilization  compared  with  those  of  America  and  Australia. 
The  former  had  those  great  collaborateurs  in  their  social  progress,  they  had  the  horse, 
the  ass,  and  the  camel,  for  beasts  of  burden ;  and  they  had  the  sheep,  the  ox,  and  the 
goat,  for  food  and  a  thousand  other  useful  purposes.  The  consequence  of  this  was, 
that,  at  a  very  early  period — at  a  period  of  which  there  are  few  authentic  historical 
documents  extant — the  nations  of  Western  Asia  had  advanced  in  civilization  to  an 
extent  which  is  now  only  beginning  to  be  thoroughly  understood  and  appreciated. 
The  researches  of  such  eminent  men  as  Dr.  Layard  into  the  antiquity  of  Assyria  and 
Egypt,  prove  this  beyond  question ;  and  show  that  those  nations  had  advanced  to  a 
power  which  in  modern  times  has  scarcely  been  equalled,  and  that  we  are  only  now 
m  the  same  state  with  regard  to  civilization  that  they  were  three  or  four  thousand 
years  ago ;  whilst  the  less  fortunate  inhabitants  of  America  and  Australia  would  be 
obliged,  by  the  want  of  those  facilities  possessed  by  the  former,  to  remain  in  their 
original  condition  for  eternity." 

On  the  Homologies  of  the  Cranial  Vertebra.    By  Professor  Owen,  F.R.S. 


On  some  Fishes,  Crustacea  and MoUusca found  at  Peterhead.  By  C.W.  Peach. 

The  fish  were  Yarrell's  blenny  (Blennius  Yarreliii)  in  considerable  numbers,  and 
Ray's  bream  (Brama  Rati).  A  new  species  of  Hippolyte,  and  several  specimens  of 
Limapontia  nigra,  constituted  the  contributions  to  the  Fauna  of  Peterhead. 


On  the  Character  of  the  Sertularian  Zoophytes. 
By  Wyville  T.  C.  Thomson. 

Mr.  Thomson's  remarks  were  confined  to  the  pointing  out  of  some  of  the  most  re- 
markable peculiarities  in  this  very  numerous  class  of  zoophytes.  He  described  their 
appearance  and  the  circumstances  under  which  they  are  found ;  and  exhibited  bottled 
specimens  of  roost  of  the  species  found  along  the  Aberdeenshire  coast.  With  regard 
to  the  specific  distinctions  of  those  species,  he  conceived  that  the  standard  of  classifi- 
cation hitherto  adopted  was  by  no  means  a  safe  one.  As  an  instance  of  this  he  referred 
to  the  Sertularia  rosacea  and  Sertularia  margarita,  which  had  been  described  by  na- 
turalists as  belonging  to  separate  species ;  but  on  recent  and  minute  investigations  it 
hasbeen  found  that  there  is  no  specific  distinction  between  them,  and  that  they  belong 
to  a  third,  Sertularia  pinasta.  He  suggested  that,  instead  of  the  ovigerous  vesicles 
being  regarded  as  the  principle  of  comparison  in  determining  the  species,  the  stem  and 
general  skeleton  should  be  adopted  as  being  more  fixed  and  invariable. 


Physiology. 


On  the  Part  played  by  the  Cavernous  Sinus  in  the  Circulation  of  the  Brain. 

By  Dr.  J.  Barker. 


On  a  New  Effect  produced  on  Muscles  by  the  Electric  Current. 
By  Dr.  £.  du  Bois-Reymond. 
Last  spring,  Dr.  Bence  Jones  of  London,  whom  I  am  proud  to  call  my  friend, 
published  a  short  abstract  of  my  Researches  in  Animal  Electricity.    To  those  who 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  J9 

have  perused  this  little  volume,  the  name  of  the  elect rotooic  state  of  the  nerves  will 
be  familiar.  I  have  ventured  so  to  call  the  altered  condition  of  the  nerve  which  is 
induced  by  any  electric  current  pervading  any  portion  of  it,  however  short,  and 
which  denotes  its  presence  by  a  most  striking  change  in  the  electromotive  action  of 
the  nerve.  The  nerve,  when  in  its  natural  state,  produces  electric  currents  accord- 
ing to  the  law  of  the  antagonism  of  the  longitudinal  and  transverse  section,  the 
former  one  being  positive,  the  latter  negative.  The  nerve,  when  in  the  electrotonic 
state,  in  addition  to  its  usual  electromotive  action,  produces  electric  currents  accord- 
ing to  the  law  of  the  voltaic  pile.  Every  portion  of  nerve,  however  short,  acquires 
an  electromotive  power  such  as  to  produce  a  current  in  the  direction  of  the  exciting 
current.  This  new  condition  of  the  nerve  begins  and  ends  as  soon  as  the  exciting 
current  itself.  I  have  endeavoured  to  account  for  it  in  the  following  way.  The 
ordinary  nervous  current  I  consider  as  being  produced  by  peripolar  groups  of  dipolar 
electromotive  molecules.  According  to  Grotthuss's  well-established  theory,  the  ex- 
citing current  may  decompose  these  groups,  so  as  to  make  all  the  dipolar  molecules 
turn  their  positive  poles  in  that  direction  in  which  the  current  goes.  If  it  be  ad- 
mitted that  this  new  arrangement  extends  with  decreasing  regularity  over  the  whole 
length  of  the  nerve,  all  the  phenomena  of  the  electrotonic  state  of  the  nerves  could 
easily  be  explained. 

In  the  second  volume  of  my  large  book,  I  have  stated  that  the  muscles  do  not  ex- 
hibit the  phenomena  of  the  electrotonic  state.  Indeed  no  change  of  the  electromo- 
tive action  of  the  muscle  is  perceived,  when  that  portion  of  it  which  extends  beyond 
the  ends  of  the  galvanometer  is  submitted  to  a  constant  electric  current.  Neverthe- 
less, I  have  succeeded  in  discovering  a  mode  of  action  of  the  electric  current  on  the 
muscles,  which  undoubtedly  corresponds  to  that  action  of  the  current  on  the  nerves 
which  I  have  called  their  electrotonic  state. 

If  a  muscle,  while  in  the  state  of  life,  is  submitted  to  a  strong  electric  current,  of 
any  kind  whatever,  and  if  directly  afterwards  it  be  placed  in  the  circuit  of  the  gal- 
vanometer, the  very  portion  of  it  which  was  comprised  between  the  electrodes  is 
found  to  have  acquired  a  new  electromotive  power,  such,  indeed,  as  to  produce'  a 
current  in  the  direction  in  which  it  was  pervade/1  by  the  extraneous  current.  This 
new  electromotive  power  is  the  greater  according  to  the  intensity  of  the  extraneous 
current.  It  rapidly  decreases  so  as  to  become  insensible  after  a  certain  lapse  of  time, 
the  length  of  which,  of  course,  depends  on  the  original  amount  of  the  electromotive 
power  induced,  as  well  as  on  the  sensitiveness  of  the  galvanometer  employed. 

This  new  effect  produced  on  muscles  by  the  electric  current  is  quite  different  from 
that  which  was  discovered  by  Peltier,  who  found  that  muscles,  when  for  a  long 
time  exposed  to  an  electric  current,  acquire  an  electromotive  power  in  the  contrary 
direction  to  that  in  which  they  were  pervaded  by  the  current.  These  two  effects, 
that  observed  by  Peltier,  and  that  now  denoted  by  myself,  both  coexist,  so  as  partly 
to  counterbalance  each  other.  But  the  contrary  electromotive  power,  induced  in 
muscles  by  electric  currents,  is  analogous  to  that  which  is  engendered  by  passing  a 
current  through  metallic  electrodes  immersed  in  any  electrolytic  liquid.  On  the 
contrary,  the  electromotive  power,  which  keeps  the  same  direction  as  the  current 
by  which  it  was  induced,  owes  its  origin  to  the  peripolar  groups  of  dipolar  electro- 
motive molecules  in  the  muscles  being  decomposed  by  the  current,  and  the  dipolar 
molecules  having  their  positive  poles  turned  with  more  or  less  regularity  in  that 
direction  in  which  the  current  goes. 

The  electric  current,  therefore,  acts  in  the  same  way  on  both  nerves  and  muscles* 
viz.  it  decomposes  the  peripolar  groups,  and  forces  the  dipolar  molecules  into  a 
certain  arrangement  different  from  the  natural  one.  In  the  nerves  this  preter- 
natural arrangement  extends  on  either  side  of  the  portion  submitted  to  the  current, 
and  even,  though  with  decreasing  regularity,  over  the  whole  length  of  the  nerve, 
but  it  vanishes  as  soon  as  the  exciting  current  itself.  In  the  muscles,  on  the  con- 
trary, the  preternatural  arrangement  does  not  extend  to  any  sensible  degree  beyond 
the  portion  immediately  acted  upon  by  the  exciting  current ;  but,  instead  of  it,  the 
arrangement  continues  to  prevail  a  certain  time  after  the  exciting  current  has  ceased. 
Hence  it  appears  that  the  production  of  the  new  electromotive  power  in  a  nerve 
and  that  in  a  muscle,  by  means  of  an  electric  current  passed  through  their  substance, 


80  RRPORT — 1852. 

bear  to  each  other  a  similar  relation  as  the  production  of  magnetism  in  a  bar  of  per- 
fectly soft  iron  and  that  in  a  bar  of  steel,  by  means  of  an  electric  current  passed 
through  a  coil  surrounding  the  bar.  Suppose,  indeed,  that  a  current  be  passed 
through  a  coil  surrounding  a  very  short  portion  of  a  long  bar  of  soft  iron,  the  bar 
will  directly  prove  magnetic  in  its  whole  length,  only  the  intensity  of  its  magnetic 
force  will  decrease  from  the  coil  to  the  two  ends  of  the  bar.  As  soon  as  the  circuit 
of  the  coil  has  been  broken,  the  bar  would  be  found  quite  bare  of  any  magnetic  power, 
provided  the  iron  be  perfectly  soft ;  in  making  the  experiment,  however,  there  will 
still  be  some  magnetism  left.  Again,  suppose  that  the  same  coil  were  placed  in  the 
same  manner  on  a  similar  bar  of  steel,  instead  of  soft  iron,  then  its  action  would 
not  extend  over  the  whole  length  of  the  bar,  only  the  very  portion  surrounded  by 
the  coil,  and  those  placed  in  its  immediate  neighbourhood,  would  become  magnetic ; 
but  in  this  case  they  would  remain  so  even  after  the  circuit  of  the  coil  had  been 
broken. 

This  difference  in  the  magnetic  phenomena  elicited  in  steel  and  iron  by  the  electric 
current,  philosophers  are  in  the  habit  of  ascribing  to  a  coercitive  force  possessed  by 
the  former  substance,  by  which  force  the  magnetic  fluids  are  prevented  from  moving 
freely  so  as  to  require  a  certain  amount  of  force  to  be  separated,  and  to  remain  so 
afterwards ;  or  by  which  force,  to  speak  in  accordance  with  Ampere's  theory,  the 
molecules  surrounded  by  currents,  on  which  the  magnetic  phenomena  are  admitted 
to  depend,  are  kept  in  the  positions  in  which  they  once  have  been  put  by  any  pre- 
vious action.  It  therefore  may  be  concluded,  that  with  respect  to  the  mobility  of 
their  electromotive  molecules,  the  muscles  and  nerves  differ  from  each  other  in  the 
same  way  as  steel  and  soft  iron ;  or  that  the  muscles  possess  a  coercitive  force  which 
prevents  their  electromotive  molecules  from  moving  as  freely  as  they  seem  to  do  in 
the  nerves. 

This  statement  appears  the  more  important,  as  I  had  hitherto  not  succeeded  in 
pointing  out  any  essential  difference  between  the  electrical  phenomena  of  muscles 
and  nerves.  Yet  such  a  difference  ought  to  exist,  if  any  relation  be  admissible  be- 
tween tiie  electrical  phenomena  of  muscles  and  nerves,  and  their  other  vital  properties, 
which  present  such  striking  discrepancies. 


On  the  Forces  by  which  ike  Circulation  of  the  Blood  is  carried  an. 
By  Professor  T.  Wharton  Jones,  F.R.S. 


On  the  State  of  the  Mind  during  Steep. 
By  Richard  Fowler,  MJ)n  F.R.S. 

What  is  the  state  of  the  vital  and  mental  forces  during  sleep,  dreaming,  trance, 
asphyxia,  coma,  compression  of  the  brain,  intoxication  ? 

The  body  of  an  animal  is  its  coil  ("  mortal  coil "),  and  this,  like  a  federative  re- 
public, of  which  the  brain  coil  is  the  chief,  is  composed  of  a  congeries  of  coils  (organs 
qf  sense,  glands,  &c),  and,  above  all,  of  a  muscular  apparatus  so  adjustable  as  to 
enable  the  mental  force  to  form  it  into  coils  for  occasional  purposes,  for  expression 
by  speech  and  gesture,  execution  of  works  of  art,  flee. 

In  its  waking  state,  the  mental  force  has  indirect  perception  at  the  adjustments 
of  the  muscles  by  the  muscular  sense,  rendered  more  sensitive  by  the  blood  accom- 
panying every  retransmission  to  the  muscular  and  nervous  fibres. 

Tlie  mental  force  has,  in  addition  to  perception  and  volition,  a  power  to  modify 
the  adjustments  induced  by  sensations  and  conceptions.  It  has  its  sense  of  buoyancy 
and  fatigue  from  the  different  degrees  of  compression  felt  on  the  sentient  extremi- 
ties of  the  muscular  nerves,  hence  the  idea  of  power.  Hume  challenged  the  as- 
sertors  of  our  having  an  idea  of  power  to  adduce  the  impression  from  which  it  may 
be  inferred  ;  and  here  is  an  adequate  impression. 

That  mind  and  vitality  are  forces,  is  ascertained  by  the  resistance  they  can  oppose 
to  all  the  physical  forces,  to  those  of  gravitation  and  motion,  by  mounting  a  hill  or 
swimming  against  a  rapid  stream,  by  the  heavier  weight  sustained  by  a  living  than 


TEAN8AOTION8  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  81 

a  dead  muscle,  and  by  the  fracture  of  bones  by  falling,  without  the  contact  of  hard 
substances.  Dead  fishes  are  disintegrated  by  being  frozen ;  but  Sir  John  Franklin's 
fish,  at  Fort  Enterprize,  were  alive  when  thawed,  after  having  remained  frozen  thirty- 
six  hours*  Men  have  resisted  the  effects  of  temperature  which  roasted  and  boiled 
butchers*  meat 

To  what  source  but  to  mind  can  we  refer  the  existence  and  marks  of  intelligent 
contrivance  on  the  earth,  and  in  all  we  have  learned  of  the  universe  ? 

It  is  an  indispensable  condition  of  all  force  to  be  latent  to  our  faculties  till  a  fit 
coil  is  present.  We  knew  but  little  of  motion,  heat,  light,  gravitation,  Sec,  before 
the  watch,  steam-engine,  thermometer,  barometer,  &c,  were  invented;  but  the 
presence  of  the  coil  ensures  the  presence  of  the  force,  and  the  more  perfect  the  coil 
the  stronger  the  force  (coil  for  atmospheric  electricity)*. 

When  asleep,  our  coil  is  like  a  drum  unbraced,  or  harp  unstrung — unadjusted; 
whether  for  sensation  or  action.  But  what  is  its  state  when  we  dream  ?  Then 
some  of  our  organs  retain  such  a  state  of  tension  as  to  be  excited  by  impressions  or 
conceptions,  and  impressions  upon  vital  coils  induce  definite  adjustments  (probably 
by  retransmission).  If  the  lips  of  a  comatose  patient  be  rubbed  with  a  spoon  before 
its  contents  are  put  into  the  mouth,  the  adjustments  of  deglutition  are  so  accurately 
made  as  not  to  risk  suffocation.  It  is  thus  intelligible.  How  suggestive  touches 
induce  retransmissive  adjustments,  by  which  sleepers,  the  blind  and  deaf  (feeling 
by  the  touch),  are  enabled  to  interpret  the  meaning  of  others ;  and  questions  to 
persons  asleep  are  suggestive  of  the  adjustments  by  which  they  are  answered.  This 
is  analogous  to  the  suggestive  effects  of  questions  in  ordinary  conversation,  but  still 
more  palpably  of  leading  questions  in  courts  of  justice. 

The  less  the  relaxation  of  tension  (as  in  the  morning)  the  more  vivid  the  dream. 
Our  belief  in  our  dream  (as  in  the  diorama)  is  not  contradicted  by  objects  outside. 

When  conceptions  are  vivid,  such  as  belong  to  the  passions,  they  produce  retrans- 
missions to  the  parts  to  which  the  conceptions  belong. 

Again — That  the  adjustments  required  for  sensation  are  the  same  as  those  by 
which  conceptions  are  formed,  is  proved  by  various  cases—by  the  experiment  of 
Banks  f — by  the  murderer,  suffering  from  remorse,  having  always  the  image  of  his 
murdered  child  before  him. 

It  is  contrived  by  Benevolence,  that  like  adjustments  induce  like  conceptions. 
Many  repetitions  are  required  to  form  accurate  conceptions.  And  we  must  do  to 
know,  for  it  is  not  till  we  have  done  that  we  get  the  conceptions  which  form  the 
painter,  sculptor,  orator,  singer,  Sec.  Sir  J.  Reynolds  says,  that  it  was  not  till  he 
had  been  at  Rome  a  year,  that  he  began  to  appreciate  the  works  of  Raphael. 

We  know  how  vibrations  induce  definite  diagrams.  Thus  are  also  defiuite  adjust- 
ments induced,  and  thus  identity  is  recognised,  by  the  likeness  of  this  object  to  our 
previous  conceptions  of  it. 

Unadjuat  the  coil,  and  the  force  disappears.  This  is  the  sleep  of  the  coil,  not  of 
the  force.  In  man,  who  is,  as  we  have  said,  a  congeries  of  coils,  they  do  not  all 
sleep. 

Feeling  in  the  body,  and  conception  from  abiding  adjustments  of  past  sensations, 
are  the  instructive  interpreters  of  new  sensations.  Thus  the  conception  of  a  ship 
near  to  us,  interprets  the  perspective  appearance  of  a  distant  sail.  Every  known 
part  is  suggestive  of  its  whole.  A  conception  already  in  the  mind  retransmits  such 
adjustments  to  the  ear,  that  it  interprets  the  sound  of  the  words  sung  in  music. 
(Men  "  walking  in  darkness."    Chant.) 

Some  persons  seem  to  live  in  a  dreaming  state,  unadjusted  by  attention.  They 
do  not  observe  what  is  passing ;  for  we  must  look  to  see,  listen  to  hear,  Sec.  Their 
impressions  and  conceptions  induce  no  definite  adjustments,  and  adjustments  are,  to 
the  perceptive  mind,  signs  of  thought. 

In  profound  sleep,  we  are  not  aware  of  more  than  suspension  of  consciousness, 
and  are  without  dreams.  In  what,  then,  does  this  differ  from  death  but  in  time  ? 
"Sleep,  the  death  of  each  day's  life."    "  But  in  the  sleep  of  death,  what  dreams 

*  The  late  Mr.  Read  of  Knightsbridge  had  on  the  top  of  his  house  an  electrical  apparatus, 
to  excitable  that  it  indicated  by  bells  the  slightest  change  in  the  electric  strata  of  the  atmo- 
sphere. 

t  See  Banks  in  Dr.  Darwin's  Zoonomia  (his  report  on  ocular  spectra). 
1852.  6 


82  report — 1852. 

may  come  ? "  If  my  notion  of  this  subject  be  physiologically  correct,  the  mind  is  a 
force  acting  as  physical  forces  do,  each  through  die  medium  of  its  appropriate  coil, 
and  returning  to  a  latent  state  when  the  coil  is  withdrawn.  A  force  is  not  mani- 
fested when  the  coil  is  not,  any  more  than  thinking  is,  when  the  coil  is  discon- 
nected with  mind  force.  What  then  becomes  of  the  mind  ?  What  becomes  of  any 
other  force  ?  Motion  is  individualized  in  a  watch — gravitation  in  a  pendulum — heat 
in  a  thermometer — and  gravitation  again  in  a  barometer— magnetism  in  a  natural  or 
artificial  magnet. 

Endow  appropriate  coils  with  consciousness — as  soon  as  an  appropriate  coil  is 
presented,  the  force  will,  as  we  observe  in  all  coils,  enter  it,  as  in  the  instance  of  the 
coil  for  atmospheric  electricity. 

Where,  then,  is  mind,  when  its  mortal  coil  is  perishing  in  the  grave  ?  Where  are 
the  physical  forces  when  the  instruments  which  they  actuated  (the  pendulum  of  a 
clock,  a  steam-engine,  a  voltaic  trough,  or  a  Leyden  phial)  are  broken  ?  Gravita- 
tion, motion,  heat,  and  electricity  do  not  cease  to  exist.  They  existed  before  their 
coils  were  invented,  and  will  continue  to  exist  when  this  earth  and  all  material  or- 
ganized structures  shall  have  ceased  to  exist ;  and  that  this  will  be  the  condition  of 
the  mind,  we  have  abundant  reason  to  expect.  It  is  the  mansion,  not  the  tenant 
that  is  changed.  Mind  may  still  live  as  distinct  from  flesh  and  blood,  which  is 
sustained  by  food,  as  is  the  swimmer  from  the  flood. 


ETHNOLOGY  AND  GEOGRAPHY. 
Ethnology. 

Remarks  on  an  Ethnological  Collection,  in  illustration  of  the  Ethnology  of 
Java.    Eg  Dr.  Bialloblotzki. 


On  the  Misapplication  of  the  terms  Evolution  and  Development,  as  applied 
by  Ethnographical  Philologists  to  the  Inflexions  of  a  Language*  By 
Richard  Cull,  Fellow  and  Hon.  See.  of  the  Ethnological  Society. 

Thi8  paper  is  more  of  a  critical  character  than  fraught  with  new  facts,  as  indeed 
its  title  conveys.  Philologists  speak  of  a  language  developing  its  inflexions,  or 
having  its  inflexions  evolved.  It  appears  to  the  author  that  Morne  Tooke  clearly 
pointed  out  the  nature  of  the  inflexions  of  languages,  that  the  researches  of  all 
philologers  have  confirmed  his  view,  and  yet  we  continue  to  speak  of  evolving 
inflexions.  Many  persons  attribute  a  vast  mental  superiority,  at  least  in  language, 
to  certain  nations  of  antiquity,  for  having  developed  inflexions  in  their  language ; 
and  deem  the  descendants  of  those  same  nations  to  be  inferior,  because  they  have 
not  only  not  developed  any  inflexions,  but  have  been  unable  to  maintain  those  which 
were  developed  by  their  ancestors.  If  the  views  of  Home  Tooke  be  sound,  the  idea 
of  developing,  in  the  sense  of  opening  or  unfolding,  is  erroneous. 

A  change  in  the  form  of  a  word  to  express  a  different  meaning  ia  called  an  inflexion. 
The  form  of  a  word  can  be  changed  in  two  ways. 

1.  By  adding  one  or  more  sounds,  or  even  syllables  to  it,  as  love,  loved,  loving. 

2.  By  a  change  in  the  word,  as  speak,  spoke ;  and  both  methods  of  changing  the 
ibrm  may  occur  in  the  same  word,  as  speak,  spoken. 

The  word  loved  differs  both  in  form  and  sense  from  the  word  love.  The  word 
spoke  also  differs  in  both  respects  from  the  word  apeak.  And  the  word  spoken  differs 
in  both  respects  from  speak. 

What  is  expressed  in  one  language  by  such  a  change,  called  an  inflexion,  may  be 
expressed  in  another  by  a  different  metnod ;  thus  the  Latin  dotninus,  a  lord,  besides 
its  other  changes  of  form,  has  one  which  gives  it  a  feminine  signification,  skmme*  a 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  88 

lady ;  but  the  English  word  lord  hat  no  feminine  inflexion.  Thus  while  in  Latin  a 
part  of  the  word  only  ia  changed,  in  English  another  word  it  adopted.  The  word 
lady  is  not  an  inflexion  of  the  word  lord.  Languages  differ  greatly  in  regard  to 
inflexion ;  some  abound  -in  inflexions,  while  others  have  but  few.  They  are  numerous 
in  Sanscrit*  Greek,  Latin  and  the  Sclavonic  languages,  less  so  in  English,  and  at  the 
lowest  in  Chinese. 

We  know  how  these  inflexions  were  produced.  They  are  not  produced  by  any 
opening  as  a  bud  opens  into  a  flower,  but  by  the  coalescence  of  another  word,  or 
fragment  of  a  word,  with  the  original  word. 

We  can  show  in  many  languages  the  word  whose  fragment  is  coalesced.  Now  a 
junction  of  two  things,  even  when  well  incorporated,  together  cannot  with  propriety 
be  called  a  development  or  evolution. 

In  the  Hebrew  language  the  personal  pronouns  are  termed  separable  and  in- 
separable. The  separable  pronouns  represent  the  person  to  be  in  the  nominative 
case.  The  inseparable  exhibit  only  some  fragment  of  the  separable  pronoun  com- 
bined with  some  word. 

In  the  Malay  the  plural  is  formed  by  adding  some  word  or  words  which  signify 
much,  many,  or  the  like,  or  by  repeating  the  same  word,  as  oran  baniok  or  ©rem  oran, 
many  man,  or  man-man. 

In  the  Coptic  the  syllable  ni  or  na,  which  is  prefixed  to  form  the  plural,  is,  no 
doubt,  says  Professor  Lee,  the  word  na  or  naa,  wnich  means  much,  many  or  great. 
In  Lee's  Hebrew  Grammar  the  subject  of  the  coalescence  of  words  with  fragments 
of  other  words  is  treated  in  a  masterly  manner. 

If  we  study  human  speech  for  ourselves,  by  closely  observing  what  is  going  on, 
instead  of  merely  reading  books  on  the.  «*biect  of  grammar,  we  shall  detect  the 
process  by  which  inflexions  are  formed.  The  formation  of  inflexions,  like  other 
changes  in  language,  are  not  the  result  of  a  committee  of  learned  men  sitting  in 
solemn  council.  -  There  is  no  deliberation  whatever  in  the  matter.  Learned  men 
and  grammarians  do  not  make  the  changes.  They  only  observe  and  record  the 
changes  that  are  taking  place  in  the  language  of  the  mass  of  the  people ;  and  all 
these  changes  are  made  in  the  spoken  language. 

The  two  objects  of  language  are — 

1.  To  convey  ideas,  etc. 

2.  To  do  so  rapidly. 

In  our  common  speech  we  are  ever  striving  to  convey  our  thoughts  with  rapidity, 
and  in  our  efforts  to  do  so,  we  involuntarily  abbreviate  many  words  and  join  those 
abbreviations  or  verbal  fragments  to  other  words.  In  this  way  we  oeconomise  sounds, 
syllables,  and  sometimes  words.  The  word  them  is  commonly  imperfectly  uttered 
in  the  rapidity  of  familiar  discourse.  It  is  abbreviated  by  cutting  off  the  theta  in 
such  phrases  as,  I  gave  'em  instead  of  /  gave  them*  This  was  observed  above  a 
century  ago,  when  an  attempt  was  made  to  render  the  written  language  a  transcript 
of  the  spoken  by  printing  the  abbreviation  'em  for  them.  The  first  edition  of  Lord 
Shaftesbury'B  Characteristics  was  so  printed. 

Again,  hi  familiar  talk  we  say  I  aint  for  I  am  not',  I  toont  for  I  will  not ;  /  thant 
for  f$haU  not.  These  examples,  so  far  from  being  exhaustive,  are  merely  instances 
from  groups  of  such  abbreviations.  The  act  of  subordinating  an  auxiliary  verb  to  the 
principal  verb  of  a  sentence  seems  to  crush  the  auxiliary  into  a  mere  fragment,  as  In 
the  sentence  /  ham  done,  which  is  in  rapid  talk  broken  down  into  JTv  done.  Such 
cases  illustrate  the  formation  of  an  inflexion,  and  is  what  is  passing  under  our  daily 
observation .  A  number  of  reasons  prevent  the  transfer  of  these  colloquialisms  from 
being  transferred  to  writing,  but  no  one  who  has  studied  the  subject  will  doubt,  that 
if  our  language  were  an  unwritten  one  and  now  about  to  become  a  written  one,  such 
forms  of  inflexion  would  be  noted  and  written  as  a  part  of  the  language. 
.  The  author  has  observed  similar  phenomena  in  several  European  languages* 
Hence  the  causes  that  produce  such  phenomena  in  our  own  language  are  also 
operating  with  similar  results  in  certain  other  living  languages,  and  it  is  to  such 
causes  alone  that  we  can  refer  the  formation  of  inflexions  in  the  Hebrew  and  other 
ancient  languages.  The  formation  of  inflexions,  then,  is  not  by  developing  some* 
thing  out  of  a  word)  but  by  adding  something  to  that  word. 

6* 


84  report — 1852. 

Notes  on  Blumenbach's  Classification  of  the  Human  Race. 
By  Richard  Cull,  Hon.  See.  Eth.  Soc. 


Description  of  a  Samoied  Family  seen  at  Archangel,  in  a  letter  to 
Dr.  Hodgkin.    By  John  V.  Giles. 

Daring  my  late  visit  to  Archangel  I  had  an  opportunity  of  observing  a  family  of 
Samoieds,  and  beg  to  offer  a  description  of  them.  They  consisted  of  five  individuals, 
the  father,  mother  and  their  children,  and  my  interest  was  chiefly  enlisted  in  them 
by  their  exceedingly  diminutive  stature. 

In  beating  about  the  coast  of  Lapland  for  some  weeks  and  round  the  North  Cape, 
I  had  accustomed  myself  to  the  low  stature  of  the  Laplanders,  but  the  height  of 
these  poor  wandering  Samoieds  approached  dwarfishness. 

The  mother,  who  was  about  three  inches  taller  than  the  man,  was  scarcely  four 
feet  high.  The  next  most  striking  peculiarity  I  observed  in  them  was  a  close  re* 
semblance  in  features  to  the  Chinese,  or  to  such  of  the  Chinese  people  as  I  have  seen 
about  Lintin,  Whamnoa  and  Canton,  who  are,  I  believe,  a  race  between  the  Chinese 
and  Tartars.  The  chief  point  of  resemblance  was  the  oblique  set  of  the  eyes  in  the 
head,  they  being  also  small,  dark  and  piercing ;  cheek  bones  high ;  hair  long  and 
black ;  complexion  dark  and  swarthy.  There  appeared  to  be  much  labour  expended 
upon  their  dress,  which  consisted  of  an  infinite  number  of  very  small  pieces  of  deer 
skins,  cut  into  the  shape  of  lozenges  or  diamonds,  closely  and  rather  neatly  sewed 
together,  the  fur  side  of  the  skin  turned  inwards.  Much  pains  seemed  to  be  taken 
to  ornament  them,  by  plaiting  and  working  up  strips  of  skins  into  tassels. 

The  upper  vestment  resembled  a  strait  jacket,  having  long  sleeves  closed  at  their 
extremities,  which  appeared  to  be  used  as  a  scrip,  for  when  anything  was  given  to 
them  they  released  the  arm  through  an  opening  made  under  the  armpit,  and  then 
drew  the  arm  in  again,  depositing  the  article  in  the  nether  extremity  of  the  sleeve. 

The  lower  part  of  their  dress  terminated  in  and  was  joined  to  a  sort  of  mocassin, 
made  also  as  the  upper  portion,  of  an  infinite  deal  of  patchwork.  I  imagined  they 
had  been  in  the  habit  of  exhibiting  themselves  to  English  vessels,  for  they  had  learned 
a  few  words  in  our  language,  and  could  ask  for  tobacco,  biscuit  and  beef.  To  my 
repeated  inquiries  as  to  where  they  came  from,  they  pointed  to  the  north-fast. 

They  made  me  several  visits  during  my  stay,  seemingly  very  much  pleased  with 
the  gifts  of  tobacco  and  biscuits  they  received  from  me,  but  would  never  come  on 
board  the  ship.    Unlike  the  people  around  them,  they  would  not  drink  raw  spirits. 

The  youngest  of  the  children  I  judged  to  be  about  three  years  of  age.  The  man's 
features  were  regular  and  tolerably  well-looking,  but  in  "the  woman  I  discerned 
the  marks  of  premature  old  age  ;  she  was  wrinkled  and  had  lost  some  teeth. 
Upon  first  seeing  them  I  had  taken  them  all  for  children  from  their  size,  until  I  came 
to  look  into  the  woman's  face,  when  seeing  the  marks  of  age,  and  making  inquiries 
as  well  as  I  could,  they  made  one  understand  their  relationship. 

As  they  are  a  people  not  much  known,  I  have  imagined  an  account  of  them,  how- 
ever short,  by  one  who  had  personally  met  with  them,  might  contribute  to  your 
researches  in  ethnology.  

• 

Notes  upon  a  Collection  of  Irish  Crania.    By  John  Grattak. 

On  placing  this  collection  of  ancient  Irish  crania  before  the  Section,  the  author 
offered  a  few  remarks  as  to  whence  they  were  obtained,  and  as  to  their  probable  an- 
tiquity. For  some  years  Mr.  Grattan  had  been  associated  with  Mr.  Getty  in  his 
examination  of  the  round  towers  in  Ulster,  having  for  his  special  object  to  rescue 
from  destruction  any  crania  that  might  be  brought  to  light  during  Mr.  Getty's  pro- 
ceedings. Ten  round  towers  were  examined  in  which  various  osseous  human  re- 
mains were  found,  including  eleven  crania.  In  all  the  towers,  except  that  at  Tram- 
mery,  upon  removing  a  greater  or  less  depth  of  heterogeneous  materials,— evidently 
the  slow  accumulation  of  ages, — a  flooring  of  lime,  apparently  the  result  of  the  acci- 
dental dropping  of  mortar  during  the  building  of  the  tower,  was  reached,  from  which 
downwards  the  offsets  that  constituted  the  foundations  of  the  tower  extended,  the 
interior  being  filled  up  with  soil  similar  in  all  respects  except  compactness  to  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  85 

virgin  soil  upon  which  the  foundation  rested,  and  tit  this  soil  and  under  the  time 
/oar,  without  any  exception  whatever,  the  remains  when  present  were  found. 

The  skulls  so  obtained  were  with  one  exception  in  so  frail  and  crumbling  a  con- 
dition that  it  was  found  impossible  to  remove  them,  except  in  almost  hopeless  frag* 
ments,  but  by  carefully  saturating  them  with  glue  and  cementing  them  together, 
they  were  restored  to  the  condition  in  which  they  then  appeared  (specimens  were 
exhibited). 

The  ten  towers  examined  were  Drumbo,  Trummery,  Clones,  Annoy,  Drumlane, 
Rams'  Island,  Devenish,  Island  Mahee,  Antrim  and  Tony.  Five  of  these  towers 
contained  human  osseous  remains ;  one  had  been  previously  disturbed,  and  four  ex- 
hibited no  trace  whatever  of  any.  At  Trummery,  a  tower  of  comparatively  recent 
erection,  according  to  Dr.  Petrie,  the  osseous  remains  were  found  in  a  carefully  con- 
structed stone  chamber. 

Of  the  eleven  skulls  discovered  within  the  Round  Towers,  one  was  found  at 
Drumbo ;  one  at  Trummery ;  six  at  Clones ;  two  at  Armoy ;  and  one  at  Drumlane. 

The  whole  collection  (including  crania  from  various  other  sources)  was  thrown 
into  four  chronological  groups,  viz.  the  Prehistoric,  the  Remote  historic,  the  Anglo- 
Irish  and  the  modern  periods.  The  eleven  crania  from  the  round  towers  were  re- 
ferred to  the  second  or  Remote  historic  group,  which  from  Dr.  Petrie's  researches 
must  belong  to  a  period  ranging  between  the  fifth  and  thirteenth  centuries.  The  tower 
of  Drumbo  not  being  of  later  erection  than  the  sixth  century,  the  cranium  must  have 
an  antiquity  of  not  less  than  twelve  or  thirteen  hundred  years.  Drumlane  tower 
being  of  nearly  the  same  period,  scarcely  so  old,  its  cranium  therefore  might  be  one 
thousand  or  eleven  hundred  years  old. 

The  collection  exhibited  unquestionable  evidence  of  the  existence  in  Ireland  at 
various  epochs  of  strikingly  contrasted  varieties  of  the  human  family.  But  amongst 
the  varieties  of  form  attention  was  fixed  upon  one  fact  strongly  shown,  viz.  the 
tenacity  with  which  different  types  preserved  their  identity  through  periods  of  time 
which  embraced  no  small  portion  of  the  history  of  mankind. 

The  crania  of  the  second  group,  viz.  those  found  in  the  round  towers,  it  was  sug- 
gested, might  possibly  represent  the  magnates  of  their  day.  The  construction  of  an 
elaborate  stone  chamber  under  the  tower  of  Trummery  would  scarcely  have  been 
undertaken  unless  the  individual  had  been  a  person  of  some  importance,  probably 
the  immediate  progenitor  of  the  erector  of  the  tower;  yet,  although  the  interment 
took  place  within  the  tower,  it  was  not  to  be  assumed  that  the  towers  were  built  for 
such  a  purpose.  The  decapitation  of  a  slain  chieftain,  either  by  friendly  or  hostile 
hands,  was  a  matter  of  ordinary  occurrence ;  now  with  the  cranium  from  Armoy 
were  found  the  three  superior  cervical  vertebra,  and  no  more,  precisely  so  much  of 
the  spinal  column  as  would  remain  attached  to  the  head  when  separated  from  the 
trunk.  Hence  the  inference  was  not  unreasonable  that  it  was  removed  from  some 
fallen  chieftain  to  rescue  it  from  indignity,  and  the  tower  in  which  it  was  found 
being  probably  then  in  the  course  of  erection,  was  there  interred,  just  as  the  head  of 
Diarmid  M' Fergus  was  buried  at  Clonmacnoise  and  his  body  at  Connor,  as  recorded 
in  the  annals  of  the  four  masters  a.d.  565. 

A  hope  was  expressed  that  the  collection  was  but  the  commencement  of  one  cal- 
culated one  day  to  afford  useful  data  to  science ;  and  the  author  concluded  by  ex- 
pressing his  own  belief,  that,  though  these  interesting  relics  of  dim  and  distant  ages 
and  their  congeners  of  more  modern  times  might  present  to  the  eye  of  the  ordinary 
observer  but  few  and  barren  facts,  they  would  be  found,  nevertheless,  when  viewed 
through  the  medium  of  what  appeared  to  some  minds  a  deeper  research  and  more 
exact  knowledge,  to  stand  forth,  voiceless  and  unsuggestive  as  they  seemed,  enduring 
hieroglyphs  of  our  race  pregnant  with  meaning  of  hidden  but  grave  import,  and  not, 
perhaps,  of  very  difficult  decipherment. 


On  the  Ethnological  Searing  of  the  Recent  Discoveries  in  Connexion  with 
the  Assyrian  Inscriptions.    By  the  Rev.  Edward  Hincks,  DJ). 

Correct  ethnological  reasoning  must  be  founded  on  facts,  of  the  present  or  former 
existence  of  which  we  have  satisfactory  evidence ;  that  is,  statements  in  relation  to 
them,  reduced  to  writing  while  they  still  existed,  and  that  by  persons  who  most 


86  miPORT— 1852. 

have  been  cognizant  of  the  reality  of  what  they  recorded.  Facts  of  this  nature  may 
be  isolated,  or  reduced  to  a  ey  ttem  by  those  who  recorded  them.  Of  tuch  a  system 
we  have  a  good  example  in  the  Germania  of  Tacitus,  Dr.  Latham's  recent  edition  of 
which  was  warmly  commended.  Other  collections  of  facts  of  a  somewhat  similar 
character  were  alluded  to  j  but  all  had  the  disadvantage  of  recording  much  as  to 
which  the  collectors  had  only  imperfect  information,  indiscriminately  mixed  up 
with  what  they  knew;  and  again,  all  such  collections  have  come  down  to  us 
through  many  copyists,  in  passing  through  whose  hands  they  have  been  much 
depraved. 

In  these  respects  they  must  yield  to  the  collection  offsets  deducible  from  Egyptian 
or  Assyrio-Babylonian  records,  of  which  we  possess  autographs,  or  at  any  rate 
copies  made  under  the  superintendence  of  the  authors,  while  the  facts  were  yet 
recent.  Nor  is  danger  to  be  apprehended  from  intentional  misrepresenting.  Facts 
connected  with  history,  would,  doubtless,  be  presented  in  a  manner  more  favourable 
to  the  royal  authors  of  the  inscriptions  than  truth  would  warrant.  But,  in  facts 
which  most  concern  the  ethnologist,  there  is  in  general  no  room  for  misrepre- 
sentation ;  they  being  facts  which  come  out  as  it  were  accidentally,  and  as  to  which 
national  vanity  has  no  place. 

The  facts  recorded  in  the  Assyrian  inscriptions  are  of  more  importance  than  those 
in  the  Egyptian,  because  they  are  not  clouded  as  the  latter  are  by  ignorance  in 
respect  to  their  chronology  or  geography.  The  chronology  of  the  period  to  which 
the  most  important  Egyptian  inscriptions  and  papyri  belong  is  still  a  subject  of 
controversy ;  while  it  was  stated  that  the  commencements  of  the  reigns  of  Sargon 
and  Sennacherib  were  as  certain  as  those  of  any  of  the  Lagidss  or  of  the  Cajsars. 
Dr.  Hincks  had  announced  in  a  paper  recently  read  before  the  Royal  Irish  Academy, 
that  the  twelve  first  years  of  Sargon  corresponded  with  the  twelve  years  assigned  in 
the  Canon  of  Ptolemy  to  Mardokempad,  which  name  is  a  corruption  of  that  of 
Marduk  Baladan.  In  the  course  of  July,  he  had  identified  the  three  years  of  the 
Belibus  of  the  Canon  (Belib)  with  the  second,  third,  and  fourth  of  Sennacherib.  It 
followed  from  this  that  the  reign  of  Sargon  lasted  eighteen  years,  and  that  the  first 
interregnum  of  the  Canon,  which  occupied  two  years,  is  to  be  referred  to  the  last 
year  of  Sargon,  and  the  first  of  Sennacherib.  Sargon'e  reign  began  in  731  n.c ; 
Sennacherib's  in  703  b.c.  Marduk  Baladan  was  three  times  conquered ;  first  by 
Sargon,  in  710  j  secondly,  by  Sennacherib,  in  703 ;  and  thirdly,  by  the  same  long, 
in  700.  On  the  first  occasion,  Sargon  added  Mesopotamia  to  his  kingdom ;  on  the 
second,  Sennacherib  gave  it  to  Belibus ;  and  on  the  third,  he  made  his  son  Assurnadin 
king  of  Mesopotamia  and  Chaldea,  which  last  country  had  been  left  to  Marduk 
Baladan  on  the  two  former  occasions.  Dr.  Hincks  identified  this  name  with  the 
Aparanadius,  which  is  the  name  of  the  successor  of  Belibus  in  the  best  MS.  of  the 
Canon  of  Ptolemy,  which  is,  however,  not  an  ancient  one  j  the  Greek  p  |ieing  a  mis- 
take for  st,  which  might  easily  have  been  occasioned  by  the  similarity  of  these  letters. 

Before  Sargon  we  have  Shalmaneser,  Tiglath  Pileser,  and  PuL  Col.  Rawlinsoo, 
who  had  first  recognised  the  name  of  Marduk  Baladan,  has  recently  discovered  a 
series  of  annals  of  Tiglath  Pileser.  In  a  fragment  of  the  annals  of  Pul,  Dr.  Hincks 
discovered  the  name  of  Menahem  as  a  tributary,  in  the  eighth  year  of  his  reign. 
This  being  fixed  by  2  Kings  vi.  to  about  770,  his  reign  must  have  commenced  about 
777-  Divanubar,  the  obelisk  king,  must  have  begun  to  reign  about  900  b.c,  as 
Hasael,  the  commencement  of  whose  reign  is  known  to  be  about  885,  was  king  in 
his  eighteenth  year,  but  not  in  his  fourteenth.  Col.  Rawlinsoo  has  found  a  series  of 
annals  of  the  father  of  this  king,  in  which  Ithobal,  king  of  Tyre,  is  mentioned.  It 
appears  from  the  Tynan  annals,  extracted  by  Menander,  and  preserved  by  Josephns, 
that  he  reigned  from  036  to  904,  which  is  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  date  of  his 
son's  reign. 

Reasons  were  then  given  why  the  geography  of  the  Assyrian  inscriptions  was 
capable  of  being  better  determined  than  of  the  hieroglyphic  ones ;  namely,  that  the 
Egyptian  could  only  go  in  one  direction  to  Asiatic  countries,  whereas  the  Assyrians 
made  expeditions  in  all  directions ;  and  the  direction  in  which  an  unknown  country 
lay  could  generally  be  determined  by  that  of  other  countries  noticed  along  with  it, 
if,  indeed,  it  was  not  expressly  pointed  out  by  the  king's  saying  that  he  went  to  it 
over  the  Euphrates  or  the  Zab. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  8/ 

The  great  ethnological  fact  respecting  Assyria— its  language— was  then  treated  of. 
Dr.  Hincks  considered  the  Assyrian  language  to  belong  to  a  family  akin  to  that  of 
the  Syro-Arabian  languages  hitherto  known,  rather  than  to  that  family  itself.  He 
first  pointed  out  what  it  had  in  common  with  all  these  languages.  It  had  verbal 
roots,  which  were  normally  triliteral,  but  of  which  some  letters  might  be  mutable  or 
evanescent,  whence  arise  different  classes  of  irregular  verbs.  These  roots  admitted 
not  only  the  simple  conjugation,  but  others  in  which  radical  letters  are  doubled, 
other  letters  added,  or  both  these  modifications  made  at  once.  From  these  roots 
verbal  nouns  are  formed,  either  by  a  simple  change  of  the  vowels,  or  by  the  addition 
*  of  letters,  such  as  are  called  in  Hebrew  Heemantic. 

It  agreed  with  the  Arabian  more  closely  than  with  any  other  Syro-Arabian  lan- 
guage in  three  respects  i — 1st.  In  forming  the  conjugations,  consonants  are  inserted 
among  the  radical  letters,  as  well  as  prefixed  to  them.  This  takes  place  regularly  in 
Arabic,  but  in  Hebrew  only  where  the  first  radical  is  a  sibilant.  2nd.  The  termina- 
tion of  the  aorist  varies  as  in  Arabic  j  different  verbs  taking  different  vowels  between 
the  second  and  third  radicals,  while  the  first  radical  sometimes  terminates  the  verb  \ 
and  sometimes  takes  after  it  a  or  u.  3rd.  The  forms  of  the  plural  vary,  and  the 
cases  of  nouns  differ  in  a  manner  which  resembles,  in  some  measure,  what  takes 
place  in  Arabic. 

The  Assyrian  language  differed  from  air  the  Syro- Arabian  languages  known 
hitherto  in  the  following  respects : — 1st  Where  they  have  h,  it  has  i  in  a  variety  of 
instances,  and  especially  in  the  pronouns  and  pronominal  affiles  of  the  third  person-** 
*tf,  *t,  sunn ;  *u,  la,  si,  mm  and  $in,  most  of  which  resembles  forms  in  other  languages, 
if  only  h  be  substituted  for  #. 

The  same  difference  occurs  in  the  characteristic  of  the  causative  conjugation.  In 
these  respects,  but  not  by  any  means  generally,  the  Assyrian  agrees  with  the 
Egyptian,  and  through  it  with  the  modern  Berber.  2nd.  The  Assyrian  has  no  pre- 
fixes, such  as  b  for  in,  I  for  to,  which  occur  in  all  the  Syro-Arabian  languages.  In 
place  of  these  it  has  separate  prepositions ;  and  to  avoid  the  awkwardness  of  joining 
these  to  the  prenominal  affixes,  and  perhaps  for  greater  clearness,  nouns  are  inserted, 
forming  compound  prepositions,  as  ina  Hrbisu  "  in  its  midst "  for  "  in  it."  Com- 
pound prepositions  may  be  used  also  before  other  nouns,  as  ina  kirib  biti,  "  in  the 
midst  of  the  house  "  for  ina  biti.  Sometimes  the  Assyrian  uses  affixes  as  substitutes 
for  prepositions.  Instead  of  ana,  to  or  for,  before  a  noun,  ith  may  be  added.  Thus 
"  for  a  spoil "  is  expressed  indifferently  by  ana  ihaUati  and  ehaUatith.  This  last 
form  has  much  of  the  nature  of  an  adverb  and  has  some  resemblance  to  the  Hebrew 
noun  with  He  locative*.  3rd.  The  Syro-Arabian  languages  made  frequent  use  of  a  pre- 
terite, in  which  the  distinctions  of  number  and  person  are  confined  to  the  end  of  the 
root ;  but  the  Assyrian  rejects  it,  or  at  least  uses  it  in  an  exceedingly  sparing  manner. 
On  this  account  Dr.  Hincks  proposed  to  consider  the  Benoni  participle,  masculine, 
singular,  in  regimen  as  the  root.  4.  The  varieties  in  the  termination  of  the  future  are 
not  connected  with  any  particles  that  may  precede  them,  but  of  themselves  indicate 
different  tenses.  The  termination  in  u  is  certainly  a  pluperfect.  Thus  where  men- 
tion is  made  of  "  that  Marduk  Baladan  whom  I  had  defeated  in  my  former  campaign," 
the  verb  is  ashtnu ;  but  whenever  "  I  defeated  "  occurs  in  the  simple  narration  askun, 
atkuna,  or  in  a  different  conjugation,  astakan  is  used.  This  law  has  been  folly  esta- 
blished. The  addition  of  a  seems  not  to  change  the  sense  ;  it  is  added  to  every  verb 
when  what  it  governs  follows  it,  and  to  some  verbs  even  where  it  precedes  it.  These 
are  chiefly  such  as  denote  locomotion. 

The  resemblance  of  the  most  common  Assyrian  prepositions  and  of  the  pronouns 
to  Indo-European  forms  is  curious,  and  points  to  a  common  though  remote  origin. 
The  Babylonian  inscriptions  are  in  the  same  language  as  the  Assyrian.  This  was 
probably  the  court  language  at  Babylon ;  but  the  common  people  most  probably 
used  the  Chaldean  language,  in  which  some  parts  of  the  books  of  Ezra  and  Daniel 
are  written. 

*  Since  this  was  written  Dr.  Hincks  has  been  led  to  alter  his  views  as  to  the  final  ma, 
which  is  not  connected  with  the  pronominal  affix,  but  with  the  verb  that  precedes  it,  of  which 
it  modifies  the  sense ;  thus  addin-su-ma  is  not  "  1  gave  to  him/.'  but "  when  I  had  given  to 
him,"  or  "  having  given  to  him."— (June  1853.) 


88  report — 3852. 

On  the  Forms  of  the  Personal  Pronouns  of  the  Two  First  Persons  m  the 

Indian,  European,  Syro- Arabic,  and  Egyptian  Languages.    By  the  Rev. 

Edward  Hincks,  DJ). 

Dr.  Hincks  began  by  saying  that  he  now  only  threw  out  suggestions,  which 
might  be  followed  up  by  others.  The  question,  of  which  he  took  a  novel  view,  could 
not  be  settled  by  considering  the  pronominal  forms  exclusively.  Many  other  points 
would  have  to  be  considered ;  and  whether  the  conclusions  which  appeared  to  him 
to  follow  with  a  high  degree  of  probability  from  these  forms,  would  be  confirmed  or 
proved  to  be  erroneous  by  the  examination  of  other  forms,  was  what  he  could  not 
now  say.  He  only  wished  to  set  persons  to  think.  It  appeared  to  him  that  a  cer- 
tain theory  had  been  taken  for  granted,  and  he  wished  that  it  should  be  subjected  to 
examination. 

The  affinity  of  the  personal  pronouns  in  all  the  Indo-European  languages  was  not 
to  be  disputed ;  nor  did  Dr.  Hincks  mean  to  challenge  any  reasonable  opinion  re- 
specting the  absolute  antiquity  of  the  Sanskrit.  What  he  called  in  question  was  its 
antiquity  relative  to  the  European  languages  akin  to  it.  The  case  with  respect  to 
the  pronouns  of  the  two  first  persons  might  be  briefly  stated.  The  Asiatic  members 
of  this  family  have  a  final  am  which  is  wanting  in  the  European  numbers*  Was  this 
am  omitted  by  the  Europeans,  or  added  by  the  Asiatics?  The  former  is  the  received 
opinion ;  the  latter  seems  more  probable  to  Dr.  Hincks.  Examples  of  both  processes 
are  common.  The  English  pronoun  we  is  nearly  the  same  with  that  in  many  lan- 
guages of  Northern  Europe.  It  is  admitted  by  all  philologists  that  this  has  been 
shortened  from  a  more  ancient  form,  wir  or  wis.  This  abbreviation  has  been  made 
in  Swedish  within  the  historic  period.  In  other  languages  it  was  made  in  the  pre- 
historic period ;  that  is,  we  have  no  written  documents  of  an  age  before  it  was  made. 
Philologists  are,  however,  agreed  that  the  $  or  r  at  the  end  of  this  form  was  an  ad- 
dition, and  that  there  must  have  been  an  older  form  without  it ;  and  the  received 
opinion  is  that  this  form  lot  or  vi  was  an  abbreviation  of  the  Sanskrit  viyam.  Dr. 
Hincks  considered  this  to  be  a  false  view.  He  assumed  a  form  anwis  or  anus  (and 
that  wi  and  u  pass  into  one  another  appears  from  a  vast  number  of  instances ;  as  the 
Latin  termination  vis,  where  the  Greek  and  Sanskrit  have  us ;  the  Semitic  copulative 
conjunction,  &c,  &c),  from  which  wis  and  nus  (not)  would  both  arise.  This  anus 
was  the  Semitic  pronoun  anu,  which  was  common  to  the  Indo-Europeans  and  Semitic 
races  before  their  separation,  in  the  same  manner  as  anaku  and  anta  or  amtu ;  and 
the  Indo-Europeans  added  *  under  a  false  impression  that  a  plural  termination  was 
necessary,  the  fact  being  that  anu  was  itself  plural.  As  it  is  not  likely  that  this  mis- 
take would  be  made  simultaneously  by  unconnected  nations.  Dr.  Hincks  argued  that 
the  addition  of*  must  have  taken  place  while  the  Indo-Europeans  were  one  people; 
and  hence  the  necessity  of  assuming  an  ancient  form  which  would  account  for  both 
wets  and  no*.  It  was  observed  that  n  was  peculiarly  liable  to  be  attached  to  words  be- 
ginning with  a  vowel.  The  Irish  names  of  Newry  and  of  the  river  Nore,  the  English 
noun  newt,  in  which  the  n  has  etymologically  no  place,  and  the  abbreviations,  nan, 
ned,  nol,  are  proofs  of  this. 

At  first,  it  was  assumed  that  the  pronoun  of  the  first  person  singular  in  the  Euro- 
pean languages  showed  traces  of  the  Indian  anu  The  o  in  ego  might  be  for  am,  as  the 
o  in  lego  certainly  was.  A  trace  of  this  o  remained  in  Sclavonic,  and  its  omission  in 
Lithuanian  and  Gothic  was  evidently  a  degradation.  Dr.  Hincks  maintained,  how- 
ever, that  this  o  might  be  otherwise  accounted  for,  the  Assyrian  form  of  the  pronoun 
being  an>a1cv.  According  to  this  view,  the  Indian  pronouns  aham  and  viyam  are  so 
far  from  being  the  original  forms  that  they  are  obtained  from  late  European  forms ; 
not  from  the  more  ancient  aku  and  vis,  but  from  the  abbreviated  ait  and  vi. 

If  this  philological  view  be  correct,  it  tends  to  an  ethnological  view,  which  re- 
sembles what  has  been  advanced  by  Dr.  Latham.  The  Indo-European  race  pro- 
ceeded westward  through  Asia  Minor,  and  over  the  Hellespont  and  Bosphorus. 
They  then  dispersed  through  Europe,  and  at  length  an  offset  from  the  Sclavonic 
branch  returned  to  Asia  between  the  Caspian  and  Black  Seas,  overrunning  some 
countries  eastward  of  Assyria  and  at  length  penetrating  to  India. 

The  Semitic  and  Indo-European  pronouns  of  the  second  person  plural  are  distinct, 
having  been  developed  in  different  manners  after  these  races  separated. 

The  Egyptian  pronouns  of  all  these  persons  take  that  am  at  their  commencement 

v;ch  the  Semitic  pronouns  of  die  first  two  persons  have. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8BCTION8.  89 

The  Origin,  Characteristics,  and  Dialed  of  the  People  in  the  Counties  of 
Down  and  Antrim.    By  the  Rev.  A.  Hume,  D.CJL,>  LL.D.,  F.S~A. 

The  district  comprising  the  counties  of  Down  and  Antrim,  of  which  Belfast  is  the 
i  natural  centre,  is  one  which  has  eiercised  a  most  important  influence  on  the  des- 
tinies of  the  human  race  in  these  islands*  In  Down,  the  patron  saint  made  his  first 
convert,  and  there  his  ashes  repose  ;t  in  Antrim,  the  real  Ossianic  poems  are  supposed 
to  have  existed.  In  Down  was  the  ancient  Ulidia,  from  which  the  extended  name 
Ulster  is  derived ;  in  Antrim  was  the  ancient  Dalradia,  the  name  of  which  was 
applied  to  a  large  portion  of  modern  Scotland.  Ireland  was  originally  known  as 
Scotia,  or  Scotia  Major ;  and,  when  the  name  was  superseded  at  home,  it  was 
retained  by  our  enterprising  colonists  to  Argyle  and  Lorn,  and  afterwards  extended 
to  all  North  Britain,  after  the  conquest  by  Kenneth  in  the  ninth  century.  The 
line  of  kings  descended  from  Fergus  the  son  of  Ere,  not  only  mingled  its  blood 
with  the  Saxon  and  Norman  royal  lines  of  England,  but  afterwards  inherited  the 
sovereignty  of  Great  Britain ;  so  that  Queen  Victoria  traces  an  authentic  descent 
from  the  petty  chieftains  of  this  neighbourhood  in  the  fifth  century. 

More  than  a  thousand  years  afterwards,  the  debt  of  colonization  was  repaid,  at 
the  time  of  the  Plantation  of  Ulster.  The  Anglo-Saxon  population  had  been  so  long 
separated  into  two  branches,  the  English  and  Scotch — differing  in  country,  laws, 
religion,  manners,  prejudices,  &c. — that  they  must  be  regarded  as  two  peoples,  and 
not  one.  If  to  these  we  add  the  remnant  of  the  native  Irish,  there  are  three  distinct 
elements,  from  the  composition  of  which,  in  different  quantities  and  situations,  the 
inhabitants  of  the  two  counties  are  derived. 

These  localities  are  the  following: — the  Irish,  in  the  hilly  districts,  as  in  the 
"  Glynnes  "  [glens]  of  Antrim  ;  and  the  Irish-speaking  population  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Cushendall.  There  are  a  few  in  almost  every  parish,  and  several  in  the 
great  towns.  In  Downjrfew  occur  north  of  Downpatrick  and  Ballynahinch ;  they 
then  converge  to  the  mountains  of  Mourne,  by  the  parish  of  Lough  in- island.  In 
die  past  generation,  Irish  was  frequently  spoken  in  the  markets  of  Downpatrick, 
Castlewellan,  Dromara,  and  Ballynahinch ;  now  it  is  rarely  used  as  a  separate  mode 
of  communication.  In  the  districts  of  the  Celts  they  preserve  their  traditional  anti- 
pathies, though  they  assimilate  in  language ;  and  the  terms  "  Irish/'  "  Scotch/'  and 
"  English/*  are  used  currently  by  the  nearest  neighbours  in  reference  to  ancestral 
origin. 

The  Scottish  immigration  followed  two  natural  routes — by  the  Mull  of  Cantyre  to 
the  County  Antrim,  near  the  Causeway ;  and  by  the  Mull  of  Galloway  to  the  County 
Down,  by  Donaghadee.  From  the  earliest  time,  coracle  skiff  and  coaster  must  have 
passed  in  this  way,  and  the  two  distinct  streams  ran  right  across  the  counties.  In 
Down,  the  Scotch  current  is  traceable  by  Comber,  Killileagh,  Saintfield,  and  Anna* 
hilt,  nearly  to  Hillsborough ;  also,  by  Castlereagh  and  Purdysburn,  to  near  Belfast. 
In  the  County  Antrim,  the  course  is  by  Ballymoney  and  Ballymena,  up  to  the  town 
of  Antrim,  and  over  the  back  of  Devis  and  the  Cave-hill. 

The  English  settlers  occupied  mainly  the  low  countries,  such  as  the  basins  of  the 
Lagan  and  Bann,  and  the  banks  of  Lough  Neagh.  Belfast  was  originally  an  English 
town,  but  its  external  increase  has  been  mainly  from  the  two  Scottish  districts* 
Lisburn  was  a  small  English  and  Welsh  colony  ;  it  is  now  practically  an  English 
town.  In  one  barony  of  Antrim,  of  128  townlands,  the  population  is  all  of  English 
origin ;  and  Aghalee,  Ballinderry,  &e.,  look  like  parts  of  England. 

At  various  points  the  different  races  meet,  but  refuse  to  mingle.  There  are  English, 
Irish,  and  Scotch  quarters  in  several  towns,  such  as  Downpatrick  and  Carrickfergus ; 
and  the  Lagan,  near  Lisburn,  separates  the  two  races.  In  one  half  of  the  parish 
of  Hillsborough  the  people  are  all  Scotch,  in  the  other  they  are  all  English.  A  hill 
near  Ballynahinch  separates  the  two  races ;  and  the  island  of  Rathlin  has  its  two 
promontories  occupied,  one  by  the  Irish,  the  other  by  the  English  and  Scotch. 

The  religion,  habits,  customs,  &c,  may  all  be  deduced  from  this  distribution.  In 
religion,  for  instance,  the  rule  is,  that  the  English  are  Episcopalians ;  the  Scotch, 
Presbyterians ;  and  the  Irish,  Roman  Catholics.  The  lines  of  Scottish  population 
may  be  marked  on  the  map  by  a  double  chain  of  Presbyterian  meeting-houses,  while 
in  the  English  districts  they  are  rare  or  unknown.  In  fourteen  Presbyteries  of  the 
General  Assembly,  seven  of  which  are  in  each  county,  there  are  upwards  of  200  con- 
gregations.   If  to  these  we  add  other  Presbyterian  congregations  not  connected 


90  REPORT— 1852. 

with  the  Assembly,  we  shall  find  that  folly  one-half  of  all  the  congregations  in 
Ireland  are  situated  in  these  two  counties,  or  connected  with  Presbyteries  that  cen- 
tralize in  them.  More  than  one-half  of  these  are  in  rural  districts,  unconnected 
with  towns  or  villages,  and  called  by  the  names  of  townlands ;  showing  that  the 
Scotch  were  in  general  agriculturists,  and  less  settled  in  towns  than  the  English.  In  < 
the  English  districts  the  church-and-king  feeling  is  strong,  but,  from  the  magnitude 
of  the  parishes  and  the  distance  of  churches  from  particular  points,  the  people  are 
less  attentive  than  they  should  be  to  their  religious  duties.  In  the  Irisn  districts 
the  Roman  Catholic  congregations  are  large,  and  those  of  the  two  branches  of  the 
Protestant  Church  are  small.  In  the  English  and  Scotch  districts,  several  parishes 
are  united  to  form  one  in  the  Roman  Catholic  arrangements ;  and  again,  Drumgoo- 
land,  where  Protestants  are  few  in  number,  is  divided  into  two  Roman  Catholic 
parishes.  This  is  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Dolly's  Brae,  and  it  is  said  that  in  two 
townlands  of  Backaderry  and  Magheramayo,  as  well  as  in  several  others,  there  are 
scarcely  any  Protestant  families. 

The  habits  of  the  people,  as  well  as  their  creed,  indicate  their  origin.  In  the 
English  districts  there  is  more  comfort  and  tidiness  than  we  find  elsewhere ;  for  the 
man  of  Scottish  ancestry  does  not  enjoy  life  so  well,  though  he  may  be  actually 
richer.  The  Scotchman  is  often  more  intelligent  than  his  English  neighbour,  but  he 
rarely  excels  him  in  weight  of  character.  In  the  English  districts  the  farms  are 
large,  and  there  is  a  better  kind  of  house,  furniture,  stock,  food,  clothing,  ecc.  The 
man  of  English  origin  will  live  and  let  live.  In  the  markets  of  Lurgan,  Lisburn, 
Moire.,  and  Portadown,  the  Down  farmer  is  known  from  the  Antrim  one,  or  rather 
the  Scotchman  from  the  English,  by  his  hardness  in  driving  a  bargain.  The  old 
English  sports  and  pastimes  were  kept  up  till  recently  at  Lambeg ;  the  May-pole  is 
still  known  in  Holywood,  and  tradition  leads  us  to  believe  that  certain  mystery 
plays  have  been  performed  in  the  district.  The  custom  of  hiring  servants  at  stated 
fairs  is  followed  in  Antrim*  as  is  the  case  in  many  other  tow*  and  places  of  England ; 
and  while  those  who  attend  for  the  purpose  at  Carlisle  carry  a  straw  in  the  mouth, 
those  at  Antrim  carry  a  little  white  rod  in  the  hand.  The  settlers  on  the  Marquis 
of  Hertford's  estate  were  in  general  natives  of  the  shires  adjoining  the  Bristol  Chan- 
nel, and  as  their  ancestral  district  is  the  apple  district  of  England,  so  the  barony  of 
Upper  Massareene  is  the  apple  district  of  Ireland.  After  the  lapse  of  250  years,  the 
ancient  custom  is  preserved  as  if  it  were  of  yesterday.  Hie  superstitions  of  May- 
eve  and  Hallow- e'en  are  still  practised,  and  not  one  of  the  ceremonies  in  Burns  s 
poem  is  neglected,  even  by  those  to  whom  the  poem  is  utterly  unknown. 

The  names  of  persons  and  of  places  are  also  highly  illustrative  of  the  people.  In 
the  English  districts,  we  meet  with  such  names  as  Turner,  Standfield,  Hull,  Moore, 
Shields;  in  the  Scottish,  Dunbar,  Edgar,  Livingstone,  Kennedy,  Douglas,  and 
sometimes  they  undergo  curious  transformations.  In  the  Irish  districts,  a  few  names 
are  used  with  distinctive  terms  and  epithets,  and  sometimes  Irish  names  are  trans- 
lated into  English  or  Anglicised ;  M'Shane  becomes  Johnston,  and  Ginnif,  Sands, 
while  M'Gurnaghan  is  altered  to  the  more  euphonious  Gordon.  Names  of  places 
are  often  derived  from  those  of  persons,  as  Hill-town,  Hill-hall,  and  Hills-borough, 
from  the  Downshire  family ;  Gill-hall  and  Gilford  from  the  M'Gilla  j  and  similarly 
Warings-town,  Ross-trevor,  Echlin-ville,  Mount-etewart.  Grooms-port  is  Graemes'- 
port,  and  Ballymcarrett  the  village  of  M'Art.  Many  names  are  less  distinctly 
known,  as  Bryan's-ford,  Lyle-hill,  Randals-town ;  others  allude  to  the  original  pos- 
sessors, as  Acre  M'Cricket,  Taggart's-land,  Douglas-land,  Dobbin's-land,  Bally- 
eopeland,  Bally-french,  Bally-gilbert. 

Dr.  Hume  concluded  his  remarks  with  a  vivd  voce  description  of  the  Hyberoo- 
English  dialect  in  these  two  counties,  and  showed,  by  various  quotations,  its  local 
characteristics,  and  also  its  usefulness.  From  the  fusion  of  many  peculiarities  and 
the  mingling  of  provincialisms  from  various  parts  of  the  United  Kingdom,  it  is  par- 
ticularly useful  in  the  illustration  of  our  old  English  literature. 

Heads  of  a  Paper  "  On  the  present  state  of  Medo-Persic  Philology:' 
By  Professor  MacDouall,  M.A.,  Queen's  College,  Belfast. 

Tendencies  have  been  lately  exhibited,  in  works  treating  of  comparative  philology, 
to  disturb,  whether  by  contraction  or  by  enlargement,  the  relations  which  profound 
researchs  was  upposed  to  have  definitively  settled  between  the  Indo-European 


TBANBACTIONS  OF  TH«  BBCTIONS.      /_-  ,„        '  -91 

(iTJi,iv*asi7 

language*  and  those  of  other  families,  and  also  to  question*  on  valtouez-points,  the 
principles  on  which  the  present  arrangement  of  the  members  compst&srafe  k»40r,_  %  * 
European  class  itself  reposes.  In  particular,  the  position  usually  assT|^e^tbhlieJL,«  **  ' 
Medo- Persic  element  has  been  assailed;  and  not  merely  has  the  registry" 
functions  and  claims  been  thought  to  demand  revision,  but  a  disposition  has  been 
evinced  to  jostle  it  altogether  out  of  its  existing  connexion.  Although  it  was  not 
to  have  been  expected  that  such  theories  as  those  formerly  advocated  by  Othmar 
Frank  on  one  side,  and  Col.  Vans  Kennedy  on  another,  would  be  reproduced  after 
the  natural  history  of  languages  had  been  traced  by  Schlegel,  Humboldt,  and  their 
coadjutors,  yet  that  the  present  attitude  of  Medo- Persic  philology  is  a  retrograde 
one,  might  be  inferred  from  such  surmises  as  those  which,  having  been  propounded 
by  an  authority  like  Dr.  Latham,  drew  upon  him  unmeasured  censure  in  a  recent 
uuwber  of  the  Edinburgh  Review.  If  it  be  not  certain,  after  all,  that  the  Iranian 
speech  is  cognate  with  the  Sanekrita,— if  it  be  still  possible  that  the  organisation  of 
any  of  its  dialects  may  pass  for  Seriform, — then  it  is  certainly  high  time  that  the 
notions  generally  current  in  reference  to  it  should  be  reviewed,  and,  if  requisite, 
corrected.  A  ruumi  of  the  progress  already  made  may  be  useful  as  a  preliminary 
to  prospective  steps  in  this  direction. 

The  Languages  spoken  by  the  subjects  of  the  Achssmenian  Kings— preserved 
through  past  ages  on  rocks,  bricks,  and  slabs  of  stone,  in  the  Cuneiform  Inscrip- 
tions— are  now  partially  resuscitated.  One  of  these — generally  known  as  "the 
third  "—is  admitted  by  all  decipherers,  with  the  (probably)  solitary  exception  of 
Grptefend,  to  come  under  the  Semitic  category,  like  those  of  the  Inscriptions  of 
Assyria  and  Babylonia.  The  "  second  "  type  has  not  yet  been  so  definitely  classified : 
the  designation  at  first  given  to  it,  "  Pahlavi,"  has  been  given  up,  and  that  of 
"  Median  "  has  been  substituted  provisionally  \  but,  while  some  consider  it  Aramaic, 
others  are  at  a  loss  whether  to  treat  it  as  Arian,  or  as  Turanian, — and  in  either  case 
disguised  by  foreign  accessions, — or  as  a  hybrid  offspring,  and  one  of  uncertain  pa* 
rentage.  Only  the  "  first "  of  these  monumental  languages  is  admitted  by  all  to  be 
Arian,  and, by  nearly  all  to  represent  the  "  Old  Persic."  Not  only  its  orthography, 
but  its  lexical  and  grammatical  constitution,  has  been  already  to  a  great  extent 
elucidated ;  and, — what  it  is  here  of  importance  to  observe,— it  has  been  shown  to 
resemble  very  closely  the  Old  Sanskrita, — that  of  the  Veda*. 

Distinct  from  the  Languages  just  noticed,  and  likewise  from  each  other,  are  those 
preserved  in  the  Sacred  Books  of  the  Parsis — whether  those  of  the  Sipasi  heretics,  or 
those  of  the  orthodox  Zoroastrians  or  Mazdayacnis.  It  is  true,  that  not  only  the 
antiquity  and  genuineness  of  those  books  has  been  questioned  by  European  criticism, 
but  that  the  very  languages,  both  of  that  oracle  of  the  Sipasls — the  DasdOr,  and  of 
those  Zoroaatrian  books  which  are  represented  as  the  oldest  and  as  the  prototypes  of 
the  rest,  have  been  regarded  as  fictitious  products, — travesties  of  real  but  recent 
tongues,  or  else  as  mere  gibberish.  Whether,  however,  that  in  which  the  so-called 
version  of  the  Dasdftr  is  composed  represents  the  vernacular  of  Persia  about  the 
time  of  the  Moslem  conquest,  or  is  some  centuries  later, — and  whether  that  of  the 
so-called  original,  the  Asmarf  Zabon,  be  such  a  fabrication  as  the  Balai-Bolna 
of  the  Sufis  or  the  Formosan  of  Psalmanasar,  or  after  all  be,  as  suggested  by 
Von  Hammer  and  Troyer,  the  relic  of  some  old  local  dialect, — are  points  which,  on 
the  one  hand,  cannot  be  regarded  as  finally  decided,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  do  not 
furnish  available  data  in  the  present  inquiry.  But  it  has  come  to  be  generally 
acknowledged,  in  respect  to  the  Mazdayacnian  Books,  that  they  in  reality  belong  to 
three  distinct  epochs : — the  originals  being  fragments  of  the  revelations  attributed 
to  the  undated  Seer,  Zarathustra;— the  proximate  versions  or  imitations  of  these, 
with  some  commentaries  on  them,  being  of  the  Sasanian  age ; — and  the  versions  of 
those  versions,  with  other  pieces  founded  upon  and  referring  to  them,  coming  down 
as  far  as — and  in  some  instances  even  below — the  era  of  Yazdajird.  And  the  history 
of  the  three  Languages,  in  which  these  three  classes  of  Books  are  composed;  requires 
now  to  be  traced  with  the  utmost  attainable  accuracy. 

I.  The  Fir$t  of  them  has  been  variously  designated  the  Language  of  the  "  Mana- 
thar"  (="  Invocations")*  or  "of  the  Avetta"  (="Text,  Discourse,"  or  perhaps 
primarily  "  Appointment,  Decree  "),  or  "  of  the  Zend  "  (  =  "  Book/'  or  perhaps 
"  Gnosis,  Science  "),  from  the  documents  in  which  it  has  been  preserved.    The  third 


92-  ftEPORT — 1852. 

of  these  names  is  the  one  most  usually  employed ;  though  Spiegel  and  some  other 
scholars  have  lately  questioned  its  propriety,  conceiving  it  to  designate  the  more  re* 
cent  version ,  in  an  Aramaising  idiom,  which  will  be  noticed  under  the  next  head. 
So  long  as  this  language  could  be  studied  only  in  the  specimens  exhibited  by  An- 
quetil  Duperron,  its  character  and  rank  were  very  imperfectly  apprehended;  bat 
now,  that  its  genuine  physiognomy  has  been  portrayed  by  the  happy  ingenuity 
of  Rask,  its  framework  rebuilt  and  reanimated  by  the  master-hand  of  Burnouf,  and 
its  relations  elicited  by  the  comprehensive  analytics  of  Bopp,  it  has  assumed  its 
rightful  stand-point  as  one  of  the  primary  members  of  the  Indo-European  family. 
As  yet,  however,  opinions  remain  divided  in  reference  to  its  original  locality, — its 
growth,  progress,  and  decline, — the  age,  authenticity,  and  mutual  relations  of  its 
literary  muniments. — The  idea  of  Anquetil,  Kleuker,  and  Herder,  that  the  Zend- 
books  were  composed  under  Darius  the  son  of  Hystaspes  and  succeeding  kings  of 
the  Achemenian  house,  has  been  advocated  by  Adelung,  Rask,  Malcolm,  and  Klap- 
roth :  Wahl  likewise  concurred, — although  he  held  that  their  language  was  merely 
a  hieratic  vehicle,  gradually  refined  from  the  one  in  popular  use  by  the  sacerdotal 
caste :  and  the  late  Dr.  Prichard  adhered  to  the  same  chronology,  without  pronouncing 
decidedly  for  Wahl's  theory,  but  evidently  well  inclined  to  it.  Foucher  and  Tychsen, 
however,  believed  the  groundwork  of  the  liturgy  to  date  from  the  reign  of  the  Mede 
Cyaxares  I.,  above  600  years  b.c  ;  while  they  allowed  that  expositions  of  various 
parts,  with  additional  prayers  and  tracts,  composed  under  the  Achaemenids,  must  have 
been  incorporated  with  antique  fragments  in  the  existing  compilation  so  lately  as 
under  the  Sasanian  dynasty.  Rhode  and  Heeren  went  still  farther  back,  making 
the  age  of  Zarathustra  anterior  to  the  Median  empire ;  and  this  hypothesis  has  been 
stamped  with  the  sanction  of  Burnouf,  Lassen,  and  Pott. — For  the  locality  of  "  the 
Zend-folk/'  the  older  inquirers  had  pitched  upon  the  North-West  provinces  of  Iran, 
between  the  Caspian  and  Black  Seas,  and  supposed  the  vocabulary  to  have  been 
that  of  Northern  Media :  philological  affinities  were  therefore  sought,  by  Anquetil, 
Kleuker,  and  Wahl,  in  the  subsisting  dialects  of  Armenia  and  Georgia ;  but — more 
discreetly — by  Klaproth  and  Rask,  in  the  speech  of  the  Caucasian  Iron  or  OsT, 
whose  descent  from  the  old  Medes  had  been  traced  through  the  Alans  of  the  middle 
ages.  An  antagonist  theory  points  to  the  North- Eastern  provinces,  those  bounded 
by  the  Caspian  and  the  Himalayan  range ;  and,  styling  the  speech  of  the  Avetia 
"  Sogdo-Bactrian,"  makes -it  intermediate,  as  to  local  habitation  not  less  than  age, 
between  the  "  Medo-Persic  "  of  the  Achsemenian  Inscriptions  and  the  Sanskrita  of  the 
Fedas.  And  this  latter  theory, — first  suggested  by  Foucher  and  Tychsen,  afterwards 
maintained  by  Rhode  and  Heeren, — is  now  commended  by  Burnouf,  Lassen,  Pott, 
Spiegel,  and  Westergaard ;  while  Prichard,  after  a  show  of  resistance,  has  virtually 
capitulated  in  its  favour. — The  definite  conclusions  of  Westergaard  on  other  points 
have  not  yet  been  announced ;  but,  in  1843,  he  proposed  to  keep  in  view,  throughout 
his  forthcoming  Grammar  and  Dictionary,  certain  ideas, — previously  thrown  out  by 
Mr.  Erskine  of  Bombay, — viz.  that  in  the  extant  rjfacciamento  of  the  Parsi  books 
but  a  small  residuum  of  the  old  Bactrian  oracles  can  be  detected,  and  that  their 
language  is  in  a  condition  of  decrepitude  and  semibarbarism.  Col.  Rawlinson,  in 
different  papers,  oscillates  between  Erskine's  notion  and  that  of  Wahl ;  but  his 
latest  statement,  in  1846,  is  opposed  to  the  belief  that  these  books  conserve  any 
tongue  which  was  spoken  under  the  ancient  monarchy.  Finally,  Spiegel's  acute 
criticism  has  not  only  dissevered  the  relics  of  most  hoar  antiquity  from  the  recent 
Sasanian  accessions, — has  not  only  detached  from  both  extremes  various  specimens 
of  the  literature  which  partially  bridged  over  the  wide  gap  between, — but  has  dis- 
parted the  "  Old  Zend  "  itself  into  two  distinct  dialects,  and  referred  to  each  of  these 
such  of  the  extant  documents  as  exhibit  their  respective  peculiarities.  What  if  this 
distinction, — which  Westergaard  homologates, — was  one  of  locality  rather  than  of 
age  ?  What  if  one-half  of  the  book  Yapia  was  composed  on  the  Western  or  Median 
side  of  the  Caspian  Lake,  and  the  other  on  its  Eastern  or  Bactrian  border  ?  If  so, 
we  may  amicably  close  all  controversy  about  "  Media  "  or  "  Bactria,"  as  the  home 
of  the  Zend  speech — which  must  thus  have  been  "  Medo- Bactrian,"  and  as  the 
cradle  of  the  Zend  people — in  whose  sagas  the  spiritual  and  secular  powers  were 

rbolised,  respectively,  by  Zarathustra,  the  Seer  born  in  Urumlya,  and  Vishtacpa, 
Monarch  enthroned  in  Balkh, 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  93 

II.  Under  the  early  Sasanian  kings  the  Pint  Book-language  had  become  obsolete, 
and  the  Second,— called  by  the  Parsls  "  the  speech  of  Huzv&reih"  (="  Auspicious 
Heroism,"  as  it  need  to  be  rendered,  or  rather,  as  it  is  now  understood,  "  Acceptable 
Sacrifice"), — became  the  hieratic  vehicle.  In  this  appeared  both  versions  of  the  old  re- 
velations, and  also  some  new  works  designed  to  facilitate  the  restoration  of  Magian 
worship,  such  as  the  Vtrof  Nomoh,  the  Bun~Dehe*h,  the  Mino-Kkirod,  the  Dln-Kard, 
Sec.  That  any  secular  works  were  composed  in  it,  or  indeed  existed  at  that  epoch,  there 
is  no  evidence.  In  it,  however,  are  expressed  the  legends  upon  the  fire-altar-coins 
struck  by  the  early  Sasanids,  and  also  the  vernacular  portions  of  bilingual  inscrip- 
tions upon  various  monuments  at  Naqsh-e-Rustam,  Naqsh-e-Rajab,  and  Karman- 
Shah,  belonging  to  the  same  period.  This  fact  was  discovered,  as  is  well  known,  by 
the  illustrious  Silvestre  de  Sacy.  The  labours  of  successive  numismatists  and  de- 
cipherers have  gradually,  though  still  but  imperfectly,  elicited  the  laws  and  charac- 
teristics of  the  language :  they  have  been  most  clearly  expounded  in  an  essay  of 
Joseph  Muller,  and  the  publications  of  Spiegel  and  Westergaard  are  now  rendering 
them  at  once  more  definite  and  more  widely  known.  All  inquirers  continue  to  agree 
that  it  is  isolated,  among  the  Arian  kin- tongues,  by  a  copious  Aramaic  infusion, 
neither  inherited  from  its  predecessor  nor  transmitted  to  its  successor,  which  has  im- 
parted to  it  a  hybrid  and  abnormal  aspect,  and  which  at  the  same  time  assures  us 
that  this  is  the  "  language  of  Zardusht"  described  by  Abu-'l-Faraj  as  an  admixture  of 
Old  Persic  with  Nabathaean  or  Assyrio-Chaldaic— Now,  these  circumstances  all 
harmonise  with — if  they  do  not  absolutely  require — the  hypothesis,  that  the  Huz- 
varesh  speech  must  have  originated  in  the  Western  provinces  of  the  empire,  where 
the  maniform  intercourse  of  Arian  and  Semitic  tribes  would  naturally  produce  a 
mongrel  phraseology.  While  compatible  with  Anquetil's  view  of  its  being  indige- 
nous in  Lower  Media,  in  the  region  between  Mazandaran  and  Farsistan,  they 
rather  favour  that  for  which  the  cogent  arguments  of  Erskine,  Muller,  Mohl, 
Lassen  and  Knobel  have  secured  a  general  reception — viz.  that  it  was  formed  in 
the  Border-land  along  the  Tigris,  including  at  first  Khuzistan  and  Iraq-Ajami, 
and  subsequently  also  the  Northern  districts  about  Hamadan  and  Kirmanshah. 
They  decisively  preclude  the  fancy  of  Quatremere  and  Pott,  that  this  language 
was  vernacular  East  of  the  Caspian,  among  the  Parthians, — was  successfully  pro- 
pagated towards  the  West  and  South  by  the  dominant  Arsacids, — and  only  relapsed 
into  obscurity  after  several  reigns  of  the  native  Sasanians.  For,  in  this  case,  it 
should  have  been  distinguished  by  a  Turanian,  not  an  Aramaic,  infusion  ;  its  monu- 
mental inscriptions  should  have  been  found  to  the  East,  not  the  West,  of  the  Great 
Salt  Desert ;  its  coin-legends  should  have  belonged  to  the  "  Phil-hellenic"  Arsacids, — 
whose  mintage  however  is  purely  Grecian, — not  to  their  Sasanian  successors,  whose 
policy  would  naturally  have  discouraged  its  use.  Equally  inadmissible  is  the  idea  of 
Anquetil  and  his  immediate  followers,  that  this  dialect  so  early  and  so  extensively 
encroached  upon  the  domain  of  others,  as  to  have  been  adopted,  under  the  Kaianian 
dynasty,  as  the  speech  of  the  court  and  the  empire,  and  to  have  maintained  that 
rank  at  least  900  years,  including  the  most  brilliant  and  palmy  period  of  Persian 
ascendency,  and  reaching  down  almost  to  the  Moslem  invasion.  It  is  sufficient  to 
remark, — without  mentioning  the  historical  and  geographical  difficulties  which  hence 
arise, — first,  that  it  is  not  this  language  which  supplies  the  words  adduced  by 
Greek  and  Latin  writers  as  exemplifying  the  classical  Persic  of  their  day ;  and, 
secondly,  that  its  structure  does  not  accord  with  the  intimations  of  Firdausi,  Nizami, 
and  other  Moslem  authors,  that  the  speech  of  the  ancient  monarchy  had  survived  the 
revolution,  and  had  come  down  to  themselves  so  far  exempt  from  any  material  change 
that  they  had  no  difficulty  in  consulting  the  chronicles  preserved  in  it . 

III.  In  respect  to  the  Third  Book- language,  the  prevalent — and,  as  would  appear, 
well-founded — belief  now  is,  that  it  was  the  one  referred  to  by  Firdausi  and  Nizami ; 
that  it  had  been  the  vernacular  idiom  of  Farsistan,  which,  under  the  later  kings  of 
the  Sasanian  line,  became  fashionable  and  literary ;  that  it  ranked  as  the  Dart  or 
"  Court-speech"  during  two  centuries,  but  shrank  into  the  obscurity  of  a  book-lan- 
guage after  a.d.  641,  when  it  ceded  its  title  of  Dart  by  resisting  that  influx  of  Arabic 
terms  and  phrases  which  began  thenceforward  to  colour  the  vehicle  of  ordinary  con- 
versation and  business.  Its  analytical  character,  intermediate  between  the  still  com* 
plex — though  doubtless  partially  relaxed — tissue  of  Huzvaresh  and  the  consummated 


94  REPORT— 1852. 

disintegration  of  Neo- Persic,  warrants  the  philological  soundness  of  this  belief.  Its 
name,  "  PSrd,"  at  onoe  recala  its  original  locality,  and  identifies  it  as  the  distant  de- 
scendant of  the  language  which  occupies  the  first  place  in  the  Achssmenian  Inscrip- 
tions—although,  of  course,  the  resemblance  between  these  two  has  been  seriously  Im- 
paired by  diversified  influences  in  the  wide  chasm  of  time  by  which  they  are  separated. 
Since  in  it  various  holy  Oracles  were  translated  from  Huxvaresh,*— if  not,  in  rare  cases, 
even  from  the  older  hieratic  tongue, — and  since  expositions  and  devotional  pieces  by 
revered  Mobeds  were  preserved  in  it  by  those  who  adhered  to  the  old  faith  after  the 
triumph  of  Islam,  it  is  now  found  to  be  largely  saturated  with  the  spirit  of  those 
uncongenial  idioms,— especially  the  latter  of  them,  with  which  it  was  in  move  imme- 
diate contact*  Hence  too  it  has  been  designated  the  speech  of  "  Pa~Zend  "  tc  "  the 
Commentary,"  and  of  " Bururgam-e-IMn"  =  "the  Doctors  of  Religion."  But, 
though  the  "literary  memorials  now  extant  in  it  are,  probably  without  exception, 
religious,  others,  now  lost,  are  recorded  to  have  been  composed  in  it  on  secular  sub* 
jects ; — such  as  the  Z(rfar-Ndmak=z"  Book  of  Victory,"  by  Buxur,  the  -Vaxlr  of 
Nushirvan, — the  far  older  Kdr-Namah  =  "Journal,"  of  uncertain  authorship,— 
and  a  work  on  Morals  by  Ardshir  Babagan.  Further,  it  must  be  this  same  Pars!  or 
Old  Dari  which  Mohammedan  writers  term  "Pahlart,"  while  stating  that  in  it, 
under  the  patronage  of  Nushirvan  and  his  successors,  were  composed  the  BMH&m- 
Nmnah  =  "  Old  Hero-book/'  and  also  sundry  versions  as  well  of  Sanskrita  collections 
of  apologues  as  of  treatises  by  Plato  and  Artstoteles. 

Although,  in  the  present  abstract  of  a  long  paper*,  the  disputed  appellations  Ave**, 
Zend,  Deri,  have  been  passed  without  discussion,  yet  it  is  necessary  concisely  to 
review  the  history  and  circumscribe  the  import  of  the  name  just  mentioned,-— ^ealsef, 
«— because  it  has  been  bandied  about,  in  reference  to  unconnected  and  alien  objects, 
with  such  latitude  as  to  have  involved  the  whole  field  of  Medo- Persic  philology  in  a 
perplexity  truly  tantalising. 

From  the  time  of  Hyde  and  Anquetil,  European  writers,  with  the  sanction  and 
concurrence  (as  would  appear)  of  the  Parsis  themselves,  have  designated  the  Second 
Book-language  "  PakUnX."  And,  in  accordance  with  the  different  views  which  they 
have  taken  of  the  origin  and  history  of  that  language,  they  have  espoused  different 
derivations  of  this  name.  Borne  have  deduced  it  from ptUUu  k  "  vigour,"  or  pakiem 
«  "  strong,  hero,"  as  if  it  were  strictly  synonymous  with  Hu-zwtreek  (according  to 
the  etymology  put  upon  the  latter  term  until  lately),  and  representative  of  the  speech 
in  which  the  PakLawdn-e-Jahdn^Xhow  Paladins  who  upheld  Iran,  while  its  sway  was 
most  extended— embodied  their  conceptions ;— others,  from  Pahiaoa  as  applied  to 
the  Parthian  tribes,  or  from  Pehlev  as  indicating  the  old  battle-ground  of  Rustam  and 
Afrisiab ;— others,  from  PaMu,  as  restricted  to  the  Border-land  between  the  purely 
Persian  and  the  Arabo-Chaldaic  territories.  But  Pahlatt  is  defined  by  some  Moslem 
authorities  as  simply  sc  "  ancient  ParH  j "  and  by  all  of  them  this  is  employed  as  the 
ordinary  designation  of  the  tongue  which  they  describe  as  having  been  the  national 
one  down  to  the  Saracen  conquest,  or  even  later.  Numerous  words  noticed  by 
Firdausi  as  Pahlavl  are  purely  Iranian— not  of  Semitic  parentage,  as  many  of  them 
at  least  must  have  been,  if  really  Hustvareeh ;  and  it  has  been  observed  likewise,  that 
that  poet  commutes  Pahlaet  and  PSra  as  epithets  distinctive  of  his  own  phraseology. 
The  truth  then  is,  that,  in  Moslem  usage,  Pahlavl  suggests  the  Third  Book-language— 
the  one  above  discussed  under  the  titles  Pa- Zend  and  Parti ;  occasionally  compre- 
hending also  the  Dart,  in  which  the  third  language  came  to  be  absorbed— just  as  the 
names  Deri  and  Par*  likewise  have  been  sometimes  treated  as  interchangeable. 
Before  this  state  of  the  case  was  clearly  demonstrated  by  Joseph  Miiller,  the  name 
PaAAitf  had  been  construed,  in  all  Oriental  works  alike,  as  referring  to  one  language, — 
and  that  the  Huzvdreeh ;  but  the  unhappy  result  had  been  the  perpetuation  of  such 
philological  and  historical  hypotheses,  incongruous  and  untenable  alike,  as  have  pre- 
viously passed  under  our  review. 

Since,  now,  the  name  in  question  has  been  ascertained  to  denote,  in  one  set  of 
writers,  the  Second  Book-language— one  strongly  tinged  with  Aramaism,  but,  in  an- 
other set,  the  Third  Book-language— one  of  more  purely  Iranian  organisation,  it 

*  In  it  the  later  "  Dari  phatis"  of  the  language,  the  modern  Farji,  and  various  Artan 
dialects  pure  and  mixed,  were  also  reviewed,  but  not  in  a  way  that  readily  admits  cendenta-. 
tlon  sr  abridgement. 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THB  SECTIONS.  95 

may  be  inquired,  whether  either  of  its  applications  favour  any  of  the  three  etymolo- 
gies, which,  aa  waa  above  mentioned;  have  been  proposed  for  it,  or  rather  a  fourth 
mast  be  resorted  to  for  it  in  one  or  other— or  both— of  those  applications.  Now, 
a  retrospect  at  the  conditions  of  the  problem  evinces  that  two  of  the  etyma  mast  be 
summarily  set  aside.  The  third,  viz.  Pahla  =  "  Border-land/'  is  suitable  to 
Paklm*  as  denoting  the  hybrid  speech  of  Khuzistan ;  but,  manifestly,  it  is  not  at 
all  appropriate  in  reference  to  the  language  of  Farsistan  and  Kohistan,  of  which  the 
Darl  employed  by  Tabari  and  Firdausi  was  the  offspring ;  and  hence  it  becomes 
desirable  to  find  one  which  may  lie  at  the  root  of  and  ei plain  both  applications. 
Various  reasons  recommend  pahalam=par'  uwam=p&rum,  &c,  a  word  which 
means  both  "excellent "  and  "ancient,"  and  which  moreover — what  it  is  especially 
important  to  observe — is  sometimes  contrasted  in  usage  with  the  later  "Pyard,"  and 
synonymous  with  "  Zabdn-e-Bfotto  "=  "  the  ancient  tongue."  It  will  thus  appear 
probable,  that  the  Pahlmxu  and  Pakahoan  are  so  designated  as  being  "  the  ancient 
tribe,"  and  the  PahUn*  as  being  "  the  ancient  speech."  _  If  so,  one  may  collate  the 
Pelaigoi  and  the  Graioi  or  Grmci  in  relation  to  the  Hellenes,  as  also  the  PrUei  and 
the  Casci  in  relation  to  the  Latini  j  and  this,  whether  or  not  "  ancient "  be  likewise 
the  radical  sense  of— that  much-tortured  appellative — Pelasgoi,  as  well  as  of  Ca$ei, 
ofPrisci  ssprUHni,  and  of  Graioi— an  abridgement  of  geraioi  which  is  illustrated  by 
graia  and  grams.  It  were  needless  to  embarrass  this  analogy  by  suggesting  further, 
that  Pelaigoi,— if  strengthened  from  Pelagoi,  a  sister-form  of  Palauri,— might  not 
even  serve  as  an  etymological  link  between  Prisci  (coll.  prim,  prima*,  prin,  pares, 
pervri,  palai,  flic.)  and  Paklava  or  Palhava,  through  a  series  of  letter-changes,  which 
separately  would  be  easy,  although  cumulatively  they  might  appear  improbable. 


Geography. 


An  Attempt  to  account  for  numerous  appearances  of  sudden  and  violent  drain- 
age seen  on  the  sides  of  the  basin  of  the  Dead  Sea.  By  Capt  W.  Allen, 
R.N^  F.R*S*y  F.R.G.S. 

The  Dead  Sea,  the  lake  Asphaltites  of  the  ancients,  is  now  generally  understood 
to  have  a  depression  of  more  than  1300  feet  below  the  level  of  the  Mediterranean ;  yet 
hitherto  no  satisfactory  theory  has  been  given  of  the  cause  of  the  phenomenon.  If 
Capt.  Allen  ventures  to  offer  one,  it  is  because  he  thinks  it  right  to  record  impres- 
sions forced  ou  his  mind,  by  certain  features  which  arrested  attention  on  approaching 
its  mysterious  shores,  by  the  road  of  Jericho. 

These  features  were : — 

t .  Some  indications  of  lines  of  alluvial  deposit  on  the  sides  of  the  mountains,  a  little 
below  the  level  of  the  sea  ;  especially  observable  on  the  eastern  declivities. 

2.  A  succession  of  sand-cliffs  on  both  sides  of  the  Jordan. 

3.  Some  parallel  lines  of  pebbles,  about  50  feet  wide,  near  the  Dead  Sea,  per- 
fectly resembling  its  actual  beach,  which  is  composed  principally  of  fiat  pieces  of 
bituminous  shale,  with  fragments  of  Lydian  stone.  These  lines  of  pebbles  are  re- 
markable, because  previously  not  a  stone  had  been  seen  for  several  mi!es ;  while 
between  and  beyond  them  the  soil  is  a  very  soft  alluvium. 

4.  The  precipitous  mountains  rising  from  this  sea  are  rent  with  ravines,  and  their 
innumerable  peaks  have  a  tendency  to  group  themselves  in  a  succession  of  plateaux. 

5.  Near  the  N.W.  angle  of  the  sea  are  some  conical  hills,  with  fiat  summits  and 
steep  furrowed  sides.  These  had  all  the  appearance  of  sedimentary  formation,  which, 
however,  was  gradually  less  observable  tn  ascending  the  mountain ;  and  at  last  the 
horizontality  of  the  strata  could  only  be  detected  in  a  general  sense. 

Similar  appearances  in  terraces  and  cliffs  have  been  noticed  in  the  Southern  as 
well  as  in  the  Northern  Ghor,  which  both  slope  downwards  to  the  Dead  Sea. 

Now,  If  these  remains  of  sedimentary  deposit  be  admitted  as  evidences  of  occa- 
sional subsidence  of  the  waters  of  the  Dead  Sea,  its  surface  may  be  traced  by  them 
to  its  original  level  with  the  Gulf  of  Akabah,  to  which  it  would  then  have  been  joined 
by  a  narrow  strait,  similar  to  that  of  Tirahn,  by  which  this  gulf  communicates  with 


.  96  RJB PORT— 1852. 

the  Red  Sea.  The  actual  condition  of  this  strait,  Tirahn,  would  give 
to  the  idea,  that  it  it  in  process  of  closing ;  for  by  the  chart  it  will  be  found  that 
a  well-defined  bank  or  shoal  is  advancing  from  the  nearest  opposite  points,  between 
which  the  channel  is  unfathomable  and  is  less  than  half  a  mile  wide. 

The  growth  of  coral  reels*,  deposits  of  sand  and  gravel,  &c,  cast  up  by  the  sea, 
may  have,  in  the  same  way,  closed  up  the  hypothetical  strait  at  Akabah,  and  cot  off 
the' communication  between  the  two  gulfs  f.  Then  the  upper  basin  being  of  great 
extent,  evaporation  from  its  surface  would  exceed  the  supplies  poured  into  it  from 
the  river  Jordan,  and  other  small  streams,  and  would  therefore  cause  it  to  mil,  as 
well  as  to  contract  its  limits. 

If  this  effect  of  evaporation  had  not  been  modified  by  other  circumstances,  it  would 
have  left  the  whole  dry  bed  of  the  basin  with  a  uniform  covering  of  alluvial  deposit. 
But  the  lines  of  silt  seen  at  different  elevations,  the  terraces,  the  sand-cliffs,  the 
flat-topped  hills  and  the  parallel  beaches,  concur  in  showing  that  the  subsidence  of 
the  surface  was  not  always  gradual,  but  that  it  has  been  subject  to  occasional  and 
sudden  changes  of  level,  of  which  these  are  the  monumental  records. 

On  these  assumptions,  the  lake  AsphalrJtes  in  its  original  state  was  the  upper  end 
of  a  long  and  narrow  arm  of  the  ocean,  extending  from  the  base  of  Mount  Hermoo, 
or  Anti-Libanus,  nearly  2000  miles,  and  gradually  increasing  in  breadth  from  a 
fewyards  at  the  north  end  to  about  200  miles  at  the  other  extremity . 

The  undulations  in  the  bed  of  this  fissure  divided  it  by  narrow  straits  into  several 
basins. 

In  the  same  way  the  upper  basin,  or  the  portion  cut  off  from  the  Gulf  of  Akabah, 
would  have  had  also  its  undulations  in  the  bed,  in  other  words,  irregularities  in 
depth. 


Valley  of  the  Jordan 


a.  Lake  Tiberias.  b,  b,  ft.  Barrier.  c.  Dried-op  Strait. 

1.  First  line.  S.  Second  line.  3.  Third  line. 

The  prodigious  evaporation  from  so  large  a  surface  would  have  brought  it  down, 
soon  after  the  separation,  from  the  upper  line  in  the  diagram,  to  the  first  i  rregularity 
or  barrier  on  the  second  line ;  where  the  further  process  of  evaporation  would  cause 
a  division  of  the  waters  into  two  basins,  of  which  the  upper,  having  the  Jordan  run- 
ning through  it,  would  preserve  for  a  time  its  level  at  the  second  line,  while  the 
lower  basin,  being  still  so  much  larger  in  proportion  to  the  supply,  would  continue 
to  fall. 

Suppose  it  to  have  fallen  to  the  third  line ;  and  then,  the  upper  basin  being  still 
at  the  level  of  the  second  line,  if  the  weight  of  water,  or  the  action  of  the  current  of 
the  Jordan  on  a  soft  bed,  or  their  combined  effect,  forced  the  barrier,  the  water  of 
the  upper  would  have  been  transferred  to  the  lower  basin,  with  a  violence  that  would 
have  torn  up  and  scoured  the  sides  of  its  former  bed,  leaving  marks  of  its  action  in 
rugged  ravines,  and  traces  of  its  ancient  level  round  the  margin. 

But  if  the  lower  strata  of  the  barrier  had  been  of  rock  so  solid  as  to  resist  the 
action  of  the  waters  at  a  certain  point,  then  a  part  of  them  would  have  been  retained 
in  the  depression,  forming  a  freshwater  lake,  as  the  lake  Tiberias. 

The  process  would  have  been  repeated,  dividing  at  the  barriers,  or  shallowest 
parts,  successively,  which  having  also  been  forced  by  the  same  action,  the  same 
effects  would  be  produced  by  the  violently  retreating  waters,  leaving  vestiges,  such 
as  the  monticules  or  conical  hills,  with  their  crowning  attestations  of  former  levels, 
the  sand  cliffs  of  the  banks  of  the  Jordan,  and  the  more  recently  formed  parallel 
beaches  near  the  Dead  Sea. 

As  the  only  solid  barrier  was  at  the  lower  end  of  the  lake  Tiberias,  this  is  the  only 

*  See  Ruppell.  f  Or  the  separation  might  have  been  caused  by  a  slight  upheaving 

r  the  land  by  volcanic  agency. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  97 

0 

reservoir  of  fresh  water  that  has  remained ;  and  the  Jordan  winds  its  rapid  course 
through  the  Ghor  to  the  last  deep  central  basin,  where  the  excessive  saltness  of  the 
water  will  now  be  naturally  accounted  for,  since  it  is  a  condensation  of  that,  which 
having  been  a  part  of  the  ocean,  was  salt  ab  origins. 

The  process  of  evaporation  and  depression  would  continue,  till  the  Dead  Sea 
should  be  reduced  to  such  an  area,  as  would  just  balance  the  water  discharged  into 
it ;  and  then  the  only  variations  would  be  in  the  oscillations  of  that  balance,  caused 
by  extraordinary  floods  or  droughts. 

From  a  fact  observed  by  travellers  in  three  consecutive  years,  namely,  that  a  salient 
part  of  the  northern  shore  is  sometimes  an  island,  and  sometimes  a  peninsula,  it 
would  appear  as  if  the  point  of  equilibrium  has  been  already  attained.  Whether 
this  be  the  case  or  no,  could  be  ascertained  by  careful  observation  on  this  fact,  or 
by  comparing  fresh  lines  of  soundings  with  those  taken  by  Lieut.  Lynch,  U.S.N., 
in  the  southern  portion  of  the  sea,  which  is  extremely  shallow. 


A  proposed  new  line  for  a  Ship  Canal  to  the  East  Indies  dirough  the  Dead 
Sea.    By  Capt.  W.  Allen,  R.N.,  F.R.S.,  F.R.G.S. 

Referring  to  the  communication  immediately  preceding,  the  author  observes  that 
the  extent  or  elevation  of  the  filled-up  strait,  the  water- shed,  in  fact,  between  the 
Dead  Sea  and  the  Gulf  of  Akabah,  remains  still  undetermined.  The  depression  is 
bounded  on  either  side  by  mountain  ranges  several  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  sea.  Those  on  the  east  are  continuous  from  Mount  Hermon,  or  Anti-Libanus, 
to  the  Red  Sea.  Those  on  the  west  are  broken  only  between  the  Lesser  Hermon 
and  Mount  Gilboa,  by  the  low  plain  of  Esdraelon  ;  which  is  watered  by  the  brook 
Kishon,  having  its  principal  sources  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Mount  Tabor  in  the 
N.E.,  and  in  the  mountains  of  Gilboa  to  the  S.E.  They  unite  near  the  middle  of 
the  plain,  and  flow  N.W.  between  a  shoulder  of  Mount  Carmel  and  a  spur  of  the 
Nazareth  range  of  hills,  to  a  little  estuary  in  the  most  sheltered  part  of  the  bay  of 
Acre. 

The  swelling  of  the  plain  is  so  gentle,  that  no  precise  part  can  be  pointed  out  as 
the  watershed ;  but  it  is  doubtless  near  the  forks  of  the  river  at  the  village  of  Afuli. 
Its  elevation  is  perhaps  less  than  200  feet  above  the  Mediterranean  Sea  on  the 
west,  and  about  900  feet  above-  the  Jordan,  with  a  rapid  slope  to  the  east. 

Thus  Nature  has  furnished  a  stupendous  "  cutting  "  of  200  miles  in  length,  sepa- 
rated from  a  sea  at  either  end,  by  a  very  slight  barrier,  which  might  be  cut  through, 
at  the  north  end  at  least,  with  very  little  trouble  and  expense,  for  the  plain  of  Es- 
draelon appears  to  be  an  alluvium  of  great  thickness,  with  no  obstructions  of  rock. 

The  required  length  of  canal  here  would  perhaps  be  about  25  miles,  the  greater 
part  in  the  already  deeply  cut  bed  of  the  Kishon. 

By  damming  up  the  head  waters  of  the  Kishon  in  reservoirs  near  the  junction  of 
the  principal  affluents,  they  might  be  used  to  sluice  out  trenches  previously  prepared 
by  loosening  the  soil  with  mines  of  gunpowder,  &c,  so  as  to  work  east  and  west  at 
the  same  time,  as  there  is  a  fall  both  ways.  When  these  trenches  shall  have  been 
cut  to  a  sufficient  depth  below  the  level  of  the  sea,  its  floods  being  let  in,  would,  it  is 
imagined,  with  the  aid  of  gunpowder,  soon  force  a  channel  wide  and  deep  enough 
for  navigation. 

Likewise,  if  the  hypothesis  of  the  "  dried-up  strait "  at  Akabah  should  prove  to  be 
correct,  the  difficulties  of  removing  the  barrier  at  that  end  may  also  be  inconsiderable. 
Of  this  at  present  the  data  are  more  uncertain,  as  they  depend  on  observations  of 
travellers,  not  made  for  such  an  object.  But  similar  aid  might  be  afforded  by  the 
force  of  a  current  from  the  Gulf  of  Akabah,  backed  by  the  Indian  Ocean,  to  clear  the 
canal. 

These  barriers  being  removed,  the  now  Dead  Sea  would  be  restored  to  its  ancient 
level,  and  would  be  converted  into  the  active  channel  of  communication  between 
Europe  and  Asia. 

Such  operations  would,  it  is  true,  involve  the  submergence  of  a  territory,  a  city, 
and  some  Arab  villages  belonging  to  the  Sultan.  But  the  territory  is  useless,  the 
city  is  in  ruins,  the  villages  are  but  mud  huts  or  tents,  and  it  is  presumed  that  His 
Highness  and  his  subjects  would  be  amply  remunerated  for  the  loss  of  these,  by 

1852.  7 


98  REPORT — 1852. 

great  revenues  arising  from  transit  dues,  from  the  increased  value  of  adjacent  and 
fertile,  but  rebellious  and  neglected  territories,  and  lastly,  from  the  facilities  the  canal 
would  afford  to  the  pilgrims,  who  now  have  a  toilsome  and  dangerous  march  of  more 
than  six  weeks  in  the  desert,  between  Damascus  and  Mecca. 


On  the  Antiquities  of  the  Island  Ruad,  the  ancient  Aradus,  and  on  the  an- 
cient Harbour  of  Seleucia  in  Pieria.      By  CapL  W.  Allen,  R.N^ 

Travellers,  to  whom  the  maritime  renown  of  the  Phoenicians  is  familiar,  cannot 
fail  to  be  struck  by  the  disproportion  of  the  means  by  which  it  was  attained.  The 
island  of  Tyre,  little  more  than  half  a  mile  long,  situated  near  the  dangerous  coast 
of  Syria,  formed  their  principal  harbour.  A  colony  from  Sidon  took  advantage  of 
similar  circumstances  at  a  more  northern  part  of  the  coast,  in  the  little  island  of 
Aradus,  the  modern  Ruad,  which  is  still  smaller ;  yet  it  soon  became  so  flourishing 
as  to  be  the  parent  of  colonies,  and  Strabo  describes  it  as  full  of  inhabitants  and 
lofty  houses.  The  vestiges  which  remain  show  that  he  did  not  overrate  its  pros- 
perity. It  is  situated  in  lat.  34°  48'  N.  and  long.  35°  51'  E. ;  the  extreme  length 
is  about  800  yards,  lying  N.W.  and  S.E. ;  so  that  the  side  towards  the  coast  presents 
tolerable  protection  from  the  prevalent  S.W.  wind. 

Considering  that  this  little  island  may  again  become  a  place  of  shelter  for  ships 
in  the  increasing  trade  of  Syria,  and  especially  as  a  convenient  coal  depot  for  steamers, 
Capt.  W.  Allen,  R.N.,  made  a  survey  of  it  in  the  spring  of  the  year  1851*. 

The  whole  N.E.  side  of  the  island  is  converted  into  two  little  ports  by  three  piers, 
which  all  more  or  less  show  their  ancient  construction :  the  most  northern  is  quite 
in  rums ;  that  to  the  southward  still  answers  its  purpose,  but  is  occupied  by  a  mosque, 
and  therefore  could  not  be  examined  ;  but  the  middle  pier  is  almost  perfect.  It  is 
constructed  with  massive  blocks  of  sandstone,  16  feet  long  by  nearly  7  in  depth  and 
breadth,  placed  transversely ;  with  large  bollards  at  the  extremity  of  the  pier.  On 
either  side  are  quays  of  concrete,  now  "  a  wash."  The  length  of  the  pier  from  the 
present  waterline  is  224  feet.  In  both  ports  are  also  traces  of  similar  quays.  From 
the  base  of  the  northern  pier  is  a  fine  bed  of  concrete,  stretching  across  the  island, 
about  150  yards  long  by  125  yards  wide,  very  nearly  level,  the  slight  inclination 
being  towards  the  port,  where  its  margin  forms  the  quay.  Pococke,  with  great 
reason,  supposed  that  this  was  used  for  drawing  up  the  smaller  shipping  for  shelter. 
The  concrete  round  by  the  west  is  about  30  yards  wide,  increasing  on  the  south  side. 
Its  probable  purpose  here  was  to  increase  artificially  the  dimensions  of  the  island, 
which  having  in  its  natural  state  been  surrounded  on  the  exposed  side  by  numerous 
rocks  and  islets,  the  summits  of  these  were  leveled,  and  the  interstices  filled  with 
the  fragments  and  squared  stones,  imbedded  in  concrete  as  hard  as  the  rock  itself, 
which  it  perfectly  resembles.  Along  the  three  outer  sides  of  the  island  are  gigantic 
remains  of  the  ancient  walls,  which  in  two  places  have  still  five  or  six  courses  of 
stones,  15  to  18  feet  in  length,  lying  transversely  and  forming  the  thickness  of  the 
wall.  On  the  west  side,  however,  the  wall,  for  about  10  feet  high,  is  of  the  solid 
rock,  which  to  seaward,  at  this  part  only,  is  cut  in  the  form  of  a  moat  and  glacis. 
The  purpose  of  this,  doubtless  was  to  break  the  fury  of  the  waves  in  S.W.  gales.  A 
small  culvert,  leading  from  the  "  moat,"  through  the  wall  and  the  concrete,  towards 
the  port,  led  to  the  conjecture  that  the  water  from  the  waves  rushing  up  the  glacis 
being  received  in  the  moat  at  a  higher  level,  might  have  been  conducted  by  this  cul- 
vert to  the  port  for  the  purpose  of  cleansing  it. 

The  central  or  natural  portion  of  the  island  is  covered  by  the  modern  town,  which 
has  wonderfully  increased  during  the  last  century.  Pococke  io  1738  found  very  few 
houses,  except  in  the  castles,  which  were  defended  by  cannon  against  corsairs.  Fifty 
years  later  Volney  says,  "  there  does  not  remain  a  single  wall  of  that  crowd  of  houses, 
which,  according  to  Strabo,  were  built  with  more  stones  than  those  of  Rome  itself." 
Now,  according  to  the  report  of  an  old  man,  there  are  500.  When  he  was  a  child 
there  were  very  few,  and  he  had  heard  that  100  years  ago,  there  were  only  5  houses. 

The  present  inhabitants  retain  some  of  the  spirit  of  the  ancient  Arcadians,  as  they 

*  The  hydrography  has  since  been  more  completely  done  by  Mr.  Hooper,  of  H.M.B. 
Frolic  under  Commander  Vansittart. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTIONS.  99 

are  all  engaged  in  maritime  aflairB,  and  shipbuilding  is  carried  on  with  considerable 
energy.  There  is  no  room  for  cultivation  on  this  confined  spot,  so  that  all  sup- 
plies are  drawn  from  the  mainland,  little  more  than  a  mile  distant.  They  depend 
for  water  on  cisterns,  and  do  not  appear  to  be  cognizant  of  the  submarine  fountain 
described  by  Strabo. 

With  the  same  view  to  the  probable  requirements  of  Increasing  commerce  of  these 
rich  countries,  Capt.  Allen  made  a  little  survey  of  the  ancient  harbour  of  Seleucia  in 
Pieria,  situated  still  further  to  the  north,  in  the  bay  of  Antioch,  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Orontes,  in  lat.  36°  8'  N.  and  long.  36°  55' 30"  E.  This  noble  work  consists  of 
an  inland  basin,  connected  with  a  small  sea-port  by  a  canal,  and  of  a  magnificent 
culvert  cut  through  a  mountain  for  the  purpose  of  feeding  the  one  and  cleansing  the 
other,  as  well  as  to  avert  the  destructive  effects  of  the  mountain  torrents. 

The  sea* port,  noticed  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  as  the  place  whence  St.  Paul  em- 
barked, is  formed  by  two  massive  moles,  about  200  yards  apart.  That  to  the  north 
is  quite  a  ruin ;  the  other  has  its  inner  part  nearly  perfect,  constructed  with  large 
blocks  of  stone  placed  transversely,  some  of  which  measured  25  feet,  and  one,  broken, 
29  feet  4  inches.  This  port,  though  small,  was  probably  sufficient  for  the  reception 
of  ships  preparatory  to  their  entering  the  basin,  and  for  the  purpose  of  refuge  in 
bad  weather. 

The  inner  harbour  or  basin  was  probably  an  excavation,  with  a  strong  wall  front- 
ing the  sea.  It  is  retort  shaped,  communicating  with  the  sea-port  by  the  neckpart, 
a  canal  about  a  thousand  feet  in  length,  and  was  possibly  at  a  highef  level  than  the 
sea,  and  entered  by  locks,  as  Colonel  Chesney  saw  the  remains  of  hinges  of  gates. 
The  basin  is  about  700  yards  long  by  450  wide.  It  is  now  a  swamp,  through 
which  a  little  stream  passes  to  the  sea  oy  a  gap  in  the  wall.  The  great  culvert  is 
nearly  1200  yards  long,  terminating  near  the  sea- port.  Its  commencement  is  at 
the  turning  of  a  little  valley,  across  which  an  enormous  wall  was  built  for  the  pur- 
pose of  directing  the  torrents  towards  it.  This  wall  has  a  great  portion  of  it  still 
standing  ;  the  dilapidated  part  being  in  the  middle,  where  probably  there  were  sluice- 
gates to  feed  the  basin.  The  culvert  is  for  the  greater  part  an  "  open  cutting/1  in 
oneplace  not  less  than  150  feet  deep  in  the  solid  rock. 

There  are  two  tunnels  of  21  feet  aperture,  with  a  channel  for  the  water  in  the 
middle ;  which  arrangement  was  doubtless  intended  to  facilitate  the  removal  of  frag- 
ments of  rock  that  might  have  been  carried  thither  by  torrents.  There  is  also  a 
conduit  at  the  side  to  supply  the  marine  suburb  of  the  city  with  water. 

Some  Greek  and  Latin  inscriptions  are  to  be  seen  in  the  culvert,  but  too  much  de- 
faced by  time  to  be  legible. 

The  principal  object  Capt.  Allen  has  in  view  in  describing  this  ancient  and  splen- 
did work,  which  had  been  previously  examined  by  other  travellers,  and  especially  by 
Colonel  Chesney,  R.A.,  is  to  show  the  facility  with  which  it  could  be  again  ren- 
dered available  for  the  reception  of  shipping  :  for,  although  each  of  the  three 
members  of  it  is  dilapidated  to  a  certain  extent,  enough  remains  to  justify  the  belief 
that  its  restoration  could  be  accomplished  without  much  labour  or  expense. 

Both  Col.  Chesney  and  Capt.  Allen,  by  independent  calculations,  estimated  the 
cost  of  cleaning  the  inner  harbour,  by  manual  labour  entirely,  at  about  j£30,000  \  but 
Capt.  Allen  consideis  that  by  making  use  of  the  appliances  left  by  the  ancients  to 
aid  in  the  operations  of  nature,  the  greater  part  of  both  expense  and  labour  would 
be  reduced. 

To  this  end,  whether  anciently  it  was  a  basin  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  and 
entered  by  locks  or  no,  he  would  now  propose  to  make  it  so,  by  raiaina;  and  strength- 
ening the  west  wall,  which  is  the  only  part  of  the  circuit  of  the  basin  not  bounded 
by  rising  ground,  so  that  any  depth  required  might  thus  be  had,  as  there  is  a  per- 
ennial stream  running  through  it. 

When  full,  the  immense  volume  of  the  basin,  a  surface  of  about  47  acres,  might  be 
used  as  a  "  backwater  "  to  clear  the  canal  and  the  sea-port.  The  piers  of  this  would 
have  to  be  repaired  and  carried  further  out  seaward,  which  would  be  the  principal 
part  of  the  expense.  The  culvert  and  the  great  wall  with  its  sluice-gates  might  be 
easilv  repaired. 

The  examination  of  the  ruins  of  this  once-flourishing  city  not  being  the  principal 
object,  Capt.  Allen  did  not  devote  much  time  to  them,  but  he  visited  some  magnifi- 

7* 


100  REPORT — 1852. 

cent  sepulchres,  excavated  in  the  mountain  through  which  the  culvert  is  cut.  From 
their  dimensions  it  is  probable  that  they  were  of  the  Seleucidae,  especially  as  the 
natives  call  them  the  "  Cave  of  the  Despot."  They  consist  of  two  large  chambers, 
ornamented  with  arches,  pillars  and  sculptured  scrolls,  &c,  containing  two  prin- 
cipal isolated  tombs,  with  numerous  loculi  in  the  walls  and  in  the  floor.  All  have 
been  rifled  and  stripped  of  their  ornaments.  In  the  neighbourhood  of  the  city  are 
many  sarcophagi,  aod  some  vaulted  chambers  in  the  face  of  the  cliffs. 

In  conclusion,  it  is  hoped  that  this  fine  harbour  may  again  become  the  outlet  of 
the  unrivalled  fertility  of  the  neighbouring  countries,  and  be  the  fitting  terminus  to 
Col.  Chesney's  projected  communication  with  our  possessions  in  the  East  Indies  by 
the  river  Euphrates.  

On  a  Railroad  through  Asia  Minor.    By  W.  F.  Ainsworth. 

The  paper,  after  describing  the  route  intended  to  be  taken,  and  remarking  on  the 
engineering  difficulties  and  facilities  on  the  way,  proposed  to  connect  Constanti- 
nople with  its  Asiatic  suburbs  by  means  of  a  floating  viaduct,  or  tunnel,  such  as 
they  have  in  Wales  at  present.  The  author  considered  that,  in  the  event  of  this 
great  undertaking  being  attempted  to  be  carried  out,  the  better  route  through  Asia 
Minor  would  be  along  the  coast  of  the  Sea  of  Marmora,  rather  than,  as  some  scien- 
tific gentlemen  had  recommended,  through  the  mountains  of  the  interior  of  Ana- 
tolia, which  Mr.  Ainsworth  considers  it  would  be  next  to  impossible  to  surmount. 
•  The  Turks,  who  just  now  are  very  much  alive  to  the  great  importance  of  commerce, 
are  engaged  in  opening  a  great  commercial  road  from  a  port  on  the  Black  Sea  to 
Sivaze,  a  town  in  the  centre  of  Asia  Minor ;  and  Mr.  Ainsworth  considered  that 
the  completion  of  this  undertaking  would  be  one  of  the  greatest  inducements  to  the 
commencement  of  the  projected  railway.  Throughout  the  land  route,  only  in  one 
instance  was  it  necessary  to  allude  to  a  tunnel,  and  that  was  where  the  Fawnes 
mountain  crossed  the  route,  and  this,  there  was  reason  to  hope,  could  be  passed 
without  a  tunnel.  Taking  the  matter  all  in  all,  the  author  pronounced  it  difficult  to 
imagine  any  country  better  adapted  for  colonization  or  improvement.  At  present, 
the  country  could  not  be  said  to  be  safe  from  the  predatory  Arabs,  but  the  Turks 
and  agricultural  Arabs  were  well-disposed.  The  road  from  London  to  Bombay  is 
5500  miles ;  for  2600  miles  of  this  distance  there  is  already  a  railway,  and  works 
could  be  carried  on  cheaply  in  Asia  Minor  from  the  facility  of  procuring  labour.  The 
capital  required  he  calculated  at  twenty-two  millions. 


On  the  Distribution  of  Common  Salt,  and  other  Saline  Bodies,  with  a  view 
to  show  their  Primary  Origin  and  subsequent  Formations.    By  William 

BoLLAERT,  F.R.G.S. 

The  attention  of  the  author  of  this  communication  was  first  drawn  to  the  subject 
whilst  chemical  assistant  in  the  laboratory  of  the  Royal  Institution  about  1824,  and 
when  in  Peru  shortly  afterwards,  the  occurrence  of  so  much  salt  from  the  level  of  the 
sea  to  great  elevations  in  the  Andes  was  noticed  by  him.  Subsequently,  being  in  the 
north  part  of  Mexico,  opportunities  offered  of  making  other  researches. 

Mr.  Bollaert,  in  a  paper  to  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  in  1851,  on  "Southern 
Peru,"  in  noticing  the  existence  of  salts  bordering  the  Pacific  Ocean,  in  the  mountain- 
ranee  of  the  coast,  in  the  great  plains  beyond,  as  well  as  in  the  Andes,  said  that  such 
a  disposition  of  things  would  lead  one  to  surmise,  that  the  salt  and  other  saline  mat- 
ters may  derive  their  origin  from  other  sources  than  the  ocean,  viz.  volcanic,  and  the 
decomposition  of  rocks. 

Dr.  Daubeny  was  one  of  the  first  to  draw  attention  to  the  fact,  that  salt  and 
muriatic  acid  are  among  some  of  the  most  abundant  compounds  thrown  out  by  vol- 
canos;  and  his  researches  fortified  Mr.  Bollaert's  opinion,  formed  in  Peru  in  1826, 
that  the  greater  part  of  salt  found  from  the  Andes  to  the  coast  may  claim  a  direct 
volcanic  origin. 

With  reference  to  the  author's  own  observations  made  in  Peru  and  other  places, 
as  well  as  those  of  others  in  various  parts  of  the  world,  and  omitting  here  geogra- 
phical, geological,  chemical,  climatalogical  and  other  details,  he  offers  the  following 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  101 

resume  as  to  the  origin  of  common  salt  and  other  saline  bodies,  adverting  only  to  the 
more  salient  points. 

I.  Bay- salt,  deposited  entirely  by  solar  evaporation  from  sea- water,  particularly  in 
warm  latitudes ;  in  Greenland,  however,  the  heat  of  the  few  summer  days  is  so  great 
as  to  evaporate  the  water  left  by  the  tide  among  the  rocks,  and  to  reduce  it  to  a  fine 
salt.  There  is  an  important  commercial  fact  connected  with  bay-salt,  inasmuch  as 
it  has  been  found,  particularly  at  Buenos  Ayres,  to  be  much  better  suited  to  the  salt-* 
ing  of  meat  (which  appears  to  be  owing  to  its  containing  the  deliquescent  chlorides) 
than  the  salt  procured  from  the  salt- lakes  and  plains  of  Patagonia,  the  latter  being 
nearly  a  pure  chloride  of  sodium  ;  thus  the  following  conclusions  may  be  arrived  at, 
that  the  superficial  saline  deposits  in  Patagonia  and  other  inland  plains  in  various 
parts  of  the  world  are  not  beholden  to  the  ocean  for  such  deposits. 

II.  Bay-salt,  as  procured  from  sea-water  by  allowing  it  to  run  into  shallow  reser- 
voirs on  ihe  surface  of  the  ground,  where  it  is  partially  evaporated  by  the  sun's  heat, 
and  then  by  artificial  means;  a  purer  chloride  of  sodium  is  thus  obtained,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  separation  of  the  bittern  from  it. 

III.  Another  and  a  harder  species  of  bay-salt  is  found  near  the  level  of  the  ocean, 
a  few  feet  above  the  sea,  particularly  on  the  coast  of  Peru;  here  it  has  been  but 
recently  uplifted  above  the  sea. 

IV.  Salt  is  produced  in  Russia  by  the  freezing  of  sea- wafer,  and  then  evaporating 
the  brine.  One  effect  of  the  low  temperature  is  to  decompose  a  portion  of  the  salt, 
and  convert  the  sulphate  of  magnesia  of  the  brine  into  sulphate  of  soda  and  chlo- 
ride of  magnesium. 

The  formation  of  sulphate  of  soda  in  this  way  may  be  the  principal  cause  of  its 
existence  in  Peru  and  other  places,  that  is  to  say,  the  saline  lakes  in  the  Andean 
and  other  mountainous  regions,  would  in  winter  be  reduced  to  a  low  temperature, 
when  the  chemical  change  would  be  produced ;  as  summer  approached,  the  snows 
above  the  lakes  would  melt,  and  rains  would  run  into  the  lakes ;  these  in  time  would 
overflow,  causing  streams ;  r ome  of  these  waters  would  find  their  way  into  rivers  and 
then  into  the  ocean,  whilst  others  would  run  into  hollows,  low  lands  and  plains ;  and 
in  such  arid  countries  as  Peru,  Mexico,  Patagonia,  parts  of  Asia  and  Africa,  and 
perhaps  in  Australia,  would  yield  layers  of  saline  material?,  the  principal  one  being 
common  salt.  In  Saxony,  Sardinia,  and  some  other  localities,  water  from  brine- 
springs  is  evaporated  by  passing  over  and  through  "  Thorn  Houses." 

V.  Salt,  having  risen  with  the  vapour  of  sea-water  or  with  the  spray  of  the  ocean ; 
also  with  the  vapour  arising  from  saline  inland  lakes,  as  in  Asiatic  Russia  in  par- 
ticular. 

VI.  Rock  on  Fossil  Salt  is  found  constituting  portions  of  mountain  ranges;  in  the 
Carpathians  in  Europe ;  in  the  Sulemien  mountains  in  Asia ;  also  in  Thibet,  here  in 
company  with  borax  and  muriate  of  ammonia;  and  doubtless  the  many  brine-springs 
in  the  interior  of  China  have  their  origin  from  masses  of  rock  salt.  As  so  much  salt 
is  found  in  the  arid  parts  of  Africa',  it  is  reasonable  to  conclude  that  the  mountains 
also  contain  it.  We  know  that  in  the  mountains  of  Morocco  there  is  rock  salt.  To 
the  east  of  this  section  much  carbonate  of  soda  (Trona)  is  found. 

The  inland  waters  of  Australia  are  brackish,  and  its  plains  covered  with  saline 
materials ;  hence  we  may  suppose  that  in  the  interior  of  that  large  mass  of  land 
there  may  be  rock  salt. 

In  North  and  South  America  there  is  abundance  of  rock  salt.  In  the  north, 
among  other  ranges  affording  it,  is  the  Wha-sacht,  which  is  above  the  Great  Salt 
Lake  of  Utah  or  of  the  Mormons;  in  South  America,  from  the  Andean  region  to  the 
coast,  on  either  side  it  is  found,  and  in  company  with  many  other  curious  saline  bodies. 

From  the  small  per-centage  of  saline  matter  in  sea-water,  not  4  per  cent.,  we  can 
hardly  look  to  the  ocean  a*  the  origin  of  so  much  pure  or  almost  pure  chloride  of 
sodium  existing  in  mountain  regions,  but  rather  to  sources  of  a  volcanic  character 
at  different  epochs;  sub-marine  as  well  as  sub-aerial  volcanos  yielding  it.  During  vol- 
canic eruptions,  with  vast  quantities  of  sulphur  and  other  volatile  bodies,  the  vapour 
of  muriatic  acid  escapes,  and  salt  has  been  found  sublimed  about  craters  as  well  as 
muriate  of  ammonia.  Sea-water  may  find  its  way  into  the  igneous  interior  of  the 
earth ;  however,  the  formation  of  salt  in  all  probability  is  mainly  due  to  the  direct 
union  of  chlorine  and  sodium ;  salt  thus  formed  from  its  elements  in  the  bowels  of  the 


102  REPORT — 1852. 

earth,  then  ejected  through  volcanic  vents,  at  timet  with  steam  and  water  as  a  not 
saturated  solution,  at  times  with  earthy  matters,  the  salt  afterwards  forming  masses, 
or  in  those  peculiar  orbicular  layers,  as  seen  in  Cheshire  and  elsewhere,  and  such 

aierations  having  gone  on  at  various  periods  and  under  different  circumstances  and 
evations,  may  account  for  rook  or  fossil  salt  being  now  found  below  the  level  of 
the  sea,  above  it,  and  at  great  elevations  on  the  surface  of  the  globe.  Having  now 
arrived  at  the  supposed  origin  of  rook  salt,  the  next  division  is  proceeded  with,  via. 

VII.  Saline  Lakes  situated  in  the  elevated  regions  of  India,  Thibet,  and  other  parts 
of  Asia,  as  well  as  at  lower  levels,  including  the  Dead  Sea,  whioh  is  below  the  ocean ; 
the  saline  lakes  of  North  and  South  America.  In  these  cases,  as  already  mentioned, 
the  waters  of  melting  snows  and  rain  would  dissolve  the  salt  formed  in  high  regions, 
washing  it  down  into  hollows,  and  then  salt  lakes  would  be  formed  at  all  elevations, 
and  when  these  waters  became  saturated  salt  would  be  deposited ;  iu  summer  some 
would  dry  up,  leaving  a  cake  of  the  substance. 

VIII.  Brine  Springs  are  met  with  all  over  the  world ;  such  being  formed  by  water 
percolating  through  the  earth,  first  at  high  levels,  then  coming  into  contact  with  de- 
positions of  salt,  producing  springs,  lakes  and  streams,  from  which  the  saline  matters 
are  found  in  some  cases  to  remain  in  hollows  and  plains,  forming  large  tracts  of  surface- 
salt. 

IX.  The  saline  matters  found  in  the  Steppes  of  Asia,  Deserts  of  Africa,  Pampas  of 
Patagonia,  and  other  places  to  the  north,  in  the  Desert  of  Atacama,  and  along  the 
west  coast  of  Amerioa ;  and  lastly,  in  the  great  saline  deserts  of  Mexico,  California, 
and  the  United  States.  In  these  cases  the  salt  has  been  brought  down  by  streams 
and  springs  from  higher  regions  to  a  lower. 

X.  Saline  bodies  formed  by  the  decomposition  of  volcanic  and  other  rocks ;  the 
albites  or  soda  granites,  so  common  in  the  New  World;  the  red  granites,  yielding 
potash,  as  in  India,  giving  rise  to  nitrate  of  potash ;  such  decomposition  would  go  on 
at  all  elevations,  and,  by  the  aid  of  water,  the  soluble  parts  would  find  their  way  into 
lower  regions,  and  ultimately  into  the  ocean. 

Mr.  Bollaert  then  describes  the  section  of  country  from  Buenos  Ay  res  to  Fotosi  and 
Lima,  also  another  in  South  Peru,  from  Iquique  in  the  provinoe  of  Tarapaca,  lat  20° 
12'  S.,  long.  70°  14'  W.  to  Potosi,  the  latter  in  particular,  as  being  interesting  in  regard 
to  the  subject  of  his  observations. 

The  now  important  port  of  Iquique  is  in  the  centre  of  a  region  where  it  seldom  or 
never  rains.  No  water  is  found  on  the  coast,  except  where  a  rivulet  may  come  from 
the  Andes ;  such  water-courses  being  very  scarce,  and  often  salt  Under  the  Inoas, 
Iquique  was  a  fishing- place,  and  guano  was  collected  there.  There  is  no  vegetation 
whatever  to  be  seen,  and  in  early  times  water  had  to  be  brought  from  the«  nterior,  When 
the  celebrated  silver  mines  of  Huantajaya  were  discovered  in  1556,  a  few  miles  inland 
from  Iquique,  then  this  port  was  supplied  with  water  from  the  ravine  of  Pisagua, 
whioh  is  to  the  north ;  but  of  late  years,  and  since  nitrate  of  soda  has  been  shipped 
from  thence,  stills  have  been  employed  for  the  distillation  of  fresh-  from  sea-water, 
supplying  1000  to  1200  people  as  well  as  animals.  In  some  of  the  plains  near  the 
coast,  bav-salt  is  met  with  15  to  20  feet  above  the  sea,  the  land  having  been  recently 
uplifted  from  it. 

From  the  sea-shore  in  many  places  there  is  an  abrupt  rise  of  2000  to  3000  feet,  at 
which  level  are  plains,  hollows  and  undulations ;  ana  rising  out  of  tbem  ranges  of 
porphyritic  and  argillaceous  mountains  3600  feet  higher.  Veins  of  metallic  matters 
are  abundant,  gold,  copper,  lead,  arsenic,  &c,  the  silver  mines  of  Huantajaya  having 
yielded  from  1726  to  1826  more  than  15  millions  sterling.  In  the  hollows,  plains 
and  undulations  are  extensive  superficial  collections  of  salt,  containing  a  little  chlo- 
ride of  calcium.  This  coast-range  is  30  miles  wide,  and,  having  passed  it,  the  Great 
Plain  of  Tamarugal  is  entered,  which  is  3000  to  3500  feet  above  the  sea,  and  tome 
30  miles  wide.  In  the  south  is  the  brackish  river  Loa,  with  salt  streams  running 
into  it  i  in  the  north  there  are  other  saline  streams.  Where  water  from  the  Andes 
gets  into  this  plain,  and  it  often  runs  over  its  surface,  and  that  water  not  very  salt, 
there  a  few  Tamarugos  (Mimosa)  grow ;  and  buried  under  the  soil  there  is  much  appa- 
rently of  the  same  species  of  tree  undergoing  a  saline  fossilization.  The  author  is 
strongly  inclined  to  think,  that  we  must  look  to  this  surface-water  as  the  vehicle 
that  has  brought  down  from  great  elevations  the  saline  matters,  such  as  are  found 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  103 

all  over  this  plain,  as  well  as  those  in  the  Desert  of  Atacama.  A  curious  point 
about  the  greater  portion  of  the  water  obtained  from  the  wells  in  this  plain  is,  that 
although  there  is  so  much  saline  material  on  the  surface,  there  is  little  or  none  of  it  jn 
the  water.  It  is  in  this  plain,  where  there  is  so  great  an  abundance  of  salt,  nitrate  of 
soda,  sulphate  of  soda  (Glauberite),  carbonate  of  soda  (Trona),  sulphate  and  muriate 
of  lime,  and  a  newly-discovered  salt  of  borax  (Hayeaine  or  Hydro-borc-calcite),  this 
valuable  salt  is  found  with  and  under  the  beds  of  nitrate  of  soda,  and  often  in  company 
with  Glauberite*.  With  the  nitrate  of  soda,  in  particular,  there  are  iodic  salts f,  and 
probably  bromic.  In  the  bills,  on  either  side  of  this  plain,  are  large  quantities  of 
native  alum  or  Pickeringite. 

The  formation  of  nitrate  of  potash  in  India,  and  nitrate  of  soda  in  South  America, 
is  difficult  to  explain.  It  was  formerly  supposed  that  the  nitrogen  required  to  pro- 
duce the  nitrate  of  potash  in  India  came  from  the  decomposition  of  organic  matters ; 
but  as  the  greater  portion  of  nitrate  of  potash  was  found  in  situations  affording  none, 
this  opinion  was  abandoned,  and  the  nitrogen  of  the  atmosphere  was  resorted  to. 
With  regard  to  the  formation  of  nitrate  of  soda  in  South  America,  at  least  in  South 
Peru,  there  are  no  organic  matters  whatever  in  the  soil  from  the  Andes  to  the  sea- 
shore ;  for  the  whole  country  is,  and  has  been  for  ages,  arid,  rocky,  sandy,  and  marly 
saliferous  deserts.  The  nitrogen  and  oxygen  of  the  air  may  possibly  yield,  in  some  way 
or  other,  nitric  acid,  when  assisted  by  tropical  heat,  the  chemical  rays  of  the  sun  and 
moisture ;  still,  if  we  have  to  look  to  volcanic  sources  for  the  formation  of  salt  and 
other  chlorides,  why  not  recur  there  also  for  the  origin  of  the  nitrates,  sulphates, 
borates,  iodates,  8cc.J 

A  short  remark  on  the  probable  cause  of  the  South  Peruvian  deserts  may  not  be 
out  of  place  here.  The  S.S.E.  wind,  having  been  deprived  of  much  of  its  humidity 
in  traversing  the  continent  of  America,  arrives  in  the  frozen  regions  of  the  Andes,  so 
dry  aa  not  to  be  in  a  position  to  deposit  any  moisture  of  consequence j  and  this  dry 
or  S.S.E.  wind  blowing  across  the  lands  of  the  west  coast,  appears  to  be  the  main 
cause  of  its  present  desert  character. 

The  nitrate  of  soda  has  as  yet  only  been  met  with  on  the  western  side  of  the  Parana 
de  Tamarugal,  and  the  deposits  of  it  have  interruptions  or  spaces  covered  with  salt. 
The  nitrate  grounds  vary  in  breadth,  but  are  of  great  length,  and  in  places  7  to  8  feet 
thick,  sometimes  quite  pure. 

The  Caliche,  or  rough  nitrate  of  soda,  is  boiled  in  water,  the  nitrate  is  held  in  solu- 
tion, whilst  the  salt  and  earthy  parts  fall  to  the  bottom  of  the  boiler :  the  saturated 
solution  is  run  into  troughs  to  crystallize,  and  is  then  ready  for  sale. 

The  principal  occupation  of  the  Province  of  Tarapaca  is  in  the  nitrate  of  soda  trade, 
the  article  being  shipped  from  Iquique  to  Europe,  where  it  is  used  as  a  fertilizer  in 
the  manufacture  of  nitric  and  sulphuric  acids,  &c. 

There  is  sufficient  nitrate  for  the  consumption  of  Europe  for  ages  to  come.  The 
supply,  however,  at  present  for  export  cannot  be  much  augmented  over  30,000  tons 
annually,  in  consequence  of  the  scarcity  of  beasts  of  burden  in  this  desert  country  to 
convey  it  from  the  oficinas  or  works  to  the  port  of  Iquique.  Since  1830  to  1851,  the 
exports  have  been  about  240,000  tons,  one  of  the  principal  exporters  being  Mr. 
G.  Smith,  to  whom  the  Province  is  greatly  indebted  for  his  perseverance  in  esta- 
blishing this  new  branch  of  trade. 

Having  traversed  the  Pampa  de  Tamarugal,  ranges  of  sandstone  mountains  present 

*  The  boracic  acid  of  Tuscany  and  borax  from  India  is  almost  monopolized  by  one  party 
in  England;  the  price  for  British  refined  being  in  November,  1852,  £4  to  £i  4$.  per 
cwt.  Now  it  would  be  important  if  supplies  of  the  boro-calcite  from  Tarapaca  could  be  ob- 
tained. Mr.  Smith  fears  it  only  exists  in  small  quantities  there,  but  in  which  opinion  I  do 
not  quite  concur.  According  to  his  views  as  to  the  origin  of  salt  and  many  other  saline 
bodies  being  volcanic,  the  author  would  recommend  a  search  for  nitrates,  borates,  Iodates, 
&c,  in  those  dry  and  desert  saline  districts,  the  more  particularly  where  there  are  evidences 
of  volcanic  influences. 

f  Hayes  found  in  a  sample  of  nitrate  of  soda,  0*63  iodic  salts,  composed  of  iodate  of  soda 
and  chloro-iodate  of  magnesia. 

In  November,  1851,  dry  iodine  sold  for  6fc*.  to  Id.  per  os.,  but  at  the  same  period,  1853, 
it  had  risen  from  U.  34  to  Is.  6<*.  Thus  in  these  salts  from  Tarapaca  we  have  another  source 
of  iodine. 


104  REPORT-— 1852. 

themselves,  at  the  base  of  which  there  is  much  sulphate  of  soda  and  some  carbonate, 
and  a  little  higher  up  large  quantities  of  gypsum.  Ascending,  a  broken  mountainous 
country  is  attained,  where,  on  account  of  it  receiving  some  rain,  coarse  pastures. 
Cacti  and  some  brushwood  are  met  with  ;  here  saline  matters  would  be  found,  but  that 
the  rains  wash  them  into  the  lower  country.  In  this  district  there  are  gold  and  cop- 
per veins  in  abundance ;  and  on  examination,  it  is  thought  that  Lavadero  or  grain-gold 
will  be  met  with  :  and  there  are  extensive  plains  in  the  Andes,  at  14,000  and  15,000 
feet,  out  of  which  rise  ridges  and  knots  of  mountains ;  that  of  Lirima  is  supposed  to 
be  24,000  to  25,000  feet  above  the  sea. 

In  this  Andean  volcauic  region  there  is  among  others  a  great  salt  deposit  known  as 
the  Pampa  de  Sal :  it  is  a  few  miles  to  the  east  of  the  volcano  and  town  of  Isluga.  The 
volcano  is  in  19°  12'S.,  68°  50'  W.  The  volcano  and  salt  plain  was  first  made  known 
in  Europe  by  Messrs.  Bollaert  and  Smith  in  1827 ;  and  it  was  on  beholding  so  large  a 
collection  of  salt  in  the  elevated  position  of  nearly  15,000  feet,  that  so  strongly  im- 
pressed Mr.  Bollaert  with  the  idea  that  we  ought  to  look  for  the  origin  of  the  greater 
portions  of  saline  materials  to  direct  volcanic  sources. 

This  Pampa  de  Sal  extends  to  near  Potosi,  varying  in  breadth  from  3  to  8  leagues, 
the  saline  matters  being  8  to  10  inches  thick.  In  this  elevated  region  there  are 
many  lakes,  some  containing  fish.  Many  of  these  lakes  are  salt ;  how  can  they  be 
otherwise,  when  saline  bodies  exist  in  more  elevated  regions,  ejected  in  all  probability 
from  craters  and  fissures,  the  whole  country  being  pre-eminently  volcanic?  In  this 
way  we  may  reasonably  account  for  the  large  quantities  of  fossil  salt  in  the  mountains 
of  Chili,  Peru,  Mexico,  and  in  those  of  the  United  States ;  also  in  the  more  elevated 
portions  of  Europe,  Asia  and  Africa  ;  and  the  melting  of  snows  and  rains  would  wash 
much  of  this  soluble  material  into  the  sea. 


Observations  on  the  Euphrates  Line  of  Communication  with  India. 
By  Colonel  Chksney,  R.A.,  D.C.L.,  F.B.S. 

In  compliance  with  the  request  of  a  distinguished  member  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation, Dr.  Robinson,  whose  continued  interest  in  the  subject  of  the  Euphrates  line 
of  communication  with  India  is  a  source  of  extreme  gratification  to  me,  I  have  put 
together  a  few  observations  for  the  purpose  of  showing, — 1st,  what  was  the  past 
state  of  the  overland  communication  with  India ;  and  2ndly,  what  may  be  done  to 
accelerate  if  not  to  perfect  this  intercourse. 

Had  not  the  want  of  the  means  promised  by  Government  prevented  the  appear- 
ance of  the  remainder  of  my  work,  it  would  have  been  unnecessary  for  me  now  to 
enter  upon  the  subject  of  our  communication  with  the  East,  since  the  succeeding 
volumes  would  have  contained  all  the  details  of  the  Expedition. 

The  use  of  the  overland  route  dates  almost  from  the  discovery  of  India  itself. 
We  find  that  the  far-seeing  Elizabeth  maintained  a  fleet  at  Bir  to  facilitate  trade 
along  the  Euphrates,  which  being  then  the  high  road  to  India,  was  constantly  made 
use  of  by  Balbi,  Fitch,  and  others,  who  had  occasion  to  pass  by  that  line  with  mer- 
chandize. The  route  from  Europe  was  by  Alexandretta  and  Aleppo  to  Bir  on  the 
Euphrates,  whence  the  goods  were  carried  by  boats,  partly  for  the  use  of  the  inha- 
bitants of  the  country,  and  partly  for  India,  whither  the  products  of  Europe  were 
conveyed  at  this  period,  by  way  of  the  Persian  Gulf. 

Space  and  time  will  not  permit  us  to  discuss  the  latter  subject,  but  I  may  remind 
you  that  in  the  time  of  Herodotus,  Mesopotamia  was  the  most  productive  country 
in  the  world  j  and  as  it  still  retained  a  portion  of  its  commercial  wealth  at  the 
period  of  which  we  have  just  been  speaking,  this  route  was  but  the  continuation, 
or  rather  the  remains  of  the  trade,  of  Tyre,  Sidon,  Egypt,  &c,  and  not,  as  has  been 
frequently  imagined,  the  adoption  by  the  Levant  Company,  of  a  new.  and  shorter 
line  than  that  by  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

Up  to  the  time  when  the  East  India  Company  ceased  to  trade,  Bushire,  Bassorah, 
and  Baghdad,  were  productive  seats  of  commerce.  But  although  their  value  to 
England  has  greatly  diminished  in  consequence  of  the  cessation  of  the  commercial 
intercourse  which  previously  existed,  I  may  just  observe,  that  it  appears  from  official 
returns  (which  are  given  in  my  work),  that  the  trade  between  India  and  the  Persian 
Gulf  is  still  about  two  millions  annually. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  105 

The  line  of  the  Euphrates,  however,  had,  as  it  still  continues  to  have,  another 
advantage  for  England.  The  direct  line  from  London  passes  by  Vienna,  Constanti- 
nople, and  Asia  Minor,  to  Aleppo,  from  whence,  by  the  desert  of  Arabia,  it  reaches 
Bassorah. 

Messengers  in  Europe,  and  Tartars  in  Arabia,  used  to  accomplish  this  journey  in 
from  twenty-five  to  thirty-six  days ;  and  fast-sailing  schooners  carried  the  despatches 
along  the  Persian  Gulf  to  Bombay  in  about  twelve  days  more. 

The  route  by  the  Red  Sea  had  been  used  in  the  same  manner,  but  being  less 
speedy  by  a  great  deal,  the  regular  transit  was  continued  through  Arabia  up  to  the 
peace  of  1815;  and  it  was  considered  of  such  importance,  that,  on  examining 
in  the  archives  of  Bombay  the  result  of  the  intercourse  by  this  route  in  1836, 1 
found  that  instead  of  trusting  to  the  Secretaries,  the  communications  on  this  sub- 
ject were  from  the  pen  of  Lord  Wellesley  himself. 

My  acquaintance  with  Mesopotamia  commenced  in  this  way : — 

Purposing  to  assist  in  the  defence  of  Turkey  against- the  Russians  in  1829, 1  pro- 
ceeded to  Constantinople  in  that  year ;  but  arrived,  as  it  proved,  almost  at  the  close 
of  the  war,  and  I  consequently  undertook  a  journey  into  Asia  with  the  object  of 
examining  the  proposed  lines  of  communication  with  India.  Public  anxiety  on  this 
subject  led  to  a  series  of  queries  being  drawn  up  by  Mr.  Peacock  of  the  India  House, 
which  fell  into  my  hands,  and  decided  me  to  attempt  the  examination  of  these 
routes ;  for  I  was  one  of  those  who  began  to  see,  in  part  at  least,  what  might  be  done 
by  steam. 

In  a  lecture  at  which  I  was  present  in  1802,  Mr.  Walker,  in  noticing  the  embryo 
power  of  steam,  made  this  remarkable  prophetic  observation : — "  The  day,"  said  he, 
"will  arrive,  when,  instead  of  changing  horses,  we  shall  only  require  to  light  a 
coal."  Already  this  grand  idea  has  been  realized  almost  to  the  letter,  and  I  may 
live  to  see  it  equally  carried  out,  by  means  of  a  railroad  and  electric  telegraph  be* 
tween  England  and  India. 

But  to  return  from  this  digression.  Provided  with  Mr.  Peacock's  queries,  I 
examined  the  route  by  Cosseir  and  the  Nile,  as  well  as  that  across  the  isthmus  of 
Suez,  and  a  detailed  report  was  made  to  Government  through  the  Right  Hon.  Sir 
Robert  Gordon,  allowing  twenty-two  days  between  Bombay  and  Alexandria. 

This,  I  believe,  was  the  first  proposal,  at  least  the  first  founded  on  examination, 
for  opening  a  steam  communication  by  way  of  the  Red  Sea.  It  is  not  therefore 
surprising,  steam  by  sea  being  then  in  its  very  infancy,  that  the  Earl  of  Clare,  in 
commenting  on  my  paper,  should  have  said,  in  allusion  to  the  time  allowed,  "  The 
misfortune  is  that  Capt.  Chesney  endeavours  to  make  out  a  case."  I  need  scarcely 
add,  that  the  energy  and  activity  of  Waghorn  has  performed  in  fifteen,  and  even 
twelve  days,  that  transit  for  which  I  had  allowed  twenty-two. 

In  proceeding  from  Egypt  towards  the  Euphrates,  which  was  my  next  object, 
difficulties  and  impediments  occurred  in  consequence  of  my  having  been  carried  off 
by  the  Arabs  for  some  time,  and  over  a  considerable  tract  of  country.  I  must  not, 
however,  occupy  your  time  by  describing  a  journey  which  I  still  remember  with  the 
deepest  interest. 

On  regaining  my  freedom,  I  continued  my  journey  across  the  great  desert,  and 
succeeded  in  reaching  the  Euphrates. 

The  line  taken  from  Damascus  was  that  by  Palmyra ;  the  country  was  not  sandy, 
but  part  of  it  had  a  hard  pebbly  surface,  while  the  rest  was  undulating,  and  covered 
with  sheep  grass,  not  unlike  the  Dorsetshire  downs.  A  slight  illness  so  far  dis- 
armed the  suspicions  of  the  Arabs,  as  to  offer  an  excuse  for  my  going  by  the  river ; 
and  having  taken  leave  of  my  camels,  I  caused  a  raft  to  be  constructed  of  hurdles 
supported  on  thirty- three  inflated  sheep-skins,  on  which,  accompanied  by  three 
Arabs,  I  was  fairly  launched  on  the  great  river  Euphrates. 

The  compass  gave  me  the  bearings,  and  the  depth  of  the  river  was  ascertained  by 
means  of  a  pole  going  down  from  the  bottom  of  the  raft,  by  which  means  I  avoided 
the  suspicions  that  would  have  been  raised  by  the  ordinary  method  of  sounding. 
The  raft  was  kept  mid-stream  during  the  day,  and  was  secured  to  a  bank  by  night, 
and  thus  made  its  way  to  Felujah  opposite  Baghdad,  not  however  without  some 
difficulties  and  even  dangers,  such  as  being  fired  at  by  the  Arabs  from  the  banks, 
and  being  three  times  robbed  of  my  money  under  the  name  of  a  tax.    The  condition 


106  REPORT — 1852. 

of  an  isolated  individual  deprived  of  all  resources  when  at  such  a  distance  from 
Europe,  may  appear  to  have  been  almost  desperate ;  but,  strange  to  say,  I  succeeded, 
through  the  influence  of  the  English  name,  in  borrowing  funds  from  the  very  indi- 
viduals who  had  previously  robbed  me,  and  the  descent  by  Babylon  to  Bassorah,  and 
ultimately  across  the  Persian  Gulf,  was  happily  accomplished. 

I  must  not  attempt  more  than  a  very  general  description  of  the  Euphrates,  but  I 
may  observe  that  I  found  it  deserved  even  more  than  its  celebrated  name  as  the 
fourth  river  of  Paradise. 

It  is  wide,  deep,  and  highly  picturesque,  flowing  between  ancient  aqueducts  and 
irrigating  mills,  some  of  which  are  of  modern  construction  also,  with  frequent  vil- 
lages and  occasional  towns,  sometimes  seated  on  islands,  at  others  on  the  banks  of 
the  river,  amidst  luxuriant  groves  of  date-trees,  and  occasionally,  as  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Babylon,  surrounded  by  the  richest  wheat  cultivation. 

I  now  laid  down  and  sent  home,  a  map  of  that  part  of  the  river  which  had  been 
examined ;  and  recollecting  that  my  temporary  captivity  had  deprived  me  of  the 
opportunity  of  visiting  the  country  between  Seleucia  and  the  river  Euphrates, 
above  and  below  Bir,  I  traversed  about  1700  miles  of  Persia,  passing  through 
Ispahan  and  several  other  great  cities  of  that  kingdom,  to  the  sources  of  the 
Euphrates,  and  also  travelled  over  some  1800  miles  through  Asia  Minor,  which 
enabled  me  to  examine  the  country  between  the  Mediterranean  and  the  upper  part 
of  the  river. 

These  explorations  occupied  three  years  and  a  quarter ;  their  result  was  a  printed 
report  to  Government,  submitting  at  the  same  time,  that  a  steam  communication 
with  India  should  be  opened  alternately  by  the  Persian  Gulf  and  the  Red  Sea.  I 
believed  then,  as  I  do  now,  that  our  great  kingdom  requires  a  second  line,  even  if 
we  were  free  from  all  chance  of  interruption ;  and  even  irrespectively  of  the  mercan- 
tile and  other  advantages  which  belong  to  the  route  through  Arabia. 

This  report  had  scarcely  appeared,  when  I  was  summoned  to  St.  James's,  and 
after  going  into  the  question  in  much  detail,  the  King  (William  the  Fourth)  took  a 
lively  interest  in  the  comparative  merits  of  the  Red  Sea  and  River  Euphrates  lines, 
observing,  that  as  a  sailor,  he  considered  that  about  one-half  the  distance  of  open 
sea  gave  a  manifest  advantage  to  the  latter. 

The  subject  was  next  taken  up  by  Lord  Palmerston,  Lord  Ripon,  the  Marquis  of 
Lansdowne,  and  Mr.  Grant,  now  Lord  Glenelg,  and  after  a  lengthened  examination 
by  a  Committee  of  the  House  of  Commons,  .£20,000  were  voted  for  an  Expedition 
to  the  Euphrates  and  Tigris,  in  the  command  of  which  I  sailed  early  in  the 
year  1835. 

It  consisted  of  two  flat. bottomed  iron  steamers,  the  fifth  and  sixth  of  the  kind 
that  had  been  built,  with  a  competent  staff  of  scientific  and  other  officers,  together 
with  detachments  of  artillery  and  sappers,  all  of  whom,  having  been  originally  boiler- 
makers,  mill- wrights,  &c,  were  prepared  to  assist  in  putting  up  the  vessels,  which 
we  carried  out  in  pieces. 

The  upper  Euphrates  near  Bir  was  the  place  selected  for  this  purpose*  as  we 
considered  we  should  there  be  less  likely  to  meet  with  opposition  from  the  Arabs, 
than  if  we  had  landed  with  this  object  at  the  mouth  of  the  river ;  moreover  there 
are  two  cities,  Antioch  and  Aleppo,  on  this  line,  and  many  villages  which  offered  great 
facilities  in  men,  animals,  &c. 

Accordingly  the  Expedition  landed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ordhtes,  where,  contrary 
to  previous  promises  and  arrangements,  we  found  ourselves  stopped  by  the  Pasha  of 
Egypt,  who  was  then  in  authority. 

In  this  dilemma,  I  determined,  instead  of  sailing  away  to  go  round  to  India,  to 
disembark  the  steamers  and  their  equipments,  and  having  formed  a  camp,  about 
400  tons  of  materials  were  deposited  on  the  banks  of  the  Orontes,  and  the  Co- 
lumbine sloop  of  war  and  transport  which  had  brought  them,  took  their  departure, 
by  way  of  proving  to  Mohammed  Ali  that  the  Expedition  wis  not  to  be  stopped. 
Open  impediments  ceased  after  a  time,  but  underhand  opposition  still  met  us  in 
every  quarter,  when  we  had  roads  to  make,  waggons  to  construct,  and  men  as  well 
as  animals  to  collect.  The  delays  consequent  upon  this  state  of  things  brought  us 
to  the  ordinary  impediments  of  the  rainy  season ;  but  at  length  all  difficulties  were 
overcome,  the  diving-bell  was  rolled  under  the  surface  of  the  water  to  be  carried 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  107 

onward,  and  the  last  piece  of  boiler,  weighing  seven  tons,  and  drawn  by  104  bullocks, 
entered  Port  William  under  a  triumphal  arch,  and  thus  the  extraordinary  energy 
and  perseverance  of  the  officers  and  men  of  the  Expedition  accomplished,  what  a 
French  writer  termed  "  the  gigantic  operation"  of  transporting  this  and  the  other  heavy 
weights  a  distance  of  147  miles,  frequently  over  difficult  country,  from  the  Orontes  to 
Port  William  on  the  Euphrates. 

This  operation  consumed  all  the  funds  of  the  Expedition,  and  having  been  told  by 
Government  that  no  more  would  be  given,  I  was  forced  either  to  stop,  or  to  find  the 
funds  myself.  I  felt  that  if  I  decided  on  the  former  course,  it  would  lead  to  the  belief 
that  we  had  failed,  and  I  therefore  ventured  to  draw  on  my  friends  at  home  for  up- 
wards of  j£2000,  and  as  a  compensation  for  this  unpleasant  alternative,  we  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  two  steamers  floated,  one  108  feet  long,  and  both  completely 
arm: X  and  equipped  for  the  intended  service,  with  ample  supplies  of  provision  and 
fuel.  The  latter  is  found  abundantly  of  two  kinds,  viz.  mineral  pitch,  and  plenty 
of  Tamarisk  wood,  which  gave  nearly  a  knot  an  hour  more  speed  than  coal. 

The  descent  and  survey  of  the  river  now  commenced.  For  the  latter  purpose  two 
boats  preceded  the  vessels  day  by  day,  sounding  and  taking  bearings,  and  the  officer 
in  charge  of  this  party  became  the  pilot  of  the  steamers  next  day  for  so  much  of  the 
river  as  he  had  thus  explored. 

In  this  way  our  operations  were  peaceably  and  successfully  carried  on,  till  on  one 
portentous  morning,  we  discovered  a  cloud,  like  a  man's  hand,  coming  towards  us 
with  fatal  speed.  All  efforts  were  made  to  secure  the  vessels  in  time,  and  the  lesser 
one,  the  Tigris,  even  reached  the  bank,  but  the  whirlwind  of  the  desert  had  reached 
her  at  the  same  instant,  and  though  still  in  its  infancy,  such  was  its  violence,  that 
that  unfortunate  vessel  recoiled  from  the  bank,  and  was  held  as  if  in  a  vice,  heeling 
over.  The  storm  soon  attained  its  greatest  power.  The  Euphrates  was  backed  at 
this  moment  to  avoid  a  collision  with  the  unfortunate  Tigris,  and  at  1  p.m.  we 
floated  past  as  a  mere  log,  in  the  midst  of  darkness  deeper  than  that  of  night,  im- 
mense waves  breaking  over  and  into  the  ill-fated  vessel,  till  she  was  carried  to  the 
bottom  in  seven  fathoms  water,  the  helmsman  and  all  others  remaining  firmly  at 
their  posts.  So  fearful  and  so  violent  had  been  the  effects  of  this  whirlwind  from 
the  desert,  which  would  have  blown  a  frigate  out  of  the  water,  that  portions  of  the 
paddle-boxes  were  in  the  fields  before  I  and  seven  others  reached  the  shore. 
Twenty  of  my  brave  companions  had  scarcely  found  a  watery  grave  when  a  calm 
succeeded  the  hurricane,  which  had  run  its  whole  course  in  fifteen  minutes.  Had  it 
lasted  eight  or  ten  minutes  more,  the  Euphrates,  though  secured  to  the  bank  with 
chain  cables  and  large  jumpers  driven  into  the  earth,  must  have  gone  to  the  bottom 
also.  The  Arabs,  however,  showed  the  greatest  kindness ;  for  instead  of  taking  ad- 
vantage of  our  condition,  as  is  unhappily  frequently  the  case  in  our  more  civilized 
country,  they  gave  us  every  possible  assistance  by  collecting  the  remains  of  the 
goods,  &c.  Our  loss  however  was  very,  very  great;  1100  drawings,  and  all  the 
accounts  of  the  Expedition,  all  the  money,  with  a  large  quantity  of  stores,  &c,  went 
to  the  bottom. 

This  catastrophe  happened  at  Werdi,  about  half-way  between  the  Mediterranean 
and  Persian  Gulf,  or  nearly  500  miles  from  either ;  at  the  very  spot  where  I  first 
came  upon  the  river,  and  also  near  the  place  where  the  apostate  Julian  lost  the 
greater  part  of  his  fleet  from  a  similar  storm.  The  Arabs  told  us  they  had  often 
witnessed  storms,  but  never  one  such  as  this  had  been. 

I  had  been  saved,  and  therefore  I  could  not  despair,  though  half  the  river  still 
remained  to  be  navigated.  I  had  now  the  painful  task  of  communicating  what  I 
had  hitherto  concealed  from  the  officers  and  men,  the  orders  to  break  up  the  Expe- 
dition as  soon  as  it  should  reach  the  Persian  Gulf.  I  announced  that  I  considered 
the  late  calamity  would  justify  a  departure  from  these  orders,  and  being  nobly 
seconded  by  the  officers,  who  gave  up  their  pay  to  lessen  the  expenses,  we  happily 
continued  our  survey  and  descent  by  Babylon  to  Bassorah,  where  we  fired  seventy- 
two  guns,  one  for  every  year  of  our  warm-hearted  monarch  King  William. 

The  expected  supplies  had  not  yet  reached  the  Persian  Gulf  from  India,  but  they 
were  received  at  a  later  period,  and  we  renewed  our  operations  by  ascending  more 
than  300  miles  of  the  river  Tigris,  to  the  city  of  the  Kaliphs,  Baghdad.  The 
steamer  everywhere  created  surprise  if  not  amazement.    On  one  occasion,  an  Arab, 


108  REPORT— 1852. 

placing  his  head  between  his  knees,  was  heard  to  exclaim,  "  Has  God  only  made 
one  such  creation"?  The  Arabs  had  a  kind  of  prophecy  that  when  iron  should 
swim  on  the  water,  their  dominion  was  to  end,  and  they  came  in  consequence  hun- 
dreds of  miles  to  ascertain  the  fact  that  it  really  did  swim. 

On  descending  again  to  Bassorah,  we  found  the  Hugh  Lindsay  with  a  mail  and 
passengers  from  Bombay.  We  took  both  on  board,  and  immediately  commenced 
the  ascent  of  the  Euphrates.  But  when  we  had  reached  the  distance  of  nearly  200 
miles,  the  cross-head  of  the  engine  snapped,  and  it  became  necessary  to  drop  down 
to  Bassorah,  and  to  send  the  mail  by  land  to  England. 

The  officer  who  took  charge  of  it  is  now  Captain  FitzJames,  one  of  those  Arctic 
voyagers,  to  ascertain  whose  fate  England  is  now  making  such  meritorious,  and  let 
us  trust  they  will  prove  successful  exertions. 

I  now  proceeded  to  India  to  urge  the  continuance  of  the  enterprise,  and  the 
engine  having  been  repaired,  Colonel  Estcourt,  who  was  left  in  charge,  ascended  to 
Baghdad,  after  exploring  the  river  Karun,  &c.  Fresh  orders  were  however  received 
to  break  up  the  Expedition,  and  the  party  returned  to  England  by  land,  while  I 
followed  taking  from  Bombay  important  despatches.  With  these  documents  I  made 
a  desert  journey  of  nearly  1000  miles  from  sea  to  sea.  My  party  consisted  of  two 
Arabs  with  four  camels.  The  compass  guided  our  steps  by  day  and  the  stars  by 
night,  and  thus  the  journey  to  Damascus  was  accomplished  in  nineteen  days.  We 
occasionally  halted  in  Arab  tents,  when  I  heard  them  speaking  of  Chesney  Beg,  who 
having  shaved  off  his  beard  was  not  recognized  by  them. 

On  reaching  England,  I  received  a  communication  from  Prince  Metternich,  ex- 
pressing his  readiness,  his  earnest  desire  indeed,  to  meet  the  supposed  Indian  line  at 
Scanderoon ;  but  the  British  Government  did  not  enter  into  the  question  at  all, 
beyond  turning  it  over  to  the  East  India  Company.  Three  river  steamers  were 
however  afterwards  floated  by  the  Company  on  the  Mesopotamian  rivers,  and  Cap- 
tain Campbell  of  the  Indian  Navy  successfully  ascended  the  Euphrates  as  high  as 
Beles.  Captain  Lynch  of  the  Indian  Navy  (who  was  one  of  the  officers  of  the 
Expedition),  in  his  descent  of  the  river,  crossed  by  one  of  the  ancient  canals  flowing 
from  the  Euphrates  to  the  Tigris,  into  the  latter  river.  The  necessities  of  the  ser- 
vice during  the  Affghan  war,  caused  these  vessels  to  be  taken  to  the  river  Indus,  and 
the  question  of  their  navigation  remained  in  abeyance  till  last  autumn.  The  Turkish 
Government  then  took  the  matter  up,  and  after  some  reference  to  me,  two  steam- 
vessels  of  suitable  dimensions  have  been  constructed  by  Messrs.  Laird  of  Birkenhead, 
and  will  speedily  be  launched  on  the  rivers  of  Mesopotamia.  I  feel,  however,  no 
small  anxiety  lest  a  great  undertaking  should  fall  to  the  ground  from  want  of 
competent  management,  such  as  might  be  found  by  British  enterprise,  either  on  this 
or  any  other  line. 

Of  late  the  Eastern  Steam  Navigation  Company,  in  competing  with  the  Peninsular 
and  Oriental  Company,  appears  to  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  long  and 
powerful  steamers,  using  both  the  screw  and  paddles,  might  reach  India  by  the  Cape 
in  about  thirty-two  days,  and  it  is  understood  that  vessels  of  this  description  are 
now  being  built.  Admitting  that  the  most  complete  success  should  attend  this 
great  undertaking,  and  that  a  distance  of  10,790  miles  should  be  accomplished 
within  the  specified  time,  it  is  quite  clear  that  this  line  will  have  to  compete  with 
vessels  of  similar  power  on  the  shorter  lines,  namely,  the  one  of  about  5238  miles 
by  the  Red  Sea,  and  that  of  4823  miles  by  the  Euphrates. 

Of  another  line,  that  by  America,  which  is  to  be  brought  before  this  Section,  I 
know  little  or  nothing,  but  it  seems  clear  to  me  that  either  of  the  other  two  must 
have  manifest  advantages.  As  the  communication  by  the  Red  Sea  has  for  a  long 
time  been  as  regular  as  can  be  desired,  it  only  remains  to  notice  the  facilities  belonging 
to  the  line  through  Asiatic  Turkey  and  Persia,  and  again  by  the  same  line  of  country, 
partly  by  railroad  and  partly  by  steam-vessels. 

A  railway  already  exists  from  London  to  Hungary,  and  ere  long  it  may  reach 
Constantinople,  either  by  crossing  the  Balkan  partly  by  means  of  stationary  engines, 
or  coasting  the  sea-shore  by  way  of  Varna,  in  order  to  turn  this  chain,  and  thus 
reach  Constantinople  with  facility.  The  great  chains  of  Asia  Minor  present,  as  I 
know,  and  as  you  have  seen  by  Mr.  A  ins  worth's  paper,  very  serious  impediments, 
Nit  not  such  as  might  not  be  overcome  by  the  science  of  the  present  day;  and  having 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  8ECTIONS.  109 

once  attained  the  valley  of  the  Mesopotamian  rivers,  the  line  might  be  continued 
along  the  southern  shores  of  Persia  and  the  coast  of  Mekkran  to  India. 

But,  although  practically  attainable,  tbe  enormous  expense  on  the  one  band,  and 
the  unsettled  state  of  this  part  of  the  country  on  the  other,  render  such  a  line  of 
communication  only  likely  to  be  successfully  attempted  at  some  distant  period.  We 
may  therefore  postpone  the  consideration  of  all  that  is  eastward  of  the  Euphrates, 
and  confine  the  question  to  a  railway  through  Arabia,  having  a  steamer  to  India 
from  one  extremity,  and  another  to  Trieste  from  the  other.  The  line  supposed  is  to 
quit  the  Mediterranean  at  the  Bay  of  Antioch,  and  pass  from  thence  by  ancient 
Aleppo  to  the  Euphrates  at  Jaber,  and  so  along  the  right  bank  of  the  river  to  its 
estuary,  a  distance  of  715  miles.  Were  this  completed,  with  the  assistance  of 
powerful  steamers  at  each  extremity,  letters  might  reach  Bombay  from  London 
in  eighteen  or  nineteen  days,  and  messages,  partly  by  electric  telegraph,  in  ten 
days. 

Seven  hundred  and  fifteen  miles  of  a  single  line  of  railway  on  the  American  plan, 
might  be  executed  for  about  j£5,7  20,000,  or  with  two  powerful  steamers  on  the 
Arabian,  and  as  many  on  the  European  side,  for  about  .£6,000,000  sterling,  including 
the  necessary  port  in  the  Bay  of  Antioch. 

Instead,  however,  of  engaging  in  the  first  instance  in  such  a  serious  outlay,  tern* 
porary,  and  by  no  means  costly  arrangements  can  be  made.  Inhere  is,  as  we  all 
know,  a  railway  open  to  Trieste,  from  whence  the  Austrian  Lloyd's  Company 
vessels  would  carry  the  mails  and  passengers  to  Scanderoon,  which,  as  a  temporary 
harbour,  requires  no  outlay  whatever.  From  thence  by  the  Bir-line,  it  is  but  110 
miles  to  Beles  on  the  Euphrates,  between  which  place  and  Bassorah  small  steamers 
might  be  used : 

Days.     Hours. 

London  to  Trieste 3         12 

Trieste  to  Scanderoon  2         12 

Scanderoon  to  Jaber 1         10 

Jaber  to  Bassorah... 5         10 

Bassorah  to  Bombay 4         12 

Delays 1         10 

18         18 
and  if  partially  using  the  electric  telegraph,  ten  days. 

Such  an  opening  as  this  as  a  commencement,  might  be  accomplished  with  a  bond 
fide  capital  of  .£50,000,  or  at  the  outside,  j#80,000 ;  and  if  the  undertaking  were 
conducted  by  practical  men,  I  should  have  no  fears  as  to  its  result.  For  the  tem- 
porary land  journey,  either  camels  might  be  used,  with  frequent  relays,  or  the  car- 
riages of  the  country,  called  Tack- i- van,  which  are  carriages  slung  between  two 
camels  or  horses ;  and  the  necessary  protection  from  place  to  place  being  connected 
with  the  hire  of  the  animals,  this  would  give  large  employment  to  the  Arabs,  and 
their  interest  would  go  hand  in  hand  with  the  undertaking. 

During  our  extensive  intercourse  with  them,  the  Arabs  showed  the  most  favour- 
able disposition  towards  us ;  and  they  were  not  only  glad  to  be  employed,  but  proved 
remarkably  faithful,  not  only  in  transporting  goods  and  stores,  but  in  money  also. 
All  our  stores,  and  upwards  of  ,£6000  were  safely  carried  in  small  sums  from  time 
to  time  by  Arab  messengers,  without  any  loss  whatever,  and  the  existence  of  com- 
mercial intercourse  for  centuries  in  Arabia,  is  the  best  proof  that  no  great  difficulty 
can  attend  more  extended  relations  with  this  people. 

Aa  the  fertility  of  Mesopotamia  greatly  exceeds  that  of  Egypt,  being  capable  of 
growing  indigo,  cotton,  sugar,  grain,  and  wool  to  any  amount,  this  country  opens 
a  vast  field  for  agricultural  and  commercial  enterprise,  with  the  safe  and  productive 
investment  of  capital.  Besides  the  advantages  of  a  postal  communication  with 
India,  alternately  with  that  by  the  Red  Sea,  a  ready  intercourse  with  Southern 
Persia,  Arabia,  Mesopotamia,  and  Kurdistan,  must  greatly  extend  the  outlets  for 
our  manufactures,  and  would  probably  afford  at  the  same  time  desirable  localities 
for  colonization. 

The  climate  is  healthy,  and  it  could  be  easily  shown  by  calculation,  that  there 
would  be  ample  returns  for  the  capital  of  any  company  that  may  be  judiciously 


110  REPORT — 1852. 

organized.  One  of  my  officers,  Mr.  Hector,  remained  on  the  Euphrates,  and  com- 
mencing from  nothing*  has  realized  a  small  independence  by  the  occasional  freight- 
age of  a  ship  from  England  with  cotton  and  other  goods.  The  natives,  both  of  Arabia 
and  Asia  Minor,  are  anxious  for  European  manufactures,  which,  when  I  was  in 
Mesopotamia,  were  chiefly  obtained  from  Russia,  and  of  an  inferior  quality.  These 
goods  were  retailed  by  the  native  merchants  at  an  enormous  price,  their  profit  being 
generally  cent,  per  cent.  It  is  however  necessary  to  consult  the  taste  of  the  natives 
in  cottons,  muslins,  and  other  manufactures,  to  ensure  success.  The  Russians  have 
done  this  judiciously,  and  have  secured  popularity  for  their  goods. 

Much  more  might  be  said  on  the  subject  of  commerce ;  but  setting  aside  all  these 
considerations,  let  us  reflect  for  a  moment  on  the  vast  field  that  would  be  opened  to 
scientific  research  and  observation,  in  countries  so  rich  in  remains  of  early  civiliza- 
tion, so  deeply  interesting  to  the  antiquarian  and  the  historian,  so  fertile  in  produc- 
tions for  the  naturalist  and  botanist.  To  the  ethnologist,  geologist,  and  geo- 
grapher also,  the  opening  of  this  line  of  route  would  be  of  inestimable  value,  while 
to  be  the  means  of  re-introducing  Christianity  and  civilization  to  regions  hallowed 
by  the  most  sacred  associations  is  surely  an  object  worthy  of  the  best  efforts  of  the 
British  people.  The  Mesopotamian  rivers  should  not  be  allowed  to  remain  almost 
useless  to  mankind,  and  I  cannot  relinquish  the  hope  that  I  shall  yet  see  this  long- 
cherished  desire,  fully  and  judiciously  realized. 

To  carry  out  the  whole  project  of  a  railway  through  Arabia,  only  £  1,205,000 
would  be  required,  and  the  annual  cost  would  be  about  j£  140,000.  The  greater 
object  of  a  railway  to  India  all  the  way,  would  require  about  j£33,800,000.  But 
my  proposal  only  requires  for  a  beginning  j£50,000  or  j£80,000,  to  be  gradually 
increased  as  success  crowns  our  efforts  to  a  capital  of  £  1,205,000 ;  and  we  may 
leave  the  question  of  the  ^33,000,000  for  our  sons  or  our  grandsons. 


Expedition  under  Mr.  F.  Galton,  to  the  East  of  Walfisch  Bay. 


Climatological  Notes  on  Pisa  and  Lucca.    By  Dr.  J.  Gason  of  Dublin. 


Becent  Survey  far  a  Ship  Canal  through  the  Isthmus  of  Central  America. 
By  Messrs.  Lionel  Gisborne  and  Forde.  Communicated  through  the 
Royal  Geographical  Society,  by  the  Foreign  Office. 


On  a  Recent  Journey  across  Africa  from  Zanzibar  to  Angola,  as  com* 
municated  from  Her  Majesty* s  Foreign  Office  to  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society.  

On  certain  Ancient  Mines.  By  the  Rev.  Edward  Hincks,  D.D. 
There  are  two  places  in  the  Cuneatic  inscriptions  in  which  mines  or  quarries  are 
mentioned.  The  first  is  on  the  obelisk,  brought  from  Nimrud,  where  the  following 
passage  occurs.  It  is  Divanubar,  king  of  Assyria,  who  speaks : — "  In  my  twenty- 
second  year  (about  878  B.C.),  I  crossed  the  Euphrates  for  the  twenty-first  time.  I 
went  down  to  Tabal.  I  received  their  tributes  from  twenty-four  kings  of  Tabal.  I 
went  to  the  mines  of  silver,  of  salt,  and  of  gypsum/'  The  last-named  substance  is 
identified  by  its  being  that  of  which  certain  colossal  bulls  are  said  to  have  been 
made.  The  country  where  these  mines  existed  must  be  a  part  of  Cappadocia ;  and, 
from  the  number  of  its  kings,  it  is  evident  that  it  was  of  considerable  extent.  It 
appears,  from  the  inscriptions,  that  it  bordered  on  Khelakhi,  which  Colonel  Raw- 
linson  has  identified  with  Cilicia.  Its  name  is  probably  preserved,  in  a  slightly  cor- 
rupted form,  in  Tavro$,  the  name  given  by  the  Greeks  to  the  mountain  chain  which 
lay  in  the  south  of  it.  So  JVararadh,  or  Ararat,  was  properly  the  name  of  a 
country,  but  is  now  applied  to  a  mountain  in  the  east  of  this  country.  As  a  more 
familiar  instance,  Mourne  is  properly  the  name  of  a  barony,  but  is  best  known  as 
that  of  a  mountain  chain  which  lies  in  it.    In  this  country,  Mr.  Ainsworth  lias 


TRANSACTIONS  OP  THE  SECTIONS.  Ill 

mentioned  two  salt  mines,  one  near  Kankari,  and  the  other  at  Tuz  Koi,  near  Neu 
Shehr.  The  latter  is  described  as  an  immense  bed  of  Bait,  in  which  a  pit  was 
originally  dug,  round  which  shafts  are  now  sunk.  Gypsum  quarries  are  found  in 
abundance  in  this  district,  as  is  also  marble ;  but  of  this  substance  it  appears  that 
no  bulls  have  yet  been  found.  No  mines  of  native  silver  exist  in  the  country  j  such 
a  mine  may  have  existed  formerly,  and  have  been  exhausted ;  but  it  is  more  probable 
that  the  mine  was  of  argentiferous  galena,  the  reduction  of  which  is  less  difficult 
than  of  copper  ore ;  and  we  know  that  the  mode  of  reducing  this  was  known  many 
centuries  before  the  date  of  this  inscription.  Such  a  mine  exists  at  Denek  Tagh, 
about  eighty  mites  north  of  the  salt  mine.  [M.  de  Tchihatchef  mentioned  another 
silver  mine,  lying  between  this  and  Sivas,  which  he  thought  more  likely  to  have 
been  visited  by  the  Assyrian  king.]  The  other  passage  in  an  Assyrian  inscription 
is  in  the  annals  of  S argon.  In  Botta's  pi.  83, 1.  9*  under  the  11th  year  (711  B.C.), 
when  he  took  Ashdud,  the  king  of  which  fled  to  Egypt,  there  occur  the  words, 
"  Baal  Zephon  (Bahil  Zapuna)  the  great  mine  of  copper."  The  preceding  and  fol- 
lowing words  are  lost.  The  earliest  known  copper  mines  are  those  in  the  peninsula 
of  Mount  Sinai.  A  place  called  Surdbat  El  Khadem  attracted  much  attention  some 
years  ago.  It  was  believed  to  be  an  Egyptian  place  of  pilgrimage.  Some  pillars 
were  found  there,  containing  dates  in  the  reigns  of  many  Egyptian  kings,  and  these 
were  believed  to  be  tombstones.  At  length  Lepsius  visited  the  place,  and  ascer- 
tained that  it  was  a  great  copper  mine ;  and  that  the  pillars  contained  records  of  its 
being  worked  at  the  times  mentioned,  and  invocations  of  Hathor,  the  Egyptian 
Venus,  who  presided  over  the  country.  This  connexion  of  Venus  with  copper,  in 
the  worship  of  both  this  country  and  Cyprus,  and  in  the  fancies  of  the  alchemists, 
was  noticed  as  a  curious  coincidence  that  required  explanation.  On  the  Nimrtid 
obelisk  are  the  tributes  of  five  nations,  the  first  and  fifth  of  which  offer  copper ;  and 
this  was,  no  doubt,  a  production  of  their  countries.  The  name  of  the  first  nation  is 
Gilzan,  probably  the  Gozan  of  scripture.  The  name  probably  signifies  the  country 
of  the  Gel*,  whom  Strabo  places  on  the  shore  of  the  Caspian  sea.  It  is 
the  modern  Ghilan.  Here  is  the  celebrated  copper  mine  of  Shichterabad,  which 
Colonel  Monteith  says  is  probably  not  exceeded  by  any  in  existence  for  richness 
and  facility  of  working.  It  is  near  a  river  which  is  called  at  this  day  Ozan.  The 
second  tribute  is  that  of  Jehu,  king  of  Israel.  The  third  is  of  a  country  formerly 
supposed  to  be  Egypt,  the  name  of  which  very  closely  resembled  its  name ;  but  it  is 
the  hilly  country  to  the  east  of  Nineveh,  and  not  very  far  from  it.  The  fourth  tri- 
bute is  supposed  to  be  that  of  a  nation  on  the  west  of  the  Persian  Gulf.  The  fifth 
is,  according  to  Colonel  Chesney,  that  of  the  people  on  the  opposite  coast  of  the 
Gulf  where  copper  is  found.  The  mode  of  reading  this  name  is  uncertain,  the  first 
character  having  different  values.  Dr.  Hincks  was  disposed  to  read  it  Shirutinoy, 
identifying  it  with  the  Sharutana  of  the  Egyptian  inscriptions,  or  the  people  of 
Cyprus ;  but  the  appearance  of  the  people  was,  according  to  Colonel  Chesney,  so 
decidedly  Persian  that  he  would  not  press  this  point.  He,  however,  went  on  to 
state  his  reasons  for  believing  the  Sharutana  to  be  from  Cyprus,  as  it  led  to  some 
interesting  conclusions.  They  are  called  "  the  Sharutana  of  the  sea,"  and  this  is 
analogous  to  a  phrase  "  of  the  middle  of  the  sea,"  which,  in  the  Cuneatic  inscrip- 
tions, is  added  to  certain  names  implying  insular  position.  This  is  one  of  the  few 
points  on  which  Dr.  Hincks  and  Colonel  Rawlinson  differ.  A  series  of  names  of 
people  are  mentioned  on  a  great  slab  at  Nimrud,  as  paying  tribute  to  the  father  of 
Divanubar.  This  list  begins  with  the  Tyrians  and  ends  with  the  people  of  Arwad. 
Then  comes  this  phrase,  which  Colonel  Rawlinson  supposed  to  apply  to  all  the 
people,  and  to  mean  that  they  lived  on  the  sea  coast ;  but  Dr.  Hincks  supposes  it  to 
belong  to  the  last  people  only,  and  to  imply  that  they  lived  in  an  island.  The  same 
phrase  is  appended  to  two  other  names  ;  and  this  difference  as  to  its  interpretation 
has  led  to  very  different  views  of  what  these  names  apply  to.  We  have  the  Yavnay, 
who  arementioned  in  several  places,  and  particularly  as  being  employed  by  Sen- 
nacherib to  navigate  his  vessels,  along  with  Tyrians  and  Sidonians.  Colonel  Raw- 
linson makes  them  to  be  the  people  of  Jabneh,  in  Palestine,  but  Dr.  Hincks  believes 
them  to  be  the  Ionians,  or  people  of  the  Grecian  islands.  But  what  is  more  inter- 
esting is,  that  Luli,  the  king  of  Sidon,  is  said  to  have  fled  from  Tyre  to  a  place 
named,  according  to  Colonel  Rawlinson,  Yainan,  and  supposed  by  him  to  be  RhU 


112  REPORT — 1852. 

nocolura,  on  the  frontiers  of  Egypt.  He  evidently  believes  that  Lnli  fled  by  land. 
Dr.  Hincks  reads  the  name  Yavan,  and  believes  it  to  be  the  country  to  which  the 
Yavnay  belonged,  or  the  Grecian  islands,  including  perhaps  Crete.  He  observed 
that,  in  the  Khorsabad  inscriptions,  an  invasion  of  seven  kings  of  this  country  is  men- 
tioned, and  they  are  said  to  have  been  seven  days  on  their  voyage.  This  implies 
that  they  came  from  Crete,  or  from  beyond  it.  What  makes  this  matter  most  in- 
teresting is,  that  the  flight  of  the  Tynans  to  Yavan,  which  is  represented  in  the  se- 
venty-first plate  of  Mr.  Layard's  Monuments  of  Nineveh,  seems  to  be  the  fulfilment 
of  the  prophecy  in  Isaiah  xxiii.  12.  Tyre,  the  daughter  of  Sidon,  is  here  passing 
over  to  Chittim.  Commentators  have  looked  to  the  time  of  Nebuchadnezzar  for  the 
fulfilment  of  this  prophecy ;  but  here  is  a  more  direct  fulfilment  than  could  have 
occurred  then,  more  than  100  years  earlier,  and  not  above  fifteen  years  after  the 
prophecy  was  delivered.  The  sculpture  evidently  refers  to  a  flight,  not  to  a  warlike 
expedition,  as  women  and  unarmed  persons  are  represented  in  the  ships ;  and  an 
adjoining  slab  represented  the  castle  of  Tyre  on  the  sea  shore,  and  a  woman,  who 
had  embarked,  receiving  a  child  from  a  man  on  the  shore.  After  this  digression, 
the  identity  of  "  Baal  Zephon,  the  great  copper  mine,''  with  the  place  of  that  name, 
before  or  over  against  which  Pihahiroth  was  situated,  was  maintained.  Baal  Zephon 
was  supposed  to  be  Surabat  el  Kbadem ;  and  it  was  maintained  that  Pihahiroth 
must  be  on  the  part  of  the  coast  which  fronted  this  mine ;  a  position  which  agreed 
with  that  of  the  coast  south  of  Rda  *At&kuht  but  by  no  means  with  any  part  of  the 
coast  north  of  it.  This  was  considered  to  refute  the  opinion  which  so  many  have 
adopted  of  late  years,  that  the  Israelites  crossed  the  sea  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Suez.  Dr.  Hincks  observed,  in  conclusion,  that  the  truth  of  the  narrative  in  the 
book  of  Exodus  was  one  for  the  theologian  and  not  for  the  geographer.  The  po- 
sition of  Pihahiroth,  whether  close  by  Suez  or  to  the  south  of  Ras  'At&kah,  was  a 
geographical  question.  If  the  former  opinion  prevailed,  another  geographical  ques- 
tion arose,  whether  a  multitude  of  people  could  enss  the  sea  in  that  place,  under 
any  circumstances  of  wind  or  tide,  without  the  laws  of  nature  being  suspended.  But 
if  the  latter  opinion  be  adopted,  there  is  no  room  for  this  second  question.  Every 
one  must  admit,  that,  below  the  Cape,  if  the  Israelites  crossed  at  all,  they  must 
have  crossed  the  broad  and  deep  sea,  when  the  water  must  have  stood  as  a  wall  on 
their  right  hand  and  on  their  left,  as  the  narrative  expressly  affirms  that  it  did. 


Latest  Explorations  in  South  Africa  to  the  North  of  Lake  Ngami.    By 
Messrs.  Livingston  and  Oswell. 


On   the  Expedition    to   the  Interior  of   Central  Australia   in   search    of 

Dr.  Leichardt. 


On  the  Proposed  Expedition  to  ascend  the  Niger  to  its  Source. 
By  Lieut.  L.  Macleod,  B.N. 

In  the  contract  lately  made  by  the  Admiralty  with  Mr.  M'Gregor  Laird,  for  the 
conveyance  of  the  mail  to  the  west  coast  of  Africa,  there  is  a  clause  by  which  the 
contractor  binds  himself  to  supply  a  steam -vessel  suitable  for  river  work,  for  the 
purpose  of  geographical  and  scientific  research,  at  the  small  cost  of  4*.  per  mile.  By 
taking  advantage  of  this  clause,  Mr.  Macleod  proposes  to  open  the  Niger  and  the 
Chadda  to  the  commerce  of  this  country  and  continue  researches  as  to  the  course 
and  source  or  sources  of  that  river. 


.   Notes  on  the  Distribution  of  Animal  Life  in  the  Arctic  Regions. 
By  A.  Petermann,  P.R.G.S. 

The  occurrence  of  animals  in  the  arctic  regions,  and  its  bearing  on  the  missing 
expedition  under  Sir  John  Franklin,  is  a  subject  which  has  of  late  excited  a  good 
deal  of  interest,  and  has  given  rise  to  the  most  conflicting  opinions :  some  have 
maintained  the  existence  of  animals  in  the  arctic  regions  in  great  numbers,  afford- 
ing abundance  of  food  to  man;  others  as  stoutly  insisted  upon  the  extreme 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  113 

scarcity,  if  not  total  absence,  of  animals.  Mr.  Petermann  then  proceeded  to  state, 
that  the  views  hitherto  entertained  regarding  this  subject  were  narrow,  circura- 
scribed,  and  consequently  erroneous;  that  individual  observations  in  particular 
localities,  comprised  within  a  small  space  on  the  American  side,  had  been  received 
as  data  upon  which  to  build  general  statements  regaiding  the  entire  arctic  re- 
gions, though  in  such  observations  the  whole  Asiatic  side  of  the  polar  basin  had 
been  altogether  overlooked.  Arguments  were  then  adduced,  from  the  geographical 
features,  and  natural  history  of  those  northern  regions,  to  prove  that  the  commonly 
received  hypothesis,  that  with  ascending  latitudes  there  was  a  proportional  descent 
of  temperature,  and  a  consequent  decrease  of  animal  and  vegetable  life,  is  a  fal- 
lacious one.  With  regard  to  the  bearing  of  these  observations  upon  the  Franklin 
expedition,  Mr.  Petermann  further  remarked :— The  general  opinion  is  that  the 
missing  vessels  have  been  arrested  somewhere  between  Wellington  Channel  and 
Bearing's  Straits,  and  the  Siberian  shores.  Most  probably  their  position  is  nearer 
to  the  latter  than  to  the  former  points.  As  these  three  regions  abound  in  animal 
life,  we  may  fairly  conclude  that  the  intervening  portion  partakes  of  the  same  cha- 
racter ;  and,  moreover,  that  the  further  Sir  J.  Franklin  may  have  got  from  Welling- 
ton Channel,  and  the  nearer  he  may  have  approached  the  north-eastern  portion  of 
Asia,  the  more  he  will  have  found  the  animals  to  increase  in  number.  The  direction 
of  the  isothermal  lines  corroborates  this  assumption,  as  they  are  indicative  of  a 
higher  summer  temperature  in  that  region  than  in  any  other  within  the  Polar  basin. 
Those  countries  being  probably  uninhabited  by  man,  the  animals  will  have  continued 
unthinned  by  the  wholesale  massacres  by  which  myriads  are  destroyed  for  the  sake 
of  their  skins  or  teeth.  An  interesting  fact  was  mentioned  by  Lieut.  Osborn, 
namely,  that  Captain  Penny,  in  September  1850,  had  seen  enormous  numbers  of 
whales  running  southwards  from  under  the  ice  in  Wellington  Channel.  We  know 
this  to  be  also  the  case  in  the  Spitsbergen  sea  every  spring,  and  that  these  animals 
are  numerous  along  the  Siberian  coasts.  This  not  only  proves  the  existence  of  one, 
or  perhaps  two  Polar  seas,  more  or  less  open  throughout  the  year,  but  also  that 
these  seas  abound  in  animal  life ;  to  satisfy  enormous  numbers  of  whales,  an  amount 
of  food  is  required  which  cannot  be  small.  And  it  is  well  known  among  the 
Tchuktchi,  on  the  north-eastern  coasts  of  Siberia,  where  land  to  the  north  is  said  to 
exist  in  contiguity  to,  and  probably  connected  with,  the  lands  discovered  by  Captain 
Kellett,  that  herds  of  reindeer  migrate  between  those  lands  and  the  continents. 
Taking  all  these  facts  into  consideration,  the  conclusion  seems  to  be  a  reasonable 
one,  that  Franklin,  ever  since  entering  Wellington  Channel,  has  found  himself  in 
that  portion  of  the  arctic  regions  where  animals  probably  exist  in  greater  plenty  than 
in  any  other.  Under  these  circumstances  alone  his  party  could  exist  as  well  as 
other  inhabitants  of  the  Polar  regions ;  but  we  must  not  forget  that,  in  addition  to 
the  natural  resources,  they  would  in  their  vessels  possess  more  comfortable  and 
substantial  houses  than  any  of  the  native  inhabitants.  So  far  as  food  is  concerned, 
reasonable  hope,  therefore,  may  be  entertained  that  the  missing  Expedition  would 
not  altogether  suffer  by  the  want  of  it ;  their  fate,  however,  depends  upon  other  cir- 
cumstances as  well,  among  which  that  dire  scourge  of  mariners,  the  scurvy,  is  pro- 
bably more  to  be  feared  than  any  other. 

Commercial  Documents  relating  to  the  Eastern  Horn  of  Africa,  translated  and 
communicated  by  Dr.  Shaw. 


Notes  on  the  Possessions  of  the  Imaum  of  Muscat \  and  on  the  Climate  of  Zan- 
zibar, with  Observations  on  the  Prospects  of  African  Discovery.  By 
Lt-Colonel  Sykes,  F.R.S. 

Col.  Sykes  referred  to  a  graphic  account  of  the  condition  of  Zanzibar  by  Lieut. 
Fergusson,  Indian  Navy,  derived  from  the  testimony  of  a  Mohammedan  merchant. 
Nothing,  he  said,  comparatively  speaking,  was  known  of  these  territories,  and  it 
was  an  unfortunate  thing  that  such  should  be  the  case,  particularly  as  the  Imaum  was 
the  friend  of  England,  and  willing  to  do  anything  he  was  asked.  Two  missionaries  of 
the  Church  Missionary  Society  had  resided  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  opposite  Mombas, 
for  six  or  seven  years,  and  an  account  of  their  experiences  appeared  in  the  Journal 

1852.  8 


114  REPORT— 1852, 

of  that  Society.  From  these  we  learn  that  several  district!  in  the  country  referred 
to  were,  owing  to  their  great  elevation,  very  healthy,  and  that  the  people  on  the 
coast  were  Mohammedans.  The  travels  of  Rebmann  and  Krapf  in  these  districts 
led  to  the  discovery  of  too  snow-capped  mountains  directly  under  the  equator.  This 
mountainous  region  was  believed  to  be  the  source  of  the  true  Nile.  The  territories 
of  the  Imaum  of  Muscat  were  confined  to  the  coast  from  the  Red  Sea  to  10°  south 
latitude. 


On  the  most  Rapid  Communication  with  India  via  British  North  America. 

By  Capt.  Synge. 

Having  pointed  out  that  a  route  towards  the  North  by  a  line  almost  direct  from 
England,  connecting  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  would  be  the  shortest*  the 
writer  compared  the  relative  advantages  afforded  in  British  America  and  the  States 
When  another  line  was  proposed,  and  stated  that  the  former  possessed  superior 
facilities.  The  plan  which  he  suggested  was  composed  of  four  distinct  links  of  com- 
munication, each  independent  in  itself,  capable  of  separate  execution,  and  opening 
up  important  sources  of  profit.  Railways  throughout  Nova  Scotia  and  New  Brans* 
wick,  connecting  the  seaboard  with  the  interior,  were  essential  to  the  success  of  the 
plan.  The  Report  then  entered  into  details  of  the  project ;  which  contemplated  the 
connexion  of  Lake  Superior,  Winipeg,  the  Rainy  Lake,  and  the  rivers  and  lakes  in- 
tervening, to  the  foot  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  thence,  by  creating  permanent 
dams  or  reservoirs,  to  open  the  passes  through  those  mountains,  and  regulate  the 
descent  of  the  waters  to  the  Pacific.  The  paper  entered  into  the  calculations  of  the 
altitudes  of  the  lakes,  the  highest  water  being  estimated  at  about  1400  feet  above 
tide- water ;  and  having  referred  to  the  ascent  accomplished  in  the  Welland  Canal, 
and  the  necessity  of  a  perfect  geographical  survey  to  ascertain  the  levels  with  pre- 
cision, the  writer  urged  the  practicability  of  the  design,  and  gave  elaborate  details  of 
the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  country  to  show  the  important  results  which  might  be 
obtained  from  opening  up  the  communication. 

Late  Explorations  in  Syria  and  Palestine. 
By  the  Chevalier  Van  de  Velde,  of  the  Dutch  Navy. 

On  the  Upper  Nile.    By  Consul  Vandey. 


STATISTICS. 


On  the  Present  State  of  the  Law  of  Settlement  and  the  Removal  of  Paupers 
in  Scotland.    By  Professor  Alison,  M.D.,  FJR.SJS. 

Having  remarked  on  the  difference  of  this  law  in  Ireland,  England,  and  Scotland, 
the  Doctor  denounced  that  of  the  two  latter  kingdoms  as  repugnant  to  justice  and 
common  sense ;  and  cited  various  authorities  (e.  g.  Adam  Smith,  Turgot,  and  Sir 
Robert  Peel)  to  show  that  its  impolicy,  as  impeding  the  free  circulation  of  labour, 
and  the  hardships  inflicted  by  it,  e.  g.  in  times  of  distress  in  manufacturing  districts, 
when  labourers  from  thence,  knowing  nothing  of  agriculture,  were  sent  back  to  agri- 
cultural districts  merely  because  they  had  been  born  there,  had  been  long  since 
clearly  pointed  out  by  the  most  competent  judges. 

The  law  of  settlement  and  removal  lately  introduced  into  Scotland  had  frequently 
frustrated  the  otherwise  beneficial  working  of  the  new  poor  law.  Strangers  were 
allowed  to  obtain  a  settlement  in  any  part  of  Scotland  by  five  years'  residence  with- 
out parochial  aid  $  and  this  provision  he  thought  equitable,  but  it  was  coupled  with 
others,  often  rendering  it  quite  ineffectual  for  the  relief  of  the  poor,  and  very  bur- 
thensome,  at  least  to  the  charitable  amongst  the  higher  ranks.  The  ill-understood 
boundaries  of  parishes  in  towns  were  one  main  cause  of  such  evils.    Again,  a  man. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  115 

however  industrious,  after  living  fonr  years  and  ten  months  in  one  place,  might  fall 
ill,  require  casual  relief,  and  thereby  lose  his  settlement ;  even  if  an  Irishman  gave 
Scotland  the  benefit  of  his  labour  for  thirty  years,  and  acquired  several  settlements 
in  the  country  during  that  time,  he  lost  all  claim  to  relief  if  he  had  not  been  residing 
five  years  in  the  parish  where  he  lived  when  first  requiring  relief.  A  married  woman, 
however  respectable,  could  not  gain  a  legal  settlement  by  her  own  labour,  if  deserted 
by  her  husband ;  although  an  unmarried  woman,  however  profligate,  might  do  so. 
And  the  forcible  removal  of  persons  thus  denied  relief  led  to  much  fraud,  expense, 
concealment  of  contagious  disease,  and  other  evils  of  which  he  gave  examples. 

He  agreed  with  Mr.  Pashley,  Q.C.,  in  recommending  that  the  legal  right  to  relief 
should  take  effect  wherever  destitution  might  show  itself;  the  relief  being  admini- 
stered, as  at  present,  by  local  boards,  under  due  supervision  from  a  general  fund, 
two-thirds  of  which  should  be  raised  throughout  the  whole  United  Kingdom,  and 
one- third  only  in  the  district  where  the  relief  was  given,  in  order  to  ensure  caution 
and  oaconomy  in  the  administration ;  and  in  this  way  he  thought  that  much  expense 
would  be  saved  (now  incurred  by  disputed  questions  of  settlement),  and  the  various 
evils  above  stated  be  entirely  avoided. 


On  the  Neglected  and  Perishing  Classes,  and  the  Means  of  their  Reformation. 
By  Rev.  John  Edgar,  DJ). 


On  the  Laws  of  the  Currency  in  Ireland^  as  exemplified  in  the  Changes  that 

have  taken  place  in  the  amount  of  the  Annual  Circulation  of  Bank  Notes  in 

Ireland  since  the  passing  of  the  Act  of  1845.     By  J.  W.  Gilbart,  FJLS. 

In  1845,  the  average  amount  of  notes  that  had  been  in  circulation  during  the  year 

ending  the  1st  of  May  1845 — j£6,354,494 — was  made  the  fixed  or  authorized  issue. 

For  any  amount  beyond  its  authorized  issue  each  bank  was  required  to  hold  an  equal 

sum  in  gold  or  silver  coin,  the  silver  not  to  exceed  one-fourth  of  the  gold  coin.  The 

Act  came  into  operation  on  the  6th  of  December  1845 ;  and  from  that  period  each 

bank  has  made  returns,  stating  the  average  amount  of  notes  in  circulation  during  the 

preceding  four  weeks,  distinguishing  the  notes  under  £S  from  those  of  J&6  and  up* 

wards,  and  stating  the  amounts  of  gold  and  silver  coin  it  held  in  its  vaults.    These 

returns  were  made  by  all  the  banks  of  circulation  in  Ireland.    The  proportion  per 

cent,  these  averages  bear  to  the  certified  circulation  of  i£6,354,494  is  also  stated 

hereunder ; — 

Average  Proportion  to 

Circulation.  Certified  Circulation. 

1846 7*259,949 IU'26 

1847  6,008,831 94*55 

1848  4,828,849  7* 

1849  4,310,283  67*83 

1850  4,512,442  71 

1851  4,462,908  . 70*25 

From  this  it  appeared,  that,  if  the  authorised  issue  be  represented  by  the  number 
100,  the  actual  circulation  for  the  six  years,  1846  to  1851  inclusive,  will  be  repre- 
sented by  the  numbers  114,  94,  76,  67,  71,  70.  The  question  occurs— What  is  the 
cause  of  this  falling  off  in  the  annual  circulation  since  the  passing  of  the  Act  of 
1845  ?  The  amount  of  notes  in  circulation  does  not  correspond  with  the  amount  of 
gold  in  the  Bank  of  England ;  for  the  gold  in  the  Bank  of  England  is  at  the  present 
time  much  higher  than  it  was  on  the  1st  of  May  1845,  although  the  Irish  notes 
in  circulation  are  much  less.  There  were  three  negative  laws  of  the  currency  in 
Ireland,  namely,  that  the  amount  of  notes  in  circulation  is  not  regulated  by  the 
Act  of  Parliament,  nor  by  the  wishes  of  the  Irish  bankers,  nor  by  the  stock  of 
gold  in  the  Bank  of  England.  Notes  are  issued  in  Ireland  chiefly  for  the  purpose 
of  purchasing  agricultural  produce  j  it  would  seem  to  follow  that  the  amount  of 
notes  put  into  circulation  will  be  regulated  mainly  by  the  quantity  of  that  produce, 
and  by  the  price  at  which  it  is  purchased.  If,  then,  we  found  that,  in  the  years 
since  1845,  the  quantity  of  agricultural  produce  hat  been  less,  or  the  price  at 

8* 


116  REPORT— 1852. 

which  it  has  been  sold  has  been  less,  and  especially  if  both  these  circumstances 
should  have  occurred,  then  have  we  an  adequate  cause  for  a  redaction  in  the  amount 
of  bank  notes  in  circulation.  The  annual  productiveness  of  the  harvest  would  affect 
the  amount  of  notes  in  circulation.  Again,  a  bad  harvest  in  one  year  may,  by  the 
distress  it  produces,  cause  a  less  production  of  commodities  in  several  following 
years,  and  hence  there  may  be  a  less  demand  for  bank  notes.  A  bad  harvest  pro- 
duces distress  among  the  farmers,  and  this  distress  affects  the  amount  of  the  circu- 
lation in  two  ways : — First,  the  farmer  consumes  his  own  produce  instead  of  selling 
it,  and  thus  does  not  require  the  use  of  notes.  Secondly,  the  distress  of  the  farmer 
diminishes  the  instruments  of  reproduction.  If  he  has  no  potatoes,  he  can  rear  no 
pigs.  An  abundant  crop  of  potatoes  produces  in  the  following  year  an  abundant 
crop  of  pigs.  After  the  failure  of  the  potato  in  1846  the  exportation  of  swine  was 
reduced  from  480,827  in  1846,  to  106,407.  The  potato  crop  again  failed  in  1848. 
The  number  of  swine  exported  in  1848  was  110,787 ;  in  1849  it  was  only  68,053. 
The  destruction  of  the  pigs  which  took  place  in  1846  would  doubtless  affect  the  cir- 
culation of  notes  in  subsequent  years,  especially  in  1847,  1848,  and  1849*  and  pro- 
bably, also,  to  a  certain  extent,  in  the  years  1850  and  1851.  He  next  proceeded  to 
lay  down  as  propositions,  that  a  reduction  in  the  quantity  of  commodities  produced 
may  be  caused  by  a  reduction  in  the  number  of  producers,  and  this  would  occasion 
a  less  demand  for  bank  notes ;  and  that  the  amount  of  notes  that  circulate  in  a 
country  wiH  also  be  affected  by  the  quantity  of  commodities  exported,  and  the  quan- 
tity imported.  After  addressing  himself  to  these  points,  he  said  that  we  found  that 
the  reduction  in  the  amount  of  notes  in  circulation  in  Ireland  had  been  preceded  or 
accompanied  by  a  reduction  in  the  amount  of  commodities  produced,  occasioned  by 
a  reduced  productiveness  in  the  land  actually  cultivated,  a  destruction  in  the  instru- 
ments of  reproduction  by  the  distress  thus  occasioned,  a  reduction  in  the  number  of 
producers  by  deaths  and  emigration,  and  the  exportation  of  an  increased  portion  of 
its  capital  in  exchange  for  food.  But  there  was  another  circumstance  that  concurred 
in  powerfully  producing  the  same  effect,  that  is,  the  price  at  which  the  commodities 
brought  to  market  were  sold.  He  went  into  a  variety  of  calculations  to  sustain  the 
foregoing  positions,  and  then  said  that,  from  the  whole,  he  inferred  that  the  difference 
between  the  amount  of  bank  notes  circulating  in  a  country  at  two  different  periods 
cannot  be  regarded  as  any  correct  test  of  the  condition  of  its  inhabitants  at  those 
periods,  unless  we  take  into  account  all  the  circumstances  by  which  that  difference 
is  attended — that  the  decline  of  the  circulation  of  bank  notes  in  Ireland,  from  the 
year  1845  to  1851,  is  no  accurate  measure  of  the  distress  that  has  existed  in  the 
country,  or  that  now  exists,  as  other  causes  besides  distress  have  concurred  in  pro- 
ducing that  effect — that  in  comparing  the  circulation  of  1845  and  1851  we  are 
making  a  comparison  unfavourable  to  the  country,  as  the  year  1845  was  a  year  re- 
markable for  the  high  amount  of  its  circulation — and  that  we  should  indulge  in  no 
desponding  inferences  as  to  the  condition  of  the  country,  even  if  the  circulation 
should  never  recover  its  former  amount.  Even  the  permanent  reduction  of  the  cir- 
culation to  its  present  amount  would  be  no  conclusive  evidence  of  the  distressed 
condition  of  the  country  $  for,  though  distress  first  caused  the  decline  of  the  circu- 
lation, yet,  from  the  new  circumstances  which  that  distress  introduced,  the  same 
amount  of  bank  notes  are  not  now  necessary  for  conducting  its  operations. 


Should  our  Gold  Standard  of  Value  be  maintained  if  Gold  becomes 
depreciated  in  consequence  of  its  Discovery  in  Australia  and  California  f 
By  Professor  Hancock. 

After  a  long  dissertation  on  the  standard  of  value  in  different  countries  and  ages, 
that  in  England  being  now  5  dwts.  9i  grains  of  gold  to  the  pound  (which  originally 
meant  the  pound  weight  of  fine  silver/  that  standard  having  been  altered  in  conse- 
quence of  repeated  depreciations  in  value,  until  silver  was  only  one-third  of  the  value 
it  was  when  the  standard  of  value  was  fixed) — after  showing  how  the  standard 
might  be  depreciated,  by  altering  the  quantity  of  gold  or  silver  representing  it — the 
alteration  of  the  purity  of  the  metal  representing  the  standard,  by  the  substitution 
of  some  other  commodity  for  gold  and  silver  as  the  standard — and  from  the  standard 
falling  in  value  from  excessive  supply— and  referring  to  various  tamperings  with  the 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  117 

currency  until  it  was  restored  by  Sir  Robert  Peel's  Act  of  1819 — the  Professor  stated 
that  the  last  cause  of  depreciation  of  the  value  was  the  one  with  which  they  had 
then  to  deal,  from  the  recent  discoveries  of  gold  in  Australia  and  California.  When 
the  large  discoveries  of  gold  and  silver  took  place  in  South  America  there  prices  fell 
considerably  in  value;  but  though  the  Government  took  the  matter  into  serious 
consideration,  they  were  unable  to  find  any  remedy  for  the  depreciation  in  the  value 
of  the  precious  metals  arising  from  their  excessive  supply,  though  it  caused  great 
confusion  in  the  carrying  on  of  all  descriptions  of  trade,  and  the  collection  of  tax- 
ation* He  was  of  opinion,  notwithstanding  the  theoretical  opinions  of  many  writers, 
that  from  the  parallel  of  what  took  place  when  the  South  American  mines  were 
discovered,  the  gold,  if  depreciated  in  value,  would  cause  great  confusion  in  the 
country ;  and  he  would  therefore  suggest  that  silver,  which  did  not  appear  likely 
to  be  depreciated,  should  be  taken  as  the  standard  of  value.  Should,  however,  silver 
also  be  depreciated,  there  ought  to  be  a  scientific  inquiry  to  see  whether,  from  some 
combination  of  metals,  a  standard  of  value  might  not  be  found  which  would  have 
the  same  effect  with  regard  to  the  commerce,  &c.  of  the  country  as  the  compensating 
pendulum  had  with  regard  to  time. 


Are  there  any  Impediments  to  the  Competition  of  Free  Labour  with  Slave 
Labour  in  the  West  Indies  ?    By  Professor  Hancock. 

The  principal  conclusions  to  which  Prof.  Hancock  came  were,— 1.  That,  as  a  con- 
clusion of  moral  philosophy,  it  was  shameful  to  maintain  slavery  for  a  single  hour. 
2. That,  as  a  conclusion  of  political  ceconomy,  emancipation  should  be  immediate,  and 
not  gradual.  This  position  Prof.  Hancock  proved  by  the  history  of  the  emancipation 
in  the  West  Indies,  where  the  apprenticeship  system  turned  out  a  failure ;  and  re- 
marked that,  where  emancipation  cannot  be  immediate,  it  is  the  duty  of  those  who 
see  that  the  change  is  inevitable  to  make  such  previous  arrangements  that  the  deve- 
lopment of  free  labour  may  arise  as  soon  as  possible.  3.  That  auxiliary  measures, 
such  as  education,  reform  in  the  courts  of  law,  especially  respecting  the  tenure  and 
sale  of  land,  are  essential  in  order  that  the  blessings  of  emancipation  may  be  exhibited 
on  the  community  at  large.  Prof.  Hancock  showed  that  these  auxiliary  precautions 
had  not  been  taken.  Grants  had  sometimes  been  made  in  favour  of  education,  but 
as  soon  as  any  pressure  came  they  were  withdrawn.  He  also  dwelt  on  the  im- 
portance of  permanently  fixing  the  law  of  property  in  land.  4.  That  the  loss  of 
property  consequent  on  emancipation  should  not  be  thrown  on  the  slaveholders,  but 
on  the  community  at  large,  inasmuch  as  the  whole  British  people  had  been  respon- 
sible for  slavery.  Accordingly,  the  slave-owners  were  compensated,  partly  in  money, 
and  partly  in  differential  duties  which  had  not  yet  quite  ceased.  5.  That  free  labour 
requires  no  protection  to  enable  it  to  compete  with  slave  labour.  In  slavery  there 
was  not  the  same  division  of  labour  as  in  freedom.'  Again,  the  invention  of  machines 
proceeded  from  free  labour,  freemen  desiring  to  oeconomize  labour.  The  consequence 
was,  that  more  labour  was  wasted  in  slavery  than  in  freedom  to  produce  equal  re- 
sults. If  free  labour  could  not  compete  successfully  with  slave  labour,  he  feared  that 
the  moral  question  would  be  in  great  danger.  6.  That  the  allegations  about  the  negroes 
in  the  West  Indies  demanding  too  high  wages  are  untrue,  and  the  imputations  on 
their  character  unfounded.  It  turned  out,  when  inquiries  were  made  into  the  facts, 
that  wages  were  very  low ;  and  Prof.  Hancock  quoted  authorities  to  show,  that 
wages  were  at  such  rates  as  6d.,  Ad.,  and  3d.  per  day,  so  that  if  the  negroes  had  not 
provision  grounds,  they  would  often  be  in  great  straits.  7.  That  the  state  of  the 
West  Indies  did  not  show  the  impracticability  of  free  labour  competing  with  slavery, 
but  shows,  on  the  contrary,  the  folly  of  the  laws  which  have  been  passed  by  the 
Colonial  Legislatures,  the  folly  of  the  short-sighted  selfishness  of  the  planters,  and 
the  folly  of  those  philanthropists  who,  instead  of  seeking  the  removal  of  those  laws, 
demand  a  monopoly  for  the  planters.  In  arguing  this  head  at  length,  Prof.  Hancock 
touched  upon  the  following  points : — the  bankrupt  state  of  the  West  India  proprie- 
tors before  the  emancipation— the  evils  of  the  Coolie  immigration — the  unjust  taxes 
on  the  labouring  ctasses  in  the  West  Indies— the  unfair  restrictions  on  their  progress 
— the  system  of  oppressive  laws  by  which  a  labourer  is  condemned  where  a  pro- 
prietor escapes— and  the  unsatisfactory  tenure  of  land  in  the  matter  of  summary 


118  REPORT — 1852. 

ejectment  and  want  of  leases,  and  in  the  impediments  to  the  transfer  of  landed 
property.  

Statistics  of  the  Revenues  of  the  University  and  some  of  the  Colleges  of  Oxford, 
compiled  from  the  Report  of  the  Oxford  University  Commission.  By  James 
Heywood,  Jf.P.,  F.R.S. 

It  appeared,  as  far  as  could  be  ascertained,  that  of  nine  colleges,  the  average  in- 
come of  the  heads  of  houses  was  jgllOO  a  year ;  and  as  regarded  Fellows,  taking 
in  the  Canons  of  Christ  Church,  the  average  income  was  .£234  a  year.  The  total 
income  of  Oxford  University  was  about  jT22,000,  and  of  the  colleges  j£  15  2,000; 
at  Cambridge  the  total  income  was  about  j£  133,000,  and  that  of  Trinity  College, 
Dublin,  was  about  jg50,000,  making  in  all  about  jg355,000.  There  were  657  fellow, 
ships  in  Oxford,  of  which  about  thirty-five  were  vacant  every  year.  The  revenue 
arising  from  die  University  Press,  by  the  printing  of  Bibles  and  Prayer-books  at 
Oxford,  was  stated  to  be  about  j£8000  a  year— though  the  amount  was  not  regu- 
larly paid  over,  but  only  when  it  had  increased  to  sums  of  ^40,000  or  ^60,000. 


Notice  of  the  Progress  of  the  Sewed  Muslin  Manufacture  in  Ireland, 
Communicated  by  Mr.  Holden,  and  read  by  Professor  Hancock. 

It  stated  that  the  trade  was  introduced  into  Ireland  between  1800  and  1810,  but 
little  progress  was  made  with  it  until  the  period  between  1820  and  1830.  The  in- 
troduction of  lithographic  printing  between  1830  and  1835,  instead  of  the  old  block 
system,  was  one  of  the  most  important  elements  in  firmly  establishing  the  trade. 
The  old  blocks  cost  from  3#.  6d.  for  simple  patterns,  to  £6  or  £7  for  more  intricate, 
besides  the  time  (two  or  three  weeks)  occupied  in  the  preparation  of  the  patterns, 
and  cutting  them  upon  the  blocks,  whilst  they  could  now  be  produced  in  a  few 
hours  at  about  the  same  amount  of  shillings  as  it  formerly  cost  pounds.  So  exten- 
sively had  the  business  increased  during  the  last  fifteen  years,  that  there  was  now 
employed  in  Ulster,  and  other  parts  of  Ireland,  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  million  indi- 
viduals. The  wages  of  the  young  persons  were,  when  they  first  commenced,  only 
from  6d.  to  Is.  per  week ;  the  more  experienced  obtained  4s.  to  6s.,  and  a  few  first 
class  workers  10*.  j  and  there  was  now  paid  between  j£500,000  and  j£600,000  per 
annum  for  the  manufacture,  exclusive  of  the  cost  of  the  materials ;  and  moreover, 
the  employment  was  afforded  in  the  best  manner,  being  given  to  young  females  at 
their  own  homes,  under  the  supervision  of  their  parents.  A  great  deal  of  good  had 
also  been  effected  by  the  establishment  of  training-schools  for  teaching  the  em- 
broidery, and  the  landed  proprietors  had  been  very  forward  in  establishing  those 
schools.  Amongst  others,  the  Earl  and  Countess  of  Enniskillen  established  one  of 
these  schools ;  and  the  result  was,  that  the  females  of  Enniskillen  were  now  earn- 
ing, from  embroidery,  no  less  than  j£400  a  week.  The  Irish  manufacture  was 
rapidly  growing  into  importance,  and,  despite  of  fiscal  arrangements,  was  making 

Cat  way  on  the  Continent ;  even  in  France,  where  the  import  of  goods  of  this 
cxiption  was  interdicted,  a  large  quantity  obtained  admission  by  smuggling. 


Statistics  of  the  Island  of  Portsea.      Communicated  by  the  Literary  and 
Philosophical  Society  of  Portsea. 

A  mass  of  documents,  giving  minute  particulars  of  the  results  of  laborious  inquiries 
into  nearly  every  subject  connected  with  that  locality, 


Excessive  Emigration  and  Us  Reparative  Agencies  in  Ireland. 
By  John  Locke. 

The  following  brief  abstract  of  this  paper  is  intended  to  indicate  the  subjects  dis- 
cussed in  it.  The  paper  has  been  printed  at  length  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Statistical 
Society  of  London,  and  subsequently  in  a  pamphlet  by  Parker  and  Son*  London. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  119 

1.  The  famine  of  1846,  originating  cause  of  the  excessive  emigration. 

Number  and  average*  of  emigranta  for  last  ten  years,  and  enormous  amounts  of 
money  remitted  from  North  America  to  Ireland,  chiefly  to  promote  emigration. 

Increase  of  emigration  daring  first  four  months  of  1859. 

Causes  of  the  gradual  deterioration  in  the  physical  type  of  the  natives  of  the  extreme 
West  of  Ireland. 

2.  Reparative  agencies.  Educational  and  industrial  progress— a  well-defined  law 
of  land  tenure— and  improvement  of  the  labouring  classes. 

Advantages  of  facilitating  the  sale  and  transfer  of  land,  proved  by  a  aeries  of  tables 
compiled  from  the  records  of  the  Incumbered  Estates  Court. 

3.  Steady  improvement  only  to  be  expected  from  industry  and  educational  pro- 
gress, all  classes,  however  differing  in  creed  or  opinion,  being  bound  to  each  other 
and  to  the  throne  by  the  links  of  constitutional  loyalty  and  social  order. 

On  the  Connexion  of  Atmospheric  Impurity  with  Disease. 
By  Henry  M'Cormac,  At.D. 


On  the  Statistics  of  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,    By  D.  M'Culloch, 


On  the  Sanitary  Stats  of  Belfast,  with  Suggestions  for  its  improvement 
By  A.  G.  Malcolm,  MJD. 

In  this  paper,  the  sanitary  state  of  Belfast,  including  its  drainage,  external  venti- 
lation, water  supply,  street  cleansing,  construction  of  small  houses,  state  of  its  great 
working  establishments,  public  schools,  slaughter-bouses,  burying-grounds,  and 
suburbs,  is  first  detailed ;  after  which  statistical  proof  is  given  of  the  propositions,— 
1st,  that  the  vital  statistics  of  the  town  corroborate  the  sanitary  laws  already  esta- 
blished ;  and,  2nd,  that  the  tendency  to  epidemic  visitations  and  outbreaks  and  their 
mortality  are  on  the  increase;  and  the  paper  is  concluded  by  a  reference  to  the 
efforts  that  have  been  made,  the  obstacles  encountered,  and  the  objects  which  are  re- 
quisite to  improve  and  permanently  sustain,  when  acquired,  the  public  health  of  the 
town.  An  Appendix  is  added,  containing  several  Tables,  besides  coloured  diagrams 
and  maps  for  illustration. 

[This  paper  has  been  published  under  the  charge  of  the  Belfast  Social  Inquiry 
Society.] 

On  the  Productive  Industry  of  Paris.    By  the  late  G.  R.  Porter,  F.R.S. 

After  a  review  of  the  various  inquiries  which  had  been  from  time  to  time  instituted 
with  a  view  to  ascertain  the  extent  of  production  and  employment  within  the  city  of 
Paris,  the  writer  proceeded  to  the  detail  of  the  most  important  points  ascertained  by 
its  Chamber  of  Commerce  in  an  elaborate  investigation  into  the  effects  of  the  Revo- 
lution of  1848  on  the  trade  of  the  French  capital.  The  total  number  of  workmen 
employed  in  1847  was  342,630,  which  fell,  in  1848,  to  156,125,  being  a  diminution 
of  fifty-four  per  cent.  The  chief  falling  off  was  in  furnishing,  where  the  reduction 
was  seventy-three  per  cent.,  and  the  least  was  in  the  preparation  of  food,  which  only 
fell  off  nineteen  per  cent.  The  latest  value  of  the  productions  of  Parisian  labour  in 
1847,  was  £ 58,545,134,  and  in  1648  only  .£27,100,964.  Although  the  falling  off 
of  employment  in  the  preparation  of  food  was  not  great,  that  in  consumption  was 
very  remarkable.  The  quantity  of  flesh  meat  consumed  in  Paris  in  1847  was  1 50lbs.  per 
head;  in  1848  it  fell  to  87-flbs.  per  head.  After  affairs  settled  down  again,  it  rose 
in  1849  to  146lbs.  per  head,  and  in  1850  reached  158lbs.  per  head.  The  difference 
between  1847  and  1850  is  partially  to  be  attributed  to  the  increase  of  population. 
The  statistics  on  the  degree  of  instruction  found  among  the  workmen  is  very  inter- 
esting. Out  of  the  entire  number  of  workmen,  147,311,  or  eighty-seven  per  cent., 
could  read  and  write.  Out  of  86,6 1 7  women,  68,2 1 9,  or  seventy-nine  per  cent.,  were 
able  to  read  and  write.  The  rate  of  weekly  wages  was  given  on  an  average  as  fol- 
lows :— Tailors,  20#.  2d. ;  butchers,  19*.  Id.  $  jewellers,  31s.  9d. j  bakers,  19*.  fd. ; 


120  REPORT — 1852. 

shoe-makers,  16*.  6<L  ;  carpenters,  27*.  4d. ;  cabinet-makers,  00$.  3d. ;  masons, 
18*.  9d.  i  confectioners,  21*.  gd. ;  milliners,  20*.  3d. ;  laundresses,  12*.  3d  It  was 
found  that  950  women  earned  less  than  6d.  per  diem ;  27,452  males  and  100,050 
females  earned  6d.  to  2*.  Bd. ;  157,216  men  and  626  women  earned  2*.  5d.  to  4*.;  and 
10,393  more  than  4#.  

On  the  Progress  and  Extent  of  Steamboat  Building  in  the  Clyde. 
By  John  Strang,  LL.D. 
No  business  during  the  last  fifty  years  had  exhibited  so  much  progress  in  the 
West  of  Scotland  as  that  of  steamboat  building.  It  was  a  manufacture  of  home 
production,  the  materials  being  within  themselves,  and  requiring  skill  in  every  de- 
partment, the  remuneration  was  higher  than  in  the  ordinary  manufactures  of  the 
country ;  it,  in  fact,  created  the  districts  in  which  it  was  established,  and  gave  con- 
stant employment  to  the  industrious.  It  was  just  forty  years  since  the  Comet  made 
its  first  trip  from  Glasgow  to  Greenock.  The  Comet  was  only  30  tons  burthen, 
and  its  engine  was  but  3  horse-power.  Dr.  Strang  then  proceeded  to  trace  the  dif- 
ferent forms  in  which  steam-vessels  had  been  built,  and  paid  a  just  tribute  to  Henry 
Bell,  the  first  man  who  rendered  steam  available  for  navigation  purposes.  In  refer- 
ence to  the  progress  of  the  trade  of  steamboat  building  on  the  Clyde,  he  showed 
that  in  the  year  ending  June  1852,  the  number  and  tonnage  of  steamers  engaged  in 
traffic  on  the  Clyde  were  93  vessels,  of  11,992  tons;  the  increase  on  regularly  em- 
ployed vessels  on  the  river  was  26,  and  in  tonnage  5301  tons.  But  that  gave  no 
idea  of  the  magnitude  of  the  steamboat  building  and  marine  engine  making.  During 
the  last  seven  years,  there  have  been  constructed,  or  are  constructing,  in  Glasgow 
and  neighbourhood,  123  vessels,  122  of  which  were  iron,  80  paddle,  and  43  screw, 
consisting  of  200  wooden  tonnage,  70,441  iron  tonnage ;  6610  horse-power  engines 
for  wooden  hulls ;  22,539  horse-power  for  iron  hulls ;  and  4720  horse-power  en- 
gines for  vessels  not  built  in  the  Clyde.  At  Greenock  and  Port  Glasgow,  during  the 
last  seven  years,  there  have  been  constructed,  or  are  constructing,  66  steam-vessels, 
13  of  which  are  wood  and  53  of  iron,  25  being  paddies  and  41  screws;  the  gross 
tonnage  being  47*202  tons.  At  Dumbarton  58  of  iron,  20  paddles  and  38  screws, 
having  a  tonnage  of  29,761.  It  would  be  seen  that  the  wooden  hulls  are  fast  giving 
place  to  those  of  iron,  and  the  screw  is  more  patronized  than  the  paddle.  The  pro- 
portion in  1852  was  73  iron  against  4  of  wood,  and  of  screws  to  paddles  it  is  as  43  to 
30.  Dr.  Strang  then  exhibited  the  amount  of  money  expended  in  this  branch  of 
trade,  and  the  quantity  of  employment  it  gives.  Both  were  enormous ;  taking  the 
last  seven  years  of  building  on  the  Clyde  at  ,£4,650,652,  and  the  employed  at  Dum- 
barton, Greenock,  Port  Glasgow,  and  Glasgow,  at  10,820  persons  at  annual  wages 
of  «£450,U2,  without  reference  to  the  very  large  body  of  joiners,  painters,  carvers, 
gliders,  upholsterers,  sail-makers  employed  by  this  trade. 


On  the  Census  and  Condition  of  the  Island  of  Bombay. 
By  Lieut-Colonel  Sykes,  F.R.S. 

The  author  observed  that  on  the  night  of  the  1st  of  May  1849,  the  government 
obtained  a  census,  as  to  population  and  as  to  the  distinctive  castes  into  which  the 
population  was  divided.  The  entire  population  of  the  island,  which  is  only  seven 
miles  in  length  and  not  more  than  twenty  miles  in  circumference,  was  569,119* 
Of  this  number,  354,090  were  males,  and  212,029  females.  The  Hindoos  com- 
prise more  than  one-half  of  the  population.  The  Mussulmans  are  more  nume- 
rous than  the  Parsees,  the  descendants  of  the  ancient  fire- worshipers ;  who,  even 
in  the  present  day,  observe  the  old  form  of  worshiping  the  sun,  and  the  old  cere- 
mony of  exposing  their  dead  as  food  to  fowls  of  the  air.  They  construct  towers, 
on  the  top  of  which  the  dead  bodies  are  placed.  The  Parsees  have  newspapers, 
printed  in  the  Guzerat  language ;  and  on  one  occasion  they  published  a  life  of  Mo- 
hammed, with  an  engraving  or  likeness  of  him.  The  Mussulmans,  regarding  this  as 
a  caricature  of  their  prophet,  rose  against  the  Parsees,  and  threatened  to  exterminate 
them.  The  feud  was  only  put  a  stop  to  by  the  intervention  of  the  military.  The 
Europeans,  Indo-Europeans,  native  Christians  and  Jews  are  20,426 ;  and  all  are 
subject  to  the  same  social  and  political  influences  and  laws.    In  the  Bombay  tables 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  121 

there  is  nothing  to  indicate  the  extent  of  vagrancy,  or  the  number  of  houses.  One 
great  feature  is  presented  in  the  tables — the  excess  of  males  over  females.  The 
contrary  is  the  case  in  Europe,  where  the  females  are  much  in  excess  of  the  males* 
The  disparity  between  the  sexes  in  India  was  attributed  to  the  crime  of  female  in- 
fanticide ;  and  so  great  was  the  evil  in  Kattywar,  that  the  government  encouraged 
a  marriage  fund  from  which  portions  might  be  given  with  the  daughters  of  the 
chiefs  and  others,  so  that  the  inducement  to  destroy  their  infant  females  might  be 
lessened ;  and  the  result  has  been  very  satisfactory.  In  Bombay  female  infanticide 
never  did  exist,  and  the  disparity  between  the  sexes  is  owing  to  the  Persian  Gulf  and 
Red  Sea  traders  and  immigrant  labourers  leaving  their  females  at  home.  Among 
the  Hindoos  the  females  number  48  per  cent. ;  among  the  Mussulmans,  48  per  cent. ; 
and  among  the  Parsees,  82  per  cent.  The  youth  of  both  sexes  in  the  Parsee  popu- 
lation are  as  23*4  per  cent,  of  the  population;  Mussulmans,  17*7  per  cent.;  and 
Hindoos  only  10*8  per  cent.  Bombay  had  anciently  been  considered  the  grave  of 
Europeans — the  Sierra  Leone  of  India — owing  to  the  high  tides  which  divided  the 
island  into  six  or  seven  parts ;  the  water  formed  morasses,  giving  rise  to  pestilent 
miasmata ;  however,  means  have  been  taken  to  prevent  the  influx  of  the  tides,  and 
the  best  results  have  followed,  in  a  sanitary  point  of  view.  In  Great  Britain  the 
mortality  is  as  one  in  forty-seven ;  and  it  is  represented  in  the  tables  to  be  now 
only  2*1  per  cent,  in  Bombay,  though  the  view  is  thought  to  be  too  favourable. 


Statistics  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  in  Ireland.    By  W.  A.  Wilde. 

This  was  an  abstract  of  the  Report  on  the  condition  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  in 
Ireland  taken  in  connexion  with  the  Census  Commission  of  1851.  In  a  series  of 
tables  amounting  to  no  less  than  sixteen  in  number,  Mr.  Wilde  furnished  a  variety  of 
data  for  judging  of  the  conditions  under  which  this  form  of  permanent  disease  exists 
and  is  perpetuated.  Among  these,  were  tables  showing  its  proportion  to  the  general 
population,  and  relative  proportion  of  the  sexes  affected — their  education,  and  sus- 
ceptibility to  education,  both  literary  and  industrial — the  class  of  the  community 
which  the  malady  chiefly  affects — and  the  localities  where  it  principally  prevails— 
with  a  view  to  seeing  whether  geological  position,  soil,  aspect,  elevation,  humidity, 
dryness,  salubrity  or  insalubrity  of  climate,  density  or  paucity  of  population,  tuu 
healthy  crowded  cities  or  open  fertile  plains,  acquired  disease,  hereditary  predispo- 
sition, family  peculiarity,  or  the  consanguinity  of  parents,  may  have  conduced  to 
the  development  and  propagation  of  this  disease.  Mr.  Wilde  stated  generally,  that 
while  in  Europe  the  average  of  deaf  and  dumb  was  one  in  1593,  4449  deaf  mutes 
were  returned  for  all  Ireland,  or  one  in  1580. 


A  short  Account  of  the  early  Bills  of  Mortality  at  Dublin.   By  W.  A.  Wilde. 


MECHANICAL  SCIENCE. 


On  Telegraphic  Commmunications  by  Land  and  Sea. 
By  F.  C.  Bakewell. 

Mr.  Bakewell  took  a  general  review  of  the  progress  which  has  been  made  in  this 
important  medium  for  the  transmission  of  intelligence,  and  examined  the  accidents 
which  have  still  interrupted  the  perfection  of  the  medium,  with  a  view  to  suggesting 
remedies.  The  principal  remedies  suggested  referred  to  the  formation  of  submarine 
telegraphic  communication.  Instead  of  employing  several  thin  copper  wires  enclosed 
in  a  protecting  wire  cable,  he  recommended  the  use  of  a  strong  self-protecting  iron 
wire  covered  with  gutta  percha.  He  contended  that  a  single  wire  might  be  made  to 
answer  all  present  purposes,  with  suitable  arrangements  and  by  employing  rapidly 
transmitting  instruments,  and  when  more  wires  became  necessary  he  recommended 


122  REPORT— 1852. 

that  they  should  be  mnk  separately  at  considerable  distances  apart  Mr.  Bakewell 
exhibited  a  contrivance  for  still  further  facilitating  Mr.  Morse's  plan  for  transmitting 
symbols  by  making  dots  and  strokes  on  chemically  prepared  paper ;  and  stated  that  in 
his  Copying  Telegraph — which  has  the  great  advantage  of  transmitting  at  once  coun- 
terparts of  the  actual  handwriting  of  parties,  so  that  secrecy  as  well  as  the  authen- 
ticity of  the  messages  is  secured — he  has  effeoted  improvements  which  increase  the 
rapidity  of  transmission  to  three  hundred  letters  per  minute. 


Mechanical  Proof  of  the  Composition  of  Rotatory  Fore*. 
By  John  Barker,  MJB. 

This  was  an  apparatus  constructed  for  the  purpose  of  exhibition  and  demonstration 
of  these  powers.  . 

On  the  Permanent  Way  of  Railways. 
By  James  Barton,  CJ2. 

After  a  brief  review  of  the  steps  by  which  from  the  first  wooden  rail  about  the  year 
1676  at  Newcastle,  the  railroad  advanced;  next  to  tram -plates,  and  lately  to  the  pre- 
sent forms  of  wrought-iron  rail. secured  to  wooden  sleepers,  which  are  now  in  com- 
mon use,  the  paper  proceeded  to  consider  what  the  defects  were  in  the  present 
system,  being  generally  describable  under  two  heads,  the  imperfect  joint,  and  the  tem- 
porary nature  of  the  wooden  substructure. 

To  remedy  these  evils,  those  whose  professional  duties  had  brought  this  subject 
prominently  before  them,  had  devised  various  improvements,  and  several  patents  were 
taken  out ;  amongst  which,  four  were  described ;  the  first,  that  of  Sir  Jonn  Macneill, 
which  consists  of  a  cast-iron  sleeper  upon  which  the  bridge  form  of  rail  beds  evenly, 
and  to  which  it  is  riveted,  the  proper  gauge  and  bevil  being  secured  by  cross-bars  set 
on  edge,  and  upon  which  two  opposite  sleepers  are  cast  The  second  is  a  cast-iron 
sleeper  applicable  to  the  edge  rail,  as  patented  by  Mr.  Peter  Barlow,  and  in  which 
each  sleeper  consists  of  two  parts,  which  when  bolted  together  by  a  horizontal  bolt 
requires  no  key  or  other  fastening.  The  third  consists  of  an  improvement  for  the  joint 
of  the  edge  rail  on  ordinary  timber  roads,  and  is  a  fishing  of  the  joint  by  bars  laid  in 
the  hollow  of  the  edge  rail  and  riveted  through  its  vertical  web :  this  is  a  patent  of 
Mr.  Samuel's.  The  fourth  is  a  patent  of  Mr.  William  Henry  Barlow,  and  consists  of 
a  wrought-iron  rail  forming  its  own  sleeper,  being  rolled  wide  enough  to  be  its  own 
base;  it  is  of  the  bridge  form,  and  eleven,  twelve,  or  thirteen  inches  wide,  according 
to  weight ;  the  connections  are  formed  by  a  chair  of  wrought  iron,  the  external  form 
of  which  exactly  coincides  with  the  inside  of  the  rail,  to  which  as  a  joint  cover  both 
are  riveted,  the  cross-ties  being  angle  irons,  bent  to  give  the  bevil  for  the  carriage 
wheels  to  the  rail,  and  secured  by  the  same  rivets  which  hold  the  chair. 

The  author  has  laid  some  of  each  of  these  kinds  of  permanent  way,  except  Mr. 
Samuel's,  and  tried  a  number  of  experiments  thereon,  both  as  to  strength,  smooth- 
ness, and  cost  of  maintenance ;  and  the  experimental  lengths  of  each  kind  have  been 
under  the  regular  traffic  of  the  Belfast  Junction  Railway  for  the  last  year  and  a  half. 
Of  the  first  kind,  Sir  J.  Macneill's,  the  Drogheda  Railway  Company  have  taken  some, 
their  rails  being  still  quite  sound  but  their  wooden  sleepers  decayed ;  the  second,  Mr. 
Peter  Barlow's,  has  been  largely  laid  in  England  on  the  South-Eastern,  and  Ashford 
and  Hastings ;  and  in  Ireland,  on  the  Londonderry  and  Enniskillen.  The  last  de- 
scribed, that  of  Mr.  W.  H.  Barlow,  is  now  being  extensively  adopted  by  Mr.  Brunei 
in  England,  and  Mr.  Hemans  in  Ireland ;  and  the  author  has  laid  seven  miles,  and 
ordered  materials  for  twelve  more ;  this  being  the  total  at  present  required  on  the 
Belfast  Junction  Railway.  The  result  of  the  experiments  was  the  adoption  of  this  rail 
as  the  best  when  the  rails  are  not  already  purchased ;  it  was  found  by  rar  the  strongest 
and  considerably  the  cheapest.  The  cost  of  the  different  kinds  are  given  in  the  an- 
nexed table,  the  estimates  being  either  from  the  author's  own  knowledge,  or  when 
they  refer  to  maintenance  for  a  term  of  years,  are  taken  from  actual  tenders  made  to 
him  for  the  work.  This  rail  thus  gives  a  first  cost  saving  of  £360  per  double  mile,  and 
an  annual  saving  of  £56 ;  the  cast-iron  sleepers  show  an  increased  cost  at  first  of  about 
£160,  but  an  annual  saving  of  about  £50. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  TH1  SECTIONS. 


19S 


Description  of  Road. 

Cost  of  materials 
for  a  doable  line 
for  one  mile,  and 
for  laying  same. 

Cost  of  ballast- 
ing per  mile  of 
double  line. 
Average. 

Cost  of  renewal 
from  decay  and 
wear  of  materials 
of  permanent  way 
for  double  line,  per 
mile,  per  annum. 

Cross-sleeper,    timber    road,    and 
bridge  rail,  eighty  pounds  to  the 
vard   . • «... 

£ 
2900 

3260 
2740 

£ 
800 

600* 
600 

£ 

80 

30 
24 

Cast-iron  deepen  either  for  bridge 
or  edge  rail,  Sir  J.  MacneiH's,  or 
Mr.  Barlow's • 

Broad-flanged  rail,  W.  H.  Barlow's 

It  ia  proposed  to  rivet  together  these  rails  at  the  joint ;  and  the  paper  proceeded  to 
discuss  the  question  of  the  feasibility  of  riveting  together  a  continuous  line  of  rails; 
directly  opposite  opinions  have  been  given  on  this  point,  and  amongst  those  opposed 
to  it  were  Professor  Barlow  in  1835.  The  matter  ia,  the  author  would  submit,  one 
capable  of  being  considered  philosophically,  and  is  dependent  on  the  amount  of  ex- 
pansion and  the  strength  of  the  iron ;  he  showed  that  the  contraction  by  cooling  a 
rail  through  the  whole  of  our  range  temperature,  say  75°,  would  cause  a  tensile  strain 
on  the  bar  only  equal  to  five  tons  per  sectional  inch,  which  the  bar  is  quite  capable 
of  bearing.  The  practical  fault  appears  to  be,  that  the  rail  when  riveted  at  a  low 
temperature  gives  way  by  flexure  and  gets  out  of  line,  acting  as  a  pillar,  and  so 
bearing,  not  as  in  tension  according  to  its  sectional  area,  but  the  cube  of  its  width, 
and  inversely  as  the  square  of  the  length  unsupported.  It  would  therefore  appear 
perfectly  safe  to  rivet  together  a  line  of  rails,  but  it  should  be  done  at  a  high  tempe- 
rature. The  effect  of  change  of  temperature  of  the  air  is  moreover  largely  reduced 
by  the  rail  being  bedded  into  the  ballast  instead  of  placed  upon  a  non-conductor  of 
heat  like  the  timber  sleepers. 

When  the  author  recommended  the  adoption  of  the  broad-flanged  rail  to  the  Com- 
pany for  whom  he  tried  the  experiments,  he  did  not  do  so  on  light  grounds,  as  in 
doing  so  he  took  the  responsibility  of  recommending  a  large  outlay  on  a  system 
hitherto  untried  except  by  the  patentee ;  in  now  however  bringing  it  before  the  Sec- 
tion, he  has  the  concurrent  opinions  of  a  number  of  the  most  eminent  of  his  profes- 
sional brethren.  This  road  having  been  objected  to  for  a  supposed  sensation  of 
hardness  in  passing  over  it,  diagrams  of  the  motion  of  a  carriage  over  it  and  other 
descriptions  of  road  were  exhibited,  taken  by  an  instrument  called  a  salograph,  and 
which  appeared  to  show  the  wrought  iron  had  less  motion  than  any  other  rail. 

Tables  of  experiments  were  annexed  to  this  paper. 


On  the  Calculation  of  Strains  in  Lattice  Girders,  with  practical  deductions 
therefrom.    By  James  Barton,  C.E. 

The  author  commenced  by  showing,  that  notwithstanding  the  large  and  valuable 
investigations  of  late  years  into  the  theory  and  forms  of  wrought- iron  girders  for  large 
bridges,  yet  the  nature,  intensity,  and  directions  of  the  strains  in  the  vertical  web 
or  portion  of  the  beam  which  separates  the  top  and  bottom  were  comparatively 
neglected,  or  conclusions  drawn  without  correct  tneorv ;  and  having  shown  the  large 
amount  of  material  used  in  this  portion  of  girders,  the  sides  in  the  Britannia  tubes 
weighing  3454  tons,  whilst  the  top  is  2962  tons,  and  the  bottom  2944  tons,  and 
therefore  the  (Economic  importance  of  this  investigation,  he  proceeded  to  explain  the 
mode  in  which  he  had  arrived  at  accurate  results  as  to  these  strains  in  the  case  of 
lattice  girders.    He  had  investigated  the  subject,  and  tried  some  experiments  on  a 

*  The  iron  roads  require  five  or  six  inches  less  of  ballast  in  consequence  of  the  depth  of 
wooden  sleepers,  and  this  decreased  quantity  gives  the  same  depth  under  the  sleeper. 


124  REPORT — 1852. 

large  scale  with  tubular  and  lattice  beams,  in  connection  with  some  large  bridges 
which  he  has  lately  erected  on  the  Belfast  Junction  Railway,  and  especially  for  the 
design  for  the  Boyne  Viaduct,  the  calculations  for  which,  and  the  working  out  of  the 
details,  were  entrusted  to  him  by  Sir  J.  Macneill  and  the  directors  of  the  company : 
the  results  show  the  high  importance  of  an  accurate  consideration  of  the  various  strains 
to  which  each  bar  is  subjected,  and  the  separate  and  different  effects  of  a  passing  and 
constant  load.  The  paper  proceeded  to  explain  how  these  calculations  were  to  be 
carried  out,  by  resolving  each  part  of  the  load  into  its  separate  effect  of  tension  and 
compression  on  every  bar  in  the  same  system,  and  on  the  top  and  bottom,  and  adding 
to  these  results  the  constant  effect  of  the  weight  of  the  structure,  and  the  results  or 
maxima  strains  for  every  bar  were  shown  in  diagrams,  as  also  a  geometrical  elevation 
of  the  strains ;  the  general  result  is,  that  in  ordinary  trussed  or  lattice-bridges  the  bars 
sloping  downwards  towards  the  bottom  at  the  centre  were  subject  to  a  tensile,  and 
the  others  to  a  compressive  strain,  and  that  these  strains  increase  nearly  in  an  arith- 
metical proportion  towards  the  points  of  support;  but  that  they  pass  each  other  for 
some  distance  at  the  centre,  so  that  a  certain  number  of  bars  arc  subject  to  a  small 
amount  of  both  tensile  and  compressive  strain.  The  geometric  elevation  showed  the 
very  small  proportion  the  strains  in  the  sides  bear  to  those  in  the  top  and  bottom, 
and  therefore  the  inutility  of  making  the  sides  solid  plates,  whilst  from  the  amount 
of  compression  a  single  plate  does  not  give  rigidity.  The  paper  went  on  to  compare 
the  relative  value  of  single  systems  bracing  with  the  lattice,  and  to  consider  the  true 
angle  of  oeconomic  bracing  which  appeared  to  be  45°;  also  how  far  the  calculations  are 
affected  by  riveting  together  the  bars  at  their  intersections.  The  paper  further  pro- 
ceeded to  the  practical  application,  and  to  the  details  of  construction,  explaining 
some  improvements  introduced  by  the  author,  both  as  to  the  mode  of  construction  of 
the  compression  bars,  which  by  him  are  made  to  form  lattice  beams,  as  also  in  the 
connection  of  plates  by  means  of  which  he  proposes  to  rivet  plates  with  a  very  slight 
loss  of  their  sectional  area.  An  isometrical  projection  of  a  lattice  beam  was  also  ex- 
hibited carrying  out  the  principles  laid  down. 

A  series  of  Observations  on  the  Discharge  of  Water  from  actual  Experiment* 
By  J.  F.  Bateman,  C.E. 

Mr.  Bateman  Btated  that  his  experiments  proved  the  accuracy  of  formulae  esta- 
blished by  Chevalier  Dubuet,  for  calculating  the  mean  velocity  of  water  in  the  separate 
channels.  ___ 

On  the  Evolution  of  Gas  in  Wallsend  Colliery.  By  George  Clarke. 
Communicated  by  Professor  Phillips. 
This  paper  relates  to  one  of  the  coal-mines  in  the  district  of  the  Tyne  which 
have  been  rendered  remarkable  for  the  frequent  explosion  of  the  inflammable 
gas  which  they  yield,  and  the  loss  of  life  which  has  in  6o  many  cases  been  the  conse- 
quence. The  colliery  in  question  has  been  wrought  for  many  years  in  safety,  by  the 
exclusive  use  of  the  Davy  lamp,  though  it  evolves  every  moment  abundance  of  gas. 
A  district  of  this  collier}',  covering  about  fifty  acres,  was  effectually  walled  up,  in  con- 
sequence  of  the  immense  discharge  of  gas  that  was  continually  taking  place.  A  pipe 
was  led  from  this  enclosed  portion  up  through  the  mine  and  for  forty  feet  above  the 
surface,  and  from  this  pipe  there  has  been  a  constant  discharge  of  gas  for  the  last 
eighteen  years.  This  gas  has  been  inflamed,  and  in  the  roughest  and  most  stormy 
weather  it  has  burned  without  intermission ;  and  were  it  as  rich  in  naphtha  as  ordi- 
nary carburetted  hydrogen,  it  would  illuminate  the  country  for  miles  round.  Two 
water-pressure  gauges  were  fixed,  one  to  the  pipe  at  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and  the 
other  at  the  bottom  of  the  mine ;  and  the  results  were  that,  whilst  the  pressure  in  the 
mine  was  only  -ftyths  of  an  inch  on  an  average,  that  at  the  top  of  the  pit  was  upwards 
of  four  inches.  From  observation  in  these  mines,  it  appears  that  discharges  of  fire-damp, 
governed  by  atmospheric  pressure,  have  taken  place  before  depressions  of  the  baro- 
meter, and  that  as  an  indicator  of  danger  that  instrument  cannot  be  implicitly  relied 
on.  A  fact  somewhat  similar  was  first  observed  by  Professor  Daniel!,  in  his  researches 
at  the  Royal  Society,  where  the  water  barometer  indicated  the  change  of  pressure  an 
hour  earlier  than  the  usual  mercurial  standard  barometers  constantly  employed  for 
observations. 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  125 

An  Account  of  the  Drainage  of  ike  Middle  Level  of  the  Bedford  Level ;  with 
Observations  on  Arterial  Drainage.    By  James  Cooper. 


On  the  Mechanical  Properties  of  Metals,  as  derived  from  repeated  Meltings, 
exhibiting  the  maximum  Point  of  Strength,  and  the  Causes  of  Deterioration* 
By  William  Fairbairn,  F.R.S. 

After  some  preliminary  observations,  Mr.  Fairbairn  stated  tbat  having  been 
requested  by  the  British  Association,  at  their  last  meeting,  to  undertake  an  inquiry 
into  the  mechanical  properties  of  cast  iron,  as  deduced  from  repeated  meltings,  and 
feeling  desirous  of  ascertaining  to  what  extent  it  was  improved  or  deteriorated, 
arrangements  were  made  for  conducting  a  series  of  experiments,  calculated  satisfac- 
torily to  determine  this  question,  and  to  supply  such  data  and  such  information  as 
will  enable  the  engineer  and  iron-founder  to  ascertain  with  greater  certainty  how  far 
those'  remeltings  can  be  carried  with  safety ;  or  till  such  time  as  the  maximum  of 
strength  is  obtained,  and  such  other  properties  as  appear  to  affect  the  uses  of  this 
valuable  and  important  material.  Mr.  Fairbairn  further  stated,  in  connection  with 
this  subject,  that  it  was  his  intention  to  investigate  another  important  process,  which, 
to  a  considerable  extent,  affects  the  stability  of  some  of  our  most  important  iron  con- 
structions, viz.  the  rate  of  cooling  as  it  affects  the  adhesive  properties  of  the  material, 
and  the  more  complete  and  effective  process  of  crystallization.  On  these  points  it  is 
well  known  that  a  rapid  rate  of  cooling  is  invariably  attended  with  risk ;  that  an  im- 
perfect crystalline  structure  is  obtained,  and  that  irregular  and  unequal  contractions 
are  not  only  present,  but  they  are  frequently  the  forerunners  of  disruption,  as  well  as 
exceedingly  deceptive  as  regards  appearances,  or  the  dangerous  consequences  which 
invariably  follow  in  cases  of  rapid  cooling  and  unequal  contraction. 


On  the  Tensile  Strength  of  Uhwrought  Iron  Plates  at  various  Temperatures* 
By  William  Fairbairn,  F.R.S. 

Mr.  Fairbairn  said,  the  experiments  were  not  sufficiently  advanced  to  enable  him 
to  lay  before  the  Section  any  detailed  account  of  them,  in  consequence  of  the  appa- 
ratus for  conducting  those  experiments  having,  for  the  last  six  months,  been  pre- 
occupied for  the  Royal  Society  to  determine  the  temperature  of  fusion  or  the  laws  of 
the  solidification  of  bodies  under  great  pressure.  Under  these  circumstances,  it  was 
next  to  impossible  to  make  much  progress  with  the  experiments  on  the  effects  of  tem- 
perature, &c.  on  wrought  iron  plates.  Up  to  the  present  time,  they  must  therefore 
be  considered  preliminary;  but,  judging  results  obtained  on  a  former  occasion  from 
experiments  on  bars  of  iron  subjected  to  a  transverse  strain  at  varied  degrees  of  tem- 

Cture,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  some  new  and  interesting  facts  may  be  deve- 
i  by  those  now  in  progress. 

New  Tubular  Boiler.    By  William  Fairbairn,  F.R.S. 

This  subject  was  illustrated  by  tables  and  diagrams.  The  new  boiler  consists  of 
two  furnaces,  the  same  as  the  double-flue  boiler,  but  with  this  difference,  that  the 
cylindrical  flues  which  contain  the  grate  bars  are  united  at  a  distance  of  eight  feet 
from  the  front  of  the  boiler  into  a  circular  flue  which  forms  the  mixing  chamber,  and 
which  terminates  in  a  disc  plate,  which  contains  a  series  of  three-inch  tubes,  eight 
feet  long,  and  similar  to  the  locomotive  boiler.  These  tubes  in  a  boiler  seven  feet 
diameter  are  104  to  110  in  number,  and  from  the  thinness  of  the  metal  become  the 
absorbents  of  the  surplus  heat  escaping  from  the  mixing  chamber  and  the  furnace. 
On  this  principle  of  rapid  conduction*,  the  whole  of  the  heat,  excepting  only  what  is 
necessary  to  maintain  the  draught,  is  transmitted  into  the  boiler,  and  hence  follows 
the  ceconomy  of  entirely  dispensing  with  brickwork  and  flues — an  important  deside- 
ratum in  these  constructions. 

Remarks  on  ike  Minis  Rifle.    By  William  Fairbairn,  F.R.S. 
Mr.  Fairbairn  observed  that,  until  of  late  years,  all  the  gun  barrels  for  the  army, 
and  other  descriptions,  had  to  be  welded  upon  mandrils,  some  of  them  formed  by  a 


126  report — 1852. 

bar  of  iron  rolled  upon  the  mandril,  in  a  spiral  direction,  and  then  welded  by  re- 

Eeated  beatingi  from  the  muzzle  to  the  breecn.  Others  were  differently  constructed, 
y  welding  the  bars  longitudinally,  in  the  line  of  the  barrel,  and  not  in  the  spiral  di- 
rection adopted  in  the  former  process.  Now  the  whole  is  welded  at  one  heat,  and 
that  through  a  series  of  grooves  in  the  iron  rollers,  specially  adapted  for  the  purpose. 
This,  with  other  improvements,  has  rendered  the  manufacture  of  rifles  and  other 
arms  a  matter  of  much  greater  certainty  and  security  than  at  any  former  period. 
Admitting  the  advantages  peculiar  to  this  manufacture,  it  does  not  affect  the  prin- 
ciple of  the  rifle  itself,  in  wnich  there  is  no  alteration,  but  in  every  respect  similar, 
even  to  the  spiral  grooves,  which  he  believes  are  not  altered,  but  are  the  same 
as  in  the  old  rifle.  This  being  the  case,  it  has  been  a  question  of  much  interest  to 
know  wherein  consists  the  great  difference  in  the  practice  with  the  new  rifle,  as  com- 
pared with  that  of  the  old  one.  It  is  not  in  the  gun,  and  must  therefore  be  in  the 
tall,  or  that  part  of  the  charge  which  generates  the  projectile  force.  But,  in  fact,  the 
improvement  consists  entirely  in  the  form  of  the  ball,  which  is  made  conical,  with  a 
hollow  recess  at  the  base,  into  which  a  metallic  plug  is  thrust  by  the  discharge.  The 
plus  is  so  constructed,  as  that  when  driven  into  the  ball,  it  compresses  the  outer  edges 
against  the  sides  of  the  barrel,  and  at  the  same  time'  forces  a  portion  of  the  lead, 
from  its  ductility,  to  enter  the  groove,  and  to  give  the  ball,  when  discharged,  that 
revolving  motion  which  carries  with  such  unerring  certainty  to  the  mark.  In  the 
practice  with  one  of  those  rifles  on  the  marshes  at  Woolwich,  the  following  results 
were  obtained.  Out  of  twelve  rounds,  at  a  distance  of  700  yards,  as  near  as  Mr.  Fair- 
bairn  can  remember,  only  one  bullet  missed  the  target,  and  the  remaining  eleven 
rounds  were  scattered  within  distances  of  about  six  incnes  to  four  feet  from  the  bull's 
eye.  At  800  yards  three  shots  missed  the  target,  and  the  remaining  nine  went  through  the 
boards,  two  inches  thick,  and  lodged  themselves  in  the  mounds  behind,  at  a  distance 
of  about  twenty  yards.  The  same  results  were  obtained  from  a  distance  of  900  yards, 
and  at  1000  yards  there  were  very  few  of  the  bullets  but  what  entered  the  target 
In  these  experiments  the  end  of  the  rifle  was  supported  upon  a  triangular  standard, 
and  the  greatest  precision  was  observed  in  fixing  the  sight,  which  is  graduated 
to  a  scale  in  the  ratio  of  the  distance,  varying  from  100  to  1000  yards,  which 
Utter  may  be  considered  the  range  of  this  destructive  instrument 


On  Improvements  made  in  the  Harbour  of  Belfast. 
By  Robert  Garrett,  CjE* 

This  paper  described  the  situation  of  the  town  of  Belfast  on  the  River  Lagan,  at 
its  junction  with  that  extensive  inlet  known  as  Belfast  Lough,  and  stated  thai  the 
courses  of  the  tides  do  not  tend  to  the  formation  of  the  shoals  and  bars  so  formidable 
at  many  harbour  entrances.  It  appears  there  are  fourteen  miles  square  of  good  an- 
chorage ground,  and  from  two  to  ten  fathoms  of  water.  The  particulars  of  the  river 
and  the  Lough,  and  the  various  engineering  additions  for  accommodation  were  then 
detailed — from  1720,  when  the  first  quay  wall  was  built,  and  1785,  which  marked 
the  commencement  of  the  progress  which  has  continued  to  the  present  time.  The 
designs  suggested  for  the  improvement  of  the  harbour  by  Messrs.  Rennie,  Telford, 
Cubitt,  &c.  were  described  and  compared  with  that  given  by  Messrs.  Walker  and 
Burges,  attention  being  in  particular  directed  to  the  manner  in  which  the  tidal  action 
had  been  taken  advantage  of  in  the  latter  design,  now  so  successfully  carried  out  into 
execution  by  Mr.  Smith,  the  Resident  Engineer  to  the  Harbour  Commissioners, 


On  Malleable  Iron  for  Beams  or  Girders. 
By  Thomas  Murray  Gladstone,  CJ2.  of  Belfast* 

This  paper  pointed  out  the  difference  between  cast  and  wrought  iron  for  beams  or 
girders ;  it  was  shown  that  cast  iron  from  its  extreme  brittleness  was  unsafe  even  for 
below  the  test  usually  applied  to  it,  especially  where  any  sudden  impact  or  force  was 
necessary ;  that  as  the  nature  of  the  metal  was  changed  from  cast  to  a  malleable  state, 
its  power  of  bearing  tension  in  the  latter  condition  was  increased  more  than  four-fold, 
while  its  resistance  to  compression  was  not  sensibly  diminished ;  that  in  consequence 
of  this  increased  strength,  the  lower  webs  of  the  wrought  iron  girder  could  be  propor- 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  12? 

tionably  reduced,  and  thereby  one-half  the  lineal  weight  saved,  which  compensated 
for  the  difference  of  price.  The  material  point  which  supervened  in  favour  of 
wrought  iron,  was  that  it  gave  ample  warning  by  great  deflection  before  the  breaking 
point  was  reached,  which  was  not  the  case  with  cast  iron. 

By  experiment  it  was  found  that  with  double  T-iron,  8  inches  deep,  and  the  top 
and  bottom  flanges  each  4  inches  wide,  the  whole  4  inches  thick,  and  having  two 
girders  10  feet  apart  and  10  feet  span,  with  a  load  of  21  tons,  within  a  radius  of 
4  feet  from  the  centre,  the  deflection  was  only  f  inches,  and  immediately  on  the  load 
being  removed  the  beams  returned  back  to  their  original  position.  Other  examples 
were  given  for  the  Members  to  see  at  the  Belfast  Iron  Works,  the  result  showing 
that  with  the  given  section  the  depth  ought  to  be  about  -^th  the  span,  and  the 
thickness  of  all  parts  ^  th  the  depth  of  girder,  while  the  best  form  was  for  the  flanges 
to  be  |  the  depth. 

The  paper  was  accompanied  by  drawings  showing  the  different  points  bearing  upon 
the  advantages  of  this  new  feature  in  the  application  of  malleable  iron,  so  interesting 
for  security  of  life  and  property  in  fire-proof  buildings. 


On  an  Improved  Cast-iron  Sleeper  fyr  Railways. 
By  John  Godwin,  C.E~,  JBelfast. 

Mr.  Godwin  said  that  his  attention  had  been  a  good  deal  directed  to  the  subject 
of  laying  and  upholding  the  permanent  way  of  railways,  from  the  necessity  which 
had  arisen  on  the  Ulster  Railway  with  which  he  was  connected,  of  relaying  a  con- 
siderable length  on  which  the  timber  was  decayed,  and  a  large  outlay  became  neces- 
sary for  its  reconstruction. 

The  Ulster  line  is  laid  on  longitudinal  bearings  of  timber,  and  the  rail  is  of  the 
bridge-form,  of  about  eighty  pounds  to  the  yard ;  although  this  kind  of  permanent  way 
has  answered  exceedingly  well,  yet  the  certainty  of  decay  in  the  timber,  and  the  conse- 
quent necessity  of  frequent  reconstruction,  inflict  a  serious  outlay  on  the  company, 
and  renders  a  large  reserve  fund  necessary  to  meet  such  contingences. 

In  the  hope  of  obviating  Ihis  serious  and  frequent  source  of  expense,  he  directed 
his  attention  to  the  cast-iron  sleeper  for  the  bridge  rail  introduced  by  Mr.  Barlow, 
and  patented  by  him ;  on  examining  the  lines  on  which  this  sleeper  had  been  laid, 
he  thought  that  an  improved  mode  of  fastening  the  rail  to  the  sleeper  was  required, 
and  that  the  form  of  the  sleeper  itself  was  capable  of  some  improvement. 

In  Mr.  Barlow's  plan  the  sleeper  is  flat,  and  the  rail  is  secured  to  it  by  means  of 
small  detached  pieces  of  iron  and  small  screw  bolts ;  these  bolts  are  liable  to  shake 
loose,  and  the  stability  of  the  line  is  consequently  injured. 

The  alteration  which  he  (Mr.  Godwin)  had  adopted  in  the  form  of  the  sleeper  is 
in  making  it  curved  instead  of  flat,  and  thus  giving  it  more  strength,  a  better  hold 
on  the  ballasting,  and  effecting  a  consequent  saving  in  the  labour  of  packing  and 

In  Mr.  Godwin's  plan,  the  chair  on  which  the  rail  rests  is  so  constructed  as  to 

Sroject  over  the  flange  of  the  rail  on  both  sides,  and  is  secured  by  a  broad  wedge 
riven  between  it  and  the  under  side  of  the  rail,  forcing  it  upwards  against  the  pro- 
jections of  the  chair :  the  joints  are  fastened  in  a  similar  manner  by  a  single  wedge  at 
each  joint. 

Before  Mr.  Godwin  had  tested  this  plan  of  permanent  way,  by  laving  a  length  of 
it  and  subjecting  it  to  a  severe  test,  ne  was  apprehensive  that  the  wedges  would 
shake  loose,  and  that  it  would  not  remedy  the  defect  of  the  screw  fastenings ;  but  after 
a  severe  trial  of  six  months  he  found  the  line  as  secure  as  when  first  laid,  although  it 
had  not  been  packed  or  otherwise  meddled  with ;  he  found,  however,  that  a  few  of 
the  joint  sleepers  had  broken,  but  without  in  the  slightest  degree  affecting  the  per- 
manence and  steadiness  of  the  line. 

In  order  to  prevent  a  recurrence  of  this  he  has  determined  on  laying  the  joint 
sleeper  transversely,  and  thus  preventing  the  possibility  of  their  breaking. 

The  advantages  to  be  expected  from  this  kind  of  nermanent  way,  are  its  durability, 
simplicity  of  construction,  facility  of  replacing  defective  rails,  and  oeconomy  in  up- 
holding. 


128  REPORT— 1852. 

This  kind  of  chair  and  sleeper  is  applicable  to  iines  already  laid,  and  to  any  pat- 
tern of  rail,  and  when  it  is  necessary  to  relay  the  line,  or  renew  the  sleepers. 

In  concluding  his  paper,  Mr.  Godwin  suggested  the  possibility  of  constructing  a 
railroad  in  such  a  manner  that  the  engine  and  carriages  should  never  rest  on  a  joint, 
but  roll  over  a  continuous  and  unbroken  line  of  rails.  He  thought  that  this  might 
be  effected  by  rolling  the  rail  in  two  halves,  and  riveting  them  together  in  such  a  way 
that  the  engine  would  never  bear  wholly  on  a  joint ;  and  by  adopting  the  wedge-fast- 
ening alluded  to  above,  the  strain  on  the  rivets  would  be  relieved  and  not  likely  to 
shake  loose  ;  indeed,  the  section  of  the  rail  might  be  so  contrived  that  the  action  of 
the  wedge  in  keeping  the  rail  tight  in  the  chair  may  also  tend  to  force  the  half  rails 
together,  and  probably  render  rivets  altogether  unnecessary ;  of  course  it  would  be 
necessary  to  provide  for  expansion  and  contraction,  which  could  easily  be  effected. 


On  a  Dynamometric  Machine  for  Measuring  the  Strength  of  Textile  Fabrics 
and  other  Substances.    By  M.  Per  re  a  ux. 


On  Telegraphic  Communication  betieecn  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  by  the 
Mull  of  Cantyre.  By  W.  J.  Macquorn  Rankine,  CJS.t  and  John 
Thomson,  CJB. 

The  authors  recommend  the  construction  of  a  line  of  electric  telegraph  between 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  crossing  the  North  Channel  from  the  Mull  of  Cantyre  to 
Tor  Point,  chiefly  on  the  following  grounds  :— 

1.  It  involves  the  construction  of  a  much  less  length  of  submarine  telegraph  than 
any  other  line,  the  distance  across  the  channel  in  the  line  proposed  being  only  thirteen 
miles,  while  that  from  Portpatrick  to  Donaghadee  is  twenty-two  miles ;  from  five  to 
five  and  a  half  additional  miles  of  submarine  telegraph  would  be  required  to  cross 
small  arms  of  the  sea;  but  this  would  be  in  small  detached  portions,  easily  laid  and 
repaired,  and  would  make  the  total  length  of  submarine  telegraph  only  about  eigh- 
teen miles. 

2.  It  is  the  most  secure  of  all  sites  for  an  electric  telegraph  between  Britain  and 
Ireland,  for  no  vessel  ever  casts  anchor  in  the  proposed  line. 

3.  Besides  these  national  advantages,  it  has  the  local  advantage  of  connecting  the 
North- East  of  Ireland  directly  with  tbe  ports  on  the  Clyde. 

As  it  may  be  considered  necessary  for  local  purposes  that  the  electric  telegraph 
should  be  carried  as  far  north  as  Lame  in  Ireland,  and  as  far  westward  as  Dumbarton 
and  Greenock  on  either  bank  of  the  Clyde,  Lame  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  Irish 
terminus  of  this  scheme,  and  either  Dumbarton  or  Greenock  as  the  Scottish  terminus. 
The  line  from  Dumbarton  would  require  106  miles  of  land  telegraph,  the  alternative 
line  from  Greenock  93  miles,  to  complete  the  communication. 

The  authors  consider  the  security  of  this  line  of  telegraph  to  be  an  advantage,  in  a 
national  point  of  view,  sufficiently  great  to  warrant  its  execution,  even  were  the  lines 
by  Portpatrick  and  Holyhead  in  full  operation. 


Remarks  on  the  Mechanical  Process  for  Cooling  Air  in  Tropical  Climates 
proposed  by  Prof.  C.  Piazzi  Smyth.  By  W.  J.  M.  Rankine,  C.J&,  FJR.SJS. 

The  most  improved  form  of  the  apparatus  proposed  by  Prof.  Smyth  consists,—!,  of 
a  compressing  pump,  by  which  the  air  is  to  be  forced  into,  2.  a  refrigerator,  consist- 
ing of  a  long  tube,  or  a  series  of  tubes,  exposed  to  a  stream  of  water,  in  which  the 
air  will  be  deprived  of  the  heat  generated  by  the  compression,  and  from  which  irwill 
escape  into,  3.  an  expansion  cylinder,  in  which  the  air  will  at  once  become  cooled 
by  expansion  to  an  extent  nearly,  but  not  quite,  equal  to  that  of  the  original  heating 
by  compression,  and  will  propel  a  piston,  to  assist  in  working  tbe  compressing  pump. 
The  air  will  be  delivered  from  this  expansion  cylinder  into  the  building  to  be  venti- 
lated. The  principal  resistance  to  be  overcome  in  this  improved  machine  will  be  the 
friction.  The  autnor  gives  formula;  and  rules  for  calculating  tbe  dimensions  of  the 
parts  of  this  machine,  and  the  power  required  to  work  it,  supposing  the  friction  to  be 


TRANSACTIONS  OF  THE  SECTIONS.  129 

known.  It  it  difficult  to  estimate  the  amount  of  friction  beforehand;  but  supposing 
it  to  be  a  little  greater  in  proportion  than  that  of  a  Cornish  pumping-engine,  the 
author  calculated  that  about  25,000  cubic  feet  of  air  per  hour  may  be  cooled  down 
from  90°  Fahr.  to  60°  by  an  engine  of  1 -horse  power*. 


A  Model  of  a  new  Reaping  Machine,  by  Mr.  R.  Robinson,  was  exhibited  by  one  of 
the  Secretaries.  ____ 

Design  for  Safety  Harbours.    By  Captain  J.  Saunders* 

The  advantages  sought  by  the  author  are,  durability,  cheapness  of  execution  (when 
compared  with  the  important  object  it  has  in  view),  and  security  from  damage  during 
the  progress  of  the  work.  The  sea  pavement,  which  has  heretofore  been  the  ruin  of 
our  best  harbours,  will  be  by  this  design  dispensed  with,  substituting  a  strong  sea-wall 
instead.  The  bell-work  to  seaward  will  be  constructed  on  a  new  plan,  diminishing 
one  foot  in  each  course  till  it  reaches  low- water  mark,  on  which  the  great  sea-wall  will 
commence ;  this  wall  will  be  supported  from  the  interior  by  horizontal  arches  and 
sectional  walls ;  the  horizontal  arches  will  be  filled  with  concrete  and  small  stones  to 
high-water  mark.  The  contractor  may  undertake,  with  a  small  capital,  a  large  work 
without  any  risk  or  danger,  as  each  section  can  be  completed  before  another  is  com- 
menced, as  particularly  described  on  the  design  and  model ;  the  cost  of  execution  will 
be  less,  and  the  permanency  greater,  than  by  the  usual  mode  of  construction,  and  the 
design  may  be  adapted  to  any  situation  or  scale  of  magnitude. 


On  the  Natural  Peculiarities  and  Advantages  of  the  Mineral  Field  and  the 
,    proposed  Harbour  of  Fair  Head,    by  W.  H.  Smith. 

This  was  a  proposal  to  erect  a  harbour  at  Fair  Head,  the  extreme  point  on  the 
north-eastern  coast  of  Ireland,  and  establish  a  submarine  telegraph  between  it  and 
the  Mull  of  Cantyre,  which  is  only  twelve  miles  distant  on  the  Scottish  coast,  and  is 
the  principal  point  to  Glasgow.  Having  pointed  out  the  variety  of  mineral  wealth 
and  natural  products,  consisting  of  coal,  iron,  sulphur,  copperas,  ochre,  building* 
stone  and  limestone,  and  ofher  valuable  substances  which  abounded  in  the  district,  but 
could  not  be  turned  to  full  advantage  in  consequence  of  the  want  of  a  harbour, — while 
shipwrecks  on  the  coast  have  occurred  annually  since  the  old  harbour  of  Ballycastle 
adjoining  was  allowed  to  fall  to  decay, — the  paper  stated,  that  a  harbour  at  Fair  Head 
would  be  a  permanent  protection  to  shipping,  and  besides  increasing  the  spirit  of  com- 
mercial enterprise,  would  in  some  cases  be  the  means  of  shortening  the  passage  to 
America  by  several  days.  The  harbour  was  proposed  to  be  constructed  on  the  recoil 
principle,  being  formed  of  a  framework  fastened  to  piles,  with  counterbalancing  weights 
attached,  so  that  it  would  yield  to  the  waves  and  yet  recover  its  position  continually. 
A  lighthouse  on  the  same  principle  was  proposed  to  be  attached. 


On  Penrose  and  Bennett's  Sliding  HeUcograph. 
Communicated  by  Professor  C.  Piazzi  Smyth. 

The  author,  Mr.  Penrose,  observed,  "  I  was  led,  during  my  researches  on  the  subject 
of  the  refined  curves  of  the  Greek  mouldings  and  ornaments,  to  consider  whether  it 
would  be  possible  to  contrive  some  method  of  describing  the  volutes  and  scroll-work  at 
once  more  ready  and  more  satisfactory  than  the  tiresome  approximations,  by  means  of 
circular  ones,  which  have  generally  been  used.    1  invented  an  instrument  for  this  pur- 

*  From  calculations  made  since  this  paper  was  read,  it  appears  mat  if  the  compressing 
pump  and  expansion  cylinder  be  made  on  the  principle  of  the  gasometer  fby  bells  dipping 
into  a  tank  of  water,  as  in  M.  Struvl's  machine  for  extracting  the  foul  air  from  mines),  the 
power  required  to  reduce  the  temperature  of  a  cubic  foot  of  sir  from  90°  Fahr.  down  to  60°, 
will  be  about  16}  foot-pounds  for  the  mere  reduction  of  temperature,  and  about  13i  foot- 
pounds additional  for  friction,  or  30  foot-pounds  in  all ;  so  that  by  an  engine  of  one  real 
horse-power,  66,000  cubic  feet  of  sir  per  hour  may  be  cooled  from  90°  to  60°  Fahr.,  being 
enough  for  the  supply  of  264  persons,  at  250  cubic  feet  per  hour  each. 

1852.  9 


ISO  RRPORT— 1852. 

pose,  called  the  Screw  Helicograph.  This  instrument  has  been  elaborated  into  the  im- 
proved form  now  exhibited.  By  simply  turning  round  the  graduated  ring  within  the 
square  frame,  this  instrument  is  enabled  to  draw  in  pencil  or  mk  any  form  of  the  equi- 
angular spiral  from  the  circle  to  the  straight  line ;  and,  by  alterations  in  the  position  of 
the  pen,  or  of  the  centre,  with  respect  to  the  guide  bar,  certain  Tariations  may  be  ob- 
tained. Also  either  a  parallel  line  to  the  first  may  be  drawn  by  a  simple  adjustment 
of  the  pen,  or  a  duly  converging  line,  by  bringing  the  whole  frame  nearer  to  or  farther 
from  the  centre.  Expressing  the  ratio  between  two  spiral  radii  at  an  interval  of  360° 
(viz.  a**)  by  the  term  ( spiral  ratio,'  it  appears  that  curves  drawn  with  this  instrument 
with  spiral  ratios  less  than  8  or  1 0  to  1  are  fitted  for  volutes  and  scroll-work,  and 
those  which  are  drawn  with-  higher  ratios  form  the  outlines  of  vases  and  other  such 
figures  where  a  gentle  variation  of  curvature  is  desired.  This  quality  is  ensured  from 
the  property  of  the  curve  that  the  radius  of  curvature  is  proportional  to  the  length  of 
the  arc.  For  figures  where  great  energy  is  required,  curves  of  a  different  nature  are 
more  suitable,  but  no  curves  appear  to  surpass  these  in  sweetness  of  sequence/' 


On  some  Properties  of  Whirling  Fluids,  with  their  application  in  \ 
the  action  of  Blowing  Fans,  Centrifugal  Pumps,  and  certain  kinds 
Turbines.    By  James  Thomson,  A.M.,  Ciiril  engineer,  Belfast 

The  author  pointed  out  several  properties  possessed  by  masses  of  fluids  revolving 
in  the  circumstances  of  one  of  the  most  ordinary  kinds  of  whirlpools,  that,  namely, 
which  is  formed  when  water  is  supplied  at  the  circumference  of  a  widely  extended 
vessel,  with  a  very  slight  rotatory  motion,  and  is  allowed  to  flow  away  by  a  central 
orifice  in  the  bottom.  Of  these  properties,  the  following.  In  Which  the  influence  of 
friction  is  left  out  of  consideration,  may  be  cited : — 

The  equation  of  the  curve  whose  revolution  would  generate  the  curved  surface  of 
the  whirlpool  is 

C* 

where  y  is  the  depth  of  any  point  of  the  curve  below  the  level  of  the  fluid  taken 
at  any  part  far  away  from  the  whirlpool,  where  there  is  no  perceptible  depression, 
m  the  distance  of  the  point  from  the  axis  of  revolution,  and  C  a  constant 
quantity. 

Every  point  of  the  surface  of  the  fluid  moves  with  the  velocity  which  a  heavy  body 
would  attain  in  falling  from  the  level  of  the  surface  far  away  from  the  whirlpool  to 
the  level  of  the  point.  Also  every  point  in  the  interior  of  the  revolving  mass 
moves  with  the  velocity  of  the  point  on  the  surface  vertically  above  itself;  and  it 
follows,  that  the  velocities  of  points  at  various  distances  from  the  centre  are  in- 
versely proportional  to  the  distances.  It  follows  also  that  the  velocity  of  each  point 
in  the  mass,  is  the  greatest  that  is  possible  without  an  increase  of  the  velocity  of 
every  other  point  revolving  further  from  the  centre. 

He  was  led  from  these  and  other  properties  of  whirling  fluids,  to  find  that  the 
efficiency  of  centrifugal  pumps  for  water,  and  of  fans  for  causing  blasts  of  air,  may 
be  greatly  increased  by  the  provision)  outside  of  the  circumference  of  the  wheel,  of 
a  space  in  which  the  fluid  may  continue  to  revolve  without  any  interruption  after  it 
has  left  the  wheel.  He  mentioned  also,  that  an  apparatus  termed  a  "  difiueer/'  and 
involving  the  same  principle,  has  recently  been  applied  with  good  results,  in  turbines 
of  great  power  constructed  in  America. 


On  a  Jet  Pump,  or  Apparatus  for  drawing  up  Water  by  the  Power  of  a  JeL 
By  James  Thomson,  C.E. 

The  purpose  for  which  the  author  has  designed  this  new  pump,  is  to  clear  the 
water  out  of  the  pits  of  submerged  water-wheels,  when  access  to  them  is  required  for 
inspection  or  repairs.  This  pump  may  also  be  used  for  raising  water  in  other  cases 
where  an  abundant  fall  of  water  is  available ;  as,  for  instance,  for  draining  a  marsh 
hi  the  neighbourhood  of  a  waterfall.  Its  action  depends  on  two  principles.  One  of 
these  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  steam  blast  used  in  locomotive  engines,  and  in  the 


TRANSACTIONS  09  THR  SRCTIONS. 


131 


ventilation  of  mines.    The  other  ii  that  of  the  increased  flow  of  water  from  a  pipe, 
produced  by  giving  a  gradually  widening  form  to  its  discharging  extremity. 

A  sketch  of  the  apparatus  is  given  in  the  accompanying  figure,  where  A  is  a  pipe 


which  supplies  the  water  to  the  nozzle  B  for  the  jet,  and  C  is  a  pipe  which  receives, 
at  its  narrow  end,  the  jet  from  the  nozzle,  and  on  account  of  its  gradually  widening 
form,  causes  a  suction  capable  of  raising  water  by  the  pipe  D. 

The  various  principles  brought  into  action  in  Uiia  apparatus,  have,  as  was  stated  by 
the  author,  been  long  known  in  hydrodynamics ;  but  their  combination  in  this  form 
for  use  he  believed  to  be  new.  A  rush  of  water  had  been  used  previously  in  a  some- 
what similar  way  in  Italy  to  draw  up  and  carry  off  the  water  of  a  marsh.  In  respect 
to  the  method  there  employed  he  had  not  been  able  to  obtain  full  information ;  but 
the  description  of  it  he  had  received  led  him  to  suppose  that  it  was  not  so  efficacious 
as  the  method  which  formed  the  subject  of  his  communication  to  the  meeting. 


On  the  Production  of  Cold  by  Mechanical  Means.    By  W.  S.  Ward. 

To  effect  the  purposes  named  in  a  preceding  paper,  Mr.  Ward  proposes  a  different 
method,  and  the  substitution  of  the  vapours  of  volatile  liquids,  such  as  sulphuric 
sether  in  place  of  air.  He  believed  the  theoretical  results  would  be  the  same,  and 
some  sources  of  loss  diminished ;  but  although  he  doubted  whether  either  form  of 
apparatus  would  be  oeconomically  efficient,  he  felt  that  interesting  results  would  follow 
well-conducted  experiments  on  the  subject. 


On  TekgrapMc  Time  Signals.  By  Charles  V.  Walker, 
The  object  was,  to  explain  the  arrangements  that  have  been  completed,  as  far  as 
his  part  in  them  extends,  for  promoting  the  scheme  of  transmitting  Greenwich  mean 
time  throughout  the  kingdom.  On  the  5th  of  August  1852,  the  first  time-signal  passed ; 
and  on  August  19th,  the  clock  at  Greenwich,  which  originates  the  signals,  having 
been  brought  to  time,  and  the  adjustment  elsewhere  having  been  completed,  the 
regular  transmission  of  signals  commenced ;  in  the  first  instance,  to  Dover,  at  noon, 
and  at  4  p.m.  Mr.  Walker  then  described  the  apparatus  constructed  by  Mr.  Shep- 
herd, and  erected  at  the  London  Terminus,  by  which  the  connexions  are  made.  And, 
"incidental  to  this,  it  is  to  be  understood  that  in  the  galvanic-room  at  the  Royal  Obser- 
vatory is  a  set  of  ordinary  sand-acid  batteries  (to  be  replaced  ultimately  by  graphite 
batteries) ;  one  battery  termination  is  connected  with  the  earth,  by  means  of  the  gas- 
pipes;  and  the  other  with  a  spring  contained  in  Mr.  Shepherd's  electromagnetic 
clock.  The  Greenwich  London  wire  also  terminates  in  the  same  clock:  and  the 
connexions  are  such  that,  at  the  last  second  of  the  last  minute  of  each  hour,  this  line- 
wire  and  the  battery-wire  are  placed  in  contact  for  an  instant;  and,  consequently,  if 
the  circuit  is  completed  at  the  other  end  of  the  wire,  whether  at  London,  Dover, 
Rochester,  the  Strand,  Lothbury,  or  elsewhere,  a  signal  will  pass  every  hour ;  and, 
when  the  circuit  is  left  open,  no  signal  will  pass.  To  accomplish  this,  a  train  of 
wheels  is  connected  with  the  rod  of  Mr.  Carter  s  large  turret-clock,  now  erected  over 

9* 


132  REPORT— 1852. 

the  South-Eastern  Terminus.  Sets  of  springs  are  placed  near  at  hand  to  some  of  the 
wheels ;  the  springs  are  all  tipped  with  platinum,  and  are  respectively  connected  with 
the  several  wires  concerned  in  the  scheme;  and,  according  as  the  contacts  between 
the  several  springs  are  varied,  so  is  the  timo  signal  led  to  its  destination.  Mr.  Walker 
then  explained  an  ingenious  contrivance,  by  which,  at  the  completion  of  the  circuit  at 
Greenwich,  a  voltaic  current  of  instantaneous  duration  passes  from  Greenwich  to 
Dover,  and  causes  one  sharp  deflection  of  the  galvanometer  needle  of  the  usual  elec- 
tric telegraph.  The  clerks  at  the  several  stations,  should  they  overlook  the  general 
order  to  cease  working,  and  to, be  on  the  watch,  are  reminded  that  the  time  is  nearly 
due  by  finding  that  the  telegraph  circuit  is  broken ;  which  happens  during  the  two 
minutes  that  the  spring  is  lifted  by  the  pin  off  the  earth  wire  at  London.  1  he  clerks 
watch  the  signal,  and  make  note  of  the  error  of  their  local  clock.  The  time-signals 
will,  at  set  times,  be  allowed  to  pass  automatically  to  Hastings,  to  Deal,  and  to 
Ramsgate,  by  turning  them  on  the  main  line  by  the  usual  telegraph  turn-plates  now 
in  use  at  junction  stations.  The  signal  will  be  transmitted  to  intermediate  stations  by 
hand,  which  can  be  done  correctly  to  a  fraction  of  a  second.  The  clerk  will  watch  for 
the  signal  while  he  holds  in  his  hand  the  handle  of  a  group,  or  a  branch  instrument; 
he  will  move  his  hand  as  he  sees  the  signal,  and  a  simultaneous  signal  will  pass  along 
the  group. 

On  Graphite  Batteries.    By  Charles  V.  Walker. 

After  referring  to  the  unfitness  of  copper,  and  the  too  great  cost  of  the  superior 
metals  for  the  purpose  of  batteries  for  telegraphic  purposes,  Mr.  Walker  said  he  had 
early  sought  a  substitute,  and  had  found  one  which  seemed  to  promise  all  that  was 
required  in  the  deposit  of  carbon  or  graphite  from  iron  gas-retorts. 


On  the  New  Patent  Law.    By  Thomas  Webster,  FJR.S. 

The  author  contrasted  the  facilities  which  the  new  law  afforded  in  the  application  for 
and  obtaining  of  patents,  and  in  the  protection  to  such  property,  with  the  cumbrous, 
expensive,  and  duplicated  processes  which  characterized  the  old  system.  He  further 
pointed  out  the  necessity  of  extending  further  protection  to  designs  according  to  a 
system  analogous  to  that  of  the  new  patent  law,  if  the  industrial  education  which  the 
schools  of  design  were  endeavouring  to  introduce  was  to  be  useful  to  the  pupils  as 
creating  a  body  of  educated  persons  not  only  dependent  on  their  employers  or  on 
capitalists. 

On  a  New  Method  of  Scutching  the  New  Zealand  Flax  (Phorminm  tenaz). 
By  Matthew  Whytlaw,  C.E.  of  Auckland,  New  Zealand.  (Communi- 
cated by  Sir  David  Brewster.) 

After  noticing  the  plan  hitherto  used  in  the  colony,  and  pointing  out  some  of  its 
defects,  Mr.  Whytlaw  went  on  to  show  that  the  principle  on  which  New  Zealand  flax 
ought  to  be  scutched  was  by  transverse  rubbing  instead  of  longitudinal  beatings  as 
-  now  in  use,  and  described  a  very  simple  machine  invented  by  him,  in  which  this 
principle  was  carried  into  effect,  and  which  was  perfectly  effectual  for  the  purpose; 
and  he  suggested  that  a  machine  on  the  same  principle  might  be  used  with  advantage 
for  European  flax. 

On  the  Mould  for  casting  Conical  Bullets.    By  Alfred  J.  Woodhouse. 


INDEX  I. 


REPORTS  ON  THE  STATE  OF  SCIENCE. 


OBJECTS  and  rules  of  the  Association, 
xiii. 

Places  and  times  of  meetings,  with  names 
of  officers,  from  commencement,  xvi. 

Members  of  Council  from  commence- 
ment, xviii. 

Treasurer's  account,  xx. 

Officers  and  Council,  xxii. 

Officers  of  Sectional  Committees,  xxiii. 

Corresponding  members,  xxiv. 

Report  of  Council  to  General  Committee 
at  Belfast,  xxiv. 

Report  of  Parliamentary  Committee  to 
General  Committee  at  Belfast,  xxix. 

Recommendations  adopted  by  General 
Committee  at  Belfast,  xxxii ;  involving 
grants  of  money,  ib. ;  involving  appli- 
cation to  Government  or  public  insti- 
tutions, xxxiii;  not  involving  grants 
of  money  or  application  to  Govern- 
ment, &c,  xxxiv. 

Printing  of  communications,  xxxv. 

Synopsis  of  money  grants  appropriated 
to  scientific  objects,  xxxv. 

General  statement  of  sums  paid  on  ac- 
count of  grants  for  scientific  purposes, 
xxxvi. 

Extracts  from  resolutions  of  General 
Committee,  xl. 

Arrangement  of  general  meetings,  xl. 

Address  by  Colonel  Edward  Sabine,  TLA., 
xli. 

Adams  (H.),  meteors  observed  at  Here- 
ford in  Nov.  1841,  190. 

Animals,  on  the  composition  of  foods, 
in  relation  to  respiration  and  the  feed- 
ing of,  323. 


Aylesbury,  observations  of  luminous 
meteors  made  at  the  observatory.  Stone 
Vicarage,  208. 

Bengal,  on  the  temperature  and  rain  in, 
252,  256. 

Birmingham,  on  the  meteorology  of,  297. 

Birt  (W.  R.),  observations  of  shooting 
stars,  226  ;  on  luminous  meteors  ob- 
served in  Victoria  Park,  232,  234. 

Boreham  (Mr.  and  Mrs.),  meteors  seen 
by,  230,  233. 

Buist  (Dr.)  on  luminous  meteors  seen  at 
the  coast  of  India,  238. 

Bulard  (M.),  observations  of  luminous 
meteors,  191. 

Calcutta,  meteors  seen  at,  228,  229* 
Cane  (T.),  meteors  observed  at  Hereford* 

in  Nov.  1841,  190. 
Carlisle,  on  a  meteor  seen  at,  232. 
Chalmers   (Charles   B.)   on    luminous 

meteors  seen  at  Weston-super-Mare, 

237. 
Chemical  action  of  the  solar  radiations,  on 

the,  262. 
Cull  (Richard),  a  manual  of  ethnological 
•    inquiry,  243. 

Daubeny  (Prof.),  twelfth  report  on  the 
vitality  of  seeds,  177. 

Earthquake  phsenomena,  on  the  facts  of, 

1. 
Ethnological  inquiry,  a  manual  of,  243. 

Fauna  of  Ireland,  supplementary  report 
on  the,  290, 


154 


INDEX  I. 


Flax  plant,  on  the  composition  and  oeco- 
nomy  of  the,  273 ;  history  of  flax  cul- 
tivation in  Ireland,  ib. 

Flax-straw,  composition  of  the  ash  of  the, 
before  and  after  steeping,  286. 

Foods,  on  the  composition  of,  in  relation 
to  respiration  and  the  feeding  of 
animals,  323. 

Forbes  (J.  D.)  on  the  laws  of  the  con- 
duction of  heat,  260. 

Gilbert  (J.  H.)  on  the  composition  of 
foods,  in  relation  to  respiration  and 
the  feeding  of  animals,  323. 

Gladstone  (J.  H.)  on  the  influence  of 
solar  radiation  on  plants,  239. 

Heat,  on  the  laws  of  the  conduction  of, 

260. 
Henslow  (Prof.),  twelfth  report  on  the 

vitality  of  seeds,  177* 
Hewitt's  (Mr.)  meteor,  231. 
Hodges  (Dr.)  on  the  composition  and 

osconomy  of  the  flax  plant,  273. 
Hodgkin  (Dr.),  a  manual  of  ethnological 

inquiry,  243. 
Hunt  (Robert)  on  the  chemical  action 

of  the  solar  radiations,  262. 

India,  meteors  seen  in,  226,  238. 

Invertebrate  of  Ireland,  292. 

Ireland,  history  of  flax  cultivation  in, 

273 ;  supplementary  report  on  the  fauna 

of,  290. 

Lawes  (J.  B.)  on  the  composition  of 

foods,  in  relation  to  respiration  and  the 

feeding  of  animals,  323. 
Lawson  (Henry),  meteors  observed  at 

Hereford,  in  Nov.  1841,  190. 
Lindfey  (Prof.),  twelfth  report  on  the 

vitality  of  seeds,  Iff. 
Lowe  (E.  J.),  observations  of  luminous 

meteors,  1851-92,  198. 

Madras,  meteors  seen  at,  226. 

Mallet  (Robert),  third  report  on  the  facte 

of  earthquake  phenomena,  1. 
Meteorology  of  Birmingham,  on  the, 

297. 
Meteors,  observations  of  luminous,  178 
to  239. 


Moore  (J.  Carrick)  on  a  meteor  seen  at 
Carlisle,  232. 

Plants,  on  the  influence  of  solar  radia- 
tions on,  239. 

Powell  (Rev.  Prof.),  fifth  report  on  ob- 
servations of  luminous  meteors,  178 ; 
appendix,  226. 

Rain  in  Bengal,  on  the,  252. 

Read  (Rev.  W.)  on  luminous  meteors 
seen  at  South  Mimms,  236. 

Respiration,  on  the  composition  of  foods, 
in  relation  to,  and  the  feeding  of  ani- 
mals, 323. 

Seeds,  on  the  growth  and  vitality  of, 

177. 
Solar  radiation,  on  the  influence  of,  on 

plants,  239 ;  on  the  chemical  action  of 

the,  262. 
South  Mimms,  on    luminous    meteors 

seen  at,  236. 
Spectrum,    analysis    of,    by    absorbent 

media,  262. 
Strickland  (H.  £.),  twelfth  report  on  the 

vitality  of  seeds,  177. 
Sykes  (Colonel)  on  the  temperature  and 

rain  in  Bengal,  252. 

Temperature  in  Bengal*  on  the,  252. 

Thompson  (the  late  William),  supple- 
mentary report  on  the  fauna  of  Ireland, 
290. 

Thomson  (James)  on  the  vortex  water- 
wheel,  317. 

Vertebrate  of  Ireland,  991. 
Victoria  Park,  on  luminous  meteors  ob- 
served in,  232. 

Water-wheel-  on  the  vortex,  317. 
Webb  (T.  W.)   on  luminous  meteors, 

from  1818  to  1850,  extracted  from 

old   diaries  of  natural   phenomena, 

178. 
Weaton-iuper-Mare,  on  luminous  me* 

teors  seen  at,  237. 
Wills  (William)  on  the  meteorology  of 

Birmingham,  297. 


INDEX  II. 


TO 


MISCELLANEOUS  COMMUNICATIONS  TO  THE 
SECTIONS. 


A.CALEPH,  on  a  new  species  of,  from 
Belfast  Bay,  77. 

jEgilops,  on  the  transmutation  of,  into 
Triticum,  68. 

Africa,  on  a  recent  journey  across,  from 
Zanzibar  to  Angola,  110;  latest  explo- 
rations in  south,  to  the  N.  of  lake 
N 'garni,  112;  commercial  documents 
relating  to  the  eastern  horn  of,  113. 

African  discovery,  observations  on  the 
prospects  of,  113. 

Ainsworth  (W.  F.)  on  a  railroad  through 
Asia  Minor,  100. 

Air,  on  the  thermal  effects  of,  rushing 
through  small  apertures,  16;  on  the 
mechanical  process  for  cooling",  in  tro- 
pical climates,  128. 

Alga,  on  a  microscopic,  as  a  cause  of  the 
phenomenon  of  tne  coloration  of  large 
masses  of  water,  64. 

Alge,  marine,  on  the  distribution  of  the, 
on  the  British  and  Irish  coasts,  65. 

Alison  (Dr.)  on  the  present  state  of  the 
law  of  settlement  and  the  removal  of 
paupers  in  Scotland,  1 14. 

Allen  (Capt.  W.),  an  attempt  to  account 
for  numerous  appearances  of  sudden 
and  violent  drainage  seen  on  the  sides 
of  the  basin  of  the  Dead  Sea,  95 ;  on  a 
new  line  for  a  ship  canal  to  the  Bast 
Indies  through  the  Dead  Sea,  97 ;  on 
the  antiquities  of  the  island  Ruad,  the 
ancient  Aradus,  and  on  the  ancient 
harbour  of  Seleucia  in  Pieria,  98. 

Allman  (Dr.)  on  a  microscopic  Alga  as 
a  cause  of  the  phenomenon  of  the  co- 
loration of  large  masses  of  water,  64 ; 
on  the  development  of  ferment  cells  in 
the  warm-water  flax  steeps,  ib. ;  on  the 
universality  of  a  medusoid  structure  in 
the  reproductive  gemmae  of  the  tubu- 
larian  and  sertularian  polypes,  70 ;  on 
a  peculiar  annelidan  larva,  ib. ;  on  the 
signification  of  the  ovigerous  vesicles 
in  the  hydroid  polypes,  71. 


Almorness  Head,  on  die  occurrence  of 

graphite  at,  50. 

Alps,  in  the  vicinity  of  Mont  Blanc,  on 
the,  43. 

America,  on  the  plan  adopted  by  the 
Smithsonian  Institution  for  investigating 
the  meteorology  of  North,  26 ;  on  a  ship 
canal  through  the  isthmus  of  central, 
110;  on  the  most  rapid  communication 
with  India,  vid  British  N.,  114. 

Anastatic  process,  on  Glynn  and  Appel's 
patent  paper  for  the  prevention  of  pi- 
racy and  forgery  by  the,  35. 

Andrews  (Dr.)  on  the  atomic  weights  of 
platinum  and  barium,  33 ;  on  the  dis- 
covery of  minute  quantities  of  soda  by 
the  action  of  polarized  light,  ib.;  on 
the  microscopic  structure  of  certain  ba- 
saltic and  metamorphic  rocks,  and  the 
occurrence  of  metallic  iron  in  them, 
34 ;  on  a  new  variety  of  magnetic  iron 
ore,  with  remarks  upon  the  application 
of  bicarbonate  of  baryta  to  quantitative 
analyses,  41. 

Angola,  on  a  recent  journey  across  Africa 
from  Zanzibar  to,  110. 

Animals,  on  the  geographical  distribution 
of,  in  connexion  with  the  progress  of 
human  civilization,  78. 

Annelidan  larva,  on  a  peculiar,  70. 

Antrim,  on  the  geological  structure  of  the 
county  of,  42;  on  the  fossiliferous  beds 
of,  53. 

Apjohn  (Dr.)  on  the  results  of  analysis  of 
a  substance  resembling  the  pigolite  of 
Prof.  Johnston,  35 ;  Is  the  mechanical 
power  capable  of  being  obtained  by  a 
given  amount  of  caloric  employed  in 
the  production  of  vapour  independent 
of  the  nature  of  the  liquids  ?,  ib. 

Aradus,  on  theantiquitiesof  the  ancient,  98. 

Archangel,  description  of  a  Samoied  fa- 
mily seen  at,  84. 

Arctic  regions,  on  the  distribution  of  ani- 
mal life  in  the,  112. 


136 


IND&X   II. 


Argvleshire,  on  the  disposition  of  granite 
blocks  in,  43. 

Arithmetic,  an  account  of  a  treatise  on, 
in  the  Chinese  language,  1 . 

Arran,  on  the  occurrence  of  glacier  mo- 
raines in,  55. 

Ascidians,  on  the  structure  of  the,  76. 

Asia  Minor,  on  a  railroad  through,  100. 

Assyrian  inscriptions,  on  the  ethnological 
bearing  of  the  recent  discoveries  in 
connexion  with  the,  85. 

Asteroids,  proposed  theory  of  the  origin 
of  the,  21. 

Astronomy,  21. 

Atmosphere,  on* the  causes  of  the  excess 
of  the  mean  temperature  of  rivers  above 
that  of  the,  30. 

Aurora,  on  the,  26;  observed  at  Hug- 
gate,  31. 

Aurora  borealis,  on  the,  31 ;  observed  at 
St.  Ives,  Hunts,  32. 

Australia,  on  the  expedition  to  the  interior 
of  central,in  searcnof  Dr.Leichardt,  112; 
Should  our  gold  standard  of  value  be 
maintained  if  gold  becomes  depreciated 
in  consequence  of  its  discovery  in  ?,  1 16. 

Bakewell  (F.  C.)  on  telegraphic  commu- 
nication by  land  aud  sea,  121. 

Balfour  (Dr.)  on  the  flora  of  the  south 
and  west  of  Ireland,  64. 

Barium,  on  the  atomic  weight  of,  33. 

Barker  (Dr.  J.  H.)  on  the  part  played  by 
the  cavernous  sinus  in  the  circulation 
of  the  brain,  78. 

Barker  (John),  mechanical  proof  of  the 
composition  of  rotatory  forces,  122. 

Barry  (Dr.  Martin)  on  a  singular  locality 
chosen  for  its  nest  by  the  black  red- 
start, 71. 

Barton  (James)  on  the  permanent  way  of 
railways,  122;  on  the  calculation  of 
strains  in  lattice  girders,  with  practical 
deductions,  123. 

Baryta,  on  the  application  of  bicarbonate 
of,  to  quantitative  analyses,  41. 

Basaltic  rocks,  on  the  microscopic  struc- 
ture of  certain,  aud  the  occurrence  of 
metallic  iron  in  them,  34. 

Bateman  (J.  F.)  on  the  discharge  of 
water  from  actual  experiment,  124. 

Bateson  (Samuel)  on  Glynn  and  Appel's 
.  patent  paper  for  the  prevention  of  pi. 
racy  and  forgery  by  the  anastatic  pro- 
cess, 35. 

Batteries,  on  graphite,  132. 

Beams  or  girders,  on  malleable  iron  for, 
126. 

Bedford  level,  on  the  drainage  of  the 
middle  level  of  the,  125. 


Belfast,  on  the  shells  found  in  the  alluvial 
deposits  of,  43 ;  on  a  species  of  Sepiola, 
procured  in  the  neighbourhood  of,  73; 
on  some  fowl  shot  near,  77 ;  catalogue 
of  the  shells  found  in  the  alluvial  de- 
posits of,  74 ;  on  the  sanitary  state  of, 
with  suggestions  for  its  improvement, 
119;  on  improvements  made  in  the 
harbour  of,  126. 

Belfast  Bay,  on  a  new  species  of  Acaleph 
from,  77. 

Bellis  perennis,  on  a  monstrosity  of,  66. 

Bennett  and  Penrose's  sliding  helico- 
graph,  129. 

BiaUoblotxki  (Dr.)  on  an  ethnological 
collection  in  illustration  of  the  ethno- 
logy of  Java,  82. 

Biquaternions,  on,  2. 

Blood,  on  the  forces  by  which  the  circu- 
lation of  the,  is  carried  on,  80. 

Blumenbach's  classification  of  the  human 
race,  notes  on,  84. 

Boiler,  on  a  new  tubular,  125. 

Bois-Reymond  (Dr.  £.  Du)  on  a  new  ef- 
fect produced  on  muscles  by  the  electric 
current,  78. 

Bollaert  (William)  on  the  sources  of  com- 
mon salt,  41 ;  on  the  distribution  of 
common  salt,  and  other  saline  bodies, 
with  a  view  to  show  their  primary 
origin  and  subsequent  formations,  100. 

Bombay,  on  experiments  in  the  island  of, 
to  determine  the  fall  of  rain  at  different 
heights  below  200  feet,  25 ;  on  the  census 
and  condition  of  the  island  of,  120. 

Botany,  64. 

Boulders,  on  the  conditions  under  which 
they  occur  in  Scotland,  61. 

Brain,  on  the  part  played  by  the  cavernous 
sinus  in  the  circulation  of  the,  78. 

Brazier  (James  S.)  on  Irish  bog-butter,  35. 

Brewster  (Sir  David)  on  a  tree  struck  by 
lightning  in  Clandeboye  Park,  2 ;  on  a 
case  of  vision  without  retina,  3  ;  on  the 
form  of  images  produced  by  lenses  and 
mirrors  of  different  sizes,  to. ;  on  certain 
phenomena  of  diffraction,  24 ;  account 
of  a  remarkable  case  of  mirage,  ib. ; 
observations  on  the  diamond,  41. 

Britain,  on  a  species  of  Sepiola  new 
to,  73. 

Bryce  (Rev.  Dr.),  account  of  a  treatise  on 
arithmetic  in  the  Chinese  language, 
by  the  Rev.  Dr.  MoncriefF,  1. 

Bryce  (James,  jun.)  on  the  geological 
structure  of  the  counties  of  Down  and 
Antrim,  42;  on  the  disposition  of  gra- 
nite blocks  in  Argyllshire,  43. 

Bryozoa,  on  a  peculiar  organ  which  oc- 
cunfon  some  of  the  marine,  75. 


INDEX   II. 


137 


Buist  (Dr.  G.)  on  atmospheric  daily  and 
yearly  fluctuation*  in  India,  &c,  25 ; 
on  four  simultaneous  experiments  in 
the  island  of  Bombay  to  determine  «the 
fall  of  rain  at  different  heights  below 
200  feet,  ib. 

Bullets,  on  the  mould  for  casting  conical, 
132. 

Butter,  on  Irish  bog,  35. 

California,  Should  our  gold  standard  of 
value  be  maintained  if  gold  becomes 
depreciated  in  consequence  of  its  dis- 
covery in?,  116. 

Camera,  on  a  manifold  binocular,  6. 

Canal  through  the  isthmus  of  central 
America,  on  a  ship,  1 10. 

Canino  (the  Prince  of),  zoological  notices, 
72. 

Cantyre,  telegraphic  communication  be- 
tween Great  Britain  and  Ireland  by 
the  mull  of,  128. 

Cape  of  Good  Hope,  on  certain  furrows 
and  smoothings  on  the  surface  of  gra- 
nite, caused  by  drift  sand  at  the,  61. 

Carboniferous  series  of  Ireland,  on  the 
lower  members  of  the,  46. 

Cells,  on  the  development  of  ferment,  in 
the  warm-water  flax  steeps,  64. 

Charters  (Major)  on  the  Alps  in  the  vi- 
cinity of  Mont  Blanc,  43. 

Chemical  combination,  on,  39. 

Chemistry,  33 ;  on  the  application  of  cer- 
tain optical  phsenomena  to,  39. 

Chesney  (Colonel)  on  the  Euphrates  line 
of  communication  with  India,  104. 

Chinese  language,  an  account  of  a  treatise 
on  arithmetic  in  the,  1 . 

Civilisation,  on  the  geographical  distri- 
bution of  animals  in  connexion  with 
the  progress  of  human,  78. 

Clarke  (George)  on  the  evolution  of  gas 
in  Wallsend  Colliery,  124. 

Classes,  on  the  neglected  and  perishing, 
and  the  means  of  their  reformation, 
115. 

Claudet  (A.)  on  the  stereoscoporoeter,  6 ; 
on  a  manifold  binocular  camera,  ib. 

Climates,  on  the  mechanical  process  for 
cooling  air  in  tropical,  128. 

Clyde,  on  the  progress  and  extent  of 
steamboat  building  in  the,  1 20. 

Coasts,  British  and  Irish,  on  the  distribu- 
tion of  the  marine  algae  on  the,  65. 

Cochliodus,  on  the  mode  of  succession  of 
the  teeth  in,  55. 

Cold,  on  the  production  of,  by  mecha- 
nical means,  131. 

Colliery,  on  the  evolution  of  gas  in  Walls- 
end,  124. 


Conductors,  on  the  mutual  attraction  be- 
tween two  electrified  spherical,  1 7. 

Cooper  (James)  on  the  drainage  of  the 
middle  level  of  the  Bedford  level ;  with 
observations  on  arterial  drainage,  125. 

Copiapo,  on  the  mines  of,  53. 

Coprolites,  on,  53. 

Crag  formations,  on,  53. 

Crania,  on  a  collection  of  Irish,  84. 

Crustacea  found  at  Peterhead,  on  some,  78. 

Cull  (Richard)  on  the  misapplication  of 
the  terms  evolution  and  development, 
as  applied  by  ethnographical  philologists 
to  the  inflections  of  a  language,  82 ; 
notes  on  Blumenbach's  classification  of 
the  human  race,  84. 

Cultra,  on  the  Permian  fossils  of,  53. 

Currency  in  Ireland,  on  the  laws  of  the,  115.' 

Cyphomscus,  new  genus,  59. 

Dead  Sea,  an  attempt  to  account  for  nu- 
merous appearances  of  sudden  and 
violent  drainage  seen  on  the  sides  of 
the  basin  of  the,  95 ;  on  a  ship  canal  to 
the  East  Indies,  through  the,  97. 

Deaf  and  dumb  in  Ireland,  statistics  of 
the,  121. 

Delesse  (M.  Achille)  on  the  changes  oc- 
casioned during,  the  cooling  of  the  gra- 
nite of  Mont  Blanc,  43. 

Devonian  rocks  in  the  S.  of  Ireland,  51. 

Diamagnetism,  on  the  laws  of,  6. 

Diamond,  observations  on  the,  41. 

Dickie  (Dr.)  on  the  distribution  of  the 
marine  algae  on  the  British  and  Irish 
coasts,  with  reference  to  the  influence 
of  the  Gulf-stream,  65 ;  on  a  monstro- 
sity of  Bellis  perennis,  ib. ;  on  the  alti- 
tudinal  ranges  of  plants  in  the  north  of 
Ireland,  66;  on  the  distribution  and 
habits  of  Echinus  lividus,  72. 

Diffraction,  on  certain  phsenomena  of,  24. 

Disease,  on  the  connexion  of  atmospheric 
impurity  with,  119. 

Down,  on  the  geological  structure  of  the 
county  of,  42 ;  on  the  fossiliferous  beds 
of,  53. 

Down  and  Antrim,  on  the  origin,  charac- 
teristics and  dialect  of  the  people  in  the 
counties  of,  89. 

Drainage  of  the  middle  level  of  the  Bed- 
ford level,  and  on  arterial  drainage,  125. 

Drawing,  on  an  instrument  for,  32. 

Dublin,  on  the  early  bills  of  mortality 
at,  121. 

Dynamometric  machine  for  measuring 
the  strength  of  textile  fabrics  and  other 
substances,  128. 

Earth,  on  the  connexion  between  geolo- 


138 


INDEX  II. 


gical  theoriesand  the  theory  of  the  figure 
of  the,  21 ;  on  the  position  of  the  poles 
of  the,  61. 

East  Indies,  on  a  ship  canal  to  the, 
through  the  Dead  Sea,  97. 

Echinus  lividus,  on  the  distribution  and 
habits  of,  72. 

Eclipse  of  1851,  solar,  on  the  red  promi- 
nences seen  during  the  total,  13. 

Edgar  (Rev.  John)  on  the  neglected  and 
perishing  classes,  and  the  means  of 
their  reformation,  115. 

Electric  current,  on  a  new  effect  produced 
on  muscles  by  the,  78. 

Electricity,  2. 

Emigration  and  its  reparative  agencies  in 
Ireland,  on  the  excessive,  118. 

Equations,  on  criteria  for  real  and  imagi- 
nary roots  of  biquadratic,  2. 

Eskera  of  the  central  part  of  Ireland,  on 
the,  63. 

Ethnographical  philologists,  on  the  misap- 
plication of  the  terms  evolution  and 
development  as  applied  by,  to  the  in- 
flexions  of  a  language,  82. 

Ethnology,  82 ;  on  an  ethnological  col- 
lection in  illustration  of  the,  of  Java,  to. 

Euphrates  line  of  communication  with 
India,  on  the,  104.  .- 

Fairbairn  (W.)  on  the  minie  rifle,  125; 
on  a  new  tubular  boiler,  #.;  on  the 
tensile  strength  of  un wrought  iron- 
plates  at  various  temperatures,  ib. ;  on 
the  mechanical  properties  of  metals,  as 
derived  from  repeated  meltings,  exhi- 
biting the  maximum  point  of  strength, 
and  the  causes  of  deterioration,  to. 

Fair  Head,  on  the  natural  peculiarities  and 
advantages  of  the  proposed  harbour  of, 
129. 

Faraday  (Dr.),  letter  from  Professor  Mat- 
teucci  on  the  laws  of  magnetism  and 
diamagnetism,  6. 

Fata  Morgana  of  Ireland,  on  the,  29. 

Ferromagnetic  substance,  on  the  equili- 
brium of  elongated  masses  of,  in  uniform 
and  varied  fields  of  force,  18. 

Fishes,  on  the  structure  of  certain  fossil, 
found  in  the  old  red  sandstone  of  the 
north  of  Scotland,  55 ;  on  some,  found 
at  Peterhead,  78. 

Flax,  New  Zealand,  on  a  new  method  of 
scutching  the,  132. 

Flax  steeps,  on  the  development  of  fer- 
ment cells  in  the  warm-water,  64. 

Fleming  (Dr.  Andrew)  on  the  rocks  of 
the  Upper  Punjaub,  43. 

Flora  of  the  south  and  west  of  Ireland, 
on  the,  64. 


Fluids,  whirling,  on  some  properties  of' 
with  their  application  in  improving  the 
action  of  mowing;  fans,  centrifugal 
pumps,  and  certain  kinds  of  turbines, 
130. 

Forbes  (Prof.  E.)  on  the  fossils  of  the 
yellow  sandstone -of  the  South  of  Ire- 
land, 43 ;  on  a  species  of  Sepiola  new 
to  Britain,  and  first  procured  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Belfast,  73 ;  on  a  new 
map  of  the  geological  distribution  of 
marine  life,  and  on  the  homoiosoic 
belts,  t'6. 

Fossil  remains  of  the  lower  Silurians  of 
the  south  of  Scotland,  on  the,  48. 

Fossiliferous  beds,  on  the,  of  Antrim  and 
Down,  53 ;  on  the  lowest,  of  N.  Wales, 
56. 

Fossils,  on  the,  of  the  yellow  sandstone 
of  the  south  of  Ireland,  40;  on  the 
Permian,  of  Cultra,  53 ;  on  a  few  ge- 
nera of  Irish  Silurian,  59. 

Fowler  (Dr.)  on  the  state  of  the  mind 
during  sleep,  80. 

Galton  (F. ),  expedition  under,  to  the  east 

of  Walfisch  Bay,  110. 
Galvanic  battery,  on  the  sources  of  heat 

generated  by  the,  16. 
Garrett  (Robert)  on  improvements  made 

in  the  harbour  of  Belfast,  126. 
Gartland  (W.)  on  criteria  for  real  and 

imaginary  roots  of  biquadratic  aqua* 

tions,  2. 
Gas,  on  the  evolution  of,  in  Wallsend  col" 

liery,  124. 
Gason  (Dr.  J.),  climatological  notes  on 

Pisa  and  Lucca,  1 10. 
Geography,  95;  physical,  41. 
Geological  formations,  on  the  supposed 

action  of  water  in,  61.- 
Geological  structure  of  the  counties  of 

Down  and  Antrim,  42. 
Geologists,  German,  on  the  researches  of, 

51. 
Geology,  41 ;  of  Ireland,  47. 
Gilbert  (J.  W.)  on  the  laws  of  the  cur- 
rency in  Ireland,  115. 
Giles  (John  V.),  description  of  a  Samoied 

family  seen  at  Archangel,  in  a  letter  to 

Dr.  Hodgkin,  84. 
Girders,  on  the  calculation  of  strains  in 

lattice,  with  practical  deductions,  123. 
Gisborne  and  Forde  (Messrs,)  on  a  ship 

canal  through  the  isthmus  of  central 

America,  110. 
Glacier  moraines  in  Arrau,  on  the  occur- 
rence of,  55. 
Gladstone  (Thoj.  Murray)  on  malleable 

iron  for  beams  or  girders,  126. 


1NDBX  II. 


1S9 


Godwin  (John)  on  an  improved  east-iron 
sleeper  for  railways,  127. 

Gold,  Should  our  standard  of  value  be 
maintained  if  gold  becomes  depreciated 
in  consequence  of  its  discovery  in  Au- 
stralia and  California  ?,  116. 

Graham  (Prof.  T.)  on  the  principle  of  the 
endosmose  of  liquids,  36. 

Grainger  (John)  on  the  shells  found  in 
the  alluvial  deposits  of  Belfast,  43; 
catalogue  of  the  shells  found  in  the 
alluvial  deposits  of  Belfast,  74. 

Granite  blocks,  on  the  disposition  of,  in 
Argyllshire,  43 ;  on  the  changes  occa- 
sioned during  the  cooling  of  the,  of 
Mont  Blanc,  ib.;  on  some  peculiarities 
of,  in  certain  points  of  the  Pyrenees, 
62 ;  on  certain  furrows  and  smoothing* 
on  the  surface  of,  caused  by  drill  sand 
at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  61. 

Graphite  batteries,  on,  132. 

Graphite,  on  the  occurrence  of,  at  Almor- 
ness  Head,  50. 

Grattan  (John),  notes  upon  a  collection  of 
Irish  crania,  84. 

Greensand  of  the  N.  of  Ireland,  on  the 
phosphatic  nodules  of  the,  36. 

Griffith  (Richard)  on  the  lower  members 
of  the  carboniferous  series  of  Ireland, 
46 ;  on  the  geology  of  Ireland,  47. 

Hamilton  (Sir  W.  R.)  on  biquaternions,  2, 

Hamilton  (Dr.  Mathie)  on  the  Lobos 
Islands,  75. 

Hancock  (Professor),  Should  our  gold 
standard  of  value  be  maintained  if  gold 
becomes  depreciated  in  consequence  of 
its  discovery  in  Australia  and  Cali- 
fornia?, 116;  are  there  any  impedi- 
ments to  the  competition  of  free  labour 
with  slave  labour  in  the  West  Indies  ?, 
117. 

Harbours,  design  for  safety,  129. 

Harkness  (Robert)  on  the  fossil  remains 
of  the  lower  Silurians  of  the  south  of 
Scotland,  and  their  position,  48;  on 
the  occurrence  of  graphite  at  Almor- 
ness  Head,  Kirkcudbrightshire,  50. 

Heat,  2;  on  the  sources  of,  by  the  gal- 
vanic battery,  16 ;  on  the  amount  of, 
produced  by  the  combination  of  seve- 
ral metals  with  oxygen,  39. 

Helicograph,  on  Penrose  and  Bennett's 
sliding,  J  29. 

Hennessy  (Henry)  on  the  connexion  be. 
tween geological  theories  and  the  theory 
of  the  figure  of  the  earth,  21 ;  on  the 
researches  of  German  geologists,  51. 

Henry  (Prof.),  letter  from,  to  Colonel  Sa- 
bine, on  the  plan  adopted  by  the  Smith- 


sonian Institution  for  investigating  the 
meteorology  of  N.  America,  26. 

Hey  wood  (James),  statistics  of  the  reve- 
nues of  the  University  and  some  of  the 
Colleges  of  Oxford,  compiled  from  the 
report  of  the  Oxford  University  com- 
mission, 118. 

Himalaya  Mountains,  on  the  geology  of 
a  portion  of  the,  62. 

Hincks  (Rev.  Edward)  ou  the  ethnologi- 
cal bearing  of  the  recent  discoveries  in 
connexion  with  the  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tions, 85 ;  on  the  forms  of  the  personal 
pronouns  of  the  two  first  persons  in  the 
Indian,  European,  8yro-Arabic  and 
Egyptian  languages,  88;  on  certain 
ancient  mines,  110. 

Hincks  (Rev.  Prof.)  on  an  anomaly  of* 
the  Trifolium  repens,  66. 

Hincks  (Rev.  Thomas)  on  a  peculiar  or- 
gan which  occurs  on  some  of  the  marine 
Bryozoa,  and  which  appears  to  indicate 
a  difference  of  sex,  75. 

Hodges  (Prof.  J.  F,)  on  the  phosphatic 
nodules  of  the  greensand  of  the  N.  of 
Ireland,  36. 

Hodgkin  (Dr.),  description  of  a  Samoied 
family  seen  at  Archangel,  in  a  letter 
to,  84. 

Holden  (Mr.)  on  the  progress  of  the  sewed 
muslin  manufacture  in  Ireland,  118. 

Homoiozoic  belts,  on  the,  73. 

Homologies  of  the  cranial  vertebra?,  on 
the,  78. 

Hooper  (Lieut.  W.  H.  H.)  on  the  aurora, 
26. 

Hymenocaris,  new  genua,  58. 

Hyndman  (George  C,)  on  a  new  species 
of  Acaleph  from  Belfast  Bay,  77. 

Huggate,  meteorological  summary  at,  for 
1851, 31 ;  on  an  aurora  observed  at,  so. 

Human  race,  notes  on  Blumenbach  s 
classification  of  the,  84. 

Hume  (Rev.  A.),  the  origin,  characteris- 
tics and  dialect  of  the  people  in  the 
counties  of  Down  and  Antrim,  89. 

Hurricanes,  on  tropical,  31. 

Huxley  (T.  H.)  on  the  structure  oY  the 
Ascidians,  76. 

Images,  on  the  form  of,  produced  by  lenses 
and  mirrors  of  different  sizes,  3. 

Impurity,  on  the  connection  of  atmosphe- 
ric, with  disease,  119. 

India,  on  the  Euphrates  line  of  commu- 
nication with,  104;  on  the  most  rapid 
communication  with,  rid  British  N. 
America,  114. 

Industry  of  Paris,  on  the  productive,  119. 

Iodine,  on  the  estimation  of,  37.  . 


140 


INDBX   II. 


Ireland,  notes  on  the  meteorology  of,  26 ; 
on  the  Fata  Morgana  of,  29 ;  on  the 
phosphatic  nodules  of  the  greensand  of 
the  north  of,  36;  on  the  fossils  of  the 
yellow  sandstone  of  the  south  of,  43 ; 
on  the  lower  members  of  the  carboni- 
ferous series  of,  46 ;  on  the  geology  of, 
47 ;  on  Devonian  rocks  in  the  south  of, 
51 ;  on  the  Eskers  of  the  central  part  of, 
63 ;  on  the  flora  of  the  south  and  west 
of,  64;  on  the  altitudinal  ranges  of 
plants  in  the  north  of,  66 ;  on  the  laws 
of  the  currency  in,  1 15 ;  on  the  exces- 
sive emigration  and  its  reparative 
agencies  in,  118;  on  the  progress  of 
the  sewed  muslin  manufacture  in,  ib. ; 
statistics  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  in,  121. 
*  Irish  bog  butter,  on,  35. 

Irish  crania,  notes  upon  a  collection  of,  84. 

Irish  Silurian  fossils,  on  a  few  genera  of, 
59. 

Iron,  on  the  occurrence  of  metallic,  in 
certain  basaltic  and  metamorphic  rocks, 
34 ;  malleable,  for  beams  or  girders, 
126. 

Iron  ore,  on  a  new  variety  of  magnetic, 
41. 

Iron  plates,  on  the  tensile  strength  of  un- 
wrought,  at  various  temperatures,  125. 

Iron  ships,  on  placing  compasses  on  board, 
10. 

Iron  sleeper  for  railways,  on  an  improved 
cast,  127. 

Java,  on  an  ethnological  collection  in 
illustration  of  the  ethnology  of,  82. 

Jet,  on  an  apparatus  for  drawing  up  water 
by  the  power  of  o,  130. 

Johnson  (Capt.  £.  J.)  on  placing  com- 
passes on  board  of  iron  ships,  6. 

Jones  (Prof.  T.  Wharton)  on  the  forces 
by  which  the  circulation  of  the  blood  is 
carried  on,  80. 

Joule  (J.  P.)  on  the  thermal  effects  of  air 
rushing  through  small  apertures,  16. 

Jukes  (J.  Beete)  on  Devonian  rocks  in 
the.  S.  of  Ireland,  51. 

Kelp  and  kelp  liquor,  38. 

King  (Prof.W.)  on  the  Permian  fossils  of 

Cultra,  53. 
Knox  (Mr.)  on  the  effect  of  the  moon's 

rays,  36. 
Koh-i-noor  diamond,  on  the,  39. 

Labour,  free  and  slave,  are  there  any  im- 
pediments to  the  competition  of,  in  the 
West  Indies?,  117. 

Land  and  sea,  on  telegraphic  communi- 
cations by,  121. 


Larva,  on  a  peculiar  annelidan,  70. 

Law,  on  the  new  patent,  132. 

Leaves,  morphological  analogy  between 
the  disposition  of  the  branches  of  exo- 
genous plants  and  the  venation  of  their, 
66. 

Leichardt  (Dr.),  on  the  expedition  to  the 
interior  of  central  Australia  in  search 
of,  112. 

Lenses  of  different  sixes,  on  the  form  of 
images  produced  by,  3. 

Leptsena,  on  the  subdivisions  of,  55. 

Light,  2 ;  on  an  instrument  for  exhib 
the  colours  of  liquids  by  tn 
20 ;  on  the  discovery  of  minute  quan- 
tities of  soda,  by  the  action  of  polarized, 
33. 

Lightning,  notice  of  a  tree  struck  by,  in 
Clandeboye  Park,  2. 

Liquids,  on  an  instrument  for  exhibiting 
the  colours  of,  by  transmitted  light,  20 ; 
on  the  principle  of  the  endosmose  of,  36. 

Lituites  hibermcus,  new  species,  61. 

Livingston  and  Oswell  (Messrs.),  latest 
explorations  in  S.  Africa  to  the  N.  of 
lakeN'gami,  112. 

Lloyd  (Colonel)  on  the  mines  of  Copiapo, 
53. 

Lloyd  (Rev.  H.),  notes  on  the  meteoro- 
logy of  Ireland,  26. 

Lobos  islands,  on  the,  75. 

Locke  (John),  excessive  emigration  and 
its  reparative  agencies  in  Ireland,  118. 

Long  (Mr.)  on  crag  formations  and  co- 
prolites,  53. 

Lucca,  climatological  notes  on,  110. 

Luminous  beams,  on,  11. 

MacAdam  (James)  on  the  fossiliferous 
beds  of  the  counties  of  Antrim  and 
Down,  53. 

Macdonnell  (A.)  on  the  atomic  weight  of 
magnesium,  36. 

MacDouall  (Pro£)  on  the  present  state  of 
Medo-Persic  philology,  90. 

Macleod  (Lieut.  L.)  on  the  proposed  ex- 
pedition to  ascend  the  Niger  to  its 
source,  112. 

Magnecrystallic  action,  on  Poisson's  theo- 
retic anticipation  of,  20. 

Magnesium,  on  the  atomic  weight  of,  36. 

Magnetic  curves,  on  certain,  18. 

Magnetism,  2 ;  on  the  laws  of,  6. 

Malcolm  (Dr.  A.  6.)  on  the  sanitary  state 
of  Belfast,  with  suggestions  for  its  im- 
provement, 119. 

Marine  life,  on  a  new  map  of  the  geolo- 
gical distribution  of,  73. 

Marshall  (Dr.  J.  D.)  on  some  fowl  shot 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Belfast,  77. 


INDEX  II. 


141 


Mastodon  angustidens,  on  a  skeleton  of, 
found  near  Montopoli,  62. 

Mathematics,  1. 

Mattencci  (Prof.)  on  the  laws  of  magnet- 
ism and  diamagnetitm,  in  a  letter  to 
Dr.  Faraday,  6. 

M'Cormac  (Dr.  Henry)  on  the  connexion 
of  atmospheric  impurity  with  disease, 
119. 

M'Cosb  (Rev.  Prof.),  morphological  ana- 
logy between  the  disposition  of  the 
branches  of  exogenous  plants  and  the 
venation  of  their  leaves,  66. 

M'Coy  (Prof.)  on  the  mode  of  succession 
of  the  teeth  in  Cochliodus,  55 ;  on  the 
subdivisions  of  Leptsena,  to.;  on  the 
structure  of  certain  fossil  fishes  found 
in  the  old  red  sandstone  of  the  N.  of 
Scotland,  to. 

M'Culloch  (D.)  on  the  statistics  of  the 
provinco  of  Nova  Scotia,  119. 

M'Farland  (Mr.)  on  the  Fata  Morgana  of 
Ireland,  29. 

Mechanical  science,  121. 

Medo- Persic  philology,  on  the  present 
state  of,  90. 

Metals,  on  the  amount  of  heat  produced 
by  the  combination  of  several,  with 
oxygen,  39,  40;  on  the  mechanical 
properties  of,  as  derived  from  repeated 
meltings,  125. 

Metamorpbic  rocks,  on  the  microscopic 
structure  of  certain,  and  the  occurrence 
of  metallic  iron  in  them,  34. 

Meteorological  summary  for  1851,  at 
Huggate,  31. 

Meteorology,  24 ;  of  Ireland,  26 ;  on  the 
plan  adopted  by  the  Smithsonian  In- 
stitution for  investigating  the,  of  N. 
America,  to. 

Meteors,  21. 

Microscopic  structure  of  certain  basaltic 
and  metamorpbic  rocks,  on  the,  34. 

Mind,  on  the  state  of  the,  during  sleep, 
80. 

Mineral  field  of  Fair  Head,  on  the  natural 
peculiarities  and  advantages  of  the, 
129. 

Mines,  on  the,  of  Copiapo,  53 ;  on  certain 
ancient,  110. 

Minie  rifle,  remarks  on  the,  125. 

Mirage,  on  a  remarkable  case  of,  24. 

Mirrors  of  different  sizes,  on  the  form  of 
images  produced  by,  3. 

Molecular  action,  on,  20. 

Mollusca  found  at  Peterhead,  78, 

Moncrieff  (Rev.  Dr.),  an  account  of  his 
treatise  on  arithmetic  in  the  Chinese 
language,  1. 

Mont  Blanc,  on  the  Alps  in  the  vicinity 


of,  43;   on   the  changes  occasioned 

during  the  cooling  of  the  granite  of,  ib, 
Montopoli,  on  a  skeleton  of  Mastodon  an- 

gustidens  found  near,  62. 
Moon's  rays,  on  the  effect  of  the,  36. 
Mortality  at  Dublin,  on  the  early  bills  of, 

121. 
Munro  (Major)  on  the  transmutation  of 

jEgilops  into  Triticum,  68. 
Muscat,  on  the  possessions  of  the  Imaum 

of,  113. 
Muscles,  on  a  new  effect  produced  on,  by 

the  electric  current,  78. 
Muslin  manufacture  in  Ireland,  on  the 

progress  of  the  sewed,  1 1 8. 

Nasmyth  (James),  proposed  theory  of  the 
origin  of  the  asteroids,  21. 

Nebulae,  on  drawings  to  illustrate  recent 
observations  on,  22. 

New  Zealand  flax,  on  a  new  method  of 
scutching  the,  132. 

N 'garni,  latest  explorations  in  S.  Africa 
to  the  north  of  take,  112. 

Nicol  (Prof.)  on  the  occurrence  of  glacier 
moraines  in  Arran,  55 ;  on  the  struc- 
ture of  the  South  Silurian  mountains  of 
Scotland,  ib. 

Niger,  on  the  proposed  expedition  to  as- 
cend the,  to  its  source,  112. 

Nile,  on  the  Upper,  114. 

Nova  Scotia,  on  the  statistics  of  the  pro- 
vince of,  119. 

Ogilby  (William)  on  the  geographical  di- 
stribution of  animals  in  connection  with 
the  progress  of  human  civilization,  78. 

Old  red  sandstone  of  the  N.  of  Scotland, 
on  the  structure  of  certain  fossil  fishes 
found  in  the,  55. 

Optical  properties  of  a  recently  discovered 
salt  of  quinine,  15. 

Owen  (Prof.)  on  the  homologies  of  the 
cranial  vertebra?,  78. 

Oxford,  statistics  of  the  revenues  of  the 
university  and  some  of  the  colleges  of. 
118. 

Oxygen,  on  the  amount  of  heat  produced 
by  the  combination  of  several  metals 
with,  39,  40. 

Palestine,  late  explorations  in,  1 14. 
Paris,  on  the  productive  industry  of,  119. 
Paupers,  on  tne  present  state  of  the  law 

of  settlement  and  the  removal  of,  in 

Scotland,  114. 
Peach  (C.  W.)  on  some  fishes,  Crustacea 

and  mollusca  found  at  Peterhead,  78. 
Penny  (Prof.  F.)  on  the  estimation  of 

iodine,  37. 


142 


INDBX  II. 


Penrose  and  Bennett's  sliding  helico- 
graph,  129. 

Permian  fossils  of  Cultra,  53. 

Perreaux  (M.)  on  a  dynamometric  ma- 
chine for  measuring  the  strength  of 
textile  fabrics  and  other  substances, 
128. 

Peterhead,  on  some  fishes,  Crustacea  and 
mollusca  found  at,  78. 

Petermann  (A.)  on  the  distribution  of 
animal  life  in  the  arctic  regions,  112. 

Philology,  on  the  present  state  of  Medo- 
Persic,  90. 

Physics,  J. 

Physiology,  78. 

Pigolite  of  Prof.  Johnston,  on  the  analysis 
of  a  substance  resembling  the,  35. 

Pisa,  climatological  notes  on,  110. 

Plants,  morphological  analogy  between 
the  disposition  of  the  branches  of  exo- 
genous, and  the  venation  of  their  leaves, 
66 ;  cm  the  altitudinal  ranges  of,  in  the 
N.  of  Ireland,  to. 

Platinum,  on  the  atomic  weight  of,  33. 

Poissou'B  theoretic  anticipation  of  magne- 
crystallic  action,  20. 

Polypes,  on  the  universality  of  a  medu- 
soid  structure  in  the  reproductive  gem- 
ma of  the  tubularian  and  rertularian, 
70 ;  on  the  signification  of  the  ovigerous 
vesicles  in  the  hydroid,  71 . 

Porter  (the  late  G.  R.)  on  the  productive 
industry  of  Paris,  119. 

Portsea,  statistics  of  the  island  of,  118. 

Potassium,  iodide  of,  37. 

Powell  (Prof.)  on  luminous  beams,  11 ; 

.  on  a  peculiarity  of  vision,  ib. ;  on  con- 
verging sunbeams,  12. 

Pronouns,  on  the  forms  of  the  personal, 
of  the  two  first  persons,  in  the  Indian, 
European,  Syro- Arabic  and  Egyptian 
languages,  88.     . 

Pterotheca,  new  genus  of,  61. 

Pumps,  on  some  properties  of  whirling 
fluids,  with  their  application  in  impro* 
ving  the  action  of  centrifugal,  130;  for 
drawing  up  water  by  the  power  of  a 
jet,  130. 

Punjaub,  on  the  rocks  of  the  Upper,  43. 

Pyrenees,  on  some  peculiarities  of  granite 
in  certain  points  of  the,  62. 

Quinine,  on  the  optical  properties  of  a  re* 
cently  discovered  salt  of,  15. 

Railways,  on  the  permanent  way  of,  122 ; 

ou  an  improved  cast-iron  sleeper  for, 

127. 
Rain,  on  four  simultaneous  experiments 

in  the  island  of  Bombay,  to  determine 


the  fell  of,  at  different  heights  below 
200  feet,  25 ;  monthly  amount  off  from 
the  register,  Armagh  Observatory,  29. 

Rankin  (Rev.  T.)  on  an  aurora  observed 
at  Huggate,  31 ;  meteorological  sum- 
mary for  1851,  at  Huggate,  16. 

Rankine  ( W.  J.  Macquorn)  on  the  recon- 
centration  of  the  mechanical  energy  of 
the  universe,  12 ;  on  the  causes  of  the 
excess  of  the  mean  temperature  of  ri- 
vers above  that  of  the  atmosphere,  re- 
cently observed  by  M.  Renou,  30 ;  on 
telegraphic  communication  between 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland  by  the  Mull 
of  Can  tyre,  128;  on  the  mechanical 
process  for  cooling  sir  in  tropical  cli- 
mates proposed  by  Prof  C.  P.  Smyth, 
ib. 

Reaping  machine,  -model  of  a  new,  129. 

Red-start,  black,  on  a  singular  locality 
chosen  for  its  nest  by  the,  71. 

Reflecting  instrument  for  use  at  sea,  on 
an  improved  form  of,  12. 

Renou  (M.)  on  the  causes  of  the  excess 
of  the  mean  temperature  of  rivers  ojiove 
that  of  the  atmosphere,  as  recently  ob- 
served by,  30. 

Retina,  on  a  case  of  vision  without,  3. 

Rivers,  on  the  causes  of  the  exoeas  of  the 
mean  temperature  of,  above  that  of  the 
atmosphere,  30. 

Robinson  (Rev.  Dr.)  on  drawings  to  illus- 
trate recent  observations  on  nebula?, 
22. 

Robinson  (R.)*  model  of  a  new  reaping 
machine,  129. 

Rocks,  on  the  microscopic  structure  of 
certain  basaltic  and  roetamorphic,  and 
the  occurrence  of  iron  in  them,  34. 

Ronalds  (Prof.  £.)  on  the  oil  of  the  sun- 
fish,  39. 

Rose  (C.  B.)  an  the  discovery  of  a  new 
Talpina?,  55. 

Ross  (Rear-Admiral  Sir  John)  on  the  au- 
rora borealis,  31. 

Rosse  (The  Earl  of),  drawings  to  illustrate 
recent  observations  on  nebula?,  22. 

Rotatory  forces,  mechanical  proof  of  the 
composition  of,  122. 

Royle  (Dr.)  on  the  black  and  green  teas 
of  commerce,  69. 

Ruad,  on  the  antiquities  of  the  island,  98. 

Sabine  (Colonel),  letter  from  Prof.  Henry 
on  the  plan  adopted  for  investigating 
the  meteorology  of  North  America, 
26. 

Salt,  on  the  sources  of  common,  41 ;  on  the 
distribution  of  common,  and  other  sa- 
line bodies,  with  a  view  to  show  their 


1NDBX  II. 


143 


primary  origin  and  subsequent  forma- 
tion, 100. 

Salter  (J.  W.)  on  the  lowest  fosailiferous 
beds  of  N.  Wales,  50  $  on  a  few  genera 
of  Irish  Silurian  fossils,  69. 

Samoied  family,  description  of  a,  seen  at 
Archangel,  84. 

Sandstone,  yellow,  on  the  fossils  of  the,  of 
the  S.  of  Ireland,  43. 

Saul!  (W.  D.)  on  the  supposed  action  of 
water  in  geological  formations,  and  the 
position  of  the  poles  of  the  earth,  01. 

Sauuders  (Captain  J.),  design  for  safety 
harbours,  129. 

Scotland,  on  the  fossil  remains  of  the  lower 
Silurians  of  the  south  of,  48 ;  on  the 
structure  of  certain  fossil  fishes  found 
in  the  old  red  sandstone  of  the  north 
of,  55 ;  on  the  structure  of  the  South 
Silurian  mountains  of,  ib. ;  on  the  condi- 
tions under  which  boulders  occur  in, 
01 ;  on  the  present  state  of  the  law  of 
settlement  and  the  removal  of  paupers 
in,  114. 

Sea,  on  an  improved  form  of  reflecting 
instrument  for  use  at,  12;  on  telegra- 
phic communications  by  land  and,  1 21 . 

Seleucia  in  Pieria,  on  the  ancient  harbour 
of,  98. 

Sepiola,  on  a  species  of,  new  to  Britain, 
and  first  procured  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Belfast,  73. 

8ertulaTian  soophytes,  on  the  character  of 
the,  78. 

Shaw  (Dr.),  commercial  document*  re- 
lating to  the  eastern  horn  of  Africa, 
113. 

Shells  fbund  in  the  alluvial  deposits  of 
Belfast,  on  the,  43 ;  catalogue  of  the, 
found  in  the  alluvial  deposits  of  Bel- 
fast, 74. 

Ship  canal  to  the  Bast  Indies  through  the 
Dead  Sea,  on  a,  97. 

8hlps,  on  placing  compasses  on  board  iron, 
10. 

Silurian  fossils,  on  a  few  genera  of  Irish, 
59. 

Silurian  mountains  of  Scotland,  on  the 
structure  of  the  south,  55. 

Sleep,  on  the  state  of  the  mind  during, 
80. 

Smith  (James)  on  the  conditions  under 
which  boulders  occur  in  Scotland,  01. 

Smith  (W.  H.)  on  the  natural  peculiarities 
and  advantages  of  the  mineral  field  and 
the  proposed  harbour  of  Fair  Head,  129. 

Smyth  (Prof.  C.  Piaui)  on  an  improved 
form  of  reflecting  instrument  for  use  at 
sea,  1 2 ;  on  the  red  prominences  seen  du- 
ring the  total  solar  eclipse  of  1851, 13 ; 


remarks  proposed  by,  on  the  mechanical 
process  for  cooling  air  in  tropical  cli- 
mates, 128;  on  Penrose  and  Bennett's 
sliding  helicopraph,  129. 

Soda,  on  the  discovery  of  minute  quan- 
tities of,  by  the  action  of  polarised  light, 
33. 

Solar  eclipse  of  1851,  on  the  red  promi- 
nences seen  during  the  total,  13. 

Spain,  on  the  geological  structure  of, 
02. 

Stanger  (Dr.  W.)  on  certain  furrows  and 
smoothings  in  the  surface  of  granite, 
caused  by  drift  sand,  at  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope,  01. 

Statistics,  114. 

Steam-boat  building  in  the  Clyde,  on  the 
progress  and  extent  of,  120. 

Stereoscopometer,  on  the,  0. 

St.  Ives,  on  the  geology  of,  03. 

Stokes  (Prof.)  on  the  optical  properties  of 
a  recently  discovered  salt  of  quinine, 
15 ;  on  the  application  of  certain  opti- 
cal phenomena  to  chemistry,  39. 

Strachey  (Capt.)  on  the  formula  for  the 
wet-bulb  thermometer,  31. 

Strang  (John)  on  the  progress  and  extent 
of  steam-boat  building  in  the  Clyde, 
120. 

Stygina,  new  genus  of,  59. 

Sunbeams,  on  converging,  12. 

Sun-fish,  on  the  oil  of  the,  39. 

Sykes  (Lieut. -Col.)  on  the  possessions  of 
the  Imaum  of  Muscat,  and  on  the  cli- 
mate of  Zanzibar,  with  observations  on 
the  prospects  of  African  discovery,  113; 
on  the  census  and  condition  of  the  island 
of  Bombay,  120. 

8ylviafTithys,  on  a  singular  locality  chosen 
for  its  nest  by  the,  71. 

Synge  (Capt.)  on  the  most  rapid  commu- 
nication with  India,  vial  British  N.Ame- 
rica, 114. 

Syria,  late  explorations  in,  1 14. 

Talpina?,  on  the  discovery  of  a  new,  55. 

Taylor  (Dr.  J.)  on  tropical  hurricanes, 
31. 

Teas  of  commerce,  on  the  black  and  green, 
09. 

Telegraphic  communications,  by  land  and 
sea,  on,  121 ;  between  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  by  the  Mull  of  Cantyre, 
128. 

Telegraphic  time  signals,  on,  131. 

Tennant  (Prof.)  on  the  Koh-i-noor  dia- 
mond, 39. 

Textile  fabrics  and  other  substances,  on  a 
dynamometric  machine  for  measuring, 
128. 


144 


INDEX  II. 


Thermometer,  on  the  formula  for  the  wet- 
bulb,  31. 

Thompson  (James)  on  a  jet-pomp,  or  ap- 
paratus for  drawing  up  water  by  the 
power  of  a  jet,  130 ;  on  some  properties 
of  whirling  fluids,  with  their  applica- 
tion in  improving  the  action  of  blowing 
fans,  centrifugal  pumps  and  certain 
kinds  of  turbines,  130. 

Thomson  (Prof.  W.)  on  the  thermal  effects 
of  air  rushing  through  small  apertures, 
16 ;  on  the  sources  of  heat  generated 
by  the  galvanic  battery,  so;  on  the 
mutual  attraction  between  two  electri- 
fied spherical  conductors,  17 ;  on  cer- 
tain magnetic  curves;   with  applica- 

-  tions  to  problems  in  the  theories  of 
heat,  electricity  and  fluid  motion,  18; 
on  the  equilibrium  of  elongated  masses 
of  ferromagnetic  substance  in  uniform 
and  varied  fields  of  force,  ib. 

Thomson  (W.  T.  C.)  on  the  character  of 
the  sertularian  zoophytes,  78. 

Townsend  (R.  W.)  on  an  instrument  for 
exhibiting  the  colours  of  liquid  by  trans- 
mitted light,  20. 

Trifolium  repens,  on  an  anomaly  of  the, 
66. 

Triticum,  on  the  transmutation  of  jEgilops 
into,  68. 

Turbines,  on  some  properties  of  whirling 
fluids,  with  their  application  in  im- 
proving the  action  of,  130. 

Twining  (Henry)  on  an  instrument  for 
drawing,  32 ;  on  some  peculiarities  of 
granite  in  certain  points  of  the  Pyre- 
nees, 62. 

Tyndall  (John)  on  molecular  action,  20 ; 
on  Poisson's  theoretic  anticipation  of 
magnecrystallic  action,  ib. 

Universe,  on  the  re-concentration  of  the 
mechanical  energy  of  the,  12. 

Vallini  (Dr.)  on  a  skeleton  of  Mastodon 
angustidens  found  near  Montopoli,  62. 

Van  de  Velde  (Chevalier),  late  explora- 
tions in  Syria  and  Palestine,  1 14. 

Vandey  (Consul)  on  the  Upper  Nile,  114. 

Vapours,  on  the  gradient  of  density  in 
saturated,  2. 

Verneuil  (M.  De)  on  the  geological  struc- 
ture of  Spain,  62. 

Vertebra?,  on  the  homologies  of  the  cra- 
nial, 78. 

Vicary  (Major)  on  the  geology  of  a  por- 
tion of  the  Himalaya  mountains,  62. 

Vision,  on  a  case  of,  without  retina,  3 ; 
on  a  peculiarity  of,  11. 


Wales,  North,  on  the  lowest  fosriliferous 
beds  of,  56. 

Walfisch  Bay,  expedition  under  Mr.  F. 
Gal  ton  to  the  east  of,  1 10. 

Walker  (Charles  V.)  on  telegraphic  time 
signals,  131 ;  on  graphite  batteries, 
132. 

Wallsend  colliery,  on  the  evolution  of  gas 
in,  124. 

Ward  (W.  S.)  on  the  production  of  cold 
by  mechanical  means,  131. 

Water,  on  the  supposed  action  of,  in  geo- 
logical formations,  61  ;  on  a  micro- 
scopic alga,  as  a  cause  of  the  phseno- 
menon  of  the  coloration  of  large  masses 
of,  64 ;  on  the  discharge  of,  from  actual 
experiment,  124. 

Waterston  (J.  J.)  on  the  gradient  of  den- 
sity in  saturated  vapours,  and  its  deve- 
lopment as  a  physical  relation  between 
bodies  of  definite  chemical  constitu- 
tion, 2. 

Watts  (J.  K.),  aurora  borealis  observed  at 
St.  Ives,  Huntingdonshire,  32;  on  the 
geology  of  St.  Ives,  and  its  neighbour- 
hood, 63. 

Waves,  21. 

Webster  (Thomas)  on  the  new  patent 
law,  132. 

West  Indies?,  are  there  any  impediments 
to  the  competition  of  free  labour  with 
slave  labour  in  the,  117. 

Wet-bulb  thermometer,  on  the  formula  for 
the,  31. 

Whytlaw  (Matthew)  on  a  new  method  of 
scutching  the  New  Zealand  flax,  132. 

Wilde  (W.  A.),  statistics  of  the  deaf  and 
dumb  in  Ireland,  121 ;  on  the  early 
bills  of  mortality  at  Dublin,  121. 

Woodhouse  (Alfred  J.)  on  the  mould  for 
casting  conical  bullets,  132. 

Woods  (Dr.  T.)  on  chemical  combina- 
tion ;  and  the  amount  of  heat  produced 
by  the  combination  of  several  metals 
with  oxygen,  39;  on  the  combination 
of  metals  with  oxygen,  40. 

Young  (R.)  on  the  Eskers  of  the  central 
part  of  Ireland,  63. 

Zanzibar,  on  a  recent  journey  across 
Africa  from,  to  Angola,  110;  on  the 
climate  of,  113. 

Zoological  notices  by  the  Prince  of  Ca- 
nino,  72. 

Zoology,  70. 

Zoophytes,  on  the  character  of  the  sertu- 
larian, 78. 


List  of  those  Members  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement 
of  Science  to  whom  Copies  of  this  Volume  [for  1852]  are  supplied 
gratuitously,  in  conformity  with  the  Regulations  adopted  by  the 
General  Committee.  [See  pp.  xiii.  &  adv.] 


HOWOBART  MEMBER. 

HIS  ROYAL  HIGHNESS,  PRINCE  ALBERT  OF  SAXE-COBURG  AND  GOTHA. 


Adair,  Robert  Alexander  Shafto,  7  Audley 
Square,  London. 

Adam,  Walter,  M.D.,  39  George  Square, 
Edinburgh. 

Adams,  John  Couch,  M.  A.,  Pres.  R.A.S., 
F.R.S.,  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge. 

Ainsworth,Thomas,The  Flosh,Egremont, 
Cumberland. 

Aldam,  William,  jun.,  Warmsworth  near 
Doncaster. 

Alexander,  William  Maxwell,  Southbarr, 
Paisley. 

Allecock,  Samuel,  Rushulme  Place,  near 
Manchester. 

Allen,  William  J.  C,  Secretary  to  the 
Royal  Belfast  Academical  Institution ; 
8  Wellington  Place,  Belfast. 

Allis,  Thomas,  Osbaldwick,  York. 

Ambler,  Henry,  Watkinson  Hall,  Oven- 
den  near  Halifax. 

Amery,  John,  F.S.  A.,  Park  House,  Stour- 
bridge. 

Andrews,  Thos.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  M.R.I.  A., 
Vice-President  of,  and  Professor  of  Che- 
mistry in,  Queen's  College,  Belfast. 

Ansted,  David  Thomas,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
17  Manchester  Street,  Manchester 
8quare,  London  • 

Appold,  John  George,  F.R.S.,  23  Wilson 
Street,  Finsbury  Square,  London. 

Armistead  John,  Springfield  Mount  near 
Leeds. 

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Street,  Manchester  Square.  London. 

Babington,  Charles  Cardale,  M.  A.,  F.R.S., 
{Local  Treasurer),  St.  John's  College, 
Cambridge. 

Backhouse,  John  Church,  Blackwell,  Dar- 
lington. 


Baddelev,  Cant.  Fred.  H.,  R.E.,  Ceylon. 

Bain,  Richard,  Gwennap  near  Truro. 

Bainbridge,  Robert  Walton,  Middleton 
House  near  Barnard  Castle,  Durham. 

Baker,  William,  Edgbaston,  Birmingham. 

Baldwin,  the  Hon.  Robert,  H.  M.  Attor- 
ney-General, Spadina,  Co.  York,  Upper 
Canada. 

Balfour,  John  Hutton,  M.D.,  Professor  of 
Botany  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh, 
F.R.S.E.,  F.L.S. ;  Edinburgh. 

Ball,  John,M.R.I.A.,  85  Stephen's  Green. 
Dublin. 

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moreland. 

Barbour,  Robert,  Portland  St,  Manchester. 

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Barnett,  Richard,  Stourport,  Worcester- 
shire. 

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Bashforth,  Francis,  M:A.,  St.  John's  Col* 
lege,  Cambridge. 

Bateman,  Joseph,  LL.D.,  F.R.A.S.,  Ex- 
cise Office,  Broad  Street,  London. 

Bayldon,  John,  Lendal,  York. 

Bayley,  George,  Camberwell,  London. 

Beamish,  Richard,  F.R.S. 

Beatson,  William,  Rotherham. 

Belcher,  Capt.  Sir  Edw.,  R.N.,  F.R.A.S., 
22  Thurloe  Square,  Bronrpton,  London. 

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Yard,  York. 

Bennoch,  Francis,  Blackheath  Park,  Kent 

Bergin,  Thomas  Francis,  M.R.I.A.,  49 
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Berryman,  William  Richard,  6  Tamar 
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Bird,  William,  5  Old  Church  Yard,  Li- 
verpool. 


(It  is  itqnsslsd  that  aar  Inaccuracy  In  thsN^  maybe 

If  em.  Taylor  and  Fraads,  Printer*,  Bed  Lion  Court,  Fleet  Street,  London 


10 


MEMBERS  TO  WHOM 


Birks,  Rev.  Thomas  Rawson,  Kelshall 
Rectory,  Roy 8 ton. 

Birley,  Richard,  Upper  Brook  Street, 
Manchester. 

Birt,  W.  R.,  11  Wellington  Street,  Vic- 
toria Park,  London. 

Blackwall,  John.  F.L.S.,  Oakland, 
Llanrwst,  Denbighshire. 

Blackwell,  Thomas  Evans,  F.6.S.,  65  Pul- 
teney  Street,  Bath. 

Blake,  Henry  Wollaston,  F.R.S.,  62  Port- 
land Place,  London. 

Blake,  William,  Bishop's  Hull,  Taunton. 

Blakiston,  Peyton,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  St.  Leo- 
nard's on-Seo. 

Bland,  Rev.  Miles,  D.D.,  F.R.S.,  Lilley 
Rectory  near  Luton,  Bedfordshire. 

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bury Grove,  London. 

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Street,  Russell  Square,  London. 

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Brunei,  Isambart  Kingdom,  F.R.S.,  18 
Duke  Street,  Westminster. 

Buck,  Geo.  Watson,  Ramsay,  Isle  of  Man. 

Buckland,  Very  Rev.  William,  D.D.,  Dean 


of  Westminster,  Reader  in  Geology  and 

Mineralogy  in  the  University  of  Oxford, 

Trust.  Brit  Mus.,F.R.S.;  The  Deanery, 

Westminster. 
Buckman,  James,  F.G.S.,  Professor  of 

Botany,  Royal    Agricultural  College, 

Cirencester. 
Buckton,  G.Bowdler,38  Gloucester  Place, 

Hyde  Park  Gardens,  London. 
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Works,  Swansea. 
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Devon. 
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Manchester. 
BurlingtonlWilliam,Earlof,M.A.,LL.D., 

Chancellor  of  the  University  of  London, 

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House  near  Devonport. 
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Christ's  College,  Cambridge. 
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carage hear  Leeds. 
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Earl    of,    K.C.B.,   V.P.R.S.E.,    The 

Weaste,  Manchester. 
Cayley,   Sir    George,  Bart,    Brompton, 

Yorkshire. 
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Mem.  Egypt  Lit.  Soc.,  Mavesyn-Rid- 

ware,  Rugeley. 
Challis,  Rev.  J  as.,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Plumian 

Prof,  of  Astronomy  in  the  University  of 

Cambridge;  Observatory,  Cambridge. 
Chambers,  Robert,  F.R.S.E.,  Edinburgh. 
Champney,  Henry  Nelson,  The  Mount, 

York. 
Chanter,  John,  2  Arnold  Terrace,  Bow 

Road,  Bromley. 
Chatterton,  Sir  William,  Bart,  F.R.G.S., 

Castlemahon,  Cork. 
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chester. 
Chevallier,  Rev.  Temple,  B.D.,  F.R. A.S, 

Prof,  of  Mathematics  and  Astronomy 

in  the  University  of  Durham ;  Durham. 
Chichester,  AshhurstTurner  Gilbert,  D.D., 

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Cavendish  Square,  London. 
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York. 

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diner's Place,  Dublin. 

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Dunlop,  William  Henry,  Annan  Hill, 
Kilmarnock. 

Dunraven,  Edwin,  Earl  of,  F.R.S.,  3  Hal- 
kin  Street  West,  London. 

Earnshaw,  Rev.  Samuel,  M.A.,  Sheffield. 

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Egerton,  Sir  Philip  de  Malpas  Grey,  Bart., 
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House  near  Malton,  Yorkshire. 

Ellis,  Thomas  Flower,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  At- 
torney-General of  the  Duchy  of  Lan- 
caster; 15  Bedford  Place,  London. 

Enys,  John  Samuel,  F.G.S.,  Enys,  Corn- 
wall. 

Erie,  Rev.  Christopher,  M.A.,  F.G.S., 
Hardwick  Rectory  near  Aylesbury. 

Evaus,  George  Fabian,  M.D.,  Waterloo 
Street,  Birmingham. 

Exley, Rev. Thos.,  M.A.,  Cotham,  Bristol. 

Eyre,  George  Edward,  F.G.S.,  Warrens 
near  Lyndhurst,  Hants. 

Fairbairn,  William,  C.E.,  F.R.S.,  Man- 
chester. 

10* 


MEMBERS  TO  WHOM 


Faraday,  Michael,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S.,  Ful- 
lerian  Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the 
Royal  Institution  of  Great  Britain  ;  21 
Albemarle  Street,  Loudon. 

Fellows,  Sir  Charles,  F.R.G.S.,  4  Mon- 
tagu Place,  Russell  Square,  London. 

Fischer,  William  L.  F.,  M.  A.,  Professor  of 
Natural  Philosophy  in  the  University  of 
St.  Andrew's,  Scotland. 

Fisher,  Rev.  J.  M.,  M.A.,  Lower  Grove, 
Brompton,  London. 

Fisher,  Rev.  Thomas,  M.A.,  Luccombe 
near  Minehead,  Somerset. 

Fitz william, Charles  William,  Earl,  F.R.S., 
President  of  the  Yorkshire  Philosophi- 
cal Society;  Mortimer  House,  Halkin 
Street,  Grosvenor  Place,  London. 

Fleming,  Colonel  James,  Kinlochlaich, 
Appin,  Argyleshire. 

Fleming,  William  M.,  Barochan,  Ren- 
frewshire. 

Fleming,  William,  M.D.,  Manchester. 

Fletcher,  Samuel,  Ardwick  Place,  Man* 
Chester. 

Forbes,  James  David,  Professor  of  Natural 
Philosophy  in  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh, Sec.  U.S.  E.t  F.R.S.;  Edinburgh. 

Forbes,  John,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  12  Old  Bur- 
lington Street,  London. 

Forrest,  William  Hutton,  Stirling. 

Forster,  Robert,  B.A.,  Springfield,  Dun- 
gannon,  Ireland. 

Forster,  Thomas  Emerson,  7  Ellison  Place, 
Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 

Forster,  Wm.,  Ballynure,  Clones,  Ireland. 

Foster,  Chas.  Finch,  Milt  Lane,  Cambridge. 

Foster,  H.  S.  Brooklands,  Cambridge. 

Foster,  John,  M.A.,  Clapham,  London. 

Fowler,  Robert,  23  Rutland  Sq.,  Dublin. 

Fox,  Chas.,  Perran  Arworthal  near  Truro. 

Fox,  Joseph  Hay  land,  Wellington,  So- 
merset. 

Fox,  Robert  Barclay,  Falmouth. 

'Fox,  Samuel  Lindoe,  Tottenham. 

Frankland,  Rev.  Marmaduke  Charles, 
Malton,  Yorkshire. 

Freeland,  Humphrey  William,  B  3  Al- 
bany, London. 

Fullarton,  Allan,  Greenock. 

Gadesden,  Augustus  William,  F.S.A., 
Leigh  House,  Lower  Tooting,  Surrey. 

Gaskell,  Samuel,  19  New  Street,  Spring 
Gardens,  London. 

Gibson,  George  Stacey,  Saffron  Walden. 

Gilbart,  James  Wm.,  F.R.S.,  London  and 
Westminster  Bank,  Lothbury,  London. 

Gilbert,  John  Davies,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  East- 
bourne, Sussex. 

Gladstone,  George,  Stockwell  Lodge, 
Stockwell,  London. 


Gladstone,  John  Hall,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S., 
21  Tavistock  Square,  London. 

Goodman,  John,  Salford,  Lancashire. 

Goodsir,  John,  F.R.S.  L.  &  E.,  Professor 
of  Anatomy  in  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh ;  21  Lothian  Street,  Edin- 
burgh. 

Gordon,  James,  46  Park  Street,  Bristol. 

Gordon,  Rev.  James  Crawford,  M.A.,  De- 
lamont,  Downpatrick,  Downshire. 

Gotch,  Rev.  Frederick  William,  RA.,  1 
Cave  Street,  Bristol. 

Gotch,  Thomas  Henry,  Kettering. 

Graeme,  James,  Garvoch,  Perth. 

Graham,  Thomas,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Professor 
of  Chemistry  in  University  College, 
London ;  4  Gordon  Square,  London. 

Grahame,  Captain  Duncan,  Irvine,  Soot- 
land. 

Grainger,  John,  Rose  Villa,  Belfast. 

Grattan,  Joseph,  94  Shoreditch,  London. 

Graves,  Rev.  Charles,  D.D.,  Professor  of 
Mathematics  in  the  University  of  Dub- 
lin, M.R.I.A.;  2  Trinity  College,  Dub- 
lin. 

Graves,  Rev.  Richard  Hastings,  D.D., 
Brigown  Glebe,  Michelstown,  Co.  Cork. 

Gray,  Rev.  David,  M.A.,  F.R.S.E.,  Pro- 
fessor of  Natural  Philosophy  in  the  Ma- 
rischal  College  and  University,  Aber- 
deen. 

Gray,  John,  Greenock. 

Gray,  John  Edward,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S.,  Keep- 
er of  the  Zoological  Collection*  of  the 

*  British  Museum ;  British  Museum. 

Gray,  William,  F.G.S.,  {Local  Treasurer), 
Minster  Yard,  York. 

Greenaway,  Edward,  9  River  Terrace, 
City  Road,  London. 

Greswell,  Rev.  Richard,  B.D.,  F.R.S., 
Beaumont  Street,  Oxford. 

Griffin,  John  Joseph,  Glasgow. 

Griffith,  Richard,  M.R.I.A.,  F.G.S.,  Fits- 
william  Place,  Dublin. 

Griffiths,  S.  Y.,  Oxford. 

Grooby,  Rev.  James,  M.A.,  F.R.A.S., 
Swindon,  Wilts. 

Guinness,  Rev.  William  Smyth,  M.A., 
Ratbdrum,  Co.  Wicklow. 

Gutcb,  John  James,  88  Micklegate,  York. 

Habershon,  Joseph,  jun.,  The  Holmes, 

Rotherham,  Yorkshire, 
Hall,  T.  B.,  Coggeshall,  Essex. 
Hallam,  Henry,  M.A.,  D.C.L.,  F.R.S., 

Trust  Brit.  M us.,  24  Wilton  Crescent, 

Knightsbridge,  London. 
Hamilton,  Mathie,  M.D.,  Glasgow. 
Hamilton,  Sir  William  Rowan,  LL.D., 

Astronomer    Royal    of  Ireland,   and 

Andrew's  Professor  of  Astronomy  in 


BOOKS  ARE  SUPPLIED  GRATIS. 


the  University  of  Dublin,  M.R.I. A., 
F.R.A.8. ;  Observatory,  Dublin. 

Hamilton,  William  John,  Sec.  OS.,  14 
Chesham  Place,  Belgrave  Square,  Lon- 
don. 

Hamlin,  Captain  Thomas,  Greenock. 

Harcourt,  Rev.  William  V.  Vernon,  M. A., 
F.R.S.,  Weldrake  near  York. 

Harding,  Wyndham,  F.R.S.,  Wimbledon 
Park,  Putney,  Surrey. 

Hare,  Charles  John,  M.D.,  0  Langham 
Place,  London. 

Harley,  John,  Wain  Worn,  Pontypool. 

Harris,  Alfred,  Manningham  Lodge  near 
Bradford,  Yorkshire. 

Harris,  George  William,  1 7  Park  Street, 
Westminster. 

Harris,  Henry,  Heaton  Hall,  near  Brad- 
ford. 

Harter,  William,  Hope  Hall,  Manchester. 

Hartley,  Jesse,  Trentham  St.,  Liverpool. 

Harvey,  Joseph  Cbas.,  Youghal,  Co.  Cork. 

Hatton,  James,  Richmond  House,  Higher 
Broughton,  Manchester. 

Hauffhton,  William,  28  City  Quay,  Dublin. 

Hawkins,  John  Isaac,  C.E. 

Hawkins,  Thomas,  F.G.S.,  15  Great  Or- 
mond  Street,  London. 

Hawkshaw,  John,  F.G.S. 

Hawthorn,  Robert,  C.E.,  Newcastle-oii- 
Tyne. 

Henry,  Alexander,  Portland  Street,  Man- 
chester. 

Henry,  William  Charles,  M.D.,  F.R.S., 
Haffield  near  Ledbury,  Herefordshire. 

Henslow,  Rev.  John  Stevens,  M.A., 
F.L.S.,  Professor  of  Botany  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Cambridge,  and  Examiner  in 
Botany  in  the  University  of  London ; 
Hitcham,  Bildeston,  Suffolk. 

Herbert,  Thomas,  Nottingham. 

Heywood,  Sir  Benjamin,  Bart.,  F.R.S., 
9  Hyde  Park  Gardens,  London. 

Heywood,  James,  M.P.,  F.R.S.,  5  Eaton 
Place,  London. 

Heywood,  Robert,  Bolton. 

Higson,  Peter,  Clifton  near  Bolton. 

Hill,  Rev.  Edward,  M.  A.,  F.G.S.,  Sheering 
Rectory,  Harlow. 

Hill,  Henry,  Athenaeum  Club,  Pall  Mall, 
London. 

Hill,  Rowland,  F.R.A.S.,  General  Post 
Office,  London. 

Hindmarsh,  Frederick,  17  Bucklersbury, 
London. 

Hindmarsh,  Luke,  Alnwick,  Northum- 
berland. 

Hoare,  Rev.  George  Tooker,  Selworthy, 
Minehead,  Somerset. 

Hoblyn,  Thomas,  F.R.S.,  White  Barnes, 
Buntingford,  Herts. 


Hodgkin,  Thomas,  M.D.,  F.R.G.S.,  3& 
Bedford  Square,  London. 

Hodgkinson,  Eaton,  F.R.S.,  Professor  of 
the  Mechanical  Principles  of  Engl* 
neeringin  University  College,  London ; 
44  Drayton  Grove,  Bromnton,  London* 

Hodgson,  Adam,  Everton,  Liverpool. 

Holden,  Moses,  13  Jordan  Street,  Preston. 

Holdltch,  Rev.  Hamnet,  M.A.,  Caiua 
College,  Cambridge. 

Holland,  P.  H,  88  Grosvenor  Street, 
Manchester. 

Hollingsworth,  John. 

Hone,  Nathaniel,  M.R.D.S.,  I  Fitxwilliam 
Square  East,  Dublin. 

Hopkins,  William,  M.A.,  V.P.R.S.,  Cam- 
bridge. 

Horner,   Leonard,   F.R.S.,  The  Grove, 

Horsneld,  George. 

Houlds worth,  Henry,  Newton  Street, 
Manchester. 

Hoyle,  John,  20  Brown  Street,  Man- 
chester. 

Hudson,  Henry,  M.D.,  M.R.I. A.,  23 
Stephen's  Green,  Dublin. 

Hull,  William  Darley,  F.G.S.,  15  Hatch 
Street,  Dublin* 

Hulse,  Edward,  D.C.L.,  All  Souls1  Col- 
lege, Oxford. 

Hutchison,  Graham,  16  Blythswood 
Square,  Glasgow. 

Hutton,  Robert,  M.R.I.A.,  F.O.S.,  Put- 
ney Park,  Surrey. 

Hutton,  William. 

Ibbetson,  Captain  Levett  Landen  Bos- 
cawen,  K.R.E.,  F.R.S.,  Clifton  House, 
Old  Brompton,  London. 

Jackson,  James  Eyre,  Tullydory,  Black* 
water  Town,  Armagh. 

Jackson,  Stephen,  Butter  Market,  Ipswich. 

Jacob,  John,  M.D.,  Maryborough. 

Jardine,  Sir  William,  Bart.,  F.R.S.E., 
JardineHall,  Applegarth,  by  Lockerby, 
Dumfriesshire. 

Jee,  Alfred  S.,  6  John  Street,  Adelphi, 
London. 

Jenkyns,  Rev.  Henry,  D.D.,  Professor  of 
Divinity  and  Ecclesiastical  History  in 
the  University  of  Durhim ;  Durham. 

Jenyns,  Rev.  Leonard,  M.A.,  F.L.S. 

Jerram,  Rev.  S.  John,  M. A.,  Witney, 
Oxfordshire. 

Jerrard,  George  Birch,  B.A.,  Examiner 
in  Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy 
in  the  University  of  London ;  Long 
Stratton,  Norfolk. 

Johnson,  Thomas,  Mosley  Street,  Man- 
chester. 


6 


MEMBERS  TO  WHOM 


Johnston,  James  F.  W.,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Durham ;  Durham. 

Johnstone,  James,  Alva  near  Alloa,  Stir- 
lingshire. 

Johnstone,  Sir  John  Vanden  Bempde, 
Bart,  M.P.,  M.A.,  F.G.S.,  27  Gros- 
venor  Square,  London. 

Jones,  Christopher  Hird,  2  Castle  Street, 
Liverpool. 

Jones,  Major  Edward,  21  Athenaeum  St., 
Plymouth. 

Jones,  Josiah,  2  Castle  Street,  Liverpool. 

Jones,  Robert,  2  Castle  Street,  Liverpool. 

Joule,  Benjamin,  jun.,  New  Bailey  Street, 
Salford,  Manchester. 

Joule,  James  Prescott,  F.R.S.,  Acton 
Square,  Salford. 

Joy,  Charles  Ashfield,  45  Gloucester  Road, 
Regent's  Park,  London. 

Jubb,  Abraham,  Halifax. 

Kay,  John  Robinson,  Boss  Lane  House, 
Bury,  Lancashire. 

Kay,  Rev.  William,  M.A.,  Lincoln  Col- 
lege, Oxford. 

Kelsall,  Henry,  Rochdale,  Lancashire. 

Kenrick,  Samuel,  Harborne  Road,  Edg- 
baston,  Birmingham. 

Kerr,  Archibald,  Glasgow. 

Kerr,  Robert,  jun.,  Glasgow. 

Knowles,  Edward  R.  J.,  23  George  Street, 
Ryde,  Isle  of  Wight. 

Knowles,  William,  15  Park  Place,  Clifton, 
Bristol. 

Knox,  G.  James,  at  C.  G.  Knox's,  Esq., 
7  Stone  Buildings,  Lincoln's  Inn,  Lon- 
don. 

Lacy,  Henry  G,  jun. 

Laming,  Richard,  1  Woodland  Terrace, 

New  Charlton,  near  Woolwich. 
Langton,  William,  Manchester. 
Lansdowne,   Henry,   Marquis  of,  K.G., 

D.C.L.,  Trust.  Brit.  Mus.,  F.R.S.,  54 

Berkeley  Square,  London. 
Larcom,  Major  Thomas  A.,  R.E.,  F.R.S., 

Board  of  Works,  Custom  House,  Dublin. 
La  Touche,   David ,  Charle*,   M.R.I.A., 

Castle  Street,  Dublin. 
Laurie,  James,  Langholm  near  Carlisle. 
Lawson,  Andrew,  Boroughbridge,  York- 
shire. 
Leatham,  Charles  Albert,  Wakefield. 
Leatham,  Edward  Aldam,  Wakefield. 
Leather,  John  Towlerton,   Leventhorpe 

Hall  near  Leeds. 
Lee,   John,   LL.D.,    F.R.S.,  5  College, 

Doctors'  Commons,  London. 
Leeson,  Henry  B.,  M.A.,  M.D.,  F.R.S., 

St.  Thomas  s  Hospital,  and  Greenwich. 


Lefroy,  Captain  John  Henry,  R.A.,  F.R.S. 

Magnetical  Observatory,  Toronto. 
Legh,  George  Cornwall,  M.P.,  F.G.&, 

H  tgh ,  Legh,  Cheshire. 
Leinster,  Augustus  Frederick,  Duke  of, 

M.R.I.A.,  6  Carlton  House  Terrace, 

London. 
Le  Mesurier,  R.  Arthur,  M.A.,  Corpus 

Christi  College,  Oxford. 
Lemon,  Sir  Charles,  Bart.,  M.P.,  F.R.S., 

46  Charles  Street,  Berkeley  Square, 

London. 
Lemon,  James,  jun.,  Ardville,  Belfast. 
Liddell,  Andrew,  Glasgow. 
Lindsay,  Henry  L.,  C.E.,  33  Lower  Rut- 
land Street,  Dublin. 
Lingard,  John  R.,  Stockport,  Cheshire. 
Lister,  Joseph  Jackson,  F.R.S.,  Upton, 

Essex. 
Lloyd,  George,  M.D.,  F.G.S.,  Stank  Hill 

near  Warwick. 
Lloyd,  Rev.  Humphrey,  D.D.,  F.R.S., 

Vice-President  of  the  Royal  Irish  Aca- 
demy; 17  Fitzwilliam  Square,  Dublin. 
Lloyd,  George  Whitelocke,  1  Park  Square 

West,  Regent's  Park,  London. 
Lockey,  Rev.  Francis,  Swanswick  near 

Bath. 
Loftus,  William  Kennett,  F.G.S.,  Stand 

House,  Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 
Logan,  William  Edmond,  F.R.S.,  Director 

of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Canada; 

Montreal. 
Lubbock,  Sir  John  William,  Bart.,  M.A., 

F.R.S.,  Mansion  House  St.,  London. 
Lucas,  William,  St.  Helen's,  Lancashire* 
Luckcock,  Howard,  Oak  Hill,  Edgbaston, 

Birmingham. 
Lnndie,  Cornelius,  Syston  by  Grantham. 
Lutwidge,  Charles,  M.A. 
Lyell,  Sir  Charles,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  11  Har- 

ley  Street,  Cavendish  Square,  London. 

M«AH,  Rev.  Edward,  Rector  of  Brigh- 
stone,  Newport,  Isle  of  Wight. 

M«Andrew,  Robert,  F.R.S.,  84  Upper 
Parliament  Street,  Liverpool. 

MacBrayne,  Robert,  Barony  Glebe,  Glas- 
gow. 

Macrory,  Adam  John,  Duncairn,  Belfast. 

McConnel,  James,  Manchester* 

McCulloch,  George. 

MacDonnell,  Rev.  Richard,  D.D.,  Pro- 
vost of  Trinity  College,  and  Professor 
of  Oratory  in  the  University  of  Dublin, 
M.R.I.A.,  Dublin. 

McEwan,  John,  Glasgow. 

M*Gee,  William,  M.D.,  10  Donegall 
Square  East,  Belfast. 

Malcolm,  Frederick,  4  Sion  College,  Lon- 
don Wall,  London. 


BOOKS  ARE  SUPPLIED  GRATIS. 


Mallet,  Robert,  M.R.I.A.,  98  Capel  St., 
Dublin. 

Manchester,  Jamet  Prince  Lee,  D.D., 
Lord  Bishop  of,  F.R.S.,  The  Palace, 
Manchester. 

Marshal),  James  Garth,  M.P.,  M.A. 
F.G.S.,  Headingley  near  Leeds. 

Martinean,  Rev.  James,  12  Mason  Street, 
Edge  Hill,  Liverpool. 

Mason,  Thomas,  York. 

Mather,  Daniel,  58  Mount  Pleasant,  Li- 
verpool. 

Mather,  John,  58  Mouut  Pleasant,  Liver- 
pool. 

Maxwell,  Robert  Percival,  Finebrogue, 
Downpatrick,  Ireland. 

Mayne,  Rev.  Charles,  M.R.I.  A.,  22  Upper 
Merrion  Street,  Dublin. 

Meadows,  James,  York  Place,  Rusholme 
near  Manchester. 

Meynell,  Thomas,  jun.,  F.L.S.,  Gillygate, 
York. 

Michell,  Rev.  Richard,  B.D.,  Prelector 
of  Lone,  Lincoln  College,  Oxford. 

Miller,  Patrick,  M.D.,  Exeter. 

Miller,  William  Allen,  M.D.,  F.R.S., 
Professor  of  Chemistry  in  King's  Col- 
lege, London. 

Mills,  John  Robert,  Bootham,  York. 

Milne,  David,  M.A.,  F.R.S.E.,  Edin- 
burgh. 

Moore,  John  Carrick,  M.A.,  V.P.G.S., 
4  Hyde  Park  Gate,  Kensington  Gore, 
London.  > 

More,  John  Shank,  Professor  of  the  Law 
of  Scotland  in  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh, F.R.S.E.,  19  Great  King  Street, 
Edinburgh. 

Morris,  Rev.  Francis  Orpen,  B.  A.,  Naffer- 
ton  Vicarage  near  Driffield,  Yorkshire. 

Murchison,  Sir  Roderick  Impey,  G.C.St.S., 
M.A.,  F.RS.,  Pres.  R.  Geogr.  Soc, 
16  Belgrave  Square,  London. 

Murray,  John,C.E.,  5  Whitehall,  London. 

Murray,  William,  Polmaise,  Stirlingshire. 

Muspratt,  James  Sheridan,  Ph.D.,  Col- 
lege of  Chemistry,  Liverpool. 

Napier,  Captain  Johnstone  (74th  High- 
landers), C.  R.  M'Grigor,  Esq.,  17 
Charles  Street,  St,  James's,  London. 

Nasmyth,  James,  F.R.A.S.,  Patricroft 
near  Manchester. 

Newall,  Robert  Stirling,  Gateshead-upon- 
Tyne. 

Newman,  Francis  William,  Professor  of 
Latin  in  University  College,  London; 
7  Park  Village  East,  Regent's  Park, 
London. 

Newman,  William,  Darley  Hall  near 
Barnsley,  Yorkshire. 


Newman,  William  Lewin,  F.R.A.S.,  St. 

Helen '8  Square,  York. 
Nicholls,  John  Ash  ton,  F.R.A.S.,  Ard- 

wick  Place,  Manchester. 
Nicholson,  Cornelius,  F.G.S.,  The  Hill, 

Hornsey,  London. 
Nicholson,   John  A.,   M.D.,   M.R.I.A., 

Balratb,  Kells,  Co.  Meath. 

O'Reardon,  John,  M.D.,  35  York  Street, 

Dublin. 
Orlebar,  A.  B.,  M.A.,  Rottingdean  near 

Brighton. 
Orpen,  Charles  Edward  H.,  M.D.,  Cape 

of  Good  Hope. 
Osier,  A.  Follett,  Birmingham. 
Ossalinski,  Count. 
Outram,  Sir  Benjamin  Fonseca,   M.D., 

C.B.,  F.R.S.,  1  Hanover  So.,  London. 
Oxford,  Samuel  Wilberforce,  D.D.,  Lord 

Bishop  of,   F.R.S.,   61    Eaton   Place, 

London. 

Palmer,  William,  St.  Giles's,  Oxford. 

Parker,  Charles  Stewart,  Liverpool. 

Pasley,  Major-General  Sir  Charles  Wil- 
liam, Royal  Engineers,  C.B.,  D.C.L., 
F.R.S.,  12  Norfolk  Crescent,  Hyde 
Park,  London. 

Patterson,  Robert,  (Local  Treasurer),  3 
College  Square  North,  Belfast. 

Pattinson,  Hugh  Lee,  F.R.S.,  Scots  House, 
Gateshead-upon-Tync. 

Pearsall,  Thomas  John,  Agent  and  Lec- 
turer to  the  Yorkshire  Union  of  Insti- 
tutes, Leeds;  Leed6 

Peckover,  Algernon,  F.L.S.,  Wisbeach, 
Cambridgeshire. 

Peckover,  Daniel,  Woodhall  near  Brad- 
ford, Yorkshire. 

Peckover,  William,  F.S.A.,  Wisbeach, 
Cambridgeshire. 

Pedler,  Lieut.-Colonel  Philip  Warren, 
Mutley  House  near  Plymouth. 

Peel,  George,  Soho  Iron  Works,  Man- 
chester. 

Perigal,  Frederick,  28  Hereford  Square, 
Brompton,  London. 

Peters,  Edward,  Temple  Row,  Birming- 
ham. 

Philips,  Mark,  the  Park  near  Manchester. 

Phillips,  John,  F.R.S.,  (Assistant  General 
Secretary,)  St  Mary's  Lodge,  York. 

Philpott,  Rev.  Henry,  D.D.9  Master  of 
St.  Catharine's  Hall,  Cambridge. 

Pike,  Ebenexer,  Besborough,  Cork. 

Pitt,  George,  11  Pembridge  Villas,  Bays* 
water,  London. 

Pollexfen,  Rev.  John  Hutton,  M.D.,  4 
Bedford  Place,  Clapham  Rise,  London. 

Pontey,  Alexander,  Plymouth. 


MEMBERS  TO  WHOM 


PoppdweD,  Matthew,  Rosella  Place,  Tyne- 


Poiter,  Henry  John,  Tandragee  Castle, 
Co.  Armagh. 

Portlock,  LMnt-Cokmel  Joseph  Ellison, 
Royal  Engineer*,  F.R.S.,  Woolwich. 

Powell,  R*v.  Baden,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Savi- 
lian  Profeawr  of  Geometry  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Oxford;  6  Stanhope  Street, 
Hyde  Path  Gardens,  London. 

Pratt,  Samuel  Peace,  F.R.S.,  Clarendon 
Chamber*,  Hand  Court,  Bedford  Row, 
London. 

Prestwich,  Joaeph,  jun.,  F.G.S.,  20  Mark 
Lane,  London. 

Pretious,  Thomas,  Royal  Dockyard,  Pem- 
broke. 

Pritehard,  Andrew,  162  Fleet  Street,  Lon- 
don. 

Prower,  Rev.  J.  M.,  M.A.,  Swindon, 
Wiltshire. 

Pumphrey,  Charles,  New  Town  Row, 
Birmingham. 

Radford,  William,  M.D.,  Sidmouth. 

Ramsay,  Sir  James,  Bart.,  F.G.S.,  Bamff 
House,  Perthshire. 

Ramsay,  William,  M.A.,  F.S.S.,  Professor 
of  Humanity  in  the  University  of  Glas- 
gow, (Local  Treasurer) ;  The  College, 
Glasgow. 

Ranee,  Henry,  Cambridge. 

Ransome,  Robert,  Iron  Foundry,  Ipswich. 

Rawlins,  John,  Birmingham. 

Rawson,  Thomas  William,  Seville  Lodge, 
Halifax. 

Read,  William  Henry  Rudston,  M.A., 
F.L.S.,  Hay  ton  near  Pocklington,  York- 
shire. 

Reade,  Rev.  Joseph  Bancroft,  M.A., 
F.R.S.,  Stone  Vicarage,  Aylesbury. 

Redfern,  Peter,  M.D.,  Lecturer  in  Ana- 
tomy and  Physiology  in  the  University 
of  Aberdeen;  2  Crown  Place  East, 
Aberdeen. 

Renny,  H.  L.,  C.E.,  United  Service  Club, 
Stephen's  Green,  Dublin. 

Richardson,  Sir  John,  M.D.,  C.B.,  F.R.S., 
Haslar  Hospital,  Gosport. 

Riddell,  Captain  Charles  J.  B.,  R.A. 
F.R.S.,  Plumstead  Common,  Woolwich. 

Roberts,  Richard,  Globe  Works,  Man- 
chester. 

Robinson,  John,  Shamrock  Lodge,  Ath- 
lone,  Ireland. 

Robson,  Rev.  John,  D.D.,  Glasgow. 

Roger*,  Rev.  Canon,  M.A.,  Redruth, 
Cornwall. 

Roget,  Peter  Mark,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  18  Up- 
per Bedford  Place,  Russell  Sq.,  London. 

Ross,  Captain  Sir  James  Clark,  R.N., 


D.CL,  F.R.S., 
Abbots,  Aylesbury. 

Rothwefl,  Peter,  Bolton. 

Roagbton,  William,  Jan.,  Kettering, 
Northamptonshire. 

Rowland,  John,  80  Termimis  Road,  Brigh- 
ton. 

Rowntree,  Joseph,  Pavement,  York. 

Rowntree,  Joseph,  Scarborough. 

Royle,  John  Forbes,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Pro- 
fessor of  Materia  Medica  and  Thera- 
peutics in  King's  College,  London, 
(GemermlStcreUry);  Heathneld Lodge, 
Acton,  Middlesex. 

Rushout,  Cant  George  flit  Life  Guards), 
M.P.,  F.G.S.,  11  Charles  Street,  St. 
James's,  London. 

Russell,  William  J.,  Owen's  College, 
Manchester. 

Ryland,  Arthur,  Birmingham. 

Sabine,  Colonel  Edward,  Royal  Artillery, 
Treae.  and  V.P.R.S.,  Woolwich. 

Salter,  Thomas  Bell,  M.D.,  F.I*S.f  Ryde, 
Isle  of  Wight 

Sanders,  William,  F.G.S^  (Local  Tre+> 
«rrer),  Park  Street,  Bristol. 

Satterthwaite,  Michael,  M.D.,  Tnlketh 
Hall  near  Preston. 

Schemman,  J.  C,  Hamburgh;  at  L. 
Thornton's,  Esq.,  The  Elms,  Highgate, 
London. 

Schlick,  Le  Chevalier. 

Schofield,  Rohert,  1  Gresham  Street,  City, 
London. 

Scholes,  T.  Seddon,  Prestwich  near  Man- 
chester. 

Scholey,  William  Stephenson,  M.  A.,  Clap- 
ham,  London. 

Scholfield,  Edward,  M.D.,  Doncaster. 

Scoresby,  Rev.  William,  D.D.,  F.R.S., 
Torquay. 

Sedgwick,  Rev.  Adam,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
Woodwardian  Professor  of  Geology  in 
the  University  of  Cambridge,  and  Canon 
of  Norwich;  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge. 

Shaen,  William,  8  Bedford  Row,  London. 

Shanks,  James,  C.E.,  23  Garscube  Place, 
Glasgow. 

Sharp,  William,  F.R-S.,  Rugby. 

Sherrard,  David  Henry,  88  Upper  Dorset 
Street,  Dublin. 

Shortrede,  Captain  Robert,  F.R.A.S., 
H.E.I.C/8  Service,  Aden. 

Sillar,  Zechariah,  M.D.,  Rainford  near 
Liverpool. 

Simpson,  Rev.  Samuel,  Douglas,  Isle  of 
Man. 

Simpson,  Thomas,  M.D.,  Minster  Yard, 
York. 


BOOKS  ARE  SUPPLIED  GRATIS. 


9 


Sinr, Rev.  Joseph D# Arcy,  D.D.,  M.R.I.A. 

Slater,  William,  Princess  St.,  Manchester. 

Sleeman,  Philip,  Windsor  Terrace,  Ply- 
mouth. 

Smith,  Rev. Geo. Sidney,  D.D.,  M.R.I. A., 
Professor  of  Biblical  Greek  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Dublin ;  Aughalurcher,  Five- 
mile-Town,  Co.  Tyrone. 

Smith,  John,  Welton  Garth  near  Hull. 

Smith,  Rev.  Joseph  Denham,  Kingstown 
near  Dublin. 

Smith,  Rev.  Philip,  B.A.,  Professor  of 
Mathematics  in  New  College,  London ; 
53  New  Finchley  Road,  St  John's 
Wood,  London. 

Smith,  Robert  Mackay,Bellevue  Crescent, 
Edinburgh. 

Smyth,  C.  Pfazzi,  Professor  of  Practical 
Astronomy  in  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh; 1  Hill  Side,  Edinburgh. 

Solly,  Edward,  F.R.8.,  Professor  of  Che- 
mistry to  the  Horticultural  Society  of 
London ;  15  Tavistock  Square,  London. 

Solly,  Samuel  Reynolds,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
Surge  Hill,  King's  Langley,  Herts. 

Sonwith,  Thomas,  F.R.S.,  Allenheads, 
Hay  don  Bridge,  Northumberland. 

Spence,  Joseph,  Pavement,  York. 

Spiers,  Richard  James,  14  St.  Giles's 
Street,  Oxford. 

Spottitwoode,  William,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
New  Street,  Gough  Square,  London. 

Squire,  Lovell,  Falmouth. 

Stainton,  James  Joseph,  Lewtsham,  Kent. 

Stanger,  Joshua,  Keswick,  Cumberland. 

Stanger,  William,  M.D.,  Cape  of  Good 
Hope. 

Stokes,  George  Gabriel,  M.A.,  F.R.S., 
Lucasian  Professor  of  Mathematics  in 
the  University  of  Cambridge;  Pem- 
broke College,  Cambridge. 

Strickland,  Arthur,  Bridlington  Quay, 
Yorkshire. 

Strickland,  Charles,  Loughglyn,  Balla- 
ghadereen,  Ireland. 

Sutcliffe,  William,  4  Belmont,  Bath. 

Sykes,  Lieut.-Col.  William  Henry,  F.R.S., 
47  Albiou  Street,  Hyde  Park,  London. 

Tayler,  Rev.  John  James,  B.A.,  Man- 
chester. 

Taylor,  James,  Todmorden  Hall,  Lan- 
cashire. 

Taylor,  John,  F.R.S.,  (General  Trea- 
surer), 6  Queen  Street  Place,  Upper 
Thames  Street,  London. 

Taylor,  John,  jun.,  F.G.S.,  6  Queen 
Street  Place,  Upper  Thames  Street, 
London. 

Taylor,  Richard,  F.G.S.,  6  Queen  Street 
Place,  Upper  Thames  Street,  London. 


Taylor,  Captain  Joseph  Needham,  R.N. 

Taylor,  Richard,  F.L.S.,  Red  Lion  Court, 
Fleet  Street,  London. 

Tennant,  James,  F.G.S.,  Professor  of  Mi- 
neralogy in  King's  College,  London  ; 
149  Strand,  London. 

Thicknesse,  Ralph  A.,  M.P.,  Beech  Hill 
near  Wigan. 

Thodey,  Wiuwood,  4  Poultry,  London. 

Thomas,  George  John,  M.A.,  Clifton, 
Bristol. 

Thompson,  Corden,  M.D.,  Sheffield. 

Thompson,  John,  Little  Stonegate,  York. 

Thomson,  James,  M.A  ,  C.E.,  16Donegall 
Place,  Belfast. 

Thomson,  James  Gibson,  Edinburgh. 

Thomson,  William,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Pro- 
fessor of  Natural  Philosophy  in  the 
University  of  Glasgow. 

Thornton,  Samuel,  The  Elms,  Highgate, 
London. 

Thorp,  The  Venerable  Thomas,  B.D., 
Archdeacon  of  Bristol,  F.G.S.,  Kemer- 
ton  Rectory,  Tewkesbury. 

Tidswell,  Benjamin  K.,  Brown  Street, 
Manchester. 

Tindal,  Captain,  R.N.,  Branch  Bank  of 
England,  Birmingham. 

Tinned  John  A.,  F.R.G.S.,  Briarly  Aig- 
burth,  Liverpool. 

Townsend,  Richard  E.,  Springfield,  Nor- 
wood. 

Townsend,  R.  W.,  M.  A.,  M.R.I.  A.,  Deny 
Ross,  Carberv,  Co.  Cork. 

Trevelyan,  Arthur,  Wallington,  Northum- 
berland. 

Tuckett,  Francis  Fox,  Frenchay,  Bristol. 

Tulloch,  James,  F.R.S.,  16  Montague 
Place,  Russell  Square,  London. 

Turnbull,  Rev.  Thomas  Smith,  M.A., 
F.R.S.,  Blofield,  Norfolk. 

Tweedy,  Wm.  Mansell,  Truro,  Cornwall. 

Vallack,  Rev.  Benj.  W.  S.,  St.  Budeaux 
near  Plymouth. 

Vance,  Re?.  Robert,  5  Gardiner's  Row, 
Dublin. 

Vaux,  Fred.,  17  Red  Lion  Sq.,  London. 

Vivian,  H.  Hussey,  Swansea. 

Vivian,  John  Henry,  M.P.,  F.R.S.,  Sin- 
gleton near  Swansea. 

Walker,  John,  Weaste  House,  Pendleton, 
Manchester. 

Walker,  Joseph  N.,  F.L.S.,  Calderston 
near  Liverpool. 

Walker,  Rev.  Robt,M.A.,  F.R.S.,  Reader 
in  Experimental  Philosophy  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Oxford ;  Oxford. 

Walker,  Thomas,  10  York  Street,  Man- 
chester. 


10      MEMBERS  TO  WHOM  BOOKS  ARE  SUPPLIED  GRATIS. 


Wallace,  Rev.  Robert,  F.G.S.,  20  Camden 
Place,  Bath. 

Warburton,  Henry,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  45 
Cadogan  Place,  Sloane  Street,  London. 

Ward,  William  Sykes,  Leathley  Lodge, 
Leeds. 

Waterhouse,  John,  F.R.S.,  Halifax,  York- 
shire. 

Watson,  Henry  Hough,  Bolton-le-Moors. 

Way,  J.  Thomas,  Professor  of  Chemistry, 
Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England, 
Hanover  Square,  London. 

Wearer,  Thos.,  F.R.S.,  16  Stafford  Row, 
Pimlico,  London. 

Webb,  Rev.  Thos.  Wm,  M.A.,  Cloisters, 
Gloucester. 

Western,  T.  B.,  Felix  Hall,  Kelvedon, 
Essex. 

Westhead,  Joshua  Proctor,  York  House, 
Manchester. 

Whewell,  Rev.  William,  D.D.,  F.R.S., 
Master  of  Trinity  College,  and  Professor 
of  Moral  Philosophy  in  the  University 
of  Cambridge;  Cambridge. 

Whiteside,  James,  M.A.,  Q.C.,  M.P.,  2 
Mounrjoy  Square,  Dublin. 

Whitworth,  Joseph,  Manchester. 

Wickenden,  Joseph,  F.G.S.,  Birmingham. 

Wilberforce,  The  Venerable  Archdeacon 
Robert  J.,  Burton  Agnes,  Driffield, 
Yorkshire. 

Willert,  Paul  Ferdinand,  Manchester. 

Williams,  Caleb,  Micklegate,  York. 

Williams,  Wm.,  6  Rood  Lane,  London. 

Williams,  Rev.  D.,  D.C.L.,  Warden  of 
New  College,  Oxford. 

Williamson,  Alex.  W.,  Ph.D.,  Professor  of 
Practical  Chemistry  in  University  Col- 
lege, London. 

Williamson,  Rev.  William,  B.D.,  Datch- 
worth  Rectory  near  Stevenage. 

Wills,  William,  Edgbaaton  near  Birming- 
ham. 

Wilson,  Alexander,  F.R.S.,  34  Bryan- 
stone  Square,  London. 


Wilson,  Capt  F.  (52nd  Light  Infantry), 
Dallam  Tower,  Milnthorp,  Westmore- 
land. 

Wilson,  John,  Dundyvan,  Glasgow. 

Wilson,  John,  Bootham,  York. 

Wilson,  Sumner,  Southampton. 

Wilson,  Thomas,  Crimbles  House,  Leeds. 

Wilson,  William  Parkinson,  M.A.,  Pro- 
fessor of  Mathematics  in  Queen's  Col- 
lege, Belfast. 

Winsor,  F.  A.,  57  Lincoln's  Inn  Fields,  . 
London. 

Winterbottom,  James  Edward,  M.A., 
F.L.S.,  East  Woodhay,  Hants. 

Wollaston,  Thomas  Vernon,  M.A.,  F.L.S., 
95  ThurJoe  Sq.,  Brompton,  London. 

Wood,  Rt.  Hon.  Sir  Charles,  Bart,  M.P., 
Hickleston  Hall,  Doncaster. 

Wood,  John,  St.  Saviourgate,  York. 

Wood,  Rev.  William  Spicer,  M.A.,  Oak- 
ham, Rutlandshire. 

Woodd,  Charles  H.  L.,  F.G.S.,  Hillfield, 
Hampstead. 

Woodhead,  G.,  Mottram  near  Manchester. 

Woods,  Edward,  7  Church  Street,  Edge- 
hill,  Liverpool. 

Worcester,  Henry  Pepys,  D.D.,  Lord  Bi- 
shop of,  24  Grosvenor  Place,  London. 

Wormald,  Richard,  1 2  Little  Tower  Street, 
City,  London. 

Worthington,  Robert,  Cheetham  Hill  near 
Manchester. 

Wright,  Robert  Francis,  Hinton  Blewett, 
Somersetshire. 

Yarborough,GeorgeCooke,Camp'sMoant, 
Doncaster. 

Yates,  Joseph  Brooks,  F.R.G.S.,  West 
Dingle  near  Liverpool. 

Yates,  R.  Vaughan,  Toxteth  Park,  Liver- 
pool. 

York,  Colonel  Philip,  F.R.S.,  89  Eaton 
Place,  Belgrave  Square,  London. 

Youngc,  Robert,  M.D.,  Greystones  near 
Sheffield. 


ANNUAL  SUBSCRIBERS. 


11 


Alison,  William  P.,  M.D.,  F.RS.Ed., 
Professor  of  the  Practice  of  Physic  in 
the  University  of  Edinburgh;  Edin- 
burgh. 

Altaian,  George  J.,  M.D.,  M.R.I. A.,  Pro- 
fessor of  Botany  in  the  University  of 
Dublin ;  Trinity  College,  Dublin. 

Anderson,  Sir  James,  Glasgow. 

Argyle,  The  Duke  of,  F.R.S.,  Hamilton 
Place,  Piccadilly,  London,  and  Inverary 
Castle,  Inverary,  Scotland. 

Atkinson,  John,  Daisy  Bank,  Victoria 
Park,  Manchester. 

Bakewell,  Frederick,  6  Haverstock  Ter- 
race, Hampstead,  London. 

Bangor,  Viscount,  Castle  Ward,  Co.  Down, 
Ireland. 

Barrington,  Edward,  Fassdroe,  Bray, 
Ireland. 

Barrington,  Richard,  jtin.,  Trafalgar  Ter- 
race, Kingstown,  Ireland. 

Barton,  James,  Newry  near  Belfast. 

Bateson,  Sir  Robert,  Bart.,  Belvoir  Park, 
Belfast. 

Becker,  Dr.  Ernest,  Buckingham  Palace, 
London. 

Beke,  Charles  T.,  Ph.D.,  F.S.A.,  34  dim- 
ming Street,  Pentonville,  London. 

Benson,  Starling,  Gloucester  Place,  Swan- 
sea. 

Bossey,  Francis,  M.D.,  Woolwich. 

Brazier,  James  S.,  Marischal  College  and 
University,  Aberdeen. 

Brewster,  Sir  David,  K.H.,  D.C.L., 
F.R.S.,  V.P.R.S.  Ed.,  Principal  of  the 
United  College  of  St.  Salvator  and  St. 
Leonard,  St.  Andrew's. 

Brown,  William,  25  Dublin  Street,  Edin- 
burgh. 

Bruce,  Rev.  William,  Belfast 

Busk,  George,  F.R.S.,  Gloucester  Cres- 
cent, Greenwich. 

Byrne,  Rev.  James,  Ergenagh  Rectory, 
Omagh,  Co.  Armagh. 

Campbell,  William,  Donegall  Square  West, 
Belfast. 

Carlile,  Hugh,  M.A.,  M.D.,  Professor  of 
Anatomy  and  Physiology,  and  Practical 
Anatomy  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast; 
3  Prospect  Place,  Belfast. 

Carpenter,  William  Benj.,  M.D.,  F.R.S., 
Professor  of  Medical  Jurisprudence  in 
University  College,  London;  Univer- 
sity Hall,  Gordon  Square,  London. 

Cheshire,  Edward,  12  St  James's  Square, 
London. 


Claudet,  A.,  F.R.S.,  107  Regent  Street, 

London. 
Clibborn,  Edward,  Royal  Irish  Academy, 

Dublin. 
Col  fox,  William,  jun.,   B.A.,    Bridport, 

Dorsetshire. 
Connal,  Michael,  Glasgow. 
Cooper,  Henry,  M.D.,  Hull. 
Crawford,  Alexander,  jun.,  Mount  Charles, 

Belfast 
Cull,   Richard,  Hon.  Sec.   Ethnological 

Society;  13  Tavistock  Street,  Bedford 

Square,  London. 
Cunningham,  John,  Macedon,  Belfast, 

Dale,  John  A.,  M.A.,  11  Holywell  Street, 
Oxford. 

Darby,  Rev.  Jonathan  L.,  Acton  Glebe, 
Loughbrickland,  Ireland. 

Da  Silva,  Johnson,  Highbury  Park  South, 
London. 

Dawson,  William  £,,  Plumstead  Common, 
near  Woolwich. 

Dennis,  J.  C,  F.R.A.S.,  122  Bishopsgate 
Street,  London. 

Dickie,  George,  M .  D . ,  Professor  of  Natural 
History  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast; 
Botanic  View,  Belfast. 

Dickson,  Peter,  24  Chester  Terrace,  Re- 
gent's Park,  London. 

Dixon,  Rev.  Robert,  M.A.,  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Dublin. 

Dobbin,  Orlando  T.,  LL.D.,  M.R.I.A., 
Hull  College,  Hull. 

Domville,  William  C,  F.Z.S.,  5  Gros- 
venor  Square,  London. 

Donaldson,  Rev.  J.  W.,  D.D.,  Bury  St.  Ed- 
munds. 

Drennan,  Dr.,  Chichester  Street,  Belfast. 

Dublin,  Richard  Whately,  D.D.,  Arch- 
bishop of;  the  Palace,  Dublin. 

Dufferin  and  Claneboy,  Viscount,  Clande- 
boye,  Holywood,  Belfast. 

Dunville,  William,  Richmond  Lodge, 
Belfast. 

Edgar,  Rev.  John,  D.D.,  Professor  of 
Systematic  Divinity  in  the  General  As- 
sembly's College,  Belfast;  University 
Square,  Belfast 

Edmonston,  Rev.  John,  Selkirk. 

Evans,  G.  F.  D.,  M.D.,  St.  Mary's  Street, 
Bedford. 

Everest,  Lt.-Colonel  George,  Bengal  Ar- 
tillery, F.R.S.,  10  Westbourne  Street, 
Hyde  Park,  London. 

Fen  ton,  Samuel  Greame,  9  College  Square, 
Belfast. 


12 


ANNUAL  SUBSCRIBERS. 


Ferguson,  John  C,  M.A.,  M.B.,  Pro- 
fessor of  the  Practice  of  Medicine  in 
Queen's  College,  Belfast. 

Fowler,  Richard,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Salis- 
bury.* 

Garrett,  James  R.,  Holywood,  Belfast 

Gassiot,  John  P.,  F.R.S.,  Clapham  Com- 
mon, London. 

Gibson,  James,  North  Frederick  Street, 
Dublin. 

Gladstone,  Thomas  Murray,  Parsonage, 
Donegall  Pass,  Belfast. 

Godwin,  John,  C.E.,  Professor  of  Civil 
Engineering  in  Queen's  College,  Bel- 
fast; Woodhouse,  Rostrevor,  Ire- 
land. 

Goodbody,  Jonathan,  Clara,  King's  Co., 
Ireland. 

Graham,  John  B.,  Lavender  Sweep,  Clap-, 
ham  Common,  London. 

Greenwood,  William,  Stones,  Todmorden, 
Lancashire. 

Hancock,  Charles  Brownlow,  12  Wel- 
lington Place,  Belfast. 

Hancock,  John,  Lurgan,  Co.  Armagh. 

Hancock,  W.  Neilson,  LL.D.,  Professor 
of  Jurisprudence  and  Political  Economy 
in  Queen's  College,  Belfast 

Harcourt,  Rev.  L.  Vernon,  West  Dean 
House,  Chichester. 

Hawkes,  William,  Eagle  Foundry,  Bir- 
mingham. 

Henfrey,  Arthur,  F.R.S.,  Lecturer  on  Bo- 
tany at  St.  George's  Hospital;  3  Down- 
shire  Hill,  Hampstead,  London. 

Herdman,  John,  9  Wellington  Place, 
Belfast. 

Hervey,  The  Rev.  The  Lord  Arthur, 
Ickworth,  Suffolk. 

Heyn,  Gustavus,  Belfast. 

Hill,  William.  F.R.A.S.,  Worcester. 

Hincks,  Rev.  Edward,  D.D.,  Killyleagb, 
Ireland. 

Hincks,  Rev.  T.  D.,  LL.D.,  7  Murray's 
Terrace,  Belfast. 

Hodges,  John  F.,  M.D.,  Professor  of 
Agriculture  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast; 
23  Queen  Street,  Belfast. 

Hodgkinson,  Rev.  G.  C,  M.A.,  Training 
Institution,  York. 

Hudson,  Robert,  F.R.S.,  Clapham  Com- 
mon, London. 

Hunt,  Robert,  Keeper  of  Mining  Records, 
Museum  of  Practical  Geology,  Jermyn 
Street,  London. 

Huxley,  Thomas  H.,  F.R.S.,  4  Upper 
York  Place,  St  John's  Wood,  Lon- 
don. 

Hyndman,  George  C  ,  Belfast. 


Ingram,  John  Reus,  LL.D.,  Erasmus 
Smith's  Professor  of  Oratory  in  the 

University  of  Dublin ;  Dublin. 

Jacobs,  Bethel,  Hull. 
Jellett,  John  H.,  Trinity  College,  Dublin. 
Jennings,  Francis  M„  Cork. 
Johnston,  A.  Keith,  4  St  Andrew  Square, 
Edinburgh. 

Kay,  Alexander,  Church  Bank,  BotH<m 

near  Altrincham,  Cheshire. 
Kelly,  John,  C.E.,  Dublin. 
Kirkwood,  Anderson,  1  Mansfield  Place, 

Glasgow. 

Lankester,  Edwin,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  22  Old 
Burlington  Street,  London. 

Latham,  R.  G.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Upper 
Southwick  Street,  Edgware  Road,  Lon- 
don. 

Lawson,  Henry,  F.R.S.,  Lansdown  Cres- 
cent, Bath. 

Leslie,  T.  E.  Cliffe,  LL.B.,  Leeson  Street, 
Dublin. 

MacAdam,  James,  jun.,  Beavor  Hall, 

Belfast 
MacAdam,  Robert,   18  College  Square 

East,  Belfast. 
Macaldin,  J.  J.,  M.D.,  Coleraine. 
McCosh,  Rev.  James,  M.A.,  Professor  of 

Logic   and    Metaphysics   in  Queen's 

College,  Belfast 
MeCoy,  F.,  Professor  of  Mineralogy  and 

Geology  in  Queen's  College,  Belfast 
M^Dermott,  Edward,  11   The  Terrace, 

Camberwell,  London. 
MacLaren,   Charles,  Moreland  Cottage, 

Grange  Loan,  Edinburgh. 
M'Mechan,  John,  M.D.,  Whitehouse  near 

Belfast. 
Malcolm,  A.  G.,  M.D.,  49  York  Street, 

Belfast. 
Marland,     James     William,'    Mountjoy 

Place,  Dublin. 
Marshal],  James  D.,  Holywood  near  Bel- 
fast. 
Maxwell,  John  Waring,  Finebrogue  near 

Down  patrick. 
May,  Charles,  F.R.A.S.,  St  Margaret's, 

Ipswich. 
Molony,  William,  LL.D.,  Carrickfergus. 
Moore,  Dr.  Joseph,  lOSa vile  Row,  London. 
Mullan,  William,  Belfast 
Murney,    Henry,  M.D.,    10  Chichester 

Street,  Belfast 
Murphy,  Joseph  John,  Glengall  Place, 

Belfast. 
Murray,  William,  F.G.S.,  President  of 

Anderson's  University,  Glasgow. 


ANNUAL  SUBSCRIBERS. 


13 


Neale,  Edward  V.,  34  Charles  Street, 

Berkeley  Square,  London. 
Neild,  William,  Mayfield,  Manchester. 
Neville,  Parke,  C.E.,Town  Hall,  Dublin. 
Newport,  George,  F.R.S.,  55  Cambridge 

Street,  Hyde  Park  Square,  London. 
Nicolay,   Rev.   C.  G.,   Kings  College, 

Strand,  London. 
Nourse,  William  E.  C,  P.R.C.P.  Lond.,  28 

Bryanstone  Street,  Bryanstone  Square. 

Peach,  C.  W.,  Peterhead,  Aberdeen. 
Percy,  John,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Museum  of 

Practical    Geology,    Jermyn    Street, 

London. 
Petrie,  William,   Ecclesbourne  Cottage, 

Woolwich* 
Purdon,  Thomas  Henry,  M.D.,  Belfast 

Ramsay,  Andrew  C,  F.R.S.,  Director  of 

the  Geological  Survey  of  Great  Britain, 

Museum  of  Practical  Geology,  Jermyn 

Street,  London. 
Randall,  William  B.,  140  High  Street, 

Southampton. 
Rankin,  Rev.  Thos.,  Huggate,  Yorkshire. 
Rankine,  W.  J.  Macquorn,  C.E.,  F.R.S., 

69  St  Vincent  Street,  Glasgow. 
Read,  Thomas,  M.D.,  Donegall  Square 

West,  Belfast. 
Ricardo,  M.,  Brighton. 
Robinson,  C.  B.,The  Shrubbery,  Leicester. 
Robinson,    Rev.    George,    Tartaraghan 

Glebe,  Loughgall,  Ireland. 
Ronalds,  Francis,  F.R.S.,  Chiswick. 
Round,  Daniel  George,  Hange  Colliery, 

near  Tipton. 
Ryan,  John,  M.D.,  23  Stepney  Green, 

London. 

Saull,  W.  D.,  F.S.A.,  F.G.S.,  Aldtrsgatt 

Street,  London. 
Shewel),  J.  T.,  Rushmere,  Ipswich. 
Simms,  William,  Albion  Place,  Belfast 
Sloper,  George  Elgar,  Devises. 
Sloper,  Samuel  W.,  Devises. 


Smith,  Robert  Angus,  Ph.D.,  Cavendish 
Street,  Manchester. 

Smith,  William,  Woodside  Works,  Paisley. 

Smyth,  John,  jun.,  Milltown,  Banbridge, 
Ireland. 

Spence,  William,  F.R.S.,  18  Lower  Sey- 
mour Street,  Portinan  Square,  London. 

Spence,  W.  B.,  18  Lower  Seymour  Btreet, 
Portman  Square,  London. 

Stevelly,  John,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  Na- 
tural Philosophy  in  Queen's  College, 
Belfast. 

Stewart,  Robert,  M.D.,  The  Asylum, 
Belfast. 

Talbot,  William  Hawkshead,  W righting- 

ton  near  Wigan. 
Teschtmacher,  E.  F.,  4  Park  Terrace, 

Highbury,  London. 
Thomson,  Gordon  A.,  Bedeque  House, 

Belfast. 
Thomson,  Alexander,  Banchory  House, 

by  Aberdeen. 
Thorburn,  William  Reid,  M.A.,  Starkiee, 

Bury,  Lancashire. 
Tooke,  Thomas,  F.R.S.,  31  Spring  Gar* 

dens,  London. 
Twining,  Richard,  F.R.S.,   13  Bedford 

Place,  Russell  Square,  London. 
Tjmdall,  John,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S.,  Professor  of 

Natural  Philosophy  in  the  Royal  Insti- 
tution   of  Great  Britain,   Albemarle 

Street,  London. 

Walker,  Charles  V.,  Electric  Telegraph, 
South  Eastern  Railway,  Tunbridge. 

Warington,  Robert,  F.C.S.,  Apothecaries' 
Half,  London. 

Watt,  William,  Glasgow. 

Watts,  John  King,  St  Ives,  Huntingdon- 
shire. 

Whitla,  Valentine,  Beneden,  Belfast. 

Wigham,  Robert,  Norwich. 

Wilde,  William  R.,  Dublin. 

Wornell,  George,  4  North  Parade,  St 
Giles's,  Oxford. 


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PROCEEDINGS  of  the  FIRST  and  SECOND  MEETINGS,  at  York 
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Contents  : — Prof.  Airy,  on  the  Progress  of  Astronomy ;— J.  W.  Lubbock,  on  the  Tides; 
—Prof.  Forbes,  on  the  Present  State  of  Meteorology ; — Prof.  Powell,  on  the  Present  State 
of  the  Science  of  Radiant  Heat ; — Prof,  dimming,  on  Thermo-Electricity ; — Sir  D.  Brewster, 
on  the  Progress  of  Optics ; — Rev.  W.  Whewell,  on  the  Present  State  of  Mineralogy ;— Re*. 
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PROCEEDINGS  of  the  THIRD  MEETING  at  Cambridge,  1833, 
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Contents  : — Proceedings  of  the  Meeting ;— John  Taylor,  on  Mineral  Veins  j— Dr. 
Lindley,  on  the  Philosophy  of  Botany ; — Dr.  Henry,  on  the  Physiology  of  the  Nervous  Sy- 
stem;—P.  Barlow,  on  the  Strength  of  Materials ; — S.  H.  Christie,  on  the  Magnetism  of  the 
Earth; — Rev.  J.  Challis,  on  the  Analytical  Theory  of  Hydrostatics  and  Hydrodynamics;— 
G.  Rennie,  on  Hydraulics  as  a  Branch  of  Engineering,  Part  I. ; — Rev.  G.  Peacock,  on  certain 
Branches  of  Analysis. 

Together  with  papers  on  Mathematics  and  Physics,  Philosophical  Instruments  and  Mecha- 
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PROCEEDINGS  op  the  FOURTH  MEETING,  at  Edinburgh,  1834, 
Published  at  15s. 

Contents  : — H.  D.  Rogers,  on  the  Geology  of  North  America ; — Dr.  C.  Henry,  on  the 
Laws  of  Contagion; — Pro£  Clark,  on  Animal  Physiology ; — Rev.  L.  Jenyns,  on  Zoology;—- 
Re*.  J.  Challis,  on  Capillary  Attraction ;— »Prof.  Lloyd,  on  Physical  Optics ; — G.  Rennie,  on 
Hydraulics,  Part  II. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  and  Recommendations  of  the  Association 
and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  FIFTH  MEETING,  at  Dublin,  1835,  Pub- 
lished at  \3s.6d. 

Contents  : — Re*.  W.  Whewell,  on  the  Recent  Progress  and  present  Condition  of  the 
Mathematical  Theories  of  Electricity,  Magnetism,  and  Heat; — A.  Quetelet,  Aperc;u  de 
l'Etat  actuel  des  Sciences  Matheraatiques  chez  les  Beiges; — Capt  E.  Sabine,  on  the  Phe- 
nomena of  Terrestrial  Magnetism. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Prof.  Sir  W.  Hamilton's  Address,  and  Re- 
commendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  SIXTH  MEETING,  at  Bristol,  1836,  Pub- 
lished at  12s. 

Contents  :— Profc  Daubeny,  on  the  Present  State  of  our  Knowledge  with  respect  to  Mine- 
ral and  Thermal  Waters ; — Major  E.  Sabine,  on  the  Direction  and  Intensity  of  the  Terrestrial 
Magnetic  Force  in  Scotland ;— -J.  Richardson,  on  North  American  Zoology; — Rev.  J.  Challis, 
on  the  Mathematical  Theory  of  Fluids  ; — J.  T.  Mackay,  a  Comparative  View  of  the  more 
remarkable  Plants  which  characterize  the  neighbourhood  of  Dublin  and  Edinburgh,  and  the 
South-west  of  Scotland,  &c. ; — J.  T.  Mackay,  Comparative  Geographical  Notices  of  the 
more  remarkable  Plants  which  characterize  Scotland  and  Ireland ;— Report  of  the  Loudon  Sub- 
Committee  of  the  Medical  Section  on  the  Motions  and  Sounds  of  the  Heart ;— Second  Report 
of  the  Dublin  Sub-Committee  on  the  Motions  and  Sounds  of  the  Heart ; — Report  of  the  Dublin 
Committee  on  the  Pathology  of  the  Brain  and  Nervous  System  ; — J.  W.  Lubbock,  Account 
of  the  Recent  Discussions  of  Observations  of  the  Tides ; — Rev.  B.  Powell,  on  determining  the 
Refractive  Indices  for  the  Standard  Rays  of  the  Solar  Spectrum  in  various  media; — Dr.  Hodgkin, 
on  the  Communication  between  the  Arteries  and  Absorbents ; — Prof.  Phillips,  Report  of  Experi- 
ments on  Subterranean  Temperature; — Prof.  Hamilton,  on  the  Validity  of  a  Method  recently 
proposed  by  G.  B.  Jerrard,  for  Transforming  and  Resolving  Equations  of  Elevated  Degrees. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Prof.  Daubeny's  Address,  and  Recommen- 
dations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  SEVENTH  MEETING,  at  Liverpool,  1837, 
Published  at  16*.  6d. 

Contents  : — Major  E.  Sabine,  on  the  Variations  of  the  Magnetic  Intensity  observed  at  dif- 
ferent points  of  the  Earth's  Surface; — Rev.  W.  Taylor,  on  the  various  modes  of  Printing  for 
the  Use  of  the  Blind ; — J.  W.  Lubbock,  on  the  Discussions  of  Observations  of  the  Tides;— 
Prof.  T.  Thomson,  on  the  Difference  between  the  Composition  of  Cast  Iron  produced  by  the 
Cold  and  Hot  Blast ;— Rev.  T.  R.  Robinson,  on  the  Determination  of  the  Constant  of  Nutation 
by  the  Greenwich  Observations ; — R.  W.  Fox,  Experiments'  on  the  Electricity  of  Metallic 
Veins,  and  the  Temperature  of  Mines ; — Provisional  Report  of  the  Committee  of  the  Medical 
Section  of  the  British  Association,  appointed  to  investigate  the  Composition  of  Secretions,  and 
the  organs  producing  them; — Dr.  G.  O.  Rees,  Report  from  the  Committee  for  inquiring  into 
the  Analysis  of  the  Glands,  ftc.of  the  Human  Body ; — Second  Report  of  the  London  Sub-Com- 
mittee of  the  British  Association  Medical  Section,  on  the  Motions  and  Sountis  of  the  Heart;— 
Prof.  Johnston,  on  the  Present  State  of  pur  knowledge  in  regard  to  Dimorphous  Bodies; — Lt.- 
Col.  Sykes,  on  the  Statistics  of  the  Four  Collectorate  s  of  Dukhun,  under  the  British  Govern- 
ment;— E.  Hodgkinson,  on  the  relative  Strength  and  other  Mechanical  Properties  of  Iron  ob- 
tained from  the  Hot  and  Cold  Blast ; — W.  Fairbairn,  on  the  Strength  and  other  Properties  of 
Iron  obtained  from  the  Hot  andCoid  Blast ; — Sir  J.  Robison,  and  J.  S.  Russell,  Report  of  the 
Committee  on  Waves ; — Note  by  Major  Sabine,  being  an  Appendix  to  his  Report  on  the  Vari- 
ations of  the  Magnetic  Intensity  observed  at  different  Points  of  the  Earth's  Surface ; — J.  Yates, 
on  the  Growth  of  Plants  under  glass,  and  without  any  free  communication  with  the  outward 
Air,  on  the  Plan  of  Mr.  N.  J.  Ward,  of  London. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Prof.  Traill's  Address,  and  Recommenda- 
tions pf  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


PROCEEDINGS  of  the  EIGHTH  MEETING,  at  Newcastle,  1838, 
Published  at  15s. 

Contents  : — Rev.  W.  Whewell,  Account  of  a  Level  Line,  measured  from  the  Bristol  Chan* 
nel  to  the  English  Channel,  by  Mr.  Bunt ;— Report  on  the  Discussions  of  Tides,  prepared 
under  the  direction  of  the  Rev.  W.  Whewell ;— W.  S.  Harris,  Account  of  the  Progress  and 
State  of  the  Meteorological  Observations  at  Plymouth ;— Major  B.  8abine,  on  the  Magnetic 
Isoclinal  and  Isodyuamic  Lines  in  the  British  Islands; — D.  Lardner,  LL.D.,  on  too  Determi- 
nation of  the  Mean  Numerical  Values  of  Railway  Constants  *— R.  Mallet,  First  Report  upon 
Experiment*  upon  the  Action  of  Sea  and  River  Water  upon  Cast  and  Wrought  Iron r— R. 
Mallet,  on  the  Action  of  a  Heat  of  212°  Fahr.,  when  long  continued,  on  Inorganic  and  Or 
ganic  Substances. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Mr.  Murchison's  Address,  and  Recommen- 
dations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the' NINTH  MEETING,  at  Birmingham,  183ft 
Published  at  ISs.  6d. 

Contents: — Rev.  B.  Powell,  Report  on  the  Present  State  of  our  Knowledge  of  Refractive 
Indices,  for  the  Standard  Rays  of  the  Solar  Spectrum  in  different  media; — Report  on  the  Ap- 
plication of  the  Sum  assigned  for  Tide  Calculations  to  Re*.  W.  Whewell,  in  a  Letter  from  T.  0. 
Bunt,  Esq. ; — H.  L.  Pattinson,  on  some  galvanic  Experiments  to  determine  the  Existence  or 
Non-Existence  of  Electrical  Currents  among  Stratified  Rocks,  particularly  those  of  the  Moun- 
tain Limestone  formation,  constituting  the  Lead  Measures  of  Alston  Moor; — Sir  D.  Brewster, 
Reports  respecting  the  two  series  of  Hourly  Meteorological  Observations  kept  in  Scotland;  — 
Report  on  the  subject  of  a  series  of  Resolutions  adopted  by  the  British  Association  at  their 
Meeting  in  August  1838,  at  Newcastle; — R.  Owen,  Report  on  British  Fossil  Reptiles; — E, 
Forbes,  Report  on  the  Distribution  of  pulmoniferous  Molluscs  in  the  British  Isles , — W.  S. 
Harris,  Third  Report  on  the  Progress  of  the  Hourly  Meteorological  Register  at  the  Plymouth 
Dockyard. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Rev.  W.  Vernon  Harcourt's  Address,  and 
Recommendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  TENTH  MEETING,  at  Glasgow,  1840, 
Published  at  15s. 

Contents  : — Rev.  B.  Powell,  Report  on  the  recent  Progress  of  discovery  relative  to  Radiant 
Heat,  supplementary  to  a  former  Report  on  the  same  subject  Inserted  in  the  first  volume  of  the 
.Reports  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  8dence  H«  D.  Forbes,  Supple- 
mentary Report  on  Meteorology ; — W.  S.  Harris,  Report  on  Prof.  Whewell's  Anemometer, 
now  in  operation  at  Plymouth  {—-Report  on  "  The  Motions  and  8ounds  of  the  Heart,1'  by  the 
London  Committee  of  the  British  Association,  for  1839-40 ,— -Profc  Schonbein,  an  Account  of 
Researches  in  Electro-Chemistry ; — R.  Mallet,  Second  Report  upon  the  Action  of  Air  and 
Water,  whether  fresh  or  salt,  clear  or  foul,  and  at  various  temperatures,  upon  Cast  Iron, 
Wrought  Iron  and  Steel ;— R.  W.  Fox,  Report  on  some  Observations  on  Subterranean  Tem- 
perature;— A.  F.  Osier,  Report  on  the  Observations  recorded  dui'.ng  the  years  1837, 1838, 1839 
and  1840,  by  the  Self-registering  Anemometer  erected  at  the  Philosophical  Institution,  Bir. 
mingham ;— -Sir  D.  Brewster,  Report  respecting  the  two  Series  of  Hourly  Meteorological  Ob- 
servations kept  at  Inverness  and  Kingussie,  from  Nov.  1st,  1838  to  Nov.  1st,  .1839;— W. 
Thompson,  Report  on  the  Fauna  of  Ireland :  Div.  Vertebrate 5— C.  J.  B.  Williams,  M.D., 
Report  of  Experiments  on  the  Physiology  of  the  Lungs  and  Air-Tubes ;— Rev.  J.  S.  Henslow, 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Preservation  of  Animal  and  Vegetable  Substances. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Mr.  Murchison  and  Major  E.  Sabine's 
Address,  and  Recommendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  ELEVENTH  MEETING,  at  Plymouth, 
1841,  Published  at  13*.  6rf. 

Contents:— Rev.  P.  Kelland,  on  the  Present  State  of  our  Theoretical  and  Experimental 
Knowledge  of  the  Laws  of  Conduction  of  Heat ; — O.  L.  Roupell,  M.D.,  Report  on  Poisons  j— 
T.  G.  Bunt,  Report  on  Discussions  of  Bristol  Tides,  under  the  direction  of  the  Rev.  W.  Whewell ; 
— D.  Ross,  Report  on  the  Discussions  of  Leith  Tide  Observations,  under  the  direction  of  the 
Rev.  W.  Whewell ;— W.  S.  Harris,  upon  the  working  of  Whewell's  Anemometer  aft  Plymouth 
during  the  past  year ;— Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  superintend- 
ing the  scientific  co-operation  of  the  British  Association  in  the  System  of  Simultaneous  Obser- 
vations in  Terrestrial  Magnetism  and  Meteorology ;— Reports  of  Committees  appointed  to  pro- 
vide Meteorological  Instruments  for  the  use  of  M.  Agassis  and  Mr.  M*Cord ;— Report  of  a 
Committee  to  superintend  the  reduction  of  Meteorological  Observations  {—Report  of  a  Com- 
mittee for  revising  the  Nomenclature  of  the  Stars; — Report  of  a  Committee  tor  obtaining  In- 
struments and  registers  to  record  Shocks  of  Earthquakes  in  Scotland  and  Ireluri;~Repert  of 


a  Committee  on  the  Presentation  of  Vegetative  Powers  in  8eedsi— Dr.  Hodgkin,  on  Inquiries 
into  the  Races  of  Man ; — Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  to  report  how  far  the  Desiderata 
in  our  knowledge  of  the  Condition  of  the  Upper  Strata  of  the  Atmosphere  may  be  supplied  by 
means  of  Ascents  in  Balloons  or  otherwise,  to  ascertain  the  probable  expense  of  such  Experi- 
ments, and  to  draw  up  Directions  for  Observers  in  such  circumstances; — R.  Owen,  Report 
on  British  Fossil  Reptiles ; — Reports  on  the  Determination  of  the  Mean  Value  of  Railway 
Constants; — D.  Lardner,  LL.D.,  Second  and  concluding  Report  on  the  Determination  of  the 
Mean  Value  of  Railway  Constants ;— E.  Woods,  Report  on  Railway  Constants ;— Report  of  a 
Committee  on  the  Construction  of  a  Constant  Indicator  for  Steam-Engine*. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Prof.  W  he  well's  Address,  and  Recommen- 
dations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


PROCEEDINGS  of  the  TWELFTH  MEETING,  at  Manchester, 
1842,  Published  at  10*.  6d. 

Contents  t—  Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  to  conduct  the  co-operation  of  the  British 
Association  in  the  System  of  Simultaneous  Magnetical  and  Meteorological  Observations  ;— 
J.  Richardson,  M.D.,  Report  on  the  present  State  of  the  Ichthyology  of  New  Zealand  {— 
W.  8.  Harris,  Report  on  the  Progress  of  Meteorological  Observations  at  Plymouth  j — Second 
Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  to  make  Experiments  on  the  Growth  and  Vitality  of  Seeds ; 
— C.  Vignoles,  Report  of  the  Committee  on  Railway  Sections ; — Report  of  the  Committee 
for  the  Preservation  of  Animal  and  Vegetable  Substances ; — Lyon  Play  fair,  M.D.,  Abstract 
of  Prof.  Liebig's  Report  on  " Organic  Chemistry  applied  to  Physiology  and  Pathology;"— 
R.  Owen,  Report  on  the  British  Fossil  Mammalia,  Part  I. ; — R.  Hunt,  Researches  on  the 
Influence  of  Light  on  the  Germination  of  Seeds  and  the  Orowth  of  Plants ;— L.  Agassis,  Report 
on  the  Fossil  Fishes  of  the  Devonian  System  or  Old  Red  Sandstone ;— W.  Fairbairn,  Ap- 
pendix to  a  Report  on  the  Strength  and  other  Properties  of  Cast  Iron  obtained  from  the  Hot 
and  Cold  Blast ; — D.  Milne,  Report  of  the  Committee  for  registering  Shocks  of  Earthquakes 
in  Great  Britain ;— -Report  of  a  Committee  on  the  Construction  of  a  Constant  Indicator  for  Steam- 
Engines,  and  for  the  determination  of  the  Velocity  of  the  Piston  of  the  Self-acting  Engine  at 
different  periods  of  the  Stroke ; — J.  S.  Russell,  Report  of  a  Committee  on  the  form  of  Ships ; 
—Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  "to  consider  of  the  rules  by  which  the  Nomenclature  of 
Zoology  may  be  established  on  a  uniform  and  permanent  basis ; " — Report  of  a  Committee  on 
the  Vital  Statistics  of  large  Towns  in  Scotland ; — Provisional  Reports,  and  Notices  of  Progress 
in  Special  Researches  entrusted  to  Committees  and  Individuals. 

Together  with  tin  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Lord  Francis  Egerton's  Address,  and  Re- 
commendations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


PROCEEDINGS  of  the  THIRTEENTH  MEETING,  at  Cork, 
1843,  Published  at  12*. 

Contents: — Robert  Mallet,  Third  Report  upon  the  Action  of  Air  and  Water,  whether 
fresh  or  salt,  clear  or  foul,  and  of  Various  Temperatures,  upon  Cast  Iron,  Wrought  Iron  and 
Steel ;-— Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  to  conduct  the  co-operation  of  the  British  As- 
sociation in  the  System  of  Simultaneous  MagnetScal  and  Meteorological  Observations ;— Sir 
J.  F.  W.  Herschel,  Bart.,  Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  for  the  Reduction  of  Meteoro- 
logical Observations; — Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  for  Experiments  on  Steam  - 
Engines ; — Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the  Vitality 
of  Seeds ; — J.  S.  Russell,  Report  of  a  Series  of  Observations  on  the  Tides  of  the  Frith  of 
Forth  and  the  East  Coast  of  Scotland ;— J.  S.  Russell,  Notice  of  a  Report  of  the  Committee 
on  the  Form  of  Ships ; — J.  Bbke,  Report  on  the  Physiological  Acdon  of  Medicines  f— Report 
of  the  Committee  on  Zoological  Nomenclature ; — Report  of  the  Committee  for  Registering 
the  Shocks  of  Earthquakes,  and  making  such  Meteorological  Observations  as  may  appear  to 
them  desirable ;— Report  of  the  Committee  for  conducting  Experiments  with  Captive  Balloons ; 
—Prof.  Wheatstone,  Appendix  to  the  Report ;— Report  of  the  Committee  for  the  Translation 
and  Publication  of  Poreign  Scientific  Memoirs ; — C.  W.  Peach,  on  the  Habits  of  the  Marine 
Testacea; — E.  Forbes,  Report  on  the  Mollusca  and  Radiata  of  the  Agean  Sea,  and  on  their 
distribution,  considered  as  bearing  on  Geology ;— L.  Agassis,  Synoptical  Table  of  British 
Fossil  Fishes,  arranged  in  the  order  of  the  Geological  Formations; — R.  Owen,  Report  on  the 
British  Fossil  Mammalia,  Part  II. ;— E.  W.  Binney,  Report  on  the  excavation  made  at  the 
junction  of  the  Lower  New  Red  Sandstone  with  the  Coal  Measures  at  Collyhnrst ;— W. 
Thompson,  Report  on  the  Fauna  of  Ireland :  Div.  fnwrtebrata ;— Pnmaiooal  Reports,  and 
Notices  of  Progress  in  Special  Researches  entrusted  to  Committees  and  Individuals. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Earl  of  Rosse's  Address,  and  Recommen- 
dations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


PROCEEDINGS  op  the  FOURTEENTH  MEETING,  at  York,  184*, 
Published  at  £\. 

Contents  : — W.  B.  Carpenter,  on  the  Microscopic  Structure  of  Shells ; — J.  Alder  and  A. 
Hancock,  Report  on  the  British  Nudibranchiate  Mollusca; — R.  Hunt,  Researches  on  the 
Influence  of  Light  on  the  Germination  of  Seeds  and  the  Growth  of  Plants ; — Report  of  a 
Committee  appointed  by  the  British  Association  in  1840,  for  revising  the  Nomenclature  of  the 
Stars ;— Lt.-Col.  Sabine,  on  the  Meteorology  of  Toronto  in  Canada ; — J.  Blackwall,  Report 
on  some  recent  researches  into  the  Structure,  Functions  and  (Economy  of  the  Araneidea 
made  in  Great  Britain ; — Earl  of  Rosse,  on  the  Construction  of  large  Reflecting  Telescopes ; 
—Rev.  W.  V.  Harcourt,  Report  on  a  Gas  Furnace  for  Experiments  on  Vitrifaction  and  other 
Applications  of  High  Heat  in  the  Laboratory; — Report  of  the  Committee  for  Registering 
Earthquake  Shocks  in  Scotland ; — Report  of  a  Committee  for  Experiments  on  Steam-Engines ; 
— Report  of  the  Committee  to  investigate  the  Varieties  of  the  Human  Race; — Fourth  Report 
of  a  Committee  appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the  Vitality  of  Seeds; — W.  Fair- 
bairn,  on  the  Consumption  of  Fuel  and  the  prevention  of  Smoke ; — F.  Ronalds,  Report  con* 
cerning  the  Observatory  of  the  British  Association  at  Kew ; — Sixth  Report  of  the  Committee 
appointed  to  conduct  the  Co-operation  of  the  British  Association  in  the  System  of  Simulta- 
neous Magnetical  and  Meteorological  Observations; — Prof.  Forchhammer  on  the  influence 
of  Fucoidal  Plants  upon  the  Formations  of  the  Earth,  on  Metamorphism  in  general,  and  par- 
ticularly the  Metamorphosis  of  the  Scandinavian  Alum  Slate ; — H.  E.  Strickland,  Report  on 
the  recent  Progress  and  present  State  of  Ornithology ;— T.  Oldham,  Report  of  Committee 
appointed  to  conduct  Observations  on  Subterranean  Temperature  in  Ireland ; — Prof.  Owen, 
Report  on  the  Extinct  Mammals  of  Australia,  with  descriptions  of  certain  Fossils  indicative 
of  the  former  existence  in  that  Continent  of  large  Marsupial  Representatives  of  the  Order 
Pachydermata ; — W.  S.  Harris,  Report  on  the  working  of  W  he  well  and  Osier's  Anemometers 
at  Plymouth,  for  the  years  1841,  1842,  1843; — W.  R.  Birt,  Report  on  Atmospheric  Waves; 
— L.  Agassiz,  Report  sur  les  Poissons  Fossiles  de  l'Argile  de  Londres,  with  translation ;— J. 
S.  Russell,  Report  on  Waves ; — Provisional  Reports,  and  Notices  of  Progress  in  Special  Re- 
searches entrusted  to  Committees  and  Individuals. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Dean  of  Ely's  Address,  and  Recommenda- 
tions of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  FIFTEENTH  MEETING,  at  Cambridge, 
1 845,  Published  at  12*. 

Contents  : — Seventh  Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  to  conduct  the  Co-operation  of  the 
British  Association  in  the  System  of  Simultaneous  Magnetical  and  Meteorological  Observa- 
tions ; — Lt.-Col.  Sabine,  on  some  points  in  the  Meteorology  of  Bombay  ; — J.  Blake,  Report 
on  the  Physiological  Action  of  Medicines  ; — Dr.  Von  Boguslawski,  on  the  Comet  of  1843; 
— R.  Hunt,  Report  on  the  Actinograph ; — Prof.  Schbnbein,  on  Ozone ; — Prof.  Erman,  on 
the  Influence  of  Friction  upon  Thermo-Electricity ; — Baron  Senftenberg,  on  the  Self- 
rtegistering  Meteorological  Instruments  employed  in  the  Observatory  at  Senftenberg;— 
W.  R.  Birt,  Second  Report  on  Atmospheric  Waves ; — G.  R.  Porter,  on  the  Progress  and  Pre- 
sent Extent  of  Savings'  Banks  in  the  United  Kingdom ; — Prof.  Bunsen  and  Dr.  Playfair, 
Report  on  the  Gases  evolved  from  Iron  Furnaces,  with  reference  to  the  Theory  of  Smelting 
of  Iron ; — Dr.  Richardson,  Report  on  the  Ichthyology  of  the  Seas  of  China  and  Japan  $— 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Registration  of  Periodical  Phenomena  of  Animals  and  Vege- 
tables ; — Fifth  Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Vitality  of  Seeds ; — Appendix,  &c 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Sir  J.  F.  W.  Herschel's  Address,  and  Re- 
commendations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  SIXTEENTH  MEETING,  at  Southampton, 
1M6,  Published  at  15s. 

Contents: — G.  G.  Stokes,  Report  on  Recent  Researches  in  Hydrodynamics; — Sixth 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Vitality  of  Seeds; — Dr.  Schunck,  on  the  Colouring  Matters  of 
Madder ; — J.  Blake,  on  the  Physiological  Action  of  Medicines ; — R.  Hunt,  Report  on  the  Ac- 
tinograph;— R.  Hunt,  Notices  on  the  Influence  of  Light  on  the  Growth  of  Plants;— R.  L. 
Ellis,  on  the  Recent  Progress  of  Analysis ; — Prof.  Forchhammer,  on  Comparative  Analytical 
Researches  on  Sea  Water ; — A.  Erman,  on  the  Calculation  of  the  Gaussian  Constants  for 
1829 ; — G.  R.  Porter,  on  the  Progress,  present  Amount,  and  probable  future  Condition  of  the 
Iron  Manufacture  in  Great  Britain; — W.  R.  Birt,  Third  Report  on  Atmospheric  Waves;— 
ProC  Owen,  Report  on  the  Archetype  and  Homologies  of  the  Vertebrate  Skeleton  ; — 
J.  Phillips,  on  Anemometry  ; — J.  Percy,  M.D.,  Report  on  the  Crystalline  Slags; — Addenda  to 
Mr.  Birt's  Report  on  Atmospheric  Waves. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Sir  R.  I.  Murchison's  Address,  and  Re- 
commendations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


PROCEEDINGS  of  the  SEVENTEENTH  MEETING,  at  Oxford, 

1847,  Published  at  18s. 

Contents  :— Prof.  Langberg,  on  the  Specific  Gravity  of  Sulphuric  Acid  at  different  de- 
grees of  dilution,  and  on  the  relation  which  exists  between  the  Development  of  Heat  and  the 
coincident  contraction  of  Volume  in  Sulphuric  Acid  when  mixed  with  Water;— R.  Hunt, 
Researches  on  the  Influence  of  the  Solar  Rays  on  the  Growth  of  Plants ; — R.  Mallet,  on 
the  Facts  of  Earthquake  Phasnomena ; — Prof.  Nilsson,  on  the  Primitive  Inhabitants  of  Scan* 
dinavia ; — W.  Hopkins,  Report  on  the  Geological  Theories  of  Elevation  and  Earthquakes ; 
— -Dr.  W.  D.  Carpenter,  Report  on  the  Microscopic  Structure  of  Shells ; — Rev.  W.  Whewell  and 
Sir  James  C.  Ross,  Report  upon  the  Recommendation  of  an  Expedition  for  the  purpose  of 
completing  our  knowledge  of  the  Tides; — Dr.  Schunck,  on  Colouring  Matters  {—Seventh  Re- 
port of  the  Committee  on  the  Vitality  of  Seeds ; — J.  Glynn,  on  the  Turbine  or  Horizontal 
Water- Wheel  of  France  and  Germany; — Dr.  R.  G.  Latham,  on  the  present  state  and  recent 
progress  of  Ethnographical  Philology ; — Dr.  J.  C.  Prichard,  on  the  various  methods  of  Research 
which  contribute  to  the  Advancement  of  Ethnology,  and  of  the  relations  of  that  Science  to 
other  branches  of  Knowledge , — Dr.  C.  C.  J.  Bunscn,  on  the  results  of  the  recent  Egyptian 
researches  in  reference  to  Asiatic  and  African  Ethnology,  and  the  Classification  of  Languages; 
-—Dr.  C.  Meyer,  on  the  Importance  of  the  Study  of  the  Celtic  Language  as  exhibited  by  the 
Modern  Celtic  Dialects  still  extant ; — Dr.  Max  Miiller,  on  the  Relation  of  the  Bengali  to  the 
Arian  and  Aboriginal  Languages  of  India; — W.  R.  Birt,  Fourth  Report  on  Atmospheric 
Waves ; — Prof.  W.  H.  Dove,  Temperature  Tables ;  with  Introductory  Remarks  by  Lieut-Col. 
E.  Sabine ; — A.  Erin  an  and  H.  Petersen,  Third  Report  on  the  Calculation  of  the  Gaussian  Con- 
stants for  1829. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Sir  Robert  Harry  Inglis's  Address,  and 
Recommendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  EIGHTEENTH  MEETING,  at   Swansea, 

1848,  Published  at  9s. 

Contents: — Rev.  B.  Powell,  A  Catalogue  of  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors; — J.  Glynn, 
on  Water-pressure  Engines  ; — R.  A.  Smith,  on  the  Air  and  Water  of  Towns; — Eighth  Report 
of  a  Committee  on  the  Growth  and  Vitality  of  Seeds ; — W.  R.  Birt,  Fifth  Report  on  Atmo- 
spheric Waves ; — E.  Schunck,  on  Colouring  Matters ; — J.  P.  Budd,  on  the  advantageous  use 
made  of  the  gaseous  escape  from  the  Blast  Furnaces  at  the  Ystalyfera  Iron  Works; — R.  Hunt, 
Report  of  progress  in  the  investigation  of  the  Action  of  Carbonic  Acid  on  the  Growth  of 
Plants  allied  to  those  of  the  Coal  Formations ; — Prof.  H.  W.  Dove,  Supplement  to  the  Tem- 
perature Tables  printed  in  the  Report  of  the  British  Association  for  1847  ; — Remarks  by  Prod 
Dove  on  his  recently  constructed  Maps  of  the  Monthly  Isothermal  Lines  of  the  Globe,  and  on 
some  of  the  principal  Conclusions  in  regard  to  Climatology  deducible  from  them ;  with  an  in- 
troductory Notice  by  LL-Col.  E.  Sabine ; — Dr.  Daubeny,  on  the  progress  of  the  investigation 
on  the  Influence  of  Carbonic  Acid  on  the  Growth  of  Ferns ; — J.  Phillips,  Notice  of  further 
progress  in  Anemometrical  Researches ; — Mr.  Mallet's  Letter  to  the  Assistant-General  Secre- 
tary;— A.  Erman,  Second  Report  on  the  Gaussian  Constants; — Report  of  a  Committee 
relative  to  the  expediency  of  recommending  the  continuance  of  the  Toronto  Magnetical  and 
Meteorological  Observatory  until  December  1850. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  the  Marquis  of  Northampton's  Address, 
and  Recommendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  NINETEENTH  MEETING,  at  Birmingham, 

1849,  Published  at  10s. 

Contents  : — Rev.  B.  Powell,  A  Catalogue  of  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors ;— Earl 
of  Rosse,  Notice  of  Nebulas  lately  observed  in  the  Six-feet  Reflector ; — Prof.  Daubeny,  on  the 
Influence  of  Carbonic  Acid  Gas  on  the  health  of  Plants,  especially  of  those  allied  to  the  Fossil 
Remains  found  in  the  Coal  Formation ; — Thomas  Andrews,  M.D.,  Report  on  the  Heat  of 
Combination ; — Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Registration  of  the  Periodic  Phaenomena  of 
Plants  and  Animals ; — Ninth  Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments 
on  the  Growth  and  Vitality  of  Seeds ;— Francis  Ronalds,  Report  concerning  the  Observatory 
of  the  British  Association  at  Kew,  from  Aug.  9,  1848  to  Sept  12,  1849 ;— Robert  Mallet, 
Report  on  the  Experimental  Inquiry  conducted  at  the  request  of  the  British  Association,  on 
Railway  Bar  Corrosion ; — William  Radcliff  Birt,  Report  on  the  Discussion  of  the  Electrical 
Observations  at  Kew. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  the  Rev.  T.  R.  Robinson's  Address,  and 
Recommendations  of  the  Association  and  its  Committees, 


PROCEEDINGS  of  thb  TWENTIETH  MEETING,  at  Edinburgh, 

1850.  Published  at  15s. 

Contents t — Robert  Mallet,  First  Report  on  the  Facts  of  Earthquake  Pbaenomena;— Rev. 
B.  Powell,  on  Observations  on  Luminous  Meteors  {—Thomas  Williams,  on  the  Structure  and 
History  of  the  British  Annelida ;— T.  C.  Hunt,  Results  of  Meteorological  Observations  taken 
at  St.  Michael's  from  the  1st  of  January,  1840  to  the  S  1st  of  December,  1849;— R.  Hunt  on 
the  present  State  of  oar  Knowledge  of  the  Chemical  Action  of  the  Solar  Radiations ;— Tenth 
Report  of  a  Committee  appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the  Growth  and  Vitality 
of  Seeds  {—Major-Gen.  Briggs,  Report  on  the  Aboriginal  Tribes  of  India  p— Francis  Ronalds, 
Report  concerning  the  Observatory  of  the  British  Association  at  Kew;— Edward  Forbes,  Report 
on  the  Investigation  of  British  Marine  Zoology  by  means  of  the  Dredge;— Robert  MacAndrew, 
Notes  on  the  Distribution  and  Range  in  depth  of  Mollusca  add  other  Marine  Animals,  ob- 
served on  the  coasts  of  Spain,  Portugal,  Barbary,  Malta,  and  Southern  Italy  in  1849; — Prot 
Allmen,  on  the  Present  8tate  of  our  Knowledge  of  the  Freshwater  Poly  soa ;— Registration  of 
the  Periodical  Phenomena  of  Plants  and  Animals ; — Suggestions  to  Astronomers  for  the  Ob- 
servation of  the  Total  Eclipse  of  the  Sun  on  July  28,  1851. 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Sir  David  Brewster's  Address,  and  Recom- 
mendations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 

PROCEEDINGS  of  the  TWENTY-FIRST  MEETING,  at  Ipswich, 

1851,  Published  at  16s.  6d. 

Contents: — Rev.  B.  Powell,  on  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors;— Eleventh  Report 
of  a  Committee  appointed  to  continue  their  Experiments  on  the  Growth  and  Vitality  of 
Seeds; — J.  Drew,  Remarks  on  the  Climate  of  Southampton,  founded  on  Barometrical,  Ther- 
mometrical  and  Hygrometrical  Tables,  deduced  from  Observations  taken  three  times  daily 
during  the  years  1848,  1849  and  1850 ; — Dr.  R.  A.  Smith,  on  the  Air  and  Water  of  Towns. 
Action  of  Porous  Strata,  Water  and  Organic  Matter ; — Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  by 
the  British  Association  to  consider  the  probable  Effects  in  an  (Economical  and  Physical  Point 
of  View  of  the  Destruction  of  Tropical  Forests , — A*  Henfirey,  on  the  Reproduction  and 
supposed  Existence  of  Sexual  Organs  in  the  Higher  Crvptogamous  Plants ;— Dr.  Daubeny, 
on  the  Nomenclature  of  Organic  Compounds; — Rev.  J. W.  Donaldson,  on  two  unsolved 
Problems  in  Indo-German  Philology ;— T.  Williams,  Report  on  the  British  Annelida;— Robert 
Mallet,  Second  Report  on  the  Facts  of  Earthquake  Phssnomena ; — Letter  from  Prot  Henry, 
Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  at  Washington,  to  Col.  Sabine,  General  Secretary  of 
the  British  Association,  on  the  System  of  Meteorological  Observations  proposed  to  be 
established  in  the  United  States; — CoL  Sabine,  Report  on  the  Kew  Magnetopraphs s— J. 
Welsh,  Report  to  F.  Ronalds,  on  the  Performance  of  his  three  Magnetographs  during  the  Ex- 
perimental Trial  at  the  Kew  Observatory,  April  1  till  October  I,  1851 } — F.  Ronalds,  Report 
concerning  the  Observatory  of  the  British  Association  at  Kew,  from  September  12,  1850  to 
July  31,  1851 ; — Ordnance  Survey  of  Scotland; — Provisional  Report 

Together  with  the  Transactions  of  the  Sections,  Professor  Airy's  Address,  and  Recom- 
mendations of  the  Association  and  its  Committees. 


DOVE'S  MONTHLY  ISOTHERMAL  MAPS  of  the  GLOBE,  with  the  accompanying 
Memoir,  Price  5s. 

LITHOGRAPHED  SIGNATURES  of  the  MEMBERS  who  met  at  Cambridge  in  1838, 
with  the  Proceedings  of  the  Public  Meetings,  4 to.  Price  4s.     (To  Members,  3s.) 


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