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REPORT 



OF THE 



TWENTY-FIFTH MEETING 




BRITISH ASSOCIATION 



ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE ; 



HELD AT GLASGOW IIS^ SEPTEMBER 1855. 



LONDON: 

JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 

1856. 




PRINTED BY 
RICHARD TAYLOR AND WILLIAM FRANCIS 

RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET. 





CONTENTS. 



Page 

Objects and Rules of the Association xvii 

Places of Meeting and Officers from commencement xx 

Table of Council from commencement xxiii 

Treasurer's Account xxv 

Officers and Council xxvi 

Officers of Sectional Committees xxvii 

Corresponding Members xxviii 

Report of the Council to the General Committee xxviii 

Report of the Kew Committee xxx 

Report of the Parliamentary Committee xlvii 

Recommendations for Additional Reports and Researches in Science Ixiii 

Synopsis of Money Grants Ixvii 

General Statement of Sums paid for Scientific Purposes Ixviii 

Extracts from Resolutions of the General Committee Ixxi 

Arrangement of the General Meetings Ixxii 

Address of the President , Ixxiii 



REPORTS OF RESEARCHES IN SCIENCE. 

Report on the Relation between Explosions in Coal-Mines and Re- 
volving Storms. By Thomas Dobson, B.A., of St. John's College, 
Cambridge 1 

On the Influence of the Solar Radiations on the Vital Powers of Plants 
growing under different Atmospheric Conditions. — Part III. By J. H. 
Gladstone, Ph.D., F.R.S 15 

On the British Edriophthaima. By C. Spence Bate, F.L.S. &c 18 

On the present state of our knowledge on the Supply of Water to 

Towns. By John Frederic Bateman, C.E., F.G.S 62 

a1 



IV CONTENTS. 

Page 
Fifteenth Report of a Committee, consisting of Professor Daubeny, 
Professor Henslow, and Professor Lindley, appointed to continue 
their Experiments on the Growth and Vitality of Seeds 78 

Report on Observations of Luminous Meteors, 1854—55. By the Rev. 
Baden Powell, M.A., F.R.S. &c., Savilian Professor of Geometry 
in the University of Oxford 79 

Provisional Report of the Committee, consisting of Mr. W. Fairbairn, 
His Grace the Duke of Argyll, Captain Sir Edward Belcher, 
the Rev. Dr. Robinson, the Rev. Dr. Scoresby, Mr. Joseph Whit- 
worth, Mr. J. Beaumont Neilson, Mr. James Nasmyth, and 
Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine; appointed to institute an Inquiry 
into the best means of ascertaining those properties of metals and 
effects of various modes of treating them which are of importance to 
the durability and efficiency of Artillery ; and empowered, should 
they think it advisable, to communicate, in the name of the Associa- 
tion, with Her Majesty's Government, and to request its assistance. . 100 

On Typical Objects in Natural History.... 108 

An Account of the Self-Registering Anemometer and Rain-Gauge 
erected at the Liverpool Observatory in the Autumn of 1851, with a 
Summary of the Records for the years 1852, 1853, 1854, and 1855. 
By A. Follett Osler, F.R.S 127 

Provisional Reports 1 ^S 



CONTENTS. 



NOTICES AND ABSTRACTS 



MISCELLANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SECTIONS. 



I 



MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 

Mathematics. 

Page 

Mr. Arthur Cayley on the Porism of the in-and-eircumscribed Triangle ... 1 

Mr. M. Collins on the possible and impossible cases of Quadratic Duplicate 

Equalities in the Diophantine Analysis 2 

Mr. A. J. Ellis on a more general Theory of Analytical Geometry, including 

the Cartesian as a particular case 5 

Sir W. R. Hamilton on the conception of the Anharmonic Quaternion, and 

on its application to the Theory of Involution in Space 7 

Light, Heat, Electricity, Magnetism. 

Dr. Adamson on the Fixing of Photographs 7 

Sir David Brewster on the Triple Spectrum 7 

on the Binocular Vision of Surfaces of Different Colours 9 

on the Existence of Acari in Mica 9 

on the Absorption of Matter by the Surfaces of Bodies 9 

on the Remains of Plants in Calcareous Spar from 

King's County, Ireland 9 

on the Phaenomena of Decomposed Glass 10 

Mr. Paul Cameron on the Making and Magnetizing of Steel Magnets 10 

on the Deviations of the Compass in Iron Ships and the 

means of adjusting them 10 

Professor Chevallier on an Analogy between Heat and Electricity 10 

M. Antoine Claudet on the Polystereopticon 10 

M. Leon Foucault on the Heat produced by the Influence of the Magnet 

upon Bodies in Motion 11 

Dr. Green on a Machine for Polishing Specula 11 

M. W. Haidinger on the Optical Properties of Cadmacetite 11 

Mr. Evan Hopkins on the Optical Illusions of the Atmospheric Lens 12 

Mr. J. P. Joule's Account of some Experiments with a large Electro-Magnet 12 

M. Nachot on New Forms of Microscope, adapted for Physiological Demon- 
stration 12 

Dr. William Scoresby's Elucidations, by Facts and Experiments, of the 

Magnetism of Iron Ships, and its changes 12 

Professor Stokes on the Achromatism of a Double Object-Glass 14 



VI CONTENTS. 

Page 
Mr. William Symons on a New Form of the Gas Battery 15 

Mr. James Thomson on certain curious Motions observable on the Surfaces 
of Wine and other Alcohohc Liquors 16 

Professor W. Thomson on the Effects of Mechanical Strain on the Thermo- 

Electric Qualities of Metals 17 

■ on the Use of ObseiTations of Terrestrial Temperature 

for the investigation of Absolute Dates in Geology 18 

• on the Electric Qualities of Magnetized Iron 19 

— — on the Thermo-Electric Position of Aliiminium 20 

■^— — — on Peristaltic Induction of Electric Currents in Sub- 
marine Telegraph Wires 21 

: on New Instruments for Measuring Electrical Poten- 
tials and Capacities 22 

Mr. John T. Towson on the Means proposed by the Liverpool Compass 
Committee for carrying out Investigations relative to the Laws which govern 
the Deviation of the Compass 22 

Professor Tyndall's Experimental Demonstration of the Polarity of Dia- 
magnetic Bodies 22 

Mr. WiLDMAN Whitehouse's Experimental Observations on an Electric 
Gable 23 

Mr. C. Greville Williams on the New Maximum Thermometer of H. 
Negretti and Zambra 24 

Astronomy, Meteors, Waves. 

Astronomer Broun on the Establishment of a Magnetic Meteorological and 
Astronomical Observatory on the Mountain of Augusta MuUay, at 6200 feet, 
in Travancore 25 

Mr. W. S. Jacob on certain Anomalies presented by the Binary Star 70 
Ophiuchi 25 

Professor Mossotti on the Calculation of an Observed Eclipse or Oecultation 

of a Star 26 

Professor Nichol's Remarks on the Chronology of the Formations of the 

Moon 28 

Professor C. Piazzi Smyth's Note on Solar Refraction 29 

on Altitude Observations at Sea 29 

on the Transmission of Time Signals 29 

Meteorology. 

Mr. Alexander Brown on the Fall of Rain at Aibroath 30 

Dr. Georoe Buist on remarkable Hailstorms in India, from March 1851 to 

May 1855 31 

Professor Chevallier on a Rainbow seen after Sunset 38 

Professor Connell's Improvements on a Dew-point Hygrometer lately 

described by the Author 38 

Captain FitzRoy's Wind-charts of the Atlantic, compiled from Maury's 

Pilot Charts 39 

Mr. M. J. Johnson on the Detection and Measurement of Atmospheric 

Electricity by the Photo-Barograph and Thermograph 40 

Mr. E. J. Lowe on the Force of the Wind in July and August 1855, as taken 
by the "Atmospheric Recorder" at the Beeston Observatory , 40 



CONTENTS. Vll 

Page 
Mr. J. C. MouNSEY on a singular Iridescent Phaenomenon seen on Winder- 
mere Lake, Oct. 24, 1851 41 

Dr. Nichol's Notice of Climatological Elements in the Western District of 

Scotland 42 

Rev. T. Rankin on Meteorological Phsenomena for 1854, registered at 

Huggate 42 

Rear-Admiral Sir John Ross on the Aurora Borealis 42 

Mr. R. Russell on the Meteorology of the United States and Canada 42 

Professor C. Piazzi Smyth on Naval Anemometrical Observations 45 

Mr. P. L. SiMMONDs's Notices of Rain-falls for a Series of Years at Home 
and in Foreign Countries 45 

Dr., Taylor on Waterspouts 45 

CHEMISTRY. 

Dr. Thomas Andrews on the Polar Decomposition of Water by Common 
and Atmospheric Electricity 46 

■ on the Allotropic Modifications of Chlorine and 

Bromine analogous to the Ozone from Oxygen 48 

Mr. Barnett on Photographic Researches 48 

Professor Bunsen and Dr. Henry E. Roscoe's Photochemical Researches, 
with reference to the Laws of the Chemical Action of Light 48 

Mr. F. Crace Calvert on the Manufacture of Iron by Purified Coke 49 

and Mr. Richard Johnson on Alloys 50 

• on the Action of Sulphuretted Hydrogen on Salts of 

Zinc and Copper ■ 51 

Mr. D.Campbell's Description of Dr. Clark's Patent Process for Softening 
Water, now in use at the Works of the Plumstead, Woolwich, and Charlton 
Consumers' Puie Water Company, together with some Account of their 
Works 54 

Chevalier De Claussen on the Preservation of the Potato Crops 64 

Mrs. Crosse on the apparent Mechanical Action accompanying Electrical 
Transfer 55 

Extracts from a Letter from the Rev. A. S; Farrar, on the late Eruption of 
Vesuvius 65 

Professor Daubeny on an Indirect Method of ascertaining the presence of 
Phosphoric Acid in Rocks, where the quantity of that ingredient was too 
minute to be determinable by direct analysis 55 

on the Action of Light on the Germination of Seeds 56 

Dr. J. B. Edwards on the Titaniferous Iron of the Mersey Shore 61 

Mr. David Forbes on the Action of Sulphurets on MetalHc Silicates at high 
Temperatures 62 

Professor Frankland on some Organic Compounds containing Metals 62 



on a Mode of conserving the Alkaline Sulphates con- 



tained in Alums 62 

Professor E. Fr^my on the Extraction of Metals from the Ore of Platinum ... 63 

Mr. J. Galletley on a New Glucocide contained in the Petals of a Wall- 
flower 63 

Mr. Robert Galloway on the Use of Phosphate of Potash in a Salt Meat 

Dietary , 63 



VUl CONTENTS. 

Page 
Mr. Robert Galloway on the Quality of Food of Artizans in an artificially 

heated Atmosphere 63 

Dr. J. H. Gladstone on a Crystalline Deposit of Gypsum in the Reservoir 

of the Ilighgate Waterworks 63 

M. Ed. Haeffely'.s Experiments on the Compounds of Tin with Arsenic ... 64 

Baron Von Liebig on a new Form of Cyanic Acid 64 

Dr. A. L. Lindsay on the Commercial Uses of Lichens 64 

Mr. Stevenson Macadam on the Chemical Composition of the Waters of 

the Clyde 64 

Dr. Maclagan on the Composition of Bread 66 

Dr. A. Matthiessen on the Metals of the Alkaline Earths 66 

Rev. Dr. J. G. Mac vicar on the possibility of representing by Diagrams the 
principal Functions of the Molecules of Bodies 66 

Mr. E. Chambers Nicholson and Dr. David S. Price on the Chemical 
Composition of some Iron Ores called ' Brass ' occurring in the Coal-Measures 
of South Wales 66 

Dr. Normandy on the Marine Aerated Freshwater Apparatus 68 

Dr. F. Penny on a simple Volumetric Process for the Valuation of Cochineal... 68 

■ on the Manufacture of Iodine and other Products from Kelp ... 69 

on the Composition and Phosphorescence of Plate-Sulphate of 

Potash 69 

Professor A. C. Ramsay on a Process for obtaining Lithographs by the Photo- 
graphic Process 69 

Mr. Thos. H. Rowney on the Composition of Vandyke-Brown 70 

■ on the Composition of two Mineral Substances em- 
ployed as Pigments 70 

Mr. Balfour Stewart on certain Laws observed in the mutual action of 
Sulphuric Acid and Water 70 

Dr. R. D. Thomson on the Condition of the Atmosphere during Cholera 71 

Dr. Aug. Vcelcker on Caseine, and a method of determining Sulphur and 
Phosphorus in Organic Compounds in one operation 73 

Mr. C. Greville Williams on some of the Basic Constituents of Coal- 
Naphtha 74 

Mr. G. F. Wilson on a Process for obtaining and purifying Glycerine, and on 
some of its Applications 75 

GEOLOGY. 

Mr. Robert Allan on the condition of the Haukedalr Geysers of Iceland, 
July 1855 75 

Mr. George Anderson on the Superficial Deposits laid open by the Cuttings 
on the Inverness and Nairn Railroad 78 

Mr. Richard Banks on the recent Discoveiy of Ichthyolites and Crustacea in 
the Tilestonesof Kington, Herefordshire 78 

Captain Sir Edward Belcher's Notice of the Discovery of Ichthyosaurus 
and other Fossils in the late Arctic Searching Expedition, 1852-54 79 

Mr. James Bryce on the Glacial Phsenomena of the Lake District of England 80 

■ on a lately discovered Tract of Granite inArran 80 

Mr. Alexander Bryson on sections of Fossils from the Coal Formation of 
Mid-Lothian 80 



CONTENTS. IX 

Page 

Mr. John Buchanan on Ancient Canoes found at Glasgow 80 

Mr. J. A. Campbell on the Auriferous Quartz Formation of Australia 81 

Mr. Robert Chambers on Denudation and other effects usually attributed to 

Water 81 

Mr. W. Darling on the Probable Maximum Depth of the Ocean 81 

Mr. J. W. Dawson on the Fossils of the Coal Formation of Nova Scotia 81 

Mr. David Forbes on the Relations of the Silurian and Metamorphic Rocks 

of the South of Norway 82 

Professors Harkness and Blyth's Remarks on the Cleavage of the Devonians 

of the South of Ireland 82 

Professor Harkness on the Lowest Sedimentary Rocks of Scotland 82 

on the Geology of the Dingle Promontory, Ireland 83 

Mr. Evan Hopkins on the Meridional and Symmetrical Structure of the Globe, 

its Superficial Changes, and the Polarity of all Terrestrial Operations 83 

on the Gold-bearing Districts of the World 83 

Signor Lanza on the Formations of Dalmatia 83 

Mr. C. Maclaren on the Excavation of certain River Channels in Scotland ... 83 

Mr. Hugh Miller on the less-known Fossil Floras of Scotland 83 

Mr. John Miller's Exhibition of Fossil Plants of the Old Red Sandstone of 

Caithness 85 

Sir Roderick I. Murchison on the Relations of the Crystalline Rocks of the 
North Highlands to the Old Red Sandstone of that Region, and on the recent 

discoveries of Fossils in the former by Mr. Charles Peach 85 

Sir Roderick I. Murchison and Professor James Nicol's New Geological 

Map of Europe exhibited 88 

Professor James Nicol on Striated Rocks and other Evidences of Ice-Action 

observed in the North of Scotland 88 

Mr. D. Page on the Pterygotus and Pterygotus Beds of Great Britain 89 

on the Freshwater Limestone of Dr. Hibbert 91 

on the Subdivisions of the Palseozoic and Metamorphic Rocks of 

Scotland 92 

Professor Phillips's Remarks on certain Trap Dykes in Arran 94 

Mr. H. Poole's Note on a recent Geological Survey of the Region between 

Constantinople and Broussa, in Asia Minor, in search of Coal 94 

Mr. John Price on the Geology of the District of Great and Little Ormes- 

head. North Wales 94 

Mr. A. C. Ramsay on the commencement and progress of the Geological Survey 

in Scotland 95 

Professor H. D. Rogers on some of the Geological Functions of the Winds, 

illustrating the Origin of Salt, &c 95 

on the Geology of the United States 95 

on some Reptilian Footprints from the Carboniferous 

Strata of Pennsylvania 95 

Mr. J. W. Salter's Additions to the Geology of the Arctic Regions 95 

on some Fossils from the Cambrian Rocks of the Longmynd, 

Shropshire ,,,.., 95 



X CONTENTS. 

Page 
Mr. R. Slimon on New Forms of Crustacea from the District of Lesmahagow. 96 

Mr. James Smith on the Shelly Deposits of the Basin of the Clyde, with proofs 
of Change of CUmate. 96 

Mr. H. C. SoRBY on the Sti-ucture and Mutual Relationships of the older Rocks 
of the Highland Border 96 

on some of the Mechanical Structures of Limestones 97 

on the Currents produced by the action of the Wind and 

Tides, and the structures generated in the deposits formed under their in- 
fluence, by which the physical geography of the Seas at various geological 
epochs may be ascertained 97 

Rev. W. S. Symonds on a Phyllopod Crustacean in the Upper Ludlow Rock 
of Ludlow 98 

Professor Wyville Thomson on the Fauna of the Lower Silurians of the 
South of Scotland 99 

Dr. Tryfe's Exhibition of a Series of Preparations obtained from the 
Decomposition of Cannel Coal and the Torbane Hill Coal 99 

Mr. Searles V. Wood, Jun., on the Probable Maximum Depth of the Ocean 99 



BOTANY AND ZOOLOGY including PHYSIOLOGY. 

Botany. 

Mr. John G. Baker's Attempt to classify the Flowering Plants and Ferns 
of Great Britain according to their geognostic relations 99 

on Galium montanum, Thuill., and G. commutatum, Jord. 100 

Professor Balfour's Exhibition of a Series of Specimens illustrating the Distri- 
bution of Plants in Great Britain, and Remarks on the Flora of Scotland ... 100 

Captain Sir E. Belcher's Remarks on the Trunk of aTree discovered erect as 
it grew, within the Arctic Circle, in 75° 32' N., 92° W., or immediately to the 
Northward of the Narrow Strait which opens into the Welhngton Sound ... 101 

Mr. P. Clark on the Flowering of Victoria Regia, in the Royal Botanic Gar- 
den, Glasgow 102 

Dr. Daubeny on the Influence of Light on the Germination of Plants 103 

Chevalier De Claussen on the Hancornia speciosa, Artificial Gutta Percha 
and India Rubber 103 

, on the Employment of Algje and other Plants in the 

Manufacture of Soaps 103 

, on Papyrus, Bonapartea, and other Plants which can 

•furnish Fibre for Paper Pulp 104 

Professor Dickie's Remarks on the Efiiects of Last Winter upon Vegetation 
at Aberdeen 105 

Dr. Duncan on Impregnation in Phanerogamous Plants 106 

Mr. C. H. Furlong's Exhibition of a Collection of Ferns from Portugal 106 

Dr. Michelson on the Flowers and Vegetation of the Crimea 106 

Zoology. 

Mr. Lucas Barrett's Notes on the Brachiopoda observed in a Dredging Tour 
with Mr. M'Andrew on the Coast of Norway, in the Summer of the pre- 
sent year, 1855 ". 106 



CONTENTS. XI 

Page 
.^-ossor Carpenter on the Occurrence of the Pentacrinoid Larva of Coma- 
tula rosacea, in Lamlash Bay, Isle of Arran 107 

on the Structure and Development of Orbitolites com- 

planatus 107 

Mr. T. Spencer Cobbold's Description of a New Species of Trematode Worm 
{Fasciola gigantica) 108 

Description of a malformed Trout 109 

Mr. J. W. Dawson on the Species of Meriones and ArvicolcB found in Nova 
Scotia 110 

Professor Dickie's Notes on the Homologies of Lepismidse 110 

Mr. James Fulton on the apphcation (for ceconomic and sanitary objects) of 
the principle of " Vivaria" to Agriculture and other purposes of life Ill 

Sir William Jardine on the Core^owi of Scotland Ill 

Professor Kolliker on transparent Fishes from Messina Ill 

Rev. William Leitch on the Development of Sex in Social Insects Ill 

Mr. Edward Joseph Lowe on a Singular Mortality amongst the Swallow 
Tribe 112 

Mr. Robert M'Andrew's Exhibition of Zoophytes, MoUusca, &c., observed 
on the Coast of Norway, in the Summer of 1855 113 

Rev. Charles P. Miles on the Fauna of the Clyde, and on the Vivaria now 
exhibited in the City Hall, Glasgow 114 

Mr. Andrew Murray on the Recent Additions to oui- Knowledge of the 
Zoology of Western Africa 114 

Mr. W. Oliphant's Exhibition of the Skull of a Manatus Senegalensis (the 
Sea Cow), from Old Calabar 116 

Mr. J. Price's Notes on Animals 117 

Mr. J. D. Sandland on Sea Medusae 117 

Mr. N. B. Ward on Vivaria 117 

Mr. Robert Warington on the Habits of the Stickleback, and on the 
Effects of an Excess or Want of Heat and Light on the Aquarium (Marine).. 117 

Dr. Lankester's Exhibition of a Copy of the 'Natural History of Deeside 
and Braemar,' by the late Dr. Macgillivray 118 

Rev. Dr. Paterson on the Cultivation of Sea-sand or Sand-hills 118 

Physiology. 

Professor Allman on the yignification of the so-called Ova of the Hippocrepian 
Polyzoa, and on the Development of the proper Embryo in these Animals... 118 

Professor J. Hughes Bennett on the Law of Molecular Elaboration in Orga- 
nized Bodies 119 

Mr. James Braid on the Physiology of Fascination 120 

Professor Calvert and Dr. Thomas Moffat on the Action of the Carbo- 
azotic Acid and the Carbo-azotates on the Human Body 121 

Dr. William Camps on an abnormal Condition of the Nervous System 121 

Dr. T. Spencer Cobbold on a curious pouched condition of the Glandulae 
Peyerianse in the Giraffe , 122 



Xll CONTENTS. 

Page 
Dr. Ferdinand Cohn on the Sexuality of the Algae 122 

Dr. Richard Fowler's Attempt to solve some of the Difficulties of the 
Berklejan Controversy by well-ascertained Physiological and Psychological 
Facts 123 

Professor Kolliker on the occiu-rence of Leucine and Tyrosine in the Pan- 
creatic Fluid and contents of the Intestine 124 

on the Physiology of the Spermatozoa 125 

Demonstration of the Trichomonas vaginalis of Donne... 125 

on a peculiar Structure lately discovered in the Ei>ithelial 

Cells of the Small Intestines, together with some observations on the Absorp- 
tion of Fat into the system 126 

on the Hec?oco<j/Z«s, or Male of the Argonaut 127 

Mr. James Macdonald on the Form and Dimensions of the Human 
Body, as ascertained b}- a Universal Measurer or Andrometer 127 

Professor William Macdonald on the Vertebral Homologies in Animals ... 128 

Dr. M'CoRMAC's Demonstration of the Origin of Tubercular Consumption ... 131 

Dr. Henry Nelson's further Observations on the Fecundation of the Ova in 
Ascaris mystax 131 

Dr. W. H. Ransom's further Observations on the Structure of the Ova of 
Fishes, with especial reference to the Micropyle, and the Phrcnomena of their 
Fecundation 131 

Professor Remak on the Mode of Action of Galvanic Stimuli, directly applied 
to the Muscles 131 

Professor Retzius on the Antrum Pylori in Man and Animals 132 

on the pecuhar Development of the Vermis CerebeUi in the 

Albatros (Diomedea exulans) 133 

on the Fornix Cerebri in Man, Mammals, and other Verte- 

brata 1 33 

on an Episcaphoid Bone in both Hands of a Guarani Man.. 134 

on the Pelvis of a Lapland Giantess 134 

Dr. Roth on the application of Physiological Principles to gymnastic education 134 

Professor Schlossberger's Observations on the Chemistry of Foetal Life ... 135 

Dr. John Struthers on the Use of the Round Ligament of the Head of the 
Femur 135 

on the Use of the Round Ligament of the Hip- Joint... 136 

■ on the Explanation of the Crossed Influence of the 

Brain 136 

Professor Carl J. Sundevald on the Muscles of the Extremities of Birds ... 137 

Professor Allen Thomson on the Formation and Structure of the Spermatozoa 
in Ascaris mystax 138 

on the Brain of the Troglodytes nig er 139 

Contributions to the History of Fecundation in 

different Animals 139 



CONTENTS. XIU 

GEOGRAPHY AND ETHNOLOGY. 

Ethnology. 

Page 
Rev. Thomas C. Archer on some peculiar Circumstances connected with one 
of the Coins used on the West Coast of Africa 140 

Dr. Earth's Description of Timbuctoo, its Population, and Commerce 140 

Mr. John Crawfurd on the different Centres of Civilization 141 

Mr. Richard Cull's Manual of Ethnological Inquiry, and the Ethnology of 

Polynesia 141 

. on some Water-colour Portraits of Natives of Van 

. Diemen's Land 142 

, on the Complexion and Hair of the Ancient Egyptians 142 

Mr. Joseph Barnard Davis on theForras of the Crania of the Ancient Romans 142 

Mr. Alexander J. Ellis on a Universal Alphabet with ordinary Letters for 
the use of Geographers, Ethnologists, &c 143 

Mr. G. Edmonds on a Philosophic Universal Language 145 

Rev. J. Gemmel on the Deciphering of Inscriptions on Two Seals, found by 

Mr. Layard at Koyunjik 145 

Professor Retzius on Celtic, Sclavic, and Aztec Crania 145 

Mr. C. Roach Smith on a Roman Sepulcral Inscription on an Anglo-Saxon 
Urn in the Faussett Collection 145 

Mr. Thomas Wright on the Ethnology of England at the Extinction of the 
Roman Government in tlie Island 146 

on Inscriptions in Unknown Characters on Roman 

Pottery discovered in England 146 

Geography. 

Mr. C. J. Anderson on late Explorations in Africa 146 

Dr. W. Balfour Baikie's Report of the late Expedition up the Niger and 
Tchadda Rivers 146 

Captain Sir E. Belcher's Remarks on the late Arctic Expedition, and on the 
several Completions of the North-west Passage 147 

Mr. J. BouLT on the Importance of Periodical Engineering Surveys of Tidal 
Harbours, illustrated by a Comparison of the Surveys of the River Mersey, 
by the late F. Giles; and the Marine Surveys of the Port 147 

Mr. Consul Brand's Notes on the Portuguese Possessions of South-west Africa 147 

Lieut.-Col. Burton's Account of a Visit to Mechnafroin Suez, by way of Jambo 147 

Rev. F. Fleming's Journey across the Rivers of British Kaffraria 147 

Mr. James Gall, jun., on Improved Monographic Projections of the World... 148 

Mr. J. M. Inskip's Account of the Exploration of the Isthmus of Darien, 
under Capt. Prevost,R.N 148 

Dr. Livingston, Extracts from Letters dated Pungo, Andongo, and St. Paul de 
Loanda, describing his Journey across Tropical Africa 148 

Professor MacDonald on the Preadamitic Condition of the Globe 148 

Dr. Julius Oppert on the Geographical and Historical Results of the French 
Scientific Expedition to Babylon 148 



xiv CONTENTS. 

Page 
Capt. Sherard Osborn's Notes on the late Arctic Expeditions 149 

Sir B. F. OuTRAM on Hartlepool Pier and Port as a Harbour of Refuge 149 

Mr. Harry Pakkes's Notes on the Hindu-Chinese Nations and Siamese 
Rivers, with an Account of Sir John Bowring's Mission to Siam 149 

Sefior Andres Poey on Hurricanes in the West Indies and the North Atlantic 
from 1493 to 1855 • 150 

Mr. J. N. Ramsay's Account of the Ascent of Mont Blanc by a new Route 
ftom the side of Italy 150 

Capt. Robertson's Ascent of the Mountain Sumeru Parbut 150 

Messrs. Adolphe Schlagintweit and Robert Schlagintweit's Notices 
of Journeys in the Himalayas of Kemaon 152 

Sefior Susini on the Amazon and Atlantic Water-courses of South America... 155 

STATISTICS. 

Dr. W. P. Alison's Notes on the Application of Statistics to questions in 
Medical Science, particularly as to the External Causes of Diseases 155 

Lady Bentham on an Improved Mode of Keeping Accounts in our National 
Establishments 159 

Professor A. Buchanan on the Physiological Law of Mortality, and on certain 
Deviations fi-om it, observed about the Commencement of Adult Life 160 

on a Mechanical Process, by which a Life Table com- 
mencing at Birth may be converted into a Table, in every respect similar, 
commencing at any other period of Life 163 

Mr. R. Clarke on Prevailing Diseases of Sierra Leone 164 

Dr. John Coldstream on some of the results deducible from the Report 
on the Statics of Disease in Ireland, published with the Census of 1851 164 

Count D. Frolich's Analysis of some of the Principles which regulate the 
Effects of a Convertible Paper Currency 165 

Mr. Petkr Gale on Decimal Arrangement of Land Measures 165 

Mr. J. W. GiLBART on the Laws of the Currency in Scotland 166 

Mr. J. Clyde, jun., on the Localities of Crime in Suffolk 167 

Mr. William A. Guy on the Fluctuations in the number of Births, Deaths, 
and Marriages, and in the Number of Deaths from Special Causes, in the 
Metropohs, during the last Fifteen Years, from 1840 to 1854 inclusive 167 

Mr. John Locke on the Agricultural Labourers of England and Wales, their 
Inferiority in the Social Scale, and the means of effecting their Improvement. .171 

Dr. A. G. Malcolm on the Influence of Factory Life on the Health of the 
Operative, as founded upon the Medical Statistics of this Class at Belfast ... 171 

Rev. A. K. M'Callum on Juvenile Delinquency— its Principal Causes and 
Proposed Ciu-e, as adopted in the Glasgow Reformatory Schools 173 

Ml-. James M'Clelland on Measures relating to the adoption of the Family 
and Agricultural System of Training in the Reformation of Criminal and 
Destitute Children 1'^ 

Mr. William Newmarch's Remarks on two Lectures delivered at Oxford in 
Trinity Term, by the Professor of Political Economy, on the subject of a recent 
Paper by Mr. Newmarch, " On the Loans raised by Mr. Pitt from 1 793 to 1801" 183 



CONTENTS. XV 

Page 
Mr. William Newmarch on the Emigration of the last Ten Years from the 

United Kingdom , and from France and Germany 183 

Mr. William Pare on "Equitable Villages" in America 183 

Lieut.-Gen. Sir C. Pasley on a Plan for Simplifying and Improving the 
Measures, Weights and Monies of this Country, without materially altering 

the present Standards 184 

Mr. Theodore W. Rathbone on Decimal Accounts and Comage 184 

Mr. John Reid on the Progressive Rates of Mortality, as occurring in all ages ; 
and on certain Deviations • 186 

Mr. P. L. SiMMONDs's Statistics of Newspapers of Various Countries 188 

on the Growth and Commercial Progress of the two 

Pacific States of Cahfomia and Austraha 188 

Mr. John Stark's Return of the Number of Civil Actions and Civil and Cri- 
minal Prosecutions and Informations in the Circuit for the Northern District 
of the Island of Newfoundland, from January 1826 to January 1855, being 
a period of 29 years 191 

Ml'. David Stow on Moral Training for large Towns 191 

Mr. Andrew Tennent's Statistics of a Glasgow Grammar School Class of 
115 Boys 192 

Dr. John Strang on the Progress, Extent and Value of the Coal and Iron 
Trade of the West of Scotland 193 

Mr. Richard Valpy on the Efi"ect of the War, in Russia and England, upon 
the principal articles of Russian produce 195 

Mr. Richard Hussey Walsh on the Condition of the Labouring Population 
of Jamaica, as connected with the present state of Landed Property in that 
District , 197 

The Price of Silver of late years does not 

afford an accurate measure of the Value of Gold 198 

Mr. John Yeats on our National Strength, as tested by the Numbers, the 
Ages, and the Industrial Qualifications of the People 199 



MECHANICAL SCIENCE. 

Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine's Opening Remarks on the Objects of the 

Section 201 

Mr. W. Bridges Adams on Railways and their Varieties 202 

on Ai"tillery and Projectiles 203 

Mr. H. P. Babbage on Mechanical Notation, as exemplified in the Swedish 
Calculating Machine of Messrs. Scheiitz , 203 

Mr. Robert Barklay on an Instrument for Sounding 205 

Lady Bentham on Continuous Work in Dockyards 205 

Mr. Robert W. Billings on the Mechanical Principles of Ancient Tracery... 205 

Mr. Joseph Boult on the Importance of Periodical Engineering Surveys of 
Tidal Harbours, illustrated by a comparison of the Surveys of the River 
Mersey, by the late Francis Giles, C.E., and by the Marine Surveyor of the 
Port of Liverpool 205 

Mr. W. Fairbairn on the Machinery of the Universal Exhibition of Paris ... 206 

Mr. James Gall, jun., on the mutual Influence of Capillaiy Attraction and 
Motion on Projectiles, and its application to the construction of a new kind 
of Rifle-shells, and Balls to be thrown from common guns 206 



XVI CONTENTS. 

Page 
Mr. William Gorman on a Momentum Engine 206 

on a Pressure Water-Meter 207 

Mr. Andrew Henderson on the Measurement of Ships 207 

Mr. M. HoLDEN on Working a Steam-engine with Rarefied Air 207 

Mr. Robert Jamieson on a Compass independent of Local Attraction 207 

Mr. James Laing on a new Air-Pump 207 

Professor Macdonald on the Structure of Shell Mortars without Touch-hole, 

to be discharged by Galvanic Circuit 207 

Mr. Herbert Mackworth on the Metra > 207 

Mr. Robert Mair on au Application of Galvanic Power to Machinery 208 

Dr. March on a Screw-vent for tuming Spiked Guns into use 208 

Mr. George Mills on Manoeuvring Steamers 208 

Mr. J. R. Napier's Description of the Laimch of the Steamer 'Persia' 208 

• on a simple Boat Plug 208 

■ on a new Method of Drying Timber 208 

Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine on Practical Tables of the Latent Heat of 
Vapours 208 

on the Operation of the Patent Laws 208 

Mr. G. Rennie on the Effects of Screw Propellers when moved at different 
Velocities and Depths 209 

Mr William Sim on the Blasting and Quan-ying of Rocks 209 

Professor C. Piazzi Smyth on the Transmission of Time Signals 209 

Dr. Taylor's Account of Experiments on Combustion in Furnaces, with a view 
to the Prevention of Smoke 209 

Mr. James Thomson on the Friction Break Dynamometer 209 

on a Centrifugal Pump and Windmill erected for Drain- 
age and Irrigation in Jamaica 210 

■ on an India-rubber Valve for Drainage of Low Lands 

into Tidal Outfalls 210 

on Practical Details of the Measurement of Rimning 

Water by Weir Boards 210 

Mr. J. F. Ure on the Navigation of the Clyde 211 

Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine's Concluding Address 211 



APPENDIX. 

Mr. J. W. Salter on some Additions to the Geology of the Arctic Regions... 211 



ERRATUM. 
Page 87, line 6, /or a dextral and not a sinistral, read a sinistral and not a dextral. 



OBJECTS AND RULES 

OP 

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 pay 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 sum 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. 

1855. b 



XVIU RULES OP THE ASSOCIATION. 

The Association consists of the following classes :— 

1. Life Members admitted from 1831 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 specification, 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 surii 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 been printed in its Transactions, and which relates to such subjects 
as are taken into consideration at the Sectional Meetings of the Association. 



RULES OF THE ASSOCIATION. XIX 

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 General Secretaries. 

6. The Presidents, Vice-Presidents, and Secretaries of the Sections are 
ex officio 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 Science. 

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. 

PAPERS 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. 

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BJ'S 



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

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

Drinkwater, J. E., Esq. 

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



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

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

Adams, J. Couch, M.A., F.R.S. 

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

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

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

Airy.G.B., D.C.L.,P.R.S.,AstronomerRoyal. 

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.R.S. 

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

Balfour, Professor John H., M.D. 

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

Bell, Professor Thomas, F.L.S., 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. 

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

Brewster, Sir David, K.H., D.C.L., LL.D., 
F.R.S., Principal of the United College of 
St. Salvator and St. Leonard, St. Andrews. 

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

Brooke, Charles, B.A., F.R.S. 

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

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.R.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.R.S. (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.R.S. 

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

Crura, Walter, 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. 



of, F.R.S. 
Egerton, Sir Philip de M. Grey, Bart., M.P., 

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.B. 
Fox, Robert Were, Esq., F.R.S. 
Frost, Charles, F.S.A. 
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., Sec.G.S. 
Hamilton, Sir William R., Astronomer Royal 

of Ireland, M.R.LA. 
Harcourt, Rev. William Vernon, M.A., F.R.S. 
Hardwicke, Charles Philip, Earl of, F.R.S. 
Harford, J. S., D.C.L., F.R.S. 
Harris, Sir W. Snow, F.R.S. 
Harrowbv, The Earl of, F.R.S. 
Hatleild," William, Esq., F.G.S. 
Henry, W. C, M.D., F.R.S. 
Henry, Rev. P. S., D.D., President of Queen's 

College, Belfast. 
Henslow, Rev. Professor, M.A., F.L.S. 
Herbert, Hon. and Very Rev. William, late 

Dean of Manchester, LL.D., F.L.S. 
Herschel,SirJohnF.W.,Bart.,D.C.L.,F.R.S. 
Heywood, Sir Benjamin, Bart., F.R.S. 
Heywood, James, Esq., M.P., F.R.S. 
Hill, Rev. Edward, M.A., F.G.S. 
Hincks, Rev. Edward, D.D., M.R.LA. 
Hodgkin, Thomas, M.D. 
Ilodgkinson, Professor Eaton, F.R.S. 
Hodgson, Joseph, Esq., F.R.S. 
Hooker, Sir William J., LL.D., F.R.S. 
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. 
Button, 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.,F.R.S. 
Jameson, Professor R., F.R.S. 
Jardine, Sir William, Bart., F.R.S.E. 
Jeffreys, John Gwyn, Esq., F.R.S. 
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. 



Kellaiul, Rev. Professor P., M.A, 
Lankester, Edwin, M.D., F.R.S. 
Lansdowne, Henry, Marquis of, D.C.L., F.R.S. 
Lavdner, Rev. Dr. 

Lassell, WUliam, Esq., F.R.S. L.& E. 
Latham, R. G., M.D., F.R.S. 
Lee, Very Rev. John, D.D., F.R.S. E., Prin- 
cipal of tlie University of Edinburgh. 
Lee, Robert, M.D., F.R.S. 
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 of. 
Lloyd, Rev. Bartholomew, D.D., late Provost 

of Trinity College, Dublin. 
Lloyd, Rev. Professor, D.D., Provost of 

Trinity College, Dublin, F.R.S. 
Londesborough, Lord, F.R.S. 
Lubbock, Sir 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. 
Macfarlane, 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, J. P. Lee, D.D., Lord Bishop of. 
Meynell, Thomas, Jun., Esq., F.L.S. 
Middleton, Sir William F. F., Bart. 
Miller, Professor W. A., M.D., F.R.S. 
Miller, Professor W. H., M.A., F.R.S. 
Milnes, R. Monckton, Esq., M.P. 
Moillet, J. D., 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 L, G.C.St.S., F.R.S. 
Neill, Patrick, M.D., F.R.S.E. 
Nicol, D., M.D. 
Nicol, Rev. J. P., LL.D. 
Northampton, Spencer Joshua Alwyne, Mar- 

quis of, V.P.R.S. 
Northumberland, Hugh, Duke of, K.G., M.A., 

F.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. 
Osier, Follett, Esq. 

Owen, Professor Richard, M.D., F.R.S. 
Oxford, Samuel Wilberforce, D.D., Lord 

Bishop of, F.R.S., F.G.S. 
Palraerston, Viscount, G.C.B., M.P. 
Peacock, Very Rev. George, D.D., Dean of 

Ely, F.R.S. 
Peel, Kt. Hon. Sir Robert, Bart., M.P., 

n.C.L., F.R.S. 
Pendarves, E., Esq., F.R.S. 
Phillips, Professor John, M.A., 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, Lieut.-Col. Sir William, F.R.S. 
Rendiesham, 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.LA., 

F.R.A.S. 
Robison, Sir John, late Sec.R.S.Edin. 
Roche, James, Esq. 
Roget, Peter Mark, M.D., F.K.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.LA., 

President of the Royal Society. 
Royle, Professor John F., M.D., F.R.S. 
Russell, James, Esq. 
Russell, J. Scott, Esq., F.R.S. 
Sabine, Col. Edward, R.A.,Treas. & V.P.R.S. 
Sandon, Lord (the present Earl of Harrowby). 
Saunders, William, Esq., F.G.S. 
Scoresby, Rev. W., D.D., F.R.S. 
Sedgwick, Rev. Professor Adam, M.A.,F.R.S. 
Selbv, Prideaux John, Esq., F.R.S.E. 
Smith, Lieut.-Colonel C. Hamilton, F.R.S. 
Smith, James, F.R.S. L. & E. 
Spence, William, Esq., F.R.S. 
Staunton, Sir G. T., Bt., M.P., D.C.L., F.R.S. 
St. David's, C. Thirlwall, D.D., Lord Bishopof. 
Stevelly, Professor John, LL.D. 
Stokes, Professor G. G., F.R.S. 
Strang, John, Esq. 

Strickland, Hugh Edwin, Esq., F.R.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. John James, B.A. 
Taylor, John, Esq., F.R.S. 
Taylor, Richard, Jun., Esq., F.G.S. 
Thompson, William, Esq., F.L.S. 
Thomson, Professor William, M.A., F.R.S. 
Tindal, Captain, R.N. 
Tite, William, Esq., M.P., F.R.S. 
Tod, James, Esq., F.R.S.E. 
Tooke, Thomas, F.R.S. 
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. 
Wheatstone, 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, Esq. 
Winchester, John, Marquis of. 
WooUcombe, Henry, Esq., F.S.A. 
Wrottesley, John, Lord, M.A., Pres. R.S. 
Yarrell, William, Esq., F.L.S. 
Yarborough, The Earl of, D.C.L. 
Yates, James, Esq., M.A., F.R.S. 
Yates, Joseph Brooks, Esq., F.S.A., F.R.G.S. 



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OFFICERS AND COUNCIL, 1855-56. 

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

PRESIDENT. 
The Duke of Argyll, F.R.S. 
VICE-PRESIDENTS. 
The Very Rev. Principal M"=Farlane, D.D. Walter Crum, Esq., F.R.S. 
Sir William Jardine, Bt, F.R.S.E., F.L.S. Thomas Graham, M.A., F.R.S., Hon. Mem. 
Sir Charles Lyell, M.A., LL.D., F.R.S., R.S.Ed., F.G.S., Master of the Royal Mint. 
Hon. Mem. R.S.Ed., F.L.S. , F.G.S. William Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. L. & E., 

James Smith, Esq., F.R.S.L.&E., F.G.S., Professor of Natural Philosophy in the 
F.R.G.S., M.W.S. University of Glasgow. 

PRESIDENT ELECT. 

Charles G. B. Daubeny, M.D., F.R.S., F.L.S., F.G.S., Hon. M.R.LA., Regius 
Professor of Botany in the University of Oxford. 

VICE-PRESIDENTS ELECT. 
The Earl of Ducie, F.R.S., F.G.S. Soc, Director-General of the Geological 

Sir Roderick I. Murchison, G.C.S«.S., Survey of the United Kingdom. 
D.C.L.,F.R.S.,F.G.S.,F.L.S.,V.P.R.Geogr. Thomas Barwick Lloyd Baker, Esq. 
The Rev. Francis Close, M.A. 

LOCAL SECRETARIES FOR THE MEETING AT CHELTENHAM. 

Captain Robertson, R.A., Rodney House, Cheltenham. 

Richard Beamish, Esq., F.R.S., F.S.S., 2 Suffolk Square, Cheltenham. 

John West Hugall, Esq., 4 Essex Place, Cheltenham. 

LOCAL TREASURERS FOR THE MEETING AT CHELTENHAM. 

James Webster, Esq. James Agg Gardner, Esq. 

ORDINARY MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. 

Arnott, Neil, M.D., F.R.S. Grove, William R., F.R.S. Sh arpey, Professor, Sec. R.S. 

Beechey, Rear-Admiral, Heywood, jAMES,Esq.,M.P. Stokes, Professor, F.R.S. 

F.R.S. Horner, L., Esq., F.R.S. Sykes, Lt.-Col. W. H., F.R.S. 

Bell, Prof., Pres.L.S., F.R.S. Hutton, Robert, F.G.S. Tite, W., M.P., F.S.A.,F.R.S. 

Brooke, Charles, Esq., Lankester, E., M.D., F.R.S. Tooke, T., Esq., F.R.S. 

B.A., F.R.S. Miller, Prof. W. A., M.D., Tyndall, Professor, F.R.S. 

Darwin, Charles, F.R.S. F.R.S. Webster, Thomas, F.R.S. 

Egerton, Sir Philip, Bart., Milnes, R. M., Esq., M.P. Wheatstone, Prof., F.R.S. 

M. P., F.R.S. Owen, Professor, F.R.S. WROTTESLEY,Lord,Pres.R.S. 

Gassiot, John P., F.R.S. Rennie, George, 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 Ellesmere. 
The Earl of Rosse. The Dean of Ely. Sir John F. W. Herschel, Bart. Sir Roderick L Mur- 
chison. The Rev. Dr. Robinson. Sir David Brewster. G. B. Airy, Esq., the Astronomer 
Royal. Colonel Sabine. William Hopkins, Esq., F.R.S. The Earl of Harrowby. 

GENERAL SECRETARY. 
Colonel Edward Sabine, R.A., Treas. & V.P.R.S., F.R.A.S., 13 Ashley Place, Westminster. 

ASSISTANT GENERAL SECRETARY. 

John Phillips, Esq., M.A., F.R.S., F.G.S., Deputy Reader in Geology in the University of 

Oxford ; Magdalen Bridge, Oxford. 

GENERAL TREASURER. 
John Taylor, Esq., F.R.S., 6 Queen Street Place, Upper Thames Street, London. 
LOCAL TREASURERS. 
William Gray, Esq., F.G.S., York. Professor Ramsay, M.A., Glasgow. 

C.C.Babington,Esq.,M.A.,F.R.S.,Cam*r%e. Robert P. Greg, Esq., F.G.S.. Manchester. 
William Brand, Esq., Edinburgh. J. Sadleir Moody, Esq., Southampton. 

John H. Orpen, LL.D., Dublin. John Gwyn JeflFreys, Esq., F.R.S., Swansea. 

WilUam Sanders, Esq., F.G.S., Bristol. J. B. Alexander, Esq., Ipswich. 

Robert M'Andrew, Esq., F.R.S., Liverpool. Robert Patterson, Esq., Belfast. 
W. R. Wills, Esq., Birmingham. Edmund Smith, Esq., Hull. 

AUDITORS. 
A. Follett Osier, Esq. Wm. Tite, Esq., M.P. Edwin Lankester, M.D, 



OFFICERS OP SECTIONAL COMMITTEES. XXVU. 

OFFICERS OF SECTIONAL COMMITTEES PRESENT AT THE 
GLASGOW MEETING. 

SECTION A. MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 

President.— Rew. Professor Kelland, M.A., F.R.S. L. & E. 

Vice-Presidents. — Rev. Dr. Robinson ; Sir David Brewster, F.R.S. L. & E. ; Rev. 
Dr. Whewell, F.R.S.; Professor Stokes, Sec. R.S. ; Rev. Dr. Scoresby, F.R.S.L., 
& E. ; M. J. Johnson, Esq., M.A., Pres. R.A.S. 

Secretaries. — Rev. Dr. Forbes ; Professor Tyndall, F.R.S. ; Professor David 
Gray, M.A., F.R.S.E. 

SECTION B. CHEMISTRY AND MINERALOGY, INCLUDING THEIR APPLICATIONS 

TO AGRICULTURE AND THE ARTS. 

President.— Dr. Lyon Playfair, C.B., F.R.S. 

Vice-Presidents. — Baron Liebig; M. Fremy, Member of the Institute of France; 
M. Peligot.'RoyalMint, Paris; Professor Anderson, F.R.S.E.; Dr. Andrews, F.R.S.; 
Dr. Daubeny, F.R.S. ; Thos. Graham, Esq., D.C.L., F.R.S. ; Dr. W. A. Miller, 
F.R.S. ; Dr. R. D. Thomson, F.R.S. L. & E. 

Secretaries. — Professor Frankland, Ph.D., F.R.S. ; Dr. H. E.Roscoe. 

SECTION C. GEOLOGY. 

President.— Sk R. I. Murchison, F.R.S. 

Vice- Presidetits.— Sit C. Lyell, F.R.S. ; Charles Darwin, F.R.S. ; Rev. Professor 
Sedgwick, F.R.S. ; Hugh Miller, Esq. ; A. C. Ramsay, F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — Professor Nicol, F.G.S. ; James Bryce, M.A., F.G.S. ; Professor 
Harkness, F.G.S. 

SECTION D. ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, INCLUDING PHYSIOLOGY. 

President. — Rev. Dr. Fleming, F.R.S.E. 

Vice-Presidents. — Dr. Sharpey, Sec.R.S. ; Dr. Allen Thomson, F.R.S.; Dr. Car- 
penter, F.R.S. ; Dr. Dickinson, F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — Dr. Lankester, F.R.S. ; William Keddie, Esq. 

PHYSIOLOGICAL SUB-SECTION. 

Chairman, — Professor Allen Thomson, F.R.S. L. & E. 

Vice- Chairman. — Professor Buchanan, M.D. ; Dr. A. D. Anderson; Professor 
Bennett, M.D., F.R.S.E. 

jSecre^ones.— Professor J. H. Corbett, M.D. ; Dr. John Struthers. 

SECTION E. GEOGRAPHY AND ETHNOLOGY. 

President.— Sir John Richardson, M.D., C.B., F.R.S. 

Vice-Presidents. — Rear-Admiral Beechey; A. Keith Johnston, Esq. ; Sir R. I. 
Murchison, F.R.S. ; Major-General Sir Charles Pasley, R.E., C.B., F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — Norton Shaw, M.D., Sec. Roy. Geog. Soc. ; Richard Cull, Esq., Hon. 
Sec. Ethnol. Society ; W. G. Blackie, Ph.D., F.R.G.S. 

SECTION F. STATISTICS. 

President. — R. Monckton Milnes, Esq., M.P., D.C.L. 

Vice-Presidents. — The Lord Provost of Glasgow ; Colonel Sykes, F. R.S. ; Sir Archi- 
bald Alison, Bart. ; Professor A. Buchanan, M.D. ; John Macgregor, Esq., M.P. ; 
James Heywood, Esq., M.P„ F.R.S.; William Tite, Esq., M.P., F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — William Newmarch, Esq. ; Edward Cheshire, Esq. ; J. A. Campbell, 
Esq. ; Professor R. Hussey Walsh. 

SECTION G. — MECHANICAL SCIENCE. 

President.— W. J. Macquorn Rankine, C.E., F.R.S. L. & E. 

Vice-Presidents. — Robert Napier, Esq. ; Joseph Whitworth, Esq. ; Dr. Neil Arnott, 
F.R.S. ; William Fairbairn, Esq., C.E., F.R.S. ; George Rennie, Esq.,C.E., F.R.S. 

Secretaries. — James Thomson, M.A., C.E. ; Lawrence Hill, jun., C.E.; William 
Ramsay, C.E. 



REPORT — 1855. 



CORRESPONDING MEMBERS. 



Professor Agassiz, Cambridge, Massa- 
chusetts. 
M. Babinet, Paris. 
Dr. A. D. Bache, Washington. 
Mr. P. G. Bond, Cambridge, U.S. 
M. Boutigny (d'Evreux). 
Professor Braschmann, Moscow. 
Chevalier Bunsen, Heidelberg. 
Prince Charles Bonaparte, Paris. 
Dr. Ferdinand Cohn, Breslau. 
M. De la Rive, Geneva. 
Professor Dove, Berlin. 
M. Dufrenoy, Paris. 
Professor Dumas, Paris. 
Dr. J. Milne-Edwards, Paris. 
Professor Ehrenberg, Berlin. 
Dr. Eisenlohr, Carlsruhe. 
Professor Encke, Berlin. 
Dr. A. Erman, Berlin. 
Professor Esmark, Christiania. 
Professor G. Forchhammer, Copenhagen. 
M. Leon Foucault, Paris. 
Prof. E. Fremy, Paris. 
M. Frisiani, Milan. 
Professor Asa Gray, Cambridge, U.S. 
Professor Heniy, Washington, U.S. 
Baron Alexander von Humboldt, Berlin. 
M. Jacobi, St. Petersburg. 
Prof. A. Kolliker, Wiirzburg. 
Prof. De Koninck, Liege. 
Professor Kreil, Vienna. 
M. Kupffer, St. Petersburg. 



Dr. Lament, Munich. 

Dr. Langberg, Christiania. 

Prof. F. Lanza, Spoleto. 

M. Le Verrier, Paris. 

Baron von Liebig, Munich, 

Baron de Selys-Longchamps, Lihge. 

Professor Gustav Magnus, Berlin. 

Professor Matteucci, Pisa. 

Professor von MiddendorfF, St. Petersburg. 

M. I'Abbe Moigno, Paris. 

M. Morren, Liege. 

Professor Nilsson, Sweden. 

Dr. N. Nordengsciold, Finland. 

M. E. Peligot, Paris. 

Chevalier Plana, Turin. 

Professor Pliicker, Bonn. 

M. Quetelet, Brussels. 

M. Constant Prevost, Paris. 

Prof. Retzius, Stoclcholm. 

Professor C. Ritter, Berlin. 

Professor H. D. Rogers, Boston, U.S. 

Professor W. B. Rogers, Boston, U.S. 

Professor H. Rose, Berlin. 

Baron Senftenberg, Bohemia. 

Dr. Siljestrom, Stockholm. 

M. Struve, Pulkoiea. 

Dr. Svanberg, Stoclcholm. 

Dr. Van der Hoeven, Leyden. 

Baron Sartorius von Waltershausen, 

Gottingen. 
M. Pierre Tchihatchef. 
Professor Wartmann, Geneva. 



Report of the Proceedings of the Council in 18.54^55, as presented 
TO the General Committee at Glasgow, Wednesday, September 
12th, 1855. 

1. In reference to the sura of £500 placed by the General Committee at 
Liverpool at the disposal of the Council for the maintenance of the Establish- 
ment at Kew, the General Committee will find in the subjoined Report of 
the Superintending Committee of that Establishment, an account of the 
various objects which have occupied their attention, and of their proceed- 
ings during the past year. The Council have directed printed copies of this 
Report to be laid upon the table as the best means of enabling those mem- 
bers of the General Committee who have not personally visited Kew, to 
form their own judgment of the nature and value of the services which have 
been performed there, and of the thanks which are due to the Superintend- 
ing Committee for their voluntary and untiring labours in conducting the 
Establishment, and to the personal staff, by whom their wishes have been 
most zealously and effectively carried out. By the perusal of this Report the 
Council consider also, that the General Committee will be better able to 
judge of the claims of the Kew Establishment to the approval and to the 
continued support of the British Association, than by any comments of their 
own with which the Council might have accompanied the Report*. 

* See p. XXX. 



REPORT OP THE COUNCIL. XXlJt 

2. The Council have also directed printed copies to be laid on the table 
of a Report which has been presented by the Parliamentary Committee of 
the British Association, on the question, " Whether any measures could be 
adopted by Government or Parliament to improve the position of Science or 
its Cultivators in this Country*." 

The suggestions which this Report contains are numerous and important. 
Some of them, such as those touching alterations in the system of education 
in our Universities, and an increased encouragement to the formation of 
museums and public libraries, seem to be already in a fair way of being in a 
greater or less degree adopted. The suggestion that the principal Scientific 
Societies shall be located in London at the public expense in some one cen- 
tral building, is, as there is good reason to hope, in a fair train of being 
realized, under the most favourable circumstances, within the walls of Bur- 
lington House in Piccadilly ; and such a result would be of the highest im- 
portance, not only for the convenience which such a juxtaposition would 
afford to members for the pursuit of their researches, but perhaps still more 
from the advantage of presenting the various scientific bodies, and in their 
persons science itself, to the public eye in a conspicuous, honourable, and 
influential position. 

Other suggestions of the Parliamentary Committee, such as those touching 
the support by the State of lecturers on science in the provincial towns, — 
touching the question of rewai'ds to be given in various shapes to the culti- 
vators of science, and more especially that of the creation of a Board of 
Science which shall advise the Government in connexion with it, have yet 
to receive that sanction from public opinion, and more especially from the 
opinion of men of science themselves, which more extended discussion can 
alone elicit, and without which they could not be pressed upon Government 
or Parliament with any prospect of success. For such a discussion perhaps 
the present meeting may present a fitting opportunity. 

3. In reference to the recommendation of the General Committee, that the 
shipowners and other gentlemen interested in navigation at Liverpool should 
form a Committee of their own body for the purpose of inquiring into the 
best means of obviating the inconveniences and losses occasioned by the 
errors of the compasses produced by the iron employed in the construction 
and equipment of ships, the Council have had the satisfaction of learning 
that a Committee has been formed and has entered upon the inquiry. 

4f. The Council have added to the list of Corresponding Members of the 
British Association the names of Monsieur Leon Foucault and the Abbe 
Moigno. 

5. The Council have been informed that a Deputation will attend at Glas- 
gow for the purpose of conveying an invitation to the British Association to 
hold its meeting in 1856 at Cheltenham. 

Letters have also been received, and will be laid before the General Com- 
mittee, from the Board of Trinity College in Dublin, from the Royal Irish 
Academy, and from the Royal Dublin Society, inviting the British Associa- 
tion to hold its meeting in 1 857 at Dublin. 

* See p. xlviii. 



XXX REPORT — 1855. 

Report of the Kew Committee, presented to the Council of the British 
Association June 27, 1855. 

The Committee beg to submit the following Report of their proceedings 
since the meeting of the Association at Liverpool. 

On the 20th of October last, Mr. John Phillips addressed a letter to the 
Chairman of the Kew Committee, announcing that a sum of £500 had been 
placed by the General Committee at the disposal of the Council for the main- 
tenance of the establishment at Kew, and that the General Committee had 
recommended that application should be made by the President to Her 
Majesty's Government for the use, rent free, of the two acres of land adjacent 
to the Observatory, and for the laying-on of gas. 

The Committee met on the 8th of November, when the fixed expendi- 
ture for the year was estimated at £341 (viz. Mr. Welsh £1.50, Beckley £91, 
Magrath £40, and house expenses £60). 

It having been represented to the Committee that Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment were anxious that magnetical and meteorological instruments, showing 
the state to which they had advanced in this country, should be exhibited at 
the Paris Exhibition, and that the expenses which might be incurred on any 
instruments or apparatus forwarded by the Committee would be defrayed by 
the Government, your Committee requested Colonel Sabine, Mr. Welsh, and 
the Chairman, to attend the Royal Society Paris Exhibition Committee, to 
explain that the Kew Committee would most readily afford every assistance 
in their power to carry out the wishes of Her Majesty's Government. 

The sum of £140 was ultimately awarded by the Royal Society Com- 
mittee for this purpose, and the instruments have been prepared and forwarded 
to Paris. 

The following letter from Mr. John Welsh, addressed to the Chairman 
of the Committee, is presented as a part of this Report. 

" Kew Observatory, June 26, 1855. 

" Dear Sir, — Colonel Sabine furnished, from the Stores in the depart- 
ment under his control at Woolwich, several of the instruments which had 
been in use at the British Colonial Magnetical Observatories ; and he also 
procured to be sent from Messrs. Jones and Barrow such of the smaller 
portable instruments as are employed in magnetical surveys. 

" At the Observatory, specimens of the self-recording magnetical and 
meteorological instruments of Mr. Ronalds were put in order, several small 
alterations in their adjustments being necessary in order to adapt them to the 
circumstances of the Exhibition. The two instruments sent, viz. the Bifilar 
Magnetograph and the Bai'oraetrograph, were sufficient to illustrate in every 
particular the principle of Mr. Ronalds's method of recording magnetical and 
meteorological phsenomena ; whilst a few specimens of the actual work of 
these instruments served to show the degree of accuracy of which they were 
capable. 

*' Portions of an electrical apparatus were so arranged as to illustrate the 
methods of insulation and of observation employed in the larger atmospheric 
electrometer of Mr. Ronalds. 

" A complete meteorological thermometer-stand, similar to the one 
actually in use at the Observatory (described in the Report of the Kew 
Committee to the meeting at Liverpool, 1854), was constructed under my 
own superintendence, and furnished with instruments chiefly graduated by 
myself. 

" Some of the standard thermometers graduated at the Observatory have 



REPORT OF THE KEW COMMITTEE. XXX: 

been sent ; and an apparatus similar to that employed here in the verification 
of thermometers has been constructed, and is exhibited in working order. 

" The meteorological instruments made use of in the balloon ascents of 
1852 were put in order, and arranged for exhibition exactly in the condition 
in which they were employed in the ascents. 

" The following instruments were made by my direction expressly for 
the Exhibition : — 

" An Evaporation-gauge on the principle of Mr. Ronalds. 

" A common circular Rain-gauge. 

" A portable Boiling-point apparatus (the thermometer graduated by 
myself), on the principle of Regnault's large instrument. 

" At the request of the Committee, Mr. Adie furnished a specimen of the 
marine barometers constructed by him, and recommended by the Committee 
to the British and American Governments. Messrs. Negretti and Zambra, 
and Messrs. Casella and Co., also furnished specimens of the marine thermo- 
meters constructed by them under the superintendence of the Committee. 

" In order to render the collection of meteorological instruments more 
complete, the Committee requested instruments to be sent by the following 
London opticians, viz. — 

" By Mr. Newman, a Standard and a Portable Barometer. 

" By Mr. Barrow, a Standard Barometer ; and 

" By Mr. Adie, a Standard and a Portable Barometer, and a Portable 
Robinson's Anemometer. 

" The instruments having been prepared and collected at Kew, glass 
cases and other fittings required for their proper exhibition and protection 
were constructed, and the whole packed and forwarded on April 10th to the 
shipping agents appointed by the Board of Trade, by whom they were 
transmitted to Paris. 

" Having learned that the instruments had arrived in Paris, and that the 
space allotted for their exhibition was in readiness ; on May 9th, accompanied 
by Mr. Beckley, I proceeded to Paris for the purpose of arranging the Col- 
lection. Owing to certain arrangements of the Imperial Commissioners, I 
could not proceed with the necessary preparations until the 17th of May. 
On June 2nd, the instruments having been all put in order, we returned to 
the Observatory. 

" The space assigned to the Kew Collection is situated near the middle 
of the South Gallery in the Central Building. It consists of a counter space 
25 feet long, and an open space 25 feet long by 7 feet wide. On the counter 
are placed two glass cases, each 10 feet long, the one containing the smaller 
Magnetical Instruments, and the other the Meteorological Instruments. On 
the counter are also placed Mr. Ronalds's Self-registering Magnetograph, and 
the apparatus for the verification of thermometers. 

" On the open space are placed the three large Magnetical Instruments 
used in the Colonial Magnetical Observatories, with the Reading Telescopes, 
supported by wooden Tripod Stands; the Self-recording Barometer and 
Electrical Insulator of Mr. Ronalds ; and the Kew Thermometer Stand. 

" There is also on this space a Stand containing a copy of the Magnetical 
and Meteorological Observations made at the British Colonial Observatories, 
surmounted by Mr. De la Rue's model of the Tower proposed to be erected 
at Kew for the Huyghenian Telescope. 

" The various instruments, especially the magnetical, have been put, as 
far as was practicable, in a state of approximate adjustment. In order to 
avoid the effect of tremor in the floor, the magnets have been supported on 
blocks in such a way as to render the scales visible. All the instruments 



XXXii REPORT — 1855. 

have affixed to them descriptive labels in French and English. The annexed 
copy of these labels will best explain tlie nature of the collection. 

" The instruments exhibited by the Kew Committee have been put in 
charge of M. de Fontaine Moreau, Avho has agreed to keep them in good 
order during the continuance of the Exhibition for the sum of £10. It 
would, I think, have been of great advantage if there had been, besides, 
some competent person appointed by the English Commissioners to take a 
general superintendence of the whole collection of Philosophical Instruments 
exhibited, and who, being always on the spot, could give any information 
required by visitors. 

" You will see by the account of the expenses, which I have already 
handed to you, that there has been expended the sum of £14'1 4s. Id., 
which already exceeds the amount of the grant from the Board of Trade. 
Some considerable expense will still be necessary for the protection of the 
Instruments in Paris, as well as for having them repacked and sent home at 
the close of the Exhibition. The amount of this I cannot at present esti- 
mate, but it will not I believe exceed £50. 

" It will be borne in mind that these expenses do not include any return 
to the funds of the Observatory, on account of the loss of the services of 
their Assistants during the very considerable period which has been devoted 
to the preparation of the Instruments and their arrangement in Paris. This 
period has been little (if at all) short of three months, and the consequent 
pecuniary sacrifice by the Committee cannot be estimated at less than £60 
or £70, independently of the very serious inconvenience sustained in the 
derangement of the general work of the Observatory. 

" I am, dear Sir, 

" Yours faithfully, 

" To J. P. Gassiot, Esq., F.R.S., " J. Welsh. 

Chairmau of the Kew Observatory Committee. 

" Copy of the Labels affixed to the various Instruments and Apparatus 
deposited by the Keio Observatory Committee in the Paris Universal 
Exhibition. 

" 1. Declination Magnetometer employed in the British Colonial Magnetic 
Observatories, under the superintendence of Colonel Edward Sabine, R.A., 
F.R.S. &c. &c. Constructed by Grubb of Dublin, on the model of the 
instrument used in the Dublin Magnetic Observatory, under the direction 
of Dr. Lloyd, F.R.S. 

" 2. Bifilar Magnetometer, for observations of the variations of the hori- 
zontal magnetic intensity, employed in the British Cofbnial Observatories, 
under the superintendence of Colonel Edward Sabine, R.A., F.R.S. &c. &c. 
Constructed by Grubb of Dublin, on the model of the instrument used in the 
Dublin Magnetic Observatory, under the direction of Dr. Lloyd, F.R.S. 

" 3. Balance Magnetometer, for observation of the variations of the ver- 
tical magnetic intensity, employed in the British Colonial Magnetic Obser- 
vatories, under the superintendence of Colonel Edward Sabine, R.A., F.R.S. 
Devised by Dr. Lloyd, F.R.S., and constructed by Robinson of London. 

" 4. Dip-circle with Microscopes, for observation of the magnetic inclina- 
tion, furnished with Deflection Bars, for observation of the absolute vertical 
intensity, by the method of Dr. Lloyd. Constructed by Barrow and Co., 
London. 

" 5. Standard Compass used in the British Navy, with Sabine's Deflection 
Apparatus. Constructed by Barrow and Co., London. 



REPORT OP THE KEW COMMITTEE. :«Xxm' 

« 6. Portable Unifilar Magnetometer, for observation of deflection in the 
determination of the absolute horizontal intensity by the method of Gauss. 
Constructed by W. H. Jones of London. 

" 7. Portable Vibration Ai)paratus (to accompany the Unifilar Magneto- 
meter), for observations of the time of vibration of the deflecting magnet in 
experiments for the absolute horizontal intensity, with brass rings for the 
determination of the moment of inertia of the magnet and its appendages. 
Constructed by W. H. Jones of London. 

" 8. Portable Declinometer, with Theodolite and Collimator Magnet, for 
observation of the absolute declination. Constructed by W. H. Jones of 
London. 

" 9. Universal Unifilar Magnetometer, for observations of deflection and 
vibration in experiments for the absolute horizontal intensity, and (with the 
addition of a Theodolite) of the absolute declination. Constructed by W. H. 
Jones of London. 

" 10. Portable Declinometer, for observations of the variations of the 
magnetic declination. Constructed by W. H. Jones of London. 

"11. Portable Bifilar Magnetometer, for observations of the variations of 
the horizontal intensity. Constructed by W. H. Jones of London. 

" 12. Self-registering Magnetometer, for recording photographically the 
variations of the horizontal magnetic intensity, or of the magnetic decli- 
nation. Invented by Francis Ronalds, Esq., F.R.S., and constructed under 
his direction for the Kew Observatory. 

" 13. Self-registering Barometer, for recording photographically the 
variations of the atmospheric pressure, with mechanical compensation for 
the effect of temperature. Invented by Francis Ronalds, Esq., F.R.S., and 
constructed under his direction for the Kew Observatory. 

" 14. Apparatus to illustrate the methods of Insulation and Observation 
employed in the Atmospheric Electrometer, constructed for the Kew Ob- 
servatory, under the direction of Francis Ronalds, Esq., F.R.S. 

" 15. Thermometer Stand for Meteorological Observations, similar to that 
employed at the Kew Observatory ; furnished with — 

A. Dry- and Wet- bulb Thermometers. 

B. Regnault's Condensing Hygrometer, with the Inverting Aspirator 

of Mr. Ronalds. 

C. Daniell's Dew-point Hygrometer. 

D. Negretti and Zambra's Maximum-Thermometer. 

E. Phillips's Maximum-Thermometer. 

F. Rutherford's Minimum-Thermometer. 
" 16. Standard Barometer by Newman. 

" 17. Standard Barometer by Barrow and Co. 

" 18. Standard Barometer by Adie. 

" 19. Portable Barometer by Newman. 

" 20. Portable Barometer by Adie. 

"21. Marine Barometer by Adie, London, supplied to ships by the 
British and American Governments, on the recommendation of the Kew 
Observatory Committee. 

" 22. Cistern of Adie's Standard or Portable Barometer. 

" 23. Cistern of Newman's Portable Barometer. 

" 24'. Standard Thermometers graduated at the Kew Observatory by 
i, Welsh. 

" 25. Thermometers for Marine Meteorological Observations, supplied to 
ships by the British and American Governments, on the recommendation of 
the Kew Observatory Committee. 

1855. c 



XXxiv REPORT — 1855. 

" 26. Evaporation-Gauge, invented by Francis Ronalds, F.R.S, and em- 
ployed at the Kew Observatory. 

" 27. Rain-Gauge, with graduated Glass-measure. 

" 28. Portable Apparatus, for the determination of heights by observation 
of the boiling-point of water. Constructed on the principle of Regnault's 
Boiling-point Apparatus for the Kew Observatory. 

" 29. Meteorological Instruments employed in the experimental Balloon 
ascents performed in 1852, under the direction of the Kew Observatory 
Committee, at the expense of the Royal Society of London. 
" 30. Portable Robinson's Anemometer. 

"31. Sliding-rule for the computation of the results of observations of the 
dry- and wet-bulb hygrometer. Designed by J. Welsh, of the Kew Ob- 
servatory. 

" 32. Sliding-rule for computing the variations of the dip and total intensity 
from observations of the horizontal and vertical components of magnetic 
intensity. Designed by J. Welsh, of the Kew Observatory. 

"33. Apparatus similar to that employed at the Kew Observatory, in 
the verification of the thermometers supplied to ships by the British and 
American Governments. 

" 34. Specimens of the Photographic Records of the Self-registering Mag- 
netometer and Barometer, with apparatus for measuring the ordinates of the 
curves." 

The cost and expenses incurred in the preparation and transit of the 
instruments and apparatus sent to the Paris Exhibition having exceeded the 
amount of £140 received from the Board of Trade, and Mr. Welsh having 
strongly recommended that some arrangement should be made for increased 
inspection of the instruments and apparatus during the time they remain in 
the Exhibition, — 

The Committee Resolved, — That the Chairman be requested to forward an 
account of the expenses incurred, amounting to £141 45. Id., with 
vouchers, to the Board of Trade, and a list of the instruments exhibited, 
requesting that a further sum of £50 be granted in order to defray the 
expenses that must be incurred in repacking and forwarding the instru- 
ments to England ; and that a copy of the above, and of this Resolution, 
be sent to the Royal Society's Paris Exhibition Committee, requesting its 
support of the application. 

A copy of the above Resolution, with a list of the apparatus deposited in 
the Exhibition, has been forwarded to Dr. Lyon Playfair and to the Royal 
Society. 

The apparatus for testing barometers has been completed, and is now in 
action. This apparatus has been entirely constructed in the Observatory by 
Mr. Beckley, under the direction and superintendence of Mr. Welsh. 

In their last report, the Committee stated that they had engaged to verify 
for the Board of Trade 400 thermometers and 60 barometers, and for the 
United States Navy 1000 thermometers and 50 barometers, all of which 
instruments have now been despatched from the Observatory. The Com- 
mittee have since undertaken the verification of the following additional in- 
struments, viz. 

For the Board of Trade. For the Admiralty. 

Thermometers 400 480 

Barometers 60 80 • 

Hydrometers 600 400 

Of which there have been already completed 540 thermometers, 800 hydro- 



REPORT OF THK KEW COMMITTEE. XXXV 

meters, 45 barometers. There have besides been verified for opticians 
92 thermometers. The total number of instruments verified up to this time 
is 2032 thermometers, 155 barometers, 800 hydrometers. 

The Chairman has received an application, through Colonel Sabine, from 
Dr. Pegado, Superintendent of the Royal Marine Meteorological Observatory 
at Lisbon, for a Kew Standard Thermometer, and for specimens of the Marine 
Barometers, Thermometers and Hydrometers, supplied to the British Navy 
and Board of Trade, accompanied by an inquiry whether a supply of such in- 
struments can be obtained for the Portuguese Royal Marine by the aid of the 
Kew Committee of the British Association, the centesimal scale being em- 
ployed in the thermometers, and the metrical scale in the barometers. The 
instruments thus applied for are in course of preparation, and the Kew Com- 
mittee signified to Dr. Pegado their readiness to undertake the verification 
of Marine Meteorological Instruments for the Portuguese Government (if 
desired), under similar arrangements to those which have been approved and 
adopted by our own Government and by the Government of the United States. 

The increased demand on the time and work necessary for the verifica- 
tion of instruments in the Observatory, renders it necessary for the Committee 
to employ further assistance. As yet the Committee have not been able to 
obtain the permanent services of any person of the character they require ; 
^ut in the meantime, Dr. Hermann Halleur, of Berlin, at a weekly salary of 
30s., on the recommendation of Colonel Sykes, has undertaken for a short 
time to assist Mr. Welsh in the verification of the instruments. 

The Committee has caused a room for magnetic experiments to be erected 
in the ground, at a cost of about £50. 

The apparatus suggested by Sir John Herschel for photographing 
the spots on the sun's disc, is progressing under the superintendence of 
Mr. Warren De la Rue. The Solar Photographic Telescope is promised by 
the maker complete in three months ; the object-glass is finished, and some 
progress has been made with the stand. The diameter of the object-glass is 
3'4 inches, and its focal length 50 inches ; the image of the sun will be 
0-465 inch, but the proposed eye-piece will, with a magnifying power of 
25*8 times and focal length x, increase the image to 12 inches, the angle of 
the picture being aboui 13° 45'. The object-glass is under-corrected in such 
a manner as to produce the best practical coincidence of the chemical and 
visual foci*. The eye-piece consists of two nearly achromatic combinations, 
their forms, foci, and focal lengths being arranged upon the basis of the 
photographic portrait lens, the conditions being nearly similar. 

It is contemplated to form the system of micrometer-wires on a curved 
surface ; and it may ultimately be found to be advantageous also to curve 
the photographic screen, as the small curvature necessary, namely about 
two-tenths of an inch, will present no mechanical difficulties. As in practice 
it may possibly be found desirable not to produce the sun's image with too 
great rapidity, a provision is contemplated for the absorption of some of the 
most energetic active rays by the interposition of coloured media of different 
tints. 

The telescope being for a special object, it will have no appliances except 
such as appertain exclusively to that object, so that the only means provided 
for viewing the sun will be through the finder intended for facilitating the 
adjustment of the sun's image in position as regards the micrometer. The 

* Mr. Ross has found, that if for the greatest intensity of vision, in common lenses, the 
ratio of the dispersive powers of the two media is 0-65, the chemical and visual foci 
will coincide best practically when with the same media the ratio is altered to 0*60 ; the 
media he sometimes uses being Pellatt's flint and Thames plate. 

c2 



XXXVl REPORT— 1855. 

polar axis will be furnished with a worm-wheel and clock-work driver, and 
the declination axis with a clamping circle. A shutter for covering the 
object-glass, and capable of being rapidly moved by the observer, will be so 
contrived as to be under his command, whether he be at the time near the 
object-glass or near the screen, eight feet distant. 

It was originally intended to place the telescope in an observatory 12 
feet in diameter, provided with a revolving roof; adjoining the observatory, 
a small room for chemicals was to have been constructed, so as to facilitate 
the fixing of the pictures. It has however been found possible to somewhat 
alter the construction of the tube, so as to reduce its length sufficiently to 
allow of the telescope being placed under the dome of the Kew Observatory, 
which is only 10 feet in diameter. 

Dr. Miller has selected an air-pump for the use of the Observatory, 
which has been purchased out of the grant of the Royal Society, and is now 
in the Observatory. 

Dr. Robinson's Anemometer, to record the total amount of wind (but 
not as yet the time or direction), has been constructed at the Observatory, 
and is now in action, 

John P. Gassiot, 

Chairman. 

Special Report of the Kew Committee relative to the use of Land contiguous 
to the Observatory, as also to the Lighting of the Buildiiig jvith Gas. 

The Committee having ascertained through the Earl of Harrowby, Pre- 
sident of the British Association, that in consequence of a recent Act of 
Parliament no portion of the ground contiguous to the Observatory could 
be obtained free of rent, and the Commissioners of Parks, Palaces, and Public 
Buildings having refused to light the Observatory with gas, the Committee 
consider it their duty to present the following special Report for the con- 
sideration of the Council. 

Beport. 

The Observatory was originally placed at the disposal of the British Asso- 
ciation by Her Majesty's Government in 18V2, and has since been used as a 
place of deposit for the various books, papers and apparatus belonging to the 
Association, as well as for the carrying on a continued series of scientific in- 
vestigations, which have from time to time been fully detailed in its annual 
reports. 

In the Report of the Committee presented to the Association at their 
Meeting at Hull in September 185S, it was recommended that an application 
should be made to the Commissioners of Woods and Forests for the tempo- 
rary use of a small portion of the ground near the Observatory for the erec- 
tion of suitable places for observing : this recommendation having been 
approved by the Association, Col. Sabine and the Chairman of the Com- 
mittee waited on Sir W. Molesworth in January 1854, and explained that 
t'.ie land which the Committee required would not exceed two acres. Sir 
W. Molesworth stated, that there was some doubt whether the Park was 
under the control of his Board, but that he would be happy to forward the 
application. 

The Committee not hearing anything further from Sir W. Molesworth, 
applied to the Hon. Charles Gore, who, at their request, visited the Obser- 
vatory on the 1st of April, I85i, in company with Mr. Clutton, when it was 
arranged that the Committee should pay a sum of £10 10*. per acre for the 
US3 of the land to the tenant, until Michaelmas IBS^, at which time it waa 



KBPORT OP THE KEW COMMITTEE. XXXVU 

stated the present tenure with the Crown would cease, and it being then 
considered, that at the teniiination of the agreement arrangements might be 
made with the Crown for the use of this suiall portion of the ground ; this, 
however, is now found to be impracticable : the Commissioner having sub- 
sequently informed the Committee that he has no intention to determine 
the present tenancy of the Park, the Committee are therefore precluded 
from becoming the direct tenants from the Crown, even at a rental (see 
Letter, llth April, 1855); and consequently they must either continue to 
pay the present exorbitant rent of f 10 lO*. per acre, or give up the land 
to the tenant, although an expense of £4'8 in fencing, and nearly ^50 in the 
erection of a magnetical house, has been incurred. 

In respect to the lighting of the Observatory with gas, the Committee 
consider that it is highly desirable that this should be effected ; for, exclusive 
of the increase in the general scientific work carried on in the Observatory, 
the constant attention requisite in the verification of the barometers and 
thermometers for the use of H.M. Navy and the Mercantile Marine, ren- 
ders a more perfect and uniform system of lighting highly desirable, as also 
avoiding the danger of fire by the use of oil lamps. 

The Committee having at last ascertained, by correspondence, that the 
Observatory and the Park are under the control of separate Boards, the Ob- 
servatory being under the direction of the Commissioners of Parks, Palaces, 
and Public Buildings, while the Park is under that of the Woods, Forests, and 
Land Revenues, applied to the Chief Commissioner of the latter department, to 
ascertain whether he would grant permission to lay down the gas-pipes in the 
Park, and whether any, and what, amount of compensation would have to be 
paid to the tenant who rents the land ; by the correspondence it will be seen 
that no compensation will be required, if the gas-pipes are laid down during 
the winter, and that the Chief Commissioner will not object, provided the 
Association will undertake to pay a nominal rent of is. per annum. 

The Committee have ascertained that the cost of laying down the gas to 
the Observatory would be about £220, and in the event of its being considered 
advisable, all that will now be necessary to obtain is the sanction of the 
officer of the Parks, Palaces, and Public Buildings department, who has 
charge of the district, and whose name and address the Committee will 
endeavour to ascertain. John P. Gassiot, 

Chairman. 



Supplementary Report of the Kew Committee, September 12, 1855. 

In addition to the report presented to the Council on June 27, a copy of 
which is appended, your Committee have now to report that a tube of 
rather more than one inch internal diameter having been satisfactorily filled 
with mercury by Mr. Welsh, the standard barometer has been now completed. 
A detailed account of the various experiments which have been made during 
the construction of this instrument will be prepared for publication. 

The following statement shows the actual number of meteorological in- 
struments verified at the Kew Observatory during the past year: — 

Thermometers. Barometers. Hydrometers. 
For the United States Government .... 1000 50 

„ Admiralty and Board of Trade. . 1340 200 1269 

„ Opticians 180 7 

Total 2520 257 1269 



XXXVIll REPORT 1855. 

Apparatus similar to that employed at the Kew Observatory for the veri- 
fication of barometers and thermometers, has been ordered by the Board of 
Trade, for the observatory at Liverpool ; it has been constructed by Mr. Adie, 
under the advice and direction of Mr. Welsh ; the original patterns used in 
making the Kew apparatus having been lent for that purpose. The Committee 
have also been informed that it is the intention of the Admiralty to provide 
similar apparatus for Portsmouth and Plymouth. 

The apparatus necessary for the complete registration of Dr. Robinson's 
Anemometer is in progress at the Observatory ; the castings of all the parts 
and most of the wheel-work being completed. 

The following letter having been addressed by Mr. Welsh to the Chairman, 
copies were forwarded, by the instructions of the Committee, to Admiral 
Beechey and Captain FitzRoy at the Board of Trade. 

" Kew Observatory, Aug. 27, 1855. 

" My dear Sir, — I enclose a memorandum of the number of meteoro- 
logical instruments which during the past years have been verified for the 
meteorological department of the Admiralty and Board of Trade, with the 
sums due to the Kew Committee for the same. 

" In the event of further contracts being entered into with the opticians 
for the supply of meteorological instruments which are to be examined at 
this observatory, I would offer one or two suggestions with regard to the 
instruments and the terms of the contracts, with the view of facilitating our 
proceedings and of securing greater uniformity in the quality of the instru- 
ments, and greater punctuality in their delivery. 

" 1st. As regards the accuracy of the graduation of the thermometers, we 
have, I think, been fully successful ; the instruments made by Casella and by 
Negretti and Zambra have in this respect been constructed with much care, 
and the numbers rejected on account of error very small. I have not, how- 
ever, been so well satisfied with regard to the uniformity of the instruments 
in a mechanical point of view : — the diameter of the bulbs has been too 
irregular, and in many cases considerably more than is desirable, — the range 
of the graduation has differed in many instances excessively from that pre- 
scribed in the instructions of the Kew Committee, — and even the dimensions 
of the mere material have been too little attended to, at least in some of the 
instruments more recently made by Negretti and Zambra. With respect to the 
first two faults, as it is practically impossible to make the instruments exactly 
to a prescribed pattern, I would suggest that certain li7nifs should be clearly 
specified in the contracts, beyond which the instruments must not be in 
error ; for example, ' the diameter of the bulb should be as nearly as possible 
0*4 inch, it must not exceed 0'5 inch, nor fall short of 0*3 inch,' and ' the 
graduation shall extend through 8| inches of the tube, and shall range from 
about 10° to 130°, and shall not exceed the limits 0° to 140° or 20° to 130°.' 
The dimensions of the mere materials should of course be explicitly stated, 
and no deviation from them be allowed. In the instructions given at first 
by the Committee, it is stated that 'fluoric or hydrofluoric acid' may be used 
in etching the divisions : I would suggest that fluoric acid vapour alone should 
be used. 

" 2nd. In the case of the hydrometers, it would be well if there existed 
more uniformity in the form and dimensions of the instruments as made by 
the three different makers employed by Captain FitzRoy. Those made by 
Casella are, on the whole, the best adapted for practical work; their scales 
should, however, be more open. In shape and strength they are by 
far the best, those by Adie and by Negretti and Zambra being much too 



REPORT OP THE KEW COMMITTEE. XXXIX 

fragile to stand the work they are designed for. In respect to accuracy, 
Casella's are also incomparably the best, and he deserves credit for the care 
witli which they have been made : I cannot report so favourably of the 
quality of those by Adie, or Negretti and Zambra. I would recommend that 
for the future the use of metal hydrometers should be altogether discon- 
tinued. They are four times the price of glass ones, — are generally less 
accurate, — are more apt to give deceptive results from their greater affinity 
for grease, — are very liable to pick up small particles of mercury, — and, 
lastly, if they do get a knock, their indications are rendered ya/se; whereas 
a glass one is simply destroyed and no harm is done to the observations. 

" 3rd. I have no particular remark to make about the marine barometers 
by Adie ; they continue to improve in quality and regularity as the maker 
becomes more familiar with the work. 

" 4th. With regard to punctuality in the delivery of the instruments ; — 
.there is, I understand, in the contracts, a clause to the effect that if the instru- 
ments are not delivered at certain dates, the Board of Trade or Admiralty 
are at liberty to purchase the instruments elsewhere, fhe defaulter to pay 
any difference in the cost. Now such a penalty might do very well if we 
had to deal with articles which are to be had at any time of the same quality. 
As it is, the instruments are not to be had in an emergency by simply sending 
into the market. I do not mean that barometers and thermometers may not 
be had in abundance, but we know, from past experience, that they are not 
of a quality which it would be desirable to give out for accurate observations. 
Such a penalty becomes therefore practically inoperative. I would suggest, 
whether a direct pecuniary fine should not be rather imposed in cases of 
default. If the punctual delivery of the instruments by the makers were 
rigorously enforced, I should then be able so to arrange beforehand the work 
of the Observatory, that the verifications should in all cases be proceeded 
with promptly and regularly. The want of punctuality hitherto has frequently 
been a source of serious inconvenience to the Observatory. 

" It would, I believe, contribute much to regularity, if the thermometers 
and hydrometers were sent here in the boxes, just as they are to be delivered 
to the ships : the additional expense would be very trifling, — perhaps a half- 
penny on each instrument. 

" I remain, dear Sir, yours faithfully, 

« J: p. Gassiot, Esq., F.E.S." « J. Welsh." 

The following reply has been received from the Board of Trade : — 

" Office of Committee of Privy Council for Trade, Marine Department, 
4th September, 1855. 

" Sir, — I am directed by the Lords of the Committee of Privy Council 
for Trade to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 31st ultimo, en- 
closing a copy of a letter from Mr. Welsh, having reference to certain 
arrangements which he proposes should be made with instrument-makers in 
the case of future contracts for meteorological instruments; I am to convey 
to you their Lordships' thanks for the communication, and to inform you 
that they will adopt Mr. Welsh's suggestions. 

" I am. Sir, your obedient Servant, 

" Douglas Galton, Capt. R.E." 

" John P. Gassiot, Esq., Chairman of the Kew Committee, 
British Association, Kew Observatory" 

Two portable barometers by Adie, previously compared with the standard 



Xl REPORT — 1855. 

at Kew, were deposited for a few days at the Imperial Observatory at Paris ; 
comparisons witli tiie standard instrument of the Observatory were taken by 
M. Liais, wliicb indicated that the standards of the two Institutions do not 
differ from each other by one-t!iousandth of an inch. 

In the report of the Committee presented to the Association at the 
Liverpool fleeting, it is stated that — " Considering the variety and import- 
ance of the objects which are now beiiBg carried out at the Observatory, the 
Committee submit for the considei-ation of the Council, that should the finan- 
cial state of the Association at Liverpool justify an increase in the annual 
sum placed at the disposal of the Committee, they feel confident that a larger 
grant than has been allowed in the last few years for the maintenance of 
the Observatory, might be so appropriated in the next year with great advan- 
tage to the interests of science and to the credit of the Association." The 
Association responded to this request by placing the sum of £500 at the dis- 
position of the Kew Committee. The Committee hope that the account of 
disbursements and the report now presented will satisfy the Association that 
the money expended during the past year has not been misapplied. Should 
the financial position of the Association justify the expenditure, the Com- 
mittee hope that a similar amount of £500 may be awarded for the current 
expenses of the Kew Observatory for the ensuing year. 

The Committee cannot close this report without alluding to the advantages 
which are likely to arise from the endeavours used by the Association to 
improve the construction of meteorological instruments, and at the same time 
to reduce their price. Independently of the improvement which the Committee 
have been able to introduce in the manufacture of instruments for the use 
of the Royal and Commercial INIarine, they are gratified by perceiving an 
increasing disposition among the makers generally to bestow more care upon 
the construction of their instruments. 

(Signed) John P. Gassiot, 

Chairman. 

Correspondence referred to in preceding Report. 
1 . Mr. Gassiot to the Hon. Charles Gore. 

" Clapham Common, 20th March, 1855. 

" Sir, — You are I believe aware, that some years since H.M. Govern- 
ment placed the Observatory in the Old Deer Park, at Richmond, at tiie 
disposal of the British Association, with the view of its being used not only 
for the deposit of the various scientific instruments and apparatus as well as 
books belonging to the Association, but also for the carrying on of various 
scientific experimental investigations. 

" Much inconvenience has arisen in the prosecution of the latter, from the 
Observatory not being properly lighted, and I have been requested by the 
Committee to suggest to you the advisability of the interior of the building 
being lighted with gas. 

" Exclusive of the desirableness of the gas being laid on, as has been 
done in tiie Magnetical and Electrical Department of the Royal Observatory 
at Greenwich Park, and in the event of which the Committee would be 
enabled to carry out a variety of scientific investigations which they are 
now totally prevented from commencing, I may state that the increased 
requirements arising from the number of barometers and thermometers, 
which are at present in course of verification for the use of H.M. Navy 
and Mercantile Marine, has rendered it indispensable that a corresponding 



REPORT OF THE KEW COMMITTEE. xl 

increase should be made in the number of oil lamps, and the Committee 
cannot but be sensible that in a building in ^vhieh so large a quantity of 
papers and books is distributed, a corresponding increase in the danger of 
fire has arisen ; this would be entirely obviated by the introduction of gas 
into the building. 

"Limited as are the funds which are at the disposal of the Association, the 
expense of the gas proposed to be used would be defrayed by the Committee, 
and all they ask is that it should be laid on in the different rooms. The 
Committee hope that as no pecuniary assistance is received by the Associa- 
tion from H.M. Government, and that as the exertions of the Committee 
have latterly been devoted to the great national object of verifying the 
meteorological instruments used by H.M. Navy, this request will not be 
refused. 

" Some time since, the Committee made arrangements through your 
Surveyor, with the present tenant, for the occupation of two acres of the 
land immediately contiguous to the Observatory ; the land has been enclosed 
•with a strong paling at a very considerable expense. 

"In any future letting, the Committee hope they will be permitted to 
take the two acres direct from the Crown, at such rent as your Surveyor may 
consider fair and equitable ; and as some misunderstanding has at times arisen 
as to the right of way to the Observatory, the Committee would feel obliged 
in any future arrangements you may make for the letting of the land, that 
the right of way should be specified. 

" I am also directed to acquaint you, that the Committee consider it 
desirable the Building should be examined by your Surveyor, as some repairs 
are required, which if not made at an early period, may ultimately cause • 
considerable expense to the Government. 

" I have the honour to be, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " J. P. Gassiot." 

" To the Hon. Charles Gore." 

2. Mr. Gore to Mr. Gassiot. 

" Office of Woods, &c., 27th March, 1855. 
" Sir, — I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 20th inst., 
and to inform you in reply, that the Buildings of the Observatory being 
under the charge of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Works, &c., any 
communication respecting its condition, or as to lighting it with gas, should 
be made to that Department at No. 12 Whitehall Place, and I have therefore 
transmitted copy of those portions of your letter which have reference to that 
Building to that Office. 

" With respect, however, to the tenancy of the land adjoining the Ob- 
servatory, I have to state that in the event of any change in the letting of 
the Park taking place, your application, that the Committee of the British 
Association may be permitted to rent it direct from the Crown, and a right 
of way thereto reserved in the letting of the residue, shall receive attention. 
" I am. Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " Chas. Gore." 

" J. P. Gassiot, Esq." 

3. Mr. Gore to Mr. Gassiot. 

" Office of Woods, &c., 11th AprU, 1855. 
" Sir, — With reference to my letter to you of the 27th ult., 1 have to 
acquaint you that I do not think it would be for the interest of the Crown, 



Xlii REPORT — 1855. 

and I have therefore no intention to deterniine the present tenancy of the 
Old Deer Park. It is not therefore in my power to give to the British 
Association a direct holding under the Crown of the land adjoining the 
Observatory and in their occupation ; but, as stated in my said letter, in the 
event of any change in the letting taking place, your application to that effect 
shall receive attention. " I am, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " Chas. Gore." 

" J. P. Gassiot, Esq." 



4. Mr, Gassiot to the Hon. Charles Gore. 

" Clapham Common, 17th April, 1855. 

" Sir, — I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your esteemed 
favours of 27th ult. and llth inst. At the time the Committee agreed to give 
the present tenant the rent which they now pay, they considered (from the 
conversation they had with you) that the present tenancy terminated next 
Michaelmas, otherwise they would not have instructed me to make the 
application, and they cannot but regret it is not in your power to give 
them a direct holding under the Crown for the small portion of the Park 
which they at present occupy. 

" In your letter of 27th ult., you stated that you had forwarded an extract 
of that portion of my former letter which referred to the repairs and lighting 
of the Observatory with gas to another department; I have not received any 
communication on the subject, and Mr. Welsh informs me that the Obser- 
vatory has not been visited by any person in reference thereto ; for the 
reasons mentioned in my letter, the Committee would feel obliged if you could 
assist them in obtaining the lighting of the Observatory with gas ; as regards 
the repairs, unless some early notice is taken, the ultimate expense to Govern- 
ment may be considerable. 

" I have the honour to be, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) "John P. Gassiot, 

. " Chairman of ike Keio Committee 
of the British Association," 
" To the Hon. Chas. Gore." 



5. Mr. Gore to Mr. Gassiot. 

" Office of Woods, &c., 19th April, 1855. 
« Sir, — I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of 17th inst, 
requesting attention to your previous application, with regard to the repairs 
and lighting of the Observatory in the Old Deer Park with gas. 

" In reply I have to acquaint you that I have no power to obtain a reply, 
and to suggest therefore that any further communication on the subject which 
you may consider desirable, should be addressed direct to the Chief Com- 
missioner of Her Majesty's Works, &c., No. 12 Whitehall Place, to whom, as 
stated in my letter of the 27th ult., I had forwarded your previous applica- 
tion. "I am. Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) "Chas. Gore." 

" J. P. Gassiot, Esq." 



REPORT OF THE KEW COMMITTEE. xUu 

6. Mr. Gassiot to the Hon. Sir William Molesworth, Bart. 

" Clapham Common, 26th May, 1855. 

"Sir, — On the 20th of last March, by the direction of the Kew 
Committee of the British Association, I addressed a letter to the Hon. Charles 
Gore, Chief Commissioner of H.M. Woods, Forests, and Land Revenue 
Department, of which the following are extracts : — 

" ' You are, I believe, aware, that some years since H.M. Government 
placed the Observatory, in the Old Deer Park at Richmond, at the disposal 
of the British Association, with the view of its being used not only for the 
deposit of the various scientific instruments and apparatus, as well as books 
belonging to the Association, but also for the carrying on of various scientific 
experimental investigations. 

" * Much inconvenience has arisen in the prosecution of the latter, from 
the Observatory not being properly lighted, and I have been requested by 
the Committee to suggest to you the advisability of the interior of the 
Building being lighted with gas. 

" ' Exclusive of the desirableness of the gas being laid on, as has been 
done in the Magnetic and Electrical Department of the Royal Observatory 
at Greenwich Park, and in the event of which the Committee would be 
enabled to carry out a variety of scientific investigations which they are now 
totally prevented from commencing, I may state that the increased require- 
ments arising from the number of Barometers and Thermometers which are 
at present in course of verification for the use of H.M. Navy and Mercantile 
Marine, has rendered it indispensable that a corresponding increase should 
be made in the number of oil lamps, and the Committee cannot but be 
sensible that in a Building in which so large a quantity of papers and books 
is distributed, a corresponding increase in,the danger of fire has arisen ; this 
would be entirely obviated by the introduction of gas into the Building. 

" 'Limited as are the funds which are at the disposal of the Association, 
the expense of the gas proposed to be used would be defrayed by the Com- 
mittee, and all they ask is that it should be laid on in the different rooms ; 
the Committee hope that as no pecuniary assistance is received by the Asso- 
ciation from H.M. Government, and that as the exertions of the Committee 
have latterly been devoted to the great national object of verifying the meteo- 
rological instruments used by H.M. Navy, this request will not be refused. 

" ' I am also directed to acquaint you, that the Committee consider it 
desirable the building should be examined by your Surveyor, as some repairs 
are required, which if not made at an early period, may ultimately cause 
considerable expense to the Government.' 

" On the 27th March, Mr. Gore replied, stating ' that the Building of the 
Observatory being under the charge of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's 
Works, any communication respecting its condition, or as to lighting it with 
gas, should be made to that department, at No. 12, Whitehall Place, and I have 
therefore transmitted copy of those portions of your letter which have 
reference to that Building to that Office.' 

" Nearly two months having elapsed without being favoured with any 
communication from you, I have been directed by the Committee to state, 
that they should feel obliged by your informing them whether their request 
can be complied with : 1 may add, that, in respect to the repairs, these are 
absolutely necessary, in order to pi'event a much larger outlay at no great 
distance of time. " I have the honour to be. Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " John P. Gassiot." 



xliv REPORT — 1855« 

7. 77*6 Secretary of the Board of Works, ^c. to Mr. Gassiot. 

" Office of Works, &c., June 2, 1855. 
" Sir,— The Commissioners of Her Majesty's Works, &c. have had 
transmitted to them by the Hon. Charles Gore, one of the Commissioners 
of Her Majesty's Woods, &c., extracts from your letter to him of the 20th 
March last, in which you request, on behalf of the British Association, that 
they may be permitted to burn gas in the Observatory in the Old Deer Park 
at Richmond, the use of which has been allowed to them, and also that the 
gas may be laid on to the different rooms free of expense to the Association, 
they engaging to pay the cost of the gas proposed to be used. 

" In reply, I am directed to inform you that the Board have no objection 
to the use of gas in the building in question, but that the whole of the work 
must be done by, and at the expense of, the Association, and to the satisfac- 
tion of the Board's officer in charge of the district. 
" I am. Sir, 

" Your most obedient Servant, 
(Signed) "J. Thomborrow, 

" Assistant Secretary ^ 
" J. P. Gassiot, Esq." 

8, Mr. Gassiot to the Secretary of the Board of Works, SfC. 

" Observatory, Old Deer Park, Bichmond, 
June 7, 1855. 

« Sir, I beg toacknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 2nd instant, 

wherein you state that, in reply to a communication made by me to the 
Hon. Charles Gore on the 20th of last March, relative to the lighting of the 
Observatory with gas, the Board has no objection to the use of gas in the 
Observatory, but that the whole of the work must be done at the expense of 
the British Association, and to the satisfaction of the Board's officer in charge 
of the district. 

" In a letter addressed to the Right Hon. the Chief Commissioner, of the 
26th ult., but which you have not done me the honour to notice, I explained 
that, in consequence of the increased requirements arising from the number 
of barometers and thermometers which are at present in course of verification 
for the use of Her Majesty's Navy and the Mercantile Marine, it was highly 
desirable that the Observatory should be lighted with gas. 

" The entire outlay attending the important work done in the Observatory 
has been defrayed by the British Association ; and considering that so large 
a portion consists in the verification of instruments for the use of the Navy, 
I cannot but regret that so trifling a request should have been so summarily 
refused ; for although upwards of two months have elapsed since the appli- 
cation was made, no one has visited the Observatory from your department 
to inquire as to the advisability of the application being granted. 

" I believe I am also correct in stating, that during the many years the 
Observatory has been occupied by the Association, no officer from your 
Board has visited the building. I name this because a portion of my letter 
referred to its present dilapidated condition, to which the Committee had 
particularly requested me to draw the attention of your Board. 
" I have the honour to be, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) « J. P. Gassiot." 

" J. Thomborrow, Esq., 
Assistant Secretary, Parks, Palaces, &c." 



REPORT OF THE KEW COMMITTEE. xlv 

9. Mr. Gassiot to the Hon. Charles Gore, Esq. 

" Kew Observatory, June 12, 1855. 
«« Sir,— The Chief Commissioner of Her Majesty's Works not having 
favoured the Kew Committee v?ith any communication relative to their ap- 
plication to you for the introduction of gas into the Observatory, and which 
application you informed me, in your letter of the 27th of last March, you 
had forwarded to him, I addressed a letter to Sir William MolesM'orth on the 
26th ult. ; on the 2nd inst. the Assistant Secretary writes me as follows : — 

" 'I am directed to inform you that the Board have no objection to the 
use of gas in the building in question, but that the whole of the work must 
be done by, and at the expense of, the British Association, and to the satis- 
faction of the Board's officer in charge of the district.' 

"The correspondence has been submitted to the Kew Committee, and I 
am instructed to inquire if you will grant permission for the gas to be laid 
on- to the Observatory through the Park, and whether, in the case of your 
granting such permission, any, and if so, what amount of compensation will 
have to be paid to the tenant in possession. 

"The Committee are anxious, before they present their Report to the 
Council of the Association, to be informed as to the total expense they would 
have to incur in laying on the gas ; and as, in a former instance, compensa- 
tion was to have been paid for the carrying of materials across the Park, the 
Committee considered it advisable that this should be ascertained before any 
outlay is commenced. " I have the honour to be, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " J. P. Gassiot." 

" To the Hon. C. Gore, Chief Commissioner 
of Her Majesty's Woods and Forests, Land Revenue." 

10. Mr. Gore to Mr. Gassiot. 

" Office of Woods, &c., June 18, 1855. 
" Sir, — In reply to your letter of the 12th instant, I have to inform you, 
that, provided the gas pipes are laid down as nearly as possible in the direc- 
tion of the footpath leading from Mr. Fuller's Farm Premises to the Obser- 
vatory in the Old Deer Park, as requested by you on behalf of the Kew Com- 
mittee, I am ready to grant the permission sought on payment of an annual 
acknowledgment of one shilling. 

" As regards the compensation to be made to the tenant of the Park, I 
am informed that if the works are not proceeded with until October next, 
and completed without interruption, and to the satisfaction of Mr. Clutton, 
the Crown Receiver, he will not require any compensation ; and as Mr. Clut- 
ton has been informed by the Superintendent of the Observatory that the 
pipes will not be required to be laid down until the latter part of the year, 
I presume that the Committee will not object to accede to this arrangement. 

" I am, Sir, 

" Your obedient Servant, 
(Signed) " Charles Gore." 

" J. P. Gassiot, Esq." 



xlvi 



REPORT— 1865. 



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REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. xlvii 

Report of the Parliamentary Committee of the British Association to 
the Meeting at Glasgow in September 1855. 

The Parliamentary Committee have the honour to Report as follows : — 

The labours of the Committee during the past year have been confined 
to two subjects : 

1st. The juxtaposition of the Scientific Societies in some central lo- 
cality of the Metropolis ; 

And, 2ndly. The report on the question, Whether any measures could 
be adopted by the Government or Parliament that would improve the 
position of Science or its Cultivators in this Country. 

As to the first, — 

We have co-operated with the Committee of the Memorialists in endea- 
vouring to obtain a reply to the Memorial on this subject presented to Lord 
Aberdeen, the First Lord of the Treasury, in May 1853, and we have learned 
from our Chairman that a Deputation of the Memorialists, of which he was 
a member, had a satisfactory interview with Lord Palmerston on the 30th 
of June last. 

As to the second, — 

Your Committee have, since their last Report, received a great many very 
valuable suggestions, both from those eminent persons who had before done 
them the honour to reply to their Circular, and from many others occupying 
distinguished positions as men of science. They have also had the benefit 
of the assistance of their new colleague, Mr. John Ball, and of others of their 
own body who had not previously expressed any opinion on the various in- 
teresting questions discussed in the Report, as originally framed. 

Your Committee maturely considered all these opinions and suggestions, 
and finally agreed on the Report, which, by permission of your Council, 
has been already printed and circulated among the Members of the Asso- 
ciation*. 

Your Chairman has forwarded a copy of this Report to Lord Palmerston 
and other Members of the Cabinet, and to certain distinguished Members 
of the Legislature, accompanied by the following letter : — 

" Wrottesley, August 1855. 

" I have the honour to forward to you a Report, carefully prepared, after 
consulting many of the most distinguished Cultivators of Science on the in- 
teresting question therein discussed. 

" The object aimed at was to collect together and enumerate all the pre- 
sent requirements of Science, considered in its relation to the ruling powers 
and educational establishments of the State ; and these various desiderata 
will be found in the last page of the enclosed Report in the form of ten pro- 
positions. 

" It must not be inferred from the course which has been taken in pre- 
paring this Report, that a necessity is believed to exist for the immediate 
adoption of all its suggestions ; but with respect to the tenth and last, viz. 
the creation of a Board of Science, it may with confidence be affirmed, that 
this measure would of itself, and at a trifling cost, confer most important 
benefits on the Government and Nation, and that it deserves early and serious 
consideration. 

" I remain, yours faithfully, 

" Wrottesley. " 

* This Report, dated July 14, 1855, is given in pp. 7-22. 



xlviii REPORT — 1855. 

Your Committee recommend that Mr. Robert Stephenson, M.P. for 
Whitby, who is well known as a distinguished Civil Engineer, be appointed 
to fill the vacancy in their body caused by the death of the late Mr. Vivian. 
August, 1855. Wrottesley, Chairman. 



Report presented by the Parliamentary Committee to the British Asso- 
ciation for the Advancement of Science at Glasgow, on the question, 
Whether any measures could be adopted by the Government or 
Parliament that would improve the position of Science or its Culti~ 
valors in this Country. 

It will be remembered, that we expressed our intention of presenting a 
Report on the answers which we had received to the above question from 
several eminent men of science. 

Tiie whole of the subjects discussed in the valuable replies which we have 
received, or which have occurred to ourselves as material to the issue, may 
be considered under the three following heads : — 

1st. How can the knowledge of scientific truths be most conveniently and 
effectually extended ? 

2nd. What inducements should be held out to students to acquire that 
knowledge ; and, after the period of pupilage has expired, to extend it, and 
turn it to useful account ? 

3rd. What arrangements can be made to give to the whole body of com- 
petent men of science a due influence over the determination of practical 
questions, dependent for their correct solution on an accurate knowledge of 
scientific principles ? 

The proper determination of these three questions appears to us of vital 
importance to the welfare of the State. 

On the first question, Hoto is the knoioledge of science to be extended? it 
will hardly be expected that we shotdd enter into details; but it is so inti- 
mately connected with the second, that a few words on the subject will not 
be out of place. 

For the purposes of this inquiry, the community may be divided into 
those who resort to the Universities for education, and those who do not. 
As to the former, we know of no step that would be more efi'ectual than that 
vvliich we have already recommended in our Report of last year, viz. that a 
certain amount of knowledge of physical science sliould be required from 
every candidate for a degree. Tiie expediency of this course is strongly 
urged by Professor Phillips and Mr. Grove in answer to our query, and also 
by distinguished witnesses wiio gave evidence to the University Commis- 
sioners. Your President, in his late address at Liverpool, has stated it as an 
undeniable proposition, " that those who administer the affairs of the country 
ought at least to know enough of science to appreciate its value, and to be 
acquainted with its wants and bearings on the interests of society." 

Air. Grove observes, " that it is melancholy to see the number of Oxford 
graduates who do not know the elementary principles of a telescope, a 
barometer, or a steam-engine. The contempt of anything manual or me- 
chanical, which Bacon so strongly reproved, still prevails to a large extent 
among the upper classes." 



REPORT OP THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. xlix 

Some evidence was given to the Oxford University Commissioners in 
reference to the inconveniences suffered by Oxford graduates when thrown 
suddenly on their own resources, as e. g. in a newly-settled country, from 
their neglect of physical science during their University career. 

It must be remembered also, that tliere is scarcely any profession or voca- 
tion in life in which some amount of knowledge of physics may not be a 
desirable, or even necessary acquisition. The legislator, statesman, and even 
legal tribunals, through ignorance of the principles of natural science, become 
the prey of charlatans; and vast sums of money may be squandered on 
impracticable, unnecessarily costly, or useless projects. In the legal and 
medical as well as in the naval and military services, a knowledge of scientific 
principles is most essential, and should be imparted to all ; but this is too 
wide a field to enter upon here. 

Now, there can be no doubt, that if Science be made an essential condition 
for obtaining a degree, it will be taught more extensively at schools, and at 
the University itself. This will give rise to an increased demand for accom- 
plished professors and teachers, or to some modification of the professorial 
system calculated to effect this object. The increase in the numbers of 
teachers, and the necessity for giving increased salaries to ensure high quali- 
fications, will in itself create a variety of lucrative employments ; and this, 
again, will stimulate students to learn that which is capable of affording 
them a comfortable provision in after-life. The whole machine of instruc- 
tion will thus act and react to the great benefit of all concerned ; and if other 
stimulants, about to be alluded to, be added, a valuable species of knowledge 
will rapidly spread among those destined hereafter either to teach or to dis- 
charge important functions, or fill high offices in the State. 

While recommending, however, that physical science should be required 
from all candidates for a degree, we admit that a discretion should be left to 
the University authorities, as to the extent to which this desirable change 
shall be at first carried into effect, in full confidence that studies so attractive 
and useful will eventually obtain from all candidates for University degrees 
that share of attention to which they are so justly entitled. 

As to that portion of the population who do not resort to universities for 
instruction, it is to be hoped that University Reform will diminish the number 
of this now very numerous class. The best mode of imparting to them 
instruction in science seems to be that suggested by Mr. Grove and others 
in their replies to our Circular ; that is, that professors, paid either wholly 
or in part by the State, should be appointed to deliver gratuitous, or very 
cheap lectures, illustrated by philosophical apparatus, to Institutions, in 
London and at the principal provincial towns, whose rules of admission and 
management should have been duly approved; and, when the system has 
been well organized, it might even be still further extended. 

Such lectures would be successful only in proportion as they were 
followed by examinations and rewards to diligent hearers, who might thus 
be induced to extend their studies, and assist in the diffusion of sound 
knowledge. 

We are aware that lectures, even though followed by examinations of a 
nature really calculated to test the degree of attention and ability of the 
hearers, are by no means a substitute for that course of severe study and 
mental training which can alone introduce the student to an accurate know- 
ledge of physical science. Lectures, however, even when addressed to men 
wholly, or almost wholly ignorant of their subject-matter, are very valuable 
as stimulating curiosity, exciting desire for study, and diffusing a general 
knowledge of facts and principles, and perhaps enabling attentive hearers at 

1855. ^ 



1 REPORT — 1855. 

least to appreciate science ; and when addressed to the real student, lectures 
are useful aids, particularly in those departments which require experimental 
illustrations *. 

On this subject, Professor Phillips, whose siiill and experience in imparting 
oral instruction are so well known and aj)preciated, has forwarded to us the 
following remarks. He observes, " that success in teaching depends not 
merely, or even mainly, on the ability of the teacher : it is much more the 
effect of his standing in the right relation to his audience. For conversational, 
i. e. tutorial teaching, one class of mind, for public teaching of large au- 
diences, another is required. Again, a teacher, whether by conversation or 
lecture, must lead by short strings. You cannot explain the precession of 
the equinoxes to a man who does not know what the rotation of the earth 

means University men should be employed for University work ; local 

men for local work. No man can take away from others the ignorance 
which he has never felt, or sympathised with." 

The Professor then proceeds to urge the employment as teachers of per- 
sons in the same grade of life as those to be taught. 

Sir Charles Lyell contrasts the state of Germany with that of this country 
in reference to the teaching of physical science. He says, "that in the 
former country, not only in cities where there are Universities, but almost 
everywhere in places where there exists a school of considerable size for 
boys under the usual university age, there is at least one teacher to be found 
whose business it is specially to give instruction in natural philosophy and 
history, and who has charge of a collection of natural objects. Frequently 
these teachers are so much devoted to some one of the branches in which 
they give instruction, as to be authors of original papers in scientific periodi- 
cals. So far is this from being the case in England, that I have visited large 
cities where there are richly endowed ecclesiastical establishments, where I 
have in vain inquired for a single individual who is pursuing any one branch 
of physical science or natural history. Hence it happens that if the towns- 
people, assisted by some of the gentry and clergy of the neighbourhood, 
establish a museum, they cannot obtain any scientific aid towards its arrange- 
ment and superintendence." 

Sir Charles suggests that laymen should be almost invariably selected to 
fill those Professorships which relate to the departments of science repre- 
sented in our Association. He suggests also, that if provincial lectureships 
should be established, five or six towns should be first selected, which have 
exhibited their taste for scientific knowledge by the foundation of museums 
and the appointment of curators, such as York and Bristol. The Govern- 
ment might enter into an arrangement with the latter to double their 
salaries, so as to secure to them a continuation of the local patronage 
already afforded them, and prevent the new grant from becoming merely a 
substitute for it. 

Mr. William Tite, M.P., observes : — " The practical course fo be adopted, 
and which has, 1 believe, to some extent, been carried out by private efforts, 
or the tardy intervention of the State, seems to me to consist, for instance, 
in the formation of schools of mining in such places as Cornwall, &c. ; of 
schools of arts and sciences in such places as Manchester, &c.; of schools of 
navigation in Liverpool, &c. ; of agriculture in York, &c. Perhaps in all it 
might be found advisable to found thirty schools or colleges of this descrip- 
tion, with (it may be) on the average six professors in each. I would pro- 
pose that these professors should only be appointed after a severe examina- 

* Mr. Ball suggests tliat, on the payment of a small fee, students should have the privi- 
lege of using the Lecturer's apparatus, and making analyses and experiments. 



REPORT OF THK PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. 11 

tion before a competent Board ; the Board not named by the Government, 
but by the Councils of the Universities, and of the different recognized 
aud chartered scientific institutions. They should be paid by a small fixed 
salary from the State, but principally by the fees from students, the latter 
being regulated by the examining Board, or by any municipal council which 
would undertake to defray the fixed charge, or the cost of the buildings and 
apparatus necessary. The united body, of professors should be entitled to 
confer honorary degrees, which should in no case convey any description of 
exclusive privilege 

"An annual vote of between £18,000 and £27,000 would suffice to carry 
out this system, — surely a very small sum to be devoted, by a country like 
England, to the practical scientific education of the people. 

" The only measures," continues Mr. Tite, "I should at present wish to 
see adopted to connect science with public affairs, would be by attaching 
eminent men to the various Government Boards." 

Sir Charles Lemon, whose experience in these matters is well known, 
decidedly objects to any plan under which itinerant lecturers should be 
employed. 

In addition to the direct advantages derivable from lectures, we may 
remark that the establishment of an enlarged staff of professors and teachers 
will provide further employment in after-life for students; and the situations 
Avill be in themselves so attractive, that many will be induced to accept them, 
on receiving a moderate remuneration for their services ; the rather, that in 
the interval between their professional labours, time might be found for 
prosecuting their studies. 

That these professors should prosecute those studies by which they have 
obtained their offices, is most desirable. The scientific character of the 
nation suffers from this cause, that our English system offers so little induce- 
ment to Mathematicians and Physicists to pursue their researches. Young 
men of twenty-one arrive at a marvellous state of proficiency for their age, 
and then entirely abandon the exact sciences for various professions ; a 
foundation is laid on which a superstructure worthy of the countrymen of 
Newton might well be reared, and then the work is abandoned ; the student 
must earn his subsistence, and he cannot earn it by geometrical or physical 
researches. 

We have no fear but that if the above, and other suggestions which we 
are about to make, should be carried out, the extended desire for acquiring 
knowledge of the kind in question would create a proportional demand for 
qualified instructors at all the principal educational establishments in the 
country, and their emoluments would again augment the desire to learn, 
both in university and general students. 

In addition to the above measures, there is no doubt that much might 
be done by the Committee of Privy Council and the Department of Science 
at Marlborough House under the direction of the Board of Trade, towards 
diffusing a knowledge of physical science among the pupils of primary and 
secondary schools, and it is with pleasure that we learn that some steps 
have already been taken in this direction. 

We are of opinion also, that means should be adopted for encouraging the 
foundation of Museums and Public Libraries, accessible to all, in our prin- 
cipal towns ; and by degrees all imposts should be abolished which enhance 
the cost to the public of scientific publications. Donations should also be 
made to public libraries and educational establishments, of works pub- 
lished at the expense of the nation ; such, e. g., as the Geological and Ord- 
nance Surveys. 

d2 



lii KEPOBT — 1855. 

2ndly. How are the students and proficients in science to he encouraged ? 

The measures which we have above described will not alone be sufficient to 
effect the object we have in view. However attractive Natural Science may 
be in itself, and it is impossible to over-estimate the pleasure which its study 
affords to the majority of minds, it cannot be expected that many men will 
piirsue it to any extent, so long as fellowships and the other university 
prizes continue to be almost exclusively bestowed upon the students in other 
departments of knowledge. In Oxford more particularly, to use Mr. 
Grove's words, " the ridos, which has been eulogized by some, is peculiarly 
antagonistic to the study of physical science. It is true that by the recent 
statutes physics are recognized, but they are not made compulsory or neces- 
sary From what I saw when resident at Oxford, the geimts loci is so 

far removed from such studies, that, unless they are made compulsory, or 
tempting prizes are held out, the minds of young men will not for an indefinitely 
long period be directed into that channel, and thus, though the examination 
papers will look very well to the public, science will form no integral part of 
a university education." 

Lord Rosse, again, in his last address to the Royal Society, has added his 
testimony to that of the many eminent men who have deplored in common 
the neglect of these studies at Oxford. " A man," says he, *' having taken a 
first class in Uteris humanioribus, may be ignorant of physics in the most ele- 
mentary form, and be incapable of comprehending the first principles of 
machinery and manufactures, or of forming a just and enlarged conception 
of the resources of this great country." 

And lastly, the Chancellor of Oxford himself has lately advocated the ex- 
tension of these studies in an eloquent appeal addressed to the University 
authorities on the occasion of founding the new museum. 

That important and instructive public document, the Report of the Oxford 
University Commissioners, shows how little the rewards now held out to 
students in mathematics at that university deserve to be denominated 
" tempting " they are in truth utterly insufficient ; and unless the changes 
about to be introduced, under the auspices of the Parliamentary Commis- 
sioners, shall remedy this defect, we greatly fear that the anticipations above 
expressed by Mr. Grove will only be too well realized. 

We are, however, convinced that the well-being of the nation would be 
greatly promoted by an extension of scientific knowledge among all classes, 
and that more encouragement in the shape of reward for successful exertion 
must be provided before that desirable end can be accomplished. 

More numerous prizes ought to be provided at our universities ; and other 
rewards and inducements both to study and to the prosecution of scientific 
research should be held out by the State. 

It is important that the endowments of Professors, who are at present very 
inadequately remunerated, should be augmented. Sir John Herschel mentions 
the following " as one of the most directly beneficial steps which can be 
taken by Government for the advancement of science itself, as well as for 
the general diffusion of its principles: viz. to increase the number, and 
materially improve the position, of the Professors of its several branches in all 
our Universities and public educational establishments ; and to erect Local 
Professorships in the chief provincial towns, independent of any University ; 
and more especially to make better and indeed handsome provision in the 
way of salary, for the Professors of those more abstract branches, which 
cannot be rendered popular and attractive, and therefore self-remunerating 
in the way of lectures." 

We direct particular attention to the last paragraph, from a conviction of 



REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. liil 

the importance of the suggestion therein contained. In a subsequent part of 
this Report, we have inserted a quotation from Professor Liebig relating to 
this subject. 

In a former Report we embodied a correspondence with the then Prime 
Minister respecting the unsatisfactory manner in which the bounty of Parlia- 
ment, in the shape of pensions, has been hitherto distributed. 

The lamented Professor Forbes says, in the concluding paragraph of his 
reply to our Circular, " It might be considered, whether it would not be de- 
sirable to found a number of scientific pensions, to be assigned, not for re/?c^, 
but for reward of good service, like the good-service pensions in the Army. 
They would often help to free the man of science from drudgery and pot- 
work, and give him the leisure for original research. They would be better 
rewards than ribands or stars, or other labels, upon the coats of philoso- 
phers." 

Mr. Ball seems to doubt the propriety of the suggestion in reference to 
good-service pensions ; he states " that he has a strong sense of the probable 
evils of anything approaching to a system of Government patronage of 
scientific men, to which it would be a forward step." 

The expediency of resorting to orders, or decorations, or any extension 
of the present system of bestowing medals, as a means of encourage- 
ment to the prosecution of physical researches, has been doubted. So long 
as the student is in statu pupillari, the system of rewarding by medals, or 
other honorary distinctions, presents little difficulty ; but in the case of pro- 
ficients it is otherwise. In addition to other objections, there is one which 
in our opinion is deserving of serious consideration ; and that is, that it seems 
difficult to devise any method of bestowing such distinctions that will be 
satisfactory. The Government are, by the hypothesis, not sufficiently 
informed ; and it will perhaps not be considered desirable that the system 
of the cultivators of science rewarding one another should receive any im- 
portant extension. We fear that, in its present limited form, it can be 
hardly predicated of this mode of conferring distinction that it has worked 
so well as to be entirely satisfactory. Only those versed in the particular 
branch of knowledge to be rewarded can properly decide on the merit of 
the candidate ; and the fear that partiality may be imputed to judges, who 
are either rivals, or will be considered as such by many, is likely both to 
render the task of decision irksome, and to impair the efficient exercise of the 
judicial function. Again, the value of a theory, or discovery, can seldom 
be justly appreciated by contemporaries : — Posterity alone can decide. 

Professor Phillips is of opinion that medals should never be bestowed 
except for work done and published ; and that they should never be given 
for mere mental proficiency ; they should be rewards for public service, 
rather than proofs oi personal merit. 

We believe, however, that, whatever objections may be raised to the 
mode of distribution, some medals are desirable, as incentives to exertion ; 
at the same time, we are aware that there may be persons whose labours 
are but little affected by these and similar rewards. Engaged in elevated 
pursuits of an intellectual and attractive nature, and appreciating the pure 
delights which such researches impart, they are contented with the renown 
which successful exertion brings in its train, and they weigh not their own 
merits in a nicely-adjusted balance, and with a jealous eye, against those of 
their rivals in fame, nor calculate the chances of material reward. Sufficient 
it is for them that they have done mankind good service, and that those 
whom they have benefited have not proved wholly ungrateful. 

Professor Faraday, after speaking of the distinctions, both national and 



liv REPORT 1855. 

foreign, which may even now be earned, writes, " I cannot say that I have 
not valued such distinctions ; on the contrary, I esteem them very highly, 
but I do not think I have ever worked for, or sought after them." 

The late Professor Moll, of Berlin, in his excellent pamphlet on the state of 
Science in England, has some remarks on the distribution of orders and 
medals abroad, which are not calculated to enhance the estimation in which 
they may be held by any one in this country. 

Again, the prosecution of some researches and the reduction and publica- 
tion of results, are expensive, and beyond the means of many of the ablest 
and most active cultivators of science. The WoUaston Fund of the Royal 
Society, the Government grant, and the grants of the British Association 
afford, in addition to the funds of the various scientific societies, most 
useful aid, but further assistance is sometimes needed, and would be more 
so, were science more extensively cultivated, and such assistance might be 
safely accorded under the conditions hereafter recommended. 

The juxtaposition of the principal scientific societies in some central locality 
in the metropolis is a question which has lately excited great interest among 
the cultivators of science. 

Lord Rosse, in his address to the Royal Society in 1853, observes, "The 
interests of Science appear to me to be deeply involved in the question of 

providing a suitable building for the scientific societies If a man, 

naturally gifted, and well educated, attends scientific meetings, he will feel 
himself constrained to work, and therefore it is so important for the advance- 
ment of knowledge, that able men should be induced to join and attend the 
different societies ; but nothing 1 think would have greater attractions than 
a building in a convenient central situation, where the business of Science 
would be transacted, where there would be access to the best libraries, and 
where that kind of society most valued by scientific men would always be 
within reach." 

The advantages of this juxtaposition are also shortly set forth in the Me- 
morial on this subject presented to Lord Aberdeen, and are indeed so obvious 
that they need not be here re-stated at length. Mr. Grove, on this subject, 
observes, " It should be borne in mind that scientific men have but very 
limited means of acting on Government ; they are politicians in a less de- 
gree than any class of Her Majesty's subjects; they consist of men belonging 
to various classes of society, and whose ordinary occupations differ greatly. 
Most of the great measures of reform or progress which are effected in this 
country result from a strong pressure of public opinion, urged on by agita- 
tion ; and as men of science are peculiarly unfitted for this process, Govern- 
ment might not unreasonably be asked to step out of its usual habits, and to 
lend Science a helping hand." 

Professor Forbes observes, " Science must have a local habitation, and be 
something more than a name, ere it can make a permanent impression on 
the somewhat material mind of John Bull. Asa man without a home, or, 
if houseless, without a club, is a doubtful and suspicious personage in the 
opinion of English householders, so is science a questionable myth whilst 
unprovided with a visible habitation. A first step, then, towards securing a 
due and wholesome reverence for science in the minds of the masses, 
educated and uneducated, is the congregation of the more important 
Scientific Societies in a central and convenient public edifice, where they 
shall be lodged at the cost, and by the authority, of the State. The prestige 
thus accorded to the Societies would soon extend to their members." 

The Astronomer Royal, on the other hand, conceives that the advantages 
of juxtaposition have been overrated ; but admits that if the measure, recom- 



REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. Iv 

mended hereafter under our third head, be adopted, the propriety of such a 
Capitol of Science would be more evident. 

Having, however, considered this question in all its bearings, we cannot 
too strongly express our conviction, that the juxtaposition of the principal 
scientific societies would confer a most important benefit on Science ; and 
almost all concur in this opinion. 

Of late years, considerable encouragement has been extended to practical 
science, and this is praiseworthy, provided that abstract science receive its 
due measure of support; but the genius of our countrymen is so eminently 
practical, that there is great fear that the less showy branch may be com- 
paratively neglected. Mr. Grove observes, that in that case, " not only will 
practical science itself suffer, but the country will lose its position in the 
scale of nations in all that most exalts them." It would be, in fact, to use a 
common phrase, a beginning at the wrong end. 

This is a subject on which much misconception prevails, and this Report 
may be read by some to whom the facts about to be stated are not so familiar 
as they are to those to whom it is primarily addressed. The following state- 
ment, therefore, may not be deemed wholly uncalled for. It is not uncom- 
mon to hear, or even to read, remarks in which the practical application of 
scientific truths is lauded at the expense of Science itself, so that it might be 
inferred, that those from whom such observations proceed were completely 
ignorant, — 1st, of the extent to which the most abstract scientific investigations 
have often led to the most useful industrial applications ; and 2ndly, of the 
many instances in w^hich observations and experiments, seemingly trivial, and 
likely to lead to no useful result, have, sometimes after the lapse of years and 
after having been submitted to a succession of master minds, been elaborated 
into discoveries of the greatest importance to the progress of civilization, 
and which do honour to human nature. 

These objectors to pure Science have either forgotten, or never learnt, 
that, in the words of an eminent writer, "the modern art of navigation is an 
unforeseen emanation from the purely speculative, and apparently merely 
curious inquiry, by the mathematicians of Alexandria, into the properties of 
three curves formed by the intersection of a plane surface and a cone." 

The Steam-Engine itself, so simple in its origin, and yet so fruitful of 
great results, derived its most important improvements from the abstract 
investigations, by Dr. Black and others, into the nature of heat ; — though it 
required the genius of a Watt to make them available in practice. 

Some curious properties of chemical substances, when acted on by light, 
were noted, and then arose the art of Photography, the applications of which 
both to Science and Art are in course of continual extension. Marvellous 
properties of light, called its ^^polarization" led to the invention of instru- 
ments by which submarine rocks may be discovered, to new modes of 
detecting the nature of chemical liquids, and to improvements in the art 
of refining beet-root sugar. 

Observations of the magnetism of iron, and on the elasticity of steel and 
relative expansions of metals, were the origin of the compass and chronometer, 
without which navigation and commerce (and how many countless blessings 
follow in their train I) would now be in almost as rude a state as in the time 
of the ancients. 

The examination of the properties of gases passing through narrow aper- 
tures, showed us how to shield the miner from destruction ; and other chemical 
investigations, how to preserve the sheathing of ships from corrosion — an in- 
vention which, from unforeseen and remarkable causes, failed at first, but is 
now successful. 



Ivi REPORT — 1855. 

To sa\' nothing of Astrology and Alchemy, the experiments on the leg of 
a dead frog were the primary source of the electric telegraph, electro- 
plating, the power of producing submarine explosions, and of blasting rocks 
with greater facility and safety, and the other invaluable applications of 
voltaic electricity to the arts. 

The labours of our (zoologists teach us how to avoid useless expenditure in 
searches for minerals where none can by possibility be discovered, and where 
to seek for materials for our buildings. 

Those of the Botanist minister to our health ; and the Meteorologist will, 
in addition to the other important applications of his science, soon be enlisted 
iu the service of navigation. Nor is Science less necessary to excellence in 
the arts of war than in those of peace ; the construction and use of arms, 
fortification, surveys, rapid locomotion, screw steamers, and so forth, all 
depend on it for their success. Nor is this all : the calamities and failures 
in war may often be traced to the inefficient means possessed by governments 
of distinguishing the really scientific man from the ignorant pretender. 

This enumeration might be greatly extended, but sufficient has been said 
to prove how truly the same distinguished writer above quoted remarks, " No 
limit can be set to the importance, even in a purely productive and material 
point of view, of mere thought. The labour of the savant, or speculative 
thinker, is as much a part of production, in the very narrowest sense, as that 
of the inventor of a practical art ; many such inventions having been the 
direct consequences of theoretic discoveries, and every extension of know- 
ledge of the powers of nature being fruitful of applications to the purposes 
of outward life*." 

On this subject Professor Liebig observes in a letter to Professor Faraday, 
dated February 18t5, and cited in Lyell's Travels in North America: — 
" What struck me most in England was the perception that only those works 
that have a practical tendency awake attention and command respect ; while 
the purely scientific, which possess far greater merit, are almost unknown. 
And yet the latter are the proper and true source from which the others flow. 
Practice alone can never lead to the discovery of a truth or a principle. In 
Germany it is quite the contrary. Here, in the eyes of scientific men, no 
value, or at least but a trifling one, is placed on the practical results. The 
enrichment of Science is alone considered worthy of attention. I do not 
mean to say that this is better ; for both nations the golden medium Mould 
certainly be a real good fortune." 

Almost all who have replied to our Circular, or favoured us with sugges- 
tions, are opposed to the establishment of Institutes or Academies ; nor is 
there any wish expressed that men of science, as such, should be appointed 
to high political offices in tlie State. As Assessors, however, or advisers 
to executive Boai'ds, the services of scientific men would be highly valuable ; 
and in foreign countries such services are believed to be much in request. 

Promotions in the Church have been occasionally made avowedly on the 
ground of literary merit ; but if such claims be admissible, it would seem 
that scientific acquirements should not be overlooked in an age in which 
scepticism has been nourished by mistaken views of physical phenomena. 

The public offices which ought to be filled by men of science, as such, should 
be sufficiently well remunerated, both to ensure their acceptance by the most 
qualified men, and also to render them a desirable object of ambition, and 
swell the list of tempting prizes for scientific distinction. We believe that, 
with one single exception perhaps, all these offices are inadequately endowed. 

* See Mill's Political Economy, vol. i. p. 52. 



REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. Ivu 

Nor is increase of salary all that is required: care should also be taken 
not to subject men of first-rate eminence in science to the harassing and 
vexatious interference of men of inferior calibre, uninterested in their pur- 
suits, and unable to appreciate their devotion. 

Mr. Ball remarks, "that it is not reasonable to expect that scientific offices 
in themselves very desirable, and arrived at by a career in itself interesting 
and attractive, should be rewarded by salaries equal to those which remu- 
nerate the devotion of time and industry to pursuits comparatively arid and 

distasteful but there are a good many offices filled by men of high 

scientific attainments, which are quite below the level which at the general 
standard of living befits the position of a gentleman." 

It is also worthy of remark, that not only ought the present scientific 
offices to be placed on a more eligible footing in respect of remuneration, 
but that there is need for the institution of others answering to that descrip- 
tion, which do not now exist. 

It would be unfair, however, not to remark, while discussing these 
matters, that the Government has already taken very important steps in 
the right direction, and has supplied very pressing wants by the establish- 
ment of the Department of Practical Geology, and of the Marine Depart- 
ment of the Board of Trade, and its office for the discussion of nautical 
and meteorological data. Much yet remains to be done ; but these and 
other acts, having a like tendency, such in particular as the £1000 grant to 
the Royal Society before referred to, are an earnest that a disposition is not 
wanting " to lend Science a helping hand." 

We observed with pleasure that, in regulating the studies of candidates 
for employment in India, Physical Science was not forgotten by the eminent 
men whose signatures are appended to the Report thereon. 

It appears to us that the question of the propriety of instituting public 
examinations, by which the degree of proficiency in knowledge of all candi- 
dates for public employment might be tested, is one of great interest, and 
that its right determination must exercise an important influence on the 
progress of education in any country. 

Finally, under both the above general heads may be classed all measures 
for facilitating the circulation of scientific publications both at home and 
abroad — an object the importance of which it is difScult to over-estimate. 

3rdly. How are the proficients in science to make their opinions known and 
cause them to he respected and adopted ? 

We have already stated that late events have shown that a disposi- 
tion is not wanting in Government to give additional encouragement to 
Science ; and the only way in which we can account for the I'ejection of some 
applications for aid, which from time to time have emanated from scientific 
societies and individuals, and which deserved a better fate, is by supposing that 
the members of the administration, to whom the applications were made, were 
either unwilling to prefer a demand for the necessary funds, or had some want 
of confidence in the judgment of those by whom the requests were preferred. 

Now the period at which the application was made may have been deemed 
an unseasonable one, as for example when the country is involved in war; 
Ave should, however, be concerned to see our country placed by any events 
in the position of being wholly unable to comply with demands of this kind ; 
but for any want of confidence we think that a remedy might be devised, 
which would relieve the Government from the performance of difficult and 
invidious duties, and give satisfaction to the cultivators of science at large. 

We observe that the Board of Visitors of the Greenwich Observatory has, 
in the proper discharge of its duties, been often compelled to recommend 



Iviii REPORT — -1855- 

large outlays upon that establishment and matters connected with astronomy ; 
and we believe there is no instance on record of tlie measures recommended 
being rejected, or even postponed, whatever might be the condition of public 
affairs, or whatever party might be in power. We believe that this is to be 
accounted for, in a great measure, by supposing that tlie Board of Visitors 
and the Astronomer Royal possess more of the confidence of Government 
than the governing bodies of societies can hope to acquire. This is probably 
owing to the permanent nature of this Board, the mode in which its members 
are appointed, and the kind of quasi connexion with the Government which 
its particular constitution involves. Again, the late Board of Longitude, 
and the similar institution in France, afford in like manner illustrations of 
the superior means possessed by public bodies so constituted of inspiring 
the ruling powers with confidence in their recommendations, and so causing 
their opinions to be respected and adopted. 

These considerations suggested the question, Whether some Board could 
not be organized, somewhat after the model of these Boards, but with 
improvements, which should distribute Government grants, perform for 
the whole domain of Science the i'unctions which two of the above-men- 
tioned Boards still discharge for Navigation and Astroiiomy, and more- 
over act as a referee and arbitrator in matters connected with science 
brought under its cognizance by Government? At present, in Science, as in 
Art, Government has no responsible adviser, and the acceptance or rejection 
of any proposal of a scientific character, or of one for the proper deter- 
mination of which some knowledge of science is required, depends upon 
the fiat of those who preside over the several public departments by virtue of 
qualifications, high it may l)e for the general purposes of the State, but 
wholly inadequate to the proper solution of the particular questions at issue. 

If such a Board as is above proposed could be constituted, which should 
acquire and deserve to possess the confidence of the Government and Par- 
liament, it would be clearly for the interests of the naticm and of science 
that it should exercise the above functions. What kind of constitution, 
then, must be given to the new Board, in order that it may fulfil the above 
requirements ? 

We will begin with setting out the opinions of those who have done us the 
honour to favour us with suggestions, premising that the late Professor Forbes, 
Colonel Sabine, Admiral Smyth, Sir Philip Egerton, and the Astronomer 
Royal have all expressetl themselves in favour of the establishment of a new 
Board of Science, though, as might be expected, there is some difference of 
opinion as to its functions and the mode in which it ought to be constituted. 

Professor Forbes, who appears to have reflected much and well on the 
questions raised in this Report *, says, " I do not think anything like an Insti- 
tute desirable . . . but I think that some Board, having at once authority 
and knowledge, should be constituted for the regulation and disposition of 
Government grants for scientific purposes, such as the assistance and 
endowment of scientific expeditions, the publication of their results, &c. ; 
matters at present disposed of by capricious, often extravagant, oftener par- 
simonious, and sometimes pernicious methods. An approximation towards a 
right course is already made in the case of the disposal of the £1000 grant 
for assisting scientific researches. Now I would work all Government grants 
for such purposes as the above mentioned, by a modification of that scheme, 
viz. through an unsalaried committee, constituted much as the Kecommenda- 
tion Committee is at present, combined with an endowed staff, consisting of a 

* It is a great source of regret to us, that he was not spared to give us further advice and 
assistance in the adTocacy and carrying out of reforms which he had so much at heart. 



REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. lix 

salaried representative (always a man of distinguished eminence and autho- 
rity in his line of research) of each of the following departments : 

Mathematics. Physiology. 

Astronomy. Zoology. 

Physics. Botany. 

Mechanics. Geology. 

Chemistry." 

Colonel Sabine considers that the working of the Board of Longitude, 
whilst Dr. Young was its secretary, affords a model which, with a few 
and slight modifications, might be extremely suitable for a Board, which 
should be constituted with a more extended scientific scope. 

Admiral Smyth writes, " Mow for Science a real boon would be the esta- 
blishment of a proper Board of Longitude, organized on clear principles, and 
armed with power tantamount to its responsibility. This great step gained, 

the cultivators of science would necessarily advance A good Board of 

Longitude is meet for a maritime nation, and would, de facto, form its great 
synod of knowledge." Again he writes, he does not mean a Board consti- 
tuted as the former one so called, but " a useful institution resembling the 
French Bureau des Longitudes, a Board managed by unequivocally qualified 
men, both in talent and vocation, with regular salaries, who are personally 
responsible for their public proceedings, whether regarding opinions, rewards, 
or publications. This Bureau is composed of Geometres, Astronomes, 
Anciens Navigateurs, Geographes, Artistes, andAdjoints; and there is no 
doubt but that the model may be improved." 

Sir Philip Egerton describes the evils which result to Science from the 
want of system in entertaining and deciding upon projects, and carrying out 
the determinations of successive Governments in refeience to questions of 
science. He complains that applications have to be made sometimes to one 
department, sometimes to another ; that Governments are prone to give ear, 
not to propositions in relation solely to the acquisition and furtherance of 
pure Science, but to the economic application of scientific principles to the 
improvement of arts and manufactures ; a most essential matter indeed, and 
properly confided to the Board of Trade, but which ought not to be con- 
founded with the more intellectual process of scientific research. Sir Philip 
thus proceeds: "The toil and labour of the latter are too apt to be left to 
the unaided exertions of the scientific drudge, and the Government steps in 
and reaps the benefit, — the osprey catches the fish, but the sea-eagle appro- 
priates it. The remedy I would propose for this state of things is, the esta- 
blishment of a Board of Science, to which all questions of a scientific nature 
might be referred by the Government for consideration. The constitution of 
this Board might be easily made such as to command the confidence both of 
the Government and the public ; but it should be provided, that only a 
portion of the members should be dependent on the existence of the ministry 
of the day. Certain funds might be placed yearly at the absolute disposition 
of the Board ; but all recommendations for the application of large funds 
would of course require the sanction of the Government." 

The Astronomer Royal considers a restriction of the functions of the Board 
desirable ; he thinks that it should initiate proposals and tirge them on the 
Government ; but he objects to its acting as a general referee and arbitrator 
in all matters connected with Science. 

There is an expression in the letter of Professor Forbes which appears to 
us to describe, with great propriety, what ought to be the characteristics of 
the fjiture Board ; he says, " it should have at once authority and knowledge \" 



Ix REPORT — 1855. 

and after weighing all the above suggestions, and considering the constitu- 
tion of other Boards established for carrjing out nearly similar objects, we 
think that the new Board should be composed of a certain number of persons 
holding high official situations in the State, more or less connected with 
science and education ; and others holding scientific offices under the 
Government ; together with tiie most eminent men in every department of 
science. With respect to the official class, there can be no necessity that 
they should be as numerous as in the late Board of Longitude, of which 
about fourteen persons answering to that description were members. 
Lord Rosse, the Astronomer Royal, and Admiral Smyth, have expressed 
opinions unfavourable to the admission of great Officers of State as ex officio 
members of the proposed Board. Admiral Smyth is even opposed to ex 
officio Members altogether, and would have all the Members of the Board 
elected. In these views of the Admiral we cannot concur ; but the expedi- 
ency of admitting the great Officers at all admits of some doubt. We are un- 
willing to believe that the free expression of opinion on the part of the other 
members of the Board would be controlled by the presence of Ministers of 
State to the extent apprehended by the Astronomer Royal ; but an objection 
to the measure alluded to by Lord Rosse, viz. that these Officers must of 
necessity, in the great majority of instances, derive their information on the 
subjects discussed from the discussion itself, is entitled to some weight. 

Whatever determination, however, may be adopted in reference to these 
matters, we are anxious that a principle of stability and permanence should 
have place in constituting a body which is to exercise such important 
functions. A certain proportion of the members might perhaps hold their 
offices for life, as is now the case in the Board of Visitors at Greenwich ; but 
some provision should be made for the retirement of a sufficient number, to 
ensure the ranks being recruited occasionally by the election of young and 
rising men in the various departments of science. It may not perhaps be 
advisable to endanger the success of an application to Government for the 
establisiiment of this Board, by adopting the suggestions of those who desire 
that salaries should be given to several of its members, as such. We may 
perhaps trust to the ultimate adoption of some of our other recommendations, 
in which the general public are more directly interested, for providing stimu- 
lants to scientific exertion, without seeking for them here. 

It will be necessary, however, that a Secretary, with a salary, should be 
appointed to the Board, and that a place of meeting and deposit for papers 
should be assigned. 

Professor Phillips suggests that the proceedings of the Board should be 
embodied in an annual report to Parliament, which should be widely circu- 
lated ; a suggestion in which we entirely coincide. 

It will probably be thought right that the functions of the Board should 
be rather strictly defined in the instrument which constitutes it. 

If the working of the Board be satisfactory, and the confidence of 
Parliament and the public be really acquired, it is hardly taking too sanguine 
a view to anticipate, — 1st, that there will be greater assistance and encourage- 
ment given than heretofore to Science, and scientific researches, and the 
reduction and publication of such researches, in cases where such aid is 
required ; 2ndly, that the necessary funds will be more directly and easily 
obtained ; and, 3rdly, that the influence and authority of such a body of 
distinguished men will ensure the adoption of all suggestions made or ap- 
proved by them for the benefit of Science, check improvident and reckless 
schemes, promote those that are deserving of encouragement, and generally 
give to Science its due weight and importance in the councils of the nation. 



REPORT OP THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. Ixi 

It may be that the union in one Board, of men holding high executive 
offices in the State, and others who, however distinguished in their own 
departments of knowledge, have in the course of their pursuits acquired 
habits of abstraction, which are supposed by some to be unfavourable to the 
development of administrative capacity, will be attended with beneficial 
results to the working of the Institution in question, the members of which 
will learn by degrees to appreciate all that is valuable in the characteristics 
of each of the sections of which it will be composed. 

We think that the new Board ought not to consist of less than about 
thirty-five members ; and if it be objected that this number is too large for 
business, it must be borne in mind, that most of the work will be done by 
standing sub-committees for the various departments of science, organized 
somewhat after the model of the Sections in our own Association, reporting 
to the general body, who will revise their proceedings. It would be hardly 
possible to include all those who have a claim to be members, and whose 
counsel and assistance it is most desirable to secure, if any attempt were 
made still further to limit the numbers. The late Board of Longitude, though 
presiding over only one department of science, contained about twenty-seven 
members. 

It is proper to add, that Lord Rosse is doubtful as to the expediency of 
constituting the new Board of Science, on the ground, principally, that the 
duties here assigned to it might equally well be performed by the Council of 
the Royal Society, enlarged for the purpose ; and that the Society would be 
in fact so far superseded by the new body. 

We cannot concur in this view. It cannot fairly be contended that the 
Council of the Royal Society, or any Committee appointed by it, confined 
as they must necessarily be to the members of one Society, is likely to 
contain at any time within it such a union and variety of talent as would be 
concentrated in the new Board, if properly constituted. We believe, more- 
over, that eminent members of that Society do not entertain the apprehen- 
sions of their late President. 

The Government again are never likely, as has been before fully explained, 
to extend as much of their confidence to any one Society, however eminent, 
as to the proposed Board. 

In conclusion, it appears that though your Committee have endeavoured to 
elicit opinions from members of their own body, and from many eminent 
cultivators of science, they have the gratification of discovering that none 
of the suggestions offered, or changes proposed, are of such a nature as to 
impose any serious difficulty on Government, Parliament, or the Universities, 
were they at once to concede all that is asked. 

Such of the above suggestions as we think deserving of the serious and 
earnest attention of Government, Parliament, and the Universities, and 
which we may term our desiderata, may be summed up in the following 
propositions : — 

1st. That reforms shall take place gradually in the system of any of our 
Universities which do not at present exact a certain proficiency in physical 
science as a condition preliminary to obtaining a degree. 

2ndly. That the number of Professors of Physical Science at the Univer- 
sities shall be increased, where necessary ; but that at all events, by a redis- 
tribution of subjects, or other arrangements, provision should be made for 
eflFectually teaching all the various branches of physical science. 

Srdly. That Professors and Local Teachers shall be appointed to give 
lectures on Science in the chief provincial towns, for whose use philoso- 



Ixii REPORT — 1855. 

phical apparatus shall be provided ; and that arrangements shall be made for 
testing by examination the proficiency of those who attend such lectures. 

4thly. That the formation of Museums and Public Libraries in such towns, 
open to all classes, shall be encouraged and assisted in like manner as aid is 
now given to instruction in the principles of art; that all imposts shall i)y 
degrees be abolished that impede the diffusion of scientific knowledge; and 
such donations of national publications be made as above mentioned. 

Stilly. That more encouragement shall be given, by fellowships, increased 
salaries to Professors and other rewards, to the study of Physical Science. 

6thly. That an alteration shall be made in the present systeui of bestowing 
pensions ; some annuities in the nature of good-service pensions be granted ; 
and additional aid be given to the prosecution, reduction, and publication of 
scientific researches. 

7thly. That an appropriate building, in some central situation in London, 
shall be provided at the cost of the nation, in which the principal Scientific 
Societies may be located together. 

8thly. That scientific offices shall be placed more nearly on a level, in respect 
to salary, with such other civil appointments as are an object of ambition 
to highly educated men ; that the officers themselves shall be emanci- 
pated from all such interference as is calculated to obstruct the zealous per- 
formance of their duties; and that new scientific offices shall be created in 
some cases in which they are required. 

9thly. That facilities shall be given for transmitting and receiving scien- 
tific publications to and from our colonies and foreign parts. 

lOthly, and lastly. That a Board of Science shall be constituted, composed 
partly of persons holding offices under the Crown, and partly of men of the 
highest eminence in science, which shall have the control and expenditure 
of the greater part at least of the public funds given for its advancement 
and encouragement, shall originate applications for pecuniary or other aid 
to science, and generally perform such functions as are above described, 
together with such others as Government or Parliament may think fit to 
impose upon it. 

It will be observed, that the majority of the above desiderata ma be 
described rather as suggestions on behalf of national education than as 
privileges to be conferred on Science. Three of the propositions, however, 
the 6th, 7th, and 8th, involve the establishment of privileges and rewards 
not now enjoyed by those who make science either their profession or pur- 
suit. Still it must be borne in mind, that the encouragement thereby 
afforded to the cultivation of science, and not the boon to the individual, is 
the principal object in view. 

The 10th proposition, the establishment of the Board, is not advocated as 
a means of increasing privileges and emoluments, but as the best mode of 
accomplishing an important national object. 

Of the value of Science no one surely can doubt who has received any 
mental training worthy of the name of education ; and, notwithstanding any 
seeming indifference to an object of such vital importance, we believe that 
a feeling does pervade the community at large, that our country's welfare 
and even safety depend upon its due encouragement and fostering; and this 
is evidenced by the readiness with which the House of Commons accedes 
to demands, when made on its behalf. Owing, however, to the system which 
prevails in this country, of each successive Government striving to outvie 
its predecessors in popularity by the reduction of public burdens, there is a 
temptation sometimes to withhold grants which may swell the total outlay of 
departments in which reductions are contemplated. This it is more par- 



RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE GENERAL. COMMITTEE. Mu 

ticularly which, in our opinion, renders the creation of the new Board, or 
some analogous measure, necessarj\ 

Whatever may be the result of this appeal, or of any other measures 
which we may adopt in the discharge of our duty of watching over the 
interests of Science, we will never cease our endeavours to diffuse a sense 
of what is due to Science, and to those who make great personal sacrifices 
for the sake of a pursuit on which the happiness and welfare of mankind so 
materially depend, 

14 July, 1855. Wrottesley, Chairman. 



Recommendations adopted by the General Committee at the 
Glasgow Meeting in September 1855. 

[When Committees are appointed, the Member first named is regarded as the Secretary of 
the Committee, except there be a specific nomination.] 

Involving Grants of Money. 

That the sum of £500 be placed at the disposal of the Council for main- 
taining the Establishment and providing for the continuance of Special Ex- 
periments at Kew. 

That Professor Anderson, F.R.S., be requested to report on the compounds 
of Platinum and the allied metals with Ammonia ; and that the sum of ^10 
be placed at his disposal for the purpose. 

That Professor Hodges be requested to continue the inquiries necessary to 
complete the report on Flax Fibre; and that the £20 formerly voted to him 
be placed at his disposal for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Professor Bunsen of Heidelberg, and Dr. 
H. E. Roscoe of London, be requested to continue their researches on the 
Laws of the Chemical Action of Light ; and that the sum of £20 be placed 
at their disposal for the purpose. 

That Mr. Mallet be requested to complete his experiments on Earthquake 
Waves ; and that £40 be placed at his disposal for the purpose. 

That Professors Phillips and Ramsay be requested to construct a vertical 
column of British Strata; and that the sum of £15 be placed at their disposal 
for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. Patterson, Mr. Hyndman and others, 
be requested to continue their Dredging Researches in the neighbourhood of 
Belfast ; and that the sum of £10 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. 

That the sum of £10 be placed at the disposal of the Council for the pur- 
pose of procuring a report on British Annelida. 

That a Committee, consisting of Dr. Lankester, Professor Owen, Dr. Dickie, 
and Dr. Laycock, be requested to draw up Tables for the Registration of 
Periodic Phsenomena ; and that the sum of aSlO be placed at their disposal 
for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of the Rev. C. P. Miles, M.D., Professor Bal- 
four, Dr. Greville, and Mr. Eyton, be requested to report on the Dredging of 
the West Coast of Scotland ; and that the sum of £\0 be placed at their 
disposal for the purpose. 

That Mr. R. Patterson, of Belfast, be requested to furnish Dredging Forms 
to. the different Dredging Committees; and that the sum of ^10 be placed 
at his disposal for the purpose. 



Ixiv REPORT — 1855. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. T. C. Archer and Dr. Dickinson, be 
requested to draw up in a tabular form the Statistics of the Vegetable, Ani- 
mal, and Mineral products imported into Liverpool; and that the sum of £10 
be placed at their disposal for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. William Keddie and Mr. Michael 
Connal, be requested to draw up in a tabular form the Statistics of the Vege- 
table, Animal, and Mineral products imported into Glasgow ; and that the 
sum of ^610 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Sir William Jardine, Bart., Dr. Fleming, 
and Mr. Edmund Ashworth, be requested to report on the progress of experi- 
ments on the Propagation of Salmon ; and that the sura of £10 be placed at 
their disposal for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Professor Henslow and others, be requested 
to print 250 copies of their Report on the Typical Forms for Museums, for 
distribution; and that the sum of ^610 be placed at their disposal for the 
purpose. 

That Dr. Daubeny and a Committee be requested to continue their atten- 
tion to the Vitality of Seeds ; with 36IO at their disposal for the purpose. 

That Mr. William Fairbairn, C.E., be requested to continue his Report 
on the Strength of Iron Plates ; and that a further grant of £10 be placed at 
his disposal for the purpose. 

That Mr. James Thomson, C.E., be requested to report on the Measure- 
ment of Water by Weir Boards; and that the sum of aflO be placed at his 
disposal for the purpose. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. Andrew Henderson, Major-General 
Chesney, Captain Sir Edward Belcher, Mr. James R. Napier, Mr. James 
Thomson, C.E , Mr. William Ramsay, C.E., Mr. Primrose, and Sir William 
Jardine, Bart., be requested to continue the investigation as to the statistics 
and condition of Life-Boats and Fishing-Boats; as to the principles on which 
such boats should be constructed ; the essential conditions of their successful 
use; and the means of establishing them round the coasts: and that the sum 
of £5 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. 

Involving Applications to Government or Public Institutions. 

That a Committee be appointed, consisting of Mr. William Fairbairn, His 
Grace the Duke of Argyll, Captain Sir Edward Belcher, The Rev. Dr. 
Robinson, The Rev. Dr. Scoresby, Mr. Joseph Whitworth, Mr. James Beau- 
mont Neilson, Mr. James Nasniyth, and Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine, to 
institute an inquiry into the best means of ascertaining those properties of 
Metals, and effects of different modes of treating them, which are of import- 
ance to the durability and efficiency of Artillery ; and that the said Committee 
be empowered to communicate in the name of the Association with, and to 
request the assistance of. Her Majesty's Government. 

That the Earl of Harrowby, His Grace the Duke of Argyll, Sir David 
Brewster, Colonel Sabine, Mr. Thomas Graham, Master of the Mint, Mr. 
William Fairbairn, and Mr. Thomas Webster, be a Committee for taking 
such steps as may be necessary to render the Patent system of this country, 
and the funds derived from inventors, more efficient and available for the 
reward of meritorious inventors, and the advancement of practical science. 

That the thanks of the Association be presented to the Liverpool Compass 
Committee for their first report; that they be requested to continue re- 
searches so important, not only to the commercial interests of the nation, 
but to the progress of maguetic science ; and that the Committee be recom- 



RESEARCHES IN SCIENCE. IxV 

mended to put themselves in communication with Her Majesty's Government, 
for the purpose of obtaining funds adequate to the effectual prosecution of 
the inquiry, in which application the British Association will gladly concur. 

Report of the Parliamentary Committee. 

1. That the thanks of the British Association be tendered to Lord Wrot- 
tesley and the Members of the Parliamentary Committee, for the vigilance and 
prudence with which they watch over the interests of Science in the Legis- 
lature. 

2. That the Report of their proceedings since the last meeting more 
especially calls for the attentive consideration of the Association, as containing 
comprehensive views on the encouragement which Science requires of the 
Legislature, and suggestions of definite measures for augmenting the useful- 
ness and amending the position of its cultivators and teachers. 

3. That the British Association offer to the Parliamentary Committee its 
congratulations on the progress already made in this difficult and important 
question, and express its confident expectation that their labours will be ulti- 
mately rewarded by a satisfactory result. 

4. That the British Association regard as a matter of immediate importance 
to the general interests of science, the seventh recommendation of the Par- 
liamentary Committee, viz. That an appropriate building in the metropolis 
should be provided by the State, wherein the Scientific Societies may be placed 
in juxtaposition; and request the President to express respectfully to Her 
Majesty's Government their anxious hope that this recommendation may 
receive its early and favourable consideration. 

That R. Stephenson, Esq., M.P., be elected in the Parliamentary Committee, 
instead of Sir R. H. Inglis, Bart., deceased. 

That the British Association express their satisfaction at the establishment 
of the Meteorological Association in Scotland, and their willingness to afford 
them the assistance which can be yielded by the establishment at Kew. 

That a letter to this effect be addressed to the Meteorological Association 
of Scotland by the General Secretary. 

Reports and Researches. 

Tliat Mr. A. Cayley be requested to draw up a Report on the recent pro- 
gress of Theoretical Dynamics for the next meeting of the British Association. 

That Professor Phillips be requested to prepare a Report on Cleavage and 
Foliation in rocks ; and on the theoretical explanations which have been pro- 
posed of these phaenomena. 

That a Committee, consisting of Professor Bennett, M.D., Professor Piazzi 
Smyth, and Professor George Wilson, be requested to report on the employment 
of M. Duboscq's Electric Lamps and INIicroscopic Apparatus for anatomical, 
physiological and other scientific purposes ; and that they be recommended 
to make application to the Royal Society for assistance in procuring the ne- 
cessary apparatus. 

That Mr. J. F. Bateman, C.E., be requested to complete, in an engineering 
point of view, his Report on the supplying of Water to Towns. 

That Mr. John Scott Russell be requested to proceed with his Report on 
Naval Architecture. 

That Mr. William Faii"bairn, C.E., be requested to continue his Report 
on Boiler Explosions. 

That a Committee, consisting of Professor Smyth, the Rev. Dr. Robinson, 
Captain Sir Edward Belcher, Sir T. M. Brisbane, Professor Nichol, and Mr, 

1855. e 



Ixvi REPORT — 1855. 

James Thomson, be requested to prepare a Report to the Council on the ad- 
vantages of the telegraphic communication of Time-signals, and on the best 
method of accomplishing it. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. W. Fairbairn, Dr. Neil Arnott, Mr. 
HenryHouldsworth,Mr.J.B. Neilson, Mr. C. T. Dunlop, Mr. James Robert 
Napier, Mr. James Aitken, Mr. Thomas Webster, Mr. W. J. M. Rankine, 
and Dr. John Taylor, be requested to prepare a Report on the subject of 
the Prevention of Smoke. 

That a Committee, consisting of Mr. Andrew Henderson, Mr. J. R. 
Napier, Mr. John Wood, Mr. John Scott Russell, Mr. Allan Oilman, Mr. 
Charles Atherton, C.E., and Mr. James Peake, be appointed to consider 
the question of the Measurement of Ships for Tonnage. 

A communication from Professor Henry, of Washington, having been read, 
containing a proposal for the publication of a Catalogue of Philosophical 
Memoirs scattered throughout the Transactions of Societies in Europe and 
America, with the offer of co-operation on the part of the Smithsonian Insti- 
tution, to the extent of preparing and publishing, in accordance with the 
general plan which might be adopted by the British Association, a Catalogue 
of all the American Memoirs on Physical Science, — 

The Committee approve of the suggestion, and recommend- 
That Mr. Cayley, Mr. Grant, and Professor Stokes, be appointed 
a Committee to consider the best system of arrangement, and to report 
thereon to the Council. 
That the Rev. Dr. Whewell, the Dean of Ely, the Astronomer Royal, Sir J. 
F. W. Herschel, Colonel Sabine, Colonel Sykes, Mr. Gassiot, Professor Miller, 
and Mr. Hopkins, be appointed a Committee for considering the propriety of 
repeating the Balloon Experiments of 1852 ; and of applying to the Royal 
Society for the grant of the necessary funds ; and that the Rev. Dr. Whewell 
be the Convener. 

Having received from the Committee of Section A, a communication re- 
specting the importance of having observations on the Sun's Atmosphere made 
at a considerable elevation above the sea, the General Committee resolved, — 
That a Committee, consisting of Mr. Piazzi Smyth, Astronomer 
Royal for Scotland, Professor Nichol, Mr. G. B. Airy, Astronomer 
Royal, Dr. Robinson, and Mr. W. Lassell, be appointed to consider 
of this proposition, and investigate the best means of accomplishing 
the object, and that they report to the next meeting of the Asso- 
ciation. 
That a Committee, consisting of Mr. James Thompson, C.E., and Mr. 
William Fairbairn, C.E.. be requested to continue their investigations on the 
Friction of Discs in Water, and on Centrifugal Pumps. 

That the Committee appointed last year, (viz. The Earl of Harrowby, 
Admiral Beechey, Mr. J. B. Yates, Mr. J. Boult, Sir R. I. Murchison, and 
Mr. Rennie,) to report upon the condition of the River Mersey, be reap- 
pointed, with the addition of Sir Philip Egerton, Bart., M.P., and Captain 
Henderson, and requested to continue the inquiry. 

Communications to be printed among the Reports. 

That the Communication by Mr. W. Whitehouse, on the rate of Electro- 
telegraphic Conduction, be printed entire in the next volume of Transactions. 

That the Communication by Mr. J. Dobson, B.A., on the relation be- 
tween Rotating Storms and Explosions in Collieries, be printed entire in the 
next volume of Transactions. 



SYNOPSIS OP MONEY GRANTS. IxVU 

R. M. Milnes, Esq., M.P., D.C.L., gave notice of a motion to be proposed 
to the General Committee at the Meeting of the Association in 1856, as fol- 
lows : — That the Section of the Association now named the Section of Sta- 
tistics, be named the " Section of Economic Science and Statistics." 



Synopsis of Grants of Money appropriated to Scientific Objects by the 
General Committee at the Glasgow Meeting in Sept. 1855, with the 
name of the Member, who alone, or as the First of a Committee, is 
entitled to draw for the Money. 

Kew Observatory. 

At the disposal of the Council for defraying expenses 500 

Chemistry. 

Anderson, Prof. — Compounds of Platinum and other metals 

with Ammonia 10 

Hodges, Prof. — Preparation of Flax 20 

BuNSEN, Prof. — Chemical Action of Light 20 

Geology. 

Mallet, R.— Earthquake Wave Experiments 40 

Phillips, Prof. — Section of British Strata 15 

Zoology and Botany. 

Patterson, R. — Dredging near Belfast 10 

The Council British Annelida 10 

Lankester, Dr. — Periodical Phsenomena 10 

Miles, Rev. C. P.— Dredging on the West Coast of Scotland. 10 

Patterson, R. — Dredging Forms 10 

Archer, T. C. — Natural products imported into Liverpool . . 10 

Keddie, W. — Natural Products imported into Glasgow 10 

Jardine, Sir W. — Propagation of Salmon 10 

Henslow, Prof. — Typical Forms for Museums 10 

Daubent, Dr Vitality of Seeds 10 

Mechanics. 

Fairbairn, W. — Strength of Iron Plates 10 

Thomson, James. — Measurement of Water by Weir-boards . . 10 

Hendprson, Andrew. — Life-Boats 5 

Grants. . . . 36730 



k 



e2 



Ixviii 



REPORT — 1855. 



General Statement of Sums tohich have been paid on Account of Grants for 
Scientific Purposes. 



£ s. d. 
1834. 

Tide Discussions 20 

1835. 

Tide Discussions G2 

British Fossil Iclithyology 105 

£167 



1836. 

Tide Discussions 163 

British Fossil Ichthyology 105 

Thermometric Observations, &c. 50 
Experiments on long-continued 

Heat 17 1 

Rain Gauges 9 13 

Refraction Experiments 15 

Lunar Nutation 60 

Thermometers 15 6 



£434 14 



1837. 

Tide Discussions 284 1 

Chemical Constants 24 13 6 

Lunar Nutation 70 

Observations on Waves 100 12 

Tides at Bristol 150 

Meteorology and Subterranean 

Temperature 89 5 3 

Vitrification Experiments 150 

Heart Experiments 8 4 6 

Barometric Observations 30 

Barometers 11 18 6 



£ s. d. 

Meteorology and Subterranean 

Temperature 21 11 

Vitrification Experiments 9 4 7 

Cast Iron Experiments 100 

Railway Constants 28 7 2 

Land and Sea Level 274 1 4 

Steam-vessels' Engines 100 

Stars in Histoire Celeste 331 18 6 

Stars in Lacaille 11 

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

Animal Secretions 10 10 

Steam-engines in Cornwall 50 

Atmospheric Air 16 1 

Cast and Wrought Iron 40 

Heat on Organic Bodies 3 

Gases on Solar Spectrum 22 

Hourly Meteorological Observa- 
tions, Inverness and Kingussie 49 7 8 

Fossil Reptiles 118 2 9 

Mining Statistics ■ ■■ 50 

^1595 11 



^6918 14 6 



1838. 



Tide Discussions 29 

British Fossil Fishes 100 

Meteorological Observations and 

Anemometer (construction) ... 100 

Cast Iron (Strength of) 60 

Animal and Vegetable Substances 

(Preservation of) 19 1 10 

Railway Constants 41 12 10 

Bristol Tides 50 

Growth of Plants 75 

Mud in Rivers 3 6 6 

Education Committee 50 

Heart Experiments 5 3 

Land and Sea Level 267 8 7 

Subterranean Temperature 8 6 

Steam-vessels 100 

Meteorological Committee 31 9 5 

Thermometers 16 4 



1840. 

Bristol Tides 100 

Subterranean Temperature 13 

Heart Experiments 18 

Lungs Experiments 8 

Tide Discussions 50 

Land and Sea Level 6 

Stars (Histoire Celeste) 242 

Stars (Lacaille) 4 

Stars (Catalogue) 264 

Atmospheric Air 15 

Water on Iron 10 

Heat on Organic Bodies 7 

Meteorological Observations 52 

Foreign Scientific Memoirs 112 

Working Population 100 

School Statistics 60 

Forms of Vessels 184 

Chemical and Electrical Phaeno- 

mena 40 

Meteorological Observations at 

Plymouth 80 

Magnelical Observations 185 





13 6 

19' 

13 



11 1 

10 

15 



15 




17 6 

1 6 


7 




13 9 



£1546 16 4 



£956 V2 2 



1839. 

Fossil Ichthyology 110 

Meteorological Observations at 

Plymouth 63 10 

Mechanism of Waves 144 2 

Bristol Tides 35 18 



1841. 

Observations on Waves 30 

Meteorology and Subterranean 

Temperature 8 8 

Actinometers 10 

Earthquake Shocks 17 

Acrid Poisons 

Veins and Absorbents 

Mud in Rivers 

Marine Zoology 15 12 8 

Skeleton Maps 20 

Mountain Barometers 6 18 6 

Stars (Histoire Celeste) 185 







6 
3 
5 



GENERAL STATEMENT. 



Ixix 





6 









£ s. 

Stars (Lacaille) "^^ ^ 

Stars (Nomenclature of) 17 19 

Stars (Catalogue of ) 40 

Water on Iron ^^ " 

Meteorological Observations at 

Inverness -" 

Meteorological Observations (re- 
duction of) 25 

Fossil Reptiles 50 

Foreign Memoirs 62 

Railway Sections 38 1 6 

Forms of Vessels 193 12 

Meteorological Observations at 

Plymouth 55 

Magnetical Observations 61 18 8 

Fishes of the Old Red Sandstone 100 " " 

Tides at Leilh 50 

Anemometer at Edinburgh 69 

Tabulating Observations 9 

Races of Men 5 

Radiate Animals •" 2 



20 



30 



G 









6 


1 


4 


7 


8 












£1235 10 11 



1842. 

Dynamometric Instruments 113 11 

Anoplura Britannia; 52 12 

Tides at Bristol 59 8 

Gases on Light 30 14 

Chronometers 26 17 

Marine Zoology 1 5 

British Fossil Mammalia 100 

Statistics of Education 20 

Marine Steam-vessels' Engines... 28 

Stars (Histoire Celeste) 59 

Stars (Brit. Assoc. Cat. of j HO 

Railway Sections 161 

British Belenmites 50 

Fossil Reptiles (publication of 

Report) 210 

Forms of Vessels 180 

Galvanic Experiments on Rocks 5 
Meteorological Experiments at 

Plymouth 

Constant Indicator and Dynamo- 
metric Instruments 90 

Force of Wind 10 

Light on Growth of Seeds 8 

Vital Statistics 50 

Vegetative Power of Seeds 8 

Questions on Human Race ....jj 7 



68 



Meteorological Observations, Os- 
ier's Anemometer at Plymouth 
Reduction of Meteorological Ob- 
servations 

Meteorological Instruments and 

Gratuities 39 

Construction of Anemometer at 

Inverness 56 12 2 

Magnetic Co-operation 10 8 10 

Meteorological Recorder for Kew 

Observatory 50 

Action of Gases on Light 18 16 

Establishment at Kew Observa- 
tory, Wages, Repairs, Furni- 
ture and Sundries 133 

Experiments by CajJlive Balloons 81 
Oxidation ofthe Raits of Railways 20 
Publication of Report on Fossil 

Reptiles 40 

Coloured Drawings of Railway 

Sections 147 18 3 

Registration of Earthquake 

Shocks 30 

Report on Zoological Nomencla- 
ture 10 

Uncovering Lower Red Sand- 
stone near Manchester 4 

Vegetative Power of Seeds- 5 

Marine Testacea (Habits of ) ... 10 

Marine Zoology 10 

Marine Zoology 2 

Preparation of Report on British 

Fossil Mammalia 100 

Physiological Operations of Me- 
dicinal Agents 20 

Vital Statistics 36 

Additional Experiments on the 

Forms of Vessels 70 

Additional Experiments on the 

Forms of Vessels 100 

Reduction of Experiments on the 

Forms of Vessels 100 

Morin's Instrument and Constant 

Indicator 69 14 10 

Experiments on the Strength of 

Materials — 60 

£1565 10 2 



£1449 17 8 



1843. 

Revision of the Nomenclature of 
Stars 2 

Reduction of Stars, British Asso- 
ciation Catalogue 25 

Anomalous Tides, Frith of Forth 120 

Hourly Meteorological Observa- 
tionsat Kingussie andlnverness 

Meteorological Observations at 
Plymouth 

Whewell's Meteorological Ane- 
mometer at Plymouth 10 



















4 


6 


3 


8 















14 11 



















77 12 8 
55 







1844. 

Meteorological Observations at 

Kingussie and Inverness 12 

Completing Observations at Ply- 
mouth 35 

Magnetic and Meteorological Co- 
operation 25 8 

Publication of the British Asso- 
ciation Catalogue of Stars 35 

Observations on Tides on the 

East coasi of Scotland 100 

Revision of the Nomenclature of 

Stars 1842 2 9 

Maintaining the Establishment in 

Kew Observatory 117 17 

Instruments for Kew Observatory 56 7 



Ixx 



REPOBT — 1855. 



£ 

Influence of Light on Plants 10 

Subterraneous Temperature in 

Ireland 5 

Coloured Drawings of Railway 

Sections IS 

Investigation of Fossil Fishes of 

the Lower Tertiary Strata ... 100 
Registering the Shocks of Earth- 
quakes 1842 2S 

Structure of Fossil Shells 20 

Radiata and MoUusca of the 

iEgean and Red Seas 1842 100 

Geographical Distributions of 

Marine Zoology 1842 

Marine Zoology of Devon and 

Cornwall 10 

Marine Zoology of Corfu 10 

Experiments on the Vitality of 

Seeds 9 

Experiments on the Vitality of 

Seeds 1842 8 

Exotic Anoplura 15 

Strength of Materials 100 

Completing Experiments on the 

Forms of Ships 100 

Inquiries into Asphyxia 10 

Investigations on the Internal 

Constitution of Metals 50 

Constant Indicator and Morin's 

Instrument, 1842 10 

£981 



s. 



d. 









17 


6 








11 



10 









10 
















3 


7 




3 


















3 


6 



12 8 



1845. 
Publication of the British Associa- 
tion 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 Ob- 
servations at Plymouth 25 

Electrical Experiments at Kew 

Observatory 43 17 8 

Maintaining the Establishment in 

Kew Observatory 149 15 

For Kreil's Baroinetrograph 25 

Gases from Iron Furnaces 50 

The Actinograph 15 

Microscopic Structure of Shells... 20 

Exotic Anoplura 1843 10 

Vitality of Seeds 1843 2 7 

Vitality of Seeds 1844 7 

Marine Zoology of Cornwall 10 

Physiological Action of Medicines 20 
Statistics of Sickness and Morta- 
lity in York 20 

Earthquake Shocks 18 43 15 14 8 

£830 9 9 



1846. 
British Association Catalogue of 

Stars 1844 211 15 



£ s, d. 

Fossil Fishes of the London Clay 100 
Computation of the Gaussian 

Constants for 1839 50 

Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 146 16 7 

Strength of Materials 60 

Researches in Asphyxia 6 16 2 

Examination of Fossil Shells 10 

Vitality of Seeds 1844 2 15 10 

Vitality of Seeds 1845 7 12 3 

Marioe Zoology of Cornwall 10 

Marine Zoology of Britain 10 

Exotic Anoplura 1844 25 

Expenses attending Anemometers 11 7 6 

Anemometers' Repairs 2 3 6 

Atmospheric Waves 3 3 3 

Captive Balloons 1844 8 19 3 

Varieties of the Human Race 

1844 7 6 3 
Statistics of Sickness and Mor- 
tality at York ■■ 12 

£685 16 



1847. 
Computation of the Gaussian 

Constants for 1839 50 

Habits of Marine Animals 10 

Physiological Action of Medicines 20 

Marine Zoology of Cornwall ... 10 

Atmospheric Waves 6 9 3 

Vitality of Seeds 4 7 7 

Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 107 8 6 

£208 5 4 



1848. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 171 15 11 

Atmospheric Waves 3 10 9 

Vitality of Seeds 9 15 

Completion of Catalogues of Stars 70 

On Colouring Matters 5 

On Growth of Plants 15 

£275 1 8 



1849. 
Electrical Observations at Kew 

Observatory 50 

Maintaining Establishment at 

ditto 76 2 5 

Vitality of Seeds 5 S 1 

On Growth of Plants 5 

Registration of Periodical Phse- 

nomena 10 

Bill on account of Anemometrical 

Observations 13 9 

£159 19 6 



1850. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 255 18 

Transit of Earthquake Waves ... 50 



GENERAL STATEMENT. 



Ixxi 



£ s. 

Periodical Phaenomena 15 

Meteorological Instrument, 

Azores 25 

£345 18 

1851. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 
Kew Observatory (includes part 

of grant in 1849) 309 2 

TheoryofHeat 20 1 

Periodical Phaenomena of Animals 

and Plants 5 

Vitality of Seeds 5 6 

Influence of Solar Radiation 30 

Ethnological Inquiries 12 

Researches on Annelida 10 

£391 9 



1852. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 
Kew Observatory (including 
balance of grant for 1850) ... 233 17 
Experiments on the Conduction 

ofHeat 5 2 

Influence of Solar Radiations ... 20 

Geological Map of Ireland 15 

Researches on the British Anne- 
lida 10 

Vitality of Seeds 10 6 

Strength of Boiler Plates 10 

£304 6 

1853. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 165 



£ s. d. 
Experiments on the Influence of 

Solar Radiation 15 

Researches on the British Anne- 
lida 10 

Dredging on the East Coast of 

Scotland 10 

Ethnological Queries 5 

£205 



1854. 

Maintaining the Establishment at 
Kew Observatory (including 
balance of former grant) 330 15 4 

Investigations on Flax 110 

Effects of Temperature on 

Wrought Iron 10 

Registration of Periodical Phae- 
nomena 10 

British Annelida 10 

Vitality of Seeds 5 2 3 

Conduction of Heat 4 2 

£380 19 7 



1855. 
Maintaining the Establishment at 

Kew Observatory 425 

Earthquake Movements ......... 10 

Physical Aspect of the Moon 11 8 5 

Vitality of Seeds ., 10 7 11 

Map of the World 15 

Ethnological Queries 5 

Dredging near Belfast 4 

£480 16 4 



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 re- 
mains disposable on each grant. 

Grants of pecuniary aid for scientific purposes from the funds of the Asso- 
ciation 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., 6 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. 



Ixxii GENERAL MEETINGS. 



General Meetings. 

On Wednesday, Sept, l'2th, at 8 p.m., in the City Hall, the Earl of 
Harrowby, F.R.S., resigned the office of President to tiie Duke of Argyll, 
F.R.S., who took the Chair at the General Meeting, and delivered an Address, 
for which see page Ixxiii. 

On Thursday, Sept. 13th, a Soiree took place in the M'Lellan Rooms. 

On Friday, Sept. 14th, at 8 p.m., in the City Hall, W. B. Carpenter, M.D., 
F.R.S., delivered a Discourse on the Characters of Species. 

On Saturday, Sept. 15th, a Soiree took place in the M'Lellan Rooms. 

On Monday, Sept. 17th, at 8 p.m., in the City Hall, Lieut.-Col. Rawlinson, 
C.B., delivered a Discourse on Assyrian and Babylonian Antiquities and 
■Ethnology. 

On Tuesday, Sept. 18th, the President's Dinner took place at l^past 5 p.m., 
in the City Hall. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 19th, at 3 p.m., the concluding General Meeting of 
the Association was held in the City Hall, when the Proceedings of the 
General Committee, and the Grants of Money for scientific purposes, were 
explained to the Members. 

The Meeting was then adjourned to Cheltenham*. 
* The Meeting is appointed to take place on Wednesday, the 6th of August, 1856. 



ADDRESS 



THE DUKE OF ARGYLL, F.R.S. 



Gentlemen of the British Association, 

I KNOW, Gentlemen, that the duty of presiding over this Meeting of the 
British Association for the Advancement of Science, has been assigned to 
me mainly in consequence of my local connexion with the district and City in 
which we are now assembled. It cannot therefore be departing from the 
special duty of that position, if I addi'ess you in the first place as one of those 
who are receiving the honour of your visit. I am sure I cannot express in 
terms too warm the feelings of this great community. It would be strange 
indeed if Glasgow did not hold out to you a cordial reception. Here, if 
anywhere, we have reason to honour Science, and to welcome the men whose 
lives are devoted to its pursuit. The West of Scotland has itself contributed 
not a few illustrious names to the number of those who have enlarged the 
boundaries of knowledge, or have given fruitful application to principles 
already known. I need not dwell on the fact that it was in this valley of the 
Clyde that the patient genius of Watt perfected the mechanism which first 
gave complete control over the powers of steam ; and that it was on these 
waters too that those powers were first applied in a manner which has given 
new wings to commerce, and is now afl'ecting not less decisively the terrible 
operations of war. These are but single examples, more striking and palpable 
than others, of the dependence of the Arts upon the advance of Science. 
This, however, is a dependence which I am sure the citizens of Glasgow 
would be the first to acknowledge, and which no doubt, with them as with 
all men, must be an important element in the value which they set upon 
physical research. But I am sure I should deeply wrong the intelligence of 
the people of Glasgow, if I were to represent them as measuring the value of 
science by no other standard than its immediate applicability to commercial 
purposes. They seek to honour science for its own sake, and to encourage 
the desire of knowledge as in itself one of the noblest instincts of our nature. 
It is my duty also, Gentlemen, to speak on behalf of a special body — one of 
which Glasgow has so much reason to be proud — I mean its ancient and vene- 
rable University. If the mechanical arts owe to this district of Scotland the 
greatest impulse they have ever yet received, it is not less true that our 
knowledge of the laws which regulate the pursuits of industry, and determine 
the distribution of the " Wealth of Nations," has been almost founded on the 



Ixxiv REPORT — 1855. 

researches of one whose name is indissolubly associated with this seat of 
learning. Here again we have an illustrious example of the mutual relations 
between science and politics in its best and highest definition. But indeed 
our convictions are independent of such examples. It is impossible to ap- 
preciate too highl}' the influence which science is evidently destined to have 
on the prospects of education, and we look for the time when its methods, 
as well as its results, will form the subject of teaching, not only as partially it 
has long done in our Colleges, but also in the humblest of our schools. I 
feel it to be no small privilege arising out of the Academical Office which this 
year I have the honour of holding, to be able to assure you on behalf of the 
University of Glasgow of the deep interest with which we regard your visit, 
and of our high appreciation of the ends which it is your object to promote. 

It is now fifteen years since the last Meeting of the British Association 
here. There are probably few even annual meetings of any considerable 
body of men, which are not marked by some melancholy recollections. Still 
more must this be the case after the lapse of so long an interval, — one which 
measures, as is usually reckoned, full half a generation in the life of man. 
Among the many vacancies in your ranks which that period has occasioned 
there are some which, from local association or from other causes, are naturally 
impressed more deeply on the mind than others. I am sure that one vene- 
rable name will rise to the memory of all who took any interest in the proceed- 
ings of 1840 ;— of one whose early tastes for natural science had only yielded 
before his devotion to a yet higher service ; but whose powerful mind still 
sought to found all his efforts in the cause of religion and humanity on 
obedience to the eternal laws, which are as sure and steady in their operation 
over the minds of men, and over the progress of society, as are other laws 
over the subjects of material change. Who can forget the zeal and more than 
youthful eagerness with which Dr. Chalmers entered into the discussions of 
the Statistical section ; and how he saw in those discussions the means of 
spreading the knowledge of principles which are of vital interest to the 
welfare of the State ? 

But that name, though the lapse of years has not carried it beyond the re- 
gion of regret, is one with which we have at least become familiar as belonging 
to the number of the departed great. Such is not the case with other 
vacancies, and especially with one which is still affecting us with almost 
bewildered sorrow, and an abiding sense of irreparable loss. Who shall take 
up the torch which has fallen from the hand of Edward Forbes? Who shall 
hold it as he held it to those dark places in the History of Life which Science 
is striving, perhaps in vain, to penetrate, but which seemed already opening 
their treasures to his fine and advancing genius? 

But whilst sad recollections are thus forced upon us as regards the life of 
individual men, we have every reason to be satisfied with the inheritance 
they have left. Many labourers are gone, but the cause in which they 
laboured has been steadily gaining ground. Long as fifteen years may be 
as a period in human life, it is generally but a fraction in the history of 
mental progress. Yet since the last Meeting of the British Association here, 
I am greatly mistaken if we cannot mark great strides in the advance of 
science. I wish. Gentlemen, you had a President more competent than I am 
to chronicle that advance, and direct the retrospect to a practical and useful 
end. There are, however, some features so remarkable that I cannot omit 
referring to them, as well calculated to raise our hopes and stimulate our 
exertions. In that science which is the oldest and most venerable of all, I 
mean Astronomy, if there had been nothing else to mark the progress of 
discovery, the construction and application of Lord Rosse's Great Reflector 



ADDRESS. IXXV 

would have been enough to constitute an important epoch. Its systematic 
operations may be said to be still only in the first stages of their progress ; 
yet already how often do we see reference had to the mysterious revelations it 
has made in discussions on the principles of that science, and in not a few of the 
speculations to which they are giving birth ! My distinguished friend Sir D. 
Brewster, in his recent Life of Newton, has designated that telescope as "one 
of the most wonderful combinations of art and science which the world has 
yet seen." All who are interested in the devotion of abilities, of means and 
of leisure to the noblest pursuits, must earnestly wish to see Lord Rosse 
rewarded by that which he will value most, the steady progress of discovery. 
It'must always be remembered, however, that Astronomy is a science of which 
hitherto at least it might almost be said that one great genius had left us no 
more worlds to conquer ; that is to say, he carried our knowledge at a bound 
to one grand, and apparently universal law, to which all worlds were subject, 
and of which every new discovery had been but an additional illustration. 
The reign of that law, whether universal or not, was at least so wide, that we 
had never pierced beyond the boundary of its vast domain. For the first time 
since the days of Newton a suspicion has arisen in the minds of astronomers 
that we have passed into the reign of other laws, and that the nebular phseno- 
mena revealed to us by Lord Rosse's telescope must be governed by forces 
different from those of which we have any knowledge. Whether this opinion 
be or be not well founded — whether it be or be not probable that our 
limited command over time and space can ever yield to our research 
any other law of interest or importance comparable with that which has 
already been determined — still, inside that vast horizon there are fillings-in 
and filiings-up which will ever furnish infinite reward to labour. Of these 
not a few have been secured since our last meeting here. Besides the patient 
work of our professed Astronomers, and the good service rendered by such 
men as Mr. Lassell and Mr. Nasniyth, who have so well relieved the business 
of commercial industry by their devotion to the pursuits of science, we have 
had one event so remarkable that in the whole history of Astronomy it stands 
alone. If in looking at the wonderful objects revealed to us in Lord Rosse's 
telescope, we turn instinctively sometimes from the thing shown to the thing 
which shows — from the Spiral Nebulae to the knowledge and resources which 
have collected their feeble light, and brought their mysterious forms under 
the cognizance of the human eye, how much more curiously do we turn 
from the single planet Neptune, to that other instrument which has felt, as it 
were, and found its obscure and distant orbit I So long as our species remains, 
that body will be associated with one of the most glorious proofs ever given 
of the reach of the human intellect ; — of the sweep and certainty of that noble 
science which now honours with enduring memory the twin names of Adams 
and Leverrier. 

In Geology, the youngest, but not the least vigorous of the sciences, every 
year has been adding to the breadth of its foundation — to the depth and 
meaning of its results. Probably no science has ever advanced with more 
rapid steps. In 1840 the then recent publication of the " Silurian System " 
had just established those landmarks of the Palaeozoic world which all subse- 
quent discovery has only tended to confirm. The great horizons which were 
first defined by the labours of Murchison and Sedgwick have since disclosed 
the same phenomena which they so accurately described, in every quarter 
of the globe ; and the generalizations founded thereupon have been definitely 
established. The same period has sufficed, partly by the labours of the 
same distinguished men, to clear up the relative position of the strata which 
represent the closing epochs of ancient life, and those which form the base of the 



Ixxvi REPORT — 1855. 

secondary age. But above all, the last few years Lave seen immense progress 
made in our knowledge of that vast series of deposits which usher in the 
dawn of existing forms, and carry us on to those changes, which, though the 
most recent, are not the least obscure of any which have affected the surface 
of the globe. The investigations of Edward Forbes on the laws which de- 
termine the conditions of Marine Zoology, have supplied us with data altogether 
new on some of the highest conclusions of the science ; whilst his profound 
speculations on the centres of creation and areas of distribution have pointed 
out paths of inquiry which are themselves of inexhaustible interest, and hold 
out the promise of great results. Another branch of investigation, which, if 
not entirely new, is at least pursued on a new system, and with new resources, 
has been opened up in Dynamical Geology by the learning and ingenuity of 
Mr. Hopkins ; whilst the thorough elucidation of the conditions of Glacier 
Motion, which we owe to Professor James Forbes of Edinburgh, has given us 
clear and definite ideas on one, and that not the least important of the agents 
in Geological change. The observations accumulated during the recent 
Arctic voyages have materially added to our knowledge of the operation of 
the same agency under different conditions — conditions which we know must 
once have extended widely over the firths and estuaries near where we are now 
assembled — leaving behind them those enduring records of the Glacial epoch 
which were first explored by my friend Mr. Smith of Jordan-hill. We owe 
many important observations on the same phaenomena, and on the various 
changes of sea-level, to Mr. Robert Chambers. And if the thanks of Science 
are due to those who advance her interests, both directly by adding to her 
store of facts, or of her discovered laws ; and also indirectly by investing 
them with popular interest, and thus enlarging the circle of observers, we 
must mention with special gratitude the classical works of Mr. Hugh Miller ; 
and those writings of Sir Charles Lyell, which his indefatigable industry is 
ever bringing up abreast with the progress of discovery — a progress stimu- 
lated in no small degree by his own exertions, — and which are alike remark- 
able for completeness of knowledge, for fertility of suggestion, and for sound 
philosophical reasoning. I think we cannot mistake the general tendency of 
Geological research, whether Stratigraphical or Zoological. It has been to 
prolong periods which had been considered short ; to divide others which 
were classed together ; to fill up spaces which were imagined blank, and to 
connect more and more in one unbroken chain the course of physical change 
and the progress of organic life. 

We pass from geology by a natural transition to another science which 
stands to it in close alliance. If all our most sure conclusions respecting the 
superficial covering of the globe have been founded on the classification of 
its animal remains, it is not less true that our knowledge and understanding 
of organic structure have been infinitely extended by the means which geo- 
logy has afforded of studying that structure in relation to its history in past 
time. In the hands of our great countryman, Professor Owen, Physiology 
has assumed a new rank in science, leading us up to the very threshold of 
the deepest mysteries of Nature. If the last few years had been marked by 
no other event in the advancement of science, there would have been enough 
to signalise them in the publication of his treatise on the " Homologies of 
the Vertebrate Skeleton :" and we may recollect with pride the fact of that 
high argument having been first opened at a Meeting of the British Asso- 
ciation. 

A sad interest, indeed, attaches, in one direction at least, to the progress 
of our knowledge in Geography. All serious doubt seems to have closed now 
over the grave of Franklin. Even in a year during which war has been 



ADDRESS. Ixxvil 

claiming the noblest victims by thousands and tens of thousands, it would ill 
become this Association not to mark with an expression of our sorrow and 
admiration the self-sacrifice of that gallant band which has perished in the 
cause of science. But their devotion has been emulated, under a still higher 
stimulus, in the more successful career of others : and at last in the discovery 
of the North-West Passage (still so-called in spite of its having been found 
impassable), the courage and endurance of Captain M^Clure and his asso- 
ciates have ascertained with certainty a most remarkable fact in the physical 
conformation of the globe. Results of still larger, and certainly of more im- 
mediate interest are being arrived at by the rapid march of African explo- 
ration, — not, surely, before the time. Every part of the circumference of 
that vast continent has been either known or accessible to us for centuries. 
On its soil have flourished some of the most ancient and famous monarchies ; 
and one of its great valleys is the fatherland of science. Yet up to com- 
paratively recent times our horizon there has been bounded by the same 
sands or mountains which bounded the knowledge of antiquity, and we had 
almost as little acquaintance with its interior as had the Tyrian mer- 
chant when his eye rested of old on the Peaks of Atlas. Nothing but fami- 
liarity with the fact could have reconciled us to the ignorance in which we 
have so long remained of one of the largest and most interesting regions of 
the world. That ignorance is at last being cleared away ; and the exertions 
of many individuals, amongst whom the names of Mr. Galton, of Mr. Ander- 
son, Dr. Livingston, Dr. Baikie and Dr. Barth, stand conspicuous, have con- 
tributed results of the deepest interest and importance. No man who values 
science can fail to appreciate the extension of our knowledge respecting 
geography even where, as in the Arctic regions, that knowledge is pursued 
simply for its own sake^ But it becomes invested with tenfold interest when 
it brings with it the largest influence on the destinies of millions of the 
human race ; and adds, as we may confidently hope it will ultimately do in 
the case of Africa, an inexhaustible field for manufacturing and commercial 
enterprise. 

In connexion with the diflTusion of geographical knowledge I cannot omit 
to mention the magnificent publications of Mr. Alexander Keith Johnston of 
Edinburgh, in his Atlas of Physical Geography. It is seldom that such a 
mass of information has been presented in a ?brm so beautiful and attractive ; 
or one which tends so much to place the study of geography on a truly sci- 
entific basis — that is to say, on the basis of its relation to the other natural 
sciences, and those grand cosmical views of terrestrial phsenomena which have 
found their most distinguished interpreter in Baron Humboldt. 

The kindred science of Ethnology has received of late years great deve- 
lopment ; not only by its increasing store of facts, but by the more scientific 
use which is being made of facts which have been long familiar. The in- 
vestigation of the laws which regulate the growth of language, promise to 
cast the most important lights on the history of our race ; but the conclu- 
sions to which that investigation may lead ai'e still matters of keen and anxious 
controversy, and are exposed to all that suspicion which has been directed 
against almost every science at some stage or other of its growth; and 
which, we must allow, every science has, at some stage or other, justified by 
hasty generalization and premature deduction. 

Of all the sciences Chemistry is that which least requires to have its 
triumphs recorded here. The immediate applicability of so many of its 
results to the useful arts has secured for it the watchful interest of the 
world ; and every day is adding some new proof of its inexhaustible fertility. 
There is one department of inquiry, and that perhaps the most interesting of 



Ixxviii REPORT — 1855. 

all, I mean Organic Chemistry, which has received an especial impulse during 
the last few years, an impulse mainly due to the genius of one distinguished 
man whom we have the honour of numbering among our guests upon this 
occasion. I think Baron Liebig will find in Scotland that kind of welcome 
which a man of science values most, — a readiness to profit by his instructions, 
and an enlightened appreciation among the farmers of the country of the 
practical value of studying in their husbandry the laws which have been 
revealed by his research. I am reminded, through the kindness of Dr. 
Lyon Playfair, of some facts which give yet a more special interest to this 
subject in connexion with our meeting here. It was to the British As- 
sociation at Glasgow in 1840 that Baron Liebig first communicated his 
work on the Application of Chemistry to Vegetable Physiology. The 
philosophical explanation there given of the principles of manuring and 
cropping gave an immediate impulse to agriculture, and directed attention to 
the manures which are valuable for their ammonia and mineral ingredients; 
and especially to guano, of which in 1840 only a few specimens had ap- 
peared in this country. The consequence was that in the next year, 1841, 
no less than 2881 tons were imported; and during the succeeding years the 
total quantity imported into this country has exceeded the enormous amount 
of 1,500,000 tons. Nor has this been all: Chemistry has come in with her 
aid to do the work of Nature, and as the supply of guano becomes exhausted, 
limited as its production must be to a few rainless regions of the world, the 
importance of artificial mineral manures will increase. Already considerable 
capital is invested in the manufacture of superphosphates of lime, formed by 
the solution of bones in sulphuric acid, the use of which was first recom- 
mended at the last Glasgow Meeting. Of these artificial manures not less 
tlian 60,000 tons are annually sold in England alone ; and it is a cui-ious 
example of the endless interchange of services between the various sciences 
that Geology has contributed her quota to the same important end ; and the 
exuviae and bones of extinct animals, found in a fossil state, are now, to the 
extent of from 12,000 to 15,000 tons, used to supply annually the same ferti- 
lizing materials to the soil. The exertions of Professor Daubeny of Oxford on 
the same important subject, and the continued attention which he has de- 
voted to it, have done much for the cause of agricultural chemistry in En- 
gland ; whilst the thanks both of practical and of scientific men are due to 
Dr. Lyon Playfair, and Professor Gregory of Edinburgh, for those admirable 
translations of Baron Liebig's works, which have rendered them accessible to 
every English reader ; and have thereby had no unimportant influence in 
extending the knowledge of the laws aff"ecting both vegetable and animal 
physiology. 

I am indebted to the same quarter for the mention of one i-emarkable in- 
stance of the manner in which — to use Dr. Playfair's words — "the over- 
flowings of Abstract Science pass into and fertilize the field of Industry." 
One of the newest and most obscure subjects of chemical research has been 
the discovery of certain conditions under which bodies, like in their com- 
position, are nevertheless endowed with unlike properties, and thereby 
become convertible to new purposes. It is in the application of this 
principle that a gentleman of this city, Mr. James Young, has succeeded in 
obtaining the illuminating principle of coal gas either in a solid or liquid 
state ; and it has proved to be a substance of immense value for the lubrica- 
tion of machinery, vast quantities of it being now manufactured and sold for 
that purpose. 

I hardly know whether it is strictly in connexion with the advance of 
chemical knowledge that I ought to remind you of one great discovery made 



ADDRESS. Ixxix 

long since we last assembled here ; — I refer to the discovery of the effects of 
chloroform on the animal system; one which claims for my friend Dr. Simp- 
son of Edinburgh a high place indeed among the benefactors of mankind. 
Chloroform as a mere chemical composition had indeed been known before, 
and had been made the subject of elaborate research by the distinguished 
French chemist, M. Dumas, whom we have here the honour of receiving as 
a guest. But the discovery of its application is not the less a triumph of 
science, and of the best and highest scientific faculties. Seldom indeed has 
that disposition of mind which is ever ready to receive a chance suggestion, 
and to pursue it believing what great things we have yet to learn, been 
crowned with a more brilliant and direct reward. 

It marks the growing sense entertained of the value of Statistical research, 
that, during the late session of Parliament, a committee of the House of Lords 
sat for a considerable time on the best means of securing a complete system 
of Agricultural Returns. We owe much in this matter to the exertions of the 
Highland Society of Scotland, and, as has been specially recorded by the 
committee, to the zeal and activity of their able secretary, Mr. Hall Max- 
well. We owe not less, also, to the high intelligence of the farmers of Scot- 
land generally, who have rendered eveiy assistance in their power, and that 
with a willingness which can only arise from an enlightened appreciation of 
the great objects to be gained by the inquiry. 

No one has rendered more important service to Statistical science, in one 
of its n;ost interesting departments, than the able Chamberlain of this city, 
Dr. Strang. His periodical Reports on the Growth and Progress of Glasgow 
are among the most curious and useful records of the kind which have been 
published in any part of the United Kingdom. I need hardly say that they 
supply materials for much reflection on many questions connected with the 
social welfare of the people. I believe Dr. Strang has lately visited Paris, 
with a view to communicate to this Meeting of the Association various facts 
connected with the great improvements which are in the course of progress 
in that city. Should his investigations cast any light on the best means of 
improving the dwellings of the labouring classes in the great centres of popu- 
lation, and on the possibility of doing so on a large scale, by public authority, 
he will have rendered no small service to his country in a matter of vital 
interest and of much difficulty. 

Closely connected with the subject of Statistics, as applied to Agricultural 
returns, I am happy to say that, mainly owing to the exertions of Sir J. 
Forbes of Fettercairn, and of Mr. Milne Home, a Meteorological Society for 
Scotland has been established, warmly seconded by the Highland Society. 
The wonderful results on a great scale which have been obtained in this de- 
partment of science by Lieut. Maury of the United States, give us ground 
to hope that even on the small areas of individual countries, where of course, 
from the crossing of local influences, the general result is infinitely com- 
plicated, some approach may be made towards ascertaining the laws which 
regulate the seasons. 

The admirable agency which is now afforded by the Kew Committee of 
this Association, for the verification of instruments, and by the new meteoro- 
logical department of the Board of Trade under Capt. FitzRoy, for the reduc- 
tion of local observations, will, I trust, be taken advantage of by the new 
Scottish Society. I cannot help congratulating the Association on the posi- 
tion which has been secured by science in connexion with both of these 
establishments. The thanks of the commercial as well as of the scientific 
world are due to Colonel Sabine and the other members of the Kew Com- 
mittee, whose assistance is now highly appreciated by practical men, and 



IXXX REPORT — 1855. 

eagerly sought for by the best instrument-makers ; whilst Capt. FitzRoy's 
office and duties are in themselves an acknowledgement of no small im- 
portance of the public value of systematic observation. 

The increasing employment of iron in ship-building has brought into cor- 
responding notice the uncertainty which attends the action of the compass 
on board vessels of that construction. This important and intricate subject 
has been treated of by Mr. Arcliibald Smith of Jordan Hill, with all the re- 
sources of his high mathematical and scientific attainments, in publications 
which have appeared under the sanction and witli the recommendation of 
the Admiralty. It will not fail to interest this great commercial city, whose 
freights are on every sea, that this question was taken up at the last Liver- 
pool Meeting by Dr. Scoresby, that it has continued to occupy his close 
attention, and that he intends to communicate to this Meeting of the Asso- 
ciation some of the valuable results of his investigations. 

Feeling deeply, as I do, my own inability to give anything like an ade- 
quate sketch — even in outline — of the progress of science during the last 
few years, I remember at the same time with some satisfaction, that it is less 
the business of this Association to boast of the achievements which have 
already been effected, than to devise means of facilitating those which are 
yet to come. You have appointed a Parliamentary Committee for the con- 
sideration of one impoi'tant branch of this inquiry. We shall doubtless hear 
from my noble friend Lord Wrottesley those recommendations which have 
been the result of its recent labours, and which will be found to owe much 
to his enlightened zeal, to his great knowledge and his sound judgment. In 
the meantime, I trust I may be allowed to make a few general observations 
on what appear to me to be some of the best means of promoting in this 
country the advancement of physical science. 

It will readily be understood, that, in referring for a moment here to the 
aid which may be afforded by the State to the advancement of science, I 
divest myself entirely of any official character other than that which belongs 
to me as your President, and that I seek to give expression to my own 
opinions only. 

I am not one of those who are disposed to look to public authority as 
the primary or the best supporter of abstract science. In the main it must 
depend for its advancement on its own inexhaustible attractions, — on the 
delight which it affords us to study the constitution of the world around 
us, and to endeavour to understand^ though it be but darkly, how the 
reins of its government are held. Nor am I disposed to indulge in any 
complaint on a matter which has lately attracted some attention among 
scientific men. In a great manufacturing country like ours, the dispo- 
sition of whose people is eminently practical, it is perfectly natural that 
greater attention should be bestowed on the arts than on the abstract 
sciences. This, indeed, is but adhering to what has been hitherto at least 
the natural and historical order of precedence ; for it is a just observa- 
tion of Professor Whewell, in his lecture on the results of the Great Exhi- 
bition of 1851, that practice has generally gone before theory — results have 
been arrived at, before the laws on which they depend had been defined or 
understood. Art, in short, has preceded science. But it is equally import- 
ant to observe, that in recent times this order has been in numberless 
instances reversed. Abstract science has gone ahead of the arts, and the 
conduct of the workshop is now perpetually receiving its direction from the 
experiments of the laboratory. Perhaps the most wonderful discovery of 
modern days — that of the Electric Telegraph — was thought out and perfected, 
so far as its principle was concerned, in the closet and the lecture-room, and 



ADDRESS. IxXXi 

flashed ready-made on the astonishment of the world. In chemistry, the lead 
taken by abstract science in reacting on the arts is manifest and constant ; 
and in a greater or less degree the same result is appearing in connexion 
with every branch of physical research. The interest, therefore, of the 
State, even if it be considered merely in this economic point of view, in the 
encouragement of abstract science, is obvious and immediate. And there is 
this additional motive to be i-emembered : the moment any result of science 
becomes applicable to the arts, the unfailing enterprise of the commercial and 
manufacturing classes takes it up and exhausts every resource of capital and 
of skill in giving to that application the largest possible development. But so 
long as science is still purely abstract, it has often to be prosecuted with 
slender resources, and specially requires fostering care and a helping hand. 
But I rejoice to believe that the conviction of this truth is sensibly gaining 
ground. The foundation of the geological museums both in England and 
in Scotland, and the carrying out of a complete geological, concurrently with 
a geographical survey, by public authority and at the public expense, were 
great steps in the right direction. Another such step was the investment of 
£1000 annually in aiding experimental research, through the agency of the 
Royal Society, which undertook the trouble of its special allocation. It is the 
intention of my noble friend, Lord Palmerston, to bring the principle of some 
expenditure in this direction specially under the notice of Parliament for the 
future ; and it is worthy of remark, as illustrating how far a small sum may go 
in aid of abstract science, and how cheaply the largest and most fruitful 
results may thereby be attained, that, as I have been informed on very high 
authority, this apparently trivial sum has been felt as a most important help 
in numberless instances, sometimes in the conduct of experiments, sometimes 
in the publication of their results, and sometimes in securing accurate artistic 
delineations. 

The relations now established between the Board of Trade and various 
branches of scientific investigation are such as lay the foundation for further 
progress in the same direction. I am happy to say that, in connexion with 
the new national museum which is being organized for Scotland, there is to be 
a special branch devoted to the industrial applications of science ; and that a 
new Professorship — one which has long existed in almost all the continental 
universities — thatof Technology— has just been instituted by the Government. 
I am not less happy in being able to announce that to that chair Dr. George 
Wilson has been appointed. The writings which we owe to the pen of Dr. Wil- 
son, and especially his beautiful Memoirs of Cavendish, and of Dr. Reid, are 
among the happiest productions of the Literature of Science. 

I trust also that the aid of the State may be secured in providing a house 
and home for the scientific bodies in the metropolis. I am disposed to agree 
with those who attach no small importance to this consummation. When 
the Royal Society alone adequately represented all or nearly all who were 
engaged in physical science, that great body fulfilled all the necessary con- 
ditions of a scientific council. But now, when almost every separate division 
of science has a separate society of its own, it has become almost indispen- 
sable that some new arrangement should be come to, in order that abstract 
science may have that degree of organization without which its interests Mill 
never receive the public attention which they ought to have. 

The influence, if not the authority of the State, may also, I think, be most 
beneficially exerted on behalf of Science, through the educational rules and 
principles of administration of the Privy Council. But the Committee of 
Council, in the adoption of those rules, is necessarily governed to a certain 
extent by the feelings and opinions of tlie various churches and bodies which 

1855, / 



Ixxxii REPORT — 1855. 

are the primary supporters of our existing educational system. In the last 
Report of the Council of the Geographical Society, they announce a com- 
munication from the Committee of Privy Council, requesting the Society to 
appoint an Examiner in Geography, to be associated with other examiners 
on other branches of education. It may be well worthy of consideration, 
whether the same expedient might not be usefully adopted in reference to 
other branches of science, which have hitherto formed a less admitted part 
of ordinary instruction. 

And this. Gentlemen, brings me to say, that the Advancement of Science 
depends, above all things, on securing for it a better and more ac- 
knowledged place in the education of the young. There are many signs 
that the time is coming when our wishes in this respect will be fulfilled. 
They would be fulfilled, perhaps, still more rapidly, but for the operation 
of obstructing causes, some of which we should do well to notice. How 
often do we find it assumed, that those who urge the claims of Science 
are desirous of depreciating some one or more of the older and more sacred 
branches of education ! In respect to elementary schools we are generally 
opposed, as aiming at the displacement of religious teaching ; whilst in 
respect to the higher schools and colleges, the cudgels are taken up in 
behalf of classical attainments. A remarkable example of the influence 
of these feelings will be found in a speech delivered by Lord Lyndhurst 
during the late session of Parliament. With all the power of his digni- 
fied and commanding eloquence he asserted the right of the elder studies 
to their time-honoured pre-eminence ; and in the keen pursuit of this 
argument even he was almost tempted to speak in a tone of some deprecia- 
tion of those noble pursuits in which the University of which he is a distin- 
guished ornament has won no small portion of her fame. But surely no 
enlightened friend of the Natural Sciences would seek to challenge this 
imaginary competition. Perhaps, indeed, like other zealous advocates, we 
may have sometimes overstrained our language, and have thereby given such 
vantage-ground to pi-ejudice, that it has been enabled to assume the form of 
just objection. We cannot too earnestly disclaim the idea that the know- 
ledge of physical laws can ever of itself form the groundwork of any active 
influence in morals or religion. Any such idea would only betray our igno- 
rance of some of the deepest principles of our nature. But this does not 
aflfect the estimate which we may justly put on an early training in the 
principles of physical research. That estimate may be not tlie less a high 
one, because it does not assign to science what belongs to other things. 

There is one aspect in which we do not require to plead the cause of 
science as an element in education, and on that, therefore, I shall not dwell. 
I mean that in which certain applied sciences are recognized as the essential 
bases of professional training: as, for example, when the engineer is trained 
in the principles of mechanics and hydrostatics, or the physician in those of 
chemistry. Of course, with everj" new application of the sciences to the arts 
of life this direct influence will extend. But what we desire, and ought to 
aim at, is something more. It is, that absti-act science, without special refer- 
ence to its departmental application, should be more recognized as an essen- 
tial element in every liberal education. W^e desire this on two grounds 
mainly ; first, thai it will contribute more than anything else to the further 
advancement of science itself; and, secondly, because we believe that it 
would be an instrument of vital benefit in the culture and strengthening of 
the mental powers. 

But, as regards both these great objects, we must remember that much 
will depend on the manner in which elementary instruction in science is con- 



ADDRESS. Ixxxiii 

ducted; on the conception, in fact, which we entertain of what science really 
is. Nothing can be easier than so to teach science as to feed every mental 
vice or weakness which obstructs the progress of knowledge, or blinds men to 
every evidence of new truths, in self-satisfied contemplation of the few they 
have already ascertained. May we not illustrate this by the effect which has not 
seldom been produced by the scientific education of professions ? It is true, 
indeed, that professional men have often enlarged the field of science by the 
discovery of new and important truths. Some of the strongest-armed pioneers 
of science have been of this class. But how have their discoveries been too 
often received by their professional brethren? How many of them have 
been assailed by every weapon in the extensive armoury of prejudice and 
bigotry ! How many of them have had their name recognized only after it 
had been written on the grave ! and over whom we might well repeat the 
noble lines — 

Now thy brows are cold 

We see thee, what thou art, and know 

Thy likeness to the wise below, 

Thy kindred with the great of old. 

What we want in the teaching of the young, is, not so much the mere 
results, as the methods, and, above all, the history of science. How, and by 
what steps it has advanced ; with what large admixture of error every new 
truth has been at first surrounded ; by what patient watchings and careful 
reasonings; by wliat chance suggestions and happy thoughts ; by what doci- 
lity of mind, and faith in the fullness of Nature's meanings ; in short, by 
what kinds of power and virtue, the great men, aye, and the lesser men of 
science have each contributed their quota to her progress ; this is what we 
ought to teach, if we desire to see education well conducted to the great ends 
in view. It is not merely for the sake of investing the abstractions of science 
with something of a living and human interest, that we should recall and re- 
vive these passages in her history : nor is it merely to impress her results 
better on the memory, as we fill up from biographies and other sources of 
Information, the meagre page of the general historian. It is for something 
more than this. It is both that they may be more encouraged to observe 
nature, and that they may better understand how to do so with effect. It 
is that they may cultivate that temper of mind to which she most loves to 
reveal her secrets. And as regards those whose own opportunities of obser- 
vation may be small, it is that they may better appreciate the labours of 
others ; and may be enabled to recognize, in the midst, perhaps, of much ex- 
travagance, the tokens of real genius, and in the midst of much error the 
golden sands of truth. 

It is one of the many observations of Sir C. Lyell which have a much 
wider application than tjiat to which they were specially directed, that the 
mistake of looking too exclusively to the grand results of geological change, 
and of referring them too readily to sudden agencies of tremendous activity 
and power, tended to check the advance of that science, by discouraging 
habits of watchfulness over those operations which are contemporary with 
ourselves, and the secret of whose power is to be found in the lapse of time. 
An effect precisely analogous is produced on the progress of science as a 
whole by a similar method of regarding it. And even when the history of 
that progress is attended to at all, there is a natural disposition to look back 
to a few great names among the number of its chief promoters, as Beings 
who, by dint only of some unapproachable superiority of intellect, have 
taught us all we know. It is true, indeed, there have been a few such men; 
just as there have been periods of sudden geological operations, which have 

/2 



Ixxxiv REPORT — 1855. 

upheaved at once stupendous and enduring monuments. But even iu re- 
spect to tliose great men, it will often be found that at least one great secret 
of their power has lain in virtues which might be more common than unfortu- 
nately they are found to be. That openness and simplicity of mind which 
is ever ready to entertain a new idea, and not the less willing that it may be 
suggested by some common and familiar thing, is one of the surest accom- 
paniments of genius. But it is clearly separable from extraordinary intellec- 
tual power, although, where both are found together, the great results pro- 
duced are too often attributed to the more brilliant faculty alone. Professor 
Whewell, in his most interesting History of the Inductive Sciences, whilst 
deprecating the degree of attention which has been paid to the well-known 
story respecting the origin of Newton's thoughts on gravitation, has never- 
theless stated, with his usual clearness and precision, the essential truth 
which the traditions of science have done well to cherish. Those who have 
been competent to judge of the calibre of Newton's mind, of its powers of 
pure abstract reasoning, have with one voice assigned it the highest place iu 
the records of human intellect. Doubtless, it was those powers which enabled 
him to prove what otherwise would have remained conjecture. But it is not 
the less important to observe, that the suggestion on which these powers were 
called to work was one eminently characteristic of a mind where simplicity and 
greatness were indeed synonymous. That the celestial motions, about which so 
many wonderful facts were then already known, and which had been referred 
to so many mysterious and imaginary forces, should be indeed identical in 
kind with the'motions which took place close beside him, and that the same 
rules should be applicable to each, this was an idea in which, to use 
Dr. Whewell's words, " Newton had no forerunner." We do not need to 
compare the relative importance of those qualities of mind which are in- 
dicated in the first conception of such an idea, and of those other faoulties 
which could alone crown it with demonstration, and add it to the number of 
established truths. For the attainment, by a single individual, of results so 
grand and so complete as those which were reached by Newton, each was 
necessary to the other. But characteristics, which were in him united, have not 
the less had their separate value when divided in other men ; and it cannot 
be too often repeated, that habits of wakeful observation on the commonest 
phaenomena of nature ai'e often alone enough to yield a rich harvest to the 
man of science, and to crown his labours with an immortal name. This has 
been a result of continual recurrence in the progress of knowledge. It is the 
expression and evidence of a truth of equal importance in the moral and the 
physical world, that the common things which surround us in our daily life, 
and many of which we do not really see, only because we see them too often 
and too familiarly, are governed by principles of infinite interest and value, 
and whose range of application is wide as the universe of God. 

And this brings me to say a word on the value of instruction in Physical 
Science, not merely with a view to its own advancement, but as in itself a 
means of mental training and an instrument for the highest purposes of edu- 
cation. It is in this latter point of view that its claims seem to be least ad- 
mitted or understood. We may bear an exception made in favour of the 
exact sciences, which involve the application of Mathematical knowledge, 
since this has been long recognized as requiring the highest intellectual exer- 
tion ; but with regard to other sciences, how often do we hear them con- 
demned as affording " mere information," and as tending in no sensible de- 
gree to strengthen and invigorate the mental powers I But, again I say, this 
would entirely depend on how Science is to be taught — whether by a mere 
cramming of facts from manuals, or by explaining how and by whom former 



ADDRESS. IXXXV 

problems have been solved, — what and how vast are other problems yet 
waiting for, and capable of solution. And even where the researches of 
Physical Science can do little more than guide conjecture, or illustrate merely 
what it cannot prove, how grand are the questions which it excites us to 
ask, and on which it enables us to gather some amount of evidence ! In 
Geology, is it true, or is it not true, that " we can see no trace of a beginning 
— no symptom of an end?" To what extent, and in what sense are we yet 
entitled to say, that there has been an advance in organization as there has 
been advance in time ? In Physiology, what is the meaning of that great 
law, of adherence to type and pattern, standing behind as it were, and in 
reserve of that other law by which organic structures are specially adapted 
to special modes of Life ? What is the relation between these two laws ; and 
can any light be cast upon it, derived from the history of extinct forms, or 
from the conditions to which we find that existing forms are subject ? In 
Vegetable Physiology do the same, or similar laws prevail,— or can we trace 
others, such as those on the relations between structure, form and colour, of 
which clear indications have already been established, in communications 
lately made to this Association by Dr. M'Cosh and Dr. Dickie of Belfast? 
In Chemistry, how is it that some of the most powerful actions escape our 
finest analyses? In Medicine, what is the action of specifics? and are there 
no more discoveries to be made such as rewarded the observation of Jenner, 
in the almost total extinction of a fearful and frequent scourge ? It is in refer- 
ence to such great questions, and ten thousand others equally interesting and 
important, that the pursuits of science call forth the highest activities of the 
mind, and exercise every power of thought and reasoning with which it has 
been endowed. 

Indeed it may fairly be questioned whether those sciences which are called 
exact, are necessarily the best preparation for the actual business of the world. 
It is the rare exception, and not the rule, when exact and perfect demonstration 
becomes applicable to the affairs of life. In general, men have to balance 
between a thousand probabilities, and to take into account a thousand con- 
flicting tendencies. Surely there can be no training better than that which 
teaches us by what careful inductive reasoning — by what separation between 
permanent and accidental causes, — by what constant reference from the pre- 
sent to the past, and from the past back again to the present, our existing 
knowledge has been attained in the paths of physical research. It is true, 
indeed, that where men's passions and prejudices are much concerned, no 
amount of teaching will ever induce them to follow or attend to the best 
methods of arriving at the truth. But even where there are no such dis- 
turbing causes, where moderate and candid men are expressing their sincere 
convictions, how constantly do we hear them ascribing effects to causes, 
which the slightest habit of correct reasoning would have been sufficient to 
dismiss ! In questions of great social or political, as well as of philosophical 
importance, the want of such habit is often most painfully apparent, and 
serves in no small degree to retard the progress of mankind. The necessity 
of considering all questions with reference to fundamental principles or laws, 
and these again with reference to the disturbing causes which delay or sus- 
pend their operation, the mode of weighing evidence, and the degree of value 
to be attached to that which is of a merely negative kind — these are things 
, of which we are perpetually reminded in the pursuits of science ; and these 
surely are no useless lessons, whether in religious, social, or political affairs. 
And then there is another consideration of no small importance. As 
Science has now come to a stage in her progress, when she heads the Arts, 
and flings back upon them her reflected light, so also has she now reached a 



IxXXVi REPORT — 1855. 

degree of development, which casts some rays forward on questions of higher 
import than those which she can fully answer. It is in vain that we try to 
draw definite lines between the Physical and the Metaphysical, — between the 
Secular and the Religious. There is a felt relation between the laws which 
obtain in each — such indeed as we might expect to find in provinces of a 
universal empire. The consequence is, that in every speculation on those 
higher questions on which men will and must speculate — in every system of 
Philosophy, whether ancient or modern, they draw not merely their illustra- 
tions, but not a few of their conclusions from science, or from that which 
passes by the name. If, therefore, her discoveries, and above all, her 
methods and her history be but partially and superficially understood, the 
popular mind will be a perpetual prey to the most specious forms of error. 
But that history teaches caution. It is full of warning as well as of example. 
In being a history of the progress of knowledge, it is a history also of the 
obstructions which Knowledge has encountered, and an index of those to 
which she is still exposed. The influence of opinions and theories precon- 
ceived, — of rash conclusions, and of false analogies, has been, and still is, a 
perpetual source of danger. So much is this the case, that we soon learn to 
receive with extreme caution the inferences drawn by men of science from 
the facts they may bring to light, wherever these inferences touch upon other 
departments of knowledge. The relation in which a new fact or law stands 
to others is seldom at once rightly understood. It is only through fightings 
and controversies of every kind that it gradually finds its place; and be- 
comes, not unfrequently, an instrument in defence of truths which at first it 
was supposed to sap and undermine. I do not mean to say that the full 
meaning of the discoveries of science is always brought to light. Far from 
it. It would be more true to say that their ultimate meaning is never 
reached ; and that for every question which Science answers, she propounds 
another which it is beyond her powers to solve. But in this we may see the 
strongest of ail arguments against our entertaining any fear of science, as 
regards the interests of religion. It is sometimes proudly asked, who shall 
set bounds to Science, or to the widening circle of her horizon ? But why 
chould we try to do so, when it is enough to observe that that horizon, how- 
ever it may be enlarged, is an horizon still — a circle beyond which, however 
wide it be, there shine, like fixed stars without a parallax, eternal problems in 
which the march of science never shows any change of place. If there be one 
fact of which Science reminds us more perpetually than another, it is that we 
have faculties impelling us to ask questions which we have no powers enabling 
us to answer. What better lesson of humility than this — what better indi- 
cation of the reasonableness of looking to a state in which this discrepancy 
shall be done away ; and when we shall " know, even as we are known !" 

But, Gentlemen, I have already detained you too long, and occupied your 
time far less profitably than it would have been occupied by many who are 
present on this occasion. The hospitality of this great city will aflfbrd you, 
I trust, a pleasant, and your own exertions will secure a profitable, Meeting. 
You may well engage in its business and discussions, with a sense of the 
high interest and value of your pursuits — not less interesting in themselves, 
— not less conducive to the progress and happiness of mankind, — not less 
tasking the noblest faculties of the mind, than those which engross the atten- 
tion of jurists, of soldiers or of statesmen, when their motives are the purest, 
and their objects are the best. 



REPORTS 



THE STATE OF SCIENCE. 



REPORTS 



THE STATE OF SCIENCE. 



Report on the Relation between Explosions in Coal-mines and Re- 
volving Storms. By Thomas Dobson, B.A., of St. John's College, 
Cambridge. 

In coal-mines liable to explosions, there is a continuous discharge of car- 
buretted hydrogen gas, from the innumerable minute fissures of the fractured 
coal, into the galleries of the mine. The rate and quantity of this issue of 
gas depend, cceteris paribus, upon the density of the atmosphere ; being 
greater when this density is less, and vice versa. The preponderance of air 
over gas in the atmosphere of the mine never falls below a certain fixed 
ratio without producing a risk of explosion; hence a due adjustment must 
be maintained at all times between the rates of ventilation and of gaseous 
discharge, in order to prevent the mine from becoming charged with gas 
up to the explosive point. 

It is here proposed to consider the effect of extraordinary fluctuations of 
the density and temperature of the atmosphere in deranging this delicate 
adjustment of opposing powers. 

There are two ways in which meteorological agency may render the atmo- 
sphere of a mine explosive. 

1. During a period of comparatively calm weather, when the mercury in 
the barometer ranges above 30 inches for several days, the usual escape of gas 
into the mine is checked by the greater density of the air, and the tension of 
the pent-up gases increases. If such a period be succeeded by a rapid dimi- 
nution of atmospheric pressure, indicated by a considerable fall of the mer- 
curial column, the consequent outpouring of suddenly liberated gas may be 
so great as to overpower the ordinary ventilation of the mine, and thus an 
explosive atmosphere may be produced by an excessive issue of gas, owing to 
a sudden decrease of atmospheric pressure. 

2. Supposing the action of the ventilating mechanism to remain unchanged 
and the flow of gas into the mine to be steady and constant in quantity, it is 
evident that the effective ventilation will vary inversely as the temperature of 
the external air. In fact, the efficiency of the ventilation depends chiefly 
upon the difference of temperature of the air in the mine and the air above- 
ground. Hence a considerable rise in the temperature of the external air 
may so impede the ventilation as to render it inadequate to effect the neces- 
sary dilution and removal of even the ordinary quantity of gas discharged ; 

1855. B 



2 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

and the atmosphere of a mine may thus become explosive from a want of 
sufficient air, oiving to a sudden increase of atmospheric temperature. 

There are two distinct and essential conditions necessary to cause an ex- 
plosion in a coal-mine : — 

1st. The atmosphere of the mine must be rendered inflammable. 

2ndly. The inflammable air must be ignited. 

The condition of inflammability may occasionally arise from a workman 
unexpectedly breaking into a reservoir of accumulated gas ; from the fall of 
the roof of a Goaf, or old waste ; or from the accidental derangement of the 
ventilating machinery. Such fortuitous cases do not belong, to the present 
inquiry. 

As the instant of ignition is independent of the weather, and is generally 
determined by an individual act of carelessness, it is obvious that any reason- 
ing based on the action of the barometer or thermometer just at the time of 
explosion will be apt to lead to conflicting and even erroneous results. This 
will appear more plainly from a brief consideration of the attempts that have 
been made hitherto to determine the relation between explosions in coal-mines 
and atmospherical fluctuations. 

In the minutes of evidence on " Accidents in Coal-mines," taken before a 
Select Committee of the House of Lords in 184-9, is a table, constructed by 
J. Hutchinson, Esq., M.D., of thirty of the "chief explosions" since 1800 in 
Northumberland and Durham, with one daily reading of the barometer and 
thermometer at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, for each of three days, of which the 
day of explosion is the last. The mean action of the barometer on the thirty 
days of explosion is found to be a depression of '02 (two-hundredths) of an 
inch ; and that of the thermometer an elevation of one degree. Hence it is 
concluded that the relation between such explosions and the barometer is 
"feeble" compared with their relation to the thermometer (Pari. Report, 
&c., 1849, p. 154). 

T. J. Taylor, Esq., an eminent colliery-viewer in the North of England, 
has selected twenty-five of the " great pit-explosions " in the same district, 
and likewise tabulated a single barometrical reading at Newcastle-upon- 
Tyne, for each of three days, of which the second is the day of explosion 
{Idem, p. 557). 

These tables have been generally accepted as conclusive against the con- 
nexion between a falling barometer and explosions in coal-mines. In a par- 
ticular instance, where a great fall of the barometric column immediately 
preceded a fatal explosion, a Government Inspector of Mines cites these 
tables as the basis of his opinion that the fall of the mercury had no effect in 
producing the explosion referred to (Pari. Report, &c. 1853, Qu. 543, 568). 

The following considerations will show that the nugatory result of these 
tables is really no evidence of the absence of meteorological influences. 

1st. By selecting the explosion for the critical phcBnomenon of the inquiry, 
the numerous cases are excluded where explosions have been foreseen and 
prevented, when the atmosphere of the mine has been observed to have become 
highly inflammable before it was too late to retreat. Two instructive instances 
of this kind are mentioned in a letter of the 24th Sept. 1839, from T. D. 
Brown, Esq., the owner of Jarrow Colliery, published in the Appendix to the 
able Report of the South Shields Commi'ttee. Mr. Brown writes, " On the 
1st Sept. I find the barometer stood at 28-81 inches. The master-wasteman's 
account of the state of the air in Jarrow pit on that day is, that it was so bad 
that the gas came to the shaft. On the day of the great storm (7th January, 
1839) my barometer was down to 27*48 inches, and the wasteman's account 
J8, that he seldom, if ever, knew a pit to be in such a state. The gas came 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 3 

to the shaft in the Bensham ; and having made its appearance in the Bensham 
engine chimney, it was found necessary to extinguish the fire. The waste- 
man says that the glass does not fall two degrees without a change being 
perceptible below." 

Notwithstanding the absence of an explosion in each of these cases, it is 
manifest that the readings 28-81 and 27'4'8 ought to have appeared in the 
tables. 

Sndly. By estimating the importance of the explosion by the number of 
persons killed, the great explosions are omitted which have occurred at times 
when few persons were in the mine. 

Srdly. By taking a// the ^rrca^ explosions, some cases are included which have 
arisen from known accidental causes, unconnected with atmospherical changes. 

These tables are, therefore, defective with respect to a large and important 
class of cases, and redundant with respect to others which have no relation to 
meteorological agency. But even if they had been perfect, the results would 
still have been illusory, so long as the attention was confined to the action of 
the barometer and thermometer at the time of explosion ; for the transit of 
a great atmospheric storm generally occupies several days, during which a 
mine may continue in a "foul" and dangerous state, ready to explode at any 
stage of the storm's progress. The mercurial column, therefore, at the time 
of explosion, may have any length comprised within the extreme limits of the 
range of the barometer. The condition of ignition, and therefore the explo- 
sion, may even be deferred until the storm has entirely passed over, and the 
mercury has resumed the height and stability peculiar to settled weather. 

Thus, on the 3rd and 4th of November 1850, "a most violent storm of 
wind" caused great loss of life and property in Great Britain ; blowing down 
walls, chimneys, trees, &c. on land, and destroying many vessels along the 
coasts. At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the passage of the storm is 
recognized by a sudden and considerable depression of the mercury on the 
3rd and 4th of November, but the readings range above 30 inches on the 
9th, 10th, and 11th (see Plate v.). 

On the 11th of November, twenty-six persons perished by an explosiou 
in the Houghton pit, Newbottle, county of Durham. 

The remark that " the workmen had been apprehensive of an explosion for 
more than a week" connects this accident with the storm of the preceding 
week. 

That such cases of delayed danger are not uncommon, appears from the 
following statement of Mr. Mather to the Parliamentary Committee in 1854 
(Second Report, &c., Qu. 1564). " The Killingworth explosion was pre- 
viously indicated for eight days by three separate explosions ; the Washing- 
ton explosion gave notice for five weeks of the coming catastrophe; and 
Wallsend, that killed 102 people, showed its state for three days in red-hot 
Davy-lamps. All of them gave large and decided indications of gas being 
present for days before they happened ; and these are some of the chief acci- 
dents that have occurred. In one instance there was, for a period of six 
weeks, carburetted hydrogen to be found in a most positive manner." 

The opinion that explosions in coal-mines are, in some manner, dependent 
upon certain changes in the ordinary conditions of the atmosphere, seems to 
have been long entertained by the colliers of the various mining districts of 
Great Britain and France ; and is repeatedly expressed in the minutes of evi- 
dence taken by the Select Committee of the House of Lords on " Accidents 
in Coal-mines," in 1849; and by the several Committees of the House of 
Commons, on the same subject, in 1835, 1852, 1853, end 1854. 

It appears to have been satisfactorily established by observation, that the 

B 2 



4 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

inflammable carburetted hydrogen gas oozes out from the coal into the mine 
in greatest abundance (and, therefore, that the danger of explosion is great- 
est) when the barometer has fallen considerably, and a toarm wind blows 
from the south-east, south, or south-west points of the compass ; and that, 
on the contrary, the mine is most free from gas, and explosions are least fre- 
quent, when the barometer is high and the wind cold and northerly, 

A brief exposition here, of the general nature of the great storms which 
pass over the British Islands and the continent of Europe, will help to a right 
understanding of the special cases to be afterwards considered ; and will also 
show that the several meteorological conditions which have been so often 
observed to precede, or accompany, a highly inflammable state of the atmo- 
sphere of a coal-mine, are only so many direct consequences of the "Law of 
Storms " in the Northern Hemisphere. 

From the valuable work of Colonel Reid " On the Law of Storms and of 
the Variable Winds" (Weale, London, 1849), it appears that the great 
storms which sweep over Britain and the Continent of Europe during the 
autumnal and winter months, rise first among the West Indian Islands; and 
after coasting along the sea-board of the United States, cross the Atlantic 
Ocean in a north-easterly direction. 

These storms are simply immense aerial eddies, or whirlwinds, which ex- 
pand gradually as they proceed ; their mean diameter frequently extending 
a thousand miles by the time that they impinge upon Ireland and the western 
coast of Scotland, England, and France. In the course of a few days, such 
a storm passes over France and the British Isles, to Belgium, Holland, Ger- 
many, Denmark, Sweden, and the Baltic Sea (Plate I.). 

The atmospheric pressure diminishes continuously, but at an accelerated 
rate, from the circumference towards the centre of a revolving storm. Hence, 
if a chord be drawn parallel to the track of the centre, to represent the part 
of the storm that passes over any assigned place, the mercury at that place 
■will fall until the middle of the chord arrives there ; and will rise, at first 
rapidly, but afterwards more and more slowly, as the second half of the storm 
is passing over. It follows that the greatest local depression of the mercurj' 
•will occur simultaneously at all places situated on the diameter perpendicular 
to the track of the cyclone. 

In the cyclones of the Northern Hemisphere, the wind turns m a direction 
contrary to the motion of the hands of a watch, so that when a revolving storm 
approaches Britain, the mercury begins to fail, and a t^arraitmc? to blow from 
the soiithward. These are precisely the circumstances under which expert' 
ence has proved that coal-mines are most liable to explosion. 

As the diameter of simultaneous local maximum depression advances, the 
mercury falls faster at any place in front of the storm, and the violence of the 
wind increases there. 

The general track of cyclones passing over Britain tends towards the 
E.N.E. Therefore, if the storm begins at S.E., S., and S.W. respectively, at 
three different places, the wind ivill shift during the transit of the cyclone, 
from S.E. through E. to N. at the first place; from S. through W. to 
N.W. at the second place ; and from S.W. to W. at the third place. 

This shifting of the wind, which indicates a passing cyclone, is reckoned 
by miners among the symptoms of danger. J. Roberts, Esq., Colliery Owner 
in Dean Forest, stated before the Committee of 1849 (Qu. 6272) that the 
gas in those mines generally occurs as the wind shifts. 

The diagram (Plate I.) is adapted from the Chart at page 323 of Colonel 
Reid's work, and represents the storm of November 1838. I have added 
the mean direction (E.N.E.) of progression, and drawn chords through 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 5 

Wick in Scotland, Dublin and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Dover, and Oporto, 
to illustrate the successive phases of the cyclone during its passage over these 
respective places. At Wick, the wind shifts from S.E. through E. to N., 
and blows hardest at E.N.E. At Dover, the wind shifts from S. through W. 
to N.W., and blows hardest at W.S.W. At Oporto, the wind shifts from 
S.W. to W., and blows hardest at W.S.W. 

The centre passes over Dublin and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where the wind 
shifts abruptly from S.S.E. to N.N.W., a short lull probably preceding the 
change of wind. Here the mercury falls lowest. 

Since all the different coal-fields of Britain are sometimes subjected to the 
action of one cyclone at the same time, the occurrence oi nearly simultaneous 
explosions in mines far apart may be anticipated ; and since storms travel 
towards the E.N.E., explosions in the coal-mines of France, Belgium, &c. 
will sometimes happen a day or two after a great storm has passed over the 
British Islands. If the number of such cases is found to be considerable, it 
will be a strong proof of the connexion between revolving storms and explo- 
sions in coal-mines. This proof will be confirmed by our finding that after 
an entire absence of explosions for many weeks, several occur almost simul- 
taneously, just after the arrival at Britain of some extraordinary atmospheric 
paroxysm, which has already devastated the islands and shores of the Gulf of 
Mexico, and the sea-board of the United States, and left several wrecked and 
disabled ships in the rear during its eastward course across the Atlantic. 

Unfortunately our mining records are defective with regard to two large 
classes of phsenomena, which are eligible as evidence in this inquiry. 
They seldom notice explosions which have not been fatal to human life, and 
they contain no account of cases like those at Jarrow in 1839, where mines 
have been filled with gas during stormy weather, and explosions have been 
prevented. 

In order [to ascertain the relation between explosions and the seasons of 
the year, Mr. Taylor has arranged, in monthly periods, a table of 115 of the 
chief explosions during forty years in the north of England (Pari. Report, 
&c., 184.9, p. 572). 

Up to the end of 1854' there are recorded 514> explosions in British coal- 
mines. With these I have constructed, in monthly periods, the curve A 
(Plate II.), which agrees remarkably well with the corresponding curve B, 
formed from the 115 explosions selected by Mr. Taylor. In the curve C, I 
have grouped all the explosions (491) of which the day of occurrence is 
known, in 73 periods of 5 days each. The minimum for the year in A is 23, 
and falls in February ; in B is 3, and falls in January and February ; and ia 
C is 1, and falls in January 20-25. 

The maximum for the year in A is 55, and falls in June ; in B is 15, and 
falls in June and December ; in C is 12, and falls June 9-14, and July 9-14. 

The persistent character of these curves, with respect to the places of their 
maxima and minima, proves indisputably the 5'e/«era/ dependence of explosions 
in coal-mines upon the seasons of the year. 

The lowest temperature of the year occurs between the middle of January 
and the middle of February. The ventilation of mines is consequently most 
active during these months ; and accordingly the curves show that this is the 
season least liable to explosions. 

As the temperature increases, explosions are more frequent, until thehighest 
temperature and the greatest number of explosions take place together in June 
and July. In September the curve descends, that is, the number of explo- 
sions is less as the temperature decreases. The rise of the curve at the end of 
September, and the great number of explosions in October, November, and 



6 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

December, is due chiefly to the frequent and sudden diminutions of atmo- 
spheric pressure which accompany the storms that prevail during these 
months. 

The advent of a cyclone to Britain produces both the meteorological 
conditions which tend to make the atmosphere of a mine explosive. The 
barometer falls and the thermometer rises. The examination of particular 
instances of explosions will show that both causes frequently concur in pro- 
ducing them. But from March to August a rising thermometer is the ex- 
ponent of danger from the predominating meteorological agent, and a, falling 
barometer is the corresponding exponent from August to January; while the 
curves indicate that the increased activity of the effective ventilation renders 
January and February a period of comparative safety, so far as atmospherical 
influences are concerned. 

The list of dates of colliery explosions begins in 1743, and often presents 
a hiatus of four or five years in its earlier portion, when collieries were few, 
and the more fatal cases only were recorded. Of the 514- cases in my list, 
considerably more than one-half have occurred during the last five years. 
The rate of increasing carefulness in observing and publishing such cata- 
strophes, may be estimated by the numbers of known explosions for each 
year since 1849. These were— 22 in 1850 ; 53 in 1851 ; 67 in 1852 ; 75 in 
1853, and 77 in 1854. Old meteorological registers are also much less com- 
plete than those of recent years. 

The most satisfactory method, therefore, of forming a correct opinion of 
the nature and extent of meteorological influences in producing an explosive 
atmosphere in mines, would be to take, as a standard of comparison, the 
barometrical and thermometrical curves for the last five or six years, con- 
structed from several daily readings made at some observatory situated near 
the centre of the colliery districts. 

By way of illustration, I shall examine the meteorological conditions which 
were simultaneous with, or which immediately preceded, the explosions in 
British coal-mines during the end of 1851 and the whole of 1852. I have 
taken the Greenwich Observations for 1851 ; and for 1852 the Manchester 
Observations, which were laid before the Parliamentary Committee of 1854 
by Mr. Dickenson, Government Inspector of Mines. The Manchester obser- 
vations have been carefully compared with the contemporaneous observations 
at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, and those made at Highfield House, 
near Nottingham, by Mr. Lowe. 

In all the curves 1 have drawn the vertical fluctuations of the barometer 
of the actual size, and those of the thermometer to a scale of 10° to an inch. 
The barometrical line of 30 inches coincides with the thermal line of 70° ; 
except during the first three mouths of 1852, when it coincides with the 
thermal line of 60°, in order to save space. 

The upper thermal line indicates the diurnal, and the Imoer the nocturnal 
temperature. 

In the continuous curves for 1851 and 1852, each day is represented by a 
lateral space of -Jgth of an inch, but in the barometrical curves of isolated 
cyclones, by -Joth of an inch. 

In the vertical strip denoting a day of explosion, the space between the 
barometric curve and the line of 30 inches is shaded, as also the space 
included between the two thermal lines ; the shade being deeper where more 
explosions than o.:e occur on the same day. This aiTangement enables the 
eye to perceive readily the height of the barometer, and the height and range 
of the thermometer on the day of explosion ; and to compare them with those 
of the preceding days. 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 7 

The mere inspection of these curves will show that explosions very seldom 
take place without the direct and manifest concurrence of one or both of the 
meteorological conditions which tend to produce an explosive atmosphere in 
mines. 

Explosions in October 1851 (see Plate I.). 

Oct. 27, Glasshouse Colliery, Leeds. 
„ 30, Clifton Colliery, Halifax. 
„ 31, Killingworth Colliery, Newcastle. 



Oct. 13, Ince Hall Colliery, Wigan. 
„ 13, Grange Colliery, Wakefield 
„ 20, Dewsbury, Yorkshire. 



All fatal explosions ; at Killingworth eight killed and six burnt. 

The approach of a cyclone raises the temperature 10° on the 12th and 
13th, and a depression of an inch of the barometer takes place by the 15th. 
Tioo explosions on the same day coincide with this marked rise of both the 
nocturnal and diurnal temperature. 

From the 20th to the 27th both thermal lines are high, but the explosions 
of the 30th and 31st seem to have been influenced chiefly by the extreme 
barometric depression on the 27th, 28th, and 29th. 

During the following Jive iceeks there are no explosions, for both the 
favourable atmospheric conditions are wanting. The barometer is always 
above 29*50, and there are no great and rapid falls of the mercury. The 
nocturnal and diurnal temperatures are both excessively low during the whole 
time. The absence of explosions at such a time is quite as significant as 
their presence when the favourable conditions exist. 

Explosions in December 1851. 

Dec. 6, Woodthorpe Colliery, Sheffield (three 
killed). 



Dec. 20, Rawmarsh Colliery, Rotherham 
(fifty-two kiUed). 
„ 22, luce Hall Colliery, Wigan, Lanca- 
shire (thirteen killed). 



On each of these days the diagram shows a very marked rise of both the 
thermal lines, induced by the south wind in front of two cyclones; of which 
the former is scarcely recognized at Greenwich on the 8th and 9th, but in 
the latter, the diminished pressure manifestly conspires with the increased 
temperature to produce the serious catastrophes of the 20th and 22Qd. 

Explosions in January 1852 (see Plate III.). 



Jan. 9, Pemberton Colliery, Wigan. 



Jan. 26, Ringley Colliery, Manchester. 
„ 26, Stoneclough Colliery, Kearsley. 
„ 27, Rothwell Haigh, Leeds. 



"The gales of January caused 126 casualties (at sea); they prevailed 
during the whole month, and the early part of February." (Pari. Return of 
Wrecks for 1852.) 

On the 8th and 9th the most violent snow-storm for many years raged 
over the British Isles. This was a regular cyclone, passing to the Texel on 
the 11th, &c. Wind S.W. on 7th and 8th, N.E. on 8th and 9th. 

On the 24th are recorded a tempest and many wrecks in the English 
Channel and on the east coast, as well as a most destructive tornado at 
Nenagh in Ireland. On the 26th and 27th, storms and wrecks again occur, 
and on the 5th of February the consequent inundations at Holmfirth in 
Yorkshire. The great barometrical depressions show the passage of several 
successive cyclones in January, some of which were probably derived from 
the great hurricane that destroyed fourteen ships at Vera Cruz, in the Gulf 
of Mexico, on the 13th. 



8 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

Explosions in March 1852. 



Mar. 22, Albion Colliery. 
„ 23, Bavlevfield Colliery. 



Mar. 13, Blackleyhurst Colliery. 
„ 15, Coate's'Park, Alfretou. 
„ 18, Ince Hall Colliery, Wigan. 

During the whole of February, with one exception, the barometer ranges 
hif^h. It is also unusually high in the first week of March. The fall of 
ab'out half an inch before the 11th, together with the contemporaneous rise 
of the nocturnal temperature, may have liberated a sufficient quantity of the 
accumulated gas to produce the explosions of the 13th, 15th, and 18th. 
The predominant agent, however, is unmistakeable on the 22nd and 23rd. 
A letter in the 'Times' of the 24th, signed P. P. B. M. (Byam Martin?), 
Dorchester, describes the approach to Britain on those days of a cyclone, 
which veered from S.W. to N.E. Its arrival caused an extreme increase of 
temperature over the whole island. The Manchester curves rise to 45° at 
night, and 62° in the day, on the 22nd ; and at Perth the thermometer was 
61° on the 23rd. At Nottingham, the maxima readings are 61°'5 on the 
21st, 71°-5 on the 22nd, 70° on the 23rd, and 49°-5 on the 24th. The tem- 
perature was therefore 10°, or an inch of vertical space, higher than shown 
by the Manchester curve on the 22nd. The wind on the 22nd and 23rd was 
S.W., and then veered to N.E. This is a striking instance of the effect of 
a cyclone in impeding the ventilation of mines by augmenting the external 
temperature. 

Explosions in April 1852. 

April 16, Ince Hall Colliery, Wigan. 

„ 23, Norleyhall Colliery, \Vigan. 

„ 28, Dukinfield Colliery, Cheshire. 



April 3, Smithfold Colliery. 
„ 11, Yewtree Colliery. 
„ 13, Hulton CoUiery. 



Barometric agency is manifested in the explosions of the 3rd and 28th of 
April. In the other cases, the thermal lines show the predisposing cause. 
A hard gale blew from S.E. and E. on the 22nd and 23rd, and from W.S.W. 
on the 28th, shifting to E.N.E. on the 29th. 



May 6, Hebburn (twenty-two killed). 
„ 10, Aberdare (sixty-five killed). 
„ 11, Hyde and Gerard's Bridge Colliery. 



Explosions in May 1852. 

May 20, Preston (thirty-four killed). 
„ 28, Preston (four burnt). 
„ 28, Birket Park Colliery. 
„ 29, Broad Oak Colliery. 



The West Indian steamship 'Medway' arrived at Southampton on the 8th 
of May, having been overtaken by strong easterly gales (the northern margin 
of a West Indian cyclone) on the 3rd and 4th. The barometric curve shows 
this cyclone to have passed over England between the 6th and 22nd of May. 
The curve shows also the consequent rise of temperature at Manchester. At 
Nottingham this rise was equally remarkable, the maximum readings there 
having been 55° on the 5th, 65°'6 on the 6th, and 74° on the 7th of May. 
On the 9th, 10th, and 11th there was very stormy weather at sea from the 
S.W., shifting to N.W. on the 14th. 

Another cyclone reached Europe at the end of May, which seems to have 
been more felt on the continent than in England. There were violent storms 
of hail, lightning, &c. on the 29th at Amsterdam, Caen, Leipsic, &c., and 
great loss from the ensuing inundations at Cette, &c. in the South of France. 

Explosions in June 1852. 

June 14, Bilston Collier> yfive killed, seven- 1 June 28, Sankey Brook Colliery, 
teen burnt )> | 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 9 

A cyclonic depression of the barometric curve extends through nearly the 
whole of June, the centre passing between the 13th and 16th, when strong 
winds blew, shifting from S. to N.E. on the 16th. The observations at 
Nottingham on the 14th are — 10 a.m., thunder-storm until Y'30 p.m., wind 
W., barometer rising ; thermometer 63°'5 at 2*30 p.m., and 66° at 3'40 p.m. 
In the Manchester curves, both the thermal lines rise considerably from the 
middle to the end of the month, which was distinguished by a very general 
perturbation of the atmosphere ; thus, on the 27th of June there was a heavy 
storm of thunder, lightning and rain at Glasgow, and a waterspout near 
Irvine ; on the 28th a great storm at Belfast, and on the 29th a S.W. gale 
at Queenstown. 

Explosions in July 1852 (Plate IV.). 



July 17, High Green Colliery, Sheffield. 
„ 24, Tillerey Colliery, Monmouthshire. 
„ 27, Haydock Colliery, Warrington. 
„ 30, Silkstone Colliery, Barnsley. 



July 4, Jackfield Colliery, Burslem. 
„ 6, Beeston Manor Colliery, Leeds. 
„ 8, Monkwearmouth Colliery. 
„ 15, Alfreton Colliery. 
„ 16, Foley Colliery, Longton. 

" In July, the maximum temperature was very high and steady, rising at 
times above 90°, and once reaching 92°*5." (Mr. Lowe.) 

It is unnecessary to particularize here the dates of the thunder-storms, 
waterspouts, &c. which occurred during this month of excessive warmth. 
The thermal curves indicate distinctly the coincidence of days of explosion 
and of increased temperature. 

Explosions in August 1852. 



Aug. 23, Sutherland Colliery, Dudley. 
„ 30, Bredbury Mine, Cheshire. 



Aug. 6, Manor Park Colliery, Belper. 
„ 13, Bradshaw House Colliery, Wigan. 
„ 16, Ubberley Colliery, Hanley. 

A great cyclone, accompanied by thunder-storms and very violent gales 
all over the kingdom, is characterized in the barometric curve by a depression 
extending from the 1st to the 20th of August. The southerly gale of the 1 1th 
and 12th is described as the most violent for many years. The gale is from 
the N.N.W. on the 15th. Its subsequent arrival on the continent is marked 
by a destructive hailstorm and waterspout in Wirtemberg on the 19th, a 
great storm at Leipsic on the 28th and 31st, &c. The thermal lines con- 
tinue high during the whole month. 

Explosions in September 1852. 



Sept. 5, Little Lever Colliery, Bolton. 
„ 16, Glodwich Colliery, Oldham. 
„ 17, Brymbo Colliery, Denbigh. 
„ 18, Little Hulton Colliery, Lancashire. 



Sept. 22, Winnington Wood Colliery, New- 
port. 
,, 24, Hunsworth Colliery, Bradford. 
„ 25, Roway Colliery, Tipton. 



Several very severe West Indian hurricanes crossed the Atlantic Ocean 
during the autumn and winter of 1852. Avery destructive cyclone blew at 
Mobile from the 23rd to the 26th of August, and afterwards travelled along 
the east coast of the United States from Virginia to Maine. A month after- 
wards another great cyclone devastated Antigua, Martinique, &c. on the 
22nd and 23rd of September, and a third reached its climax at Jamaica on 
the 6th of October. 

The barometric curve in England presents a succession of extreme fluc- 
tuations derived from the violent atmospheric paroxysms in the Western 
Atlantic. 

At Highfield House, Nottingham, on the 5th of September, there was a 
brief but heavy storm in the evening, and on the 6th a great thunder-storm. 
Nearly 2^ inches of rain fell in twenty-four hours. From the 14th to the 



10 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

22nd the depression characteristic of a great cyclone appears jn the barometric 
curve. 

At Leipsic, the first impression of the approaching cyclone appears on the 
17th, on which day more rain fell there than on any day during the pre- 
ceding sixty years. On the 19th the barometer fell to 327 Paris lines, and 
on the 20th there was a tornado. Notwithstanding the excessive decrease 
of temperature which the thermal lines indicate during the passage over 
Britain of the central portion of this cyclone, there are three explosions 
on three consecutive days, in the very midst of the cyclonic barometric 
depression. 

On the 21st the barometer rises about an inch, but both the thermal lines 
rise also, and explosions follow on the 22nd and 24th. These accidents 
were therefore induced both by diminished pressure and increased tempera- 
ture ; but so far as meteorological agency is concerned, the explosions of the 
16th, 17th and 18th were due to diminished atmospheric pressure alone. 
JExplosions in October 1852. 



Oct. 4, Horsehay Colliery, Dawley. 
„ 4, Willfield Colliery, Longton. 
„ 6, Cwmliargoed, Dowlais, S. Wales. 
„ 8, Cwmbach, Aberdare, S. Wales. 



Oct. 12, Worsley Colliery, Lancashire, 
,, 22, Tyrnicholas Colliery, Monmouth- 
shire. 
„ 27, Monkwearmouth Colliery, Durham. 
,, 29, Dudley-port Colliery. 



From the 28th of September to the 10th of October, another cyclonic de- 
pression occurs, the mercury sinking to 28"73 on the 4th of October. Two 
explosions happen 07i this day, and three others follow on the 6th, 8th, and 12th 
respectively. The weather was excessively stormy until the 10th, both here 
and on tiie continent. At Portsmouth, on the 4th and 5th, "a truly awful^ 
gale" blew from the S.S.W., and there was a destructive inundation and a 
hurricane of wind at Lewes. On the 6th and 7th, after the centre of the 
cyclone had passed, an unusually severe storm of wind blew from N.E. in 
Scotland. On the 29th of September, 1 a.m., the ship ' Mobile,' 1000 tons, 
from Liverpool, in a hurricane from N., went to pieces in the Irish Channel; 
sixty lives were lost. Many other wrecks occurred. 

A great barometric depression begins on the 20th of October, and extends 
to the 8th of November. On the 22nd of October both thermal lines rise 
considerably, and the barometer has fallen half an inch. The temperature 
is low on the 27th and 29th, but the great barometric depression is quite 
sufficient to account for the explosions on these days. 

The barometer was 28*75 on the 26th. Many vessels, and upwards of 
100 lives, were lost on the 26th and 27th, during the storm at Shields, 
Sunderland, &c. At Cologne the barometer is lowest (327 lines) on the 
27th. The cyclone began here with a gale from S.E., and shifted to N.E. 

In the Parliamentary Return of Wrecks for 1852 it is stated, that "on 
the 26th of October an easterly gale began that in six days strewed the coasts 
with 102 wrecks." 

Explosions in November 1852. 



Nov. 6, Winstanley Colliery, Wigan. 
„ 11, Bryndu Colliery, Pyle. 
„ 17, Stoneclough Colliery, Kearsley, Lan- 
cashire. 



Nov. 20, N. Brierly Colliery, Bradford. 
22, Plat Lane Colliery, Wigan. 
26, Coate's Park Colliery, Alfreton. 
28, Hadden Mill Colliery, Dudley, Staf- 
fordshire. 



On the 6th the thermal lines are high ; but the temperature is low during 
the rest of the month. The remaining explosions of this month coincide in 
a most striking manner with the great barometric depressions. Hurricanes 
of wind, wrecks and great inundations all over the kingdom, marked the 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 11 

presence of the cyclone which the curve indicates to have arrived on the 
12th of November. 

Explosions in December 1852. 



Dec. 2 and 14, Abersychan. 
„ 16, Blackleyhurst Colliery, St. Helen's. 
„ 22, Elsecar Colliery, Barnsley. 



Dec. 27, Comrie, Culross, Perthshire. 
„ 27, Titwood Colliery, Pollockshaws, 

Glasgow. 
,, 29^ Pendlebury Colliery, Lancashire. 
„ 31, Seghill Colliery, Northumberland. 

Mr. Lowe states that "the gales of December were all accompanied by 
hot weather for the time of year," which is also shown by the Manchester 
thermal lines. The explosion on the 2nd of December was probably a conse- 
quence of the cyclone just past. From the IVth to the 18th of December, the 
barometer at Manchester rose an inch and a quarter, i. e. from 28*85 to 
30"10. In Peebleshire, the simultaneous rise was from 27*90 to 29*60. This 
sudden rise of the barometer marks the exit of a cyclone all over the world. 

Another cyclone, which had more of the violence of a tropical hurricane 
than is usual in Britain, began to reach England on the 18tli of December, and 
did not entirely pass over until the 1st of January 1853. The hurricane 
began at S.W., shifting to W.S.W., and blew hardest on the 26th and 27th. 
The ' Times ' of the 29th has several columns of details of losses of ships and 
lives. The following is from the Parliamentary Return of Wrecks for 1852: 
" On the 24'th of December a heavy storm from the S.W. burst over the 
country, and continued to the end of the year with such violence, that by the 
29th there was scarcely a vessel in the neighbourhood of the British Islands 
left at sea. Some had found safety by running into port ; while of others, 
the returns show a list of 183 casualties ; of these 102 were totally wrecked, 
making an average of thirty wrecks a day during this awful and destructive 
gale." 

Two explosions on the very day of the greatest barometrical depression are 
indisputable witnesses of the effect of greatly diminished atmospheric pressure. 

Explosions in January 1853. 

Jan. 2, Titwood, Pollockshaws, Glasgow. 
„ 3, Leasingthorne Colliery, North of Eng- 
land. 



Jan. 9, Trubshaw Colliery, Newcastle-under- 
Lyne. 
„ 10, Smallbridge Colliery, Rochdale. 



„ 5, 6, Seghill Colliery, North of England. 

The weather was still unsettled in the early part of January, and these 
explosions were doubtless partly induced by the great atmospheric paroxysm 
that had just occurred. 

From the 10th of January to the 12th of February there were no explosions, 
which corresponds with the indications of the general curve respecting the 
season of lowest annual temperature. 

Before quitting this examination, let the winter curves for 1851 and 1852 
be placed in juxtaposition, and the different conditions of atmospheric pressure 
and temperature carefully noted, and it will be at once apparent why there 
were so many as seven fatal explosions in November 1852, and none in 
November 1851 ; and so many as eight fatal explosions in December 1852, 
and only three in December 1851. 



- In order to corroborate the evidence already adduced in proof of the 
connexion between revolving storms and explosions in coal-mines, I have 
selected the following from a considerable number of cases in which explo- 
sions have occurred either during or immediately after the passage of a 
cyclone. 



12 REPORT ON THE RELATION BETWEEN 

In a few instances I have given the contemporaneous barometric curves 
at two or three stations far apart, as London, Versailles, and Goersdorf on the 
Lower Rhine ; London and Rouen, &e. 

lYS^ The diagram (Plate H.) shows the barometric curve at London, 

from observations published in the ' Gentleman's Magazine ' of the time, in 
December. On the 6th the mercury fell to 28*25 inciies. A general storm 
of unusual violence accompanied this great depression. 

Onlj'^ two explosions are recorded in this year, of which one (at Wallsend, 
Northumberland) occurs before the rear of the cyclone has passed over, on 
the 12th of December. 

1818, April 9. — By a great explosion at Warnes, near Mons, between thirty 
and forty persons lost their lives on this day. 

The curve (Plate V.) shows that a regular cyclone passed over Britain from 
the 5th to the 12th. Howard, in his ' Climate of London,' records a gale 
from the S. on the 8th, and states the 9th, 10th, and 11th to have been 
windy. No explosions are recorded in Britain during 1818. 

1821. October. — From the 30th of September to the 9th of October, 1821, a 
regular West Indian hurricane, beginning at N.N.E.and ending at S.S.W. (and 
therefore progressing towards Florida, Newfoundland and Great Britain), 
blew between Jamaica and Cuba (Howard, vol. iii. p. 63). 

The great barometric depression at London (Plate V.), from observations 
by Howard, between the 16th and 26th, indicates the passage of this cyclone 
over England. The barometer was equally low at Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 

There ave Jive explosions recorded in 1821, tivo on the same day, July 9, 
at Rainton Colliery and Coxlodge Colliery, in the North of England, coin- 
cident with a rise of temperature, and the remaining three just as the central 
area of this cyclone was passing over Britain. These also occur in the North 
of England ; thus — on October 19, at Nesham's Pit, Newbottle (six killed) ; 
Oct. 23, Russel's Pit, Wallsend (fifty-two killed) ; Oct. 23, Felling Colliery 
(six killed). 

1823, November. — A great storm passed over Britain at the end of October. 
On the 30th and 31st alone, 140 vessels were lost on- the N.E. coast. At 
Penzance, the wind suddenly shifted from E.S.E. to N.E. and N.N.E., and 
instantly blew a hurricane. This shows the progressive motion of a revolving 
storm to the eastward. In Plate II. are given the barometric curves for 
London and Boston during the transit of this cyclone. 

On November 3, before the storm had ceased, an explosion at Plain Pit, 
Rainton, Durham, destroyed fifty-nine men. This, and an explosion at 
Ouston Colliery on the 21st of February, are all that are recorded during 1823. 

1828, Nov. 20. — At W^ashington Colliery fourteen persons killed by an ex- 
plosion. Howard's curve (Plate II.) shows that a great barometric depres- 
sion immediately preceded this catastrophe. 

1844, January. — A very heavy storm of thunder, lightning, hail and rain, 
passed over the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire on the 1st of January. 
The barometric curve at Makerstoun shows that the storm was general and 
lasted for several days. The contemporaneous explosions are on December 31, 
1843, Hulton Pit; on January 8, 1844, Dynas Pit, Glamorganshire (ten 
killed); Jan. 11, Whitehaven, Cumberland (sixteen killed); Jan. 18, Kil- 
lingworth Colliery, Northumberland (five killed). 

1844. October. — The great Cuba hurricane, investigated by Redfield, oc- 
curred on the 3rd and 4th of October at Cuba and Jamaica, and passing over 
Florida, the Bahamas, &c. in a N.E. track, reached Newfoundland on the 
8th (see Col. Reid's work). At Havannah, seventy-two ships were wrecked 
or sunk, houses were unroofed, crops destroyed, &c., the estimated loss there 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES AND REVOLVING STORMS. 13 

being £1,000,000. At Matanzas, in Cuba, the barometer, which usually 
stands at 30 inches, fell to 28 inches on the 5th, and rose to 29-8 by 9 a.m. 
of the 6th. Many vessels were destroyed at Jamaica, &c. The barometric 
curve at Highfield House, Nottingham', shows that this great cyclone caused 
a succession of depressions between the 2nd and 24th in Britain. The central 
area passed on the 14th, 15th and 16th. The barometer is 28-56 on the 
15th. The wind is S.W. until the 13th; then W. till the 16th, and after- 
wards N.W. till the 19th. The arrival of the cyclone on the continent is 
accompanied by a destructive waterspout at Cette on the 22nd, which de- 
stroyed thirty persons and many buildings ; and by a great storm at Toulouse 
on the 24th, followed by inundations at Marseilles, Avignon, &c. 

Two explosions occur in the very midst of this storm, viz. on Oct. 15, at 
Coxlodge Colliery, North of England (one killed) ; Oct, 19, Ilowley Regis, 
Staffordshire (eleven killed). 

1845, August. — In Plate V.I have given the barometric curves for August at 
Greenwich and Rouen, which shows that the atmospheric disturbance passed 
from England to France. The remarks at Greenwich are — Aug. 2, thunder- 
storm, rain, lightning; gusty. Aug. 9, wind and rain; gusty. Aug. 19, 
rain and wind. The atmospherical disturbance on the 19th was very general. 
In Holland, on the 19th, at Zevenberghem,a hurricane destroyed eleven build- 
ings, killed three persons, and injured several others. The same tempest 
caused great damage in North Brabant, &c. ' At Rouen, on the 19th, a 
whirlwind destroyed the three principal factories, killing seventy-five persons 
and wounding 150 others ; the wind was violent from the S.W. On the 20th 
of August there were snow-storms in England and Scotland, in which several 
boats with their crews perished. The explosions in coal-mines during this 
month were, — on Aug. 2, at Aberdare (twenty-nine killed) ; Aug. 9, Ashby-de- 
la-Zouch, Leicester (three killed and fifteen burnt) ; Aug. 18th, Dudley, Staf- 
fordshire (four killed and sixteen burnt) ; Aug. 21, Jarrow, Durham (thirty- 
nine killed). 

At Newcastle-upon-Tyne the wind was N.W. on the 21st, and the daily 
barometrical readings are 29'47, 29"81, 30-05 ; which agree with the Green- 
wich and Rouen curves, and indicate the passage of the rear of the cyclone. 

1846, September and October (Plate V.). — From the 4th to the 9th of Sep- 
tember, a storm passed over Britain. On the 7th a woman was killed by 
lightning during the storm at Leeds. On the 9th, a violent storm at Bour- 
deaux marks the rear of the cyclone. On the 6th, an explosion in a coal-mine 
at Charleroi, in Belgium, destroyed eight persons. The director had just 
inspected the mine, and was unable to account for the accident. 

Colonel Reid has given the daily track of a West Indian hurricane, which 
was at Trinidad on the 11th of September, and reached Newfoundland on the 
20th. By the 21st its centre had traversed one-fourth of the distance towards 
Britain ; where its arrival is indicated by the unusual barometric depressions 
at the end of September and in the beginning of October. In Sicily, by the 
storm on Sept. 30, seven villages near Messina were inundated and destroyed. 
Fifteen persons were killed at Portici. The village of St. Firmin, near Briare, 
was engulphed, and 600 perished. At Melazzo and Marsala 100 persons 
perished by the tempest and consequent floods. Trees, houses, &c. were 
carried away. On the 4th of October, a gale, the worst since 1824, caused 
damage at Weymouth to the extent of £1000. 

No explosions in coal-mines are recorded for four months before the arrival 
at Britain of this great cyclone. During its transit^tje fatal explosions occur 
within eleven days. These are, — on September 26, at West Bromwich (ten 
killed); Sept. 28, Bogle Hole Colliery, Clyde Iron Works, Glasgow (six killed); 



14 REPORT ON EXPLOSIONS IN COAL-MINES, ETC. 

Oct. 1 or 2, Littleton Hall Colliery, West Bromwich, Staffordshire (three 
killed; Oct. 3 (Sunday), Rainton, Durham (one man and seventeen horses 
killed) ; Oct. 6, Haigh Moor Colliery, Wakefield (three killed). Six weeks 
now succeed without explosions, so that there are no explosions for nearly 
six months, except the Jive explosions that occur within eleven days during 
the passage over Britain of a great revolving storm. 

1846, November. — On the 19th and 20th (Plate II.) a violent storm caused 
many wrecks on the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland. The barometer 
begins to fall early on the 16th, and continues low till the end of the month. 
There were no explosions during the preceding six weeks. Two occur during 
this storm, viz. on Nov. 17, at Round's Green Pit, Oldbury (nineteen killed) ; 
Nov. 24'th, Brough Pit, Coppul, near Chorley (eight killed). 

1847, March. — The barometric curves for Greenwich and Rouen (Plate 
II.), show the passage of a storm from Greenwich towards Rouen, between 
the 1 7th and 27th of March. From the 25th to the 27th, a hurricane from W. 
to N. blew on the coast of Ireland (the rear of the cyclone). There are two 
explosions on the continent, viz. on March 22, at Mons, Belgium (twenty- 
six killed and many injured) ; March 23, Lagraine, Alsace (twenty-four killed 
and twelve burnt). 

1847. — In December a well-defined cyclone passed over the British Islands. 
On the 1st the barometer at Greenwich stands at 30-23 and falls to 28*38, 
i. e. nearly two inches by the 6th (Plate V.). The wind during that time was 
S.W.; it afterwards shifted to W.S.W., and finally to W.N.W., when the 
barometer began to rise. At Rouen the barometer falls later, but rises sooner 
than at Greenwich, showing that Rouen was nearer the margin of the cyclone. 
The barometer is lowest (725*21 ) at Brussels on the 7th. The only fatal explo- 
sion during four months is on Dec. 6, at Haigh Pit, Lancashire ; also on Dec. 7, 
at Rochdale Colliery, three men are suffocated by an escape of " foul air." 

1850. — A cyclone appears by the curves (Plate V.) to have passed over 
Greenwich, Goersdorf on the Lower Rhine, and Versailles, between the 22nd 
and 28th of March. The news of a great colliery explosion at Mons, by 
which seventy-five persons were killed, reached Brussels on the 25th. It is 
therefore probable that it had taken place on the 23rd or 24th, just as the 
greatest barometric depression occurred. 

1 850. — On the 3rd and 4th of November, a most violent storm of wind caused 
vast loss of life and property in Britain. The packet-boat from Boulogne 
had to be run ashore at Margate. At Nottingham, Liverpool, &c., chimneys, 
walls, trees, &c., were blown down. At Liverpool, the ships 'Providence' and 
' Arcturus ' were wrecked, and twenty-five persons perished. Several other 
■wrecks took place along the coasts. 

On the 11th of November, at Houghton pit, Newbottle, twenty-six lives 
were lost by an explosion. It is stated that the workmen had been appre- 
hensive for more than a week. 

Two great storms succeed, one at the end of November, and the other in 
the middle of December (Plate V.), both distinguished by heavy gales, 
thunder-storms, wrecks, &c. I have given the barometrical curve at Green- 
wich for November and December, accompanied by the curves for November 
at Goersdorf and Versailles. 

The contemporaneous explosions are on Nov. 19, Emroyd Pit, Wakefield ; 
Nov. 25, Dawley, Shropshire ; Nov. 28, Victoria Pit, Wakefield ; Dec. 4, 
Oldham, Lancashire ; Dec. 5, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire ; Dec. 7, Hay- 
lock Colliery, St. Helen's ; Dec. 13, Rowley Regis Colliery, Staffordshire ; 
Dec. 14, Middle Duff'ryn, Aberdare; Dec. 17, Springfield Colliery, Hindley ; 
Dec. 21, Wrexham, Denbigh. 



ON THE INFLUENCE OF SOLAR RADIATION ON PLANTS. 15 

On the Influence of the Solar Radiations on the Vital Powers of 
Plants growing under different atmospheric conditions. — Part III. 
By J. H. Gladstone, Ph.D., F.R.S. 

During the course of the experiments recorded in my last Report, a number 
of questions suggested themselves, and were incorporated in my remarks. 
To the solution of some of these I have since addressed myself. 

In previously examining the germination and early growth of wheat and 
peas under the various coloured glasses and in obscurity, more or less com- 
plete, it was thought necessary not to cover the seeds with mould, since that 
would have greatly interfered with the quantity of the light that surrounded 
them. For certain reasons also the air was allowed to remain unchanged during 
the whole vegetation of the plants. A number of well-defined results were 
obtained ; but they were liable to the objection that the wheat and peas were 
not grown under normal conditions. I have felt it to be the more necessary 
to remove this objection, seeing that one of the most important results arrived 
at was in direct antagonism to what other observers had remarked ; the result 
■was, that " the cutting off of the chemical ray facilitates in a marked manner 
the process of germination, and that both in reference to the protrusion of 
the radicle, and the evolution of the plume." During the spring of the 
present year, therefore, another series of experiments was instituted upon the 
growth of the same plants — wheat and peas — under the same coloured and 
obscured bell-glasses, with this important difference, that a little garden- 
mould was placed on the bricks, together with the seeds, but not in sufficient 
quantity to cover them from the light. The bricks were sunk in the earth 
of a small garden attached to my residence in London ; the seeds were kept 
well-watered, and a slight change of air was permitted. The experiment was 
commenced on April 3. It was thought unnecessary in this instance to keep 
any record of the weather ; suffice it to say, that the season was generally 
backward, and that cold east winds prevailed during the latter part of April, 
which interfered with the growth of the plants materially. Owing most pro- 
bably to this circumstance, the experiments now detailed were not so suc- 
cessful as those of the previous year ; the main results, therefore, will only 
be recorded. 

In respect to the wheat, it began, as before, to germinate most speedily in 
obscurity, but of the coloured glasses the blue appeared to be the most 
favourable to its growth ; the red light seemed also advantageous. On 
May 18th, when the experiment was put an end to, the best developed plants 
were found under the obscured colourless glass. 

As to the peas, they also grew best and most rapidly in obscurity. Some 
circumstance militated against their proper development under the colourless 
and coloured glasses, with the single exception that the roots had been put 
forth well under the blue glass. On May 18th, it was found that in the dark 
all the peas experimented with had put forth long roots, and most of them 
had grown tall plants ; while under the partially obscured colourless and 
partially obscured yellow glasses, all the peas had grown, giving plants, 
which for the most part were taller, more succulent and less healthy in 
colour than those which, having been planted at the same time, had grown 
in the garden without any covering. The peculiarly beneficial effect of the 
calorific ray on the growth of peas was not observed in this instance. 

Notwithstanding the imperfect success of this series of experiments, they 
give support to the view generally entertained of the efficiency of the che- 
mical ray in facilitat"ing germination, which, however, my previous experi- 
ments (in accordance with those made by Dr. Daubeny) directly contradict, 



16 



REPORT — 1855. 



The cause of this contrariety might naturally be sought for in the fact that 
there was soil about the seeds in this year's experiment. In hopes of deter- 
mining this point, and as the season was not too far advanced, the following 
experiments were instituted. 

Two sets of the large, colourless, blue and yellow bell-glasses were taken. 
The one set was placed over bricks in plates filled with water, and on the 
bricks were simply laid, in each instance, twelve grains of wheat and eight 
peas, previously weighed. They were placed in a sunny situation in the 
garden, and the air was occasionally changed. This set, therefore, was ana- 
logous to those described in the last Report. The other set was placed in a 
sunny part of the garden over spots where the same number of grains of 
wheat and of peas, also previously weighed, had been sown in the mould. 
They were watered, and the air was changed from time to time. 

On May 26th, that is a few days after the commencement of the experi- 
ment, the wheat and peas had begun to burst under all the six glasses. 
Summer weather succeeded, warm sunshine and warm showers. 

The wheat on the bricks appeared to germinate first under the blue glass, 
and it grew more quickly there, yet not so many had shown signs of life as 
under the other glasses, and in about a month's time it was found that the 
plants were growing about equally well under all the three shades, though 
somewhat impeded by the luxuriant growth of the peas. On July 19th the 
plants that had thriven were counted, measured, removed from the bricks, 
allowed to dry in the air for twenty-four hours, and then weighed. 





No. of 
plants. 


Weight. 


Average 

weight. 


Average 

increase on 

original 

weight. 


Average 
length of 
plants. 




3 
2 

4 


1-5 
5-5 

8-5 


T-8 
2-7 
21 


2 

1-4 


inches. 

10 
14 
13 


Blue 


Yellow 





The wheat that was sown in mould was found on May 30th to have grown 
to the height of two inches under the colourless and the yellow shades, but 
the plants were not so tall under the blue. Some of the wheat under the 
yellow was remarkably fine. On July 19th, the following were the observed 
results, the weight being taken as before : — 





Number of 
plants. 


Weight. 


Average 
weight. 


Average 

increase in 

weight. 


Average 
length of 
plants. 




3 
2 

4 


io-5 

6 
31-5 


grs. 

68 

3 

7-9 


gra. 

61 
2-3 
7-2 


inches. 

20 
14 
23 


Blue 


Yellow 









It is worthy of remark, that whether with or without mould, the smallest 
number of wheat-seeds have germinated under the influence of the chemical 
ray ; yet they appear to have grown well under these circumstances up to a 
certain point, but the plant seems to have required the luminous or the 
calorific rays in order to profit much by the soil. 

The peas that were placed on the damp bricks were found on May 30th to 
have put forth radicles of half an inch or upwards in length under all the glasses, 



ON THE INFLUENCE OP SOLAR RADIATION ON PLANTS. 1^ 

those under the blue being somewhat the longest. Presently the effect of 
the yellow light in causing the production of very long roots began to show 
itself. All the seeds germinated. On July 19th, the peas were treated as 
the wheat had been. 





Number of 
plants. 


Weight. 


Average 
weight. 


Average 

increase of 

weight. 


Average 

length of 

plant. 


Colourless 


8 
8 
8 


grs. 
47 

21-5 
32 


grs. 

5-9 
2-7 
4 


grs. 
1-4 

-1-8 

-0-5 


inches. 

6 
9 
7-5 


Blue 


Yellow 





The peas that were sown in mould began to grow equally at first, but in 
about three weeks' time those under the colourless glass were the shortest. 
They grew luxuriantly and filled the bell-glasses, but at the beginning of 
July the pea-plants which grew under the blue shade, and which had never 
thriven, shrivelled and died away. The leaves never opened properly. The 
following were the numerical observations made July 19th: — 





Number of 
plants. 


Weight. 


Average 
weight. 


Average 

increase of 

weight. 


Average 

length of 

plant. 


Colourless 

Blue 


8 
4 


grs. 
98 

28 


grs. 
12-2 

r 


grs. 

7-7 
25 


inches. 

33 
24 


Yellow 





On comparing these last results, it is evident that whether with or without 
mould, the peas that grew under the blue glass display an inferiorit\\ The 
peas growing in mould certainly produced the most healthy plants when they 
were exposed to all the influences of the solar ray, and the deprivation of the 
luminous principle proved fatal to them in their more mature growth, although 
the removal of the chemical ray had little effect. 

These experiments indicate no relative difference in the actions of the 
three different coloured lights upon the germination of seeds, dependent on 
the absence or presence of soil ; and they afford further confirmation of mv 
former view, that the chemical rays rather militate against than favour the 
healthy germination of at least these particular instances of Monocotyledonous 
and Dicotyledonous plants. I remain unacquainted with the reason why the 
experiments of some other observers, arid indeed one or two of my own, ex- 
hibit a tendency of seeds to germinate more readily under a blue glass. It 
may be from the more complete darkness thus produced ; but the problem is 
evidently a difficult and intricate one, and I abstain from further conjecture. 

Among the queries at the close of the last Report was the following :•— 
"Does carbonic acid act specifically in the prevention of germination, or 
merely by the exclusion of oxygen ? " It was thought that this might be 
determined by substituting that gas for the nitrogen in the air, and observing 
whether seeds germinated equally well in such an atmosphere. Experiments 
previously recorded rendered it unnecessary for me to satisfy myself again 
that peas and wheat would commence growing in a colourless jar of twenty- 
five cubic inches capacity. Such ajar was therefore filled with a mixture of 
four parts of carbonic acid and one part of oxygen, placed over mercury, on 

1855. C 



18 REPORT — 1855. 

the surface of which was a little water; it was placed in the garden with a 
sunny aspect. Mould was introduced, and some seeds of wheat and peas. 
After fourteen days it was found that the peas had merely split, and were 
black and decomposed, while the wheat showed no signs of germination, and 
were quite soft and decayed. An analogous experiment was made with pure 
oxygen gas. Both the peas and wheat germinated and grew a little, until no 
doubt the atmosphere of the jar was in a great measure converted into car- 
bonic acid, when they also decayed. It appears then that carbonic acid in 
considerable excess has a positively injurious effect on germination. 

In concluding the record of this investigation of the influence of solar ra- 
diations on the growth of plants under different atmospheric conditions, I 
feel very sensible of the imperfect nature of the results, and am convinced 
that such are the difficulties of the inquiry, that the conclusions actually 
arrived at must not be generalized without the greatest caution. Yet at the 
same time I beg to express the hope that other observers may take up some 
of the questions, to which I have incidentally alluded, but which still remain 
unanswered. 



On the British Edriophthalma. By C. Spence Bate, F.L.S. ^c. 

Part I. — The Amphipoda. 

Introduction. — The term Edriophthalma has been given by Dr. Leach and 
recognized by all subsequent naturalists, as applied to a legion of Crustacea 
that differs in several of its external characters, independently of the eyes, 
from that on which he has conferred the antagonistic term oi Podophthalma. 

These two applications are not capable of comprehending within their 
separate significations every genus which it is desirable should be so 
embraced. There is a whole family that belongs to the Macroural type, 
the eyes of which are sessile, being lodged beneath the integument of the 
antennal segments. This infringement, which occurs in the Diastylidm *, 
shows us that it is not necessarily a law among Crustacea that the eyes shall 
be borne on footstalks whenever there is a tendency to an accumulation of 
the nervous ganglia into a central mass, even though that centralization be 
more or less imperfect. 

Again, the infringement is repeated upon opposite evidence, for we per- 
ceive that the eyes may be borne on footstalks where the nervous system is 
divided into many separate ganglia. The genus Tanais among Jsopoda has 
the eyes raised upon distinct pedicles, which we believe are moveable, and 
differ from the eyes of the Podophthabna only in being less club-shaped. 

But ever since the time of the great Swedish naturalist, Linnaeus, the rela- 
tive position of the eyes has been held as a means of natural classification, 
distinctly separating one great family of Crustaceans from that of another ; 
and although there are exceptions which demonstrate that the arrangement 
is not free from error, yet so very generally is the aiiplication correct and so 
easily capable of discernment, that it probably will remain a permanent 
mode, even should a more perfect but less readily detective system of natural 
arrangement be discovered. 

The term Edriophthalma was first understood to contain all the Crustacea 
which were not embraced within that of Podophthabna, and, with the excep- 
tion of the Cirripedia, they are still so retained in Mr. Dana's classification of 
* Cuma, &c. of M. Milne-Edwards. 






ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHXHALMA. 1^ 

Crustacea. It therefore would embrace a large number of Crustacea, which 
vary considerably in their habits and forms, some of them belonging to well- 
organized beings, whereas others degenerate in character and descend to 
those which assume an insect-like appearance. 

The first step therefore separated the Entomostracans ; and now when we 
speak of the Edriophthalma, it is understood to be a legion intermediate 
between Podophthalma and the JEntomostraca of recent Crustacea. But 
this term still conveys too wide a signification. Latreille therefore divided 
it into two, one of which he named Amphipoda, the other Isopoda. A third 
subdivision was established by the same author, that of Ltsmipoda (or 
LcBmodipoda*). This embraces an aberrant group of Amphipoda, which 
previously were ranked among the Isopoda, and must be looked upon as 
differing from the normal type in the rudimentary character of certain 
parts, rather than as possessing separate qualifications of their own, warrant- 
ing their being formed into an order of equal importance to the other two, 
although it has been retained in this position by the profound authority of 
Professor Milne-Edwards. 

Lamarck embraced these, together with the Amphipoda and Isopoda, as in 
one family. 

Dumeril, in his ' Zoologie Analytique,' united the Amphipoda with the 
Stomapoda, notwithstanding the pedunculated character of the eyes of the 
latter, because in each of these genera the head, he thought, was " separated 
from the corselet." To these united tribes he gave the name of " Arthroce- 
phaUs " or " Capites." 

Desmarest, in his ' Considerations gen6rales des Crustaces,' has adopted 
the order of Lcemodipoda which Leach united with the Isopoda, because he 
thought the vesicular sacs to be " spurious " legs. 

M. Blainville, in classifying Crustacea, arranged these three under the 
term Tetradecapoda, as antagonistic to that of Decapoda, whicl;i is synony- 
mous with Podophthalma. The adaptation of the name by Blainville to the 
sessile-eyed Crustacea, arose from the circumstance of their possession of 
fourteen legs, but this characteristic circumstance is not a constant fact. 

It is true, that in Caprella the legs are obsolete, and in Anceus are altered 
in form, though present; yet if these facts be not admitted of importance in 
consequence of their homological signification, then we must include them 
with the higher orders, for the only separation which naturally exists is the 
modification of the forms of certain parts homologically the same. Thus it 
will be found that ten-legged Crustacea exist among the sessile-eyed form, 
which in all other respects are nearer allied to true Isopodes. Anceus and 
Paniza, though only possessing ten perambulatory legs, approximate nearer in 
their structural signification to the fourteen-legged Crustacea than to that 
class, which the number of these legs would seem to suggest. 

The term Choristopoda, from ywpiarus separate, irovs foot, has been lately 
applied by Mr. Dana, and is made synonymous by its author with the Tetra- 
decapoda of Blainville, and includes the Amphipoda, Lcemodipoda, Isopoda 
of authors, and the Anisopoda of Dana. 

Perceiving no advantage in the new term over its older synonym, and 
fearing the result of multiplying names, it is the intention in this Report to 
adhere to the one most commonly used, and on that account most generally 
understood. We consider the second division of Crustacea as ^'rfno- 
phthalma, using it as synonymous with Tetradecapoda of Blainville and 
Choristopoda of Dana. 

* At first Latreille placed the animals belonging to this order among the Isopoda, section 
Cystibranches. — (Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle.) 

C 2 



20 REPORT — 1855. 

Thus it will be perceived, that, instead of considering Trilobita, Entomo- 
straca, and Rotatoria as orders belonging to the second division of Crustacea, 
as Dana has done, we take them to form natural divisions in themselves, 
with wider structural demarcations than exist between the Macroura of the 
first division and the Amphipoda of the second. This nearer approximates 
the system of arrangement adopted by Milne-Edwards in his ' Histoire des 
Crustaces.' But in his classification, Latreille's order of LcBmodipoda is 
admitted to a rank of equal importance to that of the Amphipoda or 
Isopoda. 

This, from a correct appreciation of the homological relation of the several 
parts, Mr. Dana (whom as a carcinologist no one appears to have surpassed 
in close observation) entirely ignores, and embraces the Lcsmodipoda within 
the order of true Amphipoda, making no allowance in his arrangement for 
their naturally aberrant departure in outward form from that group. " They 
are," says that author, " properly therefore Amphipoda with certain parts 
obsolescent. . . . The more essential characters are closely related to the 
Amphipoda rather than to the Isopoda, and are not properly intermediate, 
nor a new type alike distinct from both." — Vol. i. p. 11. 

This author, while from anatomical reasoning. he removes the Lcemodi- 
poda from the position in which they have been placed as a separate and 
intermediate order between the Ainphipoda and the Isopoda, yet sees in 
another group, which by every previous naturalist has been ranked with 
Isopoda, a "true intermediate species between the Amphipoda and Isopoda; 
and if any third or intermediate group be admitted, these should (he thinks) 
be considei'ed as constituting it. These species belong to the genera Tanais, 
Arcturus, Leachia, and others allied." — Vol. i. p. 11. These form the tribe 
or group of Anisopoda, the second or intermediate of that author. 

By the force of similar arguments as those which are employed for the 
removal of the Lcemodipoda from taking a position distinct from the Amphi- 
poda, it is difficult to imagine that so acute an observer as the founder of 
this new group should separate it from tlie true Isopoda upon grounds so 
feeble as appears to us to be the case. 

But on this we shall enter more at large when we report upon the British 
Isopoda, and at present only observe, that the affinity which the Anisopoda 
holds to the true Isopoda in all its more important characters is too close 
to admit of its being recognized as a distinct and separate group of equal 
importance. The only feature which, appears to approximate it to the 
Amphipoda, the forward direction of the fourtli pair of feet, can scarcely, 
we think, be of sufficient importance to narrow the margin between the 
Amphipoda and the Isopoda, thei'e being other characters of greater import- 
ance that induce a natural separation strongly marked. 

But although anatomical science will not admit the elevation of the 
Lcemodipoda or that of the Anisopoda into distinct orders or groups equal 
to that of the Amphipoda and Isopoda, yet the presence of strongly defined 
characters, both in development of form and suppression of parts, might 
safely admit, with great convenience to classification, a separation of the 
Lcemodipoda from the Amphipoda proper, and the Anisopoda from the IsO' 
poda proper, each forming a group subordinate to their respective types ; 
and in this Report we propose the following arrangement : — 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 



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REPORT — 1855. 



It will here be seen that it is thought preferable to abide by the older 
classification, which considers the Amphipoda and Isopoda as distinct orders 
of the second division, than as separate groups of the same order as classified 
by Dana; in this, we think, we are justified upon strictly anatomical reason- 
ing, for there appears to be as great, if not a more distinct separation, between 
the Amphipoda and the Isopoda, than between the Amphipoda and the 
higher types of Crustacea. 

This latter opinion is one on which Dana is again opposed to Edwards and 
the older naturalists *. 

The former considers the Isopoda a higher type of Crustacea than the 
Amphipoda, whereas Leach, Latreille, Desmarest, Lamarck, and Edwards 
have each respectively placed them next, succeeding the Stomapoda in the 
descending scale. 

This difference of opinion involves and necessarily opens the question of 
the homological relation of parts between the different orders or groups of 
Crustacea, the discussion of which will enable us, we hope, to see how much 
or little the same organs resemble each other when adapted to forms higher 
or lower in the scale ; and their closeness or dissimilarity will enable us to 
approximate toward a tolerably correct estimate of the value of the unity of 
typical development, and thereby judge the relation which one form of Crus- 
tacea may hold to another. 

The older European naturalists, and Edwards in particular, consider the 
Edriophthalma as formed upon the same general type as the Podophthalma ; 
not so the American carcinologist, who affirms that " they have not a 
macroural characteristic, but have a body divided into as many segments as 
there are legs (whence our name Choristopoda) ; the antenna, legs and whole 
internal structure are distinct in type." — Vol. i. p. 1404'. 

The consideration of the structure of the Amphipoda is one that has little 
attracted the attention of either naturalists or physiologists. This remark 
is the more correct in relation to our own country, where, we are not aware 
that there has yet been published a single communication on the internal 
organization of this order, except a short paper on the CaprellcB, by Mr. 
H. Goodsir, in the Edinburgh Philosophical Journal for July 1842. 

The labours of Montagu were mostly directed to the pursuit of objects, 
and the important addition of figuring and describing the outward appear- 
ances of his results. The attention of Leach was confined to describing, 
generalising and classifying all known species, whether the result of his 
own discoveries or that of others. The researches of most later writers have 
been extended to the elucidation of local faunas only. Dr. Thomson of 
Belfast read at the British Association, and published in the Annals of 
Natural History for 1847, a series of papers on the Crustacea of Ireland. 
Dr. Johnston of Berwick has during an industrious career (alas ! too early 



* Mihie-Edwards. 

Legio (II.) Edriophthalma. 
Ordo I. Amphipoda. 

„ II. Isopoda. 

„ III. Laemodipoda. 

Order T. Amphipoda. 

Family. I Family. 

Gammaridse. I Hyperidae. 

Tribus. Tribus. 



Sauteurs.Marcheurs. Gammaroides. Anormales. 
Ordiuaires. 



Dana. 
Subclassis II. Edriophthalma. 
Ordo I. Choristopoda. 
Tribus 1 . Isopoda. 

„ 2. Anisopoda. * 

„ 3. Amphipoda. 

Tribus 3. 

Amphipoda. 

Families. 

Caprellidea. Gammaridea. Hyperidea, 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 23 

closed) described several Scottish species. Prof. AUman, in the ' Annals 
of Natural History ' for 1 847, published a memoir on the Chelura tere- 
brans. 

But even on the continent the study of these animals has not been a 
favourite pursuit, and few naturalists have examined for themselves beyond 
the external form and general arrangement of structure. Hence we find 
that each of the few actual observers is inclined to adopt some new scheme 
of generalization for himself, founded on some peculiar fact more or less 
common to the tribe. This will continue to be the case until the anatomy 
and development be properly displayed, and their structure demonstrated la 
comparison with other known types. 

The labours of the great French carcinologist are among the best known, 
and certainly the most recognized and appreciated of any of the systematic 
works on Crustacea. But the investigations of KoUiker, Miiller, and the 
labours of Von Siebold are valuable both in interest and importance. But 
these have, probably from their inland position, confined their researches 
chiefly to the internal structure of the Isopoda. 

Rathke's contributions to the fauna of the Crimea are not only valuable 
for the addition of animals from a region that has been little examined, but 
ai'e noticeable for great accuracy of delineation in minute detail, which make 
them second to none, if not before all others, in value, for truthfulness and 
the close observation of the author. But Prof. Kroyer appears to have been 
the one of all the naturalists who has entered upon the investigation of this 
order in a manner which induces us to believe that he felt the import- 
ance of its close and extended observation, and his great work, entitled 
' Voyages en Scandinavie, en Japonic, Spitzberg, et en Feroe,' is a labour, of 
which it is to be regretted Europe has so few examples. 

Recently, Mr. Dana has given to the world a great work on the Crustacea 
as the result of his researches in the southern seas, where he was sent by the 
United States Government. This work, of which the plates have only been 
published since this paper has been in the press, will rank its author as second 
to no European carcinologist, and during the course of this Report, the work, 
though but recently obtained, will be found frequently alluded to and 
quoted. 

In furnishing to the best of our opportunities this Report to the British 
Association for the Advancement of Science, we are aware of shortcomings. 
These chiefly arise from inability of obtaining foreign works published many 
years since, "and others difficult to be procured. But these faults (not many 
or important, we hope) might have been more considerable but for the kind- 
ness of friends, who willingly supplied us with those in their possession. In 
this way we are indebted mostly to John Lubbock, Esq., Col. C. Hamilton 
Smith, C. Darwin, Esq., and J. O. Westwood, Esq. 

To study the results of other observers in connexion with a British fauna, 
it became desirable that specimens should be obtained from as many and 
distant localities as possible. In pursuance of this plan, we have many 
valued friends to thank, and if gratitude is to be measured in proportion to 
liberal communications and generous supplies, then we are most indebted to 
our highly esteemed correspondent the Rev. George Gordon, Bernie Manse, 
near Elgin, for many most interesting species, among which are some that 
are additions to the British fauna, as well as others that are new to 
science. 

Our kind friend, George Barlee, Esq., so well known to naturalists by his 
dredging results, has sent us many valuable collections from Penzance, St. 
Ives, and the Arran Isles. So also from the first of these localities we have 



24 REPORT — 1855. 

been supplied by our friend C. S. Harris, Esq., of Budley Salterton, and from 
Falmouth we have recently been indebted to our excellent friend J. Web- 
ster, Esq., for the results of extensive dredgings. 

From the coasts of Northumberland and Durham we have received many 
species through the kindness of Joshua Alder, Esq. From Weymouth we have 
been assisted by Prof. Williamson of INIanchester, and P. H. Gosse, Esq. 

To our excellent friend P. T. Smyth, Esq., who not only supplied us with 
the result of his own industry, but frequently placed his yacht at our disposal 
for dredging purposes, we cannot be too thankful, since it is greatly through 
his means that we have been successful in obtaining a very large collection 
of South British species. 

Mr. Boswarva, so weW. known in the neighbourhood of Plymouth for his 
knowledge and skill in preserving the marine Algae, has frequently sent us 
specimens. So also has our valued friend and companion Howard Stewart, 
Esq., Student of Anatomy at the Royal College of Surgeons; also his 
brother, Mr. Charles Stewart. 

George Parker, Esq., of Jersey, and recently Mr. Edwards, an industrious 
naturalist at Banff, and Mr. John Loughor of Polperro, and other kind 
friends have furnished us with what specimens accident or good fortune 
may have brought within their reach *. 

For the purpose of identifying species with Leach's and Montagu's 
types we visited the British Museum, where we received every assistance 
and kindness from Dr. Gray and Mr. White, whose ' Catalogue of British 
Crustacea ' has been a valuable handbook of species, and much used by us 
in our progress with the subject. Nor can we forget Mr. Kippist, the Li- 
brarian of the Linnean Society, who most obligingly procured for us many 
books of the Society which it was necessary should be consulted. 

The Homologies. — In comparing the external organization of the Amphi- 
poda with that of the 3Iacroura, the observer is attracted by the absence in 
the former of the great cephalo-thoracic buckler or carapace. This in the 
higher tribes is the result of the exaggerated development of some of the 
anterior segments of the head. This loss of the carapace is also accom- 
panied with a separation into distinct annules of the whole of the remaining 
portion of the animal, whilst the cephalic region, including the seven anterior 
segments, assumes no greater space or higher importance than any of the 
other individual segments. 

If a careful examination of the cephalic ring be made, it will be found 
that there evidently are the same relative parts, without that monstrous deve- 
lopment which in the higher types produce the carapace. 

It has elsewhere been shown ■]-, upon evidence which appears to us impos- 
sible to be misunderstood, that the anterior segments exhibited in the cara- 
pace, viz. the antennal rings, gradually diminish in importance inversely 
with the development of the mandibular ; that whereas the Ibrmer build up 
the larger portion of the carapace in the JBrachyura, the mandibular seg- 
ment in the lowest of the Macroura type {Diastylis, Ciima, ^cj) completes, 
to the almost total exclusion of the anterior segments, the entire carapace. 
This increasing development of the anterior or cephalic segments is in 
accordance with the consolidation of the nervous system, and vice versa, the 
separation of the nervous cord into distinct ganglia is coincident with a cor- 
responding decrease in the importance of the carapace. 

* In the forthcoming work on the British Edriophthalma, we shall identify the species 
with their habitats upon the authority of our kind friends. 
t Annals of Natural History for July 1855. 
X Vide paper on the British DiastylidcB, Ann. Nat. Hist, for June 1856. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 25 

This law, which regulates the cliaracter of the cephalic segments in the 
higher types, is still persistent in the Edriophthahna. 

The nervous system below the Stomapoda is entirely free from thoracic 
consolidation, except in the abnormal class of Cirripedia. The cephalic 
region or segments belonging to the organs of consciousness is reduced to a 
minimum, or represented only by corresponding appendages. 

In all the higher types, the antennal segments as well as the mandibular, 
excepting only the anomalous genus of Squilla and its near allies, unite to 
build up the carapace, the respective relation of each segment to the others 
differing in importance in distinct orders. This appears to be the same with 
respect to the cephalic ring of the Amphipoda, which homologizes with the 
entire carapace of the Brachyura and Macroura, differing from them only 
in degree. 

In 4,he Macroura the development of the mandibular segment extends 
back and covers the whole of the thoracic region, forming so efficient a pro- 
tection as to render the completion of the dorsal portion of the thoracic seg- 
ments a work of supererogation. These latter rings in the higher types 
become so closely compacted together, that, by diminishing their extent, 
they concentrate their force ; whereas in Amphipoda the thorax is developed 
into seven distinct and perfect rings, while the homologue of the carapace 
reaches not beyond the segment which bears the first maxilliped, and 
this not by any extraordinary development of the posterior cephalic rings, 
but by the consolidation of the three segments next succeeding the man- 
dibular into one, which supports the three posterior appendages of the mouth. 

Prof. Milne-Edwards * contends that the whole of the seven anterior 
segments of the animal are fused together and form the first or cepha- 
lic ring. 

"The exact normal relation of the shell of the head," says Mr. Dana 
(part i. p. 35 of his great work), " is with difficulty determined ; yet the argu- 
ment that this segment extends across below just anterior to the mandibles, 
and only here, probably holds in this group, as in the Decapoda, so as to 
show that the shell pertains either to the mandibles or second antennae : 
further investigation may possibly bring out a more definite decision." 

The effort in this Report will be directed, if possible, to demonstrate that 
the "shell of the head" is homologically the same as the carapace in the 
higher types, restricted according to a law of development to be a less im- 
portant feature of the animal. Gradually it descends from the most per- 
fect forms. 

In Macroura, a distinct suture, the cervical or epimeral of M. Milne- 
Edwards, is visible, distinguishing the mandibular from the antennal seg- 
ments. In Brachyura the large development of the antennal segments 
completes most of the carapace; in Macroura the mandibular ring equals, if 
not exceeds, the half of this structure. This change is produced in the rela- 
tion of the two parts by a corresponding decrease of importance in the an- 
tennal or cephalic portion, rather than by an extraordinary enlargement of 
the mandibular. As we descend in the scale of Crustacea, we find that the 
antennal, or that portion supplied with nerves from the cephalic ganglion, 
diminishes in size in relation to the rest of the carapace, and that the cara- 
pace likewise itself loses its importance in relation to the entire animal. 

This, which we see being carried out in the Macroura, Stomapoda, and 
DiastyUdce, where the thorax of the animal is seen gradually in each suc- 
ceeding form to become less protected by the carapace, appears to reach a 
l^mit approaching the extreme in the Amphipoda, when the entire thorax is 
* Histoire des Crustaces, vol. i. p. 20. 



26 REPORT — 1855. 

free ; not being protected b)^ the carapace, it ceases to possess that resem- 
blance to an internal skeleton, vvliich it receives in the higher types from its 
peculiar relation to the monstrously developed cephalic rings. 

In the Anqihipoda the upper portion or shell of the cephalic ring is 
constructed as in the higher types, that is, it is formed of the antennal 
and mandibular segments, each reduced to almost its minimum of im- 
portance. 

In TaUtrusaxxA Gammarus, but most distinct in consequence of the larger 
size in the former, a suture, which most certainly homologizes with the so- 
called cervical or epimeral suture of Macroura, is visible, and shows that the 
mandibular ring perfects its inferior arch: this forms the epistome of the 
frontal aspect of the head. 

The line of demarcation or suture which separates this segment from the 
anterior, traverses the lateral walls of the head, parallel with, and but a short 
distance above, the mandibles, after passing which it rises toward the upper 
surface, but loses itself in the posterior margin about half-way from the top*. 
In this respect it bears some analogy to the manner in which it is lost in 
Srachyura, but only in appearance, for there it was the result of a large 
development of the anterior segments ; here both are equally unimportant. 
In point of fact, the connexion of the Amphipoda is mucli nearer to the Ma- 
croura; and if a perpendicular line of incision were made to cut away the 
carapace of Astacus ^ust in front of the cervical suture where it exists on the 
top of the carapace, that is to remove the whole of the carapace posterior to 
that line, and perfect each ring of the thorax, but for the pedunculated eyes, 
the Astacus would be pronounced among the Amphipoda. 

The epistome (Plate XII. fig. 1 C) appears with little doubt to be the inferior 
aspect of the mandibular ring (B), which is seen on the external lateral 
surface of the head, and which can be identified from the fact of its carry- 
ing the mandibles. This relation of the epistome to the mandibular segment 
is not admitted by Mr. Dana, who rather, from analogy with the higher 
types, than by direct evidence of the subject before him, identifies the epi- 
stome as belonging to the inferior (or external) antennal segments. 

We do not think that the evidence in the higher forms bears out this 
assumed relation ; for whilst in the Brachyura the two antennal segments and 
the mandibular, each through the arrangement of their sternal portions, unite 
to form the antero-oral plate, we find that in the Macroura their relative 
importance is not of equal extent. We think, that as the ophthalmic segment 
is itself not developed to much importance in the Brachyura, and is altogether 
lost in the Macroura, so we believe that the same process of annihilation of 
parts continues, and that in the Amphipoda the only segment in which the 
sternal portion is persistent is the mandibular. A thin partition of osseous 
tissue, passing perpendicular in the median line between the antennae, less 
important between the superior than the inferior, may possibly represent the 
sternal part of each of the antennal segments respectively. 

The next three pairs of appendages succeeding the mandibles are borne 
upon a piece which forms the infra- posterior portion of the head (Plate XII. 
fig. 2 K), and is probably the sternal piece of the segments belonging to the 
two maxillae and the maxilliped ; the dorsal portion of these segments 
appears to form an arch within the cavity of the head, as given in Plate XII. 
fig. 3, and offers a support to the stomach as well as points of attachment 
for muscles. 

In attributing to this internal structure the high relative importance as the 

* This suture, though recognized, was scarcely appreciated by us until we had read 
Dana's work. 



ON THE BRITISH EDBIOPHTHALMA. ~ 27 

homologue of thft dorsal portion of the segments, of which it is a part, we 
think we are justified from a careful observation of its relation to sur- 
rounding parts ; and it should always be borne in mind, that the relation 
which the internal organization bears to the external structure is the only- 
sound way of understanding the true relation of individual parts to the whole. 

In the genus Talitrus the appendages posterior to the powerful mandibles 
appear to be strengthened by an internal process on either side, which is 
produced until the two meet and form a ring. It is this ring that we contend 
to be the homologue of the three posterior segments of the cephalic division : 
that it is dorsal and not sternal, is demonstrated, we think, from the fact that 
the nervous cord passes through the hollow, though to accomplish this a con- 
siderable depression from its normal direction is produced. 

Thoracic segments (Pereion*). The seven annules which posteriorly 
follow the cephalic portion are in the higher order protected by the carapace. 
These become less so in the descending order ; and in the Amphipoda each 
segment is formed into a perfect ring, analogous in appearance to the abdo- 
minal segments in Macroura. 

The anterior of these thoracic segments differs in its position from those 
which are posterior, by the circumstance, that the anterior margin overrides 
the posterior edge of the cephalic, whereas in all the subsequent ones the 
anterior dips beneath the posterior edge of the annule immediately pre- 
ceding, the two margins being united by a thin membrane sufficiently elastic 
to admit of one plate passing to a small extent beneath the next. 

The several appendages supported by these segments are locomotive in 
their character, sometimes more perfectly perambulatory, at others adapted 
for climbing and grasping, under which character the two anterior are most 
constant in their adaptation ; and the probability is that they are never used 
except as supplying organs to the mouth, unless to assist in climbing occa- 
sionally. 

On each side of the several annules of the thorax, the Amphipoda are 
remarkable for the development of a large scaliform appendage, which Prof. 
Milne-Edwards, and hitherto every author after him, consider to be epimeral 
or side-pieces of the dorsal arch, of each respective segment, remaining 
unfused. These so-called epimerals we exclude from being a portion of the 
true segment, believing them, as we think we shall be able clearly to demon- 
strate in the proper place, to be the first joints or coxae of the legs. 

Abdominal ser^ments (or pleon-f). — The next succeeding seven rings form 
the so-called abdomen of all later carcinologists, but they support three very 
■distinct kinds of appendages. 

In the Brachyura the appendages are all of one sort, and these all present 
only in the female, and are adapted to a special function connected with the 
process of reproduction. In the male they are absent, except the two an- 
terior pairs, which are modified so as to adapt them to fulfil the office of 
intromittent organs. As we descend in the scale from perfect development, 
we perceive that the posterior annules are constructed and arranged so as 
to become a tail piece, and a powerful and efficient organ it is in the Ma- 
croura and Anomoura, which enables the animal to dart or swim through the 
.water with considerable force and velocity. 

The number of segments which are arranged to complete the caudal 
appendage differs in separate orders. In the Brachyura there is but one ; 
•among the Macroura the two last segments are so arranged ; but among 

* Trom Trepaiou), to walk about : pereion, part which supports the walking legs. This and 
th€ following are suggested instead of the old and incorrect synonyms of thorax, abdomen, &c 
t From TrXew, navigo : pleon, part which supports the swimming legs. 



28 REPORT — 1855. 

the AmjjJiipoda^ there are four so constructed as to form a tail. Of these 
four, tliree pairs are arranged upon the same tj'pe ; the other, which is the ex- 
tremity, or twenty-first ring, can only be contemplated in the character of au 
obsolete segment with its rudimentary appendages. 

Thus the segments which form the abdomen support three distinct forms 
of appendages. Three anterior are constructed upon one type, three suc- 
ceeding upon a second, and the last, which for convenience we shall de- 
signate by the name of Telson (from reXo-oj', extremity), upon a third ; or, 
perhaps to speak more correctly, it is a rudimentary appendage, modified 
upon the type of the preceding three. 

Thus we perceive a singular coincidence, that the most anterior as well 
as the most posterior segments of the animal are annihilated and represented 
by their respective appendages only, a circumstance which appears to reverse 
the law in embryological development in this class of animals, where we find 
that the earliest developed parts are the anterior and posterior extremities of 
the animal, the intermediate segments being the result of subsequent growth. 

Having compared the twenty-one segments of the crustacean type with 
those of the Amphipoda, it will next be desirable that we should see to what 
extent the separate parts or appendages may or may not differ from those in 
the other forms. 

Organs of vision. — The first normal segment of the typically perfect 
Crustacea is represented in the Amphipoda by its appendages only ; the eyes, 
which appear to be lodged between the two pairs of antennae, are homolo- 
gically anterior to the antennae, and are supplied with nerves which are the 
most anterior pair given off by the cephalic ganglia. 

In the higher orders the eyes are projected upon footstalks. In \}tie, Amphi- 
poda they are sessile. This distinction between the two has been thought 
by naturalists generally to be an important signification in relation of one 
tribe to that of the other; hence the feature has been made available as a 
demarcation of distinct orders, it being taken for granted that so visible an 
alteration in these organs must be accompanied by considerable and im- 
portant changes in other parts of the structure. 

The eye in relation to the typical animal must be viewed as an appendage 
of the first normal segment peculiarly developed to perfect its adaptation for 
the fulfilment of certain requisite conditions; alter the same manner, the 
mandibles, chelae and feet are necessary forms for other uses. 

In the Brachyura an ocular appendage consists of two articulations, at 
the extremity of which the eye is lodged, in the same manner as we might 
presume the hand would hold a ball, or, to give a more correct idea, be 
developed into a ball having power of vision. 

It appears to be a law in the decreasing structural importance of Crustacea, 
that the segment supporting the appendages shall disappear before the appen- 
dages that it supports ; thus in Macroura the segment has disappeared, but 
the eye is still borne on. footstalks. In the Amphipoda it appears that the eye 
alone remains ; the segment and the articulating portion of the appendage 
not being developed, the eye is presented so deeply within the segment suc- 
ceeding, that it appears to be behind the antennae. But its position, wherever 
situated, can only be to meet peculiar advantages under certain conditions. 
Thus in the genus Taliirus the eye appears to be nearly at the top of the 
head, while in Erichthoneus and some of the Podocerides it is carried upon 
a projecting inferior angle, which in some genera of this subfamily is con« 
siderably developed in advance of the head ; in which position, iu con- 
sequence of the insufficient depth of structure, the eye projects upon the 
internal surface, where it is lodged in the form of a protuberance. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 29 

In the genus Tetromatus, which, we believe, is now for the first time added 
to our knowledge, there are four simple eyes, two upon each side of the head, 
instead of one made up of many facets, as is usually the form of the organ 
in this class of animals. But this seeming anomaly appears not to be with- 
out explanation. 

In the young of the Amphipoda the number of facets is fewer in the eye 
than in the adult; the number of the lenses therefore increases with growth. 
In the genus Gammarus the early numbers are eight or ten, whilst those of 
the adult are from forty to fifty. If we suppose tliat in Tetromatus there 
were but two crystalline lenses developed in the larva, a consequent 
arrest of development at this particular stage would limit tlie number in the 
adult to those already present in the larva, and which therefore, we think, 
must be looked upon rather as two distant lenses of the same eye, than as 
distinct organs of vision, although to external observation they assume the 
appearance of two separate eyes (Plate Xllf. fig. 8). The coloured cornea 
is very distant from the lenses. 

In this genus the crystalline lens is developed in the integumentary struc- 
ture of which it forms a part ; in this arrangement the condition of the eye 
differs from that of any other among the Amphipoda. Close observation 
may detect a lessened approximation of like condition in Anonyx HolboUi, 
but there only a semi-transparency, like a single small lens, exists. 

The sessile character of the eyes in this order appears chiefly to rest on 
the pedunculated feature being absent rather than in any definite alteration 
of the eye itself, and by no means is it to be considered as evidence of organs 
of vision indicative of a lower class of animal. This we think is easily 
demonstrated by the fact, that in all the DiastylidcB the eyes are sessile and 
converge into a single organ ; this is the case also with some of the Ento- 
Tnostraca, whilst, on the other hand, the genus Tanuis among the Edrro- 
phthalma, and Artemia among the Entomostraca, have the eyes supported 
on footstalks in a manner corresponding with the higher types. 

The internal or first antennoe. — These organs are invariably constant in 
the order Amphipoda, although in the genera of Orchestia, Talorchestia and 
Talitrus, they are so unimportant as to be little more than rudimentary 
appendages. They belong to the second normal segment, which in the^m- 
phipoda we believe not to be developed, or, if present, fused so completely 
witii the next succeeding, as not to be distinguished from it. 

The anterior antennae typically consist in all Crustacea of a peduncle 
formed of three articulations, all of which are present in the Amphipoda ; and 
a filamentary appendage more or less extensively developed, and one or two 
secondary filaments of greater or less importance, of which latter in the 
Amphipoda there is never more than one, and that is generally rudimentary, 
often obsolete, and perhaps move frequently absent than present. But this 
secondary appendage appears to fulfil but an unimportant office even in the 
higher orders, whilst in the Atnphipoda it consists of but a few short arti- 
culated joints furnislied at the extremity of each with a few hairs of a form 
similar to others peculiar to the species. 

It therefore differs from the principal filament or tige, as it is named by 
M.-Edwards, which, except in the subfamily of Pontoporeides, is developed 
to a much greater extent, and in addition to the simple hairs, is furnished 
with a considerable number of membranaceous cilia, which appear to be 
peculiar to this organ in Crustacea. The forms of these cilia vary in certain 
species, and will be more particularly described when it becomes necessary 
to consider the especial senses of the Amphipoda. We shall only here 
remark, that they appear to us to be active agents in communicating a 



30 REPORT — 1855. 

consciousness analogous to sound to the auditory nerve, and on this account 
we shall allude to tlieni under the name of Auditory Cilia. 

Professor Milne-Edwards considers the presence or absence of the se- 
condary filament or palp as a circumstance of little importance, and affirms 
that naturally the genus Amphitoe, without this appendage, is extremely near 
to Gammarus, in which it exists, if they be not in the same genus*; the 
separation being admitted for the convenience of classification only. 

But from this our experience compels us to differ. The two filaments, how- 
ever unequal, homologize with those in the higher order, where stmietimes a 
third is added, two of which are, to the extent of our present knowledge, 
always constant. We therefore can but view the presence or absence of 
this palp, however rudimentary the form in which it may exist, as de- 
monstrative of some change in the habits or condition of the animal, which 
must be accompanied by structural alteration of a more or less important 
character. It must therefore show a separation between animals that vary in 
some essential conditions, even though not very visible features. 

Thus it will be found upon a close examination that Amphitoe is separated 
from Gammarus by important essential qualities (which will be described 
with the animals in our forthcoming work on this subject in conjunction 
with Mr. Westwood). Here it is sufficient to observe, that the habits of 
Amphitoe, as well as its structure, are closely allied to tliose of the genus 
Podocerus, and that they both exist in a division (Nidi/ica) of the family 
CorophiidcB, which division we have thought desirable to construct, that 
those Amphipoda which live in nests of their own construction may be 
separated from those which live in tubes, or burrow, such as Cerapus and 
Corophium. 

The second or external pair of antenncB. — These organs appear to us to be 
the most anterior appendages, which are supported in- the Amphipoda upon 
a segment that is present, and which forms almost the entire cephalic region. 

One of these antennae consists typically in the order of a peduncle and a 
solitary filament. The peduncle consists of five articulations. In some, as 
the Macroura, there is attached a moveable scale ; and in others, as the Ano- 
moura, a spine exists on the basal portion of the antenna : these appear 
both to be represented in the larva of the Brachyura. and at an early period 
of this stage are more important than the principal appendage of the an- 
tenna itself. These secondary parts are absent in the Amphipoda. 

The first or basal joints of this organ in the Brachyura are very generally 
fused together, and with the nearest approximating part of the calcareous 
skeleton of the animal ; this fusion is sometimes so perfect, that no mark of 
distinction is apparent to distinguish the antenna from the body of the 
animal : this is particularly correct of the Leptopodiadcc. But this close 
union between the parts of the antenna and the body of the animal lessens 
with the degradation of the creature, until we find the five articulations 
separate from each other and distinct from the animal. This is the case in 
the Macroura as well as Amphipoda. 

But even in this order, Amphipoda, in many species it is with difficulty the 
demarcation between the two first or basal articulations can be made out, so 
intimately do they appear to be connected together. From the first of these 
a strong tooth or spine is commonly developed, in some more importantly 
than in others ; this denticle is the external portion of the olfactory organ, 
and homologizes with the olfactory tubercle (auditory of M. Milne-Edwards, 
Von Siebold, &c.), which is situated on the basal portion of the antenna in 
the PodopJUhalma. 

* Histoire des Crustaces, vol. iii. p. 28. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 31 

The two first articulations, without being actually fused with the anterior 
integumentary tissues, are sometimes so closely incorporated with them, as to 
be lost, except to close analytical observation. This is the case in the family 
of Orchestidcc, which has long been described by authors as having but three 
articulations to the peduncle of this antenna ; but the other two may be seen 
to exist in the upright anterior walls of the head, of which they form the 
largest portion (vide Plate Xll.fig. 1 = H first articulation =P second = G third 
and fourth). A similar conclusion is almost arrived at by Mr. Dana (Part II. 
p. SiS). He says, "C [answering to P in our figure], an area adjoining 
the antennae, having a membranous covering and properly a part of the 
base of the outer antennae; d [answering to H in our figure], a shelly 
area either side of e [C], or epistome*." This shelly area he has failed 
to perceive, equally with P, is part of the base of the outer or second pair of 
antennae. These articulations are so closely impacted with the head as not 
to be observable to a lateral examination of the animal, being as they are 
absorbed into the cephalic region. It is this peculiar arrangement ol' organs 
in this family that pushes, as it were, the whole of the anterior organs to the 
top of the head, placing as it does a more than usual distance between them 
and the oral appendages. 

The filamentary termination of this antenna in the Amphiphoda is inva- 
riably solitary and generally multi-articulate. It obtains its most filamentary 
character in the true Gammari, but in some genera the whole of the numerous 
articulations of which it is constructed become consolidated. 

The first approximation toward the strengthening character of this organ, 
exists in the true Amphitoe, whence, by its near allies through Podocerus, it 
arrives at its fulminating point in Corophium and Chelura, where they are 
completely fused into a single articulation (vide Plate XIII.). In such cases 
they are powerful assistants in enabling the animal to climb over uneven sur- 
faces, and probably assist in the construction of their abodes, whether bur- 
rowing, as Chelura and Corophium, or forming tubes, as Siphonocetus and 
Cerapus, and probably also Erichthoneus, or in building nests, as Amphitoe 
and Podocerus ; and to adapt them more completely to their work, they are 
often supplied with hooks towards the extremity (Plate XIII. fig. 6 a). These 
are formed by the consolidation of some of the capillary armature into 
strong curved spines ; the best examples that we have observed are in Podo- 
cerus, where they must become an additional means to the power of the 
antenna. 

In all Crustacea this pair of antennae appears persistent and generally well 
developed ; we are not aware that there exists in any of the Gammarina of 
this order, or among the aberrant family of the CaprellidcB, a solitary instance 
of its being reduced to a rudimentary or obsolete form. 

This remark appears to be true of Isopoda as well as Amphipoda, if we 
remove from each the parasitic forms, such as the Hyperia among the 
latter, &nd Bopyrus and its allies among the Isopoda; a circumstance, which 
induces us to believe that the second antenna is the seat of a sense which 
undergoes but slight modifications to enable it to be equally efficient whether 
in air or water, since the Orchestidce live entirely out of the water, as like- 
wise several species of Isopoda. 

The mandibles, — These are the next succeeding appendages, but are 
separated from the last by the epistome and labium. 

The former (epistome) is generally placed in the Amphipoda, vertically in 
the anterior wall of the head ; occasionally it is produced into a spear-like 

' * The Plates to Mr. Dana's work having been published since this has been in the press, 
•mt have only known the references to them by the text of his work. 



32 REPORT — 1855. 

process, as in Anonyx ampulla (Kroy.); but in tlie more common forms it 
appears as a plate across the anterior portion, as if it gave strength and so- 
lidity to the structure. As before observed, this is the sternal aspect of the 
mandibular segment, and acts as a fulcrum to the labium and anterior 
portion of the mandible. 

The labium is divided into two parts, the upper and the lower. The line 
of separation appears to be an imperfect hinge enabling the lower portion 
(E, fig. 2, PL XII.) to possess a slight opening and closing power, which co- 
operates with the mandibles in collecting materials into the moutli. 

The margin of the labium is generally fringed with hairs. In Gammarus 
gracilis many of these are club-shaped and cumbersome in their appearance.. 

The mandibles are powerful organs which impinge at their extremities 
one against the other, the biting edge being in the median line, and deve- 
loped into a series of denticles or teeth-like processes (PI. XIV. fig. 6 ft); 
these vary in form, in some considerably, and perhaps less remarkably in all 
genera. Within the denticulated extremity a second process commonly 
exists (PI. XIV. fig. 6 c), like a repetition of the first. It appears not to be 
always present ; but when it is, the plate is articulated by a free joint with 
the mandible, and is capable of a certain amount of movement. Situated 
about the centre of the posterior margin stands a large projection, which 
meets a fellow in the opposite mandible, and is evidently adapted for 
mastication ; it may with propriety be called the molar tubercle (PI. XIV. 
fig. 6 a). It forms with the anterior denticulated edge the t\vo extremities 
or horns of a crescent. The second or articulated process is placed between 
the two, but nearer to the anterior teeth. This intermediate plate appears 
to be constructed so as to pass the food from one to the other, from the 
biting to the grinding surfaces, between which there are curved spines (rf) 
to facilitate the movement. 

The two mandibles are brought into contact by powerful muscles, which 
are attached to the inner surface of the dorsal portion of the cephalic ring, 
and homologize with those attached to the long calcareous tendons in Ma- 
croura, which have their muscles secured to the inside of the carapace. 

The surface of the molar tubercle is covered over M'ith rows of teeth-like 
processes, so minute that they can only be defined by a quarter-inch power 
object-glass. The arrangement of tiicse teeth is tolerably constant, being 
in rows more or less even. At the lower portion the teeth are larger, the 
outer row being most conspicuous ; the size diminishing, row after row, until 
towards the higher limits, their importance has so fallen away, that they can 
with great diflficulty be distinguished at all. In some species there is added 
a filamentary appendage to this tubercle, the margin of which is ciliated 
with minute hairs. Perhaps this may be in some way connected with taste. 

The. mandibles are no exception to the general law among the Articulata, 
that all the appendages are modified legs ; the mandible itself homologizing 
with the ischium or third joint of the perambulating leg, and the same in the 
gnathopodite of the recent acute but cumbersome homological nomenclature 
of Prof. Milne-Edwards, the maxilliped of authors generally. 

That the third joint is the correct homologue, unless the second be fused 
in common with it, we think can be demonstrated by the fact, that in the 
Macroura the ischium of the third gnathopod (maxilliped) has the inner 
margin furnished with teeth which impinge against the similarly denticulated 
edge of the corresponding member, and assumes the character of a not very 
imperfect biting apparatus. 

In the mandible of the Amphipocla the parts are developed into an 
efficient and powerful organ ; the denticulated margin has the teeth more 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 33 

strongly defined where their office is most required, but absent where not 
wanted. 

In some, as Anonyx denticulatus, the anterior teeth are reduced to a 
smooth cutting edge ; but we have failed to detect that any relative form is 
dependent upon the character or kind of food which it may be the habit of 
the animal to prey upon. The Talitri, which are known to be carnivorous, 
appear to differ in no important feature from those which are believed to live 
on marine vegetables, as is the case with the Gammari. 

The ischium being developed into the necessary or important part of the 
mandibles, the remaining articulations of the typical appendage are reduced 
to an obsolete form, and in some of the Amphipoda are entirely wanting. 
This is the case in the family of Orchestidm, a circumstance from the, at 
most, amphibious character of the group, which suggests the idea, that it is 
efficient only to those which inhabit the water, from scarcely any of which 
among the Amphipoda is it wanting, as far as our experience goes. The use 
of this appendage is, perhaps, to direct floating material more readily towards 
the mouth. The organ generally is raised and lies between the lower pair 
of antennae. 

The MaodllcB. — These are separated from the mandibles by a posterior 
l&bium (PI. XV. fig. 2), which differs from the anterior in being cleft in the 
centre, but probably cooperates with the mandibles in the process of man- 
ducation. 

The maxillae are two pairs, the first or anterior, and second or posterior. 
They are extremely delicate leaf-like organs, and by no means fulfil the idea 
suggested by their name. 

The segments of which they are appendages, together with the next suc- 
ceeding, the first maxilliped, are fused together and concentrated around the 
mouth. 

Thejirst maxilla consists of three foliaceous plates (Edwards has figured 
a fourth in this same species. Gam. lociisia) ; the basal is developed upon 
the second articulation or basis joint of its homological position of the leg ; 
the coxa being, we presume, suppressed from a tendency we observe in 
Crustacea generally to a fusion of this articulation with the main trunk of 
the animal, rather than with the appendage of which it forms a part. The 
second foliaceous plate is developed upon the third joint or ischium in the 
homological character of the leg, and therefore represents the veritable por- 
tion of the mandible (PI. XV. figs. 3, 4, No. 5). The third leaf-like plate con- 
sists of two joints, the fourth and the fifth, the meros and the carpus. This 
last represents the appendage to the mandibles vvith the anterior joint or pro- 
podos suppressed. The extremity of each plate is fringed ; in the anterior 
or third it exists in the form of five or six short stout teeth. Tlie middle have 
likewise teeth, but these are more numerous, and exist in two rows ; the 
teeth are long, and each has the point slightly curved, having the anterior 
edge itself furnished with three or four smaller teeth. The first or posterior 
plate is furnished with a thick row of hairs, the anterior portion of which 
is extremely plumose and bushy. 

The second maxilla consists of two foliaceous plates only, wliich latter 
homologize with the first and second of the anterior maxilla ; they are 
extremely delicate and furnished on their anterior margin with stout hairs, 
which generally are slightly ciliated. 

In the genus Sulcator (but whether it holds through the whole of the 
subfamily of the Pontoporeides, we have not experience to guide us) the 
posterior plates of both pairs of maxillae are folded so as to become two or 
three parallel leaves, one of which, in the first maxilla, is developed into a 

1855. D 



84 REPORT— 1855. 

prominent lobe, the contents of which are large cells apparently of a secreting 
kind ; but of the office or use of the organ we have met with no analogy 
among Crustacea to guide us. 

The Maxilliped. — We here retain the older name in order to distinguish 
between the two next succeeding members. This is the last of the three 
appendages which are supported by the same ring. It homologizes with the 
first or anterior maxilliped in the Macroura, but as an operculum fulfils the 
duty of the third or posterior, and properly belongs to the cephalic division. 
The basal joint and the next succeeding are foliaceous in their develop- 
ment and furnished with hairs ; that of the third joint or ischium is also 
supplied with small denticles or teeth ; these vary considerably in form, and 
we think may be used as a valuable adjunct to other circumstances as a test 
for species (vide PI. XVI, fig. 6, No. 3, and PI. XVII. D, fig. 1 to 5), of which 
advantage will be taken in the forthcoming history of Sessile-eyed Crustacea. 
The Gnathopoda*. — The (so-called) thoracic members consist of seven 
successive pairs, which generally throughout the Amphipoda are developed 
upon analogous types, and assume to appearance the character of organs 
more or less perfectly adapted for perambulation. These seven pairs repre- 
sent three separate forms ; the two anterior, with a few exceptions, are deve- 
loped into more or less perfect prehensile organs, and homologize with the two 
posterior pairs of maxillipeds of the higher types of Crustacea, and like them 
their chief use appears to be as organs attendant upon the mouth. For the 
sake of distinction from the posterior pairs, we shall adopt the name given 
to them by M. Milne-Edwards, of gnathopoda, as being singularly appropriate 
for these subcheliformed organs. 

In swimming, walking or climbing, unless perhaps to overcome any extra- 
ordinary difficulty, the two gnathopoda are always at rest, being folded up 
and overlving the external oral appendages. 

Perhaps no member in the whole range of Crustacea in one order under- 
goes such a variety of modifications adapted to one end, more or less com- 
plete, as is to be found in the gnathopoda of the Amphipoda. They vary 
from' the simple finger and thumb of the perfect chela to the rudimentary 
or obsolete form, in which the hairs that ornament it are more important 
than the impinging process itself. Sometimes the prehensile character 
depends upon the dactylos or finger being reflected back and impinging 
at^ainst the propodos, either of which may have its edge of contact simple 
or serrated ; sometimes antagonistic to the point there is a minute denticle, 
a rudiment' of the thumb-like process, which upon full development com- 
pletes the normal chela of the higher types. The most constant position for 
this tooth is at the extremity of the anterior inferior angle of the pro- 
podos, to the portion between which and the articulation of the dactylos, 
we shall limit the signification of the palm. Occasionally the thumb is the 
result of an analogous development of the next succeeding joint, the carpus, 
as we find to be the case with Cerapus and Erichthoneus, or of the still an- 
terior articulation, the meros, as is the case with ZowcAoweros : in which 
examples the prehensile claw is formed with one and two intermediate arti- 
culations existing between the two impinging extremities. 

The first of the gnathopoda is generally the less important of the two, 
though not invariably, as in the genus Lembos. It is moreover occasionally 
developed, as in Talitrus and Lysianassa, into a simple foot; a feature that 
we are not aware is ever the case with the second, which generally is the 
more important organ of the two. Occasionally, as in Talitrus, Anonyx, 
Lysianassa, &c., the cheliform character of the second foot is very rudi- 
* This includes the two first thoracic feet of authon. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 3ff 

mentary ; but as far as our experience goes, it is never developed into a per- 
fectly simple foot. The nearest approach may be in Tetromatus. 

These two pairs of members are formed most commonly upon the same 
type, those of the same pair are invariably alike. Once or twice we observed 
indications of a variety of form between those of the same pair, but these we 
were induced to consider as the result of an abnormal condition of the part 
rather than a constant feature in the species. 

Even between the sexes the form of these members exhibits a very marked 
similarity, though the rule is not constant. We see in Orchestia littorea that 
the second pair of gnathopoda in the male are furnished with large powerful 
claws ; whereas in the female they are scarcely more than rudimentary, and 
assimilate in form to those found in the larva of this species. The realiza- 
tion of the same may be found in a few other species, but still the prevailing 
rule admits of little variation even where any exists. 

The Pereipoda*, or walking feet. — The two next succeeding pairs are the 
first true perambulating feet, and are always developed simple in the Am- 
phipoda, unless there may be an exception in the genus Phrosina, The 
first homologizes with the great claw in the Macroura and Brachyura; and 
both are in all the swimming Amphipoda less important in their peculiar 
character than either those which are anterior or posterior to them ; but in 
those which use them more in walking, which include many of the Corophiidce, 
they are larger and stronger. Their action is directed forwards, similarly to 
the two gnathopoda or anterior pairs of feet. 

The three next pairs of legs are the last belonging to this portion of the 
animal, and are the powerful perambulators in Amphipoda ; generally the last 
is the longest, but not invariably so ; in Phoxus it is almost obsolete. They 
difier from the anterior in being directed backwards, and having each the 
thigh or basal joint developed into a scale-like process. 

Among the more important features which are peculiar to the legs of the 
Amphipoda^ and perhaps to the whole of the legion of Edriophthalma, and 
identify them as distinct from the Podophthalma, is, that every joint is so 
constructed that the whole leg can move only in its own plane. The legs of 
the Podophthalma are arranged to admit of greater freedom in their action ; 
they can bend them in almost any direction. Independently of this pecu- 
liarity, there are others equally characteristic of the order. 

The separate parts of which the leg is constructed are unequal in their 
respective lengths as well as different in form in the separate orders. The 
basal joint in Podophthalma is extremely short and unimportant in appear- 
ance, whereas among the Amphipoda it becomes perhaps the most powerful 
and conspicuous of any, as may be seen by reference to the table repre- 
senting the homologies of the leg in Crustacea (PI. XVI. figs. 2, 3, &c.). 
Moreover it is often so developed, as, when folded up, to receive the extre- 
mity of the same leg within a groove, and sometimes, as in Acanthonotus, the 
propodos is completely buried and protected from accident. 

The knee or bending articulation, which admits of one portion of the leg 
being folded upon the other in the Brachyura, takes place between the meros 
and the carpus : in the Amphipoda it takes place between the ischium and 
meros ; but the greatest individuality in the character of the legs of the 
Amphipoda proper, as we;ll as the Isopoda proper, and whichj we think, has 
led to error in the appreciation of the true position of these creatures in 
the class Crustacea, is to be found in the development of the coxa or first joint 
of the leg; the epimerals of authors generally, and Prof. Milne-Edwards in 
particular. 

* This includes the five posterior thoracic feet of authors. 

d2 



36 REPORT — 1855. 

The coxa in Brachyura is universally fused with the segment of the bodyv 
so that its normal form cannot be distinguished ; in the Macroura it is free : 
it is here we are enabled to make out that the normal number of joints in 
the legs of Crustacea is seven, which only vary by suppression of the last or 
fusion of the first with the body of the animal. 

In the A)nphipocla, except the aberrant tribe of Lcemodipoda, the coxa is 
always developed into a scale-like process, and has been always considered 
as side-pieces complementary to the segment of the body to which the legs 
belonged, and received the name of epimerals or side-pieces by M. Milne- 
Edwards. 

These so-called epimerals, we think, we shall here be able to demonstrate^ 
are homologically the coxae of the legs, and represent the first joint in the 
typical condition of Crustacea. But this is so contrary in its description to 
the opinions of all the highest authorities, that it is necessary we should 
produce good evidence of the reason why we are induced to affirm that the 
scale-like form belongs to the first joint of the leg, rather than to the segment^ 
of which the leg is an appendage. 

The normal number of joints is most conspicuous in Nephrops and HomU' 
rus, where the coxa is an articulating joint, but appears to have no very great 
extent of movement. In the Brachyura and the Lcemodipoda, that is the 
Aherrantia of the table accompanying this Report, the coxa is fused with the 
body ; but in the Amphipoda it \^ fixed to, but not fused ivith, the segment. 

There is a peculiar tendency among the Amphipoda to a development of 
a scale-like form to the joints of the legs in general, a fact which is recog- 
nized as a constant feature in the basis joint of the three posterior peram- 
bulating legs. 

This is occasionally the case with the same joint in other legs, as in Poda- 
cerus, but appears to reach a culminating point in the genus Stdcator, where 
there is a peculiar tendency to this kind of development in almost every part 
of the visible members. 

The object of this peculiar development seems to be for the protection of 
the branchial organs, which are suspended from the inner surface of the legs, 
and would otherwise be liable to accidents, particularly to such animals as 
Sulcator arenarius, whose habitat is in the damp sand. 

But the chief object which here we have to demonstrate is, that this scale- 
like development belongs to the leg and homologically is the first joint (or 
coxa), and that it is not a lateral or separate portion of the annular segments 
of the body of the animal, and, in fact, that no side-pieces or epimerals exist; 
to this end we think we are justified by the following arguments, which we 
shall endeavour to substantiate: — 

1st. That seven joints are the normal number in the legs of all the Mala- 
costracous Crustacea. 

2ud. That the branchia is normally an appendage of the leg and attacbed 
to the coxa. 

3rd. That the moveable power of the leg is always between the coxa and 
the leg, and never between the coxa and the body. 

4th. Tliat llie coxa (the so-called rpinuM'al) in Amphipoda overlaps the 
segment to whicli it is attached, and except by a small portion only, is not 
united by the whole of the margin in jiixlaj)osition with the segment. 
5th. Tiiat there are no cpinierals where tliere are no legs. 
6th. That epimerals ;ire toinid in no other type, except the Iidriophtlialma 
among Crustacea. 

1st. Thai seven is the normal number of joints to a leg, we think we 
have already disposed of, in comparing the leg of the Macroura type with 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. Sjf 

those of Crustacea generally, and Amphipoda in particular, which is better 
and we think fully explained in the table of the homologies in Plate XVI. 

2nd. That the hranchia is normally an appendage of the leg and attacked 
to the COM.— This is readily observable in tiie Amphipoda, but not so di- 
stinct in the higher types, inasmuch as the organ is developed within the 
walls of the carapace and possesses an internal character. But this internal 
character is one of appearance only, dependent upon the monstrous growth 
of the carapace, which covers the rings and the branchial appendages also. 
Therefore, whenever the anterior cephalic segments cease to be developed 
into a carapace or protecting buckler, the branchial organs must be external, 
which in reality is their homological position even in the highest developed 
forms. 

In the Brachyura and Macroura the branchial organs are lodged in a 
cavity formed by the carapace, but they are separated from the great cavity 
containing the internal viscera by the wall of the segments belonging to the 
(so-called) thorax. These segments are not complete in their structure, but 
still they are a portion of the external skeleton, and the branchial organs 
developed upon their outer surface are homologically the same as the bran- 
chial sacs on the inner side of the coxa in the Amphipoda ; and the proba- 
bility is that the disarrangement exists in the higher type, in order to meet 
certain conditions which enable them to fulfil the more complete function 
of internal gills. The typical character of the branchial organs in Crustacea 
is an external apparatus. 

The coxa in the Brachyura is anchylosed with the segment of the body. 
In Macroura it is free; consequently we can the more readily perceive the 
attachment between it and the branchia. The flabella in the same orders, 
which are nothing more than an altered gill, originates from the same joint, 
and every fact proves to demonstration that the true homological position of 
the branchia is in connexion with the coxa (PI. VIII. figs. 2, 3, 10). 

Admitting then that the branchial organs are appendages of the legs 
attached to the coxae, we perceive at once, since they are attached to the (so- 
called) epimerals, that these cpimerals must homologically be consonant with 
the coxae o( the Macroura type, and therefore the first joint of each leg. 

3rd. The moveable power to the greatest degree is hetioeen the coxa and the 
next succeeding joint, and never between the coxa, and the animal. — This is 
most apparent in the Brachyura, where the coxa is fused with the segments 
of the body. In the Amphipoda it is not fused, but fixed, and the greatest 
freedom of motion to the legs is where the next joint is articulated with this, 
which is so frequently close to the base, that it is highly probable that a 
hasty examination of some of the more common species only, such as Talitrus 
and Gammarus locusta, might delay the acceptation of a fact urged by an 
unknown individual in opposition to the long-received idea propounded by 
the highest authorities and admitted by all others (vide PI. XV. fig. 8). 
But if the very transparent and by no means rare species of Gammarus 
grossimanus be examined, the coxa will be found to have the scale-like form 
developed to a moderate degree only ; and unlike most of the common 
species, the basal joint articulates with the coxa almost at the extremity, 
and gives to the latter so much the character of being a portion of the leg, 
that if all others of the class had been the same, we doubt if any observer 
would have thought of describing them as epimerals or side-pieces of the 
true segments. This remark will also hold in relation to the three posterior 
legs of Amphipoda generally, where the coxae are developed to a small 
degree ; also in the group Aberrantia {Lcemodipodd), where each is fused with 
the rest of the animal, as we find it is the casein Brachyura, a circumstance 



38 REPORT — 1855. 

which demonstrates that a fusion of the parts of the leg with the body is no 
evidence of a more or less perfect type of Crustacea. 

4th. That close exammation shows that, the (so-called) epimerals are 
not united to the segments in a manner tohich ivoidd be the case if they were 
merely separated parts of the same segment (Plate XV. fig. 8). — It is but 
natural to suppose, wlienever, in the structure of a segment, it is necessary 
that a line of demarcation, from incomplete union by an arrest in the deve- 
lopment of the whole, must exist, the two separated portions would con- 
tinue in the same plane. But these coxae articulate with their segments by 
the length of at most one-half of the width of the segment only, and that 
upon the inner portion. It is this line of demarcation which splits when 
the animal throws off its exuviae, and leaves the coxae attached to the 
legs, a fact which shows that a closer connexion exists between the leg and 
the scaliform coxa than between the coxa (epimeral) and the body of the 
animal. 

5th. There are no epimerals where there are no legs. 

6th. Epimerals are not observed in any except the Edriophthalma. 

These two last arguments are negative in their character; but it is at least 
curious, that if the coxae, are side-pieces of each successive segment, a 
more perfect development of the segments with the side-pieces takes place 
posteriorly where the perambulating legs cease to exist. Again, their absence 
in the Macroura (for we consider it a thing proved that the so-called epimerals 
appertaining to the carapace are in fact the mandibular segment*) is at least 
remarkable both in the anterior and posterior portions of the animal. 

Posterior to the perambulating legs, the pleopoda or swimming-feet are 
attached to the underside of what is commonly called the abdomen, but 
which we think with more convenience may be called the pleon, being the 
segments which bear the swimming feet. 

The superior arches of the segments overlie the side of the inferior to a 
considerable extent, but there are no traces of anything like independent 
side-pieces or epimerals. 

Taking these several facts into consideration, we are forced to the con- 
clusion that the epimerals of Milne-Edwards are not lateral pieces of the 
normal segment, but the first joint of the true legs, and homologize with the 
coxopodite of the same author in the Brachyura and Macroura, 

In the Amphipoda the coxa is developed into a scale-like form common 
to the whole order, and is produced to a much greater extent in the four 
anterior than the three posterior legs. The three last have generally the 
second joint (basis) developed to assume the scaly appearance which belongs 
to the anterior coxa. 

In some species, as in Montagua, one or two of the anterior coxae are 
developed so as to hide the whole of the rest of the inferiorly situated parts 
of the animal. 

On the microscopic Structure of the Integumentary Skeleton. 

In all Crustacea, from the highest to the lowest, the composition of the 
tissues is the same. 

From its capability of withstanding the disintegrating power of boiling 
potash as well as that of the mineral acids, the base of the structure is 
assumed to be chitine, developed in the form of cells, the hollows of which 
are filled with carbonate of lime. 

The process of development appears to be analogous to that of the higher 

* Annals of Nat. Hist. July 1855, and in Dana on Crustacea. 



ON THE BEITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 39 

forms of Crustacea, but the tissue is never consolidated into so firm a struc- 
ture. It seldom, except in the larger species, and in certain parts of others 
where strength is required, as the chelae, &c., increases to such an extent as 
to cease to be transparent. This circumstance offers to the observer very 
valuable advantages. Without necessarily destroying life, one is enabled to 
perceive the currents of the circulation of the (so-called) blood ; also the 
motion of the cardiac vessels, and the position of many of the internal organs, 
which otherwise could never be clearly ascertained ; since in the dissection of 
an animal so small, a great disarrangement of the tissues must necessarily 

take place. . i j i 

Independent of the advantage of being able to see through the dermal 
tissue, we are also capable of examining its minute composition, and the 
manner in which it is built up, without cutting the material into thin sec- 
tions, and thus precluding the examination of its character as a whole. The 
examination of this tissue microscopically is one of considerable im- 
portance, as we believe it will be found to offer very extensive varieties of 
structure, the extent of which is limited only perhaps by the number of 
species in the genera ; for as far as our examination has progressed, we have 
found the law of peculiarity of structure constant to every species, a cir- 
cumstance in itself of great advantage in the determination of doubtful 
specimens. 

Although a great dissimilarity of the microscopic structure between spe- 
cies belonging to the same genus is persistent to such an extent, as to differ 
■widely even when the general appearances of animals assimilate so that they 
may be mistaken otherwise for the same species, yet we find that in different 
genera the character of the structure of the dermal tissue is repeated with 
but little modification ; as compare Gammarus ( Othonis ?) with Chelura 
(Plate XVII. figs. 6 & 10), also Dexamine with Calliope Leachii (figs. 2 & 3) 
in the same table. 

The closely allied species, which by Leach in his typical collection in the 
British Museum are arranged under the same head as Gammarus locusta, 
will be found, in spite of the very near resemblance in external character, to 
have a considerable variation in the microscopic appearance of the integu- 
mentary tissue, and are in fact two species, G. locusta and G. gracilis. 

In Gammarus locusta the dermal skeleton will be found, when examined 
under one-fifth of an inch power object-glass, to possess a minutely granular 
appearance in its general aspect, studded here and there with small short 
arrow-headed spinules or hairs, around each of which is a semitransparent 
areola, it being free from granular material. In addition to the arrow- 
headed points, which at intervals cover the general surface, there is in this 
species on each side of the medial line of the four or five posterior seg- 
ments of the (so-called) thorax, a row of small simple-pointed spines: these 
are closely placed together to the number of nine or ten in a semitransparent 
areola which surrounds the entire set; the whole arranged in the form of a 
short, rather abruptly curved line (Plate XVII. fig. 5). 

The closely allied species we believe to be identical with Gammarus gra- 
cilis of Rathke, and perhaps also G. Olivii and qffinis of Edwards, but which 
only a microscopic examination of the structure of the skin could positively 
determine, since they have been found at very distant habitats ; the former 
at the Crimea, the latter at Naples. In this species, the most abundant 
upon our shores, the granular pavement is not so conspicuous; the walls 
of the cells, of which the tissue is constructed, are still apparent in their 
general arrangement. They form polygonal divisions caused by their mutual 
pressure. The small spinules, which in G. locusta assume an arrow-headed 



40 REPORT — 1855. 

form, are in G. gracilis represented by minute sharp-pointed ones, which 
rise out of a soclvet Mhieli lies witliin the tissue itself, and assume the form 
somewiiat of an iiour-giass, enlarging in diameter as it does at each extremity. 
Besides these two appearances, there is a third, which, though not present 
in G. locttsfa, is a feature in the order generally. This is a series of very 
numerous small perforations, M'hich in some species assume a waved appear- 
ance as they come through the tissue (PI. XVII. fig. 4). 

Without being confident in the assertion, we think that the object of these 
tubes is analogous to that of the pores in fish and other marine animals. 

In apposition to the dissimilarity, which often is very great, between the 
most closely allied species of the same genus, it will not unfrequently be 
found that the same kind of microscopic structure is repeated in species 
belonging to genera widely separate. 

In the genus Gammarus, a s])ecies on our shores, which approximates 
nearer to that of G. Othonis of Edwards than any other of which we are cog- 
nisant, and has the surface rough, though minutely so, it is sufficient to be 
appreciable under a lens of low power. When this is examined under a 
microscope of greater capability, the roughened appearance resolves into a 
surface irregularly covered with a number of minute projecting obtuse 
points. These appear to have a tendency to form into rows, the unequal 
length as well as distance between which are so irregularly repeated, that 
they appear to exist often together in clusters of greater or less importance 
(PI. XVII. fig. 6). 

This description of the appearance under the microscope of the dermal 
tissue in G. Otho-nis (?) would be equally correct of Chelur a terebrans, which 
belongs to a genus which bears little or no comparative assimilation with 
Gammarus, the only appreciable difference being that the points which are 
scattered over the surface of each are perhaps more obtuse in Chelura; but 
even this may have some modification dependent upon the part of tiie animal 
from which it is taken, or the relative ages of either (PI. XVII. fig. 10). 

Again, in Dexamine bispinosa of the British seas (which in form much 
resembles Amphifoe costata of Edwards from the Isle of Bourbon), we see 
repeated with little variety the same microscopic characters visible in Cal- 
liope Leachii. In each of these the animal is covered by many small scale-like 
processes developed upon the surface of the dermal tissue. These, attached 
at one margin, are raised at the opposite, which is directed posteriorly. In 
Dexamine there are also present a few solitary small hairs or minute spinules 
which we have not perceived in Calliope (PI. XVII. figs, 2& 3). 

The scales, broad at their attached base and rounded at the apex, re- 
semble generally a crescent form in both Dexamine and Calliope. In 
Dexamine they appear to be more numerous and generally more minute, 
but it is not impossible that this supposed difference may be dependent upon 
age or sex. 

Looking at the arrangement of the microscopic structure of the dermal 
tissue of this order generally, we are forcibly led to rely with con- 
siderable confidence upon its value as an important test in the diagnosis of 
species. 

The form and structtire of the hairs which exist on different parts of tlie 
animal, when microscopically considered, will be found to be auxiliaries of 
analogous character ; but being not so constant in their peculiarities, are less 
valuable as tests of species. They not only vary in species, but differ on 
separate parts of the same animal. In Sulcator arenarius there are no less 
than twelve varieties. 

1st. Some are plain, simple, stiff, bristle-like spines. These are common. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 4t 

in different deprrees of strength, to the margins of the limbs generally (PI. 
XVir. fig. Al). 

2nd. Are longer in general form, and are fringed on one side with a 
series of fine, straijiht teeth-like processes, assuming a rake-like character. 
These are attached to the maxilliped, as also another variety (PI. XVII. fig. 
A 2). 

3rd, Differs from the last in having the teeth bent in a curve directed 
to the base (fig. A 3). 

4th. On the carpus of the second gnathopod (the second thoracic foot 
of authors), the hairs are two very distinct varieties, which appear to 
originate from closely approximating bases. One is long and slender, naked 
until the extreme point, where appear a few exquisitely delicate cilia, which 
give to the extremity a bulbous appearance, which can be resolved only 
with a 700 magnifying power (fig. A 4). 

5th. Tiie other is short, broad and flat, terminating in a point which is 
sharply turned upon itself; the margins of the hair are likewise furnished 
with a series of minute teeth pointing towards the base, ranged on each side 
for about two-thirds of the entire length of the hair (fig. A 5). 

6th. Again, upon the same member on the propodos, we find two other 
forms, though decidedly moulded upon the type of the two preceding. The 
shorter form loses the hook-like point in a bulbous termination, and the 
shaft is furnished with teeth but on one edge (fig. A 6). 

7th. On the appendage to the mandible a variety of this last form exists 
(fig. A 7). 

8th. Represents the longer variety, and shows a decided increase of 
strength ; it is slightly turned at the extremity (fig. A 8). 

9th. These hairs are situated on the first gnathopod, and assimilate to 
No. 6 on the second in general form, but are minus the serrated margin; 
on one side of the extremity is a fine hair (fig. A 9). 

10th, 1 1 th, 12th are varieties of the plumose form, and are chiefly found upon 
the second antenna, though a few are present at several parts of the animal 
besides. Besides these, there are numerous modifications of a less distinct 
form of many of them in different positions of the animal (fig. A 10, 11, 12). 

To become acquainted with the whole, so as to make the knowledge avail- 
able to any practical result in the determination of species, would partake of 
too exclusive a study, and one that would not be commensurate to the labour 
entailed, if the great variety of forms were generally constant. It is not 
often that we meet with this obstruction. 

On Talitrus locusta (the common shore sand-hopper). — There appears to 
be but a single kind of hair with but little modification of form to meet the 
conditions of distinct parts. They are short, stiff", blunt spines, and exhibit 
under the microscope a tendency to a spiral condition for about one-fourth 
the length of the whole from the extremity, at which distance a second, but 
smaller process, exists, so that the hair might be characterized as forked, but 
that the great inequality of the two terminations would scarcely admit the 
idea to be realized (PI. XVII. fig. B). This kind of termination to the hair 
is by no means rare in the order. Those found in Gammarus are scarcely 
more than modifications of the same form, and not very important in their 
change, a circumstance which lessens the confidence in the expression of 
any opinion obtained from their observation. 

But still the close examination of the hairs taken from positions homolo- 
gically the same in different species, may not unfrequently be found an 
auxiliary of greater or less importance in the study of closely-allied species. 

The process of moulting, — The Amphipoda, as all other Crustacea, renew 



43 REPORT — 1855. 

their integumentary tissues periodically*. This remark holds equally true as 
regards the lining membrane of the alimentary canal, which is cast in con- 
nexion with the external skeleton. There is no appreciable difference in the 
habits of the animal more immediately before the casting of the skin than at 
any other period. It appears to swim about just the same until the hour of 
moulting arrives, when it seeks a place of comparative security where it may 
remain the desired length of time that may be necessary without fear of 
interruption. 

The opportunities that have been most favourable for our observations 
have been when the animals, confined in glass jars, have occasionally chosen 
a position against the upright walls. 

They grasp with their anterior foot or feet some fixed ground, weed, or 
secure material as an anchorage, resting the entire side against the glass. 
Here the little creature commences its labour, which appears to be one of 
no great discomfort, if we may judge from the small amount of disquietude 
with which the operation is conducted. Almost at any stage the animal has 
the capability of removing, if it be disturbed, to another spot out of reach. 

The process appears to be the result of an internal growth of the animal, 
which becoming too large for the skin, it splits. This is produced at the 
maro-in whore the dorsal and sternal arches of the three anterior segments of 
the pereion (thorax) meet, the inferior arch carrying the legs, inclusive of 
the coxEe (epimerals) attached to them ; a fact, which identifies, we think, the 
relation of the (so-called) epimerals with the sternal rather than the dorsal 
arch. 

The first of the two gnathic segments of the pereion which overrides 
anteriorly the cephalic ring is broken at that point from its attachment with 
it, and in conjunction with the two next succeeding segments it becomes a 
moveable lid, as it were, to the case in which the animal resides. 

After some tolerable exertion, the posterior portion of the animal, together 
with its limbs, is withdrawn from its normal position, and ultimately becomes 
entirely liberated from the skin, to which the animal now remains attached 
by the head and the anterior members only. A few more struggles, and the 
creature is free of the whole of the dead exuviae, which is left attached to 
its old position. 

Unless disturbed, the animal, which is now extremely soft, generally 
rests for some time, as if exhausted, near the cast-off skeleton ; should, 
however, there be any cause, it is perfectly capable of swimming away 
immediately. 

In Caprella, Mr. Henry Goodsir (Edinburgh Philosophical Journal, 1842) 
remarked that the animal, before the process commenced, " lies for a 
considerable time languid, and to all appearance dead. At length a slight 
quivering takes place all over the body, attended in a short time with more 
violent exertions. The skin then bursts behind the head in a transverse 
direction, and also down the mesial line of the abdominal surface ; a few 
more violent exertions then free the body of its old covering. After this 
the animal remains for a considerable time in a languid state, and is quite 
transparent and colourless." 

The new creature is a perfect representation of the old one slightly 
enlarged, and, according to our own observations, every hair is produced 
complete ; though Prof. Edwards believes that this is not the case, but that 

* Mr. Bell, in his Introduction to the ' History of the British Crustacea,' has, upon the 
authority of Mr. Couch, stated (iu a note, page Ixi), " that the families in which the eyes 

are always sessile in their adult growth do not exuviate or voluntarily throw oflF 

their limbs." 



ON THE BRITISH BDBIOPHTHALMA. 43 

they are afterwards produced. Our observations have not been pursued 
upon those species which are supplied with an abundant brush of hair, but 
still it would appear, that if the remark be correct when the hairs are few, it 
would lead to the same result where they are abundant. It is certainly 
capable of demonstration, even before moulting, for we have repeatedly 
observed the new hair attached to the new skin while examining specimens 
under the microscope, where the second layer of similarly furnished integu- 
ment is distinctly visible beneath the outer; and it has always appeared 
to us, though contrary to anticipation, that the new materials (hairs, spines, 
&c.) are not developed within each corresponding hair, spine, tooth, &c., 
since they are visible within the integument as a second armature. 

This remark is particularly verified by the teeth on the maxillae ; this may 
probably be here induced by their commonly forked character, which might 
cause an injury, should they have to be withdrawn from similarly formed 
organs. This is a fate that not unfrequently happens to the branchial sacs. 
We have seen one of these last remain within the old tunic of the cast skin, 
it having been torn from the parent during the process of moulting, owing 
to the narrow neck of the sac ; but which by analogy, we may infer, is again 
replaced by a process of repair, common to the whole class, but which has 
most frequently been observed in the higher types of Crustacea. 

On the reproduction of lost parts. — The power of animals to restore to its 
normal character a new limb or organ, is nowhere so visibly illustrated as in 
this great class. The manner in which it is carried into effect has been 
described by Dalyell, Goodsir, and others (including a short paper of our 
own in the ' Annals of Natural History' for 1850, as well as the British Asso- 
ciation Reports for the same year); but these labours have chiefly been 
directed to the higher orders of Crustacea, among which it has been shown, 
that upon the infliction of an injury upon any giyen member, the whole limb 
is immediately forcibly dislocated and thrown off. This is always done at 
the articulation between the coxa and the next succeeding joint. 

The wound that is caused by this sudden rupture of parts is naturally 
stanched by a thin membrane which instantly shows itself as the immediate 
result, and it appears not to be impossible, that its formation, which must be 
very sudden, may be the amputating power. 

Observers have generally added as an appendage to the above curious fact 
in nature, that it is exceedingly fortunate that Crustacea have this power of 
voluntary amputation of their members at a given spot, for otherwise, enclosed 
as they are in a most unyielding dermal case, they must, upon being wounded, 
of necessity bleed to death. 

In all the natural sciences there is nothing more likely to lead to error 
than deductions based upon negative evidence. That an animal would bleed 
to death under such circumstances would appear an extremely probable 
hypothesis ; but in answer to it, the whole of the order of the Amphipoda 
appear to want the pow er of the dislodgement of any of the limbs, yet they 
do not die upon being so wounded. 

If a leg be cut off, or any part injured, the wound appears shortly after to 
cicatrize over with a black scar ; but as far as our opportunities, which have 
not been inconsiderable, have enabled us to judge, the member is never 
thrown off. 

That a limb upon being lost is capable of being reproduced, is, we believe, 
correct, but the injured limb is not thrown off to facilitate the reproduction. 

We presume, that when the animal moults the skin, the remaining portion 
of the injured member may be thrown off with it, and the new limb com- 
mences reproduction at that or some earlier period ; but not having been 



44 REPORT — 1855. 

enabled to state the circumstance from actual observation, we wish not to say- 
much on the subject. 

We have noticed a young limb commencing at the coxa as in the higher 
order, a circumstance which maivcs us infer that the reproduction of a lost 
member is always from tiiat joint; and since it is necessary, before the com- 
pletion of the new part, that the old one should be got rid of, it is thrown off 
at the period of moulting. 

To meet with one of these animals with the limb undergoing the process 
of redevelopment is of very rare occurrence ; so rare, that after having 
watched some thousands in glass tanks, we remember only having observed 
a single specimen which had two legs in this state. 

On the auditory organs. — The upper antennae are in Crustacea without 
doubt organs of hearing of a more or less imperfect nature. This, we think, 
has been argued to demonstration : first, by Dr. Farre, in the Philosophical 
Transactions for 184'3, who reversed the decision of older authors, and gave 
satisfactory reasons for considering them as auditory organs in Macroura. 
This has been followed up by Mr. Huxley, who, in a paper in the ' Annals of 
Natural History ' for the year 1831, supported the opinion of Dr. Farre by 
researches on some small es-otic Macroura, and identified a "strongly refract- 
ing otolithe" in the anterior antennae. And lately, in a paper communicated 
to the Fellows of the Linnean Society, and published in the ' Annals of 
Natural History' for July 1855, we have demonstrated a more elaborate 
and higher kind of organ in the basal joint of the same antenna in the Bru' 
chyura. 

We may here therefore take for granted, since M. Milne-Edwards' 
* Histoire des Sciences Naturelles' was published in IS^O, in which he 
argues these to be olfactory organs, that the present state of our know- 
ledge accepts the interpretation of the later observations on the subject*. 
Admitting this to be the fact, it is for us here merely to compare the 
upper antenna of the Amphipoda with the internal of the Macroura. 

In Amphipoda the structure of the anterior antenna is very simple, and is 
generally long and slender. The second filament, which in the higher orders 
is commonly of equal length with the first, is in this order reduced to a rudi- 
mentary condition, or entirely wanting. When this antenna is reduced in 
length, it generally is increased in bulk at the base of the peduncle, as if the 
internal organization became more important with external decreasing exten- 
sion. Examples of this are to be found in the genus Lysianassa (PI. XHI. 
fig. 1) and Anonyx. 

A marked exception to this is perceptible in the true Orchestia, where 
the organ is short and unimportant, approximating towards a rudimentary 
condition of the whole. This is a valuable fact, since it evidently is the 
result of certain altered circumstances which interfere with the proper 
development of the organ, which in Amphipoda generally is adapted for 
aquatic existence only. 

Talitrus and Orchestia are in an intermediate position, their habits are 
between the aquatic and the land Crustacea, and are the nearest approach to 
terrestiial Amphipoda that we know. As their habits, so are their organs 
adapted. Tlie Crustacea, which are purely terrestrial, possess no upper an- 
tennae ; those which are semiterrestrial possess them in but a rudimentary con- 
dition. They differ from the short upper antennze of aquatic Crustacea, such 
as the Lysianassidce, They are evidently impoverished organs, that is small, 
because they are not required ; they ceased to grow from an arrest of pro- 

* Von Siebold, in his recent ' Comparative Anatomy,' supports the opinion of Edwards, but 
we think not from his own actual researches so much as from the works of others. 



ON THE BRITISH EDBIOPHTHALMA. 4Sk 

grtssive development. They are not the evidence of a more perfect 
structure. 

This fact has not its full weight in the reasoning of Mr. Dana, when he 
makes the short upper antennae evidence of a higher organized Crustacea. 

The antenna is reduced in length to fulfil certain conditions : in TalitruSy 
because it is needless as an aquatic organ ; in Lysianassa and its near allies, 
possibly as a more perfect one ; in the Hyperidce, with scarce an excep- 
tion, on account of the impoverished character of the whole animal. 

Talitrus and Hyperia are generally admitted by naturalists to rank at the 
opposite extremities of the order, and if generalization were to be adopted 
from a too narrow observation, then at whichever extremity of the order it 
was confined, the faulty conclusion would be enunciated which identifies a 
short anterior antenna as typical of an improved organization, and, on the 
other hand, one of a more feeble type. 

The most perfectly formed anterior antenna belonging to the Amphipoda 
has always appeared to us to be that furnished with the most perfect and 
largest number of those appendages which we have in this paper denomi- 
nated as auditory cilia, since they enable the organ more completely to fulfil 
its office. These membranous cilia we believe to be the external agents 
by which a sensation analogous to sound is conveyed to the consciousness of 
the animal. The imperfect nature of the organ is in accordance with our idea 
of the imperfect condition of the sensation conveyed to an animal so low in 
the scale of creation, conducted as it is by means of a medium so dense as 
water. We have never been able to observe any traces of an internal organ 
in this antenna, but in one or two species we have thought we detected 
a nerve traversing the lower side to the extremity of the peduncle in 
jEgina longispina and Amphitoe rubricata. This nerve terminates at the 
roots of the first auditory cilia, which are placed at the extremity of the 
peduncle, and are repeated throughout the length of the filamentary con- 
tinuation, which appears to us to be a more or less extended base for the 
support of these delicate organisms. The number of auditory cilia belong- 
ing to the antenna bears no relative proportion to its length. They crowd 
together where the limb is short, as in Plate XIII. fig. 1. Upon the more 
lengthened member they generally are to be found, one at the further ex- 
ti'emity of each small articulation. 

These auditory cilia are to be found only on the principal filament in all 
the malacostracous divisions of Crustacea ; the complementary appendage, 
however important, is never furnished with them. Their forms vary in 
different species, but not to any very considerable extent ; occasionally they 
will be found, as fig. c in PlateXIII., to terminate %vith a little tooth-like point; 
very commonly they are seen with a kind of semiarticulation near the centre, 
as in Tetromatus ; often they are quite simple, as in Lysianassa. But 
the most typical form appears to be blunt at the extremity, equal in 
breadth from the top to the bottom, with a sudden decrease near the centre, 
that gives it an articulated appearance. They are compressed longitudinally, 
instead of being round like hairs generally, and are extremely delicate in 
structure, quite transparent, and almost invisible when compared with the 
true hair^. They are membranous and flexible, and we should presume pecu- 
liarly appropriated for the reception of impressions of a vibratile character. 

The concentration of theio organisms upon a short antenna, together with 
tlw evident increase of diameter at the base of the peduncle, may be iudica- 
tioiBs of an organ better adapted for the reception of sounds; but we have 
not been enabled to distinguish that there is consequently any relative in- 
crease of perfection in the organization of the entire animal. 



46 KBPORT — 1855. 

Olfactory organ. — We have elsewhere* given our reasons for following 
the opinion of Dr. Farre, in transferring the seat of this sense to the lower 
or external antenna, in opposition to the opinions of Prof. Milne-Edwards, 
Von Siebold, and others. These, since they are too recent to be generally 
known, we shall here briefly recapitulate. 

" The question whicli we have to consider is, to which sense either of the 
two sets of organs belongs ; — whether the upper belongs to the auditory and 
the lower to the olfactory, as we shall endeavour to prove ; or vice versa, as 
maintained by all previous writers, except Dr. Farre and Mr. Huxley. 

" We shall divide the evidences on either side under two heads ; first, that 
which is derived from an external observation ; and second, that which is 
derived from the internal organization. 

" First then from external circumstances : An auditory apparatus is an 
organ furnished to an animal for one or both of two objects; first, for pro- 
tection from danger; second, for the pleasure derivable from sounds. To 
animals so low in the scale of being as the Crustacea, placed as they are 
in a medium which must considerably modify its character, sound can convey 
little to the consciousness of the animal beyond a sense of security or danger. 

" To enable this to be of the most extensive value, the auditory organ must 
be, and always is placed so as to be most exposed to external impressions at 
all periods ; particularly when the animal is at rest or pre-occupied. 

" Now if we look at the organ which the present state of science attributes to 
the sense of hearing, we find that in the most perfectly formed animals, the 
Brachyura, it is enclosed within a bony case and secured by a calcareous 
operculum ; that it is always so in a state of rest, and only exposed when 
especially required. Not only is this the case throughout the order, but in 
some genera, as in Corystes, Cancer, &c., it is again covered by the supplying 
organs of the mouth. 

" If we take into consideration the nature of sound, and its difference of 
character when conveyed under water from that of passing through air, the 
obtuse character of the former, which can scarcely be more than a vibratory 
action of particles of water, which conveys to us a very modified and imper- 
fect idea of sound, we find it difficult to understand that the organ situated 
at the base of the under (internal) antenna is capable of receiving impressions 
of sound, enclosed as it is within and covered by a stout calcareous oper- 
culum. 

" But if we view it as an organ of smell, every objection previously mani- 
fest now becomes evidence in i'avour of the idea. The small door, when it 
is raised, exposes the orifice in a direction pointing to the mouth ; this also is 
the direction of the same organ in all the higher orders. In Amphipoda it 
is directed inwards and forwards. In every animal it is so situated, that it is 
impossible for any food to be conveyed into the mouth without passing under 
the test of this organ, and by it the animal has the power to judge the 
suitability of the substance as food, by raising the operculum at will, and 
exposing to it the hidden organ — the olfactory." 

The deductions in the paper just quoted were the result of researches 
chiefly made on the Brachyura. In the Amphipoda, the homologue of the 
above organ, which we maintain is adapted for smelling, is to be found in the 
form of a small spine or denticle at the inferior side of the second antenna. 

This denticle is so constant, that its absence is a thing of note, as for 
instance in the almost terrestrial genus of Orchestia; probably the result 
of an adaptation of the internal organ to meet a more rarefied atmosphere. 

This organ appears to be developed from the first and second joints of the 
* Annals of Natural History, July 1855. 



ON THE BRITISH BDBIOPHTHALMA. 4f 

peduncle ; for the two appear to be so closely associated, that it is impossible 
to say to which it more immediately belongs. From analogy with the higher 
types, we should infer the first, though probably the two combine to increase 
the efficiency of the organ by their concentration. 

In the freshwater species of Gammarus, the organ appears rather larger 
and more characteristic in form. It is from this species we shall give our 
description of the organ. 

The first joint of the antenna is enlarged into a chamber of a globose form 
(PI. XIV. fig. 4a) : this is received into a corresponding notch of the cephalic 
ring (fig. 3). From the globular chamber, which appears to be the pro- 
tecting walls of an internal organ of more delicate contrivance, there proceeds 
a large tooth-like process (b), which in this Report we have called the olfactory 
denticle. It differs in length and breadth in different species, but is a very 
constant appendage. This process is open at the extremity (c), through 
which a tube projects (d), which latter is either open, or protected by a 
membrane too delicate to be observed, but which, from analogy with the 
higher orders, we are induced to believe may be the case. It is not always 
that the tube projects through the aperture at the extremity of the denticle; 
occasionally it falls short, as in Istea (fig. 1); but this is merely a variety 
depending upon species. 

The tube appears to be cylindrical, and continues internally with parallel 
walls to about half the length of the tooth itself, when it suddenly converges 
to a point, which is open, since it is entered by what appears to be a nerve, 
which either itself terminates in or supplies with sensibility a sharp tongue- 
like process (/), which is enclosed within the cavity of the tube-like canal. 
From the base of this small organ the supposed nerve is traceable in a waving 
line to a small bulbous origin (ff), situated at the base of the olfactory 
denticle at its point of connexion with the enlarged chamber. Beyond this 
probable ganglion the closest investigation has not enabled us to see any 
further trace of the nerve. 

This organ, with but little variation of external form, is to be met with in 
almost every species, even including those where the whole antenna is pro- 
duced in the form attributable to the character of Ieg«, and used as such in 
climbing over irregular protuberances of the ground. 

The species in which the organ in its external form does not exist, are the 
Talitri, Orchestia, and the Hyperice, together with a species of Gammarus, 
which we believe hitherto to be uudescribed ; we call it in our list Gammarus 
elegans, on account of the general beauty of the form and colouring of the 
only specimen we have yet taken *. The lower antenna in this species is sup- 
plied with a peculiar set of organs, similar to those which have been described 
by Prof. Edwards in his species G. ornatus. Commencing on the last joint of 
the peduncleto the extremity of the long filament, there is, at gradually increa- 
sing intervals, a series of small membranous polyp-like bodies : they are closed 
sacs, and require but a low power of the microscope to perceive them. Those 
described by Edwards are fringed with a slightly ciliated border, and belong 
to a North American species, which differs in other essential respects from our 
British form. To assign any peculiar use to these organisms came not within 
the conception of their original observer, and we can only point to this solitary 
instance of their being present on the olfactory antenna, where the organ of 
the sense peculiar to it is either absent or reduced to a rudimentary cha- 
racter: but a more extended opportunity of observation is necessary before 
we can attempt to pronounce this condition constant (PI. XIV. tigs. 5 & 5a). 

* This may be the true reason why the olfactory denticle has not been observed : we 
were »&aid of injuring the specimen. 



48 REPORT — 1855. 

In Orcheslia, as previously observed, the absence of the olfactory denticle is 
probably the result of altered internal conditions of the organ necessary to 
meet the peculiar change of circumstances into air from water, in which the 
Amphipoda normally reside. 

The denticle, when present, is situated slightly in advance of the mouth, 
and nothing can be eaten that does not pass the ordeal of the olfactory 
organs, for such we do not hesitate to call them. 

Taste. — The sense of the enjoyment of food, even in the highest types of 
the animal kingdom, is not the result of the power of any especial organ. 
The nerves which communicate the idea are developed over most of the 
internal surface of the mouth, and it is only the consciousness of taste that 
demonstrates their position and use. The probability from analogy is, that 
the sensation is manifest to creatures low in the animal scale in a similar 
manner, and is rather a faculty peculiar to the mouth in general, than the 
result of any especial combination directed to a given part. 

In Sulcator arenarius, and only in that species, have we observed what 
may possibly be an especial organ of taste. There is a large protuberance 
upon the first maxilla. It has a somewhat glandular appearance, and is the 
result of cell growth ; these cells are large and nucleated. We have failed 
to observe the organ, or anything analogous in the same or a similar position, 
in any of the more common and numerous forms of Amphipoda that we have 
examined. It can scarcely be looked upon in the light of a salivary organ, 
although its component cells possess all the characteristics of those belong- 
ing to a secreting gland, since its position upon the maxilla, being external to 
tlie mandibles, forbids the idea. The purpose of this organ (if it be one) 
will require more extended and systematic observations ere it can be resolved 
from its present enigmatical character (PI. XV. fig. 4 a). 

The Prima Via. — The oesophagus leads, as in all Crustacea, abruptly 
from the mouth to the stomach ; it is extremely short and is directed upwards, 
inclining rather forwards than otherwise, so that the stomach is almost 
entirely within the cephalic ring in the Amphipoda. 

Just within the anterior opening of the stomach are two rake-like 
organs (PI. XIX. fig. 1 a,a^; the rows of teeth form themselves on each side 
into a convex line, the teeth being a little curved, the lower or anterior ones 
mostly so. The apparatus directs its teeth inwards and backwards, so that 
the food may with ease pass in, but cannot again return. 'J'lie teeth on each 
side appear to be antagonistic sets, which probably tear and masticate the 
food as it enters into the stomach. 

Behind this masticating apparatus there exist four simple leaf-like plates 
fringed with long and powerful cilia, placed in pairs {hh, cc), one anteriorly 
and the other posteriorly situated in the stomach ; immediately above the 
second or posterior pair, apparently in a chamber of its own, is a gizzard-like 
organ (cV). This so-called gizzard consists of several closely-packed rows 
of fine short strong hairs, the whole formed into the shajje, vhen displayed, 
of an inverted heart with the apex removed, and the reversed section added 
to the base ; the walls of the cavity in which the gizzard exists is lined with 
numerous but small hairs : the whole apparatus appears to be placed out 
of the direct line of continuation between the oesophagus and the alimentary 
canal. Posterior to the gizzard-like organ, there exists in some, but we are 
not certain that it is connnon to all the Amphipoda, a long cceca or cul de 
sac (e, e) on each side of the posterior opening of the stomach. These are 
delicate prolongations of the wall of the stomach, and gradually become 
narrower towards their extremity. They probably supply the stomach with 
a gastric juice. Still more posteriorly, at the point where the stomach con- 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 49 

verges and unites with the alimentary canal, on the inferior surface, it is 
united with the liver. 

From the stomach, the alimentary tube is continued in a direct line to 
the anal extremity. To this general law we know of but one exception, and 
that upon the authority of Professor Allman, who states that in Chelura 
terebrans the alimentary canal is so arranged as to shut one part within 
another to admit of the head being projected forwards, that the animal may 
eat its way into the wood. 

In a few species the alimentary tube is continued beyond the posterior 
limits of the calcareous tissue of the animal, and is furnished with a slightly 
pectinated edge. 

The most constant condition is, that the anus shall coterminate with the 
last segment, and is there closed by a set of transverse muscles which pro- 
bably fultil the office of a sphincter (PI. XX. fig. 1 c). 

The structure of the walls of the canal appears to be a membrane pos- 
sessing a fibrous character which stripes it in a longitudinal direction (PI. XIX, 
fig. 5). Transverse lines of a finer appearance are also perceptible (fig. 6) ; 
and the general appearance of the whole is that of a passage surrounded 
with elastic walb. 

The stomach is retained in its position ; first, by being supported upon flat 
calcareous plates (PI. XII. figs. 4 O & 5), processes of the dorsal part of the 
segment which carries the maxillae. These processes are flattened to receive 
the organ, which is further retained in its position by a calcareous con- 
tinuation on each side. Besides, there are several muscles, some of which 
are attached to the upper external surface and retain it anteriorly, while 
others are attached to the under surface and hold it posteriorly in position 
(PI. XIX. fig. 2,/ &^). 

The Liver appears to be among the most important of the viscera, if we 
may judge from its relative size. It uniformly, as far as our experience 
teaches us, consists of four long simple sacs filled with biliary cells, the 
contents of which are yellow in colour (PI. XIX. figs. 3 p). These separate 
sacs unite together at their anterior extremity into a single short biliary 
duct, which opens into the intestinal tube on the under aspect, immediately 
where it leaves the stomach. 

Urinary organs. — About two-thirds the distance from the stomach to the 
anal aperture, two long cylindrical appendages, closed at the free extremity, 
communicate laterally upon the upper side with the intestinal tube (PI. XX. 
fig. 2). These appendages are more important in appearance in some 
species of Amphipoda. than in others ; but as far as our experience guides, 
they are universally present both in male and female, as also in the imma- 
ture animal. In the younger forms they are rudimentary, as shown in fig. 4, 
taken fvom Amphitoii ; but are scarcely more so than those found in the adult 
Gammarus grossimanus, as shown in fig. 3 of the same Plate. 

Immediately posterior to the communication of this organ with the ali- 
mentary canal are a series of muscular fibres transversely lying across the 
latter (PI. XIX. fig. 1 J) ; they strongly assimilate both in form and arrange- 
ment with those which we have already mentioned as being sphincter muscles, 
to the terminal orifice ,of the alimentary tube. The position which this 
second set of muscles holds is at the immediate point of communication 
between the two organs, and the general appearance would also induce us to 
believe that their object is to fulfil a similar office and keep compressed the 
efi'erent orifice. In fact they act the part of sphincter muscles to the 
urinary organ. 

Although we name these the urinary organs, yet it is without perfect 
1855. " E 



50 REPORT— 1855. 

assurance that we can arrive at the conclusion of their veritable purpose. But 
from their general position and structure, their constant presence both in male 
and female, old as well as young, together with the form of the entire appa- 
ratus, we are induced to believe them to be a simple form of urinary orgnn. 
The contents, under a one-fifth power of the microscope, are resolved into 
small round cells, containing a nucleus of granular material (PL XIX. fig. 6). 
These cells are closely packed together, but not so firmly as to lose their 
original form ; and the whole are confined within the walls of the organ, 
which appear to be very stout, the external surface of which is slightly 
notched (fig. 5) at tolerably regular distances, as if the organ had the power 
of contraction and expansion. Both the organs (if there are always two, of 
•which we are not certain, in every species, since we have not clearly de- 
monstrated them, except in Sulcafor) (fig. 2) lie so closely together, as to 
appear like one ; but in the genus Sulcator we have displayed them both by 
dissection. They lie their full length along about one-third of the upper 
aspect of the alimentary canal, and towards the posterior extremity make a 
sudden turn, and directly after connect themselves with the alimentary canal 
(fig. 1). The appearance of the structure at this bend is of a much more 
robust character than at any other point of the organ. 

The Vascular System. — At the anterior portion of the alimentary canal, 
and placed above it, lies the cardiac vessel or heart (PI. XXII. fig. 3 a). It is 
a long simple organ more like an aorta than a heart, reaching from the first 
to the last segment of the pereion (or thorax), and does not extend, as 
asserted in the ' Histoire des Crustaces' (vol. i. p. 98), " through the whole 
length of the abdomen," as is the case, upon the same authority, in the Sto- 
mapoda. The superior wall is suspended by a series of attachments at the 
centre of each successive segment, which gives it a festooned appearance 
through the whole length of its upper surface. The walls of the organ are 
of a fibrous character, arranged diagonally to the vision under the micro- 
scope, the result we believe of a spiral arrangement in the general structure 
of the walls. The whole possesses an elastic nature, and a persistent pulsation 
is carried on, causing the festoon on the upper surface to rise and fall with 
each successive throb. 

Corresponding with the centre of each segment there is an aperture in 
the heart into which passes the blood, being propelled by successive 
jerks (PI. XXII. fig. 3 c, c, c). The (so-called) blood-corpuscles are very 
discernible, and by this means the course of the circulation is not difficult 
to be traced. Though the corpuscles travel in a continuous current, yet we 
have never been able to distinguish that this channel is bounded by walls, 
in fact that there are any true blood-vessels. That none exist we think may 
be strongly inferred from the fact elucidated by close and continued obser- 
vation of the circulation, where two currents, an arterial and a venous, 
travel in close proximity to each other; an occasional corpuscle from the 
arterial may be seen to pass over to the venous without traversing the 
greater circuit followed by the others. 

An arterial current passes through the whole length of the animal imme- 
diately above the alimentary canal, and the great venous course returns 
along the dorsal centre; at the commencement of the pereion (thorax) the 
current appears to descend, and becomes confused to observation with the 
arterial channel. (Vide diagram, PI. XXII. fig. 3.) 

The legs are nourished by a single arterial current and its venous return ; 
in the broad plates of the coxae the arterial course passes down through the 
centre, where it diverges and returns as two venous currents, the one on the 
anterior, the other on the posterior margin. Near this point are situated 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 51 

the branchial organs, where the blood, which is much divided and exposed 
to aeration, goes, we believe, direct to the heart, and then, without returning 
again to these organs, passes on its way, carrying oxygen to the general 
system. 

The Branchiae. — These are by no means the simple sacs that authors have 
universally described them. They are situated upon the inner surface of 
the coxae of the leg, and assume the form of leaf-like plates on each side of 
the sternum, and are attached to every leg except the first in females, and 
generally the last in males, though in Gavmmrus we have seen them present 
in the male as well as the female, on the seventh, as shown in PI. XXI. fig. 3. 

The arterial course passes down on the side nearest the heart, and divides 
itself as it proceeds along the internal labyrinth of the organ into many 
streams, and passes out of the vesicle by an efl^erent course on the side 
opposite to that on which it entered. 

The corpuscles never increase beyond one deep. Thus each of these 
supposed oxygen carriers is brought into immediate contact with the thin 
walls, which alone separate them from external atmospheric influences. The 
branchiae homologize with the same organs in the higher orders of Crustacea, 
and each may be viewed in the light of a solitary plate of one of those more 
compound organs. In fact they bear an extremely close resemblance to the 
branchiae of the Brachyura in the larval condition, before they assume 
the foliaceous appearance of the perfect organ (PI. XVIII. fig. 10). 

The great difference in the general character appears to be derived mostly 
from the appearance which the organs in the higher types assume of a resem- 
blance to an internal position ; but this is a condition of appearance only, as 
shown in an earlier portion of this paper; the branchiae are overcapped by 
the monstrous production of the anterior cephalic segments, a peculiarity 
which is not carried out in the Amphipodous order ; consequently the 
branchiae are external and pendent in the water, and it is for their greater 
protection that the coxae are developed into large scaliform plates. 

The internal structure of the branchial organs appears to be produced by 
a thickening of a fibrous tissue in contact with the internal surface of the 
walls of the organ (PI. XVIII. fig. 7). This appears to be carried out in 
patches of an irregular form, but which correspond in their arrangement 
with one another. These patches are thickest at their centre and thin out 
towards their edges : the result is that a channel is left between each. All 
the channels so formed are connected together throughout the whole organ, 
and exhibit a continuous labyrinth in which the blood circulates in many 
small streams (fig. 8). 

Should the animal become feeble, a gradual accumulation of corpuscles 
may be discerned in different parts of the gills, mostly out of reach of the 
stronger currents, which latter, as the vitality of the aniniul diminishes, can 
be observed to lessen in force until it is propelled only by jerks, coexistent 
with every pulsation of the heart ; and at length a throbbing without any pro- 
gression of the corpuscles appears as the last effort of decaying circulation. 

The external form of the, organ varies but little: in Talitrus (PI. XVIII. 
fig. 3) there appears a second of smaller dimensions, originating from a com- 
mon base, the stalks being separated. Somewhat similar are they in the 
branchiae of Sidcator arenarius (fig. 1), and would appear as if it were an 
effort of nature to make a step towards the more foliaceous organs of the 
higher types. In the Aberrantia we find that Caprella Pcnnantii (for in 
this group, except in the genus Proto, there are but two sets attached to the 
third and fourth segment of the pereion (thorax)) has the anterior branchia 
round and much larger than the posterior, which is more cylindrical in form. 

k2 



52 REPORT — 1855. 

In JEgina they are long and slender, and furnished on the outer side of the 
neck with a small articulated scale, the rudiment of the undeveloped leg 
(fig. 6). 

Organs of Generation (male). — The dissection of these organs requires 
much care ; the most distinct that we have been enabled to make out were in 
a specimen oi' Sulcator arenarius, sent us by our most valued correspondent, 
the Rev. G. Gordon, taken in Moray Frith. This specimen was so exqui- 
sitely transparent, that we could readily detect the white patch of the testes 
with unassisted vision ; and by cautious dissection under the microscope, 
we were enabled to trace the connexion between them and the external 
organs*. 

The testicles are large, opake, oblong organs, being in breadth about 
equal to half their length ; they are situated on the dorsal aspect, immediately 
beneath the dermal tissues, occupying a position under the sixth and seventh 
segments of the pereion (thorax) (PI. XXI. fig. 1). 

From the posterior extremity of each, deflecting one to the right, the other 
to the left, a vas deferens proceeds towards and enters into the first joint of 
the seventh pair of legs (figs. 2 and 3), and again passes out and terminates 
in an external penis ; but whether intromittent or not we have hitherto failed 
to discover, though we believe it is not. We have had Gammartis gracilis 
long in keeping, and watched them in their habits much ; but have never 
detected any communication between the sexes which could admit of a 
direct passage of the penis into the vulva, which latter organ we have not 
yet discovered in the normal Amphipoda. 

The male appears to grasp the opposite sex by one of its strong subche- 
liform gnathopoda, by the insertion of the claws beneath the anterior edge 
of the first segment of the pereion (thorax), whilst another is inserted be- 
neath the posterior margin of the fourth or fifth. Thus grasping the female 
by the i^ack, it draws it into immediate contact witli the ventral surface of 
itself. In this attitude, more or less firmly compressed, they swim and rest 
alternately for days, or perhaps, as we believe, a very much longer period, 
without any apparent closer communication. 

H' tlie two be driven asunder by any fear of danger, as has been performed 
by us for the value of the observation, the female seeks a place of shelter, 
while the male swims more actively about; and we have noticed, that should 
it after a few moments swim within a little distance of its late mate, it 
instantly becomes aware of the circumstance, and having passed the spot, 
will turn abruptly back, seek her out, and seize her with avidity from amidst 
several others, and immediately after securing, strike her with two or three 
strong lashes of the tail. The female rolling herself up in fear is so carried 
oflT by her more powerful mate. 

This contact between the sexes is either occasionally repeated or may last 
through the wiiole period of incubation, as we have frequently taken them 
coupled in this manner, even when the matured young have been sufficiently 
advanced as to leave tlie care of the parent. We are induced from this fact 
to believe, that a series of broods are producible ijom the same parents during 
the year, and that the erotic state of the female may exist during the incu- 
bation of any previous brood. 

The penis is a soft Tnenibranous tube, the external continuation of the 
vas deferens, with the probable capability of erection (PI. XXI. figs. 1, 2, 3 a). 
The oritiee occupies but scarcely half of the diameter of the extremity of the 
tube, and most probably has the power of closing itself voluntarily. This 
remark is true both in Gammarus and Sulcator, in which latter the organ is 
* The observations of De Siebold on this organ chiefly relate to the Isopoda. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. SS' 

considerably longer, and terminates with a simple opening near the centre 
of the extremity of the tube (fig. 2 «). In Ganimarus (fig. 3 a) the orifice 
is on one side of the terminal point, and furnished with a small bundle of 
minute hairs. 

The spermatozoa are long simple hair-like bodies, and bear a general 
resemblance to those found in the Cirripedift ; in Sulcator they have their 
largest diameter at one end and the smallest at the other, but there is no 
decided enlargement of one part over the other to give it the tadpole resem- 
blance of the typical form of these organisms. In Ganunarus, the largest 
part*, if one is larger than the otlier, is a little on one side of the centre, 
with the smallest diameter equally at each extremity f. 

In the Aberrantia, a group recognized under the generally-accepted 
synonym of Lcemodipoda, the male organs are of a more powerful character, 
and connected in Caprella with the coxas of the last pair of thoracic legs, 
which in this group are all anchylosed with the segment from which they 
originate (PI. XXI. fig. 4 a). 

In the closely allied genus Prolo, the pleon (abdomen), though rudi- 
mentary, is not so entirely obsolete ; similar appendages to those which we 
have considered male organs in Caprella exist, four in number, but these 
homologize with the pleopoda of the anterior pieon in tlie normal type of 
Amphipoda. 

This fact can scarcely interfere with the adaptation of the members as 
intromittent organs, since in the higher order of the Brachyura the vas 
deferens is known to pass directly into one of the false feet, modified for a 
similar purpose. The observations oii this family are further supported by 
those of M. Rousel de Vauzeme, on Cyamus ovalis\, in which the organs 
are situated analogous to those of Caprella. 

Organs of Reproduction {female). — If we found that to become acquainted 
with these organs in the male required much care, those of the female demand 
it still more, a circumstance which will account for the incompletion of all 
their details with this Report ; but we feel assured that which we here state 
may be relied upon as correct as far as it goes. 

In the normal type of the Amphipoda, hitherto we have failed to discover 
the vulvai, but infer its place from the fact of their constant position in all the 
higher forms of Crustacea, on the coxje of that pair of thepereipoda or walking 
legs, attached to the fifth segment of the pereion; and we are induced to assign 
them an analogous position. In the Brachyura they are generally described 
by authors as perforations in the sternum ; so they appear also in the abnor- 
mal ^wjo^eporfa {Caprella) : in both these cases, as has been proved, the coxae 
are fused with their supporting segments. lu Homanis, &c., where the coxas 
are free, the vulvae are seen in their normal position, which we believe to be 
homologically constant in Crustacea ; and those in the Amphipoda, probably 
being only oviducts in their adaptation, have escaped our observation from 
some slight obstruction to our plan of inquiry. 

* We have observed minute objects like fat-globules attached to these thread-like organs 
\yith which they were in contact, or else form a part of the structure ; a few in fig. 5 are 
drawn with the spots attached. 

t The description given by Von Siebold in his ' Anatomic Comparee,' p. 472, § 290, agrees 
generally with the forms here alluded to. He says, moreover, that they are very similar in 
Mysis and the Isopoda. This statement is made by him on the authority of observations on 
Mysis, Oniscus, Porcellio, Idothea, and Gammarus (Von Siebold, Miiller's Archives,1836); and 
Kolliker has observed the same, but states them to be rigid, and not in a figure of 8, as 
observed by Siebold in Iphimedia obesa and Hyperiu medusaria, where they are slightly 
enlarged and a little bent at^ne extremity. 

t Ann. des Sciences Nat, 1834. 



54 REPORT — 1855. 

In Caprella Pennaniii two distinct circular orifices, situated side by side, as 
in the highest types, are visible in the calcareous ventral aspect of the fifth seg- 
ment. This is also confirmed by Rousel de Vauzeme in his observations on 
Ci/amus ovalis, except the organs which he appears to raise on small pro- 
minences (PI. XIII. fig. ITa.a, Ann.des Sc. Nat. 1834-). The position of these 
organs is very readily distinguishable, even in the dried animal, and con- 
tradicts the statement of Mr. H. Goodsir, that they are placed one before the 
other in the middle of the ventral region (Edin. Phil. Journ. 1842), PI. XXI. 
fig. 8. 

The internal organs consist of two sets of ovaries placed one on each side, but 
are not the simple tubes described by VonSiebold ; but as that author's infor- 
mation consists chiefly of the results of Rathke, Brandt and Miiller, who mostly 
pursued their researches upon the Isopoda, it may be that still we are both 
correct in the individual instances. Rousel de Vauzeme figures them in 
Cyamus ovalis of the same simple character as described by Siebold, termina- 
ting each posteriorly in a short oviduct. 

The ovaries in Gammarus appeared to us to consist of four or five sac- 
like organs, narrowing each towards their attachment with a canal into which 
they all empty themselves in succession, the largest being the most distant 
from the extremity approximating the vulva. One of these sets was found 
upon each side of the alimentary canal, and appeared to be enclosed within a 
common sac; that is, we observed a transparency around the whole organ 
which induced us so to interpret the appearance, though we were unable to 
dissect the organ out, or trace it in continuation with the as yet to us undis- 
covered vulva. 

It is not certain at what time the impregnation of the ovum takes place 
by the fertilizing spermatozoa, and it is only conjecture that induces us to 
assume it must be as the former escapes from the oviduct. Thus, if we 
are correct in our deduction from negative evidence, that an intromission 
of the male organs does not take place, then we must conclude that the male 
emission must escape into the surrounding medium, and that of the many 
thousand active organisms, some are attracted by the force of the continued 
currents, induced by the swimming feet, into the incubatory pouch, where 
they are brought into contact with and impregnate the recently deposited 
ovum, which after fertilization continues in this position to be cherished 
until after the larva quits the egg. The supposition that impregnation is an 
external act is supported by the observations of ^'^on Siebold (p. 472 of the 
work already quoted), that the spermatozoa continue rolled into a figure of 
8 until they come into contact with the water. 

The Incubatory Pouch is the result of the folding over of several lamel- 
liform plates, generally fringed with hairs. One of these is developed upon 
the inner side of each of the two pairs of gnathopoda and the two anterior 
pereipoda (or four anterior pairs of thoracic feet). These plates overlie each 
other in a compact form, and securely protect the eggs or the immature 
young from external accidents (PI. XVIII. fig. 11). 

This lamelliform appendage, which is called the palpe by M. Milne-Ed- 
wards, is, according to Von Siebold (p. 476), developed at the " epoque du 
I'ut," and afterwards again disappears. This we have not been able to verify, 
since we have frequently taken the female at all periods of the year with these 
appendages fully developed, but do not recollect ever having seen them in a 
half-formed state. We have never observed them present on the young animal, 
so that probably they may be produced as the animal arrives towards the 
era of female development. But we are inclined to doubt, when once deve- 
loped, that they ever again disappear except as the result of accident. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 55 

On the Development of the Young — The length of time between the epoch 
of the deposit of the ovum to that of the emancipation of the young animal from 
the care of the parent, has not, as far as we are aware, been ascertained, but 
from parallel circumstances in Asellus, among the Isopoda it appears to last 
from about a month to six weeks. 

At first the egg is perfectly round in form ; it shortly increases in length, 
assuming a larger proportion at one extremity than the other ; it is now that 
the young animal is seen under development, and indistinct segments are 
observable. The wall of the ovum is formed of an elastic membrane 
which corresponds to the movement of the internal embryo. 

It is probable, that about the middle of the period of incubation, the young 
animal quits the egg, for we have constantly taken them from the pouch, 
bearing an embryonic character without being closed in their egg-case. The 
larva at this period is very immature and covered in a general tunic, which, 
apparently without having any absolute vital connexion with the animal 
more than the original egg-case had to the embryo, adapts itself in form to 
the whole creature, and fulfils the duty of a protective tissue. This probably 
is shed more than once, as we perceive that as the animal increases in size 
and completeness of form, so the tunic corresponds in its general adapta- 
tion ; and at last the larva frees itself from this case and strengthens in its 
own development, but appears not to quit the care of the parent immediately. 
We have often observed that the young escape from the mother if she be taken 
or alarmed ; from the active state of their existence at this time, they appear 
as if they had long since been capable of so acting if they had preferred or 
circumstances required it. Repeatedly observing this fact, we have been 
induced to believe that they had the power, and used it, of quitting the parent 
occasionally, and either returned to the pouch again, or else being free, con- 
tinued more or less perfectly under her protection. This trace of parental 
affection receives support from the observation of Mr. Henry Goodsir*, who 
" on one occasion, while examining a female Caprella under the microscope, 
found that her body was thickly covered with young ones; they were firmly- 
attached to her by means of their posterior feet, and were resting in an erect 
posture, waving about their long antennae with great activity." But although 
the resemblance to the parent is very considerable, yet it is by no means com- 
plete, and it is probable that several moults are undergone before the perfect 
development of the animal is matured. The value of the relative difference 
is important, since the observation of the same animal at different stages of 
its existence might otherwise lead to the misinterpretation of the value of 
species. 

When the young of Gammarus gracilis first appears as an animal, de- 
pendent upon its own resources, there is no very decided contrast between the 
articulations of the peduncle of the antenna and those which pertain to the 
filament. The latter itself is shorter, consisting of five articulations only, 
than in the mother, where there are twenty-nine ; and we counted thirty -five in 
a ncale of the same species ; again, in the inferior antenna there are but three 
joints to the filament, whilst in the adult male and female sixteen are 
developed. This relative difference is likewise constant in the small fila- 
mentary appendage of the upper antenna, which in the larva has but two 
segments of an unequal length ; in the adult there are six or more. 

Again, in the structure of the eye we see the same gradual increase 

still goes on after the young has become free. The facets, or rather 

lenses, which are seen beneath the integument of the animal (for we consider 

that the eye has no especial dermal covering peculiar to itself in Amphipoda), 

* Edinb. Phil. Journ. 1842. 



56 REPORT — 1855. 

are in the J'oung from ten to twelve in number, M'hereas in the adult from 
sixty to eigiity can be counted, and the cornea assumes a deeper tint ; being 
crimson in the larva, it becomes purple or almost black in the adult. 

The young are generally of a more or less deep orange colour ; in some 
species they are cornuous and transparent^ and in the development are 
generally less marked than the adult. 

The large hand in Orchestia holds in the larva a nearer contrast to that 
of the female than to the larger claw of the male ; it is therefore extremely 
probable that this organ likewise increases in growth ; a fact also remarked 
by Rathke*, regarding the warty development of the posterior leg of the 
same animal which still goes on with increasing age. 

In Hyperia the larva bears so little resemblance to the parent, that it 
has been pronounced by Edwards, who first observed the fact, and Mr. Gosse, 
to be a metamorphosis; but since, even in the higher types, the immense 
variety of change from the Zoe. to the adult animal is but the result of subordi- 
nate becoming more important parts, together with development of others not 
yet present, and therefore hardly acceptable under the signification of meta- 
morphosis, as understood in true Insecta; we can scarcely subscribe to the 
great alteration of form as a metamorphosis in Hyperia, which is one of degree 
only, and of which we shall give a figure in the forthcoming 'British Edrio- 
phthalma.' 

On the Nei'vous System. — This part of the subject has been attended to 
with more care than perhaps any other part of the animal, by MM. Audouin 
and Edwards, in a memoir published by them on the nervous system of 
Crustacea generally. 

To this paper, which has been made the standard of all authors, we shall 
now refer the reader ; and in this Report only draw attention to particular 
details of more or less importance, which we have noticed from actual obser- 
vation in dissections made upon Talitrus locusta, and which are given in our 
figures of the nervous system of that Amphipod in PI. XXII. accompanying 
this Report. 

The scheme of the arrangement is peculiarly annular, perhaps typically 
crustacean ; a ganglion corresponds to every segment of the animal, each 
being united to the other by two cords, which correspond, but are not 
connected with each other. From each ganglion on the right and left, a 
double branch is given off; the one passes to the legs, the other probably to 
the branchial organs. In the male, the ganglion corresponding with the 
seventh segment of the pereion (thorax), which supports the male organs, 
appears a little larger than the others. From the cords intermediate between 
the ganglia originates on the external side of each a corresponding nervous 
thread, which again divides into two, and probably supplies the internal vis- 
cera of the animal. These threads have not been recorded in the memoir 
quoted as belonging to the Amphipoda, but analogous ones are figured in the 
' Histoire des Crustaces,' pi. 11. figs. 3, 4, as belonging to the Stomapoda. 
But a more important variation in the nervous system of the Amphipoda 
exists in the arrangement of that part which belongs to the cephalic region. 
The first ganglion (Plate XXII. fig. 2 E) of the pereion (thorax) rests upon 
the sternal portion of its own segment, from which anteriorly a sudden de- 
pression takes place to the infra-cesophageal ganglion (B), which lies beneath 
a calcareous arch (O), which earlier in this paper has been described as being 
the dorsal aspect of the three segments, which fused together support the 
maxillae and maxilliped. 

From the infra-cesophageal ganglion several nerves originate to supply 
* Faunen de Crim. Phil. Trans. St. Petersburg. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 



57 



the attendant appendages of the mouth, and two more important ones are 
directed anteriorly to the supra-cesophageal or cephalic ganglion, which last 
we have not satisfactorily made out, although we have traced the nervous 
cord almost to its connexion with it, that is, up to the anterior or facial wall 

of the head. . ^ .-^ e 

The probability is, that there is no very great amount ot difference trom 
that which is figured by Edwards and Audouin as belonging to the Amphi- 
poda proper, or as given by Rouzel de Vauzeme, as observed in the aberrant 

genus of Cyamus. , ,■ ^ -i x- 

Any observations, either on the generalization or geographical distribution 
of the order, we shall reserve until we furnish the second part of the Report 
' On the British Isopoda,' and here only remark that our experience induces 
us to consider the ^wjo/j^porfa, inclusive of the aberrant group, as a modification 
of the great Crustacean type!, as exemplified in the Macroura, rather than 
as possessing a perfectly distinct characteristic, as asserted by Mr. Dana. 
In this conclusion we approximate that already arrived at by Edwards m 
his 'Observations on the Classification of Crustacea' (Ann. des Sci. Nat. 
vol. xviii. n. s. p. 121). But he includes in his remarks the Isopoda and 
the Pycnogonides, with which in this Report we have nothing to do. 

In the accompanying Table the species are arranged according to order. 
Those which are in italics have never been previously recorded as British. 
Those marked with an asterisk, are species which we have not examined, 
and record upon the authority of previous authors. 

Order I. AMPHIPODA. 

Group A. NORMALIA. 

Division A.A. GAMMARINA. 

Subdivision A.A.a. Vagantia. 

Tribe a.a. SALTATORIA. 

Family OrchestidsB. 



Genus. Author. Species. 

Talitrus Bosc locusta 

Orchestia .... Leach littorea .... . . 

Deshayesii .... 
Allorchestes . . Dana . . Dmiai 

imbricatus .... 
Galanthis mihi LubbocUana . . 

Tribe b.b. NATATORIA. 
Family Gammaridse. 
Subfamily I. Stegocephalides. 
Montagua mihi raonoculoides. . 



Author. 
Latr. 
Leach. 
Audouin. 
mihi. 
mihi. 
mihi. 



marinus. . . 
pollexianus 
dubius . . . 



Montagu, 
mihi. 
mihi. 
mihi. 



58 





REPORT 1855. 






Subfamily 2. 


Lysianassades. 




Genus. 


Author. 


Species. 


Author. 


Lysianassa . . . 


Edwards . 


. . . Cos((B 


. Edwards. 






Audouiniana . 


mihi. 






Ckausica . . . 


. Edwards. 


Scopelochdrus 


. mihi 


. . . breviatus 


. mihi. 


An onyx 


. Kroyer . . . 


. . . Edioardsii . . , 


. Kroyer. 






minutus 


. Kroyer. 






ampulla 


Kroyer. 






Holbolli 


. Kroyer. 






denticulatus . 


. mihi. 


Jmanonyx . . . 


mihi 


. . . Guerinianus . 


mihi. 




Subfamily 3. 


Tetromatides. 




TetromaJtus . . 


mihi 


. . . typicus 


mihi. '■ 






Bellianus ... . 


mihi. 




Subfamily 4. 


PONTOPOREIDES. 




Westwoodea . 


mihi 


. . . CCBCUltlS 


mihi. 






cariiiatus . . . , 


mihi. 


Phoxus 


Kroyer . . . 


. . . Kroyerii 

plumosus. 


mihi. 


Sulcator 


mihi 


. . . arenarius . . . 


mihi. 




Subfamily 5 


Gammarides. 


' 


Darwinea . . . 


mihi 


. . . compressus . . . . 


mihi. 


Iphimedia . . . 


Rathke . . . 


. . . obesa 


Rathke. 


Acantfionotus? 


Owen 


. . . Owenii 


mihi. 


Dexamine . . . . 


Leach . . . 


. . . spinosa 


Montagu. 






bispinosa . . . . 


mihi. 






Gordoniana . . 


mihi. 






fucicola 


Edwards. 


Calliope 


Leach (MS.) . . Leachii 


mihi. 


Iscea 


Edwards . 


. . . Montagui . . . . 


Edwards. 


Lemhos 


mihi 


. . . Cambriensis . . 


mihi. 






Damnoniensis . 


mihi. 






versiculatus . . 


mihi. 






Websterii .... 


mihi. 


Lonchomerus . . 


mihi 


. . . gracilis 


mihi. 


Eurystheus . . 


mihi 


. . . tridentatus. . . . 


mihi. 


Amathia 


Rathke . . . 


. . . carinatus . . . . 


Rathke. 


Gammarus . . 


Fabr 


. . . Sabiiiii 


Leach. 






carinatus? . . . . 


Johnston. 






locusta 


Fabr. 






fluviatilis *. . . . 


Edwards. 






pulex 


Fabr. 






gracilis 


Rathke. 






campfolops . . 


Leach. 






palmatus . . . . 


Montagu. 






mannus 


Leach. 



longimanus . . Montagu. 

brevicaudatus. . Edwards, 

grossimanus . . Montagu. 

elegans mihi. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 



S9 



Genus. 


Author. 


Species. 


Author. 


Gammarus . 


. Fabr 


. . Othonis ? .... 


Edwards. 






maculatus ? . . 


Johnston. 






subterraneus* . 


Leach. 


Niphargus* . 


. Schiodte 


. . Stygius* 


Westwood. 


Thersites ... 


. mihi 


, . . Guilliamsonia 


mihi. 






pelagica 


mihi. 




Subfamily 6. 


Leucothoides. 




Leucothoe . . . 


. Leach . . . 


. . . articulosa . . . , 


. Leach. 




Subdi^dsion B.B.b. Domicola. 






Family 1. 


Corophiidae. 






Division A. NIDIFICA. 






Subfamily 


PODOCERIDES. 




Pleonexes . . . 


. mihi 


. . . Gammaroides . 


. mihi. 


Amphitoe . . . 


. Leach . . . 


. . . rubricata . . . . 


Montagu. 






littorina 


. mihi (punctata, 
Johnston"). 


Sunamphitoe . 


. mihi 


. . . hamulus 


. mihi. 






conformatus . 


mihi. 


Podocerus . . 


. . Leach . . . 


. . . pulchellus . . . 


. Edwards. 






pelagicus . . . 


. Edwards. 






punctatus . . . 


. Edwards. 






variegatus . . . 


. Leach. 






falcatus 


. Montagu. 



Erichthoneus. 
Siphonocetus . 



Cyrtophium 
Corophium 



Chelura . 



Division B. TUBIFICA. 
Subfamily I. Cerapides. 

diflFormis. 

Kroyer Kroyeranus 

crassicornis 
dubius . . . . 

Subfamily 2. Corophiides. 

Dana Dartvinii . 

Latr longicorne . , 

Family Cheluridae. 
Philippi terebrans . 

Division B.B. HYPERINA. 
Family 1. Hyperidse. 



mihi. 
mihi. 
mihi. 



mihi. 
Latr. 



Philippi. 



Hyperia 

Laestrigonus*, 


. Latr Galba 

oblivia 

. . Edwards .... Fabreii 


. Montagu. 
. Edwards. 
. Edwards, 


Phronoma . . . 


Family 2. PhronomidsB. 
. Latr sedentaria . . . 


. Latr. 


Typhis 


Family 3. TypMdae (? British). 
. Risso nolens* 


. Johnston. 



60 



Genus. 
Proto . . 

Caprella 



Cyamus 



REPORT — 1855. 

Group B. ABERRANTIA. 
Family CaprellidsB. 
Author. Species. Author. 

Leach pedata Leach. 

Goodsirii .... mihi. 

Kroyer longispina .... Kroyer. 

Lamarck .... linearis Latr. 

laevis* Goodsir. 

acanthifera. . . . Leach. 

acutifrons .... Desm. 

phasma Latr. 

tuberculata* . . Goodsir. 

lobata* Miiller. 

Pennantii .... Leach. 

Latr ceti* Linnaeus. 

ovalis* Rouss. 

gracilis * .... Rouss. 

gracilis * .... Gosse. 



Reference to Drawings. 



Fig. ]. 



Fig. 2. 
Fig. 3. 
Fig. 4. 



PLATE XII. 

Head of Talitrus locnsta, frontal 

aspect. 
Head of ditto, lateral aspect. 
Head of ditto, posterior. 
Head of ditto, interior labial. 

A. Inferior antennal segment. 

B. Mandibular segment. 

C. Epistome or inferior portion 

ofB. 

D. Upper division of labium. 

E. Lower division of labium. 

F. Upper antenna. 

G. Lower antenna. 

H. First articulation of lower an- 
tenna. 
P. Second articulation of lower 
antenna,represented by mem- 
brane with calcareous margin. 
I. Mandible. 

K. Inferior portion of the thin 
posterior segment of the ce- 
phalic region. 

Internal portion of the last 
segment, (the homologue of 
the dorsal part) : on this the 
stomach rests. 
First maxilla. 
Second maxilla. 
Maxilliped. 



O 



L. 

M. 
N. 



Fig. 5. The part O seen from above. 

PLATE XIII. 
Fig. 1. Superior antenna of Lysianassa. 
a, b, c. Varieties of auditory 
cilia. 



Fig. 2. Inferior antenna of Talitrus lo- 
cusla. 

Fig. 3. Inferior antenna of Chelura te- 
rebrans. 

Fig. 4. Inferior antenna of Sulcator are- 
nariits. 

Fig. 5. Inferior antenna of Corophium 
longicorne. 

Fig. 6. Inferior antenpa of Podocerus. 

Fig. Ga. Inferior antenna, the point of 
Podocerus. 

Fig. 7. Inferior antenna of Hyperia 
Galba. 

Fig. 8. Eyes of Tetromatus. 

PLATE XIV. 

Fig. 1. Olfactory organs or base of in- 
ferior antenna in IseeaMontagui. 

Fig. 2. Olfactory organs of Gammurus 
gracilis. 

Fig. 3. Olfactory organs of Gammarus 
pulex. 

Fig. 4. Olfactory organs of ditto, enlarged. 

Fig. 5. Olfactory organs ? of Gammarus 
elegans. 

Fig. 5a. Two of the segments enlarged. 

Fig. 6. Mandible of Talitrus locusta. 

Fig. 7. Mandible of ^non»/x. 

Fig. 8. Mandible of Gammaius gracilis. 

a. Molar tubercle. 

b. Incisive edge. 

c. Secondary edge with moveable 

joint. 

d. Hairs or ciliated spines. 

e. Muscles. 

Fig. 9. Dexamine spinosa. 



ON THE BRITISH EDRIOPHTHALMA. 



61 



fig. 1- 

Fig. 2. 
Fig. 3. 
Fig. 4. 

Fig. 5. 

Fig. 6. 
Fig. 7. 



Fig. 8, 



PL.^TE XV. 

Anterior labium of Gammarus 
locusfa. 

Posterior labium of ditto. 

First maxilla of ditto. 

First maxilla of Sulcator are- 
narius. 

Second maxilla of Gammarus lo- 
cusfa, 

Maxilliped of ditto. 

Two segments from IscBa Mon- 
tayui, showing their mode of 
attachment. 

Inside of the coxae from Gam- 
marus^ showing the manner of 
their connexion with the legs 
and to the segments of the body. 

PLATE XVI. 

Diagrams showing the homologies of 
separate parts. 

Fig, 1. Imaginary AnipMpoda. 

A. Cephalic ring or region. 

a. Anterior portion, or infra 
antennal segment. 

h. Posterior portion, or man- 
dibular segment. 

B. Pereion, or portion carrying the 

pereipoda or perambulatory 

legs. Thorax of authors. 
Bl. Anterior portion, bearing the 

two gnathopoda. 
B2. Posterior portion, bearing the 

five pereipoda. 

C. Pleon, or portion carrying the 

swimming feet (abdomen of 

authors) . 
CI. Anterior portion. 
E2. Posterior portion. 

1. Superior antenna. 

c. Auditory cilia. 

2. Inferior antenna, 

a. Olfactory denticle. 

3. Mandible. 

h. Mandibular filament. 

4. First maxilla. 

5. Second maxilla. 

6. Maxilliped. 

7. 8. Two gnathopoda. 

9, 10. Anterior pereipoda. 
1 1,12, IS.Posteriorpereipoda. 
14, 15, 16. Anterior pleopoda. 
17,18,19. Posterior pleopoda. 
20. Telson (extremity). 
Pig. 2. Leg of Macroura, after Edwards. 
Figs, 3, 4, 5. Legs of Amphipoda. The 
lines drawn through each joint 
demonstrate the homologies. 



PLATE XVII. 

Microscopic Sections of the Skin and 
Hairs. 
Skin of 

1. Talitrus locusta. 

2. Dexamine bispinosa. 

3. Calliojie Leachii. 

4. Gammarus gracilis. 

5. Gammarus locusta. 

6. Gammarus Othonisl 

7. Galanthis Lubhochiana (leg). 

8. Tetromatus typictts. 

9. Lembos Damnoniensis, 

10. Chelura terebrans. 

11. Amphitoe lillorina. 

12. From thorax of 7, 

Hairs of 

A. Sulcator arenarius. 

1. On legs, &c. 

2. On maxilliped (3rd joint). 

3. On maxilliped (5th joint). 

4. 5. On carpus of gnathopoda. 

6. On propodos of gnathopoda. 

8. On propodos of gnathopoda. 

7. On mandible. 

9. On propodos, 1st gnathopoda. 

10. On antennae, &c. 

11. On superior antenna. 

12. On inferior antenna. 

B. Hair from Talitrus. 

C. Hairs from Tetromatus. 

D. Teeth from maxilliped of species. 

1. Talitrus locusta. 

2. Anonyx denticulatus. 

3. Anonyx HolboUi. 

4. Tetromatus typicus. 

5. Tetromatus Bellianus. 

PLATE XVIII. 
Organs of Respiration. 

1 . Sulcator arenarius. 

2. Gammarus locusta. 

3. Talitrus locusta. 

4. Neck of 2, showing a tendency 
to a more leaf-like structure. 
Caprella. 

a. Anterior. 

b. Posterior. 
jEgi7ia longispinosa. 
Internal structure of branchial 
sac, side near the middle. 
Ditto, from bottom of sac. 

_. Blood-corpuscles. 

10. Leg and branchia of young De- 
capod. 

Fig. 11. Diagram showing the arrange- 
ment of the plates -which form 
the incubatoi-y pouch and the 
position of the branchial sacs. 



Fig. 
Fig. 
Fig. 
Fig. 

Fig. 5 



Fig. 
Fig. 

Fig. 

Fig- 
Fig. 



9. 



62 



REPORT — 1855. 



Fig. 

Fig. 
Fig. 
Fig. 

Fig. 4 



PLATE XIX. 

jllimentary Canal. 

1. Stomach of Talitrus, seen from 
above. 

la. OEsophagiis from Tetromatus. 

2. Stomacli of Siilcator, lateral view. 

3. Stomach of Gammarus in situ, 
with the liver attached. 

Alimentary tube of Sulcator are- 
narius below the stomach, with 
the liver and urinary sacs at- 
tached. 

Fig. 5. Appearance of the alimentary 
canal under two-thirds of inch 
power. 

Fig. 6. Ditto, under one-fifth. 

PLATE XX. 

Fig. 1. Posterior portion of Gammarus, 
showing the urinary — 
a. Organs in position. 
h. Sphincter muscles at ter- 
mination of urinary organ, 
c. Sphincter muscles at termi- 
nation of alimentary tube. 
Fig. 2. Urinary organs from Sulcator 

arenarius. 
Fig. 3. Urinary organs from Gammarus 

grossimanus. 
Fig. 4. Urinary organs from larva of 

Amphitoe ruhricata. 
Figs. 5 &6. Ultimate stnicture of the organ. 

PLATE XXI. 
Male. 
Fig. 1. Testes from Sulcator arenarius, 
with their vas deferens and penis 
attached. 



Fig. 2. Part of 7th segment, with coxa 
and penis attached. 

Fig. 3. The under arch of 7th segment 
of pereion (thorax), with bran- 
chial vessels and penis attached, 
from Gammarus. 

Fig. 3a. Extremity of penis. 

Fig. 2a. Extremity of penis of Sulcator. 

Fig. 4. Penis of Caprella. 

Fig. 5. Spermatozoa of Gammarus. 

Fig. 6. Spermatozoa of Sulcator. 

Female. 

Fig. 7. Ovaries of Gammarus. 

Fig. 10. Ovaries of Capre//a (after Good- 
sir). 

Fig. 8. Vulvae of Caprella. 

Fig. 11. Plate from incubatory pouch of 
Caprella. 



PLATE XXII. 



Fig. 1. 



Nervous cord of Talitrns locusta. 
O. The calcareous arch under 
which it dips to the infra- 
oesophageal ganglion. 

A. The cephalic or supra-oeso- 

phageal ganglion. 

B. The infra-cesophageal gan- 

glion hid by (O). 
E. And following, one to each 
segment of the body. 
Fig. 2. Lateral view of the internal ar- 
rangement of the head, show- 
ing the line which the nervous 
cord takes : letters the same. 
Fig. 3. Diagram showing the circulation 
of the blood. 



On the present state of our knowledge on the Supply of Water to Towns. 
By John Frederic Bateman, C.E., F.G.S. 

Among the many interesting and important subjects to which the present 
desire for sanitary improvement has recently directed public attention, none 
have a higher claim upon that attention, nor are more intimately mixed up 
with the health, the comfort and the well-being of our town populations, than 
the questions of an abundant supply of good and wholesome water, the com- 
plete and proper drainage of our houses and our cities, and the purification 
of the streams and rivers into which the sewage of our towns is allowed to 
flow. Scientific research, and the experience of daily life, are constantly 
bringing to view the close connexion which these questions have with 
the mortality, the comfort and the moral habits of our rapidly-increasing 
population. 

The tendency to herd together in large cities for purposes of convenience 
and employment, the rapidity with which many manufacturing towns have 



ON THE SUPPLY OP WrATEB TO TOWNS. 63 

sprung into existence or increased in size, — outstripping all preparation or 
arrangement for the physical comfort and well-being of their inhabitants, — 
the deterioration of the dwellings of many of the older towns and the closer 
packing of the labouring classes for want of proper house accommodation, 
have all contributed to enhance the evils attendant upon a deficient supply 
of water and imperfect drainage. 

The spread of manufactures and the valuable commercial purposes to 
which the waters of the country have been applied, have led to the deteriora- 
tion of most of the streams to which the inhabitants formerly resorted for the 
supply of their domestic wants, and suitable natural supplies of water have 
now become either wholly deficient or lamentably inadequate to meet the 
demands of health and comfort. Systenjs of artificial supply have to be 
adopted, and in many cases these are attended with so much ditficulty and 
expense, that every effort to inculcate right principles of supply, and to 
afford accurate information for the government of those engaged in carrying 
out works of so much value to the community, is entitled to attention and 
respect. 

I have had the honour of being requested to prepare a Report on the pre- 
sent state of our knowledge on this subject, but the question is one which in 
its ramifications embraces so many points, that I shall not attempt, on the 
present occasion, to do more than draw attention to the different modes of 
supply which have been successfully adopted, and to give, as far as I am 
able, such examples or such information as may serve to illustrate general 
principles, without attempting to enter minutely into mechanical or prac- 
tical details. 

The supply of water to towns on a large scale appears to have attracted 
very little attention in Great Britain till a comparatively recent period. The 
general hilly nature of the country, its geological character, and the abun- 
dant and tolerably uniform fall of rain, have contributed to an almost uni- 
versal diffusion of springs or streams, which, so long as they remained pure, 
supplied all the wants of the inhabitants, then thinly and widely spread, or 
gathered together into towns of only very moderate dimensions. 

But as population has increased and manufactures have extended, as 
towns have become larger, and streams originally pure have become foul, 
the subject has of necessity forced itself upon the notice of the public and 
excited the attention it deserves. Works are now contemplated and carried 
into effect which rival the greatest undertakings of the ancients and the Ro- 
mans, and not in this country only, but in America and on the continent of 
Europe the water-works of modern times are amongst the largest, the 
boldest and the most successful productions of the age. Cities and towns 
are now almost universally supplied with an unlimited quantity of water, 
conducted into the interior of the houses, supplying in the most perfect and 
convenient manner every domestic want. Protection against fire is secured 
by arrangements specially adapted for that purpose, by which in many places 
the simple pressure of the water is made to perform, and with much greater 
effect, the duty formerly supplied by the mechanical agency of the fire- 
engine. Streets are watered, and sewers are cleansed with little or no addi- 
tional expense, and the general sanitary condition of our thickly-peopled 
I districts is materially improved. 

! The general mode in which towns in this country were formerly supplied 

] with water by artificial means still exists in some places, and is common in 

continental towns. It appears to be the same also which, to a great extent, 

was adopted by the ancients, and carried out on the grandest scale by the 

Romans in the height of their prosperity. It consists in collecting springs at 



64 REPORT — 1855. 

suitable heights and distances, and conveying the water by covered aqueducts 
or pipes to public wells or fountains in convenient situations, from which the 
inhabitants fetch water as they require it. 

The supply to Rome on this system, is said to have amounted at one time 
to 50,000,000 cubic feet of water per day, for 1,000,000 of inhabitants, 
which is upwards of 300 gallons a-day to each person. Some of the water 
was brought a distance of nearly fifty miles, the works for its conveyance 
being of the most massive and expensive character. It was largely consumed 
in public and private baths, in fish-ponds and ornamental waters, as well as 
in supplying ordinary domestic wants. The abundance of the supply encou- 
raged the universal habit of bathing, and contributed in many ways to the 
luxurious indulgence of the inhabitants. " If any person," says Pliny, in 
writing on the aqueducts for supplying Rome, "shall very attentively con- 
sider the abundance of water conveyed to the public, for baths, fish-ponds, 
private houses, fountains, gardens, villas — conducted over arches of consi- 
derable extent, through mountains, perforated for the purpose, and even 
valleys filled up, — he will be disposed to acknowledge that nothing was ever 
more wonderful in the world." With the fall of the Roman empire, how- 
ever, the disposition or the means for carrying out works on this scale disap- 
peared, and since then nothing for many centuries appears to have been 
done, even by the most enterprising cities, beyond that which was absolutely 
required for pressing and immediate wants. 

The supply of water to London, which till lately has been far in advance 
of other places, is strongly illustrative of this. As local supplies became 
exhausted, springs were from time to time brought into the city, as its popu- 
lation increased and its wants required, and these supplied public wells or 
fountains, from which the inhabitants fetched the water in vessels as they 
required it. But it was a constant struggle to maintain a sufficient supply 
even for this limited use, and no means of artificially forcing water from low 
levels or conducting it into the interior of the houses was thought of, nor 
indeed was any large scheme attempted, until the year 1.581, when Peter 
Morice, a Dutchman, proposed to raise water from the river Thames by 
means of pumps worked by a water-wheel, to be driven by the force of the 
current of the river and receding tide through one of the arches of the old 
London Bridge. This ingenious project was carried into effect in the fol- 
lowing year, 1582, and was attended with so much success and advantage to 
the city, that several other arches of the bridge were appropriated to the 
same purpose. From an account of the works, written by Mr. Beighton, an 
engineer, and published in the Philosophical Transactions for 1731, there 
were at that time three water-wheels employed, which, if they worked con- 
stantly, would raise about 2,500,000 gallons of water in twenty-four hours. 
Allowing for the difference of the flow and ebb of the tide, probably nearly 
two-thirds of this quantity would be raised. These works continued, with some 
additions and improvements, till the removal of the old London Bridge, about 
the year 1822, being a period of 240 years from their first establishment. 
In 1821 there were six water-wheels employed, and the average daily quan- 
tity of water supplied was estimated at nearly 4,000,000 gallons. 

This was probably the ezrYiGst pumping establishment on a large scale ; but 
in the beginning of the seventeenth century a much more important scheme, 
on a different principle, that of gravitation, was proposed, and was, after 
years of difficulty, great self-denial, and the most praiseworthy perseverance, 
successfully completed by Sir Hugh Myddelton. 

This proposal was, to convey pure water from the springs of Chadwell and 
Amwell in Hertfordshire, to the city of London, a distance along the line of 



ON THE SUPPLY OP WATER TO TOWNS. 65 

the aqueduct of about forty miles. For this object the Corporation of London 
obtained Parliamentary powers in 1606, and, after some delay, transferred 
their powers to Sir Hugh, then Mr. Hugh Myddelton, in 1609. In the year 
1613 the original works were completed, and the water introduced into a 
reservoir for the supply of the city, at an elevation of about 84 feet above 
high water in the Thames ; from which time the New River Works, as they 
were then, and have since been called, have largely contributed to the benefit 
of the city by supplying a large portion of its inhabitants with an abundant 
quantity of water for all their domestic wants. The original cost of the 
works is estimated to have been between £200,000 and £300,000; but the 
quantity of water which was first introduced I have not been able to ascer- 
tain. It soon, however, proved insufficient, and recourse was had to the river 
Lea. Additions to the supply have since been made in various ways from 
various sources, and at different times, until the supply afforded by the New 
River Water Company now amounts to about 18,000,000 gallons per day, 
which is delivered to about 500,000 persons. 

It is not my intention to follow the history of the London water-works. I 
have thus briefly drawn attention to the first pumping and first gravitation 
schemes of magnitude in this country, for the purpose of marking the period 
of the earliest important undertakings, and of exhibiting the progressive 
development of works of this nature. 

The invention of the steam-engine, and its application to the water supply 
of towns, towards the close of the last century, and the substitution of iron 
pipes for wooden ones, which does not appear to have taken place till about 
the year 1810, led to great extension in the quantity of water supplied, and 
to many improvements in the mode of conducting it through the streets, and 
introducing it into the houses of the consumers. 

London is now supplied with water by nine different Water Companies, 
who jointly deliver about 4'4',000,000 gallons of water per day, and derive a 
revenue of about £236,000 a year. The water is principally derived from 
the river Thames or the river Lea, or brought in by the New River Com- 
pany, and, according to the evidence given before the Committee on the 
Metropolis Water Bill in 1851, the steam-engines employed in raising or 
forcing water amounted at that time to a combined power of 3372 horses. 

The different sources from whence a town can derive a supply of water, 
beyond that which the inhabitants can collect in cisterns from rain, or pro- 
cure by wells on their own premises, may be classed as follows : — 

1. From springs. 

2. From Artesian wells, or from the water to be obtained from absorbent 

geological strata. 

3. From rivers. 

4. From gathering grounds, where the surplus water of wet seasons is 
collected into large storeage reservoirs. And 

5. From natural lakes. 

1. From springs. — Where spring-water can be procured in sufficient 
quantity and of a quality suitable for domestic requirements, nothing can 
exceed, nor perhaps equal, this source of supply. Bright and sparkling, free 
from all vegetable contamination, and deliciously cool, the very idea of 
spring-water is refreshing to the senses; but it seldom happens that it can be 
procured conveniently in considerable volume, nor is it always the most suit- 
able for domestic use. The water, from its solvent action on the rocks with 
which it comes in contact in passing through different geological strata, 
frequently undergoes material change between the time of its first resting on 

1855. F 



C6 REPORT — 1855. 

the surface of the earth in the form of rain, and that of its final issue in the 
form of springs. The quality of spring-water, and indeed of that which 
flows only over the surface, varies constantly according to the geological 
character of the district on which it falls, or through which it passes. 
Thus most of the primitive rocks and many of the secondary ones, being 
composed of comparatively insoluble ingredients, impart little or no change 
to the water ; while others, such as the old and new red sandstones, limestone, 
chalk, the rocks of the lias and oolitic formations and clays generally, are 
more or less acted upon by the water, imparting to it in various degrees a 
portion of their mineral or chemical constituents. Hence spring-water varies 
considerably in its character ; and though, when not impregnated by mineral 
substances, it is generally agreeable and wholesome as a beverage, it is fre- 
quently unfitted for culinary and domestic uses, as well as for delicate pur- 
poses of trade, by reason of its chemical ingredients and its excessive hardness. 
Dr. Clark of Aberdeen has invented a convenient mode of determining the 
relative hardness of water by the application of a soap-test. By his rule, 
" each degree of hardness indicates as much hardness as would be produced 
by one grain of chalk per gallon, held in solution in the form of bicar- 
bonate of lime free from any excess of carbonic acid A quantity 

of a soluble magnesian salt, equivalent to one grain of chalk, destroys a like 
quantity of soap-test, and consequently indicates one degree of hardness. 
The same is the case with the salts of iron and salts of alumina ; salts of 
alkalies do not produce hardness." By this test it requires about 4° of 
hardness, according to Dr. Clark's scale, to break or curdle soap. By the 
use of this test it is shown that distilled water being zero, or possessing no 
hardness at all, rain-water, as freshly caught in towns, is generally from 1° 
to 2° of hardness. The springs which issue from such primitive rocks as 
granite or gneiss, from the mica-slate and clay-slate formations, from the 
millstone grit and from the greensands, as they are developed in Surrey, vary, 
with some exceptions, from about 1° to 3° of hardness; all these formations 
yielding water of the greatest natural purity. The springs of the new red 
sandstone vary generally from 5° to 20°, and the limestone- and chalk- waters 
from 10° to 20° of hardness, while those which issue from the lias and oolite 
run up to 30° and upwards. 

I need not mention mineral springs and spa-water. 

The chemical character of water has only recently been attended to, but 
in the selection of a water for the supply of a town, there is nothing more 
Important than careful chemical investigation. 

The instances of supplies of water being derived from springs, although 
the mode commonly adopted when towns were small and the demand for 
water limited, are now becoming rare ; but it may be interesting to mention a 
few cases, and to give the particulars of some of the more important springs 
which have been appropriated or proposed to be applied for that purpose. 
The city of Edinburgh was, till a recent period, supplied by springs 
collected in the Pentland Hills, and scrupulously guarded from ail admixture 
with other water by the very able engineer of the Water Company, Mr.Jardine. 
The supply, however, proving insufficient, recourse has been had to the sur- 
face-water collected in large reservoirs, for which object very extensive works 
have just been completed by Mr. Leslie, the present engineer to the Company. 
The whole district of the Staffordshire Potteries, comprising a very large 
population, is now supplied by a magnificent spring of very excellent water 
issuing from the new red sandstone in the valley of the River Churnet near 
Leek, which, after being raised by engine-power to the summit of a neighbour- 
ing height, is conducted several miles by iron pipes, supplying the district by 



ON THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO TOWNS. 6? 

gravitation. Many smaller towns, particularly in the limestone, chalk, and 
oolite districts, also derive their supplies from springs, but the supplies thus af- 
forded are in general comparatively insignificant to those obtained in other ways. 

The quantity of spring-water yielded by any given district varies materially, 
not only according to the amount of rain which falls, but also according to its 
geological character. Sand, gravel, chalk, limestone and other absorbent 
rocks, yield springs in the greatest abundance ; next to these, the more 
loosely stratified rocks, such as the coal-measures, the millstone grit, and the 
old red sandstone; least of all the closely-bedded slate rocks and the 
primitive formations. 

Chalk and sand absorb nearly all the rain which falls upon the surface. 
There are few large rivers or streams in these formations, for little water 
runs away in floods, that which is absorbed escaping again at the points of 
greatest depression, or along the edges of some impervious stratum on which 
the measures may rest. Thus chalk springs are generally found at the foot 
of the chalk hills, either at the lowest level of the ground, or where the lower 
beds of this formation, above the greensand, are comparatively impermeable. 
The springs of the upper greensand issue along the upper edge of the gault, 
an impervious bed of clay on which it rests ; and the springs of the lower 
greensand, where they again rest on the Wealden or Kimmeridge clays. 
The water absorbed by the lower oolite is thrown out by the lias clay, and 
the carboniferous limestone-water passes either through clefts or fissures in 
the rock to some convenient outlet ; or having penetrated to the bottom of the 
limestone bed, is thrown out by the thick beds of shale which lie beneath. 

The sands of the new red sandstone formation also absorb most of the 
water which falls upon them, as do also the local beds of sand and gravel 
found interspersed amongst the clays of the diluvium. 

From all these sources, produced by absorbent measures, large quantities 
of spring-water may undoubtedly be procured, often continuing with little 
daily variation, and frequently so situated as to be easily available for the 
supply of towns. Many single springs yield several hundred thousand 
gallons a-day; some amount to upwards of 1,000,000, and there are a few 
which far exceed this quantity, forming at once rivers of considerable 
volume — such are the source of the Aire at Malham Cove in Yorkshire, the 
Syreford Spring and Seven Wells near Cheltenham, the Hogg's Mill River 
near Ewell in Surrey, the spring at Holywell in Wales, and many others. 

But the most abundant quantity of spring-water yielded by any extended 
district is probably that which is found in the greensand formation in Surrey. 
Here this formation rises into hills of considerable elevation, Hindhead and 
Leith Hills being nearly 1000 feet above the level of the sea, forming arid 
Wastes or sandy deserts almost destitute of vegetation, which are eminently 
absorbent of water. The water thus absorbed issues in springs of the 
greatest purity, forming collectively, in the dryest seasons, a volume of 
water at Guildford from a comparatively limited tract of country, exceeding 
40,000,000 gallons of water a-day, 33,000,000 of which are the produce of 
the greensands, not exceeding on the average 2^° of hardness. One stream, 
the Potsford Brook, which rises in the Leith Hills and falls into the Albury 
Brook a little above Guildford, is under four miles in length, and yet gra- 
dually and almost imperceptibly increases to a daily volume, as measured in 
extreme drought, of nearly 5,000,000 gallons of pure spring-water. After 
running one mile, it contains 800,000 gallons a-day, in the second it is 
augmented to 1,400,000, and at the end of the third mile to 4,400,000. 
The gross quantity of soft spring-water which might be conveniently collected 
in this district at an elevation of about 120 feet above the Thames at 

f2 



68 REPORT — 1855. 

London, and conveyed thence, for a very moderate outlay, exceeds 40,000,000 
gallons per day. 

The sands of Delamere Forest in Cheshire yield a large quantity of 
beautiful water, not exceeding 5° of hardness, issuing along the margin of 
the closer measures on which they rest. From measurements made in the 
summer of 1851, the gross produce was 16,000,000 gallons a-day, from a 
tract of country not exceeding thirty-six square miles in extent. 

The quantity of spring-water must of course depend much upon the 
amount of rain which falls upon the surface, even when the other conditions 
of the case are similar ; but it is probable that in the two instances last 
named, there is little difference in the annual rain-fall. The Rev. Gilbert 
White, in his ' Natural History of Selborne,' gives the average rain at 
Selborne, close to the Surrey sand district, from thirteen years' observation 
(from 1780 to 1792), at SS'^S inches per annum ; while at Liverpool, no great 
distance from Delamere Forest, the average annual rain is about 35 inches. 

Passing from these absorbent measures, which are so eminently productive 
of springs, to those of older date and harder or closer texture, I am able to 
give, from extensive observation, some information upon the volume of spring- 
water produced by the sandstone district of the lower coal-measures and the 
millstone grit formation immediately beneath. These two groups of rocks 
usually produce spring-water of great excellence and softness, but owing 
to their general horizontal stratification, the frequent and great extent to 
which they are covered by drift clay and the numerous beds of impervious 
shale with which the sandstones and flag-rocks are interstratified ; and also 
to the steep and hilly character of the surface which generally prevails where 
these formations are present, the bulk of the rain which falls runs off the 
ground in floods, and a comparatively small quantity finds its way through 
cracks and fissures into the interior of the earth, to be reproduced as springs. 

Hence it is seldom that springs are found here in sufficient volume to 
supply large masses of population, and a different system of supply has 
been resorted to, that of storing the surplus water of wet seasons for use 
in periods of drought, which will form a separate subject of observation. 

The volume of spring-water from equal areas varies considerably in the 
districts under consideration. 

This is owing partly to elevation, partly to geological differences, but 
perhaps principally to the very variable quantity of rain which falls upon 
the surface. Taking the Penine chain of hills, which forms the boundary 
between the counties of York and Lancaster, and the various projecting 
spurs of the same range which run into both counties, as the most conspicuous 
development of these geological formations, the rain is found to vary 100 
per cent, in the same year, although the district named is confined to very 
narrow limits. Thus the rain at Liverpool, Lancaster, and Manchester, on 
the plain beyond the western confines of the district, averages 35 inches per 
annum ; at the foot of the hills, at Bolton and Rochdale for instance, it 
reaches nearly 50 inches ; on the hills above Bolton, within the gathering 
grounds of the district supplying that town, Liverpool, Chorley, Black- 
burn and other places, the rain amounts to nearly 60 inches per annum. 
On Blackstone Edge, the summit of the ridge between Rochdale and Hali- 
fax, and in the Manchester Water- Works district, about half-way between 
Manchester and Sheffield, the annual rain is upwards of 50 inches. At the 
foot of the hills to the east, as at Sowerby Bridge and Halifax, it does not 
much exceed 30 inches ; and further on to the east, as at Leeds and York, 
it falls to bet ween 20 and 30 inches. 

In like mann er the spring-water varies in extreme drought from about i of 



ON THE SUPPI^Y OF WATER TO TOWNS. 69 

a cubic foot per second for every 1000 acres of contributing area, as in the 
Washbourne, one of the tributaries of the river Wharfe in Yoriishire, to f of 
a cubic foot per second from the same area, as in tlie river Etherow at the 
Manchester Water- Works. The spring-water of the Rivington Hills, from 
whence the supply of Liverpool is to be obtained, is equal in the same dry 
season to about half the quantity of that yielded by the Manchester district 
in proportion to their respective areas. The general lowest yield of these 
measures in the dryest weather, after a long period of drought, is about ^ 
or I of a cubic foot per 1000 acres. These are the quantities measured in 
the streams, the produce of considerable tracts of land, and are liable to be 
increased and discoloured by floods. There are seldom any large or import- 
ant individual springs. The Manyvvells Spring, near Bradford in Yorkshire, 
is one of the largest. When at its lowest, except in extreme drought, it is 
about 200,000 gallons a-day, but will average about 300,000. 

The abundance of spring-water found in the limestone which lies below 
the millstone grit has been alluded to. Of that which issues from the old 
red sandstone I have no certain information, but it probably closely resembles 
in quantity that yielded by the lower coal-measures and the millstone grit. 

Beneath these, in geological series, the rocks generally become so compact 
and so little fissured as to allow the infiltration of a very small portion of the 
water which falls upon them, and the springs are consequently insignificant, not- 
withstanding the abundant quantity of rain which prevails in the mountainous 
districts peculiar to these formations. Measurements in the mica-slate in 
Scotland in the summer of 1853, give results smaller than those obtained in 
the millstone grit, notwithstanding the greater elevation of the ground and 
the much larger annual rain-fall. 

2. From Artesian Wells. — The obtaining of water by means of wells 
sunk into absorbent measures, "water-bearing strata" as they have been 
called, overlaid by other measures of a retentive or impervious character, or 
by wells sunk into permeable rocks like the new red sandstone, is a system 
which has been widely adopted, and with considerable success. Such is the 
mode by which both Paris and London are to a great extent supplied, as well 
as Liverpool, Birkenhead, W^olverhampton and other places in this country, 
and Tours, Calais, Venice and other places on the continent. 

Where absorbent measures are covered by others of an impervious cha- 
racter, as the greensands and chalk are in the London basin by the plastic 
clay, and where the absorbent or water-bearing measures are supplied with 
the water they contain from elevated districts where they rise to the surface, 
and where they receive and absorb the rain, the manner in which the water 
is obtained is the most simple and convenient. A bore-hole of suitable size 
is sunk through the impervious overlying stratum or strata to the measures 
beneath, which are charged with water received from their distant elevated 
outcrops. As soon as the water-bearing measure is reached, the water pent 
down by the overlying impervious mass is released, and rises through the 
bore-hole to the surface of the ground, where, if the supply be abundant and 
the pressure great, it will overflow in a constant stream. 

The name of Artesian Well is said to have been derived from wells of this 
description having been first constructed in Artois, in the north of France, 
where the geological structure of the country favoured their easy and econo- 
mical construction. In France, large quantities of water are obtained in 
this manner. At and near Tours fifteen wells yield about ^.OOOjOOO gallons 
per day ; one well alone supplying as much as 950,000 gallons in twenty- 
four hours. The well at Grenelle, in Paris, yields 880,000 gallons of water 



)rO REPORT — 1855. 

daily, and has continued, without diminution in quantity, since it was com- 
pleted in 184-1. The supply to the sand from which it rises is said to be 
derived 100 miles off; and yet such is the pressure, that it rises in a tube to 
the height of 120 feet above the surface of the ground at the well. 

It is estimated that the quantity of water derived by means of Artesian 
wells by public and private parties within the city of London or its imme- 
diate neighbourhood, amounts to 8,000,000 or 10,000,000 gallons per day. 
This is obtained almost entirely from the lower tertiary sands and the upper 
beds of the chalk. Probably a much larger quantity could be procured 
from the greensands below the chalk. Mr. Prestwich, who has most ably 
entered into an examination of this question, is of opinion that 30,000,000 
or 40,000,000 gallons of excellent water might be obtained daily in this 
manner for the supply of London. 

The quality of the water will depend upon the character of the water- 
bearing stratum from which it is derived; the chalk will generally yield hard- 
water, the greensands generally soft. The water from the lower tertiary sands 
is occasionally chalybeate and unsuitable for domestic use. In nearly all cases, 
the water, after being first tapped, improves in quality as it continues to flow. 

This source of supply is of course only available under certain geological 
conditions, and is always limited by the amount of water which the water- 
bearing stratum can absorb from rain or surface drainage, and by the resistance 
opposed to its free passage by the closeness of the material through which it 
has to pass. 

Formerly the water in the Artesian wells which are sunk to the chalk in 
London, rose to the surface and overflowed ; but the number of wells which 
have been constructed have in great measure exhausted the supply, and the 
water has now to be raised by artificial means from considerable depths. 

The question of a supply of water by this means is one of great interest. 
It has been very carefully investigated by many able and competent men — 
by Mr. Prestwich, the Rev. Mr. Clutterbuck, Mr. Dickinson, Mr. Stephenson, 
Mr. Braithwaite, Mr. Homersham and others, to whose publications and to 
the discussions which have taken place in the Institution of Civil Engineers, 
useful reference may be made. 

The water derived from wells in the new red sandstone forms a closely 
analogous system of supply. 

Here the supply generally depends upon the porosity of the rock, the 
quantity of rain which falls upon its surface, the amount of infiltration, and 
the angle of friction which is formed by the resistance of the rock to t"he free 
passage of the water. The new red sandstone covers so large a portion 
of England that its capability for aff'ording water is a question of correspond- 
ing interest. In some districts it is found to yield an abundant quantity, in 
others very little. It is generally hard, but well-aerated and agreeable to the 
taste. 

The largest supplies from this source have been obtained in Liverpool, and 
owing to the long contest and repeated investigations as to the best means of 
affording an increased supply to that town, very ample information has been 
obtained as to the yield of the wells and the quality of the water. The 
Report of Mr. Robert Stephenson on this subject in March 1850, is full of 
valuable statistics. It appears that the supply then afforded by the new red 
sandstone from seven wells or stations, was 3,900,000 gallons per day, being an 
average of about 570,000 gallons for each well ; but Mr. Stephenson arrived 
at the opinion that an isolated well in the new red sandstone at Liverpool 
mi^ht be assumed as capable of yielding about 1,000,000 gallons of water 



ON THE SUPPLY OP WATER TO TOWNS. 7l 

per day. After careful study of the facts with which he became acquainted, 
he came to the following conclusions : — 

"That an abundance of water is stored up in the new red sandstone, and may 
be obtained by sinking shafts and driving tunnels about the level of low water. 

" That the sandstone is generally very pervious, admitting of deep wells 
drawing their supplies from distances exceeding one mile. 

" That the permeability of the sandstone is occasionally interfered with by 
faults or fissures filled with argillaceous matter, sometimes rendering them 
partially or wholly water-tight. 

" That neither by sinking, tunnelling, or boring, can the yield of any well 
be very materially and permanently increased, except so far as the contri- 
buting area may be thereby enlarged. 

" That the contributing area to any given well is limited by the amount of 
friction experienced by the movement of the water through the fissures and 
pores of the sandstone ; and 

" That there is little or no probability of obtaining permanently more than 
about 1,000,000 or 1,200,000 gallons a day, and this only when not inter- 
fered with by other deep wells." 

The hardness of the Liverpool public well-water varied from 5° to 28°, but 
many of the private wells far exceeded this. They ranged from 23° to 352°, 
the highest being evidently afiected by saline infiltration from the sea- water 
of the Mersey. 

Assuming Mr. Stephenson's conclusions as to the probable yield of wells in 
the new red sandstone as correct, although they are beyond what is realized 
in practice, and that each well withdraws the water within a radius of one 
mile, one million gallons per day will equal a depth of about 8 inches of water 
per annum over the whole surface, which must be absorbed and conducted 
to the well. The rain at Liverpool is 35 or 36 inches per annum on the 
average. After allowing for the loss occasioned by evaporation, vegetation, 
and such absorption as does not subsequently reappear in springs, and which 
has been ascertained to be from 12 to 16 inches and upwards, there would 
remain to supply springs and flow off in floods about 20 inches per annum, 
of which 8 inches would appear to permeate the rock, and be available for 
the supply of deep wells. 

Similar experience is derived from a deep well sunk into the new red 
sandstone by the late Manchester Water-Works Company, at their works 
at Gorton, about the year 1845. This well was expected to have yielded 
2,000,000 gallons per day, and it is stated to have actually yielded at one 
time 1,500,000. In 1850 it was represented to Mr. Stephenson as yielding 
1,200,000, and in 1852, previous to its use being discontinued, the regular 
yield from daily measurements was 750,000 gallons per day. Here the rain, 
as at Liverpool, is about 36 inches per annum ; and assuming the same extent 
of collecting area, the water raised, at 750,000 gallons per day, is equal to a 
percolation of little more than 6 inches per annum. In the Midland Counties, 
however, where the rain is much less in quantity, and where also there may 
be some lithological difference in the permeability of the rock, the yield from 
such wells as have been sunk with a view of obtaining water supplies is much 
less. At Wolverhampton, where the rain is probably under 30 inches, the 
yield of two wells sunk by the Water Company is only equal to about 
200,000 gallons per day each. Some special causes may have affected the 
supply at these wells, but no greater quantity could reasonably be expected 
if the data afforded by Liverpool be made the groundwork for calculation. 
The only rain observations in that district are those which have been made 
at Lord VVrottesley's Observatory at Wrottesley, but as the rain-gauges are 



72 REPORT — 1855. 

placed at considerable elevations above the ground, they probably indicate 
much less than the real quantity of water reaciiing the surface. By these 
observations the average annual rain is about '20 inches, but allowing for 
the probable error, and assuming it at 25 or 26 inches, from which an annual 
loss of 15 or 16 inches must be deducted, there will remain only about 10 
inches to supply floods and percolation, just half the quantity which remains 
at Liverpool and Manchester. As at those places it appears that muchmore 
water runs off in floods than remains both for floods and percolation at Wol- 
verhampton, and as undoubtedly a large portion of the water will also run off 
the ground in floods in that district, a very small quantity can remain to give 
a constant supply to deep wells. 

In all cases the red sandstone water has to be pumped out of the rock 
by artificial means. Except where the rock is very porous, and where the 
downward tendency of the water is little interrupted by intervening beds of 
shale, and where only it is abundantly supplied by rain on the surface, no 
large, convenient, or cheap supplies of water can be expected. The hard- 
ness of the Manchester water at the Gorton well was about 20°, of the water 
at Wolverhampton about 18°. 

Some small supplies have been obtained by bore-holes in the coal-measures, 
particularly where they are covered by the new red sandstone ; but they are 
comparatively of small moment. 

3. From rivers. — It has been so easy and natural a course to resort 
to rivers for a supply of water to towns, as the springs or local supplies on 
which they originally depended have failed or become exhausted, that except 
in districts where the streams have been greatly polluted, recourse to con- 
tiguous or convenient rivers has been a common practice. Thus the Seine 
has contributed a large portion of the supply to Paris. The Thames and the 
Lea contribute the bulk of the water consumed in London. The Clyde 
afl^brds the main supply to Glasgow. The Ouse supplies York ; the Lee, 
Cork ; the Trent, Nottingham ; the Dee, Chester ; the Tyne formerly 
supplied Newcastle, and the Wharfe has just been laid under contribution 
for the wants of Leeds. 

In general, however, rivers are being abandoned where other sources are 
within reach, partly from the fouling of the streams by the drainage of 
towns and by mining and manufacturing operations, and partly on account of 
the frequent discoloration of the water by floods or vegetable decomposition, 
and the difficulty of purifying the water so discoloured even by the expensive 
and troublesome system of careful filtration. But where the rivers are pure 
and free from discoloration, and local circumstances favour the adoption of 
such a supply, it possesses many and great advantages. The requisite works 
are simple and capable of easy extension, and the supply generally is most 
abundant. Such are the cases of Inverness, Aberdeen, and Perth, all deri- 
ving their supplies from rivers of unexceptionable quality. 

River- water also possesses to a great extent a power of self-purification, so 
that a moderate admixture of foul water in the upper part of a stream does 
not necessarily render the water unfit for the supply of a place lower down in 
its course. In the case of the river Wharfe, lor example, from whence the 
town of Leeds is to be partially supplied with water, Dr. Hofmann was unable 
to detect the presence of any noxious ingredient at the point at which it was 
proposed to withdraw the water, although it received the drainage of several 
small towns and villages, and the refuse of several woo'len-mills situated at no 
great distance higher up on the river. The case, however, of the deleterious 
character of the water of the Thames is notorious, and I need scarcely cite 



ON THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO TOWNS. 73 

the evidence of Dr. Hassall. The Severn at Gloucester contains palpable 
indications of the sewage of Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and Worcester, and 
the Ch'de at Glasgow is no longer fit for domestic use. Except, indeed, in 
mountain districts of such physical and geological character that the water 
can neither be injured by agricultural or mining operations, nor by the refuse 
of towns and manufactures, few rivers can be depended upon for a supply of 
good and wholesome water. 

I now pass on to the consideration of the supplies derived — 

4. From " gathering grounds" where the surplus-water of ivet seasons is 
collected into large storeage reservoirs. — From these sources probably the most 
important supplies are now derived, and many points of considerable interest 
enter into the consideration of this branch of the subject. 

Very accurate information is required as to the fall of rain, the loss by 
evaporation and vegetable absorption, the quantity of water which issues in 
springs or flows off the surface of the ground, the duration of droughts and 
the largest quantity of water which passes off the ground in limited periods, 
together with the requisite capacity of reservoirs for storing such water 
according to the character of the district or the annual amount of rain. 
Nearly all the correct information which we possess on these points has 
been collected within the last thirty years, the bulk of it within little more! 
than half that period. So little was formerly known on these questions, 
that so recently as 1799 the late Dr. Dalton wrote a paper which was read 
before the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, entitled " Ex- 
periments and Obi-ervations to determine whether the quantity of Rain and 
Dew is equal to the quantity of Water carried off by Rivers and raised by 
Evaporation, with an inquiry into the origin of Springs." In this paper he 
examines the question by the aid of such meagre information as then existed, 
and arrives at the conclusion, " that the rain and dew of this country are 
equivalent to the quantity of water carried off by evaporation and by the 
rivers." He then examines the various opinions which at that time existed 
upon the origin of springs, combating the supposition that they were derived 
from some hidden subterraneous source, concluding that they must be attri- 
buted solely to the rain, their variation depending upon the seasons, and 
upon the quantity of rain which falls. 

At this time Dr. Dalton determined that the average precipitation of rain 
and dew throughout the kingdom was 36 inches, allowing 31 inches for rain 
and 5 inches for dew. The highest returns of rain before him were from Ken- 
dal and Keswick, both under 60 inches per annum. Observations since then, 
some of the most important conducted by Dr. Miller of Whitehaven, have 
proved that the rain in many parts of the country far exceeds this quantity. 
In the mountainous district of Westmoreland and Cumberland, Dr. Miller has 
ascertained that the rain amounts in one locality to nearly 200 inches 
per annum. 

On the hills between Lancashire and Yorkshire it amounts occasionally to 
80 inches in a year, the average being between 50 and 60 ; and from obser- 
vations recently taken in the Highlands of Scotland, it exceeds, at the head 
of Loch Katrine and Loch Lomond, 100 inches per annum. Judging by 
analogy, and from such facts as have been ascertained, it is probable that 
both amongst the mountains of Scotland and those of Wales, the rain will be as 
great as Dr. Miller has ascertained it to be in the English lake district. Such 
quantities form a striking contrast to those registered on the eastern coast of 
the country, where the average will not probably exceed 20 inches per annum. 

The next important point is to ascertain how much of the rain which falls 



74 REPORT — 1855. 

is lost to the rivers and springs by evaporation, or by being taken up by 
vegetation. The physical and geological features of the country will produce 
very varying results. The proportionate quantity of water which will flow 
from steep mountain sides, consisting of impervious rocks, will be very dif- 
ferent from that which will pass away from a gently undulating country well 
clothed with vegetation. 

The first accurate observer on a large scale in this department appears to 
have been the late ingenious Mr. Tliom of Rothesay, the constructor of the 
Shavvs Water-Works, near Greenock. 

The following is the result of information which he gave some years ago 
to the Institution of Civil Engineers on the rain which fell in 1826 and in 
1828, the former year being the dryest year on record, and the latter, one in 
which there fell more than the average amount of rain : — 

inches. 
From the 1st April 1826 to 1st April 1827, the fall of rain in Bute was 4>5-4i 

Of which there found its way to the reservoirs 23-9 

Lost to the reservoir 21"5 

In 1828 the rain at Greenock Reservoir was 60 inches, of which there 
flowed to the reservoir 4-1 inches, showing a loss by evaporation, vegetation, 
absorption, &c., of 19 inches. Further observations by Mr. Thom led him 
to the conclusion, that the loss bore a certain definite proportion to the rain- 
fall ; and the late Mr. Stirrat of Paisley, also an accurate observer, viewed 
the question in the same light ; their average results giving the loss at about 
^ths or Y^oths of the whole fall, when the annual amount was from 54 to 65 
inches. This conclusion was no doubt correctly arrived at from the facts 
before them, but it is obvious from a little reflection that this mode of calcu- 
lation is inapplicable to other districts, where a much larger or a much 
smaller quantity of rain might fall. For instance, the requirements of vege- 
tation and the amount of evaporation are usually much less where a large 
quantity of rain falls, while at the same time the ground is generally less 
absorbent and the declivities greater, and it evidently follows that the 
loss by evaporation and vegetation must be less under such circumstances 
than in a rich level country, where the rain is not nearly so great. By as- 
suming a certain definite proportion of the whole rain, the reverse would 
appear to be the case. Take, by way of illustration, 100 inches in a sterile 
mountainous country, the loss at ^ths would be 30 inches ; and take 30 
inches again as the rain in a fertile level country, the loss at -^ths would be 
but 9 inches, obviously inconsistent with the real facts of the case. The truth 
appears to be, that the loss within certain limits is a tolerably constant quantity, 
and that generally the greater the rain the less the deduction ought to be. 

The observations of Mr. Thom and Mr. Stirrat alluded to, give the annual 
loss at from 18 to 23 inches per annum, out of rain-falls of 54 inches and 65 
inches respectively. Measurements and observations in 1852 in the Gorbals 
Water-Works district, closely adjoining those in which these observations 
were made, and in which there is about the same amount of rain, show the loss 
to have been but 12 inches out of 60. The average loss from several years' 
observations at the Manchester Water- Works is about 12 inches per annum. 
Mr. Hawksley's observations at the Liverpool New Water- Works, in 1847, 
show a loss of 12|^ inches. 

Other observations scattered over the country show the loss to be ordi- 
narily from 12 to 16 inches, and to a great extent to be irrespective of the rain 
which falls. In determining, therefore, the probable quantity of water which 
maybe collected from any district, other than one of an absorbent character, it 
is necessary first to ascertain the fall of rain, and then, having due regard to 



ON THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO TOWNS. 75 

the state of cultivation, to physical features and geological structure, to make 
such a deduction for the loss by evaporation and vegetation, as, in the abs- 
ence of correct experiments, may under the circumstances appear to be just. 
But in estimating this quantity as a supply to towns, it is not safe to calculate 
upon an average of seasons. It is scarcely possible to provide storage which 
will equalize the extremes of wet seasons and dry ones. The average of two 
or three successive dry years should be taken as the standard. 

The storage requisite for equalizing the supply afforded during this period 
should be provided with a due regard to the continuance of drought and the 
quantity of water which will flow off the ground in extreme wet seasons. 
No water should be allowed to run to waste. Experience has shown that in the 
regions of comparatively moderate rain in this country, the storage to effect 
this object should vary from 20,000 or 30,000 cubic feet to 50,000 or 60,000 
cubic feet for each acre of collecting ground, the smaller quantity being about 
sufficient for an available annual rain-fall of perhaps 18 inches, and the larger 
for one of about 36 or 40 inches. Or in estimating the storage by time, it 
should be sufficient to afford the average daily supply of the district for 100 
or 120 days where the available rain is 40 inches per annum or upwards, and 
where the rain is frequent and heavy ; and for 200 or 250 days where the 
rain is less, and where the annual available quantity will not exceed 8 or 12 
inches, due allowance in every case being made for the produce of the 
springs in protracted droughts. 

The year 1852 was a remarkable year, not only in its meteorological fea- 
tures, but as affording valuable information for the guidance of the hydraulic 
engineer. In that year there occurred probably one of the longest droughts 
of which we have any correct record, and the heaviest falls of rain within 
short periods. The total annual fall was but an average, and reservoirs for 
a town's supply should have been able to collect nearly all the water which 
flowed off the ground during the periods of excessive wet, to have afforded 
a full daily supply throughout the whole duration of the drought. In the 
Manchester W ater-Works, the rain was just an average, the average being 
about 50 inches per annum. Rather more than half the whole quantity 
fell in the two first and two last months of the year. The quantity of 
water which flowed from 18,900 acres between the 1st of January and the 
9thofFebruary exceeded 800,000,000 cubic feet. The rain in the same period, 
taking the average of what was indicated by the gauges, was 12 inches. The 
flow from the ground, accurately measured through reservoirs, equalled 12i 
inches, the rain-gauges evidently indicating less than the real fall. From the 
evening of the 4th of February to the morning of the 5th, the quantity of 
water received into the reservoirs was equal to a depth over the whole sur- 
face of the ground of 2-^-^ inches. This excessive rain was followed by a 
drought of 110 days in duration, occasional wet days having occurred during 
this period, which would reduce the net duration of the drought to 105 
days. In the year 1850, at the Whittle Dean Water- Works, which supply 
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the reservoirs went down constantly for 240 days, 
the whole available produce of the district being but 6^ inches in the year, 
out of 17f inches of rain-fall. At Warrington, in the year 1854, there was 
no appreciable supply of water for 230 days, the reservoirs and the springs 
constantly decreasing during that period. The total produce of the year was 
but 8 inches out of 27 inches of rain-fall. 

These are a few of the points which require to be considered in connexion 
with the system of obtaining water from " gathering grounds." The amount 
of information now existing in a scattered and unpublished form is very 
large, and if properly brought together, would form a valuable contribution 



76 REPORT — 1855. 

to our knowledge on this subject. Most large modern undertakings have 
been laid out on this principle, and the constantly accumulating information 
enables the engineer to revise his data, to correct errors, and to make his 
calculations with additional certainty. To enumerate the works on this 
principle would be to name most of the important water projects of modern 
date in this country and in America. The Croton Aqueduct, constructed 
between ihe years 1835 and ISiS, for the supply of New York in America, 
from a source nearly forty miles distant, at a cost of £2,500,000, and which 
yields a daily supply of about 30,000,000 gallons a day, was one of the first 
large works on this system. The Cochituate Works, for the supply of Bos- 
ton, United States, are of more recent date. They supply about 7,000,000 
gallons per day to 140,000 persons. The distance is twenty miles, and the 
cost has been about £1,500,000. The GorbalsWater Works, as they are 
now completed, receive their supplies from a tract of elevated ground of 
2750 acres in extent, furnishing the city of Glasgow and its neighbourhood 
south of the Clyde with about 4-,000,000 gallons of good water per day, be- 
sides a stipulated compensation to the stream of 1,310,712 gallons. The 
annual rain is about 45 inches on the average, and the capacity of the re- 
servoirs equal to 61,000 cubic feet for each acre of collecting ground. 

The Liverpool Water- Works, now nearly completed, in the neighbourhood 
of the hills known by the name of Rivington Pike, near Chorley, will collect 
the water from about 10,000 acres of hilly ground, and are estimated to be 
capable of affording a supply of from 12,000,000 to 15,000,000 gallons of 
water per day, after giving about half that quantity as compensation to mills. 
The rain is about 57 inches on the average, and the capacity of the reservoirs 
about 49,000 cubic feet per acre of collecting ground. 

The Manchester Water- Works, which are now all but completed, and 
which have supplied Manchester for nearly five years, collect the water from 
about 19,000 acres of mountain ground, and are calculated to afford, when 
finished, about 25,000,000 gallons per day to Manchester and its neigh- 
bourhood, besides giving 17,000,000 as compensation to the mills on the 
river upon which the works are constructed. The average rain is a little 
above 50 inches ; the total storage upwards of 600,000,000 cubic feet, or 
about 34,000 cubic feet per acre. Much water runs to waste for want of 
sufficient storage. 

The supplies to Sheffield, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Halifax, Blackburn, Bol- 
ton, Bristol, Edinburgh, and most of the large towns and cities in the manufac- 
turing districts, and in the north of England and Scotland, are supplied in the 
same manner ; but it would be tedious and needless to describe the peculiari- 
ties at each place. 

There is, however, one point in connexion with the supplies obtained in 
this way which should not be passed over. Water obtained from gathering 
grounds is occasionally, sometimes frequently, discoloured in times of heavy 
rain, and is rendered unfit for immediate supply to the inhabitants of a town. 
Various methods have been adopted for obviating this objection. In some 
cases the discoloration from peat or other causes is so great, that no 
means which can be practically adopted on a large scale have been suffi- 
cient to clarify or purify the water to such an extent as could be desired. 

In many works a system of clarification has been adopted by means of a 
succession of reservoirs, in which the water is allowed time to deposit impu- 
rities, being gradually decanted off from one to another, until it at last becomes 
fitted for consumption. In others, mechanical filtration has been applied, 
the water being passed through layers of fine sand ; but no mechanical filtra- 
tion will effectually remove the stain of peat. 



ON THE SUPPLY OF WATER TO TOWNS. 77 

In most gathering grounds the water is at times perfectly pure, and a very- 
large portion of that which flows off the ground is in the most unexcep- 
tionable condition for immediate consumption. If this were mixed with 
that wliich had been previously stored in a discoloured state, the whole 
might be spoiled, and deposition or filtration would have to be resorted to. 

Taking advantage of these circumstances, a system of separation has been 
adopted in many works, and in the largest and most complete manner in 
those for the supply of Manchester. There, by simple self-acting means, not 
liable to any derangement, each stream subject to discoloration is made to 
separate itself, the pure uncoloured water either flowing direct to Manchester 
or to reservoirs set apart for the storage of pure water. The turbid water 
flows to other reservoirs, where it either bleaches and settles for subsequent 
use, or is employed in aflbrding the required quantity of compensation water 
to the mills on the stream. This system is probably the simplest, cheapest, 
and most eff'ective which has been suggested ; and though only recently 
introduced, is becoming very general, where circumstances are favourable 
for its adoption. 

5. The supply from natural lakes. — This supply can scarcely be said to 
differ from that of gathering grounds and large storage reservoirs, but there 
are one or two peculiarities which it may be desirable to allude to. 

Its simplicity, where it can be adopted, is a material recommendation. It 
saves the construction of large artificial reservoirs, which is sometimes one of 
the most difficult works that an engineer can undertake. The great depth, 
and frequently the large surface, of water which is exposed, in comparison 
with the collecting area, favour the clarification of the water, and, as lakes 
are generally found in mountainous districts and in the harder geological 
measures, the water is frequently of the very purest quality. The towns of 
Whitehaven and Dumfries are supplied with water from natural lakes ; the 
first from Ennerdale Lake in Cumberland, and the latter from Loch Rutton 
in Dumfriesshire. The town of Inverness is also supplied from lake water, 
the water being taken from the river Ness, a few miles below Loch Ness. 
But the largest work of this kind when completed will be the supply to the 
city of Glasgow with water from Loch Katrine, a work for which parlia- 
mentary sanction has been obtained, and which is now being carried out. 
The distance is about thirty-four miles, and the supply to the city will be 
50,000,000 gallons per day. 

Objections have been taken to the quality of these mountain lake waters 
on account of their excessive purity and their violent action upon new lead 
under certain circumstances. Similar objections were urged to the supply of 
very soft and excellent water to the cities of New York, Philadelphia and 
Boston in the United States, but experience has shown that no practical evil 
has resulted, either in that country or in this, from the passage of such water 
through leaden service pipes in any town's supply of water. 

The supply of water in the towns of Inverness and Whitehaven, both of 
which are supplied with water of the greatest softness and the utmost purity, 
almost equal in all respects to distilled water, are striking instances of the 
safety with which such water can be conveyed to the inhabitants through 
leaden pipes and cisterns. Inverness has been supplied with Loch Ness water 
for upwards of five-and-twenty years, through the intervention of lead pipes and 
cisterns, without a single case of illness ever having occurred which could be 
attributed in the slightest degree to the contamination of the water by lead. 

In Whitehaven the water was introduced from Ennerdale Lake in the 
summer of 1850. This water is of the same degree of purity and softness as 



78 



REPORT — 1855. 



the Loch Ness water. The average mortality of the town for the four years 
preceding the introduction of the lake water was S^'S per 1000, and for the 
four years subsequently the average deaths were only 23 "5 per 1000. Ex- 
cept the new supply of water, there was no apparent cause for this amelio- 
ration. These cases clearly demonstrate the great benefit which results from 
the supply of eminently pure water, even though it should be delivered to 
the inhabitants through leaden pipes and cisterns. Any objection, however, 
on this score does not apply to the water, but to the means of its distribution, 
and the evil, if any, can be obviated in various ways. 

There are still many points of much interest connected with the supply of 
water, and the sources from which it should be obtained, apart from all 
engineering and mechanical details, which have not as yet been touched 
upon ; but their investigation would occupy considerable time, and they must 
be reserved for future consideration. 



Fifteenth Report of a Committee, consisting of Professor Daubeny, 
Professor Henslow, and Professor Lindley, appointed to con- 
tinue their Experiments on the Growth and Vitality of Seeds. 

These experiments have been continued under circumstances similar to 
those of preceding years, and the results are registered in the annexed 
Table. 



Name and Date when gathered. 
1842. 


No. 
sown. 


>Jo. of Seeds of each 
Species which vege- 
tated at 


Time of vegetating in 
days at 


Remarks. 


Ox- 
ford. 


Cam- jchis- 
bridge. iwick. 


Ox- 
ford. 


Cam- 
bridge. 


Chis- 
wick. 


1. Aconitum Napellus 


100 

50 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

50 

50 

100 

150 

25 

50 

100 

100 

50 

50 

100 

100 

25 

100 

100 

50 

50 

50 

100 

25 

50 

25 

15 


1 


! 


25-30 
i}5-30 






Healthy. 
Strong. 














6. Buphthalmum cordifolium ... 

7. Bupleurum rotundifolium ... 

8. Conium maculatum 


9. Cytisus I;aburnum 






12. Erysimum PerofFskianum ... 










18. Lathyrus heterophyllus 




4 
22 




30 
16-24 








28 


48 


8 






25. Orobus niger 


26. Potentilla nepalensis 






28. Tetragonolobus purpureus ... 

29. Trigonella Foenum-graecum... 


31. Cucurbita Pepo, var 




1 



ON THE GROWTH AND VITALITY OP SEEDS, 



79 



Name and Date when gathered. 
1842. 


No. 


Vo. of Seeds of each 
species which vege- 
tated at 


Time of vegetating in 
days at 


Bemarks. 


sown. 


Ox- 
ford. 


Cam- 
bridge. 


3his- 
Tick. 


Ox- 
ford. 


Cam- 
bridge. 


Chis- 
wick. 




100 

25 

100 

100 

100 

100 

20 

50 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

50 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

200 

100 

50 

50 

50 

150 

6 

50 

25 

100 

100 

100 

50 

100 

15 

20 

100 

100 

25 
100 
15 
25 
15 
100 






3 

7 
18 






20 

15-20 
18-30 


Strong. 
Strong. 










37. Coreopsis atrosanguinea 

38. Cotoneaster rotundifolia 


40. Cynoglossum glochidatum ... 


13 
17 
11 


53 

66 
55 


20-25 
20-25 
25-30 


10 

1-21 
6 










46. Impatiens glanduligera 






50. Oxyura chrysanthemoides ... 


















60. Cichorium Endivia, var 












67. Liriodendron Tulipiferum ... 








72. Mesembryanthemum cry-" 
stallinum 

























Report on Observations of Luminous Meteors, 1854-55. By the Rev, 
Baden Powell, M.A., F.R.S. ^c, Savilian Professor of Geometry 
in the University of Oxford. 
The present Report presents, I fear, but a meagre appearance in comparison 
with some of its predecessors. But among the meteors recorded will be 
found some of considerable interest. I have to express my obligations to 
the several friends who have contributed their observations, chiefly the same 
who have favoured me on former occasions. 



80 



REPORT — 1855. 



Date. 



1854. 
Oct. 3 



14 



22 



Dec. 10 

14 

1855 
AprQ 18 



Aug. 12 



Hour. 



h m s 
6 45 p.m. 



9 p.m. 



7 45 
(g.m.t.) 



9 44 .... 
10 5 .... 

8 58 
(g.m.t.) 

10 14 ..., 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



Commenced as a 
bright point ; in- 
creased and burst. 



Like a rocket 



A large fire-ball about 
i moon's diameter. 



Large meteor 

Large meteor 

Very bright meteor, 
Venus, and as ■well 
defined. 

Large meteor 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Middle of the 
stream bright 
white, each 
edge deep 
blue. 

Brilliant ... 



Intensely 
bright, clear 
and vivid 
white, daz 
zUng. 

White 

Whitish 

Steady light.. 

Reddish 



Train or sparks. 



Burst in a long stream of 
light obUquely towards 

N. 



Long luminous train 



5 or 6 sees. 



Leaving scintillations or 
sparks of a whitish red 
colour on all sides. 



No train or sparks 
Sparks 



No train 



Long and brilliant train of|Slow. 
sparks. 



Velocity or 
duration. 



About 6 or 7 sees. 



Rapid ; described I 
path of about 30S 
and exploded. 



Slow. 
Slow. 



3 or 4 sees., mi 
slowly and si 
dily ; disappearef 
instantaneously. 



s^ 



Luminous Meteors observed 1854-55, 



1854 
Oct. 7 



Dec. 

10 
12 
1855. 
Jan. 13 

17 

April 17 
May 4 



8 45 p.m. 

11 20 p.m. 

8 5 p.m. 
1 6 a.m. 

11 44 p.m. 

6 50 p.m. 

6 50 30 
p.m. 

9 32 p.m. 

11 48 p.m. 



i size moou 

2nd mag.* 

2nd mag.* 
2nd mag.* 

1st mag.*... 

1st mag.*.., 

2nd mag.* 

5th mag.* 

1st mag.*... 



Yellowish.. 

Orange-red 

Blue 

Red 

Colourless 

YeUow 

YeUow 

Colourless 

Yellow 



Long tail .•• 

Streak left 

Streak 

Streak 

Long streak 

Streak left 

Streak 

No tail 

TaU 



Rapid . 

Rapid . 

Rapid . 
Rapid , 

H sec. . 

1 sec. , 

O'i sec. 

0-1 sec. 

Rapid . 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



Direction or altitade. 



by N., alt. about 25° under 
Bootes. 



im N.E. to S.W. over the 
:enith. 



N.N.W. towards W. below 
Lyrae. 



General remarks. 



Light, rather hazy, 
Moon half-full. 



Became much 
brighter before 
disappearing. 



Place. 



Driffield, near 
Beverley, York 
shire. 



pw « Aurigse to Ursa Major, 

jm a Persei towards the 
iouth. 



alt. 5" 



41 Polaris to S.W. 



Brilliant 

Very brilliant 

Venus visible 



Bank top Station, 
L. & N.W. Rail- 
way, Manches- 
ter. 



Observer. 



Rev. D. Blanch- 
ard. 



Langley, near 
Hitchin, Herts. 



St. Ives, Hunts. 
Ibid 



H. Fletcher, Cu- 
rator of Lit. and 
Philos. Society. 
Another account 
in the Manches- 
ter Examiner, 
Oct. 21, 1854. 

Mr. G. F. Ansell, 
Che.uist to the 
Royal Pauop 
ticon, London, 

J. King Watts. 

Id. 



Reference. 



Washington Che- Mr. John Wat. 
mical Works, son. 
Fence houses 
(Durham). 



Avery beautiful andjSt. Ives, Hunts, 
brilliant object. I 



MS. communicated 
by Rev. T. Ran 
kin. 



MS. communicated 
to Mr. Greg. 



MS. communicated 
to Mr. Birt. See 
App. No. I. 



MS. communicated 

to Prof. Powell. 

Ibid. 



MS. communicated 
to Prof. Powell, 
See App. No. II, 



J. King Watts. MS. communicated 
to Prof. Powell. 



by E. J. Lowe, Esq., F.R.A.S. 



» 35° N.W. by W., moved 
r towards N. 



' at angle 45° towards W., 
ising through t Andromedae. 
ling down through Rigel ... 
u at angle 45° towards S., 
ssing 2° S. of Sirius. 
j'eudicular down, passing 2° 
[. of Polaris, moved 30°. 
Hy from \^ to « Aquarii, in- 
,eased from a mere point. 
|i ?;to»Pegasi 



■ n, inclining W., passed be- 
een ^ and S Leonis. 
ill ? Bootis towards i Vir- 



''>>55. 



Nottingham. 

Observatory, 
Beeston. 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 



F.E.Swann,Esq. 
& Capt. A. S. H 
Lowe. 
E. J. Lowe 

Id 

Id 

Id. 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 



E. J. Lowe's MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

[bid. 

Ibid. 



82 



REPORT — 1855. 



Date. 



Hour. 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



1855. 
July 13 



Aug. 



h ni s 

11 14 30 

p.m. 



12 a.m. 



Twice size If. , and 4 
times as bright as 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Train or sparks. 



Intense blue... 



Disappeared suddenly when 
at its maximum bright- 
ness. 



= 2nd mag.' 



12 53 a.m. | = 2nd mag.*, and as 
bright as 1st mag." 



1 a.m. !2nd mag.' 
10 p.m. 



Blue... 
Bluish 



Velocity or 
duration. 



Very slow, last 
2 sees. 



Tail Very rapid, Jth 

a second. 

Short tail lAlmost instants 

neous. 



As large as 1/., but 
only as bright as 
5th or 6th mag.* 



Colourless 
Colourless 



Streak 



Trail of light left 



10 12 p.m. =2nd mag.* in size 
and as bright as V- 
5 or 6 times the size 
of Jupiter. 



Blue. 



10 15 p.m. 



Bluish 



10 25 p.m. =2nd mag.' 



Instantaneous . 
2 sees 



Resembled a reflected flash 

of lightning. 
Long streak left behind 



10 52 p.m. 



= i size moon. 



Colourless,and' Streak 
then blue. 



Instantaneous . 



Left a train of 1 il 
behind 25°: 
length, dura 
1 sec. 



Blue Leaving a streak. 



1 14 a.m. 



= 2nd mag.' 



Colourless . . . 



Streak , 



A CATALOGCTE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 83 



Direction or altitude. 



General remarks. 



Place. 



Observer. 



Reference. 



om t Serpentis through 
Ophiuchi, fading away near 
? Ophiuchi, having a single 
ray in front. 



irough Polaris from the di' 
rection of fi Cygni. 
om 1° below « Andromedae 
down towards S. at an angle 
of 50°, moved over 30" of 
space. 

om y Ursae Minoris through 
Draco to near ? Ursae Majoris. 
om /3 Herculis through a Co- 
ronae Borealis. Very singular. 
I could evidently see the 
body(whichwas oval in form), 
and apparently not j mile in 
the air. The stars were shi- 
ning brightly. 

•peared at t Aquilae, and only 
moved over 0° 15' of space. 
|om the direction of /3 Pegasi, 
starting from a point 5° abovej 
Is Pegasi, passed through %• 
Pegasi, and faded near ft. 
Aquarii. { 



It instantly increased from ai 
point to its maximum size 
and brightness, and after 
travelling for 1 sec. as instan- 
taneously disappeared. It cast 
1 light upon the ground. 
,)m /3 Cygni towards Cassio 
peia. 

st visible in S.S.W. at an 
iltitude of 45°, it moved down 
n a curve to W.N.W. burst- 
ing at an altitude of 25°, con- 
liderably brighter than the 
noon, being as light as day. 
.'or more than half its course 
twasacolourless,well-defined 
;ircular body, leaving a streak 
)f light behind in its track. 
rtTien more than half-way, 
.he meteor altered, increasing 
o double its original size, 
)ecame blue in colom-, and 
he edges ill-defined. Dis- 
ippeared suddenly, having 
)een visible 2 sees, 
rizontally from |° above 
'^egn, moving from S.E. to 
>f.W. 



, Observatory, 
I Beeston. 



E. J. Lowe 



Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 



Ibid. 
Ibid.. 



o 



:^ — >■ 



Ibid. 



Ibid. 



E. J. Lowe's MS. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 




g2 



84 



REPORT 1855. 



Date. 



1855. 
Aug. 4 



Hour. 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



h m s 
1 15 a.m. 

1 17 a.m. 

1 17 30... 

11 1 p.m. 

12 59 a.m. 

11 47 p.m. 

12 57 a.m. 
1 1 a.m. 

10 3 p.m. 

10 

10 30... 

10 9 
10 10 



= 2nd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 
2nd mag.* 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Colourless 
Colourless 
Colourless 
Colourless 
Colourless 
Blue 



Train or sparks. 



Streak . 
Streak . 
Streak . 
Streak . 
Streak 
Streak 



Velocity or 
duration. 



= 1 stmag.* & brighter 

than 1st mag.* 
= 2ndmag.* 



= lst mag.*.. 

= lst mag.*.. 
= lst mag,*.. 

= 2nd mag.* 



Twice size of lst = 
mag. star. 



Blue 

Blue 

Blue 

Blue 

Blue 

Colourless 
Blue 



10 11 



10 15 .... 

10 16 .... 

10 19 .... 

10 18 30. 



10 21 
10 24 
10 26 



Long streak of light left 

hehind. 
Streak 



Instantaneous ..j. 



Very rapid, du'- 

tion 0*2 sec. 
Instantaneous 



Streak . 

Streak . 
Streak . 



Streak 

Long streak. 



Rapid 

Rapid 
Rapid 



Rapid, duration 

sec. 
Rapid, duratioi ■. 

sec. 



= If. , and similar in every respect, and in the same path as the last meteor. 

Rapid 



Small meteor in Pegasus 
Another small meteor in Pegasus 



2nd mag.* 
Small 



Colourless 



= 2nd mag * 
= 3rd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 



Streak 

Streak = 3rd mag.*. 



Blue 

Colourless 
Blue 



Streak 
Streak 
Traiu 



Between 10''24" and 10''26'° six other small meteors. 



10 28 =lst mag*. 



10 27 Small 

10 27 15... =2ndmag.* 

10 31 =2ndmag.* 

10 32 =2ndmag.* 



With train of light , 



Blue 



Blue. 



Tail, which lingered 



Rapid 
Rapid 



Stationary 



A CATALOGUE 


OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 85 


Direction or altitude. 


General remarks. 


Place. 


Observer. 


Reference. 


erpendicularly down from 1 

S. of Vega, 
erpendicularly down from V 

S. of Delphinus. 
erpendicularly down from fi 

Bootis. 

rom /3 Cygni towards Cassio- 
, peia. 
[oved towards Vega from « 

Cephei. 
assed down through /J Persei, 

coming from the direction ol 
1 Cassiopeia, 
•om 1° W. of y Ursse Minoris 

to ( Draconis. 
•oro 1° below jS Andromedae 

through the head of Perseus 
to X Piscium. 




Observatory, 

Beeston. 
Ibid 


E. J. Lowe 

Id 


Mr. Lowe's MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

[bid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

[bid. 

[bid. 






Ibid 


Id 





Ibid 


id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 


These two fell down from "1 
1 between /3 and y Urs. > 
! Maj. inclining to W. J 
'oved upward from 1° above x 
1 Cassiopeiae. 

■cm 1° above |3 Cassiopeiae, 
passing through Vega. It left 
behind a streak of hght 20° 
long, all of which faded away 
except 1° in length of that 
portion about 5° N. of where 
the meteor vanished. This 
portion was visible 1 min. and 
gradually became narrower, 
•arting at j3 Cassiopeiae, and 
. .moving towards a Cygni. 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 


- 


Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 






Ibid 


Id 






Ibid 


Id 


^11 downwards from near x 
iDraconis. 

iom y Pegasi nearly horizon- 
,tally towards S Piscium. 
^om fc Aquarii through t Ca- 
.pricomi. 

bm Polaris horizontally to 1° 
|N. of /S Cassiopeiae. 
-i 

bm midway between x Cas- 
siopeiae and j| Persei, moving 
towards the S. and passing 
jbetween y and t Andromedae. 
i| nebula of Andromeda . . . 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id 




Ibid 


Id. ... 




Ibid 


Id 




[bid 


Id 


/out 4° N. of the cluster in 
the Sword-handle of Perseus. 

Issed between a Andromedae 
ind /3 Pegasi. 

bm r N. of the Sword-handle 
if Perseus, perpendicularly 
iown. Two other small ones, 
positions not marked. 




[bid 


Id. . 




[bid 


Id 




[bid 


[d 








i 











86 



REPORT — 1855. 



Date. 



1855. 
Aug. 9 



Hour. 



h m 
10 33 



10 35 



10 36 



10 37 
10 40 



10 41 



10 42 



10 42 30.. 
10 43 



10 52 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



= 4th mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



Small 



10 52 15... 
10 54 . 
10 55 . 



10 56 

11 
11 5 

11 7 

11 12 

11 13 
11 16 
11 17 



11 50 
11 56 
11 57 



= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



= 2nd mag.* 



= 3rd mag.* 

= 4th mag.* 
= 4th mag.* 

= 2iid mag.* 



3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 
= 4th mag.* 

= 2nd mag.* 

2nd mag.* 
Small 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Colourless .. 



Colourless 
Bluish 



Train or sparlis. 



Streak 
Streak 



Streak 



Streak 
Streak 



Streak 



Streak 
Streak 



10 



Two meteors of the 
3rd mag. were fall 
ing together. 

= 3rd mag.* 



12 1 40.. 



= 2nd mag.* 
= lst mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



= 5th mag.* 
= 3rd mag." 
= 2ud mag.^ 



= Iht mag.* 



Having a streak which lin- 
gered 10 sees, after the 
meteor had disappeared 

Streak 



Blue 



Bluish 



Colourless 
Brilliant .. 



Velocity or 
duration. 



Rapid 



Rapid 



Streak 
Streak 



Rapid 
Rapid 



Leaving a long blue streak 
behind. 



Leaving a long streak. 



Leaving streaks 
With streak 



Streak 
Streak 
Streak 



Colourless .. 



With streak . 



With a train of light 



Long streak. 



Duration 1 se* 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



87 



Direction or altitude. 



;rpendic. down from x Cassio- 
peiae. 

om 2° S. of the Sword-handle 
of Perseus, moving nearly 
horizontally towards S. in- 
clining in an angle of 5°. 
ora f Coronae Borealis to y 
llerculis. 

om Pegasus down towards E. 
om * Pegasi, nearly horizon- 
tal, slightly inclined down- 
wards, moved 4° towards N. 
om between s and ? Ursae 
Maj. towards W. nearly hori- 
zontal, passing under n Ursae 
Maj. 

milar to the last, and in the 
same path. 

om Polaris horizontally 
rpendic. down from 2° N. of 
Sword-handle in Perseus 
".om the direction of 2° under 
y Cassiopeiae, passing 1° 
below Polaris. 
Ill perpendic. down from 2° 
S. of Polaris, 
•rpendic. down from midway 
between a and /3 Andromedae. 
iirpendic. down from 10° S. of 
Polaris, and from the same 
altitude as Polaris, 
larting from just above Atau", 
!and falling down just W. of 
the Galaxy. Another small 
meteor. 

oved from 21° Pegasi to 56° 
Antinoi. 

i'om 7- Andromedae horizon 
tally towards the S. 
om just above a Persei, nearly 
perpendic. down, inclining E 

:11 nearly perpendic. down, 

incUning to £. and passing 

30' E. of « Aquarii. 

om y Pegasi perpendic. down, 

inclining to E. 

om a Cygni perpendic. down 

towards N.W. horizon. 
iOm direction of. Cassiopeia 

passing through nebula of 

Andromeda. 

, Cetus 

own from near t Aquarii 
;ora 1° below t Cassiopeiae 

down at an angle 50° towards 

N. horizon. Moved over 10° 

of space. 

ioved horizontally H" above 
, Polaris. 



Two other small 
meteors. 



General remarks. 



Observatory, 

Beeston. 
Ibid 



Place. 



Ibid., 



Ibid. 
Ibid., 



Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 



Ibid., 
Ibid. 
Ibid., 



Ibid., 



Observer. 



E. J. Lowe 
Id 



Id. 



Mr. Lowe's MS. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 



Reference. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid, 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 



88 



REPORT — 1855. 



Date. 



Hour. 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Train or sparks. 



Velocity or 
duration. 



1855. 
Aug. 10 



h m s 
12 6 .... 



12 9 .... 
12 9 30. 



12 13 
12 23 
12 31 



12 39 

12 39 30.. 
12 43 



12 47 



12 49 
12 53 



12 56 
12 59 



Small 

Small 

= 2nd mag.* 

= lst mag.*. 



Small 
SmaU 



1 3 a.m. 



9 47 p.m 

9 58 .... 

10 30 .... 

10 44 .... 

11 .... 
11 15... 



20.. 

4 

4 30.. 



11 5 



11 8 



= 4th mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 
i2nd mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 



Blue. 



Train 
Train 
Streak 

Train 



Rapid 



Colourless 



No streak 



Not visible 0'3 s 



Colourless 
Red 



Leaving a streak behind. 
Streak 



Rapid 



Colourless 



Streak 



Small 

— 2nd mag. 



= 3rd mag.* 



Red, yet leav- 
ing a white 
streak. 

Red 



= lst mag.* 

Small 

Large 

Large 

Several small meteors 
1st mag:* 



Small 



Small 



11 3 

11 4 



(Jpvpards. = 3rd mag.* 
Down, =3rd mag.* 



Blue. 



Colourless 



Streak 



Streak 



With a streak , 
With a streak , 



Streak, which lingered 



Streak 
Streak 



Streak 
Streak 



Very rapid, i 
ration 0*5 se 



Rapid 
Rapid 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



89 



Direction or altitude. 



General, remarks. 



Place. 



Observer. 



Reference. 



'■Vom 2° below and 1° N. of /3 
Persei. Moved 30' of space. 

Down from 1° N. and 10° be- 
low Capella. 

•'rom 5° below and 10° N. of 
/3 Persei down towards N. at 
angle of 60°. 

■Vom 1° below and 15° N. of /2 
Persei down towards N. 

;)own in N. from 10° above 
horizon. 

lYom head of Dragon down to- 
wards W. Moved over 40° 
of space. 

;5elow /3 Persei 

,n Ursa Major 

'rom 10° E. and 2° higher than 

Polaris, endingat 2°E .of Polaris 

,'rom direction of Polaris, start- 
ing 10° below Polaris and 
moved down towards E 
angle of 60°. 

iOw in N 

, from direction of 1° above /3 
Persei, horizontal, passing to 
Polaris. 

i)own from Perseus to 
Pleiades. 

jlearly horizontal, inclining 
down, moving towards S., and 
passing 5° below /3 Arietis. 
tarting midway between a Per 

I sei and a Arietis, and ending 

i 6° N. of a Arietis. 

rom /3 Cygni down towards W 

fverhead , 

•own in N.W 

•own in N.W 



Observatory, 

Beeston. 
Ibid 



Ibid.. 

Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 



Circular 



|ell from y Urs. Min. to near y 

\ Bootis. 

•own through Corona Borealis 

p from ;c Cassiopeiae 

Jlorizontally, passing immedi- 
ately above Polaris. 

jpwards from Sword -handle of 

I Perseus. 
; live small meteors within one 
, , minute, four in Pegasus and 

, onefrom;3Andromed8e, which 
moved towards Cassiopeia, 

I fading when 2° S. of /3 Cas- 
siopeiae. This was curious; it 

j had a rolling motion, left no 
streak, but was itself a col- 

■ lection of rounded bodies 
each equal to a 4th mag.*, 
and about 16 in number. 



|i Cassiopeia 



Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 

Ibid., 



Ibid.. 
Ibid., 



Ibid., 
Ibid., 

Ibid., 

Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 

Ibid., 
Ibid., 
Ibid., 

Ibid., 

Ibid., 



E.J. 

Id. 

Id. 

Id. 
Id. 

Id. 



Lowe 



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., 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



90 



REPORT —1855. 



Date. 



1855. 
Aug. 10 



h m 
11 5 

11 6 

U 6 

11 10 



12 



Hour. 



Down, = 3rd mag.*. 
Up, = 3rd mag.* .... 



Horizontal, = 3rd 

mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 



11 14 .. 
11 14 30... 



11 20 

12 48 a.m. 



1 5 



10 20 p.m. 
10 24 30.. 



10 25 

10 28 



13 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



Became overcast. 

= 1st mag.* in bright- 
ness, and twice size 
of 1st mag.* 



Another shone 
through cloud =lst 
mag.* 

= 1st mag.* but 
brighter. 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Streak , 
Streak 
Streak 
Streak 



Colourless 



9 45 p.m. 

11 48 p.m. 

11 48 10.. 
11 55 30... 



11 55 31.. 

12 9 a.m. 



12 57 

12 58 



=3rd mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



= lsl mag.*. 
1st mag.*. 



Yellowish 

Blue 

Red"! 

Colourless 



1 a m. 
1 3 



3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



= 3rd mag* 

= 3rd mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 

= 2nd mag.* 
= 2nd mag.* 



Colourless 



Red 
Red 



Red 

Colourless 



Colourless 



Train or sparks. 



Long streak. 



ong streak. 
Streak 



Train 

Streak 



Long streak . 
Streak 



Streak , 
Streak 



Tail 



Streak . 
Streak , 

Streak 



Velocity or 
duration. 



Rapid 



Rapid 



Duration 1 sec. 



Lasted 1 sec. 



Rapid 
Rapid 



Streak Rapid 



Streak, which lingered 
2 sees, after the meteor 
had disappeared. 



Rapid 
Rapid 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



91 



Direction or altitude. 



1 Cassiopeia 



rom Sword-handle of Per- 
seus, 
rom y Cygni 



own from a Pegasi. Three 
other small meteors having 
tails. 

cross from direction of Per- 
seus towards Polaris. 

rom Cassiopeia towards Po- 
laris. 

hone through thin clouds, 
and passed across a small 
opening. Moved tolerably 
rapid from about y Andro- 
medae towards Polaris, fading 

I in thick cloud about 10° S.E. 

; of Polaris and at nearly same 

1 elevation. 

(ill down below Cassiopeia. 

: Between this and l*" 15" 
veral others imperfectly seen, 

, after V^ 15™ overcast. 

;11 perpendic. down along N 
side of Galaxy from 3 Ser- 
pentis. 

cross zenith, from f> Cassio- 
peia: towards Cygnus. 

pwards from Cassiopeia 

•om exactly Polaris, perpeu 
die. down 12° towards N. ho- 
rizon. 

jone through thin clouds from 
about P Cygni towards S.W. 
own from Sword-handle of 
Perseus towards S. 

Pegasus 

orizontally from half-way be 
tween Sword-handle of Per 
sens and Cassiopeia, moved 
towards Perseus, 
orizontally in an opposite di- 
rection to the last, starting 
at /3 Androraedae. 
,arting 30' below /S Andro- 
medse, and passed 2° below 
a, Andromedse. 
rom 10' W. of Polaris, perpen- 
I die. down. 
;-om 10° above « Draconis, and 
passing through this star and 
fading 5° below it. 
,-om ^ between Capella and 
Ursa Major, horizontally, 
oved from 30' S. and 2° below 
a Cassiopeise horizontally 
towards S. 



General remarks. 



Observatory, 

Beeston. 
Ibid 



Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid., 

Ibid. 



Two other meteors. 



Place. 



Observer. 



Reference. 



Ibid. 



Ibid., 



Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid., 



Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 



Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 

Ibid.. 
Ibid.. 

Ibid., 
Ibid. 



Id. 



Id. 



E. J. Lowe 

Id 

Id 

Id 



Mr. Lowe's MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 



Ibid. 



Ibid. 



bid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Iliid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 



92 



KEPORT — 1855. 



Date. 



Hour. 



Appearance and 
magnitude. 



Brightness 
and colour. 



Train or sparks. 



Velocity or 
duration. 



1855. 
Aug. 13 



h m s 
1 3 .... 



1 8 
1 9 



1 9 30. 
1 10 .... 



15 



16 



17 



12 43 a.m. 



= 4th mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 

= 2nd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 

= 3rd mag.* 



Blue. 



Streak 

Streak 

Colourless ...'Streak 

Colourless ... Streak 
Colourless ... Streak 

Colourless ... Streak 



Rapid 

Rapid 

Rapid 

Rapid 
Rapid 

Rapid 



12 44 

12 45 30.. 
12 10 a.m. 
10 45 p.m. 



12 45 am. 



22 10 45 p.m. 



= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 
= 3rd mag.* 



Long train .... 

Red 'streak of light. 



Colourless ... 



Sept. 3jl0 14 

4 8 30 

8 32 

8 50 



Two small meteors 
■with streaks. 
1st mag.* 



= 3rd mag.* 
-1st mag.*.. 



Red 

Colourless 



Streak 



Rapid 

Duration 0'5 sec 
Rapid 



Having a long train of 
light. 



Duration 0*2 sec. 

Rapid, instanta- 
neous. 



Train 



.[Rapid 



APPENDIX. 
No. I. 







Mr. Ansell describes the appearance of the fire-ball as of intense bright- 
ness, its colour being a clear and vivid white, and refers the cause of its 
dazzling brilliance to its intense ignition in passing through the earth's atmo- 
sphere ; comparing it with the well-known experiment of fusing and even 
volatilizing iron by means of the oxy-hydrogen blow-pipe, he says its light 
and accompanying scintillations were of precisely the same character as 
those produced in the experiment alluded to, and he has very little doubt 
that they were actually the same. The metallic iron which we know enters 
largely into the composition of aerolites having become heated and subse- 
quently fused, produced so intense an ignition that explosion necessarily 
followed. The appearance witnessed was exceedingly beautiful. The 
drawing at the head of this article represents the meteor at the moment 
of explosion. 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



93 



Direction or altitude. 



• orizontally through Cassio 

peia towards S. 
rom Cassiopeia through the 

Dragon's tail, 
rom /3 Arietis moved 10° in 

the direction of the Pleiades, 
rom Cassiopeia towards Vega, 
rom direction of Cassiopeia 
' passing 5° N. of Vega. 
,rom about H. 1 Camelopardi 

down towards N. at angle of 

45°. 

similar one S. of tt Draconis, 

similar one near \ Draconis. 

mall meteor in zenith 

[oved from direction of a Per- 

sei, passing 1° under a Arietis 

and 1° under y Arietis. 
ifoved from immediately under 

/3 Andromedae and passed 1° 

above y Andromedse. 

own towards W. at angle of 

45°, passed 10' W. of? Ursae 

Majoris. 
|i Cassiopeia 



loved rapidly from Polaris 

perpendic. down, 
ioved down the W. edge of 
' the Galaxy from 5° below the 

altitude of Atair. 
assed downwards through the 
i centre of the Great Bear. 



General remarks. 



Very few to-night. 



Place. 



Observer. 



Observatory, 

Beeston. 
Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 

Ibid 



E. J. Lowe, Esq, 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id. 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 

Id 



Reference. 



Mr. Lowe's MS. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 



Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 



Ibid. 

Ibid. 

Ibid. 
Ibid. 
Ibid. 

Ibid. 



No. II. — Diagram of the meteor observed by ?»Ir. J. Watson. 
No. III.— In the Philoso- 



phical Magazine, Nov. and 
Dec. 1854, there is a valuable 
paper by R. P. Greg, Esq., 
containing the details of a 
communication " On Meteor- 
ites or Aerolites," which that 
gentleman gave in abrief form oam^ 
at the Liverpool Meeting of 
the British Association, 1854. 
It is much to be regretted that 
the valuable catalogue which 
it includes was not communi- /« i„^_ 
cated so as to form a part of '^^""^ 
the Report. 

A subsequent paper by the 
same author, Phil. Mag. July 
1855, contains a curious and 
interesting account of some 
other meteorites. 



HFCapella 



-.^^ AppeareJ. 



^aPeisei 



"'% Disajmeared- 



(Veiras); 



\J) Moon 



94 REPORT — 1855. 

With a view to theory, no student should fail to read two valuable and 
elaborate papers in the Transactions of the American Philosophical Society 
of Philadelphia, vol. viii. part 1. 1841, new series, viz. Art. VIII. — "On 
the Perturbations of Meteors approaching the Earth," by B. Pierce, M.A., 
and Art. IX. — "Researches concerning the periodical Meteors of August 
and November," by Hans C. Walker, A.P.S., containing investigations of the 
nature of the orbits of such bodies about the sun, occasionally encountering 
the earth. 

No. IV. — Extracts of letters from R. P. Greg, Esq., to Professor Powell, 
dated Sept. ^th and Sept. 9th, ISS-i. 

" ISi'i, Oct. 8th, near Coblentz, a German gentleman (a friend of Mr. 
Greg's), accompanied by another person, late in the evening, after dark, 
walking in a dry ploughed field, saw a luminous body descend straight 
down close to them (not 20 yards off), and heard it distinctly strike the 
ground with a noise ; they marked the spot, and returning early the next 
morning as nearly as possible where it seemed to fall, they found a gela- 
tinous mass of a greyish colour so viscid as ' to tremble all over ' when 
poked with a stick. It had no appearance of being organic. They, how- 
ever, took no further care to preserve it." 

" In connexion with the passage of luminous bodies across the field of a 
telescope observed by the Rev. W. Read (Report 1852, p. 235), Mr. Greg 
mentions that a friend of his (whose name he does not give) observed an 
apparently similar phaenomenon, May 22nd, 1854. With a 5-inch object 
glass equatorial telescope with clockwork, looking for Mercury about 11 
o'clock, then little more than an hour from the sun, he saw a luminous 
body about the size and appearance of Mercury cross the field close to 
Mercury, with a perfectly round and distinct disk ; about a minute after 
another followed in the same path with about the same velocity (crossing 
the field in about 2\ seconds by counting the beats of the clock), with an 
elongated form like a comet ; in a few minutes another followed, smaller and 
round, with the same direction and velocity. They went N.E. and S.W., 
and appeared going to the sun. It would have taken Mercury 50 seconds 
to cross the field ; the telescope being disconnected with the clockwork. He 
has never before or since seen a similar phaenomenon." 

No. \.— Account of the Meteor of Sept. 30, 1850, by Prof. Bond. 
Cambridge, U.S. 

It rarely happens that an aerolite remains visible to us during a sufficient 
period of time to enable an observer to trace its path and determine its ve- 
locity with anything approaching to the degree of accuracy with which we 
can, from their slower apparent motion, obtain the same data for the orbits 
of planets or comets. It is not surprising, therefore, that so little is certainly 
known regarding the origin of meteors. 

Laplace considered it possible that they might be fragments of the moon, 
ejected from some of the numerous craters of our satellite by volcanic 
power ; others have supposed that innumerable smaller masses of dense 
matter, not in immediate connexion with the larger planetary bodies, might 
be dispersed throughout infinite space, and occasionally brought within the 
preponderating influence of the earth. Some persons have believed that 
meteors were the smaller, as the asteroids may be the larger portions of a 
planet which formerly occupied a position between the orbits of Jupiter and 
Mars. Whatever hypothesis may be adopted in regard to their origin, we 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 



95 



must assign to meteors the properties of dense matter, subject to the laws of 
gravitation ; as this fact has been sufficiently established in numerous 
instances where portions of them have been seen to strike the earth, which 
upon examination have proved to be solid bodies ; the analysis showing 
them to be, in general, composed of native iron, sulphuret of nickel, quartz 
and magnesia. 

The object of this communication, however, is not to advance any new 
theory, but to put on record the circumstances which attended the exhi- 
bition of the remarkable meteor of the 30th of September, as witnessed at 
Cambridge. 

My attention was called to this phaenomenon by Miss Jenny Lind, who 
happening at the time of its first appearance to be looking at the planet 
Saturn through the great equatorial telescope, nearly in the direction of 
the meteor's path, was startled by 
a sudden flash of light, no doubt 
much concentrated by the power 
of the glass ; probably not more 
than a second of time intervened 
before the meteor exploded, lea- 
ving a bright train of light some 
8° long, extending from near the 
head of Medusa towards a point 
3° below the star Alpha Arietis, 
this being the direction of motion, 
and projecting a portion of its 
mass forward about 2°, as repre- 
sented in fig. 1, 

This took place at 8^ S^" m. s, t. 
of the Observatory, and in or 
very near the small constellation 
" Musca Borealis " in right ascen- 
sion 2^ 30™ and north declination 
27°. There were numerous radia- 
tions, but nothing sparkling in its 
appearance. At 8^ 57°* this had 
subsided into a serpentine figure 
about half a degree broad in the 
widest part and 10° long, as seen 
in fig. 2. 

At 9 o'clock the preceding por- 
tion had extended upward, curved 
in the form represented in fig. 3 ; 
or as expressed by a person who 
noticed the same appearance at 
Framingham, it appeared " to 
draw up its head like a serpent." 

Three minutes later it had as- 
sumed the figure given in fig. 4. 

During these changes the me- 
teor had continued a bright, con- 
spicuous object, some 10° in 
length, lying nearly horizontal. It 
was examined with three different telescopes — the comet seeker, a 4-feet 
refractor, and the great equatorial. The appearance was that of a con- 




96 



REPORT 1855. 




gregation of minute, bright clouds, of the formation usually denominated 
Cirrocumuli. 

At 9^ 7™ we had the regular "S- ^• 

cometary figure of fig. 5. 

This, the most durable form, 
forcibly reminded one of the 
drawings made by Sir John Her- 
schel of Halley's comet, as seen 
by him at the Cape of Good Hope 
on the 28th of January 1836. 

The meteor commenced a slow, 
regular motion, passing about a i i. u ^ *k<, 

degree below the star Alpha Arietis, towards a point somewhat above the 
planet Saturn, at the same time rotating apparently on a pomt answenng 
to the nucleus of the explosion, and expanding in every direction. 

At 9"^ 28*" its position in regard pig 6. 

to Saturn was as represented in 
fig. 6, the external outline touch- 
ing the planet. The meteor was 
now extended in breadth to 12°, 
its longest diameter reaching up- 
wards nearly to the zenith. Its 
rotary motiou had therefore been 
equal to an angle of about 90° in 
20 minutes of time. Although it 
had now become a faint nebulous 
light, yet it continued to exhibit 
a well-defined boundary until past 
10 o'clock, having been under ob- 
servation more than an hour : I have never niet with any account of a 
single meteor having been visible for so long a time. 

From the observations communicated by the Hon. William Mitchell ot 
Nantucket, combined with our own, we have ascertained that the vertical 
heio-ht of this meteor above the surface of the earth was about 50 miles, and 
its distance from Cambridge 100 miles in a north-eastern direction. 

We have accounts of its having been seen from near Albany on the 
Hudson river, Brooklyn, Long Island, Providence, Rhode Island, Nantucket, 
Manchester, Cape Ann, Portland, Maine, Boscawen, and Peterborough in 
New Hampshire, Quebec on the St. Lawrence, and the interior stations, 
Springfield, Quincy, Pepperell, Framingham and Lancaster in Massachusetts, 
and Norwich in Connecticut. 

We have no intelligence in regard to this meteor from Nova Scotia, where 
it must have been seen if the sky was clear. It is much to be regretted that 
among the thousands who witnessed this splendid phaenomenon, only so 
small a number regarded it with sufficient interest to note th£ direction 
of motion, position atnong the stars, and time of its first appearance and 
duration. W.C.Bond. 

Cambridge Observatory, Oct. 14th, 1850. 

No. W.— Account of a Meteor accompanying a Thunder-storm and Earth- 
quake in India. 
[From the Bombay Times, Dec. 13.] 
A correspondent calls our attention to the fact that in all likelihood Bom- 
bay was visited by an earthquake which has been omitted in our enumera- 




A CATALOGUE OP OBSERVATIONS OP LUMINOUS METEORS. 97 

tion during the furious thunderburst that occurred on the 25th Sept. 1851. 
He had never then met with anything of this sort; now that he has really- 
felt the sensation created by an earthquake, and reflects on what occurred 
three years ago, he has no doubt that the former visitation was the same as 
the latter, but that the violence of the thunder-storm and fury of the rain 
prevented us from perceiving the tremor, though the sound was heard every- 
where. The following is the account given of it at the time : — 

" Some singular phaenomena occurred during the thunder-storm of Thursday 
evening, which seem well worthy of record. Exactly at a quarter past ten, 
when the thunder was at its loudest, the inhabitants 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 yesterday morning be dis- 
covered in the neighbourhood. The whole closely resembled what is men- 
tioned as having occurred in Rosshire in August 1 849, 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 sideboard 
of a house near the Mint, fell in two about seven in the evening, imme- 
diately 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 the 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, 1851. 

" Some further particulars of the fall of the meteor which occurred during 
the thunder-storm of Thursday evening, noticed in our last two issues, have 
since tben been received. The mighty rushing sound and violent concus- 
sion perceived by hundreds of persons in the Fort, was so in exactly the 
same manner in Colaba, a mile to the southward, — at Ambrolie, two and a 
half miles to the north-west, — as it was in the Roadstead, a mile to the east- 
ward. All the parties betYi^een these two extremes of nearly four miles give 
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 phaenomena 
are spoken of by all parties as nearly identical, the meteor must have passed 
when at its nearest at a distance of ten or twelve miles at least. We want 
more information on the subject. The smallest contributions will be accept- 
able. 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, 1851. 

" The writer of the following most interesting notice has our grateful 
thanks ; we trust to hear further of the matter from the Lighthouse, or those 
on board the outer light-vessel. We have no 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 today's paper of 
the storm on the night betwixt Thursday and Friday, to know that I was 

1855. H 



98 REPORT — 1855. 

last evening informed by a seafaring friend of mine, who was, at the time the 
Times describes the rushing sottnd 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. Oct. 
1, 1851. 

" The following notice of the meteor of Thursday last 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 future communication our correspondent promises 
us. ' My wife and I had been watching the lightning for some time at the 
door of our bungalow, but feeling 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 10 and 11 p.m. Neither of us noticed at 
that time any particular noise, but at a later hour I said, — Listen to the con- 
flict going on amongst the elements : they seemed hissing one another for 
some moments.'" — Ibid. Oct. 2, 1851. 

The fire-ball here referred to was assumed at the time to have been a 
meteor, and is set down in Prof. Baden Powell's report of that year as one 
of three which had been observed during thunder-storms, one on the 18th 
of March in the N.W. Provinces, seen to fall and strike the ground, giving 
a clear ringing sound like the crack of a rifle, without echo or reverberation 
at all like thunder. It appeared 150 yards from the Choki, and resembled 
in its descent a huge ball of red-hot iron, followed by a band of fire appa- 
rently about 30 feet in length : another was visible at Kurrachee on the 
30th of April in the same year. It burst with a violent explosion during a 
storm of wind and rain, resembling the discharge of a vast battery of 
artillery ; about a minute afterwards a great ball of fire, supposed to be a 
meteor, was seen descending into the sea — the third case being that of the 
25th September already quoted. Departing from the question of earth- 
quakes, we now come to the conclusion that these balls of fire, supposed to 
have been meteors, were in reality instances of " the glow discharge" men- 
tioned by Sir William Snow Harris, and that they are matters of rather fre- 
quent occurrence in India. In 1832, in the middle of a violent thunder- 
storm, a great fire-ball was seen to descend over the house of Sir Coliu 
Halkett near Parell. It burst with a furious explosion, and did much mis- 
chief all around, amongst other things melting the plate on the sideboard. 
On the 16th of June 1819, at the time of the great earthquake, a tremendous 
thunder-storm occurred at Masulipatam, during which a fire-ball was seen 
to descend on the roof of a bungalow, when it burst with an explosion like 
a 40-inch shell, and immediately set the thatch in a blaze. These two last 
cases which we have quoted, one of which occurred during an earthquake, 
certainly were electi'ic explosions, and they in all respects so closely resemble 
the others heretofore supposed to be meteors, that we think we are perfectly 
safe in assuming the phasnomena to have been the same, and that Prof. 
Powell's Bombay correspondent was in error on the matter. 



A CATALOGUE OF OBSERVATIONS OF LUMINOUS METEORS. 99 

No. VII. 

Observatory, Beeston, near Nottingham, Sept. 4, 1855. 
My DEAR Sir, — The Rev. K. Swann, of Gedling near Nottingham, has 
sent me an account of two meteors whose paths crossed each ^ Pcjaxis 
other; they started from a point between Polaris and Ca- 
pella, but only a third of the distance from Polaris. The v-/* 
first was of the 1st magnitude and the second of the 2nd >/V 
magnitude ; both moved rapidly, were colourless, and had no 
trains of light. The paths were about 5° in length. Mr. 
Swann sent the following sketch : — 

Believe me, my dear Sir, yours very truly, 

E. J. Lowe. * CageHa 

Observatory, Beeston, near Nottingham, Sept. 4, 1855. 
My dear Sir, — Yesterday I posted for the British Association Report 
on Meteors a list of those which have been noticed here during the past 
twelve months. To that report I have to add a few remarks. 

In 1855 the meteors on the 9th and 10th of August were very numerous. 
The evenings of the 10th and 11th were mostly cloudy, but many meteors 
were noticed on the 12th. 

There were two large meteors observed on the 3rd, and it is worthy of 
note, that, although the number of these bodies in the first week of August 
are not nearlj' so numerous as they are a week later, still larger meteors are 
seen about the 3rd of August than about the 10th ; this I have noticed in 
other years. Of 118 meteors seen between the 9th and 13th of August 
1855,* 

15 were of the 1st magnitude, 
22 were of the 2nd magnitude, 
30 were of the 3rd magnitude, 
51 were of smaller magnitude. 
In 42 examples of these meteors, 

17 were colourless, 
17 were blue, 
7 were red, 
1 was yellow. 
Nearly all the meteors had streaks, which lingered after the meteors had 
themselves vanished. 

At a fair estimate I could not have seen more than a third of the meteors 
that fell, consequently they were falling at the following rate per hour : — 
August 9th from 10 to 11 p.m.=150, 
10th from 12 to 1 a.m.=48, 
10th from 10 to 11 p.m.=56, 
1 2th from 10 to 12 p.m. 1 _ . „ 
13th from 12 to 1 a.m. / ~*"» 
an average between the 9th and 13th of 73 per hour, which would give for 
the five days the extraordinary number of 8760. 

On producing the paths of their course backwards, several points of 
divergence were well shown on the 9th, 10th, 12th and 13th. 

The one most apparent was ^° above and 2° N. of a Persei ; a second 
well shown was 2° N. of the cluster of stars in the Sword-handle of Perseus ; 
a third immediately under Cassiopeia ; and a fourth below % Cygni. 

A very large proportion of the meteors were at one portion of their path 
within 10° of an imaginary line drawn from Cassiopeia to Cygnus. 

H 2 



100 REPORT — 1855. 

The majority moved very rapidly. 

The points of divergence in Cassiopeia and Cygnus were noticed in 
former years, but the two in Perseus were not seen until 1855, and I cannot 
help thinking that the meteors in other years (that I have observed) did not 
show these points of divergence in Perseus. 

It will be well to call the attention of observers to this fact, in order that 
it may be carefully watched. 

Believe me, my dear Sir, yours very truly, 

E. J. Lowe. 

To the Rev. Professor Baden Powell, F.R.S. ^c. 



Provisional Report of the Committee, consisting of Mr. W. Fairbairn, 
His Grace the Duke of Argyll, Captain Sir Edward Belcher, 
the Rev. Dr. Robinson, the Rev. Dr. Scoresby, Mr. Joseph 
Whitworth, Mr. J. Beaumont Neilson, Mr. James Nas- 
MYTHj and Mr. W. J. Macquorn Rankine ; appointed to insti- 
tute an inquiry into the best means of ascertaining those properties 
of metals and effects of various modes of treating them which are of 
importance to the durability and efficiency of Artillery; and em- 
powered, should thty think it advisable, to communicate, in the name 
of the Association, with Her Majesty's Government, and to request 
its assistance. 

At the time of the meeting of the British Association, at Glasgow, in 
September last, a question arose in the Mechanical Section as to the causes 
of the deterioration of the metal of which the Artillery of the present day was 
constructed. On this question a long and interesting discussion ensued, both 
in reference to the comparative weakness of cast iron as now produced, and 
to the adaptation of forged and malleable iron, as being stronger and 
better adapted for the purpose than the former. 

Accounts received from the Baltic and from the Black Sea of the bursting 
of guns and mortars of recent construction ("for which the inferiority of the 
metal from which they were cast was the reason assigned), afford evidence of 
something wrong. These failures gave rise to conjectures and uneasiness on 
the part of the Government as well as the public, and in order to trace the 
cause of this apparent weakness to its source, an inquiry was instituted by 
the authorities at Woolwich, and, subsequently by the Association, in the 
appointment of this Committee to co-operate with Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment in the investigation of this very important question. In order that 
no time might be lost, the Secretary of the Section was directed to issue 
circulars to engineers, ironmasters and manufacturers, requesting that they 
would forward to the members of the Committee such opinions and observa- 
tions as they deemed advisable, in regard to the material itself and to its 
treatment preparatory to the manufacture of ordnance. 

To these applications replies have been received from Sir Edward Belcher, 
Mr. Nasmyth, Mr. Neilson, Mr. Fairbairn, and others, of which the fol- 
lowing are extracts : — 

Extracts fi-om a letter addressed to the Committee by Sir Edward Belcher, 
dated Glasgow, Sept. 19th, 1855. 
Sir Edward observes that, in gunnery practice, the interposition of grit and 



ON METALS FOR ORDNANCE. 101 

the oxidation of the shot, especially with undue rapidity of firing, soon change 
the central axis ; and alludes to the grooved and abraded state of the guns 
which have been returned, in proof of his assertion. He points out the 
necessity of experiments to ascertain how much of the heating of the gun is 
due to friction, and urges that, for special service at any rate, polished shot 
accurately fitting the gun should be provided. He points out the great 
efficiency of the guns used at the siege of Gaeta, in 1815, in which he took 
an important part ; and considers that some guns of that date should be 
examined and the quality of the metal of which they are composed, ascer- 
tained. He believes that the greater heat at which metals are now fused, 
and the more perfect fluidity attained, facilitate an undue rapidity of cry- 
stallization, and, according to his idea, impair the cohesive strength of the 
metal. In consequence of the vents giving way before the bore is injured, 
he proposes the use of screw vents, ly inch in diameter, and as hard as 
fowling-piece nipples. He considers that even the whole breech might be 
cast separate, of a denser material than the rest of the gun ; and that tliis is 
proved by the ancient forms of guns, by the Chinese gingals, and by the 
revolving rifles and pistols of Colt and Adams. In conclusion he affirms 
that four-fifths of the present expense might be saved by the use of the best 
guns our engineers can produce. 

There is some truth in Sir Edward's remarks on the abrasion or grooving 
of the gun. The two opposite forces of propulsion and recoil act equally on 
the breech as on the ball, but in different directions ; and if the ball does 
not accurately fill the bore, it has a tendency to expend part of its force on 
the sides of the gun, and to cause rupture near the trunnions. Under such 
circumstances, the gun is subject to several distinct strains : one on the 

T-ig. 1. 



breech in the direction of the arrow a ; another in the line of the bore in 
the direction of the arrow b; and a third from the pressure of the ball upon 
one of the sides as at c, causing a strain in the direction of the arrow d. 
These forces, when in action at the same time, tend to rupture the gun at 
the trunnions, by tension on the line of discharge a b, and by a transverse 
strain at c, caused by the pressure of the ball in the direction of the line d. 
In guns of great length, a perfectly true bore and an oblong or cylindrically 
turned ball, fitted like the piston of a steam-engine, would doubtless cure 
this defect and prove advantageous, by giving greater safety to the gun, by 
diminishing the friction, improving the windage, and ensuring a more direct 
line of flight to the projectile. There are difficulties in casting and fitting 
guns on this principle, which may however be overcome by strict attention 
to sound rules of construction. 

Extracts from a letter addressed to the Committee by Mr. James Nasmyth, 
dated Patricroft, Sept. 19th, 1855. 
Mr. Nasmyth, so well known as the inventor of the steam-hammer, 
commences his letter by entering on the subject of the failure of malleable 
iron guns. He states that those which are built of bars, welded together, are 
sure to be destroyed sooner or later by the continued disruptive force of the 



102 



REPORT 1855. 



explosion of powder in the chamber; that it is still a question, whether, with 
our present means of forging large masses of iron, we may not obtain powerful 
forged iron guns ; but so great is the difficulty of obtaining a sufficiently 
large mass of iron sound in every part, so great is the expense arising from loss 
of material by oxidation, and such is the tendency to basaltic crystallization 

Fig. 2. Fig. 3. 

Diagram to illustrate the effects of casting solid, Mr. Nasmyth's method of casting mortars with 
the interior being weak and spongy. a malleable iron chamber. 

Vertical section. Vertical section. 




Horizontal section. 



Horizontal section. 





which the long-continued heating produces, that Mr. Nasmyth comes to the 
conclusion, that powerful ordnance cannot be manufactured advantageously 



ON METALS FOR ORDNANCE. 103 

of malleable iron, — a candid admission on the part of one whose exertions in 
that direction are so well known. 

Mr. Nasmyth then refers to the failure of cast-iron guns of recent con- 
struction. This he attributes principally to two causes: first, to the use of 
iron smelted aud cast by coal ; and secondly, to the modern method of 
casting without a core. The superiority of Russian and Swedish guns, 
proved by the late war, he ascribes to the use of iron prepared by ivood fuel ; 
coal in all cases detracting from the tenacity of iron by contaminating it 
with sulphur. For this reason, hot-blast iron, smelted by raw coal, is inferior 
to cold blast, which is smelted by coke from which many of the impurities 
of the coal have been driven off. He believes that the present method of 
casting without a core causes the centre or last-cooled portion to be spongy 
and deficient in density and strength. To secure the greatest density and 
tenacity in the centre, the present mode must be reversed, and, — as, 
according to his statement, has long been practised in Russia, Sweden and 
the United States, — must be cooled from the centre outwards. Mr. Nasmyth 
proposes that the core should consist of a malleable iron chamber, kept cool 
by a current of air or by a stream of water. In this way he thinks we shall 
obtain increased density of metal where it is most wanted, and he hopes fully 
to prove the correctness of his views by the construction of a mortar of great 
strength and range, now in progress. In conclusion, he points out the un- 
fitness of the spherical form for a missile expected to reach its destination 
with precision, on account of its susceptibility to slight disturbing causes. 
He considers the Minie bullet, especially when axial rotation is imparted, to 
possess all the conditions required to give efficiency to a projectile. 

In addition to the above, we may observe that most of Mr. Nasmyth 's ob- 
jections to wrought iron apply also to steel : for although it can be cast 
and run into moulds, and can afterwards be rendered malleable by the 
strokes of a powerful hammer, with some degree of certainty ; yet, looking 
at the results of the attempt to produce a 68-pounder gun, made by one 
of the most distinguished steel manufacturers in Europe, Herr Krupp, of 
Essen in Prussia, and taking into consideration the enormous cost, we may 
conclude that this valuable material is not calculated to supplant cast iron in 
the manufacture of ordnance. 

With regard to Mr. Nasmyth's opinion on the subject of casting with a 
core, undoubtedly great advantages would result if it could be accomplished. 
But in this process many obstacles have to be surmounted, arising from the 
difficulty of regulating the rate of cooling on the exterior and interior sur- 
faces, and from the obstacles in the way of boring after a core. This process 
has often been tried in this country, but in practice has generally been found 
unsuccessful. In America and in France it has also been attempted, but we 
have yet to learn, whether the artillery of those countries is actually cast in 
this way. 

Mr. Cochran, of the United States, has a patent for the water-core system, 
but we have been unable to ascertain to what extent it has been successfully 
put in practice. Casting in chill is another process also beset with difficulties ; 
some experimental trials made at St. Helens during the last six months show 
that great uncertainty exists as to the result. Further experiments, however, 
and a more extended practice may eventually remove the difficulties. 

Extracts from a letter addressed to the Committee by Mr. J. Beaumont 
Neilson, dated Glasgow, Sept. 20th, 1855. 
Mr. J. B. Neilson, the inventor of the hot blast, who has had great ex- 
perience in casting metals, recommends that guns, if made of Avrought iron, 



104 REPORT — 1855. 

should be forged upon a mandril in a series of rings, welded successively one 
upon another, till the required length is completed. He is of opinion that 
the hot blast has enabled the manufacturer to produce iron from inferior 
materials, and that quantitj-, not quality, is chiefly aimed at by the smelter. 
He considers, however, that if premiums were oifered for the best and 
strongest qualities of iron, Government would soon have metal of the required 
tenacity. He recommends that guns be cast hollow with cores artificially 
cooled. He thinks that it would be advantageous to cast a number of bars 
about 2 feet long and 2 inches square, in moulds of various materials, as in 
green-sand, dry-sand, loam, in chill, and in cast-iron moulds at 500° of tem- 
perature, in order that the effects of different rates of cooling might be 
observed and the best quality selected. 

The next communication is from INIr. Fairbairn, addressed to His Grace 
the Duke of Argyll, a member of the Committee, dated Cardross, Perthshire, 
Sept. 27th, 1853. This letter was submitted by His Grace to the Minister 
for War, and to the Select Committee at Woolwich. 

Mr. Neilson's communication to the Mechanical Section, " On Forging 
large Masses of Malleable Iron," proved that the strength and otlier pro- 
perties of wrought iron are seriously injured by repeated heatings, that there 
is a considerable loss by oxidation, and that the cost and risk are great. 
These considerations, and others arising from the physical properties of 
wrought iron, its ductility and want of elasticity, clearly show that it is not 
a material adapted for the construction of heavy ordnance. 

We must therefore inquire, what material at our disposal is best calculated 
to ensure durability and strength for heavy guns. Cast steel is expensive, 
and hitherto has not been manufactured on a sufficiently large scale to ensure 
its application. We have therefore to choose between brass gun-metal and 
cast iron. The latter appears by far the more eligible, both as regards its 
density and cost, and it opposes almost as much resistance to strain. The 
failure of recent cast-iron guns arises from the employment of an unsuitable 
description of that material, and from errors in their manufacture. 

It is our opinion that guns of the very best quality can be manufactured 
in this country, provided that more care is taken in smelting and casting ; 
that cold-blast iron, smelted with coke free from sulphur, is used ; and that a 
proper selection of flux and ore is made. The introduction of the hot blast 
has given great facilities not only for the reduction of crude ores of inferior 
quality, but at the same time it enables the manufacturer to melt down cinder 
heaps and other impurities which cause the iron produced to exhibit all the 
conditions of porosity and weakness. On this account hot-blast iron should 
be absolutely prohibited in the manufacture of ordnance ; there is no excuse 
for ils employment, as we are confidently assured, that several makers are 
prepared to supply Government with any quantity of the required descrip- 
tion at a proportionate rate of cost. Careful selection of the material and 
attention to its treatment are only therefore required to produce iron suitable 
for guns of any power or strength. 

Being satisfied on these points, we have next to consider how to make 
use of the material to pioduce guns of a maximum strength. The contrac- 
tion that a large mass of metal undergoes, in becoming solid, is known to 
have a very injurious effect on its tenacity and strength. In casting guns, as 
at present managed, the cooling process proceeds from the exterior to the 
interior, and the consequence is that the central portion is porous and to a 
great extent devoid of density and cohesion. It does not require much 
practical skill to know that the use of a core would remedy this defect; and 



ON METALS FOR ORDNANCE. 105 

provided this could be accomplished and the core kept cool by a current of 
air or water, as is said to have been done in America, considerable improve- 
ment as regards strength would be effected. If these suggestions were acted 
on, the Government of this country would doubtless have guns of as great 
strength and range as any other nation ; and it would be a disgrace to us, if, 
with our boasted skill and vast experience in the treatment of metals, we 
could not surmount a difficulty which should never have existed, and 
which only requires the attention of practical men to place it on a more 
satisfactory footing. 

In all descriptions of artillery the strain in the chamber of the gun is 
enormous. This is evident when we consider that the ball leaves the gun 
with a velocity of 1800 to 2000 feet per second, and that the force which 
gives this immense velocity acts equally on the breech of the gun as upon 
the ball. From these data we must learn to apportion the metal to the 
several parts in the ratio of the strain they have to bear. 

The length of the bore is another important point, as, within certain 
limits, the range depends upon the time during which the expansive power of 
the gases of the explosion is acting upon the ball, or in other words, on the 
length of the bore. Increasing the length of the bore increases the range, 
or, what is the same thing, diminishes the amount of powder necessary to 
project the ball to a given distance. 

One of the causes of failure, in both ancient and modern artillery, is the 
abrasion of the lower part of the vent by repeated discharges. In modern 
guns this is perhaps more injurious, on account of the porous state of the 
metal at that part arising from casting solid. To remedy this defect it is 
important to increase the density of the metal, and if possible to case-harden 
the entire inner surface of the gun. To attain this we have already in- 
timated that ordnance be cast in chill ; that is, should be cast on accurately 
turned metallic cores, at such a temperature as is best calculated to secure 
the object in view. To obtain uniformity in the rate of cooling round this 
core, and to produce a hard skin of steeled iron over the whole interior of 
the gun, the core should be hollow, and a current of air or water conducted 
through it. This process would- secure much greater strength and durability 
to ordnance, and at the same time cheapen its construction. 

In a former part of this Report we referred to the process of casting in 
chill {vide page 103). This is a process well worthy of the attention of the 
Government, as a series of accurately conducted experiments, with proper 
apparatus, would, in our opinion, lead to important and highly satisfactory 
results. At St. Helens experiments of this nature were made by Messrs. 
Robinson and Cook under the immediate superintendence of Mr. Fairbairn ; 
and judging from the results of some of the castings, there did not exist a 
doubt as to the advantages to be derived from the system if properly carried 
out. Several guns, or rather cylinders, of the same proportionate thickness 
of metal were cast ; two of them failed, from some irregularities in the cooling, 
which caused the core or mandril to get fast ; another, however, was well 
cast, with a perfectly smooth, interior skin, case-hardened to a considerable 
depth by the chill. In this experiment the process was to a great extent 
successful, and the only difficulty to be encountered was the danger indi- 
cated by the failures, of collapse or contraction upon the mandril. The 
utmost care was required for regulating the rate of cooling upon the man- 
dril to prevent its being unduly heated by the surrounding mass so long 
retained in a state of liquefaction. 

In these experiments sufficient data were established to convince the 
experimenters that, with proper tools and appliances, this system of casting 



106 REPORT — 1855. 

ordnance might, with careful management, be introduced ; and assuming 
that this could be done, we have the less hesitation in recommending it to 
the attention of the Government as eminently entitled to a further extension 
of experimental research. 

If casting in chill were successfully accomplished, artillery would be cast 
on accurately turned and perfectly true mandrils, so as to chill or case- 
harden the interior to a depth of about a tenth of an inch. This process 
would consolidate the metal by a uniform rate of cooling, and entirely 
disiiense with boring. In the attainment of these objects, it must, however, 
be admitted that many difficulties have to be encountered, such as the 
cooling of so large a mass of fluid metal without injuring the mandril, and 
regulating the temperature so as to produce the desired chill. These are points 
which require minute attention, and must be left to the consideration of the 
Government and to the unerring test of experiment. 

In addition to the numerous suggestions contained in this Report, we 
may state that experiments are now in progress to ascertain the strength 
and other properties of a compound similar to meteoric iron, composed of 
an alloy of about 2J per cent, of nickel melted with the best cold-blast 
iron. His Grace the Duke of Argyll has kindly sent a quantity of cal- 
cined nickel in order to ascertain the properties of this compound as 
compared with those of the ordinary mixtures of the best metals. These 
experiments are not yet complete ; but assuming the properties of the 
mixture to be similar to those of meteoric iron, we should then have a strong 
and very elastic material for the manufacture of artillery*. 

Mr. Joseph Whitworth, in a communication to the Committee, dated 
September 20, 1855, refers to a rifled cannon, which he is constructing in 
parts. It consists of three cast- or wrought-iron pieces bound together by 
wrought-iron rings. The bore is nine-sided, with the requisite pitch for 
imparting rotatory motion to the ball. 

Mr. Fulton, in a communication to the Committee, dated Glasgow, Sep- 
tember 29, 1855, off'ers to undertake the forging of a wrought-iron gun 
similar to Mr. Nasmyth's, and sends sketches of some very large forgings he 
is making for Messrs. Scott Russell and Co.'s great vessel, showing what he is 
able to accomplish : — 

tons cwt. qrs. 
Paddle shafts, supposed to be ... 30 each. 

Propeller shaft, supposed 37 

Intermediate shaft, forged 28 13 1 

Crank, forged 10 10 2 

Crank, finished 7 4 

Friction strap, supposed 10 

Extracts from a letter addressed to the Committee by Mr. Macquorn Ran- 
kine, dated Glasgow, November 13, 1855. 
Mr. Rankine, after referring to the fact that it is extremely difficult to 
break a brittle earthenware jar if filled with honey, the difficulty obviously 
arising from the softness and defective elasticity of the honey, which im- 
pedes the transmission of molecular vibrations, proposes to imbed the cannon 
in a thick coating of some soft inelastic metal such as lead. 

* Since the above was written, several alloys of nickel and iron have been put to the 
test of experiment, and have not proved so satisfactory in their powers of resistance to strain 
and impact as was originally expected. 



ON METALS FOR ORDNANCE. 



107 



Extracts from a letter from Mr. David Pilmore of Shoreliam, forwarded to 
the Committee by Mr. John Mackinlay, dated Edinburgh, January 7, 
1856. 

Mr. Pilmore considers that the inferiority of the iron of the present day 
is due partly to the source from which it is derived, but chiefly to the manner 
in which it is smelted. All the iron of the present day contains, according 
to his statement, phosphuret of iron, amounting, even in the best gray sorts, 
to ^ per cent. ; this salt being derived from the use of coal in smelting. He 
thiniis also that the gunpowder of the present day may differ greatly in its 
properties from that formerly manufactured. This difference he expects 
from the fact that the charcoal now used in its manufacture is burnt in 
closed iron vessels, thus preventing the passage of air through its tissues, 
which was allowed formerly. 

Extracts from a letter addressed to Mr. Fairbairn by Mr. A. Handyside, 
dated Derby, January 22, 1856. 

Mr. Handyside sends the annexed drawings of a mortar and cannon to 
be made in parts ; the material to be wrought iron. 

The mortar (figs. 4 & 5) to be made of rings welded together, the whole 

Fig. 4. Fig. 5. 





Fig. 6. 




iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinmTiTifll 



ii|iiiiiiiiii iiriiiiim ^mimi^ 



to be turned and ground together and then firmly bound by longitudinal 
bolts. The cannon (fig. 6) to be made in a similar way, the part behind 



108 



REPORT 1855. 



the trunnions slabbed longitudinally and ringed as shown. Mr. Handyside 
adopted this method in order to make use of wrought iron, as he conceives 
that they could not be made of it entire. He was led to this plan by having 
successfully made in this way an hydraulic press cylinder after a cast one 
had broken. The forged one has stood for six years and is still sound. 
Others made since in the same way have been equally successful. 

It is questionable whether any built gun can long resist the violence of 
the explosion, and we believe that wrought iron is not the best material for 
heavy ordnance. Nevertheless, in our opinion, Mr. Handyside's gun and 
mortar are constructed on a better principle than most we have yet seen. 
Extracts from a letter from Mr. Cochran addressed to Mr. Fairbairn. 

Without date. 

Mr. Cochran attributes the failures of ordnance of the present day to the 
inferiority of the metal and to the defective manner of casting. He would 
obviate the first by the use of iron from the Acadian mines of Nova Scotia, 
which he states to be equal if not superior to the celebrated Swedish metal, 

Fig. 7. 




^^^»^^^^^^^^ 



Gun as now adopted in the United States — from a drawing sent by Mr. Cochran. 
We think it would be improved if the metal were filled up as far as the dotted lines a a. 

and is used extensively by the Government of the United States for artillery. 
The defective mode of casting he would remedy by the use of the water 
core which he has invented. He encloses the ordinary mould in a case of 
non-conducting materials so thick as entirely to prevent the passage of heat 
from the exterior of the casting. To accelerate the cooling on the interior 
of the castiny be uses a hollow core through which he can draw a stream of 
water or current of air at pleasure. 



On Typical Objects in Natural History. 



[^Circular.'] 



Hitcham, Bildeston, Suffolk, 
June 1855. 



Dear Sir, 

To secure materials for a Report called for by the Natural History Section ^ 
of the British Association " On a Typical Series of Objects in Natural 
History adapted to local Museums," I would thank the Members of the 
Committee to furnish me with the names and addresses of Naturalists whom 
they know to have paid special attention to particular groups in either the 
animal, vegetable, or mineral kingdoms. I will then request these parties, 
as I ROW do the Members of the Committee, to send me their opinion of 



(2) 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 109 

what objects they regard as most typical of those groups and their principal 
subdivisions. May I request that returns be made as speedily as con- 
venient, and that they be not delayed beyond the end of this month, or at 
furthest the middle of the next ? 

As an example of what may be considered sufficient for the purpose in- 
tended, I here subjoin the information afforded me by Mr. Darwin, whose 
close study of the Cirripedia has rendered him so competent a judge of what 
may be regarded as the most typical species of this group of animals. 

J. S. Henslow. 

[N.B. — The list referred to is inserted under Crustacea.'\ 

P.S. I would further suggest, that where the best type is not a British object, 
some British species in addition (the more common the better), belonging 
to the same group, should be named. These, being superadded to the typical 
series, will point out the full extent to which the groups illustrated occur in 
Britain. 

In regard to tj'pical objects for a geological series, I would suggest some 
Buch formula as the following to be filled up and forwarded : — 

Under each formation, its — 

I. Lithology. 
Typical rock specimens {ex. gr, from Red Crag) : — 

Comminuted shells, more or less cemented by oxide of iron. 
Detrital materials from the lower beds, viz. rolled and altered 
fragments of Septaria, phosphate nodules, and a few characteristic 
fossils from London Clay, from Coralline Crag, &c. 

2. Simple minerals frequently associated with the rock, series (ex.gr, from 
London Clay) : — 

Gypsum (crystals), Iron Pyrites (nodules). 

3. Illustrations of volcanic agency : — 

(1) Rocks ejected during the period. 

(2) Rocks modified by eruptions subsequent to the period in question 
(ex. gr. coal charred, limestone crystallized, by incursion of trap in 
dykes subsequent to the consolidation of the coal-measures). 

II. (Botany) Flora. 
Best examples for proving the fact, that either or each of the three Natural 
Classes have been met with in the formation illustrated : — 
(3) Acotyledones. 
(2) Monocotyledones. 
(1) Dicotyledones. 

III. (Zoology) Fauna. 
One species of one or more genera characteristic of the formation in each 
Class, and its main subdivisions, as. 

Classes or Subclasses. Example of Subdivisions. ' 

Amorphozoa. 
Foraminifera. 
Zoophyta. T Crinoidea. 

Echinodermata < Asteroidea. 

— l^ Echinoidea. 

Annelida. 

Crustacea Cirripedia. 

Insecia. 



110 REPORT — 1855. 

Br3'ozoa. 

Brachiopoda. 

Monomyaria. 

Dimyaria. 

Gasteropoda. 

Pteropoda. 

Cephalopoda. 



Pisces. 
Reptilia. 
Aves. 
Mammalia. 



The following Report, with the I.ists received, were presented at the 
Glasgow meeting : — 

The late lamented Prof. E. Forbes devoted his Introductory Lecture* at 
the Museum of Practical Geology, in 1853, to a consideration of the " Edu- 
cational Uses" of Museums, and he has there commented, with some degree 
of severity, upon the very inefficient manner in which many local Museums 
are arranged. Without wishing to extend his censures to Curators who have 
devoted time and labour to the due arrangement of whatever objects have 
been placed under their care, we cannot help remarking how inefficient their 
exertions have proved in respect to the general " educational uses " to which 
they might have been rendered subservient. Great care may often have been 
bestowed in displaying numerous species belonging to one or more favourite 
groups, whilst many others, more or less extensive (tribes, orders, and even 
classes) among animals, plants, and minerals, are entirely unrepresented. 

Although our great National Establishments in London are adapted for 
displaying a large proportion of all procurable objects of natural history, 
it would require larger funds than local Museums are likely to command, 
to adopt the plan which they follow. But it is within the power of every 
Museum, however humble its pretensions, to procure and display such 
instructive series of objects as may bring the entire range of natural history 
in a forcible manner before the attention of the public. Wherever a specimen 
of some species regarded as a sufficient type of a particular group cannot be 
conveniently procured, then a model, a drawing, or a tracing from some pub- 
lished figure may be introduced as a substitute. Naturalists often differ in 
regard to what species they consider the best representatives of certain 
groups ; but still, the judgement of Curators would be greatly assisted in 
making choice of objects for public display, if they were furnished with lists 
of types selected by naturalists who had paid special attention to particular 
groups. If they considered it the primary object of their duty to secure 
specimens of as many of these types as possible, and to obtain representa- 
tions (models or figures) of whatever they could not procure, they would 
possess a basis on which to ground their arrangement of whatever else their 
Museums contained. There would no longer be great gaps in the general 

* On the Educational Uses of Museums (a pamphlet of 19 pp.), by Edw. Forbes, F.R.S. &c. 
Longman and Co., 1853. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. Ill 

series; but good types of all the main groups in the three great kingdoms of 
nature would be publicly displayed. 

Frequent additions to a general collection necessitate continual re- 
arrangements among the objects deposited in Museums ; but a set of hori- 
zontal cases on the floor may be advantageously appropriated to the 
display of the selected types. These will form a sort of " Typical Epi- 
tome" of natural history, distinct from the rest of the collection. This 
Epitome will serve as a general index to the whole ; and where a typical 
specimen (from size or other consideration) could not be ranged in the 
horizontal cases, a model or figure would occupy its place, accompanied by 
a reference to the spot where (if it be in the Museum) it may be seen. By 
a little tact and contrivance, such a Typical Epitome may be reduced within 
a narrow compass. Very limited Museums might advantageously restrict 
their collections to little more than a general typical series; always ex- 
cepting those special collections which are to illustrate the natural history of 
their own neighbourhoods. 

Perhaps the plan of a general circular inviting naturalists to cooperate in 
furnishing typical series for the departments with which they happen to be 
best acquainted, has not been so successful as a more special application to 
individual Members of the Association might have proved. A few, however, 
have kindly favoured us with lists, and the publication of these may probably 
prevail with others to assist in completing a scheme which the Natural 
History Section has twice sanctioned, and which partial experience has 
proved to be of considerable utility. No Curator can be equally competent 
in all departments of natural history, to select the types best adapted for 
illustrating the principal groups* in which genera are ranged. 



ANIMAL KINGDOM. 

N.B In the present imperfect state of the returns, the divisions into 

Classes, Orders, &c. are retained as the respective authors have employed 
these terms. 

Class MAMMALIA. 
No list sent in. 

Class AVES. 

The types are selected for groups nearly according with the arrangement 
of Mr. G. R. Gray. List supplied by Philip Lutley Sclater, Esq. 

Ordo I. ACCIPITRES. 

1 . Vulturidae Neophron percnopterus B. 

2. Falconidae Falco peregrinus B. 

3. Strigidae Strixfiammea B. 

* Great service will be rendered, if those who furnish the lists, will, as far as possible, 
give references to good figures of the types selected. A (B) should be placed after such spe- 
cies as occur in Britain. 



112 REPORT — 1855. 

Ordo II. PASSERES. 

a. Fissirosthes. 

4. Caprimulgidae Caprimulgus europtsus B. 

5. Hirundinidae Hirundo rustica B. 

6. Coraciadas Coracias garrula B. 

7. Todidae Todus viridis. 

8. Momotidae Momotus brasiliensis. 

9. Trogonidae Trogon ciirucui. 

10. Alcedinidse Alcedo ispida B. 

11. Galbulidse Galbula viridis. 

12. Meropidse Merops apiaster B. 

13. Bucerotidae Buceros rhinoceros. 

b. Tenuirostres. 

14. Upupidse Upupa epops B. 

15. Promeropidae Nectarinia senegalensis. 

16. Caerebidae CcBreba cmndea. 

17. Trochilidae Trochilus colubris. 

18. Meliphagidae Meliphaga phrygia. 

19. Certhiidae Certhiafamiliaris B. 

c. Dentirostres. 

20. Sylviidse Sylvia luscinia B. 

21 . Turdidae Turdus viscivorus B. 

22. Muscicapidae Muscicapa grisola B. 

23. Ampelidae Ampelis garrula B. 

24. Laniidae Lanius excubitor ^ B. 

d. CONIROSTRES. 

25. Corvidae Corvus corax B. 

26. Paradiseidae Paradisea apoda. 

27. Sturnidae Sturnus vulgaris B. 

28. Fringillidae Fringilla ccelebs B. 

Ordo III. SCANSORES. 

29. Psittacidae Psittacus erithacus. 

30. Ramphastidae Ramphastos toco. 

31. Capitonidae Cajnto cayanensis. 

32. Picidae Picus major B. 

33. Cuculidae Cuculus canorus B. 

34., Musophagidae Musophaga violacea. 

Ordo IV. COLUMBiE. 
35. Columbidse Columba palumbus B. 



Ordo V. GALLING. 

36. Cracidae Crax alector. 

37. Megapodidae Megapodius lapeyrousii. 

38. Phasianidze Phasianus colchicus B. 

39. Tetraonidae Tetrao tetrix B. 

40. Chionididae Chionis alba. 

41. Tinaraidae Tinamus major. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. J.13 

Ordo VI. STRUTHIONES. 

42. Struthionidae Struthio camelus. 

43. Apterygidae Apteryx australis. 

Ordo VII. GRALL^. 

44. Otididae Otis tarda B. 

45. CharadriidsB Charadrius pluvialis B. 

46. Gruidae Grus cinerea B. 

47. Ardeidae Ardea cinerea B. 

48. Scolopacidse Scolopax rusticola B. 

49. Palamedeidse Palamedea corniita B. 

50. Rallidae Ralhis aquaticus B. 

Ordo VIII. ANSERES. 

51. Anatidse Anas boschas B. 

52. Colymbidae Podiceps minor B. 

53. Alcidas Utamania torda , , B. 

54. Procellaridse Procellaria pelagica B. 

55. Laridee Larus canus B. 

56. Pelecanidae Phalacracorax carho B. 

Class REPTILIA. 
No list sent in. 

Class PISCES. 

No typical series sent in ; but Jonathan Couch, Esq. has furnished the 
ollowing list of British Fish, which he considers may be useful to local 
Museums, as they can all be procured at small expense. 

Blue Shark, Carcharias glaucus, or else the Toper, Galerius vidgaris. 

Picked Dog, as an example of such as have spines on the back. 

Nursehound, Scyllium Catulus, as one of the Ground Sharks. 

Porbeagle, as one of the class that bears a ridge on the side near the tail. 

The Common Skate, or the Thornback ; and for examples of variations in 
;he teeth, as being conspicuous objects of distinction among Sharks and Rays, 
:he jaws should be exhibited separately. A complete series of them from all 
;he British species of these two subfamilies would be very instructive, and 
night be easily obtained. 

As aberrant genera, the Monk, Torpedo, and Sting-ray. 

The Perch, or Bass. 

Smooth Serranus, for those with a single dorsal fin and serrated gill-covers. 

The greater Weaver. 

Surmullet. 

Common Gurnard ; the mailed Gurnard for an aberrant type. 

Common Cottus and armed Bullhead. 

Of Sticklebacks ; the fifteen-spined siiould be preferred, as being easy to 
be procured, and more easily examined than the smaller species. 

The Common Sea Bream. Ray's Bream. 

Common Mackerel, or else the Tunny. Scad. 

Doree. 

Red Band-fish. 

Grey Mullet. 

Common Blenny. Wolf-fish. Gattorugine. Butter-fish. 

Rock Goby. 
1855. I 



114 RKPORT — 1855. 

Either of the Callionymi, but C. Lyra in preference. 

Angler. 

Ballan Wrass, and as an example of the Wrass tribe with serrated gill- 
covers, the Corkwing. The Cook also would be desirable, as displaying 
beauty of colouring ; which by art may be preserved from fading. 

I pass over the freshwater fishes, to name the Gar-fish, and its congener, 
the Skopster. 

Flying-fish, and in preference the Exoccetus exiliens, as being perhaps the 
only species ever yet found in our seas. 

Herring or Pilchard. 

Cod-fish. 

Coal-fish. 

Hake, Rockling, for aberrant genera. 

The Plaice, or Flounder, looking to the right. 

Brill, looking to the left. Rhombus hirtus, as possessing peculiarities of 
form, roughness of skin, and remarkable position of the dorsal fin. 

The Sole, showing an elongated form. 

The Lump-fish, and any of the smaller species in spirit. 

The Remora, as displaying a variation in the mode of forming adhesion 
(which may be illustrated by another method of doing the same thing, 
although with a very different object, in the Sea Lamprey). 

The Common Eel, or Conger. 

The larger Launce. 

Syngnathus acus, for the subfamily with tail and pectoral fin, bearing 
its young in a pouch ; and ^S". Ophidion, not having these fins, and bearing 
its ova adhering to the belly. 

Sun-fish. 

MOLLUSCA. 

The following list, from Cephalopoda to Tunicata, has been supplied by 
S. P. Woodward, Esq. 

Classis I. CEPHALOPODA. 

Best example, Spirula. 

Ordo I. DiBRANCHIATA. 

(Onychoteuthis or Ommastrephes.) 

Fam. L Argonautidse . . Argonuuta argo. 

2. Octopodidae. . . . Octopus vulgaris B. 

3. Teuthidae .... Loligo vulgaris B. 

4. Belemnitidae . . Belemniles Oweni .... B. 

5. Sepiadae Sepia officinalis B. 

6. Spirulidae .... Spirula Peronii B. 

Ordo XL Tetrabranchiata. (Orthoceras.) 
Fam. 1 . Nautilidae .... Nautilus pompilius. 

2. Ortlioceratidse. . Actinoceras giganteum B. 

3. Ammonitidae .. Ammonites Jason .... B. 

Classis n. GASTEROPODA. 

( Turbo marmor-atus.) 

Ordo L NucLEOBRANCHiATA. (Carinaria.) 

Fam. ]. Firolidae Firola coronata. 

2. Atlantidae .... Atlanta Peronii. 



TYPICAL. OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 

Ordo II. Prosopobranchiata. (Buccinum and Turbo.) 

Fani. 1 . Stroinbidae . . . . Strombus giganteus. 

2. Buccinidae .... Buccinum undatum. .. . B. 

3. Conidas Conus marmoreus. 

4. Volutidae Valuta musica. 

5. Cypraeidse .... Cyprcea tigris. 

6. Naticidae Natica millepunctata. 

7. Cancellariadse . . Trichotropis borealis . . B. 

8. Pyramidellidse. . Pyramidella dolabrata. 

9. Calyptraeidae . . Calyptrcea sinensis .... B. 

10. laiithinidee .... lanthina exigua B. 

11. Turritellidae. . . . Turrilella communis .. B. 

12. Ceritliiadfe .... Cerithium vuJgatum. 

13. Melaniadae .... Melania inquinata. 

14. Litorinidae .... Litorina litorea B. 

15. Paludinidae .... Paludina vivipara .... B. 

16. Turbinidae Trochus Zizyphinus . . B. 

17. Haliotidae .... Haliotis tubercidata .. B. 

1 8. Fissurellidae . . Fissurella reticulata . . B. 

19. Neritidse Nttita peloronta. 

{Neriti7ia Jluviatilis . . B.) 

20. Patellidse Patella vulgata B. 

21. Dentaliadae . . . . Dentalium Tarentinum B. 

22. Chitonidse .... Chiton Icevis B. 



115 



Ordo III. PULMONIFERA. 



Fam. 



Fain. 



Fam. 



Fam. 



1, 



1. Helicidae. . 

2. Limacidae 

3. Oncidiadae 

4. Limneidge 

5. Auriculidae 



6. Cyclostomidae. 

7. AciculidEe , . . 



(a great Bulimus or Achatina.) 

Inoperculata. 

Helix pomatia B. 

Limax antiquorum .... B. 

Oncidium celticum .... B. 

Limncea stagnalis .... B. 

Conovulus deyiticulatus B. 

Operculata. 

Cyclostoma elegans. ... B. 

Aciculafusca B. 



Ordo IV. Opisthobranchiata. (Aplysia.) 
S§ 1. Tectibranchiata. 

1 . Tornatellidae . . Tornatella fasciata .... B. 

2. BuIlidEe " 





§§2. 


Inferobranchiata. 




3. 


Aplysiadae . . . 


, 


Aplysia hybrida 


. B. 


4. 


Pleurobranchidas 


Pleu. niembranaceus . 


. B. 


5, 


Phyllidiadae. . . 




Diphyllidia lineata. . . 


. B. 




§§3. 


Nudibranchiata. 




6. 


Doridae 




Doris tuberculata 

Tritonia Hombergi. . . 


B 


7. 


Tritoniadae . . . 


. B. 


8. 


/Eolidae 




jEoUs papillosa 


B. 


9. 


Phylllrhoidae . 




Phyllirhoa bucephala. 




10. 


Elysiadae 




Elysia viridis 


. B. 
i2 



116 



REPORT — 1855. 



Fam. 



Classis III. PTEROPODA. 
Ordo 5. Aporobranchiata. (Cleodora.) 

1. Hyaleidae Hyalea telemus. 

2. Limacinidae Limacma arctica. 

S. Cliidse Clio borealis. 



Classis IV. ACEPHALA. (Cytherea, Chione.) 

Classis V. CONCHIFERA. 
Ordo I. Lamellibranchiata. 



9. 
10. 
11. 
12. 
13. 
14. 
15. 



1. Asiphonida. 

Pecten maximus 

Ostrea edulis 

Avicula margaritifera. 

Mytilus edulis 

Area No(B. 

Nucula nucleus 

Trigonia clavellata. . . 
Unio pictorum 

§§ 2. Integropallialia. 
Chamidse Chama macrophylla 



Fam. 1. Pectinidae . 

2. Ostreidae . . , 

3. Aviculidse . 

4. Mj'tilidae . . , 

5. Arcada; . . 

6. Nuculidae. . 

7. Trigoniadae 

8. Uiiionidse. . 



Hippuritidse 
Tridacnidae . 
Cardiadse. . . 
Lucinidae. . . 
Astartidoe . 
Cyprinidae . 



16. 

17. 
18. 



Veneridce ... 
Mactridae . . . 
Tellinidae ... 

19. Solenidae 

20. Myacidae 

21. Anatinidae ... 

22. Gastrochaenidae 

23. Pholadidae . . . 



( Caprotina semistriata.) 

Tridacna gigas. 

Cardium (echiuatum) . . B. 

Lucina boi'ealis B. 

Astarle sidcata B. 

Cyprina Islaudica .... B. 

3. Sinupallialia. 

Cytherea chione B. 

Mactra stidtorum .... B. 

Tellina (crcissa) B. 

Solen ensis B. 

Mya arenaria B. 

( Thracia piibescens) . . B. 

GastroclKFua modiolina B. 

Pholas dactylus B. 



Classis VI. BRACHIOPODA. 

Ordo II. Palliobranchiata. 



Fam. 1. Terebratulidae , 



Spiriferidse .... 
Rhynchonellidae 

Orthidse 

Productidae .... 
Craniadae .... 
Discinidae .... 
Lin<iulidos .... 



Terebratula caput- ser- 

pentis B. 

Spirifera striata B. 

BhynchoneUa psittacea B. 

Orthis resupinata .... B. 

Producta gigantea .... B. 

Crania anomala .... B. 
Discina lamellosa. 
Lingida anatina. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 117 

Classis VII. TUNICATA. 
Ordo III. Heterobranchiata, Bl. 

1. Ascidiadae .... Ascidium intestinale . . B. 

2. ClavellinidaB . . Clavellina lepadiformis B. 
.S. Botryllidee .... Boti-yllus violaceus .... B. 

4. Pyrosomidae . . Pyrosoma atlanticum. 

5. Salpidae Salpa democratica. 

Mollusca (continued). — G. Busk, Esq. has furnished the following list for 
the lower groups of Mollusca. 

Classis POLYZOA. 

Ordo I. P. INFUNDIBULATA. 

Subordo I. Cheilostomata. (Celleporina.) 

§ A. Polyzoarium articulated. 

§§ a. Uniserial. 

Fam. 1. Catenicellidae Catenicella hastata. 

§§ b. Bi-multiserial. 
Fam. 2. Salicornariadae .... Salicornariafarciminoides. . B. 
3. Cellulariadse Cellularia Peachii B. 

§ B. Polyzoarium not articulated, but continuous throughout. 

§§ a. Uniserial. 
Fam. 4. Scrupariadae Scruparia chelata B. 

§§ b. Bi-multiserial. 

Fam. 5. Farciniinariadae . . Farciminaria aculeata. 

6. Gemellariadse .... Gemellaria loricata B. 

7. Cabereadse Caberea Hookeri B. 

8. Bicellariadae Bicellaria ciliata B. 

9. Flustradae Flustra foliacea B. 

10. Membraniporadae . . Membranipora memhrana- 

cea B. 

Lepralia auriculata B. 

11. Celleporadae Cellepora pumicosa B. 

12. Escharadae Eschara foliacea B. 

13. Vinculadae Vincularia ornata. 

14. Selenariadae Cupularia Loioei. 

Subordo II. Cyclostomata. (Tubuliporina.) 
§ 1. Erect, not adnate. 

§§ a. Articulated, or having' the polyzoary divided into internodes united by 
flexible joints, 

Fam. 1. Crisiadae Crisia eburnea B. 

§§ b. Polyzoary continuous throughout. 

Fam. 2. Idmoneadae Idmonea atlantica B. 

Pustulipora deflexa B. 



J18 REPORT 1855. 

§ 2. Decumbent, more or less adnate. 

Fani. 3. Alectoadae Alecto granulata B. 

■i. Tubuliporadae TtibuUpora serpens B. 

5. Discoporadse Discopora patina B. 

Subordo III. Ctenostomata. (Vesicularina.) 
§ 1 . Corneous ; the polyzoary composed of a horny substance, sometimes con- 
taining earthy matter. 

Fain. 1. Vesiculariadse Serialaria lendigera B. 

2. Farelladae Bowerbankia imbricata .... B. 

§ 2. Carnose ; the polyzoary composed of a fleshy or semigelatinous substance. 
Fam. 3. Alcyoniadse Alcyonium gelatinosum .... B. 

Subordo IV. Pedicellinea. 
Fam. 1. Pedicellinidse Pedicellina echinata B. 

Ordo II. P. HIPPOCREPIA. 

§ 1. Lophophore bilateral ; mouth furnished with a valve. 
§§ a. Free, locomotive. 

Fam. 1. Cristatellidse Cristatella mucedo B. 

§§ b. Rooted. 

Fam. 2. Plumatellidae Alcyonella fungosa B. 

§ 2. Lophophore orbicular, mouth destitute of a valve. 
Fam. Paludicellidae Paludicella Ehrenbergi .... B. 

Arachnida. — R. H. Meade, Esq., has forwarded the list for this group. 

Ordo I. ARANEIDEA. 

Tribus Octonoculina. 

Epeira diadema (best type for the whole order). 

Fam. I. Mygalidse (Latebricolae) Mygale avicularia. 

II. Lycosidae (Cursores) . . Lycosa tarantula. 

{Lycosa saccata) B. 

III. Salticidae Salticus scenicus B. 

IV. Thomisidse (Laterigradse) Thomisus cristatus B. 

V. Drassidffi (Niditelse) . . Clubiona holosericea B. 

VI. Agelenidse (Tassitelde) Agelena labyrinthica B. 

VII, Theridiidae Theridion nervosum B. 

VIII. Linypiiiidae (Retitelse) Linyphia montana B. 

IX. EpeiridiE (Orbitelas) . . Epeira diadetyia B. 

Tribus Senoculina. 

Fam. X. Dysderldse (Tubicolas) Dysdera erythrina B. 

Ordo II. PHRYNEIDEA. 

Phrynus lunatus. ' 

Ordo III. SCORPIONIDEA. 

Fam. 



I. Scorpionidae 


Scorpio EuropcEUS. 


II. Buthides 


Buthus afer. 


[II. Centrurides 

IV. Aiidroctonides 


Centrums gallineus. 
Androctonus bicolor. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL. HISTORY. 119. 

Subordo I. Thelyphonidje. 

Thelyphonus caudatus. 

Subordo II. Pseudo-scorpionid^. 





Ordo IV 


. PHALANGIDEA. 




Fam. I. 


Solpugiidse 


Galeodes araneoides. 




II. 
III. 


Phalangiidse 

Troeuliidse 


Phalangiumparietinum. . . 

Troqulus nepceformis 


B. 
B.? 


IV. 
Y. 


Gonyleptiidas . . . 
Sironidae 


Gonyleptes horridus. 

Siro rubens 


V,. 




Ordo 


V. ACARIDEA. 




Fara. I. 


Trombidiadae . . . 


Trombidium holosericeum . 


B. 


II. 
III. 


Gammasiidse 

Acariidae 


Gammasus coleoptratorum. 

Acarus domesticus 


B. 
B. 


IV. 


Ixodiidae 


Ixodes Ricinus 


B. 


V. 


CheyletiidsB 


Sarcoptes Scabiei 


R. 


VI. 


Hydrachnadae . . . 




B. 






CRUSTACEA. 





The following list of the Podophthalma is furnished by T. Bell, Esq., 
President of the Linnean Society. 

Subclassis PODOPHTHALMA. 

Ordo DECAPODA. 

Subordo Brachyura. 

Fam. Leptopodiadae ........ Leptopodia sagittaria. 

{StenorynchusPhalangium) B. 

Maiadae Maia Squinado B. 

Parthenopidae Parthenope horrida. 

Canceridae . . . , Eurynome aspera B. 

Subfam. Cryptopodia (iEthriiia) 3Sthra scruposa. 

Arcuata (Cancerina) . . Cancer Pagurus B. 

Quadrilatera (Eriphina) Eriphia spinifrons. 

Fam. Portunidae Portunus puber B. 

Theiphusidae Thelphusa fluviatilis. 

Gecarcinidae Gecarcinus ruricola. 

Pinnotheridae Pinnotheres Pisum B. 

Ocypodidae Ocypode Ippeus. 

( Gelasimus vocans). 

Gonoplacidae Gonoplax angulata B. 

Grapsidae Grapsus pictus. 

{Nauiilograpsus minutus) B. 

Leucosiadae Leucosia Urania. 

(Aberrans.) Ebalia Pennantii . . B. 

Calappadae Calappa granulata. 

(Aberrans.) Matuta Victor. 

Corystidae Corystes Cassivelaunus . . B. 

Dorippidae Dorippe quadridentata. 



120 



REPORT — 1855. 



Subordo Anomoura. 



Fam. 



Subfam. 



Dromiadoe 
Homoladae 

Raninadoe 
Hippadae . . 
Paguridse. . 



Porcellanidse 
Porcellanina 
Galatheina . . 



Fam. Scyllaridse . . 
Palinuridee . . 
ThalassinidtE 

AstacidEe . . . . 
Crangonidse. , 



Alpheidae. 



Palemonidae. 



Penaeidse 



Cumadae 



Dromia vulgaris 

Homola spinifrons. 

Lithodes arctica 

Hanina dentata. 
Kemipes tesludinarms. 
Pagurus Beinhardus . 
(Aberrans.) Birgiis Latro. 
Porcellana violacea. 
Porcellana platycheles . 
Galathea strigosa 



Subordo Macroura. 



Scyllarus arctus. 

Palinuriis vidgaris B. 

Thalassina scorpionides. 

Gebio Deltura . B. 

Astacus Jluviatilis B. 

Cravgon borecdis. 

Crangon vidgaris B. 

Alpheus bidens. 

Alpheus ruber B. 

Palemon Carcinus. 

Palemon serratus B. 

PencEus Caramote, 

PencEus trisulcatus B. 

Cuma trispinosa B. 



Ordo STOMOPODA. 



Fam. Mysidae 

Leuciferidae. . . . 
Phyllosomatidae 
Erichthidae . . ^ . 
Squilladffi 



B. 



Mysis Chanueleon 

Leucifer Typus. 
Phyllosoma laticorne. 
Erichthus vitreus. 
Squilla Mantis B. 



Dr. Baird furnishes the following list for Entomostraca. 

Divisio ENTOMOSTRACA. 

Legio I. BRANCHIOPODA. 

Ordo I. PHYLLOPODA. 



Apus Cancriformis 

Chirocephalus (Branchipus) diujihanus . 



Cypris vidua, 1 n, 

Candona reptons J 
Cythere reniformis, sea water 



B. 
B. 



Legio II. LOPHYROPODA. 

Ordo I. OSTRACODA. 

esli water B. 

B. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 121 

Ordo II. CLADOCERA. 

Daphnia quadricornis B. 

Chydorus {Lynceus) sphcericus B. 

Ordo III. COPEPODA. 
Cyclops vidgaris B. 

Legio III. PCECILOPODA. 
Ordo I. SIPHONOSTOMA. 

Argulus foliaceus (on Stickleback) B. 

Ccdigits Mtdlcri (on Cod) B. 

Lepeophtheirus (Caligtis) Stromii (on Salmon). ... B. 

Ordo 11. LERN^ID^. 

Chondracanthus lophii B. 

Lemcea branchialis B. 



The following list for the Cirripedia is communicated by C. Darwin, Esq. 
Subclassis CIRRIPEDIA. 
Ordo I. THORACICA. 
Pollicipes mitella (best type for the order). 
Fam. 1. Balanidas (sessile Cirripeds). 

Siibfam. 1. Balaninae Batanus tintinnabulum. 

porcatiis B. 

2. Chthamalinae Chthamalus stellatus . . B. 

Catophragmus polymerus 

(as connecting Balanidse 

with Lepadidaj). 

Fam. 2. Verrucidse Verruca stromia B 

3. Lepadidae (pedunculated 

Cirripeds) Lepas anatifera B 

Ordo II. ABDOiMINALIA. 

Cryptopliialus minutus. 
Ordo III. APODA. 
Proteolepas bivincta. 



EADIATA. 

Among these, G. Busk, Esq. has furnished the following list for the class 
Anthozoa. 

Classis ANTHOZOA. 
Subclassis I. A. hydroida. 
Ordo I. TUBULARINA. 

Fam. I. Corynidse Conjne pusilla B. 

2. Tubulariadae Tubularia indivisa B. 



122 REPORT — 1855. 

Ordo 11. SERTULARINA. 

Fam. 3. Sertulariadae Sertularia abietina B. 

Plumularia crisfata B. 

4. Campanulariadae Laomedea dichotoma .... B. 

Ordo III. HYDRINA. 
Fam. 5. Hydroidae Hydra viridis, or vulgaris. B. 

Subclassis II. A. asteroida. 

Fam. 1. Pennatulidas Pe7inatida phosphorea .... B. 

2. Gorgoniadae Gorgonia verrucosa B. 

3. Alcvonidse Alcyonium digitatum .... B. 

4. Antipathidse Antipatlies myriophylla ... B. 

Subclassis III. A. heliantiioida (Zoantharia). 

Ordo I. MALACODERMATA. 

§ 1 . Polypes associated by a common base. 

Fam. 1. Zoauthidse Zoanthus Couchii B. 

§ 2. Polypes separate. 

Fam. 2. Acliniadfe Actinia mesembryanthemum B. 

3. Lucernariadae Lucernaria auricula. 

Ordo II. SCLERENCHYMATOSA. (Corals.) 

Subordo I. Aporosa. 

Fam. 1. Tufbinolidse. 

Tribus 1. Cyathininse Cyathina cyathus. 

2. Turbinolinae Turbinolia borealis. 

Fam. 2. Oculinidae Oculina virginea. 

3. Astreidae. 
Tribus 1. Eusmilinae. 

§ 1. E. propriae Eusmilia fastigiata. 

2. E. confluentes Ctenophyllia mceandrites. 

3. E. aggregatae Styliiia echinulata. 

4. E. inimersae Sarcinula organum. 

Tribus 2. Astreinas. 

§ 1. Astreinae hirtae .... Caryophyllia Smithii B. 

2. A. confluentes Meandrina filograna. 

3. A. dendroidaj Cladocora ccespitosa. 

4. A. aggregates Astrea cavernosa. 

5. A. reptantes Angia rubeola. 

Fam. 4. Fungidae. 

Tribus I. Cyclolitinae Cyclolites elliptica. 

2. Fungince Anabacia orbulites. 

3. Lophoserinae Agaricia tindata. 

Subordo II. Z. perforata seu porosa. 

Fam. 5. Eupsammidae Eupsammia trochiformis. 

6. Madreporidae. 

Tribus 1. Madreporinae .... Madrepora muricata. 

2. Explanarinse Explanaria crater. 

Fam. 7. Poritidae. 

Tribus 1. Poritinas Porites conglomerata. 

2. Montiporinae.' Alveopora rubra. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 123 

Subordo III. Z. tabulata. 

Fam. 8. Milleporidae Millepora alcicornis. 

9. Favositidae. 

Tribus 1. Favositinae Favosites Gothlandica. 

2. Chsetetinse Chcetetes radians. 

3. Halysitinae Halysites escharoides. 

4. Pocilloporinae .... Pocillopora acuta. 
Fam. 10. Seriatoporidae Sei-iatopora subulata. 

11. Thecidse Thecia Sivinderniana. 

Subordo IV. Z. rugosa. 

Fam. 12. Stauridse Stauria astreiformis. 

13. Cyathaxonidae Cyathaxonia cornu (fossil). 

14. Cyathophyllidae .... 

Tribus 1. Zaphrentinae Zaphrentis patula (fossil). 

2. Cyathophyllinse . . Cyathophyllum helianthoides 

(fossil). 

3. Lithodendroninae . . Lithodendron irregulare 

(fossil). 
Fam. 15. Cystiphyllidaa Cystipkyllum Siluriense (fossil). 



VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 

Dried plants from the Herbarium cannot be advantageously displayed in 
glass cases. The following method may be adopted for the Typical Epitome: — 
a iew wax models of flowers, with figures of such parts as require to be 
magnified; but especially entire fruits, with dissections exposing the seed 
and embryo. As a general plan for fruits and seeds, there should be ex- 
hibited, — 

1. Entire fruit, dried or (where succulent) modelled in wax. 

2. Section of the pericarp to expose the seed in position. 

3. Entire seed. 

4. Section of seed to expose the embryo. 

5. Embryo. When minute, it may be preserved as a microscopic object, 
and accompanied by a figure of it magnified. 

These preparations should be protected against the attacks of insects, by 
being steeped in a solu'ion of corrosive sublimate. 

In addition to the illustrations displayed in the Epitome, dried specimens 
and figures may be arranged in a " Typical Herbarium." 

If the following plan of drawing up a joint list of objects for the " Typical 
Herbarium," and the Epitome to be exposed under glass, should be approved, 
it will be continued in a Second Report. J. S. Henslow. 



124 



REPORT 1855. 



Typical Herbarium. 



Specimens displayed under glass. 



Classis I. DICOTYLEDONES. 
Subclassis 1. THALAMIFLOR^. 

Ordo. Ranunculace.«. 

Tribus. Clematidese 

Clematis vitalba E.B. 612. . I 

cirrhosa B.M. 1070. 

(Atragene) ver 



E.B. 



B.M. 


8. 


E.B. 


613. 


B.M. 


22. 


E.B. 


297. 


B.M. 


1784. 


E.B. 


1515. 



101.. B. 
517.. B. 
135. . B. 
584.. . B. 



ticillaris .... B.M. 887 

Tribus. Anemoneae. 

Anemone Pulsatilla. . E.B. 51. . B. 

narcissiflora . . B.M. 1120 

hepatica B.M. 1 

Tribus. Ranunculeae. 

Ranunculus aquatilis E.B, 

bulbosus E.B, 

arvensis E.B 

ficaria 

Tribus. Helleboreae. 
Helleborus niger . 

fcetidus 

Nigella damascena 
Aquilegia vulgaris . 

Tribus. Paeoniese. 

Paeonia officinalis . 
corallina . . . 

Tribus. Actaeeae. 

Actaea spicata 

Ordo. DlLLENIACE.iE . . . 

Tribus. Delimeae. 

Delima hebecavpa. Dell.Ic. 72 
Tribus. Dilleneae. 

Dillenia speciosa. Sra.Ex.Bot. 2 

Ordo. Magnoliace^. 

Tribus. Ilicieae. 

Ilicium floridanum B.M. 439 

Tribus. Magnolieae. 

Magnolia grandiflora B.R. 518 



E.B. 918.. B. 



( a longitudinal and 
,^ a transverse section. 



Flower. 


F, fruit. 
P, pericarp. 


S. seed. 


E. embryo. 


V. T. Herb. 


F, ( P 
F, (P 






Figure 


F 

F, (P 

F 

F, ( P 
F, P 








F,(P 


S,(S 


E + fig. 


V. T. Herb. 


F [dry & 
' \ wax 






V. T. Herb. 









MINERAL KINGDOM. 

For educational uses, the mineralogical and geological portions of the 
Typical Epitome may be preluded by a few illustrations of some of the 
important properties of minerals. The following notice of such illustrations 
as have been introduced into the Ipswich Museum may suggest others. 



TYPICAL OBJECTS IN NATURAL HISTORY. 125 

No. 1 . As many of the elements as can be exposed under glass. 
„ 2. Scale of temperatures at which some of the elements appear solid, 

liquid, and gaseous. 
„ 3. A compound substance, of given weight, exhibited with the rela- 
tive weights of the ingredients of which it is composed : — 
Ex. gr. Cinnabar (HgS) ; with sulphur and mercury. 

„ A grain of water (HO); with relative bulks of oxygen 

and hydrogen. 
„ Gypsum (CaOjSO^ + SHO) ; with lime, sulphuric acid, 

and water. 
„ 4. Malleability, extreme in gold. 
„ 5. Ductility, extreme in platina. 
„ 6. Specific gravity illustrated by a drawing. 

„ 7. Hardness, tested by nine simple minerals adopted in Mohs's scale, 
each scratched by the one which succeeds, except the last, which 
is scratched only by diamond. 
1. Talc. 2. Rock-salt. 3. Calcite. 4. Fluor. ;■». Apatite. 6. Fel- 
spar. 7. Quartz. 8. Topaz. 9. Corundum. 
„ 8. Magnetism with polarity, exposed by a compass-needle deflected 

by a piece of magnetite. 
„ 9. Crystallization produced from four predisposing influences : 

1. Solution, — alum; blue copperas ; and ferrocyanate of potash. 

2. Fusion, — bismuth ; sulphur ; and slag of an iron furnace. 

3. Sublimation, — naphthaline; camphor; and biniodide of mer- 

cury. 

4. Precipitation, — ^lead ; tin; and silver, 
„ 10. Cleavage, very distinct in, — 

1. one direction, in mica; 

2. three directions, in calcite ; 

3. four directions, in fluor. 

„ 11. Models to illustrate the six systems of crystals; severally repre- 
sented by a letter and a colour as follows : — 

Cubic system O Red. 

Pyramidal Q Orange. 

Rhombohedral R Yellow. 

Prismatic . P ^ Green. 

Oblique S Blue. 

Anorthic T Purple. 

„ 12. Pseudomorphism in Haytorite, i. e. quartz in the form of datholite. 
„ 13. Nodular arrangement, 

1. from igneous action,— in devitrified glass; and in Corsican 

granite ; 

2. from aqueous agency, — in iron pyrites ; 

3. raetaraorphic rearrangement,— in a mass of limestone (nodular 

disintegration ) . 
„ 14. Stalactitic and stalagmitic concretions, — in calcite. 
„ 15. Polarization of light. 
„ 16. Double refraction,— in calcite. 

Mineralogi/, 
An Epitome of this science has been formed by placing one small specimen 
of every procurable species noticed in Brooke's 'Mineralogy,' on stout card- 
board of a given size. A letter indicating the system, and printed on the 
appropriate colour, is pasted on the cardboard to the left above the specimen. 



126 



REPORT — 1855. 



and its chemical composition is introduced to the right ; the name is addeo 
below. The whole does not occupy 5 feet by 2, although blank spaces are 
left for the species not yet obtained. 

Geology. 

As no returns have yet been received from geologists, perhaps we may 
improve upon the suggestions offered in the Circular, by asking, in addition, 
for lists of such genera as first occur in each formation, and also of such 
as disappear in each. It will be serviceable to those who cater for Museums, 
to receive references to localities whence the typical rock specimens may be 
most readily obtained. 



P.S. Since the above was in type, Professor Huxley has suggested the fol- 
lowing arrangement as an approximation to a scheme which shall exhibit the 
equivalent classes and sub-classes of the animal kingdom. The brackets imply, 
that in his opinion there is good reason for fusing into one group the sub- 
classes thus united, and giving a new name to the whole, to be regarded as 
equivalent to the other sub-classes. Where (H?) is added to a group, he 
considers it very doubtful whether such is really an equivalent to the other 
sub-classes. An (R) is placed after those groups which were united by 
Cuvier under Radiata. Professor Huxley proposes at the next meeting of 
the Association to read a statement of his reasons for proposing the above 
classification, and to discuss any points in it which may ajjpear doubtful to 
other naturalists. 

I. Vertebrata. 

(^Abranchiata.) 

Mammalia. 

Aves. 

Reptilia. 

{Branchiata.) 

Amphibia (H?). 

Pisces. 



II. MoLLUSCA. 

(§A.) 

{Heteropoda. 
Gasteropoda 
dioecia. 
f Pulmonata. 
\ Pteropoda. 



HI. 



Insecta. 
Myriapoda. 



Annulosa. 
(§A.) 

Arachnida. 
Crustacea. 



Gasteropoda 
nionoecia. 



Lamellibranchiata. 

(§ B. Molluscoida.) 

{Brachiopoda. Ascidioida. 

Polyzoa (R). 



(§ B. Annidoida.) 

Annelida. Scoleidae (H?). 

Trematoda (R). 
Echinodermata. Tainiadae (R). 

Turbellaria (R). 
Rotifera(R.H?). Nematoidea(R.H?). 



,} 



IV. CCELENTERATA. 

Hydrozoa (R). Actinozoa (R). 

V. Protozoa. 



{Infusoria (R). 
Noctilucidae. 



Spongiadffi (R)- 
Foraminifera (R). 



Gregarinidae (R), 
Thalassicallidae (H?). 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 127 

An Account of the Self-registering Anemometer and Rain-gauge 
erected at the Liverpool Observatory in the Autimm q/'1851, ivith 
a Summary of the Records for the years 1852, 1853, 1854, and 
1855. By A. FoLLETT Osler, F.R.S. 
It was at the Meeting held in Liverpool in 1837, that my self-registering 
Anemometer and Rain-gauge were first introduced to the notice of the 
British Association. Never having previously seen any instruments designed 
to accomplish similar purposes, I was at the outset much at fault, especially 
with regard to the Anemometer, and soon became sensible that to construct 
one that would record light winds with any degree of accuracj', and at the 
same time effect the registration of storms and hurricanes, would necessarily 
involve many difficulties. Subsequent experience has enabled me to over- 
come most of these, and I believe that the instruments now under the able 
superintendence of Mr. Hartnup, at the Liverpool Observatory, of which I 
subjoin a brief description, have for these four years past registered an 
accurate and complete series of results. 

The direction of the wind is obtained by means of a wheel-fan, similar to 
that at the back of a windmill ; this preserves a steady action and is very free 
from oscillation. Its motion is connected with the recording portion of 
the instrument, by means of a tube carrying at the lower end a large screw 
or spiral groove *, to which the direction pencil is attached ; the motion given 
by this means causing a pencil to trace the direction of the wind on a sheet 
of paper stretched on a vertical cylinder, which is moved at a uniform rate by 
means of a clock. The paper is engraved with perpendicular lines to show 
the time, and with horizontal lines to indicate the direction. 

The force of the wind is ascertained by means of a circular plate having 
an area of four square feet, which is kept by the vane at right angles to the 
current of the wind. This plate is suspended by four light springs, imme- 
diately behind which are four strong ones, the whole being so arranged that 
the light springs are in action in light winds, but as the force increases the 
pressure is gradually received on the strong ones. To this pressure-plate is 
attached a wire which communicates with a recording pencil below, that 
marks off the force of the wind in pounds avoirdupois per square foot on the 
margin of the paper on which the direction is recorded. 

For the method employed for ascertaining the amount of horizontal motion 
of the air, I am indebted to Dr. Robinson, who first introduced that beauti- 
ful and simple arrangement of the revolving hemispherical cups. These 
cups revolve in a horizontal plane, the difference in resistance between the 
convex and concave surfaces securing their constant revolution in one di- 
rection at a velocity of one-third of that of the airf. Dr. Robinson has 
fully explained the laws that regulate their motion in a paper to the Royal 
Irish Academy (vol. xxii. part 3). The plan for registration, however, 

* In the first instruivicnt the paper was placed horizontally, and the motion conveyed to 
the direction pencil by means of a rack and pinion ; but finding a vertical position on several 
accounts more convenient, I made use of the screw movement described above, which had 
been pre^'iously suggested in a conversation with the late Mr. Henry Knight, of Birmingham. 

t In the first instrument which I erected at Birmingham, the velocity of the airwas obtained 
by means of a light wheel three feet in diameter, placed horizontally, having fans resembling 
those on a water-wheel, the greater portion of the wheel being screened by a cover with a 
vane attached to it, so that only a few of the fans were exposed to the action of the wind. 
The number of revolutions was recorded on the same paper on which the other registers 
were taken, by communicating their motion, reduced by screw movements, to a spiral incline, 
which propelled a pencil at right angles to the direction in which the paper was moved by 
the clock. I found, however, that the high velocity at which it revolved interfered so much 
with its durabili



















































































■010 


























17 

70 




30 
18 










14 


* 










































■058 


032 


015 
























. 29 


3 >8 


1 24 

5 


' 


41 


3 


10 
144 
175 
549 
202 

17 
569 

13 


16 

»3 
14 




045 
060 
005 


005 




012 


028 












086 


012 






030 




205 














































III 


... 


























1 


1 13 








020 


047 


088 


062 


055 


053 


•030 


030 


032 
























17 
















































18 
























16 
113 










































































III 
























24 


3 8 
























022 


055 


045 












030 














004 




004 










30 






















































31 
























82 














8 
3 


3 


16 
44 
77 
9 


S 
'4 

3 




















































9» 


























23 


1 
























































33 


34 
35 


6 


4 


' 






















21 

6 


3 










































■020 


033 


160 
250 
008 


84 
























» 


25 


' = 


40 
90 


3 
6 


42 
157 


'3 


20 


3 


062 
045 
022 


037 
004 
033 
010 


015 


100 


072 


034 


118 


032 


080 


090 


020 


005 
030 
















055 
032 




35 




















7 

59 
27 




23 
77 
66 




070 


060 


083 


185 


120 


020 


133 


111 


135 


020 


3S 


















22 


3 


S3 6 


S 


































37 


















16 


17 


11 
39 


6 


11 


"• 


41 


3 


1 
97 
18S 
16 


4 


16 

65 
19 


3 
7 
3 








036 


046 


070 


003 




































38 






















































39 












































































































35 4 


8 
07 




36 
17 

477 7 


8 
123 I 


7 

15 
68 I 


34 
61 


8 
6 


8 
229 


7e 


62 

2505 


6 


















































018 


014 


































040 


040 


021 








013 






040 
183 


162 

262 


081 
232 


090 
201 


181 
211 


042 
2511 
















Sum.. 


79 


>6 


lU 


) 


08 


s 


100 


1 


m 


3! 


S" 43 


1 




















181 


135 


210 


120 


^ 


132 


091 


121 


213 


113 


47 


797 


1 


199 


'' 


.74 


1110 


.07 


565 


104 


74 


'3 


169 


269 


116 


241 


265 


264 


318 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 



139 






Ci: o 1-1 





o 
3 


N.N.E. 

N.E. 
E.N.E. 

E. 
E.S.E. 

S.E. 
S.S.E. 

S. 
S.S.W. 

S.W. 
W.S.W. 

w. 

W.N.W. 

N.W. 
N.N.W. 

N. 


Points of tlie Compass. 


05 


bS 


U) 0D^__*. v> ci 00 a>p 00 «n *>. *>. to H-_bo g 

•v»ooo>t<.^oo — aim — oisosoMooS 
ostsoo— i;0«/.— !Cl.i — •^l&.CrJ?OtC00• 


Whole amount of liori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 




so 


eiiic©©©;6u)Oh^!JiofctJidsoi — M 
05if>.»Mm3oui'i;oo*.coooov50'v>ai 


Relative amount of 
horizontal motion of 
the air. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 




*- 


UJbS'VlcsCO— '*..C0©© — bOtiKitObOS 

•^•^a>eo'^^cn'M-j;osuiw^©c>o05S 


Number of hours in 
which the direction of 
the wind was referred 
to each point. 




«,T 


©'^'©►^'©©©►T'HT'bO©©©©©© 

tJi^QocJcs»icc©d5»i«b»i»-»«J'eo»-i 

«Otn^»«OOi — •^3;SnO5^Q0O0O5O0 


Relative time the direc- 
tion of the wind was 
referred to each point. 
(Mean = 1-00.) 




O) 


viwo;»aoosasc«"-it>i>-ito»-oo®tn3 
;6aiiii.i-^cc'<i»^»it.T©sj»cfc©<iWcoS 


Average hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air from each point. 




■M 


U)o©--wi«ao50h-ui — !o;o«o®co 


Relative hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 


03 
til 

to 


CO 


©kc»-<4oi-iat«t--'*'"-»-H-.-i— bos' 


Whole fall of rain ar- 
ranged according to the 
direction of the wind. 




;o 


*«.5ji;nO5O0©CSOO0b0CC'^^1'^tnU( 
0DI>S&:CS?jl^l-iiUl!OCJlU(OJt«&StD© 


Relative fall of rain. 
(Mean = l-00.) 


II 
bS 

00 

1 
J 

5 
5' 


© 




Whole time in hours 
during which rain fell. 


^ 


iiiiSliSSIIISSli 


Relative time during 
which rain fell. 
(Mean =1-00.) 


Ui 


iiiiiiiiilliiiiil 


Average hourly rate at 
which rain fell. 


CC 


©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©„ 
CiMH-M)U)sobsu)i.l.u)tiwtic3itbe63 


Mean quantity of rain 
to every 1000 miles of 
air. 



1855. 



130 



REPORT — 1855. 



gg 



::t^ 






e.5"g 





o 

B 

3 


N.N.E. 

N.E. 
E.N.E. 

E. 
E.S.E. 

S.E. 
S.S.E. 

S. 
S.S.W. 

w.s.w. 
w. 

W.N.W. 
N.W. 

N.N.W. 
N. 


Points of the Compass. 


00 
50 


U> 


*.- W CO i;^ 05 Cn^JLn Oi*^Ui to _*-«>_»-' jUg 

"o "© OS 'ts "to "to "tn "— OS 10 "eo "oo "bs -^ "tn "as g^ 

•>~»ib.'v<tot0tn'<«O5CJi"-b0C0OS"^©©M 

^cnaoksootot^oaoostotobseotoco- 


Whole amount of hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 




o: 


OH^H-tO^Oi^'OOt*©©©©©© 
05Wi4.>— ©:oi--»icoi— dbmdsrfi.iids 
eoo5min)(^©i(i.oooTOi©cci^tcioui 


Relative amount of 
horizontal motion of 
the air. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 




i(^ 


i^OSOSQ0C0«0*^*-OSl«*.-i;i-C0MI«C-. o 
O5eOO3N-5O!OMtIIl&.00CC®0OO5*>.tKS 

QD05to*'Cleo^^B©olWcc*-ac©©«'3 


Number of hours in 
which the direction of 
the wind was referred 
to each point. 




Cn 


O — — — ©©©©h-bO©©©©©H- 

«cwii«Ji»i<»<i)dbiita!o»-i<>05ht.-ti 

©ifi-a0'»JCSO5lO©tnM*.O5tJi5COSO5 


Relative time the direc- 
tion of the wind was 
referred to each point. 
(Mean =1-00.) 




Ol 


oowl^^^Si^ — to^Sto^^'^ososg;. 
•<»®»ds6s>^oitoood5>^tjid'<«&5d5j 


Average hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air from each point. 




•v» 


^^^^^^^po®H-o®oo© 

■«®lsO*..*^(>S*.50QO«0®ao«OOitntn 
bOO0SnODO0V|'Mrfi.(*^bS®H-m&Stn 


Relative hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 




oc 


®©^^U>»Oi-^h-,-t-Ml^O».;-®©-;'|' 

«i(«o6i--«cJitiii-'*i-H- — eoi&-coQO»-»p' 

■M"-«O*^001nO5t«"<>lOH-mosM*.-C<» 
'V|i(>._-OSUi4^U>tn<Ol«>©iC>OsasOS®S° 


MTiole fall of rain ar- 
ranged according to the 
direction of the wind. 




VI 


®®®.-l-.|-iO«l— tS©®t-®®-;' 

cjids«^cJ»hfc-i.-dbciD®K)«->6s®cJidstii 

tntjicl0O5CC^^®CjiU>5CCCi(^»®-- 


Relative fall of rain. 
(Mean=l-00). 


05 

II 
kO 

OS 

r 

to 

B 
5 
c 


© 


bOl«pb.«-»>Ui(>.COOSi^?ObO — W — H-*^* 

©<X^a0Ul00*.O5^M4^tD^«O«O®g 


WTiole time in hours 
during which rain fell. 


- 


®©h-ioH-N-i-'i—i.^be©©©©©-. 

U.O5bSlOO0lf>.Cn©O>'«^C5lXt«ODI»® 


Relative time during 
which rain fell. 

(.Vlean = 100.) 


5 


©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©„ 
"ObOOO'.^tOUlCS — l-irfi.OStOOOWMtO. 


Average hourly rate at 
which rain fell. 


C5 


©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©©« 
^,^^^tiiiHi-u,iaui^tscoMtJ.w3 

!0©0-tOOSO-. "-^i-'O0J-Jf>-©OV«Og. 


Mean quantity of rain 
to every 1000 miles of 
air. 



SELF-REGISTEKING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 131 



2S 



13 2. ? 
1-1 >-! S 

to-H. » 

O B S) 



» og 
S- 2, s 

•I P St 



^ ? Sf • :^ ?" ^ 



"ci C5 "w OS "lo "eo Vcs H- M "o "o "^ "*- c 2 S^ 
H-05ecioMecooeji!D""<»*^cooou)OS 



©— •bOMi^-T'pOOH-'OOOOOC 



Points of the Compass. 



Whole amount of hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 



Relative amount of 
horizontal motion of 
the air. 

(Mean=l-00.) 






woes'— 'tOUICnN-&JU)CCGS'<IOS»^OD 



I— lUJkObSi— ' — ^ — H^"-" "- ' _g 

OOife.ife-O'— Sfttn>7'0";'OtOO"^C5Cnj:; 

cou>cceo:JiO'ccii^»i>^«btocJx»-'5otJiS 



OH-h-— •[-■►-►^OOOOOO*©© 
csi'-coifiCTsfcoiiobQodbcc'MdbsJiOxcji 

QOOtiOCOSOS^COOSCSCnCTSi— 'tui^© 



©!_.i-.kotObo©©>7'fco>7'©©©©'7'a 
tJ'«Oit^d5»'"iit6«Oie.-»->>ti-»ij^M©©§- 



Number of hours in 
which the direction of 
the ^ind was referred 
to each point. 



Relative time the direc- 
tion of the wind was 
referred to each point. 
(Mean = 1-00.) 



Average hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air from each point. 



Relative liourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 

(Mean = l-00.) 



Whole fall of rain ar- 
ranged according to the 
direction of the wind. 



©►_IH--_.|_.^©©H-U)l^©©©0© 

ift-wo«o«odb«~>ds©©©cjiwu)©»i 



05©tciao*^i-^ia;p-<ifi'<i0505McoQpc 
©©56«o»-»©M«idbi>bsJii-^Mcc>—ti2 



0©N-u>t---.©©»-l«©©©©©© 

i^Aiiotocodjcctii — ccM>->ti.t«;ji 

Cn?OG0«itS--O5CCif^Uit0COCOH-'»4*^ 



©©«©©©©o©oo«o©©o„ 
o©6©©©©o©©o©6©©©5 

COOS&5C)2i(^i(^>^COCi5COdCJi«s)tc©&i2. 
O<*'035£it«t0i(i<Ul*>.«CWM©0»C»0C. 



©©©©©©©©©©©©©©«©„ 

OlOJ»^©OOQr)dOS?St005U)tJl*-C20S. 
OOiJ-OtO'Mil^bi^DCtiWtOlXCOO^. 



Relative fall of rain. 
(Mean =1-00.) 



Whole time in hours 
durina; wliich rain fell. 



Relative time during 
which rain fell. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 



Average hourly rate at 
which rain fell. 



Mean qliantity of rain 
to every 1000 miles of 



k2 



132 



REPORT 1855. 



^^ 



£1 ^^ 

o => S 
-I o ^ 

C ■< "^ 

SB & 
lag 



? ? 5 ? ^ » k ^ 
^ ? ^ • ^ ? ^ 



to p— 

i|i»Ccaiin05»-i*.U)fc005lNOOi— 'I— 'bStnS 






r-L4©O5WtOt0»«if^t0O5r-©0i*'Wa 



I— WCn — 0505'MOil'O-iliW'KOCCCC 



i^,^i^t;,©©©©Mcciii;i.do;iW'ii-S 



Points of the Compass. 



Whole amount of hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 



Kelative amount of 
horizontal motion of 
the air. 

(Mean=l-00.) 



Number of hours in 
which the direction of 
the wind was referred 
to each point. 



Relative time the direc- 

tion of the wind was 

referred to each point. 

(Mean =1-00.) 



Average hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air from each point. 



©©.-^h— -.»-©©©©©►-©©© 

C5Cbi-^'^1CJi..^W?O<X?0!OC»©C5i3itn 



i-l-CtCUiM©— C'T'Mi.^O©©©©; 

i*^lCtNS*^H-C5Qomj5U>*^»O0©W»4n 

©=2tsiKUiuicits©-.£ai^u>t^cou.'' 



f-©»-i_.Ui©>^©i.;-lfO©©©©© 



Relative hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 

(Mean = 100.) 



Whole fall of rain ar- 
ranged according to the 
direction of the wind. 



Relative fall of rain. 
(Mean=l-00.) 



OS5J<iJ-i«i.lfC0CUlfc'C»©©i^i<^©i»^C 
U)^5CtiliiCGCC5CC©'»ic<C©tJlUl?o2 



aDC;©"Cil«OO5«^ltn©H-b8t-SW«^05 



©©©©©®©c©o©©«©©©„ 

0®©00©®C©©©©CO©Cg 
Ml-S©Mtr>COH-(X H-«^»-J CJ cv cc en ccr' 



©©©©©©©©©©oo©©©o. 



M'hole time in hours 
during which rain fell. 



Relative time during 
which rain fell. 
(Mean =1-00.) 



Average hourly rate at 
which rain fell. 



Mean quantity of rain 
to every 1000 miles of 
air. 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 133 



^ ^ 



■ ^ ? ^ ■ ^ • ^ 



S" m [0 ;! CO W z 



to «0 H- 00 !S C5 03 5"^ J'^i" Wj^MJ-'JW; 

Cj 03 -- "i^ C 'iu. Vj 'ui 1u. "to '^ V( bo tn M "!»■ s 



CCU10Dh-0Dt0O3W^ilNStSl4^O5tD!D 






Oh-ii— ►-'OOOOH-lOCOOOOp 
•C,o5HKidb<»'<»obMti>cfc^«^cj>cg5D 

Oi4^tntnCii"040M^SQOCCOOOOWOO 



Points of the Compass. 



Whole amount of hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 



Relative amount 
horizontal motion 
the aic'. 

(Mean = 1-00.) 



Number of hours in 
which the direction of 
the wind was referred 
to each point. 



Relative time the direc- 
tion of the wind was 
referred to each point. 
(Mean = 1-00.) 



c/;*^rfLococ3T<!CCOit4^C5diOcbo;U)fi 
©OOOOOOOOOOOOOOQ! 



Average hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air from each point. 



o©'-'-'i-'"->-'C'Ppospppp 

©CC0l'<>05©Ol— ©CCOt(^CJ<©l— « 



Relative hourly hori- 
zontal motion of the 
air. 

(Mean= 1-000 



tDd5«iT«-j5Ji5J'i<^©030jcoeo<xceitJijj;3' 



^H-'h-i-'i-'©©©>-:''*©popoo 

CS©©'MCStD!0C!O»-CC2H!H:^SS 
©»SMO5SOC00S«Otn00Oi©OV«^"<(^ 



S3SI^©ote!o©©©«9^"';i^i*^'^c 
iicjtco»^«oAif^'-'*.io>^>^'-'©ib-ws» 



0©i-'i-'^H-0«H7U>©©©®©© 
CO©SO^'<Itn©»— 05^WCC05©«005 



©©©©©©©©©©P®®®?®!-! 

©©©©©©©®®©©©©©©Po 
Go<MCOtn&S«^OSCi5C3*-oiOi^JO*-g. 

(0*^'MWH-os©p(i-M*-ovWCjiiti.ioeo- 



©©©©©©©©©©©©©©P®>- 



Whole fall of rain ar- 
ranged according to the 
direction of the wind. 



Relative fall of rain. 
(Mean = 1-00.) 



Whole time in hours 
during which rain fell. 



Relative time during 
which rain fell. 

(Mean = 1-00.) ~ 



Average hourly rate at 
which rain fell. 



Mean quantity of rain 
to every 1000 miles of 
air. 



^ 



134 



REPORT — 1855. 



Table IV. — Abstracts of Results fioin the Integrating Anemometer and the 

Pluviometer during the years 1852, 1853, 1854, and 1855, arranged 

aecording to the hours of the day. 1852. 



S^-^ 



^■S^' 



Columns. 



2^S 



"3:29 



.§2 

O bo 



6 






« is- 
7 



la u 
>- o . 

o _ «^ 



12 to 

1 „ 

2 „ 

3 „ 

4 „ 

5 „ 

6 ., 

7 „ 

8 „ 
9 

10 
11 

12 „ 

1 ,. 

2 „ 

3 „ 

4 „ 

5 „ 

6 „ 

7 „ 

8 ,. 

9 » 

10 „ 

11 „ 



h 

1 A.M. 
2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 
10 
11 
12 

1 P.M. 

2 
3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 
10 
11 
12 



Miles. 

11-2 
11-4 
11-4 
11-5 
120 
1-2 
12-2 
127 
13-4 
137 
14-4 
151 
15-2 
15-5 
15-2 
14-9 
14-5 
136 
131 
127 
122 
11-6 
11-5 
11-5 



086 
0-88 
0-88 
0-88 
0-92 
0-92 
0-94 
0-98 
103 
105 
Ml 
M6 
117 
1-19 
117 
114 
111 
1-04 
101 
0-98 
0-94 
0-89 
0-88 
0-88 



Inches. 

1-269 
1-242 
1-529 
1-353 
1160 
1-386 
1-398 
1-555 
1-459 
1-090 
1-389 
0-936 
1-305 
1-178 
1-359 
1-476 
1-241 
1-262 
1-354 
0-851 
1-594 
1-306 
1-356 
1-545 



0-97 
0-95 
1-08 
1-03 
0-88 
1-06 
1-07 
119 
111 
0-83 
1-07 
0-71 
0-99 
0-89 
1-04 
113 
0-95 
0-96 
1-03 
0-64 
1-21 
1-00 
1-03 
1-18 



Hours. 

30-2 
26-2 
34-3 
35 
24-0 
30-2 
28-2 
28-8 
316 
28-8 
27-5 
26-8 
25-4 
26-7 
26-1 
26-7 
35-6 
26-7 
30-9 
21-9 
28-9 
24-0 
29-5 
29-5 



106 
0-92 
1-20 
1-23 
084 
1-06 
0-99 
1-01 
Ml 
101 
0-97 
094 
0-89 
0-94 
092 
0-94 
1-25 
0-94 
1-08 
0-77 
1-01 
0-84 
104 
104 



1853. 



12 to 

1 ., 

2 „ 

3 „ 

4 „ 

5 „ 

6 „ 

7 „ 

8 „ 

9 ,, 

10 „ 

11 .. 

12 „ 

1 „ 
2 

3 ',', 

4 „ 

5 „ 
C „ 

7 „ 

8 „ 

9 .. 

10 „ 

11 „ 



1 A.M. 
2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 
10 
11 
12 

1 P.M. 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 
10 
11 
12 



10-3 
10-5 
10-7 
10-5 
10-8 
10-8 
11-3 
120 
12-5 
132 
13-8 
14-2 
14-5 
147 
14-4 
14-0 
13-5 
12-7 
117 
11-2 
11-0 
10-9 
10-5 
10-6 



0-85 
0-87 
0-88 
0-87 
0-89 
0-89 
0-93 
099 
1-03 
1-09 
114 
1-17 
1-20 
1-21 
1-19 
116 
112 
1-05 
0-97 
0-93 
091 
0-90 
0-87 
0-88 



0607 
0-833 
0-607 
0-766 
1-049 
0915 
1089 
1-249 
1-046 
1185 
1-577 
0-860 
1-011 
1-173 
0-818 
0-811 
1-047 
0-920 
1-108 
0-788 
0-913 
0-681 
0-631 
0-820 



0-68 


16-1 


0-69 


0-93 


21-4 


91 


0-(i8 


21-4 


0-91 


0-85 


261 


1-12 


117 


302 


1-29 


102 


27-5 


M8 


1 21 


30-8 


1-32 


1-38 


30-8 


1-32 


1-17 


32-8 


1-40 


1-34 


301 


1-29 


1-76 


30-1 


1-29 


096 


221 


0-94 


113 


27-5 


114 


131 


28-8 


1-24 


0-91 


25-5 


104 


0-90 


26-1 


112 


117 


31-5 


1-35 


1-03 


30-8 


132 


1-24 


301 


1-29 


0-88 


281 


1-20 


1-02 


21-4 


0-91 


0-76 


20-1 


0-86 


0-70 


18-1 


0-78 


0-91 


21-4 


091 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 135 







Table IV. (continued). 


1854. 








P 

o 


i S 2 

i-3g 

o -a 
.a *^ j3 


1^ 1 

■g -3 II 
2 « 2 

SS S ,J3 


C 4> (U 

■S§.2 

^ te 

3 u a, . 

O O M ., 


1^ 


o <S 

si 

.S3 

V fco 

o.S 


a<a II 


■s-g 

2 S . 
o _ » 

2-3 2 
"3 g 


Columns 1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


6 


7 


8 


h 


h 


Miles. 




Inches. 




Hours. 




Inch. 


12 to 1 A.M. 


12-8 


090 


0-762 


0-83 


18-2 


0-77 


0042 


1 


, 2 


12-8 


090 


0-415 


045 


204 


0-92 


0-020 


2 , 


. 3 


12-8 


0-90 


0-556 


0-60 


18-7 


0-78 


0030 


3 , 


, 4 


131 


0-92 


1-031 


1-12 


28-6 


1-26 


0-036 


4 , 


, 5 


12-6 


0-89 


1-289 


1-40 


31-8 


1-42 


0-041 


5 , 


, 6 


12-6 


089 


1-247 


1-35 


26-0 


1-16 


0-048 


6 , 


, 7 


12-8 


0-90 


1-263 


1-37 


27-3 


1-22 


0046 


7 , 


, 8 


13-6 


0-96 


1-112 


1-21 


26-2 


118 


0-043 


8 , 


, 9 


140 


0-99 


0593 


0-63 


20-2 


0-90 


0-029 


9 , 


. 10 


14-9 


105 


0-881 


0-96 


202 


0-90 


0-043 


10 , 


. 11 


15-2 


1-07 


0-706 


0-76 


21-8 


0-97 


0-032 


11 , 


, 12 


15-5 


1-09 


0-936 


1-01 


26-3 


117 


0-036 


12 


, 1 P.M. 


16-3 


115 


0-820 


0-89 


201 


0-90 


0039 


1 


, 2 


16-6 


1-17 


1-026 


Ml 


20-0 


0-90 


0-051 


2 


, 3 


16-3 


115 


0-714 


0-78 


17-4 


0-78 


0041 


3 


, 4 


160 


113 


0-776 


0-84 


16-9 


0-75 


0046 


4 


, 5 


15-6 


110 


1-090 


1-18 


20-9 


0-93 


0-052 


5 


, 6 


14-9 


105 


0-733 


0-79 


19-1 


0-85 


0-038 


6 , 


, 7 


14-5 


102 


0-836 


091 


26-6 


1-19 


0-031 


7 , 


, 8 


140 


0-99 


1-052 


1-14 


25-4 


1-13 


0041 


8 , 


. 9 


13-5 


0-96 


1-518 


1-64 


21-8 


0-97 


0-069 


9 . 


, 10 


13 3 


094 


1-065 


M6 


19-6 


0-87 


0054 


10 , 


• 11 


13-3 


0-94 


0-734 


0-80 


22-8 


1-01 


0-033 


11 , 


, 12 


131 


0-92 


0-860 


0-93 


312 


0-94 


0-041 


1855. 


12 t 


1 A.M. 


10-5 


089 


0-657 


0-69 


222 


0-99 


0-029 


1 , 


, 2 


10-5 


0-89 


0-971 


103 


24-6 


1-09 


0039 


2 , 


, 3 


10-3 


87 


0-771 


0-82 


21-4 


0-95 


0-036 


3 


, 4 


10'4 


0-87 


0-827 


0-88 


25-1 


Ml 


0033 


4 , 


. 5 


10-4 


0-87 


0-827 


0-88 


26-5 


M8 


0-031 


5 , 


, 6 


10-5 


089 


0-648 


0-68 


20-3 


0-90 


0-032 


6 , 


, 7 


10-8 


0-91 


0-795 


0-84 


22-9 


101 


0-035 


7 , 


. 8 


11-5 


097 


0-856 


0-91 


24-3 


1-08 


0-035 


8 , 


. 9 


11-6 


0-97 


0-666 


0-71 


25-3 


M2 


0027 


9 , 


, 10 


12-3 


1-04 


0-880 


0-93 


26-0 


M6 


0-034 


10 , 


, 11 


131 


111 


0-768 


0-81 


20-2 


0-90 


0038 


11 , 


, 12 


13-5 


114 


1121 


M9 


25-4 


112 


0-044 


12 , 


, 1 P.M. 


13-9 


118 


1-445 


1-53 


23-3 


103 


0062 


1 , 


, 2 


14-2 


1-20 


1-756 


1-86 


19-7 


0-87 


0-081 


2 , 


, 3 


140 


118 


0-933 


0-98 


15-0 


0-66 


0-062 


3 , 


, 4 


135 


114 


0-778 


0-83 


23-0 


102 


0-034 


4 , 


. 5 


130 


Ml 


0887 


0-94 


19-9 


0-88 


0-044 


5 , 


. 6 


12-6 


lOfi 


1-608 


1-69 


206 


0-91 


0-078 


6 , 


, 7 


11-6 


0-97 


1-025 


1-08 


19-8 


0-88 


0052 


7 , 


, 8 


11-2 


0-95 


0-916 


0-96 


24-7 


1-09 


0-037 


8 , 


, 9 


10-8 


0-91 


0-971 


1-03 


19-9 


0-88 


0049 


9 , 


, 10 


10-8 


0-91 


0653 


0-68 


22-8 


101 


0029 


10 , 


, 11 


107 


0-91 


0-709 


0-75 


25-1 


Ml 


0-028 


11 , 


, 12 


106 


0-89 


MOO 


117 


21-8 


0-97 


0050 



136 



REPORT — 1855. 



Table IV. (contimied).— Means for the years 1852, 1853, 1854, and 1855. 





i S| 


2l 


ill 


.5 >. 


ours 
fell. 


to 




■a 
o 


— - o 
S"3 o 


a ^ 9 
2 " ^ 




£ 5 


.S'2 




^a ■ 

1=1 


■2 

g 


S "i: <£ -3 


30 . ^ 
III 


« _ g j 




ta 

"c.S 


•5 .^ ^ 


•- M 


Columns 1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


6 


7 


8 


h h 


Blilcs. 




Inches. 




Hours. 




Inch. 


12 to 1 A.M. 


11-2 


0-88 


0-824 


0-80 


21-7 


0-87 


0-037 


1 „ 2 


11-3 


0-89 


0-865 


0-84 


23-1 


0-93 


0-036 


2 „ 3 


113 


0-8!) 


0-866 


0-84 


23-9 


0-96 


0-033 


3 „ 4 


11-4 


0-90 


0-994 


0-96 


28-7 


114 


034 


4 „ .T 


11-4 


9-90 


1-081 


1-05 


28-1 


M3 


0039 


5 ., <> 


11-5 


0-90 


1 049 


1-02 


26-0 


1-05 


0-040 


6,7 


11-8 


0-93 


1-136 


1-10 


27-3 


110 


0041 


7 „ H 


124 


0-97 


1-193 


1-16 


275 


110 


0043 


8 „ 9 


12-9 


101 


0941 


091 


27-5 


1-10 


0033 


9 „ 10 


13o 


lOG 


1009 


0-97 


263 


106 


0-036 


10 „ 11 


141 


111 


1-110 


1-08 


24-9 


1-00 


0-043 


11 „ 12 


14-6 


Ma 


0-963 


0-93 


251 


101 


0038 


12 „ 1 P.M. 


150 


118 


1143 


1 11 


241 


1-00 


047 


1 ij 2 


15-2 


119 


l-2?3 


1-25 


23-8 


0-96 


0054 


2 !! 3 


150 


M8 


0-950 


0-93 


210 


0-84 


046 


3 „ 4 


14-6 


1 15 


0-960 


0-93 


232 


93 


041 


4 „ 5 


141 


111 


1066 


1-03 


27-0 


1-09 


041 


5 „ a 


13-4 


105 


1-131 


1-10 


24-3 


100 


0018 


6 „ 7 


127 


100 


1-081 


1-05 


26-8 


1-09 


0-041 


7 . 8 


12-3 


0-97 


0902 


0-90 


25-0 


101 


0036 


8 „ 9 


1 11-9 


0-93 


1-249 


1 21 


23-0 


0-93 


0-051 


9 „ 10 


1 11-6 


091 


0-926 


090 


21-6 


87 


0043 


10 „ 11 


1 11-5 


090 


0-857 


0-83 


23-9 


0-96 


0035 


11 ,, 12 


i 11-4 


0-90 


1-081 


105 


23-5 


0-94 


0045 



The accompanying diagrams I have prepared in order to convey a more 
accurate and comprehensive perception of tiie results than can be obtained by 
consulting tables and figures, and also to enable a comparison of the different 
years to be made with greater facility. 

The Charts contained in Plate VII. are reduced from some very large and 
carefully prepared tracings laid down by I\Ir. Hartnup, directly from the 
worked paper of the integrating instrument, according to the method first 
susj^ested by Di"- Whewell ; on examining these tracings for each year, they 
will be found to bear but little resemblance to one another ; and il we refer to 
tiiose projected in a similar manner for Plymouth, by Sir William Harris, 
during the years 184-1, 1842, and ISiS*, as great a difference will be found 
to exist, one feature only being at all observable throughout, and that is the 
general tendency of the wind from the W. towards the E. ; this appears to 
"have been the case to a remarkable degree in Liverpool in the year 1854^; 
in other respects but little or no resemblance can be traced. Notwithstand- 
ino- this apparent dissimilarity when thus illustra'.cd, it will be found, that if 
the various winds, instead of being projected in tiie order in which they suc- 
ceeded one another, are classified so as to show the relative amount of each, 
for the difl'crent years, a remarkable coincidence is observable. A reference 
* See Report of the British Association for 1844. 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 137 



to the first row of diagrams on Plate VIII. will render this fact very strikingly 
apparent ; these are all drawn to one scale, so that the comparative motion 
of the air from each point, for the different years, may be seen at a glance ; 
they are on precisely the same plan as those I brought before the British 
Association in 1840*, the difference being that the mileage of each wind 
is in this case regarded instead of the force. To this mode of making dia- 
grams of the wind, the title of " Wind Stars" has lately been given by Captain 
Fitzroy. I had prepared similar diagrams for each month and quarter of 
the year, but have reserved these until a longer range of averages had been 
obtained. 

In the second row of diagrams, Plate VIII., the hours during which each 
wind has lasted are compared, instead of the number of miles ; in these, the 
resemblance the different years bear to one another is even more striking. 

The average hourly rate at which each wind travels, is shown in the third 
row of diagrams, Plate VIII.; from this it will be seen that all those winds 
having a westerly bearing travel very much the fastest : those from the S. to 
the E. proceed at a much slower rate, while such as come from the North- 
east average but a little more than one-third the rate of the Westerly winds 
(for the exact rates see Table III., Column 6). 

With reference to the results obtained from the Rain-registers, the first 
row of diagrams, Plate IX., gives a comparative view of the amount of rain 
which accompanied each wind, while the second row exhibits the number of 
hours it occupied in falling; from these the hourly rate is at once obtained, 
and the result is shown in the third row of diagrams on the same Plate. In 
addition to this, the quantity of rain compared with the amount of air that 
passed over the station has been taken out (see Table III. column 2), and a 
diagram (see Plate X. fig. 2) is given, showing the mean quantity of rain 
that falls to every thousand miles of air from each point of the compass. 
By this it will be observed that the North-Flasterly winds, -which are smallest 
in amount, bring with them a much larger proportion of rain than those from 
any other point. 

Table V. — Whole amount of rain that fell between each hour. 
See Plate X. fig. 1, and Table IV, col. 4. 




138 



REPORT 1855. 



Table YI. — Mean hourly horizontal motion of the air in miles for each month. 
See Plate X. fig. 3. 





Jan. 


Feb. 


Mar. 


Apr. 


May. 


June. 


July. 


Aug. 


Sept. 


Oct. 


Nov. 


Dec. 


1852. 


19-2 


18-6 


90 


9-3 


12-6 


13-5 


105 


10-6 


112 


11-6 


126 


17-6 


1853. 


153 


12-0 


10-3 


170 


11-3 


9-8 


15-2 


107 


12-3 


11-7 


9-8 


9-6 


1854. 


160 


19-2 


13-9 


12-8 


106 


12-6 


104 


11-4 


12-8 


13-2 


137 


23-9 


1855. 


9-6 


9-8 


12-6 


13-8 


12-5 


124 


9-6 


146 


81 


13-9 


8-5 


15-5 


Mean 


150 


14-9 


11-45 


13-2 


11-75 


121 


11-4 


11-8 


11-1 


12-6 


109 


16-85 



Winter. 
Dec, Jan., Feb. 



Spring. 
Mar., Apr., May. 



Summer. 
June, July, Aug. 

— V — 



Autumn. 
Sept., Oct., Nov, 



15-6 miles per hour. 121 miles per hour. 11-8 miles per hour. 11-5 miles per hour. 



T.4BLE YII. — Horizontal motion of the air for the years 1852, 1853, 1854, 

and 1855. 





Miles. 


Hours. 


Calm 
hours. 


Total number 
of hours in the 

year. 


Mean rate per 
hour per 
annum. 


1852.* 
1853. 
1854. 
1855. 


114,276 
105,989 
128,283 
103,405 


8765 
8733 
8756 
8748 


19 

27 

4 

12 


8784 
8760 
8760 
8760 


13-00 
1209 
14-64 
11-80 


Mean 


112,989 


8750 


15-5 


8766 


12-90 



* Leap year. 
The sums of all the changes in the direction of the wnd are in the following order : — 

{28 revolutions in 1852. n2 revolutions in 1852. 

24 revolutions in 1853. „ w = i- ^ J ^2 revolutions in 1853. 

26 revolutions in 1854. n-w.s.e.n. < ^ ^^^^X\^'i^ox,% in 1854. 

24 revolutions in 1855. \\^ revolutions in 1855. 

The excess of the direct over the retrograde motion was therefore — 
in 1852, Sixteen revolutions, 
in 1853, Twelve revolutions, 
in 1854, Twenty-four revolutions, 
in 1855, Fourteen revolutions. 

Table V. gives the hourly amount of rain, and is illustrated in fig. 1, 
Plate X. As far as four years are capable of indicating, it would appear 
that the minimum amount of rain falls during the first three hours after 
midnight, and that there are three periods in the day wlien an increased 
amount of rain falls, namely, between seven and eight o'clock in the morning, 
between one and two in the middle of the day, and between eight and nine 
in the evening; but before any satisfactory conclusions can be arrived at on 
this subject, it will be necessary to obtain averages for a longer period. 

Table VI. gives the average hourly motion of the air in miles for each 
month, direction not being regarded. The curves shown in fig. S, Plate X., 
exhibit the comparative results given in this table, by which it appears that 
the greatest amount of motion in the air taices place in the months of Decem- 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 139 

ber, January, and February. November seems to be the stillest month in 
the year, and March, which is usually considered such a windy month, is in 
fact one of the four in which the least amount of motion in the air occurs, 
while April is only surpassed by the three winter months mentioned above. 

Table Vlll., like the preceding, gives the mean hourly motion of the air 
without regard to direction, but instead of referring to the months, shows 
the amount of motion between any one hour of the day and the next follow- 
ing, as explained in the heading of the table. This is illustrated in Plate XL, 
a reference to which will render any lengthened explanation here unnecessary. 
I would merely call attention to the coincidence between these curves and 
those of temperature ; they also agree in a striking manner with the curves 
I laid down in a similar way from the observations taken in Birmingham 
with the Force Anemometer, and which appear in the Report of the British 
Association for 1840, already alluded to. 

In the foregoirij: Tables in this Report, the horizontal motion of the air, 
obtained from Dr. Robinson's revolving cups, is tabulated in preference to 
the force, not only because it can be recorded more definitely, but as afford- 
ing many interesting results respecting the velocity of various winds ; but 
when observations from different stations have to be compared, the force 
register will be found of great utility, by exhibiting the sudden and extreme 
changes which frequently take place, not only in storms, but in the more 
regular currents of the atmosphere, when those marked and important indi- 
cations become of peculiar interest : on this account I consider both modes 
of registration as desirable. 

Important as are the Observations at the Liverpool Observatory, contained 
in the foregoing Tables, their value will be much enhanced when regarded 
in connexion with those at other places ; and this leads me to repeat a pro- 
position to which I have on more than one occasion taken the liberty of 
calling attention, namely, the expediency of carrying out Anemometrical 
Observations on an extended scale, especially further South, where the 
action of the sun, that great disturbing cause, is more marked and regular ; 
after this is in operation, the observations may be advantageously carried 
Northwards to our own country, where the changes are more complex. We 
cannot hope to determine the laws of the great atmospheric currents from 
observations limited to such an ever-varying condition of the elements as 
exists in these islands, which are situated in a region of variable winds pro- 
ducing an equally varied climate, and lie, moreover, on the borders of a 
great continent as well as a vast ocean; but if such observations were com- 
bined with a series of continuous anemometrical records of the atmospheric 
currents, commencing nearer the equator, I think it would do more towards 
the advancement of the Science of Meteorology than any other class of 
observations. 

The very valuable observations that are being taken by Captains of vessels 
carrying meteorologii cd instruments supplied by Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment, under the management of Captain Fitzroy, as well as those from the 
American Government, under the superintendence of Lieutenant Maury, 
are of great and immediate practical value ; but I am of opinion, that 
if a number of standard points were to be selected, and a continuous series 
of self-registered observations obtained, the investigations that are now going 
on would be greauly benefited and advanced. Detached observations 
on the wind taken at intervals on board ship, are most valuable in filling 
up the spiices betwcrU fixed and unerring self-recording instruments, but 
are scarcely sufficient to procure such exact knowledge of tiie variations 
as it is so necessary to obtain, if the movements of the air are to be 



140 



REPORT — 1855. 

Table VIII. — Showing tlie mean horizontal motion of the air in miles 

for the years ending Novemher 30, 



1851-52. 



Dec, Jan., Feb 

March, April, May 
June, July, August 
Sept., Oct., Nov. ... 

1852-53. 

Dec, Jan., Feb 

March, April, May 
June, July, August 
Sept., Oct., Nov. ... 

1853-54. 

Dec, Jan., Feb 

March, April, May 
June, July, August 
Sept., Oct., Nov. .. 

1854-55. 

Dec, Jan., Feb 

March, April, May 
June, July, August 
Sept., Oct., Nov. .. 



0-U.M 



Dec, Jan., Feb 

March, AprU, May 
June, July, August 
Sept., Oct., Nov. .. 



1-2 



13-8 
8-5 
9-5 

107 

13-5 
10-3 
10-0 
100 

137 

107 

9-5 

12-6 

13-3 

111 

10-4 

8-9 



141 

8-4 

100 

10-9 

139 

10 5 

9-6 

10-3 

132 

102 

9-6 

12-2 

138 
10-9 
107 

8-6 



2-3 



14-3 

8-0 

10-2 

10-3 

147 
110 
9-4 
10-4 

13-2 

10-4 

9-4 

12-4 

137 
10-9 
10-G 

8-9 



3-4 



151 
7-9 
9-5 

10-8 

146 

10-8 

9-3 

10-3 

13-2 
111 
9-4 
127 

13-6 
11-3 

10-8 



4-5 



15-4 

8-0 

100 

10-9 

155 

11 1 

97 

10-2 

13-2 

106 

9-4 

12-6 

130 
111 

10-6 
8-8 



5-6 



14-9 

8-4 

10-2 

10-6 

15-4 

10-9 

9-6 

107 

13-9 

106 

9-0 

12-3 

13-5 

11-4 

111 

8-6 



6-7 



14-6 
88 
11-3 
10-5 

15-5 
11-6 
101 
107 

140 
10-8 
100 
12-2 

13-4 
11-9 
11-6 

8-9 



7-8 



150 
90 
12-2 

10 8 

160 
12-6 
11-6 
11-4 

141 
11-8 

11 1 
127 

137 

121 

12-2 

9-3 



8-9 9-10 



15-5 
10-3 
12-8 
117 

154 
137 
12-4 
117 

141 
127 
121 
12-8 

137 
131 
12-6 
101 



15-6 
11-3 
13-5 
118 

161 
14-5 
12-8 
11-8 

14-9 
13-4 
12-8 
137 

14-2 
13-6 
12-9 

10-8 



Mean , 

















Mean for the years 


13-57 

1015 

9-85 

10-55 


1375 

1000 

9 97 

10-50 


13-97 

1007 

9-90 

10-50 


14-12 

1027 

9-75 

10-65 


)4-27 

10-20 

9-92 

10-62 


14-42 

10-32 

9-97 

10-55 


14-37 
10-77 
10-75 
10-57 


14-70 
11-45 
11-77 
1105 


14-67 
12-45 
12-47 
11-57 


15-25 
13-25 
13-00 
1202 


11-03 


1105 


11-11 


1119 


1125 


1131 


11-61 


12-24 


12-79 


13-38 



charted, and we are to hope for a discovery of the laws that regulate them. 
I would propose, tlierefore, that stations be established to aid in carrying out 
an Anemometrical Survey of the Atlantic ; in the first place at Bermuda, the 
Azores, and Madeira; also one or two on the South Coast of England, and 
on some Southerly point in Ireland. To these it would be desirable, if pos- 
sible, to add two or three stations on the Atlantic Coasts of Europe and 
America. This plan, which I suggested at the Physical Section of the 
British Association in 1849, would, I believe, be the most efficient 
and expeditious mode of obtaining the knowledge required, and the 
advantages to be derived from it would more than compensate any 
difficulty. Nor need tlie expense be very great; for instruments might 
be constructed that would continue their record for several days together, 
and thus require occasional attention only. I should recommend com- 
mencing with the three first-named insular stations, as being the most 
important. In addition to the information to be obtained respecting the 
general currents of the air, the subject of rotatory storms might be investi- 
gated. There is much to be discovered respecting them, wliicli self-register- 
ing instruments alone are likely to supply. Tliat rotatory storms do take 
place, there can be no doubt; but I believe the rotatory portion is much less 
than is supposed, and may not always be in contact with the earth. The 
present theory respecting' them does not account for many phenomena, 
and can only be regarded as furnishing a rough approximation to their 
real motion. 



SELF-REGISTERING ANEMOMETER AND RAIN-GAUGE. 



141 



between any one hour of the day and the next hour following, for each of the seasons, 
1852, 1853, 1854, and 1855. See Plate XI. 



10-11 


11-12 


12-13 


13-14 


14-15 


15-16 


16-17 


17-18 


18-19 


19-20 


20-21 


21-22 


22-23 


23-24 


16-9 


17-8 


17-7 


18-3 


18-2 


17-8 


17-3 


160 


15-8 


16-0 


15-7 


15-3 


15-0 


14-5 


116 


127 


12-8 


134 


13-2 


13-1 


12-3 


11-8 


10-6 


9-9 


9-0 


90 


8-7 


8-8 


13-7 


14-0 


13-8 


13-8 


135 


13-3 


13-2 


120 


12-1 


10-6 


9-8 


9-1 


92 


9-6 


122 


130 


13-4 


13-8 


13-7 


13-3 


132 


12-3 


11-7 


12-0 


11-9 


11-7 


113 


10-9 


16-8 


17-2 


171 


170 


16-0 


15-0 


14-4 


13-5 


13-1 


13-4 


13-6 


13-5 


13-3 


14-0 


151 


15-9 


15-8 


16-2 


159 


15-7 


15-5 


14-3 


12-8 


113 


10 9 


11-0 


106 


10-7 


137 


13 8 


146 


14-8 


150 


15-0 


14-8 


13-5 


12-7 


11-9 


107 


10-4 


9-9 


103 


12-4 


13-1 


13-4 


13-6 


13-4 


130 


12-2 


11-3 


10-4 


109 


10-6 


10-2 


10-0 


100 


155 


15-6 


15-8 


161 


16-2 


15-6 


14-9 


145 


14-8 


14-9 


150 


14-0 


14-2 


143 


137 


13-8 


150 


15-3 


15-3 


15-1 


14-5 


13-7 


131 


11-9 


11-4 


11-0 


11-0 


HI 


12-7 


12-7 


13-6 


14-5 


14-0 


13-5 


13-8 


13-0 


11-8 


110 


102 


10-4 


10-2 


9-8 


142 


147 


151 


14-8 


141 


14-1 


13-7 


13-4 


13-3 


133 


13-0 


13-1 


13-4 


13-0 


148 


15-8 


16-5 


16-6 


16-1 


15-8 


15-3 


15-3 


14-7 


14-3 


13-7 


13-8 


13-7 


134 


14-8 


15-5 


160 


16-3 


16-3 


15-7 


15-1 


14-9 


13-3 


122 


11-4 


11-7 


11-7 


111 


13-6 


13-9 


14-1 


14-3 


140 


137 


13-7 


12-7 


12-5 


11-8 


109 


107 


10-9 


10-7 


11-8 


12-0 


12-6 


13-1 


12 6 


11-9 


11-4 


10-8 


9-9 


9-3 


90 


9-2 


90 


9-1 


1852, 


1853, 1854, 


and U 


^55. 




















1600 


16-60 


16-77 


1700 


16-62 


16-05 


1547 


14-82 


14-60 


14-60 


14-50 


14-15 


1405 


14-05 


13-80 


14-47 


14-90 


15-30 


15-17 


14-90 


14-35 


13-69 


12-45 


11-32 


10-67 


10-67 


1050 


10-42 


13-42 


13-60 


14 02 


14-35 


14-12 


13-87 


13-87 


12-80 


12-27 


11-32 


10-40 


10-15 


10-05 


10-10 


12-65 


13-20 


13-62 


13-82 


13-45 


13-07 


12-62 


11 -.95 


11-32 


11-37 


1112 


11-05 


10-92 


10-75 


13-96 

1 


14 46 


14-82 


15-11 


14-84 


14-47 


14-07 


1331 


12-66 


12-15 


11-67 


11-50 


11-38 


11-33 



Many interesting and important results remain to be worked out from the 
very accurate and complete series of observations that have been recorded 
at Liverpool, under the skilful and vigilant care of Mr. Hartnup. His 
Tables, which will increase in value with their progressive accumulation, are 
admirably arranged, and contain much more information than any I have 
hitherto seen. 

The following Table exhibits the extreme pressure of the -wind in pounds 
on the square foot, and the greatest horizontal motion of the air between any 
one hour and the next hour following, for all the gales during the four years 
in -which the pressure has reached fifteen pounds on the square foot. 



142 



REPORT — 1855. 









Greatest velocity 






Date. 




Extreme 
pressure on 
the square 


„. , , • t -i oftlieairbetween 

Time at whieh It ,j„,. ^^e hour and 

occurred. ^,^4 ^^^^ j,^,^, 


Hours between 
which it occmred. 


Direction of 
the wind. 






foot. 


t 


oUowing. 






1852. 




Pounds. 


h m 


Miles. 


h h 




January 


3 


16 


7 30 p.m. 


50 


8 & 9 p.m. 


S.W. 




4 


28 


5 30 a.m. 


53 


5 „ 6 a.m. 


W.N.W. 




7 


19 


2 30 P.M. 


50 


3 „ 4 p.m. 


W.N.W. 




8 


18 


4 12 p.m. 


39 


4 ,, 5 P.M. 


s. 




9 


29 


3 a.m. 


62 


4 ,, 5 A.M. 


W.N.W. 


" 


15 


16 


11 30 a.m. 


44 


11 „ 12 a.m. 


W. 




Id 


15 


O 45 p.m. 


40 


12 „ 1 p.m. 


W. 




21 


18 


7 30 p.m. 


46 


8 „ 9 p.m. 


W.S.AV. 


" 


25 


16 


4 30 p.m. 


•27 


4 „ 5 P.M. 


s.s.w. 




30 


17 


20 p.m. 


38 


12 „ 1 P.M. 


W.N.W. 


Februai-y 


6 


15 


4 45 A.M. 


44 


4 „ 5 A.M. 


W.N.W. 




9 


18 


4 20 a.m. 


47 


5 „ 6 a.m. 


N.N.W. 




16 


22 


7 42 p.m. 


50 


7 „ 8 P.M. 


W.N.W. 




17 


16 


7 38 p.m. 


47 


8 „ 9 p.m. 


W. 




18 


15 


8 30 a.m. 


47 


6 „ 7 a.m. 


N.W. 


May 


14 


17 


9 30 a.m. 


49 


9 „ 10 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


December 


25 


42 


4 45 a.m. 


70 


4 „ 5 a.m. 


W.S.W. 




27 


42 


6 48 a.m. 


71 


8 „ 9 a.m. 


S.W. 


"l853. 














January 


6 


19 


10 40 a.m. 


38 


6 „ 7 p.m. 


W.N.W. 




11 


17 


10 12 A.M. 


47 


10 „ Ua.m. 


W. 


" 


12 


17 


7 50 A.M. 


47 


9 „ 10 a.m. 


S.W. 


February 


26 


33 


11 40 A.M. 


60 


12 „ 1 P.M. 


N.N.W. 


April 


1 


23 


11 a.m. 


51 


12 „ IP.M. 


S.W. 


7 


16 


2 30 p.m. 


42 


2 „ 3 P.M. 


W.N.W. 


September 


25 


37 


7 50 p.m. 


65 


7 „ 8 p.m. 


N.N.W. 


26 


24 


2 12 a.m. 


56 


2 „ 3 a.m. 


N.N.W. 


"l854. 














January 


20 


22 


42 p.m. 


30 


9 „ 10 p.m. 


W.S.W. 




24 


19 


2 54 a.m. 


34 


5 „ 6 a.m. 


s. 


" 


25 


16 


3 36 p.m. 


34 


7 „ 8 p.m. 


W.S.W. 


" 


26 


43 


10 42 a.m. 


53 


9 „ 10 a.m. 


w. 




27 


20 


7 24 p.m. 


53 


7 „ 8 p.m. 


S.W. 


February 


6 


15 


36 a.m. 


43 


1 „ 2 a.m. 


w. 




8 


21 


1 6 a.m. 


45 


1 „ 2 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


15 


15 


4 24 a.m. 


40 


5 „ 6 a.m. 


N.W. 


" 


17 


27 


8 6 P.M. 


56 


8 „ 9 p.m. 


N.W. 


" 


18 


31 


3 54 a.m. 


56 


4 „ 5 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


22 


18 


2 18 p.m. 


35 


3 „ 4 P.M. 


s.s.w. 


October 


22 


24 


6 42 a.m. 


44 


6 „ 7 a.m. 


N.W. 


December 


2 


16 


5 6 a.m. 


47 


6 „ 7 a.m. 


W.N.W. 




3 


25 


3 54 P.M. 


45 


11 „ 12 p.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


4 


17 


I 6 A.M. 


43 


O „ 1a.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


5 


16 


11 18a.m. 


45 


8 „ 9 p.m. 


W. 


" 


15 


17 


8 42 a.m. 


44 


8 „ 9 a.m. 


w. 


" 


22 


27 


8 12 a.m. 


48 


8 „ 9 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


25 


20 


1 24 P.M. 


48 


1 „ 2 p.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


26 


16 


10 36 a.m. 


40 


12 „ 1 P.M. 


W. 


" 


27 


15 


2 48 a.m. 


43 


3 „ 4 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


" 


31 


15 


10 18 p.m. 


46 


10 „ 11 P.M. 


N.W. 


"l855. 














January 


1 


19 


1 24 a.m. 


48 


3 „ 4 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


March 


1 


15 


2 P.M. 


46 


2 „ 3 P.M. 


W.N.W. 




18 


15 


2 30 p.m. 


46 


2 „ 3 p.m. 


W.N.W. 


April 


10 


24 


5 P.M. 


51 


„ I P.M. 


W.N.W. 


11 


18 


2 45 A.M. 


48 


3 „ 4 a.m. 


W.N.W. 


October 


24 


16 


7 15 a.m. 


40 


5 „ 6 a.m. 


W. 





143 
PROVISIONAL REPORTS. 

On the Strength of Boiler Plates. By Wm, Fairbairn, F.R.S. 



On Boiler Explosions. By Wm. Fairbairn, F.R.S. 



Report of the Committee appointed by the British Association for the 
Advancement of Science, to investigate and report upon the changes 
which have taken place in the Channels of the Mersey during the 
last fifty years, to the General Meeting at Glasgow, 1855. 

Your Committee have to report that they have been engaged in the exa- 
mination of various documents which contain evidence upon the subject 
confided to them ; and they have pleasure in acknowledging the courteous 
assistance they have received from the Duchy of Lancaster, the Mayor and 
Town Council of Liverpool, the Dock Committee of Liverpool, and James 
Rendel, Esq., C.E., who have granted access to the various documents which 
they severally possess, calculated to give information upon the subject. 

As, however, the charts, reports, and other papers are for the most part 
very valuable, the several custodians naturally decline to allow them to be 
removed from their respective places of deposit ; and it has therefore been 
found necessary to transcribe such portions as are required for the purposes 
of the inquiry. Should the Association consider that the inquiry should be 
prosecuted, your Committee hope to be entrusted with a grant of £100 to be 
applied to the purpose. 

As Sir Philip Egerton for several years past has given considerable atten- 
tion to the changes in the Mersey, your Committee are desirous of enjoying 
the advantage of his assistance, and hope that he may be included in their 
reappointment. 

The inquiry into the causes of the present state of the Mersey has so 
important a relation to harbour engineering specially, and to certain sciences 
the knowledge of which is necessary for its operations, that your Committee 
hope that they shall be permitted to continue that inquiry with the means 
requisite for giving it practical efficiency. ' Harrowby, 

First Report of the Liverpool Committee on the Deviations of the 
Compass Needle in Iron and other Vessels occasioned by Inductive 
or Polar Magnetism. By J. B. Yates, F.A.S., Chairman to the 
Compass Committee, and John Grantham, C.E., Hon. Sec. 



On Life Boats. By A. Henderson. 

On the Friction of Disks in Water and on Centrifugal Pumps. 
By James Thomson, C.E. 

A Report of one Day's Dredging by the Belfast Dredging Committee 
was read by Mr. Patterson, ivho exhibited specimens of Yirgularia. 
mirabilis, with Drawings of the Polypes, by Professor Wyville 
Thomson. 



NOTICES AND ABSTRACTS 



MISCELLANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SECTIONS. 



NOTICES AND ABSTRACTS 



MISCELLANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SECTIONS 



MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 

Mathematics. 

On the Porism of the in-and-circumscribed Triangle. 
By A. Cayley, M.A., F.R.S. 

The porism of the in-and-circumscribed triangle in its most general form relates to 
a triangle, the angles of which lie in fixed curves, and the sides of which touch fixed 
curves, but at present I consider only the case in which the angles lie in one and the 
same fixed curve, which for greater simplicity I assume to be a conic. We have 
therefore a triangle ABC, the angles of which lie in a fixed conic ^, and the sides 
of which touch the fixed curves ^,38, C And if we consider the conic §> and the 
curves %, 33 as given, the curve C will be the envelope of the side AB of the triangle. 
Suppose that the curves ^, 33 are of the classes m, n respectively, there is no diffi- 
culty in showing that the curve C is of the class 2mn. But the curve C has in 
general double tangents, forming two distinct groups, the first group arising from 
quadrilaterals inscribed in the conic ^, and such that two opposite sides touch the 
curve ^ and the other two opposite sides touch the curve 33, the second group 
arising from quadrilaterals inscribed in the conic ^, and such that two adjacent sides 
touch the curve 'M and the other two adjacent sides touch the curve 33. The number 
of double tangents of the first group is mn (rnn — 1), and the number of double tan- 
gents of the second group is mn (ran — m — w-j-1) ; the number of double tangents of 
the two groups is therefore m n (2mn — m — n). The curve C has not in general any 
inflexions, hence being of the class 2mn and having mn (Jlmn — m — n) double tan- 
gents, it will be of the order 2mn (m-j-w — 1). 

When the curves ^ and 33 are conies, the curve C is therefore of the class 8, with 
16 double tangents but no inflexions, consequently of the order 24. But there are 
two remarkable cases in which the order is further diminished. First, when each of 
the conies ^, 33 has double contact with the conic ^. The four points of contact 
give rise to 8 new double tangents, or there are in all 24 double tangents, the curve 
C is therefore of the degree 8 ; and being of the class 8, with 24 double tangents, it 
must of necessity break up into four curves each of the class 2, i. e. into four conies. 
Each of these has double contact with the conic §}, or attending only to one of the 
four conies, we have the well-known theorem, which 1 call the porism (homographic) 
of the in-and-circurascribed triangle, viz. " there are an infinity of triangles inscribed 
in a conic, and such that the sides touch conies having each of them double contact 
with the circumscribed conic." 

Secondly, the conies ^ and 33 may intersect the conic ^ in the same four points. 
Here every tangent of the curve C is in fact a double tangent belonging to the first 
mentioned group, the curve C in fact consists of two coincident curves ; each of them 
therefore of the class 4. But this curve of the class 4 has itself four double tangents, 
arising from the common points of intersection of the conies 3, 33 with the conic ^ ; 
it must therefore break up into two curves, each of the class 2, i. e. into two conies ; 
each of these intersects the conic ^ in the same four points in which it is intersected 
by the conies ^, 38. Attending only to one of the two conies, we have the other well- 

1855. 1 



2 REPORT — 1855. 

known theorem, which I call the porism (allographic) of the in-and-circumscribed 
triangle, viz. " there are an infinity of triangles inscribed in a conic, and such that the 
sides touch conies, each of them meeting the circumscribed conic in the same four 
points." 

The investigations, the results of which have just been stated, will appear in the 
Quarterly Mathematical Journal. 

A Tract on the possible and impossible cases of Quadratic Duplicate Equa- 
lities in the Diophantine Analysis. By Matthew Collins, B.A., Senior 
Moderator in Mathematics and Physics, and Bishop Latvs Mathematical 
Prizeman, Trinity College, Dublin. 

The author of this tract divides it into three chapters. 

Chapter I. treats of the possible and impossible cases of the two simul- 
taneous equations x--\-ky-=-ll and x' — Ay"=D ; now it is proved in the 
original paper from which the present abstract is taken that this is impossible 
Avben A is any integer < 20, except 5, 6, 7, 13, 14 or 15. And the demon- 
strations of the impossibility are extremely easy, clear, and rigorous, and pos- 
sess the great advantage of being effected, in all the different cases, by one 
uniform method. This first chapter terminates with a ^renera/ demonstration 
of the impossibility whenever A is a prime number, and such that neither 
m~-\-\ nor m' — 2 is divisible by A, m being ^^^A. 

In the cases that are possible, as many solutions as we please, in integers 
{x, y) prime to each other, are obtained in this paper with singular facility 
and rapidity by means of the following new and useful — 

GraeraZTZ/eorem. —ThesolutionofXHa6Y== D =Z=andX=— a6Y-= n =W= 
can be obtained from a solution of the two auxiliary equations ax' + by'=nz- 
and abx'—y-=+nw'^, for in fact X = |«(2^-f-2<;^) and Y=^2xyzw will answer. 

Demonstration. — The difference of the squares of the two auxiliary equa- 
tions gives 4oJ.r-y"=K-(2^—w^), and .•. abY'-=^4abx"y-z-w-, .'. =n-z'-w-{z*—iv^); 
and as 4X-=n-{z'^ + w^y=^n-(z'^—w'^y- + n\2z-zo-y- = n-{t'--\-v-), where t = z*—w* 
andv = 2^ur and 4abY'- is =4n'z-uf{z*—w*), .•. =n-{2tv), 

.'. 4(X" + abY')^n-(t + v)", which are both squares. Q. E. D. 

By taking ?«=1 and also i=l, we can, from one solution of the equations 
3r + ay"=z- and :r — ay--=-vr, derive another solution of the same equations in 
larger integers ; thus new X=:^(2^-fi<;'') and new Y=-2xyzw. 

Ex.gr. When A=5, then the auxiliary equations ,r--f5y"=«z" and 
x^ — 5y"= — nur are obviously fulfilled by taking w=1=3/=m>, a: = 2 and z-=Z; 
hence by the general theorem, we find X = |^(s^ -|- «<;'') = |^(3^-f- 1^) = 41 and 
Y = 2a'y2J<'=12 to fulfil the proposed equations 

■r"-f-5y"= n =2" and xr — 5y"= n =w", 

giving 2=49 and to-=Z\ ; and from this set of answers we can, according to 
the above observation, deduce another set in larger integers ; in fact, it is 
evident new 

^=i(49'4-31^) = 3344161, and new y=2 x 41 x 12 x 49 x 31 = 1494696, 
from which we could again find new and very high values of x andy, end thus 
ascend into very great whole numbers. 

When A=:6, then ^=5 and y = 2 give 2= 7 and w=l; 

.•.newx=iCl^ + V) = UO\, 

and new y=10 x 2 x 7 = 140, giving new 2=1249 and new m;=1151, and 
thence again 

A'^r'w^=i(1249'-M151-') andneM;y=1201 x 2S0x 1249 x 1151, &c. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



3 



When A=7, then taking n=2, one obvious solution of the auxiliary eqaa- 
tions a'" + 7y'=2z^ and x- — 7f=2w'^ is a;=5, y = l, z=4, and w = 3; and 
hence by the above general theorem, we find X = in(z'^ + w*) = 4^ + 3* = 337 
and Y=2xyzw=l'20 to fulfil the two proposed equations ar+ 7y-=U=2F and 
x^—7y'-=n = w-, giving z — 463 and w = \l3; and thence vi^e find again, 
according to the above observation, new a;=|^(463''+113^) and 
new; y = 337 X 240 X 463 X 113, 

from -which we could again find values of x and y in integers still larger, &c. 
When A=13, then taking «=1, one obvious solution of the auxiliary 
equations x"+l3y'=z' and x-—l3y^=—w" is x=6, y = 5, giving z=l9 and 
u;=17 ; and hence by the general theorem, we find X=|^(iy*+ 17^) = 106921 
and ¥=10x6x19x17 = 19380 to fulfil the two proposed equations, 
a;'-+13y^=D = z^ and a;-— 13y-=n = M'^. These values of x and y give 
r= 127729 and «;= 80929, from which again we find, according to the fore- 
going observation, new a'=-J(127729^+80929-') and 

newy=2 x 106921 x 19380 X 127729 x 80929, &c. 

Finally, it is observed that the solution of X" + a6 Y" = D = Z" and 
X" — a6Y'-=n = W- can be also derived from a solution of the auxiliary 
equations x^ + y^= az' and x-—y^=by)^, since in fact X^=x* + y* and 
Y^2a:'yzw will answer ; for then 

aJY"=4a6^^y-2V" = 4x^y-(az-) {bw") =.4ary-{x^—y^) = 2tv 
where t=^x*—y^ and v = 2x"y^, and X^=(x'* + y*)'=^f + v-; and so 
X^±abY^={t±vf, which are both squares. Q. E. D. 

Chapter II. treats of the possible and impossible cases of the two simul- 
taneous equations a-" +y^=n anda?- + Ay"=n. Now in the original paper it is 
rigorously demonstrated by one uniform, easy, and satisfactorj^ method, that 
thi.sis impossible when A is any positive integer < 20, except 7, 10, 11 or 17; 
and it is also satisfactorily proved that the proposed equations will be always 
possible or solvable whenever A is =2a^— 8, or 2a^— 1, or 2a^-f-2, or 2a^ + 9, 
or 2a^+50, or 3a^— 48, or 3a^— 3, or 3«^+4, or 3a^+49, or 5a^— 4, or 

5a^+5, or 5a"— 80, or 5a==4-81, or 6a^— 2, or 6aH 3, or 4a=+ 3a, or--, 

diminished either by ^ or by 1^, &c. &c. And thus the proposed equations will 
be possible or soluble whenever A is any of the following integers ; viz. 7, 10, 
11. 17, 20, 22, 24, 27, 30, 31, 34, 41, 42, 45, 49, 50, 52, 57, 58, 59, 60, 
61, 68, 71, 72, 74, 76, 79, 82, 85, 86, 90, 92, 94, 97, 99, 100, 101, 104, 
105, 112, 115, 119. 120, 121, 122, &c. 

The solutions of the possible cases are inferred with great facility in the 
present paper from the following new and useful — 

General Theorem. — The values of X and Y in X^-fY^=n=Z^ and 
X^-|-a6Y^=n = W^ can be deduced or inferred from the values of x and y in 
the auxiliary equations x" + ay^=:nz^ and y' + bx^=:nw^ ; in fact, X=x^w' — yV 
anAY=2xyzw will answer; for then X- + Y^=(^w^+yV)^. And so the 
first condition is fulfilled. NownX=:x'(y^ + bx^) — y^(x^ + ay-), .'. =bx* — ay*; 
also n-Y'- = 4x-y'"-{x" + ay')(y' + bx'), .'. =4x*y*(l+ab)+4bx^y^ + 4ax-y^ ; and 
so n-(X'- + abY") = (bx* + 'labx'^y'^ -\- ay^)~ ; and hence 

X- + abY-=(J}x*Jr2abxY + ayy-^n^' •'■ =n. 

And thus these values of X and Y satisfy the second condition also. Q. E. D. 

If a or 6 be negative, we obtain a solution of X^ + Y-:=n and X^ — a6Y"=D ; 

but by taking 6 = 1 and «= 1 , and interchanging z and w, this general theorem 

shows that, "from one solution of the proposed equations a;" +y^= 2^ and 

1* 



4 REPORT — 1855. 

X- + Ay"=w" we can obtain another solution of the same equations, in larger 
integers, by only taking new X=Ay'^ — x* and new Y^2xyzw." We shall 
give here only a few instances of the use of this most important theorem. 

When K-=7 , then the proposed equations ■T^+y-=n=z'" and x'' +1 y^=U-=-w^ 
are obviously fulfilled by a7=3, y=4, 2'=5, and w=ll ; whence for a second 
solution we have only to take new x= 7 X 4^— 3'*=1711andnewy=2a:y£rz/;=1320, 
giving .*. new 2'=2161 and new «;=38S9 ; and thence again a third set of 
answers are new x=1 x 1320''— lyil'* and 

weM;y = 2x 1711x1320x2161x3889. 

When A=10, one solution is obviously a;'=3 and y = 4, from which new 
solutions can be obtained as above. When A= 11, then taking » = 5, a pos- 
sible remainder of squares to modulus 11, the aM,rj7iary equations a;"+y-=5z^ 
and a;^+ ll3/^=:5w" are obviously fulfilled bya;=l, 3/ = 2, z=i\, and j<;=3 ; 
whence by our general theorem we have X = a?V — yW=35 and Y = 2xyzw 
=:I2, which are the least values of x and y to answer the proposed equations 
x" + y^=n=z- and a:'"+lly"^=n = w^, giving z=37 and w = 53 ; and thence 
again another set of answers are r\Q-w x=-\\y*—x*, .•.==1272529 and new 
y=2xyzio—10-K 12 X 37 x 53 = 1647240, and thence again new X=lly''—a;'' 
= 11 X 1647240^- 1272529\&c. 

When A = 4, tlie proposed equations {a^-\-y^^=0 and a?* + 4y^=n) are 
proved to be impossible, whence by taking a=:6=— 2 and n= — 1, it follows 
from the foregoing general theorem that the auxiliary equations ly" — x~-=z" 
and 2cr — y- = ?y^ must be also impossible, »'. e. there cannot be four square 
numbers, lo", x?, y^, z^, in arithmetical progression. 

Chapter III. treats of the possible and impossible cases of the two simul- 
taneous equations .r— y^=D and .r^ — Ay" = n. In the paper, of which we 
here present a very short abstract, this is rigorously demonstrated to be im- 
possihle when A is any integer < 13, except 7 or 11 ; the solutions of the 
possible cases in integers x, y prime to each other are obtained with great 
facility and generality from the following new and important — 

General Theorem. — The values of X and Y to fulfil X" — Y'^ = n:=Z^ and 
X^ — a6Y-=n=:W- can be got from the solution of the auxiliary equations 
x^ — ay'^^nz" and bx" — y'=^nv?, since in fact y>.-=^x'vr-\-y'z" and Y ■=^1xyzvi) 
will answer the purpose, as is easily demonstrated. 

By taking S= 1, and interchanging z and lo in this general theorem, we see 
that the solution of X' — Y"=^7i^ and X^— aY'=W" can be obtained from the 
solution of x^ — y'^-=znz''' and x^ — ay'^^mv^ merely by taking X = a;"z" + yV 
and Y=^2xyzw. And then again, by taking n=l, this general theorem shows 
how to find a solution in great integers from a known solution in smaller 
integers of x^—y'^^=s" and x'—ay-=.u;^ ; for then new X=:x'z- + yV=^x* — ay* 
and new Y = 2xyzv> in all cases. 

Ex.gr. Let a:='l , so that the two equations to be solved are a?^ — y-=n=:2* 
and .r^ — 7y^=n = w'''; then taking n = 2, a possible remainder of square 
numbers to divisor 7, we see that one obvious solution of the two auxiliary 
equations ar — y"='2z' and x' — ly^=.2vr is ^=3, y=l, r = 2, and m;=1 ; and 
.•. by the foregoing X=:(;'V-f-y-w" = 37 and y^=^2xyzw^\2, which are the 
least integers to answer the two proposed equations; they give £r=35 and 
w=\Q ; and from this solution we find another, as indicated above, viz. new 
X=^''— 0^=37' — 7. 12^=172900!) and new 

Y=2xyzw=Z1 X 24 X 35 X 19 = 590520. 
And now using these values of X and Y for x and y, we thence get another 
solution by the same formulae, viz. 

new X=a:' — a/= 1729009'' — 7 . 590520^=&c. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 5 

As another example, let a= 11, so that the two equations to be solved are 
ar—y'=^U=z' and x^ — lly^=n = w^; then taking ;i = 5, we see that one 
obvious solution of the two auxiliary equations a;^— y^ = 52:^and x'-~\\y'^=bur 
is x=1 , y=2, z-=Z, and w=l ; and .". by the foregoing theorem 

X=.r2^+yV = 2P + 2^=445 and \'—2xyzw=S,^, 
which are the least integral values of x and y to fulfil the proposed equations ; 
they give z=437 and ty=347 ; and now from this solution we find another, 
as indicated above, viz. new X=x*— ay*— 445*— II . 84"* and 

new Y=2xyzw=2 X 445 X 84 X 437 X 347 = &c. ; 
and by using these values of X and Y for x and y, we can thence again 
find X and Y in very great integers, &c. By taking a negative, we could 
obviously deduce the solution of X^ — Y^=Z^ and X- + a6Y- = W^ from a 
solution of the two auxiliary equations x^+ay^^xz' and bx-—y" — ?iw^. 
Finally, we may observe that the two equations x"—y-=^D and x- — Ay'^^d 
will be simultaneously possible whenever A is =9 — '2d-, or 50 — 2a^ or 
49_3a2, or 81— 5a'-, or 25 — 6a^ or 64 — 7a', or 100— Ua-, or any of the 
following integers, viz. 7, 11. 18, 19, 22, 32, 36, 37, 42, 46, 48, 56, 57, 
61, &c. 

General Theorem. — The solution of X- + Y" = D and X'-+ fa+ l)Y- = a can 
be obtained from a solution of the two auxiliary equations x' + y'=^nz^ and 
«y^ + a;^ = nw'-; in fact X=a;V— yV and Y-=2xyzw will answer, as is easily 
demonstrated. 

Another GeneralTheorem. — ThesolutionofX^— Y^=nandX^ — («+ l)Y"=a 
can also be obtained from a solution of the two auxiliary equations 

{o?—y'^^=nz^ I 
aa'^+y^=W2«^ J 
or from a solution of the pair 



fy^+ ar=nz' \ 
ly^ — ax^=nw^ J 



for in fact X=,r^tiJ-+yV and Y=2jryrw will answer, as is also easily de- 
monstrated. 

The author states, that it is the demonstrations of the impossible cases 
that have led to the discovery of all the foregoing general theorems for 
solving the possible cases ; and although these demonstrations of the impos- 
sible cases are by far the most interesting and valuable part of this Tract, 
they are necessarily, on account of their length, omitted in the present 
abstract ; but the Tract quite entire will be soon published. 



On a more general Theory of Analytical Geometry, including the Cartesian 
as a particular case. By Alexander J. Ellis, B.A., F.C.P.S. 

Assuming a Roman i as the symbol for rotating through 90°, it is shown 
that {x + \){x—i)=^x' + \, and that therefore i= V'(— 1). Taking (joH-ij)L 
as the representative of a line of the length a^C^^ + j^ . L, L being the unit 
of length, making an angle with the axis, where v p" + ?"-sin d=^q and 
V jj^-l- j-.cos0=j>, this line will determine its extreme point when referred 
to a known origin, axis, and scale. 

Two Dimensions. 

Simple Locus. — If g be a function of ^, then the two expressions /? -|- ij and 
q=gp determine a curve. This corresponds with the usual Cartesian case. 



6 REPOUT — 1855. 

General Locus. — If x=p + {q and y=r + is, and f(x, y) be any function of 
X and y, then f{jc, y) = X + iY, where X and Y are functions oi p, q, r, s, 
which determines a point. If, moreover, we have given q^=q in order to 
have only one variable p, and also (p{x, y)=.(p'{p, q, r, s)-\-\(p"{p, q, r, s)=0 as 
any relation between x and y, then the whole system /(a;, y), q=^q , and 
0(^, j/) = determines a curve, called the general locus, which is found by 
eliminating p, q, r, s between the five equations X and Y= functions of 
p, q,r, s, q — q^, ^' = 0, and ^" = 0, whence Y = a function of X, and the 
required locus is the simple locus of X+iY and Y= function of X. 

Particular cases. — U q=^s^=0, and first, /(a?, y) =:^ + ir, we have a case 
corresponding to the Cartesian rectangular coordinates. If, secondly, 
y(a:, y)=p(cos a + isina) + /-(cos /3 + isin /3), we have the case of oblique 
coordinates; while, thirdly, _/ (a.', y,):= r(cosj)+i sin ^) gives the case of 
polar coordinates. 

Radical Loci of the equation <p{jr,y)=zQ for q=^qp- From q=qp, ^' = 0, 
(t>" = 0, find *=s^ and r^-r^, and describe the simple loci of — 

1. p-\-^q and q=-q„ giving x from p, 

2. r + is and s = s giving y from r, while 

3. p-\-ir and r^^r gives r from p ; 

so that by setting off ph, both xh and yL are found. In the Cartesian case, 
5'=s=0and the loci 1. and 2. coincide with the axis, while 3. is the ordinary 
locus. 

Three Dimensions. 

Assume a known origin, axis, scale, and plane, called the cumbent plane. 
On this plane draw a line determined by p + ^q. Through tliis line draw a 
plane perpendicular to the former, called the sistent plane. On this set off 
rh, where ?•=: some function of p and </, in the direction of the line already 
determined, and then set off the line determined by r + is on the sistent plane. 
The extremity of this second line determines any point in space. 

Simple Locus. — If p and q are independent, and s= a function of r, and 
therefore of p and q, the points determined by p+'iq and r-\-\s lie on a 
surface. If, in addition, q (and therefore r and s) be a function of p, the 
points determined by the system lie on a curve. 

General Locus. — If x^^p + \q, y = r + is, and z=-u + \v, then /(.r, y) will 
determine a line on the cumbent plane, and/'(^,5', r, s, z) aline on the sistent 
plane drawn through the former. Assuming q a function of p and s a func- 
tion of r in order to have only two variables, and (p{x, y, r) = as any rela- 
tion between x, y, z, then finding/(A', y) = X + iY and /'(/;, q, r, s, £r)=R + iZ, 
with (b{x, y, z) = 0' -\-i(p" = 0, where X, Y, Z, R, f', <p" are all functions of 
p, q, r, s, u, V, or by virtue of the relations between q and p, s and r, func- 
tions of p, r, V, V only, we find from ^' = and ^" = that « and v, and 
hence X, Y, Z, R, are functions of j:; and ?• only. Hence by two eliminations 
R and Z are found as functions of X and Y. The general locus is then the 
simple locus of X + iY on the cumbent, and R + iZ on the sistent planes, 
where R and Z are known functions of X and Y. 

Particular cases. — Taking (^=s = t; = 0, and assuming R so that RL is 
always the length of the line determined by/(.r, y), we readily obtain cases 
corresponding to the Cartesian rectangular oblique and polar coordinates. 

Radical Loci of ^(.t, y, z)^0 for q a function of jy, and s of r. Having 
found u and v functions of j; and r as before, describe the simple loci of — 

1. p+'\q and^= function oi p ; and 2. r + 'is and s= function of r, both on 
the cumbent plane, to find x and y. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 7 

3. p + ir on the cumbent, and V(p'^+r^)+iv on the sistent plane, with v 
a function of jo and r, giving a surface, whence iuL is found on the sistent, 
and therefore also on the cumbent plane. 

4. p + ir on the cumbent, and ^/(p~ + r')-'riu on the sistent plane, with u 
a function oi p and r, giving a surface, whence iwL is found on the sistent, 
and therefore also mL on the cumbent plane. 

Hence (u +iv)Lz=zh is also found on the cumbent plane, and x,y, z can 
be fully represented for any values of ju and r. 

By this theory, all cases of impossible roots of equations with one, two, 
or three unknown expressions admit of geometrical representation, while 
every Cartesian case is included. 



On the conception of the Anharmonic Quaternion, and on its application to 
the Theory of Involution in Space. By Sir W. R. Hamilton, LL.D. 



Light, Heat, Electricity, Magnetism. 
On the Fixing of Photographs. By Dr. Adamson. 



On the Triple Spectrum. By Sir David Brewster, K.H., F.R.S. L. S^ E. 

At an early meeting of the Association the author communicated to the Associa- 
tion an account of the experiments by which he endeavoured to estabhsh the exist- 
ence of a triple spectrum, that is, a spectrum which, instead of consisting of seven 
different colours, consisted of three spectra of equal length — red, yellow, and blue — 
having different degrees of intensity in different parts, and their ordinates of maxi- 
mum intensely incoincident. This paper, entitled "A new Analysis of Solar Light," 
was published in 1831 in the Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. The 
experiments were shown to some of the distinguished members of that body, who 
honoured them by the adjudication of the Keith Medal. To objections which 
have been raised by Mr. Airy, Dr. Draper and M. Melloni to the accuracy of these 
results, the author has replied successively, and, he has reason to think, successfully. 

Within the last few years the subject of the triple spectrum has been studied by 
two eminent individuals, M. Bernard in France, and M. Hehnholtz in Prussia, 
both of whom have called in question the accuracy of his conclusions. To the obser- 
vations of these two writers he did not think it necessary to reply ; but being obliged 
to refer to the subject of the changes of colour produced by absorption, and conse- 
quently to the triple spectrum, in his History of Newton's optical discoveries, he 
found it necessary to notice the objections which had been made to it ; and he now 
submitted to the Section a few of the remarks which he has there made upon the 
experiments of these two foreign observers. 

To make these remarks intelligible, he first stated that his analysis of the spectrum 
embraces three propositions, which to a certain extent are independent of eachother : — 

1. That the colours of the spectrum may be changed by absorbing media acting 
by reflexions and transmissions. 

2. That in pure spectra white light, which the prism cannot decompose, can be 
insulated ; and 

3. That the Newtonian spectrum of seven colours consists of three equal primary 
spectra — red, yellow, and blue superposed, — having their maximum intensity of illu- 
mination at different points, and shading to nothing at their extremities. 

" Now," observes the author, " the first of these propositions may be true, even 
though we could not insulate white light at any point of the spectrum ; and both 
the first and second may be true, without our being able to demonstrate that the 
three spectra have the same length, and diminish in intensity from their maxima of 



8 REPOXIT — 1855. 

illumination to their extieniities. The general proposition, that the colours of the 
spectrum are changed by absorption, was denied, as already stated, by Mr. Airy, 
and by Dr. Draper and M. Melloni, whereas both M. Helmholtz and M. Bernard 
have admitted it as an indubitable truth. In direct contradiction of Mr. Airy's 
statement, M. Helmholtz has candidly remarked, 'that the changes of colour which 
Sir D. Brewster described, as produced by absorption, are for the most part suffi- 
ciently striking to be observed without difficulty ; ' and he adds, 'that a careful 
repetition of at least the most important of the experiments, carried out in exact 
accordance with the method laid down, and with every precaution taken, has, 
indeed, taught him that the facts are described with perfect accuracy.' In 
these words, which are those of M. Helmholtz himself, the change of colour is 
admitted as a physical fact ; but he ascribes it to two causes : — 1, to the possible 
admixture of rays scattered from the prism, and the other transparent bodies used 
in the experiment ; and 2, to the mixture of complementary colours, produced by 
the action of the other colours of the spectrum on the retina." 

The author remarks, that the first of these causes, namely, the possible admixture 
of scattered rays, is a very extraordinary one, and that it should not have been 
assumed without some attempt to show its probability. He observes, " it is cer- 
tainly possible that scattered rays may have influenced my retina ; but, even if 
such rays did exist, it would be necessary to show that they were the precise rays 
which were capable of producing the alleged change of colour. Now M. Helmholtz 
has not even attempted to make it probable that such disturbing rays exist or could 
have influenced any retina if they did exist ; nor has he attempted to show that 
such possible rays are of colours which are complementary to those which I saw. 
With regard to the second cause, namely, the admixture of complementary colours, 
I unhesitatingly deny that it had any influence in the pheenomena which 1 
observed ; and I earnestly request the attention of the Section to the following 
observations : — If the subjective perception of colour, when we view the spectrum 
or make experiments, in which more than one colour reaches the eye, is capable 
of altering the colours under examination, then all that has been written on colours, 
thus seen, must be erroneous, and all the gay tints of Art or of Nature, which 
we admire and study, are but false hues under the metamorphosis of a subjective 
perception. We must not now pronounce a rose to be red and its leaves green 
till we have stared at them through a chink or torn them from their footstalk. 
The changes of colour by absorption which I have described I have distinctly seen, 
and seen as coirectly as Newton saw his seven colours in the spectrum, and Hooke 
his composite tints in the soap-bubble ; and, now that my eyes have nearly finished 
their work, I cannot mistrust, without reason, such good and faithful servants. 

"The observations of M. Bernard, who has repeated only a few of my experiments, 
differ very little in their character from those of M. Helmholtz. He maintains that 
the conversion of the blue space into violet, which I observed, arises from the 
diminution of the light by absorption. Now, if the colours of the spectrum thus 
change when they become fainter, we would desire to know at what degree of illu- 
mination we are to see the prismatic spectrum in its true colours. If the blue space 
is converted into violet by the diminution of its light, then colour does not depend 
upon refrangibility alone, but also upon intensity of illumination ; a doctrine as sub- 
versive as mine of the opinion of Newton, that to the same refrangibility always 
belongs the same colour. If M. Bernard's experiments be correct, it is perfectly 
compatible with my opinion, because it only proves that the blue rays, when enfeebled, 
lose their power over the retina sooner than the red. Na^^, it is a sound argument 
in favour of the doctrine which it is brought forward to disprove." 

In concluding his communication, the author mentions that none of the oppo- 
nents of the triple spectrum have repeated his fundamental experiment made with 
an apparatus which he believes no person but himself possesses. He examines a 
pure spectrum divided into compartments by the action of thin plates of calcareous 
spar passing across a prism of the same suhstance. Each of these luminous com- 
partments shades off into the adjacent dark spaces, and is in a different condition 
from the corresponding portion of the complete spectrum. When the proper 
absorbing media are applied to certain portions of this divided spectrum, he insulates 
a large portion of white light indecomposable by the prism, and it stands beside a 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



portion of red light as distinctly as an almond placed beside a cherry. This is an 
experimentum crucis, if one were wanting in favour of the doctrine of a triple 
spectrum, — of the existence of three colours, red, yellow, and blue at the same point 
of the spectrum. 



On the Binocular Vision of Surfaces of Different Colours. 
By Sir David Brewster, K.H., F.R.S. L. <Sf E. 

Prof. Dove had published an account of some beautiful expnriments in connexion 
with this subject some years ago. M. Dove showed in his paper, that when dif- 
ferent colours at the same real distance are regarded by the eye, they appear to be at 
different distances ; this is also the case when a white surface is compared with a 
black. Now M. Dove argues if a white surface and a black one be stereoscopically 
combined, one of them must be seen through the other. Taking a figure for the left 
eye with a white ground, and a second figure of the same object on a black ground 
for the right eye, when these two figures are combined, a beautiful effect is observed; 
the figure starts into relief, and its sides appear to possess a shining metallic lustre. 
This is the case when the surface of each single object is quite dull and without lustre. 
On this experiment M. Dove founds a theory of lustre, supposing it to be produced 
by the action of light received from surfaces at different distances from the eye. 
An example of this is the effect observed on looking at varnished pictures : one por- 
tion of the light comes from the anterior surface of the varnish and the other from 
its posterior surface, the action of both of these conspiring to produce the observed 
lustre. The metallic lustre of mica is also referred to by M. Dove as an example 
of the same kind. In his present communication, Sir David Brewster controveits 
the theory here laid down, and bases his objections on the following remarkable ex- 
periment : — where a white surface without definite boundary and a black surface of 
the same kind are regarded through the stereoscope, no lustre is observed. Sir David 
therefore infers that the lustre is due, not to the rays from one surface passing 
through the other to the eye, but to the effort of the eyes to combine the two stereo- 
scopic pictures. 



On the Existence ofAcari in Mica. By Sir David Brewster, K.H., F.R.S. 

While examining with a microscope a thick plate of mica from Siberia, about 5 inches 
long and 3 inches wide. Sir David was surprised to observe the remains of minute 
animals, some the 70th of an inch, and others only the 150th of an inch in size. 
Some of these were enclosed in cavities, round which the films of mica were in optical 
contact. These acari were, of course, not fossil, but must have insinuated themselves 
through openings between the plates of mica, which afterwards closed over them. 



On the Absorption of Matter by the Surfaces of Bodies. 
By Sir David Brewster, K.H., F.R.S. L. ^ E. 

If we smear, very slightly, with soap the surface of a piece of glass, whether arti- 
ficially polished or fused, and then clean it perfectly with apiece of chamois leather, 
the surface, when breathed upon, will exhibit, in the most brilliant manner, all the 
colours of thin plates. If we breathe through a tube, the colours will be arranged 
in rings, the outermost of which is black, corresponding to the centre of the system 
of rings formed between a convex and a plane surface of glass. In repeating this expe- 
riment on the surfaces of other bodies. Sir David found that there were several on whose 
surfaces no colours were produced. Quartz exhibited the colours like glass, but cal- 
careous spar and several other minerals did not. In explaining this phsenomenon, the 
author stated that the particles of the soap, which are dissolved by the breath, must 
either enter the pores of the bodies or form a strongly adhering film on their surface. 
This property of appropriating temporarily the particles of soap, becomes a new di- 
stinctive character of mineral and other bodies. 



On the Remains of Plants in Calcareous Spar from Kings County, Ireland. 
By Sir David BreWster, K.H.,' F.R.S. L. Sf E. 



10 REl'ORT — 1855, 

On the Phcenomena of Decomposed Glass. 
By Sir David Brewster, K.H., F.R.S. L.S) E. 

These papers were illustrated by elaborate drawings of the phsenomena. 



On the Making and Magnetizing of Steel Magnets. 
By Paul Cameron, Glasgoio. 

The author records a few experiments in the forging, softening, hardening, and 
magnetizing of them. He procured one dozen of magnets : four of them were 
forged, hardened, and magnetized north and south ; four were forged, hardened, and 
magnetized N.E. ; and the remaining four were foiged, hardened, and magnetized 
east and west. One dozen compass needles were forged, hardened, and magnetized 
similar to the above ; four of the compass needles were enclosed in an iron case 
filled with fresh lime ; the case was then put into a fire until it became a deep red, 
and was then covered up and allowed to cool slowly. The needles were then 
dressed and hardened in afire mixed with bone-dust, the bone-dust being mixed with 
charcoal and lime, which would further increase the quality of the steel. 

The average magnetic powers of the magnet before magnetizing were as follows : — 

The magnetic powers of the bars hardened N. and S. from V to 10. 

N.E. ... 5° to 7°. 

E. andW. ... 1° to 2°. 

He then placed a large copper coil, having an inclination corresponding with the 
dip, in the magnetic meridian, and connected the coil with the poles of a galvanic 
battery containing thirty-six pairs of plates ; passed and repassed the magnets that 
were hardened N. and S. ; placed the coil in a N.E. direction, and passed and re- 
passed the magnets hardened N.E. ; and then placed the coil in the direction E. and 
W., and passed and repassed the magnets that were hardened E. and W. 

The magnets hardened and magnttizedN. and S., average deflection from 43° to 45". 

N.E. ... ... 36° to 38°. 

E. andW. ... ... 20' to 22°. 

A similar result followed after the needles were passed through the coil. 



On the Deviations of the Compass iti Iron Ships and the means of adjusting 
them. By Paul Cameron. 



On an Analogy betiveen Heat and Electricity. 
By the Rev. Professor Chevallier. 

Arago, in his posthumous work on lightning (CEuvres de Francois Arago, Notices 
Scientifiques, torn. i. Paris, 1854), distinguishes three classes of lightning, of which 
the third is that which takes the form of a fire-ball. 

He produces many examples (chap. vi. vii.), the principal facts being, that during 
a thunder-storm balls of fire are sometimes seen ; that thej' sometimes move very 
slowly, not faster than a mouse (ch. vii. § 3), so that, in a room, a person may get 
out of their way (ch. vii. § 6), rolling over and over like a kitten, or may follow 
them for a considerable distance on foot (ch. vii. § 5) ; that for a time the presence 
of such a ball may produce no injurious effect ; but that it usually explodes at last 
with prodigious violence. 

It does not seem to have been pointed out, that this form of electricity bears a 
remarkable analogy to the spheroidal form which fluids assume when in apparent 
contact with bodies intensely heated. The attention of the Section was invited to 
the subject. 



On the Polyslereopticon. By An^joine Claudet, F.R.S. 



TUANSACTIONS OF THE SKCTIO.NS. 11 

On the Heat produced ht/ the Influence of the Magnet upon Bodies m Motion. 
Bi/ M. Leon Foucault, Paris. 

In 1821, Arago observed the remarkable fact of the attraction of the magnetic 
needle by conducting bodies in motion. The phsenomenon appeared very singular, 
and remained without explanation until Faraday announced the important discovery 
of currents of induction. It was then evident, that in Arago's experiments the motion 
gave rise to currents, which, by reacting upon the magnet, tended to associate it 
with the moveable body and draw it in the same direction. It may be said, in 
general terms, that the magnet and the conducting body tend towards a state of rela- 
tive repose by a mutual influence. 

If, notwithstanding this influence, it is desired to continue the motion, a certain 
amount of force {travail) must be constantly furnished ; the moveable part seems to 
be, as it were, pressed by a break, and this force which disappears necessarily pro- 
duces a dynamic effect, which I have thought must be represented by heat. 

We arrive at the same inference by taking into consideration the currents of 
induction which succeed one another in the interior of bodies in motion ; but an 
idea of the quantity of heat produced would only be acquired with great difficulty 
by this mode of regarding the affair, whilst by considering this heat as due to a trans- 
formation of force, it a|)peared certain to me that a sensible elevation of temperature 
would be easily produced in a decisive experiment. Having ready to my hand all 
the elements necessary for a prompt verification, I proceeded to its execution in the 
following manner. 

Between the poles of a strong electro-magnet I partially introduced the solid of 
revolution belonging to the apparatus which I have called b. gyroscope, and which was 
previously employed in experiments of a very different nature. This solid is a torus 
of bronze connected by a toothed pinion with an apparatus of wheels, by the action 
of which, when turned by the hand, it may revolve with a rapidity of 150 or 200 
turns in a second. To render the action of the magnet more effective, two pieces of 
soft iron added to the helices prolonged the magnetic poles, and concentrated thera 
in the vicinity of the revolving body. 

When the apparatus is going with the greatest rapidity, the current of six Bunsen's 
couples, passed into the electro-magnet, stops the movement in a few seconds, as 
though an invisible break had been applied to the moving body : this is Arago's 
experiment, as developed by Faraday. But if the handle be then pushed, so as 
to restore to the apparatus the movement which it has lost, the resistance experienced 
requires the application of a certain amount of force, the equivalent of which reap- 
pears and accumulates in heat in the interior of the revolving body. 

By means of a thermometer inserted in the mass we may follow the gradual eleva- 
tion of temperature. Having, for example, taken the apparatus at the surrounding 
temperature of 60°'8 F., I saw the thermometer rise successively to 68°, 77°, 86°, and 
93^'2 F. ; but the phfenomenon had previously become sufficiently developed to 
render the employment of the thermometer unnecessary, as the heat produced had 
become sensible by the hand. 

If the experiment appear worthy of interest, it would be easy to arrange an appa- 
ratus to reproduce and augment this phsenomenon. There is no doubt, that by 
means of a machine properly constructed, and composed only of permanent magnets, 
high temperatures might be produced, so as to place before the eyes of the public 
assembled in lecture rooms a curious example of the conversion of force into heat. 



On a Machine for Polishing Specula. By Dr. Green. 



On the Optical Properties of Cadmacetite. 
By William Haidinger, Vieniia. 
[Crystals of the salt were laid before the Section by Sir David Brewster.] 
I have the honour to lay before the Association a short notice on the Absorption 
of the Crystals of Acetate of Cadmium, or to denote them by a single word, of Cad. 
macetite, together with some of the crystals, which form the subject of the commu- 
nication. 



12 REPORT 1855. 

The form of the crystals belongs to the oblique system. The apparent longi- 
tudinal axis of the broad six-sided prisms makes an angle of nearly 100° with the 
base. There is a most perfect cleavage parallel to the axis in only one direction, 
which bisects the prism of 135° 39'- The plane of the optic axis is perpendicular to 
this plane of cleavage. One of the axes of elasticity makes with the plane of cleavage 
an angle of about 10°. If now the crystals are examined as to their polarization in 
a direction perpendicular to the plane of the optic axes, it will be found that the 
pencil polarized parallel to the above-mentioned axis, which makes the angle of 10° 
with the faces of cleavage, freely passes the crystal, but that the pencil polarized 
perpendicularly to it does not pass. It is true, there appears not exactly a black 
tint, but only a more or less dark gray ; but the contrast nevertheless is very striking. 
On the mode of examination being reversed, the effect is still more powerful. A 
plate of cadmacetite cut perpendicular to the plane of cleavage, parallel to the axis of 
the crystals, when held near the eye, will extinguish one of the two images of a 
doubly refracting prism entirely, without letting pass a trace of light, if the plate be 
only so much as one-fourth of an inch in thickness. 

It is the more unexpected to find such great contrasts in the modifying power of 
these crystals in respect to light, as for the rest they are perfectly colourless. M, 
Charles von Hauer has succeeded in obtaining crystals 3 inches long and 1 inch 
thick, but they are always very little homogeneous, consisting of concentric 
funnel-shaped portions, which makes it very difficult to extract larger portions fit 
for being turned to advantage as a polarizing apparatus. It is deserving of notice, 
that some particular very compact portions of the crystals do not possess that cha- 
racteristic absorbing property. 



On the Optical Illusions of the Atmospheric Lens. 
By Evan Hopkins, C.E., F.G.S. 



An Account of some Experiments ivith a large Electro-Magnet, 
By J. P. Joule, F.R.S. 
Prof. W. Thomson, in Mr. Joule's absence, brought the subject before the 
Section. The relation of the exciting force to the sustaining power of a magnet was 
the subject which it was the author's desire to examine, the laws arrived at being 
very divergent from those usually received. The soft iron made use of in this magnet 
was of such a nature, that, after magnetization by moderate currents, it always — 
probably on account of intense magnetization on some former occasion — retained 
a residual polarity which was always in the same direction. The magnet might 
be excited by a current which developed a polarity opposed to the residual one ; 
but on the interruption of the current, the latter re-appeared. With high power, 
the lifting power fell short of being proportional to the square of the current ; but 
with feeble excitation, Mr. Joule found the sustaining force to vary nearly as the 
fourth power of the current strength employed. 



Photographs of the Hartwell Observatory, and of the Craig Telescope at Wands- 
worth, were exhibited and described by Dr. Lee. 

On New Forms of Microscope, adapted for Physiological Demonstration. 
By M. Nachot. 

Elucidations, by Facts and Experiments, of the Magnetism of Iron Ships 

and its Changes. By William Scoresb"V, T).D., F.R.S.S. Land. 

<^ Edin., Corresp. Mem. of Institute of France, &-c. Sfc. 

"The author first recapitulated, as the basis of his present communication, the 

theoretic prmciples — concerning the magnetism of iron ships and its changes, with 

the effects on the action of the compasses — which he had formerly brought before 

the British Association, and described more elaborately in his " Magnetical Inves- 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 13 

tigations." Referring, more particularly, to his paper of last session On the Loss 
of the Tayleur, and to the principles on which the lines of magnetic force, and the 
equatorial, or neutral plane, are adjusted in correspondency with the earth's polar 
magnetic axis,— it followed, he showed, that the distribution of the magnetic lines 
externally should have special relation to the direction of the ship's head whilst 
building, and should therefore be easily predicted, proximately, for every particular 
case. 

The views of Dr. Scoresby on these fundamental principles, as well as on the 
source of and changes in the more intense quality of magnetism, the retentive, in 
iron ships, had had very extensive and beautiful verifications in actual experi- 
ments, since the former meeting of the Association. As to the equatorial plane of 
no-attraction, illustrated by diagrams in " Magnetical Investigations," which were 
cut in wood in the year 1851, — experiments in 1854 and 1855, on five or six ships 
whilst yet on the stocks, had shown the most remarkable correspondency. Thus, 
in the case of the Elisabeth Harrison, at Liverpool, having her head about E.N.E., 
which Dr. Scoresby examined in October 1854, — the plane of no- attraction on the 
starboard side was found to lie 11 feet 6 inches lower than that on the port side, 
whilst the difference, previously calculated, according to theory, was 11 feet! In 
the case, again, of the Fiery Cross, of Glasgow, investigated at his request by Mr. 
James Napier, the lines of no-attraction on the two sides, with the ship's head 
S.W.erly, were found to be almost exactly in agreement with theory. Again, in the 
case of the Elba of Newcastle, built at Jarrow on Tyne, with her head only half a 
point from the magnetic meridian ; as also of another ship built on the same spot, 
the magnetic lines were found in close analogy with those figured in the diagrams 
above referred to. Finally, in the case of the Persia, a large and splendid ship 
built by Messrs. Napier and Co., at Glasgovi', the magnetic lines, as determined by 
Mr. James Napier, were found to have the like conformableness with theoretic 
deduction. One striking and beautiful exception — beautiful because anticipated on 
magnetic principles — was brought out In experiments made by Mr. Robert Newall, 
Mr. George Palmer, and Mr. James Napier. This apparent exception consisted in 
certain irregularities in the external lines of the magnetic plane, — sometimes shown 
in sudden limited deflections, — a circumstance plainly referable to particular accu- 
mulations of iron material within, such as of beam ends, stringers, bulk-heads, &c., 
which the author had noticed in his " Magnetical Investigations" as not unlikely 
to disturb the regularity of the magnetic lines. In this case, therefore, the observed 
exception to regularity served most convincingly to confirm the general rule. 

Dr. Scoresby then proceeded to show how mechanical action, such as vibration, 
straining, or blows of the sea, on an iron ship, must modify or change the original 
magnetic lines, and tend (whatever the extent might practically be) to bring them 
into some measure of conformity with the terrestrial magnetic force as applied to 
the new direction of the ship's head. 

One case of positive and demonstrable change in the magnetic lines of a new 
ship, the Imperador, built at Liverpool, Dr. Scoresby had experimentally deter- 
mined ; a change which had taken place (in exact conformity with his predictions) 
whilst the ship was being fitted out for sea. In this instance the lines of no-attrac- 
tion on the two sides of the ship, which from her position on the stocks must have 
originally differed some 10 feet in level, were found to have changed to within 
about 20 inches of the same level. This showed, as the general experience of the 
adjusters of compasses and observant navigators also indicated, that much service 
at sea, and well knocking about on various courses, had the tendency to bring the 
original extreme and oblique magnetic lines into a normal direction, — approaching 
to a horizontal equatorial plane with lines of no-deviation running on both sides, 
nearly on the same level, from stem to stern, and a polar axis (in the centre of the 
ship) vertical to the keel. This tendency was elucidated by different striking facts 
of experience. 

The author further explained, and illustrated by bold and descriptive drawings, 
several cases of sudden and remarkable compass-changes, dwelling particularly on 
that of the Tayleur, where a change of some points had taken place within two or 
thiee days, whilst contending against a heavy sea with her head in a reverse po- 
sition from that on the stocks ; and on that of the Ottawa, one of whose compasses 



14 REPORT — 1855. 

suddenly changed two points from a heavy blow of the sea on the ship ; on that of 
another ship where a similar change took place on occasion of a collision; on that of 

the (name not mentioned) where the steering compass suddenly changed several 

points, and produced an error in the ship's position within 24 to 30 hours, which, 
measured on a track chart by the first officer, in his. Dr. Scoresby's, possession, was 
very nearly of the extent of the breadth of Ireland ! These various compass-changes 
were plainly in accordance with the theoretic principles formerly published by the 
author, with the exception of the latter, as to which the requisite data for tracing 
the probable causes had not been furnished. 

Of compass-changes from strokes of lightning (one of the cases also predicted). 
Dr. Scoresby adduced the instances of the Bold Biicdeuch and another ship, where 
the compass suddenly went wrong to the extent of several points. 

Having elucidated, rapidly, these various magnetic pheenomena and others be- 
longing to ships built of iron, and having given a variety of examples of great or 
considerable alterations in the compass-direction of ships proceeding into southern 
latitudes, the author recalled attention to his plan of a compass aloft, as affording, 
in the absence of azimuths or other guidance from celestial observations, a simple 
and effective mode of ascertaining the direction of the ship's course, and so, by 
comparison with the steering compass, knowing its errors and the proper correction 
to be made. This plan, he observed, when properly carried out, and a table of 
deviations, if requisite, obtained, he believed to be perfectly safe and reliable ; and 
he had much satisfaction in being able to state that it had not only been extensively 
adopted by some of our first firms interested in the building and property of iron 
ships, but had received the particular sanction and commendation of Mr. Airy, 
Astronomer Royal, and Lieut. Maury, U.S. Navy ; that is, as being recommended 
by both these gentlemen for adoption for determining safe compass guidance, or the 
correction of adjusted compasses whenever they might be found to be in error. 



On the Achromatism of a Double Object-glass. 
5y Professor Stokes, ilf.^., D.C.L., Sec.R.S. 

The general theory of the mode of rendering an object-glass achromatic by com- 
bining a flint-glass with a crown-glass lens, is well know-n. The achromatism is 
never perfect, on account of the irrationality of dispersion. The defect thence 
arising cannot possibly be obviated, except by altering the composition of the glass. 
It seemed worthy of consideration whether much improvement might not be effected 
in this direction ; but the problem which the author proposed for consideration was 
only the following : — Given the kinds of glass to be employed, to find what ought to 
be done so as to produce the best effect ; in other words, to determine the ratio of 
the focal lengths which gives the nearest approach to perfect achromatism. Two 
classes of methods may be employed for this purpose. In the one, compensations 
are effected by trial on a small scale ; in the other, the refractive indices of each 
kind of glass are determined for certain well-defined objects in the spectrum, such 
for example as the principal fixed lines. The former has this disadvantage, that 
compensations on a small scale do not furnish so delicate a test as the performance 
of a large object-glass. The observation of refractive indices, on the other hand, 
admits of great precision ; but it does not immediately appear what ought to be 
done with the refractive indices when they are obtained. After alluding to the me- 
thod proposed by Fraunhofer for combining the refractive indices, which, however, 
as he himself remarked, did not lead to results in exact accordance with observation, 
the author proposed the following as the condition of nearest approach to achro- 
matism : — that the point of the spectrum for which the focal length of the com- 
bination is a mmimum shall be situated at the brightest part, namely, at about 
one-third of the interval D E from the fixed line D towards E. The refractive 
index of the flint-glass may be regarded as a function of the refractive index of the 
crown-glass, and may be expressed with sufficient accuracy by a series with three 
terms only. The three arbitrary' constants may be determined by the values of three 
refractive indices determined for each kind of glass. The result is as follows: — Let 
/^i» M2' Ms be the refractive indices for the crown-glass ; /xj', fi,2, /j-s the same for the 
flint-glass ; fx, fj! the refractive indices of the two glasses for any arbitrary ray ; m 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



15 



the value of fi for the point at which the focal length is to be made a minimum ; r 
the ratio of A ^' to A ^ to be employed in the ordinary formula for achromatism. 
Then having calculated numerically 



we shall have 



■~''lX — fJi' '^-^ fi3- 

, 2 m - Ml — /i2 



For the value of m it will be suflBcient to take 



^D+ I ('*e-/^d)- 



On applying this formula to calculate r for the object-glass for which Fraunhofer 
has given both the refractive indices of the component glasses and the value of r, 
which, as observation showed, gave the best results, and taking in succession 
various combinations of three lines each out of the seven used by Fraunhofer, the 
author found that whenever the combination was judiciously chosen, the resulting 
value of r was the same, whatever might have been the combination, and equal to 
1"980, which is precisely the value determined by Fraunhofer from observation, as 
giving the best effect. 



On a new Form of the Gas Battery. By William Symons. 
The ingenious and original arrangement known as Grove's gas battery, although 
always considered an instrument of great philosophical interest, appears to have 
been little used as an instrument of research and experiment, except instudying the com- 
binations of different gases. The author has long thought that a modification of it may 
be usefully employed in many experiments requiring a weak but continuous current ; 
and believes the following arrangement will be found convenient and economical. 
Fig. 1 is a plan, and fig. 2 a section of three pairs ; the tray is made of gutta percha ; 
it is divided into water-tight compartments about 2\ inches wide ; the length of the 
tray will of course depend on the number of cells required, and its width on the 
length of the strips of platinum ; its depth about 1 inch. A are small tubes to 
keep the dilute acid at a uniform level ; B are tubes perforated through the bottom 
of the tray, and standing above the level of the acid to admit a constant supply of 

Fiff. 1. 




hydrogen from below ; C are cells about 1 inch deep, | inch broad, and long enough 
cover the platinum plates ; these may be composed of glass, or gutta percha with 



16 



REPORT — 1855. 



glass tops ; P are the platinum plates, ^ inch wide, doubled lengthways into a 
U-shape, and divided in the middle through a part of their length ; the connexions S 

Fig. 2. 






are silver wires passed through the platinum, and attached to it at D by the blow- 
pipe without any solder. It would economize room to crease the platinum into 
short zigzags. 

The battery, as here described, supposes the use of hydrogen and atmospheric air, 
but it may be easily modified for two gases without altering the cells or the plates, 
by the addition of tubes at E, similar to B, in communication with a supply of oxygen 
from below. 

The advantages of this arrangement over Grove's are, cheapness of construction, 
the absence of connexions by mercury or binding screws, the facility for removing 
the plates to clean, &c., and the very great economy in the platinum ; for whereas in 
Grove's battery a plate of 4 inches long and ^ inch broad would, according to his 
theory of its action, have but 1 inch of action, by the proposed arrangement it 
would have sixteen times that amount. 

The author adds a suggestion with regard to apparatus of a totally different kind, 
such as condensers, multipliers, &c., used in static electricity, where a perfectly flat 
and smooth conducting surface is required ; plate-glass gilded is generally used ; 
the substitute he would propose is common slate ; it is cheaper, stronger, and far 
more easily polished, shaped, and gilded ; perhaps rubbing it over with good 
plumbago would render it a sufficiently perfect conductor; this is the plan adopted 
in an electroscope described in the ' Chemist' for August. 



On certain curious Motions observable on the Surfaces of Wine and other 
Alcoholic Liquors. By James Thomson, CE.^ Belfast. 

The phsenomena of capillary attraction in liquids (Mr. Thomson stated) are ac- 
counted for according to the generally received theory of Dr. Young, by the existence 
of forces equivalent to a tension of the surface of the liquid, uniform in all directions, 
and independent of the form of the surface. The tensile force is not the same in dif- 
ferent liquids. Thus it is found to be much less in alcohol than in water. This fact 
affords an explanation of several very curious motions observable, undervarious circum- 
stances, at the surfaces of alcoholic liquors. One part of these phenomena is, that 
if, in the middle of the surface of a glass of water, a small quantity of alcohol, or 
strong spirituous liquor, be gently introduced, a rapid rushing of the surface is found 
to occur outwards from the place where the spirit is introduced. It is made more 
apparent if fine powder be dusted on the surface of the water. Another part of the 
phienomena is, that if the sides of the vessel be wet with water above the general 
level surface of the water, and if the spirit be introduced in sufficient quantity in the 
middle of the vessel, or if it be introduced near the side, the fluid is even seen to 
ascend the inside of the glass until it accumulates in some places to such an extent 
that its weight preponderates, and it falls down again. The manner in which Mr. 
Thomson explains these two parts of the phsenomena is, that the more watery por- 
tions of the entire surface, having more tension than those which are more alcoholic, 
drag the latter briskly away, sometimes even so as to form a horizontal ring of liquid 
high up round the interior of the vessel, and thicker than that by which the interior 
of the vessel was wet. Then the tendency is for the various parts of this ring or 
line to run together to those parts which happen to be most watery, and so there 
is no stable equilibrium, for the parts to which the various portions of the liquid 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 17 

aggregate themselves soon become too heavy to be sustained, and so they fall down. 
The same mode of explanation, when carried a step further, shows the reason of the 
curious motions commonly observed in the film of wine adhering to the inside 
of a wine-glass, when the glass, having been partially filled with wine, has been 
shaken so as to wet the inside above the general level of the surface of the liquid ; 
for, to explain these motions, it is only necessary further to bring under consideration, 
that the thin film adhering to the inside of the glass must very quickly become more 
watery than the rest on account of the evaporation of the alcohol contained in it 
being more rapid than the evaporation of the water. On this matter, Mr. Thomson 
exhibited to the Section a very decisive experiment. He showed that in a vial partly 
filled with wine, no motion of the kind described occcurs as long as the vial is kept 
corked. On his removing the cork, however, and withdrawing by a tube the air 
saturated with vapour of the wine, so that it was replaced by fresh air capable of 
producing evaporation, a liquid film was instantly seen as a horizontal ring creeping 
up the interior of the vial, with viscid-looking pendent streams descending from it like 
a fringe from a curtain. He gave another striking illustration by pouring water on 
a flat silver tray, previously carefully cleaned from any film which could hinder the 
water from thoroughly wetting the surface. The water was about one- tenth of an 
inch deep. Then, on a little alcohol being laid down in the middle of the tray, the 
water immediately rushed away from the middle, leaving a deep hollow there, which 
laid the tray bare of all liquid, except an exceedingly thin film. These and other 
experiments, which he made with fine lycopodium powder dusted on the surface of 
the water, into the middle of which he introduced alcohol gently from a fine tube, 
were very simple, and can easily be repeated. Certain curious return currents which 
he showed by means of the powder on the surface, he stated he had not yet been able 
fully to explain. He referred to very interesting phsenomena previously observed by 
Mr, Varley, and described in the fiftieth volume of the Transactions of the Society 
of Arts, and he believed that many or all of these would prove to be explicable 
according to the principles he had now proposed. 



On the Effects of Mechanical Strain on the Thermo-Electric Qualities of 
Metals. Bij Professor W. Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. 

Having found by experiment that iron and copper wires, when stretched by forces 
insufficient to cause any permanent elongation, had their thermo-electric quahties 
altered, but immediately fell back to their primitive condition in this respect when 
the stretching forces were removed ; having remarked that these temporary effects 
were in each case the reverse of the permanent thermo-electric effects previously 
discovered by Magnus, as resulting from permanent elongation of the wires, by 
drawing them through holes in a draw-plate ; and thinking it most probable that 
all these effects depended on mechanical induction of the thermo-electric qualities of 
a crystal in the metals operated upon ; the author undertook an experimental inves- 
tigation of the thermo-electric effects of mechanical strains, in which he intended to 
include longitudinal extension, longitudinal compression, lateral compression, and 
lateral extension, and in each case to test both the temporary eflects of strains 
within the elastic limits of the substance, and the residual alterations in thermo- 
electric quality, manifested after the cessation of the constraining force, when this 
has been so great as to give the substance a permanent set. The cycle of experi- 
ments has now been so nearly completed for both the temporary and the permanent 
strains, as to allow the author to conclude with certainty that the peculiar thermo- 
electric qualities induced in each case are those of a crystal. Thus, he finds that 
iron bars, hardened by longitudinal compression, have the reverse thermo-electric 
property to that discovered by Magnus in iron wires hardened by drawing ; and 
that iron wire, under lateral compression, manifests the same thermo-electric pro- 
perty as the author had discovered in iron wire while under a longitudinal stretch- 
ing force. The apparatus by which these results were obtained was exhibited to the 
Section, and the mode of experimenting fully described. As regards iron, the 
general conclusion is, that its thermo-electric quality, when under pressure in one 
direction, deviates from that of the unstrained metal, towards bismuth for currents 
in the direction of the strain, and towards antimony for currents perpendicular to 

1855. 2 



18 REPORT 1855. 

this direction ; while for all cases that have been examined, the residual thermo- 
electric effect of a permanent strain is the reverse of the temporary thermo-electric 
effect which subsists as long as the constraining force is kept applied. Those of the 
other metals which have been as yet examined, namely. Copper, Lead, Cadmium, Tin, 
Zinc, Brass, Steel, and Platinum (specimens supplied as chemically pure by Messrs. 
Matthey and Johnson being in general used), showed uniformly the reverse effect 
to that of iron when similarly treated. The effects of permanent lateral compression 
by hammering were those which were chiefly tested for this list of metals, and were 
in almost every case of a very marked and unmistakeable kind. Curious results 
were also obtained by carefully annealing portions of wires which had been suddenly 
cooled, and leaving the remaining parts unannealed. Tin and Cadmium thus 
treated have, as yet, given only doubtful results ; Platinum has not been tried ; Iron, 
Steel, Copper, and Brass have given decided indications, in which the unannealed 
portions showed the same kind of thermo-electric effect as had been found to be 
produced by permanent lateral compression. 



Oti the Use of Observations of Terrestrial Temperature for the investigation 
of Absolute Dates in Geology. By Professor W. Thomson, M.A,, F.R.S. 

The relative thermal conductivities of different substances have been investigated 
by many experimenters ; but the only absolute determinations yet made in this 
most important subject are due to Professor James Forbes *, who has deduced the 
absolute thermal conductivity of the trap rock of Calton Hill, of the sandstone of 
Craigleith Quarry, and of the sand below the soil of the Experimental Gardens, 
from observations on terrestrial temperature, which were carried on for five years 
in these three localities (all in the immediate neighbourhood of Edinburgh), by 
means of thermometers constructed and laid, under his care, by the British Asso- 
ciation. The author of the present communication explained briefly a method of 
reduction depending on elementary formulae of the theory of the conduction of heat 
given by the great French mathematician Fourier, which proved to be more complete 
and satisfactory than the method indicated by Poisson, which had been adopted by 
Professor Forbes. He applied it both to the series of observations used by Professor 
Forbes, and to a continuation of the observations on the trap rock of Calton Hill, 
which has been carried on up to the present time at the Royal Observatory of Edin- 
burgh, and of which eleven years complete have been supplied to the author in 
manuscript, through the kindness of Professor Piazzi Smyth. The results, as re- 
gards thermal conductivities, show that the determinations originally given by 
Professor Forbes do not require very considerable corrections ; and are satisfactory, 
inasmuch as values derived from the diminution of the extent of variation of the 
temperature for the deep thermometers agree very closely with those derived from 
the retardation of the periods of summer heat and winter cold at the different 
depths. They show very decidedly a somewhat greater conductivity of the trap rock 
at the greater depths (from twelve to twenty-four feet) than between the three feet 
deep and the six feet, or between the six feet and the twelve feet thermometers, but 
do not establish any such variation in the properties of the sandstone, and of the 
sand of the two other localities. A comparison of the mean temperatures of the 
four thermometers, for the whole sixteen years' observation, shows an increase of 
indicated temperature in going downwards in Calton Hill, which apparently is much 
more rapid between the upper than between the lower thermometers ; so much so, 
as not to be referable to the greater conductivity of the rock in the lower position. 
The author remarked, that, to make the observations available for giving with accu- 
racy the mean absolute temperatures at the different depths, it would be necessary 
to have the thermometers taken up and re-compared with a standard thermometer. 
It is most probable that the zero-points of all the thermometers have risen consider- 
ably since they were first laid, because the apparent mean temperatures, as shown 
by the thermometers, are much higher of late than they were at first. Thus, for 
the period of five years examined by Professor Forbes, and for the succeeding period 
of eleven years, the means at the different depths are as follows : — 

* Account of some Experiments on the Temperature of the Earth near Edinburgh, 
Trans. Roy. Soc. Edinb. vol. xvi, part 2. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



la 



Trap Rock of Calton Hill. 





3 feet deep. 


6 feet deep. 


12 feet deep. 


24 feet deep. 


Period 1837 to 1842 
" 1843 to 1854 


45-49 
46-512 


45-86 
46-751 


46-36 
47-035 


46-87 
47-349 



Notwithstanding the cause of uncertainty which has been alluded to, these 
results make it highly probable that the augmentation of mean temperature 
from 3 feet to 24 feet below the surface, apparently l°-38 Fahr. in the first 
period and "84° in the second period, must be really more than half a degree, 
or more than the greatest elevation of temperature that had been observed, for 
a depth of 21 feet, in any other part of the earth. The author was struck 
with this, and reflecting that probably the Edinburgh observations are the only 
ones that have been made on the interior temperature of other igneous rocks 
than granite, supposed it to indicate the comparatively modern time at which the 
trap rock of Calton Hill has burst up in an incandescent fluid state. This conjec- 
ture, shortly after it occurred to him, was confirmed by the intelligence he received at 
Kreuznach, in Rhenish Prussia, that the temperature in the porphyry of that locality 
increases at the rate of from 2° to 3° Reaumur in 100 feet downwards, being more 
than double or triple the rate of augmentation which had been observed in numerous 
localities in England, France, and other parts of Europe, in granitic rocks and sedi- 
mentary strata, and found to be about 1° Fahr. of elevation of temperature in fifteen 
yards at the least or in twenty yards at the greatest, as Professor Phillips has shown 
in his Treatise on Geology, in Lardner's Cyclopaedia, from careful observations made 
by himself and others. The author pointed out, that the mathematical theory of 
heat, — with data as to absolute conductivities of rocks, such as those supplied by 
Professor Forbes, £ind with the assistance of observation on the actual cooling of 
historic lava streams, such as the great outbreak from Etna which overthrew Ca- 
tania in 1669, or of those of Vesuvius which may be seen in the incandescent state, 
and observed for temperature a few weeks or months after the commencement of 
solidification, — may be applied to give estimates, within determined limits of ac- 
curacy, of the absolute dates of eruption of actual volcanic rocks of prehistoric 
periods of geology, from observations of temperature in bores made into the vol- 
canic rocks themselves and the surrounding strata. 



On the £!lectric Qualities of Magnetized Iron. 
By Professor W. Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. 

The well-known ordinary phaenomena of magnetism prove that there is a wonderful 
difference between the mutual physical relations of the particles of a mass of iron 
according as it is magnetized or in an unmagnetic condition. Joule's important 
discovery, that a bar of iron, when longitudinally magnetized, experiences an 
increase of length, accompanied with such a diminution of its lateral dimensions as 
to leave its bulk unaltered, is the first of a series by which it may be expected we 
shall learn that all the physical properties of iron become altered when the metal 
is magnetized, and that in general those qualities which have relation to definite 
directions in the substance are differently altered at different inclinations to the 
direction of magnetization. In the present communication, the author described 
experiments he had made — with assistance in defraying the expenses from the Royal 
Society, out of the Government grant for scientific investigations — to determine the 
effects of magnetization on the thermo-electric qualities, and on the electric conduc- 
tivity, of iron. 

The first result obtained was, that longitudinally magnetized iron wire, in an 
electric circuit, differs thermo-electrically in the same direction as antimony from 
unmagnetized iron. This any one may verify with the greatest ease by applying a 
spirit-lamp to heat the middle of an iron wire or thin rod of iron a couple of feet 
long, with a little magnetizing coil of copper wire (excited by a cell or two of any 
ordinary galvanic battery) adapted to slide freely on it, and so bring a magnetizing 
force to act on two or three inches in any part of the length of the iron ; and, when 



20 REPORT — 1855. 

the ends of the iron conductor are connected with the electrodes of an astatic 
needle galvanometer of very moderate sensibility, suddenly moving the coil from one 
side to the other of the flame of the spirit-larap. 

The author next explained a series of experiments (not so easily described without 
the apparatus which was exhibited to the Section, or drawings of it), by which it was 
ascertained that magnetized iron, with electric currents crossing the lines of magnet- 
ization at right angles, differs from unmagnetized iron, thermo-electrically, in the 
same direction as bismuth, that is, in the opposite way to that previously found for 
iron magnetized along the line of current ; and it was verified that an iron conductor, 
obliquely magnetized, and placed in a circuit of conducting matter, has a current 
excited through it when its two polar sides are maintained at different temperatures. 
The author also described and exhibited an experimental arrangement nade, but 
not yet sufficiently tried, to test whether or not magnetized iron possessed a certain 
thermo-electric rotatory property which his theory of thermo-electricity in crystal- 
line conductors had led him to believe might possibly exist in every substance 
possessing, either intrinsically or inductively, such a dipolar directional property as 
that of magnetism. 

Regarding the thermo-electric properties of magnetized steel, the only experiments 
yet made, being on longitudinal magnetization, showed most decidedly the same 
kind of effect subsisting with the permanent magnetization, after the magnetizing 
agency is withdrawn, as had been found in iron while actually sustained in a state 
of magnetization by the electro-magnetic force. 

The effects of magnetism on the conductivity of iron both for heat and electricitj', 
in different directions with reference to the direction of magnetization, had been 
tested by different experimenters with no confirmed indications in the conduction of 
heat, and with only negative results regarding electric conductivity. The author of 
the present communication, feeling convinced that only tests of sufficient power are 
required to demonstrate real effects of magnetization on all physical properties of 
iron, tried to ascertain the particular nature of the conjectured effect in the case of 
electric conductivity ; and at last, after many unsuccessful attempts, succeeded in 
establishing, that an iron conductor, sustained in a magnetic condition by a longi- 
tudinal magnetizing force, and brittle steel wires retaining longitudinal magnetism, 
resist the passage of electricity more, or, which is the same, possess less electric 
conductivity, than the same conductors when unmagnetic. It remains to be seen 
whether either iron or steel has, when magnetized, the electro-crystalline property of 
possessing different electric conductivities in different directions ; and whether 
either has the possible rotatory property as regards conduction, which the intrin- 
sically dipolar type of magnetization suggests. 

It is important to observe, that both the thermo-electric quality, and the effect on 
electrical conductivity induced in iron or steel, and sustained by the magnetizing 
force, are retained with the permanent magnetism in steel after the magnetizing force 
is removed, as Joule found to be the case with the alteration of dimensions, which 
he discovered as an effect of magnetism ; while on the other hand, as the author 
showed in a previous communication to the Section, the thermo-electric quality he 
had discovered as an effect of mechanical strain, becomes reversed when the con- 
straining force has been removed, if any permanent strain has been produced. 



On the Thermo- Electric Position of Aluminium. 
By Professor W. Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. 

The author, through the kindness of Baron Liebig, having been enabled to make 
experiments on a bar of aluminium with a view to investigating its thermo-electric 
properties, found that it gave currents when its ends were at different temperatures, 
and an inch or two of its length was included in the circuit of a galvanometer by 
means of wires of copper, of lead, of tin, or of platinum, bent round it. These 
currents were in such directions as to show that the Aluminium lies, in the 
thermo-electric series, on the side towards bismuth, of Tin, Lead, Copper, and a 
certain platinum wire (Pg) ; and, on the side towards Antimony, of another 
platinum wire (P3). They were in the same direction as regards the higher 
and lower temperatures of the two junctions of the aluminium with the other 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 21 

metal in each case, whether the whole bar was heated so much by a spirit-lamp 
that it could scarcely be held in the liand, or no part of it was heated above the 
temperature of the air, and one end cooled by being covered with cotton kept 
moistened with aether. Taking into account the results of previous experiments 
which the author had made on a number of different metals, including three speci- 
mens of platinum wire (Pj, Pj, Pg), probably differing from one another as to 
chemical purity, which he used as thermo-electric standards, he concluded that at 
temperatures of from 10° to 32° Cent., the following order subsists unchanged 
as regards the thermo-electric properties of the metals mentioned :— Bismuth, P3, 
Aluminium, Tin, Lead, Pg, Copper, P„ Zinc, Silver. Cadmium, Iron. As he had 
found that a brass wire, on which he experimented, is neutral to P3 at —10° Cent., 
and to P2 at 38°, he infers that at some temperature between —10° and 38° Alumi- 
nium must be neutral either to the brass or to P3. He intends, as soon as he can 
procure a few inches of aluminium wire to experiment with, to determine this 
neutral point, and others which he infers from the experiments already made, will 
probably be found at some temperature not very low, between Aluminium and Tin, 
and Aluminium and Lead ; and to look for neutral points which may possibly be 
found between Aluminium and P3 and Aluminium and Pa, at either high or low- 
temperatures. 

On Peristaltic Induction of Electric Currents in Submarine Telegraph 
Wires. By Professor W. Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. 

Recent examinations of the propagation of electricity through wires in subaqueous 
and subterranean telegraphic cables, have led to the observation of phenomena of 
induced electric currents, which are essentially different from the phaenomena (dis- 
covered by Faraday many years ago) of what has hitherto been called electro- 
dynamic, or electro-magnetic induction, but which, for the future, it will be con- 
venient to designate exclusively by the term electro-magnetic. The new phsenomena 
present a very perfect analogy with the mutual influences of a number of elastic 
tubes bound together laterally throughout their lengths, and surrounded and filled 
with a liquid which is forced through one or ^ore of them, while the others are left 
with their ends open or closed. The hydrostatic pressure applied to force the 
liquid through any of the tubes will cause them to swell, and to press against the 
others, which will thus, by peristaltic action, compel the liquid contained in them 
to move in different parts of them in one direction or the other. A long solid 
cylinder of India-rubber, bored symmetrically in four, six, or more circular passages 
parallel to its lengrh, will correspond to an ordinary telegraphic cable containing 
the same number of copper wires, separated from one another only by gutta percha ; 
and the hydraulic motion will follow rigorously the same laws as the electrical 
conduction, and will be expressed by identical language in mathematics, provided 
the lateral dimensions of the bores are so small, in comparison with their lengths, 
or the viscosity of the fluid so great, that the motions are not sensibly affected by 
inertia, and are consequently dependent altogether on hydrostatic pressure and fluid 
friction. Hence the author considers himself justified in calling the kind of elec- 
tric action now alluded to, peristaltic induction, to distinguish it from the electro- 
magnetic kind of electro-dynamic induction. The mathematical treatment of the 
problem of mutual peristaltic induction is contained in the paper brought before the 
Section ; but the author confined himself in the meeting to mentioning some of the 
results. Among others, he mentioned, as being of practical importance, that the 
experiments which have been made on the transmission of currents backwards 
and forwards by the different wires of a multiple cable, do not indicate correctly the 
degree of retardation that is to be expected when signals are to be transmitted 
through the same amount of wire laid out in a cable of the full length. It follows, 
that expectations as to the working of a submarine telegraph between Britain and 
America, founded on such experiments, may prove fallacious ; and to avoid the chance 
of prodigious losses in such an undertaking, the author suggested that the working 
of the Varna and Balaklava wire should be examined. He remarked that a part 
of the theory communicated by himself to the Royal Society last May, and published in 
the Proceedings, shows that a wire of six times the length of the Varna and Bala- 



22 REPORT — 1855. 

klava wire, if of the same lateral dimensions, would give thirty-six times the 
retardation, and thirty-six times the slowness of action. If the distinctness of 
utterance and rapidity of action practicable with the Varna and Balaklava wire are 
only such as to be not inconvenient, it would be necessary to have a wire of six 
times the diameter ; or better, thirty-six wires of the same dimensions ; or a larger 
number of still smaller wires twisted together, under a gutta percha covering, to give 
tolerably convenient action by a submarine cable of six times the length. The theory 
shows how, from careful obsers'ations on such a wire as that between Varna and 
Balaklava, an exact estimate of the lateral dimensions required for greater distances, 
or sufficient for smaller distances, may be made. Immense economy may be prac- 
tised in attending to these indications of theory in all submarine cables constructed 
in future for short distances ; and the non-failure of great undertakings can done be 
ensured by using them in a preliminary estimate. 



On new Instruments for Measuring Electrical Potentials and Capacities. 
By Professor W. Thomson, M.A., F.R.S. 

In this communication three instruments were described and exhibited to the 
Section : the first a standard electrometer, designed to measure, by a process of 
weighing the mutual attraction of two conducting discs, the difference of electrical 
potential between two bodies with which they are connected, an instrument which 
•will be useful for determining the electromotive force of a galvanic battery in electro- 
static measure, and for graduating electroscopic instruments so as to convert their 
scale indications into absolute measure ; the second aft electroscopic electrometer, 
•which may be used for indicating electrical potentials in absolute measure, in ordinary 
experiments, and, probably with great advantage, in observations of atmospheric elec- 
tricity; and the third, for which a scientific friend has suggested the nameof Electro- 
platymeter, an instrument which may be applied either to measure the capacities of 
conducting surfaces for holding charges of electricity, or to determine the electric 
inductive capacities of insulating media. 



On the Means proposed by the Liverpool Compass Committee for carrying 
out Investigations relative to the Laws which govern the deviation of the 
Compass. By John T. Towson. 



Experimental Demonstration of the Polarity of Diamagnetic Bodies. 
By Professor Tyndall, F.R.S. 
The author referred to the Bakerian Lecture of the present year, as proving that a 
bar of bismuth freely suspended within a spiral of copper wire, excited by a current 
passing through that wire and acted upon by external magnets, could be attracted 
and repelled with the same certainty as, though with a far less energ\' than, a bar of 
iron, the sense of the deflection, -which indicated the polarity of the diamagnetic 
bismuth bar, being always opposed to the deflection of the iron bar under the same 
circumstances. The experiments now described formed the complement, so to speak, 
of those described in the lecture referred to. In the latter case, the bismuth bar was 
deflected by magnets ; but as the action is mutual, it is to be expected that the magnets, 
if properly arranged, could be deflected by the diamagnetic bars. An experiment of this 
nature has already been made by Prof. Weber of Gottingen, but the results obtained by 
this distinguished experimenter have not commanded general conviction ; they have 
been questioned by Matteucci, Von Feilitzsch, and others. Prof. Tyndall has to thank 
M. Weber for the plan of an instrument, constructed by M. Leyser of Leipsic, which 
has enabled him to remove the last trace of doubt from this important question. 
The instrument consists essentially of two upright spirals of copper wire about 18 
inches long, fastened to a stout slab of wood, enclosed on all sides during the time 
of experiment, and so fixed into solid masonry that the spirals are vertical. 
Above the spirals is a wooden wheel with a grooved circumference; below the spirals 
there is a similar wheel ; an endless string passed tightly round both wheels, and 
to this string are attached two cylinders of the diamagnetic body to be examined. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 23 

By turning the lower wheel by a suitable key, the cylinders may be moved up and 
down within the spirals. Two steel bar magnets are arranged to an astatic system, 
connected together by a rigid brass junction, and suspended so that both magnets 
are in the same horizontal plane. It is so arranged that these two magnets have the 
two spirals between them, and have their poles opposite to the centre of the spirals. 
When, therefore, a current is sent through the spirals, it exerts no more action on 
the magnets than the centre or neutral point of a magnet would do. Supposing the 
bai's within the spirals to be also perfectly central, they also present their neutral 
points to the magnetic poles, and hence exert no action upon it. But if the key be 
turned so as to bring the two ends of the diamagnetic bars to act upon the suspended 
magnets, if the bars be polar, the magnitude and nature of their polarity will be indi- 
cated by the consequent deflection of the magnets. The index by which the deflec- 
tion of the magnets is observed is a ray of light reflected from a mirror attached to 
the magnets ; and as the length of this ray may be varied at pleasure, the sensibihty 
of the instrument may be indefinitely increased. When cylinders of bismuth are 
submitted to experiment, a very marked deflection is produced, indicating a polarity 
on the part of the bismuth opposed to the polarity of iron. This is the result ahead j' 
obtained by M. Weber ; but against it, it has been urged that the deflection is due 
to induced currents excited in the metalhc cylinders during their motion within the 
spirals. To this objection Prof. Tyndall replied as follows: — first, the deflection 
produced was a permanent deflection, which could not be the case if it were due to 
the momentary currents of induction ; secondly, if due to induction, copper ought 
to show the effect far more energetically than bismuth, for its conducting power and,, 
consequently, the facility with which such currents are produced, is fifty times 
greater than that of bismuth ; but with cylinders of copper no sensible deflection 
was produced; thirdly, two prisms of the heavy glass with which Mr. Faraday 
discovered the diamagnetic force and produced the rotation of the plane of polariza- 
tion of a luminous ray, were substituted for the metallic cylinders ; and although the 
action was far less energetic, it was equally certain as in the case of bismuth, and 
indicated the same polarity. The formation of induced currents is wholly out of 
the question here, for the substance is an insulator. The experiments, therefore, 
remove the last remaining doubt from the proposition, that diamagnetic bodies under 
magnetic excitement possess a polarity which is the reverse of that possessed by 
magnetic ones. 

Experimental Observations on an Electric Cable. 
By WiLDMAN Whitehouse. 

After referring to the rapid progress in submarine telegraphy which the last 
four years have witnessed, Mr. Whitehouse said that he regarded it as an esta- 
blished fact, that the nautical and engineering difficulties which at first existed had 
been already overcome, and that the experience gained in submerging the shorter 
lengths had enabled the projectors to provide for all contingencies affecting the 
greater. The author then drew the attention of the Section to a series of experi- 
mental observations which he had recently made upon the Mediterranean and 
Newfoundland cables, before they sailed for their respective destinations. These 
cables contained an aggregate of 1125 miles of insulated electric wire, and the 
experiments were conducted chiefly with reference to the problem of the practica- 
bility of establishing electric communications with India, Australia, and America. 
The results of all the experiments were recorded by a steel style upon electro- 
chemical paper by the action of the current itself, while the paper was at the same 
time divided into seconds and fractional parts of a second by the use of a pendulum. 
This mode of operating admits of great delicacy in the determination of the results, 
as the seconds can afterwards be divided into hundredths by the use of a " vernier," 
and the result read off with the same facility as a barometric observation. Enlarged 
fac-similes of the electric autographs, as the author calls them, were exhibited as 
diagrams, and the actual slips of electro-chemical paper were laid upon the table. 
The well-known effects of induction upon the current were accurately displayed ; 
and contrasted with these were other autographs showing the effect of forcibly dis- 
charging the wire by giving it an adequate charge of the opposite electricity in the 



24 REPORT — 1855. 

mode proposed by the author. No less thaa eight currents — four positive and four 
negative — were in this way transmitted in a single second of time through the same 
length of wire (1125 miles), through which a single current required a second and 
a half to discharge itself spontaneously upon the paper. Having stated the precau- 
tions adopted to guard against error in the observations, the details of the experi- 
ments were then concisely given, including those for " velocity," which showed a 
much higher rate attainable by the magneto- electric than by the voltaic current. 
The author then recapitulated the facts, to which he specially invited attention : — 
First, the mode of testing velocity by the use of a voltaic current divided into two 
parts (a split current), one of which shall pass through a graduated resistance tube 
of distilled water, and a few feet only of wire, while the other part shall be sent 
through the long circuit, both being made to record themselves by adjacent styles 
upon the same slip of electro-chemical paper. Second, the use of magneto-electric 
" twin-currents," synchronous in their origin, but wholly distinct in their metallic 
circuits, for the same purpose, whether they be made to record themselves direct 
upon the paper, or to actuate relays or receiving instruments which shall give con- 
tacts for a local printing battery. Third, the effects of induction, retardation of the 
current, and charging of the wire, as shown autographically ; and contrasted with 
this — fourth, the rapid and forcible discharging of the wire by the use of an opposite 
current; and hence — fifth, the use of this as a means of maintaining, or restoring at 
pleasure, the electric equilibrium of the wire. Sixth, absolute neutralization of 
currents by too rapid reversal. Seventh, comparison of working speed attainable in 
a given length of wire by the use of repetitions of similar voltaic currents as con- 
trasted with alternatirig magneto-electric currents, and which, at the lowest estimate, 
seemed to be seven or eight to one in favour of the latter. Eighth, proof of the 
co-existence of several waves of electric force of opposite cheu^acter in a wire of given 
length, of which each respectively will arrive at its destination without interference. 
Ninth, the velocity, or rather amount of retardation, greatly influenced by the 
energy of the current employed, other conditions remaining the same. Tenth, no 
adequate advantages obtained in a 300-mile length by doubling or trebling the mass 
of conducting metals. The author, in conclusion, stated his conviction, that it 
appeared from these experiments, as well as from trials which he had made with an 
instrument of the simplest form, actuated by magneto-electric currents, that the 
working speed attainable in a submarine wire of 1125 miles was ample for commer- 
cial success. And may we not, he added, fairly conclude also, that India, Australia, 
and America, are accessible by telegraph without the use of wires larger than those 
commonly employed in submarine cables ? 



On the New Maximum Thermometer ofH. Negretti atid Zambra. 
Communicated hy C. Greville Williams. 

The very simple but effective instrument for indicating maximum temperature, 
invented by Messrs. H. Negretti and Zambra, is remarkable both for the delicacy of 
the workmanship and for the diflBculty which is found in constructing it, a difficulty 
which is entirely of a practical character, and prevents the possibility of a perfect 
instrument being constructed by any but a dextrous artist. 

It consists of a thermometer-tube bent near the bulb, in the manner of the old 
ones, but just at the bend the tube has an impediment caused by a contraction at 
that point. This choking of the tube is insufficient to prevent the easy passage of 
the mercury during its expansion, but nevertheless effectually prevents its return as 
the temperature falls, and the mercury in the globe consequently occupies less 
space. The portion left in the stem serves as the index of the highest temperature 
arrived at. 

It is acknowledged that a certain amount of error is here unavoidably introduced, 
from the fact that the mercury at the time of passage into the tube is at a higher 
temperature than when the observation is made, and occupies a larger space in the 
tube. Consequently, the instrument when read off indicates a lower temperature 
than the truth ; but although this objection may justly be made on theoretical 
grounds, in practice the eft'ect of this error on the result is inappreciable, owing 
to the very small quantity of the mercury in the tube. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SEJCTIONS. 25 

When it is required to return the mercury to the bulb for the purpose of making 
a fresh observation, the end furthest from the bend is to be elevated, and the instru- 
ment slightly agitated ; by this means the metal repasses the obstruction and indi- 
cates the temperature at the time. 

Mr. Williams called the attention of the Section to the advantages of having the 
scale engraved on the stem of the instrument, thus preventing the danger of error 
from alteration of the scale, which may result from wooden ones being exposed to 
damp, or too high a temperature. The instrument is also provided with another 
glass scale more boldly graduated, attached to the tube, to facilitate reading off. 



Astronomy, Meteors, Waves. 

On the Establishment of a Magnetic Meteorological and Astronomical 

Observatory on the Mountain of Angusta Mullay, at 6200 feet, in Tra- 

vancore. By Astronomer Broun. (^Communicated by Colonel Sykes.) 

Astronomer Broun, in a letter to Colonel Sykes dated 2nd of July, 1855, describes 

the successful establishment of an observatory on Angusta Mullay, at 6200 feet 

above the sea-level, for the purpose of simultaneous record with the Observatory at 

Trevandrum. 

The diflSculties of access to the summit of the mountain were so great, from 
having to cut paths through dense jungles infested by elephants and other wild 
animals, from having to use ropes and mechanical aid in getting up the building 
materials, provisions, and the instruments, and in the delays from the labourers 
running away from fright and the effects of cold, that two years were consumed in 
the undertaking. The object of Astronomer Broun, in making known his successful 
efforts in Europe, is to enable observers to put themselves into communication with 
him, in case they should desire to have any experimental researches made in so 
novel a position for an observatory. 

On certain Anomalies presented by the Binary Star 70 Ophittchi. 
By W. S. Jacob, Director of the Madras Observatory. 

This pair has been long known as a binary system, but the exact orbit is yet in 
doubt, although nearly a whole revolution has been completed since it was first 
observed in 1779. 

All the orbits that have been computed fail in representing the true positions at 
certain points, and those which best represent the angles fail entirely as regards the 
distances. 

The most remarkable point is, that even in those orbits which agree best with 
observation, the errors in the angles assume a periodical form, retaining the same sign 
through a considerable space. 

An orbit has been computed with a period of ninety-three years, in which the 
errors are -|- from 1820 to 1823, — with one exception from 1823 to 1830, doubtful 
-from 1830 to 1832, and from 1833 to 1842 all +, after which they continue for the 
most part — . 

This must depend upon some law : it might arise from a change in the law of 
gravitation, but may be accounted for more simply by supposing the existence of a 
third opake bodj' perturbing the other two. Such bodies have been already sur- 
mised to account for irregular motion of apparently single stars, such as Sirius and 
Procyon. 

The body in this case, if supposed to circulate as a planet round the smaller star, 
need not be very large, as the deviation from the ellipse does not exceed 0"'l of arc. 

Assuming the small star to describe a secondary ellipse, in which o=0"'08, 
e=0'15, P=26 years, and ra=200°, and applying corresponding corrections to the 
positions, the average error in the angles is reduced from 50' to 37', and in the 
distances measured subsequent to 1837 from 0"-14 to 0"-] 1, or by about i. 

There is therefore prima facie evidence for the existence of such a body, and it is 
desirable that the fact should be still further tested by careful observation. 



26 REPORT — 1855. 

On the Calculation of an Observed Eclipse or Occultation of a Star. 
By Professor Mossotti. 
According to the denominations adopted in Dr. Pearson's ' Introduction to Prac- 
tical Astronomy,' vol. ii. p. 675, and following, the general equation for an eclipse, 
a passage of a planet over the sun, or an occultation of a star is — 

(m — TT /i)2 + (n — TT v)2 = (rf + D — / — jr 0) tan (D - /))2. 
This equation, by introducing a new angle |, may be resolved into the following 
two: — 
(»» — jT /Ii) cos 1+ (n — 7ri')sin^ = d + D— / — ttu tan (D — /) . . (a) 

— (»» — TT ft) sin ^ + (n •— ff i/) cos ^ ^ 0, (b) 

the last of which gives 

w — i: V 
tan t = —r " (c) 

The angle | given by this formula may be computed by the values of m, n, and 
n, deduced from the lunar tables, and the small error by which they may still be 
affected will not have any sensible influence upon equation (a), because the fluxion 
for a change in the value of the angle ^ is evidently reduced to nothing in con- 
sequence of the second equation (b). On this property lies the foundation of the 
method which we are going to explain. 

If we count the time t from the instant of the observation, the values of the 
cosines Mq and Mq corresponding to the instant of the true conjunction may be 
expressed by series* — 

OTj = TO -f- m' < -|- ^ m" <* + 0), 

ng = n -{• n' t ■\- -7i" f + a>: 

but at the moment of the true conjunction, we must have 

wjo = 0, Mq = 6j — Bfl, 
therefore 

m =: — m' t — -m" t\ 

n = Jo — Bo — »' < — \n" i^; 

and by substituting these expressions in equation (a), and by putting, for sake of an 

easier computation, 

m' = «; cos O, /x = sin ( cos v, m" = w cos e, 

n' ^ V sin O, v = sin f sin v, n" = w sin e, 

we shall have 

— tvcos{i — 0) + {hg — Bo) sin ^ — TT sin f cos (| — i/) — (d + D — /) = 

— TT cos f tan (D — /) + ^ f cos (^ - e). 

The letter t denotes the time elapsed from the instant of the observation to that 
of conjunction, and its value is negative when the conjunction happens before ; then, 
if we call T the mean time of observation, as counted at the place, and A the east- 
ward longitude of the place from the meridian for which the time of conjunction 
has been computed, which will commonly be the meridian of the lunar tables em- 
ployed, we must have 

T + ^ = e -f- A, 
and the preceding equation may assume the form 

G V cos (^— O) -t- A V cos (^— O)— (&o— Bo) sin ^+7r sin f cos i$—v) + d+D='\ 
Tvcosd— 0)+/— 7rcosftan(D— /)— •if^'wcosC^— e). | ^^ 

The values of the coeflicients v cos (| — O), sin ^, sin f cos (^ — v). as well as those 
of the last two terms of the second member, may be computed by the elements 
* See the Note II. at the end. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 



27 



drawn from lunar tables without any sensible error arising in our equation ; T 
and/ are given by observation, only the quantities ©, A, bg — Bg, tt and d + D, or 
some of them may form the queries of the problem, according to circumstances ; 
and as all these quantities are contained under a linear form, their determination 
can be directly obtained by the resolution of equations of first degree, without having 
recourse to the method of corrections by supposed errors, which is an analytical and 
practical advantage of the formula we propose. 

If we refer to a construction upon the usual plane of projection, as seen in the 
annexed figure, it will be easily seen that the angle $ which we have employed is 




the angle, S H A, which the line, S L, uniting the apparent centres, S and L, of the 
occulting and occulted bodies, makes with A B, the perpendicular to the projection, 
C M, of the circle of declination ; O is the angle, L' Q B, which the relative orbit, 
Li L L', of the occulting body makes with the same perpendicular, v the relative 
velocity of this body in its orbit, ( the zenith distance, C S, of the occulted body, 
and V the complement, S C A, of its angle of variation. This being understood, 
it is clear that the leading idea of our method consists in valuing the abscissae 
CI, C s of the projected centres of the said bodies, at the instant of the observa- 
tion, and in a direction parallel to the line which unites them, and to make the sum 
of their projected semidiameters, diminished by the phasis, equal to the difference of 
those abscissae, upon the length of which difference a small error on the angle $ 
has no important influence. 

Note I. — In the expressions of m and n, given at page 635 of the quoted work, 
it is supposed that A, a, B and b denote the right ascensions and declinations of 
the occulting and occulted bodies, but we may suppose as well that they represent 
their longitudes and latitudes. In this case, calUng P the angle of position of the 
occulted body* at the instant of the observation, we must compute | by formula 

♦o^ t jre sin P + M cos P — n v ^, 

tan f = — — ! ; — — . (c)i 

m cos P — wsmP — ir fi' ' ' ' ' ' 

and we must substitute in formula (A) | — P and v — P instead of ^ and v. Then 6 
will be the time of conjunction in longitude, and bg — Bq the difference of latitude 
of the two bodies ; but in the expressions of /i, v and a>, the letters a and b will con- 
tinue to represent the right ascension and declination of the occulted body, and 

* The angle of position P is to be taken positive in the ascending signs of the ecliptic 
T2o, and negative in the descending signs 2&£iK. 



28 REPORT — 1855. 

their values, as well as that of P, are only wanted to be known to the nearest 
minute. The angle | given by formula (c) or (c)', ought to be taken lesser or 
greater than 180", according as the values of the numerators will be positive or 
negative. 

Note II. — The fluxions or derivates m , ri ; m', ri' of first and second order, 
may be valued by employing the corresponding horary motions given by tables, 
which would be more analytical, but in practice it will be found more convenient 
to take out from the ' Nautical Almanac,' or from other sources, for an hour before, 
the instant of the observation, for this instant, and for an hour after, the necessary 
elements for computing three successive values, w— i, m, in, and « — i, n, Wj, and to 
make 

>n,— TO+(m — m_i) Wi — M-f-(n— w-,) 
= ra 2 , «'= ^ 

1 nji— m — {yn — m-^\ \ n^— n — («. — «-.) 
— m — — , — n = = 

2 2 ' 2 2 

I subjoin here some faults of printing discovered in Dr. Pearson's work : — 
At page 634, Une 13, read ^?ace instead of plane. 
At page 635, line 10, the formulae must be 

m = cos B cos (a — A), n = sin h cos B cos (a — A) — cos b sin B. 
At page 635, line 10, read 34' 57" instead of 3' 51". 



Remarks on the Chronology of the Formations of the Moon, 
By Professor Nichol, LL.D., Observatory, Glasgow. 

Prof. Nichol stated, that, through the munificence of the Marquis of Breadalbane, 
he had been enabled to bring to bear on the delicate inquiries, whose commencement 
he intended to explain, a very great, if not a fully adequate amount of telescopic 
power. A speculum of twenty-one inches, originally made by the late Mr. 
Raraage with the impracticable focal length oi fifty -five feet, had, at the expense of 
that noble Lord, been re-ground, polished, mounted as an equatoreal, and placed in 
the Glasgow Observatory, in its best state, only about six weeks ago. Prof. Nichol 
showed some lunar photographs, which indicated the great light with which the 
telescope endowed its focal images, and entered on other details as to its definition. 
The object of the present paper is the reverse of speculative. It aims to recall from 
mere speculation, to the road towards positive inquiry, all observers of the lunar 
surface. To our satellite hitherto those very ideas have been applied, which confused 
the whole early epochs of our terrestrial geology, the notion, viz. that its surface is a 
chaos, the result of primary, sudden, short-lived and lawless convulsion. We do not 
now connect the conception of irregularity with the history of the earth : — it is the 
triumph of science to have analysed that apparent chaos, and discerned order through 
it all. The mode by which this has been accomplished, it is well known, has 
been the arrangement of our terrene mountains according to their relation to time : 
their relative ages determined, the course of our world seemed smooth and harmo- 
nious, like the advance of any other great organization. Ought we not then to attempt 
to apply a similar mode of classification to the formations in the moon, — hoping to 
discern there also a course of development, and no confusion of manifestation of 
irregular convulsion ? Prof. Nichol then attempted to point out that there appeared 
a practical and positive mode by which such classification might be effected. It 
could not, in so far as he yet had discerned, be accomplished by tracing, as we had 
done on earth, relations between lunar upheavals and stratified rocks ; but another 
principle was quite as decisive in the information it gave, viz. the intersection of dis- 
locations. There are clear marks of dislocation in the moon ; nay, the surface of 
our satellite is overspread with them. These are the rays of light, or rather bright 
rays, that flow from almost all the great craters as their centres, and are also found 
where craters do not at present appear. Whatever the substance of this highly 
reflecting matter, it is evidently no superficial layer or stream, like lava, but extends 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 29- 

downwards a considerable depth into the body of the moon. In short, we have no 
likeness to it on earth, in the sense now spoken of, except our great trap and crystalline 
dykes. It seemed clear, then, that the intersection of these rays are really intersections 
of dislocations, from which we might deduce their chronology. Can the intersection, 
however, be suflSciently seen? in other words. Is the telescope adequate to deter- 
mine which of the two intersecting lines has disturbed or cut through the other? Prof. 
Nichol maintained the affirmative in many cases, and by aid of diagrams, taken down 
from direct observation, illustrated and enforced his views. 



Note on Solar Refraction. By Professor C. PiAzzi Smyth, JF?oyaZ Observa- 
tort/, EdinbuTffh. 

Amongst other interesting and important consequences of the dynamical theory 
of heat. Prof. W. Thomson having deduced the necessity of a resisting medium, 
the condensation of this about the sun, and a consequent refraction of the stars 
seen in that neighbourhood. Prof. Piazzi Smyth had endeavoured to ascertain by 
direct astronomical observation, whether any such effect were sensible to our best 
astronomical instruments. Owing to atmospheric disturbances, only three ob- 
servations, yielding two results, had been yet obtained ; but both these indicated a 
sensible amount of solar refraction. Should this effect be confirmed by more 
numerous observations, it must have important bearings on every branch of astro- 
nomy ; and as the atmosphere at all ordinary observatories presents almost 
insuperable obstacles, the author pointed out the advantage of stationing a tele- 
scope for this purpose on the summit of a high mountain. 



On Altitude Observations at Sea. By Professor C. Piazzi Smyth, 
Edinburgh. 

This paper treated mainly of the observation of altitudes at sea under circum- 
stances when at present they are generally unattainable, viz. when the sea horizon 
is not visible. After a statement of the necessary principles which should guide 
inventors in this matter, the author exhibited a new species of artificial horizon, 
which allowed all the latitude of the natural horizon as to errors in the position of 
the whole sextant ; and while exhibiting extreme sensibility to angular movement, 
was very little affected by any horizontal disturbance or translation through space. 

Any still outstanding difficulties were effectually removed by the employment, in 
addition, of a stand, which taking advantage of ttie composition of rotatory motion 
and the permanence of an axis of rotation, as seen on the grand scale in the con- 
stancy of the annual direction of the earth's pole, or in the pheenomenon of the 
precession of the equinoxes, and in a small way in a spinning-top, completely 
eliminated all the angular movements of which a ship is capable. 

This second subject of the paper concludes thus : — " To the first idea of taking 
advantage of the general principle for the present purpose, I believe that I was led in 
a great degree by the eminently clear and practical manner in which the Rev. Baden 
Powell exhibited by models, and expounded in his lectures in 1852 and 1853, the 
action of the composition of rotatory motion under various circumstances in nature 
and in art; for then I perceived why ' Troughton's top' had so narrowly, but 
completely escaped the honour of becoming a useful instrument to nautical astro- 
nomy; and how what was good in it might be transferred to a better planned 
apparatus. More recently, as every one knows, M. Foucault has added a degree of 
glory even to the mechanical law, by employing another feature of it in his ' gyro- 
scope,' as a means of detecting and exhibiting the rotation of the earth." 



On the Transmission of Time Signals. By Professor C. Piazzi Smyth. 
After alluding to the general subject of the longitude, the very large number of 
ships lost during the past year through errors of their longitude, and the recognized 
aids that have been furnished to seamen in the erection of time-balls, the author 



30 



REPORT 1855. 



described the recently erected time-ball on the Nelson Monument, on the Calton 
Hill, Edinburgh ; which ball is dropped daily by a clock adjusted to true time in 
the Edinburgh Observatory, and acting through electric agency, in much the same 
way as at the Greenwich Observatory. 

This electric agency having been proved, through a year and a half, to be most 
certain and accurate, and the ball proving of great advantage to Edinburgh and 
Leith, the question of extending the signal to the other parts of Scotland had been 
raised. 

If only local means be provided for raising the halls, there can be no difficulty 
in dropping them with equal accuracy, and by the same electric contact which drops 
the Edinburgh time-ball, if they also be connected together metaUically by the 
wires of the Electric Telegraph. 

But, practically, there is some difficulty, or rather doubt, when the distance 
becomes great, on account of the loss of electricity by the way. An actual experi- 
ment, therefore, in the proposed locality, was important ; and Sir T. Makdougall 
Brisbane, having long desired to see a time-ball established in Glasgow, most libe- 
rally volunteered to bear the expense of laying down temporary wires between the 
telegraph station and the meeting-room of Section G. The Royal Scottish Society 
of Arts lent a large model of a time-ball ; and the Electric Telegraph Company lent 
many batteries, and the services of their practised assistants. With this help, the 
model was erected in the room of Section G, placed in electric connexion with the 
Edinburgh Observatory, and having been half raised at five minutes and full raised 
at two minutes before one o'clock, according to preliminary signals received, at one 
o'clock P.M. exactly, the ball was dropped by the Edinburgh clock at the same 
instant as it also dropped the Edinburgh time-ball. 



Meteorology. 



On the Fall of Rain at Arbroath. By Alexander Brown, Arbroath. 

The following Table, containing a synopsis of the depth of rain which falls at 
Arbroath, was compiled for insertion in the article " Forfarshire " in the forthcoming 
edition of the ' Encyclopaedia Britannica/ and is one of a series for the purpose of 
showing the climate of that county : — 



Years. 


Spring. 


Summer. 


Autumn. 


Winter. 


Total. 


March. 

April. 

May. 


June. 
July. 
August. 


September. 

October. 

November. 


December. 

January. 

February. 


1845... 
1846... 
1847... 
1848... 
1849... 
1850... 
1851... 
1852... 
1853... 
1854... 


inches. 
1-620 
6152 
7-016 
6-105 
4-514 
4-490 
7-280 
2-323 
3-043 
3-897 


inches. 
9-021 
8-103 
5-167 
9823 
6-857 
5-764 
7-308 
6-120 
7-515 
5-744 


inches. 
8-926 

10-787 
5-506 
7-242 
4-530 
6-239 
3-481 
9-186 
9-128 
6-417 


inches. 
4-840 
3-494 

12-808 
6-793 
8-033 
6-212 
6-869 

11-525 
5-242 
4-220 


inches. 
24-407 
28-536 
30-497 
29-963 
23-934 
22-705 
24-938 
29-154 
24-928 
20-278 


Mean... 


4-644 


7-142 


7-144 


7-004 


25-934 



From the Table, it appears that at Arbroath, in latitude 56° 34' N., Longitude, 2" 
36' W., the mean annual fall of rain from ten years' observation, ending February 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 31 

1855, was 25*934 (nearly 26) inches. Beginning the year with March, about one- 
sixth of the annual fall, or 4'644 inches, occurs in the three spring months of March, 
April, and May, and the remaining five-sixths, or 2r29 inches, in the summer, 
autumn, and winter months, the fall in each of the three latter quarters being nearly 
equal. In any three months during the period above-mentioned, the greatest fall 
was in the winter of 1847, 12*808 inches, and the least in the spring of 1845, 1*62 
inch. The average number of days in each year on which rain fell was 146. The 
height of the rain-gauge above the sea is 40 feet, and 3 feet from the ground ; distant 
from the sea three-eighths of a mile. 



Remarkable Hailstorms in India, from March 1851 to May 1855. By 
Dr. George Buist, F.R.S, (^Communicated by Colonel Sykes, F.R.S.) 

Perhaps nowhere do the phsenomena of hailstorms manifest themselves in such 
frequency and magnificence as in India, or present such opportunities of studying the 
matter itself with such care and advantage. 

Reflecting on the imperfections of the records of these remarkable phaeno- 
mena, the author resolved, in 1839, to prepare for publication a list of the more 
remarkable hailstorms that had occurred in India as far back as information per- 
mitted. The most invaluable assistance was derived in this inquiry, between the 
years 1816 and 1842, from the Asiatic Journal, a publication discontinued thirteen 
years ago, the second part (about the half) of each volume of which was filled with 
most judicious selections of extracts from the newspapers ; the whole work being so 
admirably indexed, that anything contained in it, whether original or selected, might 
be examined with the utmost certainty, and almost without trouble. For the next ten 
years intervening betwixt 1841 and 1851, the newspapers required to be searched; 
a somewhat tiresome task, and one of considerable labour ; so that it is not impro- 
bable that oversights may have occurred : since 1851, the extracts have been collected 
as they appeared in print. 

The following will afi^ord an outline of the conclusions I have for the present 
arrived at : I say for the present, for but few of them are fully established, and all 
stand in need of extension and elucidation : — 

Tones when Hailstorms occur*. — Hailstorms occur in India, so far as appeeirs from 
the published extracts, in the following proportions for the various months of the 
year : — 



January 5 

February 20 

March 31 

April 34 

May 17 

June 4 



July 2 

August 

September 2 

October 3 

November 4 

December 5 



It will be seen that hail chiefly falls in our driest months, February, March, and 
April, and does not seem dependent on temperature ; May, which supplies seven- 
teen hailstorms, being the hottest month of the year, the true maxima due to the 
season being masked by the rains wherever these occur near the summer solstice. ■ 
December and January, almost the coldest months, are nearly devoid of hail. We 
have a few instances of hail occurring in June and July in Central India, when the 
rains were late in setting in, but the hailstones in those cases were always small, and 
the falls light in comparison to those experienced in other periods of the year. 

Hours when Hailstorms occur. — It very seldom happens that writers advert to the 
hours when hailstorms occur. Of a list of 30 published from the notes of that inde- 
fatigable observer Dr. Spilsbury, there are 10 set down as occurring at 3 or 4 p.m. ; 
1 at 4 P.M. ; 4 at sunset; 5 at 11 a.m. or noon ; 2 at 2 p.m. ; 1 at 8 a.m. ; cind 1 at 
9 A.M. Only 3 occur after dark, and none later than midnight. 

* The author refers to and corrects some of the statements of Mrs. Somerville and Dr. 
Thomson. 



32 



REPORT — 1855. 



Places from which Accounts of Hailstorms have heen received, arranged 
chronologically .\ 



Meerut 1761, 1851, 1855 

Cawnpore 1817,1855 

Mirzapore 1819, 1852 

Jubbulpore, 1821-23-24-25- 
27-31-36-37-39-40-41 

Bangalore 1S22, 1851 

Monghyr 1823 

Kamptee 1823,1831 

Lahargong 1825 

Bopalpore 1825 

Garth 1825 

Serampore 1827, 1829 

Tindolle 1827 

Kotah 1827 

Calcutta 1829 

Sylhet 1830 

Allahabad 1833 

N. W. Mountains 1827,1829 

Nagpoor '. 1831 

Raneegunge 1834 

Poona 1834,1847,1853 

Benares 1836 

Secunderabad ..1837, 1851 

Seetapore 1838 

Near Calcutta 183S 



Saugor 1838, 1840, 

Jessore 

Mandavee 

Sukkur 

Sattara 1845, 1850, 

Lahore 1847, 

Simla 1847,1849, 

Belgaum 1847, 

Bancoora 

Near Nassiek 

Ediilabad 

Broach 

Deesa 

Indore 

Jaulnah 

Rhotas 

Tipperah 

Purneah 1849, 

Punjab 

Bhooloola 

Kurnool 

Peshawur 1849, 

Dacca 

Delhi 1849,1851, 

Banda 



1847 
1840 
1840 
1844 
1852 
1853 
1853 
1849 
1847 
1848 
1848 
1849 
1849 
1849 
1849 
1849 
1849 
1852 
1849 
1849 
1849 
1853 
1849 
1853 
1849 



Gwalior 1850 

Rajpeepla 1850, 1851 

Rajkote 1850 

Rungpore 1851 

Ootacamund 1852 

Pondicherry 1852 

Tirhoot 1852 

Shahpoor (Punjaub) . . 1852 

Kalabagh 1852 

Landoor 1852 

Sealkote 1852 

Kurrachee..l852, 1853,1854 

Mahableshwar 1 852 

Hydrabad (Sinde) 1852 

Ceylon 1852,1855 

Ferozepoor 1853 

Nainee Tal 1854 

Roorkee 1854 

Neemuch 1854 

Jouneer 1854 

Poorundhur 1854 

Aurungabad 1854 

Bolarum 1855 

Hurryhur 1855 



Places where Hailstorms have occurred in India, arranged alphabetically. 

Pondicherry 1852 

Poona 1834,1847,1853 

Poorundhur 1854 

Punjaub 1849 

Purneah 1849, 1852 

Rajkote 1850 

Rajpeepla 1850, 1851 

Raneegunge 1 834 

Rhotas 1849 

Roorkee 1854 

Rungpore 1851 

Sattara 1845, 1850, 1852 

Saugor 1838,1840, 1847 

Sealkote 1852 

Secunderabad ..1837,1851 

Seetapore 1838 

Serampore 1827, 1829 

Shahpore (Punjab) 1852 

Simla 1847,1849, 1853 

Sukkur 1844 

Sylhet 1830 

Tindolle 1827 

Tipperah 1849 

Tirhoot 1852 



Allahabad 1833 

Aurungabad 1854 

Bancoora 1847 

Banda 1849 

Bangalore 1822,1851 

Belgaum 1847, 1849 

Benares 1836 

Bhooloola 1849 

Bolarum 1855 

Bopalpore 1825 

Broach 1849 

Calcutta 1829 

Near Calcutta 1838 

Cawnpore 1817, 1855 

Ceylon 1852, 1855 

Dacca 1849 

Deesa 1849 

Delhi 1849,1851,1853 

Edulabad 1848 

Ferozepoor 1853 

Garth 1825 

Gwalior 1850 

Hurryhur 1865 

Hydrabad (Sinde) ....1852 
Indore 1849 



Jaulnah 1849 

Jessore 1840 

Jooneer 1 854 

Jubbulpore 1821-23-24-25- 
27-31-36-37-39-40-41 

Kalabagh 1852 

Kamptee 1823,1831 

Kotah 1827 

Kurnool 1849 

Kurrachee. .1852, 1853, 1854 

Lahargong 1825 

Lahore 1847,1853 

Landour 1852 

Mahableshwur 1 852 

Mandvee 1840 

Meerut 1761, 1850.1855 

Mirzapore 1819, 1852 

Monghyr 1823 

Nagpoor 1831 

Nainee Tal 1854 

Near Nassiek 1848 

Neemuch 1854 

N.VV. Mountains 1827,1829 

Ootacamund 1852 

Peshawur 1849, 1853 



From the fortgoing tables of localities where the hailstorms enumerated in my two 
lists have occurred, one very singular anomaly will become apparent — that whereas 
the Delta of the Ganges down to the sea, in lat. 22°, and but little raised above the 
highest tide, whose damp, tepid atmosphere contrasts as strikingly as possible with 
the pure crisp, vapourless air of the mountains, is the favourite locality of hailstorms, 
and whereas these are frequent along the western shore of the Bay of Bengal — from 
Surat south to Ceylon, in corresponding latitudes and altitudes on the Malabar 
coast, hail is a thing nearly unknown, though appearing in abundance immediately 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 33 

to the north-westward, along the shores of Cutch and Sind, and to the eastward, 
as at Sattara, Mahableshwur, in the Ghauts, and all over the Deccau, so soon as we 
get some 1500 feet above the level of the sea. The climate of the eastern side of 
India is in summer somewhat drier and hotter, as it is colder in winter, than along 
the Malabar coast ; but there is no such difference betwixt them as to explain, so 
far as appears, the absence of hail*. 

In Europe and America, according to Dr. Thompson and Mrs. Somerville, hail 
rarely falls amongst or very near the mountains ; in India no such law obtains. 
In my present and previous lists will be found accounts of hailstorms in the central 
provinces of Ceylon, at Ootacamund on the Neilgherries, both 6000 feet above the 
sea, and in contiguity with mountain masses of much greater elevation, Dodabetta 
in the latter case towering to the altitude of 8500 feet ; at Sattara and Mahablesh- 
wur, in the Western Ghauts, 1700 and 4500 feet respectively ; at Simla, 8000 ; at 
NaineeTal, 6000 ; and at the Jummoo Highlands 1500 above the sea — the last three 
in the bosom of the Himalayas. 

In Europe, hailstorms usually travel rapidly over the country in straight narrow 
bands, of vast length, but very small lateral extension. On the 24th of July, 18 18, 
a hailstorm passed over the Orkneys from S.W. to N.E., twenty miles in length and 
a mile and a half in breadth : it travelled at the rate of a mile in a minute and a 
half, or the speed of a race-horse ; ice covered the ground to the depth of 9 inches, 
though the storm at no given place endured beyond as many minutesf. In 1788, a 
hailstorm moved directly from the S.W. of France to the shores of Holland. It 
marched along in two columns, the breadth of that on the west being ten miles, that 
of the east five miles, with twelve miles between them. The one extended nearly 
500 miles, the other 440 miles ; the destruction occasioned by it amounted to close 
on a million sterling J. 

The Indian hailstorm falls in very limited patches, and seldom lasts above fifteen 
or twenty minutes ; but the frequency with which hailstorms occur simultaneously at 
places remote from each other, but nearly in straight lines, seems to indicate a ten- 
dency on the part of the column to become continuous ; probablv they are at times 
more so than we imagine, only that such things are not made known to us where 
there are no Europeans, and where the country is thinly inhabited. The most 
noble of these are the hailstorms which fell on the 12th and 13th of Maj', 1853, at 
Ferozepore, Lahore, and Meean Meer, Peshawur, and Jummoo, places occupying a 
line of 350 miles in length, right across the Punjaub : unluckily the hours at which 
they occurred at these places respectively are not given. 

Although this is the only instance I am aware of, of a series of hailstorms bursting 
out simultaneously, and, if not quite forming a continuous line, appearing somewhat 
like a string of beads stretched across the country, we have numbers of them occur- 
ring in pairs or in threes on the same day at places remote from each other. Our 
first outbursts of hail nearly always happen within a week or two of each other, at 
what may almost be termed the glacial periods of our climate ; and I have no doubt 
that in many of these cases it would appear that there had been independent chains 
of hail showers, or of local atmospheric changes, many of which were accompanied 
by hail, had a greater abundance of records for reference existed. The following 
examples of this will be found in the printed list : — 

Spa1pofe:;:::::::;::;;:;::}6o°^''^s^p^'^t' ^^h February, 1825. 
AumTgabad ■■::.■::.■.■::::.■::: }75 ^^^^^ ^p^^-^ j ^th May, 1849. 

Deesa 350 miles from latter J 

* In my previous paper, prepared by Colonel Sykes for the British Association, and given 
in abstract in their Reports for 1851, with some vaUiable emendations and additions of his 
own, it was stated that no hail fell on the sea-level south of lat. 20° — it should have been 
added, on the western shore of India ; it seems not at all uncommon on the eastern shore. A 
hailstorm occurred at Pondicherry, south of Madras, in 1852, and various other places, if my 
memory serves me right, which I have not been able to catalogue. Trichinopoly, Masidipatam, 
and the Gossam Valley, some way from the shore, but nearly on a level with the sea, are 
mentioned by Dr. P. Thompson, on the authority of Dr. Turnbull Christie and Colonel Bowler. 

t Thompson, p. 175. + /6jrf. 24,962,000 francs. 

1855. 3 



34 REPORT — 1855. 

siX".!.::::::::::::::::::::: } ^^q "^^^^^ ^p^--* jsrd May, 1849. 

Peshawur 400 miles from Simla J 

Probably also at Dacca, where hail showers occurred almost daily during the first 
week of May. 

NuSn'^OTe }^° "^'^^^ ^^^^^' ^"'^ March, 1852. 

De^r''.^!^..!^'.'!^?...:::".:;::: }^°^ """^^ ^p^^*- ^^^^ ^p"^- 1^^*- 

On the I6th there was a severe hailstorm at Sattara, 700 miles south of Hydra- 
bad ; but I have only coupled together those occurring on the same day. 

It must not always be assumed that places are always prone to hail in proportion 
to the number of hailstorms assigned to them ; the apparent excess or deficiency of 
these is not unfrequently to be ascribed to the care or negligence with which they 
have been recorded. The great seeming predominance of them at Jubbulpore is 
attributed mainly to the residence for twenty years at that station of Dr. Spilsbury, 
a faithful, patient, and minute observer in all departments of natural history. 

In like manner, when we find hailstorms occurring forty times in twenty-six years, 
or on an average 1"G5 times a year, from 1820 to 1846, and then find that the 
years 1847, 1848, and 1849 aft'ord us twenty, we must not ascribe the whole, or 
perhaps any part of this, to change of climate, but to improved registration. On the 
other hand, again, when we find 1849 affording us fifteen storms, or above three times 
the number of any of the years around, and when there is no reason why there should 
have been any change in respect of registry, we may fairly set this year down as 
having been peculiarly favoured in its falls of hail. 

There are four occasions on which remarkable masses of ice, of many hundred 
pounds in weight, are believed to have fallen in India. One near Seringapatam, in 
the end of last centurj'^, said to have been the size of an elephant. It took three days 
to melt. We have no further particulars, but there is no reason whatever for our 
doubting the fact. 

In 1826, a mass of ice nearly a cubic yard in size, fell in Khandeish. 

In April, 1838, a mass of hailstones, 20 feet in its larger diameter, fell at 
Dharwar. 

On the 22nd of May, after a violent hailstorm, 80 miles south of Bangalore, an 
immense block of ice, consisting of hailstones cemented together, was found in a 
dry well. 

These masses of ice, like many of those considered hailstones of the largest size, 
have, in all probability, been formed by violent whirlwinds or eddies, and seem to 
have reached the monstrous dimensions in which we find them, either on their ap- 
proach to or their impingement on the ground ; and the same thing will apply to 
those of much more moderate bulk, and which are commonly considered hailstones, 
though when examined they turn out to be a number of these aggregated together. 
Many of the masses doubtless owe their origin to being swept, like that of 1852 near 
Belgaum, into hollows or cavities — in this particular case into a dry well — where 
they become almost immediately congealed into a mass. 

Since 1850 two hailstorms of much greater magnitude, and more disastrous con- 
sequences, have occurred than any here made mention of, that in the Himala3'as 
north of the Peshawur on the 12th of May, 1853, when eighty-four human beings 
and 3000 oxen were killed, and that which occurred at Nainee Tal, a Sanitarium on 
the lower Himalayas, on the 1 1th of May, 1855. Of the Peshawur storm we have 
few details beyond the fact that the ice masses were very hard, compact, and spherical, 
many of them measuring 3J inches in diameter, or nearly a foot in circumference ; 
and this fact seems to have been given from measurement, not by guess. 

The description of the Nainee Tal storm, from the pen of an eye-witness of intelU- 
gence and information, is the best we possess. The approach of the storm was 
heralded in by a noise as if thousands of bags of walnuts were being emptied in the 
air. At first the hail was of comparatively small size, about that of pigeons' eggs ; 
it gradually increased in magnitude, till it reached the dimensions of cricket-balls. 
Pieces, picked up at all parts of the station, were carefully weighed and measured, 
and the results will be found further on. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 35 

In the unhappy ignorance of the science of meteorology now prevailing around us, 
it seems generally supposed that these hailstorms are peculiar to India; and many 
educated persons who have lived long in the country are disposed to receive such 
narratives as those of the Peshawur and Nainee Tal ice-storms as fabulous, or grossly 
exaggerated. To correct errors of this sort, and if possible encourage observation, I 
may refer to Dr. Purdie Thompson's Meteorology, published in 1849, the year before 
the first collection of Indian hailstorms was laid before the world. He falls into 
the error of believing them nearly unknown between the tropics. 

Form.— The forms of the hailstones which fall in India seem pretty much the 
same as those that have been examined at home, and they are chiefly of four kinds : — ' 
1, pure crystalline masses, either globular or lenticular, internally transparent, but 
covered externally with a coating of opake white ice ; 2, the same, but with a star 
of many points in the centre, the principal rays of which extend to the circumference, 
the section being singularly beautiful ; 3, nearly globular, consisting of thin con- 
centric layers, like the coatings of an onion, of diflFerent degrees of transparency, as 
if increased in size by film after film being frozen over them in their descent ; and 4, 
agglutinated masses of hailstones, cemented together subsequent to their primary 
formation— if indeed these last, which may consist in part of any of the previous 
three varieties, are entitled to the name of hailstones at all. 

Sise. — I have already stated that we are now no longer required to refer, unless 
for the sake of familiar comparison, to our hail being as large as pigeon, pullet, or 
goose eggs, or pumpkins, having abundance of accounts to quote from where it has 
been correctly weighed and measured, and its precise dimensions put on record. The 
largest hailstones seem to be from ten to thirteen inches, and to weigh from nine 
to eighteen ounces. But these are the extreme exceptional cases ; and our average 
maxima appear to be from eight to ten inches in circumference, and from two to 
four ounces in weight. Their forms are so seldom regular, that it is rarely possible 
to deduce the one fact from the other. 

It is not every one who has the promptitude of the describer of the Nainee Tal 
storm ; but were any one, when a hailstorm occurs, to pick up two or three of the 
largest pieces, taking care to note the number, and if not provided with a balance of 
his own, to send the water they have yielded to the apothecary of the station to be 
weighed or measured, forwarding a note of the result, the cubical contents of the 
mass might be easily computed, and much valuable information obtained. From the 
weight of the water it yielded, one of the most important facts connected with it becomes 
determined, its mass. The fracture of the hailstones when large, with the view to 
examining, and, if possible, sketching their internal substance, is what should be 
resorted to as frequently as possible, India aflFording much greater facilities in this 
respect than can be looked for elsewhere. 

No hailstones have ever been known to fall in India to be compared in magnitude 
to very many of those already enumerated vaunted blocks of ice, of anything like 
equal in size to at least a dozen described by Dr. Thompson himself as having fallen 
in Europe. The great distinguishing characteristic of the Indian, as contrasted with 
the European hailstorm, is, that with us in the great majority of cases the hail which 
falls exceeds the size of filberts, at home it seldom amounts to that of peas or beans; 
that which here is the rule, occurring many times every year, is in Europe the 
exception — not happening oftener than once in ten or twenty years. 

Dr. Buist then describes fifty-one hailstorms, from which the following are selec- 
tions : — 

Hailstorm near Bangalore at Chichanallenhully, on the 22nd of May, 1851. 
Lat. 12° 57', long. 77° 38'. (From the Bombay Times.) 

On the evening of the 22nd of May, at Chickanallenhully, eighty miles south-west 
of Bangalore, and forty miles west of Toomcoor, there was a heavy fall of rain, 
accompanied, after the night closed in, by thunder, hghtning, and hail. The hail- 
stones were for the most part about the size of oranges and limes, which broke the 
tiles on the roofs of houses, and seriously injured cocoanut and beetlenut gardens, 
and many fruit-trees, crushing many young trees, and breaking down a few larger 
ones, but neither men nor beasts were injured, all having sought shelter at the com- 
mencement of the rain. The next morning many hailstones as large as pumpkins 
and jack-fruit were found on the plain, extending three miles south of the town ; and 

3* 



36 REPORT— 1855. 

one immense block, measucing four and a half feet in length, three feet in breadth, 
and eighteen inches in thickness, was found in a dry well. 

Hailstorm at Kandy (Ceylon) on the 15th of March, 1852. 
Lat. 7° 17' N., long. 80° 36' E. 
Kandy (Ceylon). — " On Monday (15th) afternoon, on a sudden the town assumed a 
dismal appearance, and heavy showers of rain commenced to fall, accompanied by 
peels of thunder. The wind blew with such irresistible fury that the branches of some 
trees towards the Lake Road were broken down to the ground. There was also a fall 
of hail for nearly an hour, and so much was the curiosity it excited, that crowds 
of persons were seen, in spite of the rain, busily engaged in picking up the stones, 
which were as large as bullets. After a few hours the rain ceased, thick clouds that 
were overspreading the country disappeared, and a fine calm and clear evening fol- 
lowed. The night was quite obscure, and the atmosphere very humid ; a star was 
scarcely to be seen in the firmament, and lightning was flashing from every quarter, 
illuminating the country, and making the smallest object visible. 

Hailstorm at Ootacamund, on the IQth of March, 1852. 
Lat. 11° 50' N., long. 76° 45'. Alt. 7300 feet. 

A very severe hailstorm occurred at Ootacamund at 2 p.m. on the 19th of March. 
The hailstones were not large, but sufficiently so to do considerable damage in 
the gardens. It lasted about an hour, when the ground was as white as if snow had 
fallen. Buckets full, caught from the house-tops, were next morning large lumps 
of ice ; but as this is an article little cared for in this cold region, no one took 
the trouble to keep it. Since this occurred the weather has been much colder, 
and we cannot as yet throw off any of our winter clothing or blankets. 
Hailstorm at Nursingpore, on the IQth and 20th of March, 1852. 
Lat. 22° 56' N., long. 79' 18' E. Alt. IQOO feet. 

A letter of the 30th March, from Nursingpore, contains the following items : — 
"In my last of the 13th April I mentioned that the weather was extremely sultry, 
hazy, and suspicious ; and I have now to communicate that, from the 17th to the 27th, 
we experienced a stormy period, of greater intensity and duration than is usually 
encountered inland upon the sun's equinoctial passage. Rain, more or less, fell on 
each day, attended invariably with much lightning and thunder, and occasionally 
with violent gusts of wind. On the 19th, at 2*' 50™ p.m., a fall of hail of the size 
of ordinary grapes occurred, with lightning and loud bursts of thunder; and on the 
following day, at 2'' 10™ p.m., a similar phsenomenon took place during bright sun- 
shine. No cloud in this instance was to be discerned whence the hail proceeded. 
No lightning or thunder accompanied this last fall of hail here, and the only body of 
cloud was at an altitude of about 40^ in the south-west quarter. The zenith was 
quite clear. The total fall of rain amounted to r337 inch during the above days." 

Hailstorm at Pondicherry, on the 2ith of March, 1852. 
Lat. 11° 57' N., long. 79° 54' E. Alt. 20 feet. 
Pondicherry, 2Ath March. — Pondicherry was visited by a hailstorm between 3 and 
4 in the afternoon of Wednesday last (24th), during a squall from the north-east. 
The hailstones, which fell in large quantities for about 15 minutes, were generally 
formed of a transparent covering over a white but opake interior, and most of them 
were flattened or armed with points. The largest might have been an inch and a 
half in diameter. 

Hailstorm at Mahableshwur , on the \Qth of April, 1852. 
Lat. 17° 56' N., long. 73° 30' E. Alt. 4500 feet. 
On Friday last, the l6th of April, the weather had become perfectly oppressive in the 
forenoon, preceded some few days by great piles of thunder-clouds to N.N.E. About 
2 o'clock the sky became suddenly overcast, followed by loud claps of thunder and 
vivid and forked lightning; the thunder increased louder, peal after peal, and lightning 
flash after flash, until 5 minutes to 4 p.m., when the wind veered round to N.E., and 
with it came torrents of rain, accompanied by hail, the largest of which was at least 
the size of a pigeon's egg ; such a shower of the latter I cannot recollect ever before 
witnessing. The entire compound of my house was one sheet of irregular ice — 
millions of stones might be picked up in a few minutes. This lasted for an hour, and 
I have since ascertained that the pluviometer indicated the fall of 1"50 inch. During 



TRANSACTIOXS OF THE SECTIONS. 3? 

the same night we had another light shower of some "06 or -07 of an inch. Strange, 
that there was no depression of the barometer ; on the contrary, it had risen "050 
of an inch above that of the previous day ! 

Hailstorm at Poorundhnr, on the Wth of December, 1854. 
Lat. 18° 42' N., long. 14° 12' E. Alt. 3500 feet. 

A severe hailstorm was experienced in the Poorundhur Talooka of this Collec- 
torate on the afternoon of the 11th of December. Numbers of persons were severely 
injured by the failing of large ice-flakes, many of them weighing several pounds, 
and cattle in considerable numbers have died from the effects of the storm, which, for 
the time it lasted (about three hours), was the most severe of any within the recol- 
lection of the oldest inhabitant. The hailstorm was succeeded, as at Jooneer, by a 
very heavy fall of rain, and the grain crops, gardens, and fruit-trees have suffered 
greatly therefrom. Poorundhur is situated at a distance of seventy miles south-east 
of Jooneer ; but we have not yet heard that the intervening districts have experi- 
enced similar phaenomena to those above described. There has been no particular 
atmospheric disturbance in or around Poona, the climate of which station is now 
delightful, as it always is at this time of year. — Poona Observer, Dec. 20. 

The most unusual occurrence of a hailstorm in Ceylon has lately taken place. A 
few days since at Puselava, following a thunder-storm, a heavy fall of hail took 
place, lasting half an hour. In some places, where the wind drove the hail into 
corners, whole handsfuU of hail, the size of marbles, were gathered. The natives 
were struck with wonderment, and whilst shifting the frozen drops from hand to 
hand, declared that it was so hot that they could not hold it. The hail actually for 
some minutes whitened the ground in many places. At Hunasgeria also a shower 
of hail fell on the same day, but not in the same quantity as at Puselava. Some 
years ago we saw a small fall of hail at Kornegalle. It is unknown either at Newera 
Killia or at the Neilgherries. — Ceylon Times, April 13. 

Hailstorm at Futtehgurh, on the 2\st of April, 1855. Lat. 26° 10', long. 75° 10'. 

A correspondent at Futtehgurh, writing on the 24th of April, mentions the occur- 
rence of a severe hailstorm on Saturday last, which had caused considerable 
damage to the tobacco and melon fields. Our correspondent says the hailstones 
were larger than he ever beheld ; one he measured being seven inches in circum- 
ference. Heavy clouds were hanging about at the time of writing. — Delhi 
Gazette, April 26. 

A correspondent gives the following account of a hailstorm which took place at 
Futtehgurh on the 21st April : — "Last Saturday we had an awful hailstorm, such 
a one as probably has not been known for a century. The hailstones, without 
exaggeration, were larger than turkey eggs, and sufficient to have knocked a bullock 
down. As they fell, you saw them rebounding six feet in height." 

Hailstorm at Nainee Tal, on the Uth of May, 1855. Lat. 29° 20', long. 79° 80'. 

On the 11th of May 1855, Nainee Tal was visited by a storm of hail, which, as 
regards the size, weight, and number of the stones, has probably never been sur- 
passed by any in the world. A calm, cool morning ; a hot, enervating noon ; a 
cold evening and night, with the wind blowing bleakly from the north, had charac- 
terized the few preceding days. The barometer had stood high, and the wet-bulb ther- 
mometer indicated an extremely dry atmosphere. On the 10th, at 4 p.m., the dry- 
bulb thermometer stood, under a grass chopper, at 80 degrees Fahr. ; on the 11th, 
at the same hour and place, at 62 degrees Fahr. ! On the former date, the difference 
between the dry- and wet-bulb thermometers was 15 degrees ; on the latter, this 
difference was reduced to 4 degrees ! Towards 6 p.m., a small preliminary shower 
of rain fell, deep-toned thunder rolled and reverberated, and vivid lightning streamed 
and blazed over the devoted station. The hail was ushered in by a few bright lens- 
shaped stones, as large as pigeons' eggs ; then came more. Many were the weighings 
and measurings of these monsters over all parts of the station. Some weighed 6, 
others 8, others 10 ounces ; and one or two more than 1|- pound avoirdupois, with 
circumferences varying from 9 to 13 inches. Though no bullocks were killed, a 
monkey was, and three human beings were knocked down. Birds were killed, 
trees barked, and houses unroofed. Such was the storm of the 1 1th of May, and it 
forms an epoch in the meteorological history of Nainee Tal ; for though hail is 
common enough here in the hot weather, no stones (during the ten years that Sir 



38 REPORT 1855. 

W. Richards has kept a register) of any size have ever fallen except once, and then 
they were only 2^ inches in circumference. The stones measured from 1 to 14 
inches about. 

TV/iai is a Hailstorm''. — Aqueous vapour condensed into ice, by passing through 
an intensely cold atmosphere, is the apparent, and probably the true answer. Some 
contend, that, because hail falls so rarely in winter, and the cloud whence it comes 
is usually at no great altitude, there being at the same time almost always thunder 
and lightning (with atmospheric electrometers changing in intensity), and passing 
from positive to negative, and vice versa (ten times in a minute), hence electricity 
must have quite as much to do in the matter as cold. But the latter seems the most 
reasonable view. In almost all very large hailstones (as was observed here) is found 
a nucleus, a piece of snow, or a small opake hailstone in the centre, surrounded by 
transparent coverings, one over another, concentrically arranged (like an onion), 
leading to the belief that the first concretion was a small one, and that it accumulated 
in its descent ; that a whirlwind above kept battering these formations together, and 
prevented their falling, until at length, immensely enlarged, and getting out of this 
influence, they came down upon terra firma. We are not justified in assigning limits 
to the amount of cold in the upper strata of the atmosphere. 

On a Rainbow seen after Sunset. By the Rev. Professor Chevallier. 

At the meeting of the Association in 1849, an account was given of a rainbow 
seen after actual sunset (Report, p. 16) ; and it was suggested that, in order to 
account for it, either the horizontal refraction must have been much greater than its 
ordinary value, or the rainbow must have been formed in a very elevated region of 
the atmosphere. 

On August 11, 1855, a rainbow was seen at Whitby, by Mr. C. P. Knight, 
which seems to show that such a phsenomenon may arise from rain falling at a 
great height. The mean Greenwich time of the apparent setting of the sun's upper 
limb, taking refraction into account, was 7^ 44™. 

At 7*^ 30™, " railway time," a rainbow was seen, and continued to be visible till 
7'' 48™, which is thus described. "It appeared to be far above the earth's surface. 
It was higher up than some clouds called cirro-stratus (in a sketch which accom- 
panied the account) ; and those clouds were seen in front of the bow in several 
places. Rain-clouds were some distance below these, and far above all were some 
filmy light cirri, lit up by the sun. There were only two or three small spaces of 
blue sky to be seen. No rain had fallen for some hours ; and there was no appear- 
ance of any falling where the bow was. The time I had was Greenwich time." 

Although the time given may not be quite accurate, it seems to be established 
that this rainbow was seen after actual sunset, and that it was formed in an elevated 
region of the atmosphere. 

Improvements on a Dew-point Hygrometer lately described by the Author. 
By Professor Coxnell, F.R.S. L. <§• E. 

This instrument consists of a little bottle of thin brass, polished externally, con- 
nected laterally with a small exhausting syringe, and having a thermometer inserted 
in it, by means of an air-tight brass stopper. Ether having been previously intro- 
duced into the bottle, the temperature is gradually reduced by working the syringe 
until moisture is deposited on the bottle. The thermometer then indicates the dew- 
point. An intercepting portion of ivory prevents the communication of the heat of 
friction to the bottle. The valves of the syringe are constructed of gold-beaters' leaf. 

A few simple changes, since the instrument was described in the Transactions of 
the Royal Society of Edinburgh and in the Philosophical Magazine for 1854, have 
greatly facilitated its manipulation, and have made it less liable to injury. 

The brass bottle is now connected with the syringe by means of a coupling screw 
instead of a common screw. This permits the bottle with the inserted thermometer 
to be at once brought into the proper vertical position, whatever be the nature and 
situation of the fixture to which the clamp, by which the instrument is secured when 
in operation, is attached. The projecting portion of the ivory intercepting partition 
is now made of brass, and is therefore not liable to fracture as it was previously. 
The form of the key employed in screwing and unscrewing the parts of the instru- 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 39 

ment, has now been so altered as not to cause any injury when made use of, as it 
sometimes did previously. 

It was found in a late tour on the continent that no part of the instrument is 
liable to injury from the ordinary concussions of travelling ; and its use was ascer- 
tained to be as well adapted to continental climates, so far as was tried, as to that of 
Great Britain. 

Wind-charts of the Atlantic, compiled from Maury's Pilot Charts. 
By Captain FitzRoy, R.N., F.R.S. 

These diagrams are intended to show what winds prevail, at the four quarters of 
the year, in the Atlantic. 

Each figure should be considered by itself alone, as the scales are generally very 
different, depending on the number of observations from which the respective 
diagrams are constructed. 

Relative prevalence of wind (or calm) is shown in each square of ten degrees ; but 
in no case is absolute amount given ; nor is strength of wind exhibited, as it may be 
hereafter. 

The navigator may be influenced, in shaping a course, by the probabiUty of find- 
ing certain winds more or less favourable in certain localities. 

To a sailing ship such considerations are most important ; and a glance at these 
charts shows a seaman how the wind blows (usually) during a season, as readily as 
his " dog-vane " indicates the (apparent) direction at any moment of observation. 

The diagrams illustrate Maury's Pilot Charts, in which similar information is 
offered by numbers, which require more mental operation in their use than these 
graphical figures. 

In each square the numerical data contained in four of Lieut. Maury's five-degree 
squares are combined in the following manner. 

Of a circle inscribed in any such square, the radius is taken as a measure of the 
sum of the greatest number of observations of the most prevalent wind ; and other 
lines, likewise drawn (to leeward respectively) from the centre, and on the same scale, 
indicate the relative duration or prevalence of other winds (each observation 
referring to a period of eight hours), and through the extremities of these lines a 
boundary is traced. 

As a circle is said to be generated by the revolution of a line around a point, so 
the figure representing successive directions of wind may be supposed to be generated 
by the motions of a wind-vane, and the lines or points may extend from the centre 
(like the growth of crystals) in proportion to the persistence (or continuance) of the 
vane in their respective directions. 

The relative amount or duration of calms is shown by a circle, of which the 
radius equals (according to the scale of the diagram) the number of (eight-hour) 
periods in which there was little or no wind. 

The direction of wind is corrected, approximately, for variation of the compass. 

The larger area of each figure is to leeward of the centre of the square (or inscribed 
circle) . 

The calendar quarters of the year are adopted advisedly, because the considera- 
tion of seasons in all quarters of the globe, and the examination of Maury's charts 
(including those of the trade-winds), induce the belief that extreme periodical changes 
of wind follow at a certain interval, rather than accompany the extremes of tempe- 
rature or climate. 

The small figures at the lower left-hand corner indicate the total number of (eight- 
hour) observations of calm, as well as of wind, recorded as having been made in 
that square ; and the figures at the lower right-hand corner show, in decimals of an 
inch, the unit of scale employed in constructing the diagram in that square. 

The force of wind is not shown, because it was not noted in the records from 
which these charts were compiled ; but at a future time it may be given so com- 
bined and arranged as to indicate average strength as well as direction. 

Nothing more is thus shown, in a graphical manner, than has been exhibited 
numerically in Maury's original Pilot Charts, whence solely the data for these were 
obtained. 

For the few squares still blank, sufficient data have not yet been collected. 

The number of observations used in constructing each diagram aflfords a scale of 



40 



REPORT — 1855. 



value for the figure, which may be augmented from time to time by fresh material, 
but need not be diminished, unless by a reduction of the scale (should the figure 
much outgrow its square). 

The star-like form of the figures ("Wind-star") is merely a consequence of 
groupinc/ observations MtiAt^r principal points of the compass. 

It is proposed to compile wind-charts for all known parts of the world, for 
smaller spaces or squares, and for each month of the year, as soon as sufficient 
observations can bo collected and employed. 

O71 the Detection and Measurement of Atmospheric Electricity by the Photo- 
Barograph and Thermograph. By M. J. Johnson, M.A., Radclijfe 
Observer, Oxford. 
Photography has already rendered considerable aid to science, and some results 
brought before the Section by Mr. .Tohnson furnish an example of this. On exa- 
mining and comparing the registrations of the thermometer and barometer, certain 
peculiarities present themselves which indicate a curious connexion between the 
course of these instruments and the state of the weather. The line which indicates 
the daily curve of temperature is sometimes serrated, sometimes even and con- 
tinuous ; and these appearances correspond to certain determinate states of the 
weather ; the serrated outline being confined to fine warm weather, from the end 
of March to the end of September, and never occurring even then during the night. 
Among the most remarkable results is a sudden rise of the barometer, amounting 
to "OSS inch, and an increase of temperature of 1°, coincident with the occurrence 
of a thunder-clap which struck one of the churches in Oxford, July 14, 1855. A 
similar phsenomenon took place during a thunder-storm on the 23rd of August, 
when the rise of the barometer was still greater, amounting to '049 inch ; though 
the thunder-clap coincident with this latter rise was distant. Mr. Johnson also 
showed, that, during every occurrence of thunder or hail which had been recorded 
by his instruments, similar phsenomena presented themselves, sometimes very mi- 
nute, but quite perceptible. 

Force of the Wind in July and August 1855, as taken by the "Atmospheric 
Recorder " at the Beeston Observatory. By E. J. Lowe, F.R.A.S. ^c. 

The instruments at the Beeston Observatory have only recently been erected ; yet 
as the records of the force of the wind show some interesting facts, the following 
brief summary has been forwarded to the British Association in the belief that the 
records will prove interesting. 



Hour. 


Number of days 


Mean pressure in oz. 


Greatest pressure in 
lb. and oz. on the 


quite calm. 


on the square foot. 


square foot. 


A.M. 


July. 


August. 


July. 


August. 


July. 


August. 


h m 














12 


26 


19 


Oi 


1 


0-5 


1-7 


12 30 


26 


19 


Oi 


1 


0-4 


0-5 


1 


26 


18 


Oi 


1 


0-6 


0-8 


1 30 


26 


19 


0* 


1 


0-4 


1-4 


2 


26 


19 


0* 


1 


0-8 


0-8 


2 30 


26 


19 


0* 


2 


0-4 


1-10 


3 


26 


18 


0^ 


2 


0-5 


1-7 


3 30 


26 


19 


o| 


2 


0-4 


1-12 


4 


26 


19 


H 


1 


03 


0-7 


4 30 


25 


19 


n 


n 


0-3 


1-6 


5 


25 


19 


0^ 


H 


0-7 


1-2 


5 30 


25 


19 


1 


n 


1-5 


1-5 


6 


25 1 19 


1 


n 


0-7 


1-9 


6 30 


24 


19 


H 


3 


1-5 


1-12 


7 


23 


18 


H 


4 


15 


2-13 


7 30 


22 


16 


2 


5 


1-6 


1-14 


8 


21 


15 


H 


5 


1-6 


2-14 


8 30 


20 


14 


24 


7 


16 


3-3 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



41 



Hour. 


Number of days 
quite calm. 


Mean pressure in oz. 
on the square foot. 


Greatest pressure in 

lb. and oz. on the 

square foot. 


A.M. 


July. 


August. 


July. 


August. 


July. 


August. 


h m 














9 


18 


13 


3 


8 


110 


2-13 


9 30 


16 


9 


3 


8 


1-6 


2-13 


10 


16 


8 


3 


84 


2-3 


2-13 


10 30 


15 


8 


3 


84 


1-6 


2-13 


11 


13 


8 


3 


9 


1-7 


2-14 


11 30 


12 


7 


3 


9 


2-0 


2-6 


P.M. 














12 


11 


7 


3 


9 


110 


2-12 


12 30 


9 


5 


3 


9 


MO 


2-12 


1 


8 


4 


3i 


11 


1-13 


211 


1 30 


7 


4 


3i 


12 


114 


20 


2 


6 


3 


34 


8 


MO 


2-0 


2 30 


5 


3 


4 


9 


Ml 


2-12 


3 


4 


3 


34 


8 


M2 


114 


3 30 


3 


3 


3 


7 


1-3 


113 


4 


5 


4 


2 


9 


20 


113 


4 30 


6 


4 


3 


7 


114 


112 


5 


7 


6 


34 


5 


1-3 


112 


5 30 


8 


10 


24 


4 


1-7 


1-7 


6 


9 


11 


24 


34 


1-4 


1-6 


6 30 


10 


13 


2 


24 


0-8 


1-5 


7 


12 


14 


14 


24 


1-6 


1-8 


7 30 


13 


15 


14 


24 


0-8 


1-8 


8 


16 


16 


1 


2 


1-3 


1-5 


8 30 


16 


16 


04 


2 


0-3 


1-6 


9 


17 


16 


04 


3 


0-4 


1-13 


9 30 


18 


16 


Of 


2 


0-4 


1-7 


10 


21 


17 


04 


14 


0-4 


1-5 


10 30 


22 


17 


04 


1 


0-4 


0-8 


11 


23 


19 


04 


14 


0-4 


1-6 


11 30 


24 


19 


04 


2 


0-5 


1-7 



From the above it will be seen that in July the greatest number of calm days 
occurred between midnight and 4 a.m., and the least number at S"" 30" p.m. ; and 
in August the greatest number from 11 p.m. to 6^ 30"" a.m., and the least number 
from 2 P.M. to S* 30" p.m. ; also that in each month there was a gradual increase 
from the minimum to the maximum number. 

The mean pressure in July was least from 12'' SO" a.m. to 5 a.m., and greatest 
at 2'' 30" P.M., and in August least from 12 a.m. to 2 a.m., and greatest at l"" 30" p.m. 

The greatest pressure was heaviest in July at 10 a.m. and in August at 8^ 30"" a.m. 
The greatest pressure was least in July between 8''30™ p.m. and 4*" 30"" a.m., and in 
August at 12'' 30"° a.m. 

In July the range of calm days was from 3 to 26, i. e. 23, and in August 3 to IQ, 
i. e. 16. The range in mean pressure was in July from about Og- oz. to 4 oz., or 12 
times as strong; and in August from 1 oz. to 12 oz., or 12 times as strong. The 
greatest force in July ranged between 3 oz. and 2 lbs. 3 oz., an increase of 12 times ; 
and in August between 5 oz. and 3 lbs. 3 oz., an increase of 10 times the force. 



Singular Iridescent PhcBnomenon seen on Windermere Lake, Oct. 24, 1851. 

By J. C. MouNSEY. Communicated hy J. F. Miller, Ph.D., F.R.S. Sfc. 

The morning was very misty, and the barometer high (30-35 at Whitehaven). 
Between 10 and 11 a.m. the mist cleared oif, the sky became cloudless and the air 
calm, the lake being of a glassy smoothness. At 11, we went on the lake, and in 



42 REPORT — 1855. 

about half an hour T observed brilliant prismatic colours on the water near the 
shore, say half a mile or more distant, but no appearance of a bow. I rowed 
towards the spot, and, in doing so, the colours increased in extent and brilliancy. 
There were two bows, which resembled ordinary rainbows inverted ; both were 
exceedingly brilliant at the extremities, and became gradually fainter as they receded 
from the shore. The outer bow came completely down to the boat, which appeared 
to prevent our seeing the crown of the arch ; its extremities also proceeded from the 
shore, and its centre was apparently under the feet of the spectator. In both bows 
the red was on the outside and the violet on the inside, and, in both, the light and 
colours were most brilliant and distinct at the extremities, or points of convergence 
at the water's edge. 1 am certain there was no rainbow in the sky at the time, 
neither was there any solar halo or other phEenomenon in the air that I observed, of 
which this could be the reflexion. 

I observed that, wherever the prismatic phsenomenon showed itself, there was a 
sort of scum on the water, as though there was some fine dust or bubbles on the 
surface. I put my finger into the water, and found it so dirty as to leave a distinct 
mark behind, which leads me to think that what I at first took to be small bubbles 
must have been some sort of dust. Whatever it was, it appeared to me to be the 
cause of the iridescence, as, wherever it was lost, the bows disappeared. The bows 
were visible about an hour, and, in looking at them, the sun was of course behind 
the spectator. 

The boatmen say they have sometimes (though very rarely) seen a similar phae- 
nomenon after the disappearance of a mist from the surface of the water. At 
Whitehaven the sky was also cloudless, but in the evening the air was misty. 

In reply to questions from Prof. Powell, some further particulars were stated and 
drawings furnished. 

Notice of Climatological Elements in the Western District of Scotland. 
By Dr. Nichol. 



Meteorological Phanomena for 1854, registered at Huggate. 
By the Rev. T. Rankin. 



On the Aurora Borealis. By Rear-Admiral Sir John Ross. 
Referring to his formerly published opinion, namely "that the phsenomena of the 
aurora borealis were occasioned by the action of the sun, when below the pole, on 
the surrounding masses of coloured ice, by its rays being reflected from the 
points of incidence to clouds above the pole which were before invisible," the author 
stated his impression that the phaenomena might be artificially produced. To accom- 
phsh this, he placed a powerful lamp to represent the sun, having a lens, at the focal 
distance of which he placed a rectified terrestrial globe, on which bruised glass, of 
the various colours seen in Baffin's Bay, was placed, to represent the coloured ice- 
bergs seen in that locality, while the space between Greenland and Spitzbergen was 
left blank, to represent the sea. To represent the clouds above the pole, which were 
to receive the refracted rays, he applied a hot iron to a sponge ; and by giving the 
globe a regular diurnal motion, he produced the ph.enoraena vulgarly called "The 
Merry Dancers," and every other appearance, exactly as seen in the natural sky, 
while it disappeared as the globe turned, as being the part representing the sea to the 
points of incidence. 



On the Meteorology of the United States and Canada. By R. Russell. 

The author first drew attention to the physical geography of North America, as in- 
fluencing in a very particular manner the meteorological phaenomena of that country. 
The Appalachian chain, from Northern Alabama to Maine, runs parallel with the 



\ 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 43 

Atlantic coast, and though, only from 2000 to 4000 feet in elevation, exercised a 
marked influence in giving peculiar development to certain atmospheric disturbances 
•which took place in the Atlantic States. To the west of this chain lies the vast 
valley of the Mississippi; its surface forms an easy ascent towards the Lakes of 
about one foot in a mile. This great basin is thus exposed to the free course of the 
south winds from the Gulf of Mexico. But the Rocky Mountains on the west, 
stretching from the Arctic Circle, appear to be the grand physical feature which in 
a great measure determines the peculiarities of the meteorology of North America. 
This range has an average elevation of 10,000 to 12,000 feet, which is almost 
unbroken to the Isthmus of Panama. This vast natural wall forms a barrier to the 
trade-winds of the Caribbean Sea, as they cannot cross this ridge and flow into the 
Pacific. By means of this elevated land, which forms the isthmus connecting the 
two continents, the trade-wind is gradually directed northwards until it reaches 
Texas as a south wind, which is the prevailing one in that State throughout the year, 
but more especially in summer. The great fertility of the climate of the United 
States and Canada is to be chiefly ascribed to this physical feature of the country. 
The flow of the south wind in winter brings moisture and mild weather — in summer 
intense heat, with thunder-storms. The wind, which is entirely opposite in its cha- 
racter to the south, is the west. In winter, a due west wind is intensely cold over 
the whole territory of Canada and the United States, and it often blows with great 
violence : there is no relaxing of the cold weather so long as it continues. In sum- 
mer it is dry, and the sky assumes that bright azure tint which is so striking to one 
from our island. It is a singular fact, that a west upper current flowing across the 
Rocky Mountains seems to prevail almost constantly during the whole year. This 
must never be lost sight of in discussing the atmospheric phanomena of North 
America. The upper current is nearly due west at Washington and the States to 
the south; it is a point or two north of west in the New England States and Canada. 
The west and north-west wind of the United States must be regarded as the descent 
of this upper current. In fact, the winds of the United States, especially during 
great atmospheric disturbances, may all be considered to become modifications of the 
south and the west wind. The indications of the thermometer and hygrometer are 
entirely in favour of this arrangement. The N. and N.W. winds must be regarded 
as modifications of the upper westerly current descending to the surface of the 
ground, and the S.W., S.E., E., and even N.E., as modifications of the south wind. 
The difference betwixt the temperature of the Arctic current and the Gulf-stream, as 
they meet beyond the Newfoundland coast, is not nearly so great as the difi"erence 
of the temperature, in winter, between the west current which descends along the 
eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, and the south wind from the warm waters 
of the Gulf of Mexico. The vast territories of the United States to the east of the 
Rocky Mountains are subjected alternately to these two currents so opposite in their 
characters, and hence the great changeableness of the climate, to which we have 
nothing that can be compared in Europe. The exceeding coldness of the west wind 
arises from its being robbed of its moisture as it crosses the Rocky Mountains. It 
is especially worthy of being kept in mind, that the west wind, or its modifications, 
is light and pleasant in the warm season, but intensely cold in winter, and blows 
with great vehemence when it succeeds the south wind. After the west wind has 
blown for some time in winter, the whole area over which it has extended is subjected 
to a great depression of temperature. As a general rule, the temperature rises in the 
far west in winter for some time before it rises in the Atlantic States. The weather 
first moderates in the territory east of the Rocky Mountains and west of the Missis- 
sippi, by a south wind, 500 to 700 miles in breadth, setting in and blowing along 
the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, and probably extending into the Arctic 
Circle. The rise of temperature thus takes place over all the regions swept by the 
south wind. The rising of temperature is apparently propagated from west to east 
in the United States, by the south wind flowing in succession over those States which 
are more easterly. This is the cause of the winter storms of the United States tra- 
veUing from west to east, as has been maintained by Prof. Espy, who was the first 
that made the discovery, and which has since been corroborated by Profs. Hare and 
Loomis. The distance between the ridge of the Rocky Mountains arid the east coast of 
Florida is about 1400 miles, but in the latitude of Newfoundland the Rocky Mountains 



44 REPORT — 1855. 

are nearly double that distance from the Atlantic. The south wind perhaps never 
occupies at one time the whole breadth of the country from western Texas to eastern 
Florida. The south wind is rapidly propagated from the west along the northern 
shores of the Gulf of' Mexico, but it is almost as rapidly destroyed on its western 
edges by the cold upper current descending along the eastern slopes of the Rocky 
Mountains, and penetrating, as a surface wind, this warm current from the Caribbean 
Sea. In this manner the western edges of the south wind are raised into the upper 
current, and drifted towards the east. Thus the winter storms of the United States 
are alwaj's succeeded by a cold wind from a westerly direction. The cause of the 
violence of the west wind in winter was then shown. The weather during summer 
was regulated by the same principles, but the north-west wind then lost its power, 
in consequence of its being warm and elastic. The thunder-storms and tornadoes 
generally drifted from west to east in the middle States, and from north-west in the 
northern States. This arose from the clouds being formed in the upper current, and 
drifting towards the east at the very time that the south wind was prevailing. The 
thunder and tornado clouds usually drifted in the south wind over the States bor- 
dering on the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane-clouds also drifted in the southern 
stream of warm air, and were often propagated along the Atlantic coast. The fluc- 
tuations of the barometer were attributed to the fluctuations of density of the air at 
the surface of the earth. This was Dalton's hypothesis, which he thought explained 
the fluctuations of the barometer more consistently than any which had been offered. 
It did not explain all in Britain, but it explained a great deal, — the apparent excep- 
tions were all grouped together very consistently. 'J"he height of the barometer is 
inversely as the temperature, or rather moisture, for the latter is a more permanent 
cause of high temperature. Diagrams were exhibited to illustrate this connexion 
between the rise or fall of temperature and the fall or rise of mercury. By adopting 
the arbitrary scale of 5° of heat as equal to one-tenth of an inch of mercury, which 
indicated the south wind to be about 10,000 feet in height, a great parallelism between 
the curve of temperature and inverted curve of the barometer was exhibited. A more 
perfect explanation of the fluctuations of the barometer at Alabama could not be 
given. The south wind being lighter, depressed the barometer at every place where 
the temperature was raised. The low barometer extended in a long line from the 
Gulf of Mexico to the lakes, and travelled to the east as the rains and high tempera- 
ture did. The grand exception to fluctuations of the barometer being occasioned by 
fluctuations in the density of the air at the surface of the earth, arises in the West 
Indian hurricane, when a depression of two inches was sometimes observed to take 
place. The only theory which successfully met this phaenomena was that of Prof. 
Espy, in which the wind blowing towards a central space rose in consequence of the 
extrication of latent caloric, by the condensation of moisture through the expansion 
of the air causing a reduction of temperature below the dew-point. Prof. Espy 
maintains that the whole force generated during hurricanes can be accounted for by 
the effects of heat, — Prof. Hare, that part is due to the electrical agency. In the 
case of the sea-breeze, a considerable body of air is put and kept in motion by slight 
differences in the weights of adjoining columns of air. Were such differences of the 
atmospheric conditions as the chart of the 10th of November exhibited between the 
mouth of the Mississippi and Montreal, tremendous disturbances would ensue. When 
the distance is great, the power is diffused in moving the whole body of air betwixt 
the stations. The expenditure of power in this diffused manner may be compared 
to the flow of the Mississippi over the last 1400 miles of its course, where the fall is 
less than three inches to a mile. On the other hand, when the Niagara tumbles 
over its great precipice, it expends much power at once. The hurricane might be 
regarded as an aerial cataract, only the air being forced upwards. If a slight fall of 
rain produced such remarkable effects as are noticed on the passage of the squall 
cloud, what must be the power evoked by the evolution of latent caloric in hurricanes ! 
Six inches of rain have been known to fall during some hurricanes. The caloric set 
free by the condensation of this amount of water over every square mile is equal to 
that which would be generated in the burning of 2,620,000 tons of coal, allowing 
1 lb. of coal to evaporate 13 lbs. of water. The clouds of the hurricane interrupt the 
ominous calm as suddenly as the smooth flow of the stream is changed at the brink 
of the cascade. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 45 

On Naval Anemometrical Observations. By Professor C. Piazzi Smyth. 

After alluding to the mechanical importance of the trade-winds in the economy of 
the atmosphere, the author pointed out the naturally admirable circumstances of a 
station on the surface of the sea for making exact observations to this end ; but 
indicated also the artificial difficulties that were opposed by the eddies caused about 
the actual station, viz. the deck of a ship, as well as by its proper motion. From a 
series of observations communicated to him by Captain H. Toynbee, the author had 
concluded, that the only unexceptionable station for anemometrical observation at 
sea was the mast head. Accordingly he exhibited a combined apparatus for the 
direction and the velocity of the wind, arranged with a view to such a position, and 
also with a view to accurately observing the mean effects, and this, by a summation 
of every individual gust, even the lightest. For the most accurate plan of securing 
data, he had arranged a method of electric registration which was extremely simple, 
and proceeded in the cabins below while the anemometers were measuring the wind 
aloft. 



Notices of Rain-falls for a Series of Years at Home and in Foreign Countries. 

By P. L. SiMMONDS. 

After pointing out the advantages which would result from an accumulation of facts 
that would serve to guide us to a knowledge of the mean average fall of rain in cer- 
tain periods, the proportionate evaporation, and. the alternation of wet and dry 
seasons, Mr. Simmonds pointed out the value of such inquiries to the agriculturist, 
the physician, and the statist ; and showed how important was this knowledge of the 
mean annual fall of rain in particular localities, and the average number of days in 
which rain fell in the year. Particular crops, as the sugar-cane, the indigo-plant, 
the cotton- and tobacco-plants might be entirely ruined by too much or too little 
rain. Many localities, such as Malta, Gibraltar, Ascension, &c., are obliged to hus- 
band the rain-water in tanks. The navigation of rivers and the irrigation of adjacent 
lands are also dependent on a certain amount of rain ; and the potato, the vine, and 
other plants are injuriously affected by the condition of the atmosphere and the super- 
abundance of moisture. Even the fact of whether the moon has any influence on 
the fall of rain is still a disputed point. 

The relative proportions of rain that fall by night and by day was another point 
touched on. Mr. Simmonds then took a survey of the records of this branch of 
meteorology in the various quarters of the globe, citing the comparative falls of rain 
in the tropics and in temperate regions in different countries. 



On Waterspouts. By Dr. Taylor, Professor of Natui'dl Philosophy, 
Andersonian University, Glasgow. 

The author, after describing the phsenomena of the Waterspout, stated the different 
theories which had been proposed as to their nature and origin, and showed that 
the only one which, in the present state of science, is at all tenable, is that which 
ascribes the descent of the cone of cloud and the ascent of water or other sub- 
stances, to the partial vacuum created in a portion of the atmosphere by the action 
of contending currents producing a whirlwind. He next pointed out the difficulties 
encountered in applying this theory to the explanation of some of the phenomena, 
such as the division of the " tube " into several portions towards its lower part, 
which are often seen to twist about each other like coiling snakes, and also to present 
the appearance of a dilation running up the tube like the action of the throat of an 
animal in drinking. After showing, by calculation founded on the laws of dynamics, 
that the rapidity of rotatory movement necessary to produce any considerable 
approach to a total vacuum in the interior of the tube cannot possibly exist in any 
case, it was proved that a shred of cloud, of slightly less specific gravity than that of 
the atmosphere below it, might easily be made to descend by a comparatively slight 
degree of rotatory rapidity ; and also that spray from the sea or light bodies from the 



46 REPORT— 1855. 

earth, might be carried up into the interior of the revolving mass to an extent suffi- 
cient to account for all the appearances which have in any case been actually 
observed. Formulae were shown giving the necessary velocity in any supposed case. 
An experimental apparatus was next exhibited, whereby the appearances of the 
waterspout can be easily and completely produced on a small scale. A rectangular 
box, about 18 inches square, formed of plates of glass, placed merely edge to edge 
at the corners, but not cemented, is covered by a plate of glass with a hole about 
If inch in diameter in the centre of it. This box is suspended to the roof by 
means of a twisted string, and the interior filled with the smoke rising from burning 
nitrated paper. A film of loose cotton wool is placed on the opening in the lid, 
and the box set into rotation. In a short time the air enters at the opening as the 
smoke is pressed out by the centrifugal action at the edges of the plates, and a tube 
exactly resembling the waterspout descends in the interior. It frequently divides 
into two, three, or more tubes which coil round each other ; and as their shreds, 
often of a flat or spiral form, turn themselves in different positions to the eye, the 
appearance formerly referred to, of a drinking action, is exhibited. Small holes 
pierced in the bottom, allowing air also there to enter, give rise to the formation of 
an ascending column which meets and joins with the descending one, precisely as 
on the great scale in nature. 



CHEMISTRY. 



On the Polar Decomposition of Water by Common and Atmosjjheric 
Electricity/. By Thomas Andrews, M.D., F.R.S., M.R.I.A. 

In the fine experiment first made by two Dutch chemists, and afterwards modified 
and extended by Wollaston, water was decomposed by a succession of disruptive dis- 
charges produced by the common electrical machine. But in this experiment, as 
Wollaston himself has correctly remarked, we have only an imitation of the galvanic 
phsenomena, and the essential differences between its results and true electro-chemical 
decomposition have been pointed out by Faraday with his usual clearness and ability. 
" The law which regulates the transference and final place of the evolved bodies," the 
latter remarks, " has no influence here. The water is evolved at both poles, and the 
oxygen evolved at the wires are the elements of the water existing before in those 
places." 

The same distinguished experimentalist obtained only uncertain results when he 
attempted to procure the true polar decomposition of water by common electricity, 
that is, to decompose it so that the oxygen might be evolved at one pole and the 
hydrogen at the other. " When what I consider the true effect only was obtained," 
he says, " the quantity of gas given off was so small that I could not ascertain whe- 
ther it was, as it oughl to be, oxygen at one wire and hydrogen at the other. Of the 
two streams, one seemed more copious than the other ; and on turning the apparatus 
round, still the same side in relation to the machine gave the largest stream. But 
the quantities were so small, that on working the machine for half an hour, I could 
not obtain at either pole a bubble of gas larger than a grain of sand." 

On repeating this experiment with wires of different lengths and thicknesses, I 
obtained the same uncertain results, although I had at my command a stream of 
electricity of great power, and which could be maintained without intermission for 
many hours. But while engaged in some experiments on the conversion of oxygen, 
contained in fine thermometer tubes, into ozone, the tubes being inverted in water, I 
found to my surprise that the gas in certain cases steadily augmented in volume, and 
on further inquiry I found that the augmentation of volume arose from the water 
Laving imdergone polar decomposition. The conditions under which the gases arising 
from the polar decomposition of water might be obtained were now quite manifest, as 
•was also the cause of no appreciable amount of gas having been obtained in former 
investigations. The quantity of gas produced in fact in a given time from the elec- 
trolysis of water, by means even of a powerful electrical machine, is so small, that the 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 4f 

gases are dissolved in the liquid as quickly as they are formed, if the poles, whether 
they be large or small, be freely exposed to the action of a large mass of the liquid ; 
but if the bulk of liquid around each pole be made to correspond to the volume of 
the gases evolved, the latter will not be dissolved to a greater extent than in ordinary 
eudiometric experiments conducted over water. To attain this object it is only ne- 
cessary to employ thermometer tubes, having fine platina wires hermetically sealed 
into their upper ends, as the tubes for receiving the gases. The wires may be so long 
as to extend through the entire length of the thermometer tubes ; but it will be suffi- 
cient if they only project a short way into the tubes, as the film of liquid which covers 
the interior of the tube is sufficient to conduct electricity of such high tension as that 
produced by the electrical machine. 

That the gases were evolved very nearly in the proportion of 1 vol. oxygen to 
2 vols, hydrogen, will appear from the following examples : — 

Hydrogen 6-85 4-00 3-35 

Oxygen 3-45 2-10 1-55 

The electrolyte employed in these experiments was water containing 1 per cent, 
of sulphuric acid. The gases collected in these tubes were thus proved to be oxygen 
and hydrogen : — 

1. Electrical sparks passed through the hydrogen tube exhibited the characteristic 
red colour which electrical flashes produce in that gas. 

2. On introducing a solution of iodide of potassium into the oxygen tube, and 
passing sparks through it, the oxygen was converted into ozone, and absorbed in the 
course of about one minute. 

3. On reversing the connexions with the electrical machine and the ground, the 
relative volumes of the gases were reversed; and after passing the current for the 
same time as before, and afterwards a spark through the mixed gases, they combined 
together in both tubes with explosion. 

Each of the above divisions contained 0'00006 cent, cub., and an electrical machine, 
in good order and performing 240 revolutions each minute, produced about I'l divi- 
sion of oxygen gas in the same time. A column of acidulated water, 10 feet long, 
and having a section equal to the internal calibre of a fine thermometer tube in which 
it was contained, presented no sensible resistance to the passage of this cuiTent ; but 
a similar column of distilled water 1 foot in length reduced the current to -^th of its 
original amount. 

On passing the electrical current through a series of sixty pairs of thermometer 
tubes charged with acidulated water, and fitted with platina wires as already 
described, decomposition proceeded with the same facility, and the same amount of 
oxygen and hydrogen was collected in each pair of tubes as when only a single 
couple was interposed in the circuit. 

The same apparatus enabled me to decom.pose water without difficulty by means of 
atmospheric electricity. To collect the electricity, I employed an electrical kite which 
carried a fine brass wire attached to its cord. The experiments were all performed 
on fine clear days, when the air exhibited no unusual symptoms of free electricity. 
On connecting the platina wire of one of the thermometer tubes with the insulated 
wire of the kite, and that of the other tube with the ground, the decomposition pro- 
ceeded slowly but steadily at the rate ofO'9 div. or about 0000054 cub. cent, oxygen 
per hour. Hence about O'OOOOOOOSS gramme water was decomposed hourly, or nearly 
Tbooooob gramme, or tooVob^ °f ^ grain. The wire of the kite gave small sparks, 
varying in length according to the amount of movement in the kite, from one-tenth to 
half an inch in length. The shocks were moderately strong ; and the needle of a 
galvanometer of 2000 coils was sensibly deflected. 

In the Philosophical Transactions for 1831, Mr. Barry describes an experiment, 
in which he supposes that he collected the gases produced by the decomposition of 
water by the action of atmospheric electricity; but from the form of apparatus which 
be employed, I consider it very improbable that he could have succeeded in collecting 
any visible quantity of either of the gases. 



48 REPORT — 1855. 

On the Allotropic Modifications of Chlorine and Bromine analogous to the 
Ozone from Oxygen. By Thomas Andrews, M.D., F.E.S., M.R.l.A. 

The author explained that ozone could be produced, first, by an electric spark ; 
secondly, by the decomposition of acids and solutions, when coming into contact witli 
the galvanic wire ; and lastly, by oxidation. 



On Photographic Researches. By Mr. Barnett. 

Photochemical Researches, loith reference to the Laws of the Chemical Action 
of Light. By Professor Bunsen of Heidelberg and Dr. Henry E. 
RoscoE of London. 

The following abstract gives the results of an investigation extending over a period 
of nearly two years, which has been carried on at Heidelberg. 

Owing to the great experimental difficulties which are met with in researches on 
the chemical action of light, our knowledge of the laws which govern this action is at 
present very limited. The object of the following investigation was to endeavour to 
obtain more precise information regarding these laws, and if possible to arrive at a 
quantitative measurement of the cliemical rays. The first substances examined in 
their photochemical relations were aqueous solutions of chlorine, bromine, and iodine, 
either alone in solution or mixed with hydrogenous organic substances, and the altera- 
tion which these solutions underwent by exposure to sun-light was made the subject of 
accurate measurement. The amount of free chlorine, bromine, or iodine present 
both before and after insolation, was estimated most exactly by the iodometrlc 
method, and the experiments were so conducted that all errors arising from gaseous 
absorption or diffusion were fully eliminated. From many experiments made accord- 
ing to this method, it was observed that no simple relation existed between the 
amount of free chlorine which disappeared and the time of exposure or the intensity 
of the light. 

This anomalous action may be explained by theoretical considerations. Chemical 
affinity must be regarded as the resultant of all the forces which come into play 
during the decomposition, and therefore the total action is dependent not only upon 
the interchanging molecules, but also upon the atoms which more or less surround 
these. Alteration in the mass of these surrounding particles must therefore alter the 
resulting chemical action. The correctness of this view was remarkably established 
by further experiment. In order to ascertain wh:it effect the hydrochloric acid, 
formed during the decomposition, exerted upon the affinit}' of chlorine for hydrogen 
in presence of sun-light, pure chlorine-water and chlorine-water containing 10 per 
cent, of hydrochloric acid were insolated during the same period ; the solution of 
pure chlorine lost 99'6 per cent. ; whilst that containing 10 per cent, of hydrochloric 
acid lost only 1'3 per cent, of its contained free chlorine. The result of this and 
many other series of experiments*, justifies the conclusions, — 

1. That the presence of hydrochloric acid retards in a remarkable degree the 
aflSnity of chlorine for hydrogen. 

2. That owing to this retarding action, which is governed by entirely unknown laws, 
the examination of the photochemical decomposition of chlorine-water cannot lead 
to the discovery of any simple relations. 

From these circumstances it appears probable that some simple law would be 
arrived at if the following conditions were complied with : — 

1. That two elements which have no action upon each other in the dark, simply 
combine under the action of the light, so that the relative amounts of the uncombined 
bodies remain the same. 

2. That the substance produced by the combination be either entirely removed 
from the sphere of chemical action, or be reduced to a small constant amount. 

These two conditions are only found in the gas evolved by the electrolytic decom- 
position of hydrochloric acid. This gas consists, under certain conditions, of exactly 
equal volumes of chlorine and hydrogen, and is singularly well-fitted for a photo- 
metric substance. It is perfectly unalterable in the dark ; it is not affected by lamp- 

* See Quart. Journ. of Chemical Society, Oct. 1855. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 49 

or candle-light under the circumstances of the experiment, and is nevertheless so 
easily acted upon by solar light, that when perfectly free from all admixture, its com- 
ponent gases unite with explosion in the diffused light of a room. 

In order to eliminate the source of error of the retarding action of the hydrochloric 
acid formed, it is only necessary that water saturated with the gaseous mixture should 
be present. By this means the hydrochloric acid is removed from the gas at the 
moment of its production, and thus a diminution of the volume of the gas is effected. 
This diminution of volume is a direct measure of the amount of chemical action of 
the light, and it is upon this fact that the method of measuring photochemical action 
rests. According to this method, and by carrying out a great number of necessary 
precautions, the following laws were arrived at : — 

1. The amount of chemical action is directly proportional to the time of insolation. 

2. 7%e amount of chemical action is directly proportional to the intensity of the 
light. 

The law connecting the amount of action with the mass of the decomposing body 
is not as yet completely established, but the results obtained seem to show that the 
light suffers mere optical absorption, and is not in any way expended, and therefore 
cannot be represented by any equivalent in chemical action. 

Many very interesting phsenomena connected with the action of solar light upon 
mixtures of chlorine and hydrogen will be fully treated of in the ne.st communication 
to the Association. 

In the prosecution of these researches the authors reserve to themselves the exami- 
nation of all subjects arising out of this method ; amongst others, — 

1. The reflexion and absorption of the chemical rays. 

2. Polarization of the chemical rays. 

3. Examination of the arrangement of the chemical rays in the spectrum. 

4. Application of the method to meteorological observation. 



On the Manufacture of Iron by Purified Coke. 
By F. Grace Calvert, F.C.S. 

After pointing out what were believed to be the causes of the inferiority of iron in 
many works, apart from the varying qualities of the ores, the injurious action which 
an impure fuel had upon the quality of the iron was particularly alluded to ; and the 
necessity of removing sulphur from the coal or coke, in the blast-furnaces, before it 
could be imparted to the cast iron during the process of smelting, was strongly 
enforced. Mr. Grace Calvert then referred to several instances in whiclr the quality of 
iron, by the application of the chloride of sodium in the blast-furnace, had been greatly 
improved. 'J'hese improvements were described to have been eflected at a very small 
cost by the following simple process. If the blast-furnace was worked entirely with 
coal, chloride of sodium was added with each charge, in proportion to the quality of ore 
and flux employed ; but a better result was produced if the coal was previously con- 
verted into coke, and a very slight excess of the chloride was used in its preparation in 
order to act on the sulphur of the coal and of the ore, should any be found therein; and 
a greater improvement was manifested in the quality of iron, when only coke so prepared 
was used in the blast-furnace. The coke so purified emitted no sulphurous fumes when 
taken out of the coke-oven ; nor, when extinguished with water, did it give off the 
unpleasant odour of sulphuretted hydrogen ; nor was any sulphurous acid gas liberated 
during the operation of smelting iron in the cupola, or in raising steam in the loco- 
motive boiler, by coke so prepared ; and it was stated that these decided advan- 
tages were gained, in some cases, at an additional cost of only one penny per ton of 
fue . 

Mr. Grace Calvert gave the results of a series of experiments which had been made 
upon trial bars one inch square, cast from iron melted in the cupola, with coke pre- 
pared by his process. He exhibited specimens of the iron so prepared, when the 
closeness of texture and the absence of the ' honeycomb' appearance prevailing in the 
iron cast with ordinary coke were clearly demonstrated. 

The mode of experimenting was described and the results were given very fully, and 
it was shown that the average increase of strength was from 10 to 20 per cent. 

1855. 4. 



50 



REPORT — 1855. 



At the Workt of 



Mean breaking weight of Bars 
melted by 



Ordinary Coke. Purified Coke 



Diiferenee in favour 
of Purified Coke. 



Fairbaim and Sons, Manchester... 
J. andW. Galloway and Co., do. ... 
Fox, Henderson and Co., Birming- 
ham No. 3 iron. 

Ditto ditto 2 „ 

Hibbert, Piatt, and Co., Oldham ... 

Monkland 

Joicey and Co., Skinnerburn 

Newcastle 

Elswick Foundry 



427 lbs. 
547 ... 

455 ... 
417 ... 
499 ... 
578 ... 
616 ... 
658 ... 
695 ... 



512 lbs. 
620 ... 

514 ... 

459 ... 

552 ... 

641 ... 
*741 ... 
*716 ... 
*8G3 ... 



20 per cent. 
13 

18 

10 

10 

10 

20 

9 

24 



* Were bars 3 feet 10 inches and 4 feet only in length. 

The following conclusions were an-ived at by W. Fairbaim, Esq., F.R.S., by taking 
the mean of an extensive series of experiments: — The mean breaking-weight of the bars 
one inch square, smelted with the improved coke, was 515*5 lbs.; ditto, with ordinary 
coke, 427'Olbs., equal to SS'Slbs. in favour of the castings produced from the improved 
coke, or in ratio to 5 : 4. The experiments on the bars smelted with the improved 
coke, indicated iron of a high order of strength, and might be considered equal to the 
strongest cold- blast iron. The metal appeared to have run exceedingly close, and ex- 
hibited a compact granulated structure, with a light gray colour. 



On Alloys. By F. C. Calvert, F.C.S., and Richard Johnson. 

The authors have succeeded in producing many new alloys having a definite che- 
mical equivalent composition, therefore bringing a large class of products called alloys 
into the general laws of definite proportion. 

The following alloys of iron and potassium, viz. 

First Alloy, 
4 equivalents of iron, 
1 equivalent of potassium, 

Second Alloy, 

6 equivalents of iron, 

1 equivalent of potassium, 
■were prepared with the view of rendering iron less oxidizable when exposed to a damp 
atmosphere, no kind of coating having been discovered which will resist the constant 
friction of water, — as in the case with iron steamers. But all the alloys which they 
have produced up to the present time, with the exception of one, are oxidizable, 
although some of them contain as much as 25 per cent, of potassium, the most elec- 
tro-positive metal known, and the one most likely to render iron in that electro-chemical 
state less liable to combine with oxygen. The above alloys of potassium and iron were 
remarkable for their great hardness. 

The authors have also succeeded in producing two new alloys composed of iron com- 
bined with aluminium. These two alloys are composed as follows : — 

First Alloy. 

1 equivalent of aluminium, 
5 equivalents of iron. 

Second Alloy. 

2 equivalents of aluminium, 

3 equivalents of iron. 

The last alloy presents the useful property of not oxidizing when exposed to a damp 
atmosphere, although it contains 75 per cent, of iron. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 5\ 

The authors hope to find, between this date and the next Meeting of the Associa- 
tion, a practical method of preparing this desirable alloy, which would render eminent 
service to manufacture. 

The following alloys were also described, one composed of one equivalent of alu- 
minium and five equivalents of copper ; one other of iron and zinc composed of one 
equivalent of iron and twelve equivalents of zinc ; and what is interesting respecting 
this last alloy, is not only its extreme hardness, but that it is produced at a temperature 
of about 800°, it being formed hi a bath of zinc and tin containing 14 tons of metal, 
and through which iron-wire is passed when coated with zinc or galvanized. 

The authors took advantage of having large melted mass of metals (zinc and tin) 
at their disposal, to inquire into the following question, viz. if two metals, when 
melted together, separate according to their respective specific gravity, or form a 
homogeneous mass combined in definite proportions. 

They consequently analysed three samples taken from the melted bath, one near 
the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. Strange to say, they all presented 
a different composition ; and what is not less remarkable is, that the upper layer con- 
tained the largest proportion of the heaviest metal. These three samples oSered the 
following equivalents and definite composition: — 

m (I equivalent of tin, 
•P' \ 11 equivalents of zinc. 

TW-1J1 / 1 equivalent of tin, 
Miame-j^ jg equivalents of zinc. 

„ f 1 equivalent of tin. 

Bottom -^ jg equivalents of zinc. 

The authors also prepared several alloys of zinc and copper ; copper, zinc, and tin 
and copper, zinc, tin and lead, having definite and equivalent composition; but they 
intend to enter more fully into this subject next year. 

The action of acids on these alloys of copper, zinc, &c. presents this curious 'fact, 
viz. that although hydrochloric acid attacks zinc and tin violently, still, in alloys con- 
taining these metals with copper, they are not, or very slightly attacked by this power- 
ful acid. Similar results were also obtained with sulphuric and nitric acids. 



On the Action of Sulphuretted Hydrogen on Salts of Zinc and Copper. 
By F. Grace Calvert, F.C.S, 

In all our treatises of analytical chemistry, it is stated that the process to be fol- 
lowed to separate zinc or its compounds from those of copper, is to render the liquors 
acid which contain salts of these metals, and to pass a current of sulphuretted hydro- 
gen, when the copper will be precipitated in the state of sulphuret, leaving the zinc 
in solution. 

Having had lately to analyse several alloys of zinc and copper in connexion with some 
researches on allovs, the author found it impossible to make two analyses of the same 
alloy correspond satisfactorily. To ascertain the cause of error, he made several trials, 
and soon found out that zinc, even in very acid liquors, was freely and sometimes 
completely precipitated from them by sulphuretted hydrogen. He also remarked that 
the facility with which zinc was precipitated from an acid solution depended in a 
great measure on the peculiar salt of zinc which was in solution, and the nature of 
the acid employed to acidify the liquor. The results contained in this paper are so 
conclusive on this point, that the old method (which is still recommended in recently 
published works on quantitative analysis) for the separation of salts of zinc from those 
of copper must in future be rejected as completely inexact. 

The experiments were made by employing 18 grains of crystallized and pure sul- 
phate of zinc, dissolving them in 400 grains of distilled water, and adding to the 
liquor equivalent quantities of an acid; for example, as there existed in the quantity 
of sulphate of zinc used for the experiment (18 grains) 5 grains of sulphuric acid, 2-5, 
5, 10, 12*5, or 15 grains of sulphuric acid were added, after being previously mixed 
with such a proportion of water as to give in each jar of an experiment 1500 grains 

4* 



52 



REPORT — 1855. 



of fluid. The time required for a precipitate to appear was carefully noted down, 
and also the time which elapsed hefore the liquors were filtered off. The filtrates 
were then tested to ascertain if any salt of zinc remained in solution. The results 
obtained are given in the Tables. 



Table I. 



SOaZnO + zHO. 



18 grs. (con- 
taining 5 grs. 
of S03) in 
400 grs. water 



18 grs. in 

400 grs. 

water 



Sulphuric acid. 



2-5 grs. (half the quan- 
tity of SO^ of the sul- 
phate) in 50 grs. wa- 
ter 



59 grs. in 100 grs. water 
7'5 grs. in 150 grs. water 

10 grs. in 200 grs. water 

12-5 grs. in 250 grs. water 

15 grs. in 300 grs. water 

(or 3 equivalents) ... 



Water. Time when preci- 
grs.* pitate appeared. 



1050 

1000 
950 

900 

850 

800 



The precipi- 
tate appeared in 
all cases in the 
space of from 3 
to 10 minutes 
after the satura- 
tion of the li- 
quor with HS. 
Rapidity of cur- 
rent has in- 
fluence. 



Time of 
passing 

HS 
through 
liquor. 



4 hours 



4 hours 
4 hours 

6 hours 

6 hours 

6 hours 



Precipitation 
complete. 



f A trace of zinc 
[ not precipitated 
■] The greatest part 
>• of the zinc preci 
J pitated. 



Mr. Calvert also made another series of experiments in which he employed weaker 
solutions, viz. diluting with twice their bulk of water similar solutions to those obtained 
in the above table, and these are the results obtained : — 



Tablk II. 



6a, 



S03ZnO + 7HO. 



18 grs. in 

1-500 grs. < 

water 



Sulphuric acid. 



10 grs. in 100 grs. water 
12-5 grs. in 125 grs. water 

15 grs. in 150 grs. water 



Water. 

grs.t 



3900 
3875 



3850 



Time when 
precipitate 
appeared. 



After a few 

minutes 

ditto 



ditto 



Time of 

passing 

HS 

through 
liquor. 



5 hours 
5 hours 



5 hours 



All precipitated. 

(-Almost all precipi- 

i tated; after 12 hours' 

I standing, complete. 

f Precipitate not com- 
plete even after 12 

; hours' standing; the 
quantity not precip. 

Lwas considerable. 



It will be observed, in perusing the above tables, that zinc is freely and generally 
completely precipitated from its combination with sulphuric acid, even in liquors 
containing a great excess of sulphuric acid, or from 3 to 4 times as much free sulphuric 
acid as existed in the quantity of salt used. 

Mr. Calvert also thought it advisable to make a series of experiments, employing 
chloride of zinc, and adding to it submultiple or multiple quantities of hydrochloric 
acid; and these were the results obtained. 

The required amounts of acid were calculated by employing a quantity of acid con- 
taining a given proportion of chlorine. 

* The quantity of water in column 3 is such, that when added to the quantity of water in 
columns 1 and 2, the sum is always 1500 grains, 
t Total quantity employed, 4500 grains. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



53 



Table III. 



No. 


Chloride of zinc. 


Hydrochloric acid. 


Water 
grs. 


Time when 
precipitate 
appeared. 


Time o 

passing; 

HS 

through 
liquor. 




! I.. 

2. 
3. 
4. 
5. 
6. 
7. 


10 grs. (containing" 
5-26 of chlorine, or 
5-33 hydrochloric 
acid in 250grs.water. 

10 grs. in 
250 grs. water 


2-63 grs. (half the quano 
tity of the chlorine of [ 
the chloride) in 125 grs. f 

water J 

5-26 grs. in 250 grs. water 
7"89 grs. in 375 grs. water 
1'32 grs. in 250 grs. water 
0"66 grs. in 125 grs. water 
0-3.3 grs. in 62 grs. water 
0-165 grs. in 250 grs.water 


1125 

1000 
875 
1000 
1125 
1188 
1150 


3 minutes 5 hours 

5 minutes 5 hours 
8 minutes 5 hours 
3 minutes 5 hours 
3 minutes 5 hours 
2 minutes 5 hours 
2 minutes 5 hours 


r A considerable quantity of 
< zinc precipitated, but not 
t complete. 

Only partially precipitated. 
Small quantity precipitated. 
Precipitate not complete. 
Almost all precipitated. 
A trace not precipitated. 
All precipitated. 


Influence of Dilution with Water. 


4a. 
4aa. 


] 10 grs. in r 
> 110 grs. water < 


1*32 grs. in 250 grs. water 
1-32 grs. in 250 grs. water 


4140 
7140 


3 minutes 
3 minutes 


5 hours 
5 hours 


r Precipitate complete with- 
■< out leaving it to stand for 
L a longer time. 

Precipitate complete. 



In comparing the results contained in this Table with those of the previous ones, 
it will be noticed that zinc is more easily precipitated from its combination with chlo- 
rine, and in presence of an excess of hj'drochloric acid, than when it is combined with 
sulphui-ic acid. Still, in either case, and even in presence of a very large excess of 
acid, zinc is precipitated, and in many cases completely. 

Before undertaking a series of experiments to discover a new method of separating 
quantitatively zinc and copper, the author thought it advisable to examine the various 
processes which have been proposed of late years, and these are the results : — 

He first made a series of experiments with a process which has been recommended 
by Messrs. Rivot and Bouquet, and which consists in adding an excess of ammonia 
to an acid liquor containing the above tveo metals, and then adding caustic potash in 
slight excess. The liquor is to be heated to 158° Fahr. until the whole of the ammo- 
nia is expelled, the copper being thrown down in the state of black oxide, whilst the 
oxide of zinc remains in solution ; but Mr. Calvert has always found, even in employing 
diluted liquors and a very slight excess of potash, that a certain proportion of hydrate 
of oxide of zinc, dissolved in the caustic potash, was dehydrated, became insoluble, and 
precipitated with the oxide of copper, thereby increasing its relative proportion, and 
rendering the results incorrect. 

The two methods having failed in his hands, although he had taken all the 
necessary precautions recommended to carry out those processes successively, he next 
had recourse to the methods proposed by M. Flajolot. The first consists in adding 
to a boiling solution of zinc and copper, rendered slightly acid by sulphuric acid, 
hyposulphite of soda, until no more black pvotosulphuret of copper precipitates, filter- 
ing, and determining the copper by oxidizing the sulphuret with nitric acid in the 
usual way, and throwing down the copper. The zinc is precipitated with carbonate 
of soda. The second process given by this chemist consists in estimating the copper 
by precipitating it in the state of protoiodide by a solution of iodine in sulphurous 
acid*. 

Both these processes of M. Flajolot gave very satisfactory results, and can be 
adopted when a complete analysis of an alloy of zinc and copper is required ; but as these 
methods require too much time when rapid analyses are desired, the author next tried 
M. Pelouze's method, which consists in rendering the liquor containing salts of zino 
and copper alkaline with an excess of ammonia, and pouring very gradually into it a 
standard solution of monosulphuret of sodium, which first precipitates all the copper 
as black sulphuret, leaving the zinc in solution. As this latter metal yields a white 
sulphuret, it is easy to ascertain when all the copper is precipitated. This method is 

* For further details see ' Chemist,' vol. i. p. 411. 



54 REPORT — 1855. 

so easily and rapidly performed, that he thought it advisable to test its accuracy, and 
the following results leave no doubt as to its exactitude and value. The zinc is de- 
termined by difference. 

Taken. Obtained. 

I. Copper 1-16 117 

Zinc 17-97 17-96 

II. Copper 9-91 9-935 

Zinc 3-55 3-525 



Description of Dr. Clark's Patent Process for softening Water, now in 
use at the Wo7-ks of the Plumstead, Woolwich, and Charlton Consumers' 
Pure Water Company, togetlier with some Account of their Works. By 
D. Campbell, F.C.S. 

According to the author, the process of Dr. Clark for softening water may be applied 
with advantage to water from the chalk strata, water from the New Red Sandstone, 
and waters which contain carbonate of lime in solution from any strata. It is briefly 
described as follows ; namely, by adding a quantity of milk of lime to the water, it takes 
carbonic acid holding carbonate of lime in solution ; and forms a precipitate of carbonate 
of lime, throwing down at the same time thequantity of carbonate oflime held in solution 
by the carbonic acid, and thus rendering the water soft. The works and operations for 
carrying out the process were fully described by diagrams. One peculiar feature in the 
•water after it had been softened, and which was not anticipated by Dr. Clark when he 
first took out his patent, is, that it does not show the slightest sign of vegetation, though 
exposed to the sun and light for upwards of a month, whilst the water before softening 
cannot be kept above a few days without producing Confervre ; and if this be not 
immediately removed, decay commences quickly, and small insects are soon observed, 
which feed upon the decaying vegetable matter ; and the water soon assumes a bad 
taste. This is continually the case when the water is kept in large reservoirs, and its 
removal occasions considerable trouble and expense. The author had endeavoured to 
explain the reason of this marked difference between the imsoftened and the softened 
water; and he was nearly satisfied that the vegetating principle in the water was more 
especially due to the carbonic acid holding the carbonate of lime in solution than to 
the volatile matter, or, as it is sometimes called, oi-ganic matter. The process is 
applicable to many towns already supplied with water from the chalk and from the 
New Red Sandstone, and if properly applied will be found to pay the expense of its 
working, and confer a great boon upon the populations, the enlightenment of whose 
corporations may induce them to adopt it. 



On the Preservation of the Potato Crops. 
By Chevalier De Claussen. 

At the meeting of the British Association in Hull, two years ago, the author proposed 
sulphate of lime as a means of preserving the potato. He has since, by successive 
experiments, convinced himself that it is entirely efficient. He wets them with water 
acidulated with sulphuric acid (1 part acid, 500 parts water), and before they are dry 
throws over them powdered sulphate of lime, or plaster of Paris, by which process 
they are covered with a thin film of sulphate of lime. If the potatoes are already 
attacked partially with the disease, they must be left from six to twelve hours in the 
acidulated water before the sulphate of lime is used ; but in case they are free of 
disease, a few minutes are sufficient. It is very possible that sulphate of lime, with 
an excess of sulphuric acid added to the soil in which potatoes grow, may be useful ; 
but he has not made any experiment to this purpose. He has ground to suppose that 
chemical combinations in contact with animal or vegetable products have a tendency 
to preserve them, in the same way as the combination of oxygen and zinc preserves 
iron, and that this is one of the causes why the combination of water with the sul- 
phate oflime preserves potatoes and other vegetables; and that in the same time the 
small quantity of free sulphuric acid destroys the fungus which causes the disease. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 55 

On the apparent Mechanical Action accompanying Electrical Transfer. 
By Mrs. Crosse. 

Dr. Playfair stated, that at the last meethig of the Association, Mr. Crosse, who is 
recently dead, had read a communication on some phsenomena which took place in 
the electric current, and it was objected on that occasion, that it was possible the gold 
which was carried over might have been impure gold ; and that it was owing to a 
solution of copper that was in the gold that these mechanical phaenomena ensued. 
Mrs. Crosse, with a desire to show the accuracy of her husband's experiments, had 
since his death repeated the experiment with pure gold, and obtained the results men- 
tioned in the communication. 



Extracts from a Letter from the Rev. A. S. Farrar, of Queen's College, 
Oxford, on the late Eruption of Vesuvius {read by Dr. Daubeny). 

The writer sketched the recent history of the volcano down to the late eruption. 
A new crater was formed in December 1 854 by the sudden giving way of a portion 
of the summit of the great cone, which, however, revealed little of the internal 
structure of the mountain, though it discharged only gas. The eruption commenced 
on May 1st, 1855, from ten craters which broke out in one long line down the north 
side of the cone. The lava continued to flow for twenty-eight days, and destroyed 
much valuable property, passing down the ravines between the Monte Somma and 
the Observatory, and pursuing its course in the plain to a distance of six miles. 
Professor Palmieri has taken meteorological observations at the Observatory near the 
Hermitage. The magnets were affected for two days previously to the outburst of the 
lava, with remarkable oscillations analogous to those observed in 1851, during the 
earthquake at Melfi. The development of electricity was strongly marked, of a 
nature always positive, and yielding ditferent results when studied with a fixed con- 
ductor, and the same made moveable according to Peltier's method. The Neapolitan 
Professors Scacchi and Palmieri intend to publish their observations. Mr. Farrar 
concluded with an account of M. Deville's Chemical Observations on the gases 
emitted by the fumaroles, as recorded in the ' Comptes Reudus ' for June and July, 
1855. 



On an Indirect Method of ascertaining the presence of Phosphoric Acid in 
Rochs, where the quantity of that ingredient was too minute to be determi- 
nable by direct analysis. By Professor Daubeny, M,D., F.R.S. 

The method employed was to sow on a portion of the rock, well-pulverized, and 
brought into a condition, mechanically speaking, suitable to the growth of a plant, a 
certain number of seeds in which the amount of phosphoric acid had been deter- 
mined by a previous analysis. 

It is evident, that whatever excess of phosphoric acid over that existent in the seed 
was detected in the crop resulting, must be referred to the soil in which the plant 
had grown, and hence would serve to indicate the existence of that quantity at least 
in the rock. 

Now when chalk, oolite, magnesian limestone, red sandstone, and other rocks in 
which organic remains are usually present, were made the subject of experiment, the 
existence of phosphoric acid in the rock was always detected by the foregoing method, 
the phosphoric acid in the crop exceeding the amount of that in the seeds sown. 

But when the slates that lie at the bottom of the Silurian system, such as those of 
Bangor and Llanberris in North Wales, were tested in the same manner, the almost 
entire absence of phosphoric acid in them was inferred from the scantiness of the 
crop, which in each instance contained scarcely more of phosphoric acid than had 
been present in the seeds from which it had been derived. Nor was this owing to 
any mechanical impediment to their growth ; for when the rock was manured with 
phosphate of lime, a crop was obtained from it as large as in the preceding cases. 

These experiments tend therefore to show that the rocks above named really were 



5ff REPORT — 1855. 

deposited where no living beings existed ; for although the absence of organic remains 
in them might be accounted for by metamorphic action, the heat which obliterated 
the latter would exert no influence upon the phosphoric acid which all animals and 
vegetables contain, and which therefore would still remain in a rock made up in part 
of their exuviae, even if it had undei-gone fusion. 

Dr. Daubeny suggested that this method of investigation might throw some light 
upon the much-disputed question, whether any rocks are known which were ante- 
cedent to the commencement of organic life ; and also, in a practical point of view, 
might be useful by showing, whether manuring with phosphate of lime was likely to 
be serviceable in increasing their agricultural value. 

The second subject adverted to in this communication related to the reputed exist- 
ence of phosphoric acid in certain rocks of Connemara in Ireland, which Sir Roderick 
Murchison liad referred to the Silurian epoch. 

These limestones, although totally destitute of organic remains, and possessing all 
the characters of primitive limestone, being crystalline and interstratified with quartz 
rock and mica slate, often contain, according to a recent analysis, a large per-centage 
of phosphoric acid ; and this statement, Dr. Daubeny, from a hasty examination which 
he had made of them upon the spot, was disposed to credit, so far at least as relates to 
the presence of traces of this ingredient in the limestones referred to*. 

Should this fact be substantiated by further investigations, it will not only confirm 
Sir R. Murchison 's previous opinion as to the age of these limestones, but will also 
show that they are likely to be of value as manures, by reason of the phosphoric 
acid which they contain. 



On tlie Action of Light on the Germination of Seeds, 
By Professor Daubent, 3LD., F.R.S. 

An opinion has gone abroad, and has found a place in several standard treatises f, 
that as the luminous rays favour the development of the growing plant, so the chemical 
rays promote the germination of the seed. 

The authority upon which this statement rests, seems to be that of some experiments 
instituted by Professor Robert Hunt, who, whilst employed in investigating the che- 
mical action of light upon inorganic bodies, and its application to photography, turned 
his attention likewise to the influence of the same agent upon plants. 

One circumstance alone, however, might raise a doubt as to any direct effect having, 
in the instances reported, been produced by the several solar rays, namely that, so far 
as can be collected from the statement given, all the seeds tried by Mr. Hunt were 
buried in the ground to the usual depth. Now I found that a depth of two inches of 
common garden soil was quite sufficient to intercept the rays of light, so as to prevent 
the slightest chemical action being exerted upon highly sensitive paper placed be- 
neath it. 

The improbabilit}', therefore, of a ray of light acting through such a medium in- 
duced me to institute a set of experiments, in which the seeds were placed on the 
sui-face of moist earth exposed to the action of particular portions only of the solar 
spectrum. 

Although the results obtained are rather of a negative than of a positive descrip- 
tion, and have likewise been in some measure superseded by the researches already 
published by Dr. Gladstone, yet as the experiments have been repealed during the 
last summer, and lead uniformly to similar results, they are communicated, as justi- 
fying the conclusion to which I had arrived, that no positive influence of a direct 
kind in promoting germination can be traced to the chemical rays of light, when 
compared with other portions of the sunbeam. 

Six sorts of seeds were in general employed in these experiments, and the number 
of radicles and plumules of the several kinds which had protruded each day were 
duly registered. 

The media employed for isolating certain rays, or at least particular portions 

* These limestones have been since examined more carefully by Dr. Daubeny, and the 
quantity of phosphoric acid present in them found to be much smaller than that reported 
in the analysis referred to. See Proceedings of the Ashmolean Society for Oct. 29, 1855. 

t See in particular Mrs. Somerville's work on Physical Geography. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 57 

of the spectrum, are enumerated in the table annexed, by reference to which it 
will be at once seen, what specific luminous influence was exerted upon the seeds by 
each of those coloured glasses or fluids which are named in the brief statement of the 
experiments which follow. /-> /• j p 

I am indebted to Mr. Maskelyne, the Deputy-Reader of Mmeralogy at Oxford, tor 
having examined the various media employed, and dettned by reference to Frauen- 
hofer's lines the exact quality of the rays transmitted by each, as is stated m the 
Table. (See Plate VI 

In the first set of experiments a south aspect was selected, and the following seeds 
were experimented upon, viz. — 

Datura Catiila 10 Helianthus annuus 13 

Malope grandiflora M Polygonum fagopyrum 16 

Trifolium incarnatum 14 Hordeum sativum 14 

Raphanus rotundus 12 

^ In all 93 

But as none of the two first came up, the real number operated upon may be esti- 
mated at 69. Of these — 

46 radicles and 18 plumules came up under violet light. 
44 radicles and 18 plumules came up under green glass. 

41 radicles and 19 plumules came up in one instance \^^ darkness. 

41 radicles and 5 plumules came up in another instance J 

36 radicles and 26 plumules came up under cobalt-blue glass. 

32 radicles and 17 plumules came up imder amber glass. 

29 radicles and 7 plumules came up under ruby glass. 

23 radicles and 5 plumules came up under orange glass. 
Accordingly, in this series a slight superiority seemed certainly to belong to the violet- 
coloured medium over the rest, in relation to the number both of radicles and of 
plumules which appeared; whilst in respect to the quickness of their germination, the 
violet and green media were a-head of the rest, although the plumules did not follow 
the same order. 

When, however, the same experiments were repeated in a north aspect, the same 
law did not hold good, for out of 69 seeds, — 

52 radicles and 22 plumules appeared under green glass. 

49 radicles and 17 plumules appeared under blue glass. 

47 radicles and 14 plumules 1 ^ed in darkness. 
47 radicles and 21 plumules J ^^ 

44 radicles and 1 7 plumules appeared under transparent glass. 

39 radicles and 23 plumules appeared under violet light. 
And with respect to the quickness of germination, it appeared that the green stood first 
in order; that the seeds luider blue and violet glass and in absolute darkness came 
up next in order, and with nearly equal rapidity ; that those in full light were next 
in order ; whilst orange, ruby, and yellow were about equal, but somewhat later than 

the rest. i. • i v -u 

It did not appear, therefore, from this last series of experiments, that violet light 
favoured germination at all more than any other species of light ; nor indeed that any 
kind of ray was injurious to the process, so long as its intensity was not too great, as 
maybe inferred to have been the case in the first set of experiments, where the seeds 
were exposed to the full rays of the sun in a southern aspect. 

I therefore, in my subsequent experiments, selected uniformly a north aspect for 
the germination of the seeds ; and in order still further to test the point as to whether 
the quality of the light had anything to do with the process, I placed as before upon 
the surface of the soil, in boxes, ten seeds of each of the four following plants, viz. 
peas, beans, kidney-beans, and a species of sunflower (^Helianthus annuus), all of which 
germinated. Now in this case 

37 radicles and 25 plumules appeared in the dark box ; 

36 radicles and 30 plumules appeared under green glass; 

35 radicles and 30 plumules appeared under blue glass ; 

34 radicles and 24 plumules appeared under transparent glass; 
the whole number of seeds operated upon being only 40. 



US REPORT 1855. 

It would seem, then, as if in these cases the absence or presence of light was 
almost a matter of indifference. 

In the fourth series of experiments rather a greater variety of species was experi- 
mented upon, and a larger number of media employed, the total number of seeds in 
each box being 52, viz. of a species of sunflower, peas, kidney-beans, and barley, 
10 of each, and of radishes 12, In this instance, the whole number came up under 
four of the media employed, but these media were of very different qualities ; in one 
case, all light being excluded; in another, the violet I'ay alone admitted; in another, 
green light; and in the fourth, a pale green glass being used, which cut off none of the 
rays completely, although it enfeebled all. 

The number of plumules that were developed in these several instances, were from 
46 to 47. 

The number of radicles developed under transparent glass was only less by two than 
the others, so that no fair inference would seem deducible from this series, in favour 
of one medium being preferable to another. The radicles, however, came up most 
rapidly in total darkness, and least so when all the rays were admitted. 

Although the above four sets of experiments seemed to render it improbable that 
any influence, favourable or otherwise, could be ti'aced to particular rays or portions 
of the spectrum, still it seemed desirable to show more directly, that where the 
quantity of light was the same its quality was immaterial. 

It was with this view principally that I instituted a fifth set of experiments, in 
which the light was filtered as it were through liquids — one of which was the ammonio- 
sulphate of copper, which excluded all but the violet; another, port wine, which 
admitted only the extreme red ; and a third, a mixture of ink and water, which 
deadened equally all the rays of the spectrum. 

It was in the first place ascertained, as nearly as could be done by the eye, that an 
equal amount of light was admitted through each of the media, they being severally 
diluted with water, until they allowed just so much light to pass as was sufficient for 
reading the largest print in a chamber otherwise darkened. 

The results appear to show, that there was under these circumstances scarcely any 
difference to be detected ; nor indeed did a glass, which admitted allthe light present, 
appear to interfere with the process materially, although in the box from whence light 
was entirely excluded the germination seemed to go on somewhat less vigorously than 
in the others. 

It will be seen at least, that out of 50 seeds, or 10 of each of the foflowing, radishes, 
peas, kidney-beans, sunflower, and barley, 

49 radicles and 48 plumules appeared under port wine. 

49 radicles and 43 plumules appeared under ink and water. 

47 radicles and 36 plumules appeared under transparent glass. 

46 radicles and 48 plumides appeared under \ „^^„„- o,.i„i,„t., ^f „„.,„„,. 
,. , 1 ,^o '^i 1 3 J >• ammonio-sulpliate 01 copper. 

45 radicles and 98 plumules appeared under J ^ *^^ 

42 radicles and 37 plumules appeared in total darkness. 

Upon the whole, from a general survey of the above experiments, no other conclu- 
sion seems deducible, except that light has very little to dodirectly with the germination 
of seeds ; and that although the popular opinion may be well-founded, namely, that the 
process goes on best in the dark, as maltsters generally believe, still that the light which 
interferes with the success of the operation acts chiefly by producing such a degree of 
dryness as is unfavourable to the sprouting of the seed, and not by itself interfering 
directly with the result. 

An experienced maltster, indeed, assures me, that darkness is not necessary for 
malting, although, in order to maintain a suitable degree of humidity in the apart- 
ment, strong light is generally excluded. 

In the Tables annexed, the numbers attached to each column indicate merely the 
relative number of radicles or plumules, which had been found to develope themselves 
under the several media employed, on each of the days of which the date is given. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 

First set of Experiments. — In a South Aspect. — Summary, 
Numbers that had vegetated on each day— Experiment beginning April 13. 



59 







April 








Media. — 
17. 


18. 


19. 


20. 


21. 22 

5 { 
14 1 


. 23. 24. 


25. 


26. 


No. 1. White 1 2 



2 


1 3 
6 10 


} 11 
i 22 


15 
26 


19 
30 


... 


P 
R 


No. 2. Blue { 2 



6 


2 5 
10 14 


8 12 16 
18 22 26 


21 
32 


26 
36 




P 
R 


No. 6. Amber ... | { 


1 
4 1 7 


2 
10 


4 
13 1 


6 10 

7 22 


14 

27 


18 
32 


... 


P 

R 


No. 5. Ruby | J 



2 



5 



8 


2 
11 14 19 


4 
24 


7 
29 


... 


P 
R 


No. 7. Orange ...| J 



2 



4 



6 


1 2 
8 10 14 


3 
18 


6 
23 


• •• 


P 
R 


No. 3. Green ...| [ 



9 



14 


2 
19 


4 
24 2 


6 10 
9 34 


14 
39 


18 

44 




P 
R 


No. 11». Black ...| ! 




7 



11 


2 
15 


4 
19 S 


7 11 
>4 29 


15 

35 


19 
41 


... 


P 
R 


No. ll\ Black ....| 1 


) 
> 6 




11 



16 




21 : 


1 
>6 31 


3 
36 


5 
41 


... 


P 
R 


No. 8. Violet ....| | 


) 
I 9 



14 


3 6 
19 24 


9 12 
29 34 


15 

40 


18 
46 




P 

R 


Second set of Experiments.— In a North Aspect.— Summary. 






Numbers that had vegetated on each day.— Experiment beginning April 28. 




Media. 


May 






1. 


2. 
31 


3. 
38 


4. 5. 


6. 7. 


8. 


9. 


10. 




No. 1. "White - 


n 


1 ... 
41 ... 


11 ... 
43 ... 


17 
44 


... 




P 
R 




Nn 2 Blue ■ 


18 


36 


43 


46 '.'.'. 


14 ... 

48 ... 


24 

.49 




• •• 


P 
R 








No 7. Orange ■ 


r ... 

8 


28 


33 


37 '.'.'. 


8 ... 
37 ... 


17 
41 


:;: 




P 
R 




No 5 Ruby • 




31 
29 


36 
38 


38 '.'.'. 
41 '.'.'. 


5 ... 
40 ... 

6 ... 
42 ... 


14 

44 

8 
43 


... 




P 
R 




No. 6. Amber ■ 






P 
R 




No. 3. Green 


23 


37 


49 


51 ::: 


5 ... 
52 ... 


22 
52 




... 


P 
R 




No. 11». Black 


{-. 


28 


36 


2 ... 
41 ... 


3 ... 
43 ... 


14 

47 






P 
R 




Nell''. Black 


iiS 


32 


42 


45 ... 


10 .. 
45 .. 


21 
47 




... 


P 
R 




No. 8. Violet 


r ... 

1 16 


31 


36 37 ... 


19 .. 
38 .. 


23 
39 


... 


... 


P 
R 



60 



REPORT — 1855. 



Third set of Experiments. — In a North Aspect. — Summary. 
Numbers that had vegetated on each day. — Experiment beginning May 16. 









June 




Media. 












3. 


4. 


5. 


6. 


7. 


8. 


9. 


11. 


13. 


15. 


17. 

23 
34 


21. 

24 
34 


23. 

24 

34 


P 
R 


No. 1. White.... 


•{ 


's 


i'9 


i'9 


23 


5 
31 


7 
33 


7 
33 


9 
34 


15 
34 


21 
34 


No. 2. Blue 


■■{ 


9 


26 


26 


30 


9 
33 


9 
35 


10 

35 


15 
35 


20 
35 


24 
35 


25 
35 


30 
35 


30 
35 


P 
R 


No. 3. Dark Green 1 


"9 


26 


26 


29 


5 
33 


10 
35 


10 
36 


14 

36 


20 
36 


25 
36 


27 
36 


30 
36 


30 
36 


P 
R 


No. 4. Black .... 


r 


18 


18 


is 


25 


5 
33 


10 
33 


12 
33 


13 

36 


21 
36 


23 

37 


25 
3; 


25 
37 


25 
37 


P 
R 



Fourth set of Experiments. — In a North AsjJecf. — Summary. 
Numbers that had vegetated on each day. — Experiment beginning July 28. 



Media. 


August 




3. 


4. 


5. 


6. 


7. 


8. 


9. 


10. 


11. 12. 


13. 


14. 


15. 


16. 


17. 

41 

49 


18. 

41 

49 


19. 

41 

49 


20. 

46 
50 


P 
R 


No. 1. White j 


26 


1 
40 


9 
42 


16 

42 


16 
42 


25 

44 


25 
44 


27 
45 


30 
46 


35 
46 


36 
46 


36 
46 


37 
46 


37 
46 


No. 4. Light/ 
Green... \ 


21 


38 


13 

40 


27 

40 


27 

40 


29 
44 


29 
44 


30 
45 


34 
45 


34 
45 


37 
45 


37 

45 


37 
45 


37 
45 


42 
52 


42 
52 


42 
52 


44 
52 


P 
R 


No. 3. Dark ■ 
Green..." 


23 


46 


17 
46 


20 
47 


20 
47 


27 

48 


27 

48 


28 
48 


33 35 
50 50 


37 

50 


38 
50 


40 
50 


42 
50 


47 
50 


47 
50 


47 

50 


47 
52 


P 
R 


No. 2, Blue.. / 


25 


5 
41 


16 
43 


26 
43 


26 
43 


27 
43 


27 
43 


27 

43 


32 
43 


36 
43 


38 
43 


38 
43 


38 
43 


38 
43 


46 

48 


46 
46 


46 
46 


46 
46 


P 
R 


No. 8. Violet 1 


23 


42 


23 
45 


30 

45 


30 
45 


30 
45 


30 
45 


40 
45 


42 

46 


43 
46 


43 

46 


43 
46 


43 
46 


43 
46 


46 
52 


46 
52 


46 
52 


46 
52 


P 
R 


No. 1 1. Black 1 


31 


1 

43 


10 
45 


20 
45 


20 
45 


22 

47 


22 
47 


22 

47 


27 

48 


30 
48 


37 

48 


37 

48 


38 

48 


38 

48 


47 
52 


47 
52 


47 
52 


47 
52 


P 
R 



Fifth set of Experiments. — In a North Aspect. — Summary. 
Numbers that had vegetated on each day. — Experiment beginning May 25. 





June 




Media. 






2. 


3. 


4. 


5. 


6. 


7. 


8. 


9. 


10. 


11. 


12. 


17. 


19. 


20. 


21. 


23. 


26. 


P 
R 


No. 1. White ..- 


26 


26 


34 


3 

37 


3 

37 


3 
37 


10 
41 


15 
41 


20 
46 


26 
46 


26 
46 


32 
47 


32 

47 


34 
47 


34 
47 


35 

47 


36 
47 


No. 11. Black.. - 




37 


3 
40 


3 
40 


7 
41 


13 
41 


17 
41 


20 
41 


20 
42 


25 
42 


25 
42 


29 
42 


31 

42 


32 
42 


32 
42 


33 
42 


37 
42 


P 
R 


No. 8«.Sulphate r 
of Copper., i 




22 


33 


33 


1 
33 


2 

34 


7 
36 


8 
37 


11 

38 


20 
44 


20 
44 


28 
44 


31 
44 


34 
44 


34 
44 


34 

44 


38 
45 


P 
R 


N0.9. PortWine^ 


6 


3 

36 


3 

38 


7 
38 


10 
40 


24 
43 


27 
43 


28 
43 


31 
46 


35 
47 


35 

47 


37 
47 


37 
47 


40 
47 


40 
47 


42 

47 


48 
49 


P 
R 


No. S^'.Sulphate J" 
of Copper.. \ 




32 


3 
39 


3 

39 


5 
39 


11 
39 


18 
39 


23 
41 


26 
45 


33 

45 


33 
45 


35 
45 


36 
45 


39 
45 


39 
45 


40 
45 


45 
46 


P 
R 


No. 10. Ink..,.| 




25 


29 


29 


34 


2 

38 


8 
40 


12 
43 


18 
48 


26 
49 


26 
49 


33 
49 


35 
49 


38 
49 


38 
49 


39 
49 


43 
49 


P 
R 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 61 

On the Titaniferous Iron of the Mersey Shore. By J. B. Edwards, Ph.D., 
F.C.S., Lecturer on Chemistry at the Royal Infirmary School of Medicine, 
and Royal Institution, Liverpool, 

The sand along the western shore of the Mersey, especially between Seacombe and 
New Brighton, has long been observed to contain a considerable quantity of titani- 
ferous iron, which is strongly attracted by the magnet, and thus readily separated 
from the shore sand. It occurs from the disintegration of boulders of granitic rock, 
which are found in a clay bed which rises abruptly from the shore to the height of 
about 30 or 40 feet, and is of limited extent. The formation of the district is new 
red sandstone, and this drift must have come from a considerable distance, and is 
generally ascribed to the hills of the Solway. Some of the masses of rock are very 
large, but the majority are of a few pounds' weight, or less. They are found in va- 
rious stages of decomposition ; some appearing quite hard, and speckled black, others 
green and crumbling, others in complete disintegration within the clay, and in this 
state the green colour is generally very marked. This is probably due to adhering oxide 
of iron undergoing change by the action of the atmosphere. When collected from 
among the sand of the shore, the crystals of the mineral appear of a uniform black 
colour. 

The specimens examined were carefully separated from the shore sand by a mag- 
net. Prof. Thomson's formula for iserine is FeO, TiOg, and the analysis he gives is 

TiOs 50-12 

FeO 49-88 



100-00 

The spec. grav. he gives as 4-5, and states that it is strongly attracted by the magnet, 
Gmelin gives the formula of 2FeO+Ti02 = 

TiOa 36-36 

FeO 63-63 



99-9.9 



These compounds may also be represented as oxides in which both metals are basic. 
Titanium being isomorphous with iron, the first compound therefore represents sesqui- 
oxide of iron, in which iron is partly replaced by titanium, and the latter magnetic 
oxide, with a similar substitution ; thus 






No. 1. 



No. 2. 



Many compounds of titaniferous iron have been examined, and the composition 
appears to vary very considerably. That which I now describe has a specific gravity 
of 4'82, and is powerfully attracted by the magnet; some of the particles also them- 
selves attract iron. The results of three experiments gave as its composition the 
following : — 

Experiment. Theory of formula. 

TiOj 13-20 13-74 

FeO 31-10 3092 

FegOg 42-08 4089 

AI2O3 8-62 8-91 

SiOg 4-02 5-01 

99-02 99-47 

This nearly agrees with the following formula : 

2 (FeO, TiOs) 3(Fe3 O4) + AI2O3 + SiOg. 
If the iron exists, as here represented, in the state of magnetic oxide, the magnetic 
properties of the crystals would be thus explained. 



62 REPORT — 1855. 

On the Action of Sulphurets on Metallic Silicates at high Temperatures. 
By David Forbes, F.G.S. 

This communication first treated of the sulphurets of metals formed by fusion, 
showing that very distinct compounds were thus formed generally more basic than 
under otlier circumstances. The action of sulphurets on silicates was illustrated by a 
series of researches, which showed that when the silicate of a weaker metal was fused 
along wjth the siilphuret of a stronger one, or rice versa, the result was the same, — 
not a perfect mutual decomposition, as would have been expected, but the production 
of a double sulphur-salt of both metals. When the fusion, however, took place at lower 
temperatures, no action was found to take place. A series of specimens illustrated the 
occurrence of such reactions, metallurgical operations, and their chemical composi- 
tion, &c. 



On some Organic Compounds containing Metals. 
By Professor Frankland, Ph.D., F.R.S. 

The author has continued his researches on the above-named compounds, and in a 
communication just presented to the Royal Society, has completed the history of zinc- 
ethyl, which is produced by the action of zinc upon iodide of ethyl in close vessels, 
at a temperature of about 130° C. Zincethyl is a colourless, transparent, and mobile 
liquid, refracting light strongly and possessing a peculiar ethereal odour. Its specific 
gravity is 1*182. It boils at 118° C, and distils unchanged in an atmosphere of car- 
bonic acid. The specific gravity of its vapour is 4'259. It therefore consists of two 
volumes of ethyl and one volume of zinc vapour, the three volumes being condensed 
to two. 

Zincethyl inflames spontaneously in atmospheric air or in oxygen, burning with a 
brilliant blue flame fringed with green. When more gradually oxidized, it yields 
ethylate of zinc (ZnO C4 Hj O) ; with .iodine it gives iodide of ethyl and iodide of 
zinc, and with bromium, chlorine, and sulphur the reaction is similar. Zincethyl 
decomposes water with almost explosive violence, forming oxide of zinc and hydride 
of ethyl. 

These remarkable reactions lead the author to anticipate, that zincethyl will prove 
in the bands of chemists a new and valuable means of research; for it is evident from 
its reactions that it will be capable of replacing electro-negative elements in organic 
or inorganic compounds by ethyl ; a kind of replacement which has never yet been 
attempted, but which the author anticipates will enable him to build up organic com- 
pounds from inorganic ones, and ascend the homologous series of organic bodies ; by 
replacing, for instance, the hydrogen in a methylic compound by chlorine or iodine, and 
then acting upon this product of substitution by zincethyl or zincmethyl, the author 
believes that compounds higher in the series will be obtained, since he regards the higher 
homologues of methyl and its compounds as derived from the latter radical by the 
successive replacement of hydrogen by methyl. 

The author, who is now engaged with researches in this direction, mentioned some 
substitution products derived from nitric acid in proof of the strong probability of 
the foregoing considerations. 



On a Mode of conserving the Alkaline Sulphates contained in Alums. 
By Professor Frankland, Ph.D., F.R.S. 

The ultimate object of the manufacture of alums is the production oi apure salt 
of alumina, and the alkaline sulphates contained in alums are employed only for pro- 
ducing with sulphate of alumina a readily crystallizable salt, which can be freed from 
impurities, and especially from oxide of iron, by repeated crystallizations. In almost 
every case in which alum is employed in the arts, the alkaline sulphate which it con- 
tains is utterly useless ; it is consequently wasted and thrown away. The author 
therefore proposes to extract the alkaline sulphates from alums, thus producing pure 
sulphate of alumina, and conserving the alkaline sulphates, which latter can then either 
be sold as such, or employed for the preparation of a new quantity of alum. This 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 63 

separation the author effects by dissolving the alum (ammonia alum is to be pre- 
ferred) in hot water and then passing into the solution a stream of ammoniacal gas, 
produced by boiling the ammoniacal liquor of gas-works with lime, until the whole 
of the alumina is precipitated as a subsulphate; this precipitate is then to be separated 
from the solution of sulphate of alumina by means of canvas filters, or a hydro-extract- 
or. The subsulphate of alumina, being then dissolved in sulphuric acid and evaporated, 
yields pure sulphate of alumina admirably adapted for the production of the usual 
alumina mordants of the calico-printer, and the filtered solution yields on evaporation 
crystallized sulphate of ammonia, about 9 cwt. of which will be produced from each 
ton of alum, one third, or 3 cwt., being separated from the alum itself. 



On the Extraction of Metals from the Ore of Platinum. 
By Professor E. Fremy, Paris. 
M. Fr6my treated of the preparation of osmium, rhodium and iridium from the 
residues of the platinum ores. The preparation of osmium according to the old method 
is attended with great difficulties and actual danger. M. Fremy proposed to prepare 
osmium by passing atmospheric air over the residual ore, heated in a porcelain tube. 
The volatile osmic acid is condensed in glass balloons, and the less volatile oxide of 
ruthenium is found at the extremity of the heated tube. The rhodium remaining in the 
residual mass is separated from the other metal contained by chlorine gas at a high 
temperature. 

On a New Glticocide contained in the Petals of a Wall/lower. 
By J. Galletley. 



On the Use of Phosphate of Potash in a Salt Meat Dietary. 
By Robert Galloway, F.C.S. 
We know from the researches of Liebig that salted meat is less nutritious than 
unsalted meat, if the salting has been carried to such an extent as to produce brine ; 
for the salt remains along with the water of the flesh, the different substances dissolved 
in it being albumen, lactic acid, kreatine, kreatinine and some of the mineral ingre- 
dients, especially phosphoric acid and potash. It is, in my opinion, the loss of the 
two latter substances which renders salted meat so unnutritious, because the fibrine of 
the flesh can supply the place of the organic substances, but none of the substances 
remaining in the flesh can supply the place of the phosphoric acid and potash, and even 
vegetables do not contain these substances in sufficient quantity to make up for the loss. 
To supply the deficiency, 1 propose that phosphate of potash be used with salted meat 
as common salt is with flesh ; this addition would render salted meat nearly, if not 
quite, as nutritious as flesh, and as a consequence the diseases arising from the use of 
salted meat would cease. 

On the Quality of Food of Artizans in an artificially heated Atmosphere. 
By Robert Galloway, F.C.S. 

Some time ago I had to superintend the operations in a sugar refinery ; during the 
time my attention became directed to the quality of the food consumed by the work- 
men. The temperature of a refinery varies from 90° to 120° Fahr., and the work is 
laborious. The workmen, as theory would predict, live almost exclusively upon nitro- 
genous substances; their food consists of bread and meat ; and this is the more stri- 
king, as the men in their own country (the men employed in refineries are Germans), 
and at other occupations, live almost exclusively upon vegetables. 



On a Crystalline Deposit of Gypsum in the Reservoir of the Highgate Water- 
works. By J. H. Gladstone, Ph.D., F.R.S. 

Dr. Gladstone laid on the table a large branching crystal of gypsum, weighing 
about half a pound. It was described as a small portion of a deposit which was 
found recently on cleaning out one of the reservoirs at Highgate. The clerk of the 



64 REPORT — 1855. 

works called it "congealed water," and supposed that it could not possibly have 
been brought there originally and placed in the position where it was found. The 
crystals had spread themselves over a stratum of clay, and had probably been formed 
by the action of slowly decomposing sulphurets on the carbonate of lime in the water 
or earth. 

Experiments on the Compounds of Tin ivith Arsenic. By Ed. Haeffely. 

These experiments had led to this practical fact, that the danger of using any arse- 
niates in stannates of soda might be obviated by the use of pure stannate of soda 
alone. 

On a new Form of Cyanic Acid. By the Baron Von Liebig, Munich. 

In the course of some experiments on the fulminate of mercury, I observed that that 
compound, when kept boiling in water, changed its colour, and lost its fulminating 
properties. On examining the change that had taken place in the composition of the 
fulminate, I discovered a new acid, which had exactly the composition of cyanuric acid, 
but which differed entirely from that acid in its properties, and in the properties of the 
salts which are produced with the alkaline bases — salts remarkable for their beauty 
and for the distinctness of their crystalline form. Taking for the equivalent of hydrated 
fulminic acid the formula C2, NO, HO, the new acid is produced in a very similar 
manner. The elements of three equivalents of fulminic acid unite to form one equi- 
valent of the new acid, to which 1 shall give the name of fulminuric acid. This acid 
is monobasic. Its salt of silver is soluble in hot water, and crystallizes from it in long, 
silky, white needles. The alkaline salts of the new acid are very easily prepared by 
boiling the fulminate of mercury with an alkaline chloride. The fulminate of mercury 
is first dissolved ; then gradually two-thirds of the oxide of mercury precipitates, and 
the alkaline fulminate, with a certain quantity of chloride of mercury and potassium, 
remains in the solution. By employing the chloride of sodium, or the chloride of 
barium, we obtain, of course, a salt of the new acid, with a base of soda or of barytes. 
With chloride of ammonium an ammoniacal salt is obtained, the crystals of which are 
distinguished from all others by their adamantine brilliancy, and their high degree of 
power and lustre. These crystals belong to the Klinorhombic system, and possess 
double refraction almost as strongly as Iceland spar. The hydrated acid is easily 
obtained by decomposing the basic lead salt by means of sulphuretted hydrogen. It 
has a strongly acid reaction, and when reduced by evaporation to a state of syrup, it 
is transformed by degrees into a crystalline mass, which dissolves in alcohol, and which, 
by the action of acids, is changed hito carbonic acid and ammonia. 



Baron Liebig made a few observations on a new mode of making bread introduced 
into Germany. Lime-water had been used in the preparation of the dough, and the 
loaf was rendered still more nutritive than that made by the common mode. 



Baron Liebig handed in for inspection a large bar of the new and interesting 
metal Aluminium. 

On the Commercial Uses of Lichens. By Dr. A. L. Lindsay. 



On the Chemical Composition of the Waters of the Clyde. By Stevenson 
Macadam, Ph.D., F.R.S.E., F.C.S., Lecturer on Chemistry, Surgeons^ 
Hall, Edinburgh. 

This communication is the first of a series which the author has undertaken in 
order to determine the chemical composition of the rivers of Scotland. The present 
examination was confined to the river and firth of Clyde, from Dalmarnock Bridge 
down to Arran. Specimens of the water at the more prominent stations were pro- 
cured by the author, and separately analysed. Three points were determined, viz. 
1. the specific gravity; 2. the amount of saline matter j and 3. the quantity of 
chlorine. 






TRANSACTIONS OP THB SECTIONS. 65 

The following table contains the results of the analyses of the various waters: — 



LOW WATER. 


Specific 
gravity. 


1000 grains. 


Saline 
matter. 


Chlorine. 


1000-25 

1000-28 

1000-40 

1000-60 

1000-60 

100059 

1000-62 

1000-9 

1001-3 

1002-3 

1005-8 

1007-3 

1011-3 

1021-8 

1018-9 

1020-4 

1022-1 

10221 

1022-3 

1022-4 

1022-4 

1020-2 

1021-9 

1021-8 

1022-7 

1022-8 

1005-4 

1022-4 

1022-1 

1021-8 

1022-3 

1021-9 

1022-9 

1024-3 

1024-3 

1023-6 

1023-3 

1022-5 

10242 

1024-4 

1024-9 

1026-6 

1026-3 

1025-6 

] 025-6 

1025-4 

1025-6 

10241 

1006-4 
1001-6 


0-28 

0-30 

0-45 

0-67 

0-66 

064 

0-70 

1-12 

1-62 

292 

7-38 

9-36 

14-42 

27-87 

24-53 

26-02 

28-24 

28-29 

28-35 

28-52 

28-49 

25-77 

28-06 

27-84 

28-97 

29-02 

6-86 

28-51 

28-26 

27-85 

28-36 

27-97 

29-23 

31-02 

31-06 

30-12 

29-70 

28-68 

30-98 

31-16 

31-72 

33-98 

33-66 

32-72 

32.68 

32-46 

32-71 

30-83 

8-14 
2-02 


0-02 

0-03 

006 
010 
010 
010 
0-15 
0-60 
79 
1-61 
4-03 
5-18 
7-96 
15-48 
13-59 
14-46 
15-63 
15-64 
15-82 
15-91 
15-91 
14-31 
15-53 
15-47 
1609 
16-14 
3-78 
15-88 
15-62 
15-48 
15-80 
15-52 
16-31 
17-23 
17-24 
16-88 
16-54 
15-97 
17-16 
17-41 
17-69 
18-91 
18-72 
18-34 
18-23 
1808 
18-25 
17-08 

4-38 
109 


Rutherglen Bridge 1 
Green Suspension Bridge J *" 
Suspension Bridge 


Broomielaw 






Renfrew 


Kilpatriclc 








Ditto, 2 miles below 


Port-Glasgow 


Greenock 


Ditto, +- Helensburgh 


Helensburgh 


Row 


Roseneath 


Shandon 




Gairloch-head 


Greenock -t- Kilcreggan 

KUcreggan 


Cove 




Lochlong +• Locbgoil 


Arrochar 


Strone ,, 








Gourock 


Ditto, -h- % Kirn 


Kirn 






Toward Point 






Kilchallan Bay 








Millport 


Fairley 


Largs 






HIGH WATER. 

Bowling 


Re nfrew 





The author does not regard the above figures as expressing the standard mean compo- 
sition of the Clyde waters at all seasons. Many circumstances will tend to affect these 
results, such as a wet or dry season determining the greater or less volume of fresh 
water carried down by the river, and the ebbing or flowing of the tide. The effects 
1855. 5 



66 REPORT — 1855. 

of the latter are well seen in the instances of Bowling and Renfrew, where water of 
a similar composition is found, at Bowling during every ebb of the tide, and at Ren- 
frew during flood-tide. The distance between these two places is five miles ; hence 
at every ebb and flow of the tide, there is a five-mile variation in the composition of 
the water at these points. In passing further down the Clyde, no doubt this five- 
mile oscillation in the strength of the water will vary, but at all the places mentioned 
in the table it will be more or less apparent. 



On the Composition of Bread. By Dr. Maclagan. 

Dr.Maclagan gave the results of some experiments which he himself had made. The 
amount of moisture in bread was less, and consequently the nutritive value greater, than 
was generally allowed. The late Prof. Johnston had stated that a sack of flour produced 
one hundred quartern loaves. But, according to his (Dr. Maclagan's) examination, 
the sack of 380 lbs. gave 94^ loaves of bread; 100 lbs. of flour giving 231 lbs. of bread. 
The majority of bakers were of opinion that the sack produced on an average 92 loaves, 
and there was no great discrepancy between this and the result of his own analysis. 
Unfermented bread contains, of dry flour, 60 ; moisture, 1 ; water added by baker, 30. 
100 lbs. of flour will give 143 lbs. of bread, and a sack of flour will yield 100§ quartern 
loaves of unfermented bread. 

On the Metals of the Alhaline Earths. By A. Matthiessen, Ph.D. 

Dr. Matthiessen has succeeded in preparing the metals strontium and calcium in 
the form of metallic reguli. The mode of preparation was illustrated by the apparatus 
used, and beautiful specimens of the metals, sealed up in tubes containing roach oil, 
and free from all air, were circulated among the members of the Section. Specimens 
of Lithian wire, prepared by Prof. Bunsen, at whose laboratory at Heidelberg the 
foregoing metals were prepared, were also exhibited. 



On the possibility of representing by Diagrams the principal Functions of 
the Molecules of Bodies. By the Rev. J. G. Macvicar, D.D., Moffat, 
Dumfriesshire. 

In this communication, the author, setting out with a point in the centre of a circle 
(Dalton's diagram for hydrogen and the astronomical diagram for the sun) to stand 
for the unit of material nature or minim element out of which all the molecules of 
bodies might be conceived to be constructed, proceeded to show that nothing more 
was required in order to arrive at constructions representative of hydrogen, oxygen, 
sulphur, &c., both as to atomic weight, refractive power, &c., but to combine these unit 
elements or atoms in such a way as to give a symmetrical construction. 

Then showing that the law of symmetry (which alone he postulated as the grand 
law of natural synthesis) culminated towards a spherical shell or cell as its limit, he 
proceeded to combine the representatives of the undecomposed bodies he had con- 
structed, so that the compound should always be more nearly spherical than its consti- 
tuents when separate; and thus he obtained diagrams which proved to be represent- 
atives of vapour, water, monohydrated sulphuric acid, &c. 

He concluded by illustrating the practical value of his method by presenting before 
the Section diagrams of urea and uric acid, from which it appeared that their transfor- 
mation was, under the law of genesis according to maximum symmetry, quite a definite 
problem. 

On the Chemical Composition of some Iron Ores called ' Brass' occurring in 
the Coal-Measures of South Wales. By E. Chambers Nicholson and 
David S. Price, Ph.D., F.C.S. 

The ores to which this paper refers are held in low estimation, and even rejected 
by some ironmasters. It was with a view of explaining the reason of this that 
their examination was undertaken. 

There are three varieties of this ore. 

I. One is compact, heavy, and black from the admixture of coaly matter; when 
broken it exhibits a coarse pisiform fracture. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 6/ 

II. Another is compact and crystalline, not unlike the dark-coloured mountain 
limestone of South Wales in appearance. 

III. The third variety is similar in structure to the first-named. The granules, con- 
sisting of iron pyrites, are mixed with coal, and apparently cemented together by a 
mineral substance of like composition to the two foregoing. 

It is from the yellow colour of this last variety that the name 'brass' has been 
given to the ores by ihe miners. 

The following is their composition : — 

I. II. ' 

Carbonate of iron 68-71 = iron 33-3 5973 iron = 28-83 

Carbonate of manganese 0-42 0-37 

Carbonate of lime 9-36 11-80 

Carbonate of magnesia .. 11-80 15-55 

Iron pyrites 0-22 trace 

Phosphoric acid 0-17 0-23 

Coaly matter 8-87 9-80 

Clay 2-70 

99-55 100-18 

III. 

Carbonate of iron 17-74 

Carbonate of lime 14-19 

Carbonate of magnesia , 12-06 

Iron pyrites 49-72 

Phosphoric acid trace 

Coaly matter 010 



99-81 



The ores I. and II., to which attention is directed as being those to which 
the remarks apply, may be classified with the spathose carbonates of iron. The 
absence of clay, and the difficulty, from ignorance of this fact, that would in conse- 
quence be experienced in smelting these ores, sufficiently explain the reason of the 
disrepute in which they have hitherto been held; for when judiciously treated in the 
blast-furnace, they smelt with the greatest facility, and afford an iron equal to that 

f)roduced from the argillaceous ores. It will be evident, from the large amount of 
ime and magnesia which they contain, that their employment must be advantageous 
in an economic point of view. 

An interesting feature in these ores is their fusibility during calcination on the 
large scale. When this process is conducted in heaps, the centre portions are inva- 
riably melted. This, considering the almost entire absence of silica, is apparently an 
unexpected result. 

The fused mass is entirely magnetic and crystalline. Treated with acids, it dis- 
solves with great evolution of heat. 
The following is its composition : — 

Protoxide of iron 38-28 

Sesquioxide of iron 32-50 

Protoxide of manganese 0-38 

Lime 12-84 

Magnesia 13-87 

Phosphoric acid 0-17 

Sulphur 0-23 

Silicic acid 1-20 

Alumina 0-51 



100-08 

From the above analysis, it is probable that its fusibility is owing to the magnetic 
oxide of iron acting the part of an acid. 

When thoroughly calcined and unfused, the ores retain their original form, and if 
exposed to the air for any length of time, crumble to powder from the absorption of 
water by the alkaline earths. _____ 

5* 



68 REPORT-'— 1855. 

On the Marine Aerated Freshwater Apparatus. By Dr. Normandy ' 



On a simple Volumetric Process for the Valuation of Cochineal. By Dr. F. 
Penny, F.R.S.E,, Prof, of Chemistry, A7idersonian University, Glasgoiv. 

Within the last few years several eminent chemists have rendered important ser- 
vice to the arts by devising simple and expeditious processes for estimating the value 
of technical products. In the application of volumetric methods of analysis their 
labours have been most successful. 

The great aim has been to combine economy of time with simplicity of manipula- 
tion and accuracy of result. The variety and extent of these investigations may be 
sufficiently indicated by referring to the processes of clilorimetry, to Bunsen's beautiful 
method for iodine, Marguerite's process for iron, Liebig's process for chlorine and 
urea, Pelouze and Schwarz's processes for copper, the assaying of silver according to 
Gay-Lussac, the employment of bichromate of potash for the estimation of iron, tin, 
iodides, &c., and the recent methods of testing the pntash-prussiates. 

In this field of inquiry, however, much still remains to be done, both as regards 
the improvement of the methods already in use, and the extension of our powers by 
the application of new processes. The discovery of trustworthy methods of deter- 
mining the economic value of madder, cocliineal, oak-bark, logwood, and of many 
other articles, is a boon still to be desired, and the attainment of which is confidently 
expected from the progress of technical chemistry. 

Several processes have been proposed for testing cochineal. The high price and 
variable quality of this article, as well as its liability to accidental impurity and occa- 
sional adulteration, render the discovery of a suitable method exceedingly desirable. 

The adulterations of cochineal have frequently been noticed. The use of sulphate 
of baryta and bone-black was detected and exposed many years ago. It has also 
been adulterated with powdered talc and carbonate of lead, and it has at times been 
found mixed with a coloured paste, moulded into small grains, to resemble, as closely 
as possible, the form and outline of the insect itself. 

Ground cochineal is occasionally adulterated with spent or exhausted cochineal ; 
and Persoz states that the entire insect, exhausted more or less with water acidulated 
with vinegar, has been dried and sold, or mixed with sound cochineal. 

The substance called ' Garblings,' the refuse from riddling or sifting cochineal, has 
likewise been added to the article in bulk. 

As imported, the principal impurities are sand, fibrous organic matter, and a 
resinous substance resembling seed-lac. 

Of the different methods that have been suggested for ascertaining the tinctorial 
powers of cochineal, the simplest consists in exhausting a known weight with water, 
and examining the liquor, made up to a certain volume by the addition of water, in the 
colorimeter, according to the method proposed by Labillardiere for madder and indigo. 

Berthollet estimates the comparative richness of cochineal in colouring matter by 
dosing a known quantity, dissolved in water, with a standard solution of chlorine. 

An ammoniacal solution of alum has also been proposed for the volumetric valua- 
tion of cochineal. The insect in fine powder is exhausted with water, and the liquor 
and washings, being concentrated by evaporation, are treated with a standard solution 
of alum, until the whole of the colouring matter is precipitated. From the propor- 
tion of alum liquor used the comparative quality of the cochineal is easily determined. 

Brokers and others estimate the value of cochineal by boiling a few grains of the 
sample t with a slip of flannel for a quarter of an hour, in water to which small 
quantities of cream of tartar and chloride of tin are added. The flannel is afterwards 
washed and dried, and according to the shade and intensity of the scarlet colour 
communicated, the value of the cochineal is judged of. 

The process now proposed, though far from fulfilling all that could be wished, has 
been found extremely useful in comparing different samples of cochineal, and has 
proved equally serviceable in examining specimens of lac-dye, than which few com- 
mercial substances are more variable in quality. 

It is based on the well-known bleaching properties of red prussiate of potash in 

* This invention is patented, and is employed in the Navy and at Heligoland, 
t Normandy, Commercial Analysis. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 69 

presence of a free alkali. The powers of red prussiate of potash as a discharger or 
bleacher of organic colouring principles have been successfully applied by Mercer*, and 
its action as an oxidizing agent fully examined and explained by Playfair, Baudraultf, 
Wallace;!:, and others. Its rapid action upon the colouring matter of cochineal 
may be seen by adding a solution of the salt to cochineal dissolved in a weak ley of 
caustic potash or soda, when the rich purple colour of the cochineal liquor will be 
speedily discharged. 

In applying this action to testing the quality of commercial samples of cochineal, 
certain precautions require to be strictly observed, and of these the most important 
are, to use the solution of cochineal perfectly cold, and to finish off the process as 
quickly as possible. 

Process. — A fair quantity of the sample being finely pulverized, 20 grains are 
weighed out, and gently heated in a beaker with half an oinice of caustic potash 
solution and one ormce of water. When the colouring matter is completely dissolved, 
one ounce of cold water is added, and the mixture allowed to cool. 

An alkalimeter is made up with 5 grains of pure and dry red prussiate of potash 
in the usual way. This solution is then dropped into the cochineal liquor till the 
rich purple colour is discharged, and the liquor assumes a yellowish-brown tint. The 
moment when this effect is produced may be easily ascertained by occasionally spot- 
ting a little of the liquor upon a white slab. The number of measures consumed 
shows the comparative richness of the sample in available colouring matter. 

In applying this method to lac-dye, the operations are the same as for cochineal, 
except that a larger quantity of the lac must be employed, as the amount of colouring 
matter in it is small compared with that in cochineal. 

The accuracy of this process may of course be easily vitiated by the presence or 
addition of any substance that acts chemically upon the agent of valuation. But 
nearly all volumetric methods of analysis are open to this objection; and hence they 
cannot be considei-ed as intended for the use of those who have not sufficient chemical 
knowledge to guard against such obvious sources of error. 



On the Manufacture of Iodine and other Products from Kelp. 
By Dr. F. Feuhy, F.aS. 

In the course of his remarks. Dr. Penny stated that the results of some hundred tests 
showed the quantities of the several ingredients found in kelp to be as follows : — In good 
drift weed — soluble matter 75, insoluble matter 22, water 3, iodine per ton 14 lbs., potash 
salts 7 cwt. In the inferior drift-weed, which had been adulterated with sand and 
stones, the proportions were — soluble matter 40, insoluble matter 50, water 10, iodine 
2 lbs., potash salts 3f cwt. In cut weed, the proportions were — soluble matter 60, 
insoluble matter 35, water 5, iodine 2| lbs., potash salts 5^ cwt. The average produc- 
tion from a ton of kelp was, from drift-weed kelp — iodine 12 lbs., muriate of potash 
4| cwt. (80 per cent.), sulphate of potash 2| cwt. (55 per cent.), alkaline or fished 
salt 2| cwt., and refuse sulphur ^ cwt. From cut-weed kelp the production was — 
iodine 2| lbs., muriate of potash 3^ cwt. (75 per cent.), sulphate of potash 2^ cwt. (30 
per cent.), alkaline or fished salt 31 cwt., and refuse sulphur ^ cwt. 



On the Composition and Phosphorescence of Plate- Sulphate of Potash. 

By Dr. Fred. Penny, F.C.S., Prof, of Chem., Andersonian Inst., Glasgow. 

[This paper may be referred to in Phil. Mag. Dec. 1855.] 

On a Process for obtaining Lithographs by the Photographic Process. 
By Professor A. C. Ramsay, F.R.S. 

Prof. Ramsay described a process by which Mr. Robert M'Pherson, of Rome, had 
succeeded in obtaining beautiful photo-lithographs, — specimens of which bad been 
hung up in the Photographic tlxhibition in Buchanan Street. The steps of the procesi 
are as follows: — 1. Bitumen is dissolved in sulphuric acid, and the solution is poured 
on an ordinary lithographic stone. The asther quickly evaporates, and leaves a thin 
coating of bitumen spread uniformly over the stone. This coating is sensitive to light, 

* Chem. Soc. iii. t Jouru. Pbarm. vii. % Quart. Joum. vol. vii. 



70 REPORT — 1855. 

a discovery made originally by M. Niepce of Chalons. 2. A negative on glass, or 
waxed-paper, is applied to the sensitive coating of bitumen, and exposed to the full 
rays of the sun for a period longer or shorter according to the intensity of the light, 
and a faint impression on the bitumen is thus obtained. 3. The stone is now placed 
in a bath of sulphuric aether, which almost instantaneously dissolves the bitumen, which 
has not been acted upon by light, leaving a delicate picture on the stone, composed of 
bitumen on which the light has fallen. 4. The stone, after being carefully washed, may 
be at once placed in the hands of the lithographer, who is to treat it in the ordinary 
manner with gum and acid, after which proofs maybe thrown off by the usual process. 
Prof. Ramsay then proceeded to state, that the above process, modified, had been 
employed with success to etch plates of steel or copper, without the use of the 
burin : — 1. The metal plate is prepared with a coating of bitumen, precisely in the 
manner noticed above. 2. A positive picture on glass ov paper is then applied to the 
bitumen, and an impression is obtained by exposure to light. 3. The plate is placed 
in a bath of aether, and the bitumen not acted upon by light is dissolved out. A beau- 
tiful negative remains on the plate. 4. The plate is now to be plunged into a galvano- 
plastic bath, and gilded. The gold adheres to the bare metal, but refuses to attach 
itself to the bitumen. 5. The bitumen is now removed entirely by the action of spirits 
and gentle heat. The lines of the negative picture are now represented in bare steel 
or copper, the rest of the plate being covered by a coating of gold. 6. Nitric acid is 
now applied as in the common etching process. The acid attacks the lines of the 
picture formed by the bare metal, but will not bite into the gilded surface. A perfect 
etching is thus obtained. 

On the Composition of Vandyke-Broion. 

By Thos. H. Rowney, Ph.D., F.C.S. 
This pigment is of organic origin, and is obtained from the peat beds in Cassel in 
Germany. It is a brown earthy-looking substance, a little heavier than water. It 
was found to be an organic acid with abo>it 6-00 of earthy matter. The formula 
deduced from the analyses is C54H20 O24. It is very soluble in alkaline solutions, and 
forms salts with various metals and alkaline earths. Being a distinct mineral, the 
name Vandykite is proposed for it. 

On the Composition of two Mineral Substances employed as Pigments. 
By Thos. H. Rowney, Ph.D., F.C.S. 

In this communication two new minerals are described which have for some con- 
siderable time been employed as pigment, but had not previously been described. 
The first, colled Indian red, is brought from the Persian Gulf. It occurs as a 
coarse powder of a deep red colour; its sp. gr. is 3-843. By analysis it was found 
to be a silicate of iron, having the formula FcjOg-J-SiOg. This corresponds in con- 
stitution to xenolite, which is a silicate of alumina of the formula Alj O3 -j- SiOj. 

The second mineral, called raw sienna, is obtained from Sienna. It is a soft 
earthy substance, of a brownish-yellow colour; its sp. gr. is 3'46. It is hydrated 
silicate of iron containing a small quantity of alumina, and has the formula 
4(Fe203, Al203)-f-Si03-|-6HO. The name proposed for it is Hypoxanthite ; in con- 
stitution it resembles opaline allophane, and Schrbtterite. 

Hypoxanthite 4(Fe2 03, AlgOg) -f SiOg-l- 6HO 

Opaline allophane ... 4AI2O3 -l-SiOs-HlSHO 

Schrbtterite 4AI3O3 -f SiOg-f 16H0. 



On certain Laws observed in the mutual action of Sulphuric Acid and Water, 
By Balfour Stewart. 

The object of this paper is to show that in mixtures of sulphuric acid and water 
there is a distinct dependence on tho chemical equivalents of these substances, and 
several hydrates are indicated. 

The method of analysis used is applicable to other solutions. 

When sulphuric acid combines with water the space occupied by the compound is 
less than that occupied by the ingredients when uncombined, and consequently the 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



71 



specific gravity of the mixture is greater than it would have been had no contraction 
taken place. 

Assuming the specific gravity of strong liquid acid to be 1'8485 (that of water 
being 1), we may find what ought to be the specific gravity of any mixture of acid 
and water, did no contraction take place. 

By Dr. lire's table we can tell the actual specific gravity of such a mixture. 

Dividing this by the former, we have the proportional condensation. 

The proportional condensation is greatest for strength 73 of Dr. Ure's table, which 
denotes a hydrate composed of 1 equivalent liquid acid and 2 equivalents of water. 

Let us now suppose all mixtures stronger than a given mixture to be formed by the 
combination of that mixture with liquid acid, and all mixtures weaker than it to be 
formed by its combination with water. 

If we call this given mixture our standard, and take its specific gravity from Dr. 
Ure's table, we shall, by means of it, be referred to new proportional condensations 
diflferent from those already alluded to. 

Taking as our standards strengths 40, 43 and 45, we are referred to a maximum 
of condensation at strength 73, as before. 

Taking as our standards strengths 50, 53 and 55, we are referred to a maximum 
between strengths 84 and 85, denoting a hydrate composed of 1 equivalent of liquid 
acid and 1 equivalent of water. 

Taking as our standards strengths 38, 40 and 45, we are referred to a maximum 
at strength 82, denoting probably a hydrate composed of 5 equivalents of liquid acid 
and 6 equivalents of water. 

From this it appears, that were we to use as standards all the 100 strengths in 
Dr. Ure's table, we should be referred to maxima of condensation the number of 
which would be much less than 100. May we hot infer, that when liquids or 
other substances mix with each other in all proportions, all strengths of such mix- 
tures may be viewed as derived from definite compounds having a tendency to com- 
bine with their components and with each other, thereby forming other compounds, 
so that at length mixtures of any strength may be produced 1 

It might be advantageous to lay off the diSerent strengths in Dr. Ure's table as 
abscissa of a curve, of which the corresponding proportional condensations (for a 
given standard) are the ordiuates ; thus the irregularities would become apparent. 

It might also be advantageous to apply this analysis to metallic alloys and amal- 
gams, where it would probably indicate those possessed of properties the most marked. 

On the Condition of the Atmosphere during Cholera. 
By R. D. Thomson, lU.D., F.R.S. 

The chemical condition of cholera atmospheres is a question of intense interest in 
the subject of public health ; but, with the exception of the unpublished experiments 
of Dr. Prout in 1832, comparatively little attention appears to have been bestowed 
on it. One of the most striking circumstances connected with the occurrence of the 
disease is, that no change very palpable to the senses prevails, and even one may 
have remarked that the weather has usually been exceedingly agreeable. In Lon- 
don, at St. Thomas's Hospital, the neighbourhood of which afforded a large supply of 
cholera cases, the relative weight of the air in August 1854, a cholera month, and in 
August 1855, when the metropolis was in an extremely healthy condition, is exhi- 
bited in the following table, in grains per cubic foot : — 



1854. 


Weight of 


1855. 


Weight of 




cubic foot 




cubic foot 


Week ending 


in grains. 


Week ending 


in grams. 


August 5 ... 


522-9 


August 4 ... 


516-9 


., 12 .. 


526-7 


„ 11 ... 


524-3 


„ 19 ... 


525-0 


„ 18 ... 


525-9 


„ 26 ... 


523-5 


„ 25 ... 


519-2 


Sept. 2 ... 


525-1 


Sept. 1 ... 


523-0 


„ 9 ... 


530-3 


„ 8 ... 


531-6 


Mean 


525-6 


Mean 


523-5 



72 REPORT — 1855. 

The result, as deduced from this table, which has been calculated approximately from 
the barometric pressure and dry- and wet-bulb thermometer, is analogous to that 
obtained by Dr. Prout in 1832, as the author was informed by himself. Correspond- 
ing observations have been made at Greenwich by Mr. Glaisher, and the same con- 
clusions arrived at; from which it would appear that this superior weight of a given 
bulk of air was not a local phoenomenon, but was diffused to considerable distances. 
The character distinguishing September 1S54 from the corresponding period in 
1855, was the absence of any atmospheric action on ozone test-paper in the 
former season, while during the present year the oxidizing influence of the air has 
never been absent at St. Thomas's Hospital. During September 1854, however, 
when no ozone could be detected in London, its action was sometimes faintly and 
often very strongly marked at Lewisham, near Greenwich. Throughout the same 
periods the air was exceedingly stagnant ; and it has since been observed by Mr. 
Glaisher, and also at Vienna, that rapid atmospheric movement is pretty constantly 
accompanied by an oxidizing condition of the air. With reference to the chemical 
composition in the atmosphere of inhabited localities and of malarious districts, expe- 
riments have usually been conducted on the constitution of the gases which enter 
into the composition of the air. But the results seem to have thrown little light on 
the possibility of the production, from such causes, of any disease characterized by a 
regular sequence of symptoms. So far as our knowledge warrants, gases can either 
act only as asphyxiating media by the exclusion of oxygen, or as slow or rapid poi- 
sons. The cause capable of inducing a disease formed on a peculiar type, analogy 
leads us to infer must be an organized condition, either in a solid form or in a finely 
diffused or vaporific state. The fact observed, that in malarious atmospheres sulphuric 
acid speedily becomes black, also points to the propriety of examining the air in such 
situations, with the view of filtering from it solid or condensable matter. In the epi- 
demic of 1849-50, the author examined the exterior air of an infected district with 
this object in view, to the extent of many cubic feet ; but the result was comparatively 
negative, and led to the inference that the examination of large masses of air could 
alone hold oat any prospect of a successful issue. For this purpose air was passed 
through carefully prepared distilled water, contained in Woulfe's bottles, by means of 
a large aspirating apparatus of the capacity of 16 cubic feet, which was kept constantly 
in action during the day for several months. Occasionally, freezing mixtures were 
applied to portions of the apparatus, and a tube filled with pumice moistened with 
sulphuric acid placed next the aspirator completed the series. A range of tubes con- 
ducted the air from a cholera ward into the aspirator. The ward was 32 feet long, 
20 feet wide, and 9 feet high. The air was drawn from the centre of the ward near 
the ceiling ; and when the apartment was filled with cholera patients, the air, after 
traversing several layers of distilled water, was speedily charred by the sulphuric acid, 
previously depositing a variety of solids in all the Woulfe's bottles, which could even 
be detected in some measure by the eye. The objects consisted of blue and red cotton 
fibres from the dresses of the inmates, portions of hair, wool, fungi, sporules of fungi, 
abundance of vibriones or lower forms of animal life, with particles of silica and dirt. 
In this and all the experiments conducted on the air of closed apartments, the distilled 
water was rendered strongly acid from the presence of sulphuric and sulphurous acids 
derived from the products of gas and coal combustion. The distilled water employed 
in these experiments was boiled for some time previous to being introduced into the 
apparatus, and was divided into two portions; one part being placed in a stoppered 
bottle beside the Woulfe's bottles through which the air was conducted, the sediment, 
if any, being afterwards examined and compared with that resulting from the experi- 
ment. When the ward was partially full, vegetable epiderm, vegetable cellular tissue, 
fragments of wood, cotton, linen, vegetable hairs, a sponge spicula, minute fungi, 
spiral vessels, sporules, spore cases, animal epithelium, oil-globules, and siliceous 
particles were detected ; while vibriones were entirely absent, or at least mere traces 
could be discriminated. This is an interesting result, since in the first case only 98'6 
cubic feet were examined, and of the partially empty ward 240 cubic feet passed 
through the apparatus. When the ward was empty, cotton fibres, wool, a trace of 
fungus with carbonaceous and siliceous particles were alone discernible, the amount 
of air examined being 304 cubic feet. The air external to the ward and in the im- 
mediate neighbourhood afforded, from 560 cubic feet, one cotton fibre, one of wool, 
a crystalline body (probably a sponge spicula), sporules, beautiful mycelia of fungi in 
various stages of development, and some carbonaceous matter. The distilled water 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 73 

in this instance likewise yielded a strongly acid reaction, produced by sulphur acids. 
The possible influence of sewer atmospheres predicated interesting results from an 
examination of such air ; and accordingly it was found that the predominating feature 
of this experiment was animal life in the form of swarms of vibriones in various 
stages of advancement. The chemical reaction in this case, unlike that in the pre- 
ceding experiments, was invariably alkaline, due to the evolution of ammonia from 
the nftrogenous matters contained in the sewage liquors. These experiments render 
it sufficienlly obvious that organic living bodies constantly surround us in close apart- 
ments, and particularly that animal matter under certain circumstances is likewise 
diffused through such atmospheres. They fail to point out any matter capable of 
communicating cholera from one individual to another through the medium of the 
air, and therefore are highly important to the public ; but thej^ show that foreign 
animal matter injurious to health may speedily be concentrated in certain localities, 
which will undoubtedly assist in the production and propagation of disease in con- 
junction with meteorological conditions. Pathological investigations, carefully con- 
ducted by the author's colleague, Mr. Rainey, detected in one case an entozoon in 
the glottis or upper part of the air-passage, the only analogue of which has been 
found in the substance of the muscle of animals, which would seem to indicate that the 
germ of this creature had been derived from the atmosphere, or at least from external 
sources. 

It is intended that these experiments, which are tedious and laborious in their 
character, shall be extended to other atmospheres, so as to obtain comparative series 
of views, so to speak, of air modified by the influence of different diseases. 



a: 

k 



On Caseine, and a method of determining Sulphur and Phosphorus in Organic 
Compounds in one operation. By Dr. Aug. Vcelcker, Prof, of Chemistry 
in the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, 

■When milk is mixed with a saturated solution of common salt and heated, the 
caseine coagulates like albumen, and separates almost completely, if sufficient salt- 
solution has been employed. 

The caseine, thus separated from milk, washed, dried, and exhausted with alcohol 
and aether, on analysis furnished the following results : — 

Carbon 50-97 

Hydrogen 7'43 

Nitrogen 15-09 

Oxygen 17-99 

Sulphur 1*15 

Phosphorus "39 

Ash 6-98 

The ash consisted chiefly of phosphate of lime, which rendered it doubtful whether 
or not there was any phosphorus present in another state, as that of phosphoric -acid. 
With the view of determining this point, the impure caseine obtained with com- 
mon salt was dissolved in dilute caustic ammonia, the solution filtered and precipi- 
tated with acetic acid. It was then washed with cold distilled water, dried, and again 
extracted with alcohol and aether. Dried at 110° C, it furnished, on combustion 
with chromate of lead, the following results : — 

Ash deducted. 

Carbon 53-43 53-61 

Hydrogen 712 7-14 

Nitrogen 15-36 15-47 ' 

Oxygen 21-92 21-99 

Sulphur 1-11 1-11 

Phosphorus -74 -74 

Ash -32 



100-00 100-00 

It was thus remarkably free from inorganic matters, and the phosphorus mentioned 



74 REPORT — 1855. 

in the analysis cannot therefore have occurred in the caseine in the form of a phos- 
phate, but must have existed in it in a peculiar state of organic combination. This 
amoimt of pliosphorus is equal to 1*70 of phosphoric acid, a quantity nearly six times 
as large as the whole amount of ash in the sample of caseine analysed. 

In caseine prepared at different times, invariably free phosphorus, amounting from 
•50 to '75 per cent., was detected. 

The method employed for determining sulphur and phosphorus in caseine, in one 
operation, was the following : — 

About 18 grs. of the dried and finely powdered caseine was mixed with six times 
its weight of a mixture of pure carbonate of soda and nitre, and tliis mixture intro- 
duced in small quantities into a large red-hot silver or platinum crucible. The white 
fused mass was dissolved in hydrochloric acid, and the sulphuric acid thrown down 
with chloride of barium. From the weight of the sulphate of baryta the sulphur was 
calculated. The excess of baryta was next removed with pure sulphuric acid, after 
which the acid liquid was supersaturated with caustic ammonia, which precipitated a 
small amount of phosphates. The ammonia precipitate was collected on a filter, 
washed, dried, and weighed. The filtrate was finally mixed with an ammoniacal 
solution of sulphate of magnesia, which threw down the phosphoric acidj produced 
under the oxidizing influence of nitre from the organic phosphorus contained in the 
caseine. 

Comparative experiments with sugar and the same oxidizing mixture employed in 
the phosphorus-determination of caseine, gave only negative results, and thus showed 
that there was no phosphorus present in any form in the mixture of carbonate of 
soda and nitre. 

On some of the Basic Constituents of Coal-Naphtha. By C. Greville 
Williams, Assistant to Dr. Anderson, Glasgow University. 

In this paper, which forms part of a series of researches on the volatile organic 
bases, the author shows, that although the points of difference between the gelatinous 
tissue of bones, cinchonine, coal, and bituminous shale, are as well marked as it is 
possible for tliem to be, that, nevertheless, the volatile alkaloids produced by their 
destructive distillation are almost identical, thus: — 



Gelatinous Tissues. 


Cinchonine. 


Coal. 


Dorset Shale. 


Pyrrol*. 

Pyridine*. 

Picoline*. 


Pyrrol f. 
Pyridine t- 
Picoline t. 


Pyrrol §. 
Picoline ||, 


Pyrrol H. 

Pyridine**. 

Picoline^. 


Lutidine*. 


Lutidine f. 




Lutidineif. 


CoUidine*. 


Collidinef. 
Chinolinej. 


Chinoline§. 


Collidineil. 
Parvoline ^. 


Aniline*. 


Lepidine|. 


Aniline §. 





Three intervals are seen to exist in the coal series, namely pyrifline, lutidine, and 
coUidine. The author proceeds to show, that by a careful fractional distillation of the 
bases obtained by treatment of crude naphtha with sulphuric acid, and subsequent 
distillation of the acid liquid with lime, fluids may be obtained boiling at 242°, 310°, 
and 345° Fahr. He converted these fractions into platinum salts, which on analysis 
gave numbers almost exactly agreeing with those required by theory for the three bases 
last mentioned. 

As a fm-ther confirmation of the identity of the pyridine from coal-tar with that from 
bone-oil, he transformed the platinum salt by protracted boiling with water into the 
bibydrochlorate of platino-py ridine, 

the per-centage of platinum corresponding closely with that required by the formula. 
* Anderson, Trans. Royal Soc. Edinb., vol. xvi. part 4; vol. xx. part 2 ; and vol. xxi. part 1. 
% Gerhardt, Revue Scientif., vol. x. p. 186. 
■f Greville Williams, Trans. Royal Soc. Edinb., vol. xxi. part 2. 
§ Rungs (1834), PoggendorfF's Annalen, vols. xxxi. & xxxii. 
II Anderson, Trans. Royal Soc. Edinb., vol. xvi. part 2. 
if Greville Williams (1854), Quart. Journ. Chem. Soc. Lond. 
** Greville William* (1854), Phil. Mag. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 75 

On a Process for obtaining and purifying Glycerine, and on some of its 
Applications. By G. F. Wilson. 

The manner in which it is prepai-ed is by placing a piece of common fat in a quan- 
tity of supersaturated steam ; the fat is decomposed, and resolves itself into two sub- 
stances, viz. an acid and glycerine. The latter, having a taste like sugar, is applicable 
to the cure of burns, rheumatism, and ear diseases ; it is a substitute for cod-liver oil, 
and also for spirits of wine ; also for the preservation of flesh ; and can be applied to 
photography, and preserving animals in their natural colours. 



GEOLOGY. 



On the condition of the Haukedalr Geysers of Iceland, July, 1 855. 
By Robert Allan, F.E.'S.E., F.G.S. ^c. 

The Geysers of Iceland, like most volcanic phsenomena in other regions, are change- 
able in their action, and from time to time alter in their character and appearance. 
Some of them, it is a well-ascertained fact, are steadily increasing in activity and 
intensity, while others are as distinctly growing weaker. Those of Haukedalr, 
towards the south-western extremity of the island, are the hot springs best known 
to us ; and although there can be little question t;hat they fall under the category of 
diminishing Geysers, their action is still powerful, and their structure most remark- 
able. These Geysers, according to well-authenticated Icelandic history, came into 
existence in the fifteenth century, namely, in the year 1446. What phsenomena 
attended their emption at that period we are not informed, but their action is under- 
stood among scientific men in Iceland, to have been then and long after much more 
powerful than it now is ; nor is the statement made by Olavsen and Paulson, that 
the eruption of the Great Geyser in the year 1772 rose to the height of 360 feet, 
however incredible in our eyes, disbelieved by well-informed men in that country. 

But coming down to our own times, and taking facts upon which there can be no 
possible doubt, we still find the description and drawings of these Geysers, as de- 
tailed by each successive visitor who has published any account of them during the 
current century, differ materially in particulars. Sir George Mackenzie's narrative, 
in 1810, is a faithful and interesting one; but the changes which have occurred 
in the intervening forty-five years are sufficiently remarkable to render them worthy 
of record. 

The entire area of these hot springs cannot exceed sixteen or twenty acres, and 
its extreme length from north to south is not above a quarter of a mile. They are 
situated at the foot of Langarfiall, a crag about 300 feet high, upon rather elevated 
flat ground, commanding a wide open view over a fine verdant plain to the east and 
south, Blafell and other mountains partly capped with snow rising to the north with 
great magnificence. Even the white point of Hecla may be distinguished in this 
locality some thirty miles distant. 

This area or field slopes to the south, and also falls away towards the river on the 
east, so that the Great Geysers is situated not only towards the northern, but also 
on the higher portion of the ground. The Strokr is distant about 120 yards south- 
ward of the Geyser; and the little Strokr perhaps 100 yards still farther south and 
in nearly a direct line. These are the three principal springs at present erupting, 
and although there are from forty to fifty other apertures in the vicinity, and par- 
ticularly towards the lower or southern extremity of the field, some of which emit 
water with violent ebullition and much noise, yet to these three alone can the title 
of either Geyser or Strokr be properly applied — the former, that is the Geyser, 
meaning " Agitator," and the latter, or Strokr, being the common Icelandic name 
for a churn. To the Strokrs the appellation of Roaring Geyser and New Geyser are 
given by previous travellers ; but as this rather tends to confusion, we shall retain the 
names given them by the peasantry, about which there can be no misapprehension. 

On still higher ground than even the Geyser, and more towards the aforemen- 



76 REPORT — 1855. 

tioned crag, are two tremendous holes or underground caverns, 30 or 40 feet deep, 
filled and seething over with boiling water of the most perfect limpidity. These are 
coated to their edge with a thin crust of earth or crumbly rock ; and although really 
beautiful objects, such vast caldrons can scarcely be gazed into from so unsound a 
margin without a certain feeling of awe. Several of the holes in the lower portion 
of the field are of a similar description, being, in fact, irregularly shaped caverns, 
quietly running over with boiling water, which to their bottom is as clear as crystal, 
and of a fine light green hue. In one of them we observed large bubbles, probably 
a foot in diameter, rapidly evolved, and rising in one direct line from some lower 
region to another higher up, but which did not ascend to the surface ; nor could we 
perceive that they had any direct communication with other orifices in the vicinity, 
although undoubtedly some such existed. Some of the smaller holes bubble out 
water with much noise, and six of these, we noticed, close to others perfectly limpid, 
emitted boiling mud. 

The paramount objects, however, of this wonderful locality are the Geyser and 
the two Strokrs, and to these we shall confine our remarks. 

The Geyser is the only one of the three which has formed a mound or siliceous 
deposit round its orifice. From the sloping nature of the ground this mound ia 
more than one-half higher on the east than it is on the west side, and extends three 
or four times farther in the former than it does in the latter direction, attributable, 
probably, to the greater prevalence of westerly winds in this locality. 

The western side may be 15 to 20 feet in height, the eastern can be little short of 
25 or 30. The northern, the western, and the southern are comparatively abrupt, 
while that on the east slopes away gradually ; but throughout, they form one mass 
of siliceous deposit, which is roughened on the surface with what, at a little di- 
stance, might be taken for an irregular circular flight of steps. The section of the 
Geyser may be compared to a funnel, its pipe or orifice resembling the stalk, and its 
cup or basin the head of that utensil. The cup is nearly round, its diameters 
taken in opposite directions being 72'6 and 68*1 ; while its depth, measuring per- 
pendicularly from a line drawn across its margin, appeared to be nearly 4 feet. The 
pipe we ascertained to be 83"2 in depth, and rather more than 10 feet in diameter. 
Under ordinary circumstances, when the Geyser is quiescent, this cup and pipe 
are filled to the brim with limpid hot water, which ever and anon, but at totally 
irregular periods, boils up in the centre, and then the water runs over, principally at 
the points where the lip is a few inches lower than elsewhere in the circle. This is 
a mere abortive attempt ; when, however, an eruption takes place, which almost 
invariably is preceded by a premonitory subterranean rumbling noise, resembling the 
looming of distant cannon, and by a trembling of the earth under foot, these ebullitions 
rise higher, first in a mass of 2 or 3 feet, which opens in the centre, and surges 
outwards like a wave, and then the water is suddenly ejected into the air, with the 
velocity and din of some hundred sky-rockets, the entire mound being immediately 
overflowed. This occurred four times during the thirty-six hours we were on the 
spot, two of these eruptions being on the grandest and most brilliant scale ; which, 
after waiting patiently for no less than twenty-seven hours, without the slightest 
appearance of action, we were fortunate enough to witness, the first at half-past eleven 
at night, the other at six the following morning. After an eruption, the water re- 
cedes in the pipe, and not only is the cup left entirely dry, but 8 or 10 feet of 
the pipe is likewise emptied. The inside of the pipe appears perfectly smooth, and 
is nearly circular ; but the cup, or upper portion of the funnel, as well as the entire 
mound outside of it, are both covered with siliceous incrustations, deposited by the 
water, and doubtless still more by the volumes of steam or spray arising from it. 
Inside of the cup, these incrustations present a smooth, dull ash-gray coloured crust, 
dotted with occasional pure white concretions of extreme beauty. When broken up, 
this crust yields an exceedingly hard sinter, bearing considerable resemblance in 
colour, when cut and polished, to some varieties of madrepore. Outside the mound, 
these incrustations assume the figure of cauliflower heads, and many other forms, 
which, although deposited perfectly white, shortly become gray ; and which, not- 
withstanding their being as entirely siliceous as those of the hard sinter inside the 
cup, are too porous and fibrous in their structure to admit of being polished. But 
the finest specimens of these incrustations are to be found at some of the smaller ori- 
fices lower down the field, where they are much varied in colour, structure, and 



TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 77 

appearance ; often so extremely fragile, as to crumble on being handled, and occa- 
sionally forming mere coatings of the most delicate description, on vegetable or 
bony matter — nay, even upon portions of clothing material, or scraps of writing or 
printed paper. 

Both of the Strokrs differ from the Geyser in being mere round holes or pipes, 
neither funnel-shaped at their orifices nor raised above the surface of the ground. 
They likewise differ from it in the fact that they afford no premonitory symptom of 
a coming eruption — no previous warning, but all at once dart into the atmosphere 
with extreme violence. The depth of the Strokr approximates to that of the Great 
Geyser — being, according to our measurement, 87 i feet, but the diameter of its pipe 
is rather under 9 feet. 

Shortly after our arrival, the guides cut about a barrowful of turf, which they 
threw into this Strokr. This at first apparently stopped the violent ebullition which 
can be seen always going forward in this remarkable spring at the depth of 10 or 
12 feet, but in the course of ten minutes it began to roar, and then we had an 
instantaneous and truly magnificent eruption. The water did not appear in a column, 
as most fountains do, but in a continued intermittent series of many jets all at one 
moment, having different forces, and unitedly presenting one grand pyramidal jet 
d'eauofthe most symmetrical and graceful description. Calculating from a little 
distance in proportion to the figures standing by it, we were satisfied that some of 
the principal ejections on this occasion — and there were fully thirty of them, lasting 
in all about ten minutes — must have been from 90 to 100 feet in height, and darkened 
as the water naturally appeared from the turf thrown into it, the effect was exceed- 
ingly striking. About twelve hours afterwards we repeated the dose, but the Strokr 
would not act until it received a double allowance, and then it did so much to 
the same effect as previously, throwing up stones and portions of the turf to its 
highest elevation. Three times subsequently during our short stay it erupted spon- 
taneously, but on none of the occasions was it so fine as when provoked by our 
feeding it with turf. The Little Strokr is very violent and very noisy. Its eruptions 
are feathery and extremely beautiful, although it rarely rises above 30 feet, and 
from the less regular form of its orifice, is not so symmetrical as its larger namesake. 

The action of these hot springs during eruption is not that of a mass of water 
driven up in column, as the description and drawings of most previous visitors 
would lead one to expect. The old print pubhshed by Sir John Stanley so far back 
as 1789 comes nearer to what we witnessed than anything bearing more recent date. 
Instead of a column, it is rather that of a multitude of jets possessing different in- 
tensities, all working simultaneously ; so that, whilst a few of them rise perpendicu- 
larly and attain the highest elevation, others having less power apparently stop short, 
and others again, being slightly inclined, are thrown out somewhat obliquely — all 
this, be it remembered, at one and the same moment, the jets intermitting, altering, 
and repeating their action with the utmost rapidity, and affording to an onlooker, 
on a quiet day, one of the most sublime and magnificent objects in nature. No 
doubt the ejection from the orifice of the pipe takes place in a columnar mass. This 
we distinctly observed it did at the Great Geyser, to the height of 10 to 15 feet above 
the rim of the cup ; but being accompanied, as these eruptions of boiling water 
naturally are, by vast volumes of steam, and withal so rapidly changelul in their 
movements, it is not easy to ascertain exactly what goes on near the orifice at the 
moment of propulsion. But under no circumstance did this column, as it issued 
10 feet diameter from the mouth of the pipe, remain long in that form. It surged 
outwards, and was in.mediately forced up in jets, which, rising abruptly above the 
volumes of steam, broke in the most graceful feathery masses in every direction. 
Stones thrown in, and particularly the masses of turf with which we supplied the 
Strokr, were driven out to the highest extremity of these jets, some of them falling 
outwards, and others dropping into the vortex, and being a second or a third time 
driven into the atmosphere. How all this takes place — the structure of the ma- 
chinery which causes such magnificent action — or, in fact, what goes on underground, 
it is not my province to speculate upon. 

I close these remarks by noticing a few of the recent changes which are observable 
in this locality. Sir John Stanley in 1789 found the pipe of the Geyser 61 feet deep, 
and 8^ in diameter. The funnel, or basin, as he terms it, is stated at that period to 
have been 8 feet in depth and 60 feet in diameter. "Both of these," he says, "have 



78 REPORT — 1855. 

been evidently formed by gradual deposition from the water, and a mound round 
them has in like manner been formed 30 feet high, and extending in various direc- 
tions to distances of 80, 100 or 120 feet." The great eruptions, which by theodo- 
hte he ascertained to rise 96 feet, took place every two hours, and lasted 15 to 20 
minutes. The Strokr he states to be G feet 10 inches in diameter, and its eruption 
to be much more columnar than that of the Geyser, and rising to the height of 132 
feet. In 1810 Sir George Mackenzie found the pipe 60 feet deep and 10 in diameter, 
and its basin only 3 feet deep, and from 46 to 58 feet across — the configuration 
of the latter in his time not being round, but indented, as it were, at one side. The 
Geyser eruption he estimated as rising to 90 feet, and the periods of its action were 
more frequent than now. The Strokr, Sir George says, played magnificently to the 
height of 70 feet for half an hour at a time. Henderson, in 1815, who paid the 
locality two visits, estimated the Geyser eruption at 150 feet, and that of the Strokr 
as even higher than 200 feet. The French in 1836 made the depth of the Geyser 
75^ feet, the breadth of the basin 52i, the height of its eruptions 105, and the dia- 
meter of the pipe 16 feet. The Strokr they noticed to rise to the height of 92 feet, 
and the diameter of its pipe they give at 8 feet, and its depth at 65 feet. 

Professor Bunsen, in 1846, who spent eleven days upon the locality, found the Gey- 
ser about 66 feet deep, and estimated its eruption at 140 up to 177 feet. The Strokr, 
he says, is 43 feet deep, and only 7 in diameter, and he estimated its eruption at 160 
feet. Comparing these descriptions and measurements with each other and with 
our own, it is pretty evident, that whether the intensity of the eruptions of these 
Geysers be greater or less now than they have been during the past seventy years, they 
assuredly have fallen off exceedingly, both in their frequency and in their duration. 
No doubt the action is more powerful at one time than another, or at one season 
than another ; indeed it is believed to be more so in damp and wet weather than 
during dry seasons. The supply of water to the springs must vary, and the evapo- 
ration at the surface, dependent on the currents of air, may also have its effect upon 
their action. Still, that the quantity of water emitted from them on the whole is 
much less than it once was, there can be no question. 

Sir John Stanley found the great eruptions of the Geyser take place every two 
hours. Henderson, in 1815, says that the Geyser erupted in the most imposing 
manner every six hours. We waited twenty-seven hours before anything of the kind 
occurred ; and the eruptions of the Strokr, which Sir George Mackenzie gazed upon for 
half an hour at a time, never now last above eight or ten minutes. Another obvious 
change has been going forward, and is still progressing, in the mound of the Geyser, 
arising from the rapid deposit of siliceous matter upon its sides. The edge of this mound 
forms the rim of the circular cup, which Sir John Stanley and Sir George Mackenzie 
both describe as about 60 feet across. This has now extended, still however in a 
nearly circular form, to no less than 68 by 72, and the size and bulk of the mound 
must have correspondingly increased. On the whole, such decided changes upon the 
aspect of these Haukedalr Geysers leave little doubt that their action is becoming 
rapidly weaker, and that the time may not be far distant when their forces, like those 
of Hecla in the vicinity, will become nearly quiescent. There are other similar hot 
springs in the island, especially to the north, which are known, on the contrary, to 
be steadily increasing ; and I am sanguine of bavmg it in my power shortly to place 
in the hands of our scientific men a detailed account of some of these to us hitherto 
almost unknown Geysers in Iceland. 

On the Superficial Deposits laid open hxj the Cuttitigs on the Inverness and 
Nairn Railroad. By George Anderson. 



On tlie recent Discovery of Ichthyolites and Crustacea in the Tilestones of 
Kington, Herefordshire. By Richard Banks. Communicated by the 
President. 

The discovery of fossil fishes and minerals, highly illustrative portions of the 
crustacean Pterygohis, by Mr. R. Banks, was adverted to by Sir R. Murchison, the 
detailed description of which was referred to the Geological Society of London. 



TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. 79 

Notice of the Discovery of Ichthyosaurus and other Fossils in the late 
Arctic Searching Expedition, 1852-54. By Captain Sir Edward 
Belcher, CB. 

The position where the remains of the Ichthyosaurus were found on the summit 
of Exmouth Island, about 700 feet above the sea-level, is in lat. 77° 16' N., and 
long. 96° W. The upper stratum of limestone is about 30 feet in thickness, 
dipping at an angle of 7° westerly. The inferior stratum is of red sandstone of 
a deep red colour, which gave to the island, in the first instance, the name of Red 
Island. 

The base of the island is of a friable disintegrating sandstone, which has been 
worn away on all sides, leaving the concentric elevation equal to one-third of its 
original diameter, and rising so abruptly from its base as to be accessible only on 
its western end. 

These fossils were examined by Professor Owen, and described as follows: — 

" The specimens submitted to me by Captain Sir Edward Belcher, which form 
the subjects of plate 31, are fossil remains of vertebrae and portions of ribs of an 
Ichthyosaurus. 

" Figs. 1, 2, and 3 represent the largest and best preserved fossil, which is the body 
of an anterior abdominal vertebra. It presents the ichthyic character of the con- 
cavity of the articular surface on both the front and back part of the centrum c ; with 
the character of co-existiug diapophyses d and parapophyses f, not known in fishes, 
but which the Enaliosauria present in their anterior trunk-vertebrse, in common 
with the Binosauria, Crocodilia, and other highly organized reptiles. The generic 
characters of the Ichthyosaurus are manifested in the shortness {i. e. the relatively 
small fore and aft diameter) of the centrum as compared with its breadth and height, 
and in the shape of the neurapophysial surfaces n p, and their proportions to the 
free neural surface n. With regard to the specific character of this vertebral cen- 
trum, its proportions pretty closely accord with those of the Tchthyosaurus acutus 
from the Whitby lias ; but this would be quite inadequate ground for a reference of 
the Arctic Ichthyosaur to that species in the absence of any evidence of the shape 
of its skull and dentition. 

" Figs. 4 to 7 are of a terminal caudal vertebra, of the natural size, apparently of 
the same species of Ichthyosaur and probably from the same individual as the ver- 
tebrae figs. 1-3, from the more advanced part of the body. 

" The small caudal vertebra equally manifests the Ichthyosaurian characters in its 
degree of biconcavity and in the form of the neurapophysial pits np; the lateral 
compression of the centrum indicates the vertebral development of the tegumentary 
tail-fin it helped to support : on the under surface are four surfaces for the haemal 
arches, which are articulated, as in the Crocodiles, at the vertebral interspaces to 
two contiguous centrums. 

" Figs. 8 to 11 are portions of ribs. The long, free, thoracic-abdominal pleurapo- 
physes, or vertebral ribs, of the Ichthyosaurus are peculiar for the deep longitudinal 
groove which impresses them on each side, giving to their transverse section the 
form represented in fig. 10. Two fragments of ribs, figs. 8 and 9, found associated 
with the before-described vertebrae, present this grooved character, and, with the 
vertebrae, aiford cumulative proof of the Ichthyosaurian nature of the Arctic fossils 
represented in plate 31*." 

It was on the centre of the island, at its highest pitch, and at a vertical blufF 
where a cairn was constructed, that these remains, accompanied by other fossils, 
were noticed ; and at the last moment, on finishing the pile, two specimens were 
presented by one of the men, apparently fossil bones ; but, from anxiety to proceed 
and save the season, were hastily thrust into the pocket, and consigned, with others, 
for future scrutiny. 

It is remarkable that no fossiliferous limestone is met with on the westernmost 
cliff of Exmouth Island, nor on any of the lands outside of an oval space which 
would include Princess Royal Island, and the cliffs adjacent— on an axis of twenty- 
five miles ; nor do any further traces of fossils of any description re-appear until 

* Impressions of the Plates referred to were presented to the Association. 



80 REPORT — 1855. 

reaching the entrance of Cardigan Strait, in 16° 38' N., where they only occur in 
boulders on the beach ; and the next position southerly is Cape Eden, in 75° 30', 
where the 'Assistance' wintered in 1853-54. 



On the Glacial Phcenomena of the Lake District of England. 
By James Bryce, F.G.S. 

Mr. Bryce pointed out the peculiar geological structure of the district, illustrated 
by a coloured map. There are three granitic districts, encircled by slate of three 
different ages, the granites and slates being all very distinct and easily recognized 
when found in remote places. These rocks are found to be transported to great 
distances, in various directions, across valleys and over high ridges, and the cause 
adequate to produce the phsenomena is a matter still in dispute among geologists. 
In order to elucidate, if possible, this obscure subject, Mr. Bryce had carefully 
examined the many mountain valleys radiating in all directions from the high 
mountain mass of the Great Gabel, and found various evidences of the former action 
of glaciers in all these valleys. They seem to have descended from a nucleus in the 
higher bosoms of the mountains, to have filled the valleys, and spread out over the 
low country at the base, all round the lake district. In confirmation of this view, 
various arguments were stated, and the directions of the strise pointed out on a map 
on which they had been laid down by the compass. 



On a lately discovered Tract of Granite in Arran. 
By James Bryce, F.G.S. 



On sections of Fossils from the Coal Formation of Mid-Lothian. 
By Alexander Bryson. 



Ancient Canoes found at Glasgow. By John Buchanan, Glasgow. 

The very considerable number of these primitive vessels, discovered from time to 
time at Glasgow, belonging to the wild people who inhabited this part of Scotland 
at a period long antecedent to the dawn of British history, is not a little remarkable, 
and seems fairly entitled to some consideration, not merely as raising curious moot 
points in archaeology, but as tending to reflect glimmerings of light, feeble though 
these may be, on the physical condition of the locality in which a great city now 
stands, at an epoch so deep in the dark night of Time, as to be, to us, utterly 
unknown. 

Without, however, entering at present upon archaeological topics, I shall confine 
myself to a narrative of the facts connected with the canoe discoveries. And here I 
may observe that I happened to possess favourable opportunities for personally 
inspecting the greater number of these ancient boats, through the courtesy of the late 
Mr. David Bremner, the talented engineer on the river Clyde, who sent me timely 
notice of each discovery, and thus enabled me to see them while in situ. 

Within the last eighty years, no less than seventeen canoes have been revealed at 
Glasgow. This little ancient fleet was of the most primitive kind. Each boat was 
formed out of a single oak-tree. Some were more rudely shaped than others, and 
had evidently been hollowed out principally by the action of fire, assisted by blunt 
tools, probably of stone. All had the aspect of great antiquity. 

The physical position of Glasgow is in a valley, several miles wide, through 
which the Clyde pursues its course from east to west, expanding into an estuary 
about twenty-five miles distant. The more ancient portion of the city is built on a 
ridge of considerable elevation, about a mile north from, and nearly parallel with, 
the river. From this stony ridge descend several successive terraces, or deserted 
sea-beaches, having a general direction the same as the ridge. A number of the 
streets of the more modern part of Glasgow have been formed along, and the houses 
face these terraces. When dug into, either in the construction of common sewers, 
or otherwise, they are found to be composed of finely laminated sand, as if it had 
been deposited in tranquil, and probably deep water. 



TRANSACTIONS OF THB SECTIONS. 81 

Now, five of the canoes were discovered on, or near these terraces, under the 
streets, viz. one near the bottom of the ridge ; two within a few yards of each 
other at the City Cross, on a lower terrace, one whereof was in a vertical position 
with the prow uppermost as if it had sunk in a storm, and had within it a number 
of marine shells ; a fourth was dug out further down the slope ; and the fifth under 
what is now St. Enoch's parish church, within 200 yards from, and at an elevation 
of about ten feet above the river bank, being the lowermost terrace. In this last 
canoe was a stone hatchet, still preserved. The three first-mentioned boats lay at 
points far above all river action, and could not have been drifted by the mere stream 
of the Clyde to their resting-places. 

The remaining twelve canoes were discovered within the last ten years, still lower 
down, during extensive operations for improving and widening the harbour. Large 
portions of the river banks were cut away, and these canoes were found. They lay 
in groups in a very thick bed of finely laminated sand, on the lands of Springfield, 
Clyde-haugh, Bankton, &c., at an average depth of about twenty vertical feet, and . 
at a distance of more than 100 yards back from the river edge, as laid down in the 
oldest maps. One of these canoes had gone down prow foremost, and was sticking 
in the sand at an angle of 45 degrees ; another had been capsized, and lay bottom 
uppermost ; all the rest were in a horizontal position, as if they had sunk in smooth 
water. 

These facts seem to warrant the conclusion that, at the time the canoes floated, 
a sea or estuary, several miles wide, and reaching far up the country, existed at 
what is now Glasgow, washing the base of the hills on both sides of the valley ; and 
that this ancient sea retired either by the recession o( the waters, or the elevation of 
the bottom, by degrees, with long pauses between, which occasioned the formation 
of the terraces, or deserted beaches already noticed. The tide is still perceptible 
three miles above Glasgow, at the little burgh of Rutherglen, where a canoe similar 
to those described in the outset was found in 1830, at a considerable elevation, and 
a long way back from the river, as recorded in the ' New Statistical Account of 
Scotland,' vol. vi. p. 601. 

On the Auriferous Quartz Formation of Australia. By J. A. Campbell. 
Mr. Campbell was of opinion that the gold fields are inexhaustible, and the finding 
of gold only in its infancy. Boundless fields lie still untouched, which will employ the 
labour of ages yet to come, when efiBcient machinery shall have been brought to 
operate upon the rocks. 

On Denudation and other effects usually attributed to Water. 
By Robert Chambers, F.G.S. 



On the Probable Maximum Depth of the Ocean. By W. Darling. 

Mr. Darling suggested, that as the sea covers three times the area of the land, it 
is reasonable to suppose that the depth of the ocean, and that for a large portion, is 
three times as great as the height of the highest mountains. 



On the Fossils of the Coal Formation of Nova Scotia. 

By J. W. Dawson, Principal of MacGill College, Montreal. 

[The paper was illustrated by a rich collection of specimens.] 

Mr. Dawson said, that the strata of the coal-measures in Nova Scotia extend to 

a depth of no less than 14,000 feet, containing sixty distinct surfaces, covered with 

plants and trees. He spoke of the marine and land deposits collected in the deltas, 

where the roots of the Calamite held together the mud which, forming into flats, 

sank down to receive others. 

Many of the fossil remains described by Mr. Dawson as existing in the coal for- 
mations of Nova Scotia are to be found also in the coal-fields of Scotland. 

1855. 6 



80 RBPORT-^1855. 

On the Relations of the Silurian and Metamorphic Rochs of the South of 
Norway. By David Forbes, F.G.S. 

A number of large sections were exhibited, showing the relative positions of these 
rocks, and their structure dwelt upon at length. It was shown, by overlook- 
ing the foliation of the metamorphic rocks, and by keeping in view the mineral 
character of the rock masses themselves, that the crystalline rocks of Norway, 
hitherto considered as irresolvable, would be found conformable to the Silurian 
formation above them, and that they could be regarded as altered sedimentary rocks, 
probably analogous to the Cambrian sandstones and shales of Wales. 

Some of the hornblende gneiss was even shown to be above the Devonian sand- 
stones, and to correspond to argillaceous shales of other parts of Norway. 

It was contended that the felspathic and massive gneiss of the South of Norway 
was in great part, if not altogether, granite, with a superinduced foliated structure ; 
and the large sections and plans showed full evidence of its having been eruptive. 



Remarks on the Cleavage of the Devonians of the South of Ireland. 
By Professors Harkness and Blyth. 

The counties of Cork and Kerry present several features of an interesting nature, 
as far as regards cleavage. Beds affording this structure are intimately associated, 
and interstratified with others which are devoid of cleavage ; and from several 
analyses it would appear that the cleaved strata possess a greater amount of 
alumina than such deposits as want this structure. The specific gravity of the 
cleaved strata is also greater than where this mode of arrangement does not occur. 

The angle of the cleavage planes varies with the chemical composition of the rock 
in which this structure appears; the greater the proportional amount of alumina, the 
greater is the angle of cleavage. 

In the county of Cork the strike of the cleavage planes accords with the strike of 
the rolls, which the Devonian strata have in this district been subjected to, and is 
in an east and west direction. In the county of Kerry the same circumstance 
obtains, but here the strike of the roll is not so regular as in the former county. 
In the island of Valentia the intimate connexion which exists between the opera- 
tions of the force producing rolls and that from whence cleavage originates is well 
seen. Here the strikes are E. and W., E.N.E. and W.S.W., and N.N.E. and 
S.S.W., and with these several strikes the planes of cleavage agree. The cleavage 
is also most perfect in those localities where the rolls are best developed, and all the 
features presented by the cleavage of the Devonians of the south of Ireland support 
the inference that this structure owes its origin to that force which has subjected 
the deposits to a series of rolls ; and that those beds exhibit this structure best 
which were originally of a soft shaly nature, being composed of particles capable 
of rearranging themselves at right angles to the plan