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THE 


AMERICAN JOURNAL 


OF 


SCIENCE AND ARTS. 


CONDUCTED BY 


BENJAMIN SILLIMAN, M.D. LL. D. 


Prof. Chem., Min., &e. in Yale Coli.; Cor. Mem. Soc. Aris, Man. and Com.; and 
For. Mem. Geol. Soc., London; Mem. Geol. Soc., Paris; Mem. Roy. Min. Soc., 
Dresden; Nat. Hist. Soc., Halle; Imp. Agric. Soc., Moscow; Hon. Mem. 
Lin. Soc., Paris; Nat. Hist. Soc. Belfast, Ire.; Phil. and Lit. Soc. 
Bristol, Eng.; Lit. and Hist. Soc., Quebec; Mem. of various 
Lit. and Scien. Soc. in America. 


/ 836, 
VOL. XXXI.—dANUARYS 1837. 


NEW HAVEN: 


Sold by A. H. MALTBY and HERRICK & NOYES.—Balimore, I. SMITH 
HOMANS, (late E. J. Coane & Co.)—Philadelphia, CAREY & HART and 
J. S. LITTELL.—Wew York, G. & C. CARVILL & Co., No. 73 Cedar St., and 
G. S. SILLIMAN, No. 45 William St.— Boston, HILLIARD, GRAY & Co. 


PRINTED BY B. L. HAMLEN. 


AN INSTI Tops 
Cy 


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NSN 


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BD AiG 


CONTENTS OF VOL. XXXII. 


—wWso— 


\ 


NUMBER I. 


Page. 
Art. I. Miscellaneous observations, made during a tour in May, 
1835, to the Falls of the Cuyahoga, near Lake Erie, 1 
II. Notice of the Aurora Borealis of April 22, - - 85 
HiIl. On Definitions; by Rev. D. Wiixte, - - - 88 
IV. Chemical Analyses of Mineral Waters from the Azores; 
by Cuartes T. Jacnson, M. D. - - - 94 


V. Chemical Analysis of Water from the Azores. Water 
called Aqua Azéda; by Cuartes T. Jackson, M. D. 96 
VI. Notice sur la Vie et les Ouvrages de M. leComte Lagrange, 97 
VII. On the Resistance of Fluids, in reply to Mr. Blake; by 


Prof. Gro. W. KrEety, - - - - Sein db) | 
VIII. On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic; * 
by W.C. Reprietp, Esq. - - - - - 115 
IX. Rejoinder of Prof. SHeparp to Prof. Dex Rio, - 131 
X. M. Alexandre Brongniart’s New Work on the History 
-of the Art of Pottery and of Vitrification, - - 134 


XI. Method of increasing shocks, and experiments, with 
Professor Henry’s apparatus for obtaining sparks and 
shocks from the Calorimotor; by C. G. Pace, = het 

XII. Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet, as they 
appeared at Union College, Schenectady, N.Y., in Oct. 


1835; by Prof. B. F. Joszin, - - - - 142 
XII. Solution of two diophantine Problems; by Prof. 'THro- 
DORE STRONG, - - - - - - - 156 


MISCELLANIES.—FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC. 


Astronomy. 
Supposed new Planet,’ - - - = ge ys ky LOS 
Natural Philosophy. 
1. On Electricity by contact, = - - = - - - 159 
2, 3, 4. Effects of Electricity on Vegetation—Chemical Action 
of the Solar Spectrum—Theory of the Universe, - - 160 
5. Congelation of Mercury by Natural Cold, - - - 161 


Thier 


iv CONTENTS. 


Chemistry. 


1. Cause of Decrepitation, - - - - - - 162 

2, 3, 4. On Donium, a new substance discovered in Davidson- 
ite—Solidification of Carbonic Acid—Extraction of Sugar 
from Indian Corn, - - - = = - - 163 

5. Reduction of Metals, | - - - - - - 164 


Geology and Mineralogy. 


1. Ashmolean Society, - = : = A A -. 164 
2, 3. Bird Tracks at Middletown, Conn., in the new red sand- 
stone—Crinoidea, or Lily Shaped Animals, - - - 165 
4. Extracts from an account of a visit to Iceland, by M. Eugene 
Robert, - - - - - - - - - 167 
5. From a Memoir on the origin of Mount Etna, by M. Elie de 
Beaumont, - 3 = : - 2 - - - 168 
6. Extract from a letter from Mr. James Prinsep, dated Calcut- 
ta, Oct. 25, 1835, - - - - - - - 170 


7, 8. Emmonite, a new mineral species—Retrospective Notice 
of the discovery of Fossil Mastodon Bones in Orange Coun- 


ty, (N. Y.) - - - - - - - - - 171 
9. Analysis of North American Minerals, by Dr. Thomson, 172 
10. Ornithichnites in Connecticut, - - = - - 174 
11. Delos—Greece—titanium—iron, &c. - - - - 1% 
12. Remarks on the lavas, &c. of Mexico and S. America, 176 


Miscellaneous Intelligence. 


1. Plumbago and black lead Pencils, - - - =) 
2. A comparative and chronological table of the largest Libra- 
ries in the world, - - - - - - - 178 


3, 4, 5. The Travellers—Report on introducing Pure Water 
into the city of Boston—Transactions of the Albany In- 


stitute, - ~ - - = - = 2 te. GD 
6. On the Application of the Hot Blastin the Manufacture of 

Cast Iron, - - 4 : y & s Z - 180 
% Climate'of Palestineguugoyed \ysiin te) dace) eee 
8. The Mathematical Miscellany, - - - - - 184 
9. Boston Journal of Natural History, - - - - 185 


10. On the establishment of Statistical Societies in the U. States, 186 
11. Tobacco, a remedy for Arsenic, - - - - - 188 


CONTENTS. 


12. Shower of Falling Stars in Russia, on the night between the 
12th and 13th November, 1832, _ - - - - - 
13, 14. Declination and Inclination of the Magnetic Needle at 
Paris—Progressive Rise of a portion of the bottom of the 
Mediterranean, - - - = - - - - 
15. Hail, - - - - - - - - - 
16, 17. New Animal—Ornithology, - - - - - 
18, 19. The Tongues of Ducks—Locusts, - - - - 
20. Memorandum of an excursion to the tea hills, which pro- 
duce the description of tea known in commerce under the 
designation of Ankoy (Nganke) tea, - - - - 


NUMBER II. 


Art. I. Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D., late Senior Pastor 
of the First Church in Salem, Mass.; by Rev. Cuar.es 
W. Uruam, - - " - - - - 

II. On the Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian— 
Oblateness and axes of the Earth—Comparative oblate- 
ness of the Planets—Reduction of Latitude—Radius of 
the Earth—and Length of a Degree of Parallels of Lati- 
tude, with appropriate Tables; by Prof. Tuo. Jerrer- 
son Cram, of West Point, - . 2 = . 

III. On Definitions; by Rev. D. Witxiz, — - - - 

IV. Remarks on the Geology of Western New York; by 
Gero. E. Haves, - - - = - = 

VY. On Zine, as a covering for buildings; by Prof. A. Cas- 
WELL, - - - - - - - - 

VI. An account of a Hurricane, which visited Shelbyville, 
Tennessee, June Ist, 1830; by Dr. J. H. Karn, - 

VII. On the sections of a plane, with the solids formed by the 
revolution of the conic sections, about axes situated in 
their planes; by Prof. BenEepict, Univ. Vermont, 

VIII. On the Conduction of Water; by Prof. C. Dewey, 
IX. Breithaupt’s new Specific Gravities of Minerals; by Dr. 
Lewis FEucHTWANGER, - - - = = 

X. Expeditious Mode of Manufacturing Vinegar, practiced 

in Germany; by Dr. Lewis Feucutwancer, = 


189 


201 


236 


241 


248 


252 


258 


266 


268 


272 


vi 


XI. 
XII. 


» XIII. 


XIV. 
XV. 
XVI. 
XVII. 


XVIII. 
XIX. 


XX. 
XXII. 


XXII. 


XXIII. 


XXIV. 


CONTENTS. 


Observations on Sulphurous Ether, and Sulphate of 
Etherine, (the true Sulphurous Ether ;) by R. Hares, 
M. D., Prof. Chem. Univ. Penn. = “ A 

Of the Reaction of the Essential Oils an Sulphnvotl 
Acid, as evolved in union with Ether in the process of 
Etherification, or otherwise; by Prof. R. Harz, M.D. 

Of Sassarubrin, a Resin evolved by Sulphuric Acid from 
Oil of Sassafras, which is remarkable for its efficacy in 
reddening that acid in its concentrated state; by Prof. 
R. Hare, - - - - - é 3 = 

Meteorological Register kept at Matanzas; by A. Mat- 
LORY, - - - - - - - - 

On the Elevation of Mountain Ranges, - 2 - 

Notes on Chemistry, &c.; by Prof. J. W. Baitey, 

On the Elevation of the Banks of the Mississippi, in 
1811; by F. C. Usuer, = - = - - 

Description of the Argulus Catostomi, a new parasitic 
Crustaceous animal, (with figures;) by J. D. Dana and 
E. C. Herrick, - - - = = - = 

Translation of a Memoir on the Impregnation of Plants, 
with prefatory remarks on the progress of discovery 
relative to vegetable fecundation; by Asa Gray, M.D. 

Additional Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet; by 
Prof. B. F. Josxiin, = - - = = - 

Proceedings of the British Association at Bristol, in 
August, 1836, - - 2 = - Be = 

Description of a new species of fresh water Tortoise, 
inhabiting the Columbia River; by Rrcuarp Haran, 
M.D. F.L.S., &e. — - - - - - - 

Notice of the Orbicular Lizards, or horned Agamas; by 
R. Harran, M. D., &c. - - - = = 

Description of a new species of Quadruped, of the order 
Rodentia, inhabiting the United States; by R. Har- 
LAN, M.D. - - - : a 2 


MISCELLANIES.—DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN. 


i. On the Meteoric Shower of November, 1836, - - 
2. Proceedings of the Maryland Academy of Science and Lite- 
rature, 1836, = x “ a S s L a 


Page. 


275 


281 


285 


287 
290 
292 


294 


297 


308 
324 


332 


382 


383 


38D 


386 


CONTENTS. vil 


Page. 

3. Extract from the Meteorological Register of Prof. Barton, 
kept at New Orleans, - - - - - - 400 
4. Properties of liquid carbonic acid, - - - - 402 
5. Solidification of carbonic acid, - - - - - 404. 
6. Exchanges of objects in natural history, - - - 405 
7. The Dispensatory of the United States of America, - 406 
8. Antiquities, - - - - - - - - 408 
9. Agency for Patents, at the city of Washington, - - All 
10. Excursions to Cairo, Jerusalem, Damascus and Balbec, &c. 412 


11, 12, 13. Gold mines of Virginia—Exchanges in Conchology— 

New work on Mineralogy, - - - - - - 413 
14. Statistical view of chemical education, - - - - 414 
15. History and proceedings of the Mechanics’ Institute of the 

city of. New York, - - - - - - - Ald 
16, 17. Minerals, ores, mines, &c. examined—Mineralogical and 

geological collections, - - - - - - 418 
18. Geology and Mineralogy considered with reference to Natu- 

ral Theology, - - - - - - - 419 
19, 20, 21, 22. Lyceum of New Maria Sino of the family 


of Naiades—Conrad’s Unionide, &c.—Obituary, - 421 


ERRATA. 


Page 124, for Track No. IV. read No. V., and for Track No. V. read No. IV. x 
these numbers and their paragraphs should have been thus transposed, in order 
to agree with the map.—P. 126, 1. 13 fr. top, after appears, insert not.—P. 128, 1. 2° 
fr. bot. for basis, read basin.—In the note, p. 129, 1. 6 fr. bot. after by, insert the: 
displacement of. 


THE 


AMERICAN 
JOURNAL OF SCIENCE, &c. 


Arr. I.—Miscellaneous Observations made during a tour in May, 
1835, to the Falls of the Cuyahoga, near Lake Erie: extracted 
from the Diary of a Naturalist. 


Tue spring being the most desirable season of the year for trav- 
eling, when the mild weather, the fresh green foliage of the forest, 
and the opening flowers, entice one forth to enjoy their various 
beauties, | embarked at 9 o’clock on a pleasant evening in May, on 
board the steam boat Detroit, for a visit to the falls of the Cuya- 
hoga. : 

Steam Boats.—It is now nearly twenty years since the first boat, 
propelled by steam, was launched upon the western waters. It 
was built by Capt. Shreeve, at Brownsville, (Pa.) in that region of 
country where the earliest improvements were made west of “the 
mountains.” It was considered, at that time, as a doubtful experiment. | 
The current of the Mississippi was said to be too powerful to be 
overcome by steam. ‘The upward commerce on the Ohio and Mis- 
sissippi, even at that period very considerable, was carried on wholly, 
in barges and keel boats, propelled by human strength, applied 
through the cordelle, oar, and pole. The voyage then occupied 
from three to four months: it is now performed in ten or twelve 
days. ‘This boat was named the Washington ; while lying at Mari- 
etta, on her downward voyage, she met with a very serious disaster, 
in the explosion of her immense boiler, by which accident twelve 
men lost their lives, and as many more were very seriously scalded. 
Being called immediately on board, to attend on the wounded, I re- 
collect the horrors of that morning, as if it were but of yesterday. 
At this day few accidents of the kind happen on the Ohio. The 
engines are better constructed, and built of more durable materials. 


Vout. XX XI.—No. 1. I 


2 Steam Boats.—Sun-fish Creek. 


Instead of one immense boiler, the boats now carry from four to six 
of a moderate capacity. The engineers are better educated, and 
are often chosen from among the architects of the boats. ‘The boats 
now employed on the river between Louisville and Pittsburgh, 
amount to nearly one hundred. Many of these are kept in the best 
order, and for neatness and accommodation, may be safely compared 
with any boats in America. ‘The crews are subjected to much 
more strict discipline, since that lawless, independent, but hardy race 
of keel-boat-men, from whom the hands were formerly chosen, have 
disappeared from our waters. ‘The genteel] manners and civil de- 
portment of most of the passengers, have alsoa silent, but a sure and 
perceptible influence on the manners of the crew. Good habits, as 
well as bad, are easily adopted; and, above all, the banishment of 
whiskey, that bane of the west, from many of the boats, is doing still 
more than all other causes combined, for the improvement of mor- 
als; as well as of manners. 

Sun-fish Creek.—At nine o’clock this morning, the boat passed the 
mouth of Sun-fish Creek, a small stream falling into the Chio from the 
right bank. The hills here are nearly three hundred feet high, much 
broken and divided by deep ravines into isolated masses. ‘They are 
now clothed to their very summits with the richest verdure of the for- 
est, and at this season are displaying the various tints of the different 
species that cluster around their sides—the pure white of the Cornus 
florida, and the rich pink of the Celtis Ohioensis, now in full bloom, 
appears beautifully contrasted with the rich green of the wood- 
lands. For the painter, this spot affords some of the finest views 
that are to be found on the Ohio. The river makes an abrupt bend 
opposite the mouth of the creek, and opens an extensive perspec- 
tive of the richest scenery, both up and down the stream. The 
creek itself is lined with beautiful hills and shady ravines, some of 
which have given employment to the pencil of Mr. Sullivan, who 
has produced several masterly pieces taken from this vicinity. He is 
almost the only painter who has taken living views from the enchant- 
ing landscapes of the Ohio. This summer he proposes visiting the 
cliffs of New River and the valley of the Greenbrier, where some of 
the most sublime and grand scenery has rested for ages, unnoticed 
and unknown, except to the passing traveller, or the hunter, while 
chasing the deer amidst these lovely solitudes. No country possesses 
more rich or varied scenery, than the mountain regions on the trib- 
utary streams of the Ohio; in grandeur they may be excelled by the 
alpine groups of the globe, but in loveliness they are not surpassed. 


Grave Creek.— Bituminous Coal.— Wheeling. 8 


— Grave Creek.—At 11, A. M., we passed the mouth of Grave 
Creek, a beautiful stream, emptying into the Ohio on the left 
bank, ten miles below Wheeling. It rises in the high lands be- 
tween the Monongahela and Ohio, near the great coal deposits 
found in that region. ‘The name is derived from the great mound, 
which stands on the second or higher alluvions, not far from the 
creek. It is said to be nearly seventy feet high, with a proportion- 
ate base; and is the largest known on the banks of the Ohio. Sev- 
eral curious copper relics have been taken from its sides, but noth- 
ing has yet been discovered which points to the period or the char- 
acter of its ancient founders. ‘The bottoms at this spot are very 
wide and rich, and early attracted the notice of the first settlers. 

Bituminous Coal.—The coal in this vicinity is very abundant 
and fine. Four miles below, or at the mouth of Pipe Creek, the 
main coal deposit, nearly six feet in thickness, which at Wheeling is 
ninety feet above the bed of the Ohio, dips beneath its surface ; and 
is seen no more in any considerable deposit, until it appears at 
Carr’s Run, sixteen miles above the mouth of the Big Kenawha, at 
what is now called ‘‘ Pomeroy’s Coal Beds.” 

Wheeling.—The boat landed at Wheeling at noon. This town 
is built.on elevated ground, in a commanding situation, the land 
back of it rising abruptly in a bold ridge to the height of .one 
hundred and eighty feet. A large and beautiful island in the Ohio, 
opposite to the town, adds much to the interest of the scenery as 
you approach it by water. It is a flourishing commercial, manu- 
facturing place, with a population of about eight thousand. The 
leading citizens are noted for their enterprize and activity in busi- ~ 
ness, having doubtless inherited this characteristic from its first in- 
habitants, who were amongst the most hardy, brave and active pio- 
neers of the west. 

Indian Attacks on Wheeling.—The spot of ground where Wheel- 
ing now stands was explored in the year 1769, by Col. Ebenezer 
Zane, and his brothers Silas and Jonathan Zane, and permanently 
settled the following year. They removed here from the “ south 
branch of the Potomac,” near to where the town of Morefield now 
stands. ‘The ancestors of the Zane family came over with William 
Penn, at the first settlement of Philadelphia. Col. Zane built his 
first house on an eminence opposite to the island, which spot is now 
near the center of the town, and is still owned by his descendants. 
The Swearingens, Shepherds, McCullocks, and John Wetzel, the 


4 Indian Attacks on Wheeling. 


father of Lewis, who was famous in the legends of hunting, and of 
Indian warfare, were amongst the first settlers of this place. Being, 
for many years during the Indian wars, the farthest advanced on the 
frontier, and the most exposed settlement, it suffered much from In- 
dian depredations. It sustained two memorable seiges from the 
savages, the inhabitants defending themselves with the greatest 
bravery. 

Attack of 1777.—The first assault was in Sept. 1777; when it 
was attacked by 380 Indians, headed by the notorious Simon Girty. 
Col. Zane, with thirty three men, assisted by the women, several of 
whom stood by the sides of their husbands or lovers, and discharged 
their rifles with fearless intrepidity. Amongst the females was 
Betsy Wheat, a young woman of German extraction: when Girty 
urged the garrison to surrender, promising quarters, &c., and there 
was a parley amongst the men, as to what was best to be done, Betsy 
answered Girty with all the keenness of female irony, shamed such 
of the men as seemed disposed to surrender, and infused fresh cour- 
age into the disheartened garrison. ‘The siege was continued for 
twenty four hours, during which time the Indians kept up a constant 
fire. Seeing no prospect of success, and fearing an attack them- 
selves from the neighboring garrisons, they retreated, after destroying 
nearly three hundred head of cattle, horses and hogs, and burning 
the houses in the village, then amounting to about twenty five dwell- 
ings. ‘The consequent distress of the inhabitants was very great, as 
most of them lost not only their furniture and provisions, but all 
their clothing, excepting what they had on; the suddenness of thie 
attack giving them no time to remove any thing to the fort but their 
own persons. In this siege some of the garrison were wounded, but 
none killed; the main loss fell on a reconnoitering party, who, hav- 
ing gone out early in the morning, were ambushed by the Indians, 
and twenty three of the number killed in sight of the fort. The loss 
sustained by the savages was never certainly known. 

Attack of 1782.—The second attack took place in the year 
1782. In its results, this siege was less disastrous to the whites 
than the first. ‘The assault was continued for three days and nights, 
and the defense conducted by Col. Ebenezer and Silas Zane, with 
their accustomed coolness and bravery. An interesting occurrence 
took place during this siege, so characteristic of the heroism of the 
females of that day, that I cannot forbear narrating it from the “ Bor- 
der Warfare.” ‘When Lynn, the ranger, gave the alarm that an 


Indian Attacks on Wheeling. 5 


Indian army was approaching, the fort having been for some time 
unoccupied by a garrison, and Col. Zane’s house having been used 
for a magazine, those who retired into the fortress had to take with 
them a supply of ammunition for its defense. The supply of pow- 
der, deemed ample at the time, was now almost exhausted, by rea- 
son of the long continuance of the siege, and the repeated endeay- 
ors of the savages to take the fort by storm: a few rounds only re- 
mained. In this emergency, it became necessary to renew their 
stock from an abundant store which was deposited in Col. Zane’s 
house. Accordingly, it was proposed that one of the fleetest men 
should endeavor to reach the house, obtain a supply of powder, and 
return with it to the fort. It was an enterprize full of danger; but 
many of the heroic spirits shut up in the fort were willing to encoun- 
ter the hazard. Amongst those who volunteered to go on this en- 
terprize, was Elizabeth, the sister of Col. E. Zane. She was 
young, active and athletic, with courage to dare the danger, and 
fortitude to sustain her through it. Disdaining to weigh the hazard 
of her own life against that of others, when told that a man would 
encounter less danger by reason of his greater fleetness, she replied, 
‘and should he fall, his loss will be more severely felt; you have 
not one man to spare; a woman will not be missed in the defense 
of the fort. Her services were then accepted. Divesting herself 
of some of her garments, as tending to impede her progress, she 
stood prepared for the hazardous adventure ; and when the gate was 
thrown open, bounded forth with the buoyancy of hope, and in the 
confidence of success. Wrapt in amazement, the Indians beheld 
her springing forward, and only exclaiming “a squaw,”’ ‘‘a squaw,”’ 
no attempt was made to interrupt her progress: arrived at the 
door, she proclaimed her errand. Col. Silas Zane fastened a table 
cloth around her waist, and emptying into ita keg of powder, again 
she ventured forth. The Indians were no longer passive. Ball af- 
ter ball whizzed by, several of which passed through her clothes: 
she reached the gate, and entered the fort in safety ;’’ and thus was 
the garrison again saved by female intrepidity. ‘‘ This heroine had 
but recently returned from Philadelphia, where she had received her 
education, and was wholly unused to such scenes as were daily pass- 
ing on the frontiers. The distance she had to run was about forty 
yards. She afterwards married a Mr. Clark, and is yet living in 
Ohio.” - 


6 Wellsburgh.—Steubenville. 
Wellsburgh.—The boat left Wheeling at 1, P. M., passing many 


fine views of river scenery and flourishing villages, rising along its 
borders. At sixteen miles above, we passed the town of Wellsburgh, 
formerly called Charleston. ‘The main coal deposit here has reach- 
ed an elevation of at least one hundred and forty feet above the bed 
of the river. It is six feet in thickness, and of a very superior qual- 
ity. The mouths of numerous adits are open on the sides of the 
river hill, from which the coal passes, by a wooden slide, down to 
the water’s edge, or into the boats that are to carry it to a market 
below. This town is a place of considerable business, and has a cot- 
ton and glass manufactory. Large quantities of flour are manufac- 
tured here and on the neighboring streams, which afford many valu- 
able mill sites. The surrounding country produces large and luxu- 
riant crops of wheat, and boats laden with flour and whiskey were 
very early sent from this place to New Orleans, while yet owned by 
the Spaniards. While passing Wellsburgh we saw a keel boat lying 
at the shore, with the word Poe painted on her side; this is the 
name of a celebrated borderer who once lived near this spot, and 
whose fame is yet cherished, because he was one of the most daring 
Indian hunters in the days of border warfare. This region was the 
seat of Indian wars for more than twenty years, and in the space of 
fifty miles around, more depredations and murders were committed 
by the Indians, than in any other of equal extent west of the Alle- 
ghany Mountains. The celebrated “‘ Mingo Bottoms” begin just 
above the town, and continue on both sides of the river to near Steu- 
benville. 

Steubenville—At 6, P. M., the boat arrived at Steubenville, 
where I went on shore, intending to spend the day with a few intel- 
ligent friends who reside there. ‘This town stands on an elevated 
plain on the right bank of the Ohio, and is “the Seat of Justice’’* 
for Jefferson County. It was laid out into building lots in the year 
1798, and for many years had a very rapid increase. Its present 
population is more than 3,000. The country adjacent is rich and 
well adapted to cultivation, being nearly all under culture. The 
surface is undulating, affording the finest soil for wheat and sheep. 
Messrs. Bezaleel Wells and Dickerson, introduced the merino sheep 
at an early day, and established an extensive manufactory for wool- 
en cloths. It is at present a considerable manufacturing town, hay- 


* The place where the Courts are held. 


Cabinet of Natural History. 7 


ing two woolen manufactories, two of cotton, three of carpetings, 
one paper mull, several founderies, three steam engine manufactories, 
one brass foundery, three flouring mills, one silver plate manufactory 
and three copperas manufactories, with many other mechanical ope- 
rations usually carried on in our large western towns. ‘There are 
three printing offices issuing weekly papers, six churches, one bank, 
one market house, and thirty trading stores. An abundant supply 
of bituminous coal is found in the adjacent hills for conducting all 
the various manufactures, and for domestic uses. ‘The continual 
cloud of dust arising from its combustion, gives rather a sombre look 
to the buildings and streets, a feature, however, common to all man- 
ufacturing towns. 

Cabinet of Natural History — May 7: 1 spent a part of the 
forenoon in examining Judge 'T’.’s Cabinet of Natural History. He 
has a fine collection of minerals, shells and fossil organic remains. 
The minerals embrace nearly twelve hundred species, arranged in 
natural families. ‘The fresh water shells amount to nearly one 
hundred species, the greater number of which are peculiar to our 
streams. ‘The family of the Uniones alone contains about ninety 
species, all natives of the western waters. His collection of ma- 
rine shells is also very fine. ‘The library of the Judge embraces, 
besides a due proportion belonging to his own profession, many of the 
most valuable writings of Cuvier and Brongniart, in their original 
language, on the animal kingdom, as well as fossil organic remains. 
It is truly gratifying to see even a small part of the wealth of our 
country, and a share of its most brilliant intellect, devoted to the 
study and the development of the natural history of ‘‘ the west ;” a 
subject deeply interesting, but until recently, shrouded in much 
darkness ; within a few years, however, many bright lights have 
been kindled, which promise to illustrate the hidden arcana of nature. 
The Conchology and Botany of the great valley have been pretty 
thoroughly examined, while Entomology, one of the most fertile 
branches, has been but partially investigated, although the indefati- 
gable Say made a very fair beginning. ‘The study of fossil vegeta- 
ble and animal remains, of which the valley of the Mississippi is 
one vast cemetery, yet remains an almost entirely unexplored field.* 


* The readers of this Journal have only to refer to Volume xx1x. No. 1. to see 
ample evidence, furnished by Dr. Hildreth, that much has been accomplished by 
him and his friends, able pioneers in this wide and rich field of nature—£d. 


8 Indian Sepulchre. 


But the time is not distant, when this vast cabinet of natural history, 
_ formed by a benevolent Creator for the study and admiration of man, 
will be classed and arranged by our own naturalists. Amongst the min- 
erals in the cabinet of Judge T. I observed a specimen of native cin- 
nabar, or sulphuret of mercury, in acicular crystals, being a fragment 
of a rolled mass of nearly a pound weight. This rare and beautiful 
mineral was found on the waters of Paimt Creek, amongst the debris 
and rolled masses of primitive rocks, which abound through the ter- 
tiary deposits,* from Chilicothe to the shores of Lake Erie, and must 
have been brought from the region north of Lake Huron or Supe- 
rior. = , : 

Ancient Indian Sepulchre.—The day before I reached Steuben- 
ville, an extensive colle tion of human skeletons, in a fine state of 
preservation, had beeu found on the opposite side of the Ohio 
River, a few rods from the shore, and nearly against the lower part 
of the town. ‘They were very probably placed here by the Mingo 
tribe of Indians, who for many years inhabited this spot and the 
country below, which still retains the name of ‘‘ the Mingo Bottom.” 
This natural sepulchre was accidentally discovered by a man who 
was working in a stone quarry. ‘The loose stones and earth had 
slipped down from the side of the hill above, and covered the mouth 
of the cavern. It had also been closed by the depositors of the 
dead, with fragments of sandstone rock, not only to secure it from the 
entrance of wild beasts, but also from the curiosity of the white man, 
after they had been forced to leave the country of their forefathers. 
The sepulchre, or rather natural grotto, in which the skeletons were 
placed, was originally formed in the face of the cliff above, by the 
action of the atmosphere decomposing the rock. Its constituent el- 
ements, oxygen and nitrogen, either entered into combination, or, 
the oxygen alone, by combining with the nitrogen of animal mat- 
ter, thus formed nitric acid, and the latter, acting on the lime con- 
tained in the sandstone, produced nitrate of lime; thus the cohesion 
of the particles of sand was destroyed, which, as the minute crystals 
shot into form, was detached and then fell down to the earth below, 
forming large piles at the base of the cliffs. In these piles I have 


* I know no term, more appropriate, for the immense deposits of clay, sand, and 
gravel, which compose the western prairies, than that of tertiary: they embrace 
all the characteristics of this formation, and if they do not rest on chalk, and can- 
not be called supercretaceous, they rest on lime rocks which belong to the seconda- 
ry deposits, and in a geological view, these unconsolidated beds are strictly tertiary. 


Indian Sepulchre. 9 


often seen the myrmelion formicarius, or ant-lion, form its cone-in- 
verted cells for the capture of unwary insects. 

Rains, frosts and winds, assist in the disintegrating process. In 
this manner large exca\ ations have been formed, and are still form- 
ing, in the faces of the river cliffs, along the narrows of the Ohio. 
Large masses of these cliffs are detached, from time to time, and fall 
down the sides of the declivities into the bottom below, or rest on the 
sides of the hills. ‘The rock under which these relics were found is 
of this description :—as it rolled down the side of the hill, it rested 
with the oven shaped cavity underneath, being about eight feet long, 
six wide, and five uigh in the centre, but lower at the sides. A 
small opening however was left, which by a little enlargement ena- 
bled the Indians to enter and deposit these skeletons, which are not 
less than fifty or sixty in number. ‘They were of all ages, and of 
both sexes, and generally in a perfect state of preservation. ‘They 
are most probably of very ancient sepulture, as no relics, implements 
or ornaments of a metallic nature, were discovered. Many interesting 
memorials of their own arts, and of their affection for their relatives, 
were found, consisting of pots and vases of coarse earthen ware; 
some of them were formed with much taste and beauty of outline. 
The figures of two of them now in my possession are given below. 


Is 8 inches high; 5 inches in diameter at 
the broadest part, and 43 inches at the neck. 


Is 6 inches high; 6 inches in diameter in 
the largest part, and 5 inches at the top. 


They were of various magnitudes, from the capacity of a gallon 

down to a pint, and would amount in number to not less than one 

for every two skeletons, or thirty or forty pots, several being broken 

in taking out. A number of the vases still contained relics of the 

food, consisting of the bones of turkies, opossums, &c., left for their 
Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 2 


10 Logan, the Mingo Chief. 


departed friends while on their journey to the land of spirits. Stone 
pipes, more numerous than the vases, were also found; some of © 
them display much ingenuity: one of them, which I saw, was carved 
with a fine head of the bald eagle, done with great force and 
truth: others were plain, made of light ash colored steatite, or 
soap stone. A few were of red clay, and some of hard sandstone. 
Flint arrow heads were very numerous. A very few of the crania ex- 
hibited marks of violence. ‘They appear, in general, to have died a 
natural death, and the bones to have been deposited here after being 
carefully cleared of the flesh that once covered them. ‘The sepul- 
chre is too small and too confined to have received them with the 
flesh on, or to have admitted the friends of the dead without danger 
of suffocation. I succeeded, with some difficulty, in procuring two 
crania, for the most of them had been carried off before I reached the 
place. One is the head ofa male, the other ofafemale. Inthe male, 
the organs of self esteem and combativeness are largely developed. 
It is perfect, and of as good a color as most skulls preserved in the 
cabinets of the anatomists. ‘The female head is well formed, and 
possesses some good points in the estimation of the craniologist. 

The “ Mingo Bottom,” which commences a short distance below, 
was the favorite residence of this once powerful tribe, when the 
white man first made his appearance west of the Alleghany ranges. 
The body of Logan, the celebrated chief, whose name has become . 
classical and is identified with history by the pen of Thomas Jefferson, 
is said to have been buried on one of the adjacent hills, in sight of the 
placid and beautiful Ohio, on whose waters he had so often struck 
the voracious pike with his fishing spear, and hunted the buffalo and 
the deer in the forests which shaded its shores. 

Henry Jolly.a—While on the subject of the Mingoes, I can- 
not refrain from reverting to that much controverted subject, the 
murder of Logan’s family. ‘The following facts are very valuable 
and interesting, as coming from the pen of one who saw the party 
the evening after the murder; was personally acquainted with 
some of the individuals, and familiar with that spot and all the sur- 
rounding region. ‘The statement is from the manuscript notes of 
Mr. Henry Jolly, now in my possession, and written at my request. 
Mr. Jolly is seventy seven years of age, and lived during his youth 
and early manhood on the Monongahela frontiers. At the period of 
this event, his parents resided on the spot where the town of Wash- 
ington, Pa., now stands, and which was then known to all the country 


Murder of Logan’s Family. 11 


as “ Catfish’s Camp,” so named after an old Indian who resided there 
at the time the whites first settled on the Monongahela. This place 
is about thirty miles in a south westerly direction from the mouth of 
Yellow Creek, or ‘‘ Baker’s Bottom,” opposite to the creek where the 
tragedy was acted. Henry Jolly was then sixteen years old. A 
large portion of the time during the war of the revolution, he was in 
the U. S. service, as a rifleman and ranger. Some time after the 
peace he removed to Ohio, and was for a number of years an Asso- 
ciate Judge on the bench of Washington County. He never recei- 
ved any advantages from schools, and yet was a man of extensive 
reading and general knowledge of mankind. I shall have occasion 
to refer to him again. ‘The statement cannot be better given than 
in his own words. 

Murder of Logan’s family.—* I was about sixteen years of age, but 
I very well recollect what I then saw, and the information that I have 
since obtained, was derived from (I believe) good authority. In the 
spring of the year 1774, a party of Indians encamped on the north 
west of the Ohio, near the mouth of the Yellow Creek. A party 
of whites, called ‘ Greathouse’s party,’ lay on the opposite side of 
the river. The Indians came over to the white party, consisting, I 
think, of five men and one woman, with an infant. The whites gave 
them rum, which three of them drank, and in a short time they be- 
came very drunk. ‘The other two men and the woman refused to 
drink. The sober Indians were challenged to shoot at a mark, to 
which they agreed; and as soon as they had emptied their guns 
the whites shot them down. The woman attempted to escape by 
flight, but was also shot down; she lived long enough, however, to 
beg mercy for her babe, telling them that it was a kin to themselves. 
The whites had a man in the cabin, prepared with a tomahawk for 
the purpose of killing the three drunken Indians, which was imme- 
diately done. ‘The party of men then moved off for the interior set- 
tlements, and came to ‘ Catfish Camp’ on the evening of the next 
day, where they tarried until the day following. I very well recol- 
lect my mother feeding and dressing the babe; chirruping to the 
little innocent, and its smiling. However, they took it away, and 
talked of sending it to its supposed father, Col. George Gibson, of 
Carlisle, Pa., ‘ who was then, and had been for many years, a trader 
amongst the Indians.’ The remainder of the party at the mouth of 
Yellow Creek, finding that their friends on the opposite side of the 
river were massacred, attempted to escape by descending the Ohio ; 


12 Murder of Logan’s Family. 


and in order to prevent being discovered by the whites, passed on 
the west side of Wheeling Island, and landed at Pipe Creek, a small 
stream that empties into the Ohio a few miles below Grave Creek, 
where they were overtaken by Cresap, with a party of men from 
Wheeling.* They took one Indian scalp, and had one white man 
(Big Tarrener) badly wounded. They, I believe, carried him in a 
litter from Wheeling to Redstone. I saw the party on their return 
from their victorious campaign. ‘The Indians had for some time be- 
fore these events, thought themselves intruded upon by the ‘ Long 
Knife,’ as they at that time called the Virginians, and many of them 
were for war. However, they called a council, in which Logan 
acted a conspicuous part. He admitted their grounds of complaint, 
but at the same time reminded them of some aggressions on the part 
of the Indians, and that by a war they could but harass and distress 
the frontier settlements for a short time; that ‘the Long Knife’ 
would come like the trees in the woods, and that ultimately they 
should be driven from the good lands which they now possessed. 
He therefore strongly recommended peace. To him they all 
agreed; grounded the hatchet, and every thing wore a tranquil ap- 
pearance; when behold, the fugitives arrived from Yellow Creek: 
and reported that Logan’s father, brother, and sister, were murdered! 
Three of the nearest and dearest relations of Logan, had been mas- 
sacred by whitemen. ‘The consequence was, that this same Logan, 
who a few days before was so pacific, raised the hatchet, with a 
declaration that he would not ground it until he had taken ten 
for one; which I believe he completely fulfilled, by taking thirty 
scalps and prisoners in the summer of 1774. ‘The above has often 
been related to me by several persons who were at the Indian towns 
at the time of the council alluded to, and also when the remains 
of the party came in from Yellow Creek. ‘Thomas Nicholson 
in particular, has told me the above and much more. Another 
person (whose name I cannot recollect) informed me that he was 
at the towns when the Yellow Creek Indians came in, and that 
there was great lamentation by all the Indians of that place. 


* Cresap did not live at, Wheeling, but happened to be there at that time with a 
party of men, who had, with himself, just returned from an exploring expedition 
down the Ohio, for the purpose of selecting and appropriating Jands (called in the 
West, locating lands) along the river in choice situations; a practice at that early 
day very common, when Virginia claimed both sides of the stream, including what 
is now the State of Ohio. ' 


Spring Garden. 13 


Some friendly Indian advised him to leave the Indian settlements, 
which he did.”’ ‘Could any rational person believe for a moment, 
that the Indians came to Yellow Creek with hostile intentions, or 
that they had any suspicion of similar intentions on the part of the 
whites, against them? Would five men have crossed the river, 
three of them become in a short time dead drunk, while the other 
two discharged their guns, and thus put themselves entirely at the 
mercy of the whites; or would they have brought over a squaw 
with an infant pappoos, if they had not reposed the utmost confi- 
dence in the friendship of the whites? Every person who is at all 
acquainted with Indians knows better; and it was the belief of the 
inhabitants who were capable of reasoning on the subject, that all 
the depredations committed on the frontiers, by Logan and his party, 
in 1774, were as a retaliation for the murder of Logan’s friends at 
Yellow Creek. Jt was well known that Michael Cresap had no 
hand in the massacre at Yellow Creek.’’* 
Spring Garden.—During the day, I visited “ the Spring Gar- 
den,” owned by Mr. Slack, a very ingenious and enterprizing man. 
It is beautifully situated on the southern slope of a hill, looking 
down upon the Ohio. A large spring of very pure water bursts 
from the side of the hill, a part of which is diverted to the use of a 
bath house, and the remainder to the irrigation of the garden in the 
drier portions of the year. A green house is attached, containing 
many rare and rich exotics, now in fruit and flower. ‘The situation 
is one of the best I have ever seen, and cannot fail to yield both 
profit and delight to the owner, and to afford a source of tasteful and 
refined recreation to the inhabitants of Steubenville. Indeed, hor- 
ticulture, delighting us by its flowers, and rewarding us by its 
fruits, tends, manifestly, to cherish a refined taste in individuals, 
and to produce an elevated state of society; while agriculture 
confers upon mankind the most substantial rewards: the best days 
of Rome were those of her Cincinnati, when the tillage of the earth 
was considered equally useful and honorable. The Georgics of 


* A brother of Capt. Daniel Greathouse, said to have been present at the massa- 
cre, was killed by the Indians the 24th March, 1791,-between the mouth of the 
Scioto and Limestone, while emigrating to Kentucky in a flat boat, with his fami- 
ly. Hle seems to have made little or no resistance to the Indians, who attacked 
him in canoes. They probably knew who he was, and remembered the slaughter 


of Logan’s family, as he was taken on shore, tied toa tree, and whipped to death 
with rods. 


14 Lewis Wetzel. 


Virgil have immortalized the Roman agriculture and horticulture, 
and produced a poem not only instructive, but highly attractive, 
and which, for eighteen centuries, has been a classical study. 

After spending a very pleasant day, and receiving many marks of 
kindness and attention from my friends, 1 embarked on board the 
steam boat Hero, at 4, P. M., for the mouth of the Big Beaver 
River. This stream was so named on account of the great number 
of beavers found on its head branches, and in the small ponds from 
which some of its waters flow. It is a stream of considerable mag- 
nitude, abounding in valuable mill seats, and is destined to furnish a 
supply of water for that portion of the Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal 
which passes down its valley. The distance from Steubenville to 
Beaver is about forty miles. 

Adventure of Lewis Wetzel.*—Amongst the heroes of border 
warfare, Lewis Wetzel held no inferior station. Inured to hard- 
ships while yet in boyhood, and familiar with all the varieties of for- 
est adventure, from that of hunting the beaver and the bear, to that 
of the wily Indian, he became one of the most celebrated marks- 
men of the day. His form was erect, and of that height best adapt- 
ed to activity, being very muscular, and possessed of great bodily 
strength. From constant exercise, he could without fatigue, bear 
prolonged and violent exertion, especially that of running and walk- 
ing; and he had, by practice acquired the art of loading his rifle when 
running at full speed through the forest, and wheeling on the instant, 
he could discharge it with unerring aim, at the distance of eighty or 
one hundred yards, into a mark not larger than a dollar. This art 
he has been known more than once to practice with fatal success on 
his savage foes. 

A marksman of superior skill was, im those days, estimated by the 
other borderers, much in the same way that a knight templar, or a 
knight of the cross, who excelled in the tournament or the charge, 
was, valued by his cotemporaries, in the days of chivalry. Chal- 
lenges of skill often took place ; and marksmen who lived at the dis- 
tance of fifty miles or more from each other, frequently met by ap- 
pointment, to try the accuracy of their aim, on bets of considerable 
amount. Wetzel’s fame had spread far and wide, as the most ex- 
pert and unerring shot of the day. It chanced that a young man,a 


* Received from a gentleman of my acquaintance, to whom one of the party re- 
lated the story, a few years after the transaction took place; and with which my 
friend was also familiar from the narration of others. 


Lewis Wetzel. 15 


few years younger than himself, who lived on Dankard’s Creek, a 
tributary of the Monongahela River, which waters one of the ear- 
liest settlements in that region, heard of his fame, and as he also was 
an expert woodsman, and a first rate shot, the best in his settlement, 
he became very desirous of an opportunity for a trial of skill. So 
great was his desire, that he one day shouldered his rifle, and whist- 
ling his faithful dog to his side, started for the neighborhood of Wet- 
zel, who, at that time, lived on Wheeling Creek, distant about 
twenty miles from the settlement on Dankard’s Creek. When 
about half way on his journey, a fine buck sprang up just before 
him. He levelled his gun with his usual precision, but the deer, 
though badly wounded, did not fall dead in his tracks. His faithful 
dog soon seized him and brought him to the ground, but while in 
the act of doing this, another dog sprang from the forest upon the 
same deer, and his master making his appearance at the same 
time from behind a tree, with a loud voice claimed the buck as _ his 
property, because he had been wounded by his shot, and seized 
by his dog. It so happened that they had both fired at once 
at this deer, a fact which may very well happen where two 
active men are hunting on the same ground, although one may 
fire at the distance of fifty yards, and the other at one hundred. 
The dogs felt the same spirit of rivalry with their masters, and quit- 
ting the deer, which was already dead, fell to worrying and tearing 
each other. In separating the dogs, the stranger hunter happened 
to strike that of the young man. ‘The old adage, “strike my dog, 
strike myself,” arose in full force, and without further ceremony, ex- 
cept a few hearty curses, he fell upon the hunter and hurled him to 
the ground. This was no sooner done than he found himself turn- 
ed, and under his stronger and more powerful antagonist. Discov- 
ering that he was no match at this play, the young man appealed to 
the trial by rifles, saying it was too much like dogs, for men, and 
hunters, to fight in this way. The stranger assented to the trial, but 
told his antagonist that before he put it fairly to the test, he had bet- 
ter witness what he was able to do with the rifle, saying that he was 
as much superior, he thought, with that weapon, as he was in bodily 
strength. He bid him place a mark the size of a shilling on the side 
of a huge poplar that stood beside them, from which he would start 
with his rifle unloaded, and running a hundred yards at full speed, 
he would load it as he ran, and wheeling, would discharge it instant- 
ly to thecentre of the mark. The feat was no sooner proposed than 


16 Lewis Wetzel. 


- performed; the ball entered the centre of the diminutive target : 
astonished at his activity and skill, his antagonist instantly enquired 
hisname. Lewis Wetzel, at your service, answered the stranger. 
The young hunter seized him by the hand with all the ardor of 
youthful admiration, and at once acknowledged his own inferiority. 
So charmed was he with Wetzel’s frankness, skill, and fine personal 
appearance, that he insisted upon his returning with bim to the set- 
tlement on Dankard’s Creek, that he might exhibit his talents to 
his own family, and to the hardy backwoodsmen, his neighbors. 
Nothing loath to such an exhibition, and pleased with the energy of 
his new acquaintance, Wetzel consented to accompany him; short- 
ening the way with their mutual tales of hunting excursions and haz- 
ardous contests with the common enemies of the country. Amongst 
other things, Wetzel stated his manner of distinguishing the foot- 
steps of a white man from those of an Indian, although covered with 
mocasins, and intermixed with the tracks of savages. He had ac- 
quired this tact from closely examining the manner of placing the 
feet; the Indian stepping with his feet in parallel lines, and first 
bringing the toe to the ground; while the white man almost invari- 
ably places his feet at an angle with the line of march. An oppor- 
tunity they little expected, soon gave room to put his skill to the 
trial. On reaching the young man’s home, which they did that day, 
they found the dwelling a smoking ruin, and all the family lying mur- 
dered and scalped, except a young woman who had been brought up 
in the family, and to whom the young man was ardently attached. 
She had been taken away alive, as was ascertained by examining 
the trail of the savages. Wetzel soon discovered that the party con- 
sisted of three Indians and a renegado white man, a fact not uncom- 
mon in those early days, when, for crime or the love of revenge, the 
white outlaw fled to the savages, and was adopted on trial into their 
tribe. 

As it was past the middle of the day, and the nearest assistance 
still at some considerable distance, and there were only four to con- 
tend with, they decided on instant pursuit. As the deed had very 
recently been done, they hoped to overtake them in their camp that 
night, and perhaps before they could cross the Ohio River, to which 
the Indians always retreated after a successful incursion, considering 
themselves in a manner safe when they had crossed to its right bank, 
at that time occupied wholly by the Indian tribes. 


Lewis Wetzel. 17 


. Ardent and unwearied was the pursuit, by the youthful huntsmen;_ 
the one, excited to recover his lost mistress, the other, to assist his new 
friend, and to take revenge for the slaughter of his countrymen— 
slaughter and revenge being the daily business of the borderers at this 
portentous period.* Wetzel followed the trail with the unerring saga- 
city of a blood hound ; and just at dusk traced the fugitives to a noted 
war path, nearly opposite to the mouth of Captina Creek, emptying 
into the Ohio, which, much to their disappointment, they found the 
Indians had crossed, by forming a raft of logs and brush, their usual 
manner when at a distance from their villages. By examining care- 
fully the appearances on the opposite shore, they soon discovered the 
fire of the Indian camp in a hollow way, a few rods from the river. 
Lest the noise of constructing a raft should alarm the Indians, and give 
notice of the pursuit, the two hardy adventurers determined to swim 
the stream a few rods below. ‘This they easily accomplished, being 
both of them excellent swimmers; fastening their clothes and am- 
munition ina bundle on the tops of their heads, with their rifles 
resting on the left hip, they reached the opposite shore in safety : 
after carefully examining their arms, and putting every article of at- 
tack or defense in its proper place, they crawled very cautiously to 
a position which gave them a fair view of their enemies, who, think- 
ing themselves safe from pursuit, were carelessly reposing around 
their fire, thoughtless of the fate that awaited them. They instantly 
discovered the young woman, apparently unhurt, but making much 
moaning and lamentation, while the white man was trying to pacify 
and console her with the promise of kind usage, and an adoption 
into the tribe. ‘The young man, hardly able to restrain his rage, 
was for firing and rushing instantly upon them. Wetzel, more cau- 
tious, told him to wait until day light appeared, when they could 
make the attack with a better chance of success, and of also killing 
the whole party, but if they attacked in the dark, a part of them 
would certainly escape. 

As soon as day light dawned, the Indians arose and prepared to 
depart. The young man selecting the white renegado, and Wetzel 
an Indian, they both fired at the same time, each killing his man. 
The young man rushed forward knife in hand, to relieve the young 
woman, while Wetzel reloaded his gun and pushed in pursuit of the two 
survivingIndians, who had taken to the woods, until they could ascer- 


* Between 1782 and 1784. 
Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 3 


18 Beaver Town.—Fort McIntosh. 


tain the number of their enemies. Wetzel, as soon as he saw that he 
was discovered, discharged his rifle at random, in order to draw them 
from their covert. Hearing the report, and finding themselves un- 
hurt, the Indians rushed upon him before he could again reload: 
this was as he wished: taking to his heels, Wetzel loaded as he ran, 
and suddenly wheeling about, discharged his rifle through the body 
of his nearest, but unsuspecting enemy. ‘The remaining Indian, see- 
ing the fate of his companion, and that his enemy’s rifle was unloaded, 
rushed forward with all energy, the prospect of prompt revenge be- 
ing fairly before him. Wetzel led him on, dodging from tree to tree, 
until his rifle was again ready, when suddenly turning, he shot his 
remaining enemy, who fell dead at his feet. After taking their 
scalps, Wetzel and his friend, with their rescued captive, returned 
in safety to the settlement. Like honest Joshua Fleeheart, after 
the peace of 1795, Wetzel pushed for the frontiers on the Missis- 
sippi, where he could trap the beaver, hunt the buffalo and the deer, 
and occasionally shoot an Indian, the object of his mortal hatred. 
He finally died as he had always lived, a free man of the forest. 

Beaver town, Pa., May 8.—T he boat arrived at the mouth of the 
Beaver* river, at 12, midnight, and landed me at “ the point;” from 
this place it is about a mile to the town of Beaver, situated on an 
elevated plain, from seventy to eighty feet above the Ohio bottoms. 
This plain is about a mile in length and half a mile in width; and is 
an ancient alluvion, deposited by the Ohio river, at some remote pe- 
riod.. The main body of it is composed of gravel and pebbles, with 
an argillaceous earth, at or near the surface, affording a tolerably 
good soil for cultivation and the growth of forest trees. Great num- 
bers of sandstone bowlders are scattered over its surface, rounded 
and water worn by attrition; they are far more numerous than I have 
seen at any other place. ‘The Village of Beaver town, stands near 
the western side of the plain. It is the county seat for Beaver coun- 
ty, Pa., and contains about eight hundred inhabitants. A new town 
called Bridgewater, has been laid off on the canal, a short distance 
above the outlet, which is destined to take precedence in mercantile 
business of the present village of Beaver town. 

Fort McIntosh.—Fort McIntosh, one of the earliest, if not the 
very first fort, built by the Americans on the right bank of the Ohio, 


* According to Mr. Heckewelder, the Big Beaver river, was called by the Del- 
aware Indians, Kaskask-sipee, from the Indian town of Kuskusehki. 


Fort McIntosh.—Samuel Brady. 19 


stood on the southern verge of the plain, about twenty rods from the 
bank of the river, with which it held communication, by means of 
a covered way. ‘This covered way, was constructed in a very sim- 
ple but perfectly secure manner, by digging a ditch and covering it 
with oaken palisades, sloping towards each other like: a roof, and 
then coated over with earth—an attempt had been made to dig a 
well within the walls of the fortress, but the depth of earth and grav- 
el to be passed before reaching water was so great, being about 
one hundred and twenty feet, that it was abandoned, and this 
mode adopted in its place. Water for the garrison was first pro- 
cured from a spring at the back side of the plain, but several of 
the men having been killed by the Indians while at the spring, 
this mode of obtaining a supply was given up as too hazardous, 
and the covered way was adopted in its place. Fort McIntosh 
was built during the war of the revolution, in the summer of the 
year 1778, by a military force from Fort Pitt, under the command 
of Gen. McIntosh. It covered about an acre of ground; and was a 
regularly stockaded fort, with four bastions, mounted with six field 
pieces, from four to nine pounders; one piece was placed in each 
bastion, and two in the centre of the fort. It was twenty eight miles 
below Fort Pitt, and at a favorable point for checking the incursions 
of the Indians, or for sending out parties in pursuit, while on the 
retreat from an inroad into the white settlements on the Monongahe- 
la. It was for a number of years the rallying point for the border- 
ers, when assembling for array, against the Indian towns on the 
Muskingum and Scioto rivers. 

Samuel Brady.—l left Beavertown in the mail coach, at 11 A.M. 
for Poland, im Trumbull County, Ohio, distant thirty eight miles. 
Directly on leaving Bridgewater, and crossing a small stream, on a 
neat bridge, we began to ascend a long steep hill, called “‘ Brady’s 
Hill.” It received its name from an interesting border adventure, 
which occurred in “ early times,” near its base. Captain Samuel 
Brady was one of that band of brave men, who lived, in the trying 
days of the American Revolution, on the western borders, exposed 
to all the horrors and dangers of Indian warfare, and whose names 
should be perpetuated in history. He held a commission under the 
United States, and fora part of that time commanded a company 
of rangers, who traversed the forests, for the protection of the fron- 
tiers. He was born in Shippensburgh, (Pa.) in the year 1758, and 
removed probably when a boy, into the valley of the Monongahela. 


20 Legend of Brady’s Hill. 


At the period of this adventure he lived on Chartier Creek, about 
twelve miles below Fort Pitt; a stream better known, however, to 
the pilots and keel-boatmen of modern days, by the significant name of 
‘‘ Shirtee.”’ He died in 1796, soon after the close of the Indian war. 
A number of articles were published in the “ Blairsville Recorder,” a 
year or two since, detailing his adventures, which would make a most 
interesting volume. His father and a brother were both killed by 
Indians. I shall have occasion to refer to him again in the course 
of my visit. 

Legend of Brady’s Hill.—tI received the particulars of the fol- 
lowing story from one of the passengers in the coach, who had re- 
sided in the country several years, and had often heard it related. 
Samuel Brady, the hero of the following adventure, was over six 
feet in height, with light blue eyes, fair skin, and dark hair: he 
was remarkably strait, an athletic, bold, and vigorous backwoods- 
man, inured to all the toils and hardships of a frontier life, and had 
become very obnoxious to the Indians, from his numerous success- 
ful attacks on their war parties, and from shooting them in his hunt- 
ing excursions, whenever they crossed his path, or came within 
reach of his rifle; for he was personally engaged in more hazardous 
contests with the savages, than any other man west of the moun- 
tains, excepting Daniel Boone. He was in fact ‘an Indian hater,” 
as many of the early borderers were. ‘This class of men appear 
to have been more numerous in this region, than in any other por- 
tion of the frontiers; and this doubtless arose from the slaughter 
at Braddock’s defeat, and the numerous murders and attacks on de- 
fenceless families that for many years followed that disaster. Brady 
was also a very successful trapper and hunter, and took more bea- 
vers than any of the Indians themselves. In one of his adventurous 
trapping excursions, to the waters of the Beaver River, or Maho- 
ning, which in early days so abounded with the animals of this spe- 
cies, that it took its name from this fact, it so happened that the In- 
dians surprised him in his camp, and took him prisoner. ‘To have 
shot or tomahawked him on the spot, would have been but a small 
gratification to that of satiating their revenge by burning him at a 
slow fire, in presence of all the Indians of their village. He was 
therefore taken alive to their encampment, on the west bank of the 
Beaver River, about a mile and a half from its mouth. After the 
usual exultations and rejoicings at the capture of a noted enemy, 
and causing him to run the gauntlet, a fire was prepared, near which 


Legend of Brady’s Hill. Connecticut Reserve. 21 


‘ 


Brady was placed, after being stripped naked, and with his arms 
unbound. Previously to tying him to the stake, a large circle was 
formed around him, consisting of Indian men, women, and children, 
dancing and yelling, and uttering all manner of threats and abuse 
that their small knowledge of the English language could afford. 
The prisoner looked on these preparations for death, and on his sav- 
age foes, with a firm countenance and a steady eye, meeting all their 
threats with a truly savage fortitude. In the midst of their dancing 
and rejoicing, a squaw of one of their chiefs came near him with a 
child in her arms. Quick as thought, and with intuitive prescience, 
he snatched it from her and threw it into the midst of the flames. 
Horror-struck at the sudden outrage, the Indians simultaneously 
rushed to rescue the infant from the fire. In the midst of this con- 
fusion, Brady darted from the circle, overturning all that came in 
his way, and rushed into the adjacent thickets, with the Indians yell- 
ing at his heels. He ascended the steep side of the present hill, 
amidst a shower of bullets, and darting down the opposite decliv- 
ity, secreted himself in the deep ravines and laurel thickets that 
abound for several miles to the west of it. His knowledge of the 
country and wonderful activity, enabled him to elude his enemies, 
and reach the settlements on the south of the Ohio River, which 
he crossed by swimming. ‘The hill near whose base this adventure 
is said to have happened, still goes by his name; and the incident is 
often referred to by the traveller, as the coach is slowly dragged up 
its side. 

After travelling a few miles, in rather a hilly region, the face of the 
country gradually becomes more level, and before leaving the state 
of Pennsylvania, the hills subside into low undulations, but little 
more elevated than is required to drain the country of the super- 
abundant waters. ‘This formation continues to near the shore of 
Lake Erie, and embraces what is called the Connecticut Reserve. 
In it are seated many flourishing villages, and a most industrious and 
thriving population. The soil is generally better adapted to grass 
and meadows, than to the cultivation of grain. Accordingly, large | 
stocks of cattle and extensive dairies are kept. Cheese and butter 
are staple commodities. For profitable management, from fifty 
to one hundred cows are considered sufficient for one farm. A 
market is found for the fat cattle and the productions of the dairy, 
at Cleaveland and Pittsburgh; the canals giving them the advantage 
of both the New York and Philadelphia marts, for the sale of their 


29 Poland. 


produce. With these advantages, the price of lands has more than 
doubled since the opening of the canals, and will double again when 
the Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal, down the Mahoning and Beaver, 
is finished. For these advantages, the inhabitants of the present day 
may thank a few wise and patriotic men, the projectors of ‘ internal 
improvement,” which but for these men, would not have been ac- 
complished until the succeeding age. Directly after passing the 
state line between Pennsylvania and Ohio, we cross a corner of the 
county of Columbiana. This boundary was established in the year 
1802, and runs a north course, ona line 3° 32’ west of Washington, 
from the mouth of Yellow Creek on the Ohio River, to Lake Erie. 
We arrived at Poland at 8 P. M., where I left the stage. 

Poland, May 9.—Poland is a flourishing village, seated on the 
waters of the Mahoning,* in the S. E. corner of Trumbull County. 
It contains a number of stores and mills, and from its proximity to 
the Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal, will soon be a town of considera- 
ble importance. ‘The cherry and peach are here just opening their 
blossoms, and the forest trees are yet quite naked of verdure. Vege- 
tation at the mouth of the Muskingum, is at least ten days earlier 
than it is here, which is caused partly by the difference in latitude, 
and partly by elevation of surface. It is a singular fact, that the 
peach tree is filling with blossoms, from the mouth of the Beaver 
on the Ohio, to the shores of Lake Erie, while at Marietta, and 
generally on the river for many miles above and below that place, 
the winter has destroyed all the embryo fruit buds; and yet here, in 
a degree of cold far more intense, they escaped. This fact is prob- 
ably owing to a more hardy growth, in a climate where severe win- 
ters are not uncommon, and where they are continued with much 
more uniformity of temperature. Many tender plants bear severe 
continued cold, while a less degree destroys them if subjected to re- 
peated thawing and freezing. For this reason, a tender vine on the 
north side of a building, is more safe than on the south side. 

Collection of shells, minerals, &c.—I called this morning on my 
friend, Dr. Kirtland, with whom I shall spend a few days. He lives 
on a farm adjoining the village of Poland. Every thing about it 
is in good taste and under excellent cultivation. He is a lover 


* The definition of Mahoning, according to Mr. Heckenwelder, is as follows: 
Mahoni, a lick; Mahonink, at the lick. 


Collection of Shells, Minerals, &c. 23 


of fine fruits, and in person attends to the various operations ne- 
cessary to the successful growth of all the good fruits that can be 
raised in this climate. His selection of plums, pears, cherries, 
peaches and apples, is equal in variety and excellence to any in the 
western country. ‘The cultivation and study of one branch of nat- 
ural history, often creates a taste for the rest. Accordingly, my 
friend has turned his attention to botany, conchology, and min- 
eralogy. His collection of fresh water and land shells is very valu- 
able, embracing nearly all the described species found in the west. 
They are neatly arranged in cases, and each shell deposited in 
a movable plaster cell, so that they can be examined separately 
without soiling or displacing the specimen. His collection of ma- 
rine shells, minerals, and fossil organic remains, is also very in- 
teresting. The value of the fresh water collection is much enhan- 
ced, from having been made principally with his own hands, 
from the rivers and ponds in the northern part of Ohio. This 
has given him an opportunity to discover the hidden retreats and 
haunts of the molluscous races, while searching for specimens, and 
thus he has been enabled to learn a great deal of their natural 
history and habits. He was the first to discover the distinction of 
the sexes in these animals, from the difference in the outlines of 
their shelly coverings, as noticed in the 26th volume of this Jour- 
nal. Since that time he has continued his observations, by dissec- 
tions at different periods of gestation, developing the ova in their 
various stages, and observing the females of various species, in the 
act of throwing them off per saltum, while lying on their sides, in 
shoal water. By the aid of a lens, they are found to be viviparous, 
and not oviparous, as was generally believed by naturalists. After 
exposing the roe, or oviducts, to the rays of the sun, the valves of 
the young shell separate, and can be distinctly seen with the naked 
eye. It is thought by Dr. K. that all our Uniones and other bivalve 
shells are distinguished by sexes, and that he will be enabled in a 
short time, by dissections of the living animal, and the contour of 
the shell, to point them out. This discovery will be very impor- 
tant, not only in elucidating many hidden things in the economy 
of molluscous animals, but also in correcting the nomenclature of 
American conchology ; several shells of the same species being now 
classed as distinct shells, when in fact they are only the different 
sexes of the same shell. It is only by patient investigation, con- 
ducted by men of leisure and genius, that such discoveries are made ; 


24 Mahoning Valley.— Tertiary Deposits. 


and in this country, where the accumulation of property so generally 
absorbs the public mind, few such men are to be found. . 

May 10th, being the Sabbath, was passed as a day of contempla+ 
tion and rest. 

Mahoning Valley, May 11.—Dr. K. and myself visited an inter- 
esting locality of fossil vegetable remains, called ‘‘ Mariner’s mills,” 
lying on a small creek discharging into the Mahoning, on the north 
side of the stream. In going out, we crossed the valley of the Ma- 
honing, up which the Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal will pass, in its 
progress westward to join the Ohio Canal, and unite the waters of 
Lake Erie with those of the Delaware. ‘The Mahoning valley or 
alluvion is about a mile broad, and depressed nearly one hundred 
feet below the surface of the adjacent country. The scil is very 
fertile, and finely cultivated. The whole region is gently undula- 
ting, and beautifully formed for agricultural purposes, so that in a 
few years it will be improved like a garden. ‘The present staple 
productions of Trumbull County, and generally of the ‘“‘ Western 
Reserve,’ are those of the dairy, fat beeves and wheat. The soil 
and climate are both congenial to grazing, and cattle, as large and 
fine as those from the prairies of the west, are raised here with little 
trouble. The dairy farms usually support from forty to one hun- 
dred cows, and with judicious management are profitable. ‘Traders 
in produce generally contract with the farmers for their cheese be- 
fore it is made, stipulating a certain price, to be paid on delivery, 
generally from six to seven cents per pound, at the door of the dairy, 
or at some adjacent store. Butter, in quantity, and of the best qual- 
ity, is sold for eight or nine cents. ‘There is scarcely a waste acre 
of land on “the Reserve ;” nearly all may be cultivated, although 
some of the low tracts will require draining. 

Tertiary Deposits——The surface of the country, from the Penn- 
sylvania line, north of lat. 41°, appears to be generally an imperfect 
tertiary formation, resting on the secondary, and is composed of argil- 
laceous earth and decayed vegetable matter. Granite and other primi- 
tive bowlders are scattered all over the earth, with pebbles and gravel 
intermixed to a considerable depth, varying from twenty to thirty or 
more feet. It is, strictly speaking, neither tertiary or diluvial, but 
partakes of the characters of both these formations. In the vicinity 
of Poland, this deposit rests on a bed of blue clay, plastic and tena- 
cious, like that slowly deposited from water when in a state of rest, 
varying in thickness from six to fifteen feet. ‘The blue clay reposes 


Section on Yellow Creek. 25 


on a bed of fine micaceous sand, in which is found permanent water 
for wells. Above the blue clay, the water is soft and good for wash- _ 
ing; that below is impregnated with an acid, and is hard. 

The following section of rock strata, (fig. 3.) taken on Yellow 
creek, a southern branch of the Mahoning, near Poland, will show 
the order of stratification, including the semi-tertiary deposits, to the 
bed of the stream. Order descending. | 


2S S—= Bed of the river. 


——— 


1. Semi-tertiary deposits, composed of clay, intermixed with 
bowlders of primitive rocks, pebbles and gravel.—15 feet. 

2. Tenacious blue clay, or plastic clay.—6 feet. 

3. Fine, white micaceous sand, with pebbles. In this bed is found 
permanent water for wells.—2 feet. 

4. Light gray, slaty sandstone rock, with some mica. ‘This deposit 
contains the casts and impressions of many species of fossil plants,’ 
of the arborescent ferns, Calamites, &c.—15 feet. 

5. Brown shale, filled with kidney-shaped masses of argillaceous 
iron ore, containing blende and oxide of zinc, in small quantities, 
with sulphate of magnesia, on the dry surface of the shale, in fine 
crystals.—1 foot. 

6. A stratum of an apparently crystalline, calcareous fossil, shoot- 
ing into pyramidal masses, closely compacted ; about four inches in 
thickness. Speczfic character,—shape, conical ; surface marked by 
numerous undulating, circular strie ; color, light slate ; from two to 


Vou. XX XI.—WNo. 1. 4 


26 Section on Yellow Creck. 


four inches in length, and from half an inch to one inch in diameter 
at the base. Ican describe the form and structure no better than 
by saying they resemble a mass of conical “ candle extinguishers,” 
one placed within the other, and so arranged as to make a compact 
bed, four inches thick, and extending over an indefinite space. ‘The 
thickness of the sides of the cones, varies according to size, from an 
eighth to a twelfth of an inch. ‘The form resembles some of the 
species of Belemnites, more than any other fossil. Its geological 
position, according to Blainville, is favorable to this supposition, be- 
ing near the tertiary or recent secondary deposits. Its composition 
is calcareous, effervescing strongly with dilute sulphurie acid, when 
pulverized and mixed with it. It is not a deposit, but a regular! 
organized substance, like coral or madrepore, and I have no doubt 
formed through animal agency. It is also peculiar to the calcareous 
deposits of the coal series, and 1 believe found only on the outer 
margins of the great coal basins, in the valley of the Mississippi, 
where they approach the tertiary deposits. I have in my cabinet 
specimens of the same fossil, from the coal region on the Osage 
River, in the vicinity of Harmony, the missionary station, presented 
to me by the Rev. Mr. Boynton, who collected them with his own 
hands from the bed of the river, in place. It is there from four. to 
eight inches in thickness, and is named by the hunters “ coal blos- 
som,” as where that is seen coal is usually found in the vicinity. 
When exposed to the air, the fossil separates easily, and can be 
taken out whole, in the same way that a package of thimbles, or a 
pile of tin cones, placed one within the other, may be separated. [ 
have the same fossil, but much larger and thicker, from the Gauly 
River, in western Virginia, found imbedded in bituminous shale, in 
rolled masses; also, from near Chilicothe, found in excavating the 
Ohio Canal, resting on gravel, at the depth of eight or ten feet. 
These last specimens are siliceous, about four inches thick, and were 
broken from a water-worn mass, a foot across the face, much resem- 
bling the transverse section of alog of wood. ‘They were probably 
brought from the northern borders of the coal deposits, at the same 
time that the granite bowlders were scattered over the tertiary re- 
gion of the great valley, and by the same catastrophe. An appro- 
priate name for this organized stratum, might be Belemnita-Madre- 
pora, provided it should, on further examination, be proved to be 
of the family of Belemnites. Additional aid to this conjecture 1s 
found in the fact, that the deposit on which this stratum rests, is 


Coal Deposits. Q7 


limestone, filled with various species of marine shells, and apparently 
composed altogether from ther broken down fragments. Correct 
figures of the form and structure of this beautiful fossil, are given 
in the 29th volume of this Journal, page 14 of the wood cuts, and 
figure 27.—4 inches. 

7. Blue, magnesian limestone, breaking into rhombic abliatin e 
in two beds—upper bed eighteen inches thick ; compact, and takes 
a good polish, similar to bird’s-eye marble. Lower bed six inches 
thick ; slaty structure, and filled with shells of the genera Producti, 
Spiriferi, Ammonites, Encrini, &c. generally contorted and broken ; 
upper portion also filled with shells.—2 feet. } 

8. The lime-rock reposes on a deposit of blue, argillaceous shale. 
When first exposed to the air, this deposit is of the consistence, color 
and smell of marsh mud. When dry, it takes the structure of shale. 
It is filled with larger and more numerous specimens of shells simi- 
lar to those in the lime-rock above.—6 inches. 

9. Bituminous coal and shale, three feet; upper half of the de- 
posit composed of shale, which, on exposure to the air, becomes 
covered with a thick efflorescence of sulphate of iron and sulphate 
of magnesia; lower half, tolerably good coal.—3 feet. 

10. White or light gray sandstone rock, fine and compact, forming 
here the bed of the creek. A few miles below, and deeper in the 
bed, this deposit of sandstone contains a vast collection of fossil trop- 
ical plants, of ferns, palms, &c. 

Coal Deposits.—The coal deposits begin to grow thin, as we ap- 
proach the table lands between Lake Erie and the waters which run 
into the Ohio. Over a large portion of this semi-tertiary or diluvian 
tract, the upper deposit of coal has been torn up and washed away, 
at the period, and by the same cataclysm which covered this portion 
of the valley with primitive bowlders and tertiary deposits. It is ~ 
found yet in place in several eminences, and especially at a spot, 
two and a half miles S. W. of Poland, on the sides of an elevated 
tract, where it crops out, and six miles further south passes under a 
tamarack and cranberry swamp of several miles in extent. This 
swamp lies about onegpundred and fifty feet above the general sur- 
face of the country north of it. On the sides of this ascent the coal 
comes to the surface, and is worked, but not extensively. It is 
about three feet in thickness, and of that quality peculiar to the up- 
per bed all over the valley of the Ohio, being of a slaty structure 
and glistening fracture, but when burnt in a grate it melts and runs 


28  Mounds.—Siliceous Conglomerate.—Fossil Plants. 


together, obstructing the free passage of the air. It is a good spe- 
cies for coaking, and contains a large portion of carbon for a bitu- 
minous coal, it being about sixty per cent. About one hundred 
feet below this, lies the coal bed noted in the foregoing section. 

Mounds.—Natural mounds of sand are common in this part of 
Ohio, evidently thrown up by water, and similar in structure to 
those noticed by Prof. Hitchcock, as common to the tertiary depos- 
its of the west. I observed one near the village of Poland, about 
fifteen feet in height, and from forty to fifty feet in diameter, so com- 
pletely isolated, and of a form so perfectly resembling the barrows 
of the ancient inhabitants, that many believe it to be artificial. It is 
found by the neighboring inhabitants to be a useful depository of 
sand for the manufacture of mortar, &c. 

Stliceous Conglomerate ——Amongst the numerous Borde of 
this region, I observed several of siliceous conglomerate, similar in 
structure to the rock found in the Laurel and Alleghany Mountains, 
and used in the manufacture of mill stones. In Geauga County, 
forty miles north, it is found in place, and continues on nearly to 
Lake Erie. It is associated with similar deposits, and is without 
doubt a continuation of the same rock with that found in the moun- 
tain ranges, on the south side of the valley of the Ohio. Some of 
the bowlders are very large, sufficient to make a pair or two of 
mill stones. 

Fossil Plants.—On examining the impressions and casts of fossil 
plants obtained at Mariner’s Mill, I found them to embrace several 
species of Palm, Calamites, Sigillaria, &c., several of them entirely 
new to me, and eminently beautiful. ‘They are so perfect that Mr. 
Mariner, a plain farmer, kept them a number of years to show to his 
neighbors as curiosities. He found them in opening a quarry by the 
side of the stream, for the erection of a mill dam. A little lower 
down in the same rock, opened this spring, are found very perfect 
specimens of a new species of Carpolithus. They are very abun- 
dant, and are imbedded amidst fragments aid impressions of various 
coal plants. We obtained about a dozen sicimens, some of which 
are very fine, and will be described with a f@ other interesting casts 
found here. The rock is a light gray sandsténe, similar to that de- 
scribed as lying at the base of the forecoing;section in the bed of 
Yellow Creek, and is a continuation of the same deposit. 


Pe 


Fossil Plants. 29 


~Carporirnus rrmocuraris.* Specific character and descrip- 
tton.—An oblong, ovate nut, divided longitudinally into three equal 
divisions, by strongly marked, elevated ridges, running from the 
base to the tip; base truncated, and profoundly impressed with the 
cicatrix of the stem; tip rather pomted; surface smooth; length 
one inch and four lines ; diameter ten lines. 

Observations.—Some of the specimens are flattened, others re- 
tain their original rotundity ; found in the sand rock at Mariner’s 
Mills, intermixed with casts of various species of plants; amongst 
which were Sigillaria, Calamites columnare, Calamites dubia, with 
several species of arborescent ferns. This nut is probably the fruit 
of some antediluvian Palm. We obtained a number of specimens, 
several of which were detached from the rock, while we were pres- 
ent. Drawings of two specimens are given at fig. 4. 


Fig. 4. 


_ Syrincopenpron Kirtianpius. Specific Character.—Stem 
swelled at intervals; surface finely striated, and covered with alter- 
nate grooves and double linear dot-like impressions, arranged longi- 


tudinally. 


* On examining the shell of the recent cocoa nut, I find its surface marked with 
prominent ridges, dividing the disk into three equal divisions, similar to the Car- 
polithus trilocularis. This fact is an additional proof of these fossil nuts being the 
fruit of some ancient Palm tree. 


30 | Fossil Plants. 


Description.—Stem arborescent ; length unknown; cylindrical ; 
surface finely striated, longitudinally, and ornamented ,with double 
rows of dot-like, linear impressions, divided by obsolete grooves, 
which at intervals of two inches are profoundly widened and deep- 
ened, while the interstitial spaces containing the dot-like impres- 
sions are raised into narrow ridges, giving the stem the appearance 
of being jointed ; dot-like impressions arranged in quincunx; stem 
two inches and a quarter in diameter. 

Observations.—F ound in the sandstone rocks at Mariner’s Mills, in 
Trumbull County, Ohio. It is a fragment of a stem, which from its 
thickness must have been several feet in length. The markings 
on the surface are amongst the most delicate and beautiful I have 
ever seen. In the belief that it will prove to be a new species, it is 


dedicated to my friend Dr. K. (Fig. 5.) 


NIN | 


=: 
£ 


—— 
SSS 
= SSS 

———==> 


Wr 
} | 
ri = 
| 
\, 
f f 
Pa aia 
Hui 
Wy 
4 
HUH «| Wi) =| 
‘ Ah: 
i | 
Hi/ f H 
Pa 
Y 
Al i 
| 
| ny 
i, i 
} IS Hi 
K ital 
Hi | 
ft} i {a 
| AY 
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i 


! 


Sremuaria Marinerta. Specific Character and Description. 
Stem channeled; impressions in form of disks, arranged in quin- 


Fossil Plants. 31 


eunx; grooves half an inch in width, two-eighths deep ; disks nearly 
filling the width of the groove, a little raised, and depressed at one 
side; distance equal to the diameter of the disks. 

Observations.—A most beautiful and perfect impression, about 
fifteen inches in length; the original trunk, of which this is only a 
segment, must have been more than a foot in diameter, and many 
feet in length. In fine grained sandstone, at Mariner’s Mills, and 
named for that locality. I received also a beautiful cast of Cala- 
mites columnare, remarkable for the size and depth of the columns, 
from Dr. K., finely impressed in red sandstone, from a locality some 
miles north of this spot. (Fig. 6.) 


Fig. 6. iced), 


| 


—_— 


— —- 


Pr 
—— 


——s 


i pi! HH 
ul ol vai 


Half size. 


——$_— 
-_—=_ = 


Ficorpires scaprosus. Specific Character and Description.— 
Cicatrices approximate ; arranged spirally ; spines small, stem cyl- 
indrical; one inch and a half in diameter, up to four inches; length 
unknown. 

Observations.—When taken from the sandstone rock on the Maho- 
ning River, the surface was coated with bituminous matter. ‘This fossil 
plant much resembles some of the recent species of Cactus, and was 
probably of the same succulent growth, and coated with spines. I 
have several specimens of various sizes, from half an inch to four 
inches in diameter. They are all sandstone casts. Same locality. 


(Fig. 7.) 


32 Fossil Plants.—Massasauga, Rattle Snake. 


Srropinus Caryvornyiuus. Specific Character.—Cone-shap- 
ed; seeds radiating from an oblong centre ; stem thick and short. 

Description.—Capsule cone-shaped, nearly round ; fruit arranged 
in radii; oblong, clove-shaped ; half an inch in length, and one line 
in diameter. Strobilus, one inch in diameter. 

Observations.—The fossil above described is apparently the fruit 
of some cone-bearing tree. ‘The seeds are arranged like those of 
the Plane tree, but are twice as large, and not half as numerous. 
They are more clove-shaped, and not flat like those of Conifer or 
resinous trees. It js probably the fruit of some extinct species, bu- 
ried amidst the ruins of the coal strata at that period when arbores- 
cent ferns clothed this part of the earth. From the sandstone rocks 
on the Mahoning River. (Fig. 8.) 


Hien 3s 


ie 


\ 
a\\ 


AN 


; Yi 
<=> 


ae 


[' Mine 


\v 


Massasauga, Rattle Snake.—In the Tamarack and Cranberry 
swamp, noticed as lying over the upper coal deposit, are found large 
numbers of a small black, or very dark brown rattle snake, about 
twelve or fourteen inches in length, and of a proportionate thickness. 
They have usually three or four small rattles. ‘This species seems 
to be confined to the Tamarack swamps, and are found no where 
else but in their vicinities, wandering in the summer months a short 
distance only from their borders. When lying basking in the sun, 
they resemble a short, dirty, broken stick or twig, being generally 
discolored with mud, over which they are frequently moving. ‘Their 
bite is not very venomous, yet they are much dreaded by the neigh- 
boring people. Their habitations are retired and unfrequented, so 
that few persons are ever bitten. ‘The Indian name for this snake 


Roads.— Villages. 33 


is Massasauga. It is probably the species known to naturalists as 
the Crotalus miliarius, although from the early period of the season 
I had not an opportunity of seeing one. The large rattle snake, or 
Crotalus horridus, appears to be nearly extinct in this part of Ohio. 
Roads.—May 12th: Left Poland this morning, in company with 
Dr. K. for the Falls of the Cuyahoga, distant about fifty eight miles. 
The main road here takes a due east and west course, and runs in this 
direction, with little variation, for one hundred and sixty miles: and 
for one hundred and twenty of this distance it passes through the cen- 
tre of the southern range of townships in “the Reserve.” ‘This is 
probably the longest road pursuing an undeviating course in the United 
States. ‘The townships or towns, as they are here called, are all 
five miles square, and it is the undeviating practice to run the roads 
on right lines from east to west, and from north tosouth. One pass- 
es through the centre of every township in these directions, and one 
on the line between each township, with minor roads at intervals of 
one mile and a quarter, for the convenient intercourse of the inhab- 
itants. Few countries will admit this beautiful arrangement, but here 
the surface is so level, or only occasionally diversified with a broad 
but moderate elevation, that a road may be run in any direction. 
Villages.—In the centre of each town where the roads cross, is 
usually a small village, made up of one or more churches or meeting 
houses,* the school house, one or two stores, a tavern, smith’s shop, 
with a number of neat private dwellings, including those of the law- 
yer and physician. Many of these villages are finely situated, and 
the buildings being generally of wood, painted white, make a very 
neat appearance, in contrast with the rich green of the meadows, 
and the foliage of the trees. We passed through several such in 
the course of the day, and among them the village of Canfield 
is eminently beautiful. From a number of low hills we had an ex- 
tensive view of the adjacent country, embracing a horizon of ten or 
twelve miles, and bringing at once under the eye the spires and whi- 
tened walls of four or five distant villages. At the period of the first 
settlement of this portion of Ohio, in the year 1798, the soil was 
very wet over many extensive tracts, which it was feared would 
never be fit for cultivation; but as the forests are opened, and the 
rays of the sun and the winds admitted, the soil becomes sufficiently 


* A name derived from the Puritans of New England, because in Britain at the 
period of their emigration, no houses for public worship were called churches, ex- 
cept those of the establishment ; the rest were houses for meeting or pain: houses. 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 1. 5 


34 = Fruit Trees.— Original Patent.— Sulphate of Lime. 


dry for all the purposes of agriculture, and the roads which were 
once all mire are now firm and hard. 

Fruit Trees.—Fruit trees flourish luxuriantly, and are rarely 
rendered barren by untimely frosts. Almost every farm is pro- 
vided with an orchard, it being a prime object, with the first set- 
tlers to plant out fruit trees as early as possible; and in my journey 
to-day, at every new opening, I observed a small collection of apple 
and other fruit trees, on the first half acre cleared near the house. 
This rich region has lately become still more valuable from the con- 
templated canal down the valley of the Mahoning to Beaver. ‘The 
inhabitants are generally from the State of Connecticut, and display 
all that neatness in their buildings and in the cultivation of the soil, 
which distinguish that enterprizing people. 

Original Patent.—Under the. patent of the Saybrook Colony, 
granted by Charles the First, in the year 1631, the territory of 
Connecticut extended westerly across the continent to the South _ 
Sea or Pacific Ocean. The patents of Virginia and the Carolinas 
had also the same westerly extension. On the strength of these 
patents, when the general compact of all the States was formed, the 
right of Connecticut was acknowledged with the rest ; and that right 
was commuted by the grant of a certain tract, bounded east by Penn- 
sylvania, on the south and north by the Ohio River and Lake Erie, 
and extending west on the forty first degree of north latitude one 
hundred and twenty miles; embracing about three millions, eight 
hundred thousand acres,* and at present divided into eight counties, 
with a population of 150,000: after setting off halfa million of acres 
from the west end of this tract, for the benefit of the sufferers by fire 
in New London and other places, the State of Connecticut sold the 
remainder to individuals on a credit of years: the proceeds are ap- 
propriated to the perpetual support of common schools in that State. 

Sulphate of Lime.—About noon I visited an interesting locality 
of the sulphate of lime. It is found crystallized, and diffused 
through a deposit of calcareous earth. The crystals are tabular, and 
are sometimes large and very fine. It is on Meander Creek, a 
branch of the Mahoning, near the western border of the town of 
Canfield. Below this deposit, is a stratum of bituminous shale, con- 
taining the imbedded relics, and casts of many fossil plants and 
shells. Some of the plants resemble long feathers, and are probably 


* This tract, being reserved, was called The Reserve, and is so named in this diary. 
+ Now constituting a productive fund of nearly 2,000,000 of dollars for a popula- 
tion of 300,000. 


Ponds.—Shells. 35 


the foliage of an antediluvian Palm tree. The figure of a portion of 
one is given at Fig. 9. Some of these plumose fragments can be 
traced for more than ‘a foot between the layers of shale. 


Fig. 9 


Natural size. 


A Ali 
eam 


aut 


Ponds.— Shells.—After leaving Trumbull, we enter Portage 
County. In this county we found a number of beautiful ponds, 
from each one of which flows a perennial stream. One, which lies 
a few miles south of our route, in Stark County, called “ Congress 
Lake,”’ was, until recently, the only known locality of the fine univalve 
shell, Lymnea stagnalis. It was discovered by Dr. K. in the 
course of the last season. I have one in my possession, which is 
two inches in length, with the body whorl three fourths of an inch in 
diameter. As this rare and elegant shell has not been figured or de- 
scribed by any American conchologist, a drawing is given at Fig. 10. 
The description is copied from Dillwyn, and appears to be so simi- 
lar to that of our own shell, that there can be no doubt of its identity 
with the European species, although it is a rare fact, and which 
scarcely again occurs in all our long list of land and fresh water 
shells. Geoffroy calls it ‘‘ Le grand Buccin.” 

Lymnea stagnalis. (Lamarck.)—Specific Character.—“ Shell 
imperfect, oblong, ventricose, pellucid, with the spire produced and 
subulate ; aperture ovate.” 

Description.—< Shell often two inches long, and about half as 
broad, thin, brittle and pellucid, of a whitish, dusky, or grayish color; 


36 Univalve Shells. 


sometimes covered with a greenish epidermis. It has six or seven 
whorls, of which the body whorl is very large, and constitutes half 
the length of the shell.” 
This whole region abounds with fine Helices, for which family the 
moist woodlands afford suitable habitats. ‘The following catalogue 
-of univalve shells, found on “‘ the Reserve,” is from the pen of Dr. 
K., the whole of which are in his collection : 


Pupa exigua, Saye)” Helix fuliginosa, Grif. + 
“  orata, “i te pennsylvanica, Green. 
Helix albolabris,  “ Succinea ovalis, Say. 

« “ thyroidus,~ * i avara, af 
«hirsuta, *¢  obliqua, as 

‘¢ _ perspectiva, “ Melania depygis, és 

<¢ Iineata, i f virginica, la 
‘¢ _Jabyrinthica, “ «¢  subularis, Lea. 

sc moultilineata, “*, Lymnea elodes, Say. 

¢ paliiata, ce fo meted, ke 

Bo) quik a macrostoma,  ‘° 

FS i inareyey re < desidiosa, Bs 

‘¢  solitaria, ce fe stagnalis, Lam. $ 
se Wu CONCAVE. a) ke _ |Physa  heterostropha, Say. 

cc eprotundal a | Paludina ponderosa, i 

sc valternata, 06 as decisa, oe 

o sqecena, or i granosa, i 

fo dalle. cS Planorbis bicarinatus, a 
“tridentata,  ‘“‘ ff trivolvis, a! 

‘¢ _harpa, a as «¢ _ campanulatus, ‘‘ 

Fj) gy SeleapInya so ists ai ie armiger, fe 

‘¢ —_ inornata, 1? a exacuus, cc 


* ‘“H, harpa.—I was suspicious from the description and figure of this shell in the 
2d Vol. of Long’s Expedition to the St. Peter’s, that Mr. Say had described an imma- 
ture shell of some large species of Pupa. On examining his specimen, deposited 
in the Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia, Iam convinced that such was 
the fact. Both the Pupa ovata and arrifera, just before they form the perfect 
mouth, answer Mr. Say’s description and figure above referred to.” 

+ “ Helix glaphyra and inornata of Say, and H. fuliginosa of Griffith, are only 
different ages of the same shell, if the specimens which I have received from the 
Philadelphia conchologists be labelled correctly. When the shell is young, the 
umbilicus is contracted, and the labrum not expanded. It then is called the gla- 
phyra. At amore advanced age, the labrum expands and forms a large aperture, 
but the umbilicus still remains unchanged, and at this stage it is theinornata. An 


Bivalve Shells.—Portage County. 37 


Bivalve Shells—The bivalve shells are equally prolific in spe- 
eies, and afford thirty four of the genus Unio, four of Alasmodonta, 
and five of Anodonta. ‘The Unio nasutus, hitherto considered ex- 
elusively an eastern shell, is abundant in the streams that enter into 
Lake Erie. 

Portage County.—Portage County embraces much fine land for 
tillage, and also for meadows. It is descriptively named from the 
fact of its containing within its limits the old Indian portage between 
the waters of Lake Erie and the Muskingum River. In the south 
western part of the county is a tract of several miles in width, and 
running in a S. W. and N. E. direction, of a peculiar formation. 
The surface is studded with numerous small hillocks, composed of 
gravel and sand. In the depressed portions between the hills, are 
scattered a number of beautiful ponds of fine transparent water, con- 
taining fish peculiar to this region, especially the black bass. Spot- 
ted perch, sun-fish, &c., are also common, with a black catfish or 
horn pout, similar to that found in the ponds east of the mountains. 
This species of the genus Silurus I have not seen in the Ohio river. 
They also contain the Nelumbium Juteum and fragrant Nymphea. 
Some of them are of great depth, and said to be based on quick- 
sands. At their outlets they are generally more or less swampy, 
but the shores are lined with a fine white sand. The surplus wa- 
ters of many of these small lakes are discharged into the Cuyahoga, 
and from thence into Lake Erie, proving them to be seated on some 
of the highest land between the Muskingum and the lake. Many 
of them are beautiful sheets of water of four or five hundred acres, 
and from their resemblance to the small crystal lakes of New Eng- 
land, recalled many delightful recollections of my early years in my 
native land.* ‘They were the first I had seen in thirty years, or since 
I crossed the Alleghany Mountains, as they are confined to the ta- 
ble lands between the lakes and the Ohio River, which I had not 
before visited. ‘These calm and quiet lakes, once the home of the 


additional volution, added in such a manner as to form suddenly a large umbili- 
cus, makes the fuliginosa.” 

t “M. virginica.—It is probable that two or three species existing in the waters 
in Ohio, are included under this name; and it is doubtful whether either is specif- 
ically identical with the eastern shell described by Mr. Say.” 

§ “Lymnea stagnalis—A few fine specimens have been found in the Congress 
Lake, and in some other small lakes in this section of country. Ihave also recei- 
ved some from Dr. Foote of the U. S. Army, collected in Lake Winnebago. They 
are exact analogues of the European shells of this name.” 


* Massachusetts. 


a 


38 Agricultural Products.— Climate. 


half reasoning beaver, seem to have been placed on these elevated 
table lands for the very purpose to which they will shortly be ap- 
plied, that is, as reservoirs for the supply of a canal. 

Agricultural Products.—May 13: After leaving the town of At- 
water, we pass over the same kind of low, undulating, diluvial de- 
posits, that we met with in our yesterday’s journey. The soil will 
every where admit of cultivation, and produces fine crops of grass, 
grain, and potatoes. Some low spots will need a few ditches, but 
generally, where the forests are removed, the earth becomes suffi- 
ciently dry for all the purposes of agriculture, and for good perma- 
nent roads. 

Climate.—This change in the surface must ultimately have a very 
marked influence on the streams of water, rendering them very low 
and dry in the summer, and more subject to floods in the winter. It 
will also influence the seasons. As the forests are removed, evapo- 
ration becomes more rapid, the heat of summer more intense, and 
rains more rare. Extremes of temperature will be greater. ‘Trees 
not only exclude the rays of the sun, and prevent evaporation from 
the surface, but, by the radiation of heat from their leaves, they de- 
press the temperature, and thus condense the moisture of the atmos- 
phere, and ina level country supply the place of mountains, in call- 
ing down humidity from the clouds. ‘Thus, they preserve a more 
equable temperature in the various seasons, diminishing the heat of 
summer and mitigating the cold of winter. It is probably from this 
cause that our winters are said to be more severe, than they were in 
the first settlement of the country. We have a practical illustration 
of this theory in the climate of Missouri and Illinois, where the 
immense prairies are visited by a degree of cold many degrees be- 
low that of the same parallel in Ohio, and where droughts are much 
more common. ‘The vicinity of a great fresh water sea, like that of 
Lake Erie, will be some alleviation to the latter difficulty in this 
state. ‘The average crops of hay, in this county, are two tons to 
the acre; of oats, from thirty to forty bushels; wheat, about twenty 
bushels ; and potatoes, three hundred. Indian corn succeeds very 
well on the chestnut and yellow oak lands, but is not so certain a 
crop as it is a few miles south and west of ‘the Reserve.” Fruit 
trees flourish well, and while the peach is often destroyed on the 
border of the Ohio River by frost, here, at an elevation of five hun- 
dred feet greater, and a degree and a half further north, the trees 
are filled with blossoms. It is literally ‘the land of milk and honey,” 


Poor-houses.—Kandolph. 39 


for in addition to the other fruits, the plum and the cherry flourish 
and bear fruit in the greatest perfection ; especially green and yel- 
low gages, and the different varieties of heart and bigarou cherries ; 
while with us, the little curculio, that blaster of the gardener’s hopes, 
will not allow us a single plum. ‘The farms in this quarter, gener- 
ally contain only one hundred or one hundred and sixty acres ; some, 
however, are larger; and they are almost invariably furnished with a 
well built comfortable frame house, and suitable barn and out-houses. 

Poor-houses.—As a mark of the general thrifty and comfortable 
condition of the inhabitants, it may be stated as a fact, that few, if 
any, of the counties, have need of a poor-house. 1 was told, that 
more than half of the townships do not assess any poor tax, and in 
those which do, the sum is very small. ‘The true cause of this ex- 
emption from poor rates, the bane of many a fertile portion of the 
earth, may be found in the industrious, frugal habits of the people, 
who have generally come from that ‘land of steady habits,’ which 
has furnished more inhabitants, and more able and enterprizing pi- 
oneers to the West, than any other state in the Union. I consider 
“the Reserve” as the most valuable portion of Ohio, and look for- 
ward to the day as not very distant, when this whole region will be 
cultivated like a garden, teeming with a million of inhabitants, and 
studded with towns and villages. 

After leaving the township of Atwater, we entered Randolph, five 
miles west. Like the centre of all the other townships, this also has 
a small village of neatly built, white frame houses, with the Congre- 
gational church in the midst, forming the most conspicuous feature, 
and this is characteristic of the towns on “‘ the Reserve.” ‘The little 

red school houses, so common in Connecticut have found their way 
_ here, and are seen, at short intervals, along the road, where the popu- 
lation is dense. ‘These, with the temperance societies and Sunday 
schools, will doubtless preserve the rising and future generations, in 
the sober, industrious habits of their forefathers. At Randolph we 
turned off to the north, passing through a tract of country, rather 
more undulating than that which we traversed yesterday, but every 
acre of it is fit for tillage. ‘There are a few ‘Tamarack swamps,” 
but these by draining make the finest of meadows. 

Botany.—The Tamarack, Larix Americana, or Larch, is a de- 
ciduous tree, although its present, and summer aspect, is altogether 
that of an evergreen, and it is generally considered so, being, like the 
pine, a cone-bearing tree. ‘These swamps contain many plants and 


¥ 


40 Botany.—Ravenna. 


shrubs found in the northern and eastern states; such as the Sarra- 
cenia or side-saddle plant, Andromeda meniantha or buck-bean, Dro- 
sera or dew plant, Coptis trifolia or golden thread ; with the white 
birch or Betula populifolia, and Betula lutea, in the more elevated 
swamps; and with many others peculiar to these localities, and not 
found in the southern portion of Ohio. ‘The blueberry, or Vacci- 
nium frondosum, is also a native here; with an abundance of cran- 
berries, Oxycoccus macrocarpus. This whole region is rich in bo- 
tanical specimens, and appears to be one in which the plants of va- 
rious and remote portions of the United States are assembled; the 
great variety of local circumstances and soil, affording congenial habi- 
tats to a larger number of species, than any other portion of the val- 
ley. It is a fertile field for the labors of the botanist. 
Ravenna.—After visiting two or three ponds that lie near our 
route, in search of Lymnez and Planorbi, at 1 P. M. we reached 
Ravenna, the county town for Portage. This beautiful town lies on 
a broad and moderately elevated tract, commanding an extensive 
view of the surrounding country. The court house is a large brick 
building, painted of a straw color, and constructed with much neat- 
ness and good taste. Its interior arrangement is very convenient, 
more so than that of any one I have seen in Ohio. ‘The streets are 
wide, and the private dwellings are generally substantial and neat in 
their external appearance. The present number of inhabitants is about 
eight hundred. The location is directly on the dividing line between 
the waters which run into the Ohio, and those which run into Lake 
Erie. The old court house was so situated, that the rain which fell 
on the north side of the roof passed into the Cuyahoga, and was dis- 
charged into the Gulf of St. Lawrence ; while that which fell on the 
south side passed into the Mahoning, and was finally poured into the 
Gulf of Mexico. The summit level of the new, or Pennsylvania 
and Ohio Canal, lies about half a mile to the south east of the vil- 
lage. ‘The whole distance of deep cutting will be sixty six chains, 
and averaging in depth about eighteen feet below the natural surface. 
Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal.—The length of the line of this 
canal, as reported by Col. Kearney of the U.S. Topographical En- 
gineers, is as follows: 
From Akron, Portage summit of the Ohio Canal, to the Ravenna 
summit, - - - - - 25 miles. 
From Ravenna summit to Chenango River, 67“ 


ee 


Total length of canal, - - - O24 


Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal. Al 


Total amount of ascent, from the Portage summit to the Ravenna 
summit, is one hundred and seven feet ; total descent, from Ravenna 
to Chenango, is three hundred feet; amount of lockage, four hun- 
dred and seven feet. The breadth of the canal at bottom is twenty 
five feet; at the surface of the water, forty feet; depth of water, 
four feet. 

‘Of the commercial importance of this canal, when finished,” 
the Commissioners say, ‘‘no doubt can be entertained, by those who 
understand the interest and geography of our country. The route 
passes through one of the best settled and most wealthy districts of 
our state, and when executed, it will, together with the Ohio Canal, 
open a direct and convenient channel of commerce between the in- 
terior of Ohio and the great manufacturing and commercial city of 
Pittsburgh, together with the whole of Pennsylvania. Between 
those sections of country an extensive and highly beneficial com- 
merce now exists, which must increase with the growing population 
of our country, and with the development of its resources. It is, 
however, only by looking forward to the time when the great Penn- 
sylvania Canal, and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, shall have con- 
nected the Chesapeake with the Ohio River, the Potomac, and the 
Delaware, that the importance of the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal 
can be duly appreciated. When these great works are completed, 
the farmer in the center of our state, may put the productions of his 
fields on board of a boat, which will convey them to Washington, 
Alexandria, Baltimore, or Philadelphia, without unloading or reship- 
ping; and the merchant may bring his goods from either of those cities 
to his own door, without risk or change in the method of transporta- 
tion, and at an expense not exceeding one third of the present cost.” 

“The profit of this work to the proprietors, must be commensu- 
rate to its commercial importance ; and it is believed to offer one of 
the best opportunities for a profitable investment of capital, that can 
be found in the United States.” 

The estimated cost of this canal is about one million of dollars. 
Departing from its usually wise policy, the state of Ohio has suffered 
the stock of this canal to pass into the hands of a private company. 
It is owned in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Ohio, as a portion of it 
lies in the state of Pennsylvania, from the Ohio line to its junction 
with the canal on the Beaver, at the mouth of the Chenango Creek. 
This company was incorporated in January, 1827, by the name of 
‘¢the Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal Company,” but the books of 

Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 6 


42 Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal.—Semi-tertiary Deposits. 


the company were not opened until the spring of the year 1835. 
The stock was immediately taken up, and the canal must be com- 
pleted, on or before the month of April, 1837, or the charter will 
be forfeited. There is no doubt, however, of its completion within 
the time specified. ‘The prospect of the immense profits it will 
yield to the stockholders, and the great advantages to the country, 
will insure its accomplishment. ‘The following may be enumerated 
as a part only of its good features. It shortens the distance to an 
eastern market, from the central parts of Ohio, nearly two hundred 
and fifty miles. It is accessible four weeks earlier in the spring, and 
two weeks later in autumn, than the route by Lake Erie, or the 
northern route, which will be of vast importance to the farmer and 
merchant. It is subject to no dangers or delays from storms or head 
winds, and calls for no expense of insurance on goods. It will also 
be a feasible route for merchandise going below the mouth of the 
Scioto, at those periods when the water in the Ohio is too low for 
safe steam navigation, as it almost invariably is for several weeks in 
the summer and autumn. With all these advantages, the opening 
of the Mahoning Canal will be the commencement of a new era, in 
the agricultural and commercial history of ‘the Reserve.” 

Semi-tertiary deposits —After leaving Ravenna, our course was 
directly west, and we soon came on toa region whose geological 
appearance was quite different from that of the country we had left. 
East of this line, the soil and surface of the ground are argillaceous. 
A mile west of Ravenna, the superstratum is a mixture of sand and 
gravel, with a more numerous distribution of bowlders, although they 
are seen every few rods over the clayey portions of the country. 
From Ravenna to the Cuyahoga Falls, the surface is more hilly, but 
never so much so as to occasion any impediment to tillage. Beauti- 
ful sheets.of water, or small lakes, are scattered over this formation, at 
intervals of a few miles, through its whole extent, being a space not 
less than twelve or fifteen miles in width, by forty or fifty in length, 
stretching ina N. E. and S. W. direction, from Geauga County, 
across Portage, into Stark County, and terminating at the sandstone 
and coal formations. ‘These lakes seem to have been placed here, 
in this elevated portion of Ohio, as reservoirs for canals and other 
useful purposes, by him who originally created the earth, and, by 
the operation of his physical laws, gradually formed it for the resi- 
dence of man. 

Brady’s Pond.—In the course of this afternoon, we passed near 
several small lakes, from half to three fourths of a mile long, and 


Brady's Pond.—Legend of Samuel Brady. 43 


nearly as wide; being embosomed among low green hills, they re- 
sembled beautiful pearls, surrounded by emeralds. Their shores, 
except at the outlets, are composed of a very white micaceous sand, 
which gives the water a-pure pellucid cast. One of these, called 
*“‘ Brady’s Pond,” is seated about three miles from the cliffs, or the 
narrows of the Cuyahoga. It is named after Capt. Samuel Brady, 
who, as already stated, commanded for a number of years, during 
the Indian wars, a company of rangers, or spies, as they were called 
by the pioneers of the West. 

Legend of Samuel Brady.—Capt. Brady seems to have been as 
much the Daniel Boone of the north east part of the valley of the 
Ohio, as the other was of the south west, and the country is equally 
full of traditionary legends of his hardy adventures and hair-breadth 
escapes, although he has lacked a Fun to chronicle his fame, and 
to transmit it to posterity in the glowing and beautiful language of 
that distinguished annalist of the West. From undoubted author- 
ity, it seems the following incident actually transpired in this vi- 
cinity. Brady’s residence was on Chartier’s Creek on the south 
side of the Ohio, as before noted in this diary; and being a man 
of herculean strength, activity, and courage, he was generally se- 
lected as the leader of the hardy borderers in all their incursions 
into the Indian territory north of the river. On this occasion, 
which was about the year 1780, a large party of warriors from the 
falls of the Cuyahoga and the adjacent country, had made an in- 
road on the south side of the Ohio River, in the lower part of what 
is now Washington County, but which was then known as the set- 
tlement of ‘‘ Catfish Camp,” after an old Indian of that name who 
lived there when the whites first came into the country on the Mo- 
nongahela River. This party had murdered several families, and 
with the “ plunder” had recrossed the Ohio before effectual pursuit 
could be made. By Brady a party was directly summoned, of his 
chosen followers, who hastened on after them, but the Indians having 
one or two days the start, he could not overtake them in time to ar- 
rest their return to their villages. Near the spot where the town of 
Ravenna now stands, the Indians separated into two parties, one of 
which went to the north, and the other west, to the falls of the Cuya- 
hoga. Brady’s men also divided ; a part pursued the northern trail, 
and a part went with their commander to the Indian village, lying on 
the river in the present township of Northampton in Portage Coun- 
ty. Although Brady made his approaches with the utmost caution, 


44 Legend of Samuel Brady. 


the Indians, expecting a pursuit, were on the look-out, and ready to 
receive him, with numbers four fold to those of Brady’s party, whose 
only safety was ina hasty retreat, which, from the ardor of the pur- 
suit, soon became a perfect flight. Brady directed his men to sep- 
arate, and each one to take care of himself; but the Indians knowing 
Brady, and having a most inveterate hatred and dread of him, from 
the numerous chastisements which he had inflicted upon them, left 
all the others, and with united strength pursued him alone. The 
Cuyahoga here makes a wide bend to the south, including a large 
tract of several miles of surface, in the form of a peninsula: within 
this tract the pursuit was hotly contested. The Indians, by extend- 
ing their line to the right and left, forced him on to the bank of the 
stream. Having, in peaceable times, often hunted over this ground 
with the Indians, and knowing every turn of the Cuyahoga as famil- 
jarly as the villager knows the streets of his own hamlet, Brady di- 
rected his course to the river, at a spot where the whole stream is 
compressed, by the rocky cliffs, into a narrow channel of only twen- 
ty two feet across the top of the chasm, although it is considerably 
wider beneath, near the water, and in height more than twice that 
number of feet above the current. Through this pass, the water 
rushes like a race horse, chafing and roaring at the confinement of 
its current by the rocky channel, while, a short distance above, the 
stream is at least fifty yards wide. As he approached the chasm, 
Brady, knowing that life or death was in the effort, concentrated his 
mighty powers, and leaped the stream at a single bound. It so 
happened, that, in the opposite cliff, the leap was favored by a low 
place, into which he dropped, and grasping the bushes, he thus 
helped himself to ascend to the top of the cliff. The Indians, for a 
few moments, were lost in wonder and admiration, and before they 
had recovered their recollection, he was half way up the side of the 
opposite hill, but still within reach of their rifles. ‘They could easily 
have shot him at any moment before, but being bent on taking him 
alive, for torture, and to glut their long delayed revenge, they for- 
bore the use of the rifle; but now seeing him hkely to escape, they 
all fired upon him: one bullet wounded him severely in the hip, but 
not so badly as to prevent his progress. The Indians having to 
make a considerable circuit before they could cross the stream, 
Brady advanced a good distance ahead. His limb was growing stiff 
from the wound, and as the Indians gained on. him, he made for the 
pond which now bears his name, and plunging in, swam under water 
a considerable distance, and came up under the trunk of a large oak, 


* 


Cuyahoga Falls. 45° 


which had fallen into the pond. This, although leaving only a small 
breathing place to support life, still completely sheltered him from 
their sight. The Indians, tracing him by the blood to the water, made 
diligent search all round the pond, but finding no signs of his exit, 
finally came to the conclusion that he had sunk and was drowned. 
As they were at one time standing on the very tree, beneath which 
he was concealed,—Brady, understanding their language, was very 
glad to hear the result of their deliberations, and after they had gone, 
weary, lame and hungry, he made good his retreat to his own home. 
His followers also all returned in safety. ‘The chasm across which 
he leaped is in sight of the bridge where we crossed the Cuyahoga, 
and is known in all that region by the name of “ Brady’s Leap.” 

Falls of the Cuyahoga.*—We reached the Cuyahoga Falls Vil- 
lage, at 6, P. M., passing, in the last three miles, through several 
flourishing villages, seated along the borders of the stream. They 
are all engaged in manufactures, and several, which three years ago, 
consisted of only one or two dwelling houses, now number several 
hundred inhabitants. ‘The Cuyahoga has a fall of more than two 
hundred feet in the distance of two and a half miles, across stratified 
rocks, which are worn away to nearly this depth in the course of 
the descent. ‘The adjacent country, which is moderately hilly, de- 
scends with an easy slope on each side of the stream, for a consid- 
erable distance down to the cliffs which form the banks of the river, 
and which is not apparent until you approach near toit. ‘The situ- 
ation is one of the finest I have seen for a manufacturing town, and 
is destined, at no distant day, to become to the West, what Lowell 
is to the East. 

Granite bowlders were common every few rods all this afternoon, 
and two miles north of the village we travelled over the conglome- 
rate rock, in place, noticed in the diary of the 11th. 

May 14th.—The day was spent in examining the Cuyahoga 
Falls in company with Mr. Newberry, the very intelligent owner of 
a large tract of land, embracing the upper half of this valuable site, 
and who afforded me great assistance in taking a section of the order 
of stratification. . I was much gratified in finding the same rock for- 
mations on the northern verge of the great coal basin of the Valley 
of the Ohio, that are found in its southeastern and southern termina- 
tion. No appearance of these rocks is discovered near the surface, 


* The aboriginal names of streams are almost universally significant and ap- 
propriate: the English of Cuyaho is crooked, or ‘‘ the crooked river.” 


46 


in the valley occupying the intermediate space, as they are buried 
deep under the coal series, fragments of which are brought up from 
great depths in boring for salt water, on the Muskingum and Ohio, 
near the centre of the valley ; leading us to infer that the same force 
from below, which raised the mountain ranges, also raised up the ta- 
ble lands between Lake Erie and the waters which run into the Ohio. 
The following section (Fig. 11.) will show the order of stratifica- 
tion from the surface of the highest land in the vicinity of the falls, 


Rock Strata of the Cuyahoga. 


S) 


4 


or 


ad 
= 
fo} 


| 
| | 
CA 


| 
it 


7 
| 
| 


12 


13 


alga 
feet, 319 


Hd 


i 


2 i Himaiiinh i i 


aittied 


VEEL: FTE =D 


Bed of the Cuyahoga. 


Rock Strata of the Cuyahoga. 47 


over Mr. Newberry’s coal mines, to the bed of the Cuyahoga River, 
about midway of the length of the falls: below this point I did not 
examine the geology, it being sufficient to elucidate and confirm the 
object of my visit, viz., the equivalent formations of the opposite 
side of the coal measures. 


Section of Rock Strata at the Falls of the Cuyahoga. Order 


descending. 


1. Yellowish colored, sandy, argillaceous earth, containing large 
quantities of argillaceous brown oxide of iron, in concentric, kidney- 
shaped masses. It has been dug and used in the adjacent furnaces. 
The surface is covered at this elevation with granite bowlders. The 
- forest trees are principally chestnut and yellow oak.—10 feet. 

2. Slaty sandstone, light gray color; argillaceous and breaking 
into small angular fragments, when exposed to frost and rain.—30 
feet. 

3. Bituminous shale, on which the sandstone reposes and forms 
the roof of the coal beds, after the shale is removed. ‘The shale is 
filled with casts and impressions of fossil plants of various species : 
amongst them are numerous trunks of arborescent ferns, more than a 
foot in diameter, which, extending across the roof of the drift, a 
distance ,of eight feet, are lost in the adjacent shale. ‘The orna- 
mented surface of the tree is beautifully figured or impressed on the 
rock, coated with a thin layer of coal, like a natural epidermis. I 
was unable to remove any of them without injuring the roof, but 
from Mr. Newberry, the owner of the mine, received a few fine spe- 
cimens, collected by the workmen. A drawing of one of the species 
is given at Fig. 12.—2 feet. 

4. Bituminous coal. ‘The quality of this coal is inferior to that 
nearer the centre of the coal fields. It contains considerable sulphur, 
and often slate: at some of the beds which I visited, it is coated with 
or discolored by iron rust. It is an interesting fact that no coal is 
found north of this spot; and the Cuyahoga is the only lake stream 
that passes through the coal deposits. In this instance, it is owing to 
the wide southerly sweep this stream makes into the northern bor- 
der of the great coal basin. It is here found in only a few isolated, 
elevated spots, and is evidently the remnant of the deposit, left un- 
disturbed by that overwhelming catastrophe, which strewed this re- 
gion with granite bowlders, sand and gravel, and tore up and remo- 
ved the rock strata around these solitary remnants.—4 feet.» 


48 Rock Strata of the Cuyahoga. 


5. Siliceous sandstone rock, of various qualities and colors, some 
of which is nearly white near the top: the lower part of the deposit, 
the common gray sandstone rock, is filled with casts of fossil trees, 
and Calamites of various species, amongst which are Calamites co- 
lumnare, and Calamites dubia. This rock forms the base of the 
uplands, and rests on the loose conglomerate which constitutes the 
rock at the head of the falls, making the height of the uplands about 
one hundred and twenty six feet above the cliffs of the river—80 
feet. 

6. Coarse, aggregate sandstone rock; loosely cohering, composed 
of coarse white gravel and small siliceous pebbles, imbedded in 
sand. It breaks and disintegrates easily. ‘The head waters of the 
Cuyahoga, in Geauga County, rise in a region composed of this 
rock. It is very favorable to the formation of springs, which abound 
in these conglomerate deposits, and render the stream very durable 
in the summer months. This rock seldom contains any casts of 
fossil plants: some portions of it are nearly all sand, with some seat- 
tered gravel widely disseminated through it. It is seldom suffi- 
ciently compact for building stone, although I noticed some blocks 
of this rock at the head of the falls. prepared for this purpose.—15 
feet. 

7. Bituminous shale, with a trace only of coal.—1 foot. 

8. Red sandstone—in many places of a deep red; structure, uni- 
form; texture, compact and tolerably fine grained. It contains 
very little mica. It lies in beds of from four to eight feet in thick- 
ness, and can be split into blocks of any length desirable for archi- 
tectural purposes, to which use it has already been extensively ap- 
plied ; several large, beautiful buildings having recently been erected 
of this material. It will probably afford the main building stone for 
a future city, as it is found in exhaustless quantities, and in very 
accessible situations, forming the upper portions of the cliffs of the 
Cuyahoga for several miles,—the whole length of the falls. It is 
the first and only locality north of the Ohio River, where I have 
seen this rock in place, although it is said to be abundant in Indiana. 
The upper portion of the deposit contains many fine casts of Cala- 
mites, with other fossil plants, and I think some animal remains, as 1 
have two specimens, one of which is apparently part of a tooth, and 
the other a portion of the impression of some crustaceeus animal. 
The lower portion of the deposit is in some places beautifully varie- 
gated with undulating veins and plumose lines, from the ferruginous 


Rock Strata of the Cuyahoga. 49 


sediment disposing itself in this form while in a plastic state, instead 
of being uniformly diffused through the whole mass of the sand, 
leaving portions of the rock of a yellowish cast. In other places 
which I noticed in the face of the cliffs, and also in masses which 
had fallen at their feet, the iron had formed thin concentric and 
curved lines, standing out from the rock in bold relief, presenting a 
very singular appearance, and giving rise, in common observers, to 
many crude conjectures and speculations as to their origin. 

The whole deposit of red sandstone rock is 30 feet thick. 

9. Coarse conglomerate rock, like a fine pudding stone, made up 
of small white pebbles and coarse gravel, all rounded and water- 
worn. ‘The cement of this deposit is more siliceous than that of 
the upper bed, and constitutes a very hard compact rock, similar to 
the Laurel and Greenbrier Mountain rock, used for mill stones. It 
lies in beds of ten or fifteen feet in thickness, and in huge masses of 
fallen fragments from the face of the cliffs, down to the water’s edge, 
above the clay slate, to be noticed presently. It shews few if any 
signs of fossil remains where f examined it, which was for half a 
mile in extent.—40 feet. i 

10. Coarse brecciated rock, composed of the fragments of sharp 
angular sandstone rock and pebbles, united by a brown ferruginous 
cement. ‘This deposit contains many fragments of fossil remains, 
which, in the short period I had to examine them, appeared of 
doubtful character: some much resemble bones. Owing to the 
hardness of the breccia, and from their lying directly under the hard 
conglomerate above, with numerous blocks before it, they are re- 
moved with great difficulty. ‘This stratum reposes on a thick bed 
of clay slate, and has, with several of the other strata, been brought 
to light by the cutting process of the waters in a long course of ageg. 
It is accessible only by laborious approaches along the base of the 
cliffs.—2 feet. 

11. Light blue clay slate, containing some mica, very fissile. It 
readily decomposes, and forms an abrupt sloping glacis down to the 
water’s edge. It contains a few vegetable and animal remains of 
shells, of a very singular form, resembling Anomia. I have one or 
two fine specimens from this deposit. It also contains, at short in- 
tervals, concentric tabular masses of iron ore, several inches in thick- 
ness. This deposit, although of great depth, was easily broken up 
and removed by the rushing waters, and forms nearly half the height 
of the falls —100 feet. | 

Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. 7 


50 Travertine. 


12. Granular lime rock, bluish color, very hard, and rather coarse 
grained. It makes a good hydraulic cement, and is applied to that 
use.—14 foot. 

13. Clay slate, with some impressions of the foliage of arbores- 
cent ferns.—6 feet. 

14. Secondary graywacke, of Eaton; above which lies a thin 
bed of iron ore in tabular masses. The graywacke is very hard, and 
of a light gray color when first taken from the bed, but becomes 
more dark on exposure to the air, indicating a mixture of the oxide 
of iron. At this spot, about half a mile above the foot of the falls, 
this rock forms the bed of the stream, and at this point my examina- 
tion of the strata ceased. Below this point several other deposits 
are brought to light, as the stream has cut through their beds. They 
are mostly varieties of graywacke and slate, as would appear from 
their description by Mr. Newberry. The whole series of rocks em- 
braced in this section, amounts to three hundred and nineteen feet. 

Travertine.—In the perpendicular crevices and clefts of the rock, 
a calcareous tufa, or travertine, is deposited from the springs which 
run at intervals down the face of the cliffs, as the water, from its 
lofty descent, evaporates in the air. Large masses of the rock occa- 
sionally fall, displaced by the wintry freezing, exposing these collec- 
tions, many feet in thickness and several rods in length. The tra- 
vertine often contains the bones and teeth of animals, generally of 
the deer, but occasionally of other animals, which have fallen into 
these crevices and perished. ‘They are mostly recent, although I. 
saw one or two that appeared to be of some extinct race. This tu- 
faceous deposit, after calcination, is used by the inhabitants, for lime 
or cement, no other lime rock being found near the falls. At one 
spot which I examined, the travertine is now in a regular course of 
deposition, having added an eighth of an inch since last year, when a 
part of the mass was removed. ‘The cliffs at the spot where my ex- 
amination ceased, are about two hundred feet above the bed of the 
Cuyahoga. ‘The common deer, when chased by dogs or wolves, 
sometimes leap these cliffs, and are dashed to pieces on the rocks 
below. Only a few days before my visit, a large buck was killed in 
this way. Itis rather difficult and fatiguing to make one’s way 
amidst the huge masses of rocks which line the feet of the cliffs. 
Occasionally a small stream of water rushes over the side of the 
rocks, and is lost in a sheet of foam below, especially where the 
projection is shelving: at some of these, like the table rock at Ni- 


Evergreen Trees. 51 


agara, we could pass behind the falling sheet. Beneath these pro- 
jecting rocks, ice remains unmelted until the beginning of June: 
there was a considerable quantity lying there to-day. About mid- 
way of the falls, an immense block of the conglomerate rock, from 
thirty to forty feet in height, and more than that in diameter, being 
of a cubic form, lies in the middle of the stream, the water passing 
on each side of it: several large hemlock trees crown its hoary head; 
the roots piercing the crevices of the rock, find moisture and a steady 
support. ‘The tops and sides of the cliffs are lined with fine large 
trees of the hemlock (Abies Canadensis) and white pine, (Pinus 
Strobus,) adding tenfold life and beauty to this romantic spot. I 
look forward with regret to the period, when these ancient and 
beautiful trees must fall before the increase of manufacturing build- 
ings, which will soon supply their place. Almost my last words to 
the proprietors and influential inhabitants were, ‘Spare, oh spare | 
these noble evergreens, so charmingly appropriate to the spot, and 
standing on the brink and sides of these romantic cliffs, where the 
hand of man can never replace them.” At several points along the 
falls, the view up stream is grand and imposing. The immense 
cliffs of perpendicular rocks, crowned with the towering hemlock, 
whose tall shaft in many places hangs gracefully over the gulf be- 
low, as if listenmg to the voice of the waters, which, confined to 
their narrow bed by the rocky walls of the stream, come foaming 
through with headlong fury. In some places there is a descent of 
eight or ten feet at a single bound; at others, it rushes down an in- 
clined plane. ‘The greatest pitch is twenty two feet in a distance of 
ten feet, but accomplished at two leaps. This long succession of 
falls and rapids will ultimately become of incalculable benefit to the 
manufacturer, and a cordon of mills and machinery may be continued 
without interruption, touching each other like the houses in a crowd- 
ed street, for the distance of two miles on each side of the stream ; 
the same water being used successively at the different dams, and ta- 
ken along the sides of the river in plank raceways or penstocks. 
From its proximity to two canals, leading to the two greatest cities 
in the Union, this spot is destined to become in a few years a place 
of great commercial importance and immense manufacturing busi- 
ness. The town now contains eight hundred inhabitants, and it is 
supposed by good judges that two hundred buildings will go up the 
present year. ‘The manufactures now in operation are, a paper mill, 
oil mill, flour mills, saw mills, sash manufactories, smitheries, &c. &c. 


52 


Cuyahoga Village. : 
Plan of Cuyahoga Falls and vicinity, with the Ohio Canal, &c. 
Northampton. Stow. 
hil 
a | 
. i ial 
DZ o. r) (uy | 28 Us, 
GA ZrmMiny \ Cuyshega ke Py 
Be 7 i) IN <-. onie LE 
=~ aN \\ B'S Aw pu AY fe 
G SS (; Ss LS g 
. % =S , / 
/ SS va 
A\\n <“S ee 5 
i [Zz | NG oa 3 
A\ ( S&S Portage Toinslup 0 
‘i a 
IN) : 
na a 
A . 
ay : ' 
Akron 


Middlebury. 
References—P, Old Portage; O; 0,0, Ohio Canal; B, Little Cuyahoga; C, 


Cascade or North Akron; a, a, a, Locks; m, Mill Race. 
Cuyahoga village.—The town is called ‘Cuyahoga Falls ;”’ it 
lies on the line between the townships of Stow and Talmadge. The 
annexed plan will give a view of the course of the river; the loca- 
tion of the villages in this vicinity ; the principal pitches or cascades, 


in feet; course of the Ohio Canal, and its descent into the valley of 
the Cuyahoga, below the falls. The water furnished by the Cuya- 
hoga, at its lowest stage, has been carefully estimated at four thou- 


Old Portage.— Cascade.— Akron. 53 


sand cubic feet per minute, and for more than half the year it affords 
five times this quantity. For the convenience of visiters, Mr. New- 
berry has erected a strong and safe flight of steps, by which to de- — 
scend to the foot of the cliffs, at a point which affords a fine view of 
the falls, and where the perpendicae walls are more than one hun- 
dred feet high.* 

Old Paniace: May 15.—The apple is but just fairly in blossom 
at this place, while at Marietta the blossoms had fallen ten days 
since. There was a slight frost this morning. The old portage from 
the Cuyahoga to the Tuscarawas, passed across the tract between 
these two streams, beginning at the foot of the falls, and taking a 
southerly course. ‘The distance was about ten miles, and was the 
route pursued by the savages, and by Indian traders in early days. 
After the peace of 1795, white men occupied the same route in 
carrying goods and merchandise from the Lake to the towns on the 
heads of the Muskingum River, and even as low down the stream 
as Zanesville, as late as the year 1805 or 1806. We left Cuyahoga 
Falls at 9A. M., crossing the Little Cuyahoga, a fine mill stream, 
after travelling two miles in a southerly direction; and shortly after — 
the small canal that conducts the water from the Little Cuyahoga to 
the fourth lock, below the summit level. The village, where it ter- 
minates, is called “Cascade,” from the rapid descent of the water | 
for the use of machinery. The water power thus acquired is very 
great. ‘This village lies half a mile below the town of Akron, and 
will in a few years be united with it in a continuous street, so that 
the towns can only be distinguished by the ‘‘ Cascade” portion, and 
the ‘‘ Akron” portion. ‘The waste weirs furnish an immense amount 
of water power, a considerable portion of which is already occupied 
by mills for flour, furnaces, &c. ‘The population in the two villages 
is said to be fifteen hundred. In travelling from “the Falls” to the 
summit level, we passed through the village of Middlebury, a very 
thriving and industrious place, seated at the falls of the Little Cuya- 
hoga. ‘This stream is about thirty yards wide, and takes its rise in 


* Cuyahoga village is by far the most bustling and active town I have seen in 
my journey. The demand for lots and new buildings, has given an impulse to 
every thing; while the rush and hurry of the waters, and rapid motion of the saw 
mills, has communicated, by sympathy, a quickening influence to the muscular 
motions of the inhabitants, which to me was very striking and apparent. The 
joiners, in planing a board, made three strokes with the plane, in the same time 
that lever saw two made at any other spot. The same rapidity of movement 
was perceived in every other action, which may be rationally explained in no 
other way than by the power of sympathy. 


54 Middlebury.— Sulphate of Lime. 


some large ponds, one of which lies in Stark County. In hurrying 
along to join its waters with the larger stream, it has to pass over the 
same rocky deposits, which make the falls of the main Cuyahoga. 
They however are not so much elevated, and of course offer less 
obstruction. ‘This fall, or succession of falls, continues for more 
than a mile, and affords great facilities to the mechanic and manu- 
facturer. The village of Middlebury is at this place, and carries on 
an extensive business in many kinds of manufactures common to the 
west. ‘The population is about six hundred. ‘The increased value 
of landed estate in this region, embracing a space of not more than 
four miles square, is really astonishing. The rapid progress of Ro- 
chester, N. Y., is known to have been a standing wonder, but the 
increase in this spot will far surpass that. ‘The immense, I may al- 
most say endless, water power, the passage of two canals so near 
their doors, and the extensive and rich agricultural region around 
them, afford advantages not to be found in any other spot west of 
the mountains. Several furnaces are in operation at Akron, the ore 
which they use being brought from Tuscarawas County, on the ca- 
nal, While at the former place, I observed a boat load of crystal- 
line sulphate of lime, white as the driven snow, thrown carelessly 
on the landing, amongst the dirt. It costs about six dollars a 
ton. It is in large masses, and in some parts of the world would 
be thought valuable, for alabaster vases and other ornaments. It 
is brought from Sandusky Bay, where it is found in great quanti- 
ties. This beautiful mineral is used in some counties on the Musk- 
ingum for agricultural purposes. At Akron, I took passage in a ca- 
nal boat. The canal here passes through the Portage lake, which 
we entered soon after. It is a beautiful sheet of water, bordered on 
the west side by a Tamarack swamp. Near this pond are several 
others of considerable magnitude, abounding with fine fish, and the 
Nymphea, or fragrant water lily. Peat is found in abundance, in 
nearly all these swamps, which border the outlets of the ponds. 
Within the compass of a few miles on the summit level, there are 
not Jess than ten or twelve ponds of considerable magnitude. Some 
of them discharge their surplus waters into the Tuscarawas, others 
into the lake streams: across this level the canal runs the distance 
of ten miles without a lock. It is but a few years since these ponds 
were the favorite haunts of the beaver, and many a rich package of 
furs has been taken here by the Indians and by the border hunters. 
There was a time when ponds were much more numerous than now. 


Course of the Canal.—Marl Beds.— Massillon. 55 


The swamps and peat marshes, with the growth of trees and shrubs, 
have gradually encroached on their limits, until several, within the 
recollection of old hunters, have changed their character from pond 
to swamp ; and these, after a few years, will, by drainage and culti- 
vation, pass into meadows. After passing the first lock, eighteen 
miles north of Massillon, the face of the country begins to descend 
very gently to the south, and affords fine lands for agricultural pur- 
poses, lying on long slopes and gentle undulations, clothed with 
beautiful forest trees. 

Course of the Canal.—After crossing the line of Stark County, 
which we did directly after dusk, the canal enters upon the N. W. 
border of the great coal basin. It continues near the margin of the 
basin as it advances south, down the waters of the Tuscarawas, for 
the distance of one hundred miles, until it reaches the waters of 
Licking, when, turning up to the west, through “the narrows of 
Licking,” it emerges upon the great tertiary region west of the 
coal measures. Passing over the Licking summit, through the 
‘deep cut,’ and down the Scioto Valley, it again enters the hills 
below Chilicothe, and passes out through the 8. W. border of the 
coal and iron deposits, into the Ohio River. 

Marl Beds.—The eastern line of Wayne County lies near the 
route of the canal. The two counties last mentioned contain ex- 
tensive tracts of rich prairie and rolling uplands. In the wet prairies, 
beneath a bed of black vegetable earth, are found immense deposits 
of marl, so rich in calcareous material, that when burnt it answers 
the purposes of lime, and is used in making cements and plaster, for 
buildings. ‘These beds will furnish inexhaustible supplies of the 
richest manure for the sandy plains which stretch along the 'Tuscar- 
awas. ‘The marl deposits run east and west for many miles, and 
are found near Canton, in the centre of Stark County. When these 
calcareous beds shall be thoroughly examined, they will doubtless 
afford many fine fossil shells of the tertiary series. 

Massillon, May 16th.—Stark County has a population of about 
25,000, many of whom are emigrants from Germany and France. It 
is fast rising into wealth and importance. We passed through Mas-: 
sillon early this morning. It is a town of considerable magnitude, 
and carries on an extensive business in merchandise and agricultural 
productions. The buildings are generally larger and better than in 
most new towns; many of them are constructed of brick. There 
are four large flouring mills, an oil mill, furnace, woolen manufac- 


56 Barrens.—White Sandstone Rock.— Tuscarawas County. 


tory, &c. The machinery is moved by water, furnished in part by 
the canal, and partly by the Tuscarawas, now become a large 
stream, while just below the summit it is only a small brook. The 
amount of wheat grown in this region, and sold at Massillon, is very 
great; from thence it passes to New York. Wool is also another 
staple article of produce. Large flocks of fine wooled sheep were 
brought here in the early settlement of the county, and have in- 
creased greatly. 

Fossil Bones.—I\n excavating a mill race through a swamp, or a ° 
wet prairie, near Massillon, a year or two since, some very large 
bones and tusks of the mastodon were brought to light. 

Barrens.—Just below Massillon commences a series of extensive 
plains, spreading over a space ten or twelve miles in length from 
east to west, and five or six miles in width. ‘These were covered 
~ with a thin growth of oak timber, and were denominated barrens ; 

but on cultivation they produce fine crops of wheat. ‘The Tuscar- 
-awas has cut across these plains on their western end, and runs in a 
valley of denudation, sunk about thirty feet below the level of the 
general surface of the plains. Some of the lower levels are wet, 
and filled with red cedar, black alder and the beautiful climbing mul- 
tiflora rose, (Rosa raBHONE,) The tamarack disappears as the 
country becomes more dry, and descends to the south. A few miles 
below Massillon we passed Navarre and Bethlehem, both of them 
flourishing villages on the borders of the canal. ‘The progress of 
improvement is astonishingly great through all this part of Ohio. 
White Sandstone Rock.—A deposit of fine, white granular sand- 
stone, makes its appearance here near the surface of the hills. It 
is found in great purity, containing little else than silex, and is 
used in the manufacture of white glass at Zanesville. An equiva- 
lent rock is very prominent in that series of deposits, which make 
their appearance on the tops and sides of the Laurel and Sewell 
Mountains on the south and east borders of the great coal basin. 
The mineral characters of this sandstone are similar to those of 
the rock found in boring for salt water in the valley of the Muskin- 
gum at the depth of six and eight hundred feet. I have specimens 
from several of these borings, and from the places above named, 
which are so similar as to suggest the possibility of their being por- 
tions of an equivalent, if not the same, deposit. 
Tuscarawas County.—About 9, A. M., the boat crossed the 
north line of ‘Tuscarawas County. ‘This is a rich and very fertile 


Sandy and Beaver Canal.—Fort Lawrence. 57 


county of rolling uplands, cultivated by an industrious population 
of German descent. It contains at present about twenty thousand 
inhabitants, and is nearly thirty miles square. Soon after entering 
the borders of this county, we passed the village of Bolivar. Itisa 
town of considerable importance, and fast rising into notice, as the 
point where the Sandy and Beaver canal will unite with the Ohio 
canal. 

Sandy and Beaver Canal.—This canal will be seventy six miles 
in length, and is now under contract. Bolivar is forty two miles 
south of Akron. ‘The canal terminates on the Ohio River, at the 
mouth of Little Beaver, fourteen miles below Big Beaver, and will 
be continued to the Pennsylvania and Ohio canal, and thence to 
Pittsburgh, opening a new route from the eastern cities to the most 
fertile and productive portion of Ohio. ‘This canal is also owned 
by a joint stock company. The water for its supply will be fur- 
nished by Sandy Creek and Little Beaver. 

Fort Lawrence.—-—A few miles south of Bolivar, the canal 
passes through the earthen walls of old Fort Lawrence, once the 
scene of border warfare, and of bloodshed. ‘The parapet walls 
are now four or five feet high, and were crowned with pickets made 
of the split trunks of trees. The ditch is nearly filled up. The 
walls enclose about an acre of ground, and stand on the west bank 
of the Tuscarawas. Fort Lawrence was erected in the fall of the 
year 1778, by a detachment of one thousand men from Fort Pitt, 
under the command of Gen. McIntosh. After its completion, a 
garrison of one hundred and fifty men was placed in it, and left in 
the charge of Col. John Gibson, while the rest of the army returned to 
Fort Pitt. It was established at this early day in the country of the 
Indians, seventy miles west of Fort McIntosh, with an expectation 
that it would act as a salutary check on their incursions into the 
white settlements south of the Ohio River. ‘The usual approach to 
it from Fort McIntosh, the nearest military station, was from the 
mouth of Yellow Creek, and down the Sandy, which latter stream 
heads with the former, and puts into the Tuscarawas just above the 
fort. So unexpected and rapid were the movements of General 
Mclntosh, that the Indians were not aware of his presence in their 
country, until the fort was completed. Early in January, 1779, the 
Indians mustered their warriors with such secrecy, that the fort was 
invested before the garrison had notice of their approach. From 
the manuscript notes of Henry Jolly, Esq., who was an actor in this, 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 1. 8 


58 Fort Lawrence. 


as well as in many other scenes on the frontiers, I have copied the 
following historical facts. ‘‘ When the main army left the fort to re- 
turn to Fort Pitt, Capt. Clark remained behind with a small de- 
tachment of U. S. troops, for the purpose of marching in the inva- 
lids and artificers who had tarried to finish the fort, or were too un- 
well to march with the main army. He endeavored to take the 
‘advantage of very cold weather, and had marched three or four 
miles, (for I travelled over the ground three or four times soon af- 
ter,) when he was fired upon by a small party of Indians very close 
at hand, I think twenty or thirty paces. This discharge wounded 
two of his men slightly. Knowing as he did that his men were unfit 
to fight Indians in their own fashion, he ordered them to reserve 
their fire, and to charge bayonet, which being promptly executed, 
put the Indians to flight, and, after pursuing a short distance, he 
called off his men and retreated to the fort, bringing in the wound- 
ed.’ Jn other accounts I have read of this affair, it is stated that 
ten of Capt. Clarke’s men were killed. ‘* Durimg the cold weather, 
while the Indians were lying about the fort, although none had been 
seen for a few days, a party of seventeen men went out for the pur- 
pose of carrying in firewood, which the army had cut before they 
left the place, about forty or fifty rods from the fort. Near the bank 
of the river was an ancient mound, behind which lay a quantity of 
wood. A party had been out for several preceding mornings and 
brought in wood, supposing the Indians would not be watching the 
fort in such very cold weather. But on that fatal morning the In- 
dians had concealed themselves behind the mound, and as the sol-- 
diers passed round on one side of the mound, a part of the Indians 
came round on the other, and enclosed the wood party, so that not 
one escaped. I was personally acquainted with some of the men 
who were killed.”” ‘The published statements of this affair say that 
the Indians enticed the men out in search of horses, by taking off 
their bells and tinkling them; but it is certain that no horses were 
left at the fort, as they must either starve or be stolen by the In- 
dians; so that Mr. Jolly’s version of the incident must be correct. 
During the siege, which continued until the last of February, the 
garrison were very short of provisions. ‘The Indians suspected 
this to be the fact, but were also nearly starving, themselves. In 
this predicament, they proposed to the garrison, that if they would 
give them a barrel of flour and some meat, they would raise the 
siege, concluding if they had not this quantity they must surrender 


Zoar. 59 


at discretion soon, and if they had they would not part with it. In 
this, however, they missed their object. The brave Col. Gibson 
turned out the flour and meat promptly, and told them he could 
spare it very well, as he had plenty more. ‘The Indians soon after 
raised the siege. A runner was sent to Fort McIntosh with a state- 
ment of their distress, and requesting reinforcements and provisions 
immediately. The inhabitants south of the Ohio volunteered their 
aid, and Gen. McIntosh headed the escort of provisions, which reach- 
ed the fort in safety, but was near being all lost from the dispersion 
of the packhorses in the woods near the fort, from a fright occasioned 
by a feu de joze, fired by the garrison, at the relief. The fort was 
finally evacuated in August, 1779, it being found untenable at such 
a distance from the frontiers; and Henry Jolly was one of the last 
men who left it, holding at that time in the continental service the 
commission of ensign. 

Zoar.—The boat reached Zoar at ye A. M., where I disem- 
‘barked. ‘This little “city of refuge” is heautitally situated on a 
rising ground on the east side of the Tuscarawas. It was settled 
by an industrious community of Germans, from Wittemburgh, on 
the river Elbe, while yet covered with a dense forest, in the year 
1817, under the patriarchal charge and pastoral care of Jacob M. 
Biemler. ‘They are seceders from the Lutheran church, as a reli- 
gious community. Mr. Biemler is now about sixty years of age, of 
mild manners and prepossessing appearance. He acts both as their 
spiritual and their temporal guide, directing their secular affairs with 
great prudence during the week, and their spiritual concerns on the 
Sabbath. He is assisted by a council of two or three elders, and in 
very important matters the whole male population have a voice. 
Their first purchase embraced four thousand acres, to which they 
have since added two thousand more. 

The nett profit of their labor goes into a joint stock. If an indi- 
vidual Jeaves the community, which is a rare occurrence, he draws 
from the funds a sum equal to the amount by him first invested, but 
nothing for his labor over and above the sustenance he has received. 
A part of the laboring class are employed in agriculture, and a part 
in the various mechanical pursuits necessary to the comfort of the 
village. Each family draws from the various deposits all the arti- 
cles of domestic use needed for its support. The surplus is added 
to the general fund. They have a common school, at which all the 
children are equally taught. I passed the afternoon in company 


60 Zoar. 


with Mr. Biemler, (to whom I had a letter of introduction,) exam- 
ining the improvements of these industrious people. ‘The language 
spoken is German, so that in the short space of a few minutes I was 
transferred from the mixed jargon of a western canal boat, into a 
community whose dialect, dress, buildings and manners, were assim- 
ilated to what is seen in the heart of Germany, and to the middle of 
the seventeenth century. ‘There was something so patriarchal and 
primitive in all around me, that I was delighted with the transition. 
Their present population is about three hundred. ‘The buildings 
are generally of frame work, some filled in with bricks, and with 
high pointed roofs. ‘They are covered with red tiles, made of the 
common clay of the country, burnt very hard, so as to be durable, 
and they look well because they are durable. Manufactures of flour, 
woolen, linen, leather, &c., are all carried on, and recently a large 
furnace has gone into operation near the margin of the canal. A 
substantial wooden bridge crosses the Tuscarawas, here about eighty 
yards wide. From the top of the Zoar hotel, which is surmounted by 
a handsome cupola, there is a delicious prospect of the surrounding 
eountry. The lands of the colony lie on both sides of the river, 
stretching out into broad hills and wide finely cultivated alluvions, 
through which the Tuscarawas winds for four or five miles, bordered 
with the richest verdure; all kinds of cereal productions suited to 
the climate, here find congenial soils. ‘The meadows are very fine, 
and the banks of the river are so low as to admit of irrigation, thus 
producing a succession of crops on the same field: arnidst other ar- 
ticles, I noticed a large field of rape, with its bright yellow blos- 
soms now fully expanded. ‘The seed yields a fine oil, suitable for 
lamps. ‘The Germans are every where noted for their taste in the 
cultivation of fine flowers. ‘This little “ city of refuge,” although so 
far removed from the “fader land,” and seated in the wild woods of 
the ‘Tuscarawas, instead of the classic groves of the Elbe, keeps up 
an extensive garden, and one of the finest green houses I have ever 
seen. It contains a number of lemon and orange trees, at least 
twelve feet in height, filled with the richest fruit ; and a large num-. 
ber of rare exotic plants and shrubs in full bloom, filling the large 
and lofty room with the richest perfumes. ‘The house is kept with 
the utmost neatness and order. A flower and vegetable garden of 
two acres, laid out with great beauty and in the best German taste, 
slopes gradually to the south in front of the green house. Here the 
choicest peaches, pears, plums and grapes, are also cultivated. A 


Ferruginous Deposits. 61 


large vineyard on the side of an adjacent hill, gave promise of a lus- 
cious harvest, and added one more feature to the exotic look of all 
around. A stratum of white sandstone rock is found in all the adja- 
cent hills, at an elevation of about one hundred feet above the bed 
of the river. It is used for window sills, and various other purpo- 
ses. “The lower portion of the bed is stained with red oxide of iron. 
It splits with great facility, and is used for posts in fencing the Zoar 
garden. 
Ferruginous Deposits.—The great ferruginous deposit, which 
crosses the state like a belt, in a.S. W. and N. E. direction, is here 
found in its greatest purity and abundance. It first makes its ap- 
pearance about five miles north of this place, and is known to ex- 
tend south for at least thirty miles. It does not hold of this width 
for the whole distance across the state, but can be traced without 
difficulty from near the mouth of the Scioto to Conneaut on the 
Pennsylvania line. It lies here about forty or fifty feet above the 
white sand rock, and near the tops of many of the hills. ‘The ore 
is found in three separate beds, of about six or eight inches in thick- 
ness, and about two feet apart, lying in a matrix or bed of yellow 
ferruginous clay. The bottom stratum of ore rests on a deposit of 
bluish brown clay, which when dry assumes a foliated structure, and 
is very similar to that found in the bottoms of ponds. ‘These de- 
posits were once continuous, but are now found in broken tabular 
masses, of from ten to one hundred pounds weight. - Its structure is 
lamellar, splitting into thin folia, or concentric layers, when exposed 
tothe airand sun. ‘The ore is very abundant, and yields from eight 
to nine hundred tons from an acre of surface. In the furnace, it af- 
fords about forty per cent. of iron, or two and a half tons of ore 
yield one ton of pig metal. It crops out on the abrupt and sloping 
sides of the hills, near their tops, and is yet pursued only so far as it 
can be done by excavating the superincumbent earth. I visited the 
mines on the Zoar lands, where it is found in great purity and abun- 
dance. Directly over the iron ore is a deposit of coal, of two or 
three feet, separated from it, however, by a bed of shale. Below 
the ferruginous deposit is another bed of coal ; and near the base of 
the hills, fifty feet below the white sand rock, is a deposit of lime- 
stone, several feet in thickness. I could not discover any fossil 
shells, or impressions of plants, in the iron ore; but one bed of it, 
however, is columnar in its structure, when burnt, or roasted, much 
resembling one species of fossil madrepore, common to the valley 


62 Bivalve Shells. 


of the Ohio. The deposit is very abundant in all the hills, and 
large heaps of it are seen along the sides of the canal, for the use 
of the furnaces north of the iron region, along the Tuscarawas. As 
we descend the river south, coal becomes more abundant, and the 
‘ore dips down to the base of the hills, and finally disappears under 
the superincumbent strata. Salt water has not yet been found here, 
although searched for to the depth of three hundred feet. It is very 
abundant thirty or forty miles east of Zoar, on the waters of Yellow 
Creek. The community at this place is in a very flourishing con- 
dition, and shows what the united efforts of a few hundred individu- 
als can accomplish, when cemented by love and the holy offices of 
religion. Owen’s attempt at communities was founded on a similar 
plan, but lacked the strong bond of religious rites and feelings, with- 
out which man every where loses all nice sense of right and wrong. 
They appear to be a very happy society, and I do not see how they 
could be otherwise, while under the care of so sensible and pleasant 
a guide as Jacob M. Biemler. JI left this interesting spot at sun- 
setting, and proceeded southerly through a well cultivated and very 
fertile region. ‘The amount of wheat raised in this vicinity is very 
great, the soil and climate being both congenial to its natural habits. 
Bivalve Shells —The canal promises to be of great importance 
to conchologists, as well as to agriculturists. Wherever there is “a 
feeder’? putting into the canal from the main streams, as for instance 
the Tuscarawas, Licking or Scioto, the bottom of the canal is liter- 
ally covered at this time with the most perfect and beautiful speci- 
mens of bivalve shells. This is especially the fact at Zoar, Newark 
and Chilicothe. The soft sediment, and the absence of any current 
to abrade their surfaces, preserve them with their delicate markings 
unharmed, while in the rivers with gravelly bottoms, the cuticle is al- 
ways much worn and injured. Who, that has ever paid any attention 
to the study of conchology, or searched one hour in our streams for 
shells, does not know, that like land animals and like plants, different 
species seek different localities as a habitat, where they find a soil, 
food and climate congenial totheir wants. Some species live under 
flat stones, in rapid water ; others in clay, mud, sand, &c. Some lie 
on the surface, and others deeply buried in gravel, beneath the bot- 
toms of the streams. This is the fact with the Unio oriens and U. 
Soleniformis. The latter species I have never yet found ina living 
state, although I have often picked up the shells of the recently dead, 
for the reason that they live in deep water and are buried in mud. The 


Dover.—Coal. a 63 


western country is prolific in species of insects, plants and land ani- 
mals, without limit; and shall these immense waters, embracing 
nearly one fourth of a hemisphere, be restricted according to the 
opinions of some to a few species of bivalve shells, and those only 
such as are common to both sides of the Alleghany Mountains? A 
still stronger proof than that of analogy, is found in the specific dif- 
ferences of the molluscous animals themselves. Dissections and 
comparative examinations of the animals, show a specific differ- 
ence, even stronger than the outlines of the calcareous coverings. 
I have myself dissected many shells, for this very purpose. It is 
furthermore contrary to the general economy of nature, to bring forth 
and perpetuate varieties, either of plants or animals, except when 
under the cultivation and artificial direction of man. 

Dover.—Ten miles below Zoar, we passed the village of Dover, 
with four or five stores, and two or three large flourng mills. The 
sites for water power machinery, along the canal, are very numerous, 
and as yet only partially occupied. ‘The Tuscarawas winds through 
broad and rich bottom lands, in many places more than two miles 
wide from hill to hill. The adjacent country is moderately hilly, 
and, clothed with dense forests, which are every where fast falling 
before the axe of the woodman, and rich wheat fields, orchards and 
meadows are occupying their place. 

Newceastle—Coal.—May 17: Sixteen miles below Zoar, at New- 
castle, coal is found at a less elevation, and much more abundant. 
The deposit here is six feet in thickness, and extensively worked. 
Wooden slides, on the sides of the hills, conduct the coal from the 
mouths of the mines to reservoirs on the banks of the canal; from 
thence it is carried in boats to the summit, and to the valley of the 
Scioto. It is said to be of an excellent quality. At the present 
day, with all the lights that have been thrown upon the subject by 
chemistry and the study of fossil plants of the coal series, no well 
imstructed and sound geologist would hazard the long exploded the- 
ory of the mineral origin of coal, by ejection from the interior of 
the earth. Although some bituminous shales are destitute of the 
impressions of plants, more than nine tenths of them abound with 
these authentic proofs of the vegetable origin of coal; and I have 
never seen a piece of slaty bituminous coal, from any part of the 
valley of the Mississippi, that was not filled with thin layers of ve- 
getable fibres, resembling charcoal, and lying between all the hori- 
zontal folia of the specimen. Whence all these impressions of 


64 Coal.— Gnadenhutten. 


leaves and charcoal, but from a vegetable source? Bitumen is 
rarely if ever found, but petroleum is abundant in the West. Its 
origin is plainly from vegetable decomposition,—the same source as 
that of the carburetted hydrogen, namely, from the coal beds under 
the valley of the Chio. The vegetables forming these were de- 
posited when the lime was in a plastic state, and filled with living 
shells; in the same manner petroleum is now daily discharging into 
the soft mud and gravel, in the beds of the Little Muskingum and 
Hews’s River. It will be found by future geologists, when those 
sands shall become consolidated into rock, lodged in cells formed by 
the contained gases. ‘That bituminous coal is not a mineral matter, 
is evident from the fact that it is not found in primitive rocks; prob- 
ably because, that at the period of the formation of the deeper pri- 
mary rocks, no vegetable productions were in existence; for the 
relics of none are found until near the period of the transition or 
secondary rocks, unless we ascribe the plumbago to a vegetable ori- 
gin, in which case the first plants will have been coeval with the 
earliest slaty rocks. 

Gnadenhutten.—Gnadenhutten, or ‘Tents of Grace,” the scene 
of the missionary labors of the pious and humane Heckewelder, is 
seated on the river, twenty five miles below Zoar. The ancient In- 
dian village was placed. on a broad elevated plain, on the east side of 
the stream. These simple sons of the forest had become docile 
as children, under the gentle guidance of the Moravian teachers: a 
large number of them were truly pious, and members of the church 
of Christ. Seated on the frontiers between the contending savages 
and the whites, and taking sides with neither, they had become ob- 
noxious to both, and were cruelly murdered in cold blood, to the 
number of ninety four, in April, 1782, by Col.’s Williamson and 
Crawford, and party—the Sandusky Indians, accusing them of be- 
ing friendly to the whites, and the whites charging them with secre- 
ting the stolen property brought by the war parties on their return 
from the settlements. How often the fate of these poor Indians is 
verified in modern warfare; the quiet and unoffending neutral is 
plundered and abused by both the belligerent parties. Filled with 
the spirit of revenge, in the month of March, 1782, a party of eighty 
or ninety mounted men, under the guidance of Col.’s Williamson 
and Crawford, took their departure from the ‘‘ Old Mingo Bottoms,” 
the well known rallying ground of border warfare, destined for the 
Moravian villages on the Tuscarawas. ‘The Indians, thinking of no 


Massacre at Gnadenhutten. 65 


evil, were busily engaged about their domestic concerns, and offering 
no resistance, suffered themselves to be all taken prisoners, to the 
number of ninety four. More than half of these were women and 
children. In the morning, when told what was to be their fate, they 
mutually prayed, and exhorted each other to be resigned, and ask- 
ing reciprocal forgiveness, prepared for death. Before the order for 
massacre was finally issued, some of the more humane men made 
application to Col. Williamson for liberty to take a child apiece to 
their homes and save their lives, there being not less than thirty or 
forty. _ Williamson, after considering a minute, answered that there 
were not children enough for them all to have one, and lest there 
might be any complaining, he thought it better to let them remain 
on the spot with their parents and relatives: accordingly they were 
all massacred in cool blood, and after a night’s rest for reflection. In 
the heat of battle, and at the sacking of a town, there may be some 
excuse for the indiscriminate slaughter that sometimes takes place ; 
but in the whole annals of American warfare, no scene of deliberate 
murder can be found that equals this in atrocity. This tragical story 
was related to me, a few days since, by a man now more than eighty 
years old, who was present, and one of the number that made appli- 
cation for liberty to save one of the children. He was well ac- 
quainted with Williamson, the principal actor, and says that he died 
poor and miserable, and that a large number of the men perished by 
violent and untimely deaths. He was one of the party under Wil- 
liamson and Crawford, at the defeat in May following, on the San- 
dusky plains, where Crawford was taken prisoner and burnt, and 
most of his men killed. I also conversed with a man on the spot, 
for many years a resident here, who said that when a boy he had of- 
ten seen, with mingled feelings of horror and detestation, the black- 
walnut stump on which many of the poor Indians were beheaded. 
He also confirmed the popular impression, by saying, that the larger 
number of the men engaged in this murderous business, either came 
to an untimely end, or suffered losses of property and other calami- 
ties, too striking not to be noticed as marks of the retributive justice 
of heaven. The alluvial lands at this spot are nearly two miles 
wide, and very fertile. ‘The Tuscarawas is about ninety yards in 
width, with low banks and a placid current, gliding gently along, a 
silent, but a still living witness, of the atrocities committed on its 
shores. 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 1. 9 


66 Mr. Heckewelder. 


Rev. John Heckewelder.—Gnadenhutten was first settled by the 
Moravian missionaries in the year 1772. Another missionary sta- 
tion was formed a few miles below, at Salem, by Mr. Heckewelder, 
in the spring of 1780. Sarah, his wife, here resided with him in 
perfect safety, and in the fullest confidence of security, amongst 
their Indian converts.. The 16th of April, 1781, was the birth day 
of their daughter Maria, who it is believed was the first white child 
born within the present limits of the State of Chio. She is still liv- 
ing in Bethlehem, (Penn.) In the autumn of that year, the Indians 
and missionaries were forcibly removed to Detroit, by the Sandusky 
Indians, leaving all their crops of corn standing in the fields. Hav- 
ing suffered much from a want of food during the winter, a part of 
the Indians returned in March to save what was yet left, at which 
time the massacre took place. While dwelling on the incidents of 
this interesting spot, I cannot refrain from adverting to a singular 
trait in the character of Mr. Heckewelder, that of believing in the 
power of foretelling future events. He had lived so many years se- 
cluded in the deep forests, and had, in the eye of his mind, seen 
the Indians so often at their labors, and his visions had been so often 
verified, that he had insensibly imbibed a belief that the human 
mind may become so deeply impressed with the approach of future 
events, as to predict their arrival with certainty. From certain oc- 
currences, he was led to believe that he was himself possessed of 
this faculty : whether he acquired it from the dreamy kind of life he 
led in the wilds of the Tuscarawas, or from actual intercourse with 
spiritual existences, similar to those of Swedenbory, it will be diffi- 
cult at this day to determine, but certain it is that many devout and 
pious minds have often been similarly constituted. ‘The following 
singular fact I have from an ocular, and still living witness: During 
the early years of the settlement of the Ohio company at Marietta, 
Mr. Heckewelder was a frequent and a welcome guest. He there 
found men of learning and taste, whose society was congenial, and 
where he could again enjoy the comforts and refinements of social 
life. While many of the early settlements were composed of the ig- 
norant, the vulgar, and the rude, the colony at Marietta, like those 
of many of the ancient Greeks, carried with it the sciences and the 
arts; and although placed on the frontiers, amidst the howling and 
the savage wilderness, exposed to many dangers and privations, there 
ran in the veins of its little band some of the best blood of the coun- 
try, and it enrolled many men of highly cultivated minds and ex- 


Mr. Heckewelder. 67 


alted intellect. Amidst such a society, Mr. Heckewelder could not 
but pass his time pleasantly. He was himself a man full of the 
milk of human kindness; a great lover of horticulture, and all the 
beauties of nature, and much devoted to the study of the natural 
sciences. He kept for many years at Gnadenhutten a regular me- 
teorological journal of the seasons, and of the flowering of plants, 
&c., which was published in Barton’s Medical Journal. From his 
thorough knowledge of the Indian languages, he had been employed 
by Gen. Rufus Putnam, as an interpreter, at the treaty which he 
held with the Indian tribes at Vincennes on the Wabash, in Sept. 
1792. This duty had been accomplished, and the General had re- 
turned as far as the falls of Ohio, where he was detained by an at- 
tack of autumnal fever, then common on the Wabash. Mr. H. had 
in the mean time returned by land. to Marietta, in company with 
some of the Delaware Indians. The only intercourse then sustained 
between distant places, except for hunters and warriors, was by wa- 
ter, in canoes or barges. ‘This journey had thus far been performed 
in a very light barge, built of cedar, and rowed by twelve men. As 
his fever had somewhat abated before Mr. H. left him, and the sea- 
son was now advanced into November, the General’s family at Ma- 
rietta were daily expecting him, and were with great anxiety waiting 
for news. No news however could be obtained. Mrs. Putnam, 
with whom Mr. Heckewelder lodged, had become very uneasy and 
alarmed at the long delay of her husband, and it had been the sub- 
ject of conversation before retiring to rest. In the morning, when 
Mr. H. appeared at the breakfast table, he told Mrs. Putnam with 
a smiling countenance, that he had good news for her of the General ; 
and proceeded to state, that in the course of the night he had had 
one of those mysterious communications in relation to coming events, 
that had often been made to him during the course of his life, and 
which he had never known to deceive him. He said the General 
would return in safety on the 18th day of that month; and lest he 
should forget the day, he had in the night marked on the white- 
washed chimney by the side of the bed, the number, with a piece of 
cut money he had in his pocket. My informant, who was then a 
boy, and lived in the General’s family, immediately ran up stairs 
and examined the spot pointed out. There he found the figures 18 
plainly marked in the side of the chimney by the bed. This was 
eight or ten days before the prophetic time. The days were care- 
fully counted, and as the period approached, many an anxious look 


68 Tron Ore.—Roscoe. 


was cast down the placid stream, in search of the coming barge, 
when lo! on the precise day, early in the morning, the boat reached 
the landing at ‘Campus Martius,” the name of the stockaded fort 
at Marietta, with the General and all the party in safety. 
_ Iron Ore.—As the canal boat proceeded south, I observed nod- 
ules and blocks of iron ore on the sides and surface of the hills, at 
a much less elevation than at Zoar. Vegetation has made a strikmg 
change since we descended into the lower portions of the valley. 
The petals of the Cornus florida are fully expanded and beautifully 
white; while on the summit they are yet quite green, and just be- 
ginning to unfold. ‘The weather is very cool for this season of the 
year, and the forest trees are late in opening their foliage. ‘Towns and 
villages are springing up so rapidly on the borders of the canal, that 
the inhabitants are at a loss for names. ‘To-day we passed one in 
this awkward predicament, which goes by the epithet of ‘“ New- 
comers-town.” We crossed the Walhouding or White woman’s 
_ fiver, near its junction with the Tuscarawas. After uniting their 
waters, the stream is called the Muskingum, or “ Elk’s-eye.” ‘The 
eanal crosses the Walhouding in a wooden trunk, supported by two 
- abutments and four pillars of masonry, faced with oval buttresses of 
sandstone reck. ‘The stones which compose these huge pillars are 
very large, and rough dressed, projecting beyond the joints, giving 
the appearance of vast strength, and resembling the mural face of a 
natural cliff of sandstone rocks. It looks much better for this pur- 
pose than a smooth dressed stone, and is very creditable to the taste 
of the arehitect. ‘This stream is about eighty yards wide, and has 
its sources in the northern and central parts of the state, in a very 
fertile region. Vernon river, once known by the euphonous name 
of “Owl Creek,” is one of its principal tributaries. Kenyon Col- 
lege is situated on this beautiful stream. ‘The Walhouding crosses 
the great siliceous deposit, in the N. W. part of Coshocton County, 
where we noware. I picked up several large fragments of flint and ~ 
hornstone, on the beach, at the foot of the aqueduct. ‘This 'singular 
and interesting deposit passes through the eastern portion of Holmes 
County, and crosses the Tuscarawas River not far from New Phila- 
delphia, beyond which, easterly, [ have no correct knowledge of its 
course. lake 
Roscoe.—Just below the aqueduct, is seated the little village of 
Roscoe, on the west side of the Muskingum River. It is a village 
of some importance, and hag several mills in operation. 


eB 
Coshocton.—Ancient Cemetery.— Coal. 69 


Coshocton County.—Coshocton County contains about fourteen 
thousand inhabitants. Its surface is hilly, but very fertile and pro- 
ductive in wheat and other grains. ‘The hills abound in bituminous 
coal and iron ore. Several salt wells have been sunk in the county, 
on Wills Creek, and on the Muskingum, which make considerable 
salt. The wells are not deep, and are probably pa aie on the 
north western margin of the saliferous deposits. 

Town of es —Coshocton, the seat of. Giiee for this 
county, is finely situated at the junction of the Tuscarawas and the 
Walhouding rivers. ‘The ground on which it is built, lies in four 
broad natural terraces, each elevated about nine feet above the other. 
The last one is nearly one thousand feet wide. The situation could — 
hardly be altered for the better by the hand cf man. The present 
population is about five hundred. 

Ancient cemetery.—A short distance below Coshocton, on one of 
those elevated, gravelly alluvions, so common on the rivers of the 
West, has been recently discovered a very singular ancient burying 
ground. From some remains of wood, still apparent in the earth 
around the bones, the bodies seem all to have been deposited in 
coffins; and what is still more curious, is the fact that the bodies 
buried here were generally not more than from three to four and a 
half feet in length. They are very numerous, and must have been 
tenants of a considerable city, or their numbers could not have been 
so great. A large number of graves have been opened, the inmates 
of which are all of this pigmy race. No metallic articles or uten- 
sils have yet been found, to throw light on the period or the nation 
to which they belonged. Similar burying grounds have been found 
in Tennessee, and near St. Louis in Missouri. . 

Coal.—The main deposit of coal, near Coshocton, is said to be 
nine feet thick, and lies much lower in the hills than at Newcastle. 
It is probably the same stratum that is found below the bed of the 
Muskingum River, at Zanesville. 

May 18th.—We left Roscoe and passed down the Muskingum 
valley, generally near the base of the hills, to Websport, a small 
village of warehouses onthe canal. At this point a side cut is taken 
out to the Muskingum River, across the bottom lands, which here 
are more than two miles wide, and continue nearly of this width for 
eight or ten miles up and down the river. From the outlet of this 
side cut, dams are to be thrown across the stream at intervals, for a 
slack-water navigation to the town of Zanesville, a distance of four- 


®. Narrows of Licking. 


teen miles. A little south of Websport, the canal leaves the Musk- 
ingum alluvions, and rises with the aid of two locks into the valley 
of the Wakatomika, a Jarge creek, with wide and very fertile bot- 
toms. After leaving this valley by a pretty deep cut, the canal 
passes into the valley of Licking, in which are seated the villages 
of Irville and Nashport.. After the canal enters the Wakitomika 
valley, it turns more westerly, and a short distance beyond Nashport 
strikes the Licking River, which is here about fifty yards in width. 
It is now about to emerge from the coal measures, which it has tra- 
versed more than one hundred miles, into the tertiary deposits of 
the Licking and Scioto valleys. A dam is thrown across the stream 
at this point, and by the aid of a lock the boat passes into the river, 
which now performs the office of a canal, for the distance of two 
miles, through ‘the narrows of Licking,” the tow-path being cut 
out of the solid sandstone for the larger portion of the way. 

“ Black Hand”—Narrows of Licking.—This is a very pictur- 
esque spot; cliffs of sandstone rock, fifty feet in height, line the 
sides of the canal, especially on the left bank of the stream. In 
some places they hang over in a semi-circular form, the upper por- 
tion projecting, and defending the lower from the rains and weather. 
In one of these spots, the aborigines chose to display their ingenuity 
at pictorial writing, by figuring on the smooth face of the cliff, at an 
elevation eight or ten feet above the water, the outlines of wild ani- 
mals, and amongst the rest the figure of a huge, black, human hand. 
From this circumstance, the spot is known to all the old hunters and 
inhabitants of this vicinity, by the name of ‘the black hand nar- 
rows.” It is the scene of many an ancient legend, and wild hunting 
story. At the point where the canal touches the Licking, the rock 
strata in the banks and bed of the stream dip to the north, at an an- 
gle of nearly fifteen degrees. As we ascend the stream, the incli- 
nation becomes less, and finally at the western outlet of the narrows 
assumes its usual horizontal appearance. It is a wild, romantic spot, 
and has evidently been subjected to great disturbance, before the 
waters of Licking commenced their cutting and disintegrating pro- 
cess through its rocky bed. ‘These sandstone rocks contain very 
few fossil plants, but when fairly without the line of the coal meas- 
ures, they abound in fossil shells, very similar to those found in the 
lime rocks of the older secondary formations. The cliffs are lined 
with evergreens of various species, amongst which I noticed the 
hemlock, red cedar and yellow pine. On emerging from the ravine, 


Newark.—Rock Strata. 71 


which is done by means of a natural channel, cut by a small stream, 
the canal passes over the wide and fertile alluvions of the Licking 
valley. The crab apple is now in full bloom, and at short intervals 
perfumes the air with its delicious fragrance. Fields, are planting 
with Indian corn, and in some warm and sheltered spots, it 1s already 
two inches high. We reached the town of Newark, at 8 P. M. 

Newark, May 19th.—Newark is the seat of justice for Licking 
County. It isa place of considerable commercial importance. The 
canal passes along one of its principal streets, and by moonlight re- 
minds one of some of the towns in Holland. ‘The present number 
of inhabitants is said to be about eighteen hundred, and is rapidly 
increasing. In the centre of the town is a large public square, in 
the midst of which stands the court house. ‘This square, when en- 
closed with a railing, and ornamented with our native forest trees, 
will make a fine promenade, and add more than any thing else, to 
the credit and the beauty of the place. A town without trees is 
altogether too artificial, either for health, comfort, or good taste. 
The new Episcopal church, now nearly finished, with its buttresses, 
battlements, and high gothic windows, is quite creditable to the pro- 
jectors, and an ornament to the town. 

Rock Strata.—I made an excursion to-day with a friend, for the 
purpose of examining more closely than my hasty view af yester- 
day would allow, the character of the rock strata at the narrows of 
Licking, distant nine miles from Newark. Several quarries are now 
opened, and with the excavation to form the tow-path, give a fine 
view of the order of superposition. So far as accessible, I find it 
very similar to that of the falls of the Cuyahoga, and of the same 
character with that of the chain forming the western and northern 
termination of the coal measures in Ohio. A loosely cohering, 
coarse aggregate, or pudding-stone, composes a deposit twelve or 
fourteen feet in thickness, about midway to the tops of the cliffs; 
above which is a coarse sandstone, splitting easily into large blocks 
for architectural purposes. Below this conglomerate, or pudding- 
stone, is a deposit of finer grained rock, tinged highly with red in 
many places, but it has not been exposed to a sufficient depth to dis- 
close the true red sandstone, which, judging from the character of 
the fossil shells, found a little farther west, and high in the hills, I 
have no doubt will be found here. I could discover no traces of coal, 
nor any fossil plants belonging to the coal series. 


72 | Trilobites. 


Trilobites.—In examining, a few miles west of this place, in the 
same range of hills, the fossil contents of a rock, which is fine 
grained, but rather loose in texture, and tinged brown with the oxide 
of iron, I discovered, in a few minutes, no less than three imperfect 
and broken Trilobites, which are the first I have seen in place in the 
valley of the Ohio. A drawing of the most perfect specimen is 
given at Fig. 18. Portions of the abdomen are most common. 


z= 


Description.—Breadth, one inch; length, about one inch and a 
half; diameter, half an inch. Tergum or intermediate lobe thick ; 
one third thicker than the flanks, and more convex. Lobes deeply 
sculptured or furrowed, the whole of which are equal in size in all 
the lobes; encircled at the base with a flat horizontal zone, one 
eighth of an inch wide. Coated with brown oxide of iron, as are 
most of the reliquie of this deposit. No thorax or head found. 
The Trilobites are in company with innumerable relics of radiated 
Encrini, and thin, delicate, fine rayed Producti, similar to those found 
in the vicinity of the transition limestone, near the hot springs in 
Bath County, Virginia. Some very large and perfect Spiriferi, more 
than two inches in width, are found in the more compact and deeper 
seated deposit below. ‘They are more deeply grooved and stronger 
marked than those from “Flint Ridge.” I have also a very perfect 
bivalve from the same locality, which looks like a small, elongated 
Mya. As we descend deeper towards the base of the hills, these 
remains become more rare, the rock is finer grained, of a rich brown 
color, and furnishes a beautiful material for tomb-stones and chimney- 
pieces, and other ornamental work. ‘The finest variety is singularly 
spotted with small dark specks, all through the stone ; it looks, when 

-polished, as if it had been sprinkled with some dark liquid stain. 
It is a very curious fact, that a similar rock is found in Illinois, near 


Delaware Sulphur Springs. 73 


the Mississippi River ; it is so much like this that one can hardly be 
distinguished from the other. I have specimens of both in my cabi- 
net. These deposits, destitute of vegetable remains, would seem to 
indicate the western termination of the coal series.* The deposits 
north and west are evidently tertiary, resting on the older secondary, 
filled with bowlders of the primitive rocks and broken relics of the 
secondary series—in some places encroaching on the coal measures, 
as at the falls of the Cuyahoga, and again receding to the west, like 
the bays and headlands on a rocky coast. Another indication of 
a change in the deeper deposits, similar to that on the south east 
side of the coal measures, is the formation of mineral springs. While 
none are found of any magnitude or mineral strength within the great 
sandstone and coal basin, they are very abundant on both the north 
and south sides of it, in the magnesian and transition limestone series, 
which are known to prevail in these regions. 

Delaware Sulphur Springs.—In Delaware County, about thirty 
five or forty miles north westerly from Newark, are found several 
sulphur and ferruginous springs. ‘The most noted of these is the 
White Sulphur, in the town of Delaware. From the midst of lime- 
stone rocks, filled with marine shells and Encrini, similar to those 
found in the valley of the Greenbrier, (Va.) it issues in a stream of 
considerable volume, and discharges such quantities of sulphuretted 
hydrogen, as to be smelt at a considerable distance. As the gases 
leave the water, a precipitation of lime and sulphur takes place, in 
such abundance as_to incrust sticks and stones lying in the course 
of the current with a white coat, similar to the White Sulphur water 
near Lewisburgh, Va. It is celebrated for the cure of similar dis- 
eases, and is fast rising into notice, for its valuable sanative proper- 
ties. The following analysis, made last spring by Dr. Michell, pro- 
fessor of chemistry in Kenyon College, will show how near it ap- 
proaches to those celebrated waters. 

Analysis of the Delaware Sulphur Spring — —‘‘ One wine pint of 
the water, taken immediately from the spring, contains of 


* Six miles west of Newark, at Granville, in the same fine grained sandstone, 
fossil bones of animals have several times been found by quarry-men. J have not 
seen any of the specimens, although I have made application to procure some of 
them, but have the statement from such a source as to satisfy me of its truth. This 
rock is, geologically, below the coal measures—passing under that formation—and 
may contain the Sauroid fishes of Agassiz, if not the Saurian reptiles. 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 10 


74 Delaware Sulphur Spring.—Sulphuret of Iron. 


Sulphuretted hydrogen gas, - - 12 cubic inches. 
Carbonic acid gas, - - - - 3 do. 
‘“¢One hundred grains of the deposit which results from the evap- 
oration of several gallons of the water, yield on analysis, of 


Muriate of soda, - - - - -  A8 grains. 
Muriate of lime, - ~ - - ="), F2ONAE 
Sulphate of magnesia, - - cies mor AN 
Sulphate of lime, = - - = - - Bir 
Carbonate of soda, - - - - - Bw 
o7 


«The above result shows that these waters approach as nearly to 
the well known waters of Aix la Chapelle and Harrowgate, as those 
do respectively to each other.’’* ae niusten 

These springs were first brought into notice as early as the year 
1814, or more than twenty years ago, while the U.S. troops and 
militia were quartered in that place. In a written communication 
from Dr. Jackson of Clarksburgh, at that time a surgeon in the army, 
he speaks in high commendation of the valuable properties of those 
waters in curing the soldiers of visceral obstructions, consequent on 
intermittent and bilious remittent diseases, and also of herpetic erup- 
tions, then very rife amongst the troops. He looks forward to the 
day when these waters will be esteemed a blessing to the inhabitants 
of malarious districts. 

Sulphuret of Iron.—Previously to a late number of the American 
Journal of Science, I could never satisfactorily account for the im- 
mense quantities of sulphuret of iron, found in all our argillaceous, 
and many of the calcareous deposits. ‘The beds of many streams, 
are filled with sulphurets of all forms and sizes, from minute grains 
to masses of several pounds weight. Nota well is dug in the up- 
lands, but more or less of this mineral is brought up; and from its 
rich metallic lustre, it always leads the ignorant to believe that they 
have found a treasure. Animal remains of shells and bones are often 
changed to this semi-metallic state, specimens of both of which are 
in my collection. ‘Since gelatinous matter seems to have favored 
the conglomeration of silica, and consequently the formation of sili- 
ceous petrifactions; so likewise, the putrefaction of animal matter 
having produced sulphuretted hydrogen, if any particles of oxide of 
iron should happen to be present in the surrounding mud, pyrites 
would be formed and would accumulate about the places where the 


* Gambier paper. 


Tron Ores. 15 


gas is discharged.” How simply and beautifully this theory explains 
this formation of pyrites. This whole valley is one vast cemetery of 
animal and vegetable remains, and while the deposits were in a re- 
cent and plastic state, and the animal bodies inhumed, gradually de- 
cayed, the discharges of sulphuretted hydrogen must have been im- 
mense ; and very satisfactorily account for the vast abundance of iron 
pyrites, found in many of our rock strata. From the decomposing 
pyrites, and the magnesian limestone rocks containing shells, these 
springs doubtless derive a large share of their mineral contents. 

Having completed the examination of the rock strata at ‘“‘ the Nar- 
rows,” we returned by a route more distant from the canal, across 
tertiary and alluvial plains. On these plains the crab apple finds a 
congenial soil and climate, standing in groves like the domestic apple, 
and perfuming the air with its delicious fragrance. 

Tron Ores.—The belt of hydrated iron ore, noticed at Zoar, as 
crossing the state diagonally, on the outer border of the coal meas- 
ures, here maintains its relation to the other deposits and lies near 
the top of the hills, imbedded in clay, in similarly large tabular 
masses. A few miles south of this place, we strike the siliceous de- 
posit lying parallel with the ferruginous zone, and stretching N. E. 
and S. W. nearly across the state from Pike county to Stark. At 
its northern extremity, it widens out to nearly twenty miles, and 
stretches off into Holmes county. It does not uniformly lie on the 
tops of the hills, but crops out on their sides, with a thick diluvial 
deposit over it. ‘The general course of the deposit, may be seen in 
the geological map of the coal measures, in the 29th Vol. of this Jour- 
nal, but widening more at the north than there represented. 

May 20.—We reached Zanesville at 6 o’clock, a.m., in the stage 
coach, passing over a moderately hilly and very picturesque region. 
The distance from Newark, is twenty eight miles; twenty two of 
which, are on ‘the national road,”’ a work which is more creditable 
to the Republic, than the conquest of a continent. This road is in 
fine condition. ‘The bridges, built on substantial arches, and crown- 
ed with parapets of sandstone, give promise of strength and dura- 
bility. Americans are so much in the habit of building with per- 
ishable materials, not only their private dwellings, but their public 
edifices, that every attempt at permanency, ought to be noticed 
and encouraged. Along the distance of twenty two miles, no fewer 
than six villages have sprung up, since the location of the road 
in 1832. The wood lands over the last eight miles of the way, 


76 Cornus florida.—Flint Ridge. 


wear a most enchanting appearance. ‘The soil is so very congenial 
to the growth of the Cornus florida, or dog wood, that these trees ve- 
getate in countless numbers, and being now in full bloom, their clear 
white petals, are finely contrasted with the deep green of the forest, 
and no cultivated orchard of fruit tregs, ever displayed such an array 
of splendor and beauty. . 

Fossil arborescent Ferns.—In the afternoon, I visited a deposit of 
coarse sandstone, three miles west of Zanesville, which is literally 
filled with the broken trunks and branches of various species of the 
arborescent fern and other fossil plants of the antediluvian period. 
I brought away several specimens, and amongst them is one species 
which still retains portions of the spines or sete, that grew in the 
center of the scales which covered the surface and formed the corti- 
cal portion of these singular trees, so admirably fitted to the purpose 
for which they were apparently created, viz. that of furnishing an 
inexhaustible supply of fuel for man, when the present forests are 
removed to make room for the immense tillage that will, in time, be 
needed for the support of the teeming millions, destined to people 
the earth, when wars shall cease and diseases shall be greatly dimin- 
ished, if not entirely banished. Buried deep under superincumbent 
strata, these ancient forests lie bituminized and changed to an imper- 
ishable material, in the form of ‘‘ Stone coal !”? How glorious and how 
wonderful the providence of the Creator, in the material, as well as 
in the moral world. ‘The whole region about Zanesville, is full of 
interesting relics of by-gone ages; descriptions of many of which 
are given in a late number of this Journal. 

May 21, “ Flint Ridge.” —I visited “‘ Flint ridge,” or the great 
siliceous deposit, in company with my friend N. This interesting 
formation has been frequently noticed in former publications. Be- 
ing desirous of obtaining a more correct knowledge of its relation to 
the other rock strata, with which it is associated, I visited the nearest 
locality to Zanesville, distant about twelve miles. The deposit is 
here found, as well as in other places, near the tops of the hills, 
sometimes entirely on the surface, covering large tracts with its bro- 
ken fragments ; at others, lying at considerable depths beneath a rich 
argillaceous soil and a luxuriant growth of forest trees. The spot 
chosen for the present examination lies in Hopewell township, Mus- 
kingum county, near the line which divides it from Licking county, 
on the extreme head of the Brushy fork of Licking creek; in the 
bed of a deep ravine. ‘The siliceous rock is here hollowed out, by 


Flint Ridge Section. 77 


the action of the torrents and wintry frosts, into a grotto of considera- 
ble size, called the “ wild cat’s den,” from the fact of one or two of 
those animals having been killed here in early days. It will serve as 
a landmark for others who may wish to visit the place. From this 
spot I followed down the deep ravine of the run, a considerable dis- 
tance, as far as | could conveniently go, the sides of which were 
very abrupt and gave quite a satisfactory view of the stratification. 
My examination ended with a deposit of yellow Ochre, in the bed 
of the run, which I shall make the first step in the section. 


Section of Rock | Strata at Flint Ridge.— Order ascending. 


[Bex [elena SINGe 


Sam 


2 


Bed of run or branch. 

1. Argillaceous, slaty earth, resembling ochre in appearance ; col- 
or, pale yellow; forming the bed of the run; depth, unknown. 

2. Resting on the ochre, lies a deposit of slaty, light grey, sand- 
stone, contaiming considerable white mica in fine scales; easily 
_ crumbling and decomposing when exposed to the weather.—8 feet. 
_ 3. Bituminous shale; below, with traces of coal; upper part of 
the bed, dark clay slate, considerably compact in places. 'The su- 
perior portion of the deposit, very fissile and highly calcareous, near- 
ly black ; containing numerous specimens of fossil shells, generally 
small terebratule and the upper or flat valve of the Productus, No. 
12, figured on plate 2, Vol. 29 of this Journal. Many of these 
shells still retain the cuticle.-—10 feet. 

4. Light gray compact limestone; in some places mixed with 
silex ; breaking into irregular conchoidal masses and containing or- 


78 j Flint Ridge Section. 


ganic remains of what appear to me to be Ventricolites, bearing a 
strong resemblance to those described by Dr. Mantell, in the flint 
or chalk Zoophytes of the south of England.—10 feet. 

5. Resting on the calcareous rock, reposes the great siliceous de- 
posit. At this place the upper part of the bed is very white and 
compact, containing however, many small Enerini. Below, it is of 
various hues, strangely diversified from a deep indigo, to green, yel- 
low, red, horn color, &c. Near the superior portion of the bed it is 
more porous, contains a little lime and looks as if it had been tra- 
versed in all directions, by small worms, leaving brown colored pas- 
sages of the size of acommon pin. ‘This is the portion chosen for 
the construction of mill stones ; and when properly selected, affords 
an excellent instrument for the manufacture of flour. I received this 
summer, a specimen of cellular quartz, from the shore of the Missis- 
sippi, in Calhoun county, Illinois, containing a large and very fine 
Spirifer cameratus, similar to those found here; proving the habitat 
of this shell to have been widely extended over the bed ef this an- 
cient ocean.—7 feet. 

6. Resting on the uper surface of the main siliceous rock, is a de- 
posit of a much more loosely cohering calcareo-siliceous material, 
containing considerable iron, and resembling bog ore, being probably 
the remains of the mineral matter held in solution by the warm water 
of the ocean, afier the more siliceous portion had been thrown down. 
That this was actually tne fact, is more than probable from the ir- 
regular and diffuse manner in which this deposit rests on the other 
strata, being confined to a narrow belt of only a few miles in width ; 
it must have been discharged from the bowels of the earth through a 
fissure in the bottom of the ocean, opened by the force of internal 
heat, and the expansive power of confined gases, and gradually pre- 
cipitated in the vicinity of the opening, which on more minute exam- 
ations, I doubt not may be accurately traced.—2 feet. 

7. Above this is a deposit of rich yellowish, argillaceous soil, once 
covered with a heavy growth of forest trees, but now under cultiva- ' 
tion. The siliceous rocks abound in fossil shells, affording presump- 
tive evidence of the assumed fact, that they lived and propagated in 
the bed of the ocean for many years after the precipitation of the 
siliceous mud; and that they finally perished and became silicified 
after and during the period of the change from water to dry land. 
The genera and species are, many of them, similar to those found in 
the upper calcareous rocks at Zanesville ; and figured and described 


Cannel Coal.—Cabinet of the Atheneum at Zanesville. 79 


in the ‘section of Putnam hill.” I procured and brought away, a 
number of beautiful specimens, some of which were replaced by chal- 
cedony, and quite translucent. 

Cannel coal.—Six miles west of this place, in Licking county, 
but still in the siliceous deposits, there has been recently discovered 
a fine bed of Cannel coal, similar to that near Cambridge, in Guern- 
sey Co. Ohio. I did not visit the place myself, but have no doubt 
of the fact; an intelligent friend assuring me he had specimens from 
that spot. These deposits having been subjected to a very con- 
siderable degree of heat, would be the proper place to look for cannel 
coal, as this species appears to be the common bituminous coal, re- 
duced to a pasty or semi-fluid state by heat after it was deposited. 
Its fracture is similar to that of a vitrified substance, highly conchoidal. 

This region has been a favorite spot with the aborigines; large 
heaps of fragments are found where arrow heads had been manufac- 
tured. Many of these pieces are of the first quality for gun flints, 
and are much prized by the neighboring hunters. Mounds are also 
common; a very large one near this place is constructed of sandstone, 
made up of fracments of such size as a man can conveniently lift. It 
is at least sixty feet in diameter at the base, and fifteen feet in height. 
The mound is the more interesting, from the fact, that no sandstone 
is found on the surface, within half a mile of it. The flint rocks 
were perhaps, considered sacred and too valuable to be applied to 
such a purpose, although covering the ground. Large springs of 
very pure water are common in this formation. After returning to 
Zanesville, I visited the coal beds and examined the stratification 
of ‘ Putnam hill.” 

Cabinet of the Atheneum at Zanesville—May 22: I passed the 
day in examining the cabinet of the Atheneum. It contains a num- 
ber of very interesting remains of the gigantic mastodon ; consisting 
of molar teeth and large portions of the tusks. A number of rare 
fossil shells, amongst which I noticed Ammonites Hildreth and Pho- 
ladomya elongata, with the undescribed bones of some extinct ani- 
mals, several of which were found in excavating the Ohio canal, in 
a@ peat swamp, two miles north of Nashport, in the deep cutting be- 
tween the valley of the Muskingum and the Licking, on Wakitomika 
Creek. The mud in this swamp was very deep and of a thin fluid 
character, similar to that of some of the bogs on the sides of the moun- 
tains in Scotland. It occasioned much trouble and expense, crowd- 
ing in laterally at night a quantity equal to all that the workmen could 
throw out by day ; it was finally overcome by a frame work of tim- 


80 Cabinet of the Atheneum at Zanesville. 


ber and planks, until the sides of the canal were built up and secured, 
with gravel and earth. 

The fossil head of the animal which belongs to the order Rumin- 
antia and probably to an extinct species of the genus Ovis, was found 
at the depth of eight feet in company with two others, near it. The - 
bones of the mastodon, and the right halves of the lower jaws of two 
extinct animals of the order Rodentia, or Gnawers, with a radius or 
bone of the fore arm, were found at the depth of fourteen feet, resting 
on a bed of pebbles and gravel. ‘They were safely preserved from 
decay by the black carbonaceous mud under which they lie, but had 
been considerably worn by attrition, before being deposited here, 
which might have been at the same period, and by the same catas- 
trophe which covered the districts north and west of this with prim- 
itive bowlders. One of the heads of the Oves, and one of the half 
jaws of the Rodentia, are now in the cabinet of the Atheneum. ‘The 
drawings of these relics are of one fourth the natural size, and will 
assist the reader in understanding the descriptions which I shall at- 
tempt to give. 3 

The radius or bone of the fore arm.—Description.—Ten inches 
in length, two inches across the head, and one and a half inches 
across the carpal extremity, with a strong process on the outer side. 
A moderately elevated longitudinal process runs nearly the whole 
length of the bone, with a profound groove beside it. From the 
thickness of the bone in proportion to the length, I should infer that 
powerful muscles had been attached toit. Fig. 15. 

Upper Incisor.—This tooth is very much curved, embracing the 
larger portion of a semicircle. Measuring on the outer margin of 
the tooth, it is eight inches in length; but being broken and shorten- 
ed at both the cutting and radical extremities, it must originally have 
been not less than ten or twelve inches. Diameter, seven eighths of | 
an inch. A section of the tooth is nearly triangular, as shown at 
Fig. 18, with the two inner faces plano-concave, and the outer face 
rounded and deeply grooved. Fig. 16. 

Lower Jaw.—The maxillary portion of the jaw, is eight inches 
long, and four inches wide across the articulating portion. The con- — 
dyloid process is broken and gone. Molar teeth.—The molares are 
four in number, standing obliquely to the line of the alveolar process. 
The grinding surface of each tooth is channeled, in the manner of 
ruminating animals, five eighths of an inch in diameter, with the front 
tooth a little longer than the back one. ‘They are firmly placed in 
the jaw for grinding hard ligneous substances. 


~ Cabinet of the Atheneum at Zanesville. el 


Figures one fourth size. 


Inferior Incisor.—The lower incisor is much less curved than the 
upper, and is longer than the whole jaw, being no less than nine 
inches in length and one inch in diameter. ‘The two inner surfaces 
are smooth and plano-convex, while the outer surface is deeply 
grooved, and the whole is coated with a dark brown glossy enamel. 
It is strongly inserted into the jaw opposite the last molar tooth, 
passing under them all. The cutting extremity is trenchant and 
beautifully fitted for cutting wood or bark. Its left inner surface for 
two inches near the end is considerably worn, from friction with the 
upper incisor. ‘The muscular impressions are very profound, giving 
proof of great strength in the jaw and the head to which it was at- 
tached. Fig. 17. 

Remarks.—This animal was doubtless a Gnawer, perhaps of the 
Beaver family ; or from the grooved outer surfaces of the incisors, 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 1. 11 


82 Head of fossil Ovis.—Fosstl Chiton. 


a marine animal of the Walrus or seal race, and a borderer of the 
ancient ocean. Since my return from Zanesville, I have received 
the larger portion of a similar tooth, imbedded in dark colored car- 
bonate of lime. It was found on Wills Creek, near the lias deposits, 
about forty miles east, and had fallen out from a calcareous rock which 
lies near the tups of the hills, one hundred and fifty feet apoE the 
bed of the creek.* 

Head of fossil Ovis.—DescriptionThe whole head is much 
rounder and fuller than the domestic sheep. Breadth of os frontis 
between the eyes, three and a half inches: orbitary processes very 
prominent and one and six eighths of an inch in diameter: space be- 
tween the horns, two inches at the base, which incline backward at 
an angle of about sixty degrees. Base of the head, measuring from 
occipital hole, to nasal extremity, eight inches, a part of which is 
broken off. Six stout molar teeth on each side; a mamillary pro- 
cess on each side of the upper maxillary bones, one third of an inch 
high, with broad base, opposite the second molar tooth, counting 
from back forward. ‘They are probably the supports of a fleshy 
substance for the growth of tufts of long hairs. Palate bones slight- 
ly arched. The medullary portion of the horns now remaining, 
is two inches long; thin on the upper side, and one inch thick on 
the under, and one and a half inches deep. From their direction, 
they were probably more like goats’ horns than those of a common 
sheep. ‘The animal differed from the domestic sheep in the follow- 
ing particulars. In the domestic animal, the space between the 
horns is much less ; between the eyes, the distance is alsoless. ‘The 
eyes themselves are considerably smaller, and there is no mamillary 
process on the maxillary bone, which is the strongest mark of a spe- 
cific difference between the modern and the ancient races. It may 
be named Ovis mamillaris. Fig. 19, gives a view of the head. 

Fossil Chiton.—Description.Length, eight inches; breadth, 
six inches; nearly cordiform in its outlines, and fully one inch in 
thickness on the lateral margins. Back slightly convex. Shell, 
with ten valves; longitudinally arranged and finely united on the 
back of the animal, somewhat resembling spinal articulations. Sur- 
face of each valve, smooth, or very slightly striated, and distinctly 


* In excavating the new canal this summer, in the deep cutting between the 
heads of Sandy and Beaver Creeks, many fossil bones were found. Among them, 
I am informed by J. Pierce, Esq., are some similar to these, but more than three 
times as large. 


Head of fossil Ovis.—Fossil Chiton. 83 


Fig. 19.—Side view of the head of fossil Ovis, reduced. 


Gir: 


ww )) | 


Rs 
Fig. 19.—F ront view of the head of fossil Ovis, reduced. 


ie \ 
“ Se 


marked with a very plain suture. Margin, smooth. The dermoid 
portion is replaced by a beautiful, greenish colored, crystalized car- 
bonate of lime, about one line thick. 

_ Remarks.—This beautifully preserved fossil animal, was found a 
few days since, imbedded in a dark carbonaceous lime rock, which 
forms the bed of the Muskingum river, a short distance below the 
falls. In splitting the rock, the back of the animal was distinctly 
disclosed ; the abdomen is yet buried in the fragment. ‘The outlines 
are very perfect, showing the back and sides very distinctly. This 


J 


84 Fossil Chiton. 


fossil so much more resembles a Chiton, than any of the family of 
- Asaphi, that [ have ventured to name it, Chiton occidentalis, until 
some one more appropriate can be found. Fig. 20, one fourth size. 


Fig. 20. 


May 23.—I left Zanesville at early dawn, in the stage coach for 
Marietta. The environs of Zanesville, are picturesque and beauti-. 
ful, affording many fine views of scenery. The whippoorwill or Ca- 
primulgus vociferus, was chanting his monotonous matin hymn, and 
ever and anon, the mocking bird added his cheerful and varied notes. 
A striking change has taken place in the progress of vegetation within 
a few days, especially from that of the elevated table lands on the 
heads of the Muskingum, where many of the forest trees were yet 
destitute of foliage. We reached Chandlers, the site of an ancient 
saline, to breakfast. At the first settlement of the country, before salt 
wells were in use, the inhabitants were in the practice of assembling 
in parties of six or eight, and with their domestic kettles make a 
scanty supply for their own use, from the saline water as it arose 
from the earth near the bed of Salt Creek, a good sized millstream, 
which discharges its waters into the Muskingum, about ten miles be- 
low Zanesville. The Anona glabra or papaw, and Prunus virginia- 
nus or black cherry, are both in bloom. Rye is in head, ready to 
blossom, and Indian corn just above ground. We reached Marietta 
at 8 P. M. after an absence of eighteen days. 


Notice of an Aurora Borealis. 85 


Art. Il.— Notice of the Aurora Borealis,* of Aprii 22. 


We had the good fortune to witness, on the night of the 22d, 
and morning of the 23d of April, a most magnificent display of 
northern lights. This phenomenon is but rarely seen in our lati- 
tude, and more rarely still, appears to us in its highest splendor. 
As accurate a description, therefore, as may be given of its late 
remarkable appearance, with a statement of such facts, as may 
tend in any degree to elucidate the questions which it presents, 
cannot be unacceptable, and may prove useful. I begin by noting 
the state of the weather at the time; although I am not aware that 
the Aurora either influences it, or is affected by it. The day was 
fair during the whole of the 22d. A high wind blew from the north- 
west until mid-day, when it became calm. At night fall, the wind 
again arose, and increased gradually so as to be moderately high by 
two o'clock the next morning. At dusk it had shifted to the west. 
The temperature was 39° at sun-rise of the 22d, and 53° at three 
o'clock, P.M. From ten o’clock that night until two the following 
morning, the thermometer stood at 38°; the barometer remained 
stationary at 30.00 throughout the evening and night. 

About seven o’clock on the evening of the 22d, it was noticed 
that a large part of the northern heavens was covered with a thin 
vapor-like appearance—white at the base—of a pale red at the upper 
edges, and of adeeper hue, red and yellow intermixed, about the 
middle. It spread through an arc of sixty degrees near the hori- 
zon, and extended half way up to the zenith. Before nine o’clock 
it had disappeared, leaving nothing but a bank of white Auroral 
vapor, stretching along the north and north-east horizon. At fifteen 
minutes after ten, on looking towards the north, I perceived a few 
well-defined columns, shooting up a short distance, each of them 
appearing and vanishing momentarily ; yet so that to a careless ob- 
server, they might seem to remain permanently before the view. 


* To Prorgssor SILLIMAN, Yale College, New Haven. 


Dear Sir,—The following account of the Aurora Borealis of April 22d, as it 
appeared at this place, was lately made at the monthly meeting of a Scientific 
Association, the members of which have requested me to forward it to you; for 
insertion in your Journal. If you think it sufficiently interesting, you will oblige 
me by giving it a place in your next number. 

I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, J. McCarrrey. 

Mt. St. Mary’s College, Emmitsburg, May 18th, 1836. 


86 Notice of an Aurora Borealis. 


Some of my friends were now called up to enjoy the spectacle, and 
subsequently all the Professors and Tutors, and many students of 
the College, were witnesses of the phenomena. Gradually the 
northern streams increased both in number and in length, as new 
ones sprung east and west of those originally observed. Stars could 
be seen dimly shining through them. The color of these corusca- 
tions was of a bluish white near their base; farther up it was of a 
brighter and more silvery hue. ‘Those nearest the moon, which 
was then in her first quarter and gave a strong light, assumed for a 
very short time a pale green, then a bright orange color; and one, 
which shot up to a great length, became particularly remarkable by 
its brilliant redness. The whole scene was still farther enlivened by 
a beautiful play of crimson light gracefully undulating upwards along 
the streamers. ‘The long rays continued to shoot up higher and 
higher, until they all converged at a point on or near the meridian, 
about midway between Arcturus and 8 Leonis. The right ascen- 
sion of the focus, was found, on reference to the globe, to be 194° 
20’, and its declension, 18° north. It is not, however, pretended 
that its position was determined with perfect accuracy. At this 
point, the streamers which magnificently decorated the whole north- 
ern hemisphere, reddening as they converged, formed a superb oval 
crown of deep crimson light. This crown, which seemed like a 
lake of blood, extended, east and west, about fifteen degrees, and 
ten or twelve in the opposite direction. It had such a preternatural 
aspect, and, viewed in connexion with the accompanying phenome- 
na, one of such overpowering sublimity, as to inspire a profound 
feeling of religious awe. It lasted from five minutes before eleven 
o'clock, until five minutes after. Gradually the redness faded away ; 
the coruscations, which had lately met and mingled im the color of 
blood, no longer entirely converged ; around the focus was left a 
blank space of very irregular outline ; south of it were seen the 
broken off extremities of the most northern rays ; while all the rays 
near the convergence, had a peculiar brushy appearance. At later 
periods, the point of convergence, as well as it could be determined, 
was found nearer and nearer to Arcturus, indicating that the whole 
meteor moved with the earth. During the more brilliant stages of 
the phenomena, the stars looked very dim; and the moon, previous 
to her setting, shorn of more than half her lustre, had a sickly, pal- 
lid aspect. For the space of two hours after the disappearing’ of 
the Auroral crown, the illuminated portion of the heavenly dome 


Notice of an Aurora Borealis. 87 


exhibited in great brilliancy and variety, the phenomenon fancifully 
called the “‘ Merry Dancers.” It was the incessant play of a flick- 
ering light, not so bright as the Vespertine, which in some respects 
it resembled, glancing about in various directions, but chiefly towards 
the zenith, over-this vast expanse. Its motions were far too varied 
and fantastic, to admit of description. In general, one flash seemed 
to chase another, as they arose in graceful undulations, or rather 
darted up the sky, along and between the white Auroral columns. 
At half past eleven, the spectacle began to lose its attractive bril- 
liancy. Still later, the luminous rays were intersected by two irre- 
gular belts of white vapor, which appeared successively in the north 
and north-east, one of them spanning an arc of about thirty, the 
other of forty or forty five degrees. ‘There were a few other nebu- 
lous masses of the same substance, but of less extent. About twelve 
o’clock, the Merry Dancers renewed the splendor of their exhibition, 
and continued it with less and less brilliancy for an hour. Between 
eleven and twelve, a dark cloud had arisen in the northeast ; before 
two, the wind was blowing from the south, and the sky was so far 
overcast as to hide completely from our view all that remained of 
that magnificence and splendor, on which we had gazed for hours, 
and would willingly have gazed at much longer. 

The magnetic needle was observed to oscillate during the phe- 
nomenon. Its perceived variation was forty five seconds westward ; 
but we have reason to suppose that a greater variation might have 
been detected, had we been able to ascertain it with more perfect 
accuracy. 

The morning of the 23d was cloudy, with a very high southeast 
wind. ‘The thermometer at sun-rise, stood at 42°, the barometer 
at 29.98. It was fair at noon. At three o’clock, P. M. the ther- 
mometer indicated 62°, the barometer 29.83. The wind had now 
fallen, and a perfect calm ensued. At half past eight, P. M. of the 
same day, a streak of red light was seen towards the north. Later, 
there were a few other faint indications of an Aurora ; but the hopes 
excited by them were disappointed. 


88 On Definitions. 


Art. III.—On Definitions ; by Rev. D. Wixxiz, of Quebec. 
No. III. | 


From the observations already made on this subject, it must evi- 
dently appear that the terms employed in treating of moral subjects 
do not admit of accurate logical definitions. ‘The only means that 
one man possesses of knowing what are the feelings of another man, 
are by judging of causes by their effects, and of effects by their 
causes. In either case, the feeling itself is unknown to us, and per- 
ceptible only to the sentient being himself. We infer that like 
causes produce similar effects in him, and in us, and that like feel- 
ings lead to similar effects and similar expressions in bim and in us. 

We have had experience that the prospect of good, of some ad- 
vantage and happiness, affords us the pleasant feelings of hope. We 
infer that it produces the same effect in him. We know the ani- 
mated and lively expressions of joy which it led us to use. If we 
see the same lively and animated conduct on his part, we attribute 
it to the same cause; and are especially confirmed in this opinion, 
if we know that a similar cause existed to produce it. 

Still these inferences possess less or more the nature of conjec- 
tures: the feeling itself remains forever unseen, but to the man 
himself who has it. Mankind neither see it, nor can seeit. They 
can judge of it only by its effects, or by its causes. } 

Besides we know in fact, that the feelings of mankind are widely 
different on the same subjects. ‘They are similar, but widely differ- 
ent in extent. ‘There must alway s, therefore, exist some degree of 
uncertainty. as to the names given to the feelings of the mind. We 
may approach to strict definitions, but cannot obtain them with per- 
fect accuracy. ‘ 

Hence it is, that all moral rules have a certain latitude, and must 
be applied according to circumstances. If we examine any of the 
most celebrated maxims of antiquity, or any of the best moral rules 
laid down by the moderns, we shall find that there is scarcely one 
of them, perhaps not one, which does not, in certain circumstances, 
give rise to doubt, mistake, and disputation. ‘The general course of 
human life, it is true, is governed by rules which are clear and pre- 
cise. But there are situations in which the application of every 
rule that can be devised becomes doubtful and uncertain. 


On Definitions. 89 


One of the maxims handed down from the early ages of the 
Greeks, said to have been first delivered by Pittacus, was (Ivéiés 
xoupd¢, OCCasionem cognosce,) observe, or act according to the occasion. 
This maxim, if fairly interpreted, seems to imply, that our conduct 
and behavior ought to be suited to the occasion before us, that is, 
in fact, to the circumstances in which we are placed, which circum- 
stances, are indeed the very causes why we are required toact. It 
is impossible, therefore, that any advice can be more proper, or more 
salutary, if fully acted on. Yet, by a very slight change in the mode of 
viewing the precept, it may be understood in a totally different sense ; 
it may be considered as sanctioning the practice of a time-server, 
the most despicable of all characters, as studying to render every 
change of circumstances, by every means in his power, subservient 
to his immediate and personal interests. 

The more celebrated maxim, (I'vaids ceavlov,) know thyself, ap- 
pears much less exceptionable, and is perhaps less liable to miscon- 
struction than any rule that can be given. Yet even this has been 
found subject, or at least, thought to be subject to misconception. 
How often is it observed of persons of either sex, that they would 
be better characters, that is, more observant of their moral duties, 
if they knew less of the superiority of their personal qualities? 
This is one aspect in which the precept would seem to be wrong, 
though in reality the error is only apparent ; for the knowledge which 
is blamed, or thought hurtful in such persons, is only a partial 
knowledge of themselves, and its ill effects would be entirely obvi- 
ated by a fuller acquaintance with every thing that can be compre- 
hended under the complex term, themselves. 

No rule in morals is of more extensive application, or more useful 
in practice, than that which requires us to hold sacred the property 
of another. The general application of this rule is obvious and 
extremely easy. Yet no rule has given rise to such innumerable 
questions, and we daily see hundreds of disputes arise out of this 
subject, which give occasion to the most serious contestations, and 
which nothing but superior authority, joined with superior knowledge, 
can decide. Many of the questions that arise out of this very gen- 
eral rule, are of so vague and intricate a nature, that nothing but 
an arbitrary rule, applicable to all the cases that fall under it, can 
serve the purpose of guiding the actions of mankind in regard to 
them. For example, whether the property of any literary work 
or invention, shall continue to be the author’s or inventor’s, for 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. 12 


90 On Definitions. 


twelve, or fifteen, or twenty, or fifty years, is a question which can- 
not be settled but by some positive enactment on the subject. And 
even when this is done, the subject is still sufficiently vague and in- 
definite to give rise to numerous questions, to many doubts, and a 
great deal of litigation as to the right of authorship and prior inven- 
tion. 

These examples will be sufficient, it is hoped, to explain clearly 
what is meant by the general assertion already and repeatedly made, 
that moral science does not admit of strictly logical definitions. This 
assertion was proved in the previous part of these observations, in 
which it was shown that morality was occupied with invisible objects, 
which could not be brought before the eye, or any of the senses, 
for the purpose of verifying to each other’s satisfaction, the use which 
we make of the terms employed. ‘The examples now adduced, 
serve also to illustrate the consequences of that incapability of strict 
definition, the partial uncertainty of all discussions of this kind, the 
possibility of being misunderstood in every statement of a moral 
nature, and the extreme degree of care that is necessary in the use 
of every term which we employ. 

No human science can be compared in importance with morals, © 
since upon this depends all the happiness of men, whether considered 
as individuals, or existing in societies. It is impossible to express 
in too strong terms, the infinite importance of acquiring accurate 
conceptions of the ideas involved in the various terms which it em- 
ploys, as well as of adhering in our own use of these terms, to the 
most strict and logical definitions that can be obtained. Nothing is 
so much to be deprecated as a loose and careless use of terms, in 
this, the most important of all sciences. ‘The conduct of individuals 
cannot be expected to be correct and consistent, while their ideas of 
their duty are wavering and uncertain. Still less can the conduct 
of nations and societies be strictly conformable to justice or to their 
own interest, while the moral conceptions of those who direct them, 
are fluctuating and ill founded. Numberless disputes, also, which 
have divided and embittered the sentiments of mankind, would have 
been prevented or soon removed, had those who entertained them, 
had an opportunity of coming to a mutual understanding respecting 
the terms employed in the expression of their opinions. And it 
cannot be doubted, that the total want of reflection on that uncer- 
tainty which we have shown to be inherent in the origin of our 
moral sentiments, has been a fruitful source of that fearful intolerance 
which has marked so many ages of the history of man. 


On Definitions. 


The observations which have been made upon moral definitions, 
are in all respects, applicable to intellectual ones: But the subject 
is of much less importance, as for the most part, persons only pos- 
sessing some degree of education, are interested in questions of this 
description ; while moral discriminations are in use among all man- 
kind, and are employed by them during every waking hour of their 
lives. 40) 

I proceed to make some observations on the use of definitions in 
those branches of human knowledge which are conversant, partly 
in visible, and partly in invisible objects. 

Grammar, rhetoric, and criticism, together with every thing rela- 
ting to the theory and practice of language, are conversant in objects 
perceived by the senses, namely, words ; but many of these words 
are the signs of invisible objects, and therefore bring us back to the 
principles ‘already explained, for judging of hie: unseen by their 
causes, or by their effects. 

In these departments of knowledge, the ie definitions that can 
be given, are for the most part imperfect, and, in many cases, vague. 
By a beginner in these studies, they can never be understood with- 
out numerous examples, and much practice is necessary for their 
full development. 

In grammar, for example, no writer has hitherto been able to pro- 
duce a satisfactory definition of the very common word Verb, though 
that is one of the most important in the list of grammatical terms. 
No definition of that part of speech can be given which does not 
exclude something which that term ought to contain, or which does 
not contain something which it ought to exclude. 

A noun is defined by the best writers on grammar to be the name 
of something: but the words name and something, are both so indef- 
inite, that nothing but long practice can enable any one to under- 
stand thoroughly the definition. 

Of all the definitions in grammar, none seems more simple and easy 
than that of a pronoun, which is defined, a word used instead of a 
noun. But numberless instances constantly occur, of nouns that are 
used instead of other nouns, which, by the definitions, would there- 
fore, themselves become pronouns. ‘Thus, instead of repeating a 
person’s name, or the name of a place, we say, the person or place, 
mentioned before, or mentioned above. All such phrases by the 
definition, ought to be pronouns. 


92 ee On Definitions. 


The terms employed in the higher departments of rhetoric and 
criticism, and all discussions on language are equally vague with 
those that have been mentioned, and equally incapable of strict defi- 
nition. All such terms as figure, simile, personification, hyperbole, 
concise, diffuse, elegant, simple, sublime in style, prose, poetry, his- 
tory, pastoral and didactic poetry, and numberless others of'a similar 
nature, admit of no precise definitions. The ideas conveyed by them, 
run into each other like tbe colors of the rainbow, and cannot be pre- 
cisely discriminated. We are not indeed, to suppose, that the use 
of these words and phrases, is always uncertain. Many of their 
applications, perhaps the greatest number of them, are accompanied 
with no uncertainty. But there are others in which their use will 
always be doubtful, There can be no difficulty in distinguishing an 
ordinary Epic Poem from a Tragedy or a Pastoral. But there are 
poems of which it is not easy to say, to what class they belong. 
And of some works written by eminent authors, there are disputes 
whether they are to be considered as prose or poetry. 

One figure that we meet with, may be decidedly a comparison ; 
but of another, we cannot tell whether it is a metaphor, or a pro- 
sopopeia, or an apostrophe. And when we come to determine the 
propriety of its application, we are still in greater difficulty, and 
must employ much analogical reasoning; we must appeal to the 
vague dictates of Taste; we must call up the feelings of the heart, 
which differ widely in different men. Who can define elegance in 
writing? Who can tell in what simplicity consists? Who can de- 
scribe in what consists that nameless grace in so many favorite au- 
thors which all delight to peruse, which appear to all so easy to im- 
itate, but which so few have the fortune to. acquire the power of 
transfusing into their writings ? 

Since in these departments of knowledge, the terms in most com- 
mon use, are So vague, and so little subjected to precise limitation, 
it can hardly be doubted that the whole system of precepts and 
speculations in these departments, possesses the same vagueness, the 
same antipathy to precise limitation and control. ‘The whole of 
those speculations which are designated by the Belles Lettres, Crit- 
icism and Literature, as far as they consist of judgments upon the 
performances of Literary Authors, are made up of appeals to the 
feelings of the heart, and are more or Jess just, according to the 
power which the writer possesses in embodying his own feelings, or 
in first observing, and then of embodying those of others. 


On De sfimitions. 93 


Those parts of this extensive department, however, which fall 
under the general denomination of Grammar, have, for reasons 
which will presently be seen, been reduced to a more definite form. 
The rules of Grammar are all arbitrary, for the subject admits of, 
no other; and they resemble the arbitrary rules, laws and statutes 
of the Jurist; while the precepts and directions of the Critic, are, 
as Dr. Smith justly observes,* like the ethical maxims that enjoin 
benevolence and humanity. The former mark out for us a precise 
line ; the latter, import general principles, but leave the precise 
mode of application to ourselves. 

There are two reasons why the rules of grammar have, in all lan- 
guages, been reduced to a precise form. ‘The one is the vanity of 
man, the other is his necessities or his interest. Men are led by 
their vanity to seek and to study precise rules both of construction 
and grammatical pronunciation. When a person is introduced into 
a society whose language he but imperfectly understands, or under- 
stands without being able to practice with facility, his first awkward 
attempts to communicate his sentiments, are ungraceful, and attend- 
ed with some degree of ridicule. However the polished part of 
mankind may repress this sentiment, it is undoubtedly natural and 
unavoidable. Even those who are well acquainted with a language, 
whenever, either from inadvertence or affectation, they deviate 
from the accustomed tones of pronunciation, or the usual forms of 
speech, they are received with some degree of contempt, or at 
least excite a smile. ‘To avoid these inconveniences, to escape with 
greater certainty from the mortification of such situations, certain 
rules come to be followed, which, when they become considerable 
in number, are denominated the rules of grammar. 

But whenever'and however introduced, these rules are found to 
be not less useful than ornamental. ‘They are found to serve a 
much higher purpose than at first supposed. They are found to be 
eminently subservient to perspicuity. From the view that has been 
given, it must evidently be originally a matter of no small difficulty 
to convey the sentiments of one man’s mind into that of another. 
Nor is it ever done with perfect precision. ‘To promote this impor- 
tant end, to convey our ideas with all the perspicuity that is possible, 
since it is never perfect, the best and most effectual means that can 


* Theory of Moral Sentiments. 


94 Analyses of Mineral Waters. 


be followed, is to study fully the rules of grammar, and to practice 
them unremittingly. It is principally by its capability of serving 
this great purpose, that one language is considered as more impro- 
ved, or more nearly approaching to perfection, than another. » __ 

It is of importance to observe that the art of grammar goes no fur- 
ther than to assist us in avoiding ambiguity. It furnishes no néw 
means of conveying our sentiments. ‘These the speaker or the wri- 
ter must derive from that command over language, which his mem- 
ory, his experience, and his associated ideas, give him. In this res- 
pect, the art of grammar is on a par with the art of criticism. The 
latter can only teach the poet or the orator to avoid errors. It cre- 
ates no new faculties ; it imparts no new powers. It simply directs, 
and guards from more glaring errors, those powers which nature has 
bestowed. Every practitioner in these elevated arts, and the con- 
nected ones, must seek for the means of great performances, in the 
resources of his own mind, in the vividness of his conceptions, and 
the boundless extent of his associations. 

To conclude, all the physical sciences may in time, and after 
great improvements, be reduced to the form of exact sciences. 
Morals and literature, from the nature of the subjects of which they 
treat, must, however improved, be for ever excluded from that class. 


Arr. I1V.—Chemical Analyses of Mineral Waters from the an taal 
by Cuartes T. Jackson, M. D. 


No. 1. Four bottles of water, carefully sealed at the boiling tem- 
perature. Mark, “No strings on necks of bottles.” 

This water was taken from the centre of the Great Geyser, by 
Dr. Webster. 

On examination, there appears to be a partial vacuum over the 
water, so that it has evidently been well secured, and the water does 
not contain any gas in solution. When uncorked, no odor is per- 
ceptible. ‘The water is transparent. A few flocculi of siliceous mat- 
ter separate on standing. ‘Tested for free acid, by blue litmus pa- 
per, none discovered. Reddened litmus paper is turned blue, and 
turmeric paper brown by the water. Hence it contains a free al- 
kalt. <A portion of the water, neutralized by hydrochloric acid, was 
tested for metallic salts, precipitable by liquid sulphuretted hydro- 
gen, and by hydro-sulphate of ammonia,—none discovered. A por- 


Analyses of Mineral Waters. 95 


tion of the water tested for sulphates, gave a white cloud, with ace- 
tate of barytes. ‘The water, tested for soluble chlorides by solution 
of nitrate of silver, an abundant precipitate of chloride of silver was 
formed. After separation of the chloride of silver, the water, with 
slight excess of nitrate of silver, being exposed to sun light, a dark 
reddish brown precipitate forms, indicating the presence of organic 
matter. 

Sp. gr. of the water is 1.0022, pure water being 1. 5000 grs. of 
the water, evaporated to dryness in a green glass dish, left 8.25 grs. 
of solid matter, of a straw yellow color, and containing numerous 
brilliant scales of silicate of soda, and crystals of chloride of sodium. 
It was observed while the evaporation of the water was going on, 
that gelatinous flocculi of the hydrate of silica separated, and to- 
wards the close of the evaporation the whole mass became very ge- 
latinous, and required great care to avoid loss of matter by projec- 
tion from the vessel. The dry mass was 8.25 gers. in 5000 gers. 
of Baie, and on analysis, was found to consist of 

Carbonate of soda, 

Silicate of soda, 

Chloride of sodium, 

Silicic acid, 
Sulphate of soda, 
Boracic acid? and 
Lithia, 

No iodine, bromine, lime or potash, discovered. 

The quantity of silicic acid contained in 5000 ers. of this water, 
is 1.6 grs. It is retained in solution in the state of stlicate of soda. 
When the soda is exposed to the air, it attracts carbonic acid, and 
the silica is deposited. It is a very remarkable water, and of great 
geological interest. : 


‘ a trace. 


Analysis of Water, “ from the reservoir into which the hot water 
rises.” Mark No. 2, “three strings on neck.” 


This ‘water is clear and transparent; has a ferruginous taste; a 
few bubbles of gas escape when it is uncorked. Tested by lime 
water, it gives a precipitate of carbonate of lime; by hydro-sulphate 
of ammonia, black precipitate of sulphuret of iron; and by ferro- 
cyanate of potash, blue precipitate takes place. Acetate of barytes 
gives a white cloud of sulphate of barytes. Nitrate of silver gives 
an abundant precipitate of chloride of silver, and the supernatant 


96 Analyses of Mineral Waters. 


water turns black on exposure to sun light. ‘The water, tested by 
a solution of acetate of lead, a white precipitate of carbonate of 
lead forms, but no sulphuret. From the above researches, it ap- 
pears that this water contains carbonates, chlorides and sulphates, in 
solution, besides a minute quantity of organic matter. Sp. gravity 
1.002. 5000 ers. of the water, evaporated to dryness in a green 
glass capsule, give 7.6 grs. of dry solid matter of a brown color, con- 
sisting of . 

Silicic acid, ss - i 

Carbonate of iron, - - 0.9 

Carbonate of soda, 

Sulphate of soda, 


Chloride of sodium, : 

Organic matter, 

Carbonic acid gas, —- 
7.6 


Boston, March, 1836. 


Art. V.—Chemical Analysis of Water from the Azores. Wa- 
ter called Aqua Azéda; by Cuartes T. Jackson, M. D. 


Two bottles, containing mineral water from St. Michael’s, well 
corked and sealed. When one of the bottles was opened, a copious 
extrication of carbonic acid gas took place, accompanied by a very 
slight odor of sulpburetted hydrogen. Taste of the water is very 
agreeable, acidulous and brisk. When drunk, it is found to be 
slightly tonic and antacid. ‘Tested with lime water, it gives an 
abundant precipitate of carbonate of lime. Its sp. gr. is =1.001. 
5000 grs. of the water, evaporated to dryness, gave 1.4 grs. solid 
matter of a brown color, which yields on analysis, 


»,. Silicic acid, - - 0.25 
Carbonate of iron, - - 0.30 
Carbonate of magnesia, = - 0.02 

» Carbonate of lime, - - 0.01 
Carbonate of soda, 

Chloride of sodium, ; sc 
Sulphate of soda,  - - 0.01 
Carbonic acid gas, — 
1.39 

1 loss. 


1.40 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 97 


A fresh bottle of the water was taken, in order to determine the 
quantity of carbonic acid gas, which it contained. 5,000 grs. of 
the water were introduced into a small retort, which it nearly filled, 
and it was then connected with a graduated receiver, and heat ap- 
plied to the retort. Carbonic acid gas passed over abundantly. 
When it was entirely extricated from the water, it was found to ex- 
ceed its bulk in the proportion of 6 measures of gas to 5 measures 
of water. 

This mineral water is of a remarkable character, containing car- 
bonates of iron and soda in solution, with silicic acid. It is a valua- 
ble tonic and antacid remedy. ‘The silicic acid is in combination 
with a portion of the soda in the state of silicate of soda. I do not 
know whether the presence of this substance will influence the ac- 
tion of the water on the system, but it is probable the silica is de- 
posited in the stomach, and becomes inert the moment the gastric 
fluid acts on the water. Ihave not been able to detect iodine or 
bromine in this spring. I should think it expedient to send the 
Aqua Azéda to this country and to England for medicinal use. 

When I read the above papers before the Boston Society of Nat- 
ural History, I had occasion to exhibit a specimen of this water, 
which was drunk by the members, all of whom agreed that it was 
superior to the Seltzer water, or common soda water of commerce.. 
It is surprising to observe the tonic effects of a minute proportion 
of carbonate of iron contained in a mineral water. ‘The presence of 
carbonate of soda and free carbonic acid no doubt assists in its salu- 
brious action. 

Boston, May 20th, 1836. 


Art. VI.—WNotice sur la Vie et les Ouvrages de M. le Comte 
Lagrange ; par M.la Chevalier Detampre, Secrétaire Perpétuel 
de l’ Institut Royal de France. (Lue le 3 Janvier, 1814.) 


GSES and communicated for this Journal by F. Furber, Boston, Mass. 
Coneluded from Vol. xxx. No. 1. page 80.) 


M. Laplace had arrived, by induction, to that important theorem 
of the invariability of the major axis, and of the mean motions. It 
insured the stability of the planetary system, and dissipated for ever 
the fear that some had entertained, viz. that the planets being con- 


tinually attracted towards the Sun, must finally be precipitated on 
Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. 13 


92 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


this body. M. Lagrange had already arrived ata result of about 
the same kind, for the moon. We can doubt, however, that the 
proposition was true in all its rigor. M. Lagrange had demon- 
strated it directly, and without supposing the orbits nearly circular, 
but with neglecting the squares, and the primary products of the 
masses. M. Poisson has since extended the demonstration to quan- 
tities of the second order. It is presumed that he will extend it to 
products of all orders. As to the rest, what is already done, suffices 
to show us that henceforth all fear in this Hespeet, will be very fool- 
ish and very chimerical. ; erry 

The common method of integrating equations of planetary motions, 
had an inconvenience which rendered solutions almost illusory, that 
of arcs of circles increasing indefinitely with the time. In certain 
cases, the arcs could be expunged. M. Laplace had made upon 
this kind very important remarks, but grounded on a métaphysique 
too subtle to offer the clearness of a purely analytical demonstration. 
Lagrange perceived that on making vary arbitrary constants, accord- 
ing to the principles employed in the theory of particular integrals, 
_ we can always avoid arcs of a circle in the calculation of perturba- 
tions. 

The question of trajectories, or of families of curves, cutting at 
given angles an infinity of other curves, all of the same kind, had 
busied all geometers, from Leibnitz and Bernouilli, until Euler, who 
seemed to have left nothing undone upon this question. Lagrange 
made of it a new question, by carrying it from simple curves to sur- 
faces. It leads to an equation of partial differences, integrable only 
in the case where the angle of intersection is right. 

We have presented only a very imperfect idea of the immense 
series of labors which have given so much value to the Memoirs of 
the Academy of Berlin, while it had the inestimable advantage of 
being directed by M. Lagrange. It is such of these memoirs as by 
their extent and importance, can pass as a great work, and yet they 
were only a part of what those twenty years had seen him produce. 
He had therein composed his Mécanique Analytique, but he desired 
that it should be printed at Paris, where he hoped that his formulas 
would be given with more care and fidelity. It was moreover run- 
ning too great hazard to trust such a manuscript in the hands of a 
traveller, who could not feel sufficiently all its worth. Lagrange 
made of it a copy, which M. Duchatelet took the trouble of remit- 
ting tothe Abbé Marie, with whom he was much connected. Marie 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. Jo 


replied in a manner worthy of the confidence with which he was hon- 
ored. His first care was to seek a bookseller who would risk the un- 
dertaking ; and, what we can now scarcely believe, he could find none. 
The newer his methods, the more sublime his theory, the less were 
they likely to meet readers able to appreciate them, and without de- 
tracting from the merit of the work, the booksellers were excusable 
for distrusting a market found limited to a small number of geome- 
ters spread over the face of Europe. Desaint, the boldest of all those 
who were applied to, consented to risk an edition only under a 
formal engagement, signed by Marie, to take on his own account, 
the remnant of the edition, if at the end of a fixed time, it was not 
entirely exhausted. ‘To this first service, Marie added another, of 
which M. Lagrange was at last also sensible. He procured for him 
an editor worthy of presiding over the impression of such a work. 
M. Legendre devoted himself entirely to this painful revision, and 
found himself repaid for it by the sentiments of veneration with 
which he was penetrated for the author, and by the thanks that he 
received therefor, in a letter which I have had in my hands, and 
which Lagrange had filled with expressions of his esteem and 
gratitude. 

The book had not appeared when the author established himself 
in Paris. Many causes fixed him there. We must not believe, 
however, all those that have been alledged. 

The death of Frederick had introduced great changes into Prus- 
sia, and might cause still greater to be feared. Les savans n’y trou- 
vaient plus la méme-considération ; it was, therefore, very naturally 
that M. Lagrange felt anew that desire that had formerly led him 
to Paris. These causes, with the publication of his Mecanique, were 
quite sufficient. Itis unnecessary to add to them those stated in many 
pamphlets published in Germany, and particularly by the secret his- 
torian of the court of Berlin. Never, during an abode of twenty 
five years in France, have we heard M. Lagrange utter the least 
complaint against the minister accused of having irrevocably dis- 
pleased him, par des mépris et des degotits, que par respect pour 
lui-méme vl lui était impossible de dissimuler. We may suspect that 
Lagrange had sufficient generosity to forget or to pardon wrongs for 
which he had taken the only vengeance worthy of him, that of quit- 
ting a country where his merit had been forgotten. iF when inter- 
rogated directly on this subject, by a member of the Institute, (M. 
Burckhardt,) he gave only negative answers. These indicated no 


100 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


other cause than the misfortunes that were believed ready to fall on 
Prussia. M. Hertzberg was dead. M. Lagrange, now a Count, and 
a French Senator, had no interest in dissembling truth. ‘Thus we 
must refer to his constant denials. 

The historian whom we have cited, was then misinformed. But 
the spirit of reviling and of satire, which so justly made his work 
suspicious, ought not to hinder us from quoting from it the lines 
wherein he sets forth, with all the energy which is peculiar to him, 
his own opinion, sahichnd is that of all Europe, where he Bore justice 
to M. Lagrange.* 

‘‘T] me semble,” these are his terms, “qui il y aurait ici en ce 
moment une acquisition digne du roi de Frances. I/illustre La- 
grange, le premier géometre qui ait paru depuis Newton, et que, 
sous tous les rapportes de l’esprit et du genre, est homme qui m’a 
le plus étonneé; Lagrange le plus sage et peut-étre le seul philoso- 
phe vraiment pratique qui ait jamais existé recommandable par son 
imperturbable sagesse, ses mceurs, sa conduite de tout genre, en un 
mot, l’objet du plus tendre respect du petit nombre d’ hommes dont 
il le laisse approcher, Lagrange est mécontent, tout le convie a se 
retirer d’ un pays ou rien n’ absout du crime d’étre étranger, et ou 
il ne supportera pas de n’ étre pour ainsi dire qu’ un objet de tolé- 
Fanlee.))5\/- . Le prince Cardito de Caffredo, ministre de Naples 
a Copenhague inf a offert les plus belles conditions de la part de 
son souverain : le grand duc, le roi de Sardaigne, |’ invitent vivement ; 
mais toutes leurs propositions qui lui sont faites, pour attendre les 
notres. J’ai oublié de vous dire que |’ ambassadeur, (de France,) 
avait, 4 ma priere, addressé a M. de Vergennes la proposition 
d’ appeler M. Lagrange.” 

The author whom we quote seemed to fear the opposition of M, 
de Breteuil. According to Lagrange himself, it was the abbe Marie 
who proposed him to M. de Breteuil; and this minister, that on all 
occasions met the wishes of the Academy of Sciences, favored this 
demand, and caused him to be agreed upon by Louis XVI, 

The successor of Frederick, although moderately interested in the 
sciences, yet had some scruple in letting go a savant whom his pre- 
decessor had called, and whom he honored with peculiar esteem. 
After some steps, Lagrange succeeded in being permitted to depart, 
with the condition, however, that he would still give many memoirs 


* Secret History of the Court of Berlin, 1789, Tome I, p. 178, et suiv. 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 101 


to the Academy of Berlin. The volumes of 1792, 1793, and 1803, 
prove that he was faithful to his promise. 

It was in 1787, that Lagrange came to Paris to ‘take his seat in 
the Academy of Sciences, of which for fifteen years he was assocze 
etranger. ‘To give him the right of suffrage in all his deliberations, 
this title-was changed into that of penstonnaire vétéran. His new 
fellows vied in appearing happy and glorious of possessing him: la 
reine 1’ accueillit avec bienveillance ; elle le considerait comme alle- 
mand ; il lui avait été recommandé de Vienne.-—Ou lui donna un 
logement au Louvre ; il y vécut heureux jusqu’a la révolution. ‘The 
satisfaction which he enjoyed appeared but little outwardly. Always 
affable when interrogated, he was however under some constraint in 
speaking, and seemed absent and melancholy ; often in a society which 
must have been according to his taste, in the midst of those savans for 
whose sake he had come from so great a distance—among the most 
distinguished men of all countries who assembled whole weeks at the 
house of the illustrious Lavoisier, I have seen him melancholy, and 
standing up against a window where nothing could draw his atten- 
tion. He there remained deaf to all that was said around him; he 
avowed himself, that his enthusiasm was quenched, and that he had 
lost all taste for mathematical researches. — If he learned that a geom- 
eter was engaged on some work, ‘‘so much the better,”’ said he, ‘I 
began it, and shall be exempted from ending it.”’ But this thinking 
head could only change the object of its thoughts. Metaphysics, 
the history of the human mind, that of different religions, the gene- 
ral theory of languages, medicine, botany, shared his leisure. When 
conversation turned upon subjects that seemed as if they must be 
most foreign to him, we were struck with a sudden trait, a fine thought, 
a deep view, that disclosed long reflections. Surrounded by chemists, 
that had just reformed all the theories, and even the language of 
their science, he grasped the current of their discoveries, gave to 
facts previously isolated and inexplicable, that connection which the 
different branches of mathematics have to each other ; he consented 
to acquire knowledge that had formerly seemed so obscure to him, 
and that had become as easy as algebra. We were astonished at 
this comparison ; we thought it could come to the mind only of a 
Lagrange. It appeared to us as simple as just. But it must be taken 
in its real sense. Algebra, which presents so many insoluble prob- 
lems; so many difficulties, against which all the efforts of Lagrange 
himself; had just proved futile, could not appear so easy a study. 


102 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


But he compared the elements of chemistry to those of algebra. 
These new elements formed bodies; they were intelligible; they 
offered more certainty. ‘They resembled those of aleebra, which, 
so far as is invented, offers no difficulty to the conception ; no truth 
to which we cannot arrive by a train of reasoning of the most pal- 
pable evidence. ‘The entrance of chemical science seemed to him 
to offer these same advantages, with a little less certainty and proba- 
ble stability. Like algebra, it has undoubtedly its difficulties, its 
paradoxes which can be explained. only by much sagacity, reflec+ 
tion, and time ; it will have its problems that will remain forever in- 
soluble. 

In this philosophical repose he lived until the revolution, without 
adding any thing to his mathematical discoveries; without. even 
openinga single time his Mecanique Analytique, that had been pub- 
lished more than two years. 

The revolution offered to savans the opportunity of a great and 
difficult innovation ; the establishment of a metrical system, founded 
on nature, and perfectly analogous to our scale of numeration. La- 
grange was one of the commissioners that the Academy entrusted 
with this business ; he was one of its most ardent promoters; he 
wished the decimal system in all its purity: he would not forgive 
' Borda the complacency he had shown in ordering fourths of a metre. 
He was little struck with the objection that was drawn against that 
system, from the small number of the divisions of its base. He al- 
most regretted that it was not a prime number, such as 11, that 
necessarily had given a like denominator to all the fractions. We 
_ can regard, if we wish, this idea as one of those exaggerations which 
escape superior minds in the heat of dispute. He employed, how- 
ever, this number, 11, only to drive away the number 12, which 
bolder innovators would have substituted for that of 10, that consti- 
tutes throughout the base of numeration. . 

At the suppression of the Academies, they preserved temporat- 
ment, the commission charged with the establishment of the new 
system. Three months had scarcely elapsed, when, to purify this 
commission, they struck from its list the names of Lavoisier, Borda, 
Laplace, Coulomb, Brisson, and that of the astronomer that labored 
in France. Lagrange was retained. In capacity of president, by a let- 
ter which was long and full of goodness, he informed me that I might 
go and receive the official notice of my destitution. As soon as he 
knew of my arrival, he came to testify to me the regret given him by 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 103 


the separation of so many brethren. Je ne sais, said he, pourquot 
als m’ont conservé. But, without being total, it was difficult that 
the suppresion should extend even to him. The more losses the 
commission had suffered, the more its concerns was not to be de- 
prived of the regard attached to the name of Lagrange. He was 
known in other places wholly devoted to the sciences; he had no 
place in the civil order, or in the administration. The moderation 
of his character had prevented him from expressing what he could 
not keep himself from thinking in secret. ‘But never shall I forget 
the conversation that I had with him at this time. It was the next 
day after that when an atrocious and absurd decision, shocking to 
every one who had any idea of justice, had thrown the savans into 
mourning, by smiting the most illustrious physical philosopher of Eu- 
rope. Il ne leur a faller qu’ un moment, said he to me, pour faire tom- 
ber cette téte, et cent anneés peut-étre ne suffiront pas pouren reproduire 
une semblable. We wept together at the fatal consequences of the 
dangerous experiment that the French hadtried. Some time before, 
we had held 4 conversation of the same sort in the study of Lavoi- 
sier, on account of the process against the unfortunate Bailly. All 
the futile projects of doing good, seemed to him equivocal proofs of 
the greatness of the nes mind; Vouler vous le voir veritablement 
grand; entrer dans le cabinet de Newton decomposant la lumiére, ou 
dévotlant le systéme du monde. 

Long since did he regret not having listened to those friends, that 
in the beginning of our troubles, advised him to seek an asylum 
which he could so easily have found. While the revolution appeared 
to threaten only the treatment he enjoyed in France, he had neg- 
lected that consideration for the curiosity of seeing, close at hand, 
one of those grand convulsions which it would be always more pru- 
dent to witness at a little distance. Tu [as vouler, repeated he to 
himself, as he confided to me his regrets. In vain had a special 
decree, proposed by Duséjour in the constituent assembly, assured 
him of the payment of his pension. In vain did they keep their 
word. ‘The depreciation of paper money sufficed to render this 
decree illusory. He had been nominated member of the board of 
consultation, charged to examine and reward useful inventions. He 
was made, too, one of the directors of the mint. But this commis- 
sion offered him few objects capable of fixing his attention, and could 
not in any sense expel his uneasiness. ‘They wished anew to draw 
him to Berlin, and offered him his former living. He gave his con- 


104 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


sent. Héraut de Séchelles, to whom he had applied for a passport, 
offered to him for greater surety, a mission to Prussia. Lagrange 
could not agree to leave his country. ‘This repugnance, that he 
then regarded as a misfortune, was for him a source of fortune and of 
new glory. 

The Normal School, of which he was nominated professor, but 
which had only a short-lived existence, gave him scarcely time to lay 
open his ideas on the foundations of arithmetic, of algebra, and of 
their applications to geometry. 

The Polytechnic School, fruit of a more happy idea, had also 
more lasting success ; and among the best effects that it has produced, 
we can place that of having given up M. Lagrange to analysis. It 
was there that he took the opportunity of developing ideas of which 
the germ was in a memoir that he had published in 1772, and of 
which the object was to teach the true metaphysics of the integral 
calculus.. To understand it, and to enjoy sooner these happy de- 
velopments, we saw professors mix with young students. It was 
there that he composed his fonctions analytiques, and his lessons on 
the calculus, of which he gave many editions. Ceux qui ont ete a 
porter de souivre ces intéressantes lecons, said one of these professors, 
(M. Lacroix,) ont en le plaisir de lui voir creér sow les yeuw des 
auditeurs presque toutes les portions de sa theorie, et conservéront 
precieusement plusieurs variantes que recueillera 0 histotre de la 
science, comme des examples de la marche que suit dans U analyse 
le génre de invention. 

It was then also that he published his treatise on the solution of 
numerical equations, with notes and many points of the theory of 
‘algebraic equations. 

It was said that Archimedes, whose great reputation was particu- 
larly founded, at least with historians, on machines of every kind, 
and chiefly those that had retarded the capture of Syracuse, thought 
little of those mechanical inventions, on which he wrote nothing. 
It was said that he placed value only on his works of pure theory. 
We may sometimes think that our great geometers share, in this re- 
spect, the opinion of Archimedes. ‘They regard a problem as solved 
when it offers no more analytical difficulties ; as solved when nothing 
remains but to perform differentiations, substitutions and reductions, 
operations that in fact require scarcely any thing but patience, and a 
certain habit. Satisfied with having dispersed the more real difficulties, 
they are too careless: about the confusion in which they leave calcu- 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 105 


lators, and the labor that the use of their formula ought to impose 
upon them, even after it has been suitably reduced. We would not 
dare to affirm that Lagrange was more often of this opinion. More 
than once he openly expressed his wish to see researches purely 
analytical encouraged ; and even when he seemed to propose to 
himself the utmost facility of common calculations, he still chiefly 
perfected analysis. 

The general solution of algebraic equations is subject to obstacles 
thought insurmountable: but, in practice, every determinate prob- 
lem leads to an equation, of which all the coefficients are given in 
numbers. It will suffice then to have a sure method of finding all 
the roots of that equation, which we call numerical. This is the 
object which Lagrange proposes to himself: he analyzes known 
methods, demonstrates their uncertainty and insufticiency : he redu- 
ces the problem to the determination of a quantity smaller than the 
smallest difference between the roots. Here is much. We cannot 
too much admire the analytical science that shines every where in 
this work; but, notwithstanding all the resources of the genius of 
Lagrange, we cannot conceal that the work is still too long, and cal- 
culators will doubtless continue to give the preference to means less 
direct and more expeditious. Four times the author has returned 
- upon this subject. It must be believed that a convenient and gene- 
ral solution will be always refused, or that at least it will be by other 
means than will be worth while to seek one. ‘The author seems to 
have so recognized himself, by recommending that of M. Budau as 
the most easy and elegant for resolving all equations: all the roots 
are real. 

The desire of multiplying useful applications made him undertake 
a new edition of his Mecanique Analytique. His intent was to un- 
fold its more common parts. He therein labored with all the ardor 
and force of head that he had put to it in his better times. But 
this application left him a fatigue which sometimes made him fall 
into a swoon. He was found in this state by Madame Lagrange. 
His head, as he fell, struck upon the corner of a piece of furniture, 
and the shock deprived him of the use of his senses. This was a 
warning to take more care of himself. He thought so too; but he 
held too much at heart the final digesting of this work. 'The edition 
long in suspense, was not finished till 1815. The first volume ap- 
peared some time before his death: it had been followed by a new 
edition of his fonctions analytiques. So many labors exhausted 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. 14 


106 — Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


him. About the end of March fever showed itself, appetite departed, 
sleep troubled him, his mouth was parched and he underwent alarm-- 
ing swoons, especially when he awoke in the morning. He felt his 
danger; but keeping his imperturbable serenity, he studied what was 
going on within him; and, as if he had only to aid in a grand and 
rare experiment, he gave to it all his attention. His-remarks have 
not been lost.. Friendship brought to him, the 8th April, in the 
morning, MM. Lacépéde and Monge, and M. Chaptal, who con- 
sidered it a religious duty to collect the principal traits of a conver- 
sation that was his last. We have followed scrupulously all the in- 
dications it contains, and the passages that we have italicized in 
another quotation, are faithfully copied from the manuscript of M. 
le Comte Chaptal. 

He received them with tenderness and cordiality. J’ai eté bien 
mal avant hier, mes amis, said he to them, je me sentais mourir ; 
mon corps s'affaiblissart peu-a-peu, mes facultés morales et physi- 
ques s’étergnaient insensiblement ; j’observais avec plaisir la pro- 
gression bien graduce de la diminution de mes forces, et j’arrivais 
au terme sans douleur, sans regrets, et par une pente bien douce. 
Oh! la mort west pas a redouter, et lorsqu’ elle vient sans douleur, 
eest une derniere fonction qui n’est ni penible ni désogréable. 
Then he explained to them his ideas about life, of which he believed 
the seat was every where, in all the organs, in the whole mass of 
the machine, which in his case decayed equally throughout, and by 
the same degrees. Quelques instans de plus, il n’y avait plus de 
fonctions nulle part, la mort était par-tout ; la mort n’est que le re- 
pos absolu du corps. 

Je voulais mourir, added he with more strength, oui, je voulais 
mourir, et jy trouvais du plaisir; mais ma femme n’a pas vouler : 
7 eusse preferé en ces momens une femme moins bonne, moins em- 
pressée a reanimer mes forces, et qui meut laissé finir doucement. 
J’ai fournt ma carriére; jar acquis quelque célébrité dans les 
mathémateques. Je nat har personne, je n'ai point fait de mal, et 
al faut bien finir: mars ma femme n’a pas vouler. 

As he was very animated, especially at these last words, his 
friends, notwithstanding all the interest they took in hearing him, 
wished to withdraw. He began to give them the history of his life, 
of his labors, of his success, of his sojourn at Berlin, (where many 
times he has told us that he had seen close at hand un rot,) of his 
arrival at Paris, of the tranquillity which he had at first enjoyed, of 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 107 


the uneasiness that had there been given him by the revolution, of 
the great and unexpected manner in which he had been indemnified 
for it by a prince greater, more powerful, (and he might have added, 
still more able to appreciate him,) who had decked him with honors 
and dignities, and who, still recently, had just sent him the grand 
cordon of the order of the re-union: indemnified, in fine, by one 
who, after having given him, during his life, unequivocal proofs of 
the highest esteem, has just done for his widow and his brother, 
more than ever Frederic had done for himself during all the time 
that he had adorned his academy. 

He had aspired for neither honors nor riches; but he received 
them with a respectful gratitude, and delighted in them for the ben- 
efit of the sciences. He thought fit to deck with these titles the 
frontispiece of the work, which he caused to be printed, to show to 
the universe to what degree the savans were honored in France. 

We see, by these last words, that he had not lost all hope of cure. 
He simply believed that his convalescence would be long : he prom- 
ised them, as soon as his powers returned, to go and dine with M. 
le Comte de Lacépéde, with MM. les Comtes Monge and Chap- 
tal; and there he proposed to give them on his life and his works 
other details than they could find any where. ‘These details are ir- 
recoverably lost. We are still ignorant of what he had wished, and 
what he might have been able to add to the second volume of his 
Mecanique, already in the press. (‘This volume appeared in 1816.) 

During this conversation, which lasted more than two hours, his 
memory often failed him: he made vain attempts to recall names 
and dates ; but his language was coherent and full of strong thoughts 
and bold expressions. ‘This employment which he made of his 
powers, exhausted him. Scarcely had his friends withdrawn, when 
he fell into a deep faintness ; and he died on the 10th April, at nine 
hours and three quarters of the morning. 

* % i % 

M. Lagrange was of a delicate but fair complexion: his tranquil- 
lity, his moderation, an austere and frugal regimen, from which he 
seldom deviated, prolonged his career until the age of seventy seven 
years two months and three days. He had twice been married ; 
the first time at Berlin, to do like all the other academicians, of whom 
none lived in celibacy. He had caused to come from Turin a rela- 
tive whom he married, and whom he lost after a long sickness, dur- 
ing which he had lavished on her cares, the most tender, ingenious, 


108 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


and the most sustained. When he afterwards married in France 
Mademoiselle Lemonnier, daughter of our celebrated astronomer, he 
said to us, je n’at point eu d’enfans de mon premier marriage, je ne 
sais si j’en aurat du second, je n’en desire quéres. What he chiefly 
desired, was an amiable companion, whose society could offer him 
some relaxation in the intervals of his labors. In this respect there. 
was nothing more to be desired. Madame la Comtesse Lagrange, 
daughter, granddaughter, and niece of members of the Academy of 
Sciences, was worthy of appreciating the name which he was to 
make her wear. ‘This advantage, restoring in her eyes the inequal- 
ity of their ages, she soon conceived for him the most tender attach- 
ment. He was thankful for it to such a degree, that he could 
scarcely bear to be separated from her, since it was for her alone, 
that he felt any regret in leaving life: and since in fine he was 
heard often to say, that of all his successes, what he valued most 
was, that they had made him obtain a companion so tender and so 
devoted. During the ten days that his sickness lasted, she did not 
lose sight of him a moment, and employed them constantly in re- 
viving his powers, and prolonging his existence. 

He loved retirement, but did not require it of the young wife 
whom he had married: he went out then oftener, and showed him- 
self in the world, where, on other accounts, his dignities obliged him 
to appear. Very often it could be perceived that he pursued thither 
his meditations, begun in his study ; it was said that he was not in- 
sensible to the charms of music. In effect, when a reunion was 
numerous, he was not displeased that a concert should interrupt the 
conversation, and attract all attention. On one of these occasions, 
L asked of him what he thought of music? Je? aime, parce qu’ 
elle m’ isole, 7’ en écoute les trois premieres mesures, a la quatriéme 
je ne distingue plus rien, je me lwre a mes reflexions, rien ne m’ in- 
terrompt, et c’ est ainsi que y’ at resolus plus d? un probléme difficile. 
Thus for him, the finest work in music must have been that to which 
he owed the most happy inspirations. 

Though he was blessed with a venerable figure, on which was 
delineated his fine character, yet never would he consent to sit for 
his portrait. More than once, by an address of a fair pretext, they 
had led him in to the sittings of the Institute, in order to paint it 
without his knowledge. An artist sent by the academy of Turin, drew 
in this manner the sketch from which he made the bust so often ex- 
posed in the hall of our private sessions, and still adorning our library. 


Lagrange’s Memoirs. 109 


His features were moulded after death, and previously while he 
slumbered, a portrait was made of him that was said to be very 
correct. 

Sweet, and even timid in conversation, he loved particularly to 
interrogate, either to show the worth of others, or to add their re- 
flections to his vast knowledge. When he spoke, it was always in 
the strain of a doubt, and his first phrase generally began with je ne 
sats pas. He respected all opinions, and was very far from giving 
his own as rules. Nor was it easy for him to change them. For 
he sometimes defended them with a warmth that went on increasing 
until he perceived some change in himself; then he returned to his 
usual tranquillity. One day, after a dispute of this sort, Lagrange 
haying gone out, Borda, remaining alone with me, let slip these 
words; Je suis faché d’ avoir a le dire d’ un homme tel que M. La- 
grange, mais je n’ en connais pas de plus entété. If Borda had gone 
out first, Lagrange doubtless would have said-the same of his brother, 
aman of sense and much talent. He too, like Lagrange, would 
not readily change ideas adopted only after a thorough examination. 

Often was remarked in his tone a light and sweet irony, the 
meaning of which it was possible to mistake, and at which I have 
seen no instance where any one could have felt offended. ‘Thus he 
said to me one day: “These astronomers are singular; they will 
not believe a theory, where it does not agree with their observations.” 
The looks of him who made this reflection, on uttering it, marked 
sufficiently its real meaning. I did not thmk myself obliged to de- 
fend astronomers. 

Among so many master-pieces that are due to his genius, his 
Mecanique is unquestionably the most grand, remarkable and impor- 
tant. The fonctions analytique are only secondary, notwithstanding 
the fruitfulness of the principal idea, and the beauty of the devel- 
opments. A notation less convenient, calculations more embarrass- 
ing, although more luminous, will prevent geometers from employing, 
unless in certain difficult and doubtful cases, his symbols and_ his 
demonstrations; it suffices that he has supported them on the law- 
fulness of the more expedient methods of the differential and inte- 
gral calculus. He himself has followed the usual notation in the 
second edition of his Mecanique. 

This great work is wholly founded on the calculus of which he 
is the inventor. Every thing in it flows from a single formula, and 
from a principle known before him, but of which the whole use was 


110 Lagrange’s Memoirs. 


far from being suspected. ‘This sublime composition, moreover, 
unites all those of his preceding works that he could therein embody. 
It is also distinguished by the philosophical spirit that reigns in it from 
end to end. It is also the finest history of this part of the science ; 
a history, such as could be written only by a man on a level with 
his subject, and superior to all his predecessors, whose works he 
analyzes. It forms a lecture of the highest interest, even for him 
who would be far from being able to appreciate all the calculations 
of its details. Such a reader will there perceive at least, the inti- 
mate connection of all the principles on which the greatest geome- 
ters have supported their researches in mechanics. He will there 
see the geometric law of the celestial motions, deduced from simple 
mechanical and analytical considerations. From these problems, 
that serve to calculate the true system of the world, the author 
passes to questions more difficult, complicated, and belonging to an- 
other order of things. . These researches are only out of pure curi- 
osity. ‘The author informs usso. But they prove the whole extent 
of his resources. Therein is seen at last his new theory of the 
variation of the arbitrary constants, of the motion of the planets, 
that had appeared with so much éclat in the Mémoires de |’ Institut, 
where it had proved that the author, at the age of seventy five years, 
had not descended from the high rank which he occupied so long 
since, with the consent of all geometers. 

Throughout his writings, when he quotes an important theorem, 
he gives ave for it to the first author. 

When he corrects the opinions of his predecessors, or of his co- 
temporaries, he does so with all the respect due to genius; when 
he demonstrates the errors of those who have attacked him, he does 
so with the impassability of a true geometer, and the calmness of a 
demonstrator. None of his celebrated rivals had ideas more delicate, 
just, general, and deep. « In fine, thanks to his happy labors, mathe- 
matical science is now like one vast and beautiful palace, whose 
foundations he renewed, whose pinnacle he crowned, and in which a 
step cannot be taken without finding monuments of his genius. 


* The author arrived at it by very remarkable artifices of calculation. But the 
solution is very inconvenient, notwithstanding the elegance of its formula. 


On the Resistance of Fluids. PEG 


Arr. VII.—On the Resistance of Fluids, in reply to Mr. Blake; 
by Geo. W. Keeny, Prof. of Natural Philosophy, Waterville 
College. 

; TO PROFESSOR SILLIMAN. 

Sir—Wuen I saw Mr. Blake’s first communication in Vol. xx1x, 
No. 2, of this Journal, in which among other novelties, he attacked 
the Newtonian demonstration of the law of resistance on direct im- 
pulse of a fluid, I did give it a very careful and attentive perusal, 
his repeated insinuation to the contrary notwithstanding. I observ- 
ed that his argument against that demonstration wore two aspects, 
one bad for Mr. Blake, the other worse, according as his term “‘ force 
of resistance’? meant the action in an indefinitely short time, or in 
no time. ‘The bad is bad enough, as your readers must have per- 
ceived from my last communication, if not before; but bad as it is, 
the worse is, as will presently appear, so very much worse, that 
common courtesy forbade that I should, in that communication, even 
state the alternative. Mr. Blake, however, has eaverly vindicated 
his right to the worse, and thereby has, with some probably, gained 
a temporary advantage: of how much real value this is, shall soon 
be shewn. 

Understanding now that Mr. Blake, by “ force of resistance,” or 
*¢ force,’ means action in no time, I propose to prove, 

First, That Mr. B. has misunderstood the meaning of the demon- 
stration he has attacked. 

To do this, I will first quote the demonstration as given by Pro- 
fessor Olmsted, in his Natural Philosophy. 

“Both the number of particles which meet the plane, and the 
force of each, are as their velocity : hence the resistance is propor- 
tional to the square of the velocity.” ‘This is also the argument of 
- Newton and all his followers. 

Now, your readers will remember that in Mr. Blake’s first com- 
munication, he undertakes to demonstrate that his ‘force of resist- 
ance;’’ or “force,” is as the square of the velocity. Then follow the 
two annexed sentences. 

“Since the area of the plane is given, the number of particles in 
action atany moment is given, and consequently the force of each, 
at any instant, is as the square of the velocity of the plane.” 

“‘ We may now note a fundamental error in the received theory, 
which assumes, usually without argument, that the force of each 


112 On the Resistance of Fluids. 


particle is as the velocity of the plane, instead of the square of the 
velocity, as we have now shown it to be.” 

Now who does not see that in these sentences, Mr. Blake identi- 
fies his “force” of a particle, with the force of a particle as the 
term is understood in the common theory, and if we take as the 
meaning of his ‘‘ force,” what he insists upon, viz. the action at a 
point of time, i. €. in no time, is it not obvious that he has commit- 
ted an error? Does not Mr. B. know that the force of a particle 
in the common theory, is the vis motrix, the momentum, in short, 
the whole force of a particle, and has he not expressly said, in his. 
last paper, ‘‘ when I determined the force of a particle, I determined 
not its whole action, but only its action at any instant?’ Any com- 
ment is unnecessary. ‘There is not even the consolation of a dilem- 
ma. Ido not pretend to know whether this will ‘ amuse” your 
readers, but coming as it does from a professed reformer of the abuse 
of compounding terms, it is sufficiently amusing. 

But secondly, is it not most clear that Mr. Blake has entirely 
failed in his attack upon the demonstration of the received theory ? 
The only argument he pretends to bring against it is this. It is “a 
fundamental error,” in that demonstration that the force of a particle 
is as the volocity, because I prove that the force of a particle is as 
the square of the velocity ; which, in the light of his definition is 
just this: it is a fundamental error in that demonstration that the 
whole force of a particle is as the velocity, because I prove that that 
force of a particle which is not the whole action, but the action in 


no time, is as the square of the velocity. 
The aboTe | is, in substance, the argument I should haves given in 


my last, could I have thought that Mr. Blake could have overlooked 
a point so essential to even an appearance of success. Here, there- 
fore, 1 might close, for my whole object has been to defend the ar- 
guments and conclusions of the common theory, and your readers 
must have perceived it. ‘That theory was attacked by Professor 
Wallace ; I showed that his objection to it rested on an unwarranta- 
ble assumption: it was again attacked by Mr. Blake. I have now 
shown that his objection to it rests on an error. With your permis- 
sion, however, Mr. Editor, 1 will make a few additional remarks. 
And first, if any of your readers suppose that, having regard to Mr. 
Blake’s formal definitions of ‘‘ force of resistance,”’ or “‘ force,”’ viz. 
“ grrespective of duration,’ “ at any indivisible instant.” I ought 
to have understood, in spite of the evidently consequent error, that he 


On the Resistance of Fluids. 113 


meant the action in no time ; let them consider that “ zrrespective 
of duration,’ sometimes means that time is constant, and that* at 
any indivisible instant, is not void of that ambiguity to those who 
know the different meanings attached to the differential element (dt) ; 
and further, that what words mean is fixed as much by their use as 
by formal definitions, and that if I had taken the meaning, 7m no 
time, there followed, not only the gross error above pointed out, but 
Mr. Blake’s demonstration of the “ force of resistance,’ was abso- 
lutely without meaning as such. 

As my object has been to defend the common theory, any remarks 
on Mr. Blake’s proof, that the “ force of resistance”’ is as the square 
of the velocity, must now be considered gratuitous :' whether just or 
not, they have now nothing to do with the point at issue between us, 
viz. the truth of the demonstration above given of the law of resistance 
on direct impulse. With my former understanding of Mr. B’s “ force 
of resistance,” it was a material point whether his proof, that it was 
as the square of the velocity was correct, since he identified it with 
the' force in the common theory: hence I attacked it.+ Mr. Blake 
thinks that by insisting on his definition, he has saved his argument: 
if he had regarded the true meaning of my objection to that argu- 
ment, instead of the mere form of it, he would have seen that it re- 
mains in full force. That objection is that the definition and the 
argument are heterogeneous. ‘This is true, considering as I did in 
my last communication, that the action of Mr. B.’s force of resist- 
ance, took place in an indefinitely small invariable element of time; 
it is true if, as we are now to understand, it takes place in no time 
at all; and Mr. B. may vary his definition as he pleases, the objec- 
tion I urged against that arzument will always be fatal to it, if used 
to demonstrate any other than the value of a force which acts in 
variable tume. ‘The two first of the “analogies,” as Mr. Blake 
terms them, in his argument, which express substantially the 2d and 
3d of Newton’s Laws of Motion, are not abstract conceptions which 
will apply to determine the value of any thing, whether real or im- 


* It was through an error of the pen that I appear to have misquoted Mr. Blake, 
putting the quotation marks before the word in, instead of after it, as I have done 
in all other cases, and they are numerous. 

+ again suggest that, though the common theory takes the force of a particle 
to be as the velocity, it may, its action occupying time, be taken to be as the square 
of the velocity; and if these measures are rightly understood, the results will be 
the same. 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 1. 15 


114 . On the Resistance of Fluids. 


aginary, that is called force. Among the infinite number of laws 
mathematically possible, these are the only ones that are physically 
true. They can be proved by experiment, and are obtained by in- 
duction from observed facts, and unless they are applied to cases of 
the same nature, they prove nothing. I know that some writers 
have neglected to observe these principles. Professor Farrar, for 
example, in his Mechanics, has, under the head of statics, given 
a demonstration, not of the parallelogram of forces, which is no 
where in his work proved, but of the parallelogram of motions, 
or velocities.* But Mr. Blake has left far behind him all pre- 
cedents. He applies these laws of motion to the determination 
of an instantaneous impulsive force, a thing which has no existence 
in nature, and of which I can form no conception. How can the 
laws of motion, got by induction of facts, be applied to determine 
such a force, or such a force be applied as Mr. Blake applies it, to 
determine an actually existing force? I say then, as before, that 
the logic of that reasoning is unsound, and that Mr. Blake “ setting 
out to determine the ‘force of resistance’ has unconsciously deter- 
mined a quantity of a very different nature.” 

I have no time, nor inclination, nor need for remark on Mr. Blake’s 
curious suggestions respecting the Leibnitzian controversy, and the 
possibility of my confounding the vis motrix and vis mechanica. 


* I know how difficult it is to give a simple elementary demonstration of that 
important proposition, but it were better to give a proof, though unintelligible to 
beginners, than to leave that whole grand division of Mechanics without founda- 
tion. Unfortunately the foundations of both Statics and Dynamics, in the work 
referred to, are assumed. 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 115 


Art. VIII—On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlan- 
tic ;* by W. C. Repriexp, Esq. of New York. 


From the U.S. Naval Magazine. 


As an accurate knowledge of the dangers to which the navigator 
is liable, is of the first importance to the nautical profession, I ven- 
ture to point out an error, relating to the storms of the Atlantic, 
which has found its way into Purdy’s Memoir of the Atlantic Ocean, 
and has also been copied from that useful manual, into the nautical 
books of other countries. } 

The error alluded to, is found in the following paragraph :—“ In 
the year 1782, at the time the Ville de Paris, Centaur, Ramilies, 
and several other ships of war, either foundered, or were rendered 
unserviceable, on or near the banks, together with a whole fleet of 
West Indiamen, excepting five or six, they were all lying-to, with 
a hurricane from west ; the wind shifted in an instant to east, and 
blew equally heavy, and every ship lying-to, under a square course, 
foundered.” —Memoir of the Atlantic, 7th edition, page 96. 

In the examination which I have been led to make of the storms 
of the Western Atlantic, I have found them to pursue a generally 
uniform course, which is always north-westerly, in the tropical lati- 
tudes, and till they approach the latitude of 30° N. In the vicinity 
of this parallel, the storms turn to the northward, and their course 
then becomes north-easterly, on a track which appears to incline 
gradually to the east, as they sweep over the higher latitudes of the 
Atlantic. The course thus pursued, is entirely independent of the 
direction of wind which.the storm may exhibit at the different points 
over which it passes ; the wind in all such storms being found to 
blow after the manner of a whirlwind, around a common center or 
vortex, during their entire progress, in a circuit which is commensu- 
rate with the lateral extent of the storm; and in a determinate di- 
rection or course of rotation, which is from right to left, (that is, in 
the direction from west to south,) horizontally. 

From this uniform course and regular rotative action, result cer- 
tain regular phases or characteristic changes, which are peculiar to 


* These remarks, and the chart which they are designed to illustrate, were ori- 
ginally prepared for the London Nautical Magazine, but the importance of the 
subject in its relation to our marine interests, as well as the cause of science, has 
induced the author to revise the same for publication on this side of the Aulantie. 


116 Onthe Gales and Hurricanes of be Western Atlantic. 


the opposite margins or longitudinal sections of the track of ches 
and all of these storms.* 
At an early period of the inquiry, I met with the statement above 
quoted from the Atlantic Memoir, which, by the direction and change 
of wind therein mentioned, seemed to indicate that this region of the 
Atlantic had been visited at least by one storm of a different char- 
acter. ‘Such, however, was the remarkable uniformity presented to 


my view in the phenomena of the storms which were investigated,: 


that I was led, at length, to suspect some error in the above state- 
ment, and on further inquiry, I soon found my doubts fully justified. 
I have now before me several printed authorities of that period, from 
which it appears that the first part of the hurricane in question, was 
from E. S. E. and that it shifted suddenly to N. N. W.+ 

It appears, therefore, that instead of blowing as described in the 
Memoir, this gale exhibited the usual characteristics of the Atlantic 
hurricanes. | 

If the movements of the atmosphere in these storms were of the 
vague and erratic character which has usually been assigned to them, 
the above correction would be of little importance. But, notwith- 
standing the supposed, and even proverbial uncertainty of the winds, 
navigators may be assured, that they will never, in the temperate 


* See American Coast Pilot, 12th edition, page 626—629; or the American 
Journal of Science and Arts, vol. xxv. pp. 114—121. 

+ Extract from the Journal of an Officer on board the Ramilies. 

“September 16th, 1782. At noon, lat. 42° 15/, lon. 48° 55’, wind at E. S. E., 
blowing fresh; 1p. m. gale increased, hazy weather; at 3 took in sails; at 6 P. M. 
gale very strong; brought-to under the mainsail. Midnight, three and a half feet 
water in the hold; gale E.S. E. exceeding strong; at 2 a. M. on the 17th, heavy 
rain and squally; at 3 a. m. the wind shifted; a violent squall from the N. N. W. 
without the smallest warning of a shift, took the mainsail aback; the mainmast, 
mizenmast, fore-topmast, and fore-yard, carried over the ship’s side, and the tiller 
broke; water 4 feet 4 inches, and gaining on us; at daylight, 5 feet 8 inches, and 
gaining, ship laboring in great distress; at 5 a. m. one of the convoy foundered 
close to us; several] near us dismasted, and signals of distress making frem all; 
@ prodigious swell of the sea, and heavy gale from N. W.; at 10 a.m. hard gale 
from N. W. and prodigious swell; six feet water in the hold; afternoon, threw 
guns overboard,” &c. 

A. letter from Captain Edwards, who commanded one of the convoy which 
foundered after the storm, states the early part of the gale to have been from S. E. 
by E. and the shift to fare been to N. W. This trifling discrepancy confirms, 
rather than invalidates, the general fact, and may be accounted for as a slight in- 
accuracy on the part of the observers, or by supposing the position of Capt. Ed- 
wards’s ship to have been some distance to the southward and eastward of the 
Ramilies. 


1 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 117 


latitudes of the Atlantic, encounter a gale which shall blow violent- 
ly from the west, and then shift suddenly to the east. ‘This cannot 
happen until storms in this region shall be found pursuing a retro- 
grade course, or else spinning from left to right, instead of from right 
to left as they have heretofore done; or, in other words, till a new 
system of terrestrial physics shall have been established by the Great 
Author of nature. 

The interest of this subject to navigators, and the neglect into 
which this branch of philosophic inquiry has been suffered to fall, 
will be a sufficient apology for some additional remarks on these 
storms. 

Those who adopt the views which I have maintained on this sub- 
ject, will doubtless be able to explain, in a satisfactory manner, the 
facts which are contained in the following statement, found in the 
paragraph next preceding that which we have quoted from the Me- 
moir; namely, ‘‘That while one vessel has been lying-to in a heavy 
gale of wind, another, not more than thirty leagues distant, has at 
the very same time been in another gale equally heavy, and lying-to 
with the wind in quite an opposite direction.” 

This statement is obviously to be understood as applicable to two 
vessels falling under the two opposite sides or portions of the same 
storm, where the wind in its regular circuit of rotation, must, of 
course, blow from the opposite quarters of the horizon. We will 
suppose one of the vessels to be at A and the other at B, in the 
annexed figure. © 


The storm in pursuing its course from W towards N, will strike 
the first mentioned vessel in the direction which is shown by the 


118 Onthe Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


wind-arrows at the point c, which, if the position be in the tempe- 
rate latitudes, north of 30°, will be from eastward. Now, it is ob- 
vious, that as the storm advances in its course north-eastward, this 
vessel, if nearly stationary, will intersect the body of the gale on the 
line cAd. As the storm advances, the wind must also veer to the 
northward, as shown by: the arrows, being at N. E. when the vessel 
is brought under the point A, and near the close or departure of the 
storm by its further progress eastward, the wind will have further 
veered to the direction shown at d, which, with due allowance for 
the progressive motion of the storm, we will set down at N. N. W. 
The other vessel, as is equally obvious, will first take the wind from 
the southward, as shown at e, in which quarter it will blow, with no 
great variation, till, by the advance of the storm, the ship is brought 
under the point B. The barometer, which had previously been fall- 
ing, will now commence rising, and the wind, veering more westerly, 
will, at the departure of the storm, be found in the direction shown 
at f, which, after the allowance already referred to, may be stated at 
W.N.W. Such, substantially, are the facts commonly reported by 
vessels which fall under the lateral portions of the Atlantic storms, 
and it is readily seen, that the opposite winds, which are exhibited 
on the two different intersections of the storm, as above described, 
will very naturally be mistaken for two separate and distinct gales. 

The phases of the wind in these gales are, however, in all cases, 
modified more or less by the course or changing position of the ves- 
sel exposed to its action. [or example, a ship on taking the gale, 
say at E.S.E. at the point A, on the figure, and lying-to with her 
head to the northward, may by that means be brought to intersect 
the storm on the line Az, and at the point 2, would suddenly be taken 
aback, with the wind say at N. N. W., as in the case of the home- 
ward-bound fleet in 1782, and the barometer, which reaches its low- 
est depression under the central portion of the storm, would about 
this period be found to have commenced rising with some degree of 
rapidity. . 

A further reference to the figure will show that a ship, which may 
be at the point G during the passage of the gale, would be exposed 
to a heavy swell from the southward and westward; but being be- 
yond the organized limits of the storm,* may remain entirely unaf- 


* The terms organized and organization, are used by the writer in the sense in 
which he conceives them to be applicable to all eddies, whirlpools, and whirl- 
winds, and generally, to all fluid and aérial vortices, while in a state of activity, 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 119 


fected by the violence of the wind, which at the same time may be 
raging with destructive fury at the distance of a few leagues. The 
writer has knowledge of many such examples. 

It has been suggested that “the larboard tack is the proper one to 
lie-to on, as the wind will then be found to draw aft ;”’ but this will 
frequently prove erroneous, as the wind may draw either way, on 
either tack, according to the position and course of the ship, in the 
storm, and the extent and rate of progress of the latter. Inthe case 
of the fleet which encountered the gale of 178, it was probably the 
best course to carry sail to the northward at the very commencement 
of the gale, and as far and as long as possible. By this means, the 
fleet might perhaps, have been drawn as far northward as the point 
A on the figure, and the change of wind to the northward and west- 
ward would then have been rendered more gradual. The chief dif- 
ficulty and danger is when the direction of the wind at the first set- 
ting in of the gale, is found to be nearly at right angles with the 
known courses of the storms in the region where the gale is encoun- 
tered, and it is then desirable to pursue such a course as to avoid, if 
possible, falling to the heart of the storm. 

The following passage is found in a late edition of the Atlantic 
Memoir, at the head of the article on Hurricanes. 

“A hurricane is a tempest of the most extraordinary violence, 
forming a kind of imperfect vortex, towards the center of which 
the wind proceeds, successively and abruptly, from different points 
of the horizon. Of such phenomena, the most violent and destruc- 
tive in the western hemisphere, are known to originate in or near the 
West Indies; and they commonly proceed in a cycloidal line, from 
their point of origin, to the W. N. W., N. W. and N.; or if limited 
to the West Indian sea, from E. S. E. toW. N. W. as well as from 
W. N. W. to E. S. E.”—Memoir, page 97, Tth edition. 


and as involving, in the case of storms, the production of rain, and all the other 
incidental phenomena which result from such organized action. The true char- 
acter of these rotative movements, does not appear to have been closely studied by 
men of science, and however necessary or desirable a more correct knowledge of 
these movements may be, in order to a just apprehension of the subject before us, 
still a discussion of their specific character, and of their agency in the production 
of the most important atmospheric phenomena, even if the ability were possessed, 
would be foreign to our present object. It is believed, however, that a proper de- 
velopment of this subject would do much to illustrate, in a clear and satisfactory 
manner, the formation and production of storm- clouds and rain, oe especially of 
summer hail, as well as all violent electric phenomena. 


120 On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


As most of this paragraph was probably intended to agree with 
the facts which I had formerly given in relation to these hurricanes, 
it will only be necessary to notice the closing statement, quoted in 
italics, in connection with another passage which introduces the ab- 
stract, that is given in the Memoir, of my earliest attempt to eluci- 

date the character and course of these tempests, and particularly 
those of 1821 and 1830. 

<‘ With these hurricanes, (says the Memoir,) might have been in- 
cluded the ever-memorable one of the year 1780; the latter it ap- 
pears commenced near the west end of Cuba. On the 3d of Octo- 
ber, it passed over the western part of Jamaica, and reduced Savanna 
la Mar to a state of desolation; it then in its gyrations passed along 
the coasts of Hayti, or St. Domingo, and Porto Rico, and it ended 
at Barbadoes, on the 10th of the same month.’”—WMemozr of the 
Atlantic, 7th edition, page 101. ' 

It must be evident that if there be no error in the statements here 

quoted, the systematic and uniform movements which I have consid- 

ered as pertaining at least to all hurricanes which visit the western 
portions of the Atlantic, are liable to some decided exceptions, and 
it is important therefore, that the facts of the case should be ascer- 
tained. I am confident, however, that on a full and careful inquiry, 
we shall find that nature has not, in this case, been regardless of her 
own fixed laws, and accustomed modes of action. ' 

From such evidence as I have in my possession, it appears, that 
the first hurricane of October, 1780, passed over the western part of 
Jamaica on the 3d of that month, and that the storm commenced a 
few hours earlier at Black River and Montego Bay, than at Savanna 
la Mar, which is near the west end of the island ;* and also, that on 
the 4th, at half past 5 a. m. the British frigate Phoenix, was wrecked 
on the island of Cuba, near Cape Cruz, a little before the close of 
the gale at that point, but several hours after its ter mination at Ja- 
maica. ‘There are no accounts from which [ can infer either the 
presence or absence of the storm on the more usual course down 
the Caribbean sea, into the gulf of Mexico, but if followimg the indi- 
cations already before us, we suppose the storm to have commenced 


* The northwestward or more northward course of this hurricane is fully set- 
tled, by the fact that the Pheenix first took the gale on the evening of October 2d, 
off port Antonio, which is on the eastern part of the island of Jamaica; as appears 
from the very interesting account of Lieut. Archer, which was not a hand when 
the above was written. 


Ay? 
On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 121 


its detour to the northward, and which accords well with the general 
course of a storm of a corresponding date, in the year 1830, on a more 
eastern meridian, we shall then recognize it as the hurricane which 
was encountered on the 5th of October, in the gulf of Florida, and 
northward of the Bahama Islands, in which many vessels were wreck- 
ed, and a squadron of H. M. ships was entirely disabled. This storm 
appears also to have been of limited extent and duration, as compar- 
ed with that which visited Barbadoes on the 10th, and I can find no 
evidence of its having pursued a retrograde or eastwardly course 
while in the tropical latitudes. 

The violent and extensive hurricane which desolated Barbadoes 
on the 10th of the same month, appears to have commenced at St. 
Lucia several hours /ater than at Barbadoes, and I also find that it 
did not take effect at the other neighboring islands till the 11th, 
which is sufficient proof that this storm could not have been the same 
which ravaged the western parishes of Jamaica, on the 3d of the 
month. -In its lateral extent it covered at one and the same time, the 
entire distance between the islands of Antigua and Tobago, and it 
appears to have pursued the usual course or route, towards the north- 
west. A letter from Jamaica mentions that they had a small share 
of this hurricane at that island on the 12th, which is in due course 
of time, and accords with the extent and previous position of the 
gale. It appears, in its wide spread desolations, to have dispersed 
a Spanish fleet off Havana on the 16th, and to have visited with its 
opposite margin, the island of Bermuda, on the 18th of the same 
month. I have also two accounts from vessels which encountered 
this storm at sea on the 17th, which agree with the foregoing. 

The errors in the statements last quoted from the Memoir, seem 
to have arisen from mistaking two hurricanes of different dates, which 
passed in a north-westerly course, for one and the same storm pass- 
ing eastward ; or possibly, from conceiving the direction of the wind 
from a western quarter, at some of the islands, during the first part of 
the storm of October 10th and 11th, as directly indicating the route 
of the gale; a very natural conclusion, and one that is perhaps, iden- 
tified with all our preconceived associations on this subject. It is by 
this instinctive association that most writers appear to be governed, 
in their accounts of violent storms, but than which, in its application 
to the point before us, nothing can be more fallacious and unfounded, 
as the history in detail of all such storms will certainly show. So 
strong indeed is the influence of our established modes of thinking 


Vout. XX XI.—WNo. 1. 16 


122 Onthe Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


on this subject, that it seems to be difficult, even for those who ad- 
mit the rotative character of these hurricanes, to understand correctly 
the true bearing and relations of the different phases of the wind, 

which are presented at two or more points or places, visited by the 

same storm, unless the subject has been thoroughly and carefully 

studied. Speculative opinions also upon the course of a storm, are 

usually, if not always, founded upon the erroneous notion of a recti- 
linear course in the wind. In the accounts received of a hurricane 
at Barbadoes on the 3d of September, 1835, which raged for a few 
hours from E. N. E. fears were expressed for the safety of the islands 

to the northward; but subsequent intelligence from Guadaloupe and 
Martinico, shewed that the gale had not extended to these islands. 

Had the direction and phases of the wind been viewed in their true 
relations, it would have been perceived that the heart of the gale 

must have passed to the southward of Barbadoes; and as a general 

rule in the West India latitudes, where the onset of the storm is found 

to be in the general direction of the trade wind, or more eastward, 

the observer may consider himself as under the northern verge of 
the gale; but if the onset of the gale be from the north-westward, 

veering afterwards by the west to the southern quarter, the heart of 
the storm will be found to have passed to the northward of the point 

of observation, the latter being under the southern margin of the gale. 

Among other proofs of the circuitous action of violent winds, is the 

fact that the track of a vessel which runs directly before the gale, 
will in many cases, be found to be strikingly curvilinear when traced 
on the chart; in other words, the veering of the wind which so often 

occurs, when duly considered, is in itself, a complete demonstration 

of the fact in question. Many readers will recollect the case of a 

vessel driven from Falmouth in the great hurricane of 1703, by a 

circuitous course to the Isle of Wight, with only a cabin boy on board, 

which course clearly indicates the phases of one marginal section of 
that memorable storm. It can but seldom happen, however, that 

the track of a vessel which scuds through a gale, will fully develop 

the entire circuit of the wind, the combination of circumstances neces- 

sary to this result being but rarely encountered. Still I have obtain- 

ed notice of a few such cases, and a respectable ship-master not long 

since informed me that he once scudded for twenty-four hours, under 

a typhoon in the China sea, and on its departure, found himself 
nearly in the position where he first took the gale. 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 128 


In order to illustrate more fully the foregoing remarks, I annex a 
chart of the Western Atlantic, on which is delineated the route of 
several hurricanes and storms, as derived from numerous accounts 
which are in my possession, by which their progress is specifically 
identified from day to day, during that part of their route which ap- 
pears on the chart. | 

The route designated as No. I, is that of the hurricane which vis- 
ited the islands of Trinidad, ‘Tobago, and Grenada, on the 23d of 
June, 1831. Pursuing its course through the Caribbean sea, it was 
subsequently encountered by H. M. Schooner Minx, and other ves- 
sels, and its swell was thrown with great force upon the south-eastern 
shores of Jamaica on the 25th, while passing that island, where the 
wind at this time was light from the northward. After sweeping 
through the Caribbean sea, this hurricane entered upon the coast of 
Yucatan, on the night of June 27th, having moved over the entire 
route from Trinidad to the western shore of the bay of Honduras, in 
a little more than one hundred hours, a distance of about seventeen 
hundred nautical miles, which is equal to seventeen miles an hour. 
I have no account of this storm after it crossed the peninsula of Yu- 
catan, and it is probable that it did not again act with violence upon 
the ocean level. Its course or track to Honduras was N. 74° west. 

Track No. II, is that of the memorable hurricane which desola- 
ted Barbadoes on the night of August 10th, 1831, and which passed 
Porto-Rico on the 12th, Aux-Cayes and St. Jago de Cuba on the 
13th, Matanzas on the 14th, was encountered off the Tortugas on 
the 15th; in the gulf of Mexico on the 16th, and was at Mobile, 
Pensacola, and New Orleans on the 17th; a distance of 2,000 nau- 
tical miles in about 150 hours, equal to something more than 134 
miles an hour.* Its course, until it crossed the tropic of Cancer was 
N. 64° west, or W. N. W. nearly. In pursuing its northern course, 
after leaving the ocean level, it must have encountered the mountain 
region of the Alleganies, and was perhaps disorganized by the resis- 
tance opposed by these elevations. It appears, however, to have 
caused heavy rains in a large extent of country lying north-eastward 
of the gulf of Mexico. 

Track No. III, is that of the destructive hurricane which swept 
over the Windward Islands, on the 17th of August, 18275 visited 


* Mr. Purdy states that this gale was felt at Natchez, 300 miles up the Missis- 
sippi. ; 


124 Onthe Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


St. Martin’s and St. Thomas on the 18th; passed the north-east 
coast of Hayti on the 19th; Turks Isiand on the 20th; the Bahamas 
on the 2Ist and 22d; was encountered off the coast of Florida and 
South Carolina on the 23d and 24th; off Cape Hatteras on the 25th ; 
off the Delaware on the 26th; off Nantucket on the 27th; and off 
Sable Island, and the Porpoise Bank, on the 28th. Its ascertained 
course and progress is nearly 3,000 miless* in about eleven days; 
or at the average rate of about eleven miles an hour. ‘The direction 
of its route before crossing the tropic, may be set down at N. 61° 
west, and in lat. 40° while moving eastward, at N. 58° E. 

Track No. IV, represents the route of the hurricane which rav- 
aged the islands of Antigua, Nevis, and St. Kitt’s on the afternoon 
and night of August 12, 1835; St. Thomas, St. Croix, and Porto 
Rico on the 18th; Hayti and Turks Island on the 14th; the vicinity 
of Matanzas and Havana on the 15th; was encountered off the 
Tortugas in the gulf of Mexico on the 16th; in lat. 27° 21’, jon. 
94°, and other points on the 17th and 18th; and also at Metamora, 
on the coast of Mexico, (lat. 26° 04’) on the 18th, where it was most 
violent during the succeeding night.¢ This storm is remarkable, as 
moving more directly, and farther to the-west, than is usual for storms 
which pass near the West India Islands, it having reached the shores 
of Mexico before commencing its sweep to the northward. Its 
course so far as known, is N. 73° west :—its progress more than 2,200 
miles in six days; which is nearly equal to 154 miles per hour. 

Track No. V, is that of the extensive hurricane of September, 
1804. Itswept over the Windward Islands on the 3d of that month; 
the Virgin Islands and Porto-Rico on the 4th; Turks’ Island on the 
5th; the Bahamas and gulf of Florida on the 6th; the coast of 
Georgia and the Carolinas on the 7th; the great bays of Chesapeake 
and Delaware, and the contiguous portions of Virginia, Maryland, 


* All the distances are expressed in nautical miles. 

+ Since writing the above it is ascertained that this storm also passed over Gal- 
veston bay, on the coast of Texas, where the hurricane blew with violence from 
the northeast, while at the mouth of the Mississippi and along the northern shores 
of the gulf, the gale was not felt. Such facts appear quite sufficient to overthrow 
the hypothesis of Franklin relating to northeast storms, and are equally fatal to the 
more common theories. At Galveston this storm, in passing over, veered by east 
to the southeast; the rationale of which may be made evident by drawing a line 
through the northern side of the figure on the chart, parallel to the track of the 
storm. A little further attention to the figure will also illustrate the general char- 
acter of other northers, which are so common on the coast of Mexico during a 
considerable portion of the year. 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 125 


and New Jersey, on the 8th; and the states of Massachusetts, New 
Hampshire and Maine on the 9th; being on the highlands of New 
Hampshire, a violent snow storm.. The destructive action of this 
storm was widely extended on both sides of the track indicated upon 
the chart, and the same fact pertains, in a greater or less degree, to 
the other storms herein mentioned. It appears to have passed from 
Martinico, and the other Windward Islands, to Boston in Massachu- 
setts by the usual curvilinear route, in about six days; a distance of 
more than 2,200 miles, at an average progress of about 154 miles 
per hour. . 

Track No. VI, is that of the memorable gale of August, 1830, 
which, passing close by the Windward Islands, visited St. Thomas’ 
on the 12th; was near Turks’ Island on the 13th; at the Bahamas 
on the 14th; on the gulf and coast of Florida on the 15th; along 
the coast of Georgia and the Carolinas on the 16th; off Virginia, 
Maryland, New Jersey, and New York on the 17th; off George’s 
Bank and Cape Sable on the 18th; and over the Porpoise and New- 
foundland Banks on the 19th of the same month; having occupied 
about seven days in its ascertained course from near the Windward 
Islands, a distance of more than three thousand miles; the rate of its 
progress being equal to eighteen miles an hour.* If we suppose the 
actual velocity of the wind, in its rotary movement, to be five times 
greater than this rate of progress, which is not beyond the known 
velocity of such winds, it will be found equal, in this period, toa 
rectilinear course of fifteen thousand miles. ‘The same remark ap- 
plies, in substance, to all the storms which are passing under our 
review. What stronger evidence of the rotative action can be re- 
quired, than is afforded by this single consideration ? 

Route No. VII, is that of an extensive gale, or hurricane, which 
swept over the Western Atlantic in 1830, and which was encoun- 
tered to the northward of the West India Islands on the 29th of Sep- 
tember. It passed on a more eastern route than any which we have 
occasion to describe, to the vicinity of the grand Bank of Newfound- 
land, where it was found on the 2d of October, having caused great 
damage and destruction on its widely extended track, to the many 
vessels which fell on its way. Its course is quite analogous to that 
which we have considered as having been probably pursued by the 


* For a more extended notice of this storm, see American Journal of Science, 
Vol xx. pp. 34—38. 


126 On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


hurricane of October 3d, 1780. ‘The ascertained route may be es- 
timated at eighteen hundred miles, and the average progress of the 
storm at twenty five miles an hour. . 

Route No. VIII, is that of a much smaller, but extremely vio- 
lent hurricane, which was encountered off Turks’ Island on the Ist 
of Sept., 1821; to the northward of the Bahamas and near the lat. 
of 30° on the 2d; on the coast of the Carolinas early in the morning 
of the 3d; and from thence, in the course of that day, along the sea- 
coast to New York and Long Island; and which, on the night fol- 
lowing, continued its course across the states of Connecticut, Massa- 
chusetts, New-Hampshire, and Maine. Iam not in possession of 
accounts by which its farther progress can be successfully traced.* 
The diameter of this storm appears to have greatly exceeded one 
hundred miles ; its ascertained route, and progress is about eighteen 
hundred miles, in sixty hours; equal to thirty miles an hour. - 

The last mentioned route may also be considered to be nearly the 
same as that of a similar, but less violent storm, which swept along 
the same portion of the coast of the United States on the 28th of 
April, 1835. 

No. IX, represents the route of a violent and extensive hurri- 
cane, which was encountered to the northward of ‘Turks’ Island on 
the 22d of August, 1830; northward of the Bahamas on the 23d; 
and off the coast of the United States on the 24th, 25th, and 26th 
of the same month. | 

Much damage was done on the ocean by this storm; but it scarcely 
reached the American shores. Its duration off this coast, was about 
forty hours, and its progress appears to have been more tardy than 
that of some other storms. 

No. X, represents the track of a violent hurricane and snow-storm, 
which swept along the American coast from the lat. of 30° N. on 
the 5th and 6th af December, 1830. 

The last mentioned track also corresponds to that of another storm, 
of like character, which swept along the sea-coast on the 13th, 14th, 
and 15th of January, 1831. ‘These violent winter storms exhibit 
nearly the same phases of wind and general characteristics, as those 
which appear in the summer and autumn. 

Track No. XI, represents a portion of the general route of the 
violent inland storm which swept over the lakes Erie and Ontario 


* The phenomena and progress of this storm have been more fully noticed in 
Silliman’s Journal, Vol. xx. pp. 24—27. 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 127 


on the 11th of November, 1835. This storm was very extensive, 
spreading from the sea-coast of* Virginia into the Canadas, to a limit, 
at present, unknown. The anterior portion of this gale was but 
moderately felt, and its access was noted chiefly, by the direction of 
the wind, and the great fall of the barometer; the violence of the 
storm being chiefly exhibited by the posterior and colder portion of 
the gale, as is common with extensive overland storms. The regu- 
lar progression of this storm in an easterly direction is clearly estab- 
lished, by facts, collected by the writer, from the borders of Lake 
Michivan; to the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the sea-coasts of New 
England and Nova Scotia. 

I have thus given a summary description of the route of twelve 
storms, or hurricanes, which have visited the American coasts and 
seas, at various periods, and at different seasons of the year. The 
lines on the chart, which represent the routes, are but approxima- 
tions to the center of the track or course of the several storms; and 
the gales are to be considered as extending their rotative circuit from 
fifty to three hundred miles, or more, on each side of the delinea- 
tions ; the superficial extent of the storm being estimated both by 
actual information and by its duration at any point near the central 
portion of its route, as compared with its average rate of progress. 
The figure which appears upon the chart, on tracks No. I, IV, and 
VII, will serve in some degree to illustrate the course of the wind 
in the various portions of the superficies covered by the storm, and 
also, to explain the changes in the direction of the wind which occur 
successively at various points, during the regular progress of the gale. 
The dimensions of the several SIS, appear also to have gradually 
expanded during their course. 

Storms of this character do not often act with great violence on 
any considerable extent of interior country to which they may arrive. 
Even upon the coasts on which they enter, such violence is not often 
experienced under the posterior limb of the gale which sweeps back 
from its circuit over the land, the usual woodlands and elevations 
being a sufficient protection. Often, indeed, the interior elevations 
afford such shelter as entirely to neutralize the effect of the wind at 
and near the surface, and the presence and passage of the hurricane 
is, in such cases, to be noted chiefly by the unusual depression, 
which the great whirling movement of the incumbent stratum of air 
produces in the mercury of the barometer, which thus indicates the 
presence or passage of the hurricane, in positions where the force of 
the wind is not felt at all, or only with a moderate degree of violence, 


128 On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


The action of these storms appears, indeed to be at first confined to 
the stratum or current of air moving next the earth’s surface, and 
they seldom, while in this position, appear to exceed a mile or so in 
altitude ; and the course of the next highest or overlying stratum 
does not in these cases seem to be at all affected by the action of the 
storm below. During their progress, however, by the influence of 
high land and other causes, the storms often become transferred, in 
whole or in part, to the next higher stratum of current. ‘Thus we 
sometimes see a stratum of clouds moving with the full velocity of a 
violent storm, while the stratum of surface wind is nearly at rest, or 
moves with its ordinary velocity ; and thus also it happens that bal- 
loons, ascending under such circumstances, are carried forward with 
a velocity of from sixty to one hundred miles an hour. ‘The forego- 
ing remarks are by no means hypothetical, but are the result of long 
continued observation and inquiry.. : 

It will hardly escape notice that the track of most of these hurri- 
canes, as presented on the chart, appears to form part of an ellipti- 
cal or parabolic circuit, and this will be more obvious if we make 
correction, in each case, for the slight distortion of the apparent 
course in the higher latitudes, which is produced by the plane pro- 
jection. We are also struck with the fact that the vertex of the 
curve is uniformly found in or near the 30th degree of latitude. In 
connection with this fact it may also be noted, that the latitude of 
30° marks the external limit of the trade winds, on both sides of the 
equator; and perhaps it may not prove irrelevant to notice, even 
further, that by the parallel of 30° the surface area, as well as the 
atmosphere, of each hemisphere is equally divided ; the area between 
this latitude and the equator being about equal to that of the entire 
surface between the same latitude and the pole. It is not intended, 
however to make these facts the basis of any theoretical inductions 
on the present occasion. 

It will doubtless appear desirable to know whether, if the full his- 
tory of these or other storms could be obtained, the track in any 
case, would result in the completion of an entire circuit, either in 
the proper basin of the North Atlantic, or in its continental borders ; 
and if so, whether there be, or be not, any general uniformity in the 
length of the major axis of this elliptical circuit at different seasons 
of the year? If this inquiry cannot be satisfactorily solved, it is still 
important to learn the analogies or relations which the storm-tracks 
on the eastern borders of an oceanic basis, bear to those in its western 
portions, or in other regions. On the Asiatic coasts of the northern 


On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 129 


Pacific, unless I have greatly mistaken the evidence, the same sys- 
tem of storms is found to prevail as in the Western Atlantic in the 
cases before us. On the western coast of North America it will ap- 
pear, from the phases of storms as described by Cook and other voy- 
agers, that their usual course is in a southeasterly direction. The ev- 
idence, in the case last mentioned, though it may be satisfactory to 
those who are familiar with the modes of investigation, can hardly be 
estimated by general readers, and will not, therefore, be here insist- 
edon. The journals of voyagers and other published records, when 
sufliciently examined and collated, are deemed to afford decisive ev- 
idence that a system of the same general character, prevails in the 
southern hemisphere, but exhibiting for the most part, precisely 
counter movements. If there be any important exception, it will 
probably be found in the limits of those counter movements of the 
regular trade winds on both sides of the equator, which are known 
as the westerly monsoons ;* but even in these regions, it is question- 
able whether the course of violent storms be not uniformly the same 
as in other regions of corresponding latitude; but more facts of a de- 
cisive character are wanted before this point can be settled to the 
satisfaction of the writer. 

The routes of many other storms and hurricanes might be traced 
on the chart, from materials now in hand, were it necessary ; and 
they may it is believed, be somewhere found in action at all seasons, 
and on every day in the year, although their appearance is more fre- 
quent in some seasons and even in some years than in others. The 
hasty outline of their progress and development, now submitted, is 
probably, quite sufficient to overthrow some of the most common 
hypotheses respecting their origin and times of appearance. 

Perhaps it might be deemed proper to point out on the present 
occasion, the catenation of natural causes by which the systematic 
organization and progress of these storms is produced and maintained ; 


* The author is willing to be held responsible for this implied definition of the 
general character of the monsoons, as he finds good reason to consider these 
winds to be neither more nor less than a misplaced or counter deflection in the 
course of the regular trade winds, occasioned probably, by the contour and posi- 
tion of opposing coasts and elevations, and especially by the inferior current of 
atmosphere which is necessarily produced by certain extensive elevations of the 
earth’s surface. It is to fallacious or misapplied reasonings, founded on a certain 
known principle of expansion and every where adopted, that we probably owe the 
confusion and manifest uncertainty of our knowledge in regard to the true nature 
of the great atmospheric currents. 


~ Vout. XX XI.—No. 1. 17 


130 On the Gales and Hurricanes of the Western Atlantic. 


but I do not intend, Mr. Editor, to weary the patience of your read- 
ers with a more prolonged chapter on the natural history of hurri- 
canes, or to deprive the savans of their prerogative to dispose of our 
facts in such a manner as may seem best to accord with their favor- 
ite theories. Besides, our business at this time is rather with the facts 
themselves, than with their relations in-a correct system of meteorolo- 
gy. It may be remarked however, that unless the writer has greatly 
mistaken the mass of evidence presented to his notice during the pro- 
gress of his inquiries, these phenomena, as also the general winds in 
which they occur, are to be ascribed mainly to the mechanical gravita- 
tion of the atmosphere, as connected with the rotative and orbital move- 
ments of the earth’s surface. But should any one, after an unbias- 
sed and full consideration of the great facts which are now before us, 
and of their bearing as illustrative of the physics of the atmosphere, 
seriously ascribe them either to lunary, cometary, electric, or volcanic 
influence, or even to calorific agency in any just and proper sense, 
then the writer can only say, that he finds himself unable to explain 
these, and certain other phenomena of the atmosphere, upon such 
principles, and that he desires to concede all the honor of theorizing 
to those who may imagine that such relations can be established. 
It would promise better, however, to inquire whether we have not 
in these developments, a clue to the true system of atmospheric 
physics, a subject which has always been beset with difficulties, and 
to explain which we have hitherto obtained nothing better than plaus- 
ible hypotheses.—In regard to the fall of the barometer, which at- 
tends these storms throughout their progress, its ratzonale is deemed 
to beso obvious as hardly to admit of question. 

In conclusion, I will venture to hope that the facts and considera- 
tions now presented may prove, in some degree, useful to the nauti- 
cal profession, and promotive also, of the general interests of science. 
At the same time it is hoped, that in future notices and reports of 
violent storms, more attention will be given to specific dates and lo- 
cation, and also to the direction and changes of the wind, all which 
may be expressed in the most summary manner ; and the facts when 
once recorded, are for ever available, in tracing the progress and char-. 
acter of such storms. It seems desirable also, that the general route 
and character of European storms, should be investigated by those 
whose local position, and means of information, best qualify them 
for the task. The writer of this communication is but scantily fur- 
nished with materials for this object, and would gladly see the work 
accomplished by other and abler hands. 


Rejoinder of Prof. Shepard to Prof. Del Rio. 131 


Art. IX.—Rejoinder of Prof. Surparp to Prof. Det Rio. 


I recret being obliged to vindicate myself farther against the 
misapprehensions of Prof. Dex Rio. It is a subject of much less 
concern, however, to find my system opposed by an individual whose 
long familiarity with mineralogy leaves no occasion for him to apply 
to analytical tables in the way of a learner, than to have its value 
called in question by that class of persons for whom it was expressly 
designed. Still 1 would not affect to be insensible to the good opin- 
ion of one so much my senior in the cultivation of this science, as 
must be a pupil of Werner; though I confess some surprise at the 
grounds on which he has seen fit to withhold his approval. 

In the few remarks I have to make, I shall pursue the order of 
his observations on my reply, p. 384 of the last number of this 
Journal. He asserts that I could not have chosen a worse ex- 
ample than Rutile, as a mineral for testing the comparative mer- 
its of the two systems in dispute. He objects, because he is ac- 
quainted with no Rutile “which is fine granular, or impalpable.” 
But I have no where said that Rutile occurs impalpable. My words 
were, massive in small closely connected individuals. I trust that 
these two conditions of mechanical composition are not confounded 
by Prof. Dex Rio, since the difference is as great as that between 
snow and ice! Nor is the objection valid because fine granular Ru- 
tile does not exist, since it is a well known variety both at Arendal 
and the southern coast of Cornwall, besides occasionally occurring 
in the New England states. But if this variety were wholly un- 
known, the employment of Rutile to illustrate the characteristics in 
question, so far as relates to crystallized and easily cleavable indi- 
viduals, would be perfectly suitable; though my rule for referring 
minerals to the semi-crystallized class, would but seldom allow the 
broken and imperfect crystals, and large granular varieties, to be de- 
termined in this class, for I have intended for it only such as are ea- 
sily and distinctly cleavable, and such is not commonly the fact in 
Rutile, as any one may assure himself by attempting to cleave the 
Nigrine pebbles of Ohlapian. I must therefore be allowed still to per- 
severe in recommending the pupil to determine Rutile in a great num- 
ber of instances by a reference to the uncrystallized class, notwith- 
standing the remarks of Prof. Dex Rio respecting the impossiblity of 
distinguishing it from Ostranite, if obliged to adhere to the princi- 


132 Rejoinder of Prof. Shepard to Prof. Del Rio. 


ples I have advanced, which are very unaccountably supposed to 
preclude all regard to a difference of color and lustre between these 
species. My treatise however is very explicit in the definition of the 
natural properties of minerals, and in the enumeration of these prop- 
erties among them. His assertion that I exclude color, fracture and 
lustre, from the list of natural properties, is farther proof of the hasty 
manner in which he has considered the subject of his criticisms; and 
has no better foundation than my having pronounced identical the 
three varieties of Galena. proposed by him as a puzzle for the pu- 
pil using my book. ‘These varieties were supposed to differ in 
structure: one of them is crystallized in the form of the cube, an- 
other massive in large individuals, and the third fine granular. How 
it is possible for these varieties to be identical in the sense of Natu- 
ral History, will appear, if any one will peruse the remarks on Iden- 
tity, § 104, p. 30 of my Treatise, and that without oyesioelm es struc- 
ture, color and lustre, as natural properties. 

Prof. Dex Rro is at a loss to understand how the frequent divis- 
ion of the species is a consequence, as | had asserted, of providing 
means for the determination of imperfect minerals. When any one 
will attempt to secure the object at which I aimed, in a manner 
equally effectual, he will probably comprehend the nature of the ne- 
cessity. lLintended by the remark, however, simply to say that I 
could not accomplish the task and avoid such a division. Should it 
be performed without involving this inconvenience, my assertion will 
be found untrue, and I shall cheerfully encounter the mortification it 
may occasion, for the sake of the improvement; though I must de- 
ny having triplicated (as charged by my reviewer) or even duplicated, 
the species by the process I have adopted. 

Prof. Dex Rio recommended the arrangement of Leucite, eet 
cime and Garnet under a new order, the trapezohedron. I had a 
right to conclude that this was done as likely, in his opinion, to lead 
the pupil to the names of these minerals with greater facility than 
on the disposition 1 had made of them. In adhering to my arrange- 
ment, therefore, I do not perceive the impropriety of saying, in re- 
ply, that it would lead to no confusion, provided I showed satisfac- 
torily, as I trust I did, that none could occur. 

I notice also with regret, that Prof. Det Rio adheres to his for- 
mer assertion concerning the determination of Quartz, as included in 
my order of the rhomboid; and that he has become so extravagant 
as to deny that it ever presents itself under the figure of its. primi- 


Rejoinder of Prof. Shepard to Prof. Del Rio. 133 


tive form. A student who is even moderately acquainted with 
the connexion of forms, would be prevented by the difference of 
lustre on the pyramidal faces of most Quartz crystals, no less than 
by the strie on the alternate faces of the prism, from referring them 
to the order of the regular hexagonal prism: and as to the fact of 
the primitive form being among the actual crystals of this species, 
it is abundantly mentioned as occurring at several places in Europe, 
by authors of the highest authority, and I should be extremely hap- 
py to show Professor Det Rio samples from Chesterfield, Mass. 
in my collection, (fig. 360, my Mineralogy, 2d part,) samples which, 
though not the unaltered rhomboid, are so far removed from the six 
sided prism, as to require an expert observer to detect in all instan- 
ces even the rudiments of prismatic planes. 

Had’ Prof. Det Rio been as explicit in his first review of my 
treatise, as he with some want of candor claims to have been in his 
notice of my reply, I should no doubt have extended my remarks 
in commenting upon the discoveries of MirscHERLICH, in a man- 
ner more answerable to his expectations. ‘The doctrine of dimor- 
phism, | regard as too imperfectly established to justify any innova- 
tions among species founded on natural-history principles. Chem- 
ists may by making crystallizations in different menstrua and at va- 
rious temperatures, obtain irreconcilable forms of what is supposed 
to be the same substance; they may fail also to detect any chemi- 
eal difference between Flos-ferri and Calcareous Spar, and between 
White and Common Iron Pyrites; but still the interests of Mine- 
ralogy will not permit the union of these substances, differing as they 
do in crystalline form and other natural properties. .The history of 
chemical analysis during the last twenty years, forbids such a proce- 
dure. ‘The evidence of difference arising out of structure, specific 
gravity, hardness and lustre, must still be preferred to that derived 
from chemical analysis. 

While the announcement that Arrwepson has just found 37 p. 
c. of sulphur in the European Manganblende, is a striking cor- 
roboration of the suspicious value I would attach to chemical anal- 
ysis, l am compelled still to disagree with Prof. Dex Rro respect- 
ing the identity of the Mexican variety with it as a species. The 
discrepancy of form, if real—so great as that of a cube and a rhom- 
boid—is enough to induce me to make a mineralogical distinction. 

The broken crystal with vertical planes, proposed as a dilemma 
for my characteristic, may contain such faces as to render it certain 


134 New Work on the History of the Art of 


that it belongs to the right square, the right rectangular, or to the 
doubly oblique, prism; but the probability is that it would be neces- _ 
sary to effect its determination through the 3d class. 

To the inquiry how many characters may be considered as es- 
sential ? (by which I suppose the question is asked how many of the 
natural properties are available as characters) I reply that structure, 
specific gravity, hardness and lustre, afford essential characters of 
full and perfect sufficiency for the distinction of classes, orders, gen- 
era and species, provided these groups are framed in accordance 
with the principles of Natural History. 


Cuarues U. SHEPARD. 
New Haven, Aug. 9, 1836. 


Art. X.—M. Alexandre Brongniart’s New Work on the History 
of the Art of Pottery and of Vitrification. 


Museum to illustrate this subject. 


In a letter to the editor, dated March 8th, 1836, M. Brongniart 
remarks: ‘(I am much occupied with a work upon the history of 
the plastic art, or the art of pottery; and the requests which I take 
the liberty to annex, have for their object the enriching of a grand 
and instructive collection which I have formed at Sevres, of every 
thing relative to the art of pottery, and consequently to the perfec- 
tion of the work which I have undertaken, and of which I have pub- 
lished the plan in an extract from the article Pottery, in the Dic- 
tionary of Technology published at Paris. It forms the half of a 
volume, in which I have endeavored to present the principles of the 
art in a manner at once practical, philosophical and elementary. I 
am this year about taking a journey to England and to Germany, 
for the purpose of collecting information and specimens for this work 
and for the collection at Sevres.” 

_ As this undertaking of M. Brongniart is important and interesting 
to science, to history, and to the highly useful and beautiful art of 
pottery, we publish a translation of the exposé entire, and strongly 
recommend it to the attention of all those who, in this country, have 
it in their power to promote the object in view. It is quite super- 
fluous to add, that M. Brongniart’s character furnishes every secu- 
rity for the able and faithful performance of the duty sitive he has 
undertaken.— Ed. 


Pottery and of Vitrification. 135 


\ 


Sévres, March 8th, 1836. 
Royal Manufactory of Porcelain, and for painting on Glass. 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 


Instructions as to the manner of co-operating towards the comple- 
tion of the collection relative to the arts, connected with the manu- 
facture of porcelain and with vitrification, founded at the aie 
Manufactory at Sevres near Paris. 

I. What kinds of pottery are used by the different classes of in- 
habitants of the country; the agriculturists, the mechanics, citizens 
and merchants, poor and rich? 

Is the pottery of native or foreign manufacture ? 

If foreign, from what country does it come, and in what way? 

If of native manufacture, where is it made? 

Il. As to the native pottery, (and under this name we include all 
varieties, from the most common to porcelain,) it is desired to col- 
lect and procure specimens of every sort. Common pottery, both 
with and without glazing. Delftware common and Delftware fine. 
Pottery of brown free stone; crucibles. Varieties of porcelain. 
Bricks, both common and those manufactured by particular processes. 

Plate species.—Plates, oval dishes. 

Hollow ware.—Cups, salad dishes, tea and coffee cups. 

Round pots, hollow moulded.—Oval and square pieces, saucers, 
boxes, &c. 

The largest piece of each sort that is made. 

The name given in the country to each piece. 

The price of each piece upon the spot. 

Whether there is exportation, and to what place. 

III. Fapricatton. 

1. Primary materials—for the mass or paste. Clays. Marls 
or plastic earths which may be substituted for them. Sands. Rocks 
or stones. Limestone. 

For the glaze or enamel.—If stony materials—feldspar-stones. 

If metallic matters—Metals, their oxides, and metallic glass. 

Exact localities from which these materials are drawn. 

2. Modelling.—Moulds of plaster, of terra cotta or other materi- 
als of whatever kind. 

The lathe and other instruments for fabrication. 

Sketches, with exact dimensions of these instruments, if it is sup- 
posed that they differ from those used in Europe. 

3. Baking.—Form of the ovens sketched, with the dimensions. 


136 History of Pottery and of Vitrification. 


*Combustibles used, indicating them in the clearest manner pos- 
sible. ; 

IV. Information peculiar to the country. 

1. To designate the principal manufactures of pottery, glass and 
porcelain in your vicinity. 

2. Whether there is in North America, ancient pottery ; that is to 
say, pottery fabricated in remote ages, and which has not been made 
for a long time. This pottery is found in general in alluvial soil, in 
the ruins of towns, and perhaps, as in some parts of Italy, and of 
South America, and of the oriental countries of the ancient world, 
in the graves or tumuli. In Europe, these things have often been 
admitted into museums as monuments of antiquity, but almost never 
as in relation to the art of pottery and its history. It is in this latter 
point of view that | regard them, and that I have collected a great 
number of the ancient pieces of pottery in the museum at Sevres. 

To endeavor to collect some pieces of this antique pottery, and to 
indicate exactly the place and the circumstances in which they have 
been found, and to endeavor to decide whether it had anciently any 
celebrity, always however mistrusting the deception of the sellers. 

3. Whether there is knowledge from traditions, inscriptions, &c., 
that the natives (aborigines) of North America have ever fabricated 
or known glass. 


General instructions in relation to the purchase, packing and for- 
warding of the objects collected. 


The expenses which may be incurred in procuring the specimens 
and the information, will be reimbursed by the administration of the 
Royal Manufactory of Porcelam, upon the statement sent to the 
person who shall be designated to receive the amount. 

It is expected that these expenses will not rise to a great amount: 
it is requested, in any event, that they may not exceed, in any one 
year, the sum granted, i. e. 200 francs for 1836, ($40); 200 for 
1837; at least without a previous understanding with the adminis- 
trator of the Royal Manufactory at Sevres. 

It will be necessary to pack the pieces with great care, and to 
consign them to a merchant in one of the ports of France, to be for- 
warded by way of slow transportation to the administrator of the 
Royal Manufacture of Porcelain; forwarding also the expenses of 
transportation. 


* The requests for information and for specimens, apply equally to glass manu- 
facturés and their productions. 


Method of increasing Shocks, &c. 137 


It will be necessary that the correspondent at the seaport should 
write a letter of advice to the administrator of the Royal Manufac- 
tory at Sévres near Paris, before the forwarding—that the latter 
may obtain from the director general of the customs, that the box 
may arrive under seal, sows plomb, and that it may not be opened 
at Paris: this is very important, to the end that there may be no de- 
rangement of labels, nor any breakage. It is equally important that 
the tickets which may indicate the places where the pieces were 
made, or those from which they come, should not be separated and 
mixed during the unpacking. It is desired therefore that they may 
be fastened either with glue, or with good wafers, or with twine. 

Lastly, it is very desirable that there should be attached to the 
case a separate box, either of lead or of tin, or that there should be 
sent separately, notes, previously made, of the objects collected and 
forwarded ; taking care that a correspondence be established between 
the objects and the notes, by means of numbers, which shall follow 
each ane or by numbering the series. 

AWE ENDER BRONGNIART. 


Arr. XI.—Method of increasing shocks, and experiments, with 
Prof. Henry's apparatus for obtaining sparks and shocks from 
the Calorimotor ; by C. G. Page. 

Salem, May 12th, 1836. 
PROFESSOR SILLIMAN. \ 
Dear Sir—I have lately constructed an apparatus for obtaining 
shocks from the calorimotor, which has furnished some curious results, 
and as you may perbaps, deem them worthy of publication, I send 
you herewith, a sectional drawing of the apparatus with a description. 


(13 


920 feet. 
—inmwnenner—n 17) 


ecocsesearenssame 80 


becrennneeee— 110) ‘ 


S 
Xen) 
H 
H 
H 
t 


2 i : 
a ee Eas ion 
LA 


Che imomi ais dof) 1 


The figure represents a section of an apparatus for obtaining shocks 
from the calorimotor. The coil of copper ribbon, contained in the 


box 4, is 220 feet long, an inch wide, and has but four solderings or 
Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 18 


138 Method of increasing Shocks, &c. 


joints, throughout its length. ‘The separate lengths of 55 feet are 

cut from single sheets of copper. ‘This is easily done by cutting the 

alternate strips within half an inch to the edge of the sheet, and then 

bending them one upon the other, to bring them in the same line of 
length; in this way the integrity of the circuit is better preserved 

than by numerous solderings. The ribbon is wound with single 

strips of list intervening. On five of the coils at distances indicated 

by the figure, are soldered strips of copper which pass through the 

cover of the box and are then bent down to receive the thimbles for 

the mercury. ‘This forms a convenient arrangement, as the mercury 

cups are easily emptied by straightening the copper strips. ¢, rep- 

resents the copper tube with a curved strip of copper soldered to its 

extremity for dipping into the mercury cups. For the sake of brev- 

ity in detailing the experiments, instead of the copper tube of right 

or left hand, merely the words right and left hand will be used; and 
by the abbreviations, neg. con. and pos. con. will be understood the 

strips of copper connecting the cups with the negative and positive - 
cups of the calorimotor. 

On putting the pos. con. into cup 1 and the neg. con. into cup 2, 
a bright spark and sharp snap are produced, when either of the con- 
nectors is raised from its cup. When the neg. con. is raised from 
cup 3, the spark is more brilliant than the last, accompanied with a 
louder snap. 

_ When the neg. con. is raised from cup 4, the spark is more volu- 
minous, but not so intense as the last named, nor is the snap So loud. 

When the neg. con. is raised from cup 5, the spark is still less 
bright, and the snap less loud. 

When the neg. con. is raised from cup 6, (220 feet,) the spark 
and snap are both feeble, even when compared with those given by 
cup 3. It would seem then from these results, that the limit* of in- 
tensity is attained at cup 4, which gives a length of 110 feet; but 
this inference is somewhat weakened by the following facts. The 
shocks by no means obey the same law; the maximum being obtain- 
ed by immersing the copper tubes in cups 6 and 1. For conven- 
ience of arrangement, suppose the positive connector is in cup 1 and 
the right hand incup 1. The left hand is to pass along with the 
neg. con. into cups 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and as the con. is raised from 
these cups successively, the shock increases, and from cup 6, isa 


+ This limit could be more accurately ascertained by having cups on each coil. 


Method of increasing Shocks, &c. 139 


maximum with this apparatus. It will be seen from this, that from 
cup 4 to 6, the shock is inversely as the spark, while in the first half 
of the coil, it is in the same ratio. It may be well to mention here, 
that I found if the surface of the mercury, where the contact be brok- 
en, be covered with water, the shock is very much increased. ‘The 
rationale I am unable to give, but such is the fact. ‘This augmenta- 
tion does not take place at every rupture of contact, but is best at- 
tained by striking the connector against the bottom of the cup and 
quickly raising it. ‘The shock is also increased by covering the mer- 
cury with naphtha and the mercury appeared to be oxidized, the 
naphtha soon growing turbid. 

The next results to be stated, are still more curious, and accor- 
ding to the received theories of electromotion, difficult to explain. 
The pos. con. and right hand are still in cup1. The neg. con. in 
eup 2, and the left hand in cup 3, the shock is now stronger than 
when the left hand was in cup 2 with the connector, and the shock 
goes on increasing as the left hand is carried into cups 4, 5 and 6 in 
succession.* Let now the pos. con. and right hand remain in cup 
1, place the neg. con. in cup 3, and the left hand in cup 4; the shock 
goes on increasing as before, and when the left hand arrives at cup 
6, the shock is as strong as that obtained from the whole coil, (220 
feet,) while the actual circuit from positive to negative, is only 80 
feet. Let the pos. con. and right hand remain in cup |, put the 
neg. con. in cup 4 and the left hand in cup 5; the shock is now as 
strong as when the whole coil is in the circuit, and when the left hand 
is in cup 6, the shock is stronger than can be obtained from the 
apparatus in any other way. These last results show that the real 
maximum as indicated by the shock, is given by the direct circuit 
from positive to negative, through half the coil, with the lateral co- 
operation of the other half. 

Thus much being known, we might reasonably expect that while 
the connectors are in the extreme cups 1 and 6, we should obtain 
shocks from any two intermediate cups, and this I found to be the 
case ; but contrary to expectation, I obtained shocks from cups en- 
tirely without the actual circuit. For instance the pos. con. in cup 
1, neg. in 3, right hand in 4, and left hand in 6. In this case the 
shock was slight; but by thrusting needles into the thumb and fore 
finger of the left hand, and immersing the needles in cups 4 and 6, 
the shock was extremely painful. 


* An assistant is necessary to make the immersion of the connectors. 


140 Method of increasing Shocks, &c. 


Again, solder the copper tube of the left hand to the neg. con., 
put the pos. con. and right hand into cup 1. When the end of the 
neg. con. is raised from cup 4, no shock is felt, but when the other 
end is raised from the cup on the battery, a shock is felt. Other 
things remaining the same, carry the right hand from cup 1, out of 
the direct circuit intocup 6. Nearly the reverse of the last named 
phenomena takes place. A strong shock is felt when the end of the 
neg. con. is raised from cup 4, and a weaker one when the other end 
is raised from the cup on the battery. This experiment appears still 
more striking, when the right hand is carried into the same cup with 
the neg. con., cup 4; a shock is felt, although the distance by the 
direct circuit from hand to hand, is only about eight inches. Hav- 
ing detached the copper tube from the connector, put the pos. con. 
in cup 1, the neg. con. in cup 4, the right hand in cup 4, and the 
left hand in the neg. cup on the battery. Jt is immaterial now which 
end of the neg. con. is raised, both producing a shock. If the right 
hand is now carried to cup 6, the shock is a maximum. i 

A direct shock cannot be obtained from this instrument. ‘To test 
this, I passed fine needles deep into the thumb and fore finger of the 
left hand, and immersed them in cup 6 and the neg. cup on the bat- 
tery, the pos. con. being in cup 1; no shock was felt on making or 
breaking the circuit. | 

Ifa file or rasp be inserted into either of the cups and the con- 
nector drawn across it, the shocks become insupportable from their 
rapidity of succession. The scintillations from the file in this case 
are very beautiful, being by far the most brilliant and copious in cup 
4. Very pleasing effects are produced by breaking the circuit with 
a revolving spur wheel. A little spur wheel of copper is so made, 
that in revolving, one spur shall leave the mercury before the next 
touches. In this way a rapid series of sparks and detonations are 
obtained. © If bits of silver leaf are hung upon the spurs as the wheel 
revolves, the combustion of the silver leaf is very vivid, burning 
with its peculiar emerald light. ‘The shocks produced while the 
wheel is revolving, are very disagreeable. 

The decomposition of water was easily effected by breaking the 
circuit under its surface with two clean strips of copper. On using 
two small platinum wires, they adhered as with a deflagrator. 

The coil was tried with a two quart Leyden jar, and shocks were 
obtained from cups entirely without the direct circuit. I refrain from 
stating other results with the Leyden jar, as they must be rendered 
somewhat equivocal, by the imperfect insulation of the coils. 


Method of increasing Shocks, &c. 141 


It may also be worth mention, that by using the needles as before, 
I obtained with this apparatus, shocks from a single pair of plates of 
only four square inches, (single surface.) We have then in this in- 
strument a battery by itself, from which shocks of all grades can be 
obtained, and in cases of the medical application of galvanism, it 
must prove far more convenient than the ordinary methods. 


POSTSCRIPT. Salem, June 8, 1836. 


One of the most pleasing experiments with the coil, is breaking 
‘the circuit with a revolving spur wheel. In former experiments, I 
produced the revolution of the wheel with a string,. as in the wheel 
tinder box, having failed to effect it with a magnet. But I have 
since invigorated my calorimotor, by removing and cleansing the 
zinc plates, and a small horse shoe magnet is now sufficient to pro- 
duce rapid revolutions, with the most brilliant results. The circuit 
in this case is terminated in cup 2, as the rotations diminish in pro- 
portion to the length of the coil used. The wheel is fitted with a 
‘wooden stand and trough, precisely as for magnetic rotation. . The 
deflagration of the mercury is extremely vivid, giving copious fumes. 
If the experiment is performed in a dark room, it exhibits in a superb 
manner, the well known optical illusion, of a wheel in rapid motion 
appearing to be at rest. As the wheel is illuminated by a rapid se- 
ries of sparks, it does not appear to be exactly at rest, but exhibits a 
quick vibratory movement. I have before alluded to the nature of 
the shocks given by the wheel, but with this self regulating appara- 
tus, an assistant can be dispensed with, and shocks of any duration 
and degree, can be obtained, by immersing the copper handles as 
before directed. ‘The strongest shock being obtained by immersing 
the copper handles in cups 6, and the negative cup on the battery. 
This last experiment is difficult to explain. The left hand being in 
cup 6, it is immaterial whether the right hand is carried to the posi- 
tive or negative cup on the battery ; a strong shock is felt in both ca- 
-ses, but that from the negative cup is somewhat stronger, and is the 
real maximum, if the circuit terminates with half the coil. 


142 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


Art. XII.— Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet, as they 
appeared at Union College, Schenectady, N. Y., in Oct. 1835; 
_by Prof. B. F. Jostin. { 
Preliminary Remarks.—A comparison of the recorded appear- 
ances of comets with the known period of Halley’s, has enabled as- 
tronomers, by identifying the latter, to trace back its existence for 
five or six hundred years. This circumstance renders this comet 
peculiarly interesting, as affording an opportunity of studying the 
physical changes which this class of bodies may undergo during long 
periods of time. ‘These changes will be more accurately determin- 
ed, in proportion as observers shall more particularly note those op- 
tical and other circumstances which affect their appearance, and es- 
pecially the length of their trains. 

It would appear from the former history of this comet, that at 
each of its periodical returns, since these have been recorded, the 
magnitude of its head, (which consists of the bright central part, 
called. the nucleus, and the surrounding nebulous part, called the en- 
velope,) and the length of its tail, have been observed to be less 
than at the preceding return. This has been attributed to a want 
of sufficient attraction to bring back to the head the material of the 
tail, and prevent its dissipation. In consequence of these succes- 
sive degradations, astronomers generally anticipated, that in 1835, 
its tail, if seen at all, would be far less imposing than at any former 
period ; and it was doubted by some, whether any part of the comet 
would be seen with the naked eye, or even without the aid of a pow- 
erful telescope.* Yet this zsolated mass of celestial vapor appears 
still to be far from being entirely dissipated ; although vapor, under 
ordinary terrestrial circumstances, is proverbial for its transitory 
character, and strikingly represents the brevity of human life. Yet 
this body, whose bulk consists chiefly of vapor; this body, at the 
same time among the lightest and most voluminous in the solar sys- 
tem, has (notwithstanding its alternate condensation and rarefaction, 
and its partial dissipation by solar influence) continued to exist, and 
to pursue its regular and prescribed (and now calculated) course 
through the heavens, at least during a period in which fifteen or 
twenty generations of men have been swept in succession from the 
face of the earth. 


* See American Almanac, for 1835. 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 143 


The want of any satisfactory theory in relation to the tails of 
comets, and the changes which this particular one has undergone, 
render it more desirable to multiply exact observations of its appa- 
rent length, with an account of those circumstances by which it may 
have been affected. 

The apparent length of this appendage depends, Ist, on its abso- 
lute length; 2d, on its distance from the earth ; 3d, on its intrinsic 
brightness ; for, as this fades away insensibly, the tail will appear to 
terminate where its light is too faint to make a sensible impression 
on the retina ; 4th, on the brightness of the surrounding sky, in con- 
sequence of the illumination of the atmosphere by other light, as 
that of the sun or moon, which weakens the impression made by the 
light of the tail; 5th, on the altitude of the comet, and the opacity 
of the atmosphere, which intercepts and reflects more or less of this 
light ; 6th, on the position of the optic axis; for although the figure 
and color of a bright object can be determined with more precision 
when the optic axis is directed towards it, the existence of a faintly 
luminous one can be more readily detected, and consequently the 
extent of one, whose brightness progressively diminishes from one 
extremity to the other, till it vanishes, can be more correctly deter- 
mined by oblique or indirect vision, and when the optic axis makes 
a considerable angle with the visual ray of the object; and in all 
comparative estimates of its length, as seen at different times, or by 
different observers, it is necessary to know in which of these modes 
it was viewed. Lastly, telescopic vision, in which the field is com- 
paratively of small extent, is necessarily direct; but the magnitude 
of a faint object will vary, not only with the magnifying powers, but 
with the diameters of the object glasses, provided they have propor- 
tional apertures. 

There is one rare phenomenon, which, whenever it is presented, 
claims particular attention, viz. the second tail. I have hitherto al- 
luded to the ordinary and proper one, which is nearly opposite the 
sun, and concerning the physical constitution of which the hypothe- 
ses have been numerous, but unsatisfactory. If it is owing to the 
atmosphere of the comet, driven off by the impulse of the sun’s rays, 
how shall we account for several co-existent tails, some of them ta- 
king a very different direction? There is probably no phenome- 
non, which is destined in the progress of observation, to throw more 
light upon the physical constitution and rotatory motion of comets, 
than that of these supernumerary tails. ‘The observation of some 


144 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


of them may lead to the conclusion, that they are projected by local 

causes from particular parts of the comet’s nucleus, and revolving 

with it, take at different times, different positions, a comparison of 
which may determine the period of rotation. In the account of my 

observations on Halley’s comet, as well as in the following referen- 

ces to its former appearances, the term tazl will, unless otherwise 

stated, be exclusively applied to the luminous train which was near- 
ly opposite the sun. Whether in the accounts of its appearance 
previous to 1835, its total length was given, or only that part seen 
by direct vision, we may perhaps have no means of determining. 

The comet of 1305, believed to have been that of Halley, seems 
to have presented an envelope and train, of such a magnitude as to 
render it not only sublime, but, in that age, terrific. It was refer- 
red to as the “‘cometa horrende magnitudinis,” in an age when rare 
phenomena, instead of proving a stimulus to accurate observation, 
excited either wonder or terror. In the year 1456, it presented a 
tail 60° in length, and spread consternation throughout christian Eu- 
rope. Its malign influences, in connexion with the Mahometan 
conquests, were daily and publicly deprecated, a papal bull being 
formally issued, and the church bells daily rung for that special pur- 
pose. In 1682, its tail was reduced to one half, being 30° in 
length. In the year 1705, Dr. Edmund Halley, having determined 
its period to be about seventy five or seventy six years, (varying ac- 
cording to the disturbing influence of the planets,) foretold its reap-' 
pearance in 1759. Jt appeared within a month of the time pre- 
dicted ; and the fulfillment of this prediction, the first successful at- 
tempt of the kind ever made by astronomers, ‘has liberated the hu- 
man mind from those superstitious terrors, which hairy or blazing 
stars had always excited, and of which this comet in particular, had 
been for so many times, and in such a peculiar degree, the innocent 
cause. 

Its next return to its perihelion, was in November, 1835,. but a 
few days later in the month than was predicted. 

The fact that the difference between the actual and calculated 
time, was much less than at the preceding return, evinces progress 
in astronomy. My own humble observations, however, to which I 
shall now proceed, have no bearing upon what, in the English use 
of the term, is called physical astronomy. ‘They relate rather to 
the physics, and (if I may so express it) to the meteorology of com- 
ets; to points, which may interest the public and the natural phi- 
losopher, but not the student of celestial mechanics. 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 145 


In the following observations, the largest telescope employed, 
was a five feet achromatic of Dollond’s manufacture; magnifying 
power from 57 to 260; diameter of object glass, 32 inches. Asitis 
not furnished with a micrometer, the magnitudes, positions, and forms 
of telescopic objects are to be considered as stated only approxi- 
mately. 

The smallest telescope, (except the finder,) was a portable tele- 
scope, having a magnifying power of 6.8; diameter of object glass, 
2.6 inches ; focal length, two feet three inches. 

I shall, however, confine myself chiefly to an account of such 
observations as could be made with most advantage by simple vision, 
direct, and indirect; and more particularly to the length of the 
train. As this was generally more conspicuous in October, I shall 
confine the account to that month, although the train was afterwards 
seen. The following is a copy of my journal. 

Observations.— Oct. 4, 4h. 15m. A. M. mean solar time. 'The 
tail of Halley’s comet was distinctly seen with the naked eye, by indi- 
rect vision, but was invisible when the optic axis was directed to- 
wards it. It appeared to be nearly opposite to the Sun, but as it 
was very short, its position could not be satisfactorily determined. 
Its length, as seen indirectly, was equal to two or three diameters of 
the head. The apparent magnitude of the latter, as seen with the 
naked eye, was about equal to that of a star of the first magnitude, 
as dilated by irradiation, though its brightness did not exceed one 
of the third or fourth. The tail could only be seen in the absence 
of all foreign light, except that of the stars, though the head was 
visible to the naked eye, till within half an hour of Sunrise. With 
the five feet telescope, and lowest magnifying power, no tail could 
be seen, but only a rounded mass, resembling luminous vapor, in- 
creasing in brightness toward the center, near which the brightness 
increased so abruptly as to entitle this part to the appellation of a 
nucleus indistinctly defined. 

Oct. 7.—The sky became clear at 5 A. M., and the comet was 
seen till 54. 30m. as it was on the 4th, but no tail was detected. 
The light of the moon, (it being the day after full moon,) was at first 
the principal obstacle ; afterwards, the dawn and a haziness con- 
spired. On the morning of the 4th, when I detected the tail, the 
observation was made under the most favorable circumstances, 2. e. 
at a considerable altitude, after the setting of the moon, and in a 


Vol. XX XI.—No. 1. wi? LG) 


146 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


sky neither rendered opake by vapors, nor bright by the neHlented 
rays of the sun. 

Oct. 8., P. M.—The comet seen, but so near the — that 
seb but the envelope was visible. 

Oct. 9, 5h. 80m..A. M.—Thin clouds, the moon, and the dawn, 
conspired to render the tail invisible. 

7 P. M.—The moon was below the horizon, but the comet being 
only about 18° above it, the distinctness of the tail, as seen with 
the naked eye, was not greater than on the morning of the 4th, yet 
by myself and several others, it was seen distinctly with the same 
telescope which was before used, as also with one of a less magmi- 
fying power, and greater comparative aperture. With the latter, 
which showed it more distinctly, it appeared as a faint brush of light 
extending about half way to h of Ursa Major, and was directed 
nearly towards that star. With the larger telescope, the nucleus 
was distinct. | 

Oct. 10th, 7h. 30m. P. M.—The moon had not risen, nor was 
any sensible portion of its light reflected from that part of the at- 
mosphere which was in the direction of the comet. ‘This body was 
about 4° farther from the horizon than at 7 o’clock on the preceding 
evening, and the tail more distinct; and, although this distinctness 
was afterwards diminished by the rising of the moon, and by the 
descent of the comet, in its diurnal revolution, yet there had been 
in 24 hours, an evident increase of brightness and length, as seen 
under similar circumstances as to terrestrial atmosphere. By indi- 
rect vision, it was about 3° in length. When the eye was fixed 
steadily on it, it nearly disappeared, as other faintly luminous objects 
do by direct vision. The length was still more reduced by the 
larger telescope, probably in consequence of the faintness of the 
object, and’ the smallness of the aperture of the telescope, compared 
with its magnifying power. ‘The smaller telescope had not that ef- 
fect. 

Oct. 11th, Th. 830m. P. M.—The train was very distinct. As 
seen obliquely, it intersected the line connecting « and 4 Draconis, 
at about one eighth the distance from the former to the latter. Seen 
by direct vision, it was very. short. When at some distance from 
the axis of vision, it was usually seen with great distinctness, 8° or 
9° in length; but occasionally, when the eye was in the most favor- 
able position, its length was three times as great, 2. e. between 24° 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 147 


and 27°. After being dilated for a few (perhaps two or three) de- 
grees from the head, it appeared to continue nearly of the same 
width to the extremity, the remoter half appearing to be rather 
narrower, and very faint. All the eye pieces were tried; also the 
finder, and the other small telescope. With the last, its apparent 
length was 8°; with the five feet telescope and lowest power, 1° 
in length, and still less, or invisible, with the higher powers. ‘To 
the eye, there appeared to be a nucleus; but with the telescope, 
this seemed to be more like a vapor, still denser than the outer va- 
por, and to have a diameter about one eighth that of the whole 
head ; but with the small telescope, from one fourth to one sixth. 
With the highest. magnifying. power, nothing but this central part 
could be seen, and that appeared rather as a mass of vapor, than 
a solid nucleus. 

At 10 o’clock, some time after the moon had risen, and when the 
comet had descended nearer to the horizon, the tail was not seen 
by direct vision, and by indirect vision, its length was but 2°. » 

Oct. 12, 82. 30m. P. M.—The tail appeared to be directed to- 
wards 8 Urse Minoris, and seemed to the naked eye about 9° in 
length. ‘There was one remarkable circumstance in relation to its 
length, this evening, as compared with the preceding ; which was, 
that when viewed directly and intently, its length, brightness and 
constancy, were found to have increased, whilst the total length, as 
seen by indirect vision, was not half as great as on the preceding 
evening. ‘That long, faint, white, and straight beam of equable 
width, which on the preceding evening, had stretched across the 
heavens like an auroral streamer, was now, as it were, cut off near 
the place where it joined the more obvious part. These were the 
phenomena of simple vision; and nothing remarkable was seen with 
the portable telescope. 

But at 8h. 40m. on directing the larger telescope, furnished with 
the eye piece of lowest magnifying power, I discovered a kind of 
supernumerary tail. The nebulous matter seemed to have been in 
in a great measure, accumulated on the lower side of the brightest 
part, or nucleus, and to have formed a very distinct and regular 
conical brush of light, the axis of which was directed downwards, 
and a little to the right, making an angle of about 120° with the 
long tail before described. The length of this new tail was equal 
to about three times the diameter of what I have called the nucleus, 
having the breadth of the nucleus at the part next to it, and about 


148 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


twice that breadth at its remote extremity. ‘The opposite sides were 
inclined at an angle of about 20° ; 2. e. considering it as a frustum 
of a cone, the angle at the imaginary vertex was about twenty de- 
grees. 

Although with such a telescope there can be but little irradiation 
compared with that in simple vision, I at the first moment suspected 
that it might possibly be an illusion of that kind; but having ob- 
served, as was stated in my memoir on that subject,* that the direc- 
tions of the beams produced by this cause, have certain determinate 
positions with respect to the position of the head, and are conse- 
quently changed with its inclinations, I soon discovered that this 
brush of light was not in any one of the directions of maximum ir- 
radiation ; and on my inclining the head to the right and left, the 
position of the beam, which I now concluded to be a real tail, re- 
mained constant. But for more perfect assurance, I removed the 
day tube, which had been hitherto employed, and which showed 
objects erect, and applied in succession two other eye pieces, both 
of which inverted, and one of them was of the highest magnifying 
power, 2. e. 260. The new tail was seen with these glasses with 
no less distinctness, but appeared to be exactly in the opposite di- 
rection, just as it should be if real. The object glass was also rota- 
ted, without producing any change in the tail. The foregoing ob- 
servations were completed about the time of the rising of the moon, 
more than half of whose visible disk was, at that time in the month, 
illuminated. About an hour and a quarter after it had risen, the 
comet, as seen with the naked eye, presented but a very short tail ; 
its long one being, as it were, shorn off by the moonlight, to alength 
equal only to three times the diameter of the head; 7. e. about the 
same length, compared with the diameter of the nebulous envelope, 
as that of the telescopic short one, compared with the diameter of 
the telescopic nucleus. 

Oct. 13.—The atmosphere during the day and evening has been 
smoky. ‘This opacity has prevented a good view of the comet this 
evening. ‘The tail, as seen with the naked eye, appears not more 
than 3° in length. The eye-piece for land objects gives no distinct 
view through the smoke, on account of the number of glasses. 
With the lowest magnifying power of the others, which invert, the 
nucleus appears situated as last night, in the lower and right part of 


* Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, vol. iv. new series. 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 149 


the head; 7. e. it is really in the upper and left part. What ap- 
peared as a short tail, in a clear sky, appears through the smoke as 
an eccentric envelope, this term being applied to the nebulous mat- 
ter which surrounds the nucleus. The angle which the supernume- 
vary tail makes with the other, is not greater to-night than it was 
last night. On account of the smoke, the angle cannot be so exactly 
determined, but is between 100° and 120°. As seen through this 
eye-piece, the Juminous matter on the lower right side of the nu- 
cleus appears to-night to extend three or four times as far from the 
nucleus as it did last evening, when it.appeared more distinctly as 
a tail. By the use of the term nucleus, I do not mean_ to’ affirm, 
that any solid body was seen, but to express a small bright spot, 
whose brightness had, on all sides, an abrupt termination, and did 
not fade away into that of the exterior of the head, by insensible 
degrees. Those students generally who used the telescope this 
evening, perceived the eccentric situation of the nucleus. I per- 
ceived the same after having taken the telescope from the stand, 
and placed the lower side uppermost. 1 consider my conclusion in 
regard to the existence of a supernumerary tail confirmed. The 
longer tail is directed toward 6 Cephei. 

Oct. 14.—The tail, at 8 P. M., was directed nearly towards ¢ 
Herculis. The opacity of the air, which appears to be of the same 
nature as that which frequently prevails in this country in the latter 
part of autumn, and which is called Indian summer, tends much to 
obscure the comet this evening. 'To the naked eye, the tail is about 
6° or 8° in length, and from 12° to 16°, as seen obliquely. 

The nucleus cannot be seen with the eye tube for terrestrial ob- 
jects, nor with that of the highest magnifying powers, and but faintly 
with the two intermediate powers, but more distinctly with the 
higher of these two. On account of this indistinctness, it is dif- 
ficult to determine exactly the direction of the supernumerary tail, 
or (if any one prefers the expression) on which side the nebulous 
envelope is very much condensed and elongated. But if I might: 
hazard an opinion, the nebulous matter at about 8 or 9 o’clock ap- 
peared to be elongated downwards in a direction making an angle of 
perhaps 160° or 170° with the long train. ‘That it was elongated 
downwards in some direction was evident ; the precise direction being 
rather uncertain. 

Oct. 15.—The clouds and a kind of fog this evening prevented 
a good view. ‘The length of the tail appeared less than 2°; its 
direction was towards the star Z in the constellation Hercules. 


150 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


Oct. 16, 7 P. M.—This evening the sky 1s clear, and the comet 
is seen very distinctly. ‘The condensed nebulous matter which ra- 
diates from the comet on one side, and which, for the sake of dis- 
tinction, I call the short tail, is very distinct, and forms a longer 
and less acute cone than it did when first seen; its length bemg 
equal to about six times the diameter of the nucleus, and its sides 
diverging at an angle of about 60°; and outside of these and con- 
tiguous to them, are fainter portions at an angle of about 90° with 
each other; so that, considering this tail as a frustum of a cone, 
the parts within 30° of the axis are bright ; beyond that the tail is 
faint, yet visible to the extent of 45° on each side of the axis of 
the cone. These are to be understood as the observed angles; the 
actual angles being somewhat less, if the axis of the cone is oblique 
to the visual ray. This cone seems, when viewed with the large tel- 
escope, to constitute nearly all the envelope then visible. It would 
seem that the outermost envelope seen with the naked eye, is not 
seen with this telescope, because it is too faintly luminous, and that 
this short fan-like tail is not seen with the naked eye, because it has 
not sufficient magnitude. I infer this want of identity in the visible 
envelope in the two cases, not merely from the dissimilarity in shape, 
but from their relative apparent magnitudes ; for the telescopic, con- 
centrated and radiated envelope, appears, (I should judge,) even 
smaller than the whole head, as seen with the naked eye. Had it 
appeared magnified by the telescope, we might have attributed the 
difference of shape in part to irradiation, most of which would be 
removed by the telescope. 

At 8 o’clock, the axis of this conical tail, or the middle radius of 
its projection, considered as a circular sector, is directed downwards, 
and to the right, making an angle of about 161° (as I judged) with 
the proper tail. The latter passed exactly through the star 4 in the 
knee of Hercules. ‘The small tail was seen with all the eye glasses, 
also with the tube of the telescope inverted. It was seen by many 
of the students, as well as by myself. The long tail, as seen with 
the naked eye, did not appear to increase in breadth for more than 
three or four degrees from the head of the comet, and the part seen 
constantly by direct vision, may have been 7° or 8° in length ; 
but seen by indirect vision, it extended forty five degrees in length, 
stretching across the heavens nearly to the milky way. 

Oct. 17.—The tail, seen directly, this evening, is usually about 
3° in length; its width at that distance is about twice as great as 


’ 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 151 


at the place where it joins the head. At the latter place, its width 
appears to be about two thirds that of the head. ‘The head appears 
rather larger, though fainter, than a star of the first magnitude. 
That part of the tail seen by indirect vision, the faint, narrow and 
apparently straight tail of equable width, extends into the constel- 
lation Lyra: the length of the whole tail is about thirty five de- 
grees, which is 10° less than last evening. ‘The sky is much less 
clear than on last night, and the envelope condensed on one side to 
form the short tail is indistinct, yet its direction and form seem not 
to have been sensibly changed since last evening. 

Oct. 18, 7 P. M.—Tail as seen with the naked eye fixed stead- 
ily on it, 9° in length; by indirect vision, about 18°. Seen directly 
at is longer, and indirectly, shorter than it was on the 16th. The 
atmosphere appears to be less clear. In consequence of this, and 
of the wind, the nucleus is not discernible. 

Oct. 19, Th. 30m. P. M.—Length by direct vision, about 6° ; 
by indirect vision, about 18°: sky clear near it at the time. It 
being windy and cloudy, the large telescope was not taken out. 

Oct. 22,7 P. M.—Tail directed to 8 Serpentarii; length by 
indirect vision about 9°, by direct vision about 2° 30’. Nucleus 
not discernible. 

Oct. 23.—Tail fainter than on the preceding evening. 

Oct. 24, 7 P. M.—Length as seen by indirect vision, about 12° ; 
by direct vision, about 3°. The sky is quite clear; but there is 
considerable wind. It is probably owing to this circumstance, and 
to the comet’s distance, and to its small altitude after the disappear- 
ance of the moon and twilight, that the nucleus could not, this eve- 
ning, be seen with sufficient distinctness to enable me to determine 
on which side of it the nebulous matter was most dense and elonga- 
ted. If the nucleus was seen, it must have been somewhere near 
the upper part. 

Oct. 25, Evening.—Tail directed about towards « Aquile; length 
by indirect vision, about 3°; by direct vision about 80’. The sky 
is clear and the air still, but there is a new moon. The head ap- 
pears to the naked eye about as large as a star of the second mag- 
nitude. A kind of nucleus is visible with the telescope, with which 
the tail and envelope are also distinctly seen. 

I am inclined to think that there have been seen at different times, 
two apparent nuclei of different orders; and that the smallest one, 
seen when the comet was nearer, had a situation at one extremity 


152 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


of the one now seen; and that this which is now seen would, if it 
were nearer to the earth, appear to constitute a kind of tail to the 
other. Yet, notwithstanding the indistinctness arising from distance, 
the head of the comet I should judge to be brighter than it was two 
weeks since. 

Concluding remarks.—Length of the tail by direct and indirect 
vision.—It appears from the preceding observations, that on those 
days in October in which the length of the tail was observed in 
these two modes, its mean length by direct vision, was 5° ; by indi- 
rect vision, 173 degrees ; 1. e. as one to three and ahalf.* Inama- 
jority of instances, the length by indirect vision was between two 
and four times that by direct vision. 

Now the tails of some-comets are said to have exhibited instanta- 
neous variations in length, like the coruscations of an aurora borea- 
lis; and this circumstance has led some astronomers to consider them 
of an electrical nature. But has not this phenomenon been rather 
physiological than physical? Has it not been chiefly occasioned by 
a change in the position of the eye? ‘The other hypothesis presents 
insuperable difficulties, when we consider the distances of comets, 
and the immense velocity with which electricity must move, to pro- 
duce any sensible and sudden variation of length, at such distances 
from the observer. It will be seen from the preceding observations, 
that immense and instantaneous variations of length were observa- 
ble by us at almost any time when the tail was visible. ‘They were 
observed hundreds of times; so that a tail eight or ten millions of 
miles in length, would frequently become in a second of time twenty 
or thirty millions. 


* Length of tail by direct vision. By indirect vision. State of the air. 
Oct. 10th, 0° 10! 3° = O/ Transparent. 
11 8 30 25 30 do. 
12 9 00 9 30 do. 
14 7 00 14 00 Opake. 
16 7 30 45° 00 Transparent. 
17 3 00 35 00 Opake. 
18 9 00 18 00 Less transparent than on 16th. 
19 6 00 18 00 Tolerably transparent. 
22 2 00 9 30 Rather opake. 
24 3 00 12 00 Transparent. 
Q5 0 30 3 00 Transparent, with new moon. 


Mean lengths, 1:3.5, i. e. 5° 17.5° 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 153 


Again, in estimating the rapidity with which a comets tail is de- 
veloped, we are liable to err, from a neglect of meteorological, as 
well as physiological influences. Estimates have been made in re- 
lation to the number of millions of miles to which the matter of a 
comet’s tail has been projected, during the interval between the ob- 
servations on two consecutive nights. - By overlooking or underesti- 
mating the immense influence, which slight changes in the transpa- 
rency of the atmosphere must have on the apparent length of such 
faintly luminous bodies, we might draw from several of the prece- 
ding observations, astonishing conclusions with regard to the velocity 
with which this luminous matter is projected. We might thus infer 
the projection of luminous matter to the extent of fifteen or twenty 
millions of miles in a single day ; for the tail of Halley’s comet, ac- 
cording to some of the preceding observations, must have appeared 
to receive such an augmentation of length in a single day.* The 
greatest observed length was real, and indeed from the gradual man- 
ner in which the brightness diminished, it must have been less than 
the actual length. It is not improbable, from the length of the tail 
at different altitudes, that, in the absence of terrestrial atmosphere, 
it would have presented a length of some hundreds of millions of 
miles. Even the part actually seen on the 16th, if it had been di- 
rected toward the earth at the time of the comet’s nearest approach, 
must have nearly reached us, and by gravitation, (if it were ponder- 
able,) mingled with our atmosphere. What effects may sometimes 
be produced in the planetary atmospheres in this way, isnot known. 

By what has been said in relation to sources of exaggeration, re- 
specting this developement in length, it is not intended to deny that 
it does take place with astonishing rapidity, as comets approach the 
sun. ‘This has been often observed. 

Direction of the principal tail_—By referring to those of the pre- 
ceding observations, made when the direction of the tail was seen, 
and its place among the stars recorded, it will be found that it was 
never directly opposite the sun, but always inclined towards the re- 
gion from which the comet was departing. ‘This was always the 
case when the position was observed and recorded, as it was on ten 


* The angular lengths above given would, with the comet’s place in its orbit, 
enable one to calculate the absolute lengths; but what has been said above in rela- 
tion to this last point, has been founded only on hasty and approximate estimates. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. 20 


154 Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


evenings, from the 11th to the 25th Oct. inclusive.* It was for- 
merly believed that the tail of a comet was in most cases directly 
opposite to the sun ; but modern observers have discovered that it 
is generally inclined a little backwards. ‘This has been attributed 
by some, to the resistance of an ethereal medium; but that curva- 
ture which would naturally be produced by this cause, and which 
_has been often observed in these luminous trains, was not in this n- 
stance detected. ‘The straightness of a tail of such immense length 
and levity, appears to be rather unfavorable to that hypothesis. If 
there was any curvature, (which was once suspected,) it must (1 
should think) have been less than would be due to that ealiee, ac- 
cording to that hypothesis. 

Nucleus and Envelopes.—What 1 remarked in my journal in re- 
lation to apparent nuclei of different orders, is equivalent to the ex- 
pression, that there are real envelopes of different orders, the less 
brilliant one being at the greater distance. ‘This is analogous to the 
results of former observations, which have detected, in the case of 
other comets, two or more concentric envelopes, as though there 
were different strata of luminous clouds at different heights in the 
comet’s atmosphere, with intermediate aériform matter, uncondensed 
and transparent. . 

The difference in this instance was, that the envelopes were not 
always concentric ; in other words, that there was a kind of. 

Second Tail.—This was a tail to the nucleus, but not to the exte- 
rior envelope: in this respect, it differed: from the ordinary train. 
In being equal in width to the nucleus at the part where it joined it, 
and in diverging from it, it sustained about the same relation to the 
nucleus, as was sustained to the whole head by that part of the lon- 
ger tail which joined it, although there was no neck or contraction 
of the shorter tail near the nucleus. When the sky was clear, it 
was not circular or elliptical, but presented the appearance of a cir- 
cular sector, with straight divergent sides ; so that analogy justifies 
us in calling it a tail. Indeed, -this term might be applied to any 
stream of diverging light, even were the analogy less complete. And 
even though a stratum of it may have surrounded the real nucleus, 
this would be analogous to the case of the ordinary tail, for it passes 


* This was the case according to the situation of the comet, as observed by me; 
and although IJ had not the means of determining the place of the head with great 
exactness, yet the declination was usually greater than that which would be likely 
to arise from an error of that kind, which error, moreover, would ac have been 
always on the same side. 


Observations on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 155 


in a kind of parabolic form around the telescopic envelope, to form 
the outer envelope, which is visible to the naked eye, and which 
appears to be contiguous to the tail, and similar to it in brightness, 
but not contiguous or similar to the envelope within. I have en- 
deavored to describe these objects as they appeared with our teles- 
cope. To those who enjoyed the advantage of more powerful in- 
struments, other minute and faint parts must have been detected, 
whose existence may have affected the general form ; but this cir- 
cumstance may not destroy the value of the above observations, as 
the descriptions might still be found tolerably correct, so far as re- 
gards parts within certain limits of magnitude and brightness. 

Those who are familiar with the history of astronomy, know that 
double tails are not unprecedented. 

Several tails have been seen attached to a single comet. That of 
1744 presented six streams of nearly 30° in ecm wagely) diver- 
gent, like the rays of an expanded fan. 

In January, 1823, Prof. Biela, at Prague, and President Day, at 
New Haven, saw a second tail at an angle of about 178° with the 
first. It was seen but for a few days, and not many particulars in 
regard to it are stated. But it would seem that this tail, like most 
of those seen previous to 1835, proceeded rather from the envelope 
than from the nucleus. 

In July, 1825, Mr. James Dunlop, astronomer, at Paramatta, 
New South Wales, observed the changes of position and form which 
occurred in the tails of a comet, and afforded evidence of the exist- 
ence of a rotatory motion in the comet, the approximate period be- 
ing 19h. 36m. His observations, which were exact and minute, 
were published by Sir Thomas Brisbane. 

The preceding observations on Halley’s comet, will perhaps be 
thought to justify the suspicion of a rotation, but its period cannot 
be determined by them with exactness, nor its existence with cer- 
tainty, without comparing them with others made in a clearer sky, 
with more powerful instruments, and on nights, and at Hous differ- 
ing from those of my observations. 

As this is a phenomenon which is usually seen but for a few days, 
and as the sky may be clear at one place, and cloudy at another, at 
times when it exists, the foregoing observations may afford data of 
some use in the investigation of this interesting subject, although 
they cannot be put in competition with simultaneous observations, 
made under more advantageous circumstances. 


156 Solutions of two diophantine Problems. 


Art. XU .— Solutions of two diophantine Problems ; by I Prof. 


THEODORE STRONG. 


Qu. 1. To divide unity into three positive parts, such that if each 
is increased by unity, each sum shall be a rational cube. Assume 2, 
p+4q; p— for the roots of three cubes, such that their sum shall 
equal 4, and each cube shall be greater than unity, then by subtract- 
ing unity from each of these cubes, we shall evidently have the num- 
bers required. Hence, we have z*+(p+q)?+(p—q)?=z3+2p?+ 
4—z*?—2 z>-12 
6p Be ees ee ae hence, 


6pq? =4, which gives g? = 
+Guiek 
we must make 24p —6pz* —12p'=to a sq. (1.) Put P=5—Y2, 
4 144 24. 144 
zap tur then (1) becomes 695 + 195 (323y —720)e+ oe (Quy — 


36 
3v? — 18y?)x? +5 (Sy* + 2yv? —v® )e2 +6 (yv? —2y1) ot = sq. = 


12 [eres ie 144 24 
a5 5 xotax = 695 ab 125 (323y — ae e- 


( (= = | 2 24an | - ae == — 


5 6 koe ax? + a%x*, by as- 


sumption ; .°. by reduction, and putting the coefficients of xe caps 


to each other, we shall have ee ) 
2 34 
then ae eae “— ee (5), these equations 
will enable us to solve the problem as required. Assume y=1, 
17 318049 

UAB then by (a) we get e=—B09 > and by (6) we have r= 
29739653520 4 505413181012 6 
505372949805’ °° 7-5 +""=505879048605' 28d P= 5 Ye = 
576707885046 


12 /3238y—720 
505372948805’ #!S0, since q=— (55 5 tan" +) 6p, by 
2 9264421879328262529155 

taking thesign—we easily get g=5* s76797995046 x 101074589761’ 

566270943093850697 506506070263707307 
hence, p+ 9=4790940809835196035" ©? -1-470040809835196035" 
these and the value of z found above are the roots the required 
gubes. 


Solutions of two diophantine Problems. 157 


Remarks.—This question was proposed in the Mathematical Di- 
ary, in 1832, and the above is the solution which I sent to the editor 
at that time, to be inserted in the following number of that work, but 
as the Diary has not been published since, and probably will not be 
resumed, and as several persons have expressed a desire to see the 
solution of the question, I have concluded to publish it in the Am. 
Journal of Science. 

Qu. 2. To divide any rational number into three rational cubes. 
Let a denote the given number, and «, p—x, m— p, the roots of the 
required cubes, then we shall have «° -+(p —«)?+(m—p)*=3px" — 
Bp?x2+m? —3m?p-+-3mp? =a, or 3pxr2?—d3p?a2=—a—m3+3m?p— 
3dmp? , hence, we have 36p?.x? —36p*a+ 9p‘ =(3p? —6pr)? =12ap— 
12pm* + 9p?(p—2m)2=a square (1). Assume 9p?(p— 2m)? — 
12pm? + 12ap=[3p(p — 2m) + 2c]? =9p? (p —2m)? + 12pe( p—2m) 
+4c?, (2), or by reduction, we have c?-+-3pe(p —2m)=3ap — 3pm*, 


(3), this equation is satisfied by assuming p=5 and m* =c(2m— p) 


@ 


= e(2m — =| ?.. put c=mn and the last of these gives m=z 
12an* ; 18a?n —6an? 
PSnGE Sere nat Pan eamaaias Also, by (1) and 
30un*? —n°—9a? 
— 6n?(Ba-En®) ” 
72an® + (9a? +n° — 80an?) x (8a+n*) 
6n?(3a+n°)? 
these and the value of m — p found above, are the roots of the sought 
cubes, which will be exhibited under a more general form by putting 


(2) we shall have 3p? —6px=3p(p—2m) 4+ 2c, .".@ 


and we shall have p—«#= 


an . ° . . e ° 
n=? but as the reductions which this substitution requires are ob- 


vious, we shall not insert them. Ifa=4, then by assuming n=2, 


144 470 106 : ieee 
we shall have 300° 300° 300° 2 the three roots, and by adding 


their cubes, we shall find that the sum =4, as it ought to do. Cor. 
If we wish to divide any given number as a, into two cubes, then by 
assuming x, p—w, for the roots of the cubes, we shall get (3p? — 
6px)? = 12ap —3p* =sq., but this evidently requires one answer to 
be found by trial, which cannot always be done, as is the case when 
a is a cube number; but if one answer can be found, then we can 
readily find as many others as we please by the ordinary methods. 
If we wish to divide a, into any number of cubes greater than two, 


158 Miscellanies. 


assume 2, p—ax,m—p,T, s, t, &c. for the roots of the cubes, then by 
proceeding as in the question, we shall have (8p? —6px)? =9p? 
(p—2m)? + 12ap — 12p(m? +r3-+-s?+, &c.= sq. = [8p(p— 2m)-+ 
a (p — 2m)? +12pe( p —2m)+4c?, then as in the qu. p= 
aS aaa ~p)=e(2m—5,) = =m*>--r3-+-s3-+, &c. put c=mn, r= 


6an 


S Hp Stig st ms 


mr’, s=ms', &c. .°. we shall have m=3——>, 
2 a oa+n 


hence, P= (Bani r? 4 ee)” and m—p= 


Ce eae Ce ae 
6anr’ 6ans’ 
BZatn® treats st, &e. Sa is ~Batnitr ets, &e. and 
c a a 6an 
soon; we also have x=m—3-=m—=m 


3p c.. omn 6Satnitr st, &e. 
(8a+n?+r/2+, &c.) 386an?— (Batn?+r/3+, &c.)? 


Gn? =) 6n2 (Bain? Hr, we. and 
T2an*+[(Bat+n?+r/2+, &c.)?-36an*]X Batn?+r/2+,&c. ie.) 
a 6n?(3a+n%+7r'3+, &c.)? 


which with the values found above, are the roots of use -Tequired 
cubes. 
New Brunswick, Aug. 3, 1836. 


MISCELLANIES. 
FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC. 


ASTRONOMY. 


Supposed new Planet.—On the 15th of February, M. Arago 
read to the Academy of Sciences an extract of a letter from M. 
Cacciatore, Astronomer at Palermo, to Capt. Smyth. The Sicil- 
ian Astronomer announces in this letter, that he saw in the month 
of May, 1835, near the 17th star of the 12th hour of the Catalogue 
of Piazzi, (right ascension 181° 30’, and southern declination 4° 
45’,) another star of the 7th or 8th magnitude. Having taken the 
distance of the two stars, he found that in three days the distance 
had increased. ‘The motion of the star was about ten seconds of 


‘ Ihiscellanies. 159 


right ascension on the eastern side, and a minute or a little less to- 
wards the north. In consequence of the state of the weather, he 
could not succeed in tracing it. From the slowness of its motion, 
he conceives it must be situated beyond Herschel. Se Univ. 
Jan. 1836—Rec. Gen. Se. June, 1836. 


NATURAL PHILOSOPHY. 


1. On Electricity by contact, by Karsven ; 8vo. Berlin, (in Ger- 
man.)—The following are some of the most important results to 
which M. Karsten has been led by his investigations. 

1. Metals, and perhaps all solid bodies, become positive in fluids, 
while the fluid in which they may be NOL USE is negatively elec- 
trified. 

2. A solid, immersed one half in a fluid, acquires polarity ; the 
part not immersed being negative, while the other part is positive. 

3. Solid bodies differ in their electro-motive force in the same flu- 
id, and this difference is the cause of the electric, chemical and mag- 
netic attraction in the galvanic circuit. 

4. If two solid electro-motors, of different electro-motive force, 
are immersed in the same fluid without being in contact, the most. 
feeble electro-motor receives a different polarity from the stronger, 
and becomes consequently negatively electric. 

5. The part of the most feeble electro-motor, not immersed, man- 
ifests opposite electricity to the part in the fluid, that is, manifests 
positive electricity. 

6. The electro-motive electricity of a fluid, depends on the prop- 
erty of being reduced by two solid electro-motors of dissimilar 
strength, to such a state, that the solid electro-motors receive oppo- 
site electricities. In general, all fluids which are bad conductors of 
electricity possess this property, and not those which are good con- 
ductors, or those which have no conducting power. The intensity, 
however, of the electro-motive force of the fluids depends not solely 
on the conductibility, but on other properties, not fully known. 

7. The electro-motive effects of two metals which form a circuit 
in the same fluid, depend on the continual excitement and neutrali- 
zation of the opposing electricities in the fluid. They are generated 
by the electro-motive action of the stronger and weaker electro- 
motor on the fluid; are augmented by the action of the stronger on 
the weaker; and are accelerated by the close contact of two solid 
electro-motors, when these are good conductors. 


160 Miscellanies. 


_ 8. The chemical changes in the fluid, depend on the neutraliza- 
tion of the two electricities, produced. by the solid elements of the 
circuit, but these changes have not the mutual relation of cause and 
effect. 
9. In the system of circuits composing the voltaic pile, tie oppo- 
site electricities are completely neutralized by the solid elements of 
each circuit, that is, by the pairs of plates, and there is no electric 
current from one pair to the other.—L’ Institut, No. 150. 


2. Effects of Electricity on Vegetation.—M. Baric states, that 
“last year, in the month of July, oe lightning struck one of the pop- 
lars in my avenue—the fluid breaking off at the time a few branch- 
es at the summit of the tree, followed down the tree without break- 
ing the bark, and at last passed into the earth, throwing up two cu- 
bic feet of earth. The poplar at the time was about a foot in cir- 
cumference: at the present time it is double that size, whilst those 
near by have made no perceptible increase in size.—L’ Institut, 
No. 155. 


3. Chemical Action of the Solar Spectrum, by M. Husster.— 
Professor Hessler, of Gratz, has found that the action of the solar 
spectrum on paper which has been moistened with a solution of 
gum, and sprinkled with chloride of silver, varied with the nature of 
the prism. ‘The action differed both in the extent and rapidity of 
its effect, and also in the point of the spectrum where it attained its 
maximum. It was nearly instantaneous with a prism of water or 
spirits of wine; occurred in the course of 12 or 13 minutes with oil 
of terebenthine and cassia; in 2 minutes and 3 seconds with flint 
glass, and 1 minute 5 seconds with crown glass. ‘The maximum 
chemical effect with spirits of wine, was obtained in the violet near 
the blue; with water, in the violet; with oil of cassia, 23 lines out- 
side of the violet.—Annalen der Phas. und Chem. 1835, a 8.— 
TL’ Institut, No. 152. 


A. Theory of the Universe, by P. E. Morty. (Introduction a 
une Théorie Générale de L’Univers. Par P. E. Morin. 44 pp. 
Svo. Paris.) —This author has generalized his singular views, the 
result of from 15 to 20 years’ deliberation, as follows: ‘“ ‘That the 
universe is composed of centres of action, which attract or repel ina 
ratio inversely as the square of the distance ; that the contact of any 


Miscellanies. 161 


body with the living fibre causes the fibre to vibrate; that this vi- 
bration diminishes in proportion to the number of contacts; that 
when an organized body is directed by instinct or reason, either 
pleasure, pain or ennui, result; that pleasure is a consequence of 
vibrations of mean or ordinary strength—pain, when the strength is 
greater than usual, and ennui when the vibrations are quite feeble.” 
These principles form the groundwork of a theory, on which all the 
phenomena of nature are to be explained. | 


5. Congelation of Mercury by Natural Cold.—Extracts from 
a minute of observations on freezing Mercury in the open air, 
made at Gardiner, Maine, January 28th and 29th, 1817.—The 
whole‘of the day of the 28th, was intensely cold. At2, P.M. 
the thermometer hanging on the wall of a house stood at —6°. 
About sunset the wind subsided. 

A tray of charcoal was placed upon the end of a wharf project- 
ing into the Kennebeck, nearly a hundred yards from any building 
or other elevated object. On this was placed a thermometer in a 
blackened tin case, and two phials each containing a small quantity 
of mercury, the lower half of each phial being blackened, and the 
phial a little raised from a horizontal position, so that the fluid might 
be within the blackened part. A similar phial of mercury was pla- 
ced on the snow at a little distance; but as it underwent no change, 
no farther notice was taken of it. 

At 10 o’clock in the evening, the thermometer stood at —29°. 
‘The sky was perfectly serene andclear. At half past 11, the ther- 
mometer had fallento —32°. Athalf past 3, (the 29th,) the ther- 
mometer was at — 38° ; the mercury in the phials of course still fluid. 
The atmosphere was remarkably transparent and perfectly calm. 
At half past 6, the thermometer stood at —40°. It soon rose one 
degree while we were bending over to examine it—the mercury in 
the’phials still fluid. I now poured out a small quantity of the 
mercury into an excavation in a piece of charcoal. At 4 before 7, 
the thermometer was again at — 40°; the mercury in the phials still 
fluid; but that on the charcoal was partially congealed. As I ex- 
amined it with a slender stick, it exhibited the appearance of a soft 
solid, separating into parts without running into globules; and the 
fragments were rough, and evidently crystallme. ‘These appear- 
ances, however, continued only a short time; but while I was ex- 
amining it, being of course necessarily bent over it, the whole soon 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 1. Q1 


162 Miscellanies. 


returned to a perfectly fluid state. At 7 o’clock, the thermome- 
ter was still as before at —40°. The mercury in the phials was 
unchanged. That on the piece of charcoal exhibited the same ap- 
pearances as at the last observation, only in a less marked degree, 
and it sooner became fluid. Soon after this, the sun rose, and of 
course the attempt was discontinued. 

To Pror. Sirtman.—Dear Sir,—I. send you above, the ex- 
tract from my minutes of an observation of the effect of natural 
cold on mercury, on the Kennebeck. A few weeks later, having 
been supplied by the kindness of the late Mr. Vaughan with sever- 
al excellent thermometers of Troughton’s manufacture, I attempted 
to ascertain how much effect was attributable to the cooling of the 
surface by radiation, in a similar state of atmosphere: and on one 
occasion found a difference of 18 degrees between a thermometer 
on charcoal’on the ground, and another suspended freely in the air, 
18 or 20 feet above it—one being 36°, the other 18° below zero. 
This was in a clear night, and subsequently when clouds appeared, 
the difference diminished, until at the commencement of snow the 
two instruments agreed. Yours very truly, 


E. Hau, Jr. 
Boston, Wednesday Evening, March 23, 1836. 


CHEMISTRY. 


1. Cause of Decrepitation; by M. Bavprimont.—Most au- 
thors on this subject have attributed decrepitation to the vaporiza- 
tion of water contained between the lamin which compose the sub- 
stance operated upon. ‘This opinion not appearing to me well 
founded, I dried at a low temperature and by various means, differ- 
ent anhydrous substances capable of decrepitation, but found that 
notwithstanding the most perfect desiccation, they still decrepitated 
when suddenly heated. ‘The tendency of the decrepitating body 
to a separation of its parts in the direction of its cleavage faces, 
leads me to the following conclusion: that decrepitation is owing 
principally to the bad conducting power of the several substances, 
the outer layers expanding by heat, without a corresponding inter- 
nal expansion, and consequently splitting off with a kind of explosion. 
There are instances, however, in which the substance is volatile and 
for this reason decrepitates ; but,this is not in general the case with 
decrepitable substances. —L Institut, No. 158. 


Miscellanies. 163 


2. On Donium, a new substance discovered in Davidsonite ; by 
Mr. Tuomas RicHarpson.—The mineral Davidsonite was discov- 
ered by Dr. Davidson, of Aberdeen, in a marble quarry near that 
city. An analysis of it by Mr. 'T’. Richardson, proves it to be com- 
posed of Silica and a base which Mr. R. supposes to be an oxyd 
of Donium. This oxydis distinguished from the alkaline and earthy 
bases, and from several of the metallic ones, by the green precipi- 
tate which it gives with the sulph-hydrate of Ammonia; and its 
solubility in the caustic alkalies, and in carbonate of Ammonia, the 
light brown precipitate thrown down by sulphuretted hydrogen, and 
the green given by sulph-hydrate of ammonia, distinguish it from all 
the others. 

The name Donium is a contraction of Aberdonia, the Latin name 
of Aberdeen, near which place Davidsonite occurs.—Rec. of Gen. 
Sc., June, 1836. 

Since the publication of Mr. Richardson’s paper descriptive of 
Donium, Dr. Bause, of Penzance, has announced that he has been 
examining for some time a new oxyd which turns out to be identi- 
eal with that of Donium. We may soon expect a complete ac- 
count of Donium and its compounds, from Dr. Thomson of Glas- 
gow.— Ath. No. 452, June 25, 1836. 


3. Solidification of Carbonic Acid; by M. Tuitorter.—M. 
Thilorier, who had previously succeeded in liquefying this gas, now 
announces that he has obtained it also in the solid state. Its solidi- 
fication requires a cold equal to 100°C. below the freezing point, and, 
although the liquefied gas’ evaporates almost instantaneously and 
with the production of a violent explosion, the solid continues some 
minutes exposed in the open air, and insensibly disappears by a slow 
evaporation. 

A fragment of the solid acid, touched lightly with the finger, 
slides rapidly over a polished surface, as if it were surrounded by a 
gaseous atmospere, which appears to be the fact. The evaporation 
of the solid is complete, leaving however occasionally a little mois- 
ture, which is attributable to the action of the atmosphere ae a 
body so intensely cold.—Ann. de Chim. et de Ph. T. 60. 


A. Extraction of Sugar from Indian Corn; by M. Patuas.— 
The results obtained by M. Pallas are as follows: 

1. The stalk of the corn contains little or no sugar previous to 
flowering. 


164 Miscellanies. 


2. At the time of flowering, a small quantity of sugar may be 
detected. 

3. When the grain is still soft, about 20 or 25 days after flower- 
ing, the plant contains about 1 in 100 of crystallizable sugar. 

4. When the grain is completely ripe, the stalk furnishes two 
parts in 100 of sugar, and 4 in 100. of rich and good-tasting mo- 
lasses. 

The residue remaining after. the extraction of the sugar, may be 
given for food to cattle, or will serve for the manufacture of wrap- 
ping paper which will bring 11 francs for 50 kilogrammes.—L In- 
stitut, No. 157, 1836. 


5. Reduction of Metals—M. Becqurret has succeeded in con- 
structing an Electro-Chemical apparatus by means of Iron, a con- 
centrated solution of common Salt, and an ore of Silver, and thus 
has been enabled to extract from this ore, the silver it contains, in 
the form of Crystals. The ores experimented upon were from Co- 
lumbia and Allemont. ‘The same process may be employed in the 
extraction of the silver from Copper Pyrites. It is ineffectual only 
in the case of Argentiferous Galena.—L’ Institut, No. 147. 


GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 


1. Ashmolean Society. 


Copied from the Athenzum, No. 451, London, Saturday, June 18th, 1836, and 
communicated by Dr. J. Barratt, of Middletown, Conn. 


May 20.—The President in the Chair. Dr. Buckland commu- 
nicated to the Society a notice of some very curious recent discov- 
eries of fossil footsteps of unknown quadrupeds in the new red 
sandstone of Saxony, and of fossil birds in sandstone of the same 
formation in the valley of the Connecticut. Inthe year 1834, sim- 
ilar tracks of at least four species of quadrupeds were discovered 
in the sandstone quarries of Hesseberg, near Hildburghausen. 
Some of these appear to be referable to the tortoises, and to a small 
web footed reptile: No bones of any of the animals that made 
these footsteps have yet been found. Another discovery of fossil 
footsteps has still more recently been made by Professor Hitchcock, 
in the new red sandstone of the valley of the Connecticut. The 
most remarkable among these footsteps, are those of a gigantic bird, 
twice the size of an ostrich, whose foot measured fifteen inches in 


Miscellanies. 165 


length, exclusive of a large claw measuring two inches. The most 
frequent distance of these larger footsteps from one another, is. four 
feet ; sometimes they are six feet asunder. p. 486. 

Professor Powell afterwards gave a short account of the progress 
of his researches on light.—Abridged from the Oxford Herald. 


2. Bird Tracks at Middletown, Conn. in the new red sandstone. 
—Extract of a letter to the editor dated Aug. 18, 1836.—I have 
discovered the tracks of birds similar to those described by Prof. 
Hitchcock: I have some well marked slabs, with tracks. I find 
them in a sandstone lying beneath the new red fissile sandstone with 
the vegetable impressions mentioned in a former letter. This sand- 
stone with bird tracks is perfectly distinct in character, and differs al- 
so from the old red sandstone on which it may rest. I have also 
found some small fossil ribs in the sandstone, with fossil vegetables on 
a weather-worn surface—and moreover the leafy extremity of some 
large fronds in the same sandstone, very fine. 


3. Crinoidea, or Lily Shaped Animals.—We are indebted to Mr. 
John Bonny, now of Schenectady, late of Schoharie, N. York, for 
the loan of a wood cut of a fine crinoideal specimen, and we annex 
an extract from the notice of it from a Schenectady newspaper trans- 
mitted by Mr. D. Tomlinson. 

‘Of the organic beings, for a knowlege of whose existence we are 
indebted to the researches of naturalists, some of the most interesting 
are those demominated by Mr. Parkinson, (whose work is quoted 
by Gen. Dix,) Encrinites and Pentacrinites, (vulgarly stone lilies, 
from their resemblance to lilies.) Cuvier arranges them under one 
genus, which he calls “ Encrinus.” 

In the celebrated work of J. S. Miller, A. L. S., we have the 
best description of Crinoidea, any where to be found. He gives a 
full and detailed account of all that was known on the subject up to 
the year 1821, and also the result of his own investigations, which 
are of the most important nature. His work is illustrated with 50 
engravings, containing all the varieties of Crinoidea then discovered. 
It is singular that among all these, there are none bearing the dis- 
tinctive character of the one represented in our engraving. It is 
however referable to Divisio inarticulata,—genus Antinocrinites,— 
spectes polydactylus. In this division, the plates form the superior 
cup-like body of the animal, adhering by sutures, lined by muscular 


166 Miscellanies. 


integuments, and enclosing the viscera. ‘The term actzno-crinitis, is 
derived from the Greek word “ aktinotos,” radzated; so called be- 
cause of the radiated markings of the costal and intercostal plates, 
which are peculiar to this genus. Of the antinocrinites, there are 
two species; triacontadactylus, in which there proceed from five 
scapule 30 fingers, and polydactylus, in which there are more than 
30 fingers. Divested then of all technical language, our specimen 
may be termed “a many fingered, radiated, lily-shaped animal.” 


oS 
~ ~ 


Wf 
Wa 


y 
YY) 


ue 
Uf, Wy 


i 


Wiyp; 


——>S 


= 
SSS 
ay 


Any specimens in this department of science, but particularly 
those unbroken and free from defects, are invaluable to its professors : 


Miscellanies. 167 


and it is rare that any specimen is found more perfect than the one 
here represented. It is reported that in 1774, the emperor of Ger- 
many offered one hundred dollars for ‘‘a stone lily free from its ma- 
trix, and attached to its column ;” and it does not appear that such 
an one was ever furnished. Mr. John S. Bonny, late of Schoharie, 
now of this city, who has acquired much celebrity for his mineral- 
ogical researches in Schoharie Co., in the spring of 1835, obtained 
the lily in question. Several days were spent in blasting and break- 
ing rocks, before he discovered it. Mr. B. says he has traced the 
stems of these lilies the distance of 20 feet. All the other specimens 
he has been enabled to procure are imperfect, and consist of detach- 
ed pieces. 

Mr. Bonny has furnished us with the following description of their 
locality. 

“Tt is situated about one quarter of a mile east of the Schoharie 
court house in a perpendicular ledge of rocks, about 50 feet high. 
The different strata occur in the following order. 

Ist stratum, about thirty feet—shell limerock, containing trilobites 
of the Asaphus variety, the set Spirifer and 'Terebratula of 
different varieties. 

2nd stratum, two feet—in the center of this stratum is a layer of 
clay slate, one inch thick, in which is found the most perfect Lily ; 
it also contains the stag-horn encrinite, trilobites and terebratula. 

3d stratum, eight feet—stratified limerock containing trilobites, 
species of the echinus, flustra, and orthocera. 

Ath stratum, ten feet—stratified limerock, containing species of 
the echinus and flustra. 

5th stratum, ten feet—lias contains all the strontianite localities 
discovered by myself; carbonate and sulphate of strontian, barry 
strontianite of Traill. 


4, Extracts from an account of a visit to Iceland, by M. Eugene 
Robert.—The siliceous concretions formed by the geysers of Ice- 
land, cover an extent of four leagues in length, throughout which 
there are numerous traces of the ancient geysers. We have hence 
been enabled to observe this singular formation under all its different 
forms ; passing by insensible shades from that of a loose and friable 
character, the result of a rapid deposition, to the most compact and 
transparent. We have not only observed impressions of the leaves 
of the birch tree, of Equiseta and various grasses, but the trunks of 


168 Miscellanies. 


the birch are in many places distinctly recognizable, presenting much 
the appearance of ordinary agatized woods. At the present time 
none of these plants occur on the island, and we may suppose it 
probable that their destruction was the result of the invasion of the 
silica. 

The numerous thermal springs, in the midst of which the geysers 
are situated, occupy large vallies in the interior of the island. Ap- 
pearances indicate that these waters proceed from deep crevices, in 
which they have been heated by contact with the volcanic fires. 
The geysers present the most magnificent exhibition during an 
inundation of the valley by rain. ‘The rivers proceeding from these 
springs have often the color of milk, owing to the argillaceous bole 
which they take up in their passage over the siliceous deposits. 
Such are the white rivers of Cilafsai. 

Mt. Hecla, like all the heights of Iceland, is entirely covered 
with snow. No smoke appeared about its summit. Obsidian oc- 
curs in rolled masses on its sides, and pumice stone forms a bed 
thirty feet in thickness near its base. Fragments of the branches 
of the birch, the remains of the once flourishing forests of the 
island, are found in the midst of this bed. 

After traversing currents of Java of considerable extent, we ar- 
rived at the sulphur beds, or solfataras of Krisark. It is literally a 
mountain of sulphur, and is undergoing continual increase.— 
Bulletin de la Soc. Geol. de France. T. vii. F. 1—2. Paris, 
1835 a 1836. 


5. From a memoir on the origin of Mt. Etna, by M. Elie de 
Beaumont. (Ed. New Phil. Jour. Ap. 1836.)—It has been as- 
certained that the greater number of the appearances of flames 
which accompany the volcanic eruptions, are only the effect of ‘the 
rays of light which emanate from the incandescent lava, and which 
are reflected by the molecules of vesicular vapor, and of dust dis- 
seminated by the eruption in the atmosphere. In consequence of 
this observation, doubts have been raised as to whether volcanos, in 
any case, produce real flames. These doubts have been already 
removed by Sir H. Davy in regard to Vesuvius, where he ascer- 
tained, during a small eruption, the existence of a real jet of flame ; 
and we ourselves have observed on Etna incontestible volcanic 
flames. Having left the Casa inglese about an hour and a half be- 
fore daybreak, in order to ascend to the edge of the crater, the fee- 


Miscellanies. 169 


ble light of the stars enabled us to perceive, on the commencement 
of the acclivity of the upper cone, a white space whose color was 
caused by the alteration of the rocks, and by saline efflorescences 
having a very styptic taste. In the midst of this space, at several 
points, we distinguished pale and scarcely luminous flames, which 
seemed to issue from the earth; they occtyied the orifices of sev- 
eral irregular openings, which were from one to two yards in width, 
and were only the enlargements of a tortuous crevice. These 
flames were evidently produced by a gas disengaged from the cre- 
vice, and which did not find the oxygen necessary for its combus- 
tion till it reached the external air. The combustion took place 
almost exactly at the level of the surface of the ground. The flame 
rarely rose to the height of a yard; it produced a sound somewhat 
intermittent, pretty analogous to that of several lighted faggots, or 
rather that which is heard at the bottom of a blast-furnace when the 
blowing apparatus is badly constructed. ‘The gases produced by 
the combustion did not impede the breathing, and had a strong odor 
of sulphurous acid. Sulphuretted hydrogen was also perceptible, 
but I did not recognize the odor of muriatic acid. Every circum- 
stance, then, announced that the flame was supported by sulphuret- 
ted hydrogen, and afterwards, when the sun lighted up the moun- 
tain, a long bluish cloud was seen taking its rise from that particular 
point. 

In the interior of the great crater I found several portions of 
snow, but from many other points of its angular bottom there issued 
hot vapors, having a whitish color, more or less dense, composed 
chiefly of watery vapor, but having nevertheless a strong odor of 
sulphurous and muriatic acids; one or the other of these acids pre- 
dominated alternately. ‘The surfaces across which the vapors were 
disengaged were in part covered by saline efflorescences, which were 
sometimes white, and sometimes colored of an orange-yellow tint 
by the chloruret of iron, or of a canary-yellow by particles of lava 
altered by the acid vapors. In some fissures I found white fibrous 
gypsum, mixed with altered pulverulent yellow lava in which some 
small nodules of sulphur were disseminated. 

The above account of the observations of this distinguished geol- 
ogist is followed by a statement of his theory of the formation of 
the mountain. After alluding to the changes of form that have re- 
sulted from the frequent production of extensive longitudinal fissures 
by the earthquakes that accompany or precede an eruption of the 

Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 22 


170 Miscellanies. 


volcano, also to the streams of lava that find their exit through these 
fissures ; to the unequal elevation of thew sides by the expanding 
force below, he draws the conclusion that the foundations of Etna 
are not immovably fixed, but are undergoing frequent changes. 
Guided by these considerations, and in addition, observing the ex- 
treme slowness with which ejected matter is capable of elevating 
the central peak, and the improbability, from their structure and sit- 
uation, that the layers composing the mountain are in the position 
they were originally accumulated, the author arrives at the follow- 
ing deductions. 

The surface formerly nearly flat, has been first repeatedly frac- 
tured in various lines having a nearly constant direction. ‘The melt- 
ed matters have been poured out through the fissures thus produced, 
and their fluidity must have been nearly perfect, for they have flowed 
through rents of very inconsiderable breadth. ‘These products were 
then spread on both sides of the fissures, in thin and uniform masses, 
similar to those composed of basalt, which in so many different coun- 
tries, and especially in Iceland, are superimposed above one another, 
forming vast plateaus whose surface remained always nearly hori- 
zontal, in consequence of the subdivision of successive lines of 
eruption on an extensive space. ‘The eruptions were, like those of 
the present day, accompanied by disengagements of elastic fluids, 
which, issuing like the lava itself from the whole extent of the fis- 
sures, carried along with them scorie and cinders. These scoriz 
and cinders falling back like rain, both on the lava and on the neigh- 
boring spots, produced those uniform layers of fragmentary substan- 
ces, which alternate with the layers of melted matters. But at one 
period, it would appear that the internal agent which had already 
fractured so frequently the solid surface, having doubtless exerted 
an extraordinary energy, broke up that surface, upraised it, and since 
that time Eina has existed. 


6. Extract from a letter from Mr. James Prinsep, dated Cal- 
cutta, Oct. 25, 1835.—“‘ 1 am now engaged in making engravings 
of an antediluvian animal, heretofore unknown, which ranks between 
the pachydermata and ruminantia, and is provided with four horns. 
We have christened it Stvatheriwm, in honor of our Indian god 
Siva.” 

The fossil skeletons of the above animals were found in the val- 

ley of Nerbudda in English India, and form a highly interesting ad- 
dition to the list of fossil animals.—L’ Institut, Vo. 153. 


Miscellanies. 171 


7. Emmonite, a new mineral species; by ‘Tuomas 'THomson, 
M. D., F. R.S., Prof. Chem. Glassow.—This mineral was received 
by Dr. T. from Prof. Emmons, of Williams College, Massachusetts, 
after whom it is named. ‘The color of the mineral is snow-white; 
structure obscurely foliated, with imperfect cleavages parallel to the 
lateral faces of a Right Rhombic Prism. An approxmate meas- 
urement on cleavage faces gave 113° for the obtuser angle of 
the prism. Fracture in the direction of the cleavage planes, flat 
and smooth ; but the mineral in general had a scaly appearance, 
not unlike some varieties of gypsum, translucent on the edges, very 
easily reducible to a powder. Hardness, 2.75 ; ‘specific gravity, 
2.9463. 

The analysis of Dr. 'T. gives for its composition 


Carbonate of Strontian, - - = 82.69 
Carbonate of Lime, - - - 12.50 
Peroxyd of Iron, - - - 1.00 
Zeolite, - - = =i) Weis - 3.79 

99.98 


and consequently it consists, neglecting the two latter ingredients, 
of two atoms Carbonate of Lime, and nine Carbonate of Strontian. 


8. Retrospective Notice of the discovery of fossil Mastodon Bones 
5 in Orange County, (N. Y.) 
(From a letter, addressed by Sylvanus Miller, Esq., to Hon. Dewitt Clinton, in 1815.) 

The first discovery of these bones was made about 1785, in the 
town of Montgomery, in Orange County. In digging a ditch ina 
miry meadow, to carry off the excess of water, several ribs and 
teeth and a thigh bone, were discovered; the ribs and teeth were 
very sound. Remains of several skeletons were afterwards discov- 
ered, and Mr. Peale, of Philadelphia, by great pains and expense, 
succeeded in obtaining bones sufficient to construct two skeletons. 
Mr. Miller contributed in an important degree to the success of these 
undertakings. 

The only places where these fossils were found in this neighbor- 
hood, were in the towns of Montgomery and Shawangunk ; the for- 
mer in Orange, and the latter in Ulster county, about 80 miles from 
New York, and from 6 to 12 from Newburgh on the Hudson river. 
In low situations, the receptacles of vegetable and testaceous solu- 
tions, the bones of the mastodon have been (at least as regards this 


172 Miscellanies. 


region) uniformly found. In many places the marl is 30 feet deep, 
and over it grass and plants, and even trees, grew in abundance. In 
these places are uniformly found living springs, and abundance of 
snails and muscles, which, with vegetable substances, constitute the 
marl of different colors and qualities. Within the sweep of a radius 
of six miles, there are several hundred acres of marl, at the bottom 
of which the bones have been uniformly found. Within this area nine 
skeletons of the mastodon have been found, and yet not one hun- 
dredth part of the area has been explored to the bottom: it is prob- 
able therefore that vast numbers remain undiscovered, and that at 
some period this district was fully inhabited by these stupendous an- 
imals. 

The discovery of the bones in a particular kind of earth, affords 
reasonable inferences as to the nature of the animal; while the 
quantities of marl and other productions, furnish also interesting cal- 
culations in chronology. Covered originally by sheets of water, and 
abounding in aquatic plants, and shell and other fishes, as well as. 
amphibious animals, it is probable they afforded a rich repast for the 
mastodon, thus tempting him into treacherous quagmires, where he 
found his death, probably by miring, as happens with cattle at the 
present day.* With these relics of the mastodon were found locks 
and tufts of hair, in tolerable preservation: its color was of a dun 
brown; length from 13 to 24 inches, and in one instance it was 
from 4 to 7 inches long, of the same color as the shorter, and was 
supposed to be the mane of the animal. 


9. Analysis of North American Minerals, by Dr. Thomson. 


1. Houmesire.—This is the mineral found, with Hornblende, 
Pyroxene and Spinel, in white limestone, at Amity, N.Y., and gen- 
erally recognized as Bronzite, but which Mr. CLemson has analyzed 
and described as Seybertite.t Its sp. gr. is 3.098. 


* We have been informed by Mr. Miller in conversation, that most of the skel- 
etons were found with the head and neck bent backward, doubling upon the body, 
as happens to modern animals when, in like circumstances, they give over to die. 


+ See this Journal, vol. xxiv. p.171. Mr. Clemson obtained the following result. 


Water, - - - - - 0.036 
Silica, - mj uty te - - 0.170 
Alumina, - - - - - 0.376 
Magnesia, - - - - - 0.243 
Lime, = - - - - 0.107 


Protox. iron, : - aie t's 0.050 


Miscellanies. 173 


ae Atoms. 
Silica, : 19.35 é 9.68 
Alumina, : 44.75 : 19.88 
Zirconia, , 2.05 . 0.54 
Perox. iron, . 4.80 é 0.96 
Ox. manganese, . 1.35 : 0.30 
Lime, sd CaM dees 3.27 
Magnesia, : 9.05 ‘ 38.62 
Water, : 4.55 : 4.04 
Fluoric acid, é 0.90 : 0.72 


Supposing the fluoric acid to be united with lime, and to consti- 
tute fluor spar, the constitution of the mineral is thus expressed : 
Zir. 
11AI3S+ ; fe fos + 1$Cal 3S + 2Mag 35S + 2Aq 
Mn 
The mineral is designated in honor of Dr. Holmes, Prof. of Chem- 
istry in the McGill College of Montreal. 


2. Compact Feldspar, from ese Lower Canada. Sp. gr. 
2.8617. 


Silica, : : : ; 45.80 
Alumina, 5 : : : 26.15 
Perox. iron, . : : : 4.70 
Lime, : : : : 16.25 
Magnesia, . : 5 : 2.95 
Water, ‘ : é : 2.00 

97.85 


Cal 
Its formula is 2AlIS+ ¢ Mg ¢S? 


According to Dr. THomson, it is identical with Amphodelite, 
_ which he considers a variety of Scapolite. ‘The formula of Scapo- 
lite is 2A1S+CalS. - 

3. Deweylite?* Sp. gr. 2.0964. 


Silica, , : : 50.70 
Magnesia, . : : : 23.65 
Water, é ; : : 20.60 
Alumna. é : : 3.05 
Protox. iron, . ‘ Ba : 1.70 


* The locality of this mineral is not known. 


174 Miscellanies. 


Admitting 0.11 atoms of magnesia, and 0.04 atoms of protox. iron, 
to be in combination with alumina, and only accidental, and 0.16 of 
water, to be mechanically lodged in the mineral, then it will be a bi- 
hydrous tersilicate of magnesia; and is therefore the magnesite of 
Dr. Thomson’s Mineralogy, Vol. I. p. 178. 

Another mineral was sent to Dr. THomson, under the name of 
Deweylite, by Dr. Holmes, concerning whose locality ee is 
recollected, and which consists of 


Silica, : : é : 41.42 
NSOMESIa oie yyy ite : : 23.53 
Soda, : : A 4 6.25 
Alumina, : 4 5 ie 4.AT 
Oxide of cerium, f : : 3.07 
Protox; jofirons?)) 2’. ; : a trace. 
Water, 3 ; 19.86 


It is a triple, if not a neadiale ate 


10. Ornithichnites in Connecticut.—Extract of a letter from 
Prof. E. Hitchcock, dated June 28th, 1836.—In my account of 
the Ornithichnites in New Red Standstone, given in the last Jan- 
uary number of the Journal, I intimated that perhaps they might 
be found at a place called the Cove, in Wethersfield, Ct. I went 
to Hartford last year mostly to visit this spot; but having been there. 
informed that no rocks existed at the Cove, I did not go there. Yet 
recently a young gentleman of the Junior Class in Amherst Col- 
lege, whose father resides near the spot, and who had earefully ex- 
amined my specimens of Ornithichnites, informs me that he has dis- 
covered them at the Cove in considerable abundance and variety. 
But I will give you an account of them in his own words. 

“<The first specimen I examined was a step stone which had been 
in use nearly a century; on which were four steps, whose length 
was 14 or 15 inches, and the length of the foot 4 or 5 inches. ‘The 
middle toe has three tuberous swellings, the outer ones two. The 
claws are all of considerable length. ‘This resembles your O. tube- 
rosus, « dubtus. Upon another door step in the same vicinity, I 
found two rows of tracks, the feet having the same direction. The 
length of these steps is 29 inches, and of the foot 7 inches, ye 
ings and claws on the toes. 

At the Rocky Hill quarry, in Hartford, I found a specimen clases 
ly resembling that just described: the length of the foot 6 or 7 
inches, and of the step 27 inches—I found there but two tracks. 


Miscellanies. 175 


Some at Wethersfield have the impression of a hairy appendage 
at the heel. These have the middle toe much longer, in propor- 
tion to the rest, than any that I found. Length of the foot without 
the appendage, between 34 and 4 inches. 

I saw one track of what appears to be O. tetradactylus ; the hind 
toe being turned inward, and its extremity more deeply impressed 
than usual. Length of the foot, 3 inches. 

I have but one other class to describe. ‘The toes vary in length 
from three fourths of an inch to two inches, and were more diver- 
gent than usual. It appears to be O. minimus. 

One specimen of O. tuberosus has the toes andclaws bent under, 
as if the bird were in the act of seizing or raising something. 

On one fragment of the rock, I found the ends of two toes with 
nails, which seemed to be about two thirds the size of your O. gi- 
ganteus. 

I think I have seen the impression of toe nails as distinctly upon 
the slender toed species, as upon the other species.” 
~ Mr. Hanmer also describes vegetable remains of considerable size 
upon the same rock; and from his account, I suspect them to be- 
long to the tribe of Fucoides. : 

I hope that you, or the gentlemen engaged in a geological survey 
of the State, will be able to visit this spot, to see whether any dis- 
coveries can be made, or to make any corrections of the above state- 
ment, that may be found necessary. 


11. Delos—Greece—titantum—iron, &c.—Extracts of letters 
to the editor, from the Rev. J. J. Robertson, Episcopal Missionary 
to Greece, at Syra and the Pireus, Nov. and Dec. 1835.—My 
chief relaxation during the past summer, was a two days’ visit to De- 
los, in company with Lt. Stanley, who was employed for several 
weeks by the government, in forming a map and chart of our little 
island. I brought from Mount Cynthus a specimen of the granite 
of which Delos is, in a great measure, composed, and in which I 
discovered small yellow crystals of the silico-calcar-oxide of titani- 
um (sphene.) Some time after, examining a fragment of granite 
which I procured three years since from a column among the ruins 
of the so called temple of Diana at Ephesus, | found it to contain 
perfectly similar crystals. 

The director of mines for the kingdom of Greece, was at Syra a 
few months since, and I took one or two excursions with him. We 


176 Miscellanies. 


discovered on the side of a hill, between the upper and lower towns, 
an iron mine which had been formerly wrought, and thought it still 
deserving of attention. ‘The excavation was carried horizontally in- 
to the side of the hill, and is now used by shepherds to pen their . 
flocks, and is called the black sheep fold. A little in front of its 
entrance, stands a large mass of the ore, eight or ten feet high. I 
remarked that the mine had probably been wrought by the Vene- 
tians, towards the end of the period when they had possession of 
the island, and that this would account for the work having been in- 
terrupted. ‘The director replied, that the Venetians would have 
made use of gunpowder,—but as it is evident that the ore has been 
hewn out, and not blasted, it must have been the work of the an- 
cient Greeks. ; 

The same gentleman also discovered the red oxide of titanium, 
or rutile, which seems not to be very rare in our part of the island. 
There is also manganese sufficient for some useful purposes. Iron 
abounds at Cape Sunium and coal in Negropont (Kubcea.) The 
director showed me hematite from Andros—serpentine from 'Tenos 
in masses large enough to be wrought into urns, &c. He told 
me of sulphate of barytes, extending across parts of the island of 
Mycone like white walls. 

We are on board the steam boat Levant at the Pireus. It brings 
strange associations, to be on board a steamer in sight of the Par- 
thenon, and with the ruins of the long wall of Themistocles run- 
ning along one side of the harbor! About twenty-five dwellings 
and warehouses have been erected at the Pireus, but all things move 
slowly in Greece. ‘The country is exceedingly poor, and its few 
resources have scarcely begun to be developed. 


12. Remarks on the lavas, &c. of Mexico and South Amer- 
ica, in a letter to the editor, dated January 24, 1836.—The la- 
vas are of all varieties, from the most sound basalt to the most 
porous pumice. I have been reflecting upon some of the most 
probable causes of the absence of crystallization in the lavas of this 
country. The Andes contain a much greater volume of volcanic 
rocks than any thing in Europe, and probably the force of heat ne- 
cessary to liquefy such an.enormous mass, might have been so great 
as to melt all the crystals that might have been in the primitive or 
other rocks, which, in smaller and less heated eruptions, were thrown 
out as crystals. Jn all lavas, when the vacancies are filled, it is 


Miscellanies. 177 


done by infiltration, and the results most probably depend on the 


nature of the water—that is, upon what the water contains dissol- 
ved, &c. 


MISCELLANEOUS INTELLIGENCE. 


1. Plumbago and Black Lead pencils—There is only one pur- 
pose to which this ferm of carbon is applied in the solid state, viz., 
for the manufacture of black lead pencils, and its adaptation to this 
end depends upon its softness. In the state of a powder, plumbago, 
is used to relieve friction. Its power in this way may be illustrated 
by rubbing a button first on a plain board, five or six times, and ap- 
plying it to a bit of phosphorus, the latter will immediately burn. 
When rubbed on a surface covered with plumbago, double or triple 
the friction will be required to produce the same effect. One of the 
most remarkable circumstances connected with the plumbago is the 
mode in which it is sold. Once a year the mine at Borrowdale is 
opened, and a sufficient quantity of plumbago is extracted, to sup- 
ply the market during the ensuing year. It is then closed up, and 
the product is carried in small fragments of about three and four 
inches long, to London, where it is exposed to sale, at the black 
lead market, which is held on the first Monday of every month, at a 
public house in Essex street, Strand. The buyers, who amount to 
about seven or eight, examine every piece with a sharp instrument 
to ascertain its hardness—those which are too soft being rejected. 
The individual who has the first choice pays 45s. per pound ; the 
others 30s. But as there is no addition made to the first quantity 
in the market, during the course of the year, the residual portions 
are examined over and over again, until they are exhausted. ‘The 
annual amount of sale is about £3000. ‘There are three kinds of 
pencils, common, ever-pointed, and plummets. The latter are com- 
posed of one-third sulphuret of antimony and two-thirds plumbago. 

The Ist part of the process is sawing out the cedar into long planks, 
and then into what are technically called tops and bottoms. The 
2d, sawing out the grooves by means of a fly-wheel. The 3d, 
scraping the lead ona stone; having been previously made into 
thin slices, to suit the groove; introducing it into the groove, and 
scratching the side with a sharp pointed instrument, so as to break 
it off exactly above the groove. The 4th, glueing the tops and bot- 
toms together, and turning the cedar cases in a Bu 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 23 


178 Miscellanies. 


_ The ever-pointed pencils are first cut into thin slabs, then into — 
square pieces, by means of a steel guage. They are then passed 
through three small holes, armed with rubies, which last about three 
or four days. Steel does not last above as many hours. Six of 
these ever-pointed pencils may be had for 2s. 6d. If they are 
cheaper than this, we may be sure that they are adulterated. 

In Paris, when you buy a sheet of paper in a stationer’s shop, 
some of these pencils are added to the purchase. Now these are 
formed of a mixture of plumbago, fuller’s earth, and vermicelli. 
Genuine cedar pencils must cost 6d. each. If they are sold ata 
lower price, they must be formed from a mixture, not from pure 
plumbago. Pencils are, however, sold as low as 4$d. a dozen.—Rec. 


of Gen. Sc. June, 1836. 


2. A comparative and chronological table of the largest Libraries 
in the world. 
Founded in Contains vols. Manuscripts. 


Paris: Royal Library, - 1595 626,000 80,000 
Munich: Royal Lib. - 1595 540,000 16,000 
St. Petersburg: Imperial Lib. 1728 432,000 15,000? 
Copenhagen: Royal Lib. - 1648 410,000 16,000? 
Vienna: Imperial Lib. - 1440 284,000 16,000 
Berlin: Royal Lib. - 1661 280,000° 5,000 
Pekin: Imperial Lib. - . 280,000 

Dresden: Royal Lib. - 1556 260,000 2,700 
Gottingen: University Lib. 1736 250,000 5,000 
London: Lib. ofthe Brit. Museum,1759 220,000 22,000 
Oxford: Bodleian Lib. - 1480 200,000 25,000 
Wolfenbuttel: Ducal Lib. - 1604 200,000? 4,500 
Madrid: Royal Lib. - 1712 200,000 2,500? 
Paris: Lib. at the Arsenal, 186,000 5,000 
Stuttgart : Royal Lib. - 1765 174,000 1,800 
Milan: Brera Lib. - 1763 169,000 1,000 
Naples : Li. of the Bourbon Mus’m, 165,000 3,000 
Florence: Magliabecchian Lib. 1714 150,000 12,000 
Breslau: University Lib. - 150,000 . 2,300 
Munich: University Lib. - -1595 150,000 2,000? 
Edinburgh : - - 1682 150,000 6,000 
Jedo: Lib. of the Sjogoun, - 150,000? 

Miako: Lib. of Mikado, - 150,000? 


Bib. Uni. Geneva, Oct. 1835. 


Miscellanies. 179 


3. The Travellers.—Letters have been received from Mr. Nut- 
tall, the botanist, and his companion, John K. Townsend, of Phil- 
adelphia, dated in September of last year, from Fort Vancouver, 
Columbia River. They were in good health, and would set out 
soon for home, either via Santa Fe or England, and may be at 
home in the fall of this year. Last week the Academy of Natural 
Sciences of Philadelphia received safely from them via Cape Horn 
many large boxes;—among Mr. Townsend’s collection alone are 
three hundred birds and fifty quadrupeds, many of which are un- 
known to naturalists. We eagerly await the return of these gen- 
tlemen, in order that their remarkable scientific acquisitions, togeth- 
er with the eventful personal narrative of the travellers, may be 
given to the public.—Waldie’s Circ. Library, July 12, 1836. 


4. Report on introducing Pure Water into the city of Boston; 
by Loammi Baldwin, Esq. Civ. Eng. 2d ed. 340 pp. 8vo. Boston, 
1835.—It is but poor economy to forego any expense necessary for 
the introduction of water into every part of alarge city. Not only 
comfort and health depend to a great degree on its purity and abun- 
dance, but it is the only security against the ravages of fire, and the 
great preventive, by the promotion of cleanliness, of the epidem- 
ics to which all large cities are subject. Such benefits are worth 
many times the $750,000 which it is calculated will be required to 
supply the city of Boston with water. ‘The Report contains gene- 
ral accounts of the water works in other countries, besides more 
particularly a statement of the best means of supplying Boston. 
It is accompanied with several plans and profiles. The whole work 
is one of much general interest, and does much credit to its distin- 
guished author. ‘The volume is closed by an important article of 
30 pages on Springs, Artesian Wells, &c. by M. Arago, first pub- 
lished in the Annuaire du Bureau des Longitudes, pour 1835. 


5. Transactions of the Albany Institute, Vol. Il. part 2, 50 pp. 
Svo. Albany, 1836.—We have before us, in this continuation of 
Vol. II. of the transactions of this society, the annual address de- 
livered before the Institute, April, 1836, by Daniel P. Barnard, and 
also the report of the committee appointed to take Meteorological 
observations on the 21st of June, September, December and March, 
agreeably to the plan proposed in 1834, by Sir John Herschel. 
This report is accompanied by a lithographic chart exhibiting the 


180 : Miscellanies. 


comparative variations of the Barometer at Montreal, Albany, 
Flushing, L. 1., Middletown, Conn., and Cincinnati, Ohio. 


6. On the Application of the Hot Blast, in the Manufacture of 
Cast-Iron, by Tuomas Cuarx, M.D., &c. (Trans. Royal Soc. 
Edin. xiii.) —The substitution of hot for cold air, in the blast furnaces 
of the iron manufactory, is an improvement which suggested itself to 
the ingenious Mr. Neilson, of Glasgow, at a most seasonable period ; 
when the great demand for iron in the construction of railways is 
daily, nay, hourly, increasing. 

The original process consisted in introducing a charge of coke, 
limestone, and mine, or burned iron stone, into the top of the iron 
furnace ; and this mixture was excited to combustion by air forcibly 
driven in, at about forty feet from the top, through pipes from a blow- 
ing apparatus. The iron was thus separated from carbonic acid, 
alumina, and silica; and was allowed to run off at the bottom. 

Mr. Neilson improved this process, by substituting for air at the 
temperature of the atmosphere, air heated up to 300° and upwards. 
This is effected by passing the air through the cast-iron pipes, 
through which the former passed, kept in a red heat. 

During the first six months of the year 1829, when all the cast- 
iron in Clyde iron-works, was made by means of the cold blast, a 
single ton of cast-iron required for fuel to reduce it, 8 tons 14 ewt. 
of coal converted into coke. During the first six months of the fol- 
lowing year, while the air was heated to near 300° Fahr.: one ton 
of cast-iron, required 5 tons 34 cwt. of coal, converted into coke. 

The saving amounts to 2 tons 18 cwt. on the making of one ton 
of cast-iron; but from that saving comes to be deducted the coals 
used in heating the air, which were nearly eightcwt. ‘The nett say- 
ing thus was 2$ tons of coal on a single ton of cast-iron. But dur- 
ing that year, 1830, the air was heated no higher than 300° Fahr. 
The great success, however, of these trials, encouraged Mr. Dunlop, 
and other iron masters, to try the effect of a still higher temperature. 
Nor were their expectations disappointed. The saving of coal was 
greatly increased, insomuch that about the beginning of 1831, Mr. 
Dixon, proprietor of Calder iron-works, felt himself encouraged to 
attempt the substitution of raw coal for the coke before in use. Pro- 
ceeding on the ascertained advantages of the hot blast, the attempt 
was entirely successful: and since that period, the use of raw coal 
has extended so far as to be adopted in the majority of the Scotch 


Miscellanies. 181 


iron-works. The temperature of the air under blast, had now 
been raised so as to melt lead, and sometimes zinc, and therefore 
was above 600° Fahr., instead of being 300° as in the year 1830. 

“During the first six months of the year 1833, when all these 
changes had been fully brought into operation, one ton of cast-iron 
was made by means of 2 tons 54 cwt. of coal, which had not previ- 
ously been converted into coke. Adding to this eight ewt. for heat- 
ing, and we have 2 tons 131 cwt. of coal required to make a ton of 
iron ; whereas, in 1829, when the cold blast was in operation, 8 tons 
11 cwt. of coal had to be used. ‘This being almost exactly three 
times as much, we have from the change of the cold blast to the hot, 
combined with the use of coal instead of coke, three times as much 
tron made from any given weight of splint coal. 

‘During the three successive periods that have been specified, 
the same blowing apparatus was in use; and not the least remarka- 
ble effect of Mr. Neilson’s invention, has been the increased efficacy 
of a given quantity of air in the production of iron. The furnaces 
at Clyde iron-works, which were at first three, have been increased 
to four ; and the blast machinery being still the same, the following 
were the successive weekly products of iron during the periods al- 
ready named, and the successive weekly consumpt of fuel put into 
the furnace, apart from what was used in heating the blast: 

Tons. Tons. Tons. 
In 1829, from 3 furnaces, 111 Iron from 403 Coke, from 8&8 Coal. 


In 1830, from 3 furnaces, 162 Iron from 376 Coke, from 836 Coal. 
In 1833, from 4 furnaces, 245 Iron from 554 Coal. 


“Comparing the product of 1829, with the product of 1833, it will 
be observed that the blast, in consequence of being heated, has redu- 
ced more than double the quantitity of iron. The fuel consumed in 
these two periods we cannot compare, since in the former, coke was” 
burned, and im the latter coal. But on comparing the consumpt of 
coke in the years 1829 and 1830, we find that although the product 
of iron in the latter period was increased, yet the consumpt of coke 
was rather diminished. Hence the increased efficacy of the blast 
appears to be expected, from the diminished fuel that had become 
necessary to smelt a given quantity of iron.” 

The temperature was so high, that it was found necessary, in or- 
der to prevent the melting of the cast-iron lining near the nozzles 
of the blowpipes, to substitute for the solid lining a hollow one, filled 
with water, which is continually changing as it becomes heated. 


182 Miscellanies. 


Dr. Clark gives what we conceive to be the obvious explanation 
of the mode in which the hot air acts.—Berthier, it is true, has 
broached another.—(See “ Records,” ii. 151.) But it is far-fetched, 
- and superseded by the more simple explanation presented by our 
author. He observes: 

“As nearly as may be, a furnace, as wrought at Clyde iron-works 
in 1833, had two tons of solid materials an hour put in at the top, 
and this supply of two tons an hour was continued for 23 hours a 
day, one half hour every morning, and another every evening, being 
consumed in letting off the iron made. But the gaseous material, 
~ the hot air—what might be the weight of it? This can easily be 
ascertained thus: I find by comparing the quantities of air consumed 
at Clyde iron-works, and at Calder iron-works, that one furnace re- 
quires of hot air from 2500 to 3000 cubical feet ina minute. I 
shall here assume 2867 cubical feet to be the quantitity ; a number 
that I adopt for the sake of simplicity, inasmuch as, calculatéd at an 
avoirdupois ounce and a quarter, which is the weight of a cubical 
foot of air at 50° Fahrenheit, these feet correspond precisely with 2 
cwt. of air a minute, or six tons an hour. ‘Two tons of solid mate- 
rial an hour, put in at the top of the furnace, can scarce hurtfully af- 
fect the temperature of the furnace, at least in the hottest part of it, 
which must be far down, and where the iron, besides being reduced 
to the state of metal, is melted and the slag too produced. When 
the fuel put in at the top is coal, I have no doubt that, before it 
comes to this far-down part of the furnace, the place of its useful 
activity, the coal has been entirely coked; so that, in regard to the 
fuel, the new process differs from the old much more in appearance 
than in essence and reality. But if two tons of solid material an 
hour, put in at the top, are not likely to affect the temperature of 
the hottest part of the furnace, can we say the same of six tons of 
air an hour, forced in at the bottom near that hottest part? The 
air supplied is intended, no doubt, and answers to support the com- 
bustion ; but this beneficial effect is, in the case of the cold blast, 
incidentally counteracted by the cooling power of six tons of air an 
hour, or two cwt. a minute, which when forced in at the ordinary 
temperature of the air, cannot be conceived otherwise than a prodi- 
gious refrigeratory passing through the hottest part of the furnace, 
and repressing its temperature. ‘The expedient of previously heat- 
ing the blast, obviously removes this refrigeratory, leaving the air to 
act in promoting combustion, without robbing the combustion of any 
portion of the heat it produces.” 


Miscellanies. 183 


From a table appended to this paper, and furnished by Colin Dun- 
lop, Esq., it appears that in 1829, the average weekly product of 
the Clyde iron-works was 110 tons, 14 cwt. 2 qrs., and the average 
of coals used to 1 ton of cast iron was 8 tons, 1 cwt. 1 qr. with the 
cold air; while in 1830, these numbers were respectively, 162 tons, 
2 cwt., 1 qr., and 5 tons, 5 cwt. 1 qr. with heated air; and in 
1833, 245 tons, and 2 tons, 5 cwt. 1 qr., also heated air. ‘The fol- 
lowing table gives the materials constituting the charge in the several 
years. 


Materials constituting a Charge: 


cwt. qrs. Ib. 

1829, Coke, : 3 5 0 0 
- Roasted Ironstone, 3 1 14 
Limestone, 0 3 16 

1880, Coke, : 5 0 0 
Roasted Ironstone, 5 0 0 
Limestone, 1 I 16 

1833, Coal, 5 0 0 
Roasted Ironstone, 5 0 0 
Limestone, ; 1 0 0 


tec. of Gen. Sc. June, 1836. 


7. Climate of Palestine—In the Annuaire of 1834, M. Arago 
published a memoir, which had for its object to prove, that since the 
time of Moses, the temperature of Palestine has undergone no sen- 
sible alteration. ‘The duke of Ragusa denies the accuracy of the 
facts on which the conclusion is founded. He says, “there are 
no palms in the part of Palestine indicated by the memoir.” But, 
nevertheless, I find farther on in the Marshal’s communication, “ that 
there are a few at Jericho ;” that at Jerusalem, he saw three “ nearly 
barren ;” at Rama, a place cited in the article in question, “there 
are some which yielded fruit:’’ but certainly if there are some at 
that spot, a great many might exist. One single palm-tree produ- 
cing ripe fruit, would be sufficient in a question as to the tempera- 
ture. ‘The limit assigned, in the same article of the Annuaire, to 
the cultivation of the vine, is also called in question. We here 
transcribe this portion of the memoir, in order that botanists them- 
selves may decide if the facts adduced by the duke of Ragusa, are 
of a nature to modify their old opinions. “The article fixes at be- 


184 Miscellanies. 


tween 21° and 22° cent. (69°.8 and 71°.6 Fah.) the maximum of 
temperature that the vine can bear when productive, and to justify 
this assertion, it states, that at Cairo, where the mean temperature 
is 71°.6 Fah., the vine is not cultivated on the great scale, and that 
there are there only detached vine plants. This is the fact in regard 
to the past, but then the cause is quite of another description. Con- 
siderable plantations of vines have lately been made, which promise 
to afford excellent returns; but a decisive fact is that there have al- 
ways been and still are, vines in Fayoum, which is one of the hot- 
test provinces in Egypt, owing to the hills of sand which surround 
it on all sides. These vines are situated at the villages of Fidemia, 
Adjamira, and Tumban; they are cultivated by the Cophts, and 
yield agreeable wines. ‘That which I have drunk presents a phe- 
nomenon which is rare in such aclimate; it does not affect the 
head, and is drinkable after the second year. Pocoke, who traveled 
in 1737, speaks of the cultivation of the vine by the Cophts in Fay- 
oum, and what is still more important, there is in the higher parts 
of Upper Egypt, at Esné, twelve leagues to the south of Thebes, 
a vineyard which has an extent of several feddams. Its original 
object was to yield grapes for eating, but Jussuff Kiacheff, formerly 
soldier in the army sent to Egypt, and who was taken prisoner by 
the Mamelukes at the period of the evacuation, and remained in the 
east, informed me that he farmed the vineyard; that he made ex- 
cellent wine of the produce, and obtained a quantity equal to that 
afforded by the vineyards of Europe. We may then conclude from 
these facts, that if in Egypt, till within a few years, the vine has not 
been cultivated on a great scale, it is because the inhabitants do not 
drink wine, and that we are not to draw the inference, that there is 
a maximum of temperature above which the vine does not yield the 
means of making wine.””—Edin, New Philo. Jour. April, 1836. 


8. The Mathematical Miscellany, conducted by C. Git, Pro- 
fessor of Mathematics in the Institute at Flushing, Long Island, New 
York.—We notice with great pleasure, the receipt of the first num- 
ber of this unassuming periodical, and we cordially recommend it to 
our young friends, as one of the best means of drawing out the 
mathematical talent of the country. Works of this kind have always 
been beneficial in their influences; and when conducted with a prop- 
er spirit, and good judgment, have been quite efficient in fostering 
emulation, and in promoting the circulation of science. ‘The very 


Miscellanies. 185 


danger to which they are most exposed, and of which we have lately 
had some unpleasant instances, that of becoming the arena of unfor- 
tunate disputes, is a strong proof of the interest which they excite. 
From all such dangers we trust that the ‘“ Miscellany,” will be ‘pre- 
served by the energetic management of its enlightened editor; and 
our confidence in his abilities, is not a little strengthened by the pe- 
rasal of the excellent dissertations which accompany the present 
number. The “ Ilustrations of Lagrange,” are highly to be com- 
mended to the student, who is just beginning to apply the formulas 
of the most profound and accomplished of all mathematicians. The 
treatise on Spherical Geometry, is a lucid and an almost entirely origi- 
nal dissertation on the method of applying algebra to the surface of 
the sphere, in the same way as it is applied to the plane. The ad- 
vantages are the same in both cases; and the mathematician is 
equally well enabled to give an algebraic dress to any enquiry, with- 
out perplexing his mind with geometrical considerations. But the 
chief source of interest will probably be found in the questions which 
are proposed to be solved in the succeeding number; and, after a 
careful examination of them, we feel authorized in recommending 
them as skillfully selected, with a proper regard to variety and diffi- 
culty, and we add as the result of our experience, that a better ac- 
quaintance with any mathematical subject, may be derived from the 
solution of a single problem, than from reading a volume upon it, 
and it is only by the continual solution of problems, that the use of 
mathematical tools can be acquired, and the inventive powers be 
matured. We are too prone to consider the mere reader of mathe- 
matics as a mathematician, whereas he does not much more deserve 
the name, than the reader of poetry deserves that of poet. There 
are indeed exceptions to this remark, and there are works which 
none but a bona fide mathematician could read. Thus Laplace did 
little more than give the results of his calculations to the world; so 
that the thorough reading of the Mecanique Celeste, in the original, 
involves the frequent solution of the most difficult problems, and 
none but a mathematicias: of the highest genius, could have achieved 
the finished translation with the splendid commentary upon it, which 
only our country has been able to produce. 


9. Boston Journal of Natural History.—The 3d No. of Part I. 
of this important publication has recently appeared. A large part 


of the number is occupied by the first portion of a paper of the late 
Vou. XXXI.—No. 1. 24 


186 Miscellanies. 


distinguished entomologist, ‘THomas Say, containing descriptions of 
new species of North American Hymenoptera, and observations 
on some already described. ‘The article is evidently the result of 
long continued labor, and is a most valuable contribution to science. 
The second article is a sketch of the geology of Portland and its vi- 
cinity, by Prof. Epwarp Hircucocx, whose character is a suffi- 
cient warrant for the value of his papers. It is accompanied by a 
map. Next follows an examination of Smith’s catalogue of the ma- 
rine and fresh water fishes of Massachusetts, by D. H. Storer, M. D. 
The last article is a chemical analysis of three varieties of bituminous 
coal and one of anthracite, by C. T. Jackson, M. D. 


10. On the establishment of Statistical Societies in the United 
States—To Pror. Situiman.—The Statistical Society in Paris 
have selected me as their representative in the United States, for 
the purpose of transmitting to them any documents which I might 
be enabled to procure, and for generally aiding their very useful en- 
deavors in Paris, I respectfully desire to propose for consideration 
the establishment of a ‘‘ General Statistical Society” in the United 
States, and to give general publicity to this I have selected your 
widely circulated Journal as the organ of communication. 

The Statistical Society of France was established by Monsieur 
Cesar Moreau in 1829; by the high talent of this gentleman, his 
extensive and varied information, joined with his activity and indus- 
try, this society has now the united assistance of almost every gov- 
ernment in Europe. The immediate object of the Society rests 
upon the fact, That the knowledge of mankind increases in propor- 
tion to its tendency to observe, and that Statistical Tables, connect- 
ed with general and particular information, tend greatly to facilitate 
this development. 

To gather and condense facts which tend to show the increase 
or decrease of Population, the prosperity of Arts and Manufactures, 
the state of public instruction, to develop the true state of Agricul- 
ture, and generally to make known the exact internal state of a 
great nation, its imports and exports, the state of its national funds, 
and those of Chartered companies, must ever claim the attention of 
every enlightened community. In aiding the deliberations of Goy- 
ernment, I deem it of the highest importance, and I am enabled 

“to state that the European Governments have already experienced 
great advantages from the labors of Statistical Societies, and from 


Miscellanies. 187 


that of France in particular. They have tended to facilitate the 
views of the Statesman, by offering to him in a condensed form, 
the internal sources of wealth, not only of his own, but of surround- 
ing nations; their labors render the public happiness more secure, 
inasmuch as the dark paths of the future may become enlightened 
by the experience of the past; they offer a solid basis for political 
and social economy, and they relieve and assist the Ministry of a 
Government by condensing and bringing to a focus, not only the 
minutiz, but deduced facts relative to the internal or external power 
of any nation, either remote or in their immediate vicinity. 

In the United States of America, however, the existence of such 
Societies must be of incalculable benefit. The embryo gigantic 
powers of this Republic are now beginning to develop themselves, 
and it is of primary importance that the grand stream of prosperity 
be directed into that course which will not only secure the present 
prosperity, but also the future greatness of the United States, whilst 
it must add to the welfare and happiness of her population. 

The present popular system of rapid and cheap communication, 
has already been anticipated by the enterprising genius of the Uni- 
ted States, and she forms a very prominent example of the immense 
advantages which a nation derives from the projection of such plans 
as shall tend to give full scope to the energies of the people, whilst 
at the same time it opens the paths to the development of her inter- 
nal resources, commercial, mineral or agricultural. 

To mark out and prudently to direct the course of such facilities 
of communication, requires the aid of statistic information. The 
fecundity of the soil, the amount of population, the manufactured 
products and their separate values, each require particular conside- 
ration; and this can be obtained only by personal research. ‘The 
condensation of such researches forms one of the leading features 
of a Statistical Society. ‘To accumulate and condense the informa- 
tion given by modern authors, and more particularly that offered by 
persons who have occasion to visit foreign countries for scientific re- 
search, forms the object of the ‘“ Universal Statistical Society of 
France.” To contrast the present degree of prosperity with the 
past, and to enquire into the causes of the imcrease or diminution, 
is its particular care; to trace the gradual development of the cau- 
ses which have influenced the progress, increase, and present actu- 
al state of the wealth and power of civilized nations, forms thé 
grand utility to society produced by their united labors ; and finally, 


188 Miscellanies. 


to contract into one general focus the energies of each nation, and 
comparing the state of their society both moral and political, their 
commerce, internal and external, and their state of Literature and 
the Fine Arts, with that of another Empire, demands for it the title 
of “ Universal,’ and eminently merits the zealous support of every 
enlightened individual, whose nobility of mind prompts him to offer 
his mite to the general stock of knowledge. 

Should this communication through your Journal be the means of 
having forméd in your principal cities, establishments of a statistical 
nature, be assured that each Society will receive every aid and as- 
sistance from the ‘“ Universal Statistical Society of France,” which 
will ever be anxious to advance their researches, and to act with 
them reciprocally. I have the honor to remain, 

Your very obedient serv’t, 
Cuar.Les SANDERSON, 
Mem. of the U. S. S. of France, 
the Imp. Agri. Soc. of Vienna, &c. &e. 
New York, Dec. 10, 1835. 


11. Tobacco, a remedy for Arsenic; communicated to the Ed- 
itor by Rev. Ratpu Emerson.—About the year 1820, Miss So- 
phia Eastman of Holles, N. H. (now connected with the orphan 
asylum in Troy, N. Y.) fell into the mistake, so often committed, 
of eating a portion of arsenic which had been prepared for the de- 
struction of rats. Painful symptoms soon led to inquiry; and her | 
mistake was discovered. An elderly lady who was present, advised 
that she should be made to vomit as speedily as possible, and as she 
had always felt a perfect loathing for tobacco in every shape, it was 
supposed that this would at once effect the purpose. A pipe was 
used, but without producing any nausea. She next chewed a large 
portion of strong tobacco, and swallowed the juice, and that without 
-even asensation of disgust. A strong decoction was then made 
with hot water, of which she drank perhaps halfa pint. Still there 
was neither nausea or dizziness, nor did it operate at all either as an 
emetic or a cathartic. ‘The painful sensations at her stomach, how- 
ever, subsided, and she began to feel well. On the arrival of phy- 
sicians, an emetic of blue vitriol was administered, which operated 
moderately once. One or two days after, there was a discharge of 
a dark green color, approaching to black. No ill consequences fol- 
lowed. 


Miscellanies. 189° 


Another case occurred in the same place, a few years subsequent, 
in which arsenic was taken through mistake, by a sick person, and 
she employed tobacco with the like success. ‘She, too, had always 
loathed the article, but now chewed it and swallowed the saliva, 
without producing sickness at the stomach. No emetic was admin- 
istered in this case, nor any other remedy. Happy will it be for 
our race, should this insidious poison, now the slow death of so ma- 
ny, be employed only as an antagonist to those other deadly poisons, 
for which it may have been provided by the Creator, as a sure and 
speedy remedy. 

The above facts I lately received from Dr. Eastman, of Holles, 
the father of Sophia, and from her sister, at whose house Sophia 
committed the mistake. Yours truly, 


Rautew EMERSON. 
Andover, Mass. May 26, 1836. 


12. Shower of Falling stars in Russia, on the night between the 
12th and 13th November, 1832.—The following extract of a letter 
from Monsieur le Comte de Suchteln, to Monsieur Feodorou, was 
communicated to the “‘ Royal Academy of Sciences” at Paris, in 
which mention is made of numerous meteors which were seen in the 
neighborhood of Orenburg, in the night between the 12th and 13th — 
November, 1832. “In the night between the 12th and 13th No-. 
vember, 1832, between three and four in the morning, the weather 
being calm and serene, and the thermometer being at 55° of Fahr. 
the heavens appeared to be bespangled by a great number of 
meteors, which described a great arch in the direction of from north- 
east to south-west. They burst like rockets, into mmumerable small 
stars, without producing the slightest noise, and left in the sky, 
what was long of disappearing, a [ueitiows band, having all the vari- 
ous colors of the rainbow. The light of the moon, which was then 
in her last quarter, obscured this appearance. It sometimes seemed 
as if the heavens were cleft asunder, and in the opening, there ap- 
peared long brilliant bands of a white color. At other times flashes 
of lightning rapidly traversed the vault of heaven, eclipsing the 
light of the stars, and causing these long luminous bands of varied 
colors toappear. These phenomena continued to succeed each other 
without occasioning the slightest perceptible noise. ‘They were in 
their greatest splendor between five and six o’clock in the morning, 
and continued without interruption till sunrise. They were observed 


190 Miscellanies. 


principally by the sentinels, and by the officers, when going their 
rounds; also by the ecclesiastics, and by the subordinates, and by 
many other persons. Monsieur Milordou, the principal priest of 
the cathedral, stated in the account which he gave of this occur- 
rence, that the interior of the cathedral was sometimes suddenly 
illuminated by the light of this brilliant phenomenon. Monsieur 
Itschitow, lieutenant-colonel of the 3d battalion of the line of Oren- 
burg, also confirmed these statements in his report, which as an 
additional ground of confidence, contained the accounts of the sen- 
tinels in the several positions in which they had been posted. - Dur- 
ing the same night, and almost at the same hour, a not less remarka- 
ble appearance was witnessed at Hitzkaja-Saschtschita, about sev- 
enty-five miles tothe south of Orenburg. ‘Two columns of a white 
color rose from the horizon equidistant from the moon, which at the 
time had not risen far; about the middle of their height they ap- 
peared brilliant and much curved. Several horizontal bands sprung 
from this point, the most brilliant of which extended towards the 
moon, in which they appeared to unite, so that in this way they ap- 
peared to forma great H. In the town of Ufa, the seat of the gov- 
ernment of the same name, situated 380 miles to the north of Oren- 
burg, a phenomenon similar to that which was observed at Hitzkaja- 
Saschtschita, was perceived, but, according to the accounts which 
have been given, it was not quite so brilliant.”—Edin. new Philo. 


Jour. July, 1836. 


13. Declination and Inclination of the Magnetic Needle at Pa- 
ris.—On the 9th of November, 1835, at 14. 8’ P. M. we found that 
the northern extremity of the magnetic needle pointed to the west of 
the astronomical north, 22° 4’.. On the 3d of July, 1835, at 9h. 
morning, the inclination was 67° 24’.—Arago in the Annuaire, 
1836, p. 349. 


14. Progressive Rise of a portion of the bottom of the Mediterra- 
nean.—M. Theodore Virlet lately addressed a note to the French 
Academy of Sciences, in which he directed the attention of geolo- 
gists to the probability of the speedy appearance of a new island in 
the Grecian Archipelago, in consequence of the progressive rise of a 
sunken solid rock, (composed of trachytic obsidian ?) in the gulf of 
the volcano of Santorin. The following are the author’s observations 
on this subject :—‘‘ Towards the end of the last century, at the peri- 


Miscellanies. 191 


od when Olivier visited Santorin, the fishermen of the island asserted 
that the bottom of the sea had recently risen considerably between 
the island of Little Kaiméni and the Port of Thera; in fact the 
soundings did not give a greater depth than fifteen to twenty fathoms, 
where formerly the bottom could not be reached. When Colonel 
Bory and the author visited the island in 1829, they were able not 
only to confirm the truth of Olivier’s statement, but also to ascertain 
by various soundings, that the rise of the submarine land had contin- 
ued, and that at the point indicated the depth was not more than four 
fathoms and a half. In 1830, the same observers made new sound- 
ings, which enabled them to determine the form and extent of the 
mass of rock, which in less than a year had been elevated half a 
fathom. It was found to extend 800 metres from east to west, and 
500 from north to south. ‘The submarine surface augmented grad- 
ually to the north and west, from four to 29 fathoms, while to the east 
and south this augmentation amounted to forty-five fathoms. Be- 
yond this limit, the soundings indicated in all directions a very great 
depth. Ihave lately been informed that Admiral Lalande, who, 
since 1830, has twice returned to Santorin, ascertained that the 
rock still continues to rise; and that, im September, 1835, the date 
of his last visit, the depth of water amounted to only two fathoms, 
so that a sunken reef now exists which it is dangerous for brigs to 
approach. If the rock continues to rise at the same rate, it may be 
calculated that in 1840, it will form a new island, without, however, 
those catastrophes which this phenomenon seems to presage for the 
gulf of Santorin, being a necessary consequence of the epoch of its 
appearance at the surface of the water. Since the eruptions of 1707, 
and 1712, which produced the new Kaiméni, voleanic phenomena 
have completely ceased in the gulf of Santorin, and the volcano 
seems at the present day quite extinct. Nevertheless, the rise of a 
portion of its surface seems to demonstrate continual efforts to make 
an eruption during fifty years; and that, whenever the resistance 
shall not be strong enough to offer a sufficient obstacle, the voleano 
will again resume its activity.” —Edin. New Phil. Jour. July, 1836. 


15. Hail.—After a violent storm at Clermont, MM. Bouillet and 
Lecog found a number of hail-stones as large as hens’ eggs, and 
some others as large as those of turkeys. ‘They were all of an 
ellipsoidal form, and seemed formed of a multitude of needles, united 
to the extremities of the great axis. ‘They were from eight lines to 


192 JMiscellanies. 


two inches long. ‘Those needles, ‘on which the fusion had not made 
much impression, still showed traces of hexagonal prisms, ter- 
minated by prisms of six facets. In a second storm, others fell 
which were not larger than hazel nuts, and these were formed of 
concentric layers, more or less transparent, rounded, or slightly oval, 
and possessed a powerful horizontal motion; they were heard to 
hiss in the air, as if each hail-stone rabbed against the other, and 
their rotation was extremely rapid.— Atheneum. 


16. New Animal.—A new genus of Mammalia has been found 
in Madagascar, by M. Goudot, which M. Doyeére, Professor at the 
Colleze of Henri Quatre, proposes to cal! Hwpleres. It is a lively, 
swift animal, with slender levs, and entirely Plantigrade, the sole of 
the foot being the only part free from hair. It lives on the surface 
of the ground, is long and thin in the body, and its girth is that of 
most Insectivora. If any judgment may be formed from its anato- 
my, its hearing is equal to that of other Insectivora; and the size of 
its orbits shows that its sight is likely to be good. ‘The thumb is 
much the shortest of its five fingers, and all are armed with sharp, 
thin, and semi-retractile nails. ‘The natives say that it hollows out 
the sand, and lives in pits. Flacourt mentioned this animal under 
the name of Falanou, and thought it to be a civet, which error has 
been continued in several works. ‘The animal we now speak of was 
too young to have completed its dentition, but at present it has six 
incisors in the upper jaw, two canines, six pointed grinders, and four 
tuberculous grinders in the under jaw; eight incisors, two canines 
with a double root, fitting behind those of the upper jaw, like the 
mole, four pointed grinders, and six with five tubercles in the lower 
jaw. M. Doyére gives the specific name in honor of M. Goudot, 
and writes it HupleresGoudotiz.— Atheneum. 


17. Ornithology.—A new bird belonging to the Passeres, and 
among the Upupe, has been found at Madagascar, by M. Goudot, 
and forms the type of a new and remarkable genus. ‘The beak is 
very long, arched, compressed or flattened, like a blade, and may 
be compared to that of a small sytbe. The nostrils, placed at the 
base of the beak, and pierced laterally, are not covered by the ante- 
rior feathers of the head. ‘The wings, which in length reach the 
middle of the tail, according to the nomenclature of M. Isidore Geof- 
froy, belong to the type called by him swrobtus,—that is, having the 


Miscellanies. 193 


fourth and fifth remiges the longest of all. The first like that of the 
Hoopoes, is extremely short, and nearly useless in flight. The tail 
is square, and composed of twelve pens; the externals of which have 
their stems prolonged, ina very slight degree, beyond the barbs. 
The feet have three toes, directed forwards, and a fourth backwards. 
All are long, thick, and furnished with curved talons, enlarged at 
_ the base by a thick membrane, which has some affinity with that of 
the Gralle. The only species now known has the head, the neck, 
and the under part of the body white; the back, wings, and tail, of 
a greenish black, with metallic lights. M. Isidore Geoffroy has 
named it Falculia palliata. It lives on the borders of streams, feeds 
on small aquatic insects, and the organic remains found in mud.— 
Atheneum. 


18. The tongues of ducks, I learned to-day, are among the dain- 
ties of Chinese epicures. In one of the lanes running westward. 
from Leuenhing keae, there is a shop containing a great. variety of 
live fowls, besides several species of dried ones, for sale. One 
article puzzled me much; and by inquiry I found it to be nothing 
more nor less than a string of dried tongues, obtained from ducks. 
They were stretched out to the utmost length, resembling awls in 
shape, and hardened almost to the firmness of iron.— Thursday, 
Nov. 12th.—Chinese Repository. 


19. Locusts.—The Egyptian plague of locusts made their appear- 
ance in Kwangse, and the western departments of Kwantung, about 
the 20th of July, 1835. A small advance guard having come as far 
as Canton, orders were issued to the military and people to exterminate 
them, as was done when they made their appearance here in Octo- 
ber, 1833. As this was much easier said than done, the next resort 
was to the more rational mode of offering a bounty of twelve or fifteen 
cash per catty for the locusts. But during the late strong winds, the 
locusts are said to have been driven before it in such quantities and 
into such places, that the catchers of them seemed likely to realize 
some profit from the bounty. But true to Chinese prudence, the 
officers then immediately lowered the bounty, and would give but 
five or six cash per catty. ‘The damage occasioned by these insects 
is very great, and the Chinese always dread their approach. A 
swarm will destroy a field of Rice in a short time, leaving the former 
green prospect an unsightly marsh. ‘The Chinese affirm that the 

Vout. XX XI.—No. 1. 25 


194 Miscellanies. 


leader is the largest individual in the whole swarm, and that the rest 
follow all his motions. Some stragglers have made their appearance 
in the hongs, which were from two and a half to three inches long, 
strongly limbed, and agreed with the popular description given of 
the Egyptian locusts. ‘The natives regard the insect, when depriy- 
ed of the abdomen and properly cooked, as passable eating, though 
they do not appear to holda dish of locusts in much estimation.—2b. 


20. Memorandun of an excursion to the tea hills, which produce 
the description of tea known in commerce under the designation of 
Ankoy (Nganke) tea; by G. J. Gorpon, Esq.—‘‘ Having been 
disappointed in my expectations of being enabled to visit the Bohea 
hills, I was particularly anxious to have an opportunity of personally 
inspecting the tea plantations in the black tea district, of the next 
greatest celebrity, in order to satisfy myself regarding several points 
relative to the cultivation, on which the information afforded by dif- 
ferent individuals was imperfect or discordant. 

“Mr. Gutzlaff accordingly took considerable pains to ascertain for 
me, from the persons who visited the ship, the most eligible place 
for landing with the view of visiting the Ankoy hills; and Hwuy- 
tow bay was at length fixed upon as the most safe and convenient, 
both from its being out of the way of observation of any high Chi- 
nese functionaries who might be desirous of thwarting our project, 
and from its being equally near the tea hills as any other part of the 
coast at which we could land.” 

‘«¢'The wind being unfavorable, we made rather slow progress by 
rowing, but taking for our guidance the masts of some of the junks 
which we observed lying behind a point of land, we pulled to get 
under it, in order to avoid the strength of the ebb tide, which was 
now setting against us. In attempting to round the point, however, 
we grounded, and soon found that it was impossible to get into the 
river on that side, on account of sand banks which were merely cov- 
ered at high water, and that it was necessary to make a considera- 
ble circuit seaward to be able to enter. ‘This we accomplished, but 
not till 1, A. M. At this time a light breeze fortunately springing 
up, we got on very well for some time, but were again obliged to. 
anchor at 4 past 2, from want of water. As the tide rose, we grad- 
ually advanced towards the town of Hwuytow, till we came to one 
of those bridges of which there are several along the coast, that ex- 
tend over wide sand flats that are formed at the mouths of the rivers. 


Miscellanies. 195 


These bridges are constructed of stone piers with slabs of stone laid 
from pier to pier, some extending over a space of 25 feet and up- 
wards, and others being from 15 to 20 feet span. As the length of 
this bridge cannot be less than three quarters of a mile, the whole is 
very striking as a work of great labor, if not exhibiting either much 
skill or beauty. We were informed by some boat people that we 
should not find water to carry us beyond the bridge, but observing 
some tall masts on the other side, we resolved on making the exper- 
iment, and pushing on as far as we could. It was almost dark when 
we passed under the bridge, and we had not proceeded far when we 
were again aground. ‘This, however, we attributed to our unac- 
quaintance with the channel, and as the tide floated us off, we con- 
tinued advancing, notwithstanding the warning of a friendly voice 
from the bridge, that entreated us to return to the town, promising 
us comfortable quarters, and a guide, &c. Being rather distrustful 
of the motives of this advice, however, we proceeded for some time 
longer, but at length found it impossible to proceed farther, the ebb 
having at the same time commenced. We therefore spread an 
awning, and prepared to make ourselves as comfortable as possible 
for the night. ‘The day had been the warmest we had experienced 
for a month past, but the night was very cold, and our boat, as may 
be imagined, far from commodious for so many people. At day- 
light, we found that there was not six inches of water in any part of 
the channel, and from the boat we stepped at once upon dry sand. 
The survey from the bank showed plainly that it would be impossi- 
ble to proceed any further by water. We accordingly prepared to 
march on foot, taking with us three lascars, who might relieve each 
other in carrying our cloak-bag of blankets and great coats, as well 
as some cold meat. We ordered the people to prepare a meal as 
fast as possible, intending to make a long stretch at first starting, and 
Mr. Nicholson was directed to remain in charge of the boat with five 
lascars, to move her down under the bridge on the return of the 
flood, and there to await our return for four or five days. Crowds 
of people now began to gather around the boat, moved by mere cu- 
riosity. Mr. Gutzlaff induced some of them to get ducks and fowls 
for the use of the boat’s crew, and strange to say, prevailed on one 
man to become our guide, and on two others to undertake to carry 
our baggage, as soon as we should be a little farther off from the 
town, and out of the way of observation.” 


196 Miscellanies. 


' “ Skirting the town of Hwuytow, we proceeded in a N. N. E. di- 
rection, at a moderate pace, for an hour and a half, when we stop- 
ped at a temple, and refreshed ourselves with tea. Nothing could 
be more kind or more civil than the manners of the people towards 
us hitherto, and if we could have procured conveyances here so as 
to have escaped walking in the heat of the day, loaded as we were 
with heavy woollen clothes, we should have had nothing further to 
desire: as it was, my feet already began to feel uncomfortable from 
swelling, and after another hour’s march, I was obliged to pro- 
pose a halt till the cool of the evening. Fortunately we found, 
however, that chairs were procurable at the place, and we accord- 
ingly engaged them at half a dollar each. They were formed in the 
slightest manner, and carried on bamboo poles, having a cross bar at 
the extremities, which rested on the back of the bearer’s neck, ap- 
parently a most insecure as well as inconvenient position ; but as the 
poles were at the same time grasped by the hands, the danger of a 
false step was lessened. We had not advanced above a mile and a 
half before the bearers declared they must eat, and to enable them 
to do so, they must get more money. With this impudent demand 
we thought it best to comply, giving them an additional real each. 
After an hour’s further progress, we were set down at a town near 
the foot of the first pass which we had to cross. ‘There the bearers 
clamorously insisted on an additional payment before they would 
carry us any further. This we resisted, and by Mr. Gutzlaff’s elo- 
quence gained the whole of the villagers, who crowded around us, to 
join in exclaiming against the attempted extortion. Seeing this, the 
rogues submitted, and again took us up. Mr. G. mentioned that 
while we were passing through another village, the people of which 
begged the bearers to set us down, that they might have a look at 
us, they demanded 100 cash as the condition of compliance. ‘The 
country through which we passed swarmed with inhabitants, and ex- 
hibited the highest degree of cultivation, though it was only in a few 
spots that we saw any soil which would be deemed in Bengal tole- 
rably good; rice, the sweet potato, and sugar cane, were the princi- 
pal articles of culture. We had now to ascend a barren and rugged 
mountain, which seemed destined by nature to set the hand of man 
at defiance ; yet even here, there was not a spot where a vegetable 
would take root, that was not occupied by at least a dwarf pine 
planted for the purpose of yielding fire wood, and a kind of turpen- 
tine ; and wherever a nook presented an opportunity of gaining a few 


Miscellanies. 197 


square yards of level ground by terracing, no labor seems to have 
been spared to redeem such spots for the purpose of rice cultivation. 
In ascending the pass, we soon came to places where it was difficult 
for our bearers to find a footing, and where they had consequently 
to pick out their steps as they advanced. ‘To assist themselves, 
they gave the chair a swinging motion, with which they kept time 
in raising their feet. This was far from agreeable, and the first im- 
pression was that it was done merely to annoy, but we very soon 
saw that the object was different. ‘The highest point of the pass I 
should conjecture to be about 1200 feet above the plain, and the 
descent on the north side to be nearly equal to the ascent from the 
south, say 1000 feet. At half past four we arrived at a rather ro- 
mantic valley, which was to be our halting place for the day.” 
“Nov. 12th. Got into our chairs at a quarter past six, A. M. 
and proceeded along a narrow rugged dell towards Koéboé. Seve- 
ral nice looking hamlets were seen on the way. The people were 
engaged in reaping the rice, which seemed heavy, and well filled in 
the ear. In several places I observed that they had taken the pains 
to tie clumps of rice together for mutual support. Sugar cane is 
bound in the same way, and for additional security, the outside 
canes are mutually supported by diagonal leaves, which serve at the 
same time to form them into a kind of fence. The leaves are not 
tied up round the stalks as in Bengal; the cane is slender, white, 
hard, and by no means juicy or rich ; yet, abating the black fungous 
powder, which is very prevalent, the surface is healthy, and close 
growing ina remarkable degree. We arrived at Koéboé at eight 
o'clock, and finding we could get water conveyance for part of the 
way on which we were proceeding, we engaged a boat for that pur- 
pose. After a hearty breakfast, we embarked at 10 A. M. amidst 
crowds of people who covered the banks of the river at the ghat. 
On inquiry, we found that the river on which we were proceeding 
in a W.N.W. course, was the same which passed Nganke heén, and 
flowed to 'T'seuenchow foo. The boat was large, but light, and be- 
ing flat bottomed, drew very little water. The stream was so shal- 
low, that it was only by tracing the deepest part of the channel from 
side to side of its bed, that we were able to advance at all. This 
was done by poling ; in several places the stream was deepened by 
throwing up little banks of sand so as to confine its course within a 
channel merely wide enough for the boats to pass through. I esti- 
mated the width from bank to bank at 200 yards, and should judge 


198 Miscellanies. 


from the height at which sugar is cultivated above the level of the 
present surface, that the greatest depth in the rainy season does not 
exceed 10 feet. Being entirely fed by mountain torrents, its rise 
must be often very sudden, but 1 did not observe any traces of de- 
vastation in its course. Its name, Nganke, or ‘ peaceful stream,’ is 
probably derived from this circumstance: the valley on each side 
seemed well cultivated, the banks being principally occupied by su- 
gar cane. At every village the people poured out as usual to see 
us, vying with each other in marks of civility and kindness. The 
day, however, becoming very hot, we took shelter from the sun un- 
der the roof of the boat, to the disappointment of many who waded 
into the water to gratify themselves with a sight of the strangers. 
Coming at last to a high bank close to a populous town, they actu- 
ally offered the boatman 400 cash if he would bring us to; and on 
his refusal, the boys began pelting the boat with clods and stones. 
On this, Mr. Gutzlaff went on deck to remonstrate, and Mr. Ryder 
to intimidate with his gun. Betwixt both, the effect was imstantane- 
ous, and the seniors of the crowd apologized for the rude manner in 
which the boys had attempted to enforce the gratification of their cu- 
riosity. We had been in vain looking out all yesterday and to-day 
fora glimpse of tea plantations on some of the rugged and black 
looking hills close in view, though at almost every place where we 
halted, we were assured that such were to be found hard by.” 

“« Arrived at ‘Toa-be, we were hospitably received by the family 
of our guide, and soon surrounded by wondering visitors. 

“‘ Mr. Gutzlaff speedily selected one or two of the most intelligent 
of them, and obtained from them ready answers to a variety of ques- 
tions regarding the cultivation of the tea plant. They informed him 
that the seed now used for propagating the plant was all produced 
on the spot, though the original stock of this part of the country was 
brought from Woo-e-shan; that it ripened in the 10th or 11th month, 
and was immediately put into the ground where it was intended to 
grow, several being put together into one hole, as the greater part 
was always abortive; that the sprouts appeared in the 3d month af- 
ter the seeds were put into the ground; that the hole into which the 
seeds are thrown is from three to four inches deep, and as the plants 
grow, the earth is gathered up a little around the root; that leaves 
are taken from the plants when they are three years old, and that 
there are from most plants four pluckings in the year. No manure 
is used, nor is goodness of soil considered of consequence ; neither 


Miscetlanies. 199 


are the plants irrigated. Each shrub may yield about a ¢ael of dry 
tea annually (about the 12th of a pound.) A mow of ground may 
contain 300 or 400 plants. The land tax is 300 cash, (720 to a 
dollar,) per mow. ‘The cultivation and gathering of the leaves be- 
ing performed by families without the assistance of hired laborers, no 
rate of wages can be specified ; but as the curing of the leaf is an art 
that requires some skill, persons are employed for that particular 
purpose, who are paid at the rate of one dollar per pecul of fresh 
leaves, equal to five dollars per pecul of dry tea. The fire-place 
used is only temporary, and all the utensils, as well as fuel, are fur- 
nished by the curer of the tea. ‘They stated that the leaves are 
heated and rolled seven or eight times. The green leaf yields one 
fifth of its weight of dry tea. ‘The best tea fetches on the spot 23 
dollars per pecul, (1331 Ibs.) and the principal part of the produce 
is consumed within the province, or exported in baskets to Formosa. 
That the prevailing winds are northwesterly. The easterly winds 
are the only winds injurious to the plants. Hoar frost is common 
during the winter months, and snow falls occasionally, but does not 
lie long, nor to a greater depth than three or four inches. The plant 
is never injured by excessive cold, and thrives from 10 to 20 years. 
It is sometimes destroyed by a worm that eats up the pith, and con- 
verts both stem and branches into tubes, and by a gray lichen which 
principally attacks very old plants. ‘The period of growth is limited 
to six or seven years, when the plant has attained its greatest size. 
The spots where the tea is planted are scattered over great part of 
the country, but there are no hills appropriated entirely to its cul- 
ture. No ground, in fact, is formed into a tea plantation, that is fit 
for any other species of cultivation, except perhaps that of the dwarf 
pine already alluded to, or the Camellia oleifera. Mr. Gutzlaff 
understood them to say that the plant blossoms twice a year, in the 
eighth moon or September, and again in winter, but that the latter 
flowering is abortive. In this I apprehend there was some misun- 
derstanding, as full sized seeds, though not ripe, were proffered to 
me in considerable quantities early in September, and none were 
found on the plants which we saw. I suspect that the people meant 
to say that the seeds take eight months to ripen, which accords with 
other accounts. We wished much to have spent the following day 
(the 13th) in prosecuting our inquiries and observations at 'Toa-be 
and its neighborhood, but this was rendered impracticable by the 
state of our finances. We had plenty of gold, but no one could be 


200 ! Miscellanies. 


found who would purchase it with silver at any price. We there- 
fore resolved on making the most of our time by an early excursion 
in the morning, previous to setting out on our return. 

‘We accordingly got up at day break, and proceeded to visit the 
spot where the plants were cultivated. We were much struck with 
the variety of the appearance of the plants: some of the shrubs 
scarcely rose to the height of a cubit above the ground, and those 
were so very bushy that the hand could not be thrust between the 
branches. ‘They were also very thickly covered with leaves, but 
these were very small, scarcely above 2 of an inch long. In the 
same bed were other plants, with stems four feet high, far less 
branchy, and with leaves 14 to 2 inches in length. The pro- 
duce of great and small was said to be equal. The distance from 
centre to centre of the plants was about 44 feet, and the plants 
seemed to average about two feet in diameter. Though the ground 
was not terraced, it was formed into beds that were partly levelled. 
These were perfectly well dressed, as in garden cultivation, and 
each little plantation was surrounded by a low stone fence, and a 
trench. ‘There was no shade, but the places selected for the culti- 
vation were generally in the hollows of hills, where there was a good 
deal of shelter on two sides, and the slope comparatively easy. I 
should reckon the site of the highest plantations we visited to be 
about 700 feet above the plain, but those we saw at half that height, 
and even less, appeared more thriving, probably from having some- 
what better soil, though the best is little more than mere sand. I 
have taken specimens from three or four gardens. Contrary to what 
we had been told the preceding night, I found that each garden had 
its little nursery, where the plants were growing to the height of 
four or five inches, as closely set as they could stand; from which I 
conceive that the plant requires absolutely a free soil, not wet, and 
not clayey, but of a texture that will retain moisture; and the best 
site is one not so low as that at which water is apt to spring from the 
sides of a hill, nor so high as to be exposed to the violence of stormy 
weather. ‘There is no use in attempting to cultivate the plant on 
an easterly exposure, though it is sufficiently hardy to bear almost 
any degree of dry cold.”—Jb. 


Nore.—Since the notes on p. 36 were printed, Dr. Kirtland has become satisfied 
from the anatomical structure of the animals, that the H. fuliginosa and H. gla- 
phyra, are distinct species. 


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Am, Jour. Sev Vol. 31, Frontisproce 


Mo 


[res hithog® Boston (successor to Pendleton 


DR. PRINCE. 


From a painting by F. Alexander. ‘ 


THE 


AMERICAN 


JOURNAL OF SCIENCE, &c. 


Art. I.— Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D., late Senior Pas- 
tor of the First Church in Salem, Mass.; by Rev. Cuarntes W. 
UpuHam. 


Dr. Prince was born in Boston, on the 22d of July, 1751. His 
parents resided in the north part of the city, and were worthy and 
excellent members of the religious society distinguished as the New 
North Church. ‘They were of Puritan descent, and, as was the case 
with all who worthily claimed that name, were careful to give their 
son a good education, and to impress upon his mind a reverent sense 
of relizious truth and duty. His father being a mechanic, a hatter 
by trade, the son was directed to a similar pursuit. He was early 
bound out as an apprentice to a pewterer and tinman, and continued 
industriously and faithfully to labor in his calling until his indentures 
had expired. 

But his genius, from the beginning, had indicated a propensity to 
a different mode of life. From a child his chief enjoyments were 
found in books. He was wont to retire from the sports of boyhood. 
There was no play for him to be compared with the delight of read- 
ing. During the hours of leisure, in the period of his apprentice- 
ship, he sought no other recreation than in the acquisition of know- 
ledge. 

It followed of course, that, upon becoming free, he abandoned his 
trade and devoted himself to study. Ina very short time he was 
prepared to enter college, and received his bachelor’s degree at 
Cambridge, in 1776, at the age of twenty-five. After leaving col- 
lege, he was engaged for some time in the instruction of a school. 
He pursued the study of divinity under the direction of the Rev. 
Samuel Williams, of Bradford, Mass., a clergyman highly distin- 

Vol. XXXI.—No. 2... 26 


202 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LE. D. 


guished for talents and attainments, afterwards Professor of Mathe- 
matics and Natural Philosophy in Harvard University. He was 
ordained over the First Church in Salem, on the 10th of Novem- 
ber, 1779. On the 8th of December, 1824, the writer of this no- 
tice was settled as his colleague. . He died on the 7th of June, 1836, 
having nearly completed his 85th year. His ministry lasted 57 
years and 7 months. ! 

The disease of which Dr. Prince died was stone in the kidney, 
producing frequent and violent attacks of strangury, for twelve years. 
It was, of course, distressing in the highest degree, accompanied 
by an impaired function, and ending in the entire destruction of the 
organs affected by it. It is very remarkable, however, that in all 
other respects, time and suffering seemed to have failed to make any 
impression upon his system. His appetite, organs of digestion, eye- 
sight, and general activity, either of sense, or muscle, or nerve, were 
not in the slightest degree impaired ; and this was still more obser- 
vable, inasmuch as from early life, and for more than fifty years, he 
had been afflicted with a severe cough, and a double hernia. His 
extraordinary enjoyment of general health, notwithstanding these 
local infirmities, can only be accounted for by the serenity and cheer- 
ful equableness of bis feelings and spirits, partly owing to a happy 
natural temperament, and partly to the benign influence of his scien- 
tific and philosophical pursuits. 

When Mr. Prince was preaching as a candidate, in Salem, in 
1779, his cough was so violent, that serious apprehensions were felt 
that he would soon sink inio a decline. At the meeting, called 
for the purpose of seeing whether the society of the First Church 
would give him a call to settle, the following curious incident oc- 
curred. One of the parish, before the vote was put, rose and re- 
marked, that he entirely concurred with all the rest of the society in 
admiring Mr. Prince very much as a man anda minister, but doubted 
about the expediency of settling him, as his complaints were so 
alarming that, in all probability, they would soon be called to bury 
him. Another member, who was a physician, in reply, admitted 
that Mr. Prince was in delicate health, but expressed the opinion 
that he might get over his complaints ; and, after having earnestly 
advocated his settlement, concluded his argument by saying that he 
should not be surprised if, after all, Mr. Prince should live to bury 
the whole of them. The extravagant expression turned out to be 
a true prediction. He did live to bury them all. These circum- 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 203 


.cances in reference to Mr. Prince’s state of health, constitutional 
infirmities, and the disease which finally terminated his life, have been 
particularly mentioned, as illustrative of the power of philosophical 
pursuits, and a perfectly regulated and equable state of the feelings 
and temper to prolong life, even in opposition to the most unfavor- 
able influences. 

The basis of Dr. Prince’s philosophical attainments was laid in 
the thirst for knowledge already alluded to. This trait was early 
developed, and continued to be his most marked characteristic until 
the very hand of death was upon him. It was exercised in almost 
every possible direction, and as his memory was wonderfully capa- 
cious and retentive, the result was that he accumulated and had at 
command as large an amount of knowledge, as can easily be found 
in the possession of any one mind. Without taking into the account 
what he derived from books, and few men have ever read more, his 
eyes and his ears were always open and his hands were always busy. 
No idle moment ever passed over him. He noticed every occur- 
rence, and explored every object within the reach of his curious ob- 
servation. When a mere boy.he was intent to learn all that was 
going on in the great world around him; and this appetite for know- 
ledge enabled him to lay up a body of reminiscences, drawn from 
his early youth and from every period of his life, which made him, 
in his old age, a truly instructive companion. He was an attentive 
and inquisitive spectator of the opening scenes of the revolutionary 
drama in Boston, from the massacre through all the intermediate 
events, including the destruction of the tea, to the battles of Lexing- 
ton and Bunker Hill. He was equally well stored with facts in ref- 
erence to men and. things during all the subsequent period of his 
life; and what he knew, he related, in a style of narrative, such as 
those who enjoyed his acquaintance, can scarcely expect ever to 
find equalled. 

In this connection it is necessary to remark, as it was indeed a 
most distinguishing trait in the character of Dr. Prince, and one 
worthy of imitation by all men, and especially by clergymen, that 
vigorous, unremitted, and universal as was his thirst for knowledge, 
it was invariably kept within the bounds of prudence, propriety, and 
good feeling. Probably no man ever lived more free from the 
charge of being a prier into other persons’ affairs, or a tattler of their 
failings. He did not appear to have a sense to discern the private 
frailties or follies of men. His lips were never known to circulate 


204 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


scandal or gossip. During his long ministry, I do not believe that 
he has ever been even suspected of widening a breach by tale-bear- 
ing, of raising a laugh at another’s expense, or of uttering a syllable 
to the disparagement of a single member of the community. All 
the notices he took, and all the circumstances he related, in which 
other men were concerned, were cnly such as could be made to 
point a general moral, and illustrate a principle of human nature 
without affecting any individual injuriously. WhatI have now said 
will commend itself to bis friends as a true and accurate feature of 
his character, and it strikingly illustrates bis judgment and p.udence, 
the integrity of his mind, the tenderness of his feelings, and his strong 
sense of j justice towards all men. 

His passion for knowledge, receiving a particularly strong lis from 
the manual occupation to which he served an apprenticeship, inclined 
him, with peculiar interest, to the pursuit and cultivation of the sev- 
eral branches of experimental natural philosophy. On the 10th of 
November, 1783, just four years from the day of his ordination, 
when 382 years of age, he communicated to the scientific world, his 
improved construction of the Arr Pump. His letter giving the first 
account of it, addressed to President Willard, of Harvard College, 
may be seen in the first volume of the Memoirs of the American 
Academy. ‘The present generation can form no conception of the 
interest awakened by this admirable invention, not only in this coun- 
try, but throughout Europe. His name was at once enrolled among 
the benefactors and ornaments of modern science, and on that roll 
it will remain inscribed until science itself shall be no more. The 
philosophical journals of the day emulated each other in praising the 
scientific research and profoundness of reasoning displayed in the 
construction. ‘The American philosopher was allowed to have sur- 
passed all former att€mpts in the same department. His name is 
recorded, by an eminent writer, in connection with that of the fa- 
mous Boyle, among ‘“ those who have improved the instruments of 
science and of whose labors we are now reaping the benefit.”* The 
machine is still called, by way of distinction, “the American Air 
Pump,” and its figure was selected to represent a constellation in 
the heavens, and imprinted upon celestial globes. 


* Lectures on Natural and Experimental Philosophy, by George Adams—Lon- 
don, 1799, vol. 1, p. 44-54. Rees’ Cyclopedia, Art. AirPump. Analytical Re- 
view, July, 1789. Nicholson’s Journal, vol. 1, p. 119. The best account of the 
American Air Pump isto be found in Dahse s Supplement to the Encyclopedia 
Brittannica, Art. Pneumatics. 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 205 


His reputation was thus established among the first philosophers 
and mechanicians of his age. He received the honorary degree 
of Doctor of Laws from the very respectable college at Providence, 
and was admitted to the several learned and philosophical societies 
of the country. 

It is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to do justice to Dr. 
Prince’s claims upon the gratitude of the scientific world. His mod- 
esty and indifference to fame were so real and sincere, that it never 
occurred to him to take pains to appropriate to himself the improve- 
ments and discoveries he had made. 

Fortunately for the cause of science, his whole philosophical and 
literary correspondence has been preserved. All his own letters, 
and many of them are very elaborate and minute, containing full 
discussions, and, frequently, drawings executed by the pen, were 
carefully copied out into manuscript volumes. ‘These manuscript 
volumes, which are eleven in number, are the monuments of his 
genius, and the only record of his contributions to the cause of sci- 
ence. It was his custom, when he had madean improvement in 
the construction and use of a philosophical instrument, instead of 
publishing it to the world, to communicate a full description of it, 
by private letter, to the principal instrument makers in London. 
During his whole life, down to March 19th, 1836, the date of his 
last letter to Samuel Jones of London, he has, in this manner, been 
promoting the interests of science, while his agency, to a ven great 
extent, has been unknown to the public. 

A long letter, occupying ten closely written pages, is found under 
the date of Nov. 3d, 1792, addressed to George Adams, of London, 
and containing a full description of an improved construction of the 
Lucernal microscope. On the 3d of July, 1795, he wrote another 
letter to Mr. Adams, describing still further improvements in the 
same instrument. Without making any public acknowledgment 
of his obligations to Dr. Prince, Mr. Adams proceeded to construct 
Lucernal microscopes upon the plan suggested by him. Shortly 
after the death of Mr. Adams, which occurred in the latter part of 
1795, an article appeared in the Gentleman’s Magazine, signed by 
John Hill, a distinguished cultivator of science, in which the impor- 
tance of these improvements was shown at large, and illustrated by 
a plate. ‘The writer stated that he had procured his instrument 
from Mr. Adams a short time before his death, and that Adams inti- 
mated to him at the time, that he had been indebted for some im- 


206 ~ Memotr of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


portant suggestions in its construction, to “a clergyman.” The 
purpose of Mr. Hill’s communication seemed to be, in part to make 
known the improvement, and in part to draw out the clergyman 
who invented it. Dr. Prince’s attention was directed to Mr. Hill’s 
publication by his London correspondent, but I do not find that he 
answered the enquiry, at the time, or took any steps to secure the 
credit, with the readers of the Gentleman’s Magazine, of the beauti- 
ful and truly mgenious construction which had attracted so much 
curiosity and admiration. He, probably, preferred to let the sub- 
ject drop, rather than keep it before the public to the a 
of the memory of his friend.* 

After the death of Mr. Adams, his successor in business, Mr. Wm. 
Jones, sought Dr. Prince’s correspondence in Janguage of which the 
following is a specimen, extracted from a letter, dated London, Feb. 
LS sulin: 

‘“* A correspondence with you, sir, will be as flattering to me as it 
is desirable. I have long heard of your knowledge and expertness 
in science, and shall be happy to receive any communications that 
have resulted from your study and experience.” 

In a letter, dated July 3d, 1797, Mr. Jones repeats his solicita- 
tions as follows: ‘‘ Your celebrity as a philosopher is not a little 
known in this country. Mr. Jefferson many years ago, mentioned 
your name to me, and showed me the description of your air pump. 
A correspondence with you respecting science and instruments, will 
be highly gratifying to me, and what small leisure an unremitting 
attention to business will permit, I shall be happy to snatch occa- 
sionally for your information.” 

The correspondence, thus commenced with this enlightened and 
philosophical mechanician, was continued with him, and after his 
death, with his brother, without intermission, to ‘fe close of Dr. 
Prince’s life, and became the foundation of a sincere and most inter- 
esting friendship. It is indeed delightful to witness the genial influ- 
ence of scientific pursuits upon the affections, binding together the 
hearts of those between whose persons an ocean had always rolled. 

The letters of Messrs. William and Samuel Jones are full of ex- 
pressions of admiration and gratitude towards Dr. Prince. In one 


* Gentleman’s Magazine, vol. 66, 2d part, 1796, pp. 897, 1080. When Mr. 
Dobson of Philadelphia, published the Supplement to the Encyclopedia Brittan- 
nica, Dr. Prince caused Mr. Hill’s description to be reprinted in it, under the arti- 
cle Orrics. 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. — 207 


of them, dated March 3, 1798, Mr. Jones says, “It is to you that 
the Air Pump and Lucernal owe their present state of perfection 
and improvement.”’ In ancther, dated September 29, 1798, he 
says, ‘In all respects I think you have made the Lucernal as com- 
plete and as simple as it can be made.” Under the date of March 
4, 1798, Mr. Jones acknowledges the adoption of Dr. Prince’s “ very 
useful and ingenious emendations”’ in the construction of the “astro- 
nomical lantern machinery.” 

Thus a constant intercommunication of friendly offices was kept 
up for nearly forty years. The correspondence is creditable to the 
Messrs. Jones in every point of view. On the part of Dr. Prince, 
it contains a body of instruction such as can no where else be found, 
and would be regarded as an invaluable directory, by all whose bu- 
siness or whose pleasure it is to make use of the instruments of sci- 
ence. 

When we consider the situation of Dr. Prince, conducting his 
investigations and experiments in solitude, far removed from the 
great centers of scientific research and observation, and having to 
communicate with other philosophers by the tedious and unsatisfac- 
tory means of epistolary correspondence beyond the ocean, it be- 
comes truly astonishing to reflect upon the success and amount of 
his labors. Until long after his great invention of the improved 
air-pump, he had depended almost wholly upon his own toil and 
ingenuity in the construction of scientific instruments, not having, 
at that time, established a correspondence with the London ma- 
chinists. He had, of course, to struggle against many inconven- 
iences, from which a vicinity to. the London workshops would have 
exempted him. There isa great amount of floating knowledge 
accumulated and mutually communicated where many persons are 
kept for a long time employed in any branch of business, and which, 
never being recorded in books, the self-taught and solitary operative 
will not be likely to acquire. 

The following passage, extracted from a letter written by Dr. 
Prince to President Fitch, of Williams College, Sept. 24, 1795, 
will illustrate the trials and difficulties to which he was subjected in 
the construction of philosophical instraments—it refers to an equa- 
torial. 

“On my return home, the ingenious young man, whom I have 
always employed to domy brass work, and who had begun the 
brass box for the needle, could not finish it immediately. His 


208 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


brother who worked with him, was very sick of a fever, and requir- 
ed all his attention. The brother died. In two days more he took 
the fever himself, and died in ten days, and left me destitute of 
workmen to finish the matters I had undertaken. I got the instru- 
ment from his shop as soon as I could in the unfinished state, and 
went to work myself to complete it ; and when I had done it to my 
own satisfaction, as | supposed, to my great disappointment and 
mortification, I found all the labor was lost. For, on putting the 
needle into the box, which is of a parallelogram form, about six 
tenths of an inch in width, I found the box, though made of brass, 
attracted the needle to its side and would not allow it to play freely. 
This was a circumstance entirely new and unexpected. IJ never 
had an idea of any kind of brass being magnetic, and could not ac- 
count for the phenomenon for some time. But on trying several 
other pieces I found that the box was not the only one that attracted 
the needle. ‘Several pieces did the same; others did not. This 
quality must be owing to the impurity of the brass. Some steel 
filings or small particles of iron must have accidentally mixed with 
it in casting. It would have been fortunate for me if 1 had made 
the discovery before it was worked ; but the thought never occurred 
tome. Too much of our knowledge (considering the shortness of 
life) comes to us by dear bought experience.” 

The foregoing extract may serve to give some idea of the great 
inconveniences to which Dr. Prince was put, asa philosophical me- 
chanician, from the want. of workmen, and from the necessity of 
accumulating for himself his own ‘‘ dear bought experience,” with- 
out obtaining any benefit from the experience of others. 

In looking through these manuscript volumes, we perceive, from 
the beginning to the end, the evidences of his wisdom, ingenuity, 
and skill. In one of his letters (Sept. 24, 1795,) he recommends a 
new construction of thermometers, in which zero should be at the 
freezing point of mercury, thereby avoiding the mconvenience of 
having both plus and minus in the scale. . 

In another letter (Dec. 4, 1795,) he describes some improvements 
he had introduced in the construction of an equatorial. 

Feb. 13, 1797, he gives an account of a magic lantern, contri- 
ved and constructed by him on a new and extensive scale. 

He thus introduces the description of another of his inventions, 
in a letter to William and Samuel Jones, of London, Oct. 20, 
1797—* I have lately constructed a very large microscope for my- 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 209 


self upon a simple plan, the effects of which are surprisingly mag- 
nificent and beautiful. It is also a noble megaloscope as well as 
microscope, the field of view being an inch and a half diameter, with 
considerable magnifying power. The body of the instrument is 
four feet and a half in lenyth, including the brass tubes at the end 
for the magnifiers. It is made in the form of an obelisk, and when 
it is not in use as a microscope it stands upright on its base; the 
tube in its top is unscrewed and a small urn is put in its place, so 
that it makes a handsome ornament in a room, and is more out of 
the way than if laid in a horizontal case.” 

In a letter, dated March 2d, 1801, he gives the Messrs. Jones a 
particular account, accompanied by radi and diayvrams, of addi- 
tional improvements, made by him in the magic lantern. 

In a letter to the same persons, Nov. 24, 1818, he describes a 
very important and beautiful improvement he bad just made on Dr. 
Brewster’s kaleidoscope. He constructed it in such a manner that 
it was brought to bear upon opake objects, and most splendid and 
magnificent were the combinations of dazzling colors thus brought 
to light—a world of wonders, the brilliancy and glory of which tran- 
scended all that the eye of man ever contemplated, or his imagina- 
tion conceived, was revealed to view, as existing in the darkest and 
roughest metals and rocks beneath our feet. 

The following extract is from a letter to the Messrs. Jones, Oct. 
28, 1823. ‘I have sent you, in the same box with the telescope, 
part of a hydrostatic instrament which I began to make with some 
others several years ago, and now my health and age will not allow 
me to finish it. It is a combination of several instruments. I have 
made three of them for different colleges. It is much approved, and 
more are wanted. I thought that by sending the parts done, with 
‘their description and uses, and some models of the parts to be added, 
it would give you a better idea of it than a mere description alone.” 

Dr. Prince continued his labors, as a philosophical mechanician, 
to a very advanced age. He thus alludes to them, ina letter to the 
Messrs. Jones, May 26, 1826: ‘I have been so much pleased 
with the large solar microscope [ made, of which I wrote you some 
account, that 1am making another with a large enlightening lens. 
My age and infirmities will not permit me to make another after I 
have finished this. One experiment I make with it is very pleasing 
and much admired. It is an imitation of an eruption of .a volcano, 
by burning Dutch sealing wax, which melts but does not run freely. 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. - OT 


210 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


The’ebullition and belching out of the matter, and the boiling in the 
crater which is formed, and the appearance of the black scoria are 
very striking.” 

He had another method of exhibiting a volcanic eruption, which 
was by a series of engravings, representing its. successive stages, and 
subjected to the magic lantern or camera obscura. 

Dr. Prince wontinniad to resist the approaches of age and its in- 
firmities, and to labor effectuallyin his workshop much longer than 
he anticipated when he wrote the letter from which the last extract 
was made. Five years afterwards he succeeded in piso ann 
an object at which he had long been aiming. 

In a letter to Messrs. Jones, July 10, 1800; he thus expresses 
himself: ‘“I have seen Mr. Dowse’s large telescope which you sent 
him. I think it an elegant and well executed instrument, and the 
mounting makes it very convenient in management. But with the 
greatest magnifying power there will be a tremor, when the hand has 
hold of the adjusting screw, which makes it very difficult to define 
the object ; and indeed all instruments so large, and supported in the 
center, as telescopes generally are mounted, must be affected in this 
way in some degree, notwithstanding the bracing bar. A small mo- 
tion in the atmosphere will also affect them. 1 tried this experiment 
with a gentleman for whom I imported one of your three and a half 
feet achromatic. Placing it on a firm table, in a room where the 
motion of the air could not affect it, with a high power, we placed a 
book at such a distance in the garden as that we could scarcely read 
the words by the best adjustment we could make ; then, taking the 
telescope from the stand, and laying it on the table, firmly support- 
ing it at both ends, we could read at the same distance very distinct- 
ly, and the book would bear moving farther off with distinct vision.” 

Dr. Prince brought his philosophical career to a close, by contri- 
ving a stand for a telescope by which the uncertainty always before 
introduced into the observations of astronomers, by the tremor and 
vibration here spoken of, is completely avoided. ‘The telescope rests 
in a solid bed with perfect firmness, and at the same time is mova- 
ble in every direction, and by the slightest touch of the finger. The 
following is the conclusion of the description given by him of this 
ingenious structure, as published by the American Academy of 
‘Arts and Sciences. “I made the brass work myself, and finished 
it on my birth day—eighty years old.” 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 211 


He was consulted by colleges, academies, and lyceums, in all parts 
of America, with reference to the collection of philosophical appa- 
ratus and libraries, and for nearly half a century was employed to 
select and import books and instruments for public institutions and for 
literary and scientific individuals. His letter-books contain corres- 
pondences held with the colleges at Cambridge, Providence, Bruns- 
wick, Dartmouth, Williamstown, Middlebury, Amherst, Burlington, 
Schenectady, Lexington in Kentucky, Greenville in Tennessee, and 
Charleston in South Carolina, and with academies or similar insti- 
tutions in Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Leicester, Monson, 
Westfield, Onondago, Byefield, and many other places. His agency 
in thus providing and diffusing the means of knowledge has been of 
incalculable service to the country. At some of our public institu- 
tions the most beautifully constructed philosophical instruments may 
be found, which are the work throughout of his own hands. 

Besides descriptions of improvements contrived by him in the in- 
struments of science, his letters contain equally minute accounts of 
the manner in which he used and worked them in the various ex- 
periments to which they were capable of being put; and some- 
times he indulges in trains of philosophical speculation, in which his 
mind gives itself up to the guidance of his fancy and the impulses of 
his benevolent affections. The following curious reverie of his im- 
agination illustrates the tone and spirit of his philosophy. It is 
from a letter written to a scientific and personal friend in Virginia, 
July 23, 1782, and is appended to a description of the great tele- 
scope of Herschel, then recently constructed. 

“It is said the king took great pleasure in walking through this 
enormous tube before it was mounted. Tlns may not enhance his 
greatness in the opinion of some any more than his visit to Sam. 
Whitehead’s brewery, which Peter Pindar so ludicrously celebrates. 
But there is a point of view in which I think it will appear to be a 
more laudable act than that of a king marching through the ranks 
of his disciplined army. This instrument was for the improvement 
of science, and that for the destruction of mankind. And is it not 
a more laudable ambition too? for while the general, with his military 
machine, is, by barbarous deeds, adding a few acres more to his 
master’s dominions, the philosopher is, without any expense to hu- 
manity, discovering new worlds. Oh, when will the time come 
when men will have no greater ambition than to improve the dignity 
and happiness of human nature, when the weapons of war shall perish 


212 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


or be changed for those of agriculture and science? How often have I 
wished I had power to turn all hearts to the rules of christianity, and 
correct every passion and sentiment which does not accord with it. 
Then I would next turn every ship of war into a telescope of equal 
‘magnitude and power, and send its commander on a cruise to make 
discoveries in the ocean of the universe. But, stop! we must not 
anticipate the order and method of Providence, who, in his time, 
will, I doubt not, produce this revolution in favor of human nature.” 

Dr. Prince was eminently learned in almost every department of 
Natural Philosophy. And what he knew, it-was his great delight to 
communicate. His visitors were introduced, through his admirable 
apparatus and specimens, to the wonders of Astronomy, Optics, 
Pneumatics, Botany, Mineralogy, Chemistry, and Entomology. 
Indeed there is nothing beautiful, brilliant, dazzling, or rich, m any 
department ‘of the outward world, which the ingenuity and skill 
of man has yet been able to explore, that he did not spread out 
before them. And all was illustrated, explained, and set forth, 
with a facility, a clearness, a sprightliness of manner, which never 
failed to charm the admiring listener. As an experimental lecturer 
and operator, in his own parlor and surrounded by his private friends, 
he was never surpassed by any public professor of science. The 
delightful amenity and simplicity of bis manners and spirit were in 
admirable harmony with the genius of science itself, and he never 
explored the glorious mysteries and glittering recesses of nature, 
without discerning, and causing all others to discern and adore, tra- 
ces of the power and wisdom of its author. Wherever he walked 
with science there he walked with God. Whenever he led another 
into the hidden halls of nature’s temple, be taught him to pay glad 
and admiring homage to the enshrined divinity. 

Dr. Prince brought his scientific skill and learning to contribute 
to the diffusion of useful instruction and refined entertainment in a 
great variety of ingenious methods. He was as much interested in 
man, as in nature. His knowledve of the history and usages of na- 
tions was very extensive. All the arts of civilized and social life 
had engaged his study. In architecture, painting, and the fine arts 
generally, his taste was highly cultivated. His collection of engra- 
vings and specimens was very extensive and curious. By means 
of optical instruments he was enabled to make a most satisfactory 
display of all these treasures of knowledge. In the course of a win- 
ter’s evening, his delighted visitor, sitting all the while quietly in his 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 213 


chair, was enabled to inspect the temples and the structures of 
ancient and modern Rome, to explore the ruins of the old world, to 
traverse the streets of London, Paris, and St. Petersburgh, to visit 
the villas of Italy, and noblemen’s seats in England, to watch the 
successive aspects of an eruption of A‘tna or Vesuvius, and literally 
to survey the whole earth and the glories of it. 

Thus did our venerable philosopher make science contribute to 
his own happiness and improvement, and to the happiness and im- 
provement of his friends and acquaintances. 

Dr. Prince was a very learned theologian. In all the facts, illus- 
trations and reasonings that constitute the science of natural theology, 
his philosophical attainments gave him preeminence. He was also 
thoroughly versed in revealed religion. His views of the interpreta- 
tion and general criticism of the scriptures were wise and compre- 
hensive. Few divines have ever been so conversant with the history 
of opinions in the church. His acquaintance with the literature of 
theology was extraordinarily minute and exact. With the character, 
bearing, and general contents of every work of note, in our language, 
or in the Latin tongue, he was familiar. Having for more than half 
a century corresponded with the principal London booksellers and 
been in the constant receipt of their catalogues, he had enjoyed great 
facilities for the accumulation of a theological library, and was pos- 
sessed of a most valuable, rare, and extensive collection of standard 
works.* 

Although he was numbered among the liberal clergymen of the 
present day, his preaching, in reference to the doctrines inculcated, 
has I am inclined to think been but little, if at all, affected by any 
of the controversies of the last half century. His theological senti- 
ments were always substantially the same, and would probably be 
found to harmonize very nearly with the views in which serious and 
candid christians of both parties, if they could get rid of the disturbing 
influence of names and phrases and sectarian lines of division, would 
discover themselves to be united. His preaching was rational, catho- 
lic, philosophical, and liberal, and although not calculated to be pop- 
ular at the present day, was duly estimated and admired by our pre- 


* Dr. Prince’s library, consisting of about 3,500 volumes, numerous engravings, 
specimens of art, curiosities of nature, and philosophical instruments of all sorts, 
either made or improved by his own hands, constituted it is probable, as rich, and 
various, and valuable a depository and treasury of literature and science, as have 
ever been possessed by a private gentleman in this country. 


214 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


decessors. His appearance in the pulpit was venerable and impressive 
in the highest degree, and the tones of his voice were truly noble 
and melodious. His figure was tall, and although very much bent 
by age, remarkably graceful and dignified. His dress was conformed 
to the fashion of the old school, and a full head of hair, perfectly 
whitened by time, was gathered in curls above his shoulders, so as 
to resemble the wigs worn by our ancestors, for which it was often 
mistaken. He preached his last sermon about six weeks before his 
death, in the afternoon of the 17th of April; and the image of his 
hoary locks and benevolent countenance will not soon grow dim on 
the memories of those who have seen him in the sacred desk. 

Dr. Prince’s published sermons bear strong marks of his excellent 
abilities and learning. His discourse on the death of his early friend 
and beloved associate, Dr. Barnard, is an admirable production, and 
in some passages exhibits an almost unrivalled tenderness of sensi- 
bility and beauty of expression. ‘The Lord has taken away my 
friend, my brother, my companion and fellow-laborer in his vineyard. 
But he has gone to his heavenly father; and can I complain? I 
may weep for myself, but I cannot for him. I have followed him 
through many of the walks of life, and must follow him through 
death. I ask your prayers that I may be prepared for it.” He has 
followed him through death. Their friends rejoice in the hope that 
they are again united to part no more. 

The sermon, from which the above extract is taken, was preach- 
ed in October, 1814. The following circumstances had made’ such 
-an impression on Dr. Prince’s mind, that he thought proper, in pub- 
dishing the discourse, to record them in a note to the clause, “I 
thave followed him through many of the walks of life.” The note is 
‘here subjoined. 

‘‘Tt is a singular concurrence in our walks of life, and one that 
‘has some effect upon the social feelings, that we were educated at 
‘the same university, and, after we graduated, kept the same schools 
in the same town ; studied divinity with the same clergyman; set- 
led in the ministry in the same town; the same person preached 
-our ordination sermons ; and we received honorary degrees from the 
same university.” 

It is a singular continuation of this series of concurrences, that, in 
‘selecting a text for the funeral discourse on Dr. Prince, the writer 
of this notice, without any knowledge of the fact at the time, took 
the very same passage, (Zechariahi.5.) from which the late Dr. 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 215 


Wadsworth, of Danvers, preached Dr. Barnard’s funeral sermon. 
It is still more singular, and as affecting as it is singular, that, owing 
to some error at the time, Dr. Prince’s remains were carried down 
into the wrong tomb, and laid by the side of Dr. Barnard’s. He did, 
literally, ‘‘ follow him,” not only ‘through death,” but through the 
grave itself! 

Great as was his taste for human science and philosophy, I speak 
with full conviction, drawn from a daily intimacy of many years, 
when I say that theology was the subject upon which he most loved — 
to meditate, theological works were most frequently in his hands, 
and, as he advanced towards the end of life, 1 doubt not that among 
his most delightful anticipations of the heavenly state, was the dis- 
closure there to be made, of all those truths, relating to eternity, the 
soul, and its author, about which his thoughts had been so habitually 
exercised. 

Dr. Prince was a christian ; for he had the spirit of Christ, which 
is a spirit of gentleness, tenderness and love. He loved God most 
devoutly ; and he so loved man, that he seemed not to know how to 
cherish any other affection towards him. I believe him to have 
been incapable of hatred or enmity ; and, as he was an enemy to 
no one, so J believe that he had not an enemy in the world. It ap- 
pears that his benignant disposition was an object of particular re- 
mark at a very early period of his life. Mr. Barnard, in giving the 
Right Hand of Fellowship at his ordination, congratulated the peo- 
ple, in the plain simplicity of the times, that they had obtained for 
their pastor ‘‘a person of Mr. Prince’s fine temper, and respectable 
abilities.” m 

The circumstances connected with the history of Dr. Prince’s 
improvements on the Lucernal microscope, which have been men- 
tioned in another part of this article, present a beautiful illustration 
of his truly christian spirit. The fact that Mr. George Adams neg- 
lected to make him known as the author of those improvements, 
was freely remarked upon by others. One of his philosophical cor- 
respondents, in a letter dated London, March 3d, 1798, thus alludes 
to the subject: “I am rather surprised that the late Mr. Adams ap- 
pears not to have made known the person to whom he was under so 
many and repeated obligations.” But while such remarks fell from 
others, they were never known to pass the lips of Dr. Prince. The 
feelings they express were not permitted to enter his breast. It was 
a beautiful and most noble trait in his character, and one which was 


216 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


impressed upon the notice of every observer, that he was incapable 
of jealousy and suspicion. So far from allowing himself to harbor 
unkind feelings towards Mr. Adams, or to indulge the idea that he 
had treated him with injustice, he rejoiced in his reputation, delight- 
ed to promote his prosperity, and when he heard of his death was: 
most deeply and tenderly affected. The following extract from a 
letter addressed to Mrs. Adams on the occasion, will sufficiently 
show how superior he was to every feeling of jealousy or resent- 
ment. It is, indeed, expressive of the most affectionate friendship, 
and of the sincerest sympathy. The extract is particularly interest- 
ing, as it presents those elevated and devout associations which were 
always connected, in his mind, with his favorite philosophical pur- 


suits. 
“Salem, January 25th, 1796. 


< Dear Madam, 

“It is with sincere sorrow and regret that I hear of the death 
of Mr. Adams, and I heartily sympathize with you on that mournful 
event, an event which must have deeply wounded you, who was so 
intimately and tenderly connected with him. I ranked myself 
among his friends, and was gratified by the tokens which he gave me 
of his friendship, which I endeavored to return, by promoting Jiis in- 
terest and reputation here among my friends in the line of his pro- 


fession. 
‘¢ But madam, though we lament his death, and the loss of his 


usefulness to society, yet it is a consolation that he has fallen in so 
good a cause: in promoting a knowledge of the works of nature 
among men, and leading their minds through these footsteps up to 
their Divine Author: in making the best and noblest use of Philo- 
sophy, that of expanding the idea of the Supreme Being in the 
minds of men, and impressing them with proper sentiments of piety 
towards him. This is the noblest pursuit of man here, and in this 
our friend hath spent himself: can we doubt that he is now reaping 
his reward in a superior state of knowledge and happiness, where 
the works of God can be more extensively contemplated ; where 
the hidden things of nature which here perplex the philosopher, 
are more opened to the intelligent mind ; and where God himself, 
the great, wise, and good author of the universe, gives a fuller dis- 
play of his perfections, to make those who love him supremely 
happy. ee 

“This, I doubt not, is the case with our departed friend, as I may 
judge from what I knew of his character, and the spirit of piety 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LE. D. QU 


which he has discovered in his lectures, the last of his works. ‘To 
have put a finishing hand to these, and sent them forth into the 
world, previous to his death, must have given him great satisfaction, 
as he has left behind him the teachings of a philosopher, to instruct 
men in the noblest pursuits, and enable them to derive from these 
the most rational pleasures, in the contemplation of God as seen 
in his works. Tf this laborious task has been one means of short- 
ening his days, we have to lament an effect. which has produced a 
loss to'us, though a gain to him. And it affords no small degree of 
satisfaction to me, that though dead, he yet speaketh in those wri- 
tings in the language of a religious philosopher, wko I must think, 
is the noblest of mankind. And in my imagination I conceive him 
participating in those sublime pleasures of heavenly devotion, to 
which he looked forward with such pious affection in some parts of his 
works. It is our part to follow him in death, as we cannot (if our 
selfishness would wish it) recall him to this imperfect life. Let us 
derive consolation from the hope of meeting him in a more perfect 
state—one better adapted to religious and philosophical improve- 
ment—the happiness of which will more than compensate us for all 
the troubles and disappointments of this life.” 

The christian piety of Dr. Prince was put to the severest test. 
Life had for him its full share of troubles, and the disease of which 
he finally died subjected him to the most excruciating sufferings, but 
no one ever heard a murmur or a complaint pass his lips. Neither 
the spirit of resignation nor the spirit of faith deserted him for a 
moment. ‘The gospel shed its sweetest and divinest radiance upon 
his bed of suffering and death, and we may humbly hope that 
his spirit has been received to its rest and welcomed to the rewards 
of benevolence, integrity and truth. : 

And now, before I close the delineation, let me present to view 
the philosopher, the divine, and the christian, as these titles all be- 
came combined in his character in the evening of his days. 

Old age, to those who reach it, is a sure test of character. To 
the man whose passions have been his masters, and whose mind has 
not been furnished to endure its trials, old age is but one protracted 
season of weariness, wretchedness, and woe. But to the true chris- 
tian, and the real philosopher, it is, notwithstanding its infirmities, a 
most precious period. It affords an opportunity of rest and repose ; 
the labors of life accomplished, the mind can calmly and quietly 
look back over the past, and if the past has been void of offence 

Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 28 


218 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


and usefully spent, it can look forward and upward with peace, hope 

and joy. ‘‘Oh happy old age! he is unworthy to reach thee, who 
fears thee; he is unworthy to have reached thee, who complains of 
thee.”’* 

The last years of Dr. Prince’s life realized the brightest picture 
of a happy old age. By the kindness of his people he was released 
from labor and care,—a long respite was given him, after the day of 
toil was over, and before the summons came to depart. In the 
pursuits of philosophy and religion; in the peaceful and cherished 
society of a kindred spirit ; in the company of his friends; in the 
exercise of amiable affections towards man, and of admiring adora- 
tion towards God, the glories of whose creation he was continually 
exploring; and in the enjoyment of enough of this world’s goods 
to meet his wants, he quietly descended the lengthened vale of 


years. He had his trials, and at times they were severe indeed, 


but his patience and faith were sufficient to sustain him while they 
lasted, and when they had passed away, the very memory of them 
seemed to be obliterated by the pleasant engagements which, in 
cheerful conversation, in instructive books, in philosophical experi- 
ments, and in the employments of his workshop, were ever at hand. 
His faculties of body and mind remained sound and bright to. the 
end, ‘his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated ;” and at 
last he came to his “‘ grave ina full age, like as a shock of corn 
comes in the season thereof.” In contemplating such an old age, 
we cannot but adopt the sentiment, although the conceit may be re- 
garded as somewhat extravagant, which a quaint writer expressed 
on a similar occasion—‘‘ What a lovely spectacle! the angels of 
heaven fly to the windows of heaven to look upon such a spectacle.” 

It is highly honorable to the society, of which Dr. Prince was the 
pastor, that they continued to him an unabated support, although he 
was for a great length of time disabled from the discharge of his 
ministry, and for twelve years it was necessary to supply his place 
by the maintenance of a colleague. On his death bed he gave the 
most affecting testimony that this generous fidelity was duly appre- 
ciated. He bequeathed a most choice and valuable library, of four 
hundred and fifty three volumes, being nearly the whole of his the- 
ological books, for the perpetual use of his successors in the ministry 
of the First Church in Salem. The last act of his life, was to cause 


* “OQ Felix Aitas! Indignus est ad te pervenire, quite metuit. Indignus per- 
venisse, qui te accusat!”—Petrarch. 


’ 


Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. a9 


the following sentence to be inscribed, over his signature, upon the. 
back of the catalogue of the books thus bequeathed. ete! iM 

“¢ Sensible of the kindness of my people through my long ministry 
and life, I eleeath these books as a lasting memorial of my : affec- 
tionate gratitude.” 

These words were dictated, and inscribed by the direction of Dr. 
Prince, on the morning of the 4th of June, in the presence of the 
writer of this notice. It was the last transaction in which he was 
ever engaged on earth, as he became speechless immediately after- 
wards. : ‘ 

During his whole sickness he exhibited that delightful serenity, 
which a purely philosophical spirit, resting on the faith, and filled 
with the hope of the gospel, will always enjoy and express. Jn his 
most excruciating pains, he never wavered for a moment in his re- 
signation and acquiescence to the will of providence. ‘The whole 
outward world, as well as the volume of scripture, had ever been 
radiant with divine wisdom and love, as he had spent his life in ex- 
ploring them, and in death he lost not for a moment the blissful sight 
of his heavenly father’s countenance. In his waking hours, his 
mind was warm with benevolent interest in his friends, and exalted 
into the highest exercises of pious faith and hope, and in his dreams 
the same trains of association seemed to occupy his spirit. During 
the last week of his life, he awoke from one of the few quiet slum- 
bers vouchsafed to his suffering frame, and told the watcher by his 
bedside, that he had had a most delightful dream. ‘I dreamed,” 
said he, “that | was in the New Jerusalem, and my church with 
méy? 

Such was the life and such the death of a christian philosopher, of 
whom America has reason to be proud, and to whom science owes 
a debt of gratitude, which she will ever be ready to acknowledge. 

When we consider the obscurity of his early life, and then reflect 
upon the amount of his contributions to the cause of science, and 
upon the pure and elevated reputation secured to bis name, through 
all coming ages, we cannot but recognize the stimulating encourage- 
ment held out to genius by his example; and in the serenity of tem- 
perament, the cheerful benignity of soul, the fortitude in trial, the 
resignation in suffering, the length of days, the happiness in old age, 
and the peace and joy on the bed of death, displayed by this vene- 
rable and devout philosopher, we see a specimen of the rewards be- 
stowed upon all who are devoted to their cause, and imbued with 
their spirit, by scizENCE and RELIGION. 


220 Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D. 


REMARKS BY THE EDITOR. 


It would be quite superfluous to attempt to add any thing to the 
preceding account of the late Dr. Prince, were it not that some cir- 
cumstances fell under my own observation, which evince that his 
character sustained its interesting peculiarities, to a very late period 
of his life. ) 

About one year before the death of Dr. Prince, (in May, 1835,) 
I was called to give a course of geological lectures in Salem, (Mass.) 
the town in which he resided. Dr. Prince was among my constant 
hearers, and also among the most attentive of a large and very intel- 
ligent audience. Although he had some acquaintance with mine- 
rals, geology was to him a new science. He had indeed been long 
accustomed to look beyond this planet, and to scrutinize other 
worlds ; but he had not been habituated to study the structure of 
this earth. To him, then in his eighty fifth year, this was an ex- 
periment, like that made at an earlier period of life, by the celebra- 
ted Dr. Johnson, who, it is said, after he was seventy years old, 
learned a new language, for the sake of trying the soundness of his 
mind and memory. 

Dr. Prince became deeply interested in the surprising develop- 
ments of geology, and with the ardor of early life examined the 
drawings and the specimens, and attended to the experimental illus- 
trations. Nor was he satisfied with the evidence of the lecture 
room. He took a party of gentlemen to see the beautiful jasper at 
Saugus, near Lynn, several miles from Salem, and being unwilling 
to relinquish any part of a more extensive geological excursion that 
was proposed, he passed over, by the beach that leads to Nahant, 
and with the writer of these remarks for an expounder of the sur- 
prising geological facts that abound in this ocean-barrier of rock, he 
followed the sea shore to Marblehead, and was particularly impressed 
by the magnificent dykes of trap that here invade the firm cliffs of 
sienite, and with the granite veins which rival those of Skye and Ar- 
ran, (the classical ground of British geologists,) im their wonderful 
intrusions, tortuous ramifications, and abrupt displacements ; while 
the broken veins are again recovered, at no great distance, and by 
their exact accordance in structure, color and form, evince that they 
were once connected, and were removed by convulsions from the po- 
sition where they were first congealed after their igneous injection. 

There was one enormous dyke in particular, upon the beach be- 
tween Lynn and Salem, which excited so much interest in Dr. 


~ Memoir of Rev. John Prince, LL. D.. 221 


Prince’s mind, that he left his gig and climbed the rock, to examine, 

in place, this perfect wall of black basalt, cutting in two a cliff of 
sienite, and preserving its distinctness, even where both it and the 

broken rock were deeply worn and channeled by the powerful bil-— 
lows of that stormy coast, near which nothing exists as a breakwater 

to breast the waves and check the force of the ocean, impelled by 

tempests from the east. 

From a circuit of twenty miles, the venerable philosopher return- 
ed, excited and gratified, while he manifested little more fatigue than 
the youngest of the party. 

In his house he still exhibited not only ‘i courtesies of hospital- 
ity, but the delightful resources of science: his library, his appara- 
tus, and his experiments were open and accessible to his friends, and 
especially to strangers interested in liberal knowledge. The writer 
was, at several interviews, favored with those beautiful experiments 
so well described by Mr. Upham—the glories of the solar microscope, 
the splendid artificial voleano, the endless variety and both delicate 
and gorgeous beauty of the images of the improved Kaleidoscope, 
besides a rich train of experimental exhibition on other subjects, in 
which hours slid rapidly and most agreeably away. 

In these kind and instructive recreations, Dr. Prince exhibited 
the activity and animation of early years—a perfect comprehension 
of his subject and a high degree of enjoyment in making others hap- 
py. It was surprising to observe the great amount of intellectual 
and physical materiel which he had accumulated within his domestic 
confines. In his study, although not small, you literally threaded 
your way through alleys and vistas of books, instruments and speci- 
mens, and not an inch of room was lost in the skillful disposition of 
this philosophical panoply. 

In commemorating this most venerable and most interesting sage, 
it may not be inappropriate to mention, that many years since, when 
employed among the philosophical artists of London in obtaining 
various and valuable instruments, I found that Dr. Prince’s name 
and his discoveries and improvements, were well known and highly 
appreciated by them, and an eminent artist in that great capital 
could present me nothing better in pneumatics than the air pump, 
and in optics than the lucernal and solar microscopes of Dr. Prince. 
The collection of instruments obtained on that occasion, was after 
their arrival, reviewed by Dr. Prince in Yale College, and having 
met his decided and warm approbation, this judgment when reported 


222 Lengthofa Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


to the London artist, was pronounced by him to be the highest 
encomium that could be bestowed.* Dr. Prince, from the love of 
science and an ardent zeal to promote its diffusion, used to keep on 
hand collections of some of the mest important philosophical instru- 
ments, for the supply of colleges and other higher seminaries, while 
the trifling commission which he charged on the original bills was 
hardly sufficient to save him from loss. Ata very short notice, he 
displayed for me a very complete pneumatic apparatus which would 
have been a treasure to any college. In this particular, as well as in 
the tout ensemble of his character, his place will hardly be filled 
again; and he himself enjoyed the ‘satisfaction of seeing that the 
exigencies of science in this country, could now be much better sup- 
plied than when he was its sole pioneer in the eastern, and almost 
in the United States. 

In all future periods of our advancement in the physical sciences, 
his name will be remembered with honor, clarum et venerabile nomen. 


Art. II.—On the Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridi- 
an— Oblateness and axes of the Larth—Comparative oblateness 
of the Planets—Reduction of Latitude—Radius of the Earth— 
and Length of a Degree of Parallels of Latitude ; with appro- 
priate Tables; by Tuo. Jevrnrson Cram, Principal Assistant 


to Prof. of Nat. and Exp. Philos. U. S. Mil. Acad., West Point. 


Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. » —- 


1. By direct admeasurement, and by other observations, it has 
been conclusively shown, that the curvatures of the terrestrial me- 
ridians diminish, as we recede from the equator in going towards the 
poles ; whence the inference, that the earth resembles in figure more 
nearly a spheroid than any other mathematical body. The spheroid 
is the solid which would be generated, by revolving an ellipse around 
its minor axis ; and it is to such a solid, that we shall assimilate the 
figure of the earth in what follows. 


* The same artist informed me, that he was in possession of philosophical instruments, con- 
structed by Dr. Prince’s own hands, which did him equal credit, as a workman and asa philoso- 
pher, and that they were among the articles upon which he set great value. They came to him, 
(R. Banks, 441 Strand,) from the collection of the late Mr, Adams. It is my impression that 
among them was a lucernal microscope, , 


Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 223 


2. Let the annexed ellipse represent the generatrix which being 
revolved round its minor-axis pp, would generate the earth: during — 
2! the revolution the extremities ee, 
//* of the major axis, generate the 
circumference of the terrestrial 
equator; and any point m, of the 
ellipse, generates the circumfer- 
ence of a parallel of latitude: 
Pp The axes ee, and pp, would rep- 
resent respectively, the equatorial 
and polar diameters of the earth. 
Let the former of these axes be 
denoted in length by 2a, and the 
latter by 26; and the abscissa CP, 
of the point m, by x; and the 
corresponding ordinate Pm, by y. The angle eNm, made by the 
normal Nz, with the plane of the equator, is called the latitude of 
the place m; and we shall represent this latitude by |. ‘The ob- 

; —6b 


é 


e . a e ° 
lateness of the earth is measured by the ratio , which we will 


put equal to «; and then we shall have >=(1—«)a, which being 
combined with the equation of the ellipse as found in treatises on 
conic sections, will give y?=(1—«)?(a2—.?), (1), for the equa- 
tion of our generatrix. 

3. From the properties of the ellipse, we know that the subnor- 


. b2 
mal is expressed by ~;; hence, by substituting the value of 6in 


terms of a and «, as above expressed, we have PN=(1—a)?2; 


and since tang. =py by replacing PN by its value just found, and 


) oe 

y by its value as given by (1) we shall have tang. )= (l—2)2a2" 

From the last expression we immediately deduce the equation, 
a? 

mT ptang.* 0 — a)? : 

4. Every terrestrial meridian being an ellipse equal in all respects 
to that which, by its revolution, generates the spheroid to which we 
have assimilated the figure of the earth, it follows that the law of 
the curvature of this ellipse, will be the same as that which governs 
the curvature of any meridian of the earth. Of all the circles that 


224 Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


can be drawn tangent at the same poimt of any curve, that which 
coincides with the curve for the greatest extent, is called the oscu- 
latory circle of the curve ; and the radius of this circle is called the 
radius of curvature of the curve. By the radius of curvature we 
may judge of the degree of curvature of the curve at its different 
points ; for the curvature at the point of contact being the same as 
that of the osculatory circle, and the curvature of a circle being 
greater as its radius is less, and vice versa, it follows, that the cur- 
vature of a curve is greater as its radius of curvature is less, and 
vice versa. In the ellipse the curvature is a maximum, and the 
radius of curvature a minimum, at the extremities of the major-axis : 
in going from these extremities towards the flattened parts of the 
curve, the curvature decreases, and the radius of curvature increases, 
until we arrive at the extremities of the minor axis, where the cur- 
vature becomes a minimum and the radius of curvature a maximum. 
So, in going on a meridian towards the poles, the radius of curvature, 
being least at the equator, increases from one latitude to another, 
until we arrive at the poles, where the curvature is the least, and 
the radius of curvature the greatest. 

5. For the purpose of expressing the forementioned circumstances 


attending the curvature of a terrestrial meridian in a formula, we 
3 


aah) 

G(s 

panne ane 
dx? 

vature of any curve, (See Diff. Cal.), and substitute in it the value 

2 
of (2 and of a) drawn from equation (1). . By the rules of 
2 2 ay 2 2 

differentiation, equation (1) gives (S ee) , an ole 
(1—a)ta® | bie 

—_—___———» which values, together with the equation (2) 

[(1 —«)?(a? —@?)]? 

and the trigonometrical relation between the tangent and sine, will 


a(1—a)? : 
—__——_—___— — (8), for the radius of cur- 
(1—sin.*}[1 —(1 —@)?])? 
vature of a terrestrial meridian at any point whose latitude 1, is 
known. 

6. By making in formula (3) }=0°, we shall obtain a(1 —«)? 
for the radius of curvature of the meridian where it crosses the 


take the general formula y= , for the radius of cur- 


° 


= 


give us y= 


Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 225 


; uy fe a : 
equator, and by making }=90° we shall obtain Tea for the ra- 


dius of curvature of the meridian at the poles: and as @ is less 
than unity, it follows, that the former radius of curvature is less, and 
that the latter is greater, than the semi-equatorial diameter ; hence, 
the curvature is greater at the equator and less at the poles, than at 
any other point on the ee ia el is in accordance with what 
is said in 4. 

7. Having found the radius of curvature (3) for any point of the 
meridian, we can construct the osculatory circle at the same point ; 
and as this circle will be sensibly confounded with the meridian itself 
for some extent, the length of a degree of the circle, will be sensi- 
bly equal to the length of the degree of the meridian, at the point 
of contact. It is upon this principle, that we shall obtain the length 
of a degree whose middle point is at any place m, in terms of the 
measure of the earth’s oblateness and equatorial diameter; thus— 

8. Denoting by L, the length of a degree of a terrestrial me- 
ridian, and by +, the ratio of a circumference to its diameter, we 
shall have the proportion L : 2ry::1° : 360°; whence, by sub- 
stituting the value of the radius of curvature (3) we derive L= 

fai xa(l— 
a TT » (4), for the formula be which the 
(1 —sin.? eGo “pi 
length of a degree, having its middle point at a place whose latitude 
~) is known, may be estimated: for examples, making -~~=0° and 


= 90° in the wea we shall obtain Teaae —a)* and = x 


hao aT Ste api for the lengths of the degrees, one at the 
equator, and the other at the pole ; and as « is less than unity, we 
perceive that the length of the former is greater than the length of 


i | 
the latter: moreover, 190 *” which expresses the length of a de- 


. cs 9 e 
gree of the equator, being greater than 180 *2(! —a)*, we infer, 


that the length of the degree of the meridian, where it crosses the 

equator, is less than the length of a degree of the equator itself—a 

fact which might have been ened, from the circumstance of 
Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 29 


226 Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


the meridian, where it cuts the equator, having a greater degree of 
curvature than the equator ; which is demonstrated by a comparison 
of the radii of curvature of the meridian and equator at the points 
where they intersect each other. 

9: a. He radical part of formula (4) into a series we 
1.3.5 ms 
12. 79.9(24- a?) sin.*.)-+ &e. 
Now if « be an exceedingly small fraction, its powers which are 
higher than the first, may be neglected, as being too small to affect 
materially the first two terms. of the series; and if we denote by 
L’ the length of the degree of the meridian of the equator (see 8), 
formula (4) may be written under the form, L’/=L/+8cesin.2.LU’, 
(4'). The first term of the second member of this formula, being 
the length of the degree of the meridian at the equator, the second 
term is the increment which the length of that degree receives to 
make up the value of Lin going from the equator towards the poles ; 
and hence the theorem as given by Laplace in his Mécanique Ce- 
leste ; and which we shall enunciate by translating his own words. 
“The increment of the degrees of the meridian in proceeding from 
the equator to the poles, is therefore proportional to the square of the 
sine of latitude.” 

10. It will now be proper to explain the methods by which the 
values of « and a, have been detefmined: Four distinct methods 
have been used for the purpose of solving the problem: First, by 
adverting to formula (4) it will be perceived that the second mem- 
ber contains, besides the sine of latitude, the quantities « and a; and 
therefore, if the lengths of two different degrees be determined by 
direct geodetical admeasurement, and the latitudes of their middle 
points be determined by observation, by placing each of the meas- 
ured Jengths, and the observed latitudes of the degrees, in formula 
(4), we can determine « and a, since we should have two equations 
with only two unknown quantities: We shall not here describe :the 
geodetical operations by which the degrees have been measured, nor 
the method of determining the latitudes of their middle points ; but 
will exhibit in a tabular form the results of such of these cp cations 
as are deemed to be the most correct. 


shall obtain 1 75 2\ eyepiece 


Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 227 


Table of measured lengths of portions of Terrestrial Meridians. 


Country. Latitude 1p of ane point of meas-|Mean length of a measured degree 
ais ured degree. in English fathoms. 
Peru, 1° 31’ 00.34” North. - 60467.7 No. lL. 
India, ye OG Calin ne G0492°3) “7 
France, 449 “SI O2165% -% £ 60755.7 “ 3. 
England, B2° 02% PTSS4 Hine GOSZAGT 561) Ae 
Sweden, 66° 20’ 09.91” « 60954.8 * 5, 


Substituting the lengths of the degrees which are given, and for 
convenience numbered, in the table, for Land the corresponding 
latitudes for L, in formula (4), and proceeding agreeably to the man- 
ner just before explained, we obtain ten values for each of the quan- 
tities 2 and a. The measured degrees which are numbered 1 and 


| 1 
2, give a= oR a =3958.594 miles: 1 and 3 give a=a77 a= 


1 
3962.184 m.: 1 and 4 give = 574? a=3961.954 m.: 1 and 5 give 


1 
=314 = 3962. 17 m.: 2 and 3 give — 6 C= 3962. 287 m.: 
1 


1 
2 and 4 give A= 379? a=3961.925 m.: 2 and 5 give a =31) 2= 


: 
» 2=3961.327 m.: 3 and 5 give 


3962.111m.: 8 and4 givea=355 


» a=3962.176 : 4 and 5 give a= a = 3961.977 m. 


1 1 
Wao 305° 
The discrepancies i in the agerenn values are doubtless owing to un- 
avoidable errors, arising from the local irregularities of those portions 
of the earth’s surface where the degrees were measured. But if we 


take the mean of all the values, we shall, in all probability, diminish 


the effect of these errors. 'The means are, 51g for the measure of 


the sblateness, and 3961.6667 English miles, for the equatorial ra- 
dius of the earth. ‘There is a method of combining the quantities 
in the table, to determine «, invented by Lagrange, which is called 
‘ The .séthod of the least squares,’ and which consists in making the 
sum of the squares of the errors a, minimum when compared to each 
of the unknown quantities of the problem. Doctor Bowditch has 
improved this method, and with the five measured degrees in the 


1 
table, has obtained 1319" There is also another method due to 


228 Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


Boscovich, which is exceedingly well adapted to the solution of the 
problem under consideration, and which i is founded upon the condi- 
tions: 1. That the sum of the errors committed in the measures of 
the whole arcs ought to be zero. 2. That the sum of all these er- 
rors taken positively, ought to be a minimum. Upon these condi- 
tions the measure of the oblateness of the earth is found by Doctor 


1 
Bowditch, using the same degrees as before, to be equal to 310° it 


should be remarked, however, that in both cases Dr. Bowditch used 
formula (4’) instead of formula (4.) 

11. The second process employed by geometricians for deen 
mining the measure of the earth’s oblateness, consists in observing 
the length of a pendulum oscillating in a given time at different lati- 
tudes, and then calculating the corresponding intensities of gravity. 
Since the length of such a pendulum is directly proportional to the 
intensity of gravity, it follows that the variations of the length of the 
pendulum obey the same law as the variation in the intensity of 
gravity ; and therefore if the earth were of a spheroidal form of a 
sensible degree of oblateness, the variations in the intensity of its 
gravity, arising from difference of distance from the different points 
of its surface to its centre, would produce sensible variations, propor- 
tionate to the degree of oblateness, in the length of a pendulum os- 
cillating in a given time. ‘The intensity of gravity, being calculated 
with great precision from the observed length of the pendulum, is 
found to increase in going from the equator towards the poles; and 
the excess of its intensity at any latitude above its intensity at the 
equator, is thus found, as it were by observation, to obey exactly the 
same law that results from calculation founded upon the hypotheses 
of a spheroidal form for the earth, and of the intensity of its gravity 
being inversely as the square of ‘the distance from its centre; and 
when allowance is made in the calculation for the effect of the cen- 
trifugal force arising from the earth’s rotation, the absolute amount 
of the calculated variations in the intensity of gravity, are found to 
be verified in a remarkable degree, by the amount of variations as 
deduced from the observed lengths of the pendulum. ‘The results 
of the researches founded upon the method now under consideration, 
for determining «, show that the inequalities of the surface of the 
terrestrial spheroid, have much less influence upon the variations of 
the length of the pendulum, than upon the variations of the degrees 
of the meridians; and therefore it may be inferred, that the value 


Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 229 


of a, resulting from this process, is less liable to inaccuracy than the 
value resulting from the measured degrees of the meridian. Dr. 
Bowditch has collected and recorded about fifty observed lengths of 
the seconds pendulum ; and, combining the best forty four of them 


: 1 
upon the principle of the least squares, has obtained « = 507 3 and 


combining the same number, according to the method of Boscovich, 
has found Aso)? USING a formula for the length of the pendulum, 
in which the second and higher powers of « are neglected. 

12. The third method for determining the measure of the earth’s 
oblateness, is less direct than either of those before mentioned, but is 
one of the most striking results, that the application of analysis to 
the great law of universal gravitation, has produced ; and is worthy 
of an important rank in the history of the progress and powers of the 
human mind. This method consists in recognizing among the nu- 
merous inequalities of the moon’s motion, those which depend upon 
the non-sphericity of the earth ; and in comparing their values, as 
given by observations, with those resulting from calculations founded 
upon the hypothesis of a spheroidal form for the earth, and that the 
protuberance at the equator would sensibly affect the moon’s mo- 
tion. Laplace, to whom the idea of the method now being consid- 
ered, is due, found, by using the observations of Burg, upon the ir- 
recularities of the moon’s motion, that the oblateness of the earth, 


resulting from these phenomena, was 305.05" Doubtless this meth- 


od of determining « is susceptible of greater accuracy than any other 
which is founded upon observation, since the other two methods in- 
volve observations peculiarly liable to be affected by local irregulari- 
ties and causes necessarily encountered on the earth’s surface ; whilst 
on the contrary, these same irregularities and local causes, owing to 
the distance of the moon, would not sensibly disturb the circumstan- 
ces of the moon’s'motion, which depend upon the oblateness of the 
earth. | 

13. Finally, the phenomena of nutation and precession of the 
equinoxes, furnish valuable ideas upon the figure of the earth. These 
phenomena do not, it is true, give the absolute value of the measure 
of its oblateness, but they make known two limits between which 


hor 4 ; t 1 1 
this measure is contained, and which are found to be o79 and 579° 


230 Length of a Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


14. After what we have said of the superiority of the method 
founded upon lunar observations, it might be expected that we should 


1 ; : 
adopt 305.05 for a; but we are not assured that a sufficient number 


of observations have yet been applied, to entitle this value to be re- 
ceived ; besides, we are deterred by the opinion of Dr. Bowditch, 
than whose opinion none commands greater deference from all who 
are acquainted with the splendid monument, which the American 
mathematician has recently erected to his own genius, in his transla- 
tion of the Mécanique Céleste ; a translation for which one ought to. 
be the more grateful, since, with the help of the translator’s numer- 
ous addenda, it is comparatively easy to understand the modus ope- 
randi of treating the great questions of physical science embodied in 
the original work of the immortal Laplace. From an elaborate ex- 
amination of the figure of the earth, Dr. Bowditch concludes that 

; 
301 
and that the corresponding value of the semi-equatorial diameter is 
3963 miles, and the semi-polar diameter 3950 miles very nearly. 
These values for « and a, being placed in formula (4) will give us 

68.70859375 miles 

{> Gin.) x 0.006633256 (5). From this we have calculated 
the following table, in which columns A contain the latitudes, and 
columns B the lengths of the corresponding degrees, having their 
middle points at the latitudes given in the table; the latitudes being 
expressed in degrees, and the values of L in English miles. | 


measures the oblateness more nearly than any other fraction, 


Table of the Length of the Degrees of the Terrestrial Meridian. 


B A B. Aj B A B A B A B 
miles. is miles. a miles. 5 miles. 2 miles. is miles. 
68.708594|15|68.754413130|/68.879873 | 45/69.051873} 60/69.224539}'75 | 69.351413 
68.708825 | 16|/68.760571)31/68.890333 | 46/69.063873) 61\/69.234905} 76 | 69.357302 
68.709437] 17|68 .767079| 32 68.900952 | 47|/59.075889 | 62|/69.245063177 | 69.362809 
68.710484] 18/68.773936} 33 68.911889 | 48/69.087905] 63|69.2549511 78 | 69.367936 
68.711682] 19/68.781143} 34,68.915936 | 49/69.098250) 64/69.263220179 | 69.372651 
68.713809| 20|68.788651 35/68.934127 50169.1119681 65|69.272619:80 | 68.377000 
68.716079 j 21/68.796492) 36)68.945492 |51/69.123619) 66/69.284145) 81 | 69.380936 | 
68.718762 | 22/68.8046671 37 68.956968 }52/59.135317] 67\69.291984182 | 69.384492 
68.721828 | 23/68.813127] 38)68.968556 | 53/69.146968} 68/69.300556; 83 | 69.387635 
68.7255 44 | 24/68.821841 39 68.980238 54|69.158492} 69/69.3087745 84 | 69.390371 
68.729254 | 25|68.830873) 40,68.992048 |55|69. 169885} '70'69.316492 85) 69.392683 
11168.733508]| 26/68.840030] 41/69.003921 156|69.181174] 71/69.324349 ¢ 86 | 69.394556 
12/68.738175} 27|68.849762} 42 '69.015841 157|59,192032] 72|/69.331629| 87 69.396048 
13/68.743206 | 28|68 .8590791 43 69.019492 158) 39.203206) 73/69.338587 88) 69.396889 
14/68.748651 | 29|6S.868762 4 44'69.039825 |59169.213984] 74/69.345177189 | 69.397746 
15|68.754413]30168.879873'45 69.051873 160159.224539] 75'69.351413!90 '69.397594 


cemtourskwne co? 


Reduction of Latitude. . an 


If the length of a degree be required, whose middle point falls 
between any two consecutive latitudes expressed in the table, it 
would be sufficiently accurate to proceed as follows: Suppose we 
wish the length of the degree whose middle point is at the latitude 
41° 24’ 10’—we perceive from the table, that the difference be- 
tween L answering to 42°, and L answering to 41° of latitude, is 
00.011920 miles; then we say, as 1 is to 00.011920, so is 0° 24’ 10” 


2ANOUXOTNO2N oe i 
to a fourth term Omer ye which being added to the tab- 


ular length of the degree whose middle point corresponds to the lat- 
itude 41°, will give the length of the degree sought. This method, 
of course is but an approximation ; but if the utmost accuracy be de- 
sired, we should place 41° 24’ 10” for J in formula (5), and de- 
duce from it the corresponding value for L. 


Reduction of Latitude. 


1. It is evident that the vertical and radius at every point on the 
earth’s surface will make an angle with each other, excepting at the 
equator and the poles. ‘This angle is called the reduction of lati- 
tude ; and for the purpose of determining its value, let Cz’ be the 
radius of the earth produced through any place m; and designate 
by 6 the required angle zmz’ or its equal CmN; and the angle 
PCm by C. From the triangle PNm, right- angled at P, we ihe 


Pm 


b? 
tang. +=pn= b2 ae since PN is equal to Fa We also have 
tang. c=7, whence, by combining this with the value of tang. 1, we 


b2 : 
obtain tang. C = 72 X tang. 1; but 6=)—C, therefore, we shall have 


tang. —tang.C (a? —6?) tang.) 
! l-+tang.)xXtang.C ~ a?+b%tang.2) 7 
which, by substituting in it a(1 —«) for 6, is reduced to tang. d= 


[i—(1—«@)?] tang. L 


1+(1—«)*tang.?) ? (6), which is the formula for estimating the 


t owe d= tang.()—C)= 


value of 6, at any given latitude J. 

2. In proceeding from the equator towards either pole, and vice 
versa, the angle 6 increases to a certain value depending upon the 
oblateness, and then begins to decrease ; hence, at that certain lati- 
tude 6 has a true maximum value; and as 6 is a maximum when its 


232 Rieduction of Latitude. 


tangent is a maximum in the present case, therefore, to find the lat- 

itude of the place where the reduction of latitude is the greatest, we 
have only to put the first differential coefficient of tang. 0 equal to 
zero, and the resulting value for tang. 1, will give the latitude 
sought. Thus, formula (6) being differentiated, and the first differ- 
ential coefficient being put equal to zero, we obtain 1—(1—a)? x 


1 a ; 
tang.”)=0, whence tang-}=7_ =>? therefore the place where 


the reduction of latitude is a maximum, has the tang. of its latitude 
equal to the ratio of the equatorial to the polar axis. It is worthy 
of remark too, that when 0 is a maximum, the angle eCm, which is 


b 
called the reduced latitude, has its tang. equal to >> as_ will readily 


appear by substituting the value of the tang. of the maximum value 
of 6, in the relation between tang. C and tang. 1, as foundin1. It 
follows therefore that the reduced latitude, when a maximum, has 
the value of its tang. expressed by the ratio of the polar to the equa- 
torial axis. 

8. It is evident that all which has been said relative to the angle 
made by the normal and radius at any point on the earth, will apply 
with equal force to either of the other oblate planets; therefore formu- 


la (6) may be applied to either of these planets by substituting the 
1 83 
proper value for « ; now, for Earth i= 30] 9 for, Miars, (a; == 1355 ; 


oS : 3 - 
for Jupiter “=T0,000° and for Saturn U—=3r. These values being 


successively placed in the maximum value of tang. 6, we derive the 
numbers in column 2. of the following table ; and these maxima 
values being substituted, together with the corresponding values 
of « in formula (6), will give the numbers recorded in column 38. 


Table of the maxima values of the Reduction of Latitude for the different planets. 


1. 3 
Names of Planets. Latitude where ois a maximum. 


Earth, - 0° 11’ 26.34204” 45° 05’ 16.80315” 
Mars, - | 3° 37’ 09.52994” | 46° .48/ 34.71429” 


2. 
Maximum value of §. 


Jupiter, - | 4° 19/ 36.50257” | 47° 09’ 47.99381” 
Satum, - | 5° 07/39.14768” | 47° 33/ 49.5333” 


The results expressed in this table give a very good idea of the 
comparative degrees of flatness of the oblate planets, for the more the 


Reduction of Latitude. ; 233 


planet is flattened, the greater will be the deviation between the 
normal and radius, at the place where the reduction of latitude is a | 
maximum. 


1 : 
4, The number 301° the measure of the earth’s oblateness, being 


put for « in formula (6), we shall obtain 

tang. .L i : 
150.750 +149.750 Xtang.?)’ from which we have con- 
structed the following table, in which columns A contain the lati- 
tudes differing by 1°, and columns B the corresponding values of the 
reduction of latitude for the earth. 


tang. 0 = 


Table of Reduction of Latitude—the oblateness being 34 7° 


A B PAN pA B A B A B A B 
olf i Ou |bdrameserdden OL iI Oo} f Lie o;}/ 1 ° 1 I 
1)0 23.878 | 16/6 02.7371 31|10 05.113 | 46/11 26.064 } 61/9 43.132 5 23.198 
2'0 47.725 4.17|\6 22.776 | 32/10 16.037 | 47/11 24.8891} 62)9 30.116 | 77| 5. 01.803 
31 11.514{18)6 42.375 | 33/10 26.199 | 48/11 22.944} 63/9 16.201 | 78 | 4 40.037 
41 55.210 {19/7 01.488 | 34/10 35.630 49\11 20.038 §64|9 02.004] 79 | 4 17.868 
5:1 58.804 § 20\7 20.090 | 35/10 44.274 1 50)11 16.367 £65\8 46.943} 80) 3 55.501 
62 22.249 | 21/7 38.161 | 56/10 52.138 | 51/11 11.868 } 66/8 31.236} 81) 3 32.785 
7/2 45.523 | 22\7 55.678 | 37/10 59.204 | 52/11 06.551 3 67/8 14.9011 82|3 09.806 
85 08.596 | 23/8 12.619 | 38\11 95.475 | 53\11 00.419 | 68|7 57.961 | 83) 2 46.595 
93 31.443 | 24/8 28.964 } 3911 10.939 $54)10 53.479 69'7 40.433 | 84| 2 23.178 
103 54.033 § 25/8 44.686 } 40/11 15.585 | 55/10 45.743 | 70\7 22.839 }85)|1 59.585 
114 16.341 } 26/8 59.788 } 41/11 19.408 | 56)10 37.216 § 71)7 03.703 | 86) 1 35.848 
' 1124 88.341 | 2719 14.228 | 42/11 22.405 | 57/10 27.910 | 7216 44.548 187) 1 11.987 
13.5 00.003 } 28/9 27.997 | 43)11 24.572 | 58/10 17.825 i'73|6 24.894 | 88| 0 48.041 
145 21.304 1429/9 41.078 | 44/11 25.905 | 59)10 07.006 }'7416 04.769 1 89| 0 24.045 
155 42.2164%30!9 53.500 1 45!11 26.403. 160! 9 55.434175!5 44.194 190! 0 00.000 


If the value of 6 be required for a latitude between any two con- 
secutive latitudes of the table, it will be sufficiently accurate for most 
purposes, to determine it by an interpolation as follows: Let it be 
required to determine by means of the table, the reduction of lati- 
tude ata place whose latitude is 41° 24’ 36”. We perceive from 
the table, that the difference between the values of 6, corresponding 
to latitudes 41° and 42°, is equal to 2.997”; we then say, as 1° 
is to 2.997’, so is 24’ 36” to a fourth term, which is equal to 
2.997 X24’ 367 2.997” X 1476” Bia 8, 

{0 =" _3600% = 1.229”, which, being added to 
the value of 0, corresponding to the latitude 41°, will cive the value 
of the required reduction of latitude ; if the value of 6 had been re- 
quired for a latitude greater than that at which 6 is a maximum, the 
term found by interpolation should have been subtracted. When 
the utmost degree of accuracy is required, then we must resort to the 
use of the formula from which the table is constructed, and deduce 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 30 


\ 


234 Radius o rf the Earth. 


at once the value of 6, corresponding to a latitude not expressed in 
column A of the table. 


Riadius of the Earth.’ 


1. Knowing the Reduction of Latitude, we can readily obtain the 
Radius of the Earth, corresponding to any given latitude J. Thus— 
let the radius Cm be designated by.p ; and we shall have, from the 
triangle PCm, y?=p2sin.2 PCm, and «? =p?cos.2PCm; but PCm= 
—6d, hence, y?=p?sin.2()—6), and #?=p%cos.?()—é)=p? X 
[1—sin.2(.—6)]; these values of y* and x? being placed in equa- 
tion (1) will give the relation 
p2sin.2(.) —d)=(1 —a)?(a? — p?[1 —sin.2() —6)]), whence we ob- 


2 
a 


1 
tain p= Peeters a: which, by subsriiuiiae 301 


a 
for. «, reduces to P=140.006678sin.2(D—0) =a) (i). 

2. Formula (7) can be easily reduced to numbers, for we shall 
have the value of 6, given by the table for the reduction of latitude, 
when J is assigned: Regarding a, the earth’s equatorial radius, 
unity, we have calculated from formula (7) the table below, in which 
columns A contain the given latitudes differing by 1°, and columns 
B, the corresponding values of the terrestrial radius. 


Values of the Earth’s radius—the equatorial radius being 1.000000. 


> 


= 
SeOnow 


0.999999]11)0.999886]21|0.999577}31|0.999124|41 0.99857 7}51 |0.998000)61)0.997464)7 1 
0.999996]12\0.999857}22|0.999537)32|0.999073)42'0.998519 52)0.997944|62\0.997415}72 
0.999992]13|0.999833}]23]0.999496)33|0.999020)43 0.998462]53 0.997888|63)0.997367473 
0.999983}14'0.999807}24)0.999454]34 0.998967}44 0.9984 04154 0.997832164|0.997320]74 
0.999975} 15\0.999780}25]0.9994] 1135)0.998913)45 |0.998346)55|8.997777}65}0.997275}75 
0.999964} 16 |0.999750]26|0.999366)36 0.998859146 '0.998288}56 0.997722)66 0.99723.1176 
0.999954117'|0.999718}27|0 9993 19]37|0.998803147 0.998230]57)\0.997669167|0.997189 a7 
0.999937118)0.999685}28}0. 999272138 0.998747148 0.998172)58)0.9976 16)68|0.997147}78)0.996825)88 (0.996679 
0.999919119|0.99965029]0.999224139|0.998691)49 0.9981 14159|0.99756416910.997 107479\0.996800{89 0.996678 
0.999900120|0.99961413010.999175!40:0.998634150'0.998057160!0.99751317010.997069180,0.99677 91900. 996677 


wwe Oo? 


BJA). B 


° 


B IAN B A B Af B- jA B A B a) Ls} A 


o 


0.997032}81 |0.996760 
0.996997482)0.996742) 
0.996964}83)0. 996728 
0.996932184|0.9967 14 
0.996902}85/0.996703) 
0.996874186/0 996694. 
0.996848}87\0.996687 


1.000000}10/0.999900 20]0.999614}30\0.999175 40.0.998624 50/0.998057160|0.997513 nasi 80|0.996779 


When it is required to find the length of the radius, by means of 
the table, for a place whose latitude falls between any two consecu- 
tive ones of the table, we proceed in a manner entirely similar to 
that explained for the reduction of latitude. 

3. Since a is-equal to 8963 English miles, we have only to mul- 
tiply this number by the decimal given by the table, and the product 
will be the number of miles in the terrestrial radius, at the place 
whose latitude is in column A, on the left of the decimal used. 


Length of a Degree of a Parallel of Latitude. 235 


Length of a Degree of a Parallel of Latztude. 


1. Knowing the reduction of latitude (formula (6)) and the ter- 
restrial radius (formula (7)) corresponding to any place, the length 
of a degree of the parallel of latitude at the same place, may be 
readily found as follows: The parallel being the circle generated by 
the point m, during the revolution of the generatrix, will have its 
radius equal tox: now we have already shown, that e=pcos.() —6); 
and if we designate by J, the length of the degree sought, we shall 


have 1=zaprc0s.(b —4) ; if in_ this ye place the value of p given 


by formula (7), we shall find 
= cos cos.() — Oy ee 

80 Xj gocsisn "(=o 

2. Having first found 6, by formula (6), and then substituting the 
value of 0 thus found, in formula (8) we shall at once reduce the 
corresponding value of 7; and it isin this manner that we have con- 
structed the following table, in which columns A exhibit the latitudes 
differing by 1°, and columns B the corresponding length of a degree 
of the parallel of latitude. | 


1=3963 miles Missa 


Lengths of Degrees of Parallels of Latitude. 


BWA Bogan B {AUB PATGs LpATOB pA) B pal oe eR pApoE 
Miles. |, | Miles. |, | Miles.| | Miles. }, | Miles. | ,| Miles. }., | Miles. |, | Miles. |. | Miles. 
69. 167412}10168.1234]20 65.0213) 30|59.9504140/53.0580150 44.5466}60|34.6700170/23.7261180|12.0776 

69.1669 {11/67.9189]21 64.6008]31|59.3402/41/52.2759]51/43.6160161/33.6184)71/22. 5859181 10.8554 
69,1256 |12]67.6656)22 64. 160)32|58.7137[42|51.4778)52|42. 67 15}62|32.5564]72/21.4385)82| 9.6578 
69.0733 }13/67.4060)23 63.7012133]58.0658/43 50. 6640153 41.7142463)31.4842]73)20,0842183) 8.4572. 
69.0100 ]14/67.1258)24 63.2237)34)57.4020/44/49.8347|54 40,7440]64|30.4026)74|19.1239]84) 7.2541 
68.9060 |15/66.8254125 62. 7242135|56, 7205}45 48, 9900|55 39.7615'65|29.3114175|17.9574185| 6.0484 
68.7910 |16|66.5043}26|62,2069]36|56.0218]46 |48. 1304)56 38. 7663466) 28.21 10]76|16. 7855186). 4.8409 
68.6554 117|66.1639127/61.5290137|55.3059147|47.2560]57|37.6726(67/27. 1022]77|15.6086187| 3.6320 
68.4987 ]18/65.8029128|61.1158)38}54.5732)48|46.3671|58/36.7410168|25.9848]78|14.4266188| 2.4219 
68.3214 ]19/65.4220129| 60.5424139|53.8239]49145.4639]59/35.6535969|24.8592179|13.2402189| 1.2111 
68.1234 [20/65.0213130!59.9504140]53.0580'50/44. 5466160 |34.6700470|23.7261180112.0776190) 0. 000000 


oF 


° 


SSONOOF WHE S 


= 


Should the parallel pass through a place whose latitude falls be- 
tween two consécutive ones given in the table, the length of the 
degree may be approximated to, with a sufficient degree of accuracy, 
by a method entirely similar to that explained in the subject of the 
length of a degree of the meridian; but if the utmost accuracy be 
required, then we must deduce the length of the degree from the 
formula. 


236 On Definitions. 


Art. IIl.—On Definitions; by Rev. D. Wixxr, of Quebec. 
No. IV. 


Definitions in Grammar.—There are two sorts of definitions in 
grammar; one peculiar to the science properly so called, and an- 
other practiced in all articulate languages, and which it is the chief 
object of grammar to reduce to precision. ‘I'he former comprehends 
the definitions of terms introduced by the grammarian, such as noun, 
verb, tense, number, and all the other grammatical terms and phrases 
which are brought into use, when men begin to indulge their specu- 
lations on the subject of language, and to lay down rules for its reg- 
ulation and for its improvement. The other sort of definitions, com- 
prehends those which are employed in all languages, and which are 
introduced by custom alone, varied and altered from time to time by 
the same cause. Of this kind are the distinctions of the singular 
and plural numbers, of present, past and future times, of the agent 
and subject of an action, with many other distinctions which the ne- 
cessities of human intercourse require, and which every different 
language has its own method of supplying. 

It is on these later distinctions, that I intend at present to make 
some observations. And first, | observe, that though not given out 
as such, they are in their nature definitions.* Whenever custom has 
introduced the practice of using one form of a word to denote the 
singular or a single object, and another to denote the plural or any 
indefinite number of objects, this practice amounts to a virtual and 
tacit definition. One word, ‘or one form of the word, is then ever 
after appropriated to signify one object, and another word, or an- 
other form of the same word, is appropriated to signify more objects 
than one. It is immaterial whether the alteration is made on the 
end of the words, as is more common, or on the begmning, or on the 
middle of it; or by prefixing one or annexing another. In what- 
ever of these modes the alteration is made, the purpose is the same, 
namely, to mark a useful distinction, and to shorten discourse by ex- 
pressing in one letter or syllable, or at least one word, what would 
otherwise require a considerable circumlocution. 

The same observation is true of all the other distinctions and chan- 
ges upon words, introduced in the progress of language. Changes 


* They may be termed the “ definitions of derivatives.” 


On Definitions. 237 


are employed in the case of verbs to denote the varieties of time in 
which the event may have taken place. Other changes are intro- 
duced to express the modes of the event or action, whether affirma- 
tive, or conditional, or dependent on a condition, or imperative, or 
interrogative, or whatever other peculiarity it may possess. _ So also, 
in many languages, changes are made to express the different persons 
of the verb. The agent of the verb is distinguished from the object 
of the action, and the distinction may be made either by the form of 
the word, or by its position.* : 

All these distinctions, and many others though introduced by cus- 
tom alone, and without any view to ulterior advaatages, are of the 
nature of definitions, and serve the purposes which definitions always 
serve, to abbreviate language, and to render it precise. 

The same distinctions are made, though in a different way, but 
for the same purpose, and by analogous means, in the language of 
signs, employed in teaching the deaf and dumb. In this interesting 
and most humane science, in which signs alone, addressed to the 
eye, are used instead of words, it is manifest, that no progress could 
be made without the utmost precision-and uniformity in the use of 
the signs employed. The intention is therefore, no doubt, fixed by 
such explanation as amounts to the nature of a definition, in what- 
ever way that explanation is conveyed; and such changes or modi- 
fications are imtroduced into the use of this sign, as are fitted to 
make it capable of conveying the same variations of the idea, as are 
conveyed in ordinary language by the grammatical distinctions, or 
the definitions that have been mentioned. 

Having ascertained that these distinctions are, in all languages, 
even in that of signs, of the nature of definitions, let us shortly con- 


* Changes in the form of words are adopted to express the varying extent of 
a quality, and are commonly named the degrees of comparison, whether in adjec- 
tives or adverbs. Some conjunctions are employed to express a continuation of 
similar objects, others opposition, some to express conditionality, others causation, 
and others deduction. Syllables are frequently placed at the beginning of words, 
to render aflirmatives negative, and the contrary. 

+ The grammar of any particular language, consists of neither more nor less 
than a collection and combined view of all the definitions of this. kind, which the 
practice of that language has introduced. ‘The definitions of the former kind, be- 
long rather to the science of universal grammar, as being such as are applicable to 
all languages. Those now under consideration, constitute the grammar of any 
particular language. Hence appears the absurdity of the prejudices, which some 
modern innovators have conceived against grammar rules; these being the philo- 
sophical principles of the language of which they treat. 


238 On Definitions. 


sider what uses they serve, and afterwards what are their imperfec- 

tions. 

First, what is their use? Why is it, that after having it settled | 
among a society of human beings what idea shall be conveyed by 

the word strong’, it is afterwards agreed that a particular modification 

of this idea shall be expressed by the word stronger, and another by 

the word strongest, that still further modifications of the same idea, 

shall be conveyed by the noun strength, and the verb strengthen, 

and the adverb strongly? Why are these changes made upon the 

word, and why are these new forms of the word limited to the ideas 

commonly conveyed by them? ‘The answer will readily occur. 
The objects attained by these changes of the word, are brevity and 

precision. Brevity introduced the custom ; precision is found to be 

promoted by it, and is a much greater Adena — that which 

actually was intended. 

Brevity was the object aimed at in these changes, or virtual defi- 
nitions. Thoughts rise in the mind, and succeed one another, in far 
more rapid succession, than any language can express them. Every 
method, therefore, which improves the quick and ready transmission 
of thought, is eagerly adopted, and almost invariably practiced. And 
more especially when the same idea occurs frequently in any dis- 
course, we naturally seek for shorter methods of expressing it, being 
tired and dissatisfied with every thing circumlocutory. Proofs of 
this may be readily found in the examples already produced. How 
the comparison so readily and clearly denoted by the word stronger, 
was expressed before this form of it, or one corresponding to it, was 
adopted, it is not easy to ascertain with certainty. Perhaps by a 
repetition of the word strong. More repetitions might have been 
used to express the idea now denoted by the word strongest. ‘To 
denote strength, some such phrase as “ being strong,’ must have 
been employed; and in place of ‘to strengthen,” ‘to make strong,” 
and instead of “strongly,” ‘in a strong manner.” It is manifest 
that the introduction of these shorter expressions must have been 
felt as a relief by every speaker. 

But the brevity which was so much sought for, and which gives 
so much satisfaction, in these abbreviated expressions, is far from be- 
ing the greatest advantage to which they gave rise. Before the 
abbreviation took place, there must have been much room for variety 
of expression, and consequently for uncertainty in the idea conveyed. 
By adopting one uniform mode of expressing the same idea, a great 


On Definitions. 239 


degree of precision is attained, and much ambiguity obviously avoid- 
ed. A nearer approach is made to that which forms the object of 
all language, an accurate transmission of thought. When the same 
form of expression is invariably used to denote the same idea, then 
the idea itself becomes uniformly connected with that expression, 
and is presented with readiness 'and perspicuity to the mind of the 
auditor. Doubt, hesitation and uncertainty, are excluded from 
his conception of the thing expressed. But every deviation from 
that uniform mode of expression, from whatever cause it arises, is 
followed by doubt and uncertainty, the effects which we wish, above 
others to avoid, and which, in fact, render our ae to convey 
information nugatory. 

Having thus ascertained the manner in which these definitions are 
formed, let the imperfections that have hitherto attended them, be 
next considered. While we admire the beneficence of the Deity in 
enabling man to make these distinctions, we cannot avoid being sur- 
prised at the egregious folly of man, on account of the capriciousness 
with which he has carried them into effect. 

To begin with one of the plaiest examples, the distinction be- 
tween the singular and plural numbers, is most clearly understood, 
and well defined; yet there is no language in the known world, an- 
cient or modern, in which it is expressed in one uniform manner. 
The modern languages are on the whole, more uniform than the 
ancient, yet even in them there are many exceptions. That “there 
is no rule without exceptions,” seems to be a maxim invented by 
grammarians, and principally applicable to theirs only; for it has 
nothing.to do with the exact sciences, and very little with the phys- 
ical ones. ‘The plural number is pretty generally formed in English 
and French by the addition of the letter s. The latter does not 
pronounce it, and there are numerous exceptions in both. ‘The an- 
cient languages are less uniform. It is a remarkable fact, though it 
hardly belongs to the present subject, that the oldest languages in 
Europe, appear to have formed their plurals in two ways, by the 
change of a vowel, or by the addition of an s. ‘The modern Italian 
appears to have adopted the former method, the French and Eng- 
lish, the latter. 

It is to be observed, that the irregularity here complained of, is 
not in the definition itself, which is abundantly clear and explicit ; 
but in the varying terms which are adopted for its expression. A 
language which would always express the plural number in the same 


240 On Definitions. 


way without any exceptions, would cut off many sources of ambi- 
guity. 

But the irrecularities found in the expression of number, sink into 
insignificance when compared with those which relate to the dis- 
tinction of gender. Iam not aware that there is any known lan- 
guage, except the English, in which that distinction is founded in 
nature, and the corresponding accuracy of expression preserved. In 
all others, it is a mere load to the memory, and consequently a hin- 
drance to readiness of expression, and an interminable obstruction 
to perspicuity. Many languages have only two genders, and conse- 
quently arrange all the names of inanimate objects, without any in- 
telligible rule of distinction, under the masculine or feminine gen- 
ders. Others have three genders, but still with the most capricious 
contempt of order distribute the names of inanimate objects among 
all the three. 

In the degrees of comparison, most languages fame been more 
uniform. Yet all of them have even in this respect, useless irregu- 
larities. 

The want of genders and numbers in English adjectives, is proba- 
bly a defect in that language. A uniform mode of forming them, 
corresponding to their substantives, would probably, have been an 
additional source of precision. 

It is scarcely necessary to bring forward more examples of this 
irregularity. I would only allude to, but not dwell on the great 
complexity of the declensions and conjugations in the ancient lan- 
guages. ‘That there should be five or six modes of producing the 
same alterations on different nouns, and as many on different verbs, 
is an extraordinary instance of the caprice of custom. 

All these irrecularities, and many others that might be mentioned, 
both in ancient and modern languages, are occasioned by the same 
cause. ‘They are consequences of languages being entirely formed 
by chance, and custom and caprice. ‘The writers on grammar come 
too late with their rules, to remedy the anomalies which desultory 
practice had long sanctioned. Nations have never been willing to 
allow their languages to be reformed according to any principle. 
They all act as if their language was sacred, the product of some 
celestial understanding, which no mortal had a right to change or 
improve. All that is permitted to grammarians, is to collect and 
methodize the practices which custom has introduced, however wild 
and incongruous they may have been. But mankind always follow 


Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 241 


some analogies, and these when collected, form the first rudiments 
of every grammar. 

To form a perfect language, or one as perfect as human nature 
admits, it would be necessary to express all the corresponding chan- 
ges of idea, by similar and corresponding changes in the primitive 
word. All exceptions must be lonped away. Every rule must be 
invariably applied as far as it is applicable. A uniform mode of de-_ 
clension and conjugation, must in all cases, be followed. All words, 
as far as possible, ought to be restricted to one meaning, and a 
uniform method of connecting sentences, according to their associa- 
ted ideas, ought as nearly as possible, to be pursued. 

A language, formed on these principles, would be learned with 
more ease, retained with more certainty, would prove a more prompt 
and more certain vehicle of thought, aud would promote the im- 
provement of the intellectual faculties themselves. 


Arr. 1V.—Remarks on the Geology of Western New. York; by 
Gro. E. Hayvzs.* 


Grotoersts seem to have regarded the western counties of New 
York as a secondary region. ‘The horizontal position of the strata, 
the salt springs and beds of gypsum, the evolution of carburetted 
hydrogen from the rocks in various places, and the entire absence of 
all trap rocks, are circumstances which would naturally direct the 
attention of geologists that way. With some, they have been con- 
sidered sufficient evidence to establish the secondary character of the 
whole region; while a late writer in this Journal has supposed all these 
horizontal strata equivalent to the formation containing the lias of Eu- 
rope. ‘To me it would seem that the correctness of these opinions 
may well be doubted. From the few examinations | have been able 


* Buffalo, Oct. 15, 1836. 
To Pror. Sintiman—Dear Sir,—Claiming nothing more than the character of 
a learner in the science of Geology, it is with no little hesitation I venture to send 
you the result of my observations, in the attempt to apply the principles of the 
science to the rock formations of this region. I do not know that these observa- 
tions contain any thing new to your readers, or of sufficient interest to deserve a 
place in your valuable Journal. Of that, sir, you are a competent judge. It does 
seem to me, however, that the subject is not well understood; at least, it is so en- 
cumbered with new names, as to be a source of much perplexity to a learner. 
Respectfully, your obedient servant, Geo. EK. Hares, 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 2. 31 


242 Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 


to make, as well as from the published descriptions of Prof. Eatom 
and others, I cannot resist the conclusion, that all these rocks are 
older than the secondary formation, and owe their origin to that train 
of causes, whatever they were, that produced the transition rocks. 
The metalliferous limestone of Eaton, which occurs at Trenton 
Falls, and extends to the east end of Lake Ontario, seems to be 
well characterized as the lower transition limestone. It contains 
several species of the trilobite family, and other characteristic fossils. 
It passes under graywacke on the south, which in its turn, is over- 
laid by a conglomerate rock, or millstone grit. ‘Then comes the 
saliferous rock, so important to the economy and commerce of this 
State, overlaying the millstone grit, and by its northern outcrop, 
forming the southern shore of Lake Ontario. If the views here en- 
tertained are correct, this saliferous rock must be considered equiva- 
lent to the old red sandstone of European writers ; separating as 
it does through its whole extent, the lower from the upper transition 
limestone. Wherever I have had an opportunity of examining its 
strata, they have an evident dip towards the south. In structure, it 
varies from a fine grained sandstone to-a soft shale, or slate; and in 
color, from red to a dull green. Although it forms the floor of the 
salt springs at Onondaga and several other places further west, I see 
no reason to conclude that this rock contains the mineral salt itself, 
or that it is the only source from which it is derived. But from the 
fact that brackish springs, or “‘ licks,” as they are called in the west- 
ern country, issue from some of the superincumbent strata, I should 
conclude that it acts as a vast reservoir—collecting the water which 
has become impregnated with the, salt in passing through some of 
the superior formations. In Ohio and Pennsylvania, the saliferous 
rocks underlay the bituminous coal formations. Their general dip 
there also is towards the south, or southwest, while at some places 
they are pierced, by boring at a depth below the present surface of 
the ocean. The‘thought has often struck me, (and I see nothing 


improbable in the supposition,) that the saliferous rocks in Ohio, 


Pennsylvania, and New York, belong to one vast, continuous for- 
mation, having its northerly termination and outcrop in the latter 
State, on the shore of Lake Ontario. 

Lying upon this sandstone, or separated from it by shale, contain- 
ing layers of argillaceous iron ore, is that vast calcareous formation, 
which presents so conspicuous a feature in the geology of this dis- 
trict. It extends through the western part of this State, having its 


Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 243 


northern outcrop and termination nearly parallel to that of the sand- 
stone beneath, forming the mountain ridge through which the canal 
is excavated at Lockport, the upper portion of the precipice at the 
falis of Niagara, and the bed of that river from those falls to Buffalo. 
How far it forms the bed of Lake Erie cannot be well ascertained. 
Lying on the saliferous sandstone conformably, it dips in the same 
direction. At Queenstown heights, the geodiferous portion of this 
rock attains an elevation of ninety feet higher than the level of 
table rock at the falls, six miles above, where it passes under the 
cherty, or cornitiferous strata. This latter portion forms the rapids 
above the falls, by the water passing over the basseting edges of its 
strata. At Black Rock it rises twenty or thirty feet above the sur- 
face of the river, but declining towards the south, it disappears below 
the surface of Lake Erie, cight miles south of Buffalo; at which 
place, it passes under shale or graywacke slate, and is not again seen 
rising above the water’s surface. ‘The eastern shore of Lake Erie 
is nearly or quite destitute of limestone till we get into the vicinity 
of Sandusky. ‘The specimens from that place present a far different 
appearance from any that occur in this region, and I have no doubt, 
belong to a more recent formation. One specimen in my possession 
is decidedly oolitic. By following the Niagara River from Lewiston 
to the Falls, at the water’s edge the stratification can be examined 
to great advantage, and on a larger scale than at any other place. 
The general dip to the south is there very perceptible. 

In looking over Bakewell’s description of the mountain limestone 
of Europe, I have been greatly struck with the similitude of this 
formation in all except the nearly horizontal position of its strata, 
and its want of the beds of interposed trap. Had igneous action 
been active in this vicinity at the time, or subsequent to its deposi- 
tion, upheaving the strata, and injecting the melted lava between 
their layers, the resemblance would have been complete. Cracks 
and seams would likewise have been formed, which, ere this, by 
galvanic, or some unknown agency, would doubtless have been con- 
verted into veins of the metallic ores, and other minerals usually 
accompanying the mountain limestone. ‘The same remarks apply 
with equal propriety to the red sandstone below; of which Judge 
Gibson says, that “a Pennsylvanian is struck with its resemblance 
in all but its flatness and want of greenstone trap, to the old red 
sandstone of the Connewaga hills.””. Now as volcanic action alone 
is sufficient to account for this difference in appearance, and as this 


244 Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 


action is probably in all cases a matter of accident, if may so speak 
of any of the great phenomena of nature, it follows that in deter- 
mining the relative. age of rocks, these appearances must be left 
entirely out of the account. 

Although the ordinary and more palpable effects of volcanic action 
are not discernible, it would seem, from the highly crystalline tex- 
ture of much of the limestone, that it had been subjected to a con- 
siderable degree of heat, many of the fossils having been nearly 
obliterated, and having assumed the same crystalline texture as 
the rock itself. In some places this limestone contains numerous 
seodes of crystals, consisting principally of calcareous spar, do- 
lomite, selenite, snowy gypsum, and celestine. Very small crys- 
tals of quartz also sometimes line these geodes, and show through 
the transparent selenite with a splendent lustre. Galena and blende 
also occur disseminated in the upper layers at the Falls; and green 
malachite has been found at Black Rock. It resembles the moun- 
tain limestone also, by containing in its upper strata numerous layers 
of chert, or hornstone. At Black Rock, and many other places, 
the siliceous part constitutes the greater portion of the rock, and 
forms a building stone of great hardness and durability. Where the 
calcareous portion has been disintegrated and removed by the action 
of the weather, it presents an exceedingly harsh and jagged appear- 
ance, and is most significantly called by the laborers *‘chawed stone.” 
The caverns at Schoharie Kill, and at Bethlehem, are said by Prof. 
Eaton to occur in this rock; at which places, the imbedded fossils, 
so far as I can learn, greatly resemble those found farther west. 

Thus far, I have not touched on the fossil characters of these sup- 
posed secondary rocks: and it is here the geologist will look with 
most confidence for those characters by which alone he can read the 
history of those changes which have taken place on the earth’s sur- 
face to prepare it for the reception of his own species ; the last great 
work of the days of creation. Did these rocks belong to the lower 
secondary we should expect to meet with some vestige of a former 
vegetation. Now what isthe fact? Nota fossil of vegetable origin, 
nor the impression of a single leaf is met with. ‘Those entombed in 
these rocks are entirely of marine origin, and fromthe entire absence 
of marks’ of vegetation, it would seem they inhabited deep waters. 
_ Madreporites, terebratulites, orthoceratites, milleporites, encrinites, 
and corallines, make up by far the greater part. Others-occur, some 
of which I have not been able to make out. The trilobite, which 


Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 245 


has been considered peculiarly characteristic of transition rocks, also 
occurs in the superincumbent shale. It has been found at the mouth 
of Eighteen Mile Creek, on the shore of Lake Erie. Specimens 
may also be seen at Mr. Barnett’s museum at the Falls, found in that 
vicinity. In speaking of the trilobite family, Dr. Thompson, in his 
recent work on Mineralogy and Geology, says that ‘no traces of 
them have been discovered in the lias, nor new red sandstone, nor 
even in the coal beds.” 

With the cornitiferous strata above described, terminates what I 
believe to be the upper transition limestone. ‘The superincumbent 
strata present a mixed character. ‘The fossils are mostly the same 
as those already mentioned ; showing that the same animals contin- 
ued to inhabit the same seas; while on the other hand, the thin 
beds, or rather insulated patches of bituminous coal, mostly, I should 
think, the product of single plants, begin to make their appearance ; 
showing likewise, that some portion of the earth’s surface near by, 
had emerged from the waters, and was in a fit condition to support 
the growth of vegetables. Ihave not even here met with the im- 
pression of leaves, &c. but farther research may yet bring them to 
light. | 
The lower portion of these strata, where seems to commence the 
change from the transition to the coal formation, are mostly com- 
posed of soft shale or slate, sometimes bituminous, and containing 
large quantities of iron pyrites. This shale alternates with strata of 
impure limestone from one inch to one foot in thickness, which also 
contain iron pyrites disseminated and forming a thick coating on their 
under surface. ‘The lower portion of this shale contains more or 
less carbonate of lime, varying from the least perceptible quantity 
to one half or more of its weight; constituting a marl of great value 
fgr agricultural purposes. It is principally in this marly state that 
the fossil shells occur. Many of the bivalves are exceedingly per- 
fect, retaining all the delicate markings on their exterior surface ; 
while others are twisted and contorted in a singular manner. Oth- 
ers again are in a collapsed state, one valve having been crushed 
in, as if done by great pressure. Beds of this marl have been 
opened in Geneseo and South Avon, where it was mistaken for gyp- 
sum, and used as such in the vicinity ; and it would seem, from the 
results, with equal advantage to the agriculturalist. One specimen 
from South Avon yielded thirty six, and another sixty per cent. of 
carbonate of lime. In neither could I detect any sulphate. 


246 Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. 


It is also from this slate or shale that carburetted hydrogen gas is 
evolved, at the numerous places denominated ‘burning springs.”’ 
But a single instance has come to my knowledge of this gas issuing 
from any of the inferior strata. At Gasport, six miles east of Léck- 
port, and of course below the limestone strata, gas is said to rise 
from the bed of the canal; from which circumstance the place 
doubtless takes its name. Ihave not examined the place in par- 
ticular reference to this subject; but from the descent of the canal 
at Lockport, and the relative thickness of the limestone formation 
at that place, I have no doubt it issues from the shale immediately 
beneath, which at the falls is partially bituminous. I am aware that 
Prof. Eaton has cited the burning springs in the vicinity of Canan- 
daigua as issuing from ‘‘ beneath the saliferous rock.” Now from a 
long residence in that village Lam quite sure that the saliferous rock 
no where comes in view near that place. ‘The village itself is un- 
derlaid by limestone, which, I have good reason to believe, passes 
under the superincumbent shale, about half a mile southwest of the 
principal street. The nearest place where the gas issues is in the 
town of Bristol, about eight miles in the same direction. 'The shale 
is there in sight, and constitutes nearly the whole range of hills which 
extend from there, southerly, to the high grounds in Allegany county. 
Thin seams of coal have been found at no-great distance from the 
spot where the gas issues. Large quantities of gas are also dis- 
charged ten miles south of Canandaigua, near Rushville. There it 
was conveyed by logs into one of the farm houses, and was used, 
not only for the purpose of procuring light, but for culinary purposes, 
and likewise to warm the apartments; no other fuel being used 
when [ visited the place during. severe winter weather. It was also 
used to boil down the sap of the sugar maple in the manufacture of 
sugar ; but some accidents occurring, it was discontinued. I haye 
traced the same formation from this place, likewise, to the high 
grounds in Steuben county, where one of the head branches of the 
Susquehanna takes its rise. At Fredonia, where gas is collected in 
sufficient quantity to light the whole village, it issues directly from 
bituminous shale; at which place the saliferous rock must be seve-_ 
ral hundred feet below the surface. The same gas at Niagara Falls 
on the Canandaigua shore, comes from this shale, or from the upper 
layers of the cherty limestone; the seams of which are there filled 
with a black, bituminous matter, which can be removed in scales 
from the thickness of a knife blade to one fourth of an inch. 


Remarks on the Geology of Western New York. « 247 


To me these facts seem conclusive evidence that the gas originates 
above the saliferous sandstone. Otherwise, it should find its exit 
through the sandstone itself, near the shore of Lake Ontario, where 
the least possible resistance would be opposed to its escape. Is it 
not far more philosophical to conclude, that this gas is formed in 
these strata, where we know the elements requisite for its composi- 
tion exist, than to suppose it comes from coal beds deep seated in 
the bowels of the earth, the bare existence of which is altogether 
hypothetical ? 

In passing south, towards tie coal beds in Pennsylvania, the higher 
strata are brought into view. ‘i'hey gradually become more arena- 
ceous, and the limestone entirely disappears. In Steuben and the 
other counties in that range, to Lake Eric, the principal surface rock 
is a close, fine grained sandstone, or graywacke, frequently contain- 
ing encrinites, and some other marine fossils. I have not, myself, 
had the pleasure of examining the bituminous coal beds in Pennsyl- 
vania, but we are informed by Dr. Hildreth, in his admirable treatise 
on the coal deposits of the valley of the Ohio, that at their most 
northerly limit, they crop out on the northerly slope of the high 
grounds in which some of the head branches of the Allegany, the 
Susquehanna, and the Genesee rivers take their rise, at which place 
the coal strata dip towards the south, or in the direction of the 
streams that fall into the Ohio River. It would seem, therefore, 
that these coal beds overlay, and rest conformably upon this shale and 
sandstone, which, as I before remarked, seems to form an interme- 
diate link between the transition rocks, and those which properly 
belong to the coal formation. 

If, as is taught by Bakewell, all rocks which underlay the regular 
eoal formation, are older than the secondary, the transition character 
of this region does not admit of doubt; unless, indeed, it should be 
contended, that the immense deposits of coal in the Ohio valley do 
not belong to the true coal formation. To doubt this, after reading 
the luminous account of Dr. Hildreth, before adverted to, would be 
to doubt the fundamental principles of the science itself. 


248 Zinc, as a Covering for Buildings. 


Arr. V.—On Zinc,.as a Covering for Buildings ; ina letter from 
Prof. A. Caswetu to Messrs. Crocker, Brothers & Co. 


You some time ago requested me to examine an article on Zinc, 
as a roofing material, published by Dr,-Gale of New York, ina late 
number of the Mechanics’ Magazine. I regret that it has not been 
in my power to give your request earlier attention. 

The remarks of Dr. G., which were copied by several papers at 
the time, were fitted, in your opinion, to prejudice the public mind 
unjustly upon a subject of great importance. He discourages the 
use of zinc as a roofing material, upon several distinct accounts, the 
principal of which are the following. 

1. The difficulty of making the roof tight. 

2. The deterioration of the water which falls from it. 

3. The comparatively small resistance which it offers to the pro- 
gress of fire. 

1.. As to the first of these objections, the brittleness of the metal 
and its great expansion from heat are adduced, to show that a roof 
cannot be made sufficiently tight. Zinc in the unwrought state is 
well known to be very brittle, and there may be in the market rolled 
or sheet zinc of a bad quality. But no one need be deceived on this 
point, since nothing is easier than to test its flexibility. Sheet zinc 
which will bear to be doubled and hammered down without any ap- 
pearance of fracture in the bend, may be used as a covering for 
buildings, without the least fear of leakage. Such is the fact with 
regard to sheet zinc which I have examined from your manufactory ; 
and such, I am assured, is the fact with regard to foreign zinc from 
the best manufactories. But any detailed examination of the brit- 
tleness and expansion of zinc, so far as this question is concerned, is 
entirely obviated by the well ascertained fact, that there is no prac- 
tical difficulty in making a zinc roof perfectly tight. ‘The numer- 
ous certificates which you have submitted to my examination, from 
most respectable gentlemen, who have made the experiment, place 
the subject beyond all reasonable doubt. A zinc roof may as easily 
be made tight as any other whatever. 

2. The second objection respects the deterioration of the water 
which falls from the roof. This consideration is particularly impor- 
tant to all those who are in the habit of using cistern water for culi- 
nary and other domestic purposes. 


Zinc, as a Covering for Buildings. 249 


It is alledged that a potsonous suboxide of zinc is dissolved in the 
water, See renders it unfit: for cooking, and impairs its properties 
for washing. On this point I have consulted the ‘ablest modern 
writers on chemistry, Brande, Turner, Thomson, Berzelius, and 
others. ‘The oxides of zinc seem not to have been much studied. 
The principal one known, and perhaps the only one certainly known, 
is the white oxide, (sometimes called the flowers of zinc,) which is 
quite znsoluble in water, and hence could not vitiate its properties. 
Berzelius thinks there are two. aNETS the suboxide and the super- 
oxide. 1 

- The suboxide is the gray coating formed on the surface of zinc 
by exposure to the weather, and this is.the substance which, it is 
said, is dissolved and mixed with the water, which falls from a zine 
roof, thereby impregnating it with deleterious properties. This opin- 
ion, so far as I can learn, is unsupported by any writer on chemistry. 
Turner says, ‘zinc undergoes little change by the action of air and 
moisture.” Aikin’s Chemical Dictionary, a work of merit and au- 
thority, says, “the action of the air upon zinc, at the common tem- 
perature, is very slight; it acquires a very thin superficial coating of 
gray oxide, which adheres to the metal and prevents any further 
change.” ‘The statement of Thomson is, that zinc, when exposed 
to the air, soon loses its lustre, but ‘‘scarcely undergoes any other 
change.” The account given by Berzelius, the ablest chemist of 
the age, is very explicit and much to the point. He says, “this 
oxide is formed on the surface of zinc which remains a long time 
exposed to the contact of the air. It has a dark gray color when 
moistened, but by drying becomes of a light gray. Ordinarily it 
forms a thin crust on the surface, which neither zncreases nor expe- 
riences any change in the air; but acquires great hardness, and re- 
sists, better than the metal itself, the mechanical and chemical action 
of other bodies. A piece of zinc sufficiently suboxidized at the sur- 
face, dissolves with extreme slowness in the acids, and only at the 
boiling temperature.” 

Such are the opinions of chemists, and particularly of Berzelius, 
whose unrivalled skill and accuracy in chemical analysis, have been 
the admiration of all cotemporary chemists. 

The opinion of Dr. G. is considerably at variance with those now 
adduced. 1 think he has not stated very fully, and certainly not very 
satifactorily, the reasons on which it is founded. He mentions, how- 
ever, as a proof that this suboxide is dissolved in water from zinc 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 32 


250 Zinc, as a Covering for Buildings. 


roofs, that if it is suffered to stand for some time exposed to the air, 
the suboxide gradually takes oxygen from the atmosphere, and is 
thus converted into the insoluble white oxide before mentioned, and 
is then precipitated in the form of a white powder. To test its pu- 
rity by this method, I have kept water from a zinc roof exposed in 
clean glass vessels for several days, without any, the slightest ap- 
pearance of a precipitate, or even a pellicle upon the surface. And 
what is still better as a test, | have kept it for several days in closed 
bottles with oxygen gas, and subjected it to frequent agitation, with- 
out the least appearance of a precipitate, or any diminution of trans- 
parency. I must think, therefore, that if such water contains the 
suboxide of zinc, its presence is not to be detected in this way. 

That the quantity of zine dissolved in water must be exceedingly 
small, is obvious from the following consideration. A sheet not more 
than the fortieth of an inch in thickness, would probably last at least 
half a century, on the roof of a building. Indeed, for any thing we 
know as to the rate of its oxidation, it might last for centuries. The 
concurrent opinion of chemists, and this confirmed by observation 
and experiment, so far as these have extended, is, that after the gray 
oxide is once formed, any further change takes place scarcely at all, 
or with extreme slowness. But on the supposition that it would last 
only fifty years, the whole quantity of rain which falls in the course 
of a year, or about three feet on the level, would dissolve the two 
thousandth part of an inch in thickness of zinc. This, to produce 
any appreciable effect, must be one of the most virulent of poisons, 
equal at least to prussic acid. But so far from being an active poi- 
son, it remains to be shewn that it is poisonous at all, even if a mi- 
nute portion of it did mingle with the water. The white oxide of 
zinc is not poisonous, and the inference seems to be gratuitous that 
this is so. 

It is due no less to the public than yourselves, that the truth upon 
this subject should be known and promulgated. Iam quite satisfied, 
for one, that we are not in the least danger of being poisoned by the 
use of water from zinc roofs. The portions of this water which I 
have examined, could not be distinguished from pure river water by 
any test that I have been able to apply toit. I feel myself war- 
ranted, therefore, in the conclusion, that at has eufperes no deterior- 
ation whatever from the zune. 

3. A third objection is that zinc affords sian protection 
against fire. | 


Zinc, as a Covering for Buildings. 25] 


This objection is based upon the fact that zinc melts at a low tem- 
perature ; and in case of fusion, leaves the wood work of the build- 
ing unprotected. This objection is rather specious than real. Zine 
melts at the temperature of about 700° Fahr. or a little below red 
heat. Whenever, therefore, the heat from adjacent buildings is any 
thing less than that of redness, zine would afford as complete pro- 
tection as copper or iron... When the heat has reached the melting 
point of zinc, which it seldom would do except in the most compact 
parts of cities, very little confidence could be placed in the protec- 
tion of iron or copper. The dry wood work of the roof, under a 
covering of red hot iron, with air enough for combustion circulating 
through openings and crevices, would soon be in flames; and when 
once in flames it would be extremely difficult to extinguish it by the 
application of water. It would be applied with great disadvantage 
to the under side of the roof, and almost to no purpose at all upon 
the top. If therefore the heat, in any case, should become so in- 
tense as to melt zinc, the probability of protection from iron or cop- 
per will be but small. : * 

Complete protection against fire is perhaps unattainable ; pal leat 
we can never be sure that we have attained it. In the progress of 
the arts, great improvements no doubt will be made in the mode of 
defence against the attacks of this destroyer. Iam not aware that the 
following construction fora roof has ever been tried. For cheapness, 
tightness, durability and resistance to fire, it seems to be well deserv- 
ing the attention of builders. Let the rough boards of the roof, 
(and the rougher the better,) be covered with a thick coating of 
common lime mortar,—then lay down the ribs, if I may so call 
them, for the zine plates,—then cover the whole with zinc, according 
to the most approved method of applying it.. Such a roof would be 
in no danger of leakage, unless the water accumulated upon it so as 
to stand above the ribs, in which case no roof would be tight unless 
it were calked or soldered throughout. This covering, if I am 
rightly informed, would be nearly as cheap as slate—quite as cheap 
as tin, cheaper than iron, and more than three times cheaper than 
copper; and would at the same time resist fire much better than 
either of them. A heat that would melt down the copper and iron, 
would, of course, melt the zinc, but would leave the mortar unin- 
jured. The peculiar advantage of the mortar is, that it is infusible 
except at a very high temperature, while the closeness with which 
it adheres to the wood work is such as to exclude the air and thus 


252 Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 


prevent combustion. Ifthe mortar should be kept at a red heat for 
some length of time, the wood beneath it would be charred, but 
could hardly be burnt. In case of fusion the zinc might be repla- 
ced without injury to the mortar. I know of no construction for a 
roof that would be more completely fire proof than this. 

Such are my views on the subject to which you called my atten- 
tion. If they shall serve, in any measure, to remove prejudice, and 
allay unfounded apprehensions on a subject of great and growing 


importance to the public, it will afford me much pleasure. 
Brown University, October 1, 1836. 


Arr. VI.—An account of a Hurricane, which visited Shelbyville, 
Tennessee, June 1st, 1830; communicated to the Connecticut 


Academy, by Dr. J. H. Karn. 


Few occurrences give us such awful conceptions of the power of 
the unrestraimed elements, as the agitations of our atmosphere. 
Accounts of storms at sea are common, and to those who make the 
great waters their home, they are every day occurrences. But, 
happily for the human family, such hurricanes as that which visited 
Shelbyville in 1830, are rare. The ocean is easily agitated and 
thrown into violent commotion ; but it requires a much more power- 
ful wind to disturb the repose of those solid bodies which the earth’s 
gravity has bound to her bosom. ‘The effects of a storm at sea are 
much less dreadful and terrific than the devastations of a land hurri- 
cane. A fine ship may safely weather the most violent gale at sea; 
but probably no building or work of man could encounter, without 
instant destruction, the fury of the hurricane when it meets with the 
unyielding resistance of the solid land. Not only are massy build- 
ings torn to pieces and scattered about in astonishing confusion ; but 
the largest trees are twisted off at the trunk and hurled aloft lke 
pieces of paper in an ordinary breeze. 

Some countries appear to be more subject to tornadoes than oth- 
ers. This is a well known feature of the climate of the West India 
Islands. Numerous vestiges of burricanes are seen in Tennessee. 
In some places you may trace for thirty miles the track of a tornado, 
which has prostrated the forest in its course, and piled up its ruins in 
large masses ; sometimes they appear quite recent, and nature has 
not repaired the waste; the splintered stump is still standing, the 


Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 253 


bark still covers the prostrate trunk, the branches and tops of trees 
are still intertwined, and perhaps even the brown and decaying ~ 
verdure of the leaves presents the appearance of a premature au- 
tumn ; the roads are stopped up and impassable; fences and farm 
houses have disappeared; the corn, wheat and cotton lie flat upon 
the ground, as if a roller had passed over them ; in some places large 
piles of drift are seen heaped against a hill or rock, and the mud 
has‘settled upon and buried the vegetable productions of the earth. 
At other times you see merely the vestiges of an old hurricane. A 
new growth has sprung up in the woods, and you may remark the 
uniform size of the young trees, all dating their age from the same 
epoch. The bark has decayed away, and the large trunks of the 
fallen trees are covered with moss; their limbs and tops have rotted 
and disappeared, and the roots are still distinguished by the mass of 
earth which was torn up with them, and is now settling down, and 
still by the uniformity of their position mark the exact course of the 
hurricane, the root always being towards the point of the compass 
from which the wind blew. In other places we may find the vesti- 
ges of still more ancient date. ‘The process of decay has been 
completed: even the truhks of the fallen forest have disappeared, a 
tall, rich, and luxuriant growth has again overspread the earth, and 
we can only read the history of jones devastations in the numerous 
hillocks of yellow, upturned earth, left by the roots of trees, which, 
after being blown down, have entirely disappeared and mingled with 
the rich, black soil in which they had grown. ‘The tracks of these 
hurricanes are not often more than one hundred rods wide, and vary 
from a mile to twenty or thirty in length. Youcan never tell from the 
direction in which the trees have fallen, the general course of the 
hurricane. ‘This is usually from southwest to northeast, but though 
the trees at any particular spot lie parallel to each other, their di- 
rection varies very much at different places of the same track. At 
one place they have fallen with their tops to the north, at another 
they have fallen towards the south, and at another to the east or | 
west. This fact strengthens the theory of Mr. Redfield, which as- 
cribes to winds, storms and tempests a gyral form. 

It will be remembered by those who have read Mr. Redfield’s 
very ingenious essays, that he suggests the theory that the storms 
which visit our coast rise on the Gulf of Mexico, and assuming a 
gyral motion, sweep over the United States from the southwest to 
the northeast. It is known to all who have resided in the great Val- 


254 Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 


ley of the Mississippi that there is a constant current of air setting 
in from the Gulf and blowing up our water courses. This is occa- 
sionally interrupted for a few days by a wind ina contrary direction, 
accompanied usually by rain. Probably this«s only an apparent 
variation produced by the gyral motion of the wind operating on a 
very large and extended scale. The smaller gyrations which pro- 
duce our thunder gusts and tornadoes come very sensibly from the 
southwest. It will be seen from an inspection of the map of North 
America, that the mountains of ‘Tennessee present the first obstruc- 
tion which this great southwestern current of air meets with in its 
progress across our continent. ‘That country is in a position which, 
while it catches and is refreshed by the softest zephyrs and the most 
refreshing showers of this great atmospheric current, likewise ex- 
poses it to the first rude blasts of its angry tempests. More than 
any other portion of the United States it bears on its bosom the scars 
of many an awful contest with this tremendous power, and its up- 
rooted forests tell us too plainly the overwhelming force of the un- 
conquered enemy. 

The writer had an opportunity of witnessing one of those awfully 
grand and terrific convulsions of the atmdsphere, which nearly de- 
stroyed the town of Shelbyville, in the month of June, 1830. For 
some days previous to the catastrophe the air had been unusually 
calm, sultry, and oppressive. It was a very fortunate circumstance 
for the inhabitants of the village that they were reposing quietly in 
their beds when the tornado swept over them. Had it occurred in 
the day time, when the people were moving about, and when the 
doors and windows were all open, the loss of life must have been 
much greater. It may be well to remark here, that it was found 
from the experience of that night, that the complete closing of doors 
and windows, so as to exclude the external atmosphere, was of the 
utmost importance. Not a house stood. whose doors and windows 
were left open, or were too weak to resist the impulse of the wind. 
On the night of the storm at Shelbyville, a strong western gale blew 
throughout the State of Tennessee, and several distinct gyrations 
were formed in different portions of the current. The town of 
Charlotte, sixty miles northwest from Shelbyville, was blown down 
two hours before the destruction of the latter. Another gyration 
took place twenty miles northeast of Shelbyville, which destroyed a 
farm, and was equally violent with that at Shelbyville. The clouds 
began to cluster in the west, and the wind to blow, at an early hour 


Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 255 


of the night, but the storm did not reach its utmost fury till mid- 
night. The lightning was unusually brilliant, the flashes were so 
continuous as to enable us to see objects with perfect distinctness, 
and even to read without the light of acandle. . This unusual brill- 
iancy of the lightning was remarked in many distant parts of the 
State. The lightning was not accompanied with very loud thunder, 
nor did it appear to have struck or injured any object in the neigh- 
borhood of the village. 

The town of Shelbyville is situated on a hill which fills up, so to 
speak, a long gorge between two chains of highlands, which lie on 
each side of Duck River ; this hill is at the eastern extremity of the 
valley. This circumstance contributes very much to the pleasant+ 
ness of the site for a town, commanding a fine view, and catching 
every breeze of summer ; but it likewise exposes it to the fury of 
every gale that sweeps up the river. ‘The court-house occupies the 
brow of the hill. Around the court-house is a small square or com- 
mon, and on the four sides of this square are built the principal stores 
and shops, the bank, and the taverns. It was on this part of the 
town, that the hurricane exerted its greatest violence. Few families 
resided in this portion of the village ; and it was mercifully ordered 
that the catastrophe should occur at an hour when the inhabitants had 
retired from the business part of the town. The wind had blown 
with great fury and violence without doing any injury for three hours, 
when suddenly the houses began to crack, and in fifteen seconds the 
besom of destruction swept over the devoted village, and left it a mass 
of rus. ‘Those who were within the range of the tempest were 
warned of their danger by the shaking of their houses the moment 
before they fell. A change of position saved the lives of some, 
and caused the death of others. ‘Some found themselves suddenly 
in the open air, surrounded by falling timbers, planks, and bricks ; 
others were buried in the ruins of their houses. Some met death 
whilst endeavoring to escape; others perished in their beds, crushed 
beneath their falling dwellings. Only five persons were killed. A 
few were dreadfully bruised, who recovered from their wounds. 
The interpositions of a merciful Providence for the preservation of 
life in the midst of such danger, were numerous and astonishing to 
all who knew the facts, and so much out of the way of common 
events, that they would scarcely be believed on the testimony of a 
single individual. Whole families were rescued from the ruins of 
their houses without any material bodily injury. Individuals were 


256 Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 


blown about in the air like feathers and escaped withouta scratch. A 
young lady of uncommon courage and presence of mind, who was 
out of doors, and had escaped from a falling house, described the scene 
as awfully grand and magnificent. ‘I looked,” said she, ‘ for well 
known places, and they had vanished.. I turned to go into the house 
and it was gone. I went for the kitchen, it likewise was not to be 
found: I looked up and beheld the lightning flashing vividly upon 
floating planks, plaister, bricks, and shingles, all glistening like white 
pieces of paper, and filling the air; around me I beheld the white 
walls of uncovered houses glaring in the light of the storm.” 

The court-house, a fine brick building, was blown down to the 
ground. The bank, several taverns, a church, and many stores, 
shops, and dwelling houses were laid in ruins. Some houses were 
merely unroofed ; others were blown. away to the first story, and 
others were laid prostrate with the ground. , The gyral form of the 
tempest was evinced by the manner in which the materials of the 
same building were scattered about in different directions, and by 
the testimony of an individual who declared that. he was carried 
around in a circle of fifty yards diameter with a piece of timber to 
which he held fast, and by which he was dreadfully bruised. He 
was picked up two hundred yards from his bed fellow, and in a con- 
trary direction from the house in which they slept. The general 
direction of the wind was from west to east. The gale was suc- 
ceeded by rain in quantities almost amounting in devastating power 
to an avalanche. No hail fell during or subsequently to the storm. 
The following facts will show the velocity and force of the wind. 
Laths were shot into brick walls with such force as to penetrate be- 
tween the bricks, and then turn up and break off, and laths were 
seen to have penetrated through the boards of houses. Heavy pie- 
ces of timber were carried to great heights, and falling penetrated 
the roofs of houses. Pieces of plank and shingles were carried 
along the path of the storm, and strewed on the ground for three 
miles from the town. A book belonging to an attorney, whose office 
was blown away, was found seven miles from the village. Doors 
were blown from their hinges, locks and bolts were forced, and if a 
wall proved strong enough to resist the violence of the wind, large 
masses of ruins were found piled up against it. 

A remarkable phenomenon, which was confirmed by the observa- 
tion and testimony of many witnesses, was, that sound was not con- 
veyed by the atmosphere to any distance, owing perhaps to its ve- 


/ 


Account of a Hurricane at Shelbyville, Tenn. 257 


locity. Not one individual without the range of the hurricane, heard 
the fall of the houses. The overturning of such a number of houses, 
ina calm time, would have produced a very loud sound. Still 
louder would be the sound of so many substances torn asunder, 
crushed and broken, and dashed to pieces. But no sound whatever 
was heard by those without the storm, if we except the shrill whistling 
of the wind, like a loud bugle high in the air. Those who were 
within one hundred feet of the falling houses did not hear them fall. 
Nay, we did not hear the fall of the trees, which were torn to pieces 
and piled around our house. We were not even aware of our dan- 
ger. Within doors we conversed, and were heard in the ordinary 
tones ; but we were unconscious of what was going on without, until 
informed by the arrival of fugitives from the awful scene. It was 
remarked, too, by persons in the falling houses, ‘‘ we heard nothing 
but the crash of our own house.” 

Another fact, which it is important to recollect, is, that it was ob- 
served that. the corner of the house, on the first floor, next the wind, 
was the safest part of the building. Ina brick house, the cellar was 
a very unsafe place, because if the joists gave way the cellar was 
filled with the materials of the building. The side of the house op- 
posite the wind was very unsafe, because the materials of the build- 
ing were blown to that side. A small portion of the wall next the 
wind always stood. Brick houses were less safe than framed houses. 
They were more liable to be blown down, and their materials were 
more dangerous. A young man saved his life by creeping under a 
bench, which afterwards sustained a mass of many tons. Some were 
preserved by getting under their bedsteads. No place in the up- 
per story of a house was safe. ‘The recollection of these facts may 
be useful to us, should we be so unhappy as to be exposed to a simi- 
lar catastrophe, though unfortunately at such a time we are not apt 
to recollect any thing, and are too liable to be deserted by our rea- 
son and presence of mind. 

P.S. An intellicent farmer, who lived on the high lands, eight 
miles south of Shelbyville, in a situation which commands a view of 
the hill on which that village is built, communicated to the writer a 
fact which is curious, and may throw some light upon the nature of 
the forces which produce the gyrations of hurricanes. He had risen 
about midnight to look out on the storm, his attention having been 
excited by the unusual brilliancy of the lightning, and the continu- 
ousness of its flashes. ‘The heavens were overspread with dark 


VoL. XX XI.—No. 2. 33 


258 . Conic Sections. 


clouds in rapid. motion. ‘There was a strong western gale. The 
- lightning appeared to issue from a cloud which was moving very 
swiftly towards Shelbyville. This cloud was permanently luminous, 
and between the, flashes of lightning of the color of red. hot iron. 
In shape it was double, and the two portions approached each other 
like the wings of an eagle, and on passing over the village, the wings 
suddenly coalesced and descended, and then became invisible to the 
observer. This occurred, as nearly as we could calculate, at the 
moment when the hurricane swept over the town. 

It has been suggested to me by a friend, that at the moment. of 
the union of the two clouds, two contrary currents of air met, and 
produced the whirlwind, which was so destructive in its effects. 


Arr. VII.—On-the sections of a plane, with the solids formed by 
the revolution of the conic sections, about axes situated in their 
planes ; by Prof. Bznepict, of the University of Vermont. 


Let ARH be any conic section; AM the line of its principal 
axis; A its vertex; and CQK any right line in its plane about 
which it is supposed to revolve. Let DRVT be any plane, the 
common section of which, and the surface of the solid which is 
formed by the revolution of ARH is the line RT, whose form it is 
proposed to examine. ‘Through CK let the plane DRHM pass 
perpendicular to the plane DRVT, intersecting the surface of the 
solid in the conic section Fig. 1. | 
ARH; and let the common 
section of these planes be 
DRV, meeting AM, exten- 
ded if necessary, at D and 
ARHatR. Draw RL,RQ 
perpendicular respectively 
to AM,CK, meeting them 
at Land Q. Through any 
point Vin RV which is 
assumed the axis of abscis- DC 
se of the line RT, draw HK parallel to RQ, meeting ARH at H 
and CK at K. Let HTZ bea section of the solid perpendicular to 
CK. Let AM,HM, the rectangular coordinates of the point H 


Conic Sections. 259 


of the conic section ARE relative to the axis of abscisse AM, be 
represented by (t), (wu), and QK,HK, the rectangular coordinates 
of the same point H relative to the axis of abscissee QK and origin 
Q, by (¢’) (wv). Draw RF parallel to AM, and put Z2VRF=o, 
ZKCM=o, AL=d, AG=k, RQ=7, QG=0, RV= x, and VT, 
the common section of the planes HTZ and RV'T, equal to (y). 
Since ARH is a conic section, the relation between (¢) and (w) may 


62 
be exhibited by the equation u?=7 > (pt-+-ct? 5) or a°u* —pb?t —. 


¢b*t? =0; which evidently characterizes a right line when p=O and 
c=1; acircle when a=b=p and c=—1; an ellipse when (a) and 
(6) are unequal, a=p and c=—1; an hyperbola when a=p and 
c=1; anda parabola when a=p and c=0. Draw KE parallel to 
HM and QE,KI perpendicular to KE, meeting KE and HM re- 
spectively at E and I. The relation between (¢’) (u’) may be de- 
termined, agreeably with the usual method of transforming coordi- 
nates, by putting -=AM=AG+ QE —IK=k-+ cos: 9.t/—sin. 9.w’, 
and u=HM=QG+KE+HI=6-sin. o.t/--cos. p.u’, and substi- 
tuting these last values of (¢), (wu) in the above equation of ARH. 
From this substitution we have 


a°6? —b? (pk+ck”) ) Geil Cala 
+ [2a28sin. op— 62 (p+2ck) cos.o]t’ | | +o’ | 
+ [2a?écos. p+ 6? (p-+2ck) sin. o]w’ ee J ais CU bo (1); 
+ 2(a? +-cb?) sin. ooo: pti u! ND ee Gio aiteer GMa NT ee SEE 
+ [(a? cb?) sin. » tia Ole Peele meer | 


+ [—(a2?+cb?) sin. o?+a?]w? J (+nu'? J 
where h, 6, e, f; m, , represent the corresponding coefficients in the 
left member. Resolving the abridged equation (1) in reference to 
/ fl 

et ft! e+ ft)\2 — h-+dt/+mt!?\ * 
(u’) we obtain u/=— ae +(( Zh Le) _ But 
(drawing RP parallel to CK meeting HK at P) ZVRP=o—9, 
and consequently 7’ =QK=RP=cos. (a= 9): .y; therefore, supply- 
ing the place of (¢’) by cos. («—-o).x in the equations above, there 


e+f ee ee = aes 


/ 
q fads Hiss Se MESS 
results Uu = In on 


ae ~o)2y2\2 
sire oe seal ee ) (2). The plane HTZ, 
being perpendicular to CK, is perpendicular to the plane ARHM, 
and is also a circular section of the solid. The planes HTZ and 


260 Conic Sections. 


RVT being each perpendicular to the plane ARHM, their common 
section VT is also perpendicular to RV and HK ; and consequently 
HK? —-VK?=VT?=y?. But VK=RQ+VP=27-+sI1n.(w —o)x- 
Substituting in the last equation this value of VK, and for HK the 
value (w’) in (2), we shall have 

2 etfeos.(a—9)x = a j 
id a ee ee we 


Raises ex menne@ 27 ) ‘| *—(x4sin.(0-0)] “(8)3 


, ; 
which by an obvious reduction becomes y? = Tan (-. — feos.(w—@)yxsE 


[e? —4nh+2(ef—4n0)cos.(H—0)x+ (f 2—4mn)cos.( -9)*x2F*] ee 
[r-+sin.(w—o)x]?, (4); which are the equations, referred to rec- 
tangular coordinates of the section of a plane with the surface of a 
solid formed by the revolution of any conic section about an axis 
situated in its plane. 

The equations (2), (8), (4), are liable to a failing case which, 
though of rare occurrence, it may be well to notice and make pro- 


! a2 
vision for. This happens when n=0 or sin.o? =—>——j;5, and is oc- 
pp n=0 sin.@ a? + ch2? 


casioned by regarding (1) as a quadratic equation, which it evidently 
ceases to be when n=O. In this case 


Li MSG ek (5); and consequently 
h+<dcos.(o—)x+mcos.( —)?y? \? 
y? AN) e+ feos. (u cay —[7r-+sin.(w-9)x]? (4’). 


In the application of these general equations to proposed cases it 
is sufficient merely to remark that (K), (4), (#), (@), are positive in 
the situations in which they are represented in fig. (1), and change 
their signs according to the familiar principles of trigonometry. It 
is evident from an inspection of the figure that (+) and (d) are not 
arbitrary lines, being dependent upon the equation of ARH and the 
given magnitudes (#), (4), (~). ‘To determine (7), it is necessary 
only to put (7) in the place of (w’) and zero in that of (¢’/) in (2) 
which expresses the relation between the rectangular coordinates of 
ARH relative to the axis CK and origin of abscisse Q. This sub- 


ec La Ev Hite we ia : 
stitution gives *= — 57 uf i= -:| ; which fails as above when 


| Conic Sections. 261 


n=0; in which case += —~, as is evident by putting xO in (5). 


If the axis of revolution is parallel to the principal axis of the re- 
volving curve, o=0, sin.p=0,cos.9=1,k=d,h=a?6?—-b?(pd+cd?), 


6=—b2(p+2cd), e=2a?6, f=0, m= —cb? ,n=a?, andr =—/ (pdt 
ed?) —. Substituting these values, equation (3) is reduced to y? 


(12 (pa-pea + (p-+2cd)cos. wx + C.C0S.t07 x? :) ie (° VJ (pd+ 


cd?) —4+sin.ay i (6). The most simple as well as useful class of 


cases embraced in (6) is that in which the axis of revolution is sup- 
posed to coincide with the principal axis of ARH. According to 


62 
this hypothesis 6=0, and (6) becomes y? = (pdt ed? + (p + 


3 b? 26 | 
Qcd)cos.wy + ¢.cos.w? x? —Fa(pd-+ed? ) —— v (pd +-cd? )sin.ux — 
eb? —(a? +b?) ame EEE 


SI", OF, 92 —— 


a” 
[b2(p+2cd)cos. eaaB a i patieds sin why A le 
eo ak x) (7) ; which is evi- 


dently a conic section, and characterizes the section of a plane with 
a cone, sphere, the spheroids, hyperboloid, or paraboloid, according 
as ARH is a right line, circle, ellipse, hyperbola, or parabola. If, 
for brevity, we put cb? — (a? -+cb?)sin.w? =G (8), and b?(p+2cd) 
cos.w — 2aby/ (pd+cd*) =q (9), the equation of the section becomes 
aie | (10). Conceiving A (Fig. 2,) to be that prin- 
cipal vertex of the solid which is nearest to R, it is evident that 
(p+2cd).is always positive ; for (c) is negative only in the sphere 
and spheroid, in which cases c= —1, p=a, anda>2d. When the 
plane RV is a tangent to the solid at R, SL: RL! icos.w : sin. w. 
But, according to well known properties of the oe sections, the 
subtangent es ) 
Substituting these values in the proportion above and reducing, we 
have 62 (p-+2cd)cos. w —2abr/ (pd+ed? )sin. w=0. As RV de- 
scends cos. w and sin. » continue positive, the former increasing and 
the latter decreasing till they become respectively (1) and (0) when 
RV coincides with RF. When RV is situated between RF and 


» and the ordinate RLS -o/ (pd ted"), 


262 Conic Sections. 


RL, sin. w is negative and cos. w positive till RV coincides with 
RF. As RV departs from RL, sin. » and cos. w are each nega- 
Fig. 2. 


tive, and (qg) remains positive till it vanishes when the plane becomes 
a tangent at R. These considerations render it evident that (q) is 
always positive except when it vanishes in the case above referred 
to. Wherefore (10) characterizes a right line when g=0 and G=0; 
an ellipse when (G) is negative, including the circle when G= — a? ; 
an hyperbola when (G) is positive ; and a parabola when G=O. 
The following examples will answer the purpose of illustration. 
Let it be required to determine whether a paraboloid is susceptible 
of an hyperbolic section. In this case’ (G) being positive and c=0, 


. . —G . Phat . . . 
(8) is reduced to inva ta/(—}, which being imaginary in- 


dicates the impossibility of the proposed section. Let the hyper- 
bolic section of asphere or spheroid be proposed. ‘These conditions 


require (G) to be positive and c=—1; and consequently ‘sin.w= 
— $2: ~G 
2/ (SF): which is imaginary in the prolate spheroid 


' where a>6, greater than unity in the oblate spheroid where a< 6, 
and infinite in the sphere where a=0: the section therefore is im- 
possible, in the first case because sin. is imaginary, and in the last 
two cases because sin.w > radius. If the parabolic section of an 
hyperboloid be proposed, we have c=1 and G=O, and _ therefore 
62 
a2 +62 
cates consequently the possibility of the section. If w’ denote the 
angle which the asymptote of the solid makes with its axis, we de- 


sin.w? = » an equation which implies no absurdity, and indi- 


Conic Sections. 7 263 


° 


rive, from a familiar property of the hyperbola, a? : b?::cos.w’/? 3 


62 
If sin.w?2 > GLb (G) is negative, and 


sin.w’2.°.sin.w/? = 


Ni 
a2 +62 ‘i 
if sin.w? < ss (G) is positive. Wherefore we conclude that 


the section af an hyperboloid parallel to an asymptote is a para- 
bola; that, if the section makes a greater angle with the axis of the 
lagperberd than the asymptote does, it is an ellipse or circle ; and 
that, if the section makes a less angle, it is an hyperbola. ‘To de- 
termine the sections of the paraboloid, we put c=0, and therefore 
G= —a?sin.w2, which is zero when w=0, and negative in all other 
cases. Hence it is inferred that the section of a paraboloid parallel 
to its axis is a parabola, and that in all other positions itis a circle or 
an ellipse. In the sphere and spheroids c= —1 and G=—6? — 
(a? —6?)sin.w? ; which, being always negative indicates that all the 
sections of the sphere and spheroids are circles or ellipses. ‘The 
sections of a cone are determined with equal facility. The sections 
of a cylinder may be derived directly from (8) or (4) by putting 
p=0, c=1, and considering the axis of revolution C’K’ (Fig. 2,) 
to be parallel to ARH, which in this case is a right lme. All the 
parabolic sections of the solids under consideration being charac- 


terized by the equation ya, have for their parameter 


b? (p++-2cd)cos.u — 2ab/ (pd+-cd?)sin.w 


uae 08 Boy Ae ee ses All other sections, ex- 


cepting the right line are characterized by (10) without any change 


G B? 
of general form. Putting G=+A and =; ==b yp (the --or— be- 


ing used according as (G) is positive or negative) (10) becomes 
B? 9 B? eh nae! a 
Aa Axe qe Hy, 1 Aa(Ax+x7)=y", the equation of a cir- 


cle, ellipse, or ys whose principal axis is A= 


b2(n-+-2cd ime b nd d? 
Ce tea 


AVtG /WtG “ Ge 


Miao EG ra Ler 
Mis ay (gd ted sIn.w 
a [ (cb? — (a? Feb?) sin.w?)) Wherefore also A2 ; 


sie Gi eo 2 a? 1i--[cb?\— (a? -+¢b?)sin.w?]; which is an 


264 | Conic Sections. 


invariable ratio when («) is constant, and shews the similarity of all 
the parallel circular, elliptic and hyperbolic sections of these solids. 
If a=b=p and c= —1, (6) is reduced to y2=( —é+[ad —d? + 


(a —2d)cos. Oyen 22] 2 a —[/(ad — d?) —6+sin. a]? (11), 

which characterizes the sections of a solid formed by the revolution 

of a circle about any axis parallel to a chord, and embraces those 

curves imagined by Perseus Citicus denominated spiriques. If in 

this case 4=0, the solid is a sphere; if CK is above AL (8) is pos- 
; i 

itive, and if below, negative. If (Se the axis of revolution is 


a tangent to the generating circle. 

If a> > (11) is the equation of the section of a circular ring. 
If in (6) a=p and c=—1 (while (a) and (6) are unequal, y?= 
ie (ad —d?+(a — Bd) eos.wy 608.0254? ) :) pe IE / (ad — 
d*)—b-+ sin.) (12) which the equation of the sections of an 


elliptical rimg which is elongated or flattened towards the axis of 
revolution according as (a) is greater or less than (6). The equa- 


6b 
tion (6) is reduced to y= ( ae (ad + d? + (a+2d)cos.wx + 


1\2 b 2 
cos. wy? ) | -(-/ (ad-+d?) -tsinwsy) (13), and y?= é 6 


Y (pd + peos.2)] es (Vea) — s-fsinwiye) (14), according as 


ARH is an hyperbola or parabola. 
If the axis of revolution C’” Q” is perpendicular to the principal 
AL, 9=90°, sin.o=1,- cosp=0, AC’”’=k, RQ’=d-k=q, 


b 
Q” Cl =0=RL =v (pd-ted?), h=b? (pd+cd*)—0* (pk +ck?), 


5=2abV/ (pd+ed?), e=b?(p+2ck), f=0, m=a?, and n=—cb?. 
Substituting these values in (3) we derive the equation 


265 


Conic Sections. 


+P=9O+1V=WV=? Ing ‘aiesnfuoo sit (,9) pue ‘y ye payeurwsey 


Jajoweip ayy st (0) yorum ut ‘-n=(,79-+ 9d) sae aARy AA ‘UOIYD9S O1U00 B 
e/9 


SLEYV 9Ulg “aAoge se ‘uone}ou awes ay Aojdwoa pure ‘({7) ‘sy ul se uO 
-onsjsuod ay} ajajdmiog “WY ‘INH “TV “TM saieutpsooo ay) Jo soxe ay) 
2q WIV Jaioweip aya pue VY 18'T VV 18 AMV Suiyonoy “yo uonnjosos 
JO sixe aq) 0} Iejnoipuadiad Way quesuey agi mercy “Sutpadeid ayy 01 snos 
Ova JauuvM eB UL poeuteigo aq Aevur ‘uoneordde ut yuatuaAuod o10W saseo 
"@ ‘SLT awos ul pur ‘029 ‘9 ‘y ueqi Jojduis sjuatayyooo Suiseiquia uonenba uy 
‘satwiadoid Sunsatayut pue swioy sejnsuts Jo payuasasdas saaino Jo Ajaliea ysea B pure ‘s}uamaza ayy! 0} 
san[eA Juaiayip Sutudisse fq ‘ainsvayd ye ysowye payipow aq few suoyenba oseyy, *(g{)***<[%(m—)*soo+y—p] 
= lz (ye+d) <9 
Xe (o—)uisen +%(o— )-uis( pot pd) Agng+-(.y0 +44) .9—(<p9+ pd) <9 
SB S}USIOIYa09 tj} 0} Son[eA awies oY SulusIssy ‘aAOge payseMad aseo Sulpley oy} soynqysuoo Yoram §u=Q=, rus 
(99+ .0)—,» pue ‘9 =9 ‘ejoqeaed & Suiaq aAino Surajoaas ay Jo asvo ay} uy = ‘sdojaweip jedioud meq) 0} re[noIpued 
-Jad sixe Ue jnoge suoNdas o1U09 ay) Jo UONNJoAaL aq1 Aq patuoF pIfos B Jo suONoas a) sozta}oRLeYO Yorym UOeNba 


¢ et ; 0 eS m= 96-2 Ge 
Es (s1) MS) ee P| = (. aX 5 ( =) "uls ,0-+ X ( — yuis(.po bpd) que z (paca) Pa 


= ,f samooaq uononpar saye yorum § ,[X(m—):soo+y — p] 


\5 ch (,p) woy eauep om ‘(Gq) ul 


— ( (ages sew 26 eee eg (ee) #ee)= 
Bras s( — )-uis,9-+-X (7 — )-uis( pa pd) Aqug+(.49-+44).q—(epot+pd).9  «\Po+ PET 


2. 34 


Vol. XXXI.—No. 


266 On the Conduction of Water. 


in.ot’ 
ie a ee QL+KE+HK=14 5 +1 Subetittite 


COS. 
ue values of (¢), (uw), in the equation above, there results 
«26? —/2(pd-+ed?) ) i 
t! 
9) Me Pi 
i (2 a’? sin. — 6 (p+-2cd)) — fs +6/t 
+ 2a’? bu’ : +e’u’ 
Qa’? sin.ot/u’ Shell 
4 4l af 
- COS. ee) tae 
/ 24 ida i 14/2 
a 2810?) 1602) aoe, Rosie. | +m’'t 
+a/?u’? J +n/ul?,. 


in which h’, 6’, &c., represent the corresponding coefficients in the 
left member. But as before, t/=cos.(#—)x. Wherefore it only 
remains to supply the places of the letters h, 6, &c., in (3), by the 
corresponding accented ones h’, 6’, &c. This furnishes the equa- 
4 : —e' +f’ cos.(w ~ 9) x e’ +f’ cos. (w =a) 2 

tion y= (7 Qn’! a (| Qn! 


ee. 
’+-0’cos.(w — m/cos. (w—o)?x? 

h! +-6/cos.( ol os. (w— 0)? x ) = (i aeceaiee 
in which the coefficients h’, 6’, &c. are simpler than A, 4, &c., and 
in which (n’) being equal to (a’*), is never zero. ‘This equation, 
to be general, supposes the possibility of drawing a tangent to a 
conic section parallel to a given line, a problem which is evidently 
impossible in the case of the hyperbola, when the line parallel to 
which the tangent is required to be drawn makes a less angle with 
the principal axis, than the asymptote does with the same axis. 


Arr. VIIL—On the Conduction of Water; by Prof. C. Dewey. 


In Vol. xxviii, p. 151, of this Journal, are some details on this 
subject. In that paper, the inadequacy of Dr. Murray’s experi- 
ments on this subject was shown. It is certain that when the vessel 
containing the water and thermometer is formed of zce, the power of 
water to conduct caloric downwards cannot be shown, as the heated 
water, when its temperature is below 40° Fabr., will become heav- 
ier, and thence sink to the bulb, and cause the temperature to be 
higher. If the vessel is not made of ice, and the water on the ther- 
mometer is cooled to near 32° Fahr., it will be equally impossible 
to show its conduction of caloric from particle to particle, for the 


On the Conduction of Water. | Sem 


very same reason as before, unless the caloric is applied at the bot- 
tom. ‘T’he experiments detailed in that paper were conclusive on the 
conduction of water when its temperature was above 40° Fahr., un- 
less the caloric were chiefly conveyed to the water along the sides 
and bottom of the vessel used. In some late experiments on this 
subject this difficulty has been removed, and the possibility prevent- 
ed by the following contrivance. A thermometer was immersed in 
water at 62° Fahr., so as to be three eighths of an inch deep on 
the bulb, in a large earthen dish. A hollow glass cylinder, four 
inches in diameter and two inches high, was then placed in the wa- 
ter so as to have the bulb of the thermometer in the middle of the 
cylinder. ‘The cylinder was prevented from touching the bottom of 
the dish by three small pieces of wood placed under it. The ether, 
which was to be inflamed over the bulb, was thus confined within 
the hollow glass cylinder, so that the generated caloric could not 
come to the sides of the earthen dish. When heated oil was poured 
over the bulb, it was confined in the same way. The influence of 
a heated iron was confined in the same manner. Yet when all these 
were repeatedly tried, the temperature rose about sex degrees, except 
that the iron did not heat it so much. ‘These experiments satis- 
factorily prove that caloric passed downwards. If it was not ra- 
diation, it must prove the conduction of water. ‘The form of the ex- 
periment prevents the heating of the bulb by means of the dish. It 
was Clear that the rise of the thermometer soon ceased, as it ought to 
do if it were conduction; for the heated particles, being made lighter, 
would be pressed upwards by the cooler and heavier particles around 
them as soon as the conduction was much diminished by the cooling 
above. Hence after a few moments the thermometer would begin 
to fall, although the surface of the water was several degrees above 
that of the water in contact with the bulb. When an air thermom- 
eter, with its stem passing down through the neck of a funnel of 
glass, and made tight in the neck by a cork, is immersed ‘to the 
depth of an inch in water over its bulb, and then the hollow cylin- 
der of glass is made to surround the bulb as in the other case, and 
kept from touching the funnel, and ether is inflamed within the cyl- 
inder, the experiment is clearly visible, beautiful and decisive. It 
is not obvious how any experiment can be more satisfactory than 
this ; any experiment of this character—for we must always except 
the common one of mixing heated and cold water, when the caloric 
must pass from particle to particle, as the temperature of the hotter 
is instantly diminished, and of the colder is instantly increased. 


268 New Specific Gravities of Minerals. 


Art. [X.—Breithaupt’s new. Specific Gravities oe Minerals ; i 


Dr. Lewis Feucutwanecer, of New York. 


Tue indefatigable Prof. Breithaupt, of Freiberg, in whom mine- 
ralogy has its most zealous cultivator, and to whom the scientific 
world owes great discoveries for the last fifteen years, has lately re- 
examined a great number of minerals the specific gravity of which 
has in many instances not yet been known at all, and in some instan- 
ces could not from circumstances be given correctly, and they are: 

1. 2.629, Common siliceous schist, lydian stone from Erzge- 

birge, Saxony. 

2. 2.761, Bitterspar, from Iringen. 

2.717, Eugnostic calcareous spar, from Rotluf near + Chem- 
nitz, Saxony. 
4.793 CS ore, Ilmenite, from the Uralian mountains, ac- 


ve 


4.794, companying the zircon in granite, black and con- 


4 
5 
6. 2.330, Comptonite, from Vesuvius. 
7. 2.361, The same, from Bohemia. 
8. 3.002, Small and fine granular batrachite from Tyrol. - 
9, 22.109, Native iridium in grains, lately received from Uralian 
Mountains. 
10. 17.840, ‘Two pretty large and pure grains of iridosmin, from 
Uralian Mountains. 
11. 8.185, Fluorspar-crystal, from Switzerland. 
12. 1.989, Brown sulphur, from Croatia. 
13. 2.724, Scapolite, from Arendal, Norway, fresh greenish grey 
Pre and hardness 7. 


14. 2.241, 2 Opal, Werner’s semi-opal from Freiberg, the hardest 
15. 2.250, known varieties. 
sk Oo . Stilpnosiderite, from the Voigtland. 


18. 2.700, Meroxene calcareous spar, (spar R.=105° 11’,) from 
Tharaud, Saxony. 

19. 7.198, Calamine leadspar, (white phosphate of lead,) fh 
Zschoppau, Saxony. 

20. 3.388, Transparent crystal of epidote, from Piedmont. 

21. 3.351, Pyroxene, which deserves more investigation, passing 
generally for a colophonite from Arendal, Norway. 

22. 3.437, Retinophane pyroxene, the common colophonite, 
from Arendal. 


New Specific Gravities of Minerals. 269 


ite. 3 3.830, Colophonite, which is the tree dodecahedral garnet 


and ought to be brought to the Aplome, from 
Arendal. 


N.B. These three substances, generally called colophonite, and 
not exhibiting any varieties to the eye, have on account of their 
form of cleavage and crystals been clearly distinguished by Brei- 
thaupt as as pyroxene, tetragonal and dodecahedral garnet ; the col- 
ophonite is most frequently, tetragonal. 


24, 
25. 
26. 
Q7. 
28. 


29. 


30. 


al. 
32. 


33. 
34. 
35. 


36. 


37. 
38. 


39. 


AO. 
Al. 
42. 
43. 
44. 


45. 


3.976, 
2.510, 
2.518, 
2.334, 
2.981, 


2.952, 


2.574, 


4.450, 
2.741, 


2.705, 
4.787, 
3.063, 


17.300, 


2.655, 
2.185, 


2.702, 


4.202, 
3.255, 
3.320, 
5.577, 
6.195, 


6.304. 


Earthy sulphate of barytes, Saxony. 

Metaxite, from Silesia. 

Picrolite, from Silesia. 

Lasionite, (Wavellite,) from Freiberg. 

Nephrite, greenish grey to mountain green variety, 
from a lump of 76 lbs. 

Granular tremoline amphibole, (tremolite,) from Swe- 
den, oe arsenical pyrites in talcose 
slate. 

Alum slate from Strehla, Saxony, the only slate 
where chiastolite has been found. 

Sulphate of barytes, from Saxony. 

Calcareous spar, (the heaviest calcareous spar of 

R=105° 8’.) 

Polymorphous calcareous spar, (the lighter.) 

A characteristic hepatic pyrites, Freiberg. 

Black schorl, yet belonging to the dicromatic, from 
Tyrol. 

Four fine pure grains of iridosmin, Uralian moun- 
tains. 

Common greenish gray quartz. 

Galapectite, from Silesia, (new mineral and new lo- 
cality.) 

A mineral ‘similar to magnesite, accompanying the 
kerolite, from Silesia. 

Almandin garnet, from Freiberg. 

A problematic pyroxene in basalt, from Silesia. 

Black amphibole, from Bohemia. 

Pyrites, Hessia. 

Cobaltic marcasite, (arsenical Sno from Schnee- 
berg. 

The same, in fragmentary eae from Hessia. 


270 


6.361, 
6.369, 
6.534, 


6.565, 


5.029, - 


4.284, 
7.362, 
7.123, 


wis Aen: 


2.619, 


9.612, 
1.857, 
1.685, 
8.511, 


8.462, 


8.444, 
8.381, 
8.351, 
8.341, 
2.969, 
4.797, 
3.410, 
3.239, 
2.083, 
3.557, 


3.489, 
3.547, 
2.304, 
2,966, 
2.995, 
2.318, 


New Specific Gravities of Minerals. 


The same, from Schneeberg. 

The same, from Freiberg. 

The same, fine white, resembling the nickel pyrite, 
frorn Schneeberg. 

The same, of regular crystalline dentritic conglome- 
rates, from Schneeberg. 

Octahedral crystalline and reticulated iron pyrites, 
Schneeberg. 

Berthierite, from the Auvergne. 

Diatome Wolfiamite, from Brazil. 

White nickel pyrites, (biarsenide of nickel ») Schnee- 
berg. 

ere of a large crystal of titanite—variety from 

* Arendal. 

Yellowish white tetartine felsite, (tetartin,) accompa- 
nying the topaz crystals of the Uralian Mountains. 

Native bismuth, from Brazil. 

A mineral from near Bonn, said to be Allophane. 

Supposed to be an artificial product. 

Brass from a manufactory—Voigtland. 

The same. i 


Ouwarowite, from Bisersk, Uralian Mountains. 

Manganiferous ore, Saxony. 

The true Sarkolite, from Vesuvius. 

A green pyroxene, accompanying the sarkolite. 

Hydrolite or Gmelinite, from Scotland. 

Fiedler’s Chloritoid, from the Uralian Mountains, ac- 
companying the BUSEo re and has the structure of 
mica. 

Manganesian epidote, from Piedmont. 

Topaz, from Uralian Mountains. 

Chrysocolla, from Mexico. 

Tautokline calcareous spar, R=106° 10’, Saxony. 

Dark greenish white arragonite, from Silesia. 

Zeolite, fibrous radiated, from Bohemia, belonging 
perhaps to comptonite. 


"ies lis 
78, 
79. 


80. 
81. 


82. 


83. 


84. 


2.708, 
4.262, 
4.254, 
2.989, 
2.982, 


New Specific Gravities of Minerals. 271 


Eugnostic calcareous spar. 


‘ Rutile of distinct semi-metallic lustre, from Freiberg. 


, Calcareous spar, from Schneeberg. | 


3.263, Pyroxene of green color, from the greenstone in 


4.684, 


4.211, 


4.330, 
3.829, 


3.336, 


3.443, 
3.446, 


4,030, 
4.042, 


2.957, 
2,712, 


5.144, 
3.581, 
3.582, 


2.940, 
3.029, 


2.789, 


2.632, 
3.224, 
3.535, 
3.593, 
4.626, 
5.107, 
5.232, 


Voigtland. 

Axotomous iron ore, from Essex County, N. Y., 
America. lig ihah . 
Probably a new iron ore which forms with the above 
a uniform coarse granular mixture and resembling 

the magnetic iron ore. | 

Flesh colored sulphate of barytes, from Freiberg. 

Yellow garnet of North America, identical with the 

aplome-garnet, from Franklin, N. J. 

A pyroxene distinctly prismatic, by the name of 
ferro-silicate of manganese, from Franklin, N. J. 
which bears great resemblance with the manganif- 
erous pyroxene, from Sweden, but is not identical. 


Rosy calcareous spar, from Freiberg. 


Berthierite, from Freibere. 


Tremolite, from New York. 

Polymorphous calcareous spar, accompanying the 
_ yellow garnet, from Franklin, N. J. 

‘Magnetical iron ore from the Uralian Mountains. 
Sideritic pyroxene or Jeffersonite, from N. J. 


The true Hedenbergit, from Tunaberg, Sweden, and 


appears to be in all its characters identical with 
Jeffersonite. 
Nordenskioldite, from Olonetz. 
The real Mesotype of Berzelius. 
Peach red calcareous spar, from Schneeberg. 
Pseudomorphous crystals of Gay Lussite, Mansfield. 
White hemidomatic pyroxene, from Finland. 
Sphene of changeable colors, from Tyrol. 
A massive brown iron ore, from Bohemia. 
Grey antimony, fine crystalized, from Freiberg. 
Zinciferous iron, from New Jersey. 
Micaceous iron, from Tyrol. 


272 Expeditious Mode of Manufacturing Vinegar. 


Art. X.—Expeditious Mode of Manufacturing Vinegar, practiced 
in Germany ; by Dr. Lewis Feucutwancer, of New York. 
Tuis method depends principally upon bringing the fluid, intend- 

ed to be converted into vinegar, into contact with the ferment and at- 

mospheric air, at a temperature of 100° F., in very thin layers, so 
that at the same time the menstruum may be deprived of its foreign 
matter, but not of any of its spirit and acid vapors. 

The annexed drawing of an apparatus for manufacturing any 
quantity of strong vinegar, within twenty four hours, shall now be 
explained. | 


The principal part forms the concentrating tub A, resting on a 
pedestal about 14’ or 2’ distant from the floor, which is 9’ high, at 
the lower end 3/ and above 33’ in diameter, and provided with from 
seven to nine iron hoops. At the distance of 3” or 4” from the bot- 
tom there are some small holes c,c, 3 or 3” wide, and bored down- 
wards and covered with iron gauze, for permitting the air to enter. 
1” above the bottom the glass or tin tube g is fastened, through a 
cork, and is bent a little upwards, in order to keep the liquor in the 
cask constantly at a certain height, and to prevent the tube from 
being stopped up by swimming splinters or sédiment; but the ori- 
fice must be at least 1’ deeper than the holes c: this tube is to. be 
connected with the recipient 6, for the ready vinegar. On two 
boards, fastened within the concentrator with wooden screws, a 


Expeditious Mode of Manufacturing Vinegar. 273 


smaller tub of 4” or 5” in depth is placed, the bottom of which is 
perforated with small holes of 4 wide and 1” in distance, but quite 
smooth and plane. A wooden plug is put into each of those holes, 
and in such a manner that if a liquid is contained in the tub, it will 
only be allowed to pass dripping. This tub stands at 1” distance 
from. the wall of the concentrating tub. It is understood that all 
these parts have to be constructed of well soaked wood, and par- 
ticularly those where the plugs have to fit, for otherwise the holes 
would swell on and prevent the passage.of the fluid. Right above 
the holes ¢.c, a perforated sieve-like bottom is put, filled with washed 
beech shavings, or stalks of grapes. In. order to close the concen- 
trating tub, the following manner will be best—to fix a rim of sheet 
tin, 1’ broad and deep, for covering the staves, so that when nailed 
on, the cover will exactly fit into the stave, and when the same is 
provided with a sheet tin on its edge and wet leather, it is natural 
that the cover will only come as far as the rim, without touching 
the bottom of the staves. On the edge of the tub a wet strip of 
coarse linen is laid, where the cover is to rest on; the rim is filled 
with water, and the air is by these means cut off. 

In order to observe the temperature in the concentrator, the bulb 
of a thermometer may be affixed, through a hole bored in the mid- 
dle of the tub at d, and the scale may be fastened outside the tub. 
In order to effect a strong draught of air through the concentrator, 
without losing any of its vapors, another principal part, the condens- 
mg apparatus, is put in connection with the above, and consisting 
of three wooden tubes 4,2,k, the width of which must be equal to 
that of the holes c,c. A, 1’ long, reaching in the hole of the cover, 
the joints are carefully stopped up with tow or linen. 1, is rather 
ascending, (in order that the condensed vapors from it may be able 
to return,) through the wall of the vinegar room k, and is then con- 
nected with the self-opening part /, that in passing through the cooler 
m, to the small vessel n, the contents of which are to be filled back 
from time to time into the concentrator. It is understood that all 
the joints have to be well stopped up, and that fresh water has al- 
ways to be kept in the cooler. | 

The third principal part is the filling apparatus; by boring at 3” 
distance from the edge of the cover of the concentrator a second 
hole, which connects, by means of a leather tube, provided at both 
ends with tin tubes, the wooden cockscrew g and the small keg p, in 
air-tight manner. 


Whe. KK XL No. 2. 35 


Q74 Expeditious Mode of Manufacturing Vinegar. 


For managing the manufacture of vinegar with full advantage, 
four such concentrators may be put into use, in a well floored room, 
provided with tight doors and windows, and from 12/ to 14’ high, 
which may be heated by air; the joints at the passage of the tubes 
through the walls of the roomy must. be well stopped, and all four 
concentrators may be connected with one tube, coming from J, m, - 
outside the room. 

Before setting the apparatus into operation, all the parts belong- 
ing to it have to be well washed and boiled with hot water, the 
concentrators filled with birch wood shavings of 2/ long and 3/” 
thick ; these, well curled and previously boiled in water, are-now 
put upon the perforated bottom, and soaked in strong vinegar; a 
second layer is now added, and likewise soaked in vinegar; and so 
continue, until the tub is full, without pressing them together. Now 
the small tub with the bottom provided with pins is put within, the 
cover fitted on and put in connection with the condensing apparatus, 
the vinegar room heated to 95° or 110° F., and the vinegar run- 
ning from the shavings through the tube g is now thrown back with 
the addition of fresh ones to the same until they are fully impreg- 
nated; and these shavings, so acidulated, may be used for years, 
provided whiskey and water is employed as material for vinegar ; 
other substances that contain slimy or other impure matters, will 
require the same to be renewed from time to time, and acidulated 
again. After the shavings have been acidulated, the filling cask p 
is supplied with the material, and the cocks g are turned, so that no 
more fluid can be admitted in the concentrator, to run at the same 
time through the sieve holes; and the fluid passes dripping through 
the bottom of the tub, extends itself over the shavings, runs slowly 

to the lower part of A in performing its object, and ie sour liquor 
runs through g to 6. 

This product is by no means the ready vinegar, but it has to travel 
at least twice more over the journey ; and the advantages are now 
manifest to work with four concentrators, and we may now for the 
first concentrator put altogether fresh materials for vinegar, with one 
third of the whole quantity to be added; in the second the produce 
of the first, with the second third of the additional whiskey ; in the 
third, the produce of the second, with the last third of the addi- 
tional whiskey, and the fourth may be used asa clearing tub, through 
which the produce or the vinegar obtained from the third concentra- 
tor may be running, without further addition for clearing. It is 


Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. 275 


but at the first operation of the concentrators that we require vine- 
gar for the material, afterwards we may easily dispense with it, the 
shavings being sufficiently sour to take its place. Another advan- 
tage in having several concentrators is, that if the shavings of the 
first one should require to be cleaned or renewed, the process need 
not be interrupted, but needs only to be advanced, and the first has 
afterwards to take the place of the fourth as clearing tub. If the 
vinegar, after having passed through the three tubs, should not be 
sufficiently strong, the produce of the second is-not-all put in No. 3, 
but as much as will be equal to the additional whiskey ; the like is 
done with the produce of No. 1; these three runnings are all thrown 
back into No. 1, as fresh vinegar material, and as we always add 
whiskey to the produce of 1 and Q, if all three casks are of equal 
size, there will then always be more vinegar material for 2 and 3, 
and it will be necessary, therefore, to bring the running of 3, if it 
should be sour enough, into No. 1. 


Arr. XI.— Observations on Sulphurous Ether, and Sulphate of 
Etherine (the true Sulphurous Ether ;) by R. Harz, M. D., 


Professor of Chemistry in the University of Pennsylvania. 


Ir is known that when two parts, by weight, of sulphuric acid are 
distilled with one of alcohol, a yellow sulphurous liquid is obtained. 
Berzelius alleges, that when this liquid is exposed in an exhausted 
receiver over sulphuric acid and hydrate of potash, an oleaginous 
liquid remains, which he designates as ‘‘ ov! of wine containing sul- 
phuric acid, or heavy oil of wine.” 

This oil is, by the same author, described as being heavier than 
.water, as having a penetrating aromatic odor, and a cool pungent 
taste, resembling that of peppermint. It is, in fact, the liquid which 
Hennel first analyzed as oil of wine, without, at the same time, men- 
tionmg the process by which it was procured. No doubt the differ- 
ence between it and that procured by Boullay and Dumas, was in 
some degree, the cause of the discordance between his observation 
and theirs. According to Hennel, the oil of wine consists of an 
atom of sulphuric acid, and an atom of hydrocarbon: S+-4C+4H. 
By the last mentioned appellation, this skilful chemist designates a 
compound consisting of four atoms of carbon, and four of hydrogen. 

Serullas represents the oil in question ‘as consisting of two atoms 
of the acid, two of hydrocarbon or etherine, and one of water. 


276 Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. 


To the hydrocarbon of Hennel (4 CH,) as the common base of 
all the ethers, excepting those lately alleged to have mytheline for 
a base; the name of etherine has been given; so that the heavy 
oil of wine may be called the sulphate of etherine: or, according to 
the formula of Serullas, 2SE-+H, it is a hydrous sulphate of ethe- 
rine. It is, in fact, the only compound to which the name of sul- 
phuric ether can be applied with propriety. ‘The yellow liquid out 
of which it is procured, as above stated, may be gest as ate 
ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine. 

Another oil, lighterthan water, resulting from the ‘iat af 
the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine, from hydrate of lime, 
or from potash, is described by Berzelius as oil of wine exempt from 
sulphuric acid. Of this the odor is represented as disagreeable ; 
and, though nothing is said of its taste, it is to be presumed that it 
differs from .the heavy oil of wine in this respect, as well as in its 
odor and specific gravity. 

Thenard alleges, that when the heavy oil of wine is heated with 
water for some time, a liquid swims on the water, which, if refrige- 
rated by ice, will, within twenty-four hours, deposit crystals. The 
mother liquid he calls light oil of wine, while to the crystals he gives 
the name of concrete oil of wine. Hennel mentions his having ob- 
tained a similar product by the reaction of oil of wine with water, or 
an aqueous solution of potash; and treats the crystalline matter as 
the base of the heavy oil of wine, deprived of its acid; or, in other 
words, as his “‘ hydrocarbon ;”’ or, as above mentioned, etherine. 

Considering how much has been written on this topic, I am sur- 
prised that I have met with no statements respecting the reaction of 
ammonia with the above mentioned ethereal sulphurous sulphate of 
etherine. 

Since the year 1818, I have been accustomed to saturate the acid 
in that liquid by ammonia. The residue, being rendered very fra- 
grant, and entirely freed from its sulphurous odor, by admixture with 
about twenty-four parts of alcohol, was found to constitute an ano- - 
dyne, possessing eminently all the efficacy of that so long distin- 
guished by the name of Hoffmann. When the residue, remaining 
after saturation with ammonia, was distilled in a water bath, ether 
came over, and left an oil which I was accustomed to consider as 
the oil of wine. 

I had observed that in the process above mentioned,’ there was a 
striking evolution of vapor, which seemed irreconcilable with the 


Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. Q77 


received opinion of the re-agents employed. Since the affinity be- 
tween the ammonia and sulphurous acid is energetic, it did not ap- 
pear to be reasonable to suppose, that a copious escape of the one 
should be caused by its admixture with the other; and it was no less 
improbable that the vaporization of hydric ether, in its natural state, 
could take place at temperatures so much below its boiling point as 
those at which this phenomenon was noticed. In order to ascertain 
the truth, [ luted a funnel, furnished with a glass cock and an air 
tight stopple, into the tubulure of a retort, of which the beak was so 
recurved downwards as to enter and be luted into the tubulure of an- 
other retort. The beak of the latter passed under a bell over water. 

Both retorts were about half full of liquid ammonia, and surround- 
ed with ice. ‘The apparatus being thus arranged, about a thousand 
grains of the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine were poured 
into the funnel, and thence gradually allowed to descend into the 
ammonia in the first retort. Notwithstanding the refrigeration, much 
heat was perceptible, and a copious evolution of vapor, which, pass- 
ing into the second retort, was there absorbed or condensed, none 
being observed to reach the bell glass. At the close of the opera- 
tion, hydric ether, holding oil of wine in solution, floated upon the 
ammonia in the first retort, and pure ether, of the same kind, floated 
on the ammonia in the second. 

The ammonia in both retorts gave indications of the presence of 
sulphurous acid, on the addition of sulphuric acid. From these re- 
sults, I inferred that a chemical compound of sulphurous acid and 
hydric ether formed the principal portion of the yellow liquid, and 
might be separated by distillation. Accordingly, by means of retorts 
arranged and refrigerated as above described, | procured a portion 
of sulphurous ether, which boiled at 44°, and which, when agitated 
with ammonia in a bottle, produced so much heat and consequent 
vapor, as to expel the whole contents in opposition to the pressure 
of my thumb. By employing the same distillatory apparatus, I 
subjected 2150 grains of the ethereal sulphate of etherine to distilla- 
tion, and obtained 726 grains of sulphurous ether, which boiled as 
soon as the frigorific mixture was removed from the containing re- 
tort. This being redistilled, as in a former experiment, so as to re- 
ceive the product in ammonia, left in the retort five grains of oil of 
wine. The resulting ammoniacal liquid, saturated with chloride of 
barium in solution, gave a precipitate which, agreeably to the table 
of equivalents, contained 356 grains of sulphurous acid. 


278 Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. 


The residue of the 2150 grains of ethereal sulphate being sub- 
jected to distillation, raising the temperature from 95°, the point at 
which it had been before discontinued, to 140°, the product obtained 
by means of a refrigerated receiver weighed 602 grains. ‘This was, 
of course, inferior in volatility to the first portion distilled; and, when 
redistilled, it was found to contain a small quantity of ai of wine. 
In fact, it appears, the boiling point of the ethereal sulphurous sul- 
phate rises, not only as the ratio of the sulphurous acid lessens, but 
also as the proportion of oil of wine augments. 

The residual liquid being exposed to the heat of a water bath at 
212°; a very fragrant and well flavored oil of wine was evolved, 
and floated upon a quantity of water acidulated by sulphuric or sul- 
phovinic acid. 

Agreeably to another expouinenty 1750 grains by weight, of the 
ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine, after washing with ammo- 
nia, gave 869 grains of an ethereal solution of oil of wine. This be- 
ing subjected to distillation by a water bath raised gradually to 190°, 
there remained in the retort 148 grains of oil, beneath which there 
were a few drops of acidulated water. Agreeably to the result of 
several experiments, the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine 
yields about half its weight of the ethereal solution of oil of wine. 
The quantity is always somewhat less than half when weighed ; but 
the deviation is not greater than might be expected to result from 
the loss by evaporation, and the diversity of refrigeration employed 
in the condensation of the ethereal sulphurous sulphate, — the 
process by which it is evolved. 

Under the expectation of procuring a sulphurous ether of a still 
higher degree of volatility, 1 associated with the apparatus usually 
employed in the process for generating hydric ether, a series of 
tubulated retorts, of which the beaks were recurved downwards in 
such a manner that the beak of the first communicated with a per- 
pendicular tube, passing through an open-necked cylindrical receiver, 
so as to enter the tubulure of the second retort, of which the beak 
was in like manner inserted into a tube passing through a receiver 
in a third retort, and this communicated in like manner with a fourth 
retort. The second, third and fourth retorts, and the tubes entering 
them, were all refrigerated, the first with ice, the second with ice 
and salt, and the third with ice and chloride of calcium. 

By these means, on subjecting to distillation in the first retort 48 
ounces of alcohol of 880, and a light weight of sulphuric acid, be- 


Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. 279 


sides the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine usually resulting 
from the process, and condensing in the first receiver, it was found 
that in the other retorts severally, there were liquids of various de- 
grees of volatility. That in the last boiled at 28°, but the boiling 
points rose gradually as the quantity of the residual liquid diminished. 

In order to ascertain the nature of the sulph-acids abstracted 
from the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine by the ammonia 
employed, chloride of barium was added in excess to the resulting 
ammoniacal solution, until no further precipitate would ensue. The 
liquid having been rendered quite clear by filtration, soon became 
milky. By evaporation to dryness, and exposure to a red heat, a 
residuum was obtained which proved partially insoluble in chloro- 
hydric acid, and by ignition with charcoal, yielded sulphide of bari- 
um. It appears, therefore, that a hyposulphate of barytes existed 
in the liquid after it was filtered; as I believe that the hy posulphuric 
acid is the only oxacid of sulphur which is capable of forming with 
barytes a soluble compound, susceptible, by access of oxygen, of 
being converted into an insoluble sulphate, and precipitating in con- 
sequence. 

It must be evident from the facts which I have narrated, that the 
yellow liquid obtained by distilling equal measures of sulphuric acid 
and alcohol, consists of oil of wine held in solution by sulphurous 
ether, composed of nearly equa! volumes or weights of its ingredi- 
ents; also, that the affinity between the ether and the acid is analo- 
gous to that which exists between alcohol and water. ‘The apparent 
detection of sulphuric acid in the ammonia, justifies a surmise, that 
the etherine distils in the state of a hyposulphate, which subsequent- 
ly undergoes a decomposition into sulphurous acid and sulphate of 
etherine. 

The liquid above alluded to, as resulting from the saturation of 
the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine by ammonia, and distil- 
lation by means of a water bath gradually raised to a boiling heat, is 
a very fragrant variety of oil of wine. It differs from that described 
by Berzelius as the heavy oil of wine of Hennel and Serullas, in 
being lighter and containing less sulphuric acid. I have a specimen 
exactly of the specific gravity of water, and have had one so light 
as to float.on that liquid. The oil of wine obtained by ammonia 
approximates, in its qualities, to the variety which Thenard de- 
scribes as light oil of wine. The presence of sulphuric acid in a 
definite or invariable ratio does not appear requisite to the distinct- 
ive flavor or odor of oil of wine. 


280 Sulphurous Ether and Sulphate of Etherine. 


The heavy oil of wine treated by Hennel as sulphate of hydro- 
carbon, 2S-+-4CH;; and by Serullas as a hydrous sulphate of etherine, 
4CH+2S-+H; I have obtained, as above mentioned, by exposing 
the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of etherine, in vacuo, over the hy- 
drate of lime, or potash, and sulphuric acid. ‘This variety sinks in 
water, being of the specific gravity of 1.09 nearly ; is of a deeper 
hue than the other, and of a smell less active, with a taste somewhat 
more rank. A specimen of oil thus obtained being subjected to the 
distillatory process, a portion came over undecomposed, leaving in 
the retort a carbonaceous mass. | 14 grains of the oil which had not 
undergone distillation, and a like portion of the distilled oil, were 
severally boiled in glass tubes with nitric acid until red fumes ceased 
to appear; about 28 grains of pure nitre were added to each, some 
time before the boiling was discontinued. ‘The resulting liquid was 
in each case poured into a platina dish, boiled dry, and afterwards 
deflagrated by ared heat. The residual mass being subjected to 
water, the resulting solution was filtered, an excess of nitric acid 
added, and then nitrate of barytes in excess. 

The precipitate obtained from the distilled oil, weighed when 
dry, only nine and five-eighths grains, while that procured from the 
oil which had not been distilled, amounted under like circumstances, 
to fourteen and one-eighth grains. ‘Ten grains of another portion, 
left for some time over liquid ammonia, yielded only seven-eights 
of a grain of sulphate. 

About a drachm of Hennel’s oil of wine was subjected to distilla- 
tion with strong liquid ammonia; fourteen and a half grains came 
over, retaining the appropriate fragrance and flavor. ‘This yielded, 
by the process above described, only two grains of sulphate of ba- 
rytes. After all the water and ammonia had distilled, the receiver 
was changed, and fourteen grains of oil, devoid of the fragrance and 
flavor of the oil of wine, were obtained. ‘This yielded one and 
one-eighth grains of sulphate. A carbonaceous mass, replete with 
sulphuric acid, remained in the retort. 

Hennel states that when oil of wine was heated in a solution of 
potash, an oil was liberated which floated upon water, having but 
little fluidity when cold; and which in some cases, partially erystal- 
lized. When gently heated, it became clear, and of an amber color. 
The vapor had an agreeable, pungent, aromatic smell. ‘This oil 
must have been pure etherine. 

It is not improbable that this oil, which may be considered as 
devoid of sulphuric acid, is more or less liberated in evolving oil of 


Reaction of the Essential Oils with Sulphurous Acid. 281 


wine, according to the nature of the process employed; and that 
the oil alluded to by Thenard and those procured by me by simple 
distillation, ebullition, or distillation with ammonia or potassium, are 
mixtures of the etherine with its sulphate in various proportions. As 
it is well known that the odor of the essential oils is rendered more 
active by dilution, the livelier smell of the solutions may be consist- 
ent with a diminished proportion of the odoriferous matter. 

Oil of wine cannot be distilled per se without partial decomposi- 
tion, which does not take place below the temperature of 300. 
When subjected to the distillatory process, over potassium, at. a cer- 
tain temperature, a brisk reaction ensued, and the oil and metal 
agelutinated into a gelatinous mass. By raising the temperature 
the mass liquefied, and a colorless oil came over, which retained the 
odor of oil of wine. Meanwhile some of the potassium remained 
unchanged, and appeared within the liquid in the form of pure me- 
tallic globules. On pouring into a retort a portion of nitric acid, in 
order to remove the caput: mortuum, ignition took place from the 
presence of the potassium. 


Arr. XII.— Of the Reaction of the Essential Oils with Sulphurous 
Acid, as evolved in union with Ether in the process of Etherifi- 
cation, or otherwise ; by 2. Haru, M. D., Professor of Chemistry 
in the University of Pennsylvania. 


Havine mixed and subjected to distillation, two ounces of oil of 
turpentine, four ounces of alcohol and eight ounces of sulphuric acid, 
a yellow liquid came over, having all the appearance of that which 
is obtained. in the process for making oil of wine, described in the 
preceding article. On removing, by means of ammonia, the sulphu- 
rous acid existing in the liquid, and driving off the ether by heat, a 
liquid remained, which differed from oil of turpentine in taste and 
smell, although a resemblance might still be traced. This. liquid 
was without any sensible action on potassium, which continued 
bright in.it for many weeks. It proved, on examination, to contain 
a small quantity of sulphuric acid. I ascertained, afterwards, that 
in order to produce these results, it was sufficient to pour oil of tur- 
pentine on the mass which remains after the termination of the or- 
dinary operation for obtaining ether, and apply heat. Subsequently 
it was observed that when the sulphurous. ether was removed by 


Vou. XX XI.—WNo. 2. 36 


282 Reaction of the Essential Oils with Sulphurous Acid. 


heat or evaporation, without the use of the ammonia, the proportion 
of sulphuric acid in the remaining oil was much greater. 

By subjecting to the same process several essential oils, I suc- 
ceeded in obtaining as’ many liquids to which the above remarks 
were equally applicable. With some of the oils, however, similar 
results were, by this method, either totally or partially unattainable, 
in consequence of their reaction with the sulphuric acid being so 
energetic as to cause their decomposition before any distillation 
could take place. No product can be obtained by distillation with 
sulphuric acid and alcohol from the oil of cinnamon obtained from 
cassia. From the oils of sassafras and cloves, but little can be pro- 
cured. | 

However, in one instance, by previously mixing the oil of sassafras 
with the alcohol, in the manner described in the account given of 
the first experiment with the oil of turpentine, I succeeded in obtain- 
ing, in addition to a small quantity of the heavy liquid contammg 
sulphuric acid, a minute quantity of a lighter one, devoid of that 
acid, which burned without smoke, was insoluble in water, and very 
fluid. Jam disposed to consider the liquid thus procured as a hy- 
drate of sassafras oil, or sassafreine, as I would call it, being analo- 
gous to hydric ether. 

The oil of sassafras, whether molated or in combination, possesses 
a remarkable property, which, I believe, has not attracted sufficient 
observation; I mean that of producing an intense. crimson color, 
when added, even in a very minute quantity, to concentrated sul- 
phuric acid. 

One drop of oil of sasealras imparted a striking color to forty-eight 
ounce measures of sulphuric acid, and appeared perceptible when 
it formed less than a five millionth part. This property was com- 
pletely retained by the lighter liquid above described as procured 
from oil of sassatras. 

I subsequently observed, that when sulphurous acid, whether in 
the form of sulphurous ether, in-that of a gas, or when in union with 
water, was brought into contact with any of the essential oils (inclu- 
ding kreosote,) which were subjected to the experiment,. they ac- 
quired a yellow color, and a strong smell of this acid. 

In the case of the yellow compound thus obtained from any of the 
essential oils which I have tried, if the sulphurous acid be removed 
by heat, the oil, by analysis, will be found to yield sulphuric aeid. 
That some acid of sulphur remains in union must be evident, since 


Reaction of the Essential Oils with Sulphurous Acid. 283 


washing with ammonia will not entirely remove the power of yielding 
sulphuric acid; -and the total absence of the sulphurous smell de- 
monstrates that the sulphurous acid either enters into an intimate 
combination with the oil, or acquires oxygen sufficient to convert it - 
into sulphuric or hyposulphuric acid. 

Those essential oils which contain oxygen, are most affected by 
the action of sulphurous acid. 

Both the oils of cloves and cinnamon, after admixture with sul- 
phurous ether and subsequent distillation, gave, on analysis, precipi- 
tates of sulphate of barytes. In the case of cloves, the precipitate 
amounted to one seventh of the whole weight. 

By distilling camphor with alcohol and sulphuric acid, I obtained 
a yellow liquid, which, by washing with ammonia and evaporation, 
in order to get rid of the safitiacbiad ether, yielded an oil. The oil, 
by standing, separated into two portions, one solid, the other liquid. 
The solid portion resembled camphor somewhat in smell, but differed 
from it by melting at a much lower temperature, becoming com- 
pletely fluid at 175°. 

I found that the essential oils of cinnamon and cloves possessed an 
antiseptic power, quite equal to that of kreosote, and that their aque- 
ous solutions, when sulphated, were even superior to similar solutions 
of that agent. 

One part of milk mingled with four parts of a saturated aqueous 
solution of the sulphated oil of cloves, remained after five days sweet 
and liquid, while another ‘portion of the same milk became curdled 
and sour within twenty four hours. Haying on the 2d day of July 
added two drops of oil of cinnamon to an ounce measure of fresh 
milk, it remained liquid on the 11th; and, though it finally coagula- 
ted, it continued free from bad taste or smell till September, al- 
though other portions of the same milk had become putrid. A half 
ounce of milk, to which a drop of sulphurous oil of turpentine had 
been added, remained free from coagulation at the end of two days, 
while another portion, containing five drops of pure oil of turpentine, 
became curdled and sour on the next day. : 

A number of pieces of meat were exposed in small wine glasses, 
with water impregnated with solutions of the various essential oils. 
Their antiseptic power seemed to be in the ratio of their acridity. 
The milder oilsseemed to have comparatively little antiseptic power, 
unless associated with’ the sulphurous ant which has long been 
known as an antiseptic. ; 


284 Reaction of the Essential Ouls with Sulphurous Acid. 


In cutaneous diseases, and, perhaps, in the case of some ulcers, 
the employment of the Sees Sapa oils may 4s advanta- 
geous. 

A respectable physician was of opinion that the sulphurous sulphate 
of turpentine Ha a beneficial influence in the case of an obstinate 


/ Tevtere 


Possibly the presence of sulphurous acid may increase the power 
of oil of turpentine as an anthelmintic. 

Pieces of corned meat hung up, after being bathed with an alco- 
holic solution of the sulphurous sulphated oil of turpentine, or with 
solutions of the sulphated oils of cloves or cinnamon, remained free 
from putridity at the end of several months. ‘That imbued with 
cinnamon had a slicht odor and taste of the oil. 

I am led, therefore, to the impression that the antiseptic power is 
not peculiar to kreosote, but belongs to other acrid oils and princi- 
ples, and especially to the oils of cinnamon and cloves. ; 

The union of sulphuric acid with these oils appears to render 
them more soluble in water: whether any important change is effect- 
ed in their medical qualities by the presence of the acid may be a 
question worthy of attention. 

I have stated my reasons for considering the ammoniacal liquid, 
resulting from the ablution of the ethereal sulphurous sulphate of 
etherine with ammonia, as partially composed of hyposulphurie acid. 
By adding to this ammoniacal liquid a quantity of sulphuric acid, 
sufficient to produce a strong odor of sulphurous acid, and then a 
portion of any of the essential oils ; a combination ensued, as already 
described, between the oils and the su!phurous acid liberated by the 
sulphuric acid, so as to render them yellow and suffocating. The 
habitudes of cinnamon oil from cassia under these circumstances were 
peculiar. A quantity of it was dissolved, communicating to the 
liquid a reddish hue. » The solution being evaporated, a gummy 
translucent reddish mass was obtained, which, by solution in alcohol, 
precipitated a quantity of salt, and being boiled nearly to dryness, 
re-dissolved in water, and again evaporated, was’ resolved into a mass 
having the friability, consistency and translucency of common rosin ; 
but with a higher and more lively reddish color. Its odor recalls, 
but faintly, that of cinnamon ; its taste is bitterand disagreeable, 
yet recalling that of the oil from which it is derived. Its aqueous 
solution does not redden litmus; nor, when acidulated with nitric 
acid, does it yield a precipitate with nitrate of barytes. 


Of Sassarubrin. 285 


Of this substance ten grains were exposed to the process above 
mentioned, for the detection of sulphuric acid, and were found to 
yield a precipitate of 6.5 grains of sulphate of barytes. 

It may be worth while to mention, that in boiling the sulphated 
oils with nitric acid, compounds are formed finally, which resist the 
further action of the acid, and are only to be decomposed by the as- 
sistance of a nitrate and deflagration. I conjecture that these com- 
pounds will be found to merit classification as ethers formed by an 
oxacid of nitrogen. 

One of my pupils, in examining one of the compounds thus gen- _ 
erated, was, as he conceived, seriously affected by it, suffering next 
day as from an over dose of opium. He also conceived that a cat, 
to which a small quantity was given, was affected in like manner. 

Thad prepared an apparatus with the view of analyzing accurately 
the various compounds above described or alluded to, by burning 
them in oxygen gas; when, by an enduring illness of my assistant, 
and subsequently my own indisposition, | was prevented from exe- 
cuting my intentions. 


Art. XIIl.—Of Sassarubrin, a Resin evolved by Sulphuric Acid 
from Oil of Sassafras, which is remarkable for its efficacy in 
Reddening that Acid in its concentrated state; by R. Harn, 
M. D., Professor of Chemistry in the University of Pennsylvania. 


I HAVE mentioned in the preceding article that-a crimson color is 
imparted to concentrated sulphuric acid by its admixture with a mi- 
nute portion of oil of sassafras. ‘This color is due toa peculiar resin 
elaborated from the oil by its reaction with the acid under favorable 
circumstances. This reaction is attended by phenomena which are 
striking, and, in some respects, singular. If a mixture be made of 
equal parts of the oil of sassafras, alcohol and sulphuric acid, on 
raising the temperature to a certain point, the whole mass rises up in 
a resinous. foam, of a beautiful color, between copper and purple, 
with a metallic brilliancy. In some instances, it has been partially’ 
forced out of the retort through the beak-in a cylindrical mass, 
which acquired, on cooling, the consistency of pitch. This pitchy 
- substance is a compound of the resin above alluded to and sulphuric 
acid, with which it forms a soluble substance, neutralizing its sour- 
ness to a certain extent. By steeping this subacid compound in 


286 Of Sassarubrin. 


ammonia, straining, washing the residue with water, and desiccation, 
a brittle, tasteless resin remains, which is quite insoluble in water, 
but very soluble in-aleohol and hydric ether. 

The addition of this sassarubrin to concentrated sulphuric acid, 
produces the crimson color already mentioned as resulting from the 
presence in that liquid of a minute portion of oil of sassafras. I 
infer that the color is due to the evolution of sassarubrin, which has 
a bassic affinity for the acid, to which it owes its birth. ‘The ethe- 
real and alcoholic solutions of sassarubrin are of the color of a dingy 
white wine, but acquire a deep crimson when mingled with concen- 
trated sulphuric acid. 

Sassarubrin may be produced by the union of the acid and oil, 
provided it be moderated by refrigeration or dilution with water. 

Without some precaution, the heat produced is sufficient to char 
the resin more or less. The reddening influence of the oils of cin- 
namon and cloves is due to the generation of resis! analogous to 
sassarubrin. 

To those resins the names of cinnarubrin and clovorubrin may be 
severally assigned. Cinnarubrin may be evolved by adding oil of 
cinnamon to equal parts of sulphuric acid and water, previously mix- 
ed and refrigerated, the temperature being subsequently elevated till 
the mass rises up in a foam; when the whole should be poured into 
a solution of pearlash, from which the resin may be extricated by a 
strainer. It is analogous to sassarubrin, but it is less efficacious in 
coloring sulphuric acid, and does not, like the former, impart to the 
sides of the containing glass a rich red color. Moreover, it appears 
to be partially msoluble in alcohol, and to retain sulphuric acid after 
being boiled with an alkaline solution. 

I infer that a new series of resins may be evolved foi the essen- 
tial oils by their reaction with sulphuric acid; which, having a gene- 
ral analogy to each other, may still have discriminating characteristics, 
arising from the oils whence they may be derived. 


Meteorological Register. 287 


Art. XIV.— Meteorological Register kept at Matanzas ; 
by A. Maniory. 


Matanzas, March 4, 1836. 
TO PROF. SILLIMAN. 

Dear Sir,—I duly received your favor enclosing the scale of Mr. 
Dewitt’s conical raingage, and the New York circular ; and offer in 
return my meteorological observations, made at this place for the 
year 1835. ‘The mean temperature has been considerably lower 
than in former years—the mean of 1834 being 79.27, and of 1833, 
79. Humboldt makes it about 78, which I had thought too low. 
The month of February was remarkably cold—and November 
warmer than October. ‘The summer months were cool, and January 
ranged rather high. I have been at considerable pains to verify the 
observation, that water taken from a considerable depth would give 
the mean temperature of the country, and find it true. Thave made 
a series of observations upon the water taken from a well of the 
depth of one hundred and sixty feet, and find it gives. a mean of 
seventy eight degrees. In fact the difference between summer and 
winter never amounts to a degree. 

My barometrical observations were made with a new and very 
neat instrument, made by Pike & Sons of New York; but I am 
inclined to think it ranges a little too high; of that however you 
will be the best judge—you will observe that the fluctuation of the 
mercury is extremely small. 

The hygrometrical observations were made ah Saussure’s hee 
grometer, and I believe show a degree of humidity rather greater 
than noted by Humboldt. ‘These instruments were all kept at an 
elevation of twenty five feet above the level of the sea, and about 
three hundred yards from its border, with a free exposure from with- 
out day and night, and properly shaded from any undue reflection. 
The raingage was of the old fashioned conical shape, with receiver, 
stop-cock, and graduated scale. I preferred it to a cylindrical one 
made of glass, or to Dewitt’s, as it loses nothing by evaporation, and 
‘the observation is made with little trouble, at sunrise, for the last 
twenty four hours, as were those made with the register thermome- 
ter. ‘The windgage used was of my own construction, and answers 
well to show the comparative strength of the wind for the different 
months. It consists simply of a small windmill, the shaft of which 


288 Meteorological Register. 


is enclosed in a box, and suspends a weight upon a small cylinder, 
which, of course, increases in diameter at every degree marked upon 
the dial, which is upon the outer surface, the whole adjusting itself 
to the wind by a tail orrudder. ‘The days marked fair agree almost 
exactly with those of 1834, ’3, being for the first of those years 
two hundred and thirty one, and the second two hundred and thirty 
two. ‘The quantity of rain has been a fair average ;. the heaviest 
being the 10th of October, 3.63. The greatest change I have no- 
ticed has been in the number of days marked “south winds”—of 
those sultry winds, we had in 1833 sixty five days, and in ’84 forty 
days, and the corresponding years thirty and thirty four north wind 
days against fifty of this year. ‘To this we must mainly attribute the 
low range of the thermometer for the latter. ‘The variable winds 
too have prevailed to a greater extent than usual. 

My other occupations have prevented my making any consecutive 
observations upon the electrical state of the atmosphere ; perhaps 
those days marked “thunder” may give you some idea upon that 
subject. ‘The land breeze, which generally springs up between eight 
and twelve o’clock at night, has prevailed to about the same extent 
as usual. You will observe that the mean of three daily observa- 
tions gives the same result within a fraction, as the mean of two ex- 
tremes per register thermometer. I would therefore recommend 
the use of the latter in a climate like this, as being attended with far 
less trouble ; the only objection is that the quicksilver in the mercu- 
rial tube, is apt to become deranged when the instrument has been 
long used. 

At the time of the remarkable meteoric  digplaiyal in November, 
1833, I did myself the honor of making to you some observations 
upon the subject. I have not yet learned whether Be reached 
you.* IJ remain, sir, with high respect, 

Your very obd’nt serv’t, A. Matuory. 


* They were received, and are cited in Vol. XXV. p. 401.—Ep. 


Meteorological Register. 289 


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Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 37 


290 On the Elevation of Mountain Ranges. 


Art. XV.—On the Elevation of Mountain Ranges. 


Ir is an old theory, that the lower rock formations are more easily 
determined than the upper and more recent; it being sufficient to 
examine a'small portion of territory, in order to consider the remain- 
der analogous in age and character. ‘Those who still advance (not 
to say maintain) the opinion, and believe in good faith that a part, 
for instance, of the northern extremity of the Rocky Mountains is an 
index for their whole extent, even to the extreme south, are cer- 
tainly far behind the age in the investigations of a science where ad- 
vancements are as rapid as in geology. ‘That no such sure analo- 
gies are presented appears probable from hypothesis, and more than 
probable from observation. European geologists recognize within 
the small extent of the Alps not less than three, and in the Pyrenees 
four distinct classes. ‘The writer will now make a few remarks on 
causes which might produce so seeming a correspondence with so 
wide an actual difference. | 

If the earth contain, as is probable, a series of immense galvanic 
batteries, producing the results of electric and magnetic phenomena, 
the identity of the element being inferred ; then it may be assumed 
that this principle, acting by such vast machinery, and on so grand 
a scale, is adequate to the explanation required. And this power, 
which extends with variations from south to north, and proves the 
accumulation of forces to be in that direction, might, in one age, by 
a sudden expansion of elements, throw up the precipitous barrier 
mountains of Chili; and in another, acting on different combinations, 
produce the gradual swell of the crust above in the rise from the 
valley of the Mississippi, to the summits of the same range in our 
latitudes. ‘Thus it is not difficult to conceive that an extensive and 
continuous mountain range may present characteristics entirely dis- 
similar. ‘That the accumulation of forces is in the direction of the 
line of no variation, and not simply at the point beneath the mag- 
netic pole, is manifest, in as much as the attraction is towards the 
line, and not directly towards the pole. ‘Thus in 1813, the declina- 
tion of the needle at New Orleans was 8° east, and at Philadelphia 
2° 27’ west. If it be supposed that the needles were directed to 
some point of attraction, it would necessarily be where these lines 
produced will meet, which places the magnetic pole much too far 
south. ‘Therefore it is evident that the attracting power lay between 


On the Elevation of Mountain Ranges. 291 


the two places, and that it acts in the same manner as the local at- 
traction of iron mines in turning the needle from the direction of the 
pole. 

At present the direction of the magnetic line differs from any of 
our mountain ranges ; but that it may some time have been the same 
is not irrational to conjecture, since during less than half a century 
(the seventeenth) its course so greatly varied, that the whole extent 
of the Atlantic intervened between its places at the first and last ob- 
servations. What in the course of ages have been the causes to di- 
minish the intensity of the power, if it be diminished, or repress it, 
if it only slumber ; what are the laws of its variations, and what phe- 
nomena it may yet present, are subjects far beyond the limits of con- 
jecture. At least there, more than elsewhere, are indications of a 
stupendous, although quiescent force, to fix the attention of the phi- 
losopher ; and future observations may open a new era for science, 
if any connection in results can be demonstrated, tending to the dis- 
covery of the action of a principle which has been considered one of 
the mysteries of nature “ never to be searched out by man.”’ Wide 
as appear the deviations, and far from being systematized as are 
the facts recorded, it is not to be supposed. that the principle is out 
of harmony with the economy of nature, whose laws are as fixed in 
the wanderings of a comet as in the revolutions of a satellite. And 
whatever be the anomalies of a few years’ observations, the persua- 
sion cannot be resisted, that in the recorded history of many ages 
would be seen in this, only another instance of beautiful simplicity in 
the mechanism of nature. 

That the elevations in many mountainous districts have proceeded 
from local causes, and not from the action of any such constant prin- 
ciple, is not to be doubted ; and these, it is supposed, present suffi- 
ciently marked characteristics to be distinguished by accurate ob- 
servers. Such perhaps are the Alps, the Highlands of Scotland, 
and though several ranges of Europe tend towards the opposite or 
Siberian magnetic pole, yet they are in general limited or broken 
up; and the most careless and unscientific would naturally refer 
them to agencies, combined or acting differently from those which 
produced the great mountain ranges of America. 


292 Notes on Chemistry, &c. 


Arr. XVI.—Notes on Chemistry, &c.; by J. W. Batty, Acting 
Prof. Chem. &c. U.S. Mil. Acad. West Point. 


1. Substitute for Frogs in Galvanic Experiments.—Persons who 
may have occasion to repeat Galvani’s experiment on the legs of 
frogs, will doubtless be pleased to hear of some substitute, which 
will enable them to dispense with the disgusting operations of clean- 
ing, skinning, &c. which are necessary before the legs of a frog can 
be used. I find that a leg of the common grasshopper may be made 
to exhibit the muscular contractions ; and as it appears to be easily 
affected by electricity, can frequently be obtained when frogs can- 
not, can be prepared at a minute’s notice, and retains its irritability 
for five or ten minutes, it forms an excellent substitute. 

The method of preparation consists merely in removing, with a 
sharp penknife, from each side of the thick part of one of the leap- 
ing legs, a portion of the skin, so as to expose the flesh; then by 
laying the under side of the leg upon a small piece of moistened 
zinc, and bringing a piece of copper in contact with the flesh ex- 
posed on the upper side, no motions will be observed until the cop- 
per also touches the zinc, when quick movements or jerks of the 
lower part of the leg will be seen, each time that contact is made. 
In Fig. 1, Z is the zinc, C the copper, A, B the part of the leg 
which will be observed to move. 

2. Washing Bottles—The admirable contrivances of Berzelius 
and Gay-Lussac, by means of which a substance to be washed upon 
a filter, may be supplied with water as fast.as it is required, are not, 
I believe, so well known in this country, as their merits entitle them 
to be. Ihave used them with so much satisfaction, that I am in- 
duced to send the accompanying drawings and description ; believ- 
ing that they will be useful to some persons, who may be engaged 
in analysis or pharmaceutical Bieparnoey and to whom a may 
be unknown. 

Berzelius remarks, (Traité, ‘Tome VIII, p.270,) “ Few mene 
instruments are so valuable to the practical chemist, as these simple 
washing bottles, since by means of them, the washing may be.con- 
tinued during all the time the operator may be obliged to be absent, 
and during his presence it requires no particular attention,” except 
to see that channels do not {anes which may lead the water off too 
rapidly. 


Notes on Chemistry, &c. 293. 


The bottle used by Berzelius is fitted with a perforated cork, in 
which is inserted a tube of the form and dimensions represented in 
Big. 2. A,B isa tube drawn out below and turned up, terminating 
in.asmall orifice C. ‘The small piece of quill. tube D communicates 
with A,B by the orifice E. A person tolerably skilled in the use of 
the table blowpipe, can make one of these in ten minutes. 

The tube thus prepared is fixed, by means of a perforated cork, 
in a bottle containing water, and reversed over the filter, as in Fig. 
3. so that the orifice C is placed just below the upper surface of the 
liquid in the filter. When this liquid falls below a line FG, the 
weight of the column of water from E to FG overcomes the capil- 
lary attraction, which retained a portion of water in the tube D; air 


294 On the Elevation of the Banks of the Mississippi. 


will consequently enter at E: and water escape at C, thus the water 
in the filter will be kept at the level required. ‘The pure water that 
issues at C displaces the solution below it, and the washing goes on 
in the most rapid and best manner possible. 

Gay-Lussac’s arrangement is equally simple, and may be pre- 
pared with even more facility than the preceding. ‘The water is 
contained in a wide mouthed bottle AB (Fig. 4.) which is closed by 
a cork, through which passes a syphon with equal legs (CD) anda 
strait tube EF’, whose lower orifice is a little above the level of the 
opening of the syphon. ‘To facilitate the entrance of the air by 
means of this tube, it is cut off obliquely at bottom, as shown in the 
figure. ‘The end D of the syphon being plunged into the liquid in 
the filter, the water will commence running cut, while air enters, 
bubble by bubble, through the tube EF. The water in the filter 
will not rise above the level of the orifice F. . 

The best shape of the syphon is shown in Fig. 5. in which the 
exterior opening is turned upwards. No practical chemist should 
be without one or the other of the above arrangements. 


Apr. XVII. On the Elevation of the Banks of the Mississippr, 
wm 1811; by F. C. Usunr. 


Princeton, (N. J.) July 20, 1836. 
TO PROF. SILLIMAN. 

Dear Sir—Having failed, while I was in New Haven, to comply 
with your request, that I should- give to you on paper those state- 
ments that I made to you in the lecture-room, respecting the eleva- 
tion of the banks of the Mississippi by the earthquakes of 1811, I 
will take the privilege of doing it now and sending it to you. 

The statements which I shall make, I learned from the inhabitants 
of that place, together with what I saw myself. But having taken 
no notes, my memory being treacherous at that time, from ill health, 
and several years having elapsed since I was there, my statements 
will, of course, be liable to incorrectness. Notwithstanding, they 
shall be as near the truth as I can make them. 

That you may the better understand my statements, I send with 
this as correct a map of the river there, as I can prepare. 

In the fall and winter of 1S11, (I believe,) those earthquakes took 
place. Their center was Madrid and Madrid bend. On both sides 


On the Elevation of the Banks of the Mississippi. 295 


Kentucky. 


Tennessee, 


| Me 
y Ahan 
5 


| | 
U 


Nu) 
| 


1, Madrid.—2, Madrid Bend.—3, A swamp that was elevated —4, A bed of coal 
under the river.—5, Land elevated—6, Lakes formed: they are noi all one, as re- 
presented in the drawing; I know too little to divide them: that there isa string 
of them there is all I know about it—7, Land depressed.—8, This part of Madrid 
bend is now forming by the river. 


of the river the earth cracked open, and streams of fire and red hot 
sand were thrown up. Some of these cracks were of considerable 
Tength and depth, and three or four feet wide. I saw some that 
were still four feet wider, and four feet deep, and extended, I was 
told, for miles. ‘The shocks extended to all the surrounding country, | 
for hundreds of miles, and were so violent as to shake down chinineys 
in many places, and even houses in Madrid and its vicinity. Madrid 
was then, and is still, a small place, and the surrounding region was 
then but thinly settled. ‘That whole region (so far as I could ascer- 
tain) is bedded on quicksand ; at least that which is near the river. 
This is proved by the sinking of wells, as well as by the fact that 
the falling of large timber shakes the earth toa great distance. This 
I have felt. Just below the surface of the river, at low water, is seen, 
as I was told, a bed of coal along round the Madrid bend ; proving 
that the river has washed its channel through a bed of coal at that 
place. ‘The bank marked by the figure 7, on which Madrid stands, 
was above the highest water mark before the earthquakes, but since 


296 On the Elevation of the Banks of the Mississippi. 


that, it has been subject to overflows to some extent; while the op- 
posite side of the river was inundated by high water previous to that 
period, but since that it has not been known to be flooded. This is 
proved by the quantities of large cane that cover it, which is not 
the case with land that is flooded. to any extent. ‘That part of the 
Madrid bend marked 8 is to be excepted, as it is a bank now in the 
act of forming, by deposits from the river, a circumstance, I believe, 
almost peculiar to that stream. ‘That part of the Madrid bend to 
which the remark respecting its being elevated applies, is that which. 
is marked by the figure 5. But not only that part of the Bend 
marked with 5 was elevated, but also all that. bank of the river 
where the figure 5 stands, until you get below the mouth of the river 
Obion, was raised at the same time. This elevation, however, was 
only afew feet. It, to some extent, obstructed the mouth of Reelfoot 
creek; also that of Obion river. This obstruction formed several 
lakes along back of this, where the figures 6 stand. It is quite 
probable that the land there was depressed, in some degree, in or- 
der to form these lakes. ‘That these lakes, which are called Reel- 
foot and Obion, were formed then is proved by the old trees that 
were standing in them when | was there. ‘The black spot by the 
figure 3, represents a swamp that has been raised. ‘There are many 
such swamps, or rather sloughs, on that river, formed by the river 
forsaking its bed, and this is filled up first at either end, and then by 
degrees the other part is filled, by sediment carried into it by the 
floods, until at length it gets so that there is little else in it but a 
deep thin soft mud. Around the edges, which are higher and dryer, 
cypress has begun to grow, and by shooting its roots into the mud, it 
stiffens and dries it; as this takes place, small ones shoot up, and 
thus the trees environ those swamps. ‘The larger ones are on the 
more elevated and dryer ground, and the smaller ones farther in. 
The swamp alluded to by figure 3 has this arch of cypress around 
it, the larger on the higher and the smaller on the lower ground, 

but beyond the influence of the cypress roots, it takes a gradual 
swell, rising higher in the center than elsewhere, but is very regular 
in its shape, looking as if when soft it had been pressed up from be- 
neath, the center and softer parts rising the higher. This beautiful 
piece of land, for it is now high and dry, is covered with a uniform 
growth of young cotton wood. ‘That this was one of those sloughs, 
and has been raised, is evident from the encircling cypress, its uni- 
form shape, its bemg without cane in the midst of a cane brake, and. 
the character, age, and uniformity of the trees that cover it. 


Hinman & Co, Si 


gel 


f: 


Da 


JamesD Dana Del. 


ARGULUS CATROSTOMT 


Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 297 


- Art. XVILL— Description of the Ancutus CarosTomt, a new pa- 
rasitic Crustaceous animal, (with figures.) By J. D. Dana and 
E. C. Herricx, Members of the Yale Nat. Hist. Soc. 


Read before the Yale Nat. Hist. Soc. June 2, and Aug. 4, 1836. 


For our knowledge of the existence of the interesting animal 
which we have attempted to describe in the following paper, we 
are indebted to Mr. Puitos Buaxe of this city. Early in the 
spring of 1835, this gentleman, whom we have always found ready 
to do a service to ihe cause of science, very kindly brought a spe- 
cimen for our examination. ‘This was accidentally destroyed before 
it had been fully investigated, and nothing further was done concern- 
ing the matter for that year. During the past: season however, 
through the attention of the Messrs. Buaxes, and of several of the 
intelligent workmen engaged in their establishment, we have been 
liberally supplied. 

A slight examination sufficed to show that the animal was closely 
related to that singular crustaceous parasite, which has attracted so 
much deserved attention, the Argulus foliaceus of Jurine, Jr.* 
The resemblance is so great that a hasty observer might conclude 
that the two are specifically identical ; but after considerable study 
we are convinced that they are not. The correctness of this result, 
we hope to make apparent in the following pages. 

The animal before us has been found at various times in the wa- 
ters of Mill river, near Whitneyville, just below the fall at the man- 
ufactory there established. We have discovered none above the 
fall, but have been told that for a mile above, they are occasionally 
seen. It may not be irrelevant to mention that the tide-water of 
New Haven harbor flows up as far as the fall, so that the stream 
here has a large admixture of sea-water. It infests the fish here 
called the Sucker. The fish evidently pertains to the genus Catos- 
tomus of Le Surur, a monograph of which is given by him in the 
Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, Vol. I, 
(8vo. 1817.) We cannot satisfactorily determine whether it is his 
C. Bostoniensis or C. communis, and are somewhat inclined to think 
that on further examination they may prove varieties of one species. 


* The elaborate memoir of this author contained in the Annales du Muséum 
ad Hist. Nat. de Paris, 4to. tome VII. (1807,) has been our chief source of infor- 
mation concerning this species. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 38 


298 Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 


We were at first informed by several persons, that the parasite was 
found adhering to the outside of the fish when taken from the stream, 
but our own experience has never furnished a solitary case where this 
was the fact. We have universally detected it within the branchial 
cavities ; usually on the operculum or gill-cover, and not on the sub- 
stance of the gills. On immersing the fish in a vessel of fresh water, 
the Arguli desert their habitation, and after swimming about a few 
moments, often attach themselves to the. anterior part of the fish, 
but never, as we could discover, for the purpose of feeding. Not 
unfrequently they also attach themselves to the sides of the vessel, 
and there remain many hours. This parasite has hitherto been dis- 
covered in the Sucker only: and we therefore call it the ArcuLws 
Catostomt, a name which cannot be inappropriate even if the ani- 
mal should hereafter be found on other fish. ‘The Argulus foliaceus, 
according to all the accounts we have seen, is never observed on the 
gills, but always on the exterior of the fish. 


The body is covered for the most part by a shell so transparent 
that the principal organs below may easily be seen. ‘The shell is 
nearly circular, somewhat broader transversely, slightly convex, with 
the clypeus extending a little beyond the general curvature. Pos- 
teriorly, it is divided into two broad lobes by a deep sinus, which 
gradually widens from its origin and extends as far as the line of 
junction between the first and second pair of natatory legs, leaving 
free the three latter joints of the abdomen. ‘The shell is membra- 
nous and flexible ; above glabrous. Its color is a light sea-green. 
The border of the shell and a small spot over each pair of antenne 
are highly diaphanous. Beneath, the duplicature of the shell forms 
a wide band around the marginal portions, and leaves open a large 
reniform area.on each side, and also another open spot of an irreg- 
ularly circular form about the central parts of the wings of the shell. 
The wide marginal band is thickly set with minute reflexed spines. 

The eyes as viewed from above, present twelve or thirteen dark 
reddish-brown facets, disposed in two concentric curves on a grayish 
convex receptacle, surrounded, except on the interior side, by a 
series of colorless facets. 

The antenne are situated in front of the eyes. ‘The anterior pair 
is short and stout, two-jointed ; basal joint broader transversely ;— 
terminal joint nearly at right angles with the first, gradually tapering 
from a broad base, and ending in a large, brown corneous recurved 


Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 299 


spine. This joint is hollow and contains a retractile spine of a 
brown color, capable of being projected into the terminating spine 
of the joint. From the middle of the posterior surface arises a 
jointed transparent process directed outward, extending beyond 
the main branch of the antenne and terminated by three or four ter- 
minal transparent spines. ‘This process is also furnished with a spine 
near its extremity.—The postertor pair of the antennz is one third 
longer than the anterior, to which they are at base closely approxi- 
mate. ‘They are four-jointed, slender and diaphanous. ‘The basal 
joint is large and sub-cylindrical, with a few minute spines on its 
posterior basal portion ; second joint one third the diameter of the 
first, with a few spines at its apex. Similar spines are observed on 
the apex of the first, which is one half the length of the preceding. 
Apical joint half the penultimate in length and diameter, terminated 
by three or four transparent spines. From the base of the first pair 
of antennz arises a short, fleshy cone, directed backwards and down- 
wards, having at its apex a stout, corneous tooth. The insertion of 
the muscles moving the antenne may be observed near the base of 
the sucker. 3 

The organs of manducation are complex. ‘The anterior organ is 
a sucker, inserted in a three-sided membranous transparent retrac- 
tile sheath, having free motion in any direction from its insertion in 
the fleshy parts below. While at rest it is directed forward and ex- 
tends to the base of the antenne. When the sucker is retracted 
within the sheath, a long ligulate muscle is observed lying loosely 
on the right, extending from the upper part of the sucker to the 
parts below its base. 

Below the msertion of the sucker arises aconvex oval mass (Figs. 
1 and 4,) containing the rest of the mouth apparatus. It has a mo- 
tion to some extent in every direction. Its lower half is covered by 
a lip, or thin transparent veil, capable of a backward movement ; 
its upper limits are marked by the line aba’, (Fig. 4.) At bisa 
conical fleshy protuberance, inserted on the interior surface of the 
lip, and extending a little beyond its upper limits. Anterior to this 
lip lies transversely a bony arch (cce’,) of a brownish yellow color, 
curved forward and giving off obliquely downward on each side two 
bones, connected by a membrane. The extremities of this arch 
are gradually lost in the parts above. ‘This arch is the lower limit 
of the membrane that covers the anterior portion of the oval mass. 
This anterior membrane is connected laterally with a slender bone 


300 Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 


de, d’e’, which near the center of the sides of the oval mass (at e) 
curving suddenly inward and downward and at the same time enlarg- 
ing tends to the base of the maxilla. This bone at its angle e forms 
an ear-like projection to the oval'mass. On each side of the center 
arises a curved, corneous and slightly colored maxilla (/; f’, Figs. 
4 and 5,) which extends forward beneath and beyond the arch; the 
broad inner edge of each is serrated. An indistinct line near the apex 
appears to separate a short apical joint. ‘These maxille approach 
at their extremities and are each connected at their base with one 
of the forks of a long, narrow, furcated bone g, which extends out- 
ward and as far forward as the attachment of the sucker sheath to 
the body, where it appears to be loosely connected with the. sur- 
rounding muscles. ‘The other fork of this bone is connected with 
the lateral bones before described as tending towards the base of the 
maxille after forming an ear-like projection. Between and con- 
nected with the maxille near their base, are two horizontal united 
processes, (h, Fig. 5,) which become visible on the retraction of the 
lip. 

The maxille are capable of a slight motion back and forth in con- 
nection with the ear-like projections, which is effected by means of 
muscles extended nearly in the direction of the bones just described, 
and inserted near the anterior part of the base of the suction feet. 

Between the two maxille laterally, the bony arch above, and the 
lip below, appears the orifice of the mouth, (above 6, Fig. 4.) Be- 
yond the maxille is frequently observed an internal longitudinal 
fissure, the opening of whichis always accompanied with a retraction 
of the lower lip. On withdrawing this lip, and forcibly severing 
and uplifting the bony arch with the membranes, and the maxille 
with the long narrow bones to which they are attached, a second set 
of organs, similar to the first, presents itself. ‘The maxille of the 
inner mouth, which may, for distinction, be called the anner maaille, 
are in shape, situation and structure, like the outer. They are dimly 
seen from without, just in front of the external maxille, (Fig. 4.) 
The longitudinal fissure above described appears to be situated in the 
upper membranes connected with the inner mouth, and extends for- 
ward from the bony arch of the inner mouth between the maxille. 
In endeavoring to trace analogies between this mouth apparatus and 
that of the more highly organized Crustacea, we are led to believe 
that the sheath of the sucker represents the /abzwm, which may be 
supposed to be greatly elongated, and by the union of its lateral 


Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 301 


margins to become tubular; and that the enclosed spicula represents 
_ the mandibles. The part which we have called the lower lip, is 
analogous to the /anguette; and the maxille with the long bones 
thereto attached are not unlike these organs as usually observed. 

In the Argulus foliaceus the entire oval mass, which we have above 
described, is assumed by Jurtne tobe the heart ; which we are com- 
pelled to consider a total error. The palpitation, or alternate con- 
traction and dilatation, which he speaks of, appears to us nothing 
more than the motion of the maxille, which just before death often 
becomes incessant, and in the instance mentioned by him was prob- 
ably caused by the ‘‘ alcoholic asphyxiation.” 

The anterior legs are short, hollow, flexible cylinders, containing 
four tumid membranes attached near the center of these legs at the 
bottom and extending up along the sides. By means of these the 
animal is enabled to exhaust the cavities and thus attach itself to its 
prey. The extremity terminates in a broad, circular, horizontal 
rim, with a margin nearly entire, provided with about eighty bony 
rays, each composed of eleven joints, (Fig. 6.) When the animal 
is nearly dead, this rim assumes a vertical position, and from the 
relaxing of the membrane appears to have a crenated margin.* 
These legs in their natural position are at right angles with the body 
and consequently the lower portions are concealed by the termina- 
ting border. On fig. 1, may be seen lines proceeding from between 
the base of the anterior antenne which probably mark the limits of 
a muscle connected with these legs. 

The prehensile legs arise below and on each side of the mouth, 
and are six-jointed. The thigh or second joint, is short, massive 
and irregular, and its posterior margin is occupied by three broad 
and flat teeth, with interstices about equal to half the average width. 
These teeth are irregularly quadrilateral with rounded angles. In 
this respect this species differs from the A. foliaceus, in which 
there are four narrow, acute, and incurved teeth about the base of 
this joint. 

On the lower surface is a triangular, subconvex eleyanam covered 
with papille. The third joint gradually tapers towards its apex, 
where it is papillose ; the fourth joint is shorter than the third, and 


* Jurine’s figure of this rim or disk errs in exhibiting it in the vertical position 
as that which appears during life: this is never obscured except when the powers 
ef life are nearly exhausted. 


802 Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 


flattened on the under side, which is also papillose; the fifth is simi- 
lar to the fourth, and about one third its length; the terminal is 
provided with two apical hooks. 

The natatory or branchial legs arise in a series on each side of the 
_ abdomen. The three anterior pairs are composed each of three, the 
fourth of two, large fleshy joints, and are terminated by two long pin- 
nule. Along the posterior edge of the second and third joimts of the 
two anterior natatories, is a ciliated ridge; a corresponding ridge is 
observed on the third joint of the third pair, while on the second joint 
there is substituted a-ciliated lamina: similar lamin are situated on 
both joints of the fourth pair, which on the basal joint is large and 
cultriform, and covers the termination of the abdomen. The edges 
of the pinnule are provided each with a row of transparent plumose 
cilie. These rows are inclined to one another at an angle of about 
120°, and in the usual position of the pinnule, one is invisible, it 
being directed towards the shell. 

The outer pinnula of the first pair of natatories is three-jointed ; 
(Fig. 7.) the first joint occupies nearly its whole length, the other 
two are very short and destitute of ciliz : at the apex are two mi- 
nute sete. Along the centre of these pinnule runs a dark vessel, 
which is probably connected with the branchial cilie. At the base 
of the pinnule of the first and second pairs of legs on the upper side, 
arises a recurved pinnula, composed of two nearly equal joints, and 
ciliated like those above described.* During life, the legs are ex- 
tended a little forward, and the pinnule are wholly covered by the 
shell. At death they are inclined backward, as in Fig. 9. 

The abdomen is somewhat depressed and composed of four joints, 
each of which gives rise to a pair of natatory legs ; the fourth jomt 
extends mostly beyond the shell. From its extremity proceeds a 
broad rounded lamina, bilobate posteriorly, and provided with two 
minute projecting ciliated plates, at the base of the terminal sinus. 
This caudal lamina or tail has an entire and diaphanous margin, and 
is destitute of ciliz. 

Extending from the termination of the abdomen, and partially cov- 
ered by the cultriform plates on the fourth pair of natatories, are two 
narrow lamine, (Fig. 1. ss.) near the base of which are the organs 


*In the Argulus foliaceus, the first outer pinnula is not stated to be articulated ; 
neither is mention made of any joints in the fleshy part.of the natatory legs, or in 
the recurved pinnule. 


Description of the Argulus Catostom. 303 


of reproduction. ‘Two oval yellowish vesicles or pouches, (Fig. 
1. rr.) are situated in the tail on each side of these lamine.* 

The anal orifice is situated between the laminz at the base of the 
caudal sinus: the feces are conveyed through a duct lying along 
the central line of the tail, and pass out on the lower side of the 
lamine. 


The brain is situated near the upper surface of the shell over the 
sucker, and at its posterior extremity is composed of three connivent 
elliptical masses, of which two are nearly longitudinal, and the ante- 
rior transverse. ‘The central portion between these elliptical mass- 
es, is. of a deep reddish black. From the brain, nerves are given 
out, which proceed down the abdomen, and supply the natatory 
legs; below, another nerve is visible, passing to each eye. 

Posterior to the oval mass, and within the body, are observed four 
imbricated laminz, of which the three anterior are cordate. Long 
slender cords appear to proceed from the sides of each lamina, and 

‘extend into the natatory legs ; those from the first lamina extending 
to the first pair of natatories, &c. These cords have much the ap- 
pearance of muscles. No blood is seen circulating in them, though 
it is very discernible, in a broad backward current over them. This 
current appears to arise from beneath the imbricate lamine, and thus 
renders it probable that they have some connection with the heart, 
if they do not actually compose it. ‘The blood is limpid, and holds 
suspended numerous egg-shaped particles, (ig. 8,) and is propelled 
by distinct pulsations, which occur about once ina second. ‘The 
length of these particles is about ;,,,th of an inch, and the createst 
breadth about 2ths of the length. The current above referred to, 
cannot be traced along the abdomen ; but in the tail there are dis- 
tinctly apparent two parallel currents, which diverge at the base of 
the terminating sinus, and curving around the transparent margin, re- 
turn into the body. Numerous subordinate currents ramify through- 
out the tail, dividing it into minute areolas. 

In an upper view of the animal, a strong current is observed above 
the heart, proceeding towards the brain, (Fig. 9.r.) where branches 
are given out to the antenne and eyes. ‘The antennary current, af- 
ter reaching the antenne, is soon lost in the surrounding parts of the 
shell. Just below, however, on each side, appear minute branching 


* All the specimens we have seen (about thirty) have been provided with these 
vesicles. It is possible that we have not seen any of the male sex. 


304 Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 


vessels, in which the blood has a returning course. These minute 
vessels discharge themselves in a broad channel, (Fig. 9. n.) which 
enters the body near the base of the abdomen. 

The ophthalmic current, which is most distinctly seen in an under 
view, curves at the eye and passes backward, enters the suction legs, 
is seen again between those legs and the prehensile, and also for a 
short distance posterior to the latter, after which it disappears. 

Another current (Fig. 9. k.) goes out laterally, a short distance be- 
hind the brain, to the anterior margin of the reniform area before 
described. It passes just within the exterior margin of the same 
area, and returns into the body after a final course along then inner 

edge of each lobe of the shell. 

Near the base of the abdomen arises a Gait current, which run- 
ning downward and outward is diffused through the lower portions 
of the shell, and probably returns into the body by the same cur- 

rent with the preceding. 

It is impossible to trace the passage of the blood into the bran- 
chial legs. It is probable that the above currents, after returning 
to the body, pass to these legs for aeration, and thence to the heart 
to be again diffused throughout the animal. Pulsation is frequently 
observable along the whole abdomen, and often with great distinct- 
ness in the tail. The currents of blood are not apparently confined 
within vessels of definite limits. 

The pairs of muscles by which the animal moves the various aa 
of the shell are four. The first, or that acting on the clypeus, arises 
each side of the brain and accompanies the antennary blood vessels. 
The second (00) arises just below the base of the preceding, and is di- 
rected outward and upward. Between this and the third is a suture, 
which is apparent when either muscle is in action. ‘The third. ac- 
companies the current of blood (k) which passes to the anterior part of 
the reniform area. The fourth accompanies the current (m) which 
flows to the posterior portion of the shell, and is attached near the 
central part of this portion. Several of these muscles are easily 
mistaken for the courses of the blood. ‘The muscles of the legs are 
for the most part visible, and are given in the plate. ‘T'wo muscles 
extend from their insertion, near the base of the prehensile legs, on 
each side of the abdomen, and appear to cross near its extremity. 

The entire abdominal region below of the gravid female, is occu- 
pied by eggs. The number of eggs which may be laid by one fe- 
male, cannot be stated with certainty. On the 18th of June, 1836, 


Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 305 


one of them deposited on the sides of the vessel in which she was 
contained, about one thousand five hundred, and a considerable mass 
of eggs still remained within. The eggs have an oval form, are 
white when first laid, but soon become of a dirty yellow, and finally 
assume longitudinal crenated ribs. ‘They are attached to each other 
and to the object on which they are placed, by a glutinous substance, 
and are disposed end to end, in single rows of about four or five, 
sometimes however of ten or fifteen. These rows have a somewhat 
promiscuous arrangement. 

Thirty five days after deposition, the young animal appeared, 
through a longitudinal fissure in the shell, the eyes and some of 
the darker parts having been visible about ten days previous. Its 
length is ;'; of an inch, and the general shape of the shell an 
oval, somewhat broader anteriorly. Beyond the shell, extend the 
three terminal joints of the abdomen, ending in a broad tail, with two 
terminal elongated protuberances, from each of which proceed three 
unequal sete. 

The eyes are of a reddish brown color, and proportionally much 
larger than in the adult animal. The anterior pair of antenne have 
a general resemblance to the corresponding pair in the perfect ani- 
mal, except that here the posterior branch is proportionally much 
larger and constitutes the chief part of the organ. 

Behind these arise two pairs of oars; the anterior pair have a 
basal joint in common with the posterior antenne which extend down-' 
ward and outward from the oar. Jurine seems to have erred in 
supposing this pair independent of the oar. ‘The oars are slender 
and cylindrical, extending beyond the shell. From each proceeds a 
pencil of plumose hairs; the number of these, in the anterior pair 
is four, in the posterior, three. ‘These hairs may be made to approxi- 
mate or diverge at pleasure. ‘The posterior pair may possibly rep- 
resent the maxille which are wanting; they appear to arise from the 
origin of the long bones which in the perfect animal are found con- 
nected with the maxille. 

The sucker extends beyond the anterior margin of the shell and 
is distinct, but the organs contained in the oval mass below are ex- 
tremely obscure. 

The suction legs are replaced, as is the case with the A. foliaceus, 
by a pair of prehensile legs, which end each in a spine provided 
with a sheath in which it commonly lies, (fig. 11.) The next pair 
are somewhat like the prehensile in the perfect animal, which legs 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 39 


806 Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 


they represent. ‘The next pair (representing the first pair of nata- 
tory legs,) terminate in two branches, one of which is jointed, while 
the other ends in two sete. ‘The three following pairs of natatories 
are not developed. Instead thereof are three protuberances on each 
side of the abdomen, ending each in two setz. 

"The internal organs of the abdomen as observed are exhibited in 
fig. 10. 

The larve is quite active, and by means of its oars swims with 
great agility. Out of a thousand, none lived more than four or five 
days, probably for the want of appropriate nourishment. During 
that time they suffered no change. ie 


From the structure of the mouth as described in the preceding 
article it is obvious that the name of the order (Siphonostoma) to 
which the animal must be referred, is not truly applicable, since 
the siphon is a small part only of the apparatus for manducation. 
It seems to be a connecting link between the Xyphosura and Sipho- 
nostoma, and may perhaps hereafter become the type of a new order. 

A plain man, and quite unversed in comparative anatomy, on 
looking at our Argulus with a lens of moderate power, remarked 
that it was nothing but a young horse shoe. ‘The animal to which 
he referred is the Limulus Polyphemus, (commonly called horse shoe 
or horse foot,) found so abundantly on our coasts. Although our 
opinion does not altogether coincide with his, yet we think that be- 
tween the two, many analogies may be traced. 

In the Limulus the relative sizes of the clypeal and the thoracic 
segments are in inverse ratio to the same parts in the Argulus; in the 
former, the clypeus occupying a large portion, in the latter, but a 
small portion, of the shell. ‘The prehensile legs of the latter cor- 
respond in the number and relative size of joints, and in the denta- 
tion of the haunches, to the posterior pair of manducatory legs* of 
the former. The semicircular membrane of the former, which is 
composed of a pair of united legs, represents the tail of the latter. 
It resembles it in containing near its origin, two seminal pouches and 
in being furnished with two collateral lamelle at its terminal sinus ; 
as well as in its general form. ‘The natatory legs of the latter are 
the analogues of the branchial legs of the former; their number is 
however smaller by one, unless we consider the anterior pair as com- 
posed of two in union, which opinion receives much support from the 
fact that in the larve this organ is double. 


* In this pair the number of joints is six; in the four preceding pairs, one less. 


Description of the Argulus Catostomi. 307 


In endeavoring to demonstrate, in the Argulus, the eleven pairs of 
parts or organs which are commonly found posterior to the antenne, 
in all the Crustacea, we proceed thus :—as reckoned above, there 
are, including the tail, six pairs of branchial members; next, two 
pairs of prehensile, considering the suction legs as such; then, two 
pairs of maxille; and lastly, a pair of mandibles transformed into 
the siphon. The bony arch, situated on the medial line, is not un- 
like the bony wall which in other Crustacea forms the anterior bor- 
der of the buccal aperture. 

J. V. THomrson, the author of many curious discoveries con- 
cerning the metamorphosis of the Crustacea, has published* a short 
notice of an anomalous parasite which he names Sacculina Carcint, 
found by him on the Carcinus Menas. This parasite he considers 
identical with the Argulus armiger of Mu.urr, figured by Suas- 
BER in plate 6 of his Natuurkundige Verlustigingen, (Haarlem, 
1769-78)—a species we cannot find recognized in any work since 
the time of Muturr, except in the Encyclopedie Methodique, (In- 
sectes, Art. Argule.) Mr. 'T. has not seen it in the mature state, 
and it is therefore at present impossible to ascertain its relations to 
the A. foliaceus or A. Catostomi. The larve appears to be totally 
destitute of all organs of manducation. We hope to hear further 
respecting so remarkable an animal. 

The buccal apparatus of the Pandarus alatust has, as from its sim- 
ilarity of habits might be expected, some resemblance to that of the 
Argulus, but the siphon when at rest, lies in a reverse direction. 
An extended comparison between the trophi of these two genera, 
would be of great interest. 

We are well aware that the foregoing account of the Argulus Ca- 
tostom? is not complete.. Many particulars of its habits and meta- 
morphoses, together with many important details of anatomy are yet 
to be discovered. Some of these deficiencies we hope to supply at 


a future day. 
New Haven, Conn., October, 1836. 


EXPLANATION OF THE PLATE. 


Fig. 1. Under view of the Argulus Catostomi. Seminal pouches r, r, 
Fig.2. Posterior branch of the first pair of antenne. 
Fig. 3. Termination of the second pair of antenne. 


* Entomological Magazine, (8vo. London,) Vol. 3, p. 452—456. April, 1836. 
+ Described and figured by H. Miine Epwarps, in Annales des Sciences Natu- 
relles, (8vo. Paris,) tome 28, p. 78—86, and plate 8, 


308 Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 


Fig. 4. Mouth apparatus—aba! upper limits of lower lip—cc! the extremities 
of the transverse bony arch—de, bone which curves ate and passes towards the 
base of the maxilla—f, f! aaeselikea, the lower extremities a which are beneath the 
lower lip. 

Fig. 5. g,g’ internal bones connected with the maxille f, ft and situated in the 
animal as here represented. 

Fig. 6. One of the jointed bony rays of the suction legs. 

Fig. '7. First pair of natatory legs, exhibiting the two terminating pinnule, of 
which one is jointed at its extremity, and also the recurved pinnula, jointed near 
its middle—also the ridges of hairs which in the animal are represented near the 
posterior margin of the legs. These hairs are perspectively foreshortened. 

Fig: 8. Particles observed in the circulating fluid. 

Fig.9. Back view of the Argulus Catostomi, the right hand side exhibiting 
the circulation, the left hand, the muscles which move the shell, andthe organs 
below as seen ihrough the transparent parts above—i,i, the antennary current— 
n, the return current of the same—h, the ophthalmic, (Geen most distinctly below)— 
= ,k, k, and m, lateral current shes direction is pointed out by the arrows they 
contain. The arrows in the tail mark the direction of its currents—z, z, the junc- 
tion of the shell with the abdomen. On the left, i,o,k, m, represent four muscles 
by which the animal moves its shell. Three of the blood vessels above pointed 
out, i,k,m, are in the direction of these muscles—i,i, move the clypeus—o, a 

“portion of the shell between the clypeus and x—k, and m, the lateral and posterior 
parts of the same. 

Fig. 10. Under view of the young of the Argulus Catostomi. 

Fig. 11. Termination of the legs corresponding to the suction legs in the per- 
fect animal, the spine partly separated from its sheath. . 


Art. XIX.—A Translation of a memoir entitled “ Beitrage zur 
Lehre von der Befruchtung der Planzen,”’ (Contributions to the 
doctrine of the impregnation of plants;) by A. J. C. Corpa: 
published in the 17th volume of the Nova Acta Physico-medica 
Academie Cesar. Leopold.-Carol. Nature Curiosorum. Breslau 
and Bonn, 1835 ;—With prefatory remarks on the progress of 
discovery relative to vegetable fecundation; by Asa Gray, M.D. 


Read before the Lyceum of Natural History, New York, Oct. 24th, 1836. 


Tue last volume of the transactions of the Imperial Acad. Nature 
Curiosorum, just received through the kindness of the learned Nees 
Von Esenbeck, the president of that society, contains a brief memoir 
on the impregnation of plants, which will doubtless be read by the 
botanist and the physiologist with more than ordinary interest. M. 
Corda, in the paper referred to, gives an account ofan original and 
highly curious series of observations on the structure and develop- 
ment of the ovules, and the mode in which impregnation is effected, 
in the natural family Conifer. The memoir is illustrated by nu- 
merous admirably executed figures. 


Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 309 


The comparatively recent discoveries of Amici, Adolphe Brong- 
niart, Mirbel, and Brown, having invested the subject of vegetable 
reproduction with unusual interest, I was naturally led to study the 
memoir of M. Corda with particular attention. The researches here 
communicated to the scientific world are the last, though by no means 
the least, of a series of discoveries on this recondite subject, which, 
taken together, may be safely said to form the most important con- 
tribution ever made in vegetable physiology. I had prepared a 
translation of this paper for my own private use; but, supposing that 
it would be generally interesting, I have been induced to lay it before 
the Lyceum. I have thought it advisable, moreover, to premise a 
cursory account of the progress of discovery respecting the fecunda- 
tion of flowering plants, for the purpose of rendering the subjoined 
memoir more generally intelligibie to those who are not particularly 
conversant with the present state of botanical science. 

Impregnation, in flowering plants, essentially consists in the pro- 
duction of an embryo or rudimentary plant within the ovule,* or 
body destined to become the seed. Since the office of the stamens 
in vegetable reproduction was indicated by Grew and Ray, and 
afterwards clearly established by Linneus, it has been well known 
that unless some grains of pollen come in contact with the stigma, 
impregnation does not take place. ‘The seed-vessel may, indeed, 
continue to grow and ripen in the absence of pollen, and the con- 
tained ovules attain the size, texture, and (the embryo excepted) 
the structure of well-formed seeds ; but in such cases a rudimentary 
plant, which is the essential part of the seed, is never produced. 
Respecting the immediate origin of the embryo in the animal king- 
dom, it is well known that three different hypotheses, being all that 
the nature of the case admits of, were advanced at an early period. 
These several hypotheses have been extended by analogy to the 
vegetable kingdom. According to one view a germ furnished by 


* The reader is supposed to be acquainted generally with the structure of the 
ovule, a subject upon which the limits of the present remarks will not allow me to 
enter, except to indicate the sources from which the requisite knowledge may be 
obtained, viz: R. Brown’s paper on the genus Kingia, with remarks on the struc- 
ture of the unimpregnated ovule; Mém. sur la génération et le développement de 
Pembryon, §-c. by Ad. Brongniart in the 12th vol. of the Annales des Sciences 
Naturelles; and, particularly, Nouvelles recherches sur la structure et le developpe- 
ment de Vovule végétal, by Mirbel, in the 17th vol. of the same work. The sub- 
stance of these memoirs will be found in the more recent elementary botanical 
works. 


310 Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 


the pollen is supposed to be deposited in, and nourished by the ovule: 
according to another, the germ is thought either to pre-exist in, or 
to be originally formed by the ovule itself, and that it is merely exci- 
ted into action by an influence derived from the pollen: and according 
to a third, the embryo is conceived to result from the union of a germ 
furnished by the pollen with another produced by the ovule.* It is 
hardly probable that we shall ever possess the means of absolutely 
proving the correctness or demonstrating the fallacy of either of these 
hypotheses ; but it may be remarked that the first mentioned view, 
which was advanced at an early period, is the most difficult to be 
reconciled either with the phenomena of hybridity or with the man- 
ifest analogy that exists between seeds and buds; and yet recent 
discoveries have again rendered it the more probable hypothesis. 
Soon after the discovery of the office of the pollen, several at- 
tempts were made to explain the manner in which this substance 
acts upon the stigma. Some of the earlier writers, such as Geoffroi 
and Malpighi, seem to take it for granted that the entire grains of 
pollen which fall upon the stigma pass down the style quite into the 
ovary ; and Moreland} suggested that the grains even penetrate the 
ovules and become the embryo. The latter author, who was, I be- 
lieve, the first to extend the hypothesis of Leeuwenhoek to the veg- 
etable kingdom, inquires ‘“‘ whether it be not more proper to suppose 
that the seeds which come up in their proper znvolucra, are at first 
like unimpregnated ova of animals; that this farina (pollen) isa 
congeries of seminal plants, one of which must be conveyed into 
every ovum before it can become prolific; that the stylus in Mr. 
Ray’s language, the upper part of the pistillum in Mr. Tournefort’s, 
is a tube destined to convey these seminal plants into their nest in 
the ova; that there is so vast a provision made because of the odds 
there are whether one of so many shall ever find its way into and 
through so narrow a conveyance.” He then proceeds to record 
several circumstances ; which are, in his opinion, confirmatory of 
this view ; especially the manifestly tubular style of the Crown Im- 


* The latter hypothesis is adopted by Ad. Brongniart with much confidence in 
his memoir above cited,‘ Dans cet espace... . un ou quelques-uns des granules 
spermatiques s’unissent probablement a d’autres granules fournis par lovule pour ° 
donner naissance au petit globule, premier rudiment informe de l’embryo,” &c. 
Ad. Brongniart in Ann. Sci. Nat. 12, p. 254. 

t Some new Observations on the Parts and the Use of the flower in Plants; by 
Samuet Moretann.—Philosophical Transactions, Vol. 23, (1'703.) 


& 


Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 311 


perial and some other plants, the cavity of which he erroneously 
considered to lead directly into the seed-vessel. This cavity, how- 
ever, only exists in some compound styles, being formed by the co- 
hesion of three or more simple styles so as to form a hollow cylinder, 
and it consequently does not communicate with the interior of the 
ovary. Moreland also observed the micropyle (the vestige of the 
foramen of the ovule) in peas and beans; he supposed it to be a 
perforation prodticed by the entrance of a grain of pollen, which, 
having fallen down the tube into the ovary, had at length entered 
the ovule and become the embryo or seminal plant. 

It was discovered, I think by Needham, that when grains of pollen 
are moistened or thrown upon water, they usually burst with vio- 
lence and discharge the slightly viscous and turbid fluid contained 
within. ‘To this fluid the immediate agency in impregnation was 
attributed by Linneus and contemporary botanists. ‘Two opinions, 
however, have prevailed respecting the mode of its action upon the 
ovule; some writers supposing the fluid itself to be conveyed down 
the style to that organ, while others conceived that a peculiar action 
excited upon the stigma was transmitted to the ovule by a kind of 
sympathy. The former view appears to have been adopted by Lin- 
neus.* ‘The latter was sustained by Grew and several succeeding 
philosophers. Our actual knowledge upon this subject was, how- 
ever, confined to the simple fact that the application of the pollen 
to the stigma was essential to the fertilization of the ovules, all the 
information we possess respecting the action of the pollen after it 
has reached the stigma being of very recent date. The earliest of 
a series of highly curious discoveries on this hitherto mysterious 
subject was announced in the year 1823. A few remarks on the 
structure of pollen will form a necessary introduction to our account 
of these interesting researches. 

The pollen, when examined by a moderate magnifying power, is 
seen to consist of a multitude of grains of some regular form, which 
is uniform in the same species, but often differing widely in different 
plants. It has been satisfactorily proved that these grains are com- 
posed of two coats, of which the exterior is rather thick and nearly 
inelastic, while the inner is an exceedingly delicate and highly ex- 


* Generationem vegetabilium fieri mediante pollinis antherarum illapsu supra 
stigmata nuda, quorumpitur pollen efflatque awrem seminalem, que absorbetur 
ab humore stigmatis, &e.—Linn. Phil. Bot. ed Stockholm. 1751. p.91. 


312 = Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 


tensible membrane. The cavity is filled with a fluid, which, under 
a powerful lens, appears slightly turbid, on account of a vast number 
of minute granules which float in it. ‘The existence of an inner 
lining to the pollen-grains was ascertained at an early period, first by 
Needham and afterwards by Koelreuter, and, although since doubt- 
ed, the correctness of their observations has lately been abundantly 
confirmed by the admirable researches of Ad. Brongniart and Mir- 
bel. An account of some recent observations by the last named 
author is appended to his incomparable memoir on Marchantia, 
where he has also given a representation of the two coats. 

A magnifying power of two or three hundred diameters reveals 
the existence of two kinds of granules in the fluid of the pollen- 
grain. The larger kind, which are also the fewer in number, have 
been particularly examined by Ad. Brongniart and Brown, whose 
researches, made about the same time and wholly independently of 
each other, coincide in almost every particular.* ‘These granules 
are peculiar to pollen, and have been detected in every plant that 
has been submitted to examination. ‘They differ in shape in differ- 
ent plants, but are uniform in the same species. ‘The following is 
extracted from the account of these granules given by R. Brown, 

as they appeared in the pollen of the plant which he first submitted 
“to examination. ‘This plant was Clarkia pulchella, in which the 
pollen-grains, taken from the anthers when completely developed 
but before their dehiscence, were filled with particles or granules of 
a size varying from the 4000th to about the 5000th of an inch in 
length, their form being intermediate between cylindrical and oblong, 
slightly flattened perhaps, the extremities being rounded and equal, 
While examining the form of these particles floating ina drop of wa- 
ter, I observed that many of them were evidently in motion. Their 
movements were not confined to a mere change of place in the fluid, 
as manifested by modifications in their relative position, but there 
was frequently a change of form in the particle itself; and several 
times a contraction or incurvation was perceived near the middle of 
a particle on one side, accompanied by a corresponding convexity 
on the opposite side. In some instances the particle was seen to 


* These granules were discovered and described by Needham as long ago as 
the year 1750. He even suggests that they penetrate to the ovule and form the em- 
bryo. This isnot the only instance in which the observations and suggestions of 
this author, after having been doubted or left in obscurity for nearly seventy 
years, have been recently confirmed, or rendered extremely probable. 


Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 313 


revolve upon its longer axis. Iwas convinced, from repeated ob- 
servations of these movements, that they are produced neither by | 
currents in the fluid nor by gradual evaporation, but that they per- 
tain to the particles themselves.”** The same phenomena were ob- 
served both by Brown and Brongniart, in a great number of plants 
of different families, with the exception that the change of form in 
the particles themselves was less evident when these are oval or 
oblong in shape, and perhaps never apparent when they are spher- 
ical. It is worthy of remark, moreover, that Ad. Brongniart obser- 
ved that the somewhat cylindrical granules of the pollen of several 
Malvaceous plants repeatedly exhibited a double curvature like the 
letter S. The movements of the larger granules are never rapid, 
and are frequently very slow. ‘The same motions were observed in 
the granules of pollen taken from recently dried specimens, and also 
from those that had been kept for several days and even for some 
months in weak alcohol; but in pollen taken from dried specimens 
which had been preserved, some twenty, and others more than one 
hundred years, Dr. Brown found that, although the movements of 
the molecules or smaller particles were unaffected, those of the lar- 
ger granules were scarcely evident, and often not at all apparent. 
According to Brongniart’s observations, the movements of granules — 
from fresh pollen were suddenly checked when put into alcohol. 
The smaller particles, or molecules as they are termed by Brown, 
were first observed by this distinguished naturalist in the pollen of 
Clarkia pulchella, mingled with the larger granules already deseri- 
bed; and they have since been detected in a great number of species. 
They differ from the larger granules not only by their size, which va- 
ries from the 15,000th to the 30,000th of an inch in diameter, but 
also in their form, which is always spherical, and in their movements, 
which are oscillatory and extremely rapid. These molecules were 
also observed in the powder of the so-called anthers of mosses and 
other flowerless plants by Brown, who found, moreover, that their 
motions were equally vivid, whether taken from the living plants or 


* An account of microscopical observations made in the months of June, July, 
and August, 1827, wpon the particles contained in the pollen of plants, and upon 
the general existence of active molecules in organized and inorganized bodies ; by 
R. nome I re-translate from a French tr rie iPion published in the Annales 
des Sciences Naturelles, Vol. 14, p.341; not having been able to procure the ori- 
ginal pamphlet, which was only annie for distribution among the alent of the 
author, and is now very scaree. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2 40 


314 Fiemarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 


from specimens preserved in an herbarium for more than one hun- 
dred years. Continuing these investigations, he discovered similar 
particles, endowed with the same motions when suspended in a fluid, 
not only in all forms of vegetable tissue, but also-in every inorganic 
substance examined, except those soluble in water or whatever fluid 
was employed for ee suspension.* 

In the year 1823, Prof. Amici, in examining with his pone 
microscope some grains of pollen on the stigma of the common 
purslain, (Portulacca oler acea,) observed that the grains had pro- 
jected from some part of their surface an extremely slender tube, 
which was found to consist of the inner lining of the pollen-grain, 
protruded through a rupture of the external coat. Amici published 
an account of his discovery in the 19th volume of the A‘ti della 
Societa Italiana, whence it was extracted in the second volume of 
the Annales des Sciences Naturelles. About three years after- 
wards, these tubes were observed in several plants of different fami- 
lies by Ad. Brongniart, to whose admirable memoir, published in 
the 12th volume of the work just cited, we are indebted for the 
earliest and most complete account of the manner in which they 
originate and act upon the stigma. 

When grains of pollen fall upon the stigma they are retained either 
by the hairs with which this organ is often provided, or by its humid 
and slightly viscous surface ; they slowly absorb this moisture, and, 
after an interval varying from some hours toa day or more, the outer 
coat opens by one or more points or slits, through which the highly 
extensible inner membrane protrudes like a hernial sac, and is slowly 
prolonged into a delicate tube. The diameter of these tubes does 
not exceed the 1,500th or 2,000th of an inch, and of course a power- 
ful microscope is required for their examination. In -some plants 
the grains appear to open at a determinate point, and in numerous 
instances each one produces two or three pollen-tubes. This hap- 
pens in the genus @nothera, and perhaps in all the plants of that 
tribe, in which the triangular grains open usually by two, and some- 


_ * For further particulars respecting this curious subject, the reader is referred 
to the original memoir of Dr. Brown, above cited; and also to some additional 
remarks on the same subject, which may be found in a French dress in the 29th 
vol. of the Annales des Sciences Naturelles.—Respecting the formation of pollen, 
the reader should consult the memoir of Ad. Brongniart, above cited; p. 21, et 
seq.; R. Rrown’s paper on Rafilesia, in the 12th vol. of the Transactions of the 
Linnean Society of London; and the supplement to Mirbel’s memoir on Mar- 
chantia polymorpha in the Nouvelles Mémoires du Muséum. 


Remarks on the Inpregnation of Plants. 315 


times by three of the grains, and produce as many tubes. The 
pollen of several plants, however, (particularly in the Cucurbitacez,) 
is known to protrude its inner lining from a great number of points; 
and Amici has even seen as many as twenty or thirty incipient pol- 
len-tubes arising from a single grain. Commonly, however, each 
simple and globular grain of pollen produces but a single tube, 
which makes its appearance from whatever portion of the surface 
may chance to be placed in contact with the stigma. This produc- 
tion can hardly be considered as a mere protrusion of the inner lin- 
ing of the grain, since the length commonly attained by the tube is 
greatly disproportionate to the original size of that membrane. It 
should, perhaps, be regarded as a growth of the inner coat, excited 
by the fluid which moistens the stigmatic surface. Yet it is hardly 
probable that this fluid exerts any specific and peculiar agency in the 
production of the pollen-tube, since it has lately been stated* that 
a mixture of sulphuric acid and water causes their production in the 
same manner as the stigmatic surface itself, only with greater promp- 
titude. M. Brongniart has also seen them arise from grains of the 
pollen of Nuphar and some other plants, when floating on water, 
without having been in contact with the stigma. Usually, however, 
water is so rapidly imbibed that the grains suddenly burst so as not 
to admit of their production. ‘The stigma of one plant, moreover, 
is known to excite the same action in the pollen of different species, 
and even of plants belonging to different families. ‘Thus, Dr. Brown 
applied the pollen-mass of a species of Asclepias to the stigma of 
an Orchideous plant, and found that these tubes were produced as 
readily as when left in contact with the stigma of the plant from 
which the pollen-mass was taken. 

The tubes, thus produced in contact with the stigma, penetrate its 
substance, not, however, by means of any peculiar channel, but by 
gliding between the cellules and along the intercellular passages 
which abound in the tissue of the stigma and style. M. Brongniart 
was able to follow them only for a moderate distance into the tissue 
of the style, where he thought that they terminated, and, opening 
at the extremity, discharged the fluid and floating particles of the 
pollen-grain. He conceives that these larger particles pass along 
the intercellular spaces into the placenta, and thence into the mouth 


* [have met with this statement in the article Botany, of the Library of Use- 
ful Knowledge, but I do not know on what authority it rests. 


316 Remarks on the Impregnation of Plants. 


of the ovules. Prof. Amici* has, however, recently announced 
that he had in several instances traced the pollen-tubes them- 
selves quite into the cavity of the ovary ; from which he infers that 
the immediate contact of this body with the mouth of the ovule 
takes place whenever impregnation is effected. 

In the autumn of the year 1831, Dr. Brown read before the Lin- 
nzan Society of London his highly interesting memoir on the Or- 
gans and mode of Fecundation in the Orchidea and Asclepiadee ; 

which has since been published in the last volume of the transac- 
tions of that society. It is unnecessary for our present purpose to. 
indicate the several curious and important results of the investiga- 
tions of that sagacious botanist, relative to the structure and impreg- 
nation of these two families. He followed the course of the pollen- 
tubes, in several plants of both orders, from the stigma to the placenta, 
and in a single instance traced, in an Orchideous plant, some tubes 
or vessels of equivocal nature quite into the aperture of the ovule. 
Dr. Brown remarks that these tubes had been noticed in the style 
and ovary of these two families many years previous to his observa- 
tions, viz. in Orchideous plants by Du Petit-Thouars as early as 
1816 or 1818; and by the late Mr. Elliottin Podostigma, (a genus 
of Asclepiadez,) as stated in the first volume of the Sketch of the 
Botany of South Carolina and Georgia, published in 1817. Mr. 
Elliott adds that Dr. Macbride (since deceased) had observed the 
same fibres or cords in the style of some species of Asclepias. We 
have no reason to believe that in any of these instances the true ori- 
gin or office of these cords was even suspected. 

In a short communication addressed to the editor of the Linnea, 
dated Nov. 1827, and published in the fourth volume of that work, 
Dr. Ehrenberg gives an account of his observations on the structure 
of the pollen-masses in Asclepiadee ; and states that each grain is 
furnished with a cauda or cylindrical tube of great length, directed to 
the point where the membrane of the pollen-mass opens ; which 
appendage he considers as analogous to the boyau, or pollen-tube of 
Amici and Brongniart.t He supposes that these processes exist 
previously to the application of the pollen-mass to the stigmatic sur- 
face, which is doubtless incorrect ; but Dr. Brown has observed in 


* Extract from aletter from Prof. Amici to M. Mirbel, dated 3d July, 1830, 
and published in the 21st vol. of the Annales des Sciences Naturel]les, 
+t Linnea. IV. p. 95. 


re 
we 
Dy 


of h 
a 


aa 


= SS 


va cham 
pes) 


een 
an 


) 
a 


i 
ie 
‘ 


Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 317 


this family the curious fact, that the application of one portion of 
the pollen-mass to the stigma causes the production of a pollen-tube 
from every grain of the mass. 

Iam not aware of any important addition to our knowledge on 
this subject during the interval between the publication of Dr. 
Brown’s paper, and the date of the following memoir of M. Corda; 
which was read before the Imperial Acad. Nature Curiosorum, in 
Sept. 1834, and published in the Sat eee of that society for 
the year 1835. 

M. Corda inferred, from previous observations, that the pollen- 
tubes usually extend quite to the mouth of the ovules; consequently 
it became a highly interesting subject of enquiry to determine their 
further course. In prosecuting the subject, he was induced to ex- 
amine the mode of fecundation in the Conifer or Fir tribe ; in which 
the naked ovules, impregnated by immediate contact with the pollen, 
would naturally be supposed to offer great facilities for such investi- 
gations. ‘The subjoined memoir is accordingly restricted to an ac- 
count of the development of the ovule, and the mode of impregna- 
tion in the order Conifere. 

Although the following translation will, I trust, be found substan- 
tially to embody the ideas of the author, my very slight acquaintance 
with the German language offers a sufficient explanation for what- 
ever errors may have been committed. 1 was obliged to undertake 
this labor myself, since no one unacquainted with the structure of the 
ovule, could properly translate a memoir of this kind, however con- 
versant with the language in which it is written. 


Contributions to the doctrine of the Impregnation of Plants ; | by 
A. J.C. Corpa. 


All our views respecting the impregnation of plants have been 
entirely remodelled since the discovery of pollen-tubes by Amici; 
the former hypotheses having been sufficiently refuted by the curious 
discoveries of Brongniart, no less than by the assiduous and ingeni- 
ous researches of Robert Brown. Since the appearance of Robert 
Brown’s writings, and his visit to Germany, the results of his inves- 
tigations are so generally known, that I consider an historical account 
of them superfluous; and will only mention that according to my 
own knowledge, Robert Brown has traced the pollen-tubes quite 
to the placenta; thus partially confuting the opinion of Brongniart 


318 Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 


as to the deposition of an aura seminalis, (the contents of the pol- 
len-tubes.) He, however, did not see the entrance of the pollen-. 
tubes into the micropyle of the ovules. I had already seen the 
pollen-tubes penetrate quite into the cellular tissue of the placenta 
in Hyacinthus, Himatoglossum and Orchis maculata; but it ap- 
peared to me impossible, in this instance, to follow them farther. 

In the winter of 1833-34, I frequently repeated these observa- 
tions on the Hyacinth, and saw the penetration of the pollen-tubes 
into the placenta, without touching, however, the micropyle of the 
ovules. During my residence in Berlin, I had the honor of showing 
to his Excellency Freihern von Humboldt, and to Professor Kunth, 
this penetration of the pollen-tubes into the placenta. At the 
same time I was zealously engaged in researches upon the Cycadez 
and Conifere ; and concluded about the time of their flowering to 
continue my eXpeainent on the fecundation of the latter family, 
since it bears naked ovules, and we can every year obtain large 
quantities of ripe seeds. I was convinced that the penetration of 
the pollen-tubes through the micropyle must certainly take place 
in this family, but was far from imagining that such an interesting 
and important series of investigations would arise out of the subject. 

By a careful examination of the cavity of the ovule in the fruit of 
a Pinus with a lens, or even by a close inspection with the unas- 
sisted eye, grains of pollen may be perceived reposing in its orifice, 
(Tab. 42, fig. 1, a.) In this manner the pollen-grains of Larix are 
represented by Nees von Esenbeck in his Genera Plantarum, (Vid. 
a. a. O. fig. 7.) If we lay open the cavity in the scale, by taking 
off the covering, (Tab. 42, fig. 3, 6) removing at the same time 
the primine of the ovule which is originally adherent to the scale, 
(Tab. 42, fig. 3, c) we observe the pollen-tubes, (a. a. O. a.) which 
have reached from the pollen to the endostome (Tab. 42, fig. 3, e?) 
of the secundine (d.) But often the grains of pollen fall through 
the exostome, (Tab. 42, fig. 3, e') and rest upon the orifice of the 
secundine, (Tab. 42, fig. 3 and 4, d) i. e. the endostome, (e*) or 
they sometimes fall into the cavity of the secundine, as may be per- 
ceived in fig. 4, of Tab. 42, in fig. 14, of Tab. 43, and in fig. 21, 
aa! of Tab. 44. 

So far my observations defaviistnate that the pollen-tubes’ pene- 
trate into the micropyle and the endostome ; but in explaining their 
further course it becomes necessary to recur to my researches upon 
the ovules of Conifere. My observations differ by no.means from 


Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 319 


those’ of the great Englishman,* nor from the investigations of Mir- 
bel; but as we have to follow the course of the pollen-tubes into the 
innermost cavity of the ovules, it is necessary to be acquainted with 
their structure. 

Robert Brown was, we know, the first to demonstrate the pistillate 
flower in Conifer and Cycadee to be a naked ovule. This naked 
ovule is situated in a botile-shaped cavity of the inside of the scale, 
which is directed downwardly and inwardly (Tab. 42, fig. 3, 6) and 
its first or outer coat (primine) (Tab. 42, fig. 3,c; Tab. 43, fig. 14; 
and Tab. 44, fig. 22, ccc) is coherent with the inner surface of the 
cavity ; therefore both together form the exostome, (Tab. 42, fig. 3, 
and 44, fig. 21, e’e’.) But this intimate union only exists in the 
early state; they are gradually loosened by the ripening of the seeds, 
and at length the primine is completely separated from the walls of 
the cavity. While the inner side of the wall of the scale is being 
separated, a portion of the integuments of the scale tears loose, and 
appears like a wing half surrounding the base of the ripened seed, 
(Tab. 44, fig. 30, x. and 33.) 

During the ripening of the ovules, the exostome closes more and 
more, the primine gradually thickens, and becomes harder and almost 
corneous, and finally appears as a hard covering to the seed, (testa 
vel membrana externa seminis.) 

In an earlier stage, while the primine of the ovule is yet coherent 
with the surface of the cavity in the scale, we find in the upper part 
a free empty space, (Tab. 42, fig. 3, Tab. 43, fig. 14, and Tab. 44, 
fig. 21 and 22, ¢’c’c’c’) into which the summit of the (zapfenarti- 
gen) secundine (Tab. 42, fig. 3, 4, 5, Tab. 42. fig. 14, and Tab. 
A4, fig. 21—29) projects. This free space (which in the scale is 
under the ovule, the latter being suspended) is limited by the con- 
nexion of the secundine to the nucule and primine, (Tab. 43, fig. 
14, g.) | 

The secundine (Tab. 43, fig. 14, dd) isa rather firm, hollow 
body, (zapfen,) which is connected with the nucule at the base, and 
terminated by its orifice at the other extremity. The nucule (f/f) 
of the ovules of Pinus is situated within the secundine, with which 
it is coherent only at the base. An exception which I have not 
previously observed in any other ovule. The secundine is originally 
a short conical body, in which asmall, roundish, obscure spot makes 


* Robert Brown, Botanicorwm facile princeps.— Trans. 


320 Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 


its appearance, (Tab. 44, fig. 23, ); the future nucule is first per- 
ceived by a metamorphosis of matter and form taking place at the 
base of the almost homogeneous cavity. In this state it is nearly 
impossible with our instruments to ascertain its internal structure ; for 
it appears like a scarcely congealed fluid. Ata later period we per- 
ceive the nucule (f) occupying the base of the seeundine, (‘Tab. 
44, fig. 24,) in a state of greater development, and already exhibit- 
ing cellular texture. A membranous layer of the parenchyma of 
the secundine begins to separate at this time, appearing as a nearly 
transparent narrow border. About this time the endostome (e’) be- 
gins to be perceptible. 

In the third and fourth state of the ovules, the sous and nu- 
cule increase simultaneously ; but a conical wart (Tab. 44, fig. 25— 
28) occupies the endostome and projects from the cavity ; this ap- 
pearance might easily lead to the erroneous supposition, that there 
was in this case an union of two membranes. ‘The cellular mem- 
brane and the substance of the nucule (Tab. 44, fig. 25—28) have 
now attained considerable firmness and the cells have become opaque. 

In the fifth state we perceive a well defined orifice to the nucule, 
and the cellular substance of the secundine being filled with starch, 
the ovule itself appears firmer. ‘The sac of the nucule is composed 
of large six-sided cells, (Tab. 43, fig. 19,) originally filled with a 
turbid fluid, which congeals into a somewhat crystalline matter, 
(Tab. 43, fig. 20,s.) In the cell (r) this crystalline matter appears in 
the form of Set wax-like, firm, and yellowish polyhedral bodies, 
(s.) The cells which contain this congealed matter are connected 
with each other, so as to form on the outer surface of the nucule a 
beautiful net work, (Tab. 42, fig.7, Tab. 43, fig. 14, 15, 19, 20, and 
Tab. 44, fig. 283—29.) 

The nucule itself is about half the size of the secundine, and is 
situated at the base of the latter; and while the perforation of the 
endostome is incomplete, the opening of the nucule, which we call 
the embryostome, is merely indicated. In the further growth of the 
ovule previous to impregnation, we perceive the embryostome to en- 
large considerably and to connect itself with the endostome through 
the cavity of the secundine. . 

This brief account appears to me sufficient to enable us to follow 
the course of impregnation through the secundine into the interior 
of the ovule. 


Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 321 


We left the pollen-tubes when they had reached the endostome 
of the secundine. In order to ascertain how far the pollen-tubes 
penetrate, I made a longitudinal section of an ovule, while yet en- 
closed in the scale, in such a manner (Tab. 43, fig. 14,) that a great 
part of the secundine ‘was removed, while the nucule (/) and the 
embryostome (f’) were left entire ; by this means the course of each 
pollen-tube (a’) was manifest from the endostome (e?) to the very 
bottom of the nucule (a?.) 

I saw the pollen-tubes pass through the orifice of the secundine 
to the mouth (the embryostome) of the nucule (f’); pass through 
the latter nto the cavity of the nucule, where they become some- 
what attenuated, or suddenly enlarge, (Tab. 43, fig. 14, a’,) and 
empty their contents as a turbid, originally amorphous, fluid mass. 

After this deposition, the pollen-tube still remains in the endos- 
tome, the embryostome, and the cavity of the nucule, appearing as 
a slender, empty, and transparent bag. ‘The deposited matter is 
soon perceived to become organized, and the sac of the embryo 
(Tab. 43, fig. 15, E) is formed, which increasing rapidly in size, 
often appears flaccid, or thrown into folds on one side or the other ; 
and its contents are still turbid. It is still fixed to the pollen-tube, as 
we have represented in Tab. 43, fig. 15—18, Ea’. 

During the growth of the sac of the embryo a peculiar change 
takes place in the minute polyhedral bodies which occupy the cells 
of the tissue of the nucule ; these particles become fluid or disap- 
pear as it were by absorption, until the cells again appear perfectly 
clear and pellucid, (Tab. 43, fig. 18.) 

At this period there may be found, especially in Pinus Abies, 
more than one embryo-sac in each ovule; there are ordinarily two 
or three placed side by side,* (Tab. 42, fig. 7,10, 11.) These 
embryo-sacs are found, on examination, to consist of an integument 
(Tab. 42, fic. 11, p) loosely enclosing a kernel (q.) The kernel 
has a gelatinous consistence, and is composed of large, oblong cells 
(Tab. 42, fig. 12,) mixed with fine knotty threads, to which minute 
drops of a fluid adhere, (Tab. 42, fig. 13, mn.) ‘The connexion of 
the pollen-tubes with the embryo-sac continues for some time after 


* The fact of the general existence of a plurality of embryos in the impregna- 
ted ovule of Conifer and Cycadex was announced by Dr. Brown to the British 
Association at their meeting in Edinburgh in 1834, a few months previous to the 
date of this paper, which was read Sept. 1834. Thisannouncement was, of course, 
' unknown to M. Corda at that time.—- Tvans. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. Al 


322 Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 


impregnation, even until the embryo has assumed an egg-shaped 
form, and has increased very considerably in size, becoming at the 
same time firmer and nearly opaque, (‘Tab. 44, fig. 22, a’ and E.) 
At this period the embryostome contracts, (‘T'ab. 44, fig. 22, f’) the 
nucule becomes thinner, and being, as well as the secundine (d,) 
confined between the growing embryo within, and the primine (cc) 
without, both these membranes become very much compressed. 
The pollen-tubes (Tab. 44, fig. 22 a’) are at this time very much 
attenuated and filiform, and so much shrivelled that neither cavity 
nor contents can be observed ; they are, moveover, so much attenu- 
ated at the extremity next the embryo-sac that it becomes very dif- 
ficult to trace them to that body, and demonstrate their connexion 
with its surface, which is now rough and nearly opaque. 

About this time the pollen-tubes appear to fall away, and, on ac- 
count of the solidifying of the albumen, it becomes impossible to 
perceive any vestige of its former presence. 

After having considered the fecundation and the structure of the 
ovule, I undertook to examine the different integuments of the ma- 
ture seed. The ripe seed of the Rothtanue (Pinus Abies) is fur- 
nished with a wing, (Tab. 44, fig. 30, x, and fig. 33,) the base of 
which (6) half surrounds the nut; the upper part, like a fine, thin, 
separated portion of integuments, forms the wing itself, (¢.) This 
wing is nothing else than the inner skin of the lower part of the 
inner surface of the scale; and the line of separation is visible at an 
early period, (Tab. 44, fig. 21, ¢,) by which, when the seeds are 
ripe the cavity of the-ovule opens and the formation of the wing is 
effected. By removing this wing, the nut isseen free from all con- 
nexion, (Tab. 44, fiz. 30 w and31.) The vestige of an opening is 
observable at its summit ; (the endostome of the ovule (Tab. 44, fig. 
31, 32 and 34 e’e’,) called the micropyle by Turpin,) perforating 
the hard covering of the seed (testa) which represents the primine 
of the ovule, (Tab. 42, fig. 3; Tab. 44, fig. 21, 22, and 34, ccc.) 
Beneath the testa and partly coherent with it, is the inner covering 
of the seed, (Tab. 44, fig. 34, d,) a brownish skin which represents 
the secundine of the ovule, (Tab. 42, fig. 3, and Tab. 44, fig. 21, 22, 
and 34, d,d,d.) Its opening, the endostome (Tab. 44, fig. 34, 
e?-+f’) is firmly connected with the embryostome, (Tab. 44, fig. 
22 f’) of the kernel-skin, (nucule,) (Tab. 44, fig. 21 f, 22 f and 
34 f.) In the fecundated ovule and ripe seed there is situated, in 
and near the orifice of these three mteguments, a yellowish, firm 
and shrivelled body, of a loose texture, which was called by Gert- 


Corda on the Impregnation of Plants. 323 


ner Dotter (vitellum,) (Tab. 44, fig. 35—37, vi.) This vitellum I 
consider to be merely the remains of the pollen-grains which have 
fallen into the micropyle, (the exostome.) 

The kernel-skin is filled with the albumen, in a cavity of which 
we find the embryo with its circularly-disposed cotyledons, (Tab. 
44, fig. 38, 39, 40, 41, co co,) ordinarily nine in number, with their 
summits all turned inwards and thus enclosing the center of the em- 
bryo, which bears the name of the embryo-bud, (Tab. 44, fig. 41 
and 42, Ke Eg.) Icall the undeveloped summit (Eg Eg,) placed 
in the center of the whorl of the cotyledons, the embryo-bud, be- 
cause it corresponds, not only in form and structure, but also in future 
office, with the terminal bud of Coniferous trees. In the one case 
the point of future growth is surrounded and enclosed by the coty- 
Jedons ; in the other, leaves disposed in a similar manner enclose the 
so-named and similarly situated bud. 

I endeavored in vain to detect in the soft embryo, the earliest form- 
ed bundle of fibres (which constitutes the skeleton of the plant,) but 
I could only bring to view a delicate homogeneous tissue, (‘Tab. 44, 
fig. 42, 43,) with a milky homogeneous fluid filled with white globu- 
Jar particles. 

The following positions respecting the mode of impregnation in 
Conifere appear to be established by these observations. 

1. The pollen-tube penetrates into the micropyle, (exostome ;) 
and in Pinus the pollen-grains fall directly into it; whence the im- 
pregnation is immediate. 

2. The pollen-tube passes through the exostome into the endos- 
tome, passes through the cavity of the secundine, and arrives at 

3. The nucule; extends through the endostome into its cavity ; and 

4. By the ejection of the fluid contained in the pollen-grains into 
the bottom of the nucule gives the first kezm (germ) to the formation 
of the embryo. 

5. The formation and development of the embryo changes the 
contents of the cellular tissue of the nucule, which becomes fluid, 
and appears to furnish material for the growth of the embryo. 

6. The pollen-tubes remain fixed (to the embryo-sac) sometime 
after impregnation and the commencement of the development of 
the embryo in the latter. 

Norr.—I am under great obligations to Lt. J. W. Bailey, Prof. of Chem., &c. in the West Point 
Mil. Acad., who has kindly undertaken to copy the greater part of the figures, illustrative of M. 
Corda’s memoir. The figures occupy three plates in the original ; but by omitting those of minor 


importance, we are enabled to present in two plates all which are essential to the elucidation of 
the memoir. The original numbering and lettering of the figures is of course retained.—A. G, 


324 Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


Arr. XX.—Additional Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet ; 
by Prof. B. F. Josiin. 


Havine just seen, for the first time, an article on Halley’s Comet 
by the distinguished French philosopher, M. Arago, I am induced 
to make some quotations, and some additional remarks sneered by 
a comparison of observations. 

The paper on the tails of Halley’s Comet was esa before the 
astronomical class in Union College, in February, 1836. I was af- 
terwards gratified to find, ina number of the American Journal pre- 
viously published,* a notice of the brush of light seen October 12th 
at Yale College. The observation here of the 12th of October 
was noticed in the Schenectady Reflector of the 14th. Whilst the 
paper on the tails of Halley’s Comet was in the press, Mr. KE. C. 
Herrick politely furnished me with some French extracts from a pa- 
per on this comet written by M. Arago, for the Annuaire for 1836, 
published by the Bureau des Longitudes. It appears that a similar 
brush, sector, or tail, (and sometimes more than one,) was seen in 
Europe and excited much interest :—length estimated at not less than 
two hundred thousand leagues, yet comprehended (like that seen 
here) within the fainter nebulosity. It appears to have been seen 
in the United States earlier than in any part of Europe, so far as the 
observations are given inthe Annuaire. It was seen at Paris on the 
15th, 16th, 17th and 18th of October; at Schenectady as a well de- 
fined tail with divergent sides, (or, as I have frequently called it, a 
sector, a term which M. Arago also employed,) on the 12th, 13th, 
16th and 17th, as many evenings as at Paris. Whilst on the 14th, 
I have referred to the same thing seen more indistinctly, viz. such 
an increase in the density or luminousness in the interior of the en- 
velope on one side of the nucleus as to render it visible in a state of 
the atmosphere when the envelope could not be seen with the tele- 
scope at the same distance in other directions. But in both cases I 
have with others regarded it as comprehended within the envelope, 
and as being a tail only to the nucleus. It appears from the Annu- 
aire, that M. Schwabe, a German astronomer, in a memoir presented 
to the Academy of Sciences, has used a similar term, calling the 
luminous sectors, opposite to the tail properly so called, ‘‘ secondary 


* Vol. XXIX, No. 1, p. 156, October, 1835. 


Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 325 


tails.” I believe the one seen here and in England* was also called 
a tail by an English astronomer. Six rays were seen in Germany 
on the 18th, when the state of the sky was here unfavorable. The 
sector of the 16th was here divisible into three. ‘Three sectors were 
seen at Paris on the 21st, when the comet itself was to us invisible. 
But in all the published observations made at Paris, there is a close 
correspondence with those made simultaneously here, and with some 
not simultaneous. ‘This is more than was to be expected, consider- 
ing the difference of instruments. ‘This correspondence will be seen 
from the following extracts from the Annuaire. ‘ 15th October, 
1835, at 7 o’clock' in the evening, the great telescope of the obser- 
vatory of Paris, furnished with a great magnifying power, enabled 
one to perceive in the circular nebulosity which is called the cheve- 
lure, a little to the south of the point diametrically opposite the tail, 
a sector, comprehended between two lines sensibly straight directed 
toward the center of the nucleus. ‘The light of this sector exceeded 
remarkably that of all the rest of the nebulosity. Its two limiting 
rays were distinctly defined.” ‘Their angle is not stated. ‘The above 
description as to form and brightness is applicable to the appearance 
hereon the 12th. The position, however, was different; and this 
circumstance, if its identity could be established, would afford evi- 
dence of a rotation in the comet. But the published data are not 
sufficient. It may have been a different sector. ‘‘On the next day, 
the 16th, after sunset, it was perceived that the sector of the 15th 
had disappeared; but in another part of the head, to the north, this 
time, of the point diametrically opposite to the axis of the tail, there 
was formed a new sector.”’ It was considered a new one, ‘‘on account 
of its situation, its truly extraordinary brilliancy, the perfect distinct- 
ness of the rays by which it was bounded, and its great angular open- 
ing, which exceeded 90°.”” A similar view was afforded by our tele- 
scope, except that with it the sector of “about 90°” (which was 
the angular opening that I had assigned to it,) was divisible into 
three others, viz. two equal lateral ones and a more brilliant central 
one embraced by the two former, as though a brilliant cone was sur- 
rounded by,a conical brush of less brilliancy but still greatly exceed- 
ing in brightness the rest of the nebulosity. Is it not probable that 
with a telescope having a far greater ‘aperture than ours, the brillian- 
cy of the whole might appear so intense as to render the difference 
in brilliancy between the lateral and middle parts less apparent? 


* Ido not know on what day. 


826 Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


There is also a creat resemblance between the results here and 
those at Paris onthe 17th. There, ‘on the-17th, the sector of the 
preceding evening still existed. Its form and its direction appeared 
not remarkably changed, but its light was much less vivid.” Here, 
as quoted above from the journal, ‘the sky is much less clear than 
on last night, and the envelope, condensed on one side to form the 
short tail, is indistinct ; yet its direction and form seem not to have 
been sensibly changed since last evening.” 

At iatis on the 18th, ‘“l’affaiblissement avait fait de nouveaux 
progres.” Schenectady, 18th, the proper tail ‘seen directly is 
longer and indirectly shorter than it was on the 16th. ‘The atmos- 
phere appears to be less clear. In consequence of this and of the 
wind, the nucleus is not discernible.” When the sky is free from 
clouds, may there not be frequently a precipitation or crystallization 
of vapor to a great horizontal extent, in the elevated regions of the 
atmosphere, which, whilst it has less effect on bright stars and the 
more brilliant part of a comet’s tail, entirely cuts off that fainter 
portion which is seen by oblique vision? It would be interesting 
to know in what degree the fading of other parts, which on some 
days made similar progress as seen at Schenectady and Paris, was 
owing to the above cause, or whether, as M. Arago assumes, it was 
solely a change in the comet. ‘That it did undergo real changes can 
scarcely be doubted. But can any exact estimate be made of these 
till we can determine those in our atmosphere? But whatever may 
be the real changes in the head and tail, the difference in the length 
of the latter as seen simultaneously at Paris and Schenectady must 
depend chiefly upon the meteorological or physiological circumstan- 
ces enumerated in the preliminary remarks. | include physiological, 
as it is not stated by M. Arago what was the position of the optic 
axis at the time of the observations from which the length of the 
tail was deduced, or whether it was ever inclined to the visual ray. 
On the 4th of October it could be seen here in no other way. I 
have seen no account of its appearance elsewhere previous to the 
10th. On the 16th, it appeared at Paris to be from 10° to 12°. 
At Schenectady on the same day, it was 7° or 8° by direct, and 45° 
by oblique vision; next evening 35°. .4t none of the former re- 
turns of this comet has the tail ever been represented as having 
such lengths anterior to the perthelion passage. Nor since 1456, 
has it, after the perihelion passage, been seen of such lengths as 
those given above, which were a month before, if we except a single 


Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 327 


observation of M. de la Nux in 1759, when its maximum lengths 
were 19°, 25°, and 47°. Whenever it presented such lengths, it 
was very narrow, (‘elle s’ amincissait beaucoup :’’—and ‘ l’amin- 
cissement était devenu extréme.”)* It is an interesting coincidence, 
that an unusual narrowness through the greater part of its extent, 
characterized it at its recent appearance ‘when at its greatest lengths, 
i.e. 25°, 35°, and 45°. From this circumstance we may, in the 
absence of any positive information, presume that M. de la Nux 
saw it indirectly. Before the perihelion passage a tail was scarcely 
if at all detected.t ‘The mean of the above lengths observed on the 
16th, 17th, and 11th of October, 1835, appears to be greater than 
that given by any three observations. since 1456, either before or 
after the perihelion passage. ‘This is not to affirm, that, including 
all its dimensions, its magnitude is greater ; for, except in 1759, the 
narrow portion may have been wanting. It is, moreover, not im- 
probable, that most observers have given the length as seen with a 
moderate obliquity of the optic axis, a length intermediate between 
the real minimum and maximum for any one instant, or in other 
words, intermediate between the length of the whole and that of the 
part possessing nearly a maximum intensity. 

The greatest length alluded to in the Annuaire as seen at pate at 
the late return, is 20°. It was with the naked eye, but whether 
with the axis directed toward the object, is not stated. The sky here 
was cloudy and foggy ; length less than 2°. At the observatory of 
Paris on that evening, it appeared but half as long with the finder 
as to the naked eye. ‘This M. Arago pronounces ‘a result truly 
singular.” 1 frequently observed the same thing with the five feet 
telescope and attributed it to the moderate aperture of the instru- 
ment. Could not this have been the cause in both cases? This 
effect was not produced by our 24 ft. telescope having a larger aper- 
ture compared with its magnifying power, and was more remarkable 
with the higher than with the lower magnifying powers of the larger 
telescope. | 

Although the Annuaire contains numerous observations of the 
leneth of the tail at the former returns of the comet, it gives but 
three for 1835. The last was by M. Schwabe at Dessau, who found 
it to be 7° on October 26th, when clouds here obstructed the view. 
The new moon and the opacity of ‘‘ Indian summer”? were for a while 


* Annuaire, p. 227. + p. 229. 


328 Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


afterwards unfavorable. On the 9th November the length was 
about 23° as seen with the portable telescope by my friend C. H. 
Stillman, who had often assisted me in the observations. On the 
16th the tail of 45° was shown to many of the senior class who had 
been for a time studying optics and had been instructed in regard to 
the difference between the results afforded by different modes of 
observing. 

M. Arago with great candor combats the opinion which he lately 
supported in regard to the perishable character of this comet. ‘The 
observations of the tail and other parts of this comet at its last re- 
turn, have convinced him and most astronomers that there is no evi- 
dence of any recent diminution. So far as my observations have a 
bearing they will tend to confirm this last opinion. As to the chan- 
ges which have been generally believed to have taken place between 
former returns, but which begin to be regarded as only apparent ; 
they may probably be explained on other principles stated in the 
preliminary remarks to the other article.* Some of these principles 
are applicable also to some of the daily and instantaneous variations. 

Schenectady, Oct. Ist, 1836. 


The foregoing remarks were communicated for the October No. 
of this Journal, but too late for insertion. I have more recently 
seen extracts from an article in the Bibliotheque Universelle of Ge- 
neva, relating to a memoir on the physical constitution of the com- 
et of Halley, by M. Bessel, the illustrious astronomer of K6nigs- 
berg.t His views on this subject appear to differ in some respects 
from those of the equally distinguished French savant above quo- 
ted. What M. Arago “did not hesitate to name” a new sector, 
appears to be regarded by M. Bessel as the sector in different posi- 
tions. It appears that he never saw but one. Reference is made 
to it also under the names of luminous emanation, emission, efflu- 
via and eruption ; terms expressive of its nature or mode of devel- 
opment. M. Bessel speaks of it as the cone and the sector, terms 
which were employed in the first article.t By the former we in- 
tend to express its actual form, by the latter that of its projection. 
These terms are sufficiently exact, though M. Bessel sometimes de- 


* Vid. also the Annuaire, and the last No. of this Journal. 

+ lam indebted for these to the same correspondent who furnished the former 
extracts. 

t Last No. of the American Journal. 


Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 329 


tected a curvature on one side. They will, however, scarcely dis- 
tinguish this emanation from some of those to which the name tail 
has been generally appropriated. 

If we call this cone a tail, it would be desirable to classify these 
appendages. Were there others, like the cone of Halley, traceable 
directly to the nucleus by observation alone, we might denominate 
them caude nuclei, in contradistinction to the ordinary appendages 
of the envelope. But let us see whether there are not physical 
considerations which should induce us to make this class more ex- 
tensive. As some luminous emanations are nearly opposite to the 
sun, and retain a position nearly constant in relation to the radius 
vector, and as others, which are usually much shorter, have different 
and variable positions in relation to the radius vector of the comet, 
but in all probability positions nearly or exactly constant in relation 
to the radius of its nucleus at the point of emanation, we might 
still distinguish the latter as the tails of the nucleus, (although in 
some instances, as in the comet of 1825, they are not directly trace- 
able to it by observation,) and the former as the caude solares of 
comets, on account of their characteristic position and peculiar mode 
of development. In the former article, I hazarded a conjecture as 
to the fact of a rotation of the nucleus of Halley, suggested by ob- 
served differences in the position of the cone on different days. 
This interesting fact, (or what for our present purpose is equivalent 
to it,) may now be regarded as established by the observations of 
M. Bessel, not only on different days from the 2d to the 25th of 
October, but during 8 or 9 successive hours on the 12th, during 
which there was a rapid progressive motion from right to left. It is 
an interesting circumstance, that the angular opening of the cone, 
(‘about 90°’’*) observed at Konigsberg on the 2d of October, was 
the same as that observed at Schenectady on the 16th. This tends 
strongly to confirm the identity of the cone at distant epochs, and 
affords some data for determining the period of rotation, as there 
are reasons for believing that most of the angular changes of the 
intermediate periods were not real, but resulted from variations in 
the obliquity of the axis of the cone in relation to the visual ray. 
If we assume three complete rotations with an equable motion be- 
tween the 2d and 16th of October, the period of each must have 
been 4§ days. Now M. Bessel (from data which have not yet 


* Bib. Univ. Avril, 1836, p. 357. 
Vol. XX XI.—No. 2. 42 


330 Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. 


been received here) fixes the period of rotation or (as he is dispo- 
sed to regard it) of oscillation, at 4,5, days, which is nearly the 
same. Not knowing the hour of M. Bessel’s observation, (mine 
was 7, P. M.) nor the exact angle of the cone as estimated by him 
on the 2d, I make no correction for difference of hour or of. longi- 
tude. My estimate of the angle on the 16th, may not have been 
so exact as to render this important.* Indeed, M. Bessel found 
that from the 2d to the 25th, the discrepancy between his observa- 
tions and his oscillatory hypothesis was considerable, “‘ but scarcely 
exceeded, except for a single day, the limits of uncertainty of which 
observations of this kind are susceptible.”+ He found the discrep- 
ancy still greater with the hypothesis “ of an uniform motion of re- 
volution of the axis of the sector around the straight line drawn 
from the comet to the sun.”{ I regret that his important memoir is 
not at present accessible, as it might afford a reason which does not 
occur to me, for the assumption of this particular position of the 
axis of rotation. Perhaps a different position might satisfy the con- 
ditions imposed by the observations. If we assume the fact of a 
rotation, then there are originally three unknown elements, viz. its 
period, the direction of its axis, and the actual angle between it and 
the axis of the cone. ‘The first element may be determined by the 
position and angular opening of the cone at different epochs; either 
of the latter two may be variously assumed, and their possible com- 
binations are infinitely numerous. ‘The actual and complete revo- 
lutions observed by Mr. Dunlop in the short tails of the comet of 
1825,$ seem to favor the hypothesis of rotation in the nucleus of 
Halley. But either this or the oscillatory hypothesis of M. Bes- 
sel, will if established, (and it is scarcely possible to reject both,) 
justify the foregoing distinction in regard to the two classes of com- 
etary tails. ‘Those of one class assume different and variable posi- 
tions with respect to the radius vector of the comet, and are pro- 
jected from certain invariable parts of the nucleus, either in conse- 
quence of the volatilization of matter from an unequally volatile 
surface, or of its expulsion through orifices by the agency of an in- 
terior explosive force, or they are formed by some auroral action in 


* This however being an angle of 90°, could be much more exacily estimated 
by the eye than the other angles. 

+ Bib. Univ. p. 359. Wd 

§ See plates and description in Edinburgh Journal, Vol. VI, p. 84. 


Remarks on the Tails of Halley’s Comet. ed | 


its atmosphere, and have a relation to certain magnetic poles of the 
nucleus. | 

It may perhaps be worthy of consideration, that if the earth had 
an atmosphere as extensive as that of Halley, and only one north 
magnetic pole, a terrestrial aurora borealis completely cireumpolar 
and sufficiently brilliant to be seen at the distance of the comet, 
would have appeared from that position as a conical tail, and its axis, 
being in the magnetic axis of the earth, would have appeared like 
that of the cone of Halley to revolve around the earth’s astronomical 
axis. A greater number of poles might render the tails more nu- 
merous or irregular, as in the comet of 1525. In either case they 
might occupy fixed situations on the surface, their axes making con- 
stant angles with the axis of rotation. This hypothesis would allow 
real and simultaneous variations in length and brilliancy, and such a 
diminution of the latter at the edges as was observed here on the 
16th of October. At Konigsberg on the 13th and 14th, the sector 
was still more Juminous than on the 12th, the day of the comet’s 
perigee, and could be distinguished even to the distance of 45” 
from the comet’s center. On the 12th the distance was 30’. On 
the 13th it was stated here, in the journal published in the last num- 
ber,* that it appeared to extend three or four times as far from the 
nucleus as it did the preceding evening. ‘These observations tend 
to establish the fact of a real augmentation of angular length, though 
the amount differed from difference of atmosphere, &c. What was 
meant by nucleus was immediately explained. No real nucleus was 
at any time seen; and this accords with M. Bessel’s observations. 

In regard to the class of ordinary tails, they remain, notwithstand- 
ing the rotation of the nucleus, nearly opposite to the sun ; perhaps 
by the agency of some repulsive force of an electrical or magnetic 
nature emanating from it. Is there any evidence that the material 
of these ever assumes its determinate direction until it has risen to 
some distance from the surface of the nucleus? May not this be in 
part referable to the diminution of gravitation or the coercive force of 
the nucleus, as the vapor in consequence of its elasticity and buoy- 
ancy departs in all directions from the nucleus, till at length its grav- 
itation toward the nucleus is overcome by the repulsive force ema- 
nating from the sun? And may it not be also in part referrable to 
the development of electrical and perhaps magnetic properties by a 


* Vol. XXXL. p. 149.. + Bib. Univ. p. 360. 


332 Proceedings of the British Association. 


crystallization of vapor which takes place when the mass has risen a 
sufficient distance from the heated nucleus, the vapor itself, like that 
of our atmosphere being less susceptible of being directly heated by 
solar radiation ? | 

Is there any other explanation than the latter, of the transparent 
invisible stratum, which often to a sensible extent surrounds the en- 
velope and is itself embraced by curved prolongations of the lateral 


portions of the train ? 
Union College, Schenectady, Nov. 25th, 1836. 


Art. XXI.—Proceedings of the British Association at Bristol in 
: August 1836.* 


From the Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal, Oct. 1836. — 


GENERAL OFFICERS. 


‘President.—The Marquis of Lansdown; but owing to his una- 
voidable absence, his place was taken by the Marquis of North- 
ampton. 

Vice Presidents —Rev. W. D. Conybeare, F.R.S., James C. 
Prichard, M.D. F.R.S. 

General Secretaries.—Rev. William V. Harcourt, F.R.S., Fran- 
cis Bailly, F.R.S. 

Assistant General Secretary.—Prof. Phillips of King’s College 

Treasurer.—John Taylor, Esq. F.R.S., F.G.S. 


LOCAL OFFICERS. 


Treasurer.—George Bengough, Esq. 
Secretaries.—Prof. Daubeny, V. F. Hovenden, Esq. 


Section A.—Matuematican anp Puysican SCIENCE. 


President.—Rev. W. Whewell, F.R.S. 

Vice Presidents.—Sir D. Brewster, Sir W. R. Hamilton. 

Seerctaries.—Prof. Forbes, W.S. Harris, Esq. F.R.S., F. W. 
Jerrard, Esq. 

The following Memoirs were read, and statements made, and 
more or less extensively discussed :—1. Notice regarding the pro- 
gress made in the construction of a lens of Rock-salt, by Sir D. 
Brewster. 2. Account of the recent tide observations made at the 


* Report prepared from accounts in Atheneum, Felix Farley’s Bristol Journal 
and private communications. 


Proceedings of the British Association. 333 


ports of London and Liverpool, by Mr. Lubbock. Mr. Lubbock 
stated, that through the indefatigable exertions of Mr. Dessiou, con- 
siderable progress had been made in the reduction of the observa- 
tions made at Liverpool by Mr. Hutchinson. The diurnal inequality 
or difference between the superior and inferior tide of the same day, 
which in the Thames was very inconsiderable, if not insensible, was 
found at Liverpool to amount to more than a foot; a matter upon 
which the learned gentleman laid considerable stress, as calculated 
to lead to important practical results. ‘The object of these reduc- 
tions was to compare the results of theory with these observations, 
and with those of Mr. Jones and Mr. Russell made at the port of 
London. The principal objects of comparison were the heights of 
the several tides, and the intervals between tide and tide; and these 
were examined in their relations to the parallax and declination of the . 
moon and of the sun, and in reference to local, and what may in one 
sense be called accidental causes, as storms, &c. Of this latter, one 
of the most curious, as well as important, is the effect of the pressure 
of the atmospheric column. ‘The author stated, that M. Daussy 
had ascertained, that at the harbor of Brest a variation of the height 
of high-water was found to take place, which was inversely as the 
rise or fall of the barometer, and that a fall of the barometer of 0.622 
parts of an inch, was found to cause an increase of the height of the 
tide, equal to 8.78 inches in that port. ‘To confirm this interesting 
and hitherto unsuspected cause of variation, had been one principal 
object of the researches of the learned gentleman ; and, at his re- 
quest, Mr. Dessiou had calculated the heights and times of high- 
water at Liverpool for the year 1784, and compared them with the 
heights of the barometer, as recorded by Mr. Hutchinson for the 
same year: and by a most careful induction, it had turned out that 
the height of the tide had been on an average increased by one inch 
for each tenth of an inch that the barometer fell, ceteris paribus ; 
but the time was found not to be much, if at all affected. Mr. Lub- 
bock then proceeded to examine the semi-menstrual declination and 
parallax correction, and stated that the result was a remarkable con- 
formity between the results of Bernouilli’s theory and the results of 
observations continued for nineteen years at the London docks. 
But to render the accordance as exact as it was found to be capable 
of being, it was necessary to compare the time of the tide, not with 
that transit of the moon which immediately preceded it, but with 
that which took place about five lunar half days previously. To 


334 ‘Proceedings of the British Association. 


explain this popularly, Mr. Lubbock stated, that, however paradoxi- 
cal it might appear to persons not acquainted with the subject, yet 
true it was, that, although the tide depended essentially upon the 
moon, yet, any particular tide, as it reaches London, would not be 
in any way sensibly affected, were the moon at that instant, or even 
at its last transit, to have been annihilated; for it was the moon as 
it existed fifty or sixty hours before which caused the disturbance of 
the ocean, which ultimately resulted in that tide reaching the port 
of London. The author then exhibited several diagrams, in which 
the variations of the heights of the tide, as resulting from calculations 
founded upon the theory, were compared with the results of ob- 
servations. ‘I'he general forms of the two curves which represented 
these two results, corresponded very remarkably ; but the curve 
corresponding to the actual observations, appeared the more angular 
or broken in its form, for which Mr. Lubbock satisfactorily account- 
ed, by stating, that the observations were neither sufficiently numer- 
ous, nor sufficiently precise, from the very manner in which they 
were taken and recorded, to warrant an expectation of a closer con- 
formity, or a more regular curvature. When it is recollected that 
- the observations are at first written on a slate, and then transferred 
to the written register, by men otherwise much employed, and 
whose rank in life was not such as would lead us to expect scrupu- 
lous care, it was not to be wondered at, if occasionally an error of 
transcript should occur, or even if the observation of one transit was 
set down as belonging to the next. When to these circumstances it 
was added, that the tide at London was in all probability, if not cer- 
tainly, made up of two tides, one having alreddy come round the 
British Islands, meeting the other as it came up the British Chan- 
nel, it was altogether surprising that the coincidence should be so 
exact ; and it was one among many other valuable results of these 
investigations, that it was now pretty certain, that tide tables con- 
structed for the port of London by the theory of Bernouilli, would 
give the height and interval with a precision quite sufficient for all 
practical purposes, and which might be relied on as sufficiently ex- 
act, when due caution was used in their construction, and the neces- 
sary and known corrections applied. In conclusion, Mr. Lubbock 
stated that the observations for the port of London had now been 
continued from the commencement of this century, and those for 
Liverpool, as we understood, about twenty-five years. i 


Proceedings of the British Association. 339 


3. Mr. Whewell gave an account of the proceedings of the com- 
mittee appointed to fix lines of the relative level of sea and land. 
He commenced by saying, that as in the discussion of the relative 
level of land and sea, the tides of the ocean were an important ele- 
ment, he should preface the remarks upon that subject, which he 
intended to submit, by making a few observations upon the very. 
valuable communication of his friend Mr. Lubbock. | This commu- 
nication he highly eulogized, and-pointed out to the Section the im- 
portance of many of the conclusions, should they prove hereafter 
to be generally applicable; but he expressed strongly his fears that 
this would not be the case. Observation had, in the instance of 
the tides, far outstript theory, for many reasons, which it would be 
impossible to detail; but among the most prominent were the com- 
plexity of the problem itself involving the astronomical theories both 
of the sun and moon; the masses of these bodies; the motions of 
disturbed fluids, and local causes tending to alter or modify the gen- 
eral geographical effect of the great tide-wave at any particular place. 
It was upon a careful review of these considerations, that he was led 
to fear that it would be still many years before theory would become 
so guarded and supported by local observations, as to afford a suffi- 
ciently correct guide to be implicitly relied on in these speculations. 
He instanced the tides of the Bristel Channel, which in consequence 
of their excessive magnitude, afforded magnified representations of 
the phenomena by which the deviations become more remarkable. 
At the port of Bristol, the tide rose to a height of fifty feet, while 
towards the lower part of the channel it only rose twenty, and along 
other parts of the coast not quite so high. ‘The most striking of 
Mr. Lubbock’s conclusions was that by which it appeared that the 
ocean assumed the form of the spheroid of equilibrium, according to 
the theory of Bernouilli but at five transits of the moon preceding 
the tide itself. By the calculations of Mr. Bent, however, it would 
appear, that although the observed laws of the tides at Bristol might 
be made to agree with Bernouilli’s theory of equilibrium tides, by 
referring them to a certain anterior transit,—so far as the changes 
due to parallax were concerned, as also as far as those due to de- 
clination were concerned,—yet it turned out that this anterior period 
itself was not the same for parallax as for declination. ‘The two 
series of changes have not therefore a common origin or a common 
epoch ; so that in fact there is no anterior period which would give 
theoretical tides agreeing with observed tides; and, therefore, at 


336 Proceedings of the British Association. 


least the Bristol tides do not at present appear to confirm the result 
obtained by Mr. Lubbock from the London tides. Mr. Whewell! 
then illustrated these views by diagrams, by the aid of which he ex- 
plained to the section the luni-tidal intervals, and the curve of semi- 
menstrual inequality—(this latter term, and the doctrine connected 
with it, was introduced into the subject of the tides by the professor 
himself.) Prof. Whewell then proceeded to the question more im- 
mediately before him—the proceedings of the committee appoint- 
ed to fix the relative level of the land and sea, with a view to ascer- 
tain its permanence, or the contrary. He observed, that the com- 
mittee had not taken any active practical steps for the important 
purposes for which they were appointed, because they had met with 
many unexpected difficulties requiring much consideration. It was, 
however intended to appoint a committee for the same purposes, 
who should be furnished with instructions founded upon the views 
at which the former committee had by their labors and experience 
arrived. One method proposed was, that marks should be made 
along various parts of the coast, which marks should be referred to 
the level of the sea; but here the inquiry met us in the very outset 
—what is the proper and precise notion to be attached to the phrase 
the level of the sea? Was it high water mark or low water mark ? 
Was it at the level of the mean tide, which recent researches seemed 
to establish? In hydrographical subjects the level of the sea was 
taken from low water, and this, although in many respects incon- 
venient, could not yet be dispensed with, for many reasons, one of 
which he might glance at—that by its adoption, shoals, which were 
dry at low water, were capable of being represented upon the maps 
as well as the land. The second method proposed appeared to be 
one from which the most important and conclusive results were to be 
expected. It consisted in accurately leveling, by land survey, lines 
in various directions, and by permanently fixing, in various places, 
numerous marks of similar levels at the time; by the aid of these 
marks at future periods, it could be ascertamed whether or not the 
levels, in particular places, had or had not changed, and thus the 
question would be settled whether or not the land in particular lo- 
calities was rising or falling. Still further, by running on those lines, 
which would have some resemblance to the isothermal lines of Hum- 
boldt, as far as the sea coast, and marking their extremities along 
the coast, a solution would at length be obtained to that most im- 
portant practical question,—what is the proper or permanent level 


Proceedings of the British Association. 337 


of the sea at a given place? Until something like this were accom- 
plished, Mr. Whewell expressed his strong conviction of the hope- 
lessness of expecting any thing like accuracy in many important and 
even practical cases. As an example, he supposed the question to 
be the altitude of Dunbury Hill referred to the level of the sea: if 
that level of the sea were taken at Bristol, where the tide rises, as 
before stated, fifty feet, the level of low water would differ from the 
same level on the sea coast at Devonshire, where the sea rises, say 
eighteen feet ; and-supposing, as is most probable, the place of mean 
tide to be the true permanent level by no less a quantity than six- 
teen feet, which would therefore make that hill to appear sixteen 
feet higher, upon a hydrographical map constructed by a person 
taking his level from the coast of Devonshire, than it would appear 
upon the map of an engineer taking his level at Bristol. In the 
method proposed, the lines of equal level would run, suppose from 
Bristol to Ilfracombe in one direction, and from Bristol to Lyme 
Regis in the other, and by these a common standard of level would 
soon be obtained for the entire coast.—Prof. Sir William Hamilton 
rose to express the sincere pleasure he felt at the masterly exposi- 
tions of Mr. Lubbock and Prof. Whewell. One conclusion to which 
Mr. Lubbock had arrived was to him peculiarly interesting, viz. that 
by which it appeared that the influence of the moon upon the tides 
was not manifest in its effects until some time after it had been ex- 
erted, for a similar observation had recently been made by Prof. 
Hansteen -respecting the mutual disturbances of the planets.—Mr. 
Lubbock rose to say, that the agreement between the results calcu- 
lated from the theory of Bernouilli and those obtained from actual 
observation, was much more exact than Prof. Whewell seemed to 
imagine ; in truth, so close was the agreement, that they might be 
said absolutely to agree, since the difference was less than the errors 
that might be expected to occur in making and recording the ob- 
servations themselves.—Mr. Whewell explained that he wished to 
confine his observations to the Bristol tides, as these were the ob- 
servations to which he had particularly turned his attention ; and, 
with respect to which, he should be able, at the present meeting, to 
exhibit diagrams to the section, which he felt confident would amply 
bear out-his assertions respecting these tides.—Mr. Lubbock stated, 
that so near, indeed so exact, had been the coincidence between thé 
observations made at London and Liverpool, and the theory, that 
he was strongly inclined to believe that that coincidence would: be 
Vout. XXXI.—No. 2. (ag | 


338 | Proceedings of the British Association. 


found at length to be universal.—Prof. Stevelly inquired, from Mr. 
Lubbock, whether he did not think it quite possible that local causes. 
might exist, which would be fully capable of producing the devia- 
tions from the theory of Bernouilli; as, for instance, in the case of 
Bristol, so ably insisted upon by Prof. Whewell, where the causes 
of the extraordinary elevation are the land-locking of the tide-wave 
as it ascends the narrowing channel, and the reflexions of other tide- 
waves from several places., Now, particularly in the case of reflex, 
tides, may it not so happen, and does it not, in fact, happen in sev- 
eral places, that they bring the actual tide to a given port at a time 
very different from that at which the influence of the moon and sun, 
if unimpeded, would cause it to arrive, and thus separate, as Prof. 
Whewell had stated, the origin or epoch of the variations due, sup- 
pose to parallax and declension, and even cause other deviations 
from Bernouilli’s theory ?—Mr. Lubbock replied, that unquestiona- 
bly it might so happen; but in his opinion, the discussion of a few 
observations, like those made at Bristol, could not be expected to 
point out very exactly the origin or epoch of either of the variations 
of parallax or declination, with sufficient exactness, to furnish se- 
cure data for determining that they did not correspond to any one 
common previous transit of the moon.—Prof. Whewell exhibited 
some diagrams, which tended to illustrate his view of the question ; 
and, in particular, he drew the attention of the section to the cir- 
cumstance, that the diurnal inequality, which was now beginning to 
be observed, decided the question, inasmuch as its epoch could not 
by any means be attributed to the same previous transit of the moon 
to which the others were referred.—Mr. Frend congratulated the 
meeting upon the prospect now held out of determining. precisely 
that most important practical question, the true level of the sea.. 

Mr. Lubbock next made a communication respecting the  forma- 
tion of an empirical lunar theory. 

Prof. Sir William Hamilton read his report on Mr. George B. 
Jerrard’s mathematical researches, connected with the general solu- 
tion of algebraic equations. 

Prof. Phillips read his report of the expériments instituted with 
a view to determine the temperature of the interior of the earth. 

Prof. Forbes gave an account of the experiments he had directed 
to be made on subterranean temperature at the Read Hills in Scot- 
land. 

_ The Rev. Mr. ‘ain: read-a paper on poavized light. , 


Proceedings of the British Association. _ 339 


Section B.—Cuemistrry anp Minrraoey. 


President.—Rev. Prof. Cumming. 

Vice Presidents—Dr. Dalton, Dr. Henry. 

Secretaries.—Dr. Apjohn, Dr. C. Henry, W. Herapath, Esq. 

Mr. Watson read a paper on the phosphate and pyrophosphate 
of soda. 

Mr. Ettrick noticed a new sear of blowpipe, by which the blast 
of the common blowpipe was made as equable as that produced by 
water pressure. 

Mr. Herapath then drew the attention of the section to the com- 
position of Bath water, as recently determined by him, and detailed 
the methods of analysis which he adopted, and the results at which 
he arrived. 

Dr. Hare next glecoriied his apparatus for the pros on the 
plan of Volta, of gaseous mixtures. 

Mr. Hesapath read a paper on the theory of the aurora borealis. 
He stated that he always found this phenomenon to be low in the at- 
mosphere, and in connection with clouds. Hence he inferred that 
it is occasioned by electricity passing from the clouds. 


Section C.—Gerotocy anp GEOGRAPHY. 


President.—Rev. Dr. Buckland. 

Vice Presidents.—R. Griffith, Esq., G. B. Greenough, Esq. 

(For Geography) R. 1. Murchison, Esq. 

Secretaries.—W. Sanders, Esq., S. Stutchbury, Esq., T. J. Tor- 
rie, Esq. 

(For Geography) F. Harrison Rankin, Esq. 


A memoir was read by Mr. E. Charlesworth, being a notice of 
wertebrated animals found in the crag of Norfolk and Suffolk. The 
principal object in bringing forward this subject, was to establish the 
fact of the remains of mammiferous animals being associated with 
the mollusca of the tertiary beds above the London clay, in the 
eastern counties of England. These remains are confined to a part 
of the crag formation, which appears to extend from Cromer in Nor- 
folk, to within a few miles of Aldborough in Suffolk, and the depth 
of which was very great, wells having been sunk in it without reach- 
ing its bottom. ‘The bones of fish, and a large portion of the testacea 
met with in the stratum, differ widely from those of the coralline 
beds, and from that part of the crag deposit which skirts the southern 


340 Proceedings of the British Association. 


coast of Essex and Suffolk. Among the mammalia, which the au- 
thor states really belong to the crag, is the Mastodon angustidens, 
of which several teeth have recently been obtained in Norfolk from 
localities adjoining the parish of Withingham, the spot from which 
Dr. W. Smith states the specimen to have been procured which is . 
figured in his ‘Strata Identified.” Mr. Charlesworth conceived 
the discovery of the remains of the mastodon in this formation, ‘as 
affording an argument to prove the relative ages of these rocks, as 
no remains of this animal have been found in America in beds more 
ancient than the diluvial. The remaining genera of mammiferous 
animals can be identified with those now existing, or with such as 
are found ‘in diluvial and lacustrine deposits. The author next 
notices. the discovery of the mineralized remains of birds, chiefly 
bones of the extremities of natatorial tribes, a solitary instance of a 
similar discovery in America being the only one recorded. He was 
not prepared to speak concerning the different kinds of fish, but he 
stated their distribution—species of Squalus being found near Orford, 
and what Agassiz conceives to be Platex, at Cromer. Among the 
most remarkable ‘is the Carcharias megalodon, the teeth of which 
are found in Suffolk, equal in size to specimens from the tertiary 
formations of Malta. He also alluded to the difference of the tes- 
tacea in different parts of the crag, from which he was inclined to 
infer there were several eras in its formation. No traces of the ex- 
istence of reptilia have yet been detected, which would rather sup- 
port the opinion of Dr. Beck and Deshayes, that the climate during 
the crag epoch was analogous to that of the polar regions.—Prof. 
Sedgwick stated, that he had been long aware of the existence of re- 
mains of mammalia in the Norfolk crag, although this had been dis- 
puted by Mr. Conybeare, in his work on the Geology of England 
and Wales. He was rather inclined to consider the crag as all of 
one epoch ; and Mr. Lyell had found existing species as numerous 
in the lower as in the upper crag. With regard to Mr. Charles- 
worth’s idea of the extinction of the mastodon in England before the 
formation of the diluvial beds, Prof. Sedgwick conceived that it was 
reasoning from a negative fact, and that until more extensive search 
had been made, no such inference could be fairly drawn. He also 
mentioned that remains of the beaver were found in the alluvions of 
Cambridgeshire, and that it might have existed in England a thou- 
sand years ago. He was confident that no cause still in existence 
could have produced the diluvium on the crag; its whole appear- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 341 


ance suggested the idea of a great rush of waters.—Mr. Conybeare 
was perfectly willing to correct his opinion respecting the existence 
of the remains of mammalia in the crag. He was of opinion that 
the tertiary strata of America had not been sufficiently examined to 
justify the conclusion that it did not contain remains of the masto- 
don. He started a question—which of the species of mastodon 
found in other countries did the British one resemble ?—Mr. Green- 
ough mentioned, asa singular peculiarity of the diluvium of Nor- 
folk, its containing large masses of chalk, which contain organic re- 
mains differing in some respects from those of the chalk in situ. 
‘The town of Cromer seemed to be built on an immense block of 
chalk, contained in the diluvial formation.—Mr. Murchison dissented 
from Mr. Greenough’s opinion. He conceived the formation of 
ehalk was under the diluvium, and had been elevated and disrupted. 
He had seen at Hazeborouch large platforms of chalk laid bare after 
a storm; near that place were needle-shaped rocks of chalk, and at 
Cromer the foundation of the town must rest on part of the same 
mass. There were strong reasons for believing that the Norfolk di- 
luvium contained recent shells only. Mr. Lonsdale, on examina- 
tion, could discover no others.—Mr. Charlesworth mentioned, that 
Dr. Beck considered the shells of the tertiary period to be extinct 
species, and that at the formation of the Norfolk crag the climate 
must have been very cold, like the Arctic regions. He considered 
the diluvial formation to have been sufficiently searched to warrant 
an opinion that it does not contain the remains of the mastodon. 
Many singular organic remains have been found there, which have 
been transported, as of saurians, which must have come from York- 
shire. In alluding to the fact of shells similar to those of the crag 
being found at Bridlington, he was informed by Mr. Sedgwick that 
the formation at that place was probably part of the crag. 

A paper, by Mr. J. B. Bowman, was now read, on the Bone 
Caves at Cefn, in Denbighshire. A description of these has been 
already published in the Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal. 
‘The caves are in the carboniferous limestone. The roof of the 
jower cave is covered with stalactites, which are often broken off or 
blunted. The diluvium on the floor contains fragments of slate, 
and the upper portion animal remains in great abundance. Among 
these are some of a very minute size, and also elytra of beetles. A 
black matter is also found, with veins of reddish clay. The bones 
are often in fragments ; the teeth are somewhat worn; sometimes 


342 Proceedings of the British Association. 


the teeth are of young animals, but no indentations have been found 
upon them. No skulls have been discovered, nor any coprolites. 
The bones frequently contain gelatine, and have often manganese 
upon them; hair was also discovered. ‘The stalactites seem con- 
fined to the anterior part of the cave; in the posterior part a fine 
sand is found. 

Afier this, a desultory conversation took place on the exhibition 
of two models by Mr. Ibbotson, one of the country round Neufcha- 
tel, in Switzerland, on the scale of half an inch to the mile; and the 
other of a part of the Under Cliff in the Isle of Wagbem on the scale 
of three feet to the mile. 

Mr. Greenough mentioned a new mode of engraving medals ti 
ly adopted in France, and which he conceived could be advanta- 
geously employed in laying down the varieties of surface on maps. 
—Mr. Griffiths spoke of the great importance of models like Mr. 
Ibbotson’s, as being so well calculated to display the geological 
structure of a country. He suggested the importance of possessing 
maps, both of outline and of features, and he alluded to the magnifi- 
cent map of Ireland, under the Ordnance Survey, the scale of which, 
being six inches to a mile, enabled the geological observer to trace 
the geological features with a facility before unknown.—It was men- 
tioned, that the new’ map of Austria was on a scale of twenty-two 
inches to the mile, but this Mr. Greenough considered inconven- 
iently large.—Mr. Ibbotson stated, that models could be easily mul- 
tiplied by employing a metal mould, and using papier maché, or © 
some preparation of caoutchouc ; and that they might be dissected 
to exhibit the internal structure, and that the materials of the strata 
themselves could be used as coloring matter.—Lord Northampton 
and M. de la Beche gave their testimony of approval.—Several 
gentlemen then spoke of the application of combinations of letters to 
geological maps, to express the more minute geological phenomena; 
but the general opinion was, that in geological maps simplicity 
should, as much as possible, be preserved, and that the best mode 
would be to have two maps of the same district, one without names, 
for the geological map, and the other with the necessary writing. 
Maps of this kind had been given to the Geological Society byt the 
Archduke John of Austria. 


Section D.—Zooniocy anp Botany. 


President.—Prof. Henslow. 


Proceedings of the British Association. 343 


Vice Presidents —Rev. F. W. Hope, Dr. J. Richardson, Prof. 
Royle. ) 
Secretartes.—John Curtis, Esq., Prof. Don, Dr. Riley, S. Root- 
sey, Esq. | 
Dr. Richardson commenced the proceedings of the Section, by 
reading the introductory portion of his report ‘On the Zoology of 
North America.” It did not appear probable that the progress of 
colonization had, as yet, extinguished any one species of animal 
from the country. The great similarity which existed between the 
animals of North America and those of Europe, as regarded their 
generic distinctions, connected with the dissimilarity of their species, 
rendered them well adapted to inquiries connected with their re- 
spective geographic distribution. Hitherto the trivial names be- 
stowed by the colonists upon many of those of North America, had 
tended to mislead naturalists. ‘The observations in the present re- 
port would principally refer to the western parts of North America, 
including New Mexico, the Peninsula of Florida and California, 
down to the well defined limits of the South American zoological 
province. Dr. Richardson then proceeded to describe the physical 
structure of this country, of which the Rocky Mountains formed a 
most remarkable feature. The altitude of many of their peaks rose 
above the limits of perpetual snow, and their sides were flanked by 
zones of different temperature, affording passages for animals from 
the Arctic circle to the table lands of Mexico, without any great al- 
teration of climate throughout the whole extent. The temperate 
zones of both hemispheres might, in this way, be connected, were 
it not that the Cordilleras were greatly depressed at the Isthmus of 
Panama, and that a plain extended from sea to sea a little further to 
the south. As yet we possess no information of the elevation of the 
backs of these mountains, independent of the heights of some of the 
peaks, and the elevation of the base of the range is equally un- 
known. The depths of some of the transverse valleys are consid- 
erable, and these afford passages for the migration of animals. Most 
of the principal rivers flowing to the east cut across the chain, and 
one actually rises to the west of the crests of the range. On the 
Atlantic side are prairies, composing plains gently inclining to the 
east, and there is an extent of land which may be likened to a long 
valley, which stretches from the Arctic Sea to Mexico, without any 
transverse ridges dividing it, but merely affording three distinct 
water-sheds. ‘The greatest width of the plain is about 15° of lon- 


344 Proceedings of the British Association. 


gitude, in the 40° to 50° of north latitude. ‘This configuration 
gives great facility for the range of herbivorous quadrupeds from 
north to south, and for the migration of low-flying birds ; whilst the 
Mackenzie furnishes a channel by which the anadromous fish of the 
Arctic Sea can penetrate 10° or 11° of latitude to the southward, 

and the Mississippi enables. those of the Gulf of Mexico to ascend 
far to the north. The most remarkable chain east of the Missis- 
sippi, is that of the Alleghanies, which is about one hundred miles 
broad, rises froma base between one thousand and one thousand 
two hundred feet, and attains an elevation from two thousand to 
three thousand feet above the sea. ‘The strip of land between them. 
and the coast is two hundred miles broad in the Carolinas; be- 
comes still broader in Georgia, and, sweeping round the northern 
extremity of the chain, joins the valley of the Mississippi. ‘This 
strip influences the distribution of animal life, by extending south- 
erly to the 5° of latitude, thus forming also a barrier to the progress. 
of anadromous fish from the Atlantic to the bottom of the Gulf of 
Mexico. With reference to physical geography, Newfoundland ap- 
pears asa prolongation of the Atlantic coast line, and its zoological 
and botanical productions correspond -to those of Labrador. When 
the canals already projected shall have opened a communication be- 
tween the several great inland seas which exist in North America, 
an interchange will take place between the fish of widely diverging 
waters. The great proportion of water to land forms a striking fea- 
ture of the north-east continent. This may be zoologically divided 
into two districts, viz. the northern or barren grounds, and the south- 
ern or wooded. The temperature is here materially influenced by 
the inland sea of Hudson’s Straits, and thus its capability of sup- 
porting animal life much affected: On the west of the Rocky 
Mountains, the northern corner appears to be similar to the eastern 
side or barren grounds. The general character of the country bor- 
dering the Pacific is mountainous. With respect to the climate of 
North America, the eastern coast has a lower mean temperature 
than the western, at least in the higher latitudes. Probably the iso- 
thermal, and even the isotheral lines of the banks of the Columbia 
and New Caledonia, correspond nearly in latitude with those of the 
east coast of Europe. But on the eastern side down to the 56th 
parallel of latitude, the subsoil is perpetually frozen. Even in the 
45th parallel, on the north side of the great Canada lakes, there is 
upwards of six months of continuous frost, and the grallatorial, and 


Proceedings of the British Association. 345 


most of the graminivorous birds, can find nothing to support them in 
the winter season ; and, consequently, the migration of the feathered 
tribes is here much more general than in the countries of Europe ly- 
ing under the same parallel. The principal cause of this great dif- 
ference between the climates of the eastern and western districts, 
may be ascribed to the configuration of the coast land, which de- 
tains the ice in its bays and gulfs, and this, in melting, materially 
depresses the summer heat. ‘The decrement in the mean annual 
heat, corresponding to the increase in Jatitude, is greater in North 
America than in Europe, and there exists a wider difference between 
the temperatures of summer and winter. Dr. Richardson then con- 
cluded this introductory portion of his report, by details concerning 
the temperatures which had been observed at different places in the 
country under consideration. 

Mr. Rootsey exhibited specimens of sugar, malt, and an ardent 
spirit, which he had extracted from mangel wurzel, and considered 
that this root might, under certain circumstances, be grown to great 
advantage in this country, for the purposes of manufacturing the 
above articles. 

Mr. G. Webb Hall read a communication ‘ On the Acceleration 
of the Growth of Wheat.” After pointing out the advantages which 
might accrue to agriculture from the attention given by scientific 
men to certain subjects with which it was connected ; and the abso- 
lute necessity which now existed for making the most extensive and 
careful investigations concerning many points of great importance to 
the success of agriculture, he proceeded to call the attention of the 
Section to a statement of facts, by which it would be seen that the 
usual period allotted to the occupation of the ground for a crop of 
wheat might be very materially abridged.. At an average, this might 
be estimated at ten months, though twelve, and even thirteen, were 
not unusual, and eight might be considered as the shortest period for 
the ordinary winter wheat. By a selection of particular seed, and 
a choice of peculiar situation, wheat sown early in March has been, 
on different occasions, ripened before the middle of August, a period 
scarcely exceeding five months. Mr. Hall considers it an unques- 
tionable law of vegetation, that the offspring of a plant of early ma- 
turity itself, seeks to become so likewise, even when placed in un- 
propitious circumstances, and that it recedes with reluctance from 
the condition of its parent. Hence the seed of a crop which has 
been ripened in five months has a better prospect of producing 


Vout. XX XI.—No. 2. 44 


346 _ Proceedings of the British Association. 


another crop equally accelerated, than that from a crop which has 
been longer in ripening. He also asserted, that the acceleration of 
a crop was farther promoted by thick sowing, which likewise might 
be considered advantageous in checking and stopping the mildew.— 
Dr. Richardson referred to the remark of Humboldt, that in South 
America the wheat crop was ripened in ninety days from the period 
of sowing, and stated, that about Hudson’s Bay this period was only 
seventy days. He suggested the probable advantage that might 
arise from importing seed from the latter country for the purpose of 
furthering Mr. Hall’s views; but this gentleman stated, that he had 
found that seed imported from a distance (and he had tried some 
from Italy) was liable to become diseased. As connected with the 
subject of the acceleration of the growth of seeds, Prof. Henslow 
mentioned the results of experiments which he had tried upon seeds 
of a species of Acacia, sent by Sir John Herschel from the Cape of 
Good Hope, with directions that they should be steeped in boiling 
water before they were sown. Some of these were kept at the boil- 
ing temperature for three, six, and fifteen minutes respectively, and 
had yet germinated very readily in the open border; whilst those 
which had not been steeped did not vegetate. It was suggested 
that these facts might lead to beneficial results, by shewing agricul- 
turists that they may possibly be able to steep various seeds in wa- 
ter sufficiently heated to destroy certain fungi or insects known to be 
destructive to them without injuring the vital principle in the seed 
itself.mMr. Hope mentioned a practice common in some parts of 
Spain, of baking corn to a certain extent, by exposing it to a tem- 
perature of 150° or upwards, for the purpose of destroying an insect 
by which it was liable to be attacked.—Dr. Richardson mentioned, 
that the seeds sold in China for the European market were previ- 
ously boiled, for the purpose of destroying their vitality, as the jeal- 
ousy of that people made them anxious to prevent their exportation 
jn a state fitted for germination. Upon sowing these seeds he had 
nevertheless observed some few of them were still capable of vege- 
tating. 

Mr. Curtis exhibited some specimens of the terminal shoots of a 
Pinus, which had been attacked by the Hylurgus piniperda, and 
made a few remarks on the habits of the insect. 

Dr. Daubeny communicated to the Section the partial results 
which he had obtained from a series of experiments he was carrying 
on at Oxford, respecting the effects which arsenic produces on vege- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 347 


tation. He was led to undertake these experiments from having re- 
ceived a communication from Mr. Davies Gilbert, in which he sta- 
ted that there was a district in Cornwall where the soil contained a 
large proportion of arsenic; and that no plants could grow in it except 
some of the Leguminose. By analysis, this soil yielded him about 
fifty per cent. of arsenic, in the form of a sulphuret ; the rest being 
composed principally of sulphuret of iron and a little silica. He had 
already ascertained that a little of the sulphuret mixed in soils pro- 
duced no injurious effect on Stnapis alba, barley, or beans; and 
that they flowered and seeded freely when grown init. Although 
the want of solubility in the sulphuret might be assigned as a reason 
for its inactivity ; yet it was certainly taken up by water in small 
quantities, and imbibed by the roots of plants. Upon watering them 
with a solution of arsenious acid, he found that they would bear it in 
larger proportions than was presupposed. ‘The injurious effects of 
arsenious acid on vegetation in ‘the neighborhood of the copper- 
works of Bristol and Swansea, was noticed by Mr. Rootsey ; and 
Mr. Stevens mentioned the circumstance of the trout in some streams 
of Cornwall having been destroyed by the opening of some new 
mines in their neighborhood, from which arsenical. compounds were 
discharged, though the vegetation did not appear to be injured by 
them; and it was further stated, that horses were considerably in- 
jured, and rendered subject to a remarkable disease, by the effects 
of arsenical compounds in the same districts. 


Section E.—Anatomy anp MeEdIcINE. 


President—Dr. Roget. 
Vice Presidents—Dr. Bright, Dr. Macartney. 
Secretartes—Dr. Symonds, G. D. Fripp, Esq. 


Dr. O’Beirne read a Report of the Dublin Committee on the pa- 
thology of the nervous system. 

A short description of a case of aneurism of the arteria innomina- 
ta, furnished by Sir D. H. Dickson, was then read. 


Section F.—Sratisrics. 

President—Sir Charles Lemon, Bart. 

Vice Presidents—H. Hallam, Esq., Dr. Jerrard. 

Secretaries—Rev. J. E. Bromby, C. B. Fripp, Esq., James 
Heywood, Esq. 

A very curious and interesting report was read, entitled, “A few 
statistical facts, descriptive of the former and present state of Glas- 
gow,” by James Cleland, LL. D. 


348 Proceedings of the British Association. 


Section G.—MeEcHAnicaL SCIENCE. 


President—Davies Gilbert, Esq. 

Vice Presidents—M. J. Brunel, Esq., John Ruwaey: Esq. | 

_Secretaries—T. G. Bunt, Esq., G. T. Clark, Esq., William 
West, Esq. 


The discussions were opened by some shaerariene of Professor 
Moseley on the theory of locomotive carriages. 

Dr. Lardner next laid before the meeting many details in regard 
to Railroads. Afterwards Mr. Russell of Edinburgh read an im- 
portant memoir on the traction of boats in canals at different velo- 
cities. 


Tuesday, August 23. . : 
Section A.—Matuematics aND PHysicaL SCIENCE. 


Mr. Russell gave an interesting statement of a series of experi- 
ments regarding the laws of the Motions of Waves excited in 
Water. 

Prof. Powell read a paper respecting the Refractive Indices of 
several Substances. 

A paper was then read, contributed by Sir D. Brewster, “On 
the Polarizing Structure of the Crystalline Lens of the Eyes of An- 
imals after Death.” 

The Rev. J. W. M‘Gauley read an account of “A Series of Be 
periments in Electro-Magnetism, with reference to its application as 
a Moving Power.” 


Section B.—Cuemistry anp MiIneraoey. 


Mr. Exley read a very interesting memoir on a new theory of 
chemical combination, deduced from mathematical data, and demon- 
strated mathematically. : 

Dr. Charles Henry read an account of some experiments made 
with a view to determine the mode in which certain gases act in 
preventing the action of spongy platinum upon a mixture of oxygen 
and hydrogen. ‘The gases he examined were carbonic oxide and 
olefiant gas. He found that carbonic oxide was the most powerful, 
and that carbonic acid was always the result. Hence it is evident 
that oxygen and hydrogen are prevented from combining by the su- 
perior attraction of the carbonic oxide for the oxygen. Olefiant gas 
he found not to be decomposed, and hence the attraction which pre- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 349 


vents the combination is not sufficiently powerful to form any other. 
This explanation is corroborated by the fact, that it requires a very 
great proportion of the olefiant gas to produce the effect. 

Mr. Herapath then read a paper on Arsenical Poisons. 


Section C.—Gerouocy anp GrocRAPHy. 


The first paper was ‘A Classification of the Old Slate Rocks of 
Devonshire, and on the true position of the Culm Deposits of the 
central portion of that country,” by Professor Sedgwick and Mr. 
Murchison.—The authors began by observing, that this was a mere 
outline of a more detailed memoir on the physical structure of De- 
vonshire, which they were about to lay before the Geological Soci- 
ety of London. In the published geological maps of that county, 
the whole system of the older slate rocks was represented under 
one color, without any attempt at subdivision ; and one color also 
represented different limestones, without any discrimination. ‘The 
object of the authors was, to remedy these defects,—to ascertain 
and represent the true position of the successive deposits and their 
natural subdivisions, so as to compare them with corresponding de- 
posits in other places. ‘They also wished to determine the true 
place of the remarkable carbonaceous deposits of central Devon, 
which had been previously regarded as belonging to the lowest por- 
tion of the grauwacke formation. A section was exhibited of part 
of that county, from the north coast to one of the granite peaks of 
Dartmoor immediately southwest of Oakhampton. A diagram of 
the section will be found on the succeeding page. 

In the ascending order this section exhibits—1. A system of 
slaty rocks, containing a vast abundance of organic remains, gene- 
rally in the form of casts. ‘These rocks sometimes pass into a fine 
glossy clay slate, with a true transverse cleavage ; sometimes into a 
hard quartzose flagstone, not unusually of a reddish tinge; sometimes 
into a reddish ‘sandstone, subordinate to which are beds of incohe- 
rent shale. In North Devon they are very rarely so calcareous as 
to be burnt for lime, but in South Devon, rocks of the same age 
appear to be much more calcareous.—2. A series of rocks charac- 
terized by hard thick-bedded red sandstone, and red micaceous flag- 
stone, subordinate to which are bands of red, purple, and variega- 
ted shales. ‘The red color occasionally disappears, and the formation 
puts on the ordinary appearance of a coarse, siliceous grauwacke, 

subordinate to which are some bands of imperfect roofing slate. In 


Proceedings of the British Association. 


350 


(sjuxjd) -L—ayAq ueayq ‘9—wND ‘c—(‘sjuvfd) -p—oit[Joae pA ‘E—'aIO pea ‘~—‘alo UO] Jo spoq *[—'sTONSUTATyY 


‘wiaisks oy] Jo J1ed Jamo] 9y1 jo 
Apaty ‘s[issoy ueLniig uMouy jam Aueur 


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qiog ‘ayAC UAL pue 1oOWIV Jo aytUeLdy (7) ‘SUIVUIAL DIUBSIO JO Spaq a4} YSnosy] Suts 
*s}1sodep snoaoeuog.iva ay) UO -sed asvAvI[I—SISL[as pur Sauojspues AjEIg (2) *syOOY UeLINIIS 
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‘asBAva]O A1BIS -UI—spoq pue suloa osozj1enb YIM sai¥[g (7p) 
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usJO a/BYS pue sUO)|SpULs Jo sUOISsadoNS ‘red 
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N 


Proceedings of the British Association. 351 


this series are very few organic remains. It is several feet in thick- 
ness, occupying the whole coast from the west end of the Valley of 
Rocks to Combe Martin.—3. The calcareous slates of Combe Mar- 
tin and Ilfracombe, of very great aggregate thickness, abounding in 
organic remains, and containing in a part of their range at least nine 
distinct ribs of limestone burnt for use. This limestone is prolonged 
into Somersetshire, and appears to be the equivalent of that on the 
flanks of the Quantock Hills.—4. A formation of greenish and lead- 
colored roofing slate of great thickness, and occupying a well defined 
zone in North Devon, its upper bed alternating with and gradually 
passing into a great deposit of sandstones of various colors and mica- 
ceous flagstones. ‘These siliceous masses alternate with incoherent 
slates, and are in some places surmounted by great masses of red unc- 
tuous shale, which, when in a more solid form, generally exhibit cleav- 
age oblique to the stratification.—5. The Silurian system resting 
conformably on the preceding, and of great thickness, on the north- 
western coast, containing many subordinate beds and masses of lime- 
stone. In its range towards the eastern part of the county, it grad- 
ually thins off, but its characters are well preserved, and it every 
where contains vast numbers of characteristic organic remains.— 
6. The carbonaceous system of Devonshire, in a direction east and 
west across the county, in its southern boundary so close to Dartmoor 
that its lower beds have been tilted up and altered by the granite. 
It occupies a trough, the northern border of which rests, partly in a 
conformable position upon the Silurian system, and partly upon older 
rocks, probably of the division No. 4. its southern border also rests 
on the slate rocks of Launceston. It every where exhibits a suc- 
cession of violent contortions. In some places it is overlaid by 
patches of green sand, and west of Bideford by conglomerates of 
the new red sandstone. ‘The lowest portion of this vast deposit is 
generally thin bedded, sometimes composed of sandstone and shale, 
with impressions of plants, sometimes of indurated compact slate, 
containing wavellite. ‘These beds are surmounted by alternations of 
shale and dark colored limestone with a few fossils. Subordinate to 
these, there are on the western side of the county thin veins and 
flakes of culm or anthracite ; but this is wanting on the eastern side, 
and the calcareous beds are more expanded. The higher beds of 
this deposit are well exhibited on the coast west of Bideford. These 
often contain impressions of vegetables.. Though in a state of greater 
induration than the ordinary coal measures of England, and even in 


352 Proceedings of the British Association. 


many places destitute of any trace of coal, still these beds do not 
differ from the great unproductive coal-field of Pembrokeshire. The 
authors consequently concluded, that from the order of superposi- 
tion,—from mineral structure—from absence of slaty cleavage pecu- 
liar to the older rocks on which this deposit rests, and from the spe- 
cific character of its organic remains, it may without hesitation be 
referred to the regular carboniferous series. In the course of the 
details, the authors alluded toa remarkable elevated beach, occupy- 
ing two miles of coast on the north side of Barnstaple Bay, a more 
special account of which is being prepared for the Geological Society. 

M. De Ja Beche objected to the conclusions of Messrs. Sedg- 
wick and Murchison, although he did not dispute the correctness of 
the section of the country which they had exhibited to the meeting. 
He conceived that he had traced the carbonaceous rocks passing 
into what had been termed the Cambrian system, although he was 
not prepared to say that it really was that system. He was also 
unable to make that separation of the contorted rocks, suggested by 
the authors of the paper. He spoke of the overlying greenstones 
in different places, and considered that these were of different ages ; 
also of the changes, produced by granite on rocks of every kind in 
contact with it. He alluded to the former opinions of the rocks 
called by the general name, Greywacke, which opinions have, of 
late years, been totally altered. He attached very little importance 
to mineral characters: unless the consideration of the imbedded or- 
ganic remains was made of the first importance, we were sure of 
falling into error. Are the organic remains in these carbonaceous 
rocks of Devon really the same as those of the general carbonifer- 
ous system? He stated, that he conceived there was evidence to 
prove that there was a regular band of rocks surrounding Dartmoor, 
which had been thrust up through the hollow in the middle. He 
could nowhere discover any line of separation between the carbo- 
naceous and the older rocks, so that he was unable to reconcile the 
deposits of coal with those of other parts of England, and as to the 
age of these older rocks all were agreed. In the Alps, organic re- 
mains of the coal formation are found in beds, alternating with 
oolites, so that we must not limit too strictly the range of these or- 
ganic remains, as we should be certain of all the conditions under 
which coal plants can be accumulated. We should recollect, that 
the remains of the vegetation of a mountain may be entombed at 
its base, so as to be shifted from its origimal habitat; and that, although: 


Proceedings of the British Association. 353 


the disposition of organic remains may hold true for a certain extent 
of the earth’s surface, we have no right to consider such a disposi- 
tion universal.—Mr. Sedgwick remarked, that he could with certainty 
distinguish four calcareous zones in North Devon—viz. one at Liston, 
a second at Ilfracombe, and two others at Barnstaple. ‘The differ- 
ence of the limestones of South Devon was. also very remarkable; that 
of Plymouth being essentially distinct from that of Dartmoor. These 
carbonaceous strata also extended several miles into Cornwall.—Mr. 
Conybeare considered that the public had exaggerated the difference 
of opinion then before the meeting.- He was rather inclined to co- 
incide with Messrs. Sedgwick and Murchison in considering the 
strata in dispute as referable to the general carboniferous system, 
and from the general resemblance of the formations to those of Pem- 
brokeshire, the probability was much strengthened.—Prof. Phillips 
conceived that it had been satisfactorily proved, that there existed a 
coal basin in the interior of Devonshire, although, at first sight, from 
the unprofitable nature of the contained coal, being the kind ealled 
Culm, some hesitation might have taken place as to assigning it its 
true position. But doubts must vanish on inspecting the organic re- 
mains: and here he might observe, that it was a mistake to suppose 
that Dr. Smith, the founder of English geology, had ever intended 
to limit the range of these remains as some had. accused him of. 
We might readily assume, and observation has confirmed, that some 
organic remains of one stratum may be found in contiguous strata, 
associated with fossils of different kinds, so that organic remains alone. 
are insufficient to point out distinctions in strata. But the general 
appearance of the limestones of Devon was precisely similar to those 
of the north of England, in regard both of mineral character and 
imbedded fossils. From their appearance, he had expected their 
interstratification with shales, and Mr. Murchison had confirmed this 
supposition. ‘The Devon limestone corresponded indeed with the 
upper bed of the Yorkshire limestone; in the former he had de- 
tected a shell, a species of Anodon, which he had not observed in 
the latter ;. but the species of Posidonia found in both exactly cor- 
respond. Perhaps one cause of mistake might have been the little 
attention paid to the black limestone of Craven, by Mr. Conybeare, 
and to this limestone there was a most striking resemblance in the 
black variety of Devonshire. He alluded to the extraordinary ano- 
maly of coal plants having been found in the Alps, associated with 
oolites, but this might be an exception from the general law, and 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 45 


354 Proceedings of the British Association. 


exceptions there must be ; still it must be allowed, that organic life 
must have a constant relation to the state of the actual surface. He 
came to the conclusion, that the Devon district would not offer any 
anomaly in geological arrangement, but that it would correspond in 
arrangement with the other parts of the country, and that a fruitful 
source of error is the hitherto vague term Greywacke, which has 
been applied indiscriminately to a great variety of rocks, so as to 
include many of different ages throughout this county.—Dr. Buck- 
land congratulated the meeting on the difference of opinion among 
the geologists present, such a difference producing discussion, which 
was the sure means of arriving at trath. He considered, that the 
true solution of the question at issue would be in the middle course ; 
that, no doubt, it could not be easily granted, that the series niles 
consideration was carboniferous, when no true coal was contained 
in it; but, were we to adopt the new term, culmiferous, we should 
get rid of the difficulty. This culmiferous series he regarded as the 
lowest portion of the coal formation, and as resting upon the Siluri- 
an rocks. He alluded to the difficulty of making geological maps 3 
these must be constantly modified, according to the extent of inves- 
tigation: errors of omission must be committed by every pioneer in 
geology, which can be corrected only by the researches of succeed- 
ing observers. - 

“After the discussion was closed, Mr. De la Beche exhibited a 
part of the Ordnance Geological Map of Devon, and such parts of 
that of Cornwall as have been finished ; and pointed out the gene- 
ral parallelism of certain great lines of dislocation both in the me- 
talliferous and non-metalliferous. districts. He stated that he con- 
sidered such lines to have been produced at the same geological 
epoch, and attributed the fact of the occurrence of the ores of use- 
ful metals in some situations and not in others, to conditions which 
were to be found in the one and not in the other. The conditions 
most favorable to the occurrence of the tin and copper ores of 
Cornwall and Devon, are the proximity to the junction lines of the 
granitic and slate systems of those counties; the intermixture of 
granitic and porphyritic dykes with the slates, or with the masses 
of granite; the occurrence of great lines of dislocation traversing 
the lodes or mineral veins, and termed cross courses, &c. ‘The au- 
thor pointed out numerous other conditions, and then noticed the 
beneficial effects of the proximity of the granitic or porphyritie 
dykes provincially termed elvans, and which alike traverse the 


Proceedings of the British Association. 355 


granitic and the slate systems. In support of this view, he instan- 
ced more particularly the mines in the vicinity of Marazion, where 
the lodes or mineral veins traverse lines of elvans obliquely, and 
where very rich bunches of ore have been obtained at such junc-. 
tions. Indeed the miners of that part of the country are perfectly 
aware of the value of these junctions, and carry their work on as 
much as possible within their favorable influence. ‘The author da- 
rected the attention of the Section to the fact, that all the great 
mines of Cornwall are situated amid the above conditions, and to 
the advantages which geology could thus confer upon the communi- 
ty, by pointing out to them those places where the chances are fa- 
vorable to mining operations, and by inducing them to avoid those 
bubble speculations at this moment so unfortunately common.—Mr. 
Hopkins was called upon to make some observations regarding the 
direction of the fissures mentioned by Mr. De la Beche, but he did 
not enter very fully into any discussion, as he proposed, on the fol- 
lowing day, to bring the general consideration of fissures before the 
Section. He observed, however, that there must have been one 
great axis of disturbance, to which the smaller fissures must either 
have been parallel, or have circulated around it; indeed, Mr. De la 
Beche has supposed the great line of fissures from Blackdown to 
Cornwall had been curved by the intervening granites. He stated, 
that there must be a connexion between the width of lodes and their 
mineral contents; also, that in the production of fissures there must 
have been several periods of elevation.—Mr. Tox then mentioned 
a remarkable experiment which he had made upon the yellow sul-. 
phuret of copper, having changed it by electricity into the grey sul- 
phuret. Ina trough a mass of clay was placed, so as to divide it 
into two portions, in one of which was sulphate of copper in solu- 
tion, in the other dilute sulphuric acid. - On the electric communi- 
cation being made by placing the yellow sulphuret in the solution of 
sulphate of copper, and a piece of zinc in the acid, the change of 
sulphuret took place, and crystals of native copper were also formed 
upon it.—Mr. Fox observed, that native copper is not found in the 
mines of Cornwall combined with yellow copper, but with black 
‘copper ore; and that the grey ore is generally found nearer the 
surface than the yellow, and also in and near the cross courses.— 
Mr. Taylor bore testimony to the importance of geological informa- 
tion to mining agents, who now were informing themselves, not 
only in practice but in theory. He spoke of the exertions of the 


356 Proceedings of the British Association. 


late Mr. Phillips, in drawing -up a geological map of Cornwall, so 
far back as 1800. He suggested the propriety of tracing the lines 
of fissures into the coal districts, and also wished the directions of 
the lead lodes of the mountain limestone to be ascertained, as likely 
to lead to general results. 


¥ SECTION D.—Zoo.oey AND Borany. 


Dr. Richardson resumed the reading of his Report on the Zoology 
of North America. In touching upon the geographical distribution 
of the Mammalia, he remarked the great similarity which existed 
between them and the European species ; whilst there was the great- 
est dissimilarity to those of South America. The boundary line 
separating the Faunas of North and South America, was not at the 
Isthmus of Darien, but at the tropic of Cancer. No Quadrumana 
occur to the north of the Isthmus of Darien ; though in Europe 
there is a species which ranges as far north as the rock of Gibraltar, 
in latitude 36°.—In the order Carnivora, and family Cheiroptera, 
all the North American species belong to that tribe which possesses 
only one bony phalanx in the index, and two in each of the other 
fingers, to which tribe also all the European bats belong, except an 
Italian species of Dinops. None of the sixteen species recorded 
as natives of North America have been found elsewhere ; two only 
have been traced over any great extent of country, and one of these 
(resembling the European Pipistrellus) ranges through 24° of lati- 
tude, and is the most northerly species in America. - There must be 
still many bats to be discovered in that country, as those of Mexico, 
California, and the whole track of the Rocky Mountains are entirely 
unknown. Of the family Insectivora, ten species were enumerated ; 
and it was stated that North America differs more from Europe in 
this family, than in any other of the order Carnivora. ‘Three of the 
European genera do not exist in North America, and the three ge- 
nera found in North America do not exist in South America. The 
North American species of Sorex, however, closely resemble those 
of Europe.—Of the family Marsupiata, inhabiting the New World, 
only three species reach into North America, the rest being confined 
to the south of the Isthmus of Darien. Two of these occur no 
higher than Mexico; but the third (the Virginian opossum) ranges 
to the great Canadian lakes on the north, and to Paraguay on the 
south.—About forty species of the family Carnivora have been no- 
ticed; and this family includes a greater number than any: other 


Proceedings of the British Association. _ 857 


which are common to both North America and Europe ; though 
possibly a closer acquaintance with some which are at present con- 
sidered identical, may enable us to establish some distinction between 
them. The generic forms of North America are the same as those 
of Europe, excepting in a very few cases, which belong to the South 
American group. A few of the more northern forms also cross the 
Isthmus of Darien to the south.—In the family of Plantigrada, two 
of the four bears of North America are undoubtedly peculiar to the 
New World; and one of these is the most northerly quadruped it 
contains. ‘The American Glutton, or Wolverine according to Cu- 
vier, is identical with that of the Old World. Among the Digiti- 
grada, the range of the Mustelz is limited southwards to the north- 
ern or middle district of the United States. Whether any of the 
American and European species of this genus be really identical, is 
involved in great uncertainty. Of the three otters of North Amer- 
ica, one appears to be identical with that of Europe; and another, 
if correctly identified as the Lutra Brasiliensis, has a most exten- 
sive range, from the Arctic Sea through great part of South Amer- 
ica. Eight species of the genus Canis are found in North America; 
but there is great difficulty in distinguishing the species, and in iden- 
tifying them with any of those of Europe. The domestic dog 
breeds with the wolf and fox, and their offspring is prolific. Eight 
species of the genus Felis were mentioned by Dr. Richardson, three 
of which extend from South America into the south western territo- 
ries of the United States ; and some of the others are still doubtful 
as North American species. The nine species of Amphibia found 
in North America, are mostly common to the northern seas of the 
Old and New Worlds ; the genus Otaria alone being confined to the 
North Pacific ; and even these range to the Asiatic coast. The 
specific identity of some of the seals is involved in very great doubt. 
In the order Rodentia, there have been between seventy and eighty 
species discovered ; and here North America surpasses every quar- 
ter of the globe in the abundance and variety of form which these 
animals assume. ‘The squirrels are not yet satisfactorily determined. 
The marmots are numerous, except in the subgenus Spermophilus. 
‘There is only one which may possibly be common to the New and 
Old World. ‘There is only one of the restricted genus Mus, which 
is unequivocally indigenous to North America; and this closely re- 
sembles the European M. sylvestris. Other species have been in- 
troduced from the opposite side of the Atlantic. 


358 Proceedings of the British Association. 


Mr. Bowman read a communication respecting the longevity of 
the yew tree; and mentioned the result of his observations upon the 
growth of several young trees, by which it appeared that their diam- 
eters increased during the first one hundred and twenty years, at the 
rate of at least two lines, or the one sixth of an inch per annum 5 
and that under favorable circumstances the growth was still more 
rapid. In the church yard at Gresford, near Wrexham, North 
Wales, are eighteen yew trees, which are stated by the parish regis- 
ter for 1726 to have been planted that year. The average of the 
diameters of these trees is twenty inches. Mr. Bowman then re- 
marked on two yew trees of large dimensions, from the trunks-of 
which he had obtained sections. One is in same church yard as. 
those above mentioned, and its trunk is twenty two feet in circum- 
ference at the base, twenty nine feet below the first branches. ‘This 
gives us a mean diameter of 1224 lines, which, according to De 
Candolle’s rule for estimating the age of the yew, ought also to in- 
dicate the number of years. From three sections obtained from this 
tree, Mr. Bowman ascertained that the average number of rings de- 
posited for one inch in depth of its latest growth, was 343. Com- 
paring this with the data obtained from the eighteen young trees, he 
estimated the probable age of this tree at 1419 years. ‘The second 
of these trees is in the church yard of Darley in the Dale, Derby- 
shire, and its mean diameter, taken from measurements at four dif- 
ferent places, in 1356 lines. Horizontal sections from its north and 
south sides gave an average for its latest increase at forty four rings 
per inch nearly, which gives two thousand and six years as its age, 
by the mode of calculation adopted by Mr. Bowman. He then pro- 
ceeded to state his opinion of the reason why so many old yew trees 
were to be met with in church yards: he considered that they might 
have been planted there at a period anterior to the introduction of 
christianity, under the influence of the same feelings as those which 
prompted the early nations of antiquity to plant the cypress round 
the graves of their deceased friends. 

Mr. Ball exhibited the skulls of a species of seal common in Ire- 
land with a view of eliciting information, as he considered it to be 
new to the British Fauna, and very distinct from the two already 
recorded. The present species was never known to become tame, 
whilst the Phoca vitulina, generally considered the more common 
species of our coasts, was very easily tamed.—Prof. Nilsson, of Lund, 
at once pronounced this species to be his Haliocherus griseus, 


Proceedings of the British Association. 359 


- forming a distinct genus from Phoca, and described by him in the 
year 1820. It had been previously recorded by Fabricius, under 
_ the name of Phoca gryphus. It is common in the Baltic and North 
sea, and to be met with in Iceland, and attains a size of eight feet 
in length. In Sweden it was emphatically termed the sea seal in 
contradistinction to those which inhabited gulfs. He remarked that. 
the name of Phoca vitulina had been applied by Linneus, and sub- 
sequent authors, to three distinct species, to which he had himself 
given the names of barbata, variegata, and annellata. Of these he 
had ascertained that a specimen captured in the Severn, and now in 
the Bristol Institution, belonged to the annellata.—Dr. Scoular re- 
marked that the species which Prof. Nilsson had identified as his 
Haliocherus griseus, predominated in Ireland over the Phoca vitu- 
lina, though it had been hitherto neglected; and that the great dif- 
ference in the teeth of these species, justly entitled them to be con- 
sidered as forming distinct genera.—Dr. Riley exhibited the stomach 
of the specimen alluded to, as having been caught in the Severn, in 
which he had found from thirty to forty pebbles, and states that other 
instances had occurred of a similar nature; and that it was a popular 
notion that they assisted the seal in the way of ballast whilst catching 
his prey, which it did by rising vertically upwards, and seizing it 
from below. But Sir Francis Mackenzie then asserted that he had 
repeatedly seen the seal chase salmon into the nets, and that it was 
not usual for it to capture its prey in the way described. Neither 
he nor Prof. Nilsson, nor Mr. Ball, had ever found stones in the 
stomach of this animal. 

Dr. Hancock read a paper on a new species of Norantea, from 
Guiana, termed by the natives Corocoromibi.:' 

Mr. Hope exhibited a remarkable specimen of the Lucanus came- 
lus, Fabr., from. North America, the right side of which had the 
configuration of the male, and the left of the female sex. 

Mr. Hope read a communication, expressive of the probability 
that some of the early notions of antiquity were derived from observ- 
ations made on the habits of insects. 

Mr. P. Duncan offered a few remarks upon the subject of Mr. 
Hope’s speculations. 

Mr. G. Webb Hall commented on the effects of lime-as_ vari- 
ously applied to different soils. 


360 Proceedings of the British Association. 


Section E.—Anatomy anp Mepicine. 


The first paper read was entitled, ‘“‘ Observations on Remedies 
for Diseases of the Brain,” by Dr. Prichard, of Bristol. 

The second paper read was by Dr. Houston, .on a human feetus 
without heart or lungs. 

The third paper was by R. Carmichael, Esq. on Tubercles. 


Section F.—SrartistTics. 


Mr. Kingsley presented and described several forms of tables, for 
more accurately displaying the revenue and expenditure of the Uni- 
ted Kingdom, and procuring accuracy in Parlimentary returns of the 
state of Savings Banks, &c. . 

Baron Dupin addressed the Section on the subject of a paper he 
had laid upon the table, entitled, ‘‘ Researches relative to the price 
of grain, and its influence on the French population.” 


Section G.—MercuHanicaL SCIENCE. 


The sitting of the Section occupied but a short time, during 
which two papers were read, one of some interest, by Mr. Henwood, 
on Naval Architecture, and a second by Mr. Coosham, on certain 
improvements in Napier’s rods. Dr. Daubeny also exhibited an in- 
genious instrument for taking up sea water from any given depth, 
for the purpose of chemical analysis, being an improvement of an 
admirable invention for that purpose sent out in the Bonite. 

Evening Meetings.—In consequence of the incessant rain, the in- 
tended promenade and horticultural exhibition at Miller’s gardens, 
was abandoned, and notice given that the Geological, Statistical and 
Mechanical Sections, would meet in the evening. | 

In the Geological Section, Dr. Hare of Philadelphia entered upon 
a history of the many modifications of the pile of Volta, and in par- 
ticular drew attention to a form of it devised, and long since described 
by himself, but which he conceived had not in a sufficient degreé at- 
tracted the attention of European philosophers.. Dr. Hare concluded 
by the exhibition of some striking experiments illustrative of the ig- 
niting or deflagrating efficacy of his Voltaic arrangements. — 

Prof. Phillips followed with an account of the distribution over 
the northern parts of England of blocks or boulders. ‘The Associa- 
tion, he observed, had formerly proposed a question regarding this 
distribution, and the present was a partial attempt at its solution ; 
and it was interesting both to the geologist and the geographer, as it 


Proceedings of the British Association. 361 


involved the effects of running water in modifying the surface of a 
country. In glancing over the north of England, we find a great 
variety of rock formations, from the oldest slates to the newer ter- 
tiary ; the country generally slopes to the east, with the exception 
of the group of Cumbrian mountains, which form a local conical 
zone. One striking feature in its physical geography, is an immense 
valley running north and south, and passing through a great variety 
of formations; the Wolds of York being chalk, the strata near 
Whitby of oolite, the vale of York new red sandstone, while the 
carboniferous rocks are displayed in. Northumberland and Durham. 
All the country from the Tyne to the Humber is covered with trans- 
ported boulders, many of which are of rocks quite different from any 
near the spots where they occur, and some even not recognizable as 
British rocks.- Could Mr. Lyell’s ideas regarding the office of ice- 
bergs be true, that they had been the means of transporting gravel 
to distant places—boulders of the Shap Fell granite had been found 
in the south-eastern part of Yorkshire; in the interior, there were 
great accumulations of them in many places, their directions seemed 
all to converge to a certain point, in what is termed the Pennine 
chain, but on this chain no boulders have been observed, except at 
one point, from which you look towards Shap Fell; towards the 
north they have been drifted nearly as far as Carlisle, but there is 
no trace of them towards the west. We also find boulders from 
Carrick Fell carried to Newcastle and the Yorkshire coast, and these 
have been drifted over the same point of Staimmoor. Mr. Phillips 
gave several conflicting opinions of different geologists, to account 
for this extraordinary transportation: the bursting of the banks of 
lakes ; the alternate elevation and depression of mountain chains ; 
and the supposition that the entire country had been under the sea, 
when the distribution of boulders had taken place.-—Mr. Sedgwick 
then rose, and remarked, that the direction of transport of the blocks 
may have been modified by the surface over which they were car- 
ried; and that Sir James Hall had been the first who had observed 
the Shap Fell boulders. ‘These boulders Mr. Sedgwick had noticed 
on the shores of the Solway Firth, mixed with gravel from Dum- 
fries-shire. He alluded to the action of water upon the crests of 
mountains, and to the occurrence of transported blocks at consid- 
erable elevations. It was well known that mountain lakes were 
gradually filling up; and he had shewn in a paper to the Geological 
Society, the relation of a lake to the age of the valley containing it. 
Vout. XXXI.—No. 2. 46 


362 Proceedings of the British Association. 


With the diluvial gravel over the country we find associated organic 
remains,—a strong proof that the land must have been dry when 
the transportation took place-—Mr. Murchison had observed these 
boulders associated with recent shells at various elevations,—conse- 
quently, the land must have been at one time under the sea, and 
have been subsequently elevated. ‘There must have been a rela- 
tive change of the level of land and sea; and Prof. Esmark, in Nor- 
way, had been the originator of the idea of the icebergs transporting 
gravel. He referred to the valley of the Inn, in the'Tyrolese Alps, 
as illustrating this alteration of level: boulders of granite had been 
found on calcareous mountains composing one of its sides, elevated 
five or six thousand feet above the sea level; and this valley could 
not have been scooped out.—Dr. Buckland was of opinion that the 
land must: have been dry before the action of the water that had 
transported these blocks. ‘There was a great number of organic re- 
mains mixed with the gravel derived from animals existing on dry 
land; and this was not only true in England, but confirmed by ob- 
servations made on the continent of Europe. 

In the Statistical Section Dr. Lardner delivered a lecture on steam 
communication with India. | 
In the Section of Mechanical Science, Mr. Whewell gave a short 
account of the present state of the science of the tides. ‘Though 
there can be no doubt, that the tides are to be reckoned among the 
results of the great law of universal gravitation, they differ from all 
the other results of that law in this respect, that the facts have not, 
in their detaiis, been reduced to an accordance with the theory; and 
the peculiar interest of the subject at the present moment arises from 
this, that the researches now going on appear to be tending to an ac- 
cordance of theory and observation; although much in the way of 
calculation and observation remains to be still effected before this ac- 
cordance reaches its ultimate state of completeness. With regard 
to observation, the port of Bristol offers peculiar advantages ; for, in 
consequence of the great magnitude of the tides there, almost all the 
peculiarities of the phenomena are magnified, and may be studied as 
if under a microscope. With regard to the theory, one point mainly 
was dwelt upon. By the theory, the tides follow the moon’s south- 
ings at a certain interval of time, (the dwnitidal interval,) and this 
mean interval will undergo changes, so as to leave less than the 
mean when the moon passes three hours after the sun, equal to the 
mean when the moon passes six hours after the sun, and greater 


Proceedings of the British Association. 363 


than the mean when the moon passes nine hours after the sun; and 
the quantity by which the lunitidal interval is less than the mean 
when the moon is three hours after the sun, is exactly equal to the 
quantity by which the lunitidal interval is greater than the mean 
when the moon passes nine hours after the sun. And this equality 
of the defect and excess of the interval at three hours and at nine 
hours of the moon’s transit, is still true where the moon’s force al- 
ters by the alteration of her parallax or declination. Now we are 
to inquire whether this equality of excess and defect of the interval 
in all changes of declination, &c., is exhibited by observation. It 
appears at first sight, that the equality does not exist; that is, if we 
obtain the lunitidal interval by comparing the tide with the nearest 
preceding transit. But, in truth, we ought not to refer the tide to 
such a transit, because we know that the tide of our shores must be 
produced in a great measure by the tide which revolves in the 
Southern Ocean, and which every half day sends off tides along the 
Atlantic. The tide, therefore, which reaches Bristol, is the result 
of a tide wave, which was produced by the action of the sun and 
moon at some anterior period. It is found, that if at Bristol we re- 
fer each tide to the transit of the moon, which took place about forty 
four hours previously, we do obtain an accordance of the observa- 
tions with theory in the feature above described,—that although the 
moon’s force alters by the alteration of her declination, the defect of 
the lunitidal interval for a three hours’ transit of the moon is equal 
to the excess of that interval for a nine hours’ transit. And thus, in 
this respect at least, the tide at Bristol agrees exactly with the tide 
which would be produced, if, forty four hours before the tide, the 
waters of the ocean assumed the form of the spheroid of equilibriam 
due to the forces of the moon and sun, and if this tide were trans- 
mitted unaltered to Bristol in those forty four hours. 


Wednesday, Aug. 24. 


Section A.—MatTuematicaL AND PuysicaL SCIENCE. 


The first paper read was by Mr. W. Snow Harris, ‘‘ On some 
phenomena of electrical repulsion.” 

Prof. Challis read his ‘ Eerieen ay report upon the mathe- 
matical theory of fluids.” 

Prof. Stevelly gave his ‘ Illustration of the meaning of the doubt- 
ful algebraic sign in certain formule of algebraic geometry.” 


364 Proceedings of the British Association. 


Prof. M’Cullagh made a communication respecting = laws of 
double refraction in crystals of quartz. 

Mr. R. Addams then made a communication on the interference 
of sound, and illustrated his subject by several experiments. 


Section B.—Cuemistry anp MInERALOGY. 


Dr. Daubeny read an interesting report on the present state of 
our knowledge with respect to mineral waters. 

_ Mr. Mushet exhibited some specimens of metallic iron, _ prepared 
by exposing the iron ore to long continued heat, with a small quan- 
tity of fuel, and thus reducing it to the metallic state without fusion. 

Mr. Toren described paracyanogen and its compounds. 

Mr. West next read a short paper, the object of which was to sug- 
gest a new mode of determining the presence, and estimating the 
amount, of those materials which constitute but small fractional por- 
tions of the atmosphere. His proposition was, that instead of ope- 
rating upon a limited volume of air, as is usually done, a very large 
quantity of it should be made by mechanical means to pass through 
appropriate fluids—such as barytic water for carbonic acid, and ni- 
trate of silver when the object was to determine the presence of mu- 
riatic acid.—Dr. Dalton stated that he had for many years turned 
his attention to the amount of carbonic acid in the atmosphere, and 
that he had satisfied himself that its average quantity was one part in 
1100. He altogether rejected the results of Saussure, and con- 
tended that the quantity of this gas in the atmosphere was constantly 
the same in town and country ; and that even in a crowded theatre 
it seldom rises to one per cent.—Dr. Thomson gave it as his opin- 
ion, that a fall of rain diminished the amount of carbonic acid in the 
air, and expressed surprise that Dr. Dalton should maintain an op- 
posite tenet. 

The business of the day was concluded by Dr. Hare reading a 
pamphlet on the Berzelian nomenclature, which he addressed some 
years since to Prof. Silliman. 


Section C.—Gero.Locy anp GrocGRaPHy. 


Mr. Stutchbury read a paper by himself and Dr. Riley, on some 
newly discovered saurian remains, from the magnesian conglomerate 
of Durdham Down. This communication chiefly related to ‘the 
specimens exhibited to the meeting, and contained a number of mi- 
nute anatomical details, which testified in a high degree the industry 
of Dr. Riley and Mr. Stutchbury, who had examined the speci- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 365 


mens ; but it would be impossible, without plates, to convey to the 
reader any accurate notion of these highly interesting organic re- 
mains. ‘They belong to two new genera established by Dr. Riley 
and Mr. Stutchbury, the Palgosaurus and Thecodontosaurus ; and 
were found in the magnesian conglomerate which at Durdham Down 
reposes on the carboniferous limestone. They must have been de- 
posited upon the spot where they were found without violent action, 
as they bear no marks of attrition. Perhaps the most interesting 
fact mentioned, was the peculiar structure of the vertebre of the 
newly discovered saurians, which presented a remarkable contrast to 
those of the recent crocodiles. He shewed a singular gradation from 
the recent saurians to sauroid fishes, by means of this arrangement 
of vertebre, which thus becomes an excellent guide in the discrimi- 
nation of the saurian animals; and he concluded his communica- 
tion with a quotation from Agassiz, respecting the progressive de- 
velopment of animal life-——Dr. Riley alluded to the extraordinary 
structure of the cerebral column of these extinct saurians, as likely 
to illustrate the supposition of Dr. Gall, that the spinal column of 
vertebrate would be eventually found to correspond with the gan- 
glionic system of invertebrate animals.—Dr. Buckland was particu- 
larly struck with the singular structure of these vertebre, as indica- 
ting in the animal a nervous power of the most extraordinary char- 
acter. 

A paper was read by Mr. Hopkins, containing theoretical views 
respecting the geological phenomena of elevation. ‘The principal 
object of the author in this paper, was to investigate the effects of 
an elevating force acting simultaneously at every point, on portions 
of the crust of the globe of considerable superficial extent ; and to 
shew that the theoretical inferences deduced from this hypothesis, 
are in striking accordance with the phenomena he had observed in 
the limestone and coal districts of Derbyshire. He also proved that 
in that district the direct cases of dislocation were not such as could 
result from the influence of the jointed structure as the determining 
cause of those directions. He pomted out how the theory he had 
discussed will account for nearly all the phenomena of mineral veins, 
which can be attributed to mechanical causes ; as well as for the for- 
mation of systems of anticlinal lines, of faults, and of the phenomena 
of elevation.—Mr. Sedgwick considered this as the most important 
communication as yet made to the Section. We should now be 
enabled to indulge in the same speculations in Geology, as in her 


as 


366 Proceedings of the British Association. 


elder sister science Astronomy, and from the beginning now made, 
it was impossible to predict how far investigations like Mr. Hopkins’ 
might eventually be carried. The observations of Mr. Hopkins held 
true in Cumberland, Derbyshire, and Flintshire; and some of his 
cases of complicated dislocation were admirably illustrated in Caer- 
narvon and Stainmoor. Mr. Sedgwick had himself paid particular 
attention to the joints of rocks, and had found them connected both 
with their strike and dip. He had also observed some singular phe- 
nomena in the Westmoreland slates ; he bad seen in them two sorts 
of joints, and a cleavage which was in a different direction from the 
jointing. In South Wales the planes of splitting were in one direc- 
tion with very few exceptions.—Mr. Phillips expressed his high sat- 
isfaction at the result of Mr. Hopkins’ paper, and expressed a hope 
that the phenomena of geology might, to a certain extent, be ex- 
plained by such simple laws as regulate the other branches of physi- 
cal science. With regard to the structure of rocks, which promised 
to throw so much light upon the subject, he proposed a new term 
for it, the symmetrical structure. In the examination of rocks un- 
der the three classes of calcareous, arenaceous, and argillaceous, he 
had remarked, that the regularity of the structure increased with the 
antiquity of the rock, which was well exemplified in the older slates 
and limestones. For this there must be.a cause, and this must be 
a central heat, which has acted most upon the older formations, and 
least upon the new. Illustrations of the effects of heat upon strata 
may be obtained from those in contact with dykes, which produce 
symmetrical structure in rocks or clays through which they pass. 
Internal heat must then have:caused the regular structure so gene- 
rally observed in rocks. ‘The direction of the fissures pointed out 
by Mr. Hopkins in Derbyshire, corresponded with the observations 
of M. De la Beche in Cornwall, and of Mr. Conybeare in Glamor- 
ganshire. ‘The phenomena of the direction of the joints were well 
worth investigation, as there was much uncertainty involved. They 
evidently pointed out the weaker points, or places of least resistance, 
where the disturbing force would operate with most effect ; and they 
may have been the result of consolidation, as we find them in con- 
glomerates, as well as in homogeneous rocks; still it might be a 
question, if they were formed before or after dislocation. 
Section D.—Zootroey anp Botany. 

Col. Sykes made a communication to the Section ‘On the Cul- 

tivated and Wild Fruits of the Deccan.” 


Proceedings of the British Association. 367 


Mr. Mackay read the Report which he had been last year request- 
ed to prepare, “On the Geographical Distribution of the Plants of 
Ireland.” This contained a catalogue of one hundred and ninety five 
of the more remarkable species, with a comparative view of such as 
were common to the neighborhoods of Dublin, Edinburgh, and the 
south coast of Scotland. And Mr. Mackay then entered into some 
details illustrative of the more remarkable points of difference in the 
vegetation of Ireland and Scotland. ‘This difference might be partly 
ascribed to the more southerly situation of Ireland, and the height 
of its mountains being inferior to those of Scotland. Its greater ex- 
posure to the influence of the western ocean vives it a moister cli- 
mate. Scotland is, in consequence, much the richer in alpine plants, 
and Mr. Mackay enumerated fifty five species of the more remark- 
able alpine and other plants natives of that country, which do not 
occur in Ireland. Many plants on the western coast are natives of 
the mountains of Spain and Portugal. A list was then given, in 
which twenty one species were enumerated as natives. of Ireland, 
but which had not been found in any other parts of Great Britain, 
and it was very remarkable that several of these were also to be 
met with on the western side of the Pyrenees. In conclusion, Mr. 
Mackay proposed to continue his observations, hoping to present the 
Association with a more perfect list on a future occasion. 

Mr. Royle read a communication on Caoutchouc. 

Mr. P. Duncan detailed some observations on Marine Luminosity. 

Dr. Hancock read a paper ‘On the Cow fish, Manatus fluviatilis, 
of the inland waters of Guiana.” 

Dr. Macartney made some observations on the preservation of 
animal and vegetable substances from the attacks of insects. He 
employed a concentrated solution of equal parts of alum, nitre, and 
salt, mixed with an equal quantity of proof spirits and a little oil of 
lavender or rosemary. A forcible injection of this liquid into the 
arterial system would perfectly preserve a dead body for three or 
four months fit for dissection, and portions of one which had been 
thus injected, if rubbed over with pyroligneous acid, might be pre- 
served for any length of time. He recommended a coat of plaster 
of Paris to be daubed over succulent plants as a mode of preserving 
them, and, when dry, this might be easily removed. He noticed 
the entire preservation of some bodies found in the bogs of Ireland. 

Mr. Hope exhibited a collection of North American insects, prin- 
cipally Coleoptera, collected from the raw turpentine sent over to 


368 Proceedings of the British Association. | 


this country in which they had become entangled. ‘They were ex- 
tracted from the turpentine whilst it was slowly melting at the 
warehouse, and then placed in spirits of turpentine to cleanse them 
thoroughly. In this way they may be prepared in as sei beauty 
and perfection as when newly captured. 


Section E.—Anatomy AND Mepicine. 


Dr. Macartney read the report of the Dublin Committee, appoint- 
ed by the British Association, ‘‘ On the Motion and Sounds of the 
Heart ;”’ and the report of the London Committee, ‘‘ On the Sounds 
of the Heart,”’ was read by Dr. Clandining. Dr. Symonds then read 
a letter from Dr. Spittal, of Edinburgh, stating, that in consequence 
of the death of Prof. Turner, and the absence of one of the mem- 
bers on the continent, the committee had not been able to prepare a 
report. After that a paper was read ‘‘ On the Gyration of the Heart,” 
by F. A. Greeves, Esq. 

The President then read a communication from Dr. Brewster, en- 
titled, ‘* A singular development of Polarizing Power on the Crys- 
talline Lens, after death,’ and also a letter from the same, ‘‘On 
Cataract, or a disease resembling Cataract,” which, if resisted in its 
earlier stages, the Doctor believed, from personal experience, might 
be overcome. For detecting this disease, which generally manifest- 
ed itself between forty and sixty, the Doctor gave instructions, and 
further stated, that by attention to diet and regimen, and taking care 
not to study by night, he had been cured in about eight months. If 
the affection had not been checked in time, he entertained no pay 
it would have ended in cataract. 

Dr. Carson then communicated some ‘Observations on Absorp- 
tion.” 


Section F'.—Srattstics. 


A paper on Statistical Desiderata, by W. R. Greg, Esq., of Man- 
chester, was presented by the Rev. E. G. Stanley. 

Mr. John ‘Taylor, Treasurer to the Association, read a paper on 
the comparative value of the mineral productions of Great Britain 
and the rest of Europe. A calculation, he said, was made by Mr. 
C. F. Schmidt, in 1829, of the value of the mineral productions of 
Europe, at continental prices ; and, from the accuracy of the state- 
ments coming within Mr. 'Taylor’s own knowledge, he was disposed 
to believe in the others. It should be borne in mind that the con- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 369 


tinental prices differed greatly from those in England, and, conse- 

quently, that the amounts were comparative, and not absolute value. 
The value of the mineral products of Europe, including Asiatic 
Russia, were,—gold and silver, 1,943,000; other metals, 28,515,000; 
salts, 7,640,000; combustibles, 18,050,000; making in round num- 
bers a total of about fifty six millions, begelucine of manganese. Now 
to this amount Great Britain contributed considerably more than 
one half, viz. twenty nine millions, in the following proportions :— 
silver, 28,500; copper, 1,369,000; lead, 769,000; iron, 11,292,000; 
tin, 536,000 ; salts, 756,250; vitriol, 33,000; alum. 33,000; coal, 
13,900,000. He then gave a sketch of the history of mining in 
Great Britain. dwelling strongly on its vast increase since the intro- 
duction of the steam engine. 


Evening Meeting at the Theatre.—The Secretaries having read 
abridged reports of the proceedings of the Sections, a very interest- 
ing letter was read from Sir John Herschel to Sir William Hamilton. 


Thursday, August 25. 
Section A.—MartnematicaL avy Purysicat Science. 


lfr. Peacock read a Communication from Mr. Talbot “ On the 
Jntegrai Caiculus.” 

Dr. Apjohn made a communication ‘‘ On the use of Ws Wet- 
bulb Thermometer, in determining the specific heat of air.” 

Prof. Sir. W. R. Hamilton then made a communication “ On the 
Calculus of Principal Relations.” 

The Rev. Mr. Scoresby gave an account of two very delicate 
Magnetic Instruments. 

Prof. Forbes read a paper “ On Terrestrial Magnetic Intensity at 
great elevations from the earth.” The author began by giving a 
rapid review of Saussure’s observations connected with this subject. 
It was well known (he said) to men conversant with these researches, 
that this enterprising philosopher and naturalist ascended Mont 
Blanc, nearly at the summit of which he resided for many days, 
making and recording numerous meteorological experiments, at an 
elevation of about eleven thousand feet above the level of the sea; 
but when his observations upon the magnetic needle were properly 
corrected, for the depression of temperature well known to exist at 
these great elevations, the result of them was, that at this great ele- 
vation there was no alteration of magnetic intensity which could be 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. AT 


370 Proceedings of the British Association. 


safely pronounced to be beyond the limits of the errors of observa- 
tion. Subsequently, Gay-Lussac ascended in a balloon to the alti- 
tude of about, or perhaps beyond twenty three thousand feet, yet his 
observations also, when due allowance was made for alteration of 
temperature, gave no alteration of the magnetic intensity. But the 
researches of M. Kuppfer seeming to conduct to a quite opposite 
conclusion, and the result, as stated by him, being such as, if the 
observations were correctly made, would give a diminution of the 
magnetic intensity for stations whose elevation above the earth was 
considerable, which could by no means be accounted for by ordinary 
errors of observation, Prof. Forbes deemed this a matter of so much 
importance to science, that he determined to make an extended 
series of observations at various levels among the Pyrenees and 
Swiss Alps. Accordingly, having last summer provided himself 
with a sufficient number of magnetic needles fit for making proper 
observations upon magnetic intensity, and their times of vibration at 
Paris having been accurately ascertained, he commenced his tour 
for this purpose in the neighborhood of Barege and Bagnieres ; and, 
from a multitude of observations which he had made and recorded, 
he now wished to select a series of forty five observations made at 
thirteen different stations, the elevation of which above the level of 
the sea varied from six thousand to ten thousand feet. Before he 
detailed these observations and their results, he described the prin- 
ciple upon which they were conducted, and which appeared ingen- 
ious, and well calculated to lead to satisfactory results. In each in- 
stance, the observations were made at three distinct stations—one 
on the summit of the mountain peak, or most elevated spot; and 
two at a lower, but equal level -on each side of the hill, so chosen, 
that a vertical plane would pass through the three stations, and be 
perpendicular to the axis or length of the hill. It is obvious then, 
that, speaking generally, any disturbing effect exercised upon the 
needle by the materials of the hill at one of the lower stations, 
would be opposite in kind to that exercised at the other of the two 
lower stations ; and, therefore, the mean between these observations, 
made at the two lower stations, would give the magnetic intensity at 
a point immediately beneath the upper station. By a comparison 
of this mean intensity, therefore, with the intensity at the upper sta- 
tion, it could be readily proved whether or not the intensity dimin- 
ished as you ascended toa greater elevation. ‘The result of the 
entire of this laborious course of experiments was, that, with the 


Proceedings of the British Association. 371 


exception of one solitary instance, the station being in the Pyrenees 
and in the neighborhood of iron mines, there was no diminution of 
the magnetic intensity at the higher stations, at least beyond the 
limits of the necessary errors of instruments and observations : even 
at the station where some diminution did manifest itself, the quantity 
of that diminution was very much smaller than that which resulted 
from the views of M. Kuppfer. 

Prof. Powell read a paper “respecting the impermeability of 
water to radiant heat.” 

A paper by Sir David Brewster, ‘‘ On the action of crystallized 
substances upon Light,” was then read by the Secretary, Mr. Snow 
Harris. 

Dr. Williams gave an account of an improved ear trumpet. 

The President then said, that as there were yet a great many in- 
teresting communications to be brought forward, the Section would 
reassemble at eight o’clock in the evening. 

Thursday Evening.—Mr. G. W. Hall made a communication 
upon “ the connexion observed at Bristol between the weather and 
the tide.” He commenced by stating, that long and carefully con- 
tinued observation of the weather at Bristol, together with a direct 
interest in becoming possessed of rules for anticipating its changes, 
led to the following theory, which was strikingly correspondent with 
facts. First, that the barometer very generally, indeed, almost in- 
variably, undulates at times corresponding with the changes of the 
moon, and at these times it more frequently falls than rises. Sec- 
ondly, that the weather is ordinarily unsettled at these periods, con- 
tinuing so for about two or three days; and for the most part the 
wind becomes high at these times. Thirdly, that as the weather 
settles (if it become at all settled, since it not unfrequently remains 
in an unsettled state,) so will it continue until] the next change of 
moon, or rather until the recurrence of its disturbing influences. 
Fourthly, that these variations occur as regularly at the quarters of 
the moon as at the new and full, and are then as fully marked. 
Fifthly, that the period, about five days, which determines the state 
of the weather, is derived from the spring and neap tides, or the full 
influence of the sun and moon upon them.—The only origin of these 
rules, he stated, was actual observation. Very striking changes of 
temperature and weather, from intense frost to spring mildness, and 
then frost recurring, first led to marking this correspondence; and 
so closely has it been observed, and so fully established, that opera- 


372 Proceedings of the British Association. 


tions upon a large scale, which are dependent upon the weather, 
have been frequently and successfully conducted in accordance with 
these rules. He considered the severe frost of 1813-14, which 
continued about twelve weeks, with partial thaws intervening, and 
the severe weather of succeeding winters, with their intermissions, 
to be closely connected with the above rules. The partial rains also 
of very dry summers have been found to take place at the same 
seasons of change, insomuch that for amusement he had frequently 
traced back the periods connected with the age of the moon, from 
the thaws that took place in severe weather, or the rains occurring 
in long continued drought. Residing on the banks of the river, and 
taking much interest in the operations of Professor Whewell respect- 
ing the tides, and his description of these, Mr. Hall stated that he 
had been led closely to compare them with the weather; but diffi- 
culties to him insurmountable had occurred, when considering the 
variations of weather in different places at the same time; yet, re- 
garding those in the neighborhood of Bristol, his conviction was 
unwavering. Perhaps the varying time at which the tide reaches 
various places, so fully described by Professor Whewell in his lec- 
ture on Tuesday evening, might assist in solving this difficulty ; and 
if the attention of aes were directed towards it, his end would be 
attained. 

Mr. Ettricke then gave a description of ‘‘an instrument intended 
to observe minute changes of Terrestrial Magnetism,” and of other 
philosophical instruments. 

Mr. R. Addams then made a communication respecting ae alien 
tion of bells. 

Mr. Rootsey then read papers “on the Music of the Greeks, ee 
a system of Mnemonic Logarithms.” 


Section B.—Cuemistry anp Minerauoey. 


Dr. Daubeny stated, that he. had ascertained that the sublimation 
of carbonate of magnesia was entirely a mechanical process, and he 
inferred that no support could hence be given to Von Buch’s well 
known theory of dolomization. 

Dr. Dalton then gave an exposition of his views upon.the subject 
of chemical notation, and the atomic constitution of chemical sehr 
stances. 


Mr. Johnston explained the use of some chemiigal wilde which 
he exhibited. ; 


Proceedings of the British Association. Boe 


Dr. Thomson read a very valuable paper on mixtures of sulphuric 
acid and water, in which he shewed that the theory of Irvine re- 
specting specific heat cannot be true. 

Mr. Jones detailed the results of an elaborate analysis of wheat, 
and mentioned that he had formed a new and peculiar volatile fluid 
by the action of sulphuric acid on wheat. 3 


Section C.—Gro.ocy anp GrocraPHy. 


A paper was read by the Marquis Spineto on the geographical 
position of Memphis, in Egypt. The state of that city during the 
time of its long prosperity was first considered; then the causes of 
its destruction ; and lastly, the opinions of different travellers re- 
garding its position. Its particular site had been described by an- 
cient historians as on an island in the Nile, evidently formed of the 
mud of that river; and that it had been protected from inundations 
by various extensive works erected by its kings. When its splen- 
dor decayed, these works went out of repair, and hastened the ruin 
of the city, which strewed with its fragments the place on which it 
had stood. Finally, it was submerged under drifted sand, and its 
true position became a problem to modern travellers. Of late, how- 
ever, the site has been determined by the French, who, in one of 
their exploring expeditions, had examined the stratification of the 
place supposed to be Memphis, and they ascertained the spot by the 
succession of drifted sand, ruins, and mud. Its latitude they fixed 
at 29° 20’ N. and longitude at 31° 30’ E. from Greenwich.—Mr. 
Murchison spoke of the great value of geographical papers to the 
geologist, and of the one just read, as an excellent example of this 
-kind.—Dr. Buckland took this opportunity of mentioning the estab- 
lishment of M. Van der Maelen, at Brussels. ‘That gentleman had 
devoted, in the most praiseworthy manner, his time and fortune to 
the advancement of science, by making large geographical and geo- 
logical collections, for the purpose of diffusion over the world, by 
means of exchange with societies or individuals. Dr. Buckland ad- 
vocated such a mode of obtaining maps and specimens to the differ- 
ent provincial societies of the United Kingdom. 

The next paper was on the change in the chemical character of 
minerals induced by galvanism. Mr. Fox mentioned the fact, long 
known to miners, of metalliferous veins intersecting different rocks, 
containing ore in some of these rocks, and being nearly barren or 
entirely so in others. ‘This circumstance suggested the idea of some 


374 Proceedings of the British Association. 


definite cause; and his experiments on the electro-magnetic condi- 
tion of metalliferous veins, and also on the electric conditions of va- 
rious ores to each other, seem to have supplied an answer, inasmuch 
as it was thus proved that electro-magnetism was in a state of great 
activity under the earth’s surface, and that it was independent of 
mere local action between the plates of copper and the ore with 
which they were in contact, by the occasional substitution of plates 


of zine for those of copper, producing no change in the direction of - 


the Voltaic currents. He also referred to other experiments, in 
which two different varieties of copper ore, with water taken from 
the same mine, as the only exciting fluid, produced considerable 
Voltaic action. The various kinds of saline matter which he had 
detected in water taken from different mines, and also taken from 
parts of the same mine, seemed to indicate another probable source 
of electricity ; for can it now be doubted, that rocks impregnated 
with or holding in their minute fissures different kinds of mineral 
waters, must be in different electrical conditions or relations to each 
other? A general conclusion is, that in these fissures metalliferous 
deposits will be determined according to their relative electrical con- 
ditions ; and that the direction of those deposits must have been in- 
fluenced by the direction of the magnetic meridian. ‘Thus we find 
the metallic deposits in most parts of the world having a general 
tendency to an E. and W. or N. E. and S. W. bearing. Mr. Fox 
added, that it was a curious fact, that on submitting the muriate of 
tin in solution to voltaic action, to the negative pole of the battery, 
and another to the positive, a portion of the tin was determined like 
the copper, the former in a metallic state, and the latter in that of 
an oxide, shewing a remarkable analogy to the relative position of 
tin and copper ore with respect to each other, as they are found in 
mineral veins. 

Artificial. Crystals and Minerals.—A. Crosse, Esq. of Broom- 
field, Somerset, then came forward, and stated, that he came to 
Bristol to be a listener only, and with no idea he should be called 
upon to address a section. He was no geologist, and but little of a 
mineralogist ; he had however devoted much of his time to electri- 
city, and he-had latterly been occupied in improvements in the vol- 
taic power, by which he had succeeded in keeping it in full force 
for twelve months by water alone, rejecting acids entirely. Mr. C. 
then proceeded to state, that having observed in a cavern in the 
Quantock Hills near his residence, that part of it which consisted of 


\ 


Proceedings of the British Association. 375 


slate was studded with crystals of arragonite, while the limestone 
part was covered with crystals of calcareous spar, he subjected por- 
tions of each of these substances in water, to long continued galvanic 
action (ten days action,) and obtained from the slate crystals of arra- 
gonite, from the limestone crystals of calcareous spar. In order to 
ascertain if light had any influence in the process, he tried it again 
in a dark cellar, and produced similar crystals in six days, with one 
fourth of the whole voltaic power. He had repeated the experi- 
ments a hundred times, and always with the same results. He was 
fully convinced that it was possible to make even diamonds, and 
that at no distant period every kind of mineral weuld be formed by 
the ingenuity of man. By variations of his experiments he had ob- 
tained crystallized quartz, the blue and green carbonates of copper, 
chrysocolla, phosphate of copper, arseniate of copper, acicular car- 
bonate of lead, sulphate of lead, ‘sulphuret of iron, white antimony, 
and many other minerals. 

Prof. Phillips then gave an interesting description of a bed of 
magnesian limestone, which exists near Manchester. 

Evening Meeting.—Mr. Murchison exhibited a map of England, 
colored to represent some phenomena of physical geography, and 
for the purpose of answering a question proposed by the Association. 
On a former evening Mr. Phillips had given an account of the boul- 
der stones found in the north of England, and which had been traced 
even as far as Worcestershire. Mr. Murchison, in his researches in 
Wales and the neighboring counties, had not observed these carried 
to the country bounded by the Severn, nor had he observed any of 
the Silurian gravel carried to the central parts of England. From 
this he concluded that Siluria must have been formed subsequently 
to this central part, which might have been an island or part of the 
continent. In this country of Siluria he had found the deposits of 
gravel perfectly local; nor could he perceive in this gravel any re- 
cent shells; on the borders of the South Wales Coal Basin were 
marks of diluvial action—fragments of coal strata being thrown off 
as from a centre. Another proof of the newer elevation of this part 
of Britain, are the marks of large lacustrine expanses at recent peri- 
ods. Out of this tract not only do we observe the boulders of granite 
extending from north to south, but we find fragments of recent ma- 
rine shells in the diluvium of Lancashire, Cheshire, Salop, and part 
of Stafford, all diminishing as we approach the Severn. But he 
was of opinion that these boulders could not have been so diffused 


376 Proceedings of the British Association. 


when the surface had been dry land, but that the operation must 
have been effected under the sea, as proved by the presence of these 
marine shells, and by the fact of boulders having been found on the 
summits of the sides of valleys, which could not have been brought 
to those positions save by the agency of currents of the ocean. ‘This 
later period of the elevation of Siluria, must have produced also the 
present course of the Severn. In concluding his remarks, Mr. Mur- 
chison mentioned the possibility of icebergs assisting in the transport 
of diluvium.—Mr. Conybeare mentioned the fact of chalk boulders 
being found upon Flat Holm, near Bristol, which stones must have 
been brought down by the Avon. 


Section D.—Zoonoey anp Borany. 


Dr. Moore announced his having procured a fish in Plymouth 
Harbor, new to Great Britain, the Trigla cataphractes, and Mr. 
Yarrell confirmed the accuracy of the observation, and stated the 
species to be common in the Mediterranean. 

Dr. Richardson then read the concluding portions of ae report. 
The order Edentata is eminently South American, and only three 
or four species are met with in North America. ‘The fossil species 
of Megatherium and Megalonyx, however, are found in both Amer- 
icas.—The order Pachydermata is remarkable for the size of most 
of its species, and the number of the extinct species is more than 
double the recent ones in the New World. Only two genera and 
three or four species belong both to North and South America. 
Fossil elephants and mastodons occur in the most distant parts of 
North America. Although the present race of horses is certainly 
of European origin, yet fossil bones of this quadruped are met with 
in Kotzebue’s Sound.—Thirteen species of Ruminantia were ‘enu- 
merated, two of which are common to the old and new continents, 
and have a high northerly range. The North American deer are 
very imperfectly known. ‘The reindeer reach to Spitzbergen and 
the most northerly of the American islands, and range southwards 
as far as Columbia River on the Pacific coast, and to New Bruns- 
wick on the Atlantic. Although the musk-ox ranges from the bar- 
ren lands over the ice to Parry’s Islands, it is not found either in 
Asia or Greenland.—There appears to be nine species of Cetacea, 
known as North American, and those on the east coast are mostly 
inhabitants of Europe also, under the same parallels of latitude, 
especially those of the Greenland seas. On the western side the 


Proceedings of the British Association. 377 


species are common to Asia also.— The report then proceeded with 
an account of the Ornithology, which Dr. Richardson said it would 
be unnecessary to touch upon at so great length or with so much 
detail as the Mammalia, since the species were so much better known, 
a great majority of them being migratory, and therefore those which 
lived in the less frequented regions were, at stated seasons, visitants 
of the more civilized districts. Local lists, however, were still want- 
ing to enable naturalists to trace their geographical limits with pre- 
cision, and, more especially, our knowledge was very imperfect of 
those of California and Russian America. Of about five hundred 
species, there were one fourth to be found in Europe, but not more 
than one eighth in South America. Or the former, or those com- 
mon to North America and Europe, thirty nine were land birds, 
twenty eight waders, and sixty two water birds. Several of the 
generic forms were peculiar, but only two of the families, viz. the 
Trochilide and Psittacide, were not to be found in Europe; and the 
Hoopoe is the only European representative of the whole order to 
which the former of these families belongs. No vultures are com- 
mon to both worlds, but nearly half the other birds of prey are so, 
and many of these range over South America also, and indeed the 
whole world. One fourth of the Corvide are inhabitants of Europe; 
but the other land birds, common to both continents, are in much 
smaller proportions, and not more than two out of sixty two Sylvia- 
dz are European. “The number of species common to North and 
South America is very uncertain. Some of the most numerous fami- 
lies characteristic of the former country have few or no species in 
South America. It is remarkable that only one Trochilus has been 
described as common to North and South America, although this 
family is peculiarly characteristic of the latter country; and there 
are twenty two species which have been described as natives of 
Mexico. Dr. Richardson then detailed several particulars respect- 
ing the migration of birds, stating it to be his opinion, that the spring 
movement was for the purpose of finding a convenient place for in- 
cubation and rearing the young. The lines of route were influenced 
by the supply of food to be obtained, and thus the northerly and 
southerly courses -were often over different tracts; and he pointed 
out the three great lines of route which were to a certain extent 
determined by the physical features of the country. ‘The absolute 
number of birds to be found in different countries decreases on re- 
ceding from the equator towards the north pole; but of those which 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 48 


378 Proceedings of the British Association. 


stay to breed in any place, the number increases from the equator 
up to the 60th degree of north latitude, where the forests begin to 
grow thin. But the progress of civilization has already had an in- 
fluence on the migrations of certain species, by affording them an 
abundant supply of provisions, where they were before without any. 
Thus the starlings proceed further north as the culture of the Cere- 
alia continues to extend in that direction, and the introduction of 
certain tubular flowers into the gardens of Florida, bas enticed spe- 
cies of humming birds thither from the south. Some details were 
then given of the distribution of the various families of birds, and a 
table in the report exhibited the absolute number of species, as well 
as the number of such as breed in Philadelphia, Massachusetts, and 
Suskatchewan. 

Mr. Phelps read a communication “on the formation of Peat.” 

Mr. Mackay then read a communication he had received from 
Mr. Nuttall, “on the management of the Pine tribe.” 

Dr. Lloyd read a communication on the Marsileacez. 

An abstract of a paper from Mr. P. Teale was read, “on Alcyo- 
nella stagnorum ;”’ and very beautiful preparations and specimens of 
it were placed on the table. It was found in great abundance from 
August to November, in 1835, in a small pond near Leeds. It was 
supposed to be new to Great Britain. 

Dr. Riley mentioned a circumstance in the osteology of the two 
toed ostrich, which had escaped observation. He showed, that the 
third toe was really present in a rudimentary state concealed by the 
integuments. It consists of two phalanges, and is articulated with 
a well defined condyle of the tarsal bone, and projects on the same 
plane with the other two. 


Section E.—Anatromy anp Mepicine. 


Dr. Hodgkin read a paper on the connexion between the veins 


and absorbents. 
Dr. Reid of Dublin then read to the section a paper, entitled, ‘a 
short exposition of the functions of the nervous system.” 


Section F.—SratTIistTICcs. 


Prof. Forbes described the result of his application of Quetelet’s 
principle, of describing the increase of stature, weight, and strength 
by curves. He had carefully experimented on English and Scotch 
students, between the ages of fourteen and twenty five, in the Uni- 


Proceedings of the British Association. 379 


versity of Edinburgh. The general laws of the curves were nearly 
those established by Quetelet. In the comparison of nations, the 
Irish appeared to be the first in all physical developments, the Scotch 
ranked next, the English were the lowest of the three nations, but 
they were above the Belgian. It was generally remarked, that the 
data for the Irish and English were not sufficiently accurate to jus- 
tify any general conclusions. - 

A paper from Dr. Collins on periodicity of birth was read. 

Baron Dupin exhibited two maps of Britain, colored on Guerry’s 
plan, to illustrate criminal statistics, and their relation to density of 
population and education. The latter was both the more prominent, 
and, in relation to subsequent discussion, the more important branch 
of the Baron’s observations. He drew a distinction between moral 
and physical education, describing the latter as an indifferent instru- 
ment, capable of being applied either to good or evil. He then briefly 
glanced at the proportion between juvenile offenders in England and 
France, stating as a general result, that the young criminals of Eng- 
land more frequently reformed than those of the Continent. 


Friday, August 26. 
Section A.—MatTHEeMATICAL AND PuysicaL SCIENCE. 


Mr. Whewell read a paper on a new Anemometer. In this com- 
munication Mr..W. explained a method of tracing or registering the 
course of the winds through a given period by the motion of a pencil, 
on an appropriate scale, so as to obtain eventually a true type of the 
winds, which has never yet been arrived at by other instruments. 

Prof. Phillips read a notice of the probable effects of elevated. 
ground in the direction of the lines of equal magnetic dip. 

Prof. Stevelly read a paper on the mathematical rules for con- 
structing compensating pendulums. 

Telescopes.—Sir D. Brewster read a paper describing a contri- 
vance by which he was enabled to render distinct the dark lines of 
the spectrum under the most unfavorable circumstances, and obtain 
other useful effects. ‘The method was to introduce a cylindrical re- 
fractor between the eye and the eye-glass of the telescope, the effect 
being, as he shewed, to give a linear form to a most irregular image. 

Mr. Russell read a paper on certain elements of the resistance of 
fluids that appear to be intimately connected with the application of 
analysis. 


380 Proceedings of the British Association. 


Dr. Hare read a communication relating to the prevailing theories 
of electricity ; he endeavored to explain many interesting phenom- 
ena attendant on the electric spark and the divergence of electrified 
bodies. 

Dr. Carpenter described a system of teaching the blind to read, 
similar to Mr. Lucas’s. ii 

Mr. Hodgkinson read an ‘account of some experiments, at the re- 
quest of the Association, to determine the comparative strength and 
other properties of iron, made with the hot and cold blast, at the 
Carron, Devon, and Buftrey works, under similar circumstances.— 
In the Carron and Buffrey works, the strength-was rather in favor 
of the cold blast. In the Devon iron the advantage was much in 
favor of the hot blast; but it is proper to remark, that the cold blast 
iron was very white in the break, and that from the hot was grey. 


Section B.—Cuemistry anp Mineraoey. 


The following papers were read: Some improvements on the 
Voltaic Battery. By Mr. Crosse.—Observations on Atmospheric 
Electricity. By Mr. Crosse.—On a new compound found during 
the destructive distillation of wood. By Mr. Scanlaw.—On a pecu- 
liar compound of Carbon and Potassium. By Prof. E. Davey.— 
On a new gaseous Bicarburet of Hydrogen. By Prof. E. Davey.— 
On the conducting power of Iodine. By Dr. Inglis.—On Fluorine. 
By Mr. Knox.—On detecting the Strength of Spirits, by diluting 
with water. By Mr. Black.—Communication on the Aurora Bore- 
alis. By Dr. Traill. . 


Section €.—Geroitoey anp GroGRAPHY. 


Sea Rivulets in the Island of Cephalonia.—Lord Nugent read 
a communication respecting some sea rivulets in the island of Ce- 
phalonia. The water, he said, entered the earth through fissures in 
the rock, on the seashore, and it was not discovered where it 
emerged, but it was supposed to flow into the sea, on the side of the 
island nearest Ithaca. Some observations were made by the Mar- 
quis of Northampton, Mr. Murchison, Dr. Daubeny, and the Chair- 
man, but no solution of the problem was given. 

Tertiary Deposits—Mr. Charlesworth read an elaborate paper 
on some fallacies in Mr. Lyell’s. test in determining the ages of ter- 
tiary deposits by the per centage of existing species, which may be 
considered as a continuation of his paper on crag formations. 


Proceedings of the British Association. 381 


Prof. Forbes made a communication on the connection of the 
Pyrenian hot springs with the geology of the district, in which he 
gave an outline of the physical structure of the Pyrenees. 

The Rey. Mr. Clarke stated the existence of two hot springs at 
Longfleet, near Poole, maintaining their temperature of fifty four 
degrees in all seasons of the year. 

A communication by Prof. Traill of Edinburgh was read, giving 
an account of various localities of fossil fishes in Pomona, Orkney. 
A map and specimens were exhibited, and observations made by 
Dr. Buckland, Mr. Greenough, and others. A drawing of a re- 
markable fossil fish from Clashbinnie, Forfarshire, was laid before 
the section by John Robinson, Esq. of Edinburgh. 


Section E.—Anatomy anv Mepicine. 


The first paper read was entitled ‘‘ Observations on the Patholo- 
gical Condition of the Bones in Chronic Rheumatism ;” and “On 
the Condition of the new Circulating Channels in a case of Double 
Popliteal Aneurism. By Mr. Adams.” 

The third paper read was a report on “ Fracture of the Neck of 
the Thigh Bone. By Dr. Evanson.” 

Mr. Hetling read a paper “On a new Instrument for the Removal 
of the Ligatures of Arteries” at pleasure. 

The last paper read was on the Chemistry of the Digestive Or- 
gans, by Mr. R. T. Thompson. 

Mr. Gordon, dentist, of Park Street, exhibited (although in an 
unfinished state,) some beautiful models, in ivory, representing the 
head, neck, heart, and lungs of the human body. 


At the meeting of the General Committee, held on Saturday, 
August 27, it was determined that the Meeting of the Association 
for 1837 should be held at Liverpool, in the month of September. 
The following are the Officers appointed: The Earl of Burlington, 
President; Dr. Dalton, Sir Philip Egerton, Rev. E. G. Stanley, 
Vice Presidents; Dr. Charles Henry, Mr. Parker, Secretaries, 


4 


382 New Species of Fresh Water Tortoise. 


Art. XXII.—Description of a new species of fresh water Tor- 
toise, inhabiting the Columbia River; by Ricuarp Haruan, 


MaDe si dlawS))-8eee 
Emys Oregoniensis—(see plate.) 


Characters.—Shell suboval, moderately depressed ; dark brown 
or olive, with bright yellow irregularly disposed lines with black bor- 
ders; anterior marginal plates very deep: sternum oblong, slightly 
constricted in the middle, emarginate and bidentate anteriorly, bright 
yellow, beautifully and curiously figured with black, with yellow 
curved longitudinal lines ; head of ee: size, ia jaw biden- 
tate at tip. 

Description.—Shell broadest posteriorly, about the usual heisbit 
of animals of this genus, rather depressed, very slightly emargmate 
behind, more so anteriorly, there being a deep notch on either side 
of the single anterior marginal plate, which is nearly pointed anterior- 
ly ; the vertebral plates five in number, the first nearly square, the 
second, third and fourth irregularly hexagonal, the posterior border 
of the latter curved so as to admit the arched anterior border of the 
fifth plate to project into it—the fifth plate elliptical above, and pre- 
senting four faces at its lower border for articulation with as many 
border plates: first lateral plate nearly triangular, connected with 
the first five marginal plates, the two middle lateral plates form ob- 
long squares, with each an acute angle above entermg between the 
sutures of the vertebral plates,—the last or fourth plate is pentagonal. 

Marginal plates twenty five in number,—the nuchal plate pyra- 
midal in form, with a deep notch on either side of its apex, its pos- 
terior margin being marked with two transverse depressed lines, the 
two first marginal plates on either side of the single one are quadri- 
lateral and bluntly serrate on the anterior margin, and together with 
the third plate are unusually deep—the three following plates be- 
come abruptly narrowed and slightly emarginate at the inferior bor- 
der—the six posterior plates are again enlarged, nearly square, and 
the two latter plates with each a slight notch on their inferior bor- 
ders. 

Sternum, yellow tinged with red on its outer ae the central 
portions being figured with irregularly curved black bands interspers- 
ed with interrupted yellow lines; the second plates with each a black 
dot in their centre: the two anterior plates triangular, with their 


Vol. XXXt, Pd. 


© Am. Journal of Seienoe & © 


EMMYS  ORIGONIENS 


Orbicular Lizards, or Horned Agamas. 383 


bases anterior, forming the outer border, which projects slightly be- 
yond the general border, and is bluntly serrated in the middle, and 
with a dental process at the basal angles:—of the twelve plates 
composing the sternum, all are of different shape and size, the cen- 
tral longitudinal suture irregularly curved. 

Head of moderate size, rather depressed ; the upper jaw armed 
at its apex with two strong dental processes :—color of the crown 
of the same dark olive, mottled with black and yellow, as the rest 
of the animal—throat and neck with bright yellow longitudinal lines, 
which extend on the fore feet :—the inferior surfaces of the mar- 
ginal plates marked with black bands striped with yellow. 

Tail of the ordinary dimensions of animals of this genus ;—the 
same may be observed respecting the feet; the anterior nails are 
longer than the hind nails ;/in both, the middle nails are the longest. 

Dimensions.—Length of the back plate 8 inches; breadth of the 
same 6 in.: length of the sternum 7 in. ; breadth of the same 4 in.: 
depth of the animal 2 in. 2 tenths: length of the head 23 in. ; 
breadth of the same 1 in. 1 tenth: length of the longest claw 6 
tenths; length of the longest posterior claw 4 tenths. 

General Remarks.—My friend Thomas Nuttall, whose indefati- 
gable exertions in natural history have extended throughout North 
America, on his recent travels across the continent to the Pacific 
Ocean, obtained the present specimen in the fresh water ponds in 
the vicinity of the Oregon or Columbia River, where this species 
was observed to abound, to the exclusion, according to his observa- 
ion, of any other tortoise. 


Art. XXIII.— Notice of the Orsicutar Lizarps, or horned 
Agamas ; by R. Haruan, M. D., &e. 


Among the valuable treasures in natural history, recently brought 
by Mr. Nuttall from his journey across the Rocky Mountains to the 
Pacific Ocean, are several excellently preserved specimens of a large 
species of Orbicular lizard, which he kindly placed at my disposal 
for the purpose of description. Mr. Nuttall obtained his specimens 
in California, and preserved them living for many weeks: he con- 
sidered them of a very docile nature, never attempting to use their 
horns in self-defence ; they inhabit under stones, and in holes, in the 


884 Orbicular Lizards, or Horned Agamas. 


more barren parts of the country. Hitherto great confusion has ex- 
isted among authors relative to the animals classed under this name. 
The Orbicular lizard of Linneus and Agama orbicularis of Daudan 
and Tapayaxin of Seba, belong to an entirely different genus, the 
Trapelus, which inhabits Africa: these facts were first announced in 
a memoir which I published in the year 1824, vid. Journ. A. N.S. 
Philad. Vol. iv. pl. xx,—on the Agama cornuta, of Missouri and 
Arkansas, and other portions of the United States territories. A 
very critical essay on these Orbicular lizards was published by Gra- 
venhorst.in 1833, vid. Acta Acad. Caes. Leop. Carol. Nat. Cur. 
Vol. xvi. p. ii.3 in which the learned author has fallen into some 
errors. ‘Together with Cuvier and Wagler, he confounds the Tapa- 
yaxin of Hernandez with the Agama cornuta of Harlan, whereas 
these form two very distinct species: he further errs in attributing 
to Weigman the priority in contributing any definite information 
relative to this animal, as is shown by the following extract from the 
memoir above quoted: ‘“‘ Weigman of Berlin was the first, as far as 
I know, who gave any definite information concerning this animal, 
_ and who showed at the same time that it differed from the others 
with which it had been compared, not only in the species, but also 
in the genus.” p. 912. None of the naturalists above quoted ap- 
pear to have had an opportunity of comparing our Agama cornuta 
with the Phrynosoma orbicularis of Weigmann, otherwise they could 
scarcely have overlooked the prominent characters which distin- 
guished these two species: there can be no doubt, on accurate com- 
parison, that the last named animal is the true Tapayaxin described 
and figured by Hernandez ; and which differs in size, markings and 
proportional development of the tail, from the Agama cornuta. We 
have received numerous specimens of the Agama cornuta from 
Mexico, as well as from the United States and territories, the largest 
of which are little more than one half the size of the Tapayaxin ; 
the horns of the head also differ in their proportional size, and some- 
what in their arrangement; the large transverse black bands on the 
back are peculiar to the Phrynosoma or Agama orbicularis: whilst 
in the A. cornuta there is also a constriction at the base of the tail, 
which is absent in the former,—the most accurate figure of the A. 
orbicularis is given by Gravenhorst. ‘The occipital spines in these 
animals partake of the nature of true horns, consisting of an osseous 
core with a sheath of horn, which becomes easily detached in ma- 
ceration. 


New Species of Quadruped of the Order Rodentia. 385 


The following are the comparative dimensions of one of the largest 
specimens of both species.* 


Acama Cornvta. - TApAYAXIN. 
~ Total length, 3 in. 6 eighths. - Total length, 6 in. 
Length of tail, 1 in. 2 eighths. - Length of tail, 2 in. 
Breadth of body, 14 in. - Breadth, varying. 


- Length of longest horn, 4 in. 


The following are the ascertained SYORYINGS of the animal a 
Hernandez, viz. 
Tapayaxin Lacertus orbicularis, Hernandez, Nova Plant. Anim. 
Min, Mexicanorem Hist. p. 327, 328—(see plate.) 

Phrynosoma orbicularis, Weigmann, in Isis, 1828, pp. 365-368. 
Wagler, Icon. Amph. pl. 23. fig. 1. and Nat. Hist. 
of Amph. p. 146. Gravenhorst, Acta. Acad. Ces. 
Leop. Carol. Nat. Cur. vol. xvi. p. il. 

Tapaya orbicularis, Cuv. Régne animal. i. p. 37. 

Agama orbicularis, Voigt, Trans, of Cuv. R. A. ii. p. 59. 

We have seen a specimen of A. orbicularis in the museum of 
Cincinnati, said to have been obtained from the plains of Missouri. 
If the statement be correct, we shall have four species of Agama in 
the United States, viz.: A.Cornuta, A. Collaris, A. Douglassii ; 
together with the first named species—vid. Harl. Med. and Phys. 
Researches, for figures of the others. 


Art. XXIV.—Description of a new species of Quadruped, of the 
order Rodentia, inhabiting the United States; by R. Harwan, 
M. D. 

Mus palustris. 


Characters.—Body rather elongated, color above of a ferruginous 
brown ; beneath, grayish white, the hairs being plumbeous at base : 
legs small: tail long: ears half the length of the head. 

Description.—The color above resembling nearly that of the com- 
mon Norway rat; beneath, grayish white ; ears of moderate size, 
anterior borders slightly inverted, sparsely hairy within and without ; 


* The specimen figured by Wagler, was rather larger, viz. total length 7 in. ; 
tail 24 in. 


Vou. XXXI.—No. 2. 49 


386 Miscellanies. 


legs very small and slender: toes five in number on all the feet, ter- 
minated by small hooked nails, with the exception of the four 
thumbs, which are armed with a small and broad nail: tail about 
the length of the body, not including the head and neck, covered 
with short hairs, and terminating in a delicate pencil. Head rather 
elongated ; snout furnished with from twenty to thirty sete of dif- 
ferent lengths, some white, others black: teeth, consisting of six 
molars in each jaw, invested with enamel, and marked on their 
crowns with transverse eminences: four incisors, short above, and 
sub-piceous on their anterior surfaces; inferior, long, compressed, 
and white. 

Dimensions.—Total length about nine inches, viz. of the head 
2 in. 2 tenths, of the body 4 in., of the tail 4 in.: length ot the 
anterior extremities rather more than 1 in. 

Habitat.—F ound in the fresh water swamps of New Jersey and 
South Carolina. The present specimen was taken near “ Fast 
land,” in the vicinity of Salem. A similar specimen was sent to me 
by Dr. Bachman, of Charleston, S. C.—Cab. of A. N. S. Philad. 

Remarks.—Native species of true rats are very rare in the United 
States; besides the present perhaps but one other species exists in 
this country,—unless indeed we admit the Mus rattus to be native. 
The Mus Sylvaticus is common to Europe and North America; the 
Mus leucopus, and Mus nigricans of Raffin. we take, from his 
descriptions, to be mere synonymes. 


MISCELLANIES. 
DOME STIC AND FOREIGN. 


1. On the Meteoric Shower of November, 1836. 
By Denison Otusrep, Professor of Natural Philosophy and 
Astronomy m Yale College. 


For six years in succession, there has been observed, on or about 
the 13th of November of each year, a remarkable exhibition of 
shooting stars, which has received the name of the * adic 
Shower” 

In 1831, the phenomenon was observed in the State of Oia 5 
and in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Spain.t In 1832, the 


*« Amer. Journal of Science, xxviii, 419. 
t Bibliotheque Universelle, Sept. 1835 


Meteoric Shower of 1836. 387 


shower appeared in a more imposing form, and was seen at Mocha, 
in Arabia ;* in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean ;} near Orenburg, 
in Russia ;{ and at Pernambuco, in South America.§ The magnifi- 
cent Meteoric Shower of 1833, is too well known to require the re- 
cital of any particulars. Of the recurrence of the phenomenon at 
the corresponding period in 1834, and in 18835, evidence has been 
presented to the public in previous numbers of this Journal. (See 
Vols. xxvii, pp. 339 and 417.. xxix, 168.) 

I now feel authorized to assert, that the Meteortc Shower re- 
appeared on the morning of the 13th November, 1836. 

It has been supposed by some, that the appearance of an extra- 
ordinary number of shooting stars, at the several anniversaries since 
the great phenomenon of November, 1833, can be accounted for by 
the fact, that so general an expectation of such an event has been 
excited, and that so many persons have been on the watch for it. 
Having, however, been much in the habit of observing phenomena 
of this kind, I can truly say, that those exhibitions of shooting stars 

which have for several years occurred on the 13th or 14th of No- 
vember, are characterized by several peculiarities which clearly dis- 
tinguish them from ordinary shooting stars. Such peculiarities are 
the following. 

1. The number of meteors, though exceedingly variable, is much 
greater than usual, especially of the larger and brighter kinds. 

2. An uncommonly large proportion leave /uminous trains. 

3. The meteors, with few exceptions, all appear to proceed from 
a common center, the position of which has been uniformly in nearly 
the same point in the heavens, viz. in some part of the constellation 
Leo. 

4, The principal exhibition has at all times, and at all places, oc- 
curred between midnight and sunrise, and the maximum from three 
to four o’clock. . | 

In all these particulars, the Meteoric Showers of 1834, 5, and 6, 
have resembled that of 1833; while no person, so far as I have 
heard, has observed the same combination of circumstances on any 
other occasion within the same period. I have not supposed it ne- 
cessary, in order to establish the identity of these later meteoric 


* Amer. Jour. xxvi, 136. t Ib. 349. 
+ Ed. New Phil. Jour. July, 1836. 
§ New York American, Nov. 15, 1336. 


388 | Miscellanies. 


showers with that of 1833, that they should be of the same magni- 
tude with that. A small eclipse I have considered a phenomenon 
of the same kind with a large one; and, conformably to this analo- 
gy, I have regarded an eclipse of the sun, first exhibiting itself as a 
slight indentation of the solar limb, but increasing in magnitude at 
every recurrence, until it becomes total, and afterwards, at each re- 
turn, but partially covering the solar disk, until the moon passes 
quite clear of the sun,—as affording no bad illustration of what proba- 
bly takes place in regard to these meteoric showers. ‘The fact that 
the Aurora Borealis appears unusually frequent and magnificent for 
a few successive years, and then for a long time is scarcely seen at 
all, was proved by Mairan, a hundred years ago.* ‘There is much 
reason to suspect a like periodical character in the phenomenon in 
question, which first arrested attention in 1831, became more re- 
markable in 1832, arrived at its maximum in 1838, and has since 
grown less and less at each annual return. Some seem to suppose 
that we are now warranted in expecting a similar exhibition of me- 
teors on the morning of every future anniversary ; but this, I think, is 
not to be expected. It is perhaps more probable, that its recur- 
rence, unless in a very diminished degree, will scarcely be witnessed 
again by the present generation. ‘I'he shower, however, at its late 
return, was more striking than 1 had anticipated ; and it must be ac- 
knowledged to be adventurous, to enter the region of prediction 
respecting the future exhibitions of a phenomenon, both whose ori- 
gin and whose laws we so imperfectly understand. 

But it is time to present the reader with the evidence of the re- 
turn of the meteoric shower on the late anniversary. 

Accounts of observations before us show, that the meteoric shower 
was seen in most of the Atlantic States from Maine to South Caro- 
lina. We will begin on the north. 

I. Observations made at Sprinevaute, Maine. Extract of a 
letter from Samuel Dunster, Esq., Agent of the Franklin Manu- 
facturing Company. 

‘‘T requested the watchman at our manufacturing establishment to 
call me, if any thing of interest occurred. He accordingly called 
me at about a quarter before three o’clock, [on the morning of Nov. 
13th.] At three o’clock I began to count the meteors, and num- 
bered as follows. ; 


* Traité Phys. et Hist. de L’Aurore Boréale. Par M. De Mairan.—Memoirs 
of the Royal Academy of Sciences for 1731. 


Meteoric Shower of 1836. 389 


Time. Number. 
3h. 30m. - - - - - 37 
hd Ao Maen cyt ah) he ih me we ree may 
Ah. - = - - - 3l 
Zu Wk ie - = 2h iil - Q5 
4h. 30 m. - . - - : Q2 
4h. 45 m. - - - - - 28 
‘Sy ge a - - - - - 22 
5h. 15 m. - - - - - 16 
5h. 30m. SON gk ae - - 20 
5h. 45 m. - - - - - 11 
6 h. Hi in Seg AEN vein 


6h. 15m. - = - ~ es 5 


208 


“The meteors, with the exception of five or six, all had a direction 
from a point in the eastern part of the heavens about 15 degrees N. 
N. E. of the planet Jupiter; and, although they appeared in all 
parts of the sky, still, if the lines of motion had been continued 
backwards, they would all have terminated in that point. Having 
witnessed the meteoric shower of 1833 in Pennsylvania, I was par- 
ticular to observe the foregoing fact. ‘The phenomenon appeared 
to me to be identical with that, but far less magnificent. ‘The day 
preceding had been remarkably rainy, but the night was clear and still. 

‘¢ Between four and five o’clock, an auroral arch was to be seen in 
the north, and streamers at half past five.” 

II. Observations at Campripeg, Mass., published in the Boston 
Courier, Nov. 14. 

“At eighteen minutes before four o’clock a large meteor darted 
from the north. It was quite luminous, and in size apparently equal 
to half the full moon. This was succeeded by many smaller mete- 
ors, and twenty three were counted by me during an hour and a 
half; several were seen by other persons in the room,* which esca- 
ped my notice. During this time one was observed of creat brill- 
jancy, having a luminous train apparently a yard in length. The 
lightning} continued the whole time, and there was considerable ap- 


pearance of Aurora Borealis. W.” 
Cambridge, Nov. 13. a 


* From this expression it is inferred, that the writer had but a small portion of 
the firmament in view. 
+ From light clouds in the S. E. 


390 Miscellanies. 


III. Observations at Yaue Couuecr. 

The preceding day had been rainy, and early the same night the 
sky was overcast; but before midnight, the firmament became cloud- 
less, and the stars shone with uncommon brilliancy. My expecta- 
tion of a repetition of the meteoric shower at this' place was so slight, 
that Thad made little preparation for observing the heavens, although 
Tlooked out frequently after midnight. About half past three o’clock, 
finding that the meteors began to appear in unusual numbers, I di- 
rected my attention towards the eastern part of the heavens, whence 
they appeared mostly to proceed, and closely watched the stars from 
the Great Bear on the north, to Canis Major on the south, embracing 
in my field of view about one third of the firmament. 

It was soon discovered that nearly all the meteors shot in direc- 
tions which, on being traced. back, met in one and the same point near 
the eye of Leo. Fora quarter of an hour from half past three 
o'clock, I counted twenty two meteors, of which all but three ema- 
nated from the above radiant point. ‘Ten left Juminous trains ; 
twelve were without trains; and the three that did not conform to 
the general direction, moved perceptibly slower than the others. 
The greatest part shot off to the right and left of the radiant, the 
majority tending south towards the Heart of Hydra. The next fif- 
teen minutes afforded but seven meteors, and the number gradually 
declined until daylight. : 

The exact position of the radiant was near a small star forming the 
apex of a triangle with the two bright stars in the face of Leo, hav- 
ing a Right ascension of 145, and Declination of 25 degrees.* Its 
place therefore was very nearly the same as in 1234, differing only 
half a degree in Right Ascension ; and all the phenomena very much ~ 
resembled those observed that year, except that they were ona scale 
somewhat inferior. 

IV. Observations at New Yorx. From the New York Ameri- 
can of Nov. 15th. 

“The annual recurrence of this phenomenon being a subject of 
much interest, the undersigned kept a careful watch on the night of 
Saturday and morning of Sunday last, and is gratified im being able 
to announce the re-appearance of this phenomenon with considerable 
brilliancy. 


mn 


* This position of the “ radiant,” as observed here in 1833, was in R. A. 1509, 
Dec. 20°; in 1834, R. A. 144° 36’, Dec. 30° 15’. isl Wa 


Meteoric Shower of 1836. 391 


« During the evening, but few meteors were observed, but from 
eight o’clock until near the dawn, successive flashes were observed 
in the east, supposed by some to be lightning. At eight o’clock, a 
very beautiful auroral light was seen of a pinkish color. This con- 
tinued fora short time only, although a general luminous appearance 
in the north remained during the wast 

** About two o’clock in the morning, several meteors were seen to 
dart across the Great Bear, and from this time constant watch was 
kept up until day light. From two to three o’clock, ninety eight 
meteors were counted, some being very small, but the greater num- 
ber of great size and brilliancy, resembling a rocket both in the ex- 
plosion and trail left behind,—the trails lasting in some instances for 
nearly two minutes. 

“With two or three exceptions, the course of the meteors was di- 
vergent froma point in Leo, Declination 20°, Right ascension 150°, 
nearly. The place of this point was fully confirmed during the night. 

‘From three to four o’clock, one hundred and fifty meteors were 
counted, and three hundred in all were enumerated. After this 
time we kept no account of the number though many more appear- 
ed. From the situation of the observer it is probable that more than 
half escaped notice. Several were seen in the clear licht of the 
dawn ; and Jupiter, Venus, and Mars, all shining with great brill- 
iancy, were alternately outshone by these transient rivals. No doubt 
now exists in the mind of the writer, as to the distinct and peculiar 
character of the phenomenon ; for, though an attentive observer of 
such matters, he has never seen any thing bearing the slightest re- 
semblance to this display, except.on the night of Nov. 12-138th, 
1832, when he had the good fortune to observe the same appear- 
ance while at sea, off the harbor of Pernambuco, one year before 
the far famed shower of 1833. Gr Ors 

V. Observations at Newarx, New EuEEN From the Newark 
Daily Advertiser. 

This account much resembles the foregoing, as might be expected 
from the proximity of the two places of ohservation. The writer 
remarks, that previous to two o’clock a few shooting stars were 
seen, but no more than on ordinary occasions. After that however, 
there was a decided increase. In an hour anda half he counted 
about seventy five, although his field of view took in only 60 de- 
grees. After four o’clock, their succession was less frequent, and 
they continued to diminish in number until the dawn of day. He 
thinks the whole number that fell was not less than four hundred. 


392 Miscellanies. 


VI. Observations at RanpoupuH Macon Couuece, Virginia. 
By Prof. R. Tolefree, (communicated in a letter to the writer of 
this article.) 

“On the night of the 12-13th November, three of the Ber 
and myself prepared to watch all night. ‘The sky was serene and 
all was calm. About ten o’clock meteors began to appear. The 
first distinguished for its brilliancy, started from the lower part of the 
Little Bear and proceeded to the southwest. After midnight until 
two o’clock,, all the meteors shot westward ; and from two o’clock 
until day break their course was entirely north west. We only 
watched occasionally during the night, and only on the northern side’ 
of the heavens, except an occasional visit to the other parts of the 
building.* I counted two hundred and forty eight shooting stars, 
and my companions sawa larger number than this. You may safely 
conclude that five hundred were seen by us, and this from observa- 
tions kept up only at intervals during the night.” 

VIL. Observations made in Sour Caronina. From the Charles- 
ton Courier of Nov. 25. 

“Greenville, Nov. 19th.—We learn that the people in the neigh- 
borhood of Maybinton, Newbury District, witnessed the fall of an © 
immense nnmber of meteors, which first made their appearance 
about twelve o’clock on Saturday night last, and continued their de- 
scent until daylight the next morning. . It is said their number was 
not near so great as that.of the “Falling Stars” three years since ; 
but the spectacle is represented as having been very brilliant and 
unusual.” ) 


From the foregoing accounts compared, we are ed to conclude 
that the meteoric shower increased in intensity from north to south, 
that of South Carolina having been the most considerable of all, so 
far as accounts have reached us. 

Does not the recurrence of this phenomenon for six successive 
years at the same period of the year, plainly show its connexion 
with the progress of the earth in its orbit ? and does not the fact that 
the greatest display occurs every where in places differing widely in 
longitude, at the same hour of the day, as plainly indicate its con- 
nexion with the motion of the earth on its axis? ‘The supposition 
of a body in space, consisting of an immense collection of meteors, 


+ Had Prof. Tolefree taken his station where his view of the firmament would 
have been unobstructed, he would probably have seen a still greater number shoot- 
ing tothe southwest. 


Meteoric Shower of 1936. 393° 


stretching across the earth’s orbit obliquely,so that the earth passes un= 
der it in its annual progress, while places on its surface lying westward 
of each other are successively brought by the diurnal revolution to the 
point of nearest approach, will satisfy both these conditions. I can 
think of no other that will. The “ point of nearest approach’? may be 
merely the extremity, or the skzrt of the nebulous body, while the 
greatest part of it, and consequently its centre of gravity, lies too 
distant from the earth to be much influenced by its gravity. It would 
not be at all inconsistent with the known extent of astronomical bodies, 
to give to the body in question a breadth of thousands, and a length 
of millions of ‘miles. 

It was an accidental observation, made after the conclusion was form- 
ed, which ascribes the origin of the meteoric showers to a revolving 
nebulous body, that first led me to suspect the Zodiacal Light to be 
the body in question. This, according to La Place, is such a nebu- 
lous body, revolving around the sun in the plane of the solar equator.* 
We actually observe it to reach over the orbit of the earth, making 
an angle with its plane of only 74 degrees. It is not difficult to 
place it in such a situation that the earth shall come very near to the 
skirts of it at least. We should, indeed, expect this meeting of the 
two bodies to take place at the nodes of the solar equator, and there- 
fore in December and June instead of November and April. It is 
easily conceivable, however, that the aphelion of the Zodiacal Light, 
at which place it approaches nearest to the earth, does not lie exactly 
at the node, but so far from it that the earth passes it a month before 
it comes to its node, at which time, moreover, the earth is more than 
a million of miles nearer to the sun than its mean distance. In en- 
deavoring to fix the periodic time of the meteoric body, since it must 
be either a year or half a year, (for no other periodic times could 
bring the two bodies together at intervals of a year,t) several con- 
siderations induced the belief, that half a year was the true period— 
an inference drawn especially from the apparent great excess of ve- 
locity of the earth at the point of concourse; but the period of a 
year, (or more probably, a little less than a year,) by implying that 
the two bodies are always comparatively near to each other, would 
better explain the occurrence of shooting stars at all seasons of the 
year, and would be particularly favorable to the explanation of those 


* Mec. Celeste, (Bowditch,) Vol. II. 525. 
+ See Vol. XXVI. p. 166, of this Journal. 


Vou. XX XI.—WNo. 2. 50 


394 Miscellanies. 


meteoric showers which have, on two occasions, at least,* occurred 
near the last of April,—a time distant about half a year from 
November, and therefore sustaining a like relation to the opposite 
point of its orbit. In such a case, meteoric showers would occur 
in April and November, for the same reason that the Transits of 
Mercury take place in May and November exclusively. The greater 
frequency of meteors in November than in April, naturally results from 
the greater proximity of the earth to the sun at the former than at the 
latter period; to which, perhaps, may be added, the effect of the ec- 
centricity of the orbit of the meteoric body, the aphelion being on 
the side of November. In the present state of our knowledge on 
this subject, I regard it as a point open for inquiry, whether it will best 
accord with all the phenomena of shooting stars, to give to the mete- 
oric body a period of nearly one year, or of half a year. 

[ have been somewhat disappointed, that astronomers should have 
paid so little attention to the remarkable changes which take place 
in the Zodiacal Light, about the 13th of November, as has been re- 
peatedly mentioned in this Journal. It appears to mea fact deserv- 
ing their attention, that the Zodiacal Light, which for weeks before 
the 13th of November, appears in the morning sky, with a western 
elongation of from 60 to 90 degrees from the sun, (while up to that 
time not a glimpse of it can be caught in the evening sky,) should 
immediately afterwards appear after the evening twilight in the west, 
and rapidly rise through the constellations Capricornus and Aqua- 
rius, to an elongation of more than 90 degrees eastward of the sun, 
while it as rapidly withdraws itself from the morning sky, and within 
a few days vanishes entirely from the western side of the sun. For 
three years past I have observed these changes with much interest, 
and feel warranted in asserting, that they have been repeated with 
uniform regularity. ‘The present year, the light was very feeble in 
the morning sky, an effect partly owing to the presence and peculiar 
splendor of the planet Venus; but as soon after the 13th of November 
as the absence of the moon would permit observations, the light ap- 
peared in the west immediately after twilight, crossing the Milky 
Way, and rising ina pyramid almost as bright as that, the triangular 
space between it and the Galaxy, embracing the Dolphin, appear- 
ing, by contrast, strikingly darker. 


*In Virginia, and various other parts of the United States, in 1803, and in 
France in 1095. Making suitable allowances for the more rapid progress of the 
earth through the winter signs, and for. the change of style, and the Meteoric 
shower of the 25th of April, 1095, occurred at very nearly the opposite point of - 
the earth’s orbit. 


Miscellanies. 395. 


I can account for this great and rapid change of place in the Zo- 
diacal Light, a change which is unlike any it sustains at any other 
period of the year, only by supposing, that on or about the 13th of 
November it comes very near to us, and that we pass rapidly by it, 
thus giving it a great parallactic motion, an effect which is in perfect 
accordance with all our previous conclusions. 

According to this view of the subject, the Zodiacal Light would 
no longer be regarded as a portion of the sun’s Moos tenes but as 
a nebulous or cometary body, revolving around the sun within the 
earth’s orbit, nearly in the plane of the solar equator, approaching, 
at times, very near to the earth, and having a periodic time of either 
one year, or half a year, nearly. 

Such, I affirm, would be the fact, should the Zodiacal Light be 
proved to be the body which affords the meteoric showers. 

Yale College, Dec. 19, 1836. 


2. Proceedings of the Maryland Academy of Science and Lit- 
erature, 1836. March 3.—Donations of various books for the Libra- 
ry were received from Prof. Ducatel and Mr. Alexander ; a diagram 
of the human eye from Mr. Green ; a map shewing nes connection 
of the Baltimore and Ohio rail road, with other a roads projected 
and completed, from Mr. Fisher.—Specimens were received for the 
Cabinet, from Mr. J. Tyson, jr., chrome ore, in a matrix said to be 
feldspar ; from Mr. P. 'T. Tyson, a large specimen of Asbestos, va- 
riety Amianthus, obtained at the intersection of the Susquehanna 
rail road with the Gunpowder river ; from Mrs. E. Geddings, a col- 
lection of Southern plants.—Dr. 'T. Edmondson, jr. reported a mete- 
orological table for February, 1836—referred to the section of Phy- 
sics, &c.—A list of minerals was submitted by Prof. Ducatel, at the 
request of the Consul General of France, which the government of 
that country is desirous to obtain—referred to the section of Mine- 
ralogy.—Don Ramon della Lagea, of Spain, and I*. R. Hassler, of 
Washinton, were elected honorary members. 

March 10.—Donations of American insects were received from 
Mr. Hazlehurst, and of Chinese insects from Mr. Fitzgerald, which 
were both referred to the section of Zoology.—Mr. P. T. Tyson, 
from the section of Mineralogy, reported that the specimen of 
chrome ore, referred to that section at the last meeting, is in a matrix 
of magnesian carbonate of lime, the proper title of the mineral being 
ferro-oxide of chrome in magnesian carbonate of lime. Mr. Tyson also 
reported that some of the minerals required by the French Consul 


396 Miscellanies. 


General could be supplied from among the cabinets of several mem- 
bers. 

March 17.—Numerous specimens for the cabinet were received 
from Messrs. Tyson, Webster, Geddings, and Hazlehurst ; among 
them a specimen of anthracite, containing fossils, from Mr. Ty- 
son.—Donations for the library were made by Mr. Alexander and 
Mr. Green. 

March 24.—M. J.Cohen, Esq. cee nel six English birds prepar- 
ed under the direction of Mr. Audubon.—Mr. P.'T. Glyean presented 
a collection of shells, and Prof. Ducatel a large number of minerals, 
fossils, shells, &c.—Donations of books for the library were received 
from the President ; and Prof. Geddings, on behalf of Dr. Barnum, 
presented five South American birds.—Mr. Green, from the section 
of Physics, reported progress on the examination of the specimens 

of amalgam for electrical rubbers. 

March 31.—Donations for the library were received from Me. 
Alexander, T. A. Conrad, of Philadelphia, and J. E. Heath, of Rich- 
mond, and some specimens of coral and shells for the cabinet, from 
Mrs. Fisher.—A letter was received from the New York Lyceum of 
Natural History, acknowledging the receipt of the Academy’s cir- 
cular, and proffering duplicate specimens for the cabinet. The sec- 
retary was directed to reply and acknowledge the gratification which 
this prompt offer to assist has occasioned.—Dr. ‘I’. Edmondson, jr., 
reported a meteorological table, for March, 1836.—Mr. P. T. Tyson 
gave a verbal account of the Ice mountain of Virginia, and suggest- 
ed the probable cause of that singular phenomenon. 

April 7.—Specimens of fossil bones, from Talbot county, in ‘ih 
State, were presented by Dr. A. H. Bayley—also an Osprey, Falco 
halictus, shot in the neighborhood of this city, from Mr. Hazle- 
hurst ; several specimens were presented by Prof. Geddings. The 
contributions to the library were a copy of ‘* Opinions on various 
subjects, by Wm. Maclure,” from the author, ‘‘ Synopsis of the Flora 
of the Western States, by J. L. Riddell,” from Dr. Rovers, and a 
copy of the Plates to Barton’s Flora. 

April 14.—Dr. Harlan, of Philadelphia, presented a copy of his 
‘‘ Medical and Physical Researches ;” Dr. James Eights, of New 
York—* report of the Regents of the University of the State of 
New. York ;”? St. Mary’s College, of this city, ‘“ Method of com- 
puting the observations of an eclipse of the sun,” published by the 
College ; and Charles Cramer, Esq. of New York, several numbers 


Miscellanies. 397 


of the “ Proceedings of the Imperial Mineralogical Society of St. 
Petersburg.”"—The library was also enriched by the receipt of fifty 
nine numbers of the “‘ Iconographie du Regne Animal.” ' 

April 21.—Numerous donations of books were received from Mr. 
E. Durand, of Philadelphia, and Dr. W. E. Coale ; Dr. Edmond- 
son presented six printed copies of the meteorological table for Feb- 
ruary last; Drs. Geddings and Riley presented for the cabinet a 
pair of Flickers ‘‘Picus auratus.’”-—A communication in German, 
printed by order of the Prussian Government, containing a method 
for the propagation and domestic breeding of leeches, was received 
from Baron de Roenné, Prussian Minister, read and ordered to be 
translated for the library. 

April 28.—Specimens were received from Mr. Minifie and Dr. 
Riley ; and from the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, 
a copy of the notice of that Academy recently published by them.— 
Dr. Geddings, chairman of the section of Zoology, reported pro- 
gress in his examination of the foreign and indigenous insects, refer- | 
red at a former. meeting.—Mr. Fisher invited the attention of the 
Academy toa description of the aurora borealis, which was seen on 
the 22d of this month. ‘The paper was referred to a committee of 
the section of Physics, with instructions to collect all the observa- 
tions and facts connected with its appearance in this city, and report 
to the next meeting.—Dr. Geddings described the marine animal 
recently taken at Carpenter’s point in the Chesapeake bay. The 
fish is described to be of the genus Delphinus—subgenus Delphin- 
apterus leucas—known as the Beluga.—Mr. Fisher presented for 
the use of the cabinet an alcoholic solution of the arseniate of Ba- 
ryta, which has been highly recommended for the preservation of 
cabinet specimens, especially the plumage of birds. This salt was 
prepared by fusing together at a moderate heat in a sand cruci- 
ble, in ‘their atomic proportions, crystallized nitrate of Baryta and 
arsenious acid, made into a paste with nitric acid. ‘The process is 
simple, and attended with far less trouble and expense than when 
the ordinary process described in the books is employed.—Mr. Quin- 
by was appointed lecturer for the regular evening. 

May 5.—Specimens were received from Dr. Keener, Dr. Ged- 
dings, Dr. Riley, Joseph King, jr. Esq., and A. Trevallyn, Esq., 
of England, and a copy of the Statistical View of the United States, 
prepared under the direction of the Secretary of State, was trans- 
mitted by the Hon. R. H. Goldsborough, of the Senate.x—Don Joa- 


398 Miscellanies. 


quim José da Costa de Macédo, perpetual Secretary of the Royal 
Academy of Sciences at Lisbon, transmitted a copy of his treatise 
on the early Portuguese navigators. The same gentleman, in his 
official capacity, addressed a letter to the Academy, inviting corres- 
pondence with the Academy which he represents, and giving infor- 
mation that he had sent for the library the proceedings of the Royal 
Academy of Lisbon. These volumes have since been received, and 
forma valuable acquisition to the library.—Sir Nicholas Carlisle was 
elected an honorary member.—Dr. Geddings, from the section of 
Zoology, reported a catalogue of the insects formerly referred to that 
section.—The first section reported as full an account as could be 
attained, of the late remarkable aurora borealis, which was ordered 
to be published. —Dr. Aiken, of the section of sat reported 
progress. in the arrangement of plants. 

May 12.—Dr. eae reported upon several specimens refer- 
red to the section of Zoology at former meetings.—Prof. Ducatel 
reported upon the specimens presented by Mr. Trevallyn which 
had been referred to the section of Mineralogy.—Dr. A. H. Bay- 
ley, of Easton, presented a fine specimen of the Coluber eximuus, 
(corn snake ;) Mr. Minifie the two forefeet of a kangaroo, from New 
Holland; Rev. J.J. Chauche six speciniens of South American 
birds; Dr. W. E. Coale several specimens of Rana and Coluber.— 
A memoir was read by Richard Wilmot Hall, M. D. ‘on the use of 
water as fuel,” which was referred to the joint consideration of the 
sections of Physics and Chemistry. —Dr. Aiken proffered on deposit 
a large collection of geological specimens from the Erie Canal, which 
was accepted and the section of Mineralogy charged with superin- 
tending their removal to the museum of the Academy.—Mr. Fisher 
communicated the notice of a slight auroral display on the night of 
Sunday the 8th inst., and also information of the existence of a min- 
eral spring in the western part of the city, containing free carbonic 
acid, protocarbonate of tron, muriates of lime and magnesia, anda 
trace of vegetable matter. 

May 19.—Specimens were received from Dr. Cohen, Dr. Kee- 
ner, and Mr. P. T. Tyson, and several works for the library from 
Mr. Fisher.—Dr. J. W. Gratham, of Mount Vernon, Illinois, re- 
ported a table of meteorological observations made at that place for 
the month of April, 1836.—Dr. Coale, from the section of Mine- 
ralogy, reported that the geological specimens had been conveyed to 
the museum. The section was further charged with the duty of 


Miscellanies. 399 


arranging these specimens.—Mr. Green requested the attention of 
the Academy to a notice in the American Journal of Science, from 
the Albany Institute, containing a series of observations made on the 
2ist of December last, with the barometer, wet and dry bulb ther- 
mometer, &c. in compliance with the proposition published in the 
London Atheneum, that hourly observations should be made, with 
those instruments, by the men of science throughout the world, on 
four fixed days—21st of March, June, September, and December, 
for thirty seven hours ; and commented upon the advantage likely to 
result to meteorological science if the proposed observations were 
generally undertaken and the results compared. Whereupon it was 
resolved, that a committee of three from the first section be appoint- 
ed, to report at the next meeting upon the most expedient means of 
cooperating efficiently with such other societies and individuals as 
may join in the proposed observations. 

May 26.—Specimens of fossils, shells, insects, &c. were received 
from Messrs. Alexander, Tyson, Minifie, and Dr. Coale; a fine spe- 
cimen of Derbyshire spar was received from Miss H. M. Davis, of 
Philadelphia ; a handsome collection of dried lichens, from New- 
port, R. I. from Miss P. W. Lewis, of Philadelphia; an interesting 
historical relic, being part of the beam of a house erected in St. Do- 
mingo, A. D. 1492, by Columbus, was presented by D. Lewis, 
Esq. of Philadelphia. Several pamphlets were contributed for the 
library. by Prof. Ducatel—The committee appointed at the last 
meeting upon the subject of the meteorological observations pro- 
posed to be made in accordance with the general system proposed 
in Europe, submitted a report, recommending that a committee be 
appointed to cooperate on behalf of the Academy—that the rooms 
of the Academy and every facility for observation should be placed 
at the disposal of the committee—that the expense of procuring 
and constructing the necessary instruments should be defrayed by 
subscriptions amongst the members—that the committee have au- 
thority to call upon the members for the use of any instruments 
which they may possess suitable for making the proposed observa- 
tions—that any interesting natural phenomena which may occur, 
shall be included in the table to be prepared by the committee—and 
finally, that a copy of the table shall be furnished for publication in 
the Journal of Science, anda copy to the Royal Society of London, 
to be disposed of as in their judzment will best promote the interests 
of science. 


Miscellanies. 


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Vol. XX XI.—No. 2. 


402. Miscellanies. 


Communicated by Prof. a Griveam, 


4: Properties of Liquid Carbonic Acid; by M. niente 
Within the walls of Faraday’s. tube is a new chemical world, the 
phenomena of which are totally unexpected: to mention at this 
time only liquefied carbonic acid, whose properties, in common with 
permanent liquids—dilatation, vaporization, &c.—are exalted, am- 
plified, and developed upon a scale truly gigantic. 

Dilatation.—This liquefied gas presents the strange and paradox- 
ical.fact of a liquid more dilated than the gases themselves; from 
0° to +30° Cent. its volume is increased from 20:to 29; that is to 
say, at +30 Cent. the increase of volume is nearly equal to the 
half of its volume at 0°; ina word, its dilatation is four times 
greater than that of air, which from 0° to +80° Cent. would be 
dilated only 2%°;, whilst the dilatation of liquid carbonic acid, redu-. 
ced to the same scale, is z0T 

Vaporization.—If we raise the temperature of a tube containing 
a thin stratum of liquid carbonic acid, it enters into ebullition, and 
the empty space above the liquid is saturated with a quantity of 
vapor which increases with the temperature. At +30° Cent. the 
quantity of liquid at O° necessary to saturate the empty space, is 
represented by a-stratum of liquid equal to a third of the space in 
which the paaportion was effected.. At 0° the stratum of liquid of 
saturation is only ,'; of the space saturated. 

Pyeeire “Bor 0° Cent. to +380° the pressure of the vapor 
furnished by the liquefied gas rises from 36 atmospheres to. 73; which 
gives an increase of one atmosphere for each centigrade degree. It 
is necessary to observe, that the weight or density of the vapor in- 
creases in a much greater proportion than the pressure, and that the 
law of Mariotte does not apply within the limits of liquefaction ; if 
we took the density of the vapor for the basis of pressure, the pres- 
sure at +30 Cent. would be equal to 130 atmospheres, while the' 
manometer indicates really but 73. 

Thermoscopic effects. —If we subject to the: action of heat a tube 
of glass containing a stratum of liquid and another of gas, two con- 
trary effects will appear. 

1. The liquid will increase by dileeaiens 

2. The liquid will diminish by vaporization. 

~The thermoscopic effects will be very different according as the 
liquid stratum is greater or less than the gaseous stratum: hence the 


Miscellanies. 403 


eapplication of heat may cause the Liquid to dilate, to contract, or 
remain stationary. 

These anomalies have furnished the means of verifying the num- 
bers which the preceding researches had given relative to dilatation 
and vaporization. According to these numbers, the point of equi- 
librium above what the liquid increases and below what it diminishes 
by the addition of heat, results from such a proportion between va- 
cuity and fullness that at zero the stratum of liquid occupies 13 of 
the whole tube. If the liquid occupies at zero the third of the tube, 
we have a retrograde thermometer whose fluid increases by cold and 
diminishes by heat. If the liquid occupies at zero two thirds of the 
tube, we have a normal thermometer,—one in which the fluid in- 
creases and diminishes according to the laws of dilatation. The play 
of this thermometer is limited to +380 Cent. ; for at this tempera- 
ture the tube is entirely filled by the liquid. 

A thermometer of this kind would have a great advantage over 
cominon thermometric instruments, in determining the Ce iia 
of cellars and similar places below +-30° Cent. 

Specific gravity.—Liquefied gas, whose specific gravity at 0° is 
.83, (water being taken for unity,) presents the unzque phenomenon 
of a liquid, which, from —20° to +30 Cent. runs over the scale of 
densities from .90 to .60. 

Action of liquid carbonic acid on.other substances.—While it 
remains liquid it is absolutely insoluble in water, with which it does 
not mix, but floats above it. It is the same with respect to uae fat 
oils. i 

_Itis soluble in all proportions in alcohol, ether, naphtha, spirits of 
turpentine, and carburet of sulphur. — 

It is decomposed, when cold, with effervescence by potassium ; it 
has no sensible action on lead, tin, iron, copper, &c. | 

Cold produced by liquid carbonic acid in its transition from the 
liquid to the gaseous state.—When a jet of the liquid acid is direct- 
ed upon the bulb of an alcoholic thermometer, it rapidly sinks to 
—90° Cent. But the frigorific effects do not respond to this abase- 
ment of temperature, a fact which is explained by the almost abso- 
lute want of conducting power of the gases and their low capacity 
for heat ; hence the intensity or tension of cold is enormous, but the 
sphere of activity is limited in some sort to the point of contact. 
The congelation of the mercury is confined to small portions of it, 
and if a finger is exposed to a jet of the liquid a sensation of burn- 


404 Miscellanies. 


ing is indeed forcibly felt, but the effect i is chiefly a to ae 
epidermis. 

If gases have little effect in the production of ald it is not so 
with vapors, whose conductibility and capacity for heat are much 
greater. I have therefore thought that if a permanent liquid,— 
ether, forexample—could be placed under the same condition of 
expansibility as liquefied gases, we might obtain a frigorific effect 
much greater than that procured by liquefied carbonic acid. ‘Toac- 
ciaharslict this, ether must be rendered ewplostble, and this I have 
easily effected by mixing it with liquid carbonic acid. In this inti- 
mate combination of the two liquids, which dissolve each other in 
all proportions, ether ceases to be a permanent liquid under atmos- 
pheric pressure ; it becomes expansible like a liquefied gas, still pre- 
sérving its properties as a vapor—viz. its conductibility and tapee 
for caloric. 

The effects produced by a blowpipe fed by explosible ether are 
remarkable: a few seconds are sufticient to congeal fifty grammes of 
mercury in a glass capsule. If we expose a finger to the jet which 
escapes from this veritable blowpipe of frost, the sensation is quite 
intolerable, and seems to extend much farther from the ee of con- 
tact than with the liquid jet. | 

I propose to replace ether by carburet of sulphur, which vill in 
all probability produce still more striking effects —(Annales de 
Chim. Decem.) ; foil. 


5. Sondahention of Carbonic Acid,* by M. Tuitorter.—I had 
the honor, at the last session, to state to the Academy the phenome- 
na which accompany the liquefaction of carbonic acid gas: I now 
announce the fact, important to science, of the solidification of this 
gas. This first instance of a gas becoming solid and concrete, is so 
much the more remarkable, as it relates to a gas which requires the 
most powerful mechanical action to attain liquefaction, and which 
resumes with Zhi ae rapidity its first form when Wee compression is 
removed. 

Gaseous under the common temperature and pressure, and liquid 
at zero, under a pressure of 36 atmospheres, carbonic acid becomes 
solid at a temperature about the hundredth degree (Cent.) below 
melting ice, and retains this new condition for several minutes in the 
open air, and without the necessity of any compression. 


* Mentioned in the last No. of this Journal, p. 163, but the details are now given, 


JMiscellanies. 405 


‘Whilst in the liquid state, its elastic force is under such energetic 
restraint that a. gramme of this substance produces an explosion as 
great as the same weight of powder: this spring, in the solid state, 
is completely broken: the new body disappears insensibly by slow 
evaporation. 

A fact not less curious than the solidification of this gas, is, that it 
is effected by the sudden passage from the liquid to the gaseous 
state, and that the approach and coherence of the molecules which 
constitutes the solid state, is caused by the expansion of a liquid 
which instantly arcie a space 400 times greater than its primitive 
volume. 

A fragment of wale carbonic. acid, slightly touched by the finger, 
glides rapidly over a polished antic as if sustained by the gaseous 
atmosphere with which it is constantly surrounded until it is entirely 
dissipated. 

- If we introduce a few decigrammes of this substance into a little 
flask, and stop it hermetically, the interior is filled with a thick va- 
por, and the stopper is soon driven out with violence. 

The vaporization of solid carbonic acid is complete. It leaves 
but rarely a slight humidity, which may be attributed to the action 
of the air on a cold body, whose temperature is much below that of 
freezing mercury. 

The influence of cooling upon liquid carbonic acid, whose expan- 
sive force is thus found to be annihilated at about the hundredth de- 
gree (Cent.) below melting ice, begins to be manifest at a much 
higher temperature : this expansive force, which at zero is equal to 
36 atmospheres, is no more than 26 atmospheres at 20° below zero. 

It seems proper to add, that the term one hundred degrees below 
zero, which J assign to the solidification of the liquid acid, is not hy- 
-pothetical. In the experiment which I made before the members 
of the committee, the alcoholic thermometer sunk to —87°; and 
by adding to these 6 degrees, which the fluid would have contracted 
if the whole thermometric column could have been subjected to the 
frigorific action, we shall have the actual temperature of 93° Cent. 
below 0°, and this number cannot have been the maximum of the 
effect of the blowpipe fed by liquid carbonic acid.—Idem. 


6. Exchanges ‘of objects in Natural History. (Extract of a let- 
ter from Dr. H..G. Bronn, to Prof. Silliman, dated Heidelberg, 
Germany, 13th June, 1836.)—The museum of Natural History con- 


406 | Miscellanies. 


nected with the University at Heidelberg, which for the present has 

been placed under my direction, is desirous of making exchanges of 
objects in Natural History, and more especially in Zoology, with 

‘some similar public institutions, or private individuals, in the United 

States. The number of specimens from the United States, at pres- 

ent in this country, is so very small, that duplicate specimens of any 
and every object, even the most common and least valued, would be 

acceptable. A list of desiderata is therefore unnecessary. Every 

thing that may be sent will-here be highly valued. It may be re- 

marked, however, that the packages should be large, in order to be 

proportioned to the expense of transportation, and also that the spe- 

cimens should be well preserved and carefully secured. 

There may be perhaps some persons, friends of science, now ab- 
sent from Europe for a time, who, considering the many difficulties 
which this museum must encounter in procuring objects in Natural 
History from the various parts of the globe, may feel inclined to 
transmit to us, without a compensation in return, collections of shells, 
insects, crustacea, arachnides and other objects, which require but 
little care in their preservation.* 

The society or societies, which may be disposed to accept of our 
invitation, are requested to name their desiderata3} and also those 
who have specimens for sale, are desired to’send us a list of them, 
with the prices attached. - galls 

All objects intended for the museum may be transmitted to Mr, Ph. 
Lajeune, of N. York; or Messrs. Wanner, Langest & Co., at Havre. 

~P..S. The museum would also offer to expose for sale any ob- 
jects that may be sent out with that design ; and if it is desired to 
establish in Germany a place of depot for the sale of American ob- ~ 
jects in Natural History, we would strongly recommend. Heidelberg 
as peculiarly favorable, it being situated in the most frequented part, 
and on the most travelled route of Germany ; and moreover, it ‘con- 
tains at present no similar establishment. We would correspond 
farther on this subject with any who may be pleased with this project. 


7. The Dispensatory of the United States of America ; by GroRGE 
B. Woop, M. D., Prof. Mat. Med. and Phar. Univ. Penn., Mem. 


* For the preservation of insects, arachnides, crustaceous animals, small reptiles 
and fishes, it is sufficient to put them in bottles or small kegs filled with rum, or 
with alcohol diluted one half with water, and so securing them as to prevent their 
moving. Previous to sending them, this vessel should be carefully enveloped. 


Miscellanies. 407 


Am. Phil. Soc., &c. &c.; and Franxuin Bacue, M. D., Prof. 
‘Chem. Phila. Col. Phar., a Sec. of Am. Phil. Soc., &c. sil 3d 
Ed., enlarged and carefully revised. Philadelphia: Grigg & Elliot, 
1836. —The rapid sale of two editions of this work, has induced its 
authors to enlarge and improve it still-farther. It is now the fullest 
in its details, and the most correct and best arranged, and therefore 
the most authoritative work of the kind in the English language. 
That this book of reference was deemed necessary, is now clear, 
from the avidity with which it was sought for on its first appear- 
ance, and the publication of a second and third edition proves that it 
is now considered as necessary to the physician who wishes to pre- 
scribe intelligently and accurately, especially in regard to proportions 
and modes of combination of medicines. If this be true of a city 
physician, for whom officinal combinations can be always promptly ob- 
tained in the shops, how much more strongly must this be experi- 
enced by a country practitioner, who makes up his own prescrip- 
tions, and often prepares his own extracts, tinctures, infusions and 
ointments. No memory is equal to the task of treasuring up for use, 
the proportions and mode of combination of numerous and diversified 
medicinal substances, which, in the progress of a case of disease, are 
thought worthy of trial. This difficulty is removed by the learning, 
industry, patience and good faith of the authors of this Dispensatory. 

Among the alterations and improvements of the present edition, is 
the transfer of all non-officinal substances from the body of the work 
to the Appendix. 

The following additional articles are inserted in the Aippanetias 
viz. Alcornoque ; Calotrapis Gigantea or Madar; Catalpa Cordi- 
folia ; Chlorides of potassa and soda ; Codfish oil; Creosote ; Cy- 
anuret of potassium; Cyanuret of zinc ; Dipwel’s, animal oil; Fer- 
rocyanate of potassa ; Iodide of ammonium ; Jodide of iron ; Iodide 
of sulphur ; Iodo-hydrargyrate of potassium ; Irish moss ; Artificial 
musk; Nitrate of soda; Oil of Euphorbia; Sassa gum; Soot. The 
Appendix is still farther enriched by a copious alphabetical table of 
pharmaceutical equivalents, which appears in it for the first time. 

The requisite corrections in fact and opinion, throughout the work, 
are introduced, and the authors have endeavored to make it the re- 
flexion of the knowledge of the day: both the paper and ‘type are. 
also improved in this edition. 

Based as this Dispensatory is on the Pharmacopeeia of the United 
States, it is a national work, tending to establish a common standard 


408 Miscellanies. 


of pharmaceutical nomenclature and preparations, and thus greatly to 
facilitate the free interchange of experience among our physicians 
respecting the effects of medicines, as well in their simple form, as 
in officinal combinations and common extemporaneous prescriptions. 


8. Antiquities: —We earnestly invite the public attention to the 
following important notice of AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES. 

Mr. Editor,—Having just received a letter from the sécmetinal of 
the Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries, relative to the work on 
America, upon which they have been for many years engaged, and 
deeming that the information it contains may be interesting to those 
who have subscribed* for the work, and may be the means of indu- 
cing others to do the same, I have made extracts from it, and you will 
oblige me by giving publicity to them through the Journal. 

I would also reiterate the request of Prof. Rafn, that the periodi- 
cals and journals of the day would copy the announcement here 
made, in order that the very limited encouragement thus far offered 
by us to the Danish Society, may be extended to a degree commen- 
surate with the importance of the publication, and the labor by them 
bestowed Upon ite) 2); : | 

The subject of the early history and antiquities of Asia is 
daily attracting more and more attention; and among the. philoso- 
phers and antiquarians who have enlisted in the cause, those associ- 
ated with and. belonging to the Society established ‘at Copenhagen 
stand pre-eminent for thelr laborious investigations, their long contin- 
ued and unwearied inquiries, their deep and extensive. researches, 
and more than all, for the success which appears to have crowned 
‘their efforts. 

‘ Many seem to think that all which can be satisfactor ‘ily known in 
relation to this matter, is embodied in the second chapter of Wheaton’s 
History of the Northmen. ? 

But as interesting as the intelligence there communicated i 1S, ‘the 
account isa brief one, and made subsidiary to his main design ; the 
distinguished author haying for his object the elucidation not of 
American history, but that of the Danes and Normans. 

All that relates specially to this country, is embraced in less than 
eight octavo pages, whereas the Society’s work will contain severak 
hundred quarto pages. sat 


* Yale College has ordered a copy for its Library. 


Miscellanies. 409 


With regard to the individuals engaged in the undertaking, it is 
sufficient to say, that among the most prominent are those to whom 
Mr. Wheaton acknowledges his indebtedness, and of whom he speaks 
in terms of commendation. ‘They were, many years previous to the 
appearance of his valuable publication, occupied with the task, and 
they have been diligently engaged therewith ever since its appear- 
ance, which was more than five years ago. 

During the latter period, many important discoveries have been 
made in Greenland and Iceland, bearing upon our history ; the vast 
collections of manuscripts in Copenhagen have been more critically 
examined ; collections so extensive that the life of no one individual 
would be sufficiently protracted to enable him to make a thorough 
examination of them, and consequently could only be mastered by 
a union of effort, like that which has been devoted toit. In addition 
to other materials to which the Society has had access, are “nota 

few parchment codices, never before employed or even known to exist.” 

It may be necessary to add once more, for the information of those 
who have not seen the original prospectus, that the work here alluded 
to, ‘will be published in the original Icelandic, with accompanying 
Latin and Danish versions, and will be furnished with a critical ap- 
paratus of variorum readings, explanatory notes, (in Latin,) with one 
chronological and several genealogical tables, and geographical and 
archeological disquisitions respecting the first landing places and 
earliest settlements of the Northmen in America, and the vestiges of 
their migration to, and sojourn in this country ; disquisitions towards 
which material assistance has been furnished by several men of sci- 
ence and erudition in the United States. A summary of the work, 
in English, or French, will be delivered gratis to the subscribers ; its 
size to be regulated by their number. ‘The work will consist of one 
volume royal quarto, and will be furnished, in America, at twelve 
dollars per copy, including the freight from Denmark to New York 
or Boston. Forty copies have been struck off on thick imperial 
vellum, at a proportionally higher price.” 

Individuals wishing the work, may transmit their names and ad- 
dress to the subscriber. 

Subjoined are the extracts to which we called your attention. 

Respectfully yours, 


Tuomas H. Wess. 
Providence, September 12, 1836. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 52 


410 JMiscellanies. 


Copenhagen, July 9th, 1936. 

Dear Sir,—The printing of our announced work will, we hope, 
be entirely finished in the course of a few months. ‘The delay that 
has taken place in forwarding to you and other gentlemen the pro- 
spectus issued by us, will prevent our receiving the subscriptions in 
season to transmit copies of the work this fall. 

Along with this, I send a written supplementary notice, which I re- 
quest you will prevail on some of the publishers of the most exten- 
sively circulated papers and periodicals to insert. 

Antiquitates Americane.—On the 19th November last year, the 
Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries, issued a prospectus, of a 
collection of the accounts extant in ancient Icelandic and other Scan- 
dinavian Manuscripts, relative to Voyages of discovery to North 
America made by the Scandinavians in the 10th and following cen- 
turtes. It is hoped that this prospectus has already been published 
in America; and the following supplementary notice is now added 
to it. 

This work will now soon be issued from the press. A circumstance 
that occasioned considerable delay, was the engraving of the fac 
similes, which was rendered very laborious by the uncommon dark- 
ness and illegibleness of the parchments; but which is now at length 
finished. ‘The work will be illustrated by eighteen plates in all, viz. 
eight large fac similes, four maps on which are given the Old North- 
ern names of countries and places, and six other. engravings. 

From communications made to us by several of the Society’s 
members in America, we learn that an English translation would be 
highly acceptable. Whether this will be undertaken or not, must be 
left for future consideration ; and will mainly depend upon the pat- 
ronage furnished to the original work. 

No translation however can be equivalent to, or render superfluous 
the original Old Northern or ancient Icelandic text, which all culti- 
vators and admirers of the history of the Ante-Columbian epochs of 
America will now have it in their power to consult; and by means 
of its immediate study, they will be able to come to a clear convic- 
tion of the importance of the accounts contained in the ancient man- 
uscripts of the north. 

We would remark, that in the main work itself, several important 
elucidations, received from learned men in America, are inserted in 
the English language, as it is to be presumed ihat the greatest num- 
ber of readers will prefer perusing them in that tongue. 


Miscelianies. 411 


In the expectation that the announced work will obtain that atten- 
tion in the United States to which writings, so remarkable and so rich 
in the historical records of a period long since passed away, have so 
well founded a claim, we take this opportunity to inform such as 
wish well to the undertaking, that notices of subscription may be sent 
to either of the three following members of the Society, viz. 

Tuomas H. Wezs, M.D. Providence, R. I. 
Rev. Cuarues Lowent, Boston, Mass. 
Joun R. Bartuert, Esq. New York. 

It is requested that the notices may be sent as soon as possible, as 
these gentlemen will in January transmit us the several names, in 
order that the work may be forwarded early in the spring. 

Publishers of Journals and Newspapers in the United States are 
earnestly solicited to contribute their aid to the furtherance of this 
object, by the insertion of the above, and they will thereby confer 
an obligation upon the Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries. 

Cuartes C. Rarn, Secretary. 

To Tuomas H. Wess, M.D. 


9. Agency for Patents, at the city of Washington.—Dr. Tuomas 
P. Jones, of Washington, formerly superintendent of the Patent Of- 
fice, will hereafter devote himself to the business of preparing speci- 
fications and drawings, and to other transactions connected with the 
obtaining of patents for useful inventions. His long acquaintance 
with theoretical and practical mechanics and chemistry, and with the 
progress of the useful arts, both at home and abroad, will enable 
him to decide upon the novelty and utility of machines or processes 
which it is proposed to patent; a circumstance always of great im- 
portance, but now rendered peculiarly so by the provisions of the 
new patent law. He is also familiar with the practice of the courts 
of the United States relating to patents, as well as with the patent 
laws of England, France, &c., and can furnish the information which 
may be required on these points generally. Those persons who wish 
to procure patents in foreign countries may do so through his agen- 
cy, or obtain such preliminary information as may be deemed requi- 
site, either from himself, or through his confidential correspondents 
abroad. 

In all cases where specifications are to be drawn up, good draw- 
ings or a model should be forwarded, together with such a description 
of the invention as will make its design fully known. Models are re- 


412 Miscellanies. 


quired to be deposited in the office previously to the granting of a 
patent for any machine; and although these, when simple, may be 
made in Washington from a good drawing, it will always be more 
satisfactory to have them sent by the applicant. When drawings 
are forwarded, they should be signed by the applicant, and be wit- 
nessed by two persons. 

All letters making inquiries respecting patents must be post paid ; 
and where examinations in the Patent Office or elsewhere, or writ- 
ten opinions, are required, a fee of five dollars will be expected. 
The charge for specifications and drawings must depend upon their 
complexity, but will be moderate. ) 

P. $.—Dr. T. P. Jones will act as agent in business to be trans- 
acted at the public offices in Washington, or with individuals. 


10. Excursions to Cairo, Jerusalem, Damascus, and Balbec, &c., 
by Georce Jones, A. M., Chaplain U. S. Navy: Author of 
Sketches of Naval Life. New York: Van Nostrand & Dwight, 
1836: pp. 388, large 12mo.—This very instructive and beautiful 
book is just such a production as might be expected from the au- 
thor, who is well known by his former spirited and graphic work. 

As a traveller, Mr. Jones unites great activity, curiosity and tact, 
with the knowledge which is necessary to prompt and direct his ob- 
servations. Such are his powers of narrative, of description and 
illustration, that he makes his reader a gratified and grateful party 
to his travels ; he carries you along with him, and inspires you with 
a share of his own enthusiasm. 

In the present instance, the scene is laid in countries long ven- 
erable and venerated, as the cradle of knowledge, of religion, of arts, 
of dominion : we cannot know too much of Egypt and Palestine, of 
the Nile, of the Pyramids, and of the Holy City. 

In the case especially of the latter, Mr. Jones has been happy in 
separating truth from error, and we are strongly impressed with the 
conviction that the most important localities of Jerusalem are now 
well ascertained, and are clearly indicated by him. 

In support of the authority of Mr. Jones’ book, there is at present 
a happy and very unexpected coincidence between the facts which 
he has stated, and very satisfactory evidence derived from another 
source. We allude to the valuable lectures of Mr. Catherwood, 
accompanied by fine illustrations from his own pencil, industriously 
employed, during a course of four years in Palestine, Syria and 
Egypt, to exhibit the wonderful antiquities and scenery of those 


Miscellanies. A413 


countries. Mr. Catherwood himself, every way a highly qualified 
judge, pronounces Mr. Jones’ work to be exceedingly correct. As 
Mr. Jones possesses much and various knowledge of other countries 
in which he has travelled, we cannot prove, in any way, more deci- 
sively, our confidence and satisfaction in his work, than to say, that 
in our judgment he cannot do better than to go on and tell the world, 
if not like Johnson, all that he knows, certainly some share of that 
part which remains untold. 


11. Gold Mines of Virginia.—For want of room, we are com- 
pelled to postpone an article on the gold mines of Virginia, which we 
intended to insert, (the facts being drawn chiefly from our own per- 
sonal observation, made among the mines during the late autumn.) 
We are satisfied of the great value of some of the mines, and that 
many are worthy of a sober and rational exploration. 

There is, without any doubt, much gold in Virginia, diffused 
through an extensive tract; and there is great reason to believe that 
there are still many places in the same geological and geographical 
region, in which it lies undiscovered, and is still to be brought to 
light ; we hope to add more in our next number. 


12. Exchanges in Conchology.—Dr. J. C. Jay, 22 Bond street, 
New York, has recently published a second and improved edition of 
his Catalogue of Recent Shells, with descriptions of new or rare 
species, illustrated by four colored plates. 

Dr. Jay’s collection is well known for its extent and beauty, and 
for the excellence of its arrangement. We are given to understand 
that it will ‘give him pleasure to exchange duplicate specimens, and 
that he will receive live and perfect shells, whether they are enu- 
merated in his catalogue or not; and as far as he is able, he will 
supply whatever may be desired in return.” 


13. New Work on Mineralogy.—A Treatise on Mineralogy, by 
James D. Dana, A. M., assistant in the department of Chemistry, 
Mineralogy and Geology in Yale College, is in press in this city, and 
will be published in about three months. It will comprise an ex- 
tended introduction, together with full descriptions of species, and 
an appendix upon the application of analytical geometry to the sci- 
ence of Crystallography. The work will constitute an octavo vol- 
ume of about 450 pages, and will be illustrated by 200 wood cuts, 
and four copperplates containing 150 additional figures. It will be 
published by Durrie & Peck, and Herrick & Noyes. 


Miscellanies. 


414 


NyIquop oxze ye ia ‘aq ct d aq Avi surnyax 
: p UY} SIAMSUL 0] (;4,) ppe asvalq ay—'[eunor sity ur poysitqn x = z 
ory pure ‘parry oq Aci syueyq at73 AUT arse a ? Axyan0d sry ul poysitqudas oq Avmi yey) sande e YM ‘purpsug ‘WeYANnG Jo ‘Uo\sUYoOr ‘Jorg Wor poAtoooy 
if “i . . . . . 


= Z 4 = ir) io} z m5) & a] ro) 5 ai 5 a ie . 
Sloe bee eg edie ee] Be ee eae eae eee eae ce ale ae 
3 5 a\a2ee| & E a a = Ss ie sees = 4 = ® = 5 R 
& 5 Sy Sel el] o G es a = e |e a Q o 2 0 2 a 
= iy YS o @ SS s ¢ ® ¢ 3 Ss ¢ 3 o g f 
2 ir 5|S0q 4 5 wy 5 = da . io) es, 2 e 
Sree) ee ne ie ce (mow ane 3 Beales Gree 
s | o |PalBsas| & | & | BE e 2 2 oe eal ae 
5 > le Slo a6 =| 09 ‘a as S we ae e 
= & |g Prl 5 a BS a ch 26 aS a 
a = ~ oO ne 5 @ al e E Be 5 

F i => = |2sl 480 ic) = =me) ee i Sa Zo 5 
SHUVINGY = 2 ie oe ei 8 5 Bo g 4 se Bo E 

® eo |2s! ose 2 2, Zn Ss 2 = es 

bo} @ = @ ST ety ter m mw [=O fel a 2 a g8 

5 a (oT GSS) oc oe Se @ 5 e E 

© y 2 B48 Ss i= aD S) < 5 5 

° S| ea 5 ou a Ss a 5 = , 

: a <5) = io} D ai wa J | ere eh & Es 

S15 2 il ei z 5 e j AXOISITT S So eg, 

S| 296] J 5 S “iGnnNREING $0 2 S eS 

S 5 ama ae SESE ee Had S . B 

8] BS 3 ‘JoooS § |;,asanoayove| 4 esmmoo 5 jaeok youeaq 13130 8 

e 529) x0 AysioA 2 ye sjuepnys | yore josja |S} 10d sasimoo |Aue ul ueAls 2 

a a» au 5 “yor ‘ 2 EU MOF |WOTOU.YSU! Ss 3 

S| 425) sug om uy & | joxoquayn | -yon jo o01g!|&| Auew Moy ‘uoTN.y I 


‘ fo (Ana 10) uno) ay) w2 uornonpry oormayg fO ~mar4 JVIYSUDIG *PT 


Miscellanies. 415 


15. History and Proceedings of the Mechanics’ Institute of the 
City of New York, from the Corresponding Secretary.—The New 
York Mechanics’ Institute was founded in the spring of 1831, and 
originated in a class of Mechanics attending a course of lectures on 
Chemistry and Natural Philosophy given by Prof. John Steele du- 
ring the preceding winter, and consisted of forty-five members. In 
October of the same year, the Common Council of the city granted 
the free use of the rooms now occupied by the Institute, in the base- 
ment story of the City Hall, consisting of a Lecture Room, Read- 
ing Room, Library, and a place for the deposit of Models of Ma- 
chinery. ‘The Institute has rapidly increased in numbers, until it 
enumerates above one thousand active members. The advantages 
which it offers to the members are a free ticket of admission to its 
annual exhibition and fair, generally held in September, to its lectures, 
and the use of its library and reading room, at an expense of four dol- 
lars for the first year and two dollars a year afterwards. The lectures 
are held during the winter months twice in the week, on a variety of 
subjects connected with the mechanical professions. ‘The Library, 
containing between ten and eleven hundred volumes, is well select- 
ed and free to the members. ‘The Reading Room contains above 
fifty periodicals, amongst which are found the most important litera- 
ry and scientific journals that are published in the English, anda 
few in other languages. The celebrated work on Egypt got up un- 
der the French Government, has been procured by subscription 
amongst the friends of the institution, at an expense of $800, and 
is now deposited in its Library. ‘The Institute holds a meeting for 
the transaction of its business the first Tuesday evening of each 
month, and every other Tuesday evening of the month is occupied 
by a lecture or an essay from some one of the members. ‘The sci- 
entific meetings have been but recently commenced, and promise 
the most happy results. The following is an abstract of the pro- 
ceedings. 

Tuesday, Oct. 11th, 1836.—The meeting was opened by the 
Cor. Secretary, who stated that it was one of the prominent objects 
of these meetings to communicate the various desiderata in the pre- 
sent state of the arts; to obtain, as far as practicable, histories of the 
origin and progress of the various trades, as well as of the individu- 
al articles manufactured by the various artificers—such as the histo- 
ry of pumps, stoves, mills for grinding grain, windmills, water mills, 
&c. The importance was particularly urged of imvestigating the 


416 MViscellanies. 


history of unsuccessful patents and of inventions not patented, in or- 
der to prevent the time and labor so frequently lost by inventing that 
a second time which has been long ago invented, thrown aside as 
useless, and forgotten. A complete set of Harper’s Family and 
Classical Library, 99 vols. 18mo. was received, a joint donation 
from Geo. Bruce, Esq. President of the Institute, and the Messrs. 
Harper & Brothers. 

Oct. 18.—James J. Mapes, Esq. gave a lecture on the origin and 
progress of Phrenology. The Cor. Sec. read a letter from Mr. 
Ouidinot, of Pottsville, Pa. accompanied with a box of fossils, &c. 
illustrative of the coal formation of that neighborhood, for which 
thanks were recorded. 

Oct. 25.—L. D. Cuarin, Esq. read an essay on the geology of 
some parts of Virginia, especially in the vicinity of the Natural 
Bridge, in which he gave some new measurements made by himself. 
A suite of minerals was presented by Dr. Feuchtwanger. 

Nov. 8.—Dr. R. Cranpauy gave a lecture on Assimilation, ac- 
companied by valuable practical remarks on dietetics. 

Nov. 15.—Tuos. Ewxsanx, Esq. gave a lecture on the history of 
Syphons, in which he exhibited a number of new ones invented by 
himself. Mr. Chapin exhibited some remarkable specimens of wood 
from the city of Hartford, Conn. with the marks of edged tools upon 
them, and specimens of leaves, all of which were excavated about 
40 feet below the surface. 

Nov. 22.—The President gave a lecture on the history of Print- 
ing, illustrated with a great variety of specimens of the various fash- 
ions of letters and work from the origin of the art down to the pre- 
sent time, which from the request of many members, will be repeat- 
ed on the 8th of December. 

Nov. 29.—The exercises of the evening were opened by remarks 
from Dr. Gaur on the materials generally used for building in diffe- 
rent countries, with the effect of climate, and especially its agency 
in decomposing or disintegrating the materials used. After which 
James Frost, Esq. made some appropriate remarks on the compar- 
ative methods of building in England and in the United States. 
The Cor. Sec. of the Institute announced that the associate course 
of lectures would be opened by the President on the 8th of Decem- 
ber, and presented a list of the names of the gentlemen who will 
lecture, as follows : 


Miscellanies. 417 


December 8—Geo. Bruce, Esq. Pres. Institute, on “History of 


66 


ce 


6é 


January 
66 


Printing. 
12—J. R. Barrier, Esq. on the Varieties of the Hu- 
man Race. 
15—Dr. Watuace, on the Hand, the Brain, and their uses. 
19—Geo. Bruce, History of Printing, (concluded. ) 
22—J. R. Barruert, Varieties of the Human Race, 
(concluded. ) 
26—Dr. Watuace, on the Ear, the Tongue, &c. 
29—Prof. Torrey, on Gas Lights. 
2—Dr. Wauvacg, on the structure, &c. of the Eye. 
5—Tuos. S. Cummines, Prof. of National Acad. De- 
sign, on the advantages of the Arts of Design to 
the Useful Arts. 
9—J. J. Mares, Prof. Nat. Phil. and Chem. National 
Academy Design, on the Chemistry of Colors. 
12—A. Mitts, Esq. on the Commerce, &c. of Ancient 
Tyre and Sidon. 
16—Wnm. Dunuap, Vice President National Academy 
Design, on Early History of New York. 
19—A. J. Mason, Esq. Prof. National Acad. Design, on 
History and Practice of Engraving on Wood. 
23—A. Mitts, Esq. on the Commerce, &c. of Ancient 
Tyre and Sidon, (continued. ) 
26—Prof. Mason, on History and Practice of Engraving 
on Wood, (continued. ) 
30—J. CatHerwoop, Esq. on History and Aatquies 
of Egypt. 
2—Prof. Mason, on History and Practice of Engraving 
on Wood, (concluded.) 
6—J. Caruerwoop, Esq. on History and Antiquities 
of Egypt. 
9—Dr. Cranpaut, on Animal Mechanics. 
13—J. Carnerwoop, Esq. on Hist. and Ant. of Egypt. 
16—Dr. Cranpatt, on Animal Physiology. 
20—Prof. Busy, on Champollion’s method of decipher- 
ing the Hieroglyphics. 
23—L. D. Cuapin, on the Antiquities of America. 
27—Dr. Wexpon, on the Hydro-oxygen Microscope, 
with experiments. 


Vou. XX XI.—WNo. 2. 53 


418 Miscellanies. 


16. Minerals, Ores, Mines, &c. examined.—W. W. Marner, 
Mineral Surveyor, Mining Engineer, Chemist and Metallurgist, and 
late Instructor in Chemistry, Mineralogy and Geology, and the ap- 
plications of these sciences to the useful arts, at the U.S. Military 
Academy at West Point, has. established an office for the analysis 
and assay of minerals and ores; for the examination of mines, mi- 
ning districts, mineral beds, quarries and quarry-stones; for commu- 
nicating information upon the best methods of smelting and working 
ores and minerals to bring them to a marketable state ; and for im- 
parting all the various knowledge which is a necessary preliminary to 
the successful prosecution of mining enterprises. So many mining 
operations are undertaken through mistaken views of their probable 
productiveness, and even of the nature of the mineral or ore, that it 
is deemed necessary for the public interest that an office similar to 
that mentioned should be established. This professional knowledge 
is as important to the community, to prevent the undertaking of mi- 
ning and metallurgic operations where they would be unproductive, 
as to guide and direct enterprise to the most economical and profita- 
ble methods of working mines and preparing their marketable pro- 
ducts. 

Mr. Mather has had an experience of several years in the diffe- 
rent branches of his profession, and now solicits the patronage of 
the public. The office will impart information, not only upon the 
subjects above mentioned, but upon the applications of all mineral 
substances to the various useful purposes of life. 

Letters, post paid, addressed to W. W. Mather, Mining Engineer, 
No. 95 State-street, Albany, soliciting information, and enclosing a 
fee of five dollars, will be promptly attended to. Should it be ne- 
cessary to examine the locality of the mineral or ore, or make an 
assay or chemical analysis, or make drawings, and give descriptions 
of machinery, furnaces, &c. &c. an additional fee will be charged, 
varying in amount according to circumstances. 


17. Mineralogical and Geological Collections.—Messrs. Ma- 
rHER & Haut have large collections of mineral, fossil and geologi- 
cal specimens, to illustrate American Mineralogy and Geology, which 
they will sell at reasonable rates. They will pack and forward sets 
of mineralogical specimens, well characterized, of fine quality, and 
many of them crystallized, to any part of the United States or to 
Europe, at the following rates, viz: 


JViscellanies. 419 


100 specimens two by three inches, $25 


200 66 6é 66 6é 60 
300 66 66 6é 6¢ 100 
AGO 6é 6¢ 66 66 ] 50 
500 66 Ce 66 66 995 
900 66 66 66 GC 300 
1000 66 66 66 66 600 
2000“ “ cents BESO 


The reason that the prices increase more rapidly than the num- 
bers of specimens, is the increasing difficulty of procuring varieties 
of appearance and new species, fier collections of a few AULGTSLS 
have been formed. 

Fossils to illustrate the fossil zoology and botany of the transition 
slates, graywackes and limestones; the coal formation and associa- 
ted rocks; and of the upper, secondary and tertiary formations, will 
be sent to order at the above rates. 

Geological specimens, two by three inches, will be furnished at 
two thirds the above rates; of three by four inches at the above pri- 
ces. Larger geological specimens will be procured if desired, at a 
moderately increased price. 

Small mineral specimens will be furnished to those wishing them 
at reduced prices. 

Plaster of Paris trays to lay the specimens in, in the Cabinet, 
made very neatly and of perfect whiteness, will be sent to those de- 
siring them at six dollarsper hundred. Individuals or institutions who 
wish it, can have their specimens put up in elegant cases of draw- 
ers, or in those made plain, as may suit the views of the purchasers. 

Orders for large collections will be given a year in advance of the 
time of their fulfillment. Payments are to be made one half in ad- 
vance on giving the order, the other half on the receipt of the col- 
lection. 

Orders for collections, or for particular specimens, are to be ad- 
dressed, post paid, to Messrs. Mather & Hall, No. 95 State-street, 
Albany. 

Albany, Dec. 17th, 1836. 

We recommend the above design and the gentlemen who have 
undertaken it, as being worthy of confidence.—Ep. 


18. Geology and Mineralogy considered with reference to Natu- 
ral Theology, by the Rev. Witutam Buckuanp, D. D., Canon of 


420 : Miscellanies. 


Christ Church, and Reader in Geology and Mineralogy in the Uni- 
versity of Oxford. 2 Vols. 8vo. Vol. I. 600 pages. Vol. Il. con- 
sisting of 69 plates; with 110 pages of description, and 18 of Index. 
Plate 1 is a universal geological section, colored for the various 
formations ; this section is 4 feet long, and 9 inches wide. 


Within the last days of finishing our present No. we have received 
from the respected author this long desired work. ‘There is now 
neither time nor space to do much more than to announce it to our 
readers. It deserves a full analysis, although it would be difficult to 
do it justice, without the splendid graphic illustrations, by which it is 
accompanied. 

We have read this work with a degree of satisfaction and admira- 
tion which has increased at every step. 

It is a full digest of the most important facts in geology, happily 
combined, with great condensation and perspicuity, and by the most 
liberal use of plates beautifully executed, it speaks intelligibly to the 
eyes, even of those who are not familiar with the language of natural 
history, and thus it displays the astonishing structure of the world. 

This work cannot be cursorily and rapidly read, with any advan- 
tage ; it demands study and care on the part of the reader, as it has 
evidently cost much time and labor to the writer. 

The great moral demonstration which is its main object, is fully 
sustained, and we think that no man can rise from the intelligent pe- 
rusal of it, without a full conviction that a creating and governing 
mind, infinite in power, knowledge, wisdom and benevolence, has 
gradually arranged the materials of this planet, and caused to be 
interred in its strata and mineral masses, documents of its history, 
and of that of innumerable races of animals and plants, from the most 
microscopic to the most colossal, which lived and died ere man ap- 
peared—documents surpassing in number and in credibility every 
thing of actual history, except the inspired record itself. 

With this record we believe these facts to be entirely consistent, 
and we are fully assured that ignorance of them is the sole cause of 
the incredulity and displeasure which are manifested by some as to 
the moral bearing of geology. 

We cannot now enter upon this argument, and can only say in 
conclusion, that Dr. Buckland has by the present work, laid both 
science and religion under great obligations,—while he will delight 
all his readers by the vigor, beauty and eloquence which give his 
work as high a rank in literature as it claims in science. 


JMiscellanies. 421 


19. Lyceum of New York.—This fine institution now appears 
with renovated vigor. Aided by the liberality of citizens of New 
York, it has erected a large and elegant building in the upper part of 
Broadway, containing all desirable accommodations for its extensive 
museum and library, for its lectures and various pursuits. 

It has recently issued a new No. of its annals, being the con- 
clusion of Vol. III, of 437 pages. This No. is entirely occupied by 
a botanical paper by Prof. John Torrey, being a monograph on 
North American Cyperacez ; to which is added a catalogue of offi- 
cers, &c. 

This paper we are assured is characterized by the author’s well 
known acuteness and accuracy, and will without doubt add to his 
reputation, and to that of the Lyceum, as well as to the stock of bo- 
tanical knowledge. 

We understand that the Lyceum is to be opened to the public for 
courses of lectures, to be given by different gentlemen during the 


current winter, and that Dr. Francis will deliver the introductory 
discourse. 


20. A Synopsis of the family of Naiades, by Isaac Lea, Mem. 
of the Amer. Philos. Soc. &c. &c. Philadelphia: Carey, Lea & 
Blanchard. London: John Miller.—At the last moment this beau- 
tiful little work has been placed in our hands. We presume that 
conchologists will find it to be another elegant and accurate addition 
to the valuable contributions heretofore made by Mr. Lea in this 
department of Natural History. 


21. Conrad’s Unionidae, &c.—Juvau Dosson, Philadelphia, has 
published, and now ready for sale, Conrad’s Uniondae, No.7; also 
Dr. Holbrook’s North American Herpetology, Vol. 1, with splendid 
colored plates, in royal 4to. 


22. Obitwary*—the late Mr. Georer Cuitton. This excellent 
chemist and most worthy man, was extensively known to the cultiva- 
tors and amateurs of science, not only in this country, but in Europe. 
He wasa native of England, and emigrated to the United States in the 
year 1797, at the age of thirty. Soon after he settled in New York, 


* For several of the facts stated in this notice, we are indebted to a notice signed 
J.T. published in the New York American of Nov. 17, 1336. 


499 Miscellanies. 


he commenced a course of instruction in chemistry, natural philoso- 
phy, and astronomy. Among the gentlemen who attended his early 
lectures, were the late Dr. Mitchell, President Vethake, G. C. Ver- 
planck, Esq. and the late Dr. Bruce. 

Dr. Kemp of Columbia College, and Dr. Romeyn, were his firm 
friends and patrons, as, indeed, were most of the prominent and sci- 
entific men of our city at that time. In 1803, he delivered, in New 
York, a course of lectures on natural philosophy, to a large class of 
ladies, many of whom still remember the pleasure and profit they 
derived from them. In 1805, when the yellow fever prevailed in 
New York, Mr. Chilton was invited to deliver a course of lectures 
on chemistry and natural philosophy at Newark, in which he suc- 
ceeded to the satisfaction of his numerous hearers. 

He commenced the manufacture of the chrome yellow in 1808, 
but had the greatest difficulty in prevailing upon the painters to make 
trial of it. After their prejudices were overcome, the demand for 
it rapidly increased, and had he but gone more largely into the 
manufacture, he doubtless would have realized an independent for- 
tune by it. He continued making it until the company at Baltimore 
reduced the price so low that it became no longer a source of profit. 
It is gratifying to his friends to observe, that even to this day a dollar 
a pound is offered in New York, by several chair painters, for the ar- 
ticle such as he used to manufacture; the price of the chrome yel- 
low commonly sold being but twenty eight cents. 

In 1811, he established a laboratory in New York, for the manu- 
facture of the pigments of chrome, from the ore discovered a short 
time before in the neighborhood of Baltimore, and also for the pre- 
paration of the finer chemical articles. Shortly after the late war 
with England was declared, he removed to Scotch Plains, in New 
Jersey, to take charge of the powder mills of Decatur & Atterbury. 
Here, however, he still continued the manufacture of chemical pro- 
ducts, a laboratory having been provided for him by the proprietors of 
the mills. In 1822 he returned to New York, and established him- 
self as an operative chemist and analyst. He also manufactured and 
imported materials and philosophical apparatus for numerous col- 
leges and institutions of learning. Shortly after his return to New 
York, he delivered, by invitation, a popular course of scientific lec- 
tures to a large class, in St. Stephen’s church in this city. In 1823 
Prof. Silliman, who was prevented by ill health from attending to 
the duties of his professorship, engaged Mr. Chilton to act as his 


Miscellanies. 423 


substitute, in delivering the chemical lectures in the laboratory of 
Yale College, which is a sufficient evidence of the estimation in 
which he was held by that gentleman. 

In this course, he acquitted himself with his wonted ability, exhib- 
iting an accurate acquaintance with the state of the science, while in 
the experimental illustrations he was ably assisted by Sherlock J. 
Andrews, Esq. then an experienced assistant in the department of 
chemistry, mineralogy and geology in Yale College, and now an em- 
inent lawyer in Cleaveland, Ohio. 

Mr. Chilton’s mind was early directed to inventions relating to 
science and the arts. He invented an hydrometer, which in accu- 
racy is thought to be superior to any other, and may probably be 
hereafter made known to the public. The account of his rain gage 
was published in this Journal, Vol. VII, p. 326. 

He constructed also a barometer, and some of these instruments 
have been sold and have given great satisfaction. A hydrographic 
map of his invention was pirated, and a patent taken out for it by 
some one who had no claim to it. 

He made various improvements in chemical as well as other ap- 
paratus. He was naturally possessed of a great deal of mechanical 
ingenuity, and owing to the difficulty of procuring, at that time, the 
necessary instruments, he himself constructed the whole of his beau- 
tiful philosophical and astronomical apparatus. 

In July, 1834, Mr. C., for the benefit of his health, and also for 
professional improvement, made a visit to Europe, from whence he 
returned in August, 1835. He was favorably received by many of 
the scientific men of England, Scotland and France. He attended 
the meeting of the British Association, at Edinburgh, and prepared 
a paper for that learned body, which the celebrated Dalton volun- 
teered to present. 

Mr. C. appeared to be greatly improved in health by his visit to 
the old world, but shortly after his return his strength declined, and 
his old disease, which was hydrothorax, with an enlargement of the 
heart, returned, so that he was unable to attend to the duties of the 
laboratory. 

Although Mr. Chilton was a laborious chemist, and was accom- 
plished in his profession, he published but little. ‘To the Mineralo- 
gical Journal of the late Dr. Bruce, he however contributed several 
valuable articles, and some of his papers are inserted in this Jour- 
nal. His reputation as a scientific and practical chemist was so ex- 


424 JMiscellanies. 


tensive, that for many years he was consulted in the line of his pro- 
fession by persons in all parts of our country, and in the city of New 
York, in almost every case that occurred in the courts of justice, 
where the opinion of an accurate chemist was needed, Mr. C. was 
the person selected. As a private citizen and friend he was greatly 
respected for his virtues and his amiable character; in the domestic 
circle he was affectionate, and in his protracted and painful illness 
he was sustained by the hopes of the Christian. 

He retained his interest in science even after his infirmities became 
both distressing and alarming. He brought with him from Europe 
the latest improvements in apparatus and processes, and was always 
frank and liberal in communicating his knowledge. He was the 
principal mover of the effort to arrange the public course of geology, 
which was given in April and May, 1836, in Clinton Hall, and al- 
though his unrelenting malady, which then pressed heavily upon 
him, prevented his attendance on the lectures, he participated with 
a most respectable audience, in the interest excited by that sublime 
and delightful science. 


We understand that the well known establishment, 263 Broadway, 
for chemical and philosophical apparatus and supplies, so ably and 
faithfully conducted by the late Mr. Chilton, will be continued un- 
der the care of his son, Dr. James R. Cuinton. This gentleman, 
trained by his father, and having already much experience in the 
business, is well worthy to receive a transfer of the confidence so 
long reposed in his predecessor. From much experience of the 
fidelity and capacity of this house, we can and do cordially recom- 
mend it to all who may have need of such assistance, or of the efforts 
of analytical skill. We understand that the department of analysis 
will be conducted as heretofore. It is a subject of congratulation to 
the cultivators of science, that this country now affords so many fa- 
cilities for its prosecution, and the establishment mentioned above is 
well entitled to rank among the best in the United States. 


INDEX TO VOLUME XXXII. 


A. 


Agency for patents at the city of Wash- 
ington, 411. 

Albany Institute, transactions of, 179. 

Analysis of mineral waters, 94. 

—— Emmonite, 171. 

— Holmesite, 172. 

——— Deweylite, 173. 

—— Feldspar from Bytown, Low- 
er Canada, 173. 

Animal, new, Eupleres, 192. 

 Argulus Catostomi, 297. 

Mus palustris, 385. 

Emys Oregoniensis, 382. 


Species of Passeres, 192. 
Saurians, 365. 
Sivatherium, 176. 
Antiquities, American, 408. 
Argulus Catostomi, description of, 297. 
Arsenic, tobacco a remedy for, 1 88. 
‘effects of, on vegetation, 346. 
Art of Pottery, work on the history of, 
134. 


Artificial crystals, 374. 
Ashmolean Society, “suneeettes of, iv4. 


——_— 


Atlantic, western, gales of, 115. 
Aurora Borealis, notice of, 85. 


B. 


Bailey, J. W., substitute for frogs in Ga =) 


vanic experiments, 292. 
——_—— washing bottles, 292. 
Baldwin, L., report on introducing wa- 

ter into Boston. 179. 

Baudrimont, “ause of <ecrepitation, 162. 
Beaument, Elie de, origin of Mt. Ema, 

168. 

Becquerel, reduction of metals, 164. 
Benedict, Prof., Conic Sections, 258. 
Bird tracks at Middletown, 165. 
Bituminous coal, 3. 
Black lead pencils, 177. - 
Bone caves of Cefn, 341. 

Boston Journal of Natural History, 185. 
Bottles, method of washing, 292. 


Boulders, distribution of, over the north! 


of England, 360. 
Bowman, longevity of the yew tree, 358. 


Brady, Samuel, account of, 19. 
Brady’s Hill, Legend of, 20. 


Vou. XX XI.—No. 2. 


Breithaupt’s specific gravity of minerals, 
268. 


British Association for 1836, proceed- 
ings of, 332. 

Brongni aan work on the history of potte- 
ry, 134 

Buckland, Rev. Wm., Bridgewater trea- 
tise, 419. 

Buildings, zine acovering for, 248. 


C. 
Carbonic acid, solidification of, 163, 404. 


, liquid, dilatation of, 402. 
, thermoscopic effects of, 


402. 
, vaporization of, 402. 
—_____——_., ‘cold produced by, 403. 
Caswell, Prof. A., zine a covering for 
buildings, 248. 

Chemical action of the solar spectrum, 
160. 

Chemical Education, plan for obtaining 
a statistical view of, 414, 

Coens notes on, ‘299, 
Cailton, Go obituary notice of, 421. 

Cl airke, a , hot blast in maxing cast iron, 
180. 


¢ 


Climate of Palestine, 183. 

‘Coal, Cannel, Licking Co., Ohio, 79. 

‘Cold, produced by liquid carbonic acid, 
403. 

Conchology, exchanges in, 413. 

Conduction of water, 266. 

Congelation of mercury by natural cold, 


Conic sections, sections of a plane with 
solids for med by the revolution of, 258. 

Conrad’s Unionide, 421. 

ode. ATG, , impregnation of plants, 

7 

Cram, T.J., Length of a degree of the 
Terrestrial Meridian, 229. 

——————. Oblateness and axes of the 
Earth, 229. 


Beane of the Earth, 234. 
—— Length of a degree of 2 
Parallel of Latitude, 235. 
Crosse, A., artificial crystals and mine- 
rals, 374. 


54 


426 ' 


Crustaceous animal, new, Argulus Ca- 
tostomi, 297. 
Crystals, artificial, by A. Crosse, 374. 
Cuyahoga, tour to the falls of, 1. 
rock strata of, 47. 


1D), 


Pane J. D., new work on Mineralogy, 
413. 
, and E. C. Herrick, descrip- 
tion of the Argulus Catostomi, 297. 
Decrepitation, cause of, 162. 
Definitions, 88, 236. 
Degree of the Terrestrial Meridian, 
length of, 222. 
of a Parallel of Latitude, 235. 
Delaware sulphur springs, Ohio, 73. 
Delos, Greece, titanium, iron, 175. 
me anee Prof. C., conduction of water, 
266. 
Deweylite, analysis of, 173. 
Dilatation of liquid carbonic acid, 402. 
Diophantine problems, solution of, 166. 
Dispensatory of the United States, 406. 
Donium, new metal, 163. 
Ducks, tongues of in China, 193. 


E. 


Earth, radius of, 234. 

, oblateness and axes of, 229. 

Electrical shocks, method of increasing, 
137. 

Electricity by contact, 159. 

——__——, effects of, on vegetation, 160. 

Elevation of the banks of the Mississip- 
pi, 294. 


mountain ranges, 290. 
Emmonite, new mineral, 171. 
Emys Oregoniensis, description of, 382. 
Encrinite, from Schoharie, N, Y., 165. 
Ether, sulphurous, 275. 
Etna, Mt., origin of, 168. 
Eupleres, a new animal, 192. 
Exchanges of objects in natural history, 
405. 
Exchanges in Conchology, 413. 
Excursions to Cairo, Jerusalem, &c. by 
G. Jones, 412. 


ie 


Falls of the Cuyahoga, tour to, 1. 
—__—__—_——,, rock strata of, 47. 
Falling stars in Russia, 189. 
Feldspar from Bytown, Lower Canada, 
173. 
Ferns, fossil arborescent, 30. 
Ferruginous deposits, 61, ‘75. 
meena te! manufacture of vinegar, 
72. 
Fluids, resistance of, 111. 
Fossil Ovis, 80, Fossil Chiton, 82. 
plants at Mariner’s Mill, 28. 


INDEX. 


Fossil vertebrated animals in the erag of 
Norfolk, 339. 
animal, new, Sivatherium, 176. 


G. 


Gales and Hurricanes of the western 
Atlantic, 115. 

Galvanic experiments, substitute for frogs © 
in, 292 

Geographical position of Memphis, 373. 

Geological map of Devon, 354. 

Geology of the falls of Cuyahoga, 47. 

, work by Rev Wm. Buckland, 


419 


of slate rocks of Devonshire, 
349. 


|| of western New York, 241. 


Gold mines of Virginia, 413. 
Gray, Dr. A., impregnation of plants, 


308. 


H. 


Hail, 97. 
Halley’s Comet, tails of, 142, 324. 
Hare, Prof. R., action of sulphurous acid 
on essential oils, 281. 
——, Sassarubrin, 285. 
, Sulphurous ether and sul- 
phate of etherine, 275. 
Harlan, Dr. R., new species of Roden- 
tia, 385. 
= == Emys, 
382. 
—_—_—_-_——_,, orbicular lizards, 383. 
Hayes, G. E., Geology of western New 
York, 241. 
Heckewelder, Rev. J., account of, 66. 
Herrick, E. C., and J. D. Dana, Argulus 
Catostomi, a new species of crustace- 
* ous animal, 297. 
Hessler, chemical action of the solar 
spectrum, 160. 
Holmesite, analysis of, 172. 
Hot blast in the manufacture of cast 
iron, 180. 
Hurricane of Shelbyville, \fenn., 252. 
Hurricanes of the western Atlantic, 115. 


I. 


Iceland, visit to, by Eugene Robert, 167. 
Indian sepulchre, ancient, 8. 

attacks on Wheeling, 3, 

corn, sugar from, 163. 


J. 


Jackson, C. T., mineral waters of the 
Azores, 94. 

Jolly, Henry, account of, 10. 

Jones, Rev. G., excursions to Cairo, Je- 
rusalem, &c., 412. 

Joslin, B. F., on the tails of Halley’s com- 
et, 142, 324. 


INDEX. 


K. 


AQT 
N. 


Kain, Dr. J.H., hurricane of Shelby-||Naiades, new work on, 421. 


ville, Tenn., 252. 
Karsten, electricity by contact, 159. 


Natural history, Boston journal of, 185. 
New planet, 158. 


Keely, G. W.., resistance of fluids, 111. ||North America, report on the zoology of, 


L. 


Lagrange, memoirs of, 97. 

Latitude, degrees of a parallel of, 235. 

reduction of, 231. 

Lavas of Mexico and South America, 
176. 

Liea, Isaac, synopsis of the family of 
Naiades, 421. 

Length of a degree of the 
ridian, 222. 

Libraries in the world, comparative ta- 
ble, 178. 

Lizards, orbicular, 183. 

Locusts, 193. 

Logan’s family, murder of, 11. 

Longevity of the yew tree, 358. 


terrestrial me- 


M. 


Magnetic intensity, terrestrial, at great 
elevations from the earth, 369. 

—— needle at Paris, 190. 

aoe A., Meteorological Register, 

7. 

Maryland Academy of Science, pro- 
ceedings of, 395. 

Mastodon bones in Orange County, N.Y. 
171. 

——-—— angustidens, found in the crag 
at Norfolk, England, 340. 

Mathematical Miscellany, 184. 

Mechanics’ Institute of New York, his- 
tory and proceedings of, 415. 

Memoirs of Lagrange, 97. 

Rev. J. Prince, 201. 
Memphis, geographical position of, 373. 
Mercury, congelation of by natural cold, 

161. 
Metal, new, Donium, 163. 
Metals, reduction of, 164. 
Meteoric shower of 1836, 386. 
Meteorological register, kept at Matan- 
zas, 284. 


kept at New Or- 
leans, 400. 
Middletown, bird tracks at, 165. 


Mineralogical and geological collections 


for sale, 418. 
Mineralogy, new work on, 413. 
Minerals, 171, 172, 173. 
—, &c., examination of, proposed 

by W. W. Mather, 418. 

, Specific gravity of, 268. 

Mineral waters, analysis of, 94. 
Morin, theory of the universe, 160. 
Mountain ranges, elevation of, 290. 
Mount Etna, origin of, 168. 


343, 356, 376. 
O. 


Obituary of Mr. George Chilton, 421. 
Olmsted, Prof. D., Meteoric Shower of 
1836, 386. 
Ornithichnites in Connecticut, 174. 
at Middletown, 165. 
Ornithology, new species in, 192. 


1B 


Page, C.G., electrical sparks and shocks 
from the calorimotor, 137. 

Palestine, climate of, 183. 

Passeres, new species of, 192. 

Patents, agency for at the city of Wash- 
ington, 411. 

Planet, supposed new, 158. 

Planets, comparative oblateness of, 222. 

Plants, fossil, at Mariner’s Mill, 28. 

, impregnation of, 308, 317. 

Plumbago and black lead pencils, 177. 

Pressure of carbonic acid, 402. 

Prince, Rev. J., memoirs of, 201. 

Problems, diophantine, 156. 


R. 


Radius of the earth, 234. 
Redfield, W. C., Gales of the Atlantic, 


115. 
Rejoinder of Prof. Shepard to Prof. Del 


Rio, 131. 
Resistance of fluids, 111. 
Richardson, Dr., report on the zoology 
of North America, 343, 356, 376. 
Robert, Eugene, visit to [celand, 167. 
Rock strata at the falls of Cuyahoga, 47. 
Rodentia, new species of, 385. 


Ss. 


Sassarubrin, 285. 

Saurians, new, 365. 

Sea and land, relative level of, 335. 

Shelbyville, Tenn., hurricane at, 252. 

Sivatherium, new fossil animal, 1'76. 

Slate rocks of Devonshire, 349. 

Solar spectrum, chemical action of, 160. 

Statistical societies, establishment of in 
the United States, 186. 

Strong, Prof., solution of two diophan- 
tine problems, 156. 

Sugar from Indian corn, 163. 

Sulphate of lime, locality of, 34. 

Sulphurous acid, action of on essential 
oils, 281. , 


428 


Sulphurous ether and sulphate of ether- 
ine, 275. 


INDEX. 


V: 


Sulphur springs in Delaware Co. Ohio, Vaporization of liquid carbonic acid, 
73. 402. 


Aly 


Tails of Halley’s comet, 142, 324. 
Tea hills in China, excursion to, 194. 
Terrestrial meridian, length of a degree 
of, 202. 
Theory of the universe, 160. 
Thilorier, liquid carbonic acid, 402. 
, Solidification of carbonic acid, 
404. 
Tides of London and Liverpool, 333. 
Titanium, iron, in Greece, 175. 
Tobacco, a remedy for arsenic, 188. 
Tortoise, new species of, 382. 
Transactions of the Albany Institute, 
179. 
Trilobites, 72. 


U. 


Unionide, Conrad’s, 421. 

Upham, C. W., memoirs of Rev. John 
Prince, 201. 

Usher, F. C., elevation of the banks of, 
the Mississippi, 294. 


Vegetation, effects of arsenic on, 347, 

Vertebrated animals in the crag of Nor- 
folk and Suffolk, England, 339. 

Vinegar, manufacture of, 272. 

Virginia, gold mines of, 413. 


W. 


Water, conduction of, 266. 

Wetzel, Lewis, adventures of, 14. 

Wheat, on the acceleration of the growth 
of, by Mr. G. Webb Hall, 345. 

Wheeling, Indian attacks on, 4. 

W hewell, relative level of sea and land, 
335. 

Wilkie, Rev. D., on definitions, 88, 236. 

Wood, G. B., the Dispensatory of the U. 
States, 406, ue 


Yew tree, longevity of, 358. 
Z. 
Zine a covering for buildings, 248. 


Zoology of North America, report on by 
Dr. Richardson, 343, 356, 376. 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO CORRESPONDENTS, FRIENDS 
AND STRANGERS. 


Remarks.—This method of acknowledgment has been adopt- 
ed, because it is not always practicable to write letters, where 
they might be reasonably expected; and still more difficult is it 
to prepare and insert in this Journal, notices of all the books and 
pamphlets which are kindly presented, even in cases, where such no- 
lices, critical or commendatory, would be appropriate ; for it is often 
equally impossible to command the time requisite to frame them, or 
even to read the works; still, judicious remarks, from other hands, 
would usually find both acceptance and insertion. 

In public, it is rarely proper to advert to personal concerns ; to 
excuse, for instance, any apparent neglect of courtesy, by pleading 
the unintermitting pressure of Jabor, and the numerous calls of our 
fellow-men for information, advice, or assistance, in lines of duty, 
with which they presume us to be acquainted. 

The apology, implied in this remark, is drawn from me, that 1 may 
not seem inattentive to’the civilities of many respectable persons, au- 
thors, editors, publishers, and others, both at home and abroad. It 
is still my endeavor to reply to all letters which appear to require an 
answer ; although, as a substitute, many acknowledgments are made 
in these pages, which may sometimes be, as now, in part, retrospec- 
tive.— Ed. 


DOMESTIC. 


The Dispensatory of the United States, by Drs. Wood and Bache. 
"Third edition, Philadelphia; 1836. From Dr. Bache. 

The American Almanac, for the year 1837. From Mr. J. E. 
Worcester. 

Elements of Botany, by Asa Gray, M.D. New York, 1836. 
From the author. 

Chemical and Medical Researches on Kreosote, by E. Miguel. 
From the translator, Wm. Wetherell, M.D. 

1 


2 


Essay on the Laws of Acoustics, by J. ‘Togno, M.D. Philadel- 
phia. From the author. 

Experiments to establish a peculiar Physico-organic action, inhe- 
rent inthe Animal Tissues; by J. Togno, M.D. From the author. 
Annual Report of Dr. Togno’s Infirmary. From the author. 

Improvements in the Manufacture of Sugar, by T. Judd, Esq. 
From J. Vaughan, Esq. 

Syllabus of a course of study for the S.C. Female Collegiate 
School, during its vacation. Columbia, S.C. 1836. Anonymous. 
_ Transactions of the Albany Institute, Vol. I, Part Il. From the 
Institute. { 

Report on introducing pure water into the city of Boston, by Lo- 
ammi Baldwin, Esq. C.E. Second edition. From the author. 

Discourse before the Alumni of the University of Pennsylvania, 
by Thos. J. Wharton, Esq. Philadelphia. From the author. 

Diagrams for illustrating the direction of the Wind, by A. D. 
Bache, M.D. From the author. 

Report of the Geological Reconnoissance of the State of Virginia, 
by Prof. William B. Rogers. From the author. 

Description of a new species of the genus Unio, by Isaac Lea, 
Esq. From the author. 

Hinman’s Connecticut Antiquities. From the agent, 1. Webster. 

Connecticut Historical Collections, by J. W. Barber. From the 
~ author. 

Dr. Haxall’s Dissertation on diseases of the abdomen and thorax. 
From the author. 

Journal of the Essex County Natural-History Sieicn, Vol. I, No. 
1. From the Society. 

Jewett’s Advertiser—Medical and Physical Research, Vol. I, 
No. 10. Columbus, Ohio. 

A new theoretical and practical treatise on navigation, &c. &c. by 
M. F. Maury, passed midshipman U.S. N. 1836. The author. 

Louis, of Paris, (France,) on Fevers, translation in two vols. 8vo. 
by Dr. H. T. Bowditch of Boston, and presented by him, through . 
the Ed. Am. Jour., tothe Lib. of Med. Institution of Yale College. 

Permanent temperance documents, an Svo. volume, being a copy 
from among 300 copies presented to the officers and students of Yale 


College, by E. C. Delavan, Esq. of Albany. 


3 
The American Medical Library. Philad. (Specimen sheet.) 


A Catalogue of Recent Shells, with descriptions of new or rare 
species in the collection of John C. Jay, M.D. &c. The author. 

Annual Report of the Board of Managers of the Prison Discipline 
Society, Boston. 

Annals N.Y. Lyceum, Vol. If, Nos. 6—14. From the Lyceum. 

Geological Report, by G. W. Featherstonhaugh, Esq. Two cop- 
ies, from Col. Abeel and L. H. Machen, Esq. 

Catalogue of Randolph-Macon College, Va. From Prof. Tolefree. 

Extracts from the Correspondence of the American Bible Society.. 

Catalogue of Amherst College, 1836-7. From Prof. Hitchcock. 

A Synopsis of the family of Naiades, by Isaac Lea. Philadelphia. 
From the author. 

Beautiful Bituminous Coal, from Brookfield, Trumbull Co. Ohio, 
near the Pennsylvania line. From J. Dart, jr. Buffalo. 


FOREIGN. 


Wood’s Grammar of Elocution. London. From the author. 
Neues Jahrbuch der Chimie und Physik. Heft 23 und 24.” Halle. 
Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Nos. 7 and 8. 
Chemical Tables of the properties of simple and compound bodies, 
by Prof. Is. F. W. Johnston, Durham, (Eng.) From the author. 

The Mining Journal and Commercial Gazette, Nos. 47 to 59 in- 
elusive. London. From Henry English, Esq. Editor. 

The Third Annual Report of the Royal Polytechnic Society, Eng- 
land, 1835. From the Committee—L. Squire, Secretary. 

Geology and Mineralogy considered with reference to Natural 
Theology, by Rev. Wm. Buckland, D. D. &c. 2 vols. 8vo. Vol. H, 
plates and description. From the author. 

Several scientific papers, by Mr. Faraday, F.R.S. The author. 

Proceedings of the Geological Society of London, 1835-6, No. 
46. From the Society. 


/ 
a 


ay 


aA 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TO. CORRESPONDENTS, FRIENDS 
AND STRANGERS. 


Remarks.—This method of acknowledgment has been adopt- 
ed, mee auce it is not always practicable to write letters, where 
they might be reasonably expected; and still more difficult is it 
to prepare and insert in this Journal, notices of all the books and 
pamphlets which are kindly presented, even in cases, where such no- 
tices, critical or commendatory, would be appropriate ; for it is often 
equally impossible to command the time requisite to frame them, or 
even to read the works; still, judicious remarks, from other hands, 
would usually find both acceptance and insertion. 

In public, it is rarely proper to advert to personal concerns ; to 
excuse, for instance, any apparent neglect of courtesy, by pleading 
the unintermitting pressure of labor, and the numerous calls of our 
fellow-men for information, advice, or assistance, in lines of duty, 
with which they presume us to be acquainted. 

The apology, implied in this remark, is drawn from me, that I may 
not seem inattentive to the civilities of many respectable persons, au- 
thors, editors, publishers, and others, both at home and abroad. It 

is still my endeavor to reply to all letters which appear to require an 
| answer ; although, as a substitute, many acknowledgments are made 
in these pages, which may sometimes be, as now, in part, patoapee: 


tive.—Ed. 
DOMESTIC. 


Plan of Wier’s Cave, with a box of its stalactites and crystals. 
From Mr. Cook, of Staunton, Virginia. 

An Address to the American People. 

Annual Report of the Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hos- 
pital, for the year 1835. From Dr. Lee. 

Scientific Tracts, Vol. I. No.1. Boston, April Ist, 1836. 

An Address, by S. F. Austin, of Texas. ‘Two copies. Lexing- 
ton, Ky. 1836. 

Memoirs on the Nature of Miasm and Contagion, by John L. Rid- 
dell, M.D. Cincinnati, 1836. From the Author. 

Seventeenth Annual Report of the mt York Deaf and Dumb In- 
stitution. 

1 


2 
The Booksellers Advertiser. New York. Vol. il. No. 1. 1836. 


Two copies. 

Hilliard, Gray & Co.’s Literary Advertiser. ener. Jan. 1836. 

Minutes of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. 
Philadelphia, 1836. 

A second supplementary Catalogue of the Plants of Kentucky. 
From H. A. Griswold. 

Mr. Simons’s Address before the American Antiquarian Society. 
Worcester, 1836. 

Catalogue of South Warslina Medical College, 1836. From Prof. 
C.U. Shepard. 

Nine Plates of the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences, 
Philadelphia. From the publishing committee, through Mr. M’Ewen 
and Messrs. Carey & Hart. 

Report on Intemperance. Philadelphia. From J. S. Littell, Esq. 

The Mathematical Miscellany, published by C. Gill, Flushing, L.I. 
1836. 

Notes on some of the Questions decided by the Board of Com- 
missioners under the Convention with France, of 4th July, 1831. 
From J. K, Kane, Esq. 

Inaugural Address of the Rev. Gilbert Morgan, President of the 
Western University of Pennsylvania. From the Author. 

Third Annual Report of the State Lunatic Hospital at Worcester, 
December, 1835. 

Wiley & Long’s Catalogue of English Books receatly imported. 
From the publishers. 1836. 

Catalogue of Books in the various departments of literature, for 
sale by Wiley & Long. 1836. 

The World of Instability, a Poem, with Notes. Philadelphia, 
1836. From the author. 

Dr. M’Clellan’s Valedictory Address. Philadelphia, 1836. From 
the author. 

Report on the Pacific Exploring Expedition. Washington, 1836. 
From J. N. Reynolds, Esq. 

Scientific Tracts, Vol. Il. No. 13. From the author. 

Extracts from the Correspondence of the American Bible Soci- 
ety, No. 8. New York. 

American Historical Magazine, Vol. I. Nos. 1, 2, 3. 

Address before the Frederick Lyceum. Baltimore, 1836. 

Scientific Tracts for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, Vol. I. 
Nos. 1, 2, 8. From the publishers, Light & Stearns, Boston. 

Mr. Dillingham’ s Discourse before the Chester County Cabinet, 
1835. From Dr. Darlington. 

Carpenter’s Family Medicine Chest. From the author, Mr. Geo. 
W. Carpenter, Philadelphia, 1835. 

Supplementary Catalogue of Ohio Plants, by John L. Riddell, 
M. D. Adjunct Prof. Chem. Cin. Med. Col. 1836. 


3 


Anniversary Oration before the South Carolina Society for the 
Advancement of Learning, by the Hon. Wm. Harper. 

‘An Essay cn the Abolition of Slavery, by Geo. A. Baxter, D. D. 
Richmond, 1836. From Mr. W. B. Dutton. 

Meteorological Observations and Essays—for the Appendix to the 
Report of the Regents of the University of the State of New York, 
for 1836, by B. F’. Joslin. From the author. 

Report of the Secretary of the Treasury on Commerce and Nav- 
igation, for the year ending Sept. 30, 1835. From Hon. J. Davis, 
U.S. Senate. ; ) 

Annual Report of the Regents of the University of New York, 
No. 83, 1834 —late Chancellor Dewitt. 

Address of Gov. Davis of Massachusetts. From Lieut. Gov. 
Armstrong. 

Documents relating to the Survey of Massachusetts. Id. 

Report on Indian Affairs, No. 474—May, 1834. 

Report on Post Office and Post Roads, No. 422—1834. 

Mr. Clay’s Report on Foreign Relations. From late N. Smith. 

Description of Rev. Dr. Prince’s new Stand for a Reflecting Tel- 
escope. From Francis Peabody, Esq. 

J. Olney’s History of the United States. From Durrie & Peck. 

Dr. Hare on Experimental Improvements in Apparatus and Man- 
ipulations. From the author. 

American Advocate of Peace, conducted by C. S. Henry. 

The Structure of the Eye with Reference to Natural Theology, 
by Wm. C. Wallace, Oculist, &c. From the author. 

American Almanack and Repository of Useful Knowledge, for 
1836. From J. E. Worcester. 

Dr. Comstock’s Outlines of Geology, 2d edition. From the au- 
thor. ‘ 
Dr. Franklin Bache’s Turner’s Chemistry, 5th Am. Ed. From 
the Editor. 

Elements of Chemistry, by F..J. Grund. From the publishers, 
Carter, Hendee & Co. | 

Rev. Dr. Codman’s Visit to England. From the author. 

Dr. Gray’s Elements of Botany. From the author. 

Familiar Conversations on the Constitution of the United States, 
by B. E. Hale. From the publisher. 

Report on the Coal and Iron of the Maryland Mining Company, 
by G. W. Hughes. U. States Civil Engineer. From the author. 

Proceedings of the Connecticut Medical Society, 1836. 

Mechanic’s Magazine, &c. Feb. 1836. 

Eighth Annual Report of the Young Men’s Temperance Society, 
New Haven, June, 1836. 

Triennial Catalogue of Williams College, 1835. From Dr, J. 
Porter. 

Report of the Executive Committee of the American Union. 


4 


Medical Properties of the Grey Sulphur Springs of Virginia. 1836. 

Dr. Baxter’s Essay on the Abolition of Slavery. From G. W. 
McPhail. | 

A Geological Ramble, by J. S. Riddell. 

Report on Meteorology, and Circular. From Israel Espy, Chair- 
man. 

Wet Prairies of Ohio. From Dr. Wm. Wood. 

Radiating and Absorbing Power of Surfaces, &c. From Prof. 
A. D. Bache. 

Diagrams of the Direction of the Wind. Id. 

Synopsis of a Course of Mineralogy, by F. Hall, M. D. &c. 

Geological Features of Ohio, by J. S. Riddell. 

Annual Report of the American Education Society, 1836. 

Biographical Sketch of Thomas Say, by B. W. Coates, published 
by committee of Acad. of Nat. Scien. 

Naval Magazine, Vol. I. No.1. From Rev. C. S. Stewart. 

Annual Report of the Female Benevolent Society of New York, | 
1836. 

McDowell’s Refutation of Himself. From C. C. Darling. 

Lectures before the Mercantile Library Association of N. York. 
From the Board of Directors, 1836. 

The Schoolmaster and Advocate of Education. 

Remarks on Literary and Moral Concert in the Valley of the Mis- 
sissippi, by Dr. Daniel Drake. From the author. — . 

Analysis of the Derivative Words in the English Language, by 
Salem Town, A. M. From the author. 

Constitution of Young Men’s Association of Buffalo. From the 
association. | 

Scientific Tracts, Nos. 1 to 5 inclusive. From Light & Stearns, 
Boston. . 

Essay on the Manufacture of Iron with Coke. 

Third Annual Report of the Missionary to the Negroes in Liberty 
County, Georgia. From Is. S. Bullock. 

Catalogue of Plants growing without cultivation in the vicinity of 
Troy. From Dr. Wright and James Hall, A. M. 

Temperance Convention, Boston, Sept. 1835. 

Mr. Eliot’s Address at the opening of the Odeon, Boston, Aug. 
1835. From the author. 

Documents on the State Prison of Massachusetts, Nos. 2 and 6. 

Carpenter’s Annual Medical Advertiser, for 1836. From the au- 
thor. 

Third Annual Report of the Bishop White Prayer Book Society, 
Philadelphia. From John S. Littell. 

Dr. Herman Bokum’s Lecture on the German Language and Lit- 
erature, Feb. 1836, Boston. From the author. 

American Lyceum, Transactions of the Sixth Annual Meeting, 
No. 1. Sixth Annual Report. 


5 


Rev. C. W. Upham’s Discourse at the Funeral of the Rev. John 
Prince, LL. D. June 9, 1836. From the Author. 


FOREIGN. 


Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles, par L’Agassiz, Cinquieme 
Livraison: the Ist, 2d, 4th and 5th, have been received; the 3d is 
wanting. From the author. 

Prof. J. D. Forbes’ Experiments on Electricity of the Tourmaline 
and other Minerals, by Heat. From the author. 

Prof. Sedgwick (Univ. Cambridge, Eng.) on the General Struc- 
ture of the Cambrian Mountains. 

The same, on the Structure of Large Mineral Masses. 

The same, Description of Sections in the Carboniferous Chain be- 
tween Penigent and Kirkby Stephen. All from the author. 

Lethea Geognostica, by Prof. H. G. Brown, Univ. Heidelberg. 
_ From the author. 

Dr. Hibbert on the Fresh-Water Limestone of Burdie House, 
near Edinburgh. From the author. 

Nouvel Abrégé de Geographie Moderne, Quebec. From Rev. 
J. Holmes, the author. 

Outlines of Mineralogy, Geology and Mineral Analysis, two vols. 
octavo, by Prof. Thomas Thomson. From the author. 

O. Rich’s Bibliotheca Americana Nova, 1701 to 1800, 8vo. 423 
pages. From the author. 

Instructions for Meteorological Observations in South Africa, by 
Sir John F. W. Herschel. 

Sopra I. Vulcani Estinti Del Val Di Noto. From Prof. C. Gem- 
mellaro. 

Relazione del Viaggio a Stuttgard. Id. 

Proluzione All Anno Scolastico 1832, 1833. Id. 

Relazione Academica Dell Anno XI. &c. Id. | 

Introduction a Une Theorie General de L’Universe. From P. E. 
Morin. 

A Treatise on the Physiology and Pathology of the ear, by John 
Harrison Curtiss, Esq. sixth edition, London, 1836. From the au- 
thor. 

Tabule Anemologice or Tables of the wind, No. 1. by W. R. 
Birt, London, for Jan. and Feb. 1835. 

Premiums by the Society of Arts, &c., London, 1836. 

Separation of Arsenic, the same. 

Letter from Mr. N. B. Ward, to Sir W. J. Hooker, on the growth 
of plants without open exposure to air, London, May, 1836. 


GEOLOGICAL DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Mr. Rosertr Baxewe 1, Jr., son of the author of the well known 
system of Geology, executes geological drawings with great preci- 
sion and effect. Accustomed'in former years, to make geological 
excursions with his father, and to sketch for his works, he unites 
the tact of an expert artist with a perfect comprehension of the de- 
sign, and thus is enabled to produce a fine result. To principals and 
professors of colleges, academies, lyceums, and other literary insti- 
tutions, and to other scientific persons, it must be interesting to be 
informed, that Mr. Bakewell keeps on hand, drawings and dia- 
grams, illustrative of the science of geology, comprising stratification, 
metallic veins, organic remains, active and extinct volcanoes, &c. &c. 

The drawings are fixed on rollers, adapted for lectures. Letters 
addressed to R. Bakewell, instructor of drawing and perspective in 
Yale College, at Mr. Eben. Johnson’s, Ciapel’ street, New Heal 
will be duly attended to. 

We have great pleasure in recommending Mr. Bakewell and his 
works as entirely worthy of public confidence ; and the editor of this 
Journal, (as a public teacher of geclogy,) can speak from considera- 
ble experience of the perfect intelligibleness and great attractiveness 
of Mr. Bakewell’s geological drawings, both in popular and in univer- 
sity courses. ‘This gentleman has, in the same manner, beautifully 
illustrated a course of anatomy, and his talents and attainments are 
adequate to any thing which may admit of illustration by the graphic 
art.— Editor. 


During an absence of the editor of this Journal, since the last week 
in August, various communications have arrived which he has, as 
yet, been unable to examine. ‘They will be attended to as soon as 


practicable. 
October 1, 1886. 


-AMERIC CAN JOURNAL 


OF 


SCIENCE AND ARTS 


CONDUCTED BY 


BENJAMIN SILLIMAN, M.D. LL. D. 


a | Prof. ‘Chem., Min., &e. in Yale Coll.; Cor. Mem. Soc. Aris, Man. and Com ; and 


For. Mem. Geol. Séc., Lordon; Mem. Geol. Soc., Paris; Mem. Roy. Min. Soc., 
Dresden; Nat. Hist. Soc., Halle; linp. Agric. Soc., Moscow; Hon. Mer. 
Lin. Soc., Paris; Nat. Hist. Soc. Belfast, Ire.; Phil. and Lit. Soc. 
af > padi Eng.; Lit. and Hist. Soc., Quebec; Mem. of various 

; Lit. and Scien. Soc. in America. 


x P e 
4 


VOL. XXXI.—No. 1.—OCTOBER, 1836. 


FOR JULY, AUGUST, AND SEPTEMBER, 1836. 


NEW HAVEN: 


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_ PRINTED BY B. L. HAMLEN. 


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CONDUCTED BY 


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For, Mem. Geol. Soc., London; Ment Geol. Soc., Paris; Mem. Roy. Min. Soc., 
Dresden ; Nat. Hist. Soc., Halle; Imp. Agric. Soc., Moscow; Hon. Mem. 
Lin. Soc., Patis; Nat. Hist. Soc: Belfast, Ire.; Phil. and Lit. Soc. 
Bristol, Eng.; Lit. and Hist. Soc., Quebec; Mem. of various 
Lit. and Scien. Soc. in America. 


“VOL. XXXI.—No. 2—JANUARY, 1837. 


FOR OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, AND DECEMBER, 1836. 


NEW HAVEN: 


Sold by A. H. MALTBY and HERRICK & NOYES.—Baltimore, 1. SMITH 
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TERMS. 


Six dollars per annum; published in four Quarterly numbers, making two vol- 
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illustrated by plates. 


(c= Terms of credit to general agents, six months from the viatlieaden of No. 1, of i | 


each volume. 


The Editor will draw on the agents, semi- aint 8 i.e. on the publication of 3 


No.2 of each Vol., in all cases, where payment is not otherwise provided for. 
Complete sets furnished to individuals, and to the trade, at a suitable discount. — 


The price of this Journal, on account of a limited patronage, ef numerous plates, | - 
and the frequent extra expense of difficult composition, is, necessarily, more than | — 


that of the quarterly Literary Reviews. 


materiel and the mechanical labor, especially as frequent reprints of Nos. are ne- sls | 
cessary to furnish complete sets. oe 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. ee 


The titles of pauses eee and of their authors, to be fully given. 

~ When extra copies are desired, the notice should be placed at the head of the MS. 
Notice always to be sent cf discontinuance, removals and deaths of subscribers. 
Return proofs, not to be sealed, or inscribed with any thing except corrections. 
No pages to be left blank in ms. communications sent. by mail. : 
Several communications for the present No., aré mee deferrey: 


At five aollars, it would not pay for the — 


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