The New York Herald Newspaper, August 29, 1851, Page 6

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. Albany Meeting. FIFTH DAY—¥RIDAY GENERAL MEETING—NOMINATION OF PRESIDENT OF IME ASSOCIATION FOR NEXT YEAR. New members were elected ‘The Pxesipenr announced the appointment of the members of the committeo on memorializing ‘Congress vo furnish to Profersor Mitchell the means required for the completion of his new astronomical apparatus, viz. :—Professors Pierce, St. John, Witkes, Walker, Coffin, Bache, W. B. Rogers, Loomis, Maury, and Henry ‘The Prxsivent remarked that, at the commence- roent of this session, owing to che few papers pre- sented, the meetings were held in one room. Oa ‘Tuesday afternoon, two sections were formed; on Wednesday afternoon, three sections; and this morning there would be four; in all of which the number of papers to be read was thirty-six; and the papers for the afterno»n and to-morrow would be still more numerous. The Standing Committee had nomirated, ax the President for the next an- nual meeting, Professor B. Pierce, of Harvard. Professor W. B. Rogers begged leave to ex- press his hearty approbation of the nomination. Professor Pierce was eminently entitled to the honor, as one of the most distinguished of our scientific countrymen. By his labors in original reseaich, aud in the preparation of excellent tex: books, he had received, as he deserved, the repu- tation of one of the most profound mathew stici ius in the world. _ ‘The nomination was unaniwousiy confirmed. iu danse with the generous invitacion from | ce) that city has veen selected for the next | anneal session. The Standing Committee had sot yet determined | to reoommeneé any sem) aucual sessiva. | Professor Caswet. reported a resolution which had been adopted by the sectioual meeung on me- teorology :-— : | Rerolved, That this section approve entirely of the modes of testing aud graduating the thermo moter, aud the arraugemvat wad coustitution of the barometer, and otner meteorological instru ments adopted by tbe Suiithsuviaa Lastitutioa and by the States of New York aud Vlassacausetts, aud explained by Professor Gayot To che Committee on Meteorol Professors Caswell, Beck, Wim. and Loomis. Professor Emerson suggested that it woud be | well for the Stanaing Committee to confer with the American Kvucational Association, now in ses- | sion at Cleveland, so that their meetings would not | be, in future, held upon the sume week. { Avery debate on the sudject of the constitu- | tion now took pla:e, and on the duties of the Staad- | ing Committee ben fiuisned, the meeting se- | parated into four sec iivus, as follows :— SECTION 1 —MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 1. On the Origta ot une Forms, and sae Present Condition of the Clusters of Stars aud esoivabie | Nebula; by Professor 3. A\exauder, of the College | of New Jer | 2. On the = Motions of Figures of Cer- tain Colors; by Professor Elias Loomis, of the Uui- | ogy. were added | Mitchell, Cottia | versity of New York. | 3 ry the Quau aty of Rain at Different Heights, | from Observauious wade at the {rstitution tor tae | Deaf and Dumb; by Protessor Morris, of New York. 4. Pro; for a Trigouowetrical Survey of | New York; by Lieut E. 5. tiuat, of the Corps of | Engineers. 5 On Electrical Theory; by Dr. Robert Hare, of Philadelphia. 6. On the Proper Measure of Mechanical Force; | by Professor J. H. C. Coffin, of Lstayette College. 7. Case of the Tertiary Kaiudow; by Jnarles | Hareweil, Esq. Read by Edwara Hiteh sock, Jr. S. Account of a Mewur, seen on tue uight of pn ber 3, 1850; by Protessur Brockivsby, of rlart- ord. Of these I can only send you the following ia my present communication: — ON TNE APPARENT MOTION OF CERTAIN COLORED | FIGURES—BY PROF ELIA: OMS, OF NEW YORK. | At the New Haven weotung of tne Awerican | Association, | described some experiments relating | to the apparent motions of # red wuisted figure upon | @ geen g ound, or a given figure upou a red ground. I then stated that | bed not been able vo produce the same efiect, in & :atistactury mauner, with co- characters of this oil were thea remarked we it is probably a elain than is obtained from any other natwal source, and in a cold country is thus of great value. itis now suglored exclusive: \ se houses of the lower St. Lawrens. the Beard of Commissioners having, after a sarefal bah, given it a preference over all other vils for iluminati poses. ‘ Th kin of th the beluga, freed from its epidermis, and @ thick mucous layer which underlies it, bas been found to be capable of baing made into leata- erof # very superior quality. The process is, in many respects very different from that which is required fur the manufacture of other skins, aod is the result of @ long series of careful experimeais, by Me. C. IL Tetu, of Kiviere Ouelle, who has recoutly obsained @ patent for the invention. The leather in its or dinary form, has the thickness of sole leather ; but its peculiar and valuable property is the uatformity and closeness of its texture, which enables it to bs split into three or four parts, each of which, wava dressed, has the s:oothaess and uniformity of sur- face which usually belongs to grain leather. Tia sections of it resemble the finest kid, and are em- ployed for the fabrication of gloves. Other import- ant characters of this leather are its great streagth when compared with calf skia, a pe elasticity, which obviates the ordiaary tendency to wetukle one fold—and, to a great degree, imperiousness to water. Such are the general features of this d scovery, which, from the abundance in which the animals are fond, promises to be of very higa importance in an industrial and commercial point of view. The new process of M Tetu has also been suc- | cesstully a to skin of the common while of the gulf, which yields an excellent coarse leather. SECTION II —GEOLOGY. F 1. On some new Fossil Plauts of the Oolitic Coal of Eastern Virginia; by Prot W B Rodgers. 2. Onthe Alterations of Marine and Terrestrial Organie Remains in the Carboniferous System of Ohio; by J. W. Foster. 3. Ortho Geologica Agency of the Winds; by Lieut. M. F. Maury, U 5. N. 4. Netes on the Geological Structure o Western Vermont and Massachusetts; by Wm. B. Rodgers, of the University of Virginia 5. Remarks upon the Fossils of the Potsdam Sandstone, and their more abandant oc :urreace this furmation atthe West, considered with an in- crease of caleareous matter; by Prof. James Hall, Geologis:, N. Y., Albany. 6 On some Fossils of Northern Ohio; by Prof. J. Brainerd. To be read by Prot. 3. 3. Jona 7. On the Vegetation of the (afra conboaiferous Rocks of Pennsyivania, and a Deseription of a New Genos of Fossil Plants; by Prof HD. Rogers. S. Fault in a Meiallic Vein in Waite Limeatons, N. Y ; by C. Farrington, of Newark, N. J. 9. Oa the Emery and Associated Minerals of Asia Minor; Prof. J. Lawrence Smith. 10. On the river; by Lieut. M. F. Maury, U. 8. N. SECTION IV.—CHEMISTRY AND MINERALOGY. 1. On the Octahedral Peroxyde of lrou; by T. Hunt, of the Geological Commission of Ca- by D. A. s a. 2. On the Distribution of Manganese ; Wells, Cambridge Laboratory. : i 3. Analysis of Observations on the Soils of Pike county, Scioto valley, Ohio; by D. A. Wells, Cam- bridge 4On Houghite; by S. W. Johasea, of the Yale Analytical Laboratory. To be read by Prof. J. D. Dana 5. On the Homological Relations of the Alcohols and their Derivatives ; by T. 3. Hunt, of the (ieo- logical Commission of Ci J. § 8 On the Occurrence of Caromate of Lead in Pennsylvania, with other Mineralogical Notices, | and ona new locality of Red Sapphires; by Wm. P. Blake ke 7. On Phospate of Lime; by Prof. E. Emmons, of Albany. Ss Vaiie hi Ss. Experiments on the Volatilization of Phos horie Acid, in acid selutions; by Orange Judd, by ale Aualytical Laboratory. To be read by Prof. Norton. 9. Plasticity of Phosphorus ; by Prof. Iorsford, of Cambrid; 10. On Urine ; by Dr. ried, of New York. 11. On the Existence of Organie Matter in Stalactites and Stalagmites, containing Crystal- ized and Amorphous Urenate of Lime; by D. A. Wells, of Cambridge 5 12. On the Analysis of Urinary Caleuli; by Prof. J. Lawrence Smith. THE ORIGIN OF THE FORMS AND PRESENT STATE OF SOME OF THE CLUSTERS OF STARS AND RESOLVABLE NEUULA; BY PROF. S. ALEXANDER, OF THE COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY. Every explanation of a physical phenomenon should be adequate in two respects—in mode andia measure. ‘Inis may be illustrated by aa exanple ortwo. Whiston attributedthe deluge to tue near lored poper; and & member of tne Association expressed the opinion, that the pile of the worsted | was essentially connected with tne paenomenon Although | bad, at that time, performed some ex periments which seemed incuusisient with cae latte view, still, as | had uot succeeded .o my satisfac tion with certain materials, there was coom for th fupposition that the nature of the waterial mgh’ | have some coumection with the pueuomeuos. | therefore resolved to repeat the experiments unde | @ greater Variety of cireuwetances. This | have since accomplished, and the fcllowing are some o my results:— Lxrperiment 1.—1 first tried the experiment in | questien with cotton thread. My eariiest trials Succeeded very impertectiy,; bus alter a while, | | obtained a combinauon of red wad green, and, also, | Sred aod blue, which exhibited toe puenomenoca Wory nearly as well us the vest specimen of worsted. i am persuaded that my t fadaces were due vo my bot having obiaimed & ty che proper combi- mation cf colors. The colurs uust be ot tne right | shade, and of the requisite inien difficult to obtain these in custun | Exyproment 2 —| next tried the experiment with | silk. Here again my trst att wpte were but par | tially swocesstul ; but 1 at to gth vorawed combina tions of red and gretu, a» ais of red and blue, which exmibited tb paenuweuou very haudsomely, | though perbap* not quate as well as the worsted. | The ailterenee | ascribe to toe colurs not being per- fectly matched, and aleo to the lustre of tae mate- rial, which decidedly iteriores with the effect. — Expo ment 3 —| wext ried the experunent with | colored morvcvo, aud suceeded wisnvut diffi suity The cflect was ssucvely, i at all, inferior to that | produced with worsted | Laypoimend Ami west 6 Colored paper, and Biter some ya ed specimens of red wed vl greet, which eabibiied tue olleot 4 the worsted. | au satistied that my iormer failures were due entirely to m) uvt baving been able to obtain colors of the proper suade and iateusiy The cologet paper is geuerally ca ged by mo: ing is, ond many Ppecimens WLi O du But succeed at ali in this expenment when dry, succeeded perfectly When moistened or oiled Lxcperement 6 —| wext tried the experiment with the cvu ot batural ebjeci*, aud found that the red of certain fluwe.s comoimed With Certain green leaves exhibited the effect in 4 won very baud. somely. ‘Lhe *¢ t tuwer ot & bane or g nium combises wiih the green leaves of letwuce succeeds beauttuny. 1 Bad sotioed chus effect with Lewers previous tae meeting of the Association | at New Maven. d my trials with | taking, ob Tue Pre then went on to show that the efivct is entirely independent of the wateriais em- ployed Colour alone appears w be the essential circumstance. A particular shade of culor is re quired, Bhd alee a ceromis Lnleuatly I arrived ot the conciusion that toe wave-like mo- which passes o¥er 4 cima red figure, upon @ ound, When ge eifeot of | com pli we ned ia the experi ment of “dancing mice,” is (his W hen a greeutgure | OF stripe is Worked Upou & fod gro aud, aud bao Card gently egitated, a shade ot 1ign.er yreou apyears vo spread over the whule Bguse, aud vveriaps ae sur rounding red ground, A fed siriye Upya a green ground, WheM agitaced, appewrs of & Lguver red on Bieruatery, With & deep red Wave Os Clliating Beck abd ivrih as each mvuv of the ecard. A\ter some illus ous, tue Urulessur gave it as his opimon, that the red evlor appears Ww excite the | retina more powerfully thaw the greed, aud ite iu- Picseiun is more Udi a Oie. SECTION 11—fU01.0@Y AND BOTANY. " 1 Motogi apt vi he ebera ysuoule Ag.,Com- Planaria tw, Lamponis, Muf, aud creneral Ke. marke (& (he otuer Weueria of Nawaes; by Iro- tessur L Agaseit 2. Views on the Lieut. BB Hunt, ¥. Kedations v: to Auumal Claseitic Boston. 4. Un two New Speows of Jugians; by Professor J To. rey. 5. Un the Chenopodiaces of Protersor J. ‘Lorrey 6. Os the toouwwmical Uses of the skin of the ature of Organic Structure; by 5 hpgiuver. wubryvivgy aud Spermatology vu, by Le, W. J. Burwett, North America; by White Porpoive; by 1. >. iwut, of ne Creviogioas Commission of Caweus; of Waren the tulioming is au ABSTRACT Mr. Hunt commences oy & deseription of the habits aod Charmvver of tuis ceimvemm, ome Uelyu wus kencos, of Ureelin, Mui. is & wative OF tue ‘ wait vf tae 5%. Arotie seas, pervicumriy of ub La svence ana biudsou + Bay, length of trom twetve tv bwenty leet ot wearly Leer Bop tae A of these aiimais, Which are ¢s6e St Lawrence, we e tacu described, aud the varivus he auimals. modes eapley ed for taking er thats oth; of They have loug been valued wb n they farsi sge quantity—® belage of tweuly feet yrela vod sw ason, 10 gallos ot supertor vil. eneial chemical and physical | planetary, have been once associated. | in the | respectively give rite to the | epiral nebule | splendid meteo approach of a comet. The explanatioa was eppro- riate in mode, since the attractive force of such a ly would tend to raise the watersof the ovean, measure, as the mass of the comet would aeaf- ficient, and the comet could be near to the earth only a short time. An explanation of a celestial phenomenon which sould suppose the rotation of the heavens to be real, would, in maay cases, be right in @ measure, since the time and some other circumstances would not be altered in measure, if such an by pothesis were tenable; bu: every explana- | tion feundes upon it would be wrong ia mode. The nebular bypothesis was admitted long since to be right in mode—the happy explauatioa oy Mr. Walker, of Kirkwood’s beautiful aualogy, bas shown it to be very probably right also in measure, } The considerations which | have presented fn the Astronomical Journal, in Marca last, go to 8 that the aster ids and comets, of short period, have | & common origin; or that masses of mater which are now coutessedly some nebulous, and some The com- munication which | last year made to the Assucia- tion, at New Haven, tended to show that the sun was anciently @ body surrounded by two rings ‘ar to those of Saturn ; and that from the inuer ring were formed the planets from Mercury to Saturn, inclusive ; while from the outer ring were formed Uranus and Neptune, ifuo more. If the liquid state of the ring, which Mr. Bond a d Prog. Pierei hown to prevail in the case of Savurn, were also admissible in the case of jun, thea the rending of those rings might give rise to the planets now known to exist, aud their relative size be, ia | some mengure, hen wera he ‘This was illustrated | in Various particulars allusion to the nebular | besis and its appli jons ig not unimportant, > it bas in some measure furnished the basis *i for a much more extensive generalization. 2 forms of equilibrium, of a given admissible ; both spheroids, bas or ciliptieity than the otner. forms would the one h very rearly to that w the other would exhibit ar forty to one vase, the greater the ellipticity which is adi The material of whieh sou resolvable nebule were formed, may have be 1. A fluid spheroid of great ell pricicy, & dual evolving of which might increase 16 Velocity, and produce a rupture and diep sent forms ot the f Tae observed by Lord Kosse nuiky wey may have this form : E 2. ‘The transformation of a oid intoa ring, the subsequent rupture of which might give rise bo d terms oat ee eruRancous rupture of a ring might | give rise to the annular neba w in Lyra aad otuers | 5. The simultaneous rupture of @ spaeroid migat | give rive to the “dumb bell” uebul, aud oters >. Globular nebulae giao show aces of similar welt would acom that these charges are § i pro- e pough their progte carcely be 6a ft o fet rn on ary or inore, beeause of the Vast scale on which the changes take piace ACCOUNT OF A METROR WHICH WAS SBEW IN tr INITY OF HaKEFOkD, ‘, ON THE NGWT cropen 20 nN CED ¥ PROFESSOR BROCKLEAHY, Wracis or ss Ou he evening of ber, 1559, a ot was soou by tw) Observers Who reside he ewstern siups of Lal cutt mountain, about sevea miles mest of the city of Harttord, necticut. it was first een by Me. Gaylora W aud afterwards by his w the that | have been adie to coilect in respect to this menon; for leannot ascertain, brilliant Vieitant war else Wuere noticed. lh would, however, be parsing eoge, 1 @ boly of such vast size, ano Which appeared so early iu the even- ing, and continued vieivie for so long & tine, should bave failed of atiracting attent and tae siler respecting it must be attributed to the ttle im teres t mavifested in the spectacle by tause who be ay following facts | took down from the lips of Mr. Welles, with whom | have bevn acy asiutet from my boyhood, and Whose statements a4 to what be saw | kuow vo be worthy of tae Utanres RS plese where my informant resides, com a suds a full view gt tag Gearcns in ‘three direcnoas— torth, east abd south. Oa the night in questioa, he stepped out of the eastern door of hw house, at about halt past eight o'clock, as near as be could judge; the sky Was serene, and the moon witain on | jour of ber meridia t d the syuth east corner of his wa lithe south of west, aad t length, fan chaped, and possessing an apparent breadch at its iurther extremity, of fully tau feet. ‘Lhe tra n shone With & full phosphoric lustre, and resembled @ light aud delicate summer cloud. Tae b Su and Drainage of ty Mistissippi | % | Phosphoric Acid in Normal Humana on, Woich evuld | ota train nearly ginal as the body navanesa towards the meridian, and swept onward to the moon. io its ress the meteor passed above or to the north of this luminary, and when it had arrived on the eastern side, diree:ly turned towards the sourh-east, and drop, down below the moa, a part of its atteudant train swept over the luvar disc. As iterossed, the face of the moun was slightly obssured, as when fimmed by the passage of sping cloud ‘I'he meteor now graaually di ed, was watched until it had reached tne verge of the horizon in the southeast ; and when last seen, appeared, together with its train, vo be not more than eight or niue inches long. Neither explusioas cintillations were observed ia any part of its aud it appears to have been uuasteaded | wich aay remarkable chauges inform. 3 far as, any judgment could be formed of the velocity of this body, it is believed that the time ocoupied in moving the length of its train sould not be less than three minutes. Tbe duration of ths visibility of che meteor is avt accurately known, as the observer did | not reter to the clock ac the beginning and end ofthe | phenomenon; but he is positive that it could net ssibly be less than an hour, and p.< bably was an | Boor ands half. Intruth, Mr. Wells stood out so | long gazing at the wonderful spe sacle, that his wife came out to see waat had become of-aim, and | a severe cold was the result of his protracted expo- sure. Iregret that my iafermant was unable to give the angular measurements of this meteor and | its train, if 1 was only for the sake of comparing | its dimensions with those of other meteors; butin | one respect this deticiency is partially supplied. ‘The meteor of September 30, 1850, which has been described by Professor Buad, w: by my informant when near the Ple He con- siders the meteor of October 3d to have been much larger than this, when seen near these stars, but it was of inferior brigntuess. They probably differed but little in respect to the duration of their visibi- lity. It is remurkable that two meteors of such extraordinary size, aud which continued above the horizon for so long and unprecedented a time should sweep over the sume places on the earth within days of each other ; and, uuless we knew that their ths were different, we migaot almost bo temted to imagine that they were bu jiroting as com panions through the fields of sp: ON THE METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS OF NEW yorK FRom 1825 To ISM9.—BY FRANKLIN B. HOUGH, M. D., OF SOMERVILLE, ST. LAWRENCE COUNTY, NEW YORK. It is well known that the Regents of the Univer- sity of the State of New York, tollowing the exam- | ple of the federal goverament, issaed iustructions in 1525, to the academies subject to its visitation, requiring them to make ard report meteorological | observations after @ prescribed form, and with ia- | Struments furnished them for that purpose. These | were, at the close of 1849, superseded by the pre- | seat very thorough and efficient system. This | change was made in accordance wich the present | demands of science, and will doubtless prove of es- sentia) service in advancing this branch of physical | he f ob der the old | be reports of observers under the old system have been published annually by the Regents, and bave been universally acknowledged botn in this eountry and Europe, as of inestimable service to science, by furnishing data for establishing the meax temperature and many of the laws of climate | | in the State. The fact of their havin been com- | pleted, and that the results, scattered as they are through our legislative documents for a qaarter of | a century, are difficult of access to those persons | most interested in these studies, suggested the idea | of compiling and reducing the whole series, with | the view of obtaining every fact which might pos- sess value to science. | . Tais labor bas been nearly half completed, and | the object of bringing it before the Assoo.ation is to Bowe that it may be laid before the Meteoro- logical Committee for examination, with the hops | that should they deem it worthy, they might moitid- riatize the Legislature of the State of New York on the propriety of punlishing the rame. The observations embraced in these reports have been made as stations, and form an aggregate of S34 years and eight months. The records consisted of three daily observations on the thermometer, and two on the direction of the wind aod aspect of the sky, with the depth of rain, number of rainy and snowy days, records of the aurora, haloes, me- teors, and the semeens of vegetation. Upon motion of Lieutenant Hust, this paper was referred to the Standing Committee, by whom it was | laid before the meteorological sectioa and discus- | sed in detail. The committee, consisting of Protes- sor Henry, Professor Caswell, Professor Loomis, Dr. Beck, Profeesor Guyot, Captain Lefroy, of the | Toronto Obese: ry, and others, having discussed b connected with this subdject, passe lutions expressing their appro- | bation to the P gemaer n of the tables referred to, and appointed a sub-committee, consisting of Dr. Beck, and Professors Loomis and Guyot, who were | i e’cause a great tide; but it wae inadequate in | direeted to digest a plan for the proposed reduo- , ties, and select the stations most desirable. ANALYSIS OF SOILS OF PIKE COUNTY, SCIOTA VAt+ } LEY, OWIO—BY D. A. WELLS, CAMURIDGR. | From the best bottom land, opposive the mouth | of Sunfish creek, about one hundred yards cast of | the Scicta. This ground i# eccasionally overtly wed, and bas been cleared and cultivated about eighteen | years, successively, in corn, and yields, with ordi- Bary culture, from seventy to eighty bushels por acre The average crop has not sensibly dim nished since it was firet cleared. Tae timber growth, originally, on this ground, when cleared, was honey locust, black walnat, D grad i box, elder, white ash, elu, mulberry, and buckeye. Mehanical Analysis.— Color, when dry, dark brown, or black; of an ex:raordinary degree of finences; of 100 parts, only 16 parts; consisting ia great part of vegetable and organic matter; re- fused te pass through a sieve ; the messes of which did not exceed 1-t0ch of an inch in diameter; ea- tirely free from stones or pebbles; absorptive and reten:ive character for moisture ; 7 4170 grammes, dried at 212 deg Fabrenheit; absorbed up to point of saturation, 45230 grammes of water, makiag the whole weight, soil aud water, 11 9400 grammes. The above quantity of saturated soil exposed 24 hours, thermometer 60 deg, to the open, dry atinosphere, 1ust 2 3515 grammes of mois ure. Con- tinued exposure, until weight ceased lo vary, undor the same circumstances, whole loss, 4.249), Tho- roughly drivd, at 212 deg Fahrenheit, additional loes, 0 2715—whule loss, 4 5230. Chemical Analysis. Water, bygrometri: aud combined. . 03.656 Waxy ana retinous matter extracted by alcobol . eeyesicg ae Waxy and resi extracted by ether. 025 ‘Total extract......- Per centage of the w 00.0184 Constituents soluble in pure water... Extract of earth, alkaline, chlorides, wit traces lime... 66. sees . OO Organic matter, cienie avid. 203 Sihea, ir pour ime, acid. with traces of sul- ‘Total water extract Total per ceuteg Constituents ro, alumin uble in dilute acid.. and traces of mauga- nese.... ‘ 01 995 | Organic watte on with vb abd alumin. ; 1.004 Siilico, soluole. 0.09 Vborphorie acid = 0.0 Potarra and sod. 0.101 Lime ....6. 6005 1.025 Maguesia. 0 256 Total per centage constituents s0- luble in acid . sree cede 5.103 matier rendered soluble by @ with alumina, end in- fepee of apocreme acid O19 do byroda.. ‘ 01.303 Organic matter reir tmbi- nation with the esidue, aud dete ‘ OLS Whole amount ¢ ¢ matter found im the + extracted by water, acid, and alkelies, and de- termined fiom final revidue.... 11373 Waole amennt, as determined by ignition. te sues ° 10 970 Diffcrence . . 00 48 Insoluble sii and earthy residue 75.802 100 parts of the insvluble re gare, by washing 45 os Whole amount...... te eeeeeees 94.3454 PROPOSAL FOR A TRIGONOMETRICAL SURVEY OF NEW YORK=HY LIBUT. K. B HUNT, COmPS OF BN GINKERS, U.S As ‘The importar i% acrurate delisea- tions of the eal feavures of tais country is £0 obvious, ald 80 gi | that it would be superflacus ber ments in its proot. Geograpby with the vague information of first reconnowances, | bat demands the aid of accurate methods aad the most pertect instruments, Gordesy typography, aid hyorograpby, are indispeneable hana maids to ary geegtephy worchy @ vivilized nation In @ country like ours, Where 80 many physical featares w and interest it is particularly needfol pregevtation of toe multi plied ae ound. Lhere is a geaadsuc end simpleity eee out many of the characteri+ ties of our bruad territory, Whieh may well make us | proud to picture, in topographical language, ali the pavural jeatures of (as home of & nau0en, now | great, and Foor to be the greatest. A nation’s home, its mountaine, valleys, rivers, lakes, climate, and productions, enter Fo largely into ite history gud very vitality, that ® great importance must observed | observations commenced with January 1825, and | necessarily be attached to accurate knowledge of all these particulars. The ae fod @ country contains & y of the Ristory that train of pations which, in turn, act their onitas astage. The mountains of Switzerland and Scotland fore- told, ere man’s creation, the history of a Tell and a Bruce. And here we are, in a new world, a world of wonders ed whens: surtaen a written em cryptic ecies of the ever-widening vista o history tha is to be. Where is the prophet who will intel these hieroglyphics ? Bailosophers are all prophets within the sphere of their know- ledge, being made such by their knowled Lot the land and water of our country be truly de- lineated, and) we may then forecast the future of our history. This forecastimg should not be in a spirit of vague wonder, but with an in- t pr to regulate and rightiy act our normal purt in history. The sociat and political prospects of our country are so commingled with geographical influences, that in the highest sense 1s it important to become familiar with the features of our wide territory. This country is eminent for its internal improvement, and it is evident how great would be the advantage of accurate surveys in connection with this rapidly growing system. How much accurate maps are needed, every one must have felt who has traveled through the com- mon roads of the country. The vicinity of every considerable town should be so represented that a stranger can understand the network of highways around it. inthe thousand ramifications of com- mon social life, the convenience and use ef accurate maps is felt. Millions of miles are needlessly travelled for the want of proper maps. Surveys of the geographical ures of all the States inthe Union, with the exception of Massa- chusetts, and perhaps New Jersey, are now, and must ever remaln, eminently needed until they shal be actually made. It is evident that the time is not distant when these will be emphatically called for by the combination of needs which require them of every scientific or civilized nation. They will be made, and why not soon enough to give us tho benefit of these results! It is certain that if wo are among those nations alive t» the power and benefits of the sciences characterizing civilized so- ciety, the States of this Union must, ia turn, be surveyed with that nice accuracy which geodesy now demands and furnishes. Wo may, then, best eater at once on this labor, so that the benefits, as weil asthe labor, may be ours, while those who follow us may enjoy the bene- fits without the labor. it has seemed to me, in view of these and man; other consideraticns, which need not here be a | duced, that it is fully time for New York to under- take an accurate geographical survey of her whole | territory. With a population of three millions; | with wealth and resources making her not un- | Wort ened Legislature, which has ever Labee science; with thousands of highly educate: these and many other stimulants for dving its high | duty, it has seemod to me very proper here to ro- pose, in serious earnest, that a beginning should be | _ made. Tonearly every member ot this Association, | Tam convinced, this subject need but be named to ensure hearty approbation. In this Assosiation, vow convened in the capital of the very Stato in | question, I see the most proper boijy for actively urging the claims of this proposal on the govera- | Here, if anywhere, is a fair | ment of New York. and honest tribunal for the trial of this proposal, and one to whose verdict respectful attention will surely be conceded. Permit me now to say, that when science fairly urges ter claims, in the spirit | of honest true-hearted devotion to her own ends, she will ever fiad in our legislators a ready and liberal res; Let us speak out truly our real wants, and w Il surely be heard. Tne idea which I have conceived of what a survey ot New thy the name of impire State; with an enlight- | favored | citizens, | who would fully appreciate the advantages of ac- curacy in its geograpby and topography; with | igh | York should be, is about the following:—Let a base — be measured in Western New York, and made the | starting line for a system of primary, secondary, land tertiary triangulation, extending towards Pennsylvania and New England. A connectioa will be obtained in the Husson valley with the coast survey triangulation, giving the desired veri- fication. Plain tabling should extend first over the ground around the cit nd large villages, so as soon to furnish good maps of the same and their vicinities, throughout the State, excepting such as are already covered by the corset survey opora tions The work should then be exteaded £0 as to | obtain the elements for complete county maps, to be published in the general order of popalation of counties, or per square mile. The hydrography of the interior lakes should also enter the scheme. A general State map would follow these. In regard to harbors on the lake coast, it is a question whether their surveys should not be left to the ge- neral government, the data being furnished from — the Statecurvey. In pointof accuracy and style, the work should not fail essentially below that of the coast survey, and might, peraaps, well be as- pilated to the operations for a single section of he coast. These general hints this pomt. The subject now submitted is one which, | trust, will command the cordial support of | this Association; snd it is imposuble to check the hope that, ere long, New York, like Massachusetts, will be able to show a fair presentment of her mag- nificent area. Jt isnot by chance, but by design, that this matter is presented, with especial reter- ence to this State. Circumstances seem partica- larly to point to it as the State most needing such @ survey, and the best able to undertake it. Myself a native and earnest well-wisher of New York, though now owing a first fealty to all these States united, it will ful imagination to fancy those pictures of her widely diversified and village dotted territory, which would result from the proposed survey. Flanked by the beautiful Hudson and the sublune Niagara, with her pearl necklace med groan lakes, and her towering Adirondacks Catskills, tt jon would delight the josopher, and instruct tl purpose of giving practical form and initial extst- ence to the geographical ~uwvey of New York, and to express what may fairly be presumed to oe the sincere desire of this Association, 1 would now move the following resolutions :— Resolved, That tae President of this Association be requested to appoint a commitcee of five mom- Lers, to prepare # memorial, im the name of this Association, to be addressed to the Governor and Legislature of fork, urging the speedy com- w Yor! mencement of a geographical survey of that State, and presenting a matured project of thas kind of eurvey deemed most desirable, with a carefal esti- mate of its cust. This memorial to be presented, if pourible, before January next. Resolved, ‘That this committee bo reques. to consider the general subject of State geographical surveys, and to report (hereon wt the next sonual meeting ANAL‘ S18 OF A SPECIMEN OF GLAZED SLATE—BY.J. HM. LISBURY, MD. The specimen analyzed was obtained from Chat- baw, Columbia Couuty, New York, aad was mis- aben for authracite eval. Ultea t sis under this erron¢ous in cons derable quantities ia the Hud Utica slates ant marceilus soles. 100 parts of the e, deprived of water, gave, ot ve walter, 1126 J hospa trace L oe 1575 on . trace . trace does not contain go & per eons matter. In a ta yority of the speoim i have examined for tats par- pose, there was found cot to exceed 7 per © THE PENDULUM AT DUNKER HILL Mont PROVESSOK MURSPORKD, OF HakVat, ‘The interest teit by tue puvlic geaorally in the greet experument of Foucault, aud tue attention bh bas been dirceve he repetitioa of this ex periment Moa ament, will ja & bret ac apparatus there emp! and the results (here arrived at ‘The bali used for the dulum is a thirty-two pound iron canton bail. 1t was throwa out in some excavations on Charivetown Neck, tome yoars tines, and is supposed, from the number of others, of the came size, ivund im the same lvoality, tohave been ducharged from toe British ship of war Lively, at the American army, at the clove of the buctio on the 17un of June, 1775 ball 1s now about thirty-one pounds. Tne bail is sup ported in o brags meridian, to which is attached an equatorial ring, With avjosting screws for bring ing tue centre of gravity directly in a line wita coe ingex belo pd ihe poiat of suspension ao ve. ‘Lhe ball is suspended by a wire 210 feet long— plane + 007 Car born Carbone noid... bids c acid... oxide ot iron em fuflicient on | be @ grate: | 5. The weight of the | known as No 20 steel #ire—which is annealed, wad | idian vf the bali by arumail secured to the bras serew ciamp ; the other end of the wire 1s secared | in @ simile: clamp, which is attached to a staple ia | the rvot of the chumber at the head of the Soow ment stairs. lo making the arrangemen*, it be- came necessary tw remove the grating in the floor of the chamber above, aud also the marble moad ment, erected by King Sulomons Lodge wichin tae Weil, at the bottom. from wtteeung the motion of the penda the grating avuve las been replacsd by @ pi four, and (he Wite passing tarougd the chauber ts enemed in @ square Wouden trunk’ with panes of glars on vppysite sides, for observing tae very wil aie Geceribed by the pendulum wire at this Lo svoid vbstructing currents of air ia 5 also been tuund necessary to close rt berg nt. the shaft, it ating pot d reprace the trou lavtice gate atthe bor glass doors. A smovth wouuen a at the boctom of the shalt, from fh, directly beneath the porut of deseriowd and graduated lot 0 of observation, eas ctul observation, # fas wooden ring t | about four feet above tae floor, with « o agat ou the further side, aud w currespouding Mgut at Lo prevent carrents of air | hows opening into the iuuer | the extremity ofan arm on the nearer side, which is 0 a ‘as to revolve around. the axis of the of . This ring resta upon marbles, ad may be justed by movable friction wheels placed Petaide the ring. nn the inner wall of the of these compass sights, the rotation of the plane of oscillation becomes ap: parent in less time than if the point at the bottom be observed, for the reason, that the view is confined to # definite line, and also, that the distance of the nearer sight from the centre is five feet, while the radius of the graduated arc on the floor is rather less than three ang a halffeet. The sight, through which the observation is made, is moved by asmall tes wheel upon a graduated are of brass placed in the doorway; and auch is tac nicety of the adjustment that the progress of the plane of oseiJiation can be noticedin a single vibra- oe of the dalam. me = ie mo startin, e pendulum is thi adopted by Foucault. The ball being drawn to the margin of the circle, and secured by a thread, is permitted to come entirely to rest. ‘hon this is attained, shich requires but a minute or two, the thread is burned and the pendulum launched. An unanticipated difficulty in the movement of the monument itself, and to which more particular reference will be made in another communication, for some time interfered with tho progress of expe- riment. The impossibility of using the graduation on the floor, led to the adoption of 4 movable sec- tion of a sector of brass, of three feet radius, hav: the degree divisions protonged six inches towar the centre, to prevent the lessening of the length of the sweep from interfering with the observation. The position of this plate with regard to the centre could be determined at any moment, by bringing the pendulum to rest, and measuring from the so ascertained centre. Another difficulty met me at this point. The armature in which the ball was sluog, notwithstand- ing the extreme slowness of the movement—an os- cillation regetriog | less than 8 1-16 seconds—iater- fered seriously with the experiment. Sometimes the plane of oscillation would sweep | through adegree in four minuces, and sometimes 1t | requiced eleven. A series of experiments elimi- | nated the source of this difficulty, aud the mode of 80 managing the apparatus as to sec .re trustworthy | results. The vertical brass ring gave to the ball | @ slightly lenticular form, which, it is obvious, can oscillate uniformly in but two directions, to wit:— ia the direction of the axis of the lens, and at right avgles to it. in either of these 1 obtained correct resulte. As admitting the least tendency to error, 1 unitormly adopted tne latter direction —that is, in which the plane of the ring coincided with the plane of oscillation. My observations were limited to a single degree—and that the first. ‘This was neces- sary trom the diminution in the length of the swee, unless I had constructed a movable floor. It had this advantage—that the ellipticvl motion which, after a longer or shorter period, invariably sets ia, was uniformly not appreciable. I have occa- siocally watched the motion of the pendulum when it started under the fairest circumstances, considering the imperfection of my ball, through a period of twelve minutes, without dececting elit cal motion, Soe frequently it came on in te time. Professor Norton, of Brown University, hag informed me that in experimeats conducted by Professor Caswell and himself, the elliptical motion was frequently not observable for half an hour. The elliptical motion was, with very rare excep- tions, in the direction opposite to the hands of a watch. The greatest conjugate diameter of the ellipse described has rarely exceeded half an inch. This maximum, which frequently was gained in less than twenty minutes, continued for four hours—the ball itself not coming to rest in less than five or six hours The length of the aro of oscillation was | six feet, the whole diameter of the well being but seven feet. The time required for @ single osvilla- tion was 81-16th seconds, as already mentioned, losing one second in 224 oscillations. In vbservation, I at first had the aid of an assia- tant; who counted the oscillations, while | observed the time required for the rctation of the plane of os- cillation through @ single degree. It was possibte to observe only at one extrems of the oscillation. ‘The determination of the time by oscillations, or by seconds, if ei-her one oxcillation too maay or too few, gave a range of error of 32{ seconds. It so happened that the length of the pendulam at the Monument, and the weoretical tame at that loca- lity, were marvellously suited to each other. Tae time required, ([ take the calculation by Professor Casweil, for the State Liouse, Boston,) dm. 56s. 03. Forty-four oscillations at Sm. 1-16 seconds for an oscillation, give 5m. 55s. 5. In my ovservations, a second or two would be los: at the outset in carrying the eye from the buraing thread to the watch face, and at the eonclusion, in glancing from the index coincident with the degree division, to the second hand. but when not vary: ing more than three or four seconds, it would be just to correct the time by the oscillauions, since the time requued for an oscillation had been ascer- tained with the greatest precision. 1 will here give afew of the observations with their average, and with it the time indicated by the oscillauuns—and that by theory. *, hei we 8.43" we rs Tine, Goal, Thetr. Tine. Theory. Soa GATS & OU" UB Sov” 8 ov 05 5 4 = - 606 ee 54 - - 655 «(8/58 Us 5 63 - - 5 56 5 66 = ~ 5 85 6 oF - - 5 55 6 oT - - oo 5 60 - - 6 ot 5a = = —_—- —- Bob. 5 Gob. 555 55 55475 5 5008 N. 43° W. to N.42° W By tine, By aT doa” 8” 5 0 - 5 56 - ou — 5 - oo = 5 65 — oot - Average of 8 obs... 5’ 54" 6’ 96" 03 ‘These results do not confirm tne suggestion that there is greater or less than the uniform theoretical velocity of rotation of the plane of oscillation ia diflerent parts of its orbit. Svon alter tue newspaper accounts of the experi- ment at the Pantheou reached this country, | tried an experiment suggested by # writer in the Lovion Miwtratid News vias of suspending @ borizoutal bar. It was the view of the writer that tne bar would rotate as the plune of oscillation rovates. 1 suspended @ copper bar, six iaches loag, ina glass receiver, by @ sleader iron wire, termuosting io % point, ou the polished face of 4 straight magnet. by suditious to the weight of tae bar, | reduced & magnet to the least measure. upou # window sill, in a brick build- ing, and che bar having cume to rest, it con.iaued at cost through forty- At a later period, 1 euspouded a glass tube in the monument, from @ heigut of 190 teet—two feet long, Isden with lead at each end Tae firs; sixty feet of suspension was of silk braid, to reduce tae torsion to & minimum, then caume iron wire to Within @ few feet of the bar, and thea # brass wire. So seusitive was the bar taat | towad ic impossible, eo long as 1 remained near it, to being 1; to rest, the unavoidab! nts of air from my breath being cuflisien ut its becoming > however, re jativas to a range of fear xtreme of the bar, aad thea ln the mormog it was eatirely left it over night. at reas. This wai circumstances, and such coincident results, asto duce me Wo believe tout thove experimenters Who have nuticed @ ber, or dirk, or Wueel, to revolve in time corresponding with the plane of oscillation, have been misled vy soue couccald eource o! error. i repeaied the experunent of pormittiag water to He instanced three modes in which mechanical force might be employed, viz.: to communicate mo- tion in @ body free to move (as when one ball strikes another at rest); to overcome a fied obsta- cle (a8, for example, to break an inflexible bar, or @ pressure); and, So. gemthonte ee when opposed by rome retarding uence. ‘nen employed in the first of these modes, he remarked, the “work done” was generally admitted to be pro- portional to the velocity simply, and not to its square. He mentioned a single experiment which had been supposed to prove the contrary, viz.:— that four similar elastic springs wil impel a body with only double the velocity that one will do; but he showed that this experiment, when properly ex- plained, was in barmony with the law. To prove that in the second c1se, where forse was employed to produce pressure, it varied as the velo- city simply, and not as its square, he referred to the experiments and table of Mr. Rouse, on the rela- tion between the force and velocity of wiads, und showed that his results argued much more nearly with the former hypothesis than with the latter. He showed that most of the experiments waich had been adduced in support of the doctrine he was Opposing, such as the firing of a musket bail into log, or through a series of parallel homogeneous plates, the grinding of gaains, &o , resolved them- selves into cases of retarded motion, in which it is well known that, if the retardation is uniform, the Space varies ut the square of the velocity; but he objected to using 9 ouly, without reference te the time in which it is described, as a trae measure ef foree—first, because its results were at varianse with those obtained by the other two methods, which were equally philosophicat and worthy of ore- dit; second, becaute it was not simple, inasmuch as it unneceesarily introduced a new and uncertain ele- ment into the account, viz, the wedium or influ- ence which retards the motion, which might, in- deed, be uniform, but which might alse vary ac- cording to any law, or to no lawat all. Tho ox- pausive force of the 18 discharged, might iven to the ball, or b; nd breach unpowder, when & cannon e measured, he remarked, by the velosity the pressure aguinst the sides gun, and all is simple, and wonious results; but if we atcempt to measure it by the distanze to which the ballis thrown, we must take into account a!l the various resistances that the ball will have to encounter, and which may be very irregular in their operation. He objected to it. thirdly, because it »mitted the important ele- ment oftime. If one force does four times as much work as another, but employs a double time to de it in, it is really but twice as great; so that in all such cases we must divide tho work done by the time in which it is done, in order to obtain the true measure of the force. If this were done in the ex- periments quoted by his opponents, he remarked, that the results would, in every case, be propor- tional to the velocity simply as in the other measures. NEW FORM OF MICROSCOPE, WITH IMPROVED ME+ ‘THODS OF MEASURING THE DIMENSIONS OF OBJECTS AND THE ANGLES OF CRYSTALS—BY PROFESSOR J. LAWRENCE SMITH. (ABSTRACT ) The construction of this microscope is based upon the sl aed of placing the objective glasses be- neath inscead of above the objects to be examined. The tube in which the Sp toa is, is thereby five Gracin tae the perpendicular, and the ray of ligat undergoes a defieetion of one hundred and forty de- grees before entering the eye. The deflestiva is poe’ @ four sided prism, with the angles 35 deg., 107} deg., 62) deg., 145 dog., the ray of light ing through the objective glass down; into the pes sae of the prism it penetrates and is subjected to two total reflections, and pags out of the fourth surface upwards, making an angle of thirty-five degrees with the perpendicular. The eye regards almost at the same moment the object iteelf, on the stage of the microscope, and the image of the same in the instrument; and here the advan- tage of the instrament is seen for chemical pur- ose8, for which it was originally intended. It is, owever, not confined to this, for owing to the conyenicace it affords for arranging the illumi- nation, it is woll adapted to muca general use. The bew plan of measurement is to induce a microme- ter int6 the tube of the microscope at any stage of the observations, by means of an arrangement placed so that the micrometer comes witain the lane of the foci of all the eye-pieces used in the instrument. The methoa of meaeuring the angles of crystals is by having a graduated cirsle in the outer part of the tube of the microscope, and pass- ing from the tube carrying the eye-pieces, which has acircular movement independent of that of the graduated circle. The manner of measuring the angles is as follows :—Introduce the microme- ter, turn the eye-piece until the lineson the mi- crometer are parallel to one side of the angle to be measured; then, leaving the eye-piece, turn the graduated circle until the index oa the eye piece is at zero; this done, turn the eye @ until the lines on the micrometer are parullsl with the other side of the avgle to be measured, and im regarding the circle, the degrees of the angle passed through will be eeen. The method is convenient, and more pre- cise than any known. ON A NEW LOCALICY OF RED SAPPHIRE, WITH NO= TICES OF THE ASSOCIATE MINERALS—BY WM. Pe BLAKE, OF YALE LABORATORY. (ABSTRACT ) These erystals of corunaum are remarkable for their great irregularity of form and outline, beiag almost without exception, flied wich cavities, 60 as to present a mere shell of solid sapphire. color of the finest specimens is ruby red, passing into va- rious shades of purple in dilfereat speciueas. They are translucent to opaque; no transparent speci+ mens have yet been fouul. The associate mincrals are remarkable for their beauty and peculiarities. The following list em- braces those which occur in greatest abundance: — Red spinel, rose spinel, hydrous silica‘es of alamiaa, chondrodite, horublende, iron pyrices, hydrous ses- ai oxide of iron, graphite, pulog»pite, emerylite. be following occur «pariagly :—Lutile, umenite, blue fluor. It is meng ar 4 to observe the similarity of the arsociation of the minerals of this locality with those described by Professor J. Lawrense Smith, ia bis Memoirs upon the Corundum and Survey of Asia Minor, read befure the Academy of Science of the French Institute, July 15, 1550, acd published ia the American Journal of Science. Mr. Blake presented a commanication upon tome American minerals, stating that he had ob- served the occarrence of shromate of lead ia Ponn- syivania, upon pyromorphite and carbonate of lead. Tie also noticed the occurrence of chaleotriolute at Perkromennime, Penuryivauia ; eulpauret of neckel, Leveaster county, Vennsylvania; zenite, from Mine, Orange county, New York. ON THE ALTERATIONS OF MARINE AND TERRESTRIAL OKGAMC REMAINS IN THE CARBONIVEROUS SYSTEM OF OW1O; BY J. W. FOSTER. Mr. Vosree, of the U 3. G. Survey, described a section of the carbuniferous rocks of Ohio, in which no less than ten allimations of marine aad terrestrial organic remains occur in a vertical range of about 500 feet. Tho terrestrial remains consisted of plants belonging to the genera Lopi- dodendra Sigillevria, Newoptevis, &o., while marice deposits contained Sperifera Prodacta, Go- niatites and Chone He also spoke of the oo- currence of two genera of fossil fishos, cording to Agassiz, belonging to the Port Jackson shark; t termediate between Cicunecanthus, Gyracu and Hybodus. This is the first instance observed of the occurrence of these remains in the carboni- ferous of the United States repewted under such favoravle | flow (rom a funnel, ia the expectation that the re- sultant of the motion toward toe centre in flowing out, united Wi.h the possible rotation of the body tr, would give rite to the spiral movement un, Which 13 very geveraliy believed. 1 tous, for this p yee. # tub turned io # lathe, ard caicfwly bored naif inch hole in the centre of the buttom. Into this hole | passed a good cork from below ateut Lfteen galions), the water was permitted to come to rest, a8 indicated by partisies of sawdust in tbe water and on its surface. When quiet was establiched, which required nearly aa hour, the cork was withdrawn. [he water flowed oat wish the fuilowing results in seven trials:—In two, taere Was to whirl; in three, the Wuirl just perceptible ; in the Jast quart of f, Was wita the sua; in the veman two, the 1 was in the opposite direc- tion ‘These results seem to indicate that in but two of the reven trials, bad the water obtained actual rest, While it bad in three of the other instances a sight motion in one direction, and in two # motion in the opporite. J ebou'd not omit to state, that the conveniences for these ubservations have been (urnisned by the Marsachusetts Charitable Mechanics Association, who provided the necessary funds for the pendulam appw'atus. The committee appointed by them, covsisting of Messrs. Wigbtmau aod Sunpson, of Boston, avd Mr. Bond aud my-elf, of Cambridge, were facilitated in ail their labors by the offivers of the Bu 1 ON THA PROVER MEASURE OF MECHANICAL FORG! PROFESSOR COPFIN, OF LAPAYETIR COLLEGE. Protessor Corvin, of Lafayette College, read a paper on the proper measure of mechanical force, m which he defeaded the commonly received doctrine, that the foree of a moving budy is pro- portional to the prodact of its mara mto its velocity, again: diferent view which he understood to have been maintained, by wther members, at previous meetings, viz.: that, it ‘Ube mass into the square of a! He remarked, that the q having been discussed, and, as he had always sup- pored, settled by the philosophers of Europe moro \ than @ contury ago. BY Having tlk d the tub (which contained | ANALY Si4 OF ENDIVE (C1CHORIUM ENDI A)—BY J. : SALISBURY, M.D. ‘This plant i ly aouual, a nacive of China and Japan. e saw ples Analysed sore large aad succulent. Average length of tops eleven ing Average weight of each plant six ounces. Per centage of Water, dry Mater, and Inorganic Maver . + DLO + 8.075 010 wT water ‘ dry matter. inorg anie inorgan te y be seen that this plant ts highly charged J ure. The fresh tops contaia but about eight pounds of dry or solid matter to Lhe hundred. ‘The remaining ninety-two pounds are pure water. Of the eight pounds of dry matter, a trace over one pound is ime ec matter. So that chere ox- ists but about se pounds of organic matter in one hundred pounds of fresh plants About five tons of fresh piaats contain one bun- dred pounds of inorganie matver, which is mado Per centage of up ef:— Chrbonie acid......13 80 Magnosia. Silieie acid « 20.50 Potash . Phorphoric acid. 990 Soda. Pborphate of iron.. 2.95 Onlori Lite... ...e.ss0s. 8.05 Salphuric aci tcontains o large per ceutage ot soda, phospboris acid, potash aud lime. Proximate Organic Analysis. pie. aie 100 ie (hang vesh ‘Tops. Dry Tope. se t 1 25 “ = . 16.346 from that plant in its proxima'e org sition except that it contains legs filen is shghtly richer in sugar and albumen, Ultimate Organic Analy: as, of dry plants gave of:— Nitrogen. 2170 Oxygen.... Carbo {117k Hyer ogen.... A book exhibited entitled Olmsted's Chemistry 5 100 part itie by A. F. Olmsted, son Of Professor Olmsted, of Yale College. It wag pronounced a work of ua