PROGRESS OF INVENTION.

UTILIZATION OF WOOLLEN AND OTHER RAGS.-Hitherto, rags have been, with the exception of woollen, employed only in the production of paper, and other matters not constituting articles of clothing. Woollen rags have been formed into shoddy, a wool which has been rendered of an extremely short staple-and therefore is inferior as a material for textile fabrics-by the mode employed for tearing the rags asunder. A large amount of the shoddy found in commerce is little more than a woollen powder: yet there is no reason why the staple of the wool obtained from worn-out textile materials should not be nearly as good as it ever was, nor why the same wool should not be manufactured advantageously over and over again; in which case our stock of materials would, in practice, be greatly increased, and clothing, for the poor at least, be greatly and most beneficially reduced in price. Ingenuity has at length discovered a means of not only preventing the destruction or serious damage of a vast amount of wool, but also of disintegrating, without injury, other textile matters, and separating the woof from the warp, when this is desirable from their being of different colours or materials. After the fabric has been separated into threads, these are opened by suitable apparatus, so that the wool, or other fibre of which they are composed, is not broken or damaged. The contrivance used for the purpose is simple, and mainly consists of hooks judiciously ranged.

SUBSTITUTION OF AN ELECTRIC CURRENT FOR A FULMINATE, WITH FIRE-ARMS. An application of electricity, more curious perhaps than useful, has recently been made in France. Instead of placing a fulminate within the cartridge, and thus rendering it liable to explode accidentally, a very fine platinum wire is inserted into it. This, by a simple mechanism, is connected at pleasure with two very minute galvanic batteries, which are enclosed in the stock, and becoming incandescent, explodes the powder. The arrangement acts extremely well; but, for various reasons, it does not seem likely to be ever employed in practice, except perhaps for artillery.

SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS.

The British Association met this year at Dundee, on the 3rd of September, and on the whole its proceedings were very successful, though its managers having mistaken the spirit of flunkeyism for that of science, had elected a President without information or attainments corresponding with his position, and the subject of their choice, the Duke of Buccleuch, was unable to prepare anything that could fairly be called an "address." One of the most important items in the Report of the Society related to the arrange

ments which the Board of Trade have sanctioned, and by which the Kew Observatory becomes the centre of a system of observations, constituting a "Meteorological Department," to be supported by the Government, and to furnish materials for publication.

The Council of the Royal Society, on the 13th of December, 1866, nominated the following Fellows of the Society as the Superintending Meteorological Committee: General Sabine, Pres. R.S., Mr. De La Rue, Mr. Francis Galton, Mr. Gassiot, Dr. W. A. Miller, Capt. Richards (hydrographer of the Admiralty), Col. Smythe, and Mr. Spottiswoode; and on the 3rd of January, this Committee appointed Mr. Balfour Stewart as its Secretary, on the understanding that he should, with the concurrence of the Kew Committee of the British Association, retain his present office of Superintendent of the Kew Observatory.

It is proposed to have observatories in the following places : Kew (central observatory), Falmouth, Stonyhurst, Glasgow, Aberdeen (probably), Armagh, and Valencia.

Different branches of science were fairly represented in the different sections, the general arrangements being the same as last year, except that the Anthropologists, with whose shallow pretensions the public are now pretty well acquainted, were not allowed a separate section for their chief occupation of abusing the negro. In the Physical section, Dr. Moffatt detailed some experiments and observations on phosphorus, and stated that phosphorus in a nonluminous state did not produce ozone, and looking at the sea as the chief source of that substance, he asked if it could not be ascribed to marine phosphorous which seems a doubtful opinion. Mr. Spiller described the employment of superphosphate of lime in aqueous solution for the purpose of hardening Caen stone. It acts upon the carbonate of lime forming Badiker's salt, 2 Ca O, H0, P0, +4 Ag. The igneous rocks of Scotland formed the subject of Mr. Geikie's address in the Geological section, and Dr. Sharpey gave a slight sketch of sundry physiological investigations. In the department of Anatomy and Physiology, Dr. Richardson recounted his aumoniacal theory of the coagulation of the blood. The address of Sir Samuel Baker in the Geographical and Ethnological section contained nothing worthy of note. In the Economic Science section Prof. Levi read the report of the Committee on the Uniformity of Weights, Measures, etc., in which the completion of the mural standard was announced. The Committee recommend making the metrical system compulsory, at no distant period. In the Mechanical Science section, Mr. Fernie read a paper on the iron and steel shown at the Paris Exhibition. He thought England had not been surpassed by France in any department. He mentioned a process of stamping, by which a complicated article, composed of several pieces were welded together, and stated that one English house had specimens equal to the French. The manufacture of steel in large masses by Krupp, and the Boceum Company, excelled anything of the kind done in England, the work of the latter being especially worthy of notice. Sir John Lubbock delivered an able address on the antiquity of man.

Mr. Glaisher presented the report on Luminous Meteors for 1866-7, in which, amongst much interesting matter with most of which our readers have been acquainted, it is stated that the August meteors which disappointed observers in this country, were seen in countless numbers in America, after midnight of the 10th. Amongst the remarkable meteors, the most curious seems to have been one seen by Prof. Thomson at Aberdeen, on the 14th November last, at 2h. 40.5s., A.M. The nucleus passed over a Tauri and disappeared without noise. Its diameter, of the Moon. Its train was pale yellow, and at first remained as a band of dense nebulous looking light, about half the diameter of the Moon. After two minutes the train wound about in a serpentine form, and after three minutes it had collected itself into a nebulous-looking cloud, which remained vividly distinct until four minutes, when it was obscured by a cloud. The same meteor was seen by Prof. Grant at Glasgow, Prof. Piazzi Smith at Edinburgh, and Mr. Barkas at Newcastle. On the 20th November, a large detonating meteor is reported to have been seen at Nashville, Tennessee, which made a tremendous report, rattling windows and shaking the wall. "If," says the report "it actually took place, it forms an interesting addition to the list." In the Physiological department, some curious facts were cited by Sir Duncan Gibb, who stated that of 4,600 healthy persons he had examined with the laryngoscope, the epiglottis was pendant instead of vertical. In some cases he found this formation hereditary. It led to a modification of the voice, tending towards a low tone in adult males, and preventing women from reaching the higher notes. In the department of Zoology, Sir John Lubbock read an interesting paper on the anatomy of Thysanura. The long leaps of these insects are taken by means of two long appendages bent under the body and forming a spring held by certain muscles under a small latch or catch. Directly this is released, the spring jerks back, and the creature is thrown upwards and forwards.

NOTES AND MEMORANDA.

THE NEWTON FORGERIES.-M. Chasles holds the extraordinary opinion that the quantity of the alleged Newton correspondence in his possession establishes its claim to authenticity. In opposition to M. Fougère and other French critics, who have detected the character of the letters, he brings forward comparatively trivial criticism on certain details of their objections. The age of Newton, and the date of some of the pretended letters, is quite sufficient to overthrow their claims, and so are the errors in the signature of his mother. M. Chasles declares that he will publish the documents, and that competent judges will do justice. It would surely be wiser first to remove the objections raised by Sir D. Brewster and M. Fougère. The first proves that Newton could not have done what is pretended, and the last brings strong reasons for considering the correspondence inconsistent with known facts concerning Pascal. M. Fougère says of the letters ascribed to different persons, "They agree together like false witnesses who have combined to stifle truth and obtain credit for falsehood."

THE EPIORNIS: THE GREAT BIRD OF MADAGASCAR.-M. Alf. Grandidier writes to the French Academy that his investigations in Madagascar tend to show that the Epiornis is really extinct, and, not as M. Isidor Geoffroy St. Hilaire hoped, still living in unknown parts of the island. Though perfect fossil eggs are rare, fragments are common. The oldest of the Antandrouis never heard of the bird, and they have no traditions of its existence; nevertheless, M. Grandidier does not think it has been extinct for any long period, as its remains are found in the most modern formations, whose development is still going on. "It existed," he says, "perhaps, at the commencement of our era, and as the country became peopled, it may have been quickly exterminated, like the Moa of New Zealand." M. M. Joly, describing an Epiornis's egg holding more than eight litres, belonging to M. Nau, states that that gentleman, who was for thirteen years a prisoner amongst the Hovas, and who traversed the island in all directions, considers the bird as totally destroyed, and the eggs are very rare. The Malgaches, he says, pretend that the female died after laying a single egg, and they consider the discovery of any remains of the bird to bode misfortune to the finder and to his family.

ACTION OF GREEN LIGHT ON PLANTS.-M. L. Cailletet details experiments on the influence of different coloured rays, and the decomposition of carbonic acid by plants. He observes that green light afforded unexpected results, whether this colour was obtained from a glass, vegetable leaves, or solutions. Under its influence carbonic acid is never decomposed; a fresh quantity of gas seems, on the contrary, to be produced by the leaves. When a glass containing pure air and a leaf was placed in full sunlight, under a green glass shade, after a few hours a quantity of carbonic acid was obtained, scarcely inferior to that which the leaf would have evolved in the dark. This experiment, he thinks, may explain the sickly condition of vegetation under large trees.

THE ABSORPTION OF OBSCURE HEAT.-M. Desains states (Comptes Rendus) that chloride of carbon is more easily traversed by obscure heat than sulphide of carbon, chloroform somewhat less, while benzine and glycerine, with a thickness of Om. 01, almost entirely stops the heat radiated from a blackened sheet of copper, heated to 400° (C.)

BICHROMATE OF POTASH AND ALBUMEN. POLARISCOPE OBJECT.-Mr. Thos. D. Smeaton sends us the following note from Robe, S. Australia. The action of albumen in modifying crystallization and making polariscopes is well known, but the particular plan adopted by Mr. Smeaton will interest our microscopic readers:-"In trying some photographic experiments I had occasion to coat a glass plate with the solution used in the carbon process (bichromate of potash, gelatine, and white of egg); this was left to dry slowly, when it presented a beautiful crystalline appearance. From the edges of the plate, fine arborescent shoots spread towards the centre, ending in larger twigs, enclosing ovoid loops. These were sometimes filled in with a clear yellow, sometimes with a dark orange, and occasionally with a feather of crystals so delicate as to challenge microscopic examination. The evenness of the ramifications, the wonderful manner in which they avoid crossing each other, and the varied colouring, tend to make the experiment well worthy of repetition. The solution (being solid at ordinary temperatures) must be floated on warm; and as it is already on glass, all that is needed for the preservation of the specimen is to place it face downwards on a piece of paper rather larger than the glass, to turn the edges over, and to gum them down.

POISONOUS FISHES.-The Annals Nat. Hist. has a translation of a paper on this subject by M. Duméril, containing some curious particulars. Risso ascribes the unwholesomeness of the Courpata found at Nice to its feeding on a highly irritating species of the jelly-fish, Stephenomia. Many species of fish are poisonous at certain seasons, the Conger is said to occasion dysentery if eaten at the time of depositing its eggs, and the eggs of pike and barbel are efficient purgatives. The "yellow-bill sprat" of the Antilles, in some instances, has caused death, with frightful convulsions, in the space of half an hour; another Meletta (venenosa), is almost equally formidable. A Tetraodon found at the Cape is very dangerous, and others of the same family are poisonous; and an Anchovy found in the Indian seas (Eugrantis balama) will prove fatal when eaten, if the precaution has not been taken of removing the head and intestines before cooking.

IN my notice of the Bell-bird and its allies,* I spoke of the difficulties hitherto experienced in the introduction of living representatives of the great fruit-eating families of birds of the tropics into this country, which, however, we had recently succeeded in overcoming in several instances. A case in point is that of the Barbets-a tolerably numerous and well-defined group of zygodactyle birds inhabiting the tropics of both hemispheres, of which, as far as I am aware, no living example had ever been imported into Europe prior to the arrival of the specimen figured in the accompanying illustration. This bird, although not by any means one of the largest or finest of the "Bucconidæ," as the family to which it belongs is termed, is of interest as representing a form hitherto unknown in our aviaries, and as being endowed with special modifications of structure to adapt it to a peculiar mode of life. First, therefore, I will state what is known of the life history of the present species, and its immediate allies. Then I will endeavour to point out some of the principles which are exemplified by the geographical distribution of the group to which it belongs.

The Blue-cheeked Barbet was first described by the veteran ornithologist Latham in the latter end of the last century, and provided with the not very specially appropriate name Asiatica. Latham regarded it as a kind of Trogon, and, as Trogons were in those days supposed to belong to America exclusively, called it the "Asiatic Trogon, Trogon Asiaticus." This specific name, however, being the first given, we are compelled, in compliance with the general usage of natural* INTELL. OBS., vol. x., p. 401.

VOL. XII.-NO. IV.

R