of absorption or maceration. Several other flowers besides those named are sometimes submitted to these processes, such as mignionette, lilac, hawthorn, wall-flower, lily, heliotrope, sweet-pea, &c., but the quantities obtained are so small that they have hitherto been mere experiments, and we are still obliged to compound all these perfumes artificially by studying resemblances and affinities, and blending the shades of scent as a painter does the colours on his palette. Thus, for instance, we imitate heliotrope with the aid of vanilla, sweet-pea by a mixture of rose and orange flowers, magnolia with tuberose, orange flower, and a dash of lemon, &c.

Flowers for perfumery purposes are principally grown in the neighbourhood of Grasse, Cannes, and Nice, three towns situated in the South of France, close to each other. The manufacture of perfumery materials forms one of the principal branches of industry in that district, giving employment to upwards of ten thousand people, including many women and children, for whom the work of culling flowers and picking off the stalks is particularly suitable. These flowers are generally grown by small farmers, who contract with the perfumers for their crop, with the exception of orange flowers, which are always sold on the market. The prices flowers realize vary a good deal, according to the abundance of the crop. They average as follows:

8. d.

Roses...............from 0 4
Orange flowers
Jasmines.........

Violets
Tuberose
Cassie
Jonquils..

to

d. per lb.

8

0 10

1

10012231

b """"""

14606300

0 6

1

1

1

...........

............ 29

20
1

6

20

0
6

The principal plants from which essential oils are made are lavender (Lavandula vera), spike (Lavandula spica), peppermint (Mentha piperita), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), wild thyme (Thymus serpyllum), and marjoram (Origana majorana), which all grow wild in the neighbouring mountains, and are distilled on the spot by means of portable stills. An essential oil is also extracted from geranium (Pelargonium odoratissimum), which, from its strong rosy flavour is much prized by perfumers, and the bitter orange leaves yield a powerful essence named Petit-grain, which is used in eau de Cologne. The following table gives the average quantities of flowers and plants required to make 1lb. of essential oil.

greater part of those used in France for perfumery would only grow here in hot-houses. The only flower which might be had in abundance would be the rose, but the smell of it is very faint compared with that of the Southern rose, and the rose-water made in this country can never equal the French in strength. If we add to this the shortness of the flowering season, and the high price of land and labour, we may arrive at the conclusion that such a speculation would be as bad as that of attempting to make wine from English grapes. As a proof of this, I may mention that I had a specimen submitted to me not long since of a perfumed pommade which a lady had attempted to make on a flower-farm, which she had been induced to establish in the north of England, and it was, as I expected, a complete failure. The only two perfumery ingredients in which the English really excel are lavender and peppermint, but that is owing to the very cause which would militate against the success of other flowers in this country, for our moist and moderate climate gives those two plants the mildness of fragrance for which they are prized, whilst in France and other countries they grow strong and rank.

Before I take leave of the subject of distillation, I may be allowed to mention my system of vaporizing perfumes, which is a sort of inverted distillation, for whilst the object of distilling is to concentrate the aroma of fragrant substances, that of vaporizing is to divide it ad infinitum. I was led to this discovery in a very curious way. Some years ago, Madame Céleste was bringing out at the Lyceum a new fairy piece, called Chrystabelle; or, the Rose without a Thorp." The great transformation scene was to represent a bower of roses, and she came to me to ask if I could supply her with some means of diffusing the scent of roses during that scene. My first answer was that it could not be done, as the various systems for perfuming the air had been hitherto confined to the combustion of aromatic gums and woods, which all gave an incense flavour very unlike roses. On thinking over the matter, however, it struck me that steam, owing to its great power of extension, might be used as a vehicle for carrying fragrant molecules in a rapid and powerful manner through the atmosphere. I constructed an apparatus on this principle, and the experiment succeeded so well that the perfume vaporizer has been used extensively since, not only for scenic effects, but also on a reduced scale in ball-rooms, apartments, &c. The peculiar advantage of this system is to give the fragrance of any particular flower in all its purity; thus on the day of the marriage of the Prince of Wales, the reception rooms adjoining St. George's Chapel, which had been perfumed in that way, breathed an atmosphere of violets, though none were to be seen. The potency of these vapours is also so great that a large theatre like Her Majesty's or Covent Garden is entirely filled with them in five minutes. Now, by substituting aromatic plants for flowers, you produce reviving fumes, which have been thought sufficiently prophylactic to be adopted by the Royal College of Surgeons and several hospitals. The question has been discussed and not satisfactorily settled,

QUANTITIES OF FLOWERS, &C., REQUIRED TO MAKE ONE whether these aromatic fumes destroy or only cover un

pleasant and deleterious smells-but it is very certain that they render them totally imperceptible, and that is a great point gained. There is a very curious fact connected with these scented vapours, which is that the weakest perfume, such as that of violet, is sufficient to overcome a strong persistent smell like that of tobacco. I have often tried this experiment myself by lighting a small vaporizer in a room where several persons had been or were still smoking, and in the course of a few minutes nothing but the perfume was perceptible. I shall feel much obliged to any scientific man who can give me the cause of this phenomenon.

The apparatus usually employed for vaporising perfumes consists in a water-bath containing a pan fitted with a bent pipe, the lower end of which is bored with small holes. Perfumed water is placed in the water-bath, and

Decoration of buildings, wall, decorations, furniture, works
in metal, precious metals and costly substances, glass and
ceramic wares,
tissues for clothing and domestic use,
miscellaneous articles, including carriages, arms, cutlery,
bookbinding, and ornaments; and lastly, printing, en-
graving, and photography. The iron work applied to
architectural and domestic purposes exhibits decided pro-
gress, especially that in which the ornamentation is pro-
duced by the hammer in the old style. A pair of park
gates, pedestals and brackets for lamps, chandeliers,
fire-dogs, fire-irons, and many other articles, exhibit great
manual dexterity, coupled with simplicity and purity of
design. Of chased, enamelled, and decorated goldsmiths'
work there are some beautiful examples in the Exhibition;
a portable communion service, or chapelle, as it is called,
in silver gilt, engraved and studded with precious stones,
exhibited by M. Geffroy, of which the forms, the en-
graving, and the whole of the workmanship are solid and
extremely elegant; a silver beer tankard decorated with
hopbine in repoussé work in the old German style, by M.
Fannière; a silver gilt casket, ornamented with enamels
and set with stones, from the well-known house of
Froment Meurice; cups and other articles in steel, chased,
engraved, and ornamented in the style of Louis the
Thirteenth, by M. Philippe; a noble vase and other
works in silver, chased and oxidized, by Rudolphi; silver
and plated ware exhibited by M. Veyrat, and many other
remarkable works of the same kind. Porcelain and
faience, especially the latter, also exhibit the same spirit
of artistic revival, not yet quite so fully developed. In
the exhibition are many direct reproductions of the works
of Palissy and other famous potters, executed with more
or less ability, but there are also innumerable specimens
of the judicious application of the old styles to modern
taste. The large vases and other objects in faïence
scarcely exhibit so much skill in their manufacture as
many of the productions of our own makers, but the
decorated slabs and medallions exhibit a rare amount of
artistic talent, and in some the colours are perfect,
especially the blue. At present the cost of this artistic
pottery is high, but it is evident that the time is approach-
ing when they will be brought within the reach of almost
everyone, and a brighter and more durable species of
decoration it is hardly possible to imagine. French
cutlery is another branch of manufacture which is making
great strides, and the specimens in the Exhibition deserve
special attention. Bronzes, gilt, and other ornamental
wares for which Paris has so deserved a reputation are, of
course, well represented, but they present no special pro-
gress or novelty.

PUBLIC STATUES IN FRANCE.-A grand fête took place last week at Villiers Bocage, a small place not far from Caen, in Normandy, at the inauguration of the statue of Richard Lenoir, who for forty years laboured with the greatest energy, and did the most signal service for the French cotton manufacture, and yet, after being one of the wealthiest manufacturers in France, and having laid the foundation of thousands of fortunes, died a poor man. The statue, by Louis Rochet, is one of the happiest efforts to give dignity to a costume of the most ungainly and unpromising character; the large frock-coat of the empire, with its square, stiff, prominent collar, which the artist has treated with daring exactitude, artistically seizing upon the ample skirt to break the formality of the effect, and give a flowing form to his outline. Richard Lenoir, besides being an industrial hero, and almost a martyr, engraved his name on the memory of his countrymen by placing himself at the head of his workmen and aiding in the last struggle against the legitimists and their allies in 1815. Villiers Bocages, the place of his birth, does not contain more than twelve hundred inhabitants, but thousands flocked to the inauguration from all parts of France. A statue has also been raised in honour of the astronomer Arago, at his birth place, Estagel, in the department of the Pyrenées Orientales; the sculptor, M. Oliva, is also a native of the Pyrenées.

Manufactures.

COPPER SMOKE.-The following is from the Reader:Several ineffectual attempts have been made, during the last fifty years, to abate the nuisance caused by the copper smoke which is given off during the calcining of the ore. Copper-smelters are in the habit of paying large sums as compensation for the damage done to the vegetation in the neighbourhood of their works by the clouds of valuable copper smoke which are allowed to pass into the air. Thousands of pounds are annually wasted in this manner; but up to the present time no plan has been found to answer practically for utilizing the smoke. Messrs. Vivian and Sons, the eminent copper-smelters of Swansea, who have already made great efforts in this direction, are about to adopt an improved roasting furnace, for which the inventor, M. Gerstenhöfer, a chemist of Freiberg, took out a patent in 1863. It has hitherto been the practice to perform the roasting operation either in kilns, grate furnaces, or muffles. In the first case, the stamped ores are mixed with clay or loam, and formed into balls, which are then dried. When muffles are used, the pounded pyrites is spread on plates of fireclay, and required to be kept continually stirred to expose fresh surfaces to the air. Neither of these processes answers practically. M. Gerstenhöfer's improved turnace is described as consisting of "a vertical chamber, constructed of fire-brick, and fitted with a series of horizontal bearers (formed of fire-brick) distributed evenly through the body of the furnace, for the purpose of intercepting, and thereby distributing the crushed ore as it is discharged through the top of the furnace from suitable feeding boxes. ****The upper face of the bearers is made flat, to receive the ore, and after accumulating on the upper bearer it slides off on to those lower down, and so on, until it finally falls to the bottom of the furnace, at which time it is supposed to have parted with its sulphur." The gases, passing out at the mouth of the furnace, are led into a large chamber; first, however, heating the pipes which supply air to the grate, where they deposit

the dust of roasted ores, and also the arsenious acid." The gases are now ready to pass into the ordinary sulphuric acid chambers. The inventor states in his specification that the Royal Saxon Sulphuric Acid Works have made a trial with a furnace of the improved construction with so great a success that it is now almost exclusively employed for the roasting of pyrites at that establishment." The working of this furnace has been carefully investigated by Messrs. Vivian, who expect to make 1,000 tons of sulphuric acid per week from the copper smoke, which would otherwise be worse than wasted. We are, therefore, not surprised to hear that Messrs. Vivian have paid the inventor £4,000 for his patent right.

WAKEFIELD INDUSTRIAL AND FINE ART EXHIBITION.This exhibition was opened by the president, Lord Houghton, on Wednesday, 30th August. The inaugural address was delivered by the president, after which the Archbishop of York and other gentlemen spoke at length on the advantages to be derived from such exhibitions. The building in which the exhibition is held consists of a lare vestibule, with a picture gallery on either side. Besides these galleries, the temporary building contains a large central hall, 100ft. by 60ft., and a refreshment room. The Tammy Hall is entered by steps from the central hall, and contains, besides offices, a lower room with shafting, which, in consequence, has been assigned to machinery in motion; above this is an upper room, the walls of which are covered with a neutral tint. The exhibition is held in six rooms, which contain about 17,000 square feet of floor and table space, and 17,000 square feet of wall space. The number of exhibitors, including the fine arts department and chil dren, amount to 1,300.

EXHIBITION AT THE SARACEN FOUNDRY, GLASGOW.—A private exhibition of the articles produced in the leisure

1

hours of the workmen in this establishment was recently this year show a surplus of 1,769 tons in the export held in the Moulders' Shop, which had been set apart for deliveries, as compared with the first half of 1864. Coffee the purpose. The origin of so novel an attempt was as planters need thus have no fear of extending their operafollows:-For several years back the moulders have been tions at present-the more so as the United States will in the habit, on the occasion of their annual excursion in be more and more in the market. At the same time, August, of decorating their sand heaps with devices of we fear that the use of coffee in England will be still various kinds, and last year so much talent was displayed further diminished by the late reduction in the tea duty." in this respect, that the company awarded prizes to the COAL TRADE IN EUROPE.-The extraction of coal in more remarkable of the designs, and intimated that next France in 1863 was estimated at 10 million tons, and the year they would award prizes to the amount of £22 28., import of foreign coal was 5,344,260 tons; the consumpin connection with a private industrial exhibition in the tion amounted to 882 lbs. per head. Belgium produced foundry, which would include not only specimens of the 10 million tons, but exported 3,500,000 tons. The 64 men's own ingenuity, but also that of their families and million tons which it consumes represents 2,822 lbs. per of their female friends. The employés themselves sub-head, or three times as much as France. England proscribed an equal amount, and the result was the present duces 86 million tons of coal, of which 7,934,000 tons exhibition. One rule of the exhibition was a rather were exported. The internal consumption, therefore, is noticeable one, namely, that no articles were allowed to about 78 million tons, which represents 6,394 lbs. per be exhibited illustrating the company's manufacture, so head, or about seven times as much as in France. Onethat the specimens on view were in an unusual degree the third of the coal used in France is imported from England, result of natural genius. There were in all eight sections Belgium, and Prussia. -namely, 1. For the best object in either nature, art, or industry. 2. For the best essay delivered at the Saracen Foundry Mutual Improvement Society during the session 1864 5. 3. For the best object or decoration made in moulding sand by journeyman moulders. For the best object or decoration made in moulding sand by apprentice moulders. 4. For the best specimen of female industry in needlework, knitting, &c. 5. For the best drawing. 6. For the best original composition in prose or verse. 7. For the best writing. 8. For the best specimen of writing by counting-house employés only. In one of these sections there were 36 competitors, and in another 24, and many of the articles shown were such as to reflect highly on the skill and industry of the exhibitors. The third section was in many respects the most interesting of all, comprising as it did numerous and curious designs in moulding sand. The first prize was for an elaborate design illustrative of the parable of the Good Shepherd; and the second for an imitation of Burns' monument. Mr. Walter Macfarlane, of the Saracen Foundry Company, delivered an address, and distributed the prizes.

Commerce.

COFFEE.-Messrs. Travers' circular says:-"The progressive decline in the consumption of coffee is surprising, as the quantities of nearly all other articles of produce have become much greater of late years. The home consumption reached its highest point for the last fifteen years in 1854, when it amounted to 16,674 tons; in 1864 it was only 14,000 tons, and we have now to chronicle a decrease of 315 tons for the first six months of 1865, as compared with the corresponding part of 1864. The reduced cost of tea, and the rapid advance it has made in public favour, have principally brought about this result; but, at the same time, the smaller use of coffee may, to a great extent, be traced to the way in which it is generally prepared in England. The preparation of coffee for use requires some little care and attention, which are seldom bestowed upon it by English people. The result is that we, as a nation, drink the worst-flavoured coffee in Europe, although we are supplied with the best raw material, and can pay the best price for it. The preparation of tea, on the other hand, requires little care, and the result is always certain, if enough be put in the pot. Labour being dear and time of value, coffee in England goes to the wall, and tea usurps its place. On the continent the contrary is the case, and coffee is as yet in the ascendant. England is the chief entrepôt from which continental supplies are drawn; and we may thus form a tolerably correct inference of the state of consumption abroad by the exports from British ports. These amounted in 1854, when our home consumption was at its highest, to 14,548 tons; but in 1864 amounted to no less than 35,406 tons; and the Board of Trade returns for the six months of

CLOCKS AND WATCHES IMPORTED.-From a return recently issued, it appears that in the seven months ended the 31st July, as many as 129,082 clocks and 86,814 watches were imported free of duty.

Colonies.

PROGRESS IN NEW SOUTH WALES.-The increase of population by immigration to New South Wales, from 1860 (after separation from Queensland) to 1864 inclusive, has been-Immigrants, arrived under Government Assisted Immigration Regulations, 15,903; other arrivals from Great Britain, in excess of departures to Great Britain in five years, only 1,495; arrivals by sea from other colonies and foreign ports in excess of departures to same, 480; arrivals by sea of Chinese in excess of departures, 5,721; total, 23,599. Notwithstanding the depression of the times, the purchase of land by free settlers goes on rapidly. The total quantity purchased from the time when the Act came into operation (1st January, 1862) to 30th September, 1864 (2 years and 9 months), being no less than 630,653 acres, and the sum paid as deposits alone during that time amounting to nearly £160,000. the quantity of land selected in 1864:— The following figures give the number of purchasers and

From almost every district the most encouraging statements respecting the progress the colonists are making are received.

SILVER MINES IN NEW SOUTH WALES.-It has been determined to resume operations at the Mornya Silver Mines by a new process, which has been tried with a model machine on the ores of this mine, and which is stated to have been completely successful in extracting the precious metals. Two trials have been made on the ore with very satisfactory results, the first trial giving four ounces of gold and ten ounces of silver to the ton of ore, and the second trial giving three ounces of gold and fourteen ounces of silver to the ton of ore.

NEW TARIFF IN NEW SOUTH WALES.-The act to impose stamp duties would come into operation on the 1st of July. It is estimated that the revenue to be derived from these duties will amount to £150,000. On the 25th May the treasurer proposed an addition of 20 per cent. customs duties on all goods included in the tariff, and a duty of 1s. on all goods imported into the colony. The resolutions submitted to the Assembly met with some opposition, and were amended by exempting tea, sugar, brandy, and gin from the package duty.

COPPER MINES IN NEW SOUTH WALES.-The reports from these mines continue to be of a satisfactory character. The quality of ore is improving, and the lodes are more productive as depth is obtained.

Notes.

CITY HORTICULTURE.-A recent number of the Scottish Farmer says that a large number of influential gentlemen in Edinburgh have lately associated themselves for the support of what may be termed a WorkingClass City Horticultural or Window Gardening Society. The promoters of this philanthropic movement issued a circular in March last inviting working people to contribute to a flower show for the working classes living in the various districts of Edinburgh. Prizes of sums from 18. to 5s. were given, open to working men and women; and prizes from 6d. to 2s., open to boys and girls under 15 years of age. Any flowering plant was admitted. In all, 114 prizes were offered. It appears that there are now, both in Edinburgh and Glasgow, some very successful examples of area gardening, where, considerably under the street levels, healthy and well-grown ferns, including that most elegant of all, the Osmunda regalis, as well as many kinds of shrubby, herbaceous, and climbing plants, are thriving in vigorous luxuriance, the evil effects of the street dust and city smoke being counteracted by frequent washings of the foliage, and that generally by merely sprinkling it with water from the finely-drilled rose of a small watering-pan, discharged occasionally shower-like from the higher windows, or over the railings from the street above. With regard to the choice of plants for this purpose, the above-named journal says:-"There are many plants which will not thrive under the best management in town windows, areas, &c.,-let all such be discarded; and we would further recommend workingclass cultivators not to be too ambitious in their selection, but to choose from observation those plants most suitable, whether native or exotic, hardy or tender. To juvenile growers of hanging pot plants we would say, have an eye to that hardy and pretty woodland native 'creeping jenny,' also called herb twopence,' and still more earnedly Lysimachia nummularia. Aspire to the possession of a plant of the recently-introduced hardy Japan honeysuckle, which is unsurpassed for the beauty of its golden lace-like foliage; and do not neglect the common ivy, one of the easiest managed of evergreen creepers, and of which there are now about half a hundred varieties in cultivation, all differing from one another in the colour, form, and size of their leaves; and among these, some with variegated and spotted, as well as peculiarly-formed green foliage, are unsurpassed as flower-pot evergreens, either for growing inside or outside. The general attention now and lately bestowed upon window gardening has been the means of calling forth several highly interesting and useful publications and essays on the subject; foremost among which is the paper read by Mr. John Bell before the Society of Arts last session."

SPECIAL EDUCATION IN FRANCE.-The Minister of Public Instruction has just issued a circular to the Prefects of departments announcing the intention of the Government to establish a special normal school at Cluny. The object is to create a class of teachers which neither the high schools of Paris nor the primary normal schools supply, instructed in matters connected with the applied sciences, and able to explain to the pupils not only the principles of industrial operations, but also the methods in actual practice. The new school is to be established in the ancient Benedictine abbey at Cluny, a spot well situated for the purpose, being in the centre of a rich province, where all forms of cultivation are to be found-cornland, meadow, vineyard, and forest, near Creuzot, the seat of a great mechanical industry, on the one hand, and Lyons on the other, and not far from St. Etienne; so that the pupil teachers will be placed in very advantageous cir

cumstances. Candidates are to be admitted by competition, in order that all may be nearly on a par as regards general instruction, and the pupils will receive their diplomas after public examination. The school will be open to all on the above conditions, but the Government will support the pupil teachers required for the Lycées. The departments are called upon to aid the work by applying one or two of the scholarships in each primary normal school to the new establishment, the pupil teachers to be selected from the departmental schools by competition. The modes of carrying out the object in question are not yet fully decided on, but the Minister expresses his intention of proposing to the Emperor that the pupils who pass their examination in the new school shall enjoy a portion of the advantages attaching to University degrees; and announces further that as the professors of the new school must be men of high standing, and as the laboratories, workshops, collections, gardens, and other means of practical study, must be complete, the value of each bourse will be higher than in the ordinary normal schools, and he fixes it at eight hundred francs (£32).

Patents.

From Commissioners of Patents Journal, September 1st.
GRANTS OF PROVISIONAL PROTECTION.

Copying presses-1624-P. Lawrence and G. Jeffreys.
Fuel, combustion of in furnaces, &c.-1972-B. Robinson & J.Varley.
Illusory exhibitions-1983-T. W. Tobin and Colonel Stodare.
Iron-1964-E. Sabel.
Iron-1970-W. W. Biggs.
Levels, &c., adjusting-2065-A. Budenberg.
Roofing tiles and slabs-1991-F. Ransome.
Shells, fuses for-1989-A. Noble.
Ships, water-closets for-1740-H. W. Rosser.
Soils, preparation of-1935-T. Spencer.
Spindles, lubrication of-2059-J. H. Radcliffe.
Steam, apparatus for condensing-1180-A. Francis.
Steam valves, conical plug-1956-W. E. Newton.
Steam, indicating pressure of-1497-F. N. Gisbourne.
Water, drawing-1996-J. McEwan and W. Neilson.

INVENTIONS WITH COMPLETE SPECIFICATIONS FILED.

Alcohols, distilling and rectifying-2203-H. A. Bonneville.
Elastic subttances, compression of-2205-H. A. Bonneville.
Skate, roller-2221-W. P. Gregg.

Velvet-2204-H. A. Bonneville.