men shall be admitted to the courses of study, as out-ofdoor pupils, on payment of three francs a month. Modifications will doubtless be made in the scheme as now sketched, but there is little doubt that the proposed college will be established, and the Union Centrale may well be proud of being the first body which has thought of applying the principle of thorough collegiate education to industrial art. It is worthy of remark that the project is quite independent of the government; the first idea is said to have been thrown out by M. Duruy, the Minister of Public Instruction, who is indefatigable in improving the means of education of every kind, but the initiative is due to M. Guichard, the President of the Union Centrale, who not only drew out the scheme of the new college, but, in conjunction with M. Sajou, another member of the direction of the society, supplied the funds for securing the land on which the building is to be erected. M. Guichard is an architect and decorative artist, and M. Sajou a modeller of upholstery, so that the new college springs directly from the class to which it is to be devoted. Manufactures. Russia, and said that by the diffusion of more enlightened economical views upon this question the result in a few years would no doubt be the gradual reduction of the Russian tariff. Her Majesty's government were quite ready at any favourable opportunity to exert their influence with the Russian government to bring about such a change in our commercial relations with Russia as I would be conducive to the mutual advantage of the two countries. The gentlemen present formed themselves into a committee to examine the patterns of goods and report thereon. Commerce. THE INDIAN TEA TRADE.-This trade (says Travers' Circular) is still in its infancy, and though its prospects are far more satisfactory than those of Japan, there are still many difficulties to be overcome before it can reach the development of which it is capable. Although India is an old dependency, it is but a young colony; in fact, it is still in transition from one state to the other. The aboriginai inhabitants and the European settlers are in an anomalous position, mutually jealous of each other, and for the most part without any common interest or sympathies; and it is no easy task for the Government officials, brought up among the traditions of the old regime to accommodate themselves to the new state of things, and to observe a strict neutrality between the disputants. There is great room for improvement, also, in the regulations framed for the sale of waste land, suitable for the cultivation of tea; the present system appears to lead to great abuses, and to retard rather than to advance the object for which it was framed. But India possesses what Japan does not a stable and enlightened Government; old traditions are gradually dying out, as fresh legislators, with independent ideas, are brought in to fill up the gaps which so frequently occur even in the ranks of civilians serving in a tropical climate; education is spreading rapidly among the natives, and already a more intelligent class of colonists is being attracted by the prospect of obtaining, in a few years, at small risk of health, and with comparatively little labour, a competence which the work of half a life-time spent in Europe might fail to secure. The Indian tea plantations only require time to mature, and the skill of a sufficient number of intelligent Europeans, backed by a good supply of native workmen to perform the heavier manual labour, and the result is certain. The great experience in tea cultivation which the Chinese enjoy, aided by their industry and business ability-qualities for which the natives of India are not remarkable-will probably always make China the largest tea-producing country of the world; but their feeble government, and the unlimited exactions of their rulers, will be found to be serious drawbacks in a competition with a country living under British rule, and India, possessing this advantage, cannot long continue to be far behind in the race. BRADFORD CHAMBER of Commerce.-RUSSIAN TARIFF. -A special meeting of the Chamber of Commerce was held recently, at Bradford, for the purpose of meeting Mr. Michele, attaché to the British Embassy at St. Petersburg, who attended with patterns of Russian goods, similar to woollen and worsted fabrics manufactured in this district, upon which he desired to elicit the opinions of the chamber. H. W. Ripley, Esq., the president of the chamber, occupied the chair, and the other gentlemen present, besides Mr. Michele, were Mr. Alderman Mitchell, Mr. J. A. Unna, Mr. C. Stead, Mr. Jacob Behrens, and Mr. H. C. Churton, Mr. Hirst, of Leeds, and Messrs. Grierly and Jubb, of Batley. The President briefly introduced Mr. Michele, and stated that he had accompanied Mr. Lloyd, President of the Associated Chambers, and Mr. Goodman in their visit to the Moscow Exhibition. Mr. Michele, in introducing his patterns of goods to the notice of the meeting, said his principal object was to obtain as minute a report as possible of these goods, in order that, in the report he should have to submit to Earl Russell, he might make a comparison of the relative cost of the production of the two countries-Russia and England-because there were many arguments in favour of the reduction of the high rate of duty in Russia which might be deduced from such an inquiry. They would probably find that up to a certain point Russia produced qualities of goods with which foreign countries could not compete. On the other hand, the higher qualities were produced far cheaper and much better here. This might be an argument in favour of reducing the duties on those low qualities. Mr. Lloyd and Mr. Goodman had done good service in this direction-they had sown good seed, which, no doubt, in due time would germinate and bring forth fruit. Very probably within the next few years a COTTON CULTIVATION IN INDIA.-It appears, by the considerable reduction in the Russian tariff would be Cotton Supply Reporter, that the report of the Cotton made. There was great opposition on the part of the Commissioner of the Bombay Presidency upon the distrimanufacturers. The Russian government were not abso-bution of American seed, and the means taken to extend lutely opposed to the principles of free trade, but they the cultivation of the New Orleans variety, recently pubhad to defer to the opinion of the people they governed. lished by the Bombay Government, tends to explode the Public opinion in that country had great weight at the opinion so long and tenaciously held by those entrusted present time, and the Russian government were afraid of with the management of Indian affairs, that cotton of a committing themselves to any policy which might be con- quality to rank with American cannot be grown in India. demned by large sections of the people. Therefore, this The repeated recommendations of the Cotton Supply question would have to be agitated, and he had no doubt, Association to promote and encourage the growth of this with the aid of the press and by other means, it would description of cotton in that country have more than once ultimately be made manifest to the people of Russia that been met with the reply that the experiment had been they had nothing to fear from competition, but that, on tried and had failed, and that, therefore, it was useless to the contrary, their manufactures would be improved and repeat it. In these papers their own officer shows to the wider markets created. Mr. Michele cited some of the Government that not only has there been success in protectionist arguments which were at present used in Dharwar, as Mr. Shaw, to whose zealous and persevering exertions that success is mainly attributable, has long since demonstrated, but in other districts also where similar exertions have been made. In Mysore, the ryots of their own accord have taken up the cultivation of American seed. In the North-west Provinces and the Punjaub, the Commissioner fully believes that the introduction of the New Orleans cotton from acclimatised Dharwar seed will be successful, and he is satisfied that the failure in Berar is only temporary, and is owing to the deterioration which the seed had undergone from having been shut up in the heated and close atmosphere of the ship's hold, and to lateness in sowing. "It is held to have been demonstrated in this Berar experiment that cotton of staple and colour which will always hold its place in the British market may be grown to a good profit by Indian ryots in Central India." The conclusion adopted is, that not only will the acclimatised American plant thrive in many districts of the Punjaub and Northwest Provinces and elsewhere in India, but there is good ground to expect that "the home market will be extensively supplied" from those sources with this description of cotton. Our hope of India, though long deferred, is thus, it seems, to be realised at last. This much may at least be expected, that the representations and counsels so often urged upon those at the head of Indian affairs will now, thus corroborated, obtain a degree of attention which hitherto they have failed to command. Colonies. SUGAR CULTIVATION IN QUEENSLAND.-It seems now clearly proved that this class of cultivation has taken firm root in this colony, many thousand acres having been taken up for sugar-growing purposes, under the new regulations which grant a lease of any unoccupied Government land selected, at a very low figure, to actual cultivators, with a purchasing clause during any renewal or expiry of the lease, leaving the capital of the sugar-grower intact to further his business, and at the same time securing him the land as if he were a freeholder. There are tens of thousands of acres still available for sugar-growing. COTTON IN QUEENSLAND.-A considerable number of the cotton cultivators of this colony lately held a meeting to urge on the Government the necessity of continuing the cotton bonus regulations for a few years longer, and which there is every reason to expect will be done. The last season has fully proved the adaptability of the colony for growing cotton, the crop having proved a profitable during the ensuing year. A grant of £2,000 has been sanctioned by the colonial parliament; and, in order that ample time may be afforded to mechanics, artizans, and manufacturers to enter into competition, a royal commission will be appointed, and the conditions of the exhibition promulgated. The liberality of the Victorian government ought to receive such encouragement as will induce the colonies generally to participate in the advantages of the show, and remove those jealousies which, at the outset, are likely to operate against the scheme. Obituary. THOMAS WINKWORTH.-Another of the few remaining links between the past and present in the history of the Society of Arts has been severed. Death has recently removed from the Council table one of the oldest and most tried friends of the Society. In 1822, Thomas Winkworth was elected a member of the Society of Arts, and from that time he never ceased to take an active interest in its work. Born in 1790, the son of the Rev. William Winkworth, at the age of sixteen he was apprenticed to a silk manufacturer in Spitalfields, and thus became intimately connected with the commer. cial interests of his country. After serving the usual period of apprenticeship, and being made a freeman of the Fishmongers' Company, he established himself as a manufacturer and merchant in the City of London in 1819. He purchased the freedom of the Weavers' Company, and soon became known and active among those who, some forty years back, took steps to free the silk trade from the restrictions under which it was at that time carried on. He also gave great attention to all that was being done about the same period to improve the mechanical appliances of the weaver. Having joined the Society of Arts, he soon evinced a lively interest in its proceedings-an interest which was ever increasing and progressing. From his first entrance into life as a manufacturer he desired to be free from all the antiquated forms and practices which restricted industry, qelieving that, as in fashion, so in the modes of carrying on industries, the public demand a constant change, not so much in the materials employed as in the method and form of applying them. This conviction led him to give much time and attention to the Society of Arts, and in any and every effort to render that body more vigorous, his active co-operation was always to be relied on. He was one of those who helped to remove the restriction which prevented the Society from rewarding inventions when patented, a restriction which was in force up to 1844. In 1846 he advocated with other members the incorporation of the Society by Royal Charter. He very early recognised the importance of giving to Industrial Exhibitions an international character, and never ceased to take an active interest in them. He acted as Juror, and reported on the International Exhibitions of 1851, 1855, and 1862, as well as those of Dublin in 1854, and Florence in 1860. Since 1862 he allied himself to the movement which has spread so rapidly among the working classes and created so many displays of their industry at the time of his death he was both a trustee and guarantor of the North-East London Exhibition--now open. He was a warm advocate of all those measures which tended to improve the educational, social, and moral condition of the industrial classes. members of the Society well know how constant an attendant and zealous a worker he was at the Society's meetings, and the Journal contains many evidences of his zeal and good wishes for the prosperity of the Society of Arts. He died on the 15th September, after a few hours' INTERCOLONIAL EXHIBITION AT MELBOURNE.-The Legis- illness, at his residence in Canonbury, aged 75, and was lative Assembly having assumed the desirability of inter-interred at Highgate Cemetery, deeply regretted as an colonial exhibitions of industry and art, steps will be taken affectionate father, a sincere friend, and a useful and to hold the first intercolonial exhibition in Melbourne upright citizen. one. AN EXPEDITION has just started for the interior of the Australian continent. This time the object is not so much to obtain an acquaintance with the country-although that of course will be one of the results-as to solve the mystery of the life or death of Dr. Ludwig Leichardt, who, in 1848, started from the settled district of Queensland to endeavour to cross the continent to the Gulf of Carpentaria, and who has never yet been heard of. The mystery connected with his fate, commencing at this date, still remains to be cleared up after the elapse of 17 years. A subscription has been raised by the ladies' committee to the amount of £900. The Victorian and South Australian governments have contributed each £500; the Queensland government has given £1,000; the Sydney government intends to double private subscriptions. The party engaged to conduct the search consist of eleven persons, all accustomed to bush life, and mostly of middle age. None of them, however, except the leader and a surgeon, have been to previous explorations. They are accompanied by 14 camels and over 40 horses. The Publications Issued. LES OUVRIERS D'A PRESENT ET LA NOUVELLE ECONOMIE DU TRAVAIL. By M. Audiganne. (Paris. 8vo.)-An attempt, by an able writer, to indicate the various phases of the life of the working classes, and to show what influences are at work which may produce changes in the economy of labour. The labourer himself, the tools and machinery employed, and the principles of association, The are naturally three main heads of the discourse. author belongs to the 1 beral school of the economy of labour, but he does not commit himself to the announcement of any special theory for the future. CODE INTERNATIONAL DE LA PROPriete IndustrieLLE, By J. Pataille and A. ARTISTIQUE, ET LITTERAIRE. Huguet. (Paris. 8vo.)-A collection of the conventions and regulations of European governments respecting patents, literary productions, the theatre, music, the fine arts, trade marks, and piracy, with an explanatory intro duction. ANNALES DE LA PROPRIETE INDUSTRIELLE, ARTISTIQUE, ET LITTERAIRE. By J. Pataille and other writers. (Paris. 8vo.)-The eleventh number of an annual publication, containing a large amount of important facts and opinions relative to artistic, literary, and industrial questions. JOSEPH F. B. CHARRIERE, one of the most celebrated sur-ways on each side of it, and the walls of the arches of gical instrument makers in Europe, died recently. Science which it is composed, as well as of the viaduct beyond and humanity generally owe him a deep debt of gratitude the bridge on either side of the river, are pierced throughfor the immense improvements which he has made and out by two smaller arches, which will afford a double induced in the art to which he devoted himself. M. covered way for foot passengers for the distance of about a Charrière was born at Fribourg, in Switzerland, in 1803, mile. The whole is built of stone, carefully dressed and but he was apprenticed to a cutler in Paris; he was the finished, and presents a very elegant appearance. POSTAGE STAMPS.-A proposal has been made to the founder of the establishment which he conducted to the His instruments have earned him Minister of Finance, by French merchants, for the issue day of his death. medals and recompenses at numberless exhibitions; he was of postage-stamps of the value of five, ten, and twenty made Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 1844, and francs each, to be used not only for the prepayment of after the Great Exhibition of 1851 was raised to the grade heavy packets sent by post, but also for the discharge of small accounts. The existence of some such means of of officer of the order. payment between England and France would be a great boon, and now that a system of post-office orders exists between France and Italy, there is some natural impatience on the subject. For the payment of sums too small for cheques no ready means exists, although the rapid growth of relations between England and France so much demands such an arrangement. It has been asserted that the idea of a stamp for prepayment of postage originated in France in the reign of Louis XIV., but in the absence The following notice, said to have been of any proof of the fact, little attention was paid to the assertion. issued in the month of August, 1653, has appeared in a French newspaper:-" On fait sçavoir, y est-il dit, à tous ceux qui voudront escrire d'un quartier de Paris en un autre, que leurs lettres, billets où mémoires seront fidellement portés et dilligemment rendus à leur adresse, et qu'ils en auront promptement réponse, pourvu que, lorsqu'ils écriront, its mettent avec leurs lettres, un billet qui portera port payé, parce que l'on ne prendra point d'argent, lequel billet sera attaché à ladite lettre ou mis autour de la lettre ou passé dans la lettre, ou en telle autre manière qu'ils trouveront à propos, de telle sorte néanmoins que le commis le puisse voir et oster aysément. Chacun estant adverty que nulle lettre ni réponse ne sera portée, qu'il n'y aye avec icelle, un billet de port payé, dont la date sera remplie du jour et du mois qu'il sera envoyé, à quoy il ne faudra manquer, si l'on veut que la lettre soit portée. Le commis général qui sera au palais, vendra de ces billets de port payé à ceux qui en voudront avoir, pour le prix d'un sol marqué, et non plus, à peine de concussion; et chacun est adverty d'en acheter pour sa nécessité, le nombre qu'il lui plaira, afin que lorsqu'on voudra escrire, l'on ne manqne pas pour si peu de chose à faire ses affaires," with the following memorandum appended:-" Outre le billet de port payé, que l'on mettra sur cette lettre pour la faire partir, celuy qui escrira aura soing, s'il veut avoir réponse, d'envoyer un autre billet de port payé, enfermé dans sa lettre." The stamp, or rather ticket, as may be seen, from the above quotations, applied only to Paris, cost one "sol," or halfpenny, had to be purchased beforehand at the palace, might be fixed on or placed in the letter in any way, provided the clerks could see it, but required to have the day of the month when it was used marked upon it. Moreover, its use was rendered obligatory by the announcement in question. It was doubted whether this order had ever been carried into practice, but a letter addressed by M. Pelisson to Mdlle. COMPOUND BRIDGE.-A new bridge, constructed over de Scuderi, to which such a ticket had been attached, is the Seine, between St. Cloud and Sèvres, has recently said to be in the possession of M. Feuillet de Conches. been opened for foot-passengers and vehicles. It is a com- At any rate it is clear that the system was soon abanpound bridge, for general traffic and also for the con-doned, and that no method of payment by means of In the following year the issue of stamps tinuance of the Auteuil railway, which by its means will stamps or tickets was in use in France until the year be carried almost to the gate of the Exhibition of 1867, 1849. and also placed in connection with the Chemin de Fer de amounted to 21,523,175; in 1864 it was 382,655,450. Ceinture, which connects all the main lines of railway The value of the annual augmentation since 1854 has having termini in Paris. The bridge is a handsome, varied between three and four millions of francs. though simple structure, of five arches, about 360 or 370 feet long, and perfectly level, the banks being high at the spot where it crosses the Seine. The total width of the bridge is full 90 feet, and affords room for the railway viaduct, two carriage-roads, each twenty feet wide, and two broad footpaths. The viaduct occupies the centre of the bridge; it is about forty feet high above the carriage Notes. TAPESTRIES AT HAMPTON COURT PALACE.-The removal of the miscellaneous portraits from one of the long galleries of this palace to the Cartoon Gallery has disclosed a fine series of decorative tapestries on the walls, which are of the latter part of the seventeenth century, It is to be hoped that and are well fitted to the room. Mr. Cowper will allow them to remain, being part of the original decorations of the building, and much more appropriate and decorous than a number of miscellaneous portraits hung without any classification. CHEMICAL SCIENCE IN GERMANY.-Such is the appreciation of chemical science in Germany, that at the present time two large chemical laboratories, on the most complete scale, are in course of being erected in Berlin and Bonn, at the expense of the state. They will cost, it is said, about £75,000. VINTAGE IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF PARIS.-The vintage began in some parts of France as early as the middle of August, and nearly everywhere in the first week in the present month. It is not perhaps generally known that from seventy to eighty thousand casks of wine are produced annually in the district to the north of Paris, and of which Argenteuil is the centre. There are about fifteen hundred vine growers in the locality in question. The vintage commenced on the 7th September, about nine thousand persons being engaged to aid in the gathering. The opening of the vintage is officially announced, and labourers, male and female, come from all parts to the little town of Argenteuil, where they camp in the streets for the night, roasting potatoes for their supper by bonfires, and singing and dancing till three in the morning, when the vine growers appear, engage as many hands as they require, and march off home, each at the head of their squad. The scene is one of the most extraordinary that can be witnessed when the narrow streets of Argenteuil are filled with ten thousand men, women, and youths, all determined to enjoy their annual fête. The great abundance of grapes, and the heat of the weather made the scene this year more noisy and more exciting than usual. It is calculated that the yield will reach nearly a hundred thousand pieces, or about six millions of gallons. In old times, when the crop was good, a cask was often filled for fifteen or twenty francs, say about three pence per gallon, but in 1855 the price had risen to considerably over a hundred francs. A hundred years ago the wine of Argenteuil was considered equal if not superior to Burgundy or Champagne; if that appreciation was a just one, the metropolitan grapes must have sadly deteriorated, or the products of the latter provinces greatly improved, unless indeed a great change has come over men's palates, for certainly at the present moment no one will drink the wine of Argenteuil if he can obtain any other. ECONOMIC RAILWAYS.-In the Journal of the 7th of July last will be found an account of the measures adopted by the French Government for the extension of the railway system to the rural districts of the country, and of the economical arrangements connected with the plan. The realisation of the object in view depends, in some measure, on the adoption of light and efficient engines, and the government has recently purchased the free use of a locomotive designed by an engineer named Rarchaert, for the purpose of running on light rails, and passing over sharp curves and steep inclines. M. Rarchaert's engine, with tender and fuel, does not exceed twenty tons in weight, has four pairs of wheels, coupled, and will not require rails exceeding forty pounds in weight to the mètre. The pressure of each wheel would thus be equal to two tons and a half, while that of the locomotives in use on the great lines ranges between five and six and a half tons, and the rails themselves weigh from seventy to eighty pounds per mètre. The engine is said to be able to draw 640 tons, in addition to its own weight, on a level, 310 tons up an ascent of 5 in 1,000, and so on, to 74 tons on a gradient of 30 in 1,000; and, at a speed of from eighteen to twenty-four miles an hour, it will, according to the inventor, work safely on curves of a minimum radius of sixty mètres; and, therefore, by adopting gradients varying from 12 to 30 in 1,000, nearly all necessity for tunnels, viaducts, and embankments would be avoided. The inventor calculates that under his system the average cost of these local railways will not exceed 60,000 francs the kilomètre, or less than £4,000 per English mile. Patents. From Commissioners of Patents Journal, September 29th. Breech-loading fire-arms and cartridges-2345-F. W. Prince. Cotton wool, &c., combing-2164-G. Little. Crucibles-1884-G. Nimmo. Dry docks, floating-2387-E. Clark. Effervescing drinks-2377-O. W. Jeyes. Electro-magnetism as a break power on railways-2238-E. Cowpe and D. Hancock. Fire-arms-2275-J. Snider. Flying toys-2208-H. A. Bonneville. Gases made in smelting iron, separating dust from-2391–E. A. Knitting cotton, winding-2311-H. Shanks. Mills for grinding-2264-W. Barford and T. Perkins. Ships and other vessels, propellers for-1645-C. Hook and A. Peace. Spinning frames-2343-A. V. Newton. Stafford, and W. P. McCallum. Steam boilers, preventing incrustation in-2272-J. Howard, W. Submarine telegraph cables-2341-J. O. C. Phillips. Tobacco, cutting-2359-E. T. Read. Mackie and J. P. Jones. Watches, &c., winding-up-2274—R. A. Brooman. Windows, opening and closing-2319-J. Pennington. INVENTIONS WITH COMPLETE SPECIFICATIONS FILED. 722. N. N. Solly. PATENTS SEALED. 906. J. and D. Swarbrick, B. 907. L. Bridge. 908. J. Poole and T. Brown. 923. R. A. Brooman. 945. J. R. Wigham. 948. A. and H. Illingworth. 954. W. Moody &W. J. Huband. 962. J. G. N. Alleyne, 963. H. Simon. 971. F. R. Ensor. 972. C. Esplin. 986. P. Hugon. 991. S. Smith and J.W.Jackson. 1029. J. H. Johnson. 1038. J. Haworth. 1049. J. S. Bickford. 1086. J. E. H. Andrew. 1108. J. Y. Betts. 1151. G. Davies. 1834. N. Jenkins. 1909. W. S. Yates & A. Freeman. "ON SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT CHEMICAL COVERIES MADE WITHIN THE LAST TWO YEARS." DR. F. CRACE CALVERT, F.R.S., F.C.S. LECTURE II. [No. 673. VOL. XIII. Exhibition of Fishing AppliancesAsylum for the Middle ClassesNames of Streets in Paris-International Postal Arrangements 725 Patents ... 726 726 apparatus presents:--Common coal gas, Ashburton flat flame, fish-tail, and batwing, does not yield a light of 1.5 standard sperm candles per foot, though it yields the light of 2-4 candles per foot when burnt in a 15-hole DIS-naphthalin vapour to each foot of this gas the light-giving argand with a 7-in. chimney. By adding 31.5 grains of BY value is raised to between seven and eight candles per DELIVERED ON TUESDAY, THE 11TH OF APRIL, 1865. On the Discoveries in Chemistry applied to Arts and Manu factures.-(Continued.) One of the most curious and important applications which have lately been made of chemistry to manufactures is that of coal gas as a means of obtaining intense heats. In fact, heats have been secured which far exceed those previously obtained by the combustion of coals and other carbonaceous matters. foot, according to the constitution of the gas with which the vapour is burnt. Oils do not yield quite so high a result as naphthalin, but they afford from 4.5 to 5 times the light given by gas alone. To show the economy of gas, I may cite the following results, given to me by Mr. Bowditch:-A gallon of oil, sold retail for 2s., is capable of producing, with 1,000 ft. of London gas, more light than is given by 4,000 ft. of gas, or 4s. 6d. gas and 2s. oil against 18s. gas alone. The hydrocarbon vessel requires charging about once in 14 to 16 days. But let us now return to the production of intense heat by the combustion of coal gas. This is effected by burnTo understand how this result has been effected, it is ing gas with an excess of air, generally speaking, under necessary that I should say a few words on the combus-pressure, so as to bring into contact in a given space tion of coal gas. When coal gas is ignited, the oxygen of time a large quantity of gases, especially an excess of the atmosphere first combines with the hydrogen of of oxygen, with a view of rendering perfect combustion the hydro-carbons, either gaseous or sufficiently vola- of coal gas. The first instance, to my knowledge, tile to assume a gaseous form, so as to produce water. of the perfect combustion of coal gas as a commercial Whilst a part of the carbon of these hydro-carbons com- application, was its use in machines for singeing cotton bines with the oxygen to produce carbonic acid, the other and woollen fabrics, or for the purpose of removing portions of carbon float in the mass of ignited gaseous from their surface all loose and useless fibres. One of the matters, and reach a sufficient temperature to radiate most perfect machines which I have yet examined for light in all directions. It follows, therefore, that the richer accomplishing this purpose has been lately introduced to the coal gas is in hydro-carbons, into the composition of the notice of manufacturers by Joshua Schofield and Sons, which enters a large proportion of carbon, the more bril- of Manchester. The great merit of their machine conliant will be the flame. sists in the fact that by it they can vary either the intensity of the flame or its length according, to the pressure at which the gases in combustion are made to issue from the machine. In fact, they can adapt with such nicety the action of the machine to the nature of the fabrics they have to singe, that it can be applied to the finest fabric, such as cambrics, and to some of the heaviest materials in cotton, such as fustian. This is beautifully illustrated by an invention which I have the pleasure of showing you through the kindness of the Rev. Mr. Bowditch, of Huddersfield, who has lent me one of the apparatuses which he has lately invented to increase the illuminating power of inferior coal gas, and which has been applied with success in the city of London by its learned officer of health, Dr. Letheby. It consists in the introduction of carburetted hydrogens, rich in carbon, into the flame of ordinary coal gas, thus enhancing in a marked degree its illuminating power. This apparatus consists of :—A gas-tight metallic vessel, which holds the hydrocarbons, and which has an inlet connected with a gas supply and an outlet connected with the burner. The gas in its course passes over the surface of the hydro-carbons. Being above the flame, the vessel and its contents become heated, and part of the latter is converted into vapour, which the passing gas carries with it to the burners to enrich the flame. The following are the advantages which Mr. Bowditch's The most remarkable example of the intense heat which can be obtained by the combustion of gases was brought into notice a few years since by that distinguished chemist M. H. St. Clair-Deville (the discoverer of aluminium), by which he succeeded not only in melting several metals which, until his experiments, had resisted all other modes of effecting their fusion, but in melting in his laboratory as much as 25lbs. of platinum, one of the most refractory metals known, and running it into one solid ingot. In 1862, the well-known metallurgists, Messrs. Johnson and Matthey, |