Q. Did Mr Douglas, clerk to the trustees, give you that coat? A. How do you ken ony thing about that?

Q. I ask you, did Mr Douglas, clerk to the trustees, give you that coat?

A. 'Am no bound to answer that question, but merely to tell the truth. Q. So you wont tell where you got that coat?

A. I didna get the coat to do ony thing wrang for't; I didna engage to say ony thing that wasna true.

The Lord Chief Commissioner, when the witness was going out of the box, called him back, and observed, "the court wish to know from you something farther about this coat. It is not believed or suspected that you got it improperly or dishonestly, or that there is any reason for your concealing it. You may have been disinclined to speak about it, thinking that there was something of insult or reproach in the questions put from the bar. You must be sensible that the bench can have no such intention; and it is for your credit, and the sake of

A. I dinna ken how lang I hae had my coat. I hae plenty o' coats. I dinna mind about this coat or that coat.

Q. Do you remember any thing near the time; have you had it a year, a month, or a week? Have you had it a week?

A. Hoot ay, I dare say I may. Q. Have you had it a month? A. I dinna ken; I cam here to speak about boats, and no about coats. Q. Did you buy the coat? A. I didna mind what coat I bought, or what I got.

The consequence was, that their lordships were forced to reject the evidence of this witness.

THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON.

On Saturday, November 30th,* the society held its annual meeting for the election of the office-bearers for the ensuing year. There were elected, PRESIDENT,

Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks, Bart.
G. C. B.

SECRETARIES,
William Thomas Brande, Esq. and
Taylor Combe, Esq.

TREASURER,
Samuel Lysons, Esq.
There remained of the old council,
Sir Joseph Banks, Bart.
John Barrow, Esq.
Taylor Combe, Esq.
Sir Humphry Davy,
Sir Everard Home, Bart.
Samuel Lysons, Esq.
The Earl of Morton,
John Pond, Esq.
William Hyde Wollaston, M. D.
Thomas Young, M. D.
There were elected into the council,
William Thomas Brande, Esq.
John George Children, Esq.
John Wilson Croker, Esq.
Charles Konig, Esq.
Alexander Macleay, Esq.
Alexander Marcet, M. D.
Colonel William Mudge,

William Haseldyne Pepys, Esq.
The Earl of Spencer,

Sir John Thomas Stanley, Bart. Twenty members have died since the last anniversary, and thirty-two new members have been admitted into the society. The present list of Fellows contains 649 names. Of these 44 are foreign members.

On Thursday, December 5, a paper by Mr Tod was read, giving an account of some experiments made on torpedos at Rochelle. The object of the experiments was to ascertain, whether the animal possesses a voluntary power over its electrical organs. When the fish is held by the tail, the person holding it does not receive shocks, nor are they communicated when the animal is held by the anterior part of the body. The electric shocks were given without any apparent diminution, when an incision was made round the electric organs, and even when they communicated with the rest of the animal only by the nerves. When a portion of the electric organ was cut off, the strength of the shock was diminished; but Mr Tod was not certain whether this diminution was owing to the diminution of the organ, or to the exhausted state of the fish. The nerves of the electric organs are

supplied from the medulla oblongata. When Mr Tod was cutting the electric organs, he received shocks through the scalpel. The author states a circumstance respecting the torpedo, which he has been told, he conceives, on good authority, though he never witnessed it himself. Where torpedos abound, boys are in the habit of playing the following trick to those who are not in the secret. They persuade the ignorant boy to make urine upon the torpedo. The consequence is, that an electrical shock is conveyed along the stream of urine.

At the same meeting, a paper, by Mr Hatchett, was read, describing a method of destroying the musty taste in grain. Must, the author conceives, is an alteration which is produced in the amylaceous part of the grain, and in general it is confined to the surface of the corn immediately under the husk. To remove it, the corn must be put into any vessel capable of hold. ing thrice the quantity of corn put into it. The vessel is then to be filled with boiling-hot water, and the liquid allowed to remain till it be cool. Then the light and rotten grains, which swim on the surface, may be skimmed off, and the water allowed to drain. It will be proper afterwards to pour some cold water on the grain, and stir it about in order to wash away completely the water which holds the must in solution. Grain thus treated, will be found quite free from all musty taste. In a year like the present, when so much of the corn has been injured by wet, this information must be of great importance to the country.

On Thursday, December 12, a paper, by Mr Brande, on an astringent substance, from China, was read. It was given to Mr Brande for examination by Sir Joseph Banks. It consisted of vesicular bodies like nutgalls adhering to the smaller branches of a tree. Insects could be perceived in it. There is a

On Thursday, December 19, a paper, by M. Dupin, was read, on the improvements lately introduced into ship-building by Mr Seppings. The author, in order to obtain materials for his projected work on Ship-Building, had been induced to visit Great Britain, and he expressed himself in the highest terms of the reception he met with from those gentlemen to whom he had occasion to apply. He stated a number of historical facts to shew that the principle upon which Mr Seppings's plan is founded had been previously known and employed in France, though afterwards abandoned. But he allows that Mr Seppings has introduced so many improvements, and has so happily got over difficulties to be overcome, as to have made his method in a great measure his own.

On Thursday, January 9, 1817, part of a paper, by Sir Humphry Davy, on flame was read. The author divided his subject under four heads: 1. On the effect produced by rarefaction by means of the air-pump on the inflammation of gases. A small jet of hydrogen gas from a glass tube was extinguished when the air was rarefied six times. But when the jet was larger, it was not extinguished till the rarefaction amounted to ten times. In the

second case, the point of the tube from which the gas proceeded was whitehot, and the gas continued to burn till the tube ceased to be visibly red. It immediately occurred to the author, that the cause of the extinction was not the deficiency of oxygen, but the want of sufficient heat. Hence it

followed, that those bodies which produce most heat, and which require the least for combustion, would burn the longest; and a set of experiments made on purpose confirmed these ideas. Hydrogen burned till the atmosphere was rarefied ten times; olefiant gas, till the rarefaction was nearly as great; carbonic oxide was extinguished when the rarefaction amounted to five times; and carbureted hydrogen when it was only four times. Sulphur continued to burn till the rarefaction was thirty; phosphorus, till it was sixty; and phosphureted hydrogen gas burned in the best vacuum which he could form by means of his air-pump. 2. On the effect of rarefaction by heat on the combustibility of the gases. Grotthus has stated, that, when gaseous mix. tures are rarefied four times by heat, they cease to explode. Our author was able only to produce an expansion of two and a half times. It was produced by a cherry-red heat; which of course indicates a heat of about 1032°. The result of his experiments is precisely the reverse of that of Grotthus. He found that rarefaction by heat increases the explodability of gaseous mixtures. He infers, likewise, from his experiments, that the hypothesis of Dr Higgins, Berthollet, &c., that the reason why gaseous bodies explode by electricity is the compression occasioned by the sudden expansion of the heated portion of gas is erroneous. He considers the heat evolved by the combustion as the sole cause of the explosion.

On Thursday, January 16, Sir Humphry Davy's paper on flame was concluded. In the third part of his paper the author treats of the effect of different mixtures of other gaseous bodies on the combustibility of exploding compounds by the electric spark. He made a mixture of two volumes hydrogen and one volume oxygen gas, and tried the effect pro

duced by adding various mixtures of other gaseous bodies. Olefiant gas was found to have the greatest effect in preventing the explosion of this mixture by electricity. The quantity of each gas necessary to prevent the explosion was different. From his experiments it appears that the effect does not depend upon the specific heat or the specific gravity of the gas added. He is of opinion, that it depends chiefly upon the property of the gas to conduct heat. Gases, he thinks, differ as much in their conducting powers as solid bodies, and those which conduct best will act most powerfully in preventing explosion, by carrying off the heat, and cooling the mixture below the exploding point.

The fourth part of the paper consisted in general remarks, and practical inferences. He finds that neither the rarefaction nor condensation of common air produces much effect upon flame burning in it. The effect of wire-gauze in preventing explosions, he considers as owing entirely to its property of carrying off the heat, and thus reducing the temperature of the gases that pass through it below the exploding point. He gave an account of various improvements introduced of late into the construction of the safelamps for coal-mines; and pointed out advantages arising from the yielding nature of the wire-gauze of which they are constructed.

On Thursday, January 23, a curious paper, by Sir Humphry Davy, was read, constituting an important addition to his preceding memoir. He had concluded from his former investigations, that flame consisted of gaseous bodies heated above whiteness; and he had found that oxygen and hydrogen, as well as oxygen and charcoal, might be made to combine silently at a temperature below redness, and to form respectively, water and carbonic acid. It occurred to him, that during these

mbinations heat was given out, and t, though not sufficient to cause the plosion of the gaseous mixture, it ght, notwithstanding, be able to t a metallic body to redness. While nking of an experiment to detere this point, the phenomenon exited itself accidentally while he was king an experiment with a safe-lamp a mixture of carbureted hydrogen air. He plunged the lighted safeap into this mixture, and then caud an additional quantity of carburehydrogen to pass into the mixture. he lamp was extinguished, but a plaum wire, that was above the flame, came red-hot, and continued so for veral minutes; and, when it ceased O be luminous, the mixture had enrely lost its exploding properties. It as immediately obvious that the heat as evolved by the silent combination f the carbureted hydrogen with the xygen of the mixture; and that, hough not capable of exploding the mixture, it was yet capable of heating he platinum to redness. On making xploding mixtures of oxygen with ydrogen and other inflammable gases, and plunging a hot platinum wire into them, he found that it became rednot, and continued so till the mixture had lost its power of exploding. He terminated his communication with a practical application to coal-mines. If a wire of platinum be suspended over the flame of a safety-lamp properly coiled up, and if the lamp be taken into an exploding mixture, it will be extinguished, but the platinum wire will become red-hot, and will continue to give out light till the mixture loses its exploding qualities. By this light the miner may direct his way out of the exploding mixture.

Dr Thomson considers this as one of the most beautiful discoveries which Sir Humphry Davy has made. The numerous practical applications of it to

gaseous experiments must be obvious to chemists in general.

At the same meeting a paper, by Dr Brewster, on light, was read. This paper consisting of a great number of detached facts, it is difficult to give any account of it. He shewed how the metals, by their polarization of light, form the supplementary colours. He stated also, that common salt and flour spar, when in pieces large enough, act upon light in the same way as double-refracting bodies.

Thursday, February 6, a paper on fulminating platinum, by E. Davy, Esq., was read, and continued on the 13th. The author succeeded in forming a fulminating compound of platinum by the following process: sulphuret of platinum, prepared by passing sulphureted hydrogen through the aqueous solution of muriate of pla-, tinum is converted into sulphate of platinum by nitrous acid. To the aqueous solution of this sulphate, ammonia is added in slight excess. The precipitate thus formed is boiled in a solution of caustic potash, washed and dried at 212°. It explodes when heated to about 400°, and consists of Platinum, Oxygene

Ammonia and water,

73.5

8.75

17.50

100.

On Thursday, February 20, a paper, by Mr Pond, the astronomer royal, was read, on the parallax of the fixed stars. It is well known that Dr Brinkley has for several years past been observing certain fixed stars with a circular instrument at the Dublin observatory; that he has observed a sensible parallax in several of them amounting to about 2": that this parallax has constantly appeared in every year's observations, and that it is too great to be ascribed to errors of observation. It was desirable, that these observa