SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 303 



form acolleflion of the fame fize and type, except the Equi- 

 noclial Plants, which are larger. Subfequent notices of the 

 price and publication are to appear in the journals. 



Fijh €Je6ted from Volcanoes. 

 AMONG the great number of fads which Humboldt has Volcanic erup- 

 colleded in his voyage, the following lately communicated to*^""° *^** 

 the National Inftitute is very curious. Several volcanoes of 

 the Cordilleras of the Andes occalionally throw out eruptions 

 of mud mixed with large volumes of frefh water, and what 

 is moft remarkable, an infinite number of fifties. The vol- 

 cano of Imbaburo, among others, threw out at one time fo 

 great a number near the town of Ibarra, that their putrefac- > 

 tion occafioned diforders. This phenomenon, aftonifliing as 

 it appears, is not even extraordinary, but, on the contrary, of 

 conliderable frequency, fo that the fads are authentically pre- 

 ferved in the public regifters, along with thofe of earthquakes. 

 It is more particularly fingular that thefe fifti are not at all in- 

 jured, though their flru6ture is very foft. They do not even 

 appear to have been expofed to a high temperature; for the 

 Indians aftert that they fometimes arrive at the foot of the moun- 

 tain flili living. Thefe animals are fometimes thrown out of 

 the mouths of the crater and fometimes through lateral clefts; 

 but always at the height of 12 or 1300 loifes or fathoms above 

 the furrounding plains, Humboldt thinks they are produced 

 in lakes fituated at that height within the crater ; and it is a 

 confirmation of this opinion that the fame fpecies are found in 

 the brooks which run at the foot of the mountains. It is the 

 only fpecies wihlch fubfifis at the height of 1400 toifes. It is 

 a new fpecies to naturalifts. Humboldt made a drawing of it 

 on the fpot, and gave it the name of Pi?7ielodrus Cyclopum or 

 thrown hy the Cyclops. It will be found in the firfl number of 

 his Zoology. v. v) >i; . . 



Water formed hy Mechanical Prejfure, 

 IN a fitting of the French National Inftitute at the com- Combuftion of 

 mencement of the prefent year, M. Biot read a note on the "^ys^"/*"** ^y 



• .T-» ' . arogen by me- 



formation of water by mere compreffion, The experiment of chmical pref- 

 forming water out of its component parts oxygen and hydro- ^"'^^* 

 gen by burning thofe gafes by the eleftric fpark is well known. 

 M. Biot has fucceeded in determining this combination inde- 

 pendently of eledricity, by rapidly copprcffing a mixture of 



the 



