SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 519 



Academical Society of Sciences, at Paris, 



At the meetinorin September, 7 809, Mr.Nauche commu- Contraction of 

 nicated some experiments he had "made on the contraction ^^ "^"^^*^ 

 of the muscles in froj^s. The object of these was to shovv, 

 in opposition to the assertions of prof. Richerand and Bi- 

 chat, that the contraction of the muscles may take place 

 independently of nervous influence, or the influx of the jndependeal 

 blood. We learn from comparative anatomy, that this . is p^ "^'■^"**s 

 the fact in thousands of anirauly, which have neither blood- the bioo4, 

 vessels nor a nervous system, yet this faculty is excited in 

 them with great intensity. It may even be aflirmed, that 

 it is more active, stable, and independent of life, in propor- 

 tion as the animal is less perfect, and lower in the zoological 

 8cale« These facts appear to confirm the opinions advanced 

 by Mr. Dubuisson in his Essay on the Properties of the 

 Vital Power in Vegetables, that contractibility, or irritabi- 

 bility, is inherent in the muscular fibre, and peculiar to it; 

 as sensibility is to the medullary substance, renitence and 

 elasticity to the albugineous fibre, and tone to the cellular 

 texture. 



Societi/ of JEncovragemenl at Paris. 



A report on the thread stockings manufactured by Mr. Thread steck- 

 Detrey, sen. says, that they combine fineness, strength, and ^^8^' 

 beauty. The evenness of the thread, its lustre, and accu- 

 rate spinning are remarkable. They are three thread. 

 They are not dear, as the price is 15 fr. [125. 6d.] a pair; 

 and when it is considered, that cotton stockings are manu- 

 factured in France as high as 48 fr. [£-2.], not exceeding 

 them in beauty, and inferior in strength, they must be es* 

 teemed a public benefit. 



The gold and silver medals, on count Rumford's dona- Couut Rwm- 

 lion, have been adjudged by the president and council of fof^**ni«<ials. 

 the Royal Society to Mr. Malus, for his discoveries of cer- * 

 tain new properties of reflected light, published in the 2d 

 vol, of Meraoires si'Arcu^il, which we shall insert the earli-« 

 est opportunity. 



