202 Notices and Proceedings of Scientific Societies, 



LONDON. 



Royal Geographical Society of London,^ Jan. 24, 1831. W. R. Hamil- 

 ton, Esq. in the chair. A newly invented parallel ruler was presented by 

 Mr Jones, of Charing Cross. Mr Jones' invention consists in the applica- 

 tion of the spirit level, by which he obtains the parallel line, or one making 

 any given angle with another : the only condition required being, that the 

 surface of the drawing be inclined to the horizontal plane. The line required 

 to be drawn, whether parallel to, or making a given angle with, any other, 

 being always referred to the spirit level, renders this at once an infallible and 

 extremely convenient instrument. « 



An important communication from Dr Holland was read, from the com- 

 monplace book of the Society, calling the attention of future travellers in 

 Greece to various desiderata ; some of which we shall notice in our next 

 Number. 



An account of Deception Island, of New South Shetland, by Lieutenant 

 Kendall ; and an account of Keeling, or Cocos Islands, in the eastern part 

 of the Indian Ocean, were then read. 



The folloAving gentlemen were elected members of the Society : — Hunter 

 Gordon, Esq. ; Edward Winterbottom, Esq. ; Captain Chaplin ; Captain 

 Melville Grindley; W. Westall, Esq. 



Feb. 14. John Barrow, Esq. V.-P. in the chair. There was read an 

 interesting paper on Eling George's Sound, communicated by Mr Nind ; a 

 notice of which will appear in our next Number. 



The following gentlemen were elected members of the Society : — Capt. 

 Sir J. Pechell, Bart. ; Captain Fitzroy, R.N. ; Rev. E. Hantrey ; J. Watts 

 Russell, Esq. ; J. Deville, Esq. 



[We must defer the reports of the other London Societies till next 

 month.] 



PROVINCIAL. 



Newcastle Natural History Society At a recent monthly meeting of this 



society, a paper was read from Mr Buddie, intended as a postscript to a 

 former paper, on an accident which occurred in Jarrow Colliery, in August 

 last. The " postscript" gave an account of a singular phenomenon occurring 

 in the east drift, where it was found, that, as the workmen proceeded, 

 powerful eructations took place, when the coal was struck by the pick. 

 These were as loud as the report of a musket, and, by their force, large 

 splinters of coal were thrown off, much to the alarm and annoyance of the 

 workmen. Mr Buddie thought it might be a query, whether the late 

 accident was not to be attributed to an eruption of this nature, but of much 

 greater magnitude. Though very uncommon in coal districts, similar 

 phenomena have been met with in metallic veins. 



At this meeting, four beautiful sections of the strata in the Newcastle coal- 

 field were exhibited : they are drawn to a scale from actual borings and sink- 

 ings ; and, having the sea-level line laid down through the whole, the eye in a 

 moment discovers, in every part, the situation of each seam of coal, and its 

 depth from the surface. One of the sections extends from the sea, at 

 South Shields, to the Team, and this one Mr Buddie proposes to carry on 

 to Pontop Pike ; another is at right angles to this, from the south point of 

 the workings of Jarrow Colliery towards the Blyth. Each of these four 

 sections was accompanied by a descriptive memoir. The table and section 

 vidll appear in the next Part of the Society's Transactions. 



A resolution was passed, requesting the sub-committee of the society to 



