Scientific Intelligence. 905 



Professor Don's Flora Nepalcnsis is tlie standard work on the plantsr of 

 the north of India ; and his memoirs in the Transactions of the Linnean 

 Society, and those communicated to this Journal, have been quoted by 

 the most eminent botanists in this country and on the continent, as 

 evincing profound acquaintance with this delightful science. 

 ^ 3. Aurora Borealis.—Edmburgh, Nov. 18. 1835; Lat. 65° 57' N.; 

 *^Long. 3° 11' W. — Having, in common I dare say with many others, wit- 

 ' nessed a very brilliant display of the aurora borealis last night., at 9** 37™ 

 p. M. mean time, I thought of noting the direction of the luminous arch 

 in the heavens, as well as I could, or the rapid changes which it under- 

 went would permit. At the above time, its direction was from east to- 

 wards the west, passed between Jupiter and Pollux, thence to about »- 

 degree to the south of Capella, and shot westward through Cassiopece, 

 till our view of it was intercepted by the buildings of the College. Ha- 

 ving noted the time, and its position, together with the latitude and lon- 

 gitude, these will furnish data, when compared with like observations 

 elsewhere, to compute, in an approximate manner, its height and motion, 

 and may contribute in some degree, perhaps, to illustrate the ^nature of 

 these meteorological phenomena. — William Galbraith. 



4. Composition of the Atmosphere. — M. Boussingault, Cliemical Profes- 

 sor to the Faculty of Sciences of Lyons, in the year 1834, discovered 

 that the hydrogenous principle is mixed up with the atmosphere ; but 

 as all the experiments of this chemist were made in the city of Paris, 

 Rue du Parc-Royal, in strict accuracy the conclusion he there drew 

 could only be regarded as a local phenomenon. M. Boussingault has 

 written from Lyons to M. Arago, informing him, that there also his ex- 

 periments supply him with proofs of the presence of hydrogen ; and 

 that there also from one day to the next, the proportion of the gas 

 which is contained in the air varies sometimes in the ratio of 2 to 3. M. 

 Mattucci also has informed M. Boussingault, that, in following his pro- 

 cess, step by step, he too has clearly determined that the air in Italy 

 contains this principle of hydrogen. And to this statement he conjoins 

 this important circumstance, that, in the neighbourhood of marshy 

 grounds, the proportion of hydrogen is often three times as great as In 

 the middle of large towns. The air of Lyons, according to very recent 

 experiments of M. Boussingault, contains 6, 7, and even 8 parts of carbo- 

 nic acid in the 10,000. This is a much larger proportion than M. de Saus- 

 sure discovered in the air of the country in the neighbourhood of Geneva. 

 6. Climate of Fort Vancouver. — The winter (1833-4) has been one of 

 some severity compared with what is usual in Britain, although not to be 

 compared \^th those on the other side of the Rocky Mountains. The 

 frost set in on the 2Gth December, and continued till the end of January ; 

 the lowest temperature was, + 6° Fahr. The Columbia, which is hero 

 1660 yards wide, and 5 to 7 fathoms deep, closed when the temperature 

 fell to 14% and continued frozen for three weeks, permitting of free traflSc 



