Statistics. 417 



illustrative of the appearances, nature, and seat, of this singular in- 

 filtration. 



Dr C. J. B. Williams of London made a few observations on the 

 subject. > 



Mr Dick next read a short notice on the use of the omentum or caul, 

 which he illustrated by a comparison between the structure of this or- 

 gan in the horse and in the sheep, shewing that in the horse, in which 

 the omentum is small, the intestines are fixed, and undergo compara- 

 tively little change of place. The facts adduced by Mr Dick seem- 

 ed to him to corroborate the opinion that the omentum served, by 

 i nterposition between the intestines and abdominal parietes, to fa- 

 cilitate motion. 



Sir Charles Bell then delivered a discourse explanatory of his 

 views of the functions of the Nervous System, and of the manner 

 in which this department of physiology should be studied. The 

 further consideration of this subject was postponed till Friday at 

 one o'clock. 



Section F — Statistics. 



The Section met as usual at 11 o'clock. In the absence of Sir 

 C Lemon, Col. Sykes, V. P. took the chair. 



The Secretary read a paper, communicated by Mr Gordon, the 

 Secretary of the Committee of the Society for the Sons and Daugh- 

 ters of the Clergy, on the origin and the objects of the new Sta- 

 tistical Account of Scotland, now publishing under the superintend- 

 ence of that society. 



Earl Fitzwilliam suggested the expediency of furnishing more 

 minute details with respect to the agricultural part of the reports. 

 His lordship wished the statements to shew not only the total 

 amount of land in cultivation, but also the quantities allotted at 

 the time of the inquiry to the various kinds of produce, the number 

 and value of agricultural implements, the number of draught and 

 other cattle, and other similar details. His lordship stated that he 

 had succeeded in obtaining the returns from some parishes in his 

 own neighbourhood, and suggested that accurate and minutely de- 

 tailed information from only a small number of places, would fur- 

 nish more safe general inferences than could be obtained from a 

 much more widely extended, but less precise, inquiry. 



Mr Stanley thought there would be considerable difficulty in 

 procuring such minute details, chiefly arising from the jealousy of 



