230 Proceedings of Philosophical Societies, [Sept. 



" We have noticed, that there is a plexus formed both on the 

 nerves whicli convey the will to the muscles, and on the nerves 

 which give the sense of the condition of the muscles. The 

 rei^son of this I apprehend to be that the nerves must correspond 

 with the muscles, and consequently with one another. If the 

 motor nerve has to arrange the action of several muscles so as 

 to produce a variety of motions, the combinations must be 

 formed by the interchange of filaments among the nerves before 

 they enter the muscles, as there is no connexion between the 

 muscles themselves. As the various combinations of the 

 muscles have a relation with the motor nerves, the same rela- 

 tions must be established by those nerves which convey the 

 impression of their combinations, and a similar plexus or inter- 

 change of filaments therefore characterizes both." 



XIII. 0)1 the Constitution of the Atmospheie ; by John Daltoii, 

 Esq. FRS. &c. 



1 he Annals for April, p. 289, contains an abstract of this 

 communication. E. W. B. 



Article VI. 



Proceedings of Philosophical Societies, 



astronomical society. 



June 9 . — The reading of the Rev. Fearon FaRows's paper on the 

 Small Transit Instrument, was concluded. Mr. Fallows's direc- 

 tions may be comprehended briefly in the following particulars : 

 1. Place the transit instrument as near the meridian as possible, 

 and also substantial meridian-marks at a considerable distance 

 both to the north and south. 2. The clock must be set forward 

 to sidereal time, and its daily rate obtained. 3. Observations of 

 pairs of high and low Greenwich stars must be made each 

 evening, along with others whose right ascensions are required. 

 4. The apparent right ascensions of the Greenwich stars must be 

 computed up to the time of observation, or taken from the 

 Nautical Almanac. 5. The azimuthal error must be found, if 

 possible, by several pairs of those. Also, 6. The error of the 

 .clock at the transit of one of the Greenwich stars. 7. Reckon 

 this error constant to every observation made during the same 

 night. 8. The azimuthal error must be considered, with a con- 

 trary algebraic sign, for stars between the zenith (of the Cape) 



we may learn from this ; tliat on touching the end of a motor nerve which has been 

 «ome days separated from the brain, the muscle is excited as when the nerve was first 

 divided. The property, however it may be defined, is therefore in the nerve. Our 

 language might perliaps be made more precise if we used terms which implied the 

 course of nervous influence, whether from or towards the brain j but it wiU be difficult 

 to express this without the aid of hypothesis." 



