Me. W. Keddie on the Early History and Proceedings oftlie Society. Ill 



Lithography and the Kaleidoscope were amongst the subjects of 

 inquiry in the year 1818. Mr. R. Hastie exhibited to the Society speci- 

 mens of Urtica ivhitlowi, an Amei-ican nettle growing in Orange County, 

 New York, New Jersey, &c., yielding a fibre which when made into a rope 

 was capable of sustaining a greater strain than Russian hemp. The 

 proposed expedition to the North Pole was at this time an object of 

 interest to the Society. 



It is remarkable that no notice appears in the minutes, of the Society's 

 attention having been directed to the introduction of steam navigation. 

 The "Comet" was launched in 1812; but it is not till 1818 that the 

 subject of steam navigation is mentioned in the proceedings ; at which 

 period much attention was bestowed on the improvement of steam-boat 

 machinery. 



Mr. rieming, land surveyor, submitted to the Society a plan for 

 depressing the sm-face of Loch Lomond and improving the navigation 

 of the river Leven. 



Messrs. John and Robert Hart, who did not join the Society till the 

 following year (1819), exhibited at this time a working model of the 

 Rev. Mr. StirHng's aii* engine, with which, says the record, they intend 

 to try a machine for directing the course of a balloon, by means of 

 wings to be wrought by the engine ; this at the request of Lord John 

 Campbell (afterwards the Duke of Argyll), who sent them a pair of 

 wings of a large heron for the purpose of being experimented with, 

 the heron having been slain with a view to this appropriation of its 

 wings. 



The manufacture of coal gas still occasionally engaged the Society's 

 attention. Dr. Watt suggested an experiment on the production of gas 

 from water in the shape of steam, in combination, however, it is left 

 to be inferred, with some carbonaceous body. 



Mr, Andrew Liddell and Mr. James Lumsden became members of 

 the Society this year (1818). The Society now removed to a room in 

 Trongate, opposite the foot of Hutcheson Street. 



Mr. Boaz writes this year to Mr. TuUoch, Star Office, London, claim- 

 ing for the late Mr. Roberton, who had been dead for several years, the 

 priority of discovery of a conical cannon ball for which a patent had 

 lately been granted. The claim was published. 



A fresh inii)ulse seems to have been given to the interest of the 

 Society in the improvement of steam-boat machinery, by the Messrs. 

 Hart, notices of this subject being frequent in 1820. On the 3d of 

 April this year (the Radical year), the following minute occurs : — " On 

 account of the threatened riot in Glasgow, the Society did not meet this 

 evening." This was Monday evening. The 5th was the " Wet Rarli- 



