436 Miscellaneous Intelligence. 
Mr. Ellis has claimed the merit of this discovery, and of the 
reasoning upon it, for the late Governor Ellis+. Conceiving it 
important to establish the fact that cold, as well as heat, injured 
or destroyed the magnetic power of iron and steel, we wrapped 
a magnetic needle up in lint, dipped it in sulphuret of carbon, 
placed it on its pivot under the receiver of an air-pump, and 
rapidly exhausted: in this way a cold, below the freezing of 
mercury, is readily obtained. When in this state, the needle 
was readily affected by iron or a magnet, and the number of 
vibrations performed in a given time by the influence of the 
earth upon it were observed. A fire was now placed near the 
pump, and the whole warmed; and when at about 80° Fahr. 
the needle was again examined, it appeared to be just in the 
same state as before as to obedience to iron and a magnet, and 
the number of oscillations were very nearly the same, though @ 
little greater. The degree of exhaustion remained uniform 
throughout the experiment.—Ep, 
4, Frauds committed on Bankers’ Checks, &c.—Considerable 
interest has lately attached to the means which may be adopted 
to render bankers’ checks, §c., secure, from the discovery that 
in some cases the sum had been obliterated by chemical agents, 
and a larger sum inserted, and there are now two or more pa- 
tents for paper, intended to prevent the possibility of such a 
fraud. These are founded on chemical properties, and do not 
appear to us to be sufficiently secure; but a mode of an entirely 
different kind has been suggested by Dr. Paris, which at once 
appears simple, perfect, and in every respect unobjectionable. 
It consists in a new mode of notation, which is accomplished by 
three or more rows of figures, in inverted order, thus: 987654321, 
arranged in the scroll of the check, and representing units, 
ten, hundreds, gc. The drawer of the check, in removing it 
from his book, has only to cut between the particular figures 
which represent the sum drawn, and in this manner an indeli- 
ble and unalterable indication is afforded. The sum may be 
changed to a smaller sum, but this, obviously, cannot offer any 
objection. 
9876 \54321 Pay Mr, ______. 
98765) 4321 Five hundred and forty-five 
9876/54321 
pounds. 
5. Pyroligneous Ether.—Mr. P. Taylor, in 1812, and at various 
times since then, obtained, by the distillation of wood in the 
large way, a peculiar inflammable volatile fluid, very much 
« Phil, Mag. 1x. 340. 
