1824.] 
Plying an asbestos wick to a spirit-lamp, 
and so moderating the heat of the spi- 
rits, and degree of flame, that the same 
may be used in the singeing of lace, 
passed rapidly over it. The asbestos 
fibres, in short pieces, about half an 
inch wide, are evenly spread, and fas- 
tened between two long thin silver 
plates, perforated with numerous small 
holes, for admitting the spirit to every 
part of the long wick thus formed. This 
wick is inserted into a long and very 
narrow spirit-holder, fed by numerous 
small pipes, which rise up through cold 
water, contained in a long condensing 
vessel; the water in which condenser 
surrounds the sides of the spirit-holder, 
in order to keep the temperature of the 
ere below the boiling point, except 
ong the top of the wick, after a lighted 
taper has been applied to inflame it, 
The supply of spirits for the lamp is 
Spirit of Philosophical Discovery. 
435 
kept in an interior urn, surrounded by 
another filled with cold water, and ele- 
vated rather above the level of the wick 
of the lamp. The spirit passes down 
from this urn, through a pipe furnished 
with a regulating stop-cock, and entering 
the lower part of the condenser, con- 
nected with the various small pipes 
therein, ascending to the spirit-holder, 
which have been mentioned above. 
The length of the wick is adapted to 
the width of the pieces of lace intended 
to be singed; the several pieces are 
stitched together, into one long web of 
lace, which is wound on a roller; from 
which itis re-wound on to a secondroller, 
passing in the interim over the flame of 
the wick, at a height above it, and with 
a velocity, regulated by experience in 
the use of previous singeing apparatus ; 
the present patentee laying no claim, 
but to the wick and the spirit-cooler. 
[We omitted to state, in our last number, that, owing to the illness of the late King, 
and the delay in appointing the Regent, no Patents were granted in the months of 
November or December 1810, or in January 1811, so as to be now in the course of 
expiring. 
Of New Patents, only one was granted in the month of September last, viz. on the 
16th, to Mr. Neville, or Nivell (for the carelessness of official copyists have given it 
both ways); the title of which patent was, through inadvertence, given in our last 
mumber, p. 396, instead of this place. ] 
6 Ree ee ee 
SPIRIT OF 
PHILOSOPHICAL DISCOVERY, AND OF THE 
VARIOUS SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS. 
——<—=a—_ 
‘BG VHE Duration of Day-light, andthe Length 
of Candle-light, on any given day or 
night in the year, in the southern parts of 
England, are readily obtained from a useful 
small pamphlet, by Mr. Bevan, sold by J. 
Richardson; which contains the average 
mean, or clock-ltime, of lighting candles in 
our houses in the evening, and of extinguish- 
ing them in the morning, of every day ; 
which, on many occasions, may be useful 
toknow. The equation of time produces 
in these tables some curious anomalies ; as, 
for instance, there is, in December, eighteen 
days’ interyal between the earliest period of 
lighting, viz. 4h. 26m. on the 12th; and 
the datest period of extinguishing, viz. 7h. 
31m. on the 30th; on which latter day, 
the time of lighting has increased 9m. from 
itsminimum. In June thereare onlyfourdays 
between the earliest period of extinguishing, 
viz. 2h. 58m. on the 19th, and the latest 
period of lighting, viz. 9h. 4m. on the 
24th. The lightings, at six o'clock, take 
place February 24th and October 5th ; and 
the 6h. extinguishings, on the 9th of March 
and 19th of October; the intervals being, 
in the spring, thirteen or fourteen days ; 
and, in the autumn, fourteen days. On the 
3d of March, and on the llth of October, 
candles are lighted and extinguished at the 
same clock-time, viz. 6h. 12m. in the 
former, and 5h. 47 m. in the latter season ; 
and the candle-light and the day-light are 
in each case just 12h. later. On the 2Ist 
of June occurs the longest day-light, of 18h. 
6m., and the shortest candlelight, of dh. 
54m. ; and on the 26th of December, the 
shortest day-light, of 9h. 2m., and. the 
longest candle-light, of 14h. 58m. 
Velocity of Sound.—Recent experiments 
made in France, at two distant stations, 
where cannon were fired, and the flash and 
sound observed at the other station, gave 
on the average, at the temperature of 50° 
of Farnheit, 1106.3 English feet per se- 
cond, But these observations are lesssa- 
tisfactory, in all respects, than those made 
in 1793 to 1796 in the East-Indies, and 
lately published by Mr. John Goldingham ; 
the mean of ali whose observations is 
1142.3 feet per second, or almost exactly 
the velocity assigned by Newton. Mr. G, 
found, however, that each month’s otser- 
vations gave a different mean velocity, yary- 
ing from 1099 feet, in December, to 1164 
feet, in July; the average temperature 
being then 794°, and 86%° of Farnh. ; the 
general mean yelogity of 1142 feet oceur- 
3K 2 ring, 
