182 



Proceedings of Learned Societies, 



[Feb. 



had been employed in searching for them, 

 and there was every reason to beheve that 

 if tliere were more labourers in the field a 

 still richer harvest would ensue, from which 

 there might fairly be expected some addi- 

 tional light on the laws and constitution of 

 the universe. 



The reading of the description of the 

 large reflecting telescope and frame, made 

 by Mr. John Ramage'of Aberdeen, was 

 terminated. Mr. Kamage exliibited to the 

 society, besides a neat model of the tube 

 and apparatus, two speculums, one of fif- 

 teen inches diameter, belonging to the tele- 

 scope described ; and another of tvveny-one 

 inches diameter, and fifty-four feet focus. 



There was next read a paper on the sub- 

 ject of parallaxes, taking tiie word in an 

 enlarged sense, by ]\I. Littrow ; after 

 which, a Memoir on different points relating 

 to the Theory of the Perturbations of the 

 Planets, expounded in the Mecanique Ce- 

 leste, by M. Plana, Astronomer Royal at 

 Turin, and an associate of this society. 



WERNERIAN NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. 



This society met for the winter 1825-6 

 (its eighteenth session) on the 19th of 

 November last. Mr. H. Witham, of Lar- 

 tington, read a notice of the occurrence of 

 the common cockle, cardium editk, in 

 a living state in fresh-water ditches, at 

 Cocklesbury, in Yorkshire, at the distance 

 of forty miles from the sea, and greatly 

 above its present level. Specimens of the 

 shells, from which he liad on the spot ex- 

 tracted tlie living animal, were exhibited by 

 him ; these shells diil not differ in the 

 slightest degree from those of the cockle 

 which inhabits oiu' sandy sea-shores. 

 The animal, however, mentioned by Mr. 

 Witham, had something less of the salt 

 taste or fishy flavour than the cockles sold 

 in our markets. A Memoir, by Mr. D. 

 Don, librarian of the Linuiean Society, 

 " On tlie Classification of the Genera 

 Gnaphalium and Xerantheinum, of Lin- 

 naeus," was next laid before the meeting. 

 There was then read the first part of 

 Mr. T. Buchanan's Sketch of the compa- 

 rative Anatomy of the Organ of Hearing, 

 containing remarks on the structure of the 

 ear in the Shark Tribe, illustrated by se- 

 veral specimens ; also a communication 

 by Mr. Blackadder, regarding the exist- 

 ence of a hard rock of Conglomerate 

 in the midst of the large gravel beds near 

 Edinburgh ; and Professor Jameson gave 

 an account of a Table of Colours arranged 

 for Naturalists by the Kev. Lansdown 

 GuUding, of St. Vincent's, intended as sup- 

 plementary to Mr. Syme's Treatise on 

 Colours. 



3d. Dec. The secretary read Dr. T. S. 

 TraiU's account of theanatomy of the Trum- 

 peter Bird, Psophia Crepitans- Dr. R. E. 

 Grant communicated some notices of the 

 " Habits of Tritonia Arborescens," particu- 

 J«rly th« power possessed by that molluscous 



animal of producing a peculiar and very au- 

 dible sound ; and the Doctor exhibited at 

 the same time specimens which had been 

 kept alive and active for more than three 

 weeks, in a jar filled with sea water, the 

 water having been occasionally renewed. 

 Professor Jameson commmiicated some 

 remarks " On the Existence of many Mi- 

 neral Substances in very minute Portions 

 in the Ocean and in the Atmosphere." 



At the same meeting the following gen- 

 tlemen were elected oflfice-bearers of the 

 Society for the following year : R. JamC" 

 son, Esq., President. R. Bald, Esq. ; Sir 

 W. Jardine, Bart. ; Dr. R. Graham ; and 

 Rev. Dr. A. Brunton, Vice-presidents. 

 A. G. Ellis, Esq., Treasurer; P. Neill, 

 Esq., Secretary; P. Syme, Esq., Painter} 

 and J. Wilson, Esq., Librarian. The fol- 

 lowing gentlemen were elected of the 

 council : W. Drysdale, Esq. ; G. Innes, 

 Esq. ; Dr. R. Knox ; G. A. W. Arnott, 

 Esq. ; Dr. A. Coventry ; J. Stark, Esq. } 

 Dr. R. E. Grant ; and Dr. J. Boggie. 



ROYAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 



At a general meeting of this society, held 

 Nov. 28th, the following office-bearers were 

 elected for the ensuing year : Sir W. Scott, 

 Bart., president; Vice-presidents: Rt. 

 Hon. Lord Chief Baron ; Dr. T. C. Hope ; 

 Lord Glenlee ; Professor Russell. Dr. 

 Brewster, general secretarj'; T. Allan, Esq., 

 treasurer ; J. Skene,Esq., curator of the mu- 

 seum. — Physical Class : A. Irving, Esq., 

 president; J. Robinson, Esq., secretary. 

 Counsellors : Sir W. Arbuthnot, Bart. ; 

 J. Jardine, Esq. ; Dr. Horne ; Sir W. 

 Forbes, Bart. ; Professor Wallace ; Dr. E. 

 Turner. — Literary Class : H. M 'Kenzic, 

 Esq., president ; P. F. Tytler, Esq., secre- 

 tary : Counsellors : Sir W. Hamilton, Bart, 

 Rev. Dr. Lee; Rt. Hon. Lord Advo- 

 cate; Sir H. Jardine; Sir J. Hay, Bart.; 

 Dr. Hibbert. 



FOREIGN. 



FRANCE. 



Paris. — At a sitting of the Academy of 

 Sciences, M. Lenoir, the younger, pre- 

 sented, in the name of his father and him- 

 self, a memoir concerning some new in- 

 struments which he had constructed, and 

 of which some were submitted for inspec- 

 tion ; one of them, on which he laid much 

 stress, was called " A Levelling Circle." 

 Messrs. Prony and Navier, who were or- 

 dered to examine them, have not as yet 

 made their report. M. Bitterlin applied 

 for information as to obtaining a reward for 

 the manufacture of perfect flint glass, in 

 which he had succeeded. A report was 

 made by M. M. Thouars and Labillardiere 

 on a Memoir of M. Gaudichaud concerning 

 the Cycas Circinalis. This singular tree, 

 which has a strong analogy to the sago- 

 palm, and abounds in the Molucca Islands 

 and in New Ireland, can be classed neither 



