Mechanical Scienee. 391 



5. Extraordinary Copper-plate Printing. — Th« following is 

 from the Report of the Central Jury, on the production of 

 French industry exhibited in the Louvre, in 1819. 



" M. Gonord exhibited, in 1806, porcelain on to which cop- 

 per-plate engraving had been transferred by mechanical means. 

 He has again appeared at the exhibition of 1819, with some 

 specimens of the same art perfected. He has arrived at a 

 singular but undoubted result. An engraved copper-plate 

 being given he will use it for the decoration of pieces of dif- 

 ferent dimensions, and by an expeditious mechanical process, 

 enlarge or reduce the design in proportion to the piece, 

 ■without changing the plate." 



. In a note, it is said, that " M. Gonord has made a discovery 

 of which the announcement has excited the surprise of the 

 public. If an engraved copper-plate is given to him he can take 

 impressions from it of any scale he pleases. He can at pleasure 

 make them larger or smaller than the plate, and this without 

 requiring another copper-plate, or occupying more than two 

 or three hours. Thus if the engravings of a large atlas size, 

 as for instance, those belonging to the Description de V Egypte, 

 were put into his hands, he would make an edition in octavo 

 without changing the plates. 



The certainty of the process has been corroborated by the 

 members of the Jury, who were admitted by M. Gonord into 

 his works. In consequence of their report the Jury decreed 

 a gold medal to M. Gonord. — Annates de Chim., XIH. p. 54. 



6. New Astronomical Observatory. — An astronomical obser- 

 vatory, similar to that at Greenwich, is about to be erected at 

 the Cape of Good Hope. Mr. F. Fallows, of Cambridge, 

 IS appointed astronomer. The situation is well adapted for the 

 advancement of the science. 



7. Improvement tw Scissors, — The usual angle to which the 

 edges of scissors are set is 50°, but varies between that and 

 •55°. This angle was omitted by accident in page 174 of last 

 Number. 



