jipparent AttraBion ofjl'iattng Bodies. iSf 



luftrating the natural and moral hiftory of the various people 

 they vifiied, in a journey from the 69t'h degree of north lati- 

 tude lo the territories of Circaffia and the iliores of the Nile, 

 fills 183 cafes. The botanic part contains the herbary of the 

 celebrated Pallas, enriched by the contributions of Linnjeus, 

 and his numerous literary friends. With the minerals are 

 feveral new fub (lances, and the Fared produftions of the Si- 

 berian mines. Among the antiquities are various infcriptions 

 and bas-reliefs, relative to obfervalions made in the plain of 

 Troy, and which were announced by M. Chevalier, in France, 

 in the laft edition of his work. The mcdalic fcries contains 

 Icveral coins of Greece, and of the kings of Parthia, hitherto 

 unknown. The nianufcripts are in Hebrew, Coptic, Arabic, 

 Abyflinian, Perfian, Turkifli, and the language of Thibet 

 Tartary : and in the Greek and Latin languages are feveral 

 manufcripts of the claflics, of the gofpels, and the writings 

 of the carlied fathers of the churcli. In addition to thefe, 

 the colleftion contains Greek vafes, gems, fculptures, and 

 many remarkable Egyptian monuments, from the ruins of 

 the city of Sais, dilcovered by thefe travellers in the Delta 

 alter the evacuation of Egypt by the French : alfo numerous 

 original drawings, majjs, charts, plans, models, and feeds of 

 many rare and ufeful plants; the habits, utennls, idols, of 

 the inhabitants of the Alcutan ifles, brought by Billings to 

 Kudia after his expedition to the countries lying between 

 Kamtfchatka and the north-weft coaft of America, with 

 many geographical obfcrvations, the publication of whicli 

 was fo long withheld by order of the Ruffian government. 



ON THE APPAKENT ATTRACTION OF FLOATING 



BODIES. By a Friend to Phyfical Inquiries. 



It is a well known faft, that when bodies which are afloat 

 upon water come within a fmall dirtance of each other, they 

 will fuddcnly rufli together: this fudden approach hasufuaily 

 been attributed to a mutual attraAion of the floating bodies; 

 and it is comujon to float two cork balls in a vcfl'cl of water, 

 for the purpofe of demonftrating this fuppofed attrailion. 

 A few years ago the following experiments were made, with 

 a ftrong perluafion that the abovementioned clrcumftance 

 was not owing lo the altraAion of the cork balls; and if any' 

 one who is now of opinion that it is owing to a mutual al- 

 traftion of the balls, will make the experiments themfelves, 

 it is prol)abl(.' that they will have doubts on the lubject, or 

 totally alter their opinion. 



I. June 1797. Two cork balls (one larger than the other 



ooufiderablyj were flualcd ou water : when brought near 



6 each 



