3^3 JRoyal Society of Edinburgh. 



and arrived in the afternoon at a deep cavern, where he pafTed 

 the night. Hence he made a fruitlefs attempt to afcend the 

 fnow-clad mountain, on the other fide of the valley, in which 

 the natives accompanied him with the greateft relu6lance : 

 the fame cavern received him the following night. The 

 centre of the ifland between the three mountains is barren 

 and uninhabited : it appears to be elevated about 5000 feet 

 above the fea. Returning towards the ihore, the party ar- 

 rived the next evening at a village nine or ten miles from 

 Karakakooa bay, furrounded by fields and plantations in the 

 higheft poffible ftate of cultivation ; its elevation appeared to 

 lie about 2000 feet. Here they were entertained by an ex- 

 hibition of much grace and great aftivity in the performance 

 of a female dancer belonging to a ftrolling party. The next 

 day was the laft of the excurfion ; and the natives were dif- 

 mifled with rewards of knives, files, fciflTars, looking-glafles, 

 and tape, of which a fmall portion was furrendered by each- 

 to the king. The barometer now flood at 30' 12, and the 

 thermometer at 74". 



On the 13th of January the Society refumed its fittings 

 after the Chriftmas holidays. An interefting paper, by 

 Charles Hatchett, efq. on the alloying of metals, was read 

 on that evening, and continued on the evening of the 23d. 

 It refults from his experiments that platina fliould not be 

 employed as an alloy for gold, as it makes the gold afl'ume a 

 white colour. A number of experiments were made with 

 pieces of gold coin, to afcertahi the effects of the excefs of 

 motions fimilar to what they experience by rubbing in the 

 pocket, and by being tranfported from one place to another. 

 By thefe it was found, that copper in the proportion of i -12th 

 was the beft alloy for gold ; and that the deficiency found of 

 late in the gold coin w-as not owing to the wear of circulation, 

 as, in a quantity of guineas rather loofely packed, and fcnt to 

 fome diftance by the coach, the wear was all upon a few, and 

 on thofe the impreflion vias quite obliterated : yet they were 

 not found much deficient in weight, the work being by the 

 adlion prelfed in, and not as it were filed off. 



ROYyVL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 



This learned body has publiflied the fecond part of the fifth 

 volume of its IVanla^^tions, which prefents the following 

 papers: — Remarks on a mixed Species of Evidence in Mat-r 

 ters of Hiftory ; with an Examination of a new Hillorical 

 Hypothefis in the MhnoircS pour la Kie de Pclrurt^ue : by 

 the Abbe de Bade : by Alexander Frafer Tytlcr, efq. — De- 

 fcription of an Extra-uteriue Foetus j by Mr. Thomas Bliz- 

 zard. 



