[ 402 ] 
INTELLIGENCE, 
AND 
MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES. 
ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. 
On the 30th of November latt, the anniverfary meeting 
of the Society was held. Sir Godfrey Copley’s gold medal, 
which is difpofed of yearly on this day to the moft deferving 
member, was awarded to the Rev. Mr. Hellings. 
The receipts of the Society for the year were declared to 
have been 1736 /. and the difburfements 1563 /. 
The meetings of December the 5th and 1ath were occu- 
pied principally in reading the conclufion of Dr. Herfchel’s 
paper on the power of penetrating into fpace by means of 
telefcopes. - According to the Doétor’s obfervations, it is 
impoflible with the naked eye to fee any ftar fmaller than 
thofe of the 8th, gth, or roth magnitude. With his 40 feet 
refleStor he has difcovered ftars which muft be three hun- 
dred thoufand times more diftant than the neareft fixed ftar. 
Where are the bounds of creation! 
At the latter meeting, an abftraé of a regifter of the wea- 
ther at Lyndon in Rutlandfhire, kept by Mr. Barker, was 
‘read ; as was alfo a paper on annuities, refpeéting. the con- 
tingencies of three, lives, by Mr. Morgan. 
December 1gth. A paper, by Mr. "yondan; on the irides 
furrounding the fun, moon, &c. was partly gone through, 
‘when the Society adjourned for the Chriftmas holidays: 
January 9th, the conclufion of Mr. Jordan’s paper was 
read; as was alfo a paper by Mr. Anthony Carlifle, on 
fome peculiarities in the arterial fyftem of certain animals, 
On the 16th and 23d, a paper on found. 
COMET. 
C. Lalande has announced that, on the 26th of December 
laft, his fellow-labourer Mechain difcovered a comet near 
the tar s of Serpentarius, which could be diftipguithed by 
the 
