308 London Philosophical Society. 



plore. In a word, the same philosophical spirit which 

 guided the author in his barometrical observations made in 

 low latitudes and tropical regions, as recorded in the Phi- 

 losophical Transactions, appears in this valuable Directory. 



LI I. Proceedifigs of Learned Societies, 



LONDON PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETr. 



[Continued from p. 235.] 



JL/URING last month, the Rev. J. Nightingale, one of the 

 curators, delivered before the Society a lecture on Steno- 

 graphy. He began by remarking, that to those who are 

 wholly ignorant of the art, he feared his best efforts would 

 prove dull and uninteresting; but that if he should fail to 

 amuse and instruct, he begged the Society would not attri- 

 bute that failure to any real want of interest in the subject 

 itself; adding, that it would be his endeavour to exciie ir> 

 the members, a desire for an art which the lecturer knew 

 they would derive when its merits should be duly appre- 

 ciated. 



*' Nor," said the lecturer, " is this method of recom- 

 mending the art of short-hand writing chargeable with 

 navelty. The well-known Mr. Byrora gave lectures on this 

 subject before some of the most eminent and celebrated 

 men of his day. The Rt. Hon. the Earl of Morton, P.R.S ; 

 the Lord Chancellor Pratt ; the well-known Earl of Chester- 

 field; His Grace ihe Duke of Queensberry; Dr. John Taylor, 

 chancellor of Lincoln; and numerous members of parlia- 

 ment, were among his auditors and pupils." 



After this prefatory apology, the lecturer proceeded to 

 trace the origin and history of the art; commencing with 

 a view of the Rabbinical abbreviations, of which the learned 

 !3uxtorf has written an interesting history. It was the 

 opinion of Nicjlai that this art was introduced among the 

 Greeks by Xenophon ; and this opinion is confirmed by 

 Laeriius, who particularly notices two modes of short- 

 wrilnig, by contracted words, and arbitrary characters qr 

 symbols. 



The Romans practised the art of short-writing at a very 

 early period ; and Ennius the pott is mentioned as the 

 person who first invented a system of writing by which the 

 icribes, or nolarii, were enabled to follow the most rapid 

 speakers. This method was improved upon by Tyro, Ci- 

 cerQ's freed-nian; and ilill more by Seneca. Suetonius, 



speaking 



