582 Notices respecting New Books. 
fected the various combinations of power in applying heat 6¥ 
cold which are concentrated in this establishment. Had I stop-= 
ped here, the arrangement would have been incomplete. Mo-= 
dern chemistry enables us not only to decompose and recompose: 
water itself, which was regarded as a simple element, but also 
to analyse, and form, by artificial combinations, compounds si- 
milar in every respect to the natural medicated springs, | As 
this island, at all times, is wanting in some of the most powerful: 
mineral waters which are only found upon the continent, and at 
present even the rich of our island cannot benefit from their use, 
I trust that Iam doing an acceptable service to the public, when 
Tenable them to receive all the beneficial effects, without the 
trouble or expense of a sea voyage, and a tedious journey amongst’ 
strangers in a foreign land.” 
After a concise description of the most celebrated baths on 
the continent, Dr. Kentish proceeds to show the analogies be- 
tween the physiology of plants and animals, and treats of the ef- 
fects of climate on animal and vegetable life. This leads him to 
another part of his plans for the amelioration of the condition 
of the infirm, viz. the Madeira House, of which he gives the 
following description : 
“ ] adhere to this term in my description, as it has been an- 
nounced to the public in the Prospectus republished in the 
first part of this Essay. The term Conservatory might be ap- 
plied to it with more propriety. The intention is to have the 
power, in a building or house, of regulating the temperature in 
each apartment. As it might be wished to have a temperature 
much above that of Madeira, the term is therefore not strictly 
appropriate. The use of fires to warm houses, as well as to 
answer the purposes of cooking, bears date from the earliest 
times. Wood was for many ages the chief fuel. When coal 
was first introduced, it had many prejudices to combat before it 
was admitted into general use. The manner in which our houses 
were warmed for several centuries was perfectly devoid of all 
sound principles of philosophy: it was not until the latter part 
of the last century that philosophy deigned to apply its princi- 
ples to the useful purposes of life. Society owes more to Count 
Rumford, for his investigations respecting the application of fuel 
to ali useful purposes, than to any other. Not only are we in- 
debted to him for what he has done, but infinitely more so for 
what he has caused others to do, by having given a direction to 
geiius to employ itself upon the practically useful. Several me- 
thods have been devised for warming buildings :—the Russian 
and German stoves; flues, after the manner of hot-houses; iron 
pipes heated by steam; stone bottles filled with hot water ; 
keeping cows in the room, &c, &c. These methods may an- 
swer 
