New ylslrommical Society. — Conical Balls. 147 



A paper by Dr. Granviiie was read, giving an account of a 

 case of Ovario-gestation. 



Jan. 20. Commenced reading a paper On some new Com- 

 binations of Platinum, by Edmund Davy, Esq. 



NEW ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY. 



A new Society has just been formed for the encouragement and 

 promotion of Astronomy, which promises to be attended with the 

 most beneficial advantaj^es, and appears highly deserving of public 

 support. Indeed, considering the patronage which is giveti to most 

 of the Arts and Sciences in this country, it is somewhat singular 

 that no Institution should hitherto have been formed for the ad- 

 vancement of this particular branch of Science— the most noble 

 of them all. The views and objects of this Society will be best 

 seen by llie Address which they have publi-hed ; and wiiich we 

 hope to give at full length in our next Number; together with a 

 List of the Otficers that. Irave been chosen for the direction and 

 management of the affairs of the Society; and which compre- 

 hends some of the first astronomers and mathematicians in the 

 country. 



XX. Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles . 



CONICAL BALLS. 



To Mr. Tillodi. 

 rp Chatham, Feb. 5, 1820. 



Sir, — Ihk Philosopiiical Magazine, Number 261, contains 

 some remarks on wliac are called conical balls ; it may be not 

 altogether uninteresting to your Glasgow correspondent, to know 

 that balls of an egg form were used by the Russian guards in 

 1811. The inventor, or ])eriiaps more correctly speaking, the 

 person who introduced that form, received from the Emperor the 

 sum of 50U0 rubles as a mark of His Intpcrial Majesty's appro- 

 bation. It is certainly possible, tliat the gontltinan who claimed 

 as his invention that form of shot, did not know' that in England 

 the same shape had been recommended some years before. In 

 the European Magazine for iS04 the above form is strongly re- 

 cnmmended ; I do not recollect by whom, nor am I quite certain 

 with regard to the date : but doubtless it was long before their 

 introduction into the Russian army, and also previous to 1808, 

 the year in which Mr. Robertson read his P^ssay on that sul)ject. 



I believe it is generally admitted that the rockets used in war 



are not so cHicient as miglit be expected, in consciiuence of the 



uncertainty of their striking the intended object. If any of your 



correspoudentfi will have the goodness to inform mcr whether an 



k 2 attempt 



