Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 149 



men in the Rue de la Paix, in the presence of the civil authorities 

 and several other individuals. — The following account is principally 

 taken from the Report upon those experiments, made by M. Gay 

 Lussac to the Academy. 



Thedress of M. Aldini consists of twogarments;— one, a thick tissue 

 of amianthus, or of wool rendered incombustible by being steeped 

 in a saline solution : the other, an iron wire-gauze dress covering the 

 former. The idea of the latter, he says (in a pamphlet lately publish- 

 ed), was suggested to him by the chain-armour of the ancients, which 

 he found to be impervious to flame ; upon the principle first discover- 

 ed by Sir H. Davy, and employed by him in the construction of his 

 safety-lamp. This wire-gauze dress, however, would not alone be suf- 

 ficient to protect the body from the action of heat, though it might 

 ward off the flames : but the dress of amianthus, or wool, by its thick- 

 ness and non-conducting power accomplishes this, and forms with the 

 wire-gauze an efficient defence, for the time at least that the exertions 

 of the firemen require. 



The head-piece consists of a stout cap of amianthus-cloth, fitting 

 close to the skull, and covering the throat, having holes made in it 

 for the nose and mouth : spectacles are also provided for the eyes, 

 lined with fine brass wire-gauze. 



The metallic dress consists of five different pieces: — the helmet, 

 between which and the amianthus cap there is a considerable space, 

 and which is moreover furnished with a mask in front, to afford ad- 

 ditional security to the face; a cuirass; arm- and thigh-pieces, the 

 latter joining the cuirass over the hips ; a pair of boots ; and a shield 

 of an oval form, five feet and ahalf long, and two and a half wide. This 

 shield is useful in stopping or turning any strong jet of flame, and 

 thus enabling the fireman to see his way; and it is proposed to con- 

 struct frames on a similar principle, to intercept the flames issuing 

 through a door or other aperture. 



The whole of this dress is composed of iron wire-gauze, the meshes 

 of which are about one twenty-fifth of an inch in diameter: the 

 weight of it altogether is about 15lbs. The fireman has likewise a 

 basket, covered with wire-gauze, strapped to his back, for the pur- 

 pose of transporting a child through the flames ; ropes and double 

 gloves also of amianthus have been made, with the latter of which 

 red-hot bars of iron may with safety be carried in the hand. 



We shall proceed briefly to describe the experiments, which ap- 

 pear at least satisfactorily to establish the efficacy of the principle 

 of M. Aldini's invention. 



A fireman, with the double protection of the incombustible cloth 

 and wire-gauze, subjected liis face to the flame of a straw-fire held 

 in a chafing-dish, for the space of 1 minute and 30 seconds. Another, 

 armed as the former, with the addition of a sheet of amianthus in 

 front, supported tlie heat during 2 minutes and 37 seconds witliout 

 any symptoms of suffering. The pulse of the first rose during the 

 experiment, in the space of a nnnute, from 80' to 120°, and that 

 of the second from I'l" to 100\ 



The next experiment was still more satisfactory. Two parallel 

 liedges, about 3 feet distant from each other, were formed of straw 



and 



