/ 



192 Miscellanies. 



has been communicated by Humboldt, to the French Academy ; the 

 impressions of the feet of some kind of mammalia, on sandstone, 

 belonging to the gres bigarre, at Hildburghausen in Germany : the 

 account given by Humboldt, is excellent ; he thinks the animal was 

 marsupial, but the thumb was so much prolonged, so separated from 

 the other fingers and toes, that it more resembles the quadrumana, 

 than any other recent animals. 



We observe in Prof. Jameson's Journal for July, a notice of this 

 discovery, which states that the impressions were on the inferior sur- 

 face of a bed of free stone, at the depth of fifteen and eighteen feet. 

 The traces both of large and small animals, are easily discovered, 

 which appear to have been going sometimes in the same direction, 

 and sometimes in contrary. Invariably the point of a large foot, is 

 succeeded by that of a smaller ; the larger, which are about eight 

 inches long and four broad, have at first sight, the appearance of a 

 human hand, in w T hich the thumb was placed far back ; this is prob- 

 ably the indication that is thought to point to the quadrumana. 



48. Movements on the surface of water produced by the vibra- 

 tion of glass. — Extract of a letter from C. G. Page, to the editor, 

 dated Salem, Sept. 2, 1834. — I was moving my finger on the edge 

 of a glass bowl about six inches diameter, for the purpose of obser- 

 ving the appearances on the surface of the water. During the vi- 

 bration of the glass, the surface of the water was strongly agitated, 

 presenting a reticulated appearance between four points, at, and 

 about which there was little or no motion. It would seem then, that 

 the vessel during vibration, was divided into four parts, each vibra- 

 ting about these fixed points or nodes. But the following phenom- 

 enon which I noticed, is still more beautiful. When the 

 was more violent, and the bowl nearly full, the water would start 

 up from between the nodes, in fine drops or spray, so as to rise high 

 above and cover the top of the bowl, making altogether a beautiful 

 experiment. 



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49. Maryland Academy of Science and Literature. — The Mary- 

 land Academy of Science and Literature, having lately had the mis- 

 fortune to lose its valuable Museum and Library by fire, respectfully 

 and earnestly appeals to those who feel a common interest in its pur- 

 suits, for aid in repairing its loss. 



