140 Proceedings of Philosophical Societies. [August, 



M. Chaptal, in the name of the committee to whom the 

 subject was referred, gave an account of the memoirs that had 

 been received in claim of the prize offered by the late M. Ravrio 

 for the best method of protecting gilders from the fumes of the 

 mercury employed in their art. The prize was adjudged to 

 M. Darcet, Vcrijkateur General of the Mint. 



M. Legendre anounced that the papers sent in claim of the 

 prize for the Theorem of' Fermat are not possessed of sufficient 

 merit. 



M. Humboldt read a memoir on the Arbre de la Vache (Cow 

 Tree). 



M. Gillet-de-Laumont announced the discovery of a new alkali 

 in the petalite of the mine of Uto in Sweden. 



The reading of a memoir by M. Beudant, on the Varieties of 

 Form in Crystals of the same Species, was begun. 



The Academy adjudged the annual prize founded by M. de 

 Lalande to Mr. Pond, Astronomer Royal at Greenwich, for his 

 investigations on the annual parallax of the stars. 



March 16.— M. Delambre read the eloges of MM. Rochon 

 and Messier, and M. Cuvier read those of Werner and of 

 Desmaretz. 



M. Girard read a memoir, entitled " An Historical View of 

 Inland Navigation." 



March 23. — A letter of M. Rerzelius addressed to M. Berthollet 

 was read, announcing the discovery of two new substances. 

 M. Vauquelin read a note on the same subject. 



The Marshal Duke of Ragusa made a report on a work by 

 M. Dupin, entitled " An Essay on the Progress of Artillery, and 

 of Military Engineering in Great Britain." 



M. Dupin has examined with attention, and given a descrip- 

 tion of the principal military establishments in England, viz. 

 Woolwich, Portsmouth, Chatham, &c. 



The great laboratory and military manufactory of the state, is 

 at Woolwich, in which arsenal are more than 10,000 cannon, 

 besides a vast number of mortars, aud other species of artillery. 

 Portsmouth and Chatham are fortified, but otter nothing in this 

 respect worthy of remark. 



The steam engine and the hydraulic press are at present the 

 principal moving powers employed in England ; and it is not 

 without surprise that we see engines performing the work of 200 

 or 300 horses without confusion and without noise. The 

 hydraulic press of Pascal, brought to perfection by Bramah, was 

 found during the late war to be eminently serviceable in reduc- 

 ing the bulk of hay, and of stores and equipments of various 

 kinds. 



The application of rockets to military purposes is not consi- 

 dered by M. Dupin as of much importance ; but the effect of the 

 Shrapnel shells is acknowledged by him to be most formidable. 



The reading of M. Beudant's memoir was continued. 



