1819.) Analyses of Books. 209 
Brinkley, D.D. F.R.S. and Andrews Professor of Astronomy in 
the University of Dublin. 
Our readers are probably aware that an abstract of a letter 
from Dr. Brinkley to Dr. Maskelyne on the parallax of « lyre 
was some years ago published in the Philosophical Transactions. 
Since that time, the author of the letter, in pursuing his observa- 
tions, has met with apparent motions in several of the fixed stars, 
the cause of which he was unable to explain, unless by attribut- 
ing them to parallax. Among these stars, « aquile exhibited the 
greatest change of place. The result of these observations has 
been published in the 12th volume of the Transactions of the 
Royal Irish Academy. The author there detailed his reasons for 
supposing that he could not have been misled by any error in 
the instrument, or in the mode of observing. The attention of 
Mr. Pond, the Astronomer Royal, was called to this subject by 
the publications of Dr. Brinkley ; and after some years’ observa- 
tions, he was led to doubt the explanation by a parallax being 
satisfactory. He applied in consequence to the Royal Society, 
and by their assistance, and the advantage of vicinity to the first 
artists, he was enabled to put ap his fixed telescopes to enable 
him to bring the question to a final issue. 
Mr. Pond considers the observations which he has already 
made as decisive of the question. This seems likewise to be the 
opinion of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Paris, since they 
awarded the Lalande prize to our Astronomer Royal for his 
observations disproving the opinion that the stars in question 
have a sensible parallax. The object of the present paper, by 
Dr. Brinkley, is to show, that Mr. Pond’s observations are not 
sufficient to determine so nice a point. This he does by showing 
that the unsettled points (as, fur example, the allowance for 
refraction), which must enter into calculations of their quantities, 
would be more than sufficient to account for all the difference 
between Mr, Pond’s observations and his. 
II. On the Urinary Organs and Secretions of some of the 
Amphibia. By John Davy, M.D. F.R.S.—The kidneys of ser- 
pents are very large, nearly equal in size to the liver. They are 
long and narrow, and very lobulated. Like some of the mam- 
malia with conglomerate kidneys, they are destitute of a pelvis. 
Each lobule sends a small duct to the ureter, which leaves the 
kidney in two branches. The ureters in general terminate in a 
single papilla, which is situated in the cloaca between the 
mouths of the oviducts. It is a little elevated above the surface, 
and its point is directed towards a receptacle into which the 
urine enters. The receptacle is a continuation of the intestine; 
yet it may be considered as distinct both from the rectum and 
cloaca, with both of which it communicates only by sphincter 
orifices. The urine is voided occasionally, accompanied by, but 
never mixed with the fozces. When expelled, it is commonly in 
a soft state, of a butyraceous consistence, which it loses by 
Vou. XIII, N° III. O 
