and of obtaining supplies of water and of warm air. 299 
loads of dry shavings; and { set this pile on fire. The height of 
the flame was no less than eighty seven feet perpendicular, from the 
ground ; and the grass upon a bank, at a hundred and fifty feet from 
the fire, was all scorched; and yet the secured wooden building, 
quite contiguous to this vast heap of fire, was not at all damaged, 
except some parts of the outer coat of plaster-work.—This experi- 
ment was intended to represent a wooden town on fire; and to show 
how effectually even a wooden building, if secured according to my 
new method, would stop the progress of the flames on that side, — 
without any assistance from fire-engines, &c. (See, for this passage, 
p. 892-893.) : 
3.° His Lordship, in the last place, proceeds to mention his expe- 
riments as toa small stair-case, in a confined place; of which his 
account is as follows.— The last experiment I made that day, was 
the attempt to burn a wooden stair-case, secured according to my 
simple method of under-flooring; the under side of the stair-case was 
extra-lathed. Several very large kiln faggots were laid and kindled, 
under the stair-case, round the stairs, and upon the steps: this wood- 
en stair-case notwithstanding, resisted (as if it had been of fire 
stone,) all the attempts that were made to consume it. I have since 
made five other still stronger fires upon this same stair-case (without 
having repaired it; ) having moreover filled the small place in which 
the stair-case is, sitivity with shavings and large faggots; but, the 
stair-case is however still standing, and is but litle damaged.—(See 
p. 893. | 
Passing over the details of particulars as to the methods pursued 
by Lord Mahon, for securing his objects, with their cost, we shall 
now proceed to the concluding paragraph of his Lordship’s paper ; 
which is as follows. ‘I purpose giving to the world, before Jong, 
a detailed account of many other experiments 1 have made upon 
this subject; and of the various advantages arising from my meth- 
od, with several particulars relative to the different parts of each of 
the methods above described ; and relative to their joint or separate 
application to different kinds of building, and to the different con- 
stituent parts of a house ;—to which | shall add, a full explanation 
of the principles upon which they are founded, and the reasons for 
their certain and surprising success. In the mean time, I have ta- 
ken the liberty of troubling the society with this short account.” 
Thus far Lord Mahion.—I have not examined, however, whether 
his Lordship, (as promised) resumed this subject in any subsequent 
. 
