﻿ACADEMY 
  OP 
  SCIENCES. 
  173 
  

  

  reached 
  us 
  at 
  the 
  date 
  of 
  first 
  publication, 
  that 
  the 
  European 
  A. 
  myosotis, 
  con- 
  

   sidered 
  by 
  Binney 
  identical 
  with 
  the 
  New 
  England 
  form, 
  has 
  the 
  same 
  charac- 
  

   ter 
  in 
  the 
  young 
  on 
  which 
  I 
  relied 
  for 
  distinguishing 
  A. 
  setifer, 
  namely, 
  a 
  row 
  of 
  

   bristles 
  near 
  suture, 
  and 
  that 
  it 
  had 
  even 
  received 
  long 
  ago 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  

   Melampus 
  dliatus 
  in 
  France, 
  from 
  that 
  character. 
  This 
  fact 
  being 
  omitted 
  by 
  

   Binney 
  led 
  me 
  to 
  distinguish 
  our 
  form 
  as 
  new 
  ; 
  but 
  I 
  confess 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  

   other 
  character 
  sufficient 
  to 
  distinguish 
  so 
  variable 
  a 
  shell 
  from 
  the 
  European 
  

   form 
  of 
  A. 
  myosotis, 
  although 
  it 
  may 
  still 
  prove 
  that 
  the 
  Eastern 
  American 
  

   species, 
  described 
  as 
  Melampus 
  turritus, 
  Say, 
  M. 
  bm^ealis, 
  Conrad, 
  Leuconia, 
  

   Sayi, 
  Kuster, 
  etc., 
  is 
  distinct. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Davidson 
  exhibited 
  his 
  improved 
  leveling-rod, 
  and 
  de- 
  

   scribed 
  the 
  method 
  of 
  operating 
  it. 
  

  

  The 
  President 
  called 
  attention 
  to 
  a 
  new 
  and 
  improved 
  sounding 
  

   apparatus, 
  invented 
  by 
  Commander 
  George 
  E. 
  Belknap, 
  of 
  the 
  U. 
  S. 
  

   steamer 
  Tuscarora 
  ; 
  by 
  the 
  method 
  employed, 
  a 
  quantity 
  of 
  the 
  

   bottom 
  mud 
  can 
  be 
  brought 
  up, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  a 
  sample 
  of 
  water 
  from 
  

   the 
  lowest 
  depths. 
  This 
  has 
  heretofore 
  been 
  difficult, 
  if 
  not 
  

   impossible. 
  

  

  * 
  On 
  the 
  Height 
  of 
  Mount 
  Whitney. 
  

  

  BY 
  W. 
  A. 
  GOODYEAR, 
  0. 
  E. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  M. 
  W. 
  Belshaw, 
  who 
  on 
  the 
  27th 
  day 
  of 
  July, 
  1873, 
  climbed 
  with 
  me 
  

   the 
  mountain 
  which 
  for 
  several 
  years 
  has 
  been 
  taken 
  for 
  Mt. 
  Whitney, 
  has 
  since 
  

   then 
  succeeded 
  in 
  obtaining 
  a 
  barometric 
  measurement 
  of 
  the 
  altitude 
  of 
  the 
  

   genuine 
  peak, 
  Mt. 
  Whitney 
  itself. 
  

  

  He 
  volunteered 
  to 
  pay 
  the 
  expenses 
  of 
  a 
  party 
  to 
  attempt 
  the 
  ascent, 
  and 
  

   that 
  party 
  reached 
  the 
  summit 
  of 
  Mt. 
  Whitney 
  on 
  the 
  sixth 
  day 
  of 
  September, 
  

   1873, 
  and 
  obtained 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  ten 
  observations 
  there, 
  extending 
  from 
  9.20 
  A.M. 
  

   to 
  2 
  P. 
  M., 
  taken 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Charles 
  Rabe, 
  an 
  attache 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  Geological 
  

   Survey. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  same 
  day 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  observations, 
  nearly 
  simultaneous, 
  was 
  taken 
  at 
  

   Lone 
  Pine 
  with 
  another 
  barometer. 
  

  

  The 
  altitude 
  of 
  Mt. 
  Whitney 
  above 
  Lone 
  Pine, 
  as 
  computed 
  by 
  me 
  from 
  the 
  

   mean 
  of 
  these 
  observations, 
  is 
  10,981.5 
  feet. 
  

  

  Add 
  to 
  this 
  the 
  best, 
  determination 
  of 
  the 
  altitude 
  of 
  Lone 
  Pine 
  yet 
  made, 
  

  

  * 
  The 
  accompanying 
  sheets 
  give 
  the 
  observations 
  from 
  which 
  I 
  computed 
  the 
  altitude 
  of 
  

   Mt. 
  Whitney 
  at 
  10,981.5 
  feet 
  above 
  Lone 
  Pine. 
  That 
  result 
  was 
  obtained 
  with 
  Williamson's 
  

   tables, 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  manner 
  : 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  first 
  place, 
  all 
  the 
  observations 
  were 
  reduced 
  to 
  32° 
  F., 
  and 
  the 
  correction 
  of 
  No. 
  1358 
  

   to 
  standard 
  on 
  Sept. 
  6th 
  then 
  determined. 
  This 
  correction 
  was 
  — 
  .003. 
  The 
  correction 
  of 
  No. 
  

   1564 
  to 
  standard 
  was 
  then 
  determined 
  for 
  August 
  31st, 
  the 
  middle 
  day 
  of 
  the 
  period 
  over 
  

   which 
  the 
  comparisons 
  with 
  this 
  instrument 
  extended. 
  This 
  correction 
  was 
  -)- 
  .013. 
  There 
  

  

  