45, CORNHILL, E.G., AND 122, BEQENT STREET, W., LONDON. 17 



24. The Water Barometer first constructed by Professor Daniell of King's 

 College for the Royal Society in 1830 was fitted up under his superintendence 

 at their rooms in Somerset House. It consisted of a glass tube 40 feet in 

 length and about one inch in diameter. This barometer was in action at 

 Somerset House for some two years, and a series of observations made with it 

 showed " that the Water Barometer preceded by one hour the indications of a 

 mercurial instrument having a column of mercury of f inch diameter." 



On the removal of the Royal Society from Somerset House this Water 

 Barometer was taken down by Messrs. Negretti and Zambra, refilled, and 

 mounted by them at the Crystal Palace, Sydenham, where for a short time it 

 excited considerable interest, but owing to various causes the indications were 

 found to be incorrect scientifically. Eventually the instrument was destroyed 

 by fire during the winter of 1866. At the suggestion of Dr. D. Price another 

 Water Barometer was erected by Mr. Jordan for the Crystal Palace Company ; 

 but although the Water Barometer is of great interest as a weather glass, its 

 indications were again found to be of but little scientific value, owing to the 

 effect of varying temperature on the aqueous vapour above the column of 

 water. This difficulty led to the substitution by Mr. Jordan of glycerine for 

 water, and the construction of the now well-known Jordan Glycerine Barometer, 

 one of which is erected at the Times office and one also at the Kew Observatory 

 by a grant from the Royal Society. Mr*. Whipple, the director at Kew, states 

 the records obtained by it are fairly satisfactory. 



The tube of the Glycerine Barometer is composed chiefly of ordinary com- 

 position gas tubing of f inch internal diameter : to this is very carefully joined 

 and cemented about four feet of glass tube one inch internal diameter. The 

 upper end of this tube is formed into a funnel-shaped cup, having a conical 

 shaped stopper of India-rubber arranged for conveniently filling and adjusting 

 the instrument. The glass portion of the tube is the indicating part of the 

 barometer. Suitable divided scales are placed at the sides of the glass portion 

 of the tube, one showing inches and tenths of absolute measure, and on the 

 opposite side another scale of equivalent values of a column of mercury at a 

 temperature of 60 Fahrenheit. 



R. H. Scott, Esq., of the Royal Meteorological Society, writes that during 

 the continuance of a violent gale and storm, " a fall of more than 16 inches 

 of glycerine has been noted." "The movements of the glycerine column are 

 10' 76 times greater than those of the mercurial column at the standard tem- 

 perature, 333*57 inches of glycerine being equivalent to 31 inches of the 

 mercurial barometer." We are chiefly indebted for these details of the Glycerine 

 Barometer to Mr. Jordan's Pamphlet,* to which we refer our readers for further- 

 particulars as to the construction and use of the instrument. 



* The Glycerine Barometer with Plate and Table of Corrections for Temperature, by James B. Jordan^ 

 Mining Record Office Museum of Practical Geology. Price, One Shilling. 



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