412 



The following gentlemen were recommended by the Council for 

 election as Foreign Members : 



Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet. 

 Julius Pliicker. 



Heinrich Rathke. 

 Carl Riimker. 



The President announced that Edward Tuson, Esq., who at last 

 Anniversary had ceased to be a Fellow of the Society in consequence 

 of the non-payment of his subscription, had applied to the Council 

 to be reinstated, alleging that unforeseen circumstances had pre- 

 vented him from paying the annual contribution. The President 

 therefore, in accordance with the Statutes, gave notice that the 

 question of Mr. Tuson's readmission would be put to the vote at the 

 ensuing ordinary meeting. 



The following communications were read : 



I. " Remarks on the Rev. H. Moseley's Theory of the Descent 

 of Glaciers." By JAMES D. FORBES, D.C.L., F.R.S., Corr. 

 Inst. France, and Professor of Natural Philosophy in the 

 University of Edinburgh. Received May 22, 1855. 



In a paper " On the Descent of Glaciers," communicated to the 

 Royal Society on the 19th of April, 1855, and printed in their Pro- 

 ceedings, the Rev. Henry Moseley has proposed an explanation of 

 that phenomenon. 



The first part of his paper contains a lucid description of the 

 gradual motion of a sheet of lead covering the roof of Bristol Cathe- 

 dral, which he ascribes (I have no doubt justly) to the successive 

 expansions and contractions of the lead by atmospheric temperature. 

 He explains the influence of the slope of the roof and of the measure 

 of friction upon the motion with his customary precision and clear- 

 ness. He also finds for the probable measure of the effect or creep- 

 ing motion of the lead, a quantity which, considering the imperfect 

 nature of the data with regard to temperature, agrees sufficiently 

 well with observation. 



In the latter and shorter part of the paper is a transition to the 



