August 2 2, 1878] 



NATURE 



437 



those present at the meetings of the Association have 

 had no special scientific training, and to whom, there- 

 fore, ahnost the whole of the sectional proceedings are 

 one continuous riddle. Would the actual usefulness of 

 the Association to scientific men be in any way lessened 

 by devoting a certain portion of the proceedings of each 

 section at a specified time to papers specially prepared 

 for an audience, not of specialists, but simply of intelli- 

 gent men and women, and to reports on the progress of 

 the various branches of science, couched in untechnical 

 language ? Would not such a course be a distinct gain 

 in the diffusion of science, and in its permanent effect 

 upon the town where the annual meetings are held ; and 

 would it not enable the general pubUc to give a more 

 hearty and sympathetic support to the scientific worker ? 



Let us now put on record a brief epitome of the prin- 

 cipal events in the meeting which has just closed. On 

 Wednesday night, August 14, Dr. Spottiswoode deUvered 

 his presidential address to a crowded audience, but, 

 unfortunately, in a room only suited to the strongest 

 lungs. The concert-hall of the Exhibition Palace was 

 the only room available for the purpose, and the Associa- 

 tion were fortunate in having chosen lecturers with such 

 powerful voices as Mr. Romanes and Prof. Dewar, who 

 subsequently delivered their discourses in the same place. 



The first lecture, by Mr. Romanes, on Animal Intelli- 

 gence, was admirably delivered and exxited general 

 interest by its lucid and masterly exposition of the psycho- 

 logical affinities between the mind of man and that of the 

 lower animals. 



The lecture by Prof Dewar, on " Dissociation, or 

 Modern Ideas of Chemical Action," delivered on the 

 19th, will be memorable for its magnificent display of 

 experimental illustrations; the prodigious labour involved 

 in the preparation for the successful execution and for 

 rendering visible to an immense audience (as was the 

 case) a multitude of novel and delicate experiments, 

 generally seen only on a small scale, but here magnified 

 to astonishing proportions, can only be known to those 

 who have gone through a like, though lesser, toil. 



Numerous conversazioni and private entertainments 

 must leave upon the minds of the members a not unjust 

 impression of the gaiety and hospitality of the citizens of 

 Dublin in their corporate as well as in their private 

 capacity. First there came an unusually brilliant soiree 

 given by the Royal Dublin Society, many of the objects 

 of interest in which were reproductions lent by the 

 South Kensington Museum from the valuable loan collec- 

 tion of 1876. To the untiring exertions of Mr. J, H. 

 Wigham, of the firm of Messrs. Edmundson, both on this 

 occasion as well as on others, the hearty thanks of the 

 Association are due. All the powerful machinery in 

 actual use in first-class lighthouses for the purposes of 

 illumination, as well as for signalling in fogs, was erected 

 for the use of the Association in the spacious premises of 

 the Royal Dublin Society, at the sole expense of the firm 

 Mr. Wigham has made so well known. 



On Friday evening the Rector and Vice-Rector of the 

 Catholic University gave another conversazione. The 

 brilliancy of the electric lights, derived from a Gramme 

 machine, exhibited here on this and on subsequent occa- 

 sions, delighted everyone. The phonograph was exhibited 

 in the physical lecture-hall, songs were sung and poetry 

 recited by this instrument with the most perfect success. 

 In one instance a song which had been sung into the 

 phonograph by a well-known Dublin vocalist was turned 

 on, after the lapse of an hour, in the presence of a new 

 audience, who had not heard the original, and not only 

 ■were the words and the melody easily recognised, but 

 those who were familiar with the style of the singer were 

 able at once to tell whose voice it was that came forth 

 thus wonderfully from the rotating cylinder. In another 

 hall, specially darkened for the purpose, Mr. Spottis- 

 woode's vacuum tubes were exhibited, to great advantage 



by means of a splendid induction coil made by Mr. H. 

 Yeates, of London. It was shown, too, how the stratifi- 

 cation of the electric light, in these tubes, may be unra- 

 velled by the aid of a rotating mirror, the character of 

 the stratification changing most remarkably with erery 

 change in the strength of the current. These experiments 

 were greatly facilitated by the use of a new form of Bunsen's 

 bichromate of potash battery, lately devised by Dr. Molloy, 

 Professor of Physics in the Catholic University, for 

 general use in the laboratory. This battery, which con- 

 sists of six large cells, is always ready for immediate use, 

 and is equal in power to at least eight quart cells ot 

 Grove's battery. 



The great hall of the University was laid out with re- 

 freshments on one side, while on the other a varied and 

 most successful series of interesting and brilliant experi- 

 ments, illustrating the phenomena of heat, light, sound, 

 and electricity, offered an intellectual feast even more 

 attractive to the great body of the visitors. Upwards of 

 700 guests were received during the evening, but, owing 

 to the admirable arrangements, all were able to make 

 their way through the several halls without any incon- 

 venient pressure. Amongst the guests we noticed most 

 of the distinguished English and foreign savans, the 

 President of the Association and Mrs. Spottiswoode, Sir 

 John and Lady Lubbock, Sir Joseph Hooker, Prof. 

 Roscoe, Prof. Gladstone, &c. 



We understand that it is to Dr. Molloy, the genial and 

 accomplished Professor of Physics at, and Vice-Rector of 

 the Catholic University, the Association is indebted for 

 one of the pleasantest evenings during this meeting. 



On Monday the President and Fellows of the Royal 

 College of Surgeons gave a reception to the chief mem- 

 bers of the Association, and on Tuesday evening an in- 

 teresting soiree, open to the Association generally, was 

 given by the Royal Irish Academy. The Lord Lieutenant 

 and the Duchess of Marlborough were present both on 

 Thursday evening at the Royal Dublin Society and on 

 Tuesday at the Royal Irish Academy. 



Saturday, as well as Thursday, was devoted to ex- 

 cursions, particulars of which we gave in a former 

 impression. 



At the general committee on Monday, Mr. Scrby, and 

 other delegates, attended to invite the Association to 

 meet at Sheffield, an invitation which was cordially and 

 unanimously accepted. Dr. Allman was chosen presi- 

 dent, and Swansea was fixed upon as the place of meet- 

 ing for 1880. The officers of the Association were 

 re-appointed, and the election of Mr. J. E. H. Gordon as 

 assistant general secretary was confirmed. The retire- 

 ment of Mr. Griffith from this post which he has so long 

 and admirably filled, caused universal regret. We hope it 

 may not be considered impertinent if, in conclusion, we also 

 express our sense of the great loss which the Association 

 has sustained in the resignation of Mr. Griffith, who, in 

 spite of the many demands upon his time and patience, 

 has combined a systematic and energetic discharge of his 

 duties with the most calm and courteous demeanour 

 during the fifteen years that he has filled the arduous 

 post. 



To-day the University of Dublin conferred the hono- 

 rary degree of LL.D. on the following members of 

 the Association :— Mr. W. Spottiswoode, Prof. H. J. S. 

 Smith, Dr. Janssen, Prof Maxwell Simpson, Prof. E. 

 Roscoe, Prof. Alexander W. Williamson, Mr. Evans, Sir 

 John Lubbock, Sir J. D. Hooker, Prof. W. H. Flower, 

 Prof. Huxley, Sir Wyville Thomson, and Prof. J. 

 Thomson. 



{By Telegram.) 



Dublin, Wednesday. 

 The attendance at the concluding general meeting has 

 been considerably above the average, the total number 

 present being 2,577, of which 1,959 had either Associa- 



