190 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[August 1, 1895. 



Somt HXtmxt patents. 



Matthias Nace Forney, New York, XJnited States. Improvements 

 in steam engines. This inreution is more particularly designed for 

 simple or single expansion engines, but is also apjilioable to eompoiind 

 eni»ines, and its objects are to provide means for counterbalancing 

 the momentum of reciprocating elements, one by another, without 

 inducing disturbing action at right angles to the movement of such 

 elements. The figure shows its application to a locomotive engine. 

 1 is the cylinder, 2 the piston, 3 the piston rod. the outer end being 

 coupled to the primary lever, 7, one end of which is connected by a 

 pin, 9, to a sliding block, 10, working in a fixed guide, 11. The lever, 



7, is coupled by a pin, 12, to the upper ends of a pair of secondary 

 levers, 8, 8. Instead of coupling the connecting rod, 4, directly to 

 the end of the piston I'od, it is coupled to the lower ends of the 

 secondary levers, and its opposite end is coupled to an ordinary crank 

 pin. The rod, 30, in combination with the reversing link, 20, governs 

 the motions of the valve by the rod, 24, giving constant " lead," and 

 variable expansion. 



3'o. 20,808. Dated SOfh October, 1894. Accepted 27th Jamtary, 

 1895. Eight figures. 



►.♦H 



Johann Anthon, of Flensburg, Germany. Improvements in or 

 relating to band-saw machines. The object of this invention is to 

 mount two or more band-saws upon two or more sets of pulleys, to 



afford facilities for cutting boards of various thicknesses and at 

 various angles. Fig. 1 shows two band-saws mounted on pulleys of 

 different diameters, and Figs. 2 and 3 show methods of varying the 

 saw cuts. The position of the lower axles of both the saw pulleys 

 is fixed, but the axles of the upper saw pulleys, A and A', are 

 mounted in separate bearings, so that each one of the saw-bands may 

 be stretched independently of the other, in a vertical direction. The 

 small pulley. A', is placed before the larger pidley. A, to enable the 

 saw-band, S, to be lifted over the small pulleys. B B' are shifting 

 guide blocks, capable of being independently moved to the right and 

 left, so as to make parallel or inclined cuts, as required. 



No. 9212. Dated 9th Mag, 1895. Accepted loth June, 1895. 

 Seven figures. 



THE FACE OF THE SKY FOR AUGUST. 



S 



By Herbert Sadler, F.E.A.S. 



POTS and faculiB are still visible in considerable 

 numbers on the solar surface. There will be a 

 partial eclipse of the Sun on the 20th, but it will 

 only be visible in parts of Russia and Western 

 Asia. Conveniently visible minima of Algol occur 

 Im. P.M. on the 15th, and at 8h. 45m. p.m. on the 



at 12h. 

 18th. 



Mercury is visible as a morning star during the first 

 portion of the month. On the 1st he rises at 2h. 55m. 

 A.M., or one hour and a half before the Sun, with a 

 northern declination of 21° 29', and an apparent diameter 

 of 6-0 ^ about y^ths of the disc being illuminated. On the 

 5th he rises at 3h. 18m. a.m., or about one hour and a half 

 before the Sun, with a northern declination of 20° 42', 

 and an apparent diameter of 5i", T%*oths of the disc being 

 illuminated. On the 10th he'rises at 3h. 47m. a.m., or 

 53m. before the Sun, with a northern declination of 

 18° 44', and an apparent diameter of 5i", tVo^Iis o^ '^® 

 disc being illuminated. After this he approaches the Sun 

 too closely to be visible. He is in conjunction with Jupiter 

 at 5h. P.M. on the 1st (this conjunction is not, of course, 

 visible at Greenwich), ]\Iercury being 9' to the south, and 

 in superior conjunction with the Sun on the 17th. While 

 visible he describes a direct path in Cancer. 



Venus is an evening star, and is theoretically at her 

 greatest brilliancy on the 14th. She will, however, be too 

 near the Sun to exhibit her full splendour. On the Ist 

 she sets at Oh. p.m., or about an hour and a quarter after 

 the Sun, with a northern declination of 1° 18', and an 

 apparent diameter of 31^", ^Vo^bs of the disc being 

 illuminated. On the 9th she sets at 8h. 29m. p.m., or 

 57m. after the Sun, with a southern declination of 1° 55', 

 and an apparent diameter of 35i ', f\jths of the disc being 

 illuminated. On the 13th she sets at 8h. 12m. p.m., or 

 about three-quarters of an hour after the Sun, with a 

 southern declination of 3° 24', and an apparent diameter 

 of S7i", TVxsths of the disc being illuminated. After 

 this she approaches the Sun too closely to be conveniently 

 observed. While visible she describes a direct path in 

 Virgo. 



Mars is, for the obser%'er's purposes, invisible. 



The minor planet Vesta is in opposition to the Sun on 

 the 25th, her magnitude at the present opposition being 

 about equal to that of a 6^ magnitude star. On the 1st 

 she souths at 2h. 12m. am., with a southern declination 

 of 16° 15'. On the 13th she souths at Ih. 17m. a.m., 

 with a southern decHnation of 17° 56'. On the 25th she 

 souths at Oh. 15m. am., with a southern declination of 

 19° 34'. During the month she describes a retrograde 

 path in Aquarius. At lOh. p.m. on the 3rd she is 5 seconds 

 preceding and 7 1 ' south of the 8rd magnitude star J Aquarii ; 

 at 9h. p.m. on the 18th she is in conjunction with the 5th 

 magnitude star 66 Aquarii, -J° to the north ; and at opposi- 

 tion she is about li° W.S.W. " 

 of V Aquarii {5\ magnitude). 



Jupiter is a morning star, but is too near the Sun for 

 observation during the first portion of the month. On 

 the 9th he rises at 2h. 33m. a.m., with a northern declina- 

 tion of 21° 26', and an apparent equatorial diameter of 

 31 1". On the Slst he rises at In. 36m. a.m., with a 

 northern declination of 20° 35', and an apparent equatorial 

 diameter of 325". The following phenomena of the 

 satellites occur while the planet is more than 8" above and 

 the Sun B" below the horizon. On the 14th a transit 

 ingress of the shadow of the first satellite at 3h. 28m. a.m. 



of that star and 1|° N.N.E. 



