5l6 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 1748. 



It appears, from the barometrical table, that our easterly or northerly winds 

 elevate the mercury, and that our southerly or westerly winds depress it. 



Abstract of the Bills of Mortality in Bridgetown, Barbadoes, for the Years 

 1737 — J 744. By the Rev. Mr. John Clark. N° 487, p- 345. 



Anno Bom Males Females Bapt. Buried. Anno Born Males Females Bapt, Buried. 



1737 52 26" 26 77 208 1742 87 42 45 130 296 



1738 81 41 40 106 250 1743 92 43 49 126" 252 



1739 91 54 37 119 244 1744 89 46' 43 120 16"6 



1740 91 49 42 123 242 ^ 



1741 68 33 35 9^ 261 Totals 6"51 334 317 896 1919 



The Elements of a Short Hand. By Samuel Jeahe, Esq. N" 487, p- 345. 



A succession of new short-hands published without the reason of their con- 

 struction, having put Mr. J. on forming a method founded on nature, the only 

 guide to perfection, he settled an alphabet in the following manner. 



Having taken, in a book that lay by him, a paragraph as clear of the principal 

 idea of the book as any he could find, consisting of near a thousand letters, he 

 enumerated the repetitions of each of them, and wrote them down; and thus 

 made the following table of the number of times each letter was repeated in 

 1000. It is true, it cannot be said the repetitions will be exactly the same in 

 every thousand letters that may be taken either in the same book or another; 

 but whoever will enumerate them, will not find difference enough to be of con- 

 sequence. 



a b c d e f g h i k I m n p q r s t u w x y z. 



81 20 23 45 99 18 18 54 78 3 36 15 <i% 83 12 O 50 61 95 50 25 O 23 1. 



After having made this table, he considered that there were in nature no more 

 than 8 simple characters, 4 right, and the other 4 crooked lines. The 4 right 

 lines are, first the perpendicular line | , and secondly the line of level — ; which 

 makes the two sides of a square. Secondly the oblique line / ascending from 

 the left to right, and the oblique line \ descending from left to right, making 

 the two sides of the rhomb; which is the figure of the diamonds on the cards. 

 The 4 crooked lines are only the semicircle when the diameter is either above or 

 below it, or on the right or left hand of it as, o o C o. , 



All characters whatever must be made up of these, and from their composi- 

 tion, which introduces ambiguity of signification, arises the difficulty of reading 

 a short-hand, which uses the simple characters for some letters, and compound 

 characters for other letters; or, which is as bad, for words. 

 t- This difficulty, being unavoidable in a short-hand of more than 8 letters, 

 making it appear that 8 was the number of letters a short-hand ought not to 

 exceed, he considered it in the following light. 



