PROCEEDINGS OF THE POLYTECHNIC ASSOCIATION. 599 



stated. The English standards were destroyed at the burning of the Houses 

 of Parliament in 1834, and new ones were not completed until 1844. 



Dr. Parmelee remarked that all metallic measures were liable to oxida- 

 tion; he would propose as the standard weight a diamond, of great size, 

 for instance, that now belonging to the Queen of Great Britain, 



Mr. Fisher said that John Quincy Adams paid great attention to this 

 subject; he proposed that the standard yard should be a pendulum of a 

 fixed rate of oscillation. 



Mr. Gavit alluded to the work of Haslett in providing standards to the 

 several States by order of Congress, and related some singular facts re- 

 garding a standard of measure sent to North Carolina. Of course it was 

 not to be touched by the hand, but when recently found in that State it 

 was bent, and appeared to have been hammered. This incident illustrates 

 the civilization of that part of our country. 



After remarks by Mr. Miller and others it was agreed to take up the 

 subject again. That selected for next Thursday evening is "The Use of 

 Surface Steam-Condensers." Adjourned. 



American Institute Polytechnic Association, ) 

 March 10, 1864. { 



Chairman, Prof. S. D. Tillman; Secretary, Mr. B. Garvey. 



Iron Ores of Missouri. 



During the time devoted to the examination of new inventions and dis- 

 coveries. Dr. R. P.Stevens, geologist, gave an interesting account of recent 

 explorations made by him of the great iron deposits in the State of Mis- 

 souri. He presented not only specimens of iron ore from that region, but 

 from various other localities, and gave the percentage of iron in each. 



Iron Mountain is 260 feet above the surrounding valley, and 1,206 feet 

 above St, Louis. It covers an area of about 500 acres. It is nearly a pure 

 specular iron ore, containing only a little silex. It is massive, without any 

 signs of stratification. Upon its slopes, at its base, reposes a sandstone, 

 and above the sandstone is a layer of limestone, containing fucoids, show- 

 ing that the mountain has been upheaved since these lower Silurian depo- 

 sits were laid down. 



The Pilot Knob is a much higher mountain, its elevation being nearly 

 600 feet. It is composed of alternate strata of porphyry and specular ore. 

 The mass of ore opened is nearly at the summit of the mountain; the quarry 

 is 300 feet long, by about 50 feet deep, and is composed of two masses, 

 separated from each other by a divisional band of slate, from two to three 

 feet deep. The strata of this mountain dip south-west 30°, Upon its flanks 

 repose the same lower Silurian deposits as on the Iron Mountain, 



The theory Dr. S. inclines to is that of BischofF, viz: that specular ore is 

 the metamorphosed condition of an iron deposit in some earlier ages of the 

 American continent, and which was upheaved (not erupted nor injected) af- 

 ter the Silurian period. 



The Chairman then presented the following interesting summary of Sci- 

 entific and Technological investigations: 



