CCXXXIV 



The petition for the formation of an Archaeological Section was 

 granted. 



Mr. J. J. R. Patrick was elected an Associate Member. 



December i8, 1876. 



C. V. Riley, President, in the chair. 

 Twelve members present. 



ON APPLYING MUSCULAR WORK. 



Mr. Nipher gave the following communication on the most 

 favorable manner of applying muscular work : 



Although labor-saving machinery is being constantly devised, it seems 

 to have the effect of increasing the amount of work accomplished rather 

 than of releasing individuals from the necessity of labor. Hence it seems 

 to be of growing importance to find the laws regulating muscular action. 

 Long ago it was experimentally proved by Coulomb, that a man walking 

 up stairs without any load, and raising his burden by his own weight in 

 descending, could do as much work in a day as four men working in the 

 ordinary way with the most favorable load. 



Similar isolated experiments have been made by Jevons, Haughton, 

 and myself, which have been published in Haughtotis Animal Mechanics^ 

 London, 1873, and in later scientific journals. 



Although a workman, or a horse, when working with any given tool or 

 machine, will adapt himself to it, working with a velocity which enables 

 him to do a maximum, it by no means follows that the conditions might 

 not be so changed that a greater amount of effective work might be done 

 with the same effort. 



To take a case in point : Haughton observed some fish-women gather- 

 ing shell-fish on the ocean beach. The beach back from the water several 

 rods was very rough and rocky. Farther back it was smooth and furnished 

 good walking. Starting from the edge of the water, and going straight to 

 the market of the neighboring town, they would have to walk for a long 

 distance over the rough, stony beach. On the other hand, by walking back 

 at right angles to the water-mark, they would soonest get to good walk- 

 ing, but they would have a greater distance over which to carry their bur- 

 dens. The course which they actually took was an intermediate one, and 

 Prof. Haughton found that these people, ignorant and unthinking as they 

 were, were selecting directions which made their work a minimum. But, 

 of course, the conditions under which they were working might have been 

 so improved that more useful work might have been accomplished with 

 the same effort. 



Another illustration is afforded in the series of experiments which I 

 present to you this evening. The experiments were made upon the gym- 

 nasium swing. 



