* 
Miscellaneous Intelligence. 431 
- VY. Misce.tnaneous INTELLIGENCE. 
1. Correspondence of M. Jerome Nicklés, dated Paris, Sept. 2, 1854. 
Death of Dr. Lallemand and of Melloni.—Science has experienced 
a great loss in the deaths of Dr. Lallemand and the Physicist Melloni. 
The former died at the age of 65 appa leaving a great void in medico- 
lee science, of which he was one of the most illustrious repre- 
sentatives. Melloni died saddetiy ri an attack of cholera, when he 
was just giving his last stroke to a work on electrostatic induction. His 
death took place on the 7th of August, while he was living on a small 
farm where he had retired since the king of Naples had taken from him 
the direction of the Naples Observatory and deprived him of the means 
making researches. His age was 56 years. We have not had time 
eminent men, and will return to them again in our next communica- 
hi 
Weights and Measures.—A Turk, M. Bilizidkdji, has called the 
attention of the Academy of Sciences to the many defects in the 
present system of weights and measures used in Turkey, representing 
the necessity of establishing there a uniform system cerresponding 
as nearly as possible with the metric of France he weights and 
measures in Turkey vary not only from Province to Province and town 
to town, but also according to the different professions, and the nature 
‘of products. -It is nearly as it was in France before the Revolution. 
On the Report of General Morin, os a expressed the desire 
that the Ottoman government, as s s the war ceased or gave leis- 
ure for it, should take up the ‘ailijeet our establish a plan on the metric 
system. 
We observe in this connection that two governments have recently 
adopted this system, the Republic of Mexico and that of New Grenada, 
and orders were given to M. Silbermann to supply the standards of the 
system, (a metre, kilogram and liter.) ese units have been finished 
by the late Gambey ; ‘and before delivering them over they were, com- 
pared with the fundamental standards by Silbermann in the manner ex- 
plained in this Journal (January and May, 1853, and page 388 of the 
present volume,) and verified nearly to the hundredth of a milligram 
ora millimetre. There are now 17 of these units at the Conservatory 
of Arts and Trades; they are intended for those governments that or- 
der them, or that offer their own standards of weights and measures in 
exchange. A score of setts have already been distributed, to the Uni- 
ge. of 
_ted States, Spain, different states of Germany, and Italy. per and 
Austria are Bet the only nations of the first order that do not possess 
hem and Russia received them long since. — 
Hemerch hei ok Clana Impressions produced by the Tin’ Cldsitéal action 
of Light.—It is more than six years since M. Edmond Becquerel suc- 
ceeded in preparing a surface chemically impressible to light, such that 
it would take the color of the luminous rays which fell upon it. He has 
