84 
NA OLE: 
| Nov. 18, 1869 
was founded at Salem in the year 1867, by the munifi- 
cence of George Peabody, with the design of promoting 
the study of science in his native county of Essex. The first 
Annual Report of the Trustees of this Academy, made in 
January, 1869, shows that it is already fully organized, with 
an able corps of officers and a well-ordered museum, library, 
&c., and the activity of its Director and Curators is evident 
not only in the extent and fine condition of the collec- 
tions, but in the zeal and ability with which the various 
publications of the Academy are conducted. Advantage 
was taken of the present occasion to make the formal 
transfer of the building of the Museum to the Trustees, 
and its delivery and acceptance by the Director, Mr, F. W. 
Putnam. In an eloquent address the President of the 
Academy, Mr. William C. Endicott, gave the history of 
the Museum from its foundation, in 1801, as the East 
India Marine Hall, to its purchase and reorganization in 
its present form. The Essex Institute, which is well known 
by its Proceedings, Bulletin, and Historical Collections, is 
now incorporated with the Peabody Academy of Science. 
The address of Dr. B. A. Gould, the retiring President 
of the Association, dealt with the Position of Men of 
Science in America. 
Everything which a hearty good will and an intelligent 
appreciation of science could do was done to promote the 
happiness and forward the plans of the Association and 
its members, alike by the city authorities of Salem, the 
various scientific bodies, and private individuals. We 
confess we should have been glad to learn that our 
English scientific men had been represented at the 
meeting, as America was represented at Exeter by Pro- 
fessors Newton and Lynan. 
The Association will meet next year at Troy, New York, 
under the presidency of Professor Chauvenet, of St. Louis 
University. 
The following, which were among the papers read at 
the meeting, will give an idea, not only of the great 
scientific importance of the congress, but of the direction 
in which many of the most eminent scientific men in 
America are working at the present time :— 
Section A. JAlathematics, Physics, and Chemistry.—Or. the 
Total Eclipse of Aug. 1869; B. Pierce. —On Quintuple Algebra ; 
B. Pierce.—Determination of the Mechanical Equivalent of 
Heat, by means of the modern ice and cooling machines ; P. H. 
Van der Weyde.—The Spectral Bands considered as harmonics 
of one or more fundamental longer waves, lying beyond in the 
invisible caloric rays ; P. H. Van der Weyde.—On the audible 
transmission of musical melodies by means gf the Electric 
Telegraph; P. H. Van der Weyde.—Electricity not a self-existent 
fluid, but a mode of motion of matter; P. H. Van der Weyde.— 
Flame Temperatures, in their relations to compositions and 
luminosity ; B. Silliman and H. Wurtz. —On the relation 
between the Intensity of Light produced by the Combustion of 
Illuminating Gas and the Volume of Gas consumed; B, Silliman. 
—Causes of the Failure of Lightning Rods ; J. Bushee.—Con- 
ditions of a perfect Lightning Rod; J. Bushee.—The Laws of 
the Deflection of Beams tested by experiment; W. A. Norton.— 
The physical theory of the Principle of the Lever; W. A. Norton. 
—Planetary Influence on Rainfall and Temperature; P. E. Chase. 
—The use of the Thermometer to determine the period of Solar 
Rotation; P. E. Chase.—Some observations on the Solar 
Eclipse at Montreal, by Dr. C. Smallwood, with Photographs 
taken by Wm. Notman. Communicated by B. Edwards.—A 
new method of observing Contacts at a Solar Eclipse by the 
Spectroscope ; C. A. Young. —The Spectrum of the Solar 
Prominences and Corona, as observed at Burlington, Iowa, in 
the last Solar Eclipse, and the coincidence between the bright 
lines of Corona Spectrum and those of the Spectrum of the 
Aurora Borealis; C. A. Young.—The Solar Eclipse, and the 
Outlines of the Corona as observed at Des Moins; T. Bassnett. 
—Remarkable case of freezing Fresh-water Pipes in Salt-water; 
W. W. Wheilden.—The Thermodynamics of Waterfalls; A. 
M. Mayer.—On some further evidence of the existence of a 
System of Arctic Winds; J. H. Coffin.—The present condition 
of Lighthouse Illumination in the United States ; J. Henry. —A 
new method of rendering the Needle of a Galyanometer 
definitely astatic ; M. G. Farmer.—On an improved construction 
of the Holtz Electrical Machine, adapted for the analysis of the 
phenomena of this variety of machine, and for Class-room use ; 
R. E. Rogers. 
Section B. Geology and Natural History.—Comparison of 
the Coral Faunce of the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts of the Isth- 
mus of Darien, as bearing on the supposed former connection 
between the two Oceans; A. E. Verrill.— On certain Pecu- 
liarities in the ‘distribution of Marine Life on the Sea-bottom of 
the Bay of Fundy ; A. E. Verrill—American Phyllopod Crus- 
tacea; A. KE. Verrill—The Homologies and general structural 
relations of the Polyzoa; A. Hyatt.—Observations on a new 
genus of Polyzoa ; A. Hyatt.—New Species of Fishes obtained 
by Prof. Orton in the valleys of the Maranon and Napo ; T. Gill. 
—wNotice of some new Fossil Plants; from Gaspé, discovered 
by Prof. J. W. Dawson; J. S. Newberry.—On some points 
in the Geology of North Carolina; W. C. Kerr.—Prelimi- 
nary notice of the Lamellibranchiates of the Upper Helder- 
berg, Hamilton and Chemung Groups; J. Hall. —On the 
Classification of the Diurnal Lepidoptera ; S. H. Scudder. —The 
Morphology of the Abdominal Appendages of Butterflies; S. 
H. Scudder.—The value of the characters drawn from the 
external Armature of Lepidopterous Larvae ; S. H. Scudder.— 
A classification of the Eggs of Butterflies ; S. H. Scudder.—Two 
new genera of Extinct Cetacea; I. D. Cope.—Discovery of the 
Ammonoosuc Gold Field; H. Wurtz.—Note upon the Palo- 
trochis ; H. Wurtz.—Notices of some new Tertiary and Creta- 
ceous Fishes; O. C. Marsh.—Metamorphosis of Siredon into 
Amblystoma; O. C. Marsh.—On some new Mosasauroid Reptiles 
from the Greensand of New Jersey ; O. C. Marsh.—Homologies 
of the Palzechinidz ; Alex. E. R. Agassiz.—On Surface Changes 
in Maine indicating the length of time since the close of the 
Quarternary Period ; N. T. True.—Compression as an agent in 
Geological Metamorphism, with illustrations of distorted pebbles 
in conglomerates ; G. L. Vose.—On the Plasticity of Pebbles 
and Rocks; W. P. Blake.—Flora and Fauna of the Fresh- 
water Tertiaries of Oregon and Idaho; J. S. Newberry.—On 
new species of Fishes obtained by Prof. Orton in the Valleys of 
the Maranon and Napo; T. Gill. 
SuB-SEcTION C. Archeology and Ethnology.—Conjectural ex- 
planation of Uses of the Embankments of the Mound Builders ; 
L. H. Morgan.— Discovery of the Remains of the Horse among 
the Ancient Ruins of Central America ; O. C. Marsh.—Exhibi- 
tion of a few interesting Implements collected by R. W. Haskins 
from Indian Graves on the banks of the Ohio, with special refer- 
ence to the boring of holes in stone implements; F. W. Putnam. 
NEW (| STAR-ATLAS 
R. R. A. Procror has planned a star-atlas on 
a plan which presents several advantages. The 
celestial sphere is to be divided according to this plan 
into twelve equal parts, each pentagonal in shape; but, 
each map being made circular, there is a slight over- 
lapping, which prevents any star-group from being broken 
off at the edge of a map, as in all the arrangements 
hitherto adopted. Owing to the equality of the maps and 
the choice of a central projection (the equidistant) the 
distortion is reduced to a minimum. In fact, for the first 
time in the history of star-mapping, a plan is adopted by 
which, with a moderate number of maps, there is no 
appreciable distortion or scale-variation. The woodcut 
which gives (ona reduced scale and with inverted colours) 
a portion of Map 2 of the series (where it overlaps Map 4), 
exhibits some of the principal peculiarities of the new 
scheme. It will be noticed that though this portion 
belongs to the outer portion of the map (where the dis- 
tortion is greatest) the figures between the parallels and 
meridians are of their proper shape. The arrow indicat- 
ing precession in direction and magnitude (for 100 years) 
is a novel and very simple mode of exhibiting this impor- 
tant relation. ‘The way in which the constellation-names 
are introduced is also new, and seems preferable to the 
old arrangement, in which the name straggling over the 
whole constellation at once confused the star-grouping, 
and was itself almost illegible unless printed in very large 
letters, The figure also includes instances of the mode of 
