TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 21 
covering the wire with silk or cotton to act as a damper to the more minute vibra- 
tions. This instrument being more compact, and not requiring a darkened room set 
apart for its special use, its application is much more general, whilst it at 
the same time gives much more minute and sensitive measurements. “The instru- 
ment can be used in broad day, either in or out of doors, and is applicable to all 
kinds of galvanometric observations. 
On a New Automatic Telegraphic Apparatus. By Prof. C. Zeneur. 
The Morse telegraph requires much cleverness and practice in the telegraphists 
to deliver despatches quickly, correctly, and easily legible. To avoid mistakes, and 
to get a more rapid mode of despatching, the author constructed an automatical 
telegraphic apparatus, intended to make pee ea with the Morse system quite 
independent of the telegraphist’s cleverness and practice, to procure signs automa- 
tically made of as correct a shape as if they were printed. But that is not the only 
advantage of this apparatus ; for it is capable of giving three simple signs instead 
of only two. These signs are got by pressing down uniformly three levers, the first 
giving a dot, the second a short line, and the third a nearly three times longer one. 
The combinations to one, two, and three elements are 3, 9, and 27, in some 38; 
with the Morse key there are only 2, 4, and 8, in some 14, possible. There are 
much fewer signs required to obtain all letters and ciphers than with the Morse 
key, and the despatches become more than one-third shorter than with the common 
key. But times also spared ; because an able telegraphist may more swiftly tele- 
graph than with the Morse key; for the movement of the three levers is uniform, 
and may be produced with three fingers put on the keys at the end of each lever. 
The movement of the levers produces a similar movement of shorter and smaller 
levers, producing a current of only momentary duration on the first lever, a longer 
on the second, and three times longer on the third. Whatever may be the velocity 
of the paper devolving on the Morse writing-apparatus, the relative length of the 
two lines will not be altered, and becomes quite independent from the hand of the 
telegraphist. The first lever gives always a dot, or an extremely short line. The 
author has found by using this key, which is simply placed instead of the Morse 
key in the circuit without altering anything else in the whole Morse system, that 
boys and little girls may, after a day’s practice, telegraph quite well; and that a 
clever telegraphist may reduce the space occupied by the telegram about 30 to 33 
per cent., and the time spent nearly 40 to 50 per cent., after a short time of 
practice, 
Merroronoey. 
The Resemblance and Contrasts of the Climates of the Mauritius and Natal. 
By Rosert James Mann, W.D., F.MS., F.R.AS., FLR.GS., Superinten- 
dent of Education at Natal, and Acting Special Commissioner of the Natal 
Government. 
The exact observations on the meteorology of Port Louis, in the island of 
the Mauritius, made by Professor Meldrum, and printed in the last Report 
(1867), acquire additional interest and value when compared with observations 
made at the neighbouring continental station of Natal at the same time. The island 
of the Mauritius lies in the Indian Ocean between the 20th and 2lst parallels of 
southern latitude, and 1400 miles from the African shore. The colony of Natal 
lies on the border of the African continent, facing the same ocean between the 29th 
and 32nd parallels of south latitude. The sun shines approximately with the same 
inclination and force on both situations; and the prevalent movement of the atmo- 
sphere is in the same direction in both, that, namely, of the south-eastern trade- 
wind flowing from the vast open stretches of the Southern Ocean. But in the one 
case the sun shines, and the ocean-wind blows upon a small island only thirty-five 
miles across in the widest part, and rising into a tableland 1400 feet high in its 
centre, with a rampart of jagged peaks about as high again; while in the other 
