194 Miscellanies. 



judgment and ability ; and we wish him that full success which we trust 

 he will obtain as he deserves it well. Subscribers' names will be received 

 by the editor of this Journal, by James Munroe & Co., booksellers, Boston, 

 and S. Colman, 8 Astor House, New York. 



The volume will contain biographical notices of — Ray, Priestley, Four- 

 croy, Wollaston, Cuvier, Leslie, Van Swinden, Knight, Young, Henry, 

 Peron, Hutton, Playfair, Piazzi, Fraunhofer, Breguet, Fourier, Herschel, 

 Pallas, Count Romford, Vauquelin, Volta, &c. &c. 



14. Note hy Mr. E. F. Johnson, Civil Engineer. — In the article in the 

 present number of this Journal, entitled "Mountains in Nevv^ York," the 

 angular depression of Whiteface Mountain from Mt. Marcy is quoted erro- 

 neously from the report of Prof Emmons at 15'. The depression of 15' 

 applies according to Prof E. to Whiteface as seen from Dial Mountain, a 

 high peak situated a short distance S. E. from Mt. Marcy. At the time 

 of writing the article I had not access to the report of Prof Emmons. 

 The error originated in the use of some rough and imperfect notes in 

 pencil made nearly a year since, and which were in consequence partially 

 defaced. The depression of 15' of Whiteface from Dial Mt. corresponds 

 very nearly with the difference (234 ft.) in elevation of those two peaks, 

 comparing the height of the latter as given " approximately by levelhng', 

 by Prof E., and the former as determined trigonometrically by myself 



15. A Northern Lynx talceii in Connecticut. — A wild animal of the 

 genus Felis, was trapped at Southington,Conn., during the night of March 

 21, 1839, and M'as shot the next morning by the person who found it in 

 the trap. It weighs thirty-two pounds. Its length is nearly three feet ; 

 tail about four inches long and tipped with black. The species to which 

 it belongs is probably the F. horealis, Temm.; although it does not en- 

 tirely agree with the description given in Richardson's Fanua Boreali- 

 Americana. Further investigation is requisite to settle the species satis- 

 factorily, especially as the Lynxes of North iimerica are not yet well de- 

 termined. The animal in question, doubtless strayed from the north, 

 and its like is rarely seen within the limits of this State. E. C. H. 



16. Preservation of animal fat for Soap Making, hy D. Tomlinson, 

 Schenectady, July, 1838. — Fat saved for making soap soon passes, espe- 

 cially in hot weather, to a spoiled and offensive condition: sometimes 

 with the loss, in this manner, of the fat, or it is devoured by rats. None 

 of these occurrences happen in my house : nor is the fat boiled in lye to 

 make soft soap. The fat, as it is saved from time to time, is put into a 

 |>repared cask, and strong lye is added to it. As it accumulates in 

 quantity, lye is added, and occasionally stirred by a stick. When the 

 cask is full, the soap is already made and ready for use. The lye cask 



