24 



MISCELLANEOUS INTELLIGENCE. 



[18c 



former results were found to fluctuate less than tlie latter. The pro- 

 portion of suicides todeaths(l in 70 amongst males, 1 in 125 amongst 

 fcm.iles) and the age at which they arc committed, the mode of death, 

 and even the causes wliicli lead to tla-m, vary only in accordance with 

 some general laws. l''ew know that in every seven minutes of the day 

 a child is born in London, and in every nine minutes one of its in- 

 habitants dies ! The population of London is, roundly, ?,362,000. If 

 the averages of the past 50 years continue, in 31 years from this time, 

 as niany persons as now compose its population will have died in it, 

 and yet in about 39 yeara;from this time^ if the present rate of progress 

 continue, the metropolis will contain twice as many persons as it does' 

 now. The whole population of Liverpool in 1851 numbered 255,000; 

 while the iucrea.se of itihabitants in the metropolis between 1841 and 

 and 1S51 was 413,000. It is truly marvellous! "Where it will stop, 

 and how food aud shelter are provided for these masses, are subjects 

 for speculation. 



The Amazon. — rrofessor Graham has presented a chemical report to 

 the Board of Trade on the cause of the burning of the ship Amazon, in 

 which, after investigating the evidence on the subject, he conies to the 

 conclusion that the origin of the fire must remain a matter of speculation 

 and conjecture. He does not think that it originated in the spontaneous 

 corabuslion of the coals, because they were Welsh, which arc not 

 remarkable for this properly, and were shipped in a dry and dusty 

 state. He conceives that the sudden and powerful burst of flan e from 

 the store-room, which occurred at the very outset of the corfla!i;ration, 

 is strongly suggestive of a volatile combustible, which, according to 

 two witnesses, was in the etore-roora, though this is denied liy a third. 

 Professor Gral am found on trial that the vapour given off by oil of 

 turpentine is sufficiently dense at a temperature somewhat below 110° 

 to make air explosive on the approach of a light. 



rrcvcnlion of Incrustations in Steam-IioUers. — M. Delandre states that 

 lie has succeeded in preserving tubular boilers, free from incrustation, 

 by placing 2 lbs. of protochloride of tin in a boiler, which works 12 

 hours daily, with a pressure of 3 atmospheres, consuming in this time 

 1,500 to l.GOO quarts of water, and is only emptied and refilled once 

 in eight days. For steam boilers which are erajitied daily, and are of 

 great power, the consumption of protochloride should be calculated at 

 half a pound, for every cubic inetre of water evaporated. The proto- 

 cloride of tin is changed by the water into an insoluble basis and a 

 soluble acid salt ; the latter dissolves the earthy and calcareous salts. 

 —Arlizan. 



Dr. Babbington, of London, some time since took out a patent for 

 preventing incrustation by volaic agency. For iron boilers he i-ecom- 

 mends a plate of zinc 16 oz. the square foot, to be attached by one of 

 its edges by solder, to the interior of the boiler ; and both sides of the 

 plates being left exposed to tlie action of the iron and water, voltaic 

 agency thus excited, is said to have the desired elfcct. For large 

 boilers, two three or more plates may bo used as necessary. 



Slcam-Boikr Explosions. — An invention has been registered by Mr. 

 Dangerfield, of West Bromwich, for the prevention of steam-boiler 

 explosions. The apparatus is very simple, consisting of a valve, which 

 is screwed to the top of the boiler, over which stands a hollow iiuted 

 column about 3 feet high, forming a box to eontaiti the weights on the 

 valve, and a pillar for a wheel, over which works a flat chain connect- 

 ed with the buoy in the boiler, having at equal distances two long 

 links, one on each side of the pillar. Two levers, connected with the 

 valve, and fixed on centres, pass between the long link, so that the 

 water in tlie boiler, rising or falling beyond a given level, depresses 

 the lever, opens the valve, and permits the steam to escape. An iiidex 

 is fi.xed on the wheel which gives the height of Iho water in the boiler ; 

 the steam is al.so weighed without the addition of levers, and the 

 weights are securely locked in the pillar to jirevcnt alteration. 



New Pland—ilr. J. R. Hind has announced that a few nigh s ago 

 lie "disvovered a new planet on the borilers of the constellations 

 A(|uila and Serpens, about 5 degrees east of the star Tau in Ophiuchu.s. 

 It shines as a fine star of between the eighth and ninth m.agnitudfs, 

 and has a very steady yellow light. At moments it appeared to 

 have a disc, but the night was not sufticiently favorable for high 

 magnifiers. At Kill. 13rii. IGs. moan time, its right ascension was 18h. 

 12rn. 58 8s., and its north polar distance 98 deg. 17m, 09s. Thediurnal 

 motion in R. A. is about Im. 2s. towards the west, and in N. P. D. two 

 or three minutes towards the south." 



At a meeting of the vSociety of Antiquaries, lately hold in London, 

 Mr. Wright, by permission of the owner, exhibited a sword, a spear- 

 head, and what he denominated an arrow-head of the Anglo-Saxon 

 period, from whence he argued that the Anglo-Saxons used bows and 

 arrows. Mr. Akennan expressed more than strong doubts on the 

 question, and was of opinion that the so-called arrow-head had 

 belonged to a small javelin. Our notion is that of Mr. Wright,— and 

 it is very well ascertained that the Ancient Britons, whatever might 

 have been the practice of the Saxons, employed bows aud arrows, and 

 pointed the latter with Hint. 



An account of the receipUs and disbursements of the home treasmy 

 of the East India Company, from the 1st of M.ny, 1851, to the 30th of 

 April, 1852, shows that the receipts have been £6,099,852 8s. 5d.. and 

 the disbursements, £3,734,003 lis. 6d., leaving a balance in favor of 

 the company, on the 30th of April, 1852, of £9 365,848 14s. It is 

 estimated that the receipts of the home Treasury from the 1st ef May 

 last to the 30lh of April, 1853, will be £3,858,021, which, with the 

 balance in hand, will make the total amount £6,224,369. The dis- 

 bursements for the same period are estimated at £4,439,272, which - 

 will leave a balance in favor of the company on the 30th of April, 

 1852, of £1,785,097. 



The great Fire at the Printing Office of Messrs Clowes, in London, 

 in the month of June last, by wliich property to the value of £50,000 

 was destroyed, has, it appears, a more direct interest for Canadians, 

 than the readers of the announcement in the papers, were probably 

 con.scious of. Apart of the twenty thousand reams of paper cunsunied, 

 consisted of the sheets of 457 pages of the fortliconiing Volume of 

 observations at H. M. Magneticnl Observatory at Toronto, the whole of 

 which have therefore to be reprinted. 



It appears from the I'eturns prepaied by the Board of Trade, that 

 during the five months ended the 5th of Juncla.st, we imported no 

 less tiuin 52,338,676 eggs, tlie whole of which were entered for liome 

 consumption. Of these, two-thirds were de'ivered to supply the Lon- 

 don markets. The average monthly consumption of foreign eggs is 

 15,000,000. The importations of butter during the first five months of 

 the present year were 117,797 cwt., against 129,936 cwt., in the corres- 

 pontling period of last year. 



It is stated that arraiige.Tients are in progress for extending the 

 privileges of sending books, magazines, and pamphlets by post, at tlie 

 low rates adopted for inland carriage of these article.s, to the settle- 

 ments of Australia. 



From official returns just published, it appears that the Irish 

 emigration in ten years (1841 to 1751) numbered 1,289,133 persons. 

 The decrease in the population of Ireland between 1841 and 1851 was 

 1,659,330. 



It is said that Col. Eawlinson has opened out the entire place of 

 sepulture of the Kings and Ciueeng of As,syria. There tl ey lie " in 

 huge stone sarcophagi, wilh ponilerous lids decorated with the Royal 

 ornaments and costume, just as they were deposited more than 3U00 

 years ago." 



It is proposed to construct a new Bridge on or near the situ of 

 Blackfriars bridge, to be of cast iron, and have only five arches iiistuad 

 of seven. The centre arch would thus be 150 feet open aud the two 

 side arches 140 and 130 feet resjiectively. 



Mr. A. W. Pugin, the celebrated Architect, has become the inmate 

 of a Pubhc HospitaL His mind having given way under an exccessive 

 strain of professional and nervous excitement. 



ERRATA. 

 Page 10 — Line 40. — For "shut," read "sheet." 

 Page 16 — Line 10. — For " bichlorides," read "chlo 



•ide 



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