Miscellanies. 415 



15. History and Proceedings of the Mechanics^ Institute of the 

 City of JYeiv York, from the Corresponding Secretary. — Tlie New 

 York Mechanics' Institute was founded in the spring of 1831, and 

 originated in a class of Mechanics attending a course of lectures on 

 Chemistry and Natural Philosophy given by Prof. John Steele du- 

 ring the preceding winter, and consisted of forty-five members. In 

 October of the same year, the Common Council of the city granted 

 the free use of the rooms now occupied by the Institute, in the base- 

 ment story of the City Hall, consisting of a Lecture Room, Read- 

 ing Room, Library, and a place for the deposit of Models of Ma- 

 chinery. The Institute has rapidly increased in numbers, until it 

 enumerates above one thousand active members. The advantages 

 which it offers to the members are a free ticket of admission to its 

 annual exhibition and fair, generally held in September, to its lectures, 

 and the use of its library and reading room, at an expense of four dol- 

 lars for the first year and two dollars a year afterwards. The lectures 

 are held during the winter months twice in the week, on a variety of 

 subjects connected with the mechanical professions. The Library, 

 containing between ten and eleven hundred volumes, is well select- 

 ed and free to the members. The Reading Room contains above 

 fifty periodicals, amongst which are found the most important litera- 

 ry and scientific journals that are published in the English, and a 

 few in other languages. The celebrated work on Egypt got up un- 

 der the French Government, has been procured by subscription 

 amongst the friends of the institution, at an expense of ^800, and 

 is now deposited in its Library. The Institute holds a meeting for 

 the transaction of its business the first Tuesday evening of each 

 month, and every other Tuesday evening of the month is occupied 

 by a lecture or an essay from some one of the members. The sci- 

 entific meetings have been but recently commenced, and promise 

 the most happy results. The following is an abstract of the pro- 

 ceedings. 



Tuesday, Oct. 11th, 1836. — The meeting was opened by the 

 Cor. Secretary, who stated that it was one of the prominent objects 

 of these meetings to communicate the various desiderata in the pre- 

 sent state of the arts; to obtain, as far as practicable, histories of the 

 origin and progress of the various trades, as well as of the individu- 

 al articles manufactured by the various artificers — such as the histo- 

 ry of pumps, stoves, mills for grinding grain, windmills, water mills, 

 &:c. The importance was particularly urged of investigating the 



