August 6, 18»6.j 



SCIEWCl^. 



121 



this purpose, it is well to connect it with some 

 form (preferably that known as E. P. S.) of stor- 

 age battery or accumulator. The chlorine is dis- 

 engaged very simply from hydrochloric acid and 

 manganese, and a necessary part of the apparatus 

 is a small gas-holder, conveniently constructed 

 of drain-pipes covered with pitch. All the gas 

 apparatus is worked on the displacement principle, 

 chlorine being nearly 2i times as heavy as air. 

 The apparatus necessary to establish a small in- 

 stallation of 15 to 18 ten-candle power lamps costs 

 about $250. The commonest sheet zinc may be 

 used, and the corrosive action is very slow, and 

 remarkably regular. 



At a receot conference at the Colonial exhibi- 

 tion, a paper was read by Mr. Sievwright on 

 Colonial telegraphs, in which warm tributes were 

 paid to the early labors, 1^, of Dr. (now Sir Wiii.) 

 O'Shaughnessy in* India, who in 1839 and follow- 

 ing years carried out experiments on the trans- 

 mission of telegraphic signals by 'galvanism;' 

 and 2*^, of Mr. T. R. Crampton, the engineer who 

 in 1851 laid the first submarine cable aci'oss the 

 English Channel, and whose pluck and energy 

 found, in addition, nearly the whole of the money 

 necessary for the undertaking. Mr. Crampton 

 was present, and made an interesting speech in 

 the discussion which followed, in the course of 

 which, also, the need of a submarine cable from 

 the American to the Australian continent was 

 alluded to. 



The newly organized gunpowder factory at 

 Chilworth was recently inspected by a party of 

 scientific men, where, under Herr Hiedamann's 

 direction, the new brown or ' cocoa ' powder is 

 being produced. Wood charcoal is replaced by 

 another form, and the proportions of sulphur and 

 nitre have been so changed that but little smoke 

 is produced. Except in a gun-chamber, the firing 

 of the powder is very slow, and a new dejjarture 

 in the history of artillery has taken place. 



Dr. C. R. Drysdale, senior physician of the 

 Metropolitan free hospital, is one of the most 

 recent distinguished converts toPasteurisra. Hav- 

 ing visited Paris, and investigated 740 cases treated 

 in the Rue Vauquelin, in which there was no 

 doubt of the madness of the dog, he gives the 

 death-rate as 0.75 per cent, while under other 

 treatments, the death-rate is 16 per cent. Hence 

 he considers that the value of M. Pasteur's treat- 

 ment is 25 times as great as that of all the other 

 treatments. 



The use of petroleum as fuel was the subject of 

 a paper by Colonel Stewart at the United service 

 institution recently, and a warm discussion fol- 

 lowed. The Russians have now applied liquid 

 fuel in various ways to 200 steamers, 700 or 800 



locomotives, and probably 1,000 stationary engines. 

 In England the use of liquid fuel is still only in 

 an experimental stage, whereas in Russia the 

 labors of Urquhart, Lentz, and other sound prac- 

 tical engineers, have made it as familiar as con- 

 stant practice can make anything. A suggestion 

 was made that English ship-owners should send 

 one of their staff to Baku to examine the various 

 systems in use. Two pioneer steamers are now 

 being fitted out on this principle in West Hartle- 

 pool, one of which, the Gliickauf, is to be engaged 

 in carrying oil from the United States. She is of 

 steel, to carry 3,000 tons dead weight, fitted with 

 triple-expansion engines, with cylinders of 22, 35, 

 and 58 inches diameter. Two single-ended steel 

 boilers, with two furnaces in each, are expected 

 to develop 1,000 horse-power. W. 



London, July 13. 



NOTES AND NEWS. 



The local committee of the American associa- 

 tion announces that the arrangements for a suc- 

 cessful meeting are fairly completed. A misstate- 

 ment was made in the first circular regarding 

 telegraph dispatches. Ihe Western union tele- 

 graph company has consented to accept for free 

 transmission over its lines only the official tele- 

 grams of the association, and will charge one- 

 half of the regular rates to members who have 

 their messages stamped by the local secretary. 

 The American express company, the United States 

 express company, and the National express com- 

 pany wiU ship packages over their own lines free 

 of charge to Buffalo providing, such packages, 1°, 

 contain specimens, etc., to be used during the 

 meeting ; 2°, do not exceed twenty-five pounds in 

 weight ; 3°, are shipped at owner's risk and are 

 addressed to the American association, care of the 

 local secretary at the High school in Buffalo. 

 The following programme has been arranged by 

 the local committee : Thursday, afternoon, excm-- 

 sion down the Niagara River to Grand Island ; 

 evening, the Botanical club of Buffalo will receive 

 the Botanical club of the association, at the resi- 

 dence of Hon. David F. Day ; the Entomological 

 club of Buffalo will receive the Entomological 

 club of the association at the rooms of the Society 

 of natural sciences. Friday, afternoon, Mrs. 

 Bronson C. Rumsey will receive the association at 

 a lawn party at her residence on Delaware Avenue 

 from 4 to 6 o'clock ; evening, illustrated lecture 

 by Prof. C. A. Ashburner, on ' the Geology of oil 

 and gas.' Two excursions will be given to the 

 members of the association on Saturday, one to 

 Niagara Falls, the other to Chautauqua Lake. 

 Monday, afternoon, excursion of the Botanical 



