March 12, 1897.] 



SCIENCE. 



441 



methods employed by him in the analysis of the 

 action of steam within the engine, and in the 

 measurement of the heat and steam passing 

 through its cylinder and in the determination 

 of their various directions of useful application 

 or of waste. This method is, in the main, that 

 of Hirn, but reduced to algebraic expression by 

 Dwelshauvers, and given application in scien- 

 tific work of vastly more exact nature than was 

 practicable in the time of the great master. 

 The ' experimental engine ' established within a 

 few years at the School of Mines of the Uni- 

 versity of Liege affords M. Dwelshauvers op- 

 portunity to illustrate the principles enunciated 

 and to secure original and helpful data, while, 

 at the same time, giving practical instruction to 

 his students. 



A paper by M. Boulvin, of the University of 

 Ghent, on ' Le Diagramme entropique et ses 

 applications' follows. This diagram and 

 method of representation of thermodynamic op- 

 erations, original with our own Professor Gibbs, 

 nearly a quarter of a century ago, is just at- 

 tracting attention among scientific practitioners 

 in engineering by its peculiar adaptation to the 

 exposition of the eflfects of transformations 

 upon the relative volumes of fluids, losing or 

 gaining heat while work is being done. The 

 pressure-volume diagram is usually better ad- 

 apted to the needs of the engineer ; but this 

 special form of chart, the temperature-entropy 

 diagram, better exhibits the physical condition 

 of the fluid during the progress of the engine 

 cycle. M. Boulvin, in his article, shows its 

 practical uses, as particularly applied to the 

 study of the permanent gases used as working 

 substances in heat engines. 



M. Sauvage studies the compound locomotive 

 engine, exhibiting the structure of the princi- 

 pal classes in great detail and giving much at- 

 tention to the forms familiar in the United 

 States. M. Richard similarly discusses the re- 

 frigerating machines, giving detailed descrip- 

 tions of the principal parts of such apparatus 

 and according large space to those observed by 

 him at the Chicago Exhibition of 1893. The 

 same prolific pen oflTers an account of the con- 

 struction of the later forms of the gas and pe- 

 troleum engines. A ' chronicle ' of current 

 novelties and a review of contemporary litera- 



ture conclude the volume, which occupies 112 

 giant pages. 



With such extraordinary editorial support, 

 and with such contributors, the new journal 

 should promptly assume a place among the 

 leading periodicals of its class ; in fact, it may 

 be said to have done so with .this first issue. 



The following original papers are announced 

 as in preparation for succeeding numbers : 

 L'Influence des parois dans les machines a 

 vapeur, par Bryan Donkin ; Le Surchauffe, par 

 M. Sinigaglia ; La Machine a, vapeur am4ricaine, 

 par M. Thurston ; Las Machines a vapeur ma- 

 rines, par M. Roche ; Les Chaudieres, par M. 

 Walkenauer ; Les Pompes, par M. Masse ; 

 Les Regulateurs, per M. Marie ; Les Appareils 

 de levage, Les Machines-outils, par M. Richard. 



GENERAL. 



Me. .T. H. Brigham, of Ohio, has been ap- 

 pointed Assistant Secretary of Agriculture. 



The fourth session of the Congress of Ameri- 

 can Physicians and Surgeons will be held at 

 Washington, D. C, on May 4th, 6th and 6th, 

 under the presidency of Professor W. H. Welch, 

 of Johns Hopkins University. Fourteen of the 

 most important medical societies, including the 

 Physiological Society and the Society of Anato- 

 mists, will take part in the Congress. One of 

 the three general meetings will be devoted to 

 a discussion of ' Internal Secretions considered 

 in their Physiological, Pathological and Clinical 

 Aspects.' Dr. William H. Howell, of Balti- 

 more, Md., and Dr. Russell H. Chittenden, of 

 New Haven, Conn., will speak in behalf of 

 the American Physiological Society. Dr. J. 

 George Adami, of Montreal, Canada; Dr. James 

 J. Putnam, of Boston, Mass., and Dr. Francis P. 

 Kinnicutt, of New York City, in behalf of the 

 Association of American Physicians, and Dr. 

 William Osier, of Baltimore, Md., in behalf of 

 the American Pediatric Society. The papers 

 will be followed by a discussion. 



The anniversary meeting of the Geological 

 Society of London was held at Burlington- 

 house on February 17th. The officers were ap- 

 pointed as follows : President, Dr. Henry Hicks, 

 F. R. S. ; Vice-Presidents, Professor T. G. Bon- 

 ney, F. R. S.; Lieutenant- General C. A. M'Ma- 

 hon, Mr. J. .J. H. Teall, F. R. S., and Dr. 



