MEETING OF THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. 



[1853 



Libraiy oft! e Canadian Institute. 



Through the liberality of A. H. Armour, Esq., of Toronto, the 

 Library of the Canadian Institute has just received a very valu- 

 able addition to its collection of Books and Maps. The volumes 

 presented consist of the magnificent Report of David Dale Owen 

 U. S. Geologist, on the " Geological Survey of Wisconsin, Iowa, 

 and Minnesota, and incidentally of a portion of Nebraska Terri- 

 tory," accomp; nied by a quarto volume of Plates and Maps 

 illustrative of the work. Also, of the annual Report of the 

 Superintendent of the Coast Survey, and a quarto volume of 

 sketches accompanying the Report. We understand that Mr. 

 Armour is indebted to the politeness of the Hon. J. M. Brodhead, 

 second Comptroller of the U. S. Treasury, for these valuable 

 documents. The importance of procuring works of this character 

 for the Library cannot be too highly estimated, and we gladly 

 avail ourselves of the earliest opportunity of acknowledging the 

 uniform zeal which Mr. Armour has manifested in promoting the 

 interests of the Canadian Institute. 



Tweaty=TI:J!-d Meeting of the British Association for the 

 Advancement of Science.* 



' The following recommendations were adopted at a Meeting of the 

 General Committee: — 



Involving Grants of Money. 



That, the sum of £200 be placed at the disposal of the Council for 

 the maintenance of the establishment of the Observatory at Kew. 



That the Committee appointed to investigate the Physical aspect of 

 the Moon be lequested to endeavour to procure Photographs of the 

 Moon, from telescopes of the largest size, -which can be made availa- 

 ble, with £-25 at their disposal for the purpose, 



That the expense of certain Thermometers constructed for the in- 

 quiry on conduction of heat, by Professor Forbes, amounting to £4 2s. 

 be paid. 



That Dr. Hodges be requested to continue his investigations on 

 Flax, -with £20 at his disposal for the purpose. 



That Mr. Rankine, Dr. Robinson, Prof. Hodgkinson, and Mr. Ward, 

 be requested to continue the Report on the Cooling of Air in Hot 

 Climates, with £20 at their disposal for the purpose. 



That Mr. Fail-bairn be requested to prepare a Report on the effects 

 of Temperature on Wrought Iron Plates, with £ I (' at his disposal for 

 the purpose. 



That Mr. Mallet be requested to continue his experiments on Earth- 

 quake Waves, with £50 at his disposal for the purpose. 



That Dr. Laukester, Prof. Owen, and Dr. Dickie be a Committee to 

 draw up Tables for the Registration of Periodical Phenomena, with 

 £10 at their disposal for the purpose. 



That Dr. Lankester, Prof. E Forbes, and Prof. Bell, be requested to 

 assist Dr. T. Williams in drawing up a Report on British Annelida, 

 with £10 at their disposal for the purpose. 



That Mr. Hyndman, Mr. Patterson, Mr. Dickie, and Mr. Grainger, be 

 requested to carry on a system of Dredging on the North and East 

 Coasts of Ireland, £10. 



That Mr. H. E. Strickland, Dr. Daubeny, Prof. Lin dley, and Prof. 

 Henslow je requested to cominue their Experiments on the vitality of 

 Seeds, with £5 10s. at their disposal for the purpose. 



That the Committee for providing a large outline Map of the World, 

 consisting of Sir R I. Murchison, the Lord Bishop of St. Asaph and 

 the Secretaries of the Royal Geographical and Ethnological Societies, 

 be re-appointed with the addition of Sir James Ross and Dr. R. G. 

 Latham; with £15 at their disposal for the purpose. 



Not involving Grants of Money or Application to Government or Public 

 Authorities. 



That Lieut-Col. Portlock, Prof. James Forbes, Mr. Mallet, Mr. Phil- 

 lips, Dr. Robinson, Col. Sabine, and Professor Stokes, be requested to 



consider and report upon the best form of apparatus for registering tha 

 direction and amount of Earthquake. 



That Dr. Gladstone be requested to continue his inquiries on the 

 influence of Light on the Vitality of Plants. 



That Mr. Robert Hunt be requested to continue his investigation of 

 the Chemical Action of the Solar Rays. 



That the following gentlemen be a Committee to report on the best 

 means of preserving Pyritous and other specimens of Organic remains 

 which are liable to decomposition, viz : J. S. Bowerbauk, Esq., Prof. 

 Johnston, J. E. Lee, Esq., H. E. Strickland, Esq. 



That Mr. Sp' nee Bate be requested to give a report on the present 

 Btate of our knowledge of the Lower Forms of British Crustacea. 



That Mr. Fairbairn's account of Experimental Researches to deter- 

 mine the Strength of Locomotive Boilers, and the causes which lead 

 to explosion, be printed, entire, among the Reports. 



That the Kew Committee be requested to furnish a Report to the 

 Council, on the Definition of the Boiling Point of Water at present 

 adopted in this country, for the Therniometric Scale: and that the 

 Council be requested to communicate with the President and Council 

 of the Royal Society; should any change in that respect be deemed 

 desirable. 



That Prof. Johnston be requested to furnish a Report on the rela- 

 tions of Chemistry to Geology. 



That the following papers with the consent of the authors, be printed 

 in full in the Transactions of the British Association for the year 1853: 

 — James Oldham, Esq., ' On the Physical Features of the Hnmber;' 

 'On the Rise, Progress, ana Present Position of Steam Navigation in 

 Hull' J.P.Bell, Esq., M. D., 'Observations on the Char'acter_and 

 Measurements of Degradation of the Yorkshire Coast.' 



That Mr. John Frederick Bateman, C. E., F.G.S., be requested to 

 Report on the State of our knowledge on the Supply of Water to 

 Towns. 



That the thanks of the British Association be given to the Parlia- 

 mentary Committee for the unceasing attention they have paid to the 

 interest of Science, both in communications to Government, and in 

 proceedings in the Houses of Parliament. 



The Members of the British Association have learned with satisfac- 

 tion that it is the intention of Gov mmeut to diiect, that in tutuie daily 

 Meteorological Observations shall be made at sea, in correspondence 

 with the plan adopted by the Government of the United States, on 

 the sug^e-tion of Lieut. Maury, and to take such further steps, in re- 

 ference to the Mercantile Marine of Great Britain, as may be best 

 suited to stimulate and encourage the Masters of British Merchant 

 Ships to take interest iu investigatioi s by which the times of passage 

 between different ports have already, in many instances, been ma- 

 terially shortened, and which may lead to other results of the greatest 

 importance to practical navigation. 



The British Association entirely concurs in the opinion that to make 

 the Observations thus contemplated serviceable for the purposes which 

 they are designed, it will be necessary to make provision for their co- 

 ordination, and for derivmg from them the instruction which they 

 may be capable of yielding, primarily for the advantage of navigation 

 and secondarily, for the benefit of Science. 



In this view the General Committee requests that the Council will 

 con municate on the subject with the Parliamentary Committee, and 

 will take such steps, either by deputation to Government or otherwise, 

 as may appear to them desirable. 



That Col. Sabine be requested to draw up a Report on the principal 

 magnetic results obtained at the Magnetic Observatories. 



Involving Application to Government. 



Tnat as great inconvenience is frequently occasioned by the injury 

 or destruction of instruments and specimeus, arriving from foreign parts 

 arising from careless re-packing at the Custom House, it be referred 

 to the Council to consider of the best mode of representing this to the 

 Government, and of remedying the evil. 



Section A.— MATHEMATICAL AND PHYSICAL SCIENCE. 



Col. Sabine opened the Section by apologizing for the absence of 

 the President. 



' Continuation of Report on Luminous Meteors' by the Rev. Professor 

 Powfll. — The Report contained tabulated records of observed meteors 



"At/ienczum, 



