1832.] Scientific Intelligence. Ill 



Cet art se perdit ou du moins restait dans l'oubli pendant pr£s de trois siecles. 

 On en vit reparaitre, a l'exposition de 1806, quelques prodnits qui furent pr£sent£s 

 par M. Gardeur. lis £taient ex<§cut£s avec une pate a laquelle ou donne le nom 

 de carton pierre : En 1819, M. Huseh recut une m£daille de bronze pour de nou- 

 velles applications de cette substance ; mais jusque la tout ce borne encore a d' 

 heureux essais. II etait reserve aux artistes dont nous allons parler de relever com- 

 pletement cet art, et de lui donner m£me un nouvel eclat. 



Ces artistes, qui se suivent de tres pr£s, malgre" quelques legeres differences 

 dans la manure de preparer le carton-pierre, parviennent a mouler cette substance 

 avec une telle perfection, qu'ils obtiennent de suite, et sans reparage, les contours 

 les plus nets et les surfaces les plus unies. 



De belles ^preuves de statues rappelant toute la grace, toute la purete et tout 

 le'esprit des originaux, des ornemens du meilleur gout, offrant tout le relief et tout 

 l'effet pittoresque de la sculpture, des candelabras, des colonnes, des entablemens 

 profiles avec une grande puret£, prouvent que le carton-pierre est susceptible, entre 

 les mains des homines habiles dont nous parlons, de reproduire fidelement les in- 

 spirations du statuaire, et de se prater, avec une facilite" merveilleuse, a l'execution 

 des conceptions les plus dedicates ou les plus grandioses de l'architecture, pour la 

 decoration des int^rieurs." 



4. — Progress of Improvement in France. 



Statistics. — Since the peace, France has increased three millions ; she has now 

 about 33 millions of people, about 7,000,000 of families, and there are in 

 this population four millions of small proprietors residing on their properties. 

 France is improving rapidly. When the whole of the woodlands are converted into 

 arable, and coal used instead of wood, France may easily carry a population of 

 sixty millions of people. 



The price of land carriage is about four pence per mile per ton ; in America 

 about two shillings and one penny ; in Ireland about four or five pence. Iron 

 sells in France for £18 per ton ; — in London for £7 — in Wales for £6 — Raw 

 Sugar is raised here from Beetroot at 8 sous per lb. and it is considered that 

 it will be raised for 6 sous per lb. France has doubled her consumption of Iron 

 yearly within these few years. 



Arts. — The instrument-maker, M. Gambey, has invented a new level, which Mr. 

 Arago praises extremely, and the great circle which he is now making for Brussels, 

 is a model of execution. You would have been astonished at the fine divisions cut 

 in the limbs of all his instruments, exceeding any thing of the kind to be seen in 

 London. I have been to see the sawing machine, which gives twenty-five cuts of 

 timber in one inch ; and the snuff mill, which manufactures one ton of snuff in 

 an hour ; it is driven by a thirty-six horse-power engine. The composition with 

 which they paint the names of the streets is volcanic and quite monumental, it 

 would be valuable for Edinburgh and other places in our country. The beautiful 

 ladies combs now so much in fashion are made of the prepared horn hoofs of oxen : 

 this manufacture is, I believe, hitherto unknown in England. The French ate 

 Succeeding with the Cashmlr Goats, they have now about two hundred or upwards 

 in excellent thriving condition. 



5. — Mode of conducting the Meetings of the Academic. 

 A very interesting letter was read before the Institute by Gay-Lusac. It was 

 from Humboldt, and was addressed to Arago ; — the letter related to Humboldt's 

 late journey into Siberia. Last Monday, a most important paper was read before 



