Nov. 9, 1888.] 



SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



489 



Highbury Social Guild. — On October 30th the first 

 lecture delivered in London on the " Perfected Phono- 

 graph " was given under the auspices of this guild by 

 Sir Albert K. Rollit, LL.D., F.R.A.S., M.P. The 

 Rev. Dr. Allon presided, and amongst those present 

 were Colonel Gourand and Mr. Hamilton (representing 

 Mr. Edison. The lecture was illustrated throughout 

 by interesting and successful experiments in acoustics, 

 with sensitive and manometric flames, microphones, 

 telephones, various phonographs, etc. Sir Albert, after 

 sketching the career of Edison, and explaining the prin- 

 ciples which Edison had practically applied in the in- 

 vention of the phonograph, said it was in 1877 that the 

 magnificent step had been taken which had led to the 

 evolution of the new instrument. Its purpose was to 

 register the different vibrations produced by speech, 

 and to reproduce the words in correspondence with 

 the registered tracings. Phonograms would become, 

 he did not doubt for a moment, a matter of ordinary 

 correspondence through the penny or parcels post. The 

 phonograph as a medium of correspondence was always 

 audible and legible. One could not say the same of 

 personal handwriting. Immense possibilities were 

 opened up by the belief of Edison that there would 

 ultimately be a combination of the telephone and 

 phonograph with which they would have a messenger or 

 clerk who could make no mistakes. 



Essex Archaeological Society. — On October 26th the 

 members of this Society paid a visit to Coggeshall. Mr. 

 G. F. Beaumont exhibited a number of Saxon relics found 

 at Kelvedon in March last. These included a knife, a 

 fork prong, hair pin, ring, and hinge, all highly oxidised, 

 together with a small Saxon javelin head and a straight 

 sword heavily embossed with the rust of centuries. Mr. 

 Beaumont also exhibited a small bronze Virgin and child ; 

 a square red drain pipe, possibly as old as a Roman 

 aqueduct, found near St. Nicholas' Chapel, Coggeshall ; 

 two cinerary urns, and a weaver's shuttle. Major Hamilton 

 produced two handsome stone axes, found near Kelvedon. 

 Mr. G. F. Beaumont followed with an interesting descrip- 

 tion of relics which have been found near Coggeshall and 

 Kelvedon ; after which Major Hamilton referred to the 

 many Roman remains which have been found near 

 Rivenhall Church and on Crane's-hill, between Witham 

 and Kelvedon. — Major Hamilton said recently, at Braxted, 

 he saw a lady executing some needlework, the pattern of 

 which had, she stated, been copied from that of the tiled 

 pavement in Prior Cranden's Chapel at Ely. He recog- 

 nised that the pattern corresponded with that of the 

 pavement in the Pilgrims' Chapel at Little Coggeshall. 

 Now, he found that about the 13th century the Bishop 

 of Ely came to Coggeshall to settle some dispute about 

 tithe, and he probably carried back with him to Ely some 

 of the pavement of the Pilgrims' Chapel. It was a 

 Cistercian pattern, plain, and with little ornament. 



Physical Society of Glasgow University. — At a 

 meeting held on October 26th Mr. G. G. Henderson, 

 M.A., B.Sc, read a paper on " The Determination of 

 Molecular Weights," in which, after referring to the well- 

 known methods, he directed special attention to the 

 important researches of Raoult on the laws governing 

 the freezing-point of dilute solutions, the outcome of 

 which is a new process for determining molecular weights, 

 which is of almost universal application to organic sub- 

 stances. The great value of Raoult's method lies in the 



fact that by its application it is now possible to deter- 

 mine the molecular weights of substances whose charac- 

 ter renders a determination of vapour density impossible 

 — the carbo-hydrates, for example. The process is based 

 on Raoult's general law of congelation — viz., " If one 

 molecule of any substance be dissolved in one hundred 

 molecuks of any solvent the freezing-point of the latter 

 is lowered i"63° C." — and is a very simple one, involv- 

 ing the use of no complicated apparatus. Till recently 

 chemists have not given this discovery the attention 

 which it deserves, though it is, without doubt, one of 

 the most important additions to the supply of physical 

 methods applicable to chemical research since the enun- 

 ciation of the law of Dulong and Petit. 



Bristol Microscopical Society. — The forty-fifth 

 annual meeting was held on October 5 th, when the 

 following officers were elected: Dr. Harrison, president ; 

 Professor Leipner, F.Z.S., and Mr. E. B. L. Brayley, 

 F.R.M.S., vice-presidents; Mr. C. K. Rudge, hon. 

 librarian ; and Mr. H. A. Francis, hon. secretary. The 

 retiring president, Dr. Hudson, Pres. R.M.S., in his 

 annual address, congratulated the Society upon its 

 flourishing condition, and also read a letter of thanks from 

 the Bath Microscopical Society to the Bristol men for the 

 great assistance rendered to Bath on the occasion of the 

 soiree given to the British Association. Several mem- 

 bers exhibited rare and interesting specimens, Mr. C. K. 

 Rudge showing discs of Lipar is Montagni and Cyclopterus, 

 also epizoa of dogfish, Mr. F. W. Stoddart a section of 

 wall of subcutaneous abscess in glanders, Mr. Brayley 

 a very rare mite, Glyciphagus plumiger, and Dr. Hudson 

 a very rare rotifer, Esplanchna ebbesbomii, found only 

 near Salisbury, England, and at the Botanical Gardens, 

 Sydney, Australia. 



The Leeds Naturalists' Club and Scientific Asso- 

 ciation. — At the meeting on October 22nd the subject of 

 the evening — " Plant Structure " — was entered upon, 

 under the chairmanship of Mr. F. W. Branson, F.C.S., 

 who gave some account of the structure of Pihdaria 

 globulijera, an interesting cryptogamous plant, the repro- 

 duction of which is effected by spores. The sporocarp 

 and the macrospores and microspores were very beauti- 

 fully shown in section, as was also the structure of the 

 stem, and attention was called to the species as being 

 the only British one possessing both classes of spores. 



Leyburn Literary and Scientific Society. — On 

 October 19th this society held its annual meeting. The 

 president, Mr. H. Arthine, sen., occupied the chair. 

 The secretary (Mr. F. Potter) produced his report, which 

 stated that during the past session nineteen papers were 

 given embracing different subjects, while in the previous 

 session only twelve papers were read. The meeting 

 then elected Colonel Wray, hon. president ; Mr. H. 

 Arthine, sen., president ; Mr. W. Horns, F.G.S., vice- 

 president ; Rev. P. K. Bircham, Mr. C. Horner, and Mr. 

 L. Paisley, members of the council ; Mr. H. Home, 

 treasurer ; and Mr. F. Potter, secretary. 



Old Kirkpatric Naturalist and Antiquarian 

 Society. — A very successful conversazione was held by 

 this Society on October 26th. 



The Bradford Philosophical Society. — On October 

 25th the session of the Bradford Philosophical Society 



