Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 335 



of the cornea, all the while keeping your gaze fixed on a lamplight 

 some hundred feet away. As the raindrop alights on the cornea, 

 several rings of light appear to surround the luminous source. The 

 rings gradually contract in diameter. Explanation : — In sunshine, 

 the moving ring crest of water produced by dropping a pebble 

 into a still and shallow pool projects a ring of light on the bottom 

 which gradually increases in size. The moving ring crest, by its 

 refractive action, produces a hollow cylinder of rays of ever increa- 

 sing diameter ; and we see a section of it on the bottom of the pool. 

 The raindrop falling on the cornea spreads out on its surface in 

 several ring crests, and would similarly produce a series of outward 

 travelling rings of light were it not for the combined action of the 

 refractive media of the eye. Under the influence of these, two 

 hollow cones of light are formed within the vitreous humour directly 

 upon impact of the raindrop. The first of these has for its base a 

 small circular area of the hind surface of the lens ; and its prolon- 

 gation, the second cone, has the retina for its base. As any indivi- 

 dual ring- crest spreads out on the cornea, the first cone increases 

 in size, the common apex advances towards the retina, and con- 

 sequently the section of the second cone projected onto the retina 

 decreases in size and appears as a contracting ring of light. — 

 Abstract of paper read in Section D, British- Association Meeting, 

 Monday, August 25th. 



PRECIS OF A REPORT ON ELECTRIC-LIGHT EXPERIMENTS. 

 BY L. SCHWENDLER, ESQ.* 

 Mr. Schwendler said it would be impracticable to read the 

 " Precis of Report on Electric-Light Experiments" in extenso, since 

 it contained too many technicalities which could not easily be 

 followed if the paper were read in the manner usual at these 

 meetings, and that he therefore would prefer to give verbally a 

 short account of his researches and the results obtained. He 

 stated that the inquiry originated with General Strachey, who, in 

 April 1876, recommended to the Secretary of State that a trial of 

 illuminating Indian railway-stations by the electric light should 

 be made. In February 1877 Mr. Schwendler was requested to 

 institute detailed inquiries, which led him to propose that it would 

 be advisable to first make some more experiments before a practical 

 trial at Indian railway-stations should be attempted. The Board 

 of Directors of the East-Indian Railway Company agreed to this, 

 and sanctioned the necessary outlay, whatever it might come to. 



The experiments made at the India Office Stores, London, ter- 

 minated on the 1st November, 1878. The report, however, could 

 not be finished in time before Mr. Schwendler left for India'; and 

 he therefore prepared a precis — the paper before the meeting to- 

 night. After pointing out the general results obtained, and ex- 

 plaining in a brief manner the three principal questions at issue, 

 * Read before the Asiatic Society 5th March 1879 (from the Proceed- 

 ings for March). Communicated by the Author. 



