594; Royal Society : — Mr. Gassiot on obtaining 



rus. He has made no mention of the large nervous trunks on both 

 sides of the uterus, which accompany the uterine veins ; nor has he 

 noticed fasciculated transverse bands on the anterior and posterior 

 surfaces of the uterus, connected with the hypogastric and spermatic 

 nerves. 



" Observations made at the Cape of Good Hope, in the year 1838, 

 with Bradley's Zenith Sector, for the verification of the amplitude 

 of the Abbe de la Caille's Arc of the Meridian ; by order of the 

 Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty." By Thomas Maclear, 

 Esq., M.A., F.R.S., &c. Communicated by Sir John Barrow, Bart., 

 V.P.R.S., &c. 



The author gives an account of the precautions taken in putting 

 together the different parts of the zenith sector, which he received 

 on the 9th of December, 1837, in erecting it in the central room of 

 the Royal Observatory at the Cape of Good Hope, and in afterwards 

 transferring it to the southern station of La Caille, in Cape Town. 

 He then proceeds to desciibe La Caille's observatory, and the par- 

 ticular circumstances of its locality, with relation to the object in 

 view, namely to determine the influence of Table Mountain on the 

 direction of the plumb-line*. He next relates his progress to Klyp 

 Fonteyn, where he arrived on the 24thof March, 1838, and describes 

 the operations resorted to for erecting the sector at that place. 

 He then enters into the details of observations made at different sta- 

 tions, and especially with comparative observations at the summit 

 and foot of the mountain of Pequet Berg. The instrument was 

 lastly conveyed back to Cape Town, and again examined, and *he ob- 

 servations made with it repeated. The reduction of the observations 

 occupies the remainder of the paper ; and in conclusion, the author 

 remarks, that although these labours have not altogether cleared up 

 the anomaly of La Caille's arc, yet they show that great credit is 

 due to that distinguished astronomer, who with imperfect means, 

 and at the period in M'hich he lived, arrived at a result, derived 

 from sixteen stars, almost identical with that from 1139 observations 

 on forty stars, made with a celebrated and powerful instrument. 



Dec. 19, 1839. — A paper was read, entitled, "An account of expe- 

 riments made with the view of ascertaining the possibility of obtain- 

 ing a spark before the circuit of the Voltaic Battery is completed." 

 By J. P. Gassiot, Esq. 



The author of this paper adverts to the fact, of a spark invariably 

 appearing when the circuit of the Voltaic Battery is completed ; an 

 effect which Dr. Faradaj" has shown can be easily produced, even 

 with a single series. He then refers to the experiments of Mr. 

 Children, Sir Humphry Davy, and Professor Daniell, recorded in 

 the Philosophical Transactions ; in which experiments, when more 

 powerful and extended series were used, the spark was obtained be- 

 fore contact took place. 



In order to ascertain, not only the fact of a spark being obtained, 

 but also the distance through which it may be passed, the author 

 had an instrument prepared, which he denominates a Micrometer 



[* See L. and E. Phil. Mag., vol. xiv„ p. 522.— Edit.] 



