SCIENCE. 



533 



SCIENCE: 



A Weekly Record of Scientific 

 Progress. 



JOHN MICHELS, Editor. 



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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1881. 



The distribution of honors at the French Electrical 

 Exhibition is very gratifying to the pride of the Amer- 

 ican people, as the American exhibitors have rela- 

 tively carried off a large share of the prizes. 



Edison has maintained the prestige of his country, 

 and asserted the integrity and value of his wonderful 

 series of electrical inventions, by alone receiving a 

 "diploma of honor" for the electric light. This 

 high mark of distinction he shared in other depart- 

 ments with the United States Signal Office, the 

 Smithsonian Institution, the United States Patent 

 Office, and Messrs. Graham & Bell. 



Gold medals were awarded to the Anglo-American 

 and Brush Electric Light Companies, the United 

 States Electric Lighting Company, Elisha Gray and 

 Taintoi. Silver medals to Bailey & Puskas, Conolly 

 Brothers & MacTighe, Dolbear, Eccard, Electric 

 Purifier Company, Hubbard Pond Indicator Com- 

 pany, Western Electric Manufacturing Company, 

 Western Electric Light Company and the Electro- 

 Dynamic Company. Bronze medals to Messrs. 

 Chavat, Cumming and Dion, the Hoosac Tunnel 

 Company, the Trinitro Glycerine Works, Partz, Photo • 

 Relievo Company, Whitehouse, Mills & Williams. 



That Mr. Edison, with the whole world competing, 

 and with every system represented, should receive 

 from such a critical committee this special recognition 

 and honor as the inventor of the most perfect system 

 of electrical illumination, appears to decide this point 

 in a decisive manner. The practical application of 

 this system on a scale which will astonish the world, 

 is near at hand. The immense dynamo machines de- 

 signed for use to illuminate a district in New York 

 City with Mr. Edison's perfected lamps have been 

 placed in position, and the mass of details connected 



with placing wires and fittings are nearing completion. 

 Soon the word will be given that all is ready, and Mr. 

 Edison will probably enjoy a triumph to which all his 

 previous successes will be insignificant. 



Mr. Edison must experience some regret that he 

 was unable to be present at Paris, and in person re- 

 ceive the congratulations which would have been 

 showered upon him, but we understand that he was 

 most worthily represented by Mr. Charles Batcheler 

 and Mr. Otto Moses, whose courtesy and indefatiga- 

 ble exertions have been fully recognized in some of 

 our Parisian exchanges. 



An instrument was lately described in a French 

 journal, which was invented for the purpose of detect- 

 ing oleomargarine as against pure butter. 



This instrument discriminated between the specific 

 gravities of the two substances. Shortly after the 

 announcement of the making of this instrument, a 

 report was spread in the daily papers, that the slight 

 difference of density between oleomargarine and 

 butter, was insufficient for this purpose. 



A correspondent writes as follows on this subject : 

 " The report that no difference of density is of any 

 use in distinguishing oleomargarine from butter, is 

 very easily disposed of, as the density of oleomargarine 

 is 0.915 and the density of butter is 0.925. One will 

 float at 15 C. in alcohol 53! per cent., and the other in 

 alcohol 59^ per cent. I mean by floating that the 

 butter or oleomargarine will neither rise nor sink, when 

 placed in the alcohol. If placed in the middle it will 

 neither go to the top nor bottom, except very slowly. 

 Of course there are persons who cannot distinguish 

 between 0.915 and 0.925 specific gravities, and who 

 cannot make an observation at a fixed temperature, 

 but it is unreasonable to expect that any process can 

 be satisfactory to such persons." 



SCIENTIFIC ASSOCIATIONS IN WASHINGTON. 



The three societies at the metropolis, the Philosophical, 

 the Anthropological, and the Biological, all reorganized 

 in October under very favorable auspices. A short 

 account of their proceedings is given below : 



Philosophical Society of Washington.— Three 

 papers were read, one on Geology, by G. K. Gilbert, 

 which our correspondent did not hear ; a communication 

 on Fog-signals, by Prof. Johnson, of the Light-house 

 Board, and a paper on the Best Methods of Calculating 

 the Solar Parallax, by Professor Harkness, of the 

 National Observatory. Mr. Johnson's remarks were an 

 account of investigations made the last summer upon the 

 refractions of sound, in pursuance of the experiments set 

 on foot by Professor Henry. The inquiries were prose- 

 cuted mainly in Newport harbor and its vicinity. The 

 facts set forth were of great interest to scientific men 

 and of great practical value to the mariner. Professor 

 Harkness, who is a very ready speaker, gave the Society 

 an explanation of the various methods employed in cal- 

 culating the distance of the sun and the planets, inclin- 

 ing to prefer the transit observations as yielding the best 



