FOREIGN COKRESPONDEXCE. 
195 
aioplicable to a whole century. But tkis law, true for a century and 
a half century, will it hold good for a quarter, or say a tenth, of a 
century ? 
" I have divided the latter half of the eighteenth century into two 
portions of twenty-five years each; and calculations similar to the 
above have led to similar results : so also for ten-yearly periods. I 
have also divided it into ten periods of five years : the numbers not 
being great in this case, the irregular and perturbating causes it 
might be easily imagined would regain their sway, and mask the 
difierential action of a continuous influence. Nevertheless, in eight of 
these ten periods the preponderence is with the syzygies. 
These insults, however, of which the concordance is very striking 
and demonstrative of an influence connected with the movement of 
the moon in its orbit, are not the only ones to be mentioned. M. 
Perrey has found that the numbers of times the days of perigee and 
apogee with the two days preceeding and following have been 
marked by shocks of earthquake, are as follows : — 
Days of shock. 
Perigee 526 
Apogee 465 
Excess at perigee 60 
Or, counting only the day before and after : — 
Perigee 313 
Apogee 278 
Excess at perigee 35 
M. Perrey concludes by referring to journals kept at Monteleone, 
Messina, Calanzaro, and Scilla, at which places in every instance, the 
shocks felt ^vith the moon on the meridian exceed those felt at other 
times. 
This paper was followed by one by M. Gentili, " On the cause 
assigned to Earthquakes, founded on observations made at difierent 
times at the summit of the Soufriere, a volcanic mountain in Guada- 
loup." 
Cajnllary Infiltration of Water in Bock-strata. 
This journal was the first to call attention in this country to the 
important researches of M. Daubree on the metamorphism and 
chemical conditions of rocks. 
Another contribution to our science, under the title of " Experi- 
ments on the possibility of a capillary infiltration through porous 
materials, in spite of a strong counter-pressure of vapour," has been 
recently presented to the Academic des Sciences, by this eminent 
experimental! st. 
" Every day," he says, " in the great phenomena which make 
