172 Proceedings of the Royal Society 
The following Communication was read : — 
On Detached Theorems on Circnlants. By Thomas Muir, 
Esq., LL.D. 
PRIVATE BUSINESS. 
The following Candidates were balloted for and declared duly 
elected Fellows of the Society: — Johnson Symington, Esq., M.B. ; 
J. F. Pullar, Esq. ; Professor J. M. Dixon ; and J. Macdonald 
Brown, Esq., M.B. 
Monday, 1 &th May 1885. 
EDWABD SANG-, Esq., LL.D., Vice-President, in the Chair. 
The following Communications were read : — 
1. On the Hessian. By Professor Chrystal. 
2. On the Distribution of Potential in a Thermo-Electric 
Circuit, open or closed. By Professor Tait. 
3. On the Volume of Mixed Liquids. By B. Broom, Chemical 
Laboratory, Glasgow University. Communicated by 
J. T. Bottomley, Esq. 
After seeing in the course of one of Sir W. Thomson’s lectures 
an experiment showing the contraction which takes place when a 
solution of common salt is mixed with water, I resolved upon 
making a number of experiments with a view to noting the result 
of mixing various solutions. 
I find that a number of experiments of a somewhat similar nature 
have been made by MM. Bussy and Buignet ( Compt . Rend., 59), 
Mr F. D. Brown {Jour. Chem. Soc., 1881), and by Mr W. Nicol 
{Jour. Chem. Soc., 1883). The first two of these papers deal with 
organic liquids, and Mr Nicol has noted the result of mixing 
various salt solutions, w T hereas the experiments I have made give 
the results of mixing salt solutions with water. 
