147 
A Paper, entitled, “ Nouveau Systeme de Communication 
Pelegrapliique, rendant impossible toute collision de trains 
sur les chemins de fer,” by Professor Baulet, of Perpignan, 
communicated by William Fairbairn, Esq., LL.D., &c., was 
read by Professor Roscoe. 
In this plan an insulated wire placed between the rails, 
and divided in its middle, affords a connexion between the 
instxuments at the stations and others situated in the trains 
themselves. The details of the arrangement could not be 
understood without the drawings accompanying the Paper. 
Mr. Dodwell, the Superintendent of the Magnetic Tele- 
graph, described Mr. Clark’s system, which is now in full 
operation between London and Rugby, and which, he 
thought, left little further to be desired. 
SECTION FOR STATISTICS AND SOCIOLOGY. 
November 19th, 1861. 
Dr. R. A. Smith, F.R.S., &c., read a Paper, entitled. 
Examples of Relative and Absolute Law.” 
The Author said that it was an easy thing to express the 
most important laivs that ought to rule absolute in society. 
They were such as had been given in the words, “ Love thy 
neighbour as thyself, do justice, love mercy,” but, when it 
became needful to apply these laws to particular cases, the 
operations of the greatest minds were needed, and found 
after all to be wanting. Quoting from a former Paper, he 
said that even our ideas of property ceased to have influence 
when our relation to property changed ; for example, when 
millions of our fellow-creatures are dying at a distance, we 
feel it scarcely right to consider that we have a right to any 
luxury; where they are dying in our own country, we feel 
