the Congelation of & uiclflver . -4* 
to the improvement ot icience, defired their late fecretary Dr.. 
xMATY to make the neceflfary application to the Hudfon’s Bay 
Company ; in confequence of which Mr. hutchins, who 
was then m London, and going out with a commiffion as go- 
vernor at Albany Fort, offered to undertake the experiments, 
and executed them m a very complete manner, as appears from 
the account published in theLXVIth volume of the Philofophi- 
cal Traniactions. In the months of January and February 177^ 
he twice froze quickfilver at Albany Fort ; and in the firft of 
tnde experiments, having broken his thermometer, he found, 
that the metal flattened by a fall of about fix inches, bore to 
be hammered, gave a “ deadifh” found like lead, and was 
finely pohfhed on the furface. As Mr. hutchins adopted 
exadlly the method of Profefior maun, he obferved the fame 
phenomena, encountered the fame difficulties from the flicking 
of the quickfilver in the tube, and cracking of his thermo- 
meter, and was equally at a lofs with regard to the point of 
congelation. Still, however, this was the fulleft confirmation 
that M braun’s Ditfertatiuns had ever yet received; and it 
may be con.hdered as a prelude, by which Mr. hutciiins ac- 
quired tiie experience that enabled him to fucceed fo perfectly 
111 his laft moft decifive and fatisfadory experiments. 
§ 4. The account of Mr. Hutchins’s fuccefs at Hudfon’s 
Bay was leaci before the Royal Society at the commencement 
of the fevereff winter that had been known for many years in 
Europe. Two gentlemen of different countries embraced this 
opportunity to attempt the congelation of quickfilver. The- 
firlf was Dr.. LAMBERT bicker, Secretary to the Batavian So- 
ciety at Rotterdam, who, on the 28th of January, 1776 at 
eight in the morning, made an experiment to try how low he 
5 could- 
