‘ 
586 Sixty Articles of Literary and Philofephical Intelligences [July 1, 
he then pafled fteam. through it, and ob- 
tained at firft pretty pure oxygen, and at- - 
terwards azotic gas. _ 
3. Dy. Pearson, inthe decompofition of 
water by the electric fpark, always ob- 
tained azote, as well as oxygen and hy- 
drogen. | $0) fe 
4. Dr. Pearfon, in recompoling water by 
the combuftien of oxygen and hydrogen, 
by means of the eleétric. fpark, obtained 
water and azote. ‘ 
5. In the combuftion of oxygen with 
hydrogen, whep this laftis‘in excefs, nitric 
acid is obtained. C 
_ Thefe are the principal faéts adduced by 
Girtanner/in proof of his theory, exclufive 
of fome experiments of his own, which.we 
forbear to quote, as the name of Dr. Gir- 
tanner is not commonly affociated with a 
high degree of credibility. The enquiry is 
of high importance, and merits the atten- 
tion of all philofophical chemifts. 
A -very eflential improvement in the 
bleaching or linen has Jately been made by 
Dr. Hiecins of Dublin, by the introdug- 
tion of fulphurat of lime. He finds that 
the alternate ufe of fteeps of, oxymuriat of 
lime, and fulphurat of lime, will, in the 
courfe of ten days, bring green linen to a 
ftate of periect whitenels; and he recom- 
mends this as the cheapeft and beft of ail 
the known methods\of bleaching. 
Dr. HeRscHEL has decompofed the fo- 
lar rays, by means of the prilm, into vilible 
rays.of light, and invifible ones or-heat : 
he finds that thefe latt envanate from. all 
candent bodies, that they bave the property . 
of heating other {ubfiances, and are fubject 
to peculiar laws of reflection and refraétion. 
Itis well known that VOLT was always 
of opinion, that animal eleétricity or gal- 
vanifm was a mere modification of common 
- electricity ; this eminent philofopher has 
at length invented an apparatus that accu- 
mulates the galvanic influence in a furprif- 
ing degree, and brings it fo near in its 
efieéts to common eleétricity as almaft to 
identify them. The apparatus confifts of 
plates of zinc and filver, piled. up aiter- 
nately on each other, witha piece of wetted 
card between each pair ; a bit of flartened’ 
filver-wire is placed below the bottom 
plate, and another is laid upon the upper 
plate, which completes the machine: now. 
if both the hands are well foaked in water, 
and one brought into contact with the 
lower wire, and the other with the upper 
one, at the moment of contaé& a fenfation 
will be perceived in the hand exactly fiini-, 
Jar to that of an eleétrical fhock, the force 
of which depends on the number and: fize 
of the metallic plates. Forty half-crowné, 
and as.many pieces of zine are adequate 
to the production of very fenfible effects. 
Mr. Carlifile has applied this apparatus to 
the decompofition of water; alcohol has 
“likewife been decompoted by it : it affedts 
the eleéirometer as common. eleétricity 
does, and no doubt other coincidents will 
foon be difcovered. : 
The noted magnetifer, Mrsmer, has 
been again at Pasis for fome time paft, and 
carries on a war of words with his oppo- 
nents in the public.papers. 
. The Swedifh Baron von. HERMELIN is 
now publifhing a fet of new maps of the 
provinces of Sweden: feveral of them have 
already been engraved at his expence, and 
the author proceeds to complete the others 
with_all pofiible diroatch.—For the pur - 
pole of determining the true geographical 
fituation of places, M. Schulten, an able 
aftronomer, member of the Stockholm Aca- 
demy of Sciences, has been travelling, cor. 
ing the laft three f{ummers, 4 the Barea’s 
expence, and fupplied with goed initru- 
ments, through the if-venr: provinces of 
that kingdom. . a . 
_ The bookfeilers, Sepp.and-Son, of Am- 
fterdam, have undertaken oie publigation 
of a Flora Bataée. All the indigenous 
plants of the Bafavian repubtie are to,he 
drawn and coloured from nature; and the 
text iso be furnifhed by a celebrated bo- 
taniit. hs 
J. D, Pasreur, fecretary to the fecond 
legiflative chamber at the Hague, has late- 
Iy publifhed a play in five atts, entitled 
The Rufiansin North Holland, (De Reffen 
in Noord Holland, of Vryhart en Saertje.} 
A, fimilar produ€tion has likewife madeits 
appearance at Amiterdam, entitled: Da 
Aftogt der Engelfchen en Ruffen von de Ba- 
tafschen Koji, 
treat ot Enolifh and Rufhans from the Ba- 
tavian coatt.) ¢ 
In feveral of the flates of Germany, they 
are now zealoufly engaged in reforming 
and ameliorating the public {chools: elpes 
cially in Pruflia, where M. Von Maffow, 
chief minifter for ecclefiaftical and fcho- 
laftic affairs, has, with the opennefs pecu- 
liar to the Pruffian government, fubmitted 
to the judgmentoof the public Wiyideas on 
education, in as far as it is the affair of the. 
ftate, by inferting them in Gedicke’s An- 
nals of the.Pruffian Schools. 
To the different publications of Lava- 
TYR relative to the revolution of |his na- 
tive country, a new one has lately been ad- 
ded On the fyitem of Deportation, on his 
own Deportaton, &c. it contains many 
fa&s which were before unknown to the. 
pubic. Among other things, it me, 
that 
Toncel/pel in 3 Bedr. (Res. 

