100 
ther with the communications which the 
direétors have had with the engineer em- 
ployed by government to furvey and report 
upon the pratticability and plan of car- 
rying thefe improvements into effect. 
Mr. ALEXANDER, the artift who ac- 
companied Lord Macartney in his embafly 
to China, is now employed in drawing de- 
figns of the monuments brought from 
Egypt, and. propofes to engrave them, 
They are very interefting, and perfectly 
weil executed. 
Mr. HaTcuHeErT has pointed out the great 
utility of pruffiate of copper as a pigment. 
‘< During fome late experiments,” fays 
he, ** Twas much ftruck with the beauty of 
this precipitate, and was therefore induced 
to make feveral trials of it asapaint: the 
refult exceeded my moft fanguine expecta- 
tions.’ Ir has alfo been tried by Mr.’ 
Weft, Mr. Trumbull, and Sir H. C. En- 
glefield, who agree that in beauty and in- 
tenlity it furpafles every brown paint now 
in ufe. It forms, with white, various 
fhades of lilac colour, which do not appear 
liable to fade, like thofe which are formed » 
by means of lake. ‘The pruffiates obtain- 
ed from acetite, fulphate, nitrate, and mu- 
riate cf copper, are all very beautiful; 
but the fineft and deepeft colour is afford- 
ed by the muriate. The beit mode of 
forming this pigment, is to take green mu- 
riate of copper, diluted with ten parts of 
diftilled or rain water, and to pour in pruf- 
fiate of lime, until the whole is precipi- 
tated : the pruffiate of copper.is then to be 
well wafhed with cold water, on the filter, 
and to be dried without heat. 
Mr. HatcueEr has lately prefented to 
the Royal Society an interefting paper, on 
the alloying of metals; from which tt ap- 
pears that copper, in the proportion of 
goth, is the beft alloy for gold. From 
many experiments it is afcertained, that 
the deficiency found of late in the gold coin, 
is not owing to the wear of circulation ; as 
in a quantity of gnineas, rather loofely 
packed, and fent to fome diftance by the 
coach, the wear was all upon a few, and 
on thofe the impreffion was quite obliter- 
ated ; yet they were not found much defi- 
cient in weight, the work being, by the 
aétion, prefied in, and not as it were filed 
off. 
From the late important and ftriking 
experiments in Galyanifm, it appears, 
x. That, taking the ceffation of excitability 
to the Galvanic ftimujus as the criterion 
ef life, the heart is not the gltizzum, but 
the primum, moriens ; for, while the muf- 
cles of the limbs were excited to ftrong 
contractions, tor even feveral hours aiter 
Literary and Philofophical Intelligence. 
[March 1, 
apparent death, the heart was utterly in- 
capable of being excited to aétion, either 
by applying the extremity of the metallic 
arc to the furface or to the interior of this 
organ. 2. That the lungs were equally 
inexcitable as the heart. 3. Not only 
were the mufcles, but the fkin and cellular 
membrane, excited by the Galvanic {timu- 
lus. 4. The contractions of the mufcles 
were excited by the metallic arc, applied 
to the nerves iupplying the mulcles; but 
the nerves themfelves were not affected. 
5. The raifing up of the arm was pro- 
duced, as if by volition, by the Galvanic 
ftimulus. 6. A milky or coagelated mat- 
ter was formed by repeated contractions. of 
the muicle in contaét with the copper wire. 
7- When the parts ceafed to give out mo- 
tion, the motion was renewed, with aug- 
mented force, by wetting thei with a fo« 
lution of fal-ammoniac. 
In attempting to reftore fufpended ani- 
mation by means of the Galvanic ftimulus, 
it is recommended that oxygen gaz fhould 
at the fame time be applied to the lungs. 
Mr. CuTHBERTSON has conftructed an 
inftrument by which the Galvanic fluid 
may be applied effectually, for any length 
of time, without manual afiifiance, and 
will, without doubt, hereafter, be as com- 
monly ufed as our prefent eleétrical ma- 
chines. 
In comparing electricity with Galvan- 
ifn, itmuft be oblerved, that the former 
aéts by its intenfity, and the latter by its 
quantity : that the former is fometimes in- 
tenfe enoagh to ftrike a man down, and — 
yet not in quantity fufficient to melt a 
{mall wire ; but the latter will melt metals, . 
and yet fcarcely produce a fhock. 
M. HiLDkEBRANDT, im a feries of ex- 
periments on the action of the carbonate 
and pure ammonia on copper, found no 
folution take place without the prefence 
of atmofpheric air. . 
M. CuausiER employs a folution of 
oxygenated muriate of mercury, in a ftate 
of faturation, for preferving animal matters 
from putrefaétion.. The preparations are 
to remains immerfed in it for a certain num- 
ber of days, and then dried by an expo= 
fure to light and air. They then are no 
longer {fuiceptible of eafy decompofition, 
preferve their form, become hard, and are 
not fubjeét to the attacks of infeéts. 
Dr. BENZENBERG, in. An Effay on the 
Improvement of Object-glaffes, for Tele- 
fcopes, recommends that the glafs be fuf- 
fered to cool in the pots, without flirring, 
and that the mafs be then divided in a 
horizontal dire€tion, fo that.the variation 
of denfity may be regular, and then, by 2 
proper 
