3805. ] 
‘fo unite with them in their benevolent 
purpole. ‘Their treafurer is ANDREW 
Pore, E‘q. who receives fubfcriptions. 
Mr. Woovuotst will fpeedily pub- 
lith Norbury Park, with other Poems, on 
Various occafions. 
A Defence of the Condu& of Mary 
W olitonecraft Godwin, which has been 
long in hand, will fpeedily appear. It 
is the production of aclergyman, and) is 
addrefled, in a Series of Letters, to a 
Lady. 
Mr. Byer ey has in the prefs a novel, 
intitled Nature ; or, a Picture of the Paf- 
fions, to which he intends to prefix an E(- 
fay on Novel-writing. 
Ear. Sranwope has lately employed 
the greater part of his time in bringing to 
pertection an improved mode of printing. 
His invention, though in fome re{peéts 
fimilar to the French ftereotype, is faid to 
be very fuperior to at, with regard, to neat- 
nefs, accuracy, and cheapneis. 
It has been decifively thewn, by fome ex- 
periments made by Mr. WILKINSON, the 
Leégturer on Galvanifm, xs. That a vital 
attraction fubfifis between a nerve and 
muicie ; for the fulpended {ciatic nerves of 
a frog, after detaching the {pine, being 
near tife intercoital mulcles of a dog, 
while the affiitant, who held the frog, 
with his other hand touched the muicles 
of the thigh of the deg (thus forming a 
circle); in this iituation, the nerves fuf- 
pended, appreached and came into contact 
with the mufcie, as evidently as a filken 
thread is atiraéted by excited fealing-wax. 
2. The heart of a rabbit was excited to 
action foon after the animal was killed, 
but vitality difappeared much fooner than 
in the other muicles ; fo that this organ is 
the primum, avd not, as Harvey afferted, 
the uliimum moriens. ‘The lungs, liver, 
and {pleen could not be excited to action, 
even immediately after the animal was 
killed. 3. The mot important fact was, 
that of exciting contraétions, by making 
a circle of nerves and mufcles of different 
animals, without any metallic excitor or 
conduétor. 4. The head of an ox recent- 
ly decapitated exhibited aftonifhing effetts ; 
for, the tongue being drawn out by a 
hook fixed into it, on applying the exci- 
tors, in f{pite of the ftrength of the affif- 
tant, the tongue was drawn back, fo as to 
detach itfelf trom the hook; at the fame 
time, a loud noife iflued from the mouth 
by the abforption of air,attended by,violent 
contortions of the whole head and eyes. 
Mr. Nicnoxson has publifhed a de-. 
feription of a curious Magazine-piitol, 
which, when loaded,is capable of being dif- 
Literary and Philofophical Intelligence. 
865 
charged nine fucceffive times, through the 
fame barrel, in the {pace of half a minute. 
It has been ufed for fome time paft in all 
parts of the world by Lord Camelford, 
and is fo conftruéted, that its ufe is at- 
tended with neither danger nor uncer- 
tainty. 
Mr, Davy, Profeffor of Chemiftry in 
the Royal Inftitution of Great Britain, in 
a paper lately read to the Royal Society, 
has defcribed the proceffes ufualin the art 
of tanning, entered at large into a chemi- 
cal inveftigation of the nature of the 
agents employed in the procefs ; and de- 
tailed a number of ingenious experiments 
undertaken exprefsly for the purpofe of 
afcertaining the mode of their operation. 
A new felf-regiftering thermometer, 
which may be applied to meteorology, has 
been invented by Mr. James CRICHTON, 
of Glafgow. ' 
The Board of Agriculture has voted a 
gold medal to the Rev. Mr. CLUFF, in 
Denbighthire, for irrigating the largeft 
quantity of meadow land. 
A. difcovery of confiderable importance 
has been announced, with regard to the 
prefervation of corn. To preferve rye, 
and fecure it from infects and rats, no- 
thing more is neceflary than not to win- 
now it after it is threfhed, and to ftow it 
in the granaries mixed with the chaff. In 
this ftate it has been kept for more than 
three years, without experiencing the 
fmalleft alterations, and even without the 
neceffity of being turned to preferve it 
from humidity and fermentation. Rats 
and mice may be prevented from entering 
the barn, by putting fome wild vine or 
hedge plants upon the heaps: the fmell of 
this wood is fo offenfive to thefe animals, 
that they will not approach it. ‘The ex- 
periment has not yet been made with 
wheat and other kinds of grain, but they 
may probably be preferved in the chaff 
with equal advantage. 
A new varnifh for earthen-ware has 
lately been difcovered. It is made of 
equal parts of white glafs ard foda, finely 
pulverifed, carefully fifted and mixed. 
This varnith is applied in the fame man- 
ner as that in common ufe. The advan- 
tage of it is, that it is fafe, and can have 
none of the poifonous effects that arife 
from the decompofition of lead var- 
nifh. 
Baron EDELCRANTZ has prefented to 
the Society for Encouragement of Arts 
-at Paris, the defcription of anew lamp, in 
which, by means of mercury and a weight, 
the oil is made to afcend to, and remain at, 
any required height. } 
| A very 
as 
