592 
for purifying water. Thefubftancethrough 
which the water paffes is charcoal, in 
fmal! pieces, but not reduced to powder. 
At the School of Medicine in Paris, he 
poured water taken from the kennel, and 
fome in which putrid carcafes had been 
immerfed three weeks, vpon his filters, 
and in a few minutes it ran of in both 
cals perfeétiy clear, limpid, and without 
tafte or imell. 
In the dominions of Pruffia, Branden. 
burgh, &c. nothing can equal the zea! of 
FREDERICK-WiLLIAM, for the inftruc- 
tion of his jubjeéts, and for the progrefs 
of the ayts and of fciences. That monarch 
3s, at this time, chiefly occupied in orga- 
nizing fuitable eftablifhments for the or-. 
dinary fchools, in which he is feconded 
by a grouve of diftinguifhed writers, who 
contribute their united talents to the fuc- 
cels of his patriotic views on all matters 
eflential to the good of the flate ; the af- 
fairs of adminiftration are difcufied; rela. 
tive jnterefts are treated of with a frank- 
nefs, which, whilft it-reflects lufre on his 
character, cannot but be acceptable-to a 
king, triendly to publicity, and a!moft all 
of whofe letters, orders, and decrees, are 
publifhed in the Annals of the Pruffian 
Monarchy. ‘Thus every thing fucceeds 
and profpers vifibly under the thade of the 
olive, which grows and flourifhes under 
the aufpices cf that pacific monarch ; and 
the gratitude of a Brandenburgher, mani- 
fefiei ina publication, entitled, «* To 
Frederick William, in the Name of the 
Northern Part of Germany,’’ may be con. 
fideied as the expreflion of a fpentaneous 
and unanimous [entiment. 
The King of Sweden has lately granted 
a donation of the fum of 500 crowns to 
M. Courin, optician of the Academy of 
Sciences at Stockholm, and the inventor 
of an inftrument, by means of which, ob- 
jects at the bottom of the fea may be dif- 
tinguifhed to a confiderable depth. 
‘Ihe foilowing anecdote relative to the 
Jate Mr, Gibbon, the hiflorian, is copied 
from a work Jatcly printed at Paris, in- 
titled, ‘* Anecdotes Relatives,’ &c. or 
&* Anecdotes relative to J. J. Roufleau 
and to Gibbon,”’ publifhed by Madame 
De GENLIs.—NMir. Gibbon is a man of 
low fiature, and of enormous or dilpro- 
portioned bulk ; his countenance is a per- 
fect uxigue, fo that it is impoffible: te 
difinguith a fingle feature in it. He has 
fcarcely any nofe, or any eyes, and but a 
very little mouth. His two fat cheeks 
abi. rb every thing; they are fo large, {9 
piominent, and of fo extravagant a pro- 
portion, that it is matter of aftonifhment 
Literary and'Philofaphical Intelligence. 
[July 1, 
to find them there. The countenance cof 
Mr. Gibbon would be very ealy to repre- 
fent or defcribe, if full liberty of fpeech 
were allowed, and it could be done with. 
out a figure. .M. De Lauzun, an inti- 
mate friend of his, took him on a vifit to 
Madame Du Deffant.. That lady, who is 
blind, has a cuftom of handling the faces 
of fuch perfons of note as are introduced 
to her, with a view to form fome idea of 
their features. She, of courfe, wifhed to 
fhew this mark ot flattering curiofity ta 
Mr. Gibbon, who endeavoured to fatisfy 
her, by accommodating his vifage with all 
the gcod nature imaginable. Then Mz« 
dame Du Deffant, gently ftroaking heer 
hands over his large phyfiognomy, was 
fearching, but in vain, tor fome feature, 
but could meet with nothing but thofe 
two furprifing cheeks. During this ex- 
amination, there might be read fuceeffively 
in the countenance of Madame Du Def- 
fant, aflonif:mest, uncertainty, and at 
length, all of a fudden, the moft violent 
indignation when, drawing back her 
hands, abiuptly fhe exclaimed, * Voila 
une tnfame plaifanterie!”—Truly, a very 
indecent joke! 
The French Government has letely de- 
creed, that there fhall be erected at Paris, 
in the centre of the Place Vendome, a 
Column, fimilar to that ere&ted at Rome 
in honour of Trajan. This Column is to 
be two metres and 73 centimetres in dia- 
meter, by 20 metres and 78 centimetres 
in height. Its fhaft is to be ornamented 
iN ifs contour, with 108 allegorical figures 
in bronze, each having 97 centimetres of 
proportion, and reprefenting tie Depart- 
ments of the Republic. The Column to be 
furmounted witi a pedeftal, on which will 
be raifed a pedefirian ftatue of Char lemagnee 
Citizen Contre has invented a method 
of preventing iron and fieel from rufting. 
This method confifts im mixing with 
oil varnifh, at leaft half, or, at fur- 
theft, four fifths of eflence of turpentine, 
well rectified, according to the greater 
or lefs tolidity that is intended to be pro- 
duced in the effeét. This varnith to be 
applied |: ghtly and equally with a fponge 3; 
atter which the piece fhould be left to dry, 
under fhelter from the duft. It is an- 
nounced that articles thus varnifhed will 
preferve their metallic luftre, and not con- 
tract the flighteft {pot of ruft. It may be 
likewife applied to copper, whoie polith 
it preferves, and keeps alive the colour. 
It may more efpecially be employed ta 
advantage, to prefeive from all decay phy- 
fical inftrumenis in experiments, wherein, 
when put in contact with water, they are 
apt 
