APPENDIX.-Meteorological Journal kept at the Apartments of the Royal Society, by Order of the President and Council.

A new System of Chemical Philosophy. Part I. By John Dalton, 8vo. pp. 220.

The intention of this small but interesting volume is to exhibit and elucidate the author's ideas relative to those primary laws which seem to obtain in regard to heat, and to chemical combinations. Some of the doctrines which he maintains will occasion discussion and investigation, but they are of so interesting a nature as to promise an ample recompense in the elucidation of chemical truths, which may be expected to be the result.-The author expects to publish Part II. in about a year hence.

In the course of next month will be published, a supplementary volume of Birds, to Barr's Edition of Buffon.-The proprietors of that work have engaged a literary gentleman to collect all that has been discovered in ornithology of an interesting nature since the death of the illustrious Buffon ; and for that purpose procured the splendid edition of his works lately published by Sonnini, in 114 volumes. From this has been selected every article of importance, or of curiosity, from the additions of Sonnini and J. J. Virey.

Several new plates will accompany the volume; the contents of which will bring down the æra of discovery in this interesting branch of natural history to the present day.

Mr. Accum, lecturer on operative chemistry and mineralogy, &c., has in the press A System of Mineralogy and Mineralogical Chemistry, with applications to the Arts. The work will be formed chiefly after Haüy and Brongniart, and will be published in three octavo volumes, with fifteen copper plates.

XIV. Proceedings of Learned Societies.

ROYAL SOCIETY.

JUNE 2 and 16. The president in the chair.-—The continuation of Messrs. Allen and Pepys's paper on Respiration,

occupied

occupied the Society. The general result of the numerous and accurate experiments performed by these philosophers prove, that the quantity of carbonic acid produced in respiration is always equal to the quantity of oxygen consumed, and vice versâ; that a healthy man, whose pulse is 70 in a minute, will consume 3400 cubic inches of oxygen gas in eleven minutes; that the same man will emit in the course of 24 hours, calculating the quantity of gas which always remains in the lungs after every respiration, 18000 cubic inches of carbonic acid, which yield 10 oz. 2 grs. of solid carbon. It also appeared that no combination takes place between oxygen and hydrogen in the lungs, and that they do not form water in the process of respiration. The authors were assisted in the accuracy of these results by the great perfection to which they have brought their eudiometer. June 23. The president in the chair.-A paper by Dr. Henry of Manchester was read, On the instruments of analysis of carbonic acid, and the gases emitted by coal in destructive distillation. This paper chiefly consisted of tables of the relative quantities of gas contained in coals, and of the tests and means of measuring their qualities and quantities.

Mr. Home furnished the society with a sketch of the natural history of the trombac and caudivolva of New South Wales and Bass's Straits. The trombac was domesticated by him two years, is about two feet long and one thick, with round ears and a head resembling a pig, and without a tail. It burrows in the earth and climbs trees; it suffered itself to be nursed, and when it bit any thing it was without ill-nature. On dissection it was discovered to have two uteri. Mr. Bell, a surgeon in New Holland, dissected one in a pregnant state, and found the uteri containing a gelatinous substance conveyed in two tubes, instead of a placenta. It is of the same genus (Didelphis) as the American opossum and the kangaroo.

WERNERIAN NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.

At the last meeting of the Wernerian Natural History Society, (June 11,) Dr. Thomas Thomson, one of the vicepresidents, read a very interesting and valuable paper on the

chemical

chemical nature of fluor-spar.-Captain Lasky also read a paper on the Pinna ingens of Pennant. From his observations it appears, that the Pinna ingens of Montagu, Pinna borealis of Stewart, and Pinna ingens of the Linnæan Transactions, are the same species, and identical with the Pinna ingens of Pennant.-At the same meeting, Charles Anderson, esq. read some observations on the geognosy of the island of Inchkeith, in the Frith of Forth. It appears from the interesting details which he communicated, that the whole island is composed of rocks belonging to the independent coal formation; and that the green-stone which there occurs, is traversed by true veins filled with quartz, chalcedony, calcspar, &c.; and also contains numerous contemporaneous veins of different kinds. Mr. Anderson intimated his intention of laying before the Society, at a future meeting, a more particular description of the island, illustrated by drawings and a series of speci

mens.

XV. Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles.

CALCULUS IN THE Bladder.

M. VURZER, a French chemist, has published the following analysis in support of Messrs. Fourcroy and Vauquelin's discovery of silex in urinary concretions * :

"I received the calculus, of which the following is the analysis, from M. Michaelis, who extracted it by an operation from a patient.

"Physical Properties.-It was nearly oval, but a little compressed; brown externally, and of a yellowish white internally. It weighed exactly 870 grains; its specific gravity was 1.572; its surface was irregular and uneven. It was of the consistence of hard chalk, was entirely without a nucleus, and was composed of layers.

"Chemical Examination.-1. I macerated 300 grains of this concretion (after having pulverised them) for two days in distilled water, at a temperature of 12° (Reaumur). I then filtered. The colourless liquor presented by the reagents From Annales de Chimie, tom. Ix. p. 310.

the

the following phænomena: the nitrates of mercury and of silver. The muriate of barytes-the water of barytes-limewater oxalic acid-potash and ammonia produced no precipitate nor any sensible change. It is clear, therefore, that the distilled water employed contained none of the constituent particles of this urinary concretion.

"The dried powder was of the same weight as before.

"2. I next treated this powder with muriatic acid, (the specific gravity of which was 1.181,) keeping the mixture for two days at the temperature of 15° of Reaumur. I afterwards added distilled water. After having filtered the residue, when well dried it still weighed 248 grains, and was of a reddish-brown colour.

"3. The filtered liquor precipitated by lime-water gave a deposit which, when collected and examined, was found to be phosphate of lime: it weighed 52 grains.

"4. The 248 grains which remained after the second experiment were put into a solution of potash a little diluted, and left for two days at a temperature of 18° of Reaumur. I afterwards filtered; and the liquor decomposed by the acetous acid furnished a precipitate weighing 230 grains, which, when examined with care, consisted of 226 grains of uric acid distinctly characterized, and four grains of animal matter.

"5. The weight of what remained upon the filter was 18 grains; I heated it in a silver crucible until red-hot. During this operation, there was a very disagreeable fetid odour disengaged, like that of burnt horns or hair. The residue weighed scarcely three grains.

"6. These three grains were not dissolved in the sulphuric, the nitric, or muriatic acids, even when heated successively with these acids to ebullition.

"7. I then mixed it with four parts of potash, and melted it in a suitable fire. The whole was dissolved in water, and I precipitated, by an excess of acid, pure silex.

"This substance has only been found twice in the urinary calculi by Messrs. Fourcroy and Vauquelin, although they have analysed an immense number of them. This induced me to recommence my labours with the 570 grains which I had

laid aside. Having again found silex, I was convinced that no mistake had crept into my former analysis.

"From the above experiments it results that 300 grains of the above calculus contained

SOCIETY FOR THE RELIEF OF THE RUPTURED POOR.

The election of Surgeon for this institution, vacant by the death of Mr. William Turnbull, took place on Tuesday the 28th of June; when 48 old subscribers to the charity balloted in person, as follows:

After the ballot had taken place, it appeared that Mr. Price had previously paid into the hands of the treasurer 34 guineas, which, together with the six votes above stated, gave him a majority, and he was declared duly elected.

MONUMENT TO LOCKE.

The admirers of the writings of Locke will rejoice to hear that a subscription has been begun for the purpose of erecting a monument to his memory. Subscriptions are received at the office of the Literary Fund, where a model of the intended erection may be inspected.