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COAL-CUTTING MACHINES.

A Engineers, Ta meeting of the Institution of Civil held December 15, 1868, Mr. C. H. Gregory, President, in the chair, the paper read was "On Machines Employed in Working and Breaking-down Coal, so as to Avoid the Use of Gunpowder, by Mr. S. P. Bidder, jun., Assoc. Inst. C.E.

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It was stated that the object of this communication was to direct attention to the "winning " of coal by mechanical appliances, with the view of obviating the loss in production and the danger to the colliers which were incidental to the use of gunpowder. Several inventions for this purpose were described, including the machines Mr. Cochrane, Mr. Chubb, Mr. Grafton Jones, and Mr. Farum; and it was remarked that the great defect in all these machines was their limited expansive power, which did not exceed 3in., and which in practice proved to be insufficient for breaking down a mass of coal in a workable state. Machines for cutting grooves or slots in the coal had also been tried, but it was said only with partial success.

After fully considering these various systems, the author had, in conjunction with Mr. John Jones, devised a machine which had been submitted to actual trial on a working scale at the Harecastle Colliery, where the results were so satisfactory as to induce the proprietors to make arrangements for its immediate adoption. The machine consisted of a small hydraulic press of 12 tons power, to which was attached a pair of tension bars, bent in the form of a connecting-rod or hinge-strap. These were placed one over the other in the bore-hole, and between them, at the extreme end, there were a clearance box and two metal pressing blocks, between which was forced, by the action of the hydraulic press, a split wedge 15in. long, causing a lateral expansion of 3in. The ram was then withdrawn, and a second wedge was inserted between the two parts of the first wedge, and was forced up until sufficient expansion was obtained to break the coal. The operation could be repeated several times if found necessary. The whole apparatus would weigh about 50lbs. The hydraulic press was in future to be made of steel, and the ram would be cored out. In practical working, each gang of colliers would be provided with the tension bars and three wedges, while the presses would be under the charge of the men who at present occupy the position of firemen, so that no new class of labour would be introduced, while the risk of firing would be got rid of. Trials had been made both in the 7ft. and the 9ft. seams at Harecastle; and in the latter, with three wedges, about twelve tons of coal had been brought down in only three or four pieces. It was found that the press could be applied and the blocks brought down in less time than was consumed by firing and waiting for the smoke clearing.

Explosions in mines were known to arise, very frequently, from the employment of gunpowder for blasting. In the interests of humanity alone an efficient substitute had long been desired by practical men; and this, it was believed, had been accomplished by the machine under consideration, which had also the advantage of preventing the waste of coal incurred by the present system.

IT

ROTATORY INKSTAND.

T needs but a glance at the number of shapes and principles of inkstands in use to prove that one which shall obviate the many inconveniences attendant upon these necessary accompaniments of office work is still a desideratum. Omitting the consideration of foreign substances getting into an inkstand full of ink, either by chance or carelessness, the great contaminator of its contents is unquestionably the atmosphere; and bearing in mind the nature of the atmosphere usually existing in offices and counting-houses, then it is no wonder that it is a difficult matter to preserve the ink pure M. Stlotz has designed an inkstand which is calculated to remove some of the many objections raised against this useful appliance. It allows the ink to be shaken before being used, completely prevents the introduction of foreign bodies, and permits the quantity to be varied according as occasion demands, without fear of spilling, even

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them comes immediately under the orifice c, lifting the ink with it ready for use. These cups are widened out at the upper extremity, so that when they are in a vertical position, the quantity of ink taken up fills a greater space, vertically considered, than when they are in motion. This is for the purpose of facilitating the taking it up by the pen. The disc is retained in the position it is placed in by turning the button D, by a couple of india-rubber washers, which make a hermetically tight joint between the disc and the body of the stand. On referring to the figures, it will be seen that there is a small space or clearance between the disc and the bottom of the interior of the stand. By this arrangement, any foreign substance that may have got into the ink is precipitated in this space, when the disc is turned round again previously to the ink being used. If the disc be furnished with only one cup, it will require a whole revolution to cause it to come under the orifice, but if four be provided, every quarter of a revolution will suffice. When it is desirable to, what might be termed, throw the apparatus out of gear, the button may be turned to the left; the ink consequently falls out of the cups to mix with that in the body of the stand, and the orifice is closed by the solid part of the disc between two of the cups. In the present instance, an eighth of a revolution would be sufficient to close the aperture.

THE ARCHIMEDEAN SCREW VENTILATOR HIS ventilator is the invention of Mr. Howarth, THIS and it possesses advantages which render it adapted for all situations and for any purpose where ventilation is necessary. The principal features of these ventilators are the revolving hood, the Archimedean screw, and the internal arrangements for lubrication, by means of which the ventilator will revolve with the smallest amount of wind, and without any noise. The hood has side vanes to let out the hot vitiated air, and to prevent rain or snow beating inside; on the top of the hood are curved vanes acted upon by the wind

The

plied with marked success in Liverpool. Great expense has been incurred last year by the corporation in endeavouring to effect the ventilation of their sewers, in which, by the aid of Howarth's ventilator, they have happily succeeded. method adopted is to connect an 8-inch earthenware pipe to the sewer, which is carried away to the gable end of the house, or any other convenient position. From the earthenware pipe an iron tube is carried up the side of the house and is surmounted by a ventilator. About 1,000 ventilators are now applied in Liverpool in this way, and the sewers are comparatively wholesome. The shafts are carried far above any windows, so that there is no fear of the poisonous gases being inhaled. Since the adoption of these shafts and ventilators, we understand a great reduction in the rate of mortality has taken place. The efficiency of this invention is undeniable, and its success unquestionable. We have only to add that these ventilators are manufactured by Mr. J. L. Norton, of Belle Sauvage-yard, Ludgate-hill.

A NEW CLACK VALVE.

N improved form of the clack valve is now being extensively introduced in America (through the agency of Mr. T. P. Pemberton, of the "American Journal of Mining,") which wherever it has been is the invention of Mr. A. H. Simons, of Philadelphia, tried has given the utmost satisfaction. The valve and combines simplicity and durability with great facility for repairs. The clack valve is, of all valves, that least liable to derangement, yet it was doubtless capable of considerable improvement. It consists, as is well known, of a flap of leather or other material covering the orifice, and fixed down at one edge, so as to open, as it were, on a hinge. The leather valve has to be weighted with metal, so that it may close rapidily and keep rigid. These valves are frequently made of india-rubber, closing upon a grating instead of upon one large opening. Guards are fixed over the valves to prevent them from rising too high. When one piece of leather or other substance used for the valve is fastened down in the centre, so as to form two clacks, the arrangement is termed the butterfly clack. Another kind of valve is the conical form, which consists of a flat or slightly curved plate of metal, of which the periphery is in the form of the frustrum of a cone, fitting into a seat of corresponding shape. In order that this valve may rise vertically, it is sometimes furnished with a spindle, moving in guides, and sometimes provided with three or four guides, projecting from its lower surface, and fitting the pipe beneath the valve. Stops are placed above the valves to limit their rise. A valve commonly used for locomotive feed pumps, consists of an accurately-formed sphere of metal, working in a hollow spherical seat, its rise being regulated by guards. It is a great desideratum to obtain a valve which shall close rapidly, so that it may reach its seat before the column of water above it begins to return, whereby loss of water is obviated and concussions their seats are generally produced by scraping or grinding, so as to obtain the highest degree of accuracy attainable. When the valves are made of metal, they should be of the same kind as the seat, or otherwise galvanic action will ensue, causing the corrosion of that surface which is formed of the most electrically-positive metal. With a feed-pump for boilers are connected suction and delivery valves, and also a check valve, the purpose of the latter being to prevent a reaction of the water after it has been forced by the pump through the delivery valves. The check valve, as commonly used, has a conical seat, and the valve is placed within a metallic box, or casing, which is connected with the wrought-iron feed pipe. The check valve is placed as near the point of feed on the boiler as possible. Understanding the use of the check valve, it is at once apparent that its action should be reliable at all times, and keep perfectly tight when closed. In the improved valve, a peculiarly arranged ball and socket joint is substituted for the hinge, the socket being formed in two parts, the upper of which screws into the valve box at the opening through which the valve is reached.

avoided. The surfaces of contact between valves and

ANOTHER case of death produced by the selfadministration of chloroform for the relief of pain, has been reported in the daily papers. It has now often happened that persons have inhaled chloroform after having laid themselves down in bed, and have like the sails of a ship, by which means the head died, not from the direct effects of the anaesthetic, revolves. The screw, connected with the hood by but from suffocation, due to the position assumed a spindle, revolves with the hood, and produces a during anesthesia. It cannot be too strongly imstrong continuous up-current, at the same time pre-pressed upon the public, that the self-use of chlorovents the admission of cold air, or a down draught. form must always be highly dangerous, and can when the holder is full. The action will be readily This ventilator is adapted to, and extensively in use scarcely ever be justifiable. We, "Lancet," fear that expressible from the figures, which represent two at, cotton and other mills, bleach and dye works. ing under painful diseases of a remittent kind to take a custom has sprung up of permitting patients labourvertical sections made in planes perpendicular to stables, &c., where a supply of good air, and the chloroform when paroxysms occur; and we would It will be seen that it consists of a expulsion of that which has become impure, is strongly urge that the dangers of such a practice are disc with four cups A, placed in the interior of the essential. It is also specially adapted for the venti- too great to be incurred on account of any considerabody of the stand B containing the ink. Thlation of sewers, to which purpose it has been ap-tions of convenience.

one another.

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SIX-HORSE POWER "PARAGON" ENGINE.

BY MESSRS. KITTOE AND BROTHERHOOD.

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PARAGON STEAM PUMP.

NE of the novelties at the late Smithfield Club

ONE of the at the late pump of Messrs.

Kittoe and Brotherhood, of 56, Compton street, Clerkenwell, and which is illustrated opposite. It is well worthy the attention of those who require to raise large quantities of water and transmit it from place to place through pipes. The steam piston and pump piston are fixed on the same rod. This rod is prolonged upwards into the flat case, shown on the upper part of the machine, and is fitted with a crosshead, into which takes a crank. pin on a disc revolving within the case. The flywheel shaft is carried in a tubular bracket accurately bored to receive it. At the end of this bracket is a disc, in the lower part of which a vertical slot is cut which acts as a guide for the head of the slide valve spindle. In the fly-wheel boss, an eccentric groove is turned which lays hold of a stud projecting from the top of the valve spindle, which spindle is thus driven up and down by the rotation of the shaft. By removing the six nuts, shown in front elevation, all the pump valves can be removed for examination or repair in five minutes. The pump is double-acting, and will throw from 3,000 to 10,000 gallons per hour according to the size. The parts are well got up, and we think this is a very excellent steam pump-compact, reliable, and cheap.

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THE PARAGON ENGINE.

T the late Smithfield Club Show, we found a

Kittoe and Brotherhood, of 56, Compton-street, ROSSETTER'S IMPROVEMENTS IN LOOMS
Clerkenwell. This engine is illustrated in the
annexed engraving. The piston is fitted with a

block on the upper surface, in which is a V-shaped THE object of this invention is to change, by

self-acting arrangement, the shuttle in which space, within which the connecting rod works. the weft is broken or absent for another shuttle with Both the crank and connecting rod work inside the the weft ready for weaving, without stopping the cylinder; there is, therefore, no stuffing-box. The loom. This is effected by means of mechanism crank shaft is made tight where it passes through of great simplicity and efficiency, which forms the the side of the case on top of the cylinder by a subject of the accompanying engraving. It is the faced collar. The slide valve is actuated precisely patented invention of Mr. William Rossetter, of as in the paragon pump by the same firm. The Scaitcliffe, Accrington, and is of considerable imV-shaped piece on the top of the piston is intro-portance to the trade. Figs. 1, 2, and 3 are front duced to save steam, by reducing clearance. and end views of an ordinary loom, provided with arrangements for placing a shuttle with weft at one end of the slag, and removing a shuttle with broken or absent weft from the other end of the slag without stopping the loom. The ordinary weft fork holder g is secured to the lever h on the shaft I. When breakage or absence of weft takes place, the shaft I makes part of a revolution in the direction of the arrow, thereby moving the lever J on the shaft I. The lever J comes in contact with the bracket and

It is impossible to see how the steam engine can be presented to the public in a simpler form, and although the design is not applicable to high powers, it appears to be well suited for many situations where there is but little room available, and the consumption of steam is moderate, and the loss by friction very small. Owing to the small number of parts, and general simplicity of the machine, its price is exceedingly low.

bowl h, and raises the spring e, the next beat up of the slag raising the shuttle guard f, which is connected to the bracket and bowl h, so that a

shuttle can pass under into the slag, and so on, continuing the loom working. A shuttle is shown going into the slag in the drawing. On fig. 1 will be seen a table A, with a receptacle or box B, for holding shuttles one above another, as many as may be deemed convenient. The table A and slagplate C are made with projections and spaces so as to form a bridge or continuous surface for the shuttle to travel on into the slag. On fig. 2 will be seen a table A, brackets and light springs B, for receiving a shuttle; when absent or broken weft is indicated, this table and slag-plate have projections and spaces to form a bridge or continuous surface for the shuttle to travel on when being expelled from the slag to the table A, brackets and light spring B. The lever J on shaft I is shown in position, with the shuttle guard raised, and as the slag moves towards the table, the lever J moves the lever which is in connection with the slide m, and

Legal Intelligence.

was 9in. thick, and carried straight across under
the boiler, whereas it is always recommended that
these walls should be only 44in. thick, and recessed
round the blow-out elbow pipe, when there would JUDICIAL COMMITTEE OF THE PRIVY
be less liability for this corrosion to occur, and less
opportunity for its going on destroying the plates
unawares.

COUNCIL.
DECEMBER 16.

(President-Lord CHELMSFORD, Chief Baron KELLY, Sir J. COLVILLE, and Sir L. PEEL.)

removes the shuttle from the slag to the table A, brackets and light springs B. The machine shown is an ordinary over-pick loom. The advantage of this invention is that the slag carries only the shuttle that is working. The table A and box B in fig. 1 being stationary, the operator has no difficulty in placing the shuttles in the box; whereas, in the other machines, the operator One case of improper treatment of safety valves has to place shuttles in a box fixed to the slag was met with on two boilers set side by side, and when running to and fro, which can be accom-working at as high a pressure as 70lb. per square plished only by expert hands, and with difficulty inch. Each boiler had two safety valves, one of when working at high speeds, which is not so with open lever construction, the other bonnetted over Mr. Rossetter's invention. In worsted goods this and arranged to blow off both at high steam and loom is specially beneficial, on account of the cops or low water. In order to keep the safety valve of bobbins holding but little of that material. Several the open lever from rising too high, the attendant of these looms have been made in England and had inserted a wedge in the guide through which sent abroad, and others are now in course of the lever passed, and the arrangement was such that a slight blow on the back of the wedge would drive it right home, and lock the valve fast. Al- The petitioner and other witnesses were exthough in this case there was a duplicate valve, so amined. He was employed in the engineering dethat the tampering with the one in question was partment of the Woolwich Dockyard when he not attended with such imminent danger as it made the invention, the object of which was to would otherwise have been, yet it entirely neutra-weld joints of iron plates instead of fastening

manufacture for home use.

IN RE BERTRAM'S PATENT. THIS was an application for an extension of the patent granted to William Bertram, who had been a working man, for improvements in the manufacture of iron ships, steam and other boilers, bridges and other structures.

Mr. Groves, Q.C. (with whom was Mr. Aston) appeared for the petitioner; Mr. Archibald represented the Crown.

was lized the advantage of rivota,

MANCHESTER BOILER ASSOCIATION. HE last ordinary monthly meeting of the exeheld at the offices, 41, Corporation-street, Manchester, on Tuesday, November 24, 1868, William Fairbairn, Esq., C.E., F.R.S., LL.D., &c., president, in the chair, when Mr. L. E. Fletcher, chief engineer, presented his report, of which the following is an abstract:-During the past month 229 visits of inspection have been made, and 559 boilers examined, 432 externally, 8 internally, 3 in the flues, and 116 entirely, while in addition 7 have been tested by hydraulic pressure. In these boilers 93 defects have been discovered, 5 of them being dangerous, Furnaces out of shape, 1-dangerous; fracture, 11; blistered plates, 6; internal corrosion, 15-1 dangerous; external ditto, 12-3 dangerous; internal grooving, 3; external ditto, 3; water gauges out of order, 4; blow-out apparatus ditto, 8; safety valves ditto, 8; pressure gauges ditto, 7; boilers without glass water gauges, 2; without feed back pressure valves, 11; cases of over pressure, 1; deficiency of water, 1.

Further reference may be made to three of the defects enumerated above, two of which were cases of fracture, a third of external corrosion, and a fourth of improperly treated safety valves. The first of these cases was met with in an externallyflred boiler, a number of cracks having occurred at the rivet holes at the transverse seams over the fire, added to which the boiler was found to be considerably corroded on the inside of a lower chamber used as a water heater, so that on account of the defects to which this construction of boiler was liable, the owners wisely decided on condemning it altogether, and laying down a new one in its place.

each boiler. The Association's inspector of course bursting. He met with great opposition, and had
withdrow the wedges, and threw them away, and been threatened with personal violence. He had
the attendant should be peremptorily forbidden to been ill, and, from various causes which he de-
restore them. It should be an absolute rule that scribed, he had not realized much more than £1,000
the regulation of the safety valves should not be by the patent, which was granted in December,
interfered with without direct permission from the 1854. Other witnesses stated that the invention
head of the establishment. A considerable number was of great benefit, and would by the manner of
of boilers under inspection are fitted with a safety fastening iron plates prevent boilers from burst-
valve of external dead weight pendulous construc-ing, and otherwise afford protection to the public.
tion, in addition to the low-water one already It appeared that the solicitors for the petitioner,
named. This would appear to be a superior arrange-Messrs. Wilson, Bristows, and Carpmael, had given
ment to the one under consideration, as these notice of the petition as directed on an application
valves, at the same time that they are less liable for a prolongation of a patent.
to get out of order, cannot be so easily tampered
with as those of lever construction. If the escape
of steam in a boiler house is inconvenient, these
valves can easily be carried up through the roof,
as is frequently done, while the arrangement has
the advantage of placing them in a position which
is generally open to view, and where it would be
practically impossible to overweight them.

In another case, two safety valves of lever construction, loaded with spring balances, were found to be screwed down so far as to be locked fast. The sooner all these spring balances are discarded for weights, the better; but in any special cases where may be necessary to continue them, stop ferrules or collars should be introduced so as to keep the spring from being screwed down beyond the desired point. From the neglect of this simple precaution, a number of explosions have arisen.

Mr. Groves submitted that it was a case in which their Lordships would extend the patent. The invention was one of public benefit, and the petitioner had only realized a small sum for his labour.

Mr. Archibald admitted that the invention was one of public utility, and it was for their Lordships to decide the period to which they would extend the patent. By the petition a further term of fourteen years was prayed.

Their Lordships consulted with closed doors. Lord Chelmsford, on the re-admission of the public, said their Lordships considered the invention was a very useful one, and as yet the petitioner had been but scantily remunerated. The Committee would recommend to Her Majesty that the patent be prolonged for a further term of seven

years.

Correspondence.

COLLIERY EXPLOSIONS.

SIR,-You will doubtless be pleased to hear that

But one explosion has happened during the past month. This was. however, of a very The second case of fracture was met with in an disastrous character. It occurred to a boiler not under the inspection of the Association. It took TO THE EDITOR OF THE "MECHANICS' MAGAZINE.” place in a thickly populated district, at half-past two o'clock on the afternoon of Friday, October 30, on the premises of a small steam sawyer, who carried on his business on the ground floor of a three-storeyed building, the upper part of which was let off to small tenants, such as glass-cutters and turners, who were supplied with steam power. On the occurrence of the explosion the house immediately over the boiler was blown down, while the adjacent buildings were shaken, and the floors and roof much shattered. There were altogether about twenty persons in the building at the time, ten of whom were seriously injured by the fall of the debris, and the escape of hot water from the boiler, one of them being so severely scalded that he died shortly after.

ordinary Lancashire mill boiler, having two furnace tubes, the fracture penetrating right through the front end plate for a length of 18in. immediately over the furnace crowns. All boilers of the Lancashire type are prone to this more or less, and most of them in process of time become somewhat grooved either at the root of the furnace mouth angle iron, or at the front end plate, though an actual fracture is but rarely developed. Happily, however, this grooving is not a source of danger in this class of boiler, and Mr. Fletcher states that he has never known explosion to result from it. It arises from want of flexibility, and rather from too much metal than too little, while it is found to be most severe in long boilers with thick end plates, and a defective circulation of the water. In the present instance, the boiler was as much as 35ft. long, while the thickness of the plates was seven-sixteenths of an inch in the furnaces, and nine-sixteenths of an inch in the ends, the latter being stiffened with a couple of horizontal bars of angle iron riveted across them, and stayed with three longitudinal bars, measuring 2in. square, and running from one end of the boiler to the other. This is not the most approved form of staying, while the length of boiler now very generally adopted is 30ft. or less instead of 35ft. Also, the furnace tubes, when strengthened either with flanged seams, encircling hoops, or other approved means, can be of lighter material, while the ends for greater flexibility are made in. thick instead of nine-sixteenths, and a space of not less than 9in. allowed between the rivets at the furnace mouth angle iron, and the lowest one in the end stays, so as to afford sufficient breathing space, and thus allow for expansion and contraction. External corrosion was met with at the bottom of a boiler 8ft. in diameter, the plates were in contact with the front cross wall, being found so eaten away that the inspector made two or three holes in them with a slight touch. The front cross wall

the great fatality attending colliery explosions may in future, by a very simple contrivance, be greatly mitigated. Experience teaches that under the most careful surveillance accident or negligence does occasionally produce the ignition of the gas in coal mines. Everybody knows that the effect of an explosion is to consume a large volume of air; it therefore of necessity follows that immediately after the explosion a great vacuum is created. A simple experiment will illustrate this. Put a few drops of brandy in a wine glass; set it on fire, and immediately turn it over on your open hand; you will see the fire will be extinguished, and you will also see the effort Nature will make to supply the vacuum. This simple operation is

similar (only in extent) to that of a coal mine explosion, and this it is which produces the effects Though the explosion occurred some 200 miles which we have all had lately to lament. "Nature from Manchester, an officer from the Association abhors a vacuum,' and will take instantaneous visited the spot to acquire particulars very promptly means to fill it, and has enormous forces at hand to after the disaster had occurred. He found, how-perform the work, and it will also take the readiest ever, that the boiler was so buried in the debris method of doing it. that it would have to be dug out before it could be seen, so that the examination had to be deferred. In our crowded cities there are many such buildings full of workpeople from top to bottom, working

over or near to steam boilers in the basement. In
such cases it is doubly important that the owners
of the property should protect the lives of the
workpeople by putting the boilers under competent
periodical inspection, otherwise it is no exaggera-
tion to say they might as well be seated round a
cask of gunpowder. Although it might be pre-
mature, until further details have been acquired,
to speak positively, yet the experience based on
previous investigations leaves very little room to
doubt that the boiler must have been defective,
and that had the precaution recommended above
been adopted, the danger would have been detected
in time to have prevented this explosion with its
lamentable results

In coal mines, there is a tall ventilating chimney into which a large fire is kept, and which, in the ordinary working of the mine, produces its well known useful purposes. Immediately an explosion takes place, this chimney becomes the miner's dead

liest foe. It will at once be seen that this is the readiest way Nature can get at the substance necessary to supply the vacuum; down, then, from it pours all the products of combustion contained in the chimney itself-the deadly choke damp, which nothing that breathes the air can touch but to die. The current is thus reversed, all assistance from above is cut off, and it then becomes hopeless destruction to all life in the mine. My proposition consists in simply isolating the furnace shaft itself, so that immediately following the explosion a simple self-acting apparatus closes every approach and connection between it and the pit. It therefore necessarily follows that if this source of supply is stopped, the vacuum must, and will, obtain the quantity of air required from some of the air shafts and crevices

from above, but in some way or other Nature will in a few seconds restore the equilibrium. Immediately this is effected, the furnace will set itself at work again in the ordinary manner, when assistance can be immediately rendered to those injured by the force of the discharge.

The invention itself consists in causing the approach to the furnace shaft to be protected with one or more strong iron casements divided into squares, like an ordinary window, each of these squares or openings to be provided with a wrought-iron plate or valve properly balanced and hinged one-third from the bottom. These valves open outwards only, and they will therefore offer no resistance to the free passage of the air to the shaft, seeing that the upper part of the valve is two-thirds of the whole area, but will immediately shut themselves, and remain so whilst there is the least pressure from behind, for the same reason the force being greater on the upper part of the valve, on account of its area, which it will thus close up tight. All communication from the furnace being thus cut off, the dreadful effects we have lately witnessed will be prevented. If this apparatus is properly constructed and properly fixed, and sufficiently strong, the result is certain.-I am, Sir, yours, &c., R. WAYGOOD. Newington Iron Works, Falmouth-road, Great Dover-road, S. E., Dec. 19.

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Meetings for the Week.

TUES-Royal Institution.-Professor Odling on "Carbon
(juvenile lectures), at 3 p.m.
THURS.-Royal Institution.-Professor Odling on "Car-
bon" (juvenile lectures), at 3 p.m.
SAT.-Royal Institution.-Professor Odling on "Carbon"
(juvenile lectures), at 3 p.m.

Nabal, Military, and Gunnery Items.

A NEW military penal code has been promulgated in Sweden. It abolishes corporal punishment as being contrary to principles of humanity and injurious to the dignity of the soldier.

THE Directors of the North German Lloyd have contracted with Messrs. Caird and Co., of Greenock, for the construction of two new steamers of large size for their New Orleans line. They are to be

named the "Frankfort" and the "Hanover."

CAPT. T. A. J. HARRISON, R.A., Secretary to the Royal Artillery Institution, is appointed a member of the new committee to be formed in place of the Ordnance Select Committee, and which will, if formed, be called "The Invention Committee,'

IT is rumoured that the arrangements which Sir John Pakington made previously to his retirement from office, with reference to the head of the Arsenal and the new Ordnance Select Committee, are likely to fall to the ground.

THE "Deccan," screw, the latest addition made to the fleet of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, has made a favourable trial trip. She was built by Messrs. W. Denny and Brothers. Mr. Reed, Chief Constructor to the Admiralty, was among those present at the trial trip of the "Deccan."

THE Board of Trade have ordered a telescope to be prepared for presentation to Captain H. F. Block, master of the Prussian brig "Auguste," of Barth, in acknowledgment of his kindness in receiving on board and conveying to Ireland sixteen of the passengers and crew of the screw steamer "Melita," which was destroyed by fire on her passage from Boston, U.S., to Liverpool.

Josef," and assisted the immortal hero into the
chains of that vessel, Nelson exclaiming "Give me
your hand, Pile; I'm a good soldier but a poor sailor.'.
It may be mentioned that, although a sailor from his
boyhood, he never indulged in a pipe of tobacco.
THE Committee appointed, of which Major-Gen
Eardley Wilmot, R.A., is president; Cols. Wray,
Adye, Maxwell, Middleton, and Reilly, members;
and Capt. Luellyn, secretary, assembled last Thurs-
day, for the first time, at the War Office, to report
upon and recommend ordnance for field artillery
service-whether the muzzle-loading or breech-load-
ing rifled guns-and also on their ammunition and
equipment.

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THE magnificent bell captured at the siege of Sebastopol, and presented to Her Majesty on arrival at Windsor, was placed upon the North terrace of the Castle, where there is also one of the largest guns taken in that memorable siege. The bell has been hung in the Round Tower, just over the steps which give access to the apartments in the centre of the great tower, near the cannon which sweeps the sole entrance to the ancient "donjon keep, in which King John of France and King David of Scotland were prisoners in the reign of Edward III.; and where Charles I. was confined by the Parliament, when Windsor Castle was under the governorship of Colonel Venn, in 1648. The weight of the bell is 17cwt. 1qr. 211b. The bell, which has a rich and sonorous tone, bears, in the Russian language, the inscription "Sevastopol-Nicolas Sanctus, and a record of its weight in poods.

Miscellanea.

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ON Thursday, during the strong gale, the new Wesleyan chapel, at Littlemoor, Pudsey, was blown down. The foundation stone was laid on May 2.

THE acquisition of Sir Charles Eastlake's art library, recently purchased by the National Gallery, and the removal of the library of the Royal Academy to Burlington-house, have induced the trustees to form a collection embracing every attainable work relating to the fine arts, and to establish a library of reference and reading-room for the use of students, and accessible for the public under certain regu

lations.

WE read that the famous salt mine of ka ten miles from Cracow, which brings a net revenue to the Austrian Government of upwards of 6,000,000 florins (£600,000), is threatened with total destruction by a stream of water, which made its appearance on the 19th of last month, while the workmen were digging in one of the lower shafts, in search of potash. Thus far all efforts to drain off the water have proved ineffectual.

GIBRALTAR was visited by an earthquake shock on the 8th, at 10.50 a.m. The "Chronicle says: -At the Upper Tower signal stations it was severe, and also at Windmill-hill telegraph station, where the clerks were thrown off their chairs. At the North Front it was likewise severely felt. The shock was accompanied by a rumbling noise, not unlike distant thunder, or heavily laden waggons passing along a paved street. No damage is re

ported."

MUCH has been said of late in France about the effects of inferior bottle glass on wine, and the following is given as a sure test of the quality of the metal. Fill a bottle with water, add about the third of an ounce of tartaric acid, shake the bottle well so as to cause the salt to dissolve, and if at the end of five or six days no effect is produced, the glass of the bottle may be considered to be of good quality; if otherwise, the solution will have become gelatinous, or crystals will be found to have formed ta

the bottom of the bottle.

A STALACTITE cave has been discovered in the rocks near the Clifton station of the Bristol Port and Pier Railway. The cave has been explored to the distance of some 20 or 30 yards, under the superintendence of Mr. Wilkinson, the manager of the line, and many beautiful stalactites have been disclosed, some of them extending from the roof to the earth beneath, and which from their size have for the present prevented the further passage of the explorers. Some bones of animals and birds have also been found among the soil, including part of a skull which would seem to be that of a hyena. The is apparently of considerable length and

cave

depth.

'he passengers on board the "Tanjore" is not less han £3,000.

WE understand that important working arrangements have been entered into between the SouthEastern and the Brighton Companies, founded on the joint-purse system and a percentage division of receipts. The agreement applies to Tunbridge Wells, Hastings, and all the places at which the two lines at present compete. The two companies bind themselves not to promote or aid any new extension without mutual consent and agreement. Duplicate staffs at stations used by the two lines will as far as possible be abolished under the new arrangement, and a considerable saving may be effected by avoiding the running of duplicate and unnecessary trains. The arrangement applies only to the services of the two companies as they exist at present. Ultimately the agreement may beɔ extended to include the running of the Brighton trains to Cannon-street and Charing-cross.

THE opening of the Electric Telegraph School of Instruction is announced. By means of this institution good manipulators of the telegraph can be turned out to fill the numerous posts that will shortly be open to them, if we may judge from the rapid extension of telegraphic projects. The chief feature of this undertaking, however, is that it opens out a new field for female labour, and merits the attention of those noble philanthropists, Miss Burdett Coutts, Miss Rye, &c., and should the Post-Office authorities, as empowered by special Act of Parliament passed last session, take possession of all the telegraphs in this country, they will extend the present number of stations by some 600. To all servants in the Government service the knowledge of the practical working of the telegraph must prove of advantage.

A GOOD many generations ago, the then Earl of Derby obtained leave from his Sovereign to build and fortify a castle at Liverpool. On more occasions than one, well-executed subterranean means of communication between the castle and different points of the river beach have been discovered. None of these, however, surpass in interest and distinctness one which has recently been brought to light in the area of the Exchange Buildings. Here a deep excavation is being made for the cellars. In the course of this excavation, which is all through rock, a well-marked gallery has been opened up. It is cut in the solid rock, is fully 6ft. in height by 3ft. in width, and its crown is about 6ft. below the surface of the natural ground. It runs almost directly north from the sito of the castle, from which the Exchange is distant about 200 yards or more.

Patents for Inventions.

ABRIDGED SPECIFICATIONS OF

PATENTS.

THE Abridged Specifications of Patents given below are classified, according to the subject to which the respective inventions refer, in the following table. By the system of classification adopted, the numerical and chronological order of the specificatious is preserved and combined with all the advantages of a division into classes. It should be understood that these abridgments are prepared exclusively for this Magazine from official copies supplied by the Government, and are, therefore, the property of the Proprietors of this Magazine. Other papers are hereby warned not to produce them without an acknowledg

ment:

BOILERS AND FURNACES-1851, 1875, 1888, 1890
CHEMISTRY AND PHOTOGRAPHY-1841, 1854, 1868, 1885
BUILDINGS AND BUILDING MATERIALS-1869, 1882, 1899
CULTIVATION OF THE SOIL, including agricultural imple-
ments and machines-1863, 1883, 1893
ELECTRICAL APPARATUS-None
FIBROUS FABRICS, including machinery for treating fibre,
pulp, paper, &c.-1844, 1846, 1852, 1857, 1866
FOOD AND BEVERAGES, including the apparatus for pre-
paring food for men and animals-1860
FURNITURE AND APPAREL, including household utensils,
time-keepers, jewellery, musical instruments, &c.—
1858, 1886, 1887

1878, 1898

GENERAL MACHINERY-1848, 1856, 1859, 1867, 1871, 1872
LIGHTING, HEATING, AND VENTILATING-1855
METALS, including apparatus for their manufacture-

1892

MISCELLANEOUS-1842, 1843, 1845, 1849, 1861, 1862, 1864,
1874, 1876, 1877, 1879, 1880, 1884, 1889, 1891, 1895, 1896,
1897

ROADS AND VEHICLES, including railway plant and car-
riages, saddlery, and harness, &c.-1847, 1850
SHIPS AND BOATS, including their fittings-None

STEAM ENGINES-None

WARFARE-1853, 1865, 1870, 1873, 1894

1841 M. HENRY, Fleet street, London. Converting basic phosphates of lime into soluble acid phosphates of lime. (A communication). Dated June 5, 1863.

THE "Malta Times" contains the following:The passengers by the last overland mail came to grief in Egypt. The train containing their luggage was burnt, and they arrived here with only what they stood in. The Pasha will doubtless have to pay. The most unfortunate part of the accident The patentee claims, first, the employment of sulphurous acid for the purpose of acting on the basic phosphates of was the destruction of two fine elephants, a papa lime, in order to produce soluble acid phosphates and and mamma, which with their infant were on their sulphite of lime. Second, the method consisting of the way to England. The papa was burnt while trying series or combination of operations described for producto save his offspring. The mamma died on boarding acid soluble phosphates of lime and sulphite of lime the "Tanjore" from anxiety and injuries received by means of sulphurous acid, as explained. Third, the ONE of the last of Nelson's brave companions at in the same cause. The orphan, only the height of application of sulphiteof lime for bleaching fabrics, and the battle of St. Vincent, has just died at Fremington, an English sheep, was progressing famously under producing or re-producing sulphurous acid, and for obtainmaterials for fumigating plants, shrubs, and trees; for near Barnstaple, at the great age of 97. Thomas the care of a cow and the ship's butcher. We ing sulphite of soda and insoluble sulphate of lime, as Pile was one of the crew who boarded the "San understand that the claims alone from the portion of described. Fourth, the mode of obtaining sulphite of lime

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