ance weight may be given per minute, making 50 bricks of large size. By dividing them, 100 of less size would be made ;-indeed, if the children could take them off, 150 might be made, a result which, however incredible, is nevertheless true, as I have proved before the authorities of the country, who were quite incredulous before they saw it. I have even gained bets upon it.

I have hitherto employed only horse power, but there would be great advantage in using steam, wind, and especially water; the velocity of the shaft being more regular and rapid with a water fall, and with a greater force than two horses, the kneading and other operations would be better performed.

By a similar arrangement tiles are made, earthen water pipes may be moulded, concave bricks for vaults, and in fact all sorts of bricks, refractory and others.

LIST OF ENGLISH PATENTS GRANTED BETWEEN THE 27th OF SEPTEMBER AND THE 25th OF OCTOBER, 1838.

John White, of Haddington, North Britain, iron monger, for certain improvements in the construction of ovens and heated air-stoves. September 27; six months to specify.

John Bourne, of Dublin, engineer, for certain improvements in steam-engines, and in the construction of boilers, furnaces and stoves. October 8; six months.

Jehiel Forbes Norton, of Manchester, merchant, for certain improvements in stoves or furnaces, and in instruments or apparatus for making the same. October 8; six months.

Henry Dunington, of Nottingham, lace manufacturer, for improvements in warp machinery, and in fabrics produced by warp machinery. October 8; six months.

George Haden, of Trowbridge, Wilts, engineer, for improvements in the manufacture of a soap or composition applicable to the felting and other purposes employed in the manufacture of woollen cloth, and other purposes to which soap is usually employed. October 8; six months.

Charles Sanderson, of Sheffield, steel manufacturer, for a certain improvement in the art or process of smelting iron ores. October 11; six

months.

Matthew Heath, of Furnival's-inn, London, Esq., for improvements in clarifying and filtering water, beer, wine, and other liquids. October 11; six months.

John Woolrich, of Birmingham, professor of chemistry, for an improved process for manufacturing carbonate of lead, commonly called white lead. October 11; six months.

John Fowler, of Birmingham, gent., for certain improvements in preparing or maufacturing sulphuric acid. October 16; six months.

William Brockedon, of Queen-square, Middlesex, Esq., for a combination of known materials, forming a substitute for corks and bungs. October 17; six months.

Henry Meyer, of Piccadilly, wax-chandler and oil merchant, for improvements in the manufacture of lamps. October 17; six months.

Elias Robison Handcock, of Dublin, for improvements in castors for furniture and other purposes. October 17; six months.

George Harrison, of Carlton-house-terrace, Middlesex, surveyor, for improvements for supplying air for promoting and supporting the combustion of fire in close stoves and furnaces, and for economising fuel therein. October 17; six months.

William Edward Newton, of 66, Chancery-lane, Middlesex, for improvements in the construction of bridges, viaducts, piers, roofs, truss-girders, and stays for architectural purposes. October 17; six months.

John George Bodmer, of Manchester, in the county of Lancaster, engineer, for his invention of certain improvements in the machinery or apparatus for carding, drawing, roving, and spinning cotton, flax, wool, silk, and other fibrous substances. October 22; six months.

William Jeakes, of Great Russell-street, Bloomsbury, for a mode of applying ventilating apparatus to stoves constructed on Dr. Arnott's principle. October 22; six months.

William Edward Newton, of Chancery-lane, mechanical draftsman, for an improved method or methods of preparing certain substances for the preservation of wood and other materials used in the construction and fitting-up of houses, ships, and other works, which improvements are also applicable to other useful purposes. October 22;

six months.

LIST OF SCOTCH PATENTS GRANTED BETWEEN THE 22nd OF SEPTEMBER AND THE 22nd OF OCTOBER, 1838.

Robert William Sievier. of Henrietta-street, Cavendish-square, Middlesex, gent., for certain improvements in looms for weaving, and in the mode or method of producing figured goods or fabrics. Sealed 1st of October, 1838; four months to specify.

John Robb, of No. 13, Commercial-road, Hutchesontown, Glasgow, mechanic, for a machine for preparing wood for joiners, carpenters and others. October 2.

Edmond Henzé, of Fenton's Hotel, Saint Jamesstreet, Middlesex, merchant, in consequence of a communication made to him by a certain foreigner residing abroad, for improvements in the manufacture of Dextrine. October 8.

Robert William Sievier, of Henrietta-street, Cavendish-square, gent., for certain improvements in rigger and pully bands for driving machinery, and ropes and lines for other purposes. October 11.

James Nasmyth, of Patricroft, near Manchester, engineer, for certain improvements in machinery, tools, or apparatus for cutting or planing metals and other substances, and in securing or fastening the keys or cottars used in such machinery, and other machinery where keys or cottars are commonly applied. October 11.

Thomas Ridgway Bridson, of Great Bolton, Lancaster, bleacher, for certain improvements in the construction and arrangement of machinery or apparatus for stretching, mangling, drying, and finishing woven goods or fabrics, and part or parts of which improvements are applicable to other useful purposes. October 12.

William Angus Robertson, of the Patent Agency Office, Peterborough-court, Fleet-street, London. for certain improvements in the manufacture of hosiery, shawls, carpets, rugs, blankets, and other fabrics, being a communication from a certain foreigner residing abroad. October 12.

John Seaward, of the Canal Iron Works, Poplar,

Middlesex, engineer, for an improvement in condensing steam-engines. October 12.

Joshua Wordsworth, of Leeds, machine-maker, for certain improvements in machinery for heckling and dressing flax, hemp and other fibrous matter. October 18.

John Melling, of Liverpool, for certain improvements in locomotive steam-carriages to be used upon railways, or other roads, part or parts of which improvements are also applicable to stationary steam-engines, and to machinery in general. October 18.

Horace Cary, of Marrow-street, Limehouse, Middlesex, Bachelor of Medicine, for improvements in the manufacture of white lead. October 18.

Henry Huntley Mohun, of Regent's-park, Middlesex, M.D., for improvements in the composition and manufacture of fuel, and in furnaces for the consumption of such, and other kinds of fuel. October 18.

LIST OF IRISH PATENTS GRANTED IN

SEPTEMBER, 1838.

Pierrie Armaud Lecomte de Fontainemoreau, for improvements in wool combing. September 14. Edward Davy, of Crediton, for improvements in saddles and harness. September 22.

John Hanson, of Huddersfield, for improvements in machinery, or apparatus for making or manufacturing pipes or tubes from metallic substances. September 22.

Robert William Sevier, of Henrietta-street, Cavendish-square, for improvements in looms for weaving, and in the mode or method of producing figured goods or fabrics. September 25.

Arthur Dunn, of Stamford Hill, for improvements in the manufacture of soap. September 28.

NOTES AND NOTICES.

Launch of the Archimedean Steam-Vessel.-On Thursday a steam-vessel, named the Archimedean, was launched from the yard of Mr. Wynn, of Millwall, nearly opposite Deptford. The principle upon which the vessel is proposed to be propelled (Ericsson's) is one which has long been in agitation, and which has already been experimentally tried with considerable success upon a vessel of eight tons, and of four-and-a-half horse power, and the objects which it is desired should be attained are at once speed, and the ready application either of steam or sailing power. The engine will be placed amid-ships, as in the steam-vessels now in use, and the propeller or paddle, which is under the stern, will be worked by a communicating shaft, acting upon a screw, called the Archimedean screw, in the application and use of which the invention is grouuded. The propeller being placed under the stern, the inconvenience arising from the paddle now in use, which act themselves as a backwater, is avoided, and great benefit will be derived in seas when the wind is on the beam, when, instead of a great portion of the power being lost as now, the revolutions of the paddles will continue with as good effect as in calm weather. Should any circumstance render it necessary to remove the steam power, the wheel may be immediately unshipped, or its action upon the water may be prevented, and sailing power may then be applied. The vessel has been built at the yard of Mr. Wynn, under the direction of Mr. Smith, and is of exceedingly elegant construction. Its dimensions are as follow:-Extreme length fore and aft, 155 feet; length between perpendiculars, 107 feet; breadth of beam, 22 feet 6 inches; depth of hold, 13 feet; diameter of screw, 7 feet; length

63%

of screw 8 feet; and it is intended to apply engines of 45-horse power.-Chronicle.

New American Steam Ship.-The steam-ship Liverpool made an experimental trip on Saturday from Liverpool to Dublin. The weather was very boisterous, but the ship made her way at the rate of about 10 miles an hour and reached Dublin in 12 hours and 21 minutes. In returning, the wind was not quite so strong, and blew from the west, and the distance from Kingstown harbour to Liverpoo was accomplished in 10 hours and 42 minutes. The Liverpool Albion says-"The result fairly justifies the conclusion that, when all on board is completed, the stiffness of the engines worn off, and the improvements made which this first voyage has suggested, she will be one of the most ocean-worthy and swiftest vessels hitherto built, and become a credit to the owners and to the port." She started on her first trip to New York last Saturday.

Foreign Railroads.-Mr. Stephenson, the celebrated railroad engineer, has been engaged by the Florence and Leghorn Railroad Company to make the requisite surveys and plans for that line. Two English engineers have already arrived at Florence, to commence the preliminary works.

Iveson's Smoke-consuming Plan.-Sir,-I perceive an article making the round of the newspapers, upon the saving of fuel, and the consumption of smoke, said to be the discovery of a Mr. Iveson, manager of the Castle Silk Mills, Edinburgh, on which, with your leave, through the medium of your valuable columns, I wish to offer to the public the following remarks :-It is part of a plan which I mentioned to several gentlemen so long ago as 1835, for the consumption of smoke, the economising and condensation of fuel in bulk, applicable to steamers in long voyages. I may here observe, that this fuel is not more expensive than the best Newcastle coal, and somewhat less than one-half the bulk. The use of the fuel will involve a slight alteration in the frame-work of the furnace, and render the smoke-funnel or chimney no longer necessary. Among the gentlemen to whom I mentioned my discovery in 1835, was the Rev. George Jacque, of Auchterarder, N.B., and again in conversation with him upon the same subject, in July 1837, he suggested an improvement in the mode of applying the jet of steam, which was to take it from the exhauston-pipe after the steam had done its work; and early last winter it was mentioned to Matthias Dunn, Esq., of this town. Having some specimens of the fuel prepared, I shall be happy to show them to any person interested in this important subject.

I am, Sir, your most obedient seryant,
J. M. ARNOTT.
33, Blackett-street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne,
October 15, 1838.

Statue of James Watt in Greenock.-The statue of James Watt, by Sir Francis Chantrey, is now placed in the building erected for it in Union-street. It is an 8 feet figure, of statuary marble, and weighs upwards of 2 tons, and the pedestal, which is of Sicilian marble, weighs about 3 tons. On the front of the pedestal is the following inscription, from the classic pen of Lord Jeffrey:-"The inhabitants of Greenock have erected this statue of James Watt, not to extend a fame already identified with the miracles of steam, but to testify the pride and reverence with which he is remembered in the place of his nativity, and their deep sense of the great benefits his genius has conferred on mankind. Born XIX January, MDCCXXXVI. Died at Heathfield, in Staffordshire, August XXV., MDCCCXIX. " On the right of the pedestal is a shield containing the Arms of Greenock, and on the left strength and speed. On the back is an elephant, in obvious allusion to the beautiful parallel drawn by Mr. Jeffrey, between the steam-engine and the trunk of that animal, which was equally qualified to lift a pin or to rend an oak.

Bridge over the Danube.-The new suspension bridge over the Danube, between Buda and Pesth, which will be begun the next spring, is a colossal undertaking. Two piers of granite and the red marble of Neudorf, 35 feet thick, and 150 feer above the level of the foundation, will support the whole structure. There will consequently be three openings for the water to pass through, the middle passage being 640 feet in width, and each of those at the sides 270 feet, making in all 1,180 feet. The entire length of the bridge will be 1,600 feet. Castiron beams will support the platform, which is to be 37 feet wide, viz., 25 feet for the carriage-way, and six feet for each foot-path. The whole will be suspended by 12 chains, weighing together upwards of 2,000 tons.

The last of the First Steam-boat.-A curious fate has attended the first actually employed steamvessel, which was constructed for the late Mr. Miller of Dalswinton, by Mr. William Symington, on the Forth and Clyde Canal, near Falkirk, and from seeing which Fulton took his idea of introducing steam-vessels on the rivers of the United States. In the formation of some new works at the eastern extremity of this canal, it lately became necessary to fill up the course of a stream, which formerly ran into the harbour of Grangemouth; among the rubbish and materials used for this purpose, the venerable remains of Mr. Miller's vessel have been buried-strongly reminding us of the lines of the poet

"Imperial Cæsar, dead and turned to clay, May stop a hole and keep the wind away." Sir James Anderson's Steam-coach is finished, and will start from Buttevant for this city in a fortnight, travelling at 15 miles an hour.-Limerick Paper.

The Suspension Bridge at Freyburg, the longest in the world, was completed and thrown open in 1834. The engineer who constructed it is M. Chaley, of Lyons. Its dimensions, compared with those of the Menai bridge, are as follows:Length. Elevation. Breadth. 905ft 174ft 28ft. 580 130 .. 25

Freyburg Menai

It is supported on four cables of iron wire, each containing 1056 wires, the united strength of which is capable of supporting three times the weight which the bridge will ever be likely to bear, or three times the weight of two rows of waggons, extending entirely across it. The cables enter the ground on each side obliquely for a considerable distance, and are then carried down vertical shafts cut in the rock, and filled with masonry, through which they pass, being attached at the extremity to enormous blocks of stone. The materials of which it is composed are almost exclusively Swiss; the iron came from Berne, the limestone masonry from the quarries of the Jura, the woodwork from the forest of Freyburg: the workmen were, with the exception of one man, natives, who had never seen such a bridge before. It was completed in three years, at an expense of about 600,000fr. (25,000l. sterling.)-Hand-book for Switzerland.

Sweden.-The Swedish government has recently published a military map, in which are figured the works of public utility, commenced, continued, or finished under the reign of the present king, Charles-Jean Bernadotte. There are fifteen canals, eight ports, eight roads, nine lines of defence, the expense of which has amounted to 77,177,095fr., all

furnished, (without borrowing) by the royal treasury.

Fermentation an act of Vegetation.-M. Turpin has lately published his observations upon certain phenomena, which he considers sufficient to show, that the act of fermentation, concerning which chemists have been so much embarrassed, is owing to the rapid development of infusorial plants. He states, that all yeast, of whatever description, derives its origin from the separation from organic tissue, whether animal or vegetable, of spherical particles of extreme minuteness, which particles, after a certain time, rise to the surface of the fluids in which they are immersed, and there germinate. Their germination is said to be caused by a certain amount of heat, and by contact with atmospheric air. The carbonic acid obtained by fermentation is ascribed to the infusorial plants. M. Turpin considers the act of adding yeast to liquids, when fermentation is languid, as equivalent to sowing millions of seeds in a favourable soil. He calls the yeast plant of beer Tolura cerevisia: he considers each infusion to have its peculiar plant, and he names the whole race of such beings Levurians. No doubt the yeast of beer consists of minute molecular matter, the particles of which are globular; and that those particles produce, from their sides, other particles like themselves, which eventually separate from the parent, but we do not know that they are therefore plants.-Athenæum.

Life-saving Buoys.-Sir,-I think it would be an excellent plan, if the Trinity-house Commissioners were to order a set of iron handles, to be fixed round all their buoys that are anchored in the sea, and in mouths of rivers, for marking rocks, shoally bottoms, or channels, in case of a vessel being wrecked, or a boat upsetting, near such a buoy. Some of the immersed crew might gain it, and by means of the handles hold on until other assistance came. making new buoys, or repairing old ones, these handles might be easily attached, as one of the hoops might be forged with them on it, or they might be rivetted to the hoop, the increased cost and trouble of making would be very trifling.— Arthur Trevelyan.

In

The Compass in Iron Vessels.-Sir,-In reading your Magazine of this day, I observe among the hints upon iron and other steam boats by Junius Redivivus, his alluding to the alleged impractibility of navigating iron-boats across the ocean, owing to their effect upon the compass. I beg to say, that two or three years back I tried some experiments by placing the compass within an iron rim, and in an iron desk, in order to make attraction equal, and to neutralize the partial attraction of the ship's iron, and I enclosed the account to the Admiralty, and 1 think I enclosed it to you, but in neither case was it thought worthy notice; the idea seems now revived by Redivivus, and I certainly believe it much more likely to be successful than the experiments that I read of lately, of turning the compass upside down. I had thought of it for years, particularly to counteract the partial attraction of the ship's iron. Your constant reader. C. P. ASTON. 26, Little Windmill-street, Golden-square, October 20, 1838.

The Railway Map of England and Wales continues on sale, in a neat wrapper, price 6d. ; and on fine paper, coloured, price ls.