The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-10 00:00:00

MR. _FARADAY'S JUVENILE LECTURES AT
THE ROYAL INSTITUTION.

The closing lecture of the series was delivered on
Saturday to a very large assembly of young persons and
adults. A considerable portion of the course having
• been occupied with illustrations of the action of the
atmosphere upon such bodies as carbon and hydrogen,
on this occasion the lecturer confined his remarks and
experiments on that subject. The combustibility of
sulphur and of phosphorus was clearly exhibited, the
former being connected for that purpose with charcoal,
and the experiments terminated with the action of oxygen
on both substances, as being, in its pure state, the most
powerful instrument of combustion. This was the old
story over again, Mr. Faraday observed ; but the ques-
tions put to him at the close of the lecture showed that
it was impossible to repeat it too frequently. The im-
portance of phosphorus was shown as an element in
the fabric of the human body, and its necessary pre-
sence in the vegetable kingdom, in order to replace ani-
mal waste. Great stress was laid upon chemical affi-
nity as the source of many of the operations which were
constantly taking place around us, and this was amply
illustrated by examples. Sulphuric acid was now intro-
duced as the strongest of what are termed the acid
powers, formed by the union of sulphur with oxygen as
the largest other ingredient. To show the strength of
this substance, a blue liquid in a large bottle was by the
application of one or two drops of the acid changed into
a red one. With the same view was exhibited the influ-
ence of sulphuric acid in destroying ammonia and in
charring wood. A few drops of the acid were also poured
upon some syrup of sugar, which in a few seconds as-
sumed the shape of a black and almost solid mass. Thus
it was observed, by means of chemistry, they gained a
knowledge of the wonderful powers of sulphuric acid,
composed of an inert and apparently indifferent substance
called sulphur, and of another inert and apparently indif-
ferent substance called oxygen. Separately these appeared
incapable of exercising any important influence, but their
mighty powers were developed by chemical affinity. He
then proceeded to speak of the metals. They were, he
said, thirty or forty in number, including some of the
strongest bodies in nature, and were all elementary, and
all, apparently at least, opaque. But what he chiefly
desired to show was their combustibility. Iron was a
very combustible substance ; so combustible that but for
one little circumstance, the Crystal Palace would have
burnt down spontaneously, in consequence of the share
which iron had in its composition. The combustibility
of zinc was then shown by experiment ; some shreds of
that metal, in the form of a tassel, when placed in ajar of
oxygen burning like paper. The combustibility of iron
was illustrated by the friction of steel. Copper and tin
were burnt at a small charcoal furnace. Antimony, after
burning for some time at the same. furnace, was thrown
down upon a white frame which lay upon the floor, where
it continued to burn in globules until all was consumed.
A similar experiment was performed with iron. The ques-
tion might be asked, said the lecturer, why, if these metals
were so combustible, they were not used as fuel? The an-
swer to that question illustrated the extraordinary diver-
sity which existed in nature. Such bodies as carbon,
when burnt, produced substances of a volatile nature,
which mingled with the atmosphere ; but as soon as
burning metals had cooled they assumed a condensed
and even solid form ; so that lead for example, after be-
ing consumed left behind it, in the form of oxide of lead,
a substance weighing more than the original one. This
was proved by experiment ; and to show one of the uses
of oxide of lead, the lecturer exhibited a piece of glass
about an inch thick, two-thirds of which, he said, were
composed of that substance. Mr. Faraday terminated
his interesting expositions by expressing a hope that
what his juvenile hearers had heard, would prove the
foundation of a careful and progressive acquaintance
with the science of chemistry ; a hope which seemed to
be borne out by the rush instantly made to the appara
tus, and the thronging of fifty eager young inquirers
around the lecturer.

DEATH OF MR. EDWARD SEGUlN.—lnte4ligence has
been received of the death of Mr. Edward Seguin, at
New York. This young vocalist was one of the earliest
pupils of the Royal Academy of Music in Hanover-
square, where he distinguished himself very considerably.
He made his debut at her Majesty's Theatre, in Crima-
rosa's opera of "Il Matrimonio Segreto," in which, even
by the side of Lablache, his voice and style created for
him not only a highly flattering reception, but also led
to a call at the close of the opera. Subsequently his
services were retained by Mr. Bunn for Drury-lane,
where he again distinguished himself in "La Sonnam-
bula," " Gustavus," and many other operas, in which he
played in conjunction with Madame Malibran. Mr.
Bunn's operatic experiments at this period did not receive
much encouragement, and as favourable overtures were
made to Mr. Seguin for himself and his wife (formerly
Miss Childe, a pupil of the Royal Academy of Music)
from America, they left about 14 years since. The suc-
cess of Mr. and Mrs. Seguin during their sojourn in
America was highly satisfactory, the widow, with four
children, being left in very comfortable circumstances.

VICTIMISING THE YANKEES.—There has recently been
arrested near St. Louis, United States, a man calling
himself Houghton, who had a short time before victimised
some wealthy citizens of Bloomington, Illinois, out of
about 50,000 dollars, under the pretence that he was a
wealthy gentleman from Leeds, England, and was about
to establish a bank there under the new banking law of
the state. A large portion of the property has been re-
covered. He had pursued his business in many places,
with much skill and address, for some time.

BRITISH AND FOREIGN SHIPPING.—Although the com-
parative statement of the number of ships, both British
and foreign, which entered inwards and cleared outwards
with cargo from and to places within the limits of the
East India Company's charter, in the years 1851 and
1852, issued on Friday by the London East India and
China Association, exhibits an aggregate increase of 40
ships inward in 1852 as compared with the year 1851, it
must be borne in mind that this return for 1852 includes
no fewer than 97 foreign ships, whilst the return for 1851
is confined to British ships exclusively ; deducting, there-
fore, the excess of 40 from 97, there is an actual decrease
of 57 British ships inwards in the year 1852, as compared
witli 1851. As regards the ships cleared outwards, the
year 1852 shows an increase of 155 as compared with
1851 ; but as this latter was a year in which the decrease,
as compared with its predecessor, 1850, amounted to 222
ships, to have recovered but 155 out of a loss of 222 shows
a decrease, as compared with 1850, of 67 ; to which add
the inclusion, now for the first time, of foreign ships, in
number 61, and we have a diminution in British ship-
ping outwards of 128 ships. What would have been the
deficiency, but for the attraction to Australia (the in-
crease to that one destination being no less. than 230
ships) it is easy to estimate.
REPORTED DEATH OF M. MADIAL—TIiC Florence
correspondent of the Opinions of Turin writes that Fran-
cesco Madiai has died in the prison into which he was
cast for reading the Bible with his family and friends.
FIRE AT GREAT TEY.—APPREHENSION OF THE SUP-
POSED INCENDIARIES.—On Saturday evening last, about
half-past seven, a fire broke out at Buckles Farm, Great
Tey, the property of the late Rev. James Brown, and
occupied by Mr. W. Kemp. Immediately on receiving
intelligence of the outbreak, Mr. D. Leaper, the Cogges-
hall agent of the Essex Equitable Fire Office, proceeded
with an engine to the scene of conflagration, and, with a
good supply of water at hand, was' able to preserve the
dwelling-house, stabling, cow-house, granary, gig-house,
and piggeries from destruction. The property consumed
consisted of a barn (at the back part of which the fire
originated), two cattle sheds, stacks of wheat, barley,
oats, beans, peas, and hay ; six loads of threshed and
unthreshed wheat in the barn were partly consumed ;
and the barn utensils, including a threshing and dressing
machine, were also destroyed. Suspicions attaching to
two young labourers, named George Breed and Alfred
Carey, from Coggeshall, they were at once apprehended.
On Monday the prisoners were brought up at the County
Magistrate's Office, and were remanded till Monday.
The only motive that can be assigned for the act is the
fact of Mr. Kemp having had a threshing machine at
work on his farm.—Essex Standard.
THE QUART AND PINT BOTTLE QUESTION.—On Satur-
day, at the Brentford Petty Sessions, William Bayliss,
landlord of the Railway Hotel, at Twickenham, appeared
to answer an information laid by the Inspector of Weights
and Measures for selling a certain quantity of beer in
quart and pint bottles which were not of the imperial
measure. Evidence was given of the purchase at the
defendant's hotel of bottles of the usual size, commonly
called quart and pint bottles, and it was alleged that the
law had been infringed by reason of these bottles
not
holding full quarts and pints. The bench said, ashune-
dreds of people with their eyes wide open were in the
habit of purchasing these bottles, well knowing the g hey did
not contain the full measure, they should not convict the
defendant. The agents of the brewers who supplied the
publicans were the parties in fault, if any, and therefore
the present information must be dismissed,