New-York daily tribune., 1856-08-27

horizcnts. m!romc,ec The cbfonogrsph ras to be
ueed, but IN toe c.sc Of the polar etars the
slow mot.cn rcqUirs the adoption OF system
of uiCr,mttIc measurement recently INTRO
duced into the Imperial observatory in Psrs, Icy Lo-
venier. II mad tctn decided 70 Use Challs arrange
mert of cor etors :nstead Of the oonVetbty OF the
object and eye pece. and Of the teeecCpe, fer the
purpose o. testing tie figure Of thItube. Dr. Gould
ud take W Tie time OF the Section in discussing
this mater at leIgh tut there was one opinion o Ais
VIII ch vine ~ouo advsIce, namely that he ora uot
coni i've the fexure Of the telescope to be minimum
in zeI IT'D ob, ervaions nor aximum a. the noz 'n
TT crclt are divio ed to minutes aud are read
by mic oscopes 70 the ttntbs of q secouc. The lu'
nat or Of the field Of the Ann ArbOr Instrument was
rcgulacd by set Of plates somewhat Ike those wlch
on a large scale regulated the swell Of an org.p.
metbCd Of eiviIg bright sta's has been introduced
in the circle by which bo'h the threscs and the
fed nay be illuminated but with comp'eme ntary
co'ois DR. Gould deacIibed the means which had
been arrange for determining every nstHunenial error
by two entirely Independent methods- he cioscd oy
fayng that ID commemoration Of one who had sbora
himself to be public spirited man, benetactor to
oil good institutions, man N whom thero Wa, 10
guile. Scientific council had obtained permiasion
fom tie Trustees 10 name this instrument the OicoH
MefiCian Cncle.
Prof ALrxAsDTR calling Professor Coffin to tie
Char rag paper on some hpsTas, eTneg.
He hervcd that this hypothesis had opg boroe the re
proaoh Of atheism, but ton unusy II - not ne
ce say this ypOthcs 20 substitute blind ofcs for in-
,eIpent ar8pgement. Any theory must fsi which
vouIc put s,itute any thing God wisdom and powell
Go back with tbs theory to period so remote that
even geology dreamed Of it, AID ssk how did 1t
happen that case ling rolled isef Up into world
90 exactly adapted in the length of its Jear-, and Is
day It's seasons ard It's physical constitution to the
abode Of intelligent races How did it happen, he
e,ktd it rcyerently, but because God reigns
fem everlasting 70 everlasting, and because
God is true Lapace's hypothesis "a no more
la'a than the law Of D(hyltY. III ha9 been,
it s true, enormously abused and made use
Of for aheistic purposes bu. we have yet to learn
that Whist has been abused is thereby made untrue
and We shall be slow to take that !csson the bare
authority Of those who, upon their own showing. are
but the descencans OF monkeys improved But, 1t is
said, the foundation OF LapIaces theory has been
kn, cked away from under 1t; that the nebuas seen
by Hesebel, by which the hypothesis was suggested.
are all resolved by Lord Ross telescope But this is
not the fact. But suppose 1t were, does 1t fol-
ew that when the thing which suggeat. a
bus started for the Western World in con-
Scent expectation Of reaching the Indies; did he
because he did not find the Indies, find nothing If
we reason as those do who think the resolution of
n.bue d,proves the nebulsr hypothesis, we must sag
that this continent Goes rot exist. But Ne need care
notlHg for ncbulg 80 ong as comets and the zodaca
t tht, and the phenomena seen at tue ecPsts OF the
sun prove 20 thai there syet rebular m4tter about
our solar system. We do not the Of truth
by opceunng 20 beautiful theory uuheard, and Civ
ing il the OF atheistc Prof Alexander thought
that Laplace hmsef died believing in per-ona Deity
He then psDc eded TO discussion o. the relative den
sitits distances of the planets and from these and
other pb( nomena drew, by mathematical reasoning
col fl nations of the by OOthesis Of Lspace.
Prof. PIERCE remarked that this was one Of the
most important subjects in Astronomy. lie was aware
of the of many OF the invest cations Of MIR. AL
sxander, end thought it might be well to discuss them
at lergth az the meeting TO morrow morning,
when it was probable that the Section you'd be subdi
vided and We should have subsection Specially &C.
Tod fn Mathematical M LOT
Pioi. BACHE then communicated some remAIks
the secular variation in the magnet the Atlantic and
Cult coast Of The United States from two papers Of his
assistant Mr.. Charles A. Scho't. His Observa
tons seem to show a slight Oimnuton in the rate of
increase Of westerly declnason, leading the upp
son that the rfexure in the curve Of sec ar ysIa
tCn corresponds to about 1885, The minimum
about 1900. The present rate of increase Of westerly
declinaton along the Atlantic coast s about five space
minutes per annum Mr.. Scbots results in regard to
the dip are also valuable Prof Bache remarked that
this hc not only of scientific but Of great prac
teal value there places where the nav gator
would be obliged 10 rey more upon the DIP than upon
tie declnaiicn Of the needle.
Prof. HENRY Cf the Smithsonian Institution, read
paper upon large barometer in the hall OF the insti
iute. Attempts have several times been made to form
bsrOmeteis OF water instead OF mercury. One was by
Pot. Daniel, in the hall Of the Royal Society, IN
which glass tube was employed, filled with boiled
water while in a boiling state-the lower sIrface Of
the water was covered with cast,r oil to preven,
tact with the al but this prccauion was found not to
be sufficient Al was absor bed by the oil, and the
nitrog,n Of this ar absorbed 10y the water. Another
attempt wos made to exclude the air by thin fl m of
gutta ptrcha left afer the evaporation of naphth1 But
vald objection TO water aIi 'es from the vapor which
will fiji the top Of the tube. Prof. Henry had decoed
to use euphuTiC acid, which does not give oil any hp
preciebe vapor, nor absorb any air The objections
10 its use are the liability to accident and its affinity
for water But care can guard against acei1ent aud
the moisture be absorbed from the air which
touches il by drying tube apparatus containing chic
ride of calcium. He construction was lutfu@tcu
TO Mr. James Green of New-YOrk The tube is
two hundred and forty inches long and three
foutIs OF an Ich in diameter ilcosed in brass case
two and half incLes in diam -ter. The mechanical
details of the instrument we reed not re sca'. Inc
whole Of the apparatus is incosed IN glazdcase one
foo square.
Prof CHAuyENET read a papor method OF de-
teInihirg the latitude of place from the observed
times when two known stars, properly eituated, sue
cessively arive at the same altitude. Prof Bartlett
r'maIktd upon this paper that there was nilaIiy
between this method and that of Capt John Mlls
Brown. Prof. Coffin corrected Prof. Bartlett by re-
IN udirg him ttat in Browns method the two stars
20 to the altitude at the same mo-
cent Of time.
ZOOLOGY, BOTANY AYD PHYSIOLOGY.
Prof HALDTnAS in the Chair.
Dr. a. &. HAMI IS of Name exhibited casts of sup
posed Runic ns scIiptiors found in the Island of Mon
hogan. He gave some account of rures, simple be
said, at first but gradually becoming composite
that, later ages it difficult even for the learned
to read them. These appear upon stratum which
seems to have been fssured at first by Nature lie
thought that ia. rock was syentic gneis, spring of
clt,r water bubbles up from below the Island is
about fifteen miles from the main land. few yesrs
ago similar inscr ptOn was found on the coast op
posiie. 1t was destroyed by basteg. Mr. Harnlir
copied various authentic runes upon the bla ,kboard
Pref WmsoS gave an account of vaIiJus RGnc
inscription and the difficulty of reading He ootced
Scotch inscription, which was first read by Dane
auo tuno to bt Runc, containing historical faces.
Kenble, the Anglo Saxon scholar, read It, and
be found that it was an Ang o'Saxon hymn on the
CrucifIon of our Savior. His reodiog was subse-
au,bty confirmed by the finding OF the identical Ar.
glo.Saxon hymn. He spoke against sending original