New-York tribune., 1867-08-17
NArToNAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.
~, rrIreHAPH TO TEE rRIsuNA
FOURTH DAY AND AID

Eew.Haven and Trinity College having sent & IN as If
BtoWe Prof smenson and Prof Laurent SitES nc the
opening the session, Prof Henry n1 men who psid
mo attention TO acoustics, and ne ~ou .S he'r
ndyise the multitude 10 ro ts ts apoE the spectre
5tcope lie lad tried various mineral ana othe5 so
"ntiop OF bisuphite Of carbon. The action Oh da{ "
of light upon this was TO keep II tnTsd GdsnersiTe
and ABSOLUTELY unchangeable ana TINS Igud
Adding sulphur ne pT3dueea e @s greater than that of
ahe best hnt glass The next paper was ~ oy CERTAIN
Hall OF Albany and entitled 1.-The yane % 1tir Sen
onns in fhe geological series when studied ~ ter . o
0graphioal extension" The fIoess9th tha XtIantlo cast
geological species miles west oi tne iSept IN him
mai he found on beach, and At was S'9gn d S the
that the ocean hsG once Prof H protests against the
ssimilitude Of DomenclatnIe wen ter Irof Hal had
concaced the difficulties wklch ne haa en- IN
III respect Of nomenclature naH eeeh o o1Snsd 70
Tie tenueTate zene almost exclusively, DuI = pSS %
tng new Enoyledee of the earth on which dwell
Prof Han made Important contribution, reauDg Oh
fhe value of ceran groups ntbe geological series when
traced In their geographical extension Certain forma
fOus determined IN New-YOrk State receive ulneIenV
Me believed the source Of sedhnentary formation was
from the northeast these formations being OF course,
tai the result of recent Investigations of his through an
extent Of 800 miles tending TO show Ina tne tbose
IN NewYork State. He did not believe there was aos
source OF sedmentsd not believe that any group west
Of New-Yo ork indicated any different source uorod
the conclusion Of this paper fS ta tbe PeSs
reference HNDAANN-S
committee and the motion prevailed l., , Prof
Discussion the topic presented being in order &
Ier WAS most Important. being in fact c0ndehsau0S "a
Prof Halls Investigations OF the geology OF ined TO
Ihey show how physical geography is tOo 4li 4lin of
So,ssi inveStifaiions Here have the begn@is @ m ~
geology as physical gecphRy, R ,se process Of formation
There was side 10 the subject IL tboncbt the
Sdic1lty prof Han found to the occurrence ol % dg
fauna in formations i o1t fhe
and vanishing of groups OF anln's tIo boracterzed
EeoiSn5 t remains found was absurd. At present
avery area on the surface OF the earth mas Vs own
saesis % % sdem 70 saw yes The extension Of geologic
reseaTcRe into other parts OF the earth tnn those ~
Sistrbnti6n in geologic the as now there
fore geologic periods must be charaeellzed 10y
afford In the distribution OF its loose materlalS
t anv instanee in which geology has anticipated the
survey dry land He would advise the IOast ut &
10 send the country to ascertain something Apon ne
Prof Nan thanked the last speaker for coming TO his
Ssikeiy 10 stand alone among geoogsts in regard to
this matter He had published remarks III THIS uHecuoh
Prof Henry had had his mind this with reference 70
the temperature OF our new northern @
be reduced 20 few central ideas currents III tne 10
no continents mterposed there wonld be continued
current rOrnd the globe. continent causes I .e s ~
verge IN eBrve and with certain Veloely lnls iols
roI Pirce r6marK1ng upon an alusion which had
bee made to the Coast Survey said that he considered
SSaseiT from fie circumstances under which he was
called to the oce not bound TO carry out any special
evs oS his own but simply to act as the steward Of
great in which Science was called 10
npos scientific men to asst they had anything bear
lng the benefit OF the survey IL Is 9uy .E a
fh eouu.TV the difference between men OF popular ana
of scientific reputation The former are those that CONE %
forward with idea, brilliant but not TelLioandeG We
have had such men in high position, and lnnuenuai III
this country. We have had books, widely hnuehtLa i
~ me tate war Was the removal Of this banefnl influence
This Investigation oi Prof HaD shows now w., eiiea %
body there had been the greatest care to bring
together precisely the scientific class OF men ~ was
IN this body then that he would rather seek assistance
IN not sustained in that by the country he would give up
his position He spoke of the great decaey OF te ttus hs
country were capable of being ruined by slight change
SSa should SI T % " oseb e SOS sSd Now could
the geOOgsts say whether the continent was @ dSihg w
What the character Of the causes operating upon our
Prof Gibbs Illustrated valuable improvement Of his
of aSsoTptiSn GIadstona's simple wedge he hso con-
Prof. ASassz spoke again on the practical value of &c
Ologe Investigations showing how in spending SIX TeeS
amazon does not form delta because the resdium melt
away and the encrOaches on the shoTe the process
graphic Works can be undertaken by the BRAZILIAN Gov
ernent except at distance from shore ana prospect
Of having 10 rebuild Prof gassiz followed with paper
on the Circulation Of Blood II the Skate which, as nc
ianon in other animals Milne Edwards had in.
vestgated this matter in the molusks IN the vertebrate
the blood was all from the heart into the lungs and
10 back again The same the case in birds; but III
fishes much larger quantity thrown into the body
In selacbans there Is peculiar condition of the blood
Each skate has let us say about PINT ana quarter OF
This than ODefifths is in circulation While the
remaining fouT-ffths is stagnant The motion OF the
heart undulatOry the movement being from the cir
eumference to the center, precisely as in chicken
another example Of the limitations OF the embryonic forms
of the higher orders by the lower Prof Assz describes
the circulation in the skates Of the blood from the heart
through the gs and finally 70 the tall whence returns,
sacks sinuses in which the stagnant blood is con
tanned. The object Of so much noncreuaung blood was
TO feed the ovaries and spermares which explains the
reason why thus similar animals produce such i'm
nense number Of offspring. Prof Agassiz describes at
length these snuses, which he compares to lakes into
which rivers empty. The channels from them to the
heart were exceedingly minute He alludes TO error
who mistook the siuuses Of the skin foTymphatic vessels
The mistake had arisen from not coInprehending the
true character Of the meshwork OF channels in the sin
They contained no lymph only blood At the
close the speaker noticed beautiful adaptation OF ht
snuses and their walls 10 feature OF the embryonic
Prof Gibbs read paper on the method of determining
wave lengths ia the solar spectrum. He first described
the results 10 which AchhOf had attained That inves
gaCr had used -four nt glass E3 bpt IT. he ySret
tions very snuous. The results published by Hug
bIs nrsms Proi Gibbs Tsated how the iSenacaton
of Hugnss lines, which were only tabulaed not mapped
with those OF Krchho had coat him the labor Of many
months He then described twoingenOus methods Of meas
urng the lines Of the speerunOOth with the use OF the
micrometer screw-whichh had hit upon the course
of his observations, and showed the object which
hoped to reach. This TO determine the law of dis
tance which governed the line Of the spectrum, which
would solve some old and puzzng questions IN this
branch science He alluded the abors Of the Dutch
Van der Wlegen, the German FrauenhOeT, the Swedes
Wrede and AhnsrOm, and others. At the close Of his
paper Prof Perce made some remarks IN which he char
acerzed these researches Of Prof Gibbs with the spec
troscOpe as an exquisite investigation.
Ine ACADEMY @ adjourned at o'clock and became the
and IN the evening visited Senator Dixon at his mansion
we'll Peirce Hiyard and Gen Barnard viii attend the
meeting OF the Association for the Advancement Of Sci
emy being merely it's Oshoo II was expected that Tie
Academy would beiore elect President In