, 1873-08-29
Session Of tho American Scientific
Association al PORT, :,
land, Nc,
Abstracts Of Papers on Vari-
GUS Topics. = ...
The sun-'.elass' riginaI Architecture
---Metamorphism Of Rocks.
Entomology In tho Mississlppi
Vaucy-.-Tlo Preservation
Of Forests.

Of Forests.
From Our orrn Reporter.
THE suN.
CharlcB 4. Young road paper IL On the Pos
sibility TINT tho Sun, Whilo Mainly Gaseous, May
Hayo q Liquid Crust" There cnn DO very llttlo
doubt that fayo, socchi, aud others who hold
TINT Tho sun Ii mainly gaseous, are correct IN
this; tho smal1ncss Ut density cannot posBibly
bo explained OIL any other suproaitton. Al tho
Same tlmo, tho eruptional pho,omenn which arc
all tho time occurring OH klo surfaco almost
compel tho superstition that thera Is crust OF
some kind Which rostraiua tho imprisoned
gases. and through which They ioroo their wayin
lots with great violouoo, Prof. Young Bnggostss
that ts crust may consist Of more or less oon-
tinuoua sheet Of descending rain,-n Of water,
OF COURSE but OF tho nlaterials whose vapors aro
Bhown to o1ist In tho solar atmosphere by
moana Of tho speotroscope, and whose con-
donsation aud combinations nre supposed
to furnish tho aolar hoat. The
continuous ef1lux Of tho aolar heat Is equivalent
to tho supply TINT would DO developed by tho
condensation Eromsteam to wator Of alayor about
five feet thick over the whole surface OF tho sun
every minute OF tino. AS this tremendous
rain descends, tho velocity Of thu falling drops
would DO retarded by tie resistance Of the
donBor gasos underneath; tho dropB would
coalesco until continuous aheet would
be formed; and these sheotB would unite and
form sort Of bottolnleas ocean, resting upon
tho compressed vaporB bcnoath, and pierced
by iuuumerablo ascouding jots and bubbles.
It would havo an approximately constant depth
or thfcknoAs, because 1t would ro-evaporato at tho
bottom nearly as rapidly aa it would grow By tho
descending rains above, though probably tho thick
ness Of this sheet would continually incronso at
somo slow rato, md its whole diamotor diminish.
In otlcf words, tho stn according to this viow,
js gigantic bubble, whose walls arc gradually
thckoning md its diameter diminishing at
ratio determined by it's loss OF hcat. 1t differs,
however, from ordinary bubbles in tho fact that
it's skin is continually penetrated by blasts from
within. The hypothesis leaves tho question
Of tho solar spots untouched 1t is consistent
with eithor Of those most in vogue Mt present,
nona Of which, however, Beon to be entirely Sat
isfactoiy. Prof. Young added I'll explanation OF
lhe narroiS diak-fringes Soon ut tic moment Of
Iotality In q Holar eclipse, showing thonl to bo
optical interference effects, caused by The sud-
don ci,auges Ut tho temperature Of tho mir at
the edge Of the shadow. Tbe twnkling. Of
stars ia analogous In marty respects.
GLASS.
lewis Feuclltwaugor read ttRcmnrlss on tho
Manufacture of Glass, and tho plate-Limo
Glass;" The iucalculablo bone1ts which the dis
alone for purposes Of dniiy lfe but also for
higher objects In the cause of Rciouce, Buch as
tho microscope and Bpcctroecopo, must lead lib
TO bolioye that attention ought to bo pail to
been dono 30 fur. Ever snco 156o, when Agrl-
cola gayo tho first detailed description Of tho art
Of glaas-maiing, very fow improvements havc
been mnde. Tile samo materials, tho same
tools. the aumc furnace with its "glor, hens, +"
and the sa1ne nnnclentliio manipulatons. have
been nsel these 323 years, excepting tho discov-
nry OF I.o Blanc, in 1909, which waA tho nBo OF
caibonato of soda by tho decomposition
Of common ealti tho production Of achro-
matte lenses by the experiments Of Fara-
day, Horachol DontompH, Frnunhofer, Dnle.
md others during th1s century; and latter1y tho
Introduction Of Siemons roheatiug furnace.
hut the common glaes-tnaker has notyet learned
that certain equivalents according to the atomic
theory aro Indispensable for the production OF a
chemical composition; all he knows IL that 100
pount]B Of sand and 30 pounds of IN alkaline
earth, "hether it is limo. or potaHh or soda, will
givo him, OIL exposure to great heat, tho tranB-
parent substance called glass. staohiometry hus
not yet buen introduced III this art, while other
arts have undergone gigantic metamorphoses.
AnoR1a1SAL ARCHITECTURE.
Mr.. 8. Il. Morgan, Of Nsw York, gaye nm nd
dreps on 'sTle Architecture Of tho American,
Alorigiues," beginning with tito northorli and
partially village Indians. Communism dotor-
mind it. Thcy lived by groups.-~acsoral fun
lies under ono roof. When America WIS dis
covered, there were two clnsaeh Of aborigines
tho rowing and tho village Indians. Tho Ir0quoia
connect theHo two. All Indian tribes are Of one
stock, except the EHquilnau1. After noticing
the progross IL tho mechanic arta and agri-
culture, 11r. Morgan divided tho indians into
uatious and confodoracies. Tho government
was a aocetaB, not a civitas. Tho popular ideas
OF the yillago indians are false. because their
lArgost hollBeF were supposed to be those OF
great chiofa, when, in fact tloy were those oi
small families.
blETAMonPH1sM OF HoCIg.
Prof. T. Storry Hunt read paper on F." The
hfotainorphjsnl Of noeka." Tho various clnngef
ter, mir, md various causes, and the changes i!
molecular structure, we're briefly noticed, aud
tho uso Of the name of 1netamorphc rooke. as
now generally applied to crystalline strata, con
Ri1orod While sonic geologistB hal supposed
that Many Of these, such nB gneipes, groen
stones, Betpontlnes tnlcoHe, and cAloritic rockb
wore igncnus products, moro or loHs modifaa; b,
subsequent chemical processes, others maiutaiu
tlon, Md subsequently orystallizel. Ilils wal
taught by Hutton aud when, curly IN this con
tury, tho crystalline rocks of the Alps were
shown to roBt upon uncfystulline fosa}lltorou
atrata, 1t was suggested that tho oyorlyng crys
tallnea wore newer rookH which had Undergone
motamorphUgs from Which those directly beneatl
had been exempted. This notion sprond uati
The groat crystalline ccu're Of the Alpa was con
siaered to DO in part seeondary, and oven o
tertiary age. The history Of tie extens'on Q
this notion to Gormauy to, tile British Inlands
anl to E.w England. was tlion akotchod, anu |
waH shown that similar crystalline rocks, iron
supposed stsatgratAioal evlflotlco. camo to II
referred to formations Of very tIdereHt agoa II
paloozoio or muro recent geological time. 5Th'
author then dethilea Tue course Or, study .!
which ho lad boon le1 20 question tiiis notion
ho showed tlat, according to Fayre, thoro wa
no longer any svdenco III tho;AlpB il, support q
tle vlsw naove. noticed That 6edgwlok, III Eng
land, sad Njcoll, in Scotland. had rejected th'
vio"s OF tho pRlsoxoiu aso, Of tho crys
All,no schista rogarlel by. Muiuhipon III
Gamb,ian and siur!an and finally gago lii
obsaryationa BY wiio', l'o tho apoaltar) had eat
5em .ean a' aa WITH ,ohh o. t
their Representatives. Mike IN Quebec, New Is1ns
;., At.I fN,4n