The Portland daily press., 1873-08-22
THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION.


Barlow, Plymouth; John j. Joyce, Philadel-
phia Mrs. G. w. Hook Dayton, OHIO; Au'
vey, M d., Buffalo, N. Y; H. I. Jeuks, Mid
dleboro Mass. G. q. Carpenter, Indianola; A
Lsbourveau, Waterfowl, Wis.,; T, R. Baker,
Millerville, Penn; Sylyest G. Gould, Man
chester N. H.; Mrs. Mary Ambell, Craw-
Me w C. Little, Albany, n. Y; Moses LIZ
ford, Waterville, Me-; S. w. Johnston, New
Haven, Conn; E. A. Pond, Rutland, Vt. !;
E. T. Quimby, Hanover, N. H.; G. A Vince
lock, Keene, N H.
1t was announced that the address of Prof.
Smith, the ret iring President, would be read at
City Hall this evening A cordial invitation
was extended to the public.
Thrty-one new papers were announced as
received and were handed over to the sections.
Prof. Caswell resigned his place on the stand
ing committee by election, because he was also
a member by virtue of his Office as chairman of
a section. Prof James Hall of New York
was chosen in his place
Rev. Mr. Hayes of the local committee an
nounced that a free lunch in Congress Hall
will hereafter be furnished members of the
Association, beginning at 10 A. M. to-day.
Free tickets for members and their wives can
be obtained at the Secretary's desk.
The following letter from President Cham
berlain of Bowdoin College was received and
read:
CAMP PERHAM, August 10, 1873
To Prof Lowering, President A. A. A. s.:
Dear Sir,-Being deprived at present of the
pleasure of paying my respects to you In per-
son, / beg in this manner to tender the comph-
ments Of Bowdon College, and should be ex-
tremely gratifed if it should please the Assoc
citation, or any members of it, to Visit the Col
lege Whenever il may DO most convenient.
If it is possible shall be present at some of
your sessions; but in any case, trust | may
have the honor of welcoming you at Bruins
wick. am, sir, with high respect,
Your obedient servant,
JOSHUA l.. CHAMBERLAIN,
President of Bowdoin College.
The invitation of President Chamberlain
was accepted with thanks.
The general session then adjourned, and the
sections met.
SECTION A.
After the reading of Prof. Dolbear's papers,
abstracts of which we gave yesterday morning,
Prof. Young read paper on the possibility
that the sun while mainly gaseous may have
liquid crust. There can be very little doubt that
Faye, Seechi and others who hold that the sun Is
mainly gaseous are correct in thistle small
ness Of his density cannot possibly be explain
ed on any other supposition. At the same time
tine eruptional phenomena which are all the
time occurring on the surface almost compel
the supposition that there is crust OF some
kind which restraints the imprisoned gases and
through which they force their way in jets with
great violence. Prof. Young suggests that this
crust may consist of a more or less continuous
sheet of descending rain, not of water,o course,
but of the materials whose vap0rs are shown
to exist in the solar atmosphere by means OF
tba and wi copdpn SatiOn and
combinations are supposed to furnish the solar
heat. The continuous effiux of the solar heat,
is equivalent to the supply that would be de-
veloped by the condensation from steam to wa
ter of layer about feet thick over the whole
surface of the sun every minute OF time; as
this tremendous rain descends the ire
mendous velocity of the falling drops
would be retained by the resistance OF the dem
ser gases underneath; the drops would coalesce
until continuous sheets would be formed and the
sheets would unite and form a sort of bottom
less ocean resting upon the compressed yapors
beneath and pierced by inuumerable ascend
ing jets and bubbles. 1t would have an approx
imately constant depth in thickness, because it
would re-evaporate at the bottom nearly as 1t
would grow by the descending rains above,
though probably the thickness of this sheet
would continually increase at some slow rate,
and its whole diameter diminish. In other
words the sun, according to this view is gi-
gantic bubble whose walls are gradually thick
determined by its loss of heat. 1t differs how
ever from ordinary bubbles, in the fact that its
skin is constantly penetrated by blasts and jets
from within. The hypothesis leaves the ques-
ton of the solar spots untouched; it is consis-
tent with either of those most in vogue at pres
ent, none of which. however, seem to be entire
ly satisfactory. Prof. Young added an eXpla-
nation of the narrow dark frnges seen at the
moment of totality in solar eclipse, showing
them to be optica interference effects, caused
nv the qu6dau chanOoS Of the tenpara of
the air at the edge of the shadow. The twink
ling of stars is analogous i'll many respects.
Prof Hilgard read a paper on merdinal arcs
measured in the progress of the Coast Survey.
The paper called. forth many complimentary
remarks concerning the new methods in trigo-
nometry introduced by the coast survey, and
the improved instruments in use by it. Prof.
Pierce spoke of series of triangulations ex-
tending over the whole surface of the country,
a series of incalculable benefit and which must
soon be undertaken: Already Europe is intro
ducing the American method of determining
latitude, as practiced in the coast survey, and
Europe has found it necessary to send to Amer
lea for suitable instruments.
Rev, DR.. Hill read a paper on new curve,
after which the section adjourned to afternoon.
SECTION B.
The exercises began in Section B. by Prof.
Morse reading a paper on Her Genitalia OF the
Brachiopoda The professor recalled that Natu-.
ralists had been disposed to consider the Bracho-
phoda as hermaphroditic animals, i. e. that the
sexes were united in the same individual but
on recent study of the animal OF Ferebrdta-
Ira it was evident that the sexes were really
represented by different individuals, aud that
what were considered by Hancock to he origo-
rous bodies were spermanis. He further dem
onstrated that the organs supposed to have for
the functions of the heart in the same forms
were not such but were probably q portion of
the genital system.
He also read one on Enabuzology Of the Brach-
i0pdn. He recalled the results of previous in
vestigationa on the Embriology of the Brachio-
poda and then enumerated and demonstrated
by figures on the black boards, the fru its of
his own recent investigations on Terebratuzina
by which he was enabled to elucidate the more
early stages of that form than had been known
before, and in the early stages it was shown to
resemble considerably certain worms He had
not formerly detected in the form of the eyes
which had been sign3lized in the culium. He
continued with summary of the subsequent
developments of the forms which gave nearly
complete series of the phases OF development
from the extreme young to the adult.
Prof Gill remarked that all naturalsts inter
ested in this class of Brachopoda must be ex
tremely gratfied to Prof. Morse for the new
light shed upon the systematic relations of the
South. In the course of Prof Morses Temarksit
occurred to him that he might have made obser
vations which would elucidate the question as
to the systematic value of the characters which
had been employed to dfferentiate by more re-
cent writers on the subject
Prof. Morse remarked that in the earliest
stages in which he has examined the termina-
tions of the intestine. thev were imperfect.
Prof. A. Hamlin of Bangor, next present.
ed a suite of cut diamonds, another suite of
crystals in their native state and number of
diamond in its matrix. These specimens came
from South Africa, Brazil and Carolina Some
specimens of oNaclumnite were shown, the
speaker disputing the claim that this is the
matrix of the diamond If the theory of many
scientists were correct and the report of dia-
monds having been found above deposits of
minerals, prove true, then the diamond must
have been the last gem deposited in the earth.
He had found that there was always associated
with the diamond ferragineous oxide. The
deposit of this oxide is now going on. There is
also associated with the gem substance once
supposed to be oxide of iron, but which is now
known to be of vegetable origin. Consequently
it has been thought that the diamond might al
so have vegetable origin. One diamond was
shown whose edges had been in spite of their
hardness rounded by water All the great dia-
monds of modern times have been discovered
within 500 years.
Prof. j. NJ. Dawson read paper On The &C.
olgica1 relations Of the Iron Ores of Nova Scotia.
The iron ores of Nova Scotia long neglected,
have recently begun to attract the attention of
capitalists to an extent in some degree COM