to let in a fresh supply from the reservoir above, but to protrude an additional lengti. of wick into the burner, By this ingenious adaptation of the self-acting power of the lamp, it can supply itself, during a whole evening, with both oil and cotton, without requiring the least care or attention.

METHOD OF CASTING THE CHARACTERS USED IN PRINTING, IN SOLID FORMS OR PLATES. BY M. HARHAW. (From "Description des Brevets d'Invention.")

This process consists, first, in making moveable characters, the body of which has the form and size of common types, but which, instead of bearing a projecting character, turned towards the left, have, on the contrary, a hollow or sunk impression or engraved character turned towards the right, always exactly of the same depth; second, in uniting firmly these characters (which the inventor calls moveable matrices) into pages, so as to leave no interval between them, their arrangement being n.ade in the usual manner of composing types, and differing only in this, that they are placed in' a contrary direction, namely, from left to right; third, in casting a solid plate from these united matrices with the greatest neatness.

REMEDY FOR THE DECAY OF COPPER BOTTOMS.

Sir Humphry Davy, in a paper on the cause of the corrosion and decay of copper used for covering the bottoms of ships, read before the Royal Society, has pointed out a simple, effectual, and economical method of remedying this evil. The cause he states to be a weak chemical action, which is constantly exerted between the saline contents of sea-water and the copper, and which, whatever may be the nature of the copper, sooner or later destroys it.

The same general principle of the manner in which chemical changes may be exalted, destroyed, or suspended, by electrical powers, which led him to the discovery of the decomposition of the alkalies and the earths, likewise afforded him this new and more practical discovery. He finds that a very small surface of tin, or other oxidable metal, placed any where in contact with a large surface of copper, renders it so negatively electrical, that sea water has no action upon it; and that a little mass of

tin brought even in communication by a wire with a large plate of copper, en tirely preserves it. It is needless to point out the uses and economical advantages of a result which must add so much to the permanency and strength of our navy and shipping, and be so beneficial to our maritime and commercial interests. Philosophical Magazine.

By desire of the lords of the Admiralty, a trial of the remedy thus suggested has been ordered to be made on the bottom of the Surly cutter, under the direction of Sir Humphry Davy and Sir R. Seppings, in one of the eastern dock-yards.

A patent, which had for its object the emedying of the same evil, was lately taken out by Mr. Mushet, of the Mint; and it is a curious enough fact, that the means he recommends for improving the copper employed in sheathing is, the alloying it with a very small portion of tin, or of zinc, or of arsenic, or of antimony.

NEW STEAM-ENGINE, INVENTED BY M. DE MONTGERY. (From the "Annales de l'Industrie.")

1

In this engine, purified bitumen, after having served in the form of vapour, serves as combustible. The fire-place, the pipes, and mechanism are contained inside the boiler, which is itself inclosed in a double case. The vapour may, therefore, be raised to a very high degree of tension, without danger, and this advantage, joined to several others, renders the bulk of this new machine from forty to fifty times smaller than that of the present steam-engines of equal power.

NEW MODE OF MAKING AN ORI

GINAL SCREW.

The Committee of Mechanics of the Society of Arts have had submitted to their consideration the following new method of making an original screw. A short screw is cut in the lathe in the ordinary way; it is then mounted in à cleft stock, or handle, similar to a common milling tool, and is pressed against the cylinder (in the lathe) of which the screw is to be produced which, by its revolution, gives a longi tudinal as well as rotatory motion to the tool, and forms a spiral indentation on the surface of the cylinder. It is then worked up with the common screw-tool, being occasionally corrected by the tool with which the lead is given.

GOLDEN ROD FOUND NEAR INVERNESS.

66

A few weeks ago there was ploughed up within a few miles of Inverness, on the estate of Colonel Baillie, of Leys, M. P., a rod, which is described as of the purest native gold." It was found broken into two parts, one fifteen, the other three inches long; each part has hook at the end, and the shape lengthwise is triangular. The weight of the whole is above an ounce. "The workmanship," says a correspondent in the Gentleman's Magazine, "is that of the rudest ages, and the spiral work evidently done by twisting. That this must have been in its day a piece of royal or clerical magnificence, can admit, of no doubt; it appears to me to have been the rod upon which a lamp has been suspended, either before some shrine, or very possibly at the table of Macbeth or king Duncan!" We think this by no means a far-fetched supposition; for in an antiquarian it is modest surely not to suppose that it may as possibly have been part of the regalia of king Donald, or king Fergus, or any other of the nine hundred and ninetynine kings of Scottish romance. But where, after all, is the evidence of its extraordinary antiquity?

NEW PATENTS.

To Joseph Bourne, of Derby, stonebottle manufacturer; for certain improvements in the burning of stone-ware and brown-ware in kilns or ovens, by carrying up the heat and flame from the furnace or fire below, to the middle and upper parts of the kiln or oven, either by means of flues or chimneys in the sides thereof, or by moveable pipes or conductors to be placed within such kilns or ovens ; and also by increasing. the heat in kilns or ovens, by the construction of additional furnaces or fires at the sides thereof, and to communicate

with the centre or upper parts of such kilns or ovens ; and also by conveying the flame and heat of one kiln or more into another, or others, by means of chimneys or flues, and thus permitting the draft and smoke of several kilns or oveus to escape through the chimneys of a central kiln or oven of great eleva tion, whereby the degree of heat is increased in the several kilns or ovens, and the quantity of smoke diminished.22nd November, 1823.

To Thomas Todd, of Swansea, organbuilder; for an improvement in producing tone upon musical instruments of various descriptions.-22nd November,

1823.

To Samuel Brown, of Windmill-street, Lambeth, gentleman; for an engine or instrument for effecting a vacuum, and thus producing powers, by which water may be raised, and machinery put in motion.-4th December, 1823.

TO CORRESPONDENTS. The communications of F. JW. K. S.-n-and W. Wh-th-m, on the Fallacy of PROJECTOR'S Hydraulic Steam-Engine (described in No. 20)— and J. Y.'s Remarks on A. McKinnon's Notions of Mechanics [see last Number, p. 363.] in our next.

We feel particularly obliged to Mr. J. R. (Edinburgh) for his very friendly letter, and accompanying communications, and shall endeavour to profit by his advice in our future progress.

Can T. M. B. favour us with the name of the patentee of the new Turn-cock?

Communications received from Saveall--G., A. S.-H. D.-W. II. T.-W. B. B.-W. J.-John (of Manchester) -S. S.-Clio-T. O. Blackett.-B. Edwards H. C.-T. H. P.-S. R.J. B.-W. W.- J. G.

T. F. is unintelligible, and Vindex not temperate enough for our taste.

PLAN OF A SELF-MOVING

MACHINE.

GENTLEMEN;-Your correspondent F. J-n seems very confident of having discovered a means of producing a machine possessing a self-moving principle. It seems that a pump of a peculiar construction is to be the principal agent employed. Without the least intention of detracting from the merits of his discovery, I beg leave, through the medium of your useful publication, to submit to your consideration a sketch of a similar project by the same auxiliary, viz. the Rotatory Pump described in page 202 of your Magazine, which is represented as working with no more friction than what is occasioned by its revolution on its axis, viz. the revolution of a cylinder on its axis delivering water with a continual stream, &c. &c.

mere

I believe in every attempt to produce a self-moving power by mechanical combinations, friction has ever been, and ever Iwill be an insurmountable obstaclc. Presuming that the description of the roller pump is correct, I think it possible to produce a self-moving power by such a machine as that, a drawing of which is now prefixed. From its very simple construction a very brief description will be necessary. A represents a pump immersed in a reservoir B; the pump is worked by the rotatory motion of the waterwheel C, which is four feet diameter; on the shaft of the waterwheel is the drum-wheel D, working by a small cord the wheel E, on the axis of the pump discharging the water by the pipe F, into a reservoir G over the waterwheel: in this reservoir is a cock, to regulate the quantity of water to be discharged on the wheel. The wheel on the shaft of the water-wheel being nine inches diameter, and the wheel on the axis of the pump three in diameter, the latter will consequently make three revolutions for one of the water-wheel. As the pump is

on

not required to turn with great ve locity, the speed might be regulated by the quantity of water thrown the water-wheel, the latter being four feet diameter, and the wheel on its shaft nine inches; consequently the radius or arm of the wheel has near 44 powers to counteract the friction of the axis of the pump and water-wheel, and of à fine cord passed over the wheels D and E. If necessary, the friction of the machine might be still farther reduced by the axis of the pump and water-wheel being made to run in gudgeons with friction rollers.

The pipe H is intended to convey the surplus water from the reservoir over the wheel to the reservoir below.

The pump might easily be turned by a cog-wheel; but this is unnecessary, as the cord passing over the drum-wheels will do equally well, and is, besides, a more simple method.

Having described what I think a simple method of producing self moving machine by hydraulic assistance, I leave its correctness to the consideration of your ingenious correspondents, some of whom, I hope, will investigate the subject, and favour us with their opinions upon it.

Your most obedient servant,
J. O.

III ABSTRACT OF THE EXIST. ING COMBINATION LAW, AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE JOURNEYMEN.

The following is an abstract of the principal clauses of the act of 1800:

1st. All contracts or agreements entered into previous to passing this act, either verbally or by writing, or in any manner whatsoever, by journeymen or other persons, for obtaining an advance of wages, lessening the time of work, or preventing masters or other persons from employing whoever they please in their trade or manufacture, are declared null and void.

2nd. All persons who, after the passing of the act, shall be convicted, either by their own confession or the oath of one credible witness, before any two justices of peace, within three months after committing the offence, of entering into any such contract or agreement, shall be punished by imprisonment in gaol, for any period not ex

eeeding three months, or in a house of correction, and kept to hard labour for any period not exIceeding two months, at the discretion of the justices.

3rd. Any person incurs the penalties just mentioned, who shall be convicted in the manner and according to the conditions just described, of entering into any combination for procuring an advance of wages, or lessening the hours of work; or who shall, by giving money, or employing persuasion or intimidation, endeavour to prevent unemployed journeymen from hiring themselves, or shall, for the purpose of obtaining an advance of wages, decoy or intimidate journeymen to leave their employment, or shall malici ously prevent any master from employing whom he pleases, or shall, being hired, refuse to work with other journeymen or workmen, without any just or reasonable cause.

4th. Any person convicted in the same manner incurs the same penalties, who shall attend any meeting held either to make such contracts or enter into such combinations as are above described, or who shall endeavour to persuade or intimidate other persons to attend such meetings, shall collect, receive, or pay money for such purposes, or shall induce others to do so.

5th. Any person, whether journeyman or not, convicted in the above manner of contributing money for the above purposes, or for the maintenance of persons who refuse to work, shall forfeit the sum of ten pounds, and any person collecting money or valuable things for the above purpose, shall forfeit five pounds; and if the fine be not forthwith paid, the justices may order a distress to be levied; and if there be nothing to answer the distress, the offender shall be committed to gaol, or to the house of correction, for the same period as described in the foregoing clauses.

6th. All sums of money contributed for any of the above purposes, either before the passing of the act or afterwards, and not divided; or shared, but remaining in the hands of any collector, shall be forfeited, one half to the king, and the other half to whoever will sue for it, that is, turn informer, in any of his majesty's courts of record at Westminster; and any person in whose possession such money is, may be sued for the same.

7th. All persons liable to be sued for such money, shall be obliged and compelled to answer on oath to any information lodged against them relative to such money.

8th. Such persons, on making a full discovery or all such money, cannot be prosecuted or punished on account of it, by the parties who intrusted the money to them, or by any other persons.

9th. All persons offending against this act may be called in and compelled to give evidence against any other person offending against it, and on giving such evidence, shall be indemnified on account of any information to be laid, or prosecution to be commenced against them for having offended in that matter to which they give evidence.

10th. On information being laid on oath, before any justice of the peace, of persons having of fended against this act, he may issue a summons

for such persons to appear before him and some other justice; and if they do not attend, the justices may issue their warrant for apprehend ing the persons informed against; or they may, in the first instance, issue their warrant, and on proof being put in, that the parties against whom such warrant was issued have absconded, the justices may proceed to inquire into the matter, and acquit or condemn the parties.

11th. The justice, at the request of any of the parties, may summons any persons as witnesses, and such persons not obeying the summons, the justices may commit them to prison, there to remain till they do give evidence.

12th prescribes the form in which convic tions shall be drawn up, and the

13th orders them to be transmitted to the next Quarter Sessions to be filed, and they may then be appealed against.

14th is a saving clause, that this act is not to abridge the power given by any other acts of parliament, or by law, to justices, relative to the combinations of manufacturers, or workmen; so is the

15th, which says, nothing in the act is to authorize manufacturers to engage workmen contrary to any provisions now in force for regulating particular trades.

16th. No master in the particular trade or manufacture concerning which any offence is charged to have been committed under this act, shall act as a justice of peace in administering it.

17th. This single clause contains all which the act says against combinations of masters. All contracts, or agreements, whether verbal or written, entered into by masters, or others, for reducing the wages of workmen, or for adding to their hours of work, are declared illegal, null, and void; and all persons convicted of entering into such contracts, by the oath of one credible witness, within three months after the commission of the offence, shall forfeit twenty pounds, one half to the king, and the other half to be equally divided between the poor of the parish and the informer; and if such penalty be not forthwith paid, a distress may be levied; and in case no sufficient distress can be had, the justices may commit the offender to the common gaol, or house of correction, for any period not longer than three inonths, and not less than two.

18th to 25th clauses relate to settling disputes between masters and workmen by arbitration, which being a subject quite foreign to the law against combination, they may be passed over in silence.

The above are all the clauses of that act which relate to the combination of workmen, and therefore all that it is necessary for us to give.

It must be evident, on the slightest perusal of these clauses, that in almost every one of them its penalties apply to two distinct classes of actions, viz. acting in concert to procure a better price for labour, and combining either to intimidate masters, or prevent workmen from