! Report of the Parliamentary Committee to the Meeting of the British Association at Manchester, in September 1861. The Parliamentary Committee have the honour to report: That on the 19th of July they met the Steam Performance Committee, by appointment, at the Admiralty, and had, in company with the Members of that Committee, an interview with the Duke of Somerset. That in the course of that interview the Chairman of your Committee shortly explained the motives which had induced the British Association to appoint the Steam Performance Committee, and called upon Mr. Fairbairn, who thereupon stated and explained the principal suggestions contained in the Report of the Steam Performance Committee, which had been prepared and agreed upon, and will be presented to this Meeting; and urged upon His Grace the expediency of carrying them into effect. The Duke of Somerset, in reply, stated certain objections which he entertained to some of the suggestions, founded chiefly upon the circumstances that sufficient time could not be allowed for the various experiments consistently with the interests of the service, and that the ships of the Royal Navy only employed steam occasionally, and only as an auxiliary power; but His Grace was understood to agree to supply such information to the scientific public as could be done without improperly interfering with the performance of ordinary duties. The Dukes of Devonshire and Argyll, the Earls of Enniskillen, Harrowby, Rosse and De Grey, Lord Stanley and Sir John Pakington, must be considered as having vacated their seats in your Committee, in pursuance of the resolution adopted at Liverpool in 1854; but your Committee recommend that they should be re-elected. Your Committee also recommend that the two vacancies in the House of Commons List be filled by the election of Sir Joseph Paxton and Lieut.-Col. Sykes. WROTTESLEY, Chairman. RECOMMENDATIONS Adopted by the General Committee at THE [When Committees are appointed, the Member first named is regarded as the Secretary of the Committee, except there be a specific nomination.] Involving Grants of Money. That the sum of £500 be appropriated, under the sanction of the Council, for maintaining the Establishment at Kew. That the sum of £40 be placed at the disposal of the Kew Committee for the employment of the Photo-heliometer. That the cooperation of the Royal Society be requested in obtaining a series of photographic pictures of the Solar Surface; and that the sum of £150 be placed at the disposal of the Kew Committee for the purpose. That Professor Airy, Lord Wrottesley, Sir D. Brewster, Col. Sykes, Sir J. Herschel, General Sabine, Dr. Lloyd, Admiral FitzRoy, Dr. Lee, Dr. Robinson, Mr. Gassiot, Mr. Glaisher, Dr. Tyndall, and Dr. W. A. Miller be requested to form a Balloon Committee; and that the sum of £200 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Professor Williamson, Professor Wheatstone, Professor W. Thomson, Professor Miller (of Cambridge), Dr. Matthiessen, and Mr. F. Jenkin be a Committee to report upon Standards of Electrical Resistance; and that the sum of £50 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. J. Glaisher, Mr. R. P. Greg, Mr. E. W. Brayley, and Mr. Alex. Herschel be a Committee to report upon Luminous Meteors and Aërolites; and that the sum of £20 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. Fleeming Jenkin be requested to continue his Experiments for determining the Laws of Permanent Thermo-electric Currents in broken metallic circuits, and to report thereon; and that the sum of £20 be placed at his disposal for the purpose. That Professor Hennessy, Admiral FitzRoy, and Mr. Glaisher be a Committee to study, by the aid of instruments specially devised for the purpose, the connexion of small vertical disturbances of the atmosphere with storms, and to report thereon; and that the sum of £20 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. Alphonse Gages be requested to continue his Researches on Mechanico-Chemical Analysis of Minerals; and that the sum of £8 remaining undrawn from the grant of last year be again placed at his disposal for the purpose. That Dr. Hooker, Mr. Binney, and Professor Morris be a Committee to prepare a Report on the connexion between the external form and internal microscopical structure of the Fossil Wood from the Lower Coal-Measures of Lancashire; and that the sum of £40 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Sir C. F. Bunbury*, Mr. Binney, and Mr. H. Ormerod be requested to prepare a Report on the Flora of the Lancashire Coal-fields; and that the sum of £40 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. R. H. Scott, Sir Richard Griffith, Bart., and the Rev. Professor Haughton be a Committee to prepare a Report on the Chemical and Mineralogical Composition of the Granites of Donegal and the Rocks associated therewith; and that the sum of £25 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, Mr. Alder, and the Rev. Thomas Hincks be a Committee to Dredge the Dogger Bank and portions of the Sea Coast of Durham and Northumberland; and that the sum of £25 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, Dr. Dickie, Professor Nicol, Dr. Dyce, and Dr. Ogilvie be a Committee for Dredging on the North and East Coasts of Scotland; and that the sum of £25 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. Gwyn Jeffreys, Dr. Kinahan, Dr. Carter, and Mr. E. Waller be a Committee for conducting the Dredging Report of the Bay of Dublin; and that the sum of £15 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, Dr. Collingwood, Mr. Isaac Byerley, Rev. H. H. Higgins, and Dr. Edwards be a Committee to Dredge the River Mersey and Dee; and that the sum of £5 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, Dr. Lukis, Mr. C. Spence Bate, Mr. A. Hancock, Dr. Verloren, and Professor Archer be a Committee for the purpose of Reporting on the best mode of preventing the ravages of the different kinds of Teredo and other Animals in our Ships and Harbours; and that the sum of £10 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Dr. P. Lutley Sclater, Mr. R. J. Tomes, and Dr. Günther be a Committee to Report on the Present State of our Knowledge of the West Indian Vertebrata; and that the sum of £10 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. * Sir C. F. Bunbury has declined to act. That Dr. P. Lutley Sclater and Dr. F. Hochstetter be a Committee for the purpose of continuing their investigations as to the Species of Apteryx in New Zealand; and that the sum of £50 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Dr. E. Perceval Wright and Professor W. H. Harvey be a Committee to draw up a Report on the Fishes of Dublin Bay and the Coasts of Leinster; and that the sum of £10 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Dr. P. Lutley Sclater and Dr. E. Perceval Wright be a Committee to assist Dr. P. P. Carpenter in preparing a Supplementary Report on the Mollusca of N.W. America; and that the sum of £10 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Dr. Collingwood, Mr. John Lubbock, Mr. R. Patterson, Dr. P. P Carpenter, Mr. J. A. Turner, M.P., and the Rev. H. H. Higgins be a Committee to Report on the Collecting of Objects of Natural History by the Mercantile Marine, with £5 at their disposal for the purpose. That Dr. Edward Smith, F.R.S., and Mr. W. R. Milner be requested to continue their inquiries into the influence of Prison Discipline and Dietary over the Bodily Functions of Prisoners; and that the sum of £20 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Mr. Thomas Webster, the Right Hon. Joseph Napier, Sir W. Armstrong, Mr. W. Fairba rn, Mr. W. R. Grove, Mr. James Heywood, and General Sabine be a Committee (with power to add to their number) for the purpose of taking such steps as may appear expedient for rendering the Patent Law more efficient for the reward of the meritorious Inventor and the advancement of Practical Science; and that the sum of £50 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That Professor J. Thomson be requested to complete his Report of Experiments on the Gauging of Water; and that the sum of £15 be placed at his disposal for the purpose. That Mr. William Fairbairn, Mr. J. E. McConnell, and Mr. William Smith be a Committee (with power to add to their number) to investigate and report on some of the Causes of Accidents on Railways, more particularly those accidents consequent upon the failure of the materials and apparatus used in the Construction and Working of Railways, and in the Rolling Stock; that the sum of £25 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That the Committee on Steam-ship Performance be reappointed; that the attention of the Committee be also directed to the obtaining of information respecting the performance of vessels under Sail, with a view to comparing the results of the two powers of Wind and Steam, in order to their more effective and economical combination; and that the sum of £150 be placed at their disposal. That the following noblemen and gentlemen be requested to serve on the Committee, with power to add to their number:-The Duke of Sutherland; The Earl of Gifford, M.P.; The Earl of Caithness; Lord Dufferin; Mr. William Fairbairn, F.R.S.; Mr. J. Scott Russell, F.R.S.; Admiral Paris; The Hon. Captain Egerton, R.N.; The Hon. Leopold Agar Ellis, M.P.; Mr. J. E. McConnell; Mr. W. Smith; Professor J. Macquorn Rankine; Mr. James R. Napier; Mr. Richard Roberts; Mr. Henry Wright, to be Honorary Secretary. That Mr. J. Oldham, C.E., Mr. J. F. Bateman, Mr. J. Scott Russell, and Mr. T. Thompson be a Committee to conduct a series of Tidal Observations in the Humber; and that the sum of £25 be placed at their disposal for the purpose. That the sum of £600 be appropriated for the purpose of printing an Index to the Volumes of Reports and Sectional Proceedings of the Association, from 1831 to 1860 inclusive. That Professor Phillips be authorized to employ for the ensuing year an Assistant, and that the sum of £100 be placed at his disposal for the purpose. Applications for Reports and Researches not involving Grants of Money. That Professor G. G. Stokes be again requested to furnish a Report on Physical Optics. That Mr. A. Cayley be again requested to furnish a Report on the Recent Progress in the Solution of certain Problems in Dynamics. That Mr. Archibald Smith and Mr. F. J. Evans be requested to abstract and report upon the three Reports of the Liverpool Compass Committee, and other recent publications on the same subject. That Mr. Johnstone Stoney be requested to report on the Present State of Molecular Physics. That Dr. Lloyd, General Sabine, Mr. A. Smith, Mr. G. Johnstone Stoney, Professor Airy, Professor Donkin, Professor W. Thomson, Mr. Cayley, and the Rev. Professor Price be requested to inquire into the adequacy of existing data for carrying into effect the suggestion of Gauss to apply his General Theory of Magnetism to Magnetic Variations; and to report on the steps proper to be taken to supply what may still be wanting, and generally on the course to be adopted to carry out Gauss's suggestion. That Dr. Crace Calvert be requested to draw up a Report on the Chemical Composition and Physical Properties of the Wood employed for Naval Construction. That Dr. Williamson, Dr. W. A. Miller, Dr. Andrews, Professor Brodie, Professor W. H. Miller, Dr. Lyon Playfair, and Dr. Angus Smith (with power to add to their number) be requested to inquire into the best means of effecting a registration and publication of the Numerical Facts of Chemistry. That Dr. Williamson, Dr. Angus Smith, Dr. Christison, Mr. W. De la Rue, Mr. Grove, Mr. Webster, Mr. Bateman, Rev. W. Vernon Harcourt, Professor Brodie, and Professor W. A. Miller be requested to consider whether any improvements can be suggested in the present practice respecting scientific evidence, as taken in courts of law, and to report any such suggestions of improvement as may appear practicable to the ensuing Meeting at Cambridge; that the Committee have power to add to their number. That Mr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, Mr. R. MacAndrew, Mr. G. C. Hyndman, Dr. Edwards, Dr. Dickie, Mr. C. L. Stewart, Dr. Collingwood, Dr. Kinahan, Mr. J. S. Worthey, Dr. E. Perceval Wright, Mr. J. Ray Greene, Rev. Thomas Hincks, and Mr. R. D. Darbyshire to act as a General Dredging Committee, with a general superintendence of all other Dredging Committees appointed by the Association. That M. Foster, M.D. be reappointed to report upon the Present State of our Knowledge in reference to Muscular Irritability, he having been unable from ill health to prepare it for the present Meeting. That Admiral Sir E. Belcher, Sir J. Rennie, Mr. G. Rennie, and Mr. Smith be requested to report on the Rise and Progress of Steam Navigation in the Port of London. That Mr. W. Fairbairn, Mr. J. F. Bateman, Professor Thomson, and Mr. J. G. Lynde be requested to report on Experiments to be made at the Manchester Waterworks on the Gauging of Water; with power to add to their number. That in the opinion of the Committee a large and extensive Reform in the H Patent Laws and their administration is necessary and urgent; that the discussion which took place indicated the means for effecting such reform; that the Parliamentary Committee of this Association might be advantageously employed in bringing the subject before Parliament, and that they be requested to give their attention to the subject, and to take the necessary steps for the purpose. That Mr. Webster and Mr. Grove be requested to make the communication to the Parliamentary Committee. The following recommendation was referred to the Parliamentary Committee:-"That application be made to the Charity Commissioners of England and Wales to provide sufficient means for the Classification and Condensation of the Accounts of Charities sent in Annually to the Charity Commissioners." That Mr. Heywood be requested to communicate with the Parliamentary Committee. Involving Applications to Government or Public Institutions. That a Committee, consisting of Dr. Robinson, Professor Wheatstone, and Dr. Gladstone, be requested to make application to the Board of Trade for Experiments on the Transmission of Sound Signals during Fogs. That it be represented to the Secretary of State for India, that inquiries into Prisons similar to those made by Dr. Mouat on the Prisons of Bengal, as detailed by him from his printed Reports, be instituted in the other Presidencies of India, especially in those of the Punjaub and the North-West Provinces. That Dr. Davy, Dr. Smith, and Mr. Miller be a Committee to make a representation in this matter to the Secretary of State for India. Communications to be printed entire among the Reports. That Dr. Lloyd's Paper, on the Secular Changes of Terrestrial Magnetism and their Connexion with Disturbances, be printed entire in the Sectional Proceedings of the Association. That the Report of Drs. Schunck, Smith, and Roscoe, on the Recent Progress and Present Condition of Manufacturing Chemistry in the South Lancashire District, be printed entire among the Reports. That Dr. James Hunt's Paper, on the Acclimatization of Man, be printed entire among the Reports. That Mr. Charles Atherton's Paper, on Freight as affected by difference of the Dynamic Performance of Steam-Ships, be printed entire among the Reports. That Mr. E. J. Reed's Paper, on the Iron-Cased Ships of the British Admiralty, be printed entire in the Sectional Proceedings. Synopsis of Grants of Money appropriated to Scientific Purposes by the General Committee at the Manchester Meeting in September 1861, with the name of the Member, who alone, or as the First of a Committee, is entitled to draw the Money. Kew Observatory. For maintaining the Establishment at Kew......... £ s. d. 500 0 0 Carried forward...... £500 0 0 |