Apparatus for racking Wines bright from the Lees. By MR. HILTON, of Regent Street.

THE operation of racking wines by the usual method is one of considerable trouble, and is often productive of injury to its quality, by exposure to the atmosphere, as well as a waste of its quantity. To obviate these disadvantages, Mr. Hilton (who is a wine merchant) has contrived a very simple and convenient apparatus by which the process may be performed with the greatest ease, and without the chance of deterioration or waste. This apparatus, as manufactured by Mr. Russell, of St. John Street, West Smithfield, is represented in Plate XX. by fig. 2; the following is an explanation of its construction:

a is a cask of wine to be racked off; 6 an empty cask into which the wine in a is to be transferred; c is an exhausting pump fixed by a conical screw at the bottom into the bung-hole of the cask b; d and e are two cocks screwed into the casks near to the chimes, and communicating with each other by a syphon f, and a flexible tube or hose g. At h there is a valve to prevent a return of wine from the cask b to a. At i there is a cock to try the brightness of the wine. and at k an air-cock. The lower portion of the syphon is made of glass, that the wine may be seen during the operation.

The pump c being put in action, a vacuum is caused in the cask b, and the bung in cask a being taken out, the pressure of the atmosphere upon the surface of the wine causes the wine to be discharged, and rise in the cask b, until it gets as low in the cask a as

m.

The cock d being then half closed, and the cask a tilted, all the wine will flow out of it, the syphon preventing the air from passing during the latter part of the racking. It takes about five minutes time to rack a hogshead carefully. The distance between the casks is immaterial, which adds much to the convenience of the apparatus.

Patent Apparatus for evaporating Syrup and other Solutions. By WILLIAM GODFREY KNELLER, of Pear Street, Spitalfields.

THE novelty of the process, for which this mechanical arrangement has been designed, consists in forcing air, by means of bellows or other blowing apparatus through liquids subjected to evaporation, with the view of expediting the operation, and accomplishing it at a low temperature. The patentee states, that, in evaporating cane juice or syrup for making refined sugar, he can bring it to the proper crystallizing point by keeping the temperature between 140° and 170° Fahrenheit: that he obtains by it a great quantity of large and shining crystals, which were hitherto attainable only by evaporating in vacuo only, a troublesome and expensive process, while other methods, by exposing the sugar to a high temperature, impair the quantity, size, and brilliancy of the crystals, and form a great quantity of molasses or treacle.

At Plate XIX., fig. 5, a perspective sketch of this apparatus is given as applied to vessels of small capacity; the arrangement is,

however, quite as simple, and only more extended when applied to larger vessels. a a is a pan or boiler about half filled with liquid; bban air tube running horizontally above the surface of the liquid, and supported at each end by legs which rest on the bottom of the vessel. The air is forced in at c, and filling the tube bb, escapes at the lower orifices of the small pipes d d, which do not quite touch the bottom; thence it rises through the liquid, producing great agitation, and rapidly abstracting the heat together with aqueous matter in the form of steam. By raising the degree of heat under the pan or boiler, and increasing the quantity and velocity of the air injected into the solution; or, on the contrary, by lowering the heat, and moderating, the injection of air, the evaporation is accelerated or retarded at the pleasure of the operator, according to the nature of the substances, or the effect desired.

The pans used for evaporating on this plan should have flat bottoms, and the depth of the fluid should be equal in all parts. When sufficiently concentrated the liquid will not readily flow out of the aperture opened for the purpose: to remedy this inconvenience, a flat vertical plate 4 to 5 inches in height, and of a length rather less than the breadth of the pan, such plate being kept in its upright position by projections at right angles with its lower edge, which - must slide as nearly as possible in contact with the bottom of the pan. When the evaporation is sufficiently effected, the system of pipes are raised by a winch about six inches high, when the upright sliding plate is drawn towards the discharging aperture, and thereby cleanses the bottom of the plan. To admit of the pipes being raised. without cutting off the communication with the blowing apparatus, they are connected by a flexible tube.

Check-Register for marking the Quantities of Liquors drawn from Casks. Invented and manufactured by MESSRS. ARNOLD and ARMITAGE, of Moor Lane, Cripplegate.

THIS apparatus, which is delineated in perspective by fig. 6, Plate XIX., is called by the inventors The Patent Liquor Machine. We expected to have been favoured with some account of the internal construction of the machine before this number went to press; but not having yet received it, we can only state at present that it has an elegant appearance, is about the size of a large table-clock, and has a dial face, on which is engraved five graduated circles, with indexes registering the quantities in eighths of pints to one hundred gallons, thus affording an effective check against any unauthorized abstraction of fluids which it is necessary to keep under guard.

Improved Four-Wheeled Carriage. By F. RONALDS, Esq., of Croydon.

To construct a carriage that shall be less liable to overturn than the common sort, and that shall uniformly adapt itself to the

most rugged and uneven surfaces, every body must admit to be an object of the greatest interest and value. A simple method of effecting this object occurred to Mr. Ronalds about two years ago, when he constructed a little model of the carriage; this model is now deposited in the National Repository, from which we have made the sketch, fig. 3, plate 20. The banks, and other ordinary obstacles over which the carriage is represented as running, are not so great in proportion as those which we caused the model to surmount on the table of the Repository. The ability of the carriage to run through ditches, and over banks and milestones, cannot be doubted, however unpleasant and unadvisable it may be to take rides of that kind. Yet the reader will allow, that, were he to attempt to run over a mile-stone in a common carriage, he would most likely have a grave-stone placed over him shortly afterwards.

a represents the perch of the carriage, to which is fixed, at right angles, the axletree of the hind-wheels, bb; cc are the fore-wheels, the axletree of which is divided in the middle, where the extremities are made semicircular, so that when united (by bolting), they form a ring, constituting a portion of an universal joint, d, this joint allows of the axletrees of both the fore and hindwheels to assume any angle with the ground, or rather horizon, without materially disturbing the vertical position of the carriage body that might be suspended above.

Apparatus for boring the Earth for Water, or Minerals.

By L. HEBERT.

THE object of this invention is to reduce the labour and shorten the process of boring the earth, as practised by the ordinary instruments, in which every portion of the rod constituting the entire length inserted into the aperture is necessarily taken to pieces every time that a charge of earth is drawn up to the surface, and put together again, in order to let it down for the renewal of the boring or changing the tools.

The time thus occupied in connecting and disconnecting the numerous pieces (sometimes amounting to a hundred) is calculated at full nine-tenths of the total period of time employed in completing the perforation, and the labour attending it bears the same proportion. To obviate the expenditure of so much time and labour, the present invention has been proposed, and the inventor is sanguine in his expectation that so important a desideratum in the useful art of boring the earth may thereby be fully attained.

It is several years since the inventor proposed an apparatus on the principle of the model exhibited, (which he described in the first volume of the Register); but in some of the details of construction modifications have been introduced which make it require, perhaps, a second notice; and it should be observed that the present model was the earliest mode, and does not combine some improvements introduced into an apparatus of the full size subsequently made.

This model consists of an auger, with a spiral worm winding round a cylinder, the centre of which cylinder is perforated longitudinally throughout, with a square hole, for the purpose of receiving within it a square bar, upon which the auger will easily slide up and down. To the lower extremity of the bar a stout chissel-formed steel tool, technically called a jumper," is welded to it: this single tool is used in passing through all kinds of strata; it is universally used in perforating hard rock, and it of course easily penetrates soft substances, the auger in every case receiving the materials cut through, which, when completely charged, is drawn up, sliding upon the square bar to the surface, where it is discharged of its contents, and let down again.

The mechanical means by which the auger is raised and lowered are of various kinds, all very simple, but experience must determine which is the most convenient: the monkey" employed in piledriving has been tried by the inventor, and found to answer very well.

The rod is lengthened as the perforation deepens, by a peculiarly `constructed solid steel joint, which renders the rod stronger at the junction than in any other part. The rod is not drawn up until the perforation is completed, unless an accident should render that necessary, which is, however, much less likely to occur with this machine than with those of the usual construction, on account of its superior strength, and its being subjected to less wear during the operation

To prevent any large masses from sticking at the entrance of the cylindrical case, a strong curved knife-edged piece of steel is fixed near to it, by which nothing can pass that will not easily enter the cylinder; this curved piece of steel likewise serves to enlarge a little, and perfect the figure of the hole excavated.

The inventor proposes, where the soil is not very compact, to pipe it throughout, by a process simultaneous with the boring, and requiring but little additional labour; the particulars of which, together with the various details of the apparatus, he will be happy to explain to any respectable person disposed to undertake boring the earth extensively, and at a cheap rate, for the purpose of obtaining a plentiful supply of pure water, which is so much wanting in this great city.

N. B. It is worthy of remark, that an apparatus, on the principle of this boring machine, may be rendered a most effectual PILE-DRIVER, especially for driving them in oblique positions, and under water. The reader has only to imagine the “ jumper" or chissel at the lower extremity to be a SCREW fixed into the head of the pile, and the cylinder to be the RAM or weight, and he will perceive, that while the instrument will hold the pile in the required position, the ram will inevitably be guided by the bar, it will produce the utmost effect (of a boy falling in the direction given) upon the pile.

Improved "Observatory" Bee-Hive. Invented and manufactured by Mr. T. NUTT, of Moulton Chapel, near Spalding, Lincolnshire.

In the last year's exhibition Mr. Nutt exhibited in the Repository several forms of his improved bee-hives, one of which we described, with an account of the produce and management of it, in our last volume, page 228. Referring our readers to the important facts there given, we proceed to give a brief description of another kind