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making the same, and a copy of the subscription-contract after-mentioned, together with a statement of any alterations from the book of reference which may have arisen since the same was deposited, be lodged in the Private Bill-office of this House, and that the receipt thereof be acknowledged accordingly by one of the clerks of the said office upon such petition.

14. That before any petition is presented to the House for a Bill for making any railway, a subscription to the amount of onehalf at least of the estimated expense shall be entered into by persons under a contract, binding themselves, their heirs, exécutors, administrators or assigns, for the payment of the money so subscribed.

15. That no such Bill shall be reported to the House until it has been proved to the satisfaction of the Committee, that threefourths at least of the proposed capital of the Company has been subscribed under a like

contract.

16. That no such Bill shall be reported to the House unless provision be made:1. That no such Company shall be authorised to raise, by lean or mortgage, a larger sum than one-third of their capital; and that, until 50 per cent. on the whole of the capital shall have been paid up, it shall not be in the power of the Company to raise any money by loan or mortgage. 2. That, where the level of any road shall be altered in making any railway, the ascent of any turnpikeroad shall not be more than 1 foot in 30 feet, and of any other public carriage-road not more than 1 foot in 20 feet; and that a good and sufficient fence, of 4 feet high at the least, shall be made on each side of every bridge which shall be erected. 3. That no railway whereon carriages are propelled by steam shall be made across any turnpike-road or other highway on the level, unless the Committee on the Bill report that such a restriction ought not to be enforced, with the reasons and facts upon which their opinion is founded.

Special Resolution, applicable to all future Sessions.

That no line of railway shall be deemed a competing line in contemplation, unless the plan and section for the same shall have been deposited, as required by the standing orders, on or before the 1st day of March in the year 1837, or on or before the 1st day of March in any succeeding year.

NOTES AND NOTICES.

Belgian Railway.-An account has been published of the original cost, expense of maintenance, and revenue, of the railway from Brussels to Antwerp, with the general results of the undertaking, forming, on the whole, a document of some interest to railway projectors and speculators. The line from Brussels to Mechlin was opened in May, 1835,

and that to Antwerp, which completes the undertaking, on the 1st of May of the present year. The cost of the whole line, including the purchase of land, with locomotive engines and carriages, was, in round numbers, 179,000. The expense on the line to Mechlin, for the first year, was 7,3501. The sum received was 14,3767., and the clear profit, after charging 5 per cent. as interest on the capital, was 3 per cent. The number of passengers during the first year, 563,000. During the month of May last, when the whole line was open, the number of passengers was 101,000, and the sum received was 4,3131. According to an estimate prepared of the charges and income from May, 1836, to May, 1837, a profit of 11 per cent, was anticipated on the invested capital, in addition to the ordinary interest of 5 per cent. The average duration of the passage from Brussels to Mechlin, 13 miles, is from 30 to 35 minutes, including stoppages; that from Brussels to Antwerp, 27 miles, is from 1 hour 25 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes, including stoppages. The speed originally calculated was two hours. The fare in the coaches is 3s.; in the waggons, 1s. Before the opening of the railway from 15 to 20 diligences ran between Brussels and Antwerp, carrying a yearly average of 80,000 passengers, at 2s. 6d. to 4s, each. These have entirely ceased to run, as well as the canal-boats, except a few for the conveyance of goods, for which the railway has not yet been employed.

Phrenology.-The Academie de Medecine has been led upon to decide the important question of phrenology. The discussion occupied four sittings. Dr. Broussais, who is at the head of the phrenological school, maintained the principles which he had laid down in his lectures. M. Gueneau de Mussy had to sum up the arguments on both sides, and in conclusion gave an opinion that the system ought not at present to be adopted. The Academy, concurring in this opinion, deferred its decision till the system was established upon more solid bases.-Paris Journal.

Errata in the Description of Mr. Pickworth's Padale-Wheels.-P. 322, col. 1, lines 5 and 6:The "transverse bars" here mentioned do not exist in the drawing, but instead thereof there is a pintle on one side of the revolving-frame and a crank on the other.-Col. 2, line 5 from the top, for "to" read that the broader part of the paddle

shall".

P. 323, col. 1, lines 1 and 2 from top, for the words, "when revolving as well as when fixed; both have," read "both revolving and fixed; each has".

P. 325, col. 1, line 27 from bottom, the word "time" should end the paragraph.-Dele "And"; the word "when" begins the new paragraph.Line 24 from bottom, for Nearly" read but"; and for "may be" read "are".

The Supplement to Vol. XXIV., containing Title, Contents, Index, &c., and embellished with a Portrait of Mr. Walter Hancock, C. E., is now published, price 6d. Also the Volume complete in boards, price 9s. 6d.

British and Foreign Patents taken out with economy and despatch; Specifications, Disclaimers, and Amendments, prepared or revised; Caveats entered; and generally every Branch of Patent Business promptly transacted.

LONDON: Published by J. CUNNINGHAM, at the Mechanics Magazine Office, No. 6, Peterborough-court, between 135 and 136, Fleet-street. Agent for the American Edition, Mr. O. RICH, 12, Red Lion-square. Sold by G. W. M. REYNOLDS, Proprietor of the French, English, and American Library, 55, Rue Neuve, Saint Augustin, Paris.

CUNNINGHAM and SALMON, Printers,
Fleet-street.

Mechanics' Magazine,

MUSEUM, REGISTER, JOURNAL, AND GAZETTE.

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354

ERICSSON'S PATENT LEAD, OR SOUNDING-INSTRUMENT,

ERICSSON'S PATENT LEAD, OR SOUNDING

INSTRUMENT,

This instrument may be considered as an important addition to the valuable discoveries which have been made in modern times to render navigation safe and easy; its principle being such, that it enables the navigator to take soundings, or ascertain the depth of water, whilst the ship is under way, and independently of the measurement of the lead line.

The inconvenience, loss of time, and frequently danger, consequent on rounding a ship to the wind every time a cast of the deep-sea lead becomes necessary, is best understood by the experienced sailor; and he can best judge of the utility of a sounding-instrument who has seen the safety of a numerous crew and a fine ship depend entirely on the accuracy of the soundings.

All persons employed in laying down deep soundings, in the construction of charts, know the ordinary way of doing it to be a laborious and unsatisfactory operation; for although the ship is rounded to the wind at every cast of the deep-sea lead, still, as the line which the lead takes down with it considerably retards its descent, the ship drifts over it, and by the time the lead has got to the bottom the line is no longer up and downwhich is the sole condition on which the depth is measured and therefore, an arbitrary allowance, depending on circumstances, must be made on the depth shown, which causes all deep soundings, unless taken under the most favourable circumstances, to be liable to great uncertainty.

In order to remedy this great defect in navigation, many persons have suggested contrivances by which the pressure of the water might be made available in ascertaining the depth. The idea of using compressed air for this purpose is of very remote date, but the difficulties in the way of applying it to practice have been, first, the establishment of a register which could be depended on to certainty to remain at the same point after the pressure that advanced it was taken away-and, secondly, the graduation of the scale; because the air being compressed into half its bulk at a depth of only 5 fathoms, the graduations must diminish very rapidly. These difficulties have been overcome by the invention we are about to

describe, in a manner peculiarly simple, and altogether precluding the possibility of error in the indication.

A (see front page) is a glass tube open at both ends, firmly bedded in the cast-iron stem F, by means of plaster of Paris or other cement. B is a small tortuous pipe inserted into the top of the glass tube, and in continuation with it; this pipe is open at the top, and communicates therefore freely with the air-chamber C; and this last, with the external air by the small tube, whose orifice is D; E is a common stopcock at the bottom of the glass tube; and G is a slide, or guard to the glass tube and the graduated scale of fathoms. The lower end can be loaded with lead when required, and takes the arming as usual. When the instrument is to be used, the stop-cock E is closed, by setting it at X, fig. 2, after turning it to let out any water that may have been suffered to remain in the tube; the guard is drawn round, and the lead is thrown overboard, with the line attached. The pressure of the water at D begins at once to exceed the pressure of the air within the chamber Cand tube A, which of course was that indicated by the barometer before the lead was thrown overboard, and the water begins to rise through the small tube D into the chamber, driving the air before it into the upper portion of the chamber and tube A, until it has risen to the top of the tortuous pipe B. At this instant the whole of the air before contained in the chamber and tube is confined in the tube only; the water, therefore, still entering at D, falls over the orifice of B into the glass tube, and rises in it; the division to which it rises always indicating the depth to which the lead at that instant has descended.

It is evident from this description, that the air in the tube being in a high state of compression before the graduation begins, the divisions of the scale are more uniform, and therefore indicate greater depths with more accuracy than if the tube alone contained all the air.

Again, the register, being the column of water in the tube, cannot be affected by any shock, nor disturbed, unless the whole be held for a second or two with the upper end downwards, which the tortuous or cork-screw tube B is intended to provide against; and, lastly, the pressure of the air within being always exactly equal to that of the water without, there

Mechanics' Magazine,

MUSEUM, REGISTER, JOURNAL, AND GAZETTE.

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LONDON AND BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY.

356 than 1; hence (1-a (0-0)) is always positive, and B (1—a (0-0)) is less = /

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to notice my paddle-wheel generally, and perceive the force of your objection respecting weight, but this is true only when the fixed frames are attached to the wheel, which are not necessary and without them my wheel is as light as any improved paddle-wheel, and lighter than

most.

An advantage would certainly be gained by adopting your suggestion of rods instead of plates for the vertical paddleframe bars, in the circumstances to which you refer; but in their present form they prevent the lateral escape of water from the paddles when propelling.

Your engraver has, by mistake, carried his water-line of fig. 2 to the wheels B and C, which are withinside of the vessel. I am, Sir, Your obedient servant, H. PICKWORTH.

1, Lincoln's Inn New-square, Aug. 15, 1836.

LONDON AND BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY.

Report of the Directors to the Sixth HalfYearly General Meeting of the Proprietors, held August 5, 1836.

The Directors have the satisfaction to announce to the Proprietors, that the progress of the works generally, in the last six months, has been such as to warrant the expectation which was held out at the last meeting, that the whole line will be completed by the summer of 1838, and the first 21 miles from London in the spring of 1837.

Of the Primrose Hill Tunnel, which is 1105 yards long, only 114 yards remain to be made; the Kensal Green Tunnel is finished, and traversed by the Company's locomotiveengines; 1423 yards are completed of the Watford Tunnel, the total length of which is 1793 yards; and the difficulties which were presented by the quicksand in the Kilsby Tunnel have already been so far surmounted, as to leave no doubt in the mind of the Company's engineer, that they will not delay the opening of the railway beyond the time mentioned. With reference to the other portions of the work, the Directors are making every exertion to forward them, so as to give the Proprietors the benefit of a revenue at the earliest possible period; satisfied that although for the attainment of this object an additional charge will be incurred by the Company, the advantage to be derived from it will be more than commensurate to the expense.

The Directors have entered into a contract, under the guarantee of two responsible sureties, with Mr. Edward Bury, of Liverpool, an

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