1Kbt Vrobintts.
Several candidates for West Suffolk are named, but some without obvious an- thority,—Mr. Kerrison, son of Sir Edward Kerrison, Lord William Powlett, brother to the Duke of Cleveland, and Captain Bennett, of Rougham Hall, all Con- servatives; and the Earl of Euston, a Whig, but in favour with both .parties. Captain Bennett has issued an address as a strict Agricultural Protectionist.
The attendance of the public at the meetings of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, in Cambridge, has not in general been mg great.
Some very curious communications were made in the Chemical Section, on Saturday. Professor Shiinbein then read his report of experiments on a new substance which he terms ozone, a kind of gas. He was led to infer, by various circumstances, that the peculiar smell of frictional electricity must be due to the presence of an odoriferous body that was produced by the electrical action. One of its most remarkable properties is, that it loses its chemical action by heat. Professor Boutigny than exhibited an experiment, which excited the most lively interest, the room being completely crowded. The title of the communication was "Experiments on the spheroidal state of bodies, and its application to steam- boliers, and on the freezing of water in red-hot vessels." He commenced by showing that when cold water is poured on a hot metallic surface the heat is not communicated to it; and that the water assumes a spheroidal form, and continues to roll about, upheld at a minute distance from the heated surface, without boiling. The water poured into a heated platinum cup kept in rapid motion, and resembled a small globe of glass dancing about. There was no hissing noise nor appearance of steam, though the globule of water must, nevertheless, have evaporated rapidly; for, after gradually diminishing in size, in the course of about two minutes it disappeared. The same result takes place when any substance capable of assuming a globular form is placed on a heated surface. In ,proof of which, the Professor placed in the heated cup of platinum, iodine, ammonia, and some inflammable substances; each of which became globular, and danced about like the globule of water, but with- out emitting vapour or smell, or being inflamed, until the platinum cup was cooled. Another experiment was yet more carious. Professor Boutigny heated a silver weight, of the same shape as the weight of a clock, until it was red-hot; and then lowered it by a wire into a glass of cold water, without there being the slightest indication of action in the water, more than if the weight had been quite cold. Professor Boutigny, who addressed the meeting in French, advanced no theory to account for these Wier actions, further than that a film of vapour intervenes between the heated y and the substance, which prevents the communication of heat. The facts, however, he thought were of importance in a practical point of view, both in the tempering of metals and in the explain!, San of the causes of steam-boiler explosions. It would stem from these expen- meats, in tempering metals, if the metal be too much heated, the effect of plung- ing it into water will be diminished. In steam-boilers also, if the water be in- troduced into a heated surface, the heat may not be communicated to the water, and the boiler may become red-hot, and without any great =fission of steam; un- til at length, when the boiler cools, a vast quantity of steam would become sad- deoly generated, and the boiler burst. The last and most carious experiment per- formed by Professor Boutigny was the freezing of water in a red-hot vessel. Having heated a platinum cup red-hot. he poured into it a small quantity of water which was kept in a globular form, as in the other experiments. He then poured into the cup some liquid sulphurous acid; when a sudden evaporation ensued, and, on quickly, inverting the cup, there came out a small mass of ice. This experi- ment called forth loud and continued applause,.and 3L Boutigny appeared as much delighted as his audience with the success of his experiment. The principle on winch this experiment depends is this—sulphurous acid has the property of boil- ing when it is at a temperature below the freezing-point; and when poured into the heated vessel, the suddenness.of the evaporation occasions a degree of cold suf- ficient to freeze water.
In the Geological Section, on Monday, Professor Forbes described a singular phaanomenon connected with the fresh-water tertiary of the island of Cos. It consisted of a transmutation of forms which were proved to have taken place in various marine animals from the admixture of salt along with the fresh water. Sach distortions were not at all uncommon, producing such changes even in the forms that they had often been characterized as new species; whereas, in reality, they had only become modified by the change of food and circumstances under which they were placed.
On Tuesday, there was another discussion on ozone and its existence in the at- mosphere. Professor Schonbein thought that it is developed largely by atmo- spheric electricity; and he conceived that it was thus generated in such quantities as would endanger life were it not removed as soon as it was formed by the agency of organic matter. He attributed the phosphorescence of the sea and the lumi- nousness of the glow-worm entirely to this agency.
At a general meeting, on Monday, it was resolved to hold the meeting for 1846 at Southampton, in September. Invitations were also sent from Cheltenham and Norwich; but Southampton was selected, as being. convenient for foreign visiters. Mr. Murchison was appointed President for the ensuing year; and the following were appointed Vise-Presidents—the Marquis of Winchester the Earl of Yarborough, Viscount Palmerston, Lord .Ashburton, Sir W. bleathente, Sir George Staunton, the Dean of Westminster, Professor Powell, Professor Owen, and the Speaker of the House of Commons.
A general meeting was held on Wednesday, principally to pass the usual com- plimentary votes of thanks; and then the assemblage finally broke up.
Such is the demand for certain descriptions of cotton goods, that hands cannot be .found on the spot to produce them fast enough. In consequence of this defi- ciency of labour, a gentleman from the neighbotwhood of Rochdale came down to Liverpool last week, to see if a supply of hands could be obtained from among the pauper children in the Liverpool Workhouse. We believe that the subject is under the consideration of our parochial authorities.—Liverpool Times.
The iron-trade of South Staffordshire is in a most unsatisfry state. The high price recently obtained for the manufactured article has uffered a rapid decline, and a greater fall is feared; which renders the trade very unsettled. The ironmasters increased the wages of their men when the price of iron was high, and now they are attempting to reduce them. The consequence has been a par- tial turn-out at Billiton, and some rioting; and a general strike appears to be appre_hended. In the prospect of this, a writer in the Times rejoices that Chartism isunct among the men, and that, the leaders of that party, in the event of a tarn-out, could not exert the pernicious influence which they did on a former Occasion.
In consequence of the recent accidents to express-trains on the Great Western Railway, the Directors have resolved that no liOt four-wheeled luggage-vans shall in future farm part of the fast-trains: the aange was made on Saturday. The four-wheeled vans weigh only three tons and a half, while a second-class six- wheeled carriage weighs seven tons. Mr. Vaughan, of Gloucester Place, was one of the sufferers by the accident last week: his ribs were broken, and he received other injuries.
The Times states, that much of the iron rail on this railway is so worn down as to render travelling dangerous; the flanges of the wheels coming in con-
tact with the projecting nuts which fasten the rails to e sleepers. It considers that this was pro bly the cause of the late accident. New rads are iu process of being laid down in various parts of the line, which are two inches and a half hieh • the old ones are only one inch and a quarter.
A train on the Eastern Counties Railway was partially thrown off the rail on Monday, at Margaretting, by running over a horse which had strayed on to the line. 'rho horse was dashed to pieces, but fortunately none of the passengers were injured. Three women and two children were drowned on Tuesday, in Plymouth Sound, by the capsizing of a boat in which they were returning from the surveying-ship Pandora, after taking leave of friends. Five men, who manned the boat, and six women, were saved by clinging to it after it had overact.
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