mechanics, are concealed as long as possible, that the inventor may profit by the exclusive practice of them; and when they get abroad, they are pretty widely circulated before they can find a place in the scientific works. This edition of Nicholson's Operative Mechanic has, however, been prepared and published with a good deal of care and expense; and must recommend itself to a very large and increasing class of the public. It contains a description, and a representation by very distinct plates, of almost all the machines of any importance used at the present day; and also brief accounts of many kinds of manufactures, which do not require the aid of machinery. The work must, therefore, be highly acceptable to the gentleman, who wishes to obtain a knowledge of the mechanic arts, and the various kinds of machinery employed in them, and a general idea of the modes of conducting them. To the young just entering upon the science, it will be valuable, as it conveys, in a very clear manner, a general knowledge of mechanical principles, and illustrates them by frequent applications and examples. In this respect, it has a decided advantage over an abstract treatise. And to the adept in the science, it will be a convenient manual for reference for many things, which cannot easily be retained in the memory. Our limits do not allow us to go any more at length into the merits of the work; and we could not pass over so valuable an addition to the number of useful books, without announcing its appearance, and thus briefly commending it to the public

attention.

INTELLIGENCE.

Quarterly List of New Publications. The new publications contained in the numbers of the United States Literary Gazette, for the months of July, August, and September, amount to three hundred and six, which may be thus distributed ;-Biography, four; The Drama, five; Education, thirty-four; Geography, two; Law, eleven; Miscellaneous, eighty-two; Music, three; Poetry, eleven; Politics, four; Theology, twenty-seven; Topography, seven; Travels, two; History, five; Mechanics, one; Mathematics, one; Medicine, one; Novels, one; Orations, fourteen; Arts and Sciences, two; Eulogies, nine; Foreign works reprinted, eighty.

Humming-Birds. Humming-birds have frequently been described by naturalists, as of an extremely passionate disposition, destroying the most beautiful flowers, apparently without any cause. An enterprizing traveller, Mr. Waterton, has lately shown, that the food of these minute birds consists of insects, and, consequently, what has been hitherto attributed to irritability arises from the natural instinct of the bird in pursuit of sustenance.

Botany. In an extent of more than four thousand leagues, in the whole intertropical zone, from the Isle of France as far as Otaheite, and much further, on the islands as well as on the continents, the vegetable kingdom presents a great number of identical species; while the islands of St. Helena and Ascension, also situated under this zone, in the Atlantic Ocean, produce species which are peculiar to themselves, and not found either in Brazil or Africa in the same latitude. This observation was made during the circumnavigation of the globe by the French vessel Coquille.

Vegetable Life. A rather uncommon instance of the tenacity of vegetable life, occurred some time since in the Royal Park of Bushey. A small portion of the park being broken up for the purpose of ornamental culture, immediately several flowers sprang up of the kinds which are ordinarily cultivated in gardens; this led to an investigation, and it was ascertained, that this identical plot had been used as a garden not later than the time of Oliver Cromwell, more than one hundred and fifty years before.

Salmon in Ponds. An English gentleman caught a number of young salmon, about four fingers long, at the time of year when these fish return to the sea, and put them into a fish-pond about an hundred feet square, with a clay bottom, and fed by a running stream. Three years afterwards, he found in this pond three salmon, about eight fingers in length, which, though lean, appeared to be in good health. It would seem to follow, that they might have attained to their natural size, if they had been placed in a larger body of water better suited to their nature, with a fuller supply of food. They may perhaps, therefore, be naturalized in lakes.

Posts. The statutes of Edward III. contain the first intimations of the carriage of letters by post in England. Edward IV. established several lines, in which the stations were twenty miles apart. It is doubtful, at what period the advantages of this establishment were opened to the public. In the reign of Charles I., private individuals were obliged to depend on the chances of private conveyance, and the universities, as well as the principal cities, had each its own post. In 1543, there was a post between London and Edinburgh, which transmitted letters in four days. It continued in existence but a short time. James I. instituted one for the conveyance of letters into foreign countries. For a long time afterwards, the foreign merchants settled at London, claimed the right of having a postmaster of their own in that city. In 1632, Charles I. forbade the sending of letters into foreign countries by any channel but the government post. In 1635, he established a post between England and Scotland, abolishing the private posts, and appropriating the proceeds of the one which he had instituted, as a branch of the royal revenue. In 1630, this same prince, in concert with Louis XIII., organized a post between London and Paris. The private posts between France and England were abolished. The civil wars almost entirely broke up these institutions; but as soon as public tranquillity was restored, they became one of the principal objects of attention to the rulers of the English Commonwealth. They were subjected to new regulations, and made to produce a net annual income of ten thousand pounds sterling. In the reign of Anne, they received an organization, which has remained to the present time. The general post-office of Great Britain includes every thing relating to the posts of England, Scotland, and the Colonies, with the exception of the East Indies, and the settlements in the South Sea. The post of Ireland is also a separate department. The annual income from all the branches, is over 13,335,000 pounds sterling.

Iceland. The following account of the island of Iceland may perhaps be interesting to our readers. It was discovered in the year 861, by the Norwegian pirate Nadod. The first colony, consisting of Normans, was established there in the year 874. In 928, its constitution of government had become aristocratic. This constitution endured three centuries, and comprises the period of the island's greatest prosperity. Christianity was introduced there in 981. In the middle of the thirteenth century, it submitted to Norway, and in 1380, was, together with Norway, united to Denmark. These changes were ruinous to its prosperity. Its commerce diminished by degrees, and fell into the hands of foreigners; it lost its reputation for eminence in the arts and sciences. Calamities of various sorts gradually diminished its population. The plague, several kinds of epidemics, the small-pox, the incursions of pirates, in turn afflicted this unfortunate isle. In the year 1530, the first printing-press was established there; the reformation was introduced towards the middle of the same century. In 1703, its population amounted to 50,444 souls; in 1809, to 48,063; and, in 1822, to 48,386; at present, the number is 49,269. The greater part of the children die before the age of ten years. The whole population dwells on the seacoast; the interior is absolutely uninhabited. It is the usage among them, for the minister, in the name of the suitor, to ask the hand of the lady. They have no national dance. Their mode of singing is monotonous, and their war songs resemble confused cries. The island is very poor in

vegetables, and the fruits of the trees seldom reach maturity. Barley is cultivated there. The reindeer has been naturalized since the year 1770. It is seen in considerable herds. As for domestic animals, it was computed, that the island contained, in the year 1822, about 28,443 horses; 21,803 head of cattle; 348,752 sheep; many goats, and a very few swine. The country is divided into three bailiwicks. It has a bishop, nineteen provosts, a pharmaceutical institution, and five surgeons.

Russian Marine. The maritime force of Russia, which Peter the Great began to form, and which amounted, in the reign of Catherine II., to forty-five vessels of the line, now consists of about seventy vessels of the line, eighteen frigates, six cutters, seven brigs, fifty-four schooners or vessels of small size, twenty galleys, twenty-five floating batteries, and many vessels of inferior consequence, in all four hundred and sixtyfour sail; carrying five thousand pieces of ordnance, thirty-three thousand sailors, nine thousand marines, and three thousand men belonging to the department of maritime artillery.

Dome of Milan. The celebrated metropolitan church or Dome of Milan, is well known to be one of the largest and most magnificent monuments of the Gothic architecture existing in Europe. It was begun in the latter part of the fourteenth century, by the first duke of Milan, Giovanni Galeazzo Visconti, who laid the first stone in the year 1386, and it was not entirely finished till within a few years, while the French armies remained in Italy. Napoleon, then king of Lombardy, issued a decree, dated the 8th of June, 1805, ordering the erection of the facade and the completion of the upper part of the edifice. During the long train of ages, which elapsed between the commencement and completion of this admirable monument, the progress of the work was often suspended, in consequence of the change of princes, the occurrence of wars, and other similar causes. The artists successively employed about the work, one might imagine would have displayed the state of art at different epochs; but they seem to have been in fact so impressed with the dignity of the charge committed to them, and the necessity of preserving uniformity of design, that we are struck no less with the harmony of its parts, than with the majesty of its whole appearance, and the richness of its details.

English Gardens. The botanic gardens of Great Britain are supposed to contain between fourteen and fifteen thousand living species of plants, and are the richest in the world. The principal foreign establishments are supplied with their rarest plants from thence. The gardens of Lee and Kennedy at Hammersmith, and of Loddiges at Hackney, are on so extensive a scale, that they may be considered national monuments of the taste of the English people; and have been rendered exceedingly useful to science, through the liberal spirit of the proprietors. On entering the principal apartment at Mr. Loddiges', the visiter finds himself suddenly transported into a grove of palms, flourishing in all their native luxuriance, many of them of full size, and clothed with foliage unbroken by exposure to the winds or the thunder-shower, in many cases, in fact, more splendid than they are often to be met with in their native climate. So large an assemblage of tropical plants and trees of full growth, was never before seen at such a distance from the equinoctial regions.

Georama. We extract from the Florence "Antologia," the following description of a machine intended to facilitate the acquisition of geographical knowledge. The georama, which signifies, view of the earth, is a hollow sphere, forty feet in diameter formed by the union of thirtysix rods of iron, which represent the parallels and the meridians, covered with a blue cloth, admitting the light, and representing the seas and lakes. Countries, with their mountains and rivers, are painted with much exactness, on paper attached to the cloth. The poles are situated as in maps, at the extremity of the vertical diameter of the sphere. Round this diameter wind spiral stairs, which lead to three little circular galleries, placed one above the other, in such a manner, that the spectator can at pleasure approach the point which he wishes to examine. This ingenious and convenient contrivance produces a striking effect at first view.

Omography. A new art, to which the name of omography has been given, has been invented by M. Aiguebelle, of Paris, which is said to afford an extraordinary facility in executing, not only all that has been hitherto done by engraving and lithography, but also the effects of the pencil and stamp, which neither the graver nor the crayon has yet been able to accomplish.

Whales' Bones dug up. Some vertebræ of a whale have been found near the mouth of the river Couan, in Scotland, in a bed of blue clay, twelve feet above the level of the sea. This marine clay extends several miles. In the park of Dunmore, also, sixty feet from the river Forth, several similar vertebræ have been discovered, from which, the length of the animal, when alive, was estimated at eighty-five or ninety feet. The place is twenty three or four feet above the highest flood tides. The bed of earth was likewise argillaceous, and contained several staghorns. At Blair Drummond, too, bones of a like sort have been excavated at the depth of four feet.

Calculating Machine. An incident, which occurred during some of the proceedings of the Astronomical Society of London, has given rise to one of the most extraordinary of modern inventions. To insure accuracy in the calculations of certain tables, separate computors had been employed, and two members of the Society, having been chosen to compare the results, detected so many errors as to induce one of them to express his regret, that the work could not be executed by a machine. To this, the other member, Mr. Babbage, at once replied, that this was possible; and, persevering in the inquiry which had thus suggested itself, he produced at last a working model of a machine for calculating tables with surprising accuracy. The government, with equal judgment and liberality, have encouraged this admirable invention, and induced Mr. Babbage to undertake the construction of a machine applicable to more extensive calculations, which is now proceeding, as rapidly as its very difficult and complex nature will admit.

Death of Infants in Russia. The number of children, who die annually in Russia, amounts to about one fourth of the whole number of deaths in the empire. The ceremonies which take place at their baptism, are stated to be one chief cause of this mortality. The naked infant is three times plunged into a bason of cold water, from which it emerges shiver