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Easter day, 1845
NaMer Day, 1845.
351
than fine spirit of turpentine mixed with a little varnish, or gold size. Turpentine varnish, diluted with spirit of turpentine, appears to do just as well. R.M. Lond. Mechanics' Mag.
New Safety Lamp. At the last meeting of the Literary and Philosophical Society, Newcastle, Mr. t I e n r v Smith, of that town, described a lamp invent~d by him, or, as it m a y ~'ather be called, an i m p r o v e m e n t on Stevenson's lamp, still in part adhering to tile priueiples of the Davy. By a careful eonsideratiou of tile subject, Mr. Smith has come to the eonehlsion that more air is admitted in the D a v y than is necessary Io support combustion. S t e p h o n s o n ' s l a m p admits but a small q u a n t i t y o f air, and is thu:s easily put out by a change of position, or a current of air, and when lhe atnlosplmric air is deteriorated by lhe m i x t u r e o f hydrogen, sullicient o x y g e n is not admitted, and tile light is extinguished : it, tlmr~:tbt'c, shows when the air is impure, but so se.sitively, that it: is extiiJ2uishcd be(ore ally accident can occur. Bit'., mlth s lamp l'esembles; the l):lvy m {he brass reservoir and top, aml the same kind of wire :,;auz% b~ll, ii~ addilion, at the bottom of tlte wire gallzt2, there is a hollow m~lal b(>~tilig, whiell constitutes an air ch+,unl)cl ', ol+ezJing trite :x'llie!~, i'l m the outside, is a series of holes, so apl)orii,)m*d lhltt lilt2 ti:ll~lC'~ callliot go o~l[ until lhe air beCOllleS [oo vitiated i'm" a. lll:tli lo brcat ; J~ it; in:~ide the wire gauze is a e~;ia'qs'evlimlcr,, with a COpl.,cr t<~p, pv~rS)rated with holes; the3 gauz{: fits close Io the eolq)er top, a!l~[ is ,z~ td tits;t bx: a screw, which also carries lilt; 2t~ls,-;. Ill this !amp ig will be seen tfmt t[a,' flame could not ignite tim intl:~mmablc •gas outside, without passina, in a (Iowiiward direction t}~,~;:,,.[~t' llw, g~tll?;e .~]FSt~ then the air eham!~er, all~l la.~stiy, thl'otl":~h tll~-: i~', i[i)Fatc([ head. T h e lnil~cr eatlllOt, ligllt his piFe at |he llame, l}le dang
]_~ct~ler DctU, 18-t5. ./5~/ A. DE 2MoJlc;=lx, [The grave mistake which forms the subject of the following notice by Professor 1)o M o r g a n , in the ~qel,'~,eum of Saturday ]as b cannot be made too extensively, or too speedily, known.] In an article w h i d l I have prepared lbr tile next number of tile "Compatliou to the A l m a n a c , " I h a v e discussed tile reasons w h y Easter Day will next y e a r fall, in a p p a r e n t defiance of the act of Partiament, upon the very day of the full moon. But as an accidental application which I h a v e received (and I k n o w that tile superintendent of tile Nautical A l m a n a c has received another from a different quarter,) makes me think that the computers of almanacs will be puzzled, and that the useless discussion of 1818, (when the diserepeney last occurred,) will be revived, unless soma one will forthwith state
352
21h.,chanie.%Physics, and Chemistry.
the reason of the dittieulty, I request that y o u will publish some of the conclusions of the paper Io whic-h I refer, which will in due time appear in thu work cited. T h e rule adopted iu this country for finding ]!]ast(tl', is lhat of tile I{onlan Catholic C[mreh, as esta[)lished at what is called Ihc l'cibrmalion of the (¢alender by Pope Gregory X I I I , iu 15a2. 'I'}~e authority Rir Ihis rule is contained in the papal brief of .March lsl, 15.~2, in "~vhich reference is made, for all explauatious, to lira I la:n lbrlhcomiug work of the .fesuit Clavius, to w h o m bolh the :~(]jl>:lmelit :tnd explanation of the calender trod been intruslcd. The lh llJsll ]~;trlian~t~l l, ill adoptil~g lhe rtde of Cla.vius, lnade lwo ntisIal;(.s in file eaT,[rtnulim~ of tlmt rule. Their exlllanatioll is, that Easlcr ,';ulid:ly is tim S u n d a y after Ill(', full lnooll, which comes on, or next afit:r, file 21st of March, and that if the fuLl moon fall on a Sunday, E;l~4t:r S u n d a y is the next Sunday. "l't+e two IIl]:';l:tl,:l'.S art..' aS follows : - I. l~l>:l~':~tlof '+ ful! m o o n , " they stmuld have said +:fourteelith day f,[" llil hltI/)ll, Ill,' d a y O{" I l e w IllOOll llcil~g l'ccl.zolmd as the f i r s t . " ~ 'I';i;/[ l.::t::momcr:~ ret~r the real moon, but dittbrs from it inlet> |iolmlly aml ~vowc'dly, by two classes of arbi!rary alterations, the first class inlcuded ior simplicity of calculation, the second ibr aw)iding lhe posaihilily of the ('hristian Easter falling on lhe actual d a y of the .lewish Passover. Ill the vear 1S45, tile fourteenth day of tile crt/en&tr ~noon falls on S a t u r d a y the 22d of March, whence Easter is rightly m a d e to be ,';lul(l:ty file '.,ad, according to the law both of lhe R o m a n and English churches, |hough the English statute does l~ot welt explain its own nmlhod. With regard to tiffs country, it should be noticed that this statu~,c enacts that Easter shall be kept by the "calendar, tables, and rules," annexed to the act; and these agree with Clavius. Of course ally one is at liberty, as m a n y did in 181 S, to think that file slalutt,, shouhl be altered ; and certainly, it would be w o r t h while lo avoid misconception by repealing the faulty definition, and substituting a better one, in the prayer books of the Established Chureh. But if any one should wish to advocate the repeal of the rules, anc~ the eonslruction of new ones agreeable to the existing definition, and astronomically trtte, he will perhaps pause when he finds that his o w n system wou[~l somelimes cause it to happen that St. P a u l ' s Cathedral must keep Easter a w e e k after Westminster Abbey, and would very ti'equently make a week's difference between the festivals o f the colonies, and the mother country. University College, London~ June 14~ 1844. Ibid.
351
than fine spirit of turpentine mixed with a little varnish, or gold size. Turpentine varnish, diluted with spirit of turpentine, appears to do just as well. R.M. Lond. Mechanics' Mag.
New Safety Lamp. At the last meeting of the Literary and Philosophical Society, Newcastle, Mr. t I e n r v Smith, of that town, described a lamp invent~d by him, or, as it m a y ~'ather be called, an i m p r o v e m e n t on Stevenson's lamp, still in part adhering to tile priueiples of the Davy. By a careful eonsideratiou of tile subject, Mr. Smith has come to the eonehlsion that more air is admitted in the D a v y than is necessary Io support combustion. S t e p h o n s o n ' s l a m p admits but a small q u a n t i t y o f air, and is thu:s easily put out by a change of position, or a current of air, and when lhe atnlosplmric air is deteriorated by lhe m i x t u r e o f hydrogen, sullicient o x y g e n is not admitted, and tile light is extinguished : it, tlmr~:tbt'c, shows when the air is impure, but so se.sitively, that it: is extiiJ2uishcd be(ore ally accident can occur. Bit'., mlth s lamp l'esembles; the l):lvy m {he brass reservoir and top, aml the same kind of wire :,;auz% b~ll, ii~ addilion, at the bottom of tlte wire gallzt2, there is a hollow m~lal b(>~tilig, whiell constitutes an air ch+,unl)cl ', ol+ezJing trite :x'llie!~, i'l m the outside, is a series of holes, so apl)orii,)m*d lhltt lilt2 ti:ll~lC'~ callliot go o~l[ until lhe air beCOllleS [oo vitiated i'm" a. lll:tli lo brcat ; J~ it; in:~ide the wire gauze is a e~;ia'qs'evlimlcr,, with a COpl.,cr t<~p, pv~rS)rated with holes; the3 gauz{: fits close Io the eolq)er top, a!l~[ is ,z~ td tits;t bx: a screw, which also carries lilt; 2t~ls,-;. Ill this !amp ig will be seen tfmt t[a,' flame could not ignite tim intl:~mmablc •gas outside, without passina, in a (Iowiiward direction t}~,~;:,,.[~t' llw, g~tll?;e .~]FSt~ then the air eham!~er, all~l la.~stiy, thl'otl":~h tll~-: i~', i[i)Fatc([ head. T h e lnil~cr eatlllOt, ligllt his piFe at |he llame, l}le dang
]_~ct~ler DctU, 18-t5. ./5~/ A. DE 2MoJlc;=lx, [The grave mistake which forms the subject of the following notice by Professor 1)o M o r g a n , in the ~qel,'~,eum of Saturday ]as b cannot be made too extensively, or too speedily, known.] In an article w h i d l I have prepared lbr tile next number of tile "Compatliou to the A l m a n a c , " I h a v e discussed tile reasons w h y Easter Day will next y e a r fall, in a p p a r e n t defiance of the act of Partiament, upon the very day of the full moon. But as an accidental application which I h a v e received (and I k n o w that tile superintendent of tile Nautical A l m a n a c has received another from a different quarter,) makes me think that the computers of almanacs will be puzzled, and that the useless discussion of 1818, (when the diserepeney last occurred,) will be revived, unless soma one will forthwith state
352
21h.,chanie.%Physics, and Chemistry.
the reason of the dittieulty, I request that y o u will publish some of the conclusions of the paper Io whic-h I refer, which will in due time appear in thu work cited. T h e rule adopted iu this country for finding ]!]ast(tl', is lhat of tile I{onlan Catholic C[mreh, as esta[)lished at what is called Ihc l'cibrmalion of the (¢alender by Pope Gregory X I I I , iu 15a2. 'I'}~e authority Rir Ihis rule is contained in the papal brief of .March lsl, 15.~2, in "~vhich reference is made, for all explauatious, to lira I la:n lbrlhcomiug work of the .fesuit Clavius, to w h o m bolh the :~(]jl>:lmelit :tnd explanation of the calender trod been intruslcd. The lh llJsll ]~;trlian~t~l l, ill adoptil~g lhe rtde of Cla.vius, lnade lwo ntisIal;(.s in file eaT,[rtnulim~ of tlmt rule. Their exlllanatioll is, that Easlcr ,';ulid:ly is tim S u n d a y after Ill(', full lnooll, which comes on, or next afit:r, file 21st of March, and that if the fuLl moon fall on a Sunday, E;l~4t:r S u n d a y is the next Sunday. "l't+e two IIl]:';l:tl,:l'.S art..' aS follows : - I. l~l>:l~':~tlof '+ ful! m o o n , " they stmuld have said +:fourteelith day f,[" llil hltI/)ll, Ill,' d a y O{" I l e w IllOOll llcil~g l'ccl.zolmd as the f i r s t . " ~ 'I';i;/[ l.::t: