figure. When we take into consideration the fact that the corrected birth-rates in subsequent years have been: in 1841-50 about 341, in 1851-60 about 35, and in 1861-70 about 36 per thousand, we are perhaps entitled to infer that an appreciable abatement in the rate was brought about through the operation of the new Poor Law. Similar calculations with reference to the south-western counties, from whence the emigration has been largest, show that the birth-rate in that division in 1801-40 was probably near 35 per thousand, against 32 per thousand in the succeeding twenty years. The exodus from this division has been such that, for more than 700,000 natives aged 20-40 surviving in 1861, less than 500,000 persons were enumerated as resident, of course inclusive of strangers. Other calculations show that the death-rate amongst natives of London is probably much higher than the observed mortality amongst residents would lead us to anticipate. It is desirable that returns should be obtained showing the place of nativity of the dying, the effect of which would be to disturb very materially the current ideas as to the significance of local death-rates. Finally, it may be useful to state summarily the following results of this inquiry: 1. Whilst the net loss by the emigration of natives of England and Wales amounted in the twenty years 1841-1861 to about 1,130,000 persons, the net gain by the immigration of persons born elsewhere amounted to about 740,000 persons, so that the average annual loss of population caused by migrations in those twenty years did not exceed 20,000 persons; and the loss by the same cause in 1861-70 has probably not exceeded 40,000 persons annually. 2. That more than 15 per cent. of the male natives of England and Wales aged 20-50 were absent in 1861 from their country. 3. That the census of England and Wales about to be taken will probably show the population to be nearly 22,500,000, and the excess of females to be nearly 700,000. The first of these figures is a quarter of a million larger, the second about 150,000 smaller, than the estimates published by the Registration Office would indicate. On Decimal Money and a Common International Unit. By WILLIAM WESTGARTH. 1st. Our arithmetical basis is decimal; that is, we count by tens. Must that therefore be the system in our money, weights, and measures, in all that concerns numbers, or are we free for any other counting? 2nd. The greatest diversity of national units, from the Spanish real of about 2d. up to our own pound, shows that accident first and habit afterwards must have largely shared in the creation of such a family. Are some more suitable than others? and how does this appear? 3rd. Is the international arrangement really important? Decimal Money.-Ten is not the best number, and probably never came into arithmetical use by design; eight and twelve, as more divisible, are better. Cannot we therefore alter our basis? The reply at this time of day is, that in whatever way ten-counting reached us, the world is now practically decimal, and will remain so. Then what is the effect of nonconformity to our basis? Try, for example, to convert 1,527,643 farthings into pounds, shillings, pence, and farthings; or to reduce 10,253 tons, 9 cwts., 3 qrs., 7 Íbs., 8 oz., 6 dwts., 5 grains, into grains. With much time and trouble to all, a large proportion would for certain commit one or more mistakes in the process; and some might never get through at all, in the weights and measures at least, unless they could refresh their memories as to some part or other of the unsystematic medley. Such being our present nonconformity system, how are these puzzles dealt with decimally? Simply by pointing off the successive grades, or conversely, by erasing the decimal points. The two questions are thus instantaneously answered: £1,527.6.4.3, and 10,253,937,865 grains. The answer is not worked, it is simply read. Of course every one has not such long calculations as these to go through; but every one has something, more or less, of this kind daily and hourly in ordinary or business life, and wanting the decimal facility, all the multiplication and division becomes a superfluous toil. In short the disadvantage in all that relates to numbers in quitting our arithmetical basis is manifest, continuous, and universal. That basis stands as the common figure, while money, weights, and measures are, as it were, so many varieties of its clothing. The latter must be adapted to the former and not left to other forms, even if in the abstract superior. As well might a tailor cut his suits from some model Apollo instead of his customer's own shape; nor would the customer feel much more comfortable even if convinced that Apollo's figure was the better of the two. An International Unit.-The grand test of suitability must be general use. Thus tried, we find a middle region of fairly suitable units from a franc to a dollar. Lower values, as the real and the piastre, provoke the substitution of a higher unit when large amounts are dealt with. The Turks, for instance, whose piastre is only 14d., tell up their revenues or debt by "purses," while a Frenchman is loyal to his franc even up to "milliards," and an American to his dollar in thousand millions. Our pound is of course the most convenient of all in such high-value regions, but it entirely fails elsewhere. The trading classes ignore it to a very great extent, as their shops and stalls everywhere testify, by such ticketed prices as 258., 50s., 100s., even 120s. upwards, instead of pounds. The vast mass of the poorer classes is still further from the pound. Probably more than half the money dealings of all classes together are for values under a pound. What does this mean, and what its disadvantage? No less than this, that of all this everlasting business of society the greater part is done in fractions instead of integers, which is much as though a traveller took one part of his journey in the usual forward motion and the other part backwards. The disadvantage is not felt in each individual step or even in a hundred, it is in the huge collective total of the journey. It is like the minute fraction of extra cost that seemed quite unworthy of attention, until we could realize that even the hundredth of a penny was important in millions of yards. The franc, then, seems the lowest, as the dollar seems the highest, value that experience indicates as suitable by the test of general use. The other principal units are all under the dollar, our solitary and anomalous pound excepted. Perhaps the special well-being of America assists a rather high unit, thus confirming the view of its extreme position; but the scale of modern finance requires the highest value the dollar rather than the franc. But, again, authority and habit cannot be ignored in this question, and the franc is backed by eighty millions of people comprised in the successful International League of 1865. The choice is perhaps restricted to one or other of these two units; either of them is greatly more suitable to us than the pound. The Decimal Association has decided on a ten-franc unit. By the foregoing data this is proved obviously too high. The countless users of a franc unit will not, indeed cannot, rise to a ten-franc. The Association is a great authority; but another no less, the Paris International Conference of 1867, preferred the five-franc, that is, the dollar value. Our present moneys, the Association contend, could be readily adapted to the ten-franc unit: true, but so they could to the five-franc, and even more readily; for with the small alteration suggested last year by Mr. Lowe, the new coinage would be fifths of a pound (the new unit) and double pounds, or ten times the unit. The subsidiary silver and copper money would, with their allowable margin of seigniorage, be as easily dealt with. Here he would remark that, to carry out decimals in their integrity, there should be no intermediate coins; most countries, indeed all countries, decimal as well as non-decimal, are inveterate in this practice, which violates all decimal simplicity. Of what importance is the International Arrangement?-Persons not undistinguished have answered in effect, "None;" little more than a convenience to excursionists. Such views seem incredible. There are certain great barriers to general intercourse—the foreign element, the different language, and the different moneys and measures. An international monetary and metric system would entirely sweep away the last, not perhaps the least, of these barriers. Statistics on Tobacco, its Use and Abuses. By R. WILKINSON, L.C.P. The main object of this paper was to show that the use of tobacco in its various forms tended to weaken the vital functions of the body, to interrupt the uniform ity of their action, to rob life of much of its natural enjoyment, and to shorten the period of its duration. In commenting on the diversity of opinion amongst the most eminent surgeons on this subject, the author argued that if pharmacy be really a science, its principles should not be less definite, nor their operation less uniform in their results than in ordinary sciences. By careful compilers it is ascertained that in Great Britain there is an annual increase of consumption of tobacco of about 750,000 lbs. weight. In 1861, the quantity imported into this country was 34,828,441 lbs. The number of the male population at that time, aged fifteen years and upwards, was eight millions; and supposing only half of them to be smokers, it would give more than eight pounds to each smoker! Cigars and snuff do not come into this calculation. With respect to the revenue from this source, the following particulars may be relied on, as they are copied from Government returns:-"In 1839, the duty was £3,587,663; 1847, £4,278,893; 1857, £5,272,470; 1859, £6,542,000." These figures do not give the actual cost of smoking, snuffing, and chewing; we must add the whole paraphernalia of snuff-boxes and pipes of all descriptions, numberless and nameless, the construction of which has taxed the ingenuity of craftsmen; and by these additions we shall realize as much more as the duty, and thus produce the startling fact that £13,000,000 sterling of national wealth, and much industry that might have been better employed, are worse than wasted. On Local Taxation. By O. WILLIAMS, A report was presented to parliament last Session by a Committee of the House of Commons recommending that a moiety of the local taxation now paid by tenants should be transferred to owners of property. Mr. Williams maintains that this change would be so very far short of the requirements of the case as not to be worth the while to make it. He suggests that the area of payers should be very much enlarged, and maintains that the reasons for collecting the local taxes upon the same principle and by the same machinery as the income- and property-tax are very much the same. In his paper he shows that the poor-rate is a personal and not a property-tax; that all other local taxation is based upon the poor-rate assessments; and that, when the rent of property was originally fixed upon as the measure of the ability of each to pay according to his means, then the measure was much more just than under present circumstances, because the great bulk of income was derived from land, very little from foreign commerce. As immense profits are now made from trade, the writer urges that those profits should contribute, along with all kinds of house and other property, as for national taxation in the property-tax. He shows that, at present, owners pay all local taxes in large towns, where the great bulk of the population reside, upon property let at the net yearly rent of £13 and under; that if the recommendation of the Committee were carried out, owners would still have to pay all taxes on this very large class of property; and that the change practically would reach houses rented above £13 per annum net, the gross rental of which would range between £18 and £20 per annum. Shift half of the taxation from tenants to owners of such houses, and the owners will at once increase the rentals by the same amount. What matter to the tenants whether they pay to the tax-collector or the landlord? It is expanding commerce which necessitates wide, long, and good roads, brings into existence quite an army of police to protect its products, requires hundreds of thousands of hands to work it, and, surely, commerce should contribute directly towards all local taxation. After the payment of the interest upon the national debt, the great bulk of the remainder is expended upon the army and navy. And how are they employed? Mainly in protecting the lives of Her Majesty's subjects. In times of war those who have most property do not object to contribute most towards the expense of protecting it, and why should they not do so in times of peace. The army protects life and property, and so do the police force; the navy is similarly engaged on the seas; how are our river-police employed? the difference is not great, Then a glance should be taken at the paving, improvement, and lighting rates. All personalty should contribute towaids them. Good wide roads are འ greatly for the convenience of commerce; were roads narrow and in bad repair, wealth would not accumulate so very rapidly, nor would property or commercial products be as safe in banks and warehouses if streets were badly lighted. And the wear and tear of the roads, in the main arteries, is enormous by the grinding, crushing, and heavy loads drawn over them. Narrow streets have constantly to be widened by the growing demands of commerce, and it should be compelled to contribute towards the expense, which it would do through a property- and income-tax. Then commerce should contribute towards the expense of an abundant watersupply, i. e. according to the value of products protected, as by insurance, not by a mere rate on a warehouse. A property-and income-tax would be an approximation. Prevention is better than cure. Commerce should contribute towards the Library, Museum, and Education Rates, because property is safer in the midst of the educated. Mr. Williams shows that 1d. in the pound for the Library and Museum or poor-rate yields about £6300 per annum within the parliamentary borough of Liverpool; that 1d. in the pound for the property- and income-tax yields about £39,000 within the same area; and that a rate, on the principle of the propertyand income-tax, of about d. in the pouud would yield as much money as the present excessive rates of over 6s. in the pound. He advocates that national and local taxes should be collected by the same collectors; that on the face of the tax-bills should be printed in two lines, National Taxes and Local Taxes; that the collectors should pay to the Government the national and to the local authorities the local taxes collected. And he suggests that the poor-rate authorities, the watch, education, sanitary, water, improvement, indeed that all committees should send into the mayors of the several boroughs the sums required by each for the next year; that they, respectively, should be required to send the amount required to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who, again, would fix the rate to yield the amounts required and to be collected with, but separate from, the Government taxes. In this way the same local authorities as at present would have the expending of our taxation, maintaining the golden feature that those who pay shall expend their money through their representatives. Exceptional legislation is recommended, instead of a national bill, as the writer believes that it would be much easier to get a local bill than a general measure through the House. MECHANICAL SCIENCE. On a New Steam-power Meter. By Messrs. ASHTON and STOREY. On the unprotected state of Liverpool. By Admiral Sir EDWARD BELCHER, K.C.B., F.R.G.S. On a New Heat-Engine. By A. W. BICKERTON, F.C.S. The engine is intended to be worked by the expansion of crude nitrogen or common air, under the influence of heat. The air is heated in a serpentine system of tubes passing up and down inside a flue which surrounds the fireplace: the fire itself does not come in contact with the tubes; but as they entirely surround the fireplace, loss by radiation and conduction is prevented. The air to be heated is compressed and forced into the tubes at the end most distant from the fire, and as it travels forward it is gradually heated; so that the air to be heated is travelling towards, and the products of combustion away from the fire: in this way the heat is almost all abstracted from the products of combustion and given to the air, thus preventing the loss that usually occurs by the hot gases passing up the chimney, The air that has been expanded is allowed to pass out of the tubes from the end nearest the fire, and to act upon a piston under full pressure through part of its stroke; it is then cut off and allowed to expand until the pressure is a little above that of the air, but it is still much hotter than the air; it then enters an air-chamber, and part of it is used for the blast of the fire, which is in a firebrick chamber without bars, the ashes fusing and flaming off as slag: the remainder of the spent air not used as a blast is mixed with the products of combustion immediately above the fire and before they enter the flue, thus diminishing the intensity of the heat and preventing its injuring the tubes, and also using up the heat of the spent air in helping to heat a fresh supply. The complete cycle consists of the following steps:-Air is compressed, is forced into tubes, is then heated, then acts upon a piston, and a part of the spent air, which still retains considerable heat, is used as the blast and the rest in heating a fresh supply; thus the real work at our disposal is the difference between the compressing and working cylinders. The above description applies to an engine where air is used; when nitrogen is used, the same gas is used over and over again, and slight modifications are necessary, but the general principle is the same. By these means it is hoped that a considerable amount of the loss of heat that must accompany the use of steam may be avoided, especially that which passes up the chimney and that which passes away with the water that becomes heated in condensing the steam, an amount many times that which is converted into work in the steam-engine. On a New System of Testing the Quality of the Malleable Metals and Alloys, with Experimental Illustrations. By GUSTAV BISCHOF, Jun. Superior qualities of malleable metals and alloys are characterized by their being able permanently to extend in all directions by rolling or hammering without rupture, whilst inferior qualities break before reaching the maximum of extension which the former can endure. The cause of this is the difference of the cohesive power in different qualities of the same metal or alloy. From this it must be concluded that if different qualities of the same metal or alloy have been rolled in exactly the same manner, the better their quality the oftener they can, after rolling, be bent in reverse directions at a certain angle without breaking. Upon this principle my test is based. The to-and-fro movements which, for instance, pure zinc, the best and the most inferior quality of commercial zinc hitherto tested, withstood without breaking, under the conditions presently described, were respectively in the ratio of 103, 54, and 19; for a good quality of steel, charcoal iron prepared by puddling, and ordinary bar iron the ratio was 100, 43, and 26; for different qualities of commercial copper between 100 and 19; for different qualities of commercial tin between 100 and 16, &c. It is obvious that once having such figures as standards, any other figure obtained in testing metals or alloys will indicate their quality in reference to the quality of the standard, the method being the more reliable, as properties which are essential for practical purposes form the criterion. The accuracy and saving of time and labour through this test will be estimated from the fact, that, for instance, the deteriorating effect of as little as 1 part of tin upon 10 million parts of pure zinc, or of 1 part of cadmium upon 250,000 parts of pure zinc, can be detected with certainty in less than one hour, whilst such traces would probably escape the notice of a chemist if he spent a fortnight in analyzing. As the rolling of samples for comparative tests must always be effected under the same circumstances, the shape of the different samples must be alike before the rolling is commenced. Metals which do not, or not materially, alter in quality through fusion, are melted and poured into iron moulds of the required size, whilst metals which alter in quality through fusion are cut into bars of the required size. These bars are then, with or without annealing, according to the nature of the metal or alloy, rolled in a test rolling-mill until they have a standard weight. To the central screw of the rolling-mill which actuates the two screws which press upon the upper roller a dial-plate with pointer is attached, enabling one to 1870. 14 |