In answer to questions put to him by different members of the Section, the Baron stated that,

The difference in France between the lowest price and the medium price was as thirty-four to forty, and though that variation made but little difference to the consumer, it was not so to the grower, who had to estimate it on large quantities. In France the land was more divided than in England, the num-ber of growers being no less than five millions; the ordinary tenure was one half of the produce, the leases being on three, six, and nine years; and hence it followed that, in times of scarcity, the proprietor bore one half of the suffering, as, when the prices fell, the contract still continued. He did not mean to contend for the position, that, abstractedly, a season of plenty was inimical to population, but the results he had given made it obvious that low prices were not, in themselves, the constituents of prosperity. The solution might be that, a sudden fall in prices, though regarded as advantageous to the mass of the population, might entail great suffering and distress on those engaged in agriculture, and that would account for the results he had given. Another fact, too, must be kept in view, that labour always bore a proportion in value to the price of commodities. At the close of the discussion the thanks of the meeting were unanimously voted to Baron Dupin for his interesting communication.

Colonel Sykes read a paper entitled, "On the utility of co-operating Committees of Trade and Agriculture, in the commercial and manufacturing towns of Great Britain; as projected by the Right Hon. Holt Mackenzie, and Mr. Forbes Royle, and advocated by the Right Hon. Sir Alexander Johnstone, and Sir Charles Forbes, Bart., for investigating more extensively the natural and artificial products of India."

The object of this paper was to incite the formation of committees in the manufacturing and commercial towns of Great Britain, either in co-operating with the Royal Asiatic Society, or independently, for the following objects: 1st. To ascertain what articles, the produce of India, now imported into England, are of inferior quality to those produced in other countries; to investigate the causes of their inferiority, and to explain and suggest the means of removing them. 2nd., To ascertain what articles, now in demand in England, or likely to be used, if furnished, but not yet generally forming part of our commerce with India, could be profitably provided in that country, or their place advantageously supplied by other things belonging to it; to take measures for making known in India the wants of England; and in England, the capabilities of India; and to suggest and facilitate such experiments as may be necessary to determine the practicability of rendering the resources of one country subservient to the exigences of the other. 3rd., To ascertain what useful articles are produced in countries possessing climates resembling those of the different parts of India, which are not known to this country, and, vice versa to consider the means of transplanting the productions and transferring the processes of one country to another, and to encourage and facilitate all useful interchanges of that nature. 4th., With the above views, and for the sake of general knowledge and improvement, to consider how the statistics of Indian agriculture and arts, including climate, meteorology, geology, botany, and zoblogy, may be most conveniently and economically ascertained and recorded; and to encourage and facilitate all inquiries directed to these objects. Numerous illustrations of those views were quoted, particularly from Mr. Royle.

It was stated that, so recently as 1784, an American vessel arrived at

Liverpool with eight bags of cotton, which were seized, under the belief that America did not produce cotton; and now her produce is 400 millions of lbs. annually, the greater part of which is consumed by Great Britain; and it is a curious fact, that the native country of the sea-island cotton was supposed to be Persia. The Carolina rice, which sells at 5d. per lb., whilst East India rice sells at 24d. and 3d., originated in a single bag of East India, given by Mr. C. Dabors, of the India House, to an American trader. All the coffee of the West Indies originated in a single plant in the hot-houses of Amsterdam. It was stated that, in 1792, Mr. Browne, the resident at Cossimbazar, told the Council at Calcutta, that if he should think proper to send a few cwts. of lac to Europe, it might be procured at Calcutta. The annual consumption of lac in England is now estimated at 600,000lbs. A variety of other instances of a similar description, and of comparatively recent date, were adduced, to illustrate the importance of the subject now submitted to the consideration of the Section.

A very interesting paper was also read by Mr. Fripp, of Bristol, to this Section, on the statistics of the popular education in that city.

The population of Bristol and its suburbs (now incorporated in the new borough) according to the census of 1831, was 104,378, which number, at the usual rate of increase, 1 per cent. per annum, must have become about 112,438 at the present time. The number of children attending schools, according to the returns obtained, is 14,717, of whom

The total number of schools, of which returns have been obtained, is 128, of which

Deducting 1645 from the above total, viz., 1526 in the day-schools, and 119 in the infant-schools, who attend also in the Sunday-schools, there remain 14,717, as before given, and the following are their ages:

The following table gives the number in connexion with the various sects of religion :

The only important omission in the mass of facts thus collected, was with respect to the Roman Catholic Schools, no detailed returns of which, Mr. F. said, had reached him from the resident clergyman, though they had been twice applied for; he had, however, that morning obtained the total number of scholars attending those schools, which was 215-123 boys, 92 girls; being an increase of 58 boys and 33 girls since 1821. The returns of the children attending schools in connexion with the Wesleyan Methodists, included six Sunday schools (with 1260 scholars) which are not locally within the borough. but, being attended by many children resident in the outskirts of the city, and both supported and governed by a committee within the borough, they might with propriety be comprised in the borough-returns, whilst, on the other hand, it was probable that some charity-schools of minor consequence had not been returned. The returns were confined to public schools, whether day, infant, or Sunday, no account having been obtained of the different classes of private schools.

The only communication of interest and importance which remains to be noticed, or rather which at this late period we have time to notice, is one made to one of the evening-meetings, when Sir William Hamilton read a letter recently received from Sir John Herschel, at the Cape of Good Hope, giving an account of the progress of his observations on the nebula of that part of the southern hemisphere, a description of several of which he had forwarded to Professor Schumacher, for insertion in his Astronomical Ephemeris.

As an instance of the clearness of the sky, it was stated by an observer that in forty-two successive days there were only three in which he could not see Venus in broad day-light; and Sir John Herschel stated that he had also Under these circumwritten a letter by the light of an eclipse of the moon. stances, the starry heavens presented a brilliance of which the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere can have no conception; the line from Orion to Antinous being remarkably rich and brilliant, appearing as a continuous blaze of light, with, however, a few patches of the sky destitute of stars. The Magellanic clouds were described as curious objects, differing from other nebulæ apparently in the greater degree of condensation of the stars of which they were composed. He had also observed several planetary nebulæ, the appearance of some of which gave him at first the idea that they were real planetary bodies; and it was not until after he had observed one several times that he could divest himself of the idea that he had discovered a new planet more inclined than that of Pallas.

We must here break off. Although the account with which we have been enabled to furnish our readers will, we believe, be found clear and correct, as far as it goes, we acknowledge, with regret, that it has not

been in our power to do full justice to the many excellent communications which were made on this occasion. Indeed, the interval between the close of the meeting and the period at which our Magazine must necessarily be in the press, is so very short, that we have, in several instances, been under the necessity of availing ourselves of some of the very able reports published in the Bristol and London papers, to complete our own notes of the proceedings.

Having, in the commencement of this Report, alluded to an accidental and very unimportant deviation from the programme of the meeting, in respect to that most useful auxiliary to the Association, the Inquiry-room, which, although announced as a place of reference on Saturday, on which day great numbers of persons arrived, was in reality a place where no information could be got until Monday; having, moreover, alluded to what we must be allowed to call the rapacity of the innkeepers, in advancing the price of their accommodations, a rapacity which has, as far as we know, no precedent, in respect to the meetings of this Association, it remains for us to bear testimony, as we do with great sincerity, to the cordial hospitality with which a large portion of the Members of the Association (those most eminent in science) were received and entertained in the private dwellings of the inhabitants; and to the munificient liberality which characterized the public reception of the Association. All the places of public resort, which could possess an interest with its members, were thrown open to them; and they were invited to visit all private collections of paintings, museums, manufactories, ancient buildings, &c. A steam-packet was provided to convey a geological party, on Friday, along the coast of Wales, round the Holms, up the coast of Somerset, and back to Bristol; and boats and a déjeûné were supplied for those who preferred to be rowed up the Avon, to the interesting excavations which are making to bring the Western Railway to Bristol. Refreshments were supplied in abundance for all who applied for them at the Theatre and at the Promenade; and, in short, everything was done on a scale worthy of the great and ancient British commercial city, which on this occasion entertained the British Association of Science*.

The Association terminated this, its sixth, assembly at midnight of Saturday the 27th of August, having sat the whole of the week. The number of members present exceeded that of any previous meeting, and amounted to about 1350. About 2000l. was voted for the prosecution of various inquiries, experiments, &c.

The seventh meeting is announced to be held in Liverpool, in the month of September, 1837. The day of meeting is yet undecided. The Presidents elected are, the Earl of Burlington, Dr. Dalton, Sir Philip Egerton, and the Rev. E. Stanley. Manchester, Newcastle-on-Tyne, Leeds, and Worcester, were competitors for the honour of receiving the Association.

* The sum of 8007. was, we believe, raised for this purpose, by local subscriptions.

166

MISCELLANIES.

Patent-Law Improvement-Bill. MR. MACKINNON has failed in getting this Bill even a second reading, and the Parliament has been prorogued. This grievance" of the poor inventor must therefore still be borne. Mr. M. has given notice that he will make another attempt in the next session.

66

and as having given some attention professionally to the subject, to offer a few observations upon it.

06

The legislation which is demanded for the regulation of patents is essentially reformatory, and it seems the briefest way to obtain a notion of what it ought to be, to state the several evil consequences which follow the law as it exists. Generally, it may be said, that a patent, instead of being a reward for genius, and a privilege to be desired, is a trap for the unwary, a source of heart-breaking annoyance, and in many instances the cause of utter ruin; and for all this an enormous tax is imposed, almost entirely in the form of fees to high public functionaries who do nothing in the matter.

During the late meeting of the British Association at Bristol, Sir David Brewster, Mr. Babbage, and a few other members, feeling deeply the oppressive effects of the present law both on the inventive genius and the productive energy of the country, met several times, and passed resolutions expressive of the desirability of an early and an effectual removal of the evil. One of the parties stated that "he had been "1. The glaring inconsistency and abfrom his professional position, for many surdity of passing patents, of course, is years a depositary of inventions, &c., the manifest root of all the evils attendwhich could not be patented under ing the system. The patent is the the present exorbitantly-high Patent-privilege of a monopoly of the market of fees and stamps, but which would, the patent article, as a reward for its whenever they were promulgated, put originality and utility. But it is given at least ten thousand hands to work on to any one who asks it on his own affinew engines, products, &c." davit, to his belief on these two imPractical Suggestions for a Reform of portant points.

the Patent-Laws.

THE following view of the subject was presented to the meeting of the British Association by Mr. James Simpson, Advocate, of Edinburgh. It may be observed, that this gentleman is one of the ablest supporters of the opinion, that the specification should be examined and reported upon by a commission of competent persons before the patent be granted.

"To influence a reform of the laws of patents for new inventions, was one of the leading objects of the formation of the British Association*. The subject, however, not having yet come under their consideration, I have humbly ventured, at the request of Sir David Brewster,

*It is remarkable that from some cause or other, which ought to be ascertained and exposed, this "leading object," though repeatedly presented to the attention of the Managers of the Association, has never been permitted to be discussed. They have uniformly denied it admission to any section. They did so this time at Bristol.

On both points the

patentee, for he becomes such in the course of the official forms, on paying his fees, may be in error or in fraud; on both points, may have stolen another's invention, or taken a monoply of an article sold in every shop and market. If he has invaded the rights of prior inventors, or of the public, his patent is waste-paper, and ought to be so, and he must defend himself in a court of law. But the extreme looseness of the practice naturally gave rise to a leaning against the patentee, and the adoption of a number of rigid rules and technicalities, of all of which he was forced to get clear before he was secured of his privilege. There could be no distinction of persons, so that an Arkwright, a Watt, and a Dollond, was as much put at disadvantage as the least respectable patentee; and unable to overcome the vexatious obstacles that rendered their right a mockery, after expending vast sums, actually lost it on the most frivolous technicalities. Having, as I observed, had some practice as counsel in patent