385

F r a n k l i n I n s t i t u t e .

Quarterly Meeting. The fifty-first quarterly meeting of the Institute was held at their Hall,

on Thursday evening, October 20th, 18,36. TItOMAS FLET(:HER~, Vicc President, presiding. (gT[ARLES l~. TREGO, Rec. Secretary, pro tern. The minutes o[ the last,_ q,uarterly meetin~, were read and approved. D,nati.ns of Bucks were presented by Matthew Carey, Esq., 1L C.

Taylor, Esq., George Fox, Esq., lion. James Harper, Isaac tIay%M. D , Ro~Jt. lIare, M. D., Prof. Alex. D. Bach% Messrs. Carey & Hart, D, Mm~lson, John Ahbmt, of Pinladelphia; Timothy Claxton, Esq., of Boston, Mass; Prof. B. F. Joslin9 of Albany, New York; Prof. John R. Cotting~ of Tauntm], Mass.; the Society instituted in London fiw the encouragement , f Arts, Manufi~ctures ant] Commerce; Francis Baily, Esq. and Petty Vaughan, Esq. of London.

Donations to the Cabinet of Minerals, &e., were presented by Messrs. Ft, iix Fossard, Rufus Tyler, and John L. Pearce, of Philadelphia; Calvin Mason, ~f York, Pa.; Timothy J. Dyre, of Fair Haven, Mass.

Pc(ft. Franklin Bache presente.d a machine for dressing printers' types, formerly the propertyofl)r. Benjamin Franklin.

The Actuary laid on the tables the periodicals received in exchange for lhe ,lour~tal ~t the Institute, since the last meeting.

The Chairman of the Board of Managers presented the fifty-first quar- terly report of the Board to the Institute, which was read and accepted; on tnoti(m~ it was referred [or publication.

The Treasurer presented his report of the finances of the Institute~ for the quarter ending September 50, 1856, which was read and accepted.

Extract from the minutes. TIIOgIAS FLETOUEI% ~rice President.

CmUtLES Bo Ta~c(~o, Rec. See., P. "11.

FiJ'ty fir~t Quarterl N I~eport of the Board of Managers of the t~ranklin Institute.

The transactions of the past quarter of lhe year, furnish but little new naatter to be communicated to the lnstitut% as it has been marked only by the prosecution of the general scientific inquiries in progress at the last tneetin~, anti in making preparation for the active duties of the approaching season. The second part of the Report of the Committee on the explosions of Steam Boilers, has been completed and published, and contains an elab- orate scientific explanation of the causes of such disaslers, and manififld directions and cautions by which they may in a great measure be avoided. A bill l~as also been prepared to be submitted to Congress at ti~eir next session, to enforce the Use of the protective measures which the Committee have deemed important, to give perfect security in the use of SO valuable anagentas steam. I t is hoped that the return of the gentleman to whom ~he results of the experiments on the strength of the matemals employed in steam machinery were confided, for the purpose of making a report thereon, will very shortly enable him to complete it. and when that shall be accomplished, the penple ot the United States will be put in possession of information on the interesting subject, embraced in the investigation, of

VOL. XVIII.---No. 6.~D~c~;.~J3Er% 1836. 35