To Mrs. Lourey, Exeter, for a hat of doubled split wheat straw, Five Guineas.

To Mr. J. Horne, jun. Kenninghall, near Bury St. Edmunds, for Leghorn plat made of English spring wheat, Ten Guineas.

LONDON ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY.

April 14.-At this meeting there was read "A comparison of observations made on double stars." Communicated in a letter to J. F. W. Herschel, Esq. Foreign Secretary to this Society, by Professor Struve, of Dorpat. Addressing himself to Mr. Herschel, M. Struve, says, "You may easily imagine with what interest I have perused the work on double stars, by yourself and Mr South, and with what pleasure I found that, indepen dently of one another, we have arrived at the same results and deductions. Although my instruments were formerly inferior to your's, with respect to measurements (as I could only observe differences of AR on the meridian, and angles of position with a 5-feet telescope of Troughton), they may be considered in an optical point of view equal to your's; viz. the 5-feet telescope of Troughton's to your's attached to the 5-feet equatorial; and the 8-feet one of Dollond to your's attached to the 7-feet equatorial; and after receiving the repeating micrometer of Fraunhofer, which I fixed to Troughton's telescope, every desideratum in this instrument was fulfilled."

M. Struve, however, found himself involved in some practical difficulties, until the arrival of Fraunhofer's large refractors, an instrument which, with respect to double stars, left him nothing further to wish; and he determined on a new examination of all the double stars

observed before (whether by Sir W. Herschel, Messrs. Herschel and South, or himself), as well as on a minute inquiry of the heavens from the north pole to-15° of declination, with respect to these objects. He has now accomplished one-third of the labour, and has found 1000 double stars of the first 4 classes; among which 800 are new, and of these nearly 300 are of the first class. He extends the examination to all stars of the 8th and (8-9) magnitude.

The author after detailing a few more preliminary remarks, enters into a comparison of many of his observations with those of Sir W. Herschel and of Messrs. Herschel and South, pointing out many cases in which their coincidence is truly remarkable ;-others in which there are discrepancies, evidently attributable to the relative or real motions of the stars in the intervals between the observations; others in which the diversities seem occasioned by the instruments employed ;-and others in which there are anomalies which do not, as yet, admit of explanation. This part of M. Struve's communication is not susceptible of abridgement.

New Patents Sealed, 1826.

To William Wood of Summer Hill Grove, in the county of Northumberland, Gent. for his invention of an apparatus for destroying the inflammable air, (which is commonly known by the name of fire damps in mines)— Sealed 22d April-6 months for Inrolment.

To John Petty Gillespie, of Grosvenor Street, parish of Saint Mary, Newington, in the county of Surrey, Gentleman, for his invention of a new spring or combination of springs for the purpose of forming an elastic resisting medium-5th April- 6 months.

To Samuel Brown, of Eagle Lodge, Old Brompton, in 'the county of Middlesex, Gentleman, for his invention of certain improvements on his former patent, dated December 4th, 1823, for an engine, or instrument; for effecting a vacuum, and thus producing powers by which water may be raised and machinery put it motion-April 25th-, 6 months.

To Francis Halliday, of Ham, in the county of Surrey, Esq. for his having invented an apparatus or machine for preventing the inconvenience arising from smoke in chimneys, which he denominates a wind guard-April 25th-6 months.

To John Williams, of the Commercial Road, in the county of Middlesex, ironmonger, and ships' fire hearth manufacturer, for his invention of certain improvements on ships' hearths, and apparatus for cooking by steamApril 27th-2 months.

To William Choice, of Strahan Terrace, auctioneer, and Robert Gibson, of White Conduit Terrace, builder, in the parish of Saint Mary, Islington, in the county of Middlesex, for their invention of certain improvements in machinery for making bricks-April 27th-2 months.

To Charles Kennedy, of Virginia Terrace, Great Dover Road, in the county of Surrey, surgeon and apothecary, for his invention of certain improvements in the apparatus used for cupping-April 29th-6 months.

To John Goulding, citizen of the United States of America, but now residing in Cornhill, in the City of

London, engineer, for his invention of certain improvements in the machines used for carding, stubbing, slivering, roving, or spinning wool, cotton, waste silk, short stapled hemp and flax, or any other fibrous materials or mixture thereof-May 2d-6 months.

To Arnold Buffurn, late of Massachusetts, in the United States of America, but now residing in Jewin Street, in the City of London, hat manufacturer, (being one of the people called quakers) and John M'Curdy, of Cecil Street, Strand, in the county of Middlesex, Esq. in consequence of communications, made to them by a certain foreigner residing abroad, and discoveries by themselves, for improvements in steam engines-May 6th-6 months.

To Sir Robert Seppings, Knight, a commissioner and surveyor of our navy, of Somerset House, in the county of Middlesex, for his invention of certain improvements in the construction of fids or apparatus for striking top masts and top gallant masts in ships-May 6th-6 months.

To William Fenner, of Bushell Rents, Wapping, in the county of Middlesex, carpenter, for his invention of improvements in machinery or apparatus for curing smokey and cleansing foul chimnies-May 6th-6 months.

To Alexander Allard, de la Court, of Great Winchester Street, in the City of London, Esq. for his invention of a new instrument, and improvements in certain well known instruments applicable to the organ of sightMay 6th-6 months.

To Joseph Schaller, of Regent Street, in the county of Middlesex, ladies' shoe-maker, for his invention of certain improvements in the construction or manufacture of clogs, pattens, or substitutes for the same-May 6th6 months.

To Edward Heard, of the parish of St. Leonard, Shoreditch, in the county of Middlesex, chemist, for his invention of a certain new composition or compositions to be used for the purpose of washing in sea and other water -May 8th-6 months.

To Levy Zachariah, jun. of Portsea, in the county of Hants, pawnbroker, for his new invented combination of materials to be used as fuel-May 8th-6 months.