PROFESSOR LYON PLAYFAIR, C.B., F.R.S.

PROFESSOR OF CHEMISTRY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH.

Dear Sir,

I Dedicate these pages to your Children, whom I often had the pleasure of seeing at the Polytechnic during my direction of that Institution. I do so as a mark of respect and appreciation of your talent and zeal, and of your public-spirited advocacy of the Claims of Science in this great and commercial country.

Without making you responsible in any way for the shortcomings of this humble work on Elementary Science, allow me to subscribe myself,

Dear Sir,

Yours most respectfully,

JOHN HENRY PEPPER.

CONTENTS.

PAGE
[INTRODUCTION.]1
[CHAPTER I.]
THE PROPERTIES OF MATTER—IMPENETRABILITY3
[CHAPTER II.]
CENTRIFUGAL FORCE17
[CHAPTER III.]
THE SCIENCE OF ASTRONOMY19
[CHAPTER IV.]
CENTRE OF GRAVITY32
[CHAPTER V.]
SPECIFIC GRAVITY48
[CHAPTER VI.]
ATTRACTION OF COHESION59
[CHAPTER VII.]
ADHESIVE ATTRACTION67
[CHAPTER VIII.]
CAPILLARY ATTRACTION69
[CHAPTER IX.]
CRYSTALLIZATION73
[CHAPTER X.]
CHEMISTRY81
[CHAPTER XI.]
CHLORINE, IODINE, BROMINE, FLUORINE129
[CHAPTER XII.]
CARBON, BORON, SILICON, SELENIUM, SULPHUR, PHOSPHORUS151
[CHAPTER XIII.]
FRICTIONAL ELECTRICITY173
[CHAPTER XIV.]
VOLTAIC ELECTRICITY193
[CHAPTER XV.]
MAGNETISM AND ELECTRO-MAGNETISM206
[CHAPTER XVI.]
ELECTRO-MAGNETIC MACHINES211
[CHAPTER XVII.]
THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH218
[CHAPTER XVIII.]
RUHMKORFF'S, HEARDER'S, AND BENTLEY'S COIL APPARATUS230
[CHAPTER XIX.]
MAGNETO-ELECTRICITY241
[CHAPTER XX.]
DIA-MAGNETISM247
[CHAPTER XXI.]
LIGHT, OPTICS, AND OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS255
[CHAPTER XXII.]
THE REFRACTION OF LIGHT298
[CHAPTER XXIII.]
REFRACTING OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS303
[CHAPTER XXIV.]
THE ABSORPTION OF LIGHT327
[CHAPTER XXV.]
THE INFLECTION OR DIFFRACTION OF LIGHT328
[CHAPTER XXVI.]
THE POLARIZATION OF LIGHT335
[CHAPTER XXVII.]
HEAT352
[CHAPTER XXVIII.]
THE STEAM-ENGINE406
[CHAPTER XXIX.]
THE STEAM-ENGINE—continued418