I have kept this demand steadily in view throughout, by selecting subjects which are likely to be interesting to all readers who are sufficiently intelligent to prefer sober fact to sensational fiction, but who, at the same time, do not profess to be scientific specialists.
In the writing of these papers my highest literary ambition has always been to combine clearness and simplicity with some attempt at philosophy.
W. M. W.
Willesden, September, 1882.
CONTENTS.
| PAGE | |
| The Fuel of the Sun | [7] |
| Dr. Siemens’ Theory of the Sun | [38] |
| Another World Down Here | [41] |
| The Origin of Lunar Volcanoes | [50] |
| Note on the Direct Effect of Sun-Spots on Terrestrial Climates | [56] |
| The Philosophy of the Radiometer and its Cosmical Revelations | [59] |
| On the Social Benefits of Paraffin | [65] |
| The Solidity of the Earth | [72] |
| A Contribution to the History of Electric Lighting | [75] |
| The Formation of Coal | [88] |
| The Solar Eclipse of 1871 | [93] |
| Meteoric Astronomy | [104] |
| The “Great Ice Age” and the Origin of the “Till” | [112] |
| The Barometer and the Weather | [140] |
| The Chemistry of Bog Reclamation | [159] |
| Aerial Exploration of the Arctic Regions | [170] |
| The Limits of our Coal Supply | [189] |
| “The Englishman’s Fireside” | [213] |
| “Baily’s Beads” | [221] |
| The Coloring of Green Tea | [223] |
| “Iron Filings” in Tea | [227] |
| Concert-Room Acoustics | [231] |
| Science and Spiritualism | [237] |
| Mathematical Fictions | [251] |
| World-Smashing | [257] |
| The Dying Trees in Kensington Gardens | [261] |
| The Oleaginous Products of Thames Mud: Where they Come from and Where they Go | [266] |
| Luminous Paint | [269] |
| The Origin and Probable Duration of Petroleum | [273] |
| The Origin of Soap | [281] |
| Oiling the Waves | [285] |
| On the so-called “Crater Necks” and “Volcanic Bombs” of Ireland | [290] |
| Travertine | [296] |
| The Action of Frost in Water-Pipes and on Building Materials | [300] |
| The Corrosion of Building Stones | [308] |
| Fire-Clay and Anthracite | [312] |
| Count Rumford’s Cooking-Stoves | [320] |
| The “Consumption of Smoke” | [327] |
| The Air of Stove-Heated Rooms | [332] |
| Ventilation by Open Fireplaces | [337] |
| Domestic Ventilation | [341] |
| Home Gardens for Smoky Towns | [351] |
| Solids, Liquids, and Gases | [367] |
| Murchison and Babbage | [386] |
| Atmosphere versus Ether | [389] |
| A Neglected Disinfectant | [392] |
| Another Disinfectant | [393] |
| Ensilage | [394] |
| The Fracture of Comets | [396] |
| The Origin of Comets | [398] |