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vides him with food for a year. This great cheapness of food leads to excessive laziness and misery. There is no stimulus to labour, and we find that the sagoeaters have generally the most miserable of huts and the scantiest of clothing. In the western islands of the Archipelago, where rice is the common food, and some regular labour and foresight are required to produce it, the populations are in general more wealthy, more industrious, and more intelligent, and there is much more likelihood of introducing among them the rudiments of knowledge and civilization. The more detailed information given in the paper of which this is an abstract was collected by myself during three voyages to various parts of the coasts and islands of New Guinea, in the years 1857, 1858, and 1860, mostly undertaken in native prahus, and with a view to the investigation of the natural history of the country.

On the Human Remains found in the course of the Excavations at Wroxeter. By THOMAS WRIGHT, F.S.A.

Mr. Wright stated that human remains had been found in the excavations at Uriconium under three different classes of circumstances:-First were the ancient Roman cemeteries outside the town, which had been partially explored last autumn, and which were now under a course of further exploration. In an ethnological point of view the discoveries here were of comparatively little use, because, as all the interments hitherto discovered were by cremation, no skulls or other perfect bones were found among the remains of the dead; but we derived from them the knowledge of the important fact that the inhabitants of Uriconium continued to burn their dead, and, in fact, seem to have had no other mode of burial, until the latest period of the existence of the city, that is, after the Roman government had been Secondly, there were the remains of the inhabitants withdrawn from the island. of the town, men, women, and children, who had been massacred by the savage barbarians when the city was taken and destroyed. He told several interesting anecdotes of the circumstances under which these remains had been found; and he In the third stated that the skulls of these people presented no peculiarities which might not be found in any civilized town, such as Uriconium undoubtedly was. place came the deformed skulls which had been the subject of so much discussion, a discussion which seemed not yet to have led to any satisfactory result. He described the circumstances and conditions under which these skulls had been found, and stated reasons for suspecting that the interments belonged to a considerably later date than had been supposed. His friend Dr. Henry Johnson, of Shrewsbury, in a very able paper recently read before the Royal Society, had undertaken to show that there are chemical elements in the earth in which these remains lay which might have so far affected the substance of the bone as to render it pliable and capable of becoming deformed after death. But, supposing this to be the case, we seem to want entirely the mechanical cause of deformation. The bodies were not buried sufficiently deep to have a weight of earth upon them; in fact, when buried, their graves must have been very shallow. No weight of buildings or of ruins had been laid upon them; but, on the contrary, from the quantity of small fibres of roots which are mixed with the earth, it appeared probable that during the middle ages the spot had been covered with low brushwood, which was usually the case with deserted ruins. He suggested that we can hardly understand why such a cause, affecting bones in this field, should not equally affect the skulls of the bodies interred in the adjacent churchyard; or why all the deformed skulls in this field should have the same deformity, or why the other bones of the body should not be similarly affected. The skulls of the Roman inhabitants, found with a great weight of ruins upon them, have in no instance yet observed undergone any similar deformity; and it must be added that the few skulls not deformed, found among these deformed skulls, were comparatively good types. It is intended to have a fresh and more careful exploration of the ground, in the hope that thereby some further light may be thrown on the subject.

STATISTICAL SCIENCE.

On the Progress of Instruction in Elementary Science among the Industrial Classes under the Science Minutes of the Department of Science and Art. By J. C. BUCKMASTER, B.A.

The author referred to the origin of mechanics' institutions, and the influence of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. The want of a better elementary education was the great obstacle to further improvement. The Royal Dublin Society, the old schools of design, and the industrial museums of Ireland and Scotland were intended to promote, in a variety of ways, a more general knowledge of those arts and sciences which relate to our national industries. In 1852 all these institutions were united under the Board of Trade into a Department of Science and Art. The old schools of design were superseded by drawingschools or schools of art, and 90 of these schools are now in active operation, teaching the elements of art to 92,000 persons, of whom the larger number belong to the working classes. In 1857 the Science and Art Department was placed in connexion with the Committee of Council on Education, and in 1859 a very comprehensive Minute was passed for aiding instruction in the elements of all the natural and applied sciences. There is annually held at South Kensington an examination for teachers of elementary science, which is free to all who give notice of the subjects on which they propose to be examined. The State avoids all the responsibility and expense of training teachers and providing them with employment. At the first examination, in November 1859, there were 57 candidates, of whom 49 were successful; in 1860 there were 89 candidates, of whom 75 were successful; in 1861 there were 103 candidates, of whom 97 were successful. By far the larger number of certificates have been taken by elementary teachers; but certificates have also been taken by a weaver, a printer, a wheelwright, clerks, and assistants in shops. Wherever a class is established, there must be a local committee of at least five persons. This committee superintends the examination of the pupils, which is conducted on the same principle as the Oxford middle-class examinations. For every pupil of the industrial classes who has received 40 lessons from the teacher, and who passes a satisfactory examination in the elements of the subject taught, the teacher receives a payment of £1, and for every first, second, and third grade Queen's prizeman he receives higher payments. The successful pupils receive rewards of books and medals. The department is merely an examining body; it does not pretend to interfere in any way with local organization and authority. All that is looked for is a successful result, and on this the teacher receives his payment. The examinations this year were held in May in 75 places; 60 of these were in connexion with mechanics' institutions. Last year only 563 pupils were examined; this year 1260, of whom 1038 were persons belonging to the industrial classes, and their ages varied from 9 to 53 years.

On the Cotton Famine, and the Substitutes for Cotton. By DAVID CHADWICK, F.S.S., Honorary Secretary of the Manchester Statistical Society.

The civil war in America has stopped our supplies of cotton from the Southern States, which during many years have supplied us with more than three-fourths of our total consumption. In 1860 we received the following supplies of cotton :United States, 2,581,000 bales; Brazil, 103,000 bales; Egypt, 109,000 bales; West Indies, 1000 bales; East Indies, 563,000 bales; total, 3,357,000 bales. The total amounts of cotton imported into Liverpool in the two periods of 81 months were respectively as follow:-To September 1861 (8 months), 2,508,672 bales; to September 1862 (8 months), 725,917 bales; deficiency, 1,782,755 bales. The average price of New Orleans cotton, in September 1861, was from 7&d. to 101d. per lb.; in September 1862, from 24d. to 30d. per lb. ; increase 16 d. to 20d. per ĺb., or more than 200 per cent. In ordinary times the price of yarns (40's) has been from 4d. to 5d. per lb. more than the price of the raw cotton, and a proportionate additional price for weaving. It is now (September 1862) no unusual thing for the spinner and manufacturer to take orders for the yarn and the cloth at the market price

on the day of sale of the raw cotton from which it was made. These facts may be taken as sufficient to indicate the unparalleled extent of the present cotton crisis. It has frequently been asked why the cotton manufacturers have allowed themselves to be to so large an extent dependent on one source of supply. It may be answered that cotton-spinners, like all other tradesmen, have gone to the best and cheapest market. The Southern States of America have hitherto supplied cotton of a better and more uniform quality, in larger quantities, and at a cheaper rate than any other country. Why should the cotton manufacturer be blamed for doing that which every other good tradesman does? But Lancashire has not been unmindful of the rapid increase in the consumption of cotton, and the danger of depending so largely on one source of supply. Mr. Bright's committee on India twenty years ago, the Manchester Chamber of Commerce for the last twenty-five years, and the Cotton Supply Association during the last few years have been continuously calling the attention of all the countries capable of growing cotton to the necessity of new sources of supply. India affords the means of supplying us with three-fourths of all the cotton consumed in Great Britain, and the remainder of our wants could be well supplied by Brazil, West Africa, Egypt, Turkey, and Australia. The misgovernment of India, as shown by the want of roads, ports, and irrigation works, and of that security for capital which will induce private enterprise, is the cause of the vast resources of that great country remaining for so long a period comparatively undeveloped. If contracts could be legally and more promptly enforced, and the restrictions on the purchase of land removed, as recommended by Lord Canning, Lord Stanley, and Mr. Laing, there would be some hope that India would be able to compete successfully with America in the cotton markets of the world. Two years ago the Manchester Cotton Company was established, with a capital of £1,000,000. The company entered into negotiations with the government, who promised to make a new road leading from Darwhar to the new port of Sedashegur, and to improve the harbour at the latter place. On the faith of these promises, the company sent a special commission to India, a staff of engineers, mechanics, workmen, and clerks, and have forwarded two shiploads of improved machinery for cleaning and packing cotton. The cotton company find that the road and the pier are not made as promised, and no reasonable progress is being made with the work. The company's efforts have thus been frustrated, and an immense loss sustained by the vexatious delay which has been occasioned. With such a result, is it surprising that private capitalists refuse to embark in commercial enterprises in India? Other cotton companies have been started, viz., The Jamaica Cotton Company, East India Cotton Agency Company, Venezuela Cotton Company, Western Australian Cotton Company, East India Irrigation and Canal Company; and proposals have been made for a Natal Cotton Company, an Asia Minor Cotton Company, an Ottawa Cotton Company. How has the cotton famine affected the working classes? There are upwards of 500,000 persons employed in the cotton manufacture, of which nearly 400,000 are employed in Lancashire. It may convey a better idea of this number to say that it is equal to 25 towns of 20,000 inhabitants each, all wholly engaged in the cotton trade. The engineers, mechanics, and the workers in iron, steel, brass, copper, tin, and wood, and the shopkeepers and other tradesmen supported by them, may be reckoned in addition at half that number (250,000). The women and children and those not able to work, and dependent entirely on the cotton operatives, may also be taken at 250,000. The total number of persons dependent upon the cotton manufacture may therefore be taken at 1,000,000 persons, of which 800,000 are in Lancashire and the immediate neighbourhood. Lancashire, in 1861, contained 2,464,592 inhabitants, or about one-eighth of the population of England and Wales. Of the 400,000 persons usually employed in Lancashire, more than 150,000 are now entirely out of employment, and more than 120,000 are working short time. Taking those working short time at three days a week, and reckoning them at half the number (60,000), it gives 210,000 persons now totally unemployed. By a careful investigation into the rate of wages in 200 trades and occupations in Lancashire in 1859-60, the author found that the average wages paid to the cotton factory operative was 10s. 34d. each per week, reckoning men, women, and children. Taking the average earnings of the 210,000 persons now thrown out of employment at 10s. per week, the total loss

amounts to £105,000 per week, or £1,365,000 per quarter, or £5,460,000 per year. This estimate is likely to be doubled before Christmas next, and, including trades dependent upon the cotton manufactures, the loss of wages may be taken at £200,000 per week. This grievous calamity falling upon an industrious, high-spirited, and hitherto independent class of people, has found them comparatively unprepared to meet the great emergency. Many who had saved a little money in savings-banks, building-societies, and cooperative associations, have stinted themselves of the actual necessaries of life rather than withdraw the whole of their hard-earned savings. Others less provident, or having large families of young children, have been compelled immediately on the cessation of work to apply for relief. Seeing the great distress occasioned by a short supply of cotton, the important question arises, have we any available substitutes? The substitutes for cotton, or admixtures, which have been proposed during the last few years may be stated as follows:-Flax, the product of Linum usitatissimum, from nearly every country in the world; hemp, the product of a kind of nettle, Cannabis sativa, chiefly from Europe and Asia; jute and bast, the inner bark of a species of lime or linden tree, Corchoris capsularis, from India; New Zealand flax, a bulbous plant of the lily kind, Phormium tenax, from New Zealand; China grass, a nettle of China, India, and the Indian Islands, affording the valuable rhea-fibre; nettle-fibres, obtained from the common stinging-nettle, and other species from the East; Sunn hemps, obtained from leguminous plants, of species allied to the broom, clover, beans, and peas; silk cottons, or Baraguda cotton, the product of a large tree, Bombax ceiba, in South America; pineapple fibre, the produce of the pineapple leaves, from the tropics of the Old and New Worlds; plantain-leaf, from which is obtained Manilla hemp, the product of Musa textilis, from the tropics; aloe-fibre, or agave, a bulbous plant from South America, the large leaves of which produce abundance of fibre. In the Jurors' Report upon the Great Exhibition of 1851,' and the special papers in the 'Journal of the Society of Arts,' Dr. Royle's work on 'The Fibrous Plants of India,' or the reports of Dr. Forbes Watson on the 'Fibres of India,' a large number of fibres are mentioned as cheap, suitable, and sufficient for clothing the natives of several countries entirely independent of the fibre of the cotton-plant. A fibre said to be new, and stated to be available in very large quantities, at a reasonable price, has been forwarded to the author by a foreigner, who refuses to communicate his supposed secret, except upon impracticable terms. Samples of this fibre have been freely submitted to the merchants on 'Change in Manchester and Liverpool, and obtained general appreciation for their attractive appearance. They are long in the staple, somewhat mixed, silky, and fairly white to the eye, but somewhat harsh and rough to the touch. The samples show great delicacy in the shades of dye in the wool. It is stated to be very suitable for mixing with wool, silk, or cotton, or to be worked alone; but no sample of weaving has yet been sent by the inventor. An establishment has recently been founded in Manchester with the object of testing all fibrous materials and ascertaining the purposes for which they may be used. Samples were recently shown, and an offer made to supply forty bales per week during the next twelve months, of a fibre said to be suitable for mixing, which was strong, of good colour, and of a length and uniformity of staple suitable for cotton machinery, thus presenting the three main conditions required in a substitute for cotton. The price of this fibre, which appears like a mixture of jute and rhea, is said to be less than half the present price of Surat cotton. To all inventors, discoverers, and pioneers in the large and fertile fields of fibre fabrication or adaptation, we venture to recommend that they should avoid secresy, and avail themselves of the power of patenting their improvements, so that no unnecessary delay may occur in putting to the test of practical experiment every intelligent suggestion that may appear in any degree likely to afford relief to the fearful distress now prevailing in the cotton districts. The general feeling appears to be that no new fibre is likely to be a substitute for cotton, but that several of those proposed may be useful and valuable admixtures with cotton, silk, wool, flax, and alpaca.

In further illustration of the extent of the distress in the cotton districts, Mr. Chadwick furnished tables compiled from the Reports of the Committee for the Relief of Distress in the Manufacturing Districts, dated March 30, 1863.

The following is an abstract of the tables :

Table No. 1.-The number receiving relief from the guardians and local committees in each district. The total number was 420,243; for the corresponding week in 1861, the number was 39,507.

Table No. 2.-The number working full time and short time, and the number entirely out of work, the estimated loss of wages, and average income. The number entirely out of work was 240,466. Number working short time 166,225. The estimated loss of wages was £184,572 weekly; and the average income per head, including relief and earnings, was 2s. 24d. per week.

Table No. 3 showed the total subscriptions received to March 28, 1863.

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Table No. 4 gave the population and assessment of each district.
Population in 1861..2,013,315.

Assessment in 1856. .£5,660,390.

On the Numerical Mode of estimating Educational Qualifications, as pursued at the Greenwich Hospital School. By the Rev. G. FISHER, M.A., F.R.S. In Greenwich School, where there were 800 boys, he had adopted a numerical method by which he could arrive at the attainments of any boy. For instance, in writing, he had a standard book: in this book were descriptions of writing of five degrees of quality, and the work produced was judged of according to these results, fractions being used to represent any specimens which might be deemed in quality to be between any of the five whole numbers representing the standards. A similar course was pursued regarding other subjects of instruction, and for examinations, prizes, &c. He had also weighed his boys, and divided them into three groups according to their weight, the three groups varying from 90 lbs. to upwards of 100 lbs. The result of this was that he found the heavy boys and the light ones, as a rule, to possess much about the same amount of talent, whilst the boys who represented the medium possessed the largest amount.

The author insists upon the importance of recognizing and preserving some standard specimens of examination-questions in educational subjects, such as might be generally agreed upon, as explanatory of their nature and difficulty, and which might be adapted to a numerical scale of estimation, upon a plan similar to that which he has carried out in this school with great success for more than twenty years. By such means, absolute as well as relative values of acquirements can be assigned to a considerable amount of accuracy, and the amount of educational work done in various public and private schools be compared with each other. He submitted a diagram to the Section exhibiting, by means of differently coloured lines adapted to a scale, the attainments of the boys at different periods, keeping in view the same standards of estimation. The author stated, in conclusion, that he had no motive in making this communication beyond the desire of exciting attention to the subject, in order that it might lead to the adoption of a sound practical system of testing and recording educational qualifications of a general character; not simply of a comparative and numerical kind (which is common in many educational establishments), but of a permanent nature, so as to be available for the future as well as the present time, and that we may not be under the reproach of being "unable to hand down to posterity, statistical information of such value as will mark the progress of education."

On Endowed Education and Oxford and Cambridge Fellowships.
By JAMES HEYWOOD, F.R.S.

Mr. Heywood defined an endowment to be a charity, and explained that many of

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