THE Journal of the Franklin Institute, November 1873.—In this number Mr. Richards, mechanical engineer, communicates the first part of a treatise on “The Principles of Shop Manipulation for Engineering Apprentices;” the points dealt with being these: plans of studying (and here he advocates the order, first, machine functions, next, plans or adaptations of machines, third, construction of machines), nature of mechanical engineering, engineering as a calling, and the conditions of apprenticeship.—Dr. Coolley, in a lecture-extract, shows how convection may be usefully applied in detection of heat. He has an instrument somewhat like a Coulomb electrometer; in a glass case, a thin glass tube with black pith ball at one end is suspended horizontally by a silk fibre over a graduated disc. A heated body is introduced near the ball, which immediately swings towards it; while a cold body will repel the ball; these effects being due to air currents. The experiments Dr. Coolley makes, show that this forms a very sensitive thermoscope.—An account is furnished of the Cleveland Waterworks Tunnel, just completed, and which is similar to the one at Chicago. The shore section and lake section were carried on simultaneously, 40 ft. to 70 ft. below the bottom of the lake; the starting-points being a mile and a quarter apart. The work was somewhat disturbed by quicksands, but the sections met on an exact level. The capacity of the tunnel is 60 to 70 million gallons daily; though the average daily consumption is at present only about 6 million gallons.—A new process is described for utilising coal waste. The inventor uses, as a cement, only yellow clay with some milk of lime, but no bituminous or resinous matter; merely waterproofing the surface with a solution of rosin. From first to last no handling is required; and the lumps are delivered, in shape and size like hen's eggs. The process is highly commended.—We find notes on American machinery abroad, friction of screw propellers in water, &c., and, among other novelties of construction described, a planing bar, a compound beam engine, an antifriction journal, an irrigating machine, and a new optical toy (Prof. Dolbear).