. Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal. designed to accommodate Spectators and Auditors. 133 comfort, in an easy posture, and as clearly as if no other indi- vidual auditor or spectator were present. (See Plates I. and II.) The position of the seats is the first circumstance we shall in- vestigate. Thats eats should slope, or, in other words, that the more distant auditors should be raised above those who are nearer, is at once seen ; the question is how, and how much .^ To see and hear comfortably, it must not be necessary for us to remain long in one position ; we must not require to sit upri
. Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal. designed to accommodate Spectators and Auditors. 133 comfort, in an easy posture, and as clearly as if no other indi- vidual auditor or spectator were present. (See Plates I. and II.) The position of the seats is the first circumstance we shall in- vestigate. Thats eats should slope, or, in other words, that the more distant auditors should be raised above those who are nearer, is at once seen ; the question is how, and how much .^ To see and hear comfortably, it must not be necessary for us to remain long in one position ; we must not require to sit upright at full stretch, or to stoop on one side to catch a glance between an avenue of heads or hats; we must be permitted, whether tall or short, to sit in a comfortable variety of attitudes, now a little back on the seat, then a little forward, now stooping down, and now raised upright. In the usual variety of station and of po- sition, it appears from experiments we have made that the range required for this purpose is more than a foot and less than 18 inches, so that these may be taken as the limits ; that is to say, over the head of the person who is before you, there must be a clear range of 12 or 18 inches, through which the head may be moved upwards or downwards without interruption. In other words, as the undulations, both .soniferous and luminiferous, move in straight lines, it is necessary for the purpose, that the rays of light and of sound emanating from the speaker, may fall, without interruption, on the organs of sight and hearing of the spectators and auditors; that a straight line drawn from the speaker's head over that of the anterior .spectator, shall inter- cept the straight line wliich forms the back of the seat of the posterior observer, so as to cut off a height of 12 to 18 inches, within which the head of the spectator shall at all times be com- prehended while sitting in a comfortable position. Thus let A Fiff be the speaker, and XYZ be three successiv
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