Autobiography of Sir George Biddell Airy Part 13

n.o.body would have conceived that an edgewise gripe of such a ma.s.s of metal could derange its form in this way.

Last night was the finest night we have had as regards clouds, though perhaps not the best for definition of objects.

THE CASTLE, PARSONSTOWN, _1848, Sept. 2_.

I cannot learn that the fault in the mirror had been noticed before, but I fancy that the observations had been very much confined to the Zenith and its neighbourhood.

1849

"In July the new constant-service water-pipes to the Observatory were laid from Blackheath. Before this time the supply of water to the Observatory had been made by a pipe leading up from the lower part of the Park, and was not constant.--In May the new staircase from my dwelling-house to the Octagon Room was commenced.--In the Report to the Visitors there is a curious account of Mr Breen's (one of the a.s.sistants) personal equation, which was found to be different in quant.i.ty for observations of the Moon and observations of the Stars.--The most important set of observations (of planets) was a series of measures of Saturn in four directions, at the time when his ring had disappeared. They appear completely to negative the idea that Saturn's form differs sensibly from an ellipsoid.--Among the General Remarks of the Report the following appears: 'Another change (in prospect) will depend on the use of galvanism; and as a probable instance of the application of this agent, I may mention that, although no positive step has. .h.i.therto been taken, I fully expect in no long time to make the going of all the clocks in the Observatory depend on one original regulator. The same means will probably be employed to increase the general utility of the Observatory, by the extensive dissemination throughout the kingdom of accurate time-signals, moved by an original clock at the Royal Observatory; and I have already entered into correspondence with the authorities of the South Eastern Railway (whose line of galvanic communication will shortly pa.s.s within nine furlongs of the Observatory) in reference to this subject.'--I agreed with Schumacher in giving no medal to Mr G. P. Bond; his comet was found to be Petersen's. Five medals were awarded for comets in 1847 (Hind, Colla, Mauvais, Brorsen, Schweizer).--The Liverpool Observatory was finished this year: and the thanks of the Town Council were presented to me.--Respecting Fallows's Observations at the Cape of Good Hope: I had received the Admiralty sanction for proceeding with calculations in 1846, and I employed computers as was convenient. On July 20th of this year I was ready with final results, and began to make enquiries about Fallows's personal history, and the early history of the Cape Observatory. On Oct. 23rd I applied for sanction for printing, which was given, and the work was soon finished off, in the Astronomical Society's Memoirs.--In the month of March I had commenced correspondence with various persons on the imperfect state of publication of the British Survey. Sheets of the Map were issued by scores, but not one of them had an indication of lat.i.tude or longitude engraved. I knew that great pains had been taken in giving to the princ.i.p.al triangulation a degree of accuracy never before reached, and in fixing the astronomical lat.i.tudes of many stations with unequalled precision. Finally I prepared for the Council of the Royal Society a very strong representation on these subjects, which was adopted and presented to the Government. It was entirely successful, and the Maps were in future furnished with lat.i.tude and longitude lines.--I was elected President of the Royal Astronomical Society on Feb. 9th.--In June I went with Sheepshanks to see some of the operation of measuring a Base on Salisbury Plain. The following extract from a letter to his wife dated 1849, June 27th, relates to this expedition: 'In the morning we started before eight in an open carriage to the Plain: looking into Old Sarum on our way. The Base is measured on what I should think a most unfavourable line, its north end (from which they have begun now, in verification of the old measure) being the very highest point in the whole plain, called Beacon Hill. The soldiers measure only 252 feet in a day, so it will take them a good while to measure the whole seven miles. While we were there Col. Hall (Colby's successor) and Yolland and Cosset came.'"

Of private history: "I made short visits to Playford in January, April and July. From July 28th to Sept. 12th I made an expedition with my wife to Orkney and Shetland.--From Dec. 24th to 26th I was at Hawkhurst, on a visit to Sir John Herschel."

1850

"The Report to the Board of Visitors opens with the following paragraph: 'In recording the proceedings at the Royal Observatory during the last year, I have less of novelty to communicate to the Visitors than in the Reports of several years past. Still I trust that the present Report will not be uninteresting; as exhibiting, I hope, a steady and vigorous adherence to a general plan long since matured, accompanied with a reasonable watchfulness for the introduction of new instruments and new methods when they may seem desirable.'--Since the introduction of the self-registering instruments a good many experiments had been made to obtain the most suitable light, and the Report states that 'No change whatever has been made in these instruments, except by the introduction of the light of coal-gas charged with the vapour of coal-naptha, for photographic self-registration both of the magnetic and of the meteorological instruments.... The chemical treatment of the paper is now so well understood by the a.s.sistants that a failure is almost unknown. And, generally speaking, the photographs are most beautiful, and give conceptions of the continual disturbances in terrestrial magnetism which it would be impossible to acquire from eye-observation.'

--Amongst the General Remarks of the Report it is stated that 'There are two points which have distinctly engaged my attention. The first of these is, the introduction of the American method of observing transits, by completing a galvanic circuit by means of a touch of the finger at the instant of appulse of the transiting body to the wire of the instrument, which circuit will then animate a magnet that will make an impression upon a moving paper. After careful consideration of this method, I am inclined to believe that, in Prof. Mitch.e.l.l's form, it does possess the advantages which have been ascribed to it, and that it may possess peculiar advantages in this Observatory, where the time-connection of transits made with two different instruments (the Transit and the Altazimuth) is of the highest importance.... The second point is, the connection of the Observatory with the galvanic telegraph of the South Eastern Railway, and with other lines of galvanic wire with which that telegraph communicates. I had formerly in mind only the connection of this Observatory with different parts of the great British island: but I now think it possible that our communications may be extended far beyond its sh.o.r.es. The promoters of the submarine telegraph are very confident of the practicability of completing a galvanic connection between England and France: and I now begin to think it more than possible that, within a few years, observations at Paris and Brussels may be registered on the recording surfaces at Greenwich, and vice versa.'--Prof. Hansen was engaged in forming Lunar Tables from his Lunar Theory, but was stopped for want of money. On Mar. 7th I represented this privately to Mr Baring, First Lord of the Admiralty; and on Mar. 30th I wrote officially to the Admiralty, soliciting _150_ with the prospect, if necessary, of making it _200_. On Apr. 10th the Admiralty gave their a.s.sent. The existence of Hansen's Lunar Tables is due to this grant.--The King of Denmark's Medal for Comets was discontinued, owing to the difficulties produced by the hostility of Prussia.--On Aug. 1st I gave to the Treasury my opinion on the first proposal for a large reflector in Australia: it was not strongly favourable.--In August, being (with my wife and Otto Struve) on a visit to Lady Breadalbane at Taymouth Castle, I examined the mountain Schehallien.--As in other years, I reported on several Papers for the Royal Society, and took part in various business for them.--In the Royal Astronomical Society I had much official business, as President.--In March I communicated to the Athenaeum my views on the Exodus of the Israelites: this brought me into correspondence with Miss Corbaux, Robert Stephenson, Capt. Vetch, and Prof. J.D.

Forbes.--In December I went to the London Custom House, to see Sir T. Freemantle (Chairman of Customs), and to see how far decimal subdivisions were used in the Custom House."

Of private history: "From Mar. 19th to 22nd I was on an expedition to Folkestone, Dover, Dungeness, &c.--From Apr. 3rd to 8th at Playford, and again for short periods in June and July.--From Aug. 1st to Sept. 5th I was travelling in Scotland with my wife and Otto Struve (for part of the time). At Edinburgh I attended the Meeting of the British a.s.sociation, and spoke a little in Section A. I was nominated President for 1851 at Ipswich. We travelled to Cape Wrath and returned by Inverness and the Caledonian Ca.n.a.l.--I was at Playford for a short time in October and December."

1851

"In this year the great shed was built (first erected on the Magnetic Ground, and about the year 1868 transferred to the South Ground).--The chronometers were taken from the old Chronometer Room (a room on the upper story fronting the south, now, 1872, called Library 2) and were put in the room above the Computing Room (where they remained for 10 or 12 years, I think): it had a chronometer-oven with gas-heat, erected in 1850.--The following pa.s.sage is quoted from the Report to the Visitors:--'As regards Meridional Astronomy our equipment may now be considered complete. As I have stated above, an improvement might yet be made in our Transit Circle; nevertheless I do not hesitate to express my belief that no other existing meridional instrument can be compared with it. This presumed excellence has not been obtained without much thought on my part and much anxiety on the part of the constructors of the instrument (Messrs Ransomes and May, and Mr Simms). But it would be very unjust to omit the further statement that the expense of the construction has considerably exceeded the original estimate, and that this excess has been most liberally defrayed by the Government.'--In December Sir John Herschel gave his opinion (to the Admiralty, I believe) in favour of procuring for the Cape Observatory a Transit Circle similar to that at Greenwich.--I had much correspondence about sending Pierce Morton (formerly a pupil of mine at Cambridge, a clever gentlemanly man, and a high wrangler, but somewhat flighty) as Magnetic a.s.sistant to the Cape Observatory: he was with me from May to October, and arrived at the Cape on Nov. 27th.--I was much engaged with the clock with conical motion of pendulum, for uniform movement of the Chronographic Barrel.--Regarding galvanic communications: On Sept. 19th I had prepared a Draft of Agreement with the South Eastern Railway Company, to which they agreed. In November I wrote to Sir T. Baring (First Lord of the Admiralty) and to the Admiralty for sanction, which was given on Dec. 18th. In December I had various communications about laying wires through the Park, &c., &c., and correspondence about the possibility of using sympathetic clocks: in June, apparently, I had seen Shepherd's sympathetic clock at the Great Exhibition, and had seen the system of sympathetic clocks at Pawson's, St Paul's Churchyard.--In the last quarter of this year I was engaged in a series of calculations of chronological eclipses. On Sept. 30th Mr Bosanquet wrote to me about the Eclipse of Thales, and I urged on the computations related to it, through Mr Breen. In October the eclipse of Agathocles (the critical eclipse for the motion of the Moon's node) was going on. In October Hansteen referred me to the darkness at Stiklastad.--I went to Sweden to observe the total eclipse of July 28th, having received a.s.sistance from the Admiralty for the journeys of myself, Mr Dunkin, Mr Humphreys and his friend, and Capt.

Blackwood. I had prepared a map of its track, in which an important error of the _Berliner Jahrbuch_ (arising from neglect of the earth's oblateness) was corrected. I gave a lecture at the Royal Inst.i.tution, in preparation for the eclipse, and drew up suggestions for observations, and I prepared a scheme of observations for Greenwich, but the weather was bad. The official account of the Observations of the Eclipse, with diagrams and conclusions, is given in full in a paper published in the Royal Astr. Society's Memoirs.--This year I was President of the British a.s.sociation, at the Ipswich Meeting: it necessarily produced a great deal of business. I lectured one evening on the coming eclipse. Prince Albert was present, as guest of Sir William Middleton: I was engaged to meet him at dinner, but when I found that the dinner day was one of the princ.i.p.al soiree days, I broke off the engagement.--On May 26th I had the first letter from E. Hamilton (whom I had known at Cambridge) regarding the selection of professors for the University of Sydney. Herschel, Maldon, and H. Denison were named as my coadjutors. Plenty of work was done, but it was not finished till 1852.--In connection with the clock for Westminster Palace, in February there were considerations about providing other clocks for the various buildings; and this probably was one reason for my examining Shepherd's Clocks at the Great Exhibition and at Pawson's. In November I first proposed that Mr E.B. Denison should be a.s.sociated with me. About the end of the year, the plan of the tower was supplied to me, with reference to the suspension of the weights and other particulars.--In 1850 Admiral Dundas (M.P. for Greenwich and one of the Board of Admiralty) had requested me to aid the Trustees of the Dee Navigation against an attack; and on Mar. 19th 1851 I went to Chester to see the state of the river. On Jan. 1st 1852 I went to give evidence at the Official Enquiry.--At a discussion on the construction of the Great Exhibition building in the Inst.i.tution of Civil Engineers, I expressed myself strongly on the faulty principles of its construction.--In this year I wrote my first Paper on the landing of Julius Caesar in Britain, and was engaged in investigations of the geography, tides, sands, &c., relating to the subject."

Of private history: "I was several times at Playford during January, and went there again on Dec. 23rd.--In this year a very heavy misfortune fell on us. My daughter, Elizabeth, had been on a visit to Lady Herschel at Hawkhurst, and on Apr. 2nd Sir J. Herschel wrote to me, saying that she was so well in health. She returned a few days later, and from her appearance I was sure that she was suffering under deadly disease. After some time, an able physician was consulted, who at once p.r.o.nounced it to be pulmonary. A sea voyage was thought desirable, and my wife took her to Shetland, where there was again a kind welcome from Mr Edmonston. But this, and the care taken on her return, availed nothing: and it was determined to take her to Madeira. My wife and daughter sailed in the brig 'Eclipse' from Southampton on Dec. 11th. The termination came in 1852.--On Nov. 23rd I went to Bradfield, near Bury: my uncle, George Biddell, died, and I attended the funeral on Nov. 29th.--From July 18th to Aug. 24th I was in Sweden for the Observation of the Eclipse, and returned through Holland.--In October I was about a week at Ventnor and Torquay, and from Dec. 7th to 11th at Southampton, on matters connected with my daughter's illness."

The following extracts are from letters to his wife, relating to the Observation of the eclipse, his interview with the King of Sweden, &c., and his visit to the pumping engines at Haarlem:

_July 28, half-past 10, morning_.

The weather is at present most perfectly doubtful. Nearly the whole sky is closely covered, yet there is now and then a momentary gleam of sun. The chances are greatly against much of the eclipse being seen. All is arranged to carry off the telescope, &c., at 11: they can be carted to the foot of the hill, and we have made out a walking-pa.s.s then to the top. We are to dine with Mr d.i.c.kson afterwards.

_July 28, 10 at night_.

Well we have had a glorious day. As soon as we started, the weather began to look better. We went up the hill and planted my telescope, and the sky shewed a large proportion of blue. At first I placed the telescope on the highest rock, but the wind blew almost a gale, and shook it slightly: so I descended about 8 feet to one side. (The power of doing this was one of the elements in my choice of this station, which made me prefer it to the high hill beyond the river.) The view of scenery was inexpressibly beautiful. The beginning of eclipse was well seen. The sky gradually thickened from that time, so that the sun was in whitish cloud at the totality, and barely visible in dense cloud at the end of the eclipse. The progress of the eclipse brought on the wonderful changes that you know: just before the totality I saw a large piece of blue sky become pitch black; the horror of totality was very great; and then flashed into existence (I do not know how) a broad irregular corona with red flames _instantly seen_ of the most fantastic kind. The darkness was such that my a.s.sistant had very great trouble in reading his box chronometer. (A free-hand explanatory diagram is here given.) Some important points are made out from this. 1st the red flames certainly belong to the sun. 2nd they certainly are in some instances detached. 3rd they are sometimes quite crooked. 4th they seem to be connected with spots. The corona was brilliant white. One star brilliant: I believe Venus. I had no time to make observations of polarization, &c., although prepared. When the totality was more than half over I looked to N. and N.W., and in these regions there was the fullest rosy day-break light. After the sun-light reappeared, the black shadow went travelling away to the S.E. exactly like the thunder-storm from the Main. The day then grew worse, and we came home here (after dinner) in pouring rain.

STOCKHOLM, _1851, Aug. 5_.

I then by appointment with Sir Edmund Lyons went with him to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Baron Stjerneld, who received me most civilly. My business was to thank him for the orders which had been given to facilitate the landing of our telescopes, &c., &c. He was quite familiar with the names of my party, Humphreys Milaud, &c., so that I trust they have been well received (I have had no letter). He intimated, I suppose at Sir E. Lyons's suggestion, that perhaps King Oscar might wish to see me, but that it would not be on Tuesday. So I replied that I was infinitely flattered and he said that he would send a message to Sir E. Lyons by Tuesday evening. Now all this put me in a quandary: because I wanted to see Upsala, 47 miles off: and the steamboats on the Malar only go in the morning and return in the morning: and this was irreconcileable with waiting for his Majesty's appointment which might be for Wednesday morning. So after consultation Sir E. Lyons put me in the hands of a sort of courier attached to the Emba.s.sy, and he procured a caleche, and I posted to Upsala yesterday afternoon (knocking the people up at 11 at night) and posted back this afternoon. And sure enough a message has come that the king expects me at 11 to-morrow morning. Posting of course is much dearer than steam-boat travelling, but it is cheap in comparison with England: two horses cost 1s. for nearly 7 miles. At Upsala there is a very good old cathedral, I suppose the only one in Sweden: and many things about the University which interested me. I sent my card to Professor Fries, and he entirely devoted himself to me: but imagine our conversation--he spoke in _Latin_ and I in French: however we understood each other very well. It is on the whole a dreary country except where enlivened by lakes: some parts are pine forests and birch forests, but others are featureless ground with boulder stones, like the worst part of the Highlands.

_August 6, Wednesday, 3 o'clock_.

I rigged myself in black trowsers and white waistcoat and neckcloth this morning. Sir Edmund Lyons called. Baron Wrede called on me: he had observed the Eclipse at Calmar and brought his drawing, much like mine. He conducted me to the Palace. The Minister for Foreign Affairs came to me. In the waiting-room I was introduced to the Lieutenant-Governor of Christianstad, who had had the charge of Humphreys and Milaud. He had placed a _guard of soldiers_ round them while they were observing. They saw the eclipse well. Captain Blackwood went to Helsingborg instead of Bornholm, and saw well. I am sorry to hear that it was cloudy at Christiania, Mr Dunkin's station. I heard some days ago that Hind had lost his telescope, but I now heard a very different story: that he landed at Ystad, and found a very bad hotel there: that he learnt from Murray that the hotels at Carlscrona (or wherever he meant to go) were much worse; and so he grew faint at heart and turned back. I was summoned in to the King and presented by the Minister (Stjerneld), and had a long conversation with him: on the eclipse, the arc of meridian, the languages, and the Universities. We spoke in French. Then Baron Wrede went with me to the Rittershus (House of Lords or n.o.bles) in Session, and to the Gallery of Scandinavian Antiquities, which is very remarkable: the collection of stone axes and chisels, bronze do., iron do., ornaments, &c. is quite amazing. I was struck with seeing specimens from a very distant age of the Maid of Norway's brooch: the use of which I explained to the Director.

I dined and drove out with Sir E. Lyons, and called at the houses of the Baron Stjerneld and of the Norwegian Minister Baron Due, and had tea at the latter. Most of these people speak English well, and they seem to live in a very domestic family style. I should soon be quite at home here: for I perceive that my reception at Court, &c., make people think that I am a very proper sort of person.

The extract concerning his visit to the Pumping-Engines at Haarlem is as follows:

LEYDEN, _1851, August 20, Wednesday_.

I went to see the great North Holland Ca.n.a.l, and went a mile or two in a horse-drawn-boat upon it: a very comfortable conveyance. Saw windmills used for sawing timber and other purposes, as well as some for grinding and many for draining. Yesterday at half-past one I went by railway to Haarlem. I did not look at anything in the town except going through it and seeing that it is a curious fantastic place, but I drove at once to the burgomaster to ask permission to visit one of the three great pumping engines for draining the immense Haarlem lake, and then drove to it. Imagine a round tower with a steam-cylinder in its center; and the piston which works up-and-down, instead of working one great beam as they usually do, works _eight_, poking out on different sides of the round tower, and each driving a pump 6 feet in diameter. I am glad to have seen it. Then by railway here.

1852

"Galvanic communication was now established with Lewisham station (thus giving power of communicating with London, Deal, &c.).--From the Report to the Board of Visitors it appears that, in the case of the Transit Circle, the azimuth of the Instrument as determined by opposite pa.s.sages of the Pole Star had varied four seconds; and in the case of the Altazimuth, there was a discordance in the azim.u.t.h.al zeros of the Instrument, as determined from observations of stars. In both cases it was concluded that the discordances arose from small movements of the ground.--Under the head of 'General Remarks' in the Report, the following paragraph occurs: 'It will be perceived that the number of equatoreal observations made here at present is small: and that they are rarely directed to new comets and similar objects which sometimes excite considerable interest. This omission is intentional. It is not because the instrumental means are wanting (for our Equatoreals, though not comparable to those of either Cambridge, or of Pulkowa, are fully equal to those usually directed to such objects), but it is because these observations are most abundantly supplied from other observatories, public and private, and because the gain to those observations from our taking a part in them would, probably, be far less than the loss to the important cla.s.s of observations which we can otherwise follow so well. Moreover, I am unwilling to take any step which could be interpreted as attempting to deprive the local and private observatories of honours which they have so n.o.bly earned. And, finally, in this act of abstinence, I am desirous of giving an example of adhesion to one principle which, I am confident, might be extensively followed with great advantage to astronomy:--the principle of division of labour.'--Discoveries of small planets were now not infrequent: but the only one of interest to me is Melpomene, for the following reason. On 1852 June 24 I lost my most dear, amiable, clever daughter Elizabeth: she died at Southampton, two days after landing from Madeira. On that evening Mr Hind discovered the planet; and he requested me to give a name. I remembered Horace's 'Praecipe lugubres cantus, Melpomene,' and Cowley's 'I called the buskin'd muse Melpomene and told her what sad story I would write,' and suggested Melpomene, or Penthos: Melpomene was adopted.--The first move about the Deal Time Ball was in a letter from Commander Baldock to the Admiralty, suggesting that a Time Ball, dropped by galvanic current from Greenwich, should be attached to one of the South Foreland Lighthouses. The Admiralty sent this for my Report. I went to the place, and I suggested in reply (Nov. 15th) that a better place would be at an old signal station on the chalk downs. The decisive change from this was made in 1853.--As the result of my examination and enquiries into the subject of sympathetic clocks, I established 8 sympathetic clocks in the Royal Observatory, one of which outside the entrance gate had a large dial with Shepherd's name as Patentee. Exception was taken to this by the solicitor of a Mr Bain who had busied himself about galvanic clocks. After much correspondence I agreed to remove Shepherd's name till Bain had legally established his claim. This however was never done: and in 1853 Shepherd's name was restored.--In Nov. 1851, Denison had consented to join me in the preparation of the Westminster Clock. In Feb. 1852 we began to have little disagreements. However on Apr. 6th I was going to Madeira, and requested him to act with full powers from me.--I communicated to the Royal Society my Paper on the Eclipses of Agathocles, Thales, and Xerxes.--In the British a.s.sociation, I had presided at the Ipswich Meeting in 1851, and according to custom I ought to attend at the 1852 Meeting (held at Belfast) to resign my office. But I was broken in spirit by the death of my daughter, and the thing generally was beyond my willing enterprise. I requested Sir Roderick Murchison to act generally for me: which he did, as I understood, very gracefully.--In this year a proposal was made by the Government for s.h.i.+fting all the Meeting Rooms of the Scientific Societies to Kensington Gore, which was stoutly resisted by all, and was finally abandoned."

Of private history: "I was at Playford in January, and went thence to Chester on the enquiry about the tides of the Dee; and made excursions to Halton Castle and to Holyhead.--From Apr. 8th to May 14th I was on the voyage to and from Madeira, and on a short visit to my wife and daughter there.--On June 23rd I went to Southampton to meet my wife and daughter just landed from Madeira: on June 24th my dear daughter Elizabeth died: she was buried at Playford on June 29th.--I was at Playford also in July and December.--From Sept. 16th to 24th I went to c.u.mberland, via Fleetwood and Peel."

1853

"On May 3rd 1853 I issued an address to the individual Members of the Board of Visitors, proposing the extension of the Lunar Reductions from 1830. From this it appears that 'Through the whole period (from 1830 to 1853), the places of the Moon, deduced from the observations, are compared with the places computed in the Nautical Almanac: that is, with Burckhardt's tables, which have been used for many years in computing the places of the Nautical Almanac.......Very lately, however, Mr Adams has shewn that Burckhardt's Parallax is erroneous in formula and is numerically incorrect, sometimes to the amount of seven seconds. In consequence of this, every reduction of the Observations of the Moon, from 1830 to the present time, is sensibly erroneous. And the error is of such a nature that it is not easy, in general, to introduce its correction by any simple process.... The number of observations to the end of 1851 (after which time the parallax will be corrected in the current reductions) is about 2560. An expense approaching to _400_ might be incurred in their reduction.'

Subsequently I made application to the Admiralty, and the _400_ was granted on Dec. 12th.--In the Report to the Visitors it is stated that with regard to the Transit Circle, changes are under contemplation in its reflection-apparatus: one of these changes relates to the material of the trough. 'Several years ago, when I was at Hamburgh, my revered friend Prof. Schumacher exhibited to me the pacifying effect of a copper dish whose surface had been previously amalgamated with quicksilver.......The Rev. Charles Pritchard has lately given much attention to this curious property of the metals, and has brought the practical operation of amalgamation to great perfection. Still it is not without difficulty, on account of a singular crystallization of the amalgam.'--With regard to the Chronograph, the Report states: 'The Barrel Apparatus for the American method of observing transits is not yet brought into use.... I have, however, brought it to such a state that I am beginning to try whether the Barrel moves with sufficient uniformity to be itself used as the Transit Clock. This, if perfectly secured, would be a very great convenience, but I am not very sanguine on that point.'--A change had been made in the Electrometer-apparatus: 'A wire for the collection of atmospheric electricity is now stretched from a chimney on the north-west angle of the leads of the Octagon Room to the Electrometer pole.... There appears to be no doubt that a greater amount of electricity is collected by this apparatus than by that formerly in use.'--As regards the Magnetical Observations: 'The Visitors at their last Meeting, expressed a wish that some attempt should be made to proceed further in the reduction or digest of the magnetical results, if any satisfactory plan could be devised. I cannot say that I have yet satisfied myself on the propriety of any special plan that I have examined.... I must, however, confess that, in viewing the capricious forms of the photographic curves, my mind is entirely bewildered, and I sometimes doubt the possibility of extracting from them anything whatever which can be considered trustworthy.'--Great progress had been made with the distribution of time. 'The same Normal Clock maintains in sympathetic movement the large clock at the entrance gate, two other clocks in the Observatory, and a clock at the London Bridge Terminus of the South-Eastern Railway.... It sends galvanic signals every day along all the princ.i.p.al railways diverging from London. It drops the Greenwich Ball, and the Ball on the Offices of the Electric Telegraph Company in the Strand;... All these various effects are produced without sensible error of time; and I cannot but feel a satisfaction in thinking that the Royal Observatory is thus quietly contributing to the punctuality of business through a large portion of this busy country. I have the satisfaction of stating to the Visitors that the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty have decided on the erection of a Time-Signal Ball at Deal, for the use of the s.h.i.+pping in the Downs, to be dropped every day by a galvanic current from the Royal Observatory. The construction of the apparatus is entrusted to me. Probably there is no roadstead in the world in which the knowledge of true time is so important.'--The Report includes an account of the determination of the Longitude of Cambridge Observatory by means of galvanic signals, which appear to have been perfectly successful.--Under the head of General Remarks the following pa.s.sage appears: 'The system of combining the labour of unattached computers with that of attached a.s.sistants tends materially to strengthen our powers in everything relating to computation. We find also, among the young persons who are engaged merely to serve as computers, a most laudable ambition to distinguish themselves as observers; and thus we are always prepared to undertake any observations which may be required, although necessarily by an expenditure of strength which would usually be employed on some other work.'--Considerable work was undertaken in preparing a new set of maps of our buildings and grounds.--On Apr. 23rd there was a small fire in the magnetic observatory, which did little mischief.--In December I wrote my description of the Transit Circle.--Lieut.

Stratford, the Editor of the Nautical Almanac, died, and there was some compet.i.tion for the office. I was willing to take it at a low rate, for the addition to my salary: Mr Main--and I think Mr Glaisher--were desirous of exchanging to it: Prof. Adams was anxious for it. The Admiralty made the excellent choice of Mr Hind.--In October Faraday and I, at Lothbury, witnessed some remarkable experiments by Mr Latimer Clark on a galvanic current carried four times to and from Manchester by subterranean wires (more than 2000 miles) shewing the r.e.t.a.r.dation of visible currents (at their maximum effect) and the concentration of active power. I made investigations of the velocity of the Galvanic Current.--I was engaged on the preliminary enquiries and arrangements for the Deal Time Ball.--With respect to the Westminster Clock; an angry paper was issued by Mr Vulliamy. In October I expostulated with Denison about his conduct towards Sir Charles Barry: on November 7th I resigned.--On Feb. 11th I was elected President of the Royal Astronomical Society.--In the Royal Inst.i.tution I lectured on the Ancient Eclipses.--On Dec. 15th I was elected to the Academy of Brussels.--After preliminary correspondence with Sir W. Molesworth (First Commissioner of Works, &c.) and Sir Charles Barry (Architect of the Westminster Palace), I wrote, on May 14th, to Mr Gladstone about depositing the four Parliamentary Copies of Standards, at the Royal Observatory, the Royal Mint, the Royal Society, and within a wall of Westminster Palace. Mr Gladstone a.s.sented on June 23rd.--On Mar. 26th I wrote to Mr Gladstone, proposing to take advantage of the new copper coinage for introducing the decimal system. I was always strenuous about preserving the Pound Sterling. On May 10th I attended the Committee of the House of Commons on decimal coinage: and in May and September I wrote letters to the Athenaeum on decimal coinage.--I had always something on hand about Tides. A special subject now was, the cry about intercepting the tidal waters of the Tyne by the formation of the Jarrow Docks, in Jarrow Slake; which fear I considered to be ridiculous."

Of private history: "From Jan. 15th to 24th I was at Playford.--On Mar. 4th I went to Dover to try time-signals.--From June 24th to Aug. 6th I was at Little Braithwaite near Keswick, where I had hired a house, and made expeditions with members of my family in all directions. On July 28th I went, with my son Wilfrid, by Workington and Maryport to Rose Castle, the residence of Bishop Percy (the Bishop of Carlisle), and on to Carlisle and Newcastle, looking at various works, mines, &c.--On Dec. 24th I went to Playford."

1854

The chronograph Barrel-Apparatus for the American method of transits had been practically brought into use: "I have only to add that this apparatus is now generally efficient. It is troublesome in use; consuming much time in the galvanic preparations, the preparation of the paper, and the translation of the puncture-indications into figures. But among the observers who use it there is but one opinion on its astronomical merits--that, in freedom from personal equation and in general accuracy, it is very far superior to the observations by eye and ear."--The printing and publication of the Observations, which was always regarded by Airy as a matter of the first importance, had fallen into arrear: "I stated in my last Report that the printing of the Observations for 1852 was scarcely commenced at the time of the last meeting of the Visitors. For a long time the printing went on so slowly that I almost despaired of ever again seeing the Observations in a creditable state. After a most hara.s.sing correspondence, the printers were at length persuaded to move more actively, ... but the volume is still very much behind its usual time of publication."--"The Deal Time-Ball has now been erected by Messrs Maudslays and Field, and is an admirable specimen of the workmans.h.i.+p of those celebrated engineers. The galvanic connection with the Royal Observatory (through the telegraph wires of the South Eastern Railway) is perfect. The automatic changes of wire-communications are so arranged that, when the Ball at Deal has dropped to its lowest point, it sends a message to Greenwich to acquaint me, not with the time of the beginning of its fall (which cannot be in error) but with the fact that it has really fallen. The Ball has several times been dropped experimentally with perfect success; and some small official and subsidiary arrangements alone are wanting for bringing it into constant use."--The operations for the galvanic determination of the longitude of Brussels are described, with the following conclusion: "Thus, about 3000 effective signals were made, but only 1000 of these were admissible for the fundamental objects of the operation. The result, I need scarcely remark, claims a degree of accuracy to which no preceding determination of longitude could ever pretend. I apprehend that the probable error in the difference of time corresponds to not more than one or two yards upon the Earth's surface.--A careful scheme had been arranged for the determination of the longitude of Lerwick, but 'unfortunately, the demand for chronometers caused by our large naval armament has been so considerable that I cannot reckon on having at my disposal a sufficient number to carry on this operation successfully; and I have, therefore, unwillingly deferred it to a more peaceful time.'--The covering stone of Halley's Tomb in Lee Churchyard was much shattered, and I applied to the Admiralty for funds for its complete restoration: these were granted on Feb. 3rd.--In this year, under my cognizance, _100_ was added to the Hansen grant.--I had much correspondence and work in connection with the printing of Maclear's work at the Cape of Good Hope. In June, all accounts, &c. about the Transit Circle were closed at the Admiralty, and the instrument was completely mounted at the Cape.--Dr Scoresby (who in his own way was very imperious) had attacked my methods of correcting the compa.s.s in iron s.h.i.+ps: I replied in a letter to the Athenaeum on Oct. 17th.--I made enquiries about operations for determining the longitude of Vienna, but was utterly repelled by the foreign telegraph offices.--In the Royal Astronomical Society; I prepared the Address on presenting the Medal to Rumker.--In Melbourne University: The first letter received was from the Chancellor of the University dated Jan. 26th, requesting that Sir John Herschel, Prof. Malden, Mr Lowe (subsequently Chancellor of the Exchequer), and I would select professors. We had a great deal of correspondence, meetings, examination of testimonials, &c., and on August 14th we agreed on Wilson, Rowe, McCoy, and Hearn.--On Feb. 17th I received the Prussian Order of Merit.--I had correspondence with the Treasury on the scale to be adopted for the Maps of the British Survey. I proposed 1/3000, and for some purposes 1/600.--I printed a Paper on the Deluge, in which I shewed (I believe to certainty) that the Deluge of Genesis was merely a Destructive Flood of the Nile.--Being well acquainted with the mountains of c.u.mberland, I had remarked that a 'man' or cairn of stones erected by the Ordnance Surveyors on the Great Gable had covered up a curious natural stone trough, known as one of the remarkable singularities of the country. This year, without giving any notice to the Ordnance Surveyors, I sent two wallers from Borrowdale to the mountain top, to remove the 'man' about 10 feet and expose the trough. Sir Henry James afterwards approved of my act, and refunded the expense.--I investigated the optical condition of an eye with conical cornea.

"The Harton Colliery Experiment: I had long wished to repeat the experiment which I had attempted unsuccessfully in 1826 and 1828, of determining by pendulum-vibrations the measure of gravity at the bottom of a mine. Residing near Keswick this summer, and having the matter in my mind, I availed myself of an introduction from Dr Leitch to some gentlemen at South s.h.i.+elds, for inspection of the Harton Colliery. I judged that it would answer pretty well. I find that on Aug. 11th I wrote to Mr Anderson (lessee of the mine), and on the same day to the Admiralty requesting authority to employ a Greenwich a.s.sistant, and requesting _100_ for part payment of expenses. On August 16th the Admiralty a.s.sent. There were many preparations to be made, both personal and instrumental. My party consisted of Dunkin (Superintendant), Ellis, Criswick, Simmons, Pogson, and Rumker: I did not myself attend the detail of observations. The observations began on Oct. 2nd and ended on Oct. 21st: supplementary observations were subsequently made at Greenwich for examining the coefficient of temperature-correction. On Oct. 24th I gave a Lecture at South s.h.i.+elds on the whole operation. In 'Punch' of Nov. 18th there was an excellent semi-comic account of the experiment, which as I afterwards found was written by Mr Percival Leigh."

Of private history: "On Jan. 18th I returned from Playford. From Mar. 10th to 13th I was at Deal, and visited Sir John Herschel at Hawkhurst.--From June 28th to Aug. 7th I was staying with my family at The Grange, in Borrowdale near Keswick: and also made an expedition to Penrith, Carlisle, Newcastle, Jarrow, &c.; and descended the Harton Pit.--In September and also in October I was at South s.h.i.+elds on the Harton Experiments.--From Dec. 14th to 18th I was at Cambridge, and on the 26th I went to Playford."

The following letter, written in answer to a lady who had asked him to procure permission from Lord Rosse for her to observe with his telescope, is characteristic:

ROYAL OBSERVATORY, GREENWICH.

_1854, September 20_.

DEAR MADAM,