on board ship:  I gave a Report, of mixed character, on the whole discouraging.—­I had correspondence with G.P.  Bond and others about photographing the Stars and Moon.—­On Feb. 17th Piazzi Smyth’s books, &c. relating to the Teneriffe Experiment were sent to me:  I recommended that an abridged Report should be sent to the Royal Society.—­Respecting the Sheepshanks Fund:  there was correspondence with Miss Sheepshanks and Whewell, but nothing got into shape this year:  Miss Sheepshanks transferred to me L10,000 lying at Overend and Gurney’s.—­In November experiments were made for the longitude of Edinburgh, which failed totally from the bad state of the telegraph wire between Deptford and the Admiralty.—­In June the first suggestion was made to me by Capt.  Washington for time-signals on the Lizard Point:  which in no long time I changed for the Start Point.—­The Admiralty call for estimates for a time-ball at Portsmouth:  on receiving them they decline further proceeding.—­I was engaged in speculations and correspondence about the Atlantic Submarine Cable.—­In the Royal Astronomical Society, I presented Memoirs and gave lectures on the three great chronological eclipses (Agathocles, Thales, Larissa).”—­On Dec. 5th Airy wrote to the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, objecting to the proposed changes regarding the Smith’s Prizes—­a subject in which he took much interest, and to which he ascribed great importance.—­On Apr. 27th I was in correspondence with G. Herbert of the Trinity House, about floating beacons.—­In July I reported to the Treasury on the Swedish Calculating Engine (I think on the occasion of Mr Farr, of the Registrar-General’s Office, applying for one).—­In November I had correspondence about the launch of the Great Eastern, and the main drainage of London.”

Of private history:  “On Jan. 14th I returned from Playford.—­From June 27th to Aug. 5th I was travelling in Scotland with my wife and two eldest sons, chiefly in the West Highlands.  On our return we visited Mrs Smith (my wife’s mother) at Brampton.—­On Dec. 26th I went to Playford.”

1858

“In the Minutes of the Visitors it is noted that the new Queen’s Warrant was received.  The principal change was the exclusion of the Astronomer Royal and the other Observatory Officers from the Board.—­In the Report to the Visitors it is stated that ’The Papers of the Board of Longitude are now finally stitched into books.  They will probably form one of the most curious collections of the results of scientific enterprise, both normal and abnormal, which exists.’—­It appears that the galvanic communications, external to the Observatory, had been in a bad state, the four wires to London Bridge having probably been injured by a thunderstorm in the last autumn, and the Report states that ’The state of the wires has not enabled us to drop the Ball at Deal.  The feeble current which arrives there has been used for some months merely as giving