thighs, not at all emaciated; the abdomen fomewhat tumid, and the muscles tenfe, &c.'

In 1772 the Author again vifited her; and though he found that fhe now took fome little crumbs of barley cake into her mouth, and fucked a little water out of the palm of her hand; he thought her existence then little lefs wonderful than when he faw her in 1767. In 1775 he found her greatly improved in her look and health; and her appearance to be that of a perfon not above 20 years of age. At this time, the quantity of food that he took was not greater than what would be neceffary for the fuftenance of an infant two years old.

Article 4, is a letter to Mr. Magellan, F. R. S. from Dr. Wolf of Dantzick; giving an account of a portrait of Coper nicus, prefented by him to the Royal Society.

Article 14. An Account of Perfons who could not diftinguish Colours; in a Letter to the Rev. Dr. Priestley. By Mr. Joseph Huddart.

The principal fubject of this curious Article, whofe name was Harris, laboured under the very fingular defect of not being able to diftinguish the colours of objects; though he could difcern their form and magnitude very diftinctly. Although he was an intelligent man, and was very defirous of acquiring this knowledge, he had attended a courfe of lectures in natural philofophy for that purpose, without any advantage. He recollected that his first fufpicion of this defect arofe in his infancy, on accidentally finding a stocking in the street; when, on carrying it to a neighbour's houfe, he obferved the people called it a red stocking, though he did not understand why they gave it that denomination; as he himself thought it completely defcribed by being called a flocking.'-He could however diftinguish white from black, or black from any light or bright colour, or a striped ribbon from a plain one; but his difcriminating powers, with refpect to colour, feem not to have extended further. He had two brothers who had the fame peculiarity; though his parents, and two other brothers and fifters

were free from it.

Article 16. Directions for making the best Compofitions for the Metals of reflecting Telescopes, &c. By Mr. John Mudge.

This most excellent paper forms a valuable appendix to the directions and obfervations of Meffrs. Molyneux and Hadley on this curious fubject, published in Dr. Smith's Optics. Befides relating, in the most perfpicuous manner, the fuccessful result of his numerous experiments, made with a view to discover the beft metallic compound for the fpecula, and giving the rationale of the process; the Author communicates many confiderable improvements in the articles of grinding and polishing, and par

ticularly

ticularly of giving the form of the true parabolic curve to the great fpeculum. We fhall not attempt to abridge, nor fhall we transcribe any part of this excellent Article; the intire perufal of which we recommend to every person who, through taste or intereft, may wish to avail himself of the Author's valuable and liberal communications. B..Y.

ART. II. The original Aftronomical Obfervations made in the Course of a Voyage towards the South Pole, and round the World, in bis Majefty's Ships, the Refolution and Adventure, in the Years 1772, 1773. 1774, and 1775. By William Wales, F. R. S. Mafter of the Royal Mathematical School in Chrifl's Hospital; and Mr. William Bayly, late Affiftant at the Royal Obfervatory. 4to. 11, 1s. Boards. Nourse. 1777.

THIS work has been publifhed by order of the Board of Longitude; and almoft wholly confifts of tables of the various aftronomical and other obfervations made during the course of the last voyage of Capt. Cook and Capt. Furneaux round the world. The moft interefting part of it to readers in general is a fenfible Introduction; in which Mr. Wales, after giving a catalogue of the excellent aftronomical and philofophi❤ cal inftruments with which Mr. Bayly and himself were furnished by the Commiffioners of Longitude, particularly describes fuch of them as had any thing peculiar in their conftruction. We fhall felect fuch particulars from this Introduction, as appear to us moft worthy the attention of our philofophical Readers.

The first of thefe articles is the defcription (illuftrated with a plate) of a convenient Portable Obfervatory, ufed in this philofophical expedition, and invented by his affociate. The two clocks, and the mechanifm employed in fixing them, are next defcribed. Thefe defcriptions are followed by fome judicious obfervations on the Hadley's Sextants; comprehending a general hiftory of that valuable inftrument, from the period of its invention to the present time. The Author dwells more particularly on the application of it to the finding the longitude; the computations for which purpose, he obferves, have been fo greatly abridged, that they may now be performed in 15 or 16 minutes, by a very moderate computer; though formerly the neceffary calculations could not have been made in lefs than three or four hours, by the most skilful. He particularizes the great improvements made in thofe inftruments; and takes notice of the prefent degree of perfection to which the practice of nautical aftronomy has arrived, principally indeed by their means and as it might be expected, from the warmth with which he fpeaks in favour of the prefent method of finding the Jongitude by the Lunar Obfervations, that he should deliver his

opinion

opinion concerning the degree of accuracy to be expected from it, and which fo materially depends on the excellence of thefe Sextants; he declares, from his own experience of it, which has certainly been pretty extenfive, that with very little trouble the longitude of a fhip, at fea, may generally be had by this method, within about the one-fixth part of a degree, or, at moft, the one-fifth.'

Mr. Wales, nevertheless, after noticing fome defects or imperfections incident to thefe inftruments, defcribes fome finguJar and unaccountable anomalies obferved in the two Sectants which he used in this voyage. We fhall give the observation in his own words:

It must be owned there is fomething in the conftitution of this quadrant very difagreeable, and not eafily to be accounted for. Sometimes, for many months together, the longitudes deduced from obfervations made, about the fame time, with my two Sextants, would not differ more than 10 or 15 miles, and. very feldom fo much; after which the longitudes, fo deduced, would begin to differ, and that difference would gradually in-. crease, sometimes to more than a degree and a half: in a little time it would again decreafe; and foon after, the obfervations would agree as well as ever. It will readily be fuppofed, that no means were left untried by me to discover the caufe of this ftrange aberration; but all my endeavours were ineffectual; and I mention the circumftance to induce fome perfon, more skilful in mechanics, to attempt it.'

An obfervation perhaps ftill more fingular occurs, when the Author fpeaks of the Azimuth Campaffes employed in this voyage for obferving the variation. The remark is indeed fo very extraordinary, that it will be fafeft to give this likewife in his own words:

I cannot, fays Mr. W. pafs this article over, without making a remark or two on the irregularities which we found in the obfervations made with thofe inftruments. In the Channel of England, the extremes of the obferved variations were from 19 to 25° and all the way from England to the Cape of Good Hope, I frequently obferved differences nearly as great, without being able, any way, to account for them; the difference in fituation being by no means fufficient. These irregularities continued after leaving the Cape, which, at length, put me on examining into the circumftances under which they were made. In this examination it foon appeared, that when most of those obfervations were made, wherein the greatest Weft, variations had happened, the ship's head was North and Eafterly; and that when thole, where it was leait, had been obferved, it was South and Wefterly. I mentioned this to Capt. Cook, and fome of the officers, who did not at firft feem to think much of

ป

it; but as opportunities happened, fome obfervations were made under thofe circumstances, and very much contributed to: confirm my fufpicions; and throughout the whole voyage I had great reasons to believe, that variations obferved with a ship's head in different pofitions, and even in different parts of her, will differ very materially from one another; and much more will variations, obferved on board different fhips, which I now find fully veri fied, on comparing those which were made on board the Adventure, with my own, made about the fame time: and the in-. quifitive reader will find fome very fingular inftances of these matters in the course of the following obfervations.'

The work itself confifts of a great variety of tables of different kinds; particularly, the nautical journals of each fhip, indicating its fituation at one view, each day, at noon, as fhewn by the log;. by obfervation; and by Mr. Arnold's and Mr. Kendall's timekeepers tables of obfervations of the moon's diftance from the fun and fixed ftars: meteorological journals, kept on board each of the fhips, including experiments occa fionally made to afcertain the temperature of the fea at confiderable depths, by means of an apparatus contrived for that purpose: obfervations on the tides; on the magnetical dip, and variation; the rate of going of the different timekeepers, and comparisons of them with each other, &c.

From thefe journals or tables, notwithstanding their utility, it cannot be expected that we can extract much that can conduce to the inftruction or amufement of our Readers. Nevertheless some scattered obfervations occur in these pages occafionally, which are of a more general nature. With the fub-. france of one of these we fhail terminate our account of this work.

In obferving the tides, Mr. Bayly, our Author's affociate, made ufe of the following method, which appears to be equally simple and accurate. A glass tube, the internal diameter of which was seven-tenths of an inch, was lafhed: faft to a ten-feet. fir rod, divided into feet, inches, and quarters. This rod was fastened to a ftrong poft fixed upright and firm in the water. At the lower end of the tube was an exceeding fmall aperture, through which the water was admitted. In confequence of this conftruction, the furface of the water in the tube was fo little affected by the agitation of the fea, that its height was not altered a tenth of an inch, when the fwell of the fea was two feet and Mr. Bayly was certain that with this inftrument he could difcern a difference of one-tenth of an inch in the height of the tide.

In taking notice of the account which the Author gives of the philofophical inftruments employed in this voyage, we omitted his defcription of the Marine Barometer, conftructed by:

Mr.

Mr. Nairne; and of which we are here reminded, as it was founded on principles fomewhat fimilar to those of this tidegage, and might poffibly fuggeft the idea of it. It was what is commonly called a Cistern Barometer, and differed from the usual conftruction in the following particular. The bore of the lower part of the tube, for about the length of two feet, was fmall; but above that height the tube was enlarged to the common fize. Through the fmall part of the inftrument the mercury was prevented from afcending too haftily, by the motion of the fhip; and the motion of the mercury in the upper wide part was, confequently, leffened. It is a curious circum ftance, that much depends on the proper fufpenfion of this inftrument; and that Mr. Nairne has fince found, by experiment, the point from which it may be fufpended, fo as that the mercury fhall not be affected by the motion of the ship.

B..yo

ART. III. Defence of Lord Pigot. 4to. Volume of 404 Pages. (No Bookfeller.)

HE affair which is the subject of this work is of fo interesting a nature, and has of late engaged fo large a fhare of the public attention, that we hope to oblige many of our Readers by laying before them fuch a fummary of the leading facts and arguments refpecting the conduct of Lord Pigot, as we have been able to collect from this ingenious and fpirited apology for his Lordship. Without further preface, we therefore proceed to offer them the following brief abstract of this voluminous publication.

.

To enable us to judge of the meaning and spirit of the orders which Lord Pigot received from the Eaft India Company, and confequently of the propriety of his conduct in the execution of them, it will be neceffary to review the prior state of the Carnatic. For near a century paft, the government of Tanjore. has been in the family of the present Rajah, or king. About the year 1742, Pertaub Sing, the father of the prefent Rajah, was called to the throne, by the concurrence of the principal men of the kingdom, to fucceed Taujokee, whom they had depofed. In the year 1744, Anwaròdean, who had been entrusted with the guardianship of Seid Mahommed, the infant Nabob of Arcot, contrived the death of this young man, and foon after fucceeded to the nabobfhip. This Nabob, who appears from several striking facts to have been inimical to the English, met with a powerful opponent in Chundafaheb (of the family of. the murthered Nabob) and was at last flain by him in battle,, His youngest fon, Mohammed Ally, the prefent Nabob, faved himfelf by flight. In this fituation of the young Nabob, he found a faithful ally, and fteady friend, in the Rajah of Tanjore,