212 Miscellaneous Intelligence. 



19. PROFESSOR OLTMANNS ON THE GEOGRAPHY OF SOUTH 

 AMERICA*. 



It is well known that the results of the expedition of Malespina, 

 which was most richly fitted out for scientific investigations, and most 

 ably conducted, have never been communicated to the public. M. 

 Bauza, a skilful officer attached to the expedition, communicated to 

 Professor Oltmanns the astronomical observations made on that ex- 

 pedition, which he has saved from the fate of the other fruits of that 

 ill-starred expedition, on condition that he would recalculate them. 

 Professor Oltmanns has redeemed his pledge, and in laying before 

 the world the results of his calculations of the observations of 

 Malespina, together with those of other observers, he confirms 

 the opinion expressed by Bauza, that the former calculations were 

 very inaccurately executed. He likewise agrees with M. Bauza 

 respecting the inaccuracy of the observations made on board the 

 Conway, some of which, when recalculated by Professor Oltmanns, 

 gave results differing more than twenty minutes in arc from what is 

 most probably true. From the numerous list given by Professor 

 Oltmanns, we extract the following positions of some remarkable 

 places on the coast of South America, as corrected by Professor 

 Oltmanns; among which the longitude of Rio Janeiro depends 

 on a great number of occultations of Jupiter's satellites. 



Places. Latitude. Longitude west of Paris. 



Rio di Janeiro . . .22 54' 45 36' 13" 



Buenos Ayres . . . 34 36 40'' 60 47 



Monte Video (Observatory) 34 54 40 58 36 50 



San Carlos de Chiloe . 41 52 76 11 20 



La Concepcion . . . 36 49 30 75 25 55 



Valparaiso ... 33 2 74 2 10 



San Jago de Chili . . 33 26 15 73 17 17 



Coquimbo ... 29 56 40 73 43 48 



Callao (Casillo del Callao) . 12 3 40 79 34 31 



Guayaquil . 2 12 82 18 10 



20. ON BEAUCHAMP'S GEOGRAPHICAL POSITIONS IN THE EAST. 

 (By Professor Oltmanns.')^ 



It is well known that the geography of the interior of Asia was per- 

 fectly unknown till within about half a century, and even at this, 

 moment there are, in the interior of Persia, and other central regions 

 of Asia, large tracts without a single place whose position is deter- 

 mined by astronomical observations. We are indebted to two 

 travellers, Niebuhr and Beauchamp, for the first advances made ia 

 the geography of the south-western parts of Asia. Niebuhr's ob- 



* Berlin Academy, Year 1827 : Berlin, 1830, 2d Part, p. 37. 

 f Mem, of Berlin Academy, Year 1827. ' Berlin, 1830, p. 139, 



