fhe GEORGIUM STDUS. 307 



to more than what might reafonably be attributed to the inac- 

 curacy of obfervation. 



ASTRONOMERS were every where engaged in the fame re- 

 fearch ; and it occurred to fome of them, that the Star might 

 poffibly have been obferved before, by thofe who were employ- 

 ed in making catalogues of the Zodiacal Stars. Mr BODE of 

 Berlin had juft published a valuable work, in which all the 

 catalogues of the Stars were included. He had recourfe to 

 his papers, where he had marked all the difference of thefe 

 catalogues, in order to difcover whether any Star, obferved 

 by one aftronomer, and omitted by another, might not be 

 this Star of Mr HERSCHEL, paying attention to thofe diffe- 

 rences only which he could find in the parts of the Zodiac, 

 through which the nearly determined orbit of this newly dif- 

 covered Planet might be fuppofed to pafs. Among others, he 

 found the Star, No. 964. of MAYER'S Catalogue, not obferved 

 by others, and but once obferved by MAYER, who could 

 not therefore difcover any motion in it. Mr BODE imme- 

 diately examined the heavens, and could not find this Star. 

 He farther found, that the elements of the new Planet affigned 

 to it that very apparent place, in the month of September 

 1756, one of the years in which MAYER was occupied with 

 thefe obfervations. On examining the regifter of MAYER'S 

 obfervations, it was found, that he had obferved the Star, No. 964. 

 on the 2jth of September 1756. This was notified to Mr BODE, 

 in September 1781. He immediately made this information 

 public ; and it has fince been currently fuppofed, that the Star 

 obferved by MAYER was the Planet of HERSCHEL. 



IT was found, even before the end of 1782, that the circu- 

 lar hypothefis was not exacl:, and that the angular motion of 

 the Planet round the Sun was increafing. This mowed, that 

 the Planet was not moving in a circle, but in an excentric orbit, 

 and was approaching to the Sun. Aftronomers, therefore, be- 

 gan to inveftigate the inequality of this angular heliocentric 

 motion, in order to difcover jhe form and pofitiou of the ellipfe 



2 defcribed 



