MAY28, 18G0.] OBITUARY.— BKUNEL. 123 



will be found in the following letter from onr late President, 

 Admiral W. H. Smyth :— 



"..... You wish to know my opinion as to the estimation 

 in which I hold the merits of my admirable friend, General Sir 

 Thomas M. Brisbane. My knowledge of the pursuits of this emi- 

 nently distinguished officer is of many years' standing, and my 

 personal acquaintance with him almost as long ; for, shortly after 

 the peace of 1815, we met, British soldier and sailor- — of all places 

 in the world — in a French astronomical observatory ! And I can 

 render testimony to the high regard paid by his late enemies to his 

 scientific attainments. 



'* From long intercourse I can have no hesitation in pronouncing 

 that Sir Thomas was equally familiar with the theory and practice 

 of astronomy ; and he not only worked himself, but was the cause 

 of work in others. Nor should it be overlooked that intellectual 

 zeal at that time was even more meritorious than of late, since it 

 was necessarily exerted among the incessant and frequently dis- 

 tracting duties of actual warfare. 



"About the year 1820, when appointed to the high office of 

 Governor of New South Wales, Sir Thomas resolved to improve our 

 astronomical knowledge of the Southern Hemisphere. With this 

 important object in view, previous fo sailing for his destination, 

 he made direct inquiries in various quarters as to how it could be 

 executed to its fullest extent ; and I cannot but feel proud of 

 having been consulted on that very interesting occasion." 



After detailing the establishment of the Paramatta Observatory, 

 and its result — " The Brisbane Catalogue of Southerh Stars " — the 

 Admiral concludes : — 



" The well-known military career of Sir Thomas Brisbane is now 

 matter of history ; but I may truly assert that there is not, either 

 in the army or navy, an individual to whom Ham artibus quam 

 armis ' can be more appropriately applied than to that excellent and 

 honoured officer." 



Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Esq., one of the most eminent en- 

 gineers of the day, was born at Portsmouth in 1806, while his father, 

 the late Sir Mark I. Brunei, was engaged in erecting the Block-fac- 

 tory there. The principal works with which Mr. Brunei's name will 

 in future ages be associated, are the Thames Tunnel, in conjunction 

 with his father; the Great Western, and the Great Eastern Steam 

 Ships, both, at their respective periods, the largest vessels ever 

 built ; docks at various seaports j the Great Western Kailway, with 



