

ASTRONOMY. 395 



Wardhus, before there was any possibility of communication with other 

 observers. 



Third. The addition of the time of the formation of the thread of 

 light was suggested by the accounts of other observers ; but the time 

 itself is Hell's own, obtained possibly from estimation and memory, but 

 more probably from a memorandum made at the time of observation, 

 which he neglected to insert in his journal. 



Fourth. The alteration in Sajuovics's time of second internal contact 

 were probably made, because Sajnovics himself afterward concluded 

 that his recorded time was too late ; but it may be assumed, that, in 

 reaching this conclusion, he was influenced by Hell's observations. 



Professor Newcomb adds, respecting his own proceedings in investi- 

 gating this subject, that, in commencingthe examination of Hell's journal, 

 he had no hope of doing more than deciding whether it was or was not 

 safe to use Hell's numbers as actual results of observations, and no 

 thought of doubting the commonly received view of the case. He soon 

 became perplexed to find himself differing entirely from the conclusions 

 of Littrow. Before the latter had found the manuscript, suspicion had 

 rested upon Hell's truthfulness ; so that when he looked into the manu- 

 script, and saw such extensive alterations, the indictment seemed so 

 clearly proven that Littrow's only duty was to make the facts which 

 proved it known to the world. He thus unconsciously assumed the 

 tone of a public prosecutor, and saw all the circumstances from an ac- 

 cuser's point of view. — (Science.) 



Transits of Venus, 1874 and 1882.— The United States Transit of Venus 

 Commission, under whose direction all the operations undertaken by our 

 Government in connection with the transits of 1874 and 1882 were carried 

 out, has lately communicated a statement with regard to the conduct 

 of its affairs and the reduction of the observations. The number of 

 parties organized for the observation of the transit of 1882 was eight, 

 four of which were sent to the southern hemisphere, the other four re- 

 maining in the United States. The foreign stations were, with their 

 chief astronomers, as follows: Wellington, South Africa, Prof. Simon 

 Newcomb ; Santa Cruz, Patagonia, Lieut. Samuel W. Very ; Santiago 

 de Chile, Prof. Lewis Boss; Auckland, New Zealand, Mr. Edwin Smith. 

 The home stations were Washington, D. C, Prof. William Harkness ; 

 Cedar Keys, Florida, Prof. John E. Eastman ; San Antonio, Tex., Prof. 

 Asaph Hall ; Cerro Eoblero, N. Mex., Prof. George Davidson. In ad- 

 dition to these parties, there were two others, equipped wholly or in 

 part at private expense, but whose operations were conducted in such 

 a way as to insure the strict comparability of their work with that of 

 the Government parties. One of these was stationed at Princeton, N. 

 J , in charge of Prof. Charles A. Young, and the other at the Lick Obser- 

 vatory, Mouat Hamilton, Cal., in charge of Prof. David P. Todd. The 

 photographic results will be derived from the labors of these two par- 

 ties in the same way as from the Government photographs, and the final 



