SOLAR ECLIPSE OF JANUARY 3, IQOS ABBOT 33 



Smithsonian expedition hung upon this choice, for on January 3, the 

 day of the echpse, a rain-cloud ahnost hid the total phase from view, 

 and rain would probably have fallen throughout totality at the station 

 first proposed. 



In the three and a half weeks spent on Flint Island the apparatus 

 was put in the most perfect condition, many practice rehearsals were 

 carried through, measurements were made of the brightness of the 

 sky, the sun, and the moon, and a meteorological record was kept 

 by Mr. Moore. At the suggestion of Mr. Rathbun. Assistant Secre- 

 tary in charge of the U. S. National Museum, the writer collected a 

 number of kinds of shells and corals for the use of that Museum. 



Among the interesting social events were the coming of the Eng- 

 lish eclipse party of Mr. F. K. McLean and the celebration of Christ- 

 mas, New Year's, and a marriage anniversary. On Christmas day 

 Rev. Mr. Walker, of the McLean party, read a service at 9 a. m., and 

 in the evening a company of seventeen English-speaking people from 

 England, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, and the United States had 

 a turkey dinner together on this coral island of the South Pacific. 

 On New Year's evening a prize poetic contest was enjoyed. 



After the eclipse the expedition left Flint Island on January 5, 

 reached Tahiti on January 7, and embarked for San Francisco Jan- 

 uary 13. During the stay at Tahiti on the outward trip the presence 

 of so many Americans had been taken advantage of by Consul 

 Dreher as a fitting time to celebrate the completion of the new con- 

 sulate at Papeite. Our stay on the return was also made pleasant 

 by the attentions of the consul, and by trips to the interior and along 

 the coast to the home of Chief Tati Salmon. The scenery of Tahiti 

 is exceptionally beautiful and fine, for high mountains are broken at 

 many points by nearly vertical precipices thousands of feet high, yet 

 clothed from top to bottom by luxuriant tropical verdure. Clear 

 streams run down the steep-sided valleys and water-falls of more than 

 600 feet sheer fall are found upon them. Our visit to Chief Tati 

 Salmon was made most interesting by his recounting of ancient 

 stories of the islands and b}^ the serving of native dishes cooked on 

 hot stones by the seashore. 



Our voyage to San Francisco, while impleasantly rough, was made 

 without mishap to the expedition, and the writer reached Washing- 

 ton on February i, 1908. 



Objects and Methods 



We proposed to measure with the bolometer the intensity of the 

 radiation of the solar corona and to determine the quality of coronal 

 radiation as compared with that of the sun. 

 3 



