PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. S 



in the anuals of Science, and for the reasons already stated must be specially interest- 

 ing to this Society and to Canada. I shall therefore give a slight sketch here, referring 

 those who desire full details to a pamphlet on the subject, which is, I am happj* to say, 

 shortljr to be published by the Canadian Institute of Toronto. 



The desirability of having one common Prime Meridian had, of course, long been felt 

 by civilized nations, and the inconvenience of the incessant changes of time in going from 

 one city to another must have been a matter of thought to many, especially on this con- 

 tinent, with its long lines of railways, and great distances travelled by passengers on them. 

 This has probably led to writings from time to time in one periodical or another, many of 

 which might possibly be found, if diligent search were made for Ihem. 



To Mr. Saudford Fleming belongs the credit, not only of conceiving the idea of a 

 remedy for the inconvenience, but of carrying it out to practical conclusions by one sus- 

 tained effort. He introduced the subject before the Canadian Institi^te, in January and 

 February, 18*79. The proceedings of the Institute were subsequently brought, in the form 

 of a memorial, before His Excellency the Marquis of Lorne, Grovernor-G-eneral, in the hope 

 that he would lay them before the Imperial Government. Through his good offices, and 

 the action of the Imperial Grovernmeut, copies of the Proceedings were distributed to some 

 of the leading scientific Societies in Great Britain, and to the governments not only of many 

 European nations, but even of Japan and China. 



In the year following, 1880, the American Metrological Society issued a Report of 

 the Committee on Standard Time, bearing date May, 18*79. In this Report, attention is 

 drawn to the fact that through the influence of the then Astronomer Royal, Sir George Airy, 

 the notation of time had been made synchronous in Great Britain, and it pointed out the 

 inconveniencies in America for want of similar action. Advance copies of this Report 

 were obtained in 1880 from New York, and, again through the kindness of the Marquis of 

 Lorne, were sent, along with a second issue of Mr. Saudford Fleming's papers, to some of 

 the leading European Societies. In consequence of this action of the Marquis of Lorne, 

 general attention seems to have been drawn to the subject in Europe. Scientific men of 

 A-arious nations wrote on it. In Spain, all the papers sent from Canada were translated 

 and published. This general attention prepared the way for a discussion at the Interna- 

 tional Geographical Congress at Venice, in which Mr. Sandford Fleming took part. He 

 there suggested the idea of an International Conference to be held at Washington. Out oT 

 this discussion appears to have sprung another important discussion at the meeting of the 

 International Geodetic Association at Rome, in October, 1883, when a special International 

 Conference for the establishment of a Zero Meridian for Longitude and Time was recom- 

 mended. 



In June, 1881, the subject was considered at Montreal by the American Society of 

 Civil Engineers meeting there, and a Committee appointed to consider it. A circular from 

 the Secretary of that Society, dated March, 1882, was issued to the leading men connected 

 with railways, and to scientific men on this continent. Replies were reported at a Con- 

 vention of the Society held in May, 1882, and in consequence of their favourable character 

 it was resolved to petition Congress to take the matter into consideration. This petition 

 was supported by another from the American Metrological Society. The consequence was, 

 that a joint resolution was passed by the House of Representatives and Senate, authorizing 

 the President to call an International Conference to decide the question. The subject was 



