182 The Late Transit of Venus. ‘April, 
methods had been provided for at all by our official astro- 
nomers.* 
On the morning of the transit, at Mauritius, the sun rose 
concealed by clouds. Minute after minute passed without 
any sign of a break in the cloud-bank behind which the sun 
lay hidden. The important period of ingress, from first ex- 
ternal contact to first internal contact, passed without a 
single opportunity of observing the motions of Venus as she 
entered on the sun’s face. Had Lord Lindsay’s party been 
relying upon the views entertained by astronomers five years 
ago, according to which only the Delislean method could be 
applied, their whole scheme of operations would have already 
failed, for the egress at Mauritius was not worth observing 
for that method. But the failure thus far signified only that 
one method out of three which the party had hoped to apply 
had failed them. We may say, indeed, that Halley’s method 
* It seems to me that Lord Lindsay’s recent work in the cause of science is 
worthy of more than ordinary recognition. Itis no new thing, indeed, for men 
of wealth and leisure to devote large sums tothe advancement ofscience, though 
even in this respect what Lord Lindsay has done is noteworthy, seeing that 
the expedition fitted out by him will involve, first and last, a cost little short 
of the entire amount devoted to the British Government expeditions. The 
remarkable feature in the present case is the personal activity displayed in the 
cause of science by one who might well have been content with the contri- 
bution of some fifteen thousand pounds to a single scientific expedition. 
Moreover, it is to be remembered that this is not by any means the first of 
Lord Lindsay’s services to science. On the occasion of the eclipse of De- 
cember, 1870, Lord Lindsay fitted out an expedition at his own expense, all 
the preparations being much more complete than those made for either of our 
Government expeditions. On that occasion he accompanied his party, and 
took an important share in the work of observation. The next great astrono- 
mical event in which he assisted was the total eclipse of December, 1871. On 
that occasion he fitted out an expedition at great expense, the results obtained 
by which were the most important ever obtained in eclipse observation, seeing 
that Lord Lindsay’s party stationed at Baikul secured a series of photographs 
of the corona which finally established the solar nature of that wonderful 
obje@. Lord Lindsay did not himself join the expedition to India, but he 
took a large part in the work of analysing the results then obtained. A labo- 
ratory was fitted up by him in London, where, in company with Mr. Davis (to 
whose skill the success of the operations was in large part due) and other 
skilful assistants, he investigated carefully all the details of the photographs 
obtained in India. Even at that time preparations were being made and ex- 
periments carried on for the expedition to observe the transit at the Mauritius. 
Lieut. Gill was placed as superintendent over Lord Lindsay’s observatory at 
Dunecht, where all the instruments and methods to be employed during the 
transit were carefully tested. At the laboratory in London experiments were 
made by Lord Lindsay and Mr. Ranyard on the peculiarities of solar photo- 
graphs, in order that the best method of photographing the progress of the 
transit might be adopted. Lord Lindsay not only took a share in such work, 
and in superintending the preparations at Dunecht, but visited continental 
astronomers, physicists, and instrument-makers, inquiring into the qualities 
of various methods, processes, and instruments, in order that every available 
means for securing the best results might be employed. Lastly, he was not 
content to send out the expedition thus carefully provided for, but himself 
went to the Mauritius and shared in the work of observation. 
