Astronomical and Nautical Collections. 353 



which Dr. Thomson has ever written, or can ever write on the 



subject. 



We have now accompanied the Doctor through the various 

 turnings of his tortuous course, and our readers must perceive 

 how heavily his Answer has fallen back upon himself. Many of 

 our most important criticisms he prudently shrunk from ; but 

 as these are fully before the public, we shall not fatigue our 

 readers with references and repetitions. 



Had Dr. Thomson confined his " Answer" to the statements 

 contained in our " Review ;" had he endeavoured, as he should 

 have done, to have vindicated his character as a systematic wri- 

 ter by a calm and temperate reply, showing that our charges 

 were exaggerated, and our conclusions erroneous, we should 

 have left hiln in the quiet enjoyment of such refutation ; but the 

 tone and tenor of his answer are such as amply to confirm the 

 justice of our criticism, and to seal his own condemnation ; it is 

 overbearing, petulant, and personal— full of topics entirely 

 irrelevant, and evidently brought in with a view of drawing 

 the reader's attention to any thing but the subject of our 

 animadversions. In language much stronger than we should 

 have any where used, Dr. Thomson tells his readers that we 

 have accused him of being utterly incapable of writing English; 

 of being ignorant of the first principles of arrangement ; of hav- 

 ing made many false statements to promote his own absurd and 

 erroneous chemical speculations; and of having stuffed his book 

 with innumerable errors, arising from his want of acquaintance 

 with the elements of chemical science. These, we repeat, are 

 Dr. Thomson's words; how far they are true, we now leave our 

 readers to determine. 



ART. XII. 

 ASTRONOMICAL AND NAUTICAL COLLECTIONS. 



No. X. 

 i. A Table to facilitate the calculation of the Equation to equal 

 Altitudes, by D. Josef Sanciies Cerquero, Lieutenant of 

 a Frigate of the Natiotial Navy, in the Observatory of the 

 City of Saint Ferdinand. Translated and communicated by 

 Mr. Andrew Livingstone. 



Call the hour shown by the chronometer at the time of the 



first observation in the forenoon H, the corresponding apparent 



time h, the time which the chronometer is fast of apparent 



time a, the horary angle in parts of the equator P ; and we 



shall have H - h + a 



h = 24" - i- P. 

 15 



