330 Progrefs of AJironmni/ in 1805, by Lalande. [Nov. 1, 



Brunef, fiiiiciior of St. Lazarus. He 

 hopes to fet out this year, and an able 

 sillionomer is already preparing his in- 

 ftruments. The ninnnfcripts relative to 

 China, collecled I>y JM. Bertin, are in the 

 pofl'eliion of a iecretary, who has otlcrcd 

 to difpofe of them to government. M. 

 Billien and M. Alaric, in the foreign 

 millions, have been in China, and un- 

 derltand the Chincfc language ; fo that 

 we have not loll all hope of feeing this 

 branch of our knowledge again come in- 

 to favour in France. 



Additions are likcwifc making to tlie 

 geography of Europe. J\I. Beiizcnberg 

 writes t<j me from Duflcldorf, that the 

 King of B.vvaria has ordered plans of the 

 duchy of Berg to be taken on a very 

 largo fcale. 



RI. Henry has returned from Alface ; 

 he is prevfiitt.-d by the war from going to 

 Spain to continue the meridian. He will 

 either relume his triangles for his degrees 

 of longitude, or will continue his tri- 

 angles of Hclveria. 



W. Henntr, Imperial Commiflary for 

 the rci^iltry of lands, has pid)lillied a Col- 

 lection of Laws and Decrees, Inltruc- 

 tions, 'Writs, and ])ecilions, in two vo- 

 lumes oftavo. A third will be publilhed 

 in 1!J0(3. In every part of I'rancc they 

 are ai'tively engaged in taking plans. 



The principal geometrician of the re- 

 giftry of the department of Aveyron, and 

 the learned prol'elVor of Rhodes, Tvl. Te- 

 dcnat, are engaged in rettitying the priu- 

 ripal points of the map with a circle of 

 *ight inches, n\ade by MtlVrs. Becker 

 'and Michel, which is capable of giving 

 ifc precilion of two leconds in the angles. 



'I'ili thi.s complete and circumllantial 

 tlefcription of Fr;;nc<' (liall appear, Brud- 

 hounne has publilhed A Geograjihical, 

 J'tatiriical, HiitorJcal, and Political, Dic- 

 tionary of France : j-ontaining a Defcrip- 

 fcion of Its Cities, \'ill;xgcg, Hiftory, Po- 

 puhition, Mineralogy, Hydrography, 

 Commerce, Katurul and Artificial Pro- 

 ductions, Ancient and Modern Covern- 

 Jncnt, Civil, Military, and i'k;clel:afucul 

 Liditutions, and a Dictionary of tlie Co- 

 ionics, with a general Map, &c., five 

 ihick volumes quarto. He has been en- 

 gaged for fiftteu ycai's on tliis great work, 

 V, hicli luis colt him great pains and e.K- 

 jience. Several men of letters have co- 

 operated in it ; tliel'e he refufes to name, 

 biit tJie authors appear worthy of bt;ing 

 tnowii. Kxpilly's Dictionary, in fix fo- 

 lio volumes, was not finillicd : I requefc- 

 letl lcv(,'rid rimes tliat it might L« *om- 



pleted ; but this will now fupply the de- 

 ficiency. 



Since it is neceffary that our Hiftory 

 of Aftronomy Ihould always conclude 

 ^vith a recital of our lollcs, I fliall begin 

 with M. llatte, who long conferri'd ho- 

 nour, as an allronomer, on the Academy 

 of JMoutpellier. 



Ktii'uue llyacinte do Ratte, fon of yean 

 Pierre de Ratte, and of Gillette de P'lau- 

 gergues, was born at Montpcllier the firft 

 of September, 1722. His love of the 

 fcicnces, and particularly of mathema- 

 tics, was manifelled at an early age. He 

 had mailers of every kind, Ihidied the 

 fciences with ardour, and the extent and 

 variety of his attainments alloiiiihed all 

 well-informed people, who w,ere then 

 very numerous at Montpellier. The 

 Royal Society of Sciences, ellablilhed in 

 170(j in that town, was delirous of re- 

 ceiving fuch a hopeful youth into, the 

 mmdier of its members j and notwith- 

 ilanding tlie rule that none lliould be ad- 

 mitted under the age of twenty, letters 

 of difpenl'ation were given him in 1741. 

 The next year he was ai)poiiited perpe- 

 tual Iecretary, the funttiims of which of; 

 fice he never ceafed to perfonii with cre- 

 dit till the clitfolution of the Royal Socie- 

 ty of M.nitpellier. lu 17G(J and 1778 

 he publilhed vulumes under the title of 

 Mcmoircs, afterwards under that of Af- 

 fc/iibltes, Biillcfiiis. His Eulogies on 

 Plautade, Clapics, Lapeyronie, \'enelj 

 Lafolle, Pilot, Suuvage, Linna'us, Lcroy^ 

 Lainure, ike, difplay his extcnfive know- 

 ledge and bis tnlent for compoiition. 



He likewiie wrote feveral mathemati- 

 cal and phylical Memoirs, on whirlwinds, 

 fluids, aloes, fome of which are printed 

 in the CoMcclious of tlic Royal Society ; 

 and he furnilhed the articles Froid, 

 Gluce, GfUe,lk.Q., for the Fjitcyrlopidie. 



The celebrated prediction of Halley 

 relative to the return of the comet of 

 1C82, whicii he had fixed for 1757 or 

 1758, at that time engaged the attention 

 not only of allronomers, but likewife of 

 other fcicntific men. i\I. de Ratte v.as 

 curious to participate in the dil'covery of 

 this comet, and at this period commen- 

 ced his predilection for al'trononiy. H«{ 

 was one of the firll th;iL difcovcred and 

 obferved it, upon its exit from the Sun's 

 rays. Tliefe obfervations delighted him, 

 and he never afterwards tailed to ob- 

 ferve .ill comets that were at all remark- 

 aide. He likewife obfened the tranlit 

 of Venus over the Sun in 17(51. The. 

 obfervutions lie aiade oj» it ut Montjiel- 



Jicr 



