16 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 
an observatory. By the end of February a very complete and 
satisfactory series of time signals were exchanged between Capt. 
Darwin, at Singapore, Capt. Helb, at Banjoewangie, in Java, and 
Mr. Baracchi, at Port Darwin, as well as between Port Darwin 
and Adelaide, and Port Darwin and Melbourne, the result being 
to reduce the hitherto adopted longitude of Melbourne by 1.43 
secs. of time. 
What may be regarded as Australasia’s greatest contribution 
to astronomical knowledge is now in progress by the co-opera- 
tion of the Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide Observatories in the 
great international undertaking for making a complete survey 
of the heavens by means of photography, from which a chart of 
all stars down to the 14th magnitude, and a catalogue of the 
positions of all stars down to the 11th magnitude will be 
formed. The heavens have been divided into zones, and each 
observatory joining in the work has allotted to it the particular 
zones best suited to its latitude ; for instance, the zones allotted 
to the Sydney Observatory are from 54 degs. to 64 degs. south 
latitude, and to Melbourne from 65 degs. to the pole. Adelaide 
was not able to take a share in the photographic campaign, but 
gives important help in determining the places of the reference 
stars. This work was commenced in 1891, and will probably 
occupy four or five more years before the photographic part is 
completed, after which the formation of the chart and catalogue 
from the photographic plates (numbering over 20,000) will pro- 
bably extend over many years. 
The occurrence of the transits of Venus, and the very general 
interest taken in them by most civilised countries in the world, 
had the effect of an astronomical awakening in Australasia, for, 
although as early as 1855 there were several private individuals 
practically interested in astronomical matters, such as making 
reflecting telescopes, and testing their powers on planets, double 
stars, and so on, with some occasional useful observations, there 
was a marked increase of the number of people who, possessing 
themselves of telescopes, took up astronomy as a recreation 
about 1874 and after. In New South Wales especially was this 
the case, and quite a number of amateur astronomers appeared 
on the field, some of whom have become professionally engaged ~ 
in the science, while others are doing good practical work con 
amore. One of these, Mr. Innes, of Sydney, is now a talented 
and valued assistant of Dr. Gill, of the Cape Observatory. 
About the same time, Mr. James Oddie, a banker at Ballarat, 
established an observatory at Mount Pleasant, near that city, at 
his own private cost, and placed it in charge of a well-known 
amateur astronomer, the late Capt. Baker, who had for many 
years been very successful in making Newtonian reflectors of 
considerable dimensions ; one of these, a fine 24-in. mirror, was 
mounted equatorially in the Mount Pleasant Ubservatory. Mr. 
