10 INAUGUEAL ADDEESS. 



tronomers as Ellery, Russell, and Todd, whose discoveries 

 secure renown for their respective colonies. 



Of course I am quite prepared to admit that the redupli- 

 cation of observatories in ahout the same latitude, merely 

 for the study of the heavenly bodies, would be rather a 

 matter of scientific luxury. The few degrees of additional 

 elevation of the South Polar region which would be gained 

 by an observatory situated even in the extreme south of 

 New Zealand could hardly be expected to disclose pheno- 

 mena that would escape the vigilance of the Melbourne 

 observatory. But star-gazing is only one branch of the 

 routine work of an observatory. It is true that we have a 

 moderate but efficient observatory estabiislnnent in New 

 Zealand, sufficient for distributing correct mean time, 

 and that our meridian distance from Greenwich has been 

 satisfactorily determined by telegraph. Also, thanks to the 

 energy and skill of the Survey Department, despite most 

 formidable natural obstructions, the major triangulation and 

 meridian circuits have established the basis of our land- 

 survey maps on a satisfactory footing, so that subdivision 

 of the land for settlement and the adoption and blending of 

 the excellent work done by the Provincial Governments of 

 the colony are being rapidly overtaken. Further, I have 

 already recalled how much the colony is indebted to the 

 Mother-country for the completeness and detail of the 

 coastal and harbour charts. 



But there is much work that should be controlled by a 

 physical observatory that is really urgently required. I 

 may give a few illustrations. The tidal movements round 

 the coast are still imperfectly ascertained, and the causes 

 of their irregular variations can never be understood until 

 we have a synchronous system of tide-meters, and a more 

 widely extended series of deep-sea soundings. Excepting 

 the " Challenger " soundings on the line of the Sydney 

 cable, and a few casts taken by the United States ship 

 " Enterprise," the depth of the ocean surrounding New 

 Zealand has not been ascertained with that accuracy which 

 many interesting problems in physical geography and 

 geology demand. It is supposed to be the culmination 



