ti'ijlory of Ajiranomy Jot the Year 1801. S09 



had not a finale -^ yauier-cock in their view, but a great many 

 conduftors, wh.^h are not \\;;y hue cfting'. ' 



On the 3d of November there was in The Baltic a terrible 

 ftorm, which deftroyed fonie velTels, and was felt even at 

 Breft. On the 7th there was a (iorni in Provence, which 

 produced 73 lines of water in 2 hours by a wind at S.S.E. 

 It did very great diiniage at Marl'eillcs; feveral perfons pe- 

 rifhed in the neighbourhood, and the lofs amounts to Tome 

 millions. C. Thulis has found fome memorandums of the 

 itorms of July 12, 1748; September 4, 1764; and Septem- 

 ber 15, 1772: but no pcrfon had any remembrance of a 

 ftorm like that of the prefent year. The plain of the Po was 

 cxpofed loan immenfe inundation. 



The Clafs of the Phyfical and Mathematical Sciences on 

 the i6th of April ciiofe three afironomers, who were pre- 

 fented to the general alTcmbly for the place of aifociate, va- 

 cant by the death of C. St. Jacques, viz. C. Vidal, Sepman- 

 villc, and Bernard. 



The firft is an uncommon obferver, who has alone made 

 more obfervations of Mercury than all the atironomers of the 

 ■world fince 2000 years. The feclionof aftronomy had prefeuted 

 alfo C. I*i6let of Geneva, Chabrjl i^de Riom), and Quenot, 

 officers in the navv. I even made out a lift of the aftrono- 

 incrs known in France, which contained C. Henry, returned 

 from Peterfburgh ; Nouet and Beaucham]!, returned from 

 the Levant; C. Derattc and Poitevin, of Montpellier; Ber- 

 nier and BilTy, who embarked with captain Baudin ; Cheva- 

 lier, m the department of foreign aH'airs ; ICramp, of Co- 

 logne; Duvaucel, at Evreux ; Guerin, at Amboife; Mongin, 

 at la Grand-Conii)e-des-Bois ; Maingon and Lancelin, at 

 Breft; Jacotot, at Dijon; Planpnin and Degrand, at Mar- 

 irilles. If v\c add to thefe the fix aftrononicrs alfociated at 

 the luftitutc, it will be fecn that this I'cicnee, the moft un- 

 profitable and the moft neg!e6led, (till furnillies fubjefts in 

 France. As foon as the happy event of peace exalted the 

 hopes of literary men, I took advantage of it to folicit from 

 all quarters, that aftronomy might participate in the benefits 

 of it. 



The Academy nf Peterfburgh has tranfmittcd to me a fmall 

 prefent, which it has been accuftomed for thirty years to 

 tend me for the good ot- aftronomy ; and the emperor of 

 Kuflia has approved the defire of the Academy in that relpeiS. 



The king of fururi.i has promifcd to patronize aftronomy 

 at Florence. The oblcrvatorv is already provided with excel- 

 lent inftruments, and Faljroni has aftlired me that an ob- 

 ferver will be pl;iced in it : he has rcquefted one of my pu- 



VOL. XII. N0.47. pils; 



