942 On the Usefulness of Time- Keepers 
at the ship being obtained, the time-keeper supplies the 
rest by almost simple inspection. To the skilful mariner 
the time-keeper will prove a great acquisition ; for notwith- 
standing the best of time-keepers are liable to change in the 
rate of their performance, he will however so employ his 
time-keeper as to make this variation of but little im- 
portance, and by a judicious management of his lunar ob- 
servations, combined with the deductions of his time-keeper, 
make each a correction for the other. And to the less ex- 
perienced mariner it will afford the means of a check upon 
his deductions, derived from the practice of Mercator’s 
Sailing, or, as it is more commonly called, a Day’s Work. 
As time-keepers are now become an almost general arti- 
cle of our manufactory, and a great many are made by per- 
sons who are mere copyists of others, working without a 
knowledge, simple as it is, of the principles upon which 
the greater part of their accuracy depends, it necessarily 
happens that we must meet with a number of inferior time- 
keepers. In addition to these disadvantages we may also 
add that few of the time-keeper makers have the means, after 
their machines are made, of ascertaining their rate of per- 
formance, which must tend in a very considerable degree 
to keep up the price of these articles above the standard at 
which they would otherwise be sold; for the labouring 
mechanic, finding himself unable to account for the degree 
of merit to which his time-keeper is entitled, is obliged to 
dispose of it tu persons who are better able than himself to 
ascertain its value, and to affix a price, which is always re- 
gulated by the performance of the machine. With a view 
to the removal of this disadvantage to the mechanic, and 
giving facility to the introduction of a selection of good © 
time-keepers into the service of the Navy, and at moderate 
prices, the following plan was drawn up. It has for its 
object the establishment of an office properly adapted for 
the trial of time-keepers. 
To such an office the labouring mechanic would bring 
his machine, and be glad to obtain a price for it, which might 
amcunt to a few guineas above that which he can obtain in 
the trade; and in addition to this advantage, of being bet- 
ter paid, he would have an opportunity of becoming ace 
quainted with its performance: a mutual advantage would 
therefore acrue to both parties, viz. to the Government, 
in obtaining possession of a set of good time-keepers at a 
moderate price; and to the mechanic, in being able to find 
a mart for his Jabour, affording him the means of improve- 
ment and future success, Another and yery considerable 
‘advantage 
