10 Life and Character of Nathaniel Bowditch. 
that on the day previous to their sailing on their fourth and leat 4 
voyage together, Mr. Edmund M. Blunt, a noted publisher of 4 i 
charts and nautical books, then residing at Newburyport, came to 
Boston, where the ship lay, on purpose to see Mr. Bowditch. In 
the course-of the conversation between them, which Capt. Prince — 
overheard, Mr. Blunt said, “If you had not corrected the declin- . 
ation, I should-have lost the whole of the last edition ;”’ meaning 
the last edition of John Hamilton Moore’s book on Navigation, — 
then in common use on board our vessels. ‘“ Why,” continued — 
he, “can’t you be good enough to look over Hamilton Moore 
again, more carefully? . Take a copy of it with you, and mark 
whatever you may find ;-and when you get home, I will give” 
you a new one.” ‘“* Well, ” replied Mr. Bowditch, “I will.” On 
the home passage Capt. Prince says that Mr. Bowditch remarked — 
to him, “ Now I am going to assist Blunt, and begin with Ham- 
_ jlton Moore.” When he had been engaged upon it several days, — 
- Gapt. Prince passed by him in the cabin, and said, ‘‘ Well, sit, 
you seem to put a great many black marks on Johnny Moore:” 
“Yes,” replied Mr. Bowditch, “and well I may, for he deserves 
it; his book is nothing but a tissue of errors from beginning to 
ha: ” ~ After he had been hard at work for some time, Capt. Primee — 
said to him, “If I were you, I would sooner make a new book 
than undertake to mend that old thing.” Mr. Bowditch smiled — 
and said, “1 find so many errors that I intend to take out the 
’ work inmy own name.” Capt. Prince closed the conversation by 
adding, “I think you ought to do so, for the work will be new, | 
and the fruit of your own labor, and will be the best work on 
navigation ever published ;” .a prediction that was wonderfully — 
fulfilled to the letter. : 
As an illustration of the deexjerons blunders of Moore’s work, — 
I will mention a fact related to me by John Waters, Esq. of Bos- 
Sun’s Declination for the years a 7, 3 
[80 which he had appended the remar : 
ing leap year.” In consequence of thus erroneously ie : 
18002 leap year, he March © 
: declination on the - 
to the Nautical Almanac 
