1824.] Col. Beaufoy's Astronomical Observations. 11 



alike eminent as a practical chemist and mechanic, as a patriot 

 in public, and a friend in private life, as presiding over the inte- 

 rests of the miner and of the farmer, and in fine as the guardian 

 and overseer of the large family of his native poor. It will not 

 indeed be easy to find another, whose talents have been at once 

 more brilliant and more useful, who has been more admired and 

 more loved by his country, than John Gottlieb Gahn. 



Article II. 



Astronomical Observations, 1824. 



By Col. Beaufoy, FRS. 



Bushey Heath, near Stanmore. 



Latitude 51° 37' 44-3" North. Longitude West in time 1' 20-93". 



June 9. Occupation of a small star by the moon. Im-> .. h gr , „„„ ^., . . r „. 



mersion S J ' em aae ' 



Article III. 



Additional Remarks on the Older Red Sandstone Formation, or 

 Group, of foreign Geologists, and the Carboniferous Series of 

 the English. By Thomas Weaver, Esq. MRIA. MRUS. 

 MWS. MGS. HMBI. 



(To the Editor of the Annals of Philosophy .) 



SIR, TortKorlh, June I, 1894. 



The rapid progress that geology has made within some year.* 

 past, may be mainly attributed ; first, to the greater precision" 

 introduced into the researches of geologists, and the consequent 

 greater accuracy of their descriptions ; and secondly, to the 

 comparisons which they have thus been enabled to draw between 

 classes and groups of formations, in different parts of the world.. 

 The ground-work has thus been laid for correct generalization,. 

 Most of the errors that have crept into geology have confessedly 

 proceeded from a hasty desire of deducing general inferences 

 from imperfect or merely local data, without taking that enlarged 

 view of the subject, which, comprising all the modified details 

 observable in different countries, secures alone a safe foundation 

 for legitimate induction. The spirit of inquiry which has gone 

 forth lias led to discussion, and to that conflict of opinion in 

 which zealous minds are prone to engage, when instigated by a 

 sincere desire of eliciting the truth. Continental and English 

 geologists thus mutually assist in elucidating the positions of 

 each other. An instance of the kind may, perhaps, be found in 

 the more exact determination of the relative position, characters, 

 and organized remains of the muschel-kalk and quadersandstein 

 of Germany, and other parts of the Continent, from which, so 

 far as they have lately been investigated, there appears reason to 



