374 



the northern hemisphere where the phenomena have been examined 

 with equal care. This fact is not in accord with the opinions of those 

 physicists who regard the solar action as conditioned in its exercise 

 by the direction of the magnetic meridian at the particular station. 

 In the different stations in the northern hemisphere, where the ex- 

 treme deflections have been found to take place at the same hours of 

 solar time, the differences in the direction of the magnetic meridian 

 have not been less than 70, equivalent to a difference of solar time 

 of between four and five hours. 



I ought not to close this paper without adverting to the success 

 which has attended Mr. Scatchkoff's employment of native Chinese 

 as his assistants in the work of the Pekin Observatory, holding out 

 as it does an encouraging example to Directors of Observatories who 

 may be similarly circumstanced. A very close test of the care and 

 fidelity with which observations have been made and recorded is fur- 

 nished by the lunar-diurnal variation, deducible from them when they 

 have been re-arranged under the lunar hours to which they severally 

 belong. Thus tested, the Pekin observations show no inferiority to 

 those of other stations which have been similarly examined. 



It is understood that the observations, which were discontinued at 

 Pekin at the end of 1855, are about to be recommenced, or have been 

 so already. It is greatly to be desired that hourly obervations of 

 the Horizontal and Vertical Forces should be combined with those 

 of the Declination at this important station. The self-recording ap- 

 paratus of the three elements which has been in action at Kew during 

 the last two years, has been found, by the reduction of its tabulated 

 values at hourly intervals, to be in no respect practically inferior to 

 the method of eye-observation, whilst it possesses many advantages 

 which are peculiarly its own. The tabulation from the Photographic 

 Curves, as well as the reductions, might be made, if more convenient, 

 at the central Physical Observatory at St. Petersburgh. 



March 15, 1860. 

 Sir BENJAMIN C. BRODIE, Bart., President, in the Chair. 



Robert Patterson, Esq., was admitted into the Society. 



The following communications were read : 

 L "Analysis of my Sight, with a view to ascertain the focal 



