Report of the Kew Committee. 



VI. RATING OF WATCHES AND CHRONOMETERS. 



A large increase has taken place in the number of watches sent for 

 trial during the year, 1,521 having been received, as compared with 

 1,044 during the previous twelve months. 



This increase, however, has been largely in watches entered for the 

 class B test, and for various reasons a future falling off in the 

 number of such watches is not unlikely. 



It is a gratifying fact that the number of high-class movements 

 attaining the distinction especially good has been greater than in any 

 previous year. 



The watches were entered for trial as below : 



For class A, 376 ; class B, 885 ; class C, 251 ; and 9 for the subsi- 

 diary trial. Of these 5 passed the subsidiary test, 299 failed from 

 various causes to gain any certificate ; 238 were awarded class C 

 certificates, 722 class B, and 257 class A ; of the latter, 34 obtained 

 the highest form of certificate, class A, especially good. 



In Appendix III will be found a table giving the results of trial 

 of the 34 watches which gained the highest number of marks during 

 the year. The first place was taken by Messrs. Stauffer, feon, and Co., 

 London, with a keyless, going-barrel, chronometer- watch, No. 147,625, 

 with the " tourbillon " escapement, which obtained 88*0 marks out of 

 a maximum of 100. 



The best performance of lever watches during the year was that of 

 No. 33,884 by Jos. White and Son, Coventry, which gained 84*9 

 marks. 



Non-Magnetic Watches. Twelve watches thus designated have been 

 examined during the year, both as to their ordinary time-keeping 

 and also as to their non-magnetic properties, and although the trial 

 to which they are submitted is severe the movement bein*g tested in 

 an intense magnetic field, both in vertical and horizontal positions, 

 and gradually approached to and removed from the poles, whilst 

 its behaviour is critically watched in the majority of cases the 

 watches were found to perform very satisfactorily. 



Marine Chronometers. The Committee having been requested by 

 the Naval Attache to the Royal Italian Embassy to undertake trials 

 for Marine chronometers on the Greenwich plan, Mr. Constable 

 visited the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, by kind permission of the 

 Astronomer Royal, and was afforded every facility to make himself 



