244 HISTOEY OF ASTRONOMY. 



For the last two or three years the energies of Professor 

 Mitchell have been devoted almost exclusively to railroad 

 engineering, and the observatory has consequently been 

 neglected. We trust that he will soon free himself from 

 such groveling occupations, and again direct the gaze of 

 his powerful telescope to study the movements of distant 

 worlds. 



CAMBRIDGE OBSERVATORY. 



The project of erecting an observatory in the neighbor- 

 hood of Boston upon a scale corresponding with the im- 

 portance and dignity of astronomy, had for a long period 

 been the subject of conversation among the friends of 

 science. This was a favorite scheme with John Q. Adams, 

 Nathaniel Bowditch, and others, and various plans had 

 been proposed for carrying it into execution ; but it did 

 not appear practicable to raise a sum of money sufficient 

 to complete the plan upon the liberal scale which was de- 

 sired. Something was needed to give a stronger impulse 

 Sto the claims of practical astronomy. This impulse was 

 given by the unexpected appearance of the splendid comet. 



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