I 



Trntmtion Stutiies ^ 89 



ordinary counto he liaH to npply, with doubtful ulmncu of buoc«mi, to upward* of 10 Metooro- 

 InHtitutoK ill HritMin and Euro[H>, for thu favour of acceaa to thi^ <•!- ' InoaiDMtta 

 cuivt<d hy them, and to fully 30 iudividualM In'Midt-H. I(i< hoM ii<<xt to pro< ' , then to 



KJucc tin) barometer and thfrmonictur rradin^'H to a coiiwimhi nifa.sure, and tiiiully in protract 

 1 a map. I U•i^\ tluit all this dry, lulx)rii>UM, and contly work, which ha.s to l>e unil"i<»c)rM« in<l*«- 

 'pt'iiilently by every real student befort) he can venture a step into scientific wof ' 

 that which should Ix- uiidiTt^iken by Iimtitute-H eNtabli.sluHl for thw advance of "•; 

 (p. 3, col. i.) 



(Jalton's own list of failures is considerable: 



"There was no ceiitnil Institute in Switzerlund neither wiim there any reco){tii.se<i inst iti]t<- 



in Denmark oi' Norway. Whether by accident or iiii.sundeniUiidinK, several promiwd , um 

 muni(;ationH from Denmark liave never reacliwi mo, to my great n^gret, for its weather won 

 clo.sely linked with our own. From Hwe<len I could obtain nothing, from France next to 

 nothing', from Havaria only the valuabh^ olraervntions niatie at Munich. Fn<m Italy I had 

 lonNiderable ho|>e.s held out to me, but little fruit. The interior of Ireland is wretchedly repre- 

 sentiMl, and would have presented a gap, like France, were it not for two eminent astronomen 

 and some chance a.ssistance besides." (p. 4, col. ii.) 



The hulk of Galton's data came from Belgium (with the aid of Quetelet). 

 Holland (with the help of Buys Ballot), Austria (from Kreil) and Berlin 

 (from Dove). To the three former (lalton tenders his special tlianks. Then 

 comes Galton's e.xcuse for his pul)lication of a work ba.sed on admitt^Mllv 

 inadequate data: 



" Kntcrtaining the views I have expressed on the necesjiity of mett-orological charts and mapa, 

 and feeling confident that no i-epresentation of what might be done would influence meteorolo- 

 gists to execute wliat I have described, so strongly as a practical proof that it could be done, 

 I determined to make a trial by myself, and to chart the entire area of Europe, so far aa 

 meteorological st^itions extend, during one entire month, and 1 now publish my results." (p. 3, 

 col. ii.) 



A mo-st important discovery was made by Galton as soon as he had 

 begun plotting his wind and pressure charts. While Dove had recognised 

 that centres of low pressure in the northern hemisphere were associated with 

 counter-clockwise directions of the wind round a centre of calms, and termed 

 this system a cyclone, Cialton noted that centres of high pressure jire associated 

 with clockwise directions of the wind round a centre of calms. Galton termed 

 this system an anticyclone, and the name nipidly came into general use, and 

 is very familiar now although few who use it rememl)er that Galton first 

 noticed the system and coined the name*. 



When one studies Galton's tiny charts of pros.su re and wind for the thirty- 

 one days of December ISfil, each chart extending over the whole of Central 

 Europe, and thinks of the paucity of his data, one cannot but wonder at the 

 inspiration which led him to his conclusions. Luckily Deceml>er 1861 was a 

 month of contrasts, the first half of the month marked a series of cyclones — 



' Appeal to France for scientific information is even after the war nearly always in vain ; 

 letters remain unanswered, and presents of memoirs unacknowle<lgetl. From Ixith (tennany 

 and Austria, even at the pre.sent day, one is fairly certain of a full and courteous reply, and 

 almost any (Jerma'i University Library will still lend a book inaccessible in this country. 

 Narrow nationalism in science is a crime against our common humanity. 



' "A Development of the Theory of Cyclones." Receive*! Dec 25, 1862. Royil Sodely 

 Froee«dingn, Vol. xii, IHtiS, pp. 38.5-6. 



