15] ON THE TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN, JULY, 1851. 8] 



the Norwegian Government having, in the most liberal and enlightened 

 spirit, ordered the custom-house officers to allow them to pass without 

 examination. This favour, I afterwards found, we owed to the kind offices 

 of Professor Hansteen, whose acquaintance, as well as that of several other 

 eminent Professors of the University, I had the happiness of making during 

 my short stay at Christiania. 



On Thursday the 24th, in company with my friend Mr Liveing, of 

 St John's College, Cambridge, I proceeded by steamer to Frederiksvsern, the 

 point selected for making the observation, as being one easily accessible, 

 and situated almost exactly on the central line of the path of the Moon's 

 shadow. Here is one of the royal dockyards, containing a small observatory 

 for giving time to the shipping. The officers of the dockyard shewed us 

 much attention, and were anxious to render us every assistance in preparing 

 for the observation. To Lieutenant Riis, in particular, we are under the 

 deepest obligations. On Friday the 25th we inspected the Observatory, and 

 examined the neighbourhood with the view of selecting a favourable spot for 

 the observation. It rained heavily during the whole of Saturday, so that 

 our prospects were not very encouraging, but on Sunday the weather im- 

 proved, and on the morning of the eventful day, Monday the 28th, the 

 sky was bright and clear, with the exception of a few light clouds, which, 

 however, became more numerous as the day advanced, and at length over- 

 spread the heavens, as fresh vapour was brought up by the wind, which 

 blew quite a gale from the south-west. I had intended to observe the 

 eclipse from the summit of a rocky island lying just off the dockyard, and 

 commanding an extensive prospect over the sea, though the view on the 

 land side is cut off by a lofty ridge of rocks rising behind the town. The 

 violence of the wind, however, made it necessary to choose some sheltered 

 position for the instrument, and I fixed upon one in an angle within the 

 ramparts of the dockyard. The telescope which I employed was one of 

 Dollond's, which was kindly lent me by the Master and Fellows of St John's 

 College. The aperture of the object-glass is 2^ inches, and its focal length 

 42 inches. The astronomical eye-pieces belonging to the instrument giving 

 too small a field of view, I employed a terrestrial eye-piece, with a mag- 

 nifying power of about 20. The field was limited by a diaphragm having 

 small teeth of different sizes arranged at intervals of 45 around its cir- 

 cumference, in order to enable me to estimate the position and magnitude 

 of any small object that might be seen. 



As the eastern limb of the Moon advanced over the Sun, I observed 

 A. 11 



