544 The Smithsonian Institution 



of the Smithsonian Institution, now quite inaccessible. It was 

 on the "Advantages of the Metric System in Scientific In- 

 vestigation," and it doubtless did efficient duty in bringing 

 the system to the attention of Americans at that early day, 

 a half century ago. 



The Smithsonian Report for 1863 contains two pages 

 of "Tables of Weights and Measures," and there is nothing 

 to show by whom they were prepared. They are mostly de- 

 voted to showing the English equivalents of the various units 

 and denominations of the metric system, although there is 

 also a partial table of English measures. While the Report 

 for 1865 was passing through the press, Congress passed the 

 "metric law "of 1866, the conversion tables in which had 

 been prepared by Professor H. A. Newton, of New Haven. 

 This law and these tables were added to the Report for 1865 

 as an appendix. As is well known, the fundamental metric 

 value of the yard as then adopted is now the recognized 

 best approximation. It is worthy of note that in the print- 

 ing of these tables, as well as those of 1863, the spelling 

 of "metre," "litre," etc., and their derivatives is that of the 

 French, and also that in universal use among the English ; 

 and it is to be regretted that the Institution has in later 

 years departed from an orthography which has everything 

 to recommend it, in order to adopt one to which there are 

 many serious objections. 



Two brief papers, metrological in character, will be found 

 in the Reports for 1889 and 1891. They refer to time meas- 

 urement, the first being on "Time- Keeping in Greece and 

 Rome," by F. A. Seely ; and the second, " Modes of Keeping 

 Time Known Among the Chinese," by Doctor D. J. Magowan. 

 Mr. Seely traces the origin of time keeping apparatus, of 

 which the sun-dial and water-clock, or clepsydra, are among 

 the earlier forms, and both probably originated in the Orient. 



