92 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 1771. 



on the computation of Mons. Pingre, in his Memoir of the year 1767, the 

 solar parallax is S-J-*- And the distance of the sun from the earth is greater than 

 it was supposed to be -^Vj or nearly 6,685,000 leagues. 



L. Extract of a Letter, dated Paris, Dec. 17, -\ 7 70, to Mr. Magalhaem,from 

 M.Bourriot ; containing a short Account of the late AbbS Chappe's Observa- 

 tion of the Transit of Venus, in California. Translated by Dr. Bevis, 

 F. B. S. p. 551. 



The 7th of Dec. inst. the journals and mss. of the late Abbe Chappe were 

 deposited at the Royal observatory, with M. Cassini de Thury, by the Sieur 

 Pauli, one of the king's engineers and geographers, who had accompanied the 

 Abbe in his voyage to California. M. Pauli relates, that M. Chappe chose to 

 stay at St. Joseph, a small village 10 leagues from St. Lucar, though the con. 

 tagious disease prevailed there, and relying on his own good constitution, be- 

 cause he had no more than 8 days to prepare for his observation. 



Eight days after the transit he sickened, yet continued his'obscrvations to the 

 18th of July ; and, a little before his death, left his materials in writing, put 

 into a box, with M. Pauli, to be delivered to the Royal Academy. He died 

 about the 1st of August, as did, about the same time, the clock-maker, the 

 interpreter, one of the two Spanish officers, besides 12 soldiers, and 4 officers 

 sent from Mexico, and about 50 Indians. 



The first internal contact was at O*' 17"" 27' 



The second contact at 3 54 5O-125. 



The duration 5 57 23-f5- 



The latitude of the place 23° 3' 87' 



Lastly, according to M. de la Lande, the parallax of Venus 8^; 



and her distance about 33000000 leagues of 2283 toises each, on a mean of 

 comparisons with observations made in the north of Europe, at Cajaneburg and 

 Wardhus. 



END OF THE SIXTIETH VOLUME OF THE ORIGINAL. 



/. Remarks on the Nature of the Soil of Naples, and its Neighbourhood. By 

 The Hon. JVm. Hamilton, p. 1. Vol. LXI. Anno 177 i. 

 This paper and the following one may be consulted in the collection of Sir 

 W. H.'s Essays, published in 8vo. 1772. 



//. Extract of another Letter from Mr. Hamilton, on the same Subject, p. 48. 



