D. J. Macgowan on Chinese Horology. 247 
gistes complains in Lés Lettres Ediciante et Curieuse, that his 
time was so occupied with the watches of the grandees, that:he 
had never been able to study the language. Doubtless the fash- 
ion which Chinese gentlemen have of carrying a couple of 
watches which they are anxious should always ‘harmonize, gave 
the fathers constant employment. A retired. statesman of this 
province has published a very good account of clocks and watches, 
accompanied with drawings representing their internal structure 
- ina manner sufficiently intelligible... ee 
Chinese divide the day into twelve parts, which are not 
numbered, but designated by characters, termed, rather inaptly, 
horary, These terms were originally employed in forming the 
nomenclature of the sexegenary cycle, (2657 B.C.) which is still 
in'use.. It was not until a much later period, that the duodeci- 
same characters are also applied to the months. The first in the 
list (meaning Son,) is employed at the commencement of every 
cycle, and to the first of every period of twelve years, and also 
to the commencement of the civil day—at 11 p. m—comprising 
the period between this and 1.a.m. ‘Che month which is desig- 
the time of Confucius, as mention is made.in the spring and au- 
tumn annals of the ten hours of the day, which accords with the 
ecimal divisions so long employed in -clepsydras, the indices of 
which were uniformly divided into one hundred parts... A com- 
mentator of the third century of our era, in explaining the 
relating to the ten hours, adds a couple more, but even at that 
time, the present horary characters were not employed. 
he diagram, Plate I, represents the form I would recommend 
as suitable for the dial plates of clocks manufactured for this 
market.’ The small characters on the outer circle are numerals, 
exactly corresponding to the Roman figures on western clocks. 
The inner circle contains the twelve horary characters, and within 
these are the signs for noon, evening, midnight, and dawn. In 
the horary circle the large single characters represent whole hours, 
and the ‘small double ones half hours, equal to a whole Eu- 
topean hour. ; 
t the minute hand extend to the inner part of the outer cir- 
cle, and make éwelve revolutions in a diurnal period.. The hour 
hand should reach to the inner edge of the horary ¢ ers, 
and make one revolution in the same period of time. Let the 
pendulum vibrate seconds as now, and the minute hand at the 
expiration. of sixty seconds’ make’ half-a revolution. It should 
5 eds eee 
Ses ee ee ee 
ite ‘nail 
