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NATURE 



[Oct. 25, 1883 



"professors" in the United States : are one hundred and 

 fifty of them active investigators ? The time seems remote 

 when every American professor will be expected to be 

 also an investigator ; but among us is a little band of men 

 who have before them the model of Germany, and who 

 are working earnestly for the intellectual elevation of their 

 country. Their first object is necessarily to render r;- 

 search more important in public estimation, and so to 

 smooth the way for a corps of professional investigators. 

 Every thoughtful person must wish success to the 

 attempt. 



THE GEODETIC CONGRESS 



THE most generally interesting part of the proceedings 

 of the Geodetic Conference which has been sitting 

 at Rome during the past week is that connected with 

 the selection of a common first meridian. 



The report of the Permanent Committee of the Inter- 

 national Geodetic Association recommends to the Con- 

 ference the general acceptance of the meridian of 

 Greenwich ; it was referred to a Special Committee 

 composed of one representative for each of the follow- 

 ing — England, the United States, Germany, Italy, France, 

 and Hamburg The report concludes thus : — 



" We terminate our report by proposing to the 

 Assembly the following resolutions : — 



"The seventh General Conference of the International 

 Geodetic Association, held at Rome, and in which repre- 

 sentatives of Great Britain, together with the directors of 

 the principal astronomical and nautical almanacs, and a 

 delegate from the Coast and Geodetic Survey of the 

 United States have taken part, after having discussed 

 the questions of unification of longitudes by the adoption 

 of an initial meridian, and of the unification of time by 

 the adoption of a universal hour, have come to the 

 following conclusions: — 



" Firstly, that the unification of longitudes and of hours 

 is as equally desirable in the interests of science as in 

 those of navigation, commerce, and international commu 

 nication. The scientific and practical utility of this 

 reform considerably outweighs the sacrifir.es and the 

 trouble of arrangement to which it will put the minority 

 of civilised nations. It should, therefore, be recom 

 mended to the Governments of all the States interested 

 that it may be arranged and confirmed by an International 

 Convention, so that henceforth one and the same system 

 of longitudes may be employed in all the astronomical 

 and nautical almanacs, in all the geodetic and topo- 

 graphical bureaux and institutes, and in all geographical 

 and hydrographical charts. 



"Secondly, that the Conference propose to the Govern- 

 ments to choose for the initial meridian that of Green- 

 wich, inasmuch as that meridian fulfils, as a point of 

 departure of longitudes, all the conditions required by 

 science ; and that being already actually the most exten- 

 sively used of all, it presents the greater probability of 

 being generally accepted. 



" Thirdly, That the longitudes should be reckoned 

 from the meridian of Greenwich in the sole direction of 

 from east to west, and from zero to 360 , or from zero to 

 twenty-four hours ; the meridians on the charts and th- 

 longitudes in the registers should be indicated everywhere 

 in hours and minutes of time, with liberty of adding the 

 indication of the corresponding degrees. 



" Fourthly, That the Conference recognises for certain 

 scientific needs, and for the service of the great adminis- 

 trations of the means of communication, such as rail- 

 ways, steamship lines, telegraphs, and posts, the utility of 

 adopting a universal hour, side by side with the local or 

 national hours, which will necessarily continue to be 

 employed in civil life. 



" Fifthly, That the Conference recommends, as the 



point of departure of the universal hour and of cosmo- 

 politan dates, the mean noon of Greenwich, which coin- 

 cides with the instant of midnight or with the beginning 

 of the civil day, situated at the twelfth hour, or at 180 , 

 Greenwich. It follows that the universal time will corre- 

 spond everywhere with the mean local time, reckoned 

 from midnight, less twelve hours and the longitude of the 

 place, and that the dates change at the antipodes of 

 Greenwich. 



" Sixthly, That it is desirable that those States which, 

 in order to adhere to the unification of longitudes and of 

 hours, will have to change their meridians, should adopt 

 the new system of longitudes as quickly as possible in 

 their observatories and official almanacs, in their geo- 

 detical, topographical, and hydrographical works, and in 

 their new charts. As a means of transition it would be 

 well that in new editions of old charts, on which it would 

 be difficult to change the squares, the indications accord- 

 ing to the new system should at least be inscribed along- 

 side the enumeration of the old meridians. 



" Seventhly, That these resolutions should be laid 

 before the Governments and recommended to their 

 friendly consideration with the expression of a hope that 

 an International Convention confirming the unification of 

 longitudes and of hours may be concluded as quickly as 

 possible by a special Conference." 



The Report is signed by the president, General Ibanez, 

 and the secretaries, Professors von Oppolzer and Hirsch, 

 the latter being also the reporter. 



The paragraph in Dr. Hirsch's report, in which, after 

 considering the question of the choice of an initial meri- 

 dian, he emphatically conveys the opinion of the Per- 

 manent Committee in favour of that of Greenwich, merits 

 quotation : — 



" It cannot be doubted that the problem should be 

 solved in favour of the meridian of Greenwich. It is by 

 far the most extensively used, and, from the geographical, 

 nautical, astronomical, and cartographical points of view, 

 best answers the two conditions required. In fact, the 

 immense British Empire, with its 20,000,000 of square 

 kilometres and its 250,000,000 of population, extends over 

 all parts of the world. Its mercantile marine, numbering 

 40,000 ships, with a total of from 6,000,000 to 9,000,000 

 of tons, and an equipment of 370,000 men, surpasses in 

 importance the ensemble of all other navies. It must also 

 be added that a great many other countries, among which 

 the most important in respect of their mercantile marine 

 are the United States, Germany, Austria, and Italy, 

 equally use the Greenwich meridian in navigation, whence 

 it may be affirmed that 90 per cent, of the navigators 

 throughout long voyages calculate their longitudes by the 

 meridian of Greenwich." 



The Report of the Special Committee on the above 

 resolutions was read on the 22nd before the general 

 meeting of the Conference, and accepted, after a very 

 animated debate. 



Referring to the resolutions it is only requisite to state 

 briefly that, according to the Times report, as sent back 

 to the Conference by the Special Committee, they now 

 stand as follows: — Numbers 1, 2, 4, 6, and 7 were 

 adopted by the Committee without alteration ; the other 

 two were modified, or rather abbreviated, and now read 

 thus : — 



"Thirdly, that the longitude should be reckoned from 

 the meridian of Greenwich, in the sole direction of from 

 west to east. 



" Fifthly, That the Conference recommends, as the 

 point of departure of the universal hour, and of cosmo- 

 politan date, the mean noon of Greenwich, which coin- 

 cides with the instant of midnight, or with the beginning 

 of the civil day, under the meridian situated at 12 hours, 

 or 180 , from Greenwich ; the universal hours to be 

 counted from zero to 24." 



To these seven resolutions the Special Committee have 



