Victor Mauvais—The Paris Observatory. 117 
scribed upon almost every page. Of the 150,000 observations there 
recorded, over 30,000 are due to Mauvais. 
In 1848 he was called by the department of Doubs to represent the 
people, and he remained in that capacity a member of the National As- 
sembly until its dissolution. These duties did not interrupt his astro- 
nomical observations. He passed the day in parliamentary labors, and 
the night in observing the heavens. He had undertaken a serious la- 
bor, in the absolute determination of the position of the fundamental 
stars. Struck by the discrepancy which had been remarked between 
the right ascension of certain stars, be conceived the idea of a series 
of observations with the meridian circle. He had chosen two groups 
each of twenty stars, succeeding each other on the meridian, after an 
interval of twelve hours, and had observed their passage at intervals of 
six months, proposing to compare them afterwards with the sun in or- 
der to deduce the position of the equinoctial points. This important 
labor remains unfinished. 
Incessant fatigues and night watchings had broken down the health 
of Mauvais. He suffered much from a disease of the intestines. 
The death of Arago and the unexpected separation of the Bureau of 
Longitudes from the Observatory affected him deeply. Disapproving 
the course taken in this case, he left the Observatory with MM. Mathieu 
and Laugier, son-in-law and nephew of Arago, and determined to sus- 
pend for some time his researches. Effort was made to induce him to 
resume his position in the Observatory ; but being the friend of Laugier 
he preferred to share his fate. ‘he care and anxiety which sprung 
from these circumstances sadly affected the health of Mauvais. From 
the stomach the malady went to his head, and in a paroxysm of burning 
fever he took his life by the discharge of a gun. ° 
Mauvais was born at Maiche, a little village of the department of 
Doubs, on the 7th of March, 1809. He died the 23d of last March, 
and was consequently 45 years old. 
The Paris Observatory.—Before the death of Arago the director of the 
ureau of Longitudes will not have a voice in this nomination ing 
to these changes and to many others made in the regulations, some of 
the astronomers (MM u, Mauvais and Laugier,) gave in their 
stronom 
ely appointed, M. Chacornac, a pupil in the Marseilles Observatory, 
of the Beli ed on his duties on the afiernoon 
ptic. M. Chacornac entered on his 
of the 2d of March, and on the night of the 3d-4th of March he dis- 
