50 REPORT— 1883. 
tion with regard to several points. More recently, in a resolution dated, 
Simla, June 1, 1883:—‘ The Government of India notices with pleasure 
that the tidal observations, in addition to their practical value for the re- 
quirements of navigation, are now furnishing information which is found 
to be of much scientific value.’ The resolution then refers to a paper on 
the rigidity of the earth, which was read at the last meeting of the 
Association. 
During 1882 Major Baird was in Europe, and Sir William Thomson 
was kind enough to permit me to arrange a meeting with Major Baird, in 
December, at his house in Glasgow, in order to discuss the subject, in 
continuation of our previous correspondence. 
We then arrived at a general idea of the course of future procedure, and 
also came to some agreement as to the changes of notation which it was 
desirable to adopt. Subsequently, I proceeded to draw up a considerable 
part of this Report, had it printed, and submitted it to Major Baird. Iwas 
not at that time aware of the extent to which Mr. Roberts, of the Nautical 
Almanac office, co-operated in England in the tidal operations, nor did I 
know that he was not unfrequently taking the advice of Professor Adams. 
It was not until Major Baird had read what I had written, and expressed 
his approval of the methods suggested, that these facts came to my 
knowledge; but it must be admitted that it was through my own care- 
lessness that this was so. I then found that Professor Adams decidedly 
disapproved of the notation adopted, and would have preferred to throw 
over the notation of the old Reports and take a new departure. The 
notation of the old Reports seems to me also to be unsatisfactory, but, 
seeing that Major Baird and his staff were already familiar with that 
notation, I considered that an entire change would be impolitic, and that 
it was better to allow the greater part of the existing notation to stand, 
but to introduce modifications. The fact that Major Baird, who was 
actually to work the method, approved of what had been written, and had 
already mastered it, went far to prejudge the question, and Professor 
Adams agreed, after discussion, that it would on the whole be best to 
allow the work to go on in the lines in which it had been started. 
It has seemed proper to give this account of our operations in order 
that Professor Adams may be relieved from responsibility for the ana- 
lytical methods and notation here adopted. I may state, however, that 
although the Report is drawn up ina form probably differing widely 
from that which it would have had if Professor Adams had been the 
author, yet he agrees with the correctness of the methods pursued. I 
have been in constant communication with him for the past eight months, 
and have received many valuable criticisms and suggestions. 
Mr. Roberts has been supervising the printing of a new edition of the 
computation forms ; they have undergoue some modification in accord- 
ance with this Report. He has also computed certain new coefficients 
[Schedule Q | which are required in the reductions. 
Major Baird returned to India in the spring of 1888, and, as I learn, 
will shortly begin revising all the published results, so as to bring them 
to one uniform system—namely, that here recommended. We are now © 
supplying Mr. Neison at Natal with a copy of this Report, and a few 
copies of the computation forms will be sent to him for the purpose of 
reducing the South African Tidal Observations. 
The general scope of this paper is to form a manual for the reduction 
of tidal observations by the Harmonic Analysis inaugurated by Sir 
