ON THE OBSERVATORY AT KEW. 113 
numerous and important publications. He continues himself to observe 
during a portion of the year, and has almost completed a map of the different 
magnetic elements over England. 
“As was to be hoped, General Sabine heard with lively interest that the 
establishment of a magnetical and meteorological observatory at Coimbra was 
in contemplation, and readily offered to help forward the realization of this 
good idea by directing the construction of the magnetic and other instruments 
required, and also undertook that they should be verified and their constants 
obtained at the Kew Observatory, where I should be enabled to make 
practical studies, and receive suitable instruction for their establishment and 
manipulation, 
«General Sabine, speaking of the University of Coimbra in terms very 
agreeable to a Portuguese auditor, expressed satisfaction at so good an oppor- 
tunity of sending to this respectable Academy eleven large volumes of obser- 
vations analysed by him and published, under his superintendence, by the 
English Government. Besides the observations of the four observatories 
above mentioned, there are also contained in these volumes observations from 
Lake Athabasca, Fort Simpson, Fort Carlton, Fort Confidence, the Falkland 
Islands, and Pekin. 
“I informed the Faculty at their first meeting after my arrival at Coimbra 
of the courtesies received from this savant, and I presented to your Excellency 
at the proper time the books of which I was the bearer.” 
Prof. deSouza then proceeds toconsider the results of his journey, and its bear- 
ing on the establishment of his own hoped-for observatory. Having obtained 
permission to employ the funds available in the current year in the purchase 
of magnetic instruments, he wrote to General Sabine, asking him to bespeak 
for him both the self-registering instruments, and those for absolute deter- 
minations (as will be specified in the sequel), with any further improvements 
that he might deem desirable. He had previously consulted General Sabine 
on an important question, that of the choice between the different dimensions 
of the magnets in use at Greenwich and at Kew, and says that “the 
instructive reflections so obtained” had left him ‘completely satisfied in 
determining for the Kew dimensions.” 
In regard to the locality, it appears that the University of Coimbra does not 
possess any building suitable and available for the purpose; but the Rector 
pointed out a site which appeared to M. de Souza highly suitable, if he could 
assure himself that the ferruginous particles contained in the new red sandstone 
rock would not be objectionable. He sent specimens of the rock (a well- 
known one in England) through the Portuguese Ambassador to London, and 
experiments made with them discovered no sensible magnetic action. But 
although this doubt was thus satisfactorily removed, unfortunately the site in 
question is private property, and means are wanting both for its purchase 
and for the building. He presses on the authorities the urgency of this 
provision being made without further delay, and states that the plan proposed, 
after full consultations, and for which Mr. Beckley has offered to make the 
drawings, combines the greatest economy with all that can be desired 
scientifically. Finally, he discusses the question of meteorological instru- 
ments, and concludes for obtaining them also from England, proposing to 
devote to this purpose the means at his disposal up to the termination of the 
University year in 1862. 
Second Visit to the Kew Observatory. 
oie on the 5th of July (1861) from General Sabine that the magnetic 
. I 
