REPORT OF THE KEW COMMITTEE. XXXU1 



Report of the Council of the British Association, presented to the 

 General Committee, Wednesday , September Q>, 1865. 



1. The Council has received a Report from the Treasurer, W. Spottiswoode, 

 Esq., at each of its meetings, and his General Report for the year ending 

 September 6, 1865, 'will be presented to the Committee this day. 



2. The Report of the Parliamentary Committee has been received for pre- 

 sentation to the General Committee this day. 



3. The Kew Committee has presented a Report to the Council at each of 

 its meetings, and the Report for the year 1864-65 -will be laid before the 

 General Committee this day. 



4. In addition to the Noblemen and Gentlemen elected at Bath, the Council 

 propose the names of the Right Hon. the Earl of Dudley ; the Eight Hon. the 

 Lord Lyttelton, Lord-Lieutenant of "Worcestershire ; A. Eollett Osier, Esq., 

 F.R.S. ; and the Rev. Charles Evans, M.A., Head Master of King Edward's 

 School, as Vice-Presidents of the present Meeting ; and the Rev. G. D. Boyle, 

 M.A., as Local Secretary. 



5. The Council have added to the list of Corresponding Members the names 

 of the following Foreign Men of Science, who have been present at Meetings 

 of the Association : — M. E. Hebert, Dr. Arnold Moritz, Herr Neuniayer, M. 

 Vambery, Dr. "Welwitseh. 



6. The Council learn with deep regret that the prolonged illness of Mr. 

 Hopkins renders him unable to continue his valuable services in the office of 

 General Secretary. 



7. The Council have been informed that invitations will be presented to 

 the General Committee at its meeting on Monday, September 11, from 

 Nottingham, for the year 1866 ; from Dundee, for the year 1867 ; and from 

 Norwich and Southampton for an early meeting. 



Report of the Keio Committee of the British Association for the 

 Advancement of Science for 1864-65. 



The Committee of the Kew Observatory submit to the Council of the British 

 Association the following statement of their proceedings during the past 

 year :— 



A short time before the Meeting at Bath, it had been decided by the 

 Secretary of State for India, on the recommendation of the President and 

 Council of the Royal Society, that pendulum observations should be made 

 in India, and that the officer appointed to conduct this experimental inves- 

 tigation might receive instruction at Kew Observatory, which might form the 

 base-station of the Indian series. 



In consequence of this decision Captain Basevi, R.E., first assistant in 

 the Indian Trigonometrical Survey, received instruction at Kew Observatory 

 in the method of making and reducing pendulum observations, and in that 

 of taking transits. Colonel Walker, R.E., Superintendent of the Survey, also 

 attended, in order to make himself acquainted with the details of the' appa- 

 ratus and the method of observing. 



The pendulums used were those marked No. 1821 and No. 4, used 

 formerly by General Sabine in different parts of the globe. The former was 

 also used by Mr. Airy in his Harton Colliery experiments. 



A receiver, by means of which these pendulums might be vibrated in vacuo, 

 was constructed by Mr. Adie, optician, London. A convenient room for pen- 

 dulum observations was likewise fitted up in the Observatory, the expense 

 being defrayed from the Government Grant Fund of the Royal Society; 



1865. c 



